Toshiro Hitsugaya sat quietly at his desk, looking at the giant stack of papers he had been assigned with for tonight. Yamamoto seemed to think since he was the newest captain, that he should get assigned the most work. Toshiro didn't mind at first, but over the last few months, he had come under so much stress. He had almost went over the edge and dropped the captain's badge altogether after Rangiku had died. She had been a person he could talk to, and now she was gone. Toshiro almost felt like he was all alone, and for the first time, he had to honestly accept that he needed someone to talk with. A person immediately came to mind, but Toshiro shrugged it off in embarrassment. A knock on his office door quickly pulled him out of his state of deep thought.

"Come in." He said curtly, crossing his fingers over his desktop.

Toshiro was surprised to see Momo come charging in, looking extremely happy. Funny...exactly the person I was thinking about.

"Momo, what do you need?" Toshiro asked, trying to look serious.

Momo stopped in front of his desk and leaned over towards him, smiling.

"Toshiro, I'm your new lieutenant! Isn't it great!? I'll be able to see you a lot more. I miss spending time with you like we used to do. You remember right?" Momo said excitedly, looking at him with her blue eyes as she awaited his reaction.

"That's great Momo...now will you please leave me to my work?" Toshiro asked grumpily, grabbing a stack of papers and pulling them towards him.

"Well...aren't you excited? Toshiro...ever since we became shinigami, we have wanted to be in each others' squads." Momo said, looking a little disappointed at Toshiro's lack of reaction.

"Yes, Momo, I am excited, but I would be more excited if you helped me with this paperwork like a lieutenant is supposed to do." Toshiro replied without emotion.

"Well...of course Toshiro. This is a lot of work. I'd be glad to help." Momo said, taking a chair from the corner of his office and sitting it next to his.

As they began with the paperwork and started working through it, Toshiro gradually glanced at Momo out of the corner of his eye, and felt a strong pang of guilt. He hated treating her like that, but if he tried to take any other approach to a conversation with her, he wouldn't be able to talk to her at all. He'd be forced to tell her how he really felt, and that would kill him, because he wasn't ready. And he didn't think he ever would be.

He had to admit that he had always thought she was pretty. It wasn't until recently that he had really seen how beautiful she was. And now while he looked through the corner of his eye at her, he saw that beauty, and it made him feel like he wasn't alone anymore.

"Um...Toshiro...you're starting to creep me out by looking at me like that." Momo said, looking at him sideways as well.

"Oh...sorry, I was just trying to evaluate your performance, since I've given you your first task as lieutenant." Toshiro said, picking his words carefully.

"Well...am I doing a good job?" Momo asked.

Toshiro nodded and turned back to his work, thinking crazy thoughts.

Dammit, I've put it off for so long...but I have to admit, I love this girl so much.

They continued to work, and Toshiro could only capture fleeting glances out of the corner of his eye at her. She was very pretty when she seemed to be thinking hard. He wanted to run his fingers through her hair and feel it, and more than ever he wanted to touch her.

"Toshiro, stop! You're just doing that to annoy me, aren't you!?" Momo asked, looking annoyed.

"No, Momo, just trying to make sure you're keeping up with your work!" Toshiro yelled defensively.

"Well...Toshiro...please, if you could, try not to do it? I get uncomfortable when people continually watch me work." Momo asked, writing her signature in flowing letters over a piece of paper and setting it down on the table.

"Fine, I won't. And from now on, call me captain Hitsugaya! Okay?"

"Yes sir, captain Hitsugaya." Momo replied, staring at him for another minute before returning to her work.

Toshiro let the corners of his mouth crease upward just slightly in a smile as he noticed the hint of mockery in her tone. He quickly put his serious expression back on and continued working, and kept from looking at Momo in fear he would latch his eyes onto her and she'd berate him again for it.

An hour passed, and he looked around at her to see her asleep, head resting on her shoulder, pen dropped from her hand onto the paper on the hard book in her lap. He definitely couldn't help smiling as he saw her sleeping there, looking so peaceful, and so beautiful. Gently, he picked her up in his arms, and walked her quickly to her quarters, where he sat her on her bed.

Before leaving, he smiled one last time at her sleeping form, and brushed a finger against her soft, smooth cheek, feeling the warmth. He admired her for a little bit longer, seeing the girl he wanted to tell so many things to, lying here before him.

"I love you." He said once, very quietly, before he slipped out of her quarters and slid the door shut behind her.