A/N: Sorry for the delay, I was swamped with homework, I'll update tomorrow or later today to make up for it!
Chapter 5: explaining matters
Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha
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Rin pulled her key from the ignition and opened the car door. "It won't be stolen will it?" She joked with a wide smile on her face. She looked around as Kagome turned forward to lead her to the building up ahead. She seemed very fascinated in everything she saw. "So how long have you lived in the city?" She asked, Kagome pulled open the door that led to her part of the complex. "They don't lock it?" Rin asked alarmed; she meant the glass door that led to a series of doors and stairs. Kagome didn't say anything she just walked up the few steps ahead while Rin asked more questions. She didn't seem to mind that Kagome didn't answer her questions; she was satisfied with just asking them.
She continued to ask more questions as Kagome got to her apartment. She walked to the door in the middle and picked up the shabby 'Welcome's' mat that sat below it. "You leave your key under a welcome mat?" Rin asked. "I thought that was only in movies." She continued shallowly and Kagome nodded while pushing the key into the indigo door's bronze door knob. She turned it slowly while deciding she'd humor Rin. She was a bit exhausted but she didn't want her thinking she was rude.
"I lose my key all the time." She lied "I know it's dangerous." Rin smiled while shaking her head in disagreement.
"No I think it's cool." She said and Kagome smiled slightly as she pulled the key out and opened the door. Rin's excited grin got wider as she looked around the apartment. "It's so adorable." She commented, taking it on in. It was so clean and organized, everything had a place and was in its place. Kagome set her binder on the small shelf near the door. She did the same with her jacket and placed it on one of the hooks that attached to the shelf. "It doesn't look like you ever lose anything." Rin mumbled, looking around the small studio apartment.
"Yeah I'm a bit OCD…" Kagome admitted as she walked forward into the living area. There was a large sofa sitting across from a TV and a coffee table, and behind that was a small kitchen nook. Rin could see the whole apartment from the front door, the only other door in the whole place led to the bathroom and a closet space off to the right of the couch. "I don't really lose my key; it's just that I have a problem not having a place to actually put the key. If it's under the mat than there's a place for it." Rin raised her eyebrow as Kagome remembered something. "Oh excuse me…I forgot to get my mail. I'll be right back make yourself at home." She said shyly as she walked past her and out the open door.
Rin stared around the room; beside the TV was a desk with a closed laptop on it. She was wondering where her bed was? The walls were a very bright clean white and so was the carpet. The kitchen nook had tan tiles, and all of the furniture looked extremely clean, almost as if she was to touch anything she'd sully it. The only thing that was a bit out of order was a small stack of mail that sat on the kitchen counter. She instantly gravitated towards it. It was the only thing that wasn't completely perfect in the whole apartment. She looked down reading the name on the hand written envelope. It said to: Kaggy…It was already opened. She knew she shouldn't read it, but she couldn't help it.
"Hey Kags, it's Kikyo, you got my invitation right? I'm getting married! Yeah I know it's really short notice and I've only been dating him for a few months, but mom and grandpa love him, and he's really hot! Well I'm writing you because I'm starting to think you're avoiding us? You did get my invitations right….weren't they cute. I know a beach themed wedding was your dream but since I'm getting married first you won't mind if I just steal it, besides I'm sure you'll have plenty of time to think of a new theme..."
Rin rolled her eyes opting not to read the rest.
"What a bitch." She mumbled to herself. The letter was dated for a few months back. She picked up another letter reading it as well. She scrunched up her face at the obvious superior tone of the girl who wrote it. She learned soon after that it was her sister. She read a couple more from her mother and grandpa. They were all about Kagome avoiding them and how proud they were of her older sister, but there wasn't one that said they were proud of Kagome. "Kikyo…" Rin mumbled…"I hate her already…." She leaned forward to grab another letter when Kagome came back. She had a package in her hand and a bundle of mail. Rin quickly dropped the letter in her hand and backed up towards the sink.
"There was a line. Can you believe that at this time…?" She mumbled halfway to herself while dropping the package on the counter. Rin stared at her as she looked through some of the mail. She organized the stack of envelopes from personal and bills. She stared at offers for awhile before putting them over in the personal section. Rin stared at her for awhile as she rose up and placed the spam into a waste basket and grabbed hold of her bills. She opened a drawer and placed them in an orderly way into a separator. She closed the drawer and looked up at Rin. "Sorry about that." She said and Rin just nodded.
