Demand for Canon: Seriously, Hitsugaya and Karin-chan have never even meet in the manga? And there's only this one episode where they played soccer in the anime. I demand more. Hitsugaya and Karin make a great couple! While I browsing through the net for some HitsuKarin fanarts, I came across this artwork of E—L—M—ODeviantArt. Oh, gosh, the scene is just wonderful. The expressions and the closeness are to die for here. It's one of the best HitsuKarin arts I have ever laid eyes on. The link to the art is found in my profile.

Disclaimer: I don't own Bleach. I only own this story.

A Picture of Words
By: JcZala

Art Inspiration by: E—L—M—O
Bleach Pairing: Toushirou Hitsugaya & Karin Kurosaki
Six Remaining Days: A Memorable Summer

It was another ordinary summer day. No missions and no hollows to hunt down. Everything had been peaceful over the past several months after Sousuke Aizen's defeat. Though there was freedom from strife, the scars of battle have not completely healed from everyone's heart, including his own scars. He had started training harder and more diligently, as he made a vow to get stronger. But his obsession for training made a certain Lieutenant worried, thus suggesting that he should take a week off. He objected to this, of course, but with the help of her friends, they practically dragged him to the Real World and got him inside a gigai, modified to hold his soul for a week.

This time he was sitting in the apartment of a friend, Orihime Inoue, tuning in and out of a soccer game on TV. It was so good of Orihime to take him in, despite his lieutenant's persistence. She was out for the day, and he was bored to death. Perhaps if he was like any ordinary teenager, he would be hanging out with his school friends by now. But he wasn't. He was older than he looks and he was one of the captains of the 13 Court Guards.

Just then, his cell phone rang. The number on the call display was an unknown caller. After letting his phone ring five times, he pressed the answer button and placed the phone over his ear. "Hitsugaya here," he said.

"Toushirou, you free today?"

This voice—It belonged to Karin Kurosaki, Ichigo's little sister.

"How the hell did you get this number?"

"Got it from Orihime-chan," Karin answered. "So, are you free?"

He shrugged. "I'm bored as hell. Why?"

"Meet me at the park at 2 o'clock sharp! Don't be late!" After that she hung up.

That was one quick call. As usual she was pretty demanding. He had met her before and even played soccer with her. They needed his help pretty badly, and he couldn't say no after witnessing the sheer determination she had. Why was she asking him to meet him? That he had no idea, but it would better than staying home all day.

He left the apartment and got to the park exactly at two, where he saw Karin Kurosaki in the flesh. She was the same person, but she looked a bit different now. One thing for sure, her body sure had grown in certain places, and her dark hair was longer and tied in a ponytail. She wore a sleeveless white hoodie and khaki shorts with a pair of black-white sneakers.

He came in his black tennis shirt and blue jeans, yet it did not do justice against the hot weather. "What did you call me out here for?" he asked.

"You're a kid. You're supposed to be enjoying summer, you know."

"First of all, I'm not a kid," he said, narrowing his gaze at her. "And what's so good about the summer? It's too hot."

"Orihime-chan did tell me that you hated the sun." Karin grabbed onto his wrist. "Come on, let's talk someplace else. I know this great cafe and it's air-conditioned." Without giving him the chance to respond, she hauled him away.

As soon as they found their seats at the cafe, the waitress came over and took their orders. When that was done, she excused herself politely and went away.

"Now tell me what this is about."

Karin slammed a sheet of paper down on the table. "This is our list of things to do for the last six days of summer," she said, grinning proudly, and Toushirou arched a brow. "Dude, you need to lighten up since we're gonna do all sorts of things together."

"What the hell?" He looked through the list and sighed. "It's a pass for me."

"You don't have a say on this," she said.

The waitress came by and placed their drinks on the table; a Coke float for Toushirou and Chocolate Mousse for Karin.

"I have the right to decline," Toushirou pressed on, sipping his cola through the straw.

