Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha or any of the other characters.

A/N: I apologize, like always, for not updating sooner. I had a bit of trouble with this chapter. I was debating whether or not to put Inuyasha in it, but I think I'm going to leave him out and dedicate the whole next chapter to him.

But, other than that…I guess I've just been having a hard time in general. Some of my friends are going through some hard times and I had to abandon this chapter to help them out. Sorry guys.

I SAW HARRY POTTER! OMG! Hehe, I went on the premiere, I'm such a nerd. It was really well done, I thought.

Cigarettes and Lavender

Chapter 20-Like This

Bi Polar

He felt betrayed …more than betrayed…he felt abandoned. A forgotten toy, that's what he was. Just a forgotten toy.

Souta pulled at his backpack straps and walked down the street which was flooded with melted snow. He bit his lip trying to drown out everything rushing around in his jumbled mess of a mind. He kept his eyes on the ground making sure that he jumped the puddles of sludge. His mom would wring his neck if he got his new pants dirty.

Nothing seemed to satisfy him lately. It was like no matter where he went or what he did, the only thing he wanted was everything to be back to what it was like before.

It wasn't supposed to be like this.

The front door was unlocked, thankfully. Kagome sat on the couch, motionless. He hated seeing her like this. It was pathetic.

It was his entire fault too.

Souta ignored his sister's 'hello' and went upstairs to his room. He threw his backpack on the floor and climbed up his bunk bed to lie down. His eyes watered but he held back the tears determinedly.

Why did he care so much? It wasn't like he was that important. He was just a boy, just a boy that came to stay with them for awhile. He was just a boy, just the boy that changed Souta's life.

His mother told him that Inuyasha was having family problems and that he had to go back home. Souta wasn't stupid. Inuyasha didn't want to go home, anyone could see that. It wasn't an excuse; he lied. He said he wouldn't be leaving anytime soon but he left and Souta hated the fact that he was left all alone again. Without a father, without a grandfather, and without a big brother.

So here he was; useless and alone in the very same bedroom where that very unimportant boy had slept. His mother was calling for him, but he didn't feel like moving.

Dinner lately was painful. They would sit down, eat quietly, and in one way or another Kagome would break down in tears and run upstairs. She seemed to be doing that almost every night, and he despised it.

"Souta!" Mrs. Higurashi called up the stairs impatiently.

He still ignored her still.

"Souta Higurashi!" She called again. "Get down here right now, young man!"

Souta sighed quietly knowing that if he ignored her any longer he'd be pushing it. He got up and opened his door quietly.

"Coming mom." He called.

Souta sat down at the kitchen table, his sister was already there; wrapped up in a blanket and pushing her food around on her plate. He sighed powerfully, preparing himself for another evening of melancholy.

"Well…how was your day Souta?" Mrs. Higurashi asked politely from across the table.

"Fine." He answered softly.

"How about yours Kagome?"

Kagome didn't answer, fearing that she would break down in one of her nightly cries.

"Kagome?"

Souta bit his lip getting ready for the waterworks.

"It…it was fine." She said gently, but her azure eyes glazed over with unshed tears and she pushed her plate away. "Mom…I'm not hungry. Can I go upstairs?" She didn't look up, ashamed for weakness.

Mrs. Higurashi frowned but nodded. "Yes…go ahead Kagome. I'll save you some leftovers so you can have some later, if you feel like it."

"Okay." Kagome pushed her chair back, making a screeching sound against the wood floor. She left the room, her mother and brother staring at her retreating figure with furrowed brows and worried thoughts.

Kagome sat on her bed wiping her eyes delicately. "Things aren't suppose to end up like this." She whispered to herself.

She wondered what he looked like right now. If he was free of bruises or covered with them.

Every night it was the same thing. She'd close her eyes to sleep and there he was lying on the floor bleeding. She could see him in her mind's eye and it scared her.

Kagome lied down, closed her eyes, and hoped for a peaceful night's sleep; but it didn't come. It seemed like it would never come.

There he was in her mind. She could see him perfectly; his messy silver locks and void golden eyes. He was so thin; she could practically see his ribs through his thin layer of clothing. There were dark circles under his eyes; and she could tell that he hadn't slept in days.

He was standing in the middle of a white vacant room. It was blindingly white, and it gave off the feel that it would almost hurt one's eyes to stand in there for a long period of time. Yet, Inuyasha stood without moving, without feeling, without thinking.

