Author's Note:
I did nothing all weekend and it was super magical.
Kaleidoscope
a Bleach (© Kubo Tite) fanfiction
Theme #92
Snowflake
Opening Song: "Closer" — Tegan and Sara
Snow days are the best part about high school, unless all of your friends caught the flu and have to spend their free day inside because of their deteriorating health. Rangiku has to wonder how literally all of her friends are sick while she's still as healthy as a horse, and she decides to blame it on Gin. Because Gin is nothing but bad luck and, to be totally fair, everything tragic in her life is due to him anyway.
A snow ball to the head ingrains the frown deeper into her face. "Eeek! What the heck!?"
She spins around furiously to glare at the perpetrator, who merely grins and puts together another piece of ammo. "Tryin' to get ya to loosen up," Gin says, his voice muffled by the thick white scarf wrapped around his neck. "Enjoy your day off, Rangiku! Quit bein' a spoil sport." He throws the snow ball at her, but this time she's ready and manages to duck; it hits the car behind her. "Ooo, quick movin'. I'm impressed."
"I don't wanna have a snow ball fight," she replies and folds her arms across her chest. She's still angry about being stood up for the dance, but it's not bothering her or anything. Definitely not. "I think I'm gonna go back inside."
Gin drops his snow ball in mid-throw. "Huh? Already? We've been out here for ten minutes."
"Yeah, I'm not really feeling it. Sorry."
He runs up to her to cut her off before she can make it halfway up the drive way. "You're still mad at me," he says plainly. She opens her mouth to protest (unconvincingly, considering the way her brow is furrowed so heavily), but he holds up a hand to cut her off. "I know you're still mad me. And I know I ain't gonna get ya to forgive me easily, but just stay outside with me for a little longer, yeah? Please?"
No. "Fine." Dang it, that's not what she wanted to say.
Somehow, his grin widens. "Thanks." He takes her by the hand (her skin tingles, even though they're both wearing mittens) and takes her to his backyard, where they spent so much of their childhood. When he lets go of her hand, he lays down on the ground and motions for her to join him.
Rangiku adamantly shakes her head. "No way. My coat'll get wet. And my hair."
"C'mon," he says, trying to goad her. "You can dry off inside later." Her mouth prepares itself to say no once again, but her body's already on the ground beside him. Rangiku decides she hates herself when she feels the snow seeping into her hair. "It's nice, ain't it?" he asks.
"What?"
"This. It's nice. It's like we're kids again."
A small flurry begins to fall, sticking to her face and eyelashes. "Yeah, kind of," she acquiesces. Like kids playing in the backyard, making snow men, throwing snow balls at each other, getting soaked and sick and drinking hot chocolate by the fireplace. Was it really that long ago? "But we're not kids anymore, Gin."
"Then what are we?"
She senses a deeper question behind the surface, but she decides to ignore it. "We're… older." Not kids, not adults — they're teenagers, but no teenager actually wants to admit that.
"Hm. Sounds kinda sad."
"You're right." It was easier back then and everything was so much fun and nobody (really) got their feelings hurt. It was all fun and games, but now it's just irritating and aggravating and it makes her angry. "It is really sad."
Gin suddenly sits up so that he's hovering in her vision. "It doesn't have to be sad, ya know. We can write our own story. Do our own thing."
Sighing, Rangiku pulls herself up as well so that they're face to face. "It'll be hard to do that when you're constantly on hiatus, Gin."
"Sorry," he says again, smiling sheepishly. "I'll make it up to you. I swear." His fingers slowly push back thick strawberry locks from her hair; it's significantly different from when he used to do this as a child. When he pulls away, there's a single snowflake on the tip of his pointer finger. "It'll take a while, but I won't give up."
Closing Song: "Love They Say" — Tegan and Sara
Fluff is so much easier and fun to write geez.
xx, der kapitan