Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach, despite that being my wish whenever I blowout the candles, see a shooting star, or throw coins in a fountain. Despite the afore mentioned methods, I also do not own any characters from Bleach either. i only own the original storyline of this story :(

note: I appreciate reviews that contain constructive criticism VERY MUCH, and while I will read them, Flames will only be used to roast marshmallows and nothing else.

It started with a simple question. "Rukia, have you ever been to a beach?"

I had never heard of a place called a 'beach'. "No, Ichigo, I have not been to a 'beach'. What is it?"

I looked at Ichigo expectantly as he began to explain. "Well first of all, have you heard of an ocean? It's a huge body of water."

"Like a lake?" I asked.

He nodded, "Yeah," he said, "Only a lot bigger, and it's salty."

I tried to imagine this place called a 'beach' and why I had to know what an 'ocean' was to understand what a beach was. Ichigo was still talking, "Anyway, a beach is like this place that has lots of sand, you know what that is, right?" I glared at him; I wasn't completely ignorant. Of course I knew what sand was. "Well it's covered with sand and it borders the ocean. People go there to swim and relax. It's actually pretty fun, and I was wondering if you wanted to go," he finished.

Ichigo wants to take me to this beach? He hasn't mentioned if anyone else is going….I thought. I hadn't had an actual day off in a long time, and Ichigo said that the beach was a fun place to go. It won't hurt anything, just as long as nobody finds out. I thought. "Yes, I'll go with you to the beach. When do you want to take me?"

It occurred to me too late that if Nii-sama ever found out about this, Ichigo might as well draw Senbonzakura across his own throat. As innocent as Ichigo was, I was sure he didn't think of it as a date, but as cautious and overprotective as my brother was, I was sure he would. It also occurred to me too late that Renji was also somewhere in Karakura Town, and he had an odd way of finding out things that he wasn't supposed to know. And if he found out, he'd definitely go tattling to Nii-sama. However, I couldn't really back out of my engagement with Ichigo; that would be rude. Besides, I was very interested in seeing this beach. Also, Renji knew I was sleeping my nights in Ichigo's room, but Byakuya either didn't know about that, or he didn't care, so maybe I was worrying too much.

Pushing aside those disturbing thoughts, I turned my mind to slightly more trivial matters. Ichigo had said I would need a 'bathing suit'. I had no idea what this was other than that it was an article of clothing meant to swim in. In Soul Society, I had simply gone swimming in my underclothes or stripped down. But then again, I had always swum with a group that consisted solely of other women, and obviously that method wasn't going to work with Ichigo. I decided to ask Orihime for help in the morning. I was pretty sure she would know about things like this. He'd also mentioned things like sunscreen, bodyboards, and something on the beach called a boardwalk. It had all gone in one ear and marched right out the other, but I figured he'd repeat it all when we went.

I rolled over on my tiny bed in Ichigo's closet, and I drifted off to sleep, finally have nothing left that I wanted to think about.

"Of course I'll take you swimsuit shopping!" Orihime exclaimed when I asked her, "It'll be so much fun!" She certainly looked excited at the purchase of a single article of clothing. I couldn't understand why, although, I decided that there were more options open to her as a human than to me as a shinigami, and that might be why. She offered to take me that weekend, and I agreed. In a very enthusiastic tone, she then began to rattle on about different boutiques we could frequent and how we should visit the mall. I was completely confused, considering that I didn't know any of them, but I let her ramble on.

The weekend came faster than I anticipated, and rather early Saturday morning, Orihime dragged me off to the center of town where her favorite boutiques were. Secretly, I was dreading our little shopping trip. I'd never actually been shopping for clothes; the servants at the Kuchiki manor took care of that for me, and when I came to the World of the Living, Uryu had sewn all me clothes for me. Shopping was a completely new experience for me, and by the way Orihime was acting, it seemed rather complicated full of styles, and patterns, and brands.

The first store Orihime brought me to was brightly lit and the walls were very colorful. There were long, flowing dresses in the front of the store accompanied by sleeveless shirts and pants of varying lengths, some that wouldn't even pass the middle of my thighs. Off to the walls, there were various styles of sandals and other shoes. Then, to the back of the store, we found the clothing that was apparently the object of our quest. I found that I blushed even just looking at them.

