Bleach Fan Fiction ❯ Until We Meet Again ❯ Chapter 4 ( Chapter 4 )

Chapter 4 - Until We Meet Again

“Deep in my heart I'm concealing things that I'm longing to say. Scared to confess what I'm feeling - frightened you'll slip away.”

- 'You Must Love Me', Madonna.

Byakuya stared vacantly at the woman in front of him. She surveyed him critically, expecting an answer to a question which he had no interest in answering.

Her lips began to curl into a sneer as he turned his gaze to the side.

"I will ask once more, Byakuya. Why did you allow that girl to leave without my knowledge or permission?"

After receiving nothing more then silence again, she felt her patience lessening. "You realize her status, do you not? Even though I will never condone your past actions regarding her and her sister, she has still been entitled the name Kuchiki due to your stubbornness. A decision that even today we must live with."

She did not wait this time for his reply, knowing fully well he would not say a word. "When will be returning?"

For the first time since he entered her room, he looked at her.  "This evening..."

The woman nodded as Byakuya bowed silently before getting up.

"Byakuya..."

The young man stopped as he looked at her wearily. Her cold eyes penetrated into his as she delicately put the cup down. "Do not try and stop what has been already set in motion. This is our last chance to return the dignity that you once took away so foolishly from us by marrying that commoner from the streets. Do not dishonor the name Kuchiki again."

"Yes...Obasan."

x.X.x

Ichigo hesitated for a moment outside his room before lightly tapping his knuckles against the door. He pressed his ears to the door, trying to discern any sounds or movements within. However after a moment of nothing but silence, his hands slowly touched the doorknob as he opened the door quietly. His face immediately turned into a frown when he found Rukia on the floor, leaning against the bed for support as she slept rather fitfully.  The window was opened, and a cold breeze was filtering through the room, causing the petite shinigami to curl up slightly. She was still in her half sleeve dress from last night and had no blanket to stave away the cold air.

He sighed softly before walking over to her. "Rukia?"

Just from her features he could tell that she had not slept well at all last night. Her eyes were baggy and she had an evident look of unrest. She muttered something when he had called her name and curled up even more, a slight shiver running through her spine.

He knelt down next to her and slowly wrapped his arms around her knees and back, pulling her up. She made a slight movement before sighing deeply and pulling herself into his embrace. He waited until she was completely asleep again before turning to the bed beside them.

'She is still as light as a feather' he mused, putting her down softly on the bed. Though he would never let her know. He grabbed the blanket from the edge of the bed and placed it on top of her. He closed the window and grabbed another blanket from his closet, wrapping her tiny body with it. For a moment, he just stood there, reveling at her as she softly nuzzled her face under the blanket. She let out another sigh before finally appearing as if she was sleeping peacefully. A single strand of hair that had been bothering her last night once more fell delicately in front of her. Ichigo smirked lightly as she wiggled her nose at the offending strand. He lifted his hand and gently pushed the strand of hair away. He finally pulled himself up when he heard a faint stirring in the closet.

He made his way over there and found Kon snoring lightly on top of some extra blankets that were kept there for guests. Ichigo's eyebrows knitted in irritation as he grabbed a clean shirt and pants, and made his way to the bathroom.

x.X.x

Rukia opened her eyes wearily, sleep still evident within her deep lavender orbs. She stifled a yawn as her eyes peaked out of the warm blanket that she had been sheltered under. She blinked a few times before realizing where she was. Her eyes widened when she realized she was in Ichigo's bed; she didn't even remember getting up from the floor last night. Yet all thoughts of how she ended up in the bed were put to the side when she sensed a familiar scent. Ichigo. It was overwhelming and seemed to be weaved into every thread of the blanket that was now covering her. She closed her eyes, a pained expression on her face. Unknowingly she clutched the blanket and brought it closer to her. Why was this harder then she had ever expected it to be.

She could hear the distant sound of the shower as she pulled herself up. Her body was still aching from sleeping on the floor the entire night. She rubbed her sleepy eyes before pushing the blanket off herself and made her way outside.

