Disclaimer: I do not own InuYasha

A/N: Someone asked why Kagome didn't go with InuYasha in the ambulance. It was because her mother stopped her before she could reach him. I hope that clears any question about that that you had. I'm sorry for any inconvenience.

Chapter Twenty-One

Kagome walked further down the hallway clinging to Shippo. The corridor was damp and held many cobwebs. Kagome didn't feel right, but she knew that she had to keep going. She had to find the Shikon no Tama and make sure that it would never fall into the hands of someone who would abuse its powers.

"Hey Kagome, where are you going?" Sango called to her as she ran down the hallway with Miroku at her side.

When they reached her, Sango grabbed her wrist and started pulling her in the direction that she had come. "Wait! What are you doing? I have to find--" Kagome started.

"We don't have time! We've got to get to the hospital to see how InuYasha's doing." Sango said as she continued to pull Kagome back down the hallway.

"She's right Kagome." Miroku agreed. "Whatever you want to find has to come later."

Kagome sighed in defeat, "Of course." she said as they strode out of the building and hoped into a police car that was waiting for them. The police man, that was in the car, pulled out of the parking lot and headed on his way to the hospital.

"So, do either of you know how InuYasha and Kikyo are doing?" Kagome asked as the anxiety of the situation sank in.

Miroku shook his head. "I haven't heard anything yet."

"I guess we'll know when we get there then." Kagome said as she turned her attention to the outside exterior. 'I hope you're alright InuYasha. Please let him be alright.'

The car pulled into the hospital parking lot and Kagome was the first one to pile out in a hurry to get inside. Sango and Miroku were delayed because they had to make sure Shippo crossed the busy parking lot safely.

Kagome ran up to the service desk and franticly asked the nurse behind it, "Which rooms are Kikyo Higurashi and InuYasha Takahashi in?"

The nurse looked at Kagome suspiciously. "Are you any relation to them?"

"Kikyo's my cousin and InuYasha's my . . . um my fiancé." she lied, but the nurse seemed to believe her because she started to put in their names on her computer.

"Okay, Kikyo's in room number two hundred twenty-seven and InuYasha's in room number two hundred twenty-nine." she said as she looked up at Kagome with a smile.

"Thank you." Kagome said gratefully as she sprinted to the elevator and hit the second floor button, but before the door could close a hand stopped it.

"Hold on Kagome!" Miroku said as the elevator door slowly opened again--allowing the late passengers to get on.

"Sorry. I'm just really--" Kagome started.

"There's no need to explain. We already know that you're worried about InuYasha." Sango said with a reassuring smile.

As the elevator went up at an excruciating slow pace, Shippo let a yawn escape. "Are you tired, Shippo?" Miroku asked as he looked down at him.

Shippo nodded in response. "This has got to be the longest day of my entire life." he said as he rubbed the sleep out of his eyes.

Kagome kneeled down next to him and smiled. "Once we're in InuYasha's room you can take a nap okay?"

Shippo crossed his arms and looked at the elevator wall. "I'm not a baby. I don't need to take a nap." he said in a determined voice.

"Alright. If you say so." Kagome said as she stood up when the elevator doors opened. She hurried out them and down the hall--reading the signing that directed her to his room.

When she arrived in front of his room she paused, questioning whether or not to go in. "What's wrong, Kagome?" Miroku asked as they walked up to her.

Kagome couldn't say what was holding her back. Maybe it was the thought of seeing InuYasha in a hospital bed or maybe it was the thought of finally seeing him--face-to-face with the knowledge that they had not betrayed one another. She shook her head of any doubts and smiled. "It's nothing. Let's go in, shall we?" Kagome asked and they all nodded in oblige.

The room wasn't dark and gloomy like Kagome had thought it would be, in fact it was an innocent white. 'Too white.' Kagome thought as she walked closer to InuYasha's bed. Her heart ached to see him in it. She felt like crying right then and there, but she held them back as she scooted a chair closer to the bed side and carefully took his hand in hers. He was sleeping so soundly--it frighten her--she just wanted to shake him until he woke up.

Kagome sighed, pushing all of her urges aside, and settling for pushing his long bangs out of the way. "InuYasha." she whispered.

Shippo and Miroku walked in after her and sat in the other two deserted seats. "Sango will be in here in a second. She's checking on Kikyo." he said as Kagome nodded in response.

