Inuyasha instinctively knew, from the very moment they met, this was what the rest of his existence was gonna be like: always chasing after her.

Of course, he had never expected to live the literal version of that knowledge.

Yet there he was, running across the airport like a crazy person, ignoring the curses and nasty looks he received from the people unlucky enough to stand between him and his goal as he bumped and forced his way through.

Inuyasha couldn't care less.

Because Kagome was leaving.

He had been a coward and now she was leaving.

It wasn't for good. Exchange programs were temporary, a fact he had to keep reminding himself of time and time again to keep what was left of his sanity. As much as she was off to the other side of the planet, here was where she belonged, where her life was. Here, with her family, friends, favorite coffee shop and him.

But what if something changed her plans? Kagome could get a permanent job. Smart, young, bilingual. Anyone would be thrilled to hire her.

What if someone changed her plans? This was what hurt the most, imagining her in the arms of a man who wasn't afraid to tell her how he felt.

Inuyasha needed to tell her how he felt.

It was this urgency that drove him there, even though Kagome told everyone not to come. Even though he had spent years convincing himself that their friendship was too important to risk it. Even though his feelings were probably unrequited.

He couldn't keep it in. Not anymore.

And maybe he was late. Maybe he missed his shot. But didn't Kagome deserve to know that he didn't have a favorite color until he saw the way the sun hit her eyes? That he was just as bad at algebra in High School as she was and he had to ask his mother to teach him the lessons in advance, so he could tutor her the following day? That for years now, every love song he listened to seemed to be written about her?

Worst case scenario, Kagome would let him down easy and they could still be friends. No heart broken but his own. And after the Hojo fiasco and that one agonizingly long summer she spent dating Koga, Inuyasha was no stranger to heartbreak. He could handle heartbreak. Never knowing what it could have been if he had taken a chance, on the other hand…

Which brought him to the best case scenario, something he only allowed himself to think about late in the night: Kagome somehow wanting to be his. Finally tasting her lips. Touching her. Really touching her. And making clear, in no uncertain terms, that he was hers as well.

That's when Inuyasha saw her in the crowd. Smaller than average, Kagome was far from being a difficult target to spot. Her lustrous dark hair was half up, half down, a red ribbon tying it all together. It fell onto that oversized, deep blue sweater that he liked and it was a bit shorter than usual, courtesy of a brand new haircut. He distinctly remembered the selfie she sent him to show it off. It was still on his phone.

"Kagome!"

Nothing. She kept walking forward, one hand dragging her suitcase, the other holding her phone. He increased the pace, the sight of her back providing renewed disposition, every step bringing him closer.

"Kagome!" Inuyasha tried again. And she turned. Her doe eyes wandered around, searching for the source of his voice as if she had imagined it.

Then she found him.

Kagome froze in place and Inuyasha took advantage of her bewilderment to reduce his frenetic rhythm to a moderate march, his gaze locked on hers. She blinked her stupor away and her face lit up like a Christmas tree. Before he could register, Kagome was moving — no, racing — to him. She collided against his body so violently it could have knocked him over, had he been in his human form. It was endearing, how tight she clung to him, the way her head fitted under his chin so well. Closing his eyes, Inuyasha inhaled the aroma he had been tracking, happy to have it filling his lungs. His arm surrounded her waist with the familiarity of coming home. Absentmindedly. Almost intuitively.

"What are you doing here?" She asked, breaking free from his embrace to properly see him.

By all means, he shouldn't be. A Bon Voyage party had been held for her the previous night and Kagome used the occasion to rip the band-aid off. It was better, she had reasoned, to say her goodbyes all at once. That way, she could bid farewell to everyone and go alone to the airport. Having them scorting her there would make leaving a thousand times harder.

Realizing his hand still rested on her waistline, he quickly retreated it to scratch a nonexistent itch on his nape.

"I've somethin' to tell ya." He blurted out, noticing how her heart skipped a beat. "I should've done it at your party yesterday but there were so many people, I couldn't get ya alone. And you know I ain't good with words—"

"It's fine, really. You can tell me, whatever it is."

"Well… I, uh…"

"Yes?" She encouraged.

