Disclaimer- It's not mine...the boy with the ears I mean...

Chapter 22- Am I Dead?

Black. All she saw was black. Though all she could see was black, she could hear something. It was so far away at first, that she barley noticed it was there. But as time went on, the sound got much louder and it called to her. She felt like she could reach it, but her body wasn't listening to her mind's commands anymore. She just wanted to touch wherever the sound was coming from. The voice seemed to lonely and afraid, she just wanted to hold it in her arms and keep it company.

Her hand was covered in something. Something warm was now layered over her hand, but it wasn't something she minded. She seemed to know everything around her, but just didn't know how she did. She had felt the warmth around her hand before and the voice that called to her belonged to someone she had met before. Hearing it so desperate and calling her made her want to cry out to it, but her voice was completely gone. She felt weak, and even though she hated admitting it, she knew how weak she was now.

The only thing that she wanted to do was open her eyes which felt heavier than anything, and felt like they hadn't been open in centuries. She wanted to talk again, mainly to whoever was staying with her. She wanted to give back the warmth she felt; she wanted to see her helper. She wanted to comfort the pain in their voice, which seemed to be a lot. Though she wasn't completely ready to wake up, her mind was able to process what the voice was saying.

"Kagome, this is not how you should die. I won't let it be, this isn't right. You deserve to finish school and have a family...you don't deserve this. I...we couldn't live without you here! You stupid girl, you dumb stupid girl! Why did you want to be with me so bad?"

"Rin wants you back so badly. She misses your laughing and jokes. Miroku wants you to tell him he's an idiot, and yet you always seem to treat him like a brother. Sesshoumaru can't wait to lecture you, though he knows you're just going to block him out. We all do it anyways, so it's not like he cares anymore, and he always means good. Sango had been in tears since you've been here. She wants to tell you about everything you've missed. She wants to talk about anything, she just wants you back."

"I…I really need you. I need you for all those reasons, plus my own. I miss you...I even miss our arguments. Stupid huh? You must be rubbing off on me... you have no idea what's it like without you...well of course you don't, I mean how could you? God I'm so stupid...I just want to see your eyes open; I just want to see that look you always give me. It's almost like you really care about it, it just makes me feel so different than with everyone else. Please come back."

Kagome wanted to answer, to say all the things that everyone wanted to hear. She wanted to calm Sango and laugh with Rin. She wanted to encourage Miroku and drive Sesshoumaru up a wall. She wanted to make this mysterious person smile, wanted to make them feel cared for. Why can't I have any of this? Because my body wants more sleep! Well it's time is up, I'm sick of waiting! I just want to know who this boy is, just let me see him! And with that, Kagome's eyes shot open as fast as they could, though it seemed like forever for her bedside companion. Kagome let her dark brown eyes look over to finally see who had been waiting with her for so long.

"Ka-Kagome?" Her eyes were blurry, but even though her eyes weren't working as well as she wanted them to, she could still see him.

"Inuyasha? Inuyasha are you Oka?" Her voice was weak, which was expected from not using it for so long.

"Me! You're the one who got stabbed! I should be asking….you….that." Inuyasha stopped when Kagome started crying, which made his panic rise. "What are with the water work!"

"I was so scared, I was afraid he was going to go after you Inuyasha." Kagome whispered. Inuyasha stared at her for a moment before he spoke.

"Kagome you shouldn't have been worried about what was going to happen to me. Remember, you were the one that was in real danger, you had the knife to your neck!"

"I didn't care what happened to be as long as you were Oka."

"Kagome, don't you ever do that again. If you ever pull something as stupid as that again, I swear someone is going to die." Now Kagome was fuming.

"I did it so that he wouldn't pull that knife on you! Who knows what he was going to do if you got him really mad."

"But I wasn't the one with the damn knife against my neck now was I!" The room fell silent after Inuyasha's outburst, neither knowing what to say. Luckily, the silence was broken by Sango.

"Kagome, are you…you're awake?" Sango's eyes filled with drops of rain created from her own clouded emerald eyes as she ran over to Kagome, hugging her tightly. Kagome winced slightly as the cut stung with the pressure that was now placed on it. Sango pulled back, trying to control her tears the best she could. "Oh thank God you're alright."

"Don't worry San; I wouldn't leave you like that." Kagome said softly, still shaken by Inuyasha's comment.

