Green Tea and Sugar, by U. May

Disclaimer: Bleach is the property of Tite Kubo. I just play with it to have some fun. ;)

Summary: Ichigo is having problems to understand his own hormones. Rukia is jealous of her nii-sama. Maybe they can help each other? Sexy fluffiness, IchiRuki.

N/A:Well, this was intended to be an NC-17, but it ended much more softly. I guess I'm just not good at writing this kind of stuff. Anyway, inspiration came from a conversation with Miss Just (aka Hollow) and a music, "Almost Lover" by A Fine Frenzy. Found it on an IchiRuki AMV and it stuck in my mind as their music. I recommend to read it while listening to the music.

Dedicated to Mi and Jay. They were the ones who made me write this, after all.

-x-

"Fuck!"

It wasn't working. It wasn't working at all.

"What's the problem, Ichigo?"

He turned to look at Renji. The red-haired fukutaichou(1) of the 6th Division was giving him a What's happening with you? glare. They were in the middle of a training session. A training session Ichigo had asked for. Yet, he couldn't fully concentrate on the sparring.

With a shout, he lifted Zangetsu and ran with full force towards Renji. The other shinigami just smiled at him and prepared Zabimaru for another strike.

"You're really pissed, aren't you?", Renji continued the conversation, without noticing he was the only one talking. "Won't you tell me what happened?"

Ignoring his friend's words, Ichigo attacked his right side. Renji promptly moved away from him, taking advantage of the movement to put more force into his own strike with Zabimaru. The two zampakutous clashed against each other. Their audience suddenly gulped nervously.

They were in rokubantai's(2) training grounds. Almost all the 6th Divison officers were in the sidelines, watching their "fight". The only exception was the same person that put Ichigo on that kind of mood.

Kuchiki Byakuya.

The taichou(3) of the 6th Divison was the only person Ichigo didn't want to see on that moment. Well, maybe Yoruichi-san too, since she was part of the reason he was furious with himself. Cursing under his breath, Ichigo asked himself for the millionth time What am I doing in Rokubantai if I can't face Byakuya right now? while charging with full power at Renji.

He'd seen something he shouldn't. Something he didn't want to see. Something very private. And now he had to deal with the consequences of that. The problem was… He didn't know how.

For the last three days, he was incapable of controlling his mind. Every time he tried not to think about it, it just surfaced and put him on the very edge of exploding. He just couldn't understand why that thing was disturbing him so much.

It was quite easy for Renji to dodge and trap him, since he wasn't paying attention to their training. He had just asked for this spar because he needed to consume his energy. Maybe, if he got himself exhausted enough, he could finally relax and get back to what he was. If he had to be completely defeated and humiliated by Renji to achieve that, then so he would.

"Now, Ichigo, it isn't even funny to spar with you like that!" Renji interrupted his thoughts, Zabimaru once more on its sheath. "I won't fight with you anymore."

"I'm sorry, Renji." Ichigo answered. "I'm really a mess right now." Getting up, he sheathed Zangetsu and covered his face with his hands. "I just wanted to…"

"…To get beaten into oblivion." Renji completed the sentence, making Ichigo blush. "That I've already figured. What I don't understand is why."

"Well…"

What could he say?

You know, I caught your taichou doing naughty with Yoruichi-sama the other day and now I'm unable to rest.

No, he would never be able to tell that. To anyone.

"I'm just pissed about something I did." He offered, hoping his usually dumb friend would not argue with him.

"Oh, that explains a lot!" Renji smiled, confusing his human friend. "You know, Rukia's been weird these days, too. She's worst than a hollow. You can't even talk to her without her getting pissed off at you."

"Nani(4)?" The substitute shinigami asked, totally lost in the conversation.

"You two had a fight, huh? That's what pissing you both, right? Don't worry, she'll get over it soon!" Renji tried to cheer his friend, not knowing it had nothing to do with the truth.

"Oh… Thanks, Renji!", Ichigo quickly replied, thinking it was better to let his friend think like that than he knowing the truth.

"Renji!"

Both of them turned to look at Rukia. The black-haired shinigami was coming from the rokubantai's offices. It was pretty obvious what she was doing until then.

"Nii-sama(5) is looking for you." She told him, not without a harsh tone.

