Chapter 2: Kagome the Angel, My First Love

As the years past, both of the boys spent as much time together as they could. They lived just two blocks from one another, so it was rather convenient for them to get to and from each other's homes. Their parents befriend one another and constantly invited the other child to attend family outings such as beach trips and amusement park adventures. Inu Yasha and Koga stayed true to their promise and never hid a secret from one another. Whatever one did without the other, they would share as soon as they were reunited.

Sessho-Maru, Inu Yasha's older brother and five years their senior, had once let it slip that he thought they would grow up to be gay lovers. Of course the younglings didn't understand what he meant, but he had threatened them to not ask questions about what 'gay lovers' entailed. They only understood that they were indeed going to grow up together. Before they knew it, they were already nine.

-Summer before 4th Grade-

Koga had gone with his parents out of state to their family reunion in the countryside. Inu Yasha would have gone with him if it wasn't going to be a whole summer trip this time around, and if his mother wasn't on her last stage of pregnancy. Inu Yasha was bored to say the least, and he honestly thought it was going to be the most boring summer ever.

"Inu, can you go get the mail?" his father called from the kitchen while making him and his brother lunch. Their mother was in the hospital since she just gave birth to his younger brother, Shippo. Inu Yasha was excited for the new edition to their family, though Sessho-Maru warned him that babies were messy, noisy and as fun as a sack of potatoes full of glass.

"Ok!" Inu Yasha yelled back as he got off the couch and set his sketchpad aside. He slipped on his sneakers and went to check the mailbox. Before he could reach in and grab the envelopes and catalogs, something- more like someone- caught his eye. In front of his house was a little girl about his age dressed in a blue summer dress and had her long black hair in braided pigtails. Her small white sandals went tap, tap, tap as she jumped roped her way up and down the pavement, going three houses down then coming back up to his and repeated the process over and over again.

He watched her gallop around, transfixed with her childish beauty. Her eyes were a rich chocolate color, her smile shone brighter then the summer sun, and her humming of some offbeat tune to herself was lovely. Inu Yasha didn't know how long he was staring at her from behind his picket fence, but as she soon as she stopped to talk to him, his heart skipped a bet.

"Oh, hello," she smiled at him, causing a small blush to creep onto his cheeks, "I'm Kagome, what's your name?" she wiped the thin layer of sweat from her forehead.

'She's so pretty.' He thought to himself as he gulped, 'Like an angel.' His heart began to beat faster and he could feel his face getting warmer. He tried to speak but his vocal cords seemed to have shut down while he gazed at her. His blush intensified, causing him to look away from her. 'How embarrassing!' he mentally screamed at himself.

Kagome giggled, "Cat got your tongue?" she walked up to him and tried to look at his cherry red face, "Can't you talk?"

Inu Yasha sighed, and tried again, "Inu… Inu Yasha." He stuttered and glanced at her from his peripheral. He felt himself melt when she smiled widely at him, her bangs danced in the summer breeze over her sparkling eyes.

"Nice to meet you. Can I call you Inu?"

"Yea…" he said shyly, rubbing the back of his neck, "I've… I've never seen you around before."

Kagome coiled up her jump rope, "I'm visiting my grandpappy. My mom and dad are helping him move. We live like two hours away up North from here."

Inu Yasha looked down the street and saw a man and woman moving folded up boxes from their van into the house. The woman noticed him and waved. He waved back. He turned his attention back to Kagome, "Oh, so you don't live here?" he was saddened by the news, "When does your grandpa leave?"

Kagome put her finger to her lip and thought for a moment, "End of summer I believe. My grandmammy died earlier this year, so he sold his house. He's really old so my parents thought it was best he came to live with us." She shrugged, "So I guess I'll be here for about a month?"

"Oh, ok."

"Wanna play? I don't have any friends and I can't find any of the other kids on this block." Kagome shied a little, rocking back and forth on the heels. "Maybe we can go to the park behind the house? My grandpappy can see us from his balcony so someone can watch us."

Inu Yasha perked up, "Sure! Let me put this inside and let my dad know, ok? I'll be right back!" he stumbled inside; his legs had seemed to become limp noodles.

"I'm going to change!" Kagome called out, "I'll meet you right here, ok?"

"Ok!" As soon as Inu Yasha entered his house, he made a beeline for the kitchen and handed his dad the mail, "I'm going to the park with my new friend. Is that ok?"

