InsaneJournal

Ichigo/Orihime Fic
Title: Miscommunication
Characters: Ichigo/Orihime and Tatsuki, mostly.
Series: Bleach by Kubo Tite
Rating: PG (PG-13?)
Warnings: Fluff, innuendos, spoilers, complete failure at comedy.
Disclaimer: Don’t own anything. …Though I wish.

Orihime was so grateful that she was blessed to have someone like Tatsuki-chan in her life.

Ever since that day in middle school when Tatsuki-chan reached out to her, –becoming her friend, protecting her from bullies, and sticking with her throughout the years- Orihime didn’t know if there was anything she could really do to repay her best friend for everything she has done for her.

After all, it was thanks to Tatsuki-chan that Orihime was given the opportunity to meet Kurosaki-kun when they started high school. If that had never happened, she knew that her life would have never changed for the better, and she was so very glad it had.

Of course, there were hardships that came with such changes, but Orihime was still grateful for those as well. In fact, without the good and bad experiences, she would never have had the chance to become the person she was today. Nor be as she was now, on the phone with Tatsuki-chan and telling her how her first date with Kurosaki-kun had gone.

She was right in the middle of describing all the fun things they had done at their picnic in the park (as well as how delicious her butterscotch, pineapple, and red pepper salad was and wasn’t it great how Kurosaki-kun had eaten every bit of it?), when the voice on the other line interrupted her.

“Wait,” Tatsuki-chan said, suddenly sounding pained, “What did you just say?”

Orihime blinked and cuddled closer with her stuffed bear, Enraku. “I slept with Kurosaki-kun,” she repeated.

There was a sound like a loud thud, as if something heavy –a person, maybe- had fallen over. However, before she could ask about it, Tatsuki-chan was suddenly screaming in her ear. “HOW COULD YOU DO SOMETHING LIKE THAT ON YOUR FIRST DATE, YOU IDIOT?!”

“I’m not an idiot,” Orihime protested, suddenly feeling miserable and unhappy, even after spending such a wonderful day with Kurosaki-kun, “And it seemed like a good idea at the time.”

“‘A good idea’-…?! Are you even listening to yourself?!” There was a long moment of silence and then a frustrated huff, as if Tatsuki-chan was forcing herself to take a deep breath in order to calm herself. “Okay then. … Then I’ll just have to kill Ichigo the next time I see him.”

Orihime gasped. “Tatsuki-chan!”

“I mean it,” her best friend said in a tone that almost sounded like a growl, “That’s what he gets for taking advantage of you like that! And why in the world didn’t you protest, even halfheartedly? I mean, I know how much you care about this guy, but don’t you have any shame doing it in a public place?!”

“But I asked him to do it!” she tried to explain, “And it didn’t even take that long either!”

There was another long moment of silence, and Orihime prayed to anyone who was listening to please help calm Tatsuki-chan down. She didn’t want to get Kurosaki-kun in trouble and it had just felt so right, so why couldn’t her best friend be happy for them?

“Orihime,” Tatsuki-chan said suddenly, “Can I call you back tomorrow?”

She blinked in surprise. Whatever she had expecting her to say, it certainly hadn’t been that. “Um… Sure. I-I’ll talk to you later?”

“Yeah, later,” Tatsuki-chan replied distractedly and hung up.



“Onii-chan!” Yuzu called from the living room, “Phone!”

Ichigo dashed out of his bedroom, leapt down the stairs, and quickly snatched up the item in question from his youngest sister before his idiotic father could. It was probably Inoue, he knew, and the last thing he wanted was for his old man to embarrass him in front of his new girlfriend.

Girlfriend.

It was amazing to think how far they’ve come in order to finally pursue a relationship with one another. Had he been anyone else, he might have started grinning like an idiot at the thought, but Ichigo –being Ichigo- simply kicked his father in the gut and headed back up to his room. Even though he knew that his family would be listening in on the outside of his door, while Kon and Rukia would spy on him on the inside, he liked to pretend that he had just a single ounce of privacy in his crazy household.

Squashing the anxiety that he suddenly felt building in his chest, he threw himself down on his bed and carefully put the phone up to his ear. “Yeah?” he answered, trying to sound casual.

“KUROSAKI ICHIGO, I AM GOING TO CASTRATE YOU WITH MY BARE HANDS.”

Ichigo sat up in surprise. “…Tatsuki?”

“You heartless jerk!” she shouted, “You’re just lucky Orihime isn’t upset with you, because I’m about ready to tear you apart as it is!”

He sighed and scratched the back of his head, wondering how things had become so complicated so quickly. “Tatsuki, calm down. What did Inoue say to you?”

“You still can’t call her by her first name, you jerk?! And I can’t tell you! It’s too embarrassing!”

“Ah, I see. She probably told you about how we slept with each other,” he said, “But I mean it when I say that’s all we did.”

Silence reigned for a long moment before Tatsuki spoke again. “You honestly expect me to believe that?” she asked, the disbelief evident in her voice.

“No, but I want to tell you the truth, because you’re obviously freaking out thinking I took advantage of Inoue,” Ichigo said, shrugging.

“…What are you doing falling asleep at the park, anyway?” Tatsuki asked, her voice soft. It was as close to an apology as she would possibly get. “The both of you must have looked like such idiots doing that.”

“Shut up,” he replied, lying down on his back, “It wasn’t my idea, and I didn’t even sleep either.” Ichigo had simply held Inoue against his chest and dozed off for a little while. There was a difference.

He knew that Tatsuki was smiling, even if he couldn’t see it. “Take good care of that girl for me,” she said.

Ichigo closed his eyes. “You don’t have to tell me twice.”

“Good. Otherwise, I would kill you quite dead. Now hurry up and call her to say goodnight, you loser.”

“I would have done that even if you hadn’t told me to, idiot.”

Having grown up with a tomboy like Tatsuki, Ichigo was thankful to her for a lot of things -being his friend, defending him from bullies, and giving him a reason to take karate somewhat seriously-, but that wasn’t all.

He was grateful that she had been the one to protect Inoue over the years, because it had given her the opportunity to grow into the young woman he had come to know and love.

…Of course, such a thought was too sappy for his tastes, so it was quickly discarded when Ichigo hung up and started to dial his girlfriend’s phone number.

The End.

Omake: During the next few weeks as a couple, Ichigo and Orihime continue to take naps with one another whenever they get the chance, mainly because they enjoy just being together.

Ichigo doesn’t mind it, -even though his friends always act so taken aback when he admits that he still hasn’t done “anything worth mentioning”- because he likes watching Inoue sleep. She has a habit of making the funniest expressions and saying the strangest things while unconscious, which he secretly finds adorable.

Orihime loves it, because she has discovered that Kurosaki-kun’s scowl almost never falters, even when he’s asleep. However, when he’s having a good dream or when she wakes up first and gives his hand a light squeeze, there’s nothing that could make her happier than watching the tension between his brows fade away and how the faintest of smiles finds its way to his lips.