A/N: Happy Chinese New Years! This is my favorite chapter so far. Enjoy!

Thank you for those who reviewed!

ROSELIACOOL

Anon. (loujane14)

BlueJx13

Black Magician Girl3

Makino114

ichigoxrukia

angiez

ShinigamiLenne

-In loving memory of

chibi milktea

ya1ya

Anon. (Hitomi)

Goku's Daughter

meiko kairi

4 rOy MuStAnG

Akum

Kitsune6

Sierra77

andrag

Anon. (Sakyru)

honey-vanilla11

sanriochica333

shadow eyes

Started: July 29, 2006

Draft Finished: August 08, 2006

Fiction: Continuation

Rated: PG-13

Disclaimer: The character and names of Bleach belongs to Kubo Taito. The plot belongs to me.

Anime: Bleach

Pairings: IchiRuki, slight RenRuk

Genre: Romance/Humor

Summary: AU Community service has always been a pain to Kurosaki Ichigo. Manipulated by his crazy teacher, Ichigo has to complete his community service at a hospital. While he is there, he meets the most interesting girl in his life, Kuchiki Rukia. Everything about her is intoxicating . . . and then, Ichigo makes the next big decision of his life: he is going to get her out. Breaking about fifty laws to help her escape in the process, will he succeed?

"When the Rain Stops"

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"Kuchiki-san is kind, strong, and beautiful, and she makes Kurosaki-kun happy. . ." -Inoue Orihime.

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Chapter Five

After a couple of days, the second part of Rukia's plan took place. Tabloids were asking the same question: "Just where was she?" With rumors floating around, the topic of her disappearance was the talk of the town. Even after weeks, the headlines were still sprouting out nonsense. And who was the one dishing them out? The answer was simple: Urahara Kisuke.

But all of that didn't bother Kurosaki family, until people from school started asking prying questions. Like always, Ichigo would ignore his peers, having to punch the lights out of Asano in doing so. That idiot did not know when to shut up, honestly. With no one stalking him for answers, photos, and autographs, Ichigo's life gradually went back to normal, sort of. It's not every day you are stalked by journalists who have sold their soul to the devil and devoted their lives to make others a living hell.

And as if that was bad enough, people started to come to the Kurosaki Clinic. Normally, Isshin would be glad to have so many customers, but it turns out that none of them were even injured. Nevertheless, he treated them nicely with the stupid grin on his face, dodging their questions and telling them what it was like to be a doctor. Boy, were they in it deep. Even the Kurosaki children have shivers knowing that Isshin does not stop for anything once he gets his story rolling. It was a sad concept, but any form of torture that isn't inflicted on them is some good news.

The news about Rukia finally died down and the front page cover story came to take only a small space under the second page of continuations. It was a breath of relief for everyone. Any more of the publicity and even Isshin would go nuts, not from the questions but from the choices of stories he had to tell. It was one thing to tell the world how proud he was the day Ichigo was potty trained, and another when he gets knocked out by his son, right then and there without a warning. Talk about embarrassment.

It is summer. That meant blistering heat waves, firework festivals, and also a break from hell's prison, whom many would confuse often with the word 'school'. But even though there are breaks to escape from the devil's minions (nagging teachers), homework never escapes summer. Thus, on a sunny day, Ichigo is confided in his room with an open textbook in his lap. His eyes moved across the pages as he skims the long paragraphs, ignoring the sharp, snipping sound made by the female in his room. Stopping halfway down the page, his amber orbs stole a glance at his guest. Plodded down on the wooden floor and donned in a simple white summer dress, Rukia was flipping through the pages of a manga she had borrowed from one of his sisters. Though she was not facing him, he knew she was enjoying herself. Swinging her legs absently in the air and silently reading, he would say that she was happy because she was definitely hard to please.

