Bleach Fan Fiction ❯ The Positive Thinking Test ❯ Log 2 ( Chapter 2 )

The Positive Thinking Test

Spoiler Alert! People who only watch the Bleach anime might find themselves unwillingly enlightened on aspects of the later plot. At the expense of sounding ominous, read this chapter at your own risk…

Part 2

Trust is an essential component to the Positive Thinking Theory.

Being in a relationship is not necessarily all fun and games. If one were to think in a more realistic sense, one would be inclined to agree that kisses and hugs can only send you to the proverbial peak of euphoria (more accurately dubbed La-la Land) for so long. It is left to outside factors to dictate the length of time you are allowed to remain in La-la Land.

Often, other pressing engagements will tug people away from time with their loved ones. Indeed absence does make the heart grow fonder, but one must be careful not to allow too big a dosage of this `absence' to fall into play.

For be warned that too much fondness (in theory stemmed from too much absence) can sometimes give rise to scary side-effects. Resentment. Jealousy. Suspicion. Insecurity… Of course, these feelings are only natural. When one wants to be with another person, but isn't allowed enough time to get to do so, one does sometimes get a tad disconcerted.

In such cases, trust and optimism go hand in hand in overcoming dilemmas. To trust someone is to understand someone. Knowing your partner well and having faith in their discretion is essential to getting through tough times. The earlier you acknowledge that his or her life does not revolve around you and you alone, the easier it is to cope with changes. And on that note, we can now focus our attention once more on our orange-haired observee to test our Theory (discussed in chapter 1, refer back for in-depth coverage) on a situation in which his trust in his female counterpart might be challenged.

Scenario Two - Trust Factor (Part A)

Kurosaki Ichigo is very frustrated.

It is dark and the hour is late. He lies sprawled atop his bed doing what every healthy male high-schooler would be liable to do at this crucial stage in their lives.

His homework.

Yes. The bane of every young life. Tedious, yet frustrating in its essentiality. His eyes narrow in contemplation at the writing pad before him. The history assignment he is to complete taunts him with its difficulty.

If one were to wonder, the late hour in which he chooses to complete his term paper certainly has nothing to do with the extreme laziness that most people label him with.

No, that is not the case at all. Because Kurosaki Ichigo is far from lazy. One does not maintain a top-fifty placing in the school's academic ranks for three years straight by simply being lazy. Ichigo is merely special. He can see dead people. He is a creased-browed, insomniac, semi-delinquent student by day. And a powerful supernatural-menace-purifying temporary death god by night…

But this night is an exception. This night, his brows are creased more than usual.

Because year-end examinations are coming up. And as a result, he has a mound of notes and study materials to go through aside from the one he is currently working on. Hollow-bashing has been pushed to the side for the time-being in favour of harsh mental labour. But that's just as well. His hollow-bashing partner, Kuchiki Rukia be away for a few weeks. A lack of distractions is much needed in this important time.

Ichigo knows he will miss her, regardless. The boy will no doubt sulk more than normal in her absence. Not to mention brood depressingly…

In private of course. He'd sooner choke himself dead than let anyone see him lose his confident air over this. There are certain levels of pathetic that one simply does not sink to. Appearances need to be maintained after all.

In any case, he knows that her prolonged departure from his world has to do with it being the anniversary of Shiba Kaien's death. Of course, Ichigo of all people understands the need to pay respects to one's deceased loved ones. Or so he claims...

It isn't like him to feel insecure about anything. But he cannot help but acknowledge the resemblance he bears to Kuchiki Rukia's first object of affection... Ichigo frowns.

And shakes his head harshly. He should hit himself for even thinking like that.

They had established a long time ago that though his resemblance to Shiba Kaien had indeed drawn her attention to him initially, it is his own unique traits that have kept it there ever since. She by no means thinks of him as a replacement for her ex-vice-captain. And be believes her. For what would Kuchiki Rukia be if not honest?

The girl couldn't lie to save a bunny.

No. Rukia probably just has a thing for spikey hair. And Ichigo knows his orange tresses are a far cooler shade of colour than Kaien's could have ever been.

But then there is also the other unsettling thing. Ichigo knows Rukia will, from now on, be spending a lot more time on assignment with Abarai Renji (fittingly dubbed pineapple-head by Kon the possessed plushie). And Ichigo is not ignorant of the likelihood of Renji seeing Rukia as more than just a friend.

The heated rivalry between him and pineapple-head had been apparent the day they first met. Since then, the two have competed on many levels on various occasions. Each trying to prove their superiority over the other. We shall not go into the details of competitive male egotism for now. (But if you must know, it has mostly to do with… the size and length of things, to put it more or less simply. Complicated psychological workings of the male brain is another theory altogether. So we'll skip that for now…)

In any case, it has been Ichigo that has emerged victorious from most of their bouts. So should he feel at all threatened now by Abarai Renji?

Of course not. Renji might have spikier hair, but Ichigo has a bigger sword. He can't help the swell of masculine pride that stems from this thought. He'd let Zangetsu do the talking should Renji overstep his boundaries.

Ichigo continues with his essay with new-found vigour.

He thanks Kami-sama for making Rukia the level of oblivious that she is. Even if Renji did try something, she would likely not even notice. Matters of the heart are not her forte. (Ichigo is unaware of the hypocritical nature of his own thoughts here.)

And so with insecurities sated, he continues with his task.

End Scenario

Moral: Distrust is troublesome. It's easier to do the opposite.

From this we can see how Ichigo's understanding and trust in Rukia has allowed him to twist his thoughts in a more positive direction, rather than dwelling on the negative side of his situation. And this has managed to give him peace of mind.

We shall explore the intricacies of Rukia's thoughts with respect to this scenario next time.