Silence reigned on the inside of room 615 at the Gotei hotel. Its two unlikely occupants weren't speaking a word, and only their light breathing interrupted the quietness.
Ichigo and Rukia sat together on the carpet, their backs leaned against the side of the queen-sized bed. Both still wore their outfits for the Christmas party, but Ichigo had now loosened the grey tie around his neck and Rukia had long-since abandoned her shoes. The orange-haired male sat with one knee propped up, an arm resting lazily on it; Rukia sat with both knees to her chest and her arms wrapped around them, the length of her dress just enough to protect her modesty from her companion, and no one else around to see her compromised. Her head was leaned softly against Ichigo's shoulder, her eyes half-lidded as they stared ahead at nothing in particular.
If either of them had been thinking about it, they might have laughed at the irony of how similar their positions were at that moment to the very first time they were together, in a supply closet what seemed like light years in the past; their backs had been against a wall and their clothing had been a far cry from their present semi-formal get-up, but the way they sat beside each other was nearly identical to how they sat back then. With the exception of Rukia lying her head comfortably against Ichigo and the fact that this time, neither said anything for a long time.
After Ichigo had confided the story of his dark past to Rukia, he had stood in her embrace he didn't know for how long, and eventually they had broken apart and ended up as they were. Throughout the whole time they had shared a comfortable silence; she never pushed him to speak before he was ready and he appreciated her patiently waiting for him. He was also silently glad that she never left his side; but when he tried to thank her, before he could even get the words out, she just looked at him and smiled comprehensively. He had smiled back and they returned to their shared silence.
Neither could really tell how much time had passed when Ichigo finally spoke up.
"Are you hungry?"
Rukia slowly lifted her head from his arm and looked up at his unexpected question. After a moment of studying his face, she was sure that if he had broken the silence it was because he was finished with his inner grieving for the time being. Satisfied with the fact, she gave a halfhearted shrug in response. "It doesn't really matter. It's too late to go back to the ballroom and get food, and all the restaurants must be closed by now."
Ichigo seemed to consider this before saying, "I saw a couple of snack machines on the way here."
That being said, Ichigo stood and absentmindedly offered Rukia his hand to help her up, missing the brief look of surprise on her face before she accepted it and climbed to her feet as well, letting her dress fall into place over her legs. Rukia thought she caught Ichigo's gaze lingering on the white of her legs for a moment, but she dismissed the thought quickly.
Their trip to the snack machines and back to the hotel room was quick, and they each returned carrying a wide array of candy and chips, as well as a couple of sodas. Ignoring the lonesome table on the corner of the room, the pair simply retook their spots on the carpet and set about to eating the assortment of junk food without remorse.
Aside from the odd pause for bickering over certain items;
"Oi! Don't eat all the chips!"
"You're taking all the chocolate-" Rukia pushed at him with her foot. "-the chips are mine!"
"You're loaded with crackers!" he tried reaching for the bag that she held away as she kept her foot in his way. "That much salt is unhealthy!"
"I didn't know you were so concerned about my health." she cut in slyly.
"I'm not!" Ichigo quickly complained.
"Then you don't care if I eat the chips." The argument was diplomatically concluded.
Several more bouts like that one ensued, but otherwise neither bothered speaking much. There options for conversation were either really gloomy or things they didn't quite feel ready to talk about in that moment. So they stuck to their familiar comfort areas, and neither complained over the fact.
When their food was finished, Rukia was rubbing at her eyes and Ichigo was barely suppressing a yawn. The raven-haired woman stole a glance at the alarm clock on the bedside table and saw that it was over an hour past midnight.
"I think we should be calling it a night." Rukia noted, pushing herself to her feet.
Ichigo took one look at the glowing red numbers of the clock and nodded his agreement. He helped Rukia gather all the empty wrappers and bags from the floor and throw them away, then they both stood awkwardly facing each other at the door of the bathroom.
They stood there for a couple of seconds before Ichigo coughed slightly and motioned for Rukia to go inside. "You go, I'll wait out…there." he finished lamely, pointing towards the other side of the room, thinking it would have seemed creepy if he said he'd wait outside the door. The raven-haired woman merely nodded and quickly disappeared behind the door.
Rukia was fairly fast to wash her face of all make up and change into her warm sleepwear, but even so when she emerged from the bathroom she was met with the sight of Ichigo sprawled on the bare carpet, seemingly unconscious. Her features softened as she took in his lanky, sleeping form. His jaw hung partially open and he had begun to snore softly, exhaustion along with an emotional night having rapidly taken over him.
