wk: Okay... "Neighborly Love" is back up in a new version! I'm gonna end up not liking this one either, but I'll try to stick this one out!
Chapter One
We're Neighbors!
Kagome knew from the moment she awoke that it would be a fresh new day with a fresh new start. She made some fresh coffee to go with her fresh day. As she was sipping her coffee, she grinned when her phone started to ring.
"Hello?" she answered.
"Kagome," said the practical voice of her mother. "I already hired the movers, and they're on the way right now. Are you sure you don't need our help? Grandpa can't help, but I'm sure he would be able to cheer us on."
"No, Mama, I'm fine," Kagome said with good cheer. "The movers are more than enough."
"I could at least send Souta—"
"Mama, I'm fine," Kagome reassured her once more. Kagome's mother sighed.
"I called with the intention of trying to get you to change your mind, but that probably won't happen, huh?" Kagome's mother chuckled a bit wryly. "Well, all right then. I love you, and if you don't call at least every weekend once, I'm going to go find you and live with you, understand?"
Kagome gave a laugh. "Yes, Mama. I understand clearly." They exchanged their goodbyes, although Kagome's mother's goodbye was a bit tearful.
She was moving out of her dim little apartment to a cheery little neighborhood filled with old people and youngsters who were in elementary school. It made her heart swell to look at the small, cheerful house, and perhaps she had bought it a bit too quickly, but she had no regrets.
She waited until the movers came, and worked with them. It wasn't too hard, and the only thing they really had to struggle with was the TV, her bed, sofas, and the many boxes of books she had. Her clothes were roughly thrown into garbage bags, which were thrown over broad, sweaty shoulders onto the truck. She picked up the pet carrier, which carried a currently grumpy Buyo. Buyo would be going with her in her own car.
She walked outside, still grinning. She had bought her first house, and it was a wonderful feeling. Her mother and grandfather ad blanched when she had told them, resisting the idea, but they supported her anyway. She lived in an apartment now, to be close to her college. Still, her mother had insisted on visiting, whether it was Kagome doing it or her.
Kagome carefully placed Buyo in the passenger seat next to her and buckled in. She thought her cheeks should be hurting from smiling so much, but she thought her cheeks were numb to it.
Fresh out of college at the tender age of twenty-two and with a job offer to boot, she was a happy little camper. She knew she was lucky to have the job offer, and to even be able to afford the house. She had gone to college on scholarships, only paying for books, and had worked her butt off both in school and out of school, saving every penny that she had received. It paid off well.
Whistling and humming along with her radio, she drove and drove until she arrived at the neighborhood. It wasn't a small neighborhood, but it wasn't big either. Her own house was a two-bedroom house with two bathrooms. It had only one floor, and an attic. It was really all she needed. She was thinking about getting a roommate for the second room.
The movers, who had followed her the whole way there, jumped out of the truck and began bustling about immediately. Kagome ran to get the front door open with her house key—her house key!—and kept it open with a shoe to stop it from closing. The men began to do what they were paid to do—move her stuff.
Kagome went to a fast food restaurant, and purchased loads of food that probably had the workers sweating more than they were used to. She bought plenty of cold drinks, and struggled to carry it all back to her car. When she drove back to her house, the movers were nearly done. She brought out the bags, placed them on the trunk of her car, and called, "If you're hungry, you should take a break. I have food and drinks here for everyone!" The workers moved towards the food like vultures on fallen carcasses. Although none of them had hardly spoken a word to her the whole day, the gladly included her in their conversation.
"So, Miss Kagome, what are you doing moving here? The city seemed like a good place to stay," one of the movers said around a mouthful of chicken.
"I was only staying there because it was near my college," Kagome explained. "I much prefer the suburbs or the quiet countryside to the rudeness of cities."
"I'll the city over anything else any day," another mover said derisively, although he meant no offense to Kagome.
"To each his own," Kagome murmured as she watched them eat.
"You bought the food. You should have some," one of the workers stated. Kagome shrugged, grabbed anything she could, and started to eat with them. She laughed with them and sympathized with them, and encouraged them to do whatever it was they wanted to do. After every crumb of food had been eaten, they reluctantly returned to their job. Afterwards, they left, and Kagome was left with a semi-empty, dusty, wonderfully new home. She went to all her windows, opened them to let the fresh air inside. The wonderful, breathable, clean fresh air. It was unhindered by car fumes or cigarette smoke.
