A/N: Hey everyone! It's been a while! I'm so sorry, I waited for the exams' results to come out first before officially beginning my summer vacation… so it took me quite a while to update this story.

Anyway, here's chapter 7! I hope you guys enjoy it

Big thanks to all of you out there, to the readers, reviewers and whatnot.

Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach!

oOOOo

"Alright. I'll be your escort then."

WHAT?

"What?" Momo stopped mid-sob and quickly looked up at me, her face all messed up from crying.

The wake up call.

Momo's birthday party has become the talk of the town, since everyone was pretty much invited.

The girls in our group were slowly crumbling under the pressure, every single one of them feeling it for the high expectations they put upon themselves. I mean, townies here in Karakura are pretty much simple minded people, they probably wouldn't mind an average party.

At least, that's what Ichigo and the other guys have been saying about the girls' feisty temper. And by 'girls' I mean Rukia and Rangiku. Orihime and Momo seemed to be fine.

But I'm kind of suspecting that there's another reason for their edgy mood.

"Here's your change, Toushirou-kun."

I thanked Hinamori-san (Momo's Mom) and neatly put the change in my wallet. "How are the preparations going so far?"

"Ah well, Momo-chan told me the preparations are almost complete." She then sighed "I just wish she let us help them with all the preparations."

"She… what?" I asked, stunned. So, all this time the only ones preparing for the party have been Momo and the other three?

"You should know by now how stubborn she can be sometimes." Hinamori-san sighed once again, defeated. "The only thing I managed to take off her hands was the birthday cake."

"That's already a conquest, Hinamori-san."

"Indeed!" She said laughing.

"Ah, Hinamori-san. Just out of curiosity, have you invited anyone from your former city?"

"Yes, just an old family friend of ours. Unfortunately, though, they won't be able to come. They're off on a trip overseas, and their son has already something to do that day." Hinamori-san shook her head in dismay. "It's too bad, we haven't seen them in so long."

So it's confirmed. Aizen – and apparently his family too – is not coming to the party.

"I'll be leaving, then, Hinamori-san."

"Take care on your way home."

Finally done with my snacks-shopping, I went straight home, tired from club activities.

As they say, Thank God It's Friday, right?

Momo's birthday and the party is this Sunday. I wonder how she's doing right now?

oOOOo

The 'The Hangover' played on TV, I lazily laid across the couch while eating the sweets I bought from the Hinamori's patisserie.

My phone loudly buzzed on the coffee table, so I slowly reached out for it and flipped it open.

Let's exchange brains. – Momo

I laughed at the text. She really has her own ways of making me laugh, jeez.

Not a chance. – Toushirou

Even for just a moment? I'm in trouble . - Momo

Trouble? I glanced out of the window, in her house's direction.

Are you okay? – Toushirou

Yeah, yeah. Nothing much, just the end of the world approaching. – Momo

Great! – Toushirou

Nooooo you're supposed to panic and ask me how to prevent it! – Momo

Too lazy to even try and stop it. – Toushirou

Waiting for her reply, I turned my attention back to the movie. My eyes moved on their own, stealing glances at my phone laying next to me.

How weird… she usually replies immediately.

Shaking my thoughts away, I looked back at the TV screen.

Before even realizing it, I was looking out of the window, checking for any weird movements in the neighbor's house. I noticed that the windows of her house, at least on the side that I could see, were wide open.

It's a warm sunny day, she told me once that she liked to keep windows and doors open to let the sun's warmth in her house. It was something she couldn't do back in the city she used to live into. Though I warned her so many times not to do it when she was all alone at home.

Sure, Karakura is a small village where no crimes are committed, but you never know.

Giving up on the movie, I turned the TV off and made my way out of my house, directed in Momo's house.

Look at that, all the windows and doors are open wide. That stubborn girl!

I stood by the porch "Momo?" I called her out.

"Toushirou! Help me!"

A rush of adrenaline coursed through me. What happened?! I quickly ran inside, following the source of her voice. It sounds like she's upstairs. "Momo?!"

When I found her, I let out a big sigh and slumped down on the floor.

"Jesus, Momo! I thought something serious happened!"

"It is serious!" She complained, trying to escape the jungle of silk and frills and lace surrounding her. "I can't get out of this dress! I think I should go on a diet before my party."

"I think you put it wrong." I narrowed my eyes at her, but she ignored me, busy in her attempts to reach for the zipper on her back. "Serves you right for always eating so many cakes without sharing."

Momo sheepishly grinned "I often think of sharing them with you, dear neighbor."

"You should do rather than just think." I teased, walking behind her. "Pull your stupid long hair aside."