She debated waking him up so he could change into a more comfortable attire, but as she watched his expression, almost childlike in sleep, she opted to get a blanket instead -the bed had several thick layers, so she just picked one of them- and gently threw it over him. Rukia hesitated, wanting to place a pillow for him but figuring that she'd wake him up in the process, so she just left him as he was, and proceeded to go on to bed.
She lay there with her eyes open for some time, listening to the sound of Ichigo's soft snores and letting her mind whirl with thoughts of his past and what might become of his future if he went on the path to try and expose Aizen. She allowed herself to cast a worried glance over at him in the darkness, and felt her eyebrows furrow.
Rukia knew that Ichigo wouldn't let go of his goal no matter what anyone said or did, especially with how much it ultimately meant to him. The most she could hope to do was try and make sure he didn't get himself killed on the way. Eyes still settled on his peaceful form, she sighed quietly.
Just when did I start to feel like this…? she wondered idly, half-conscious, before finally drifting off into a dreamless sleep.
-x-
Pale morning light barely filtered through the crack in between the heavy curtains that covered the glass windows of the hotel room. The two occupants inside seemed blissfully unaware of anything around them, as they each slept on unperturbed.
But nothing could last forever.
Rukia felt consciousness returning to her most unwelcome, and her first reaction was to firmly keep her eyes shut and attempt to return to sleep. Unfortunately, even as much as she wanted to keep on sleeping, she was the type of person that could never go back to sleep once she was awake. Resigning herself, she began to stretch out in the bed, kicking the sheets off herself in the process and yawning widely.
Unwilling to sit up just yet, Rukia started a process she often employed as she roused herself up at home; she turned over to her side, then again so she was on her belly, then once more. Literally rolling out of bed was a habit of hers that no years of Kuchiki training had been able to break, and she personally thought it was the best way to give her the kick she needed to be alert in those first few minutes of the early hours. However, one fact that Rukia did not take into account, is that she was not, in fact, in her home. And a more important fact- that she was not alone.
Not having considered any of this in her groggy haze, Rukia went on to roll until her body was tumbling out of bed, already bracing herself to land in a crouching position that would absorb the impact harmlessly…Except, instead of touching on the carpet, her feet first came upon a different object, and immediately became tangled. The raven-headed woman inevitably lost all her balance as she tripped upon the unidentified object, and was sent toppling gracelessly forward.
"Shit!"
Ichigo's eyes flew open and the curse left his mouth as he felt the wind knocked out of him, instantaneously jolting him out of sleep. His hands came up in an almost automatic -albeit belated- response to grab a hold of the object responsible for leaving him breathless, only to be surprised when his hands settled on a soft, slender frame, that was breathing.
The orange-haired man waited for his vision to clear before focusing on the startled face that was looking right back at him from above. Unblemished ivory skin, midnight-colored hair, and wide violet eyes; it could only be one person. Ichigo blinked and focused more closely. Her usually smooth hair, turned up only at the ends as they reached her shoulders, was not completely untamed and sticking out in every direction around her face; her normally large eyes had widened to the size of diner plates; and her white skin was now tinged with pink spots on her cheeks. Her disheveled state, coupled with her slightly parted lips -almost as if they were caught mid-gasp-, as well as her startled look, made her look completely unguarded and vulnerable for the first time since he had met her.
Ichigo couldn't stop the way his lips curved upwards in a sideways grin, his brown eyes looking up at her, and his hands on her waist. Her slim body was completely pressed against his. "Hey." Came his husky, morning-straggled voice.
Some part of him realized that it wasn't the smartest thing to say, but what could anyone really say when you were woken up by a woman virtually falling on top of you?
Rukia, seemingly snapping out of her stunned state, scrambled to push herself up on her hands and knees, separating their bodies but still close enough that he could feel the warmth of her radiating above him. "I-" her voice cracked, either from that morning strain or from embarrassment- he couldn't tell. Then her eyes settled on the curve of his mouth, and almost immediately narrowed. "What are you smiling at?"
The effect of what was probably supposed to be her accusing tone was lessened by the huskiness in her voice.
Ichigo did his best to straighten his lips, but he could still feel the smile in his eyes. Not bothering to clear the huskiness out of his voice, he spoke. "Nothing; I was just amused by your new look."
Slowed down by drowsiness, Rukia looked confused at his words, and didn't have time to react when, in answer to her unspoken question, Ichigo reached a hand up into her hair and shamelessly tousled the already messy locks.
Rukia made a noise of surprise and pulled back immediately, moving to slap his hand away. "Ichigo!" she squeaked.
