Not Meant For Me

Chapter 5: Lies


“Uryuu…?”

I groaned softly. Coming to, I could feel a throbbing in my face as well as a cold pack pressed against my face. My eyes fluttered open, though, the world around me was blurry without my glasses on. I could see a slight blur of where Rukia was hovering above me. I made a movement to get up, letting out another soft groan. My head throbbed more.

“Ugh…” I whined before lying back down. Getting up right now was not going to be an option. “Fucking hurts…”

“Well… he did hit you pretty hard. While you were out, I felt for anything broken, but, I don’t think there is anything broken.”

“Just my pride.” I frowned, moving my hand up to my face where I pressed against the cold pack. “How long have I been out?”

“Couple of hours. Enough time for Ichigo to…” she drifted off, not finishing her sentence. “Never mind that. After he left, I got you inside and tended to you while you were unconscious.”

“I can’t believe he hit me,” I muttered.

“Well… the next time I yell at you to move, move stupid.”

“…Hnn…”

I lay there a moment, just letting my thoughts run through my head. I wondered what happened while I was unconscious. Was there something that happened that I needed to know about? Finally, bracing myself, I sat up, pulling the cold pack away.

“Rukia…?” I asked softly.

“Hm?”

“What happened…? While I was out?” I reached for my glasses. Feeling them near me, I picked them up and tugged them on, letting my eyes adjust. I looked to Rukia then, seeing her head bowed. Her hair obscured her face and I frowned. “Rukia…?”

“Please, don’t get upset…” she whispered softly. She sounded… scared. I frowned.

“What…? What do you mean?” When she didn’t answer, I reached out to her. She flinched. “Rukia…” I noticed her body shaking. “What did he do?” Again, she didn’t answer, but a soft sniffle came from her.

Finally, I cupped her chin and lifted her head to look at her and gasped. Along the left side of her face, her skin was already shaded into a deep purple. Her lip was split as well. My hand shook.

“I’m going to ask you again, Rukia. What did he do to you?” I noticed her hands then, looking down, I saw how they shook. Not only that, but they were red and scuffed up. My voice softened then as I had to force what came out of my mouth next. “Did… did he rape you?” Her fingers curled into her hands, forming tight fists. “I swear, I’ll kill him. I’ll tear him apart with my bare hands.”

“No… please… just, don’t say anything. Okay? Please?” Tears had formed in her eyes then. “He didn’t… rape me. I promise.” Something in her voice told me that wasn’t the truth, but, I didn’t press it any further. “We fought. It got a little out of control and he hit me… again. He and I are over. There is no ‘Ichigo and Rukia’ anymore. I just… it finally hit me. I’m sorry, I don’t mean to be so emotional about all of this. I don’t know what I thought was going to happen.” She looked away. “I didn’t think I was going to fall for you like this.”

“Wait… fall for me?” I was struck by what she said.

“Yeah. The whole reason this happened is because I realized how I felt about you. I mean, you’ve always been here for me… I don’t know why I didn’t see it before. You’re perfect, Uryuu.”

“Perfect?” I laughed, shaking my head. “There’s no way I’m anywhere close to perfect, Rukia. Don’t you think you’re being a little foolish throwing everything away? For me?”

She looked down then. I sighed. How did I not see this until now? I didn’t understand how I missed the signs, the way she’d flirted with me before. The casual touches and the way she would lean into me when we studied. I’d missed it all when we were younger and in a sense I had been too late.

“Foolish, maybe,” she says softly, looking at me. “But… I may be foolish, but I know what I want.” With that, she moved at last. I found myself on my back before I could blink. She hovered over me, an arm on either side of my head. “I want you, Uryuu. All of you.”

“Wait… what?” I asked quietly. But, before I got an answer, she had kissed me, harder than she had ever kissed me before. It felt frantic, rushed even. It wasn’t like her previous kisses at all. Moving my hands to her shoulders I pushed her back some. “Rukia… are you sure?”

“Of course I’m sure,” she answered, holding herself up again. “I’ve never been surer about anything ever before. I want you.” She moved to make due with my shirt, her fingers shaking as she attempted to unbutton it.

Shaking my head, I pushed us both up to a sitting position, although, she was straddling my lap again. What an awkward position. I ran my hand up her back slowly.

“Perhaps… that could wait, yeah?” I looked to her face then, seeing many emotions running across her features. I lifted my hand to her bruised cheek, lightly dragging my finger tips along the purple flesh. Leaning, I pressed a soft kiss to her cheek as well. “I’m not at all rejecting you, okay?” I smiled at her then.

“I know. I… I don’t know what came over me.” She lifted her head then to look me in the eye. She smiled as well, lifting her hand to touch my cheek. I hissed. “Oh… still a bit tender.” I nodded. “I’m sorry. At least the swelling has gone down a lot.” She nuzzled against the good side of my face, sighing softly.

