Chapter 4: Misogyny
000
She saw him a week later.
He hadn't answered her texts and since she had time, she figured that she would try to find him on campus.
At least then she could return the clothes.
She tried not to draw too much attention to herself. This particular school was like 88% demon and Rin felt like she stuck out as an outsider, someone not as smart or cool as the others.
She wandered around the large campus until she found the spot where she first met him and his friends. She sat on the bench and saw the judgmental looks from the people surrounding her. Rin was wearing jeans, a trench coat-like jacket, and her converse. Her hair was in a messy bun and her glasses laid on her tired face. She was kinda a hot mess compared to the preppy kids at this school.
She scanned the area looking for him, hoping for him. This wasn't really about the clothes or the drawings, she just really wanted to see him.
Yeah, she had a huge crush on the unattainable demon who hated her kind, but that was Rin. She could never really get what she wanted.
Keeping herself busy with her phone, she played games and texted her aunt. Maybe it was a bad time to see him. He could have two classes in a row or he could be busy. She should have asked before randomly showing up at his campus like he wanted to see her.
In her angst, she was about to leave and then, she felt that strange pull that she figured she'd never understand.
Then she saw him.
And he was with a girl.
She was gorgeous. She had long brown hair, a thin frame, and tall legs. She looked like a Victoria's Secret model, while Rin looked like Rin. His hand was on the model's back, moving down to her perfectly shaped rear. He was close to her, a seductive look on his face. His lips moved to her ear, whispering sweet nothings that made her giggle. Then he kissed her. She wrapped her perfectly toned arms around his neck and kissed him back with equal vigor.
Two beautiful people making out is something like that of a movie. It's fun to watch, and you feel a bit jealous but at the same time turned on.
For an onlooker like Rin, whose only wish is to be in place of one of those people, it was a nightmare.
Rin did think that heartbreak was romantic. The feeling of your breath being stolen from your lungs, the tears forming in your eyes, your heart pounding slower and slower, only to fall into your stomach, was something that sounded so eerily exhilarating, until it happened to her.
"Waste of time," she said to herself while fighting back the tears. She shouldn't have been crying, they only met once, and they were only friends.
However, Rin was a romantic and thought that they would end up together because fate had a plan for them. A forbidden love, if you will. She guessed that the pull was just hormones after all. She hated that he might have been right all along.
Wiping her one tear she sighed and began to walk back to her dorm, cursing herself that she liked him so much when she knew he would never ever date her.
Sesshomaru must have moved while Rin was crying because then she saw him with another group of friends including the girl he was dry humping a few minutes ago. They were talking and most likely going to a party at the end of the day. They were all too beautiful to be true. Rin plucked up enough courage to go over to the large group of demons, she didn't want to keep a reminder of him, even if it was just laundry, "Are you Sesshomaru Taisho?"
It seemed like Sesshomaru had been preparing for her to say something, like he had seen her, "I am."
She handed him the bag with his clothes, "You left this in the laundry room."
He took it while the other demons looked at Rin and whispered, "Thanks."
"Don't mention it," she replied with a sad smile. She walked away biting her lip, refusing to look back. She could only imagine what they would say about her. She's was short, curvy, and human. They could pick her apart based on those characteristics alone. It seemed like discrimination would always linger on in the world.
"I've never seen her around here," one demon said aloud, while checking out the human girl blatantly.
"I think she goes to the all girls school down the street," Sesshomaru said while holding up the bag that seemed to be from the university store.
"What were you doing there, Taisho?," one said with a wink.
"Don't worry about it," he replied, hooking his arm with the girl he was making out with before, "Let's party."
000
"Oh, Sesshomaru!," she screamed underneath him. He felt as if he was doing a job, not pleasuring himself.
The sex was shit. He didn't cum. He was left feeling very unsatisfied while the girl he sexed with came like 7 ½ times. He was barely hard, but when he thought of Rin, naked, and underneath him, he would feel it right away. He pretended she was under him, but this girl was too loose and too tall to be Rin. It didn't feel right to him.
