Well hey everybody! A little hassled right now because I can read all of your fantastic reviews but I can't reply or login to fanfic because of a technical glitch or something. So… let's hope by coming Saturday I'll be able to update as usual, eh? Here's chapter 8! Read and review! ^_^

"Kurosaki… I… I really like you. Will you… go out with me?"

Chapter Eight: Countdown to Disaster

"Toushirou,"

He looked down from his seat on the roof of the Karakura clinic. Ichigo's black-haired younger sister stood there, staring up at him. The icy-cold Tenth Captain met her gaze steadily and they were silent as they stared at each other.

The atmosphere between them was so awkward and uncomfortable. It was strange.

Normally, Karin had a relaxed and cheerful smile on her face, especially whenever she looked at Hitsugaya. He had been slightly concerned about that in fact, the way her face brightened up whenever he was around. But now any hint or trace of a smile was gone from her face.

Instead, Karin's expression was hard and bitter. Her brown eyes were dark and harsh.

Hitsugaya met her expression with no problem. His icy cold eyes were hard and his facial expression one of cool casual boredom.

This went on for a couple more seconds and then Karin tore her gaze away from him and glowered at the ground in anger. Her hard composure slipped and her face scrunched up angrily as she demanded, "Why did you do it?"

Hitsugaya continued to stare at her, coldly, silently.

Karin's voice was unsteady, rising higher in her anger. "Toushirou, you know how much I don't like this 'dating' and 'liking' business! Why did you have to walk away and leave me alone with Jun?"

Karin wrenched her face from the ground and stared at him with intensity. And at that very moment, Hitsugaya realized.

"…hey," he said at last. "It's not like I would've been any help."

Karin crossed her arms tightly across her chest. "…I didn't know what to do, Toushirou!"

Hitsugaya sighed silently to himself. Wearily, he heaved himself up to his feet and then leapt down onto the road.

Standing there, watching Karin critically, he spoke again, "That boy Jun likes you. What's wrong with that?"

"I don't…" she trailed off, uncertain.

Hitsugaya turned and looked out down the street absentmindedly. "From what I've seen, he must be a pretty cool guy at your school, right? It seems that all the girls like him and he's very popular. And he's… nice to you and you find him good-looking, yeah?"

Karin grunted slightly in reply.

Hitsugaya looked at Karin questioningly. "So what's the problem?"

Karin sighed lightly and the scowl vanished from her face. She turned away from him, as though she was about to speak, and walked off slowly down the road, eyes worriedly searching the ground, thinking hard.

Hitsugaya watched her move away from him. Slowly, he followed after her as she finally slowed down around the corner, at Karakura park. Karin still hadn't said another word. She made her way to the swings and sat down, just staring at her feet resting on the ground.

"…Karin," he said.

Karin sighed, pushing off and starting to build up height as she swung.

Hitsugaya sat down on the swing beside her.

She slowed down to an even pace, swinging back and forth, back and forth.

Finally she looked at him and said, "Tell me about the person you liked."

"Why?" he asked carefully.

She shrugged. "You promised. You said someday."

Hitsugaya felt his heart grow heavy. Ah, and he'd been doing so well these last few days. He'd peeked at himself in the mirror and seen that at least the bags under his eyes were getting better and the dullness of his blue-green eyes was disappearing. Sure, he… still very rarely slept but that was okay. He didn't really need the sleep since he wasn't doing anything tiring here in Karakura.

He couldn't help the way his heart cringed. It was bad. It seemed to be foretelling something, as though it was telling him things would get worse, trouble was coming. Hitsugaya ignored the way his heart fell as he stared away from Karin.

"There's nothing to say."

She slowed straight down and stopped the swing. Tightening her fingers over the chains, she glared at him. "Toushirou, you owe me for ditching me yesterday."

They glowered at each other.

He gave up. "She didn't like me back, okay? Enough said."

And he swung his legs, moving the swing up higher and higher.

But it wasn't hard to miss the way his voice broke halfway in his sentence. And it was obvious reading the pain in his eyes as he spoke, how he tried to hide it by glancing away at that very moment.

"Well, why should I bother dating Jun then? It's not like anything good ever comes out of liking anybody." Karin muttered.

"At least he likes you!" Hitsugaya practically hissed, and Karin was startled at the slight anger in his tone.

"You like him, right?" he went on, his voice getting louder. "All the girls in your grade like him! Surely, you do too!"

