Disclaimer: sadly, I don't own the Inuyasha characters; Rumiko has that honor.

Hey readers, this is my first attempt at writing fanfiction, please be gentle. - Please read & review; constructive criticism greatly appreciated!

A/N: I couldn't get my flashback signals to work so I'm using the OOO to indicate the beginning and ending of flashbacks.


Unspoken Words

by: lady-rouge


Chapter 7

The silver car dodged the heavy traffic as it smoothly weaved around the cars towards its destination. Inuyasha drove past the ice cream store, pass the Chinese restaurant and pass the huge salons to stop in front of a medium building. This was the second time he had ever come here by himself.

He got out of the car and locked it before crossing the street to approach the welcoming doors. He looked up to the sign on top of the doors to make sure he was in the right place. It said Kohaku's Bar. Inuyasha nodded to himself. This was it. He composed himself to look decent and walked into the lowly lit place. He cast a quick gaze around the bar to calculate the busyness of it tonight. It was busy, but he wouldn't bother anyone if they didn't bother him.

He spotted an empty table by one of the dim corners in the back. He strode over to the table and sat down. It wasn't long before a waitress came up to him to take his order.

"Can I get a beer?" He said to her before turning back to his thoughts.

"I'll bring it right away," she replied to him before skirting away.

He glanced around the huge room and sighed to himself. The last time he had been here was that day six years ago right after what happened. He looked around again. Things were still the same, actually. The owners had changed and the color of the inside was different, but the structure of where the tables were placed was still the same.

"Here you go," the waitress had come back. "Flag me down if you need any more and enjoy," she said giving him an appreciative smile.

He found it hard to smile back and so he turned back to his drink. He took a gulp of it and sat quietly to himself. Tonight, he would not think. He wanted to forget. He took another gulp. A loud feminine laughter caught his attention and he turned to the source. It was a young couple who looked to be in their early 20s. The young man was teasing her about something and she was blushing, but laughing. He looked at the happy couple and felt a stab of envy course through him like hot electricity as he watched them act like there was no care or worry in their life. Only few couples were as happy as those two. He took a swig. But then later on, things would change for those two lovebirds because shouldn't he know? He used be as happy and carefree as they were. He took another swig and finished it all.

He flagged his hand up to the waitress for another one and she nodded in understanding before turning to go retrieve it.

He always thought he and Kagome would end up together and that nothing would ever tear them apart, but look where they were now and at what happened six years ago. He clenched his hands angrily. He did not want to remember…but it was too late…he could not stop the hated images of that night that tore through his head; leaving burning trails afterwards in his head.

OOO

Inuyasha walked cheerfully home from Kagome's house as he watched the sun set in its brilliant shades of reds, yellows and pinks. Maybe he should have stayed with Kagome for that dinner with the guests, but he also didn't want to intrude. Kagome understood him really well, so he didn't have to fear her anger or disappointment in him. That was what he loved about her: her compassionate and truthful heart. She was the most honest and incredible person he had ever met and he loved her for it.

He reached his house in a couple of minutes and he entered it. It was an old house that had paint peeling from the outside and some wood rotting, but in Inuyasha and his mom's view, it was still a house and that was enough to be thankful about. Everything still worked and that was all that mattered. He went straight to the kitchen where he knew his mother was and greeted her.

"Hey ma," he said giving her a peck on the cheek.

"Hi Inuyasha," she said giving him a tired smile. "How was your day of school?"

"It was great," Inuyasha said happily; stepping around her to grab the dinner she made and set it on the table.

She went to go sit down and he followed her. "Whenever you say great, it usually means that you were with Kagome, so I take it you were with her."

"Yep. I had a fun time," he said before grabbing their utensils and plates. He set them down and sat across from her as they started to eat dinner.

"When's the next time you work at Tire Service?" Inuyasha's mother asked him.

"Tomorrow right after school," he informed her. "You shouldn't wait for me to come home before you eat dinner, ma, because I won't be home until 11:00 or so.

"That late?" She asked; her brows brunching in worry.

"Yeah, Kagome's birthday is coming up this Friday and I want to make it really special for her this year since she's turning 18."

"I see…" His mother's smiled broadened. "You should because Kagome is a wonderful girl."

Inuyasha nodded. "I'm glad you like her because I want to propose to her on Friday," he said and blushed a deep hue when he saw the happy look on his mother's face.

"Oh Inuyasha!" She said to him elatedly. "Are you sure about this?"

"Yes," he said without hesitation. "There's nothing I want more."

His mother's eyes misted. "Have you bought her a ring yet?"

"I've already found a ring at a store for her. All I need to do is pick my check this Friday and pool it with the other checks I've been saving and it should be enough."

