Author's Note: Thank you guys very much! I know the story is pretty long with still no
end in site. Go figure huh? There's just so much going on with everyone…Everyone has
their own life and story, can't forget any of the key players. I'm sorry if I'm not going
fast enough in any way…And I'm also sorry if you feel I am leaving out some of your
favorite characters. Yeah, I miss Miroku and Kouga too! Let's see what we can do to
bring them in the game!
Chapter 23: An eventful encounter.
"Oh my God, this isn't possible, no, no I can't be pregnant! There has to be some
mistake! You guys know it's not possible for me to-to-to-conceive!" stated Kagome as
she felt the lighted headedness of the situation sink in.
"Kagome, it's true all right. The doctor ran tests shortly after you were transported to the
hospital. It was part of hospital procedure or some sort of bullshit like that."
"Sango…I can't be pregnant." Said Kagome with tears in her eyes.
Both Ayame and Sango held Kagome as her tears overwhelmed her.
"It's gonna be all right Kagome. We'll get through this together. Sango and I won't let
you do this on your own," Ayame reassured.
"Yeah, and once you tell Inuyasha, he'll be more than thrilled to know you two are going
to have a baby," said Sango giving Kagome a gentle squeeze.
Upon hearing Inuyasha's name, Kagome went into deep thought wondering what would
happen when or if she told Inuyasha about her child…their child.
Oh my God…What will Inuyasha say when he finds out I'm pregnant? After what
happened in the parking lot would he want to even see me? I'm the reason he's here this
very moment laid up in a hospital bed. What am I going to do if he doesn't want anything
to do with a child that I'm going to give him? Would he want my child? Will he be
happy? What if I just left and never told him about our child?...No! I shouldn't think
anything like that. One woman has already done that to him, he doesn't need another to
do the same. I have to be an adult about this…I'm going to be a mom. Oh my God…I'm
going to be a mother…
"Kagome?"
As if pulling her out of a trans Sango shook Kagome pulling her back into their reality.
She looked at both her friends eyeing her wearily and quickly said,
"What? Something wrong?'
"Well, I just asked you if you were all right?" said Sango giving Kagome a look of worry.
"Oh…Um…Yeah, why wouldn't I be?" said Kagome shrugging off her friends, "I'm just
a pregnant teenager, who's a freshman in college, with a boyfriend who would rather
make out with another woman than me…Yeah, I'm quite all right," she finished as the
tears piled up and spilled down her flushed face once more.
"Oh Kagome…Don't worry, please don't worry. We're here, see…And all that mess
with Inuyasha…It probably wasn't his fault."
Before Sango could help her poor red headed friend, Kagome turned on her, the anger
apparent in her movement.
"Not his fault? NOT HIS FAULT! It's every way imaginable his fault! He was fondling
who ever the Hell that was and he looked as if he was liking it just a little too damn
much! Of course it was his fault!"
"Kagome. Kagome-KAGOME! Calm down girl! It's gonna be all right!" said Sango
smoothing out Kagome's hair as she tried to cool down.
Looking at Ayame's stunned expression; Kagome quickly retracted and put an arm
around her giving off a deep sigh.
"Oh I'm so sorry Ayame. Please forgive me. I didn't mean to go off like that. It's just-
I'm not myself right now."
"Don't you try and defend yourself Kagome. It's all right. We all do things we're not
proud of for various reasons…It's human nature…" comforted Ayame as she hugged her
teary eyed friend.
"Thank you…It's just when you mentioned Inuyasha-I just couldn't hold back. I have all
these feelings and they're just mixing together and I feel as if I'm just gonna break if
anything else happens. But more than anything…I just wonder about Inuyasha and if he
still loves me or not…"
Gasp "Kagome! You don't even have to be afraid of something like that!"
"Yes, Sango's right! Inuyasha loves you more than life itself! Why would he risk his
own life just for your safety if he didn't love you?"
Taking a moment to think about this, Kagome opened her mouth to respond to their
words but chose to look out the window instead. When she was feeling up to it she said,
"I want to see Inuyasha."
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Inuyasha still looked the same with a nurse coming in every hour to check his process,
check his vitals, make some notations on his note board, fluff his pillow, and then walk
out giving his visitors a gentle smile upon doing so.
Kouga and Miroku looked on at their friend in disbelief and listened intently to the
beeping vital monitor as it continued to work signifying Inuyasha was still alive…barely.
"So what did Sango say happened again Miroku?"
