Heartbeats
by Rikayu

Chapter Ten: Midnight

He tried to convince himself that he didn't mind. The papers strewn all across the living room floor, he calmly ignored. The dog food, flour, and cake batter scattered all over the kitchen remained overlooked, as were the dishes soaking in the sink. His white dress shirt was wrinkled and unbuttoned to reveal the wifebeater he wore underneath. He ran a clawed hand through his bangs and flicked his eyes down to the woman lying on the carpeted floor next to him.

Her blue eyes flashed up at him brilliantly, the sides of her eyes squinting slightly and her hand covering her mouth. He could tell she was trying her hardest not to laugh, but she failed miserably as a small giggle escaped from her lips behind her hand. She rolled around to rest on her stomach and stretched her neck a little to look up at him, her dark hair falling over her shoulders.

He'd left the girl in charge of his home for the last two weeks so that he could attend a conference at a university in Kyoto where he had been asked to be a guest speaker. He hadn't intended to find his condo a complete mess with the miko he entrusted with his home, sitting in the middle of his living room floor waiting for him. Despite the chaos around her, the woman smiled good-naturedly, the dogs he'd been caring for sitting all around her and not immediately running towards him as they usually did. As he was about to ask just what happened, the girl moved and revealed a cake that looked obviously homemade with a single lit candle placed in the middle.

Sesshoumaru let out a curt sigh, the sides of his lips twitching as he remembered the girl trying to coax him into eating her sugary concoction, promising that she hadn't poisoned it at all. After tasting what seemed to be the most sugar-abundant thing he'd ever tasted, the young woman pulled out the rest of the food she'd prepared for his homecoming before pulling out another bottle and informing him of another event worth recognizing.

"I believe," he heard her start, as he watch glance out at the night sky, a little smirk on her lips, "This is the first time after seven years that I've spent my birthday with anyone."

Kagome turned to look back up at the dog demon before she pushed herself up onto her knees and stretched her arms over her head. She relaxed and sat on her legs and let a lazy smile cross her mouth as she closed her eyes and hummed out a made-up tune. Slowly, she opened her eyes and her hands went to the sake bottle next to her companion's leg. She tipped a small amount of the liquid onto the saucers they'd been drinking out of and picked them up, giving one to the man in front of her and raising the other in front of her face.

"Kanpai..." she said as a big grin spread across her face. Then she brought the sake to her lips and threw her head back as she let it flow into her mouth.

Sesshoumaru nodded his head and raised his saucer of sake a little before letting the warmth of it flow down his throat. Just as he lowered the saucer from his face, the girl next to him refilled it immediately before drinking yet another one of her shots. The youkai's golden eyes stared at the woman as he downed the sake, watching the redness of her face glow in the moonlight shining through the window.

She turned her eyes towards him and noticed his eyes trained on her. She placed her saucer down and leaned forward, placing her hands down in front of her. Her eyebrows furrowed as she stared intently at him, searching his face for something. Then one of her hands went up and tugged the glasses of the demon before she dropped them on the floor and smiled. "That's better," she said, slurring a little.

The girl did not pull away and for one, Sesshoumaru noticed the sweetness of the miko's scent even as it was laced with the smell of sake. It seemed almost intoxicating as he inhaled the air into his lung. So very intoxicating. And he had the strangest urge to touch her cheek, his hand twitching ever so slightly against the white carpet.

"You know," Kagome said as she tilted her head and trailed her eyes all over his face, "I thought I was the only one left. I was alone. Even with my family... I was alone." She closed her eyes and she let a shaky breath out. "But then, your jerk-face showed up."

Sesshoumaru raised an eyebrow at her little endearment, but he remained silent. The miko swayed as she let the lids of her eyes fall. She finally leaned away from him and then sat against the large window of the room. The former demon lord watched as shadows played against Kagome's form, the moonlight making her skin glow white and cast a sparkling shine on her raven locks.

Kagome was beautiful.

"Sesshoumaru?"

The demon snapped away from his thoughts and stared into clouded blue eyes. She moved close to him, her hand brushing against his in the smallest of touches. A soft smile appeared on her face and she leaned closer, fluttering her eyes closed. The inuyoukai's eyes widened slighty as she placed a tiny kiss that lingered a bit too long on one of his striped cheeks.

"Thank you," Kagome whispered against his skin, "For showing up."

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