Chapter 2: Let Go

"We must let it go,
all the dust atop our hearts.
We must set it free."

-Tyler Knott Gregson

The first time Kagome saw Inuyasha after it was all over, she didn't really see Inuyasha.

Like any self-respecting college student, Kagome found herself struggling to handle her test anxiety in the proper way. Really, she thought to herself, she should have spent her Friday night in her dorm, writing and rewriting notes on whatever the test was on (she couldn't bring herself to check, she knew she wouldn't like it) to just get it in her brain. But somehow, in the midst of her final semester of undergrad, Kagome found herself out with a group of people she barely knew, celebrating some holiday that didn't apply to her.

Valentine's Day.

It just happened to have fallen on a Friday this year, and while Kagome had sent her little brother the obligatory box of chocolates, there was no one else she cared to give the same courtesy to. Somehow, her roommate, Maya, found out her "non-plans" for the holiday and invited her to "a single's night destined to help even you find temporary love."

Kagome didn't have the strength to tell her friend that love wasn't "temporary" if it was really love, and a small, stupid part of her whispered a "who cares, let's just go," and for once, she listened.

But really, she shouldn't have.

Here she was, in some ridiculously loud and dark club called "N2U," nursing glass number whatever of white wine, trying to figure out how to escape without the rest of the group noticing, things a comfortable fuzzy for the time being.

The club itself wasn't terrible, Kagome surmised. It was the upstairs of a bar, what she assumed used to be an apartment, in the busy downtown area near her school. The walls, where they weren't structurally necessary, had been removed to create as large of a space as possible, the biggest section of which was occupied by a DJ booth and sizable crowd of drunken dancers. She was in a dark corner near the bar, desperately trying to hide the stretch of skin between the thigh high boots and barely-a-dress her roommate had lent her.

The problem, Kagome realized, wasn't what she was wearing, what she was doing, or where she was.

It was who she was with, or rather, who was sitting next to her.

His name was Daichi and her roommate insisted he was "the most attractive guy you have ever set eyes on," but the problem was she couldn't set her eyes on him. From the minute they had arrived at the club to meet up with the "crew," Maya had set Daichi on Kagome, and Kagome had barely glanced at him before making a bee-line towards the bar.

He wasn't unattractive, by any means. He was tall, and he was funny, every joke he was making to the bar tender and surrounding patrons landing with resounding success. He was well built too, Kagome overheard Maya saying he was on the kendo team at school. He seemed like an overall outstanding guy and Kagome couldn't even sit back and enjoy the thinly veiled looks of interest he was sending towards her because of his stupid, stupid eyes.

They were sunset eyes, made of molten gold and they lit her on fire to her core.

Stupid, stupid eyes. It was as if every time she was on track to finding a normal, human guy to settle for-down, to settle down with, some idiot pulling the red strings had to go and give a perfectly-perfect guy gold eyes, or silver hair (which was alarmingly becoming a fashion trend) or a red tracksuit that looked different (she swears) from the corner of her eye.

She was having none of it.

Speaking up to order something just a teensy bit stronger from the menu, Kagome unwittingly opened herself up to conversation.

"Can I have a manhattan please?" The minute the order was out of her mouth, her non-companion whipped his head towards her with a look of terror.

"Uh, no. No, have you had one of those before? They're god awful. Why don't you try an amaretto sour instead?" Kagome had to physically clench the seat as she reigned in her temper. Just who the heck does this guy think he is, telling her what she can and cannot order? It's her choice. The bartender looked expectantly between the two of them, clearly sensing the tension.

To Kagome's absolute horror, she was unable to stop herself from letting those words come out of her mouth.

"NO, I haven't, jerk. But that isn't any of your concern. The manhattan, please sir." Her mansplaining stranger then swiveled her stool towards him then, amusement written all over his face. Kagome stared at the space between his eyebrows, willing herself to seem normal in that with all that she had.

