InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Movie House Hanyou ❯ Seizure of the Senses ( Chapter 16 )

Bankotsu strategically fingered the upper frets of his Peavey Forum as his left hand rapidly plucked string after thick metal string with alternating fingers. His eyes were closed as he stood in his basement, the strap of his bass resting heavily on his right shoulder, and plucked familiar bass lines that reverberated around the room. The amp was tuned to a fairly low volume for solo practice; unlike a lot of bass players, he didn't feel the need to crank everything up as high as possible just to feel the power of his music. His personal motto was, "it's not how loud you play but how you manipulate the strings."

His friend Kouga sat in a chair on the other side of the basement's main room, listening quietly to his band practice. The low, amplified notes continued on uninterrupted for a lengthy period of time, the short man playing his restrung bass taking notice of nothing but the lines he had composed only months before for a musical side project with his friend DJ [spacebar].

When he finally finished, Bankotsu relaxed his hands and let the upper end of his purple and black Peavey dip to his right with unsupported weight, letting out a content sigh. "So, what did you think? Pretty snazzy, huh?" he asked his seated friend with a smile and brought his hands up to his nape in a stretching motion.

"Still needs work on the middle section, but I think that when you overlay the whole thing with electronics, it'll not matter as much and not be so noticeable," Kouga replied with only half interest, smirking when his braided-haired friend stared at him dryly.

"I'd like to see you attempt my fancy fingerwork, and then tell me--"

"Look, man, don't take it so seriously. I know very well I can't play a tune and that you can, geez!" Kouga promptly interrupted. "Now, can we get to working on the plans for the party on the 18th of next month? I said I would listen to your piece, and I did."

Bankotsu threw his hands in the air with an exasperated sigh and a resigned "Fine." He took his bass where it hung from his shoulder via strap and set it down upright in a guitar stand. After turning off the amp he and Kouga made their way up the stairs, their idle chit chat slowly progressing into the topic of their discussion plans.

Upstairs the two twentysomethings sat at the table in his den, drawing up plans for what supplies they would need, how much alcohol and mix-ins they would supply themselves, who would be sent away (in the case of unwanted persons attending) should they show up, the matters of decorations, what to do in case the police came on a complaint from the neighbors about the noise, and so on.

Kouga absently started scratching part of his upper shoulder blade through his shirt as he tried to keep his mind on the plans. The scabbing that had formed on the most recently inked spot of his back piece was beginning to bother him. Later he would have to smear more bacitracin on it to help soothe the itching and to aid in the healing of his needle-stabbed skin.

As the two men finished up with the details, they heard a key scraping in the lock on the front door as someone unlocked it. Within moments Bankotsu's roommate and boyfriend Jakotsu yelled out happily, "I'm home!" as he came into the den, passed by the two men with little more than a smiling glance and made his way into the kitchen to set down the bag of groceries he had been carrying.

After putting things away in the cupboards and the refrigerator, the tall black-haired man made his way back to the den. He came up behind Bankotsu, leaned over, and wrapped his arms around his boyfriend's neck and shoulders. Kouga desperately tried not to pay attention.

"Hey, short-stuff, how was your day?" Jakotsu asked absentmindedly, smirking because he knew Ban hated being called on about his low stature.

"Fine," Bankotsu managed to reply while ignoring the annoying cutesy name his boyfriend had a habit of using for him. "What's got you into such a great mood?"

"Jakotsu, we were in the middle of working on the plans for the party next month," Kouga spat out with annoyance from across the table. "Play lovey-dovey with your boy-toy later, please? I have nothing against guy-guy relationships, but I really don't wanna be seeing this stuff if I don't have to." He leaned forward onto his elbows and raised his eyebrow in a warning glare.

Jakotsu rolled his eyes and replied, "Kouga, are you still mad at me for hitting on you three years ago?" The silent brooding that the man across the table from him now started was enough of an answer. He diverted his attention back to the man in his arms. "Anyway, I'm in a good mood because it's Thursday and I get to see Inuyasha again," he managed to blurt out without squealing too much in joy.

Bankotsu furrowed his eyebrows and turned his head so that he could look up into Jakotsu's face. "But Inuyasha hates you. We all know that."

Kouga immediately slipped from a brooding expression to one of surprise. "Wait, Jakotsu, you gotta be kidding me."

"Come on, have you been at Ground Zero the last few weeks at the Thursday night Bondage A Go Go?"

