14Disclaimer: I don't own Bleach.
A/N: Hi, guys! Happy holiday season! This random plot bunny came to me on a fine, quiet Saturday so I just wrote it. The one thing about random plot bunnies is just they didn't take a long time to write it XD I tended to keep each chapter short (I mean it this time XD) for a maximum of 2000 words.
This story came to mind as I started my ultrasound rotation a month ago, and we did a lot of breast ultrasound and mammo and I saw a lot of breast cancer patients and her family. So for those brave fighters who are fighting for breast cancer, this story is for you brave fighters out there!
I hope you enjoy it!
Warning: I do praise Rukia a lot in my story, sometimes too much (Ichigo realizing how beautiful Rukia is just has to be there in every story of mine XD).
The very first time Ichigo met his wife was at the hospital sometime in 2020, two years ago. Ichigo was about to take an elevator to the rooftop because he needed a gateway–somewhere a little bit quiet after the doctor in charge of his mother told him that no, it wasn't looking good for Masaki.
The elevator door opened and she was there. He still remembered to this day what she looked like the very first time he laid his eyes on her.
She was a stranger, dressed in a light-blue dress that cut just some inches above her knees completing her pale, white, milky skin. She was holding a bucket of flowers; yellow roses, sunflowers, and pink tulips (to send well wishes).
And she got off the elevator to the same floor where Ichigo's mom was staying for almost 2 months already. The VVIP floor of Karakura general hospital only had two rooms.
And the young businessman at the Shiba enterprise, 29-year-old Ichigo Kurosaki, stared and paid attention (he usually never did).
For a moment there she looked up and their eyes met (And Ichigo thought this stranger had the deepest amethyst eyes he had ever seen like if he stared long enough, he could drown in them).
She looked away first and walked past him. After all, they were basically just strangers to each other at this point.
(Ichigo remembered what he thought of her that day–a stranger that ended up to be his wife two years after the very first time he saw her in person; the very same thought he still had to this day–it never changed–
–Ichigo thought his wife had always been that beautiful).
Ichigo stood on the rooftop, still wearing his white shirt from yesterday. His sleeves were rolled up, his tie was nowhere to be seen, and his first button was undone. He just stood there and stared at the darkening sky.
"We turned to palliative treatment for advanced cases like this. The main goal for such treatments is no longer to cure, but to make sure that Kurosaki-san could live her last years in the most comfortable and painless ways with her the people closest to her,"
Ichigo inhaled his cigarette and said nothing to no one.
(Ichigo never smoked before but his dad did and he told him that mom thought dad looked cool when he was smoking).
"Oh, Ichigo, honey, where have you been? I called you like six times already." Masaki whined the moment Ichigo got back to her room–room 25A, the VVIP ward on the 25th floor of Karakura General Hospital.
Ichigo didn't bring his phone. He needed quiet.
The younger Kurosaki scratched his neck and looked kind of apologetic to his mom on the hospital bed, "sorry, mom, I was–"
Ichigo paused.
There was that bucket of flowers on Masaki's bedside–the same flowers; yellow roses, sunflowers, and pink tulips (to send well wishes, to wish you a recovery, to wish you a happy-long-life).
"She was here, Ichigo. Rukia-chan, the girl I have been telling you about," Masaki sighed.
Her?
That girl from the elevator before was the 'Rukia' his mom had not stopped talking about for the last month?
There were two VVIP rooms on the 25th floor; 25A and 25B. Room 25A had Masaki Kurosaki's name on it for the last two months, and its twin room, room 25B had Kuchiki Hisana's name on it for the last four months–until a week ago.
Rukia Kuchiki was this girl his mother met about two months ago. Her sister, Kuchiki Hisana was fighting the same disease Ichigo's mom was fighting now, breast cancer.
Hisana was a fighter. She never stopped looking for the best treatment, they went all over the world to find one, but in the end, she chose to be home for her last fighting days.
Rukia had always been there for her sister. Every single day. She might as well be the ghost of the 25th floor. Every nurse knew her. Every cleaner on that floor knew her. And Masaki knew her too. Her sister had been unconscious for almost 4 months and Rukia stayed–living her youthful life at the hospital bedside to take care of her dying sister.
Masaki imagined how lonely it was for the young lady, so one day she invited her over for some tea in her room, and ever since then the two had been friends. Rukia took care of both Masaki and Hisana. She brought Masaki delicious food and flowers and she was a delightful company when Masaki was all alone–since her husband was still an actively working surgeon and owner at the same hospital she was being treated at, and Karin was studying laws in the US, and Yuzu was studying psychology in Tokyo, and her son Ichigo was the second man in command at his dad's family's top enterprise, the Shiba Enterprise.
Rukia Kuchiki kept her company and Masaki loved the girl dearly. She called her 'her third daughter' already. It was just a friendly way to call her, but deep down Masaki wished she could officially call Rukia-chan her daughter one day.
