So, this chapter isn't the most exciting or fluffy of the bunch but I still think it's pretty cute and it's quite informative ;)
The designs for Ichigo's and Rukia's outfits for their date belong to ~luculentquark on deviantArt. You should really go look at the picture: Pina Colada Sunrise. I'd post the link but FF won't let me :( Also, check out the whole gallery; the other IchiRuki pieces (and everything) are divine as well!
So we take a step into the light
And I fight the urge to fight for you
'Cause I know your colors seem to show
And I think I could make them glow.
I'm a little bit scared
But I think I'm ready to prove
That I'm the one for you.
Only One - Sing It Loud
Chapter 15: Pre-date Jitters
-Rukia-
Today was an important day; Rukia woke with a jolt.
She didn't hear anyone stirring on the second floor of the house and expected that everyone was still asleep, recuperating from the night before.
Still half-asleep herself, Rukia slowly crawled out of bed. She stretched and looked through her closet.
After a long moment, she picked out a pink dress with white lining. This was one of the few items that Rukia had been allowed to choose for herself and she loved it for the more modern yet simple design that her maids had always disapproved of.
She showered, rubbing the sleep from her eyes and washing the late night out of her hair. After running a comb through her hair, Rukia studied herself in the mirror as she brushed her teeth.
Her eyes widened at her reflection and her toothpaste-filled mouth dropped open.
I have a date today.
Rukia quickly rinsed out her mouth and carefully studied her appearance in the mirror.
I have a date with Ichigo.
Fighting the nervousness that swelled in her stomach, Rukia forced herself to calmly walk downstairs and into the kitchen for breakfast.
Fortunately, she had been mostly correct and, aside from Chad, everyone else seemed to be sleeping in.
Does he ever sleep?
"You're up early." Rukia smiled as the older boy turned to look at her. He was sitting on the deck in the same place as last time.
He nodded and then continued to look out to the waves crashing repeatedly on the shore.
Trying to be as small a disturbance as possible, Rukia only made tea instead of starting breakfast. Then, she pulled up another chair and joined Chad. He thanked her for the drink and they sat quietly for a few moments, listening to the ocean and sipping from their cups.
"We're out of bread."
Rukia looked at him questioningly.
"I was going to make toast but there's no more bread. I didn't want to wake anyone up."
"Oh. I didn't realize we were running low. I'll run out and get some now." Rukia was glad for the excuse to get out of the house. She stood up and collected the cups.
"I was going to walk. I just wanted to tell someone where I was so no one worries." Chad got up as she did and opened the door so she could walk through with her hands full.
"The store is miles away." Rukia protested as she put the cups in the sink. "It'd take you an hour at least."
Chad shrugged. "I don't mind. Everyone will probably be hungry by the time I get back."
Rukia found herself smiling at the absurdity of the idea. Though she had no doubt this giant of a teenager would walk all the way into town and back for a loaf of bread for his friends, Rukia suggested that they go together in her car instead.
"It'll be nice to have something to do and I'll leave a note in case someone wakes up."
Rukia ran back up to her room and tore a blank page from her sketch book. She scribbled a simple note in purple marker and left it on the kitchen counter.
Went to store. Back soon with breakfast.
-Rukia and Chad
-Ichigo-
When Ichigo could no longer stand the sun coming through the window and shining directly on his face and pillow, he rolled over and put the pillow over his face.
When that didn't work, Ichigo reluctantly got out of bed and showered.
A frown crossed his face as he stared at his open suitcase on the floor. Ichigo had been on plenty of first dates before and the usual jeans and t-shirt had always sufficed but, this time, he found himself wanting to impress this girl that was always wearing brand name designer clothes.
He spied a dark green long-sleeve shirt and khaki colored fitted pants.
Ichigo wasn't sure what had possessed him to pack these items in the first place but now he was glad he had. He rolled the sleeves up around his muscled forearms and messed with his hair in the mirror for a few moments before deciding that it was a lost cause.
Girls always told him that his unruly hair was 'sexy' anyway.
