----
Just hold me close,
don't let go,
don't let me fall
don't let me drown.
I love you,
so hold me tight.
----
Kagome's head hurt worse than she could imagine. She could hardly remember who she was. Opening her eyes slowly as not to cause so much pain, she looked around.
"Doctor, she's come around." said a voice that she did not recognize. She squinted at the blurry figure.
A different blurry thing leaned over her and got in her face.
"Kagome...? Kagome, can you hear me?" He asked her. She blinked up at him, and slowly nodded her head. It caused her excruciating pain, but at least she was communicating with the odd creatures.
"Kagome, we need for you to speak..."
She swallowed thickly, gagging on the gross phlegm. She croaked out a "Where am I?" she winced at the pain.
"You're in the hospital, dear." She looked up at him through cleared eyes. He was friendly looking with big glasses.
"Wh... What happened...?"
"You were in a terrible accident, dear."
She closed her eyes, and remembered when they were in the car... she remembered when Suzaku took her eyes off the road... and then...
"Where's Inu-yasha? What about mom?"
The doctor gave her a pitied look. "I'm sorry dear, but your mother was killed in the accident."
Kagome looked away from him, dreading the next bit of information. "What about Inu-yasha? My... my father..."
The doctor smiled happily. "He, on the other hand, left with a small concussion. He'll be wanting to see you soon."
Kagome was swept through with relief and sorrow. A shining tear formed in her eye, and she blinked it away quickly. She would miss mother, she would miss Suzaku more than anyone. Maybe not even grandpa...
"Umm... Sir?" She asked shakily, fighting the tears that threatened to spill over her. "When... when can I leave?"
"You'll be out as soon as we remove your bandages. You healed nicely." He said, turning to some machinery.
"Sir...? When will that be?"
He laughed. "In a couple of hours, dear. The pain you're feeling now is just the pain of trying to move after being asleep for a good two weeks."
Kagome exhaled, relieved. She had to speak to Inu-yasha. She had to see his face.
"Sir...? Could I leave early? I miss... my father."
He smiled. "We could arrange it. Hold still for a moment, dear." He said, piercing her skin with a large needle and injecting a clear fluid into her.
She tensed, then relaxed as the medicine spread through her aches and pains.
"Doctor, a man is here to see your patient." A feminine voice said through the door.
"Send him in."
A few minutes later the door opened, and a worried-looking Inu-yasha stepped inside. He had a vase of beautiful periwinkle flowers.
"Kagome?"
"Inu-yasha!" She cried, sitting up, and looking eager. "I missed you so much!"
"Doctor, could we have some privacy...?" Inu-yasha said with a grim smile. The doctor nodded and left the two.
"Inu-yasha... about mother..."
"Yes." he said, taking her frail hand. "I'm so sorry, Kagome."
A tear slid down her face. "Now I feel more guilty than ever." She muttered, looking at their joint hands.
"There's nothing we can do about the past. Right now, I still have you, and I'm never letting you go." He said, his eyes lonely and tired. "You can't imagine the pain I felt seeing them take you two away. I was afraid. I was afraid that I would be all alone again..."
"Inu-yasha..." She whispered. "You know I love you... but this just isn't right..."
"Please don't leave me too, Kagome. You're all I have."
"And you are all I have. I can't sleep with you anymore. It's for the respect of my mother." She said, quivering from the oncoming tears. "Please don't ask me, Inu... You know I want to."
"Kagome, I understand you, but sooner or later she and I would have broken up. It wasn't working, and you know it. I need you." One of his smooth hands cupped her pale face. She hadn't looked this bad since that day some time ago when she tried to kill herself. "I won't ask you to screw me, Kagome, but I'm still as madly in love with you as I was the very first day I met you."
"Inu-yasha..." She sobbed. "I feel so horrible about this! I feel so awkward!" She buried her face into her hands. "I love you! I swear I do!"
"Shh... Kagome... please, don't cry. It'll work out. Your mom would have wanted you to be happy."
