7:06 PM

Ichigo's brown eyes fixed on the clock mounted on the wall across from where he sat on his couch. He kept a hand -tightened into a fist now- over his right leg as it pumped up and down rapidly; his other hand remained stretched out over the back of the couch, the fingers drumming nervously over the leather. In front of him, the small television set showed some weather girl announcing clear skies for the following weekend to an inattentive audience.

She's late.

The thought kept running over Ichigo's mind as his gaze remained locked on the clock. Rukia had said she would come over at seven o' clock after he'd emailed her his address -just as a precaution though seeing as she had already been to his house once-.

Maybe she had gotten lost, or maybe she was stuck in traffic -a lot of people went out to meet with their friends and family on New Year's Eve-, or perhaps her car had broken down, and she couldn't come after all…Or maybe she had simply changed her mind and decided she didn't want to go to his house after all…

But what if that wasn't it at all? What if she had gotten sick, or worse? Had she been in accident? Maybe he should call to make sure she was alright… But if she hadn't been in accident, then she'd undoubtedly laugh at him for calling to ask, and she'd probably continue to bring it up just to annoy him the rest of the evening…If she decided to show up at all, that was.

7:07 PM, the clock read now.

Ichigo was just wrestling himself over whether he should reach for his phone and give her a call or just wait a little longer, when he was abruptly brought out of his thoughts by the sound of knocking.

He all but ran to the front door and yanked it open.

There was a moment when the petite woman on the other side sucked in a sharp breath of surprise at the door flying open so fast, and in which Ichigo stood rooted to the spot, his voice mysteriously caught in his throat.

Then, after the moment passed, she spoke up. "Hey, Ichigo."

The moment he heard his name come from her mouth and saw the smile curling her lips, all at once his anxiousness drained out of him as if by magic. The jumbled mess of thoughts in his mind quieted and the knots in his stomach became undone as he looked at her. She was dressed simply; wearing a zipped up lilac sweater, black leggings and a scarf, along with winter boots and a white beanie over her midnight hair. For all her simplicity, the way her smooth creamy cheeks turned slightly pink in the cold and her violet eyes seemed to sparkle in an amethyst tone -lighter than he'd ever seen them-, still made his breath catch in his throat for an instant before he shook himself out of his daze.

"Rukia." He said simply, his lips curving into a natural smile.

"So are you going to let me in or wait until my fingers start to turn purple?" Rukia's smile shifted into a familiar smirk.

Ichigo felt himself rolling his eyes as they quickly slipped into their comfortable interactions, though he couldn't quite erase the slight smile from his features. "Try not to break anything." He commented offhandedly as he stepped aside to let her pass.

With nothing but a slightly exaggerated eye roll, Rukia walked into the warmth of his living room and started to unwrap her scarf from around her neck, then casually threw it over the back of the couch. Ichigo couldn't help but notice how at ease she looked, standing there in the middle of his house. Even though she'd only been there once, briefly, she still looked as comfortable as if she were stepping into her own home.

"Hungry?" Ichigo asked, kicking the door shut behind them and walking up behind her, shutting out his inner musings before he could start thinking too much.

"I could eat."

"Great." Ichigo said with somewhat exaggerated cheer, which made Rukia immediately turn to give him a suspicious glance. "I hope you're in the mood for instant noodles then…Because that's all we have."

His father was a pig, and while he was at it, so was his sister Karin. Have them both over for one day and he was bound to expect a cleared out refrigerator. And going to the supermarket the night before New Year's eve was about was productive as attempting to start his own harvest in during winter…in the middle of the city.

"Instant noodles just happen to be an entire food group as far as I'm concerned." Rukia smirked, and Ichigo felt his lips twitching upwards in response before he started towards the kitchen.

-x-

Thanks to the miraculous wonders of instant food, it was only fifteen minutes later that Rukia found herself comfortably perched on the countertop at Ichigo's kitchen, contentedly slurping the precooked noodles.

She acted oblivious to the pair of brown orbs that were currently glaring at her form.

When the male noticed that his silent approach was being ignored, he cleared his throat. "Is there any particular reason why you're sitting on the counter?"

Rukia finished loudly slurping one of the long noodles, licking her lips before looking up casually. "Is there any particular reason why I shouldn't?" She raised an eyebrow slyly.

Ichigo's own eyebrows appeared to twitch. "Yes! How about the fact that I put actual food on this surface, that I eat!"

"I don't see the problem."

"The problem is your behind on my counter!" Ichigo put an exaggerated amount of emphasis on the words, which seemed to have no effect on the listener. "It's unsanitary!" He declared.

"Stop being so squeamish." she replied flatly, starting to take her chopsticks back up to her mouth before adding an, "Idiot.", for good measure. "Relax and eat your food."

Ichigo set his face in a stubborn scowl, the bowl of untouched food in one hand and chopsticks in the other. He stared at Rukia for a good thirty seconds without seeing the slightest twitch of response from her. Finally, holding back a sigh of defeat, he grudgingly turned around and slid unto the countertop beside her, his tall frame barely requiring for him to hoist himself up.

The raven-haired woman hid a smirk behind her the arm that held her chopsticks, and continued eating silently, Ichigo following her example beside her.

"So," Ichigo started after a minute or so. "I'm surprised you're here."

Rukia peered at him from the corner of her eye, frowning. "You…?"

"I mean," he amended quickly, gulping down a mouthful before continuing. "I'm surprised you didn't have anything planned for New Year's. Most people would be out drinking with friends and family. Not…" He deliberately trailed off, motioning to the warm bowls they each held, before looking at her, then down at himself.