Inu Taisho looked up from the lasagna he was preparing. Looking over his shoulder, he raised a brow. Inu Yasha and Sessho-Maru's father was a tall man, standing roughly six feet tall and had platinum blonde hair which contrasted with their mother's midnight black hair. He stared at his son intensely, worrying Inu Yasha he was going to say 'no' to his request. However the intense look was of him trying to not let his eyes water from the onions he was chopping to mix with the lasagna meat.

"Oh? Who are you playing with? Koga's gone until the end of summer and you normally don't play with anyone else without him."

"The granddaughter of the old guy who lives a few houses down across the street." Inu Yasha said shyly.

Inu Taisho straightened up and turned toward his son, "Oh, Mr. Higurashi's granddaughter?"

Inu Yasha nodded his head, "Yea… how do you know him?"

Inu Taisho smiled, "His wife owned the bakery mom likes going to. May she rest in peace. That's fine son, just be back before dark, alright? I'll be leaving soon to go pick up your mother and baby brother. Here, I'll walk you over." He washed his hands and dried them on the apron he was wearing. "Sessho Maru! I'll be right back." He yelled so his oldest son would hopefully hear him from upstairs.

The duo walked to their neighbor's house and as soon as Inu Taisho spotted Kagome, he instantly knew why Inu Yasha wanted to play with her. They were greeted by her parents. The adults instantly struck up a conversation and allowed the children to play at the park. Instead of walking out of the closed community they lived in, Kagome led him through the back yard.

"I always go through here. I like this park better because it has more swings and more kids." She grabbed a bundle of what looked like rope and sticks and carried it over to where a storage bin was pushed up against the wall. Inu Yasha took a moment to examine the back yard. It was relatively small compared to his house, but it was neatly kept and lively with all the flowers in bloom and the grass was a healthy shade of green. "There we go! My grandpappy and daddy made this for me so I could get to the park and get back into the yard."

She hooked up the rope ladder to the lip of the wall, which was kept in place by two rods that measured about a foot long. She climbed over the wall and jumped. Inu Yasha followed and followed Kagome.

The two played for hours, their laughter rung in the air as they lost track of time. The ice cream man came around and Inu Yasha was happy he had his wallet on him. They shared a sundae. Once they were done, the two laid side by side on a slope near the field and watched the clouds go by.

"Today's been a lot of fun. Thank you Inu. Can we play every day?" Kagome asked as she turned her head to face him. "I know I'm leaving soon but… today I feel like you became my best friend. I don't have many friends back home."

Inu Yasha smiled back at her, admiring how pretty she looked in the frilly blue tank top and denim shorts. "Sure Kagome. I'd like that. My best friend isn't here right now so it's nice to have someone else to play with. For a girl, you're pretty cool." He teased at the end. Kagome giggled. Inu Yasha adjusted himself and rested his head on his right arm, his left laid by his side near Kagome.

"I wish I didn't have to go." Kagome admitted with a sad sigh. They were both silent for a moment.

Inu Yasha was the first to speak up, "Let's not think about it, ok?" his breath hitched in his throat when he felt Kagome hold his hand. He stared at her, but her attention never left as she looked up toward the sky, a small but sad smile on her face. He smiled himself and held her hand a little tighter.

His heart thundered in his chest. He liked this feeling, being beside Kagome. He didn't know exactly what it was what his was he was feeling, but he was very certain about one thing: he really liked her.

"Kagome!" came the distant call of her mother, "Time to come in and wash up for dinner!"

The two hadn't realized how fast time had gone by. Inu Yasha helped her up and together they slowly walked back to the ladder. Kagome was the first to climb over and as soon as her companion was on the other side with her, she pulled up the ladder and tossed on the ground beside them. She walked him over to the side gate and opened it so Inu Yasha could get home.

"Play with me tomorrow?" she asked as they walked to the front yard.

"Sure. Same time tomorrow?" Kagome nodded her head. "Ok. See you." They stood in awkward silence. A minute must have gone before Kagome moved toward him and wrapped her arms around his neck. Again Inu Yasha's breath hitched, but not a moment was wasted as he snaked his arms around her waist and held her close. She nuzzled into his neck. He didn't realize how short she was compared to him. She barely reached her jaw line, and they were the same age.

