Title: Happily Ever After
Genre: Romance, Angst
Pairings: Inu/Kag
Disclaimer: Nope...don't own them.
A/N: It seems that i was right and that many of you were upset due to my other fic Dirty Little Secret. All i can say is that this fic is nothing like that one and i hope you all enjoy it. This is actually a companion piece to something else i wrote which i may or may not post.
Falling in love is one of the hardest things to do in life. To be able to trust someone without question, to be able to give yourself willingly –heart, body and soul –is really difficult. Without even trying they could shred your heart into pieces –something much worse than death. Falling in love is supposed to be one of the hardest things that you would ever do in life –but it wasn't. In fact it was pretty simple –so simple that you didn't even notice until it was too late. You don't know how it happened, one moment you hated him the next you loved him –but you don't regret it. No you don't. And that's why you kept going back –just to see him, to be with him a little while longer.
You stare at the well, squinting in the dark as your eyes try to see through it. Your legs dangle off the lip of the well as you brace yourself against it with your hands. All you need to do is jump. Jump and you'll be back with your friends, your family, and your home. Just jump and you'll be able to see them, to see him again. Jump. Closing your eyes, you take a deep breath and push yourself off the edge, falling into the never-ending darkness. You wait for the familiar blue light to surround you, for the feeling of warmth and comfort that you usually feel when travelling to the other side. You wait for it, and wait and wait and wait.
But it doesn't –it didn't before so why would it now?
Your feet collide into the solid ground at the bottom of the well. You fall to your knees –a strangled cry of frustration rips through your throat. Why? Why did this happen? How did this happen? Why can't you get through? You slam your fists into the ground, tears of desperation running down your face as you begin to frantically claw at the dirt beneath you. You have to get through –this is your last chance. You don't care that your hands begin to bleed. You don't care that the white dress you're wearing becomes filthy and caked with dirt. You don't care about the makeup running down your face.
All you care about is getting through.
You slump in defeat, sitting there in the dark crying quietly to yourself. You aren't going anywhere. You're stuck here, in this place you used to call home. It wasn't fair. You never knew that this would happen. You never knew that it was your last day with them. If you did, you would have never left in the first place. You would've stayed just like he wanted you to. But no, you just had to go back; you had to go back home to get some stupid supplies and in the end it had cost you everything. It had cost you your friends; your life and more importantly it had cost you him.
It was supposed to be a simple trip –go home, come back, that's it. But no, it wasn't. At first you thought that it was just a mistake, you probably forgot the jewel in your room and that's why you couldn't get through. But when you found it in your pocket, you knew that something was wrong. So you tried again. And again and again and again until you ended up in a bloody heap at the bottom of the well, your legs aching terribly. This has got to be a mistake; it can't end like this you told yourself. So you tried calling for him, screaming his name hoping with all your heart that he could hear you, that he would come get you. You called for him until your throat burned your voice becoming hoarse and the taste of your blood in your mouth.
You became so desperate that you even tried to use the jewel to get through –wishing to be able to get back to him. But it didn't work. So you wished again and again the damned thing didn't work. Clutching it in your hand you noticed that you couldn't feel the jewel anymore –the feeling that you had while searching for it was gone. And that's when you knew. You knew that you couldn't get back, that you would never be able to. The jewel had somehow lost it's powers –the very same powers that let you pass through the well –and was now just a giant pink marble. A giant pink useless marble that you threw against the well, shattering it into a million shards.
It was over. After five years of jumping between different time frames it had all come to an end. You had finished your job, finished collecting the shards, destroyed the bad guy and saved the world so your purpose there was done. You had no reason to go back.
But it didn't matter to you. You had to get back, you promised. So you tried again, and you kept on trying, ignoring your mother's pleas to stop. Ignoring the pain in your body as you slammed over and over into the solid ground.
Days turned into weeks, weeks turned into months and months turned into years –but you didn't stop. You would get back somehow, even if it killed you. There were times when you gave up hope, accepting the fact that there was no possible way to ever return. But then you would remember why you had to get back. You had to return for your friends, you had to return for you family and you had to return for him. To be able to see his face, to hear his voice and to tell him how you really felt.
You had to return to be able to feel him –to feel his aura again. Before you were able to feel it, to feel him from anywhere –whether it was a mile away or a few inches away you always knew that he was there. You were even able to feel him through the well –his presence always there and you knew that he would always be there waiting. But now you couldn't. It was killing you, the comforting feeling that was him, was gone –ripped away from you and you desperately wanted it back. He was apart of your soul and now he wasn't.
But as time went by you began to lose hope. You began to realize that there truly was no way to get back. Slowly, you started adjusting back into your normal life. You had to –your mother had threatened to seal the well shut if you didn't. At first it was hard, watching as everyone happily lived their lives while you pined away to return to yours through the well. You didn't belong here. You had gone through too much to ever really belong in your world again. But you continued on –he wouldn't have wanted you to waste away. You lived your life again because of him; you tried to move on because of him. Besides, he was probably trying to move on to, it wasn't like he was going to wait for you forever. You would've wanted him to get on with his life –even if it wasn't with you.
And he would've probably wanted you to get on with your life –even if it wasn't with him.
'Kagome, the guests are going to be arriving soon.' You hear your mother's voice call out to you.
Taking in one last shuddering breath, you slowly climb your way out of the well –no more chances, times up. The last bit of hope you had left is finally gone. You walk out of the well house, and with one last look over your shoulder, you close the door shut –knowing that you had failed him, that you had broken your promise.
Your mother walks towards you, taking in your messy appearance and you know that she knows what you did –or what you tried to do. Without a word, she takes out a handkerchief and wipes the dirt and tears off your face, an understanding smile at her lips.
'I'm sorry,' you sob, 'I–I know you worked so hard and I –'
She silences you with a hug and you cling to her, holding her tightly as the pain of what had happened early washes over you. 'It's okay. No harm done,' she says, rubbing your back comfortingly. 'We still have time to get you cleaned up, it's not the end of the world.'
But it is, it's the end of your world –your world with him.
Pulling away, you stand beside your mom and stare at the Goshinboku sadly –how long has it been since that faithful day when you freed him from there?
'You don't have to do this if you're not ready,' your mother says quietly. 'No one is forcing you to.'
You look at your mother for a moment and then back at the tree. 'I want this. I'm…I'm going to do this because I want to, not because I have to.' You wonder if you're trying to convince your mom or really trying to convince yourself.
Your mother sighs softly and you know that she doesn't believe you. 'If you're sure, then I won't stop you.' she says, wrapping an arm around your shoulders.
You look back towards the well house, the familiar ache in your chest returning. It wasn't fair. It wasn't supposed to be like this. It was supposed to be a happy ending –with him by your side. You were supposed to be able to return to him, to finally be able to feel his lips against yours. It was meant to be and yet it wasn't. Why? Why did this happen? How did this happen? You clench your hand into a fist, the ring on your finger glinting in the sunlight. You have to move on. You have to forget. You have to… for him.
Falling in love is hard…
'I'm sure.'
…but falling out of love is harder.