"I'll make you a deal, Higuarshi. If you can drink the entire manhattan without even cringing, I'll get you out of here quicker than you can even blink. But if you can't, you have to have two more rounds of good drinks with me and tell me why you can't even properly look at me."

Kagome faltered in her anger.

He could tell something was up, and he hadn't pushed the issue with her up until this moment. In fact, he was offering to help her get out of there if she could drink the beverage with a straight face. Which, she was sure she could. Unimaginably, he gained some points in her book.

"Look, to make it a sweeter deal, I'll even pay your tab if I lose. But, you can't water down the drink either. You drink it as it comes, with no cringes, and I'll whisk you away to your lonely dorm room. No questions asked." Kagome couldn't help but nod in agreement, to which Daichi turned her back around towards the bar tender.

Before she knew it, Daichi had ordered her manhattan, two amaretto sours "to start our two rounds when you lose," and one tall glass of ice water "to wash away the disgusting drink you think you'll like," to a back booth that was empty, and isolated enough to keep attention off of them "when you spit that drink out like it's sewage."

Kagome had just cozied into her new seat when their drinks came, and Daichi got everything squared away for her before sitting back expectantly, a smug look on his face.

"Alright, Higuarshi. Let's see how well you like this."

Kagome thought she had this in the bag, knowing, truly, that he had underestimated her.

But then the drink was in her hand and something in her said "slow down, this doesn't smell so great." So, she did, she took a tentative sip, not wanting to lose because she was drinking too fast.

It took everything in her not to flinch when the first taste registered in her brain. It was awful. It was like drinking antifreeze mixed with ammonia mixed with pledge. She used to sneak some of her grandfather's sake, and that stuff was strong, but this was like drinking straight poison.

That thought was quickly followed by "he was right," and then a subsequent "how am I going to pull this off."

Somehow, Daichi himself was managing to keep a straight face (she could see the smirk twitching on his lips) and appeared to be content to just watch her finish the drink.

She set the glass back down, looked out of the window closest to their booth and began to plot, feigning disinterest. How was she going to get rid of this drink without having to drink it and still get out of here in the next five minutes?

Maybe, she thought, just maybe he had somehow convinced her brain the drink was terrible, and she should just give it one more taste before going any further. So, she scooped the glass back up, took a less tentative sip and promptly realized that was a horrible idea and she couldn't believe she had done that again.

Her stomach turning from the offensive drink, Kagome again schooled her expression and set the drink back down daintily before scanning her surroundings for something, anything that could help her get out of this situation.

And that was when she saw her.

A very clearly new waitress was struggling to carry a cocktail tray to the booth next to theirs. Kagome could tell her forearm was wobbling from the weight of the tall beers she carried, but the girl pushed on anyway. Judging the space between the booths, Kagome decided that if she could somehow get the girl to trip- no, no, she was not going to do that. That was just mean.

Instead, she grabbed the girl and ordered some tortilla chips and a large bowl of salsa, stating a sudden case of extreme hunger (which wasn't an absolute lie, she hadn't had any dinner). The girl excitedly said she could have that for her in just a moment, and promptly scurried back to the bar. Kagome could see Daichi watching her in interest, apparently trying to figure out what she was doing but she knew she was going to win this one.

So, she took another sip of the drink (as much as she could tolerate without spitting it out as if it was the paint thinner it tasted like) and coyly smiled at Daichi before reassessing her plan.

Their table was small, most of it taken up by the drinks Daichi had ordered, but there was enough space that if Kagome angled her manhattan just right, it could get caught on the edge of the girl's tray when she was setting down the chips and salsa. The trajectory would make it fall towards the back end of the booth, which would save the drink from getting on any of them. All she had to do was hold the manhattan in her hand and scoot it forward just so while the snack was being delivered. Daichi would be none the wiser and she could promptly feign distaste and ask him to be a gentleman and get her home.

In hindsight, Kagome was already fairly tipsy, if not a bit beyond that (that glass of wine had turned out to be her fourth, which is a lot for her) and she wasn't accounting for one thing.