Nii-sama had trained me into modesty like the most protective of fathers. I rarely wore any top lower than my collarbone, and I never wore any robe, skirt, or pant higher below my knees. What I was looking at was skimpier even than some of my underwear. They left nothing to the imagination. In any of the articles of clothing in front of me, I would be hopelessly exposed. My stomach, my legs, most of my breasts….my head swam in horror just at the thought of it. Nii-sama would cloister me away for sure if he ever caught me in anyone of these. Orihime chuckled when she saw my face, and despite that, she handed me a bright pink suit speckled with flowers. It's nothing but a bra and panties, I thought. I didn't want to offend her though, so I took it and the others she handed me. When I looked at them, my insides squirmed uncomfortably. I was going to the beach with Ichigo; there was no way he was going to see me like this. And if Byakuya found out, it would be that much worse.

Something further back caught my eye. It was another one of these bathing suits, but it considerably more modest. It could cover up much more of my chest and it covered all of my stomach. The bottoms didn't cover anymore of my legs, but none of the bathing suits I saw did. I picked it up. "Rukia," Orihime cried in obvious dismay, "Why would you get something like that?" I blinked at her in confusion. "You're going to the beach. You're supposed to show off. You always wear these things that cover you up, so flaunt it a little this time," she admonished me. I could only stare, completely scandalized.

"But, some of these have less fabric than my underwear," I protested weakly, "I could never."

Orihime narrowed her eyes at me. It was one of the few times she looked something other than happy, and by the look in her face, I could tell I wasn't going to win this argument. "Alright then," she said in a commanding voice, "You're embarrassed to wear a bikini," (so that's what this was called), "and I won't let you wear a tankini," (so that's what this was called), "Then you'll go to the beach in a monokini." The word itself sounded imposing to me.

Orihim guided me to a rack of one-piece bathing suits. All of them had fabric missing from somewhere on the torso. This was her compromise, I guessed. It covered up part of the torso, unlike the bikinis, but it didn't cover up as much as the tankinis. I wasn't pleased, but Orihime wouldn't budge. I ended up buying one that had a large portion of cloth cutout from the torso in the back and front on both sides.

We didn't go on the actual beach right away. Ichigo insisted we walk on the boardwalk first. The boardwalk, as it turned out, was a raised walkway made of wooden planks with little shops and restaurants alongside it. We entered one of the shops, and Ichigo bought me what he said was a bodyboard. It was a large piece of foam covered by some odd brightly colored cloth, much like the one he ahd brought along. A thin rope dangled from it with a wristband at its end. Ichigo said I would need it for later, but I couldn't think why.

We found a quiet spot on the beach where there weren't too many people. The sand was warm under my feet and the waves crashed against it as they rolled in and away from shore. It was a beautiful scene, I had to admit. Ichigo began to set up some of the things we'd brought: an umbrella, a blanket, and a collapsible chair. He'd also brought along a basket of food, so I supposed that we were going to have a picnic. "So how do you like the beach so far?" he asked.

I squinted back at him as I shaded the sun from my eyes. "It's very bright, to be honest," I replied.

He shrugged. "It won't bother you for long. I'm going in; you coming?" He picked up his bodyboard and began to move toward the water. I wasn't sure what he was about to do, but I picked up mine. Also, and followed him. He began to run toward the water, board raised over his head, and once he was in waist deep, he lay the board on the water's surface and lay down on it. He let himself drift out a bit before yelling back to me, "Are you coming or not?"

I nodded hesitantly. I wasn't sure how safe it was to be in water that moved as much as this water did. It splashed upon shore before some invisible force sucked it back out and then it rushed onto shore once again. Further out, it moved in rolling movements that were slightly calmer, but never did it lie still like the water of a pond of a lake. I walked rather slowly toward the water until it was ankle deep. A hiss shot through my lips; it was cold! I could hear Ichigo, that impertinent brat, laughing out me from farther out in the ocean. He was just floating, lazily, completely unperturbed by the motion of the water. I steeled myself against the biting cold of the salty water and rushed out. Once I was in up to my chest, I laid myr board down and lay down on my stomach. The water rolling under me felt strange as I bobbed up and down. At first I thought I was going to fall, but then I grew used to it, and I was rather pleased with myself. It was very peaceful, and, excepting the distant voices of the other beachgoers, it was quiet.

