HEY GUYS! HERE'S THE ONE-SHOT I PROMISED (WELL SORT OF) ANYWAYS, I APOLOGISE FOR TAKING SOOO LONG. MY LAZINESS TOOK OVER. OKAY! READ AND REVIEW AND ENJOY ^_^
Disclaimer: I do not own InuYasha. Just the story plot.
"Sometimes, love is where you least expect it," he read.
Houshi Miroku closed the book and placed it back on the shelf. He just loved reading. (A/N: I'm a bookworm XD) He loved reading books in the genre of mystery, suspense and of course, romance. Romance was his favourite amongst them all. He found that is soothed his mind. Forbidden love, true love, unrequited love; he read about it all. And that left him wondering how love felt. But he was a playboy. He wouldn't be able to tell. People often asked him why he couldn't just settle for one girl and he always said the same thing; "I have a reputation to keep up."
Love was only left in his imaginations.
Miroku had found that he was out of food and he had to go buy some. Of course, he'd go to the usual. (A/N: Sorry, can't say. If I'm not mistaken, I have read that it was against the rules to say a brand name. I'm one of those Ms. Goody-Two-Shoes)
It was two blocks away. He'd always go there. Every person in the supermarket knew him.
He stepped into the store and was greeted by Inuyasha, his best friend.
"Miroku! It's been a while, man. How have you been lately?" he greeted.
"I'm doing fine. How are things going with Kagome?" responded Miroku.
Kagome was Inuyasha's girlfriend and has been for almost 6 years. Miroku always wondered why he hadn't proposed to her yet. Now, Inuyasha, yes, he sounded friendly and all that sort of stuff, but he has some anger issues that poor Kagome has to deal with. So with his attitude, he had told Miroku to leave him alone and 'don't mind other people's businesses'. Miroku left it at that. He respected his best friend and besides, he didn't know anything about love. The only thing he knew about it was that it consists of 4 letters: l, o, v and e.
"We're doing great. And I thought about what you said the other time and…" his voice trailed off for a moment before saying, "I might just do it," he finished and brought out a velvet red box from his pocket.
All Miroku could do was give him a warm smile.
"Good luck, buddy," he said whilst patting his shoulder and with that he went in, happy for his best friend.
He had been waiting for a whole 20 minutes now. The store was understaffed at the moment. The staffs were either sick, on vacation, at a funeral, simply running late, resigned or got fired. There were at least twenty staffs at the shop. That still wasn't enough. There were probably thirteen at the counters and the others were probably doing what they were told to do. The supermarket was a big one and it needed at least 40-45 staffs, mind you. Luckily, Miroku still had some patience in him.
He glanced over at the counter and found that it wasn't just the long line keeping him up but the flirting session that some boys and men had with the cashier. A screen was blocking the cashier's face but it was undoubtedly a girl. Miroku was suddenly eager to see the so-called beauty and see if she was worth his flirting, as well.
Minute by minute, he grew much more eager.
Finally, he had reached the counter and grinned like he had just won the lottery. Unfortunately, the cashier had her back to him.
He cleared his throat and she finally turned around.
What a sight she was.
She had beautifully tanned skin. Her long chocolate-brown hair was in a high ponytail and the way it shined like silk gave Miroku the sudden urge to run his hands through the dark silky strands. Her eyes had a mysterious colour. It wasn't just any hazel colour. There was a slight tint of honey in them. Those pink lips of hers looked soft. Her nose looked adorable to him. She had a very, very curvaceous body that Miroku's eyes lingered at it for a second or so. Her hands looked delicate. She had long flawless legs that her denim shorts showed. She had an average foot size and Miroku strangely found that her toes, which were shown because of the sandals she wore, were . . . cute.
He was suddenly dragged back to reality by a velvety feminine voice.
"Excuse me. You're holding up the line," the young beauty told him.
"Oh, I'm so sorry. Your beauty entranced me. I couldn't take my eyes off of you. I could stare at you all day if I had to," Miroku replied with a cheeky smirk while putting his stuff on the counter.
She sighed, "Look, if you think flattery is going to get you a discount, you're on the wrong counter. You see that girl on counter 8?" she asked while pointing to a girl on the said counter.
Miroku looked back and saw a girl who was pretty enough but didn't rival the girl in front of him.
"Tell her all those sweet nonsense and she'll give you a 20% discount before she even asks for your number. If you've got the looks, that is," she continued.
"Nah. I'd much rather have a legitimate person than a biased one," came Miroku's clever reply.
The girl raised a brow and said, "I've met people like you. You just seem more . . ."
"Charming? Breathtaking?"
She was about to continue when her phone rang. She held up her palm, signaling for him to wait. By the time she got to her phone, it stopped ringing. With her back to him, she placed the phone back into the bag. Miroku reached his hand out and his hand met her big firm rear.
She stopped for a moment then turned around and nearly slapped him but stopped herself for her fear of getting both of them in trouble. A wise one, she was.
"Perverted," she finished.
Miroku smirked, "You can say that again, sweetheart."
"The name's not sweetheart", she stated through clenched teeth.
