InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Palm of Your Hand ❯ Stuck in the Middle with Ru ( Chapter 13 )

[ X - Adult: No readers under 18. Contains Graphic Adult Themes/Extreme violence. ]

Disclaimer: InuYasha is the property of Rumiko Takahashi, not me. I'm just having fun and making no money doing it.

Stuck in the Middle with Ru

Kagome was sitting on the small balcony of InuYasha's temporary apartment, basking in the early morning sunshine, and reflecting on the events of the past week.

*Clink Clink Clink*

She was drawn from her musings by the sound of tapping on the sliding glass door behind her. Turning around and looking over her shoulder, she saw InuYasha standing at the door, tapping against the glass with one of the mugs of coffee he held in each hand.

She chuckled as she stood and made her way to the door. There was still something so strange about seeing him like this. Looking human. Acting human. Doing some mundane human activity. Laid back and helpful and polite.

"A little help here?" she heard his muffled voice call through the door.

Well, mostly polite...

"Ask nicely." she replied through the glass.

He was so different from the InuYasha she had first met when she was fifteen...

"Can you get the door, your royal highness." he corrected facetiously.

...yet in some ways he was still completely the same.

She crossed her arms and cocked her hip to the side. "InuYasha… say please…"

"Can you please get the door...wench." he smirked.

Kagome rolled her eyes and slid open the door, grabbing a mug from his hand before whirling around with her nose in the air and retaking her seat. "I only did it for the coffee, not for you." she said, before bringing the mug to her lips and taking a sip to hide her smile. 'Oh, sweet nectar of the gods, this is good coffee!'

InuYasha smiled smugly as he stepped out onto the balcony and took a seat in the chair next to her.

"So, I've been meaning to ask you, what were you thinking when you first saw me in your apartment, before you recognized me?" he asked her.

"I wasn't thinking anything." Kagome said, almost too innocently.

"Oh yeah right! Is that why you were all like, 'Oh! Takahashi-san! It's a pleasure to meet you. Oh! Oopsie! My panties just fell off! Tee-hee!'" he mocked in a ridiculously high-pitch.

She punched him in the arm teasingly. "I didn't say it like that, you jerk!"

"Well then, tell me what you were really thinking."

She shot him sideways glance. "Do you honestly want to know?" she asked.

InuYasha just sat watching her attentively, silently encouraging her to continue.

She sighed. "Okay, well... you're right... maybe I was having some fantasies about jumping you right there in the kitchen...but I had a very good reason!" she defended.

InuYasha looked at her expectantly. "And that was…?"

"...Because you looked exactly like a guy I had a big crush on in middle school..." she said with a mischievous grin as she kicked her feet up to rest on the balcony railing. "I guess I'm still sort of hung up on him, truth be told…" she added with a smirk.

"Ah. I see... So you were going to use me to play out some fantasy?" he said, feigning offense.

"No, I wasn't gonna use you, I was gonna use that guy." she corrected.

"I am that guy, and just so you know, you wouldn't have stood a chance with me." he crossed his arms.

"Oh really? And why is that?" she asked him coyly.

"Because I was sort of already hung up on somebody else, too."

She giggled. "Well, I guess it's a good thing we're us then."

"Keh! Who said I was talking about you?" he teased.

"Actually... I have no idea what we're even talking about anymore. This conversation took a strange turn." Kagome said chuckling.

He laughed along with her in agreement.

InuYasha had a passing thought about how well they seemed to be getting along this time around. He thought perhaps they had both done some growing up over their time apart. He would realize the bitter irony of this thought only minutes later.

"This balcony is so nice." Kagome said, leaning her head back and taking in a deep breath. "I wish my apartment had one."

"You'll love my apartment in Tokyo then. It has a much bigger balcony than this one. That was the reason I chose it, actually." he said casually, forgetting the fact that Kagome still hadn't agreed to come back home with him. In fact, she hadn't even agreed to discuss it. He noticed her stiffen at his words. It was a sensitive subject for both of them.

"So, I take it you're just assuming I'm going to drop everything and move back to Japan with you, then?" she said, thinly veiled anger in her voice. She lowered her feet from the railing to the floor and turned slightly toward him.

