Inuyasha is mine. Okay, not really. But if I'll win lottery I'll give Ms. Rumiko an offer she could not refuse. Then, I'll earn it... I AM SO STUPID!
A/N: I got so excited after I finished this chapter that I'm quickly posting it. so… sorry for mistakes and grammatical errors I overlooked.
Chapter 18: Foolish Heart
Hope. It resounded like two cymbals banged together. The harder the banging was, the louder it was. The cymbals resonated the hope building inside her.
The puzzling thought to this analysis was where was she getting all this hope? Perhaps it was her experience in love, or lack thereof, that she was still hopeful. She daydreamed. She fantasized. She still replayed that little kiss like a child watching a favourite film.
If only she could strangle Inuyasha for the trouble he was causing her, oh, how she would love to strangle him!
Sango stared at her reflection once again. She was not a woman of vanity. She rarely cared how she appeared to others. But right at the moment, she wished she was more beautiful or even a distant appealing. Maybe, just maybe, Inuyasha might have fallen madly, deeply in love with her.
She shut her eyes tight. She hated the way she was thinking; it was not like her. But, wasn't that how love worked? Changing people's perspectives in life?
Once again she was left to ponder. Love: a word often used, its meaning had simply became obsolete. People used it in their everyday lives, unaware of the depth of its definition. Well to Sango, love meant a lot.
Love meant taking responsibility at a young age for a brother's sake. Love meant being a mother and a father, and a decent sibling, all at the same time. Love meant looking out for a friend who seemed to fail in every relationship he had. Love meant giving up everything for a brother's illness, including own happiness to ensure the happiness of the brother. Love meant loving, even if the person did not reciprocate.
Love meant hoping.
Tears dribbled down her cheeks. Somewhere between the constant visits at the shop and at home, the kindness showed to Kohaku, and the simple conversations they had, Sango fell in love with Inuyasha. It was that kind of love, budding and blooming, as sincere as a vow spoken out loud.
Sango smiled then chuckled. Was she going crazy? She wiped the tears in her eyes, still staring at the mirror. She felt good enough, and decent, to show her self to the world – or better yet, to show her face at the party hosted by Inuyasha's mother.
She smoothed the mocha-coloured dressed she had on. With a small dab of perfume and a final glance at the mirror, she headed out the room to meet the waiting Miroku downstairs. Tonight she would see Inuyasha; and perhaps she might be able to gather the courage to tell him how she felt. She paused halfway out her room.
Confessed her feelings to Inuyasha? Would that be advisable? Was that decent or moral – for a girl to tell the guy first? As if a breeze of confidence passed through her, Sango (partially) decided to end the hurting once and for all.
She would tell him, or give him a hint. (Inuyasha's not that dumb!) What had she got to lose? If ever he rejected her, she would just be crushed into tiny pieces; but she would move on. She would rather be devastated because of rejection than devastated due to regret. This made her feel anxious and excited all at the same time. What if Inuyasha was the type of guy who was just embarrassed to admit his feelings? What if it turned out that Inuyasha did feel something deeper than friendship for Sango?
Once again, she was hoping. That was what love was all about… hoping.
Miroku met her at the bottom of the stairs. He gave her a nod of approval. He couldn't help snort a bit. Rarely could one see Sango looking all glamorous and girly.
"So… What do you think?" Sango asked him, knowing Miroku was the perfect man to criticize a girl's appearance.
"Hmm. I would say you look okay enough to be my date for the evening. I mean I'd rather go out with Serena for tonight but you'd do fine," he stated in an overdramatic tone.
Sango took a jab at him on his stomach. "Well. Nobody's forcing you to go to the party."
"So you could all have the fun? Anyway, my Lady Sango, I'll be there for moral support when dog-boy finally confesses his feelings for ya!" he winked. His statements made Sango speechless and beet red as a tomato.
"Let's just go so we wouldn't be late!" Sango rolled her eyes. The two made their quick goodbyes to both Kohaku and Kaede, who were marvelling at the stunning appearance of Sango. The woman in flattery just blushed.
