Warning: My mood in creating a dramatic GinHiji situation has returned

Disclaimer: Gintama, y u not mine!? *Shakes fist in anger towards the world*

She Forgot To Give Back What Belonged To Me

Extract 1

What You Broke Was Not A Lighter, It Was My Heart

CRACK

The perm head slowly turned his head, his red eyes widen as he inspected the damage he had done.

The lighter's cap and body had snapped into two and the oil had leaked onto the tatami mat whilst the small gears are splayed lifelessly here and there. The broken pieces are an anomaly to the tidy room although the lighter, when it had seen better days, was previously already an unusual addition to the room.

It was a normal grey metal lighter, a product that you can find in a convenience store anywhere and it had complimented the simple room nicely. However, knowing the owner of the room personally, normal is what others should least expect; the stack of yet-to-be-thrown-away otaku merchandise stuffed in the closet and the mayonnaise-print boxers in the wardrobe certainly screamed abnormality about the owner.

H-He'll kill me, Gintoki thought. He'll definitely run me through with that sword of his for breaking the lighter. C-c-calm down, me… I can get through this.

Abandoning his search for a time machine, he reasoned that he could clean up the crime scene and keep quiet about the murder. Happy with the plan, -just as he was about to pick up the pieces with the intention to dispose of the evidence and act as if nothing had happened-, the paper door had slid open, revealing the person the silver samurai had least wanted to see.

Hurriedly, Gintoki stepped over the mess to block the entrance.

'Ah,… Oogushi-kun! There you are! Um, the Gorilla was calling for you. So, let's go, let's go.' Assertively, Gintoki pushed the uniformed shoulders out. He is obviously trying to get the oblivious man out of the room before the man himself found out of the recent damage Gintoki had done.

'Who's Oogushi-kun? I've just come back from Kondo-san's room. What are you doing idiotic perm-head?' the clearly annoyed officer brushed aside Gintoki's grip, inviting himself into the room to attend his mountain of paperwork.

Several steps to his table, it was then that he saw the pool of sleek oil and scattered pieces of his lighter near the corner of his wooden table; the culprit of the mess sneakily creeping away towards the door.

Before Gintoki could make his get-away, Hijikata had yanked the white kimono backward; the tight grip firmly prevented him from trying to avoid the incoming fury.

The silver perm squeezed his eyes tightly shut, expecting a raging black demon to cleave him into two yet he could only feel the relentless grip to his white kimono tightened with every second.

The moment passed in silence and Gintoki can feel himself still intact.

Curiosity took better hold of him as he peeked with one eye open in search of the raven head's gaze. He was not sure when the hand that gripped the white kimono had left but that same hand had now picked up the pieces carefully, wiping away the oil with tissue on the damp tatami mat.

No anger, no fury, no flying objects nor curses travelled towards him and definitely, no sword can be seen snaking its' way to his throat. Not a word of complain did the raven uttered and it had made Gintoki worried. So worried, that he contemplated on buying Hijikata a mayorin factory although money would certainly be a major setback to his daydream.

'I-i-it was an accident. A-and anyway, y-y-you can just buy a new one, Oogushi-kun… there's no need to act as if that's the only lighter in the world. The convenience store sells a lot of them. It's not like I broke a Ketsuno Ana figurine, right? Because Ketsuno Ana is more important, right? She's more expensive, after all…' Gintoki babbled; his hands flurried in the air as he tried to explain himself.

'Chuck this.'

'Eh?'

The calloused hand gripped Gintoki's wrist to transfer the broken lighter to Gintoki's own hand for disposal.

'Chuck it.' The raven repeated.

Moving away to settle himself, Hijikata lit his cigarette and started the first paper to the already towering mountain of paperwork.

Unsure as to what to do, Gintoki looked back and forth between Hijikata and the little pieces on his hand and with a final shrug, he complied with the Vice-Commander's order.

Gintoki then resettled to his previous spot on the tatami mat, avoiding the new damp patch on the corner and once again re-read his Jump. The matter with Hijikata's lighter still worried him though he was thankful that the man was not outraged due to his carelessness.

Even so, Gintoki is torn between his sense of relief and worry as Hijikata continue to feign indifference, making Gintoki unable to concentrate on the new technique Naruto had mastered.

The calm silence was deafening in the ears of the guilty.

'Uh… I have 300 yen.'

'Good for you.'

Hijikata's shrug hinted that he has no interest in a conversation. Methodically, he had move on to the next report with quick efficiency.

'Do you want my Jump instead? I've only read it 5 times-…'

'No, keep it.'

The silence relapsed though now it had morphed into a tense silence. The silver samurai had sensed the change in Hijikata's attitude but he could not recognize the feeling driven behind it. No strong comments or exaggerated response had Hijikata uttered, the Vice-commander single-mindedly focusing on his work.

Could it be that he is thinking too much into this? Maybe Hijikata did not like the lighter in the first place and was glad to be rid of it? Or perhaps the lighter was already broken before he completely smashed it into pieces?

He had never seen Hijikata used it though he had seen the mayo lighter in action plenty of times. Where did Hijikata buy it and why? Knowing Toshiro, the man adored the dog-food so much he knew that the Vice-Commander had bought every possible product related with his beloved mayo.

So why is the grey lighter an exception?

'Ah… Um, sorry.'

'For what?'

The rustle of the paper did not pause, accompanied with the scratching noise made by the pencil.

'You know, the lighter.'

'Don't mind it.'

The pregnant pause was once again filled with the scratch of pencil.

'I've already said sorry!'

'Yeah.'

'Stop sulking!' complained the irked silver head.

'I'm not,' was the nonchalant reply.

'You're definitely sulking! If you want a new one, I'll buy you a new one!'

'It's fine.'

'Stop sulking then!'

'I'M NOT, JUST DROP IT!'

His sudden shout startled the silver perm.

The outburst allowed Gintoki to look at the dark face clearly as Hijikata lifted his gaze from the table. He can detect the droplets of blood on Hijikata's lips as he had bit them; a tell-tale sign that he had regretted the tone he had used towards his partner.

'It's fine.' Hijikata mumbled the words as he repeated himself, all the while sucking on his lower lip to prevent the red droplets from staining the paper.

Hijikata is acting strange. Not that the Vice-Commander is not strange normally, but this incident involving the lighter made him act too strange, too out of character from the demonic Vice-Commander that had usually looked for fights with the silver perm. Now needless to say that a one-sided banter with the subdued man and his sudden outburst made the said silver perm unsure as to how to respond.

'Sorry, I've a lot to do. Can you leave for today?' the raven head once again direct his gaze to his report, continuing his work like a machine, drowning himself in it.

With a shrug and a scratch to the back of his head, Gintoki rose from his position and made his way towards the door with heavy steps. As he glanced back before sliding the door closed, he could see the forlorn figure hunched over the wooden table, the hand clenching the pencil continuously move though the shoulders tremble and droplets drip silently onto the wood.

Gintoki left, assuming that those droplets are not of blood.

A/N: Uh... yeah, I'm currently in my dramatic mode so I'm sorry that there's no progress on The Daily Lives of Thorny Boys. Sorry... but I hope you enjoy this and reviews are appreciated :D