InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Almost ❯ Chapter 1

A/N: Konichiwa minna-san! I'm back again with another really long oneshot. It's all InuKag and I think it came out pretty good. It's mostly long flashbacks, but that's ok. I love the band `Bowling For Soup' and just had to write this fic. It was one of those random idea bunnies, you know? Anyway, I hope you like it! Tanoshii omoi o suru!

 

Ok, I may be a little confusing with the italics in this fic, so listen up. In the very beginning it's just Sango on the other end of the telephone. After the song starts it's all the flashbacks. Anywhere else it's for thoughts. Got it?

 

Important: If you need help with any of the Japanese, just visit my author page. There is a dictionary there to help you.

 

Disclaimer: Ramiko Takahashi-sama owns InuYasha, and `Bowling For Soup' owns the song `Almost'. Not me.

 

 

Almost

 

-

 

 

“Kagome, are you sure you wanna do this? I mean, it's been almost ten years. You know nothing's gonna be the same.” Sango's voice rang clear and concerned through the wires of the portable phone balanced between her best friend's ear and shoulder.

 

Kagome sighed as she finished up with the remainder of her makeup. She wasn't wearing much, usually she didn't wear any, but this was a special occasion. “Yes I'm sure I want to do this, Sango. And it hasn't been almost ten years! It's only been eight. I'm twenty-six now, when we graduated high school I was eighteen.” she said exasperatedly, “Besides…that's the main reason I am going. So I can see if he's really changed that much.” Her expression turned sullen at the though.

 

There was a pause. “Liar,” came Sango's deadpan voice, “You're going because you're still in love with the man.”

 

Kagome's hand slipped as she tried to close the tube of mascara. “I am not still in love with him!” She protested indignantly.

 

Sango snorted. “Deny it all you want Kags. Either way it's still the truth. You've spent every day for the last eight years trying to forget all about him, but it never worked, did it? You still can't stop wondering about what would have happened if you stayed. About where you would've been now if you hadn't picked up and moved to Kyoto with out telling him. He's famous now Kagome! What do you think it'll serve if you go tonight? Do you think he'll just welcome you with open arms and declare in front of the entire crowd that he never should have let you leave?! That he loved you even though he acted like a complete jackass?! Is that what you're expecting out of this?!” The twenty-seven year old ancient weapons master was yelling by this point, waving her arms about in a wild rant. She didn't understand it. Why was her best friend setting herself up for an inevitable failure?

 

“Stop it.” Kagome crocked quietly, but it got Sango's attention anyway. She knew the odds were against her two-million-to-one, but she didn't care. She knew her friend was just concerned for her wellbeing, but she had to see for herself. She had to see him in person just once more. “Look, I really need to go. I'll be late if I don't leave now. I'll talk to you later.”

 

“Kagome don't-!” She hung up. A single tear escaped her cerulean eyes and slid quickly down the porcelain skin of her cheek.

 

“Damn. I really don't have time for this.” She took a tissue and lightly dabbed at the corner of her disobedient eye as to not mess up her light makeup. The raven haired girl gave one last sniff before doing her best to compose herself, then grabbed her casual purse and the concert tickets off her dresser. She looked down at the small rectangle of stiff, glossy paper.

 

Band: InuYasha Takahashi; Instinct

Date: May 23, 2006

Start Time: 6:30pm

Seat: Row 1, right center, seat 6

Admit One

 

`He did it. He really did it…' She smiled to herself. She had always, in her heart, believed in his dream. But he just never took responsibility for anything that didn't have to do with that dream, especially in high school. She had met InuYasha in the sixth grade when he saved her from getting caught up in a serious confrontation between a few upper middle school trouble-makers. They had been inseparable from that point until the summer right after high school graduation, when he… `No.' she thought sternly, shaking her head, `I won't think of that now. It's in the past and all I want to know is where my future is headed.'

 

She looked back at the ticket in her hand. Sango was right, though. Soon after Kagome had met the brash hanyou, she had developed a rather significant crush on him, and that crush held strong and grew in to what, Kagome was sure, must have been love. It was at the beginning of freshmen year that the realization had hit her, rather hard in the heart, that she was in love with a boy she could never have. He never saw her as anything more than a friend. She was always the one to pull him out of jams, and keep his mind on what was really important. The only rewards she got for her efforts were a smile, a hug, and the satisfaction that he was still happy.

 

She continued to muse to herself as she got into her car and proceeded to drive the half hour to the concert arena. It had been eight years since she had moved to Kyoto. The last time she had seen him was two days before she left…well, in person anyway. It had now been over a year since the instant smash hit new band `Instinct' had hit the music scene. From that point on she couldn't go a week without seeing his face at least once. That little aspect definitely hadn't helped her healing process. She had hoped not seeing his face would help her forget. Forget him, forget her love for him, forget…that. She thought she had done a good job until his posters began popping up everywhere and his songs going almost nonstop on the radio, though she could never bring herself to listen to any of them. It was then she had realized the emotion had just been buried deep and festering until it grew insider her heart. She did still love him. But she just couldn't afford to admit it to herself, let alone anyone else, just yet.

 

It was starting to get dark now as she continued to weave her blue standard sedan through highway traffic. Sango's phone call had delayed her longer than she would have liked. It was already past six o'clock and she was just now pulling into the packed parking lot. Screaming from the hundreds of fans grew in volume as Kagome half jogged to the front gate so she could make it in with the rest of the few stragglers, silently thanking Kami she had decided to stick with casual cloths and her normal beat-up sneakers. Other than the makeup, she hadn't bothered to get dressed up at all. Simply opting for a pair of slightly faded blue-jeans and a green fitted T-shirt. Exactly the type of outfit InuYasha would have remembered her in, if he cared enough to remember at all. Once her ticket was stamped, she quickly made her way to her front row seat. She had really broken her budget for this seat, but, she reminded herself over and over, it would be worth it to see him again.

 

-

 

InuYasha made another pass behind the set. He had been pacing backstage, scowl on his face, for almost half an hour now, and the show was due to start any minute. Miroku and Kouga followed their lead guitarist with their eyes. He was like this before every show, though he had grown less nervous as their months of touring had progressed. When they had first started out he practically tore out his signature waist-length silver hair every time they had to go out on stage for a concert.

 

He made another pass in front of them. Though it made them quite dizzy, and as such very annoyed, they didn't stop him. They knew why he was like this, and though they would never admit it to him, the drummer and base players pitied the hanyou. He always had that hope that she would be out there somewhere in the crowd. As unlikely as that thought was, they didn't have the heart to tell him to quit it. They saw him peer out over the set for a fifth time. Miroku just shook his head and looked at the wall clock. Three minutes to show time.

 

InuYasha broke his pacing to glance out over the crowd again. It was absolutely packed. Every seat was filled that he could see. The hanyou sighed. It was no different than the other twenty-eight concerts they had played in the last ten months. Most of the screaming people had dark onyx hair, and more than half were girls. That was not helping him in his search for the one person he wanted to see. The one girl he would turn back the hands of time for if he could. He was about to turn away to get into his position for the start of the show when he noticed one front row seat that had just been taken. That was strange, usually those with front row seats were the first to get there, not the last. He narrowed his eyes to try and get a glimpse of the person who would pay an outrageous amount of money for a fist row seat and then be late enough to almost miss the start of the show.

