The Rebellious Novice

She was running as fast as she could.

Her lungs were burning but she couldn't bring herself to stop, she was almost outside the forest and it was about to get dark, she couldn't afford to be alone at night, she needed to reach the city or the beach, it didn't matter. She needed help urgently. Forcing her legs to go faster she reached the edge of the forest, she was about to smile victorious but she never got the chance, she didn't know that at the end of the forest was a cliff, she gasped and tried to grab something to stop her fall but it was too late.

She fell violently and everything went dark before she could even scream.

Kurosaki Ichigo was driving as fast as he could.

He was late to dinner and his father, being the dramatic jerk he was, was going to make a scandal out of it. The orange haired teenager cursed under his breath, it wasn't his fault, it was Byakuya who sent him to deliver some important documents outside the city and while he appreciated the trust his boss put into him he couldn't believe how uncaring he was, Ichigo didn't have a driver's license yet, he was too young. Well, apparently the Kuchiki heir didn't care about Ichigo's problem, all he cared about was his efficiency in delivering the documents and luckily he delivered them on time so his job was safe for now.

He sighed and accelerated, going outside Karakura always came with lots of difficulties because the roads were tricky, not to mention that he had to drive near the beach and the traffic was a nightmare around that zone, thinking about that he took a shortcut, it was a lonely road next to some cliffs but it didn't matter, he wanted to avoid the policemen and he knew no one would take this road.

Once he realized there were no other cars near him he relaxed, he could still make it on time.

It was then when it happened.

He didn't know how but something or someone fell from the cliffs and he hit that person with the car before he or she could reach the floor, he hit the brakes immediately but it was too late, he could tell that he had hit whoever had fell from the cliff.

He started to think, could it be that someone tried to commit suicide? Could it be that someone was trying to get rid of a body? Was he so damn unlucky that he had killed some crazy asshole that for some reason wanted to enjoy the view from the cliff? His heart was beating hard on his chest and for a minute it felt as if the world had stopped spinning.

He couldn't call the police.

Without the license they would take him along with the car, not to mention that there were no witnesses so he couldn't prove that the person fell from the cliff, instead they would blame him, there was no way. Besides, policemen always gave him a hard time because of his hair and his permanent scowl.

"Fuck" he said aloud and letting out the air he didn't know he was holding.

With trembling hands he get off the car and ran towards the probably deceased person.

"Please" he said under his breath "please God, if you really exist let this one be alive, I cannot go to jail" he wasn't used to praying but he supposed that it a lame prayer was better than no prayer at all.

He kneeled down next to the body and the first thing that he noticed it was that it was completely dressed in black, it looked like a huge dress with an apron, a veil and a cross.

He paused.

"No" he said aloud "I killed a nun?!"

He took the veil off her face and his eyes widened, this nun was gorgeous. Pale skin, button like nose, she couldn't be older than him, if anything she was younger. He gulped and checked the pulse.

He gasped.

She was alive! He wasn't a murderer!

He picked her up bridal style, he was glad to see that there was no blood anywhere but it was obvious that she was hurt. He ran towards the car and lay her carefully on the backseat. Collecting his thoughts he got to the conclusion that he wasn't going to make it to dinner in time, so he grabbed his cellphone and sent a message to his father, after that he took a deep breath and decided to drive towards his best friend's house.

From: Useless son.

"Hey dad, I won't be able to make it to dinner. The traffic is crazy and Renji says he needs my help with something, don't wait for me, I'll tell you how everything went tomorrow."

Kurosaki Isshin sighed.

Well, at least the boy was responsible enough to let him know.

When Renji heard the doorbell he knew that Ichigo was the one who was at the door. The orange haired loser was the only one who always showed up unannounced, pausing his videogame and sighing heavily he walked towards the door. He thought about waiting for a few minutes to make the bastard suffer but, considering the hour, the visit was probably because of something important, the last time Ichigo showed up in the middle of the night it was because he had a fight with his father, so Without even asking who was ringing at this unholy hour he opened the door.

His eyes widened at the sight of Ichigo carrying a nun.

"What the...?!" Renji was about to ask but Ichigo's angry look shut him up.

Renji took a step aside and once Ichigo stepped into the apartment, Renji closed the door behind him. He was glad that he didn't have nosy neighbors otherwise he wouldn't hear the end of it.

"Okay" Renji said carefully "I don't know what happened but please tell me that she's alive."

Ichigo looked at his redheaded best friend and nodded.

"Explain" Renji said while walking towards his room.

Ichigo lay the nun carefully on Renji's bed and turned to see him but he couldn't say anything. He sat down on the edge of the bed and hid his face on his hands. Renji approached him and patted him on the back twice, Ichigo wouldn't admit it but that little gesture helped him a lot. Before he could process everything, he told Renji the complete story, he accelerating Byakuya's car, hitting the crazy or suicidal nun with the car and how he couldn't think about what else to do or where else to go.

"What am I supposed to do?!" Ichigo asked desperately once he let the whole thing out of his system.

"Leave her on your father's hospital, someone will eventually show up to pick her up." Renji said wisely "is not as if you can treat her here!"

"What if she has lost her memory?!" Ichigo asked "what if they send her to some unknown place full of crazy people?!"

Renji looked at the girl.

She looked fine.

"Let's wait for her to wake up" Renji suggested "once she does, we'll explain everything to her and we'll help her."

Ichigo gulped.

"Hopefully she won't sue me."

"I don't think nuns know how to sue someone" Renji said "come on, you need something to eat."

Rukia groaned.

Her whole body ached and she didn't know why. Closing her eyes tightly she tried to remember what happened to her, the day had begun quite normally, the usual prayers and then breakfast and as time went on she kept replaying all the details of her escape plan which succeeded until she got to the edge of the forest where she fell and...

She gasped and sat down immediately.

With widened eyes she looked around and noticed how she was in an unknown room that didn't smell very sanitary. She checked herself and noticed how she didn't have any broken bones and her garments were still on so she guessed that no one touched her or hurt her.

She gulped.

Someone probably found her when she fell from the cliff. She stood up and decided to leave the room, she didn't know what time it was but obviously the people from the convent would be already looking for her. With trembling hands she opened the door and peeked outside, there was nothing but an empty hallway, she could tell she was inside a tiny apartment.

She blinked. Was she already in the city?

"I'm telling you Renji, she fell out of nowhere I swear to you that if she doesn't wake up..."

"Ichigo, she'll wake up, just give her time."

Her eyes widened. They were obviously talking about her, apparently someone called Ichigo had helped her.

"What if I made permanent damage? I could go to jail or worst, to hell."

Rukia frowned and followed the sound of the voices.

"Didn't take you as a religious one." Renji said smirking and Ichigo glared at him.

He was about to tell him how he wasn't an atheist but he couldn't talk, once he saw the girl stepping into the dining room words failed him. She was walking, that was a good sign but still, she looked pissed. Ichigo and Renji stood up immediately at the sight of her.

"Which one of you is Ichigo?" She asked and Ichigo thought that her voice was quite peculiar.

Renji pointed at him.

"You were the one who helped me?" she asked.