"Yeah, thanks for the compliment, you too." She deadpanned, while doing as she was told. Of course, without forgetting to roll her eyes.

"Your hair is just too long," My fingers fiddled with the zipper, which got stuck with the T-shirt she was wearing under the dress. "And what gave you the fantastic idea of putting on this fancy dress over your clothes?"

She shrugged. "My brain." I shook my head, smiling at her answer. "And I like my hair." Momo twirled a lock around her finger. "Sousuke-kun likes girls with long hair."

"Ah. That explains a lot." I mumbled loud enough for her to hear me.

"So, what do you think of the dress?" Momo peeked over her shoulder. "I'm going to wear this at the party."

I quickly scanned the mess surrounding her, unable to figure out what it's supposed to actually look like. But at the sight of all that lace and pearls, I could guess that it was supposed to be one of those frilly feminine dresses. "Too feminine for you."

A laugh escaped her lips "You think so too, huh?"

"Yep. Whoever chose this probably has no idea how manlier you are than Ikkaku." I finally eased the zipper back and pulled it all the way down. "There you go."

Momo thanked me and quickly slipped out of the dress, revealing her oversized T-shirt and comfy pajama pants. "Ahhh, I'm free!"

"How long have you been stuck in that?"

"Ehhh, a couple of thousands of seconds." She grumbled, neatly folding the long dress over her arm.

"Thirty minutes?" I laughed while she frowned, embarrassed.

"Yeah. Good thing you're good with numbers."

"Oh come on, I just saved you from that, didn't I?"

Momo rolled her eyes and gave up with a smile. I glanced around my surroundings while she was busy to find a hanger for her dress. This was her room, huh? Sakura pink walls, Christmas lights hung on them, and there were lots of pictures hanging by her mirror.

"Even your room looks too feminine for you." I absentmindedly commented, noticing the big pile of books in a corner, next to a beanie bag and a small and low coffee table.

From the corner of my eyes, I could see Momo smiling while shaking her head. "Come on, let's have some cake downstairs."

"I thought you were going on a diet."

"Me? Diet?" She laughed. "Never!"

We made our way downstairs, idly chatting about her incoming birthday party. Momo neatly served different slices of cakes, along with some drinks.

"So, how are your birthday party's preparations going along?"

"Oh, you know… Rangiku and Rukia are going gaga over every single thing." Momo laughingly explained.

"Must be hard on you, to be handling so many things."

"It's not that bad." She fondly smiled, taking a bite of the cheesecake on her plate. "I'm going to dedicate this party to the villagers of Karakura. They've been nothing but kind towards me and my parents ever since we got here." Momo leaned back in her chair and swung her legs under the table. "Rather than birthday party, I'd love to call it a 'Thank You party'."

"Wow, a 'Thank You party' two years later?" She kicked my shin, making me nearly fold in two for the pain. "OUCH."

"Yeah, that was the point of my kick." Momo smiled sweetly, though there was no sweet meaning behind it.

"Gee, thanks." I muttered. "Should've let you rot in that stupid dress."

"Oh come on, now. Don't be so mean." She jokingly batted her lashes, putting another slice of the Black Forest cake on my plate. "Here you go, eat some more, Mr. I-saved-you-from-a-dress. You must be tired from all the action."

I laughed at her mockingly sweet tone, eating a mouthful of the cake. Her Dad's version of the Black Forest has to be the best one in the world. "Damn right, I am. Do you know how much energy it takes to save people from evil dresses?"

"Wow, I can't even imagine." She played along, now eating a piece of what looked like custard cake. "I guess that's what makes you so popular, here in Karakura. The hero who saves people from evil dresses. The hero this town didn't really need."

At that point, we both started laughing, still happily eating our cakes. A breeze blew by us, reminding me of the open doors and windows. "Hey, I thought I told you many times already not to leave them open."

Momo shrugged. "There's nothing to worry about, Toushirou. When was the last time a crime was registered here in Karakura?"

I frowned. "A very long time ago. But it doesn't mean that you can still leave your house like this when you're all alone."

"You're just next door, anyway!" She really looked like she didn't care at all. "I can always scream bloody murder and the entire village will hear me."

"Thank God you love Karakura." I retorted ironically, making her laugh.

"I'm not belittling its size. I like the fact that this village is so small." She grinned.

I shook my head and drank a sip of the coffee she prepared. "So… Have you chosen your escort yet?"

Momo froze for an instant. "No… No, I haven't." She looked at me with a guilty expression. "I'm sorry. Even though you went out of your way to prepare a list of candidates."

"I told you not to worry about that thing," I dismissively waved my hand. "I wrote down the first names that came into my mind." Of course, she saw right through my lie.

