Chapter 34: Do you want to?
She opened her eyes, and gasped. The room had a million flowers in it. She shot up, her hair still messy, and rubbed her eyes just to make sure that she was not dreaming. The room was adorned with flowers that seemed to cascade down her bed up to the door.
She looked beside her and was not too surprised to see a letter from a certain Toushiro. She picked it up and grinned.
Dear Karin,
Want to have dinner with me later?
Love,
Toushiro
P.S: Did you like the flowers? I was the one who set them up. You look beautiful while you sleep.
Karin giggled, and then placed the letter on her bed. She lied down again and put her arms up to her head and sighed. She liked the fact that Toushiro made his way to do something special for her, but she was wondering if he had something to do with it.
After all, why the flowers? There was a reason for it. Was it…?
No. Or was it…
She was confused, she didn't know anything, and suddenly the flowers looked wilted.
He tried to propose last night… I'm sure of it.
HT/KK
Toushiro sneaked out of his room and nudged Matsumoto, who he forced to sleep at the administration office that night. She grumbled and looked at him, she had a goofy face on.
"T-Taicho?" she muttered. It was early in the morning, and she wasn't in the mood to do her paperwork. Toushiro nudged her again.
"Get up. We're going to Karin's." said Toushiro, then he blushed when Matsumoto looked at him. She smiled, and then stood up.
"What are you planning?" she asked, her face anxious, but there was amusement in it. It was full of it, actually.
‑
"Don't ask questions. Just come with me, I need your help." he said. Matsumoto nodded slowly, then followed her captain out of the office and she gasped loudly at what she saw.
"TAICHO!" she cried in shock.
The whole ground was full of flowers, and they were in different colors. Toushiro grinned.
"I managed to gather it the whole night." he said, his words full of pride. Matsumoto looked at him.
"All night?" now that she thought of it, her captain looked tired, and his eyes were red. His robes were dirty too. Luckily, he washed his hands, but there were traces of mud on his fingernails.
Toushiro nodded then picked a flower up.
"Now, I want to surprise Karin this morning, and you have to help me decorate her room." said Toushiro. Matsumoto smiled at him.
"That's really nice of you, taicho. I didn't know you were such a sweetie." said Matsumoto, her eyebrow raised interestedly. "Wait, how did you know she was here? I didn't remember telling you.."
Then her eyes widened. She definitely said so much.
Toushiro glared at her. She squirmed.
"You knew?" he growled. Matsumoto nodded slowly, and then she grinned sheepishly at him.
"I wanted to surprise you!" she cried. "I mean, you'd probably take her on if you found out she was studying at the academy."
"MATSUMOTO!" he boomed.
She ran away, and Toushiro clenched his fists and ran after her.
HT/KK
He opened the door quietly and tiptoed in. There she was, in a small futon, sleeping. He sighed in relief. He looked out the door and muttered for Matsumoto to come in. She nodded and snuck in.
"Taicho." she whispered. He looked at her, she pointed out the window at the overflowing flowers. "Should we put them in now?"
Toushiro nodded.
"Get them in, and make sure that none of them get blown away." he added, and bent over next to Karin.
He looked at her calm face. She really did look different. She looked like a woman. Unlike 4 years ago, in the soccer field, though she looked like a woman, she didn't have the gentleness and the strange aura of one.
She was beautiful, and he loved her. He bent over at her, and pushed a strand away from her face and bit his lip.
‑
"Karin…" he whispered. She didn't move, but her mouth started moving.
"Toushiro…" she said, her voice tiny. She was dreaming about him, and that made him smile.
Matsumoto got in, a million flowers next to her, but she muttered about having a million more outside. Toushiro sighed and got out, sending Karin a last smile of adoration.
HT/KK
"Finally!" burst Matsumoto eagerly as they stepped out of the room, sending the flower incrusted palace a last look. Toushiro looked at her and smiled at her for once.
"Thank you, Matsumoto. It would have taken me hours if it weren't for you." said Toushiro truthfully.
