AN: OMG! I am on a roll, people! LOL I swear, I haven't written anything like this in months, and then the next thing I know I'm pumping out words by the thousands. Haha. I am very excited to present to you (what should have been a one-shot, but turned into a 7,000 word and still counting story) my latest fanfic.

Warnings: Some angst, and perhaps just a little OOCness. I changed their childhood personas to match their adult ones (because it's hard to age people correctly when the story jumps around a bit; you'll see).

Summary: [Two-shot. AU.] Some people have many loves that come and go, while others have one great love for an entire lifetime. Karin is among the latter. HitsuKarin

Five Years Old

"I'm home!" calls a nine-year-old Ichigo, toeing off his shoes in the dugout in front of the door. Two girls are coming down the hall when they here the latch close, one decidedly more chipper and quicker than her counterpart.

"Welcome home, Onii-chan!" cries the brown-haired girl, gazing up at her brother with adoring eyes, hands tucked neatly behind her. He smiles at the enthusiastic greeting, patting the youngest on the head with his usual grin. His eyes drift to the corner, where he spies another girl jutting her head around the corner.

"Yo, Ichi-nii," says the other twin, her welcome back understated to go hand-in-hand with the boredom lining her dark eyes. Unlike her younger sister, this girl's attention attaches to the group currently behind her brother, noting that she didn't know any of the four presences behind him. She didn't bother with pleasantries.

"Who are you people, and why are you in my house?" She gave them a half-lidded stare.

"Definitely a Kurosaki," one of the chuckles, eyeing the precocious brat with an amused smirk. His fire red hair is fairly long, tied high on his head in a way that might've resembled a girl's ponytail, if not for the spikes. She frowns at the statement, somewhat insulted that he could generalize her so easily.

"She's got the same look in her eyes as Ichigo," another howls, laughing as he realizes the resemblance. It earns the one she has now dubbed 'the bald one' a glare as well, feeling her eye twitch at the comparison.

"At least his sisters are more beautiful than him," the pretty boy on the far right remarks, nodding his head with sureness. He gets a rather angry response from the orange-haired kid in question, pointing a finger at him and causing a scene in a very inconvenient place. It only makes the dark-haired one laugh, flicking that lengthy bob of his with a smile.

"That's enough, Kurosaki," calls out the last boy.

All stares fall on him, his white hair much too shocking to be unnatural and standing noticeably shorter than the rest. But he certainly had more charisma than the others. Karin couldn't help but think that if Ichigo was the epicenter of their little group, then this one was their unofficial leader. Teal green eyes slide over to hers, showing a nonchalant arrogance that rubs her the wrong way. She sticks out her tongue before pulling her head back from the corner, walking straight into her mother coming down the hall.

"Hora, what do we have here?" she asks, patting Karin's head and intercepting a running Yuzu. The woman known as Kurosaki Masaki is greeted by the band of misfits, who introduce themselves as Ichigo's friends. When she invites them in for snacks, the rambunctious boys cheer and run in, save for the one known as Hitsugaya Toushirou. Instead, he strides in with a certain grace that will one day become his signature.

Six Years Old

Karin is crying to herself, alone along the bank of the river in their small city called Karakura. She's been crying for days to be honest, holing herself up in her room, sobbing as quietly as she can so as not to worry anyone in their house. During the occasions she finally does stop, she's only met by the half-dead stares of what's left of her family, their shining star gone and leaving a black hole in her presence.

Last week, Kurosaki Masaki died in a car crash.

The house has been so painfully silent without her, no laughter, no hope, and certainly no love. It felt as if it had been drained of her light after she had saved her son from an oncoming car. It was a tragedy, people said, saying their condolences with care. But they too left, leaving the grieving family to their private, reclusive world.

Within the first few days, Yuzu had taken on the housework, realizing her father couldn't even get out of bed without a haunting look in his non-seeing gaze. Ichi-nii had cried his heart out, sobbing for the woman he had loved more than his own life. And Karin… She was just trying to stay strong, trying not to fall flat on her face when she walked or cry when she was supposed to laugh. They were all trying to deal, just a little bit, on their own and with their own guilt.

