InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Virulence ❯ Chapter Eight ( Chapter 8 )

Chapter Eight

"Chicks DigComplications"

The morning after the strange intimacy that transpired between InuYasha and Kagome felt like no different from the others the young woman had experienced.

It probably would have, if she'd been conscious the night before.

But unlike her startled landlord, Kagome was left in a state of ignorance, which explained her confusion towards InuYasha actions that day.

Kagome had woken up on her own, undisturbed by the light of the sun between the blinds. A dried trail of drool covered her right cheek, leading to a pool of it on the bed. Her legs and arms were sprawled across the bed, her arms covered in pressure marks from lying on them in her sleep. Sitting up, Kagome closed her eyes in exasperation as she lifted her hands to her hair, now scraggly and greasy to the touch. 'God, I seriously need a bath,' the girl thought in wonder as she slipped off the bed. 'Time to try out that new shampoo!'

Walking out the door -with a strict eye kept on the water gun behind her-, Kagome dragged her feet down the hallway, her eyes trained on the bathroom door down the hall. 'Shower, shower, shower', was the only thing she could think off, horrified at the idea of anyone seeing her hair. Well, Yasha being the only one around, it didn't really matter what she looked like to him. But she might get lucky and have a chance to slip out for the day.

Walking to the door, Kagome jerked on the knob, registering resistance in it. She pulled again, twisting it. Why wasn't it opening?

"Wench! What do you want!"

The voice, Yasha's voice, was coming from the door. "Yasha? Is that you?"

The door sighed. "No, I'm a talking puppet. Do you need something in particular? Or can I take a shower in peace?"

"Oh…you're in the shower? I need to take a shower," Kagome called, yanking on her messy hair.

"That's great, baby-face. You'll just have to wait."

Kagome frowned, kneeling down in front of the bathroom door. She was not the kind of girl who 'waited' to use the bathroom. She was the kind of girl who spent her entire morning in there. She took plenty of time shampooing her hair. Shampoo twice…then condition it and leave it while you scrub and then scrub again. Then wash the conditioner out. Dry body, the blow dry, then brush teeth, floss, wash face, brush out hair, take needed meds or lip gloss, figure out a hairstyle…

"You know, that's very annoying. I don't need to know everything you do in the bathroom. You didn't mention you put on clothes in there…do you do all that naked?"

Kagome was almost too tired to be outraged. "Humph! I don't think that's any of your business, thank you very much. And I'm not a baby-face."

"You kind of just made that my business, baby-face" came the dry yet amused reply.

"Yasha!"

"Kagome!"

After a few more moments of Kagome nagging, a frustrated growl came from the bathroom. The sound of water stopped, the sound of movement, and the turn of the doorknob.

A rush of steam flew past Kagome's face, so hot it felt as though it was scalding her. Covering her eyes, Kagome was not prepared for the view that greeted her when she dropped them from her face.

Yasha stood before her, in all his half-naked glory. A plain baby-blue towel rested on his hips, held up securely by his fist. His long silver hair was tangled and wet along his chest and shoulders, almost gleaming in the light.

'Wow, he really has a great chest,' Kagome thought, rubbing her neck, suddenly feeling nervous. 'I wonder if he works out…'

"See something you like?"

Looking up, Kagome felt her face burn in embarrassment. What she expected to see was Yasha's usual amused grin, his eyes shining. What she was greeted with was the opposite.

Yasha's usually composed face was now the complete opposite. His face was flushed (which could have been from the steam), and his expression was one of absolute discomfort, like a little boy caught trying on his mother's bras. When Kagome's eyes locked with his, his brows raised, and he turned his head away. "The bathroom's empty now, your Highness."

"Uh-huh," Kagome replied, her eyes trained on Yasha's expression. What was bothering him?

As Yasha turned to walk down the hall, Kagome realized that asking him directly was the only real solution.

"Hey… Yasha?"

The man's back stiffened. Turning halfway, he stood silent.

"Do I really look that bad in the morning?"

"Keh!" the dog-man replied, walking into his room and slamming the door.

Standing up, Kagome walked into the bathroom, matching the force of Yasha's own door slam.

