The finale.

Enjoy my duckies.

The Next Day- March 14th- St. White's Day

Orihime reached from her futon to turn off her alarm. She rolled onto her back and yawned as she rubbed her eyes. They slowly cracked open, but her eyes still felt heavy. Orihime sat up in her futon and poked at her eyelids. They were puffy and covered in eye crust. She quickly got up and rubbed her eyes once more, wiping away any residue.

With arms stretched over her head, Orihime walked into the living room to check on Nell.

"Nell-chan…" she said softly as she poked her head over the crib, but she gasped at what was inside: nothing. Orihime's arms dove into the crib frantically searching around for Nell, tossing everything about.

"K-Kurosaki-kun!!!" Orihime exclaimed as she turned around. She briskly walked towards his futon and roughly shook the lump inside. "Kurosaki-kun, Nell-chan is-" As she peeled off the comforter from the lump, she realized that all she was shaking was his pillow. Orihime quickly got up and searched her apartment.

"Kurosaki-kun? Nell-chan?!"

They were no where in sight. Orihime dropped to her knees in the living room, clutching at her face in horror. "No, the aliens must have taken them!!!" she thought as she sat on her feet. She hunched over, arms propping her up, as she stared at the floor. "But why am I still here? Why didn't they take me too?!" But as she began to sob, a larger thud was heard against her apartment door. Orihime's head jerked up.

"Oh my goodness, they've come for me?!"

She immediately leaned back and crawled her way into a corner keeping her eyes glued to the door. Her eyes widened as the door handle jiggled and cracked open slightly. Orihime closed her eyes and threw her arms in front of her face as the door swung wide open. "Please don't eat me! I taste really bad… actually, I might taste pretty good. But please don't eat me!" she yelled out to the alien.

"Inoue…?"

Orihime opened her eyes as she slowly lowered her arms. Her heart stopped beating for a second. Relief washed over her as she realized that it was Ichigo who stood staring at her with Nell in his arms. "Yay! You're both alive!" she exclaimed. Both the Ichigo and the baby raised an eyebrow.

"What?" Ichigo asked, cautiously approaching the orange-haired beauty who seemed more off than usual. "Are you still dreaming?"

"No. I thought you and Nell-chan were abducted by aliens when I couldn't find you!" she replied as she stood up.

"Yup, that's normal and she's definitely awake." Ichigo thought with a tiny smirk on his face. "I just stepped out to get us some breakfast," he said, outstretching a hand which held a bag of breakfast foods. Orihime beamed as she took the bag from his hands.

"That's so nice, Kurosaki-kun!" she exclaimed as she began plating up their food. "You didn't have to wake up early to do this," Orihime said as she glanced back at Ichigo, who began changing Nell's diaper, and smiled.

"Nah, I woke up really early this morning and couldn't fall back asleep. So I got ready for school and started packing up my things while you were sleeping. Then, I figured I should get us some breakfast, but Nell woke up when I was about to leave. So I brought her along," he replied as he placed Nell into her crib and walked over to the kitchen sink to wash his hands.

"Well, it's still very thoughtful of you, Kurosaki-kun," she said as she threw away the containers. Out of the entire month they spent living together, Orihime definitely learned one thing about Ichigo: he was not a morning person. She smiled at him as he finished washing his hands. "Oh, did you get something for Nell-chan too?"

"Yeah, I got her some scrambled eggs that are made of just the yolks and some yogurt just in case," he said as he began helping Orihime set up Nell's plate. The two worked side-by-side as Ichigo mashed up some fish and mixed it with a bit of rice. When finished, he placed their food onto the table as Orihime retrieved Nell from her crib. The family comfortably sat together around the tiny table, and Orihime clapped her hands together with chopsticks in hand.

"Itadakimasu!"

