Hello Ginranners! :) So here's chapter 7, and let me just tell you that I loved writing it! You'll see why lol Anyways, I want to thank everyone for sending the incredible reviews, I thought they were amazing! I chose another Coldplay song because it's amazing and it definitely summed up this chapter 7 Alright enjoy!
"Gravity" - Coldplay
Baby
It's been a long time coming
Such a long, long time
And I can't stop running
Such a long, long time
Can you hear my heart beating?
Can you hear that sound?
'Cause I can't help thinking
And I won't stop now
And then I looked up at the sun
And I could see
Oh, the way that gravity pulls on you and me
And then I looked up at the sky
And saw the sun
And the way that gravity pushes on everyone
On everyone
Baby
When your wheels stop turning
And you feel let down
And it seems like troubles
Have come all around
I can hear your heart beating
I can hear that sound
But I can't help thinking
And I won't look now
And then I looked up at the sun
And I could see
Oh, the way that gravity pulls on you and me
And then I looked up at the sky
And saw the sun
And the way that gravity pushes on everyone
On everyone...
11:52 A.M. - John F. Kennedy International Airport
She was just sitting there, running out of patience. Her eyes, just kept on wondering all over the place, her palms felt clammy, and her eyes felt heavy. Supposedly, their flight was going to leave at noon, but they still haven't opened the doors. Today was definitely not her day; she woke up on the wrong side of the bed this morning and she only had a few hours of sleep. Just her luck.
"Ya feelin' okay? Ya look like yer 'bout 'ta fall asleep." The silver-purple haired businessman spotted his drowsy friend.
'Oh perfect, when will hell end?!' Her thoughts wondered in her head. She wasn't in the mood to talk to anyone, especially Gin. Her tired icy blue eyes, met Gin's long hidden ones, "Yeah, I'm fine. Just didn't get enough sleep last night." She answered vaguely.
He unbuttoned his suit jacket, before he took a seat next to Rangiku, as he placed his right ankle on top of his left knee, "Phew! I thought I was gonna be late. What's takin' 'em so long? I thought tha flight was leavin' at noon?" He glanced at his elegant silver watch.
"The lady told me that the pilot couldn't make it to his last flight this morning, so they had to find a replacement for our flight. I think that we're gonna be waiting another half hour." She crossed her long exposed legs.
Gin suddenly got up from his chair, as he began to walk away from Rangiku. She raised her eyebrow, "Where you going?"
"I'll be back. Don'cha worry, Ran-chan!"
She rolled her drowsy blue eyes, as she scoffed, "I'm not worried." As if he could hear her. He was already far away from her.
15 minutes later…
She was checking her email on her smartphone, trying to distract herself, until she spotted a cup of Starbucks coffee close to her nose, "Maybe this'll keep ya awake in tha meantime…" She looked up at the smiling fox-faced man. She didn't think that he would go through the trouble of getting her coffee, "Ya like French vanilla, right?"
She took the warm cup from his hand, "Y-Yeah…Thank you." She took a couple sips from her cup. Yup, that definitely hit the spot.
"Ya don't need 'ta thank! Thought ya might need it." He took a sit next to her again, as he enjoyed the taste of his coffee, "Oh, I got'cha this too." He gave her the paper bag, as she spotted the maple pecan scone, "Figured that ya haven't eaten breakfast."
How did he know? Was Gin like a fucking mind reader or something?
"I'm not gonna eat this knowing that you didn't get anything yourself." She glanced up at Gin.
"Are ya kiddin'? O'course I got somethin'." She then spotted the cinnamon roll, looking back at his smiling face.
"Flight 344: New York, New York to Los Angeles, California. Doors have now opened." The lady in the front desk announced through the speakers.
Both childhood friends, got up from their chairs, as they walked up to the door, leading towards the plane, "Have a nice flight!" The lady at the front desk smiled at Gin and Rangiku.
As they walked towards the front of the aisle, the flight attendant escorted them to their first class seats, "Oh there they are." Gin exclaimed, "Did ya want tha window seat?"
"Nah, you can take it." There were only two chairs on each row, so she had to sit next to Gin.
They both knew that the flight was going to last about six hours; they would most likely arrive at the Los Angeles Airport at around 6:30 P.M.
3 Hours Later…
Rangiku had slowly fallen asleep; Gin had been trying to sleep to but he loved watching her sleep. She always looked beautiful, but she looked innocently stunning with her eyes closed. His narrowed slitted eyes glanced at her chest, making him frown.