"Drop everything?" he repeated incredulously. "Kagome, what would you be dropping? Don't sit there and act like you'd be giving up your whole life when the only thing you'd really be giving up is Ru."

"Ru is my whole life!" she spouted out without thinking before snapping her mouth shut. She had become so accustomed to that being true, that she had said it almost on reflex. Immediately she regretted it.

InuYasha's eyes locked with hers. He was clenching his teeth so tightly he was sure they would be ground to dust. He was trying desperately to keep a grasp on his emotions, but even with every ounce of his self-control being utilized he was failing dismally.

Kagome looked at him apprehensively as she tried to think of something to say. She was finding it difficult to think clearly while watching him grip the cast aluminum arms of his chair so tightly they were moulding around his fingers.

InuYasha managed to find words before she did.

"And you'd rather stay here and be his fucking pet, than come back home and be my mate?" he ground out, the words dripping with venom.

"You know that's not true, InuYasha." she said.

"Do I, Kagome?" he snapped, his brow furrowed in anger. "Well if that's not true, then what is? Why don't you enlighten me?" he said as he scooted forward to the edge of his chair, making a show of preparation to listen intently, but in a manner that was obviously facetious.

"Why do I have to be the one to uproot my life and not you? Why can't you stay here with me?"

"Because I have a real life, Kagome."

"I have a real life too, InuYasha!" she shouted.

"Keh!" he scoffed. "Some fucking life you've got here. Two shitty jobs, one friend, and a string of random guys that you fuck and never call back." he spat out. Now it was his turn to regret something he had said. He visibly cringed when the words left his mouth. His horrible temper causing him to reveal feelings even he didn't know he had.

The stricken look on her face that followed, however brief, made him want nothing more than to take back what he had said and try to comfort her. Unfortunately, his feelings of guilt were not successful in overriding the conflicting feelings of anger that seemed to be pouring out of him from some unstoppable floodgate.

For a moment Kagome felt like crying, but that feeling quickly evolved into anger. "Don't act like you know me, you smug asshole! You don't fucking know anything!" Kagome's voice became progressively louder as she spoke. If the neighbors could speak Japanese, they were no doubt getting an earful.

"I know enough…" InuYasha mumbled under his breath, but not so low that she didn't hear it.

Kagome took in several slow breaths through her nose. "You know what...you were right." she said shaking her head, her voice suddenly eerily calm. "You are still a huge jerk just trying to get what you want." She punctuated the sentence by slamming her coffee mug down on the end table, cracking it against the tempered glass tabletop.

"Oh, right! And you're just a fucking saint, aren't you?" he said sarcastically.

Kagome got up from her chair on the balcony, flung open the door, and stormed back into the apartment; InuYasha hot on her heels. "Fuck this." she said coldly. "If you're looking for a trained bitch that you can order around, then you're barking up the wrong tree." she said as she grabbed her purse and shoes and headed for the front door. "I'm not gonna stand around and let you treat me like shit this time. I'm going home."

"Good. You should get home. Ru's probably missing his lap dog." he said as he jerked open the door for her to exit.

Kagome walked out before turning around to get the last word in. "Grow up, InuYasha!" she yelled in his face. She then reached back in and yanked the door from his hand, slamming it as hard as she could.

InuYasha turned from the door to find himself face to face with his own reflection in the entryway mirror. He punched the offending object in disgust, shattering the mirror and the drywall underneath.

Every time he had opened his mouth to speak he was surprised at what came out. His intention had been to say something to get her to stay, but his temper kept getting the better of him.

He watched as the blood from his knuckles ran down between his fingers.

It didn't make him feel any better.

<<>>

Seconds after she slammed the door Kagome heard a loud thud come from inside InuYasha's apartment. No doubt the sound of him destroying some innocent, inanimate object in a fit of rage. She released a sigh. This was the first real disagreement they'd had since their reunion and both of them had erupted like Mount Vesuvius. The speed at which their argument had escalated frightened Kagome. She knew that she was probably freaking out over nothing, but she couldn't help it. Everything was changing so fast. Too fast. Despite the fact that she wasn't exactly happy with the status quo before InuYasha reappeared in her life, she had gotten comfortable, and all the changes that had happened so suddenly were sending her into a panic. She knew that real life was nothing like a fairy tale. Prince Charming doesn't just come sweep you off your feet and the two of you live happily ever after. Things have to change and sacrifices have to be made on both sides. You have to work to find common ground, and it's never found on the back of a white stallion as you ride off into the sunset.