"Sesshoumaru, Miroku, Rin! Come here quick, she's awake!" A new sound was weaved into Sango's voice which Kagome figured out was relief. Were her friends really that worried about her? Rin was the first one of the three to enter the room, many emotions flying around her. Surprise and fear were the most evident.

"Oh Kagome we thought we had lost you and that we'd never be able to talk to you again! I didn't want to lose you, I was so scared." Rin said, slowly walking over and sitting on the chair that was next to the bed. She didn't bother to look behind her as Miroku came crashing through the door, a satisfied Sesshoumaru walking in behind him. Miroku could only glare at Sesshoumaru before he looked up at Kagome, a playful smile places on his mouth.

"That was the evilest trick you have ever pulled on us, and I mean it was worse than the balloons with whipped cream. Oh, glad you're alive." Kagome couldn't help but smile at Miroku. She watched Sesshoumaru roll his eyes at Miroku's remark, his happiness covered by his usual calm stare.

"Hey Kagome." Sesshoumaru said simply, leaning on the door. Rin glared over at him after the comment.

"Is that all you can say to her? I mean, she was just put in a life or death situation and all you can say is hi?" Rin asked her hands folded in her lap, though they would have been on her hips if she was standing. She glared over at Miroku. "And you too. Was all that you were going to say?"

"Um…yes?" Miroku said, getting a smack in the back of the head from Sango.

"Show her some worry at least! Jeeze why do I put up with people like you? Why don't I listen to my mother and look for a rich English boy?" Sango asked herself, catching Miroku's attention.

"Wait, Trisha really said that?" Miroku always called Sango's mother by her first name as instructed by Trisha, having a problem admitting she was getting older. It seemed to the teens that all parents were in denial.

"Well no, but I bet she would of thought that if she had just heard you!" Sango paused after this, giggling slightly. "After she beat you over the head with her shoe for showing no consideration for her second daughter." Trisha had always considered Kagome a daughter since she had known her since she was a child. Trisha and Kagome's father were close friends before the accident, and she was the last one to talk to the deceased man. Since the death, Trisha had taken Kagome under her wing and helped raise her when Kagome's mom went to his work, which was one of the main reasons Sango and Kagome were so close.

"Oh really, so then I guess I shouldn't be doing this-" Miroku grinned at Sango for a second before grabbing her hand and pulling her to him, grazing his lips with hers. She blushed and looked at the ground as he pulled away, making his grin grown. "-Since you have a 'rich English boy' and all."

"Know what, I didn't really like English men, their teeth are messed up." Sango said quickly, wrapping Miroku's arm around her waist and leaning against him.

"I hate having to interrupt this cute scene, but how did I get to the hospital! The last time I was here I was a visitor, now I'm getting visitors, not to mention it was within 24 hours, and that doesn't seem right!" Kagome asked her friends, not remembering what had happened to her. The others looked at her strangely before Rin spoke up.

"Kagome, you've been in the hospital for over three days. You're mom's been here at least three times, and everyone else on the street came at least once. Well, except Kagura and Kikyo, but that was expected." Rin explained, making Kagome blink.

"I've really been out for that long? It's only felt like a couple hours." Kagome sighed at her mental clock, which seemed to be very slow. "Oka, so explain to me why I'm here."

"I guess I'll explain." Miroku said, making Sango laugh lightly.

"You don't even know what happened! We weren't even there when Inuyasha got there, and it was a good 10 minutes until we found them. We would have been there sooner if someone didn't get us lost and then decide they were hungry…"

"Hey, can't a guy get some Dunkin Doughnuts if he's hungry! And how was I supposed to know where Inuyasha went, he was running too fast to catch up to him. I mean, Dunkin was right there and I knew that Inuyasha was already there by now. Besides, I scoffed down that doughnut in less than a minute, and we both know that because I made you time me."

"Well we could of fa-"Sango's lecture was interrupted by Inuyasha, who decided that neither of them knew the whole story.

"I know that when I got there, you were pinned up against some alley wall by some guy named Naraku. I'm guessing that you probably remember this." Kagome nodded, but he could tell the others were hanging off his every word, so he kept telling his story. "We exchanged a couple of…words, and he pulled out a knife out and he had it up against your neck. I could tell you were kind of scared, but you started freaking out randomly and he ended up stabbing you." Inuyasha heard the girls gasp, but he continued.

