Dedication: To my wifey Kinky-Hoe, because it's your birthday and if you were in Canada with me, you could legally drink ;) Happy birthday darling! I hope you like it.
Rated: T - MPAA Rating PG-13 - language
Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha. I do not profit from this story.
As Fast As You Can
"Let's have a toast for the douche bags. Let's have a toast for the assholes. Let's have a toast for the scumbags, every one of them that I know. Let's have a toast for the jerk-offs that never take work off. Baby I got a plan: runaway as fast as you can."
-Runaway by Kanye West
It was just like any other day. It should have been just like any other day.
She woke up at one in the afternoon after a solid nine hours sleep, peering unhappily at the light that was shining through the curtains.
"No... Not yet," she grumbled, cringing at how groggy her voice sounded. Pulling the green duvet above her head, she sighed contently in the warmth and darkness that surrounded her.
And then her alarm went off.
Kagome sighed, groaning angrily as she threw off her covers and glared at the insistent buzzing machine that was disturbing her sleep. It glared right back at her.
Flipping the switch and turning it off, Kagome took a deep breath before pushing herself up and out towards the bathroom. One shower later, her hair was wrapped in a towel and she was down in the kitchen making brunch. At one p.m., breakfast wasn't really an option. After eating, drying her hair and getting dressed, Kagome left a note for her roommate Sango that she'd pick up milk and then left the apartment.
Working nights wasn't the most ideal, but money was decent and the people were fun. The only problem was that paying off student loans meant she needed more money than just a night job, so babysitting was a necessity.
"Kagome!" a child screamed as she finished walking the two blocks to a tiny townhouse in the middle of a neighbourhood.
Smiling, Kagome watched a tiny redhead struggle to shut the door before giving up completely and running to her. "Hey Shippo!" she greeted, bending down and opening her arms wide for the eight year-old. "How are you doing?"
"I'm good," Shippo replied, giving her a toothy grin and placing his small arms around her neck. "Are we going to the park today? Are we?"
Laughing, Kagome nodded and waved at the red-headed woman that was Shippo's mom. "Hi Emura," she said, taking in the woman's work clothes and half-completed makeup. "Are you late for work?"
Emura Watanabe rolled her eyes. "Am I ever early?" she replied. "You two have fun and Kagome you have the key, right?"
"I do. Thanks Emura, good luck at work!" Turning to the small boy in her arms, she whispered in his ear and grinned when Shippo ran back into his mother's arms to hug her goodbye for the day. Hugging finished, Kagome grabbed the redhead's hand and tugged him along the sidewalk. "So you want to go to the park, do you?"
"Yes!" Shippo cheered, looking at her with big green eyes. "Will you push me on the swing?"
Pretending to think about it for a moment, Kagome couldn't help but giggle at the little boy's expression. "Of course I will. Hey, maybe you'll get to see that Koume girl, huh?"
"NO! Kagome stop saying that!"
"What, that you'll see her or that she's your new girlfriend?"
"She's not!" the eight year-old wailed, closing his eyes and blushing like mad.
It was cute, Kagome thought as she watched the little boy. He was so young to even get what being a girlfriend or boyfriend meant, but it was just too cute to watch him get all flustered. At eight, having a girlfriend meant being able to talk to a girl without catching cooties.
It was somewhat adorable.
The park was only a three minute walk away from Shippo's house, closer to the middle of the suburban neighbourhood. It was large with two different kinds of jungle-gyms and four swing sets. There was a sandbox in one corner, little ducks on springs that rocked back and forth in another and to the farthest side, nine massive tractor wheels of all different shapes and treads sunk into the ground.
Why, Kagome had absolutely no idea. Still the kids seemed to think that climbing on massive rubber wheels three times their size was amusing, so she let it go.
It was a typical Monday afternoon and the large, rather decorative park was filled with children. Shippo bounced up and down when he saw the little girl Koume running around the swing set, and he only had to give her his best grin before she nodded and let him run off.
Her usual bench seat was free, unoccupied since it was wooden and old and most of the parents liked the splinter-free, metal ones better. Reaching into her purse, Kagome pulled out her small sketchpad and pencil and then just waited.
Life was something that hit Kagome hard in her final year of high school. It hadn't been until then that she decided she still didn't know what to do with her life. Her mother told her that realistically, Kagome hadn't decided anything at all. Kagome argued back that deciding that she still had yet to decide was still deciding.
It was decided that they would drop the subject.
Kagome went to school for a four-year degree, hoping that eventually she'd be able to become a physiotherapist. The problem was the level of work you had to do to achieve it. After realizing she couldn't live on a barely existent salary will she got all the experience necessary, Kagome continued on with her night job as a bartender. That's also when her best friend introduced her to Emura Watanabe, a stressed out wife and mother who didn't know what to do with her adorable child during the summer when school was out. Shippo, as it turned out, hated daycare. Emura worked later hours as well, doing international work where timing conflicted with their current location's time zone. That was why Kagome picked up Shippo Monday to Friday at two-thirty, and kept him amused until six o'clock when his father was home.
Every day, Shippo wanted to go to the park. The park was the greatest thing in the world in his eight year-old eyes. Kagome could never deny him going, unless it was pouring rain and they decided to watch Disney movies all day instead.
Just like every day, while the adorable redhead ran along and played with his friends, Kagome would find something and sketch it, just for the sake of doing something. Art wasn't something she was amazing at – not that she thought anyways – but sketching relaxed her and helped her to focus on the smaller details. She just had to find some inspiration.
"Kagome!"
And that's when she saw him.
It shouldn't have been as hot as it was. His silver hair was long and tied back roughly at the nape, triangle-shaped ears fixed on some destination ahead. His body was sleek and muscled – if the way his sweat-drenched shirt clung to his physique was any indication – with broad shoulders and long legs.
"Kagome?"
He was wearing some sort of runner attire, with a tight red sleeveless shirt and somewhat baggy grey shorts. He was jogging down the sidewalk that ran along the perimeters of the park. He was straight ahead of her, running perpendicular to her line of sight and running at a pace that would've winded her after a few short minutes.
"Kagome!"
Oh god, he was turning towards her. Since the park was square in design, the sidewalk ran on all four sides. He had just turned, running with his gaze fixed somewhere behind her and Kagome couldn't help but think that if she could try and memorize him as he came closer, she could have a real fun time sketching him.
"KAGOME!"
Jumping about a mile high, Kagome gasped and put a hand on her chest. She looked towards where the yelling came from, the red-headed child squinting at her like he was studying something.
"What are you looking at?" Shippo asked, putting a small hand on her arm.
"Me?" Kagome asked, somewhat breathless and she cursed herself for being so dumb. What the hell was she thinking? Inevitably, her eyes strayed once more to the man jogging on the sidewalk. He was getting closer and since her bench sat pretty close to the edge, Kagome had a shot of catching the colour of his eyes.
"Kagome, what are you looking at?" Shippo whined. Finally, his cries of protest silenced as the young boy finally saw where her gaze was landed. "Oh."
Kagome realized, just a moment before he was close enough to see his eye colour, that she was being a terrible babysitter. "I'm sorry Shippo," she said, dragging her eyes away from the hottest man alive and turning her attention to the eight year-old instead. "What did you want? Is something wrong?"
Shippo was staring at the jogger for a moment before looking back at her, eyes narrowed. "No, I was just talking to Koume about popsicles and she said that she loved popsicles too. Can we have them later, please?"
Smiling a little, Kagome nodded. "With or without Koume?"
Shippo scrunched up his face. "Without. Did you know that girls have cooties?"
Kagome laughed, shaking her head and reaching out to hug Shippo. "Then why do you want to get a popsicle with me? Doesn't that mean I have cooties too?"
"No! You're too nice for cooties," Shippo replied, grinning at her with a toothy smile before wrapping his arms around her neck. "Can we? Can we? Please?"