Renji was sitting at the table, eating his breakfast rather quickly. Rukia blinked in surprise when she noticed he was wearing his shinigami clothing. His eyes met hers as she walked over to him, and he knew from her expression that his suspicion was correct. She had overheard his conversation with Ichigo last night.

He sighed wearily as he put his rice bowl down, wishing for the first time that Ichigo would get out quickly to stop the storm that was brewing in front of him. He frowned slightly as he observed her sitting across from him. Her hair was completely mussed, and she looked as if she hadn't slept in days.

She suddenly turned to him, her eyebrow raised. Smiling at her inquiring stare, he leaned back slightly. “I got called from Taichou early this morning. He needs me to handle some paper work since he seems to be very busy with other matters. Don't worry, you don't have to go right now. Ichigo told me you guys were going to go see his family today. I'll come pick you up later today. Just give me a call whenever you are ready…”

Rukia remained silent as her eyes looked downward. "Maybe I can just come with you. I think its best we go now."

Renji set his cup down and sighed deeply.

"You know, I don't understand why you just don't tell him," he said quietly, concerned etched on his face as she looked at him irritably.

"Don't start this again, Renji," she muttered, placing her head on the table as she fought to stay awake. When she did not receive a reply from him, she peeked to see him giving her a scrutinizing look. She pouted slightly, "I will. It's just...more complicated then I thought."

There was a moment of silence before she looked at him again, her eyes filled with the same fire he had seen when she had entered the room.

“Why did you tell him?” she asked quietly.

 Renji blinked a few moments before realizing what she was talking about. “Oh, that. Well he asked, so, uh, I thought it would be best to let him in on what has been going on.”

 He shifted uncomfortably as he saw Rukia's cheeks flush and knew he was going to hear an earful. 

 “You couldn't lie?” she asked quietly, yet each word filled with anger. She suddenly looked at him dangerously. “Why did you have to tell him that I came here before?!”

 Renji sighed and massaged his forehead.  He was becoming weary of all of this. “Look, Rukia, you never told me what happened then so I didn't think much of it, ok? He asked, I blurted it out by accident. Besides, did he ask you about it or something?”

 Rukia groaned in frustration. “That is not the point, Renji! No, he didn't ask me, but you know very well he will when the time comes! If I wanted him to know I was here, I would have told him myself. What am I going to tell him when he finally does ask?!”

 “Maybe the truth?” Renji said irritably. He was definitely too weary of all this. “Damnit, Rukia, that guy is crazy about you and has been waiting for you all this time! You come here and then just leave without him ever finding out. You won't even tell me what happened when I asked. How am I supposed to know?”

 Rukia could feel a headache beginning close to her temple. She took a few moments to calm herself down as she massaged it gently. Renji remained silent, to which she was thankful for. She wouldn't know what she would say if he continued.

 “Look, Renji. Just please, don't tell him anything else, okay? I just want this day to be over and for me to just return to Soul Society.” She sighed in frustration and set her head against the cool table. "Everything is such a mess. I don't even know what is right anymore..." she muttered to herself.

She heard him exhale softly and set the cup down. “You know, I don't know what has been going on, but I just want you to remember, Rukia, to think long and hard today on what you want. This is your last chance and there is no going back once you return.”

 “I've already made my decision, Renji, I'm returning to Soul Society…without Ichigo.” she muttered.

 Renji stopped midway as he was getting up, watching her closely.

 Rukia averted her eyes from him and continued to stare at the table again. “I've been thinking. Perhaps it's just best if we allow Ichigo to stay here. His family and friends are here. There is nothing in Soul Society for him that would make it worth him leaving everything behind.”

 Renji snorted as he got up and put the empty plate in the sink. “What about you?”

She crossed her arm, and glared at him as he turned towards her. “You know the answer to that, Renji. I'm glad that at least some things didn't escape that big mouth of yours.”