Letting out a sigh, she fiddled with the cup in front of her. "The girls are insisting that I should just go ahead and pick one."

"You know… it's not really necessary to have an escort. It's not obligatory." I explained, seeing the hesitation in her eyes. Though you will certainly need an escort to keep your mind off of Aizen. The rest of my thoughts were left unsaid.

Momo just looked down at her lap, as if finding something interesting to keep her distracted.

"Just pick a random one." I suggested with a shrug "Roll the dice, close your eye and see where your finger lands on."

"I can't." She said sadly. "I don't want to."

I sternly looked at her. "You think that your guests will feel comfortable seeing you frowning throughout the party?"

She couldn't say anything to that. Her long hair fell into cascades over her shoulders, as she sunk low in her seat.

"Seriously, Momo. There won't be any meaning behind your choice for an escort. It doesn't mean you're going to end up with whoever you're going to choose, if that's what's you're worried about."

"No, it's not that…" The brunette answered, tucking a lock of hair behind her ear. "Call me stupid or whatever, but I still hope for Sousuke-kun to show up…"

What? What? "Are you—you can't be serious."

She just smiled sadly. "It's ridiculous, huh? Though he already said that he won't be able to come, I'm still hoping that he will just suddenly call me, or text me. And then he'd say that it was all a joke and that he's actually coming and going to be my escort." Looking up with a dreamy look, she matched a sigh. "Or that he's going to just turn up at the party and take the place of the 18th Rose, for the final dance…"

I rolled my eyes. Turns out that she's actually a hopeless romantic, just like Kira. The two are a match made in heaven. "Alright. First, you need to get over your phase of denial." She frowned at my frankness, but she didn't complain. "Second, if your last fantasy were to come true, then you might as well randomly choose an escort while you wait for him to magically pop out of nowhere, Miss Hopeless Romantic."

Momo laid her head on the table, looking out of the glassed door that lead to her backyard. "I don't want to use anyone for my own selfish desires." She muttered. "Whoever will have the unlucky role to become my escort… I will see them simply as Sousuke-kun's replacement."

"Well, whoever is going to be your escort won't know it. So they probably won't mind." I served myself another slice of the Black Forest cake.

"That's what would make me even more guilty… they would have no idea that I'm mentally photoshopping their faces, replacing them with Sousuke-kun's face."

I laughed at her explanation. "Then explain them right away that they're just going to be your beloved Sousuke-kun's rebound."

"No, that doesn't sound nice." She started laughing. "I can already imagine them flipping me their middle finger."

"Call Kira, then. Trust me, he'll be more than happy to be your escort."

Momo lifted her head up to look at me. "No. I don't want Kira-kun to be my escort." She slumped her head back down on the table. "Besides, he's not on the list."

"Hey, no one said that you had to choose only from the list." I scolded her, accusingly pointing the fork in my hand at her. "And what's wrong with Kira? He's a nice guy."

"I don't want to create misunderstandings."

Surprised, I stopped half-way through my bite of the cake, looking at her. So she knows he still likes her? "Misunderstandings?" I asked, feigning ignorance.

"Yeah." She sounded confused herself, though. "That's what Rangiku and Rukia keep on saying whenever Orihime suggests Kira-kun to be my escort."

Go figure. I sarcastically thought. Seriously, what did they have against poor Kira? "Why would there be misunderstandings with him?"

"Because they keep saying he still likes me." Momo sighed "I don't understand why they keep saying that. Kira-kun and I are just friends, we made it clear when I-" She stopped mid-sentence, blushing.

"When you rejected him?" I tentatively finished her sentence.

"Y-yeah. That." She sounded incredibly embarrassed and… guilty? "Anyway, if what that crazy duo says is true, then Kira-kun should be the last person to be my escort… I've already r-rejected him twice, I don't want to add up to my list of wrong-doings against him by using him like this."

Titling my head to the side, I carefully thought of Momo's logic. I guess she has a point, though I'd really like for her to choose Kira.

But it was her birthday party, after all. The choice was still up to her, and whoever was going to be her escort is going to be unlucky, since he's merely going to take the 'rebound' role.

Kira doesn't deserve to be used like that. He'll have his chance with her on some other occasion.

Ugh, so much drama just because of this missing Aizen guy.

"You know..." Momo began speaking, making me snap out of my thoughts. "Sousuke-kun has changed so much…" She sounded like she was lost in her thoughts, but still continued to talk. "I've seen his updates on the social media. He's been hanging out in clubs, smoking, drinking… Your typical bad boy."

I rolled my eyes at the story. That time at the slumber party she's been bragging how much of a good kid Aizen was, and now the truth comes out.