"Apparently Kagome caught him kissing a young woman when she went up to his room.
After that she took off into the rain and then as she was about to reach her car a truck
came peeling down and Inuyasha pushed her out of the way before she was hurt."
"What was he doing kissing another woman anyways?"
Miroku just shrugged looking on at his friend's motionless form.
"I mean, who was this woman? She must have been something if this idiot would cheat
on Kagome like that! When he wakes I better not be here because I may just put him
right back in a coma!"
Miroku just looked at Kouga hitting his fist against the palm of his hand and mentally
berated his child hood friend…
Dammit Inuyasha…What were you thinking? Kissing Kikyo knowing full well Kagome
could be there any moment. Wait…That's not what I meant…Damn…What I mean is-
How could you do something like that to Kagome? How could you fall victim to Kikyo
again? Haven't you learned anything?
"Uncle Miroku! Uncle Kouga!" said Kenjen bouncing into the room and into Kouga's
arms and then Miroku's.
"What are you doing here Kenjen?"
"Grandma said I could come see my dad today. She said he was sleeping, so I've come
to wake him up!"
"Oh have you now?'
"Yes! But…" Kenjen looked at his father for the first time letting his smile darken, "she
also said that he saved Ms. Kagome's life and that I could try all I wanted to wake him
up; but it might not happen yet."
"It's possible he may not wake up yet Kenjen; but it doesn't mean he won't."
"Oh I know Uncle Miroku! He has a promise to keep!"
"A promise?"
Finally deciding to intervene, Mrs. Shigwa said,
"Um…Kouga do you mind taking Kenjen down to the cafeteria to get a snack or
something?"
"Of course not Mrs. Shigwa, we could even swing by the teen lounge and maybe play
some games."
"Kouga, he is a little boy remember?"
"Yes Mrs. Shigwa, women's rooms are off limits, yeah, I know…"
"Good boy."
"Hey Kenjen...After getting something to eat, how 'bout we swing by Kagome's room?"
"YEAH!"
With that, the two took off hand in hand leaving Mrs. Shigwa, Miroku, and Inuyasha
alone.
Looking at her battered son, Mrs. Shigwa shook her head placing her hand against her
eyes and could no longer hold back her tears. Miroku was quickly at her side taking her
into his arms and letting her tears soak his shirt.
"Tell me Miroku-tell me what happened. The police report says he was hit by a truck;
but it never went into detail about why this happened! The end of the report states that all
the people in the vehicle were drinking even the driver. He was arrested with a DUI
while the others went off free. But why Miroku? What made this happen? Why was
Inuyasha in the parking lot in the pouring rain?"
Unable to not give Mrs. Shigwa an answer he began…
"Well…You see Inuyasha was meeting up with someone yesterday and took her up to his
room."
"This someone wouldn't happen to be Kikyo would it?"
"Nothing gets passed you does it?" chuckled Miroku
"I'm a mother Miroku; it's in the job description."
With Mrs. Shigwa starting to stop crying, Miroku pulled away to look at her.
"Well, Kagome saw him and Kikyo, um…"
"Making another Kenjen?"
Miroku has never been a man to blush; but seeing Mrs. Shigwa's angelic face say
something like that gave him reason to look like a tomato.
"Miroku?"
"Well, um, not in that sense; but they were kissing each other."
"I see, and Kagome caught him red handed."
"Correct. When she saw this, she ran away from Inuyasha trying to get to her car.
Inuyasha went after her and pushed her out of the way of the truck's path…And there you
have it Mrs. Shigwa…That's the truth to what happened."
"I see…" she said once again turning towards her son.
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Knock Knock!
"I'll get it," said Ayame reaching for the door knob.
As she opened it Kouga winked at her saying,
"Hey beautiful!"
"Oh Kouga!"
Kenjen raced in to check on Kagome while the two love birds cuddled.
"Ms. Kagome! Are you all right?" Said Kenjen running up to her trying to jump on the
bed but realizing he was too small. Sango came up behind him and put him gently down
next to Kagome as he reached out hugging her. Seeing the two together, Sango excused
herself and went outside with Kouga and Ayame.
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Kouga and Ayame smiled at Sango as she closed the door behind her.
"So…What are we talking about?"
"Well," said Ayame taking a look at Kouga, "We were just talking about going home."
"Oh yeah, I guess it wouldn't hurt to go back to Lamar a little later to pick up a few
things."
"No Sango…We meant, go home as in 'go home'. You know…The semester's over, we
have to go pack."