We lay like that for a while before Ichigo paddled over. He was lying in what I thought was the strangest position. His back was in the water, and he held his board across his stomach. His head was tilted back so that everything was submerged except for his eyes, nose, and mouth. He seemed oddly relaxed. "You should try it," he murmured. "Just lie like this and relax everything. Feeling the waves roll under you feels so good." I slipped off my board and turned onto my back, clutching the board to my chest. Hesitantly, I relaxed my muscles. The feeling of just being shifted gently this way and that was more relaxing than anything I had ever felt before. I almost felt like I wanted to lie like this forever. I closed my eyes, listening to the silence. I have never felt this good… I thought.

Ichigo and I floated like that for what seemed to be a long time. When I heard him lifting himself back onto his bodyboard, I was reluctant to move, it was so soothing. But when I heard him paddling toward me, I quickly clambered onto my board. It would be just like Ichigo to shove me under while my eyes were closed, and I was having none of that. I looked at him warily and by the disappointed look on his face, I knew that I had been right about his intentions. But his chance was ruined and there was nothing he could do about it. He smirked at him.

"Hey, move in toward the beach," he said. He began to paddle off, and I followed, wondering what other things he had in store. Once he seemed to be somewhere he could stand, he picked up his board and walked to shore and stood waiting for me to catch up. I could see a look of anticipation in his eyes, like he wanted to show me something. "Now this," he said once I got out of the water, "Is the real purpose for these things. I'm just going to do something simple, so you can do it, too." He walked back into the water until he was in up to his knees. And the point of making me get out of the water was….? I thought with mild bemusement.

He stood, back to the waves, yet looking back, board held out in front of him. He was tense, waiting for something. A wave rushed past him, and was sucked back out, but he ignored it. A second and third wave passed him, but he ignored them, too. The fourth wave was rather large, and when Ichigo saw it, he became visible excited. Just as it curled to crash upon the beach, he lowered his board and lay down, placing his weight on the wave. Rapidly, in a spray of foam, it shot him forth several meters up onto the sand. I couldn't tell what was so entertaining about it. Ichigo was lying there with a look of amusement on his face and grinning stupidly. It's just water; I don't understand why you are so entertained. I thought.

Five minutes later I ended up back turned to the waves, board in hand. The wave curled and I threw my board and my weight against it. What a waste of time. I thought. But I was wrong. The brief feel of the wind rushing through my face and the feel of the spray against my skin as I was shot up onto the beach by the wave was more enjoyable than I had previously thought. It was childish, really, but it was fun, and we did it for a half hour at least. We would have continued, but Ichigo said, "Hey, Rukia, I want to try something."

"What?" I asked. He motioned for me to come over.

"I want to see if you can do this on me." Wait…what? I was confused, but I walked over. Ichigo moved out into the waves and I followed. I climbed onto his back and we waited for the perfect wave. When it came, it was huge and fast. Ichigo threw his board and his wait into it, eliciting a small yelp from me at the sudden drop.

I suppose you can't really call it flying, considering I was clinging to Ichigo, and we were skimming across the seawater and the sand, but it felt close. The moment was perfect as we shot farther than we had any of the other times and we squinted against the salty spray and the sand. I could feel Ichigo's muscles spasm under me as he laughed gleefully; he sounded so happy like skidding across the sand and the foam was the most wonderful experience in the world. And, as long as my life had been, for me, it was. We went back and did it again, and again, and again. I never had so much fun in my life.

It was rather romantic what we were doing. And despite my original relief that Ichigo didn't think of our outing as a date, a part of me now very much wanted him to.

"Remind me why you built a pool in Nii-sama's back yard?" I asked Rangiku as I looked for a bathing suit.

"Because he has the biggest property to do that in the Seireitei. Anyway, he destroyed our pool, and now we're going to the beach," she said lightly. I smirked as I watched her move to another rack. I was fine since I got to go to the beach again. I had heard that Ichigo would be there, which was nice.

Two pink pieces of cloth caught my eye, and I picked the hanger holding them up. It was the bikini I had dreaded on my previous shopping trip. But this time I smiled. I would buy it, I decided. After all, we were going to the beach, and I was supposed to flaunt it.

(Thanks for reading. Please review)