"Oh Inuyasha, it's not an expensive ring is it?" She said; worry evident in her eyes.

"Don't worry, I've already calculated it all out and there's enough to give you some for bills and for the ring. I'm trying to buy her a nice ring that at least is close to being worthy of her. If she doesn't like it, it's still only an engagement ring anyways."

"I understand, Inuyasha, and she's lucky to have you love her so much."

"No ma, I'm the one who's lucky to have her love," Inuyasha said softly.

OOO

Inuyasha clenched his hand tightly around the glass at the memory and took a gulp to realize that it was empty. He had already drunk two, but he felt like he needed one more. He raised his hand again to indicate one more and the waitress nodded in comprehension. She came with it quickly and he thanked her before taking a mouthful.

He was lucky to have her love…

What love? He thought bitterly. She never even loved him, he thought mournfully; taking a huge mouthful of his beer to drown his thoughts out. She was only playing with me. I was such a fool…such a stupid fool that night…

OOO

"Wish me good luck, ma."

Inuyasha was standing by the front door about to leave to go to Kagome's house. He was fidgeting as his mother tried to fix the tie on his tuxedo that he had rented from the rental store nearby.

"You don't need luck with Kagome, Inuyasha. She loves you, Inuyasha. In love, there is no luck. It's either real or not. And in your case, it's real."

Inuyasha quieted and smiled at his mother's wisdom. "Thank you, ma. I needed that."

She smiled and smoothed his hair down as she gave him a misty smile. "I can't believe that my son is growing up so fast," she said teary-eyed. "Tell me all about it tomorrow, okay?"

"I will. Goodbye," he called to her before leaving their house to walk the distance to Kagome's house. Throughout the whole way, he could not take the silly grin off his face as he envisioned her reaction to his proposal. She would probably be stunned first, then cry at him and then later smile and say yes. Just thinking about her made him hurry to her house. She didn't know that he was coming, but she probably had an idea since he had hinted that he wanted to do something special for her.

He approached her house and came to a stop in front of the front door. He rapped three firm knocks on it before it opened to reveal a stunned mother.

"In-Inuyasha," she stuttered. "What a pleasant surprise."

"Yes," he smiled. "I wanted to surprise Kagome for her birthday. Where is she?" He turned his head to search the house, but could find no Kagome. He turned back to Kagome's mother. "Okay, I give up. Where is Kagome hiding?" He smiled and yelled, "Okay, you win Kagome. Come out now."

Silence.

He looked at Kagome's mother questioningly. "Where is Kagome?"

She shifted. "Well, she didn't know that you were coming, so we planned a special dinner for her. She's already there."

"Oh, I see," Inuyasha said thoughtfully. "Could you tell me where she went?"

"Well…" Kagome's mother shifted slightly and Inuyasha understood the problem.

"I won't disturb their dinner; I just want to give her something."

Her mother observed him for a couple of seconds and then smiled. "All right. They went to the new French restaurant a couple blocks down."

Inuyasha thanked her and left.

Kagome's mother looked at his moving back and sighed softly before closing the door; worry evident in her dark eyes. A pang of regret was starting to settle in her stomach. Maybe she shouldn't have told him. She wondered if Inuyasha knew the situation. On please Kagome, please tell me that you told him everything because if you didn't . . .

Her eyes looked through the window to the cheerfully moving figure that was soon disappearing into the shadows.

Inuyasha will get hurt . . .

Inuyasha lightly jogged to the restaurant. He was kind of disappointed that he couldn't take her out to dinner, but there would be other times to do so, he thought optimistically. As long as he could talk to her and propose, then his dreams would come true. He spotted the restaurant a block before he was there and he sprinted quickly to the entrance.

He quickly composed himself before entering. When he got inside, he was awed at how glamorous and beautiful the place was. It was decorated with sparkling glass chandeliers and formally dressed waiters and waitresses. Women draped in beautiful silky dresses sat across from men that wore silk tuxedoes. It was clearly made for the rich. It must cost a lot to eat here, he thought.

Walking a couple feet into the restaurant, he was stopped by a waiter. "Excuse me sir, but do you have a reservation?"

"No," Inuyasha started, "but I just need to talk to someone who is here at the moment."

"I'm terribly sorry, but our policy is 'no reservation, no entry."

"But I just need to speak to Kagome Higurashi. She has a reservation here. I need to talk to her!" Inuyasha said with an angry tone. "At least call her up then."

"Our guests can't be disturbed. That is also our policy," the waiter said placidly. "But you can wait to talk to her after dinner, perhaps?"

"No. I need to talk to her now."

