She shouldn't have been looking for him. Kagome knew this but, she couldn't help that her eyes always roved the landscape for signs of silver hair and akita ears. Inuyasha. Her next door neighbor. Her best friend. The man she secretly loved.
All she'd wanted to do was pick up Legally Blonde from the library, so she could spend the night vegging out and thinking about getting out of that small town.
But going to the library meant biking down Main Street. And Inuyasha worked at Myoga's Hardware Store on Main Street.
That was probably why she did it: because she wanted to see Inuyasha.
She hadn't wanted to see him though, leaning against the window of the little shop, with Yura, the head cheerleader, hanging all over him. Yura's hair was always perfectly styled, in a razor-straight bob. Kagome's was always unwieldy, with wild waves that made her look like she had bedhead within an hour of styling (that was probably why she kept it up in a messy bun most of the time.) Yura could poke people's eyes out with her cleavage, which she normally had on proud display in low-cut shirts. Kagome wouldn't tell people how often she stood in her room, naked in front of her mirror, and wished her boobs were larger. She filled out a sports bra, but would never make the men drool by bending over.
But what's more, Yura wasn't fair. She didn't have to go to work after school like Kagome did, because she had two parents. Okay, fine, Kagome actually really loved her job at the library, and Kaede let her study and do homework whenever things were slow, but… Kagome would never get a car for her birthday like Yura. And Yura could depend on her parents to pay for college. Kagome had studied her ass off to get the grades and the test scores she needed to get a scholarship. She wasn't going to Harvard, but the state school she was accepted to was well-respected, and gave her a scholarship that covered most of her tuition. (That Inuyasha was also a student there was… well… it had crossed her mind.)
And now, Yura was going to get the only thing that Kagome really let herself desire to have. She wanted so badly for her next door neighbor, friend, and pretend-adventurer-when-they-were-kids Inuyasha to see her the way she saw him. Romantically.
Her chocolate eyes met his golden ones, but before he could so much as wave, Kagome shifted the gears of her bike and started pumping the pedals as hard as she could. She wanted to race away from there, away from Inuyasha and Yura. The library was not far off, and the burn in her calves at the extra effort was boiling away the lead that settled in her heart with every reminder she got that Inuyasha was not interested.
She should have been happy with friendship. Inuyasha was a great friend. He teased her without making her feel stupid. He brought her chicken soup from his mom when she was under the weather. He'd always wait for her in the morning so they could walk to school together, talking about homework or sometimes fighting about who would win in a fight: a bear or a lion. (It was obviously a bear.)
Maybe part of the problem was that she didn't let herself think about how much she liked—loved?—him. Not until he was safely away at his first year of college, anyway. When his silver hair and triangular ears were gone, when his soulful amber eyes and fanged grin no longer greeted her in the morning, she understood just how much she wanted him there—wanted him. It shouldn't have taken her so long to realize it, but now that she had, it was all she could do to distract herself from thinking about it.
"Legally Blonde." Kaede greeted Kagome in front of the familiar brick building, and handed Kagome her DVD. "Get home, I don't like the way the sky is changing."
"Thanks Kaede." Kagome gave the elderly librarian a smile. Kagome then looked to the west, and her face grew dark. Storms were definitely coming. She needed to book it. "I'll get home in time."
"You better. I'm surprised your mama didn't drive you," Kaede called as Kagome hopped back onto her bike.
"She's off at an all-state soccer tournament with Souta," Kagome replied, then waved as she took off.
The green-gray sky was gaining on her, but she only had a mile to go, and she loved nothing more than to race the wind on that bike, pushing herself until her lungs burned. She'd jump in the shower, smear on a mud mask, and throw an entire Margherita pizza into the oven. Kagome loved her mom and her brother, but… there was something so nice about just sitting at home and relaxing in front of a good girlie movie. And there, feeling the wind whip through her hair, she could stop thinking about Inuyasha.
Kagome made it home just in time, throwing the bike into the hallway as the rain started pelting the roof of the little house she shared with her mother and brother. She sighed, relieved that she had not lied to Kaede. Biking while lightning crashed around her would not have been smart.
