Disclaimer: I do NOT own Bleach in any way! All copyrights of this series goes to Tite Kubo.
Author's Note: Here's another update of The Healing Heart. With only a few more parts left (three chapters and the epilogue to be more exact), the ending to this story is coming to its end very soon. So, let's just enjoy it while the story lasts. Special thanks goes to icyangel27, yumi-2121331, Ai Angel, Ougon 22, lil'sayuri-chan, maili-chan, Evertale, KnowledgeandImagination, k a y - t h i, Samantha, Epoch95, applestoapples, Neko-cheung, monkeywinz, HyourinmaruIce, serenity095, athfdrizzle, michi. hishiro, cool!. Thank you for all your kind reviews. They're greatly appreciated. Anyway, here is chapter twenty-seven. Enjoy!
LEGEND
"Talking." "Thinking." Flash Back.
The Healing Heart
Part II - Hardships and Love
Chapter Twenty-Seven: Irreplaceable
Matsumoto whined. "You guys, have you found a spot for us to eat yet?"
"We're sorry Matsumoto-san, but we haven't yet," Kira apologized.
Renji, Hisagi, Ichimaru, Rangiku, and Izuru are walking around the school premises in search of a good spot to sit down and eat their lunches. The strawberry orange haired woman folded her arms over her chest. "Why can't we eat on the roof like we usually do?"
"Now that's a first," Gin said. "Ran-chan, doesn't know that it's currently closed to students. Apparently, a part of the fence up there has fallen. The school had to call a contractor to get it fixed up."
"Really? Did the fence hurt anyone?"
A grin suddenly appeared on his face. "From my sources, yes..."
Everyone gave him a stern look. "That's not actually true. He's only making that up," Renji corrected.
"Eh?" She turned to the gray haired teenager. "Gin!"
"Sorry, but the opportunity was too good to pass," Ichimaru said as he shrugged his shoulders.
She pouted. "You're so mean!"
"Hey, isn't that Hitsugaya?" Hisagi interrupted.
Heads turned their attention to what the short dark haired teenager is pointing at. They saw the white haired teenager hanging out with a young girl with dark blue hair and pretty jade blue eyes. Immediately, Rangiku ushered her friends to hide behind the trees and bushes and eavesdrop on the conversation. "Oi Matsumoto-san, what are you doing?" Kira asked.
She placed a finger between her lips and said, "Shh, be quiet."
"Isn't that Akane Kudo from class 1-1?" Hisagi asked.
"Eh, you mean that smart freshman everyone has been talking about?" Abarai questioned.
Kira slowly nodded with agreement. "I think so."
"What is she and Hitsugaya doing together?"
"If my guess is right, then I think we're going to hear a confession of love," Rangiku concluded.
"Eh?" everyone except Gin exclaimed, looking at one another.
They turned their heads and listened to the conversation."You wanted to talk to me privately?" Toshiro asked.
Akane slowly nodded with agreement. Trying to find the words, she stared at her fiddling fingers. "I-I'm glad to see that you have healed from your injuries."
Remembering about the forehead brace and the rib cast (that got removed about two days ago), he placed his hands into his pants pockets. He half turned to the side and muttered, "Thanks, I suppose...Is that all you have to say?"
She quickly shook her head. "No, the reason I called you out here is because...I-I wanted to say...well..."
Feeling the heat on her cheeks, she put her hands up into fists.
"I...I love you!"
Upon hearing those three words, Toshiro's eyes widened. He turned his focus on her. "You...love me?"
Feeling shy, she lowered her head and nodded with agreement. "Yes, I do...I really love you, Toshiro Hitsugaya. Y-You're smart, athletic, and strong willed. Even though you don't really notice, I-I've always been watching you from a distance. Ever since I realized my feelings for you, I knew...it wouldn't be long before I have to confess to you."