Sango was nervous – an understatement considering the sweat in her palms kept pouring out. Her heartbeat was a tad faster than the ticking of the second-hand of the clock. They left a little early because a forty-five minute drive to the suburbs would take at least an hour due to Miroku's driving skills. Good thing, though, Sango had time to pacify her nerves. Miroku's constant chatter helped a lot.
Yet by the time they neared the doorway of the rich neighbourhood, Sango's nerves began to vibrate once more.
"Will you stop it?"
"What?" she gave Miroku a puzzled look.
"That- that thing you always do, whenever you're nervous or something," he answered without taking his eyes off the road. They were nearing the Yuukans' house. "You keep fidgeting with your hands. It tends to get annoying!"
Sango calmed down a bit - at least she clasped her hands tight to keep them from doing anything. "This is actually my first high-class party," she admitted to Miroku. In fact, it was probably her first party in years. She rarely went out of the house, if not for work and necessary errands to run. "What about you?" she needed to start another nonsensical conversation with her best friend, to simply forget about her worries.
"Me? Hmm, lemme see. No. Remember Farrah, the model I used to date in college? She was a rich girl and she always made me go to her rich friends' parties. I enjoyed it, I'm telling ya."
"Farrah? I didn't know she is a model!"
"Was a model," he corrected Sango. "Last time I heard, she's a mother of two. Gosh, wish she had my child instead of some rich businessman!" Miroku clicked his tongue. He received a slight hit from Sango. "Here we are! 4080, right? Wow, big house!"
For a few minutes, between entering the gate and Miroku handing keys to a valet, Sango was in a daze. She was excited, nervous and anxious. It felt as if something whimsical, for lack of better word, will happen tonight. Miroku offered him an arm. "Shall we?" Sango could only nod.
OOOooOOooOOOooOOooOOOooOOooOOOooOOooOOOooOOooOOOooOOooOOO
It was happening again. He was biting his nails. He had the urge to howl out of frustration. He scratched his head. Perhaps this was not the time to do such things – not with all the people in their fancy clothes and big, white smiles around. Yet he felt like being a savage for once, so he could escape all these fake genuineness of people around him.
To sum it all, Inuyasha was not having the grandest time at his mother's birthday party (as well as his parents' wedding anniversary).
He stood alone at one side of the garden, quietly sipping his champagne, simply watching the festivity unfolding in front of him. He waited impatiently for anyone he could simply converse with. His friends were running a little late in their arrival. (Of course, they have to be there by the time Inuyasha made the big announcement.) Speaking of big announcements, the other person involved in it was still missing-in-action. Apparently, Kagome had still not arrived. There was also one person he had not laid eyes on: his older brother. Funny, Sesshoumaru was never late in his entire existence.
'Well, the idiot must've gotten scared of all the guests," he mentally snickered. He remembered, at Sesshoumaru's engagement party months ago, the guy was beyond the level of boredom and annoyance. What more in a party like this? He chuckled, proud to at least amuse himself though at his brother's expense. He gulped down the last drop of his drink before grabbing another champagne glass. Maybe he should have something stronger, like vodka or tequila. God-knows he needed it by the time he and Kagome would announce their-.
He thought about Sango. She would be there, if ever she showed up. How would she react? Well, she'd probably applaud, glad for her Inuyasha's 'happiness', and smile her sweet smile. She might not even be affected at all. He had thought about confessing his feelings for her. God-knows how many times he considered going to her house and telling her everything, so he could get the clearest picture of his second life. What use could that be though? She had a boyfriend; and he had the duty to straighten things out for a second chance in life.
He caught sight of two individuals making their way to the centre of the garden where Izayoi and Taisho were standing. He couldn't help but squeezed his eyes shut then opened them to have a better focus.
