It had been a long day for Inuyasha. He barely registered where his feet were taking him, letting his displeasure from the day dictate his path. Inuyasha always hated working the day after a holiday. The guys who worked under him at his mechanic shop were good workers, but they never failed to get utterly smashed - no matter the holiday - and would always show up to the work the next day extremely hungover. Which of course caused their inventory of cars to fix to pile up, and it usually took them a week or so to get the shop back to normal.

Usually if a holiday lined up on a Friday or Monday, Inuyasha would just declare the shop closed for a three day weekend to avoid this exact problem, but there were plenty of times over the years where luck was just not on his side. This year, Halloween was no exception to their holiday partying tradition, and Inuyasha had found himself working double time today as an onslaught of customers had flocked to the garage in anticipation for the weekend. While the weather had already started to get a little chillier, it didn't seem to steer people from wanting to go out for the weekend, and who could do that with car troubles?

And yet, after such an exhausting day, Inuyasha still felt restless. He had arrived home long enough to shower before heading back out to…God only knows where. All he knew was that there was no way he would just sit around at home alone. Again.

Despite escaping the aching loneliness of his apartment, he didn't want to think about being around anyone at the moment. His only friend, Sango, had begged him all week to accompany her on Halloween, and Inuyasha had thrown her every excuse in the book as to why he couldn't come. She decided to throw a huge costume party with her new husband, Miroku, and as per usual signed herself up for more than she could handle. But Inuyasha wasn't an idiot. This was a classic Sango tactic to set him up on some God awful blind date. She would plan some huge event, get herself all worked up over the whole thing, beg Inuyasha to help her, and as soon as she had him in her grasp, shove him off onto some unsuspecting female. Well, the women in the beginning weren't innocent in Sango's plans, but she eventually became desperate enough for the hanyou to devote any amount of attention to someone of the opposite sex, with no remorse for the women who had no idea what they were getting themselves put into.

No, Inuyasha didn't want anything to do with a costume party where Sango would try and shove him towards the first slutty cat she could find. He knew that she meant well. It was clear to Sango that his separation from Kikyo was hard on him, but the last thing he wanted to do was just dive into some meaningless relationship.

Inuyasha was trying to forget about her. It had been two years since she left. Two years since he felt the warmth of her body next to his. Two years since he last felt alive. Everything had all happened so fast. One minute, they were engaged and looking at houses in the area, the next she was packing her bags. She admitted she felt stagnant, tied down. Whether she felt that towards him or just her life in general, Inuyasha feared he would probably never find out. Kikyo didn't seem to know the answer to that either. All she knew, or would tell him, was that she needed to leave, to clear her head.

Inuyasha had hoped that maybe after a little time, she would return. He wouldn't have faulted her too much for going away, he would always forgive her. She was the first person to ever see past the fact he was just a hanyou. She was the first person to love him like that. His kind were treated a lot better nowadays than in the past, but that didn't mean that people – humans or demons alike – wanted anything to be with him. Not like that anyways.

The first year apart was the hardest. He spent so many months trying to figure out what went wrong. Was he too clingy? Could she not look past his usually brash personality? Did she fall in love with someone else? Inuyasha couldn't scent any deception on her when she left him, but Kikyo was so cryptic in her explanations who could say where her true reasoning lied. Kikyo had always been a woman of few words, and despite being together for three years, Inuyasha rarely knew what was going through her mind. He tried to erase her scent from his loft, but he was constantly finding little things of hers that she had left behind. In an attempt to not go crazy with despair and longing, he moved to a different apartment, and purged himself of anything materialistic that reminded him of her. The past year found him working far more than he needed to, and avoiding anywhere that Kikyo and him might have frequented.

A quick blast of cool air brought Inuyasha back to the present. He didn't know how far he had walked. Many of his and Kikyo's old haunts were fairly close to the area he resided, even though he had moved, so he continued his inattentive roaming, in search of an establishment that would serve him something that would take his mind away from it all. Before long, he found himself standing in front of an unfamiliar bar. Inuyasha could tell it was a more local joint, not quite a hole in the wall bar, but also not one of the more popular places for folks to hang around.