Not eating instant noodles with someone, he was trying to say.

Rukia felt herself smiling slightly in response. "Well, the alternative is being home by myself eating leftovers. This isn't so bad in comparison." She smirked slightly at the last part.

Ichigo only gave her a slight scowl in response before relaxing again. "But seriously, you didn't have any plans with anyone, not even that stuffy brother of yours?"

She chuckled dryly at that. "New Year's -or any type of celebration actually- with my brother means a room full of grouchy businessmen parading around their trophy wives while abusing alcohol."

"Sounds like fun."

Rukia threw him a look that said, you have no idea. A heartbeat later, she spoke up again. "What about you?"

"Hmm?" Ichigo looked sideways at her.

"Why aren't you spending any quality time with your family?" she specified.

Ichigo didn't hesitate. "One holiday is more than enough quality time with my father, thank you."

She laughed at that, before shaking her head slightly. "You love them a lot, your family. Don't you?"

Ichigo seemed slightly taken aback by her question. He swallowed one last gulp, then set his bowl and chopsticks on the counter, leaning back on his arms. His expression was faintly thoughtful. "Well they're all insane. My dad especially. But, they're my family." He turned his eyes away, fixing his gaze on the ceiling. "You love them anyway, right?"

Rukia watched him, feeling something tug at her heart; whether it was because of his words or something else. She couldn't tell. He turned to her and spoke again before she had a chance to.

"Isn't it like that for you?" he asked lightly. "Your brother seems to have a stick shoved pretty far up his a-", the last of his sentence was cut off by a sharp glare from her. "But still, he's your family. Am I wrong?"

Rukia turned her gaze away, staring at nowhere in particular. "I guess you could say my relationship with Byakuya is…complicated. But he took me in, he's my only family. You're right. I do love him."

Ichigo was staring at her with a frown pulling at his brows. He straightened up slightly to look at her. "Your only family…?" He asked, almost softly. He seemed to regret his question, because not a second later he was shaking his head and saying, "I didn't mean to-"

"It's okay." Rukia interrupted smoothly. "It's nothing I mind talking about. Byakuya adopted me as his sister when I was eight years old. I never knew my parents."

-x-

Ichigo couldn't stop his face from turning into an expression of surprise. He quickly shook himself out of it though, carefully fixing it into a neutral expression. He didn't say anything, waiting to see if she would go on.

She did, but not how he'd expected.

"You look a little constipated, Ichigo." she snickered. "I can see the questions in your eyes. You don't have to try so hard to hide them."

Ichigo snorted. "Shut up, I'm not that interested."

"Really?" Rukia lifted a thin eyebrow. "Because I never suggested you were interested."

He silently cursed himself for walking into that one.

"You can't really miss something you never had." she said after a while, still clutching the now empty bowl now on her lap. Ichigo's eyes were on her quickly, but he remained quiet. "My years in the orphanage are actually some of my fondest memories. I made good friends there. I guess you could say, they were my first family."

He couldn't help but notice the hints of a smile tugging at her lips, as her eyes became slightly unfocused, momentarily lost on a memory only she could see.

Orphanage…The word echoed around in his head. It conjured up images of sad children; kids forced to face the world without the ones meant to guide them through it.

He thought of his mother, and the pain of losing her. He wondered what it would have been like to never have known her, but dismissed the notion quickly. He knew at once that would go through the pain of losing her a thousand times over if it meant one more day with her.

But the way Rukia spoke…"You can't really miss something you never had."

He studied her profile, but her features were relaxed as ever. He could find no trace of a lie, or hidden pain in them.

Finally, to break the silence, Ichigo asked, "But you were adopted then, right?"

She seemed to snap out of a trance as she turned to him, but only a moment passed before she nodded. "Yes. Byakuya took me in as his sister…He was barely in his mid twenties at the time."

"And he raised you by himself?" Ichigo couldn't keep the surprise coloring his tone away. He found it hard to imagine stony-faced Byakuya Kuchiki bringing up an eight year old in his home. The image did not compute.

Something in the way Rukia's face fell slightly told him that perhaps his surprise wasn't unfounded. "More or less." She answered him. At this, he raised an inquisitive eyebrow, which earned him a sigh from the raven-head. "Part of it was Byakuya…Part of it was a torrent of nannies and maids. He was too busy to have time to dedicate to a child, and many commitments to maintain."

"He had a commitment to you." The words left Ichigo before he could ponder them. He couldn't stop the twinge of resentment he felt towards the other male; even if it wasn't by blood, he had a responsibility as a brother. What kind of-?"He did what he could." Rukia cut off his train of thought, her voice surprisingly strong…defiant.

Ichigo was taken aback by the intensity of her rebuttal. But then he felt his expression soften as he met her eyes. Behind the bravado in her violet hues, he could see the swirling emotions that she tried to cloak. He was left silenced.

When she spoke again, her voice had gone back to its calm tone, but it seemed more hollow than before. "I understand that he couldn't be there…I am still grateful that he took me in. He had no obligation, and it was more than I could ever have asked for."

There was no accusation in her eyes or in her voice. No anger or blame. She truly believed what she was saying. And above all else, Ichigo could read one emotion in her eyes…

Loneliness.

Ichigo felt his throat constrict as he imagined such a lonely childhood, while simultaneously feeling his resentment towards the man grow exponentially. As his resentment bubbled up into anger, he let his face morph into a scowl and he scoffed loudly. "That's bullshit."

"Wha-?" The female's eyes flew wide open, round as saucers in shock. Whatever response she had expected from him, it wasn't what she got.

"I don't care what 'commitments' he had." Ichigo went on. "His first duty was to you as a brother."