With Nell sitting in her lap, Orihime attempted to feed the squirming baby her breakfast. She filled a tiny spoonful of fish and rice into the utensil and-

"Chugga-chugga-choo-choo~"

-skillfully glided the food into her baby's little mouth. Nell bit onto the spoon, taking only half of its contents and began meshing it together with her gums at the back of her mouth, occasionally letting the half-masticated food slip out. "Ah ah ah," Orihime said with her mouth shaped in the form of an 'o' as she wiped away the gooey mess. Meanwhile, Ichigo watched with an amused grin on his face.

"Oi Inoue, do you want me to feed her?" he asked after some time, noticing she barely touched her own food.

"No, I've got it, Kurosaki-kun."

"But, you need to hurry up and eat."

She waved him off with spoon in hand as Nell munched on some eggs. "It'll be fine."

Ichigo frowned. He scooted closer to her, grabbed the loaf of bread he specifically bought for her, dipped it into some honey and-

"Chuggachuggachoochoo," he monotonously said as he shoved the food by her face. She turned her head, perplexed at his sad imitation.

"Wha-" Orihime tried to ask as Ichigo skillfully rammed the bread into her mouth. She instinctively bit down and munched on the bread dripping with honey. She swallowed hard at the large mouthful. "What was that?" she asked with a look of confusion on her face and a tint of pink on her cheeks.

"I'll feed you while you feed Nell since I'm already done eating and you won't let me feed her. Deal?" he bargained as he dipped the bread into more honey.

But Orihime pouted. "Fine, you feed her…"

And Ichigo grinned. "Smooth King, real smooth…"

He was a master at the art of negotiation. (Not really) :P

When they finished eating breakfast, Orihime quickly got ready for school as Ichigo resumed packing his things. He neatly placed all of his belongings into Nell's crib and sat on the floor by the apartment door as he impatiently waited for Orihime to dress Nell in a different outfit. Once she was finished, she ambled her way towards Ichigo with Nell in tow. He immediately got up, slung his bag over his shoulder, and picked up his baby's bag. With his hand already turning the door knob, Ichigo glanced at Orihime.

"Ready to go?" he asked. She didn't reply and merely stared at the door with an anxious face. "Are you okay, Inoue?"

"Y-yeah. I'm fine."

"Are you sure? You look…scared."

She bit her lip and looked at the ground. Her eyes shifted uncomfortably as she thought of what to say. She looked up at Ichigo and scrunched her face. "Today's St. White's Day," she said in a hushed tone.

"And…?" he asked, curious about her sudden case of agoraphobia.

"Well," she began with a tinge of embarrassment in her voice," usually on St. White's Day, there's this small group of guys who wait outside my apartment complex. Some of them know exactly where I live, some of them don't. So when I go out there…" Her voice trailed off as she bit her lip once more and glanced out of the window. Ichigo let go of the door handle and turned to face Orihime.

"Is that why there were so many guys outside this morning?"

She nodded her head.

"Well then, you don't have to worry about it," Ichigo casually said. "When I left this morning to get our breakfast, some of the guys saw me and immediately left. When one of them approached me asking if that was your apartment, I told him to fuck off and when I came back everyone was gone."

Orihime breathed a sigh of relief.

"Okay then," she said as she reached for the door. "Let's go, Kurosaki-kun!"

The door to class 1-3 slid open.

The entire room fell silent and an unfathomable tension filled the air as Inoue Orihime and Kurosaki Ichigo walked into the room. The two felt the stares from their classmates as they took their seats and placed Nell's carrier on the floor. It felt as if time stood still. Feeling uncomfortable, Orihime looked at Ichigo who was scowling back at his classmates. She shook her head, knowing that his reaction would only make things (whatever their problem may be) worse.

She nervously turned her head and wryly smiled.

"G-good morning…?"

And just like that, the hustle and bustle continued. Orihime sighed and looked at Ichigo once again.

"What the hell was that?!"

"I have no clue!" They whispered to each other. He merely shrugged and continued glaring at the classmates who kept glancing in their direction. Orihime crossed her arms on her desk and nestled her head into her limbs as she rocked Nell's carrier with her foot. She eyed the door, waiting for Tatsuki to come in and give her some explanation.

