Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha...sigh...
Kagome awoke to a hand shaking her shoulder gently. Her eyes fluttered open and peered into those of a man in a white medical coat.
"Miss," the young man said nervously.
"Mmm..." Kagome groaned. "What time is it?"
"Miss, it's two in the morning. Your husband is not showing any brain activity. I'm afraid we'll...have to take him off life support."
Kagome just sat there, head in her hands. What a wake up call.
"Why didn't you try to save him?" she whispered, exhausted, depressed, and desperate for someone to blame.
"Miss, I'm very sorry, indeed, I am, but there was nothing that could be done. His injuries are already very, very critical. Dr. Otari has put him on life support. I was to ask you whether or not you wanted to...to take him off."
"Well, I don't really have a choice, do I?" she snapped. "He's dead, and I can't leave him on life support forever."
The man nodded hurriedly and rushed out of the room.
Kagome wanted to cry, but she couldn't. She had used up all her tears for her daughters, and now there were none left for her husband.
"Inuyasha," she whispered. "I love you so much."
Then, placing one last kiss on his lips, she touched his hand and left the room. When she reached the hospital lobby, she pulled out her cell phone. Yeah right, she thought sarcastically. Who can I call now? Sango and Miroku are asleep, and they've done enough for me tonight. I've got no one else to turn to.
The suddenly widowed woman quickly rushed out of the hospital and dashed into her car, before pulling out her keys and shoving them into the ignition. She drove the thirty miles between the hospital and her home and climbed out.
I'm exhausted.
Kagome opened the door, crawled her way up the stairs, trudged into her room, and collapsed on the bed. She tossed and turned in the night, not used to the feeling of sleeping alone. Finally, she got up and went to her medicine cabinet. Looking in the very back, she found some sleeping pills that the doctor had given Inuyasha when he broke his ankle. She took out two, popped them into her mouth, stumbled back to the bed, and fell into a deep, dreamless sleep. And so the routine continued for three days. Every time she woke up, she just took two more sleeping pills and fell back into sleep. On the fourth day, she was woken by Sango storming into her room angrily.
"Kagome!" she cried. "Where the fuck have you been? Miroku and I were worried sick! We thought you had committed suicide or something! Where were you?! I tried to call you for two days!"
Kagome moaned. Her head ached and she was feeling a little hungry after her three days of sleeping.
Sango noticed the bottle by her bed.
"My God, Kagome!" she whispered. "Have you been taking drugs?"
"No, Sango. They're sleeping pills. I...haven't been able to sleep."
"Kagome, where's Inuyasha?" Sango demanded. "I'm going to beat the shit out of him for letting you stay like this for the past few days. He is out of the hospital, right?"
Kagome shook her head and croaked, "He never woke up."
Sango saw the warning signs immediately and sat down quickly on the bed. Pulling Kagome to her she whispered, "It's all right, shhh," while Kagome bawled her eyes out, finally finding the tears to do so.
"Kagome, you have to get your life back on track. When I came in, I saw thirty messages on your answering machine. Have you been going to work?"
Kagome shook her head.
"How long has this been going on?"
"Three days. Since...since he left. Oh, God, Sango. What am I going to do? I've lost my whole family...like that!" she snapped her fingers.
"Shh, I know, Kagome, I know."
"No!" Kagome screamed, pushing her friend back. "You don't know! You've never lost your son or Miroku! I lost my parents when I was eight and now I lose my family?! What is wrong with my fucking life? I want to die!"
Sango stared. This girl was hysterical, and she was usually so calm.
"Kagome, come on. Come downstairs, and let's have some breakfast for starters. We'll figure out where to go from there."
Kagome nodded dully, suddenly calm, and followed Sango down to the kitchen. While Sango prepared some eggs and bacon, Kagome stared into space.
"Here you go," Sango said as cheerfully as she could manage.
"Thanks," Kagome muttered, picking up a cup of coffee and drinking from it. "Sango, I want to go swimming today. I want to go the YMCA."
