Disclaimer - I do not, and will never, own Inuyasha.
Also: Kagome 'quotes' the song "Better" by Plumb. Download it, it's a great song.
Another Also: It's a song-chapter, it always is with me (lol). Anyways, the song is "1234" by Feist, download it, I'll remind you when the time comes.
(Don't own either.)
Now, read and enjoy.
She walked out of the apartment complex, hating herself. She always ended up hating herself by the end of the night when she was with him. She took her umbrella out of her bag and waited outside, in the rain, for her cab. She sighed with relief as the yellow automobile pulled up to take her away; to take her home.
"Wait!" She turned to the voice with a sigh. And to think, she'd almost escaped.
"What is it, Koga?" She asked softly.
"Here." He handed her a box. She had no idea what was in it but she presumed it to be a gift. "Happy birthday." He said with a smile. Her eyes fluttered up to look at him. She'd completely forgotten about her own birthday. She was 22.
"Thanks." She said simply.
"Come on lady!" She heard the cab driver say with aggravation. "I ain't got all day."
"I should go." She told him and Koga nodded his head.
"I know." He bent down and kissed her lightly on the lips. "Take care, Kagome."
"Bye Koga." She said, getting into the cab and almost slamming the door behind her. "Drive." She said with so much hate in her voice that any anger the cab driver had felt towards her before, had vanished as quickly as it had appeared.
"So," He began almost conversationally, "Where to?"
"Rose Street." She mumbled.
"Just 'Rose Street?'"
"Yeah. I can walk from there." She told him lightly and the old man started to drive a bit faster.
"You look terrible." He said bluntly and the tears that were in her eyes were shaken away with laughter.
"Why, thank you." She said, continuing to chuckle to herself. She looked down at her watch and sighed. It was 11:45 p.m.
"So, who ya angry at?" He asked her and Kagome shook her head.
"Myself." She said with a sigh and he nodded his head. This was a situation that he would not be able to fix in one cab drive.
"Well, here we are, my dear." He said in a gentle voice and Kagome felt the tears coming back. She'd liked his company.
"Thank you." She said to him, gratefulness etched in her words. Then, she gave him his money and walked out of the cab to go under a streetlight. The rain had become a soft drizzling mist, but she still pulled her umbrella out.
She smiled sadly as her apartment building came into view. "Home." She whispered to herself; pulling her keys out of her purse and opening the first door then, using her key, the locked one. She'd decided on checking her mail in the morning.
"Yeah, yeah!" She heard someone say across the street. "I'll see you tomorrow!" The same voice yelled. Kagome didn't care enough to see who it was. She just wanted to crawl up in a corner and die. "Dude, you better pay up! You know it. All right, later man!" Kagome sighed, annoyance washing over her.
"Why doesn't he just say 'bye' and get it over with?" She asked herself quietly, rubbing the temples of her head. She heard someone enter the building and she felt her body freeze up with fear. Why are you afraid? She thought to herself.
"Hey." Someone said beside her. She looked over at the tall person beside her.
"Hi." She said softly. He glanced down at her and noticed that she hadn't shut her umbrella properly. She began to tap her foot on the floor in an annoyed way.
"Uh, your umbrella isn't closed correctly." He told her and Kagome rolled her eyes. "Are you alright?" He asked, slightly aggravated with her strange behavior.
"No." She said, tapping her foot with annoyance. "Come ooon!"
"Is there a problem?" He asked her, looking at her with his aggravation.
She sighed then answered his question, "Yeah, there is a problem. The elevator died." He took a moment to process what she'd said and then laughed at her sarcasm.
"Did you try pressing the up button a second time?" He asked her, still chuckling softly, and Kagome shook her head, rain drops rolling off the bun in her hair and down her neck. "Do you want me to do it?" She gave him a look and pressed the button herself. That was when she noticed he was the guy that was yelling to his friend. She recognized his voice.
Finally, the elevator door opened and they both stepped inside.
"Are you new here?" Kagome asked him. He looked slightly taken aback by the question but he quickly recovered.
"Uh, nope." He said. "I moved here about a year ago."
"Oh," Kagome said with a frown. "Really?" She asked him and he laughed.
"Yeah, really."