"Girls shouldn't be out here by themselves."

Head snapping up, Karin's tear-streaked face meets with the emotionless countenance of Toushirou, her brother's friend and soccer buddy. Vaguely she remembers he had been at the funeral, along with the others, looking solemn and respectful for the woman they had known as a second mother. The loss had been a faint echo of her own, and it was a little comforting to know that there were others who loved this woman as she did.

Wiping away her tears, she sniffles and turns her gaze to the still water, reflecting the glow of the sunset. She sees out of the corner of her eye that he has settled down next to her, a bit away to give some space. He doesn't offer anything as an icebreaker, no words of advice or comfort. They just sit there for a while, perhaps an eternity, until the reds of the sky mixes with the cobalt of the night and gives way to darkness.

He's the first to move then, standing up and dusting off his pants. He peers down at the oddly silent Kurosaki girl, not recalling a time when she had ever been so quiet. Her melancholy is still heavy on her shoulders, making her look as if she hasn't slept for days. Realizing that she probably hasn't, Hitsugaya grabs her attention by holding out his hand, though she looks at it curiously as if she's never seen the gesture.

With a roll of his eyes, he says, "give me your hand. I'm taking you home."

When she does, Karin is pulled to her feet and led down the creek to the concrete stairs. They walk back side-by-side in a familiar calm, his steps decisive and sure while hers are a bit more of a shuffle as she tries to keep up with his strides. He keeps his hand clasped in hers, protectively making sure she didn't end up wandering away or getting lost (even if she already knew how to get to her own home). They arrive at the clinic soon enough and he brings her to the door, knocking on it. Before anyone answers, he meets her gaze, an authoritative look against her questioning one.

"It's okay to be sad, but you shouldn't be sad by yourself," he chastises, lifting his hand so he can ruffle her hair as she squawks in protest. "Hard times shared will half the burden, and good times shared with double the joy. If you really want to cry, then do it with people you trust and who love you because they're suffering too."

He leaves then, walking back and disappearing just as if he'd never been there. The door opens and it's Ichigo glaring at her, wondering where she's been and why she's alone. Karin tries to explain that she'd been with Hitsugaya, but her older brother doesn't buy it and unceremoniously picks her up and brings her into the house. It's strange and perhaps the weirdest thing that's happened to her in a while, but it also makes her laugh and she knows it's a sound that's long overdue.

She smiles softly throughout dinner for the first time in a week.

Eleven Years Old

"Karin, we're gonna get massacred!"

"Yeah! Why'd you have to challenge a bunch of middle schoolers to a game?"

"We should just practice eating spaghetti through our noses." All four boys sigh, agreeing.

"C'mon you guys, buck up!" exclaims the only feminine voice out of the bunch, pumping her fist into the air. Kurosaki Karin was as much of a tomboy as she could be, but had enough spirit and backbone to put others of either gender to shame. "All we have to do is win one game! Besides, this isn't about the field but the principle! Do you wanna get pushed around forever?"

"You've been pushing us around forever," one mutters. It's not muted enough, however, as he finds himself in a deadly headlock. The other three are panicking, their shouts a combination of trying to stop their fearless leader and reprimanding the other for his insensitive comment. They don't notice two others approaching.

"Karin-chan, I think you've won," the newcomer says, eyeing her technique with interest and feeling impressed despite the situation. Looking up from beneath the bill of her cap, she grins widely at them and drops her victim to the floor. She doesn't even bother to say anything to him as he writhes on the floor, gasping for air like a beached carp.

"Renji, Toushirou," she smiles, running to stand in front of them. They're on their way back from weekend practice, as Karin observes the kendo armor on the redhead's back and the duffel bag the other was holding. Immediately, a stroke of genius hits her.

"Toushirou, can you do me a favor?" she asks, her smile immediately ten times sweeter. It gets a laugh out of Abarai and a scowl from the other, who has seen that grin far too many times to know that nothing good comes from it.

"No," he replies gruffly, watching as the mischievous look falls from her face. Crossing her arms over her chest, she looks at him indignantly, a stare she had copied from her brother. Ichigo had done a number on this one. She was going to turn out just like him.

