I'm not too certain on this chapter. I withheld it because I rewrote one scene about ten different times, but I'm still not entirely happy about it.

Enjoy~

Sasha pounced on me as soon as I entered the locker room. "Did you bring them? Did you bring them?" She begged

I held up the ribbons. "Of course I did."

"Thanks! Oh, I would so be dead right now if you had forgotten," Sasha sighed, then snatched them away and ran to a mirror. Slinging my duffel bag onto the bench, I sat down beside it as I watched Sasha get ready. Mishi meandered over to my area, sitting down beside me. "Nervous?" She asked softly.

"For the guys, yeah," I admitted. "This is going to be a tough game."

Mishi nodded. "Shuuhei was telling me that some of the players they were going up against were already offered scholarships to various colleges. This one kid, Schiffer I think his name is, is already under contract with a sponsor."

I didn't think Toshiro had any sponsors, but then again I wouldn't doubt it if he had been offered some. "Well, we've got some pretty good players as well," I assured her. "No matter how it ends, I know that we would have given our best."

Amu stood up on a bench opposite us. "Alright, gather up!" She called. Instantly, everyone became quiet. "Ok, as you very well know, it's the last game of the season. I don't need to remind you that now, more than ever, the team needs our support. We need to be out there, giving all we can to boost crowd and team morale. This is our chance to make a difference, girls. Don't let our fans down."

We cheered, and grabbed our pompoms for our big debut. Amu and Rangiku would be holding the giant paper banner for the team to crash through, and the rest of us would be lined behind them to follow the team as they raced onto the field. Currently, they were warming up, and we had to get everything ready.

After putting my megaphone in its spot along the line, we huddled near the bleachers, watching as our team ran through its drills and stretches. Anxiously, I looked for Aizen. Though the senior was nowhere to be seen, that didn't mean he wasn't there. Turning my head, I looked through the crowd, finding with some relief that the Urameshi's had arrived. Keiko was talking with her neighbor, Yuuskue watching them with an amused expression. In fact, the sight rather startled me; it was the first time I had seen in the detective outside of work, and seeing him acting normal was a little confusing at first. He had always seemed so professional and serious . . .

Wrenching myself away from my musings, I focused on the opposite side of the field to where the opposing team's fans sat. They were just as enthusiastic as our own fans, hanging posters, waving their school colors, dressed in school shirts and uniforms. Their cheerleaders leaned against the bleachers, chatting as they checked their hair and texted their friends. Not so different from us . . . only, knowing that Aizen was a part of them somehow put a negative feel on the entire party.

"Momo? You ok?" Sasha gave me a gentle shake, and I forced a smile. "Yeah. Just nervous."

She smiled. "Hey, no biggie. We haven't even started yet. Leave the butterflies for the last ten minutes."

"I'll try."

She walked away to speak with her mother, who was leaning over the railings. I searched for my Aunt, and spotted her near Yuuskue. As they were deep in conversation, I refrained from calling out to her and studied my pompoms instead.

Out on the field, the team finished their warm-ups.

"Alright, boys, to the benches!" The coach called out. "Game time in ten!"

They grouped together, moving toward the benches and grabbing their water bottles. A few were juggling their soccer ball, Ichigo included. There was an apprehensive look on the orange-haired boys face as he peered anxiously in the direction of the opposing team. At least, where the opposing team was meant to be; they were still nowhere to be found.

A murmer arose from the other side of the field, and the band suddenly struck up an ominous tune that slowly grew louder. Finally, with a great swell of noise, the team burst out onto the field, accompanied with cheerful shouts and whistles. Jumping and prancing alongside the team, the cheerleaders waved their pompoms, and I felt like some of them sent smirks in our direction. I glared back. We would show them who was boss.

Our boys huddled together, and inspiration struck me. Leaning over to Matsumoto, I whispered into her ear; she nodded, grinning, and went over to Amu. After listening, Amu nodded. "Hisagi. Come here." She ordered. Looking startled, Mishi went over to Amu, and the Cheer Captain grabbed the girl by the arm and all but dragged her over to the team. Claiming the coach's attention, Amu explained my plan, and there were a few cheers from the team.

"Let's go, kids," Amu instructed when they had returned.

We grouped together in front of the team as our only two boys on the squad unrolled the banner. Us girls snickered amongst ourselves, and when Amu gave the go-ahead, Sasha ran over to the band director. She returned with good news. "He's ready and willing," She said.

The band began to play 'Bad to the Bone', and we lifted ourselves up to create a human arch for the soccer players. As I was at the top of the arch, being the lightest, I could see the opposing team's cheerleaders staring; I stuck my tongue out at them, though I doubted they were able to see. Still, it felt good to get the last word –or, rather, action- in.

The boys burst through the paper, and I flipped off those supporting me after the coach had ran past, cheering with everything I had. The crowd went wild, at least, as wild as a bunch of parents and relatives could at a soccer team. Really, crowds at High School football games in America were more excitable than this lot. At least every seat was full.

The coin was flipped, and we were allowed to have the ball first. Wishing that our luck would continue, I nudged Mishi, gesturing at her brother. "Don't you think your brother looks a little, I dunno, sick?"

