Chapter 14

Rin reached the bottom step and Kagome had just opened the front door to let herself in. She had a grocery bag of fruit in her hand which she passed to Inuyasha when he greeted her. She visibly shivered as her body adjusted to the warmth and she sniffled.

"Wow, it is really chilly outside." Her cheeks were red from the harsh winds and she complained a bit about the weather but there was a giant smile on her face. Inuyasha let Kagome know they had company and she looked up after she slipped off her shoes.

"Oh!" Kagome looked at Rin with surprise and a smile pulled at her lips. "You must be…" She glanced at Inuyasha who nodded. "...Noto Rin?" She asked and both girls bowed to each other. Kagome told her she had heard a lot about her through Inuyasha and looked forward to meeting her.

"I've wanted to meet you too." Rin told her.

"I didn't know you would be here tonight! What a nice surprise!" Kagome said.

Rin immediately liked Kagome the moment she walked in. She had a friendly character with a smile to match. She had a melodic voice and her eyes seemed to brighten with every blink. She was the type of person who naturally attracted people with her open and warm personality. Rin clearly understood why Inuyasha fell for her.

"Oh! Sorry for calling you Sesshomaru. Inuyasha didn't pick up his phone." Kagome suddenly regarded Sesshomaru who walked down the stairs. 'Oh?' Rin thought and perked up at the news. Rin glanced at Sesshomaru over her shoulder and immediately glowered when he smirked at her after she realized her mistake. It was Kagome who had called him before and here she thought she had someone to be jealous of. Thankfully it all made sense to her now. A heavy weight lifted off her chest and she sighed with relief.

"You called him?" Inuyasha asked. Kagome said it was to ask if she could just walk right in since her hands were full. Rin had to smile again and Sesshomaru lightly bonked her on the head as he stepped towards her.

"Stop overthinking everything." He said quietly so only she could hear. Rin wanted to turn around and kick him in the shins but Kagome pulled Rin away and began to chat with her. They both strolled into the kitchen and Kagome easily greeted Mrs. Taisho, showing just how comfortable she was with the family. Without asking, Kagome grabbed a knife and naturally began to help prepare dinner. Rin found herself doing the same.

"Can we put in extra tofu?" Kagome asked, waiting to slice the cube of tofu. Both Mrs. Taisho and Rin glanced up from cutting vegetables.

"Of course! I had Inuyasha and Rin buy extra because I know you love it." Mrs. Taisho chuckled as she chopped some cabbage.

"Did you hear about how Inuyasha once bought cabbage instead of lettuce?" Kagome laughed and Inuyasha grumbled something under his breath. Rin enjoyed preparing dinner with everyone. It was a feeling she had long forgotten after being alone so often.

When the table was set and the ingredients for the hot pot were finished, Mrs. Taisho invited everyone to sit. She settled herself at the head of the table while Inuyasha and Kagome sat across from Rin and Sesshomaru. Upon sitting down, Sesshomaru set his hand, palm up, on his lap and looked at Rin. Her cheeks colored and she quietly thanked him. He was ready to lend her his palm when she needed to communicate. However, this was deemed unnecessary since Sesshomaru had been correct when he said dinner was going to be rather chaotic. Throughout the entire meal, Rin never even had a chance to communicate.

At some point, Inuyasha had said something that set Kagome off and they began bickering. This was apparently normal for everyone else while Rin sat in shock. Mrs. Taisho took Kagome's side and scolded Inuyasha while Sesshomaru just continued to eat in silent irritation.

"I thought I told you to stop bringing up Kikyo." Mrs. Taisho uttered a 'tsk-tsk' of disapproval. Inuyasha shrugged, seemingly unable to help himself. Rin assumed that Kikyo was the twin sister she had heard about.

"Do they fight often?" Rin asked. Sesshomaru's response to her was a tired exhalation. Rin had to hide a smile of mild amusement. Luckily, their lover's quarrel did not last long and Kagome and Inuyasha were right back to chatting about other things.

"Rin is making dessert for us tonight." Mrs. Taisho mentioned later. Kagome looked at Rin with excitement and clapped her hands.

