Standard disclaimers apply.
A/N: Thank you for all your reviews to the previous chapter! I really appreciate your support for this story, especially how you guys are not blaming me at all for the slowed down rate of updating. I am really busy with school work and the impending exams, and writing is more of a treat now than anything else.
I do agree with all of you on how Sesshoumaru should see how Kagome is not as weak as he thinks she is, but given how stubborn he is, I doubt he will be changing his mind anytime soon. However, sometimes, things just have a way of working themselves out…
Oh, and to vote for this story in the annual awards on "A Single Spark", please do click on the tab for "Annual Awards" by the side of the Fanfiction page…Thank you very much for your support!
Title: Love after Loss
Chapter 28: Kagome's decision
"No."
He gave her a questioning look.
"I said no." Kagome insisted, quickly dispelling the nagging fear of Sesshoumaru getting angry at her boldness. "You tell me what happened."
He did not reply verbally, and instead, settled for looking at her without any expression on his face.
A few seconds went by without a further word from him, and Kagome simply continued. "This is not working, Taisho-san. You know I will not be discouraged by this attitude."
Sesshoumaru still did not reply.
"If you don't tell me, I will find it out for myself. I can easily contact Myoga-san, Miroku or even Jaken, and you know it very well. Besides, it would not reflect well on you should I have to resort to questioning outsiders, right?"
He closed his eyes for a split moment at her stubborn words, silently reminding himself once again this was Kagome he was dealing with, before replying in a slow, controlled tone.
"And what do you want to know?"
"I want to know what happened, of course! I know you lost the deal, but how? Why? And to whom? Everything was going fine, wasn't it?" Kagome persisted, unwilling to give up in the face of Sesshoumaru's evident exasperation. "I think I deserve to know!"
"Very well…" He said with the same slow tone, under which she could catch a hint of anger. "It's Kurotani Naraku."
"H…How?" Kagome almost could not verbalize her wild, churning emotions at the mention of that name. To be shocked was to say the least, and she could only wait for Sesshoumaru to say more.
He watched the emotions on her beautiful face swirl into a mess of shock, curiosity and a bit of determination, before the look softened to settle into a calmer mask. It was then he decided to continue.
"Nishimoto did not find Taisho Holdings sincere enough in this partnership, since I was often standing Nishimoto-san up-"
Kagome's eyes widened in shock and a small gasp escaped her lips, as she hurriedly grabbed Sesshoumaru's hand.
"But…But this is not your fault! Oh no…I…I'm so sorry, Sess…If it wasn't for me-"
"It's not your fault, Kagome." He interrupted her sharply, turning his hand around so he was holding hers in his instead. A taut hold on her slender hand told her of the assurance he sought to give her then.
"But-"
He shook his head firmly. "I still would have put you and Rin as my priority even if I got to choose again."
Helplessness flashed across Kagome's lovely features as she thought quickly for something, anything in fact, to remedy the situation which she had indirectly caused.
"Why don't you tell Nishimoto-san the truth? It is because of personal family problems which led to you being-"
"No. That would simply be seen as creating excuses. I will not do that." Sesshoumaru was quick to refuse. It would be most lowly to do so, in his opinion.
"That is the truth, Sess!"
"Yes, but nonetheless, I could have done something about it. Maybe I could have made prior arrangements or something along those lines…besides, I should have known that people like the despicable Naraku were eyeing the contract."
"That cannot be the only reason, right?" She asked in a soft voice, as if afraid of agitating him further. "As in, the sincerity issue."
"The conditions offered by Naraku are more attractive to Nishimoto, and what they are offering was something Taisho Holdings failed to do. I left Jaken alone to chair the conference for the discussion of the terms, and…"
Kagome fell silent as his sentence trailed, her head lowered as she tried to think carefully. She knew Sesshoumaru would most probably go berserk if he knew what she was thinking of, but she really, really wanted to help him in some way.
How would she go about trying to help him win the contract back?
Approach Naraku?
That was not going to help in any way. He did not even know her personally; he left Taisho Holdings before she joined it at the marketing department.
Devise a proposal far more attractive in terms to present to Nishimoto?
That was feasible, but she could never possibly do it without Sesshoumaru not knowing. Especially when an attractive proposal would require a lot of funds, and to shift the finances around under Sesshoumaru's watchful eyes was just impossible.
She could start by knowing how Naraku's proposal was structured, and from there, seek to understand more about the current situation. However, how could she possibly do so? Such documents were of top secret, and other than Kurotani Naraku and Nishimoto Yutaka, no one would know of details of the documents. She did not have links to either party, and there was no one who could help her.
Furthermore, she needed more information about the focus and directions of Nishimoto Biomedical Technology as well. What was their motto or priority in their business? She knew they dealt in medical equipment and technology, but what else was there to it? Kagome needed to know all these, and it would have to be done without Sesshoumaru's knowledge.
But even if so, even if she could draft a fantastic proposal, how was she ever going to present it to someone as influential as Nishimoto-san? She was not even linked to Taisho Holdings at this point – She was merely a supervisor at Kinokuniya bookstore.
