Chapter 3: The Icing on the Cake

Kagome trudged home heavily, feeling a little more than silly for jumping to conclusions and making a fool of herself in front of people she really didn't know. She should have known from their behavior in the restaurant that they were just hooligans. What connection could they possibly have with the supernatural?

She sighed deeply, slouching over partially with exhaustion and the burden of her bag and partially in embarrassment. She felt tired…very tired…and the thought of having to do so much homework just made it all worse. She was just in the depths of self pity when she heard a familiar voice calling her from a little ways behind her. 'Oh no!' she thought. 'Please tell me it's not…'

"Hojo!" she said with forced cheeriness, turning around to see him ride his bike up to her and then jump off merrily. He had WAY too much energy for this time of day, in her opinion. Still, Hojo did always have a very sweet and sincere smile and she had to admit that just seeing it made her feel a little better. Even if she didn't like him in that way, it was nice to be around a guy who wasn't a jerk.

"Hi, Kagome!" he greeted with his usual joviality. "I ran into your friends and they told me you'd come this way! I couldn't bear the thought of you walking home alone, considering how ill you've been. Here!" He reached into his pocket and pulled out a little jar with something in it that Kagome didn't want to know about. It was dark and swirled with at least three different nasty colors, like mud mixed with tar and sewage. Kagome couldn't help but make a face and Hojo laughed cutely. "Oh, I know it looks terrible! And it doesn't taste that great either but I promise it works miracles!"

Kagome smiled weakly and took it, placing it in her already teeming bag. "Thanks," she said without enthusiasm.

Hojo's smile faltered and was replaced with concern. "Are you ok, Kagome? You don't look like you're feeling very well."

Great…now he was going to start doting. Kagome sighed. "Oh, I'm fine, Hojo…really. I'm just a little tired. It's been a long day."

Hojo's smile reappeared and he held out his hand. "I'll carry your backpack and walk you home."

Kagome groaned inwardly. She still would rather be alone but in all honesty, letting him carry that bag might not be a bad idea. It was so heavy and she just didn't have very much energy left. So she finally relented and decided to take him up on his offer. She took off her backpack and hefted it to him. It was pretty humorous seeing his eyes widen and then watching him stumble and teeter from the unexpected weight.

"Wow, Kagome! It's no wonder you've got a bad back! This thing is really heavy!" Hojo grunted.

Kagome smiled slightly. "Actually, I've gotten stronger from carrying it around."

Hojo half smiled as he struggled to get it on his back. When he finally did, he sighed. He was an athletic guy and he was feeling somewhat overburdened. He couldn't imagine how Kagome did it everyday! Unfortunately it only made his admiration for her increase.

Kagome took a deep breath with all of that weight off of her lungs. "Thank you, Hojo! That's much better."

Hojo had to slump forward slightly to support the weight of the bag. "Sure…no problem," he said, his voice sounding a bit strained.

Kagome smirked. "I'll walk your bike. It's the least I can do."

Hojo was not about to refuse her offer and he nodded instantly. With that, they began to walk back to the shrine where Kagome lived. They spoke a few words occasionally along the way but for the most part, Kagome was quiet. She could feel Hojo's constant stare of adoration and by the time they reached the steps to the shrine, she was ready to be away from him.

At the foot of the steps, they traded back off, his bike for her bag. He wanted to carry her bag up the steps for her but she assured him that she could handle it. He seemed very reluctant to leave her and it took her promise to talk to him tomorrow to get him to go away. When he had finally ridden off, she breathed a huge sigh of relief. At last some peace!

She slipped inside her house, wanting only to get to her room and lay down for a while. But as soon as she got inside and closed the door behind her, Souta came around the corner and grinned. "Hey, Sis, guess who's here!"

Kagome groaned. "You can't mean…"

Just then Inuyasha appeared from around the corner as well, holding Buyo upside down and chuckling almost sadistically as he swung him slightly from side to side. "You're home late…where've ya been?" he asked casually. Surprisingly, there was no accusation in his tone.

Kagome stiffened anyway, assuming he'd come there to drag her back to his time. "Aw, were you waiting at the door for me like a good boy?" she said acidly.

Inuyasha's eyes widened and then narrowed. "Well, someone's in a mood!" he snapped back, dropping the very pissed off Buyo and crossing his arms in an annoyed pout.

Kagome's lips tightened. 'Now where have I seen that before?' she thought to herself sarcastically, remembering how the boy from the restaurant did the exact same thing.

Inuyasha scowled, his ears now back to show his irritation. Kagome frowned at him. "Don't give me that look," she bit at him. "I told you that I'd be gone at least a week! It's only been three days. I'm not going back right now! I have too much to do!" Kagome's volume escalated with each sentence. Souta's eyes widened and he quickly fled to avoid his sister's wrath, leaving Inuyasha to face it alone.

Inuyasha gave Kagome a dirty look and huffed loudly. "Who said I came to bring you back?" he said curtly. "You left this…" He reached into the folds of his clothes and pulled out a small notebook, holding it out to her but not looking at her.

