Sorry it took so long for me 2 write!! I've been watchin' D Gray Man & got side tracked. *sweatdrop* Well, here it is finally…. CHAPTER 3!! -hollowstrawberry1515

"Tatsuki Arisawa." The girl with spiky black hair looked me up and down. She looked kind of angry.

I nervously replied. "Hey, I'm Ichigo Kurosaki. I'm guessing you know Orhime?"

She defiantly looked angry. "Orhime is my best friend. Don't introduce me to her like you are best friend with her." She glanced at Orhime, who was blushing, embarrassed.

Tatsuki waved away her anger and gave me a devilish grin. "So…do you fight?" Orhime's head snapped up and she shook her head furiously, "Ichigo, don't, please, fight Tatsuki! She's bad news in a fight!" Tatsuki grinned even more.

"What kind of fight? Street fighting? Wrestling?" I can street fight pretty well. You just have to know how to fight dirty.

"Kick boxing." Tatsuki crossed her arms with a "humph".

I thought about this. This girl was small, but looked like she could kill someone. Orhime obviously thought I couldn't win, so Tatsuki must be good.

"Maybe." I told her. "I have to get to class, though." In order to be Orhime's friend, I have to get through her "bodyguard" first! And then there's the whole Rukia problem…

Speaking of Rukia, I had biology next, and I was panicking. What would I say to her?! I know, demand to know what her problem was. Then, ask questions.

But when I got to biology, she wasn't there.

What did I do wrong? No, why do automatically think it's my fault?! But still… I thought as I sat down. The whole period, I thought about Rukia. Why wasn't she here? What was that monster- thing that man was battling? There were too many unanswered questions.

But the worst part of the whole ordeal was— Rukia didn't come back. For a long time.

Three weeks, in fact. After a while, I stopped worrying about her altogether. I hung out with Orhime, Tatsuki, and the tall, Mexican guy named Chad. We all became great friends. Tatsuki and I even went to the gym to work out on Saturdays.

I was talking with Chad when Rukia stepped into the classroom. I was so awestruck; I forgot what I was going to say at that moment.

"Ichigo? Hey, Ichi—"

Rukia sat down behind me, her usual seat. No one seemed surprised to see her come in.

"Ah, Rukia, you're back? Good, good, you have a lot of catching up to do." Ms. Ochi said with a hint of annoyance.

The whole period, I was so nervous about what I was going to say to her. Thank goodness lunch was after this; I could have a proper conversation with her then.

The bell rang, making me jump. Rukia was out of her seat in a flash, already heading to the cafeteria.

"Hey Chad, does Rukia usually skip school?" I asked him.

"She skips a lot, but usually not that long. I hear she does extra work to make up for her absences. And besides, she's really smart, too. See you at lunch, Ichigo."

Chad left, and that got me wondering. She skipped when I came to school. And I noticed that weird thing. Aw, I've got a headache.

At the cafeteria, Rukia was sitting alone at her corner table again. I walked to her table.

"Uh, Rukia?" Shit, why am I nervous?! "Could I talk to you for a moment?"

She gestured to the empty seat across from her. I sat.

"So…I'm guessing you're wondering about what happened the last time we talked."

I nodded dumbly. She continued reading her book, not eating any of the food that sat in front of her. She put the book down and sighed.

"Well I'm not telling you anything until you can prove yourself."

"And what the hell does that mean?" I asked, temper rising.

"How clearly could you see that hollow?" she asked, ignoring my question.

"Hollow? That monster?" She nodded. "It was crystal clear. Like it was real when it shouldn't be."

Rukia thought for a moment then said, "After school, meet me in front of the school, and maybe I'll explain everything to you. Maybe." Then she abruptly got up, dumped her tray, and left.

This is not helping at all! If anything, she just made this mystery more confusing!