Ichigo laughed; an unusual, unconstrained sound. Rukia seemed to pause at this. For a brief moment, time seemed to stand still as their eyes met, Rukia's small hands wrapped around Ichigo's arm in an attempt to keep it away from her hair, while his other hand had lowered onto her hip.
But the moment was gone as quick as it had come, as Rukia's eyes were lit up by a mischievous glint and she suddenly reached down to visciously ruffle Ichigo's orange spikes, giving him no time to react. The raven-head laughed vindictively while he struggled halfheartedly against her.
As the two playfully attacked each other, a light atmosphere seemed to settle into the room and Ichigo felt like his heart had lifted. A sort of carefree attitude that he'd never been too familiar with took over him, and everything else faded into the darker careens of his mind for the moment.
After their laughter started to die down, Rukia started to pull away and climb off him. Ichigo watched her as he did, not interfering, his eyes softening slightly as he saw her wipe her teal pajamas clean of imaginary dust; a belatedly self-conscious gesture that he didn't fail to recognize.
He pulled his gaze away then, pushing himself up to a sitting position and reaching a hand up to run through his orange hair absentmindedly. "That was an interesting way to wake up." He commented with a half chuckle, peeking through his peripheral vision at Rukia almost timidly. I'm not sure I mind it, he added mentally.
Rukia turned to him and offered a sheepish smile. "It was an accident." She told him, though the light gleam still present in her eyes made him think that, maybe, she hadn't minded either.
Ichigo leaned back and rested on his hands, when he noticed the white sheet that lay on the carpet by his legs, unnoticed before then by him. He looked at it quizzically and then down at himself, registering the fact that he was still wearing last night's attire. He quickly gathered that he must have passed out on the floor while Rukia was in the bathroom, though he could find no recollection of having taken a sheet to cover himself with. He reached down at gingerly picked up the blanket, fingering the smooth material while inconspicuously glancing over at the petite raven-head currently occupied with riffling through her suitcase.
"So," Rukia had started saying, without looking at him. "Do you want to get breakfast at the hotel's buffet or do brunch later?"
Ichigo, the sheet still held between his fingers, answered from the floor. "Brunch sounds better. The line for the buffet will probably be brutal."
"Yeah, I figured." Rukia straightened up with a small smirk, holding some clothing items and a bag of toiletries in her arms. "That gives me time to freshen up and pack everything with plenty of time left over to enjoy that bed."
Ichigo scowled at that, purposefully rubbing at a sore spot on his neck. "Sure, rub it in to the guy who slept on the floor."
Her smirk widened. "You know I won the bed fair and square. Besides, shouldn't you be the gentleman who lets the lady have the bed anyway?"
Ichigo felt himself smirk back in response. "I would, if there were a lady to speak of."
The cushion smacked him square on the face. He tossed it back but only hit the wall beside Rukia's head, and she just glanced at him haughtily before stepping towards the bathroom. She paused a moment to look at him over her shoulder, and say, "You can always try the bed for a few minutes while I use the bathroom."
Ichigo opened his mouth to reply that he would, thank you very much, but stopped as he thought of something. "Hey, wait, I didn't get to even shower last night. I deserve to use the bathroom first."
Rukia appeared to consider this. "I suppose you're probably right. I should…"
"Of course I'm- Oi!" Even as he jumped to his feet and dashed to the bathroom in a few, long strides, he wasn't fast enough to stop the raven-head before she had slammed the door behind her and disappeared inside. "Rukia!" he growled, banging one fist against the door for good measure. The only response he received from the other side was the sound of the shower beginning to run. He clicked his tongue in annoyance and muttered a few less-than-flattering words, before resignedly heading back to the bed and flopping down on it.
-x-
Rukia hummed a cheery tune as she stepped out of the bathroom, her seeming innocence soiled only by the sly look in her eye as she turned towards the queen-sized bed. "Alright, the bathroom is free for your use now."
Ichigo lifted himself on his elbows and looked at her with a quirked eyebrow. "Gee, thanks."
The orange-haired man grabbed only a couple of clothing items on his way before going inside the bathroom. However, he stopped just as he stepped through the threshold and looked at his temporary roommate. "Hey, Rukia," he called out to her. She turned to look at him expectantly. Ichigo looked down at his feet as he spoke. "What are you doing tomorrow?"
Rukia raised a delicate black eyebrow. "Tomorrow's Christmas." She said, as if she was informing him of something he didn't know. When Ichigo still looked at her waiting for a response, she shrugged. "The same thing I do every year." When Ichigo still watched her, she added, "Spending it with a friend."
