Sooo, I can safely say that I am not dead, but I'm pretty sure that most of you want to kill me by now. I know I promised to have this up by the end of Thanksgiving break, and I know I said that I wanted to have this whole story finished by the end of 2008... but so much for that! .

But, to those of you who didn't like the sexual themes in the previous chapter, I'm not going to apologize for putting that stuff in there since of course, that's the way I wanted it to be. I am, however, quite grateful for those who nicely voiced their opinions and expressed their concern for me to not make a lemon without calling my story trashy. -ahem ahem- I am quite sad that someone called my story trashy, in fact. That's just mean man, just plain mean. I put up a warning that the rating went up for that chapter for a reason you know...

Oh well, I am very pleased that you all liked the ended of the last chapter though. Someone even said that they almost cried - coughs... copper...coughs- But you know what? I cried while I was writing it. Sad, ne? Oh yeah, you all are in for a huge surprise at the end. Enjoy! :D

Oh yeah, I don't plan on updating until I hit... 110 reviews. It is possible, right?

Disclaimer: Yadda yadda yadda. You know what goes here.

Five Days Later- Thursday- March 13th: Week 5

"You what?!"

"He kissed me-"

"He what?!"

Tatsuki slammed her hands on the table while Orihime sat on her feet, fiddling her hands in her lap.

"No way?! He kissed you?!" Tatsuki repeated in disbelief. She drew her hand towards her chin and propped her head up. She stared at her bedroom ceiling, pondering the information her best friend just revealed to her. Her eyes shifted back towards the subject in question who was uncomfortably shifting on her feet.

"He kissed you?" Tatsuki repeated.

Orihime nodded.

She slammed her hand on the table once again.

"Hot damn," Tatsuki said, scratching the back of her head. "And I didn't think he had it in him…" she mumbled under her breath. Orihime's raven-haired friend ceased her scratching to prevent herself from ripping out her own hair. She cracked her knuckles, laced her fingers, and placed her elbows on the table. "When?" The interrogation began.

"On Saturday-"

"Saturday?!" Tatsuki threw her arms in the air, completely losing her recently attained calm demeanor. "And you tell me now?! Five days after it happened?! This is huge, Orihime, HUGE for that dim-wit to actually make a move on you. Why didn't you tell me?!"

"We've been busy with school, Tatsuki-chan," Orihime said as she slid her feet out from under her bottom, causing it to thud against the ground, and let her forehead plop onto the edge of the table. She took in a deep breath and sighed.

She half-lied.

The truth was that she wasn't sure if she should tell her best friend exactly what happened. In fact, she initially had chosen not to say anything about it. But the more Orihime thought about that night trying to analyze Ichigo's reaction, the more she felt lost; and the more she deliberated with herself about telling Tatsuki, the better she felt about the whole ordeal.

But Orihime decided not to tell her everything.

"I wanted to tell you in person and when we were alone. After all, it is, like you said, a huge deal." Orihime raised her face and rested her chin onto the table to see her friend's reaction. She could see her frustration.

"You tell me this now-" Tatsuki massaged her temples. "-now that you're about to leave?" Apparently, Orihime also chose to make this conversation short. Tatsuki slid her hand through her short, spiky hair and sighed. Then, she came to a sudden realization. Tatsuki leaned back, arms propping her up, and gave a smug look at Orihime. "You guys did it, didn't you?"

The timid young lady became red in the face. "N-no!!!"

"Why the hell not?!" Tatsuki hunched forward with her hands gripping her knees. "Are you stupid?!"

Orihime straightened up with her hands on her hips and bit her lip. "How rude, I am not stupid."

"Yes you are, to waste an opportunity like that!" Tatsuki huffed.

"Kurosaki-kun wouldn't-" Orihime puffed as she crossed her arms.

But she was incapable of finishing her sentence.

Her eyebrows slowly drooped as she lowered her eyes when she realized what she was about to say. She stared down into her lap while her hands loosened their grip and her arms slid down to her sides. "He wouldn't do that…" she thought as the bridge of her nose began to tingle, her nostrils slightly stuffed up and her eyes glazed over, "because he doesn't l-"

"Fine, I'll give you that." Tatsuki interrupted Orihime's thought. "I never thought the guy had the balls to make any kind of move on you-or any girl for that matter! So it'd be a miracle if he forced himself on you."