"Fine, I'm going!" Knowing better than to antagonize Rukia, or her brother, Renji quickly went to the bureaucratic part of his squad after biding farewell to Ichigo. The other officers, seeing they wouldn't have another 'show', started to leave as well.

"Ohayo(6), Rukia!" Ichigo greeted, his eyes never meeting hers. The blush in his cheeks only increased with her presence.

"Hi, Ichigo!" She replied, seemingly at a loss of words, not noticing her friend's state. "Hm, what are you doing here? I didn't know you were called."

"I wasn't." He answered, one of his hands running through his hair. "I just came to spar with Renji."

"Ah." She lost her interest, then. "Well, I have to go. See ya!"

She turned to leave. Ichigo had to give Renji his worth. She seemed really weird. It was obvious she was annoyed by something. He didn't like to see her like that. As her friend, he should do something. Maybe, if he could help her, he would feel better, too. At least it would distract him from his disturbing thoughts.

"Matte(7), Rukia!", he called.

She turned to face him, surprised.

"Would you mind to keep me company for a while?"

-x-

Ichigo wanted to slap himself. Or maybe he should just punch Rukia. He did want to spend some time with her. After all, it's been weeks since he last saw her. But why did they have to come to the Kuchiki manor? Damn it!

"Are you sure you want my company?" She asked when they settled under a cherry tree, at the Kuchiki gardens. He just seemed to get more and more moody as the time passed.

"Yes. I'm sorry, it's just not my best day." He sighed, lying on the grass. The cold autumn wind played with his hair. He looked around, worried if he would see Byakuya or Yoruichi there. "You sure are busy. You haven't gone to Karakura in weeks!" He stated.

She sighed, her body leaning against the tree. "Well, after Ukitake-taichou made me his fukutaichou, my workload doubled. No, I think it tripled. And now I have to help with nii-sama's marriage, too…"

Ichigo suddenly got redder than a tomato. Seeing this, the shinigami woman looked at him more carefully. "Ichigo, what's wrong with you?" She asked, suspicious.

"N-Nothing!" He quickly answered, turning his back to her. "Anyway, ossan(8) is bugging me to ask you to visit. He really likes you, you know?" He said in an irritated tone. Rukia laughed. "My sisters miss you, too." He ended with a softer tone.

It was very obvious the I missed you hidden between those words. Rukia smiled. "I missed them, too." The shinigami answered.

A comfortable silence fell between them. They both found some peace in the company of each other. Ichigo slowly turned to face her again.

"Rukia, what's bugging you?"

She didn't look at him. Her face was turned in the direction of the Kuchiki manor, but he could see her eyes were not really looking at it. She was obviously lost in thoughts.

"Rukia?"

She almost jumped.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to scare you." Ichigo apologized.

"No, it's all right. I was daydreaming, anyway." She replied, a fake smile on her face. "What did you ask again?"

"I wanna know what's bugging you." He supplied, seriousness written on his face.

"Oh." She took a deep breath to calm herself before she answered. "Well, I guess you could say I'm jealous."

"Jealous?" He repeated, confused. "Jealous of what?"

She gulped. It was just too embarrassing.

"C'mon, Rukia. What is it? Maybe I can help you!", he incited her.

Suddenly, she was even redder than he was a while ago. Aho! You don't even know what I'm talking about! Stop spitting nonsense!, she thought. Deeply uncomfortable, the girl turned her gaze away from his before she could answer.

"N-N-Nii-sama-"

"Nani?" a confused Ichigo interrupted.

"I'm jealous of nii-sama!" she shouted at him, angry, still unable to look at her friend.

"Nani?" he repeated. He wasn't understanding at all. "But… Why would you be jealous of Byakuya?" Speaking that name made him remember what he had seen, and he was suddenly blushing again.

"You don't understand." She whispered, hugging her knees close to her chest and resting her head above them. "You always had to share your parents with your sisters. You were too young to remember how it was to receive their full attention alone."

"What are you talking about, Rukia?" Ichigo, once more confused, questioned. He turned to seat by her side.

"You already know about my past, Ichigo. What do you think I'm talking about?" she returned him the question, her anger suddenly surfacing again. "I do not want to share my nii-sama." She closed her eyes, her forehead resting against her knees.

