The burning tip of the cigarette seemed to draw itself closer and closer to his fingers as he set it aside momentarily; the black remains of the burning cylinder dissipated into thin ashes that floated downward into the partly filled ceramic dish below. A slow exhale allowed for the silver clouds of smoke to escape from his lips as he crossed his arms over the thin banister of the balcony; it was a small, last minute addition to the master bedroom that had ultimately won him over when it came down to making a decision in the housing competition. He didn't really know why he enjoyed coming out here so often but… something about the early morning breeze and the slight overlook seemed to go well together.

He pressed the still smoldering tip of the cigarette into the bottom of the ceramic dish and ultimately smothered the burning end easily. Why did he still smoke anyways? It was a terrible habit and… well it was a habit overall, which is what made it addictive. Still, he hated it for the sheer fact that he picked it up from Ryuken- not exactly the best role model in the world.

And just what the hell did he get himself into?

Everything from the night before, from the whole 'event', to the skipping out and moving into his office and then… letting her persuade him like that- although she would rather use the term 'seducing' which did seem a bit more appropriate for the given situation. The entire night afterwards… he just couldn't believe he let himself fall into it so easily. There should've been more of a resistance, more something just like all the times before but instead… well, he didn't really need to remind himself what happened. What happened last night was still in his bed this morning, probably all curled up in the blanket since she seemed to have the tendency of stealing it afterwards.

Why did he leave himself vulnerable to situations like that? Situations that gave her that much of an advantage over him.

A warm set of hands somehow managed to find their way against him as the feel of calmer flesh moved to press against his back; arms lightly draping themselves around his waist. A light chuckle removed itself from her lips as she tucked her head into the empty dip between his shoulder-blades. "You know, if you're one of those people who smokes after a night like that…you better make sure you have another pack."

A brief chuckle escaped him as he turned around in her arms and looked down at her; feeling the way she promptly rested her chin against his chest. Her purple locks were disheveled and fell into messy strands around her shoulders; her matching eyes were just barely open as a somewhat satisfied smile resided on her lips. "Actually, I got a call from work earlier today; I have to be back at two for a scheduled surgery that they assumed I had forgotten about."

"Well did you?"

"Not entirely."

She chuckled to herself this time as she moved her hands to push against the railing behind him; stretching slightly to work out the tension in her shoulders. "Well it's only twelve now, which is surprising seeing as I'm rarely awake this early after that kind of activity."

"It's actually more like twelve thirty and I was planning on going in at one to go over details of the surgery with the patient; which means, I need to start getting ready now so I can get there in time without looking rushed."

"Haven't we been through something like this before?"

"It does seem like a running theme with us, doesn't it?"

One hand moved to pull together the loose shirt she had thrown on moments before while the other ruffled up her confused locks. "Well I guess that's just what I should expect with a Quincy. Am I still required to show up today?"

"Actually, I think you might be scheduled off for the day." he started as he took the time to remove himself from the railing that had started to dig into his back and moved back around her; stepping into his bedroom once room. "I imagine that half of the staff won't be coming back in today."

"Oh don't worry, you'll see them back in a few months or so." she teased; slowly moving back in after him. She watched as he eventually made his way to the bathroom across from the balcony, no doubt planning a morning shower before work. It wasn't surprising, although she kind of liked how his skin retained a hint of her perfume from the night before. Hands were already in the process of removing a shirt he had thrown on for the moment; revealing old and new injuries on his skin. There were a few fresh scratches on his shoulders and around his neck- there was sure to be one on his left hip as well; a few more bruises to add to his collection from where her fingers might've pressed too harshly against his skin, but what could she say, she liked it a little rough sometimes.

Still, she found her eyes drawn to the pale scars that continued to plague his skin; his entire back almost taken up from long marks that stretched end to end, a few of them curved around his side while others struck to a specific linear path. She remembered almost specifically how some of them felt underneath her fingertips but she couldn't have possibly been able to touch all of them; the visible number of strikes surprised even her.

It was difficult to ignore that burning pressure of her eyes against him; even now, the feeling continued to make him unease as he glanced back to her for a moment. "Is there something wrong?"