Ichigo nodded but didn't speak. As he observed her he noticed that her eyes were gorgeous, she had violet eyes, he had never seen that eye color. Hell, he wondered if she was wearing contacts, he couldn't take his eyes off her face, were nuns really that pretty?

"Where am I?" she asked and Renji, after noticing Ichigo's idiotic stare, decided to answer.

"You're in Karakura town" he told her and Ichigo noticed how her eyes widened at that "My name is Abarai Renji, the orange haired idiot brought you to my apartment."

"Was anyone following me? Did you see someone?" she asked Ichigo and he shook his head.

"Why?" Renji asked "is someone looking for you?"

She shrugged.

"Hopefully not" she said "I escaped for a reason after all."

Ichigo gaped, her final statement settled on his head and he felt as if a bucket of cold water had fell on him.

"You what?!" he finally asked "you escaped?! From where exactly?!"

Rukia looked at the orange haired boy and frowned, he was loud and had quite the scowl on his face. She wasn't sure if she could trust him, but he had helped her and she supposed that she owed him an explanation, she didn't have to tell him everything.

"I escaped from the convent" she said "although I was lucky enough to fall from the cliff because..."

"Lucky?" Ichigo asked aghast "Idiot! I almost had a heart attack, I thought I killed you!"

Rukia glared at him.

"Well, sorry is not as if I planned to fall from there." She said crossing her arms.

"You're sorry?! I hit you with my boss's car, if I had killed you he would've been involved, I cannot even begin to explain how awful that would've been."

Rukia tilted her head confused.

"Boss? How old are you?"

"I'm sixteen" he said "but my father gave me authorization to" he paused "you know what? Never mind, I shouldn't be explaining myself to a stranger, what's your name anyway?"

"My name's Rukia" she answered "and yes, you're right, you shouldn't explain yourself to a stranger but you hit me with your car."

"Boss's car" Ichigo corrected her.

"Therefore you're going to help me, carrot top" she said smirking.

Ichigo chuckled sarcastically.

"Help you? After you almost made me had a panic attack? Hell no, I don't even know you, why should I help you?"

Rukia grabbed her head then and she winced dramatically.

"My head hurts" she said and then leaned against the wall "now I'm all alone in the outside world, my head and my body aches, the principal is probably already looking for me."

Ichigo frowned.

"I'm not falling for that trick" he said angrily "go look for the closest church, you might find someone to help you there."

Rukia frowned at that. She approached Ichigo decisively and kicked him on the shins, the orange haired boy doubled in pain and Rukia pulled his hair painfully. Renji was shocked to see a nun acting so violently so he didn't interfere, he didn't want to get hurt too.

"What the fuck?!" Ichigo asked.

"Listen here, idiot." She said "I escaped and I'm not going back, you'll help me to get on my feet and you'll teach me how to fend for myself."

"And if I refuse?!" he asked looking at her sort of scared.

"I'm going to the nearest police station to tell them how you hit me with your car and brought me to this tiny, dirty apartment instead of taking me to a hospital like any decent man would."

"Hey" Renji said offended "this apartment is not dirty!"

"So, make a choice." Rukia ordered and Ichigo sneered at her.

He would have to help her.

An expensive black car parked outside the convent.

"Sir" the chauffer said while opening the door for his bosses "we've arrived."

Kuchiki Soujun stepped out of the car along with his son Kuchiki Byakuya. The young novice that was sent to greet the guests blushed at the sight of them and quietly guided them towards the Principal office, both men ignored her nervous staring.

"I never understood your decision of leaving my favorite granddaughter in here" Soujun commented while walking next to Byakuya and admiring the hallways. The convent had quite the gothic style and it looked as if it belonged to a horror movie, the walls looked ancient and the fact that the place was crowded with nuns gave Soujun quite a nasty feeling.

"Rukia is your only granddaughter" Byakuya replied coldly.

"Fine, let me rephrase my question" Soujun said unaffected by his son's coldness "why would you leave your only daughter in a place like this?"

"I already explained" he said dodging the question "I'm surprised that you decided to come today."

Soujun shrugged.

"I haven't seen her in ages, besides I promised Ginrei that I would make sure she was okay."

"She's living with nuns" Byakuya said "this is the safest place on earth, grandfather always exaggerates when it comes to Rukia."

"You cannot blame him" Soujun said "the only heiress of our clan, living with nuns, I think it's time for you to finally get her out of here."

Byakuya sighed and refrained from uttering another word, once they reached the principal office the young novice left the room.

"Oh sweet God" the Principal, who was an old woman with a mean smile, greeted them "it's so good to see you, Lord Kuchiki."

Both men nodded.

"May I ask the reason behind your visit? We're honored of course but all of our young novices are quite busy at the moment, Rukia is not an exception."

Byakuya raised an eyebrow.

"We've come because as I stated the last month I think it's time for her to go back and live with us" he said "you were, of course, informed about this."

The old nun in front of him never stopped smiling.

"Of course" she said "but it's so sudden, I don't think Rukia wants to leave this place."

This time Soujun was the one who looked at the old nun incredulously.

"Rukia has sent us several letters begging us to get her out of here" he said "I thought that lying was a sin."

The woman's smile faltered for a second.

"She's really special" she said.

"Oh, we're aware" Soujun said "are your bringing here anytime soon? We've quite a busy schedule."

"Oh" the nun said "such busy business men as you cannot wait much longer I understand, which is why I must ask you to leave sweet Rukia with us for another couple of months, I don't want to imagine her living alone in a mansion like yours."

Byakuya frowned.

"Is none of your business" he said "but I've taken my position inside our enterprise since my grandfather already retired, Rukia will not be alone, Ginrei Kuchiki is anxiously waiting for her return."

The old nun was about to speak again but a young novice burst inside the office with a frantic expression.

"We already searched the whole convent, she's nowhere to be found, nothing was found in the forest either, Kuchiki Rukia escaped leaving no traces behind her."

Soujun's eyes widened and Byakuya looked angrily at the Principal.

"Were you planning on informing us about this? Or perhaps were you asking for another couple of months with Rukia so you could find her?"

The woman paled.

She hoped that Kuchiki Rukia was okay otherwise they would be hell to pay.

Ichigo stepped into his house at midnight.

He couldn't believe the predicament he was in, still he knew what he had to do. Without turning on the lights he walked towards his room as quietly as he could, he was glad that his dad didn't wait for him otherwise he would've noticed Ichigo's worried expression. He gulped, he didn't know how he was going to hide what he was doing, but hopefully no one would notice.

Once he stepped into his room he turned on the light and ran to open the window. Rukia stepped then into the room, with difficulty because of the garments she was wearing, and smiled at him.

"Carrot top" she said while looking around his room with curiosity "this looks way better than Renji's room."

Ichigo frowned.

"Keep it down" he told her "my sisters are sleeping in the other room."

Her eyes widened.

"Oh" she said "how many sisters do you have?"

Ichigo shook his head.

"I think I underestimated you" he said "you literally let a stranger bring you to his home, are you crazy?"

Rukia chuckled.

"Well, you helped me" she reasoned "if you wanted to kill me you would've done it on the way here."

Ichigo sighed.

"Fine" he said "since we'll be spending a few days together I think we need to get to know each other, stay here, I'll bring you some clothes."

Rukia nodded happily.