"No, I'm busy on Thursdays. When I go, it's on Saturdays," Kouga cautiously answered.

"What are you getting at?" Bankotsu interjected, confusion intermingling with suspicion and almost a twang of jealousy. His boyfriend seemed way too excited for things to be what they seemed.

Jakotsu took his arms away from Bankotsu's neck and shoulders, making sure to tug lightly on the long black braid of hair that trailed down his boyfriend's back as he smiled deviously. "Oh, well then, I guess you wouldn't know, would you?"

"Get to the point."

Sighing almost joyously, Jakotsu spilled the beans. "I get to have a session with him," he answered smugly, his eyes twinkling. "Again." He giggled like a sophomore on her first date.

Both Bankotsu and Kouga stared at him, their faces glazed over in temporary shock. It was a moment before either could speak.

After stumbling over unspoken words, Bankotsu finally blinked several times and managed to squeak out, "Well, I believe this is proof that Hell has just frozen over and is ready for the ice skating crowds."

"Jakotsu, Inuyasha has interest in a woman," Kouga attempted to explain, "I know so. Not that he would tell me anything about her, mind you. But, while I got the hint that he's not making any moves--"

"Inuyasha is seeing me because of her, you dolt," Jakotsu interrupted with a smirk.

Bankotsu closed his eyes and sighed before getting up from the chair, the action causing his overly joyous boyfriend to step backwards to give him enough room to stand up. Turning around to face Jakotsu, he coughed lightly before proceeding to speak again. "You've got some explaining to do."

Jakotsu looked down at Ban before looking over at Kouga, who still looked bewildered, then sighed dramatically. "Fine, but I shouldn't even be telling you guys this. Nothing I say is to leave this room. Inuyasha will kill me if he finds out."

---

"Hurry up and clock in, Kagome," Inuyasha called out to her as he saw her pass by the concession stand from the elevators. "This weekend we've got The Hulk, Charlie's Angels 2, and 28 Days Later, and it was a mess during the last rush."

She glanced over at where he stood behind the stand near Register 4. "Yeah, okay. Which register am I on?"

"Number 2!"

"Right on," she answered before walking off to the break room down the hallway as usual. On the way, she brooded to herself about the events of only a week and a half ago.

Mouse had miraculously not broken his hip, merely bruised it; he had even been able to walk out of the auditorium unattended, though not before proudly displaying exactly what he felt about Naraku by using the middle finger from each of his hands and spitting out a line of comments she personally wished she might never hear again, they were so crude and vulgar.

Surprisingly, most of her coworkers had found the event to be quite amusing. It was like she worked with an overwhelming amount of closeted, not-so-well-meaning sadists. After the meeting she had cornered Inuyasha outside the building and bitched at him left and right about reporting the incident, to which he sullenly reminded her that what she had seen was not the first time he himself had seen Naraku physically lash out at employees, and that once he had actually reported it anonymously, but never heard anything about it. He had told her about the incident before, but of course, he suspected, the reason why she forgot about it was because she had been absolutely toasted when he had told her. Hash brownies could do that sometimes.

Even so, she still was not pleased with the way he seemed so nonchalant about it. He swore he didn't mean to come off as uncaring, just that it was to be expected and for her to stop worrying. He spoke of having the feeling that the Corporate Office wouldn't really give a rat's ass about how the employees were treated, and that only when they could send in reports for scandalous actions that would make Mr. Vault and Mrs. Harmon look like they were taking advantage of the company's assets would it be worthwhile.

Kagome opened the door of the break room and saw Tamisha hurriedly folding up a piece of paper covered with scrawls and then closing a locker door. The female usher of her same age seemed a bit flustered when she saw someone enter the room. However, Kagome thought nothing of it and, ignoring her, silently made her way over to the time clock.

Later on that evening, during the first evening rush, Kagome had just finished with a customer who had placed an exceedingly large order when the beeper on the popcorn kettle near her went off. As it was a Friday, all six of the main registers were in use, and both poppers were at work, noisily making fresh popcorn. Glancing off to her right, she saw that her coworkers on Registers 3 and 4 were both in the middle of heavy orders and that Inuyasha was busy helping bag popcorn for employees on the other half of the stand, so she took it upon herself to dump the latest batch. She couldn't let the popcorn burn.

