WestSide Story From Hell
Chapter 13
I woke up the next morning with a slight headache. My limbs were sore and my head felt like it had a pulse. I groggily pulled myself out of bed, already dreading the morning. After what went down last night, I don't think anything would be the same between me and Rukia.
Shaking my head, I put my foot down. I wasn't going to worry about Rukia or the others and what they think. My attention was on the people who were really there for me. Nel, Rangiku, Ulquiorra…
With the new thought of Ulquiorra in my head, I felt my face heat up. Did that really happen last night?
I pulled my knees to my chest and cupped my cheeks. My ears were beginning to heat up and my heart was thumping out of my chest. I closed my eyes resisting the urge to scream just because I could.
Slipping out from under the covers, I got up and looked at myself in the mirror. Pinching my cheeks, I watched as the smile never left my face.
Perhaps, maybe today wouldn't be as bad as I thought it would be.
Of course, I would just have to be wrong. Everything would be fine actually; if it weren't for me finding out I still didn't have my car keys. Not only was I late to class, but when Rukia saw me in the hall, she full out ignored me. I couldn't help but stare at the arm that was now in a sling that I was supposed to heal.
The only response to my worried mind? Her cold shoulder.
I didn't expect anything better than that to begin with, but it kinda just hit me that this was actually happening. I could talk about it all I want, but when it happened, it made me feel like crap.
Then when I opened the classroom door, some of the students straightened up in their seats –most of them were probably apart of the Shinigami and what happened last night most likely went around. Surprisingly fast, considering it pretty much just happened; and that was pretty much how my day went. Being ignored by others, but at the same time, knowing they were right there, waiting and watching you to see what your next move was.
Even in this silent pain, I smiled knowing I taught them something along the way.
Halfway through 3rd hour, the stares and the silence were getting to me. I was beginning to feel tired and a little irritated. Shifting in my chair, I noted again for the 5th time this hour that someone behind me jumped back a little bit, making their chair slide backwards. Not many people would notice it, but after becoming slightly paranoid from that amount of people who kept reacting weirdly towards me, everything was just getting my nerves all jumbled up.
Rolling my head back, I sighed. How long was it going to be like this?
"Inoue?" My teacher called out my name. Quickly turning my attention to her I responded.
"Yeah?" I asked nervously, fiddling with my fingers underneath the desk.
"Are you okay?" She asked, clasping her hands over her arms with a worried expression.
"No, I'm fine. Really!" I started saying with enthusiasm, but began to trail off. "Actually, can I go to the nurse? I don't feel too good." I said in a soft voice, rubbing my arm. Wondering if she would say yes after hearing me try to pass it off.
"Yeah, go ahead. Let me write you a pass." She responded after a pregnant pause. Collecting my stuff, I walked up to the front of the room and stood a little ways behind her as I waited for a pass. Awkwardly shuffling my feet, she handed me a pass and I hurriedly walked out the room.
Closing the door behind me, I let out a breath, it was becoming suffocating in there. Stuffing the pass in my pocket, I decided to take a little detour before I went to the nurse's room.
Wandering the halls around the school opposite of the nurse's room, I played a little hide and seek from the teachers that were walking around. It was fun for a while, until I accidentally turned around and banged my head on a locker –obviously not realizing that I was close to them.
Shaking my head, and laughing slightly in embarrassment because of all the endless scenarios that could've happened if someone saw that, I didn't seem to notice the approaching footsteps I should've been slightly wary of.
"Hey, Orihime." Someone said, really close up to me. Turning around, ramming my back into the lockers, I put my hand over my heart, but instantly calmed down when I realized it was just Gin.
"Ah, Ichimaru. Hi. How are you…uh…doing?" I said, aimlessly trying to make a conversation. Slightly concerned for my well-being since he appeared in front of me.
"Have you seen Ulquiorra by any chance?" He asked, getting straight to the point.
"You don't know where he is?" I asked curiously. Why did he tell me he was going somewhere and not his higher ups?
"Not exactly, but I have an idea." He said, narrowing his eyes in suspicion. Tilting my head, I decided to go along with it and pretend I didn't know.
"Well, I haven't seen him. Where do you think he might've gone?" I asked, maybe, perhaps, possibly curious to where he was heading last night; with my keys.
"I think you're lying to me. You have seen him, haven't you?" He accused. Correctly, but it's not like I'm gonna tell him that.
"No!" I huffed at him. "When would I have seen him then? Do tell me?" I asked, bringing back sass and crass into my non-existent social life.
"Last night. At any time, you guys are practically glued to the hip now." He said, trying to snarl at me but failing.
"Gin, you have too much of a permanent happy face to make that expression." I responded, smirking.
"You seem a bit too innocent to have an attitude with me." He said, straightening his back in dominance.