The first couple of weeks was hard for her. To avoid being seen in public, she had to stay inside the house while he and his sisters went to school. Isshin kept her company for a couple of days, but he had his clinic to run, so that left her to be on her own. The options she had were limited. When she isn't correcting his mistakes on his homework, or making his ears bleed with mind-blowing lectures (and he thought his teachers were worst), there was nothing else she could do.

Household work was out of the question because Yuzu was already in charge of that. Isshin did need some help down in the clinic, but after suggesting to Rukia that she will be wearing a 'special' type of uniform, Ichigo banned the idea after knocking his father unconscious, muttering 'pervert' under his breath when he was finished. Karin's role in the family was complicated, though she tried to be the least bothersome one to make the family worry less about her. But somehow, Rukia was able to 'connect' with her and the next thing he knew, they were talking about horror genre mangas, which was all right to him until she got her hands on the shoujo type. That marked the beginning of her never-ending questions about school life. And he thought the journalists were annoying.

Ichigo knew she would be bored out of her mind after reading so much and suggested her to take on a hobby, any hobby that didn't require questioning or her 'artistic taste'. Somehow, Rukia took it a different way and asked Yuzu to teach her how to cook. It was a disaster and Ichigo's stomach and bruised shins were proof of that.

After three days of her 'training' with Yuzu, Rukia wanted to show the family what she had been learning, so she decided to cook them dinner. At first, Ichigo thought it would be all right since Yuzu was supervising everything, but in the end, the food she cooked was horrible. Of course, being the way he is, he insulted her cooking skills, like she had any.

"You suck, you know?" The orange haired teenager drawled, placing his chopsticks down. His appetite was lost after his first bite of the saltiest beef stir-fry he has ever tasted. Just how much salt did she put in it? Half a hand full? As for Karin, she took one bite and continued to sit there in silence, scooping as much rice as she could into her mouth. Obviously, she didn't have time to reach for a glass of milk to drown the taste from her tongue. Nevertheless, she did not say anything, or have seconds for that matter. It was official, Rukia was trying to poison them with her damn salty cooking. And here he thought salt was a seasoning, not a deadly agent that can destroy their sense of taste permanently.

"Nonsense!" Isshin argued. "You would make a lovely housewife, Rukia-san." The female Kuchiki beamed at this after throwing Ichigo a death glare.

"Sure, she'll make a lovely housewife," said Ichigo sarcastically, praying for the poor souls who have to suffer through her cooking. "If she wants to become a widow too." Upon hearing that remark, Rukia gave him the first of many bruises that he was going to receive under the table that night. And throughout dinner, Isshin couldn't help but give a wink at his son, knowing very well that something was going on between the two. Right. Every once in a while, Ichigo would look over at Rukia with his jaw clench tightly together with a certain look in his eyes. Aside from the constant twitching of his right eye, he was a bit jumpy from what Isshin was able to tell. By the end of the night, Ichigo's shins were so bruised, he cursed his father for his idiocy. He was in pain and his father couldn't even tell! What kind of a doctor is he?

Being abused by a girl half his size was not his problem, the fact that she is cooped in the house is. He knew that she is ill and cannot be exposed outside very often, but a part of him wants her to be able to actually enjoy life. Many nights, he would see her sitting next to the window, gazing out into the sky. Sometimes, he wondered what she was thinking about. She would sit there with a grim expression as if a great burden upon her shoulders. Though he knows her well enough to see that she is not the kind of person to cry over things, he couldn't help but feels her sadness every time she is like that. It tore him apart.

"Rukia." Upon hearing her name, the raven haired female saved her place in the manga with a bookmark before turning her full attention to Ichigo. With her big violet orbs staring at him, he knew she was asking 'what' in her mind. "Today is the start of the fireworks festival. I was wondering," his gaze shifted towards the window. Why was he hesitating? "I was wondering if want to go with my family." He heard her move, the fabric of her dress made a soft sound as she sat up.

"A fireworks festival?" She was silent for a while. "I've never been to one." Ichigo looked at her with bewilderment in his eyes, but he was not surprised.