Nodding, Kagome let go of the boy and waved him off. "Now go find your friends and have fun, okay? I think it's going to rain later so you'll want to play as much as you can."
Whooping, Shippo jumped a little before running back to the playground, meeting up with his friends who were building a sort of sand castle in the small box.
Unable to resist, Kagome turned her head to see if the hot runner guy was still in sight. When he was nowhere to be seen, she just sighed.
On Tuesday, Shippo was quieter than usual.
"Hey, are you feeling alright buddy?" Kagome asked, looking worriedly down at the green-eyed boy. Usually he was talking her ear off.
Shippo looked up at her for a moment, grim determination on his face – or as grim as it could get for an eight year-old. "Kagome, do you love me?"
It was an odd question coming from the young boy but Kagome nodded anyways, reaching down to grab the small hand. "Of course Shippo, you know I love you."
"One day, I'm going to marry you."
Laughing and ruffling his hair, Kagome sighed. "If only guys could be like you Shippo, then the world would be a better place."
The red-haired boy seemed pleased at this, and the rest of the walk to the park was full of his usual bounce and chatter. Pretty soon, Kagome forgot all about Shippo's question and instead enjoyed the outdoors. It was hot that day, the sun beating down ruthlessly so Kagome made sure to cream suntan lotion all over his face and arms before letting him run onto the playground. Koume, his usual friend, was there and she waved over at him excitedly.
Unable to stop the smile forming on her face, Kagome merely got out her sketch pad and relaxed on the old wooden bench. If she was lucky, she could get an attempted golden glow going. Her pale skin usually never changed – and if it did, it was lobster red at best – so she didn't hold much hope.
She was just about to close her eyes and contemplate a nap when a flash of silver caught her eye. She squinted, staring at the other end of the park and trying to squash the butterflies raging in her stomach at the sight of...well him. It was the silver-haired, doggie-eared man, running on the sidewalk. She couldn't imagine how he could even breathe in this heat but Kagome certainly didn't mind the eye candy. The closer he got, the clearer she could see the sweat on his face, how his bangs were draped across his forehead. His shorts and sleeveless top were both dark colours, undoubtedly drenched with sweat and water. He held a water bottle in each hand and a repetitive breathing motion showing on his face.
Wow, he was hot.
And Kagome didn't mean hot as in the temperature. Even drenched with sweat and probably smelly the guy was like a god.
Maybe today she could see the colour of his eyes.
Sketchpad ready, Kagome looked at a spot on the grass, using her peripherals to wait until he was close enough before she'd – conveniently – catch his eye.
"What the hell?"
That wasn't part of the plan.
Kagome's head snapped up, just in time to see Shippo throwing rocks at said running god.
"Shippo, what are you doing?" Kagome demanded, putting her sketchpad down and racing to the sidewalk were the boy was sitting. "Let go of those rocks!"
"Is this your kid?" the running god asked – and oh, his voice was...well, it was what dreams were made of. "Hello, wench, you dumb or something?"
It was a terrible waste that such a fine sound said things so terribly. "Excuse me?" Kagome asked, frown instantly marring her features. "I don't appreciate being called names. Shippo, I want you to apologize to the man."
Shippo glared defiantly for a moment, staring down the running god as if in a battle of wills. He glanced at Kagome out of the corner of his eye and then sighed. "I'm sorry," he said sadly, head hanging a bit.
"You can't throw rocks at people," Kagome explained, trying not to sound nagging and more motherly. "You could hurt someone."
"Oh cut the crap."
Kagome looked up, startled for a moment when she realized the runner was still there. Wow, up close he was even hotter, and wetter and his eyes. Gold, like the colour of the falling sun. There were amber flecks dancing inside, hidden momentarily as the guy squinted his eyes at her. "What?" she asked. She couldn't even remember what he said, truthfully.
"The kid's not going to learn shit that way," the man explained, glaring at the eight year-old with annoyance. "You know how kids learn? By seeing for themselves what real consequences are. Next time you start to throw rocks at me kid, I'll start throwing them back."
Kagome was shocked, horrified and pissed as hell. "What the fudge are you saying? Get out of here, jerk-face."
The man snorted. "Ooh, I'm so scared."
Taking a step forward and placing Shippo behind her, Kagome marched right up to him, ready to throw fists if necessary. She wasn't stupid but Shippo was just a child and this sorry excuse for an adult was way out of line. "I'll show you what scared is you immature, self-righteous, ignorant gnat. If you were smart–"
"Yeah, whatever wench," the man sneered, taking off at a sprint down the sidewalk.
At this point, Kagome was literally seething. Her whole body was vibrating with the urge to protect her dignity and to keep the little boy safe. If she ever saw that ass-clown again, so help her god–
"Kagome?" a small voice asked.
Turning around and instantly going to her knees, Kagome scooped up Shippo in a hug. "Hey, are you okay?"
Shippo was sniffling but he nodded against her chest. "I'm sorry Kagome! I didn't mean to!"
She doubted that but an eight year-old didn't exactly get the finer points of accountability. She nodded instead, rubbing his back for a second before gently pulling away. "You ignore that dummy, okay? He was being mean. But you can't throw things at people, especially rocks."
Shippo nodded, rubbing his nose with the back of his hand before grinning. "Can we go get ice cream later?"
Laughing, Kagome rolled her eyes. "Only if you're good for the rest of the day."
"I will, promise!" Shippo yelled, already pulling away and running back to the playground.
She shook her head, watching for a moment before sitting back down at the bench. She hoped that the ignorant prick never showed his face again because Kagome? She was ready to kick his ass.
Heavy rainclouds ruined what had promised to be a lovely Wednesday, so instead Kagome and Shippo stayed inside and watched Disney movies. Shippo's fake foam swords were soon brought down, and they re-enacted Peter Pan without difficulty, pretending to be pirates and drinking juice like ail. They had tickle fights, an intense game of hide-and-seek and as promised, Kagome read "Are You My Mommy?" to the little boy before his dad was scheduled to come home.
Mr. Watanabe was a good man, soft spoken and easily pleased. When he entered the house, Shippo was fast asleep on the couch with the final moments of Robin Hood playing quietly on the TV.
"You tuckered him out, huh?" the older gentleman asked, smiling down at Kagome before reaching out to brush the bangs off his son's forehead.
"I think it was the other way around," Kagome replied, yawning and stretching. "I just have a better tolerance for staying awake."
Mr. Watanabe nodded. "Did you want to stay for dinner? I know Emura was planning on bringing pizza home for tonight."
Gently refusing his offer, Kagome thanked him and told him that she had to get home. It was a mess from the little time she spent at it and there was bound to be some sort of edible thing in her cupboards. Going grocery shopping wouldn't be a bad idea either.
Kissing Shippo on the forehead, Kagome said her goodbyes to Mr. Watanabe and left for her apartment.
The sun was back out and shining on Thursday, so Kagome walked an excited and bouncy Shippo that morning to the park. It seemed so very perfect, the way the sky was a stunning blue and grass was dancing with the light wind. Shippo was going on about something that Kagome couldn't quite understand, only because parts of his words were made up. Shippo was pretty ahead for a child speech-wise, but when he got excited the words all kind of rolled into one.
"And there was this spaceship and..."
Kagome smiled, holding his tiny hand even tighter.
There weren't many kids on the playground, despite the fact it was so nice out. Instead of Shippo running off with his buddies, Kagome sat down in the sand and played with him. They built castles and cities made of rocks and sand, with Shippo pretending to be a giant monster and crushing it all at the end.
"Shippo, you're not supposed to do that!" Kagome chided lightly, unable to help but laugh at the face the young boy was trying to make to look scary.
"But I'm a monster," Shippo yelled, roaring later for effect.
Kagome raised a brow, inching closer. "Oh yeah?"
"YEAH!" Shippo yelled, stomping up and down and destroying yet another building. That one was supposed to be a candy store.
"Then how about this!" Kagome reached out and tickled Shippo's sides, knowing the red-haired boy couldn't stand it.
