Since she had joined the second division, Karin couldn't remember the last time she had a free evening. So when the opportunity arose, she decided to stroll through the streets of Seireitei. She hadn't been in the Soul Society for very long, no more than three months, following a tragic accident she didn't want to talk about anymore, so she didn't yet know much about her new world. Of course, her brother and friends had accompanied her as best they could in this new life, but some adaptation time was still necessary.
After over an hour of walking, admiring the city at night, she realized that her steps had taken her to the gates of the tenth division. She didn't bother wondering why her subconscious had brought her there, but she took the opportunity to enter.
At this hour, she didn't expect to encounter many people, but she was certain he would be there. Because he always worked until unimaginable hours.
When they had met in the real world and during the few times they had played football matches together, she had never imagined the many responsibilities he had. The word "captain" didn't make sense to her at that time. Today, now that she had integrated into his world, she understood the full extent of it. She understood better why he struggled to free up time to come see her during these times, and she congratulated herself for never having blamed him because she was sure that today, she would have been filled with guilt.
Even though Tôshiro constantly complained about the ton of work he had, she knew very well that he was more than happy with his responsibilities.
It wasn't the first time she had come to visit him at such a late hour, and she was even happy to think that it was going to become a habit.
Once inside, she made her way to the young captain's office and opened the door behind which she thought she would find him. But this time, it was a sleeping Matsumoto, a bottle of alcohol in hand, whom she surprised sprawled out on the couch at the back of the room.
Karin entered on tiptoe and saw a sheet lying on the floor. When she picked it up, she couldn't help but glance at it, recognizing Tôshiro's fluid handwriting.
"I'll be back in an hour, you better have sorted these reports by importance and category."
Seeing the mess in the room, the young girl felt sorry for the lieutenant. Obviously, she hadn't finished, let alone started, and was going to get a scolding she would remember. Appreciating the pretty young woman a lot, she decided to give her a little helping hand.
Thanks to her organization and speed, it didn't take her more than half an hour. A few minutes after she finished and took a seat next to the lieutenant on the couch, noise could be heard behind the doors. He was coming.
She couldn't stop her heart from beating faster. She always felt this joy and impatience at the thought of seeing him again, and today was no exception. It wasn't false to say that her feelings were growing stronger every day.
When Tôshiro entered the room, it was as if he was surprised to see her. Things weren't as usual as she had thought, after all.
"What are you doing here?"
"Do you want me to leave?"
"I didn't say that. But it's your first quiet evening in a while, I thought you'd enjoy it." She smiled at his words.
"How do you know I have the evening free?"
"There's nothing I don't know," he replied with an enigmatic smile before casting a disapproving glance at his snoring lieutenant.
"Don't be too hard on her."
He responded with a look that said "I'll hold back" before calling out Matsumoto's name. She woke up with a start.
"Oh captain, you're back already? But you said an hour, I..."
She stopped speaking after scanning the room. Obviously, the fact that it wasn't as she had left it when she fell asleep made her question a lot of things. Starting with the amount of alcohol she had consumed. Karin imagined her counting the number of drinks she had had and who could be responsible for her memory lapse. How could she have forgotten that she had done her job? The young Kurosaki suppressed a laugh at the thought before coming to her rescue:
"Rangiku, you might be better off going to bed, don't you think?"
"Um, yes, maybe that's a good idea. Good night, and don't do anything weird, you two!"
The two of them, embarrassed, called out the redhead's name, but it was too late, she had completely disappeared.
"I hope you regret doing her job for her," Tôshiro said in a voice that was half embarrassed, half mocking.
"What makes you think it's me?" the young girl replied, looking perplexed.
"For one, Matsumoto never does her job, and if she did, she wouldn't do more than what's asked," he explained.
Karin responded with a frustrated "tsss" at his insight while Tôshiro settled behind his desk. He shifted slightly, as he was starting to get used to it, so she could sit at the table too, and she got off the couch to join him.
She then asked if she could help him.
"You've already helped a lot. You should go back and take the opportunity to rest," he suggested.
"This is the second time you've hinted at not wanting my company. I might start to get offended," she teased him.
"I wanted to prevent you from having a boring evening, but since you're looking for trouble," he replied.
He transferred a pile of documents to his side as a vein appeared on his forehead.
"Oh no, not complaints. You're being tough on me!" she exclaimed, adding a fake pout to her words.
As they worked side by side, Karin came across a letter that left her perplexed, to say the least. Indeed, she wasn't sure she appreciated the little heart she saw on the edge of the envelope.
"Here. A letter for you," she said, her tone a bit curt.
"What does it say?" he asked without looking up.
"I don't know. I haven't opened it," she replied.
"Open it," he suggested.
"It seems private," she hesitated.
He glanced at the envelope and the recipient before returning his attention to his documents.
"You can read it," he said. She didn't need any further encouragement.
"Shiro-chan, look what you're making me do. I have to send you a complaint letter just to get your attention. You work way too much! Would you like to spend some time together tomorrow evening? Signed, Hinamori."
Karin felt her heart skip a beat.
"If this isn't a date, I don't know what it is."
"She does this all the time."
The youngest Kurosaki felt a furious urge to tear the letter apart.
"Who is it?"
"What do you mean, who?"
"Is she your girlfriend?" The words were ripped from her tongue.
He lifted his head from his papers and studied her for a few seconds before replying.
"A childhood friend."
Karin looked away and focused on her sheets before replying with a flat "oh, okay." She concealed her annoyance and the small flutter in her chest that felt like it was breaking into a thousand pieces as best as she could.
She then handed him the sheet while his eyes were still focused on something on the opposite side.
"Here, if you want to reply to her."
"I'm busy, can you do it?"
Was he really asking her to respond to his date? She felt like twisting his neck. Yet, she already reached for the paper before asking him what she should write.
"That I can't make it."
The relief that washed over her wasn't as comforting as she would have liked.
"Anything else I should add?"
"If you have a good excuse, by all means."
She replied instantly. "I'll take care of it, no problem."
After finishing the refusal, she stood up, a satisfied smile on her face.
"Well, I'm going to bed."
He looked up at her as she handed him the letter again, and their eyes met for a second before she turned away and tossed him a good night as she hurried out. Tôshiro watched her leave the room eagerly before scanning the response she had written.
"I can't, the girl next to me wouldn't forgive me."
A delighted smile spread across his face. It took him only a second in shunpo to catch up to her, pin her against one of the hallway walls, and kiss her passionately.
As they separated to catch their breath a few seconds later, the wielder of Hyōrinmaru took the opportunity to whisper in her ear:
"I may have accidentally forgotten to mention that this childhood friend is my sister."