A/N: So this takes place after the 10 year time skip because holy shit the amount of plot bunnies that came into mind after figuring out that Karin is already 23 considering the fact that she was only 13 as of chapter 424. And the fact that Toshiro reverted back to his "child-like" form makes for some angsty hitsukarin moments lmao I'm horrible, I know.

Do they interact? Yes they do but this is more Toshiro's thoughts on Karin after not seeing her for so long.

Disclaimer: I don't own bleach. The series belongs to Tite Kubo himself!

I stay away from you because everybody knows I'm a ghost but I can still dream

He sees her again when she is older.

Ten years doesn't feel like a long time when you're a shinigami. But with humans, he realized, ten years could feel like a life time. They drastically change over the decade, he hardly recognizes the person he met all those years ago.

He realizes with a heavy heart that she's no longer a child but an adult.

She grew out her hair. She was taller. She had curves, though nothing like Matsumoto. She suddenly appeared to be more feminine in his eyes, no longer having the boyish features that resembled that of Ichigo Kurosaki or of her father.

The word beautiful comes into mind.

And he wonders if she still plays that sport she dragged him into when he first met her. He wonders if she still has that ferocity that had him intrigued when they first met. He wonders if she's still the girl who's selfless and brave. The girl who puts a smile on her face when she's injured.

"Hello, Toshiro." She says, smiling down at him, patting his head like the child he looked like.

And he swats her hand away, scowl in place, "I'm not a child, Karin."

She blinks at him, "Oh? You certainly look like one." And she laughed a different laugh he didn't recognize. "I'm only kidding, Tosh, I know you're actually an old man."

Her voice was mature, her gaze experienced. Her expression was softer as she stood before him in her nurse's uniform. He isn't feeling joy as he looks at her. It's more like a sudden emptiness in his chest that continues to grow as he continues to stare at her.

"What brings you down here anyway?" She suddenly asked after a minute of silence, gazing at him from the corner of her eye as they sat on a bench.

"Everything was way too peaceful up there." He tried to sound nonchalant, unfazed by her sudden change of appearance, "I needed a change of pace so-"

"So you came to see me?" She cut him off, "How considerate."

She wasn't looking at him, her eyes were focused on something else in the distance and he had the sudden urge to grab her face and force her to look at him but he couldn't bring himself to do it. He can't bring himself to touch her. "Is it wrong of me to visit an old friend?" He saw her shrug.

"I don't think you should come down here anymore." Her words had caught him by surprise. He noticed how they held a bit of sadness and he clenched his fists, suddenly angry with himself. "Using me as an excuse to come really doesn't sit well with me. Why now?"

He frowns at the question. Why now? He doesn't know how to answer her. He doesn't know how to act around her anymore. The air she's giving off is suddenly suffocating.

"It's not that I'm not glad that you're here..." He hears her say, "...because I really am. I'm ecstatic that you're here. I couldn't calm down at the thought of seeing you." She turned to look at him, her eyes burning into his, "But, you see, you and I are different. It hurt to see that I was the only one who changed."

She's frowning at him and it appeared as though she was about to cry. The pain evident in her eyes as she continued to stare at him, questioning him and his actions.

"It'll be an inconvenience if you continue to visit. I can't be your friend. Not like this."

"I'm sorry, Karin." He heard himself say, her name foreign on his tongue. Unfamiliar. Painful.

Despite it all, he continues to hope that something about her didn't change. That maybe, she's still the same girl he met ten years ago. That she's still the same spunky thirteen year old he grew to love deeply.

But the look she was giving him was telling him otherwise. She was no longer the vibrant girl he once knew.

He does not know the woman in front of him.

A/N: lol forgive me guys this was really a spur of the moment sort of fic, partly inspired off the quote which is actually a lyric from the song BLUE OCEAN V19 by WILOUGH (the song could be found on soundcloud btw) and the recent bleach chapter.

So yes, I do hope you guys enjoyed this one-shot even if it is kind of short.

Anywho, thoughts on this would be greatly appreciated :)