Why did this shit happen to him? He didn't ask for this human girl to walk into his life, yet she did, and she made him not cum. God he resented her at the moment. He felt as if all his problems were her fault.
However, he was the one who figured out her art class and signed up to be a model. He was the one who chose her to be his artist, and he knew why, and he hated it. He refused to even believe that such a thing was possible, that this pill was possible.
He hated the connection, so he tried to sever it the easiest way possible. He wanted her beautiful face eliminated from his memory. He wanted to destroy her in the most humane way possible. So he had sex with other women and treated her like a second class citizen by ignoring her.
He was cursing himself for taking the assignment of a model. He would have to still see her. He was selfish though, for he didn't want anyone else to be her model. She would see no other man naked. That is of course until he breaks the pull, then she can see any man she wanted.
The inner turmoil was too much for him. He wanted her gone from his life, but he couldn't leave her alone either.
He left the girl in the morning and met up with his jerk friends outside the frat house. He really needed to take note of where he was when he went to parties because he usually had no idea.
"Taisho," one said, "We're getting breakfast. Coming?"
"Sure," he said making sure he had his wallet with his card and money in it.
They walked from their regretful nights and into a nearby café, which Sesshomaru recognized, but couldn't remember where. That bothered him.
He sat down with his friends, and once they talked it over, he suddenly remembered where he was, but it was too late.
That fucking pull came back.
She walked over in her tight black shirt and pants. She clearly looked nervous as she walked over to the table, refusing to make eye contact with Sesshomaru, which he deserved. He couldn't blame her for not wanting to see him after the way he treated her yesterday.
"Welcome to Café Vanille. I'm Rin and I will be taking care of you," she began, "Can I start you guys off with some drinks?"
One of the douchebags started first, "You can take care of me any day, sweetheart. Coffee, please."
Rin fought the urge to roll her eyes and moved to the next douchebag, "Okay, and for you?"
The second douchebag stared right at her breasts, "Same for me, honey."
Then, Rin turned to the man who haunted her dreams, who refused to look at her, "Make that 3."
Rin nodded and faked a smile, "I'll get that for you right away."
As she walked away, douchebag number one began to say very inappropriate comments, "Damn. That's the girl with the laundry, right? She's human and I would love to slam that pussy all night long. I bet she's a screamer."
Sesshomaru's jaw clenched, "Must you talk about women in such a way?"
"Coming from the king of sex?," douchebag 2 commented, "You don't have any respect for women. Not like you should, they're only good for sex, cleaning, and having kids."
Rin could hear them from the kitchen counter, and she wanted to dump the pot of coffee she was bringing over on all of their stupid faces. Disrespectful assholes. She really wanted to keep her job though, so she couldn't, no matter how tempting it seemed.
She waited a bit longer to bring the coffee so she could cool down and hear the rest of their conversation, "Taisho, you have to admit she's hot. I've never seen a human with a better rack. They're natural, and that ass."
Rin was not a piece of meat, she was living, breathing being, and right now, she wanted to go over there and kick them out of the establishment, but again, she could not. Maybe if things got out of hand, she could get the owner, who was a demon himself. He could take care of them.
She didn't want to cause a scene, so putting on fake smile, she walked over with three mugs, a pot of coffee, milk and cream, and sugar, "Here you go, boys. All ready to order?"
Douchebag 1 winked at Sesshomaru as she pulled out her pencil to write down the order, "I'll have you."
Rin's eyes widened, "Pardon me?"
Douchebag 2 decided it was a good idea to add, "You heard him."
Rin didn't know how to react, and the fact that Sesshomaru was watching it happen, made her want to die. Why would he just watch this unfold in front of him? Didn't he have any integrity?
"Come on, sweetheart," douchebag 1 said while grabbing her wrist, "We can get out of here, and go somewhere else to have some fun."
"I really don't want to," she said firmly while snatching her hand away from the demon.