Tatsuki's words sent a shiver down Orihime's spine. "He didn't force himself on me…" Orihime thought, attempting to convince herself as she regained her composure for her friend who was in the midst of verbalizing a long train of thought.

"Although, Ichigo is a guy and he is a teenager. And hormonal teenage boys have only one thing on their minds…" Tatsuki continued as she began to bit down on her thumb. "But, then again, it is Ichigo who we're talking about here. He never thinks about that type of shit. But, then again…"

Orihime stared intently at her babbling friend with a smile. Tatsuki was beginning to think like her.

"…you never know what a guy's thinking. Right…?" She looked up at Orihime who was smiling strangely at her.

"What?" Tatsuki asked, slightly weirded out.

"Nothing," she beamed.

"Anyways," Tatsuki began, surprised at her own surprise towards Orihime's normal strange behavior, "If he did force himself on you…" Tatsuki balled her hand into a fist. "You know what I'd do?" she asked as she punched into free hand.

"What's that?" Orihime wondered, slightly afraid of her overprotective best friend's plan.

"I'd go to Ichigo's place, knock on the door, and when he opens it- WHAM!" She punched the air. "I junk-punch him in his man business and he'll fall to the floor crying 'why?!' And then I'll say 'you know why!' " She then forcefully pointed her index finger between Orihime's eyes. "What do you think?" she asked, tapping her best friend's forehead.

"Tatsuki-chan?!" Orihime exclaimed. "You can't do that!"

"And why not?"

"That's just… wrong! Besides, isn't Kurosaki-kun you're nakama?"

"Yeah. So?"

Orihime looked at her best friend in disbelief. She tilted her head with wide-eyes as she stared at Tatsuki.

"What?" she asked as she rubbed her nose. "I hate pigs who force themselves on girls. It's as simple as that. My friendship with him would change if he really was a womanizer, but he's not. So it's all good," she explained.

"Oh…" Orihime said feeling like an idiot. "Of course Tatsuki-chan hates men like that, right? She always protects me from those kinds of guys and even from Chizuru," she thought as she took a sip of her tea. Her eyes wandered over to their children. Sasuke and Nell had been playing together in the corner since Orihime had arrived. She smiled at their babies when suddenly her female intuition (which was usually wrong) kicked in.

"Are things not going well between you and Ishida-kun?"

Tatsuki looked surprised at the question. "What?" she asked with a cookie dangling from her mouth.

"Well, I figured something might be up between you two. You have a lot more aggression in you these days!" Orihime said with enthusiasm. "You're all HI-YAH!!!" she playfully karate-chopped the air," in your karate club lately and some of your fellow club members have been getting much more injuries and whatnot from you. Frustrated?"

"No, not really. We've been doing pretty well lately," Tatsuki began. "He's really polite and gentleman-like. He isn't that pompous ass that I used to think he was, thankfully. So things are fine between us, just a bit slow though."

"So you are frustrated," Orihime teased.

A tint of pink became visible on Tatsuki's cheeks. "N-no…" she quietly said as she pressed her lips together.

"Ma-ma…?"

The two looked down at their adorable little babies who crawled their way over to the table. "Sasuke…" Tatsuki replied as she playfully placed her son in her lap, Orihime doing the same with Nell. But once the two were out of sight from one another, they began to wail.

"Alright, alright…" Orihime and Tatsuki placed both of their babies onto the table. They crawled over to each other and successfully made their way over to the cookie tray together- making a complete mess. "Argh… here! Watch some cartoons!"

Tatsuki managed to pick both of them up at the same time and plopped them onto her couch. She dragged the table against her sofa and began placing books to separate the two pieces of furniture. Orihime grabbed the remote and turned on the T.V. Sasuke and Nell automatically ceased their fit and began watching the tube. Tatsuki sat back down and helped Orihime clean up the mess.

"Geez," she began, "they can be such a hassle at times." Orihime nodded in agreement. "But even though they can be a real pain in the ass," Tatsuki continued. "I'm actually kind of sad about tomorrow. Aren't you?"

"Yeah, it's the last day of the project…" Orihime replied as they finished wiping up the remaining crumbs.

"But, you know what else is tomorrow…"

"What?"

"Are you serious?" Tatsuki raised an eyebrow. She was sure Orihime wouldn't forget what day it was, but she was proven wrong when her well-endowed friend shook her head.

"What's tomorrow?" Orihime asked.

"It's St. White's Day!"

Orihime slapped her forehead. "That's right! I completely forgot!"

