I'M SORRY, I'M SORRY, I'M SORRYYYYYYYYYYYYYY. I am so sorry for leaving for so long! Sorry I had exams, the holidays, and then I had to get ready for the show I'm performing in right now! I'm performing in Godspell and it's a blast! So yes sorry I have been so busy! But I finally got around to writing!! This is super, super, super short because I am still writing more, and I just put this short blurb in that I finished just to get something out before I pump out the next chapter. It's already started! Yay! So sorry about the shortness, but I was sure you guys would want something now and more later than have to wait for all of it. The next chapter will be longer and you'll get a few surprises with Kai and Ichigo! Right before they leave for Soul Society!! Hurrah! Next up, the thank yous!

LadyChaos1011, DreamerLoverHaterKillerMolder, SpazardHazard, Holy Star, no-name-chick, The Loyal Newt (who still represents the loyal part of her name :D), GuitarGirl1418, Tenshi Akki-chan, chocolatemud, R.P Tacy, Kitsune Barra Hime, ChalkMuffins, blackfox-vixen, flame-dragon2, 13Lulu's

If I forgot anyone, please let me know!! Thank you all very much for your support, and you guys are what keep me writing!! I promise to update more often from now on. I have ideas for this story and I'm ready to write!! I hope you all enjoy this short little chapter, especially because I added a little bit of a moment between Ichigo and Kai. Because it's about damn time. Plus I think that's one of the main reasons you guys read fanfiction. For the cute stuff. I hope I did the moment some justice, and I hope you guys like it!! Let me know what you think!

Disclaimer: I still don't own Bleach. *sigh* But a woman can dream…

Kai is mine though. l: So step off.

Before my thoughts could wander further, my ears picked up the sound of the front door downstairs. I wasn't expecting anyone to enter the room quickly since getting through the family took quite some time. However I was surprised to see Ichigo arrive in the room only a short while after the front door opened. I wasn't quite sure what the proper course of action would be now. My eyes followed him from the closet as he trudged over to his bed and collapsed on top of it.

I decided that the best choice would be to go to him. After all, misery loves its company.

I gently leapt out of the closet and made my way towards the bed. Without hesitation, I jumped up next to him. The only acknowledgement I received was a short side glance before his eyes returned to the ceiling. Perhaps he did not want any company after all. I faltered a bit in my original intentions, but quickly decided that I definitely needed company, and a selfish act wouldn't hurt every once in awhile.

I lay myself down next to him, crossing all personal boundaries that were set up between us. I only ever showed affection to Rukia, seeing as how being near him made me slightly uncomfortable. I was never sure if it was the permanent scowl he wore that was discouraging, my inexperience with being around boys, or for another reason that I had yet to figure out, but either way being near him was unsettling for me.

My thoughts had pictured him flinching away, moving away, or in an extreme case, pushing me off the bed. He surprised me a bit when he remained motionless. Part of me was relieved that he did not do anything my imagination had conjured up, but another part of me felt like I was being ignored. I lay next to him for quite some time, enjoying the fact that his body was warmer than Rukia's cold one. But the longer I lay there the more I felt like I was being ignored. I knew that he probably was not making a conscious effort to effort to ignore me, but I still felt annoyed for some reason.

With boldness I did not know I possessed, I moved my head onto his chest and stared at his face intently. My eyes very clearly said one thing,

'Acknowledge me.'

He glanced down at me and locked his eyes with mine. I realized that he looked rather odd from this angle, and the way his head was tilted looked like it hurt. Several moments passed as I studied him intently, all the while never breaking his gaze. It was during this time that I noticed his usual scowl was gone. His lips were curved slightly downward in a slight frown, and his face looked more relaxed than it usually was. Of all the slight changes I could see in his face, it was his eyes that struck me the most. His eyes conveyed the emotions he could not express on his face: his sadness, his weariness, and that always present flicker of determination.

I tried to smile lightly at the dormant fire in his eyes that seemed to fill me with some traces of hope. After a few more moments he lay his head back down and stared at the ceiling. As his head went down, he put his hand up to rest on my head. My eyes closed in content as his had absently scratched behind one of my ears. As much as I hated to admit it, his scratching felt much better than Rukia's ever did, especially because of the warmth his hands gave off. We sat like this for awhile before he finally spoke to me. I cracked one eye open to watch him speak.

"Well Kai, looks like it will be just you and me for awhile," he spoke to me in a soft tone I had yet to hear him use. I wondered why he was telling me since I was there, but I then remembered his memory of what happened after I had arrived had been erased. I whimpered slightly at his comment and curled up even closer to him. No more words were said after that. I felt Ichigo's hand slowly start to slow down until it eventually stopped and rested gently on top of my head with his fingers intertwined in my fur.

Despite the craziness of the recent events, I felt peaceful as sleep slowly took over my mind.

That's it! I hope you guys liked it!! Let me know what you think~

I should have the next chapter out within the next 2 weeks! See you soon!!