the first time he meets shiraishi ringo, they're paired up together for a class project in middle school.

he sits at his desk, waiting for his project partner to come to him, since he doesn't remember most of the class's names.

the girl that greets him, he thinks, is soft and young - closer to his age than his sisters', of course, but with the same air and traces of baby fat clinging to her cheeks that asks for protection. her bangs cover one eye shyly and her glasses only emphasize how innocently child-like her eyes are, but she speaks clearly and smiles freely.

she doesn't so much as glance at his hair.

for that alone, she becomes one of his favorite classmates.

the assignment itself is the largest portion of their grade that year and will take multiple meetings over several weeks, but even as they continue to meet and grow closer, ringo has none of the usual complaints or threats he hears from anyone he's ever been partnered with outside of his close friends.

she does complain, but not about things he's used to hearing - about being partnered with a delinquent or about his attitude or about his flippant responses.

she complains about what just happened in her favorite show or book and, as she grows more comfortable with him, how unfairly tall he is and how she's definitely going to rely on him to reach the top of the board when they're put on cleaning duty together.

she also does make threats but not at him to help upkeep their grade.

instead, he's treated to the rare sight of someone being threatened on his behalf when his classmates poke fun at him and her for being a "fruit basket" together.

(the rage hardening her face and utter sincerity in her description on how to carry out her threats to the next person that makes fun of their names - because "names are gifts that shape us, and you think purposefully misinterpreting someone's is a sign of how much greater you are when it's just showing how immature and pathetically insecure you are" - elevates her in his mind all the more. if he's at least a little fearful of her temper after, well, he knows who he can take in a fight or not.)

・。.・゜✫・.・✫・゜・。・

the first time he catches sight of both of her eyes, their teacher announces they've received the highest grade for the project, even earning extra credit with how thorough their presentation was.

her hidden eye isn't something he thinks much about, recognizing a sore spot when he sees it, especially with his own experiences. he is curious, but with how saintly a partner she is, he figures he can at least try to return the favor. (it helps that the thought of upsetting her reminds him heavily of upsetting yuzu, and the thought is shelved immediately.)

after the class ends, she bounds up to him with a grin, a hand up for a high five. he huffs, hiding a smile when she fearlessly wiggles her fingers at him in a "i'm not putting my hand down until you do" sort of way.

he finally lifts his hand, acutely aware of their classmates' eyes on them, but she claps her hand against his without seeming to notice.

at his acquiesce, she turns her smile into a pure light and tilts her head naturally, bangs falling out of the way and sunlight hitting her eyes just so.

one brown like amber and earth. one blue like sapphire and sky.

it steals his breath for that moment, that snapshot in time, but it's gone just as quickly, and he decides the stop in his heartbeat had been a figment of his imagination.

his theory seems more and more likely as he continues to speak to her without any awkwardness or heart attacks, watching her slowly integrate into his friend group without issue.

she takes to chad (minus a grumble that is not quite under her breath about how unfairly tall people can be) with a smile and the same lack of prejudice and declares tatsuki as the epitome of girl power, allowing the tomboy to teach her a few basics of karate to bond.

when graduation comes and they all enter the same high school, she freely welcomes mizuiro - and his strong attachment to his phone, rumors of his potential yakuza connections, and string of older lovers - with only one complaint (about how perfect his hair is of all things) and laughs at keigo's antics with pure amusement rather than any exasperation. when introduced to inoue, she greets the redhead like a lost sister and just tolerates chizuru at her worst and most erted but laughs alongside her otherwise.

he never imagined how a partner project could lead to something like this.

every so often, he sees that smile again - both of her eyes gleaming in the light of her joy - but his heartbeat does not freeze. instead, his pulse spikes for a moment, as if in response to her joy - a sort of shared energy high that knocks the breath out of him more often than not.