"I'll be with you in just a moment," she quickly explained with a smile to her latest customer before jetting off to the popper right behind where Tanaya was ringing up a large family on Register 3.

The heat and the muggy scent of canola oil and salt dazed her for a moment as she grasped the lever with her left hand. While tipping the kettle her lower forearm pressed against a large metal region on the bottom of the kettle. It took a moment for her to react to the burning sensation. When she tried to say something, all she could utter was a squeal of pain and a hiss, her eyes wide and ready to water.

The part of her arm that had touched the underside of the kettle, as she yanked it away from the hot surface and carefully used her right hand to settle the kettle back into proper place, was a bright sunburnt red, in the shape of a football about two inches long and an inch wide. It took all she could not to just immediately run into the prep room and stick her arm into the icemaker.

Carefully and testingly, wincing from the searing pain, she loaded the next batch of seed and oil into the kettle and closed the lid of the popper before motioning to her customer, who had witnessed the occurrence and looked at her with concern, that she needed him to wait just a bit longer. The man, although feeling a bit antsy, was understanding.

Kagome made her way over to where Inuyasha was acting as a runner and poked at him to get his attention. "Uh, Inuyasha?"

Inuyasha's first reaction was one of annoyance, but he had indeed heard her little outburst over by the other kettle, so he wasn't surprised when he saw the pained and whimpering look on her face. "Kagome, what did you do?" he asked in concern, finishing off the medium size popcorn he was currently bagging for Dennis.

She held up her forearm for him to see the giant burn she'd just received. "And I have a line of customers, too."

Inuyasha told Dennis he would have to bag his own popcorn for a while and then grabbed Kagome and took her into the prep room. She made a grab for the lid to the icemaker, but he firmly told her not to use ice.

"It'll only make the burn worse. Here," he explained as he pulled her over toward the sink area about five feet farther down. "Run lots of cold water over it and stay back here. I'll take care of your customers for a little while, then be back as soon as I can cut the line empty. We can't have you working with something like that uncovered." Then he ran back around the corner and toward the door that would lead to the stand, leaving Kagome alone in the prep room in front of the three-basin set of sinks.

Silently, she turned on the faucet at the coldest temperature possible and doused her burn mark with the now gushing water. It was a while before she saw him return. At least 20 minutes it felt like, but as she did not wear a watch and there were no clocks back there, she had no way of knowing.

The time had passed quite slowly and tediously. Nothing caught her attention except for the cooling sensation of the faucet water attempting to soothe the burn mark, the sounds of running water and fresh ice tumbling into the lower region of the icemaker, and occasionally the sucking and pumping noises from the boxed bags of pop syrup being slowly emptied drop by drop into the tubes and mixing with the contents of the large CO2 tanks over on the far end of the prep room where she couldn't see.

When Inuyasha returned, the concession keys still jangling in his right hand, he walked over to her and shut off the faucet. She pouted at the loss of the cooling water, but he didn't notice, his gaze elsewhere for a moment before it disappeared.

"Come on, I locked your drawer up and your stock cupboards too. First aid kit's in the GMO," he explained softly, waiting for her nod before leading her away from the sink. On the way to the GMO in the hallway, Kagome absently poked at the almost eye-shaped area with a finger, feeling the heat that still flourished deep beneath the damaged epidermis.

Once the manager inside the office let them in before returning to the cash room and closing the door, he sat her down in a chair while he searched for the kit. He cleaned off the burned area before searching for a bandage large enough to cover the injury. Kagome sat patiently, trying to act like the burn didn't bother her.

"The hell?" he questioned aloud, more to himself than to anyone else, as he pulled out a sterile eye-patch type of pad from the bottom tray.

"Hmm?" Kagome looked at the white thing he daintily held between two clawed fingers, her eyebrows furrowing.

"Oh, it just seems to be the only thing large enough to cover your burn, is all," he explained, taking her left arm by the wrist and bending it toward her shoulder at the elbow. Kagome watched him silently as he delicately placed the soft patch, slightly smeared on the down side with bacitracin, onto the burn area with proper placement. Inuyasha had her hold it in place with her other hand while he strapped it down with medical tape, along the edges as well as through the middle in both directions.

Inuyasha smoothed the tape down into place, unconsciously relishing in the soft feel of her skin, his gaze blank and fixated upon her lower forearm. Kagome noticed the fervor in his hand motion, lightly callused finger tips slowly running across her skin almost meticulously; her breath hitched for a moment, and she felt the need to lick her lips. She glanced back up at him; his gaze was still as it was.

