Chapter 9 - Remember the rings
"You're going to have to pretend." Sango's voice echoed in Kagome's head.
'Pretend?! Pretend? Really? Pretend. We're pretending. Great. Just peachy.' she thought to herself as she stood in shock.
"Wh-wh-what do you mean. . . pretend?" Kagome asks as she sits on a small chair. Inuyasha's smirk is heard from behind her.
"Regardless what we do, or how much we dislike each other, we're still going to play it off as a married couple." he explained as he stepped over Miroku and sat on the couch. Kagome turned to look at him.
"But I hate you." she said annoyed. Inuyasha rolled his eyes and leaned back his head.
"And I hate you." he commented. "But what Taijiya's saying is that the public doesn't have to know that. Now do you understand? Or do you need all of the information to be spoon-fed to you?" he asked mockingly. Sango just gave a deep sigh and got up. She walked towards Miroku as he lay dizzy-eyed and lifted him by his shirt collar.
"I'm sure you two have plenty to discuss. But please, just cope with each other here. It's hard enough as is." Sango dragged Miroku to the door of the hotel room and turned around to face the two once more. She picked up a small brown bag next to the door and held it out to Kagome. "A delivery to the happy couple. The door man came up and said it was for you two." she said as she gave them one final nod and exited the hotel room with Miroku.
Kagome gave her a confused glare and opened the brown bag. There were two small ring boxes. One had the letter 'K' engraved on top of it and the other with an 'I'. Kagome picked up the one with the 'K' and opened it. She gasped as she found the treasure inside. It was a white gold ring with a small heart made of diamonds on it next to an engravement. Kagome gulped as she read the engraving. 'Inuyasha'.
"What is it?" Inuyasha's voice broke into her thoughts as he got up to see what the gift was. Kagome clutched the ring in her fist and tossed him the bag. He growled at her and lifted a brow as he picked up his ring box. He pulled out the ring and brought out one similar to Kagome's.
"Are you sure this is mine? Why does it say your name on it?" he asked confused. Kagome gave a sigh as she opened her fist and looked at the ring.
"These are our wedding rings." she said silently as she turned to show him hers. Inuyasha held out his ring in disgust.
"These are it?" he gave a grunt. "Thought I would've picked something more classy." he said casually as he slipped the ring back into the box and tossed it on the table. Kagome stared in shock at his carelessness.
"How can you do that?" she asked him as she turned around in her chair.
"Do what?" he asked rudely.
"Do that! Just throw our wedding rings!" Kagome's voice rose as she stood up from the chair. "I mean, I know that there is no love at all between us. . .but if we're going to be pretending, shouldn't we at least wear the rings?" Inuyasha rolled his eyes and picked back up the box.
"Feh. Whatever." he replied as he took out his ring and placed it on his left hand. He observed the ring on his finger and sighed. Kagome looked at him oddly and wondered what he was thinking. He then twisted the ring around his finger so that the part that read 'Kagome' faced down. Kagome looked down at her hand and the ring.
Flash back
"How 'bout that one?" Inuyasha asked as he pointed toward a small ring through the glass container. Kagome shook her head hard as she smiled.
"Nope! I want something special! So that everybody knows that I'm Mrs. Inuyasha!" she laughed high-pitched.
"That doesn't sound so bad once you say it, does it?" Inuyasha said dumbly as he scratched his chin. Kagome laughed and lightly hit his shoulder.
"Nope! Nope, not at all!" she said as she shook her head and looked at all of the rings. Kagome gasped as she found a simple white one. She instantly tugged on Inuyasha's sleeve and pointed at it. "Mmp! That one! That one!" she jumped.
"Kinda plain, dontcha think?" Inuyasha said uneasily. Kagome stopped and tilted her head.
"Yeah. . .but it's so purdy!" she said. Inuyasha gave a happy sigh and looked at her.
"What if it had. . .brandings? What's that one word?" he said as he snapped his fingers and tapped his head.
"Err. . .engravings? Sir?" the small store man asked as he stood behind the counter. Inuyasha gave a loud 'A-ha!' and pointed at the little man.
"That's the word! Thank you, Mister! So how 'bout it, Kaggie?" he said as she turned to Kagome.
"Sure!" she answered happily. "With a diamond heart next to it! Because. . ." Kagome stood up proudly. "Diamonds are a girl's best friend!" she sang.
"Diamond hearts it is then, Miss. And engravings?" the store man asked as he grabbed a pen and pencil.
"I want my name!" Inuyasha exclaimed as he hiccuped. "Mine will say 'Kagome'!" he finished. Kagome giggled several times and stopped as she gave a small burp.
"And mines will say 'Inuyasha'! Since that is me!" she laughed as she pointed to herself. The store man was too busy counting up the total to realize that the two were drunk.