Matsumoto flushed for a little bit, and then waved it off.
"Not a problem, taicho. But if I can ask… Why?" she asked. Toushiro looked away, blushing.
"It's none of your business." he muttered. Matsumoto looked at him amusedly, smirked and crossed her arms.
"Well, if you want to propose to her so badly, you don't have to do something extravagant like that." she said, her voice indicating that she knew things.
"I want to! Besides—"then he stopped and looked at her like she was an elf rather than a fukutaicho. "How'd you know?"
"Oh, I found that ring in the office last night, and I sort of figured." she said. Toushiro gritted his teeth.
"If you tell ANYONE about this, I am going to strip you off you're badge before you even realize it!" he said loudly. Matsumoto groaned.
"What! Taicho…" she begged. Toushiro sent her a death glare, which sobered her up immediately.
HT/KK
"Good morning!" burst an overly-chipper Karin that morning at the 11th squad dojo. Ikkaku, Yumichika and another guy were there and they seemed to have been fighting for hours now.
"Ah, Kurosaki-san!" shouted the guy. He had a twirl of a mustache, and he was incredibly ugly.
"Who are you?" asked Karin, a little bit rudely. The man groaned and bowed low.
"I am Aramaki Makizou! But you may call me MakiMaki." he said. Karin smiled at the name, and Ikkaku eyed her.
"Why so happy today, Karin?" he asked. Karin giggled, which caused both Ikkaku and Yumichika to raise an eyebrow at each other.
But before she could answer, the door banged open to reveal a very hasty looking Zaraki and a over-dosed with chocolate Yachiru.
‑
"OHAAAYOOOOOOO!" cried Yachiru, who started laughing. Zaraki rolled his eyes.
"Good morning, taicho, fukutaicho." bowed the three. Karin however remained standing, and she was practically drooling.
Zaraki looked at her.
"The hell is wrong with this woman?" he asked. Then he grinned. "Probably needs a beating up."
Ikkaku sighed.
"We don't know. But she doesn't seem herself." he said. Yumichika stood in front of her and raised her chin. Karin giggled.
"She smells like flowers. Beautiful flowers to be exact." said Yumichika. Ikkaku went nearer and sniffed her.
"You're right! Karin! Karin!" he called out next to her ear. Karin looked at him dreamily.
"Yeah?" she asked slowly, her eyes unfocused.
"WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU!" he burst. Karin snapped out and punched him flat on the face.
"Stupid! You don't have to scream next to my ear!" she cried, and she was about to punch him again, when he stood up and smirked.
"Now that is the Karin I know. What's going on with you?" he asked. Yumichika, MakiMaki, Zaraki and Yachiru were all eyeing her.
"I-I…" she blushed. Then she darted her eyes from the door to them. Then she dashed out.
Ikkaku rubbed his face and looked at them.
"Looks like they're facing the music." he said. Yumichika smiled.
"That's so beautiful." he said, his hands together.
"Ken-chan, I want more chocolate." begged Yachiru, with puppy dog eyes. Zaraki looked at her then grinned.
"I would give some to you, if I wanted you to kill the whole of soul society." he said, seeming to have ideas of his own. Yachiru groaned and looked over at Ikkaku, who immediately backed off.
HT/KK
Karin debated whether she should go visit Toushiro or just wait for him to pick her up later for their date. And she decided the latter. It would probably best for her to get prepared for whatever was going to happen later. She then flashed a smile as an idea popped in her mind.
"I HAVE TO VISIT GANJU!" she burst, and ran as fast as she could to the 11th squad again, so she could get actual permission.
‑
When she finally got out of the gate to Rukongai, she whistled as she saw a million kids prying to get a glimpse of her.
"Look onii-chan! A shinigami!" a kid screamed at an embarrassed adult. Karin laughed inwardly.
The people from Rukongai were starting to get attached to her, and for some reason she felt certain warmth towards them. Probably the feeling of wanting to protect? She didn't know.
All she knew was that ever since she started at the academy, things were going so smoothly, that the poverty of Rukongai seemed to be not a problem for her.