"Inuyasha?" The feeling of his touch was beginning to extend beyond common sensation. Those fingers came to her wrist and thumbed the soft fleshy inner part lightly.

"Huh?" He lifted his head up and stared at her, seemingly broken from his previous stupor. He blinked a few times, then noticed that his hands seemed to have taken on a mind of their own just earlier. He quickly withdrew his hands from her arm with almost a cautious and paranoid look on his face, his eyes shifting from side to side, though the closest other person was behind the door to the cash room.

"You, um, really like touching my arm, I guess?" Kagome told him in a small, extremely surprised sounding voice.

What surprised her, really, was the way he seemed to be attempting to wipe off his hands, mindful of his long fingernails, on his pant legs in a furious, almost frantic manner.

"Uh…" he managed to mumble uncertainly before gathering himself mentally and placing a finger to his lips. "Shhhhh… Nihongo de dake!" With his other hand he pointed his thumb over his shoulder, indicating that he did not want the manager in the next room to understand anything that might be overheard.

"Un, wakaru. Ne, nani shita koto… ano…" Kagome found herself unable to really say anything. Somehow, even with the language change, she wasn't sure she felt comfortable.

Their eyes met in an unusual stare. Kagome gave in and licked her lips, almost wishing it was someone else's tongue wetting the very same dry skin. His.

"Kagome, ashita wa ima yori hanashi niwa iin da," he quickly replied, his voice strained. "Yakusoku…."

They continued shortly discussing the where and when of their meet up for the following day. As much as Inuyasha had been wanting to avoid 'the talk,' it seemed inevitable now, and Kagome would get what she wanted… to talk, about them. Otherwise, things would continue to get weird.

---

Inuyasha pulled his car into a parking space near Lake Harriet and the lofty, mansion like blue Bandshell near the boating docks. For a Saturday afternoon toward the end of June with weather as nice as it was, the light crowds were only to be expected at that corner of the lakeshore.

He turned in his seat to Kagome and smirked while he unbuttoned his long, army green coat down the front and shrugged his arms and shoulders out of it.

"Oh, you're actually wearing white today. That's new," she commented with a hint of amusement. He almost always wore dark colors if not black, she had noticed. Then she read what the front of his shirt said. "Oh, hell no, there is no way I am going anywhere with you wearing that shirt, Inuyasha," she firmly told him, crossing her arms emphatically.

"What, you got a problem with me having a lil bit of pride?" he questioned smugly.

"Pride is one thing. Announcing it publicly for all to see is another," she replied, an incredulous tone in her voice.

"Whatever. Out of the car."

"No. I'm not going anywhere while you're wearing a shirt that says 'hentai and proud of it,' got it?" She narrowed her eyes.

He looked down at the red lettering on his white tee shirt, then back over at Kagome. "Why not?"

"It's embarrassing!"

Inuyasha sighed with a roll of his eyes. "I'm not putting my coat back on, or I'll overheat."

"Why did you have to wear that, of all shirts?"

"Because."

"Not good enough. If you have nothing you'll wear over it, we're going to talk right here in the car," she replied.

"Don't think so," he answered, setting his seat back so he could have better access to the back of the car. He turned around and groped semi-blindly around on the floor of the car, then returned himself and the seat to a more proper upright position as soon as he had what he was looking for… again.

With the riding crop in his left hand and leaning against his left shoulder, and his right arm draped over the top of his car seat, his back to the window for his car door, he somehow managed to announce his cutesy little ultimatum with a mischievous smirk. "Out of the damn car, or the crop says hello again."

Kagome blinked twice in surprise, then hardened her exterior again. "Try me." Seriously, what part of me could he hit well in a car at that angle?

"Fine, but don't say I didn't warn you," he drawled out almost in a sing song manner.

Inuyasha sent the riding crop whistling down onto the tops of her black skirt-covered thighs in a swift overhand shot, about halfway between her knees and the apex of her legs. The stinging connection made her jolt and hiss in her seat with surprise, and she firmly closed her legs together, all the while staring at him. So this is what it felt like for him when I whipped him with it….

