Author's Note: I love the duet between Gin and Rangiku ("Fuyu no Hanabi"). It makes me happy inside. You should go listen to it. I like "Hyouri", too. You should go listen to that, too. His whistling makes me giggle. Teehee.

Theme #8
Smile

Gin was always smiling. Even the townspeople, who only saw him once every two weeks, knew that the kid was always smiling. It didn't matter if he was angry with rage or filled with sadness; he was always smiling.

"Gin?" The gray-haired youth looked up from the withering grass to grin at Rangiku. "What are you doing?"

"Jus' sittin' around," he answered simply.

"Well... Dinner's ready."

"I'll be there in a sec'."

"Oh. Alright." Gin turned his attention back to the grass, expecting to hear her departing footsteps. When he was greeted with only silence, he jerked his head upwards again, only to find Rangiku hovering above him in the same spot, only with a contemplative look on her face. "Wha'ssa matter?"

"Gin? Why are you always smiling?"

The question was so forward that his grin slackened into a frown, but he was quick to recover. "Why do ya ask?"

"In all the time that I've known you, I've never seen you without a smile or a grin." She folded her yukata under her and took a seat next to him. "I can never tell if you're angry or if you're sad. I mean, sometimes it's even hard to tell if you're happy."

When he didn't respond, she couldn't help but wonder if she had offended him. Just as she opened her mouth to apologize, he spoke, "In my previous life, my pop was never home, and my ma was an alcoholic. Whenever I cried or if I ever had a temper tantrum I'd get smacked around. My ma hated it when I cried.

So I figured what was the point of cryin' if yer just gonna get beat for it. My ma would get annoyed when she saw me smilin' or grinnin', but she left me alone. An' what's the point o' havin' a pity party if nobody cares, right? Why should I have to trouble myself with emotions? Why--"

Before Gin could continue, a weight had latched itself around his middle and he was thrown back onto the ground. "Wha? Rangiku?"

She didn't know when or why, but she was sobbing, and she holding onto him as though she were afraid to let go. "You don't have to do it anymore, Gin. You don't have to... You don't have to fake anything for me. You can be angry, or you can cry, or you can throw tantrums and rant... Gin, you don't have to... You don't have to..."

Gin stroked her hair, a loving smile playing on his lips. "Ya don't know, Rangiku. Ya don't know... that you're the only person I really smile for."

Word Count: 438

Renji's songs are kinda weird. But that's okay. 'Cause we all love him anyways.