Sango froze for a second contemplating their response and then added,
"I guess the fall semester is over isn't it?"
"Sure is…We have till tomorrow to move out, according to Cardinal Village rules," said
Kouga.
"We can't leave Kagome and Inuyasha like this, not now…"
"I know Sango, but there's nothing more we can do…"
"But we have to be here for them!"
"Sango…"
"Ayame, look at Kagome right now, she's upset and who knows what else!"
Looking at Kouga and then back at Sango…
"We have to go home Sango, even Kagome will have to leave Inuyasha…"
Feeling defeated, Sango gave out a deep sigh pushing her shoulders down accenting her
misery. All she could think about were her friends' feelings. She knew she could never
comprehend what either of them was going through. Kagome being pregnant, Inuyasha
in a coma, and his poor son now without both his parents…
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"Ms. Kagome?" asked Kenjen snuggling closer into Kagome's chest.
"Yes Kenjen?"
"Is it true my father saved you?"
"Yes Kenjen, it's true. Your father acted very bravely."
"So, my father's a hero?"
"Yes he is sweetie." Giving off a smile she kissed his small head and hugged him tighter.
Looking up into her smile Kenjen began,
"Don't worry Ms. Kagome. I know my father will wake up soon."
"I know sweetie. He will wake up, but we have to give him time."
"I know he wants to come back to you."
Kagome paused and looked into his gentle eyes, noting the way he looked so much like
Inuyasha. His very features did the man in a coma justice. Those bright molten gold
orbs peering into her soul at a moments notice. She wanted to cry and hold Kenjen for
his comment.
"If he didn't he would be breaking his promise."
"And what promise is that Kenjen?"
"His 'returning promise.' Father said no matter what happens, he would always return to
the people he loves."
Flashback
"What do you think of this one Kenjen?" asked Inuyasha showing him various Christmas
presents he was thinking about for Kagome.
"That's really nice Father."
"Yeah…Or maybe this one?" He asked holding up another one.
"Father?"
"Yes Kenjen?"
"I was wondering…"
"Yes?"
"What would happen if you left?"
Pausing to look at his son, Inuyasha finally answered,
"Um…What do you mean son?"
"Well, I heard Grandma and Uncle Sessy talking about it over the phone one day.
Grandma was talking about how she needed to sit down with you one day and talk about
who would take care of me if you left one day…"
"Kenjen…Son…You know I love you very much right?"
"Yes Father, I know that."
"Good…I also want you to know, if anything happens to me, ever….I promise I will
always return, no matter what. I will always return to the ones I love."
"Thank you Father."
"And besides…If anything really terrible ever happens, and that's a big if Kenjen…Your
Grandma and Uncle Sess will always be there for you, all right?"
"All right Father."
"That's my boy; now let's find Ms. Kagome a nice present huh?"
End Flashback
Thinking about what Kenjen said, Kagome was reminded of Inuyasha's words right
before they took off before Hurricane Rita…(Chapter 8)
"Well, that's the last of it!"
"Thank you so much Inuyasha for helping me pack."
"Of course Kagome…Something wrong?"
"I'm worried Inuyasha. I've never been through an evacuation before. Grandpa was
telling me people were going to be cut throat and cruel and would probably harm me if I
let them."
"Don't you worry Kagome. Just keep your doors locked, your cell phone turned on, and
as soon as you get home…You better call me and let me know you're all right!"
"Inuyasha…What if something happens? What if we won't see each other for awhile?"
"Then we call each other till we're back again."
"But what if-"
Inuyasha wrapped his arms around Kagome's waist and pulled her in for a long
passionate kiss. Pulling her out of it he hugged her gently to his chest and whispered in
her ear,
"Whatever happens Kagome…I promise to return to you. No matter what…I've never
felt like this before Kagome, and it's all thanks to you. I'm not about to lose you now.
You're my love Kagome, and this is where you are going to stay."
"Thank you Kenjen. You're absolutely right. You're Father will wake up soon, I'm sure
of it."
With that, the young boy snuggled closer to Kagome going to sleep as she watched over
him. Noticing the boy rest his arms gently around her stomach, she couldn't help but
realize Kenjen was soon to have a brother or sister. Looking down at Kenjen all her fears
and doubts melted away until all she could do was hope for Inuyasha's return to their
world very soon.
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"You know Inuyasha, I understand if there are some unresolved feelings towards Kikyo.
