Author's Note: I'm pumped 'cause me and my friends are gonna go see Harry Potter on premier night on Wednesday, and then we're going to the midnight party for the book next week. ... And I don't even really like Harry Potter since Sirius died. XD WHY DO ALL THE INTELLIGENT CHARACTERS DIE!?

Theme #25
Bittersweet

Her back remained pressed against the side of the house as she clamped her eyes tightly, praying that this wasn't happening. Her hands were fisted in her yukata, her chest was falling and rising abnormally, and she was almost certain that she was going to faint.

Her heart scolded her: "Say goodbye, you moron. Say it. Don't be a weak little fool."

Her mind warned her: "If he sees you, he won't want to go. He'll stay. He'll give up his dream for you. Is that what you want? You want to make him unhappy?"

Rangiku wanted to listen to her heart. She wanted to run out from her hiding place, to hug him from behind, to tell him what he meant to her. She wanted to thank him for everything he did for her; for saving her from starvation, for giving her home, for giving her someone to love and to cherish.

But she knew better than that. She knew her psyche was right. She knew that if he even caught a glimpse of her, that he would gather second thoughts about leaving. He'd see her in her weak, disheveled form, and he'd drop everything in an instant, just to hold her. To soothe her. To let her know that everything was alright, even when it wasn't.

And the last thing that Rangiku wanted to do was make him unhappy.

So she only watched as he looked at the house one last time, smiling sorrowfully. She only watched as he turned his back on the house. She only watched as he made his way down that hill. Silently, she prayed, she begged for him to turn around just once. Just once more. But he never did.

He was gone.

She fell to her knees, her body wracking with sobs as she buried her face in her hands. "Gin..."

"You fool. You're weak. You're undeserving. You broke his heart. One word, one simple word was all that it took, and you couldn't even do that. You're pathetic."

"What you did was for the best. You did it for him and for you. It was necessary."

"It was weak. You were weak."

As her inner feelings merged and fought amongst one another, Rangiku felt herself growing tired. She felt her body and soul growing weak. With a look of deep reflection on her features, she ran her hand across the soil that he had once walked on. The soil that he had trained so hard on. And with a bittersweet smile dawning on her lips, she fisted her fingers in that soil. "Just wait a little longer, Gin..."

Word Count: 437

My life is complete: I have chocolate, pocky, and a Chai Tea Latte. :)