*French-accented voice from Spongebob* Two…months…later…
Haha I'm back, guys. This is a short chapter, but it's a good one (at least I think so but I might be biased).
Also I FINALLY updated How Far We've Come, so if you're already following it, go check it out! If you haven't read it, still go check it out! ;)
Enjoy!
Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha or its characters. All rights to Rumiko Takahashi.
Chapter 3: Bright Future
"And then root beer shot out of her nose because she was laughing so hard!"
The table erupted into laughter at my own expense. I tried to give Sango a reproachful look for telling Miroku and Inuyasha about one of my most embarrassing moments, but I could only chuckle along.
"That's why I never drink root beer now," I explained. The laughter increased as Inuyasha wrapped his arm around me.
"It's never a dull moment with you," he said as he quickly kissed my cheek.
This was the third time Miroku and Inuyasha had come to visit us since my boyfriend and I had become official. They worked together, so their days off were usually the same. Those days had been when they would drive to my and Sango's apartment to spend the day with us.
During this visit, we'd decided to go out and try a new restaurant. Miroku had ordered root beer, and had questioned me when I crinkled my nose and stifled a gag.
That's when Sango had told him the story of when I snorted the beverage out my nose at something funny she'd said in one of the few classes we'd shared together. After that, the professor had banned all drinks from class. Talk about embarrassing.
"I'm glad you guys can find some humor in my mortification," I teased. That only set them off again.
"Sango, dearest," Miroku said as he turned to her. "You must have some sort of embarrassing moment like Kagome's. Care to share?" Sango thought for a moment.
"Actually, yes," she replied. "It was at a Christmas party that Kagome's family had hosted a few years back, and it had to do with Kagome's weirdo cousin and some mistletoe…" As she dove into her story, Inuyasha took my hand under the table and laced his fingers with mine.
We'd talked about breaking away from Miroku and Sango so we could have some time alone, which we knew the other couple wanted, too. We'd driven in separate cars for that exact reason.
Then we'd started telling stories and we'd gotten distracted. I could tell my boyfriend was eager to get out of there, but we would have to wait a little longer. We were having too good of a time to end our evening with Miroku and Sango.
But then he started stroking my hand with his thumb…and then I started feeling antsy.
Sango finished the story about ten minutes later, and even though I was ready to get out of the restaurant, I couldn't help but contribute to her embarrassment. It was actually a really funny story, so I figured Inuyasha could wait a little longer.
Once the story was over, I gave Sango a discreet Look. She nodded and turned to Miroku.
"Do you want to go to that little café I showed you last time you visited?" she asked sweetly. Miroku smiled at her and nodded.
"We'll catch up with you two later?" Sango asked Inuyasha and I. We both nodded eagerly. After paying their portion of the bill, they left.
Soon after Inuyasha tugged on my hand.
"Let's head out, too," he said. I quickly moved to follow him as he stood up after paying. I'd been waiting for some alone moments with him all day, and now that it was finally happening, butterflies were zooming around in my stomach.
We decided to just go back to my apartment to watch a movie. Knowing our past experiences with movies, I knew we probably wouldn't see too much of it. Memories of our first "date" made me blush as I drove off in the direction of the apartment.
When we arrived, we headed straight to the door and as soon as I closed it behind us, Inuyasha was wrapping his arms around me and leaning down.
Our lips met in a soft kiss that slowly built up. He deepened the kiss not too long after, and I could feel how much he had missed me from that one kiss. I wrapped my arms around his neck and titled my head to try and pull him impossibly closer.
When we pulled away to breathe, Inuyasha wrapped me in a simple, tender hug. His hands brushed up and down my back as we just held onto each other.
"I missed you," he murmured in my ear. "I know I told you that this morning when we got here, but I'm saying it again." I giggled and kissed the crook of his neck where my head was settled.
"I missed you, too," I replied. "Like, I missed you so much it was stupid." Inuyasha laughed and released me. He led me over to the couch and sat, pulling me down next to him.
"What movie do you want to watch?" I asked as I grabbed the remote. Inuyasha stopped my hand by taking it in his own.
"Actually, I need to talk to you about something," he said seriously. The smile had disappeared from his face.
"What's wrong?" I asked, concern instantly filling me. Inuyasha looked nervous.
"Well, nothing is really wrong, exactly," he began. "It's just…um, I've been talking to my dad lately." I smiled.
"That's great!" I encouraged. Inuyasha shrugged.
"Yeah," he replied, not as enthused. "I mean, It's been hard. There's a lot of stuff that we needed to talk about. We needed to air out all our dirty laundry, you know?" I nodded. I knew he was talking about his mother's death. He and his father had stopped speaking after his mom's tragic death.
"But, yeah," Inuyasha continued. "I went over to his house for dinner a few nights last week and it's been pretty good." I smiled.
"I'm so happy for you two," I replied. "So what made you guys start talking again?" Inuyasha avoided my eyes and fidgeted nervously.
"Uh, well," he stuttered, "that's kind of what I want to talk to you about." His hold on my hand tightened as he finally met my gaze.
"It was time for me to make amends with my dad," he explained, "because I wanted him to meet the girl I love." My eyes widened as I took in Inuyasha's words.
Inuyasha took my other hand in his. "Kagome, I love you," he said simply. "I've known since that all-nighter." Tears started to gather in my eyes but I tried to will them away.
"I love you, too, Inuyasha," I replied. "So much." Inuyasha smiled brightly and leaned forward to kiss me.
After his lips left mine, he pulled me against him. We just held each other for a few moments until he leaned back to cup my cheeks in his hands.
"Will you come home with me soon?" Inuyasha asked. "Maybe the next time we come visit?" I nodded excitedly.
"Yes," I replied. "And will you meet my mom, too? She should meet the boy I love." Inuyasha grinned.
"It depends on what you've said about me," he teased. "Any bad things?" I rolled my eyes.
"Oh, yeah," I replied sarcastically, barely able to suppress a laugh. "I told her all about how you were sleeping instead of studying the night before a final." Inuyasha chuckled.
"Dang," he joked. "I guess I'll have to really impress her when I meet her. I can't leave her with that idea of me." We both laughed as I snuggled against him again.
We wound up turning a movie on, but we talked through pretty much the whole thing. Inuyasha wanted to hear about my younger brother, and it only seemed fair to warn him about how hyper Sota could be. I knew that he would like Inuyasha, so I wasn't too worried.
When Sango and Miroku got home a couple hours later, I knew it was time to say goodbyes.
I decided to walk Inuyasha out to his car to give Miroku and Sango some privacy to say their own farewells. And, yeah, I wanted some privacy with Inuyasha, too.
As soon as we reached his car, he pulled me tightly against him. "I love you," he said softly. I smiled and leaned up to kiss him.
"I love you, too," I murmured against his lips.
Miroku met us at the car several minutes later, so Inuyasha and I took it as our cue to let go of each other. I smiled bitter-sweetly at him as got behind the wheel and Miroku walked around to the passenger side.
"See you later, Miroku," I said with a smile and a wave.
"Bye, Kagome," Miroku replied, mirroring my smile.
Inuyasha rolled his window down to give me a final kiss goodbye.
"I can't wait to meet your dad," I said quietly to Inuyasha. He smiled widely.
"Me neither," he replied.
I stepped away from the car so that Inuyasha could pull out of the parking spot. I waved until they were out of sight; luckily, this time I kept my tears at bay. Things were growing stronger between us, and I knew that the future was bright.
It was all because I loved him and he loved me.
To be continued…
I've already started working on chapter 4, so it should be up within the next few days. I'll try to make it great ;)
Much love. :)