He opened his mouth to speak then closed it when he found the nametag she'd been wearing.
"Of course, my dearest Sango."
She glanced up at him then scanned the item she had been holding.
"You're actually quite different. Most people would ask me what my name is instead of looking for the nametag that I've been wearing in front of them. Oh and don't call me your dearest or I'll whack you in the head if you called that, yeah?" She gave a small smirk.
Miroku gave a mere chuckle then a thought struck him.
"Oh by the way. How come I've never seen you before? I come here every time I need something. I've never seen your pretty face before. Are you new or something?"
"I'm not new. I've been working here for exactly 5 years now. You must've been in other counters, Miroku."
Now, he was dumbfounded. Miroku-the-player was dumbfounded. By a girl, of all things!
"People here talk about you. A lot. Especially that girl that gives discounts," was her answer to his unuttered question.
"Koharu? Yeah, I know her. We went out for quite a while. She got quite clingy so I broke it off," he calmly pointed out.
"Ah. Player?"
"Oh yeah."
There was silence while she kept on scanning his items. He broke the silence with his sudden outburst.
"Is that the 'Unshed Tears' by the Kuranosuke Takeda?" he exclaimed, unashamed of the looks he got from other customers. (A/N: LoL. Who else finds it funny that I made Kuranosuke a well-known author? XP)
She merely smirked. "Yeah. I know, I know. It's not supposed to be out until the next two months but I know the guy personally. And well . . . he kind of has a thing for me." Sango couldn't help but add a sheepish smile to the last part.
Miroku just stood there. He just wanted to grab the book and leave. He couldn't do that though. Sango would definitely ban him from even touching the book. Heck, maybe even see it. But he just wanted to-
"You can borrow it, if you want," Sango unbelievably offered.
"I-I . . . pardon?"
He couldn't believe it. Sango had just offered him to borrow the book. Was she even speaking normal? Is it just his ears deceiving him or . . .
She chuckled. "Take it. I don't mind. I'm done reading it anyway. Just give it back to me once you're done reading it," she finished with a smile.
He merely nodded, too speechless to say anything. She was done scanning his items (A/N: Woah . . . that was a lot O.o) moments after.
"Cash or card?"
"Card," he answered, woken up from his too-stunned-to-say-anything state.
He did what he usually did. Swiped the card and got the receipt from the cashier.
She held out the book to him with a friendly smile. He returned the smile and was about to walk away when he heard her voice call out to him.
"Miroku!"
He turned around.
"I think we'll be great friends."
The two simply grinned at each other.
Months passed and the two were becoming very close friends.
Years passed and they were stuck like glue.
They hung out at each other's place. They told each other secrets. The two were 'inseparable', according to the customers, who wait long in line for them to finish their conversation. They acted as if they were siblings. If one were depressed, the other one would comfort them until they were happy to live to tomorrow.
They had each other.
They were comfortable around each other. No one was uneasy albeit Miroku had this weird feeling when he was around her. Heck, even when he was just thinking about her or merely talking to her on the phone.
There was always this unknown emotion when there was something involved her.
Miroku was still trying to figure out what it was . . .
One day, Miroku decided to meet up with Inuyasha and Kagome at the park. The newly engaged couple (A/N: Took Inuyasha that long to propose . . .) agreed and was there in 5 minutes. Kagome had brought a picnic basket along with her to eat.
"So, why'd you wanna meet up?" Inuyasha asked while he chomped on a sandwich.
"Inuyasha! Don't talk with your mouth full!" Kagome scolded.
Still munching he said, "Shut up! Who cares about table manners? We're not at a table!"
The two kept arguing and Miroku just sighed. Poor him. He always had to deal with these two.
"Okay, okay. Calm down. If you don't, I'm not answering any of your questions," he said, hoping it would bring the squabbling down.
It did. The couple obediently followed and sat down quietly.
"So . . ." Inuyasha started, "why'd you wanna meet up?" he repeated his unanswered question.
"W-Well . . . you see . . . I, uh, wanted to, um, ask you guys something about, um, w-well . . . l-love," he stammered.
The two were left gaping. Who knew Miroku, The Ultimate Player, would ask about love? You will definitely be surprised because the said player was looking away, blushing. BLUSHING! Never did his friends see him, blushing. (A/N: Okay. If you guys think the 'The Ultimate Player' thing is wrong grammar, it's not because it's a title. Yep ^_^)
A long awkward silence . . . until Kagome broke it.
"It's the end of world, isn't it, Inuyasha?"
"You got that right, 'Gome."
"S-Shut up! P-People change . . . " Miroku defended, once again looking away.
Kagome, the first to get out of the surprised state, asked, "I'm just wondering . . . " she thoughtfully said.
Miroku raised a brow. "About what?"
Kagome looked at him in the eye. "Why you would ask such a thing."
The man simply looked down. A warm smile was shown on his features when he looked up.
"Well . . . there's this girl back at the supermarket," he smiled even more at the thought of her, "I . . . I think I'm in love with her."
Silence once again took over the three.