Two more overhand connections of the crop enthusiastically came down upon her thighs again when she didn't say anything or make any moves. It took massive amounts of self control for her to keep from shuddering as the tingling pain sensations spread across the top of her thighs. She felt a warm rush coiling below her navel just inches away from where Inuyasha was hitting her with the crop, and her breath became erratic as her chest heaved. Her eyes closed to shut out all other distractions. If he keeps doing this, I don't know what I'm going to do-- Inuyasha brought the crop whistling down again with a snap, and she moistened her lips and whimpered as it connected with another sting, feeling massive blood rush.

The crop poised again, he was about to take another shot when he took notice of a tangy, moist scent filling the inside of the car. His gaze had mostly been directed toward her thighs, but now he glanced up at her face and upper body and took in how she was reacting. The scent... it was purely Kagome, and it had been almost a month since he had smelled it so strongly. As he drew the aroma into his nostrils, he could hear her blood pulsing as erratically as her breathing had become.

Damn, this did nothing but turn her on! He wetted his lips and absently clinked the barbell in his tongue against the back of his upper teeth as he looked at her curiously. Time for a change in tactics. I don't think I can last much longer being in the car with her like this and not be affec-- His desperate train of thought was cut off by a very familiar, distracting feeling. Shit, too late. Must get her out of the car NOW before I practically kill myself in an attempt to not jump her!

Not very pleased at having just gotten turned on, Inuyasha threw his crop into the back seat and rolled his eyes upward in an attempt to scramble for the next thing to say. "Look, how about I shred that lovely Botticelli print shirt of yours," he paused to waggle his fingers near her shoulder in a tease, "and you can wear the 'hentai' shirt, then, hmm? Cuz you most certainly are getting turned on just from gettin' hit with my crop, and if that's not hentai, then I don't know what is," he proclaimed with a grin only comparable to that of a particular fictional Cheshire feline.

At that statement, Kagome grabbed his outstretched hand, firmly clamped onto it and dug her nails into his skin, hissing, "Don't you dare. Number one, we are in broad daylight in a lakeshore parking lot. Number two, I'm not wearing a bra under this!"

"You think I can't tell?" he asked in a cover up for the current bout of discomfort he was currently feeling, wresting his hand out of her grasp roughly. "Well, look, I'll wear the coat, but are you sure?"

"Sure about what?" The hell is he getting at?

Inuyasha tugged his coat out from behind and beneath him, shifting as he did so. Once he had the coat free, he turned its back toward her and held it up just below his chin. Centered in the middle of the coat's back area, in black marker, was--

"Management not responsible for lost or stolen virginity?!" she read aloud in shock. Beginning to stammer, she promptly and sheepishly answered, "Y'know, I think I'll g-go with the shirt, Inuyasha!"

---

They had found a decent place for chat in a woodsy, hilly area within a short walking distance from the lake, just across the bike paths, the Bandshell still visible but the onstage performers, if any, no longer discernable. Still fretting over the saying on Inuyasha's shirt but not saying anything, Kagome picked a more secluded area of the park like area away from picnic benches and sat down on a mild, grassy slope.

Inuyasha sat next to her and mostly stared forward or off in another direction, not wanting to start the talk but rather waiting for her to begin. It was a very long and tedious moment before she spoke up, and when she did, her voice was soft.

"Well, I guess I should thank you for finally being willing to sit down and have a serious talk about this," she began. He grunted in response and remained staring off somewhere else. Since they had left the car, his mood had gradually changed, and she could feel his reluctance from the very start. "I know you probably don't want to talk about this--"

"Damn right I don't," he mumbled, his mood now obviously soured. He turned to look at her and explained, "Right now, I see you as my employee, as my insider, and as jailbait, and until the first and third items I just listed are remedied, I don't see any reason for things to extend beyond… beyond," he trailed off and waved one of his hands in circles while trying to find the right word, "uh, platonic! That's the word I was looking for, platonic. Damn stupid confusing English. It's funny. As much as the language bugs the shit outta me, I prefer it over Japanese." He raised his eyebrow wryly.

Kagome, who had been lightly gripping her drawn up knees with her hands, took her left arm and smacked him hard on his right leg with anger before looking away, utterly shocked. "I don't see why we can't just keep things under wraps!" she half hissed, half muttered. "And would you please not refer to me as jailbait? It's insulting."

Inuyasha grabbed her upper forearm roughly and growled in her ear, "It's true, though. You are jailbait. Just what the fuck did you think you were doing in the prep room a month ago, huh?"