"Would you like to go then?" Ichigo closed his textbook and swung his legs over the side of his bed. Elbows resting on his knees, he waited for her to give an answer.

"Sure," she said with curiosity. "What is the festival for?"

"It's the mark for the beginning of summer," he explained. "There will be lots of games and activities. Just a fun thing to attend with the whole family, I guess. There will be a lot of people, so you don't have to worry. You'll probably blend in." This puts a smirk on her face. Pulling her knees under her chin, she rested her eyes as Ichigo watched her. She was probably picturing the event in her mind. Dark locks blowing softly on her porcelain face from the wind that was circulating in the room, Ichigo observed Rukia closely to find that her health was looking better. A soft sigh escapes from his lips as he got up and walked over to her.

"Come on," he said, pulling her up to her feet. "You must be hungry." Heading to the door, he heard her shuffled behind him while he descends down the stairs. They took their seats beside each other as Yuzu brought the food from the kitchen to the table.

"Konichiwa, Onii-chan, Rukia-chan!" She greeted with a big smile on her face. Ichigo gave some kind of response under his breath and the raven haired female gave one of her cheerful 'hello'. Coincidently, Ichigo noticed that Karin was missing from the table. Nowadays, Karin seemed distant from her usual self. When he asked her what she has been up to these days, she would give him a short reply and wander off somewhere. It was right then and there that Ichigo decided that the girls needed some time to form a bond. One, it would get Rukia distracted for a while. Two, he wouldn't have to worry so much about what she was doing. And three, he needed some time to figure out what was up with Karin.

Muttering a 'thanks' when Yuzu handed him a bowl of rice, he waited for Rukia to take the first bite before eating. Even though others always stereotype him for a punk, he was anything but. When it came to manners, he respected them like morals. It was something his mother taught him and he will never forget them. Ever.

Seeing how the sun is out, Rukia took the chance to take a walk after lunch. Donned in a light sweater, she took small steps as she reached the park. A couple of feet behind her was Ichigo. Hands in his pockets, the orange haired teenager arrived moments after her and sat down next to her on the bench. The two do not say anything and become observers of the environment around them. The sun was casting shadows of the bare trees onto the green grass, birds were chirping merrily, and children were running around freely like they do not have a care in the world.

"I envy them," she admited softly. Her violet orbs followed the movements of the children laughing and running; they were playing a game called 'tag'. He looks at her from the corner of his eye. Sitting with her back straight, head up, Rukia sat there like a statue.

"Envy is one of the seven sins," he replied, not knowing what possessed him to tell her that.

"I know." And she continued to stare off into space.

He was speechless and that is saying something. Karin watched as her brother flickers his gaze away from the Kuchiki and looked out the window. Her attention lingers from her own brother to Rukia, silently observing the light smile she had on her face. Dressed in a light lavender kimono with white kikyou blossom prints and a yellow obi around her slim waist, the image of Rukia was quite different. The contrast between the kimono and her pale skin made her look like she is glowing.

"Oh, I am so proud to know that I am surrounded by the most beautiful daughters in the world!" Isshin exclaims, earning a punch from Ichigo.

"Pipe down, old man. I think China got your message," he snaps sarcastically. The girls took this time to exit the house before someone gets beat into a bloody pulp. Getting blood stains off clothes is always a killer task. "And since when did Rukia become your daughter?"

"Since you brought her home right in your arms!" His father replies, doing a dramatic performance. "I remember it like it was yesterday. My son," he wrapped his arm around Ichigo's shoulders, "saving a damsel in distress. Your love life is like a fairy tale, Ichigo!"

"She's not my wife," he grounded out. "Rukia is just a friend."

"Sure, she is." With a deep frown on his face, Ichigo shrugged his father off and went to the door and followed Rukia and his sister in the cool night. Though the air was much less humid, he could feel his face getting warm. Ignoring the sudden sensation, he looked up at the sky. The stars were bright tonight.

