He was just a boy.

He sat behind me in class.

I never spoke to him. Until our teacher made us get into pairs.

I stood by my desk, waiting as everyone scurried around trying to find the person with their number.

The last person, walked up to me, flashed his number and I nodded.

It was the boy who sat behind me.

We put our desks together and sat down. The teacher brought us our assignment and I read it intently.

I looked up at him. His eyes were glued to the paper like he was trying not to look at me.

"Your name, It's Kohaku right?"

He just nodded.

"I'm Rin."

He looked up and I smiled at him. He blushed and looked away. I had never seen a boy blush before when I spoke to him. I thought it was so cute.

"Are you shy? You don't seem to talk much in school. Do you have any friends here?"

"Not really."

"I don't have a lot of friends either. Maybe it's just the people in this school. They're kind of mean. Do you like this school?"

He shrugged. There wasn't much interaction. I began to assume he didn't want to be bothered with me either.

"Am I talking too much? I'm a bit nervous. When I get nervous, I talk a lot."

"No. It's okay. You're nice." He told me. He still looked away, though. I couldn't understand why he was so shy. Was he afraid of me?

"I'm not very good at drawing. Can you do the second part of the assignment?"

"Sorry. I can't really draw either."

I giggled. "I suppose we have to draw stick figures."

He nodded as he finally smiled back at me. I hoped this meant we were friends.

After School...

I caught him on his way out.

"Hey Kohaku!" I called after him as I followed.

He stopped and turned to me. "Oh. Hi Rin."

"Wanna walk together?"

He nodded.

I was happy. He said he didn't have many friends and I was glad to be walking with him.

We began to share things about our lives; who we were, the things that made us unique.

Before I had even got home, I knew I developed feelings for that quiet boy from my class.

"Um...y-you wanna...have lunch...with me. Tomorrow?" He asked me nervously as he blushed again.

I started to blush too as I nodded.

The next day...

I found Kohaku in the lunchroom. We sat and talked; he even brought a lunch from home for me. "My sister made it." He said. Sango had made extra just for me. Without even knowing me, his family showed me kindness. I was flattered.

I liked the way Kohaku opened up to me more and more. He was just a shy boy. Plenty of people liked him, but he always kept to himself.

As we spent more time together, I saw Kohaku becoming more comfortable around me. He even began to act a little more confident around others. It was nice to watch him grow.

A few months after we met, he asked me to be his girlfriend.

"Please go out with me, Rin! I'll cherish you forever. I know we'll be together a long time. I'll get stronger too so I can always keep you safe." That was how he asked me.

"I'll get stronger." He said. He became obsessed with being stronger. Over the years, he became stronger, and then he became colder, distant, and mean. He was hardly human, just a fighting machine wielding swords and mastering martial arts.

Did I create a monster? Is it my fault my sweet, kind hearted Kohaku is gone? Or is he still in there waiting for me to reassure him I don't need him to be so strong? He's losing himself.

Or maybe he already lost himself.

Deep inside, he's just the boy who sat behind me in class.

"Rin? Rin wake up."

'That's why…I don't want anyone else to feel the need to be stronger for my sake.'

"We're here."

Sesshomaru held the door open for Rin. She rubbed her eye and quickly got out the car.

As they walked up to his father's front door, she could see Kagome sitting outside.

"I was waiting for you!" She called out.

Kagome looked up at Sesshomaru, and flashed a smile. "Hey. Long time no see."

"Yes. I see your head has grown."

"My head?!" She asked in a confused voice as she touched her forehead.

"Yes. Your eyes are no longer taking up your entire face. You were a weird looking child." He remarked rudely as he headed inside.

Kagome grunted angrily as she clenched her fists.

"Don't get offended!" Rin said with a smile. "That's just his way of complimenting you."

Kagome released an irritated sigh before laughing. "You look so beautiful by the way."

"You think so?" Rin began to blush furiously upon hearing the compliment.

Kagome nodded. "Uh huh. You always dress so plain. Either work clothes or sweat suits." She said as she grinned. "It's nice to see you like this."

"Thank you." Rin responded with a giggle. "But I honestly can't wait to get this dress off."

"Come with me, then. I'll give you a change of clothes." She said as she led her inside.

Rin said hello to the others in passing as Kagome dragged her upstairs to her bedroom.

"So…what's going on with you two?" She asked as she rummaged through the closet.

"Huh? What two?"

Kagome turned to Rin with a knowing look on her face. "Seriously? You know what I'm talking about! Inuyasha told me everything."

Rin's face went white. "What exactly did he tell you?"

Earlier

"Your friend has feelings for Sesshomaru." He said in an irritated voice as he paced the room.

"Why is she only my friend when she does something that upsets you?"

"Because you need to talk her out of it!"

"Why?"

