Undisclosed Desires, chapter 4 (Ori/Bya)
Undisclosed Desires, 4/5
by hardlyfatal
Chapter 4
The next week, Byakuya had no need to go out of his way to avoid Orihime, because she spent each night on a date with a different man. Then she'd return to the Kuchiki estate and regale Rukia with what they'd begun referring to as "the post-mortem", which Byakuya would of course eavesdrop upon from his study.
Date 1: Madarame Ikkaku
"How was your date, Orihime-chan?" asked Rukia upon her friend's return.
"It was good? I think?" Orihime did not sound as if she were entirely sure.
"Ho... let me call for tea," Rukia said, and Byakuya could tell she was grinning. "Let's hear it."
"Well, we ate in the Eleventh Division's canteen," Orihime began.
Rukia snorted. "Ok, minus ten points right there. That's the worst date setting I've ever heard of."
"It's not the most romantic place, no," Orihime said haltingly, clearly not wanting to disparage Madarame. Byakuya thought it very generous of her; he'd want to flay the man alive, personally. The canteen? Utterly tacky. "But I don't think Ikkaku-san has ever taken a girl on a date before. He doesn't seem like he knows what to do on a date."
"Ugh," said Rukia in disgust, a sentiment with which Byakuya could definitely sympathize. "What did you do next?"
"We went to the Eleventh's training yard, and I watched while he fought everyone else."
Rukia paused. "Everyone else?"
"Except Kenpachi," Orihime confirmed. "He took the seated officers one-by-one, then had the unseated shinigami attack him all at once."
"How hurt was he by the end?" Rukia sounded amazed; Byakuya was less so. This was the Eleventh they were discussing; its members gave toughness an entirely new standard.
"Oh, he only had a few scratches," said Orihime. "It was everyone else who was damaged. I spent the rest of the date healing everyone." She sounded a little down, and no wonder; who wanted to spend a date eating in a canteen, watching a lunatic beat up a hundred other lunatics, then doing the equivalent of her day job for an hour?
"So, another ten points for him making you watch him show off," stated Rukia, "and twenty points for doing it so you'd have to heal people instead of having fun." She paused; Byakuya imagined she was peering closely at her friend. "Did he kiss you?"
Silence from Orihime, which had him wondering what she was doing until his sister exclaimed, "You're blushing! He did kiss you! How was it?" Byakuya scowled.
"It was- it was- something!" She sounded so flustered. He had to find a way to see into that room. "It wasn't bad!"
" 'It wasn't bad' is not the same as 'it was good', Orihime," Rukia stated dryly. "How about some descriptives?"
"Oh, well, I guess... his breath wasn't bad!" Orihime sounded relieved to find something to say. "And his lips weren't chapped, and his mouth wasn't too wet! And he's nice and strong! Strong, very... strong!"
"It sounds like he was too rough with you," Rukia said, her tone a little concerned. "Did he hurt you?"
"Oh, no, no, no!" Byakuya imagined her waving her hands in denial. "It didn't hurt at all! It was just more, uh, forceful than I prefer." Good to hear, or he'd have to maim the man.
"Another minus ten for being too forceful," said Rukia darkly. "That's 50 points total for Ikkaku. I say you turn him down if he asks again." Pause. "Unless you can see dates with him improving at all?"
Orihime sighed. "I don't think they will. All he could talk about was fighting. Or recovering from fighting; he actually knows quite a bit about healing; not kidou healing, of course, but bandaging and splinting and cauterizing and that sort of thing. So we could talk about that a little, but that's what I do all day long. I don't want to talk about healing on a date." She sighed again. "I guess, yes, no more dates with Ikkaku. Though I hope he's not hurt when I turn him down, the next time he asks."
"If he can take on his entire division without being hurt, I think he can handle rejection from one woman," Rukia snarked, and Orihime laughed. Byakuya wasn't so sure; he had a feeling that being rejected by Orihime could make a man's heart shrivel.
"Things will look up!" said Rukia encouragingly. "Who's up for tomorrow?"
"Ukitake-taichou!" replied Orihime happily. "We're going to have dinner at his family's estate!"
"Oooh, that will be nice!" exclaimed Rukia. "I've been there, it's very beautiful." Pause. "I bet you that Ukitake-taichou will more than make up for Ikkaku's lack of romanticness."
"Let's hope!" Orihime said with a giggle.
Date 2: Ukitake Juushiro
The next night, Byakuya made sure that the fusuma screen separating his study from the sitting room where his sister and his guest conducted their "post-mortems" had a half-inch space between it and the wall where he had a clear line of sight of where the two woman usually sat during their conversations. He even positioned a chair just so, for his surveillance comfort.
When Orihime returned from her date with Ukitake, her gait held none of its usual energy; if anything, she sounded like she was dragging her heels a bit. Rukia called for tea, and they got down to business.
"His family compound is so lovely!" Orihime began. "We had a picnic under the stars, and the food was fantastic." She stopped and blushed a little, which Byakuya was embarrassed to find enchanting. "He insisted on feeding me with his fingers. When we were done, we walked around the pond, holding hands and talking."
"Isn't my captain a wonderful man?" asked Rukia eagerly, face shining with loyalty. "What did you talk about?"
"Oh, lots of different things. His brothers and sisters- he has seven! Doesn't that sound like a busy family? We talked about books he's read lately, and how he likes to play Go, and he told me funny stories about when he and Kyouraku-taichou were in Academy together."
Rukia was frowning. "Sounds like he did a lot of talking about himself, and not about you too much." That startled Byakuya; he was thinking how that actually sounded like a rather pleasant evening.
