Bleachfic: Undisclosed Desires (Orihime/Byakuya) 1/5
Undisclosed Desires, 1/5
by hardlyfatal
Chapter One
Inoue Orihime was dead, and living in his house.
Byakuya's only concern, when Rukia had asked if the girl could stay in the Kuchiki manor after she had died, was of the thriving Gotei rumor mill. Always a primitive and viral force of nature, he had expected the news to get out by the end of the day, and for speculation on "dealings" between himself and Orihime to run rampant by the end of the week.
He had underestimated that period of time by six days.
It had been morning; Rukia had burst into his office at the Sixth Division to request that Orihime move in with them at the manor "just until she figures out what she's doing". He'd wanted to refuse, but at some point over the past ten years, he'd acquired a gravely troubling inability to deny his sister anything. Anything reasonable, that was, and having her dear, newly departed friend as a guest in their home seemed entirely reasonable.
To the best of his recollection, Orihime was the least objectionable of Rukia's mortal friends. The Quincy's loathing for shinigami was palpable, Ichigo's manners were negligible, and Sado was likely to eat even the Kuchiki clan out of house and home. His sole misgiving was that the girl was somewhat attractive, and thus the shinigami rumor mill would commence its churning. Byakuya was determined to evade being ground up by it.
He hadn't counted on the girl herself. He had not seen Orihime in several years, but apparently everyone else had, and thus the speculation about he and her "getting together" was a wildfire throughout Seireitei before he himself had clapped eyes on her.
Renji returned from lunch break with a peculiar expression on his face. "Taichou," he ventured, "I heard that Orihime-chan and you are so in love that she killed herself so you could be together."
Byakuya restrained himself from huffing. Kuchikis did not huff. "Renji," he began patiently, the addendum of 'you idiot' left unsaid but clearly implied, "exactly how likely is that?"
He meant, of course, "How likely is it for me of all people to fall in love with a living human commoner over a century younger than my esteemed self?"
Renji interpreted it as, "How likely is it for the nicest human on the planet, who also happens to be smokin' hot, to fall for an emotionally constipated elitist snob?"
"You're right!" Renji therefore said, scratching his head and grinning. "She's probably still hung up on Ichigo, anyway!"
Orihime was in love with Ichigo? Byakuya's estimation of the girl's intelligence dropped by a quarter. Then he processed Renji's words further; Ichigo did not return the lissome Orihime's feelings? His estimation of the boy's intelligence dropped by a half.
Byakuya continued with his workday, aware of and ignoring the avid glances shot his way. Soon it would become old news and thus dissipate.
Then he returned to the manor, saw Orihime, and realized that the news would remain new and fascinating for as long as she was in any direct proximity to himself, because at some point over the intervening years since he'd seen her, she'd become gorgeous.
The fresh prettiness of her face had matured into full-blown beauty, with peachy skin over elegant cheekbones, pink lips made for kissing, and big hazel eyes designed to rob a man of all sanity. Her waving chestnut hair fell past a bosom to make Matsumoto sob with jealousy to hips curved in the exact way for male hands to grasp and pull closer. Repeatedly and with accelerating tempo until completion was achieved.
And then she smiled, and went from merely shining to positively blinding.
"Thank you so much for allowing me to be your guest, Byakuya-sama," she was saying with a polite bow as Rukia beamed at them from the side. "I will try not to be too much of an imposition!"
And then she hugged him.
This was no ordinary hug. Byakuya was pretty sure he'd been hugged at some point in his past (though he was unable to recall the experience) and usual hugs were not this... sensual melding of flesh from chest to knee. Orihime threaded her arms under his captain's haori, around his waist, to press with flat palms on his back so that they meshed even closer. Her face was pressed to his chest, with her lips resting on him where his kosode crossed over his heart. He could feel her warm breath on his skin. She smelled like oranges.
He loved oranges.
He had to get her out of here.
Failing that, he had to get himself out of here.
He meant to extract himself from her clinging, fragrant embrace. What he did was flash-step out of the circle of her arms and across the room. He could only pray his usual bland expression was holding. Startled, the gazes of both women followed him.
He meant to say, "It is nothing, please make yourself at home."
What actually came out was, "Blargle. Mmado."
Rukia's eyes popped out in alarm. "Nii-sama?"
"Gweh."
"Byakuya-sama? Are you alright?" Orihime was coming toward him again, this time that face creased in concern, little hands out to comfort him or heal him or touch him in some way and that sounded wonderful and he had to leave.
Thank the gods for shunpou; thank, even, Yoruichi for teaching him how to do it faster than anyone else (except her). He flash-stepped out of the Kuchiki manor and back to the Sixth Division where Renji was still poring over the last of the day's paperwork, even at that late hour.
"Taichou?" he said, raising his head to find his supervisor standing in the office. "Didn't you go home?"
Byakuya took a deep breath, then gazed plaintively at his lieutenant. "Why didn't you warn me about her?"
"I... thought I had?" said Renji, putting his pen down. "You knew there was already a rumor--"
"Not about any rumors. About her. And how she... is... now."
Renji's face shifted to an expression of sympathetic comprehension. "Orihime has that affect on a guy. When it happened to me, Rukia saw and almost ripped my ears off." He sighed reminisciently, as if that were a positive memory.
"She hugged me."
"She hugs everyone. You should have seen the other men today. Ikkaku wanted to kidnap her. Shuuhei was about to propose. And it's a good thing Nanao has that book all the time, she had to beat Kyouraku-taichou off Orihime. No joke."
"I was just surprised," said Byakuya, feeling more himself as the minutes passed and Renji regaled him with tales of other men in similar predicaments of losing their minds. Not that it didn't rankle, to be grouped in with that bunch of louts, but at least it meant he was still a reasonably normally-functioning male. "Now that I'm prepared, everything will be fine."
He'd just go home and act like nothing had happened, welcome his new guest to his home, and hide in his private rooms until he was able to escape the next morning. He glanced at Renji.
...who was gazing at him with definite pity. "You can try that," Renji said, skepticism thick in his tone, "but, man, it's Orihime. She's..."
His words trailed off as he stared off at the corner, eyes glazing.
Byakuya had a sinking feeling he knew precisely what his lieutenant meant.
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