Her platinum necklace was gone.
Why did she take it off? He felt his chest tightening just at the sight of not spotting the necklace he had given to her when they were teenagers. That made him think: Rangiku was really trying hard to let go of him, yet he still remained in that spot, wanting to see her come back.
He quickly crushed his hopes, remembering that she was now with someone else. It hurt him to see her with another man. There was no way that he would make her love him again, but he's been trying hard to become friends with the strawberry blonde beauty.
He suddenly felt Rangiku's head gracefully land on his shoulder. He could smell her addictive girly scent; cherry blossom. He lightly inhaled the scent of her hair, as it tickled on his long pale neck. God she was tempting even in her sleep…
Gin couldn't help but smile at the cute angle of his Ran-chan's sleepy self.
He hesitated…until his long fingers caressed her soft cheek. She lightly hummed in her sleep, adjusting herself, as she got closer to Gin. He could feel her arms encircling his long right arm, as she unconsciously snuggled her left cheek on him. Gin couldn't remember the last time she's done this, but right now, he just wanted to devour this physical contact.
The silver haired man lightly cuddled his head upon Rangiku's, wanting to fall asleep too. He loved how every single time he would breathe, he would smell Rangiku's sweet aroma.
6:15 P.M. - Airplane
"Rangiku… wake up…" A soft voice ringed in her ear.
Her eyes lightly fluttered, trying to get rid of her blurry vision, "…What?" She half consciously responded.
"We're in Los Angeles already." Gin smiled at her.
"…Did I sleep throughout the entire flight?" Her fingers rubbed hard on her sluggish eyes.
A light chuckle escaped Gin's lips, "…Uh, sorta. But c'mon, let's hurry up. Ukitake-san told me that he booked us a rented car fer tha week."
She stretched out her arms, as she lightly yawned, "Okay."
Gin had woken up way before Rangiku. He was pleased to see that she was still asleep against his neck, but he lightly placed her head against her own pillow. He didn't want to imagine her furious face, waking up against his shoulder.
7:00 P.M. - Ritz-Carlton
"What are your names?"
"Matsumoto Rangiku and Ichimaru Gin." The businesswoman responded for both of them.
"Hmm…let me see." The receptionist focused her eyes on her computer screen, as she smiled back at Gin and Rangiku, "Alright, I've got rooms 223 and 225 for you, which are both Club Executive Suites."
"Wait a second; are those two suites next to each other?" Rangiku leaned her head closer to the woman as she questioned.
"Yes they are, ma'am. Is there a problem?"
The light red head placed her hand on her waist, "Well, let's just say that I kind of wanted to have my distance." She could feel Gin's gaze hitting her.
"Unfortunately, all rooms are booked for the entire week, Matsumoto-san. Looks like you'll have to stick with the rooms that were already assigned for you and Ichimaru-san."
Rangiku sighed heavily, "Fine…" She forcefully grabbed her room key as Gin followed along.
The elevator ride was pretty quiet, not exchanging too many words. Even if he wouldn't show any sort of discomfort with his smiling face, it did hurt him to hear Rangiku not wanting to be so close to him.
But he understood why. That's why he wanted to fix everything now.
Rangiku opened her door, as she placed all of her belongings next to her bed. Before she would even shut her door, Rangiku felt like there was a barrier that wasn't letting her close her door completely. She looked down, seeing Gin's black shoe blocking the space between the door and the wall.
"What the hell are you doing?" She let go of the door knob. What he didn't know was that she was trying to protect herself from him and from herself. She didn't want to get close to Gin and start talking to him, because she knew that she was starting to get a soft spot for the grinning man again.
The tall pale skinned man shoved his hands inside his pockets of his slacks, "Ran… aren'cha hungry?"
"Yeah, but I'll just order room service." She crossed her arms. The young strawberry blonde didn't want any eye contact with Gin.
He scooted closer to her, piercing his closed eyes onto Rangiku's shiny blue eyes, "C'mon Ran-chan, just lem'me take ya out fer once. It ain't gonna hurt no one." He gave her a faint smile; those kind of smiles were rare, "I know ya don't wanna see me all that much, but I do. It ain't a date or nothin' like that."
Rangiku just stared at his handsome face, thinking about his invite, "…"
'Why the hell would you accept his invite? He's obviously just trying to get laid tonight.'
'Just accept it. There's no harm in eating dinner with Gin. It's Gin, for God's sake. He's your best friend!'
'Just remember all the pain and heartbreak he's caused you! Don't get your hopes up with this douchebag.'