Ichigo couldn't see her face through all that hair, but he could imagine it quite well. He knew Rukia probably better than he knew himself. Putting the pieces together, he could finally understand her. "You don't want him to get married."

"No, I don't." the answer came in a whisper, barely audible to his ears.

"And the reason is because you're jealous of the… attention he gives Yoruichi-sama." He continued, his cheeks getting redder by the second. He was thanking God that she was with her head down.

"Yes, I am." The answer came once more in a whisper.

"You really grew used to his attention, didn't you?" He thought out loud. She suddenly lifted her head, a sharp look piercing him.

"Yes, so what? Is this a crime, now?"

"No!" Ichigo burst out laughing. "Sorry, Rukia, it wasn't what I meant!"

"Stop laughing, baka(9)!" She screamed, quickly punching him.

"Matte! Matte!" He continued to laugh while trying to stop her attacks.

"You stupid, dumb little kid!" Rukia shouted. "This is nothing to be laughing at!"

Ichigo ignored her warning, but stopped abruptly when he saw tears in her eyes. "Oe, Rukia! I'm sorry! I'm stupid, I'm a moron! Please, don't cry!" He pleaded, his regret already filling his heart.

"Baka!" She repeated, hiding her face from him.

"I'm sorry, I really am…" He tried once more. He wanted to touch her, to give her a hug as if she was one of his sisters. Yet, he was too afraid of making her burst into tears to do anything.

"I'm feeling so lonely…"

Ichigo almost didn't hear her whisper. She was once again curved into a ball, her face hidden in her knees. Her body was trembling slightly. Gathering the courage he needed to help his friend, Ichigo pulled her into a hug. She just adjusted her position to become more comfortable in his embrace, but she still wouldn't face him.

Hearing her deep breaths to regain control over her emotions, he felt his own heart breaking. She was the strongest woman he knew. She was his pillar of strength, his own little goddess. His best friend. She gave him hope. She gave him a new life. Seeing her broken like that only made him broken, too. Broken and angry.

Damn! Couldn't Byakuya dispose of his own ego and tell his sister that she had nothing to worry? It was too much to ask of that cold bastard?

"Don't worry, Rukia." He said softly, tightening his embrace around her. "I'm sure Byakuya won't let you behind because of a marriage. I mean, sure, he has to give Yoruichi-sama some attention,", and he couldn't help but blush when he thought about the kind of attention her brother was giving his fiancée, "but I'm sure he still loves you. It's a different kind of attention. She's his lover. You're his sister. You'll always be. Nothing can change that."

Rukia took more deep breaths while she let his words sink in. For once, she had to give Ichigo his reason. He was right. And she was a cry baby. "Gods, I feel so childish for feeling like that…" She confessed, hiding her face in his chest.

Full of tenderness, he let his head rest on her hair, smiling even if she couldn't see. "Don't. You have the right to be childish sometimes. Everyone has. God knows I make full use of my share of childishness!" He laughed.

She couldn't help but laugh with him. Yes, he had his fair share of childish behavior, but he (generally) knew when to be serious, so she could forgive him that. "Yes, you do. Thanks, Ichigo. I'm feeling better already." She lifted her head to smile at him.

He smiled back, and suddenly everything was alright again. "So, I guess I'll be a mature little sister and let my nii-sama have his private life without complaining from now on." She told him in a mocking tone, which made him laugh again. Happy, she let herself stay in that hug for as long as he wanted to hold her.

Far from being bothered by her warmth next to him, Ichigo gave her a foxy smile. He was just happy to help her smile like that again. They fell on a comfortable silence once again. The cold wind blowing on their faces just made them cuddle together more.

Eventually, that situation made them sleepy. Trying to fight her own drowsiness, Rukia decided to talk once more. "Oe, Ichigo! I've just noticed now, but what was bothering you earlier?"

Blushing, the teenager scratched his head. "Hum… Nothing, really."

Closing her eyes, Rukia sighed. "Will you really try to hide it? You know, I just trusted you with something serious, I thought you could trust me, too." Ok, it was a cheap trick, but she knew how stubborn Ichigo could be when he didn't want to say something. Even if he needed to share it with someone.

"I'm not trying to do anything!" He replied, angry, but his red cheeks betrayed him. "It's just that… It is too stupid, too childish, to speak about it."