"Then I'll have to ask you to leave willingly or by force," the waiter said calmly.

Inuyasha cast a frantic glance around the restaurant to see a brief flash of her face before the waiter blocked his path again. "Alright," Inuyasha said while a plan formed in his mind. All he had to do was get the attention of Kagome and then she would come out and talk to him. "Can you at least get some paper to write down my phone number and name so you can give it to her later?"

He nodded willingly and turned to go into a room. "I'll just be a minute," he said.

Seeing his back turn and disappear into the office, Inuyasha ran to where he last saw Kagome. But he must have taken a wrong turn because he couldn't spot her.

"Sir! Come back!" The waiter's voice rang loudly. Inuyasha cursed and made a quick left turn. He ran quickly and came to another set of turns. He hastily made a decision and turned right and halted abruptly to see Kagome sitting on her side of the table. He almost shouted her name, but he heard the waiter's voice coming closer.

"I think he came this way! Hurry up, we'll get fired if the boss hears about this." Inuyasha could hear the patter of feet as they came closer to where he was. He had to hurry up or he would get caught and thrown out. Casting one more look into the hallway, he grabbed the ring he had worked so hard for out of his pockets.

He quickly stepped out of the hallway and into the area where Kagome was sitting and froze. There, in front of her was a man who was in the process of slipping a large sparking diamond ring into one of her fingers . . . and she was letting him. His eyes pained, he could only stare at the scene as he watched Naraku lean down to kiss her.

"Kagome!" Her name shot out of his mouth with a willpower of its own. At his voice, her head snapped up and her eyes widened.

"Inuyasha!" She shot up and pushed Naraku off of her.

Shaking his head in disbelief and trying to block the stabbing image of them, he swiftly turned and started to walk away; his heart starting to rip ever so slowly as he took each step away from her.

He made it couple of feet in the hallway before he felt her warm hand clasped his arm frantically.

"Wait Inuyasha." Her voice carried a pained plea that shocked his soul. "Please." Against his better judgment, he obeyed her request. He turned around and was pierced by her pleading gaze. "I-I can explain, Inuyasha." Her voice trembled as she spoke. "I should have been truthful with you earlier, but I didn't want to tell you because-"

Something inside of him snapped. "Yes you should have told me how you felt about me before this "relationship"," he sneered, "went on any further."

"I-" she flinched and tears started to trail down her face as she looked at him.

"I swear I can explain this," she said desperately, seeing that she was losing him. "It's correct that I'm here with Naraku, but please understand that I had to."

"Save that bull shit for another idiot," he said coldly. "I won't be your toy anymore."

Her grasp on his arm tightened and she bored her gaze into his. "Inuyasha, please! Just hear me out. I just wanted to hel-"

"I don't care!" He said angrily. "I hate you!"

She gasped and tears streamed down her face as she gasped and choked on her breathing. Her hand flew to her chest and she tried to ease the pain. "Please Inuyasha," her tears ran unchecked down her smooth cheeks, "Don't leave like this."

His heart thudding painfully, he could only stare at her beautiful but deceitful face. He could never trust her again. His heart felt so heavy and painful that he wanted to cry. "I guess you find it funny that I actually believed you when you told me that you loved me despite my lack of money, huh?" He laughed a hollow laugh. "Why wouldn't you find it funny? A poor guy like me actually thinks that you love me for only myself and nothing else. Well, I find it funny myself." He laughed again. "I am such a stupid ass. You and Naraku, the heir to the richest man in Japan, probably laughed at me. Well, you two deserve each other."

"No," she said softly, her head shaking in denial to him and tried to catch his arm, but he shrugged her off and she fell to her knees, her hands falling in front of her; the big diamond ring catching the light. Inuyasha's eyes fell to it and his heart clutched. He was so stupid. She would have laughed at him if he had showed her the ring that he bought for her. She didn't want the cheap stuff that he could only offer.

"Here's a souvenir for you to keep to show off that you've won. You actually had me go all the way as to propose to you tonight," he said bitterly.

Her head jerked up and a light entered her eyes to dim. "You-you actually want to marry me?"

"Wanted," he said softly and let go of it to see it fall onto her lap. "I don't anymore and I will never again."

"D-Don't say that," she cried. "Please don't say that. I realized that-"

"There he is," voices shouted. Inuyasha turned to see a group of waiters run towards him and then the reality of the situation hit him. A bout of panic and urgency rode up in him and he realized something that froze him again. This would be the last time he got to look at her beautiful face. The last time he would actually be able to talk to her. His heart froze and he turned anxiously to look at her face. He stared at her stunning face; trying to memorize every single feature about her because he would never see her again. The waiters came up to him and grabbed each of his arms.