Ichigo finally decided to head downstairs. He realized he was actually eager to see Rukia and what she thought of his unusually nice outfit.
Before descending the last step, Ichigo forced himself to take a deep breath and relax.
Being overly excited for a date was not cool.
Ichigo found the first floor empty except for Tatsuki and Orihime drinking from mugs and talking at the dining table.
"I'm surprised Rukia's not up yet." He tried to sound nonchalant but both girls laughed.
"They left a note in the kitchen!" Orihime chirped before Tatsuki teased, "Don't worry, lover boy. Your date didn't forget about you. "
Ichigo rolled his eyes. Of course, he'd never hear the end of it from his old friend.
He walked through the kitchen and read the note while pouring himself a cup of tea. It was obviously written by Rukia; her hurried handwriting looked remarkably similar to chicken scratch and he'd never seen Chad write in colored marker, much less decorate his writing with small animals and speech bubbles.
The girls were oddly quiet as he sat down.
"What?" He asked defensively.
Tatsuki grinned. "Nothing. It's just nice to see you chasing after a girl for once instead of the other way around."
Ichigo crossed his arms and scoffed. "I'm not chasing after her."
"Whatever you say." The athletic girl shrugged innocently.
"Tatsuki has a date today." Orihime squeaked. She quickly put a hand over her mouth to cover her excited smile.
"'Hime!" Tatsuki pleaded exasperatedly.
"With who?" Ichigo looked at the dark-haired girl. He knew Tatsuki was more than able to take care of herself but his protective nature always took over when it came to his friends.
Tatsuki sighed. "Just a guy I met a Matsumoto's."
"The one with the crazy hair and tattoos?" Ichigo frowned.
"Jeez, stop acting like my dad. He's not a bad guy."
Orihime beamed. "He's really nice. Tatsuki introduced me and Uryuu last night. He lives in Tokyo but he came all the way out here for a vacation." Then, her voice lowered and added conspiratorially, "I think he's rich."
Tatsuki set her cup down forcefully on the table. "It doesn't matter either way. We're going out for dinner and that's all. He's going back to Tokyo on Saturday."
Orihime regarded her friend sadly. "I bet you could still keep in touch. You'll be near there for university anyway."
"We're just having fun. It's nothing serious." Tatsuki spoke casually, clearly ending the conversation.
"So, Ichigo." Orihime easily switched topics. "Are you excited for your date with Rukia? You look really nice."
"Thanks." Ichigo replied. Fortunately, slow footsteps were heard coming down the stairs and Ichigo avoided answering the redhead's question.
"Good morning." Uryuu greeted as he sat down with them at the table.
"There's no breakfast yet but Rukia and Chad should be back soon!" Orihime responded cheerfully.
"Oh," Uryuu commented, not fully awake yet. "All right."
"Would you like some tea? I was going to make more anyway." Orihime asked as she stood and headed towards the kitchen.
"That'd be great. Thanks."
Ichigo observed his friend's interactions carefully.
There's no way…
"Are we still going for a walk after breakfast?" Orihime asked as she handed a cup to the dark-haired boy.
"If you'd like." Uryuu adjusted his glasses, attempting to distract from the obvious pink tinge on his cheeks.
"Ok," Orihime smiled, lowering her gaze coyly when their eyes met.
Ichigo wondered how he had missed this significant change in their relationship.
When did this happen? Ichigo raised an eyebrow questioningly at his friend.
Uryuu shrugged and rolled his eyes when Ichigo grinned.
"I expect you're looking forward to your date with Rukia this afternoon?" Uryuu asked pointedly.
Ichigo sighed. Here we go again…
-Rukia-
"So…" Rukia started. She and Chad were on their way back from the store; the back of the Jeep was filled with grocery bags.
"You've known Ichigo a while." Rukia paused to figure out exactly what she wanted to ask.
"We became friends in middle school," Chad offered.
Rukia smiled, grateful that he had started answer before she even formed her question. "Yeah? How did that happen?"