"Shower time," Kagome sighed to herself, throwing the video on the couch, and climbing up the stairs to the bathroom.
She let the warm water of the shower run down her body as if it were the rain, cleansing her of her jealousy, and soothing her dented heart. She feathered her fingers across her breasts, down over her navel, and finally to the curls between her legs, picturing silver hair and marble-cut abs. The Inuyasha in her fantasies threw her up against the wall and took ownership of her with his mouth, dragging his fangs across her skin.
"Inuyasha," she whispered, but her heart wasn't in it. Not right now. Not when Yura's breasts were all she could see. The breasts she would never have.
The water that dribbled down her body obscured the tears she let come to her eyes. No. All she had to do was tell him, and she didn't. Not when she first noticed how ripped his body was under his clothes. Not when she started dreaming about him pressing her into her mattress. Not when… he said goodbye the previous summer. So many moments, so many chances, and she just… let him go.
Well, that was not entirely true.
If he'd even once made her think he felt the same, she would have pressed forward.
She hoped.
She believed.
Would she have told him then?
Kagome turned off the water of the shower, and stepped out of the tub. When she looked in the mirror, she frowned. Her boobs would never be Yura's, and her stupid crying in the shower had left her eyes puffy. It was so stupid! Kagome knew that there were lots of "Mr. Rights" out there, and that she and Inuyasha would always be friends. Maybe she was PMSing, and that was why seeing him… so obviously with someone else had stung.
Or, maybe it was because she was a coward.
Either way, she was really glad she'd thought ahead and gotten herself a mud mask. Those puffy circles under her eyes would be gone, she could watch Legally Blonde, and she could veg like she so desperately wanted.
After slathering on the clay mask, Kagome dressed in a tank top, some terry cloth pajama pants, and her fluffy bunny slippers, then tramped downstairs. During her shower, the storm had intensified. The wind was howling through the trees, the thunder and lighting seemed in a nearly continuous duet of light and sound, and the plinking on the roof sounded like they were now getting hail. Even in the violence it was exacting on the landscape, it left Kagome with a sense of peace.
Kagome loved thunderstorms. She loved how they smelled, she loved how they looked, and she even loved the hint of danger they posed. It was like Mother Nature was singing a beautiful song to the Earth, and Kagome was privileged enough to get to listen. Nothing compared to a night snuggled on the couch, tea and pizza in hand, with a storm howling in the background. As long as the power stayed on, Kagome would experience as near to her perfect night as existed. Well, as perfect as a night could be that didn't involve Inuyasha.
That was the plan, anyway.
The moment she'd peeled the packaging off the Margherita pizza, the wail of tornado sirens pierced her ears.
Fuck.
Kagome knew she was supposed to move, knew she needed to go down into her basement, but… she couldn't. For some reason, even as she adored storms, tornadoes terrified her. They were the spectres of her nightmares, stalking her and chasing safety away. She couldn't count the number of times she'd awakened to her own gasps for air, so sure that this time, it was real, that this time, she'd not made it to safety.
It had always been a dream, but those nightmares leeched their way into her waking thoughts. So on the rare occasions that tornado sirens sounded, Kagome needed her Mom to hold her. To wrap her in a blanket and stroke her hair as they sat in the basement, listening to the weather radio. But Mama and Souta were gone. Kagome was alone.
No one was there to tell her it was okay. No one was there to take her hand and lead her down into the basement, to safety. No one was there to wrap her in a blanket and stroke her hair.
WHOMP WHOMP WHOMP
The sound of someone banging on her door broke Kagome from her stupor just long enough for her to surface from her panic. Kagome didn't let herself think; she just reacted, running as fast as she could. As her hand hit the door handle, she paused. Was this an entirely different nightmare? One that they played about teens never opening the door to strangers? But there was a fucking tornado somewhere and someone needed to come into her house. And she was way more afraid of the tornado than whoever it was pounding on her door. Decision made, she threw the door open.
Golden eyes stared back at her, as wide as she'd ever seen them. His ears drooped so low they were nearly hidden in his silver hair and both the red t-shirt he wore and his jeans were several shades darker from the rain. Kagome's breath caught as she stared into the face of the one person, the only person, she wanted to see in that moment.