"You don't even know what it is yet!"

"If it has something to do with you, then it's definitely no good." He shrugs easily, knowing his friend's sister almost as well as he knew his friend. She was always looking for a way to cause trouble, getting in people's hair (oftentimes, his) to help bail her out of things or just generally make life as hell-like as possible.

"But—!"

"No 'but's, I'm not getting into the middle of this." Turning away, he can almost see the dark pout on her face, just that barest of guilt sinking in. For some reason, he always had the hardest time telling a girl no, but it was especially difficult saying it to someone he actually cared about. Renji caught up to him as he finished saying goodbye to Karin and her friends, grasping Hitsugaya's shoulder to catch his attention.

"Are you sure you don't wanna hear her out? I mean, it's not like you couldn't say no afterward," he pries, trying to play the mediator as he always did in these kinds of situations. He half-shrugs, trying not to fall into the other's meddling.

A few days later, he cuts across the park as he usually does on his way home from school, feeling the lethargy seep deep into his bones. He passes by a number of couples, married and teenage alike, children playing on a structure nearby and even a familiar old field he had grown up with. Shooting it a nostalgic look, Hitsugaya's eyes fall on a very familiar brunette, running drills like the leader she was and her soccer buddies nearly passing out with the effort. He can't help but wonder why they're practicing so hard and so long (he'd just finished practice himself, after all) when one of them calls out to their unofficial coach.

"Kurosaki, can we stop? We've been practicing all day!" he pants, falling to the ground and reclining on his hands behind him, wheezing out a few breaths. The others soon do the same, hitting the floor and looking as if they'd been rung dry by their exhaustion. Karin places her hands on her hips, her eyes narrowing at their tiredness.

"We can't! We only have three days until the game and we'll need all the field time we can get if we wanna beat those middle school bullies!" she retorts, snorting at their lack of stamina. She knew she was their best player, but it took a team to play soccer. They needed to pull it together or they'd never live their defeat down.

So that's what she wanted, Hitsugaya thought, watching as she barked orders and pointed fingers threateningly at each of them. That damned conscience of his was getting to him, taking him back to that moment when he wouldn't even let her ask for his help before turning her down. It wasn't Karin's style to depend on anyone, but for her to let down her guard enough to try, this game must be something special.

Battling with his demons for a second longer, he can't help but sigh at himself, resigned. He slides down the grassy plane and towards the group, coming up behind a rather frustrated Kurosaki. Her four friends look up at him with wide eyes, causing confusion to fall on her own face. She turns to see the white-haired boy, a soccer ball in hand and that usual nonplussed look on his face. She makes a move to say something scathing, wanting revenge for his earlier snub, but he puts the ball down and passes it to her, telling her where to go and how to run it. His interference breathes life back into the other boys, who smile as if their savior has come in the form of a high school teenager who frowned too much.

Besides the usual commands, he and Karin don't say much to each other, preferring to communicate with their actions and expressions, much more used to that than needless words. She doesn't need to tell him that they'll be practicing here until Saturday, and he doesn't do a thing to tell her that he'll be back to help out. But he shows up just as if he had, and she doesn't act surprised when he finds them when they have to move spots on Friday, as if knowing where she was going to be anyway.

When he shows up at the Kurosaki residence on Sunday, his notes in hand for Ichigo to copy, she greets him with a smile that says, 'we won… thanks to you.'

Thirteen Years Old

Karin makes her way to Karakura High on a mission to find her brother. Her bag is heavy because of some rather unusual luggage, but it doesn't deter her, as she places a hand on it because she's afraid of jumbling the contents. She was sent here on Yuzu's orders, who demanded she deliver the gifts and do her grocery shopping for the week while she herself did her regular chores. With little else to do and no excuses she could legitimately cite, Karin had left the house still in her sailor uniform.

Getting to the gates, she recalls the familiar buildings and wonders if her brother is out of practice yet. He changes teams much too often, so she can't be sure which one to ask for if she needed to look for him. To ease some of her worries, she checks on the packages, smiling to see that all of them are intact, blushing at one that's particularly large.