Giggles and fits of laughter burst out, making Kagome smile and join him. Her fingers danced lightly over his blue t-shirt, poking at his sides until Shippo called for a time out. Letting him go, Kagome sat back in the sand and relaxed.
Until a slap hit her shoulder. "You're it!"
Cackling evilly, Shippo took off at a run around the park, circling around some tree and peering at her cautiously.
Kagome grinned and stood up, brushing off the sand that covered her clothes and broke out into a run. "Oh I'm going to get your for that!" she shouted, chasing him around the tree and going slower to prolong the game.
Shippo giggled and ran, making faces at her every so often when he felt bold enough. He climbed on the jungle gym. "You can't catch me!" he called in singsong, and Kagome huffed and chased up him the contraption.
Just seconds before he was in her reach, Shippo pounced away and shot down the slide.
Kagome sighed and shook her head. She barely even fit on the damn thing. Sitting down, she pushed and slid, laughing when she slowly but surely made it down. Shippo was giggling on the grass below, holding his stomach as he pointed.
"You looked like a clown!"
Kagome rolled her eyes. Of all the things to be called. Reaching down, she poked Shippo in the shoulder and ran away back towards the sand pit. "You can't CATCH ME!"
Looking stunned, the young boy fumbled up and started to chase. "I'll get you Kagome!"
It was her turn to cackle evilly and as she ran, she caught a glimpse of silver hair. She turned slowly, blinking when the sight of the man from the other day – the jerk from the other day – was just standing at the edge of the grass and sidewalk, watching intently.
She was about to yell at him when Shippo crashed into her legs. "Tag, you're it!"
Kagome laughed at Shippo and lunged for him, letting him just barely make it out so he could get a head start. When she looked back at the spot where the silver-haired man had been, he was already long gone.
Fridays were the best days, according to Shippo.
The eight year-old was rather pleased with himself, clutching a dandelion in his hand to give to Koume. Kagome thought it was cute, even if he was just handing out a weed.
"Can we get ice cream later?" Shippo asked rather excitedly, looking up at her with big green eyes. "I really like ice cream."
"Sure," Kagome replied, nudging him slightly. "But you have to keep it a secret because your dad won't be happy if you spoil your dinner. You'll eat all of it, right?"
The kid nodded enthusiastically and Kagome let go of his hand the moment they entered the grassy field. She watched as the red-haired boy took off, heading towards the slide where the small girl named Koume was waving excitedly.
Oh to be a kid again, Kagome thought to herself, smiling as she went to sit down at her usual seat.
Pulling out her sketchpad, she started to doodle, not paying much heed to anything around her. Every couple of minutes she'd look up to make sure Shippo was still there, but otherwise she continued to let her hand dance across the white page.
It wasn't until she heard the sound of someone approaching that she stopped.
And then there he was.
"Uh, hi?" Kagome said, sounding more like a question because the last time she saw the silver-haired guy he was rather rude. And an ass. Quickly checking to make sure Shippo wasn't near him or the sidewalk, she grew confused as to why the man was here.
The guy was still staring, and now the situation was going from awkward to creepy. His golden eyes held hers, seemingly forever until he looked down at the grass. "Yeah, hi."
Well, so far so good.
"Can I help you?" Kagome pushed, letting irritation filter through her voice. Last time hadn't ended on a good note and if he was here to bother her so help her she would scream. If he went near Shippo she'd punch him.
It would hurt but she would do it.
The guy looked up, startled like he just suddenly remembered where he was. Well, wasn't he an oddball? "No, I mean – yes. You can help me. Well, I'm Inuyasha."
Kagome blinked. "Okay. How can I help you...Inuyasha?"
It was getting even stranger. She edged away slightly.
Inuyasha's face scrunched up a bit. "Do you want to tell me your name?"
That was unexpected. No, Kagome thought instantly. Why would she give a guy like that her name? Okay, so maybe the first time she saw him, he was ultra hot. Actually he was still hot. He was still all sweaty because clearly before he had been running. Or was still running... It doesn't matter because she shouldn't give her name to a man that was an angry douchebag.
"Kagome."
That didn't work out like she wanted it to.
Inuyasha nodded, a small smirk lighting up his face. "It's nice to meet you Kagome."
Looking around the park, she saw Shippo still happily enjoying himself with Koume. There wasn't any danger and clearly he hadn't moved from the jungle gym they were still playing on. Why was this guy here? "I'd like to say the same thing but I'm rather confused," Kagome answered truthfully, frowning. "Last time I wanted to punch you in the face."
Very suddenly Inuyasha burst out laughing, his golden eyes turning towards the sky before he shook his head. "I bet you did."
There was more silence.
"I really don't get it," Kagome stated again, looking even more confused. "Shippo didn't do anything this time so if you're pissed off at something..." He didn't look angry. He actually looked somewhat embarrassed. Although who was she to say? She didn't even know the guy.
"Oh," Inuyasha whispered, frowning. "No I'm, uh, actually coming to...you know..."
Kagome blinked. "No I don't know. I really don't know."
Inuyasha rubbed the back of his neck, cringing a bit. "I wanted to...apologize for Tuesday. I wanted to do it Wednesday but you weren't here and then on Thursday you looked a bit busy. So..."
Oh. He was coming to apologize? "Well, it's over so as long as you don't threaten Shippo again your face should be safe from my fist." Oh dear god, why did she just say that? She probably couldn't have even hit him if she tried. Maybe if she was fuelled by rage and adrenaline she'd have a chance. Confused and off guard? She'd get zip.
"That's good to know," Inuyasha replied, smirking again. "You draw?"
Kagome nodded, relaxing her hands from where they were clenched on the sketchpad and looking down. Staring right back at her was a face with two big orbs and shaggy bangs. She internally flinched, because it wasn't hard for her to see who she was trying to draw. "I only draw a bit to distract myself. It's kind of a hobby."
Slowly, watching Kagome as he did so, Inuyasha sat down on the other end of the bench. There was plenty of room between them but she couldn't help but feel dizzy. Just because she was confused as hell didn't mean he was any less hot. "You're pretty good. I couldn't ever draw for shit in art class," Inuyasha told her, holding out his hand.
Frowning, Kagome raised her brow.
"The pencil," Inuyasha explained, reaching for it instead and then grabbing her sketchpad. He flipped it to a new page and started to draw.
Kagome watched in horrid fascination, because a random stranger (who before this she threatened) was sitting beside her and now drawing in her book. It was beyond weird. Was this weird? Kagome thought it was weird.
"See?" Inuyasha said, smirking dangerously and holding up the sketchpad. "I can draw a house."
It wasn't more than three squares, a rectangle and a triangle – and Shippo had done far more creative things than that – but Kagome couldn't help smiling a bit. "You must be proud."
The silver-haired man scowled and returned the pad. "Shut up, I gave up after elementary school. Art was never going to be my thing."
"Really? I saw potential."
Giving her a funny look, Inuyasha bit his lower lip, thinking. "You know, for a girl that called me a gnat the other day, you're pretty damn witty."
"I was in front of a kid!" Kagome explained, unsure as to why she was so defensive in front of him. "You don't swear in front of kids."
"That explains the fudge then, huh?"
Kagome sighed. "Shippo's a great child but he's very impressionable. The last thing I want is to bring him home to his parents' house and have him curse at them. I think his mom would hunt me down."
The silver-haired man tilted his head, staring at her quite intensely. "Before I say any more, I should probably ask how old you are."
Kagome blinked – once, twice – and then opened her mouth. "Why so you can hit on me?" Oh dear GOD, did she just say that?
Inuyasha seemed just as thrown, mimicking her actions before shaking his head. "Goddamn women. You're all fucking confusing, did you know that?"
Despite his foul language, she kind of felt bad. He most definitely wasn't hitting on her, he was just being friendly and she was way too over her head. "I didn't mean it... Okay, I did but sometimes I just lack a brain-to-mouth filter, you know?" When he gave her a strange look, she sighed, "Probably not then. I'm twenty-three."