Masaki was touched by the selflessness of the young lady–how she sacrificed her best days to take care of her dying sister no matter how lonely her days were at the hospital. She was young, she was very beautiful, and she had a full life ahead of her, and yet, Rukia never even missed a day–spending her days with the old nurses on the 25th floor, seeking joy from talking to another sick stranger named Masaki Kurosaki on the hospital bed.
The girl was everything Masaki loved–beautiful, kind, and selfless.
And Masaki wanted nothing but to introduce her to her son.
She talked about Rukia to Ichigo, and she talked about Ichigo to Rukia. Her son was stubborn, he always acted like he didn't care, but Rukia was nicer with a pretty and amused half-smile–
Masaki knew it wasn't like Rukia was interested, maybe she was just being polite to entertain this sick mother that wouldn't stop talking about how she couldn't wait to hold grandchildren before she took her last breath.
But the two never had the chance to meet. Ichigo could only come to visit Masaki late at night after his busy day at the company. And when there was no significant progress in Hisana, Rukia usually went home at 7 PM and just came back early the next day.
They never met. The timing just never crossed.
And a week ago, Kuchiki Hisana's condition was deteriorating and they finally decided to let her go and plugged out the machine and Hisana's failing heart and lungs just stopped working the moment the ventilation machine did the work for her.
Hisana lost her fight to breast cancer a week ago. And Masaki–
–Masaki was devastated.
For Hisana.
For Rukia.
And for the loss of a company.
Rukia-chan would stop coming. She had no more reasons to. Her sister wasn't here anymore. She didn't have to be the ghost of the 25th floor anymore.
Until today.
Until today, a week after her sister's passing, Rukia-chan came back with flowers and fresh fruits and just got back to their routine as if she never stopped coming for a week.
Masaki imagined it had to be hard for her, going to the same place she lost her sister after fighting with her here for 4 months.
But Rukia-chan was here.
She was here to listen to Masaki's rambling about how nauseated she was from her medication, her rambling about how she thought her brave daughter Karin was secretly seeing someone, or about how kind Yuzu baked her these really delicious cookies and Rukia-chan should bring some of them home, or about her son.
Her busy son was here at the same time at the same place as Rukia.
And Masaki just wouldn't stop calling his son's phone over and over again ("I swear he was here a minute ago, Rukia-chan. You should meet him, wait for a moment, okay, please?").
And today would have been the perfect timing, the right time. Her son was here all day from yesterday (because her health was deteriorating too), but of course–
"Where have you been? Had you not wandered anywhere you could have finally met Rukia-chan—Kurosaki Ichigo, did you smoke!?" Masaki scolded her only son.
She had tried to halt and halt Rukia from coming home but in the end, the young Kuchiki had another business she needed to attend to and Masaki was just really, really disappointed.
Ichigo ignored his mother and walked closer to the bedside to take a look at the flowers this 'Rukia' girl delivered for his mother.
There was a card on it:
"Dear Masaki-san, my wish for you in this journey is to feel supported, powerful, and loved. I want you to know that you are never alone in this journey. I am thinking of you and your brave fight. Always. Love, Rukia."
And there were those little rabbit doodles at the bottom and–
–Masaki watched as her ever-scowling son half-smiled, half-laughed, holding that little pink card in his hand.
In the end, Rukia kept coming. It wasn't every day like the last time, only on Tuesdays and Thursdays. But the young lady still came to visit Masaki, to keep her company. She didn't stay that long, probably just one to two hours. But every time she knocked and came into room 25A with that beautiful smile that tried to hide the pain in her empty, lonely, and cold deep amethyst eyes, Masaki felt like crying.
How could this girl be this lovely and selfless and kind?
And as Rukia peeled another apple for her, Masaki just blurted it out–the one thing she had always wanted to say to her since the last two months she knew her.
"Rukia-chan?"
"Hm?"
Masaki held her hand, and her hand–just like her eyes–was cold, cold, cold. And Masaki wondered how someone so cold could bring such warmth into her life.
"Please marry my son for me,"
And Rukia-chan raised her eyebrows (as if she asked, 'you're kidding, right?'), but she saw the seriousness on the older Kurosaki's face behind and she just knew that Masaki did mean every word.
A/N: You got me guys, this is an IR arranged-marriage trope XD
I am going to explore some new things with this story. Hint: Ichigo is going to be kind of seeing someone else at this point in the story (and I don't think it's going to be Orihime, because I am trying new concepts and I just get tired of Hime-pinning-over-Ichigo XD).
And he wasn't going to be much of a whipped dork this time. He was a bit more serious and mature. And I am going with the characterization of Rukia from pre-SS; cold, lonely, and kind of detached but still has the pourest soul.
And since I am trying to write something different, Rukia might as well fall first this time XD (It was something I read on IR discord (thank you!) that 'Rukia fell first but Ichigo fell harder', let's make this story like that).
And for the EBTR joy, Masaki is going to be the center of this story too.
Have a joyous day!
PS: sorry for the grammar mistakes.