Chapter 28: What a Kiss Means... and Step Three
Izayoi had picked up Kagome and Shiori and they were heading back to the house with Shiori chatting merrily to Izayoi on what they bought. Kagome was hardly listening to a word that they were saying… she was thinking about what Shiori said earlier… was she right? Did Inuyasha really want to be with her?
She was so lost in her thoughts that she didn't notice when they were in the driveway until Shiori tapped her on the knee. "Mommy? Are you ok?"
"Huh?" Kagome said as she snapped out of it.
"Kagome? Are you alright dear?" asked Izayoi's voice.
"Yeah," said Kagome quickly as she gathered her bags and got out of the car. "Yeah, I'm fine. I was just thinking of something." As she headed up the walkway to the house, Shiori and Izayoi gave each other triumphed grins.
When Kagome entered the house, she saw that it was decorated with pink and blue decorations and Rin was humming merrily to herself from the couch. She looked up to see Kagome enter the room and she gave her cheerful grin as she waved her over. "Hey Kagome! We just finished the decorations! What do you think?"
Kagome walked over to her grinning, and said, "They're adorable! Did you find out if it's going to be a boy or girl yet?"
"Nope," said Rin happily as she went rummaging through a box of brightly colored tissue paper. "Me and Sessy decided to wait and find out."
"Any ideas on what it might be?" Kagome asked as she sat down next to her.
Rin thought it over for a moment, "Well, I want it to be a boy… but then I'll have to worry because boys will get ideas… and if it's a girl… I'll still have to worry because boys will get ideas."
Kagome laughed. "That's true."
"Did you know that you were going to have a boy?" Rin asked interestedly. Kagome, who was messing with the handle of the bag, accidently snapped it in two. She thought it over for a minute.
Now she really liked Rin, but… she wasn't sure if she was ready to tell her about Shippo's twin sister being a stillborn. Her heart still ached at the thought of her baby girl…
"No…" she said after a moment of quiet. "I was very surprised of having a boy."
The smile on Rin's face, faded slightly as she saw the sad look in Kagome's eyes. Did she say something that she shouldn't have? Rin decided to change the subject.
"Anyway, I have something that I wanted to show you."
Kagome looked up interested, not noticing the little girl that was peeking into the room at them. As Kagome bent down to move her bag, Rin caught sight of Shiori and gave her a quick wink. She then held up 3 fingers to the little girl and mouthed, 'Step Three.'
Shiori flashed her a wide smile before she nodded and ran off.
Kagome then sat up straight and asked, "What did you want to show me?"
"Well," Rin began as she reached into her pocket and pulled out a picture… it was of her and Sesshomaru. Kagome thought that the picture had to have been taken a few years ago… maybe before they were married perhaps? Rin and Sesshomaru both looked as the same as they did today, except maybe a little bit younger, and before Rin was pregnant. She and Sesshomaru were both sitting on a park bench and Sesshomaru had his arm around Rin's waist, and Rin had her head on Sesshomaru's shoulder. Sesshomaru looked the same as he always did, except he had a slight smile playing on his lips. Rin on the other hand, had a big Cheshire Cat smile on her face.
"This picture was taken when me and Sessy were both still dating," said Rin dreamily. "It was in the park, right after he and I had our first kiss…"
"Awwwww," said Kagome. "That has to be one of the sweetest things I ever heard of."
"Yeah," Rin said with stars in her eyes. "But I knew that he and I were meant to be together… even before the kiss."
"What do you mean?" Kagome asked.
"Well, believe it or not… I was once a shy little girl when I was I school."
Kagome let out a fake gasp, "You? NO."
Rin nodded, "It's true. I hardly ever spoke to anyone… I spent most of my time alone… that is until the day I meant Sesshomaru." Rin sighed happily before she went on, "I was being bullied by a group of wolf demons one day, and Sesshomaru fought them off. I can't explain the feeling I had… all I knew was that I felt truly, and completely safe around him. I wanted to get to know him more."
She grinned as if remembering all the times she spent with Sesshomaru. "He was a bit of a lone wolf himself you see. He was one of those strong silent types… and I guess that's what drew me to him like a moth to a bright flame. Thanks to him I was able to come out of my shell and be myself. We started dating not long after that…"
She gave Kagome a wide grin as Kagome tried to think of a quiet and shy Rin.