She is after all Kenjen's mother…She'll also always be apart of you therefore making her
now and forever the other woman."
"Kagome-
"You can't deny it Inuyasha. You care for her. You-
"YES! All right! Yes Kagome! Yes, I care for her, I care about her; but that doesn't
mean I love you any less! Kikyo and I have unfinished business, it's true Kagome. Part
of her will always be right here," said Inuyasha placing a hand to his heart, "But part of
you will reside here for the rest of my life, no…For all eternity. Believe me Kagome…I
never meant to hurt you. I love you…"
"So why'd you do it Inuyasha? Why'd you have to kiss her?"
"In all honesty she reached for me."
"Yes, and you responded. Just tell me why? Do you want her? Would you rather be
with her?"
"This is ridiculous Kagome! I'm not listening to this anymore!"
"Oh and where are you going to go Inuyasha? Where in your head after all…It's about
facing yourself Inuyasha. Time to stop running."
"I've never, not now, nor ever have run from anything! When Kikyo left I dealt with it,
when Kenjen came I took care of him, when you came running off I took after you!"
"Yeah, but you could have prepared me for Kikyo! Why didn't you tell me about her?"
"I don't know, maybe I was…"
"Afraid I'd be pissed?"
"Something like that."
"I love you Inuyasha, and I always will. She's part of your life and that makes her part of
mine."
"No…"
"Excuse me?"
"No, I rather not be with Kikyo. I wanna be with you Kagome."
"Good. Now that wasn't so hard was it?"
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Sango, Kouga, and Ayame enter Kagome's room to find Kenjen sleeping on her while
Kagome watches over him. She smiles and whispers,
"I really need to go visit Inuyasha."
Sango replies, "Don't worry, we'll take care of Kenjen while you're gone."
"Thank you."
With that, Kagome has Kouga lift Kenjen in his arms while she gets up, grabs her
belongings, dresses in the bathroom and takes off down the hall to Inuyasha's room.
Upon entering, Miroku and Mrs. Shigwa are seen sitting next to him.
"Kagome, thank goodness you're all right," said Mrs. Shigwa getting up and giving her a
hug.
"Thank you Mrs. Shigwa."
"It's good to see you're all right Kagome," said Miroku giving her a gentle embrace.
"How is he?"
"The doctor said he is still the same; but nothing is for certain," Mrs. Shigwa said looking
at Miroku. She gently smiled and put a hand on his arm.
"Come on Miroku, we both need a break," looking at Kagome she continued, "We'll
leave you two alone."
"Thank you…Oh, by the way…Kenjen is in my room with Kouga, Ayame, and Sango."
"Figures…" said Miroku with a smirk.
Leaving the room to Kagome and Inuyasha, she wasted no time in sitting next to
Inuyasha and holding his hand. Leaning her head against the bed to be even closer to
Inuyasha she sighed and said,
"I love you Inuyasha. I love you so much. Please come back to me. Please come back
to us," she said placing a hand on her stomach, "We need you Inuyasha. We can't do this
without you."
Tears began to stream down her face as she continued to coach Inuyasha and beg for him
to return. Oblivious to anything not having to do with Inuyasha, she never realized the
click of the door closing as a lone figure descended to the foot of his bed looking down at
her…
"Seems we do have something in common."
Kagome looked up from the now tear stained sheets to see a beautiful and yet strikingly
familiar young woman standing before her. Looking into her face, the memories seemed
to flood back…
(Chapter 18)
"Oh my gosh!"
"Here, let me help you," said Kikyo bending to the ground helping Kagome put her
belongings back into the bag.
"Oh, thank you very much. That's awful sweet of you."
"Don't mention it," she said holding up a red sweater.
Kagome noticed her admiring it and said, "Oh, my boyfriend loves the color red. I
bought it as a Christmas present for him."
"Oh really? Hmm, the father of my son also loves the color red. Seems we have
something in common."
"I guess we do."
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"I remember you…You helped me while in the hallway. Um, what are you doing here?"
"That's a very good question. You see, the man's hand that you are holding right
now…He's the father of my child."
Kagome begins to contemplate what she just revealed…
"You mean…You're Kenjen's mother?"
"Yes, I am. You must be Kagome."
"That's correct."
"It's nice to meet you Kagome; I wish it were under better terms."
"Thank you…I'm afraid I don't know your name."
"I guess Inuyasha didn't talk much about me did he? Well, my name is Kikyo."
"It's nice to meet you Kikyo." She said looking down at Inuyasha and then turned
towards Kagome…
"He loves you Kagome."