"Uh-huh. . .lovely, okay then. Your total will be 14 thousand per ring." the man finished. Kagome and Inuyasha's mouths both dropped.
"So much! So much!" they both recited. Inuyasha felt in his pockets for a wallet, but gasped when he found nothing.
"Damn! I forgot. . .no wallet." he shrugged. Kagome pouted.
"Kagome has nothing either." she said. The two sighed. Suddenly, a light bulb lit in Kagome's head. "What if. . .we gave you something of ours? Then you can sell it on eBAY for a big profit!" she asked. The store man raised an eye brow at the naive girl. He then began thinking.
'Hm. . .a pop-singer and actor. It's priceless.' he thought as to himself as he grinned.
"Okay, then. Ms. Higurashi, you have a deal." the store clerk said as he shook her hand. "Just leave an address where I can send the rings over and I'll be sure to deliver. I'll be closing up soon, so I'll go around the back. Just place whatever you feel needs trading on that chair in the corner. Farewell." he waved and shut off the lights of the glass case.
End of Flash back
Kagome instantly remembered the reason of her and Inuyasha's current clothing.
'Oh God. . .it's my fault why we're dressed this way.' she thought in horror as she looked at Inuyasha. He was still in his boxers. 'He probably thinks that it was my fault to get married also.'
She was sure of it that his memory of that event had returned. He turned his head to look at her and their eyes met. Kagome gasped in shock as she turned her head away from his amber eyes. She looked at her ring in her hands and slipped it onto her finger. With the name 'Inuyasha' facing up.
'I bet now she remembers why we're dressed this way. She smells of guilt. Feh. Figures. She's the one that wanted these damn rings.' Inuyasha thought to himself as he looked at his ring. 'It's not so hideous when you get use to it. . .' he shook his head. 'Nevermind. Scratch that thought. It never happened. Never. Nope. Never.'
"I can't believe that they're married." Sango says for the hundredth time as she sits next to a healed Miroku.
"So I've heard. . ." he said sarcastically as he rubbed his head.
"I mean, I take my eyes off of her for a moment and look what's happened! Ergh!" she banged her head in her hands. "I'm a terrible assistant. I'm a terrible manager! How could I let her do such a thing?!" Miroku stared at the girl with pity and stopped rubbing his pained head.
"You didn't let her get married. She merely did it herself." he tried to comfort her. Sango gave a snort and Miroku realized he wasn't helping much. "For what it's worth. . .I don't think you're a terrible assistant nor manager. You're just having a hard time dealing with things right now." he said calmly. Sango turned her head to look at him. He was smiling at her.
"Everything's just so complicated right now, Mr. Houshi. If Myouga finds out about this. . .I could be fired." she said with a hint of worry in her voice. Miroku winced as she informed him by his last name. . .again. He placed his hand gently on her shoulder.
"You'll get through it, Sango. If there's one thing I know about you, it's that you have the capability to work your way through even the toughest situations." he smiled at her again. Sango looked at him and felt herself blushing. Miroku's smile grew larger at the site of her rosy cheeks. Suddenly, Sango saw Miroku's eyes shift from her face to her chest. She instantly covered them with her arm and slapped him across his face.
"PERVERT!" she exclaimed and got all of the attention of the people in the lobby. She sits up with her arms folded across her chest and far away from a dizzy-eyed Miroku.
"There. . .was. . . a. . ." Miroku tried explaining with an excuse. Sango broke in his sentence with a grunt.
"Save it, Mr. Houshi." she finished sternly. Miroku sighed as he sat on the carpet until he could regain his consciousness. Suddenly, there's a ringing heard to break the silence of the room and Sango picks up her cell phone.
"Taijiya speaking. Yes? Uh-huh. Yes, I'm her temporary manager. Uh-huh. 'It Must Be True'?" Sango answered on the phone. Miroku slowly began to stand up with interest. "Oh. Sure. No, no. It's fine. When? Tomorrow? No, not at all. It's not too late. Okay. Yes. Yes. Okay, bye. See you then." and then she flipped her phone off and placed it into her sweat pocket.
"And who was that? The Grim Reaper?" Miroku asked jokingly. Sango just sighed.
"Close. It was the producers of 'It Must Be True'. They want an interview of the happy couple. . .tomorrow." Sango sighed as she rubbed the temples of her head. Miroku pouted at her stress and sat down in the chair next to her.
"So what now?" he asked. She turned her head and forced him a smile.
"I told them 'okay'. . .Oh God the two are going to kill me." she frowned as she cupped her face in her hands. Miroku sighed and placed his arm around her shoulders. Sango's head shot up and she looked at him. Sure, other men have embraced her that way for comfort, but somehow this time she felt warmth and pure concern. Something she hadn't felt for a long time. . .
"You'll make it. . ." Miroku said calmly as he gave her another smile. "Just don't give up."
