A/N: This was originally going to be a one-shot, but it was getting so long and I really wanted to have it finished and edited on time, so I decided to split it up. It'll probably be a three-shot at this point. I've already started working on the next chapter, so I'll try to get it out as soon as possible.

Thank you, as always, to my amazing beta.

Inspired by the songs Home Alone Tonight by Luke Bryan, and Bartender by Lady Antebellum.

For InuKag week on Tumblr: Day 4: AU

Double Shot of Heaven
Part 1

Breakups were never an easy thing. They were messy, full of tears and angry outbursts, and the awkward encounters afterward were definitely something to avoid. Really, it made her wonder why anyone would choose to stop being single.

Kagome Higurashi grasped the strap of her purse tighter as she stormed into the local pub. The music was loud as the bass pounded through the speakers, reverberating through her chest and drowning out the sad thoughts in her head.

Screw men and their idiocy. She really should stop dating all together, and maybe she would. After all, she had her own place, an amazing career, and her cat Buyo to come home to every night. Who needed the male population anyways?

She leaned on the bar, her obsidian hair lying over one shoulder of her black, sequined dress. She tilted her head to one side, pushing out her red lips just a little. The bartender was there to take her order in a flash, eyes dropping momentarily to her low-cut neckline.

"What can I get for you, beautiful?" he asked, flashing a wolfish grin.

"Margarita on the rocks with salt," she answered with a sweet smile, nibbling on her lower lip seductively.

His eyes were the blue of water so deep that she was afraid to jump in, but she was still tempted to. "Coming right up," he replied with a wink, before making his way to the other end of the bar.

Kagome watched him fetch her drink as she slid onto a stool. His black shirt was tight, revealing his chiseled chest and toned abs. His face was above average with those eyes and tanned skin. Perhaps she would come back for him later, after they closed, and invite him home. It was perfectly acceptable, wasn't it?

As soon as the thought came to mind, she immediately rolled her eyes and dismissed it. Why would she even think such a thing? She was not about to be one of those heartbroken girls who found comfort in the arms of another man as he screwed her senseless. That wasn't her style, and she certainly wasn't going to stoop so low now.

"Here you are," the bartender returned, handing her a cocktail glass filled to the brim with tequila and lime.

She appeared pleased as she sipped it gingerly, relishing in the cool sour taste against her lips. "You have a nice touch," she commented wryly.

He leaned against the bar. "So I've been told," he said, his eyes dipping to glance at her low cut top again. "What brings you in tonight?"

Kagome sighed. This is not what she wanted. She didn't come to the bar to talk about her problems. She came to get drunk, maybe smack lips with a guy, and then leave feeling a little fuzzy. "Just needed a drink," she asserted, taking another taste, attempting to show her disinterest.

Unfortunately, he didn't get the hint.

"Is that all you needed?" he questioned, his voice low and seductive.

She frowned, not in the mood to deal with forward guys like him. Especially not so soon into her evening. She would definitely need a few more drinks in her before she even considered him. A range of words were perched on the tip of her tongue, hell bent on putting him in his place, but someone else beat her to it.

"Hey, flea bag," a man said, stealing the stool beside her. "Get me a whiskey sour."

The bartender narrowed his eyes and shot him an annoyed look. "Back again, Inutrasha?" he scowled.

"Do you want your tips tonight or not?" said man growled with furrowed brows.

Rolling his eyes, "fleabag" moved away to grab his order. Kagome smiled behind her glass as she took another sip. She glanced at the man beside her out of the corner of her eye. He was tall, with startling silver hair and luminous amber eyes. Definitely not like the men she was used to being with, and he clearly wasn't someone to be looked over easily. His stand-out features made sure of that.

"Take a picture, it'll last longer," he grumbled.

Caught off guard, Kagome's eyes widened as she placed her glass back down on the countertop. "Excuse me?"

"It's rude to stare."

Her lips pulled into a frown. "Well, aren't you just a ball of sunshine."

The bartender returned with his patron's drink and slid it in front of him. "Inuyasha is the furthest thing from sunshine," he announced with a chuckle.

Said man glowered at him. "Don't get me started," he warned, curling his hand around his whiskey sour. "I'm not in the mood today."

"When are you ever in the mood?" he barbed, leaning his hands against the top of the bar.