"I can't believe you. You're always bombarded with gifts on St. White's Day. How you could you forget?"

Orihime bit onto her thumb nail. "Well, with the whole baby project and now the thing with Kurosaki-kun, it kind of slipped my mind…"

"But you've been making St. White's Day decorations in your handicrafts club for the school all week," Tatsuki said still pondering whether or not her best friend was really that much of a ditz. Orihime's eyes widened and her head perked up.

"Oh, so that's what they were for…?" She merely shrugged and contently drank some more tea. Tatsuki slapped her forehead: Orihime really was that much of a ditz.

"Well, I guess Ichigo kissing you is a sign of good things to come. He may even get you a gift for tomorrow," Tatsuki said happily, but her friend didn't look nearly as cheerful as she would have thought. Orihime looked downright doubtful.

"I'm not so sure about that," she said smiling wryly. "But, enough about me and Kurosaki-kun. Do you think Ishida-kun has something special in store for you?"

Rarely, if ever, did Orihime ever see her best friend so fervent. Tatsuki grinned from ear to ear and produced a smile so cheeky her eyes almost completely shut. "Maybe," she shrugged as she replied. "Ishida's always got something creative up his sleeve, but I kind of want…" Tatsuki hesitated and rubbed the back of her head, completely embarrassed about her true desire.

"I kind of want a white ribbon."

"A white ribbon?" Orihime asked, slightly befuddled. "I'm sure he can give you a white ribbon, he uses tons of it in our handicrafts club! But, why do you want that? You could always buy yourself a stool of it at the fabric store."

"You don't know what a white ribbon means on St. White's Day?" Orihime shook her head once again.

"On St. White's Day, if a guy gives you a white ribbon then it means that you're really special to him. But, if he ties it in your hair for you, then your love for each other is supposedly going to last forever. "Orihime smiled and brought a hand up to her face. Tatsuki took notice when her best friend attempted to suppress a chuckle. "What?" she asked slightly annoyed and ashamed.

"Nothing, nothing…" Orihime replied as she grinned and laughed through her teeth. "I never took you for a hopeless romantic, Tatsuki-chan."

"I-I am not!" she ardently denied the truth. "I'm just saying that I want a white ribbon… for the symbolism in it! I don't believe in the whole 'love lasting forever' myth."

"Alright, alright. I believe you. You don't need to get so heated about it though. It's cute." Orihime beamed, but Nell suddenly captured her mother's attention.

"Da-da!" Nell squealed. She bounced on her bottom and clapped her hands together. Even Sasuke joined in on the fun.

"Dada~" she repeated.

"Dada!" she repeated once more.

"Dada dada dada dada dada dada dada…"

Orihime knew that Nell's incessant sayings meant only one thing. She stood and picked up Nell. With her baby still squirming about, Orihime walked over to the window and searched for her baby's "Dada." And sure enough, the two caught a glimpse of Ichigo walking down the lighted street.

"Kurosaki-kun's here, Tatsuki-chan," Orihime informed her friend and the two commenced cleaning up the room. As if on cue, the doorbell rang as they finished straightening up and they dashed downstairs. Orihime slung Nell's baby bag over her shoulder as Tatsuki opened the door.

"Yo Tatsuki."

"Yo Ichigo."

"You ready to go, Inoue?" he cocked his head as he asked.

"Hmm…" she nodded and waddled out the door, Nell's baby bag slipping off her shoulder.

"Here, let me hold it."

"I've got it, Kurosaki-kun," she quickly replied. Orihime slung the bag over her head and repositioned Nell on her hip. She turned to face Tatsuki and Sasuke. "See you guys tomorrow! Bye bye. Say bye, Nell-chan." The three turned to leave, Nell waving goodbye to her friend.

"Bye bye~ bye bye~ bye bye~"

Ichigo and Orihime walked in silence as the tension in the air mounted onto their shoulders. Nell's idle banter finally ceased and she rested on Orihime's shoulder. From time to time, the two parents glanced at one another with curious and analytical eyes. And each time Ichigo caught a glimpse of Orihime, his palms became sweaty.

He still hadn't apologized to her.

Five days had passed, and he was still to chicken shit to do so. Whenever he mustered some form of courage to approach her about the topic, a knot in his chest formed and the conversation became about meaningless chit-chat. Five days had passed, and with each passing day it became harder for him to apologize. And the tension only grew thicker.