Kagome turned her attention back to InuYasha. "He's still sleeping." Kagome said more to herself than to Miroku.

"Sango said that the nurse said that he just got out of surgery." Miroku replied. "it looks as though it went well."

As Miroku finished his sentence, Sango walked into the room looking as though she were exhausted. "Kikyo's still in surgery." she said as Miroku pulled onto his lap. "Is InuYasha still asleep?"

"Yeah." Kagome replied. "I hope he wakes up soon."

"I'm sure he will." Miroku reassured her as a knock was heard on the door.

"I'll get it." Sango said as she stood up and started making her way over to the door. Kagome glanced over at Shippo, who was being awfully quiet, and smiled when she noticed him nodding off in his chair.

"Yes, please come in Doctor." Sango said as she moved out of door way to allow an elderly woman with long gray hair into the room.

"My name's Doctor Kaede Juzo and was InuYasha's surgeon." said the doctor, "I take it that you are all his family members?"

"Um, well, Kagome kinda is," Miroku replied, "but the rest of us are just his close friends."

"Very well, Miss . . . uh . . . ?" Kaede stammered.

"Higurashi." Kagome told her. "Is InuYasha going to be alright?"

"Oh yes. I didn't mean to alarm anyone, but I would like to discuss his surgery with you or if you don't mind we can do talk about it in front of your friends." Kaede suggested as she gestured toward Miroku, Sango, and a half-asleep Shippo.

"Oh I don't mind if they hear." Kagome said, knowing that she would have to tell them afterward anyway. "So, how did his surgery go?"

"The bullet didn't hit any important organs, but it did severely bruise his right shoulder blade." Kaede explained, "He was very lucky. If it had been any farther to the left it would have hit his heart or possibly his spine, which could have either killed him or paralyzed him from the chest down."

Kagome's eyes filled with worry as she brought her hand up to cover her opened mouth and glanced between InuYasha and Kaede. "But . . . neither of those things happed. Right?" Kagome asked suddenly sickened with worry.

"No. The surgery went well and he didn't loose too much blood."

Kagome sighed with relief. "Good. How long do you think he'll be out for?"

Kaede looked over at InuYasha. "Well, since his blood lose wasn't so bad, he should wake up in the next half hour or so."

Kagome nodded and looked down at her palms for a moment. Squeezing and then loosening them before she remembered Kikyo. She looked back over to Kaede. "Do you know anything about my cousin Kikyo? She was shoot also and I heard that she went into surgery."

Kaede sighed. "I'm really sorry, Kagome, but she didn't make it through the surgery. She had lost so much blood by the time she got her that there wasn't much we could do." Kaede said gravely.

Kagome's body stiffened. "She's . . . she's de-dead?" Kagome asked as her breaths of air became shorter. Tears stung the back of her eyes.

"Even if she had survived, she would have been paralyzed from the neck down." Kaede informed her. "I am truly sorry." she said was she walked out the door to give her some privacy.

Kagome couldn't believe this was happening. She put her face down on the side of InuYasha's bed and started crying. "Oh Kagome." Sango said as she walked up beside her and started rubbing her back. "I'm so sorry."

"Thanks, but . . . could I please be alone for a minute?" Kagome asked as she continued to sob into the bed.

"Sure Kagome. Take all the time you need." Miroku said as he took Sango by the hand and lead her toward the door. He stopped by a sleeping Shippo and picked him up. "Come and get us when you're ready for some company. We'll be in the cafeteria." Then they went through the door, leaving Kagome alone with a sleeping InuYasha.

Kagome looked around the unnaturally clean room with tears in her eyes. 'How could this have happened? I mean, I was mad at her, but I never wanted her dead. She was my cousin after all.'

"Kagome?" a familiar groggy voice asked as he gripped her hand.

She looked over at InuYasha and smiled as she whipped the tears from the corner of her eyes. "InuYasha. I'm so glad you're okay."

"Sensitive woman, why are you crying?" he asked as he looked around the room they were in. "Where are we?"

"We're at the hospital. Don't you remember getting shot by Naraku?" Kagome asked.

"Yeah I remember that, but how did we get here? How did you get away from that guy?" InuYasha asked trying to see if he could remember anything after being shot.

"After you were shot, the FBI and police took over. Koga was the one who directed them there." Kagome explained.

InuYasha's eyes went wide. "Koga? For the club? That Koga?" InuYasha asked furiously as he started to sit up.