"And you still babysit?"
It came off rather rude. Bristling, Kagome was about to snap about the fact that yes she did – what was so fudging wrong with that? – and no it wasn't any of his gosh darn business. That mother fluffer. "I'll tell you w–"
"Wait!" Inuyasha exclaimed, holding his hands up in the air defensively with big golden eyes. "Stop being so goddamn defensive, I was just asking. Don't go biting my head off wench."
Picking up her sketchpad, Kagome belted him on the head with it before standing. "Have a good day you bothersome jerk."
"WHAT IS WITH WOMEN?" the man yelled, rolling his eyes to the sky. "Seriously, am I the only one that doesn't get it?"
Kagome had already been walking away towards Shippo but she felt the need to respond to him anyways. "I'd bet on it!" she screamed, stomping her foot on the grass as she did a dancing side-step in her rage.
What was with that guy anyways?
"Kagome, if you wanted to avoid me, there are easier ways of doing it," Sango remarked dryly, trying and failing to hold back her smile.
Kagome groaned, crawling back from under the table with the back of her earring in her hand. "I dropped something, give me a break."
Sango, her roommate and best friend, took a step back, full-out grinning. "You totally met a guy, didn't you?"
It was outrageous really, what her life was like. Kagome couldn't understand how coming out from under a table after finding her lost butterfly backing was any indication of her love life. Her best friend obviously knew her too well.
"There is no guy," Kagome sighed, sitting back in her chair and returning to her laptop. She had been a fiddling and shaking mess for the past half-hour, after returning Shippo to his house when his dad returned. It had been during the walk to her own home that she realized what day it was.
How could she have forgotten?
Ever since getting out of school with her BSc, she'd been dying to continue on to achieve her master's in physiotherapy. The problem was that experience was a major bonus and opportunities were hard to come by. There was one firm in the area in which she lived, a private business that served members from people all over. She'd kill to get some experience there – even if she had to do it during school.
But today was the last day to submit her resume, and now she was running around trying to make sure it was perfect. Of course, the moment she actually needed her resume, it could use quite a bit of cleaning up.
"I'm ruined!" Kagome exclaimed, burying her face in her hands. She took in several deep breaths, turning around slowly to see the black-haired woman with magenta eyes still staring at her. "You're a manager, aren't you?"
Sango cringed. "At a beauty salon? It's not exactly the same Kagome."
Jumping out of the chair, Kagome raced towards her friend, hands held out as if an offering. "Please Sango, please please please please please?"
The woman ran her hands through her straight hair, glaring at Kagome half-heartedly. "Only on one condition, alright?"
"Anything," Kagome agreed, nodding enthusiastically. Sango was a genius at making things sound professional and well-done. It certainly couldn't hurt.
Smiling, Sango headed towards the table and sat down in the chair Kagome was previously occupying. "You tell me the name of this guy you're seeing."
"There's no–"
"Kagome," Sango interrupted sternly, giving a mock glare. "I'm your best friend. I know you better than you do. Trust me, there's a guy."
"But–"
Sango shook her head. "No buts."
Admitting defeat, Kagome sunk back into another chair and groaned. "He's just some asshat I met earlier today – and kind of last week. I mean, he's a jerk! He yelled at Shippo and did this weird growling-thing with me. Who does that?"
Sango raised a perfectly sculpted brow. "What's his name?"
Desperately wishing she could just lie and say she didn't know it, Kagome knew far better than that. Sango was practically clairvoyant, and she'd definitely see right through her. "Inuyasha," she grumbled.
"Is he hot?"
This was just getting worse. Sinking even lower in her seat, Kagome nodded.
"How hot?"
Kagome practically whined.
"Fine," Sango sighed. "On a scale of one to ten."
It took a moment – a very long moment – before she finally answered. "Like, a fifty."
Shaking her head and grinning wildly, Sango started to read her best friend's resume.
On Monday morning, Kagome picked up Shippo. The little redhead was like a big ball of energy, running around her feet in circles and grinning wide and toothy. "Kagome guess what?"
"What?" she asked, smiling despite the fact all she wanted to do was sleep. Last night she'd been tossing and turning from the moment she got back at three a.m. She couldn't help but worry about her application.
"Koume said that if I brought her a flower today, she'd give me her candy." Shippo clapped, as if the world was singing a merry little song. "Can I pick a flower Kagome, please?"
Laughing, Kagome promised him they'd find a flower to give Koume. So what if she snuck it from some guy's front garden? The little redhead holding her hand couldn't have smiled any wider and that was totally worth it.
When she got to the park, the first thing she did was look for Inuyasha – the mysterious, jerk-off of a runner. He wasn't there.
An hour later, he still wasn't there.
It's not like you actually wanted to see him, Kagome reminded herself. She promptly ignored the little voice in her head that said, yeah you did, moron.
Shippo was quiet again on Tuesday, mostly because it was somewhat cold for the summer and the redhead was most likely coming down with something. Kagome told him to stay inside and they could play some awesome games. Shippo scrunched up his nose and told her the park was his favourite place in the whole wide world.
Kagome would rather eat dirt than say no to him.
"We're not staying too long, okay?" she warned, feeling his little hand already slip away from hers as he was just bouncing to run to the playground. Koume wasn't there, but another boy he often played with was and it looked like he got a brand new toy. "When we get back we can watch whatever movie you want."
Smiling at her, Shippo nodded enthusiastically. "Can we watch the dragon movie?"
"Definitely the dragon movie," she agreed, sighing when he took off like a bullet the moment he was free.
"I really don't know how you can deal with children."
The voice was familiar, deep and rich, and Kagome jumped about a mile high. "Holy cow!" she yelped, spinning around and clutching her hand at her heart. "Don't sneak up on me like that."
Inuyasha smirked at her, leaning against the pole of the fence looking as sweaty and glorious as ever.
Kagome cursed him in her head.
"It's not my fault you're a wimp."
"If this is to make up for what you said last time, you're doing lousy already," Kagome pointed out, turning on her heel and heading towards her favourite bench. Her brown eyes searched the playground for Shippo, seeing him bound up the slide before slipping and giggling the whole way down. She couldn't help the small smile on her lips, even with the stranger watching her.
"You actually like kids," Inuyasha said, somewhat bizarrely. "Huh."
Kagome frowned, looking up at him. "Really, that's what you have to say? Of course I love kids and Shippo is dear to me. Where do you get off trying to make what I love to do sound like utter ridiculousness?"
A beat of silence and then Inuyasha was sitting down on the bench, scrunching up his nose. Funny, Shippo had done that earlier. "So I take it you want kids when you're older?"
Kagome felt that was a bit too personal for her liking. "Maybe, I'm kind of young to decide that now."
Inuyasha nodded, his silver hair plastered against his forehead. A bead of sweat dripped down from his bangs and landed on his shorts. Kagome thought it was really creepy of her to notice that. "I take it you don't actually babysit for a career."
"Give the man a prize," Kagome muttered, looking back over at the playground. "No, I just got out of university, trying to get into my master's program. I'm just taking the extra money to pay off student loans."
"Those can be a bitch," the silver-haired man agreed.
Kagome shrugged. What did she say to that?
"So...what are you going to school for?"
Feeling a bit like this was twenty questions, Kagome raised a quizzical brow at him. "You know, considering that this could be harassment or stalking, you really don't give up."
Inuyasha scowled, crossing his arms over his chest. "It's not my fault you're weird."
Well, that made everything better. "You're an ass-clown," she said simply, without heat. This man would obviously never learn.
The man sighed, long and hard and suddenly spun around to face her. "Look," he said sternly, golden eyes intense on hers. "I caught you two weeks ago staring at me and I thought that it was pretty odd because you had a kid you took to the park. I didn't know which kid, but there were tons around and tons of mothers so I figured one of them had to be yours."
