The next morning, Kisuke woke to the sun shining down on his face. His head was throbbing and his mouth was parched. How did he even get back here? The events of last night suddenly came rushing to him and he felt like he got hit by a truck. Crap, I made a fool of myself, didn't I?

Another thought came to his head. If he was sleeping on the bed, how about Yoruichi? He looked to the sofa, but she wasn't there. He sensed someone stirring next to him and turned to see her sleeping next to him. There was some space between them since the bed was huge, but it still caused him to jolt in surprise.

Her long, silky locks were sprawled messily on her pillow and her lips were slightly parted. She looked so peaceful in her sleep. He resisted the urge to tuck a strand of hair behind her ear.

"You're awake?" Yoruichi mumbled, her eyes still closed and her voice full of sleep.

"Yeah," he croaked. "Thank you for bringing me back here last night."

Kisuke wondered how on earth she managed it. He figured he was nearly a foot taller than her, and though he didn't weigh that much, deadweight was hard to move around.

"You're welcome, I almost broke my back doing it," she said, half-jokingly. She opened her eyes and smiled softly. "You're lucky I have experience dragging around men twice my size."

He felt his face flush. "Do you miss it?" he murmured, "judo," he clarified when he saw the confusion in her eyes.

"Yeah, I loved it," she breathed, "it let me feel like I had control over something in my life for once. I could relieve all the stress I felt from bearing the Shihōin name." She winced. "Then the accident happened, which left me an emotional wreck for years and with a knee injury that prevented me from competing anymore."

His eyes searched hers and he felt the sudden need to comfort her— hold her even— but he didn't. That would be breaking down boundaries, after all, and after last night, he needed to place them back up. "Would you ever go back to it?" he asked gently.

"I… can't. There's too much on my plate now and I'm getting older. It was about time I stepped up for the family business anyways," she said with a wistful look on her face.

He wanted to ask her more— get to know more about her, but she looked like she didn't want to talk about it any longer and he didn't want to pry.

"How about you? Why did you become a professor?" Yoruichi asked.

"It's… a bit of a long story," he replied.

"We have some time," she said, resting her head on her hand and looking keenly at him.

Kisuke pondered for a moment, wondering what to tell her. He decided on giving her a brief overview, skipping out on certain details that he didn't feel like divulging to her yet.

"I always had a fascination for how things worked ever since I was a kid. I love tinkering with things, taking them inside out, and putting them back together. Hence, me constantly conducting experiments and nearly blowing up my house in one of them, which Kiyoko-san already told you," he said, earning a laugh from her. "I love doing research and inventing, but to put it out publicly, I needed the qualifications. So, I ended up doing my master's, PhD, and even my postdoc. My mother wasn't fond of me going into academia. She always said that someone with my talents should do something more stable, with a better outlook. Like becoming a doctor or something."

She pursed her lips. "Technically, you're a doctor now."

He snorted. "You're not wrong." He continued, "Anyways, I wasn't planning on becoming a professor. The thought never crossed my mind to do something other than research… but it made sense. Becoming a professor meant that I could oversee my own research lab."

"Instead of being someone else's lab rat?" she joked.

He chuckled. "Exactly. The pay is pretty good too. I haven't been a professor long, but honestly, I couldn't be happier. I enjoy teaching more than I expected to and I love working with other like-minded scientists to conduct fulfilling research."

"I'm glad. It's good that you're happy," Yoruichi said softly, "I always wondered what the inside of a lab looked like," she added.

"I can show you sometime," he blurted out before he could think about it. "I-I mean only if you'd like…"

"How about sometime next weekend? I have a lot of things to catch up on this week."

His eyes widened. He hadn't expected her to agree to his sudden outburst. He felt a rush of happiness burst through him. The weekend was a perfect time to show her the lab. There would be fewer people around— fewer prying eyes. "That's good with me." Better than good, actually.

Yoruichi smiled. "Okay, time to get up." She sat up and stretched languidly, almost like a cat. Her shirt rode up above her stomach, revealing her toned midsection. Kisuke swallowed and forced himself to look away.

She turned to him, oblivious to his dilemma. "So, the plan for today," she began," first, we're going to have breakfast with everyone. Then we're sending Rangiku and Gin off to their honeymoon and heading back home."

"Sounds good."

Honestly, he felt disappointed that they weren't going to spend more time together. Even if nothing could happen between them, he enjoyed her company. She was like a breath of fresh air that suddenly came crashing into his life and brought him out of his comfort zone— in a good way, of course. At least he had an excuse to see her soon.