'What a douche.'

^. ^

InuYasha slid down against his door, his grip on his towel loosening as he let it fall to the ground. With a sigh, he dropped his head on his knees, the images of the night before slamming into him with the force of a punch to the gut.

Spending the night on the couch seemed to have done him no good. The feel of Buyo on his chest matched the weight of Kagome's arms across his chest. He'd lain awake there most of the night, trying to think of everything but the young seventeen-year-old girl that seemed to have taken over his life.

But what could he do about her? All she seemed to do was mess with his head in the most annoying ways, and now she messed with his body. Remembering her touch didn't necessarily arouse him, but it made his stomach stir in the most familiar way. It reminded him of a feeling he'd felt so long ago. But perhaps it really hadn't been that long ago…

^. ^

InuYasha had first met Kikyou almost four years ago, when he'd still been living on his own, unemployed and living off the inheritance his father had seen fit to leave him. Back then, he'd been even more of a booze-head than he was now. Cuts covered his body; demon scars that refused to heal, so often were they reinflicted. Despite having a pretty good sized mansion on the more suburban side of Tokyo city, InuYasha could most often be found passed out somewhere near a Dumpster, or beaten and bleeding in a bar somewhere. The idea he actually lived in his parents' house was laughable. He didn't even keep his clothes there.

It was the evening of a big dinner that InuYasha was finally tossed aside. Although both sides of his family despised him, his elder brother Sesshoumaru had reserved a seat for him at a large family gathering composed of the inu-youkai and other powerful youkai of the age. This gathering was assembled to discuss the brothers' finances and their futures.

InuYasha knew his brother didn't give a crap about him, but he did know that Sesshoumaru cared about the family's image. After all, many distant family members noticed that both InuYasha and his brother shared the more dominate traits their father had: InuYasha was more expressive in his emotions than his brother, and he did what he wanted, something the former Mr. Dai had been known to do. Sesshoumaru acted as the more regal and somewhat controlled side of their father, an image that their sire had spent years trying to create. According to Sesshoumaru's own mother, the elder son was the rational brain, InuYasha was ever-changing heart, and the both of them together would have created a perfect replication of the dai-youkai.

But back then, InuYasha didn't care whom he was like. He was himself, a half-demon scourge that acted as the black sheep of his relatives. If not for the stories his mother had told him as a child, he probably would have hated his father beyond measure. The most he could express in relation to his father was a sort of disconnected admiration, as a child would at their favorite athlete.

The night of the dinner was a numbing experience. Deciding that it would be best to show up relaxed, InuYasha decided it would be good to get a little loaded beforehand, maybe a bit of tequila or scotch. Sadly, InuYasha's constant binging left him unable to get drunk quick, and it was only after almost ten shots of booze that InuYasha realized he was more drunk than he should've been. He'd shrugged, slipping on a suit jacket and stumbling out the bar he'd been at for most of the day, making his way to a five-star restaurant only twenty minutes away.

When he thought about how the event had begun, he supposed he should've realized their disgust with him started the moment his slurred voice had called out to their table. "I'm here with them," InuYasha had mumbled, gripping the nearest waitress' arm. Nodding as though he'd spoken in a secret code, she'd slowly guided the drunken man over to the table, helping sit down beside an old woman youkai as the rest of the table observed silently.

After a few awkward greetings, InuYasha was left to his appetizer as the rest of the family listened to Sesshoumaru talk about the human economy and a bunch of other stuff. Silently chewing on some fried green beans, it was only when he was finally addressed that he noticed the woman sitting beside Sesshoumaru's boss, Naraku.

Her white skin was the first thing he noticed, the second was her boobs. Her flesh was smooth and creamy looking, nary a scar or disfiguration on it. Her breasts were normal-sized, InuYasha noticed. Nothing to gape at but nothing to snort at either.

His eyes eventually found their way to her face. Cool chocolate irises looked back at him, a cute red mouth curved in a polite smile as woman looked back at him. One delicate hand boasting long manicured fingers lifted to toss her hair over her shoulder, exposing the soft skin of her neck and a flashing diamond earring.