"Repeat that" Kuchiki Ginrei ordered and Byakuya fought the urge to groan.

"Rukia escaped from the convent a few hours ago." He said and he noticed how his grandfather's expression changed from anger towards distress in a matter of seconds.

"How did she do it?" Ginrei asked quietly while closing his eyes.

Soujun and Byakuya exchanged a quiet glance. After threatening the Principal and leaving the convent they decided to wait to break the news on Ginrei, he had just recovered from an illness and that was one of the reasons why they wanted Rukia back, Ginrei wanted to spend his retirement in the company of his only granddaughter, unfortunately luck wasn't on their side because once they stepped into the mansion again Ginrei was waiting for them and Rukia.

"No one knows" Soujun answered "all she left was her novice uniform, there were no notes, her bed was neatly made and no one saw anything."

Ginrei sighed heavily.

"I see" he said.

"She was informed that we would pick her up today" Byakuya said "she's obviously avoiding us."

"Oh no" Ginrei said while looking angrily at his grandson "she's avoiding you, she's probably afraid that you'll keep the ridiculous promise that you made her the night you left her in that dreadful place."

"That was a lie" Byakuya excused himself "she's not an idiot..."

"She was a twelve year old girl!" Ginrei said, his anger getting worse by every second "you're her father! I tried to stop you but you never listen! Now look what your silly decision brought! Rukia, our fifteen year old Rukia, alone in the city! The situation is bad enough for common girls, is not like Karakura is the safest city on earth after all, but can you imagine if someone were to discover who she is?!"

Byakuya looked aside.

He didn't like to see his grandfather upset over his mistakes.

"No one knows Rukia" Soujun said calmly "as far as everyone's concerned, Byakuya's daughter is studying overseas, the rival companies and the press none of them knows who Rukia is."

Ginrei nodded.

"That's true" he said "but anyone who knew Hisana-san will recognize Rukia immediately, so we have to find her before anyone else does."

Byakuya nodded.

"She's clever and reckless" Ginrei said smiling fondly "hopefully she'll be okay until we find her."

Soujun smiled at that.

"She will be" he said "who knows? Perhaps she's scared right now, she might look for a way to call us."

Byakuya doubted it but he refrained from speaking.

"So, tell me your story" Ichigo said while handing Rukia some pajamas and a sundress "a nun does not fall from a cliff very often."

Rukia shrugged and took the clothes.

"I'll tell you" she said "but you should tell me yours first, is polite to do so."

Ichigo took a seat on his desk chair and nodded.

"Well, my name is Kurosaki Ichigo" he said while closing his eyes, he supposed that she took that moment to change because he could hear her taking off her clothes "I'm sixteen years old, my father is a doctor and I have two younger sisters, they are fraternal twins by the way, I study at Seireitei High School and Renji is my best friend."

"You mentioned something about work, where do you work?" she asked.

Ichigo could still hear her moving her clothes so he didn't open his eyes.

"Well, one of my father's friends is the CEO of an important enterprise" he explained "I've always admired him so when I turned fifteen I asked him to teach me about his work, he's a lawyer but his family has lots of other business, either way he took me under his wing and I've been working for him for a year now."

"He sounds like someone important." She pointed out.

"He is" Ichigo assured her "he's also a stuck up bastard but he gets along quite well with my dad, so he's not that bad."

"You can open your eyes now." She told him and he did so.

His eyes widened when he saw her wearing Yuzu's pajamas.

Now that she wasn't wearing the veil he could admire her pointy raven hair, it accentuated her unique eyes quite well, he also noticed how skinny she was. He supposed that the nun garments made her look bigger because now she looked like a midget to him.

He blinked.

He thought she was really pretty.

"Well" he said when he was done staring at her "that's my story, what's yours?"

She took a seat on his bed. She wanted to ask him about some things he didn't say, like her boss's name and why he didn't mention his mother when talking about his family but she supposed that for now it was okay.

"My name is Rukia" she said "I'm fifteen years old."

Ichigo crossed his arms.

"What's your last name?" he asked.

She shrugged.

"It's not important." She said dodging his question.

He let it aside, he could always ask her later.

"How long were you inside the convent?"

"My father left me there when I was twelve and before that I was home schooled so I, unlike you, don't know how normal schools work."

Ichigo was starting to feel a little bad for her, he couldn't imagine not having friends and then been locked up in some depressing old place.

"Why would your father do that?"

"He told me, and I swear to you I'm not lying, that it was the best for me and that he would come back for me once he had found a nice husband that would take care of me."

Ichigo's eyes widened.

"What the fuck?" he asked offended "what kind of sick asshole does that?"

She nodded.

"I know" she said "that's why I escaped, he sent me a letter a month ago saying that it was time for me to go back and live with the family, I panicked so I planned the whole escape thing."

Ichigo blinked.

"Falling off the cliff was not in the whole plan though." She added with a smile "I'm an only child, I love animals, I hated every second inside the convent and now that I'm finally free I'm ready to learn to live like a normal girl."

Well, it makes sense he thought.

"So, what are we going to do?" she asked him "where do we start?"

Ichigo sighed.

"Wait a minute" he said "I need more information, is there any way your father might track you here? Should I be worried about that?"

"Not at all" he assured him "I didn't have friends inside the convent so I didn't tell anyone and hopefully he won't find time inside his tight schedule to look for me."

"Okay" he said cautiously "what about your mom?"

"She died when I was little" she said.

"I'm..."

"Don't be sorry" she interrupted him "I barely remember her."

"Okay" he said "now midget, we should get some sleep, tomorrow is Saturday so we'll figure out how to get you a life once the sun is out."

She smiled at him thankfully.

Ichigo looked aside, he didn't know why he liked her smile so much.

Kurosaki Isshin decided that it was time to wake his only son once the first rays of sun sneaked through his window. Smiling he went upstairs and without knocking on the door he stepped into the room.

"ICHIGO!" he yelled and jumped on the bed, only to find it empty.

His eyes widened. He was sure that Ichigo had come back yesterday, he heard him parking outside and he heard him moving some things around his room at midnight. So where was he? He looked at the empty bed and found a note, frowning he read it.

"Old man, don't destroy my neatly made bed. I went to deliver the car to Byakuya along with my reports from yesterday, I'll be outside most of the day, Renji needs my help with something. Don't wait for me."

Isshin blinked.

That was odd.

Rukia sank into the leather seat comfortably.

She was wearing a blue sundress and white sandals, it was so different from the novice uniform that she found herself smiling and enjoying the freedom the dress gave her. She looked at the city passing by from the car window, Ichigo had told her how he needed to give something to his boss so they woke up early, way too early for her liking. Still, she thought that it was for the best because it gave them more time to look around the city and she would be able to learn more things.

Ichigo looked from the corner of his eye to the weird girl.

He couldn't sleep thinking about what sort of problems she would bring him, he woke her up before sunrise so she could take a bath and get ready. He didn't want to imagine what his father would say if he were to see her, leaving a note was the safest route and besides he didn't lie, he needed to see Byakuya before he started to ask where his precious car was.

Ichigo huffed.

The Kuchikis had more cars but Byakuya liked this one for some stupid reason, the fact that he had hit a young novice with it made Ichigo believed that God hated him. He looked at the girl again and noticed how she was frowning.

