Last chapter! This is a combination of both Christmas Eve Day and Christmas Day. Enjoy and please review when done!

DISCLAIMER: I don't own Bleach. I just do in my dreams. =)

December 24th, 8:30p.m.

The house had been surprisingly quiet all day long despite the fact that it was Christmas Eve. Ichigo had woken up to Rukia complaining that she hadn't been out in the snow for a whole day. Ichigo had huffed and had taken her to the park; the whole way there, he whined about how "playing in the snow" didn't seem very Rukia-like. This earned him a punch to the gut, two badly bruised shins, and a very emotional talk about how since Rukia had died without even beginning a childhood, she had to make up for lost opportunities now. Ichigo had actually almost shed a tear during her story.

When they had arrived at the park, Rukia begged Ichigo to help her build another snowman. Ichigo had refused, which started another snowball fight. The two teenagers were soon chasing each other around the park throwing snowballs at each other and earning many stares from people.

Once the flying balls of snow had ceased for the second time, Ichigo told Rukia it was time to go. On their way out however, Rukia caught a glimpse of something which fascinated her.

"Ichigo, why are those kids sliding down that hill?" she had asked.

"It's called sledding," Ichigo had told her. "It's yet another activity kids do when it snows."

"I want to try it!"

"Of course you do…" Ichigo grumbled.

So, he had taken Rukia back to his house, grabbed his sled from the garage, and gone back to the park. He had explained the concept of sledding to Rukia before telling her to get on.

"I'll go with you the first time, just so you actually stay on," Ichigo said.

"Afraid I'll go flying into a tree?" Rukia had teased.

"Actually yes. With your midget body, you'd hit a tree, fly off and land in Mexico," Ichigo joked right back.

"Hardy har har."

Rukia finally sat down on the sled and Ichigo sat behind her.

"Ready?" he had asked.

Once Rukia had gotten herself situated on the small sled, she nodded, and Ichigo pushed off. Soon, they went speeding down the hill.

Rukia thought it was the most fun thing she had ever experienced. It was better then ice skating and killing Hollows combined. In other words, it was better then killing Hollows on ice.

So, that's what the rest of the afternoon consisted of: Rukia sliding down a hill, and Ichigo amusing himself by watching her yell in joy and make a complete fool of herself. After all, you never really saw many teenagers sledding; they either did it in private or not at all. Ichigo just laughed as all the other kids on the hill (who must've been younger then ten) gave Rukia strange looks.

After Rukia had gone down the hill more times then possible to count, she was finally ready to head home.

Now, Ichigo was lying on the couch, strumming his scarcely-used guitar, and trying to figure out how to play "Little Drummer Boy" – which was always his favorite Christmas song. He watched as his dad and Karin walked in and out of the living room as they transferred wrapped gifts from the back room to under the tree.

A little while later, Ichigo could smell traces of what he thought were cookies. He set down his guitar, stretched, and walked into the kitchen to find Yuzu and Rukia making cookies.

"Oh, hey Ichigo!" Yuzu greeted him.

"What are you guys making cookies for?" he asked.

Yuzu poured a cup of flour into a bowl and turned to him with a big grin on. "Santa, of course! He's coming in less then four hours and he expects cookies!" she exclaimed.

Ichigo just smirked at Yuzu as she stood on a stool to reach the bag of chocolate chips. He thought it was nice that Yuzu still believed in Santa. Ichigo, of course, stopped the year his mother died, and Karin found out from friends at school last year. But, they still kept it a secret from Yuzu. Isshin, Karin, and Ichigo always got a kick out of making her squeal on Christmas Day when the cookies were gone and there was a thank you letter written by "Santa" himself.

Ichigo then turned to Rukia, who was mixing up the batter.

"And what are you doing in here?" he asked her. "Isn't it illegal for you to be in a kitchen?"

Rukia scowled and just flung cookie batter in his eye. Ichigo grunted, before walking up to his room. He might as well wrap Rukia's present while he knew she was busy.

Once he had locked his door, he walked over to his desk and opened one of the drawers. Reaching into the very back, his hand curled around a long slender box, before carefully pulling it into view.

Ichigo glanced back at his bedroom door to reassure himself that it was locked and no one – especially Rukia – could get in. Just to be careful, Ichigo locked his window as well.