Her eyes widened in fury as she turned her head in a swift movement to glare at him. "You know, if I recall correctly, you're the one who started it!"

"All I was doing was teasing you--"

"And it certainly worked, bakayarou!"

"That's not what I meant, ya dumb girl!"

"Stop insulting me!"

"Stop acting like I'm the only one responsible for this mess! You're as guilty as I am," he muttered and let go of her arm. "Be thankful that at least I'm man enough to admit partial responsibility for that fuck-up, cuz it don't happen often."

"You practically seduced me, Inuyasha! I couldn't help myself! Before that, I hadn't kissed a guy in over a year!"

"I did not, and I repeat, did not seduce you! I was merely licking Coke syrup off your face and… got… carried away," he rambled uncertainly as his voice softened with each word, averting his gaze so she couldn't see read what sped through his eyes. After a moment he asked with surprise, "Was it really that long since you'd kissed anyone?"

Kagome noticed the change that had fallen over him and decided to cool her anger and annoyance for the time being. "Yes. I'm sure you're well aware of how uptight everyone is back in Japan when it comes to public displays of affection. It never ceased to amaze me. You can't even tell who the couples are, it's so uncommon even for holding hands in public. I occasionally got asked out, but for the most part the Japanese high school boys treated me as an unwelcome foreigner, as a taint to their blood."

She paused solemnly before starting again. "There was one boy who really liked me a lot and didn't care about my mixed blood, but he wasn't really my type. I only went out with him to boost my self esteem, you know? Kissed him a couple times, but not much else." By this time Inuyasha had begun to watch her talking again, though she had not yet noticed.

"Before I moved to Sumida, I lived in Chicago. There were a few guys I occasionally did stuff with, but nothing major either. And even then, one of them in particular, this guy named Tanner, when I found out the only reason he was even interested was because he had a thing for Asian chicks, I made sure to punch him really hard. He made me so mad! I mean, it's one thing to have a preference," she outpoured to her companion, now seeing the intense gaze directed toward her, "but going after someone who's 'exotic,' as he worded things, just because and for no other reason, not because you feel your personalities mesh together or you have common interests or whatever…" she trailed off.

"I guess it made me feel like I was this exotic freak of nature that he worshipped. Oh, and once he found out I was only half Japanese, he suddenly lost interest. Gee, how convenient," she finished in a bitchy, sardonic tone. She wrinkled her face up and asked, "How in the hell did this conversation turn from my kissing history to how I feel judged on my blood heritage?"

"You were rambling, Kagome. You ramble, a lot. Go off on tangents all the time," he promptly answered. "So, this means you're a virgin?"

Kagome blushed a bit, flustered at the straightforwardness of his question, then turned her head off toward the right to watch some bikers approaching the Bandshell far off. "Uh, yeah," she managed to squeak out with a rising intonation that obviously ended up amusing Inuyasha greatly due to his snickering response.

"And you're embarrassed about telling me that yet when I openly call out that you get off on me using a crop on you, you don't deny it or act flustered at all?"

"I was too shocked and overwhelmed to react properly back in the car," she dryly attempted to offer as her excuse, at which he promptly laughed. "What's so funny?"

"Just the way you're acting, that's all."

"I don't see what's so funny about it. You just… caughtmeoffguardwiththevirginquestion," she quickly replied, rushing all her words together.

"You know, ten minutes ago you were just radiating with fury at being called jailbait, yet you got embarrassed when I asked if you're a virgin just a moment ago," he went on. "You are one confusing lil bitch…."

"I told you not to call me that either!" she angrily retorted, halfheartedly swatting at him again with a grumpy expression.

Inuyasha merely snorted. The two remained quiet for a moment, until he broke the silence again. "Just what did you ever have in mind, about us?" At her confused look he went on, "You've been pressing me for this little discussion for a long time, I finally give in, and it ends up you can't even stay on topic. What gives?"

Solemnly, Kagome looked at the ground. "I know I said I could wait, but I merely meant that about the sex part, I guess. Every single day I work with you, I want more than just being your coworker--"

"Employee."

"Just because you're my supervisor doesn't mean I'm not your coworker," she spat out in a grumble.

"Well until I get you promoted, you're still not on the same level as me, so you might as well get used to it."

Preferring to continue where she had left off rather than allow the petty argument go on, she ignored his statement. "Whatever. As I was saying, I know we can't, you know, do anything major, or where other people at Pierce Theaters can see us, but I feel like you're deliberately pushing me away."