"I know."
"Please don't be mad at me Kagome. You must understand…"
Kagome was slightly confused by this comment. Why should she be mad at this woman?
Has she done anything wrong?
"Understand what?"
Kikyo looked at her with an ashamed look and Kagome realized something…
"Wait a minute…Inuyasha said he was going to meet an old friend in the park
yesterday…And then he ends up in his room with a woman-another woman-meaning-that
was you wasn't it?"
"Kagome-
"You're the one Inuyasha was-he was…"
Placing both her hands over her face Kagome gently stood up.
"You knew he was my boyfriend. That day you were at Cardinal Village…You were
leaving his room weren't you?"
Seeing how Kikyo continued looking at her without so much as a response she
continued…
"Of course it was you," she looked down at the floor to gather her thoughts, "What are
you doing here? What do you want?"
Upon hearing her new tone, Kikyo looked into her eyes…
"What I want is to pay respects to the father of my child. As much as you may not want
to admit it right now, I am still Inuyasha's friend. He still means something to me and
always will."
"I guess we have quite a dilemma on our hands don't we Kikyo."
"I guess we do Kagome. Seeing as you are the other woman."
"I'm the other woman? How do you figure that?"
"Well, look who came first?"
"Well, look who he's with now!"
"I'm not your enemy Kagome all right. I don't want to compete against you for
anything."
"I bet you don't."
"Kagome, seeing as how Inuyasha loves you very much, it's only fair that we try to make
the best of this."
"You made my boyfriend cheat on me!"
"I made your boyfriend cheat on you? Listen good sweetheart…Your boyfriend kissed
back and he didn't hold anything back! He relished the feel of my lips and my body and-
Oh my God…"
"What?"
"What are we doing Kagome? Look at ourselves…This isn't right…Look; I don't want
to fight you. I'll just leave…"
"Wait Kikyo…"
Kikyo put her hand on the doorknob looking back at Kagome.
"I'm sorry, please, sit down and stay."
"It's all right Kagome, I should be going anyway. We'll talk some other time."
With that, she opened the door and took off down the hall, leaving Kagome to sit back
down in her chair and wait patiently for Inuyasha to wake up…
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Knock Knock!
"Come in," said Kagome still sitting next to Inuyasha holding his hand.
"Um, hey Kagome," said Sango with Ayame, Kouga, and Miroku in tow.
"Hey guys, where's Mrs. Shigwa and Kenjen?"
"Oh, they decided to go home, they should be back later," replied Miroku.
"Oh Kagome, the doctor said you can go home today if you feel up to it."
"Thanks Sango, I'll probably go grab some more clothes and head back up to the
hospital."
"Um Kagome…"
"Yes Kouga?"
"Well, it is the end of the semester and all…"
"And well, like the rest of us were discussing…" interjected Ayame.
"It might be time…" continued Miroku.
"Time for all of us to go home Kagome…" finished Sango.
Kagome began to nod her head realizing what they meant. It was time to go home, after
all the fall semester was complete. Everyone had to go home and wait for the spring
semester…
"Um, hey Kagome…" said Ayame waiting for Kagome to look up, "None of us are
leaving till tomorrow, so we'll all come back here to say good bye. And plus…The gift
exchange is still on…"
"Right…I can't believe Christmas Eve is tomorrow."
"I know…It's hard to believe we've been in school this long," said Sango.
"A lot has happened," followed Kagome.
"And you know what's even worse," replied Kouga.
"What that's honey?"
"We only have fifteen days till the next semester. What a jip!"
The gang began to laugh again and the life seemed to return back to their little group
once more. This semester was a long one but they have endured together. One more day
stands in their way before going home finally. Finally so they can forget…No…They
could never forget what went on this semester, maybe suppress some of the
memories…No, that's not right either. Either way, they will return home tomorrow, and
wait less than a month to return to each other and build fond memories that will last a
lifetime…
End Chapter 23!
Thank you very much everyone for reading! I hope you are enjoying this story. I have to
admit I was beginning to get rather sentimental at the very last paragraph. No doubt
about how the next chapter will be. It was a pretty powerful Fall Semester for us at in
Southeast Texas. You'll see in the next chapter or maybe the next…I haven't decided the
flow of the next two chapters yet…Anyways, thank you guys so much and I can't wait to
hear from you again. I need to get started on responding to your reviews right now. So,
talk to you guys later, and have lots of summer fun!