"Oh, oh! I would love to help you!" She offered. Inuyasha snorted loudly.

"You better not let her, Rin. She will burn the house down." Inuyasha was silenced with a solid whack to the back of his head and the two went back to bickering.

"You're not heading home already, are you?" Kagome asked. Before Rin could respond, Kagome hooked her arm through Rin's. "You can't leave me alone with those two." She said jerking her head in Inuyasha and Sesshomaru's direction. The two were still sitting at the dining table enjoying a cup of tea and the last bit of their desserts. Rin was making her way towards Sesshomaru's room to grab her things when she bumped into Kagome who was exiting the bathroom.

"I don't want to over stay my welcome since it is so late." Rin said, glancing at the time. Mrs. Taisho already turned in for the night.

"I rented a movie. At least stay and watch it with me and Inuyasha!" Kagome begged, slightly tugging Rin's arm. Rin actually did want to stay longer. She was having so much fun with Kagome and Inuyasha, and of course she wanted to spend more time with Sesshomaru. Seeing that Rin was not declining the suggestion, Kagome led Rin back to the kitchen.

"Let's watch the movie I brought!" Kagome said, growing slightly impatient with how long they were taking to finish their tea. Inuyasha gulped the rest of it and dropped the spoon with a loud clatter.

"Are you watching too, Rin?" He asked with a hiccup. Rin momentarily glanced at Sesshomaru and then nodded. She wanted to stay with Sesshomaru for just a while longer.

"I brought some fruit and snacks. Let's eat them!" Kagome grabbed the plastic bag she brought with her.

"I'm already so full though." Inuyasha groaned but Kagome was quick to disagree with him.

"Nonsense! You're fine. Let's go set up the movie." She said and led Inuyasha into the family room while Rin waited for Sesshomaru.

"You better tell your uncle you're here." He said standing from the table.

"Already did!" She smiled. She watched as Sesshomaru put his empty tea cup in the sink and walked past her towards the stairs. Rin suddenly gripped his shirt when she noticed he wasn't going in the right direction. "You're not watching the movie?"

Sesshomaru turned around so he could face her and leaned his arm on the railing. Rin looked at him with an anxious expression.

"You really want me to watch the movie with you?" His lips almost twitched into a smirk. Rin released his shirt as if she had been burned and tucked some hair behind her ear. She crossed her arms with a scornful expression.

"Stop teasing me. You knew I was jealous when Kagome called you and you know I want to watch the movie with you. Stop pretending you are so oblivious." Sesshomaru responded by cocking an eyebrow and she was tempted to rip it right off his gorgeous smug face. She hated that he knew how to get under her skin.

"I'm just going to the bathroom." He said and Rin blinked. 'Oh.' She thought and mentally cursed herself for letting Sesshomaru get the best of her again.

When Sesshomaru entered the family room, the three of them were situated around the low top table in the center of the room. Rin was munching away at a bag of chips with a heavy blanket covering her legs. They switched off the room lights so the only light source came from the television.

"It's an action thriller." Kagome said aloud as she pressed play on the remote. Sesshomaru lay on the couch directly behind Rin and rested a hand behind his head. In all honesty, he had no interest in the movie whatsoever but he agreed to watch because Rin was there.

"I got this movie because of the main actor." Kagome was not afraid to admit and she snickered. Rin gazed at the screen when it cut to a very young and handsome actor. She recognized him from commercials and magazine photoshoots. He was becoming very popular lately. "You know him, right Rin?" Kagome asked when she noticed the blush on Rin's face.

"He looks like any other random guy to me." Inuyasha grumbled but was quickly hushed by both Rin and Kagome. Inuyasha's face grew dark with jealousy. Sesshomaru could relate with his brother. There was a curious sense of annoyance every time the actor appeared on the screen. Sesshomaru watched Rin, who seemed completely focused on the movie. He turned his gaze to the actor and wondered if he was the kind of guy Rin found attractive.

'You're not the only guy in this world.'

He thought of Naraku's words and felt the muscle in his jaw tighten. He didn't like the idea of Rin around another guy, especially if the guy was a twit like the one on the screen.