Was that really his older brother? With another woman? That couldn't possibly be Koura! Immediately he strode over to the same direction Sesshoumaru and the woman took. Once he got there, he shared the same speechless and stunned countenance his parents had. Inuyasha was too bewildered to think of an insulting remark.
"Mother, Father, this is Kagura," he heard Sesshoumaru introduce the woman. Inuyasha noticed the woman's conscious scarlet eyes. She possessed the features of an independent, strong woman with a warrior-persona in her, like Sango's. Her exterior features were not hard to look at. In fact, the longer Inuyasha stared at the said Kagura, the longer he could appreciate her beauty. But, she was surely someone his brother would not be interested.
Kagura shook both the extended hands of Izayoi and Taisho, both too kind to ignore the woman despite their questioning glares at their older son. She turned to Inuyasha. "You must be Inuyasha," she extended a hand much to his surprise.
Inuyasha accepted the hand, already recovered from some kind of an initial shock. "Well, my brother's a little on the dumb side 'cause he forgot to introduce me," he threw Sesshoumaru a challenging look.
"On the contrary, I really intended to ignore you," was the frigid retort.
Izayoi hushed the two boys. "Well, my dear, it's a pleasure to meet you."
Before she should say anything more, Inuyasha jumped in. "So, are you, like, Sesshoumaru's friend, or somethin'?" he inquired, adding an extra stress on the words 'friend' and 'something'. Surely, there was a double meaning behind the question. From the glint in his eyes, Sesshoumaru had already picked out the hidden message.
"Actually, business colleagues, in a manner of speaking," Kagura answered slowly and carefully. Her being vagueness did not help cure Inuyasha of curiosity.
"Shocking. Sesshoumaru rarely makes friends, least of all, if they're part of the female population." Inuyasha snorted a bit. He was rather enjoying humiliating Sesshoumaru. He had done it to Inuyasha countless of times before.
Taisho coughed, sending a message to Inuyasha to end his nonsense interrogation. "Sesshoumaru, why don't you and Kagura head off to the buff-," he was cut off.
Before he could finish his sentence Izayoi managed to attract someone else's attention. "Sango!" she welcomed the newly arrived guests. "Oh how wonderful. You made it."
Inuyasha slowly turned around, afraid that Sango's radiance might stupefied him that he would engage into a passionate kiss with her. What he saw though broke something beating wildly inside of him. Beside her stood Miroku, looking all beaming and gleaming with Sango in his arms. He uttered a low 'keh'. Only Sesshoumaru heard it as he was standing beside his brother.
"Happy Birthday," Sango greeted. Izayoi kissed her at the cheek. "This is Miroku," she introduced him. "Jakotsu sends his apologies for his absence. "He had a test at his night class," she said with a small smile. Disappointment enveloped her. Inuyasha didn't even run to greet her or even looked the tiniest happy to see her.
"Hello, Miroku," Izayoi cheerfully shook his extended hand. She turned around to face everyone. "Everybody, this young lady is the reason this party is so beautiful. Did you all notice the flowers and the right colour of chairs? It was all because of Sango!" she said, half-dragging both Sango and Miroku to the little circle of her intermediate family. This is my husband, Taisho. You've never met him 'cause his always on a golf trip or doing a little business meeting despite his retirement," she introduced Taisho who happily kissed the hand of a blushing Sango. "This Sesshoumaru, my oldest son, whom you've met briefly. This is the lovely Kagura. And this is… Oh how silly of me. You know Inuyasha already!"
Inuyasha, and he was sure Sesshoumaru as well, was staring at their mother's perky exuberance. Izayoi was known for her unusual spurts of vibrancy and energy.
"Nice to meet you," Sango acknowledged everyone with a smile. "Happy anniversary," she said looking at both Taisho and Izayoi
"Thank you. I hope you will enjoy your evening-," Taisho was cut off once more.
"Kagome's here, Inuyasha!" Izayoi happily announced. Everyone turned to the direction of the newly arrived guest.