He opened another desk drawer and pulled out scissors, tape, and a small roll of wrapping paper. Taking his time, Ichigo wrapped his gift in white wrapping paper that was covered with the words 'Ho ho ho' in red. Once he was satisfied with his work, he stuck a bow on it as well as a tag and wrote Rukia on it in his best attempt at cursive.

Sighing in satisfaction, Ichigo smirked at the present in his hand before placing it back in his drawer. He then pulled out a sheet of paper and began to scribble something down on it.

9:30p.m.

"Ichigo, come on!" Yuzu's voice called. "How the Grinch Stole Christmas is starting!"

Ichigo sighed and got up from his desk. "I'm coming!"

He went downstairs to find Yuzu, and Karin on the floor in front of the TV, Isshin in the kitchen making popcorn, and Rukia sitting on the couch. It was Kurosaki tradition to watch The Grinch every Christmas Eve. Ichigo didn't really care for the movie, plus he had seen it countless times. But Yuzu and Isshin weren't ones for breaking tradition, so Ichigo was basically forced to watch it each and every year. Apparently this year, Rukia had been dragged into tradition as well.

Ichigo sat down on the couch next to Rukia and stared at the TV as the beginning credits began to roll. Yuzu quickly explained the basis of the story to Rukia so she wasn't completely lost.

Isshin came out minutes later with two bowls of popcorn; one for Yuzu and Karin, and one for him, Ichigo, and Rukia. Ichigo grabbed a handful and prepared himself for yet another Christmas movie.

11:00p.m.

Ichigo yawned as the movie came to a close. He was glad that was over with. Perhaps next year they would end this silly tradition. After all, Yuzu and Karin would be turning twelve, and Ichigo thought that was a good age to stop watching remakes of Dr. Seuss originals at.

Isshin told Yuzu and Karin to go get ready for bed so Santa could come and they immediately ran into their room to go to bed (Karin just so the next day would come faster, and Yuzu because she believed Santa had to come).

Ichigo stood up and walked back up to his room. He was turning down his bed when Rukia walked in.

"Ichigo?" she asked, standing behind him. "How does Santa get in? All the doors are locked."

Ichigo sighed and turned to face her. "First off: Santa's not real – but don't tell Yuzu that. He's really called Saint Nicholas and he's the spirit of Christmas. Parents just tell their children about him because it makes Christmas morning all the more magical," he explained.

"Santa's not a real person?" Rukia asked, totally lost.

"Nope."

"Then what's the point?"

Ichigo sighed and said, "I just explained it to you. It gives kids something to believe in and makes Christmas a magical holiday."

"What do their parents tell them?" Rukia asked.

"My mom and dad always told me that Santa comes at midnight and comes down the chimney to leave kids their gifts. He eats the cookies you leave out and then flies off to the next house in his big red sleigh. If you were naughty at all the past year, he brings you a lump of coal and no toys," he told her.

"Is that why Yuzu asked me to help make cookies tonight?"

Ichigo nodded. "Yep, they're for Santa."

Rukia pondered the previous information for a while before asking, "So, if Santa isn't real, who eats the cookies?"

"My dad," Ichigo replied. "He'll probably wake up early in the morning, eat the cookies and write a thank you letter from "Santa"." Ichigo then gave her a serious look. "You have to keep all this a secret from Yuzu though, okay? She still believes in him and I can't imagine how upset she'd be if she knew the truth."

Rukia smiled and nodded. "Sure, Ichigo," she said. "I won't tell her anything."

Ichigo smiled at her and settled himself underneath his covers. "Good." He yawned. "'Night Rukia. See ya in the morning," he said.

Rukia told him goodnight as well and then climbed into the closet. She tossed and turned in her bed for while before she could get settled. She was so excited! Tomorrow was finally Christmas! Her very first Christmas! Rukia couldn't wait to see what got the humans all excited about this special day. Just a few more hours…

---

December 25th, 7:30a.m.

"Ichigo! Wake up Ichigo! It's Christmas!" Yuzu hollered while Karin shook the poor teenager awake.

"Get up!" Karin added. "We want our presents!"

"Okay, okay," Ichigo mumbled, swatting them away. "Give me a few minutes. Go get Rukia up."

"I am up," Rukia stated.