She was drawn from her thoughts by the sound of a neighboring apartment door creaking open. She turned to see the tenant peeking out past the door chain. "You okay, miss?" the tiny redheaded woman asked.

"Oh, uh, yes I'm fine, thanks." Kagome answered.

The woman, who had no doubt heard not only the fight, but the sex that preceded it, nodded hesitantly, and slowly closed the door.

'Gods, how trashy.' Kagome thought, horrified. 'We're gonna end up with a reputation as 'that couple'.'

It was weird for her to think of herself as being part of a 'couple'. In only one week she had gone from being completely unattached with no previous relationship experience, to being in a very serious, committed relationship. All of her prayers were suddenly answered and now she felt like she wasn't ready for it. 'Is anyone ever ready for anything?' she thought to herself as she stepped onto the elevator. She didn't want to seem ungrateful, but she was scared of starting over, even if InuYasha was there with her. She momentarily considered going back and trying to work things out with him, but she just couldn't bring herself to go back in there right now. Not after the things he had said. Besides, she was still pissed off and she would probably lose her shit the second she saw his face if she went back in there now. She just needed some time to cool off and work through this on her own.

<<>>

Nine days.

That's how long it had been since Kagome had spoken to him. He had tried to call her and she declined his calls. He had texted her and she wouldn't respond to his messages. She was shutting him out. Running away and avoiding the issue rather than dealing with it, just like she did with everything else.

Minutes after she had left his apartment he had decided what he would do. He would yield to whatever she wanted. What else could he do? All of this was his fault, after all. At least that's how it felt to him. He still thought he was right in the matter, and more than anything he wanted her to choose him; but if his only options were either to stay here and play second fiddle to his nephew, or go home and live without her, he would stay without a fight. Even if it meant being her consolation prize.

He just needed to see her so he could tell her.

He headed directly over to her apartment after work. Since she hadn't been answering his calls, it was probably safe to assume that she wouldn't be happy to see him, but what other choice did he have? He missed her and he didn't want to spend another minute apart from her over a stupid fight.

When he knocked on the door, it was Ru that answered, holding a spoon in his mouth and a jar in his hand.

Ru pulled the spoon from his mouth. "Hey." he drawled. "Long time no see. Did you two have a fight or something?" Of course Ru knew they'd had a fight, but he thought maybe he would have more success prying information from InuYasha than he had with Kagome.

'He doesn't know? Geez... and he thinks I'm dense.' InuYasha thought. "No, everything's fine. Is Kagome home?" he asked.

"Yeah, she's in her room getting ready for work." Ru stepped back, allowing InuYasha entrance into the apartment before kicking the door shut with his foot.

"What are you eating?" InuYasha asked him, nodding towards the jar.

"Bee puke." Ru said as he twirled the honey covered spoon over the jar before shoving it into his mouth.

"You know that stuff is just pure sugar right?"

Ru gulped down the sticky substance before answering. "Oh, you're right! What am I thinking? This is gonna go straight to my hips!" he said facetiously before turning around and flopping onto the couch.

InuYasha rolled his eyes as he walked to Kagome's door and knocked.

"Come in." he heard her call from the other side. She clearly thought he was Ru.

"Hey, umm...it's me." he called back through the door. He could have just went in, but he didn't want to enter on false pretenses. Especially when the situation was already so delicate.

Several seconds of silence passed before she opened the door. The sight and scent of her hit him like a ton of bricks and he had to fight the urge to drop to his knees and beg like a pathetic pup.

"Can I come in?" he contritely asked her again.

She nodded.

She sat down on the edge of her bed and he followed suit.

"Kagome, I'm sorry...about all that stuff I said. I was just scared I guess and...I said a lot of things that I shouldn't have."

She said nothing in response.

He grabbed her hand, interlocking his fingers with hers as he released a slow breath through his nose. "I just came here to tell you that... I'm gonna stay. I'll stay here with you or I'll move to the fucking North Pole if it's what you want, I don't care." he said, shaking his head. "Whatever you want...that's what I want."