Taking a large gulp of alcohol, Inuyasha slammed his glass down and abruptly stood. "You wanna take this outside, Kouga?"

"It'll be my pleasure." He shot him a sadistic grin.

Kagome glanced wide-eyed between them before grasping onto the silver-haired stranger's arm. "Hold on," she intervened, stepping between them. "Come on boys, its early. Can't this wait until later?"

"Keh," Inuyasha sneered, shrugging off her hand. "If you don't want to get involved, go get drunk somewhere else, wench."

All attraction Kagome had felt for the man moments earlier immediately vanished. She was not a stranger to name-calling, but she would be damned if she took it from some pretentious jerk she just met.

"Who the heck do you think you are?" she demanded, folding her arms over her chest.

Amber eyes glanced toward her with disinterest. "What's your problem?"

Her blood boiled. "You can't just come waltzing in here, start a fight, and treat a woman like crap. It's men like you who disgust me."

Inuyasha knitted his brows and turned toward her fully. "Listen, lady," he began, clenching his hands into fists. "I've had a rough fucking day and I'm not in the mood to deal with your whiny bullshit. So if you don't mind, go get drunk somewhere else, you floozy."

That did it. Before Kagome even knew what had happened, her hand came up at an alarming speed and made contact with his cheek. His eyes turned wide as she stood there, her arm still raised, glowering at him with eyes full of rage.

"Holy shit," Kouga breathed, his piercing blue eyes glancing between the two. That had quickly gone from bad to worse.

Inuyasha brought a hand to his face, his cheek still resonating with heat from where she had smacked him. After getting over the initial shock, he glared at her. This chick had some nerve. Never in all his life had he met someone so infuriating!

"What the fuck—"

"Kouga!"

The bartender turned at the sound of his name to see a red-headed woman storming through the crowd. He visibly paled. This was bad. This was really freakin' bad. If the manager saw a fight in the bar so soon into the evening, there was be hell to pay.

As the realization of what she had done sunk in, Kagome began to wither under Inuyasha's intense gaze. Where in the world had that come from? She was not a violent person. She wouldn't hurt a fly! And yet, she had smacked some stranger in a bar for simply having a dirty mouth. Oh. Oh no.

Heat crept up her neck and flushed her cheeks, but she was just as stubborn as she was kind. She bit the inside of her cheek to steel her nerves. "Look," she began, hoping to ward off his impending fury. "I didn't mean—"

"Quiet, you two!" Kouga hissed, leaning over the bar. "Sit down and look like you're having a good time!"

Kagome had no time to object as Kouga forcefully pulled both her and Inuyasha back onto their stools. He pushed their glasses toward them eagerly, his eyes glancing fearfully between them and the crowd. Curiosity got the better of her embarrassment, and Kagome found herself searching the mass of people behind her.

"What is it, Kouga?" she dared to ask, momentarily forgetting the silver-haired idiot sitting beside her.

The bartender gulped, nervously cleaning a glass. "Ayame's here," he grumbled with wide eyes, as if that alone would mean anything to her.

Before she could ask any more questions, a fiery red-headed woman pushed between her and Inuyasha. "Kouga," she said sternly, leaving no room to question her authority. "Didn't I tell you to restock the bar inventory before nine o'clock?"

"I thought you told Hakkaku to do it?" he prodded.

Kagome could see he was racking his brain for a way out of this one. Apparently, he was afraid of Ayame's temper, and she could see why.

The bar manager narrowed her green eyes at him. "Hakkaku isn't working tonight," she snapped. She leaned forward threateningly. "It better be stocked in thirty minutes. Otherwise, it's your job."

She turned on her heel and left as quickly as she had come, leaving a shaking bartender in her wake. Kagome turned hesitant eyes to Kouga. "Are you all right?" she asked.

He blushed and scowled. "Damn that Ayame," he grumbled hotly. He set down the glass and began walking to the other end of the bar, mumbling, "I'll be right back," over his shoulder.

"That was a little harsh," Kagome muttered, turning her attention back to her drink. Tonight was definitely bizarre to say the least. All she wanted to do was drink until she could forget what had happened earlier that day, but already she had run into a flirtatious bartender, an arrogant brute, and a hot headed manager.