I had to admit that it felt nice having her there with me, with her allowing me to hold her as I did. My fingers ran along her back and side, hugging her to me as well. She was warm. I could feel her heart beating in her chest, adding a light thump against my own. Turning my head, I nuzzled my nose against her neck. She tilted her head some for me, giving me more access. I trailed my nose a little more along her skin before pressing a soft kiss to her neck, right at her pulse. She sighed quietly again, a hand moving to cup the back of my head.

I experimented a little, kissing her neck in certain spots, just to see what she would do. I found that there were two spots that made her sigh and two more that made her gasp. I could feel her pulse quicken. The air around us felt a bit warmer as well. I smiled, trailing kisses along her jaw and cheek. She let out a quiet sound before turning her head towards me. I tilted my head some then, bringing her closer as I kissed her mouth. Her arms wrapped around my neck to pull me closer as she returned my kiss.

A loud, chiming tune brought us from our kiss. Rukia let out a gasp as she scrambled out of my lap and towards her bag. She quickly unzipped the bag and reached in to pull out her phone. She let out a curse before flipping it open.

“Nii-sama… I’m sorry I didn’t call you,” she started, but paused, flinching. Though the other was not yelling at her, I could tell by her expression that the other was none the happy that she wasn’t home yet. “Ichigo said what? No, that’s not true. That’s not true at all!” She paused again. “Yes, nii-sama. I’m sorry for yelling. But, I assure you that that did not happen. At all. And it has not happened either.” She sighed quietly. “Yes, nii-sama, I’ll be home as soon as possible.”

She flipped the phone shut and let out a frustrated growl. She went about picking up her things, shoving them into her bag. All the while she was muttering things under her breath. I was sure I caught ‘Stupid Ichigo’ at some point. Finally, when she wouldn’t look at me, I reached out, grabbing hold of her wrist to stop her. She gasped and looked at me.

“What’s going on?” I asked.

“Well, that was Byakuya, if you couldn’t tell. While I understand that he’s mad I’m not home, or that I didn’t call him… what makes things worse is Ichigo went to my home and told my brother that you and I were fucking like rabbits. Goddammit… I’m still a virgin!”

I nodded as I listened to her. Even I was angry at what Kurosaki had implied. I moved to get up as well, wincing at the head rush I got from the movement. I brought a hand to my head a moment, pausing for the dull ache to go away.

“Let me walk you home,” I suggested. “I’m not going to let you walk home this late by yourself.”

“Thank you, Uryuu,” she smiled at me again. “That’s very sweet of you.”

With that, she picked up her bag, hoisting the strap over her shoulder. We both slid our shoes on and moved to exit my apartment. Making sure I had my keys, I locked the door behind us before moving down the stairs to join Rukia. She reached to me, taking hold of my hand. I blushed at the feeling before giving her hand a gentle squeeze, which she returned. We started walking, making the walk towards the Kuchiki household in a comforting silence.

It’s funny how long I had known Rukia yet I’d never really talked to her brother. Either he was never there or he didn’t speak. It wasn’t that I was afraid of the older man, even though he had this aura of superiority. From what I could remember from what Rukia told me, the man was a doctor and a damn good one.

When we arrived to the large house, he was waiting on the porch. He stood there in the light, giving him an ominous look. It was the first time I ever felt afraid of the man. He stood there, his arms crossed. Even at this time of night he wore a pair of black slacks, a white dress shirt and a black tie. His hair, however, was pulled back in a loose ponytail, a few of the long black strands falling over his shoulder.

“You two look like hell,” he spoke finally. His voice, though soft, held a chip of ice in it. “I’m afraid to ask what happened.”

“Ichigo,” we both answered. We looked at each other and grinned ever so slightly.

“He hit you both?” He looked between me and Rukia, lifting an eyebrow. “I could understand you, but… Rukia?” He came down the steps, moving with such grace. He came up to us, lifting a hand to Rukia’s chin. He tilted her head gently, brushing back her hair from her face.

“It’s not as bad as it looks, nii-sama. It doesn’t hurt at all.”

“Still. It looks horrible. The boy didn’t say anything about this happening.”

“I’m sure he left out him mauling us for a reason,” I said softly. “He probably knew you could take him out without any problems if he had told you he hit your little sister.” Byakuya turned his gaze on me then. I nearly shivered under that icy grey gaze.

“That is true.” There was a slight smirk on his features. I don’t ever recall seeing the man ever smiling. He moved to me then, examining my face. When he touched the tender part of my cheek, I had to do everything in my power to not wince. “I know it hurts,” he says quietly. “You’re lucky nothing is broken.”

“Indeed I am.” A small smile crossed along my face. I noticed his touch had lingered a bit longer than normal, but, it seemed his touch made my face hurt less. I felt a blush come across my cheeks. ’I did not just like his touch. No. Not at all. He’s just a doctor. He’s Rukia’s brother for Christ’s sake!’