She didn't touch the package though; she sort of pushed it towards the small stack of envelopes off to the side. Rin stared at her as she opened up the fridge. "Do you want to stay for dinner? I'm making pasta." She asked. Rin nodded. At that Kagome quickly dipped her head back into the fridge. None of them said anything for a second until Rin decided to look at the box, she read the words to Kaggy, and she already knew who it was.
"So your sister" she said…. "She's a total bitch no offence." Kagome tensed up slightly before taking out the small container of butter. She didn't reply to anything, she just continued on her tasks as if nothing happened. "Sorry I skimmed through some of your mail. Does she know how sacred a wedding theme is?"She asked but when she took in Kagome's face, she decided to soften the blow. "I want a spring wedding myself." She said trying to seem nicer after reading someone's personal mail. Kagome was taken off guard but not really as upset as Rin thought she would be. "I'm sorry…I just…"
"It's okay…" Kagome mumbled while opening up her pantry. It wasn't actually okay, but she didn't get angry often. She blamed herself more; she shouldn't have left the letters somewhere people could openly read them. She was sort of wondering why Rin was here, she didn't ask it though, she just continued getting the needed ingredients to make pasta.
"If you want me to go I totally get it. I just didn't want you thinking badly of me because of yesterday, but I see that I've made it worse." She said and Kagome turned around facing her.
"No you didn't….it's okay. Those letters don't have a place. I need to make one or throw them away. They should actually be in the trash." She muttered. Rin stared at her as she fished for a pot; she pulled one out and a strainer.
"I shouldn't have been so nosey…" Kagome shrugged and Rin narrowed her eyes. What was with her, why wasn't she upset, why was she putting up with this? It gave Rin a whole new persepctive. She stared at her with complete interest for awhile before leaning forward and narrowing her eyes. "You know..." Rin started wanting to test how far she could go "Your parents aren't the best either." She added in. "They're proud of your sister for getting married...sounds chauvinistic."
"Well…" Kagome started while thinking of how to reply. "It's only my mom and grandpa now, and they're both very old fashion. When my sister's around them, she pretends to be too."
Rin rolled her eyes while crossing her arms. "She sounds like a kiss ass…Is she marrying this guy for your mom or herself." She mumbled, it was just a passing thought, but Kagome picked up on it.
"Suikotsu…" She said as she let the comment sink in. "You know, I don't really know, my mom likes him and that's really all that's ever mattered." She admitted and Rin thought that over.
"Wow…really?" Kagome nodded while taking out a board to begin chopping. Rin watched the chopping of the tomatoes for awhile. "You seem like a parent's dream." She commented and Kagome hesitated mid slice. Rin noticed it was a sensitive spot so she switched her view towards the huge package. She didn't think twice before lifting it from its place. "So what's this?"
Kagome turn to look her way as she set the box back down and began opening it. She cleaned her hands off on a dish towel. "I think it's the dress." She said slightly, Rin moved the sorted packaging peanuts to glance down at the turquoise and tan disaster below her. All she could do was open her mouth in a dramatic telling of how horrendous she thought it was. "The bride's maid dress." Kagome rephrased while Rin pulled the dress out; it had shells dangling from the bottom of it. There were two parts connected by a sheer type of fabric at the waist. It bore bare parts of the abdomen.
"If you want to call this a dress?" Rin said, staring down at it. Kagome scrunched up her face. She knew this was probably the only exact design of the dress. It was just like Kikyo to make her wear something obscene while having everyone wear a more subtle version of it.
She looked up at Rin's shocked face. "Yeah and I bet that's the worse of them."
"What do you mean?" Rin asked as she saw the confused yet shock look on her face. She wasn't used to talking bad about her sister and family with anyone but Sango, but with Rin standing there with the horrendous bridesmaid dress, it was a little hard not to indulge in it.
"I just know my dress is going to be worse than everyone else's." She mumbled as she went back to her cutting board. She halted for a moment wanting to continue when Rin dropped the dress back in the box and just stared her way.
"So what are you going to do?" She asked and Kagome looked up mid chop to stare at her. "She's not married to this guy yet right?" She asked. She didn't wait for an answer. When's the wedding?"
"She moved it to March."
"Well that's right after Inuyasha's business trip… are you going? She asked and Kagome glanced up not knowing exactly. She was going to answer when Rin lodged another question at her. "So, Is this wedding at a beach…?"
"No, I don't think so…I think their honeymoon is? I'm sure her fiancé could afford a whole wedding on a beach if he wanted too, it was Kikyo's dream to marry rich." She mumbled to herself. "She's getting it of course."
"Okay so it's just a theme wedding." Rin said nonchalantly. Her stomach was sort of flipping with disgust. She didn't know this Kikyo girl but she already didn't like her. "So are you going, if your going what are you going to do?"