She then set her mind to unpacking. It was an easier thing said than done. To her limitless affection, she saw that the movers had moved in the bed so that it was against the wall and perhaps not exactly where she wanted it, but comfortable. They had already set the mattress on top of it and everything.
Kagome regretted throwing every item of clothing into garbage bags, because now she had to refold everything and resort it all. She vacuumed all the rooms, because the previous owners of the house hadn't been very clean.
She then put a sheet over the bed, placed her blankets and pillow over it, and set up her laptop as her impatient fingers hovered over it. As soon as she could figure out how to connect it, she was using the internet to e-mail her friends how she had successfully moved into her first house. Grinning, she shut off her lap top, and went to work on the electronics of her house.
She connected the TV to the wall, and decided to call the cable service the next day. She plugged in her electronic can opener and her blender into the wall of the kitchen. While she was there, she also unpacked all her dishes and other assortment of items. She then promptly collapsed onto her sofa.
Moving was hard work. When she looked out the window, she saw that the afternoon had turned colors to the orange of sunset. Going around the house and making sure all the doors and windows were locked, she let Buyo loose. Buyo, incensed that he was left in his cage for the majority of the day, immediately shot off to squeeze himself behind a sofa and undoubtedly get himself stuck there.
Kagome set up the litter box in the bathroom, where it would be easy to clean off the tile floor. She set the cat food in the floor of the kitchen, and she went to go sit on her bed this time. She looked at the bathroom wearily. She should really get up and set up all her toiletries, but she thought she only had the energy to get her toothbrush.
She brushed her teeth in her new bathroom, and then she called her mother. "Safely moved in," Kagome reported to her mother the second she picked up her phone.
"How is it, Kagome? I'll have to come down and see it myself one of these days. Is it where you wanted to spend most of your life?"
"Well, not the rest of my life, I don't think," Kagome said with a hint of amusement. "It's not a lifetime commitment to move into a house, Mama."
"You would be surprised how hard it is to tear yourself away from something once you consider it yours," Mrs. Higurashi said wisely.
"Well, I'm going to go to sleep in my new house now," Kagome squealed happily.
"All right. I'll tell Grandpa you're doing well. Did you lock all your doors?" Mrs. Higurashi couldn't resist asking.
"Yes, Mama. Double-checked them all, too," Kagome said.
"Okay," Mrs. Higurashi said reluctantly. "Say hello to your neighbors tomorrow, and good luck at your new job."
"Thanks, Mama. I will. Bye." Kagome hung up, and flung herself back onto the bed. She was now moved in. Officially. She would start receiving the mail in her own mailbox, in her own yard, which she would have to mow and tend to.
Smiling to herself, she covered herself with the blanket, ignoring Buyo's piteous meows for attention and help from behind the sofa.
Kagome awoke to what sounded like a gunshot going off. Stumbling and looking crazily around while trying to push her tangled hair out of her face, she fell off the bed to lie in a crumpled heap on the floor. Groaning, she glanced at the clock. It was four in the morning, and she sighed. She was supposed to wake up at five, but she figured an hour earlier wouldn't matter. She would just take a nap on the job…
She forgot why she had woken up an hour early. Frowning, she went into her bathroom scratching her head and yawning. She was brushing her teeth when she remembered the gunshot. Toothbrush still in her mouth, she rushed out of the bathroom, out of the bedroom, through the living room, and out the front door. It was still dark outside, and she looked wildly around.
She squinted into the darkness, twilight minutes away but not a glimpse of it in the sky. Kagome looked around, and nearly jumped out of her skin when a car door slammed in her neighbor's driveway. She looked, and saw a silver-haired hanyou grumbling to himself as he kicked the side of the car in a disgruntled, bad-tempered manner.
So. This was the neighbor that she had never seen. Toothbrush still in her mouth, Kagome tried to get a better look at him in the darkness. When she had looked at the house, the real estate agent never said anything about bad-tempered neighbors. She decided she wouldn't say anything, and started to creep back into her own house, but it seemed that a light breeze had carried her scent to him. She had impression that his head snapped up, and he glared at her across their driveways.
"What are you looking at?" he snarled at her. "Go to sleep, wench." Kagome's hackles rose. Well she had never been spoken to like that by a stranger!