"Oh." he nodded, the action seeming to be more to himself than for her. "Right."
Rukia looked at him suspiciously. "Why do you ask?"
"Uh, no reason." he said hurriedly, before reaching up to scratch behind his ear. "My family has plans to come over, and I figured since I was already cooking, I might as well set an extra plate. I mean, it's not like it'd make much difference anyhow. And I'm sure my younger sisters would love to have someone other than me and my dad around for a change. You know, how girls are…Err," he continued to scratch awkwardly, looking anywhere but at her. "But you already have plans. That's fine too. It's no big-"
"Thank you."
Ichigo stopped his ranting long enough to look at Rukia, who was now looking down at the carpet beneath her feet with a soft expression that she usually reserved for particularly cute rabbit-themed items. The man visibly relaxed after hearing her words.
Rukia turned away to hide her face, and spoke quietly but still loud enough to be heard. "I'm sorry I can't go. But thank you for inviting me, Ichigo." she said meaningfully. She didn't turn back to see him, but she heard him make a noncommittal grunt, followed by the sound of a closing door.
Once she was sure he was gone, Rukia let her knees give way and let herself fall unto the bed, breathing deeply. A plethora of memories flashed through her mind, of countless years, but each so similar to the last, they were nearly indiscernible: a small raven-haired girl sitting by a richly decorated Christmas tree, shivering due to the cold but having no one to notice and give her something to warm herself with; in her hands, a crudely, self-wrapped shoebox, containing her most precious stuffed rabbit in it, with the words 'For Byakuya' written in red crayon on the paper.
Rukia blinked herself away from the cold memories, and her eyes strayed to the bathroom door behind which she knew Ichigo to be. He had just asked her to spend Christmas with him and his family…
She closed her eyes and attempted to push down the uprising of too many feelings. He had no idea how much his offer had touched her.
Her hands tightened at her sides before she loosened them again. A part of her had ached to accept his deceptively warm offer, but a larger part of her had stopped her. She didn't know yet what exactly her relationship with Ichigo was turning into; she wasn't quite sure that she was ready for something like that just yet…
After Ichigo exited the bathroom and the two set to work on packing all their things, then later when they left together for brunch before checking out of the hotel; both continued on with each other as they normally would. Aside from the occasional lingering glances, or the accidental touches that they hesitated to end, neither addressed any of the situations that pressed against the backs of their minds.
About the situation with Aizen and Ichigo's revelation; about the changing feelings between them. All aspects were left untouched, many words left unsaid. An unspoken agreement between the two of them to enjoy the holidays before accepting other impending concerns.
For the moment, they just needed a break, and each respected that, as well as welcomed it.
-x-
Christmas Day
7:06 AM
Ichigo cracked his eyes open as the sound of someone seemingly trying to knock his front door down reached his ears. He turned in his bed, feeling his every nerve scream in protest as he looked at the time and threw himself back with a groan.
The obnoxious knocking continued, and now he could hear a voice accompanying the knocks as well. He took his pillow and pressed it over his face, half hoping it would drown out the sound, half hoping it might suffocate him.
Once, just once he wished that he didn't have to deal with this…
"IIIII-CHIII-G- HMPH!"
The tall man standing outside Ichigo Kurosaki's door hunched over, clutching his stomach in pain after having received a well-placed kick in the gut by a very irritated-looking orange-haired male.
"Jesus Christ, Dad!" Ichigo glared down at the man without an ounce of pity. "The neighbors will file a complaint before noon!"
"We tried to tell him." A female voice cut in, sounding pretty bored with the situation. "But you know how he is." Her voice was followed almost immediately by another, more innocent-sounding one.
"He gets so excited when we come to see you…"
Ichigo looked over his father's crouched form and smiled as he saw the two girls, now standing at his shoulder-height and not looking anything like children anymore. "Karin, Yuzu." He greeted each of his sisters. "Good to see you again."
Karin, the darker-haired one, offered a lazy smirk. "Not bad seeing you too, Ichi."
-x-
"I told you-" growled the red-headed, heavily tattooed man from across the counter at the kitchen area. "A ninja could never beat a pirate!"
Rukia, bent over by the sink as she peeled a potato, answered in a knowing voice. "Pirates are dirty, drunken, gold-diggers. They don't have the finesse that is required for being a proper assassin. A ninja would have them dead before they could blink."
Renji, still wearing his thick black jacket -as Rukia refused to turn the heat up despite the freaking blizzard outside- scowled at his friend's back. "Pirates are not dirty drunks." He said, clearly offended. "They were survivors. Show me any ninja who could last a week in a ship at sea. Pirates are better sailors, better fighters, and better people!"