"We'll have to ask you to leave. You have caused a disturbance to this young lady. Shame on you." He let himself be taken by the waiters, but before they turned the corner, he took one last final look into her gorgeous eyes. She was still crying and he could see Naraku coming around to comfort her. He gazed one last time into her pleading eyes before the waiters took his arms and forced him to go.

That night, he had passed the exact same bar that he was in today and had gone in; unsure of what to do, only knew that he was in pain. The waitresses had seen what a painful state he was in and had consoled him before they had given him a beer. He had gone home and had cried himself to sleep. That was the last time he had ever let himself cry, but he broke that promise the next morning when his mom came to wake him up happily. She had taken one look at the state that he was in and had uttered a cry before she grabbed him to hug him. Tears ran down her face upon seeing the haunted look in his eyes.

"Inuyasha, what happened?"

"What happened, ma, was that you're right. Either someone loves you or not. I found out that she doesn't love me," he said dully.

"Are you sure?" She protested, trying to look for any spark of hope that her son might have misunderstood something.

"Positive. How else can you explain her being with another guy yesterday? She was eating dinner with the richest guy in Japan at an expensive restaurant. He gave her an expensive diamond ring that my pathetic ring couldn't have competed against. It made me realize that I could never give her anything that she would want. I don't have anything to give to her that she wants. She was just toying with me, ma." He broke down then, and his mother could only cry and hold her son close to her heart; trying to take in all his pain so he would not have to suffer anymore.

OOO

Inuyasha took another drink of the beer and noticed that it was also done. As he stared down into the cup, he saw drops of liquid fall into the cup and he reached a hand to feel his face. It was wet.

Tears.

Inuyasha swiped at them; offended. He never cried anymore; not after that day his mom had held him as he had cried. That day he had vowed to himself never to cry again. He gazed around dazedly and realized that there were now more people than before. As he looked around, a shadow fell across his table and Inuyasha looked up. It was an older man and he was holding two cups of beer. He slid into the seat across Inuyasha and placed one next to Inuyasha.

"Here," the man said softly. "You look like you need another one."

Inuyasha stared at him intently; trying to read him. "What makes you think that?" He defended roughly.

"Because I was just like you once. Girl problems?"

Inuyasha snorted. "I would never drink over a girl," he said. "I hate females. Every single one of them."

The man looked at him and smiled sadly. "You know, you remind me so much of myself."

"Keh!" Inuyasha snickered.

The man pushed the beer towards him again. "Here, take it. It's my treat."

Inuyasha gave him a long look before muttering a thanks and taking a gulp. Inuyasha gazed into the cup for a while and then turned towards the man again; his eyes had turned a dark stormy violet color to show the turmoil inside of him. "I hate her," he said angrily; his voice was laced with bitterness.

The man looked in surprise at his abrupt comment. "You don't mean that?" the man asked, his curiosity piqued.

"It's true," he growled. "I hate her so much that I wish I had never met her." His hands gripped the glass so tight that the man thought the cup would break. "She was just like everyone," his voice dropped into a softer tone; held by the tinges of pain. "Back then I was a young fool. Then, I would have given up my life for her, but now . . . if given the chance, I wouldn't." Inuyasha turned to him and laughed hollowly. "You know it's funny how we are such fools. I can't believe I fell for her trick. I hate myself for ever being weak," he growled. "But now I'm stronger and I don't need her in my life any longer," he said firmly.

"Are you really sure about that?"

Inuyasha nodded rigorously. "Of course!" he said in an offended tone. "People who need women are weak and dumb. I don't need her anymore," he said and turned to drown the last of the contents in the cup into his willing mouth.

The man patted his arm consolingly and got up, but not before catching the last of his words in a broken whisper. "But who says I can't be weak and dumb once in a while as well? I wish I wasn't though." Inuyasha turned his haunted eyes to him. "You know…I loved her so much," he said hoarsely to the man. "I would have done anything for her. Anything." His voice slurred as his eyes threatened to close. "If only she would love me," he slurred, "then I would have been the happiest man," he said softly before letting the blissful darkness carry him away from all his pain.

If he would have opened his eyes right then, he would have seen the cruel smile that crept up on the man's sneering face as he walked away and out the door.


"Happy Birthday, Kagome," a co-worker patted Kagome on the shoulder as she passed them.

"Thank you," Kagome smiled and walked over to where Mirouku and Sango were standing. "Hey, it's been so busy that I haven't got a chance to thank you guys personally for this party."

"It's no big deal, Kagome," Sango said with a smile. "How do you like it?"