She looked at the odd expression on his face. "He's just nervous. One of my mom's friends and his personal hero is here tonight, and he wants to impress him. He'll get over it. Rather, you should be concentrating on Toshiro. I know he'll be looking over here to see you."

I laughed. "Don't be silly. The game's more important to him right now."

From behind my left shoulder, Sasha chimed, "I wish I was as tolerant as you. Right now it's killing me that Hisagi hasn't even said a word to me today."

"I wonder why," Mishi said dryly. "You forcing him to take you to prom couldn't have anything to do with it."

Sasha rolled her eyes. "I don't really hear him complaining, now do I?"

Mishi was spared a rebuttal when Amu snapped at us. "Quiet, you three! We're supposed to be cheering, not holding private conversations!" For a moment, her face tightened as she looked at me; then there was a flash of something in her eyes, and she quickly looked away.

Was I imagining it, or was that . . . guilt?

Never mind. I returned my attention to the game.

I was so caught up in the action that I failed to notice the players. If I had, I would have noticed Aizen and his two cronies standing near the benches, watching with cold, hard eyes. One of the cheerleaders, a busty girl with cleavage to rival Matsumoto's, was standing at Aizen's elbow, matching his expression.

Ichigo had the ball, and he dribbled it around an opposing team member and kicked it toward Hisagi. Mishi's brother took control easily; a white-headed blur suddenly streaked past, and Hisagi propelled it toward Toshiro. My boyfriend claimed it, weaving around the defenders almost lazily.

He brought his foot back to kick . . .

. . . and missed the goal.

There was an audible gasp rolling through the crowd and my squad as I stared, dumbfounded. Even Toshiro looked startled, and turned, blinking, toward a comically surprised Ichigo and blank Hisagi. Gulping, I glanced at their coach. He did not look happy.

With the other team now in possession of the ball, our team struggled to regain it and keep it off their end of the field. It wasn't working well; we would claim the ball for a few seconds, only to have it stolen back as the player suddenly stumbled. Closing my eyes, I took a deep breath, and then turned toward the crowd to help elicit some excitement from them.

By half-time rolled around and our team stumbled off the field, exhausted, the score was still zero-zero. My throat raw, I followed my squad out into the center of the field for our skit, my eyes riveted to the ground. Strange. There were glints in the grass . . .

"Hinamori! Get in position!" Amu hissed, and I jumped to my spot, heart pounding. I could solve the problem of the glistening grass later. I had a skit to perform.

As I tumbled through the groups that had formed, I felt a distinct wetness on my neck, and I realized why the grass was glistening. There was water on the ground. Not a lot, but enough to dampen your skin . . . or to make a soccer player slip.

They were cheating.

Hand-springing back to my feet, I noticed with horror that Aizen was staring at me, and from this distance I could easily see the sneer on his face. My legs wobbled, and I forced my eyes away, relieved that the routine was almost over.

I pulled Mishi and Sasha aside as we left the field. "They're cheating." I whispered. "The grass is wet; our players are slipping."

Sasha frowned. "That's ridiculous."

"No it's not! It hasn't rained lately, and I doubt body sweat will produce that must water." I insisted. Mishi shook her head. "Look, Momo," she said, "I know you're worried and all, but how could they wet the grass while playing? It's not like they carry water bottles up their sleeves, or something."

Ignoring their sympathetic looks, I looked hard at the opposing team. Besides Aizen and his bodyguards, they were all chatting on the benches as they took a breather. Their uniforms consisted of long sleeves, pants, and cleats, which wasn't all that uncommon due to the slight chill in the air. Maybe Mishi had a point. How could they cheat?

My eyes went to Aizen once more. No, I couldn't let my guard down. So long as he was there, anything could happen.

Excusing myself, I began to head toward the bathrooms, giving Toshiro a meaningful look. He caught it, but barely. Only after seeing his slight nod did I look away, walking around the corner to bend over the water fountain.

He walked up a few seconds later. Mostly unnoticed by the crowd, we leaned against the wall. "What?" he asked, sounding weary.

Though concerned, I had more pressing matters to talk about. "I think they're cheating. The grass is wet, Toshiro. It hasn't rained lately."

His eyebrows furrowed. "Momo, wet grass on a playing field isn't all that uncommon. And my missed shot threw us off. There will be slip-ups. I don't think it's any cause for concern."

"Shiro-chan, I know this sounds stupid, but remember who we're dealing with! Aizen's over there, and he . . ." I stopped at the look in his eyes. "What?" I demanded.

He rubbed his forehead. "Look, Momo, Aizen's a problem, but what can he do in front of all these people? You need to relax." Smiling slightly, he continued. "It was probably all talk and no action. He hasn't done anything yet."

"Yet," I insisted, but Toshiro wouldn't listen. "There's no way they can wet the grass without us noticing, and even then they will be in danger of tripping themselves." He said. "And with all these people around, Aizen won't make a scene."

Trying to be patient, I continued to explain. "I know he's going to try something. There are thousands of things that can happen in a second with no one the wiser. Be careful."

"I can look after myself, Momo." Toshiro retorted.

