InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Time After Time ❯ I Know Your Face ( Chapter 2 )

Time After Time

By RosieBird

Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha. Pity me!

Chapter 2 - I Know Your Face

"Kagome!"

Kagome turned around to see her friends racing to catch up with her. She forced a smile, despite her depression. It had been 3 months since she'd come back from the Warring States Era of Japan. 3 months since she'd seen Naraku, the wicked demon who'd tormented people for 50 years, destroyed. 3 months since Inuyasha had kissed her before going off with Kikyo.

Flashback

"I had to be sure of something," he whispered, "Kagome, I..."

End Flashback

"What had he been trying to find out?" Kagome thought to herself.

"Hey, how are you doing?" asked Yuka, as she came running up to Kagome, "You haven't been out sick in over a month. Think all your illnesses are gone?"

"Oh, I think so," Kagome said.

"Though I wish I could be "out sick" again," she thought.

"Great!" they chorused. Kagome smiled despite herself. She had missed just the normal activities of a teenage girl.

"Come on," Eri said, "Let's stop and get something to eat. I'm starving! And I want to hear how everyone is doing with their tests."

Kagome sighed. The high school entrance exams were upon them now. All her time spent in the Feudal Era and Kagome had been so sure she'd fail her exams and not make it into high school.

"I'm doing really well so far," Ayumi said, "They've been really easy!" She wanted to continue, but the look her friends shot her was enough to close her mouth with a smart tap.

"I have to admit," Eri sighed, "I'm doing pretty well myself. I've had problems with the history questions."

"Yeah," Yuka said, "Languages and history for me. Math is no trip down the strawberry path either."

"How are you doing, Kagome?" Ayumi said tentatively, not really sure if she was allowed to talk yet.

"Oh, yeah," Eri said, "How are you doing with the tests? They can't be easy with all the school you missed."

"Actually, I'm not doing too bad," Kagome said. And it was true. History, geography, even science had been a breeze. Her languages had been an issue, but having the time now to study without worrying about attacking demons had really helped. Math, which had never been easy for her, was difficult, but she'd known a lot of the answers.

"Really?" her friends said together. Clearly, they had a hard time believing it too.

"Yeah," Kagome said, taking a sip of her soda, "I was just as shocked as you were, but I'm really doing well. I think I may even want to study history."

"I was having such a hard time remembering those dates," Yuka exclaimed, "I'm so jealous that you got it figured out."

"No kidding, Kagome," Ayumi said, "That's great news."

The girls ate in silence more a while, then Ayumi spoke up again.

"Hey, Kagome," she said, sounding nervous to be asking, "What ever happened to that guy you were hanging out with?"

Eri and Yuka were suddenly staring at her with keen interest. Kagome looked surprised for a moment, then sighed heavily.

"Oh, well, he hooked up with his first girlfriend," she said softly, "He said he felt obligated to her since the reason they....broke up was sort of his fault. He wanted to try and fix things up and prove to her he was sorry."

"Yeah, that sounds good," she thought.

The three girls were silent for a moment. Then, Eri reached out and touched her hand.

"You really did love him, didn't you?" she said.

Kagome nodded, lowering her gaze to hide the tears.

"What an insensitive jerk!" Yuka exclaimed.

"But kind of a romantic too," Ayumi said, "I mean, to have that much dedication to one girl is really inspiring."

"Yeah," Eri said, "Wish there were more guys like that."

 

They ate the rest of their meal in silence. Kagome hadn't meant to depress her friends. She had enough trouble trying to keep her own spirits up. She really didn't want to be thinking about this now. She had exams and high school to prepare for. She glanced over at the clock to catch the time and something caught her eye. It was a boy. He was dressed in red and had...white hair! Kagome felt her heart skip a beat in her chest. It couldn't be him! She jumped up and ran over to him. The boy must have seen her coming and looked up in surprise. Kagome stopped and shook her head. He wore a red leather jacket and blue jeans. His hair was white, but it was pulled back in a long ponytail and there was no sign of dog ears.

"Can I help you with something?" he asked. His voice was pleasant, not at all sounding like the familiar growl she knew and loved.

"I'm sorry," she said, feeling her face flush with embarrassment, "I thought you were someone I knew."

"Hey, Kagome," her friends called, "Come sit back down."

They lead her back to the table and stared at her as if she'd grown another head.

"How do you know Chiko Tekeshi?" Eri exclaimed.

"I don't know him," Kagome said, "I just thought he looked familiar."

"You've probably seen him around before," Yuka said, "He's a student at Gakugei High School. He's supposed to be something of a rebel."

"I heard he's got a soft side though," Ayumi said wistfully, "He's won the fencing championship 3 years in a row and runs track."

"He's definitely unusual," Eri continued, "I mean, white hair. And I don't think it's a dye job. It's like he's from some other world."

"Kagome!" Yuka exclaimed, "Are you okay?"

Kagome felt like she was in a daze. She wasn't exactly sure how she left the diner, but she found herself walking along the road. She wasn't sure where she was and she'd left her bag at the diner.

"Great," she thought, "Just what I needed. Now what am I supposed to do?"

"Can this evening possibly get any worse?" she asked aloud. Suddenly, she wished she'd kept quiet. Out of nowhere, 4 big guys appeared. Not just 4 big guys, but 4 big, mean-looking guys. Kagome stared at them nervously, but stayed alert, ready to defend herself if she had to.

