For the hundredth time since she had arrived in the human world, Rangiku paused her stroll down the sidewalk to lean down and check her reflection in the nearest car window, obsessively adjusting the way her orangey-blonde locks framed her face and teasing the wrinkles out of her clothes. As she had anticipated, her wounds had healed just enough overnight for her to be able to move without too much pain (perhaps the copious amounts of alcohol she had ingested with Shūhei had assisted with that endeavor), and so she was able to come to the human world to go on a date with Ichigo Kurosaki as planned- well, sort of. It had been a tentative thing, an estimation really, and so honestly, she wasn't sure if he had decided to go ahead and make plans for the evening or not. Rangiku had no way to communicate with him, so she had just decided to jaunt over to Karakura Town and hope for the best. Though her worries had been alleviated somewhat the day prior, they had returned full-force upon stepping into the human world- hence her continuous fawning over her looks.

"I hope he'll like this outfit," she mumbled as she straightened up to look down at herself. Rangiku obviously couldn't go walking around the human world in her Soul Reaper uniform, so she had perused her collection of human fashion. It was a hobby of Rangiku's, to go shopping in the human realm, which many Soul Reapers found odd but Rangiku righteously didn't care and it had worked out in her favor anyway. She had settled on something casual, a pair of slim-fitting jeans and a long-sleeve blouse that didn't show too much of her body off but still accented it well, and some sandals. Rangiku had also applied a fair bit of make-up, but not too much, because she pinned Ichigo as more of a "natural" kind of guy. She obviously looked very nice, as people she passed on the sidewalk ogled at her and whispered about how stunning she was, but Rangiku was still a nervous wreck; she didn't care if strangers thought her beautiful. She wanted Ichigo's approval.

Rangiku was able to navigate her way to Ichigo's residence-slash-clinic by memory. Her fingers twitched as she hesitated in front of the door, her mind spiraling into worrisome delusions. What if he isn't home? That'll mean I've come out here for nothing… What if he is home but he's busy? I don't want to bother him… What about his family? Will I have to meet them? Oh, I don't know if I'm ready for that! She stressed incessantly. As her mind short-circuited, her body was forced into autopilot and obeyed the base desire of Rangiku wishing for the date to proceed, and she didn't even realize that she had reached up to press the doorbell until she heard its tune echoing through the house inside. She bit down on her hand as a scream rose in her throat, or maybe it was her heart jumping up from her chest; regardless, she dissolved into further panic. What the hell am I thinking? This is nuts!

"I'll get it!" The sing-song voice of one of Ichigo's little sisters floated from beyond the painted wood of the door. Rangiku's feet itched to whirl and carry her far away, back to the Soul Society, but she was also overwhelmingly rooted to the spot. All she could do was hurriedly thrust her hand behind her back, hiding the red imprint of her teeth as the door was pulled open and the small frame of a honey-haired girl blinked up at her, dressed in an apron and girlish eyes wide while her little hand held a soup ladle aloft. "Can I help you? Are you one of Ichigo's friends?"

Before Rangiku could answer, the other sister peered around the doorframe, her dark eyes narrowed as she blew a bubble of gum and then popped it in her teeth. Rangiku compulsively straightened up like a private under inspection by a drill sergeant.

"That's obviously his girlfriend, Yuzu. She's all dressed up nice. He must have a date."

"A date?!" A thin bead of sweat rolled down the side of Rangiku's face as the absurd, distraught cry blasted out of the house, and she stiffened further as the man who must be Ichigo's father slid into the doorway like a dog running over slick tile. He slapped his hands on either side of the doorframe as he leaned over the heads of both his daughters, face flushed and heaving from exertion though he really over traveled a short distance. He was wearing a lab coat though it was late in the evening and the clinic was most obviously closed. Rangiku, though thoroughly intimidated at this point, flashed him a serene smile.

"My name is Rangiku Matsumoto."