"What do you mean?"
"I mean, you're not just planning on going home are you." Kagome shrugged. She still didn't know what Rin was getting at but she didn't comment on it. She instead reflexively put a hand up to fix her perfect bun and began shifting the chopped vegetables back into a bowl. "You're going to let your sister get her way…" Rin said flatly. It didn't take long for Kagome to understand exactly what she meant. She hated the idea of going home; sometimes she liked to daydream that she could live up to her mom and grandpa's expectations. That she'd shock everyone as soon as she walked through the door. That obviously wasn't going to happen, but she liked to think with the aid of the promotion she could get her mom to be a bit proud.
"Well I'm getting a big promotion after the trip…."
"A promotion" Rin said as if that wasn't acceptable. "You can't wow people with a promotion Kagome." She added in as if that was obvious. "Job's only wow people during conversations, and when you have wealth backing it up…" She tugged at her stylish sweater before propping herself in one of the stools. "Besides your only 23 and you work at Takashi corporations, if your mom isn't proud of you now than I don't think she'll ever be."
"She's not all that bad." Kagome said on her mother's defense. "She just likes to let superficial things like appearances outweigh the important things. Ever since we were little she always wanted us to wear dresses and bows, grow up and marry some rich guy. She just wanted to ensure we get the best." Rin didn't say anything as Kagome began preparing the food.
Rin stared at her as ideas erupted in her head. She didn't voice them, she decided for the time being to just change the subject. She looked around the kitchen letting her eyes roam and stop at the hideous bride's maid dress. She leaned up against the counter and placed the dress back into the box. On the front flap of the box in huge letters it read: 'I HOPE YOU LIKE IT! I HAD TO GUESS THE SIZE; I HOPE YOU DIDN'T GET FAT!' Rin narrowed her eyes for a moment.
"Did you read this?" Rin asked pointing towards the flap. Kagome looked over at her, noticing the huge letters. She narrowed her eyes; the words were big enough to read without her glasses. "Your sister is such a bitch…"
"Yeah…that's Kikyo for you."
"Okay, that's it…I was going to wait awhile, but I have an idea." She said and Kagome shifted her sight away from the box to Rin. She didn't like the sound of her voice or the fact that she was brewing up a plan.
"That's quite an initiative." Kagome commented," she said it sarcastically, but Rin didn't pick up on it.
"Yup… it sure is…
"Can I hear about it?" She asked and Rin thought about the question before realizing that she didn't know the full extent of her actual plan.
"No… not yet… I'm not completely sure what the idea is." She said and Kagome nodded as she went back to cooking. "But it's going to be good. I'm going to help you out."
"You know you don't have to do that." She said while placing the pasta into the boiling water. "I'm just going to go to the wedding and come out. It won't be that bad."
Rin stared at her for a second. "Don't you want to prove everyone in that dinky town wrong?" She asked, as Kagome lifted up the bowl slightly. "Don't you want to make her swallow everything she said, actually you know what…I sort of know how you feel. I always visit home the same time Sesshomaru does, and he still doesn't know I exist. I would love to go back home and have him actually notice…you know."
"No I don't." Kagome lied. She knew exactly what Rin meant. She felt that way all the time. She had just been thinking about that exactly. She didn't want to entertain the idea though; it would just bring her hopes crashing down. What could Rin do to ensure that she made the impact on her family that she always dreamed of?
"Sure you do. It's the least I can do, after being so rude to you earlier."
"You don't have to do the least of anything. It's alright."
Rin just stared not fully believing her. There was no way Kagome was telling the truth. Rin had a feeling that Kagome had a habit of letting people walk all over her, that was going to change if Rin had anything to do with it. "Well I'm not taking no for an answer, you have to stick up for yourself. Besides I think we could be friends." She said and Kagome threw a fake smile her way as she seasoned the food. Rin didn't comment she just stared letting new ideas erupt in her head. "So what do you say?"
She didn't reply back, she seasoned the food for a while before placing the top on the pot. "To be honest." She said while B-lining for the fridge. "I find the whole thing a bit trivial and implausible." Rin stared at her not knowing what that meant. She watched as she opened the fridge and took out a container of something.
"What do you mean?"
"I mean, I don't think so, but thanks for your concern…and I do think we could be friends." Rin didn't say anything, she just stared.
It wasn't until Kagome was ready to place the meat into the pot did she form a well-organized sentence that she decided was polite enough. "What part of I'm not taking no for an answer don't you understand?" She asked and Kagome decided to just ignore the notion.
"I hope you like pasta? My mom has this amazing recipe for the meat sauce, I think you're going to really like it." Kagome commented hoping to direct the conversation away from her personal life.