InuYasha must have been staring at her for quite a while. A loud cough from his brother and a sharp jab from the grandma beside him was what brought him back to the discussion at the table. Shaking his head, he turned to look at his brother, who redirected him to a demon who asked him a series of personal questions. Most of which were answered honesty. By the end of the dinner, everyone in the restaurant knew that InuYasha was currently unemployed, lived on a steady diet of udon, fried chicken, pizza, and beer. The clothes he wore now were purchased only recently at a designer store on his way to the bar for lunch, and he'd spent a damn good amount of time trying to figure out how to put on his tie. He also really didn't like stuck-up assholes like Sesshoumaru, and he thought most old women smelled of waste and death. In fact, InuYasha claimed he could even smell how close one was to death based on the scent of their inner organs, or something- he'd said. In fact, the woman next to him wasn't good for long. She was already past the sell-by date.

As such, the dinner ended much earlier than had been anticipated, InuYasha, his brother, and Naraku and his woman being the last people in the building.

'You're quite the interesting man, Mr. Dai,' Naraku had commented, his trademark apathetic expression pasted on his face. 'I believe you're a worthwhile candidate for a position at my company.'

Sesshoumaru looked at his boss, his irritation apparent. 'what kind of job?'

Naraku laughed smoothly, his humor apparently not shared by his female companion, who excused herself. 'Not an executive position, I can assure you.' Turning back to the younger brother, Naraku lifted his brow. 'How about you come in on Monday with your brother?'

'Do I have to get up early?' the hanyou grumbled, lifting his legs onto the table, knocking over a glass of water onto his brother's lap.

'I would say you do,' his future employer answered, grinning at the man across from him, 'but I don't think you'll have to come over all the time or in the morning. In fact, after Monday I'm sure you'll be able to make your own hours.'

'Deal.'

^.^

It was on the next Monday that InuYasha found out the name of the woman who'd been at the dinner. According to his new boss, she was Kikyou, surname classified. She would give him his 'assignments', and she was the other human located in the I. Corps building.

He was in a foul mood after getting his first assignment, and thinking back on it, any small amount of support would have created a bond for him. Perhaps it was her hand brushing against his that started it all, or maybe it was their first date. Whatever it was, he had fallen hook and sinker for the woman. In only a few months, he found himself sitting beside his brother in the same restaurant they'd first met in, all Kikyou's friends and a few relatives of hers seated at the long table. They sat there, waiting for her. The ring in InuYasha's pocket grew colder and colder, yet InuYasha kept faith. She would come, she'd definitely come. She knew that they were going to celebrate their new engagement to everyone.

But the person who walked through the front door was not Kikyou. It was Naraku. Bowing before the befuddled group before him, he announced that Kikyou had a nervous breakdown at work and would not be coming that night. With a nod, he'd left, accompanied by Kikyou's guests.

It was Sesshoumaru who alerted his brother to the situation. "I'm sure finding out you didn't have much inheritance money left would leave any woman subject to a nervous breakdown."

"Shut your fucking mouth," InuYasha snarled, his claws digging into his fisted hands, " you don't know anything about her. She's better than that."

"I'm sure she is. I just didn't know that Kikyou was imperfect enough to even admit to a nervous breakdown."

^.^

God, remembering all that now, he really was a hopeless idiot. He'd trusted Kikyou; trusted a human, and look where it had gotten him. Just remembering the smug expression on Naraku's face as he'd bowed struck in InuYasha such a strong chord of anger that he slammed his fist into the floor, which shook from the force. Opening his eyes, InuYasha looked out the blinds. Was he making another mistake? Was letting Kagome in his life his worst mistake yet?

^.^

Kagome sighed, humming as the warm water flowed over her tired body. Her short hair stuck to her neck and chin, her eyes so wet she kept them shut, hating the sting of soap and water in the shower.

She spent a few more minutes there, her hands rubbing her arms and stomach in contentment. Deciding it was best to get out of there before she got all pruney, Kagome stepped out of the shower and reached blindly for a towel, finding a ragged blue one on the rusty rack. She dried herself off, wiping the mirror as she got a good look at herself.

