It was such an innocent day, except for the brush of his palm over her butt. To his delight and surprise, she didn't smack him. The vast hills they sat admiring didn't ring with the sound of her strong hand imprinting itself in his face. Instead, without so much as glancing in his direction, she placed a hand on his thigh.
Then she moved it up, her eyes fixated on the green grass flitting around in the wind. His cheeks flushed pink.
Miroku sucked in a breath and waited for her to stop. Her hand kept creeping, though, and through all his talk and all his groping he wasn't actually sure he would know what to do with her if she…when she…
"Sango!" he stumbled sideways out of her grasp. She turned her eyes on him, all warm and brown. "What are you doing?"
"Flirting," she responded, blinking at him. "Kagome's idea."
Of course it was Lady Kagome's idea, he thought to himself. He waited to return to Sango's side until the sound of his beating heart subsided in his ears.
"That made you uncomfortable, didn't it?" She asked him when he reclaimed his spot beside her. He was thoughtful for a moment; unsure of whether or not he should admit to her that he wasn't so suave after all. Surely she'd seen his blush, caught the deep pink tinge flashing over his features, but he was apprehensive anyway. He had a front to keep.
When he didn't answer, Sango put a hand on his arm. He flinched, but stayed seated. "Well, Houshi-sama, that's how I feel when you pat my butt." She looked at him sternly. Her nose scrunched up as she scrutinized his face. She'd given him one serious nod as the words left her lips.
Miroku knew he wasn't supposed to do it, but he did anyway. He giggled at her. His shoulders bobbed as he huffed out laughter, the severity of it increasing with every intake of breath. Sango gasped. "I'm serious," she said. "It's not funny, Houshi-sama!"
"I know, Sango, I'm sorry," he replied, wiping small tears from the corners of his eyes. She glowered at him, her hand twisted into his sleeve. He smiled at her. "If that is truly how it makes you feel then I can try to break the habit. For you."
She pulled back from him, her eyebrows rising in disbelief. A warm breeze caught her hair and flung it over her shoulder. Her bangs flew chaotically around her face, so Miroku reached out and tucked a piece of her hair behind her ear. Her cheeks flushed pink. "Thank you, Houshi-sama," she said, turning back to the view of the hills.
"No need to thank me," he told her. She tipped her head onto his shoulder. He placed a hand on her thigh.
The hills rang.