Chad waited a moment before speaking. "He had a lot of anger after his mother died. He got in fights a lot when people picked on him for his hair and usually they were the same guys that would pick on me for being tall. It made sense for us to start helping each other out."
Rukia noticed a quiet smile form on Chad's mouth. "Now we don't get into fights anymore and Ichigo isn't as angry."
Rukia saddened at the idea of a young Ichigo losing his mother and getting teased for being different. It clashed with the image she had of Ichigo now: confident, handsome, popular.
"But Ichigo was so popular in high school. What happened?"
"Ichigo never thought of himself as popular." Chad answered simply.
Rukia gripped the wheel tightly.
Is he really going to make me ask this? Maybe I shouldn't say anything…
"But all the girls…" Rukia stopped herself before she could finish, totally embarrassed.
Chad smiled again. "They liked him because he didn't like them. He likes you."
Rukia blushed and the car was silent as she pulled into the parking area.
They collected the bags and walked up to the beach house.
"Thanks for… explaining things." Rukia stuttered.
Chad nodded and held the door as she walked inside to see four hungry teens waiting for them at the table.
Ichigo got up as they walked in, taking the bags from her and setting them on the counter.
"Do you need any help, Rukia? I can make my special omelets for everyone!" Orihime called from the dining table.
Ichigo caught her attention and quietly shook his head.
"That's ok! I'm just going to make some toast and eggs with rice." Rukia replied before looking back at Ichigo and smiling. Orihime had been famous in high school for her unusual taste in food but Rukia had never fully realized her creativity until this week.
"Good thinking," Ichigo commented in a low voice as he came up next to her to grab the plate she was filling with pieces of fresh toast.
Rukia reddened at his nearness and focused on loading the plate with butter and jams.
Once the toast was on the table, Rukia helped Chad mix the eggs and rice.
Ichigo looks nice today.
Chad brought out the golden mixture and breakfast was able to begin. Rukia sat down in the empty chair next to Ichigo, admiring the way the deep green in his shirt clashed with his bright hair.
She remembered what Chad had said and wondered how anyone could be so cruel as to make fun of a lonely child.
Ichigo looked at her curiously and she realized she had been staring.
"You look nice," she blurted out.
-Ichigo-
"You too." Ichigo tried to contain the smile pulling at his lips. Orihime had said the same thing earlier but it felt different coming from Rukia.
He noticed that her simple dress wasn't as elegant as what she usually wore but it suited her. The pink color matched the pink of her delicate lips exactly and gave more depth to the dark color of her eyes.
Ichigo was pleased that she approved.
"I'm sorry we took so long this morning." Rukia apologized to the group. "We ended up getting more than we expected."
"We forgive you!" Orihime smiled.
"Of course, it's fine." Uryuu added.
"We'll just call it an early lunch instead." Tatsuki shrugged.
Ichigo watched Rukia's lips curve into a gracious smile. Then, she looked back at him.
"I hope we won't be late."
Ichigo smiled at the genuine apprehension on her face.
"We won't be late. Want to leave when we're finished eating?" He suggested.
Excitement shone in her bright eyes and she nodded.
Uryuu and Orihime stood up and took their plates into the kitchen.
"We're going to go for a walk. Have fun on your date!" Orihime said before she and Uryuu headed to the deck and the beach.
Ichigo watched the two dark-haired girls exchange knowing looks with their red-haired friend and Orihime waved once more before Uryuu closed the door behind them.
"Well, I think I'm going to head to the gym. Want to come?" Tatsuki looked at Chad who nodded.
Everyone helped clean up the table and soon Ichigo and Rukia were left alone in the kitchen.
"So… You ready?" Ichigo asked, trying to come off as suave as possible.
Rukia grinned. "Just let me get my shoes."
She returned shortly and Ichigo took her hand in his as they walked out the door.
Oh my :) I already know what's going to happen and I'm still excited for the next few chapters!
Review? And don't forget to stop by luculentquark's gallery on deviantArt!