Sorry the update took longer than expected. Thank you for reviewing, faving, enjoying, etc! please continue to do so
xoxo
-VQ
Saturday Afternoon
Rin was on her way home from a lunch date with Kagome. Since she was only dealing with one client, she had a lot more free time on her hands. Not only that, Inuyasha encouraged Kagome to spend more time with Rin so he could find out what was going on with Sesshomaru. He claimed he was just interested but deep down, he was worried.
While Rin couldn't go into any explicit details about his progress due to doctor-patient confidentiality, she still managed to tell Kagome how he was doing.
She parked her car in the parking garage and took the elevator upstairs to her apartment. Once she was inside, to her surprise, there laid Kohaku, sprawled out across the couch with a flask hanging out of his hand.
Kohaku changed a lot over the years. He started to become cold and dark. He drank heavily and yelled often. He used to be the only person who was good to Rin, but he became the person who treated her worse than anyone in the world could.
Rin shut and locked the door, startling Kohaku awake.
"What the fuck! I was asleep! Can't you be quieter?" He barked, causing her to flinch.
"I-I'm sorry. I tried to be as quiet as I could but—"
"No you weren't." He said as he sat up. "Where were you anyway? You're not at home as often anymore. I call your house phone, I stop by all the time and you're never here." He slowly walked up to her with cold, deadly rage in his eyes. "Are you cheating on me?"
"No!" She argued. "I was out with Kagome!"
He chuckled sarcastically. "So you're suddenly spending time with her again?" His eyes glossed over with a ghostly evil as he approached her.
"Wha…what are you doing, Kohaku?" She asked fearfully as she backed up against the wall.
"You don't love me anymore." He said in a monotone voice as he grasped her neck tightly.
Rin felt like he was squeezing the life out of her. She didn't know how to get out of his grip. She started to cough and gasp for air. 'Why is he doing this? What happened to him?'
"Ko…Koha…ku…please stop." She managed to say as she tried to pry his fingers off her neck.
Rin started feeling weak and faint. She continued to sadly stare at the evil look in Kohaku's eyes and wonder what happened to him. The sweet boy she loved for so long was gone. 'We were supposed to get married this winter…'
Knock. Knock. Knock. "Rin? It's me! I-I heard you come in. I have some of your mail."
It was her wolf demon neighbor, Ayame. Rin and Kohaku both knew how well she could hear so Kohaku quickly let go and ran towards her window.
Rin gasped for air and held the sides of her harshly bruised neck. "Kohaku, wait!"
He didn't even turn around. He opened the window and jumped out onto the fire escape.
"I guess it's over." She said to herself.
Rin threw a scarf over her neck and opened the door.
She smiled happily the second she saw Ayame's face and Ayame returned the gesture.
"Here you go!" She said as she handed her the mail. She looked at Rin's face and noticed she was very pale and ghost-like. "Are…you alright?"
Rin nodded. "I'm fine! Do you want to come in and have some tea?"
Ayame couldn't deny the gorgeous smile on Rin's face. It was always so inviting. She flipped her red hair onto one shoulder and nodded happily. "Of course I'll have tea with you!"
Rin filled with joy. She knew she had to move on and not let anything interrupt her life or her happiness.
No matter how many shadows covered the sun, it would never stop shining.
Monday, 4 AM
Rin was lying in bed trying to go to sleep. She had stayed up all night wondering if Kohaku would ever come back, either to apologize or finish attempting to kill her.
She sighed and turned over onto her stomach.
"Kohaku is all I know. He's been my only love since I was a child. How am I supposed to move on?"
She looked over at the picture of the two of them together on her nightstand. She reached over and pushed the picture on the hardwood floor, cracking the glass on the frame.
She slid the diamond flower ring off her finger and threw it towards the wall.
"I'll be okay. I know I will."
Monday Afternoon
Rin showed up for work hours later than she normally did. She was able to disregard her rough weekend and focus on her job only: The place where she was relevant, she was needed and she was changing the lives of others.
"Good afternoon, Dr. Asano!" A young girl said sweetly from behind the desk.
"Oh, hello. Are you the new intern?"
The young girl nodded. "My name is Shiori. I'm so glad I get to talk to you in person. You've really inspired me. I think you're so brave for taking The Hound as your client."
'I'm brave?' She wondered to herself. 'Does my desire to help make me brave?'
"I'm glad someone is reaching out to him." Shiori admitted as she flipped her silver bangs up, showing more of her glowing, purple eyes. "I think everyone needs help, no matter what kind of sins they've committed."
Rin smiled upon hearing Shiori sound so mature for her young age. "Your attitude will get you far." She told her as she headed down the hall.
Rin wore heels again. They clicked down the white halls beneath the buzzing lights. 'White halls, white walls…this place is so dull. Staying here can make someone's mental state even worse, if you ask me. Keeping people locked up in places like this where they're miserable will only make them worse.'