"Rukia-chan," said Yuzu when they passed the river. Her eyes wondered over her shoulders and realized that her brother had stop to stare at the shimmering water made possible by the moon's light. The footfalls of Rukia slowed down and came to a halt as she gave her attention to the young female beside her. "Do you," the girl fidgets the hem of her pink sleeves, "do you like Onii-chan?" Slightly surprised, the Kuchiki felt Karin watching her intently from a few feet away. With a big smile on her face, she answered the girl.

"Of course, I do."

"You're not going to take Onii-chan away from us are you?"

"Why would I do that?" Rukia raises a brow, wondering why in the world would an eleven-year-old think a thing like that.

"Because Karin-chan said that like each other and that he will stop spending time with us because he wants to be with you," the girl explained, droplets of tears threatened to spill from her eyes.

"Well," drawled Rukia as she patted Yuzu on the head. "I promise I will not take your Onii-chan away from his family." Pulling Yuzu's hand up, she hooked her pinky onto hers to show her commitment.

"And I hope Rukia-chan will stay and become apart of our family," Yuzu beamed.

"Sure," she smiled back, feeling her heart beat against her rib cage. "Now, let's go," her eyes scanned ahead to find Karin's tiny figure getting smaller by the second. "We're going to be late for the festival." Hand in had, the two walked with huge smiles on their faces. It is summer. They should enjoy it while it lasts.

"That bunny," exclaimed Rukia as she admired it from a few distances away. Lanterns lit by bulbs of electric lighting, the festival grounds were surrounded by them. Each of them hung on a wire that stretched all around the site, barely touching the heads that were passing into the crowds. Dressed in formal and traditional kimonos, men, women, and children in groups of families walked down the streets, laughing merrily as they ate, played games, and window shopped.

"Do you want it?" Ichigo asked, pointing to the prize. It was a white bunny with long ears and a wide smile on its face. Not bothering for an answer from her, he paid the vendor and tried to knock down the three bottles that were stacked upon each other. Rukia just watched him, his face was scrunched in determination as he tried to win her a prize.

In her hand was a fan, one of the many fans Isshin had earlier. Making a silly excuse, the old man dragged his daughters away to play more games after losing simultaneously to the vendor that hosted a game of catching goldfish onto thin rice paper.

"It takes skill," Isshin grinned with his thumbs up.

Her attention flashed back to Ichigo. He held the prize she wanted in front of face, muttering a quick, "here." She stared at him incredulously and accepted the bunny with a tiny smile. It takes skills, indeed. Who knew the idiot had any?

"What is this called?" She pointed to the drink and took another long sipped.

"It's juice, from a pack," Ichigo answered her. Rukia wasn't even paying attention to what he had just said. Instead, she was still enjoying her first juice box. From the way she was taking it in, he was sure that the hospital was keeping her as a prisoner. Honestly, that girl hasn't even had juice from a box before! It was like not giving a baby their rattle to shake when they are crying. He watched her cautiously drinking her juice like a little kid. She looked almost innocent. Inside, he knew that she was anything but. "Do you want another?" He realized that she had just finished the juice in less than a minute.

"Only if you open it for me," said Rukia. The male smirked at her.

"Of course."

Ichigo's POV

It is so peaceful. Being with her is so peaceful.

The way she walks, the way she moves. Her grace is limitless.

I shook my head as I picked up my pace to keep up with her. It's a miracle that she can walk so quickly dressed in that kimono. She walked toward the forest, isolated from the festival. Tiny beads of green light surrounded us and she stopped to gasp, her dark violet eyes observing the fireflies. I realized then, that we were alone, away from everyone.

"It's beautiful, isn't it?" She asked me flatly. Plodding down, Rukia laid the bunny plushie in her lap as she sat. Her short hair brushed lightly on her shoulders every now and then while she followed the fireflies with her dark orbs. As I watched Rukia enjoy herself, my heart jumped against my rib cage. A familiar feeling rushed throughout the course of my body like I've been struck by lightening. Whenever she was with me, my emotions would overwhelm me just like this. Then, I saw a look passing over her gaze. Her face portrayed a solemn expression and the smile she had on vanished from her face.