"Sango?" Inuyasha asked with a mischievous smirk.
Miroku just gave a sigh. "I guess there's no point in hiding it," was all he said.
"Then it's time for me, Higurashi Kagome [soon to be Taisho Kagome ;)], to tell you if you are in love," Kagome said with a cheerful grin.
Let the session begin . . .
"How do you feel around her?"
"I guess I feel . . . happy."
"Hmmm. Not good enough. Does your heart pound when you hear her call your name?"
Pink tainted his cheeks. "M-Maybe . . . "
"Do you have some sort of longing when you're beside her?"
Darker and darker went the pink tinting his cheeks.
"I guess so . . ."
"Do you like her?"
At that, Miroku smiled and said, "A lot."
Kagome smirked and asked, "Do you love her?"
Miroku gave a thought to it. Did he love her?
He looked around him. He saw families together, heaps of them. But one stood out the most to him.
They were three - a mother, a father and a son. The mother was gorgeous. She looked like she was in her late twenties, early thirties. She had a smile that made the father stare at her lovingly. The father was quite charming. Miroku guessed he was in his late thirties. The mother saw that her husband was looking at her and blushed which made the dad smile even more. Then there was the son, a charming young boy. He looked at his parents then laughed. He held both of their hands. The parents looked at him lovingly and they all laughed together.
It was funny how he was able to picture Sango and him . . . but with more children. (A/N: Now, there's his 10-20 babies offer XP)
He looked back at Kagome, who was getting slightly impatient with him. Her eagerness was very evident in her features.
He once again gave her a smile – a smile that answered her question.
"I do."
Miroku had once again run out of food – according to him – and went out to the store. He picked just a few items; just some potato chips, chocolate, some meat and some veggies.
As always, he'd go to counter 11, where the lovely Sango was.
When he got there, no other customers were waiting. It seemed Miss Luck was smiling at him today.
"So," he said whilst putting his food on the counter, "very lonely today, Miss Taijiya?"
She shot a glare at him.
"Don't start with me with that 'Miss Taijiya'," she warned whilst using air quotes to the last part. [A/N: Thank you once again to lovemondotrasho. X)]
"Ooh. Someone's in a crappy mood," Miroku remarked with a smirk.
She gave a grin. He always made her day.
"Heck yeah."
"Now, talk to daddy and tell me what's gotten you in a bad mood."
The cashier gave a small laugh.
"Did someone grope you?"
Sango looked at him as if she'd found out he was a criminal.
"What the heck? I'm dead ugly, Miro. When it comes to beauty, I come dead last. Where have you been lately?"
Okay. Reactions reversed. Now, he was the one looking at her as if she was a criminal.
"Sango, darling, you're the most beautiful woman I've ever met in my twenty-four years of living."
"Miro, that's-"
"No, Sango. This time, you listen."
Sango stayed silent for she knew better than to mess with this Miroku.
"You're the only woman I've met who's been through so much pain yet puts other people ahead of her. You're the only one I know who has the strength of a knight yet has the grace of a princess. You're so stubborn but it just shows how strong-willed you are. You stand up for what you believe in. You're my best friend, Sango. Well, aside from Inuyasha but still. You make me smile no matter what state I'm in. You never cease to make my heart race whenever and wherever. You have no speck of unattractiveness whatsoever!"
He was raising his voice a little but not too loud.
"You practically glow with beauty! You're in my mind 24/7. I think about you even when I'm with you. You have a temper that I find sexy. Sango, you're the only woman I met who's left me grasping for more. I'll never grow tired of you. I mean, what do you expect? You're the woman I fell head-over-heels-in-love for!"
Sango's eyes widened, utterly surprised.
After a long string of silence, a soft laugh was heard.
Sango's laugh filled the air.
"Oh dear. Just when I thought I've been avoiding this very well."
Miroku only stared at her in confusion.
"Huh?" came his reply.
The girl merely chuckled.
"Well, you see . . . there's this . . . thing . . . that I didn't want to believe at first. I feel safe when I'm around you. I smile when I simply think about you and I think about you a lot. You take away the sadness in my day and make me laugh instead. I'm myself when I'm with you. My heart skips a beat when I see you. So . . . in other words . . ." she smiles, "I love you, Miroku."
The said man just stood there for a good two seconds then made his move.
Miroku smirked. "Then, will you go out with me and be my girlfriend?"
Sango just gave a smile – a smile that said it all.
Miroku couldn't help but give a grin. He noticed her other hand was vacant while the other was occupied with his item. He held the vacant hand gently. The cashier blushed.
"Miro-"
Whatever she was going to say was forgotten. Miroku's lips had interrupted her sentence. She closed her eyes in content.
They didn't know if it was just their ears but somehow the music being played – which was a love song – got louder and the couple heard whistles and cheers.
Indeed, love was unpredictable.
OKAY! THERE'S YOUR ONE-SHOT. I'M STILL TRYING TO THINK OF OTHER IDEAS FOR MY NEW STORY.
IF YOU HAVE A SUGGESTION, FIRE AWAY! ^_^
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TILL NEXT TIME!