The argument may have been more adequate at a high school boy's locker room, but after many years of friendship, it wasn't rare for Rukia to get herself roped into these kinds of quarrels. Of course she didn't care deeply about either pirates or ninjas, but she could never pass up an opportunity to make her redheaded friend tick.
And if she was being honest, after years of making it her tradition to spend every Christmas with Renji like this, she couldn't say that it was something she abhorred… She actually rather enjoyed it, but she'd never say that out loud.
"Ninjas are specifically trained in the art of killing." She said calmly, turning away from her work and cleaning her hands on the festive apron she wore. "They have stealth, speed, skill and agility that is unsurpassed to this day. There is no way that a pirate would ever, could ever, defeat a ninja!"
"Argh!" Renji threw his hands up in frustration, fuming as he glared.
Ah, Christmas.
-x-
"So, my dear delinquent son," Isshin Kurosaki, the elder Kurosaki began to say as he fingered his stubble-covered chin thoughtfully. "Why don't you tell your family the reason that you have yet to find yourself a wife."
Ichigo's fingers twitched on the black horse that he held over the chess board. He could hear Karin snicker from where she sat on his couch watching television. Setting the horse down in a rather aggressive gesture that made the remaining pieces on the board rattle, he looked up at his father with a scowl. "None of your business, Old man."
Isshin gave him a sly look, absentmindedly moving a rook a couple of paces. "Oh? Are you enjoying the bachelor life that much? I never would have pegged you for a gigolo, Ichi- mmph!" The older man never got to finish his statement as the remote control that Ichigo had snatched away from his sister flew into his face.
"Shut up." Ichigo commanded. "Did it ever occur to you that maybe I just like being single?"
Isshin's face -reddened by the impact of the remote- fell instantly. "Oh no…I know what this is. Forgive me, Masaki!" The brown-haired man bellowed up to the heavens -or ceiling, in this case. "Our son is ga-"
"Shut up, goat face!"
In the time it took to blink, Ichigo had launched himself over the chess board and at his father, the two becoming a tangled heap of limbs as they wrestled on the ground.
Yuzu, emerging from the front door with bags of gifts in each arm, gasped as she saw the scene.
"They're at it again." Karin said indifferently, fixing her ponytail a little higher on her head.
The light-haired girl shook her head, internally wondering why her family could never act like all the other normal people she saw on TV. "Dad, leave Ichigo alone." She said in her sweet, but commanding voice.
Isshin, currently trapped in a headlock from his eldest, gaped at his daughter. "Me? Why would you accuse your poor father of causing anything? Ichigo started it!"
Yuzu set down the bags by the small Christmas tree in the corner and set her hands on her hips sternly. "But you usually do something to upset Brother before he attacks you."
"I didn't-" Isshin started to mutter before Ichigo shoved his head into the floor.
"Yes you did!"
Isshin's mumblings were muffled as the two females in the room shook their heads.
"Every year." Karin commented.
Yuzu nodded, before looking at her sister and smiling earnestly. "At least it never gets boring."
"Mmm." Karin mumbled, though the corner of her mouth twitched a bit.
-x-
Renji flinched and nearly fell off his chair as Rukia flicked a piece of leftover chicken in his face. The raven-haired woman laughed at his expression before gathering their emptied plates from the table and heading back to the kitchen.
Despite her resolve not to turn the heater 'high enough' by some people's standards, and their constant verbal -and sometimes non-verbal- arguing, the atmosphere always seemed warm when she and Renji celebrated Christmas. Rukia pondered this vaguely as she dumped the dishes in the sink then walked back to the dinner table. Before she could reach it though, she found the tall redhead blocking her path. He wore a Cheshire grin that never meant good news.
Rukia immediately narrowed her eyes in suspicion. "What are you-?" She cut herself off as she noticed his wiggling eyebrows -well, the tattoos where his eyebrows should be, she amended-, and she let her gaze go up, where his arm hung in the air above them. "Where on Earth did you get a mistletoe?" she asked, knowing full-well that she had none in her apartment.
"A smart man always carries ammunition." He said, the catlike grin still firmly in place.
"Well you can forget about it." Rukia said flatly, folding her arms over her chest.
Renji pouted -or did his own version of a pout, which looked horribly wrong on his far-from-childlike face. "Oh come on. Don't be such a sourpuss. One smooch won't kill ya'." He raised his eyebrows suggestively.