"Do you envy them?" I ignored the question she had inquired earlier. I watched her eyes dance from the floating lights to mine.

"No, I don't," her voice rang in my ears. I turned to the fireflies and noticed that they were flying closer to her. She reached out to touch one. Leaning against the tree, I watched silently. Fireflies are interesting creatures. Once they light up, they will die moments after. They were beautiful, but they will only last for a while. And during that brief moment, they live their life to the fullest. They don't even have time to regret their existence.

I know that all things can't last forever. Humans, for an example cannot live for long time. The average life span of a human varies depending on climate, location, and health at birth. Nothing lasts forever. Not even time.

The soft moonlight created a path through the dark night, emitting the streets, trees, and everything around them. Crickets chirped, owls hooted, it was quiet night. Stealing a peek, Ichigo knew that Rukia would have enjoyed the fireworks. Yes, would have because she fainted. Again, she was in his arms as he carried her home. Clutching onto the bunny plushie for dear life, Rukia's head lay on his shoulder, bumping on it now and then due to the speed he was running.

The streets were empty. He knew that every living soul was currently at the festival. Turning the corner, Ichigo felt Rukia stirred in his arms. He looked down and saw her eyes slowly opening.

"I fainted," she realized in a dull tone. He noted the tiredness in her voice. She was probably exhausted from the night's events. In a few steps, they approached the Kurosaki residence. Being careful, he settled Rukia down on the cement ledge that acted as a seat for the time being to let her rest. He was about to brush a piece of stray hair away from her face but stopped amiss and looked up only to find someone near the doorsteps of his house. Before Ichigo could even ask, "Who the hell are you?" Rukia opened her mouth and said one word.

"Renji." As for him, his mind was asking: 'Who the fuck is Renji?', and his question was answered when the red-haired man turned to their direction, throwing them a murderous glare while at it. What the hell happened to a simple 'hello'?

A/N: AH, Renji finally makes his appearance and I cut it off! Anyways, here is another chapter. I hope this had some sort spark of romance. Many wanted to know the illness Rukia has in this story, but all I can tell you is that it will be revealed eventually, so please be patient. I know the manga does not show that much romance of these two, so I'm just using what I can gather from the manga as a preference. Mostly, I just see Orihime being in love with Ichigo, while he is just too thick to know that she likes him more than a friend. It seems that the mangaka of Bleach is focusing more on Ichigo's view of Orihime, for he already expressed all he can on Ichigo's pledge to risk his life for Rukia during the Soul Society arc. Not that I personally hate Inoue, but I just don't like that pairing. But one thing's for sure, I'm glad the fillers are gone. Thank the heavens! I am so wrapped up in the manga right now! Seriously! Enough of my rambling. So, if you would like to read more, please review! Don't hesitate to tell me if anyone is out of character. Excuse my grammar mistakes and review with any comments, questions, or suggestions in a constructive manner.

Preview of Chapter Six

In the absence of her father and sister continuing to win more prizes, Karin wondered where Ichigo and Rukia were. Along the festival, she knew her father had purposely lost them. She was well aware of her father's intentions of leaving those two alone. She was not clueless like her little sister. Having seen them give little glances between one another, she knew something was going on between them. For weeks, she had known but kept it to herself. Even tonight, she did not miss the look Ichigo gave Rukia, nor did she miss the smiles he always had on his face whenever he assumed no one was looking. But she had. Though she was young, she was sure that her brother had some feelings toward Rukia. She was dead sure.

Despite the warm air, she couldn't help but pass a shiver. An inkling feeling went through her body and she felt the violent breeze hit her, raking her air along until they were tangled. With her brother missing and with Rukia, she had an eerie feeling passing through her. Something was wrong.

Thank you for reading!