 A small twitch appeared on the side of his face as he stared at his friend. Sometimes she just knew which buttons to push to really tick him off. But he knew right now was not a good time to start an argument. He shrugged lightly and walked towards her. “All I'm saying is this. I don't know what happened between you two to get to where you are today. I really don't. All I know is for the past five years I have seen you trying everything possible to get to him. And when I came here, I saw that it was his intention too. Yet something has happened that has just changed everything. All I ask is you think about this, Rukia.”

“I don't want to make this harder then it is for him, Renji…” she said quietly, still not meeting his gaze.

 Renji shook his head. “No, I think you just want it easier for yourself. If you had half an idea of what he felt about you, we wouldn't be having this conversation.”

 Rukia glared at him, but before she could say anything, the door to the bathroom opened. Both went silent as Ichigo appeared, and looked at them curiously when he sensed the tension in the air.

"Eh, are you two alright?" he asked curiously as he walked over to them.

"We're fine,"  Rukia muttered as she looked away from Renji.  He sighed and turned back to Ichigo, who was now sitting with them on the table.

"So..." Ichigo started, "What did you want to talk about before you left, Renji?"

Rukia's head whipped back from the window to Renji, narrowing her eyes suspiciously. Renji cheeks flushed slightly before letting out a soft cough. "Well, might as well get straight to the point since I don't have much time. You know, Ichigo, that we aren't just here for visiting, right?"

Ichigo nodded, noticing Rukia's uncomfortable demeanor at where the conversation was going.

"Well, you know that Captain had given you these past few years to stay here with your family and friends, and to let you decide if you were ready to come back with us to Soul Society or stay here."

Ichigo nodded, still remembering their agreement.

"Then you do know that we are here for your answer," Renji asked hesitantly, eyeing Rukia, who was not looking at either of them.

There was an awkward pause in which Ichigo turned from Renji to Rukia, not knowing what was going on. Why did Rukia have such a pained expression on her face? What were they hiding from him?

"Rukia..." he said quietly. She finally turned her eyes to him.

"Ichigo..." She bit her lip slightly before sighing. "I think…”

A sudden pounding of the door nearly caused the entire apartment to shake, causing the three to turn their attention the raucous outside.

"IIICCHHHIIIGGOOO!!! Let us in! Is my darling Rukia-chan inside?!"

Ichigo groaned as he looked at the ceiling. "It is way too early to be dealing with him," he muttered as he made his way towards the door.

Rukia and Renji watched curiously as Ichigo grabbed the door knob tentatively, taking a deep breath before opening it quickly, immediately removing himself from the ongoing path of Kurosaki Isshin, who had at that very moment hurtled into the room.

The man got up and looked around happily as two figures walked in behind him, embarrassment still evident on their face.

"Where iiiss sheee??!! Rukiachan! My lovely third daughter, oh how I have missed you!!"

Rukia got up from her seat and smiled. Isshin's attention quickly turned to her, and grabbed her hands. "Rukiachan! You really are here! Where have you been?! Has my son been treating you well? oooo, you stayed the night here! Excellent!" He winked with a toothy grin.

Rukia blushed slightly as Ichigo muttered angrily, yanking her hand out of his fathers.

"You almost broke my neck!" he growled at Isshin, who waved his hand dismissively in front of Ichigo.

"Nonsense, you did fine, my boy. I am so proud! You have made your father truly proud by dodging it! I have taught you well!"

Rukia's eyes lingered for a moment at Ichigo, who at that moment dove at his father, then to the two figures who were standing silently behind them. She smiled as the two girls looked over to her as well. She sidestepped Isshin and Ichigo, who were now sprawled on the floor arguing, and walked over to them.

The two girls ran up to Rukia, with one wrapping her arms so tightly around Rukia that she gasped for breath. "How are you, Yuzu? Karin?" She smiled affectionately.

The picture Rukia had seen last night did no justice to how beautifully the two had grown these past few years. Rukia mused on how they were almost her height now.

Yuzu let go of Rukia a moment later and smiled. "We are great, Rukia-nee. It's so good to have you back."

Behind her, Karin nodded. "Yeah, after you left, we got stuck again with those two," she muttered, pointing to Ichigo and Isshin, who now had each other in a headlock. She shook her head, and turned back to Rukia. "We heard you were leaving today, so we decided to kidnap you for a while and make sure that doesn't happen."

