3. The loss of a mother

Hirako Shinji didn't tell Hiyori he was there that night and Hikifune didn't either. He fell asleep next to her but left in the very early morning. She didn't notice a thing and Shinji never sad he was sorry about his reaction the day before. Time got by, the time when Hiyori officially became vice captain of the 12th Division. The time that Hiyori never came by and spoke very distantly when they bumped in with each other. Hirako fond her very suborn, but was also as suborn as hell. He did not tell her about that one night he lied next to her. He did not tell he watched her sleep almost the whole night. He wanted to tell her, and he wanted so say he was sorry, but she just acted so arrogant against him. Screw her, he didn't missed her yelling and kicking at all.

That lasted for about two months and Hiyori could be named the winner of this game she played with Hirako. The more days go by, the more he began to miss her but he did not admit it, not even against himself. But he didn't knew that the day had come that she needed him more than ever before. When he walked in the main office of the 5th Division some Shinigami started whispering. Yes he knew he was late, but he just enjoyed sleeping. But he always was this time, so why had this to be a problem now? Aizen Sōsuke gave him that answer very quickly but it wasn't the answer he wanted to hear. Aizen loved to tell him this one, that little creepy nasty asshole. Aizen was his vice captain, but he did not trust him at all. He only was his vice captain so he could watch him.

"Shouldn't you be visiting the 4th Division Captain Hirako Shinji?" he said to him with a big grin on his face.

"Give me one good reason to visit the 4th Division, Aizen?"

"I don't know, I just thought that you and Sarugaki Hiyori from the 12th Division were good friends"

Bingo. He had him, Aizen reached his goal and had the full attention of Hirako Shinji who thought he was going crazy when he heard this news. Whit great, big eyes and a totally shocked expression of this face he wanted to attack Aizen so bad

"What is going on with Hiyori? Tell me NOW Aizen Sosuke!" and Shinji felt he began shivering all over his body.

"I only heard that she was totally unconscious and taken immediately to the 4th Division. It's something really serious I thing"

This could not be true, what was going on with Hiyori and why had he to be so suborn all this time?! He had to make this right, he had to tell her he was sorry and… and he loved her. Could it be as serious as Aizen said? Could it be.. too late? No! Whatever was going on, Sarugaki Hiyori wasn't the girl to give up like that.

Hirako Shinji stormed out the 5th Division and used her Shunpo to get to the 4th Division as fast as he could.

Sarugaki Hiyori blinked her eyes really slowly. It hurt, there was too much light. She could not handle it. She closed them again but that she felt that someone had turn off the light. She wanted to say something but she could not. She felt so tired and her whole body hurt, especially her head.

"Don't talk Hiyori, just be quit. Go get some sleep, you need it"

Hiyori though she recognized this voice who spoke to her, but could not find a name. It was a very frustrating feeling, but she was so tired she did not have the energy to be frustrated. She did not knew what happened to her, but knew that this wasn't a normal situation. She heard the person who spoke to her leave the room. Hiyori tried to remember but her head was hurting so much. But she did not give up and pushed herself to the absolute limit. With result because a few minutes later she knew what was going on. She lied in a bed of the 4th Division because she fainted this morning.

Because Sarugaki Hiyori heard that Hikifune Kirio had left the 12th Division and wasn't coming back; never again.

It was exactly the moment Hirako Shinji walked in to the room that Hiyori look at him as if she could start crying any moment because of what she remembered just now.

Hirako Shinji could not believe what was happing right now. If someone told him this weeks ago he would properly started laughing and didn't believe a thing. But now, when it started raining outside on what had to be a beautiful spring day Shinji stared at a side of Saruagaki Hiyori he had never seen before. She seemed so little and vunerable. Her ponytails where once again gone. Right before Shinji walked in her room, Captain Unohana Retsu told him what happened to her.

"She is going to be just fine. She fainted and fell pretty hard on her head. Her wouds are already healed. She just needs to take it slowly for a couple days."

Hirako didn't understand at all what was going on. Hiyori wasn't the person to just faint like that. Could there be more? If there was more, he wanted Unohana to tell him. He wanted to know everything.

"Why did she faint?"

The answer was given him immediately and it totally made sense why Hiyori fainted this morning. It was quite a shock, even for Shinji himself. He could not imagine how Hiyori must fell.

"Captain Hikifune Kirio has left the 12th Division. They're saying that she was promoted to the Royal Guard. But she just left like that, whit no goodbyes.

And now Hirako Shinji was standing before Hiyori and did not know where to even start. He saw that she was fighting against her tears so badly. Why? Why could she not just cry about it? He knew how important Hikifune was to her. She saw her captian as her own mother. Hikifune was the one person in the hole Seretei who understand Sarugaki Hiyori completely.

"It's ok if you want to cry Hiyori-san"

And just when Shinji thought he had said the right words to Hiyori for her to let her guard down the unbelievable stubbornness of Sarugaki Hiyori returned. She swallowed her upcoming tears away.

"What on earth are you doing here you stupid moron?"

Shinji's face changed. He was so close and yet again he failed at trying to get Hiyori let her guard down ones again. But he was not giving up this time. He did that to many times. So instead of yelling back at her and leaving he now walked right to the bed and jumped right on it so he could take a close look at her.

"You're my friend so when I heard you were here I immediately came to check on you"

Now it was Hiyori's face who changed. Did he just said that they were friends? He never ever said something like this before to her. She didn't know what to say to him but she didn't want him to leave either. She really liked what he just said to him. They were friends. With Hikifune gone she thought she had nobody left who'd care for here. Could it be that Hirako Shinji did care? She felt like crying again. What was wrong with her? He emotions where totally all over the place. She never felt like this before. She didn't like it at all. It was so much easier to feel strong, confident and yell at everybody who got in her way. But she didn't feel like yelling right now. She didn't feel strong or confident at all.

"I'm tired"

"You should get some sleep Hiyori-san"

"Will you stay?"

"Do you want me to say?"

"Yes"

"Then I will"

"I not going to thank you"

"You don't need to"

"Ok"

"Ok"

"And if you tell anyone about this I'd kill you"

"Clear"

Shinji was satisfied. This was a start. She didn't send him away. He sat there at the foot of Hiyori bed and watch how her eyes got heavier and closed. There was lots of work to do at his own Division but, not even for a sec, he didn't think about leaving Hiyori. He was going to be there when she woke up. He needed to make her see she could trust him. He would do anything for her. He cared so deeply for this girl. No. He loved this girl. Oh boy. Hirako Shinji bit on his own lip and shook his head. He was in big, big, big trouble.

Why on earth did he, from all those beautiful woman in the Seretei, fall for this little complex suborn brat?