Kagome nodded, and wiped her tears on her hospital gown sleeve.
He took her chin with his hand, and placed a soft kiss on her wet lips. "Just remember me, Kagome. Remember that I love you."
She gave him a watery smile, and laid back down on her cot. He smiled back, and left the room, shutting the door behind him silently.
'These two weeks without her have inflicted more pain on me than she is aware of.' he thought, sitting down in a stiff waiting-room chair. 'I couldn't eat. After seeing them both carried away, Suzaku dead on impact, Kagome struggling for life with a nearly shattered skull. Her dwindling health made him furious, forced to watch from the sidelines as her face grew paler and paler by the day. Nearly a week went by before she started to improve.'
He cradled his head in his arms, and didn't stop the single tear that fell from his eye.
"Inu-yasha?" He looked up at his frail angel, and wiped away the wetness from his face.
"Kagome! They're releasing you?"
She nodded, and the nurse helped her into a wheel chair. He took the wheelchair handles from the nurse, and allowed himself to roll Kagome into the elevator.
"You ok?"
"Yeah, I'm fine."
"Good, just tell me if you get dizzy... sick... etc... ok?"
"I'm fine, Inu-chan." she said, giggling.
"Just making sure." he said, wheeling her out to his car. He helped her into the front seat. He put the wheelchair in the pickup center, walked back to his car, and opening the door. He started up easily, and pulled out of the parking lot. The short drive to his mansion seemed to take forever, and Kagome found that her energy was running low. She yawned, and leaned on his shoulder.
"Tired already?" he joked. "You slept for two weeks."
"Ah... I'm..." she never finished before she slipped into a light sleep. He smiled at her, as he pulled into his front drive. Tossing the keys to the parking dude, Inu-yasha walked around to the other side, and picked her up in his arms. Her head lolled around, before he held her with his shoulder.
The house was a mess, Inu-yasha had stopped paying Myouga and the other cleaning people, so they just left the shit lying around. He trudged up to his room, and laid her down on the red sheets. Careful not to hurt her, he removed the ugly gown, and tried not to look too hard at her when he found a large shirt and some boxers. He removed his own sweater and pants, and climbed in as well, holding her protectively. He immediately relaxed as he breathed in her sweet scent.
Her guilt-ridden sleep made her toss and turn, thoughts of Inu-yasha. Thoughts of her deceased mother, looking down at them, tears spilling from her blank eyes.
"Kagome..."
"Nnn..." She sat up, and rubbed her head. She couldn't shake the feeling of being watched. She shivered.
"Ka..."
She leaned on her elbows and watched him talk in his sleep.
"No... Monkeys don't live underground...." he sighed, and pulled her to him.
She squirmed in his arms. "Inu-yasha, wake up."
"Hmm?"
"I was thinking..."
"Yes...?"
"Why is this so wrong, yet so right. I feel so comforted by you. But I am overcome with guilt about mom.... A tear fell from her eye.
"Kagome... what we did was wrong, but there's nothing now."
"That reminds me. Did you find that sword yet?"
"Yeah, Myouga tried to throw it out." He gazed at her. "I have a question for you though..."
"What's that...?"
"Who was your first?"
"Oh, that..."
"I... It was a boy from high school..."
"I see. Was he better than me?
"Of course not, you dirty bastard!" she said, smacking his arm playfully.
He purred low in her neck. "I'm not dirty!"
"Yes you are, just look at your room!" She said, hastily wiping away her fallen tears. She could be happy. Though her mother would always be with her. She had to take her place. She would understand.
"Feh."
----
I can rest,
the time has come
for me to move on.
don't go too fast,
I may miss you
in the process.
Just hold be tight.
I love you.
----
Well, that's the end! I hope you liked it... There were some things that were left unanswered, but you can guess. PS, I will write an alternate ending with the same poem. You can also guess who goes to rest. Poor Kagome. But it was inevitable.