"Didn't you hear?"

"They saw him leaving her apartment."

"You think that they've been living together?"

"Tch. Are they even dating?"

Suddenly, Orihime realized what was going on. A dash of pink splashed across her cheeks as she thought about it from the gossiper's point of view. She quickly turned to Ichigo and whispered, "Kurosaki-kun! They know!"

He raised an eyebrow at the statement. "They know what?"

"They know that-"

"They know that you two have been living together." Tatsuki finished her best friend's sentence as she slammed her bag onto Ichigo's desk. "Or at least some people are saying that. Others are saying you two are dating, you're getting married… the whole rumor shebang. So, how did it get out?"

"They saw Kurosaki-kun leaving my apartment to get us breakfast…" Orihime quietly said, clutching at her forehead. "And he scared some guys away too."

"Is that true, Ichigo?" Tatsuki asked.

He nodded.

Suddenly, a certain lesbian rushed to Ichigo, grasped onto his desk, and shoved her face merely centimeters away from his. "It's true?!" she hollered out to the entire class. "You fiend! How dare you impregnate my Hime!!!"

Orihime slapped her forehead as Tatsuki and Ichigo slapped Chizuru.

"No, you dumbass!" Ichigo shouted as he glared at the onlookers.

"Now, go away!" Tatsuki said, pushing the lesbian towards the door. Keigo and Mizuiro quickly apprehended said lesbian and dragged her out of the classroom. They let go of her once she calmed down.

"Maybe you should get over Orihime-san, Chizuru." Mizuiro said with a worried look.

"Whaaat? Why?!"

"Do you remember that transfer student Shinji?" Keigo surprisingly interjected.

She nodded her head.

"Well, do you remember that day when he hugged Orihime-san?"

"Yeah. Ichigo got all worked up and dragged Shinji outside."

"And have you seen him since?"

"N-no." Chizuru choked out the simple word and hung her head low. "Maybe I should give up…"

"Now that's the spirit!" Keigo stupidly said as he patted the depressed lesbian on the back and led her back into the classroom. The three walked in, Tatsuki and Ichigo glaring in their direction.

"Anyways," Tatsuki said, shrugging her shoulders. "The rumors have already been set loose. Just give it a couple of weeks and it will all be long forgotten." Orihime, about to express her concern over the situation, was interrupted when Ochi-sensei barged through the door. She slammed her briefcase onto her desk as everyone took their seats.

"Alright everyone! You know what today is, right? The last day of your baby project!" Ochi-sensei enthusiastically said as she opened her briefcase and took out her notepad. Surprisingly, only half of the class cheered. "As all of you know, some of you started about half a day earlier than everyone else. So, those of you who started later, you will need to go to the teacher's lounge." Immediately, half of the class stood up.

"Hold your horses! I'm not finished!" the teacher hollered out, motioning her students to take their seats. "Impatient little bastards," she mumbled under her breath. "Anyways, this is what we're going to do for the first half of the day. Those of you who are going to the teacher's lounge, you will be taking care of your projects as usual, and those of you who will remain here will be graded immediately."

"Since the grading process does take an extensive amount of time, those of you in the lounge will watch a movie about safe sex and you will receive and partake in a crash-course child development class. Enjoy!" Ochi-sensei brightly said as half of the class groaned. "You will be brought back here shortly before lunch."

"Now, for those of you who are staying in here, you will, of course, be graded. Although, since I can only grade you one-at-a-time, you will be watching a bunch of kiddy movies to keep the little tots entertained. Then, you'll have lunch and you'll go through the same child-development class during the second half of the day as I grade the rest of the bunch. Is that understood?" she asked the class.

"Alright, move out!"

Orihime waved to Tatsuki as she and Ishida packed up their things and headed out the door. She turned to Ichigo as he picked Nell out of her carrier.

"I wonder how they're going to grade us." Orihime said, thinking out-loud. Ichigo shrugged as he held Nell over his shoulder and rocked her slightly with his characteristic frown on his face.