Kagome recognized it as being her planner. The fire instantly left her eyes and she felt like a fool yet again. "Oh…Inuyasha…I'm sorry," she said as she took the book from him and looked at it with regret.

Inuyasha eyed her sideways, horrified to see tears building in her eyes. He held out his arms, waving his hands. "No, no! Don't do that!" he said nervously, his voice becoming a bit high-pitched and cracking slightly. If there was one thing he didn't know how to handle, it was a woman crying.

Kagome stared at the floor for a moment. "I'm sorry I snapped at you, Inuyasha…it's just been…a bad day," she said weakly, wiping her eyes and trying to will herself not to cry. Inuyasha shifted uncomfortably and cleared his throat. Kagome looked up at him. "You know…you could have just left the planner with Mom or Souta…you didn't have to wait for me."

Inuyasha smiled slightly. "Yeah, well…I wanted to see you." Kagome could hardly believe how sweet he was being, especially after she had just blasted him for doing something considerate.

Inuyasha saw how tired she looked and held out his hand. "Let me take that bag for you." Kagome all too happily surrendered it to him and he one-handedly slung it over his shoulder with no effort at all. Kagome remembered how hard it had been for Hojo and felt her heart speed up a bit just watching Inuyasha's display of strength. It wasn't that it surprised her…she saw it all the time, but for some reason she found herself admiring it more when he wasn't trying to show off. It was simple things like this that made her feel warm inside.

Kagome smiled softly and the two of them walked upstairs to her room. Inuyasha set her bag down on her desk and immediately climbed up onto her bed, sitting in the middle and smiling cutely. It was moments like this that made Kagome want to pet him. She could just imagine him panting happily and waiting for her praise for a job well done. This mental picture of course made her giggle softly.

Inuyasha's ears perked forward. "What?" he asked in confusion.

Kagome shook her head and sat down next to him. "Oh, nothing," she replied as she looked up into his eyes. Then her expression softened. "Thank you."

Inuyasha grinned at her. "No problem…I figured you could use a hand."

Kagome shook her head again lightly. "No…I mean thank you for being here and cheering me up. I've had a really rotten day and it's nice to have you here. I always feel…safe…when you're around."

Inuyasha's eyes softened and he gave her a tender smile. "What happened today to upset you so much?"

Kagome sighed. "Well…school's really hard right now…I think I failed a test."

Inuyasha looked slightly confused. "What kinda test?"

"A math test," Kagome answered unhappily. "You know…numbers and equations…"

Inuyasha didn't know what equations were but he knew that Kagome wasn't good with numbers and that she hated this advanced counting method that she was forced to learn. He nodded, giving her an unusual amount of undivided attention. "What else?" he asked, almost as if he were eager to hear all of her troubles.

Kagome smiled, surprised but very happy that he was being so sweet to her right now. "Well, my friends were kinda getting on my nerves and then I had a run-in with a couple of loud jerks at this place we were eating at."

Inuyasha suddenly became edgy. "They didn't try anything, did they?" he asked, leaning a bit closer.

Kagome blushed slightly but shook her head. "No…they were just being obnoxious in public and I told them to stop but this one guy was being belligerent and…well…it just wasn't very pleasant. And then I misunderstood someone and made a fool of myself after that. Nothing seemed to go right today." She opted to leave out the story about Hojo, knowing that Inuyasha's jealousy would overcome his current preciousness.

Inuyasha had a sympathetic expression on his face and he smiled kindly at her. "Well…you're home now and it's all over so don't worry about it." His voice was so soothing that she felt a strong temptation to lean against him for further comfort.

She smiled gratefully. "Thanks for listening, Inuyasha. You have no idea how much I needed that."

Inuyasha grinned widely. "Hey, what are friends for, right?" he said cheerily.

Kagome sighed deeply and opted to give him a quick hug, which he surprisingly returned without acting uncomfortable. Then she got up and started to unload some of her school books onto her desk. Inuyasha watched her, suddenly looking a bit antsy. He leaned from one side to the other, looking around her to see her books and then he leaned back with a disgruntled expression on his face.

Kagome paused and looked back at him. "I'm sorry I can't spend more time talking to you, Inuyasha, but I have a lot of work to catch up on."

His lips tightened a bit and his brow furrowed. "So you don't wanna come back now even after all of that?" he asked, his disappointment evident.

Kagome blinked a few times before she realized what he'd said. Then she responded, her voice much sharper than before. "Of course not…I told you I'd be gone at least a week!"

Inuyasha frowned. "But…I did everything right."

Kagome eyed him suspiciously now. "What do you mean everything right?"

Inuyasha didn't realize how thin of a rope he was walking on at that moment. "I thought you might come back earlier if…" He stopped cold when he realized that he was now receiving Kagome's patented glare of death.

"If you pretended to be nice to me?" she finished for him, raising her voice dangerously. "You're taking advantage of my bad day and my vulnerability just to trick me into going back early?"