Ichigo sighed. "Did you wake dad yet?"

"GOOOOD MORNING MY SONNNN!"

That answered his question…

Ichigo huffed and slowly sat up. He was always the last one up every Christmas. He didn't understand how Yuzu and Karin could wake up so early every year. They must set their alarm.

"C'mon, Ichigo! We want our presents," Karin pestered him.

"Yeah! Santa left some for you too!" Yuzu added.

Ichigo stretched before standing up and facing his grinning sisters.

"Okay," he said, putting on his best smile. "Let's go open some presents."

"Yay!" Yuzu shouted before dashing out of the room. Karin smiled and followed.

Ichigo walked downstairs after making his bed – one of his biggest fetishes, despite him being a boy – to find Yuzu reading the letter "Santa" had left them aloud to Karin, Rukia, and Isshin. Ichigo threw himself onto the couch and watched as Isshin handed out the presents. Ichigo noticed that each year, Yuzu and Karin always seemed to get more presents then he did. It didn't bother him of course; he wasn't one to get competitive over how many more presents he got than someone else.

Ichigo waited until his sisters had opened all their presents, before turning to Rukia.

"You go first," he told her.

Rukia quirked an eyebrow at him. "You sure?"

"Of course," he said. "Believe me. I can wait."

Rukia shrugged before tearing into her presents. She had gotten two presents each from Ichigo's sisters, one from his dad, and one from Santa, plus her stocking.

Yuzu had given her a Chappy backpack and a Chappy pen. Ichigo only sighed. So much for trying to stop Rukia's drawings…

Karin gave her a charm bracelet and a jersey from her soccer team. It said Karakura on the front with a number 7 and then had Rukia on the back with a bigger 7. Rukia smiled and promised she'd wear it all the time, and even go to some of Karin's games next season.

Ichigo twitched unnoticeably as Rukia picked up Isshin's gift. He prayed silently in his head hoping that his dad didn't buy her something perverted she wouldn't know about. Ichigo knew he'd be the one having to explain it to her.

Rukia lifted the lid off the box and Ichigo held his breath. He peeked over her shoulder – she was sitting in front of him on the floor – and looked in the box. Thank God it wasn't some skimpy little dress like Ichigo had been dreading. It was simply just a scarf that was embroidered with white flowers. Ichigo gave his dad an incredulous look. Isshin just grinned and winked.

As Rukia picked up her last gift which was the one from Santa, she spotted an envelope underneath it.

"The envelope's my present," Ichigo told her, before she could question it.

"An envelope. How thoughtful, Ichigo," she sighed.

Ichigo huffed. "Just open it. You may be surprised," he said.

Rukia set the envelope aside and opened up her gift from Santa first. She had gotten a pair of baby blue ice skates. Rukia smirked before turning to Ichigo.

"Guess what we're going to do tomorrow, Ichigo!" she said in a sing-song voice while swinging the skates in front of his face. Ichigo just groaned.

Rukia laughed a bit before picking up the envelope that was supposed to pass as Ichigo's gift. She tore it open and took out a sheet of paper. Her face scrunched up as she read the slanted writing printed on it.

Rukia,

Don't worry; this isn't the only thing you're getting from me. Your real present is up in my room. If I had given it to you here, I would never be able to show my face in front of my family again. After the morning is over, come up to my room with me and I'll give you your present.

Merry Christmas,

Ichigo

P.S. Don't let my dad read this; he'll get the wrong idea.

After Rukia had finished reading it, she looked up at Ichigo with a confused expression on her face. Ichigo just smirked and started opening his gifts.

Karin had given him a new alarm clock, saying the one he had now was so loud, she could hear it all the way down the hall in hers and Yuzu's room. She had also given him a soccer jersey just like Rukia had gotten. Only his said Ichigo on it of course and was embedded with the number 6.

Yuzu had given him a black jacket with a red dragon on the back. Ichigo smirked at it when he held it up. Yuzu always seemed to know when he was in need of something new. Her next gift was a pair of black ear muffs to match his jacket. Yuzu was always the one who gave him the useful presents.

Isshin had given him knee to the back and a whack on the head. When Ichigo yelled at him saying that wasn't a present, Isshin handed him a small box. Ichigo took it hesitantly and opened it. He hoped nothing would pop out of it and kick him in the face. He opened the flaps slowly to see it contained…

Nothing.

