Until We Meet Again

The Guys

Four guys sat around the table. Beers laid in front of each other. Silence seemed to be the company among them until Miroku broke the silence. Like all the guys, his body is hunched over in a depressive state. Sadness was the one word to describe the scene.

"What happened to us? What happened to our lives?" Miroku asked quietly.

After the divorce, he was more lonely than he ever had been in his life. He ignored the calls from other women, and he actually ignored all women, except Sango, completely. He threw away his trophies of his affairs. He tried to spend time with his children, but it was unsuccessful. It was as if all the laughter and happiness had been sapped away from him and his children. Whenever Sango appeared to pick up their children, he would always hope that Sango would notice him and take him back. No such luck though. All he had gotten was her saying, 'it's time for me to take our children'. The cycle continued like that every week when it's her turn to have their children for the week. He rarely ever gets the chance to have Sango's company unless there was some sort of performance or activity that needed both parents to be there for their children. But even then, Sango ignored him or kept her distance from him. Her complete disregard of him had taken a toll on Miroku, and he would always cry at night missing the warmth of his wife. He missed the completeness of his family. He missed the laughter. He missed the brightness of his life. He missed Sango.

"We became selfish," Kouga immediately answered. He had bags under his eyes as if he didn't sleep for a while.

After that fateful phone call, he found out Ayame was in a coma. It had been a month since. They said her survival rate wasn't good, and he should be prepared for her death. It was at that moment he felt the blood in him drain away, and he screamed and begged for the doctor to save her. He even kneeled on the ground, not caring for his pride. The doctor merely shook his head and told him that was all he could do. The doctor left him to his own devices, and all Kouga could do was have his hands cover his face and cry. He stopped coming to the hospital for a whole week because he couldn't take it. If only he knew, it caused him even more emotional pain.

"It freaking sucks," Inuyasha added.

After his own divorce with Kagome, his life went downhill after a week of bliss with Kikyo. His life spent with Kikyo was peaceful, yes, but he had lost all life in his house. There was no color in the house to brighten up his life. It was just white. All he saw was white nowadays. There were days that he and Kikyo don't speak at all. Kagome was mostly the one who spoke up first while he listened, and Inuyasha only spoke here and there until they argue like they always do. But this time, he would be the one in the relationship who put in the effort to speak first, and he would always get one-worded answers from Kikyo. It frustrated him, but he was afraid to speak his thoughts. With Kagome, he could talk to her about anything even if they did argue. It wouldn't be a big deal because they would make up after. All they need to do is talk about it. He doesn't have that with Kikyo. Lately, he always forgets that Kagome wasn't the one next to him in his bed. Every time he woke up, he would smirk and was about to call out her name. But before he could, he would look to his right to see no one there. He had forgotten Kikyo was living with him. She always woke up before him while Kagome would laze in bed before he teased her to get out of bed. Those mornings were quite lonely actually. The meals were quiet as well. One-worded answers were all there was left.

"Hn," Sesshomaru stated.

After Rin left his life to let him live his own, he had fell back to the loneliness he had once lived before he met her. The days go by like there was nothing else to do but just live. His life was on a schedule once again. It used to be thrown off at times when Rin surprises him, but he won't have that anymore, will he? He lost all warmth in his house and the scent that belonged to Rin was replaced by Kagura's strong perfume. It actually made him ill with his sensitive nose. Rin would usually not use any strong scents, knowing how sick he would get. Kagura doesn't even know about his pet peeve. After a hard day at work, he would lay on his couch to relax, but he always hoped for someone to put a blanket over him like Rin would always do. It was foolish of him to ever think Rin would pop out of nowhere and do it. He trailed all around his home, and he didn't know why. It was as if he was searching for something... or someone. His life, now, was all about work. Why would he stay at home when there was no one there anyways? Kagura and him rarely ever go out anyways. Sometimes, at night, he waits for a certain voice singing to help him sleep. It never came. He found out that he may never will.

The four men continued to drink in their sorrows. Women came at them, seducing them. They, on the other hand, never gave a glance and ignored their advances. They wanted to wallow in their mistakes and think back of better times.

It was then they heard familiar voices talking. The three men's breaths hitched at the sound of their voices. They never knew how much they missed it until they heard it.

"Kagome! I told you I don't want to go to the club!" A woman whined to another.

"No way, Sango! You have to. You need to let out your stress. You've been overworking yourself. You even almost went to the hospital," Kagome lectured.

"Rin, tell her she can't make me," Sango pleaded. Rin sighed and let out a smile.

"Sorry, Sango. She's forced me to come here too. She's threatened to cut my roses in my garden if I don't listen to her," Rin stated with a deep sigh.

"C'mon girls. It's been a while we have danced in a club," Kagome encouraged.