(chad and mizuiro notice, the former simply calling his name and giving a knowing nod with the latter smiling as though oblivious but clearly not.)

instead, he finds his heart stopping when he catches her looking around at them, as if stumped as to why she's here - a little confused and maybe a little lost, but mostly joyful as if blessed beyond all measure. sometimes, she's looking at someone specific - a random classmate with an excited curiosity, chad with unhindered pride, inoue with a sort of sorrow - or him with a sort of wistfulness that he can't quite place. it's always quick and replaced with a grin - genuine and bright - but his mind latches onto those flashes of something else.

it makes him wonder what she's thinking about, if the expression is good - made from happiness and contentment, a sort of gratitude for their part in her life - or bad - a sign of low self-esteem or previous betrayal, something that transports her to a memory better left forgotten.

he almost asks but ultimately keeps the question between his teeth, letting the warmth rest in his chest as she simply enjoys their presence. if it's important, he'll address it when it comes up; the others, he knows, will be right behind him.

・。.・゜✫・.・✫・゜・。・

the first time he recognizes the skip in his pulse and the warmth in his chest, rukia comes to town and his world is turned upside down, the shinigami having successfully conned her way into his household.

it is after she has gone, yuzu and karin asking pointed questions about "ringo-nee" - a title born from more partnered projects and dinners at his house scattered over their years of friendship - and why he hasn't brought her over for a while.

he's sure that the implications would have been lost at any other time - as it isn't the first time they've questioned her lack of presence (and beamed when he invited her over for a meal within the next few days after) - but his mind flashes to the wistful look he sometimes sees directed at himself and the new flash of emotions today at rukia's entrance.

it's an amalgamation of feelings that he can only parse through - albeit slowly - because of the years between them (of him watching her) and how openly her face shows her expressions.

the emotion that he gets stuck on is her fear, the split second of concern - not the fussy or everyday or exasperate kind, but something bone-deep.

his gut instinct is to do something to make her never feel that afraid again, to wrap her up in blankets and soothe her like he used to his sisters when they were young and more fearful.

but it's different too, punctuated with the desire of hands wrapped together and a share of warmth not just in comfort but a basking in presence - an off-hand curiosity to how soft her skin is and if she'd be willing to let him rest his head on hers, lips pressed to her hair like he does to reassure his siblings but different altogether.

it's subtle, that difference in feeling.

it's like a punch in the gut, the realization that comes with it.

it shifts his previous reactions and illuminates a new field in which he's both a novice and a complete idiot.

this is, he knows already, going to be a wild rollercoaster.

(when he asks chad and mizuiro about how they knew before him, chad shrugs silently while mizuiro smiles as if he knows nothing when he knows a lot more than that.)

・。.・゜✫・.・✫・゜・。・

the first time he gets jealous, he watches her take the chaos of attempted co-habitation by force via poor planning on seireitei's part and turn it into order.

she'd covered for him in school with ease, neatly using his injuries to cover for his "fainting" and having the "one-day exchange students" help her take him home.

she doesn't ask for an explanation, merely reading in the corner with music playing in her ears until she hears their concerns over their housing situation as it gets increasingly violent.

(the shinigami give her suspicious looks initially, but when he goes so far as to drop three textbooks in front of her to demonstrate her utter devotion to her current novel, they accept it as fact and speak anyways - random glances thrown her way still but reassured by her obvious absorption in the book.)

she divides them all with ease with clear logic: ikkaku and yumichika with mizuiro (who has similar "family members" - though no one is still sure if it's via a yakuza group or literally having some interesting family members), renji with chad (to "keep each other calm," she says though absolutely everyone gives her confused looks at the statement), matsumoto with inoue (since "like calls to like," as the saying goes), rukia with tatsuki (as "strong girls need to stick together"), and toshiro in her home.

she doesn't elaborate further on the point for a second, saying it like a foregone conclusion as if it made sense.

the burn of searing flames in his veins is unexpected, nothing like the cold flare of his usual reiatsu.

he's careful to prevent his face from doing more than twitch at her statement (or lack thereof to be precise), but he recognizes the emotion almost immediately though usually with a different context.

envy.

he's been to ringo's home a handful of times over the years, the female more oft coming over to his own place.

the fact that she so easily opens it to toshiro-

only for her to come to a realization of sorts, steadily flushing before clarifying that she'll be staying at the kurosaki home - with the twins - while a "pipe issue" is being fixed at her home.

she states hitsugaya-san would probably also appreciate being alone and not having to deal with people babying him.

something about the way she adds that she's staying at his home - as if it were a foregone conclusion - calms him, makes his rage cool in an instant like magic.

