Characters: Tatsuki, Orihime
Summary: "Tatsuki-chan! Where are you going?" "To the bakery so I can get some real food."
Pairings: None
Warnings/Spoilers: No spoilers
Timeline: pre-manga
Disclaimer: I don't own Bleach.
In the first weeks following Tatsuki's becoming friends with Orihime, Tatsuki quickly becomes aware that Orihime is a little… different. She's incredibly sweet and kind and friendly, especially for a girl who is apparently the frequent target of her classmates' ridicule—though not anymore, if Tatsuki has anything to say about it—but she's just a little…
…Eccentric.
Especially, Tatsuki is to discover, in the area of food. She can't decide whether she's disgusted or outright nauseated by this development.
"Orihime, there is absolutely no way I'm eating that!"
Her brown eyes open very wide and Tatsuki glares at her to make it absolutely certain that while that trick might work on the boys in their class, it won't on her. Orihime seems undeterred by this, though, holding out the offensive cup over her small kitchen table. "Tatsuki-chan, I'm sure that if you just tried it, you would love it! It's really very good!"
Tatsuki shakes her head and holds her hands up as if warding off an attack. "If it didn't kill me first! God Almighty, Orihime, what's your stomach made of? Cast-iron?"
Orihime wrinkles her nose and briefly sticks her tongue out at her friend. "I take offense to that, Tatsuki-chan," she retorts, only half-serious; Tatsuki would be surprised if Orihime has ever been truly angry at anyone in her life.
Then, very deliberately, as if to cap all of the rest, Orihime sits down across from Tatsuki and, slowly, starts to eat the food she prepared.
Tatsuki shivers in revulsion. "That, that, Orihime, is truly disgusting."
Orihime smiles through a mouth full of ramen noodles doused in cherry sauce, mustard and jalapeño chili peppers, before swallowing. "Actually, quite tangy."
Tatsuki rolls her eyes as she stands up in protest. "Someone must have numbed your taste buds as a baby. There's no other reason why you can stand such an awful combination of food."
She starts to walk off.
"Tatsuki-chan! Where are you going?"
"To the bakery so I can get some real food."