 

InuYasha's golden eyes snapped wide at what they saw. The seat had not been filled with an excited and anxious looking teenage fan, but a raven haired beauty in her mid twenties, looking almost as nervous as he did. Stormy blue eyes cautiously darted from side to side, almost looking as if they were contemplating if she should just leave while she still had a chance. Her green and white East Tokyo High T-shirt confirmed she was who she looked like.

 

“Come on Yash get into position. It's time to start.” Miroku's voice broke the dog demon's disbelieving trance. He turned to face his drummer.

 

“Change of plans. We're doing `Almost' first.” InuYasha stated gruffly, leaving no room for argument.

 

The two other members of `Instinct' looked at each other. “But, we always do that one about Sango's mom and her obsession with the 80s first.” Kouga blinked in confusion. Amber eyes stared intently into both sets of dark blue, conveying their reasoning without words. Said blue eyes widened in astonishment after a moment.

 

“Don't tell me…she's actually out there.” Miroku said slowly. It was obvious he could barely believe what his long time friend was insinuating. InuYasha turned to get ready to walk out on stage, answering the question with two words that meant everything.

 

“Front row.” And with that the multi-colored stage lights began to flash and the fog machine kicked into high gear, their announcer starting his introduction. It was time to get the ball rolling.

 

-

 

Kagome sat with her back strait, ankles crossed, nervously wringing her hands in her lap. Her eyes darted about like a caged rabbit looking for a way out. Of course her second thoughts would start now instead of before she had paid for the tickets. What if he didn't recognize her? What if her didn't even remember she existed? What if…What if he never forgave her for running away? She was almost shaking with the weight of the `what ifs' and her major case of the nerves. Without warning, the flood-lights cut, and multi-colored beams began flashing across the smoke-filled stage in front of her. Kagome jumped quite noticeably when a loud booming voice echoed from the loudspeaker, announcing the start of the concert. `Come on Kagome! Get a hold of yourself! Do you really want him to see you looking like a deer caught in headlights?!'

 

Three silhouetted figures walked confidently on to the stage. Two stopped a little farther back than the third, one behind a mic stand with a base guitar propped up next to it, and the other behind a drum set with its own mic. Kagome, however, kept her eyes on the third. He stepped up to the front mic, electric guitar strap expertly slung around his chest, the instrument hanging at his waist on an angle. Kagome panicked. `Oh my God! Oh my God! Oh my-!' Her thoughts stopped immediately when the stage spotlights were snapped on.

 

The hundreds of fans screamed so that the very air was vibrating around her. There he stood. His beautiful silver hair falling past his waist, the light reflecting off it like snow under the sun. Two furry dog ears flicked from their perch on top of his head. The scowl that he often wore in high school graced his face even now. A tight, red wife-beater and black Hot Topic jeans adorned his lean muscular form. A single black wrist band separated his muscled arm from the clawed hand gripping the stem of his metallic black and red fender. The deep amber eyes that had mesmerized her so many times during their friendship swept over the audience before that satisfied, sexy smirk he had spread across his handsome face. Kagome's breath caught as she stopped all fidgeting and simply stared at the man on stage in front of her. He looked exactly the same as she remembered him, and it almost made her want to cry.

 

InuYasha made another pass over the screaming crowd with his eyes before they landed on Kagome. She gasped softly as his smirk lessened a fraction, and an unnoticeable amount of pain to any other than herself seeped into his golden depths. Kagome's eyes widened as they met his. He remembered her. He remembered everything. The super star tore his gaze away from hers as he addressed the crowd, and she heard his deep, rich voice for the first time in eight years.

 

“You ready to get this thing started?!” He bellowed into the mic, smirk back full force, his unoccupied hand gripping where the mic and stand met. The crowd went wild all over again. He couldn't let the masses see any hint of emotion on his face besides brash excitement. No matter how much he just wanted to jump off stage, pull her into his arms and never let her go again. He didn't know if she had really forgiven him or not. He figured that she had since she was actually there, but assuming stuff was dangerous. He had assumed something about her a long time ago, and he was still kicking himself in the ass for it. Nodding at the crowd's response, he spoke again, this time just slightly more serious. It was time to see if she forgave him or not. “I'm sure you've all heard our first song at least once before, but I'm guessing you don't know the story behind it. This song probably means the most to me out of all of 'em. You wanna see which one it is?!” The mass of fans screamed again in answer. “Ok then.” InuYasha let his gaze rest on Kagome once more. Staring into the eyes of the girl he never thought he would see again. She stared back with the same intentness he had. He could tell she was holding back tears. He could always tell when she was about to cry. “It's dedicated to someone really close to me. I hope you can forgive me…You know who you are.” `Kagome…'

 

He looked back at his base player and drummer. Both nodded, indicating that they were ready. There was no room for anything to go wrong. This song was solely about her, and for her. Every verse was a memory he had of her. Letting go of the mic, he put his hands in their proper positions, adjusting the guitar one more time. He tapped his sneaker clad foot, signaling the other two to start on the third tap. The signal came and he played the first few bars of the music before the other two joined in after the fourth bar, his voice joining soon after with the words, letting her know he hadn't forgotten.

 

 

“I almost go drunk at school at 14,

Where I almost made-out with the home coming queen.

Who almost went on to be Miss. Texas,

But lost to a slut with much bigger breastes.”

 

 

Kagome couldn't believe it. The start of his rebellious high school years. She didn't know whether to laugh or cry as the memory came to the front of her mind.

 

-

 

It had been their freshman year at East Tokyo High. Kagome, InuYasha, Sango, Miroku, and a few other of their friends had decided that they should go to at least one high school dance just so they knew for sure they weren't missing anything when they skipped the rest of them until prom. Homecoming seemed to work out perfectly. It was on a night where they could all go, and everyone was in high spirits because their football team had smashed their opposing team in the game the night before. The plan had been they go, they see, they have a bit of clean fun if possible, and they leave before it got too late. The girls should have known things rarely go as planned.

 

Most of the boys had immediately dispersed into the crowd of mostly older teens to get some dancing done, or to see if they could pick up a girl of a different grade. InuYasha and Miroku stayed with Kagome and Sango for a bit. InuYasha's excuse being he needed to make sure no one tried anything on Kagome because she was still only thirteen, five months younger than the rest of them, though he had said this jokingly just to get a rise out of the girl. Miroku's was simply that he wanted to stay near his lovely Sango, though he was quickly distracted by the `allure' of one of the junior girl's beauty and ran off to `introduce' himself. With a snort and a yell, InuYasha went after him to make sure he didn't get himself killed, which left a fuming Sango to be calmed down by a giggling Kagome. After they had lost sight of the two in the crowd of crudely dancing teens, the girls hadn't seen them again until it was almost time to leave.

