Title: Eyes On Me

Characters: Ichigo, Rukia

Genre: Humor/Romance

Rating: PG-13 (Ichigo’s potty mouth)

Notes: Too long for a drabble, but then again, everything I write is. I should rename it, but I don’t like the title Ficlets from the Two Worlds. Until I think of something better, it’s still going to be Drabbles from the Two Worlds. Pocky to anyone who spots the Monty Python reference.

Rukia felt a pricking at the back of her neck that only one thing could cause. Sure enough, Ichigo was staring at her again, with all the intensity of a hawk before a kill. He had been doing it ever since she had returned whenever he thought she wasn’t looking. The fact that there was no one Rukia could ask for advice on why he was staring at her didn’t help the situation.

Rukia wouldn’t get a straight answer from Orihime. Asking Yumichika would have the same result. Hitsugaya-taicho and Ikkaku would be useless for this sort of thing. Chad’s normal perceptiveness wouldn’t be very helpful with such unusual behavior from Ichigo. Maybe Matsumoto could help, but Rukia has a feeling she would arrive at a highly unlikely (or at least embarrassing) conclusion. And Renji…Renji would just attack Ichigo if he learned about what was happening.

Having eliminated anyone who could possibly help her, Rukia decided to take the matter into her own hands. The second Ichigo walked out of the building once school was over she grabbed his shirt and dragged him off to a reasonably secluded area. Well hidden behind a larch tree, Rukia got straight to the point with her usual bluntness.

“You’ve been staring a lot at me lately, Ichigo. Care to explain why?” Rukia asked, looking him right in the eyes. Naturally this made Ichigo’s defenses go up.

“Why the hell should I tell-OW! Bitch!” Clearly time spent away from Rukia made him forget just how violent she could be.

“Do you really want me to step on your foot again?” Rukia responded, a little pleased. It was nice to see she hadn’t lost her touch.

“Step, hell. How does someone as small as you inflict so much pain?” Ichigo asked, his foot still throbbing.

“Stop changing the subject.” Rukia ordered, increasing the intensity of her glare.

Ichigo swallowed with a throat that was suddenly extremely dry. He desperately tried to think of a way to stall. In a rare moment of luck the beeping of Rukia’s cell phone ended their discussion. Rukia scowled at the device before heading off.

“And don’t think I’ll forget to finish this conversation!” She said over her shoulder as she ran off.

Ichigo stared at her retreating back before an odd combination of relief and a desire to bang his head against a hard object overtook him. He settled for the tree before running after her, briefly wondering if he had been such a glutton for punishment before Rukia came into his life. She drove him nuts, but still…the ever growing affection inside him never wavered.

“Oi! Rukia! Wait up!”