Oh no! There was still a huge clump of conditioner in her hair. And she'd forgotten to bring panties and a bra with her. Groaning in irritation, Kagome ducked her head in the sink, clenching her teeth as water stung her eyes again, blinding her.

'I don't have time for this, she thought, turning in the direction of the door and blindly reaching for the knob, 'I'll just change in the closet or something and brush my teeth after I eat…'

^.^

InuYasha slipped on a pair of dark blue jeans, looking through a pile of what he hoped was clean clothes for a shirt. Smelling filth on almost all of them, the hanyou frowned. He was NOT wearing something dirty.

Walking out the door, his arms across his chest to secure some bit of warmth, InuYasha grumbled as he walked down the hallway. He knew there was a mess of shit in the college…

Stomping over to the closet, InuYasha yanked the door open.

And saw a naked Kagome.

Gaping, InuYasha stared at her, his mind only able to register the fact that she was bare before him. After a few moments, he realized what was going on, and how attractive her body was. They shouted simultaneously, Kagome shoving him as she stumbled out of the closet, using a jacket to shield her body.

"Why are you naked!" InuYasha screamed, covering his face. Why was this happening to him?
"Why are you shirtless?" the girl screamed in reply.

"Excuse me," InuYasha stuttered, "I'm a guy. Guys can walk around shirtless. Wenches can't!"

"UGH!" Kagome grunted. Reaching out, she pushed InuYasha out of her way, walking backwards down the hallway.

"Where are you going!" the half-demon yelled, confusion tinting his voice.

"To your room. You obviously have business out here, so I'll just take some if your clothes or something and put on my underwear when you're out."

"But I'll only be out here for a second! Come back!"

SLAM.

Was this how it was always going to be? If it was, he was already too deep in.

^. ^

Was this how it was always going to be? If it was, Kagome knew she was getting to involved with him.

It wasn't as though she didn't trust Yasha at all, she did. It was just…she knew nothing about him. Nothing at all. Being a girl, she knew what she was feeling for him wasn't just casual shyness. She was beginning to feel affection for him. Since she'd been stuck with him almost a month ago, they'd developed an odd but somewhat comfortable friendship with her new…friend? Somehow, the word 'friend' seemed wrong. She'd never felt friendliness around him. More…they'd grown used to a…dare she even think it…a couple's relationship. Albeit a very grumpy, stiff relationship. But one all the same.

Their mornings started like couple's days started in movies, Kagome mused. One of them -usually Yasha- was in the bathroom first, showering. When he was finished and in the living room fighting with his hair, Kagome went in and showered, brushing through her short hair quickly. They would end up fighting over the sink when it came to brushing teeth, and would race each other to the fridge in the kitchen that Yasha kept fully stocked often. He always got 2% milk for himself, skim for her. There was vanilla ice cream for her in the fridge, strawberry for him. The first person to get to the fridge had the other make them tea or coffee, and that was usually Yasha, cheating with his half-demon powers. After that, if Yasha wasn't on a job, the two of them would sit in the living room and watch anything on, or sometimes Yasha would go to his room and Kagome would stay in the living room. When Yasha was out, Kagome still sat in the living room, having left only once so far.

There was something incredibly wrong with all this. She wasn't really in a relationship with him; she didn't know him. And it was time she started getting to know the man.

Slipping on a plain white shirt she found in a pile beside the mattress. Kagome walked out twisting her fingers around. Should she just come out and ask him about himself? He probably already knew everything about her. All she knew was that he was somehow involved with people who were in dangerous gangs, but so were many humans and demons nowadays.

Walking into the kitchen, she saw Yasha standing at the sink, a wife-beater on his back and his wet hair falling around his lowered head.

"Yasha?"

He was silent, yet his back stiffened.

"I really think…I think we need to talk about some things," Kagome muttered, crossing her arms. "I mean…I think I deserve to know some things…and I can't be living like this anymore…just…we can talk about it…"

She didn't expect him to agree with her.

"Yea" came the hushed reply, "We really do…"

For some reason, the way he said it, so quiet, so resigned, made Kagome's heart hurt.