"Wasn't I being childish just now?" She asked him, serious. "Wasn't you who told me everyone has their fair share of childishness to use?"

Ichigo sometimes hated the fact that she knew him upside down. Rukia always knew what buttons to press in order to make him talk. Cursing under his breath, he avoided her gaze while he started talking. "Well… It's just that I can't understand."

"What?"

"This 'falling in love' thing. I mean, Inoue and Ishida started dating. Chad's seeing someone. Your brother is getting married with Yoruichi-sama…"

"What's wrong with it?" Rukia questioned, confused.

"There's nothing wrong with that! I just can't understand it. At all! I mean, how can passion be so powerful for people to do stupid things when they've fallen in love like they do?" He wasn't very sure why his body was reacting so strongly to the scene he saw three days ago.

"That isn't all, is it?" Rukia, as perceptive as always, noticed his uneasiness.

Ichigo, very much ashamed, lowered his head so he could hide his face in Rukia's hair. "No, it isn't."

"Then spill it." She told him and, even if her choice of words wasn't the best, her gentle tone made him feel more at ease.

"I'm having weird reactions these days." He started, not moving his head. Rukia stood still in order to not disturb him. "I mean, every time I see a couple kissing, or caressing, or… you know… I start to get nervous, and adrenaline rushes through my veins, and I lose my focus, and…"

He stopped to breathe a little. "I know I'm a teenager, and that my hormones are high because of my age, but I still don't understand it. How can a body react so strongly to another one? How can someone feel so lonely when the other one is distant? How can you be so happy when you're with that other person that you totally lose your sense of ridiculous?"

Rukia was at a loss for words. Ichigo was talking about feelings, after all. Love. Passion. It wasn't something you could just explain by talking. Wasn't that why people were so confused about what really meant to be in love?

"Rukia?" Ichigo's sultry voice came from above her head.

"Shh! I'm thinking!" She replied, annoyed.

"Ok, sorry." Ichigo said, falling silent after that.

They stayed that way for a few minutes. Ichigo would often try to read Rukia's face, at the same time not letting her see his. She often murmured to herself something like What can I do? While frowning and pinching her own nose. If he thought she wouldn't kill him for interrupting her train of thoughts, he would tell her to give up. It wasn't that much important, anyway.

"YATTA(10)!"

He almost jumped when he heard her scream. "What?"

"I know what to do! I know a way to make you understand!" She told him, happy.

"Really?" He smiled.

"Yes! At least I think it'll work!" She answered him.

If she told him what she was planning, he probably would have backed out of it. Even she was doubting if it was a good idea, after all. It would make her blush in front of him for years to come, she was sure, but she had a huge debt to him. One that had nothing to do with her childishness. She had to pay it, even if it was just a little.

"So, what will you do?" Ichigo asked.

She didn't answer with words. Instead, she turned into his embrace to become face to face with him. Holding his head with both her hands, she let her forehead touch his. The blush his face spotted on that moment didn't register in her mind.

"You have to trust me for this to work, ok?" She whispered to him. He gulped and nodded in agreement with his head, incapable of talking. "Whatever I may do, just get along, ok? Don't try to fight it. Now, close your eyes. No matter what I do, don't open them. Did you hear me?"

"Y… Yes!" He whispered back, his voice a little hoarse. His eyes were already closed. Rukia, happy, distanced her face from his, assuming a lecture tone she often used to explain him some hollow-related information.

"Ok. Now, use your creativity. Imagine you're going back home after a long and tiring day. Not to your father's house. Your own. It is exactly as you ever wanted your house to be. Don't you think it would be a little sad to get back home to find it empty?"

He didn't know what to think of it. "Well…"

"Yes, it would. You battled so hard to have your independency, and yet this gorgeous house is empty and dark every time you come back to it. It's cold, too. What's missing in it?"

"What's missing in it?"

"I can't tell you. You are the one to answer here, remember?" She replied, looking at the frown that was forming in his face and trying to not giggle.

"Hum… Me?"

"No."

"My family?"

"Try again."

"My friends?"

"NO!"

"SO TELL ME WHAT IT IS, BAKA!"

"THE ONE YOU LOVE, AHO(11)!" She replied, almost crushing his face between her hands. "Really, how dense are you? Wasn't it obvious?"