Rukia rolled her eyes in apparent exasperation. "You won't let this go, will you?"
Renji merely smirked. Finally, she sighed. "Fine. Just one."
With that, he lowered himself onto her height -which took quite some lowering-, and puckered up. He closed his eyes, and just as he did, Rukia shoved her hand, palm-open, into his unsuspecting face and shoved it aside -hard. Before he could protest to loudly, she had pushed herself unto her toes and quickly given him a peck on the cheek.
Then she walked away, leaving him dumbfounded, to the living area. After a moment, Renji looked back and hurried after her, a light blush rapidly fading away.
"See? That wasn't so bad." he said, catching up to her and flopping down unto the couch.
Rukia answered by pulling on her lower eyelid and sticking her tongue out at him from the other side of the couch.
"Now maybe if you weren't such a prude all the time, you might just get yourself laid once in a while."
"You ass!" Rukia punched his arm, before giving in to a good-natured chuckle and easing herself back.
"So, Rukia," Renji started, after their soft laughter subsided. "How'd it go with Byakuya at that Christmas party?"
Rukia blinked, fixing her eyes on him. "How did…You knew he was going to be there?" she asked accusingly.
Renji shrugged and smirked. "I'm not the boss's number one suck up for nothing."
"And you didn't warn me?" she gaped disbelievingly. "What kind of a friend are you?"
"The kind that thinks it might be fun to have you squirm a little every now and then."
Rukia gave him a good glare. "You're lucky everything turned out okay, or else you'd be dead now."
"Hmm?" Renji's interest was peaked. "So what happened?"
Rukia went on to explain the whole of her encounter with Byakuya, right up to the part when her whole internship had been discovered, to his surprising reaction. She only, conveniently, left out the part where her brother had interrupted her rather intimate moment with Ichigo.
Ichigo…
Remembering that night inevitably caused Rukia's thoughts to drift to the orange-haired man. She could only wonder what he was doing then.
-x-
Ichigo's eye twitched for what felt like the hundredth time since that morning. "Dad…" his tone was low and dangerous.
However, far from intimidated, Isshin grinned cheekily. "What? Don't look at me like that. All alone in this big ol' house of yours, I imagine you need entertainment. You should feel honored that I decided to bestow upon you the gift of movies from my own, personal and prized collecti-"
The rest of the statement was cut off as the pack of inappropriate DVD movies flew straight into his face.
Ichigo could feel a vein throbbing almost visibly on his forehead. He knew not to expect any better from his Dad, even so, each Christmas -and birthday, and any other excuse for present-giving he could find- the man always found new and creative ways to embarrass his eldest son. If he was being honest with himself, this year Ichigo had to admit had been one of the less awful ones. He'd try to remember that the next time he felt the urge to pound his old man senseless…Which would probably be within the next few minutes.
Ignoring his father's whines of protest about his 'ungrateful spawn', he stood up and gathered the far-more-sensible gifts given to him by his sisters (a gift card from Karin, which according to what she wrote on the card said 'I care enough not to give you generic money, but not enough to think of a real gift'; and an old-fashioned hand-knitted sweater from Yuzu, which he put on despite it being a far cry from anything he'd ever normally wear, and was rewarded by her huge smile and shining doe eyes). Neatly placing the gifts back under the Christmas tree to get again later, Ichigo started away from the living room.
"Ichigo?" Yuzu called after him. "Are you going somewhere?"
"Just going out back for a sec. I could use a little fresh air." Ichigo answered, glaring meaningfully at his father, who gleefully made it a point not to acknowledge his presence at the moment.
Slipping through the sliding glass door, Ichigo stepped out into the cold air and recoiled at first, but got acclimated quickly and, sliding the door closed behind him, went out into his very small, unlit backyard. Despite his protests and shows of annoyance, the day had seemingly flown by; it was already dark outside. After looking over his shoulder in an overly-paranoid gesture, Ichigo slipped his cell phone out of his back pocket.
He flipped the device open and its bluish light illuminated the night faintly. He stared at the screen for a few moments that felt like minutes, his thumb hesitating over the buttons. He contemplated just putting the phone back in his pants pocket, but grit his teeth and dismissed that plan. He steeled himself and opened up the phonebook in the menu, rapidly scrolling down the list of names until he landed on one in particular.
Ichigo edged his thumb towards the green 'call' button, but pulled it back at the last minute. Taking a shaky breath that came out like smoke in the winter air, he looked back at the screen and finally decided on a simpler course of action.
He pressed the 'send message' option, and began to type as soon as the blank screen came on, not giving himself a chance to back out.