"Oh." Was all that she could say. After a few moments of silence she decided to speak up again. "Are you sure? Because I know just about everyone that lives here and you are not someone that's lived here for long because I would know."
"I see." He said softly. "Well, maybe it's because we've never talked before now?" He offered and Kagome shook her head.
"No, I know people who are living here who don't even know that I exist." She said with a sly smirk.
"Don't you think that's just a little creepy?" She looked as if she were about to yell at him or laugh at him and he sighed, putting his hands up in surrender. "Fine, you caught me. I moved in about 5 months ago." He told her and Kagome nodded her head.
"So you're relatively new then." She said, continuing to nod her head. "And, I'd just like to say, it's 'creepy' that you just lied." He gave a low laugh.
"I'm Inuyasha, by the way." He put his right hand out for her to shake. She took it with a smile.
"I'm Kagome." She said to him. "It's very nice to meet you."
"Mm, likewise." He said, turning forward once more.
Then Kagome asked, "How old are you?" Why the heck am I being so chatty tonight? She asked herself, her mind seemed to be all over the place and she had no idea why.
"I'm 23." He said with a little nod of his head and Kagome smiled, zipping her mouth shut. "How old are you?" He asked her and Kagome looked at him for a moment.
"I'm 22." She said casually. Then she cracked a small smile and muttered, "That's so weird to say..." Inuyasha cocked his head to the side and looked at her with skepticism.
"Why's that?" He asked, checking to see what floor they were on. He had to get to the 25th floor and they were on the 5th.
"It was my birthday today." She answered and his eyes widened.
"Well, congrats." He said to her, patting her on the back. Kagome laughed on the inside.
Who the Hell says, 'congrats' when they hear that it's your birthday, and who the fuck pats you on the back to add on to their 'congrats'???
Then Inuyasha asked, "So, you turned 22 today?"
"Yep." She said in a bored tone. "That's usually what happens on your birthday. You get a year older." He smirked.
"Oh, is that so?" He teased and Kagome grinned.
"Mhmm." She placed her bag down and put her hands behind her back. "So, you like the city?"
"Yeah. Great place." He said lightly and Kagome held back from rolling her eyes for what seemed the hundredth time that night.
"What, ah, floor are we on?" Kagome asked, looking over herself and not really needing him to answer her question.
"We are on the 22nd floor." He smiled to himself. "Three more till we reach mine."
"That's funny."
"What is?"
"Well, I live on the floor right below you." She said.
"Cool." He said, folding his hands.
"Hmm," Kagome hummed. For some reason, she wanted the elevator to just stop so that she could talk to this stranger, Inuyasha, some more. Little did she know, he wanted desperately to get out of the elevator. Not that she was bad company, he just hated tight spaces. And, they weren't really hitting it off. "I'll uh, see you later?" She wondered aloud and he nodded his head.
"Sure." He said and Kagome stepped out of the elevator. She turned around to watch him leave and they waved at one another like big idiots. Kagome laughed.
"Bye!" She said as the elevator door closed.
"Later!" He yelled once the door was actually shut. Then, she headed for her apartment; her skirt dancing on her legs as she picked up her pace.
- Inuyasha's Apartment -
Inuyasha took his keys out of his pocket and opened his apartment door. His place wasn't anything special. It was truly average and he didn't mind.
"Ugh, I am exhausted." He flopped right onto his couch and planned on staying there the rest of the night. He didn't even have the energy to pick himself up and move into his bedroom. With one last sigh, he shut his eyes and tried to sleep when, suddenly, the image of Kagome crept into his tired mind. He sat up, wide awake and breathing heavily.
Kagome had been wearing a black sweater with quarter-lengthed sleeves. He vaguely remembered that it was a very thin material and it wasn't cotton or silk but he knew it was soft. In fact, he thought that it was a little fuzzy. He closed his eyes as he recalled the feel of it on his skin.
He also remembered that she'd been wearing a black, cotton, spaghetti-strapped shirt underneath the sweater. He'd only known this because her sweater had been slightly off her right shoulder.
Then, he thought about her skirt. Just another black clothes item and yet, on her, it was nice. The skirt went down to her knees. He remembered it being layered and it seemed kind of flowy.
"If that even makes sense." He said to himself with a shake of his head. Then, he lied back down, placing his hands behind his head.
