Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha.

Chapter 7

Kagome looked through the articles of clothing which hung in her closet. I don't even have anything to wear… She sighed as she pushed clothing to the side of her closet and looked deep within. Hojo had asked her to the dance at the last minute, leaving her no time to go shopping for something to wear, so she was stuck looking through what she already had. She smiled as she pulled out a dress that appeared to be perfect for the occasion. It had been a very good day. A good week in fact. Being 'stuck' in her own time had allowed her to catch up on her homework and with her friends. She looked up as she felt someone enter the room.

"Are you busy, Kagome?" Miroku stood in the doorway.

She smiled. "Not really, Miroku. I was just looking for something to wear to the formal tomorrow."

"Formal?"

"A thing at school. A social thing when guys and girls get together and dance." She smiled. "There is one upside to this whole situation. I actually get to be a normal teenager for awhile. I usually don't have time to go to these sort of things."

"So, this is the type of occasion that would require a courtship of some kind?" the monk asked curiously.

Kagome smiled. "Yes. I'm going with that guy I told you about earlier. Hojo. I'm glad he asked me—I really wanted to go." She laid her dress on the bed, trying to smooth the wrinkles out with her hand.  "No one goes to these things alone, you know. If you do, most people think you're pathetic."

The monk looked away. "I thought you said you didn't like him in that way."

"Well…" Kagome's smiled faded instantly. "I've never really given him much of a chance…"

"I see."

"Why?"

"It wouldn't be nice to give him a false sense of adoration," Miroku replied, quietly.

"I…I'm not."

Miroku shrugged. "You don't need to pretend you like someone in order to receive some affection."

"Huh?"

"Nothing," the monk replied as he turned and walked away, leaving Kagome utterly confused. Why is he acting so strange? Certainly it doesn't bug him that I'm going out with Hojo…right? Surely not, why would it?

Miroku had seemed depressed ever since they had tried the well again that morning without any luck. She felt bad for him. She could understand why he would be upset, but something was different about the way he was acting today. He had seemed almost…rude.

Kagome went downstairs, shortly after the monk had left her room, and found him in his new favorite place—sitting on the couch watching television in a daze. Surprisingly, not drinking a soda this time.

She approached the monk quietly. "Something bothering you, Miroku?" she asked him.

Miroku sighed. "I'm stuck 500 years in the future and I may never make it back home. No, everything's fine, Kagome."

Kagome felt her eyes begin to tear up. "I'm sorry…I…" Miroku had never said such nasty things to her, and his spiteful comments left her speechless. The monk's gaze remained fixed to the television. "I just want to be alone…" he said to the girl, without bothering to look up.

She nodded.

***

Kagome did her best to avoid the depressed monk the rest of the day. Miroku had always worried about his air void, but she had never seen him actually angry before. She sighed as she changed into her pajamas and climbed into bed. Tomorrow I'm going to the dance. At least that will take my mind of things.

She sighed as she rested her head on her pillow. Soon after, a gentle knock was heard at the door. "Come in." Miroku appeared at the end of her bed, wearing only the flannel pajama pants her mom had bought him the previous day. Kagome blushed at the half-naked monk. "Miroku?"

Miroku smiled as he took a seat at the end of her bed. "Your brother's snoring was keeping me up." He crossed his arms across his bare chest. "It's rather loud, you know."

Kagome smiled and nodded as she leaned forward in an attempt to discreetly smell his breathe, remembering the monk's previous late night visit to her bedroom. Miroku smiled as he moved towards Kagome, and much to her surprise, pulled the girl into a gentle embrace. "I'm sorry," he said, "I'm sorry about earlier." He spoke softly as he rested his chin on her shoulder. Kagome began to feel a little shaky. She had never seen this kind of affection from the monk before. He made no attempt to grope her, but only hugged her softly. Gods he smells wonderful, she thought to herself, feeling his muscular arms around her and enjoying every minute of his embrace, although she knew that, most likely, the hug was a platonic one.

