[archived] [Ishida & Orihime] ; That Little Shop at the Corner
Bleach
: Ishida Uryuu & Inoue Orihime
That Little Shop at the Corner
Comments: Revolving around Tatsuki and her observations, which in turn revolve around a certain little head-in-the-clouds-klutz and a stick-in-the-mud archer. =3
Originally posted: scribblepaws, April 2005.
Shopping was the highlight of their time together.
Tatsuki happily dived into the smaller stores, with attractively patterned clothes she'd certainly never seen before and would probably never see again. "They're done by hand," she would point out gleefully, happy with the glitter and sparkles and grungy designs that she always managed to wear with her own unique flair.
Orihime nodded and hummed and poked through the racks, seeing less of what was actually there than what she was making in her mind - coming up with stories an scenarios to go with every shirt, every pair of jeans - with every tatter and tear and artistically faded patches. They would spend hours giggling together, Tatsuki never quite understanding what was in her best friend's head, and Orihime never quite amused enough to buy from the same store.
Then it was the grungy little places in the corner with surprisingly clean skirts and fairy-tale-princess dresses, where Orihime would zoom for the flowers and pastels as Tatsuki hung around the door with some trepidation, confused by the look and feel of the place (completely different and certainly nothing she expected, even after she came time and time again).
And it was the fifth time they shopped there that Tatsuki noticed something, as she half-heartedly glanced through the racks, her eyes catching on glossy black hair let loose…
"Ishida?!"
And the student who was always meticulously groomed, the student who was always cool and distant and cold, glanced up with an arched brow, completely at home behind the counter.
"Yes?" he asked, as though completely unaware he didn't fit here, that his loose hair and contacts were certainly not the image of model student, that he most certainly wasn't an Ishida she ever knew, and that Orihime - the girl who made him blush and half-stutter, the girl who he always avoided during lunch, the girl who was the only one to ever make him smile - was standing behind him, oblivious as she twirled in a skirt that had caught her eye.
"You work here?" she half-squeaked, feeling oddly off-balance and in some sort of fairy-tale world as her best friend continued to twirl oblivious.
"Of course I do," he responded, when she suddenly blinked and shook her head, only to see the same little old lady that was behind the register every morning.
And where the hell was Ishida now?
"Eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!" The half-excited, half-terrified shriek shattered her confusion, and Tatsuki turned - only to see Orihime caught in the arms the same normal-teenager-Ishida she had seen before.
"You shouldn't be so careless in a store," he chided, setting her back on her feet.
"I'm sorry," a flushed Orihime apologized, keeping her head turned down, her eyes locked on her feet.
And Tatsuki had to hide the faintest smirk as it all clicked.
Ishida, trying hard to overcome his weakness toward Orihime - only to find himself working at the very place she frequented.
Orihime, happily coming here every time they went shopping, even when she couldn't afford it. And twirling and laughing whenever she came, when she was normally just a little more calm in other stores.
And, if she remembered correctly, this was the fourth time the girl had almost fallen in her antics.
Why hadn't she noticed Ishida there before?
Perhaps because he was changing.
Poor, dear Orihime. She certainly didn't have the upper hand anymore. No indeed. Ishida was a sly, sly man.
Orihime had always been attracted to quiet strength.
: Ishida Uryuu & Inoue Orihime
That Little Shop at the Corner
Comments: Revolving around Tatsuki and her observations, which in turn revolve around a certain little head-in-the-clouds-klutz and a stick-in-the-mud archer. =3
Originally posted: scribblepaws, April 2005.
Shopping was the highlight of their time together.
Tatsuki happily dived into the smaller stores, with attractively patterned clothes she'd certainly never seen before and would probably never see again. "They're done by hand," she would point out gleefully, happy with the glitter and sparkles and grungy designs that she always managed to wear with her own unique flair.
Orihime nodded and hummed and poked through the racks, seeing less of what was actually there than what she was making in her mind - coming up with stories an scenarios to go with every shirt, every pair of jeans - with every tatter and tear and artistically faded patches. They would spend hours giggling together, Tatsuki never quite understanding what was in her best friend's head, and Orihime never quite amused enough to buy from the same store.
Then it was the grungy little places in the corner with surprisingly clean skirts and fairy-tale-princess dresses, where Orihime would zoom for the flowers and pastels as Tatsuki hung around the door with some trepidation, confused by the look and feel of the place (completely different and certainly nothing she expected, even after she came time and time again).
And it was the fifth time they shopped there that Tatsuki noticed something, as she half-heartedly glanced through the racks, her eyes catching on glossy black hair let loose…
"Ishida?!"
And the student who was always meticulously groomed, the student who was always cool and distant and cold, glanced up with an arched brow, completely at home behind the counter.
"Yes?" he asked, as though completely unaware he didn't fit here, that his loose hair and contacts were certainly not the image of model student, that he most certainly wasn't an Ishida she ever knew, and that Orihime - the girl who made him blush and half-stutter, the girl who he always avoided during lunch, the girl who was the only one to ever make him smile - was standing behind him, oblivious as she twirled in a skirt that had caught her eye.
"You work here?" she half-squeaked, feeling oddly off-balance and in some sort of fairy-tale world as her best friend continued to twirl oblivious.
"Of course I do," he responded, when she suddenly blinked and shook her head, only to see the same little old lady that was behind the register every morning.
And where the hell was Ishida now?
"Eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!" The half-excited, half-terrified shriek shattered her confusion, and Tatsuki turned - only to see Orihime caught in the arms the same normal-teenager-Ishida she had seen before.
"You shouldn't be so careless in a store," he chided, setting her back on her feet.
"I'm sorry," a flushed Orihime apologized, keeping her head turned down, her eyes locked on her feet.
And Tatsuki had to hide the faintest smirk as it all clicked.
Ishida, trying hard to overcome his weakness toward Orihime - only to find himself working at the very place she frequented.
Orihime, happily coming here every time they went shopping, even when she couldn't afford it. And twirling and laughing whenever she came, when she was normally just a little more calm in other stores.
And, if she remembered correctly, this was the fourth time the girl had almost fallen in her antics.
Why hadn't she noticed Ishida there before?
Perhaps because he was changing.
Poor, dear Orihime. She certainly didn't have the upper hand anymore. No indeed. Ishida was a sly, sly man.
Orihime had always been attracted to quiet strength.