There was a brief moment of silence. Taking a hand out from his pocket, the prodigy let out a sigh, turned his head to the side, and scratched his head. Moments later, he placed his hand down, looked at her and said, "I...thank you for telling me this, but...I can't return your feelings. I-I'm not in love with you."
It is when she tilted her head forward with misery. "I see..."
"I'm sorry..."
The jade blue eyed student placed both her hands up in front of her. "No, don't be sorry. It's not your fault that you don't have any interest in me."
Seeing her upset, Hitsugaya couldn't help, but feel bad. She deserve to know why he said what he felt. "The thing is...I-I have an interest in someone else."
"Someone else?"
Toshiro slowly nodded with agreement. "Yeah..."
Kudo let out a deep sigh before a smile crept up on her face. With her hands together behind her back, she turned around and said, "So, I lost to Hinamori-senpai after all..."
Hitsugaya blinked, slightly surprised that she guessed correctly who his love interest is. "Hinamori?"
"I had a feeling you have very strong sentiments for her. Besides, you two usually hang out with one another. I could tell from the look on your face, you're always happy."
Hitsugaya didn't say a word. Instead, he thought about his sleeping friend in the hospital. "It does make sense..."
"I heard that she fell into a coma about two months ago. Are you sure it's okay for you to wait like this?"
Once again, no words came out of the young prodigy's mouth.
"I mean...what if she never wakes up?" Akane asked. "Then, all that time you've waited would be wasted."
"Then, that's the consequence I get for being a believer," he finally said.
"Hitsugaya..."
A faint smile crept up on his face. "Even if I'm able to move on in my life, I don't think neither my heart or my feelings will do the same. Hinamori is...irreplaceable to me. Until I know what is going to happen to her, I have no other choice, but to keep waiting."
"I see."
"I'm sorry again for rejecting you like this."
Kudo let out a sigh of defeat. "I could only hope for the best for you. She's lucky to have someone like you, Hitsugaya. If she was here, she would have noticed how much of a dedicated and loving person you are."
"Arigato..."
"Well, I go to go. See you some other time."
"Hai ja ne."
As he watched the freshman student leave, a pair of hands covered his eyes. While he is trying to break free, the white haired teenager felt the softness of her large bosoms. "Guess who is it?"
"What the hell are you doing, Matsumoto?"
"Sugoi, you really are a genius!"
Hitsugaya grabbed her wrists, pulled them away from his face, and turned around to see his group of friends. Toshiro gave her a stern look. "It doesn't take a genius to figure out it's you."
"Eh, really now?" She turned to Kira, Hisagi, and then Renji. "Is what he says is true?"
Instead of replying back to her comment, the three boys' faces turned a little red. Each of them turned their heads away from the strawberry orange haired woman, trying to hide their embarrassed and shy expressions. As for Ichimaru, he merely smiled with snickering delight.
Matsumoto placed her hands on her hips. "Well, aren't you going to answer my question or not?"
"Never mind them, why are you spying on me?" Hitsugaya interrupted.
"Eh?" Rangiku placed a hand behind her head and began laughing. "What are you talking about I wasn-"
All of a sudden, chills ran up the girl's spine. She knew from that moment, her old neighbour is giving her the icy glare.
"Geez, you really have to stop doing that!" She pouted. "It's like you have ice powers or something like that!"
"Stop changing the subject and fess up to the truth!" Toshiro snapped. "You were spying on me."
"Okay fine! We did spy on you, but we wanted to know whether you still have strong feelings for Hinamori."
"Oi oi, don't drag us into this Rangiku-san," Renji and the others similarly thought, giving the female student a stern look.
The strawberry orange haired woman placed her hands together. "After that nice speech, you have definitely showed her and the rest of us that you have deeply fallen for her!"
Hitsugaya scowled, wishing that she never heard the conversation in the first place.
"You're so sweet when you're not showing off your smarts or acting like a brat."
"Uruse..."
"Anyway, we better hurry up and find a place to sit down and eat before the bell rings," Kira said. "I don't want to listen to the lecture on an empty stomach."