For you see, today is Valentine's Day and half of her mission was to deliver chocolate.

It had become a sort of tradition after fifth grade to make chocolates for Ichigo and his friends. After an incident where they ate all of the ones they had made for the boys in their class, Yuzu promised to make them their own batch as long as they didn't eat theirs. Ever since then, she's become a messenger girl of sorts, bringing newly made chocolate to Ichi-nii's school for the ever-hungry group of misfits that had since grown to include a rather large half-Latino male named Sado and the other school genius (aside from Hitsugaya) Ishida. It was always a tall order to fill, but it made her delivery something she looked forward to each year.

As for the largest chocolate… She blushes a little, as she remembered what her sister had said. 'Give it to Hitsugaya-kun,' Yuzu whispered, winking conspiratorially as she encased each piece in pretty, see-through plastic bags with a bow tied at the top. Her sputtering was loud and over exaggerated, as she did her best to deny and insult the older boy as best as she could while trying not to look completely humiliated.

Speaking of him… she thinks, noticing a shock of white hair coming out of the building, and her heart thuds a bit in her chest. She almost calls out for him, but stops when she notices the look on his face.

Hitsugaya Toushirou, the boy voted most likely to glare his way through life, had the softest look she had ever seen on his face, as he watched the person next to him talk animatedly, hands waving and mouth laughing about whatever they were discussing. It was a girl beside him, one that was pretty, had hair as dark as hers but pulled into a tight bun and eyes that looked like the night sky. She was small, quite a bit shorter than him and barely taller than Karin's still growing self, but she's captured his attention, wholly and fully.

As they make their way closer to her, she can feel a piece of her heart break.

"Oh, Karin. Is that you?" he asks, his eyes falling on her now. That old, emotionless stare of his is back, a brow rising in congruence with his question. Hands tightening on the strap of her bag, she nods, not quite finding her voice. She gets a curious look from the other girl, who looks between them before nudging the man beside her, the action seemingly familiar between them.

"This is Hinamori from my class. Hinamori, this is Karin, Kurosaki's little sister." The comment shouldn't mean anything, but it still manages to damage her heart again, as she realizes just how far from him she really is. She's been reduced to his good friend's sister, not even considered a friend herself. She can't help but feel something hollow begin to fill the inside of her, taking that place that was once so enamored with this boy. She tried not to let the sensation harden her features, as she greeted the girl with a polite bow.

"Oh, so you're Ichigo-kun's sister? You're so pretty!" she compliments, saying how she'd never had guessed because their coloring was different. Karin does her best to be courteous, explaining how he was a little closer to their mother's and she was more similar to their father's. They make small talk, as Karin does her best not to allow her eyes to drift to Toushirou. She's saved by a familiar, all-male crowd coming out of the school and making their usual inane chatter, staggered in a formation they had unconsciously adopted.

"Oi, Karin. What're you doing here?" Ichigo says, noticing the teenage girl when he reaches the gate.

"It's Valentine's Day, idiot. She's here every year," Ishida reprimands, the most oriented to the makeshift traditions they took part in. It gains an angry retort from the orange-haired boy, which spawns a small battle between them. Chad moves to stop them just as Karin panics inside herself, a sinking feeling coming back to her. There's no way she can give Toushirou that oversized candy, not with this girl here or all of his friends. It makes her heart speed up at the thought of his rejection, knowing he'd do it even if it was just to save face. Perhaps he could even do it for real, she thinks helplessly, considering how close he was to this girl.

"That's right," she interrupts, going to open the bag, making sure to avoid any and all eye contact. She slips out the baggies, handing the regular-sized ones to each of them, especially careful to make sure Hitsuagaya's is among them. When Ichigo inquires about his, she smiles as she hands him the largest one, playing it off by saying Yuzu had made too much chocolate and didn't want it to go to waste.

"Besides," she continues, forcing a laugh and turning decidedly away from the couple behind her, "wouldn't it be weird if our own brother didn't get something more special?"