"Hmpf!" It was all he replied.

"Now try to use the few neurons you have, please!" She yelled at him. Breathing deeply, Rukia tried to calm herself. "OK, let's continue. Now that you know it is your loved one, can you imagine what the house would be with her in it?"

He didn't even knew who was his loved one. He couldn't tell it to Rukia, tough, so he decided to user her as a "model" to his loved one in that little game of them. Trying to remember how he felt when he discovered she would stay in Soul Society with her brother after Aizen had almost killed her, he felt a pang in his heart.

"I think I know what you mean. I mean, when she's there, it is always happier. I mean, it's fun to have her around. We may come back home together, and stop to do some shopping in the way, or she will ask me something everyone knows and I'll have to give her a huge explanation, otherwise she won't be satisfied. In any way, she makes me comfortable, and gives me warmth. I don't want to lose it. Never again."

Rukia felt that description was somehow familiar, but before she could connect the pieces together, Ichigo's arms around her tightened their embrace. Her face was too close to his, now. She doubted he would stay calm if he opened his eyes at that moment. Shaking her head to regain control over her mind, Rukia continued:

"You can feel the difference? Your house will be with the lights on when you come back, and there will be someone special there to share your thoughts and care for you."

"Yes." He smiled. "It's nice to think about it."

"Now back to the beginning. Imagine you're coming home after a tough winter day. She may be a housewife, or maybe she just got there earlier than you, but the house has the lights on. While you walk in its direction, you smile to yourself. Your house will be warm and cozy when you enter. Maybe there will be something smelling nice on the oven. The bath water is being heated for you two."

Getting caught in that little fantasy, Ichigo let his body relax more against the tree. Rukia unconsciously changed her position a little to adapt to the new angle. Seeing the smile on his face, she knew he was trapped in her mind game.

"You open up the door. While you take off your shoes, you say 'Tadaima(12)!'. A little after, she comes from the bedroom. She's wearing a light robe and nothing under it. She says 'Okaeri(13)!' while she smiles. She loves you."

"Yes, she does." He agreed, while seeing a robed Rukia greeting him in his mind. Her eyes are sparkling and her smile is absolutely beautiful. It was pretty clear that she was happy he had finally come home.

He tried not to think about the "naked under" part, since he would burn bright red in front of her if he did it, and then she would punch him when she understood what was happening.

"The robe is elegant, but shows her curves. 'The soup is almost ready, love.', she says. You don't even listen. You just wonder why the Gods were so good to you, to make her love you. You remember the way you met each other for the first time."

Yes, he did. While he was hugging his loved Rukia in his fantasy, he could easily remember how he had met her. Destiny sure had a strange way to make people meet.

"Maybe you two weren't a 'love at first sight' case. This is too unreal. You were colleagues, maybe at school. At first you didn't give her much thought. Maybe she was even annoying back then. But, little by little, you got closer to her. And she to you."

If Ichigo were thinking straight at the moment, he might have wondered what Rukia was fantasizing to give that description. It was almost word by word how they became friends. As he wasn't, he just went along with her little tale in his own mind.

"You stayed as friends for a long time. Both of you were too shy to express your feelings. But then, one day, you finally found the courage. You declared your love to her. Almost crying of happiness, she says she feels the same way. You still remember it as one of the best days of your life."

Closing her own eyes to enjoy her little fantasy, Rukia let her forehead touch his again.

"Back to present day, you look at her carefully. You marvel at the fact that she's your wife now. You two fought a lot for that to be possible. Not everyone wanted to see you together. But it is all over now. She is yours, and you are hers."

The autumn wind blew at them with force, but they never noticed it.

"She tells you to take of your clothes and put a robe on while she's going to the kitchen. Next time you see her, the two of you are going to the bathroom. She tells you the oven was turned off. You can take as much time as you want in your bath. She will even join you."

"Nice." His voice was hoarse again. Ichigo's body was starting to understand where Rukia was taking him to.

"You put the hot water into the bathtub to help her. The two of you take your robes off. You stare at her body. She is aware of that. You apologize to her when you notice it. She says she doesn't mind. 'After all, I'm your wife. I would be sad if you didn't like me.', she tells you."

"It would be impossible to not like you." He replied.

