Author's Note: Hey everyone, I hope you enjoy this fanfic, please let me know what you think, thanks! And no, of course I don't own Inuyasha. Enjoy!
Side note: "Normal parenthesis" means that someone is talking; "parentheses italicized" means that it's a message/email and italicized and underlined is Kagome's thoughts during that moment or her reflecting back on that scene. As always, enjoy!
Part 24: Girls Night Out- Last night of Adolescence
No.. Definitely not him.. He looks like him, but he's not…
I stared more carefully at the man as he closed the car door. Our eyes met briefly before he turned away and followed the driver in the opposite direction.
But what would I do if it was him?
Would I walk up to him and stick out my hand for a handshake?
No.. Too weird and awkward..
Would I introduce myself and wait for him to make the first move?
No.. What if an awkward silence happened after he introduced himself?
Would I stand there and stare at him, not saying anything?
Ok.. Now that went from friendly to creepy real fast..
Then would I run up to him and hug him?
So abrupt.. But out of all my options, this one seems to be the one I'd most prefer..
Shaking my head clear, I continued to my dorm. Opening the door, I set down my backpack on my bed and turned on my laptop.
"Sango, I just met him.. No, I mean, I just saw someone who looked like him. Not that it was really him. But he looked so much like him, that it took me by surprise! I probably looked like an idiot standing in the road, staring at a complete stranger.."
"Ugh.. Priestess, you know I love you but you're rambling too much. So, what happened?"
"Nothing. Just nothing."
"And, you're freaking out because you thought it was him?"
"Not just because of that.. Because of how I should react to him, you know, when I do really meet him one day? I haven't prepared anything! I don't even know how to react, what to say, what to do.. What if I just panic and run?"
"Well, if he knows you well enough, he'll be prepared for that. But honestly speaking, I don't think you need to be prepared for anything. Sometimes we just go with the flow, that make sense?"
"Well.. I guess. So how are things?"
"Everything is going well with Miroku. A bit touchy and feely here and there, if you catch my drift but otherwise he's a fine man. I haven't spoken much to the other members, have you?"
"No.. I've been busy with real life.." ..With real life problems.
Continuing to chat with Sango, I told her about graduation coming up and how excited I was to be graduating and in turn, Sango told me about mother working and putting more distance between the group and himself. Not that anyone was worried, since mother was so capable of managing himself. Noting the time, I typed a last email to Sango before gathering my things to go to lunch.
"Are you going to stay on campus?" Ayame asked as I watched her pack her things into a suitcase.
"Yeah, I think I will. There's really no point in moving back for like three weeks and then driving back here for commencement. Seems like a waste of gas and time, if you ask me."
"You're so lucky.. I can't wait to get there in like three years haha." Ayame threw the last of her clothes into the suitcase and sat on top of it trying to pull the zipper shut.
"Are you really sure you don't need help?" I asked, biting back a smile as I watched from the doorway.
"I got it!"
"I'll miss you." I said out loud. Seeing the room finally empty made it so much more real now. Made it so much more lonelier now that my freshman friends were leaving to go onto summer break and I would be leaving for good. I wouldn't be here when they came back.
"Hey, come on now.. If anyone should be sad, it should be me, not you. You won't be here for me next year and I have to go through three more years of this place. I mean, urghh why would anyone want to stay at school? You should be happy to graduate and move on with your life, silly."
"Don't get me wrong.. I am. It's just... Wow, it suddenly just feels so… so real."
Ayame got up and hugged me tightly, a hug that lasted a long time, a hug that I didn't know I needed.
A few days weeks later, hearing a knock on the door, I got up from where I had been sitting on the bed and opened the door to a familiar face.
"Hey! Lets go out to dinner."
"Yura! You're off from work?" I pulled the door open more, allowing her to enter.
"Yeah, I took the next few days off, my boss is like real chill with it because of the graduation and all and I'll start working full time after.. Have you figured out what you'll be doing?" Yura took a seat on the empty bed opposite mine.
"Not yet. I've been looking but I don't have any job lined up like you. I have my resume and I've been updating it for potential employers."
"Well, its a step in the right direction. Do you need any help editing it? I could look it over for you if you'd like? Or I could give it to my other friend who is studying to become a teacher to look over it?"
"Sure. I don't mind, I'll email it to you later. But what are you doing here? I mean, you don't even live on campus!"
"I wanted us to go out to dinner tonight."
"Us?"
"Yeah, I know another senior who has been dying to have dinner at that place we went to last time."
"You mean that pho restaurant? With all the boba teas in the front?"
"Exactly the one. And besides, I think this may be the last time we have dinner together, you know? I will be a hundred percent focused on my job and you'll move back home, where, sadly I won't be able to see you as much. Please? Go out with me?"
"Yeah, I'd love to." I gathered my wallet and a jacket, following Yura out the door. "Why are we going on like the day before graduation though?"
