Five months have passed since Takeshi was born and the days were getting even more hectic, especially with Isshin spoiling his only grandson to the extent that he sees Takeshi more than his parents.
Ichigo, now in second year of high school, was starting to feel the stress of raising a baby. Sure he loved his son like crazy, but the diaper changing and the middle-of-the-night crying fest was getting old, fast. All it did was deprive him of the much needed sleep.
So here he was, yawning out loud as he tried to suppress sleep creeping into his eyes while the teacher was going on and on about something in front of the class.
"Is there a problem, Kurosaki?"
Ichigo was pulled out from his dazed state when his name was suddenly called. "Wha-what?"
The teacher glared at the orange head. "If this class is so boring, why didn't you just stay at home?"
"Uh, sorry," he quickly apologized, "I just haven't been getting much sleep these days."
"Che, of course," the teacher snorted, "Must be hard having a kid in the house so early in life. I swear, kids these days can't keep it in their pants…" he muttered some incoherent words as he returned to write some stuff on the blackboard.
Ichigo just ignored his teacher, already too used to people talking shit about him. He only fought back when somebody made a target at Rukia or Takeshi. But after getting in trouble at school several times already, he forced himself to ignore those comments in fear of getting suspended, or worse, expelled.
Ding ding ding!
The bell finally rang and the teacher wasted no time to leave the classroom.
"Aw man, that was fucking long." Renji stretched his arm above his head.
"Even I'm tired," Uryuu sighed.
Renji slowly got up from his desk and walked over to the orange head who was yawning again. "This is the third time this week you almost got into trouble for almost falling asleep in class. What's going on?"
"Takeshi has been getting grumpier ever since I started school again," Ichigo said, "Not to mention he doesn't like sleeping alone in the nursery. "
By then Tatsuki and the others came over to join in on the conversation. "That's because you and Kuchiki spoil him too much. I read somewhere it's not good to let the baby sleep with you too long, and that's what you two did."
"Let's see if you can say 'no' to that kid's face," Ichigo groaned, ignoring the comment about him being whipped by some people.
"Is Kuchiki-san coming over today?" Orihime asked.
He nodded as he pulled out his phone to check for any messages from the said person. "Apparently Yume-san made some food and she's bringing it for lunch."
"Well, we'll go up to the roof first so meet us there," Tatsuki said as she grabbed Orihime's hand and led her away, not even waiting for a reply. Uryuu, Renji and Chad soon followed after them
Checking his phone, he noticed a message blinking on the screen. After quickly reading its content, he left his room and headed to the front of the school. As he arrived at the lockers, he noticed Rukia was already there, pushing the baby stroller inside the building.
"You sure did get here fast."
Rukia looked up and smiled. "Takeshi was getting restless to see you," she pointed at the stroller for emphasis.
Ichigo walked over and helped her pull the stroller in completely before peering down to a smiling Takeshi. "How're you doing big guy?" The baby squealed in excitement at seeing his father.
"He just woke up from a long nap so he's really happy," she told him.
"Were there any problem getting here?" he asked.
"Nope, everything went smoothly.
"Good," he nodded before bending down to unfasten the belts and lift Takeshi out of his stroller. "Have you guys eaten yet?"
Rukia shook her head as she pushed the stroller over to the corner before joining him. "Obaachan made enough to share with everyone so I decided to eat with you. Takeshi hasn't eaten yet either." She handed him the picnic basket and walked beside him to the roof.
The moment they opened the door, their friends started running towards them.
"TAKESHI!" some squealed.
"FOOD!" the other—mostly males—screamed.
Ichigo expertly dodged everyone's attack by stepping off to the side with Takeshi, Rukia and picnic basket in his arms. He didn't even pretend to be fazed when they all crashed into the door. "Idiots," he snorted as he calmly continued his walk to their spot on the roof where some of the sane people were still sitting there.
"Kuchiki, good to see you got here safely," Tatsuki said as she scooted over to make room for the tiny family. "And how's Takeshi doing?"
The baby giggled in response.
"He's adorable," Chad muttered with a small blush on his cheeks as he wiggled his finger in front of the entertained baby.
"Yeah, but too stubborn like his father," Rukia commented as she started pulling out the content inside the basket, promptly ignoring the glare from the orange head next to her. She simply handed him a bottle of milk as she continued her conversation. "How's school so far?"
Everyone groaned.
"That bad?"
Uryuu grabbed some of the food he was handed by Rukia as he answered her. "With college entrance exams next year, we have a lot more material to work on now."