"Ichigo" she said "I'm hungry."

Ichigo stopped at a red light.

"Well, sorry" he said "but if I don't deliver the reports on time, By-"

"Yeah, your boss will fire you" she said "stop talking about him, can't we go to a fast food restaurant? I cannot remember the last time I had a hamburger."

"You're not having hamburger for breakfast" Ichigo said and checked the clock "okay, I think we can grab breakfast on the way, we still have some time."

Rukia smiled.

"Great!"

Byakuya looked at the clock and frowned.

Every second, every hour counted and up until today there were no news. No one had seen anyone around the area, the cliffs were not an option, it wasn't as if Rukia would jump or fall from there, she wasn't an idiot after all. The woods were empty and not even pieces of clothes were found. Byakuya sighed, the fact that they had to keep the investigation a secret was a point against them, he just couldn't send Rukia's picture to the news channel, no one had to know.

"Stop overthinking, Byakuya" Ginrei advised him while stepping into the studio.

"I'm not overthinking" he said "I'm just wondering if Kurosaki Ichigo will make it on time."

Ginrei looked at the clock on the wall.

"He's on time" he said "besides, the reports can wait, have you heard anything about Rukia?"

"I thought you told me not to overthink" he said "and no, no one saw anything, there are no cameras on the area either."

Ginrei took a seat in front of Byakuya's desk.

"Have you called him?"

"The mad hatter?" Byakuya asked "no, and I don't plan to. The last thing we need is to explain to an eccentric freak about Rukia's existence." The Kuchiki heir grabbed his cellphone.

"Who are you calling?" Ginrei asked.

"Kurosaki Ichigo" he said "I never told him that he could take my car over the weekend."

"I never understood why you liked the Audi so much." Ginrei pointed out.

"It's mine and that's enough reason" he said "besides, why would the boy need my car? He has a motorcycle for the weekends, who knows what kind of things he could do on my car seats over the weekend?"

Ginrei chuckled.

"Stop talking like that, you know he's a good boy" he said smiling fondly at the mention of Ichigo "besides, it's not as if he's using it to drive crazy girls around."

"He better not" Byakuya said and dialed the orange haired boy's number.

Ichigo observed the crazy girl in front of him and started to wonder several things, who was she? Somehow, while he didn't doubt the convent story, he couldn't help but wonder if that was all there was to it, which brought him to the next question, who was her crazy as fuck father? It had to be some fucking asshole, because no one deserved to be called father after leaving his daughter in a convent and then try to get her a husband, it didn't make sense.

And his last question was, how come she could eat so much while having such amazing table manners?

Ichigo noticed instantly how well behaved she was, they sat in one of the tables at the back of the restaurant, Ichigo ordered a traditional Japanese breakfast and Rukia sat down with her back straight and once the food was served she started to eat with impeccable manners. That surprised him, he didn't know a lot about convents and nuns be he didn't suppose that they would teach etiquette, did they?

The breakfast consisted of mixed rice with either ikura, eggs with furikake, pickled vegetable salad, grilled fish, miso Soup and natto, somehow the skinny girl in front of him managed to eat everything and even asked for seconds.

He tilted his head while looking at her.

Perhaps the nuns were starving her or something.

"Is there something on my face, carrot top?" she asked smiling.

He looked aside and frowned.

"Stop calling me that, midget."

She smirked at him and was about to tell him something else when his cellphone went off. He answered without checking who was calling.

"Yo" he said uninterested and Rukia noticed how he paled in a matter of seconds.

She blinked.

"Who...?" she wanted to ask but he stood up.

"I'm on my way, I'm still on time! No, I'm not messing around with your car! Would you listen to me? Bya..." he hung up the phone defeated and Rukia looked at him worriedly.

"Is everything okay?" Rukia asked him.

"Yes, my boss is just being an ass" Ichigo said "I have to go, are you done?"

"No" she said while looking at the rest of her breakfast "why don't you go? I'll wait for you here."

Ichigo paused for a second. Something about leaving her behind didn't settle well with him but he knew he didn't have much time, besides he chose the restaurant because it was just a few blocks away from Byakuya's residential area. He was going to come back walking but he could do it fast, right?

"Promise me you won't move from here." He told her and she nodded while focusing on her breakfast again.

"Sure" she told him and Ichigo left the restaurant running.

It wasn't until he was a few blocks away when he noticed that he didn't leave her his phone number nor money.

Well he thought she's not going to leave the restaurant, right?

Soujun observed how the boy parked perfectly on the usual spot and frowned.

Kurosaki Ichigo was a really interesting boy. He had perfect grades, he was responsible and his family was his top priority, well at least that's what he had noticed in the short time the boy had been working for Byakuya. He liked him well enough but still thought that he needed to learn some manners, he needed to learn how to use honorifics and, for heaven's sake, couldn't the boy dye his hair? He looked like a criminal.

A maid ran to open the door once the boy rang the doorbell.

"Good morning" he greeted politely "Byakuya called me."

The maid nodded and told him he would announce him shortly, Soujun took that chance to talk to the boy so he stepped into the living room.

"Good morning, Soujun-sama" he said respectfully and noticed how he looked nervous.

"Morning" he said "what brings you here so early? You're half an hour early."

The boy shrugged.

"Byakuya called me" he said "I guess he missed the car."

Soujun smiled at that, his son had a soft spot for that car.

"You can bet on that" he said "so, everything went well yesterday?"

Ichigo tensed at the question and he could tell that Byakuya's father noticed. He never got the chance to answer because in that moment Ginrei stepped into the room along with Byakuya, Ichigo greeted them as usual and Byakuya nodded at him while Ginrei smiled warmly. Of all the Kuchikis, Ginrei was the one Ichigo liked the most. He was the oldest but he always smiled kindly at him and he could tell that he appreciated him, which was a relief.

"Son" Ginrei said "I'm so glad to see you, did something interesting happened to you yesterday?"

Oh yes Ichigo thought I hit a girl with Byakuya's favorite car.

"Nothing at all" Ichigo answered, ignoring his own thoughts "I went and delivered the documents, I have the reports here."

He handed the envelope to Byakuya who grabbed it absentmindly.

"I was kind of worried" Ginrei said while walking Ichigo towards the studio, Byakuya and Soujun followed them closely "the roads outside the city can be quite dangerous sometimes, I'm glad nothing bad happened."

"Thank you for worrying, Sir" Ichigo said and noticed how everyone was taking their usual seats inside the studio, he took a deep breath, he couldn't stay to chat today.

"Well" Byakuya said while eyeing Ichigo "sit down, we'll talk about your report and there are a few other things you'll do this week at work."

"I don't mean to be rude" Ichigo said nervously "but I need to go."

Everyone looked at him questioningly.

"Do you have something to do?" Byakuya asked "that's unusual."

Ichigo gulped.

"Well" he said scratching the back of his head "I have a friend visiting the city and I promised her that I would show her around, she's waiting for me."

Byakuya and Soujun frowned.

"Show her around?" Soujun asked "so, you're leaving work aside for a girl?"

Ichigo sighed.

"Oh come on" Ginrei said smiling "is a good thing that Ichigo is finally going on dates."