"This time you don't," Karin retorted. He took a sip of her drink as she picked up the list. "I'll go pick you up early tomorrow." She folded up the list carefully and slipped it into her pocket.

"You can't be serious, Kurosaki."

"Oh, I'm dead serious."

He sighed and took a sip of coke. It looks like he was going to spend the summer like other kids do. He figured it wouldn't be too bad since he wasn't going to spend it with a total stranger. He made a mental note to tell Orihime later.

Karin's call woke him up from his sleep the next morning, 5 AM to be exact. Talk about an early riser! Karin was pretty serious for their summer get-together. She called to remind him once more about their meeting. Was she doing this to annoy him? Or was it because she was excited?

The call also woke up Orihime, and she asked him if the caller was Karin. "She's getting on my last nerves," he replied, running a hand through his hair. "Kurosaki's persistent."

Orihime tucked some stray orange hair behind her ear. "That's Karin-chan all right," she said with a giggle.

And the Summer Event began!

On the first day, he and Karin went swimming at a pool with a bunch of her classmates. To his utter dismay, her female classmates couldn't stop pestering him with questions. They were quite interested in him, saying how cute he looked and how mature he was for his age. It was tiring to hang out with them, but he couldn't be rude. Also it seemed like he wasn't the only one bothered by how the girls swarmed around him. Karin looked very, very annoyed.

The event for the following day was mountain biking. Handling the slopes and downhill were no biggie for them. He had admitted to himself that he was rather impressed with Karin's endurance and speed. She was like on fire as she enjoyed the wind against her face. It was a breath of fresh air to see her enjoying herself so much.

Third Day was hectic since they had to do a part-time job in a Cosplay Cafe. The manager went crazy with the costumes and forced him to wear outfits like Cloud Strife from FFVII and Gray Fullbuster from Fairy Tail.Karin went for outfits that were worn by tomboyish Anime characters like Cagalli Yula Athha from Mobile Suit Gundam SEED.

It was hiking and camping for Day 4 and 5. Some of Karin's classmates came along with them and set up camp in the mountains.

And the agenda for the sixth day was the Festival. Karin had him up early once again for this particular event. He headed to the meeting place, which happened to be the Kurosaki household. When he got there he received a not-so-welcoming greeting from Isshin Kurosaki, dubbed as the idiot father by Karin and Ichigo. Why? Well, being the oh-so-caring and protective father that he was, Isshin warned him not to do anything 'funny' with his precious daughter. Was the father under the impression that he was dating Karin? The very idea sent shivers down his spine.

It was a good thing Karin came in and hauled him back into the house for making such a fuss.

"Don't pay attention to my stupid old man," Karin said with a shrug.

"Good morning to you, Hitsugaya-kun," a petite light-haired girl said as she stepped outside. It was the twin sister, Yuzu Kurosaki. She was Karin's complete opposite. Karin was feisty and a tomboy, while Yuzu was a bubbly and gentle girl with a knack for cooking and cleaning, as what he had heard from Karin herself. She had her hair in two low pigtails. She wore a short-sleeved blue cardigan over a pink knee-length dress. "I've heard so much about you from Karin-chan. She talks about you non-stop everyday during dinner time."

Karin got flustered and lightly punched Yuzu's arm. "I do not!" she retorted. "You're exaggerating, Yuzu!"

He raised a brow at this.

Clearing her throat, Karin looked at him from head to toe. "Do you have a yukata?" she asked.

He has loads of it, but they were back in Soul Society. "No, I don't," he replied.

"Yuzu and I need new yukata and there's a place I saw in the shopping district where they were selling a set with just the right price. We're going there."

"I don't think it's necessary for me to wear one for the festival," he said.

Karin shook her head. "No, you're gonna wear one too!" she said, crossing her arms.

He sighed. Why can't he just say no to this girl?

Yuzu dragged her sister into the store, picked out the patterns she liked, and pushed her into the dressing room. Putting on a yukata was quite complicated as it looked. It was a good thing that Yuzu was an expert. It sure took up a lot of time just to put on the yukata. When all was done, the twins stepped out of the dressing room and went in front of a full-length mirror.