"I'm sure I will, but did you hear what I said?" Rin asked and Kagome sighed as she turned towards the pot. "I think if you let me help you we can bond quicker."
"We're bonding right now."
"Are we? Rin asked as she threw an eyebrow up. Kagome didn't say anything else. "I just can't shake the feeling that you don't really like me."
At the moment she was facing the stove but she rolled her eyes as she pushed the wooden spoon into the pot. She didn't understand why all of the sudden it was so important for Rin to bond with her. Especially since recently she hated her guts. The idea that Rin and her could be friends left an uneasy feeling in the center of her stomach. She was so pushy, she didn't take 'no' for an answer. It seemed more like a hassle than anything else.
"What would give you that idea?" Kagome asked, she said it under her breath, but it came out positively so Rin didn't suspect anything.
"Yeah, maybe I'm being overdramatic, I'm sure you don't dislike anyone." Rin said and Kagome sighed silently as she continued tending to the food. As she did there was a slight pause between the conversation, and Rin was about to fill in the silence when her ring tone cut through the air. "Sorry about that, hold on."
She turned slightly to the right. "Hello…okay wait, what happened." Kagome listened only slightly to the conversation before ignoring the rest. She was actually happy to have a break from her pressuring attitude. Though the small moment of quietness did give her a second to think over Rin's absurd idea, she wasn't really thinking of giving it a chance, but she did find it amazing that Rin pin pointed exactly how she was feeling.
"Inuyasha…seriously…." Rin said with shock highlighting her voice. Kagome turned quickly around as she watched Rin's eyes pop. "I'm at Kagome's house." She said and Kagome's attention was fully peaked. She didn't understand why Rin talking with her boss had her so on edge, but it did. "Kagome, the girl you hired to go on the trip with us, you should really learn her name." She rolled her eyes as his voice heightened. Kagome could hear his tone on the other line, but she really couldn't make out what he was saying. "No, I ran into her…at the mall" she lied and telling by her slightly flushed face, Inuyasha wasn't buying it. "…okay whatever; you need my help so lower your voice… I'm coming" She hung up the phone and set it on the counter.
Kagome quickly turned around to pretend to stir the pasta. "Thanks for having me over Kagome," Rin said as she rose from her spot. "But I have to go."
She turned back around at that, "Really," she said with false regret lining her voice. "Why?"
Rin was too busy feeling her pockets for her car keys to detect the huge height in interest Kagome was showing at the moment. "Uh… it's nothing, just the usual when it comes to Inuyasha." She mumbled as she found the keys in her jacket pocket. She glanced up slightly and she spotted Kagome's expression, she realized instantly that she probably had no idea what the norm was. "It's Inuyasha and girlfriend problems, he has no trouble getting them, he just has a problem with getting rid of them." She smiled reassuringly and she didn't know what it was about Kagome's interested expression that made her want to reveal more, but she liked that there was something she knew that Kagome didn't.
It was the first time during the night that she didn't seem completely neutral or apathetic. "Um… see Inuyasha doesn't really break up with girls, I mean some time he does when there stalking him, but for the most part he just sort of stops talking to them and moves on to the next one. So you can imagine how many girls still think their dating him." Rin smiled slightly. "One of his ex girlfriends stabbed his tires, he has no transportation, and he's really pissed." Kagome's eyes drifted to the counter as she let the information soak in. "He's probably going to be madder now that he doesn't have a date to his parent's dinner."
"The company dinner," Kagome asked and Rin nodded. The Takashi's held a dinner every year smack dab in the middle of the annual business trip. It was only for executives, promoters, buyers, and investors, but Kagome had read about it and heard some news from it.
"Yeah, he doesn't really date girls for too long, I think the longest has been two weeks, but when it comes to the dinner he likes picking out some gorgeous classy well bred girl and date her for about a month so he has someone to bring to the dinner, but I'm guessing now that's out of the question, so he'll be even angrier." Rin rolled her eyes as she checked the time on the stove. "Anyway sorry about ditching you."
"No it's fine, I understand. I'll have leftovers." Rin nodded as she turned for the door. Kagome watched her leave; she had a feeling of familiarity come over her. It was a strange feeling that Rin had aroused in her while she told her about the plot to get her actually appreciated when she went back home. It was a dream she sort of kept to herself so it was strange that someone else had the same vision. When Rin told her about Inuyasha harboring a girl that he deemed parent approved, it sort of reminded her of herself. The fact that she couldn't go home with just any one as a date; it was a ludicrous thought any way, it wasn't as if she was going to get a date to begin with...
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