I lost it. With the stress of Aizen's threat, Toshiro's apparent lack of concern, and the feeling that I was about to go insane, emotion clouded my thoughts. Growling in frustration, I threw up my hands. "Fine! See if I care! I'm trying to save your butt, and you won't listen to me!"

"Momo, just think about it for one second!" Toshiro demanded. "If you'd just calm down . . ."

I stepped away, glaring daggers at him and hating myself for it. "No, you wake up! God, Toshiro, he burned down my house and nearly killed my uncle. If he's willing to do that, who says he won't have other means of making my life a personal hell? He said he'd hurt you if I didn't break up with you. I saw the truth of it in his eyes. He'll stop at nothing until he gets revenge for that night at the party!"

Disgusted, Toshiro turned away. "Think what you want. There's nothing he can do."

But there was.

After all, everyone knew I was Toshiro's one weakness.

But in my enraged, clouded mind, I only thought of leaving the area. Our little spat had drawn attention, and some of the squad looked on in nervous giggles. Stomping around the corner, I ducked behind the wall of another building, alone for the moment. The crowd was mostly congregated around the bleachers, bathrooms, and concession stands, and I was the only soul in sight. Sliding down to the ground, I buried my head in my arms, hot tears coursing down my cheeks. What had I done?

Toshiro and I had never fought before. Sure, there was teasing and little arguments over who should pay the lunch bill or who was going to drive, but nothing like this. I had only experienced this kind of bitterness once, when my first boyfriend and I had broken up after he had thought I was flirting with another boy in my class. Despite my insistence that I wasn't he had blown up on me, and two minutes later we were single and hating each other. Though I hadn't cried at the time, the equal blend of anger, pain, and emptiness was the same.

I was so absorbed in my misery that I didn't hear footsteps approaching. So when I was roughly hauled up by my arm, I shrieked, lashing out. My foot connected with something solid as my head whipped up, and I went numb as I found myself staring into the brown eyes of Aizen Sousuke.

"Hello, Hinamori-chan," He said amiably, the effect ruined by the dangerous smile. "Long time no see." Then he slammed me against the wall.

I tried to scream, but ended up producing a choking noise. All my wriggling and squirming wasn't helping, either. Though cheerleading had strengthened me to a degree, it was nothing compared to a boy two years my senior and a foot taller. Eventually, I gave up and hung limp.

"Good girl." He commented. I vaguely realized my feet were off the ground. "So glad you could cooperate. You see, we have unfinished business, you and I. But first, perhaps you should know your punishment. I warned you to stay away from Hitsugaya, but not only did you not listen, you grew even closer. That's not allowed. And because of that, I'm going to hurt him deeply. So deeply, in fact, that everything he has worked for, everything he has accomplished, will be for nothing. And in the end, you will be living with the knowledge that you caused it. How will it feel, I wonder, to know that you caused his dreams to die?" He paused, as if expecting an answer. I did not give him the honor. Besides, I was too numb to think straight.

"Oh well." He shrugged. "Nothing you can do now anyway." And then he dropped me, pinning me down with one foot.

I finally found my voice when a searing pain erupted in my chest, but the cacophony from the crowd drowned out my screams. I curled up into a ball after my few attempts at self-defense failed. He continued to beat me, but I didn't care. My mind had drifted long ago.

Then, somewhere, an angel's voice called out.

"MOMO!"

Aizen disappeared, and I heard a heavy thud. Slowly opening my eyes, I watched as Toshiro wrestled with Aizen, the latter at a disadvantage from having been caught by surprise. Out of nowhere, his two henchmen appeared, only to be quickly apprehended by a murderous Ichigo and Renji. Though the red-head was a surprise to see, I only let a split-second of my attention be spent toward him before I switched back to Toshiro.

I attempted to sit up, but I was hit by a wave of nausea so severe that I vomited instantly, my entire body one massive pain generator.

"You . . . sick . . . bastard . . ." Toshiro grunted as he landed a punch. "No one . . . hurts Momo."

Aizen scrambled backwards. "I don't care about your girlfriend," He spat. "You're the one I'm interested in." And then he let out a savage kick, causing Toshiro to land against the wall with a loud crack and slump to the floor.

There were other noises now, terrified screams and angry shouts. With a snort, Aizen turned. "Tousen! Gin! Let's go!"

The two struggled out of Ichigo's and Renji's grasps, chasing after their leader. Forcing myself to my knees, I began to crawl toward Toshiro, falling after only three paces.

"Easy there," Ichigo said soothingly, coming over to me. A wound bled sluggishly from his forehead and it looked as though he would develop a black eye, but otherwise he looked unharmed. "You're ok now."

My vision swam, and the sounds melted together. "Toshiro . . ." I whispered. I wanted to say more, but my vocal cords weren't responding. Instead, I began to choke on more vomit.

"He's ok. You're going to be fine, Momo. An ambulance is on its way." I couldn't see him anymore. Had the world always been this black?

"Not . . . his fault," I managed to gasp. "I . . ."

I fainted.

D:

Poor Momo.

There will be about two or three more chapters, so stay tuned! And please push that pretty button below. You've been skimping on reveiws lately.