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Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach or Lipice.

Chapter 21

From the World of the Living

Words: 717

"Wait, Momo…why do you taste so good?" Hitsugaya Toushirou asked after breaking the kiss that he was sharing with his lover.

The moment he uttered those words, Hitsugaya's face turned a fierce shade of red in embarrassment. He didn't mean for it to sound like that. He looked at Hinamori to see her expression mirroring his.

"You think…I taste good?" she asked tentatively.

"Ah…yes? I mean, you always taste good but this time, it's different," he answered, trying hard not to let his embarrassment swallow the words. "It tastes like…"

"This?" Hinamori said, and pulled out a small tube from her robes.

She held it up and Hitsugaya eyed the item warily.

"What's that?" he asked, curiosity and suspicion lacing his voice.

Hinamori let a grin rest on her features. "This," she started, "is LipIce."

"Lip…ice?"

"That's right! It's a kind of lip balm. You apply to your lips and it helps to protect them from dryness for example," Hinamori explained.

Hitsugaya was still rather suspicious of the tube-like contraption. It was his first time seeing such an item after all. "Where did you get it?"

"From the World of the Living!" Hinamori replied cheerily. "Rangiku-san said it works wonders for the lips and they come with different flavors too! Amazing huh? I chose watermelons and peaches!"

"So that's where the taste came from…" the white-haired captain said in realization. After hearing the explanation from Hinamori, his suspicions about the weird object were erased and replaced by mild interest. "And how do you use this thing?"

"Oh," Hinamori said in surprise, taken aback by the fact that Hitsugaya would be interested in it, given that it's a girly thing no less.

"Well, you have to uncap it first," she began, demonstrating as she explained. "Then you twist it to bring up the lip balm. Afterwards, you just apply it to your lips."

The fifth division vice-captain brought the lip balm to her lips and applied a thin coat, giving them a shine. "Just like this!" she announced and capped the lip balm again.

She wanted to press her lips together to ensure the lip balm was applied evenly but Hitsugaya's fingers prevented her from doing so.

"Eh?"

The captain held Hinamori's chin firmly in his fingers and settled his thumb on the edge of her mouth. With one smooth motion, he cleanly wiped the newly applied lip balm across her lips, collecting a thin coat on his thumb. An amused glint flashed across his eyes and Hitsugaya gave Hinamori a smirk before flicking his tongue out to lick the lip balm off his thumb.

Taken by surprise, Hinamori stared at him in shock and…anticipation?

"Toushirou?"

As he gave the balm one final taste, Hitsugaya said, "You taste good with this on, but I still prefer how you taste naturally."

"…!" Hinamori was left speechless and she could only watch him with a persistent blush on her cheeks.

Seeing his partner so flustered gave Hitsugaya a sense of satisfaction. He brought his face closer to hers, stopping until their noses were almost touching. He gave her a half-smile that seemed to make her blush even harder. Realizing that he wasn't going to come any closer than that and that he was actually waiting for her to come to him, Hinamori mustered the courage to look him in the eye. Hesitantly, she closed her eyes and tilted her head to meet his lips in a shy kiss.

The tenth division captain smiled inwardly and pressed his lips more firmly on hers. In a moment of boldness and mischief, Hitsugaya brought out his tongue to lick her lips. One flick of his tongue was more than enough to make her squeak in surprise. As if that wasn't enough for him, he caught Hinamori's bottom lip between his lips and sucked, earning himself a moan from her. The brown-eyed girl felt something stir in her heart as boldness took control. She slipped her tongue in when Hitsugaya covered his mouth over hers yet again. Needless to say, her boldness surprised him a little but he welcomed her and a playful fight for dominance ensued soon after.

When oxygen became a need, they broke apart with their foreheads still touching.

"Momo."

"Hm?"

"As I thought, I still prefer how you taste naturally."

-Owari-

Just a drabble.

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