"No, I was just sitting here thinking… my aim was a lot better than I thought it was." she shrugged lightly.

"Yeah, mine too."

There was a brief period of silence where neither of them seemed sure if they should feel offended or just pass it off as a piece of the past; the moment was merely bypassed as they both moved into different areas and decided to toss out the moment as though it hadn't occurred. At least, not yet.

Ruffling her hair, she pulled it back from her face as she stepped out from the bedroom and slowly made her way through the house; making her way through the fairly straight corridors until she came to the neatly-aligned kitchen. She was still a little woozy from the drinking last night but at least it wasn't a hangover, then again she was pretty sure she had perfected the balance of keeping one away. As long as she could still set up a pot of coffee for later, then she was still in a pretty good functioning balance. It only too a few steps before she set the new pot into the machine for a new brewing round and leaned back against the counter behind her; stifling a soft yawn that interrupted her.

Well… last night was certainly one for the books.

Ah shit, now everyone else was going to be on her ass about what happened and wanting all the details; although she had warned Nell that she would call her that morning if something did happen. There was no regret about last night, in fact she was kind of looking forward to another, short round but decided that he probably wanted a bit of privacy during his morning routine. Her only problem was spilling it to everyone else, although she had been doing that from the first day and they were all expecting it anyways. Aw hell, in the end, there were no problems then. The tension was finally out of the way and she knew exactly what to tell the others should- or rather when- they ask.

One hand moved to rub at the back of her neck as she gently rolled it back and forth; waiting for that all telling pop to finally happen and work out the stiffness that had settled in over night. A satisfying groan escaped when it did occur and she let her hand move back to readjust the loose shirt she had thrown on moments before. It was one of his that she grabbed from his dresser, she was somewhat surprised that it seemed to fit her just as well; given the chance, she might just wear it back home to avoid the risk of making one of those 'Walk of Shame' looks. Although, she preferred to call them the 'Walk of Victory' instead, because that's how she felt afterwards and this was certainly a victory for her to take. Just when she thought he was going to hold out on her forever…

Still, she could hear the scream of irony in the back of her head.

The one man she had learned to hate with a seething passion in that short battle was the only one she had been content with chasing for this long period of time; at first it had been for the sheer fact of making him hate her even more and then… well somewhere along the way, things twisted and ended up on the other side of the spectrum.

Wait, that wasn't even the definition of irony. What word was she even thinking of? Fuck it, she wasn't here for a literary lesson.

Oh God, she could already hear Szayel bringing it up; it was going to be hell to try and get around him about it. He was just going to bring up exactly what she just said to herself… and she couldn't deny it. She really couldn't. Then again, at this point, she had learned many ways to avoid him and get around in a conversation, so she should be set.

And to think all those scars on his back belonged to her. They were given by her hand, so it was only right that they still belonged to her. There was still some sick kind of pride in them though and she wasn't entirely sure if she wanted that feeling to go away or not. He had plenty of other scars so it was only right for her to claim something…

She moved to give into a long stretch to help ease herself from her own thoughts before she looked over to see that the coffee pot was mostly halfway full- enough for her. Heading over to the cabinet, she fished out a small mug and walked back towards the coffee machine; removing the pot just long enough to fill most of the mug before she set it back without causing all too big of a mess. The heavy scent from the coffee beans was enough to wake her up as she held it between her hands for the warmth. At least for now she could sit back and think about what her day was going to consist of; it probably wouldn't hurt if she did some shopping, picked up around the house, or check in and see how Nell was doing with the new baby. Well, he was probably like two or three weeks out now, so he wasn't necessarily new but still- well hell, he was still new regardless.

She moved to press the mug against her lips before feeling the touch of his hands around her waist; feeling the slight brush of his lips against the side of her neck. "Shit… I almost tossed this coffee on you."

"Well that would've been an inconvenience on my part." he remarked.

"Yeah, but then I would've been forced to help you with that second shower."

"Oh well then, good thing you didn't." he replied as he slowly stepped away from her. "I should be done around four or five this afternoon but it all depends on how much paperwork gets done beforehand."

She chuckled lightly and turned back towards him. "I'm gonna head back home for a few hours but if you want… we can meet back here later."