Slightly horrified at the thought, Kagome didn't even blink at his outburst. She merely continued to listen.
"And then, out of the blue, this goddamn child, with a mop of red hair and dumb freckles, starts throwing rocks at me," Inuyasha blabbed on, his arms starting to wave a bit. "Can you believe it? Rocks. And while he was setting up his attack I was looking at this woman who I caught staring the other day."
The admission knocked Kagome off-kilter, making her frown and turn to double-check on Shippo. He was off to the side, his head tilted as his big green eyes stared at her curiously.
Oh no, he was heading their way.
"So I'm getting ambushed by a two year-old–"
"Eight."
"An eight year-old and then the girl starts running over. It turns out the kid is hers." Inuyasha seems almost breathless by this point and more than a little angry. "And what messed up genes does the kid have that he got everything from his undoubtedly ugly father when his mom was hot?"
"You thought Shippo was my kid?" Kagome exclaimed, looking away from Shippo at the admission. "Are you blind?"
"I was getting rocks pelted at me!" Inuyasha defended, crossing his arms. "It's not like I continued to think that, I figured it out pretty damn quick, thank you very much. But then I realized that this woman I thought before I couldn't touch, ended up being touchable and–"
Kagome slapped a hand on his mouth, silencing him then and there. "I hope you don't finish that sentence."
For what it was worth, the silver-haired man looked a little flustered. "Sorry," he mumbled around her mouth, cringing when she actually pulled it away. "My best friend is a pervert."
"I'll bet," Kagome mumbled.
"What I'm trying to say," Inuyasha continued, touching her shoulder lightly, "is that I'm shit at this fucking crap and I wanted–"
"Kagome! Kagome! Kagome! Kagome!" Shippo yelled, running as fast as his little legs carried him. He hit her legs, wrapping his arms around her and glaring at Inuyasha. "Can we go home please, Kagome? I want to watch the movie with the balloons."
"What about the dragon movie?" Kagome asked, instantly running her hands through the kid's hair.
"No," Shippo mumbled, sounding rather stubborn. "I want to watch the movie with the balloons and the dog."
"We can't forget the dog," Kagome agreed, shooting Inuyasha an apologetic glance. Whatever he was about to say was still burning in her mind and she desperately wanted to find out, but it most likely wasn't a conversation to have around a sick and stubborn eight year-old.
"Yeah and the doggie? Well it's funny because he can talk but he's kind of dumb." Shippo's green eyes focused on Inuyasha then, travelling up towards the white triangles that clearly made his point come across.
"I hope that didn't just happen," Inuyasha groaned, running a hand over his face. "Do you see that?" he asked, standing up. "That's the reason I hate kids. They have no tact and absolutely no manners."
"He was talking about the movie," Kagome reminded him, rolling her eyes. "And even if, he's eight and if what he says bothers you, you need help." Looking down at the redhead, she narrowed her eyes. "But that was inappropriate Shippo, and mean. Apologize to Inuyasha."
Shippo crossed his arms but mumbled out a sorry. He didn't look it one bit.
"Oh yeah," Inuyasha said sarcastically. "You really taught him now."
Kagome scoffed. "He's eight years-old, for the love of chocolate. Get over yourself."
Inuyasha blinked and then slapped his hand on his forehead. "I really don't get it," he mumbled, more to himself. "I think it's just me."
"It is just you," Kagome shot back, just to have the last word and then held Shippo's hand to walk him back.
And if she didn't sleep that night because of what he could've said, she chalked it up to the fact that she was insane. Absolutely insane.
When Kagome was watching Shippo in the park, she saw Inuyasha running as per usual. This time he didn't stop. He just kept running, his long silver hair tied behind his back and his amazing amber eyes focused ahead.
Kagome huffed, a mixture between angry and disappointed. He was such a jerk. He was kind of cute and not so much a jerk when he was being nice...
You're an idiot Kagome.
What she didn't realize as she turned her eyes back to the red-headed boy playing in the sand, was that a pair of golden orbs looked at her, softened and then looked away.
Days went by and Inuyasha never stopped to talk to her during his jog. His golden eyes were always looking straight ahead, mouth moving rhythmically to his inhales and exhales.
When the end of the week came around and it looked like the silver-haired man wasn't even going to show, Kagome growled in frustration. This was stupid. It was stupid and ridiculous but you know what? There hadn't been one day that went by where she didn't think about the arrogant jerk-face. She had horrible taste in men apparently but it didn't stop Kagome from trying to get what she wanted.
So it was the following Monday, hot and brutal as the sun beat down. Shippo was hanging out in the sandbox again, suntan lotion smothered all over him. She had covered him up as much as possible, with a big blue hat to shield his eyes.
She, herself, was trying a different tactic.
Mostly when she thought back to Inuyasha, she thought back to the conversation almost a week ago, when he mentioned how she had become touchable. It was a blunt and rather crude way of saying it, but Kagome got the impression that the guy didn't exactly know another way to speak. The point was that it seemed like he was interested and Kagome wanted to test a theory about sweaty joggers and desperate-for-answers babysitters.
She wore a jean skirt and a tiny tank top that made her boobs look huge (with many thanks to the creators of the push-up, cleavage-ahoy bra). She didn't bother with makeup or fancy shoes because this was a park and it was hotter than hell out. Kagome had to be realistic, even if she was stretching appropriate attire a bit around children.
When she saw Inuyasha running perpendicular to her line of sight, Kagome grinned. She readjusted her sunglasses, held her sketchpad loosely at her side, crossed her legs and waited. With the dark glasses, Inuyasha wouldn't know that her eyes never left his form. It was a good way to sneakily see what his reaction was, if there was a reaction at all. As Inuyasha turned on the sidewalk and started to run towards her, Kagome braced for whatever may come her way.
She really didn't expect what happened next.
For a moment she held her breath as his golden eyes took her in. It was a quick moment, less than a second before his eyes averted away. Instantly, they snapped back to her, big and wide as he continued to run, run, run…
Fall.
"Oh fudge," Kagome commented, standing up immediately and racing over to him. He had rolled over from being face-first into the cement, now sitting down in the grass looking more than a little dazed. "Are you okay?" she asked, wincing at the sight of blood on his left cheek and forehead. "Come on, I have stuff in my bag."
"Bag?" Inuyasha asked. He didn't sound very good.
Wincing even more, she raced back to the bench and pulled out some Kleenex, a couple band-aids and ointment-to-go. When she came back there was a frown on his face. "What's wrong?"
"You look funny," Inuyasha replied, blinking repeatedly as he stared down her top. "Why are you dressed like that, to kill me?"
"Not to kill you," Kagome replied, resisting the urge to cover up her boobs because it had been her original intention to show them off. Now with his gaze undoubtedly focused she felt a little torn. "Uh, look at me for a second?"
Golden eyes slowly lifted upwards, holding still when he caught her gaze through the sunglasses. "Are you going to patch me up like that eight year-old of yours?"
"Pretty much," Kagome responded, taking the sheet of Kleenex and lightly dabbing at the blood. There was barely any of it, most having just broken the surface. When it was mostly clean she put on the ointment to clean up any dirt she happened to miss. The band-aids were next. When she pulled away and looked at her handy work she winced.
He really did look like a child with the band-aids all over him. Well, she tried at least.
"You know I'm going to take these off the moment I get back to work," Inuyasha pointed out, falling back down on the grass and looking up at the sky.
"Back to work? You mean you jog in between your work hours?" Kagome asked, frowning slightly. She knew of some women that did that on their lunch break, but typically it was in an air-conditioned gym with readily available showers. Inuyasha was practically a shower of sweat when he ran so going back to work like that…
Inuyasha shook his head, the grass peeking between the strewn out silver strands. "My boss, the stupid old hag, makes me because apparently I have anger issues."
"Wow, I'm shocked," Kagome mumbled sarcastically.