- Kagome's Apartment -
Kagome had just finished getting ready for bed. She'd quickly gone to the bathroom, washed her hands, washed her face, and brushed her hair.
"Champagne." She said to herself quietly. "That is exactly what I need." She walked into her kitchen and looked on top of her fridge. "I shouldn't feel guilty about this." She told herself. "It is my birthday." She took down a bottle of champagne and poured herself a glass. "Yum." She said with a smile as the fizzle of the champagne tickled her tongue.
She walked into her medium-sized living room. She placed her glass down and shook her head.
"I'm gonna go get the bottle." She said to herself. Once she was settled down and comfortable she grabbed her remote and turned on the television. Not really caring what was on, she went back and forth through the channels. Once she found something that seemed was interesting enough to give a few minutes she grabbed the champagne bottle and poured herself another drink. She picked the glass up and watched the tiny bubbles float from the bottom, to the top, then disappear.
Suddenly, the phone was ringing. She took a quick sip then ran into her kitchen to get the phone.
"Hello?"
"Hiii Kagome." A woman with a pleasant voice almost sang.
"Oh, hey mom." Kagome was very confused as to why her mother was calling her so late but that didn't really matter. It was nice to hear her voice.
"Honestly dear, use your caller ID. You would've known it was me if you looked."
"I know mother. I forgot." Kagome said with a sigh.
"Anyway, I just wanted to wish you a happy birthday."
"Thanks," Kagome said, grabbing one of her kitchen chairs and pulling it over to her phone. She hated not having a cordless.
"What did you do? Go out with the giiirls, hang out with Koga?"
"I did both." Kagome said in an almost depressed tone.
"Dear, what did you eat today? You don't sound very well."
"Oh, thanks mom." Kagome said with sarcasm and her mother laughed.
"I was just worrying out loud. I'm sorry."
"It's alright."
"Well, did you have fun?"
"When?"
"Today silly!" Her mother said with a chuckle. "Or well, yesterday." Kagome heard her mother laughing a bit more and noticed how tired she sounded. She got crazy when she was tired.
"Oh yeah, it was a great birthday." Kagome said, lying.
"You don't sound very enthused." Her mother said, smirking sadly. "Honey, you should've come home for your birthday. Your father and I miss you terribly and we would've loved the company."
"And I miss you guys too..." Kagome said with a heavy sigh. "Mom, I don't think Koga's the guy for me."
"What?!" Her mother asked in a high pitched voice.
"Mom, he makes me feel..." Kagome couldn't find the words that she was looking for and talking about it with her mother felt strange.
"Oh Kagome, you're just going through a rough patch with him. You'll get over it in no time. Trust me, Koga is the guy for you. You're perfect together."
"Mom, no, we aren't. He depresses me and controls me and makes me feel like shit all the time."
"Honey! Stop it. You're being silly." Kagome rolled her eyes, a wandering tear gliding down her soft cheek.
"Whatever," She breathed. "Listen mom, I gotta go."
"Oh... okay." Her mother said, trying to sound happy but in actuality she was sad to say goodbye to her daughter. "I- your father and I love you!" Kagome heard her father, in the background, chuckle.
"Love you sweetheart." He said in his deep voice. Kagome smiled, laughing slightly. Why the hell were they still up?
"I love you both very much." Kagome replied quietly. "Tell daddy."
"Kagome says she loves us." Kagome laughed.
"Byeee mom." She said, her voice loud enough for her father to hear as well. She heard them both say their goodbyes then hung up the phone. "Man oh man, am I tired." Kagome said with a yawn, stretching her arms above her head. She looked over at her purse which was on her kitchen table and remembered the present. "Huh, might as well check it out." She said, one hand on her hip. It was a medium sized box wrapped in silver striped wrapping paper. "Aww, so pretty." She said sarcastically. She looked for where there was a break in the wrapping to open the gift. Inside it was a wooden box. Perfectly square and slightly boring. She opened the box to find a beautiful necklace. A sapphire heart surrounded by diamonds on a white gold chain. "Wow... this is-" Suddenly, there was a knock at her door.
"Kagome!" Someone yelled from the front door. Kagome put the necklace on, liking the feel of it on her neck. It made her feel pretty which was strange since it had come from Koga.