Rin turned her head and smiled at him. He looked at her curiously when she waved a clementine in his face. Rin peeled it and handed Sesshomaru half.

"It's sweet." She said as she put it in his hand. She turned her attention back to the movie and continued to peel more clementines while offering him half.

If someone asked Sesshomaru what the movie was about, he couldn't say. Sesshomaru had long forgotten the movie and found himself watching Rin instead. He noticed that she had the habit of biting her lip when tension filled moments came on screen. He watched as her lips turned plump and bruised from the constant torture.

Rin flinched when she ate a potato chip and the salt stung her lip. Sesshomaru smirked at her innocent and naive behavior as she licked away the salt from her lips and popped the whole chip into her mouth.

Before he could realize what he was doing, Sesshomaru reached out and touched a lock of her hair. He didn't plan on touching her. His hand just moved before he could stop himself. He was curious to see how she would react. Rin stiffened and she peeked at him over her shoulder with a deepening blush on her face. He twirled a lock around his finger.

"Haircut." He whispered in response to her quizzical expression. He pretended to 'accidentally' graze his knuckle against her cheek. Rin tried to muster a glare, warning him to stop teasing her again. His touch drove her mad and she almost felt drunk from it.

Rin noticed that Kagome was resting her head on Inuyasha's shoulder while he had an arm wrapped around her waist. Rin saw this and looked at Sesshomaru with round eager eyes, silently begging him to do the same.

"Quit joking around." Sesshomaru said sarcastically and flicked her forehead. Rin rubbed the tender spot and huffed with frustration. He was the one touching her hair and getting her hopes up in the first place. She was slightly disappointed when the hand that caressed her hair eventually dropped back to his side.

Inuyasha suddenly reached out and set the movie on pause. When they glanced at him, he had a finger to his lips to quiet them. Kagome had fallen asleep on his shoulder and was lightly snoring.

"Don't forget to call her mother and let her know she's here." Sesshomaru said quietly.

"Yeah, yeah. I know." Inuyasha mumbled as he lifted Kagome and carried her up the stairs. Rin smiled at the loving gesture and swooned. Sesshomaru stared at her with a raised eyebrow.

"If I fell asleep you would have just kicked me awake." Rin pursed her lips as she spelled on his palm. Sesshomaru slowly sat up and stretched his tired muscles.

"Exactly." He said and Rin chuckled knowing he was lying. She knew Sesshomaru would have done the same as Inuyasha. She now wished she was the one who had fallen asleep. It would have given her an excuse to be wrapped in Sesshomaru's arms.

"I'm guessing Inuyasha isn't coming back to continue watching?" Rin asked when Inuyasha was not making his way back downstairs. Judging by the look on Sesshomaru's face, her assumption was correct. It seemed they didn't like the movie as much as she and Kagome did. She ended the movie and switched on the lights in the room. She and Sesshomaru cleaned up the area before she followed Sesshomaru to his room to grab her things. As she buttoned her sweater she glanced out his window. It was very late and it looked like it was freezing outside. His windowpane was fogged and cold to the touch.

"Do you think it's very cold outside?" She asked and started pumping her arms to warm up. She would have jumped but didn't want to wake the others in the house. Sesshomaru reached into his closet and pulled out two sweaters. He tossed the heavier one to her and slipped on the other.

"Return it to me later." He said. Rin glanced at it and thought he had given her a blanket. It was so large she felt like a child in it.

"This is a tent." She said, trying to get her hands through the ends of the sleeves. Sesshomaru told her to simply use the long sleeves to block her hands from the wind.

"I'll walk you home." He said and gave Rin another flick to the forehead when she had another one of those goofy, triumphant smiles on her face.

They quietly made their way down the stairs and out the front door. They both hissed and rubbed their arms once they stepped outside. She and Sesshomaru immediately began running to her apartment as if to outrun the cold weather. As she giggled, vapor clouds puffed from her lips. It was so quiet in the streets that it was actually a bit eerie.