Sighing, Inuyasha turned to look at her. "You don't have to be a bitch about it."
"So I guess the jogging doesn't actually help at all," Kagome pointed out, rolling her eyes. Standing up, she brushed at the grass on her skirt. "You're still rude."
"I really can't help it," Inuyasha replied, shrugging. "And I rather be like I am than some pussy-whipped, whiny bitch."
Maybe all the effort she put into her outfit wasn't worth it. It seemed like the more she talked to him, the worse he got. There was a likely possibility that she was losing her sanity by being…attracted to this jerk. Walking towards the garbage, she threw out the bandage wrappers and went back to her bench. The sketchpad was haphazardly balancing on the edge and she picked it up, closing it seconds later. She refused to look at the previous drawing of golden eyes.
"Hey! Where the hell do you think you're going wench?"
"Away from your potty mouth?" she suggested, raising a brow when she realized he was directly behind her. "You do realize this is a children's park, right?"
Inuyasha nodded. "I do. I don't particularly care though, you know, with free speech and all that."
"You're annoying me the more you open your mouth, did you know that?" Kagome asked hotly, glaring. "You can say whatever you want but you should have enough respect for me and the other parents or sitters to be careful and mindful of the kids!"
Inuyasha looked at her, slightly alarmed. Slowly his hands raised up defensively. "I'm sorry?" He grimaced, sitting down on the bench and looking up at her. "I'll be more careful."
She didn't really believe him but the earnest look on his face made her sigh and sit down beside him. Kagome had no clue what to even say. The jogger was cute alright but she'd already determined he was less than stellar when it came to opening his mouth and speaking. Still, he kept coming back to the park and in a way, back to her.
"Despite the fact I fell down, you should dress like that all the time," Inuyasha said suddenly, breaking the silence.
Kagome laughed. "Yeah right, I don't think so."
It was absurd, but it looked like Inuyasha was pouting, his lower lip sticking out just slightly. "Why not?"
"My sanity." Kagome wasn't going to add how confusing he tended to make things for her, or how she had dressed up specifically for him.
"Your–"
"Kagome!" Shippo yelled, hugging her legs and grinning up at her underneath his blue hat. "We made a castle and it's huge! Come and see!"
"Okay, okay, I will," Kagome replied, smiling back at him. "Inuyasha has to go back to work anyways, doesn't he?"
Inuyasha raised a brow at her, looking mildly put off. "The eight year-old won again."
"What?" Kagome asked.
"What happened to your face?" Shippo interrupted, tilting his head slightly. "Did Kagome fix you?"
"I fell," Inuyasha answered shortly. "And she did, but she kind of did something else too." He shrugged, ignoring the raven-haired woman's questioning gaze. "But I have to go to work. Bye you two."
Shippo waved a little, not particularly interested. Kagome on the other hand couldn't take her eyes off of him.
What else did I do?
Inuyasha was the most confusing person she had ever met.
It was Tuesday night when her phone rang and Kagome's life did an epic one-eighty.
"Absolutely," she replied immediately, rushing to the back room and pulling out a pad of paper and a pen. She listened to the polite feminine voice on the other end chat for a bit, offering times and dates. Honestly, Kagome would've dropped any plans she had for this opportunity.
"I can make Friday," Kagome said the moment the woman told her of the available spot. She'd take it. She'd take anything. "At one p.m.? For sure! Thank you very much – yes you too, have a good day."
When the call was officially ended, Kagome let out the biggest, happiest squeal of her entire life.
She got an interview at the medical clinic – the firm she desperately wanted to work at.
Life couldn't get any sweeter, even if her silver-haired jogger didn't show up that day.
The next day, Kagome was bubbling with energy. She had a job interview that could make everything so much easier and Shippo was giggling and playing with some toy that his parents had gotten him the previous night. They had come to the park later than usual, making a stop at a passing ice cream truck to have some delicious treats. Shippo had debated if Koume would want an ice cream too but realized that with the heat, it would probably melt before he could give it to her.
He picked her a flower instead.
Kagome giggled to herself as Koume kissed the eight year-old boy on the cheek, making him blush a little. She wished that everything could be as easy as that, where a simple flower could be the only thing needed to be happy.
"Your smile is absolutely ridiculous," a familiar male voice said, startling Kagome and making her jump on the bench. Inuyasha chuckled a little, sitting down before being allowed and relaxing against the back. He was dripping with sweat, silver bangs plastered to his forehead.
But he still looked like a hot god, and Kagome wondered when she found toned, muscular and sweaty attractive.
"You run an awful lot," Kagome commented lightly, still watching the redhead playing on the jungle gym.
"The old hag thinks I have a lot of anger," he countered, smirking down at her. He wiped at his face, cringing a little. "I wish it wasn't so d– darn hot all the time." He made a horrible, unhappy face.
Laughing, Kagome swatted at his arm. "Hey! That was a good first start! I'm impressed."
"You better be," he mumbled. "I think I lost my pride somewhere, hold on a moment."
Rolling her eyes, she sighed and relaxed, soaking up the sun that beat down on them. They were both quiet for a moment, Inuyasha's breathing slowing into a calm state as he came down from his running adrenaline. A few squeals could be heard from the park, other children jumping about and talking excitedly to one another.
"So what were you so happy about?"
"I have a job interview tomorrow, which is exciting. It'll help big time with school when I apply for my master's."
"Congratulations," Inuyasha said, smirking a little. "Wait…does that mean you won't be here?"
"Here…as in the park?" Kagome asked, raising a brow. She turned towards him, taking in his small frown with disbelief. "It depends on the hours I guess. Why?"
Inuyasha shrugged, face set in a near scowl. "No reason. Have you told the brat?"
"Shippo, I think you mean," Kagome corrected. "And no, not yet. I will when I know if I got the job for sure or not. I may still be able to see him some days, it's best not to worry until I know more."
Nodding, the silver-haired man sighed. He tilted his head and looked at her, his narrowed golden gaze intense. "When's your interview?"
"Friday," Kagome replied. "I have to go shopping, now that I think about it. I'm going to need some decent clothes, maybe more shoes…"
"Women and their shoes," Inuyasha huffed.
"Shoes are great, stop making them sound terrible." Kagome grinned at him. "Besides, I buy sexy shoes. I'm not one who buys a million pairs of runners or something. All of mine are for nights out and stuff like that."
"So sex shoes?"
Rolling her eyes, Kagome turned her attention back to Shippo. "No."
"No?"
"No."
Inuyasha shrugged. "Why not?"
"Men and sex," Kagome sighed, mimicking his previous actions. "You're all obsessed."
Looking at his watch, Inuyasha smirked broadly before standing up. "I have to go now but I'll have you know that if we had sex, you'd be obsessed too."
Kagome blinked at him. "What? You can't just say things like that!"
"Of course I can wench," Inuyasha replied, laughing. He started to jog away but Kagome wouldn't let it end there. She followed him, trying to keep pace although he admittedly ran too fast. In seconds she was left in the dust.
"Darn it!" Kagome yelled, watching as he cackled ahead of her and gave a mock salute. He was taunting her, the smug bastard. "Don't call me wench!" she yelled at his back, restraining from shaking a fist at him. It wouldn't help to make her look like a complete fool.
But next time she saw him, they were going to have a nice long conversation about bad words and annoying behaviour.
It was Friday morning and Kagome groaned mentally. Why was her damn alarm going off so early again? The sun was in the wrong part of the sky, this couldn't be right.
I'm not babysitting Shippo today so why...?
Leaping out of bed, Kagome turned off her alarm and ran into the bathroom. She looked in the mirror, groaning at the bags under her eyes before turning on the hot water for her shower and getting in. She scrubbed at her long black locks extra hard, making sure every part of her was clean before rinsing off. Hair rolled up in a towel that sat on top of her head, Kagome practically sprinted towards her bedroom.