"I knew that I loved him with all my heart and soul," went on Rin. "But for a long time I wasn't sure of how he felt towards me… that is until the day that he took my hand did I begin to think that maybe he felt the same for me…"
"How is that?" Kagome asked confused.
"Well," Rin said with a smirk. "It's just something I heard when I was little. What hand gestures mean… when you hold hands, it means that 'I care about you.' When he took my hand for the first time, I began to think that he had some kinds of feelings towards me."
"Really?" said Kagome surprised. "Holding hands means 'I care about you?'"
"Yep. And when you're holding on tightly, that means 'I don't want to let go.' Hand gestures have special meanings."
"Like what?" Kagome said interestedly.
"Well," Rin said grinning. "When you're holding each other's hands while looking into each other's eyes it means, 'I just plain love you.' When someone is playing with your hair it means, 'I wish you would tell me that I love you.' When you're laughing while touching, that means 'I am completely comfortable with you.' One of my favorites is when someone picks you up off your feet, it means 'That I love you fully and will do anything for you.' And then there's arms around your waist like in this picture," she pointed to the Sesshomaru who did have his arm around Rin's waist. "That means… 'I love you too much to let go.' That was the day I knew he loved me… even before the kiss."
"Wow," said Kagome stunned. "I had no idea what a simple hand gesture could mean."
"Yeah, well that's nothing. You want to know what a kiss means?" Rin asked smiling.
"A kiss means 'I love you' doesn't it?" Kagome said surprised.
"Yes… but that depends on where the kiss is," Rin said wisely. "For example, a kiss on the forehead means 'I hope that we're together forever.' A kiss on the cheek means 'We're friends.' A kiss on the hand means that 'I adore you… don't ever change.' A kiss on the neck means that 'We belong together,' and kiss on your nose means 'I want to be with you.'"
"And a kiss on the lips?" Kagome asked.
"Oh that means, 'I love you… with everything I have,'" Rin answered. At that moment, Shiori came running into the room and into her aunt's arms. As Rin and Shiori talked, Kagome was lost in thought.
Kagome never knew that touching, that may seem simple, could have a special meaning. But now that she thought of it, it made plenty of sense. She thought back to all the times that she had with Inuyasha… They held hands sometimes… and he sometimes wrapped his arms around her waist… she laughed whenever they touched… and she held on tightly to his hands when she looked into his eyes…
And the kiss? They kissed several times… but only on the forehead or the lips… she blushed at that thought.
Was Rin right? Did these simple gestures mean what she had secretly been hoping for all this time? Did that mean that Inuyasha truly loved her with all his heart and soul like Rin loved Sesshomaru? She didn't pay much thought to anything else for the rest of the evening.
Even when all of Rin's friends came over and they all celebrated Rin's shower, Kagome couldn't help but feel distracted all night. It wasn't until Inuyasha brought Shippo home from a baseball game, and her son running towards her waving around a foam finger did she come out of her trance.
Inuyasha was looking rather pale, and he asked if he could drive her and Shippo home before he went home with Shiori.
As Kagome nodded, she didn't notice that Izayoi, Rin, Shiori and Shippo all giving each other a high five.
*Inuyasha and Shippo*
Inuyasha and Shippo were driving home after the game, with Shippo reliving every part of it while waving a foam finger. Inuyasha didn't know what to do make him shut off except by saying, "Yes, Shippo," and "I know Shippo."
After awhile, he gave up and just pretended to listen to the kid talking non-stop. As they continued the ride, Shippo thought that now was a good chance to complete his part of Part 3. He took a deep breath and asked, "Hey, what do you think Shiori and mommy are doing right now?"
"Hmm?" grunted Inuyasha, "Oh, I don't know… probably still talking about how 'cute' the baby's going to be and all other kinds of girly things."
Shippo nodded wisely. "Hey… you know what? Auntie Rin was reading a story to me and Shiori the other day, and it had all kinds of weird sayings and stories in it. Do you want to hear a few of them?"
Inuyasha rolled his eyes, "Sure, what are they?"
"Well, one said, 'A woman never forgets the men she could have had; but for a man it's the women he couldn't.' What do you think that meant?"
"Ah…" began Inuyasha, in shock.
"And another said, 'Have you ever wondered which hurts the most: saying something and wishing you had not, or saying nothing, and wishing you had?' Have you ever heard of that one?"
"Well…" began Inuyasha.
"Oh, and I really liked the one that said, 'Meeting you was fate, becoming your friend was a choice, but falling in love with you was beyond my control.' That's really different don't you think?"