"Me neither," Hisagi agreed.
Renji placed both hands together behind his back and said, "Same here."
"Are you going to join us, Hitsugaya?" Matsumoto asked.
Toshiro merely shrugged his shoulders. "I don't know whether to take up on your request or not, but it's not like have anything else to do."
Rangiku smiled. "Of course you don't have anything else to do especially when Hinamori's not here."
"MATSUMOTO!"
Hitsugaya came into Momo's hospital room holding a small bouquet of daffodils (1). After going to the washroom with the vase of wilting flowers, he changed the water and got rid of the old plant for the new ones. He returned to the room and placed it on the small table beside her. He pulled up a seat next to her bedside and sat on it.
For a few moments, he listened to the sounds of her heartbeat and breathing from the machines. "Hey Hinamori, it's me," Hitsugaya said. "It's nice to see that you're recovering nicely."
Momo is only wearing her arm cast and forehead bandages.
"If only that could be the same for your consciousness."
There was a short pause.
"At lunch today, Akane Kudo of class 1-1 has approached and confessed that she loves me. However, I replied to her saying that I don't have any interest in her. to be honest, I said that because I'm hoping that the one I have fallen for will come back to me."
Suddenly, Toshiro heard the sound of the door opening. He glanced over his shoulder and noticed the nurse and the doctor of Seireitei Hospital enter the room. "Hitsugaya, you're here to visit again," Isane said.
He gave her a short bow. "Yeah..."
Upon hearing his response, Unohana let out a smile on her face as she and Kotetsu walked to Momo's bedside. "It's nice to see a dedicated person coming here all the time," Retsu commented.
"I try to...whenever I get the chance," he quietly replied. "It's the least I can do for her."
"I see," Isane said.
"If you don't mind, can you please step out for a bit?" Unohana asked. "We need to do a full check up on her."
With a short nod of agreement, he turned to the sleeping girl. "I'll be back soon..."
Eventually, he stepped aside and allowed the doctor and the nurse to do their jobs. In the meantime, Hitsugaya left the room and patiently waited in the hallway. Isane let out a sigh before she said, "He really does care a lot about her."
"Yes, he does," Retsu agreed.
"He doesn't have visit her everyday. It's as if coming to see her is an obligation."
"It probably is to him. Guilt is one of the reasons he's here; the other is caring about her."
"Should we tell him to stop worrying about her?"
Unohana shook her head. "Even if we asked him to do that it's not like he's going to listen. I think the way he cares about her is beyond what he has shown to anyone before."
"Even the feelings for his biological family?"
"It's most likely."
Leaning against the wall, Toshiro stared down at his feet, ignoring the people passing by while his mind is focused on the raven haired girl inside. From time to time, he would take a short glance at the door to see if Doctor Unohana and Nurse Kotetsu have come out. Unfortunately, they haven't done that yet.
Feeling bored, he took out his cell phone and his earphones from his pants pocket, and equipped them together. After putting the earphones in his ears, he flipped the phone cap open and started pressing buttons. Soon after, he began listening to some music.
Toshiro closed his eyes and began imagining a scenario that suit the melody.
He's in a sandy beach, enjoying the fresh breeze that is flowing through his clothes, skin, and hair. He inhaled some of the sea's oxygen and exhaled the unneeded carbon dioxide out of his system. All of a sudden, he felt his arm being wrapped around by pair of slender arms. He turned his head to the side to see his friend cuddling next to him. With her chocolate brown eyes opening up to him, she called out his name. "Toshiro..."
"Momo."
He holding her by the furthest shoulder, he pulled her close and smiled in return. Just as they were about to give each other a loving kiss, Hitsugaya's eyes shot open as he snapped back into reality.
Realizing what he just did, he let out a frustrated sigh while placing a hand over his forehead.
"Baka, you shouldn't be thinking about stuff like that," he told himself. "Right now, you should be more concerned for her health."