 

Sango had found Miroku first, apparently drunk as a monkey due to the spiked punch, and was dragging him to the doors by his ear when Kagome had spotted her half-demon friend and secret crush. Her face turned red with anger as she saw what he was doing. There he was, standing near the bleachers, his arm around the previously announced `Homecoming Queen', Kikyou, who many people said could have been Kagome's twin much to her annoyance, laughing their heads off, with a number of empty plastic cups surrounding them. She gave a growl that would have had the hanyou himself cowering, and stomped her way across the gym, pushing aside any person who got in her way. Damn him! He'd never touched another girl like that before! What was wrong with him?! Kagome gasped. Was he…kissing her?! That senior slut?

 

She gave another growl as she came up behind him and grabbed the back of his shirt, pulling him away from the girl before the kiss could get passionate. “Come on lover boy. Our moms want us back before 9:30.” She said in an annoyed tone. The boy gave a surprised yelp as he was ripped away from the plastered girl he had his arms around and whipped about to face his attacker, tottering slightly. Kagome sighed. “I leave you alone for and hour and you go and get yourself half drunk.” InuYasha steadied himself on her shoulder and looked at her with an owl-eyed expression. He looked back at Kikyou, who had found herself a new make-out buddy, and then back at Kagome.

 

He rubbed his slightly bleary eyes and shook his head, as if he was just waking up from a dream. He leaned against her a bit more and slung his arm around her shoulder. “I ain't drunk.” He protested drowsily.

 

Kagome just sighed again and guided him to the doors. “You keep telling yourself that dogboy. Just try to `wake up' before we get home, ne?”

 

InuYasha grunted. “Do we have to leave? We didn't get to have fun yet.”

 

An annoyed tick started on Kagome's forehead. “Yes InuYasha, we have to leave. I'm sure you've had enough enjoyment for one night.”

 

The boy snorted. “You're no fun wench.” Kagome sighed at the nickname, but chose not to respond.

 

-

 

 

InuYasha had gone home slightly confused that night, but could remember a certain day the next year that had given him the rest of the story.

 

-

 

 

A now almost 16 year old InuYasha sat sprawled on the overstuffed couch in Kagome's living room, flipping channels while Kagome herself sat at the computer across the room. He was about to fall asleep, when the girl's soft laughter reached his ears, making them twitch as a small smile spread across his face. When the laughter persisted, his curiosity got the better of him. “Hey, wench, what'er you laughin' about?” He asked roughly. She didn't need to know that her laughter made him soft.

 

Kagome turned in the swivel chair to face him a radiant, yet slightly mischievous, smile playing on her lips. “I was just talking to my cousin in America. You know, the one that lives in that western state, Texas?”

 

He nodded even though the state's name meant nothing to him. “So? What's so funny?”

 

She giggled again. “You remember Kikyou?” After graduation, the senior girl had apparently moved to the states and ended up winning a lot of beauty pageants in the previously mentioned area. “She was just named runner up for the `Miss. Texas' pageant. Lost to some girl with a triple D bust size, and who my cousin suspects slept with most of the judges. Though I have trouble believing your `girlfriend' didn't.”

 

InuYasha growled in annoyance. “Kami, Kagome, not again! Why do you bring her up all the time? I still don't get why you call her my `girlfriend'! We barely even spoke to each other, let alone date!” He glared at her from the couch.

 

A deadpan look came over Kagome's face. “It's cuz you practically made-out with her at Homecoming last year. You're telling me you really were too drunk to remember?”

 

InuYasha froze in shock, eyes wide. “I…what?” He didn't remember anything about being with Kikyou that night.

 

Kagome rolled her eyes and turned back to her computer. “You were all over that slut! If I hadn't found you and pulled you away I wouldn't be surprised if she had ripped your shirt off.” He continued to stare at her, completely silent. She turned and glanced at his expression. “You're hopeless dogboy.”

 

He couldn't believe what he was hearing. Now he remembered what she was referring to, but he was still mortified. `That wasn't …a dream? Shit, that was Kikyou?! I must have had more of that punch than I thought. There I was thinking I was having a nice little dream about me and Kagome. She must have hated me!' He didn't know when it happened, but somehow he had fallen for his best friend a year or two after they had met. I mean, who wouldn't fall for her if they got to spend so much time with her? She was smart, she was caring, she didn't care that he was hanyou, and she was damn beautiful! He felt like the lowest scum on earth. He didn't care if he didn't know what he was doing at the time, he had practically made-out with someone else and pretended she was Kagome.

 

-

 

 

Unfortunately that wasn't the last time he screwed up big time, and she was the one to pull him back. It happened again half way through junior year. She saved his ass, his education, and, unbeknownst to him at the time, his career. There was no way he was leaving it out of the song.

 

 

“And I almost dropped out to move to LA,

Where I was almost famous for almost a day.”

 

-

 

 

He was almost eighteen now. He felt invincible. Nothing could go wrong now! His dream was coming true, damn it! He'd been dreaming of this opportunity ever since he had gotten his first guitar lesson not long after he had met Kagome. She had always helped him out with this among other things. She would sit through his practice sessions and honestly tell him if he was getting any better, if things sounded right, sometimes even if he was putting his fingers in the right places on the strings. Heck, with all the help she gave him he was surprised she couldn't play the guitar herself. And now he was going to show her how far he could really go with this. He wasn't only doing this for himself, but for her too. She had stuck by him and now it was time to show her how much she had helped him, and maybe even impress her on the way.

 

He had created a local band with Miroku and Koga a little over a year ago now, and they'd become pretty popular around town. Apparently an American agent had heard him practicing in his garage and was thoroughly impressed. The man had said he had a great amount of talent and he was almost positive he would be very popular with the people in the states. The man had given InuYasha his business card and asked for a recording to take back to California with him. The boy eagerly complied and it was a couple of months later that he had received an email from that same agent saying that he had passed around the recording and gotten a few people in high places interested. Attached to the email was a newspaper article translated into Japanese saying this there was a possibility that the American radio waves could be invaded by a Japanese rookie in the near future. People were reading about him!

 

So there he was, standing in the airport terminal waiting for his flight to Los Angelis, California in the states. His long silver hair tied back in a low ponytail, in casual cloths, with nothing but his red and white fender guitar his mother had bought him as a 17th birthday present, and one suitcase at his side. He only felt slightly guilty because he hadn't actually told anyone that he was leaving. He had sent them all emails this morning knowing they wouldn't see them till after they got back from school, and he was long gone. He knew how they'd react. They'd try and talk him out of it, saying it wasn't really a good idea. But this was his opportunity damn it! This was a once in a lifetime thing! How often did normal seventeen year olds get a chance to be famous? He could tell you. Almost never. They wouldn't understand.

 

“Flight 379 to Los Angelis, California USA, please report to boarding gate 9. Flight 379, please report to gate 9.” The loudspeaker broke him out of his thoughts. This was it. This was his chance of a life time. He started toward the nearby boarding gate when he was stopped by a familiar voice.

 

“InuYasha!” He turned. “InuYasha, please wait!” Kagome ran up and stopped a few feet in front of him, face flushed, half panicked, and breathing hard. She had come after him. Why the hell had she come after him?!

 

“What the hell Kagome?! I gatta go! My flight's boarding!” This wasn't right. She was supposed to be supporting him, not stopping him!