Blushing, Rukia told herself he was just telling what he would answer to his loved one. "That's the right thing to say. She blushes, and her smile is a shy one this time. You offer your hand to her. 'May I help you?', you ask. She thanks you and accepts your hand while she enters the tub."

"And she's beautiful." Ichigo continues. His head turned to the side, making his nose brush against Rukia's. The shinigami in his arms blushed even more, but he couldn't know. His eyes were still closed.

"Yes, she is. She's not as beautiful as a model, or an actress, but for you, she's the most beautiful woman in the world. It doesn't matter if her body isn't the idealized by society. Her beauty isn't only physical."

"Yes. It isn't."

"You enter the tub after her. You relax your body against the tub, and she lets herself relax against you. You wonder at how perfectly your bodies fit against each other. It is like she was made for you."

"And I for her", He completed, smiling while his hand caressed Rukia's back.

"Yes." The girl continued. Her own hands rested against his shoulders, under his shinigami robe, and started to slide through his arms, making the shinigami robe slip. "You two talk about your day while you help each other to get clean. After it, she starts to spread oil on your arms. 'To hydrate your skin', she says, but actually she just needs to touch you more."

Ichigo froze when he noticed Rukia was undressing him from his waist up. He almost opened his eyes and told her to stop, but then, she had told him to follow her no matter what she did. The wind tickled his sides, but then Rukia started to caress his torso with her bare hands. Cold was the last thing in his mind after that.

"She loves you and, for her, your body is all that she wants. You start to relax with her touch. All your worries are gone. That's her special power. At the same time, you become pretty much aware of the places she is touching. Anywhere her hands pass gets on fire, just to become dead cold when they move to another part of your body."

Rukia didn't dare to open her eyes. If Ichigo was with his open, she would never be able to look at him again. She still caressed his body, and now mostly for her own pleasure rather than to make him get on the fantasy. She had to admit she liked the slim and well-toned body he had. Well, I have to continue, she remembered herself.

Ichigo was afraid of Rukia feeling how excited he was becoming in that tight embrace of them. Decided to preserve some of his honor, he released her to distance himself a little, but she had other plans. Before he could do anything more, Rukia held his hands on hers. The next thing he knew, he was feeling a very smooth skin that wasn't his.

"You can't hold back anymore. You hold the oil in your hands and say 'I'll return you the favor.', and then you start to spread it on her."

Ichigo almost fainted in surprise when she started to guide his hands to take off her own shinigami robe from the waist up. Was she crazy? Someone could see them! Well, obviously her torso was bandaged. Every female shinigami had their torso bandaged to protect that vulnerable area from harm. Even then, her shoulders and her arms were naked, and it made his hands hot wherever he touched her.

"Rukia…" He called her, his voice even hoarser than before.

"There is no need for words." She interrupted him again. "The touch of her skin, the warmth of her body, the way you two know exactly where to touch to make the other need more air." She leaned against him. It was obvious certain parts of his body were reacting to her game, but then even if she felt ashamed, she wouldn't back out now.

Ichigo went stiff when he felt Rukia's nose on his neck. He wanted to touch her so badly. It was past the fantasy, now. She was making him crazy. He could bet he could win a race against Yoruichi anytime with that much adrenaline running through his body at once. It was like his heart would tear his chest open with how fast and strong he was beating now.

"Rukia…" He tried to plead again. She needed to stop that, or he wouldn't be responsible for his own actions.

She heard the alert in his voice. She knew she should stop now. It was enough. He was already on a state of excitement he couldn't deny. The lesson was learned. She froze for a moment, asking herself what she wanted to do. What she really wanted to do.

She knew what.

"Her nose is buried in your neck." She continued, running her own nose through his skin. "She is as excited as you are. That's the magic of passion. No matter in what situation, whenever you look at each other, you know you want each other. You love each other. You can depend on each other. You can explore each other's bodies without fear. After all, you're partners. You have a connection no one else has between you two."

His arms around her started to move on their own. Ichigo's big hands started to explore her body just as she had told him. His own nose found its place in her neck, making her shiver. Letting herself enjoy the present, the girl repaid him the 'courtesy'. Her own hands, free of concern now, rummaged through his hair, while her mouth dropped kisses on his shoulders.