She finally arrived at the house of the Shiba clan. She memorized the path years ago, and it was a cinch to her that she didn't need the usual boars to get her there.
She knocked on the door, and the two twins started bombarding her with a million questions, but before she could stutter the usual answer, Ganju popped out of nowhere and hugged her so tight she almost popped a vein.
"Ganju!" she gasped. Ganju laughed and let her go.
"Karin, what are you doing here?" he asked. Karin giggled and smiled at him.
"Toushiro is going to propose." she said. Ganju gaped at her then gave he another hug, but this time it was bone-crushing.
"Ganju!" she gasped again, but this time out of amusement.
"I can't believe it! But… How did you know?" he asked. Karin blushed.
"Fine, I have to admit, he didn't say anything. But I have a pretty good idea that he will. He gave me a million flowers this morning adorning my room!" she burst. Ganju raised an eyebrow.
"I didn't think you would be the type of person who would be interested in flowers, Karin-chan." he said. Karin laughed.
"Yeah, that makes the two of us! I didn't think he would send me flowers either. But I guess he really knows me better than I know myself." she said. Ganju smiled at her.
"My little sister's finally getting married, eh?" he said. Karin giggled. Little sister?
"Yeah, anyway, I was just wondering if you could help me make it extra special?" she asked. Ganju nodded.
"Say no more, I have the perfect idea." he said. Karin smiled, and then a hand grasped Ganju's shoulders which caused him to jump.
Kuukaku looked at Karin and grinned.
"Congratulations. And by the way, I have a better idea than his." she said. Ganju grimaced, as Kuukaku dragged Ganju inside. Karin followed.
HT/KK
‑
Toushiro groaned at the pieces of paperwork that landed in front of him that afternoon.
"MATSUMOTO!" he screamed. But as usual, she was nowhere to be found. He scratched his head.
"I don't have time for this. I have to prepare for…" but then a glimmer caught his eye. On the floor was the ring he was supposed to give Karin.
The ring was a product of Sereitei, and only a few shinigami knew where to find it. Obviously, that would be him and Byakuya. The ring was lying on the floor, and it was gathered with dust.
He cursed and bent over to pick it up, and he wanted to kill the person who accidently knocked it over upon delivering the death named paperwork.
As he tried to clean it, it wasn't working. The diamond that sparkled seemed to be completely dirty, and he didn't know what to do.
Suddenly, his zanpakuto glimmered, and he took it out.
His head sparked an idea, and he immediately sealed his reiatsu, and ran to the nearest deserted forest.
HT/KK
Karin was walking back to the gate, amused at Kuukaku's brainy ideas.
"Karin, I'm guessing that you want some fireworks?" she asked Karin, who nodded. Ganju mumbled something, but Kuukaku decided to ignore it this time.
"Then I'll handle that. Just order the gate guardian clear for us to pass this evening, and I'll get everything straight. You get back to Sereitei and get ready." She said.
She wondered what she planned to do, but as she was about to get nearer Sereitei, Hyourinmaru and his reiatsu popped out of nowhere.
"TOUSHIRO!" she cried. What was happening?
She ran as fast a she could to the gate and practically bounded to the reiatsu that she didn't want to feel at all.
HT/KK
Toushiro finally finished, and he pocketed the ring and was about to get back when a couple of reiatsu started coming to where he was, and to his shock, Karin was coming too.
"Oh damn! I should have realized that Hyourinmaru would get this much attention." he growled to himself, and he jumped to the bush nearby and sealed his reiatsu, in time to see Karin pop up out of nowhere looking worried.
Karin was looking at the ground that seemed to be partially frozen, and she clutched her arms.
"Toushiro… Why are you hiding in a bush?" she asked. Toushiro froze as the ground below him.
"What?" he whispered to himself. He hid his reiatsu perfectly, but how did she know he was there?
‑
"Come on out. You know that you can't hide that pure white hair of yours." she said in amusement.
Toushiro groaned and stood up, his face beet red in embarrassment. So much for hiding.
