IF IT COSTS ME MY LIFE PT. 3

EVEN IF IT COSTS ME MY LIFE --- PART 3



Toshiro stood up suddenly, knocking over his chair with  a loud crash. Momo winced at the noise.
"Oh damn. Sorry Momo. Are you okay?" said Toshiro, quickly picking up the chair, then turning to look at Momo in concern.
"I'm fine, Captain Hitsugaya. Thank you for asking", Momo replied, ducking her head.

Why was she being so formal all of a sudden? 'Of course', Toshiro thought, comprehension dawning. 'It's not proper to address a seated officer by their first name if you were of a lower rank, especially if you were not alone. Even if you knew the person well, like him and Momo, it still applied if you had company.'
He frowned and said, "You're welcome."

"So, Lieutenant Hinamori. How are you? Do your wounds hurt?" Unohana asked again.
"Oh! Yes, I'm fine. My wounds don't hurt at all. Not when I'm just lying here, that is."
"That's good. I was hoping that would be the case. You should be able to return to your own quarters sometime in the next few days. But right now  you need to rest as much  as you can. Your wounds are not just physical", she added, her voice softening to a gentle, low pitch.
"Yes, I know that. Thank you Captain Unohana."
"That's quite all right." Unohana smiled warmly down at Momo. Then, looking at Toshiro, she said, "Thank you for coming, Captain Hitsugaya. I'm sure Lieutenant Hinamori appreciates it too."

"Oh, yes! I do!" Momo looked down, embarrassed by her own eagerness. A blush spread over her cheeks.

"Would you like me to leave? I'm sure you two have a lot of catching up to do." As she said those last words, she looked meaningfully at Toshiro and slightly raised her eyebrows.

'What is she hinting at?' Toshiro wondered agonisingly. Then, realising that Unohana was still looking at him, he hastily replied, "No, no. You can stay. I've already explained everything that happened after Momo was-" Toshiro paused and winced slightly as he continued, "incapacitated."
"Ah. I see. Well then, if you're sure, I'll stay here for a while. I do not have any immediate duties to perform." Unohana brought another chair over to Momo's bed and sat down. An awkward silence reigned over them for a few minutes.

"Have you heard Lieutenant? The Head Captain is going to promote you to Squad 5 taicho", Unohana said.
Momo gasped and looked up in horror. "What?! Why me?!"
"Because he believes you are quite capable of filling the position and that you can help the rest of Squad 5 recover from the shock of Aizen's betrayal. Squad 5 was affected the most by his defection." Her voiced softened as she said these last words and her expression became serious.
"But I-I haven't even achieved bankai yet! And I haven't sat the captain's exam either! And I'm haven't been acknowledged by at least four of the current captains! And there's no way I can be a captain! I'm not strong enough! I can't-"
"Of course you can Lieutenant Hinamori", said Toshiro, smiling slightly. "You are perfectly capable of succeeding…him. And don't say that you're not strong enough. You are one of the best kido masters in the Soul Society. And it doesn't matter that you haven't achieved bankai yet. When you're back to full health, I will help you train until you have regained your former strength. Then you can work on achieving your bankai."
"Oh Toshiro, would you really? Thank you so much!" Momo beamed up at him, melting his heart in the process.

"Ah, that's better", said Unohana, smiling.
Toshiro and Momo looked at her quizzically.
"You were being too formal. Things like that don't matter when you're not in the company of others."
"But-Captain Unohana!-" Momo began.
Unohana raised her hand. "It doesn't matter. You are old friends and haven't spoken to each other for almost two months. There is no need to address each other as 'Captain Hitsugaya' and 'Lieutenant Hinamori' at the moment."
"Uhh okay then." Toshiro glanced sideways at Unohana, wondering why she was saying all this. He found her looking at him with a knowing look and smile. He looked away, focusing instead on the glass on Momo's bedside table. 'Why is this happening to me?' he thought in agony.