"Yeah, but there is one person missing in our group," Rin once again spoke. Kagome, Sango, and Rin looked sadly at each other and then at the empty chair.

"What did the doctor say?" Kagome asked, the first one to speak. There were already tears starting to form in her eyes.

Rin sighed and sadly said, "They said if she doesn't wake up in three days, she may never wake up at all. They might even take her off life support if her parents agreed to it, so she wouldn't suffer anymore."

All was quiet among the girls for a moment. It hurt them completely to have the news that Ayame was in a coma. The girls were always in an emotional wreck whenever Ayame was brought up. After all, their friend was dying, and they couldn't do anything about it.

Kouga felt the blood in him drain away at the news. Is this the news he got for not seeing her for a week? The news made him sick enough that he had to run to the bathroom. Before he knew it, he was vomitting and crying at the bathroom stall. Ayame was all his brain repeated.

"Oh yeah, how is Kohaku, Rin?" Kagome asked, changing the sad subject. Kagome and the rest wiped their tears away, not letting their sadness take away their evening. After all, Ayame wouldn't let them if she knew they were wallowing in their sadness for her. She's the kind to enjoy life and wouldn't let any of them stop living even if it is for her.

Rin let out a sparkling smile and said, "I'm happy. He makes me happy. He actually almost proposed to me, but he stopped himself and asked if he could do a retry in a later date. I would have said yes either way."

Sango chuckled and nodded.

"He was a nervous wreck when he practiced it on me. Kept on stuttering and sputtering words. I had to practically slapped his back to make him say it," Sango told them. The girls giggled at imagining the thought about her brother proposing to her.

Sesshomaru's anger flared at the news. Rin, his Rin, would actually say yes if the boy had actually proposed to her. He couldn't help that his fingers clenched into a fist, and the news left an aftertaste in his mouth. The thought of Rin leaving him forever, never being in his life ever again, made his stomach sick. She would be a wife, but he wouldn't be the husband. Sesshomaru never did like the idea of marriage. He would never think about marriage until now. The thought of her wearing a white dress and walking down the aisle made his breath hitch. For the first time in his life, he was daydreaming.

"And what about you, Kagome? How is your special guy doing?" Sango asked teasingly, elbowing her side with a smirk.

Kagome smiled sheepishly.

"Well, he's doing great actually. Got to say, no one else could ever compare to him. He's all I think about now," Kagome said. The girls chuckled, and Sango and Rin nodded their heads in agreement.

"When I first met him, I couldn't help but want to scream out how cute he is," Rin said.

"Yeah, he's the epitome of cuteness. He's perfect, Kagome," Sango added in.

Kagome blushed and smiled lovingly.

"He's all that I ever need. No other guy can ever compare," Kagome told him. Sango and Rin nodded.

Inuyasha couldn't help but growl. His anger and jealousy had made him clench the table top with pressure. The thought of her loving someone more than him made him sad and overwhelmed with jealousy. He knew he had no right to be jealous when he had Kikyo like he always wanted, but he just couldn't help it. He couldn't imagine Kagome with another man but him. But what could he do? The damage has been done, and he wasn't going to let Kagome suffer anymore. No, he deserved this emptiness. He had broken years of trust and love. He had broken a marriage that was never broken in the first place for a love that came first. Yeah, he got what he deserved. He finally realized why his relationship with Kikyo never worked. Unlike Kagome and him, they never actually talked.

"What about you, Sango? How's your love life?" Kagome asked. Sango let out a sigh.

"After Miroku, I've gotten wary around other guys. I don't want to make the same mistake again. After the divorce, he made me realize that there is no such thing as devotion in marriage, and it only leads to divorce in the end," Sango stated seriously. She shook her head. "I don't believe in love. Not again. Not when my children are at stake."

Miroku thought he couldn't feel anymore guilty until now. He had made Sango wary of men. He had put her through such a trial, and it was his fault. He made her lose all hope in marriage, in love. He made her lose hope in him. She had lost her trust in him, and he hated it was him that entangled her into this mess. He hated these hands he had. He hated these lustful thoughts that always came into his mind. He hated at how he wasn't wholly devoted to Sango when he knew she was the only one he ever truly loved. He hated himself even more to cause her this much pain. Yeah, he hated how he ruined his family. He is an idiot, a fool. He lost everything over meaningless affairs just to satisfy his lust. All he had ever received now was just misery. It wasn't worth it. None in the least.

"You know what girls? Maybe the club isn't right for us. Let's go have fun somewhere else," Kagome said.

"Finally!" Sango yelled exasperatedly. Rin and Kagome laughed.

The girls got up from their seats and left. None of them ever noticed the three men behind them. It actually hurt the guys, but they finally realized one thing about their whole conversation. The girls were letting them go, and the realization created an even worse feeling for them. This feeling could not be described. It was worse than loneliness and sadness. It was emptiness. A void.