"Not to mention all our teachers this year are asses," Tatsuki added.
"That's too bad," Rukia commented. Just as she finally finished setting up lunch, everyone who was missing from the circle quickly returned to their seats.
"Ittadakemasu!" they all shouted before digging into the food, ignoring the pain and blood on them that was due to their collision against the door a minute ago.
"So," she continued, "With the exams and all, have any of you guys decided on which colleges to apply to yet?"
"They're planning on the police academy," Hinamori pointed to the three older sempai's: Matsumoto, Ikkaku and Yumichika.
Rukia's eyes widened at the news. "Seriously? You guys never mention anything about that before."
"We just thought of it," Matsumoto shrugged her shoulders, "Unlike the rest of these guys, we're graduating this year so we're more pressured to think about our future goals."
"And what better then to be cops so we can beat up people," Ikkaku grinned.
Everyone groaned, obviously too exhausted to explain to him again that that wasn't the main job of a police officer.
"I'm thinking about becoming a teacher," Orihime said, moving forward with their conversation. "And after hanging out with Takeshi-kun, I think I might work with preschool."
"Too bad that kid will be too old to be in your class by then," her best friend pointed to the baby that was being fed by his father. Orihime slightly pouted, muttering her disappointment as Tatsuki continued. "Teaching sounds fun for me too, but I might do it at the dojo."
Ichigo looked up. "Planning on taking over that place?" he asked, insinuating the dojo they had attended together as kids. He immediately got a big grin and a nod as an answer. "Good luck with that," he smirked.
"What about you, Kurosaki-kun?" Orihime asked.
Ichgio shrugged his shoulders as he pulled the bottle away from Takeshi. "Most likely take over the clinic after my old man."
"Why not try the main hospital in Karakura?" Hitsugaya asked.
He immediately snorted at the idea. "And risk working with that pansy over there—" he pointed to Uryuu, "—and his crazy old man? No thanks."
"Fine with me," Uryuu scoffed.
"And you, Kuchiki-san?" Orihime asked, "Are you planning on starting school again?" Everyone suddenly stopped to turn to Rukia, waiting to hear her response. Even Ichigo stiffened, wondering what she would answer.
But unlike what the others thought, she hadn't thought too much about it yet. "I'm not sure. School sounds like a great plan but with Takeshi around I don't think I'll be able to work things out."
"But what about working?"
She shrugged. "If I can find a good place that can work with my personal life, then maybe."
"Che, you shouldn't have to work at all," Tatsuki snorted, "Ichigo is going to be a doctor so he'll make enough money to provide for you and Takeshi."
"Yeah, but I don't want to rely on this idiot completely. He does have the intelligence of a buffoon."
"Oi!" Ichigo glared at her when he heard Renji laughing his ass off. "Shut up, babbon."
Renji immediately glared as he raised his fist. "What did you call me, carrot top?"
"You heard me you overgrown fu—OW!" He rubbed the spot on his arm where Rukia had just pinched him. "What was that for, midget?"
"How many times must I tell you to watch your language in front of the baby," she snapped at him as she took Takeshi away.
"Such a protective mother," Tatsuki smirked.
Lunch continued peacefully…with occasional punches and kicks here and there, with everyone getting their fill of Yume's delicious lunch. In no time the bell rang, signaling the end of lunch, and they all helped pack up everything. They all rushed downstairs to their class except Ichigo who was walking slowly with Rukia and Takeshi to escort them out of school.
"Don't you have to get going?" she frowned at him.
"Nah, I'll walk you to the gates."
"Don't blame me if you get into trouble," she chuckled.
Just as they walked by the staff office, a teacher came out and almost walked into them. "Oh! Kuchiki! What are you doing here?"
Rukia bowed in greeting. "I'm just here to see Ichigo. How have you been, Ochi-sensei?"
She smiled as she patted her shoulder. "I'm doing really well. Is that Takeshi-kun?"
"Yup, this is him," Ichigo lifted his son higher in his hold.
"Aw, he's so cute," she giggled as she tickled the baby's tummy. She looked back at Rukia and asked, "How long are you staying here?"
"Actually, I was planning on leaving right now," she told her, "I don't want to bother Ichigo while he has class."
"Well, walk home safe," Ochi-sensei smiled, "And come visit us more often. I'd like to play with Takeshi-kun too.