"I don't know how you managed it, but he stabbed your shoulder instead of your neck, and no important organs or arteries were injured. You blacked out, probably from the shock or pain. Rin and Miroku came in at this point, and the man got knocked down. I used my cell phone to call the hospital and explained what happened, and they must have called the cops. You were rushed to the hospital and the man is currently waiting for his trial later on in the year." Inuyasha's voiced wavered slightly during his story, though Rin was the only one who noticed. Silently, Rin tapped Sango on the arm.

"Let's leave them alone to talk, you busted in last time." Rin whispered, Sango nodding slowly.

"We should get going, come on guys. Rin, can your dad give us a ride?" Rin nodded and grabbed Sesshoumaru's arm, dragging it towards the door. Sensing that Sesshoumaru wanted to protest, Rin did the unexpected. She leaned up and kissed his cheek. This got his mind off of protesting as she pulled him out of the room. Miroku turned to Sango, another playful smirk tugging at his lips.

"Just go before I hurt you." Sango said, blushing lightly as she figured out what he was waiting for. Miroku slightly frowned as he walked out, Sango following him. Again, Kagome and Inuyasha were hurled into an awkward silence. Neither knew what to say, slowly wishing for another outburst from one of their friends. When none came, Kagome spoke up.

"Are you still made at me? For what happened before?" Kagome asked, her voice shattering the silence like glass.

"What are you talking about?" He asked slowly.

"About the fact that I struggled with Naraku?"

"I just...I wasn't mad, more like confused. I didn't know what he was going to do to you." Inuyasha replied, looking down for a moment.

"I didn't mean to make you worry or to get you scared, but I didn't know what was going to happen if I didn't. I didn't want to go with him like he wanted me to; I just wanted to stay with you!" She admitted, all room for embarrassment gone. The subject was too serious for childish blushes.

"I told you not to struggle."

"Well what did you expect me to do, act like I was perfectly fine with being kidnapped!"

"Do you honestly think I was going to let him take you away?"

"Well you were just standing there; I didn't know what was going on. I thought he had scared you enough to just let him to take me."

"You should of known that I would never have let him just walk out of there with you."

"Well you weren't moving! What were you going to do?"

"I wasn't going to do anything."

"Than how would you save me!"

"Will you just shut up and listen to me?" Kagome's mouth clicked shut at the sharp command, her eyes wide as she look at the serious streak that stretched across Inuyasha's face. "Now, I said I wasn't going to do a thing because that man was so focused on any movement that I made, that I could of breathed to hard and he would of hurt you more. He was so caught up in making sure that I didn't go anywhere that he didn't notice Sango come up behind him. Like I said before, the man got knocked out, and Sango was the one who did it.

"She must have found an extra piece of the wall or something because she hit him hard with the brick. I saw her coming before you started to struggle, but I couldn't say anything because then he would have noticed her. When you started to move around, I knew that Rin couldn't hit him because he was moving with you, so I couldn't do anything but tell you to stop. Obviously you didn't listen, but she got him when he stabbed you."

"I feel so dumb now." Kagome looked away from Inuyasha, slightly embarrassed at the actions that almost made her lose her life.

"It was pretty stupid...but the fact is your Oka now."

"I should have known you wouldn't have let him hurt me." Inuyasha smiled slightly as Kagome's embarrassment only grew.

"It's Oka Kagome, you made a mistake." Her eyes darted back to Inuyasha.

"But it almost cost me my life!" Inuyasha's eyes flashed fear as she stared at him. "Inuyasha, what's that look for?"

"Don't say that Kagome." His reply was low, almost passing by undetected.

"Don't say what?"

"Don't talk about that."

"You're not making any sense to me."

"I don't want to think about you dead, ever." The words flowed down a bumpy road since his voice shook. Kagome's eyes opened wider with surprise as she sat up slowly.

"Inuyasha, I'm fine. My shoulder hurts somewhat, I've got a couple bruises and my neck is a little soar but other than that I'm fine. You don't have to worry about me leaving you all behind. As I told Sango before, I wouldn't leave you like that." Kagome tried to catch Inuyasha's eyes with her own to reassure him, but he let them pivot to look away from her and out the window.