Ichigo couldn't worry anymore. Any rational thoughts were erased from his mind. Her scent, her warmth, her smoothness… All he could think about was Rukia. On that moment, she was the only one he wanted. The same one that scolded him every time he did something stupid. The one who put her life on danger without a thought if it was for him. The one who saved him from his own darkness multiple times.

Rukia was petite. She may look frail, but she was strong. Sometimes, much stronger than he could be. Her skin glowed like a pearl when she was under the moonlight. Her hair cut suited her personality: practical and resilient. Her eyes were always watchful, but they could be kind too. Her hands often held her sword, but they could caress someone too, like she was doing for him now.

All in all, there wasn't a single thing not to like about her. Even when she was stubborn, or angry, or tired. She always made him feel happy. When she wasn't around, there was often a hole in his heart. One that had nothing to do with becoming a hollow. This hole only vanished when she was near him.

"Rukia…" Ichigo whispered, his head resting against her neck. His arms embraced her again. He wanted her to feel how his body was reacting to her. She had to stop that madness before they crossed a line.

She blushed more when she felt the extension of his excitement. Gulping nervously, she confessed to herself she felt the same way. Opening her eyes, she lifted his head in her hands.

"Look at me, Ichigo."

He did. Those brown eyes she loved so much were looking directly into hers. She could see the excitement there. She could see, also, that he wanted to hide that more raw side of him from her. He was trying to protect her honor. Ichigo couldn't know she was absolutely in love with him. She never had the courage to tell him that.

"She want as much of you as you want of her. Maybe even more. Her rational thoughts are failing. The last thing she tells you, looking straight into your eyes, is 'I need you'… It is up to you what will happen next."

Ichigo couldn't believe it. Was he fantasizing or she had indirectly told him to do whatever he wanted? She was hugging him by his neck. Her eyes were looking intently into his. Her face was becoming redder by the second. Maybe he had read it wrong? It wouldn't be the first time.

But then, wasn't he the one who didn't understand why people did silly things when they were in love? Weren't the two of them doing silly things right now? They were in the Kuchiki gardens. Her brother or anyone else could appear out of nowhere anytime. Even so, here they were, half naked, hugging each other, their faces almost touching.

Did he want to go back to rational?

Probably not.

He couldn't tell he was in love with Rukia. He still hadn't had the chance to thoroughly analyze his own feelings. What he could tell was that she was the only woman he could think of doing something like that with. There wasn't anyone else.

And, damn, he wanted to kiss her!

Leaning his forehead against her, Ichigo brushed his nose against hers. Her grip on his nape tightened. Smiling kindly, he thought to himself she looked adorable on that moment. She truly deserved him to be silly right now.

Slowly, almost painfully aware that he was crossing a border he would never be able to go back, he closed the distance between their lips. He was new to that, and for a moment he panicked thinking it would be a total failure, but then her hands sank deeply into his hair, pressing his face fully against hers, and he forgot to think.

Her lips tasted like green tea and sugar. He knew she loved that tea. After all, she had made him drink it often, no matter how many times he told her he didn't like it. While their lips parted and the kiss deepened, however, he reviewed his thoughts about that taste. He would love it as long as it came from her lips.

And what about Byakuya and Yoruichi? Well, he couldn't damn care about them anymore. After all, he had found something much better to entertain himself with.

-END-

N/A: I'm not a native speaker, and I do not have an English beta-reader, so, please, forgive me the possible mistake you might have found here. I tried my best to beta it myself, but I'm not flawless, unfortunately.

Anyway, this is the first Bleach fanfic I publish in English, so I do welcome your feedback on it very much. Feel free to give me your thoughts on this piece. I answer every review I receive.

I hope you have enjoyed the reading. =)

Vocabulary:

1) Fukutaichou – vice-captain or lieutenant.
2) Rokubantai – 6th Division.
3) Taichou – captain.
4) Nani – "What?".
5) Nii-sama – Onii-san means older brother. The suffix –sama added to the end means a great respect towards him.
6) Ohayo – "Good morning!".
7) Matte – "Wait!".
8) Ossan – "old man". In this case, Ichigo is using it to refer to his father.
9) Baka – Stupid.
10) Yatta – "I did it!"
11) Aho – another way to call someone "Idiot!".
12) Tadaima – "I'm home!"
13) Okaeri – "Welcome", but in this case it means "Welcome home!".