"Who the hell could that be? It's one in the morning." Kagome muttered to herself, slipping her slippers on and rushing over to the door.
"Kagome!" That was when she realized it was a hysterical Sango at her door.
"Hon?" Kagome questioned, opening the door to find her best friend completely soaked and her clothes ripped and clinging to her. She was shivering violently and Kagome already knew what had happened. "Get inside." Kagome muttered, wrapping an arm around her friend and locking the door securely behind her.
"He- I was- I can't believe- help meee!" Sango sobbed, collapsing just before she made it to the couch. "Get away!" Her teeth chattered and Kagome stood up, trying to remain calm. "Oooh nooo..." Sango cried, trembling from fear and the chill that was coming from Kagome's opened window. Kagome practically ran over to it, shutting it with a bang.
- Inuyasha's Apartment -
"What was that?" Inuyasha questioned himself. A beetle had apparently just eaten its baby on the Discovery channel and he hadn't been able to process it. "Gahross." He said, imitating a stupid girl. "Oh mah gawd, I am NOT watching this anymo-" Suddenly, a loud knock sounded at his door. Inuyasha looked over at his door and shook his head. "What the fuck was I saying?" He asked himself as he got up to get the door. It was his friend Miroku, completely drunk.
"Why'd she leave me?" He asked through half-sobs.
"Who? Why'd who leave you?" And then Inuyasha remembered who he was talking about: Shiori. Shiori, the bitch. She'd "fallen in love" with Miroku, cheated on him, told him about it, lied about being faithful from then on, was caught with another guy by Miroku, and then she left Miroku as if it was HIS fault; as if she were the victim and not him. She was some crazy ass bitch.
"Shi- what's her name." Miroku said angrily. He gave a soft burp, feeling sick. Inuyasha rolled his eyes.
"Come on, let's go outside." Inuyasha said, grabbing his coat and wrapping an arm around Miroku's shoulders to steady him. As they walked towards the elevator, Inuyasha couldn't help but feel sorry for his friend. Shiori had been the best thing in Miroku's life, according to Miroku. Inuyasha had tried to tell him but Miroku hadn't listened. Now, Miroku was a total pervert and went clubbing almost every night to get drunk or fucked.
"I hate her so much." Miroku muttered, no longer crying. Which, in truth, he'd been doing the dry sob thing. So, he hadn't, really, been "crying" from the start. They finally got to the first floor and walked out the elevator. Then, they went outside. There was a nice little bench to the left of the building and they both walked over to it. Once they were seated, Miroku took out a cigarette and lit it. Taking a drag, he looked over at Inuyasha. "We shoulda brought out some beers." He grinned sadly.
- Kagome's Apartment -
"Sango, did you recognize the man?" Kagome asked a still hysterical but a little more calm Sango."We have to notify the police!"
"No!" She said, clutching the mug of hot chocolate that Kagome had just made her. She also poured herself another glass of champagne and was starting to feel its effects. "It's all a blur, Kagome..." Kagome looked over at her friend, tears in her eyes that weren't there before.
"I know." She whispered and Sango looked up at Kagome, her tear stained face marked with her eye liner and mascara. "We'll talk to the police tomorrow." Kagome touched Sango's face and frowned. "Oh Sango, how the hell did this happen?" She asked, getting on her knees and taking one of Sango's hands in hers.
"I was alone." Sango whispered, shaking violently. "And the guy, he was taking me home-"
"Is he a cab driver?"
"No, no," Sango said, shaking her head and swallowing the lump in her throat. "I'd met him the other night at this club." She said, frowning. "He seemed so nice... Anyways," Sango said, coming back to the present. "He had told me to call him so I did." She shrugged and Kagome nodded her head with understanding. "I called him and he told me to meet him tonight at that same club. The time didn't matter cause he was gonna be there all night or something. Kagome, he was beautiful." Sango shuddered. "But then he got scary and I wanted to leave, so I did. He followed me!" Sango sobbed, breaking down once more. Kagome went to sooth her but Sango put up her free hand to silence her and swallowed before continuing. "And I was taking the short cut home, you know, that lonely little back street? Well, I was walking down it and then he put me up against the wall, took my money, and-and he..." Sango couldn't take it any longer and broke down.
