Chapter 10: A Trip down Memory Lane
~ For a certain encounter one Thursday morning ~
4th division barracks
"Soi Fong.."
Concerned golden orbs stared at the unconscious shinigami lying on the hospital bed. The gaze was so intense it was as though they were trying to wake by sheer will.
I knew I should have gotten there sooner. That Mabashi. If it wasn't because you're dead when I got there I will make sure you suffer every single moment before letting you die by my hands. Soi Fong…
"There there, Yoruichi-san, stop worrying. You have been keeping watch over her for the past few days. Captain Soi Fong will be fine. She is just exhausted from the fight. It is normal for her to be sleeping it off. But she pushed herself too far this time, fighting while being poisoned. Even though she managed to counteract the poison, it was a little too late. Some had merged into her bloodstream creating mutant cells which, thanks to you, didn't manage to spread as she was sent here in time."
"Are you sure she will be okay?"
"A hundred percent sure."
"Unohana…thank you."
"Anytime. What are old comrades for? Here, have a cup of coffee. I know it isn't what she make, but I hope my coffee making skills are not far from hers" Unohana said with a small smile and a nod in Soi Fong's direction.
"Thanks."
Yoruichi accepted the cup and took a long gulp. The coffee is good, but it just wasn't Soi Fong's coffee.
Wake up little bee. I only take my coffee the way you make it.
She places her cup on the stand next to the bed. The lipstick smear on the edge of the cup where her lips touched brought back a long forgotten memory.
-Flashback: 150 years ago-
"Yoruichi-sama"
"Yoruichi-sama"
"Yoruichi-sama, wake up."
A blushing Soi Fong prodded the sound asleep Yoruichi.
"Hngh…go away"
She squirmed out of reach of the finger.
"Yoruichi-sama!"
Oops! That was loud. Am I being too disrespectful? Yawns…I knew I shouldn't have spent the entire night training and not sleeping. There is this stupid wedding I am to go for later. Damn makeup. It's all your fault mother for making me put on this stupid lipstick.
Grumbling under her breath, she made her way to the kitchenette adjoining Yoruichi's office and made a cup of coffee for herself. She took a whiff of coffee aroma and sipped it.
Now this is exactly what I needed.
Looking at the clock, she gasped.
Tenjou-sama will be here soon. If he sees Yoruichi-sama sleeping, he would know that the work wasn't done by her and she would get into a lot of trouble with him. I need to find a way to…
In the midst of her panicking, Soi Fong had an epiphany. She took the cup of coffee she had in her hands and placed it under Yoruichi's nose.
"Yoruichi-sama, time to get up. Tenjou-sama will be here soon to check in on your progress."
Upon hearing the name Tenjou coupled with the heavenly aroma of coffee, Yoruichi slowly woke up.
"Hey little bee, how long was I out for? Okay, don't answer that. Oh. My. God! Shit! Tenjou that teme will be here sooon!"
Yoruichi scrambled around to make herself presentable. Seeing the cup of coffee in Soi Fong's hand, she grabbed it and took a gulp from the cup, scalding her tongue in the process.
What is that weird feeling on my lips? It is as though they are covered by a thin layer of something.
Taking a look around, her eyes fell on the cup and the lipstick smear before coming to a stop on the blushing face of her subordinate.
Now that is weird. What did I do this time?
Deeming that her scalded tongue and the impending arrival of Tenjou takes precedence over the reason behind Soi Fong's blush, she rushed to the restroom to tidy herself and was in her seat just in time to see Tenjou sliding the shoji open. He strode over and began going through her work.
What just happened? Did Yoruichi-sama and I...No. it's not like that. I have to stop thinking about it.
Soi Fong's brain was going into overdrive. Yoruichi was trying to concentrate on what Tenjou was saying when she saw Soi Fong shaking her head vigorously from the corner of her eye.
"Well done Yoruichi-sama. I see that you are beginning to take your responsibilities as an heir seriously. I shall see you the same time tomorrow and check on your progress again."
With that, he bowed and left.
"Yoruichi-sama, it is my cousin's wedding today and I was wondering if I could…"
"Yeap! It's okay. You could leave. I remember you telling me that two weeks ago. Have fun there little bee" and she dismissed her with a wave.
Just as Soi Fong was stepping out of the room, Yoruichi called out
"And by the way, the coffee you made was fantastic. Could you make one for me tomorrow or something?"
"S—Sure" Soi Fong stuttered and blushed at the memory of what had happened.
-End of flashback-
Yoruichi chuckled at the memory. It took her a long time to figure out why Soi Fong was blushing even though she knew that the stuff on her lips was from the lipstick smear that Soi Fong had left on the cup after taking a sip from it.
Kuukaku and Kisuke did have a good laugh at my expense. Am I the only one that didn't know that Soi Fong was in love with me all the while? God. How dense can I get? She took it as an indirect kiss. No wonder she blushed like mad when she saw me taking a sip out of her cup and from the exact spot she drank from to boot!
The memory made her smile. Looking back at the person lying on the bed, her eyes soften.
Seems like once again, you've pushed yourself too hard. When will you ever learn to take life easy? I shall stay here and keep you company so that the first person you see when you open your eyes is me…
With that thought in her head, Yoruichi drifted off sprawled on the chair next to the bed, their fingers interlaced.
A/N: It's been a long time since I've updated. Well, school and stuff. But that is never a good enough reason to be not updating. Here's a new chapter. A little short on the side but I hope you all enjoyed it. Let's just say I was suddenly struck by inspiration to be able to write this. My muse upped and left without warning so it might take some time before the next one is here. I hope the wait won't be as long as this.