Inuyasha shrank back in defense and put his hands up, waving them vigorously. "No! Kagome! It's not like that!"

Kagome was giving him the darkest look she could muster. "All of that sweet stuff…the backpack…the listening…it wasn't real! You were playing me!"

Inuyasha looked like a puppy who knew he'd done something grievously wrong and was about to get beaten. His ears were flat against his head and his eyes were huge. He scampered off of her bed and continued to back away. "Kagome…please…you don't understand!"

Kagome closed in on him, her arms stiff and drawn to her sides and her fists clenched in fury. When she assumed this posture, he knew he was in for it. "DON'T UNDERSTAND?" she exploded. "YOU THINK YOU CAN JUST COME HERE AND PLAY ME FOR SAP AND EXPECT ME TO DO WHAT YOU WANT? I HAVE A LIFE HERE TOO, YOU KNOW, AND I HAVE TO DEDICATE SOME TIME TO IT…IT'S NOT ALWAYS ABOUT YOU, INUYASHA!" Her voice was so loud and piercing that it hurt his sensitive ears and he grimaced in pain. Kagome wanted to sit him a million times but she didn't want to damage the floor of her room. "GET OUT! NOW!" she yelled as loudly as she could, pointing at her door and looming over him like a carnivorous predator over cornered prey.

Inuyasha cringed and decided that he had better cut his losses for now and let her cool off. No amount of backpedaling in the world would make a difference at this moment and he realized that he'd gambled poorly and timed it very badly. He fled her room quickly, not wanting to risk being sat. With how furious she was at the moment, she would probably break his neck in the process.

On his way out, Souta stopped him. "Geez, what did you say, Inuyasha?" asked the young boy, having heard Kagome's shouts quite clearly.

Inuyasha shook his head. "Never mind…I think for now I should just go."

Mrs. Higurashi peaked her head around the corner, having also heard the explosion. "What's the matter, dear? What happened?" she asked, approaching him with motherly concern in her eyes.

Inuyasha wanted nothing more than to flee the ominous cloud of anger that was emanating from the direction of Kagome's room but he could not resist that look. Being around Mrs. Higurashi was the closest he'd felt to having a real motherly presence since he lost his own mother. He slouched in resignation, his ears drooping in a downtrodden manner. "I think I said something wrong."

Souta scoffed slightly. "Yeah, sometimes you never know what's gonna set Kagome off…especially when she's already in a mood."

Mrs. Higurashi gave Souta a stern look. "Souta! That's not very nice!"

Souta shrugged defensively. "Well! It's true!" One more look from his mother assured the cessation of his commentary.

Mrs. Higurashi then directed her attention back to Inuyasha, her eyes instantly kind again. "Don't take it too personally, dear…Kagome's been very stressed since she came back. She's also very tired. Just give her some time to adjust to her schedule here again. She'll be better in a couple of days, I'm sure." She patted him tenderly on the back, offering him a reassuring smile.

Before Inuyasha could respond, Kagome's irate voice filled the entire house. "IS THAT JERK STILL HERE? IF I HAFTA COME OUTTA MY ROOM, IT WON'T BE PRETTY!"

Inuyasha cringed again and Mrs. Higurashi frowned. "Oh my…well…perhaps it will take longer than a couple of days," she amended.

Inuyasha started to edge away quickly but Mrs. Higurashi held out her hand. "Wait, dear! What about your dinner?" She had made him a large steak in anticipation of him staying to eat with them.

Inuyasha shook his head. "I'd rather live than eat right now," he said hastily, though his mouth watered for that steak, a meal he only got when he visited them.

Mrs. Higurashi bade him wait for a few seconds and rushed to the kitchen to put the steak in a container. Then she handed it to him and tousled his hair affectionately. Normally he didn't like being petted but he found that he didn't mind it so much when she did it. With that, he said a quick thank you and goodbye and took off for the well, feeling rattled and frustrated.

This had not turned out at all like he'd hoped. Deep down, he had earnestly missed Kagome and wanted her to return, not just because she could detect jewel shards but because he felt more at ease when she was around. In fact, he had gotten to the point where he could hardly stand for her to be gone at all. Her presence provided him with a comforting constant and she made him feel like he belonged in the world.

But he didn't know how to express these things adequately. There was a part of him that even resisted acknowledging his need for her so quite often he ended up saying or doing the wrong thing. Sometimes, he would earnestly try and still end up face first in the ground. 'I just don't understand her!' he thought to himself as he bounded into the well. 'What does she want from me!' With that, he vanished back to his own time.

In her room, Kagome had flopped down on her bed and was still fuming. "What a jerk!" she growled aloud to herself. "Jerk, jerk, jerk! AHH!" She sprawled out and bent her arm over her face. 'I hope that Keiko girl has better luck with her jerk than I have with mine,' she thought, her body already starting to feel heavy with sleep. 'I really should get up and start my homework…before…I….' She fell asleep in that position, all of her homework sitting undone on her desk.