Chapter Three: That I really wanna make you mine
Sango pulled her cell phone out and dialed her home number. A teacher noticed and walked up. "Ms. Tanaka, I'll have to confiscate that phone."
Miroku piped up, wiping his face. "Her father is in the hospital with a tumor undergoing surgery. She's just checking in with her mom."
"Fine, but next time, it's a no go."
Sango's mom picked up as the teacher walked off. "Honey, what's wrong?"
"My friend wants to know if there's anyway he can stay until ten or eleven for the next few weeks."
"Why?"
"Mom, if I tell you, you can't say a word to anyone else."
"I swear I won't."
Sango hesitated and looked at Miroku. He nodded. She lowered her voice. "His father beats him."
"Oh honey! It's a boy? Of course I won't tell. Unless he breaks the poor boy's bones or something."
"I said he was a boy before."
"I mustn't have heard you. He can stay. I'll pick you two up after school."
Sango hung up. Miroku was watching her expectantly. She was about to answer when the bell rang.
Miroku got up and started walking away. Sango ran after him and grabbed his hand. "My mom says you can stay."
Miroku looked at her, then hugged her, unaware the whole 11th grade was watching them. "Thank you, thank you, thank you, Sango! God, I think I'm going to love your family!"
He let go of her and grinned. "Walk you to class?"
"S-sure." They walked out of the cafeteria and into the hallway.
Miroku broke the silence. "Earlier you called me Houshi-sama. Why?"
"When you were little, you dressed up as a monk for Halloween one year. I guess that just stuck with me."
They came up to their classrooms, which were across the hall from each other. Miroku grinned down at Sango. "Hey, I've got something for you. Think of it as payment."
He pressed something into her hand, clapped her on the shoulder, and ducked into his class. Sango looked down at her hand. Miroku had given her a heart-shaped locket, identical to the one he had around his neck.
Opening it up, she laughed. There were a few pictures of him in the locket, apparently cut from various pictures in photo booths at the mall. She put it on and walked into her classroom.