 

“InuYasha, please! You can't do this! What about school?” She pleaded.

 

“I'm dropping out. It's not like I'm the first. This is a one time opportunity Kagome. I have to go. And how did you get here? Shouldn't you be in school?” he glanced at the people at the gate anxiously.

 

She huffed, finally regaining her breath. “I stayed home today to take care of Mom, cuz she's sick. Sango called me to ask if you were helping me or something cuz you weren't there either. Since you obviously weren't, I checked to see if you'd sent an email and you had. I'm just glad I got here in time. What? Do you want to be an uneducated rock star or something? Dropping out of school? What the hell are you thinking?!”

 

InuYasha glared. Hadn't she always supported his dream? “I'm gonna be famous, Kagome. I found my break.”

 

Kagome matched his glare. “And what about Miroku and Kouga? They're in your band too! Shouldn't they get a chance to be famous too? Didn't you all want to be famous as one band?”

 

“Yeah, but when I really break through, I'll just have them come over too, and it'll be our old band again. Really I gatta go.” He tried to reason as he started to turn back towards the gate. The girl gave a half-panicked whimper and latched onto his arm, pulling him back to face her. She was holding back tears. He could always tell when she wanted to cry. She pleadingly looked up at him with those gorgeous deep blue eyes that always tugged at his heart strings.

 

“What about your family InuYasha, huh? What about your mom? What about your friends? What are they gonna do?” She dropped her gaze. “What…What about me?” She almost whispered the last sentence, but he still heard it loud and clear. His ear twitched. What about her? The only reason he was even this close to his dream was because of her. He was doing this partly for her. Could he really go the rest of the way without her there by his side like always? “What about…” she tried again, still in a whisper, “What about your real dream?” His real dream? What did she mean by that? His dream was to be a famous guitarist. She must have felt his confusion, because she looked back up at him and continued this time her voice a little stronger than before. “You always used to tell me that you wanted to become famous to show them that you were worth something. To show all of those bastards who made fun of your being a hanyou that you were better than they would ever be. Who is there in America InuYasha? Who do you need to prove your worth to in America?”

 

She was right. He had almost forgotten his motive for being famous in how fast this had all come. All those bastards who made fun of his heritage. Who called him dirty, a half-breed. They were here, in Japan. He couldn't rub it in their slimy little faces if he was only famous half way across the world. He sighed at his own stupidity and let his suitcase drop to the floor while swinging his guitar case onto his back. Kagome looked at him, trying to gage what he was going to do. “Damn it Kagome, why do you always have to think things through?” He smiled at her and opened his arms to her. Her blue eyes, once pleading, were now sparkling with joy as she practically tackled him into an embrace.

 

“Cuz if I didn't you'd probably be screwed right now, you asshole.” Kagome said with an obvious smile in her voice. Chuckling, he wrapped his arms around her and buried his nose in her hair, taking in her wonderful scent and reveling in her embrace. Telling himself this was what he had to content himself with. She would never see him the way he saw her. She was just too pure to be with a hanyou like him. She pulled away slightly, averting her gaze shyly. “Just…I don't want you scaring me like that again, ok?” He smirked at the blush rising on her cheeks. “I don't really know what I would do if anything happened to you. I feel like I would loose some kind of…” the blush got brighter, “connection or something I have with you. So no more doing really stupid stuff, ok?”

 

He picked up his suitcase and slung an arm around her shoulder. Maybe…he did have a chance? “Ok Kagome. No more doing really stupid stuff, especially without telling you first.” They laughed and started out of the airport.

 

“I don't really see how you could have made it in America anyway, you know.” Kagome said in mock annoyance.

 

Taking it the wrong way, InuYasha scowled. “Oi, what happened to you always supporting me and believing in me and shit?” His frown instantly vanished as he heard her laughter and saw the sparkle of mischief in her eyes. She ducked out from under his arm and innocently took a step forward.

 

“Cuz,” she said in a matter-of-fact voice, inching ahead a bit more, “you're currently failing English class.” She giggled and ran off toward the exit. InuYasha stood there, an utterly shocked expression on his face. How the hell had he forgotten that little piece of information? He came out of his daze and shook his head, then an almost evil smirk crossed his face as he took off after the girl. Did she really think that she could out run him?

 

-

 

Damn it if he was only able to keep that promise of not doing anything stupid. He didn't even remember why he broke it, but he did. He shattered it to a million pieces or more. And it was enough to chase her away. If he'd fessed up about his feelings right there at the airport things might have turned out differently. But it didn't happen that way.

 

 

“And I almost had you,

But I guess that doesn't cut it.

Almost loved you,

I almost wished you would've loved me too.”

 

 

Kagome stared up at him. Had…had he had a crush on her too? If he had said so any time back then she would have gladly been his. She couldn't get the memories out of her head. They held so much emotion for her. Heck it was only fifty seconds into the song and she already wanted to cry more now than any other time since… Oh Kami. He wasn't. He had mentioned the Homecoming incident, the airport incident, was he going to sing about that? She didn't want to think about the reason she left! She didn't want to feel like a coward again! She didn't want to remember him like that! But he met her eyes and she knew. She couldn't stop the tears anymore once she heard his voice sing the next verse.

 

 

“I almost held up a grocery store,

Where I almost did 5 years and then 7 more.

Cuz I almost got popped for a fight with a thug,

Cuz he almost made off with a bunch of the drugs,

That I almost got hooked on cuz you ran away,

And I wish I woulda had the nerve to ask you to stay.”

 

-

 

 

They had graduated almost a month before. High school was now officially over and they were all officially free. Kagome sighed with contentment as she continued driving toward the local supermarket. It was her turn to cook dinner and she had used almost everything left in the kitchen leaving it practically empty. So here she was driving to the store at a time late enough that the sun was already starting to set. The oranges and golds lighting up the sky reminded her of the eyes of a certain hanyou.

 

She frowned. She hadn't seen him since graduation, for which he had, for some reason, skipped the after party, and had only talked to him once. He said he had been sick in bed a lot and didn't feel well enough to go anywhere. She had asked him if he wanted her to come over and help out a bit and she was surprised when he had abruptly and forcefully refused. He quickly covered it up with saying that he didn't want her to catch whatever he had. Uneasily she agreed and told him to get better soon, because they all missed hanging out with him, to which he just grunted in response. Mrs. Takahashi had called her three days later in a rather worried state saying that InuYasha had, for some strange reason, sold the fender guitar she had got him for his birthday two years earlier. It worried Kagome more when the woman had also said she had caught him sneaking out of the house late the other night. What was he doing? She had tried to get in contact with him but his cell phone was either off or he didn't even bother to pick up. She wished she knew what was going on. He loved that guitar, why on earth would he sell it? And he was never the type to sneak around, so why start now? She felt like he was falling outside of her reach, and it scared her.

 

She reached the store and parked her car in the only remaining open section, in the back corner of the parking lot. `Busy tonight.' She thought absently as she began walking towards the front entrance. Before she could get to the lighted sidewalk in front of the large store she heard strained whispering from the unlit side of the building. She ducked behind a parked car near by so she could figure out what was going on with out being seen. Her heart beat sped up at what she heard.