"What the hell dad?!" he yelled, chasing Isshin around the room. "What kind of dad gives his only son nothing on Christmas?!"

"On the contrary son, I gave you the best gift of all!" Isshin contradicted, hiding behind the Christmas tree so Ichigo couldn't get him. "I gave you a valuable lesson!"

"Like what?" Ichigo questioned.

"Now you know not to get your hopes up! Not everyone gets something on Christmas you know. You should feel lucky that you even got one gift," he said.

Ichigo sighed. "Thanks dad, but I already knew that."

"Well, now it's definitely going to stick in your head!" Isshin exclaimed.

Ichigo just shook his head in disapproval as he sat down to open his gift from Rukia.

"You're such a dunce, dad," he mumbled.

Isshin just fell to the floor with anime rivers running down his face.

Once Karin had made Isshin stop crying, Ichigo opened Rukia's gift. She had given him two Al Pacino movies. Ichigo looked at her in shock.

"How did you know I liked his movies?" he asked her.

Rukia just smirked. "Your dad told me," she said.

Suddenly Ichigo felt a bit of guilt rush over him for yelling at his dad. It quickly dissipated though.

10:00a.m.

After all the presents had been opened, Yuzu went into the kitchen to begin breakfast. Another Kurosaki tradition: Every Christmas morning, the family would open presents, followed by a breakfast consisting of cinnamon rolls, and then spilt up to go enjoy their new gifts.

Ichigo had gone right up to his room after breakfast. Rukia had stayed down in the kitchen saying she was going to help Yuzu wash the dishes. When she came up minutes later, she saw Ichigo was standing in the middle of his room with his hands behind his back.

"Ready for your Christmas present?" he asked her, his voice low.

Rukia nodded and Ichigo presented her with a slender, wrapped box.

"Wow, you weren't lying," Rukia commented. "You actually did get me something." She took the gift from Ichigo's hands and studied it.

"I'm not heartless you know," he mumbled.

"Wait," Rukia said after a minute. "Before I open your gift, I want to give you something else."

"Really, why? You already gave me a present," he pointed out.

"I know, but…" she looked down at the floor. "You're dad really helped me out with that. I had to ask him what to get you because I couldn't decide. I just feel like that gift didn't really come from my heart." She started walking over to the closet. "So, I decided to give you something else. Something that I picked out on my own."

She opened the closet and Ichigo watched as she lifted her pillow up. He wasn't able to see what she picked up though, because in a second, his gift was behind her back.

As she approached him, Ichigo was able to pick up on something that smelled delicious. Rukia stopped inches from him and looked up at him. A look of uncertainty was on her face.

"I hope you like them," she whispered, sounding almost shy.

She pulled out from behind her back a folded piece of paper and a clear bag. The first thing Ichigo noticed was the bag. It was clear, but had several small designs of snowflakes on it. It was tied closed with a red ribbon. What Ichigo noticed second was what the bag contained.

It was a bag full of chocolate chip cookies. Ichigo's favorite food in the whole world. He took the bag and piece of paper from Rukia, who was looking down at the floor.

"You made me cookies?" he asked.

Rukia silently nodded.

"Wow," Ichigo breathed out as he studied the cookies.

They were small, but there were plenty in there. They were cut out in various shapes. Apparently Rukia had gotten cookie-cutter-happy. Some looked like hearts, some like stars, and others were in the shape of bells. They were slightly burnt on the edges and quite lumpy, but they smelled delicious.

"I made them after helping Yuzu make cookies for Santa last night," Rukia told him. "I didn't have any help. I made them by myself."

"You didn't have to do this Rukia," Ichigo told her, picking up on the fact that she seemed embarrassed.

"I know," she responded quietly. "But I wanted too."

Ichigo smirked. "Guess I have to try one then, huh?" he joked.

That made Rukia look up at him finally. "Of course!" she demanded. "I spent hours on those! You better eat one or I'll shove one down your throat!"

"Chill would ya?" Ichigo said with a small laugh. "I said that just so you would look at me again."

"Oh."

Ichigo untied the ribbon around the bag and the aroma from the cookies exploded and filled the room instantly. Ichigo reached into the bag and pulled out a star shaped cookie. He turned it around in his fingers for a moment before throwing it into his mouth.

