Two months later found Rangiku Matsumoto and her friends at Kuchiki Records at her debut album's release party. She felt butterflies in her stomach as one by one her friends stood in front of everybody present and proclaimed her hard work and talent. Toushirou – for all his stoicism – practically beamed at her right side. She couldn't be happier that she had made him proud. Her first single from the album had already hit the top one hundred on the country charts. It was rare for a Kuchiki country singer to do so well, she had learned. They seemed to do better in the rock scene, but Rangiku had taken the whole nation by storm. Radio stations were praising her vocal and violin talent. The next Alison Krauss, they crooned. All she could do was smile.
Her heart nearly leapt out of her chest as Toushirou finally took the podium. She had been more worried about what Toushirou would say about her than what Byakuya Kuchiki had to say. Luckily Toushirou was the last person to speak and she wouldn't have to fret any longer. She watched as he walked smoothly to the front of the room, stepping up to the podium.
He wore a chocolate colored Armani suit, with a teal blue shirt and brown satin tie underneath. The colors made him look bronzed and exotic against his white hair and teal blue eyes. His gaze swept the room completely and then settled on Rangiku. He smiled and his eyes twinkled, looking almost sea foam green in the light. She thought her heart stopped. She didn't know when Toushirou's effect on her had gotten more intense, and she really didn't care, but she hoped it wasn't as obvious to others as it was to her. However, she doubted Kyouraku could miss such an attraction. It seemed that lately the tension between them had gotten stronger, almost palpable in small enclosed spaces, much like the many recording studios and radio stations they'd been in the last few weeks. Kyouraku teased her mercilessly when Toushirou wasn't around.
She sincerely hoped no one else noticed when he started to speak and her breath hitched.
"I found Rangiku Matsumoto on my night off at a bar," he started. The crowd chuckled and Rangiku hid her face with her hand as she blushed and Renji elbowed her left side. Toushirou waited as the laughter died down, steadily looking at Rangiku with the same twinkle in his eye. "I saw her once before the karaoke started, but didn't pay much attention to her until she was up on stage." He tilted his head thoughtfully, blinking his eyes as his expression softened and he moved his gaze elsewhere. For a moment Rangiku thought she could breathe again.
"She was the only one that got on stage that night that was worth listening to. Even though the pop music and rapid lyrics didn't suit her, her voice was still…" he hesitated here, his eyes flickering around the room as if searching for the word. Finally they fell on her face and he smiled again, relaxing. "Ethereal."
Rangiku was horrified as Renji burst into guffawing laughter, followed by others in the room. Toushirou chuckled and looked down, straightening his tie and waiting again for the laughter to stop. When everyone had settled down, he glanced back up at her, still smiling.
"I know that's out of character, for me to be so sentimental, but it's the truth." He looked away from her and back across the crowd. His eyes stopped somewhere across the room and to the back. "I've only ever heard one other voice that compared, and even that person, on her best day, could not match Rangiku as she sang a song that was too fast and upbeat for her style."
He looked back at Rangiku, all expression of mirth gone. His face was all seriousness as he stared at her grey-blue eyes. "Rangiku's talent is beyond anything I've ever heard, both vocally and on the violin." He pulled something from the podium, and after a moment Rangiku realized it was a plaque, with the new album cover and a gold plate on it. Renji nudged her again and she rose, her mouth agape. She looked to Kyouraku whose eyes shone with amusement.
"Go," he mouthed. She took a shaky step forward.
When her gaze finally found Toushirou's again it wasn't so hard to walk toward him. His expression was warm, welcoming. She'd never seen it before. Before this moment he had always been stoic and cold; easily irritable. Now, Rangiku thought for the first time, he was more. He was more than just her producer, her manager. He was more than a good-looking friend that the girls she introduced him to drooled over. He was more than a handsome coworker.
Now he was so much more, she realized. She had fallen for him, while barely even knowing him, and he was completely untouchable. He had been there through her ups and downs, when she cried from exhaustion or frustration or nothing at all. He had been there when she unexpectedly fell asleep during a recording session or a movie with the group. He had driven her home and slept on her couch the one night she'd gotten drunk with Renji on one of the group's nights out. He had taken care of her, cared for her, and she hadn't done anything for him.
She knew then that she couldn't touch him. He wouldn't let her, and she wanted to know why.
She ignored the overwhelming rush of thoughts as she took her last steps toward him. When at last she stood in front of him, nearly eye level with him, he spoke.
"Rangiku Matsumoto, this album is the beginning of the rest of your career. If you work hard like I know you can, like you did with this debut album, only success awaits you." His teal eyes met hers and her knees went weak. He held out the plaque and she delicately took it from him. "I'm proud of you," he said.
The crowd stood in applause as her eyes filled with tears. Knowing she wouldn't want to be seen crying, Toushirou pulled her close to him. He held her close as she composed herself and the applause continued. "Are you okay?" he murmured finally. She nodded and leaned back, looking back up at him. He smiled and nodded, leaning forward and pressing his lips to her forehead in a brotherly gesture.
Her heart nearly broke before she resolved herself to find out why Toushirou Hitsugaya was so untouchable.
With renewed confidence Rangiku turned to the applauding crowd and raised the plaque above her head, laughing. The applause only started over again and she could feel Toushirou smiling as he clapped beside her.
Oh yes, she would know exactly why he was untouchable. And then she would get around it however she could. But in the meantime, she would have a hell of a lot of fun.