Kagome felt like she should be relieved, but she wasn't. In fact, she felt worse. She felt horrible and selfish.

"Do you forgive me? For the shit that I said the other day?" he asked her.

She nodded. "I forgive you." she said without turning to look at him.

He waited for her to say more, but when she remained silent, he continued. "Umm...I think maybe I've just been bottling some things up... and I kinda blew up on you a little. I'm not trying to make excuses or anything. There are no excuses for the things I said..."

"So, you will stay here with me then?" she interrupted. "You're not just saying it to make me happy, hoping that will change my mind?" She turned to look at him.

"I'm not just saying it, Kagome. I'll stay here with you."

He was hoping she would change her mind, but his choice was not contingent upon that. The very thought of having to move here made him almost physically ill, but it was certainly the lesser of two evils.

"Thank you." She smiled ruefully and squeezed his hand.

He released her hand and wrapped his arm around her shoulders, pulling her closer to him as he planted a kiss on the crown of her head. "I missed you." he said as he nuzzled into her hair, disappointed that not the slightest hint of his scent remained on her.

"I missed you, too." she said as she wrapped her arms around his waist and rested her head against his shoulder. It was true. She had missed him. She just couldn't bring herself to face him after the things he had said. It embarrassed her and made her feel ashamed of herself.

"We need to start talking more...not bottle so much up." he said.

She nodded. "I don't want you to feel like you have to bottle stuff up at all."

"I guess I just didn't want you to think that I was still the same petty, jealous asshole I was back then…"

"Hey." she said, grabbing his chin in her hand and turning his head toward her. "You've grown up so much since then...the old you would have never apologized to me like this." she said. "And don't forget, I fell in love with that petty, jealous asshole, so what does that tell you?" she gave him a slight smile.

InuYasha sighed as she leaned in and kissed his lips. "I'm off tomorrow night. How about I come over to your apartment and cook dinner." she said.

"Just you and me?" he asked.

She nodded. "Just you and me."

He noticed that she still seemed forlorn.

"Kagome, please believe me when I tell you that I'm sorry. I didn't mean what I said, I was just upset. Please don't let my stupid mouth change the way you feel about me."

"Nothing could change the way I feel about you, InuYasha. It just hurt my feelings is all...they'll heal." she turned to him and gave him another chaste kiss. Despite his heartfelt apology, she knew that on some level he did mean all those things that he had said in haste. But she also knew that it was all true, regardless of how much it hurt to hear it from him. The one person whose opinion of her mattered most.

"If you say so." he said.

"I unfortunately have to go to work now." she said before standing.

"Okay," he said before rising to his feet alongside her and heading toward the door.

They said their goodbyes and reaffirmed their dinner plans for the following evening before she made her way out of her room.

'Would she still chose me if Ru were to ask her to be his mate?' He couldn't help but wonder as he watched her hug Ru goodbye and walk out the front door. He would never ask her that question, as he was too terrified to know the answer.

"Well," he heard Ru's voice coming from the kitchen. "What'd you do?"

InuYasha let out a long, slow breath before turning around to answer him. "I made the mistake of letting her get away from me, and now I think she might be in love with somebody else." he said pointedly as he made his way into the kitchen.

The two men stood, locking eyes for several seconds. Ru knew that he was the 'somebody else' his uncle was referring to.

"No," Ru shook his head. "you're wrong." he said plainly. "Trust me, I would know."

InuYasha supposed that was true. Considering the fact that Ru was a youkai, and his senses would, at the very least, make him well aware of any physical attraction she held towards him. But, then again, it's unlikely Ru would tell him if that were the case. "I hope I am." InuYasha said

"You are." Ru affirmed. "Now...I'm hungry." he changed the subject abruptly as he turned toward the fridge.

"You mean the thousand grams of sugar you just ate didn't spoil your appetite?" InuYasha asked, shaking his head. "You need a mother."

Ru snorted as he opened the refrigerator and started pulling out several glass containers filled with food, placing them on the counter.

"Nevermind. It looks like you already have one." InuYasha said chuckling.

"Kagome makes almost all my meals for me. She says it's to make up for her rent being so low."

"What does she pay?"

"Five hundred including utilities."