"Only because you're only 17, but keen observation indeed. I see they have trained you earthlings well," he half-heartedly patronized her. "Look, even if there wasn't the work thing, I wouldn't touch you with a ten-foot pole--"

"You already have!"

"It wasn't intentional!"

"You call licking and kissing my neck unintentional?!"

"Look, I haven't gotten laid since February, and I am very cranky when I don't get sex on a regular basis," he retorted with a hiss and an inhuman growl that she only vaguely remembered hearing come from him that day about two months earlier, "and to top it all off, you made it worse by--"

"Oh, I made it worse, huh?"

"Yeah, you did. I have immense self control, but you had me so riled up, you had me so turned on with that tonguework of yours, I was about this close from ripping your pants off, undoing my zipper, and fucking you right there in the prep room!" he yelled with a snarl, his golden eyes flashing with fury.

Kagome wasn't sure which startled her more: the bluntness of his outburst, or the fact that nearly anyone within a block radius had probably heard what the had just said. It took her a moment to calm down, and even then, her voice sounded alien to her.

"Okay, I know some of the more intimate stuff is out of the question, but can't we, at least away from prying eyes, you know… kiss? Maybe it could help you blow some steam off, or something," she suggested, finally saying some of the things she'd been waiting to mention ever since he had finally agreed to the talk. You probably need to jack off more at home, too, she thought amusingly to herself, not daring to actually say it aloud.

"No, no kissing. Period. I refuse to get involved with someone I can't fuck," he bluntly replied in a low voice.

"So all I am is just an age?"

"You being 17 is a danger to me. If anyone got suspicious, I would be the one getting in trouble with the cops, not you. Since you're the minor, you're the unsuspecting victim, and I'd be the big bad older guy who obviously, in the eyes of everyone else, is trying to seduce you--"

"You already did seduce me--"

"For the last fucking time, I did not seduce you back there! If anything, you noticed I was enjoying myself and decided to fucking take advantage of me!" He snorted and huffed, then calmed himself as he lowered his voice for his next statement. "It's not that I give a damn how old you are. It's… I almost got arrested about eight years ago for statutory rape."

Kagome stared at him in shock. He turned his head away; he couldn't look at her while telling her such a controversial aspect of his past.

"In Seattle. It was only a week after I had turned 20. I met a girl at an 18+ club, went home with her, and fucked her. Then her father walked in on us cuz we made so much noise fucking. As it turned out, she was only 15 and had used a fake ID claiming her to be 23 to get into the club, and he not only was confiscating that from her, he was going to have me arrested for statutory rape. I won't give you all the details. All you need to know is that based on what happened and most especially her reaction to my predicament, I don't exactly have a good opinion of her. I felt like she knew full well what she was doing and that maybe I had been set up."

Turning to face her, he continued, "I'm not saying I think that you would ever do that to me, just that I don't want to risk anything. I'm super fuckin' paranoid about cops now. Don't know how I manage to work with them at the theater, but I do. The only reason I never got arrested or sent to jail is cuz I ran off, broke through her window--"

"Did you hurt yourself?" Kagome softly asked, too overwhelmed until now to say anything.

"Just a few cuts here and there, nothing major." He remained silent for a moment, then solemnly picked up where he left off. "So, now you know my big, dark secret. Kissing is out of the question simply because I'm very sensual when I'm with someone. I'd be likely to get carried away and not realize just how far I'd gone until it had already crossed the line."

"Is that what happened last night at work, then?"

"I guess. Hadn't even noticed I was doing it until you said something. I guess it's pointless to deny the effect you have on me. But if--"

Inuyasha was interrupted by the ringing of his cell phone. Sighing, he pulled it out and answered the call.

"Yeah?" he said into the receiver part.

Kagome listened intently and nosily to his side of the conversation. He made some comments to the caller about agreeing to do something as a fill-in for someone, some chit chat floating around a bit as well, then ended the call.

"Who was that?" she asked, her curiosity piqued.

"Eden," he explained, "She plays bass for one of my favorite local bands. I know I said no kissing, but, would you like a chance to see me dance half-naked?" The scars on my back from two nights ago should be completely cleared up, so it'll be okay for her to see my back, I suppose.