Once the students who started late left the classroom, the teacher brought a TV into the room and began setting up the DVD player. When finished, Ochi-sensei briefly walked out of the room and returned with a cart covered with a sheet. She went to her desk, gathered her things, and placed them onto the cart.

"Well, I'm going to start the movie. I'll be at the back of the classroom where I'll call you in groups by your baby's name as it plays. When you have been graded, just stick your hand into their mouth and pull out the gumball. Alright?" Ochi-sensei said as she hit the play button. She wheeled the cart to the back of the room and uncovered the contraption.

Orihime did not dare look at it for she was enjoying the movie.

"Asano Sakura."

Immediately, Keigo and Chizuru took Sakura to the back of the room. Orihime, occupied with the movie, jumped at the sound of gears grinding and metal clanking. Although the sounds surprised her, she refrained from glancing backwards. "I don't want to know what they're doing…" she thought as she scrunched her face.

Orihime turned to Ichigo with the intent to ask him what was going on at the back of the room, but he was completely preoccupied with their baby. She pouted and anxiously waited for their turn. Several names were called before she was about to find out.

"Kurosaki Nelyasviel."

Ichigo stood up with their sleeping baby draped over his shoulder. Orihime quickly followed, her eyes glued at the contraption. "It looks like a crib…" she thought as they approached Ochi-sensei.

"Okay, put her in," the teacher said.

Ichigo did as he was told and gently placed the sleeping Nell inside the seemingly normal crib. Once inside, Ochi-sensei pressed a button on what looked like a printer. The sound of gears turning and metal clanking filled the back of the room, but the crib stayed completely still. Orihime cocked her head to the side, wondering how in the world this crib could possibly be the means of their grade.

The abnormal sounds ceased and Nell began to stir as the printer went off. Orihime picked Nell up out of the crib and hushed her cries while Ochi-sensei looked over the freshly printed sheet. The two orange-haired teens nervously awaited their results.

"Hmm…" the teacher said she marked their grade into her booklet. "Good job you guys."

They both breathed a sigh of relief.

"It says here that you didn't feed your baby any lethal foods and you didn't give her any whiskey for when she was teething. Interesting since about half of the people before you gave their kid some type of alcohol… Anyways, overall you both did a great job. Although, it also says here that you were almost always with the baby and were very attentive to her cries. "

Orihime looked up at Ichigo, then to the teacher. "Is that a bad thing?"

"It's not a terrible thing, but it's kind of bad. It's important for the baby to become attached to its parents, but it's also important for it to not become overly attached. I understand that you occasionally let Kurosaki's dad watch your baby from time to time? That's good. Interaction with people other than the parents stimulates the brain and allows the baby to trust other people."

"Also, you should have let your baby cry a little bit more, but don't over do it since that would mean you are neglecting your child. Anyways, by letting your baby cry, you allow their lungs to strengthen a bit. Plus, if you act that way when they're a toddler, they'll become a spoiled little brat…"

"So, how did we do?" Ichigo finally asked.

"Since most first-time parents make the same mistakes the both of you did, you did great. You both get an 'A.'" Ochi-sensei said with a smile. "Now that you're finished, go over to that corner, take out the gumball and put it in that jar. Then, put the doll into the basket with all the others."

Orihime's eyes widened. "What?" she asked the teacher, but Ichigo quickly dragged her towards the corner. "Wait a second, Kurosaki-kun!" Orihime defensively held onto Nell. "We can't! I can't…" she said softly as she looked down at her sleeping baby.

"We've got to, Inoue. She's not really our baby, you know…" Ichigo said, his voice trailing off.

Orihime pouted. She held Nell with outstretched arms and looked at their baby. "You do it, Kurosaki-kun," she said, handing Nell over to Ichigo. He quickly took their baby into his arms and looked at her serene face. He slowly put a finger put up to Nell's mouth, ready to snatch the gikongan out of the gigai. But as his fingertips touched his baby's face, Nell grasped onto her father's finger, inserted it into her mouth, and began sucking on his fingertip like a binky.