InuYasha's eyebrows raised. "And what's the rent on this place?"

"Twenty-two hundred plus utilities." Ru leaned back and grinned at him around the refrigerator door.

"Wow. She must be a really good cook." InuYasha said as he pulled out a chair and took a seat at the table.

"She totally is... not that it really matters, though. Money's no object to me… I wouldn't take any money from her at all if she didn't insist. Actually, I have all the rent money she's ever given me in one of my desk drawers. I always thought I'd gift it back to her when she got married but…well, she never did so I just kept saving it…I don't even know how much is in there. What's five hundred a month for seven years?"

InuYasha paused for a few seconds before answering. "Forty-two thousand." he said flatly. "You have forty-two thousand dollars in cash in your desk?" he asked incredulously.

Ru shrugged casually. "Guess so."

InuYasha rolled his eyes and shook his head.

"So, are you staying for dinner?" Ru asked as he popped the lids off the glass containers.

"Yeah." he shrugged. "Got nothin' else to do."

<<>>

On the walk home from Ru's, InuYasha decided he might as well call his brother and break the news to him, giving him time to get everything sorted out for him to stay here. He looked at his watch, which was still set to Tokyo time, to make sure he wasn't calling in the middle of the night. The phone rang several times before he picked up.

"Takahashi Sesshomaru." he answered.

"Why do you answer like that when you know it's me?"

"Good afternoon, otouto. How is the project coming along?" Sesshomaru said, ignoring his brother's question.

"It ain't afternoon here, and the project's fine, that's not what I'm calling about."

"What then, is the reason for your call?"

InuYasha rolled his eyes. It was like talking to a computer automation. "Umm...listen…" he paused. He hadn't even thought about what he was going to say.

Sesshomaru waited patiently for his brother to gather his thoughts. He heard a heavy sigh come through the line before InuYasha began to speak.

"Do you happen to know the name of Ru's roommate?" InuYasha asked.

"No, I can't say that I do." came Sesshomaru's answer.

InuYasha figured as much. He was sure that if his brother had known her name he would have done at least some investigating.

"Well, it's Kagome…" InuYasha told him.

"Your Kagome?" Sesshomaru inquired. Slight shock apparent in his voice. An exceedingly rare thing coming from him.

"Yeah. My Kagome." InuYasha repeated.

Sesshomaru was aware that Kagome was alive somewhere in this time. He was the one person InuYasha had entrusted with that information, knowing that he was the only one who wouldn't get involved.

"Apparently the guy she was living with was Ru all this time…" InuYasha added.

Sesshomaru remained silent.

"Well, aren't you gonna say anything?!" InuYasha snapped.

"I was only waiting for you to finish." Sesshomaru said. He could tell from his brother's tone that there was more to the story. Something that InuYasha was clearly unhappy about.

"She…" he paused and let out a long sigh. "she's attached to Ru. She's not gonna leave him to come back home with me."

"And so you are going to stay." Sesshomaru stated.

"Yeah." InuYasha said dejectedly.

Several seconds of silence passed between them.

"I hope you will reconsider." Sesshomaru said. He had come to think of his brother as a friend, and that was something he didn't have a whole lot of.

"I hope that she'll reconsider." InuYasha said back.

"Hmm. Very well, then. I will begin the transfer process," he said, "although I will hold off submitting the paperwork until your current project is finished. I hope that the two of you are able to reach a different solution during that time."

"Yeah, me too… Anyway, listen...don't say anything to Rin or the girls… at least not yet, alright?"

"It will stay between us."

"Thanks... I'll talk to you later." InuYasha said before disconnecting and jogging the rest of the way back to his apartment.

<<>>

Sesshomaru sat back in his desk chair, reflecting on the conversation that had just taken place between he and his brother. He knew Rin was going to be extremely saddened by this. She will probably cry… He huffed at that thought. The idea of having Kagome deported, and solving this problem himself momentarily flashed through his mind. He wouldn't get himself involved, though. He had kept Ru on the company payroll for years, which allowed him to live legally in the United States. He could terminate Ru's 'employment' at any time, forcing him to return home, but he would never do that. He wanted his son to return, but on his own terms. Forcing him would only put even more of a strain on their already virtually non-existent relationship.