"I-Inuyasha?" Kagome was surprised the words even made it out of her mouth, even as a whimper.
"We… we should get inside." Inuyasha put his arm around Kagome's shoulder, then closed the door to the deluge outside.
It took Kagome a moment for her brain to kick back in. There was a tornado… and there was… Inuyasha?
Basement.
That's where people went when there were tornadoes.
The weather radio seemed to read Kagome's thoughts, picking that precise moment to blare. Without saying a word, the two rushed to the basement door, descending the stairs just as a blinding flash of lightning and deafening boom of thunder caused the power to flicker off. Kagome stiffened at the sudden loss of light.
"S'Ok, Kagome, I got ya." His voice was tender, and Kagome felt his arms more firmly around her shoulders.
"Wh-why… what are you?" Kagome stuttered, as she let Inuyasha finish guiding her down the stairs.
"You got any candles?" Inuyasha walked Kagome over to the couch in the little rec room in the basement, which was usually used by Souta as an extension of his bedroom. Luckily, it was clean.
"Um. In the closet next to the laundry room," Kagome answered, letting Inuyasha's hands guide her waist onto the leather cushion.
A rustle of fabric was followed by slight clanking of closet doors, but soon the basement was bathed in the soft glow of candles, and Inuyasha settled down on the floor across from her. The sirens blared, and the radio crowed, but Kagome felt quiet in the moment, safe. Because Inuyasha was there.
Wait.
"Inuyasha… how… how did you know?" Kagome asked, finding her voice.
"Well… I… I know how much ya hate tornadoes… and… I remembered that Mama and Souta were outta town this weekend…" Kagome couldn't quite make out Inuyasha's face in the candlelight, but his eyes were squarely focused on the basement floor.
"So… you ran? Through the rain?" Kagome's shock had finally worn off, so had her fear.
"Keh." Kagome was certain she'd imagined it, but it looked like Inuyasha cheeks glowed the slightest pink at her question. "Last thing I need is your Mama and Souta on my case for leavin' you alone during a tornado."
"Didn't Yura need someone to look after her?" Kagome asked, unable to keep the bitterness from seeping into her words.
"Yura?" Inuyasha's ears turned toward her, "What the fuck does Yura have to do with anything?"
"Nothing." Kagome folded her arms. It was stupid. She was stupid. She wasn't even sure why she'd brought it up.
"Higurashi, whatever that was, it wasn't nothing," Inuyasha intoned, his eyes coming back to meet Kagome's, fire flecked in the gold.
The way Inuyasha was looking at her, pleading with his eyes for her to tell him all that was in her heart, unsettled her.
"It's fine." Kagome really really didn't want to spill her guts. Not in the basement waiting to find out if a tornado was about to crash into them, not… not ever. Not when it took her years to realize what she felt, not when it felt like she was tearing open her own heart to even think about it.
"It's not fine, Kagome. Why did ya bring up…" Inuyasha started, but he stopped before he finished what he was saying. Something in his eyes had changed, something deep, as if he had realized something profoundly important. He took a few deep breaths, then slowly, deliberately, edged closer to her, never breaking their eye contact.
The air between them was thick enough that it seemed to muffle all other sounds, leaving only them, staring at one another. The tension was… exquisite and tortuous all at once. Kagome had to do something.
"You're still drenched," Kagome deflected, but, well… it was the truth.
Inuyasha barked out a laugh far more exuberant than her comment should have elicited, then looked down at his waterlogged clothing.
"I suppose I am," the candles highlighted the pearlescent glow of his fangs as he grinned. "What do ya think I should do about it Ka-go-me?"
Kagome gulped. She knew what she wanted Inuyasha to do about his wet clothing, and visions of him sitting—no, lying—shirtless and pressed against her danced through her mind. Unfortunately, Inuyasha's grin grew wider the same moment Kagome felt her cheeks heat up. She'd gotten used to Inuyasha's nose reading her moods, her distraction, her arousal...
Wait.