Ichigo blushed slightly.

"It's not like that" he tried to say but Ginrei just smiled at him.

"It's okay, I still remember my youngster days and I understand" Ginrei said "what's this girl's name?"

"Ru-"

"Her name does not matter" Soujun said interrupting Ichigo "is not as if we know her, just stay for a few minutes boy, then you can leave to your date."

Ichigo obeyed and took a seat.

"Listen" Soujun started "there's a family matter that we must solve this week, therefore we'll leave in your charge some important documents, you can take them to your house if you wish to work there, but we won't be available until the next Friday."

Ichigo nodded

"I don't mean to pry" he said "but is everything okay? Can I help with anything?"

He noticed how the three men in front of him exchanged careful looks, and Ichigo thought that that was weird. The Kuchikis had a tendency to keep all of their worries hidden or at bait, they didn't become one of the most powerful families of Tokyo for nothing, but for them to actually tell Ichigo that they had problems it was quite the event.

Ginrei sighed.

"Hopefully we'll be able to explain this situation soon" he said finally "for now, we need your trustworthy silence and your efficiency at work, is that okay?"

Ichigo nodded.

"Yes, Sir."

"Magnificent" Byakuya said, his face was no betraying any emotion "then we'll begin with your reports from yesterday."

Ichigo looked at the clock and decided to stop thinking about Rukia for a while, she promised she wouldn't leave the restaurant.

After half an hour Rukia got bored.

She had finished her breakfast and she had nothing to do, besides the waiter kept directing glances her way and she felt uncomfortable. She knew that Ichigo wouldn't abandon her, he didn't look like that type of guy, but she wouldn't be able to wait for him much longer. So, making a quick choice she called the weird waiter and asked for the bill.

Once he got back to the restaurant he realized that Rukia wasn't at the table in fact, instead of Rukia, a group of teenage girls was at the table, all of them looked at him with sly smiles and he felt the sudden urge to escape the establishment.

"Uhm, sorry" he said awkwardly "there was a girl here, just a while ago and..."

A blonde one sighed.

"Sorry, we're the only ones here and we just arrived." She explained.

"But" a brunette said "if you're looking for a girl's company you can join us."

Ichigo mumbled his thanks and left them, he was starting to believe that every single girl on earth was crazy. He approached the waiter and asked him about Rukia, surely he knew if she was in the bathroom or something.

"The cutie? Raven hair and amazing legs?" He asked Ichigo after he asked him.

"Yeah" Ichigo answered while holding back from punching the guy.

He had noticed, of course, that Rukia's legs were amazing but he wasn't a pervert to comment on them so shamelessly.

"She left a while ago."

Ichigo frowned confused.

"Just like that? How did she pay?"

The boy frowned confused.

"With money" he answered "she had quite a lot, but she didn't leave a nice tip."

Ichigo thanked him and left the restaurant, where did Rukia got money? Shaking his head he started to look for her, he would have to ask her once he found her, she had to be close. Frowning he looked around the street and then at the sky, it was starting to get cloudy. He cursed inwardly, he didn't want to be under the rain while looking for Rukia.

Rukia looked around the street and noticed the amount of shops and people that were around the place. She smiled, she would look around and then she would stroll around the park, Ichigo would find her, she wasn't going to go too far after all. Looking up she realized that it was going to rain, without hesitating she looked for a shop with umbrellas, which would be her first stop.

Ichigo had searched around all of the street stores and he didn't find her, desperate he texted Renji.

To: Pineapple head.

"How do you find a lost novice in the middle of the city? Asking for a friend"

Renji read Ichigo's message and chuckled.

To: Orange haired asshole.

"Sounds like you're having the weekend of your life. Sorry dude, I don't know how to find girls in the city, otherwise I wouldn't be single as fuck. Let me know if you need help, meanwhile I'm going back to sleep, is Saturday after all."

He sent the message and sighed.

Ichigo groaned at Renji's text.

The first droplets of water started to fall and he felt as if he was running out of time. He started to think, where did she go? He thought about thousands of places only to realize that he didn't know a single thing about her. He didn't know what she was interested in, or where she wanted to go or to do. He felt the need to punch himself, he had promised her to get her a life and he failed to ask her the bare minimum, glaring at the gray sky he promised himself that once he found her he was going to dedicate himself to get to know her.

Without hesitating he started to run.

Rukia paid for her hat and thanked the dark skinned woman on the counter. After stepping into the shop she couldn't help but fall in love with the hat so, instead of being logical and getting an umbrella, she chose the hat which combined nicely with her dress.

"Have I seen you somewhere?" the woman asked her with a cat-like grin.

"I don't think so" Rukia answered "I'm new around here."

The woman smiled.

"Then, welcome to Karakura" she said kindly "my name is Yoruichi and this is my store, feel free to come as much as you want."

"Thank you" Rukia said "my name is Rukia, by the way, do you know where the nearest animal shop is?"

Yoruichi nodded and gave the young girl the directions.

Ichigo thought about going to the police but he discarded the idea, what would he say?

"Officer, somehow I ended up taking care of a novice, she looks like a midget but I do not have pictures or anything, can you help me find her?"

Ichigo shook his head, he couldn't do that. They would probably send him to jail accusing him of being drunk. He groaned and looked up at the cloudy sky, he hated the fucking rain and it was starting to pour harder, he thought about Rukia, would she be scared? Did some fucking pervert found her and she didn't know how to defend herself? Would she be able to remember the way back home? And then another, more scary thought invaded him, did her father found her somehow?

He tried to tell himself that he shouldn't be worrying so much, he didn't even know the girl that much! But her smile and her big unique eyes came to mind and he couldn't help but think about how much he wanted to find her and take her home, with him. He walked towards the animal shop and smiled melancholy, looking at the bunnies from the window shop he remembered how Rukia told him she loved animals.

He groaned.

It had been just a few hours and he had already lost the girl, he was a useless case.

Rukia looked from outside the window shop and noticed his orange hair and sighed with relief. She knew he would remember! She thanked the owner for giving her the chance to protect herself from the rain and said goodbye. She wanted to keep looking at the bunnies but Ichigo was wet so she left the shop, she needed to stop him for looking like a drenched fool.

He was about to leave the street when someone kicked him on the back. He fell painfully on the street and was about to turn around and punched whoever was interrupting his depressive moment when he noticed who the person was.

"Rukia?!" he asked shocked.

He thought he was seeing things, she was wearing the blue sundress, the sandals and a blue straw hat with a ribbon. Where did she get the hat?

"I knew you would remember that I love animals!" she said smiling "I didn't wait for you because you were taking too long, so I visited a few shops, I walked through the park and I decided to wait for you here!"

She extended her hand and he took it, once he was on his feet again he looked at her.

"I was worried" she kept explaining "I thought that your boss was giving you a hard time because we decided to have breakfast instead of delivering the reports, did he fire you?"

Ichigo shook his head in negative.

She smiled.

"That's cool" she said and then looked for something inside the pockets of her dress "I bought you this."

She handed him a key chain, it had a black bunny.

"It'll bring you luck" she said "at least that's what the owner of the shop told me, I think that you work with an asshole so I guess you'll need that from now on."

He looked at the bunny on his hand and thought that it was so Rukia.