in the background, she's handing the young captain her keys and feeding him a simple backstory (her older cousin since those in her neighborhood are used to her baby face and would take the declaration that he was older with minimal fuss and maximum respect), but he does his best to not pay too close attention to the way toshiro straightens under her gaze and how ringo's eyes stray a few times to toshiro's hair as if she can't help herself.

the fire in his veins burns again, closer to a simmer than the previous boil.

later, he'll comment on her staring, awkward and probably more than obvious at his curiosity but hopefully not his feelings and envy.

later, she'll blush and lament how obvious it was if he noticed, as he hadn't noticed before - back when they had first been in the same class and she hadn't been able to keep her eyes off of him.

later, his jealousy will shift to embarrassed pleasure, remembering how he hadn't known her at first and rationalizing that her gaze had probably been blurred together with all the others' staring at the time.

for now, he tries to lower the fan of flames and act naturally as he and his allies part ways, ringo warm at his elbow as they head inside to plan how to lie to his sisters to allow her to stay for some time (not that it'll be hard to convince them).

・。.・゜✫・.・✫・゜・。・

the first time he voices his feelings to her, there's a new transfer student with an offer he has no plans on agreeing to (though he hopes on taking).

she simply smiles back and returns the sentiment but without any romantic connotation - so quick to dismiss as if she knows something he doesn't.

he opens his mouth to correct her, pauses, thinks of the upcoming battle, and returns the easy grin.

he wants her to know in case the next battle is his last, but they're already close friends and knowing of his romantic interest will do nothing except perhaps make her question and worry when there's no point.

she tilts her head, blue eye peeking through strands of her jet black hair like a jewel shining against darkness, and stops him when he turns to leave, her fingers catching on his wrist like some gender-role-reversed romance drama.

she hesitates when he turns back to her in question, his brow raising further at the uncharacteristic fear.

he calls her name with worry and keeps the moment in mind - how she tells him to be careful, voice quivering ever so slightly with a strange sort of knowing, how her eyes take him in as if to memorize, how her fingers tighten just a moment and seem to burn into his skin like a reminder of some kind before letting go, how her smile seems so sad and worried though she shouldn't know.

he can't stop to wonder then - not when he's off to train to fight in a war against a megalomaniac with visions of grandeur and power to back it up, not when enemies come to scope out the competition and leave with the confidence of someone knowing they're stronger and it being true (for now), not when orihime is taken and tatsuki is upset and everyone is worried but the seireitei, not when the battle explodes across three worlds and calls all warriors of two and remains in the ignorance of one, not when his father is not an imbecile and buys ichigo time to choose giving up the world as he knows it to save it with little time to think of the full consequences, not when his bright world fades away and takes away some of the best friends he's ever known -

but later, he thinks on that moment and on conversations past.

(later, he compares it to the relief and joy when he comes back to school - how she beams at him the whole time and spares glances at the rest of the seireitei-busting group with cautious and curious eyes, how she doesn't ask but seems to know he can no longer see and doesn't cut out that subject from conversation but somehow skirts around asking about current events in a way that avoids landmines, how she suggests he find new hobbies or jobs to fill the time without any judgment and plenty of possibilities, how she bears his not-quite mood swings with infinite patience and her gazes towards their friends turns from caution to an understanding of sorts.)

and he wonders.

・。.・゜✫・.・✫・゜・。・

the first time he finally gets through to her and gets her to agree to a date, it's been a little over half a year from the end of the war and things have been settling into a new normal.

at this point in time, the others no longer avoid him nor cut him out of spiritual conversations despite his clear longing to have seen it firsthand. they make mistakes in navigating landmines born from ptsd, but they do not give up and come back with more and more vigour each time.

(he wonders if ringo is giving them pointers behind the scenes because as much as he loves his friends, most of them share this in common with him: they lack tact and disregard common social boundaries. he wouldn't put it past her anyways.)

he bids his time with the school's sports teams to stay in shape - currently with the basketball team and contract ending in three weeks - and is working on his resume to apply to local part-times while maintaining his grades towards the top of his class, even higher in placement than before what with all the free time.

in between all of this, he confesses to ringo and gets casual, platonic misunderstandings in return again and again to the point that it becomes a bit of a long-running joke (and long-standing bet) within the school.

this changes after he wins a basketball game with the team and she comes up to him with a towel, eyes shining as she praises all of them but especially ichigo.

he asks her out again, jokingly as a reward for his hard work since he doesn't think anyone should actually give dates as bribes for good results, and gets rejected (again), but this time, she comments ("careful or i'll think you're serious one day."), he replies ("i am."), and after a little more banter, she turns bright red but quietly agrees. finally.