"Because he's dangerous! He doesn't have feelings! Especially towards humans! He's just using her to his advantage. She'll end up getting hurt."

Rin hung her head down. 'He knew my feelings anyway? Am I really that transparent?'

Kagome handed Rin a pair of shorts and a tank top. "Don't feel so down!" She said as she rubbed her back. "We argued about it for hours. The only way you would have feelings for him is if he showed feelings first, right?"

"Well—"

"Then again, you haven't been single for a long time and you've only been with one guy."
'She's really doubting me?'

"But it's alright!" Kagome said with a smile as she waved her hand. "You're a people person and a great judge of character. Who knows? Maybe you've really changed Sesshomaru's heart."

"Perhaps. I-it's just..." Rin sighed sadly.

Kagome looked at her worriedly, waiting for Rin to elaborate.

"I've been thinking about Kohaku. A-a lot. He sent me flowers recently and—"

"No! You have to let him go! He tried to kill you, remember?" Kagome emphasized as she shook her.

"Not in that way! I'm just so worried about him. He's not the Kohaku I used to know. Something is wrong with him."

"You found out who he really is, that's all. You just have to accept it, Rin. You can't fix everyone."

Rin slowly nodded. "That's true." She agreed as she stood. "Please help me unzip this dress."

Downstairs

"Inuyasha you need to leave the room. Father and I have some business to discuss."

"Tch. Like I don't know. I'm not goin' anywhere. I'm just as involved as you are."

"That's enough." InuNo intervened. "Now, Sesshomaru. Jaken mentioned that you spoke to Kagura earlier this evening. Did she happen to tell you anything about her younger sister?"

"We didn't have a friendly conversation. So no."

"About 5 years ago, a member of the Slayers sexually assaulted her sister, Kanna. She described him as a human with eyes like a demon."

"Oh great: From a serial killing, abusive rapist to just a serial killer. Well at least you're a step up, Sesshomaru. " Inuyasha said abrasively.

"What the hell are you talking about, Inuyasha?" Sesshomaru questioned in an agitated voice.

"Don't play dumb! You know Rin has feelings for you!"

"This is hardly relevant to the situation at hand!" InuNo shouted.

"It isrelevant!" Inuyasha argued. "He's gonna use Rin as bait to lure Kohaku in. Then he'll either kill her or just toss her to the side."

"How dare you accuse me of anything?" Sesshomaru snapped.

"Don't act like you've changed. Your plan from day 1 was to make her like you so you could use her in your little plot for revenge. You've been calculating this from the moment you met her! That's the kind of man you are!"

"Shut your mouth!"

"Don't tell me what to do!" Inuyasha barked as he stood. "I'm not 13 years old anymore. I'll kick your ass!"

"You honestly believe you can? Why don't we put your theory to the test?" Sesshomaru challenged him as he also stood.

"Both of you sit down!" Their father ordered. "This is childish!"

"No way, old man. If I let him walk all over Rin, it'll crush her."

"I'd expect a weak minded half breed like you to worry about humans that are hardly even his concern."

"I told you she is my concern."

"And I told youthere was no need to worry about her. So which of us is the one with the hearing problem?"

"What's your angle?! Pretending you've changedjust so you can what…kill more people?! You're putting on a hell of a show for Rin!"

"You're meddling in other people's business as usual. Learn your place." Sesshomaru told Inuyasha as he swung on him.

His fist made impact with Inuyasha's face, knocking him to the ground.

Inuyasha growled angrily as he forced himself onto his feet. He refused to let Sesshomaru make a fool out of him anymore.

He rushed over to the wall and picked up one of their father's swords.

"Inuyasha, stop this right now." His father warned as he stood up.

"Shut up!" He shouted as he rushed at his brother with the sword.

Sesshomaru caught the blade with his hand. "What do you intend to do? Kill me?"

"No. I'm not a killer like you." He reached into his pocket and pulled out a dagger "I'm gonna do to you what you did to me." and he drove it into Sesshomaru's side.

He dropped the sword and watched him bleed. He didn't feel guilty at all, knowing Sesshomaru would heal within the hour using sheer will. It pissed him off knowing he couldn't even leave a scratch on his brother, but because of his human blood, he'd have that scar forever.

The dagger Inuyasha used to inflict the wound was very jagged. Even though he was a powerful demon, the wound was still painful.

He picked up a vase off the table and threw it at Inuyasha.

Inuyasha dodged at the right moment.

At the top of the steps

The girls were on their way downstairs when they heard glass break.

"Are you fucking stupid?" Inuyasha shouted.

The two rushed down to see what all the commotion was.

"What happened?" Kagome shouted. She scanned the entire living room. To the left was Inuyasha, beside him was a broken vase, in front of her was a trail of blood leading to Sesshomaru who was holding his side.