"Are you even listening?" she asked him "we look like fools standing here, carrot top! We're fucking wet and...!"

She couldn't keep talking because Ichigo took that chance to hug her.

Her eyes widened, she had never been hugged by a guy but it felt nice. Ichigo smelled nice and while the hug wasn't really comfortable, because of their wet clothes, she couldn't help but think that Ichigo's arms were really toned, she blushed slightly at that last thought.

"I thought I would never find you." Ichigo said and his breath on her ear gave her goosebumps.

"Well" she said a little unsure "you did, can we keep looking at the city? It looks like the rain will end soon."

Ichigo chuckled and let go off her.

"Sure, midget." He told her and looked at the sky.

The rain was really stopping.

Of all the places in which Ichigo thought that he would spend his Sunday morning, the church was the last of them, hell the church wasn't even on his list. On Sunday mornings he would usually wake up late, have breakfast with his sisters, perhaps mind his own business and then call Renji and hang out with him and the others. He looked around himself, he was the only young person in the church, except for the couple of children that were running around and ignoring the Priest's speech and Rukia.

He looked at the weird girl standing next to him and sighed. She was a force to be reckoned with, that was for sure. She was looking at the altar in front of them and was listening intently to everything the Priest was saying, after spending one day with her he assumed that, considering how she escaped from a convent and everything, she wouldn't be religious. Apparently he was wrong, perhaps he had failed to notice. Sighing again he contemplated everything that brought him to this unusual place.

It was early, perhaps 6AM, he couldn't really tell.

He was still on his bed, enjoying its warmth and his lack of responsibilities. Sundays were awesome to be lazy and not to worry about the next day, he could read a book, watch TV, or to have several naps. He smiled against his pillow, Kurosaki Ichigo loved Sundays.

"Ichigo" a deep, feminine voice said and his smile faded.

He decided to ignore her.

"Ichigo" the voice repeated and he groaned while hiding his face deeply into his white pillow.

He wasn't going to get up because of her, he wasn't going to.

"Carrot top, if you don't look at me right now I'm stepping out of your bedroom and I swear I'll greet your father as if I live here!" there was a pause "in fact, I do live here, should I let your father know?"

Ichigo sat down and glared at Rukia.

She was already dressed, this time she was wearing a white sundress, blue sandals and the straw hat that she bought while Ichigo had been panicking over her.

"What?" he asked her rudely and then looked at the clock on his bedside table "Rukia, what the fuck?! Is six in the fucking morning! It's Sunday!"

"Exactly" she said unaffected by his rudeness "it's time for you to get ready."

"Ready?" Ichigo asked shocked.

"Yes, we're going to church, it's our responsibility to go and listen to the Sunday mass, remember?"

Ichigo blinked confused several times.

"What the hell?!"

He ran a hand through his messy hair.

This time he didn't leave a note to his father nor his sisters, what was he supposed to say anyway? Hey, don't wait for me, I went to church. He clicked his tongue, frustrated, he needed to balance Rukia's existence with his family life otherwise his father would've his head. Sundays were a family day and this was the first time he wasn't going to have breakfast with Karin and Yuzu, he felt a little guilty about that.

Sooner than he thought the mass was over and Ichigo noticed how everyone started to leave the place, he almost thanked God for that.

"Excuse me" an old lady said while approaching them at the exit "miss?"

Rukia, who was putting on her hat, looked at the old lady and smiled.

"Yes?" she asked politely.

Ichigo noticed how the old lady looked him out of the corner of her eye, she was looking with distrust at him. He frowned, this was always the problem with his hair and his scowling face and he couldn't help it, he was born like that, damn it!

"I was wondering, are you in danger?" the old lady asked and Rukia tilted her head in confusion.

"Pardon?" she asked.

"Well" the old lady insisted and she didn't stop staring at Ichigo "this boy... he is not forcing you to be with him, is he?"

Rukia looked at Ichigo and then at the old lady and laughed.

"Oh no!" she said "not at all! It's quite the opposite, you'll see, I'm forcing him to be with me."

She said it so naturally that Ichigo couldn't help but laugh alongside her. In the end the old lady said goodbye and assured Rukia that it wasn't her intention to disturb her Sunday.

Kurosaki Isshin woke up and smirked.

This was his chance, today he was going to kick Ichigo to make him wake up. He knew that his son wouldn't miss a family day so of course he was still asleep. As silently as he could he walked towards his son's bedroom and once he was in front of his door he kicked it open, he jumped and when he landed on the bed he realized it was empty.

Isshin gaped.

Where the hell was Ichigo? He couldn't find any note so without wasting more time he went downstairs, Yuzu was already making breakfast and Karin was watching TV.

"Does anyone of you knows where Ichigo is?" he asked.

Karin raised an eyebrow and looked at him.

"Damn" she said "you're acting serious, is everything okay?"

"Ichigo is not in his bedroom" he said.

"Dad" Yuzu said worriedly "you sound shocked, are you okay?"

Tears started to roll down his cheeks and he ran towards his late wife's poster.

"Mom!" he said "our rebellious son is out there on the street, probably getting into trouble, and our daughters don't care!"

"Leave him" Karin said to Yuzu "he is totally okay."

"Okay" Ichigo said checking his watch "I still have time to have breakfast with my sisters and my father."

Rukia frowned sadly.

"I'm sorry" she said.

"What for?" Ichigo asked confused.

"Well" Rukia said while walking alongside him towards the church's parking spot "I am forcing you to have time with me, I didn't stop to think that your family might miss you."

Ichigo shrugged.

"It's not a huge deal" he said and looked around, every single old lady was looking at them with curious eyes, they probably looked funny together "but my father has this rule about having a family day on Sundays, I didn't tell you beforehand because I didn't think you were going to come to church."

Rukia sighed.

"It's okay" she said "I can spend the rest of the day in your room, tomorrow we can make something else, right?"

Ichigo stopped walking.

No, they couldn't do anything else tomorrow. He had school, he had to work and he wouldn't be able to see her that much. Gulping he realized that he had made a huge mistake by promising that he would teach her how to live on her own.

"What is it, carrot top?" she asked while looking at him.

Ichigo sighed.

"Well" he said and was about to explain her why he wouldn't be able to spend time with her until he saw her eyes, her impossible gorgeous eyes, he didn't think that he could deny her anything so in the end he took another decision "I'll go and have breakfast and then lunch with my family but in the afternoon I'll be free, we can go and do something then, do you think you can wait that long?"

She smiled at him widely.

"Sure!"

Ichigo was glad and once they reached his motorcycle they were ready to go.

Rukia loved motorcycles, when she woke up Ichigo she expected them to walk towards their destination but he informed her that he had a motorcycle of his own. It was a 2018 street rod, red Harley Davidson. She gasped when she first saw it and Ichigo smiled cockily at her reaction, what did he expect? It was amazing!

"You know" she said while taking seat and hugging him from behind "your hair, your permanent scowl and this motorcycle really makes you look like a bad boy."

He chuckled.

"Yeah" he said "unfortunately, the fact that I'm leaving church ruins my image."

She laughed and he accelerated towards home.

"Why is that cute lady dating a gangster?!" one of the church's old ladies asked her friend.