"Ichigo…" It seemed the name escaped her lips involuntarily. She stared at him, wide-eyed, seemingly unsure of how to respond to his words.

The orange-haired man turned away then, looking away from her surprised eyes. He heard her put down the emptied bowl on the flat surface of the countertop, and he could literally feel her as she started to reach out to him. He didn't move, ready for her fingers to make contact with him…

And they did. Just not in the way he expected.

"Oi!" he screeched out, more out of surprise than any real pain as he rubbed his arm for show. "What now?" He growled, giving her a good glare.

It was for nothing though, seeing as how she was facing forward now, away from him. But he noted how her posture had relaxed into a casual pose, her hands at either side of her on the edge of the countertop. "That was for being such a sap." She remarked plainly.

"A sap?" he bellowed disbelievingly, not missing the way her lips had curled up at the side.

"You heard me." She said, a playful smile in her voice.

Ichigo snarled, crossing his arms over his chest. Though inwardly, he smiled. That flash of loneliness had gone from her eyes.

The orange-haired man turned a minute later at the sound of Rukia hopping off the counter. He looked at her curiously and saw that she was picking up both their discarded bowls and utensils and walking up to the sink. Just as her hand reached for the faucet, Ichigo hopped down in one fluid movement and was beside her in the blink of an eye.

"I'll handle that." he said quickly, using his body to lightly bump hers out of the way and reaching for the faucet himself.

"No that's fine. You cooked so I can-"

"They were instant noodles, Rukia. That hardly counts as cooking."

"Still, I don't mind washing the dishes."

"It's my house. I can wash my own dishes."

"And I already offered to do it for you."

"I don't need you to do it for me."

"I'm being nice! Can't you appreciate a favor?"

"You're being annoying! I already told you I'd do it, you're supposed to be the guest here, so just go sit in a corner and wait for the host quietly like you're supposed to!"

"You-!"

In the midst of their latest argument and rising voices, neither of the two present were aware of the knocking sound coming from the front door.

"Fine! If you want to do the dishes so badly, here!" The raven-head emphasized her sentence by throwing the dripping sponge she had managed to get a hold of moments earlier, the faded yellow rectangle landing square in the face of the man beside her.

"Why you-!" The orange-haired man growled, grabbing the sponge in a firm grip, before a spark lit his eyes.

Rukia noticed it too late, and didn't have enough time to stop him before he squeezed the soaked sponge right into her midnight hair.

"You're going to pay for that!" She was just moving to turn on the faucet and take advantage of its rapidly flowing water, but was stopped short by the sound of a door slamming open with such force it practically seemed to have smashed against the wall. "What the-?" she squeaked out, turning to look in the direction of the adjoined living room, when Ichigo's body blocked her vision.

He stood with her back to her, his frame having gone rigid.

"Where you expecting someone?" Rukia asked from behind him, her eyes trying to look around the man and towards the living room.

"No." Ichigo answered, his voice hard.

A jolt of alarm shot through Rukia, her hands tightening at her sides suddenly at the realization.

Someone broke in…

But then she felt her eyebrows furrow. Who would be so carelessly loud when breaking into a house…?

She was just about to voice her thoughts in a whisper to Ichigo, but instead looked up at him in surprise as a curse flew out his mouth.

"Shit."

"What is-?"

She didn't get a chance to finish her question, as a broad-shouldered, tall figure appeared on the threshold connecting the kitchen and living room.

Her eyes widened, then the man took a step forward…

-x-

Fuck me. It was all Ichigo had time to think as he caught sight of the widening grin on the man before him.

After that, he went into auto pilot.

"ICHIGO!"

His father was on the floor barely an instant after launching himself with impressive speed for his age towards him.

"What the hell are you doing here, Goat-chin?" Ichigo asked as he pinned the older man to the floor.

Behind the two men, the petite raven-head watched the odd spectacle with creased eyebrows, but her stance had relaxed significantly. It would seem Ichigo at least knew the man…

"What do you mean what am I doing here? I'm your father! You are the fruit of my loins! I have a right to visit you once in a while!" Isshin cried out from under his son's hold.

"No you don't!" Ichigo retorted. "Especially if you don't even call first! And much less if you break into my house, you lunatic!"

"Oh! Your words wound me, you'll regret them when I'm dead!" he continued to wail.

Ichigo groaned. "Like you'd ever die! You'll probably outlive us all just to pester us for the rest of our existences!"

They probably would have continued for a while, if not for the quiet "Umm…" that reminded one man of another's presence, while it alerted the other for the first time.

Oh no… Ichigo felt himself pale.

Isshin's ears perked up like a hound dog's and his eyes lit up with a gleam that could mean nothing good.

"I feel like I'm missing something." Rukia stated.

"Do my ears deceive me?" Breaking against Ichigo's hold like it was nothing, the dark-haired male was abruptly on his feet and his brown eyes were fixed on the third person occupying the room. "They don't!" he exclaimed, his eyes widening. "It's true, there is a woman in my son's house!"

Rukia's eyes widened in belated realization.

"This is…" she muttered, her eyes going from the brown-haired man to the one with bright orange spikes. "Your father?" she asked at last, looking at Ichigo. Something in her tone must have given her away, because the next instant Isshin had wrestled himself free and to his feet, Ichigo being too slow to stop the man from appearing by the woman's side with uncanny speed.

"So he's talked about me!" Isshin declared, before leaning in closer to inspect Rukia's face.

To her credit, she barely even flinched; instead she blinked her large eyes in surprise at the sudden invasion of personal space. A moment later, the man had stepped back, a serious look on his face that made the woman slightly nervous. But then he broke out into an ear to ear grin and held a thumbs up. "I approve!"