Mr. Athletic himself being her companion.

Everything was going according to her plan, the edge of glass getting caught on the cocktail tray after she had expertly maneuvered it to the perfect spot. The glass began to tip over, the first few drops spilling out-

And nothing. Suddenly it was upright, a masculine hand wrapped around it.

Kagome's eyes snapped up to Daichi's, which were swimming in amusement before her.

"Oopsie daisy, don't want to lose our drink now, do we?" Daichi said something charming to the waitress and made her feel better about almost spilling the drink (which really wasn't her fault anyway), before looking back at Kagome with something akin to both surprise and pride in his eyes. As soon as the waitress was out of ear shot, he addressed the elephant at their little booth.

"Are you going to confess that it's horrible now, or would you rather try to con some other poor soul into getting rid of it for you again?" Kagome felt her eye twitch at his words before calmly reaching for the untouched glass of water near her.

"That drink being the worst thing I've ever tasted does not make you better or smarter than me." Daichi immediately gave a full laugh, his head thrown back and amusement lining all of his features.

"No, you're right, it doesn't. But a deal is a deal, is it not?" Kagome acquiesced and began drinking the, admittedly, much more tolerable drink he provided. Somehow, she found herself the full focus of the young man's penetrating gaze.

"So, what is it about me that makes you want to probably get some random girl fired for spilling too many drinks in one night?" Kagome again felt her face twitch involuntarily. Daichi lifted the manhattan to his lips for a sip, before frowning and pushing it away, grabbing the other drink he'd ordered for himself instead.

"I doubt she would have been fired for spilling that atrocity." Daichi had already drained half of his drink, and she saw him move to order another whatever-sour.

"You never know. Maybe she's had a terrible run of it and your drink was the one that pushed her out of the door." Daichi shrugged, then grinned at her in a terribly familiar way, and her heart ached with an intensity that made her cast her eyes downward. "I look like him, don't I?"

Kagome felt her heart stop, her soul leave her body and then felt the terrible crash as she returned. She didn't want to have this conversation with anyone, let alone someone she didn't know at all. So instead, she mumbled a barely coherent "who," before taking a large gulp of the drink in her hand.

To her detriment, Daichi seemed to have super sensitive ears as well.

"You know, the guy who stole your heart, broke it, left you to be too damaged emotionally to even have drinks with the cute boy from the kendo team?" Daichi then awarded her a beaming smile. "Really, Kagome? You, who I've heard nothing but amazing things about, can't beat this one ghost? Come on! You don't even know the number of guys you've turned down, do you? There are guys placing bets on who can convince you to go on a date, and no one has won yet. You have a reputation, miss 4.0 with a perfect track record of broken hearts, and right now you're not meeting any of my expectations." Kagome flinched a little at that, hoping not to relive her not so great dating record tonight either.

"Look, I'm not saying you and I should skip off into the sunset and be the "it" couple or whatever you're thinking I want. All I want is for you to just look at me and see me, not some guy you used to know. Just give yourself this chance. Look at me, and see what makes me different, rather than what makes me more of the same."

Kagome kind of hated this guy for being right. And she kind of hated herself more for not realizing the same thing sooner. If she spent her whole life dodging dog-eared shadows, she'd have no life left to live. So, she did what he asked, and she looked at him with the intent to see the difference.

His eyes were gold, she hadn't made that up, the same molten intensity she remembered. But around that, his skin wasn't as tan, and his face shape was a little softer, but still masculine. Everything in his expression radiated kindness and acceptance, no hint of the wounded half demon she was used to. His hair, too, was completely different than what she expected. It was unruly, a kind of wavy she found herself envying a tad and cropped to his shoulders. His hair looked soft, and where the dim light hit it, it seemed to shine, but the shine wasn't silver or even the black she would expect. Instead, it was a bronze-brown, which made a striking combination with his eyes.

He wasn't Inuyasha, despite the eyes and occasional mannerisms. He was someone else, and despite her ignoring him for the better part of the evening, here he was trying to help her out.