'He's already pleading. Don't make him feel any worse if you say no.'
'Who the fuck cares if you say no? He deserves to be rejected.'
She then felt his fingers grasp onto hers, making her lightly gasp, "Just a lil' treat…what'daya say?"
Even with the slightest touch of fingers, she would feel this sudden spark between her and Gin.
Rangiku's thoughts were debating so much; she didn't know what to answer him. She understood both sides of the argument. She looked up at her long time friend's unseen eyes, followed by his faded smile, "...Okay, but I already feel bad because you also bought me coffee this morning."
How could she say no to Gin? Especially with the soft tone of voice that he was using. Like he said, it wouldn't hurt to have dinner; it's not like if they were going out on a date.
He lightly laughed, "There ain't nothin' 'ta worry 'bout. I'mma take ya somewhere we've been before."
8:00 P.M. - Redondo Beach Pier
Gin had taken her to Old Tony's restaurant. They both remembered their first college trip was here at Redondo Beach. It wasn't too far away from Los Angeles; it was about a thirty minute drive.
"Remember when ya didn't want 'ta go swimmin' deeper in'ta tha water." Gin let out a low chuckle.
"Well you were being pushy! You kept on telling me that the sharks were coming!" Rangiku pouted out her bottom lip.
"Ya were bein' naïve, Ran. B'sides, if there were sharks that were 'bout 'ta attack yer pretty lil' face, I would 'o done somethin' 'bout it." Gin peeled one of his shrimps, as he threw one in his mouth.
"Yeah right! You would have been out of the water, before saving my ass." Giving him a clever look.
They both stayed quiet as they observed the ocean. It was dark, but they were still able to see the shimmering water, "The atmosphere of the ocean is a lot different here than in the East coast, don't you think?" Rangiku blurted out, "The ocean seems calm, yet it still looks lovely."
"Yeah…" That all she heard from Gin's part. She turned her head towards her business partner, seeing how he was gazing at her.
"…Is there something on my face?" Her hands began to wipe on her cheek and her chin.
"No, I was just thinkin' that ya look nice t'day." He rested his cheek on his palm. His slittled eyes then shifted to her chest, remembering that she didn't have her friendship necklace on, "…Can I ask ya somethin'?"
"What?"
"What happened 'ta yer necklace?" He pointed his long finger towards her chest. His been dying to ask her this question, and more eager to listen to her answer.
Her eyes softened with sadness, remembering the night she cried when she found out about him and Mila Rose. Her instant reaction on that night was anger and crying out her sorrowful feelings. Later that night, she became more conscious about the situation. At the end, she wasn't really angry at Gin, because if she remembered correctly, she had pushed him away. Rangiku had told him to give her the distance she wanted.
That's exactly what he did. And then she saw the consequences: she saw him and that Rose girl kissing. She hated to admit it, but she had a swarm of jealousy wash all over her body. She was being stupid. She wanted to let go of Gin, yet she didn't want him to date anyone else.
How selfish of her. Rangiku had taken off the necklace that he had given to her because of that reason exactly. She wanted to let go of him, and if taking off a friendship necklace was necessary, then she would do it. She needed to move on. She then thought: even if she did take off her necklace, it still didn't remove the history that she shared with Gin.
"…Ran?"
"Huh?"
"Did ya listen 'ta my question?"
"Yeah…i-it's a long story…" Rangiku eyed her childhood friend, seeing his dissatisfaction with her answer. She decided to let him live his life; guide themselves to their own road.
"…Congratulations on your new girlfriend, though." She lowly said.
Gin raised his eyebrow confused at what she had just said, "…What?"
She took a deep sigh, "I read an article on TMZ about you and that model, Mila Rose." Before Gin would even respond to her statement, she added more, "…I also saw the two of you kissing in your office."
Gin stayed quiet, not imagining Rangiku staring at Mila and him kissing. His jaw clenched, "…How much did ya see?"
"I saw enough." She crossed her arms.
"I ain't datin' anyone, Ran. And that kiss meant nothin'." He leaned closer to Rangiku.
"You don't have to explain yourself, Gin. Even if you're not dating, I understand where you're coming from. I mean, you're young and single; you've got your entire life ahead of you." She gave him a weak smile. Only she knew that her smile, was full of regret, but needed to get used to it.
"…And so do I…I-I mean, that's why I'm trying it out with Aizen-san…" She looked down at her half-finished plate, as she poked on her seafood.