'Well, this seems as good a place as ever,' he thought, pulling the door open. It was a decently sized little taproom, consisting of one main room, with a hallway in the back that lead to what Inuyasha suspected were bathrooms or employee only areas. Sweeping his eyes across the room, Inuyasha spied two pool tables lining the far left wall. A couple of booths were situated immediately to the left of the door along the wall, while a few high rise tables with bar stools were set around the room, and on the far wall opposite the door was an old jukebox. On the right hand side of the room was the bar, where an older looking gentleman happened to be taking drink orders. There were a few groups scattered throughout the room, but not enough for Inuyasha to feel overloaded. The place had an overall comfortable feel to it. Being a hanyou, Inuyasha had a better sense of smell and hearing than humans, so the atmosphere of most bars would irk him, the smell of cigarettes and the heavy beating of music aggravating his most important senses, giving him a substantial headache.

Inuyasha walked up and sat at the closest seat at the bar, giving the few people seated there a sparing glance before he set his eyes on a most enticing sight. Sitting at the other end of the bar was presumably the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. Due to the way the bar was curved, Inuyasha was facing her side view, but that did nothing to damper her exquisite features. Her dark hair fell half way down her back, the light from the bulbs above the bar giving it an almost ethereal blue hue. Her eyes held a look of pure dedication to the book she held in her hands, her plump lips a delicious red from the cold drink she sipped on. With only a quick glance of the girl, and one might say that she was Kikyo's twin, but even without going by scent, Inuyasha could spot all the differences. Kikyo was a very private person, someone who always kept her emotions tame, no matter the situation. This girl wouldn't know how to hide her feelings if her life depended on it. Inuyasha watched as her expression changed rapidly from happy to shocked, her book keeping her on the edge of her seat.

If Inuyasha had a mirror, he would be able to see the very predatory look he had on his face.

"What's your poison tonight son?" the bartender asked, rousing Inuyasha from his thoughts. He had to physically shake his head to take his gaze off the goddess in his midst.

"Just a shot of whiskey," he muttered, barely feeling his movements as he pulled his debit card out to start a tab. The bartender placed a small glass in front of him and filled it a quarter of the way full with whiskey. Nodding in thanks, Inuyasha downed the glass in one gulp. His mind was clouded with thoughts of this mystery woman. Against his earlier desire to not get involved with anyone, the couldn't help but wonder what her voice sounded like. He wanted to hear her laugh at one if his stupid jokes, the touch of her hand over his, her body squirming under his as he –

'Get it together Inuyasha!' he growled to himself. What was going on with himself? Not even ten minutes ago he couldn't imagine even talking with another woman, but now he was envisioning himself with this complete stranger? Inuyasha closed his eyes and took a deep breath. It had been two years since Kikyo left. Most people would have at least tried to dip their feet back into the dating pool by now, so just what was holding him back? Did he think he'd be betraying her if he started seeing someone else? Did he truly believe she would just walk back through his door, like nothing had happened? Was he afraid no one could love him like she did?

God, he needed another drink.

Inuyasha opened his eyes to gaze at her again. The corners of her mouth turned upward, a content expression set across her face, and suddenly the only thing Inuyasha wanted to do was find out what was so interesting about that book.

He stood up from his chair and made his way down the bar. He kept his footsteps light, not wanting his presence to become known to her yet. Time seemed to slow down with every step. She continued reading her book and savoring her drink, completely unaware of the hanyou prowling towards her. With only a few chairs between them, Inuyasha finally caught a whiff of her scent; sweet honey and floral jasmine. Inuyasha's eyes almost rolled toward the back of his head, nothing could have smelled better.

Inuyasha found himself getting nervous as he came to stand behind her. He was still trying to grapple his emotions and fears about Kikyo when his legs started leading him towards her. He had no idea how to start a conversation with this woman! Should he make up a fake reason as to why he came over to her? Should he try and flirt with her? Did he even know how to flirt anymore? Inuyasha felt his chest tighten and his throat dry up. If he was honest with himself, he hadn't tried flirting with someone in over five years. What if he tripped over his words, making her think he was some kind of fool.