"Are you Ichigo's girlfriend?" the black-haired girl quipped, though she didn't sound the least bit interested. Rangiku's mouth twitched; she really didn't want to answer because she didn't know if Ichigo had informed any of them of their developing relationship. Thankfully she didn't have to, because she heard the frantic pounding of Ichigo's feet against the steps within the house, and in similar fashion as his father he slid across the tiled floor in his socks to wrestle his father into a rather vicious-looking chokehold.

"Would y'all cut it out? Stop harassin' Rangiku!"

"So she is your girlfriend!" his father wheezed with a devilish snicker. Ichigo responded by restricting his windpipe, and Rangiku watched with mild concern as his ands scrabbled at his son's thick arm while his face gradually began to turn a sickly shade of blue.

"Are you senile? I didn't say that!" Ichigo snapped back, then turned around to fling his father into the living room. Rangiku watched uncomfortably as the man collided with the back of the couch, landed on the floor right on his head, and promptly folded over himself into a rather uncomfortable-looking heap, his behind in the air while his face was practically melded with the wood. "Sorry," he then turned to her with an airy laugh while running his hand through his tangerine hair.

"Oh! Um, it's fine," she responded quickly. Truth be told, she was a little sad that he had not affirmed that they were a couple. It's probably too soon for that, she thought immediately with a slight flush of her cheeks. Ichigo had turned his gaze from her and was now sliding his socked feet into some tennis shoes. It was then that she was finally able to get a good look at him, and she was relieved that she had settled for a more casual outfit, because he was in jeans and a simple tee.

"I'm goin' out!" he shouted over at his father, who was only just now pushing himself up into a sitting position. Even from the small distance, Rangiku could see the goose egg swelling out of his dark hair. Ouch…

"Have fun on your date, Ichigo!" The little girl named Yuzu giggled before whirling on her feet to bounce back into the kitchen where she was presumedly cooking dinner. The other one had decided the situation was not really entertaining and had slung herself across the couch, playing on her smartphone.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever," Ichigo grumbled. Rangiku turned to the side as he slipped through the doorway, hands buried deep in his pockets and his shoulders hunched. Rangiku's face continued to be painted red as his arm brushed against hers, and realized just how much taller than her he was; she had to crane her neck to look up at him, and was just staring, somehow oddly transfixed by him as if it were her first time clapping eyes on him. Her gaze was ripped away when she heard the scrabbling of hands and feet across the interior floor, though, to see his father once again bee-lining for the door.

"Wait a minute, I have questions-"

"Later!" Ichigo snapped and slammed the door shut behind him. Rangiku winced as the door trembled with the tremendous force of the older man colliding head-first with it. He's definitely going to be feeling that tomorrow. Her anxiety must have shown on her face, because Ichigo smirked at her with a snort of laughter. "Relax, he's tougher than he looks." Sure enough, she could hear him jumping up to run and cry to his little daughter Yuzu, who snapped at him to not bother her while she was cooking. All the antics made Rangiku chuckle; she held a hand up against her mouth as she laughed, not even bothering to censor it for his sake. "What?"

"Your family is very entertaining."

"If that's what you want to call it," he huffed and promptly descended the stairs with a series of small hops. Rangiku hurried after him, falling in step with him on the sidewalk. "You look nice," he commented once he felt that he was a safe distance away from the residence. Rangiku's cheeks once more dressed in a rosy hue, and she looked away nervously to hide it. She was a full-grown woman, yet all it took was a compliment from him to turn her into a mushy teenager all over again.

"Thank you…" When she dared to look back at him, she instantly recognized it as a mistake; he had a smug sneer on his lips and was leaning over, his face just barely hovering over Rangiku's shoulder. "Wh-What the hell?" she shrieked and jumped to the side to clear to the nearest object, a light pole.

"I just didn't pin ya to be all shy, that's all." Her lips pursed as he so nonchalantly uttered the words. He was enjoying her nervousness all too much, but the worst part was that she really couldn't do much about it; as they spoke, her heart was doing an anxious samba against her ribcage.