"Erruse re?" Kagome said around her toothbrush. She yanked it out, spitting out into her yard, and instantly regretted it. She had spit toothpaste onto her flawless yard! It made her angrier. Having no idea what she herself was saying, she started to rant about how loud and obnoxious he was.
"I thought someone had been killed out here, and you—"
"Pipe down. You're going to wake the neighbors," he growled loudly.
"Well, you're not exactly Mr. Quiet, either!" Kagome said in a fierce whisper. Before he could answer, she went back into her house, slamming the door behind her. The hanyou, likewise, turned and went into his own home, growling as he slammed his own door.
There was a peaceful silence after that brief, loud interlude.
But not in Kagome's bathroom.
Fiercely brushing her teeth until she was sure her gums were bleeding rivers, She was murmuring dark expletives under her breath. If she saw him today, she would—
Okay. Murderous thoughts weren't too good right now. Especially since she was going to start her new job today!
She finished getting ready, choosing a simple black skirt and blouse for her outfit, and she walked out the door. She froze as she saw the man next door. Her breath whooshed out as she saw him bare-chested. He had the hood of his car open, and he was tinkering with something. His upper body was slick with sweat, and he had black streaks all over his hands and his chest. His jeans hugged his hips, and were low enough that she could tell that he was very lean.
This sudden lust for her neighbor floored her. She tore her gaze away quickly when he looked up. She practically ran to her car, but he was suddenly there, walking up behind her as she struggled to get her door open. He looked at her compact sports car with a bit of amusement before turning to her.
"I would offer my hand in apology for earlier this morning, but…" he gestured at his black hand and shrugged. She nodded mutely. What was wrong with her, she thought wildly. It wasn't like he was threatening her with a gun. So why was her heart beating so fast and her mouth so dry? She glanced at his smooth chest, the muscles rippling underneath.
Oh yeah. That was why.
She decided to combat her sudden attraction to her neighbor by being mean to him.
"Look, Mr. Whatever—"
"The name's Inuyasha," he drawled.
"Yeah, okay. Inuyasha, you were in a bad mood this morning, but that was no excuse to be mean to me. You don't have to take out your bad mood on strangers," Kagome hissed. "You were rude to me, and not exactly what I call neighborly."
"Yeah, that's why I'm trying to apologize to you right now," he said with annoyance.
"I'm just telling you," she said in what she hoped was her most haughty voice. "You were out of line."
She could tell that he was starting to get mad. "Look, I don't even know why you were outside at four in the morning with a damn toothbrush in your mouth looking like a mad dog, but—"
"I thought someone had gotten shot!" Kagome yelled, stabbing her finger at him. If she actually touched his chest, she was sure her finger would melt with the heat he was giving off.
"If you were smart, you would have known that it was just my car backfiring!" Inuyasha bit out. He blew out an angry breath. "Look, I just came over to say sorry, not start another argument. So shut up, get in your car, and go to wherever you're going before I do something I regret."
"Gladly," Kagome said with narrowed eyes as she finally managed to get her car door open. She slid in, started the engine, and gripped the wheel tightly as she watched him cross back to his own driveway. Why she had just thought he was attractive was beyond her. "Attractive as a damn cockroach," Kagome growled.
By the time she arrived at her new job, her mood had gone down quite a bit. She still brightened when she stepped into the building, however.
She walked in, and was immediately flanked by Mr. Tadahashi. It seemed like he was waiting for her. "Oh, hello," Kagome said, blinking. Mr. Tadahashi grinned.
"Yes. Hello. Today's the big day. You'll get to meet the little monsters," he said fondly. He was the principal of the school, and she had met him before, on her job interview.
"Yes. I get to corrupt them as much as I can when they're so young," Kagome said with amusement.
"Do you remember where your classroom was, Miss Higurashi?"
"It's Kagome, and yes, I do remember, thank you," Kagome said. Mr. Tadahashi smiled.
"Then you can call me Hojo."
He walked her to the classroom, and left with a wave. Kagome wondered if this was how all the newcomers were treated. Hospitality was big here, Kagome mused.
She opened the school supply cabinet, immediately taking out the construction paper. Laying the stack on a large table, she busied herself with memorizing names. She had met some of the parents the week before for orientation for their children.
When the first bell rang, she could almost hear the rumble of small feet as they all ran or walked to get to their first class, eager for an education they would be moaning about a couple of years from now.