 

“So after I do this you'll give me the stuff, right?” The voice was familiar, but she couldn't place it. It was male, hollow, and seemed slightly dazed.

 

“Yeah, yeah. Sure kid. The stuff is all your's. Just go in there get the money from the registers and bring it here to me.” A much deeper, gruffer, and more alert also distinctly male voice replied. He spoke as if he was walking through the steps with a child.

 

There was a pause. “What if someone gets in the way?” The first voice asked. The way he said it, it would almost seem as though he had to strain himself to think of the simple question. What was wrong with this kid?

 

“What? You think the gun is just for show or somethin'?” Kagome gasped quietly. They were planning to rob the grocery store at gunpoint?

 

“Oh, right.” The first voice said, as if he had completely forgotten that he held a deadly weapon in his hand. Kagome peered around the car to try and catch a glimpse of the two men. They were in the shadows, dressed completely in black, right down to the ski masks covering their faces. The first was a giant, burly man with, from where Kagome was sitting, very cruel dark eyes. The second was smaller, leaner, but still muscled. She gasped in disbelief when she saw that cascading from the back of the ski mask was long dull silver hair, and when he turned she could see golden eyes, also looking eerily dull. She bit her lip. It couldn't be…could it? He was sick. He was home, in bed. He had to be. He would never do something like this. Never! The silver haired boy looked as if he was about to start his task when he stopped and looked back at the other man. “Why do I have to do this though? I already paid you the full amount.” He still didn't sound entirely coherent, but now Kagome could definitely place the voice, and it made tears spring to her eyes.

 

“Cuz, you do this and I give you more.” `More what?' The girl thought, `What are they talking about?'

 

The boy now sounded even more confused. “But I don't need more.”

 

The burly man now sounded frustrated bordering on angry. “Look kid. You don't do this, and you don't get your stash. Got it?” He pushed the boy forward.

 

In turn the boy whipped around and growled at the man, his demeanor instantly different. He pulled off his face covering, squashing any hope Kagome still had that this was not her hanyou. “I paid you for it already!” he yelled, “Now hand it over!” She could see red begin to bleed into his eyes, and his claws lengthen. He was turning full demon. It had only happened only twice in all the years she had known him. This was bad. How had he gotten so mad all of a sudden?

 

The other man, who either had no idea what was going on or no regard for his own life, sneered and held up a medium sized plastic bag that he had dug out from is black coat. “You want this kid?” he asked mockingly, “Well with that attitude you ain't getting it.”

 

“Then give me my money back!” The hanyou yelled, cracking his knuckles.

 

The man laughed. “Not a chance.” He turned and walked quickly toward a black car a few yards away from where they stood. The hanyou snarled again and lunged at the man, struggling with him for a moment before, somehow, the man was able to push the half-demon off of him, but not being able to stop the boy from ripping the bag away and throwing it in the direction of the car Kagome hid behind. The man opened the car door, but before he could close it InuYasha was able to get up, run over, and sink him claws into the man's shoulder. Kagome shot up from her hiding spot and made a gasping whimper, taking a few steps toward her friend. He looked up at her and pulled his hand away from the man, but only to avoid getting his hand crushed in the slamming door.

 

As the car sped off, InuYasha stared at the girl that stood a mere ten yards from him, watching her intently. Kagome stepped even closer and knelt down, picking up the plastic bag filled with something she never thought she would ever see. The hanyou narrowed his eyes and growled at her, but she paid no heed. Tears leaked from her eyes freely now as she stared at the substance. She knew what it was, she had seen the pictures in health class. Joints of pot. She looked at her longtime friend and crush accusingly.

 

“When InuYasha?” She glared at him through her tears, her voice holding almost no emotion. But when he only continued to growl at her, she lost it. “When damn it! When did you start this?!” She shook the bag and his growling became louder. Why was he doing that? Didn't he know who she was? He had never growled at her like that before. “This is why isn't it? This is why you didn't come to the graduation after party! This is why I haven't seen you all month! This is why you've been `sick'! Why you haven't let me see you or even talk to you! Do you know how worried I've been?! How worried your mom has been?!” She sobered for a moment in shock and realization. She spoke quietly, almost to herself, but she knew he still heard her. “Oh, Kami. This…this is why you sold your fender. For drug money.” His ear twitched. It was true. She could always tell when she had hit the mark with him. She knew what all his body language meant. Right now it said that she was right about everything she had accused him of, but…it was off, just like his voice had been before. A second wave of utter shock passed through her, and she just stared at him, eyes wide, voice even softer than before. “Dear Kami…You're…you're jacked up on the stuff right now aren't you?”

 

It wasn't till then that he spoke, still in a deep growl, ignoring everything she had just said. “Put it down wench.” At least he knew who she was.

 

She regained some of her senses, and shut her eyes against the pain of what he was doing to himself. “Baka!” she yelled, hands clenched at her side, still holding the bag of illegal material. “Why?! Why did you have to do something this stupid?! Why did you go and become a fucking druggie?!” If he had been in his right senses, InuYasha would have winced. Kagome never said that word. But he wasn't so he didn't recognize the signs.

 

“I ain't some fuckin' druggie wench! I play around with the stuff once in a while, so what?! Now put it down!” He bared his teeth at her, body tense.

 

Kagome matched his growl. “Once in a while?! You've been out of it all month!”

 

“You never let me do anything for myself!”

 

“That's a load of crap and you know it!”

 

“Why do you care anyway?!”

 

“Because I'm your friend, and I want to look after you!”

 

“Well maybe I don't want you to!”

 

“Than what do you want me to do?!”

 

“I want you to leave me the fuck alone! I don't even want to see your fucking face again!”

 

She had frozen at this declaration, stood stock still, hadn't even dared to breathe. Did he know what he was saying? He was breathing hard, eyes still rimmed red, fangs bared. Dear Kami, he was serious. All fight had left her. She couldn't even move. The faint sound of sirens reached her ears. Someone had seen. Someone had called the police. She spoke slowly, softly once more. “Is…” she swallowed, “Is that really what you want InuYasha? Have I burdened you that much?” Her eyes had slid their gaze to the pavement. She couldn't look at him, not when he was looking at her like that. She brought her free hand, still fisted, to cover her heart, hoping beyond hope, he would deny it. She was disappointed.

 

“Yes.”

 

It was simple, monotone almost, only slightly laced with anger. But it had been enough to break her heart into more pieces than she could count. He never said things he didn't mean to some level. That was the kind of person he was. Sometimes the things he said were misinterpreted, but not this. This was plain and simple, there was nothing else it could mean. Tears rolled down her pain contorted face unchecked. “Ok, then,” was her small, whispered reply. She didn't trust herself not to sob uncontrollably if she tried to offer anything more than that. She dropped the bag she had held through the ordeal and turned to walk away. The sirens were now much louder. She stopped momentarily, but didn't turn. “You'd better hurry if you don't want to get caught.” And with that she walked the rest of the way to her car, got in and dove off, not even a glance back at the hanyou that had held her heart for so long now. No one had asked about the forgotten groceries when she got home and locked herself in her room that night. They didn't have the heart to ask what was wrong.