"You're going to have to pretend." Sango's voice echoed in Kagome's head.
'Pretend?! Pretend? Really? Pretend. We're pretending. Great. Just peachy.' she thought to herself as she stood in shock.
"Wh-wh-what do you mean. . . pretend?" Kagome asks as she sits on a small chair. Inuyasha's smirk is heard from behind her.
"Regardless what we do, or how much we dislike each other, we're still going to play it off as a married couple." he explained as he stepped over Miroku and sat on the couch. Kagome turned to look at him.
"But I hate you." she said annoyed. Inuyasha rolled his eyes and leaned back his head.
"And I hate you." he commented. "But what Taijiya's saying is that the public doesn't have to know that. Now do you understand? Or do you need all of the information to be spoon-fed to you?" he asked mockingly. Sango just gave a deep sigh and got up. She walked towards Miroku as he lay dizzy-eyed and lifted him by his shirt collar.
"I'm sure you two have plenty to discuss. But please, just cope with each other here. It's hard enough as is." Sango dragged Miroku to the door of the hotel room and turned around to face the two once more. She picked up a small brown bag next to the door and held it out to Kagome. "A delivery to the happy couple. The door man came up and said it was for you two." she said as she gave them one final nod and exited the hotel room with Miroku.
Kagome gave her a confused glare and opened the brown bag. There were two small ring boxes. One had the letter 'K' engraved on top of it and the other with an 'I'. Kagome picked up the one with the 'K' and opened it. She gasped as she found the treasure inside. It was a white gold ring with a small heart made of diamonds on it next to an engravement. Kagome gulped as she read the engraving. 'Inuyasha'.
"What is it?" Inuyasha's voice broke into her thoughts as he got up to see what the gift was. Kagome clutched the ring in her fist and tossed him the bag. He growled at her and lifted a brow as he picked up his ring box. He pulled out the ring and brought out one similar to Kagome's.
"Are you sure this is mine? Why does it say your name on it?" he asked confused. Kagome gave a sigh as she opened her fist and looked at the ring.
"These are our wedding rings." she said silently as she turned to show him hers. Inuyasha held out his ring in disgust.
"These are it?" he gave a grunt. "Thought I would've picked something more classy." he said casually as he slipped the ring back into the box and tossed it on the table. Kagome stared in shock at his carelessness.
"How can you do that?" she asked him as she turned around in her chair.
"Do what?" he asked rudely.
"Do that! Just throw our wedding rings!" Kagome's voice rose as she stood up from the chair. "I mean, I know that there is no love at all between us. . .but if we're going to be pretending, shouldn't we at least wear the rings?" Inuyasha rolled his eyes and picked back up the box.
"Feh. Whatever." he replied as he took out his ring and placed it on his left hand. He observed the ring on his finger and sighed. Kagome looked at him oddly and wondered what he was thinking. He then twisted the ring around his finger so that the part that read 'Kagome' faced down. Kagome looked down at her hand and the ring.
Flash back
"How 'bout that one?" Inuyasha asked as he pointed toward a small ring through the glass container. Kagome shook her head hard as she smiled.
"Nope! I want something special! So that everybody knows that I'm Mrs. Inuyasha!" she laughed high-pitched.
"That doesn't sound so bad once you say it, does it?" Inuyasha said dumbly as he scratched his chin. Kagome laughed and lightly hit his shoulder.
"Nope! Nope, not at all!" she said as she shook her head and looked at all of the rings. Kagome gasped as she found a simple white one. She instantly tugged on Inuyasha's sleeve and pointed at it. "Mmp! That one! That one!" she jumped.
"Kinda plain, dontcha think?" Inuyasha said uneasily. Kagome stopped and tilted her head.
"Yeah. . .but it's so purdy!" she said. Inuyasha gave a happy sigh and looked at her.
"What if it had. . .brandings? What's that one word?" he said as he snapped his fingers and tapped his head.
"Err. . .engravings? Sir?" the small store man asked as he stood behind the counter. Inuyasha gave a loud 'A-ha!' and pointed at the little man.
"That's the word! Thank you, Mister! So how 'bout it, Kaggie?" he said as she turned to Kagome.
"Sure!" she answered happily. "With a diamond heart next to it! Because. . ." Kagome stood up proudly. "Diamonds are a girl's best friend!" she sang.
"Diamond hearts it is then, Miss. And engravings?" the store man asked as he grabbed a pen and pencil.
"I want my name!" Inuyasha exclaimed as he hiccuped. "Mine will say 'Kagome'!" he finished. Kagome giggled several times and stopped as she gave a small burp.
"And mines will say 'Inuyasha'! Since that is me!" she laughed as she pointed to herself. The store man was too busy counting up the total to realize that the two were drunk.
