BLEACH: 10 Minutes In Heaven -Karakura Town- Uryu Ishida

 10

"10." You say aloud, hoping you picked a number somebody was actually thinking of, and not some random thing that would make everyone laugh.

Thankfully, someone stands up.

You are less thankful when you see who it was-- Uryu Ishida, the Quincy archer. You have had a long-standing grudge with him, mainly because while you were learning to vanquish Hollows with your Gran, he was learning the same thing from his grandfather, and you crossed paths often. The first time was horrifying. Gran had just become a Soul Reaper at the time, so when she spotted the Quincies she'd challenged them. You remember the outcome-- a whole lot of busted windows and a serious gash in the street you'd been standing on. You and Uryu had been saved from the melee by Uryu's father. You remember dangling by the back of your shirt next to a small, bespeckled kid with a miniature bow and faint riatsu. You'd glared at each other from over Ryuken Ishida's chest for nearly a minute, until he placed you on the ground and nudged you over to Gran.

That brief glower had formed a lasting dislike in both of you. Now, you cross the room, glowering at Uryu much in the same fashion as you had upon first meeting him.

Pushing his glasses up his nose, Ishida regards you coldly, then looks away.

Chad, in charge of the closet, (unhelpfully) gestures to the open door. Realizing a refusal to go in will make Ishida think you're scared, you go in-- only to bump shoulders with Ishida in the doorway. He steps aside, his chivalric gesture to go on ahead so infuriating you have to restrain yourself so you don't punch him.

The light winks out around the doorframe, leaving a thin line of gold underneath from the lamps outside. You walk to the other end of the room and sit down with a thump. You are going to ignore him for the ten minutes, and if he comes anywhere near you, you're going to stab him in the eye with a rusty sewing needle-- poetic justice, since Orihime mentioned he likes to sew.

Minutes tick by, and you realize, with a lurch of nausea, that you'll be even more furious if he doesn't try to kiss you than if he does! How screwed up is that? 

You get to your feet. "Alright, Ishida, where are you?"

There is silence, but something moves to your right, and you hurl yourself at it. If you're not going to get kissed, at least you'll get to fight.

You crash headfirst into the wall, and the mouse you chased scuttles away in a panic, while you curse up a storm. "Gah! Stupid Quincy!"

"I didn't do anything," Ishida says boredly. "You're the one that took a flying leap at a rodent."

Rather than reply you nurse the goose egg on your forehead. Unless you found some way to enact revenge on the Quincy, you'd never live this down-- and, of course, your Benedict Arnold brain comes up with a plan to ruin both of you.

Crawling across the floor as quietly as you can, you listen for Ishida's breathing. Once you hear him, you begin making your way, ever so slowly, in that direction. The plan? Kiss him senseless and make him fall in love with you, then reject him! Brilliant!

Of course if you'd been thinking straight after knocking yourself silly against the wall, you would have realized the "plan" was all just a ploy. Ishida was infuriating and you hated each other's guts, but somehow, your stupid heart had ended up in his hands. Fate is cruel.

While you are thinking this, you aren't paying attention to where you're going, and you manage to blunder right into the Quincy's lap. "Hey!"

You jump up, cracking your head against his chin, and spend the next few seconds doubled over, saying every swear word you know in various combinations. After that little interlude, you notice Ishida's nose is a scant inch away from yours. You gawk at each other, Ishida bruised and you slightly disoriented. "Stupid Quincy," you mutter.

His eyes widen slightly; he noticed your words don't have the usual accompanying bite to them.

"Damn it!" You finally shriek, and slam your mouth onto his.

Uryu's fingers dig into your shoulders as you kiss him, your knees between his and your arms propping you up against the wall. Half-tangled, you push your tongue between his lips, not caring what happens. Your heart and his gallop together, a Quincy and the granddaughter of a Soul Reaper. For a moment, you want to cry.

The romance you crave was doomed from the start.

You discover Uryu's cheeks are burning hot as he stares at you in disbelief. You try to laugh it off, and end up crying.

"W...What are you doing? What's wrong? Hell!" Ishida tries to calm you down, but the storm of weeping eventually stops on its own. When you lean your head on his shoulder, he stiffens up but doesn't move away. 

You sniffle and say quietly, "I love you, you stupid Quincy."

If it is possible, Uryu's body becomes even stiffer. You can feel the heat of his blush radiating down to you. You sniff again and wrap your arms around his neck. "I'm sorry," you mumble, hating how watery your voice sounds. "Just forget this ever happened, okay?"

"I..."

You look up at him, waiting for the inevitable. Even so, the constant twinge of indecision aches.

"Don't look at me like that! How am I supposed to say the right thing if you're looking at me like that?" He explodes, his face just as drawn and nervous as yours. In a moment, his eyes soften. "I... I can't forget about that. This. I..."

Your hopeful face tortures him.

"I love you too, you little idiot," he says in one breath, gathering you close. "I'm not hallucinating? You did say you love me?"

You nod.

Uryu's chest heaves with pent-up emotion. "Then... Then to hell with everything else."

"Agreed." With that pronouncement, Quincy and Soul Reaper's granddaughter share a long, tender kiss.