"Beats me" the other said "but I bet that they are having the most heated romance, oh to be young again!"

The other old women nodded solemnly.

Rukia stepped into the room through the window and sighed.

Ichigo was kind enough to buy breakfast for her on the way home so she decided to eat on his desk. She tried not to think about how many times the girls back in the convent left her to eat on her own just because they didn't like her, this wasn't the same, Ichigo promised to take her somewhere after lunch, she wasn't alone anymore.

She smirked as she took a bite from her toast, those girls would probably blush a deep shade of red if they were to discover how she was sharing a room with a boy. She chuckled at that thought.

She finished her breakfast and soon she got bored, so she decided to look around Ichigo's desk.

She found an envelope that was labeled "work for the week" and left it aside, she wasn't that interested in Ichigo's asshole boss. She found a picture of Ichigo's family and smiled, his father was making a goofy face while Ichigo was looking angrily at him, she then observed with curiosity his sisters, they didn't look like twins at all but they looked nice, she wondered if she were to meet them soon. As she suspected Ichigo's mother wasn't with them, she probably passed away, she didn't dare to ask at least not for now, she could hear laughter from downstairs and what sounded like something hitting the walls painfully, she frowned as she remembered her family.

Breakfast with the Kuchikis never sounded like that.

She was about to get up and take a quick nap when she noticed Ichigo's cellphone. She bit her lip, he probably forgot it before going to church, deciding that a quick peek wouldn't hurt so she grabbed it and smirked when she realized that it didn't have a password. She checked his picture gallery first, there were pictures of her sisters but it was obvious that he didn't take them, it looked as if the blonde one grabbed the phone to take selfies. She found a picture of Renji playing video games with Ichigo and a slim, bespectacled boy she didn't know, there was a picture of Ichigo with his motorcycle and some pictures of him eating lunch at school with what seemed to be a big group of friends.

She sighed longingly.

She forgot that he would go to school tomorrow, she wanted to go too.

More girly laughter was heard downstairs, Ichigo's sisters without a doubt, and she frowned. Why couldn't her family be as warm and funny as Ichigo's? Without being able to hold her curiosity she opened google on Ichigo's cellphone and searched for her father's latest news, after writing his name several news appeared and she clicked on the most recent one.

Her eyes widened as she read aloud.

"In the last year the Kuchiki enterprise tripled its incomings and is now one of the leader companies around Japan, and without leaving aside their commitment with the Justice system they've now given opportunities to several new lawyers eager to please both Kuchiki Soujun and Kuchiki Byakuya, leaders of the Kuchiki Company."

She closed the browser and left the cellphone where she found it.

She now understood why they didn't visit her the whole last year.

"Ichi-nii" Yuzu said as she observed her father lying on the floor due to Ichigo's kick "where were you this morning?"

Ichigo choked on his tea and Karin hit him lightly on the back.

"Uhm..." he said "I just went to take some fresh air."

"Are you feeling stressed about something?" Karin asked casually.

Ichigo remembered the raven haired girl inside his closet and chuckled.

"You've no idea."

"You should get a girlfriend!" his father said standing up suddenly "I need to see grandchildren soon!"

Ichigo glared at him.

"Shut up old man!" he said "Byakuya already owns my whole life and tomorrow will be bad, apparently they have something important to do so they won't be at the office, I'll have to take care of all the paperwork!"

"Why?" Yuzu asked "I thought that they rarely missed an office day."

Ichigo shrugged.

"They didn't explain, but I'll think I'll take a nap today to be able to function properly tomorrow."

"That's a good idea" Karin agreed "as long as daddy here doesn't try to kill you in your sleep."

Yuzu laughed at that and Isshin went to cry onto Masaki's poster about disrespectful children.

The day went considerably fast and Rukia found herself on the back of Ichigo's motorcycle again. He promised her some dessert and she agreed without much thought. The café Ichigo chose was cute and the smells were amazing, once they were both waiting for their orders to arrive Ichigo decided to talk.

"You're really quiet this afternoon" he commented "did something happen?"

Rukia looked outside the window towards the street, it was already sunset.

"Well, I just got bored I think" she lied.

"Sorry" Ichigo said "the old man and the twins wouldn't let go off me."

Rukia smiled at him.

"Your family sounds like fun" she said "tell me about them."

Ichigo nodded and started to talk.

Rukia found herself laughing at some of his anecdotes and his father's antics, Karin and Yuzu apparently had really opposites personalities but somehow they got along really well. He showed her the pictures she had already seen and she pretended that it was the first time seeing them, he talked about his classmates too and she noticed how he didn't mention any girl's name. Before they knew it, it was already night and they needed to go back.

"I'll take something to Karin and Yuzu" he said.

"I'll wait for you in the motorcycle" she told him and he nodded.

Once Rukia stepped outside she noticed a public phone, gulping she decided to make a call.

The phone rang and Byakuya frowned. He was in his studio speaking with his grandfather and father about the business and Rukia's disappearing, no one had the house number, no one. It was reserved for family members and to use only in case of emergency. Clicking his tongue he decided to ignore the call, it wouldn't do any good to answer a random seller who probably found the number by mere coincidence.

Soujun glared at him.

"Answer" he ordered "I cannot hear myself think with that ringing."

Ginrei nodded agreeing with him.

Byakuya answered on speaker.

"This phone is for family members only" he said as a way of greeting "no matter how you found it, delete it and don't call again."

There was a pause of a few seconds.

"Damn" a deep feminine voice said finally "I don't know what I expected to hear but it wasn't that."

Everyone's eyes widened and Ginrei stood up out of shock.

"Rukia?!" he asked "is that you?! Rukia?!"

There was another pause.

"Hi, granddaddy" she said finally and Soujun could swear that she sounded melancholic "I hope you're okay."

"I am" Ginrei said quickly "but you shouldn't worry about me, where are you?"

There was a longer pause this time and Soujun exchanged a look with Byakuya. It was obvious how she wasn't going to reveal where she was.

"Rukia" Byakuya said finally "your grandfather asked you a question, we've all been worried sick. Where are you?"

Rukia sighed heavily.

"I will not tell you" she said decisively "I just called to know if you were okay, is grandpa Soujun there?"

"I am" Soujun said smiling fondly at her granddaughter's voice "and I, as Ginrei, am okay but I think I speak for all of us when I say that we would be much better if you could tell us where you are."

"Why?" Rukia asked "did you already find a good husband for me?"

Byakuya pinched the bridge of his nose exasperated.

"No, Rukia" he muttered impatiently "you will not marry anyone you don't want to, that was a lie, we just want you to come back home."

"Why?" she asked again.

"Rukia" Ginrei said "are you okay? What happened? Why did you escape?"

Byakuya could hear some background noises, some cars and some store doors opening and closing, she was in a city.

"I'm okay" she said "in fact, I'm amazing."

"Amazing?" Byakuya asked coldly.

"Yes, I found someone who helped me" she said "I've been having the best time of my life, I have a friend and I have a nice room, three meals a day and guess what? I'm not surrounded by old, ancient, gothic walls or angry old women who only treat me decently because of my last name."

Ginrei hid his face on his hands.