Pink-colored, Cherry Blossom-patterned yukata for Yuzu, which suited her character well, while Karin had festival flowers and orb patterns on her violet yukata—both looked very stunning. However, he was most awed at Karin. Her hair had been released from its ponytail and flowed a bit past her shoulder.

"Karin-chan, you look so cute!" Yuzu said excitedly. "Violet is totally your color."

Karin seemed very uncomfortable as she kept fidgeting with her obi sash. He figured that she wasn't used to such getup. "It's a bit tight in the chest, Yuzu..." And when she said that, he simply turned his head away. He can't deny the fact that she had assets which were rare for girls her age.

"It's time to choose a yukata for Hitsugaya-kun," Yuzu said, darting towards the men's side, leaving him and Karin alone.

"If you ask me, I'd rather not wear this to the festival, but I don't want to dampen her mood," Karin said as she watched her sister hunt for the right yukata. "It looks weird on me, don't you think?" She turned her head to him.

He had his hands in his pockets and a bored face when he looked at her. Karin in yukata? Weird? Hell no! She looked very elegant, but he could not bring himself to say that to her. "You look fine to me," he said.

There was a slight blush on her face that she quickly hid away by turning her head. "You're just saying that. Come on, I can take the truth. I know that someone like me isn't fit to wear ladylike clothes."

"Even if you're every bit of a tomboy, you're still a girl. I know you're not used to wearing a yukata, but I just want you to know that it unexpectedly suits you."

Her red stain on her cheeks became deeper in shade. "Um...Thanks...I guess..."

The Summer Festival was buzzing with people when they've arrived. Toushirou, who was wearing a royal blue yukata, felt discouraged to see such a huge crowd, but it was a different case for the Kurosaki sisters who looked equally excited for the festival. He had attended such festivals before together with his childhood friend and lieutenant. Those two would drag him from stand to stand, forcing him to play games and win prizes for them. Though he found them annoying, he sure did have a lot of fun with them.

They hit the stand where you have to shoot targets to win toys. Karin hit the target without any problems and asked Toushirou to give it a try as well. Like Karin, he hit the target effortlessly. Karin took the bunny rabbit toy, while Toushirou got the white tiger toy as the prize. Both of them gave the prizes to Yuzu.

After playing two more games and winning a flower necklace and a Masked Rider mask for Yuzu, they bought some takoyaki and took a seat on a stone bench. Yuzu almost did all the talking as they munched on their delicious food. It was entertaining to hear stories of their childhood, and Toushirou learned more about Karin. Yuzu eventually told him about their mother and he quickly noticed a frown on Karin's face.

Just as they were ready to join the festivities again, Yuzu's close friends from school came and invited her to join them. Yuzu, of course, asked Karin if it was okay. Karin had no problems with it just as long as she gets home in time. As Yuzu scurried off with her friends, Karin and Toushirou were left alone.

"Hey, let's take a look at the other stands," Karin suggested.

"Sure, whatever," he replied nonchalantly.

As they walked through the busy crowd, they got spotted by two of Karin's girl friends from school. One was a brunette with short cropped hair and she was wearing a yellow colored, goldfish-patterned yukata. While the other one was a bespectacled blue-haired girl with braided pigtails and her yukata was green with flower patterns. Both of them greeted Karin with their best smiles before they started ogling Toushirou. They also thought that he was her boyfriend, which she strongly denied. Then when one of them began flirting with him, Karin couldn't help but feel irritated. And Toushirou wasn't doing anything to drive them away. The brunette girl went as far as inviting him to watch the fireworks with her and gave him a light peck on his cheek. Karin clenched her hands as she burned with rage.