"I hate that you've been right more times than I have tonight." Kagome smiled at him and finished off her drink, the waitress appearing just in time with Daichi's next round and took Kagome's order for another glass of white wine. "So, what was that about running off into the sunset?"

Daichi laughed again, and Kagome fully appreciated it, glad to have made a sort-of friend that wasn't judging her for the chip on her shoulder.

"I am just as damaged as you, I'm afraid. I've been chasing after the same girl since she and I were kids, but she still sees me as her childhood friend." Daichi shrugged. "It's not that you aren't, well, perfect, and I'd be lucky to land a date with you under any other circumstances. I just want a friend right now more than anything else. Besides," Daichi winked at her then, a full smirk, "aren't you tired of Maya trying to set you up with any guy within arm's reach? If we always have plans together, she can't make you go out with Ryo from the track team next weekend and I won't have to go home and see Kira either."

"Seems like a fair trade to me." Kagome looked around then, taking note that every other person from their group was off dancing. "After we finish our drinks, do you want to grab greasy waffles at the place down the street?" Daichi seemed to contemplate her offer and then an expression of deviance lit his features.

"How about we keep drinking and have greasy waffles for brunch tomorrow?" Her expression must have faltered, because he suddenly captured her hands in his. "Kagome. You are young, in college, and likely to wake up tomorrow regretting going out tonight at all. Why not take one night to live it up and actually do something fun for once? "Still, Kagome remained unconvinced. "Listen, I'll go ahead and text my uncle to come get us in two hours. I'll tell him your dorm and room number and everything, just so you know we'll get you there safe. I can hold my alcohol, and I can promise I will get you there, but this way there's at least a paper trail in case you don't trust me." Daichi dropped her hands to quickly type on his phone, ignoring Kagome's sigh of resignation as she began sipping on the fresh glass of white wine.

"Here, look." Suddenly, Daichi's phone was in her face. The text was a bit fuzzy, but she was able to make out that the contact's name was "Uncle Y" and Daichi had not so kindly asked him to come get them in two hours, but the information was all there, her dorm and room number added at the bottom of the text "just in case I forget where my friend lives." While Kagome was reading, a new text bubble popped up, with the words "u owe me, brat." Kagome flipped the phone around to show Daichi, and what happened next has stayed fuzzy for her for a while.

She remembers doing some shots, and then dancing to some ridiculously old song that played at her first middle school dance. Then they were taking more shots, and the rest was a mix of strobe lights, dancing bodies pressed all around her and music so loud all she could hear was bass. Daichi was there the whole time, blocking people from getting too close, keeping her away from guys that seemed to have less than savory intentions. It went on like this for what simultaneously felt like hours but also just a few minutes, Kagome having no idea how long they'd been there and how long they'd been dancing, or even how many drinks she'd had that night. She was happy, glad she'd come out that night, drunk on alcohol and freedom, when suddenly, a firm hand was wrapped around her upper arm.

She looked up to meet gold again, but it wasn't Daichi this time. Between the strobe lights and the world being a little fuzzy, she couldn't make out all his features, but decided he must know Daichi since they had the same eyes. She quickly looked around her and realized Daichi wasn't there, and in her less than put together state, she looked up at the stranger and was starting to ask him if he knew where Daichi was when all of a sudden, she felt a hand grab her butt.

Then, she was roughly pulled against a body, where she felt rather than heard someone say, "don't you fucking touch her." Kagome blinked up at the gold eyed stranger, who she could now see had shoulder length hair that was straight and black. He was the one who had pulled her against him, and he was angrily looking over her shoulder towards someone she couldn't see. Something was nagging at her, something that she couldn't quite hear or place but suddenly his eyes were on her and all she could think to say was, "hi." He still looked pissed and didn't greet her back and something in her kept flashing in red and warning her to prepare for anger, but she didn't hear it and just kept staring up at this man.