"I love it," Kagome exclaimed with a laugh. "Though I think you guys went a little overboard," she said, indicating to the elaborate dishes and platters that lay on the table to the fancy decorations that draped the room.

"For you, Kagome," Mirouku said with a grin, "it is never overboard."

"Oh you two," Kagome laughed. "I don't know how to thank you," she ended with her eyes watering. "No one's ever done this for me before." She sniffed.

Sango laughed and stepped up to hug her. "Don't cry," she soothed. "Now that you know us, you can expect these kinds of surprises in your life more often," she grinned. "Like how I knew your birthday."

Kagome could only laugh. "Well, I'll go socialize with the others," she said. Flashing a smile, she turned around to seek people that she had not talked to yet. Seeing that everyone was occupied, she went over to the food table to grab a drink. As she drank some water, she gazed around the room and the smile that graced her lips disappeared. The light that danced in her eyes dimmed.

Where was Inuyasha?


Someone was nudging Inuyasha, but he didn't know who. His mind was groggy and as he opened his eyes, the room swirled in front of him before restoring to a dim, blurred view. In front of him was a waitress.

"Excuse me, sir, but we are closing early today. It's 10:00 now."

Inuyasha got up slowly and the world tilted abruptly, making him throw both arms in front of him. He closed his eyes tightly and blinked a couple of times, trying to make the blurry vision that tinged his eyesight go away. But it was useless. The blurriness stayed with him no matter how many times he tried to clear his vision. He swore at his stupidity. He shouldn't have drunk so much, but it was too late to regret actions that were already done.

"Do you want me to call a taxi for you? I don't think you should drive like this," the waitress asked worriedly as she saw the state that Inuyasha was in.

Inuyasha contemplated this for a while. He knew that there was no one who would be willing to pick him up right now if he called them. Sango, Mirouku and Kagome were having too much fun at the party to come pick him up and he didn't want to ruin their fun. They probably didn't even notice that he was not there. His brother had a family to take care of so he didn't want to bother him. His brother would only lecture him anyways and he didn't need that right now. He already knew that what he did was stupid. "Sure," he said. "But I have to go grab my suitcase first."

The waitress nodded and went through the backdoor. Inuyasha moved slowly as dizziness swept over him. He had a headache that was starting to grow bigger and his limbs felt like they were so heavy. He opened the door and a blast of fresh air hit his face, clearing his view a little more. It was already dark and he could barely see his car across the street as he began to walk towards it. He reached for his keys in his left pocket and they came out, but slipped out of his hands. He swore and tried to gradually bend down and pick it up without losing his balance. As he touched them, a loud screeching reached his ears, deafening him for a second. Inuyasha turned his head to the source and saw a blinding light that grew brighter and brighter. It took a second for the knowledge to hit him that the light was from a car. Inuyasha's eyes widened in surprise and he started to move his body.

But it was a second too late.


"Happy Birthday to you,

Happy birthday to you

Happy birthday dear Kagome,

Happy birthday to you!"

The voices of everyone carried to Kagome as she stood in the center of the room next to the table filled with her cake and presents. The song ended and Kagome laughed as they all encouraged her to make a wish and blow the candles. "Are you guys sure that birthday wishes come true?" She teased. "Because I'm holding you guys to your word."

They laughed and nodded for her to make her wish. "Go ahead, Kagome," Sango said with a laugh. "I'm getting hungry."

"Okay," she promised and closed her eyes as she searched her mind for a wish. A phone rang distantly in the background as she thought about what she wanted. A wish swept through her mind about her brother Souta and she smiled at the brilliancy. 'I wish that-'

"Kagome," a voice shook as it spoke to her.

Kagome snapped open her eyes and smiled. "Sango you interrupted my wish," she scolded with a smile. One look at Sango's pale features wiped the smile off her face and she walked up to Sango. "Are you okay Sango?" She asked, seeing the worry in Sango's face. Sango opened her mouth to say something, but before words could fill the space between them, a flash of dread hit her, but she had no idea why.

No words came out and Sango tried again. This time it came out in a whisper but it filled the entire room that had stilled into silence.

"Inuyasha's hurt."

It took a moment for the words to register and when they did, Kagome's features blanched, the world tilted and she fainted.

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COMMENTS:

B.rouge: Really? Thanks! That makes me feel unique. '-'

Nauriell: So, after reading this, did the past fit your assumptions?

Kurokumo: You're too sweet! '-' You make me and my story feel so appreciated!

dark bebi pan ssj4, Shesshou's Bynx/S.Wooz, animemistress419: Thanks for reviewing! I appreciate it!

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TO BE CONTINUED

Readers, tell me what you think! '-' Read and Review!