As she got off the bed, he sat up and called her name, "Yoruichi?"

"Hm?"

"About last night, can we pretend it never happened? I was a bit drunk and it was… a mistake. If you're ok with it, I'm still down to help you get your father off your back." He swallowed. "As friends."

"I would like that," she said, a smile tugging at her lips. She reached into her bag and took out a bottle of pills. "You have a hangover, right? Take one of these."

He gave her a smile of his own. "Thanks, you're really my savior."

She gave him one of her signature smirks and went to the bathroom to get ready while he took the pill with a glass of water.

Friends. He could be friends with her… right? Not like he had a choice unless he wanted to be badly hurt again. The thought of his ex came up, causing him to wince. Just thinking of her for a second made his blood run cold. He shook his head, trying to rid any thoughts of her far, far away. He didn't need to be hurt again. He had his research to focus on and was finally in a stable position after the complications he went through to get here. Even if someone's amber eyes pierced through him and had a laugh that sounded like music to his ears…

He exhaled loudly and tapped his fingers on the coffee table, fidgeting like he often did. He wondered what he should do while he waited for Yoruichi to get ready. He decided on facetiming Isshin— the poor guy was waiting for him to call him for a while. He put some earphones in and dialed Isshin, who picked up almost immediately.

"Hey, how did the wedding go?" Isshin asked.

"It was nice. I had a lot of fun actually."

"Oh good, I was worried you'd run away or something. I know you're not a fan of weddings."

"It definitely was uncomfortable at times… but her friends were nice and welcoming." For the most part.

"I saw some pictures in the news this morning. You were both looking pretty cozy. You catching feelings?" Isshin joked.

Kisuke choked on his water. "What? No— yes—." He sighed and moved to the other room, to make sure Yoruichi wouldn't hear. "It's not like that… at least on her end. And you know I'm not looking for a relationship anyways."

"Why not? Still not over your ex? That woman was a manipulative, lying b—"

"No, I am. I just… I don't want to get hurt again and you know this whole fake dating thing is practically a recipe for that."

"That's true. The fake relationship will be over one day." Isshin paused before continuing, "Honestly I still can't believe it. Why did she ask you out of all people?"

"Is it that unbelievable?" Kisuke asked, feigning hurt in his voice.

"Um, yes."

Honestly, Kisuke didn't really understand why either. "Ask her yourself," he grumbled.

Right on cue, Yoruichi stepped out of the washroom, wearing a yellow sundress that hugged her curves, her hair tied up in a dainty bun, exposing her long neck. Kisuke cursed inwardly and wondered what he did to deserve this.

"Who are you talking to?" She walked over to him and peered over his shoulder.

Kisuke put himself on mute. "My friend Isshin. He was just asking about the wedding. He uh, knows we're fake dating by the way."

She shot him a look, to which he shrugged. "He was the one who was supposed to meet me at L'été, so he kind of knew about the situation. Besides, you told Kuukaku."

Her expression softened slightly at his explanation. "Ah, guess there was no hiding it from him then. No one else though. Your turn to get ready," she said, gesturing to the bathroom.

He nodded, unmuting himself and finishing his call with Isshin before getting ready.

They arrived at the breakfast hall holding hands— this time, punctually.

"Yoruichi! Kisuke!" exclaimed Rangiku upon seeing them. Gin, who had his arm wrapped around Rangiku gave a nod and smiled at the both of them.

"Morning lovebirds, excited for the honeymoon?" Yoruichi replied with a grin.

Rangiku looked back at Gin and smiled warmly. "Of course, I can't wait to relax on the beautiful beaches and get a nice suntan with Gin. He's soo pale, he needs one badly."

"Ah, but you like that 'bout me," said Gin, pressing a quick kiss to her temple.

Rangiku giggled. "I'm curious to see what you look like with a tan though."

They sat down, conversing as they waited for the others to arrive. Kisuke tried to seek out Yoruichi's eyes, but she was engaged in a conversation with Shinji about the best hair conditioner to use.

Momo, who was sitting on his right, caught his eyes and smiled. "Kisuke-san, how are you feeling? You were pretty drunk when you showed up last night."

Kisuke ran a hand through his hair looking embarrassed. "I'm feeling much better, thanks to Yoruichi." He glanced towards Yoruichi but she and Shinji were getting into a heated debate now. "Thanks for the concern, Momo-san."

Momo leaned in a little closer and said in a quieter voice, "You're good for her. She left behind her party ways last night to take care of you."

"She's a brand-new person," added Rangiku, who apparently still heard their conversation.