He glanced at her once again.

Instantly, she turned her head and their eyes locked for a brief second.

"S-so, how are they?" Orihime asked trying to break the tension.

"What?!" Ichigo quickly asked out of nervousness and surprise.

"The patients. How are they?"

"Oh." Ichigo felt the weight on his chest alleviate slightly. "Just a couple of cuts and bruises, but one of them had their arm broken."

"Really?" she asked, her eyes widening at the news.

"Yeah, it seems that they're getting more violent." Ichigo slowed his pace as they talked. "It was a good thing that you actually did what I said this time and stayed at Tatsuki's while I was helping out at the clinic."

"Why's that?"

"There was another beating tonight," Ichigo stopped dead. "By your apartment."

"What?"

"It was a woman this time too. They nearly raped her, she said, but one of your neighbors came out and called the police."

"Really?! Is she alright?" Orihime looked up at Ichigo with worried eyes.

"She's a bit shaken up, but she'll be fine," he replied as they continued walking. "I told you it was a good idea to stay with Tatsuki. " She nodded in agreement and the two walked in silence once again. Orihime focused her thoughts on the poor woman who had been attacked right in front of her own apartment. The thought sent a shiver down her spine and she glanced up at Ichigo, who had suddenly increased his pace, for some form of comfort.

His face had that signature scowl plastered all over it, but it never looked so stern before.

It made her feel uneasy.

"Kurosa-"

"Inoue. I want you to keep walking. If I stop, I want you to run. Okay?" he muttered really low.

"What?" she asked completely perplexed, attempting to walk in stride with Ichigo.

"Well well well. Look at who we've got here," a voice from behind sneaked up behind them. Several snickers were heard before Orihime completely grasped the situation.

"Shit." Ichigo growled underneath his breath as he furrowed his eyebrows, trying to come up with a plan. "Inoue, keep walking." He ordered as he slowed his pace. He came to a complete stop and looked over his shoulder. They were the next targets. "Inoue, run." He commanded.

She didn't.

"Inoue, run!" He commanded once more as the three from behind closed in.

"I can't."

Ichigo turned his head back around.

And there Orihime was with a stout thug blocking her escape. With hands in his pockets and a smug grin on his face, the leader of the pack approached until his prey was surrounded.

"Kurosaki Ichigo, eh?" he said as he and his crew circled around them, the smirk never leaving his face. "I haven't seen you around lately. I see you haven't dyed your hair to a normal color yet. I guess we need to change that, won't we boys?" The leader threw his arms into the air, waiting for the agreement of his crew. They obliged, laughing at their 'ingenious' plan.

Ichigo's eyes followed their leader as they circled around him, Nell, and Orihime. They narrowed when the leader turned his attention to Orihime.

"But what's this, men?" The leader stopped at the frozen girl. "It seems our little Kurosaki found a mate with the same colored hair." He came up behind her, eyes wandering all over her. Ichigo watched him intently, gritting his teeth and forming his hand into a fist.

"Oh…?" The leader looked surprised. "And you two got busy!" he exclaimed once he caught the sight of Nell. "Oh, come on baby," he referred to Orihime, "with a rack like that, you could have been any man's baby's mama! Why'd you choose him?" the leader asked, gripping onto Orihime's shoulder. "Why don't you be my-"

Before the gang leader could finish his sentence, before his mind could comprehend what he was doing, Ichigo's body reacted and punched the leader square in the jaw. "Don't touch her," he growled under his breath as the stout thug plummeted into the ground.

"B-Boss!"

His underlings cried out for their leader in vain for he was knocked out cold.

Ichigo quickly turned his attention to the three minions.

"Question 1!!!" he said while pointing to one of the three. "You, the stinky looking one! Are you the ones that have been attacking people recently?!" The smelly looking one smirked. "Yeah, what are you go-" Hearing him say yes was all Ichigo needed to hear before he grabbed the smelly one behind his head and rammed his knee into his face.

"Question 2!!!" Ichigo turned his attention to the only thug standing up. "Were we your next targets?!" he asked while walking slowly towards the remaining attacker, acting completely crazed.

"Y-yeah," he stammered as Ichigo approached. Then suddenly, a cocky grin plastered was all over his face. "What of it?"

"Wrong an-" Ichigo, about to punch the guy in the stomach, was sucker-punched from behind. "-swer…?" He felt his cheek scrape against the pavement as he was beaten into the ground. The kicks to the face, side and stomach left Ichigo dazed as he glanced up at his attackers. "Man, it's been a while since I've gotten into a fist fight," he thought with a tiny grin on his face," I kind of miss it."