That didn't make sense. The purr in his voice as he said her name didn't make sense. The cheshire smile that grew wider when he sensed she was fantasizing about him didn't make sense either.
Inuyasha stood up, never breaking their eye contact. Kagome involuntarily licked her lips as Inuyasha placed his hand on his shirt, then peeled it off of his body, leaving his bare, glistening chest on display. Kagome would never understand how he could look both sculpted from marble, and irresistibly soft.
"If ya keep lookin' at me like that, I'm gonna get the wrong idea," Inuyasha teased. "Unless… I'm… not gettin' the wrong idea?"
Kagome's face was bright red. Her brain was short-circuiting. There was no way that he was suggesting what she thought he was, right? Right? But his face was leaning closer, and even in the dark there was no doubt about the way that he was looking at her.
"T...t...towels," Kagome whimpered.
"Kagome…" Inuyasha leaned forward, his eyes burning into hers. "I… I don't want to dance around this anymore."
"Dance around what?" Kagome exclaimed, but… she knew what he was trying to say. It just hadn't occurred to her that her unrequited feelings weren't so… unrequited.
"I swear Higurashi, I'm gonna take off my pants in like half a second if you keep playin' coy!" Inuyasha warned, and Kagome heard Inuyasha unbuckling his belt.
Coy? What the hell was Inuyasha talking about, coy? Kagome had not so much as had a man look at her long enough for her to play coy. Especially not the man she wanted to look at her like that. Because she'd never played coy with Inuyasha. It was… infuriating! Inuyasha wouldn't tease her, wouldn't flirt with her as a joke. But… that must mean...
No. Inuyasha flirting with her was not happening. Love stories were for other girls, bustier girls, girls who had time and money to land boyfriends as hot as Inuyasha. It was so un-fucking-fair, dangling this in front of her. Everything she'd dreamt of. She wanted to punch him! She wanted to kiss him. She needed to…
She needed to tell him.
"Goddammit Inuyasha!" Kagome shouted. "What the hell do you want me to say? That… that last year was the hardest year in my life because I didn't see you every day? That I'm so angry that you went off to college and left me behind? That… that I just… I… knew that you never… saw me like that?"
"I… I always saw you... Kagome," Inuyasha interrupted, his voice laced with emotion. "Fuck. I… I never thought you saw me like that. Last year sucked. Sure, college is awesome. But… I didn't get to give you shit on the way to school. I didn't get to come over and crash on your couch and play video games with Souta. It… it was like something was missing. And you were… well… I came back and there you were again and…"
"But… you've been home for a month Inuyasha." Kagome could feel tears coming to her eyes. "I've seen you, what, three times?"
"I… was avoiding…" Inuyasha's head slumped down, and Kagome realized the absurdity of the moment.
Inuyasha was half-naked, still sopping wet, with his pants undone. He looked like he was modeling underwear, his long hair draping down his back and his chest and abs contoured and highlighted by the candlelight. But it was his drooping ears that really set it off: Inuyasha, god amongst mortals, with drooping ears, had to be the hottest and most adorable thing Kagome had ever seen.
She wanted to laugh, to cry. He was the best friend that she loved so dearly, and the man who made nightly appearances in her dreams, and he wanted her. Not Yura. Not anyone else.
"Inuyasha Taisho. You're telling me… that you've been avoiding me this summer?" Kagome put her hands on her hips, but her heart was not in the scold, it was too full of joy. "And you're telling me… that all this time… you've been hiding a crush on me?"
"Keh." Inuyasha's eyes rushed up to meet Kagome's, the smile in them counteracting the scoff. "You're one to talk! You had a crush on me too and never said anything!"
When had Inuyasha moved so close to her that she could feel his warm breath tickle her skin? Had his lips always looked so supple? Had his eyes always beckoned her to lean closer to him and taste him like she'd been dreaming about? In that moment, in the glow of the candlelight, Kagome started to let herself picture it, kissing him, and the way that his eyes danced with desire, she was pretty sure Inuyasha was thinking the same thing. Then, in that delectable moment a breath away from a kiss, the power decided to click back on, and the tornado sirens halted their wailing.
