InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Phony Digits ❯ Over the Moon ( Chapter 18 )

[ Y - Young Adult: Not suitable for readers under 16 ]

Disclaimer: InuYasha is the property of Rumiko Takahashi. I have nothing.

Chapter Eighteen: Over the Moon

March eighth.

To most people it was a day like any other, but to InuYasha it was significant.

It marked the anniversary of the day which he burst forth into life.

Thirty years and what did he have to show for it?

What have I fucking done with my miserable fucking existence?

BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP

With an annoyed snarl, InuYasha snatched his phone from the nightstand, disconnected it from the charger and turned off the alarm. The only thing more annoying to him than being woken up by an alarm, was the sound of the thing going off when he was already awake; it's abrasive tone just a smug reminder that his time to wallow in self pity was up for another day.

He rolled over in his bed, letting out a groan and burying his face in his pillow as he contemplated the idea of calling in sick to work. He didn't really feel up to the challenge of getting out of bed on this particular day. Although he hated his job with every fiber of his being, at least if he went to work he would have something to distract him from his depressing thoughts.

Another year gone and what had he accomplished?

Getting dumped.

That was the only noteworthy event that had taken place in the last twelve months. All other aspects of his life remained unchanged. His parents still thought he was a giant disappointment. His brother was still a bastard. Miroku was the one and only person in the entire world who actually called him a friend.

Meeting Kagome had been the only potentially positive new development in his life, but he'd blown that all to hell too.

And what was worse? Tonight was the goddamn-fucking-piece-of-shit new moon to top it all off…

<<>>

"...and then he got down on one knee and asked me to marry him."

"Let me see the ring! Oh, it's gorgeous! I'm so jealous. When's the wedding?"

"October first."

"Oh, I just love fall weddings! I'm so happy for you!"

InuYasha unintentionally listened in on the conversation going on in the cubicle behind him.

Stupid fuckers...

He lifted his phone from his desk, checking it for the tenth time this hour. He perked up momentarily when he saw a new notification, only to sink back down when he realized it was just a junk email.

His face lit up again when the phone vibrated in his hand, but sank even further when he saw it was only a message from his roommate.

'Lunch?' the text read.

'No.' InuYasha responded.

'I'll meet you at Monroe's at 1'

'I said no.'

'Okay, see you then!' Miroku responded, ignoring his friends refusal.

InuYasha let out a frustrated growl, but otherwise conceded.

Miroku was already at the diner waiting when InuYasha arrived. He slid into the booth across from his friend without a word; immediately slipping his phone from his hip pocket and resting it on his thigh under the table.

Miroku couldn't help but notice how horrible InuYasha looked. Tired and pale and...well...sort of gross...

"So, is this some kind of new grunge look you're going for, or have you just decided to let yourself go?"

"Keh!" he scoffed. "I don't know what you're talking about."

If he hadn't looked so incredibly pathetic, Miroku would have probably laughed at his friends disheveled appearance. It had clearly been a while since he had shaved, his scruffy black facial hair was in stark contrast to his snow white hair which didn't appear to have been washed or even brushed in several days at least. It was twisted up on the back of his head and held in place by a large, stainless steel friction divider.

When the waitress arrived and took their order, InuYasha declined to order anything.

"You aren't eating?" Miroku asked him.

"Not hungry." InuYasha said shaking his head. "I think I'm getting sick."

Miroku narrowed his eyes and looked him over appraisingly. "I've known you since you were born. You've never been sick."

"Well, I don't know. Maybe I have cancer or something."

Miroku sighed. "And you say I'm dramatic…" he said rolling his eyes. "You don't have cancer, InuYasha. You're depressed."

"I'm not fucking depressed."

"Oh really? So you're just so happy that you had to go to bed at six-thirty and sleep for fourteen hours straight?" Miroku said facetiously.

"I told you, I'm just sick or something. I'm not depressed like some little fucking girl…" he spat out before trying to nonchalantly check his phone that rested on his leg under the table.

"Is your phone in your lap or are you just playing with yourself under the table?"

"It's my phone, jackass!"

"You expecting a call?"

"No...I guess not…" InuYasha said dejectedly as he returned the phone to his pocket.