"It's almost been three full days since you woke up. A whole three days without anything to eat or drink. I didn't want to leave you. The only thing I did leave for was to get my stomach looked at by the boys...I was so...afraid I left you...that I'd lose you" Inuyasha tried his best to keep his amber eyes clear of emotion, though it seemed harder than ever to him.

Everything he said was true, everything he admitted was how he felt. Inuyasha spent every possible moment with Kagome, and when he couldn't be in the room he would wait in the waiting room till they let him back in. He barely slept, and when he did he made Miroku promise to wake him if anything happened. His friends tried to get him out of the hospital, Sango even slapped him. Inuyasha refused to leave even if they threatened him.

"You didn't have to worry about me Inuyasha, I'm fine." Inuyasha smiled slightly and nodded, but winced as he shot up, catching Kagome's eye. "What's wrong Inuyasha?"

"Nothing, I'm fine." Inuyasha's voice sold him out, holding the pain that was now erupting in his stomach. He hadn't moved from his place for the past four hours, and usually he stood up every half hour to keep his blood from dripping in one spot. Now a small pulled of blood from the cut that had got unattended for three days.

Inuyasha had gotten screamed at by the nurses for leaving early, though he had explained to each one that a different nurse had let him go. When they asked which one, he always gave a different description and made up a weird name. He didn't want to be checked out while Kagome was in the hospital, so he pushed the pain aside for the past couple of days.

"Are you sure?" She asked, and he nodded quickly. Another jolt of pain shot into his stomach and his reflexes were too quick for his mind, making his hand cover the cut. Kagome let her chocolate eyes slowly drift down to see crimson staining the middle of his shirt. How she hadn't noticed it before, she had no clue.

"And your st-" Kagome heard a small whimper escape Inuyasha as he clutched his abdomen tighter, slowly sitting in the chair that Rin once sat in. Alarmed, Kagome immediately crawled over to him, ignoring the pain that she felt in her wrists and her shoulder when she moved her upper body. Inuyasha looked over at her, slightly confused at what she was doing. Coffee eyes winced as she pushed herself completely off the bed, slowly reaching out and grabbing his hand.

Inuyasha wanted to pull back when her hand grabbed his, knowing what she wanted to do. The only thing that stopped him was the fact that Kagome had used her brains and used her right side, which meant she had to use her injured shoulder. If he pulled away, it would immediately cause her pain. Sadly Inuyasha let Kagome pull him over to the bed, making him sit on it.

"You just have to be complicated don't you?" He asked, though she didn't answer him. She moved to one side of him, pushing on his shoulders to make him lie down. He sat up on his elbows as she moved the bottom part of his shirt up, blushing harder than ever before. Inuyasha himself had to keep a blush down as he looked away slightly, though looked back when he heard gasp.

"What happened to these bandages!" Her eyes scanned over the now bloody bandages, to which Inuyasha look away again guiltily. She lightly traced her finger over the cut, causing him to hiss and close his eyes in pain. She pulled back as she looked at him worriedly. "I'm sorry; I didn't mean to hurt you!" She could see his eyelids which now trembled from the pain, and she felt a knot of guilt fill her. She looked around the room, her eyes lighting up when she saw what she wanted to find.

Inuyasha heard Kagome move, though he didn't open his eyes. Try as he might, Inuyasha's eyelids were persistent and stayed down. He could hear his own shallow breathing, though he tried his best to ignore it. Finally he felt Kagome return, though she dropped something onto the bed. He felt the bloody bandage that he had clumsily wrapped onto himself fall slacker than it already was, making him grown curious.

"What are you doing?" He finally asked.

"I'm going to need you to sit up." She said making him sigh before he slowly sat up. He finally pried his eyes open to see Kagome kneeling next to him, unwrapping the bandage around his stomach. "This was really done badly, almost as if someone did it in a hurry."

"Whatever." He mumbled, feeling something cold against his skin. He jumped slightly as a shiver went down his spine. "Now what are you doing?"

"I'm cleaning out the cut and putting on a new bandage so that it won't have a big chance of getting infected." She replied, lightly cleaning the blood from the wound with a cloth. Inuyasha sighed as he looked down at her, smiling slightly at the softness she used.

"Why are you doing that?" He asked, making her glance up at him slightly.