"Kurosaki-kun!"

Orihime called out to him, and he immediately snapped out of reminiscent daze. Ichigo attempted to glance towards her, but winced in pain as one of the thugs twisted his arm behind his back. The stinky thug sat on his back and grabbed Ichigo's head, forcing him to look in Orihime's direction. Then, through Nell's boisterous cries he realized why she called out his name.

He thought she called out to him in fear of his life or of his minor injuries, and maybe she really did mean to, but as he lay with three thugs pinning him against the pavement, Ichigo watched her become trapped as well. The leader he punched out only a minute ago was already on his feet, standing behind Orihime with one arm wrapped around her waist and his other hand clutching at her throat.

"Inoue!" Ichigo shouted as he watched the leader caress the poor girl and the rest of the pack make love to her with their eyes.

"You let your guard down, Kurosaki. Big mistake," the leader said as he pressed his fingertips into Orihime's neck, slowly drawing her even closer to his face. Once she was close enough, he grasped harder around her throat, closed his eyes and breathed in the intoxicating scent of her hair. Orihime choked and gasped for air. Surprisingly, the leader loosened his grip, but he reached over her mouth. He clutched her face, stroking her cheek with his thumb and breathed in once more.

"Why so serious?" he asked Orihime as a sweat drop trickled down her temple. "A dame like you needs to smile more. Let's put a smile on that face!" The leader unclamped his hand over her mouth and roughly pushed the corners of her mouth up with his thumb and index finger. He smiled. "Ain't she a looker fellas?!"

Tears welled up in her eyes as she was forced to smile.

As if that didn't piss Ichigo off enough, the leader lightly slapped Orihime's face. "Don't worry baby, we'll take good care of you," he assured her as he clamped his hand over her mouth once again. "After we take care of this annoying baby!"

But before the leader removed his hand to shut the baby up, Orihime chomped down onto the inside of his palm. Ichigo and the dumbfounded lackeys watched as she bit as hard as she could. He cried out in pain, but grasped onto her jaw even harder. "You little bitc-"

Orihime quickly jolted her head backwards, causing the thick mass called her skull to collide with the leader's nose. His eyes immediately filled with tears, not from the tingling and stinging sensation from his broken nose, but from the damage his so-called helpless hostage dealt to his lower half.

With Nell crying in her arms, Orihime dug her heel as roughly as she could into her attacker's foot. She swore she heard a crack, but commenced with some serious ass kicking. With Nell now clinging around her mother's neck, Orihime switched arms and supported her baby with her left as she swiftly balled her right hand into a fist and swung it straight into the leader's… tender area.

He keeled over, clutching his manhood from the throbbing pain, and quickly passed out- leaving one awe-struck group frozen.

"B-Boss?!"

One of them let go of Ichigo's arm to check on their now infertile leader. The orange-haired shinigami who was pinned to the ground smirked when Orihime was out of harm's way. "Don't worry about him," he said, pushing himself and the stinky thug on his back off of the ground with a single arm," You really should worry about yourselves."

Thusly, Ichigo opened a can of whoop-ass on the conscious thugs.

Once finished, he approached Orihime who was attempting to hush Nell's cries. The two watched as their attackers took their retreat, carrying with them their unconscious leader. Orihime smiled as Nell's wailing ceased when the gang was out of their sight. She looked up at Ichigo, who shifted uncomfortably.

"Tch." He frowned while scratching the back of his head. "I figured that if we freaked them out enough, they would leave everyone alone, but they ended up sucker-punching me and you scared them off. Go figure," he said as he smiled at Orihime. She strangely had a tiny tinge of pink on her cheeks.

"Well, I think you're the one who scared them off Kurosaki-kun. All I did was protect our baby!" :D

"Yeah, and that's why I think you scared them off. You seriously kicked his ass. I'm surprised." He grinned as they continued walking home. The adrenaline pumping through his veins strangely made him for more at ease, as if the previous tension never existed.

"Really? I learned some karate from Tatsuki-chan. She said I was pretty strong, too! I think she said I was at the shodan level or something?" she said, recalling an event that took place in Soul Society.

Ichigo looked shocked to hear that Inoue Orihime, the nicest girl he has ever met, was at the first-degree black belt level. "But," she continued," I'm surprised that they took you down so easily!" She teased.