"Thank you for walking me back." Rin spelled onto his palm. Her fingertips were cold against his warm hand. "I had fun making dinner with everyone. It's been awhile since I could do that." She said. Sesshomaru just nodded and mumbled a curse at how cold it was. Rin furrowed her eyebrows when she realized he was just wearing a thin sweater. Since she was already at the apartment she returned his sweater. She stood on her toes to drape it over his shoulders.

He didn't have to walk her back home. Her apartment was only a few feet away yet he came out into the cold anyway just to make sure she was safe. He let her wear his sweater rather than wear it himself. Maybe Sesshomaru didn't return her feelings but those small gestures proved to Rin that he cared for her in his own way. She blushed and looked at her feet. That was more than enough for her. That was all she needed.

Sesshomaru was slipping his arms through the sweater when Rin suddenly stepped forward. Her heart pounded painfully against her chest as she forced her body to boldly make a move. She couldn't stop herself. She just had to. He silently watched her as she cautiously stepped towards him. Before he could question her, she wrapped her arms around his waist and buried her blushing face in his chest. She hugged him.

He wasn't sure how he was supposed to respond to her hug. While his body did not stiffen at the sudden touch, he also did not hug her back. For a moment he simply allowed her to hug him and did not push her away. He could hear her trying to catch her breath and he felt her heart pounding wildly against her chest. It wasn't until a gust of wind blew past them did he finally wrap his arms protectively around her. He slowly lowered his head and rested his cheek on her hair and inhaled the sweet scent of her shampoo.

Rin expected him to push her away. She thought he was going to flick her forehead or pinch her cheek again. She thought he was going to punish her and cruelly mock her for being so bold. She figured she could manage to get a quick hug and enjoy the sensation for the split second before he released his evil. But…he didn't push her away. The butterflies flew wildly around in her stomach when she felt him lean his head on hers and he tightened his hold around her waist. Her blush deepened and she breathed in the mixture of his woody cologne and his mint scented soap. She felt his hard body mold against her soft one and her knees trembled. Her mind grew hazy and she felt drunk in his arms.

Seconds turned into long minutes but the minutes felt like hours. They simply embraced, shielding each other from the cold. Their hearts pounded against their chests as they both struggled to make sense of why neither of them dared to move. The thought of ending the embrace was almost painful. If only time could really stand still. It was finally Sesshomaru who broke the silence.

"Rin..." He whispered into her hair. "...I should go." They both responded by briefly tightening their hold and Rin slowly nodded. As they slightly pulled apart, she stared up at him with glazed eyes.

"…because you were cold." She tried to explain the sudden embrace but they both knew the truth.

"I know." He said and gently flicked her forehead.

Typically, Rin would have confessed to Mao and Chiyo that she hugged Sesshomaru. However, this time she kept the incident to herself. During the past couple of weeks, neither she, nor Sesshomaru, mentioned it to each other. They treated it as if it was a dream and it never happened.

After he had left her and returned home, Rin went to bed without changing or washing up. She could hardly even breathe so there was no possible way she could get ready for bed. She knocked into a few of the furniture because of the daze she was under. She lay in bed and hugged herself, wishing she was still in his arms. Sesshomaru also struggled to sleep that night. He sat at his desk and tried to read but his mind ran wild with thoughts of Rin. He ran a hand through his hair and cursed, tossing his book across the room. When Rin pulled away from the hug and looked at him, he had this overwhelming desire to kiss her.

When they returned to school that Monday, he and Rin were back to normal but the desire they felt for each other scared them. Neither of them was confident they could pull apart if they embraced again. Since then, they paid special attention to keeping a rather safe distance when they walked home together.

Rin sighed to herself and glanced out the classroom window. Mao and Chiyo were flipping through a magazine, searching for the best Christmas gift to buy for their Kohaku and Hayato. The month of September flew by and they were already nearing the end of November. Christmas was right around the corner. Rin dropped her face onto the desk with another sigh. In Japan, Christmas was more of a couple's holiday rather than one spent with family. Rin was actually dreading Christmas this year. Rin lifted her hand and began to count with her fingers. This year, she wanted to get presents for uncle Jaken, Mr. and Mrs. Taisho, Chiyo, Mao, Kohaku, Hayato, Kagome, Inuyasha, and most importantly Sesshomaru. Rin let her head fall onto her desk again with dejection. It was hard enough to find presents for the others so how in the world would she find the perfect gift for Sesshomaru?