Rukia sounded extremely resentful towards them, she had hated the convent life so it was no surprise that she was avoiding them and she would continue to do so. Ginrei couldn't blame her but he was worried, she was his only granddaughter.

"Please" Ginrei said almost desperately "please, Rukia. Tell us where you are, I believe that you're okay but I cannot bear your distance any longer, don't you wish to see us? To see me?"

Rukia cleared her throat and Soujun crossed his arms while sinking into his chair. It was obvious how she wanted to cry and judging by his father and his son's reaction they noticed it too, Rukia's tears always brought unpleasant feelings, they hated to see her sad and the fact that they were the ones to blame this time didn't make it any better.

"I miss you all terribly" Rukia said "but you didn't visit me for a whole year, I don't even need to ask why, I read the newspaper today, business is really booming right now so I'm guessing that leaving me aside while you were making a fortune worked out magnificently."

Byakuya ignore the pang of guilt he felt and made a mental note to see how many newspapers published their business affairs today, it was an amazing clue and she wasn't aware of that.

"All we wanted was for you to be safe" Byakuya excused himself "and I don't think you realize how exposed you are in the middle of the city, is the person who is helping you aware of who you really are?"

"My last name is not important" she said "I already told him that and he doesn't care."

At this Soujun exploded.

"He?!" he asked angrily "a boy is helping you? What's his name and what is he demanding in exchange of taking care of you?"

Ginrei tensed.

"Rukia" he said worriedly "no matter what this boy promised you, he's a stranger and you're a young girl, I beg you to tell where you are right now, we can talk, we'll bring you home."

"Home?" Rukia asked "I haven't been there in ages, you didn't even bother to take me home in the holidays!"

"Rukia" Byakuya insisted "who's helping you? You said you have a room and three meals a day, did a grown man took you to live with him? Do you realize the vulnerable position you're in?"

"I'm not an idiot" she said defensively "and he's not like that, he hasn't demanded money from me if that's what you're suggesting."

Ginrei wanted to bang his head against Byakuya's desk, Rukia's innocence was going to be the death of all the Kuchiki clan.

"That's not what I'm suggesting" Byakuya said impatiently "Rukia, where are you?"

"Oh, he's coming" she said and Soujun frowned at how happy she sounded at that "listen, I'm glad that you're all okay but I'm not going back, I don't want to be a Kuchiki anymore, I'll learn to fend for myself and I'll live on my own. Don't look for me, I'm fine."

"Rukia!" Ginrei said.

"I love you" she said and this time they were all sure, she was crying "but I cannot forgive you, you all abandoned me!"

"Rukia" Soujun said "just tell us where you are, we won't force you to do anything, let us see with our eyes that you're okay."

"I love you, really" she repeated "bye."

"No!" Ginrei said but the call ended and all that could be heard was the line beeping.

No one said anything, there was no need, it was obvious how guilty and heartbroken every single men in the room felt.

The ride home was quiet, Rukia was holding onto Ichigo harder than before but he didn't say anything. He noticed it when he approached her, after she finished her call, she was crying. It was quite weird to see her sad, he felt like whipping her tears away but he didn't know how to do it and he didn't know what to say.

Once they arrived home Rukia stepped into the room through Ichigo's window while he put the motorcycle into the garage.

When he stepped into his room he found her sitting on his bed, she was hugging his pillow and her shoulders were shaking, she wasn't crying but it was painfully obvious how she wanted to. He let her be and took a seat on his desk chair, if she wanted to talk he would listen but something was telling him that pressuring her wasn't the right thing to do.

"Carrot top" she said finally after a few minutes "do you like me?"

Ichigo blinked, he wasn't expecting that.

"Yeah" he said without hesitation "I mean, you have some violent tendencies and you could grow an inch or too, but other than that you're awesome to have around."

He noticed how she hugged his pillow tighter.

"Even if you don't know my last name? Or who my father is?" she asked.

Ichigo shrugged.

"I figured out that you didn't want to tell me your last name because you don't want to use it anymore, am I correct?"

She nodded.

"And the reason you don't want to use it anymore it's because you don't want anything to do with your father, right?"

Rukia sighed.

"Not exactly" she said "listen, my father is quite a complicated person."

"I figured out that much when you said the bastard wanted to choose a husband for you" Ichigo said and Rukia smiled sadly.

"Well, yeah" she agreed "anyway, the thing is that I really love him and back then, when I was still a child, he would always spend time with me."

Ichigo nodded to let her know that she had his full attention.

"I was spoiled in my house, my grandparents and my father loved me a lot" she said "I guess they still do."

She took a deep breath.

"But as I grew older I noticed that daddy couldn't look at me very often" she sighed "I look a lot like my mother, carrot top. I look so much like her that it's crazy, if she was alive I'm pretty sure people would confuse us as sisters."

"So, your father stopped looking at you because you reminded him of your mother?"

"That's my theory" she said shrugging.

"What was your mother's name?" Ichigo asked.

"Hisana" Rukia said and he noticed how she smiled a little, like if she was remembering something "but well, as I was telling you I got older and my father dumped me in the doors of a convent and only visited once in a while, my grandparents didn't stop him and one day no one came for me. I didn't leave that place, not even for holidays."

Ichigo noticed how miserable she looked saying that.

"I spent a full year without visits, I sent them lots of letters, several letters and they never answered back" her eyes shone with unshed tears "I thought they had forgotten me."

Ichigo crossed his arms to ignore the urge to comfort her with a hug.

"But then daddy's letter arrived" she said "he didn't explain why they didn't visit or why they didn't take me home for the holidays all he said was that they wanted me back home."

"That's when you panicked" Ichigo summarized.

She nodded.

"I thought he had chosen a husband, I planned the whole thing, grabbed all the money I saved and well, you know the rest" she stood up and started to pace around the room "I know I'm not mature and sometimes I'm silly but I'm not an idiot, I knew they were worried so I called them today."

Ichigo noticed that she couldn't hold the tears anymore. He had forgotten to ask about the money the day before but now there was no need, apparently she had been saving.

"They didn't apologize, they didn't explain anything, all they wanted to know was where I am" she said "daddy didn't even talk that much."

Ichigo scoffed.

Rukia's father was probably some stupid asshole.

"I told them that I was fine and that there was someone helping me" she said "I didn't say who you were but they told me that you were just helping me because of money and well, they didn't say it like that, but I thought that's what they were suggesting."

Ichigo stood up and put his hands on his shoulder to stop her from pacing.

"Midget" he said "calm the fuck down, I'm helping you because I want to and your good for nothing father doesn't know me, you shouldn't worry."

"I don't want to go to them!" she said looking at him desperately "I want to keep enjoying this for a while, you're okay with that, right?"

Ichigo nodded.

"You can stay as much as you want" he assured her "I won't let your father find you and besides, Japan is huge, is not as if he's near any of us."

Rukia smiled.

That was true.

In what Ichigo thought was a rare moment, he observed Rukia's eyes. All the light inside the room was coming from the moon so they were shining in an amazing way, he found himself unable to stop looking at her and before he knew what he was doing he started to lean down. Rukia smiled and surprising him she kissed him sweetly on the cheek.

"Thank you, carrot top" she said and left him there as she got into the closet to sleep.

Ichigo blinked and wondered why he felt so damn happy at that simple gesture.