"Well, boys," one guy with a diamond stud in his ear snickered, "Look what we got here."

"Hey, pretty lady," another sneered, "You really shouldn't be in these parts. Girl like you could get into serious trouble."

"Thanks," Kagome said, disdain thick in her tone, "I'll keep that in mind."

"You know," the guy with the diamond sneered, "We could take care of you. Make sure nothing happens to this sexy body." His companions laughed and began to close in around her. Kagome tried to keep some distance without letting them trap her.

"I can take care of myself," Kagome hissed, trying to keep the fear she felt from showing.

"Cute little thing like you can probably take care of all of us, what do you think, boys?" The guy was right in her face. She could smell the alcohol and the disgusting air of lust-driven psychosis.

"What I wouldn't give for my arrows," she thought to herself. She decided to work with what she had. She drew back her arm and connected her hand with the guy's mouth. It wasn't a very hard punch, but it was strong enough to catch the drunken guy by surprise. He stumbled backwards and groaned in pain.

"Get away from me! All of you!" she screamed. She hoped it was loud enough that someone would hear her.

"Get her!" came various shouts from the other men. Kagome was immediately grabbed from all sides. She struggled as best she could, but they held her fast.

"You little bitch!" the guy she'd punch sneered, his mouth full of blood, "You're gonna regret that!"

He grabbed hold of Kagome's blouse. Kagome suddenly felt the Shikon Jewel against her chest, before the guy pulled it out from around her neck.

"Nice," he grinned, "That oughta buy a few rounds of beer for us afterwards."

"Don't touch me!" Kagome shrieked but the guy slapped her face and Kagome hung limply in their arms, dazed.

"Shut up!" he spat. He then began to laugh, "Keep screaming like that and you'll cause a scene."

"Too late!" another male voice snapped and Kagome heard the sound of bones shattering as her attacker fell to the ground. Kagome was flung to the ground. Slowly, Kagome began to focus and saw a dark figure in front of her with long white hair. It was the guy from the diner. Chiko Tekeshi

"The lady asked you not to touch her," the white haired boy growled, "I believe it's a fair request."

"You punk," another boy snapped, "Who the hell do you think you are?"

"Look," Chiko sighed, sounding very bored with them, "I'm quite capable of taking you all on, but I think you're more intelligent than that. Your leaders' out cold, so why not turn tail and run?"

The smaller boy seemed to think this through. Then, he held up his hand to the others.

"Let's go," he said, "No quick fix is worth this much pain."

The gang dispersed, leaving Kagome staring up at her rescuer.

"You okay?" he asked. He bent down to look at her closely.

"Yeah, I think so," Kagome said. She gingerly touched her cheek and felt the swollen lump. Chiko took a closer look.

"It'll be a nasty bruise, but you'll live," he said and smiled.

"Thank you for helping me," Kagome said.

"What were you doing out here anyway?"

"I didn't come out here on purpose! I wasn't paying attention to where I was going after I left the diner."

"Oh, speaking of the diner," Chiko said and pulled her school bag from his shoulder, "You left this back there. Your friends said you'd need it to study."

"Thank you again," Kagome said, "My name's Kagome Higurashi."

"Kagome," he said thoughtfully, "That's a nice name."

Kagome blushed and stood up. She must have risen too quickly because, suddenly, she swayed and began to fall again. Instead of the cold cement, Kagome felt herself fall into Chiko's arms.

"Don't you faint on me, Kagome," Chiko said. Kagome jerked in surprise as she stared at him.

Flashback

"Don't you faint on me, you stupid girl!"

End flashback

Kagome stared into his eyes for the first time.

"Gold eyes," she whispered. Chiko looked up at her.

"Dear God, please," she thought, "Please don't let this be a dream."

"I-Inu-yasha?" Kagome said, almost too softly to hear. She looked up at him.

Chiko stared at her silently. Then, without warning, he pulled her closer to him and kissed her as though he would die. Tears began to swell in Kagome's eyes as she realized the truth. Chiko Tekeshi was Inuyasha. Her beloved half-demon stood before her and was kissing her. He pulled away from her lips and buried his face in her hair.

"I can't believe how long it took you to recognize me, you stupid girl!" he whispered.

"Stupid!?" Kagome cried, "You're calling me stupid?! You leave me to go to hell with Kikyo and now, you come back to me? If I thought it would still work, I'd sit you!"

Suddenly, Inuyasha was lying face first, spread-eagled on the ground. Kagome stared at him in shock and prepared herself for the familiar outburst. It never came. Instead, all she heard was laughter.

"As much as I hate to admit it," Inuyasha laughed, "I've missed that."

Kagome sank to her knees and threw her arms around Inuyasha in fierce hug. Inuyasha returned her embrace.

"Oh, Inuyasha," Kagome sobbed, "How can you be here? What happened?"

"That's a long story, Kagome," Inuyasha said, "And I'll tell it to you, but not here. Let me take you home, okay?"

Kagome nodded and Inuyasha helped her to rise. Then, he took her hand and Kagome walked with him back to Higurashi Shrine.

To Be Continued...

Okay, this chapter is a little shorter, but with good reason. It just seemed to make more sense to end things here before going on. Next chapter coming soon! Keep those reviews coming in so I know how I'm doing.

Stay cool minna! From her on in, this will be fun!