"I guess... but I didn't mind!" She looked down at her lap. "But I did feel... a bit like I was spending the evening with a grandpa. And when he kissed me..." She gave a little sigh. "He's so, so handsome, and sweet, and gentle. Very, very gentle."
Rukia gave her a rueful little smile. "Too gentle, eh?"
Orihime nodded. "It felt like I was being kissed by a grandpa. I think Ukitake-taichou is a bit too nice for me. I'm more used to cranky boys like Ichigo-kun, and Uryuu-kun, and Bya-" She cut herself off abruptly, which had Rukia perking up like a shark scenting blood in the water.
"Bya... kuya-sama?" she finished for the other woman, her wide, wide grin looking particularly shark-like, as well. Byakuya wondered dimly if she'd always been such a feral little thing, even as he felt his senses sharpen in anticipation of Orihime's response.
"Er, yes," the girl confirmed. "It's much more... interesting... when a man has some... edge to him... don't you think?" she said haltingly. "Having someone agree with me all the time... it's not very exciting."
"And you want to be... excited. Like Nii-sama makes you," Rukia paraphrased. Byakuya blinked. Was she trying to set him up with the girl?
Orihime's face flooded with color. "I- I didn't say that!"
"So, you think Nii-sama is boring, then."
"I didn't say that, either! Rukia-chan!" She buried her face in her hands.
"Hey, hey, I'm just teasing, don't be upset," Rukia soothed, patting her arm. "So, let's tally the points. No deductions for crappy food or location, but minus ten for dull conversation and another ten for a boring kiss."
"Minus twenty for the kiss," Orihime corrected.
"That bad?" Rukia seemed surprised.
Orihime nodded sadly. "I want to feel like he-" Her blush darkened. "There should be some passion in it, like he can't control his hands, like he... like he wants me, you know?" she continued in a whisper. "Like if he doesn't kiss me right that moment, he might die. And I want to feel that way, too, about him."
Rukia was staring at her friend with wide eyes. "Have you ever felt that way about anyone before?"
Orihime nodded again, this time shyly, keeping her eyes fixed on how her fingers were twisting together in her lap. "Years ago, with Ichigo-kun. And... a few days ago..."
Heat lanced through Byakuya's belly; it took everything he had to keep from hissing in surprise. She was talking about how she'd tried to kiss him on the veranda, after her yoga.
"Who? Who?" Rukia squealed, in a very unseemly and undignified way.
But Orihime wasn't telling; she pinched those full pink lips together and averted her face and wouldn't say a word, no matter how Rukia badgered her.
"It will never come to anything," she said stubbornly. "I'm not setting myself up for embarrassment and disappointment."
"Well, at least you've got one more candidate," Rukia sighed. "Tomorrow's Hisagi-san, right?"
Orihime brightened. "Yes! I think he's got real promise!" She pumped her fist into the air in a show of enthusiasm.
Byakuya's gaze narrowed; he, too, thought Hisagi had promise as a prospective boyfriend for Orihime. The idea did not best please him, though he was loathe to identify why, exactly, since the newfound knowledge that Orihime apparently desired him as much as he desired her made him feel a sense of inevitable doom.
It was bad enough to control his own passion; he wasn't sure he'd be able to withstand hers, as well, if she made any sort of concerted effort to seduce him. The very idea made him break out in a lustful sweat.
He looked back to the crack in the fusuma screen, and realized that both girls had left the sitting room. No matter; it was time for bed anyway.
...after another cold shower, perhaps.
Date 3: Hisagi Shuuhei
This time, when Rukia called for tea, Orihime interrupted and requested sake. From his seat at the crack in the fusuma (and don't think it didn't gall him to be reduced to such elaborate snooping), Byakuya could see that her face, usually so happy, was looking a bit haggard.
"That bad?" asked Rukia with sympathy. "What went wrong?"
"Nothing," said Orihime glumly, and splashed a goodly measure of sake into her saucer. "Everything was perfect. Absolutely wonderful."
"So, spill it! I want to hear it all!" Rukia threw herself down on her belly, chin propped on her fists, like a child eagerly awaiting a bedtime story.
"Shuuhei-san has a motorcycle up here, did you know that? He keeps it in a shed out in 14th District in South Rukongai. We went to a nice restaurant, then he took me for a ride through the countryside on the motorcycle, and watched the sunset over a waterfall. It was beautiful." Orihime's voice was dull, and her face lacked any animation at all.
"That sounds amazing! That sounds like the best date ever!" Rukia exclaimed; seeing Orihime's clear dejection, she continued, "...so why do you look like after the waterfall, Hisagi rode the motorcycle over an entire litter of kittens? Didn't he kiss you?"
"Yes, he kissed me," Orihime confirmed. "He's a fantastic kisser, and just handsy enough that I feel sexy but not objectified. It was like Goldilocks and the Three Bears. If Ikkaku is too much, and Ukitake-taichou isn't enough, Shuuhei is just right."
"Then... why do you sound like you're about to either fall asleep, or cry?" Rukia sounded as confused as Byakuya was feeling.
Orihime turned huge, despairing hazel eyes to her friend. "Because he was the wrong man." Her shoulders slumped. "I have this nasty, sinking feeling that unless it's... the right man, it's not going to matter how perfect Shuuhei is."
"Is the right man the one you were telling me about last night?" Rukia asked. "The one who makes you feel like you'll die if you don't kiss him?"
Orihime nodded miserably. "I think I might be in love with him."
Very calmly, Byakuya stood, opened the shoji screen enough to slip outside, and flash-stepped to the closest tree, where he commenced to beat his head upon its trunk.