Popping in to give a quick note that this chapter has art that goes with it, so if you'd like to see it you'll have to go to AO3 where it's embedded. Shame FFN won't allow that :/

The phone buzzed along the coffee table, forgotten by its owner. It got progressively – and aggressively – louder the longer it continued to go.

The owner, dripping wet from the shower that was cut short, nearly slid into the coffee table trying to get to the device.

"Son of a fuck!" Inuyasha swore, pretty sure his shin was going to have a massive bruise from that collision. He'd left his phone on vibrate while he was working, and he'd forgotten to turn the ringer back on when he got home. The desire for a shower was too great, even with the cold one he'd gotten running from his car to the front door of the building.

It had everything to do with warming up and nothing to do with trying to get rid of the image of Kagome getting caught in the rain. The actual rain couldn't cool those thoughts off so he was up a creek on that one.

He'd heard her voice in the diner and was glad that he had an excuse to go to the counter aside from the quick drop off of the ready plates. The old man talking "shit" about his cooking was just the opening he needed to linger and see Kagome. She was wearing that dark red blouse again, so she must have had a video conference. Getting to see her closer…fuck he wished he could've gone on break right then. Just to have five minutes to talk to her face to face.

Kagome had lit up when she had seen him appear, but he could tell that she was also tense. Maybe it was better that it was the dinner rush, because if she had run… he didn't think he could take that. He could see her expression try to remain calm and smile, and it was incredibly goofy. It was also cute as hell, and he couldn't imagine another woman making whatever that expression was and still looking cute. It was a feat just to get him to use the word even.

So he sent her a smile. Tried to let her know he wasn't going to eat her like the Big Bad Wolf, though he felt his fang poke out over his bottom lip so that might have had the opposite effect. Just in case, he'd winked at her too.

It'd had some kind of effect. Through all of the noise of the diner he'd heard this strangled whimper the second he turned around, and he wasn't sure if Kagome realized she'd even made the noise out loud.

The rest of his shift he kept telling himself that while that wasn't a bad noise, it didn't mean anything good either.

He had to stop getting his hopes up. She was adorable, enticing, and he wanted to be her friend. In a sense it was like they were on that path already, but just because she responded to his flirting well didn't mean anything. Inuyasha could tell right away the moment he set those plates on the counter that she was shy. He couldn't scare her away because he was horn-

Inuyasha thought that all of the noise his phone was making was a call.

It was a text.

He didn't recognize the number, but couldn't bring himself to delete the message without reading it. Worst case scenario it was a sales pitch from some online store. On the other hand… The moment that he read the message, he started to laugh so hard he nearly dropped the towel he was gripping.

New phone who dis?

Of all the things he expected to be in the text, seeing that old meme and a picture of Kagome following it was at the bottom. He really didn't expect a photo, certainly not of her biting into one of the fried pickles he'd made, but he wasn't about to turn it down. With a couple clicks he had it saved to his phone. She'd done that on purpose, to not just show it was her texting him, but that she'd gotten his surprise.

If she hadn't wanted him to keep it, she wouldn't have sent it, right? It wasn't even risqué. Her hair looked damp and she was wearing baggy clothes. The only thing that could've been indecent was where the water dripped off the ends of her hair onto her shirt, but it took more than the barest hint of a shoulder through white cotton to get him going.

He may have been out of touch for a long time but he wasn't that far gone, even if the bottle of syrup in his fridge suggested otherwise.

He gnawed on his bottom lip, debating how he should respond, because he had every intention of doing so. If she sent a text it must have been because she thought he was busy. Could also be because she was shy. Could also have been so she could send that picture of herself. Knowing Kagome all of those were highly likely.

Kagome nearly dropped her pickles the moment her phone's text notification went off.

The selfie was a spur of the moment thing, really, and it wasn't until after she sent it that she wondered if it was presumptuous on her part. It felt like a good idea at the time! Open with a joke and follow it with who sent it, cause she knew he didn't have her number.

Now, he did. If he chose to save it, of course.