-x-
Rukia felt her phone buzz in her pocket just as the Grinch's heart began to grow on the screen of her small TV. Taking her eyes off the movie, she extracted her phone from her front pocket and flipped it open, pausing only for a moment in surprise to see who the message was from before pressing the button to view it.
Message from: Ichigo
Received at: 6:22 PM
Hey, Santa called. He said he's missing an elf, I thought of you.
Rukia swallowed an indignant gasp. She narrowed her eyes at the screen of her phone, though she could feel the corner of her mouth twitching upwards. Before she moved to punch in a reply, she averted her gaze sideways.
Renji was completely immersed in watching the Grinch saving Christmas, he barely seemed aware that she was even there. She took the moment to slide off the couch and head to the kitchen, where she hoped onto the counter before writing back her reply.
Very funny Pumpkin man. We'll talk in Halloween.
She barely had to wait for his response to light up the screen.
Hey, I could die my hair. There's nothing you can do about your 'little' problem.
The raven-haired woman huffed, despite the fact that no one would hear her, though she was still fighting back a grin.
Shut up. Maybe you can work with your hair, but I doubt you can afford the plastic surgeon that you need for that face.
Rukia waited a couple of minutes, keeping her cell phone neatly balanced on her lap, before it buzzed again with his reply.
Funny, I was under the impression that you liked my face.
She paused, momentarily taken aback by his uncharacteristic boldness. Then she shook her head, attributing his sudden courage to the advantages of texting.
Sorry to disappoint you then.
His response was quick, almost as quick as she knew it would have been if he had physically been there.
Who said I was disappointed?
Rukia smirked as she replied.
So you're not?
He answered quickly.
Why should I be?
She was just as fast.
Don't answer my question with a question!
Ichigo's response seemed nonchalant, she could almost picture him scoffing and lifting his chin in the air in a show of male pride.
Whatever. So how's Christmas going?
Rukia smiled a little before writing back an answer, giving him a vague recount of her day. After that she asked how things were on his end, and read on in amusement as he described in apparent annoyance what his supposedly crazy family had been doing to him. She laughed out loud a couple of times, particularly when he described in what she assumed to be an exaggerated manner his father's conduct.
Your family sounds fun.
She wrote to him, after a while of reading his anecdotes. Her head was filled with images of dinner tables filled with a large, warm family as she had seen in many movies. She tried to imagine Ichigo in this picture, and tried to come up with what she thought his dad and sisters would look like. She could picture him pretty clearly, seemingly sulking in his chair on the dinner table, while his excited relatives hovered over him restlessly.
Easy for you to say, you haven't met them.
Came Ichigo's reply. Rukia couldn't help but roll her eyes. Despite his bravado, it was evident even in the bits and pieces that he recounted that Ichigo cared for his family. She was just about to tell him as much and maybe tease him a bit for it, when she gave a startled start at the sound of Renji's voice.
"There you are." he said, appearing around the counter and moving to face her. "Sneaking out in the middle of How The Grinch Stole Christmas? What kind of a friend are you?" He looked at her accusingly, then his eyes zeroed in on the cell phone in her hands.
Rukia tried her best not to look like a kid caught with his hand in the cookie jar, but she was relieved to see Renji only raised an eyebrow and looked back at her.
"Well," he said casually. "I'll be on the couch watching Jack Frost if you decide to get back into the Christmas spirit." With that, he turned on his heel and left, not asking any questions.
Rukia released a relieved breath, grateful for Renji's lack of inquiring. When he was out of sight, she typed to Ichigo:
I have to go now. Talk to you later.
His message came quickly.
Okay… Merry Christmas, Rukia.
She felt the smile on her lips as she wrote back.
Merry Christmas : )
After clearing the screen, Rukia started to shut her phone when she remembered something. She hopped off the counter and peeked over to the living area, seeing Renji sprawled on the couch as he watched TV. Once she was sure he was too engrossed in Jack Frost to pay attention to her, she walked over to the furthest corner of the kitchen and leaned against the wall as she dialed a familiar number, hesitating only for a moment before calling.
He picked up on the second ring.
"Rukia." his emotionless voice greeted her.
"Hello," she spoke in a low voice, careful not to be overheard. "Brother." He didn't say anything, and after swallowing thickly, she went on. "Merry Christmas."
She heard him grunt slightly in response. "Yes, to you as well."
She knew she wasn't going to get any more than that, so she didn't press the matter. The purpose of her call was a different one. She hesitated, not wanting to be out of place with her brother, but quickly tossing aside her anxiety, determined to go through with what she wanted.