"You guys just wanted some later, didn't you?" his voice serious, but eyes teasing in that boyish way only he could use, earning a real chuckle from her.

"Can't get anything passed you, Ichi-nii," she smiles easily, nodding to everyone as they voiced their thanks, some even biting into it without another thought. Vaguely she heard Toushirou make an uncommittal noise in appreciation, but nothing else. Trying to control an uncharacteristic rush of sadness, she tells Ichigo about their mandatory shopping spree, getting a rather indignant moan in response. But she's not taking his melodrama today, firmly grabbing his arm and leading him passed the gate and down the street. The siblings turn back to wave everyone off, as they go in the other direction. Unconsciously, Karin's eyes fall on Hitsugaya's back, feeling her sorrow show just a little bit on her features.

He's holding that girl's hand in his own.

Seventeen Years Old

"I'm home," a deceptively feminine voice calls out, tired from summer practice despite it only being mid-afternoon. Readjusting each bag on her shoulders, she goes down the hall to be greeted by a filled living room and a cooking Yuzu.

"Welcome back," the group choruses, and she immediately drops one of the bags to the floor, caught off guard by the college students who had infiltrated her home. Her eyes fall on faces she's known for a long time, and some newer ones she's met in passing.

She avoids sea-green eyes at all costs.

"Why are you all in my house?" she asks, and a feeling of déjà vu coming over her and causing three of them to laugh.

"Definitely a Kurosaki," Renji replies, grinning that oversized smile of his in a way that's both affectionate and mocking, as her mind pulls out the memory of their first meeting. She hides a blush when she bends to take the fallen sack and hang it precariously on her shoulder.

"Still doesn't tell me why you're chilling in my living room," she flipped her head to the side, jostling her equipment and making her comprehend just how much stuff she was carrying. She moves to put it somewhere out of the way, preparing to make some decent conversation despite the fact that they haven't really seen much of each other since Ichigo and them had graduated more than two years ago.

It had been a defining moment for her, as she watched them parade out with the largest grins, diplomas in hand. But it had hurt to see them walk away even more, staring at their backs when she saw her childhood companion wrap an arm around his girlfriend and disappear to some after party. It was that same night that Karin had decided to give up on that part of herself, determined to put it away and forget her feelings that were starting to solidify into something not merely infatuation, something that she had been becoming more and more terrified of.

When the next semester rolled around, she had thrown herself into school and clubs, studying as hard as she ran a soccer ball across a field or hit an opponent during a match. By doing so, she had unintentionally gained a reputation more or less the same as Hitsugaya's or Ishida's. It was funny how irony loved to mess with her life. She had never heard a teacher talk about her without a certain prodigy's name being in the sentence.

It was both flattering and completely heartbreaking.

"Oh, Karin, what's with all your sports stuff?" asks a black-haired girl, as she sat up to glance at the younger girl placing them aside. Her head cocks to the side questioningly, her blunt cut falling into her face a little.

"I had practice today, Rukia-nee," she replies happily, eyeing the older woman fondly. She and her family had been introduced a year ago when Ichigo had gotten home for winter break, telling them that she was his girlfriend with the reddest color on his cheeks. All of them found her a bit too well-bred to be with someone as rough-and-tumble as Ichigo, but that idea was completely destroyed when she promptly kicked him in the face for not respecting their father, who had attempted to tackle his only son into a hug. After that, she was practically family.

"Clubs? You have two bags, so you're in two sports clubs?"

"Not just the clubs, but the teams as well," Yuzu jumps in, happy to brag about her sister. Karin snorts, trying to appear unfazed but just a little proud of her achievements, if she was being completely honest. "She's the vice captain and a starter on the soccer team, plus she's one of the top kendo fighters in our district. Karin's even gone to National's in both leagues!"

"That's enough, Yuzu. There's no need to tell them my life story," she sighs, but doesn't miss the impressed looks from them. Madarame looks like he's itching to ask her for a fight, but is held back by a chastising Yumichika. Ishida, Chad and Rukia express their congratulations, while Renji and Ichigo look exceedingly proud (Karin had the distinct feeling they believed she was their protégé or something). Hinamori is there too, sitting alongside Orihime, Uryuu's girlfriend for the last four years or so, and they too seem surprised but excited for her.