"No problem," Rukia smiled as she said her farewells. The small family continued to the front doors of the school where the stroller was. Just like any other time, they ignored some of the looks they were getting as Ichigo placed Takeshi back into his stroller and Rukia shoved the now-empty picnic basket underneath the stroller. Once everything was secure, they made their way to the school gates. "I'll see you back home," she smiled at him.
"Be safe." He leaned over and gave her a sweet kiss on the lips. Ichigo remained on the same spot as he watched Rukia slowly disappear down the street, his overprotective nature preventing him from moving even as the bell rung behind him to signal the start of class.
It wasn't until well after class started that he finally forced his legs to move, not after Rukia but to his class where he knew he was going to get another scolding from his teacher for being late.
Grabbing the towel, Ichigo stepped out of the shower and started to wipe himself down. Quickly slipping into a pair of boxers, he stepped outside, ready to return to his room to finish his book, when he was forced to step back. "What the—"
"Ichigo!" Isshin squealed as he grabbed his son and ran downstairs.
"What the fuck is wrong with you?" Ichigo shoved his father away when they reached the living room, only to be greeted by Yume and the Urahara couple who were sitting on the couch, all drinking tea.
"Not bad," Yoruichi smirked at his state of dress while her husband chuckled behind that stupid fan of his.
The orange head groaned as he looked at his father. "Why did you bring me down here, old man?"
"Why else? To plan your wedding of course!" he shouted.
"We're not getting married," Ichigo deadpanned but couldn't say anything more when his father's fist collided with his guts.
"Nonsense! By next year Takeshi will be running around so that makes it perfect for him to walk down the aisle as the ring-bearer—"
"Shut up!" Ichigo punched his father back, stopping his rambling. He then glared at the couple. "Were you the ones who put the idea of marriage into his head again?"
Urahara continued chuckling. "We're not that stupid."
"And that other time was completely Isshin as well," Yoruichi added, "If anything we've been trying to stop him, telling him Rukia would only end up suffering by marrying you."
Instead of commenting Ichigo groaned in irritation as he looked at Yume for some help.
But the old lady just shrugged her shoulders. "I was actually siding with your father this entire time."
"If Rukia heard you, she would have called you a traitor," Yoruichi smirked.
Yume laughed behind her hand. "Just because she decided not to get married doesn't mean I think the same thing. I've been trying to get her to change her mind but so far nothing has changed."
"Maybe her decision has more to do with how she feels about the young father," Urahara gave Ichigo a sly look.
And the said man just looked away, not wanting to say anything.
But Isshin commented. "I wouldn't blame Rukia-chan. Who would want to marry a weak man like my son?"
Ichigo rolled his eyes at his father's over-dramatic reactions. "Please, let's not go over this again."
"Why not?" His father whined, earning him a slap over the head.
"Because Rukia and I agreed to take things slow between us," he said, "Just because we have a baby together doesn't mean we're in 'love.' We're just friends."
"Friends with benefits," Yoruichi added while her husband made a cat call.
Before Ichigo could strangle them, Isshin ran over to the poster of his wife and cried out, "Masaki! I have ended up raising an inconsiderate pervert that has shamed you! Not only will he not married the mother of his child, but he's tricking her into his bed for hot sex that doesn't mean anything to him because he doesn't love her like she does him, and will most likely discard her like a used tissue when—" His banter was cut off when an irritated Ichigo kicked him into the poster and through the dry wall.
"Shut up before you wake up everyone in the damn neighborhood," he snarled.
"But your father does have a point," Urahara said, earning him a confused look from the orange head that was still kicking his father further into the wall. "Kuchiki-san doesn't have any reason to stay here except Takeshi. One day you're going to find someone else or she will and by then it'll be too late to create a relationship."
"So you two should just get together now," Yume added with her sweet smile, though her eyes were stern.
Ichigo gulped as he stepped away from his father's still form. He scratched the back of his head like he usually does in an odd situation such as this. "Well, if anything, we are…um, trying to…step forward?" he shrugged with some uncertainty. Sure they were still hugging, kissing, etc., but they haven't had sex for months (including the last few months of her pregnancy) and they haven't had a chance to talk about their developing relationship these days because they have been so occupied with Takeshi.
"I don't think that's good enough," her eyebrow quirked up a bit.
"Not to mention you sound uncertain of your words," Yoruichi nodded.
He looked between the three people on the couch, feeling uncomfortable under their criticizing gaze. "Look, I know you guys are all worried about us, but right now we're doing really well. So please don't try to step in or else you might mess things up."