 

-

 

 

He had broken her that night. Fully and completely. Through the years of knowing him he had done many stupid things that unintentionally hurt her. Some big, some small. She had forgiven him for all of them up until that point. Regardless, she realized she couldn't take it anymore. She had started making calls late the next day, and the day after that she had packed what she needed and used what pocket money she had to buy a one-way train ticket to Kyoto. She had enough money in her bank account to hold her over until she got a job and found her own place. Though her family found it weird that before she had left the house late in the evening on the second day she had hugged each of them before saying goodbye, they hadn't questioned her.

 

InuYasha looked down at her from the stage. His heart clenched painfully at the sight before him, but he couldn't show it. It was all she could do to chock back the heart wrenching sobs, he knew she would be making if she wasn't in public. He had only seen her like this twice before. Once was when her beloved, morbidly obese cat, Buyou, had died in the tenth grade, and once the night he had last seen her. He still remembered what had happened after the incident, though it was a bit hazy.

 

-

 

 

He hadn't gone home that night. Somewhere in the depths of his mind he knew his mother would be waiting up for him. So instead he took shelter a Miroku's apartment. His friend had already known of his experimentation, so it wouldn't matter if he showed up there in that condition. It hadn't been till late the day after that he had really comprehended what he had done, but he had still been recovering from the drugs so, even though he was mentally cursing himself, he felt much too sick to actually do anything about it. He tried to reassure himself by thinking about all the times she had forgiven him not long after the stupid deed had been carried out. Sure it would probably take longer this time, but she would still forgive him none the less, right? He attempted a growl when he realized that she had every right to hate his hanyou guts after that little stunt, but it had quickly turned into a whimper of pain as his head gave another agonizing throb.

 

He didn't know how long he had slept after that realization exactly, but it had apparently been well over a day, because when next he woke the sun was streaming in through the large window across from the living room couch where he had made his bed, and the annoyingly chipper guy on the radio had said it was Thursday when he could have sworn he had fallen asleep on a Tuesday night. He had felt pretty much back to normal except for the very dull ach in the back of his head. As he lay there on the couch he realized there weren't any sounds in the apartment besides the radio, not even his friend's breathing could be heard no matter how hard he strained his ears. InuYasha's silent question of where Miroku had gone was soon answered as the man himself came hurriedly through the front door shutting it behind him and locking it. The hanyou sat up on his arms to have a better view of his friend. That's when he'd noticed the tight look drawn over the normally cheerful face of the 19 year old. Miroku turned to look at InuYasha stiffly.

 

“What did you do?” The black haired boy ordered sternly.

 

InuYasha blinked at the blunt demand. “Huh? What do you mean?”

 

By the tone of his voice Miroku could tell he wasn't just trying to play innocent. He sighed. “Kagome. What did you do to Kagome?”

 

This was bad. InuYasha sat up the rest of the way, panic skimming his senses. “Why? What's wrong?” He made his own demand. Miroku's taught look wilted into one that InuYasha narrowed his eyes at. He knew that look, and he hated that look. It was pity.

 

Miroku sighed again, seating himself on the edge of the reclining chair to the left of the couch before answering. “Because she's gone, InuYasha.”

 

The hanyou's face paled and his eyes widened in fear. “Gone? Gone like how?” His voice was more than just slightly panicked. What did he mean gone?

 

Miroku rubbed his tired face. “Gone as in gone, InuYasha. She bought a train ticket last night without telling anyone. She called her mother and Sango early this morning then disconnected her cell phone. She was on a train. She didn't say how long she'd been on the train though. But she left her house last night around seven.”

 

“Well, where is she?!” InuYasha leapt from the couch to yell at Miroku.

 

“We don't know, InuYasha. Or at least I don't. If she told her mother and or Sango her destination, then they are withholding the information from us for what ever reason.” InuYasha fell back onto the couch. “I hate to say it, my friend, but I have a feeling that reason is you. Now what happened?”

 

Miroku was too tired to get riled up about anything at the moment. Sango had called him around five that morning half way to hysterics saying that Mrs. Higurashi had called asking about Kagome because she never came home the night before. The girl in question wouldn't answer her cell phone and couldn't be found anywhere. This coupled with her stranger behavior over the past two days had everyone extremely worried. He had immediately grabbed his car keys and drove to the apartment Sango rented with her brother. When he got there, she had calmed slightly and told him that not five minutes after she had hung up with him, Kagome herself had called and said she was on a train and had been for a while. If the girl had told her friend where she was going Sango wouldn't tell him. Soon after that Mrs. Higurashi had called again saying the same had been told to her not long after she had called Sango the first time. It had been a very exhausting morning.

 

The nineteen year old turned his attention back to the dog eared boy sitting dazedly on his couch. He had to strain his hearing to catch what his friend was saying. “I…I didn't mean it. I didn't mean any of it.” His golden eyes stared at the wooden coffee table in front of him with unseeing eyes.

 

Miroku kept his signature patience with the distraught figure. There was no use getting frustrated at him in this state. “Any of what, InuYasha? What happened? What did you say to her?” He was ignored as if the hanyou hadn't even remembered he was there. As if in a trance InuYasha turned and dug under a couch cushion for a moment before pulling out a medium sized plastic bag of something white and just stared at it. Miroku couldn't keep calm when he saw what was in the bag. “Not this again! This is the whole reason you're here isn't it?! InuYasha, how many times do I have to tell you that whether you're hanyou or human that stuff affects you just the same?!” he paused, “She caught you during a high, didn't she? What did you say to her, InuYasha.” His stern, no nonsense voice was back in place.

 

InuYasha's ears didn't even twitch at the outburst. He was completely numb to the world. “Someone had already riled me up when she found me,” he started, “She put everything together then and there. I didn't want to back down, not even to her. I told her to leave me alone. I told her I didn't want to see her again.”

 

Miroku sucked in a breath. “Damn it,” he said quietly, “You have no idea what you've done do you?”

 

InuYasha snapped. He abruptly stood from the couch again, overturning the coffee table and scattering the various papers on top of it. “What the fuck do you mean I don't know what I've done?! I know exactly what I've done damn it! I chased her away! She couldn't stand to be around filth like me after that!”

 

“That's not all of it you thick headed idiot!” The boy stood from his chair as abruptly as InuYasha had so he could face his friend. InuYasha froze. It was not often Miroku lost his temper like that. Sure he yelled, but when he did he called InuYasha by name. This was different from him just yelling. “And she doesn't think you're fucking filth! If anything she's afraid you think of her as filth! She never wants to be stockpiled in with all those bastards who made fun of you or hurt you! If you said those things to her when you were high and angry then you probably said them with a much harsher tone than you're using now! And if that's the truth then there is no fucking doubt that you broke her heart into so many pieces that it will take her months, if not years to pick them all up!”

 

That was another scary thing. Miroku refrained from cursing as much as he possibly could, and he'd just said the work fuck twice in the same rant. And what did he mean he had broken her heart? You couldn't break a friend's heart, because they hadn't put it in your hands to have the power to do so. “What do you mean?” He asked suspiciously.