Toushirou wasn't comfortable at all with the attention. He wanted to be as far away from these girls. But when he suggested going someplace else Karin snapped at him and marched away. He raised a brow, wondering what he could have done to make her angry. Not bothering to excuse himself from the girls, he ran after Karin. He called out to her, telling her to wait up, but she kept moving along. This was very unlike her.

And before he realized it, she disappeared into the crowd.

Toushirou still could not find Karin. He had sought out Yuzu's assistance to cover more ground. They've searched every stand, every corner, but to no avail. As they came to rest by the riverbank, they spotted an old shack there. Letting her curiosity flare, Yuzu approached the rickety shock and peeked inside. Though at first it seemed like nobody was home, Yuzu popped her head through the window and saw a girl lying down on the tatami floor. And the instant she recognized the person, she called out to Toushirou.

"It's really Karin-chan," Yuzu said as they entered the shack quietly. "And she's asleep."

The moon served as the only light source and its ethereal glow illuminated Karin's features perfectly. Toushirou can't help but be awed by the unexpected beauty she possessed.

Yuzu was about to wake her sister up when she saw her swollen ankle. "Karin-chan's hurt. She must have tripped somewhere. I'll go search for a first-aid kit." She reached for Toushirou's hand and looked straight at him in the eye. "Please take care of Karin-chan for me in the meantime, okay? Thank you!" She bowed her head and ran past him in a hurry.

Toushirou sighed and went to sit down right beside her. "This is what you get for running off like that," he muttered under his breath as he gazed down at her face. "Just why did you act that way?" He lay down on his back, positioning his hands behind his hair.

Karin had been energetic the whole time they were together, though he would notice her scowl every time a girl approaches him. But the summer had been a blast with her. Because of his responsibilities he had forgotten what it was like to be a kid. Karin really showed him a good time and he will always remember this summer. If it weren't for his lieutenant's request, he would never have enjoyed himself. The vacation was just what he needed. Maybe he should go buy something for her before he leaves for Soul Society.

His name suddenly escaped from her lips, making his heart skip a beat. Was she dreaming of him? The thought made him flush red a bit. That can't be right. Why would Karin Kurosaki dream of him? Just then, she snuggled up to him and grasped onto his yukata with her left hand. "K-Kurosaki...?" She was clearly asleep, much to his relief, but she was too close for comfort.

"Toushirou...let's play soccer again..." she mumbled in her sleep, and his lips curved into a smile.

So, Karin was really dreaming of him, and it made him quite happy. This was the last day of summer for the year, the last day before he resumes his duties as captain. And to be able to spend it with her was more like a blessing to him.

"Thank you, Kurosaki..." he whispered into her ear as he closed his eyes.

The door slid open and in came Yuzu, carrying some bandages and a bottle of ointment in her hands. "Umm...I'm sorry if I took so long," she said in between her pants. "I had to run to the pharmacy and—" She stopped dead in her tracks the moment she saw Toushirou and her sister sleeping together under the pale moonlight. "Wow...They look so cute together."

She knew something was up between the two of them. Karin had always talked about Toushirou ever since they got together for the summer. Karin may not realize it herself, but Yuzu can tell that she was falling for Toushirou. It made her heart flutter to see her sister together with the boy she liked and in such a position too! She would definitely tease Karin about this in the morning. For now she would just leave them be. To ruin such a perfect, tranquil moment would be a sin, she thought with a giggle.

"I'm sure the fireworks will wake them up later," she said, leaving the bandages and ointment by their side. "This is one summer you'll never forget. Sweet dreams, you two." She turned around on her heel and started to the door. She spared one more glance at the two before she closed the door.

THE END

JC: Seven and a half pages? I never expected it to be this long. My goal was 5 pages long, but it turned out this way. This is my first time writing a HitsuKarin fic and I simply had no idea how to portray them. They may come off as a bit OOC here, so I apologize for that. But I cannot resist Hitsugaya and Karin-chan, and the wonderful art really gave me the inspiration. You can find the art link in my profile, so just go there if interested. Please send me the reviews. No flaming. Now which couple should I focus on next?