"I can't believe the two of you fought like this!" She exclaimed as she stood in between them.

"Do not interfere!" Sesshomaru shouted at her.

Rin ran up to Sesshomaru with fear in her eyes. "Are you alright?!" She asked him as she held onto him. "Inuyasha you didn't have to stab him! That was extreme!"

"You're defending this bastard?!"

"No! Neither of you had to fight! What was so serious that you two had to fight about it?"

Neither of them wanted to repeat what was spoken about. They were both trying to protect her.

"I guess you're right." Inuyasha said in a small voice. "It wasn't worth fighting about." He said as he gave Sesshomaru a threatening glare before walking away with Kagome.

Rin continually examined Sesshomaru's injury.

"Why don't you retire to your old room for the evening?" His father suggested. "We can continue our discussion in the morning."

Sesshomaru was hesitant about staying in his father's home but he was willing to do it simply for the information he would be getting in the morning. "Fine. Follow me, Rin."

"Okay." She turned to his father and smiled. "Goodnight."

Upstairs

"What in the world were you doing down there, Inuyasha?! Stabbing him? Really?!" She fumed. "You are so reckless!"

" He punched me!" He said as he pulled the covers over his head.

"So you stabbedhim?!"

"To him that's like a punch. He'll be fine in the morning."

"But still. Why?!" She questioned.

"I don't like what he's doing to Rin. His little scheme."

"Scheme?"

"Yeah. Don't say anything but…Kohaku is behind this whole thing. He's the leader pulling all the strings behind the Slayers. I know Sesshomaru's gonna use her to get to Kohaku."

"What?! But why would—"

Kagome could hear Rin and Sesshomaru talking in the hallway. She peered through her slightly open door.

Rin was holding Sesshomaru up and helping him walk.

"I told you I can walk on my own."

"I know but I want to help."

"It's pointless."

"You started that fight didn't you?"

"...Perhaps."

"You promised me you wouldn't hit anyone else."

"I know. I apologize."

Kagome turned away from the door with a suspicious smile on her face.

"What are you all cheery about?" Inuyasha asked as she crawled into bed.

"Oh, nothing."

Sesshomaru's bedroom

"Shut the door."

Rin closed the bedroom door and he removed his shirt.

Rin gasped when she saw the severity of the wound. The maid had given her a first aid kit and she was set on helping with that injury.

"Let me help." She said as she began to open a bandage.

Sesshomaru slapped the bandage out of her hand. "No." He said gruffly as he plopped down on the bed.

Rin sighed and picked up the bandage off the floor. She knelt beside him and he gave her a confused glare.

"It's okay. I can help."

"I don't need you to help me." He said as he turned away from her.

Rin ignored him and placed a cloth on the wound to soak up the blood. "You're going to bleed all over the place."

He let out an irritated sigh as Rin continued to tend to his wound. As he glanced over at her, he noticed her shaky hands and slow movements.

"You're a doctor aren't you? Didn't you study skills like this in school?" He asked.

"Yes I did."

"Then why are you moving so slowly?"

"I'm trying to be gentle. I don't want to hurt you."

'Hurt me?' He didn't understand. Was she undermining him? "Do you really think you can hurt me?" He asked callously.

Rin looked up at him with a serious face. "Well, I don't want to find out." She said as she continued what she was doing.

He stared at her, watching as her determined, but worried face changed to a calm and relieved one.

"All finished." She said with a cheerful grin as she stood.

"Such a futile effort." He said under his breath as he ran his hand across the bandage. "Did you speak to Kagome about her doctor?"

"Yes. She said she's going to another obstetrician as soon as possible."

"Good."

There was a momentary pause in their conversation. "Why did you start that fight with Inuyasha?"

"Inuyasha is a bombastic and reckless child. He was feeling rather ornery tonight, perhaps because of my presence. I simply made the first move. "

"I guess he doesn't see how much you've changed."

"As much as you say it, I have not seen a single change within myself."

"Really? From the moment we met to now, you're certainly a different man! When I first decided to work on your case, I didn't think things would end up like this."

"Like what exactly?"

"Well, we've grown so close. Don't you agree?" She said with a smile. "For the first time in my career, everyone doubted me, but everything turned out better than I expected!"

"I don't recall ever doubting you."

Rin turned to him with an optimistic smile. "So did you always trust me?"

"Of course not." He replied bluntly. "But in the end, I knew you were going to continue to work with me regardless of the difficulties. For that, I am grateful."

"Thank you." She said happily. "But…I didn't really do anything. I-I just—"

Sesshomaru pulled her in by her waist, bringing her close to him.

"D-did my job."

He looked into her eyes. She felt that sensation again. His amber eyes were like waves, pulling her in and causing her to drown in an icy ocean. It was twice as inescapable, and thrice as seducing.