The container of pickles that she was savoring was moved from her crossed leg to the desk before she picked up the phone. There was some nerves at play as she unlocked the screen, wondering what it was that he could have sent. Was he annoyed? Did he regret giving her his number? Did he think she was some silly little girl now? Had she blown everything?

Deep breath. It wasn't like whatever he sent was going to jump out and bite her, after all.

Kagome tapped the notification…and nearly dropped her phone.

At least the pickles were safe.

Inuyasha had sent a picture back, apparently. It told her a few things at once. He had gotten home alright, and he'd just taken a shower. Also that the hint of carpet matched the drapes, so to speak.

She really tried not to stare, she really did, but it was hard. His hair clung to his neck and shoulders, and he must not have toweled off very well. Little droplets ran down his skin, dipping into the curves of his collarbone and muscle.

If she didn't zoom back out of the picture she was going to end up licking her phone on accident.

The towel, what there was of it in the picture, was arranged just so which also told Kagome that he had done this on purpose. Those spread knees, the exposed hip and inner thigh, the way that towel was draped over – wait, was that around, no…wait…oh god –

As if the picture alone wasn't enough, he sent a message. And Kagome wasn't sure if that was any better than the picture.

I see you're enjoying yourself.

Understatement of the fucking millennium.

He really had no idea what kind of sound had bubbled up from her throat, and she couldn't even describe it. It wasn't normal, but then neither was this. Well, neither was the mini billboard conversations they had when the weather was decent, and they hadn't exactly been dressed properly all the time…

Fuck it she was going to go for it. What was the harm, really?

I am. Dinner and a show? What's a girl not to like?

A show? More like a teaser trailer to a long event.

Kagome swallowed, feeling her face get hot, and it had nothing to do with the spices in the food. This was new territory for her. She hadn't always been the best at flirting, at least she thought, and that was done in person. This should be easier, right? She wouldn't be able to see his face when she said something stupid…

A long event, huh? It wouldn't be very entertaining if it's dull, no matter how long it is.

…like that.

She visibly cringed, shoving a fried pickle into her mouth so she wouldn't scream in frustration. There he was, flirting with her, and she has the social range of bean dip and says that lame ass –

Oh fuck. The phone was ringing. Oh god.

How she felt more nervous in that moment than when she was at the diner earlier, she'd never understand. Inuyasha wasn't in the room with her. She was on her own, with her fried pickles that he made her. She couldn't ignore it. Couldn't let him think that she was avoiding him.

"H-hello?"

"Hey, there you are," the timbre of his voice washed over her. "I didn't upset you, did I?"

Like an idiot, she shook her head, forgetting that he couldn't see her. "No – I…I was actually about to apologize…"

"For what?"

"You mean you couldn't tell how dumb my last text was?" she snorted, leaning back into her chair.

"Dumb? I was going to tell you that there's all sorts of things going on in the show. You never know what's about to come next."

If she wasn't careful she'd be next. Kagome hadn't noticed it before at the diner, but when Inuyasha was talking casually, his voice was soothing. She shouldn't have been surprised; she'd heard him laugh. But there she was, once more blown away by this half demon. The conversation had switched to actual movies, which turned into talk about food. It then turned into them both going to get their piece of that chocolate cake he'd made before settling in front of their TVs to bad mouth the cliches on the latest singing competition.

The program had finished running, but Kagome was too distracted by Inuyasha's voice and the rain to really care. It had saved. She could send off her part first thing in the morning.

"You've been here for six months."

"And yet this is your first visit out here," Kagome replied cheekily.

Her cousin Kikyo visibly pouted. "You know I wanted to sooner, but Suikotsu got hurt and needed surgery."

"He's better?"

"He told me in no uncertain terms that if I didn't visit you before the holidays he was going to make me regret it once he could walk without the crutches."

Kagome looked out across the balcony. The trees she could see had already shifted to shades of red and gold. Fall was in full swing and the start of the holidays were only weeks away. By all accounts her cousin was cutting it close, but she wasn't going to fault her. She had a husband to take care of. A torn ACL was nothing to sneeze at, and the doctor had recommended surgery to prevent further damage.

