The sequel to Parallel Lives is up! Rejoice! XD I hope you like this fic as much as you like the first one!

The sequel takes place three months after Parallel Lives; if you are just reading this fic then I would advice you to go read the first story or else you won’t understand.

Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach!

Joined Destinies

Prologue

Responsibility

By Kyttichan

Rated: R for mature themes and some strong language.

Whatever happens, take responsibility...

-Anthony Robbins-

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Orihime had been so upset with her the first two months, they barely spoke. Rukia could still remember how her lip had quivered and she had nearly broken down crying when she confronted Rukia about Ichigo. Orihime had nearly screamed at Rukia at how she was making the biggest mistake of her life but she bit her tongue and walked out of Rukia’s office, angrily digging her heels in the carpet.

Rukia was upset at having her best friend angry at her but she was also angry that Orihime wasn’t seeing her reasoning. But Orihime really cared for Rukia, more so now that she needed moral support, and because of that they made up. It had been harder to tell her brother and sister about her pregnancy.

She had fumbled and twisted her fingers in her lap while her family waited. Hisana’s eyes had doubled their sizes when Rukia had said that she was would become a single mother. Byakuya’s face was stoic and his eyes had barely registered any surprise. Instead he had spoken to her privately.

“Why won’t you tell me who the father of that child is, Rukia?” He had asked her.

“Isn’t it enough that it is my child?” Rukia had said with her eyes on the floor. “If you don’t want to see me anymore, I will understand.”

“Why would I want to stop seeing you?” Byakuya asked back and Rukia’s lower lip quivered. She knew her adoptive father is to be very strict.

Byakuya sat near Rukia in the couch and, in an unexpected sign of affection, touched her shoulder. Rukia looked up into her older brother’s stoic face.

“You are my daughter, Rukia.”

“It is my duty to stand by your side,” He said, his voice faltering slightly with emotions.

Ishida recommended Rukia with one of his friends, a very experienced obstetrician-gynecologist. Her friends had been very supportive; she didn’t know how she could thank Orihime enough.

Rukia sighed when she saw herself in the mirror. She stood on her side and lifted her shirt to reveal a more pronounced bump in her abdomen. The nausea stopped oddly enough when she stopped drinking coffee in the morning and eating chow mien for lunch.

Her left hand cupped her swelling lower belly. Rukia’s eyes had taken on the same sorrowful look she had for years after Kaien died. She had tried her best not to feel upset because it was bad for the baby. She already had half of what she had always wanted, but an important piece of her was missing.

Ichigo.

She thought and a tear slipped past her eyes.

She hiccupped and lifted her other hand to cover her mouth. She felt so upset, during the last few months that she had tried her best to move on, but she just couldn’t. Rukia couldn’t stomach the idea of being with anybody else. She wondered if Ichigo had been able to move on.

Was he with somebody else now? Had he love her as much as he said he did?

Many times she had thought about calling him and asking him to return, but she had always stopped herself. There were too many things in between for them to go back now. Rukia sobbed and slid to the floor; she knew she needed to calm down. Feeling like this wasn’t helping her baby but she just couldn’t.

Her whole body shook in immense tremors and that was how Orihime found Rukia that day.

Orihime had made it her mission to check on her pregnant friend and make sure that she was actually eating and not wasting away in her bed.

“This is not going to work,” She had said that for the thousand times as she helped Rukia up.

“You are hurting yourself and the baby Rukia-chan,” She whispered as she handed Rukia some tissues.

“Did you eat today?” Orihime asked, with her voice unbelievably harsh.

“No,” Rukia chocked and Orihime glared back at her.

“How do you expect to have this pregnancy come to term if you are not eating?” Orihime now replied back in a voice that was even harsher than before.

“I’m sorry,” Rukia responded quietly.

“Don’t be sorry and, eat!” She sighed, dragging her friend to the kitchen and showing her the food she brought.

“I bought all fresh stuff. Salad, chicken anything that look like healthy food.

Now I want you to eat,”

Orihime added, while sitting her friend down and practically shoving the food in her face.

Rukia looked up from her food.

“Thank you Hime,” She muttered and Orihime’s face softened in an instant.

“I am your friend. Friends stick together, Rukia-chan,” Orihime confided tenderly, taking out a plate and utensils.

