Speechless Soi Fong stared at her watch, both excited and nervous about what was rapidly approaching. Isane said she would be at her house to pick her up around 6:00, and while it was only 3:00 she was beginning to worry. How long will it take me to get ready, she asked herself agitatedly. Should I get started now, or should I wait a little longer? What about dinner? Should I ea-- Oh wait, she said we'd eat at a restaurant before we got there...oh, crap, I knew this was a bad idea... Soi wanted to occupy her hands just to take the edge off a bit, but instead of being able to concentrate on her book she just found herself glancing back at the timepiece on her wrist. When 3:10 arrived she finally lost her patience and headed to the shower, grabbing her dress from its place on the closet doorknob as she walked. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- "Hellooo!" Yoruichi called into Soi's house, poking her head inside upon finding the front door unlocked. "Oh! Yoruichi-chan, is that you?" The upperclassman flinched at the use of 'chan,' but since this was her friend's father she did nothing. "...Yeah, it's me! Is it okay for Kisuke and I to come inside?" "Jeez, Yoruichi, just go in!" Urahara implored behind her, clutching at his sides to keep the blood flow circulating due to the cold. "He's not gonna ca--OW!" "Come on in," the older man called from the kitchen, and Yoruichi gratefully jumped inside the only slightly-warmer house, followed by her best friend as he shut the door behind them to keep the fall night from blowing in. Once they had slipped their shoes off, they came into the kitchen only to find Soi's father standing there looking slightly out of his element. "I'm glad you decided to come, actually." "...Why?" Kisuke asked as he placed his hat on the railing for the staircase. "Well, it's Soi-chan," he answered uneasily. "She's ready, but she won't come out-- I even told her that her friends would be here in a few minutes to pick her up and she just won't budge!" Yoruichi gave a sigh as she listened to his story, then followed him throught the kitchen and to the door of the bathroom. "Don't you have a shower upstairs?" Yoruichi asked as she recalled the layout from the last time she'd been here. "Well, yes," the patriarch nodded, "...But this one has hot running water. The pilot like for the one upstairs likes to turn off at random times. Soi?" he called as he rapped on the wood with his knuckles. "...Dad?...I, uh...just wanted to tell you that...I'm not going anymore," the freshman called from the other side of the threshold. "Soi?" Yoruichi yelled, the better to be understood through the obstruction. "What the hell are you doing in there!" "Y-Yoruichi-san!" Soi yelped as she jumped back slightly from the door. Of all the people she didn't want to see her, Yoruichi was right at the top of the list. Why was she here? "Come on, you're being stupid! Get out here so that you can go to the dance! You were looking forward to this, remember?" Instead of going with her gut and childishly yelling 'no,' Soi only needed to glance at herself in the mirror before recalling why she preferred now to stay home. "...I'm not going like this-- I look ridiculous!" "What are you talking about!" Yoruichi yelled back with a roll of the eyes. "I'm sure you look fine! And besides, if you come out then I might be able to help you with make-up!" "I am NOT wearing make-up!" Soi bellowed from the other side of the door, and Yoruichi had to stifle a chuckle at how much Soi was kicking and screaming her way towards 'femininity.' "...Is she always like this?" Kisuke asked Soi's father, surprised at the sudden turn in her behavior for the childish. "Well, I can tell you that the last time I got her to wear a dress was--" he began but was cut off by the sound of a horn honking outside. "Oh! That must be them! Soi, come on!" the older man implored the freshman. "Your friends are here NOW!" Soi was quiet for a moment as she considered the situation, glancing disdainfully at herself in the mirror. It was too late now to back out. Besides, she suddenly realized with pride, why should she care what anyone else thought? She was going because she HAD wanted to, and she ultimately concluded that she didn't want to ignore something that she might look back and regret not going to. "...All right. I'm coming out," Soi muttered as she unlocked the door. "About time!" her father teased as he backed away from the bathroom and picked up the disposable camera he'd left on the counter. "I've been waiting to see her in this all week!" "Hmph-- You too?" Yoruichi grinned as she stepped back as well. "...You know that she wouldn't even let me see the thing when she b--..." "...Sorry, guys," Soi muttered as she stepped out of the bathroom, eyes flitting downward and a blush playing on her face, both a testament to her feeling of shame at this moment. Her apology was lost in her father's loud accolades of her beauty, in Kisuke's half-teasing but impressed clapping. The dress she'd bought had been made of sleek black cotton, a hoop at the collarbone connecting the front to the straps that traced her shoulders around to the fairly open back. A red sash around her waist complemented the dress, its surface covered in gold-trimmed azaleas, one of the few flowers she liked, and it made a small bow in the back before lettting the tails flutter down behind her. Her hair wasn't in its normal double-braid anymore; Soi had somehow managed to pull it up into an elegant bun held in place with the silver-rimmed hairpiece Yoruichi had bought her at the shopping arcade, which perfectly suited the alternating silver and gold bracelets on her wrists and forearms. She'd even made an effort to push her straight bangs out of her face, revealing her normally hidden eyebrows and bringing more light to reflect off her gray eyes. "Oh, Soi-- You look beautiful!" Soi gave a light snort and a patronizing smile as she turned to hug her father goodbye. "Yeah, right, dad--thanks anyway, though." "I have to say-- very nice," Kisuke admitted with a wolfish grin as the freshman approached. "You could probably pass for about 18 with a a push-up b--" "Yeah, yeah," the Chinese girl muttered as she rolled her eyes and walked past. "Well, HERE'S someone I can trust to be honest with me! Yoruichi, how bad is it?" "H...Huh?" The upperclassman blinked, shook herself