"Huh?"

Rukia's confusion was promptly ignored as Ichigo snapped to his feet and was yelling in his father's face. "What are you talking about, old man?"

"Oh you don't have to play innocent with me, my boy." Isshin was still grinning as he slapped his son's shoulder and gave him a wink. "Daddy's very proud that you got a girl like that! I was starting to have my doubts about you, but I should have known the Kurosaki genes would not fail! You were merely a late bloomer-"

"Shut up, crazy old man!" Ichigo cut him off before he could go any further, feeling his ears getting hot.

Before he could get another word in, his dad was already back to Rukia's side. "Why, forgive my son's terrible manners, I'll have to introduce myself." Isshin was saying. "I am Isshin Kurosaki, and what is the name of this lovely lady?"

Rukia looked hesitantly at his now outstretched hand, almost as if expecting it to grow teeth and bite her any minute, but then she relaxed into a smile. "I'm Rukia Kuchiki, pleasure to meet you Mr. Kurosaki. Don't worry, I am well accustomed to your son's dreadful manners and personality." She spoke brightly, taking his hand and shaking it.

Isshin's eyes lit up like stars at her words, and he shook her small hand with both of his, his enthusiasm pouring through, both people seemingly unperturbed by Ichigo's enraged "What?" somewhere in the background.

"Such a well-spoken young lady!" The older man cried.

Rukia made a show of giggling behind her free hand as she received praise, before answering with her own. "I never thought such a nice, handsome man could have been Ichigo's father! I can hardly even see the resemblance."

Isshin looked like he was seconds away from pulling the petite woman into a bear hug, when the ignored young man decided it was time to step in.

"Hey!" he stepped between his father and Rukia. "I'm still here ya' know!"

"Rude as ever," the petite woman lamented. "This is what I have to deal with."

Ichigo openly gaped, while Isshin simply turned to Ichigo and struck his fist over his head. "Haven't I taught you anything, boy? It's not polite to interrupt a conversation." He turned away from his dumbfounded son to Rukia. "I apologize on behalf of my son, Miss Rukia! I promise that not all Kurosaki men are as bad as he makes us look!"

"Okay, that's enough!" Ichigo burst, cutting off the reply that was just shaping itself on Rukia's smirking lips. He stepped in between her and his dad again, making sure his tall frame hid them from one another as he whirled on his progenitor, folding his arms over his chest and leveling a glare at him. "Just what are you doing here? Don't you and Yuzu always throw a party at home for all the neighbors in New Year's?"

Isshin straightened up and crossed his arms to match Ichigo's pose. Tossing his chin in the air, he started to answer. "Yes, even if you've never bothered to show up." Ichigo didn't move, and so he went on. "But," he lowered his head, and stuck out his lower lip. "The twins didn't come to spend the day with me this year! They're at some party with their college friends and they left their poor old father all alone!" He wailed pathetically, launching himself forward to hug the younger male.

Ichigo tried to wrench himself free without much luck, his scowl deepening. "Let go, Goat chin! Karin and Yuzu are twenty-years-old, they can spend New Year's wherever they want to!"

"Aha!" Isshin abruptly let him go, pointing an accusing finger at him. "So it is your fault that my sweet girls have abandoned their daddy! You've poisoned their minds!"

"I have not!" Ichigo retorted. "You drove them away yourself by being the big idiot you are!"

"That's no way to talk to your father, you delinquent son of mine! Ah, Masaki!" He looked towards the ceiling. "Do you see this? Your son is so cruel to the man who raised and cared for him!"

"Not this again!" Ichigo ran a hand down his face, frustration clear on his features. He snapped his gaze to look behind him as he heard laughter beyond the cries of his father. "What are you laughing at?"

Rukia looked up at him with an almost devious grin. "Have you seen your face right now?"

Suffice it to say, the evening was not going as Ichigo had planned.

-x-

Roughly forty-five minutes later found Ichigo relegated to the corner of his own couch, while Rukia and his Dad occupied the rest of it, currently immersed in his father's latest story about Ichigo's first visit to a beach…And how he had lost his trunks in a wave.

Some time ago, the orange-haired male would have jumped in to stop his dad from telling an such story, but after a few dozen times of trying and being pushed away by both the man and the rather fascinated woman, he simply gave up and settled for sitting quietly, attempting to drown out their voices with the sound of the television. Anyone looking upon the scene might have said he resembled a grumpy child at a family reunion; which was almost accurate, except that he was the one actually related genetically to the man who was currently engaged in what was surely a great conversation for the small raven-haired woman.

"Really Rukia," Isshin was saying. "You should have seen his face! He was red as a strawberry as he ran out and jumped into his mother's arms, crying and with his little tiny Ichigo out for the whole beach to see!"

Ichigo could only groan as he caught the end of that particular story above the sound of the TV. He turned up the volume, to no avail, as it was already well past the point that he ever considered acceptable, much less tolerable.

Rukia's light laughter in response only served to aggravate him further. He turned his head ever so slightly to the side, seeing the slender female sitting in between the two Kurosaki men. Her violet eyes, lightened to lavender by the color of her sweater, were wide and seemed full of wondered as she listened attentively to each story. Her laugh at his expense was unrestrained, and despite his greatest efforts, he felt his muscles relaxing accordingly to the sound.

"I never realized Ichigo was such a crybaby before!" Rukia grinned, her body half turned towards the man in question, purposely allowing her words to reach him easily.

"I was a kid!" Ichigo jumped to his defense predictably. His defenses fell on deaf ears.