“Now eat!”

x:X:x

Ichigo waited in line with Tatsuki at his side. He tapped his foot; he had no patience when it came to waiting. He was so fed up that he was about to turn and leave when the door opened and all the people in the room turn to look at the owner of the restaurant.

“Good Morning everybody, I am Urahara Kisuke and I am the owner of this fine restaurant. I know you were told that you would be judge according to your skills but,”

“…that was a lie...”

He said and everybody stare at him dumbly.

“Everybody who is over thirty and overweight, out the door please,” He said rudely pointing with his fan. People stared at him even harder. And then, many left the place, grumbling that they would take him to court. Upon hearing their remarks, Urahara replied in a confident voice that he had so much more money than all of them and could buy better lawyers.

Soon afterward, a woman came out of the same room Urahara had come out and she glowered at the people left.

“You…” She began and pointed at the addled Ichigo who glared back at her.

“…You are hired” She replied, leaving him stunned upon hearing a respond.

“You are hired too,” She continued, pointing at Tatsuki next.

“... and you... Eww! You are ugly and short and scrawny. Get out!” She snarled to the poor guy who was left crying. Once she sorted through the news, she pointed at herself.

“My name is Shihouin Yuruichi. I am the manager of this restaurant and you are my minions...” She said, smiling.

x:X:x

Ichigo looked at his shoes and then took them out. He flopped onto his bed and stared fixedly at the ceiling. How long had it been? Three months had gone by in a blur. He turned on his side and unknown to him, a tear slipped down his eyes.

He whipped it away furiously; he wasn’t going to cry again.

It was over, he thought.

He had drilled that in to his head months ago. The first few months he had been a confused mess. He only remembered crying so much when his mother had passed away. Whenever Orihime came to check on him, she neither spoke nor insisted on Rukia and somehow, he was relieved.

He was still a mess, only that now he was a quiet mess. He no longer showed the same sad face and the drooping eyes. He had smacked his head hard against the wall several times and then walked out of his room, determined to move on with his life. To him, there was no point in killing himself over her if she didn’t love him. Ichigo lifted his hand and rubbed his face with it.

It wasn’t easy lying to yourself, especially when you loved someone so much, it hurt.

Ichigo heard a knock on his door. “Come in,” He said and Chad opened the door.

“We are going out. Do you want to come with?” He asked.

“Yeah I’m going,” Ichigo said, getting up and taking his jacket from the hook at the door.

x:X:x

Tatsuki stared at Ichigo who was now looking at the band with little to no interests. She suspected he broke up with the woman he was dating. Maybe she had a chance with him, she mused. But he had been so cold to her lately; she took comfort in the fact that she wasn’t the only one he was cold to.

Ichigo was barely paying attention to the band; his drink lay forgotten in front of him. Putting up a pretense was harder than he had thought. He looked at his hand and flexed it around. Many times throughout the last three months, he had though about running back to Rukia and trying to mend things but her words had hurt him so much.

“I want a husband, children. You are too young to give me that. This thing we are having is over; I need a man, not a boy.” Rukia finished her eyes cold like ice and her voice was harsh like hail.

He understood that things were complicated because of his age but he just couldn’t change that. Was it his fault that he had been born ten years after her? He loved her and that was the only thing he could give her. He wanted to give her more but he couldn’t.

“Things got complicated when you got all those strange ideas in your head that you love me. And to be honest, I am bored with you.”

Ichigo swallowed heavily when he remembered her words. He felt so used; he had screamed at her many times that he was her fucked toy. It had been true and that was what hurt him the most. Ichigo looked around remembering where he was; he blinked away at the stinging sensation in his eyes and got up from his seat, leaving without giving his friends a second glance.

Tatsuki watched him walked dejectedly towards the exit and her eyes looked hurt. Ichigo inhaled the fresh air outside and wiped any tears away furiously. He wondered what Rukia was doing now.

Had she moved on with somebody else?

A man who could place a diamond ring on her finger and give her children? He sucked in a breath that turned into a sob. In the end, he hadn’t been good enough for her.

To be continued...

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A/n: Short I know. But it’s the prologue the story will continued as soon as I finished chapter 1. This story will take more time to write than the previous one! I hope you like it!

Date finished: December 6, 2007.