 

Miroku sighed forcefully, trying to regain his control. “Buddha have mercy…Do know why she always forgave you every time you did something stupid?” InuYasha shook his head. He'd never actually figured that part out. “Kagome has had a crush on you since middle school InuYasha. It may have even grown into love over the years, I don't really know. Me and Sango were just hoping you'd realize that before it was too late.” The hanyou's eyes widened at the new information. “And now I owe her fifty bucks. Damn.”

 

InuYasha's eyes narrowed. “What the hell'd you bet on?”

 

“Apparently I had more faith in you than Sango did. She bet me that Kagome would get too frustrated with you and walk away before you drummed up the nerve to tell her how you feel.” Miroku gave a small glare at his friend. “Maybe I can get her on the technicality that she didn't walk away, she ran.” And with that he turned to the door, unlocking it and holding it open for a moment. “She was my friend too, InuYasha.” He said quietly before walking out of the apartment.

 

 

He didn't come back until late that night, and was more than a little frustrated that all his time meditating and claming down that day had been for naught. For even though he had walked in refreshed, his frustration and anger quickly returned at the sight that greeted him. InuYasha was languidly stretched out on the couch once more, staring at the ceiling with slightly hazy eyes, the bag he had pulled out earlier laying open on the righted coffee table. One smoking joint sat lit between the hanyou's fingers. Miroku gave an impressive growl and stomped over to his friend, tore the joint from his fingers, went to the kitchen and threw it down the garbage disposal, before going back to the hanyou who hadn't moved, heaving him up by his shirt collar, and giving him the strongest punch in the jaw he could manage. After receiving a satisfying grunt of pain and the full attention of the boy, Miroku let him fall back to the couch.

 

“What the fuck bastard?!” The drugged boy cried.

 

“I don't want druggies in my living space.” Miroku said flatly.

 

“I ain't a druggie!” InuYasha growled.

 

“Than what are you?” It unnerved the hanyou how his friend kept so calm. It reminded him of his brother. “What do you call yourself if you aren't a druggie?”

 

InuYasha stayed quiet. But answered after a moment. “I ain't addicted Miroku.” He said guiltily in his defense.

 

Miroku snorted, crossing his arms over his chest. “Is that what you think? That you have to be addicted to be a druggie? That what you do is so much better that it can be justifiable? Look at you. This has been going on for a month now. You think you aren't going to become addicted if you keep going the way you are?”

 

InuYasha stared at the carpet, looking completely and utterly defeated. “She's not coming back Miroku. She's not coming back and it's my fault.”

 

“And you think killing yourself with pot will find her?” He raised an eyebrow.

 

“She could be in any city, any town, within the shores of Hanshu. Maybe even on another island. There are millions of places she could be Miroku.” InuYasha dropped his face into his hands.

 

“Well, then,” Miroku said casually, “we better start searching for a means of finding her, ne? I hear popular bands draw in a lot of people from many different places when they go on tour.” InuYasha looked up at his friend to find a smug smile on his lips and a mischievous glint in his eyes. The now sobered silver haired hanyou returned the look.

 

“Call Kouga.”

 

-

 

They had started on their goal seriously for the first time the next day. It had taken almost five years to get all the right connections, but they had done it. It took them another year and a half to finally break out onto the music scene with their first hit. InuYasha had wanted to start touring right away, but again he had to wait. The bigger they got, the more people would be drawn to their concerts, and the more likely it was that he would find her. He never forgot what Miroku had said that day. He had been a hairs breath away from having Kagome as his and had been completely oblivious to it. He had just assumed she was too pure to love a tainted hanyou. He was never going to make that mistake again.

 

“And I almost had you,

But I guess that doesn't cut it.

Almost had you,

And I didn't even know it

 

You kept me guessin'

And now I'm destined

To spend my time missin' you.

I almost wish you woulda loved me too.”

 

There were times when he had thought that maybe she had loved him. But then they would have some stupid little fight and he would be back to thinking they would only ever be friends. If only once he had been completely sure of himself, then he would have told her, but that was one of the side affects that he never grew out of from when he would be teased about being hanyou, his lack of confidence in his ability to judge other people's feelings. He had realized it was also partially his fault too though. If he hadn't goaded her into all of those stupid fights and just been more considerate things may have turned out differently. But because he hadn't, he'd been hauling everything with him from city to city just to find her. He also had the emotional luggage bearing down on him all the time too though. The guilt and regret never seemed to go away. And he knew it probably never would He wanted to forget every problem they ever had together. To just have all of the happy memories. And to make more happy memories.

 

“Here I go thinkin' `bout all the things I could've done.

I'm gonna need a forklift cuz all the baggage weighs a ton.

I know we had our problems, I can't remember one.”

 

InuYasha smiled at the girl crying in the front row as he sang the next line. He knew she would get the joke.

 

“I almost forgot to say somethin' else,

And if I can't fit it in I'll keep it all to myself.

I almost wrote a song about you today,

But I tore it all up and I threw it away!”

 

-

 

A fifteen year old Kagome sat with her back to the Goshinboku that was settled in the courtyard of her shrine home, smiling at the warm sun and the lush leaves above her. She giggled at the sounds her cat was making as he tried to escape the torturous hands of her dog-eared friend who sat with his back to the other side of the enormous tree. She couldn't think of a time that she had felt more content in her life. Smiling again to her self she addressed her companion, though she didn't turn to see him.

 

“Hey, InuYasha?” She asked in her usual gentle voice. He only grunted in acknowledgement, but stopped playing with Buyou, and flicked an ear in her direction so he could listen to her question. “When you're famous, what're you going to write your songs about?” The hanyou let a genuine smile cross his lips as he stroked the old cat's soft fur. It had never been if to her when talking of his dream, but when, always when.

 

He thought quietly for a moment, letting the clam of the late spring day consume his senses. The songs of birds mixed with the faint rushing sounds of the cars going by on the street at the bottom of the shine steps, the bright colors of the shrine grounds, and the calming scent of both the sacred tree and Kagome herself. His voice held a smile when he spoke. “Life I guess, and the people in it.”

 

It was a simple answer but she understood what he meant. She had always understood what lay beneath his words while others only took them at face value. She giggled and looked around her shoulder, even though all she could see of her best friend was some of his long silver mane and a jean-clad knee. “You'd write a song about me?” She asked innocently, trying to corner him, but he was too good.

 

“Keh! Course not. Who'd want to hear a song about a scrawny little wench?” His smirk was evident in his voice. He turned a mischievous golden eye toward her around the tree, and what he saw turned his smirk into a grin of excitement. Kagome was in a runner-like stance, giving him a playful little glair, which was ruined by her own smile.

 

“InuYasha…” She said in a good-humored warning tone. He took off with Kagome running after him. They spent the rest of the afternoon like that. InuYasha using his hanyou skills to always keep at least two steps ahead of Kagome, both laughing with the carefree air of children. It didn't end until Kagome had caught InuYasha of guard right after Mrs. Higurashi's voice had reached them, calling them in for dinner, where she was able to tackle the hanyou to the ground. After which she announced that she had won the argument, if it could be called that, and when InuYasha became famous he had to write at least one song about her, to which he had grudgingly agreed, though he still smiled at her. It had felt so right to both of them.