"Sh-shut up! I'm a woman, you know? Of course I'm gonna get flustered when you go and do all that!"

"Do what?" Realizing that she had no good answer, she just vaguely gestured to his general being. "Exist?" he laughed at her, and her head descended into her shoulders as if she were a turtle retracting into its shell. Except she could not hide her blazing fire of a face, so Ichigo could continue to tease her about it.

"I'm gonna go home!" she whined miserably and banged her forehead against the light pole. Ugh, this sucks! Why am I acting like this? You've been on dates before, Rangiku! She had, but none of them had ever felt like this; something about him just rocked her entire world, making it all confusing. She could barely look at him without incessantly focusing on his handsome, almost rugged good looks, and every word he said sent her into a nervous, giddy tizzy, especially when he was teasing her so. It was maddening and yet riveting.

"No, don't go," he laughed while skipping across the short distance between them. Rangiku had to swallow a squeal of delight at the utterance of her to stay. He flashed her a smile, the laughter still dancing in his eyes. "I promise, no more teasing. Just come on?" he pleaded lightly, and held out a hand for her to take. Rangiku's mind instantly melted into lovestruck mush at the very blatantly romantic gesture. Does he want to hold my hand? Oh my God, what if my palms are sweaty? Again, while her mind screamed protests, her body acted on its own to lift her hand and slide it delicately into his. His fingers wrapped around her own slim ones, tugging gently on her arm to peel her off the light pole and pull her back to the center of the sidewalk; as she predicted, he did not release her hand, but held it between them as he began strolling down the sidewalk as if it were the most natural thing in the world. Rangiku managed to keep her cool on the exterior, but inside, she was screeching and tugging at her hair. How can some brat hundreds of years younger than me be so confident and smooth?! It was a little depressing how easily he made her squirm, but Rangiku decided to grin and bear it, because hot damn, did it feel good to hold his hand.

They descended into silence. The sky was beginning to blush too as the sun drifted ever closer to the horizon, a flood of rose overtaking the blue. Rangiku's eyes attempted to train themselves on something other than the man beside her, but were unsuccessful, as it dragged in by a magnetic field, they rolled in her sockets to settle on his profile. She instantly swooned at the way the shifting shadows played across his jawline, sharp as a zanpakutō. She was struck then at the suddenness of it all; their entire relationship had been a whirlwind, and now Rangiku was here. A question began to burn on her tongue, and as it flamed, she could not help but release it, unable to contain its flickering desire.

"Ichigo… Why… me?" Though she was immensely happy he returned her affections, it was still surprising. There were surely several girls Ichigo had better access to, human girls- like Orihime Inoue. Even Rukia, his best friend, made more sense than herself. As the query felt out of her mouth, she immediately shut it, nervously chewing on her bottom lip. She didn't know what answer she was expecting but somehow, she still feared it. His jawline caught the light of the setting sun as he tilted his head to the side to scratch it, an uncomfortable look coming across his features.

"The truth is, I dunno, really," he admitted quietly. "It's like I just woke up one day and it just… happened. The feelings were there and I didn't know how to get rid of 'em… N-not that I wanted to or anything," he cut in with a nervous glance at her. Rangiku smiled at him, not offended and genuinely relieved.

"That's kind of what happened to me, too." Somehow, she became even more aware of the feeling of his rough, large hand cradling hers. Her fingers twitched in the endeavor to embrace more of him, and in a moment of daring, she stepped a little closer to him, their bodies just barely brushing as they walked in sync down the sidewalk.

Maybe they didn't know how it happened, or why, but it did; and Rangiku was glad that they had decided to embrace it, rather than ignoring the feelings they had somehow developed for each other, and forever wondering what could have been. Rangiku wasn't sure what the future held in store for them, but she was eager to learn. She hoped Ichigo was too.