Xi #21: Don't Expect Life To Be Fair (Love and Blessings by Kitsune Moonstar))
Title: Love and Blessings
Author: kitsunemoonstar
Pairing: Ukitake Jyuushiro x Unohana Retsu
Fandom: Bleach
Theme: #21: Don't Expect Life to be Fair
Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach or its characters.
Rating: For Everyone
Love and Blessings
Life was not fair. Jyuushiro had known that for years. He'd known that when he'd been a teenager being more of a parent to his siblings than his mother or father ever were. He knew that when he was a college student working two jobs plus going to school at the same time. He knew it when he was diagnosed with a chronic illness that had no hope of a cure. He dealt with it all the best he could. Life wasn't fair, but that didn't mean he couldn't make the most of his life. He wasn't about to let unfairness ruin his enjoyment of life. He'd be miserable all the time if he did.
Still, when Jyuu had first met Retsu Unohana, he'd been a bit wary. It wouldn't be fair for him to meet someone who could quite possibly be his soul mate only to her not be interested in him or dating someone else, but then at this point he didn't expect life to be fair. So Jyuushiro had become friends with his new doctor, but he hadn't dared hope for more.
Life was not fair. Retsu had known that for years. She'd grown up with a dead mother and an absent and distant father. He'd wasted away before she turned fifteen. Shy and bullied in school she'd found solace in her studies. She'd worked hard to make her limited finances stretch as far as possible and to earn every scholarship she could find. Channeling her energy into that had lead to a brilliant, if rather lonely career. But she'd also found her calling in teaching and research. And she truly loved her work, especially when she could help others with new treatments.
Still, when Retsu had first met Jyuushiro Ukitake, she had been a little wary. She'd known from the start that he would a patient it would be all too easy to get attached to. She knew from experience that it was easy to get attached to a patient and then have them just walk out of her life once they were well. Jyuushiro was one she could easily fall in love with. And even when they'd become friends outside of her work, she hadn't dared hope for more.
Life was not fair. Shunsui knew that. He just didn't care. Especially when his friends were too blind to see what was right in front of them. Neither of them had an easy time of it; Shunsui knew that. He also knew that for the most part, neither Jyuu nor Retsu had let life's unfairness stop them from make the most of their lives. Except when it came to one another. So, after years of them pussyfooting around the subject, Shunsui arranged for the two of them to take a vacation at cabin that had been in his family for years at the same cabin. That particular cabin also had the habit of having its inhabitants get snowed in the winter. It had done some good at least.
It had been a long and winding road. It some ways it was amazing that they had made it this far. Love and friendship had been the key. Life wasn't fair, but as Shunsui watched his best friend kiss his wife and hold his daughter for the first time, his belief that it was pretty wonderful was confirmed.
Author: kitsunemoonstar
Pairing: Ukitake Jyuushiro x Unohana Retsu
Fandom: Bleach
Theme: #21: Don't Expect Life to be Fair
Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach or its characters.
Rating: For Everyone
Love and Blessings
Life was not fair. Jyuushiro had known that for years. He'd known that when he'd been a teenager being more of a parent to his siblings than his mother or father ever were. He knew that when he was a college student working two jobs plus going to school at the same time. He knew it when he was diagnosed with a chronic illness that had no hope of a cure. He dealt with it all the best he could. Life wasn't fair, but that didn't mean he couldn't make the most of his life. He wasn't about to let unfairness ruin his enjoyment of life. He'd be miserable all the time if he did.
Still, when Jyuu had first met Retsu Unohana, he'd been a bit wary. It wouldn't be fair for him to meet someone who could quite possibly be his soul mate only to her not be interested in him or dating someone else, but then at this point he didn't expect life to be fair. So Jyuushiro had become friends with his new doctor, but he hadn't dared hope for more.
Life was not fair. Retsu had known that for years. She'd grown up with a dead mother and an absent and distant father. He'd wasted away before she turned fifteen. Shy and bullied in school she'd found solace in her studies. She'd worked hard to make her limited finances stretch as far as possible and to earn every scholarship she could find. Channeling her energy into that had lead to a brilliant, if rather lonely career. But she'd also found her calling in teaching and research. And she truly loved her work, especially when she could help others with new treatments.
Still, when Retsu had first met Jyuushiro Ukitake, she had been a little wary. She'd known from the start that he would a patient it would be all too easy to get attached to. She knew from experience that it was easy to get attached to a patient and then have them just walk out of her life once they were well. Jyuushiro was one she could easily fall in love with. And even when they'd become friends outside of her work, she hadn't dared hope for more.
Life was not fair. Shunsui knew that. He just didn't care. Especially when his friends were too blind to see what was right in front of them. Neither of them had an easy time of it; Shunsui knew that. He also knew that for the most part, neither Jyuu nor Retsu had let life's unfairness stop them from make the most of their lives. Except when it came to one another. So, after years of them pussyfooting around the subject, Shunsui arranged for the two of them to take a vacation at cabin that had been in his family for years at the same cabin. That particular cabin also had the habit of having its inhabitants get snowed in the winter. It had done some good at least.
It had been a long and winding road. It some ways it was amazing that they had made it this far. Love and friendship had been the key. Life wasn't fair, but as Shunsui watched his best friend kiss his wife and hold his daughter for the first time, his belief that it was pretty wonderful was confirmed.