The room came back into stark relief, but it didn't matter. Inuyasha looked thoughtfully into her eyes, and Kagome could swear he flexed the muscles of his bare chest (not that she was complaining). She could feel the flutters in her chest looking at him, wanting to reach out and touch those chiseled muscles and sinfully smooth skin. That Inuyasha's own eyes contained a predatory edge was doing nothing to settle her burning blood.
"Looks like I can put my clothes in your dryer now Ka-go-me." Inuyasha's grin reappeared, now lit up by the floor lamp that had flickered to life. He finished unzipping his drenched jeans, removing them in one graceful flick. He paused for a moment, letting his eyes drink in Kagome, winked, then walked into the laundry room, wearing nothing but black boxer briefs.
Kagome was pretty sure she'd never wanted anything more in her life. It made her growl. How dare he come into her house when she desperately needed someone to calm her? How dare he confess that he liked her the way she liked him? How dare he… take off all of his clothes that were drenched because he'd bolted to her house to make sure she was safe?
Alright, okay. Those were thin reasons to be pissed at him. But goddammit she wanted so badly to be mad at him! He'd confessed his feelings and he'd made her confess her feelings.
There were no roadblocks...
The sound of the dryer being turned on jolted Kagome back to the present. Back to the fact that a very nearly naked very hot half-demon she was in love with was wandering around her house. The one she was alone in. With him.
"Hey Kagome! Uh. Do you maybe have a robe or something I can borrow?" Inuyasha called from the laundry room.
"Yeah. Up in my room, in my closet," Kagome called back, only the slightest bit disappointed that she would not get to continue to ogle him, "Hope you don't mind pink!"
Inuyasha called his thanks then loped up the stairs and out of the basement. Now that the coast was clear and the sirens no longer warned of tornadoes, Kagome followed him up, leaving the lamps on in case the storm decided it needed to have an encore performance of swirling terror and death.
Kagome wandered into the kitchen and saw the frozen pizza still sitting on the counter. It couldn't have been there more than a half hour, still perfectly okay to eat. Kagome's stomach rumbled audibly as she looked down at the dinner she hadn't yet made; adrenaline was one hell of an appetite magnifier.
"Um, Kagome?" a raspy voice came from the doorway into the kitchen. "You… didn't tell me your robe was gonna be so… short."
Kagome turned around and choked, then burst out laughing before she could swallow it down Her pink fleece robe, which was a little short on her, was scandalous on Inuyasha, running so high that the bottom of his black boxer briefs peeked out below the hem.
"I look ridiculous," Inuyasha confirmed.
"I mean, don't go wandering around Main Street like that, but…" Kagome chuckled, then trailed her eyes down to take in Inuyasha's perfectly chiseled legs. "You don't look half bad."
"Can I ask you a question?" Inuyasha strode to Kagome, standing so close she swore she could feel the head radiating off of his body.
"Of course," Kagome answered, her heart fluttering at their sudden closeness.
Inuyasha let his hand brush Kagome's face, and he leaned closer, closer, closer to her. The question he was asking was in his eyes, waiting, hoping: can I kiss you?
Kagome tilted her head to meet his, her way of telling him 'yes!'.
The distance between them closed, and when Inuyasha's lips touched Kagome's, the world fell away. His lips were soft and pliant, and moved in congress with her own. His hand came around the back of her head, claws playing with her hair. Kagome opened her mouth slightly and was met with Inuyasha's enthusiastic tongue. She moved her tongue to meet his, and they deepened their kiss, both seemingly in disbelief and simultaneously overjoyed that it had finally happened. She then traced his fangs, smiling into his mouth. It was everything she'd ever dreamed of, everything she'd ever fantasized about, but so much more, because this Inuyasha was real. Kagome brought her hands up to caress his ears, something she'd always been so desperate to do. They were downy soft, with fluffy silken fur that gave a little when her fingers touched it, triangular treasures atop Inuyasha's head.
"Unnnhhhhhhh." Inuyasha broke the kiss the moment her hands made contact. "I… I can't be held responsible for what comes next if you keep strokin' my ears, Higurashi."