Karin was looking at him and she was silently laughing, while Toushiro blushed.
"Toushiro, why ARE you hiding? And why DID I feel Hyourinmaru a few seconds ago?" she asked. Toushiro bit his lip and felt the ring in his pocket.
"Can't tell you, anyway, did you like the flowers?" he asked. Karin raised her eyebrow in the change of subject, but she responded eagerly.
"I loved them! How did you manage to get them all in my room?" she asked. Toushiro grinned and said,
"Let's just say, they were a handful." he said. Karin smiled at him.
Then she grabbed his arm and Toushiro smiled at her.
"Thanks." she said. Toushiro took her hands in his and hugged her. Then he sniffed her.
"You smell good, Karin." he said. Karin giggled as she eyed the dirty nails of Toushiro.
Picked them by yourself, huh?
HT/KK
Karin smoothed down the kimono that she managed to borrow from an all too willing Rukia, who was giggling all the while at the fact that Hitsugaya taicho was going to get married.
"Karin, you look great!" cried Rukia as she peeked out of her hands. Karin grinned, and blushed.
"Ya think? He would think that I was over-dressed." she said. Rukia smiled at her.
"Trust me, the fact that you are dressing up like this would make him want you more." said Rukia. Karin giggled and felt the nerves get to her.
Rukia fixed her hair, and Karin watched as her hair turned from her usual ponytail to a nice bun with pink sakura petals attached to it.
"Do you think he's going to propose?" asked Karin. Rukia looked at her then blinked.
"Yes, Karin. And by looks of what you told me about that night, he was about to." said Rukia, who sighed. "That's so romantic; I wish the one I love would propose to me too."
"You love someone, Rukia-chan?" asked Karin slyly. Rukia blushed, and then bit her lip.
"I-I uhh…"
"Don't worry, I won't tell Ichi-nii." said Karin, who watched as Rukia's already pink face turn redder than red.
‑
"Was I that obvious?" she asked. Karin shook her head.
"I just realized actually when I first met you…" she said.
"Huh?" asked Rukia, her face still red. Karin grinned.
"You kissed him, didn't you?"
"So, how do you know Toushiro?" asked Ichigo, ignoring Rukia.
"He asked me out… We have a date tomorrow." said Karin. Rukia laughed then hugged her knees tightly.
"Yeah right… Him asking a human? Impossible." she said.
"He did." said Karin quietly.
Rukia stared. Ichigo was slowly turning purple and he looked like he wanted to strangle someone.
"What? Why that little white-haired kid! I forbid you to go out with such!" cried the over protective brother.
Karin rolled her eyes and smirked at his feeble attempts to jump out the window (Rukia had him on a headlock).
"Let go of me Rukia! Im going to strangle that son of a—"
But then Rukia clamped his mouth shut and pushed him in the closet, she slammed it shut, the silence. A very long silence.
Then they emerged. Ichigo was flushed. Rukia looked triumphant.
"So, dinner anyone?" asked Rukia.
"W-Well… Not really." she said. Karin laughed. By the looks of it, she did.
HT/KK
Toushiro held the ring in his hand, practicing what he was going to tell her. Matsumoto, who was doing some paperwork (forced), watched and smiled as her taicho struggled for the right words that dared pour out of his mouth.
"K-Karin… I love you, and I want to be with you… Uhm… Forever!" he said loudly. Matsumoto burst out laughing.
"Taicho, that's too direct!" she said. Toushiro glared at her, and sighed.
"I don't know if I could do this." he said. Matsumoto looked at him sympathetically and said,
"If there was one thing you should know is that the right words always come from the heart. No amount of practice is needed to say what you want to say." she said. Toushiro looked at his ring that glimmered.
"You're right." he muttered. Matsumoto smirked and hugged her taicho, who struggled from her hug. Too tight!
‑
"Matsumoto…" he growled. She grinned at him and let go.
"I'm so proud of you, taicho. You finally learned how to show emotions." she said.
"What are you talking about? I am a very emotional man." he said, his face showing no emotion at all. Matsumoto laughed.
