Disclaimer: No claims on the hanyou... *sigh*

A/N: I'm back!!! Two finals are over! Time to take a break before I start studying to the last one... Eheheh... ^_^;

Happy Birthday!

by Nankinmai

Chapter 12 - What About Him?

It was a beautiful afternoon. The sun was finally getting to its hottest times of the day. People were having fun on the beach. The two young people nearby were about to too, until...

"Hobo..." Inuyasha growled deeper this time.

"Inuyasha, Hojo is a friend of mine, so there's no reason for you to go growling like that," said Kagome, trying to calm him down.

"Keh!" Kagome looked curiously at Inuyasha and thought, 'Is he jealous?' Meanwhile, Hojo finally approached her with a bright smile.

"Kagome! I see that your health has improved enough for you to be able to go to the beach," said Hojo.

"Eh heh heh," said Kagome with a sigh. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see that Inuyasha had raised a brow at Hojo's comment.

"You know, I spotted a shaved ice booth on the way here. Would you like some?" asked Hojo, while reaching for Kagome's hand. Inuyasha noticed this and started to growl softly, but loud enough for Kagome to hear. She turned around to say something to the hanyou when she felt Hojo grabbed her hand and smiled.

"Come on. It'll cool you down in this heat," Hojo said with a brighter smile, seemingly oblivious of Inuyasha and his growls. 'Who does this Hobo think he is?!' thought Inuyasha between his growls.

"Uh..." Kagome tried to come up with an excuse, and for once wishing her grandfather was there, when her three friends pop up out of nowhere right in front of the human boy.

"Come on, Hojo. You can treat the three of us to some of that shaved ice you mentioned," said Eri, while turning the boy around.

"But what about Kagome?" asked Hojo, trying to turn back around in resistance.

"Right now she wants some time alone," replied Yuka who started to push him.

"Then what about that weird guy?" inquired Hojo, finally acknowledging the hanyou's existence. All four girls was amaze to be able to notice the large vein that was about to pop underneath the hanyou's cap. He even had a menacing glare on his face. The three friends looked at each other and nodded before grabbing Hojo by the arms and ran away.

Kagome turned to face a now smirking Inuyasha and sighed. 'I guess they're going to believe that he's violent now. Or at least that he has a very short temper,' thought Kagome as she placed a hand on his chest unconsciously. She felt Inuyasha stiffen underneath her touch before realizing where her hand was. She quickly withdrew her hand and suddenly became interested in the sand she was standing on. Quickly, her face reddened with several shades of red.

Inuyasha silently took in a deep breath and gathered up his courage. As Kagome was too busy with the sand, she didn't notice the hanyou's hand moving. She was quite surprise to find someone grabbing her hands for the second time. Even more so when she found that the hand belonged to Inuyasha. She looked up only to find Inuyasha looking away, but not enough since she noticed a hint of blush on his face. She smiled as she clasped her fingers around the hand that was already holding hers. Inuyasha looked down at the smiling face before walking towards the water.

Kagome allowed herself to be gently tugged towards the ocean, where the water's reflection of the bright sunlight practically blinded her. Inuyasha took noticed and walked so that this body blocked the intense light from her eyes. She was grateful and slightly tightened her grip on his hands in appreciation. Inuyasha did the same as they slowly reached the water before breaking the peace by splashing each other with the ocean's cool salty water.

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Japanese terms: (See earlier chapters for other terms.)

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A/N: Gomenasai!!! I know this chapter is the shortest yet, but I had to leave it there. Gonna sleep early for once, or as early as I can get. (Currently midnight...) To make it up, I'll try to get another chapter up before I start studying for the last final, and it'll definitely be longer than this one!

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Kitten Kisses - Glad you're happy!

Ms. Prongs - Hmm... Too many evil things in this world... And thanks for the poem! It did cheer me up, especially since I read it right after I got back from my first final.

Bunny - Thanks! Wanna blow up all educational institutes to stop this evil??? Still thinking about how to end it... Should Miroku know about the beach or not, that is the question...

Para - People have mysterious minds... I merely make them up!

Rikku_ja - Happy belated birthday! Be careful when driving!!!

Miaka Kiri - Err, been too lazy to look it up, but what's "Ganbate ne"?

Higurashi Kagome - Yes, computers have been giving me issues also... It's been lagging too much lately and I think my roommate was about to beat her laptop up...

Chris-Redfield26 - Where's the pom poms? I wanna throw them in Hobo's face!

Ame Tenshi - Hey! Where did you go???

Demon Girl - Is there anybody in this world who likes Hobo???

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Nankinmai - Zzzzzzz...

Inuyasha - Keh! She's already asleep!

Kagome - Shh! Don't wake her up! Ja ne!