She really needed a miracle. But like all miracles, she had to start off at somewhere.
There was a lot to be done, and seemingly hard as it might be, Kagome was quite sure she would not give up.
She was part of the reason Sesshoumaru lost his deal, and she was going to get it back for him, whether he liked it or not.
"Kagome-chan...Kagome-chan."
The soft, gentle voice by her side broke her out of her reverie, as Kagome quickly turned to face the kindly old lady looking at her with concerned eyes.
"Yes, Kaede obaachan?"
"Something is bothering you, my child." The old lady smiled, reaching out to pat Kagome's hands, which were folded in her lap.
Kagome managed an embarrassed smile at being caught spacing out again by Kaede, as her thoughts involuntarily went back to Sesshoumaru's problem at hand and how she was ever going to manage to help him. She had been thinking of it day and night, even as she was now having lunch with the old lady, with whom she had become great friends with. Right now, they were sitting outside the shopping mall in which Kinokuniya was located, as they waited for Kaede's grandson to pick her up.
"You can share it with me if you do not mind." Kaede prompted, before Kagome nodded wearily, the trace of her earlier smile fading into the gentle breeze around them.
"It's my ex-husband."
"Hmm? Aren't the two of you seeing each other once again?"
"Yes...it's nothing to do with our relationship. Instead, it is work." Kagome admitted, tucking a lock of hair behind her ear. "He's facing some difficulties at work, and they are caused indirectly by me. I wish I could help him…he is so unhappy, but he tries hard to hide it."
Kaede's nod and the gentleness she exuded like an aura only served to make Kagome say more. She could really do with someone to confide in at the moment, and someone who did not know the situation at all would be the best choice to talk to. Their family members would most probably panic and start worrying if they ever got wind of the bad news.
"It's because of me and Rin's illness that he was unable to focus on his work…and now, it has resulted in a major problem which would bring about very severe consequences should we are unable to do anything about it."
"I really wish to help him, but I have no idea how to go about doing so. I have tried to understand his work, but…there's really not much use in doing so…" Kagome did not elaborate about Sesshoumaru's job, for she did not tell Kaede her ex-husband was Taisho Sesshoumaru. "Besides, he is not willing to let me help in any way."
"He does not want you to worry, Kagome-chan." The old lady replied softly. "It is out of love that he is keeping it from you."
"That's what he said too, but…but he should know I am not as fragile as I might appear to be. I am capable of helping too…"
"I know, Kagome-chan, I know. But this is not how he sees it. To him, you are more important than the job, which is why he has been unable to focus on work when you and your daughter are involved."
Kagome nodded dumbly, feeling very helpless all of a sudden. The Kagome after the divorce really did not want to go against Sesshoumaru's wishes, but the Kagome from the past still wanted very badly to do something for him.
Kaede continued, watching Kagome's forlorn profile. "Remember my grandson whom I mentioned? I took care of him and practically brought him up since his parents were often busy, and now that he has grown up into a fine young man, he too, is trying to carve out a respectable career for himself. With that, came immeasurable amounts of stress and unhappiness, but just like your ex-husband, he chose to hide it from his loved ones. I wish I could help him sometimes too, but there's simply nothing we can do for him. I realized, he would not want us to worry either."
Kagome nodded once again. Sesshoumaru's love for her was hurting and caring at the very same time.
"I just want to let you know this, Kagome-chan, so you will not feel as helpless as I did. I know you love him, but sometimes, love does not always have to be about helping or contributing."
That made sense to Kagome, and she could clearly understand where the old lady was coming from, but it did not seem to be able to reduce the urge to help Sesshoumaru at all. She still prayed for her miracle.
A gentle honk from the road caught their attention, as Kaede's face lit up with recognition as a familiar car came into view.
"That's my grandson." The old lady smiled as Kagome quickly stood up to help her over to where the silvery blue car was waiting. Kaede's footsteps were slow with age, and Kagome was careful as to ensure the old lady did not trip.
As they approached, Kagome was vaguely aware of the driver of the car walking over in hastened footsteps to help Kaede along.
"Obaachan, isoganai de." (Grandma, don't hurry.)
Another pair of stronger hands could be felt on the other arm of the old lady, before Kaede's slightly amused voice was heard.
"Yes, yes…Yutaka, this is Higurashi-san." The old lady introduced. "Remember the young lady I told you about? The one who saved me?"
Kagome's head lifted up instantly to greet Kaede's grandson and introduce herself with a smile, only to have her words get hitched in her throat.
For a moment, she felt as if her air supply had been cut off, and all thoughts frozen. She could only stare with widened eyes.
For looking back at her with a polite smile on his young face, was none other than Nishimoto Yutaka himself.
To be continued…
A/N: I don't know how many of you saw that coming, but this is one of the major plot twists which I am extremely proud of being able to weave into this story! Yes, Nishimoto Yutaka the young entrepreneur is Kaede's grandson, and he is also the very same one with whom Sesshoumaru is trying to strike a deal with!
I sincerely hope you guys enjoyed this chapter, and please do vote for this story on "A Single Spark" should you think it deserves an award! Thank you once again for your support!
Love,
MissTeak