Rin looked up and waved for Kohaku to come over to her desk. He walked over and Chiyo immediately hid the magazine from him. She glowered at him as he put a hand over his eyes.

"I didn't see anything!" Kohaku reassured her and pulled up a chair beside Rin. "Does Chiyo realize I am the one who bought that magazine for her? I already looked through the whole thing." He pointed his thumb at her over his shoulder and shook his head. Rin smiled and glanced at Mao and Chiyo. Chiyo wanted Kohaku's Christmas gift to be a surprise but she wasn't doing a very good job at keeping it that way.

"What kind of gift should I get for Sesshomaru?" She asked him. Kohaku sucked in a deep breath and exhaled. He scratched the back of his neck and scrunched his nose.

"Um…a…book?" He questioned.

"Yes yes…we all know he enjoys reading…" She rested her chin in her hand. She didn't want to buy him another book. She wanted to get him something that he would never throw away, something that he would keep forever and think of her when he looked at it. "I want to get him something useful. Maybe even something he can use all the time." She said. Kohaku passed her an uncertain expression.

"…A book…?" He said again and Rin slapped a hand to her forehead. Kohaku felt badly and tried again. "Well…since he is going off to college maybe he will like to use a neck massager for all the times he studies. That is useful too." Mao came to Kohaku's side and gave him a pat on the shoulder.

"It's okay." She told him. "We tried to help too."

"We also suggested a book." Chiyo added. Kohaku snapped his fingers.

"What about thermal socks?" He said and this time all three girls sighed. Rin knew she needed another opinion.

"I'll be right back." She told them and headed up to the second floor. Rin glanced into every classroom until she found Kagome and Inuyasha. She caught their attention by waving at them from the doorway and they walked over to her. Of course, Rin also caught the attention of many others who watched the three of them converse from afar.

"A present for Sesshomaru?" They said in unison. Inuyasha folded his arms across his chest and scoffed.

"Hah! He doesn't need one." Kagome rolled her eyes and nudged Inuyasha out of the way so she could talk with Rin.

"I always bought little things that he and his parents could share…like a box of specialty chocolates or…" Kagome thought. "…oh! I once bought them a package of different bath soaps. The soaps had real flowers and fruit inside them." Rin nodded her head at the good idea. Unfortunately, Rin didn't want to copy what was already done.

"I guess I could do something like that for your parents." Rin said, glancing at Inuyasha. "…but I want to get something more special for Sesshomaru." She blushed and Inuyasha nearly gagged. Kagome passed her boyfriend an annoyed glare and he immediately snapped his lips shut.

"Will you stop being so immature? Girls think hard and struggle about these things!" Kagome waved a fist under Inuyasha's nose. "I struggled the same way when we first started dating!" He smiled and patted Kagome on the head.

"Alright, I am clearly no help here. You two discuss it." Inuyasha also patted Rin on the head, which earned sighs of envy from other female students. "Sesshomaru will like whatever you give him, Rin. Don't worry." Kagome pursed her lips as Inuyasha walked back into the classroom and shook her head to herself.

"I can't help it but love that fool." She grumbled.

"He really loves you." Rin said and Kagome blushed while a small smile graced her lips. "What did you buy for Inuyasha?" Rin asked. Kagome tilted her head as she considered her question.

"I never actually bought a gift just for Sesshomaru." Kagome frowned to herself as she thought. "Well, Inuyasha and Sesshomaru are so different. I don't think Sesshomaru would like the gifts I bought for Inuyasha." Kagome said but Rin asked her to tell her anyway.

"Umm…" Kagome lowered her voice and put a hand over her face to hide her embarrassment. "During our first year as a couple, I bought him a waffle maker because he loves to eat waffles." She shrugged and Rin just died a little inside.

A waffle maker…? For Sesshomaru? Yeah. That wasn't happening.

"You're right. Inuyasha and Sesshomaru are very different." She said and Kagome couldn't help but laugh.