(he ignores keigo weeping and passing mizuiro money. later, he spots ringo and mizuiro talking - ringo clearly flustered and mizuiro amused before mizuiro hands her the same bills keigo handed him, pats her on the shoulder, and walks away. she makes a sound of frustration but pouts rather than scowls, so everyone knows it's ok. he pretends he saw nothing and walks away.)

the date itself is simple.

though this is the first romantic date they're going on, they've been friends for years, and he knows her.

he picks out a movie she'll spend the rest of the day raving about, double checks the hours of a new restaurant she's been thinking about trying, and lets both yuzu and karin know she'll be coming over for dessert.

(yuzu is enthusiastic, and karin just as much though she doesn't say so. he asks them to be home during the time and gets chewed out for an hour between the two of them for it about romantic dates and other people and how "you should know this, ichi-nii!")

when the day comes, ringo shows up in an outfit he hasn't seen before and with her bangs pinned back, both eyes - blue and brown - displayed and hesitant to meet his with what he reads as nerves.

he compliments her honestly, smiles when she returns the sentiment (making him glad yuzu and karin had helped him put together the ensemble), and offers her his hand.

she hesitates long enough that he contemplates rescinding the offer, but she takes it finally and lets him hold it all the way to the theater.

as he planned, ringo is thoroughly entranced by the movie, forgetting whatever misgivings she had as she enthusiastically recounts her favorite parts for what reasons and practically writes an essay for him as they walk to the restaurant.

he holds her hand the entire way, and she only spares it a single glance and blush when he brushes his thumb against her skin of her hand absent-mindedly and affectionately.

he asks questions about the movie to keep her going but lets the topic shift naturally while they eat, changing nothing about their usual interactions.

she points her chopsticks at him when accentuating her words, drinks her entire glass of water in one go each time, and knocks her ankle against his "unfairly long legs" whenever he riles her up enough - the last of which he decides to not tell her is more incentive than anything given her weak (in comparison to his battle opponents') power, the voluntary and playful contact, and how her eyes shine with inner fire and without fear.

she gets self-conscious again when he picks up the check as he asked her out, but she manages to wrangle a promise that she pays on their next date, which pleases him with the promise of a next time.

dessert at the kurosaki house is delicious, and despite both ringo and his badgering, yuzu and karin refuse to join them. (this time at least, as ringo is able to extract a promise for the twins to come next time.)

conversation is easy, almost like another late night post-projects or studies rather than a romantic date. just as he had planned, to ease her into a relationship that was more.

it ends with him walking her home, laughter softly echoing against the darkened sky.

・。.・゜✫・.・✫・゜・。・

the first time he presses his lips against ringo's, it is seventeen months from losing his ghost-related powers and two days after the xcution fiasco and regaining said powers.

they've been officially dating for eleven months, nearly a full year, and have fallen into what his friends and classmates have taken to calling "the honeymoon phase and old married couple phase combined."

(when told so, he shrugs and assumes it's a side effect of being childhood friends.)

he apologises for dragging her into the whole mess.

she apologizes for not warning him.

he double checks that her triumph over tsuki-whatever's memory power has to do with her supernatural status.

she double checks that his feelings towards their relationships have not changed.

their fingers tangle together in unison.

in that moment, he is certain their thoughts are the same, an amalgamation of relief and affection and being post-crisis.

he leans down at the same time she tilts up, the two pausing and sharing smiles.

he asks.

she answers.

and the press of their lips together follows.

shiraishi ringo
(白石 りんご)

her previous life: an older sister to three boys and one other girl. relatively good grades but nothing amazing. was part of the anime club growing up and really liked action-fantasy like bleach. became a pediatrician until she died choking on an apple during her commute one day. (the irony of being named after the fruit that killed her will never not be wryly amusing to ringo. it's one of the first facts she likes to tell people when she tells them that she's reincarnated; yes, she very much laughs at herself over it.)