"Oh he was a crier alright!" Isshin boomed mercilessly. "You should have seen him when he took his first karate classes! Ichigo here would always get his ass handed to him by a girl."

"Tatsuki could probably knock you senseless, old man!" The orange-haired man retorted resentfully. "She doesn't count as a girl!"

His father turned his eyes to the woman beside him. "See the violent reaction?" He spoke in a lowered volume, cupping a hand at the side of his mouth as if he was sharing a secret. "He still hasn't gotten over that. You know he's always scowling around to compensate for his soiled manhood." The man nodded to himself as he finished, as if he had just shared some piece of invaluable wisdom.

Ichigo just about launched himself onto his dad for what he felt was a well-deserved beating, but had to stop himself because Rukia was still in between them. He settled for a dark glare and gritting his teeth almost audibly.

"Look at that!" Isshin pointed at him. "He's doing it right now!"

Whatever Rukia's surely amused reply would have been was cut off by the muffled ringing coming from the pocket of her sweater. As she took out the cell, she glanced briefly at the display before standing up and excusing herself.

"I have to take this call," she said, the smile leaving her features. "Be right back." she added hurriedly, before stepping away towards the kitchen.

Ichigo could only catch one word before she was out of earshot: "Brother."

His brows knitted closer together as he stared after her, catching only glimpses of her form as she paced behind the counter they'd been using as a bench earlier.

He was snapped back to the man beside him by a careless blow to the side of his head. "Agh! That was a cheap shot!" He accused immediately, back to glaring at his father.

The dark-haired man merely sat back and his face relaxed innocently. "There's no such thing as a cheap shot, son. You should be prepared to deal with whatever comes at you, expected or not."

Ichigo frowned at the words that he suspected carried a fair amount of double meaning with them. "Hmph." He grunted in response, turning to look at the TV before them.

Father and son sat in a rare comfortable silence, veiled only by the sounds of an old western film, for a few peaceful minutes. The silence was broken by the elder male, who did not turn to look at Ichigo as he spoke. "She reminds me of Masaki." He said simply.

His calm words contrasted with Ichigo's exalted reaction. "What? Rukia?" he asked incredulously, whirling to face his dad. "She's nothing like mom!" He declared, remembering his mother's gentle face framed by her long, honey-colored wavy hair; then thinking of Rukia's starkly different appearance and countenance.

"She makes you smile." Isshin countered easily, not appearing the least bit put out by Ichigo's reaction.

At this statement, Ichigo backed down, feeling completely taken aback.

"I noticed it right away." His father continued, still not facing him. "Even if you yourself haven't. Whenever she's in the room, you can barely keep the stupid grin off your face."

"That's not…" Ichigo started to argue, before he realized it was a futile attempt. Almost of their own volition, his eyes wandered back towards the kitchen area, seeking out her slight figure from within the shadows.

Isshin was studying his face now from the corner of his eye, not missing the way Ichigo's gaze settled calmly after an instant; he could only guess on whom. He wondered vaguely if his son had any idea of how his brown eyes lit up like ambers at the mere sight of the woman.

"Just try not to have your head up your ass too long." Isshin said with a scoff.

"What are you-"

"People like that don't come around every day." He cut off Ichigo's question. "Sometimes they don't stick around forever either."

Ichigo's face had twisted into confusion, and there may even have been a flicker of fear passing through his features just for a split second. He started to open his mouth, no doubt to ask his dad what he meant exactly, but never got the chance to voice anything.

"Rukia!" Isshin exclaimed, his childish antics and delight firmly back in place.

"Everything okay?" Ichigo asked as casually as possible, meeting her gaze.

Her eyes held his for a moment longer than necessary, before she offered them both a smile. "Yes, just my brother calling to wish his best." she explained quickly. Her eyes remained on Ichigo as she said this, and in them he could see that she was not letting on everything, but that now was not the time to talk about it.

"Ah, what a nice sibling relationship!" Isshin said almost dreamily. "I bet this idiot has not even bothered calling his little sisters today-"

"I talked to them this morning, goat-face!" Ichigo retorted, easing back into their usual interactions.

The two males went back and forth for a little while longer, before Isshin suddenly straightened up', putting a hand over his belly. "I'm starving!" he declared suddenly. "Don't you have any food here?"

Ichigo scoffed loudly, rolling his eyes. "You ate it all the last time you were here."

Isshin made a show of pouting dramatically. "After so many years of feeding you, this is how you repay your father? How ungrateful children are nowadays!"

"Oh zip it, you old fart." Ichigo said exasperatedly. "If you want food, go somewhere else. You aren't going to find it here."

"I think I will." Isshin agreed, to everyone's surprise. The man jumped to his feet and started towards the front door.

"Eh?" Ichigo looked at him in confusion. Usually it took hours of kicking and screaming (literally) to get his old man to leave any place. The turn of events was unexpected to say the least.

Isshin seemed unperturbed, stretching his arms over his head and yawning widely. "Yeah, I think I'll just fill up and head home. I bet Karin and Yuzu will have started feeling sorry they left me by now and will want to meet me at home. I can't disappoint my girls."

"I doubt they'd be disappointed." Ichigo muttered under his breath.

"Have a good time then!" Isshin started to wave at them as he grabbed the jacket he'd tossed on the floor carelessly. "Try not to miss me too much, eh?" He sent a wink towards Rukia. "And don't let my idiot son get out of line, Rukia!"

"Don't worry!" The petite woman replied from beside Ichigo. "I'll make sure he behaves!"

"That's my girl!" Isshin said, almost proudly. "What a fine daughter I have now!"