"I'll be right back." Sango gave her the most horrified glare Kagome had ever seen.
"Don't leave me." She said, clutching her friends arm.
"Okay," Kagome pulled Sango up from the ground and helped her onto the couch. "Wait here. I'm just going to go get you some clothes and then we're going to go sit outside for a bit."
"No! Kagome you can not leave me." Sango said seriously. Kagome understood but she was just going across the room to her room to quickly get her friend some comfy, dry, clothes.
"I'll keep talking to you while I get your clothes." Kagome said, walking away.
"No!" Sango freaked. Kagome sighed, she was halfway there. So, she started to sing. First she hummed, trying to remember a song that Sango liked. She remembered one and smiled, singing the lyrics to the chorus.
"'Cause when you're afraid, you lash out at me/When you say all the things that you never meant to say/And try to break me/But in the end, what leaves you broken/In the end, makes you better, yeah..." Sango smiled in spite of herself and began to sing along.
"Makes you better..." She whispered softly, completely forgetting the fact Kagome had just "left" her. Kagome quickly came back with clothes. A nice pair of soft pajama pants and a matching, plaid, dark and light blue top. Sango took them happily but wanted a shower first. Kagome had a glass door to the shower so Sango asked her to wait right outside the bathroom door for her. When Sango was finally done with her shower (which was about 4 minutes short), she came out of the bathroom, dressed and ready to head outside like Kagome had said they were going to.
"Maybe we should stay in-" Kagome said softly, looking at her watch. "It's 1:45." She said, squinting up at Sango.
"I can't be afraid of going outside." Sango said softly and Kagome understood now why her friend wanted to go outside so badly.
"Okay," Kagome said, getting up from the floor and walking over to her shoes. She slipped on her purple slippers, laughing at her outfit. She was wearing pale pink pajama pants and a tight white t-shirt. If her purple slippers didn't clash with that, nothing would. Kagome quickly grabbed her purse and then followed Sango out of her apartment.
- Outside (Inuyasha and Miroku) -
"Why the hell did I love her so much?" Miroku questioned Inuyasha who was practically asleep on the bench. "I mean, she was a lying bitch! Why was I so blind? I'm fucking stupid."
"Yeeep," Inuyasha said softly. Then, realizing what Miroku had said, he sat up, his eyes wide, and looked at Miroku who was glaring at him. "I mean-"
"Save it, I know what you meant." He said, sitting back and taking another drag on his second cigarette. Suddenly, two young women were walking out of the building. Both Inuyasha and Miroku sat up and looked over to see who it was, not that they'd know.
"Hey, is that...?" Inuyasha asked himself, squinting his tired eyes.
"Come on, we can sit over here." One of the girls said, turning towards to two young men.
"Hi." They both said, grinning stupidly. It took Kagome a moment to register that two people were already sitting on 'their' bench and they were going to half to head in or sit on the sidewalk.
"You're Kagome." Inuyasha said, pointing at her.
"And you're Inuyasha." Kagome said, nodding her head. She'd just remembered his name the moment she had said it. "Funny seeing you again." She said with a fake little laugh. Inuyasha held back the want to roll his eyes. Why was she being 'weird?' He liked that other weird of hers.
"Not really," He said simply. "We live in the same building. It was bound to happen some time." Kagome smiled a real smile and Inuyasha knew she was back.
"Uh, I'm Miroku." Miroku said softly, standing up and putting his hand out for Kagome or Sango to take.
"I'm Sango." Sango said, her voice shaking slightly. She took his hand in hers, afraid of his touch. "It's n-nice to meet you." Miroku cocked an eye brow and smiled at her cautiously.
"You cold or something?" He asked her, tossing his cigarette and pulling out another one.
"My God man, that's enough!" Inuyasha said exasperatedly. Miroku just gave him a glare and lit up. Sango began to shiver slightly as a gust of wind traveled its way through the city.
(The song is "1234" by Feist. DOWNLOAD IT RIGHT NOW! Also, if you download it, I suggest you put it on repeat b/c near the end the music runs out a bit but if you put it on repeat it's starts up again and then you can fade out or do w/e you want to do but I just imagine it this way. If you get it, great. If you don't, oh well.)
Music starts now...