Ichigo looked at Orihime, completely heartbroken.

He looked down at his adorable little daughter once again, then back at the exquisite mother. "I can't do it, Inoue," he gently said as he looked at her with pain in his eyes.

"Okay…" she replied as she felt a tingle in her nose. "Let's ask Ochi-sensei."

The two went up to their teacher, Nell still sleeping and sucking on Ichigo's index finger.

"Ochi-sensei," Orihime began. "Can you take the gumball out; we can't bring ourselves to do it."

"Sure," the teacher quickly said, putting her notepad away. She got up, took Nell from Ichigo's arm, and rammed her fingers into Nell's mouth. Ochi-sensei pulled out the gikongan, and Nell reverted back into the simple doll. She handed the gumball to Orihime, tossed the lifeless doll at Ichigo, and sat back down. "Make sure to take the clothes off of the doll before you put it into the basket and go back to your seats."

Ichigo and Orihime stood there completely stunned. Their once beautiful, bouncing baby was now a defunct doll.

Feeling completely empty, they robotically undressed the doll, placed it into the basket, and sat back down. Orihime held onto Nell's clothes, staring at them. She clutched onto them and brought them up to her face when she felt her eyes well up with tears. Ichigo placed a hand on her shoulder as she wiped her tears away. She handed Ichigo the clothes and he put them away with a mournful expression on his face.

Orihime glanced around the classroom. The students who went up before them remained lachrymose as they watched the kiddy movie. She put her head onto her desk and blankly watched as well. Ichigo glanced at Orihime, not knowing what to do. He merely turned away and watched as the other babies became lifeless dolls.

The two watched detachedly as Ochi-sensei packed up her things and wheeled all the parts of the project to the front of the classroom. She turned off the movie and spoke.

"Well, that was much faster than I anticipated," she began, noticing the languor emanating from the class. "So, I say we do the child development class and possibly watch the other video. If we finish, then you are free to go after lunch. What do you think?" she asked the class.

The response she got was a slight murmur. Ochi-sensei thought nothing of it and began teaching the class.

Orihime gazed outside the window as the movie about safe sex played. She sighed and turned her head back towards the film. She raised an eyebrow, wondering why the video was talking about "swapping shoes" when it was supposed to be discussing that abstinence being the best policy for safe sex.

Bored out of her mind, Orihime propped her head up into the palms of her hands. She puffed up her cheeks and with her fingertips, she squeezed the air out. She unknowingly continued to puff and squeeze the air out of her cheeks until she curiously turned her head to look at Ichigo.

As she glanced in his direction, Orihime took in a deep breath and blew up her cheeks as much as she could. When she noticed Ichigo was looking right at her with a grin on his face, she quickly squeezed her cheeks making her look like a fish. Ichigo smiled even more. Orihime nervously smiled back and then slowly turned to face the front of the class, utterly embarrassed.

The credits for the film began rolling and Ochi-sensei turned the lights back on. She turned off the TV and pushed it into the corner of the room.

"Okay, we finished the movie and most of the lesson, so you are all still free to go after lunch. The other half of the class should be coming soon, so you may talk amongst yourselves as you wait for the lunch bell to ring." Shortly after the teacher spoke, the classroom door slid open and the students filed into the classroom with their babies, making the other half of the class depressed.

Orihime bit her lip and turned to Ichigo. "I miss Nell-chan already, Kurosaki-kun."

"I know. I actually do too."

"Even I miss that little booger," his inner hollow added. Ichigo chuckled slightly. "The hollow misses her too," he said, attempting to comfort Orihime. She smiled a little. "Really? That's kind of funny!" she said as the lunch bell rang.

Ichigo quickly looked at the front of the class. Tatsuki stood up and made her way over to the two fast. Before she could reach them, Ichigo turned back towards Orihime.

"H-hey Inoue?"

"Hmm?"

"Do you think you can meet me on the roof around the end of lunch?" he quickly asked. She looked surprised. "I wanted to talk to you about something."