Sesshomaru heard Rin's heels click down the hall again. A smirk crept into the corner of his mouth. "I smell it in her scent. A speck of sadness. This should be interesting."
Rin slowly opened the door and was surprised to see Sesshomaru sitting on his bed looking directly at her as though he was waiting for her. She showed him her usual smile but today, it was different. The way her smile was bright enough to overshadow that speck of darkness in her heart sent chills down his spine. He was fascinated with the way she could shield her sadness.
"There's something different about you today…Rin." He said sinisterly.
Rin was taken aback by the way he said her name for the first time; the way it rolled off his tongue like it was something delectable…something he ordered off a menu. But, she was more surprised by the fact that he was actually speaking to her.
Rin stood in front of the door and tilted her head as a confused expression displayed on her face. "Different how?"
"What happened to the ring from your ring finger? And you're not doing a very good job of hiding the bruise on your neck with your collar." He told her as he stared at the wall.
Rin was fascinated with how observant he was for someone who hardly even looked at her.
"What happened?" He asked as he looked up at her.
Rin was utterly stunned. 'Does he care about me? The way he's asking…he seems concerned.' Unbeknownst to her, a blush spread across her cheeks as her smile widened. She began to giggle slightly.
"What's with your face? I was simply asking a question out of curiosity. Nothing more."
"Hmm. Let's focus more on you being off solitary confinement."
Sesshomaru's eyes widened. He was trapped in that room for so long. The last time he walked down the halls, he had just arrived at the hospital.
"You're quite stupid for a doctor." He said rudely as he crossed his arms.
"Huh?"
"You're setting off the balance of this place. No one will be happy to see me sitting anywhere near them."
"Caring about what others think. That isn't like you!" She said as her sweet smile turned sinister.
Sesshomaru leered at her as she continued to talk. "This isn't about them." She explained. "It's about you, and us proving that you aren't what they think you are."
"Hmph. I don't have to prove anything to anyone."
Rin continued to smile gleefully. "Right, right!" She reached to her hip and grasped the walkie talkie. "Okay, we're ready for you now."
"What are you doing?" He asked.
Two men holding shackles came in put the chains on Sesshomaru's legs and arms. "What the hell is this?" He questioned in a furious tone.
The men locked the cuffs and stood to leave the room. "Should we help you escort him, Doctor?"
Rin shook her head. "No, no. I can handle this. Thank you!"
The men nodded and left the room.
Rin turned to Sesshomaru who was staring at the shackles angrily like he wanted to burn holes in them with his eyes.
"Sorry." She said sincerely and apologetically. "If it were up to me, I wouldn't escort you out of here like this."
Sesshomaru let out a low growl as he glared at her.
"Now, shall we go?" She said with a smile as she opened the door for him.
Sesshomaru hesitantly stood and slowly walked out into the hallway. He had forgotten what that long hall looked like and how it felt to walk down it. He followed behind Rin, eyeing down her slender legs to her annoying black clicking heels.
Rin slowed down her pace to allow Sesshomaru to catch up to her. She looked up at him as they continued down the hall together. She was excited to be the one to take this step with him and help him move forward. She grasped his big, muscular arm with her soft, tiny fingers and continued to lead him to the patient cafeteria.
Sesshomaru cut his eyes at her when he realized that she was touching him, but he found something profound about the determined, yet excited look on her face as she lead him down the hall. He let out a defeated sigh and continued to follow. The dark fortress around his soul was slowly beginning to crumble, whether he wanted to admit it or not.
Rin opened the cafeteria door and Sesshomaru slowly walked in with his chains jingling and jangling as they dragged along. Everyone in the cafeteria looked up at him as the room immediately became dead silent like a muted television.
Patients were either staring or being asked to be brought back to their rooms. Others were just sitting around, oblivious to the situation because they were too far gone or heavily medicated.
"Okay, there you have it. I'll leave you to make some new friends!"
"You're going?"
Rin was laughing inside. 'Yes! A sign of weakness.' "Would you like me to stay and have lunch with you?"
"All I did was ask if you intended to leave or not."
Rin nodded. "I won't if you want me to stay." She said with a sweet grin. "All you have to do is say the word."
"Just go." He told her as he sat down at one of the tables.
Rin shook her head. 'He's so proud. He could have just asked.' She sat down next to him and he gawked at her.
"Why are you still here? I told you to go."
"Wait just a second! You can't tell me what to do, you know. But if you really want me to leave—"
"Do what you want. You already said I couldn't tell you what to do."
Rin smiled and handed him a paper bag. "Unless you want jell-o and a dry cheese sandwich."
Sesshomaru stared at her before snatching the bag out of her hand. He could hear others around the cafeteria whispering about him.
"Isn't that The Hound?"
"He doesn't seem like a crazed and deranged killer."
"You think Dr. Asano can help him?"
"I can hear you!" He said angrily.
Rin looked around the cafeteria at the frightened people covering their mouths and pointing fingers. She put a hand on Sesshomaru's shoulder. "Just ignore them. You're doing just fine."
"Tch."