"Byakuya," she said seriously, and almost heard him pause on the other end. "I need to ask a favor." she said, keeping her voice even and strong, despite her lowered volume.
A heartbeat later, Byakuya spoke, a wary edge in his otherwise stoic tone. "What is it?"
Rukia took a deep breath and lowered her voice even further, until it was just above a whisper. "It's about a man named Sosuke Aizen…"
-x-
Ichigo stood staring at the screen of his cell phone for a long time, feeling his lips quirk upwards in amusement at the sight of the 'smiley face' typed by Rukia.
"God!"
A hiss broke through his calm reverie and he turned to look at the owner of the voice. His dark-haired sister was stomping outside, wearing a scowl that could have rivaled his as she glared at nothing in particular and rubbed her arms.
"It's freezing out here!" she complained as she trudged up to him. "What are you doing?" she demanded, her breath visible with every word.
Ichigo shoved his phone back into his pocket so fast that Karin raised a quizzical eyebrow at him. Before she could formulate any questions, Ichigo shrugged. "Nothing, just getting fresh air." Even as he spoke, he rubbed his hands together, only then taking notice that his fingers felt like frozen popsicles.
"In this temperature?" Karin replied skeptically.
"I wanted a break from old Goat face." he tried instead, and was relieved to see that she seemed satisfied with this answer as she nodded understandingly.
"Well you've been gone for nearly an hour. You better get back inside, Yuzu and I can't handle Dad by ourselves forever." Karin said. "Besides, he's starting to talk about how you need a break because of 'male needs' and-"
"That's enough," Ichigo cut her off before she could finish the statement. "I'm coming back inside now." He hurried back into the house in the time it took Karin to blink.
To his dismay, he was met immediately by his father…flying straight into him.
"Argh! What the-" he started to yell as he wrestled his father on the floor, barely catching the sight of Karin nonchalantly stepping over them and walking over to Yuzu on the living room.
Isshin interrupted him with his booming laughter. "My son! Back from taking care of business already?"
"Shut up you crazy old man!" Ichigo forcefully shoved his father's face away from him and proceeded to kick his body off himself. "Why would anyone even think that?"
Jumping to his feet with a stamina that should have been impossible for a man his age, Isshin grinned. "Ah, but there aren't many reasons for a man to brave the cold night for an hour like that. And if my fatherly intuition is correct…"
Ichigo was rolling his eyes as he sat on the floor, not even bothering to stand up again.
"You're hiding a woman from me!" Isshin concluded triumphantly.
"WHAT?"
"Aha! Right again! Score another one for Daddy!" Isshin was cheering to himself. "So when do I get to meet this lovely lady? Is she a looker? On a scale from one to-Mmmph!"
"SHUT UP!" Ichigo roared, red in the face, before launching himself unto the older man mercilessly. "I'm not hiding any woman, you pervert!"
"Oh, Masaki! How our children treat their poor father!"
A/N: That was a very lighthearted chapter, kind of to counter the last heavy chapter.
Ichigo and Rukia were apart for like half the chapter, but I still liked writing it. Introducing Ichigo's family at last and showing more of Renji and Rukia's relationship was enjoyable^^ And before I get any complaints about it: no, I did not get moody and suddenly switched to RenRuki or plan to start a love triangle. Yes, there were RenRuki scenes here that could be interpreted romantically, but if you look closely you'll notice the total lack of tension between them. I've always thought that RenRuki has the building blocks necessary to become romantic, but their chance was killed by IchiRuki. I wanted to show that potential present in their interactions here. Renji is supposed to be Rukia's best friend but I hadn't shown a lot of their bond until now, personally, I liked it :P I also liked the texting between Ichigo and Rukia. I think it's cute:3
To: love-mikan, Kuroi-cho-tsuki-shiro, Hunny sempai, inthenameofninny, Black Sun Upon An Icy Sky, AiyaZen, 1999, I am L, VioletCrush, MN, shnizlefritz, falconrukichi, AnimeFanx3, Crazy Otaku Fangirl, dArkAnge04, ali6220, IchiRuki2.0, Rukia Martinez, Poisonfish, TruantPony, Prizz, Aizawa Li Syaoran, Vessalius, novicestar, and Sa Rart
Thank you all for taking the time to review! Reading your reviews is definitely the highlight of my day :D
So, not a lot happened in this chapter, but fear not...Things will heat up again soon with both Ichigo and Rukia and the Aizen plot. Especially next chapter...*giggle-giggle-snort* I'll leave you with that! Haha! Until next chapter :)