"Why don't you just call her and apologize?"

"You think I haven't tried that?" InuYasha snapped. "She didn't answer."

"Oh…did you try texting her?"

InuYasha nodded.

"I see...well, maybe I could try to talk Sango into talking to her for you."

"No!" InuYasha said adamantly. "I don't need anyone cleaning up my messes for me."

"Well, you need to pull yourself together. It's not like you to feel sorry for yourself."

"It's not like me..." InuYasha repeated mostly to himself.

"If you aren't going to fix this, then you need to move on."

"Easy for you to say. You've got your dream girl following you around the city like a lost pup."

"So, you're saying Kagome is your dream girl?"

"I ain't sayin' that!"

"Then what are you saying?"

InuYasha shrugged. "I just miss talking to her. That's all."

"That's all?" Miroku asked. "You expect me to believe that?"

"I mean, I guess it's not all. I like her, of course. She's funny, and smart...and she's really pretty...not that I care what my friends look like or anything…" he said, keeping his eyes cast down on his fidgeting hands.

Miroku chuckled. "But you wish she was more than just a friend."

"I'd take anything she'd be willing to give me." he said, sounding discouraged. "At this point I'd be lucky to just have her friendship...but I fucked that up just like I fuck up everything else in my life."

"You don't fuck up everything, InuYasha."

"Oh really, then name one of my many smashing successes." InuYasha challenged.

Miroku's mouth opened, InuYasha could almost see the metaphorical gears turning in his mind.

"See?" InuYasha said.

"It's just hard to think when you put me on the spot like that."

"Whatever." the hanyou huffed, crossing his arms across his chest. "I'm ready to change this subject anyway."

Miroku nodded, before leaning in and sipping his water through the straw.

"Geez...could you drink any louder? You sound like a horse at the trough." InuYasha snapped.

Miroku shot him an annoyed glare. "I can sympathize with you Yash, but don't start taking your bitterness and self loathing out on me. I'll will kick your ass six ways to Sunday."

"Keh! You wish." InuYasha grumbled under his breath.

"So, anyway, not to add insult to injury or anything, but Sango and I are finally going on a real date." Miroku said, respecting his friends request to change the subject.

InuYasha raised his eyebrows in surprise. "No kiddin'? Did you blackmail her or something?"

"No. For your information, it didn't require all that much coaxing at all.

"Don't get your hopes up too high. She doesn't seem like the type of girl that would sleep with you on the first date."

Miroku gasped and pressed a hand to his chest. "I'm offended you would think that that's my intention."

"When has that ever not been your intention, Miroku?"

"Well...today, for one."

InuYasha furrowed his brow. "Your date with her is today?"

"Yes, tonight."

InuYasha nodded. It's not like he really cared whether or not anyone remembered his birthday...but Miroku had never forgotten it before…

"Do you have any plans?" Miroku asked. "You know, like shaving, or showering? Anything like that?"

InuYasha rolled his eyes and let out an annoyed huff. "It's the new moon tonight."

"Ah, I see. So you are going to stay at home and sulk some more then."

"What the hell else am I supposed to do?"

Miroku let out a sigh. "I'd suggest you go out and try to make some friends, but I know that's a rather farfetched idea for you." he said facetiously.

"So what are you and Sango doing?" InuYasha asked, directing the focus away from himself. "I'm sure you got the whole night planned out already."

"Well…"

<<>>

Sango ran her straightening iron slowly through her hair, pressing out the crease left behind from the ponytail she'd been wearing earlier in the day. Just as she was finishing, she heard a knock at the door. She retrieved her lint roller from the dresser, and quickly rolled it over her black dress to catch any stray cat hairs that may be clinging to the fabric.

Her dress was very snug, and very short, and very low-cut, and probably totally inappropriate for this time of year; but it was the only one she owned, and she'd be damned before she'd go out and buy a brand new dress that she'd probably never wear again for a first date. She reasoned that since it had long sleeves, it was acceptable as a winter dress.