"Come on," douchebag 2 chirped, "You know you want to, baby. After he's done, I'm free to do whatever, too."
"I SAID NO!," she screamed at them, no longer caring about the consequences, "Do you understand what that means?"
"Fine, bitch," douchebag 1 replied whom getting up and pushing the tray to the floor. The pot and mugs crashed onto the floor loudly, pouring hot coffee and milk all over Rin's legs. Glass crashed and spread all over the area, cutting a part of Rin's hand as she picked it up. Everyone in the café turned and looked as the two douchebags left. Sesshomaru didn't meet her eyes as he got up and began to walk away from the scene he left. He wanted to beat the shit out of those guys. He wanted to scoop her up in his arms and make the pain go away.
But he didn't.
"I thought we were friends," she whispered while crying softly and cleaning up the floor and the disgusting mess left by those awful boys.
He stopped for a moment. He should have turned around and helped her, given her a $20 tip. But instead, he walked out the door and followed the douchebags to the next location.
A few waitress friends came over to help and tried to make her feel better, to no avail. This was one thing that really fricken bothered her. She couldn't handle it. Honestly, after that display, she'd rather take the f in art than see that asshole ever again.
000
After work she was livid. She was covered in coffee and milk. She was sticky and nasty, and on top of that, Jay asked to meet her at Gabe's campus, because that was the first thing she wanted to do on her Saturday. She really could've just sat in her bed and watched Netflix for the rest of her life.
She went there anyway, hoping to bitch to her friend about how all people were assholes, but came to find the same group that walked her to the train station. Oh joy. Maybe it was an emergency or something important, but she hoped it was something dumb so she could go home, eat mac and cheese, and cry for a bit.
Her Dutch braids felt too tight all of the sudden as she felt that awful pull again. That awful awful pull. He was too close. Run away from the problem seemed like the best option, so that's what she decided on doing.
She went to turn around only for her dumb friend to scream her name, "Rin!"
'Really?,' she asked the sky before turning around with another fake smile. She seemed to be perfecting those lately, "Hey Jay."
"We are going to the movies," she said with a smile, "Wanna come with?"
"I would but," she sighed, "Some assholes dumped coffee on me at work, and I'd rather go to our dorm room to clean up."
"That's awful," Jay then texted her mate real quick, "How about you clean up and we can see a later movie? Then we can still have fun."
Rin thought about it for a minute, "I don't want to keep you guys waiting."
"You won't!," she explained with a smile, "We'd love to have you. We are going out for dinner afterward too. Gabe's treat."
"If it's alright with everyone else, then I'd love to," she replied.
"No problem. We'll meet you at our dorm and then go from there."
"Sounds perfect."
She walked away from her friend with a smile. It would be fun to get to know Gabe and his friends. They were really nice people, and Rin wanted to have new friends. That's what college was all about after all, well other than academics.
Walking home to her dorm was nice. She was able to think about things and write some cheesy poetry in her head about how the sun shined just right on the cracks in the sidewalk while the city children played on the streets without a care in the world. It would be nice to be a naïve child again, on who only knew what fun was, one who only knew happiness.
Walks were nice. They could really clear the mind, and bring out the imagination in almost anyone. The street art, the people, the architecture, all seemed to expose the creative and beautiful side of the city, something that was overlooked nowadays.
She felt at peace, finally making it to her campus and saying hi to some nice girls along the way. It was her one place where she felt really safe, like not even Sesshomaru could infiltrate it.
You couldn't get into the campus with out a college id. If you were with someone, you had to sign in and could only stay for a 72 hour period. There were campus police at different stations, watching the girls carefully and making sure nothing could happen to them.
There were rarely security breaches.
In this world, violence against women is too prevalent and Rin loved the fact that she felt protected. Her mother would be very happy to know that she was in safe hands.
Her only solace after her day was the shower that she and Jay shared. It was so clean and well kept. The hot water felt amazing. She was able to finally feel free of the grossness that plagued her in the morning.
