Author's Note: SPOILER THROUGH MANGA CHAPTER 422.

Disclaimer: BLEACH IS OWNED BY KUBO TITE. AUTHOR OF THIS STORY DOES NOT OWN ANY PORTION OF BLEACH.

If I Were the Rain –Redux

by Songsparrw1

Six years after graduation from Karakura High, Orihime returns from the U.S. to Japan to attend her class reunion. The exact nature of that reunion is known only to Orihime. Will her dreams become reality?

Chapter One

Baggage

Orihime stuffed clothing into the enormous canvas suitcase until the zippers smiled at her. Into it went a rainbow of pastel slips frosted with lace, bras in coral, purple, black with sleek thongs and panties; eye-popping bikinis, and bustier sets in colors of the sea. She blushed as she imagined actually wearing these, and sadly realized that her feelings would never change. She had collected all these items over the years, hiding them away, in hopes of modeling them for one particular pair of extremely warm brown eyes. The gleam and fire in those eyes was only a day-dream, still, but Orihime had plans…

She'd been living largely on hope. Her life clicked along the cold metal track of reality, but her dream life was rich fantasy. She imagined Ichigo and herself in a thousand vignettes: Dancing in Ichigo's arms in Renoir's café, surrounded by friends drinking wine in the lazy afternoon; kissing passionately in the moonlight on a balcony in Tangiers, hearts beating in time with a sultry middle eastern rhythm; Ichigo beating down the door to her lonely apartment at 4 a.m. to fall at her feet, begging her to come home to Japan, and give him the chance to make her happy beyond her wildest dreams.

In real life, her men were "just friends". They learned quickly not to press her for a kiss, or to expect to see her alone in her apartment. She would grab a quick lunch or meet them to catch a thriller at the movies, but beyond that, she was a princess of legend, lost in time.

An earthquake rattled the dream world: Tatsuki's announcement of a reunion tore open the landscape of sleeping fantasies, and the old dream of walking back into Ichigo's life, and seeing him astonished with her beauty and hungry for her company shoved its way out of the rubble. The dream lived! She would go to the reunion and be ready for anything. She was no longer a shy child vying for Ichigo's attention. I am a grown woman, with an education and a career, and absolutely nothing else in my life. I miss him terribly, and this town seems empty. She had absolutely nothing to lose, but everything to gain. She would make her feelings known and take her chances. If she had no choice but to return home rejected, she could hardly feel any worse. At least, she would have tried her best to win his heart.

Packing done, she checked her carry-on bags for essentials. Her tote held the latest Stephen King thriller, her sexiest shades, water, I-phone, and a little Dove chocolate. American snacks are really quite delicious, she'd discovered. And yet, what she wouldn't give to sit on the roof and eat a bean paste sandwich and drink juice with her friends. It all seemed like a lifetime ago, when she took it all for granted, being near Ichigo every day, and feeling the thrill of knowing that he truly cared about her as a friend.

Now her life was centered around the consulate. Her decision to study in America had opened vistas she would never have imagined, and led to her appointment to the Japanese embassy. She had almost decided against accepting it, unable to commit, because her heart was not where her feet stood.

She drifted back to that awful afternoon when Ichigo awoke in his room, surrounded by his friends. She'd been so excited when he finally woke up that she'd screamed out loud. Her joy gave way to profound sadness over what came next. She would never forget the expression of pure longing on Rukia's face as she said good-bye. She was torn between duty and love; she didn't want to leave Ichigo and go back to Soul Society. Ichigo's lanky form stood like a statue, head bent, waiting for Rukia to disappear completely, before he moved. His face was turned toward the sky, and Orihime had quietly walked away and gone home, leaving him to his private misery, not knowing if he cried, or how long he stood. She herself had cried enough tears for them both. The friends returned to studies, clubs, and sports, but life was emptier. It was a kind of living death, burial in minutes that didn't seem to mean much. She'd tried in vain to be happy and cheer up the nakama, but there was a cloud over the group that resisted her funniest faces and silliest songs.

The former substitute shinigami returned to a smaller sphere of study, work, and family. He worked at the clinic, sometimes at after-school jobs, and helped his sisters and friends with their essays or homework. Orihime watched sadly as Ichigo grew more and more distant. He never seemed unhappy, but there was a sense of closure that she hadn't wanted to disturb.

When the time came to go to university he chose to pursue a degree in medicine, as had Uryuu, much to the joy of their fathers. After six years of college and medical school, Ichigo served his internship and residency at Ryuken's hospital. He specialized in emergency medicine. Uryuu chose neurosurgery, but the rivalry that characterized their friendship never ended.

Having won a scholarship in English studies, Orihime left for America a year after the war. The night before she left, she walked to the clinic to say good-bye. In the back of her mind there was a scene of Ichigo declaring his love and asking her to stay. Of course she was prepared to do that, if her gave even the tiniest sign of regret at seeing her go. When she arrived at the clinic, the light in his window above the door winked out. It was only 9:30. She thought of him lying on his bed, arms under his head, drifting off to sleep. She turned and walked away, crying silent tears. There would be no regrets on his part, and no begging. She was only fooling herself. At once she turned back toward the street. "Good-bye, Ichigo" she said to herself. "Maybe in another life-time, things would have been different." The next morning she flew across the sea to her new life. It was exciting and absorbing, and exhausting, but it was not all she'd ever hoped for. She still dreamed of Ichigo…the Princess and her Cow-Herd, never together…

Tears dripped to her lap and startled her out of her reverie. Shaking her head at her own sentimentality, she returned to the mission at hand. Gathering her purse and keys and taking one last look around, she locked the door and wheeled her luggage down the hall to the waiting taxi, and her waiting destiny.