"Where were those new clothes I bought?" she whispered, somewhat frantic. After she had babysat Shippo yesterday, she had gone to the mall to buy brand new professional-looking clothes for her interview. An interview she was going to be late for if she didn't hurry the hell up. Why did she press the snooze button so many times?
"There you are!"she practically crowed with she found them, tossing them properly onto her bed. She put them on and checked herself in the mirror before running to the door. She had left everything out the last night, ready for the morning. Her purse and keys, as well as her folder with copies of resumes and reference letters were all sitting there waiting.
Taking in a deep breath, Kagome grabbed her stuff and went.
The drive was pretty short, giving Kagome barely any time to figure out intelligent sentences to say, possible answers to give. Parking the car, she stepped out and straightened her white ruffled blouse and sleek black pencil skirt. She checked to make sure there was nothing stuck or dragging with her black heels. No, everything was fine.
Breathe Kagome, breathe.
Stepping inside the building, she was greeting by a pale woman with short black hair. She smiled, her ruby eyes dancing as Kagome approached. "Hi, can I help you?"
"I'm supposed to be meeting with Kaede Kyouda for an interview? She called me earlier this week."
"Absolutely, if you just want to take a seat, I'll let her know," the woman said. Kagome noticed the nameplate read Yura Yajima. "What was your name again?"
"Kagome Higurashi," she replied, giving a smile as she waited.
When the woman frowned, looking her up and down and muttering something about sounding familiar, Kagome wondered what exactly this Yura woman did. Typically people were better informed. It was some time later when an older woman with a kind smile walked out, extending her hand. "Kagome?"
Nodding, she shook the woman's hand. This had to be Kaede, as the voice was familiar from their previous phone conversation. They walked into a room at the back, a spacious office with bright natural light filtering through the blinds. Kaede went on to introduce herself and the company, filling Kagome in on the layout and policies they followed.
The next forty minutes were a blur of questions and answers. Kagome replied as honestly as she could, going on to explain a lot of what she did in school and the extra-curricular activities she was apart of. A few times they went off topic, going on about particular courses or workloads and how they translated to the real world. It wasn't until Kaede stood up and shook Kagome's hand again, with a big smile that made Kagome's heart flutter nervously, that she realized the interview was over.
"I'll call you later and let you know," Kaede murmured, giving away nothing but leaving Kagome with the utmost hope that she got the job. There hadn't been anything wrong with the interview so it was a matter of fit. Kagome prayed she fit in.
As they walked out, Kaede led the way. She pointed out a few rooms and offices as they headed back to the main entrance. It wasn't until they passed a small office door in the corner that everything changed. Kaede had passed easily, her head turned to say something when all of a sudden someone walked out right into Kagome's way.
With a soft 'oof' she was knocked back, intense heat covering her chest and stomach. It wasn't until she looked down at that she realized there was burning brown liquid all over her new shirt. Coffee. She had hit someone who spilled their coffee.
"What the fuck– Wait, Kagome?"
She'd recognize that voice anywhere.
Kagome blinked, looking at Inuyasha. "Uh, what?"
"The fuck is she doing here?" Inuyasha yelled, turning to glare at Kaede with a large coffee stain all over his blue dress shirt. When the older woman just glared at him he turned to Kagome. "Seriously, who put you up to this?"
"Put me up to what?" Kagome demanded, giving him a strange look. "And I'm fine, the coffee only burned me a little, thanks."
Inuyasha scoffed. "Fucking bitch, I'm going to kill Yura– Kagome, why are you here, goddammit?"
"Inuyasha, you need to–" Kaede started but couldn't finish, because Kagome had had about enough.
"You!" she yelled, pointing a finger into his wet-with-coffee chest. "You are the most vulgar man I've ever met! You swear about every five seconds and after you walk right into me, you start demanding answers to questions I have no clue about! So please, shut up for once in your life. It isn't that bad, okay? Your life doesn't suck so much that you have to be such a prick all the time! Consider others, is that so hard?"
The outburst silenced Inuyasha, his golden stare huge and wide in horror. He looked at her like a deer caught in headlights, unmoving and completely shell-shocked. Kaede too was silent, looking between Inuyasha and Kagome with shifty eyes before clearing her throat.
"I–" Kagome started, because her brain finally caught up with her. Inuyasha obviously worked here and Kaede was the old hag he referred to occasionally. Despite the fact that this was all Inuyasha's fault, she just freaked out on a current employee at a place where she potentially could work.
Well, clearly not anymore.
"I'm just going to go, I'm sorry," Kagome uttered quickly, feeling hot embarrassment burn through her as she made her way to the front and out the doors. She jumped into her car and drove.
Shippo wasn't there but Kagome couldn't think of anywhere else to go. It didn't matter right now if she was alone or not, she needed to be somewhere peaceful, somewhere that she was always happy.
The park was that place for her.
Sitting on that wooden bench, Kagome slouched down until her head rested on the tip of the back. She closed her eyes and relaxed, trying not to think about it. He was such an asshole and what made it worse was that she knew it too.
She'd spent weeks with him, talking at the park. Actually, it had been more along the lines of loud bickering, but that wasn't really the point. The point was that she was stupid and it was of course her bad luck that out of all the places in the world, Inuyasha just so happened to work there.
And to her luck, she just so happened to crash into him so that his bitch-face would come out. He had yelled at her and demanded things from her, and that wasn't fair. There was no way in hell she was going to get the job. It had been a shot in the dark before she crashed into Inuyasha. Now it was just darkness. There was nothing left and she was screwed.
Kagome groaned and sat up, about to put her head in her hands when she saw something silver out of the corner of her eye. "No," she whispered, turning her head more to get a better view. There was the one and only jerk-face, the one that was causing all of her problems. From the looks of it he had been running, if his expanding and deflating chest were any give away. His hair looked ruffled by the wind, even when he stopped and ran his hands through it. She could see determination in his golden eyes, and something else that she didn't trust – not right now, not for her life. That prick could go to hell.
And then he started walking towards her.
"No," Kagome repeated, a little more forcefully. It was still quiet, possibly too quiet for him to hear, but it didn't matter because she was standing up now, tensing.
Inuyasha just kept coming.
"What the hell are you doing here?" she yelled, angry. He's a dick, an asshole, a jerk...
"I want to talk to you!" Inuyasha shouted back, coming closer with his arm outstretched.
No. Just no.
Kagome did the only thing that she could: she ran. Taking off at a sprint, she booked it across the playground, spewing rocks behind her until the soft grass what all she tore up. She didn't dare look back, didn't want to see his retreating figure as she got further and further away. He had ruined a very good opportunity for her, all because he was a dick. To think that she had been a little fond of him – maybe even vaguely interested.
Well, definitely not now.
"You stupid–" The deep voice behind her was cut off the moment she felt contact along her back. Suddenly she was falling, her hands coming out in front of her as she collapsed into the long green grass of the park.
Kagome was panting, struggling, figuring out what the hell was going on. Being flipped without her consent, she gasped when Inuyasha was on top of her, arms pinning her down and one bent leg pressing on her thighs. He was by no means on top of her, but the sheer strength he had would make it impossible for her to escape.
"Why the fuck are you running?"
"You ASSHOLE!" Kagome screamed, letting him have it, letting him get it all. "You are a selfish, ignorant, pissy man that needs to get a reality check. People may not always be nice, and life isn't exactly easy, but you don't have to go around biting off everyone's head. Do you know how much I wanted that job? It could've helped so much that you don't even know!"
Inuyasha's golden eyes were boring down in her dark ones, unflinching.
"You're a jerk. Let me go!" Kagome struggled against his hold on her, yelling out in frustration when she didn't even budge.
Inuyasha shook his head. "You know, you're very right."
The raven-haired beauty stopped struggling at that.
"I'm a huge asshole," Inuyasha agreed, nodding. "I push people away pretty often. I'm good at it too."
He was...agreeing with her? Kagome frowned, unable to see where any of this was going.