Inuyasha held his head high, preparing himself to somehow say something to her when he noticed that the wall he faced - which was adorned with all the different alcohols they served – was a decorated with mirrors. If the woman in front of him only looked up, she would see him standing behind her. It was a little frightening, knowing in any second she could notice him, before he could effectively make up an excuse to want to talk to her. But she didn't glance up. Hell, she didn't even raise her head to look at her drink. This book was so completely catching her attention that she couldn't even concentrate on her surroundings. Which irritated the hanyou; What is so interesting about this book? Why was it more interesting than him?

Inuyasha growled almost soundlessly as he yanked the book from her hands. He was going to find out why she was so interested in this damn book. She stammered at him, her eyes growing wide in confusion and…anger?

"Excuse you!"

"You're excused," he muttered, scanning each page for anything that would pop out at him. He affirmed she was reading one of those sappy, romantic fantasy novels, where some beautiful outcast falls in love with a dragon, or some shit like that. Inuyasha almost couldn't believe she was the kind of girl who would read books like this. He wondered if she actually liked the story or if reading it was a guilty pleasure for her. He glanced down to inspect her face. At the same time she shot up from her seat, arm extending upwards towards the book. He held the book up just out of her reach, reveling in the split-second feel of her body against his as she tried swiping it.

Inuyasha hadn't even processed that she had said anything to him when he decided to take the plunge talk to her. "So tell me, who comes to a bar – alone – just to read a book? Can't find yourself a date on this day, after All Hallows Eve?"

'Good job baka. Nothing tells a girl you're interested in her than insulting her!' Inuyasha cursed to himself as she slightly looked away timidly. He softened the features in his face in an attempt to soothe the harsh words that came out of his mouth. When she looked back up at him, a light blush covered her cheeks, and Inuyasha couldn't help but smirk at her. She was adorable. Her eyes sought out refuge from his own, the scent of her embarrassment wafting towards him.

"If you must know, I've had a hard week and decided to treat myself to a drink and a good book. If that's okay with you?"

"By yourself?" Inuyasha let his body slouch so she could be in reach of her book. She was obviously embarrassed to be called out on being alone, but her eyes shone with intensity, as if to challenge him to insult her.

'She's a little spitfire,' he mused, thinking her more beautiful by the minute.

"You say that like it's bad thing."

"Well when it comes to celebrations, no one should be alone." Inuyasha motioned to the bartender. Step one in serenading: buy her a drink. Right? The wary look on her face didn't budge, but Inuyasha could see the way her shoulders dropped just slightly, her body relaxing in his presence.

"Here you are buying me a drink, and I don't even know you're name."

Inuyasha grinned at her. 'So she wants my name, huh?' he thought, giving her body a once over. She shifted in her seat, her eyes just as focused on him as he was on her.

Inuyasha couldn't believe it. Was this flirting? Was this successful flirting? It was if her scent told him anything, despite the fire in her eyes. But if he was honest, it was that exact fire that called her to him. Is this how women acted when they played hard to get?

"I could say the same thing about you," he pointed out to her. As if he was going to make it easy on her, especially if this was a real 'playing hard to get' situation. He wanted to watch her squirm under his ever watching eyes, to know that he was the one making her face flush. She sat there, opening and closing her mouth like a fish out of water, as if she was trying to come up with the perfect comeback. Her soft, brown orbs caught his, and he almost gave in to her silent request. He would have told her anything to keep her beautiful eyes on him, but right as he was about to let go, she beat him to the punch. She spoke so softly, if it wasn't for his hanyou hearing, he might have missed it. And thank God he didn't miss it, because the name she uttered shook him to his core.

Kagome.

Was Inuyasha always this sappy, or was it because of her? He didn't think he'd ever heard a more beautiful name, befitting of the woman sitting beside him. In that moment, he knew how fucked he was. She barely said more than a few sentences to him, and she had him wrapped around her little fingers. He wanted to know everything there was to know about her. He wanted to hear her laugh, to forever breath in the sweet scent that was Kagome.