She got out of the shower and dried her hair, only to throw it up in a messy bun, but it looked cute. She put in her contacts for once and applied a bit of mascara to her lashes. Next she threw on leggings, a David Bowie t shirt, and her black boots. Good enough for the movies and a casual dinner. She then grabbed her favorite jacket and called her friend while heading out the door.
She found they were waiting outside for her and Rin was happy to finally get out of campus with some friends.
"Hey guys!," she said with a wave, "Thanks for waiting."
"It's no problem, Rin," Gabe said with a smile, "We're waiting for Sesshomaru anyway."
Rin froze, that was the last person she wanted to see at this point in time, "Oh he's coming too? I thought he would have a party to go to."
"We're his second friends," Vic interrupted, "When his plans fall through, he comes to us. We call ourselves, the backups."
"That's shitty," Rin spoke up without holding back. How could he be such an ass 24/7?
"It is," Gabe laughed, "But I've known the guy forever. He's a good person, if he stopped being a player and stopped caring about what others think."
"He cares about what other people think of him?," Rin never thought that Sesshomaru would be one who really cares about others in general, much less what they thought of him.
"You have no idea, Chica," Diego chuckled behind her, "He wouldn't be caught dead in a relationship with a human after what his Father did."
Rin raised a brow, that was certainly an interesting statement, "What do you mean?"
Gabe shot a glare at Diego and hit his arm. Diego shrugged apologetically and Gabe continued, "It's not my place to say. If you ever get close to him, you can ask."
Rin rolled her eyes and began walking with the crew. Could all of his animosity for humans been a result from something his father did? Rin was very curious, though she stayed silent while they chatted and laughed at each other. She felt nervous to see him again. She just wanted to scream at him, but at the same time, she would probably forgive him if he apologized.
Rin wasn't one to hold grudges. Her mother always told her that holding grudges gave women wrinkles, so Rin was always kind and forgiving. If someone wronged her more than once, she would cut them from her life rather than ruminating on it for years.
She lived a happier life that way.
So, if Sesshomaru were to apologize, she would be friends again.
Though, she doubted that would happen.
Walking along with the group was peaceful until she felt that fucking pull again.
She needed to know what that was before it drove her insane, 'Note to self: Figure this all out.'
Soon she saw him and all his hotness. His body just screamed 'fuck me' and Rin desperately wanted to. The good girl wanted to be corrupted by this awful person before her, through she was unaware as to why.
He looked at her for a second before Gabe greeted him, "Hey Sessh. Long time no see."
Sesshomaru actually smiled and shook his friend's hand. Rin believed that the two were close even though Sesshomaru didn't agree with his mate choice. It seemed like the two really tried hard to stay friends, despite their differences, something that Rin found to be honorable.
Anyway, they walked to the movies, with Rin in the back of all of them. She crossed her arms and kept her purse on her shoulder while trailing behind, observing the city streets and the constellations in the sky. She saw the North Star and smiled at it, it was truly a beautiful thing. Stars were surreal to her, but she admired them with all her heart.
Before she knew it, Sesshomaru was walking with her, and instead of apologizing like she hoped he would, he chastised her, "A woman should not be walking alone at night in a city."
"You're not my father," she hissed, "Fuck off."
"Idiot," he said while grabbing her arm and dragging her towards her friends faster than she could walk.
"I didn't ask to be man handled," she yelled while pulling her arm from his grip.
"I'm trying to keep you safe," he whispered angrily before walking in front of her.
Her friends were oblivious to the situation, they were laughing in front of them, not looking back to the situation behind them, and Rin felt a little flutter in her stomach. Maybe he did care?
Or maybe he didn't. She still remembered how much of a bitch he was that morning and she wasn't going to let that slide so easily.
Unless he apologized, then she would let it go.
000
Once they actually got to the theater, Rin was super excited.
Her favorite super hero movie had recently come out and she was too happy to see it. Gabe and Sesshomaru split the bill, each paying for three people including themselves. Sesshomaru paid for Vic and Rin and Gabe paid for the rest.