 

-

 

“And I almost had you,

But I guess that doesn't cut it.

Almost had you,

And I didn't even know it.

 

You kept me guessin'

And now I'm destined

To spend my time missin' you.”

 

He looked strait into those blue eyes he would always remember, whether things were mended here or not and gave the girl, quite literally, of his dreams a slightly sad smile.

 

“I almost wish you woulda loved me too.”

 

She cried. She didn't know if it was from joy or emotional pain, but she just couldn't help it. She watched as he pulled away from the mic, still looking right at her. The crowed screamed like it had when he had first come out on stage, but she gave them no mind. All that mattered was that he was there and he had forgiven her. She couldn't take being apart from him anymore.

 

Kagome sprang from her seat with a choked sob and ran the short distance to the stage only to be stopped by a rather large security guard. “InuYasha!” She cried, reaching for him.

 

He had come away from the mic, leaving the guitar in its conveniently placed stand, and crouched at the edge of the stage. “It's ok Sano, let her through!” He yelled to the large man. Sano quirked an eyebrow but did as he was told, this could get interesting. Kagome hurriedly closed the two feet between her and the stage, grabbing InuYasha's outstretched hand so it could pull her up onto the stage. It was rough and smooth at the same time, and she could feel his claws grazing her skin but never hard enough to pierce it. He quickly hauled her the four feet up and pulled her into a tight embrace, the force causing him to take a step back.

 

She circled his waist tightly in a desperate hug, burying her face in his chest, sobbing her heart out. “I'm sorry! I'm so sorry!” Her words came out muffled against the fabric of his shirt, but he caught every word. “Oh, InuYasha…” She cried.

 

He buried his nose in her hair, breathing in the only scent he had ever found truly comforting besides his mother's, the scent he had been without for the last eight years. He loved her scent, it was like nothing else in the world. He held her as if he would never let her go again, and he had no intention of doing so. “Kagome…” he breathed, unaware that his voice carried to the mic right next to them, “Kami, you've been in Kyoto this whole time?” She nodded. He trailed one clawed hand up her back and began stroking her soft raven locks. “Who knew? You couldn't just have everyone worry about you, you're not like that.”

 

She sniffed and hiccupped. “Mama and Sango.” She knew what he was going to ask next. She didn't want him to ask, but there was no avoiding it.

 

“Why didn't you come back? Did it really take you this long to forgive me?” He sounded hurt. She never wanted him to sound like that because of her.

 

She shook her head. “No, I forgave you a long time ago InuYasha, a long time ago.” Tears were still leaking from her eyes and staining his shirt, but she did her best to compose herself.

 

He was still confused. “Then why…?”

 

“I couldn't face you after what I did. I ran away like a coward. I figured you'd be the one who wouldn't be able to forgive me. I didn't want to risk the possibility that you had really meant what you said that night. I didn't…I couldn't…” She gave another small sob.

 

“Shhhh. It's ok now.” He hugged her closer, doing his best to sooth her. “I'm not going to let you go again Kagome. Hell! I'll be damned if I even let you out of my sight for more than a few hours at a time.” She gave a tearful giggle and pulled back slightly to look up at him. The hand that had been stoking her hair came around to rest against her cheek, his thumb whipping away the wetness. He looked her right in the eye to show her how serious he was. “I shouldn't have let you slip away then and I ain't gonna give you the chance to do it again. I'll admit that I was a fucking idiot back then, but I still cared for you a lot.” He smiled at the girl in his arms. “I could never get up the courage to tell you, but I've grown up over the years. I loved you then, and I love you now. I want you to stay with me, if you'll have me.”

 

Her eyes lit up with more joy than she could ever remember feeling before. “Oh, InuYasha!” She threw her arms around his neck, and he adjusted his arms to accommodate her. “Of course I'll stay with you! I've loved you for so long, and I always will.” There was a tremendous cheer from the hundreds of fans in the stadium and the two of them only then realized that that hadn't been a private moment. Kagome blushed and buried her face back into InuYasha's chest, only this time a smile graced her face as well as his. They stood like that for a moment, reveling in each other's presence, in the warmth of the other's body. Seemingly out of no where Kagome giggled and it persisted until InuYasha pulled back slightly to look at her.

 

“Oi, wench. What's so funny?” He couldn't keep the laughter from his own voice.

 

Kagome looked up at the man of her dreams and gave him the brightest, most beautiful smile he had ever seen. “Sango warned me before I came here that it was probably the most doubtful thing on earth that this would happen.” She giggled again.

 

He gave her a slightly confused look. “That what probably wouldn't happen?”

 

Kagome's smile just wouldn't go away, and she began to play with the silver hair that her hands rested upon. She never wanted to let him go. “That you would tell me that you loved me in front of the whole audience, and that you should have never let me go.” He cheeks tinted slightly pink at the thought again.

 

InuYasha quirked an eyebrow. “Oh really?” A playful glint found its way to his gorgeous eyes and Kagome gave him a bewildered look.

 

“What're you planning dogboy?” She tried to pull away a little more, but he held firm.

 

“Oh, nothing.” He smirked and waited till she was about to speak again before he dipped his head and captured her lips with his own. A satisfying gasp came from the girl and InuYasha took advantage of the opportunity and dove his tongue into her mouth. He explored the moist cavern slowly, savoring every moment. He mentally smirked when he felt her close her eyes, relax, and begin to kiss back. Their tongues battled for dominance before InuYasha relented and let Kagome do the same with his mouth as he has done with hers. She pressed herself closer, applying more pressure to the kiss, running her tongue over every inch she could reach. She moaned into his mouth when he decided to tack back control of the kiss and nipped at her bottom lip before soothing it with his tongue and sucking on it a bit.

 

She had never experienced something so wonderful. It was sweet and caring, but passionate and possessive all at the same time. She nearly whimpered when he began to pull back, and he chuckled lightly, giving her another light kiss on her lips. His mouth hovered mere inches from hers when he spoke, it was soft and caring, but strong enough to be picked up by the microphone. “I love you, Kagome Higurashi.”

 

“And I you, InuYasha Takahashi. Now and for always.” She leaned against his muscular chest happier than ever before. She looked at him curiously when he grabbed the mic where it met the stand, and he just smiled at her. He brought the mic closer to him, smirking like the devil, and looked strait into the main TV camera.

 

“Take that Sango.”

 

-

 

The twenty-seven year old ancient weapons master smiled and shook her head at her friends' behavior as she watched Kagome giggling against InuYasha's chest on the TV. She hadn't seen her so happy since high school graduation. As the camera got a close up of the couple on stage looking at each other with more love than there was in the world, grinning like they were fifteen again, Sango smiled to herself. Once, just this once, she was happy to have been proven wrong.

 

 

Owari.

 

 

 

A/N: Yatta! Another story down! This one was longer than I thought it would be…a lot longer actually. I've never been good at stepping back and judging my own work. I think most of it came out pretty good, and over all I'm happy with it. But, hey, Tell me what you think, ne? Review please! Ja, ne!