"Your…?" Ichigo felt his eye twitch. But before he could even start to chew out his dad for getting too familiar, the man was out the door and gone. Rubbing his nape as he released a breath, he said, "That was tiring."

"That was fun." Rukia responded, and his attention snapped to her. He was about to tell her that she had to be kidding, but the glint in her eyes was answer enough.

"You both have problems." he settled for saying.

"Yes, and that would be you." Came her effortless comeback.

-x-

When Ichigo's father's impromptu visit was over, Rukia was suddenly rather aware that she and Ichigo were alone in his house. Sure, that had been the case before, but without the loud addition of his dad, it was like they were more alone than ever.

She chanced a look up to see Ichigo's expression, and judging by the way he stuffed his hands in his pockets and looked down at his shoes, she guessed his train of thoughts wasn't too far from hers.

"So what do you want to do now?" Ichigo broke the silence.

Rukia thought for a moment before looking up at him. "Are there any wide windows in this house?"

"Huh?" Ichigo looked at her oddly. "Wide…enough for what?"

At that, she quirked an eyebrow and smirked.

So it was that five minutes later that Rukia was carefully stepping on the window ledge of Ichigo's room, taking a firm grasp of the frame as she turned her body, all the while a very tense Ichigo barked at her things that went from, "Do you know what you're doing?" to "What the hell? Are you demented?"

"Oh shut up." Rukia said as she accommodated herself standing up, half of her body sticking out of the window, her head only a few inches below the one-story-high roof.

She felt herself grinning as she took a moment to calculate, before having her right hand let go of the top of the window frame.

"Hey!"

She heard Ichigo's slightly panicked shout just as she reached out and grabbed a firm hold of the edge of the tile roof. "Relax," she called out to him from her spot. "I know what I'm doing." As she reassured him, she felt a gust of chilled air hit her back and tussle the locks of hair resting over her nape. A moment later, she reached up with her other hand and had them both over her, hanging on to the roof.

"Rukia," Ichigo's somewhat distant voice was calling. "Rukia what are you trying to do? Rukia!"

The raven-head ignored his calls as she took in one breath, testing her grip on the mercifully dry tiles for a moment. Then, without further warning, she pushed herself off the window edge with a small jump, using her arms to heft her body up to the roof in one impulse. She landed like a cat on the slightly inclined plane, grinning to herself with the knowledge that after so many years, she still had not lost her touch.

A second later, she turned one her hands and knees and looked over the edge, unfazed by the new height. A bright-haired head had popped out of the window and was looking up incredulously. "You're insane!"

She laughed, enjoying the cold wind that picked up. "Come on! Are you going to stay down there all night?"

Ichigo's expression changed into one of horror. "You're not suggesting I go up there too, are you?" She only grinned back. "You're crazy! There's no way in hell I'd do something so stupid."

Rukia let a moment pass before she shrugged lightly. "Alright, I understand. Fear of heights is pretty common, even though this isn't all that high, but I understand the idea. It's okay that-"

"Oh no," Ichigo's scowl became more pronounced by the second. "You're not goading me into doing this."

"Suit yourself then." Rukia said simply, then turning away without another word and starting to rise to her feet. "You can just wait inside." Her conceding tone successfully hid the forming smirk on her face.

It took about two seconds before Ichigo screeched from below. "What the fuck are you doing standing up? Get down you idiot!"

Rukia bit her lip to keep from laughing out loud, not making any move to indicate that she'd heard him or that she planned on doing as he said.

Three, two, one… Just as she finished the little countdown in her head, she heard the telltale sounds of Ichigo's considerably larger body fighting its way out the square opening, along with a fair amount of cussing.

A second later, Rukia was crouching again and was looking over the edge at the man currently struggling to stand as she had on the window ledge, having trouble working his long limbs through.

"Changed your mind?" she asked, not bothering to keep the teasing note from her voice.

"Shut up." he grumbled in between curses. Once he was through, it didn't take him long to get to his feet and reach up to grab onto the edge of the roof.

He hesitate then, Rukia could almost hear him deliberating. But not too long after, he hefted himself up with as much force as she had, only his landing wasn't quite as graceful. He didn't quite calculate the right distance, and found himself with his torso up on the tiles while his legs dangled uselessly over the edge.

Just as another flurry of curses followed, Rukia took hold of his arm with one hand and the back of his jacket with the other. Using the strength that betrayed her tiny body, she pulled him up and, with their combined efforts, Ichigo managed to land fully on the roof of his house.

"Damn it," the man huffed, holding himself up on his elbow and looking up at the deceivingly strong woman who still had her firm hold on him. "I'm not doing that again…ever."

Rukia, panting slightly with the effort, beamed at him. "That's what you say now." She let go of her grip on his jacket, keeping a hand lightly placed on his arm, and turned to lie on her back. "Take a look."

Ichigo followed her example and went to lie flatly on his back, blinking once before looking up above him.

It was a clear night; hadn't snowed the past two days and there was barely a cloud in the sky. And to their good fortune, the full moon was out. A seemingly perfectly round orb, radiantly white in the middle of the black sky. Ichigo took in a small breath as he was met with the spectacle, uninterrupted by any buildings of lamp posts as he looked up from the rooftop. "Not bad." He breathed out.

"Not bad at all." Rukia said, a smile in her voice.

Ichigo chuckled low in the back of his throat. "Is this something you do often? Sneak onto rooftops at night?"

Rukia gave a small laugh before replying. "Not anymore. I did when I was younger though, at the orphanage. It was always either rooftops or climbing up trees…I guess I've always liked high places."

