Birthday

He'd made plans to drink with Rangiku, Shūhei, and Shiba today.

"Gaoyu, where have you been for the past month?"

At the table, Rangiku gulped down a big mouthful of wine and immediately asked curiously.

"Don't ask. I got a mission as soon as I became Vice-Captain." Gaoyu sighed and took a drink too.

"By the way, I heard Shūhei's going to become a Vice-Captain?"

He looked at Shūhei.

Shūhei was the same rank as him. They'd both thought Shūhei would become a Vice-Captain first, but Gaoyu, who'd always been unremarkable, had beaten him to it.

Shūhei hurriedly waved his hand. "Not yet. Captain Tōsen is only considering it for now. I'm nowhere near as capable as you, Gaoyu. I'm not qualified yet."

Shiba said gravely, "Gaoyu, you set a precedent in the Soul Society. That's why Captain Tōsen wants to appoint Shūhei as Vice-Captain."

"Captain Aizen treats you too well," Rangiku said with a hearty laugh. "But it can't be helped. That bastard Gin went to the Third Division to become Captain, so someone has to fill the vacancy for Vice-Captain in the Fifth Division."

"Anyway, enough about Gaoyu and Shūhei. What about you..."

Rangiku turned to Shiba again. "I heard you're going to become a Vice-Captain too?"

"Huh?" Shūhei was taken aback, then hurriedly said, "But Senior Shiba is in the Eleventh Division, isn't he? The Eleventh Division already has Vice-Captain Yachiru."

"Not the Eleventh Division. The Seventh Division." Shiba's expression gave nothing away. He simply downed a drink.

"The Seventh Division is short a Vice-Captain. The higher-ups say I'm an All-rounder, and they want to transfer me to the Seventh Division as Vice-Captain."

"Congratulations, Shiba." Rangiku raised her glass. "I heard your family has always hoped you'd become a Vice-Captain."

The four of them had become a regular little group and often went out drinking together.

The next time he saw Rangiku, Gaoyu noticed that her favorability toward him had reached eighty-one. He'd permanently gained the Great Replenishing Pill ability.

As for gaining Shiba's "All-rounder" ability, it was only a matter of time.

They'd likely keep getting together to drink often over the next few decades. Raising their favorability to eighty was practically effortless.

After they'd had their fill, Gaoyu staggered home, a little drunk.

The moment he opened the door, he froze.

Inside were Shūhei, Rangiku, and Shiba, who had just left the tavern.

Renji, Hinamori, Kira, and Tōshirō were there too.

"What are you all..."

Gaoyu scratched his head and asked, confused, "Why did you all come to my place?"

"You really don't remember?" Rangiku asked in surprise, her eyes widening.

"Remember what?" Gaoyu had drunk quite a bit earlier. Hearing her say that, he thought he'd forgotten something important and hurriedly tried to recall it.

"Gaoyu, today's your birthday."

A voice suddenly sounded behind him.

Gaoyu hurriedly turned around. When he saw who it was, he stammered, "C-C-Captain Aizen?!"

That's right—it was Aizen!

Aizen was carrying an enormous cake. He walked in with it in both hands and set it down on the table.

No way, it's my birthday today?!

Wait, today's December 25th. Damn, it really is my birthday!

Gaoyu froze.

"You're kidding. Senior Gaoyu forgot his own birthday?!"

Renji said in surprise, "I thought only us Rukongai residents forgot our birthdays. Turns out nobles forget theirs too."

"All right, all right. Don't just stand out there. Come in and cut the cake. Gaoyu, you're the birthday boy, so you get to blow out the candles first."

Looking at everyone, Gaoyu felt a warmth rise in his heart.

He'd made friends with them for his own reasons, of course, but now...

Having friends...

Was actually pretty nice.

Gaoyu's lips curved into a smile. This wasn't the fake smile he usually wore.

"Honestly,"

Gaoyu said softly, "if I'd known, I wouldn't have eaten so much earlier."

"You've got some nerve," Shūhei said, looking a little pained. "I heard I was the one paying, and you didn't spare a thought for your old classmate's wallet."

"Haha! Shūhei rarely treats us, so of course we had to make the most of it!"

"What?! Miss Rangiku has no right to say that! You're always dodging the bill!"

"Oh? You think it's okay to make a beautiful woman pay?"

"So this is what life in the Gotei 13 is like," Momo Hinamori remarked, watching the two "argue."

"What a pain." Tōshirō folded his arms and looked at them, exasperated.

"Stop acting so grown-up." Gaoyu walked over and ruffled his hair.

Tōshirō hurriedly wriggled free.

"Don't ruffle my hair!"

Gaoyu chuckled and walked over to the cake.

It was huge, with thirty-three candles stuck into it.

That didn't mean Gaoyu was thirty-three. In the real world, a candle represented a year, but that custom didn't make sense in the Soul Society.

There were plenty of people in the Soul Society who'd lived for hundreds of years. Were they supposed to stick hundreds of candles into their birthday cakes?

Here, each candle represented a year since Gaoyu had become fully independent.

Gaoyu's parents had died thirty-three years ago. Until their deaths, while they were still alive, Gaoyu had followed the path they'd laid out for him.

Only after they passed away had he gained a will of his own.

Looks like...

Aizen investigated me pretty thoroughly.

Well, if he couldn't uncover even that, he wouldn't be Aizen.

Gaoyu blew out all the candles.

Even though he'd already eaten his fill and drunk plenty, he still cut a big slice of cake for everyone, himself included.

"Thank you, thank you, everyone."

Gaoyu spoke from the heart. "I hope we can always gather like this in the future, and that no one will ever leave."

Though the words came from the heart, he knew they could never come true.

Everyone...

Would eventually go their separate ways.

Like a ripple rising on the river of fate, spreading farther and farther from its center...

And farther and farther away.

The others were one thing, but everything Aizen did now was an act. What about Gaoyu?

Was he truly expressing his feelings, or was he, like Aizen, unconsciously putting on an act of being moved?

Honestly, even he wasn't sure anymore.

Gaoyu glanced at Aizen. The latter seemed not to have noticed his gaze and was still laughing and chatting with everyone as they ate the cake.

For a Captain, being this "approachable" was quite something.

Whatever. I'll worry about the future when it comes!