Orihime cocked her head to the side and smiled. "Sure!" she replied as Tatsuki came by.

"Oi, Orihime! Ready for lunch?" their raven-haired friend asked. "I think we should all eat inside today, it's really windy outside," she said as Ichigo got up and left the classroom.

"Okay," Orihime replied as she picked up her lunch and walked with Tatsuki over to their friends who formed their five desks into a tiny circle. They sat down and unpacked their lunch.

"So who do you think had the weirdest looking baby?" one of their friends joked as they ate.

"Oh! That's an easy one! Ryo and Mizuro's baby looked the funniest!" Chizuru chimed.

"What?!" Ryo angrily said.

"No way," Tatsuki said with her sandwich dangling from her mouth.

"If anything, her baby was the cutest!" Orihime exclaimed.

"Yeah! She was so cute with her black hair and pale skin. Why would you think she looked the weirdest, Chizuru?" Michiru asked.

"Ryo's baby looked weird because it had such light colored eyes even though both the parents had dark colored ones!" Chizuru replied.

Tatsuki nodded as she munched on her lunch. "That's true," she said with her mouth half-full.

"Yeah, Hinata-chan did look a bit strange because of that," Michiru added. "But, my baby was probably the weirdest looking one…"

Tatsuki nodded once again as she inhaled the rest of her sandwich. She chewed quickly and swallowed hard. "That's probably because of Sado's Mexican heritage. Your baby had his huge lips and thick, curly hair. To be honest, it didn't look much like you," she said as she wiped away the crumbs on her face.

"Why are you in such a hurry, Tatsuki-chan?" Orihime asked, finishing her lunch as well.

"I have to meet Ishida around the end of lunch. So I got to go now," she replied as she quickly stood up. "I'll see you guys later!" Tatsuki said as she walked out of the classroom.

Orihime's head perked up.

"That's right!" she said loudly. "I've got to go too! Bye!"

And off she went to meet Ichigo, leaving behind her curious friends. Orihime practically ran up the stairs to the roof, wondering why Ichigo wanted to talk to her. She reached the door and fixed her shirt and skirt which had ridden up as she climbed the staircase. She reached for the handled and attempted to slowly open the door.

Immediately, the door flung open while Orihime's hair and skirt flared about. She clutched onto the bottom of her skirt as the wind blew, searching through her thick hair for Ichigo. She found him leaning against the fence at the edge of the building and slowly made her way over to him. As she approached, the wind gradually died down much to her relief.

Ichigo stood up and waved as she came towards him.

"Um, h-here. This is for you," he nervously said, handing her a rectangular box. She took the box and curiously examined it.

"Ichigo?" she asked.

"Y-yeah?" he responded, surprised that she called him by his first name. Heat rose into his cheeks.

"Ichigo daifuku? What's the mochi for, Kurosaki-kun?" she asked, oblivious to the fact she accidentally said his name.

"Oh, I thought you might get sad today, so I bought it for you this morning," he said feeling a bit embarrassed. "But, if you don't like the strawberries inside, I'll take it back." Ichigo reached for the box, but Orihime clutched onto it.

"No, I love strawberries!" she exclaimed, holding the mochi to her chest. She smiled and shyly held the box behind her back with both arms. "Was this what you wanted to talk about, Kurosaki-kun?"

"N-no actually." Ichigo felt a knot form inside his chest and he scratched the back of his head. "I wanted to apologize about… before," he said as he brought his arms to his sides and ashamedly looked at Orihime.

"I-It's okay, Kurosaki-kun," she replied softly, unable to look into his eyes.

"No it's not," he sternly said. "I'm sorry that I ruined our day together and letting myself go that far. I should have stopped us sooner or not let it happen at all." He felt the winds pick up a bit. "I know I said that I didn't know if I loved you. But last night, I realized something…"

Orihime's head jerked up. She looked at Ichigo, heart racing at what he was going to say, not knowing if it was good or bad.