“You two come inside. We have much to discuss.”

With that, Byakuya turned to go into the home. We followed along behind him. I glanced to Rukia who looked back at me and shrugged. Once inside, I glanced around a moment. It had been a while since I’d really been inside. Things were different. The walls were a different colour, the furniture had been rearranged, and there were more pictures here and there.

We followed Byakuya to the small tea room where he sat in an overstuffed chair. There was a pot of tea and cups on the small table in the room. This had been the first time I had ever seen the man relaxed. He had drawn his feet up under him in the chair. In a way, it reminded me that he was still indeed human, that even he had the right to unravel from the world’s events every once in a while. He looked at peace in his position, like he didn’t really have anything to worry about.

I took a seat on the couch near by. Rukia moved to the tea and went about fixing us cups. She moved with her own sort of elegance as she picked up the pot and poured. She fixed the cups accordingly and handed one to her brother, then to me before picking up her cup and moving to sit next to me. I watched as they both took a sip at the same time and couldn’t help but smile as I brought the cup to my lips to do the same.

“I’m sure you know what Ichigo said when he stopped by tonight,” Byakuya spoke again at last. He still held his cup in his hands, looking between the both of us.

“Rukia told me, yes,” I answered, holding onto my cup as well. “I can honestly say that what he said to you did not happen and has not happened either.”

“I know. I didn’t believe what the boy said. Not with the way he was spewing words and profanities in the manner he did.”

“I’m sorry he came to disturb you.”

“Do not worry about it, Uryuu. However, I’m more wondering what the two of you were doing together anyway. Especially after a football game.” He lifted his cup to take another sip, eyeing us both again.

“Well…”

“We’ve been studying,” Rukia answered. “And, I had invited Uryuu to come to the game tonight and thought it would have been nice to walk him home. We were goofing off on his steps when Ichigo came by.” She took a sip of her tea to gather her thoughts. “He slapped me, twice, punched Uryuu and knocked him out. We fought after that, he stormed off saying it was over for good this time. I got Uryuu inside and tended to his face the best I could. I know I should have called but… I was so upset. I couldn’t just leave him.”

“What gets me is how he would claim that we were being intimate with one another,” I said softly.

“Probably to upset me,” Byakuya answered me. “But, I believe you both. I trust you. I have no reason to not trust you.”

Rukia moved after a moment, setting her empty cup on the tray. She moved to stand, yawning softly. I looked up at her a moment, smiling gently.

“Well, I am going to go up and bathe and get ready for bed. Something tells me that tomorrow is going to be a long day,” Rukia said softly. “I’ve got a report to work on for History. Shouldn’t be too bad. Not only that, but I’m prepared for phone calls and people visiting and asking what’s going on.”

“I hear you on that,” I answered, grinning just slightly as I moved to stand as well. “I should probably head back home anyway. Thank you for the tea, Kuchiki-sama.”

“Please, Uryuu,” Byakuya smiled slowly. A true smile. I felt honoured to even be graced with such a gesture. “You’ve known me how long now? You know you don’t have to be so formal.”

“Ahh, I’m sorry. It’s just a habit. Thank you, Byakuya.” I nodded to the older man a moment before turning to follow Rukia from the room.

She led me to the door, smiling at me as she rested her hand on the knob. I smiled back at her, lifting my hand to brush my fingers through her hair.

“Thank you for walking me home, Uryuu,” she said to me, biting her bottom lip ever so slightly.

“It was nothing, really. I couldn’t have let you go alone after all.”

“I know, but still, thank you.” She reached up, lightly touching my cheek again. “Will you come by some time tomorrow?” She asked me, tilting her head some.

“Of course I will.” I smiled at her again, lowering my head closer to hers. She leaned up, meeting me half way before our lips touched. It was such a simple kiss, but it was enough to send a slight shock through me. It was a feeling I liked. When we pulled away, she pulled open the door for me.

“See you tomorrow, Uryuu.” I smiled.

“See you tomorrow.” Before leaving, I leaned, pressing a kiss to her cheek. With a grin, I left, a slight skip in my step.

I made it home with a smile still on my face, even as I put my key in the door. Once inside, I sighed quietly to myself. I kicked off my shoes before making my way down the hall to my room. I shed my clothes, dropping them into the hamper in my room. I moved to my bed and flopped down onto it with another sigh.

Lying there, I stared at the ceiling for a long time. So many thoughts ran through my head. Shaking a few from my thoughts, I finally rolled over to try and get some sleep. I knew I was going to need it.

“Tomorrow…It’s gonna be a tough day.”

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AN: Oh wow, I've actually got another chapter up. I could have made this chapter a little longer, however, I felt it was better to stop it where I did. I had to bring Byakuya into everything. And, I'm looking forward to working on the next chapter. I've got a few ideas I want to throw into everything. I hope you all are still enjoying reading. :)