He wasn't going to ask her about Aizen; Gin didn't think that she would feel comfortable talking about it, not just yet. He felt like Rangiku was becoming a bit more accessible with her attitude with him. He's noticed this small change on her for the past week. Don't get him wrong, Rangiku still reserved herself from him most of the time, but she wasn't as mean as before.
"Hey, how 'bout we go to that fair?" Gin pointed out from their view. It looked kind of small but it looked pretty fun.
"Isn't it a bit late to be going to a fair?" She looked back at Gin.
"What'cha worryin' 'bout, Ran? There ain't nothin' 'ta do t'morrow in tha mornin'. We only got that meetin' at 2:30 in tha afternoon."
'I guess he's right…but just a few hours.' She thought, "Fine, but let's not stay for too long. A girl's got to get her beauty sleep." She eyed him as she stood up. That was until she realized what they were both wearing. Gin had his dark blue suit on, while she wore her dark red blazer, with a white undershirt accompanied with a white mid-thigh skirt. It's what they would usually wear to work, but she would never wear this for a night out to the fair.
9:40 P.M. - Fair
"Which one did you want, my dear? You can pick whichever stuffed animal you want; your friend got the highest score out of all people today." The older man looked at Rangiku.
"Which ever?" She smiled at him, as the man nodded, "Hmm…oh what about that one!" She pointed that the stuffed animal.
He walked towards the prize, pulling down, "This one?"
"Yes, thank you."
"A white fox? Ya got weird taste. Don't girls always get tha pink stuffed bunnies?" Gin scratched the back of his head.
She playfully pushed Gin's arm with her shoulder, as Rangiku gave him a small smile, "It's not weird taste, it's just rare. Totally different."
That made his smile a lot wider, "Ah, that's a smile I've been dyin' 'ta see." He loved seeing his childhood friend smile like that. It made him think that she was happy; he never wanted to see her sad ever again. Gin hated to see her tears running down her face.
For some reason his comment made her smile more, but her used the oversized white fox to cover her mouth.
"Uh, it's almost ten o'clock. You think we can go back to the hotel?" Rangiku pulled out her phone, as she checked the time.
"I'm getting' kinda tired too. I ain't lookin' forward fer tha meetin'. It don't feel like a business trip." They both began to walk towards the exit, following the rest of the people.
"Tell me about it… but the meeting's not until 2:30 and it's the only meeting for tomorrow." She looked up at him, as he nodded.
10:15 P.M. - Ritz-Carlton
"Well, I'm off to sleep." Rangiku opened her door, but before she would go inside, she glanced at Gin.
"…Thanks, for everything." She softly said, as she lifted up her enormous fox stuffed animal.
"Yer welcome…" It looked like he wanted to say something else to the light red head, but he just gave her a toothy smile, "Good night, Ran."
'You're so fucking stupid.' Her thoughts ringed in her head. Her thoughts were right.
'Have you forgotten the great amount of pain he's put you through? After that one night, everything changed between you and him. Now you go out with him as the best friends that you used to be?'
She changed into her short shorts and her loose t shirt, as she slid her body in between her bed sheets. Her thoughts kept on bugging her about hanging out with Gin.
'Keep this up and you'll get your heart broken again. Gin isn't the guy who you think he is. He doesn't have a heart, he's emotionless, doesn't consider your feelings. He will never be the Gin that you used to love.'
Her thoughts and her heart argued back and forth, debating over Gin. Her thoughts were right; Gin made her feel like shit and used when he…
Rangiku shook her head, not wanting to have those flashbacks.
But then her heart would speak to her. Tonight, Gin reminded her of what they used to have. Her heart reminded her why she loved that man so much. He was charming, got his sense of humor, good-looking, he understood her in many ways. Rangiku knew that they had this strange, yet natural chemistry ever since the very first day they had met at their middle school.
She needed to learn how to keep her distance. Rangiku didn't know what made her not hate Gin today; ever since the morning, he had been treating her so kindly and she tried to have a closed and cold behavior with him, but it was just so hard. Maybe becoming friends with him wouldn't be such a bad idea after all.
Aww! Wasn't that sweet?! Looks like Rangiku's starting to play nice with Gin, but she still wants to keep her distance. What did you all think about this chapter?
I want to thank everyone for supporting me with this fanfic. It is my first time writing Gin and Rangiku, so it makes me happy to see the positive feedback. Thank you so much for the reviews, favorating my fanfic and me as an author. Just thank you for everything! :)
Please leave a review! I love receiving them! ^_^ They're awesome!
