~~~~~Morning, 10 o'clock~~~~~

Tatsuki woke up slowly, feeling incredibly dizzy and sick. She looked around the room she found herself in, trying to remember the previous night's events. Her eyes widened as she saw the clothes scattered all over the room, the red tie and newsboy cap being the first clue leading to the identity of the person sleeping peacefully next to her. She gulped, immediately noticing that she was completely naked, sickness temporary forgotten. Her eyes then landed on the boy… no, wait, hundreds years old man sleeping next to her. 'This... this is all your fault, Hirako!' she thought, though refrained from saying it out loud. The last thing she needed was him to wake up. Though luck wasn't on her side that morning.

Shinji woke up slowly, rubbing his eyes. The first thing he noticed was that he wasn't in his room. He looked around, scanning the clothes randomly thrown across the floor and his eyes stopped on the blushing girl glaring angrily at him. His eyes widened, noting their similar state of undress. He looked away, trying to figure what to say. "Tatsuki…" he trailed off, already guessing her reaction to the whole thing.

"This… is your fault! This is all your fault! You did this to me! I'll never forgive you!" she yelled, glaring at him.

He gulped, avoiding her eyes on him. "Listen, I'm sorry. I… I didn't want this to happen, I swear." When he searched for her again, he realized that she was long gone. "Dammit!" He collapsed against the pillow, cursing every single thing leading to that moment. 'WOW, you screwed up epically.' His hollow whistled.

'Listen, I am so not in the mood for you right now.' Shinji thought, inwardly fuming. He then shot up, shunpoing towards the bathroom the next moment. 'Aww, fuck.'

~~~~Flashback: the previous night~~~~~

It was the party celebrating Aizen's defeat. The Shinigami had decided to hold it in the World of the Living, so Ichigo and his friends could come and party with them. As well as the Visoreds, given they were no longer exiles, but they still didn't want to return to Soul Society. And, of course, it was cheaper. Everyone had waited for Ichigo to wake up and, after he became accustomed with the loss of his powers, they invited him to join the party. All the Shinigami had bought gigais for the occasion and were at the assigned place at 9 o'clock.

Hirako Shinji looked around the room for his friends. They were all more or less drunk, causing him to roll his eyes. He knew his limit and wasn't foolish enough to overdo it. He took another sip from the bottle lying next to him. 'Hmm, maybe I can get drunk. After all, what are the chances?' He finished the bottle and ordered another one. Soon he noticed the spot next to him was no longer empty. Tatsuki was occupying it. She was one of the very few people still sober. She sighed.

"Morons."

Shinji chuckled. "What happened?" He knew her friends well enough to know that whatever it was, it had to be goddamn funny.

She noticed his grin and rolled her eyes. "Asano got everyone drunk. Even Chad."

Shinji broke up laughing. "Oh, God, I love that guy… he's just priceless!"

Tatsuki smirked. "You're just like him, you know?"

He shook his head, smiling softly. "Nah, I like to think that I'm a little more mature. You know, being older and stuff."

She nodded, taking a sip from his bottle. "I keep forgetting that you're older than all of us together."

"You make me sound like some sort of old pedo."

"Aren't you? You called Orihime your first love."

He rolled his eyes. "Spirits age differently. Besides, it was just a joke, you know. Can't you make the difference? Don't have the experience of boys flirting with you?" he mocked.

Tatsuki blushed, feeling extremely embarrassed. "Urusai."

His comment was meant to be just some mocking, but he soon realized that he had touched a very sensitive nerve. Shinji sighed. "Well, you are cute… when you don't glare as if you wanna murder me. Like now."

Her glare intensified. "You're just another pervert looking for a hot girl." She spat.

He ignored her glare. "Probably. But I am a little bit more. An ex-Taicho and stuff."

"I honestly don't care. Being a leader doesn't mean you're not a complete asshole."

Shinji rolled his eyes. "Feisty."

'She's not leaving, though.'

'Leave me alone! Can I get a night without you?'

'Tch. Fine, but you'll pay for it later.'

He sighed heavily. 'Having an Inner Hollow sucks.'

"What's wrong?" she asked. 'People don't just go from teasing to bad moods.'

"The bad sides of being a Visored." He tried to be as vague as possible. She was a Human, and he didn't want her to be afraid of him. He closed his eyes. 'Why do I care so much what she thinks of me? It's not like I'm gonna see her after tonight.' He emptied the bottle of sake, ordering another one.

"Oh, I see. I was told that you guys have some sort of… Inner Hollow, right? Ichigo said that his is especially irritating."

Shinji rolled his eyes. "He isn't that unique. They're all irritating."

Tatsuki nodded, taking another sip from his bottle. "Hey, that's mine!" Shinji said. She smirked, pulling the bottle back when he stretched to get it. She leaned back, pushing him with one hand, the other keeping the bottle as far from him as possible. He moved on top of her, trying to get his alcohol back… though he found something else instead. The moment their eyes met, they were both frozen. Tatsuki's eyes widened as Shinji leaned down, slowly pressing his lips against hers.

~~~~~Present~~~~

Tatsuki remembered little to nothing after that. She knew that he had taken her to a motel room. She remembered the way he dropped her on the bed and a few key details. She blushed, remembering his words.

"I love you, Tatsuki. I promise to be gentle, but promise you'll forgive me tomorrow."

She closed her eyes, sobbing quietly. She couldn't remember her answer. She pulled her knees to her chest and folded her arms around them. 'Bastard, you knew I was drunk and you had taken advantage of me.' She had successfully reached her apartment and was now sulking in her bed. 'What will I do now?'

Shinji paid for the small dirty room and went home. He had a lot on his mind. 'When did I get drunk?'

'You drank about 3 bottles while you were with her and you were already close to your limit before.'

He sighed. 'Yeah, you're right.'

'She was even more trashed than you, though. She wasn't supposed to be drinking.'

'I know. What I don't know is why the fuck do I care? We're never gonna see each other.'

Shinji's Inner Hollow started laughing madly. 'Are you that much of a moron? You wisen up when you drink. You love her, that's why.'

He stopped walking, frozen in place. The statement was confusing, shocking him. His mind raced with different possibilities, but he reached the same conclusion: he was in love with her. His eyes slid shut, as his mind raced with his memories from the previous night. 'I screwed up.'

A/N: Yeah, yeah, I know I have another story right now. But I promise this one will be short. Mostly 10 chapters. I just think that since I am on holyday I'll be able to have weekly updates for both...

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