"I've been thinking of the conversations we had at Rangiku's place… Is there still a reason for me to like someone who has changed this much?"

Once again, I was taken aback from her change of mood. Her voice shook, as if she was on the verge of crying.

Oh hell, who am I kidding? This is Momo Hinamori, and Momo Hinamori never cries.

"Like you said, there doesn't necessarily have to be a reason to like someone." I tried to console her nonetheless.

"No, I was nonsensical." Oh shit, was she actually crying? "I've been doing nothing but force my ideals upon Sousuke-kun. The disappointment I felt upon his refusal… I've been delusional over him. I was hanging over every word I could get from him. And I interpreted them in my own way, pretending that maybe, even if just a little, he liked me back." Alright, now she was full out sobbing. "I don't even care about the party anymore. The party will only remind me of how Sousuke-kun flat out rejected me, both as a woman and as a friend."

Nervously, I scratched the back of my head. I was holding back from laughing, because the sounds she made were kind of cute and funny. But at the same time, I couldn't help but feel sad at the sight of her tears. Now I kind of understand Kira's anger towards Aizen.

"And now, I can't even bring myself to choose for an escort. That one major thing the girls ask me to do while they take care of the rest, I cannot do." She wailed like a little kid, but the sadness in her voice was crystal clear.

"Alright. I'll be your escort then."

WHAT? "What?" Momo stopped mid-sob and quickly looked up at me, her face all messed up from crying.

"It's not a big deal, and it really doesn't mean anything." I grabbed a tissue and rubbed it all over her face, in an attempt to wipe her tears and snot away. "Just take it as a favor you're going to owe me. For the rest of your life." My mouth kind of moved on its own, and my brain tried to catch up with the events.

"Really?" The spark of hope in Momo's eyes got my brain to function slower and my mouth faster.

"Yeah. Since I know the situation, you can't consider this as using someone, right?"

She just nodded, though she looked as lost as I felt. "Alright then… please take care of me."

I refrained my jaw from dropping on the floor. Oh shit, what did I just do?

oOOOo

I was still in a daze when I went to Kira's house. Damn, Momo was really bummed about this Aizen thing.

At least, she had her wake up call. Hopefully she will move on from that douche.

"Huh? You're going to be her escort?"

"I'm just Aizen's replacement. Don't take it the wrong way." I explained with a frustrated sigh. "We both made it clear when we sorted things out. This is strictly business."

"Yeah, wait until it gets personal, then let me know how professional you two can be." Kira frowned and plopped down on the couch. "Jeez, man… You're so lucky."

I rolled my eyes. "Shut up, this is merely a friend doing a favor to a good friend."

"Oh yeah? I'd like to be that friend, then."

Titling my head to the side, I quirked my brow at him "I didn't know you had this jealous side in you."

"I'm not jealous…" He looked up at me, as I was leaning against the doorframe to the living room. "I'm envious."

Laughing, I put the little take-out box from Hinamori's Patisserie next to my best friend. "Here, I bought too many."

"Thanks." Kira mumbled and began eating the contents. I mentally sighed in relief, seeing him relax even further at the news. Truth be told, these sweets were a sort of 'apology gift'.

There's no need to feel guilty for this stupid issue about Momo's escort, because it seriously meant nothing to me and to her.

But, knowing Kira, I know how much of a big deal this is to him. "Seriously dude, don't worry. As I told you before, she's not my type."

Kira raised his eyebrows at my remark. "How can she not be your type? She's cute, she's smart, funny, kind…"

"Yeah, stop that list, I gotta go home early." I interrupted him, making him laugh. "And you must have some weird filter in your eyes that makes you see her that way. In my opinion, she seriously lacks femininity." In my mind, memories of Momo laughing out loud in the most unlady-like way, her violent way of smacking her hand when she gets over excited, or her enormous appetite that could beat a truck driver. Oh, and least I forget, the way she cries like a toddler. "Don't worry about us, worry about how you're going to confess to her."

And here, Kira began ranting about his new plans on how he's going to confess.

It's almost funny how easily Kira can get distracted.

Oh well, at least I told him… The main shit I have to deal with is the day after tomorrow.

UGH. Just what the hell did I put myself into?

oOOOo

A/N: Aaaaaaaaand that's it. Hopefully, I might be able to update in just a couple of days.

Meanwhile, please do leave a review and let me know what you think of the events so far! I'm really giving a thorough analysis on the characters' psychology and their personality, so the story is going at a slow pace for you guys, maybe. I mean, I hate rushing stories, so I'm just going with the flow ahahah.

Toodles! xx