Against her better judgment, her stare meets Toushirou's from across the room. To most, it looked as if he had no particular sentiment for or against her athletic prowess, but she could see an endearing spark behind those glass eyes. But it was the kind of look one gave a child who had done something amazing, and it caused a pinch of anger in her, as she turned her head away to grab a juice box from the back of the fridge.

What were you expecting to see? she asks herself, completely ashamed for even looking at him with some sort of expectation. Nothing had changed between them since she was a child, and it most likely never would. Better that it was reinforced here and now than to allow herself another moment of weakness. And yet somehow, just knowing that he was nearby again made it feel as if the years of hard work and promises to get over him were falling to pieces around her. She couldn't help but wonder about how far she'd come, and if it would ever be enough for her to escape him for good.

"Karin-chan, you're too modest," Momo says from her seat, eyes wide and delighted, just as pretty as she'd been so many years ago.

"Ah, no, not really," she answers, not wanting any sort of praise from her. Early on, Karin had wanted to hate this girl so badly, despise her for taking away the one person in life she'd ever truly wanted, but it was hard thing to actually do. Hinamori was kind, if not a bit too delicate for her tastes, but she was bright and bubbly, a peal of sunshine on a cloudy day. So while it should have been easy to hate her in theory, it was rather difficult in real life.

"Aren't you also the top of your class?" Ichigo inquires, looking up as if wondering where he'd heard it.

"Yeah! Karin's graduating valedictorian at the end of the year!" Yuzu just loves to talk about people other than herself, her older twin frowns, huffing a bit at being the current topic of choice. Before Karin can put a stop to her sister's rambling, however, she moves forward on the tangent without another thought. "She also ranked first on the national exams recently. Daddy and I were so proud!"

There's no intention to flatter her, but it doesn't make the reddening of her cheeks any less intense. She decides to drink her juice in silence, eyes gazing out the kitchen window in hopes that they'll forget her and move onto something else. But that's not the case when Ishida joins the foray, pushing up his glasses and smirking a bit.

"You're certainly bright than your brother, Karin-chan. Your brother's fairly intelligent, but incredibly lazy," he offers, and it sparks an argument that never fails to arouse laughter amongst them. It's been a while since the house has been so lively, and it almost makes Karin smile, but then she notices just how much she needs a shower and maybe a good long nap. She gets up to excuse herself so she can put her stuff away.

"By the way, Karin, we're going out to dinner tonight. Wanna come?" Ichigo asks, as she moves to take her things up to his former bedroom. She looks confused, asking why Yuzu was cooking in the first place if they had plans, and finds out that it's for Isshin for when he gets back tonight from some conference or whatever. The thought doesn't sit well in her stomach. She isn't sure she can sit in front of Hitsugaya for an entire meal without giving herself away or, at the very least, doing something embarrassing.

"I think I'll pass," is her reply, getting a unanimous protest from everyone in the room. Well, everyone except him. He's as silent as ever, his arm draped over Hinamori's shoulders but with the blandest look on his face. Smiling and trying to look apologetic, she drops off her stuff and grabs her things for a shower. She relaxes there for a while, wading through her jumbled thoughts before deciding against sleep for now and to just enjoy the rest of her day in peace. When she's clean and dressed in her pajamas, she's at her desk writing new plays to try tomorrow, hair wrapped in a towel, when a knock sounds on her door.

"Come in," she welcomes, not even looking up from her hunched form to greet the guest.

"I see you're in Kurosaki's room now."

Her heart skips for a second at the all-too-memorable bass of that voice, as she closes her eyes and takes a deep breath, trying to get control of her nerves. She also motions to remove the towel from her head, her hair kinked and curled from the water, as she puts the cloth on the the bed. Turning in her swiveling office chair, she meets Hitsugaya's eyes with guarded pleasantness, a small curve on her lips.