"Uh…." she trailed off, her eyebrows shooting straight upward. Erm, yes, very much. Just because I blush when you ask me if I'm a virgin doesn't mean I wouldn't die to see you even partially devoid of clothing, she said to herself, not daring to actually say it to his face.

Inuyasha smirked. "Judging by the look on your face, and especially that blush," he paused to see her blush even more, "I'd take that as a yes." He laughed. "Eden wants me to fill in as a replacement go-go dancer at their outdoor performance tomorrow at PRIDE Fest in Loring Park. Normally you would never get a chance to see them perform live since their usual concerts are always 21+, but PRIDE Fest is always all ages. I was planning to go anyway to see them play, but since I won't be able to take pictures during the performance like I usually do, you could do that for me." His smirk gained the slightest ounce of lasciviousness. "I'll even let you keep a copy of the pics, if you want, maybe even the negatives too."

Kagome's mouth was practically watering. "What time tomorrow?"

---

At half past two, Kagome sat anxiously on the grass a few yards away from the small stage and the low platform that extended out front of it at ground level, waiting with Inuyasha's 35mm Minolta in her lap and an extra two rolls in her pocket. The band, All the Pretty Horses, was nearly ready to take stage.

Inuyasha, dressed in nothing but intimidating black boots and black and silver Capri style racing stripe pants, had his hair styled in many braids with clip-in extensions and, as always, a black and silver bandana capping everything off. She watched him down a bottle of Naya water offstage while chatting with Shannon Blowtorch, a heavily tattooed and very scantily clad woman with a mohawk, before chucking the emptied bottle and making his way onto the corner of the stage upfront where he would be dancing. Another go-go dancer, this one female in a flapper style blue dress and strappy heels, curly golden blonde hair and a white feather boa, positioned herself at the matching opposite corner.

The band members slowly trickled onstage into their designated positions. Jendeen sat at her drum kit in the back, Emily had a mic set up a few feet to the right of the female go-go dancer, Shannon's dance area was situated to the left and farther back from Inuyasha's spot, and Eden was somewhere between Jendeen and Shannon with her bass guitar. Looking around he asked Shannon again if Venus was ready yet when the tall Venus herself came onstage with her guitar and her extremely fetish-friendly costume all ready and rip roaring to go, smiling and whispering to Emily an apology for her lateness using her low, too low to be naturally female, voice before she walked toward the mic standing at center stage.

A few more murmurs among the performers readying themselves, and the crowd quieted as the band broke into the first song on their set list and the dancers eased into eyecatching movements that matched the tempo of the song, always oozing with excellent segue into the next song no matter what song came up next.

Kagome and the rest of the audience sat back mostly with awe and watched the capturing performance. When she was able to pull her attention away from one particular band member or dancer, she snapped photo after photo, finishing off a roll in no time.

My sweet distraction
I see you there
My sweet distraction
Are you aware
I see you dearly
I see you clearly

My precious wonder
My dreams are haunted
My precious wonder
My dreams are taunted
Your touches capture
Your touch is rapture

Have you ever wanted
One kiss of passion
Or is it all you've wanted
One kiss for fashion
I see your distance
But what insistence

She changed the roll of film and continued snapping away whenever the dancers, the performers' flashy garments, and the music itself, which reminded her of David Bowie in a strange way, managed to let go of their distracting hold. Most especially, the distracting and mesmeric hold of Inuyasha blissfully dancing in place at the far side of the stage.

---

A/N: a few things…

1- the 'Hentai and Proud of it!' shirt is available for sale at the following website: http : // www . cafeshops . com / delkaidin

2- lyrics are from "Distraction" by All the Pretty Horses, who have a website: http : // www . prettyhorses . net

Japanese vocab:
Nihongo de dake! -- Keep it to Japanese! (loose translation)
Un, wakaru. -- Yes, I get it.
Ne, nani shita koto… ano… -- Say, about what you were doing, um…
Kagome, ashita wa ima yori hanashi niwa iin da -- Kagome, tomorrow would be better than right now for this talk (loose translation)
Yakusoku -- Promise

Review responses:

To anyone who has asked: yes, I live in the very same city where this fic takes place. Used to live a 15 minute walk south of Lake Harriet, in fact; the same lake I mentioned in this chapter

Dvalkyria (AFF) - no, no affair w/ my boss. I mean, it's based on the shit the management did

YoukaiFate (AFF) - if you liked that part, then read Fit For Flogging. That whole club scene segment was directly lifted from FFF