Vic saw one of her ex girlfriends there with a new girl, which was awkward, seeing as how sad she looked, and Sesshomaru kept his distance from the crew, much to Rin's disdain. Maybe she would help set up her new friend in the future. Rin loved the LGBTQ community ever since her best friend came out to her, and she knew that it could be hard at times. Vic was really nice too, and seeing her sad, made Rin sad.
Anyway, it was kinda awkward in the actual movie theater. Rin sat in between Sesshomaru and Diego. Diego had been flirting with her since day 1 and Rin was sort of enthralled with the other demon next to her. She didn't want to hurt Diego, but she didn't want anything from him.
He put his arm around her, making her uncomfortable, and she noticed that Sesshomaru didn't even care, which in turn made her angry.
Why did everything suck?
She could barely focus on the movie, the only thing she was looking forward to, because of the situation. And she really really wanted to see this movie.
Soon, thankfully, they left to go out to dinner. They went to a local restaurant that wasn't too crowded, and they all sat a large booth, and this time Rin sat next to both Vic and Jay, so she wouldn't feel the awkwardness of being between two boys.
"Why didn't you go out to a party tonight with your friends?," Gabe asked Sesshomaru curiously.
"They're diseases," he said while taking a sip of his water, "They did something today that I did not agree with, and because of that, I severed ties with them."
"Wow," Gabe said, "What did they do?"
He glanced at Rin for a split second before replying, "Don't worry about it."
Rin felt her heart begin to beat a bit faster. Did he do that for her? She didn't want to get her hopes up. He still hated humans after all, but her tolerated her. A small smile formed on her face as she played with her salad.
The rest of the night was spent in laughter with everyone else. Rin enjoyed the company of others. Her whole life, she only really had 2 good friends, Jay and Kyle, but no one else had ever been kind or genuine. Most girls were fake and others were just cruel. These demons she was getting to know we're actually awesome people.
"How are your aunt and uncle?," Jaycee asked out of the blue after a silence plagued the table.
"They're great. Auntie wants to have a baby soon, so they're moving into a new house this summer," Rin said with a smile.
"A baby?," Jay smiled, "That's going to be the cutest half-demon."
"I know," Rin picked at her salad again, "They need help moving this summer, you in?"
"Most definitely," she replied, "Gabe will help too."
"I'll only help if Sesshomaru does," he interjected with a laugh.
Sesshomaru shrugged, "Okay."
Gabe's jaw dropped, "Are you alright? Do I need to take you to the hospital? You're worrying me."
Sesshomaru glared at his friend, "I'm fine."
"First, you said you stopped going to parties with your douchebag friends, and now you AGREED to help a human and a demon who are in a relationship?," Gabe spoke in aw. He had no idea how to react to this sudden change in his friend who hated humans.
"Calm down," Sesshomaru commanded while eating his food.
"I'm not going to calm down! Who are you and what have you done with Sesshomaru Taisho?," he seemed genuinely concerned.
"Listen to me, you imbecile. I do what I want. Nobody has any say in what I choose to do with my life. If I want to help her, I'll help her. Hop off my dick," he ended with an angry voice. He seemed frustrated with Gabe, and Rin chuckled a bit. She thought the interaction was rather funny.
"And he's back," Gabe said with a smile.
Leaving the restaurant was bitter sweet for Rin. She didn't want to leave Sesshomaru, but at the same time, she was still peeved at him. She turned to her friend, hoping to catch up with her on the past week.
"So, Jay, are we walking home?," Rin asked with a smile.
"Actually, I'm spending the night with Gabe," she replied with a blush, "Sorry."
"It's fine," Rin crossed her arms at her chest to keep herself warm. She was kinda sad that her friend constantly ditched her to have sex with her mate, but Rin would never tell her that. She didn't want to lose the rest friendship she had with her, so she could deal with the ditching from time to time.