Hitsugaya went on, "I've been watching out for him and from what I've seen… he really does like you. He seems honest and he looks like he'll really care for you. I wouldn't… worry about him or anything," he sent her a careful smile and she stared at him, wide-eyed in amazement.

And Hitsugaya knew all that, because well… he felt like he had to. After this last week, his time in Karakura, spending his days wandering and thinking, spending his nights watching over Karin sleep… something had happened.

He couldn't help it. At times, even though there was nobody there to see it, he found that he watched over her tenderly, and that he could not help the smile that would appear on his face.

It was a bit like responsibility to him. If Ichigo were to find out about Jun, then he would bankai that poor kid before he even got a word in. But Hitsugaya, he… he wanted Karin to have a chance.

And sure, she was a kid, but that made it all the better. When you're a carefree kid, when you're meant to have an easy going life, just with school and crazy family, you should be free to love, right?

A… carefree childish love was something he himself had not been blessed with.

Not when he was the Tenth Company Captain with so much weight and responsibility heaped onto his shoulders.

Maybe he had made a mistake telling her about how he'd liked a girl, that night on the roof. Karin was already… a lot more mature than the other kids around her. She had the knowledge of shinigami and Hollows, she bore what happened to her mother and was yet to know the truth about her father.

And Hitsugaya had put her off the idea of 'love' before she'd even understood it.

"I won't ever let myself fall in love with anyone!"

Hitsugaya smiled at himself, a small smile, in memory of her stubborn words.

He was different. There was no such thing as just a childish crush, or maybe a devoted liking. He had really… and truly fallen for Hinamori Momo. And with that falling, came the crashing.

So… he'd always been around, watching over Karin and her friends, looking at the way Jun blushed whenever she passed, seeing the way he struggled to gather up the courage to ask her out.

She should… be able to understand it. She should know that surely there was an upside to love.

Even though Hitsugaya himself didn't know what it was.

As Hitsugaya broke away from his thoughts, he realized that Karin was still, sitting there on the swing, still staring at him critically.

And as he hid the smirk attempting to appear, he noticed that his heart was feeling very light, very relaxed and without worries. He felt as though he was all right, as though everything was okay. As though, the time here in Karakura had just done its job and he felt like he could get back and captain over his division.

He was getting better now, right? His condition had to have improved! It had been like a week!! Surely…

Hanging out with Karin had relaxed him and knowing that after he left, there would be another guy to take care of her; he felt like his job here was done. Even though he was here to deliberately not be doing a job.

But there seemed to be just one thing missing, one little detail yet to be taken care of.

Karin was looking very uncomfortable, staring down at the ground. Hitsugaya swung slower on his swing as it slowed to a stop. He looked at her quizzically, his blue-green eyes questioning.

He frowned. "Karin… after Jun asked you, what did you say?"

She was deliberately silent, staring down at the ground as if it were the most interesting thing she'd ever seen.

Hitsugaya's voice grew more urgent as he asked, "Karin, what did you tell him?"

Karin didn't want to tell him.

And Hitsugaya felt any confidence or any belief that he had recovered vanish. He felt unsure, as though he had missed some vital thing.

Karin mumbled something, turning away from him so that her face was covered by her short black hair.

"What?" Hitsugaya frowned, growing annoyed.

"…no." Karin muttered again, louder. "I told him no."

Hitsugaya was silent for just a second, surprised. He recovered very quickly. His voice was slightly raised, annoyed. "What? Why??"

Karin heaved an irritated sigh. "Because I don't like him!"

Hitsugaya's frown deepened.

Karin went on, slowly, muttering, frowning. "Why should I go out with someone I don't like? And why… why should I even… be…"

She trailed off, not continuing.

Hitsugaya was irritated. She was flushing bright pink, but stubbornly did not look at him.

"I don't get why you told him no," he said. "You should've-"

"You know why I said no?" Karin said suddenly, glaring at him, loudly.

He was stunned into silence.

"I said no because I didn't like him! I… I liked someone else, okay??"

Hitsugaya stared.

"I…" her fire diminished as quickly as it had started. "…I like you… Toushirou."

End chapter 8!! Sorry for the long wait and the late update!! Well… Sorry that was a messy chapter. Next chapter will be really hectic and crazy 'cause we've got Hitsugaya's meltdown!! Ooh! Please review!! ^_^