His eyes immediately doubled in size. Aside from the crunchiness and burnt taste at first, they were really good. This was the first of Rukia's cooking Ichigo had actually attempted to try.

Rukia felt slightly better as she saw Ichigo grin as he chewed the cookie. Well, at least he hadn't spit it out immediately. She must've done something right.

Ichigo swallowed the cookie and then said, "Wow, Rukia. That was really good."

A smile tugged at the corner of Rukia's mouth. "Really? You liked it?" she asked, hoping Ichigo wasn't just toying with her.

"Of course!" he threw another one in his mouth before holding the bag out to Rukia. "Trthy one," he said with his mouth still full.

Rukia could only grin as she pulled out a cookie. She plopped it onto her tongue and chewed. Her eyes lit up.

"Hey, they are good!" she exclaimed after she had swallowed.

Ichigo ate one more before setting the bag down on his desk and focusing on the other thing Rukia had given him.

"Is this also part of my gift?" he asked her.

Rukia nodded.

Ichigo unfolded the sheet of paper and couldn't help but smirk. This must have been what Ichigo had seen Rukia working so hard on the other night.

It was a drawing. There were two bunnies in the middle of the paper that seemed to be blushing. One had a mop of orange hair, and one had black hair with a stray bang down its face. There was a Christmas tree to the side that was lit up in an array of colors. The one thing that stood out at Ichigo however, was the reason why the bunnies were blushing.

They were standing under a mistletoe. Another bunny wearing a Santa hat was suspended in mid air and holding it.

Ichigo looked away from the picture and down at Rukia, who was trying her hardest to hide her blush.

"I worked really hard on that too," she mumbled.

"I can tell," Ichigo replied. "I really like it."

This made Rukia look surprised again. "Really?"

"Really. If I didn't know any better, I'd think it was one of Picasso's first works," Ichigo told her.

This only caused Rukia's blush to deepen. Even she knew it wasn't that good, but it did make her feel good to know that Ichigo truly appreciated it. She watched as Ichigo thumb-tacked it to his bulletin board above his desk. He turned back to Rukia with a smile on his face. A real smile.

"Thanks Rukia," he said. "These are the best presents I've ever gotten."

Rukia smiled a bit. "You're serious?"

Ichigo nodded. "And I can tell they came from the heart."

Rukia's smile grew and she averted her eyes to the floor.

"I tried," she said.

"And you succeeded," he told her. "Now," he picked up his gift. "Ready for your gift now?"

Rukia nodded and took the box from Ichigo's hand. She unwrapped the present to reveal a white box. To Rukia was printed in a curvy, silver font on its lid. Rukia lifted the lid off and gasped.

Inside was a silver chain. The pendant was a decent sized R made of silver. The R was encrusted with amethyst jewels. To Rukia, it was overwhelming.

"Ichigo…" she said in a dazed voice. "It's beautiful." She looked up at him. "This must've cost you a fortune."

Ichigo smiled and shrugged. "I was surprised when I saw how much money I had saved up. I wasn't planning on using it for anything for myself yet, so I thought what better way to use it then to use it to buy a gift for a best friend?"

"I love it," Rukia said, still mesmerized by the necklace's beauty. "No one's ever given me something like this before."

"Then I'm glad I was the first," Ichigo said.

He took it from her hands and fastened it around her small neck. The amethyst accented her eyes perfectly. Rukia fingered the R for a moment.

"It looks great on you," Ichigo told her. Now he was the one blushing.

Rukia looked up at him. "Ichigo…" she started.

"What?"

Before he knew it, Rukia had jumped on him and had wrapped her arms around his neck in a hug. Ichigo, completely shocked, could only hug back.

"Thank you," Rukia whispered into his neck. "This has been a great Christmas, and probably the best one I'll ever have."

Ichigo just smiled. "Anything for you Rukia," he told her, embracing her tighter.

Rukia smiled and gave Ichigo a peck on his neck.

"I love you Ichigo," she said.

Ichigo, now as red as a strawberry, shivered, before breaking out into an uncharacteristic grin.

"Love you too Rukia," he whispered back, kissing her head.

The End

R&R! I hope the ending wasn't too mushy.