"I volunteered Sesshomaru to walk you home," Gabe replied.
Sesshomaru glared daggers at him before complying, "Fine."
Rin nodded and said her goodbyes to Gabe and Jay. Now only four were left.
"Come on, Diego," Vic said while motioning for him to follow.
"Hold on!," he replied while walking up to Rin and handing her a piece of paper, "Here's my number. Maybe some day, we can go out, just the two of us."
"Like on a date?," Rin asked warily.
"Yeah," he replied with a smirk, "Just think about it, okay? I'll see you around."
"Okay," Rin said while putting the paper in her pocket, "See ya."
She waved to them and turned to Sesshomaru, whom she wanted to yell at, but didn't. He stared at her for a bit before walking behind her. The silence between them was almost deafening. That attraction and pull still lingered between the two of them and made the sexual tension too obvious to be ignored.
"Are you going to go out with him?," he asked her angrily.
She sighed and crossed her arms, "That's really none of your business."
"Don't do it," he walked up next to her, his body towering over her small, 5 foot 2 frame, "He's no good for you."
"How do you know?," she asked, "He seems very nice."
He stopped her and looked her straight in the eyes, "Don't do it."
"Well, I'm thinking I might," she replied venomously, "Because I don't think he can do much worse than watching me get both sexually and physically harassed by two men."
"Rin-"
"Don't," she interrupted, "I got the message loud and clear. You don't like me. It's fine."
"You don't understand," he said.
"Then tell me!," she yelled back, "I thought we were friends."
"We are friends," he said back, "But being with a human…"
"Appearances mean everything, right?," she said with a sigh.
"It's dangerous," he replied, "Gabe is always stressed out about Jaycee. He needs to be with her almost all the time, and when he's not, I think he'll have a heart attack. It's dangerous for humans and demons to interact sometimes. Appearances are a part of it, but not all."
"So you kinda care about me then?," she said with a small smile.
"I wouldn't go that far," he replied.
"Whatever," she continued to walk ahead of him and didn't turn around when she said, "What you did today was not okay."
"And I'm sorry, Rin," he said, "Truly, I am. I don't apologize to anyone unless I mean it. What they did was wrong, and I shouldn't have left with them. When I did, I only told them that they were misogynistic idiots, and I wouldn't be seen with them again."
"Are you serious?," she asked with a raised brow.
"Yes," he said truthfully, staring her in the eyes, making sure Rin knew he wasn't lying.
"Well, apology accepted then," she smiled, "Don't do it again."
"I will not," he smirked.
Then, the way home was nice. They began to walk side by side again, slowly, making sure to spend all the time they could in each other's presence. The moon on his forehead mirrored the moon in the sky. Rin really enjoyed that. She thought his looks were perfection. His long white hair and golden eyes were something of another world, and his tattoos. Don't even get her started on those.
She was content in the night, and deep down, she thought maybe the demon had a slight crush on her too. Call it wishful thinking, or call it fate.
She called it fate.
Getting through the gates and into her dorm was bittersweet. She wanted him to stay the night. She wanted to give everything she had to him, but she still had no idea why she felt this way. At this rate, she probably would never know.
"Thanks for walking me home," she said with a smile, "I'm glad we're friends again."
"Likewise," he replied, "And you can come over to do the drawings Tuesday if you'd like."
"Tuesday should work," she smiled at him and opened her door with her key, "I'll see you soon."
"Goodnight, Rin," he said while turning to walk away.
"By the way," she said casually while leaning against her door frame, "I'm not going to go out with him."
"Why the sudden change?," he asked curiously.
"Well," she bit her lip and blushed, "There's someone else that I like a lot."
He knew exactly who she was talking about, "Again, goodnight."
He turned around and smirked, even though he would never let her see that.
"Goodnight," she closed her door and put a hand to her heart, only to slide against the piece of wood and down to the floor with a girlish giggle.
"What have I gotten myself into?," she smiled before going to bed.
000
Review please :)