"Yeah, I moved in right after graduation, but he crashes here when he stays the night," Karin offers in explanation, wondering why he was even here. He had spent the good part of her small talk completely silent, and now he was visiting her in her own room. It all smelled very suspicious to her. He nodded his understanding, moving onto the next subject without an ounce of tact.

"The others sent me up to see if you had changed your mind about dinner." Ah, so that's it. Her slight crush hadn't been a secret (to anyone who noticed, which was pretty much everyone except Hitsugaya, Orihime and Momo) so they knew her soft spot for him would get them results that they themselves couldn't. She could feel a small sense of betrayal at their assumption, as if they knew she'd been trying her hardest to get over the older man.

But she couldn't blame them for their ignorance. After all, if this was another time and she had been the same girl she was a few years ago, she'd have probably caved with nothing more than a half-hearted fight and a laugh, at best. He had made her so incredibly weak against him, even she had found it pathetic. But the past is not today. Now, she can feel the need within her to turn him out, to defend what little progress she has made by pushing him as far away as possible. So she smiles at him politely, but with no emotion in it, turning back to her paper and continuing her work.

"I'm afraid you're out of luck. Tell them I'm sorry, but I'm not really feeling up to dinner." At least that was the truth. Now that she was in his presence, her appetite had suddenly vanished and what was left in its place was a bitter feeling she that had nested inside herself long ago. Hoping that was all he needed from her, she grabs a new sheet and begins to rewrite her completed formation, wondering who she could place in each position.

"Are you sure?" he presses on, and she finds the question irritating for no apparent reason. Before now, he wouldn't have cared, would have shrugged it off and said goodbye without a backwards glance. Perhaps he feels like he and her should catch up. Always a stickler for common courtesy and the like, she knew it was most likely out of duty that he asked in the first place, as if she was a stranger he needed to make nice with. It almost made her heart hurt, but this time in a different way. It was sad how far they'd drifted apart.

"Yeah, Hitsugaya, I'm good." The name is foreign on her tongue, so much so she almost trips on it. It's funny because she doesn't need to glance at him to see the perplexed look on his face. Never had she called him by his surname, not even when he had commanded her to at five years old, where she retaliated by running around the house, yelling 'Toushirou!' just to get a reaction out of him. The memory almost makes her smile, but she bites it back, fighting to refocus on her task and carry out her charade until he left.

"Are you okay?" he asks after a moment, going over and touching her shoulder. She can't help that she flinches at the touch, pushing the offending hand off her as if frightened by it. Then Karin is standing up, turning around to look at him while leaning against the desk, eyes uncharacteristically wide and gazing at him with an unreadable look on her face.

"Karin, are you okay?" he repeats, his frown underlined with worry, his tone matching it. It snaps her out of her alarm then, as she relaxes but doesn't get any closer to him. She laughs, sounding strained and maybe a little regretful to his ears, as she reaches to scratch the back of her head. It was an old habit of hers, he recognizes, one that she did when she was stressed and unsure.

"I'm fine. You should go down now. They're probably waiting for you," she tried to sound sweet, as if she wasn't trying to send him from her room, down the street and as far away from her as physically possible. She points to the clock on the wall reading '6:42' with its hands, both of them knowing that the reservation is for seven sharp. He's running out of time and she knows it, uses it to her advantage even, as she pushes him out the door and into the hallway. "Have a good night," she says, before slamming the door in his face.

He stares at it for a while, not sure what just happened and moves to knock on her door to ask what's wrong again, but is stopped by a voice calling him from downstairs. Fighting with himself for a bit, Hitsugaya can only sigh as he decides to turn away, moving towards the stairs hesitantly. He stops just as he's about take the steps down, his eyes falling back on the closed door, before finally descending. On the other side, Karin is on the floor leaning against it, curled into a protective huddle.

But she doesn't cry.

AN: For all of you who didn't know, I am actually a huge angst fan, which means that a lot of my stories will be sad BUT will have happy endings. I write almost every story that way. I don't know why. Maybe I'm missing something normal in this brain of mine. Haha.

Anyways! Please review, favorite and alert! I love knowing your guys' thoughts so feel free to let me know. Makes my day just a little brighter. :)