She had been thinking about this date all afternoon. Not that she was all that much more excited than usual. Well, maybe a little more excited...but just a little teeny tiny bit…

She liked to brush up on her psychological profiling skills when she prepared for dates. So far her track record was solid. She could almost guess every detail of a date, solely based on a first impression of the man. For Miroku, she would almost bet money he'd bring her roses. Red roses. The date would consist of eating at a fancy restaurant where the food was good, but not when compared to the price. She'd have him take her straight home afterward, and no doubt it would end with him walking her to her door, leaning in to kiss her, only to be denied her lips and offered her cheek. Yes. There is no way she was going to let him kiss her on the first date. Not that she had been mentally planning any future dates, or anything like that. No. Definitely not...

She whipped open the front door to find Miroku leaning casually against the frame, holding a bouquet of white lilies out toward her.

Sango took the bouquet in her hands. "Not roses?" she asked, raising a brow. Zero for one. "You seem like a roses kind of guy."

"Roses are so ordinary."

"Ah. I see. And let me guess, you are no ordinary guy, right?" she quipped.

"No, you are no ordinary woman."

She rolled her eyes. "Not even in the door yet and already working on your endgame." she accused.

"You are too cynical, Sango. Do you always assume the worst in people?"

"Of course. It comes with the territory. If you'd seen the things I've seen, you'd lose faith in humanity too." she said as she turned and headed for the kitchen. "Just let me put these in some water and we can go."

While her back was turned, Miroku took the opportunity to enjoy the view that had been testing every shred of his self control since the moment Sango had opened the door.

"Stop staring at my ass!" she called over her shoulder.

"I was doing no such thing!" he defended a little too quickly.

She spun around to face him. "Yes you were, I could see your reflection in the microwave." she said, pointing to said appliance.

"Oh…" He wondered if she was ever not in 'detective mode'. "Well, Sango, what can I say. I have always been an admirer of rare and beautiful things."

"Oh my god." she said with a sigh as she grabbed a quart mason jar from the cupboard and began filling it with water. "Let's go. Quick, before you say something else stupid and I change my mind."

<<>>

"So, do you like being on the water." Miroku asked as the approached the ramp leading up to the dinner cruise ship they were preparing to board.

Zero for two.

Sango shrugged. "Haven't spent all that much time on it, to tell you the truth. I usually only visit the river when a dead body washes up."

Miroku cringed. "How very romantic." he teased. "Well, shall we?" He held out a hand to offer her assistance in her ascent up the ramp.

"I think I can handle it myself, loverboy." she said as she pushed his hand away with a smirk. Stepping past him, she strutted towards the foot of the ramp with her head held high, before tripping on the lip, running and flailing her arms in an attempt to regain her balance, and finally catching herself on the guard rail.

"Glad to see you have a handle on things, Sango." Miroku said facetiously, barely containing his mirth as he breezed past her to the boats entrance.

Sango let out a frustrated growl as she released the railing and begrudgingly stomped the rest of the way up the incline behind him.

<<>>

"My mother passed away when Kohaku was just a toddler, and my dad never remarried."

"Sorry to hear that." Miroku said.

Sango waved her hand dismissively. "It was a long time ago. I mean, I hardly even remember her to tell you the truth. So what about your family?"

Miroku chuckled at the question. "Well, calling my family a family would be using the term quite loosely."

"It couldn't be that bad." she encouraged him to continue before taking a sip of wine.

"Well, let's see...where do I begin…" He leaned in on his elbows on the table and steepled his fingers in front of his lips. "My father had intended to become a priest. He even attended seminary, but alas, the vow of celibacy proved to be too difficult, even for a man of such rigorous discipline. His love for women proved to be his undoing as a man of the cloth."

"Love for women, huh?" Sango repeated facetiously. "Are you sure he wasn't just a skirt-chaser?"

Miroku smiled. "You're powers of deduction extend even to people whom you haven't even met."

"So are your parents still married?"

He shook his head. "They were never married. They were never really even together. The only connection they ever had was shared custody of me." he said.

"Oh. So do you have any siblings?"

He nodded. "My dad has four other children, all with different mothers."

"You're kidding…" Sango said in disbelief.

"Nope." He shook his head. "Well, actually I take that back. The youngest two do have the same mother, because they're twins. I've never even met them because their mom doesn't want them around my dad...not that I really blame her. They're young, maybe eleven or twelve years old at most. I have one older half brother who's probably in jail right now, he usually is; and one younger half sister who lives in Colorado with her husband and children. They're both doctors."