Kagome watched gleefully as seats began to fill in her class. When the second bell rang, she gave them a few minutes to get adjusted and talk to each other before she stood to get their attention. She smiled kindly as the room went only semi-silent.
"I'm Ms. Higurashi," she said, the whispers diminishing to a hushed silence. "I'll be your teacher. I met some of you last week, but I'm afraid I'm horrible with names, so don't feel bad if I get your name wrong."
Kagome indicated the stack of construction paper on the table. "Grab your favorite color and go back to your seats, please." In an orderly fashion, each child went to get a sheet of construction paper. Pink, purple, and blue were gone very fast.
When each child had the sheet of paper he or she wanted, Kagome passed out scissors and markers.
"Write your name on it, so that we can make name cards. Fold it in half first, so that you can put it on your desk," Kagome said. She walked around while each child laughed and cut out borders for their name cards.
"Ms. Higurashi, can you hold this while I cut the corners?" said a voice. Kagome turned to survey the child that had spoken.
"What's your name?" Kagome asked gently.
"Shippo," he said, his voice tight with concentration, trying to cut the corners in a certain design while Kagome held the construction paper. Kagome saw that he was a fox-demon, and an adorable one, at that.
Kagome found the day going by quickly, and she enjoyed it much more than she ever imagined. She couldn't wait for the next day to start, another fresh beginning and another fresh start. Some might have called her naïve, but she was just hopeful. She could be painfully realistic when she needed to be, but she liked to be optimistic a lot better. Who wanted to spout realistic crap when they had so much to hope for? She only wished her neighbor didn't ruin it.
Inuyasha was still cursing her as he tinkered with his engine. He hated this car. The state appointed car was a heap of junk, and he would tell them so he could trade it in for an equally unstable piece of shit.
He was supposed to be sleeping right now, catching up on the sleep he had lost last night when they called him. His irregular hours were sometimes an inconvenience, but he had his civil duty to carry out. So who cared if groceries were left in the middle of the store when he got beeped?
She certainly didn't care. That bitch of a neighbor had primly told him off, then sped away in her little toy car. The ironic thing was that he was aroused by her anger. He had cursed himself mentally, but that didn't tell his body anything. He personally liked his old neighbor, one that he didn't see often and was quiet. He was wrinkly, old, and gave away cookies to the neighborhood children. This one was a firecracker, and he could tell that just by looking at her. Firecracker had nice legs, he mused to himself momentarily, and then swore as his skin was pinched in between two devices.
He went inside to rest a bit, leaving the hood of his car open. There were no criminals in this neighborhood, and everyone here knew he was a cop. There was no way that anyone would even attempt at picking his or her nose while he was around. Maybe his cockiness would get him into trouble one day. He really didn't give a damn.
He propped his feet onto the little foot stool he had, and turned on the TV with a refreshing Coca-Cola in his hand. He drank, tipping the can so that he could guzzle it down as if it was alcohol. He turned the channels of the TV until an action movie he had seen numerous times before came on. Sighing as he finished his coke, he glared out the door. He did not want to return to fixing that damn car. He should just have a tow truck come and let the state handle it. Still, if it could be fixed with his hands, he couldn't let his male pride receive any hurt knowing he could have fixed it with his own two hands.
He went out, and glared at the car with veiled contempt. He would drive his own car around, but it had a high risk of getting totaled. It was the reason why he was given dumps as cars. He had totaled many cars, and he had not even started to count. They had taken his license away, but then the bad guys always got away. They were forced, by the media, to conform to Inuyasha's wishes.
He finished tinkering with the car, and closed the hood of the car with a finality that had him grinning. If it tried to break down on him again tomorrow, he would get into an accident on purpose.
He went inside again, eating lunch. When he was washing his dishes, he involuntarily glanced out the kitchen window when he saw movement in the corner of his eye. It was Ms. Firecracker's car, pulling up into the driveway.
He noticed vaguely he still wasn't wearing a shirt, so he pulled one on quickly as he went out the door. He looked at his hands to see that they were clean. They had to be, if he had to do dishes. Still, there were probably streaks on his face.
When she noticed him, he noticed her scramble to get her things together, probably to bolt as fast as she possibly could.
"Hi," he said loudly, making sure that she would notice him. She froze, turned slowly.
