Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach or any of its characters. I do own Kazuki.

I hated her sometimes. And not just in an irritated sort of way, like a lot of siblings get with each other, it was a pure loathing that came from somewhere deep, dark and dangerous inside of me. It wasn't because my best friend (and one of my long-time crushes) turned into a stuttering pile of goo everytime she walked into the room (why doesn't he act like that around me?), it wasn't because the only reason I didn't get laughed at and picked on in high school was because of the legacy and influence she left behind there, it wasn't because she was tall, thin, and beautiful, it was because she had something I always lacked—Confidence.

My older sister, Kazuki Arisawa, is a bitch. She's mean, rude and preppy. She tans daily, giving her skin that to-die-for glow that so many men drooled over. She was thin to the point of being dangerous—disgusting, I thought, and I wasn't speaking from envy, either. She was a dancer, being in contemporary and ballet since she was four, parallel to my martial arts. She could seduce anyone she wanted too, with her bright, attentive smile (even though it was so fake), and me? I could break your face if I thought it was justifiable.

I hated her right now. She was waiting outside of the school for me, smoking a cigarette and talking to a girl who was in the senior class. I don't know why she was here, but obviously to pick me up. Ichigo was next to me, Rukia and Orihime on the other side of me. Ichigo turned red when he saw Kazu. Kazu waved, and Orihime waved back enthusiastically—the two always got along well.

"Do you guys wanna ride?" I asked, out of politeness, but I really didn't like Ichigo being around Kazuki. Her hair was long, almost to her waist, and black as night, like mine. She had hair extensions that she took impeccable care of. Her skin, deeply tanned, glinted with the delicate jewellery she was wearing. An off-the shoulder, vibrant violet top hugged her slender body. A white belt cinched black cut offs to her slender, dancer legs, rips up the thighs, showing the smooth skin underneath. She was wearing golden gladiators. She exhaled a plume of cigarette smoke through her nose, like a movie star.

"Sure!" Orihime gushed. She threw herself into Kazu's arms as they neared, who spun her around playfully.

"Hey, sexy!" Kazu said cheerfully, setting her down. Although Orihime was my friend, the two always took the time to talk to each other about clothes, cars, boys—things I wasn't into, so therefore we never conversed about things. I sometimes wondered if Orihime would prefer if I was more like my sister, who was my polar opposite in so many ways. "Hey, Ichi!" She ruffled Ichigo's hair.

"Don't." He mumbled, although he was still blushing. Kazu had once asked me if Ichigo had some kind of disease that made his face red all the time. I couldn't believe she didn't notice—although her big, hunky boyfriend was definitely a twist on scrawny Kurosaki.

"How was school?" Kazu asked, pitching her cigarette. I shrugged. I hated how insecure Kazu could make me feel.

"This is Rukia, Kazu-chan!" Orihime chirped, thrusting the petite black haired girl before Kazu, who pushed up her rose-colored sunglasses, revealing her big brown eyes, expertly ringed in brown eyeliner, purple eyeshadow, and mascara. She was giving Rukia the "Manhattan Once Over", and it was honestly one of the most cruelest things I could witness. Her eyes slowly looked Rukia up and down, and I waited for the smile or frown. If she smiled, Rukia was in. If she frowned, Rukia was out.

Kazu smiled. I breathed a sigh of relief.

"Hey, Rukia-san. Where did you come from?" Kazu extended one delicate, manicured hand towards Rukia, who shook it.

"I'm from Tokyo. I'm here living with friends." Rukia explained. Tatsuki had heard the story lot's of times.

"Where are you staying?"

"With Ichigo-kun."

"oooooh!" Kazu nudged Ichigo. "Ooh la-la-la, Ichigo's got a lil' lady friend!" She teased.

"It's not like that!" Ichigo protested. Kazu laughed.

"C'mon guys, I'll give you a ride." She turned and walked around to the driver's door. I tried not to let my jealousy show as Ichigo lost his control for a moment and blatantly checked out my sister's ass.

"Come on." I nudged him. I got into the passenger seat, and the other three clambered into the back. Kazu was fixing her lipstick. "Seriously? No one can even see you, the windows are tinted!" I said, annoyed.

"Excuse me," She smacked her lips, and smudged the pink color better. "I didn't know I was offending you so much by fixing my lipstick. Jesus, change your tampon." I flushed with anger.

"Shut up."

"You shut up."

"You're such a bitch, Kazuki."

"Will you take that self-righteous stick out of your ass? Fuck, I'll make you walk." I opened my mouth to talk but Kazu had turned on the car and put the music on full blast. She had always been into America pop music so her pirated Rihanna CD blared from the speakers. I was more into metal myself, it helped me train better, but Kazu detested the "trash" as she called it and I knew she played it just to annoy me. We dropped off Orihime first. She said bye about a hundred times before we managed to get my bubbly friend out of the car. Kazu laughed.

"She's so cute!" She said cheerfully, turning the music to a more appropriate level. "Why doesn't she have a boyfriend yet?"

"Maybe she doesn't need one." I retorted. Kazu rolled her eyes.

"What's it like in Tokyo, Rukia?" Kazu asked. Rukia opened her mouth to speak, and then she suddenly stiffened, her dark blue eyes going even darker. Ichigo picked up on it right away. "What's wrong?" Kazu asked, frowning. I already knew what was going on. I could sense the Hollow already.

"Stop." I ordered.

"No, I'm in the middle of traffic! Is she sick? What the fuck, Tatsuki."

"Just shut up and pull over!" I snapped.

"Please, pull over Kazuki-chan!" Ichigo called. Kazu rolled her eyes and sighed, mumbling about melodrama and she pulled over to the curb.

"Do you need me to come?" I asked, praying they would say yes. Rukia shook her head.

"It was nice to meet you Kazuki-san!" She said as she hopped out of the car, Ichigo following. "See ya, Tatsuki!" And they were running back up the sidewalk together. It wasn't any of my business, but I felt rejected all the same. I felt disappoint well inside of me.

"What the hell was that all about?" Kazu asked. "you got some weird friends." I didn't answer, and asked if she could drop me off at the dojo.

"Duh, that's why I picked you up. I have to practice anyways." By practice, she meant dance. This meant her shitty music blaring, and probably her boyfriend to come watch her jump around in skin tight clothes. Sickening.

"Whatever." I wondered if Ichigo and Rukia were okay, what they were fighting. I looked at Kazu. I was annoyed with her right now, but I had no idea she was going to be in just as deep with the Shinigami as I was in only a matter of hours.