╭Temporarily Here╮

Chapter 21

✨Karin's P.O.V✨

"Are you going with us?!" Yuzu asked. I waved my hand in dismissal. "Nah! You head back without me. I'm going to hang out with Toshiro; we need to catch-up!" I answered, which made Yuzu brighten up. I swear she would be 'the happiest girl in the world' if I ever got married to who-knows-who!

"Okay! See you later!" Again, she looked like the person who 'hasn't seen her friend in a long time and planned to hang out with them'. But come to think of it, both Toshiro and I didn't look outwardly excited to see each other after all this time. I wondered if he was happy to see me or had any feelings on the lines of 'this annoying girl again'. I really wonder. I remember following him around too, but he accepted my company anyway. I don't know. Toshiro himself seemed reluctant in hanging out too, but I don't want to have one of that inner-conflict nonsense. I actually need the guys advice and I consider him a friend.

That is what led me to grabbing his sleeve, as a sign that he couldn't get out of this one. He should at least hang out with me today for old-time's sake!

"Let's go, Toshiro."

He hadn't said a word, while I dragged him along. I turned around - not stopping - to look at him. He was ridiculously out of it; that wasn't normal for 'Captain Hitsuguya'. He used to speak vaguely like an old man and would blatantly ignore me. Albeit, this was new.

I stopped to see if he would notice we stopped. That is, if he noticed we moved in the first place. I stared at him, while he looked at me blankly. Then he glanced at my hand on his sleeve, then back at me and he blinked. Did he finally realize what was happening?

"Karin, what are you doing?" Yup, he did.

I crossed my arms, letting go of his sleeve, "I should be asking you that. You're acting weird. You do know you're supposed to be leading me, since I don't know my way around."

"Leading you? Where would I be leading you?" He asked, purely confused. "Somewhere to hang out, obviously," I said dryly. Did he not get the memo that we were going out-

Wait, no. That sounds weird phrased like that.

I wanted to face-palm when I saw Toshiro raise an eyebrow. "I cannot say I understand fully. Are you referring to the past when we would go to the soccer field and the place I would watch the sunset? Activities like that?" He appeared unsure by his own words and - for a reason beyond me - he reached for his ears to cover it. I decided not to question it for now, since he was getting somewhere.

"Yeah, things like that," I said, nodding briefly. "Then, I'll tell you about that thing you would probably want to put in your report-thing."

I heard him sigh. "Fine. Where do you want to go?"

My lips curved up into a smile. I guess he was right when he mentioned I was smiling a lot today. "Let's go get something to eat and then decide. Oh, I don't have money though, so it's your turn to treat me."

"Okay, I guess." I saw that flinch of his. He probably remembered the times I would get us something or he ate the food made by Yuzu.

Tasuki's P.O.V

"It's like they're on those dates they used to have!" Yuzu squealed, watching them walk off somewhere. We began walking away too.

"Huh? Karin and that Toshiro-dude?" Keigo's interest perked, being his usually nosy-self. He was in front of us, but he slowed down to walk at our - Yuzu and I - pace. "Karin used to date him?" He asked, looking down at Yuzu.

I sighed. "Yuzu, you shouldn't go around saying those kind of things. Everyone might get the wrong idea. You saw how those Soul Reapers looked at him when they were talking. You might get them in trouble that way." I practically scolded her. But I could see she knew what I meant. She sheepishly laughed, "You're right. Sorry."

"Oh, so they're not dating," Keigo mumbled.

I shook my head.

"Why do you even want to know?" Mizuiro took the words out of my mouth. "It would be interesting," Keigo exclaimed. One of those goofy laughs escaped his lips.

"Interesting, huh?" I repeated, reminiscing about earlier on. When we were finishing up everything and Karin tagged along with Hanataro to talk to Hitsuguya. That was the moment I overheard some of those Soul Reapers speaking about them.

"Did you hear that rumour going around about Captain Hitsuguya?"

"Yeah. The one where he's in love with a girl from the world of the living?"

"Yup. Do you think it's her: Karin Kurosaki? She's the younger sister of Ichigo Kurosaki. She has a lot of reistu and an amazing amount of control too."

"Perhaps. But still, what is he thinking? He's a captain. This could ruin his reputation and his squad's. Tenth division must be cursed or something. They're old captain abandoning them and now this."

"Who knows. And it's love, sometimes you don't think at all."

"Maybe his inner kid is showing." He laughed.

"Oh, quit it."

I instinctively flared my 'reistu' at them, which caught them off guard. Needless to say, they were so surprised they fell on their behinds.

I scowled. Jeez, and I thought high school was a mess.