He wanted to feel how each syllable in her name rolled off his tongue. Ka-go-me. He didn't fail to notice how she shivered when he said it. Perhaps he had her wrapped around his finger just as much as she did with him. He hoped so anyways. It was becoming increasingly difficult to keep up with his surroundings. Everything around them was suddenly blurred, leaving only Kagome in crystal clear focus. He barely noticed their drinks bring sat in front of them, the clinking of their glasses muffled by the sound of his heartbeat.

The night was perfect. Inuyasha had never found someone he could actually stand to talk to. Sango was usually the one exception to his 'I-don't-like-talking-to-people' rule, and even then, they're conversations were rarely two sided. Sango would talk, while Inuyasha responded with an occasional 'Keh!'. He didn't even talk much with Kikyo, which was probably a reason he liked being around her; he didn't have to make unnecessary conversation with her. But with Kagome…talking came easy. She was the type of person who could talk about anything and everything, but she knew just how to keep him a part of the conversation, no matter the subject.

Hell, she even got him to go on and on about his mechanic shop, an accomplishment Inuyasha was extremely proud of. It took a lot of time, energy, and money to get to where he was, and he so rarely raved about himself. He blushed when he realized he had taken over their conversation, but none of that mattered when she gave him the brightest smile he had ever seen.

It was like she was breaking down all the walls he had built around himself over the years. It had been so long since Inuyasha had felt comfortable around someone. It made all the feelings he had about Kikyo feel superficial at best. Was this what it was like to really be in sync with someone? Every word she spoke sent a tingle of warmth to his chest. Every time she cheered as she scored a shot in pool, he couldn't help but share in her pride. And when they were dancing? Fuck, it was like he was walking on air. Inuyasha couldn't give a damn if anyone was watching either. Nothing was going to spoil this night.

Except for himself, of course.

Not like he did anything wrong per say, he was the perfect gentleman. Kagome was, for lack of a better word, shit-faced. She claimed that she wasn't a lightweight when it came to alcohol, but three whiskey shots and several rum and cola's later and even Inuyasha was starting to feel a slight buzz, let alone a small human girl like her. Not that he was even remotely drunk, as a hanyou he'd have to drink twice as much as he did if he wanted to really feel anything.

Inuyasha's plan was foolproof. He'd call her a cab, pay for the trip home, put his number in her phone, and kiss her goodnight. Inuyasha had no idea if she had driven here or how far away she lived. He figured if she needed her car, he'd help her get it tomorrow. Which would give himself another reason to see her again. And God did he want to see her again.

Inuyasha wondered what had went wrong. Was he too confident in his plan? Should he have rearranged some of the steps? Did fate just want to kick him while he's down? Everything had happened so fast. As soon as the cab driver had his card info and Kagome in the back, he sped off, leaving a stunned hanyou standing alone on the sidewalk. No goodnight. No number. And no kiss.

《~~~~~~~~~~~》

The next several months for Inuyasha were painful. Time for the hanyou had never gone by so fucking slowly for him. The following day after that wondrous night, Inuyasha had gone back to the bar in hopes that she would have to return for her car, or maybe she would be there in hopes to find him as well. There was no such luck to be had for him though. Inuyasha had stayed in the area for a better part of the day, but every car in the area was eventually claimed, with no sign of Kagome coming back. Either she had come back before he arrived, or she hadn't drove to the bar.

The first month consisted of Inuyasha berating himself. Why didn't he get her last name? Why didn't he push to know the name of that diner she worked at? Why couldn't he have put his number in her phone before she got into that fucking cab? The more he thought about it all, the angrier it made him. How could he let his feelings cloud his judgement? Was he so desperate for the here and now that he couldn't step back to secure the future? To make sure that night would be a first, not an only?

'Keh, of course not. All I could see was her,' he conceded, combing his hand through his bangs. Inuyasha was currently sitting at this desk staring at his computer screen with a lifeless gaze. It was a fairly lackluster day at the shop – there was only a few cars booked with no walk ins – and seeing as his help wasn't needed on the floor, Inuyasha finally took it upon himself to tend to the mountain of paperwork he had let pile up for the past couple of weeks.