"Well, speaking of waffles…since baking is your special talent, why don't you just bake him something?" She said. Rin bit the inside of her cheek.

"But isn't that kind of repetitive? I am going to make him chocolates for Valentine's Day too."

"You're right." Kagome tapped a finger to her chin. When Kagome couldn't give her a good idea, Rin simply thanked her for trying.

"You'll figure out something. Anyway, Inuyasha was right! Sesshomaru will like anything you give him as long as it's from the heart." Kagome said to her as she left. As Rin walked down the hallway she thought of one last person she could talk to.

Naraku was messaging on his phone when something caught his eye. He glanced over to the door and found Rin trying to sneakily wave him over. She kept popping her head back out of the doorway when she thought someone was looking her way. She peeked around the door and waved him over again. Naraku looked at her, confused, and pointed to himself.

"Me?" He mouthed silently and she nodded, placing a finger to her lips to quiet him. Naraku glanced at Sesshomaru who was busy reading his book.

"Just…uh…going to the bathroom." Naraku cleared his throat. Sesshomaru said nothing and flipped a page in his book. Naraku quickly made his way out of the classroom and Rin dragged him to a far corner of the hallway. He couldn't help but smirk when she pulled him aside. "Welll, what do I owe this pleasure?" He asked. Rin politely bowed first to greet him as her senior and then apologized for calling him out.

"A Christmas gift?" He repeated after her. "…for him?" Rin nodded and Naraku just had to let out a short laugh. He had never gotten a present for Sesshomaru before. Presents weren't exactly Sesshomaru's thing. He didn't know how to help her or where to even start.

"And please don't say a book." Rin added and Naraku tightened his lips because that was exactly what he was going to say. "What gift would you want to receive?" Rin asked him. Naraku stared off into the distance and narrowed his eyes as he thought.

"If I was spending Christmas with someone special, it's not the tangible gift that would matter to me but the happy memories we share." He said. "So your birthday gift idea was a good one."

Rin would have agreed with him. She also thought that memories as a gift beat any other gift no matter how expensive or extravagant. But the reason why she wanted to give Sesshomaru a tangible object was because he could carry a piece of her once he left. She didn't want Sesshomaru to forget her.

"Do you think that's selfish of me?" She asked Naraku when she explained her reasoning to him. He slightly shrugged in response.

"Hard to say. It all depends on who you ask but I don't think it's selfish." He told her. Rin just nodded along.

"Well, anyway...there was a saying that I heard once..." He began. "It was something like...'every man needs nothing but a good watch, a good wallet, and a good pair of shoes.'" He grinned at Rin when her eyes seemed to sparkle at the idea.

"I can work with that!" She smiled brightly and thanked him. "I must add you to my list of people to get Christmas presents for!" Naraku blinked in surprise and stuttered.

"Oh! Oh...you don't have to do that." He said but Rin promptly shook her head.

"No, I want to. It's a shame we never talked before. You seem like a very nice person." And with that, she waved goodbye and returned to her classroom.

Naraku approached Sesshomaru and slapped a hand on his back. Sesshomaru looked up questionably.

"You better not lose that girl to any other fool out there." He joked. "Good girls like her don't come around often." Sesshomaru looked at him coolly as Naraku sat at his desk.

"What are you talking about now?" He asked. Naraku rocked back in his chair and chuckled.

"Let me put it this way...if you don't go after her then I will." He said pointing to himself. Naraku smiled upon seeing the look on Sesshomaru's face.

"Did something happen?" He asked. He didn't understand why Naraku was suddenly bringing up Rin . Naraku shrugged.

"No, I just thought about it while walking back from the bathroom." He said casually. "But I'm just proving my point."

"And what's that?" Sesshomaru wanted him to clarify. Naraku brought his hands behind his head and sighed.

"That someone's mind can be changed within a second and that you aren't the only guy who could be interested in her." He smirked when Sesshomaru's face looked grim. Naraku put his hands up in a defensive manner. "Just trying to give you a little push." He said. Sesshomaru sighed and ran a hand through his hair.

"You're lucky I don't hate you." He glared at his friend. Naraku looked touched and put a hand to his heart.