CHAPTER 24: FALLEN TEARS

Hitsugaya sighed, as he looked through the stack of reports in his office. Matsumoto was looking through her stack slowly, clearly distracted after Ichimaru's recent appearance in Soul Society. She wondered where he was going, what he was about to do and what his plans were. Hitsugaya's expression was as cold as ever, but inside, he was rather excited. Opening the drawers and taking out a small box, he smiled to himself. He wondered if Tayomi would like his little gift. Matsumoto placed her stack of reports on his desk, before leaving for lunch. She had been unusually obedient these few days, always handing in her reports on time and actually touching the paperwork.

Just then, Hinamori entered his office and asked him what he was doing. Hitsugaya looked up at her and waved his report in his hand, before looking back down and skimming through the finely printed words. Hinamori smiled, knowing that Hitsugaya wanted to finish his paperwork as quickly as possible, so that he could meet Tayomi. According to her Captain, they were going star gazing tonight. Tayomi was in an exceedingly good mood today, jumping all over the place as if she was on a sugar rush. She had stayed in her office for the whole day, including meal times, in order to finish her work early. Hinamori had to bring lunch and dinner to her office, watching her Captain work hard while she helped out with some of the paperwork. Hitsugaya slammed his pen down, delighted that he had finally finished his paperwork. Hinamori turned to leave and tripped over the stack of reports on the floor. Reacting almost immediately, Hitsugaya rushed to catch his childhood friend, holding her in his arms. Hinamori looked up into his eyes and he looked back down into hers, both of them still stunned over Hinamori's clumsiness.

Tayomi skipped to the 10th Division's barracks happily. After an entire day of effort, she had finished looking through the reports at last. Hitsugaya and she were going out tonight to look at the stars, just like they usually did before she disappeared. Running her fingers through her hair nervously, she wondered if she looked alright. It was highly possible that the day's work had messed up her appearance and worn her out. She wanted to look nice for him and intended to give him a surprise. They were supposed to meet on the hill an hour later, but since she had finished her work early, she decided to pounce on him and give him a small surprise.

"Susu-chan! I finished…"

Tayomi smiled as she pushed open the door. Once she saw the sight in front of her, her smile disappeared completely and she was unable to finish her sentence, as her heart stopped in shock. She could feel hot tears streaming down her cheeks instantly as she looked at her best friend, in her lover's embrace. Trying to hold back her tears, she turned her back on them and ran off, crying. Hinamori and Hitsugaya quickly drew apart, with Hinamori pushing Hitsugaya, telling him to chase after her. Stuffing the tiny box into his pockets, Hitsugaya ran after Tayomi using Shunpo.

It was not easy chasing her, as she was using Shunpo as well. With her high agility, he knew that she could outrun him easily and picked up speed. He chased her all the way to the hill, where they had intended to meet and go star gazing. Reaching his arms out, he caught her by the back, holding her close to him and pressing his lips against her cheek, hoping that she would calm down. Tayomi struggled in his arms endlessly, shivering in sorrow with her teardrops hitting his arm incessantly. She tried to free herself from his grasp, her heart bleeding.

"Sakuri, what's wrong?" Hitsugaya asked, while trying to hold on to his squirming girlfriend.

"WHAT'S WRONG? WHAT'S WRONG?" Tayomi screamed at him, not even bothering to look at him, tugging at his arms and attempting to escape his embrace. "YOU'RE WRONG! IF YOU NEVER LIKED ME, JUST TELL ME! DON'T WAIT FOR ME TO SEE IT FOR MY OWN EYES! DON'T MAKE ME FEEL LIKE AN IDIOT WHO'S BEEN FOOLING HERSELF FOR THE PAST DECADES, FOOLISHLY THINKING THAT SHE WAS LOVED!"

"But Hinamori and I…" Hitsugaya replied hurriedly, hoping she would calm down and listen to him. "She…"

"SHUT UP!" Tayomi covered her ears with her hands, shaking her head. "SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP! I DON'T WANT TO HEAR IT! I DON'T CARE WHAT YOU'RE DOING WITH HER AND WHETHER YOU WANT TO PROPOSE TO HER!"

"PROPOSE?" Hitsugaya shouted back at her. "WHAT?"

"DID YOU THINK I WAS COMPLETELY UNAWARE OF THAT TINY BOX ON YOUR TABLE THAT CONTAINED A RING IN IT?" Tayomi screamed.

Hitsugaya gasped. He had rushed off for a mission the other day and carelessly left the ring on his table! Tayomi must have seen it… But the ring was not for Hinamori, it was for her…

"LET ME GO." Tayomi demanded. "LET ME GO NOW, HITSUGAYA TAICHO."

HITSUGAYA TAICHO? Did she just address me properly?

"LET ME GO NOW!" She pushed him away from her, before running back to her Division's barracks. Wiping her tears as she ran, she hoped that she would stop crying, but to no avail. The tears kept flowing from her eyes endlessly. She felt liked the stupidest person in the world, the saddest person in the world and the weakest person in the world at that moment. All those years… Everything was just an illusion!

She stormed into her office and Hinamori ran over to her immediately, holding her hand and wanting to explain things. Tayomi glared at her, her eyes filled with tears and burning with rage. She shook Hinamori's hand away violently, before shouting at her to get back to doing the paperwork. Slamming the door behind her, Tayomi threw herself on her bed and stuffed her face into her pillow, soaking it in her own tears.