He placed his hand down and began staring up at the ceiling. For a few minutes, he asked himself one single question: why is he still waiting for her?
It has been about two months since she has fallen into that sleeping state. After all that time, he's still doing his best to visit her everyday whether it be early in the morning or late at night. Even his schoolmates are asking him why he's still wasting his time to be with someone who might never wake up.
He could understand why they're asking. Besides, instead of spending his time hanging out with his friends, go watch a movie, or even try to get a girlfriend, he decided to sit next to her bedside and wait. Matsumoto and his other companions also said similar stories.
"Hitsugaya, I know I shouldn't be telling you this, but isn't it about time for you to see her less often?"
"What's wrong with continuing to see her?" he asked. "I thought you wanted me and Hinamori to be together."
"I know, but...it hurts to see you like this. I'm sure...she will forgive you for moving on without her."
"I have moved on..." he quickly replied. "It's just my heart hasn't."
He gave a sincere yet sad look.
"It was left in her safekeeping..."
There was a moment of silence. "What will you do if you found out that she's never going to wake up?"
He didn't reply right away. Instead, he lowered his head and clutched his fists tightly together, resisting the fear that suddenly washed over his body. It is when she knew he has imagined the worse case scenario. "She'll wake up; she has to."
She can only imagine the type of person he could become if that ever came true. Just like how he lost his family, he would act in a similar manner. He would return to being the anti-social person who just wants to wait for death to come and claim him. At its worse, he may turn insane and do the unimaginable: end his life on his own. All the years of recuperation would go to waste. "Hitsugaya..."
"If you're thinking that I'm going to kill myself after knowing she's dead, then stop thinking that way. I won't die...because I promised her not to do that. Instead, I'll live for her sake."
Rangiku let out a sigh of defeat. There is no point in reasoning with a stubborn teenager like him. "Sorry for asking you that question."
"It's okay...you were looking out for me, that's all. Even I wonder sometimes why I keep doing this when the chance of her waking up again is close to nothing. I don't like to admit this, but I guess this is what happens when you feel guilty, caring, and loving all at the same time."
All of a sudden, the door opened. Toshiro quickly took off one side of his earphones, left his waiting spot and walked up to Unohana and Isane, concerned for the raven haired girl. Noticing the worried expression on his face, Retsu smiled. "Daijobou, she's alright."
Hitsugaya let out a sigh of relief.
"You can come back inside to see her."
With a nod of agreement, he did just as the doctor predicted. Kotetsu turned to the braided haired woman and asked, "It's about the end of visiting hours. Shouldn't we tell him to go home and rest for the night?"
"It's alright Isane," she replied. "I will be the one responsible for letting him stay here. Besides, the future's not certain for Hinamori. In one month, one year, or even a day, she suddenly wakes up or breathes her last breath. This is why Hitsugaya always comes to see her. He wants to be the first to witness what happens to her."
"I see..."
Hitsugaya placed a hand over hers and gently held onto it. "No matter what happens to you; whether it be seeing you open your eyes or breathe your last breath, I'll be here to see it all."
He suddenly felt his body started shaking with fear once more. As he tried to resist it, he closed his eyes and bit the bottom of his lip. His hand's grip onto the girl became tight.
He slowly opened his eyes and shakily said, "...I-I'll be the first to know of what happens to you, no matter how much time passes by, no matter how things have changed around us, or how old I will become. This...is a promise I will keep, Hinamori."
Japanese Word Translations and References
Senpai - Upperclassman, Arigato - Thank You, Hai - Yes, Ja ne - Good Bye, Sugoi - Amazing, Uruse - Shut Up, Baka - Idiot/Stupid, Daijobou - It's Alright
(1) Daffodil's flower meaning is unrequited love or emblem of regard. In the Bleach series, it is also the Gotei 13's tenth division flower insignia.
Author's Note: It's amazing how dedicated Toshiro is. He loves her so dearly. You can't help, but feel sorry for the guy for waiting so long. Anyway, please review! Thanks.