That didn't mean she'd let her entirely off the hook. "I didn't take Suikotsu for being a kinky man!"

Kikyo had been taking a sip of her drink and started to cough as it tried to come back up. She didn't respond beyond a raised middle finger, which had Kagome laughing out loud.

"And what about you?" she finally countered. "You've been here for six months and you're going to sit there and tell me that you're still single? Not even a date?"

"Work has kept me busy…"

"Mmhm. And I'm sure Inuyasha would be thrilled to know that he's being called "work"."

Now Kagome was the one sputtering. "Inuyasha is not work, I mean my actual work, Kikyo!"

The older woman glanced down at the discarded phone on the small table between them. She'd heard of this Inuyasha for months from her cousin. Couldn't understand how something hadn't developed between the two, since they're literally across the street from the other. How was it that the closest they'd come to meeting had been in the diner where he worked? "Six months," Kikyo reminded her. "Your mother wants to know that you're taken care of. Ah – do not give me that look, Kagome. We all know you are capable of taking care of yourself. But we don't want you to be alone and so far away from the rest of the family."

"A hookup isn't going to have emergency contacts if my appendix were to rupture."

Kikyo rolled her eyes so hard she may as well have seen the devil wave from hell. "Did I say anything about a hookup? No, I didn't! A boyfriend would be preferred, and given how you've talked about Inuyasha I thought that's what was going on –"

"Our schedules have never lined up, even if I knew without a doubt that he's interested." Not an entire lie, but she knew Kikyo wouldn't want to hear that by the evening when he got off work and hers was done for the day, that she was still too shy to do anything. The empowered feminist in her said that she had every right to ask first, but the traditionalist in her kept saying to wait. The paranoia sided with the traditionalist, but added on that she could be setting herself up for failure if she approached him first.

"If he's flirting, he's interested," Kikyo replied offhandedly, missing the way Kagome lit up at the reminder of that first picture he'd sent.

It wasn't the last, either.

None of them were obscene. Inuyasha had told her outright that unless she actually asked verbatim he wouldn't surprise her with a dick pic. Kagome appreciated that, and had sent pictures on occasion as well. It was only fair, and some days when she felt especially good about her look for her video conference, she had to show someone.

"You don't know that," Kagome bit back quickly. "You're married. You don't know how guys are anymore. They can say one thing and mean something different –"

"That's human." Kikyo fished in her back pocket for her phone and unlocked the screen. "Since you insist that you're single, it's time for some tough love. We want you to get over all the past flops and start looking for someone that will make you happy, Kagome." Her fingers danced across the screen as she set to work, not bothering to acknowledge the look of dread on her cousin's face. "His name is Kirinmaru, and he's a friend of one of Suikotsu's friends. He just so happens to be in the area for a few weeks, and I think it would be good for you to go out to eat instead of holing up here in your apartment all the time."

"Wait just a second –"

"He just told me that he'd be delighted to meet up with you," she cut the other woman off, reading the message. "You can meet up at that diner. It'll be within distance for you both, and it'll show Inuyasha that he's missed his chance."

Inuyasha reclined in his chair, kicking away a leaf that the wind had carried over. He was going to have to sweep the balcony again before it rained. Damn leaves could be slick as hell when wet. His focus should have been on that, however, he was more concerned with the down face of the woman on the balcony across from his. "You okay?" he asked, hearing her soft sigh on the other end of the phone. That was not a good sound.

"I…not really," she finally admitted.

"Can I do anything to help?"

"You want to go on my blind date for me?"

Kagome…had a date? "You're not looking forward to it?"

"Not really. My cousin set it up. A friend of a friend of her husband's is in town. My family wants me to start trying to find the one, because they don't like me being alone without someone I can turn to."

"You…" Inuyasha started to speak, but the words escaped him. He knew what he wanted to say, but he wasn't sure if it was the right thing to say.

She'd heard him. "What is it? Inuyasha?"