"I don't want you to get this thing infected, and you seem to ignore pain." When he didn't answer, Kagome dropped the cloth onto the floor and grabbed a dry towel that she found under the medical kit. She started to dry the cut, talking as she went along. "I can't believe that the doctors let you out with such a huge cut on your stomach. I should have a talk with Kaede; she was the one who took care of you."

"It's oka, really." Inuyasha's fast words made Kagome suspicious, though she didn't show it as she grabbed the medical bandages.

"So tell me, what did they say when they let you out?" Inuyasha bit his lip for a moment, thinking of the last time he was at the doctors.

"That I should watch where I walk and make sure that I don't overdo it."

"Oh really, what medicine did they prescribe for the pain?"

"Just regular stuff."

"Hmm, that's interesting." Kagome smirked as she wrapped the bandage carefully around Inuyasha's abdomen. "My mother got a cut like this and they had to prescribe something at the pharmacy." When Inuyasha didn't respond, Kagome continued. "Of course my farther also didn't do his own bandages and he didn't lie to me about what the doctors said to him. Well you can't lie about what they said since you didn't talk to them."

"What ar-"

"I'm not dumb Inuyasha; I know you somehow managed to get out of the hospital without permission. I've spent my whole life in hospitals because of my mom; I know a lot more than you do." She finished the bandaging his cut, but stayed on the floor and looked up at the now fidgety boy. "So what happened?"

"You got all worked up; I didn't know what the hell was going through that head of yours. So I convinced Miroku and Sesshoumaru to help me sneak out, and we managed to cause a scene and then escape out one of the emergency exits." He sighed when she gave him a look that a mother would shoot at their child when they stole from the cookie batter.

"Inuyasha, you're badly hurt. Now you're going to get some rest in my bed, so go lie down." Inuyasha shook his head.

"It's your bed, and it's your room. That means that you should sleep in it. I'm fine, really."

"Stop trying to lie to me, do you do this all the time when you're with me?" The look she gave him made him quickly shake his head. "Then go lie down." She walked on the other side of the bed, slowly pulling him over to lie on the bed. Once he was settle, she began to stand up but was stopped when an arm circled around her waist and brought her back down. She made a soft squeak before looking back at Inuyasha.

"Inuyasha what are you doing?" A blush tinted her cheeks lightly.

"If I have to rest, so do you." She lied down so her face was level with his, though when her head hit the pillow she felt very tired. She yawned slightly, but tried to cover it up and started to talk.

"Inuyasha I don't-" He cut her off suddenly.

"Just sleep Oka?" Kagome nodded slightly and rolled to face the wall to hide the smile on her face. She felt the arm around her move slightly before relaxing again, but she said nothing to him about moving it. Sleep came faster to them then they thought, and it slowly lulled them from the real world peacefully, never making a sound.

Well there's a cute little ending for this chapter, and as you can tell, the relationship between Inu and Kags has taken a turn for the better. I am sad to say this, but there are only three more chapters for this story! I know I know, it's always sad to see a story end. But the GOOD news is, I'm already starting a new story. I don't think it will be up till January of 2006, but it's still a start!

"Finding a mate takes time, there is nothing wrong with you Rin." Silence followed the last comment as the night air blew past them. Even the slight frost in the air couldn't cool Rin down. Rin' gaze now fell on Sesshoumaru, who was already looking at her.

"You really mean that Sesshoumaru?" Rin' voice quivered as she tried to contain her emotions. She could feel her lungs gasp for air, her mind forgetting how to breath. When she didn't see any sense of confirmation, fear shook in her body. Oh gods please don't tell me he was just being stupid. Please tell me that he really meant it. "Sesshoumaru?"

Rin's eyes opened wider when she felt Sesshoumaru pull her closer to him, making her blush deeply. She tried to hide her surprise, though Rin knew he could tell she was dumbfounded. He had a way of knowing her emotions better than anyone else, making her feel guilt for her previous statement. He probably knows me better than anyone else now, since I seem to tell him everything. He never asks me either, I just feel...even if he doesn't care, I want him to know.

"If you are accusing me of lying, then I will answer with a no. I do not lie, only cowards would shield the truth." Rin tried not to smile at Sesshoumaru's complicated explanation.

"Why don't you ever just say no?" She whispered lightly, her lips brushing against his before closing the space between the two, the night sky watching in wonder.

Chapter 23- Girl Tricks Work Wonders