The Royal Academy professors were a surprisingly fun group, Stephanie couldn't help but think. Granted, only a handful of them had gone out for drinks at The Leopard tonight, and most of the teachers were pretty young (contradicting the old stuffy British professor stereotype), but Stephanie still enjoyed their company. For hours, all of them chatted, laughed, and drank together, and after three beers, several tequila shots, and two vodka sodas, Stephanie was feeling pretty light and swimmy. Not to mention particularly fond of everyone around her.

"About twenty minutes till last call," Kyle said to Stephanie, placing a hand on her shoulder and leaning close to her ear so she could hear him over the noise. She shivered involuntarily. "I'm heading up to the bar. Want anything?"

Stephanie turned to look at him, and for a moment her fuzzy, alcohol-addled brain couldn't focus on anything but his proximity to her. She stared into his eyes, which she realized for the first time were a chocolate brown color.

Kyle raised an eyebrow at her, smiling slightly. "Stephanie?"

Stephanie's mouth opened slightly. "Um. I-I..."

"Oy!" Kier, one of the music professors, called toward Kyle from the other side of the table, and Kyle and Stephanie both looked up. "One last round of shots for the table then, eh?"

The others cheered, lifting up their empty glasses in agreement. Kyle grinned and chuckled.

"Sure thing, mate," he called back. "This round's on me. And then you can pay me back!"

Everyone laughed, and Stephanie giggled. Kyle gave her one last smile and a wink before heading over to the bar.

Once Kyle had gotten all their drinks, and they all took their final shots, everyone began to disperse for the evening. Stephanie grabbed her things before going to seek out Lydia, who seemed to be even more sloshed than herself.

"Ohmygod, tonight was sooooo much fun," Lydia giggled as Stephanie helped gather her things, and she grasped Stephanie's arm. "A bunch of us were going over to Dave's flat for a nightcap. Wanna come?"

Stephanie grimaced. She was exhausted, and not particularly keen to prolong this night. "I don't know, Lydia. I'm kind of tired."

"Oh, but it'll be fun!" Lydia insisted, her intoxicated voice sounding whiny. "Dave's flat is the best! He has this cool fish tank thing embedded in his wall, and a massive sectional that's really soft. We can all laze about and watch telly!"

Stephanie smirked at her friend amusedly. "Maybe another time. Your place isn't too far from here. Give me your keys, I can just walk there and let myself in."

"No way, Steph. It's too dangerous," Lydia said firmly, seeming to sober up for a moment as she gave her a stern look. "It's after midnight, and this is an unfamiliar city to you. I couldn't live with myself if something happened to you."

Stephanie wanted to argue that she would be fine, but before she could say anything, someone approached them:

"Hey," Kyle said, appearing at Stephanie's side, and she looked up at him. He had on his coat already and he smiled at her. "I was going to head out too. Would you like me to walk you home? Lydia's right, it really isn't safe to walk around this city alone at night. I can walk you back to Lydia's flat and then take an Uber home."

"Yes, I think that would be best," Lydia agreed, turning to Kyle and seeming to sway slightly where she stood. "Thank you, Kyle."

"It's no problem," Kyle smiled at her before turning back to Stephanie.

Stephanie looked at him, a part of her wanting to argue that he didn't need to do that, but another part of her - probably the more intoxicated part - wanted to spend as much time with him as possible. She was no fool, and knew that Kyle walking her home alone at night carried certain implications, and the thought of that made her heart pound.

Whether it was from excitement or from fear, however, she didn't know.

Thoughts of Leon came back to Stephanie, though, and her stomach twisted. Getting cheated on by him was the worst experience of her life, and it was the last thing she wanted to relive. It was only a few months ago when her whole life fell apart because of that man, and she wasn't sure if she wanted to jump back into that pool again so soon because she might have a bit of a crush on a new guy.

Kyle isn't like Leon, though.

Stephanie very much wanted to believe that. But she had to admit to herself that she didn't know Kyle well enough yet to make that determination. He was a man, and he had the potential to hurt her just like Leon did.

Stephanie suddenly wished she hadn't had so much to drink tonight. Maybe then she'd have a clearer head to better think about this whole situation.

"Shall we?" Kyle now asked, gesturing to the door where everyone was now leaving. Stephanie nodded, slipping on her coat before taking the house keys from Lydia. They said goodbye to each other before Stephanie followed Kyle out the door into the London night.

The two of them were silent for several minutes as they walked together down the sidewalk, moving away from the other pedestrians leaving the pubs for the night.

"So did you have fun tonight?" Kyle finally asked, glancing over at her.

"I did," Stephanie grinned. "I had no idea that a group of professors from the Royal Academy could be so much fun to hang out with, but tonight was surprisingly enjoyable."

Kyle chuckled. "Yeah, I'm a bit surprised too. In a good way, I suppose."

"So how come Chloe didn't come out with the rest of the staff tonight?" Stephanie couldn't help but ask as they stopped at a crosswalk. "Was she busy tonight?"

Kyle grimaced slightly, and Stephanie got the impression he was annoyed. "She had a fan meet-up in another town, apparently. I didn't really ask, and I probably wouldn't have come out tonight if she did come."