"So, how's your night been?" Kagome asked Inuyasha with an exhausted grin, recognizing a broken man when she saw one. She looked over at the smoking Miroku then she looked at the shivering Sango.
One Two Three Four
Tell me that you love me more
Sleepless long nights
That is what my youth was for
Inuyasha returned the grin, knowing she knew what he was going through. Then, he realized he knew what she was going through, too.
Old teenage hopes
Are alive at your door
Left you with nothing
But they want some more
"Oh, it has been quite grand." He said with a smirk and a stretch. Kagome crossed her arms over her chest because it had gotten quite chilly. "Yours?" She looked him in the eyes and snickered.
Oh, you're changing your heart
Oh, you know who you are
"What's wrong?" Miroku questioned Sango softly. Sango looked over at Miroku, slightly shielding her eyes.
"Nothing." She muttered.
Sweetheart, bitter heart now I can tell you apart
Cosy and cold, put the horse before the cart
"Liar," Miroku said jokingly, smoking the life out of his cigarette.
"What's wrong with you?" Sango asked, an angry tone to her voice. Miroku gave her a once over, smirking.
Those teenage hopes who have tears in their eyes
Too scared to own up to one little lie
"Nothing." He said, mocking her slightly. Sango touched her left hand to her right elbow, scratching it.
"Alright then." She said with a nod of her head.
Oh, you're changing your heart
Oh, you know who you are
Miroku got up from the bench and walked over to chat with Sango a bit more and Kagome walked over to the bench and sat down beside Inuyasha, crossing her legs.
One, two, three, four, five, six, nine, or ten
Money can't buy you back the love that you had then
"It's so late." Kagome said, her teeth chattering and her left foot wagging. Inuyasha rolled his eyes, not because he was annoyed with her, but because he knew that already and he was very tired.
"Yeah and Miroku comes over, bangin' down my damn door..." Inuyasha muttered, shaking his head. Kagome chuckled sympathetically.
One, two, three, four, five, six, nine, or ten
Money can't buy you back the love that you had then
Then, they both looked over at their friends and felt guilt wash over them. Why in the world were they at all irritated that their friends needed them? They should be glad to help; it was so horrible that they felt badly about it. Kagome looked Inuyasha in the eyes and sighed.
"But I love her." She said simply and Inuyasha nodded his head, understanding.
Oh, you're changing your heart
Oh, you know who you are
Oh, you're changing your heart
Oh, you know who you are
Oh, who you are
"What time is it?" Miroku asked Sango conversationally. She showed him her blank wrist and he smiled. Then, he noticed Sango looked pretty beat up. He hadn't before because it was so dark out.
"What hap-" He started but then she sharply interrupted him.
"Nothing." She looked down. "Nothing happened to me." An accidental tear slid down her cheek and Miroku's brow furrowed with worry for her. That was when he noticed other little details that he'd missed before. She was really scared. Her arms were crossed and she was picking at her elbow, making the skin practically bleed. He chuckled nervously, scratching the back of his head.
"Don't want to hurt yourself." He said, going to touch her right hand but instead, Sango flinched away from him. Her breathing had fastened and Miroku was starting to freak. "Hey, Kaga-what's your face? Sango over here's not feeling to hot." Kagome stopped talking with Inuyasha and immediately walked over to Sango.
"What's up, hon?" Kagome asked, bringing Sango over to the bench to sit down. Sango swallowed the lump in her throat and tried to force a smile.
For the teenage boys
They're breaking your heart
For the teenage boys
They're breaking your heart
Then she whispered, "Too much."
"Huh?" Inuyasha wondered aloud, his left brow up in the air.
"Uh, we're gonna head in." Kagome said, smiling at Inuyasha and Miroku. She paused before entering the building. "We'll see you later." She said, smiling in a confused sort of way.
"Yeah," Inuyasha said, rushing his words to get them out. "Later." Once the girls were gone, Inuyasha and Miroku looked at one another.
"I wonder what happened to Sango." Miroku muttered and Inuyasha nodded.
"Yeah," He said, leaning back. Then, he looked back at Miroku, smiling slightly. "I wonder what just happened to me." He said and they both began to laugh.
A/N: Okay, so I got a little tired at the ending, I know. Anyways, review please! I hope you liked it. I'll try to get another chapter up really soon. :-) Laterrr.