"And what about your mom."

He took in a deep breath. "She's..." he paused before letting the air out of his lungs in a whoosh. "tiny, and loud, and full of rage..."

Sango threw her head back and laughed at his description. "I like her already!"

"Good!" Miroku exclaimed. "I guess that means I haven't totally scared you away yet."

"No." she shook her head. "Not yet. It takes more than a little family dysfunction to scare me away."

"That's good to know, because I've got plenty of that to go around."

They sat for several minutes in companionable silence, eating their dinner, enjoying the live music and the nighttime view of the city through the large, floor to ceiling windows that served as the walls of the ship.

"You know, I've been on lots of first dates, and this is my first boat ride."

"Really?" Miroku asked in surprise. "Mine too!"

"What made you choose this then, if you've never done it before?"

He shrugged. "Just wanted to try something new."

"I've heard mixed reviews." Sango commented.

"Me too, but far so good, wouldn't you agree?

"Knock on wood." she responded, rapping her knuckles on the table and he followed suit.

"So, about your 'lots' of first dates…" Miroku interjected. "many of them turn into second ones?"

She gave him a coy smile and clicked her tongue. "Not many."

"Then tell me, where did they go wrong, so I know where to go right?"

Sango chuckled. "No big things really. Just lots of little things. Deal breakers, you know…"

"So, what are some of these 'deal breakers' then. Give me an example."

"I don't know... Just, you know, like maybe something annoying or gross."

"Like?"

"Like, if I found out you liked to drink buttermilk as a snack or something like that."

His face dropped into a serious expression. "Sango, I love buttermilk. I drink a glass every morning upon rising and every night before bed."

"Uh…oh...I…" she fumbled for words, then looked up to find his shoulders shaking with restrained laughter.

"You idiot!" she said upon realizing that he was messing with her. She grabbed the napkin from her lap and threw it at his face,

"I'm sorry, I couldn't resist." he laughed, catching the napkin against his chest.

"So, just for the record, you don't drink buttermilk, right."

"No. Yuck." He shook his head and scrunched his face in disgust.

"Good."

"Although, I have to say, I'm surprised that someone who isn't deterred by family dysfunction would be put off by something as simple as buttermilk."

She shrugged. "What can I say? I know what I like...and don't like. Besides, everyone has some dysfunction, right? I'd be a hypocrite to reject someone over something like that; but the 'deal breakers' on the other hand...those are important. I couldn't have a future with someone who was always doing things that were irritating or a turn-off."

Miroku nodded. "Makes sense...so, what's another one?"

"Another deal breaker?"

He nodded.

"Hmm…" she tapped a finger against her chin as she thought. "Like, If you showed up to pick me up wearing brightly colored tennis shoes, I'd probably say I had something come up at work and cancel the date."

He laughed. "That's so harsh."

"Like I said, I know what I like." she said with a smile.

"Do you like to dance?"

"Depends. Are you any good?" she asked.

"Only one way to find out." He stood from the table and extended his hand to her and she accepted.

<<>>

The ship returned to dock and the two made their way back to Miroku's vehicle.

"So, it's still pretty early." he said, looking at his watch. "Would you like to come over to my place and watch a movie or something?"

She narrowed her eyes at him. "You still working on that endgame?" she asked suspiciously.

He chuckled. "No, I assure you my intentions are honorable. Plus, InuYasha is there so if there were any sort of romantic mood it would be killed instantly upon entering."

Sango snorted a laugh. "Yeah, he's a little bit of a buzz kill, huh?"

Miroku nodded. "He can be."

"Alright then." she accepted. Zero for three. "I can't stay too late, though."

<<>>

A/N: In order to keep chapter lengths somewhat consistent I split this one up, so ch. 19 is technically the 'part two' of this one.

Thanks farawayeyes for the date suggestion! This probably wasn't the kind of boat ride you were envisioning, but I remembered after I started writing this chapter that it is still winter in this story so it had to be an indoor thing.

Thanks to all those still reading!

Have a glorious day,