"Really?" Stephanie couldn't help but ask curiously. "But everyone at the Academy thinks you and she are getting back together since you both started teaching masterclasses there at the same time."

Kyle scowled. "That's what you think? You've just been listening to all the stupid bloody gossip about me and her, then?"

Stephanie bristled, feeling a bit hurt. "It's just what I heard - I'm not saying I think it's true. I saw the way the two of you were interacting in that performance hall the other day, and I felt I could've cut the tension with a knife."

Kyle didn't say anything as the two of them turned onto the residential street where Lydia's flat was. "That was actually the first time I had spoken to her since we broke up last year," he said after a moment, and Stephanie looked at him. "I've been doing my best to avoid her whenever possible."

"That's kind of tough, considering the two of you work together now," Stephanie raised her eyebrows at him.

"It was my manager's idea," Kyle said dully. "He thought this would be good for my public image, and the Royal Academy wanted the good PR of having my and Chloe's names attached to it. This just made good marketing sense."

"I suppose," Stephanie said, rather unconvinced. "I'm not privy to everything happening in the classical music world right now, so I don't know if I can really comment on it."

"I was surprised by that, actually," Kyle noted. They finally arrived at Lydia's flat, and they both stopped in front of the walkway leading to her front door, facing each other.

"What do you mean?" Stephanie asked curiously.

"When I met you that day in the Academy, I was surprised you didn't seem to know who I was," Kyle explained, gazing at her. "You were playing the violin, and I could tell you were incredibly talented and very well-versed in classical music, but you didn't seem to be involved in the classical music world at all."

"And so you thought I was just some dumb American not worth the effort?" Stephanie asked jokingly. However, she felt her heart pounding in her chest as Kyle continued to stare at her.

"On the contrary," he said, taking a step closer to her. "I thought you were one of the most interesting people I'd met in a very long time. More than anything, I wanted to get to know you better."

Stephanie felt her mouth open slightly, surprised at that admission. Before she could say anything, however, Kyle slid his arm around Stephanie's waist and pulled her forward so she was flush against his body, their noses touching as he gazed intently into her eyes. Stephanie stared back at him, her heart pounding and mind spinning with a million thoughts all at once.

Kyle stared down at her for several long seconds before slowly leaning down, and Stephanie closed her eyes just as his lips met hers.

It had been ages since Stephanie was last kissed like this, and as his lips pressed against hers, the seconds seemed to stretch on for an eternity, and she felt like she couldn't get enough. Kyle slid his other arm around her waist as he pulled her even closer, moving his lips against hers, and Stephanie automatically grasped the lapels of his jacket, holding onto him tightly.

Kyle groaned as he opened his mouth against hers, and Stephanie touched her tongue against his. Her mind and body were still a bit intoxicated, and while she knew kissing him probably wasn't the best idea right now, she didn't want this moment to end. His lips were warm and soft, and tasted like sweet alcohol.

"Steph," Kyle breathed, finally pulling away slightly as he rested his forehead against hers. Stephanie kept her eyes closed, wanting to soak in the moment.

"Wow," Stephanie whispered without thinking, smiling as she blinked open her eyes. Kyle chuckled.

"Yes... wow," he murmured, gazing down at her with a certain intensity in his eyes. "I've been wanting to do that since the day I met you."

Stephanie felt her heart catch in her throat at his admission. "Kyle..."

"Let me take you out to dinner tomorrow night," he said imploringly. "Please, Stephanie. I want the chance to spend more time with you."

Stephanie stared at him, feeling a whole plethora of emotions fill her body. "Really?"

"Really," Kyle smiled down at her. He moved his hands from her waist to grasp her hands in his own. "Please?"

Stephanie dearly wanted to say yes, but on some level in her mind, she remembered it was two in the morning and she had had a lot to drink tonight. "I don't know, Kyle."

Kyle looked rather disappointed, but he clearly tried to hide it as he smiled gently at her. "Why? Is it because of your ex?"

Stephanie swallowed before glancing down. She didn't want to think about Leon right now. "Sort of. I really don't want to have to drag you into my issues with him."

"If you don't want to talk about it, I understand," Kyle said assuredly. "I get it. I have to put up with my ex-girlfriend on a daily basis, so I know what you're going through."

Stephanie swallowed down the lump in her throat. "I do like you, Kyle," she said honestly. "Really. But my breakup with Leon really messed me up, and I don't know how ready I am to jump into something new with someone else. I'm sorry."

Kyle smiled softly at her. "No need to be sorry," he said, reaching up to tuck a piece of hair behind her ear. "I understand. I would never want to force you to do something you're not ready for. But I'd be remiss if I didn't tell you that I'm not going to stop trying."

Stephanie felt her heart stutter in her chest as she gazed up at him, and, still smiling, Kyle leaned forward to press a soft kiss to her forehead.

"I suppose I'll go home and call it a night... and I can revel in the fact that you said you like me too," he added, winking down at her.

Stephanie couldn't help but giggle and blush. "Shut up," she teased.

Kyle then gave her hand a gentle squeeze, looking into her eyes, before he turned and walked back down the sidewalk. Stephanie watched him for a few moments before turning and heading up the walkway toward Lydia's flat.