The next morning, Kate waited in the Galley La Office's lobby. She sported ankle length jeans, a white v-neck t-shirt and her new sneakers. She was thankful she had packed more than dresses after Monday's events. It was bad enough she didn't think to pack sneakers.

Paulie walked past the Lobby and observed Kate's outfit before greeting her.

"Morning. Better, but maybe wear a higher neck line."

Kate simply laughed at Paulie's remark. Kaku had warned her not to take anything Paulie said regarding outfits seriously. "Morning Paulie! I'll do my best!" She waved as he walked away murmuring something she couldn't make out.

Kaku walked in with Kalifa, who had given him a new itinerary for the day.

"If you're unable to complete all of them today, you can skip item numbers "14, 16 and 28".

The carpenter rubbed the back of his head as he looked at the list which had over 50 items. "We will definitely be skipping those 3!" He chuckled to try and soften the glare Kalifa was giving him.

The blonde secretary turned towards Kate. "Good morning, Kate. I have given Kaku your itinerary for today. I will be in meetings with Iceburg until 3:00PM. Feel free to let me know if there are any questions Kaku is unable to answer." She turned to her comrade who was busy making several markings on the itinerary.

"Ah, how rude of me. Good morning, Kate! Sorry, I'm just tryna' simplify things is all…" he laughed nervously, but was relieved to see Kalifa hadn't noticed his remark as she walked away.

"Morning Kaku!" She smiled as she watched him continue to scribble.

"Done!" He looked up and finally noticed her outfit. "What you're wearing is perfect! If we're gonna finish even half of these tasks…we're gonna need to take the Mountain Wind Express!" He shot her a wink.

Kate's face turned a deep shade of red. She hadn't expected to ever go flying with Kaku again.

Good thing I ate a light breakfast..

"Only if it's okay with you. I'd be fine taking a Yageda!"

He shook his head. "No can do, we simply don't got the time!"

They walked outside and Kaku took a look over the itinerary once more before putting it away into his pocket.

"Ready?"

She took a step towards Kaku and took a deep breath. Kaku picked her up, but noticed she looked uncomfortable.

"Everything okay?"

Her face remained scrunched as she looked at he ground.

"Taking off makes me a bit sick, but the rest is fine."

Kaku smiled down at her. "Easy fix! Just try your best to stay as close to me as possible. You have my guarantee that it'll help!"

She nodded and kept her eyes closed as she wrapped her arms tighter around his neck and pressed herself hard against his chest.

Kaku felt his heart start to flutter. He looked back down at her and noticed her cleavage which was now being squeezed. His pants began to feel tighter.

Focus!

"Let's go!"

-

Kalifa had set up the itinerary so Kate would become familiar with the other local businesses and contractors Galley La worked with. The first on the list was the café owner who supplied coffee, as well as catering for large events.

She was a middle aged woman with brown hair and green eyes. She wore a dark brown skirt with a matching pin striped dress shirt and a white apron.

"Howdy Kaku!" She waved as she wiped her hands on a cloth.

"Howdy do, Yuri! I'd like to introduce you to someone."

Yuri looked over at Kate curiously and smirked as she punched Kaku on the shoulder.

"So you finally decided to settle down, hm? I thought I was going to have to send a cousin of mine for you to date. A young man like you should be enjoying himself!"

Kaku and Kate both began to laugh nervously as Kaku placed a hand on Yuri's shoulder.

"Ha! I wish, but Kate here is actually working with us for the next little bit. Kalifa has me on strict orders to visit every single business we work closely with today."

Kate looked over at Kaku in disbelief.

Did he just say "I wish"?!

She couldn't fight the sudden flood of thoughts that came through her mind. What would it be like dating Kaku? She would have to fight off women like the woman at the cafe yesterday…but so far the people she had met seemed as if they'd be supportive. Would he be a good father? Did he even believe in marriage?! He was so much taller than her….would love making be-

"Kate?" Kaku looked at her quizzically, noticing she had spaced out.

"Oh! I'm so sorry, I was lost in thought." She quickly shook Yuri's hand.

"Hi Yuri! I'm Kate. I hope I'll get to work closely with you during my internship." She bowed as soon as their hands separated.

Yuri let out a boisterous laugh. "You are adorable! I don't do much…I just make sure they don't go hungry, and all the workers get nice meals during company events. You're always more than welcome to swing by if you ever feel peckish, or if you want to escape for a bit!"

They continued to chat before Kaku looked at a nearby clock.

"Yuri, thank you so much for spending time with us. We've got a few more stops to go and best be on our way now." He tipped his hat down towards her.

Yuri waved as she watched Kaku and Kate take off, and noticed how close Kate was against Kaku.

"Ha! Those two aren't foolin' me one bit."
-

The two made their way through several stops. Every now and then people would mistaken them for a couple, which both of them denied but didn't seem to mind.

A group of old ladies who ran the Inn high paying customers of Galley La stayed in surrounded Kaku. They were dressed in brown and grey kimonos, and their grey hair was put up in traditional updos. They must have been related as all 5 of them looked almost exactly the same.

"You look like you've lost some weight! Are you eating enough?"

"He's not eating enough! Let's get him some food!"

Kaku laughed as he waved his hands in reassurance.

"I'm fine! Really, I don't want to trouble you. I wanted to introduce you to Kate is all. You may be seeing her a lot more for the next few months."

They turned to Kate and immediately surrounded her instead.

"What a beautiful girl!"

"Look! She has a dimple, how charming!"

"Very good, she has great birthing hips, Kaku! She can defininitely give you many children!"

Kate smiled awkwardly as the women examined her. She wasn't sure how to react as she didn't want to come off as impolite.

Kaku reached into the group of women and grabbed Kate's arm, pulling her out of the crowd.