Inuyasha didn't know what else he could do to try and find her. He had gone and eaten at a variety of different diners over the past couple of months in an attempt to find the one she worked at, a feat that turned out to be much more difficult than he initially realized. Kagome talked a lot about her accomplishments in cooking, from being accepted into and graduating culinary school to all the work she did at the diner, but she never specified exactly where she worked. Inuyasha thought there had to hundreds of diners out there, from little mom and pop dives to more commercial franchises. He didn't know how much more diner chow he could swallow – literally. No one at any of the places he checked had heard of her, and some places were less than enthused about some strange man asking about their employees.

After giving up on the 'I'll-find-her-at-the-diner' idea, he also tried going back to the bar fairly regularly. He hoped that the bar was actually a regular haunt of hers. He fantasized about walking in, the faint chiming of the bell above the door becoming the perfect soundtrack to the light that would sparkle in her eyes as she caught his own, giving him that smile that made his knees week.

She was never there though. His daily visits turned into once a week visits, until he couldn'r stomach the emptiness he felt as he left every night. He decided around the New Year to stop looking for her. If he was meant to find her, it would have happened by now. Life was just a cruel bitch that way.

So now he was cooping himself up at work. For the hundredth time today, Inuyasha's phone flashed. Sango had been texting him nonstop all week, and he had been avoiding her. Tomorrow was his most dreaded day of the year - Valentine's Day - and Sango was doing her best to 'hook him up'. Inuyasha couldn't remember if he could ever tolerate this unnecessary holiday. It was exhausting when he was with Kikyo because it always felt like he had to buy her love, whether it was jewelry or going out to eat. Not that she was a materialistic person, but Inuyasha thought that she had a certain idea about what Valentine's Day meant, and when she thought she was right there was no diminishing her resolve. Then, after Kikyo left, Sango decided to get involved with his love life starting with Valentine's Day. She might be able to ensnare him in her grasp on any other holiday, but he kept as far a distance as he could when it came to her.

He hadn't bothered to tell Sango about Kagome. He waited in the beginning because he was so determined that he would find a sign that Kagome was real and not some illusion, but recently the thought of telling Sango anything was humiliating. Here was a beautiful young woman who was so kindly thrust into his life, only for him to lose her, like an idiot.

'Keh, Sango'd kill me if she ever found that out,' he sighed despondently, throwing his phone in his top desk drawer as his phone buzzed with yet another text. With one final exhalation, Inuyasha grabbed a small stack of papers and set about getting his office back in order. What better way to avoid Sango than to hole yourself up all evening with work?

"Damn, I need a drink…"

《~~~~~~~~~~~》

'Since when was filing paperwork so damn tiring?'

Inuyasha was exhausted. He hadn't realized how much work he had put off over the last couple of weeks, so it took him the rest of his work day - plus an extra hour – to get himself caught up.

'Ain't making that mistake again, I don't care how many clients we got,' he grumbled, crashing onto his couch. Today was looking like it was to be the roughest day in all of Inuyasha's life. He had a splitting headache from staring at a computer screen all day, and despite working an extra hour today, Sango had been relentless in attempting to convince him to double date with her and Miroku. About halfway home, Inuyasha had turned his phone off to stop the endless rampage of texts and calls. It was a better alternative to what he really wanted to do, which was block her number altogether.

After getting home to shower and change into a comfortable pair of sweats, his plan was to make a couple of cups of instant ramen and park his ass in front of the t.v. for the remainder of the night. Only for him to realize, as he stared into his empty cupboard, that on top of forgetting about paperwork, he also forgot to go food shopping. Which meant there was no ramen in his house.

It was like the universe had only one soul purpose, and that was to fuck with Inuyasha's life. Today really was shaping up to be the worst. Headache, an empty stomach, and an even emptier apartment. And so Inuyasha sat there on his couch, not really feeling takeout tonight but not wanting to leave the house either.

Inuyasha felt pretty pathetic, to be honest. He would be lying if he hadn't fantasized about spending Valentine's Day with Kagome. Even in the last month, when he had give up looking for her, he could still envision what she'd be wearing or where they'd go to eat. He hadn't felt this lonely since Kikyo first left him. All for a girl he only spoke to for three hours at best?

