Of course, I always loved you.
She probably knew that, deep inside herself. Or maybe she didn't, and that's why she kept chasing after me all these years. She never could believe it, that I was a traitor, even when she had her sword against my throat. She was always too attached to me for her own good.
I hated seeing her on that rooftop. I, the smiling snake, was afraid that Aizen would kill her himself. I would never let him. But I still felt the fear.
Rangiku.
She floats down like an Angel, arms reaching for me. No one understands her like I do. I wish, sometimes, that she didn't understand me like she does. But that's what it will do to you, looking out for each other as kids. Becoming each other's everything before you have anything. She didn't know she was mine, but she was. Or maybe she did. I believed I could kill him for her.
The blood loss is making me think slowly. The thoughts are flowing out of me like blood. Blood is flowing out of me too. I might die here.
At least she is coming to me. And at least she knows. There are things I want to tell her. I missed you. I was always, always thinking of you. I never cared about Aizen's power. I never cared about the people I killed or the blood on my face, as long as it was for you. In the end, there wasn't supposed to be anyone standing but us, and you would never have had to cry, and I could have finally smiled. A real smile.
Her tears are burning on my face. Hot, frightened, desperate. Don't. I see her long hair tumbling toward me, the heat of her body as she falls over me. Her blue eyes.
I'm sorry, I want to say.
And of course, I always loved you.