There was a violent shake in the room but Inuyasha didn't budge. Kagome watched anxiously. A door opened from one of the pallid walls, and she shook with anticipation. A man stepped out, and she recognized him instantly as Inuyasha's father.

He walked up to the motionless boy, smiling snidely, he reached out and grabbed a hold of his son's chin and glared angrily into his eyes. The drunken mess of a man lifted his hand above the golden eyed boy's head and brought it down violently on his pale cheek. Inuyasha fell with a loud crash on the floor. His lip was bruised and bleeding, staining the perfectly white floor.

Inuyasha still lied there, not moving, not even bringing a hand to his wounded face. Kagome felt her heart wring with sickness but she couldn't move, she was glued to her spot, all she could do was watch hopelessly.

The older man walked around the unmoving body of his son expecting the boy to do something of importance; but he didn't move. Inuyasha's eyes were wide open staring ahead. His father watched frustratingly and in his desperation he brought his large booted foot down on the silver headed teenager's stomach. Inuyasha spurted blood from his mouth but gave no signs of pain.

Blood now tarnished the white pristine floor, red was everywhere. Her eyes prickled with tears she refused to let fall. Inuyasha stared straight ahead…straight at her. His eyes changed for one second and she gasped. For that one second he looked hopeful…he looked at peace.

Kagome sat up in her bed and wiped her cheeks free from tears. There was nothing she could do but wait, it hurt, but that's what she needed to do; she needed to trust him.

There was nothing she could do.

"Sango, we can only wait!"

"Wait! Wait! Wait until when, Miroku? Wait until he's dead?" Sango paced Miroku's room, he watched from his bed.

"We have to trust him. He's not a little kid, Sango. He can handle things on his own."

"Everyone needs help once in awhile Miroku. I think now is the time for Inuyasha." She stopped her pacing to stare at the boy sitting on the bed, wringing her hands together nervously.

"He just has to wait 2 more weeks and he's gone Sango. He out of here… he's safe…"

"I know…but…it just seems like every time we seem him he looks worse and worse." This was true. He was unbearably skinny, the visible bruises were getting bigger and uglier. The silver haired teenager, however, seemed not to notice any of this.

"I know San, but it's only a matter of time." Miroku tried his best to sound calming and confident.

"I hope your right…I hope he's okay." Sango walked over and sat on the bed.

"He will be. I know it." Miroku put his arm around Sango's shoulder; Sango in turn eyed him wearily.

He put his hands up shaking his head. "Don't worry, not this time. Too serious of a situation." He grinned lightly.

"Okay…just making sure." Sango gave a weak smile before leaning over and giving Miroku a small peck on the cheek. "That's for being such a good guy."

Miroku blushed lightly but his devilish smile hid it. "Oh, I think I deserve more that that." He said charmingly.

"Don't push it mister." She shook her finger in front of his nose.

"Oh come one Sango." He gave her puppy dog eyes and stuck his lower lip out pitifully.

Sango gave a small smile and leaned forward. Miroku mentally jumped for joy. "So…you want a kiss?" Sango asked gently.

Miroku nodded vigorously waiting expectantly. Sango continued to bring herself closer and closer to his face.

"Close your eyes." She whispered. He did so happily. Sango waited for a moment building up the anticipation before putting a palm to his chest and pushing him roughly off the bed. Miroku's eyes flew open in disbelief; he hit the ground with a thunderous thump.

Sango laughed loudly. "You should have known better Miroku."

Miroku didn't answer. He gasped for breath and writhed on the ground. Sango's heart dropped and she leapt off the bed and kneeled down next to him.

"Miroku? Miroku, this isn't funny." She said seriously, worry tinting her voice.

Miroku continued to thrash about on his bedroom floor, wheezing for breath.

"Miroku!"

Miroku stopped moving, he stopped struggling for breath, he stopped breathing all together. Sango sat there, her eyes wide and her heart pounding against her rib cage.

"Miroku?" She leaned down, staring at his face and into his wide vacant eyes. "Miroku? Come on, I don't want to play anymore." She could feel her eyes stinging.

Miroku lied there, trying desperately to hold in his sniggers. Now, would be the perfect time. She was on the verge of tears, yeah this was perfect. With one fluid movement Miroku swept up and caught Sango's trembling lips with his. He smiled against them.

Sango gasped and stared at Miroku's face. He had his eyes closed and she felt a little stupid sitting there with her's wide open. She closed them and leaned into his warmth.

The boy was taken back, he never expected her to enjoy it. He thought she was going to slap him, like she always did. It was a wonderful thing. Miroku brought his hand up to her face and wiped away some of the tears that she had shed in fear.