"Can we trust you?" Urahara asked as he placed a hand on the old lady's shoulder. "You wouldn't want to mess with this sweet lady's granddaughter. That'd be too cruel." She nodded in agreement.
"Seriously," he said in a confident tone this time, "We're getting there even without your help. So don't question us about it anymore. Hell, just wait until you get the wedding invitation…who knows when that will be though."
"That's good enough!" Isshin suddenly jumped out from the large hole in the wall and laughed out loud, ignoring the blood dripping down his face. "Let's go out and celebrate!" He shouted as he grabbed his friends and ran out the front door before anyone could stop him.
"Oh my," Yume giggled as she got up. "Well, I'm turning in for the night. Staying up too late isn't good for my bones. Goodnight."
Ichigo wished her back a good night before following upstairs after her. Grumbling about perverted old men, Ichigo walked into the nursery to see a very pleasing sight. Rukia was carefully rocking Takeshi in her arms as he fell into deep slumber. Just by watching her, being the natural mother that she was, made his heart beat faster. Maybe it was because of what just happened, but whatever the reason, Ichigo knew he wanted to hold her. When Rukia set him back down on the crib, Ichigo walked over and wrapped his arms around her waist from behind.
"Isn't he adorable?" she asked, not at all startled by his sudden appearance. It was almost as if she knew he would come and hug her.
"Stop describing him with such sissy adjectives. Takeshi is a Kurosaki which only makes him more manly and handsome." Ichigo smirked.
Rukia lightly slapped his arms. "Are you trying to tell me our son doesn't have any of my genes that make him beautiful?"
Ichigo raised a brow at her. "Do you see yourself as 'beautiful'?"
Rukia glared at him before releasing Ichigo's arms around her and walked outside. Ichigo only chuckled as he followed her, leaving the door slightly open as he left. And before Rukia could make a turn into her room, Ichigo grabbed her wrist and pulled her into his own.
"Ichigo, what are you—" Her sentence got cut off when Ichigo closed the door shut and planted his lips against hers. Rukia stiffened as his lips placed wet kisses on her lips. She didn't know when it happened but soon her eyes closed and she started to respond to him. Her arms wound themselves around his waist and Ichigo also pulled her tighter against him as their kiss deepened.
He wasn't sure what came over him. Maybe it was all those questions he had received from the adults a little while ago? Or maybe he realized how long it had been since they were intimate and was starting to feel his hormones going crazy? Whatever the reason, it seemed necessary for him to feel her warm skin against his, and now that they were alone, he wanted more.
Seconds later, when the need for air became too great, they pulled away, but only a few inches. Ichigo stared down at Rukia's blushing face through half-lidded eyes, trying to cover the obvious lust that was hidden there.
That was all he needed to know to continue.
"It's good to know we're moving forward even after the baby's born."
Rukia scoffed as she slapped his arm. "You sound shocked."
Ichigo snickered as his hand travelled up and down her bare back, his fingers lightly tracing over her spine. "This is nice."
"It is," she sighed as she cuddled next to him.
He closed his eye as if concentrating on memorizing the shape of her body with his own. "Hey, was there any moment that you felt…any discomfort?"
"No. Why?" she asked.
He shrugged his shoulder. "Well, it's only been a few months since you had Takeshi so I only guessed you would feel…you know."
She smiled at his unwillingness to finish his sentence. "You mean how I might feel down there during sex?"
A light blush came across him as he opened his eyes a little to glare at her for making him uncomfortable. "Yeah."
Rukia almost giggled at his expression. "Don't worry. I feel completely fine."
"Good," he sighed in relief before wrapping both arms around her body, her petite form coming back from the pregnancy. "Are you going to spend the night here with me?"
She remained quiet as she thought about it. "Why not? It's too much of a hassle to put on all those clothes and go to sleep when I'm already comfortable here."
"Good," he said again as he held her tighter.
"Goodnight," she whispered as she snuggled into his chest.
Ichigo leaned down and kissed the top of her head as he held her closer. "Goodnight, midget."
A/N: I know what a lot of you guys are thinking: was the ending part really necessary? Well, I could have pushed it off but I decided to put it in now so I don't have to awkwardly place it somewhere else. And I wanted to show that they are still 'moving forward' in their relationship, as Ichigo said. Just showing the steps they are taking to arrive at the place that is shown in the beginning of the sequel. This is all planned so please don't hate.
Thanks for reading and please review!
Preview for next chapter:
A sad event rains over Ichigo and Rukia's newfounding relationship. How will they stand up to the death of a loved one?
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