Valentine's Day sure had a knack for kicking a man while he's down.

Despite his unwillingness to leave his home, Inuyasha decided that he was better off going out somewhere. There was that little ramen shop in the downtown area. He had seen an advertisement for the shop last week that caught his eye; they were apparently known for being open extremely late. So, he made his decision; he would go and grab something to eat at the ramen shop and stop to grab some groceries on his way home. He did need something to eat in the morning anyways. He changed into a pair of jeans, pulled on a light jacket, and strode out into the brisk night.

The cold hardly bothered him much. Perks of being a hanyou and all that. The crisp breeze brushed against his still damp hair, making him feel like he had just jumped into a ice cold bath, but it was almost soothing. His headache still remained, but the pounding had started to dull. He took deep breaths, in and out, trying to clear his mind. Inuyasha was convinced he thought too much. Nothing good ever came from thinking anyways.

He rounded the next corner, taking on another gust of wind. Only two more streets and he would finally have some warm food in his belly. The thought of his all-time favourite food was beginning to lighten his darkened mood – as ramen always did – when he suddenly stopped. All of a sudden, his mind was running at incomprehensible speeds. In his starving induced state, he had failed to remember that in order to get to the ramen shop, he would have to walk right by the bar. Had he taken a moment to think instead of letting his legs push him onwards, he could have taken a much longer route to avoid the bar.

Inuyasha took back what he thought earlier. He hadn't been thinking too much, in fact he hadn't been thinking at all.

There wasn't any time to spare thinking about his hunger, or how he led himself right to the bar before Valentine's Day. His eyes never wavered from the sidewalk in front of him. One ear kept an eye out for anything strange around him outside, while his other ear twitched towards the door to the bar. There were too many noises to pick up anything specific, the occasional car driving by, the sounds of people walking in and out of the businesses that surrounded him. But Inuyasha wasn't paying attention to any of the information those senses brought him. The only one that mattered was smell.

Honey. And Jasmine. Inuyasha closed his eyes as he took in a deep breath. All of a sudden, his headache dwindled down to only a faint buzz. Even his hunger subsided, as if breathing in that scent could satiate him. He was frozen to the ground. Part of him wanted to turn so badly, to look inside that door and find her sitting on that damn stool. Another part of him didn't know if he could take it, to look over and not see her there. He had stopped looking for her because of this very reason. But as he inhaled more of that sweet scent, he threw reason out the window. He violated the very essence of his logical brain that told him to run, to keep moving towards the ramen shop. Because that scent, it was still strong. Which means whatever – or whoever – it came from had just passed by. He turned his head to look through the door, and in that moment it seemed like the whole world just stopped. Everything but her anyways.

Kagome.

She was chatting with someone out of his sight, most likely the bartender. Her cheeks were tinged with color, little wisps of hair that weren't held up in her bun looking wind swept. She must have just sat down, not even a drink in front of her yet.

Inuyasha couldn't believe it. Months of searching for her, pining for her, and there she sat. In the same spot as he first found her. There were so many thoughts rushing through his head, it was like he couldn't find that happy medium between not thinking at all and thinking too much. She was just as beautiful now as she was that day. Kagome didn't need makeup to highlight any feature on her face, she was naturally alluring in her own right. And seeing her wearing red – his color – was extremely arousing. It didn't matter that she was wearing an oversized sweater. Hell, she could wear a trash bag and he'd still think her the most beautiful creature he'd ever seen.

It didn't take long for him to imagine that she was wearing one of his sweaters. Didn't he have one just like that at home? A darker thought clouded his mind – what if she was wearing someone else's sweater? He growled at his minds insinuation that she was with someone already. He had waited MONTHS for her to come back into his life, and he wasn't about to let some other male take her from him. He'd just have to make her see that, too.

The soft chiming of the door announced his presence. Looking over at the bar, Inuyasha vaguely noticed the demon cub was on duty tonight, probably making Kagome's drink.

