Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha and never will.

Chapter 2

Stranger

Cerulean met chocolate brown, each flashing dangerously and screaming the other to submit. But none seemed to be intimidated the least.

"Kagome," Sango began with a superior tone. "I will not allow that."

"You cannot stop me," the said female challenged with an air of defiance.

Sango hardened her gaze and crossed her arms with new found determination.

"Yes I can."

"Who are you to stop me?!" Kagome cried out stubbornly.

"Perhaps… your manager and dietitian?"

Her reply hit the raven haired female like a ton of bricks.

'Damn it! I am out of comebacks. But I won't give up!'

"Please Sango?" Kagome pouted and batted her lashes.

Sango scoffed before replying dismissively, "Any extra blinking or contraction of your facial muscles will not change my decision."

'I give up.'

"Honestly Sango, I don't see how abstaining me from eating is beneficial for my health in any way!"

Raising a dainty finger, she quickly reprimanded her supermodel friend, "Trust me, ol' pal, it is totally beneficial; especially, if it is ice cream we are talking about. Just the mere thought of all those fat going into your system makes me feel queasy."

"I really need to escape from her devilish clutches before it is too late," Kagome mumbled, grinding her teeth.

"What was that?"

"I was just thinking that what I have ever done to deserve a friend cum assistant like you," she quickly lied with an angelic face.

"A few good deeds," the other brunette commented smugly before she gasped in realization. "I totally forgot to tell you what I had come here for in the first place! Your whole ice cream ordeal distracted me. I am telling you Kagome, you are making me more and more inefficient by the day."

"I am honored," Kagome replied monotonously.

Ignoring her mild sarcasm, Sango conveyed the message, "You have been offered the lead role in Ookami's upcoming film. They seem determined to have you as their heroine and are unwilling to take no for an answer."

Kagome, who had taken a sip of her orange juice, immediately spurted out at the news.

"Me? Lead actress?!" she exclaimed disbelievingly.

At Sango's nod of affirmation, Kagome stared at her friend dumbfounded. "How?"

"Hiroshi recommended you and after taking a look at some of your pictures, the producer averred you as the lead actress."

"B-but doesn't my consent count? I always thought actors have the last say," she whispered.

"Well nothing will be official until you sign the contract but that will be just for formality. They have already planned everything," Sango informed.

"That's absurd!" Kagome disparaged. "I cannot act. I am a model, not an actress."

Her friend pursed her lips in disapproval and placed her arms on Kagome's shaking shoulders.

"You are a brilliant actress, Kagome and you know it. Who won all those prizes in drama in school? You!" she reassured with a soft voice. "Plus this is a golden opportunity for you to spread your wings, Kagome. For how long are you planning to pose for the camera and sashay down the ramp?"

Kagome opened her mouth to deny but Sango beat her to it.

"No one knows better than you that fame of a model is ephemeral. New faces will come and replace you before you know it. Then no one will remember a Kagome Higurashi ever existed. This is a chance that every model would die for. Don't let it slip by."

The blue eyed maiden remained silent as she absorbed Sango's every word. She was right. Life of a super model was indeed short. Competition ran through the roots of this industry. Blink once and the faces on the magazines would change in a snap and no one would bother to remember whose face was there before. Kagome couldn't afford that. She couldn't afford to be forgotten…and go back to rely upon her parents' names. She wanted… no needed to make a name of her own. And, this was the only way to.

"Fine," Kagome acquiesced.

A genuine smile spread across Sango's countenance and she embraced her friend tightly. "I am so happy for you!"

Kagome chortled lightly at her companion's enthusiasm and retuned the gesture.

"So, when do I have to sign the contract and get to read the script, if at all?"

"Today… Oh, you are running late! You were supposed to leave for their office half an hour back," was Sango's sheepish reply.

….

"I am going to give that woman a piece of my mind once I get back," Kagome promised herself as she took a sharp turn from the next corner. "She knew I would agree at the end all the way! Curse that woman for always having a way with words."

Yes, Kagome Higurashi was mad. But it was not because she failed to impress her producers. On contrary, they seemed quite pleased with her work and were quite enthusiastic about signing the contract with her. The raven haired supermodel had bagged the lead role in the upcoming movie. But she was displeased. Don't get her wrong. She didn't mind this new opportunity. In fact, she was ecstatic about it….deep down. It's just that she hated to be manipulated. Apparently, Sango had ascertained the producers about Kagome taking up the role. Much before she even got to know about it. What bothered the young lady more was that her friend cum manager cum dietitian knew her much better than her own self! It disturbed her, yet she liked it. But she'd be damned before she let Sango figure that out.

'She is much too wise for her age, as it is.' Kagome grumbled, stepping on the accelerator. 'But she can't decide for me like that!'

Kagome would have continued with her silent complaints had a figure not appeared out of the blue in front of her car. The figure drew a hand up to shield his eyes from the blinding headlights. Out of reflex, she quickly hit the brakes but it was too late. The car screeched to a halt leaving tyre marks on the road and the menacing silence that ensued was killed when the sound of something landing with a loud thump erupted not too far away.

"Please no…please no," Kagome whispered as her nails dug deep into her steering wheel, making her knuckles go white.

A bead of sweat rolled down the side of her face as she trembled in her seat.

Craning her neck out of the window, she gulped nervously when she saw someone sprawled out with a bleeding head as he moaned in pain.

"I…I have to help him."

There were no other cars in the street. No sign of pedestrians.

'It is a winter night. Of course, there will be fewer cars at this time!'

Sprinting out of the car, Kagome bolted towards the injured figure. Upon a closer look, she concluded it to be a male- a young man, to be specific, no older than twenty five or seven. He had received a few scratches in his arms but his head was what scared Kagome. It was bleeding profusely.

"H-help," he pleaded with a coarse voice.

Big worried cerulean eyes were what he saw before everything around him dimmed and he lost consciousness.

The desperation in his voice, the fear in those dark orbs, the pained look were what persuaded Kagome that she had to save this stranger by all means.