"Is that all you've done?"

Rin didn't like the way he was looking at her. It was confusing her. It made her question everything. 'What am I doing? Why am I here? How did I end up falling in love with the man that was supposed to be my patient? When? Was it the moment we met? The moment our eyes locked like this? Or was it when I trusted him with secrets I never told anyone else? Was the moment I became the patient, and he became the doctor, helping heal my wounds…easing my loneliness, taking away the pain…was it then?'

All the questions Rin asked caused her to fall deeper in love, and it was showing on her face. The way her eyelids drooped and a look of fascination displayed on her face, the way she flushed completely red just from him looking at her. She knew she had to escape this eye-lock somehow.

"A-are you... sure you're alright?" She asked, changing the subject. "Is it going to heal okay? I know you're a demon but just patching up a stab wound like a paper cut doesn't sit right with me. Do you need an aspirin? Do you want me to—"

"Why are you nervous?" He asked her.

"No, no! I just wanted to make sure you were—"

He lowered his head to her neck. "I can smell it in your scent. You're feeling uneasy."

Rin's eyes rolled into the back of her head. She began to realize what Inuyasha was talking about when he warned her that there were other ways Sesshomaru could get to her. It was so easy for him to make her flustered.

'But…if it was this easy, why did he wait so long to make me feel this way? If he was just using me, he had so many chances to do something like this. Aside from that, even when we're not close like this, I just like knowing he is by my side. I love him for that reason.'

Rin didn't know what to do. Her heart was conflicted. There were so many things wrong with her falling for him, but the one thing that concerned her most was her heart getting broken.

"What is troubling you?" He asked as he looked at her.

'Maybe I'm overanalyzing this.' Rin turned her head away to hide her sad face. "It's nothing."

Sesshomaru gently grasped her chin and turned her towards him. He placed his hand on her lower back and held her tightly. He trapped her in his clutch.

"There is no reason to be afraid."

"I'm more concerned than afraid. W-we really shouldn't…I—"

"You talk too much." He told her as he leaned in and planted a gentle kiss on her lips.

Rin's body nearly went numb. She was overwhelmed with the soft feeling of his lips, and he was overwhelmed with the wild range emotions she had. He could hear her heart thumping against her chest harder and harder and he could smell her blood becoming sweeter as her nerves tightened.

It was more satisfying than the scent of fear, or the look of horror in the eyes of his prey. Just one simple human girl's arrhythmic heartbeat was enough to please him.

He pulled Rin on top of him as they continued to exchange kisses. Her small tongue was darting against his as he sucked the peach lip balm off her lips. He laid down on the bed, her body pressed up against his chest, breasts spilling out of a shirt that was a size too small, legs bent, and inner thighs rubbing against his warm body.

Her skin was feverishly hot. It was true what they said: If you get too close to the sun, you'll get burned. But he liked this burning sensation. Her blazing rays finally broke through his ice. Sesshomaru was in pieces.

The lustful intentions in his kiss changed into slow, loving pecks on the lips as he ran his fingers through her hair.

Rin's slow gasps between each kiss told him she wanted something more—something she was never given before.

He wanted to do something dangerous. He wanted venture to a place no man had ever been—the sun's core.

Sesshomaru guided his hand down to unbutton Rin's shorts. Just as he was about to tackle the zipper, there was a knock on the door. Rin sprang off of him, smoothed down her hair and opened the door.

"Yes?"

"Master asked me to bring you two something to eat." The maid said as she placed a tray on the table.

"Ah, Thank you!"

The maid bowed and left.

Rin studied the tray intently, practically ignoring the fact that Sesshomaru was waiting for her so he could finish what he started.

"Uh…are you hungry?" She asked without making any eye contact.

He realized nothing would be happening tonight. Perhaps the moment was ruined, or maybe Rin still had doubts. "No."

"Well, you didn't take me out to dinner. You could at least eat with me." She persuaded with a smile.

Sesshomaru rolled his eyes. "Fine."

"Yay!" Rin brought the tray over to the bed and sat beside them as they ate together.

She rested her head on his shoulder and sighed. "I wish we were home. At least there's a TV in both our rooms."

"You're serious…"

"And we'd have more privacy. The maid scared me nearly to death!"

"Ah, so that's what it is."

She nodded with a small chuckle.

After they finished eating, she put the tray back on the table.

"I'm going to head to bed."

"You're leaving?"

"Yes. I don't think your father would like it if I stayed in here."

"Do as you please."

Rin skipped over to him and planted a gentle kiss on his cheek. "Thank you for tonight. I did have a wonderful evening." And she let herself out.

Sesshomaru could feel a distance between himself and Rin. She seemed like she was ashamed when she left.

It was a reasonable emotion in his eyes. After all, how could a human love a monster?