"Yo, time to come home."

Both kids jumped away from one another, putting their hands behind their backs as they turned to the voice that startled them. Sessho Maru rasied a brow at them.

"Sessho-Maru!" hissed Inu Yasha, fighting down the blush that burned his face, "Don't scare us like that!"

His brother rolled his eyes, "Sorry I ruined the moment between you and your girlfriend." At this both of them blushed harder and tried to deny the accusations, but it fell on deaf ears, "Any way, dinner is ready and mom is home. They made me come get you."

Inu Yasha scowled at him before turning back to Kagome, "I'll… I'll see you tomorrow, ok?"

"Ok. Bye Inu."

"Bye… Kagome."

The month had gone by in a blur and true to their word; they played with each other every day for hours. Today was Kagome's last day and they had promised to meet early and have a picnic at the park. Inu Yasha loaded his backpack with the peanut butter sandwiches he made and some fruit cups. He opened the fridge top put away the jelly and grab some juice boxes.

He was very sad, but he promised he would make the most of today. He knew he really liked Kagome and he had hoped that maybe she would come and visit, even though she lived far and there was nowhere for her to stay. There was no reason for her to come to town anymore.

He went up into his room and open up his sock drawer of his dresser to get a capsule for the quarter machine that can be found at grocery stores. Opening it up, he smiled as he took out the necklace his mother helped him buy with his allowance money for Kagome as a token of their friendship. It was a silver chain with a heart pendant and the white half of a yin-yang. He had the other half of the yin-yang on a matching necklace he kept in a box on his desk. He pocketed the capsule and reach for another, holding it delicately in his hand and carefully slipping it into his other pocket. He set his backpack down on his bed and opened it up to place one of his stuffed animals inside to also give to Kagome as a good bye present. Once he was sure he had everything that he needed, he shouldered his backpack once more and left his house, only stopping to say goodbye to his mother and give her and his baby brother a kiss on the forehead.

The back gate of Kagome's grandfather's house was already open and he wasted no time to scaling the wall and jogging over to who was sitting under the sheltered picnic area where she and her mother had set up a table cover, some cupcakes and utensils.

"Hello Inu Yasha." Kagome's mother said. "Stand next to Kagome so I can take a picture of you two before I go. I want to thank you for being such a good friend to her. It means a lot to us."

Inu Yasha blushed a little as he stood next to Kagome who wore a pretty yellow spaghetti strapped sundress that reached down to her knees. Her hair was down and one side was pulled back by a large white flower barrette. She looked stunning to him and he felt inadequately dressed in his black knee length shorts and red t-shirt. Maybe he should have worn his nicer sneakers instead of the beat up converses.

Kagome startled him a little as she hugged him around the waist and rested her head on his shoulder. She was awfully quiet today. She held her around the shoulder with one arm and smiled up at the camera when her mother prompted them. There was a flash and he was blinded momentarily. Kagome's mother took a couple of more pictures and finally excused herself.

"Don't forget Kagome, you only have a few hours before we go, ok?" Kagome nodded as she handed Inu Yasha a plate, her face somber and distant as if her thoughts were elsewhere.

"You ok Kagome?" Inu Yasha said softly as he carefully opened up his backpack so she couldn't see what was inside.

"Not really." She said softly, "I don't… I don't want to go." She looked up at him as her eyes brimmed with tears. Inu Yasha felt his eyes watered a little.

"I don't want you to go either Kagome. I… I really like you." She looked up at him in shock. He stuttered, "Uh, uh… you're a good friend. I like you a lot like a friend." He felt a pang when she saddened again.

"Oh. I like you a lot too. You are a good friend."

The two ate in silence. It was depressing and neither of them liked it. The minutes slowly ticked by and both of them, after they were done with their picnic, sat on the hill in silence. They watched the clouds go by and savored their last moments together.

"Your friend Koga comes back tomorrow, doesn't he?" she asked, picking blades of grass absent mindedly as she looked down to look at her pink painted toe nails. "I wish I could have met him."

Inu Yasha chuckled, "You're not missing much. He's a nice guy, but I'm more fun." He joked.

Kagome laughed a little, "Still, it would have been nice."

"Yea."

"Inu Yasha?"

He turned his head to look at her, "Yea?"

"I'm sorry."

His head tilted a little from the confusion. "Huh?"