"I figured out that I-I-I…" he tried to sputter the three simple words. "I…I…" Ichigo's stuttering worsened as heat raised into his cheeks, turning them a deep red hue.

Orihime's eyes widened, waiting for Ichigo to say what she wanted to hear most. But suddenly, a strong gust of wind cut Ichigo's confession short. Orihime shrieked as her skirt flew up and her hair lashed around once again. She clutched at the hem of her skirt, thinking "Why now?" She furrowed her eyebrows and pouted as Ichigo amusedly watched.

Feeling like himself again, Ichigo reached out and skillfully tucked one side of hair behind her ear. She looked up at him, surprised at the contact. A tint of pink crept onto her cheeks as Ichigo successfully captured the rest of her unruly hair. He wrapped a hand behind her head and pulled her hair over her left shoulder as the winds died down. He held the bunch of her hair in the palm of his hand and placed his free hand into his pocket.

Orihime watched with mouth agape as Ichigo slowly took out a white ribbon.

"Inoue…" he began as he tied the ribbon around her luscious hair. He rubbed his rose, embarrassed at what he was about to say. Her heart skipped a beat as he looked into her eyes. He opened his mouth, about to say what she longed to hear. But she didn't need to hear it.

She already knew.

"I love you, too." Orihime said before Ichigo could even confess. And she didn't care. His actions spoke much louder than his words ever could. She stood with arms behind her back and cocked her head to the side as she smiled, her eyes watering slightly.

Her smile took his breath away.

He stepped forward, gently grasping onto her shoulders, as he pulled her into an embrace. His body warmed up from head to toe as he held onto her. A smile crept onto his forever frowning face as Orihime's arms wrapped around him as well. They held onto each other, Orihime still holding onto the box of mochi. They slowly pulled away from their embrace, both of them with their cheeks flushed, and shyly smiled at one another.

Ichigo lightly grasped onto her arms once again and leaned in. Orihime nervously scrunched her face and brought the box of mochi up to her chin. She covered her lips from what was to come out of shyness, but quickly uncovered them. With eyes closed, Orihime anticipated the feeling on her lips.

Instead, she felt a peck on her forehead.

She looked up, surprised at the small peck, and saw Ichigo's grinning face. He let go of his grasp on her arms and placed them into his pockets. With cheeks still flushed, Ichigo looked at the fervent Orihime.

"Let's go slow this time?" he softly asked.

She merely nodded, biting down on her lip. The two looked back towards the school as the bell signaled the end of lunch. The two happily walked towards the staircase, eating the mochi along the way. Once they reached the stairwell, Orihime held the door open for Ichigo.

"After you, Kurosaki-kun!" she cheerfully said.

He reluctantly walked through, feeling a bit awkward that she held the door for him. Ichigo walked ahead of Orihime down the stairs with his hands in his pockets. He suddenly stopped on one of the steps and turned to look up at Orihime.

"Hey, Inoue?"

"Hmm?"

"I love you." Ichigo said with a tinge of pink on his cheeks.

She stared at him and smiled.

"I know that already, silly," she said as she stepped down towards him.

He rubbed the back of his head, feeling a bit embarrassed. "I know, but I thought I should say it. You know I'm not good with this type of stuff…" he said as they walked side-by-side.

"I know," Orihime replied. "That's what I like about you," she shyly said as she boldly snaked her hand into his.

They smiled at each other, and the two walked to class to retrieve their belongings as the new, comely couple.

.x. THE END .x.

So was the ending to your liking? :3 Sad to see that it's finally done? Not me, I'm ecstatic! This is the first story I've ever completed! Well, actually I plan on making an epilouge so you can see Urahara and Yoruichi's baby. It's going to be a cutie!

"Hey Kurosaki-kun?" Inoue Orihime called out to her significant other as they cooked dinner later that evening.

"Hmm?"

"How come you were able to tie my hair up so nicely?"

Ichigo averted his eyes from his girlfriend. "Yuzu used to make me play dress up…"

Just a funny little tid-bit for all of you. xD Ehhh... show me some love?