She pulled back and stared at him, his hand still on her cheek. Sango glared angrily and took his face in her hands. "Don't you ever do that again you bastard!" She whispered fiercely. He nodded quietly but smiled when she wrapped her arms around him and snuggled against his neck.

They would stay like this; they would stay like this as long as they possibly could.

A/N: Hehe… 3 306 reviews…my goodness, that's just lovely. Thank you all of you, I think you're some of the most fabulous people I've ever had the chance to meet.

Peoplekityo: Hehe, there's enough Inuyasha to go around. Go ahead and hug him all you want, he's probably enjoying all the attention.

Kasandra: Thank you! I hope you liked this chapter as much as the last one.

Avian Dincht: Hehe, well, I put some Sango/Miroku fluff; but no Inuyasha/Kagome fluff quite yet.

DemonSaya: Haha. I 3 your reviews. Thank you so much.

Blacklillygurl: Thank you, I tried my hardest to try and develop some of my own personalities for the characters, did I do it alright?

Lonelylulaby: Thanks for going through all the trouble to review even though you're at the library.

Inahosetai: I wish we could talk sometime too; but I agree, school is a little too hectic right now. Those are lovely scenes, thanks so much for drawing them, it was such an honor. :D I hope you liked this chapter. Inuyasha will show up in the next one, I just thought we needed a little break from him at home. Anyways, thanks for the review.

Whitewolf33: Hehe, don't worry, don't worry; things will get better. No worries. Thanks for the review.

Inuyashasgirl1517: Haha, well, then you'd be stealing him away from seeing Kagome. Hehe, thanks for the comment.

Kitasha: Thank you for the compliment, I hope you enjoyed the fluff.

Hanako Horigome: Haha, no need to beat around the bush; my fic is pretty gloomy. But thanks for the comment; it was really nice. :D

Angelic lily: Haha, yea. They'll get together, don't worry. Thanks for the comment.

SeeC: Hehe, that's awesome! I bet it looks so cute! I'm so sorry about your mom and the girl at your school. I truly, truly, am. I hope everything works out for the best for both of them. Thanks for the review.

AnimeAngelz: Thank you so much. You're a wonderful person.

Ya1ya: I know. It's hard to believe a parent would do that to their child…but it happens. Thanks for the review.

Enchanted Disaster: Yea, it's a lovely song. Kagome and Inuyasha are going to get together soon, don't worry. Thanks.

Amber: Thank you for the reviews, they're always short and sweet; it's really nice.

Amanda Trinh: Oh thank you so much for your reviews; they're really fun to get. No, I didn't bleed when I ran into the wall; but I had to go the doctors. Hehe, I'm the exact opposite, I'm hardly ever hyper. :D Now, it's only 2 more weeks. I'm excited to finish this story up. I think I'm going to go out for ice cream in celebration. Hehe thank you for the monies. Thanks again for the review.

TheyCallMeTaterSalad: Look, I don't mean to be rude, but there are plenty of other stories out there with blood and gore and dark endings. Mine just isn't one of them. I'm completely open to ideas, but what you have to understand is that I might not take them. I tried to add a little bit of blood here, but I just don't think it's fair for you to tell me I'm getting worse when you're not the one writing it.

Xianora: Yea, the song is really beautiful. Thanks so much for the support.

Angel61991: Thank you for the review, I hope this wasn't too late in updating.

Creature of the light: I hate it too. It's horrible that you were verbally abused, I'm so sorry. No, you don't offend us. In fact I think it's one of the nicest things anyone can do. You're a good person, thanks from both of us.

Tahitianbabe: Thank you for the comment.

Bubblez4ya: Thank you for the review. :D

Auxana: You should, it's a really good song. The band is wonderful. I 3 them so much. Hehe. Thank you.

Hazumi: I hope that this chapter kind of explained it. But if not, it's sort of a trust issue. They don't want to do things for Inuyasha; it kind of lowers his self worth. They want him to solve his own problems. Thank you for the review.

Luv,angel-muzik,baby: I hadn't heard from you so I thought something had happened. But thank goodness. Hehe, I did miss your humor. Thank you for the cookies. :D

GiantMutantCoconuts: Hehe, thank you!

KInasha14: Hehe, I don't like the sun either. Seattle is nice; it's great fun. Hehe, yea; romantic writing is hard. I hope I did okay with Sango and Miroku. I'm sorry I made you cry. I didn't know that lavender meant that, that's wonderful. Well, I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Thank you for the review.

Please review!