"Yes, she is quite wonderful. However, I'm only here on strict orders from Iceburg himself to bring her around and meet all his business partners. She is working with us for the next few months." He shot her a smile. He hated to admit it, but he looked forward to people assuming they were a couple. He had never had a girlfriend before, and had always imagined what it would be like to have one.

The ladies sighed and immediately formed a line, then bowing to Kate.

"It is very nice to meet you, Kate. We look forward to working with you."

Kate bowed in return. "I promise I'll do my best!"

Kaku looked at the women curiously. "Wait a second...did you all get haircuts?"

The women immediately changed their demeanor back to excited and surrounded Kaku once again.

"Oh Kaku! You are such a dear!"

"Yes, even our husbands didn't notice!"

"Thank you for paying attention to old bags like us."

After several minutes spent refusing food, Kate and Kaku waved goodbye and took off.

It was now 5:00PM and they hadn't made it through even half of the items on the list due to the amount and length of conversations they would have. Kaku was well known, and well liked amongst the people of Water 7. Kate wasn't surprised by this due to the way he interacted with them. He was always so sincere.

As they made their way back to Galley La, Kate looked up at Kaku. He hadn't noticed her watching him as his usual smile stayed on his face.

He really is something else.

-

Paulie lit a cigar as Kaku and Kate landed in front of Dock 1. Himself and the other shipwrights were done for the day.

"Ay Kaku! Kalifa says to save any questions for tomorrow...and that..uh...keeping Kate past work hours is sexual harassment. Apparently." He puffed on his cigar. He didn't agree with Kalifa, but he had made her angry once, and was not planning on disobeying her orders ever again.

Kaku looked at the clock. He was in disbelief how fast the day had gone by.

"Thanks, Paulie! Don't worry, I'll make sure I finish up a few things I had on my list." He smiled at his boss reassuringly to let him know he wasn't tired.

"Whatever you say kid. Have a nice night." He slung a bag over his shoulder as he walked away.

Kaku turned to Kate. He fought a smile as he watched her standing against the backdrop of the sun lowering on Watre 7. It was a sight he'd keep etched in his mind for a long time.

Beautiful.

"Kaku?" She looked up at him as he snapped out of his trance.

"Ah! I'm real sorry, Kate. I was going over some work items in this head." He laughed nervously.

"No worries! I figured I'd better get going since you still have work to do. Thank you again for taking me around." She rubbed her arm shyly. Though they had been together for the whole day, it seemed to go by so quickly.

"Wherabouts are you staying?" He looked around, scanning the area. There were quite a few bars in Water 7, and he didn't feel right letting Kate walk alone.

"Oh, I'm renting a place close by. It's only a 20 minute walk." She pointed in the general direction of the house she was staying in.

Kaku made his way over the fence at Dock 1. "Give me 2 secs!" He ran towards his work station and quickly returned. "Alrighty! I wanted to make sure the fellas locked everything up."

She leaned her head to the side, shooting him a confused look. "Are you not working overtime today?"

He laughed. "No can do, there are some things I need to finish...but I'd like to walk you home first."

Kate took a step back, her face a bright pink. "Oh! No, it's really close, don't worry! I will be okay!" There was no way she could have him walk her home. After all, she was the reason why he had to work over time.

He started to walk in the direction she pointed in. "You said it's this way, right?"

"Kaku! No, it's fine, really!" She waved her hands frantically, unsure of how to convince him.

He continued to walk, whistling with every step. "Kate, I'm not letting you walk home alone while I'm around." He smiled at her softly.

She bit her lip. Once again, there was no way of convincing him once his mind was set.

They walked beside each other in silence. The restaurants and bars were packed, and the canals were full of people on yagedas on their way home.

A group of men seated at the bar leered at Kate. Kaku noticed this and quickly blocked Kate from their drunken gazes.

"Kaku?" Kate hadn't noticed the men at the bar.

He smiled at her as if nothing had happened, but stayed silent- wanting to stay alert. He was glad he was walking her home.

They reached her house shortly after. It was a small cottage style home. The outside was white with a brown roof, a wooden door, and a round window. It was obvious it had been abandoned for quite some time.

Kaku looked back and measured the distance from her house to the bar. It was far enough that it would not be dangerous.

Kate dug around her purse for her keys.

The shipwright analyzed her house carefully.

Squeaky door, rusted lock, probably some mold on the ceilings...needs re caulking too I bet.

"Thank you so much again for walking me home. You really didn't need to." She had trouble looking him in the eye. As much as she wanted to invite him inside, she didn't want him to take it the wrong way as she wasn't that type of girl.

"It was my pleasure, little miss!" He did his common salute type wave.

Kate stood in her doorway and smiled. "Be safe and don't work too late. I'll see you tomorrow?"

"You betcha!" He waved again before walking back to Dock 1.

Kaku made a mental note in his head for a list of items to pack.

Kate watched as he walked away. She was never one to mix business with pleasure, but she couldn't help but feel drawn to Kaku. She shook the thoughts from her mind as she milled about the house. There was no way he felt the same way. Not only that, but she would be leaving in 4 months.

It's pointless...

Her transponder snail began to ring.

"Hello?"

It was Kalifa on the other end.

"Hello Kate. My apologies for calling you after work hours. Galley La's main supplier of lumber will be in town tomorrow. Iceburg would like you to attend the meeting with us."

"Of course! What would you like me to bring?"

"No need to bring anything. But please dress appropriately."

"Yes, I'll see you tomorrow!"

"Goodbye Kate."

Kate sifted through the clothes she had unpacked. Lumber was the most crucial supply source when it came to Galley La. She was excited to be able to take part in a meeting with them.

But what do I wear?!
-