Outside, Hitsugaya rushed into the 5th Division's barracks, towards Tayomi's office. He entered and found Hinamori staring blankly at Tayomi's door. She rushed to him and told him what had happened. Hitsugaya scratched his head in frustration. Tayomi could be awfully stubborn when she was angry. Sighing, Hitsugaya walked over to her door and attempted to open the door. However, the door was shut tight and he instantly knew that Tayomi was sitting beside the door, pushing the door hard and preventing anyone from entering her room. He sat down beside the door and spoke to her through the door.

"Tayomi…" He sighed.

"GO AWAY!" She screamed and sobbed at the same time, hugging her bunny. "I CAN'T BELIEVE YOU, HINAMORI. YOU WERE THE ONE WHO ENCOURAGED ME TO TELL HIM ABOUT MY FEELINGS! YOU IDIOT! YOU HAD FEELINGS FOR HIM TOO AND NEVER STOPPED ME… YOU… YOU… ARGH JUST GO AWAY!"

"TAYOMI!" Hitsugaya sounded half angry, half concerned.

Tayomi had her body leaning against the door. She slid down and crumbled beside the door, hugging her bunny and hiding her face in its soft fur, weeping. At that moment, she did not feel like listening to anyone, especially Hitsugaya and Hinamori. The two people whom she trusted the most, the two people who she cared for so much, the same two people who broke her heart, shattered it and reduced it to pieces. She could feel Hitsugaya breathing and knew he was sitting right outside her door. If she were to get up, he would definitely rush in. She knew him well enough to know what he would do. Resting her head against the door, she felt her tears drip down her face, staining her cheeks with her salty teardrops. Just then, she heard footsteps. Who's here now?

Hisagi walked into the office silently and Hinamori greeted him. He smiled at her and asked her for the reason behind calling him. She instantly explained what had happened and requested that Hisagi try to persuade Tayomi. Hisagi gazed at the door with concerned eyes and saw Hitsugaya sitting down beside the door, trying to get Tayomi to listen to him. Hisagi walked over to Hitsugaya and patted him on the shoulder, before knocking on the door gently and motioning for Hitsugaya to stand back. Hitsugaya could only watch helplessly as Hisagi entered Tayomi's room to have a chat with her.

"Tayomi-chan…" Hisagi sat down beside Tayomi, who still looked adorable despite the fact that her eyes were filled with tears and her cheeks were very red.

"Shuu-kun, if you're here to try and talk me out of being angry with that person, then forget it." Tayomi held her bunny tight and replied stubbornly.

"Alright, I won't…" Hisagi smiled, reaching out his hand and wiping away her tears. "Don't cry…"

Hitsugaya watched from the small opening of the door as Hisagi stroked Tayomi's hair. For some reason, she had calmed down almost immediately. His heart was filled with jealousy, while he watched Hisagi pat Tayomi's head, making her giggle a little. He felt like running over to beat Hisagi up, but he knew that Tayomi would not be happy if he did that. The only thing he could do right now was watch and hope that she would be fine. Just then, Matsumoto entered the office and greeted her Captain and Hinamori, before knocking on Tayomi's door and entering.

Matsumoto beside Tayomi and hugged the crying girl. Even though she was practically being suffocated as Matsumoto embraced her, Tayomi did feel slightly better in the company of her close friends. Matsumoto took out a small bottle of sake and thrust it into Tayomi's hands.

"I always drink this when I'm sad… I hope it makes you feel better." She smiled.

Tayomi stared at the small bottle before opening it gingerly and sipping it. All of a sudden, she felt giddy and put down the bottle instantly. Her vision blurred and she lost consciousness. Matsumoto's eyes shot wide open and she turned to look at Hisagi, who shook his head and sighed.

"I was going to tell you, Rangiku-san…" He sighed. "Tayomi-chan is really bad at holding her liquor. A few sips and she can be knocked out for an entire night… She never admits it, but she's a really horrible drinker…"

Hisagi asked Hitsugaya to come in and Matsumoto smiled sheepishly, as she told her Captain that she had knocked Tayomi out on accident. The two Lieutenants left the room and Hitsugaya sat down beside his sleeping girlfriend. He carried her in his arms and placed her on her bed, covering her up. Sighing, he lay down on her bed beside her, gazing at her sleeping face and ran his fingers through her hair, down her shoulder. She was fast asleep beside him, knocked out by the sake. Aware that he needed to give her time to cool down, he kissed her on her pink lips and got up from her bed. Reluctantly, he turned back to look at her, before closing the door behind him and returning to his Division's barracks for a good night's rest. That is, if he could even get any sleep. He could only hope that Tayomi would be willing to listen to him tomorrow.

Tayomi woke up the next day, completely exhausted. She knew that after the few sips of sake, the next thing she would experience after being knocked out was the dreaded hangover. Her head was still spinning and she struggled to keep her eyes open. Suddenly, she realised that she was no longer in her room, in the 5th Division's barracks. She was in a white room with white ceilings, white walls and white flooring. She attempted to get up, then realised that her hands and feet were tied together. Panicking, she struggled to get up, but still felt dizzy as her vision blurred every few seconds. Why am I so sleepy? Where am I? Why am I tied up?

"Ah, Tayomi Sakuri…" A voice spoke. "You're awake at last!"

Tayomi turned her head and gasped in shock.

Author's note:
Yeah... Tayomi is very very INCREDIBLY BAD at holding her liquor. Completely vulnerable to even sake T.T And OMG who captured her? What's the Gotei 13 going to do about it? How's Hitsugaya going to deal with it? Find out in the next chapter! :D
I hoped you all liked this emo chapter XD Please review! Thanks! ^.^