The older woman looked at her friend as if she were crazy.
"Swimming?! Kagome, are you serious?" she exploded.
"Yes, Sango. I want to go swimming. There's...people there. And...and I used to go swimming with the girls while Inuyasha worked out at the gym. Please, Sango, just...please, drive me to the YMCA. I don't want to drive myself. You can drop me off...and go to work. You can work for the whole day and then, if you can, come pick me up!"
"Kagome...in your situation, I don't think you should go swimming. Stay at home and rest."
"Sango! For Chrissake, I've been resting for three days! I want to go out!! Into civilization! I don't want to stay all shut up in this house." Her lip quivered. "He wouldn't have wanted that."
Sango sighed.
"All right, get in the car."
As Sango drove to the YMCA, she glanced over at her friend occasionally. It hurt her to watch Kagome staring listlessly out at the scenery flying by. Her best friend, usually so vibrant and full of life was now lost.
"You know, Sango," Kagome mumbled. "I loved him a lot. No, I loved them a lot. Inuyasha, Lin, and Shinji. We used to go out all the time. And Shinji loved that restaurant, and Lin always wanted to go swimming. They both loved ice skating...they were so happy when,,, when we signed them up for lessons. And...and Inuyasha. He was always there. When my dad died, he went to the funeral with me, and when I found out I was pregnant, he was in the doctor's office with me...and he did everything he could in the emergency room when my girls were born. He was...such a great father..."
"Kagome," Sango sighed, fumbling for words. "You were really, really lucky to have them."
"Sango, if you don't have anything to say, don't try to say anything."
Silence.
Five minutes later, Sango pulled into the parking lot of the YMCA. Kagome hopped out and trudged into the gray building.
"Miss," the lady at the desk called. "Do you have a membership? Yes? May I see your card, please?"
Kagome pulled out the card and handed it to the woman, who scanned it and handed it back.
"Thank you."
Kagome nodded and moved toward the women's dressing room. Reaching into her purse, she pulled out a key and opened her locker. She pulled out a simple, blue swimsuit that had three white stripes across the stomach. Inuyasha loved that swimsuit. He said it made her look sexy...Kagome shook her head. Don't think about that...it'll only make you cry again. She changed quickly and dashed into the pool area, eager to feel the cool embrace of the water.
"Miss," a voice called out. "Are these yours?"
Kagome turned and found a young man who looked a lot like Inuyasha. He was holding up a pair of blue-rimmed goggles.
"Yes, I'm sorry, I must have dropped those," Kagome muttered, still watching the young man.
"See something you like?" he teased.
Kagome blushed. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to stare, it's just...you look so much like someone I knew. What's your name?"
"I'm Sesshomaru. I came here to work out for a bit. I...I have a weak heart, so I need to work out more often, you know, to build it up."
"Well. I'm Kagome. I...err...swim here a lot."
Sesshomaru laughed and handed her back her goggles. "Well, Kagome, enjoy your swimming!"
Kagome smiled for the first time in a long while. "Thanks."
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Kagome woke up suddenly. Was it all a dream...oh, god, I hope everything was a dream. That was a terrible nightmare. She rolled over. Inuyasha wasn't there. I go through this every morning...I have to stop this.
"Let's take a shower and clear my head."
Slipping out of her over-sized t-shirt and red shorts, she hopped into the warm shower. After completely scrubbing herself down, she turned off the water and grabbed a robe. Kagome dried herself off and grabbed a shirt and a pair of jeans. Both were black. She was just making breakfast when she heard a knock on her door.
"Hi..." she said as she opened the door.
"Miss Takashi, I'm Dr. Harita. I'd like to come in and talk to you."
Kagome stepped back, allowing the man entrance, before showing him into the living room. She went to the kitchen and came back minutes later with tea.
"What would you like to talk about?"