"I… well I…" stuttered Inuyasha, having trouble coming up with an answer.
"Hey! Want to hear about a story that was also in that book?" Shippo said quickly. Without waiting for an answer, he said, "It's a story about this kid who sat in English class when he was in 10th grade. He was staring at his best friend who was sitting next to him. He loved her, but he was sure that she didn't love him back. After class, she walked up to him and asked him for the notes she had missed the other day and he gave them to her. She said "thanks" and gave him a kiss on the forehead. He wanted to ask her to be with him forever… he wanted to be with her, but he never could tell her."
"And when they were in high school, the girl came to him and told him that her date had cancelled on her the day before prom and she asked him if he would want to go to the prom as friends. And they did. After it was over, he was with her at the front door step. She told him that she had a best time and gave him a kiss on the forehead. When they graduated, she went to him in her gown and hat, and cried as he hugged her. Then she told him, "thanks for everything" and gave him a kiss on his forehead."
"A few years later he sat in the pews of a church and he watched the girl he loved get married to someone else. But before she drove away, she came to him and said "you came!" before she then kissed him on the forehead. Years passed, and when he was at the girl's funeral , they read a diary entry she had wrote when she was in high school. This is what it read: I stare at him wishing I could be with him, but he doesn't love me like that, and I know it. I want to tell him, I want him to know that I don't want to be just friends, I love him but I'm just too shy to tell him. I wish he would tell me he loved me! Once he heard that, he cried… wishing that he did too."
Shippo sighed, "Why do you think he never told her that he wanted to be with her?"
Inuyasha had gone very numb from listening to the story, and he hardly noticed the shaking from his hands. "I don't know… maybe… he just couldn't say the words because he was afraid that he would lose her completely?"
Shippo sighed truly confused this time, "I don't get it. If you want to be with someone… then why don't you tell them?"
Inuyasha didn't answer. They spent the rest of the ride in silence. And when they got home, Shippo went running into the house and straight into his mother's arms. As he entered the house, he got a good look at Kagome's face and he saw that she looked a little more tired than usual.
He offered to drop her and Shippo off at her house before he took Shiori home. He was so focused on Kagome's face, that he didn't notice his mother, sister-in-law, Shiori, and Shippo all giving each other a high five.
*Later*
He pulled up in Kagome's driveway, and Kagome looked in the backseat to see Shippo and Shiori both fast asleep. Smiling, Kagome took Shippo and carried him in her arms up to the house and waved goodbye to Inuyasha. She took her son inside and just finished getting him ready for bed when she heard a knock on the door.
Confused she tucked Shippo into bed and went down to see who it was. She opened the door to see a very nervous Inuyasha standing there. "Inuyasha?" she said in surprise.
"Ah… Shippo forgot his foam finger," he said as he handed the souvenir to her.
"Oh, thanks," she said as she took the finger. "I'll give it to him when he wakes up tomorrow."
"Good," said Inuyasha in a higher tone than usual. They both stood there in embarrassment for a few minutes before Kagome said, "You know? Halloween is coming up soon. Is Shiori going trick-or-treating this year?"
"Huh? Oh, yeah," said Inuyasha quickly.
"That's great! What is Shiori going as?" Kagome asked, trying to make conversation.
"Ah, I don't know. We haven't gone shopping for a costume yet," Inuyasha said slowly.
"I see," Kagome said shyly. "Well I haven't had a chance to get one for Shippo yet so…"
"You want to go take the kids Halloween shopping sometime this week?" Inuyasha said quickly.
"YES!" Kagome said a little too loudly and eagerly. She coughed and said in a calmer tone, "Yeah, that sounds great. Tomorrow? After they're out of school?"
Inuyasha nodded before he gave her two quick kisses… the first on her forehead, and the second on her lips. "I'll be waiting for you."
He left after that… leaving Kagome wondering if this was how Rin felt when she first met Sesshomaru… that feeling of being truly and completely safe?
'I love you Inuyasha…' she thought to herself.
Unbeknownst to them, Shippo who was in his room, and Shiori who was in the car were watching the entire thing. "Step 3 is complete…" whispered Shippo from his window.
"Now onto Step 4…" said Shiori from the car.
(Hey sorry for taking so long. But i got school tomorrow so i thought that i would put this up before i get the truckload of homework i'm sure to get. Hey, what do you guys think step 4 is going to be? Please review and tell me what you think!)