"Hey, I haven't been in a real fist fight in a long time," he said as he puckered his lip and frowned," And on top of that, I haven't fought any hollows for a while." He smiled once again as Orihime suppressed a tiny giggle. They both missed how they used to be: no tension in the air, no awkward silences- just the two of them shooting the breeze.

"Hey, Kurosaki-kun?"

"Hmm…?"

Orihime looked eager and anxious to ask her question. But before she could, Nell interrupted.

"H…"

The two parents stopped walking and looked at their child.

"Huuuu…"

Ichigo raised an eyebrow.

"Huuuu…"

"Huuuungry…?" Orihime tried to crack the code of baby talk. Ichigo immediately took the baby bag from Orihime and began digging through it for Nell's bottle. He offered it to Nell, but she refused and smacked the bottle away.

"Huuuu…" she muttered again.

Ichigo became frustrated. "Dammit, what does she want?"

"Haaaall-" The two teens looked questioningly at their rambling baby. "-low."

"What?" Ichigo asked as he took a step back.

"Hollow!" Nell exclaimed.

They eyed their baby, Orihime feeling anxious.

"Hollow. Hollow. Hollow. Hollow…"

"Wha-" Ichigo asked once again.

And in a blink of an eye, a hollow wrapped its skeletal fingers around Orihime and Nell. As if in slow motion, Ichigo watched as the two were encased in the hollow's grasp. His heart stopped. His mind became clouded. His blood began to boil.

"INOUE!!!"

He screamed for her, his mind becoming pristine. With his heart rapidly beating in his chest, adrenaline flowing through his veins, anger and worry emanating through his very essence, Ichigo plunged his hands into his pockets, searching for the one thing that would allow him to protect her.

But, it was missing.

His shinigami representative badge was missing.

"Inoue!!!"

Ichigo screamed once again as he furiously rummaged through his pockets. It was really missing. Realizing where it could be, Ichigo cursed himself when he turned around and saw his badge aimlessly lying amongst the pavement. He ran towards it, glancing back in horror at who he promised to protect.

The hollow's hand completely clutched around Orihime and Nell, and it began to pull itself out of Hueco Mundo. Ichigo dove for his badge and thrust it against his chest as he rolled along the ground.

Body and soul became separated at last.

But as he drew Zangetsu, Ichigo stopped dead. He heard her call out a name she rarely speaks.

"Tsubaki. Koten Zanshun. "

Ichigo loosened his grip on his zanpakutō as he watched the hollow's thumb was completely severed off and the rest of its arm split in half. Tsubaki traced his way towards the hollow's shoulder, neck, and finally the head. The hollow disintegrated and its remains dissipated, leaving Ichigo speechless. Orihime and his child stood there completely unharmed.

Orihime turned to Ichigo as her Saten Kesshun reverted back into her hairpins, surprised to see him in his shinigami outfit. She briskly walked towards him, smiling and waving.

He stood there awe-struck as she approached. She and Nell cocked their heads to the side as Ichigo raised an eyebrow.

"H-how did you know?" he asked referring to her shield.

"I didn't," she replied as she bounced Nell in her arms. "She knew."

"But then…"

"They kind of come out on their own," she said while Ichigo fused back into his body. "They've been doing that since the Winter War. It's pretty cool, actually. I like calling it my absolute defensive shield!" Orihime beamed.

"Oh." Ichigo said as he got up and dusted himself off. "So you and Nell aren't hurt?" he asked while patting his baby's head. Orihime shook her head as she passed Nell over. "Nope," she replied, intently looking at Ichigo's face. "But, do you want me to heal you?" she asked while pointing to the laceration on his cheek.

"Well that was a disappointing sight to behold."

The two teens looked up, but the shinigami quickly jumped down from the building. The girl looked as if she was in her early twenties, her hair was cropped into a short bob, and she had a pair of sleek, dark rimmed glasses resting on the bridge of her nose. Orihime leaned towards Ichigo as the shinigami came closer.

"Wow, Kyōraku-taicho has a thing for girls with glasses, doesn't he?" she whispered.

"That's what I said, but then she-" Ichigo whispered back from the corner of his mouth, but the shinigami smacked Ichigo upside the head.

"Yes yes, we all know that Kyōraku-taicho possesses a strong affinity for bespectacled women," she said before the orange-haired hot-head could voice any protests. The shinigami turned to the auburn beauty. "You're Inoue Orihime correct?" she asked with a slight air of haughtiness.