"That's weird." Ichigo commented unthinkingly. Tearing his eyes off the natural satellite, he looked sideways at Rukia. "You're weird."

"Look who's talking, Sir Fruit Head." she retorted, though her tone was more playful than mocking.

"I guess we're both weird then." Ichigo conceded, feeling his lips pull up. "I could think of worse things."

Rukia let her expression ease into a content smile, before looking back up to the sky. "You know, I stopped climbing when I was adopted. It wasn't proper behavior for a Kuchiki." she confessed, not entirely sure why, but somehow it felt right. Her gaze became just mildly melancholic. "Sometimes I wonder how things would have been like, if it had been different."

Ichigo gave her a sideways glance and found her looking straight at the moon, its milky light bathing her features.

"If I hadn't been adopted by Byakuya; or if I hadn't been adopted at all. Or if…" she trailed off. Or if I'd met my parents.

After she was silent for enough time that Ichigo figured she wasn't talking anymore, he spoke up. "It's okay to wonder sometimes."

Rukia's gaze flickered over to him, not having expected him to say anything.

"I…" Ichigo paused as something seemed to lodge itself in his throat. He cleared it before going on. "I wonder too. If she…"

Your mother, Rukia understood immediately.

"But I learned, after some time," he went on. "That it doesn't matter how much you wonder. Or how much you wish it had been different. We can only continue forward…It's what they would have wanted, after all."

Rukia felt herself smiling again, her chest filling up with warmth at his words and, a sense of admiration. Despite everything that he'd gone through, he still found the will to move forward- not for himself, but for the ones he loved.

"And," Ichigo started once more. "Along the way you find other people. More who will make you realize that there are reasons to keep moving forward. Sometimes you even…" He trailed off, and Rukia wondered if he had stopped talking. She turned her head to face him, and found his eyes on her. Their amber shade looked dark in the night, reflecting the silver light of the moon, and her own face. "…You even find a reason to start smiling again."

Rukia felt her breath hitch as he said that, his eyes locked on hers. His gaze carried an intensity mixed with softness that made something flutter in her stomach.

"I didn't know you were such a romanticist, Ichigo." she said at last, folding her hands over her flat stomach in an attempt to control the fluttering feeling.

"Heh. Don't get used to it." Even as he said it, a smirk lifted his lips.

-x-

They talked about everything and nothing.

Ichigo talked about his family, telling her about his younger sisters. They were twins, he said, fraternal; and they couldn't be more different. Yuzu, older by nine minutes, was a sweet, softhearted girl; she took on the role of the mother in their house, cooking and cleaning for everyone. While Karin was the cynic; she had grown up as a tomboy, always hanging out as one of the guys and more interested in sports than girly magazines, and like Ichigo, had never hesitated to fight back or stand up for whatever she felt was right.

Rukia had smiled at his descriptions, picturing their small but warm family interacting in their younger days.

Rukia talked about her life in the orphanage. How she had a small group of friends that spent almost every minute together. How, when she was older, she would tell stories to her friends and the younger kids, to help them go to sleep on particularly rainy nights. How one of her friends, Renji, was still with her today.

Ichigo could hear the fondness of those memories in the way she spoke, and knew at once that she kept those days close to her heart.

He told her of silly things. How in middle school he was bullied for the unusual color of his hair. How in high school he had to work extra hard for his grades because his teachers all assumed he was a punk. How once he'd graduated he'd spent six months in the police academy, then went off to college and changed his major twice before landing on communications.

She told him that she'd picked up writing as a hobby to amuse herself after the boring activities she had to attend with her brother. When they got home, she would always hurry to her room and write about the events of the day, like a diary, only she focused on everyone but herself; how a certain businessman's toupee had slipped to the side of his head during dinner, how a woman's dress had ridden up and showed her ripped panty hose…Small things like that had soon filled pages that she'd go back to read on days when she was stuck in the house with nothing to else to do.

On and on they went sharing anecdotes about their days in high school and college; funny, embarrassing, downright painful…And then some.

It was no surprise that the two had lost track of time when the first fireworks started lighting the sky in different hues.

Surprised, Ichigo sat up and looked at his wristwatch, only to confirm that it was, in fact, midnight. "Well I'll be damned."

Rukia straightened up along with him and looked around his shoulder to his watch, checking for herself. "What do you know…Happy New Year, Ichigo." she said, watching with interest as the colors of the fireworks reflected dully upon the watch's glass surface.

"I didn't realize it was so late already." He scratched a spot behind his ear absentmindedly, before resting back on his hands and looking up to watch the show of pyrotechnics.

"Time flies by in good company." Rukia said smugly.

"Really? How would you explain tonight then?" It didn't even bother him when he received the light punch on the arm for that.

They sat quietly, listening only to the sounds of the fireworks and the celebrations in the nearby houses; it all seemed faraway, somehow. Like they were encompassed in their own little bubble. When all the celebrations started to die down, Ichigo spoke again.

"We should be getting back inside now."

"Right." Rukia mumbled, her eyes on the moon once again.

Ichigo shook his head as he started to get up. "Come on, it's still going to be there tomorrow night."

"What?" Rukia brought herself out of her daze to look at him in confusion.

"The moon." he pointed up for emphasis.

"Oh…" Rukia understood, but frowned. "Not really. Tomorrow, maybe. But not in a couple of weeks. It isn't always there." Maybe that's what makes it so beautiful, she added thoughtfully to herself.

"But it is always there." Ichigo said. "You just can't always see it."

And then his eyes were on hers, and she felt like they were piercing her very soul in that moment with their dark brown intensity. Swallowing, she tilted her head to the side. "Then we should still enjoy it when we can."

