Bleach: Rukia's Requiem

Untitled Part 10

"There. Perfect," Rukia said as she placed the two bowls of popcorn on the coffee table.

Next she checked all the candles and the movies she had picked out. When she was satisfied with her handy work, she checked it all over again until there was a frantic knock on the door.

She quickly walked over and opened it, finding a very tired Ichigo on the other side.

"What? What happened? Are you okay? Is Hana okay?" he asked, not even bothering to take a breath between questions.

Rukia pulled Ichigo into the apartment.

"Yeah, everyone's fine, I just needed to get you here," she said.

Ichigo looked like he was about to kill her, but then noticed all the candles, roses and food spread out across the living room.

"Rukia... What're you up to?" he asked, looking at her sceptically.

"Hana and I had a little conversation last night," Rukia said and Ichigo's eyes widened in surprise.

"Oh, don't worry. I just thought I'd like to help ease the tension between the two of you," she continued, ducking down to grab her duffel bag next to the door.

"Hana will be back in ten minutes, I suggest you go through the movies I got and make yourself familiar with the surroundings," Rukia said as she started to open the door again.

"Wait, Rukia, what's going on here?" Ichigo asked before she could step out of the door.

Rukia sighed, wondering how it was possible for one person to be so dense.

"It's a date night Ichigo. You decided that you wanted to be a loving boyfriend and make up to her for making her cry. You asked me to go somewhere else for the night, which I did without complaint. Do I need to explain the story or can your tiny orange brain guess the rest?"

Ichigo looked away, raking a hand through his hair.

"Hay, don't overthink it. This is just my way of trying to make up for the mess I brought back to your life," Rukia said gently before giving him a tiny smile.

He smiled back, but it was sad, which was the opposite of what his night had to be.

"Please Ichigo, make things right with Hana. It's terrible to see you guys fighting like this," she said and hoped it would finally sink in. When he didn't say anything, Rukia left.

Seconds before the door shut, she heard him say, "Thank you, Rukia."

She leaned against the door before pulling her duffel bag closer and going down the stairs. It was cold outside, exceedingly so, and very dark.

Rukia walked fast with certain steps, not planning to stop once before she reached Daniel's place.

She had asked him if she could stay there for the night, but didn't say why. Daniel, being how he is, didn't ask any questions.

"Hay there little missy" Rukia heard someone say from the shadows. She swirled around, ready to launch herself out of harm's way. Unfortunately the man was closer than she anticipated and she was unable to get out of the way before he grabbed her wrists.

She stared for a moment at the man's rough hands, binding hers together. She tried to pull them away, but his grip was iron clad.

"How?" she asked, to herself more than anyone. Usually she would have sensed someone if they got close to her, but she never noticed the man.

To add to that, she couldn't even break free from the man. Her body simply couldn't muster the amount of strength needed. She hated it, hated feeling completely helpless.