"That's okay, Miroku. I understand. It's my fault you are stuck here in the first place. I pulled you into this era to begin with…" The monk gently backed away as he looked into her eyes.

"Don't say that."

"It's true."

"It's not your fault I'm stuck here. You shouldn't apologize to me. You're the one that deserves the apology—your family has done nothing but make me feel welcome here the past few days. I have never felt this welcome anywhere before." He paused as Kagome stared intently at him. "I shouldn't have been rude to you earlier. You are a wonderful girl, and you don't deserve that kind of treatment."

Kagome smiled, blushing slightly. "Miroku…what is bothering you? I wish you would tell me."

The monk sighed as he looked at his lap. "The air void. I don't have a lot of time left, and I'm starting to doubt if the well will ever let us back through. I worry that we may not be able to make it back…in time." The last part he said very quietly.

Kagome's look saddened. "I never thought of that…" The monk looked away as the soft glow of the moonlight, which shone through the window, illuminated his face. When he turned his attention back towards her, she noticed a shiny trail had formed on his cheek. Miroku is crying? She had never seen him so depressed before, and it saddened her. She gently put her hand on his bare shoulder. "Don't worry, everything will work out fine."

"I wish I knew that were true." He gave her a small, fake smile as another tear trailed down his cheek. He slowly brought the back of his hand to his cheek to wipe it away. "I wish I could just stop worrying, but I can't. I wish I could just live everyday to its fullest. It should be about the quality of life, not the quantity. But that isn't enough for me."

Kagome gave Miroku's shoulder a small squeeze. I'm so stupid, of course that's what bothering him. If I were in his situation, I would probably feel even worse than he does right now. "Miroku," she spoke his name soothingly, "I don't care if it takes all I have to do it, but I will find a way for us to get back through that well. I won't give up."

Miroku smiled at her. Kagome looked into his eyes. They looked tired, and his eyelashes were moist with tears. Years of stress had begun to take their toll on his physical appearance, making him appear older than he was. He looked dignified, despite the fact he was still a young man. Kagome smiled, she had always found him rather handsome, and his gentle words and warm smile only made her more attracted to him.

She soon found the monk looking directly back at her fixedly. He hand came up to rest on hers. "Thank you," he said in a low voice. He slowly moved intimately closer to her. She gasped as Miroku cupped her chin into his hand and slowly leaned forward, turning his head slightly to the side, and pressed his soft lips against hers. Kagome could feel her heart pounding in her chest, and she kissed him back, lightly parting her lips as his tongue met hers. He grabbed the girl around her small waste, gently pulling her closer as he wrapped his arms tightly around her. Miroku deepened the kiss as Kagome gently clasped her hands on his muscular shoulders. Both reacting deeply to the passionate feelings imprisoned within themselves. Miroku brought his large, uncursed hand up to the smooth skin of the girls face, and then moved it through her dark tresses. Kagome squeezed his upper arms tightly in the heat of their passionate kiss. It was her first kiss. And it was amazing.

The moment was, however, short-lived.  The kiss came to an almost abrupt halt as Miroku broke free of her embrace. "I think I should get some sleep." He slowly moved away from the girl and stood up. He ignored Kagome's look of question as he stared toward the floor.  "Good night, Kagome." His face saddened. "And I'm sorry…" he added softly. Then he walked out of the room, leaving Kagome sitting on her bed speechless. It had been her first kiss—the most romantic moment in her life. Ruined. What exactly did I do wrong? Why did he leave? She couldn't help but to shed tears as she stared at her bedroom door. Did he realize he had made a mistake? Kagome fought the temptation to follow the monk. Instead, she lay down and buried her face into her pillow. I'm sleeping. I'll wake up and everything will be fine. This is all just a bad dream…

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A/N: If you're having trouble finding Mir/Kag fics, I read a really good one on this site called Unexpected Emotions (it's in my favs). I really suggest checking it out—it's very well written. Oh, and I warn you, it's also pretty sad!! What did you think of this chapter?? =) I had a lot of fun writing it.