"Whatever you say, taicho." she said and saluted. Toushiro pocketed the ring and crossed his arms.
"Get back to work." he said. Matsumoto groaned.
"Come on, I gave you good advice!" she said loudly. Toushiro smirked at her.
"I have advice for you. If you want to keep your seat, get back to work." he said. Matsumoto sighed.
"Yessir."
Toushiro smirked and walked out of the room, the ring vibrating in excitement.
HT/KK
The dark sky shined down at her as the kimono reflected it. Rukia left her a few hours ago, and she loved just being able to stay still, it was more comfortable. And she was waiting for Toushiro.
It's been a long time since there last date, and Karin was getting tired of the huge gaps every time, their last date was nothing much though, but it mattered a lot to her.
Karin knocked on the door, and it opened instantly.
"Karin." said Toushiro, and then he let her in.
"Hey Toushiro, so what are we going to do?" she asked.
"There is some peet saw." he said, and pointed to the direction of the kitchen.
"You mean, Pizza." said Karin, with a giggle.
Toushiro blushed and guided Karin to the kitchen, his hand on her waist.
She smirked at the thought and her legs sagged a bit. She was getting tired, but she couldn't sit on the floor because her kimono will be drenched with dirt. A breeze entered her mind, it was mixed with the scent of flowers and she closed her eyes.
"Toushiro…" she whispered in the air. The air whispered back.
"Karin?"
Karin opened her eyes in shock, as she saw Toushiro standing a few feet from her, his face etched with shock.
‑
HT/KK
Toushiro walked over to the living quarters of the 11th squad, his legs wobbly, and he was nervous. How do you propose to a woman? He wished he asked Byakuya for some advice, but he knew that would be useless.
Finally, he arrived there, and spotted a beautiful woman standing in her porch, her eyes closed. Her hair was fixed in a bun, and she looked great.
Wait, was that Karin? There's no way.
He walked nearer, and her still closed eyes made him wonder who she really was. Then she called his name out.
"Toushiro…" she whispered. Toushiro raised an eyebrow and realized that this WAS Karin. In a kimono, no less. First, the shinigami outfit, now the kimono. She was definitely full of surprises.
"Karin?" he called out. She opened her eyes and looked at him.
Then she laughed nervously, and stepped down. But her foot caught on a rock, and she tripped.
"Wahhh!" she cried, she thought this was the end of her.
Until, Toushiro caught her with a swift movement of his arms. Karin gasped as she was an inch from his face. And he put her straight and looked at her worriedly.
"Are you okay?" he asked. Karin smirked.
"Concerned?" she said. Toushiro blushed.
"Of course!" he cried, his dignity intact. Karin laughed and took his hands.
"Come on, let's go. I'm starving." she said. Toushiro nodded, and his heart started beating a million beats a second.
HT/KK
Karin looked at Toushiro's face, and he seemed pale.
"Toushiro, why do you look like you've seen a ghost?" asked Karin. Toushiro sniffed and gulped.
They food between them was gone, and it looked like he couldn't stall any longer.
"K-Karin…" he said. Karin raised an eyebrow as Toushiro grabbed her hands. They were cold.
She laughed inwardly.
"Yes, Toushiro?" she asked, getting excited for words.
"I-I…"
"Yes?"
‑
"W-Will…"
"Yes?"
"Uhmm…"
"Toushiro, spit it out will you?" she cried, getting annoyed. Toushiro blushed and went down on bended knees. Karin blushed, and her eyes widened.
OH MY GOD.
He really plans to propose!!
What to do… What to do!!
Okay, calm down.
Karin gulped. Toushiro gulped.
Come on, Hitsugaya.
You're a captain for goodness sake, this should be a cinch!
Oh yeah? I don't remember studying proposal in the academy!
Oh yeah.
Damn.
Toushiro mustered all the courage he had and took placed his hand in his pocket and took Karin's hand. Karin froze, but she was anticipating it already. It wasn't time to back out.