Yuzu nodded in agreement, still holding onto Rukia with a surprisingly strong grip.

Rukia smiled, "I'm so happy I got a chance to meet you both, but I really cannot stay longer then one day."

She noted immediately how both Ichigo and Isshin had stopped fighting and were listening to every word being spoken from her. She sighed and turned her attention back to the girls. "I promise next time I visit I will stay longer."

Both Yuzu and Isshin pouted, while Karin and Ichigo just stared at her. She felt her face flushing slightly, and her eyes narrowed when she found Renji in the background with a cocky grin. He coughed lightly, earning him all the attention that was before on Rukia.

"Well, if that is the case, you should spend as much of you can today here," he added, grinning at Rukia's expression. "I'll pick you up around eight this evening."

Rukia nodded tersely, remembering to have a few words with her friend when they got back to Soul Society. Renji nodded to the rest of Ichigo's family before walking towards the door. He stopped in front of Rukia, giving her one more meaningful, unspoken look before turning and walking out the door. She watched him disappear before her attention was shifted back to Ichigo's family, who were watching her very carefully. A moment of awkward silence ensued, before Yuzu coughed slightly.

"Well, Rukia-nee, we should spend as much time as possible then! We wanted to take you around Karakura since you haven't been here for so long!"

Rukia knew there was nothing else she could do. Truthfully, she had missed both girls, and it wouldn't hurt to spend some time with them before she left. She felt guilty over the promise she had made them, but there was nothing else she could really do about it.

"Yeah that sounds great, Yuzu. I'll just get ready and we can go then."

x.X.x

 

Although she had her reservation about staying any longer then she should have, Rukia had to admit that it really wasn't a bad idea after all. Spending the day with Ichigo's family made her remember just how much she truly had grown to love them. Even though Ichigo always complained about their crazy antics, she could tell how much he cared about them, and she could not help but bond with them immediately. They drove around Karakura, Rukia smiling at all the places she still remembered from when she had been here. Ichigo and Isshin sat in the front, still arguing as they picked different places they wanted to go, while Karin and Yuzu sat with her in the back, watching their endless bickering quietly.

She really wanted to visit Ichigo's old school, but the day was going by so suprisingly quick. As the sun began to set, they decided to head back to their house for dinner.

Rukia was pleasantly surprised to find that Isshin had invited her friends as well. The chaos that ensued during dinner had no bounds. It seemed Ichigo was having a yelling match with Isshin and Ishida throughout the entire night while Chad stood quietly to the corner. The girls stayed on their own end, trying to keep themselves out of way except when they needed to break up any fights that got out of hand.

The noise in the house had gotten to the point that Rukia found herself stepping out quietly in order to call Renji. He had not called her the whole day and she began to wonder irritably if he had forgotten about her. There was still no response and she sighed in frustration. The sky was not blanketed with several twinkling stars, and the moon spread a luminous glow throughout. She knelt down on her knees, trying again to get in touch with him.

"Why aren't you picking up, Renji?" she asked bitterly, before conceding defeat and slumping to the ground.
She shivered slightly from the cold air, and tried calling him again. She gasped in shock when she felt something warm wrap around her shoulders. She quickly looked to the side and found a thick jacket placed around her shoulder. She looked up and found Ichigo watching her curiously.

"Thought you might need that since it gets very cold at night nowadays."

Rukia clutched the jacket and brought it closer to her. "Thanks, Ichigo." She heard a slight rustle and knew that he had settled down next to her. She turned to find him staring out at the moon, scratching his head slightly.

She smiled lightly, instantly reminded of a time before when she saw him like this. He turned to her, and then noticed the phone in her hand. "Renji called?" he asked coolly.

Rukia bit her lip and shook her head, looking at the phone. "No, he hasn't. I don't know. I tried calling him, but he isn't picking up."

"Rukia?" he asked softly, causing Rukia to turn to him.

"Why are you in such a hurry to get back to Soul Society?" he asked, watching her carefully.