"The thing is," Inuyasha continued, looking almost as if in thought, "you're the first person I've ever met that I haven't wanted to be a complete asshole to. Isn't that a piss off?" He laughed, though the sound wasn't amused. "Yet, I seem to piss you off more than anyone else I've ever met."
Kagome finally found her voice. "What are you talking about?"
"I'm talking about the fact that I don't want to be a prick to you but I'm not very good at figuring out how to do it." Inuyasha frowned for a moment before smirking. "Could you teach me?"
"I – What?" Kagome asked, clearly confused. "You ruined a job opportunity for me that would've helped me get the experience I need for school! Do you know how important this was?"
Inuyasha rolled his eyes. "You idiot, you got the job."
"And now I–" Kagome shut her mouth, hard. The clacking of her teeth rang loud and clear. "What?"
"You got the job," Inuyasha repeated, nodding almost sagely. "Kaede loved you and when she found out that you'd actually yell back at the jerk who'd managed to scare off every single employee, instead of run for the hills like the rest... Well let's just say she was pretty damn pleased."
"I got...the job." Kagome couldn't process the statement fast enough, her smile coming onto her face slowly. "I got the job?"
Inuyasha smirked, nodding. "You got the job."
"I got the job because you're an asshole?" Kagome added.
"I wouldn't go that far," he muttered, rolling his eyes. "But I guess because you're used to me now it helped."
"I am not used to you," Kagome shot back.
Inuyasha shook his head. "Oh you have so much to learn."
Not understanding what he meant, Kagome ignored him and smiled. "This is...amazing. So is she going to call me? Do I have to go back there? Oh my goodness, should I apologize?"
Letting go of her now that he was sure she wasn't a flight risk, Inuyasha sat beside her and looked at the blue sky. "She'll call you tomorrow with details."
Kagome was so happy, she didn't even care that she was still lying in the grass. "Of course, this means I have to work with you right?"
"Yup."
The fact that her stomach dipped a little – whether in fear or anticipation she didn't know – made Kagome very conscious that the man had followed her from his place of work, all the way to the park and had then chased after her onto the grass. "What are you doing here?" she asked gently, not looking at him but rather at the fluffy clouds.
Inuyasha shrugged. "It was partly because I was already following you but also because Kaede threatened to cut off my balls if I didn't."
"It sounds like your boss likes me better already," Kagome commented slyly, holding back her grin.
Inuyasha scowled. "The old hag doesn't know what's good for her. It doesn't matter anyways because secretly I'm her favourite. She just pretends to hate me because all my co-workers do."
"That's kind of mean sounding."
Inuyasha raised a brow at her. "It's fine. I'd rather not hang out with pansied-ass bitches anyways."
Kagome rolled her eyes. "Wow, I'm so shocked as to why they hate you. You practically ooze sensitivity."
"Bite me."
"No thank you," Kagome replied.
Silence slid in between them, cool like a refreshing breeze. The sun was high above them, fluffy clouds forming shapes in the sky. Kagome felt her body relax, even as Inuyasha slowly lay on his back beside her. They weren't touching, but she could feel the heat of his hand inches away – or maybe that was the sun. Kagome chose not to think about it anyways, instead closing her eyes and breathing in the summer air.
"Did you know," Inuyasha started casually, his voice rough and quiet, "that there isn't any sort of policy for dating a co-worker?"
Opening her eyes, Kagome frowned. "What?"
"There isn't anything to stop it from happening," Inuyasha continued. "Kaede is cool like that."
"I thought she was an old hag?"
Inuyasha chuckled, deep and insanely warm. "Yeah, well, whatever. Right now I'm not complaining, but it won't last for long."
Kagome sighed. "I can only imagine dealing with your angry face five days a week."
"How about six?" Suddenly her eyes were shaded from the sun as Inuyasha rolled nearly on top of her, face hovering above her. His golden eyes were staring into hers, a slight smirk on his face. "How 'bout it?"
"...What?" Kagome was trying to keep up. Really, she was. It was just really hard with his good looks right in her face like that. He wasn't even gross or sweaty this time. "Why six?"
"Have dinner with me, Saturday," Inuyasha murmured, eyes travelling down to her lips. "I promise I won't be a dick. I'll be on my best behaviour."
Kagome was stunned, and then her brain caught up with the moment and her eyes widened. "You want to go out with me? But you yell at me!"
"I yell at everyone," Inuyasha pointed out.
That was true, it had to be. Kagome nodded. "You're not lying, are you?"
Inuyasha rolled his eyes. "You're starting to annoy me. Just say yes, will you?"
"I won't just say yes, I have to want to say yes," Kagome said stubbornly. "You're already becoming a douche bag."
"I am not!" Inuyasha defended, scowling.
"You are too!"
"This is not being a douche bag," he growled.
"No, this is you being a jerk."
Inuyasha's eyes narrowed. "Nuh-uh."
"Yeah-huh."
"I wasn't being a jerk. You're the one that started it."
"I did not."
"You were all 'I won't just say yes' when I know you want to," he mimicked, attempting and failing to raise his pitch.
Kagome glared. "Well, clearly I'm going to say yes now," she muttered, sarcasm laced with every word.
Smirking, Inuyasha reached with one hand, gently brushing the stray bangs from her face. "Then clearly I'm going to see you Saturday."
Kagome opened her mouth to argue, to yell at him because he honestly was a pain in the rear. Then his lips pressed against hers, soft and sweet – so not like him. Mouth already parted, Inuyasha licked his way into her mouth, teasing with little nips. Kagome lost all thought process and she lost all of the arguments she had ready in her head. Instead she reached up and ran her hands through his long silver hair, pulling him closer.
They stayed like that for what felt like forever, until Kagome's lungs burned and Inuyasha pulled slightly away, tugging her lower lip playfully and then kissing it gently. His golden eyes watched her, as if waiting for some sort of explosion. When she didn't say anything, he leaned down to claim her lips once more.
"Wait," Kagome whispered, pressing the pad of her finger on his plush lips. He was so close to her, they were practically breathing the same air. "I forgot to tell you something."
There was a second where his eyes narrowed thoughtfully, his body starting to pull away. Kagome held him tightly, waiting until he settled back down half on top of her. "What?" he asked, slick lips moving around her finger as he tried to speak.
Kagome smiled softly. "Yes. Yes, I will see your face six days out of the week."
"At least it's a good looking face," Inuyasha commented, smirking dangerously as he pressed in closer, hands sliding around her hips.
"Shh," Kagome whispered. "Stop talking." She kissed him, more demanding, needing him there. Silken heat slid together, tongues dancing seamlessly as nothing but the breeze danced around them.
"You know," Inuyasha murmured deeply, sounding whiskey-rough and undeniably hot. "This is a children's park."
Kagome groaned. "How sad is that? You chased me down and tackled me in a park."
"You loved it."
"I did not."
"You so did."
"No, Inuyasha–"
"Oh shut up already." With a final lingering kiss, he chased away her thoughts and let the sun warm their skin in the grassy field. Later on they would walk together, hand in hand until Inuyasha said something else incredibly asshole-like. Kagome would yell at him, he would yell right back. When their screaming turned into glaring, it inevitably turned into kissing.
"Sometimes," Kagome murmured, hands moving along his chest, lips sliding along his skin. "You're the biggest jerk ever."
Inuyasha chuckled and halted her movement with his hands, forcing her to look up at his face. His golden eyes searched her, sweeping up her image like he could memorize it permanently in his mind. "At least," he started, not really knowing what to say. Being sweet was definitely harder than being nice, and Kagome had already reminded him how bad he was at the latter. "At least I'm your jerk."
And Kagome smiled, soft laughter filling up their space. Because yeah, he was her jerk and right now she wouldn't have it any other way.
The End
Author's Note: Do you want a full copy of this story to keep? Go to my profile and there's a link underneath "As Fast As You Can" in the "One Shots" section.
I'd greatly appreciate any feedback :)