"Y-Yes. You are?" Orihime apprehensively replied.

"Shiori Miyoshi. Nice to finally meet you!" The shinigami happily introduced herself as she extended a friendly hand. Orihime reluctantly shook her hand, but smiled nonetheless.

"Nice to meet you too, Shiori-san!"

"That was quite an impressive display I saw earlier, Inoue-san. It's no wonder why the Captain Commander has his eyes set on you. "

"What the hell, Yoshi!?" Ichigo angrily interjected. "You're supposed to be on duty, not watching us fight!"

"Us fight? Us fight? Excuse me, but I only saw this young lady over here fight." Miyoshi retorted. "Besides, it's your fault that hollow appeared here in the first place."

"How do you figure that?" Ichigo asked as he shifted Nell to his other shoulder.

"Well," the shinigami began, placing her hands on her hips," two hollows were to appear within a span of five minutes on the other side of town, both of them being only one mile away from each other. I could have gotten both of them, but your reiatsu spiked a moment after the first hollow appeared. So, naturally the second hollow followed your gargantuan spiritual energy at the last second. "

"Oh, so you defeated the first hollow, came running here, and watched Inoue get the second one?"

"No, I came as quickly as I could, but Inoue-san defeated it before I could get here in time. Now I'm here to inform you that I'm going to file a report and get your consent to alter the conditions placed your representative badge."

"Yeah yeah, do whatever you want. Sheesh," Ichigo consented as he rubbed the back of his neck with his free arm.

"Alright then. See you later, kiddies." Miyoshi said as she whipped out her cell phone and jumped back onto the roof of the building. "Oh, Ichigo! Tell your friend Keigo to stop asking me to turn him into a 'ninja' like you," she hollered out as she ran into the distant horizon.

Orihime turned to Ichigo and wryly smiled. "Let's go home, Kurosaki-kun?"

Ichigo nodded and the family quickly went home.

This was one hectic night.

"Hnnn…" Orihime grit her teeth as she pulled and pulled. It wouldn't budge. She walked over to the other side of the crib and began pushing.

"Inoue, what are you doing?" Ichigo curiously asked as he stepped out of the bathroom.

Orihime jumped at the question and began to laugh nervously. "I'm putting Nell's crib back into my room. But this darn thing won't move!"

"Well first of all, the wheels are still locked. That's why it won't budge. And second, leave it out here."

"But…" Orihime glanced at Ichigo as she began to protest. He stared intently at her, knowing very well that she remembered their previous arguments. "Fine, I'll leave it out here," she said as she sighed and pouted. But, Ichigo would not give in to such a tactic. He merely entered Orihime's room as he roughly ran a towel through his spiky hair.

Orihime quickly followed, picking up Nell's toys along the way. She placed all the little trinkets into the corner as Ichigo carefully picked up their sleeping daughter out of Orihime's futon. He slowly passed his sleeping child to her mother when she motioned for him to do so.

She left the room and placed Nell into her crib as Ichigo got his rolled up futon and pillow. He exited the room as well and set up his futon in the living room. He glanced back at Orihime who was leaning over the edge of the crib to watch her sleeping baby.

She felt Ichigo's gaze and turned to face him.

Their gazes crossed paths.

This time neither one of them looked away.

Ichigo stared into the odious pools of brown which also reflected expressions of confusion, sadness, and compassion. His heart sank as she lightly furrowed her eyebrows and averted her gaze.

"Goodnight, Kurosaki-kun," she softly said as she turned away.

Guilt washed over him.

"Goodnight, Inoue."

She slightly nodded and turned off the lights as Ichigo climbed into his futon. He watched as Orihime crawled into hers and lay there supine.

Since the incident, both Orihime and Ichigo agreed it would be best if Ichigo slept in the living room. They moved Nell's crib into the living room as well, and had some minor altercations regarding its placement throughout the week. Orihime insisted that they move the crib back into her room on her nights, but Ichigo argued that while she had to suffer through Nell's cries on his nights, he would have to suffer through hers.

She reluctantly agreed.

Now, he carefully watched as she lay motionless within her futon, waiting for the twenty-second hour to pass.

The two listened to the ticks and tocks from the clock, anticipating Nell's cries. But when it passed, Nell remained peacefully asleep inside her crib. Strangely, their baby only acted up on Ichigo's nights throughout the week.