Kagome tried to calm him down by gently toughing his arm. "Please calm down InuYasha. If it wasn't for him I would have been shot next."

This bit of information seemed to quiet InuYasha down. "You're not hurt, are you Kagome?"

Kagome shook her head. "No, the only injuries I had were a sprained ankle and a bruised arm, but I'm fine."

"That bastard! How dare he hurt you! It's a good thing the FIB took him or I might have killed him!" InuYasha said outraged.

"It's alright InuYasha. I'm fine, really." Kagome said with a smile. "I'm just glad you're alright. Your doctor said if the bullet had been any more to the left it could have either killed or paralyzed you."

InuYasha's eyes softened. "I'm sorry I worried you Kagome."

Kagome couldn't keep the blush off her face as the scene from the airport flashed through her mind. She wanted to bring it up, but she didn't think now was the right time. "It's okay InuYasha, just don't let it happen again. What will I do if my boss wasn't at work to order me around."

InuYasha smiled. "So, you're still going to work for me?"

Kagome nodded. "Of course. No one else would be able to edit my work correctly."

InuYasha chuckled. "That's right because no one else could be able to handle all the mistakes you make." he smirked, but it suddenly vanished when he remember that he wasn't the only one that was shot. "What happened to Kikyo?"

Kagome looked down at the bed--the happiness gone from her eyes. "InuYasha--"

"And you know what, you didn't answer my question. Why were you crying?" he asked.

"Listen, you remember that she jumped in front of the bullet that was coming toward me?" she asked cautiously not really knowing how to explain this.

"Course I do. That's mainly the reason I want to see her. So I can thank her." he said as he smirked. "Isn't ironic how just a couple of hours ago I was considering never forgiving her, but now I want to thank her?"

"You like her." Kagome teased and then felt bad afterward remembering she was dead and that she hadn't told InuYasha yet.

"Yeah. She saved you life didn't she?" he replied and his eyes filled with concern as Kagome started crying again. "What is it Kagome?"

"She's dead, InuYasha!" Kagome cried, "She didn't make it through surgery!"

InuYasha froze as he watched Kagome cry. He didn't know what to say, but he did the one thing that Kagome need right now and pulled her into his arms--being careful not to move his shoulder. "Shh, calm down. Getting upset's not going to bring her back. It could have easily have been you Kagome. I don't know what I would have done."

"I--I know, but--I feel--I feel as though it's all my fault! If I hadn't taken Naraku's job offer than he never would have had a reason to shot her!" she sobbed into his shirt.

"Oh come on Kagome. You really don't believe that do you? If you hadn't taken the job then he would have found another way to kidnap you. " InuYasha said trying to soothe her.

Kagome nodded against his chest. "I still can't believe she's gone."

InuYasha decided to change the topic for awhile. "Kagome, do you remember what I told you at the airport?"

Kagome looked up at him with tear blurred eyes. "InuYasha, maybe we should wait until you're feeling better before we talk about this?"

"No I think we should talk about this now." he said with determination. "I meant what I said. I lov--" InuYasha started but Kagome cut him off by kissing him. InuYasha's eyes were the size of golf balls. He started to kiss back, but Kagome pulled away.

"Please can we talk about this later--in private?" Kagome asked as she gestured toward the door. InuYasha turned a bright red when he saw Sango, Miroku, and a now awake Shippo standing in the doorway.

InuYasha looked away, wanting nothing else but to whip that perverted smirk off of Miroku's face. "Feh, sure."

"We were going to ask if you were ready to join us down at the cafeteria, Kagome, but it looks like you're busy." Miroku commented as his smirk got larger causing Kagome to blush.

"You perv. Would you mind keeping your dirty thoughts to yourself?" InuYasha asked only because he was restricted to his bed otherwise he would have pummeled him to the ground.

Kagome smiled at InuYasha and he looked over at her and smiled back.

Sorry about the long wait. I was having a major writer's block and I had an urge to write short story. I posted it. You should check it out. It's called Don't Ever Leave Me

Anyways, I sorry if no one liked that I killed Kikyo off, but I didn't know what to do with her if she stayed. She would have been a dead weight. Sorry again.

Please review. I'm not going to post a limit on this on because some people were complaining about it and it really didn't have anything to do with posting it. It was just there to keep me in line. Thanks again.