out of her trance with such force that it surprised her. She'd felt herself go blank as soon as she'd seen Soi walk out of the bathroom, felt her ability to speak leave her as she stared, unable to do anything else. "Come on, tell me the truth," Soi said with a facetious smile, though the slight curl of her tiny lips only sent Yoruichi's equilibrium into further disarray. "...I told you I look bad in dresses." Oh God no, Yoruichi wanted to say as her eyes stayed helplessly glued to her, trying to will herself to think straight as the room's other occupants began to look at her curiously. All she could get out at that moment, however, was a mere: "Y...You look okay..." She was rewarded for her hesitance with a light smack on the arm as the younger girl blushed out of shame. "God, you too, Yoruichi? Don't bother lying; I could tell that you had to think about that." The upperclassman had a retort half-formed on her lips but a string of honking from outside reminded them of the waiting limo. "Oh! You better get going, Soi! Have fun!" Her father called as the freshman dashed out the door, turning quickly to wave them goodbye before she got inside the glossy black stretch limousine. Yoruichi wasn't sure if she returned the gesture from her spot on the doorstep, her eyes glued to her friend even as she hiked up the hem of her dress to aid in her jogging. She was only sure of the fact that she HAD lied to Soi before. She wasn't cute at all. She was... "...Gorgeous..." "Huh? Did you say something?" Soi's father asked, putting a hand on Yoruichi's shoulder and pulling her out of her trance. The upperclassman flinched, nearly screaming before managed to catch herself. "N...Nothing..." she answered, not noticing the comprehending look on Kisuke's face as she reluctantly shut the door. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- "There you are! What took you so long?" Isane asked irritably as Soi hopped into the car. "Sorry! I...got held up by my Dad a little," she answered with a blush. She wondered for a minute if Isane was going to tell her to leave but the junior smiled instead. "Hey, don't worry about it! Believe me, I know how that is...Wow, is that your dress?" the silver-haired girl asked as she ran a hand through her shaggy locks. "You look great!" Soi only had to glance at Isane, elegantly attired in a red gown with a rose corsage tied around the left shoulder strap, to feel her already low confidence wane. "...Thanks..." Soi answered as sincerely as she could before turning to the limo's other occupants. They were definitely a motley crew, the only immediately familiar faces being Rukia and Renji, sitting comfortably across from her in a contrasting white one-piece dress and black pinstriped suit, respectively. "Hey, Fong-san, haven't seen you at the last couple meetings," the tall boy said as he scratched the side of his crimson-topped head. "...You're not neglecting the club on PURPOSE, are y--" "Jeez, Renji, can we just enjoy this WITHOUT you bringing up Karate for five minutes?" Renji was about to retort but a steely glare from his girlfriend brought him to a rather submissive silence. "...Hey, Isane..." an even taller boy with a dark complexion and wavy hair that concealed his eyes began, "...Who's this girl?" "Yeah, introduce us, Isane-kun!" a girl with long red hair squealed gleefully. "She's cute!" "Okay, okay..." the Junior said as she waved her hands in the signal for ceasefire. "Soi Fong, this is Chad..." "'Chad?'" Soi asked with a cocked eyebrow, confused by the pronunciation. "Well, his name's Sado, but...we all just ended up calling him that," the Junior shrugged while the boy sighed in mild frustration, leaning his massive frame against the seat so forcefully that the freshman was almost afraid the limo would tip over. "Anyway," Isane continued as she pointed to a severe-looking boy with highly reflective glasses, "Over here is Uryuu..." "Hi," Uryuu nodded while he pushed up his glasses, promptly shutting himself off before he would be obligated to engage in conversation. "...And over here's Orihime, and..." "Hey, I know you!" Soi interrupted as she stared at the last guest in the luxury vehicle, who took his arm off the seat behind Orihime to lean out of his slumping position. "Huh?" the boy mumbled, running a hand back and forth through his short hair, the bizarre vermilion color making his appearance rather difficult to ignore. "...Oh yeah, he said in a gruff voice as he looked at Soi with dawning comprehension. "...You just joined my group in Karate, didn't you?" "That's right!" Soi said, intrigued that he seemed rather pleasant despite his punklike appearance. "...And you are...?" "Oh, sorry," the boy apologized as he stuck his hand out in greeting, "...Ichigo Kurosaki--I'm Orihime's date." ---------------------------------------------------------------------- "Hey, are you almost done using the phone in there?" Kisuke called from the hallway, tapping his foot with raising impatience. Yoruichi had asked to use the telephone almost as soon as Soi had left, and if they didn't hurry they wouldn't be able to make the movie like they'd planned. "Okay, sorry," Yoruichi apologized as she walked out, waving goodbye to Soi's father while slipping on her jean jacket. "We're going now." "Finally," the blonde muttered once they had shut the door behind them and began walking to his car. "...I thought you said that we were just gonna drop in and see her off!" "...Yeah, I know..." the girl muttered as she climbed into the sedan, buckling her seatbelt as Kisuke turned the engine over and pulled out of the driveway. "Well, I've gotta say I'm really looking forward to this movie," he smiled as he changed the subject. "You know, my favorite actor's in th--" "Oh! Sorry, Kisuke," Yoruichi interrupted as she pointed towards the high school, "...But we're not going to the movie tonight." He would've stopped the car and demanded to know what she was talking about if he wasn't so shocked that his body simply complied. "...What are you talking about?" "I talked to a couple of the teachers a few minutes ago," she answered hurriedly, though sounding slightly afraid of how he would respond. "...We're going to be chaperoning tonight." All the teen did was sigh lamentfully as he turned left instead of right at the first intersection.
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