"Uh-huh. . .lovely, okay then. Your total will be 14 thousand per ring." the man finished. Kagome and Inuyasha's mouths both dropped.
"So much! So much!" they both recited. Inuyasha felt in his pockets for a wallet, but gasped when he found nothing.
"Damn! I forgot. . .no wallet." he shrugged. Kagome pouted.
"Kagome has nothing either." she said. The two sighed. Suddenly, a light bulb lit in Kagome's head. "What if. . .we gave you something of ours? Then you can sell it on eBAY for a big profit!" she asked. The store man raised an eye brow at the naive girl. He then began thinking.
'Hm. . .a pop-singer and actor. It's priceless.' he thought as to himself as he grinned.
"Okay, then. Ms. Higurashi, you have a deal." the store clerk said as he shook her hand. "Just leave an address where I can send the rings over and I'll be sure to deliver. I'll be closing up soon, so I'll go around the back. Just place whatever you feel needs trading on that chair in the corner. Farewell." he waved and shut off the lights of the glass case.
End of Flash back
Kagome instantly remembered the reason of her and Inuyasha's current clothing.
'Oh God. . .it's my fault why we're dressed this way.' she thought in horror as she looked at Inuyasha. He was still in his boxers. 'He probably thinks that it was my fault to get married also.'
She was sure of it that his memory of that event had returned. He turned his head to look at her and their eyes met. Kagome gasped in shock as she turned her head away from his amber eyes. She looked at her ring in her hands and slipped it onto her finger. With the name 'Inuyasha' facing up.
'I bet now she remembers why we're dressed this way. She smells of guilt. Feh. Figures. She's the one that wanted these damn rings.' Inuyasha thought to himself as he looked at his ring. 'It's not so hideous when you get use to it. . .' he shook his head. 'Nevermind. Scratch that thought. It never happened. Never. Nope. Never.'
"I can't believe that they're married." Sango says for the hundredth time as she sits next to a healed Miroku.
"So I've heard. . ." he said sarcastically as he rubbed his head.
"I mean, I take my eyes off of her for a moment and look what's happened! Ergh!" she banged her head in her hands. "I'm a terrible assistant. I'm a terrible manager! How could I let her do such a thing?!" Miroku stared at the girl with pity and stopped rubbing his pained head.
"You didn't let her get married. She merely did it herself." he tried to comfort her. Sango gave a snort and Miroku realized he wasn't helping much. "For what it's worth. . .I don't think you're a terrible assistant nor manager. You're just having a hard time dealing with things right now." he said calmly. Sango turned her head to look at him. He was smiling at her.
"Everything's just so complicated right now, Mr. Houshi. If Myouga finds out about this. . .I could be fired." she said with a hint of worry in her voice. Miroku winced as she informed him by his last name. . .again. He placed his hand gently on her shoulder.
"You'll get through it, Sango. If there's one thing I know about you, it's that you have the capability to work your way through even the toughest situations." he smiled at her again. Sango looked at him and felt herself blushing. Miroku's smile grew larger at the site of her rosy cheeks. Suddenly, Sango saw Miroku's eyes shift from her face to her chest. She instantly covered them with her arm and slapped him across his face.
"PERVERT!" she exclaimed and got all of the attention of the people in the lobby. She sits up with her arms folded across her chest and far away from a dizzy-eyed Miroku.
"There. . .was. . . a. . ." Miroku tried explaining with an excuse. Sango broke in his sentence with a grunt.
"Save it, Mr. Houshi." she finished sternly. Miroku sighed as he sat on the carpet until he could regain his consciousness. Suddenly, there's a ringing heard to break the silence of the room and Sango picks up her cell phone.
"Taijiya speaking. Yes? Uh-huh. Yes, I'm her temporary manager. Uh-huh. 'It Must Be True'?" Sango answered on the phone. Miroku slowly began to stand up with interest. "Oh. Sure. No, no. It's fine. When? Tomorrow? No, not at all. It's not too late. Okay. Yes. Yes. Okay, bye. See you then." and then she flipped her phone off and placed it into her sweat pocket.
"And who was that? The Grim Reaper?" Miroku asked jokingly. Sango just sighed.
"Close. It was the producers of 'It Must Be True'. They want an interview of the happy couple. . .tomorrow." Sango sighed as she rubbed the temples of her head. Miroku pouted at her stress and sat down in the chair next to her.
"So what now?" he asked. She turned her head and forced him a smile.
"I told them 'okay'. . .Oh God the two are going to kill me." she frowned as she cupped her face in her hands. Miroku sighed and placed his arm around her shoulders. Sango's head shot up and she looked at him. Sure, other men have embraced her that way for comfort, but somehow this time she felt warmth and pure concern. Something she hadn't felt for a long time. . .
"You'll make it. . ." Miroku said calmly as he gave her another smile. "Just don't give up."