"You have a tendency to conclude too much." I said, crossing my arms.
"You never denied being glued to the hip." He pointed out, waving his finger in the air.
"If we were glued to the hip, wouldn't he be with me right now?" I pointed out in response, putting my hands on my hips. He opened his mouth to speak, but his eyes zeroed in on my shoulder. Slightly confused, I turned to look at my shoulder when I realized some of my not yet healed skin from last night's shower was showing. Frantically adjusting my shirt to cover the spot, I smiled hesitatingly at Gin.
"You didn't get that last night at the park." He stated, reforming his playful face to his serious I-mean-business one. Slumping my shoulders, I shook my head. "Did you purposely hurt yourself?" He asked, bewildered.
"No! I–," I stopped trying to defend myself as he glared at me.
"I…I felt bad; guilty. Horrible even, and I just couldn't take everything all at once…" I mumbled, getting quieter and quieter.
"If that's how you handle a situation, so be it. But you have to get that checked," he said, grabbing me by the arm and pulling me in the direction of the Nurse's office. "Ulquiorra wouldn't like it too well, if he found out you were hurt. Even by your own self-punishment." Letting him drag me by the arm, I indulged myself in thinking about my "self-punishment". When he spoke of it, I felt as if I had done wrong.
So why was it that in my head, it didn't seem wrong?
Gin dropped me in the infirmary and soon left me alone, after once again asking to make sure that I hadn't seen Ulquiorra. Sitting on the white bed, I stared at the ceiling wondering where the nurse was. Shouldn't the nurse be here all the time, in case some klutz hurts themselves and needed immediate treatment? Losing myself in my thoughts, I didn't notice someone enter the room.
"Oh gosh! I'm sorry, the nurse isn't here right now, she was just –wait. Orihime?" They started blabbering nonsense before realizing who they were talking to.
"Good morning, Hanataro. Are you the stand in nurse?" I asked with a cheeky smile.
"Uh..something like that," he said, scratching the back of his neck, "Oh, wait! I'm not supposed to talk to you!" He shouted, jumping at least a foot in the air.
"Oh no, you're fine." I said chuckling, waving him off. "It'll be our secret."
"Oh well, I suppose…" He said, still slightly nervous.
"Good." I said, nodding to him.
"So, uh, why are you here?" He asked, looking at his hands.
"Actually, I–," Stopping myself, I thought about what I wanted to say. I could tell him about my back and have him check it out, or just say I didn't feel too good and lie down and sleep. Thinking about doing the latter, I looked at him when his eyes flickered to meet mine.
"My back." I said immediately, caught off guard because I went with my impulse.
"Your back?" He asked, taking a few steps towards me.
"Yeah, um," I started out, scrunching my eyebrows together. "I got hurt last night, and it's been sore, and…stuff?" I finished my sentence, slightly confused about what possessed me to tell him the truth.
"Here, let me take a look at it." He offered. Staring at him, I nodded my head and agreed. I laid down on my tummy on the bed and let him lift my shirt up to see how bad the damage was.
"What were you doing last night?" He asked breathlessly.
"What do you mean?" I asked, giggling nervously.
"Your back is so red, and peeling. This isn't a normal wound. How? How did you get this?" He asked, gently letting his fingertips graze around my skin.
"Accidents happen?" I wondered out loud, hoping he'd take it. I stared at him with hope he'd let me off the hook.
"Accidents are scraping your knees when you fall. Not beating yourself even harder once you reach the bottom." He said in all honesty. My throat clenched and closed up on me. It was sad, wasn't it? Having an underclassmen put me in shame when I knew he was right. Burying my face in the pillow, I tried to calm down. "You know, it's okay to not be okay, right?" He asked me. "The hardest part about not being okay is admitting it to yourself." He continued, rubbing some kind of ointment on my burns.
With my head still buried in the pillows, my eyes started betraying me and my self-control broke. I really thought I was okay with everything.
With Nel entering the healing stage,
With not being able to remember anything,
With the fact I had to choose between Rukia and Ulquiorra,
That I had to leave one behind,
That the one I saved left me behind
I really thought, in all honesty, that I was okay with it all.
With Orihime all emotional and all, I wonder if she made any of you cry yet. Just a thought. :)
I thank everyone who has alerted/favorited/reviewed this story!
ladycifer : You really know how to make me smile! Oh, and you're gonna to enjoy the next few chapters about where Ulquiorra is heading. They're fun to write!
BlessedRain : Thank you! Sorry, I'm a little late with the update though, I kinda lost the edited packet I got back... :D But I found it!
Nightkill : Oh yeah! Grimmy's totally gonna kick Ichi's butt! Thank you :)
Happy Easter Everybody! :3