"It's his own fault," Inuyasha piped up beside her.

Kagome startled, almost forgetting he was there. "Come again?"

He nonchalantly took a sip of his drink. "If he did what he was supposed to, Ayame wouldn't be hounding him. But he's lazy and would rather flirt with girls than do his job."

"Isn't that part of his job?" she pointed out. "I mean, girls tend to leave better tips for a man who gives them attention."

He gave her a sideways glance. "Is that what you're gonna do?"

Realizing the implications behind his words, warmth flushed her cheeks as she frowned. "No," she denied. "I'm not that kind of girl."

Inuyasha smirked. "That's hard to believe."

"What's that supposed to mean?" she quipped, her blood beginning to boil.

"A single girl sitting alone at the bar on a Friday night?" He shrugged. "Doesn't exactly scream purity."

She glared daggers and clenched her hands tightly into fists. "I'll have you know that I'm simply having a bad day and needed a drink," she spat out through clenched teeth. "I plan on going home with a nice buzz. Alone."

"Yeah, keep telling yourself that, darling."

Kagome faltered from the nickname. Well, she supposed it was an upgrade from 'wench'. "All right, jerk-face, what are you doing here?" she questioned hotly. "A man sitting alone at the bar on a Friday night? I don't see any pure intentions there."

"Didn't say I had any," he reminded.

She rolled her eyes. "Sheesh. Not even a saint could be patient with you."

"You wouldn't know, would you?"

That was it! That was the last straw! Forget her simple night out. Inuyasha had completely ruined it. She had been talked down to a fair share already today and she would be damned if she sat here another moment being spoken to like that.

"You're a jerk," she snapped. "There is absolutely no hiding that. Apparently a girl can't even enjoy a drink around you! No wonder you're here alone!"

Kagome suddenly stood, grabbed her purse, and threw a few dollars onto the granite top for her drink. She was ready to storm out of the bar, Inuyasha be damned, but a hand on her wrist stopped her.

"Woah, hold up," he called.

"Let go of me!" she demanded, pulling on his grip insistently.

Intense amber eyes met her gaze, causing her heart to leap into her throat. "Sit down," he insisted.

"No way!" she sassed back. "I couldn't stand another minute in your presence."

He exhaled deeply and slowly released her. "Look, I'm sorry," he grumbled, averting his gaze. "I'm just in a bad mood. Didn't mean to take it out on you."

His words shocked her. So far, Inuyasha had been brash, rude, and inconsiderate. Taunts and barbs she expected. She did not foresee his eyes becoming soft and the sharp tone of his voice changing to a gentle manner. This was unanticipated.

She eyed him warily. "Everyone has bad days."

"Keh," he scoffed, turning his attention back to the bar. "At least let me buy you a drink."

Kagome sighed and hesitantly returned to her stool. "I guess I can't turn that down."

He raised his hand to grab Kouga's attention. As soon as he was within earshot, Inuyasha ordered a cranberry vodka.

"What?" Kagome asked with a raised brow.

Inuyasha's eyes questioned her. "What's the problem?"

She shook her head. "I don't want some girlie drink," she pointed out. "If I'm getting a free drink out of all of this, it's going to be something I like."

He frowned. "What the hell do you want then?"

"I'll have what you're having," she replied, noticing his empty glass.

Smirking, as he was sure this woman was going to regret her decision, Inuyasha turned his attention back to Kouga. "Two shots of your finest whiskey," he ordered.

"Make mine a double," he heard Kagome speak up from beside him.

Inuyasha felt his jaw drop open slightly and he studied her. "A double?" he parroted, leaning his arm against the bar top.

"Yes, a double," she confirmed with a nod.

He chuckled and shook his head. "Are you planning on hitting the floor tonight?"

Her eyes scrutinized him, fearless and full of a fiery spirit. She was not backing down. "I can handle my liquor," she assured confidently.

Inuyasha's eyes dipped to examine her body. She was a tiny little thing. Couldn't have weighed more than one-twenty soaking wet. And she thought she could keep up with him? He smirked. This was going to be fun.

"Whatever you say, wench."

She finished off her margarita and scowled. "My name is Kagome," she addressed him. "So you can stop calling me that."

"Sure thing," he said, leaning toward her. "Wench."

This was going to be very fun indeed.