He rested in his futon, one arm on his stomach, the other propping up his head. Although it was dark throughout the entire apartment, Ichigo could see Orihime clearly. She curled up into a ball, completely covering her head under her comforter as ten o' clock passed.

Since the incident, Ichigo watched from the living room as Orihime cried herself to sleep.

He felt like shit.

He hurt her.

He broke her heart.

But it was for the best.

He did not know if he loved her.

"What the hell is love anyway?" he asked himself as he watched the mound of sheets curl up into a tighter ball. He grit his teeth and placed a hand on his forehead. "What is she to me?" He asked himself those questions every night as he watched the girl he had hurt. He knew he loved his mom, his sisters, and yes- even his crazy dad. He knew loved Rukia, Renji, Chad, Tatsuki- he knew he loved his friends. But, that was a different kind of love.

So, did he love Orihime?

Ichigo stared at the ceiling, not knowing what to do, what to think. He didn't even know where to begin.

Then, let's start with the basics, shall we?

Love is when you are willing to do anything to protect that person.

Ichigo scoffed. That was no help. He'd protect any one of his nakama.

Love makes you happy.

Ichigo frowned. Enough said.

Love is…

Ichigo smacked his forehead and roughly scratched his hair.

"I don't know what love is, but I sure as hell know what it's not." Instantly, an image of Rukia popped into his mind. Of course many have assumed that they had affectionate feelings for one another, and it was true that they did have a share of tender moments, but Rukia was like a sister to him. Ichigo raised an eyebrow at the thought.

Okay, maybe not like a sister. Maybe more like a cousin you can't get away from, but you still get along with (sometimes).

Ichigo smirked as he recalled the infiltration of Soul Society. Orihime was along side him, encouraging him to fight and take Rukia back. Even though nothing went as smoothly as they planned, they managed to rescue Rukia almost completely unscathed. And when it was time for them to part, Ichigo said his goodbyes to Rukia with no regrets, no hesitations.

It was she who granted him that power to protect, and with that power he saved her. That was the true goal: to save her from execution, not to bring her back to the world of the living.

But, not bringing Orihime back from Hueco Mundo was never an option.

Ichigo had to bring Orihime back. He wanted to, he needed to. But, why? Why go to Hueco Mundo and infiltrate Las Noches before the Winter War to bring back a person who supposedly left on her own accord?

To prove her innocence?

She could have when the war was over.

Instinct?

"Pft." That was all bullshit.

Ichigo flipped over and laid on his belly. He drew his comforter up to his face, placed his arms under his pillow, and nestled his head into it shifting his gaze in Orihime's direction. He heard her trying to inhale deeply and hold her breath as he moved about. She was still crying…

He sighed and plunged his head into his pillow, nearly suffocating himself. When out of breath, he turned his head away from Orihime this time.

Never in his life had he felt this way. Never in his life did he have to evaluate a person's meaning to him. Never in his life had he thought about loving someone. So now that he finally had, how did he feel? His late night deliberations with himself left Ichigo feeling utterly confused and lost.

But, maybe that was just it. He thought about what she meant, he thought about whether or not he loved her.

It's either you do or you don't.

Ichigo turned his head to watch Orihime. His expression softened when she finally unraveled from the tight ball she curled into and relax. He knew what he needed to do, he knew that he needed to apologize…

And he finally knew what he wanted.

But when Orihime woke up the next morning, Ichigo was already gone.

Oh my, is that a cliffy? My gawd I think it is!!! Sowrie guys, but this is only PART ONE of the finale. :3 I know I said that this chapter would be the finale, but I thought I would leave you all in suspense for another long while. Just kidding. This time I swear to you that I will work diligently on the true finale!!! Anyways, there won't be any lemons in this story, just to let you know. Sorry if that bums you out, but I honestly don't want to write a lemon. Although, once I post the epilouge up and someone wants to write a lemon based off of it, be my guest. :3

So how'd you like the grinning gangsters, btw? I watched The Dark Knight for the umpteenth time while I was writing that part, so I guess the leader acted like the Joker didn't he? Eh... Oh, and another thing! Shiori Miyoshi was supposed to be me...I had to throw myself in there for the hell of it. :3

Read and Review guys, it makes me happy and more determined to finish the next chapter when you review! Really, it does.

Next Chapter: Morning of Mournings

The final day of the project has finally come. What's to happen between the parents?