"Are you o-" Suddenly Daichi was there too and then he said something to the guy. Kagome only blinked (she swears), and then suddenly they were outside, her body now tucked under the stranger's arm.

Things get a little fuzzy again after that. She remembers the guy, she assumes now it was Daichi's uncle, taking off his jean jacket and wrapping it around her, before again pulling her against his side, and he must have reprimanded her for not dressing for the weather because she bit out a "it doesn't need to be practical, it needs to be cute," which is what her roommate said to her before they left. The man scoffed at that, and then he was helping her into the back of a black car, buckling her in and checking to make sure it was secure before carefully shutting the door and climbing in the drivers seat. Daichi was in the front passenger seat, and he and his uncle were having a hushed but obviously intense conversation that came to an abrupt, "we will talk about this later," ending.

Daicihi's uncle must have been mad, Kagome decided, because the air in that car was thick enough to cut with a butter knife.

The drive to the school was about 20 minutes, and Kagome must have fallen asleep on the way because the next thing she knew, she was staring up at Daichi's uncle under the harsh lighting of the school's parking lot.

Things were as clear as mud from this point, distorted from the alcohol and by the sleep trying to take her captive. Daichi's uncle was opening Kagome's door, and Daichi must have made a move to get out of the car, because Kagome swears she remembers a voice saying, "no, you stay right here, and we will be talking about this when I get back" while she was being unbuckled and helped to her feet. She remembers handing her purse to Daichi's uncle in the lobby of her building, and him getting fed up with her being so slow on the stairs up to the third floor that he scooped her up in his arms. She remembers the hall door being a bit tricky, and then suddenly she was sitting on her bed, struggling to get her boots off, the long cuffs of the jacket she wore getting in the way.

Steady hands swatted hers away and she watched as Daichi's uncle worked her boots off, muttering under his breath the entire time. Soon, she was shoeless and under the covers of her bed, Daichi's uncle asking her how to lock the door while leaving her keys in the room, which she told him wasn't possible and that she would get up and lock it when he left, she promised. All the while, Kagome was poorly fighting sleep, her eyes closing but something in her brain kept forcing them back open.

She half watched Daichi's uncle set a bottle of water on the desk close to her bed with aspirin next to it. He then plugged her phone up and asked her what he passcode was, to which she just gave him the answer without a fight. He sat there for another moment, typing something into her phone, and then he was looking down at her.

"Kagome, listen, I've set an alarm on your phone for 9:30 am. It's important you get up and drink all of that water and take an aspirin." She murmured her consent, wanting to just be asleep, but the man was having none of it. "Kagome, I need you to promise me that you will get up and let Daichi know you're okay, his number is in your phone." She must have said something that sounded like she agreed because he looked a little less than angry. "I'm not mad, just worried. Sleep, I'll see you tomorrow." Kagome watched him walk towards her door, and the last thing she remembered was him looking back at her before she fell right into a dreamless sleep.

A/N: I originally wanted to do Kagome meeting Inuyasha for the first time (again) a little differently, but after some thought I really liked this idea a bit more. It leaves me open to play with this story more if I want. It's my goal to write each bit where it could be a standalone, but still have it leave enough up in the air that the creative juices keep flowing.

Thanks a ton to those who chose to comment on the last piece. I wanted to show that meeting because so many of these stories put Inuyasha and Kagome together for the first time right after she returns from the well, and I don't think that's how it would happen. After 500 years, and most likely access to a lot of money, I have always imagined that if the well would have stayed closed, he would have kept an eye on her throughout her childhood, but from a distance. He's lived for 500 years, and I imagine she looks like a child to him even as she's traveling back and forth through the well.

I am equally terrible at being drunk and writing people being drunk, but I always remember that time skips a lot when I drink heavily (I'm 23, and have survived a semi-normal college experience), so I wanted to show that a bit. Let me know what you thought, or if anyone would like to see anything in particular. I have an idea of where this is going and would like to continue it from here.

Edited for errors 3/6/2018