Rukia could feel her face flushing slightly under his stare before muttering something that he could not understand. She turned to find him still watching her, his brow raised slightly.

"It's just that...Nisama wanted me back as soon as possible, and you know how he is..."

Ichigo snorted softly. "Yeah I do know how he is too well. But I also know you, Rukia. Had you really wanted to stay, you would have." he added hesitantly.

Rukia continued to look at him, realizing the sadness his eyes held as he turned away from her. She felt herself unable to swallow as she felt the guilt of her actions. Renji was right, she had been acting selfishly. If she was going to leave, the least she could do was to let Ichigo know why she had to go...without him.

"Ichigo?" she said quietly, a little evil part of her hoping he didn't hear. But the irritating fool he was turned quickly.

She breathed deeply before turning her attention to her hands as she fiddled with her fingers. "Well, the truth is..."

Her words were quickly cut off by a loud ring that nearly made her jump when she felt the phone go off. She wasn't the only one as she heard Ichigo cursing slightly next to her. She looked down and breathed in relief to see it was from Renji. She quickly attended to it, trying to ignore the mutinous scowl that had taken hold of Ichigo's face.

"Renji! Where have you been?!" she muttered in irritation.

Ichigo watched as she spoke with Renji, noting how she avoided his stare and kept her conversation to such a light tone that he could barely make out the words. Yet he was able to discern where the conversation was going by the changing expression on her face. She didn't look happy at all at what Renji was telling her.

She finally noticed that Ichigo was watching her and sighed deeply.

"Ok. Let me know immediately if there are any changes then. Yes, yes, Ichigo is here with me right now." She listened for a bit and rolled her eyes at whatever Renji's response was, and Ichigo would have given anything in the world right then to know what was said. She turned off the phone and pouted slightly, staring at it.

Ichigo raised his brow, waiting for her to respond on what had just happened. Rukia bit her lip hesitantly and let out an exaspherated sigh. "They are having some problems with the gate. Its gotten a bit unstable again..." she muttered. She fiddled with the phone again before placing it in her pocket.

Ichigo watched as she rose quietly and followed suit. She turned away from him and started walking back inside. "Rukia?"

Rukia stopped for a moment and shifted her head just an inch to his direction. "Looks like I will have to take up on Karin and Yuzu's invitation to spend the night with them here."

Ichigo blinked several times while taking in the words she had just said and it took nearly every bit of will power he had not to smile from ear to ear.

 

x.X.x

Renji shifted uncomfortably as he stood in front of Byakuya. The man was way too quiet while surveying him critically.

"So, the gates are unstable once more?" he asked quietly, closing his eyes.

Renji nodded as Byakuya got up. There was a very long silence before he turned and walked towards the door. "Very well, Renji. Keep watching to see when it will be safe for Rukia to return."

Renji waited until he was sure Byakuya left before letting out the breath he had been holding in for so long. He shook his head and muttered a few words before turning to the tiny figure next to him, who had up to that point been hiding behind him.

The young shinimagi looked at Renji nervously. "Renji-san, why did you say that to Taichu? I thought we were told that the gate was safe enough for Kuchiki-san to go through?"

Renji snorted softly as he shook his head. "There was no need for me to say it. He already knew."

The shinigami stared in shock. "Then...why didn't he say anything?"

Renji just shrugged his shoulder. "I don't know. But what I do know is, that if you utter a word of this to anyone, especially Rukia, you will regret it..."

The shinigami squeaked in fright and nodded quickly, before running out the door.

Renji smirked. "Yeah, because if Rukia finds out..." He shuddered slightly.

He knew Rukia would kill him if she ever found out, but he couldn't let her come back yet... not without working things out with Ichigo. If she left Ichigo hanging, if she never told him the truth, he knew she would live to regret it.

 

To be Continued...

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A/N: This chapter is dedicated to my dear friend and beta, Ava. I'm still debating whether this series is worth continuing, but I wanted to thank everyone who has commented on it thus far. You have no idea how happy it makes me to read everyone's thoughts on it. Thank you so much. I hope you enjoyed this chapter as well.