"I'm sorry I never got a chance to meet you sooner and be your friend sooner. I'm sorry I live so far away and I might not ever come back. Just know that you're like, my best friend. Even if you're a boy. Promise you'll never forget me? I'm… moving further up north, so I won't be that close anymore."

He reached for her hand, "Only if you never forget me. Here." He reached into his pocket with the necklace, "I got you this."

"Inu…" her voice trailed as she opened the capsule. Her bottom lip quivered as tears began to stream down her cheeks, "It's pretty. I… why?" she turned to look at him. She gently lifted the necklace out of the container.

Inu Yasha got up to kneel in front of her, "Kagome… I… I really like you. More then just my friend." Both of them blushed, but he continued, "I've never felt this way before and I want you to keep that to remember me and friendship by. Also…" he reached into his other pocket. He briefly wondered if Kagome to hear the thundering of his little heart. He was ridiculously nervous and felt his stomach doing flips.

"Kagome Higurashi, you've made me feel like the luckiest guy in the world. I'm really glad I met you and…" he opened the container and Kagome gasped, her face flushed with a bright red blush. "I love you. When I'm old enough, I'll find you again. When we're old enough… would you… would you marry me?" he could only hope he was doing this right. He had only watched a few sappy love move and this was usually how the guy got his girl.

Kagome sobbed and unable to form a sentence, let alone utter a single word, she nodded furiously and lunged towards him, wrapping her arms around his neck. Inu Yasha suddenly felt like crying as he held her.

"I'm going to miss you Kagome. Will you write to me when you get home?" Again, Kagome nodded. They pulled apart so he could slip on the cheap metal ring with the faux sapphire gem he got on sale for thirty dollars at Wal-Mart onto her necklace since he knew it would be too big for any of her fingers.

"Thank you Inu Yasha. I… I love you too. I've had this big crush on you since the first day we played together." She blushed. Inu Yasha smiled.

Before either of them could say anything, they heard her mother call to them from the sheltered picnic area as she cleaned up their table. Both of them frowned but went to join her. Once everything was cleaned, Kagome's mother drove them home. The first stop was Inu Yasha's house so Kagome to say goodbye to his mother and his baby brother who were the only ones home since Sessho-Maru was out with his friends and Inu Taisho was at work.

"It was good to meet you Kagome." Izayoi, Inu Yasha's mother said as she gently placed Shippo in her arms. The baby cooed a little when Kagome gave him an Eskimo kiss.

"It was nice to meet you too Mrs. Takahashi. I'll try to write to you and come to birthday parties."

Izayoi smiled gently, "We'll try to do the same Kagome. I gave your parents our address so you could write to my son."

Before Inu Yasha walked her out, he invited her to his room. "I have one more gift." He opened up his backpack and handed her his favorite stuffed animal. It was a little black puppy with a red ribbon around its neck. "This is Oscar, I've had him since I was a baby. I want you to have him and take care of him for me, ok?" he blushed, "I'm… I'm too old for him now, but since you're a girl, it's ok for you to have him no matter what. Ok?"

Kagome nuzzled him, "Thank you." She leaned in a gave Inu Yasha a quick peck on the lips, "I'll never forget you, and please… when we're older. Come find me. I don't know where I'm moving too… but I promise, I'll write to you."

Together they walked back to her grandfather's house where everyone was loading into either the family car or the moving truck. Kagome's father greeted him for the final time and handed him a small frame. In it was the picture of him and Kagome on their picnic.

"Something to remember her by. Good luck Inu Yasha, and thank you for being a good friend to my little girl." He patted the boy on the shoulder and climbed into the truck. As the car began to move, Kagome rolled down her window and poked her head out. She waved at him.

"Don't forget your promise! You'll find me again!"

He waved goodbye and sighed broken hearted, "I promise." He whispered to himself as he stood there until the car turned the corner and disappeared from his sight. He looked down at the picture and smiled. She was pretty in it, just like always.

"Koga's gonna be back soon but… I don't know if I want to tell him. He might make fun of me. No, he doesn't need to know. It's… it's no big deal."

With that said, Inu Yasha walked back and tried to ignore the pain in his young heart.

AN: Well now… that was a lot longer then the original and pretty different. I like it than what I originally had because needless to say, it was pretty retarded, haha. I hope I evoked some feels for their summer love. Onward to the next chapter!