A/N: Finally, a quick update! Ugh, my web connection's playing up, so I'd already typed a whole long A/N, and then lost it. Typical of my life.

So, if you don't mind, I'd quite like to just get down to business, without any of my usual wibbling in between! :)

Special thanks and cyber cookies go to:

newserzzz

chesxca

AniMesXVIII

5popcorn99 - choc chip for you, hun! :P

the anonymous reader who's name I don't know, but love anyway!

dragonballzlover2499

and, last but definitely not least, Jii-chan!

Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach or any of it's characters. All credit goes to Kubo Tite, who needs to make his manga a bit more idiot-proof, cos I'm hella confused!

Chapter 10

Shinji was pacing around his room fast enough to wear a dent in the floorboards. To tell the truth, he was concerned. I would like to let you think it was about Hiyori and her unfortunate 'dumping', but then I would be lying. Was Hirako Shinji was actually sweating over was his own safety. Selfish much?

However, it was justified, as never in Vizard history has a daft matchmaking plan cooked up by Lisa ever turned out even vaguely well. Kensei and Mashiro being the first and last exception to that rule. So, the blond Vizard was wondering about how to boycott the whole ridiculous scheme before he either got beaten to death or severely injured. And that wasn't even taking into consideration what would happen to Hiyori. For a start, it would probably ruin their friendship if it got out of hand, and Shinji definitely did not want that. Contrary to common belief, Shinji did actually care about Hiyori and treasure their friendship against all the odds, and he wasn't about to give it up for something as stupid as this. Secondly, when Hiyori found out about the matchmaking plan, she was going to flip! Poor monkey, she was completely oblivious to what the other six were planning for her.

All of a sudden, Shinji's frenzied pacing came to a halt. Was it-? No, it couldn't be...not-! Shinji flash-stepped to his calendar. It was. Fourteenth of February. Valentine's Day.

...

The other Vizards (minus Hiyori) weren't surprised to see Shinji racing down the hallway in a state of panic. He reached the door and skidded to a halt.

"Where's the post?" he demanded.

"Hiyori took it, as usual. She's in the training grounds reading it."

"Gah!" Shinji figuratively flew to the small-ish trap-door in the floor of the hallway. Hiyori reading all the mail was normal procedure for every other day than today. But on the fourteenth of February, Shinji always made sure he got up extra early for the sole purpose of grabbing his huge amounts of fan mail and shoving them through the paper shredder before the tiny Vizard saw them. As everyone knew, Hiyori did not take kindly to 'Shinji's whores', as she called them, and would promptly blow up if anyone so much as mentioned them.

As Shinji jumped from the ladder to the ground of their large underground training area, he scanned the expanse of dirt to see the monkey girl crouching on a rock not very far away. Good, she hadn't got very far yet. Now, all he had to do was sneak up very quietly behind her, grab all the pink/red envelopes and incinerate them with a small cero before she realised what they were. Imagine his shock when he realised she was already reading one, with a very naff picture of a puppy on it.

"Hiyori! Don't read that!" he shrieked, his voice cracking up a few octaves in terror. He ripped the card out of her hands. Please let her not have read it, please let her not have—

"There's no point doin' that, I already read it."

Crap. Shinji inhaled a large breath through his nose, waiting for the oncoming slaughter.

"And anyway, it's kinda pointless taking it away when your whole plan all along was to get me to read it, right?"

Okay, now he was confused. "What?" he asked.

"Don't play dumb with me, Baldy, just own up and apologize before I blow my top!" Hiyori was getting a rather terrifying glint in her eye.

"I actually have no idea what you're talkin' about." Shinji protested, dodging when a kick was thrown his way. "Let me read it before you kill me, so I at least know what I did." When he was sure he wasn't going to get beaten to a pulp, he averted his eyes to the neat handwriting on the card.

Dear Hiyori,

I thought you should know that, ever since I met you, I thought you were incredibly special. Now, after all these years, I think that feeling's blossomed into something else. There aren't any words to tell you exactly how I feel Hiyori, but I guess these will have to do: I love you, more than any of my first loves, because you were the first girl I took any sort of interest in. I know it's presumptuous of me to expect anything back in return, but I thought you should at least know.

All my love,

Shinji

Shinji stared bug-eyed at the name signed at the bottom, in what looked very suspiciously like his handwriting.

"What the hell?" he finally said.

"That's what I thought. Now you'd better have a very, very good excuse for this, Shinji, or else, I'm gonna kick your ass till ya cry for mercy like a baby!"

"No! Wait! I didn't write this!" Shinji half-screamed, his voice strangled.

"Right, sure. Then who did, ya damn baldy? Hm?"

"Uh...the other six?"

"No, they did not." Hiyori was pretty sure about that, She would have been informed if they'd come up with a plan this far-fetched. No, it had to be the stupid Baldy teasing her! AGAIN!

...

Lisa glanced up as the unmistakable sounds of Shinji's yelps rose up from underneath the floor. She sighed, took out her list of ideas, and crossed Fake Valentine's card off with a thick black line. They'd have to try another one next time. All the ideas on the Without Hiyori's Knowledge list were really very good.

A/N: Tut tut. Naughty Lisa, setting Hiyori up. *cough*says me*cough*

Now, I really liked this chapter, cos I can totally see Mashiro in the card shop cooing over fuzzy kittens etc while Lisa muses over what to write on 'Shinji's Proclamation of Love'. Lol...

Please tell me what you think, and whether you want an epilogue! (In a review, in case you don't already know)