"Hey, I can hear you." Yoruichi turned away from her debate with Shinji and glowered at them.

Seriously, Kisuke appreciated the gentle, brown-eyed woman's kind gesture, but she really sucked at whispering.

While they ate, Yoruichi turned to look at Nanao, who looked away, red in the face.

Kisuke didn't fail to notice the exchange when it happened several times throughout their breakfast. He whispered in Yoruichi's ear, "Is there a reason that everytime she looks at you, she turns brighter than a tomato?"

"What, jealous?" She snorted when he gave her a 'seriously?' look. "Last night, I gave her— well attempted to give her— a lap dance."

He raised an eyebrow at that to which she shrugged. "I'm not one to refuse a dare."

Kisuke looked entertained, but really, he was disappointed that he had missed it. (Maybe even a tad jealous.)

After the lavish meal, the women were gifted with beautiful, red carnations. "They symbolize love and good luck," said the waiter.

"Personally, I prefer sunflowers," Yoruichi said to no one in particular. The statement amused Kisuke. Ironically, she reminded him of sunflowers— bright, bold, and blinding.

Are we supposed to put these in our hair?" Soifon asked.

"I guess so," Yoruichi replied, taking the carnation and fumbling with it to try and get it to stay in her hair. She let out a frustrated sigh. "It's not really staying."

"Here, let me try," said Kisuke, taking the carnation and threading it carefully into her hair. His hands brushed against her cheeks as they came down, lingering a little longer than they should. "There." He took a step back to admire his handiwork and smiled gently at her, satisfied. She was stunning, to say the least.

"Thanks," Yoruichi croaked.

"Y'all are gross," came a voice from their right.

"What do you mean, Shinji? They're so cute!" Momo slapped his arm playfully.

"Cute my ass," Soifon mumbled under her breath.

Shinji smirked. "Glad yer happy Yoruichi," he said, earning a glare from her.

Kisuke offered her a coy smile and his hand, and they all headed to the entrance of the hotel, where a limo was waiting for Rangiku and Gin. He moved his arm to wrap around her waist as everyone said their goodbyes to the newly-wedded couple. Yoruichi leaned into him and rested her head on his shoulder. Her head was barely able to reach his shoulder, even in her heels.

"I need a long nap." She yawned and raised her head to meet his face. "Time to head back?"

He nodded, letting go of her waist. "I have a lot of emails to catch up on and a conference I have to prepare for."

"What's it about?"

He scratched his face. "Artificial neural networks."

"…Right. I don't suppose you need a plus one for that, do you?"

"You would go with me?" he sounds surprised, and a part of him jumps at the thought.

She gave him a meek smile. "Maybe next time. My schedule's fully packed this week."

Next time. Would there be a next time? Or would their fake relationship be over by then?

They said their goodbyes to the rest of the bridal party and groomsmen and headed back to their suite to pack everything up. Kisuke took one last look at the room, taking it all in, before leaving. It wasn't everyday one got to stay in such a luxurious hotel suite with someone like Yoruichi, after all.

Yoruichi peered curiously at him to which he gave her a charming, lopsided smile, causing her to scowl and look away with a faint tint on her cheeks.

They stood outside the hotel, where Tessai was waiting for them.

"Thank you for doing this with me, by the way." She turned to face him with a grateful look on her face.

"Don't worry about it," he replied with a smile.

"Do you think we were able to pull it off?"

He was pretty sure she already knew the answer, but he told her anyways. "Definitely."

Their eyes held onto each other and the tension in the air was heavy. Tessai interrupted with the boom of his voice, "Yoruichi-dono, Kisuke-dono, how was the wedding? Did you enjoy yourselves?"

They recounted to Tessai about the wedding while Tessai drove to Kisuke's house.

Once they arrived, Yoruichi broke the silence first, "I'll let you know what time I'm free next weekend. Don't miss me too much," she said, a little smirk tugging at the corners of her mouth.

"I'll try not to," he grinned at her like an idiot, and mentally chastised himself for doing so. Friends, dammit. Friends. He really needed to get a grip.

He couldn't help it— she crossed his mind several times a day. Thankfully, he was able to distract himself by diving deep into one of his experiments— something that definitely came in handy at times like these. Normally principal investigators of labs didn't do much of the lab work themselves, but he was mostly a research professor anyways, and he enjoyed doing some of his own experiments.

Suddenly, he got a text. He quickly sat up and fumbled with his phone, trying to read the message. It was from Yoruichi.

'Saturday at 12 pm, good with you?'

He grinned and typed in his response.

'Sounds like a plan'

Only a few more days to go.