"Easier to remember." Yura unlocked her car, climbing into the driver's seat. I climbed into the passenger's seat next to her and buckled the seat belt.
"I'm so excited! We haven't been there in like… Well, in like so long I don't remember the last time we went there ha ha."
"What? Drooling over their soup already?" Yura winked at me, starting the car and pulling out of the parking lot.
"Yura, you are too! What'll you get?"
"I'm thinking crazy noodles this time?"
"Oh, the one with all those dried fried noodles shaped in like a nest with seafood mixed in?"
"Yeah. What about you?"
"I went with beef pho last time so maybe the lobster seafood pho?"
"Then, are you getting boba this time? I think you were so full from that pho last time."
"I want the Vietnamese coffee boba this time."
"Addicted to caffeine! As usual." Yura laughed and I found myself laughing with her. It was the first time in over three weeks that I had seen anyone. Sure, there had been some students roaming around campus for summer programs or exchange students staying because they had nowhere to go, but this was the first time that I had spoken to my friends.
Later that evening,
"I'm so stuffed, I can't eat anymore!" I looked down at the enormously huge bowl in front of me. I couldn't believe I had emptied it all. I was some sort of hungry animal. Yura's crazy noodles were still half there before she too called it quits. And Yura's friend had finished but left all the soup in the bowl.
"I can't believe you ate it all! How much sriracha did you put in there anyway? Then you added the lime and all those bean sprouts." Yura said staring at my empty bowl.
"A growing girl has got to eat! At least I could only drink half the boba." I replied.
"How are you not feeling the urge to use the bathroom right now?"
Yura's friend started laughing. "You guys bicker like an old married couple, you're so close."
"Well, she used to be my wife" Yura said jokingly.
"No no no, you were the wife, I was the husband" I insisted. "But you choose that boyfriend of yours over me, so she divorced me."
"Oh? So Yura, you cheated?"
"I did not. I divorced her first, then found him."
"All I know is.." I paused, then said dramatically "I STILL LOVE YOUUUUUU. Come back to me, my wifeeee."
Yura smiled, shaking her head. "I'm the husband, you're the wife."
"Get a room you two!"
We all laughed then took out our phones for a picture. Shortly after, we paid and drove to a nearby arcade.
"An arcade? I didn't even know there was one so close by." I said staring out the window at the building that Yura had parked in front of.
"Yeah, its been here for awhile but I've never actually gone inside. Might as well explore it now… Before we become too grown-up and forget how to be kids." Yura turned off the engine and unlocked the doors.
Waiting briefly for Yura's friend to park her car, we walked into that building, where we reached a small check-in lobby. Only one guy was hunched over on the counter, playing a game on his phone. Looking up, he asked "For three?"
"Yes" Yura replied.
He reached up and pointed to the door to his right, "you're gonna want to walk in through those doors. Most importantly, enjoy yourselves".
Moving my head to survey the area as we stepped into the room, I noticed all these machines. A machine for car racing, one for air hockey, one for shooting basketball hoops for tickets, a claw crane machine for winning prizes, one for shooting zombies and so much more that I was surprised there wasn't more people here on a Friday night. I stopped by the basketball machine, watching as people used the machine to aim for the top hole.
If he were here now.. Would he be playing this machine? Would he be turning to me and giving me that gentle smile of his? Would he then show me where to position my feet and how to shoot? Would he wrap his hands over mine and celebrate if I got that shot?
"Hey! What are you zoning out for? We're over here!" Yura waved from the air hockey machine, on the opposite side of the room.
I walked over to them, watching as they hit the puck around. Would he know how to play air hockey like this? Could it be us at either ends like this, defending our slots? No.. Stop. STOP THINKING ABOUT HIM. I'm here to have fun with my friends...
Exchanging my money for coins, I took a seat, and slid a coin into the driving machine slot. I slowly felt the thoughts drift away as I focused on driving, focused on keeping the wheel steady. 55 miles… 60 miles… 75 miles… I kept gaining more and more speed as I drove along the racetrack.
When the game ended, I looked down at the slot where I had inserted the coin and counted the amount of tickets I earned. Not bad for my first time.
And so the night went on like that, until we had enough tickets to combine trade for prizes. Yura drove us back to my dorm. I headed to the showers first but when I came back to my dorm room, I noticed she had moved her duffel bag into my room.
Author's Note: Hey everyone, thank you very much for reading! Sorry for the long wait, I've been pretty busy and as a result, neglected this story.. again.. I hope my readers are still with me….. But its understandable if they have left. However, I do want to welcome in any new faces to the story and hope you enjoyed it thus far. Anyway, please leave your reviews on what you think about what you've read so far. Would you want to see more? Please favorite the story or feel free to hit the "follow" button for me, so you'll be notified first of any new chapters/stories. Thank you guys again!