"Hi," she said, her tone frigid and totally without emotion. He found himself fighting a grin, and, to his astonishment, attraction.
"I'm sorry I yelled at you this morning," he blurted. She seemed to unfreeze, tension slowly leaving her muscles, although there was still enough of it left to have her practically vibrating. She waved it off.
"It's fine. I was in a bad mood, too," Kagome said. Inuyasha couldn't help but try to rouse her anger again.
"Aren't you the one that said I shouldn't take out my bad mood on others?" he asked. She immediately became tense again, her glare pinning him.
"Yes, I did, and I'm sorry I did it. I'm sorry you did it, too," she snapped.
"Had a bad day?" he drawled. The wind suddenly shifted, and it brought her scent to him. He breathed deep, finding out things about her that she herself might not know.
Why, the little darling was just as aroused as he was.
Fighting to hide his grin, he moved next to her to lean against her car. Their new, closer proximity, had her breath hitching, something he noticed. He had noticed that wouldn't stop staring at his chest this morning, but that was just hormones. This, he thought while he brought a hand to her hair, was attraction.
She pulled her head away, frowning and his hand fell back to his side. He acted as if it hadn't happened.
"What's with the box?" he asked, nodding towards the passenger seat. He saw a flash of tenderness enter her gaze as her attention shifted. It allowed him to study her while she explained that the box was full of arts and crafts items for her students—to which he wisely deduced that she was a teacher—and that she had bought more things so that they could do something with it tomorrow.
When she realized whom she was speaking with, she blinked, and then narrowed her gaze on him. He nearly laughed at her abrupt change.
"So, Mr. Inuyasha—"
"It's just Inuyasha, Firecracker," he drawled.
"Your last name is Firecracker?" she asked, dubious. He chuckled and shook his head.
"Nope. Just calling you a firecracker."
"Oh." She looked sheepish.
Inuyasha wondered if he should make a move. She was attractive. She wasn't the most beautiful woman he had ever seen, but she far from the worst. She had a healthy look to her, as if she didn't starve herself like other women did. Her bones weren't sticking out, but they were padded with a layer of fat that would have most women moaning and groaning. Her legs were long—goodness, were they long!—and she had long hair that he knew he would kill to sink his hands into.
Her grunt of effort brought him out of his lustful thoughts. She was trying to drag the box across the seat so she could lift it from the driver's side. Sighing, he gently pushed her aside, easily picking up the box.
"Where do you need it?" he asked.
"I could have handled it myself," Kagome said with a slight smile.
"Where?" He asked again. Kagome sighed, and walked up her front steps. She opened the door, going inside and holding it open for him so he could walk in with it. He set it on a small table, and stood there while she opened the box.
She removed some items, and Inuyasha watched her look some of them over. He decided then and there that he would not pursue an affair with her. An affair with your neighbor? Now that was just iffy. Besides, to him it would be a fling, but to live next to her for more than the relationship lasted would be… awkward.
Kagome looked at him curiously when she saw that he had not moved. What was the man waiting for? A physical boot to the ass so he would leave?
"Do you need anything?" Kagome asked, and an eyebrow rose to indicate her bafflement. Inuyasha grinned as he looked at her.
"Cup of coffee?" He asked with such hopefulness that she nearly agreed. She shook her head.
"I'm afraid I don't have coffee at my place. I just moved in yesterday, and I forgot to buy coffee."
"Absolutely blasphemous," he murmured. "No coffee? However do you live?"
"With the cold punch of caffeine. From a Coke, or whatever else is lying around," Kagome said with a shrug. She gave him an impatient look. "Look… If you're looking for a not-so-polite suggestion that you leave my house, then you're about to get it real soon," she said. Inuyasha laughed, and moved towards the door.
Oh yeah, he thought. She had the hots for him. It made his pride and ego swell, but he reminded himself that he wasn't looking for a relationship with her.
"I'll be seeing you around, Firecracker."
"The name is Kagome! Ka-go-me!" He heard her shout after him as he closed the door. Shoving his hands into his pockets and humming, he crossed he driveways to get to his own house. This was going to be interesting.
wk: I don't know if you'll like this version better or if I just wasted my time, but it's all good. If a majority of the people don't like it, then I'll just have to start again from scratch. Although, I do already have chapter two written...
Anyways, tell me your OPINIONS, because I sorely need them.