Inuyasha could feel beads of sweat forming just inside the collar of his dress shirt. He urged his legs to meet and greet his fiancée. Before walking towards the smiling creature (who would be his bride), he stole a quick glance at Sango. Was it just his imagination or was there something else behind the gaze she gave him? Inuyasha refocused himself on his fiancée.
Kagome greeted him with another of her big smile and a quick peck on the cheek. "Sorry, I'm late, hon. I have to pick up Mom and Shippou," she hooked an arm around Inuyasha's. He greeted the older woman standing beside his fiancée, and gave a little shove to the young kid.
"Watch it, Inuyasha!" Shippou whined, adding venom to his name. Man, he and Kagome's brother would never get along! What a brat for a brother-in-law!
They approached the little group. Inuyasha wasn't sure if there were any need of introductions. After all, his parents and Sesshoumaru knew of Kagome and her family. It was only for the sake of Kagura and Miroku, and well, Sango too, that he introduced Kagome.
"Everyone, this is Kagome, Mrs. Higurashi and Shippou," was all he said. "Kagura, Miroku," he indicated. "And Sango," he rested his eyes at her before quickly snatching his gaze away. Kagome shook the hands of those she knew. She was smart though, in Inuyasha's observation, to avoid Sesshoumaru. Kagome once told him she was a little scared of his older brother.
"What a lovely evening," Izayoi gushed.
"Happy Birthday, Izayoi," Kagome embraced the older woman then kissed her on the cheek.
"Call me mom," Izayoi winked.
"Mom, then!" Kagome giggled. "Then, happy anniversary, Mom and Dad!"
Taisho laughed. "Then, I guess, on to the announcement!" He walked over to a small platform set up at the centre of the garden. Taisho signalled for the musicians to halt. He tapped the microphone for attention. He frowned a little, remembering he did the exact same thing some months ago when he announced his older son's engagement. "Can I have everyone's attention please?" All at once the place turned silent.
Inuyasha was itching to stop his father. He noticed his group of friends had just arrived, in time for the big announcement. Hiten, Bankotsu and Kouga made their way to greet Inuyasha, but did not say anything yet. They were waiting for Taisho to finish his speech.
"My wife, the exquisite birthday celebrant, and I are very honoured and flattered to be blessed with all your presence for tonight. I'd like to take this opportunity to express our gratitude. Also, I am pleased to make an important and joyous announcement." He cleared his throat. "My younger son and his beautiful girlfriend, Kagoma Higurashi have finally set the date to tie the knot. Let us give a thunderous applause for them on being officially engaged!"
The guests cheered, some a little stunned that both Yuukan sons were getting married. Inuyasha's friends clasped him on the back. Kagome was laughing at the uproar. "Come up here, you two lovebirds!" Taisho called for them.
The two obliged. They made their way to the ledge. Inuyasha resisted the urge to glance at Sango. If he looked, he would only see a woman applauding and smiling, not knowing that his heart really belonged to her. He put on a fake smile, a facsimile of a smirk, before he and Kagome stepped up the platform.
If Inuyasha had looked, he would have seen the woman, Sango, trying to fight the tears in her eyes. If he had looked, he would have seen her, unable to clap her hands or give in a smile, even a fake smile was hard to conjure.
If only he had looked, he would have seen the hurt in Sango's eyes, the way she clung to Miroku's arm for fear she would lose balance and fall.
Because at the moment, she was falling, falling out of hope, falling in despair; but worst of all, she was still falling more in love with him. Illogical reasons it may be.
A/N: this is as close as a cliffhanger I could write..heh. I'm bad at writing cliffies. Anyway, there's still about another or two more chapter of this party. We'll see.
In this chappie, somewhere in the middle I forgot this was Bless the Broken Road, and thought I was writing my other fic. So… anyway, I think I fixed it with the focus…
Oh well, thank you everybody who still continued to review. I really hope this fic is not getting boring, though I realize it's frustrating. Ppl just want to strangle Inuyasha… I know, coz I would! Anyways.. till next chapter. Take care everyone!