"I just gotta tell you…"

"Yes?"

Inuyasha's mouth went dry.

He had the speech on the tip of his tongue, rehearsed the damn thing over and over in his mind for longer than he cared to admit. But now that it was real and she was staring at him so expectantly, now that — slim as it was — there was an actual possibility of making what he wished for the most come true… Inuyasha realized how unbelievably selfish and completely insane he was acting.

Even if by some miracle Kagome loved him back, she was still leaving.

Leaving.

What was he thinking? What the hell was he thinking? That he would show up, pour his feelings out, kiss her passionately and then give a long distance relationship a go? They would still be apart. It wouldn't be fair to her. It wouldn't be fair to himself. This wasn't what he wanted. Not by a long shot.

He wanted her to stay.

Which was infinitely worse. This was a once in a lifetime opportunity for her. To grow, to have new experiences, to learn, to live without a hometown boyfriend holding her back. He could never do that to Kagome, he could never be the one standing between her and a bright future. It would kill him if she decided to stay, only to resent him for it later.

And so those three words became two.

"Good luck."

"Oh." Kagome said, something he couldn't quite distinguish crossing her features for the briefest of seconds before she composed them into a soft expression. "Inuyasha!" She breathed out, her head tilting slightly.

In a swift move, Kagome was in his arms again and Inuyasha didn't shy away from hugging her just as tight, painfully aware it could be their last. For a while, anyway.

And she smelled so good.

Inuyasha hoped the scent would linger. If not on his shirt, then at least in his memory.

Her silent cry was wetting his shirt and, helpless to stop himself, he placed a kiss on the top of Kagome's head.

"I can't believe you came all the way here just to ruin my mascara." She kind of sobbed, kind of laughed while letting go of him to wipe her cheeks clean of tears.

Not the part of her makeup Inuyasha intended to ruin, but he would take it.

Despite everything, a weak smile shaped his lips.

"Keh. Then stop crying, woman."

Whatever she was gonna reply died in her throat when a woman's voice announced the next flight.

"That's me. I, huh, I should get going."

"You call me when you land, alright? I don't give a shit what time it is."

"You got it. And you, stay out of trouble." Standing on her tiptoes, Kagome gave him a peck on the cheek and judging by the way he felt it burn, Inuyasha had no doubt he was blushing an embarrassing amount. "I'm gonna miss you so much."

"Yeah. Me too."

"You better." Joked Kagome, reaching for her suitcase's handle. "So… I guess this is it. Bye."

"Bye."

He watched her walk away, praying she would look at him one more time and torturing himself with each 'what if'.

It was all his fault.

Inuyasha should have been bolder, fought harder. Should have told her the truth sooner. He only saw her every single day for years.

Now it was too late.

Kagome turned around right in front of the gates, her eyes finding his like they were magnets. She waved him goodbye, a faltering smile on her face.

Inuyasha attempted to return the gesture, but it lacked energy.

And then she left, completely out of sight.

He missed her already.

It was for the best, though. He would beat himself up for wasting the cards he had been dealt, probably for the rest of his life. And yet, he could never bring himself to regret letting her go, if it meant she would be happy.

Inuyasha stayed until her plane took off.

What would his days be like with her gone? Picturing it was too painful. Overwhelming. Perhaps he should focus on getting his degree. Finally. Or sinking further into work.

Move on.

That would do the trick.

But even in the light of how definitive their departure appeared to be or how devastated he was, the strangest feeling nestled in the depths of his heart: that this was not the end. That someway, somehow, their paths would meet again.

Inuyasha held on to that as if it was a life jacket.

Too bad he was still adrift.


A/N.: so... it's been a hot minute, yes? I must confess, I haven't had time to work on my writing in a while and, the few times I did, I just didn't find the motivation to share online. Which I'm sure you can understand, given how all over the place this fandom have been. So... this is me trying.

Don't mind me. Anywho... this fanfic was inspired by the list linked above. It's gonna have a hundred chapters, as you probably guessed. Each chapter will be based in one of the hundred prompts of said list. They'll vary in length and genre and there's no obligatory connection between them, so beware.