Kagome let out a rapturous laugh, wrapping her arms around her best friend. It was unreal and yet so real. His body was so solid against hers, his eyes so vibrant, his nose...
"What… what's that on your nose?" Kagome saw a dusting of something rust-colored on Inuyasha's face, but as soon as she said it, her face went pale. "Oh… oh no."
The face mask. Her face had been covered in clay through everything. She'd confessed her love for Inuyasha, they'd had their first kiss, and she looked like a goddamn golem. Inuyasha's laughter was even more uncontrollable than her own.
"Go… wash your face Pigpen." Inuyasha kissed her forehead, leading Kagome to grimace. "Your Mama always had all the fixins of spaghetti lyin' around this place. I'll get dinner started."
"Y-you're staying?" Kagome asked, hoping she sounded hopeful rather than incredulous.
"You're holdin' my clothes hostage, and I ain't even goin' next door wearin' nothin' but this." Inuyasha wiggled his ass enough to make Kagome's robe billow around him. "And… well… seein' as… well… all that stuff we said… I kinda… wanted to… And… there are gonna be thunderstorms all night. I don't wanna have to sprint through the rain if there's another tornado. You… you need someone here to take care of ya..."
"You… you really mean it?" Kagome tried to stifle the tears that wanted to fall from her eyes.
"'Course I do. I ran through a fucking hailstorm to get to ya, Kagome." Inuyasha took Kagome's hand. "I'm not goin' anywhere. Not when… well… when I know that the thing I want so much is something you want too."
Kagome smiled up at him. This man. The one she dreamed about and fantasized about. The one who was always there when she needed him. Her best friend. Her next-door neighbor. The man she missed so much her soul ached when he'd left for college without her.
"I'll be back," Kagome finally said, running up the stairs to rinse the mask off.
It had not taken long for the rust colored "skin rejuvenator" to come off her face, but she was not sure she'd ever live down the embarrassment. And yet, as she looked in the mirror, she smiled. Inuyasha had come for her. Because he knew that tornadoes terrified her. He'd come for her because he knew she was alone. And he'd not even batted an eye when she came to the door looking like she face-planted in a mud pie.
It didn't help matters that he looked better in her robe than she did. Kagome returned to the kitchen to the sound and smells of garlic and onions sizzling in a pan. Inuyasha had pulled his hair back, and was hunched over the stove.
"Need any help?" Kagome walked up behind him, then roped her arms around his torso. She'd wanted to do it for so long, that when she knew it would be welcomed, she couldn't help herself.
"Just… keep touchin' me," Inuyasha answered, and she could feel the brightness of his smile even through the back of his head.
"As much as you want, for as long as you want," Kagome whispered, leaning her entire body into Inuyasha's back. "But only if you tell Yura to fuck right off."
"You got a deal Higurashi," Inuyasha chuckled. "Besides. I like a woman who isn't tryin' to poke my eyes out with her tits."
Kagome laughed, letting go and joining him in preparing the spaghetti. It was more playful than it had been in years, because finally, they'd stopped keeping the most important secret from each other. Wanting more was in the air between them, and it danced around them, filling them with joy.
They talked about Kagome's graduation, about their jobs, about bike rides together to watch the sunrise and about nights they would be snuggled together to watch movies. They talked about university, and futures, and laughed when Inuyasha called Kagome his "girlfriend", then mumbled and grumbled as his face turned maroon.
Who were they kidding? They were a couple from the moment that they kissed.
The two then migrated from the kitchen into the living room, Legally Blonde proudly displayed on the television, though neither of them really paid attention between jubilant kisses. Kagome leaned against Inuyasha, who curled his arms around her, still in nothing but his underwear and her robe. It was the happiest Kagome had been in a really long time.
"Yash?" Kagome asked, ignoring Elle Woods's bubbly banter. "This is real. Right?"
"Fuck yes it is," he answered, wrapping his arms even more tightly around her, and pressing a kiss to the back of her neck. "Now. Tomorrow. The next day. It's fucking real, Kagome."
Kagome smiled, breathing in the scent of Inuyasha, and swore that she could smell his happiness.
It smelled like the calm after a fresh rain.