Okay, Matsumoto said it would come out naturally.
Baka! She never proposed to anyone!
He cursed Matsumoto and wished that he practiced what to say. Too late.
He took the ring, which turned cold in his touch. Then he looked Karin in the eye, and she in turn, looked back.
"I remember when I first met you." he said. Karin nodded, and she smiled.
"I do too… I will never forget it."
"I never expected picking up a soccer ball and handing it back to a human would get me this far." he said. Karin giggled. "Kurosaki Karin, I love you."
Karin blushed and squeezed his hand.
‑
"I love you more, Hitsugaya Toushiro."
"That's why I was hoping that maybe… If you want… You could be my wife?" he said, his words in a stutter. Karin stared at him in shock.
Okay, she expected this. But she didn't expect the feeling of love over flowing them. Toushiro was looking at her, and her body began to melt as he showed her the ring that was in his hands.
It was beautiful. The diamond was in a pure color blue, and it seemed to be moving. The ring band looked like it was frozen. Toushiro blinked up at her hopefully.
Karin didn't know what to say. It was a YES! But she couldn't say it… She was too stunned.
"Well… Do you want to?" he asked, his voice sounding a little too hopeful. Karin smiled at him, feeling some tears in her eyes.
"Do I want to?" she said. Toushiro gulped. "Hitsugaya Toushiro… You didn't even have to ask!"
Toushiro wasn't able to register what she said, when her body banged into his and their lips met together. Toushiro grabbed her shoulders and met with her eyes.
"You do?" he said, wanting to hear her yes. Karin smiled at him.
"Yes."
Then it looked like on cue, red fireworks shot up from out of nowhere and formed a heart.
"WHOA!" cried Karin in shock. Toushiro looked shocked too, but he was really too happy to care.
Then the fireworks formed into a million bursting soccer balls. Karin grinned up at it and said,
"That Ganju."
Toushiro looked at her happy face.
"What?" he asked. Karin shook her head and shrugged and buried her head on his shoulders. Toushiro hugged back, feeling happier than he ever did in his whole life.
"I love you."
"I love you too."
HT/KK
Karin shot up her futon and put a hand in her hair.
Was it a dream?
‑
She closed her eyes and wished upon all the stars in heaven that it wasn't just a dream. Then she saw the flowers still gathered around her room and she laughed at herself and buried her head in her pillow.
"Hitsugaya Karin." she whispered and laughed like a maniac.
Then the door banged open, the hinges almost falling off to reveal Rukia and Matsumoto, their eyes wider than wide.
"Well?" they asked at the same time.
Karin laughed and a then she realized that her hands were heavy. She looked at it; the rock was shining on it.
Toushiro put the ring on her dainty finger.
"That has a piece of Hyourinmaru in it. So that means it has a piece of me. And when I'm not with you, you would know that I will always be." he said. Karin smiled and kissed him gently.
"You don't have to say that. Because I will be with you forever, like it or not." said Karin. Toushiro laughed.
"What have I gotten myself into?" he said, faking anxiousness. Karin laughed at him and kissed him harder.
"WELL?!" the two burst again. Karin looked at them and raised her hand. They both squealed and looked at it their eyes wide.
"It has Hyourinmaru in it!" cried Matsumoto in shock.
"So that's why I felt its reiatsu yesterday." said Rukia thoughtfully. Karin giggled.
"So Karin, how do you feel?" asked Matsumoto. Karin grinned at her, then lied down on her bed again. Then screamed with all her might,
"I'M GETTING MARRIED!"
Matsumoto and Rukia laughed and celebrated with her.
HT/KK
Toushiro sat on the office, the pile of paperwork was still overwhelming.
"Who cares?" he said to them. Then he stood up and smiled at the early sun.
"I'm getting married." he said. Then it finally sank in to him.
The hell, he was!
HT/KK
Love, it had its ups and downs. It had its sacrifices, it had its guilt. It had its joy, and it had its sadness.
But no matter what happens with love, true love really does prevail the test of time.
Even if it takes them nine years to finally figure it out!