"There's a program at the hospital," the doctor began. "It's...how to say...for those who have, erm, passed away, we are trying to gather permission from their families for, um, using their hearts? No, that's not the best way to say it. Basically, we'd really appreciate it if you donated Mr. Takashi's heart. There are those who are in dire need of a heart transplant and would benefit greatly from this."
Kagome sat there. "You...want me to give up my husband's heart?"
"Please, ma'am," the doctor was desperate. "Please, we really, really need this heart. There is a man who will die if he does not get a heart transplant within two months. He and his wife...they are going to have a child together. Of course, it was through artificial insemination, but the point is that...without this donation, he won't live to see the child."
Kagome sighed. She didn't like hearing sob stories about someone else's personal life. Then she thought of the man at the pool. Sesshomaru. He had said that he had a weak heart. If anything, she would do it for him. Who was she kidding? He probably wasn't even going to get the heart anyway.
"Fine, I'll do it."
She pulled the form close to her and signed at the bottom.
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"Sesshomaru! You're home!" Rin laughed and pulled her husband into a hug.
"Yes, Rin, I'm back. How is everything?"
"Fine."
"Good. I'm going to go up to our room for a bit. I need some quiet."
"Okay, I'll bring dinner up," Rin said, a little concerned. Her husband was usually more enthusiastic than this.
"No, don't bother. I just want to be alone for some time. I need to...I need to think things through."
Rin nodded and watched Sesshomaru's retreating form as he trudged up the stairs. This wasn't like him. She just brushed it off and patted her stomach. Perhaps he was just worried about whether or not he would see his child.
Sesshomaru sighed. He was thinking about the woman he had met at the YMCA. She was...different. Unique. Someone to consider. He laughed at his foolishness. He had only spoken to her for about five minutes and he was already starting to feel...something. What was it? It couldn't be love. He already had a wife and a child on the way. One that he would never see...
Rin came up to the room a few hours later.
"I decided to come sleep early so I could join you," she grinned.
"Rin, I'm exhausted. All that weight-lifting is really tiring."
"It builds up your heart, Sess. Don't complain."
Suddenly a tiny beeping sound went off. Rin jumped up and dashed over to the dresser, picking up a small, black beeper.
"It's the hospital beeper!" she cried. "Sesshomaru! They found a heart for you!"
Sesshomaru climbed out of bed as quickly as he tired body could and yanked on some clothes. Rin pulled on a sweater over her sleeping tank top and shorts and they both slipped into the car together.
"This is so great!" Rin giggled as she drove.
"Yeah..."
"Now you'll be able to live! To see your kid! That will be so awesome!!"
The two reached the hospital and ran inside, where a doctor was already waiting for them.
"We can start the operation immediately, if you want. That's probably the best idea. If we don't use the heart in twenty-four hours, it won't work. We're almost positive it's compatible with your blood."
Sesshomaru nodded and followed the doctor while Rin stayed behind to do some paperwork and fill out forms.
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Several hours later, the doctor came out of the operating room.
"How is he?" Rin asked, more than a little concern in her voice.
"He'll be fine, ma'am. We've stabilized him and the heart appears to be working. We'd like to keep him in the hospital for another day or two, just to be sure. You should go home and rest."
"Can I see him?"
"Miss, it's not the best idea. He's just recovered from surgery, he needs the sleep, and we don't want anything to happen."
"Alright," Rin sighed, disappointed. "Thank you, doctor."
The woman turned on her heel and left the hospital.
My Corner
Okay how was that? A lot of people said the first chapter was really sad...I guess it was. Due to the fact that I felt like updating, I decided to just write this chapter and base the plot on whatever reviews I have. Obviously, with Inuyasha dead sniff poor Kagome, it's going to be a Sesshomaru/Kagome story. I'm really, really, sorry to those of you who wanted it to be an Inuyasha/Kagome coughsorrySilentBratcough I'm sure many of you are pleased with that. Read and Review, please!
skittles