Rukia felt as if she was about to drown in his gaze. Her heart pounding and her breath nearly failing her, she was on the verge of standing up and running to him with an urge that she hadn't known she could feel, anything to alleviate the current pain in her chest.

But before she could even move, he had turned, crouching low, before dropping down, hanging on by his hands. She crawled hurriedly over towards the edge, in time to see him manage to swing his legs through the window and make his body follow after them, disappearing inside in an instant. As soon as he was gone from her sight, Rukia hastened to go over the edge as well, dangling on her hands only a moment before she swung herself down through the window.

Short as she was, the landing down was not as easy. The distance being greater for her to cover, she had to make sure her momentum threw her far enough that she wouldn't hit her head on the window sill as she came down. She managed that much, but still would have landed on her behind if not for a pair of strong arms that had seemingly awaited her and held her up as soon as she came through, stabilizing her on the spot.

Even after Rukia had regained her balance though, the hands around her did not loosen their hold. In their proximity, she noticed that her own hands had settled themselves over Ichigo's chest. They were barely inches apart now, and she could feel the warmth of him tempting her like a blanket after the cold open night air. When she breathed in, she took in his scent, which she'd never paid much attention to but now realized she recognized as well as that of her favorite perfume. She wasn't sure what exactly the smell was, but if she had to compare it with anything, it would be the smell of a warm breeze in a hot summer's day... The scent of grass and sunlight. She wanted to crush herself into him and wrap herself in the scent, and his warmth, entirely.

When she finally looked up, she almost choked. His eyes were on hers again, and in the unlit room, they looked as they had up on the rooftop; dark brown, but somehow still bright…Smoldering. A combination of intensity and vulnerability that robbed her of her breath.

"Rukia…" Her name left his lips in a husky whisper, and she could feel a shiver run down her spine.

Then her eyes trailed over his face. His hard jaw line, his Greek nose, the slight furrow that never quite left his eyebrows, and his lips… She ran her eyes over the shape of his full lips and vaguely remembered them crushed against hers in what seemed like a long-ago dream.

This wasn't the man she had kissed, a mere few months ago that felt like a lifetime. No, this was…

He was the man who helped her at work, who scowled and complained but would do everything in his power to aid her, who rarely smiled with his lips but often showed her smiles as bright as the sun in his amber orbs, who felt he could take on the world by himself but had allowed her to know and share a part of that weight…This was the man she had opened herself up to and who had done the same with her.

He was Ichigo.

And she could think of no one else who had ever made her feel as she did just then.

Taking one of her hands off his hard chest, Rukia reached up and lightly brushed her fingertips against his face as she had once, long ago. Ichigo's eyes widened a fraction then, but he made no other move.

When she pulled her hand back, he reached up one of his own and, with a gentleness that she had rarely -if ever- witnessed on him, he brushed her hair behind her ear, letting his fingertips linger along her jaw line and sending sparks throughout her body with every slight touch.

Rukia saw the slight instance of hesitation that flashed through his eyes, before he began to lean down.

She took a sharp intake of breath, not moving as she felt him close the distance between them; the hand that she still had on his chest trembling slightly. When his lips were only a breath away from hers, she started to stand on her toes, ready to close the remaining gap…

She was met with cold air.

Rukia had to catch herself to keep from falling forward as Ichigo pulled back abruptly, stepping away from her like she was poisonous.

"What the hell are we…" He was muttering, running his hands through his hair as he paced away from her. "I can't…" His expression was tortured as he looked at her one last time, then turned away, heading out of the room resolutely.

Rukia felt a notch in her throat, and never had she found it so difficult to breathe. Her eyes followed Ichigo, seeing that he was only steps away from exiting the room, and she knew instinctively that once he was gone, her chance would be lost, maybe forever.

Making a split second decision, Rukia felt her feet carry her almost automatically, moving fast until she was suddenly right behind Ichigo. Her hand shot out and was gripping his arm in an instant, twisting him to a halt and face her again. She had only a moment to register the expression on his face, which was a mixture of pain and longing and conflict, along with something else that would have stirred something deep within her had she had the chance to ponder it before she forcefully pulled him down at the same time as she rose to the tips of her toes.

She smashed her lips against his without a second thought, and everything disappeared around them at once.

A/N: *evil laugh* Yes, yes I left it there.

Let's ignore this for a moment and say...this chapter was a bitch to write and not even for the chapter itself, but for everything around me, Rukia back in the manga made it impossible for me to concentrate on anything else. Then I was stressed out because classes start and just AGH! But finally, here I am at 3am the night before my first day of classes, finishing this...So be nice and please excuse any horrid mistakes.

chineschopsticks, Ichirukilover154, MN, Black Sun Upon An Icy Sky, ali6220, Rukia Martinez, MindlessAbandon, shnizlefritz, novicestar, IchiRuki2.0, AiyaZen, pamianime, love-mikan, Mae Snapdragon, Mokimoki-chan, MONST3R, 1999, Alyssa, thehgirl13, TruantPony, .x, BleachOrcalover13, Fire331, Poisonfish, Aizawa Li Syaoran Vessalius, dArkAnge04, and VioletCrush, thank you all so much for the great reviews!

Kudos to those of you who predicted the kiss (you know who you are *wink*wink*) and to those who demanded a kiss: rest assured, that has had no more effect on my writing now than ever xD The kiss was planned like this, so yeah...xD

I'd love to comment on a bunch of things right now, but I should have been in bed like 4 hours ago, so I'll have to leave you with this. THANK YOU FOR ALL THE SUPPORT! Hope you guys enjoyed and continue to enjoy what's to come!