"Let me know if you need anything else Kagome!"

'Is Kagome on a first name basis with the runt?' he pondered, slowly making his way towards her. She didn't reply to the cub, only giving him a weak smile before focusing on her drink. To Inuyasha, she smelled stressed, and he could hear the soft sigh she let out as her body attempted to relax somewhat. It hurt him to see how exhausted she looked and all he could think of doing was pulling her close to him.

She finally picked up her drink, nearly inhaling half of it in one gulp. And that's when he pounced.

"You better be careful, take any more drinks like that and I'll have to call you another cab," he snickered, enjoying the idea of teasing her just so he could see that fire in her eyes again. His plan backfired as she choked on her drink, being completely unaware that anyone was behind her.

"Kagome!" he gasped, as he brought his hand to her back, bracing himself on the counter.

'Feh, good job baka! First thing you do when you find her is almost kill her!' he snarled at himself. He rubbed his hand on her back in soothing circles as she gained control of her breathing.

"I-Inuyasha…" she stuttered. Her face flushed almost as red as the sweater she wore, and Inuyasha could smell the tangy scent of embarrassment wafting off her. Given her attire and embarrassment of being caught at the bar, Inuyasha speculated that she didn't expect to run into anyone tonight. He was glad to see that she wasn't too angry with him for making her choke on her drink, and decided he was still in good standing to continue with his teasing.

"Well damn, Ka-go-me, didn't know you were that drunk already," he made sure to enunciate her name like before, his prize the shiver that he could see running down her body from it. Her eyes held so many emotions, it was hard for Inuyasha to keep track. He was waiting for the bold fury to erupt from them, to feel the stubbornness she exuded. He wasn't quite prepared for her actual response.

"Do you want to get out of here?"

'Like you wouldn't believe wench,' he thought amusedly. "What's the rush? You just got here?"

"I didn't get a chance to eat dinner yet. It's been a long week," she confessed. Inuyasha almost wanted to pinch himself to make sure he wasn't dreaming. He loved the rapt attention she was giving him, but he still longed to see her bite out at him.

"You're just always having a bad week, aren't ya wench?"

"Only preceding when I see you apparently." And there was the bite. "Maybe it's a sign?"

"A sign of what?" he questioned, squinting his eyes at her slightly as he tried to predict what she was about to say.

"That I should see you more," she practically whispered. He only managed to hear her because of his enhanced hearing. Perhaps he wouldn't get any of her true snarky-ness tonight, at the moment he couldn't quite care. She had glanced away from him for a second before gazing back up at him. Her eyes conveyed every emotion she felt to him. Longing, hope, excitement, a dash of embarrassment. He could only hope his eyes would carry out his own emotions to her. The yearning he felt for her these past few months, his desire too be in her presence, how just looking at her seemed to cure whatever ailed him.

"There's a really great ramen shop not too far from here. If you don't mind walking."

Inuyasha could not believe his luck. How much of a coincidence would it be if she was referring to the very shop he was on his way to? The last few months had been hell for Inuyasha, but it was all worth it for this moment. He couldn't contain the smile on his face.

"You just said the magic word,"

Inuyasha was sure he was going to have teach himself how to breath again. She had no idea what those tender looks did to him. He pulled back, ready to pay for her drink and whisk her away. She beat him to the punch, throwing down enough bills for a decent tip before they walked out into the cold night air. He was okay with that though. He had the rest of the night to mend all the mistakes he made the first time they met.

She laced her right arm with his left, leading him in the same direction he was originally walking towards before his brief stop. His other hand came up to grasp her hand, and as they walked, there was only one thought running through Inuyasha's mind.

'There is no way I'm letting her get away again.'

A/N: Thank you to everyone who has taken the time to read this! It's been so long since I've last written anything (that wasn't for school anyways). I had almost forgotten about the joy writing can be to someone. This was only intended to be a one shot, but I really want to try and get back into the groove to write, and I'm hoping this story will help me. It won't be a very long story, but I'm hoping to bring y'all some sweet InuKag fluff! Thank you to everyone who reviewed the first chapter! You really helped inspire me to write this next chapter!