Chapter 8: Doing What Feels Right

I follow Sesshomaru back to the car replaying the previous scene in my head to reason why he has become angry. The ride back to my place is quiet and tense. Sesshomaru focuses his eyes on the road and his jaw looks clenched. He still has not said a word, and I am trying to not care about it as much. I just mindlessly fiddle with the zipper on my jacket until we pull up in front of my building. I look up at the place and reach for the door handle.

"Don't move. I will get the door for you," Sesshomaru finally speaks unbuckling his seatbelt and opening the driver's side door.

I step out, and he leads me into my building then up the three flights of stairs to my floor. I try to slow our pace so I can figure out what to say by the time we reach my door. "Thank you for dinner… Why are you so pissy? Would you like to come inside? No, that doesn't sound appropriate for a first date. What crawled up your backside?" I am jolted out of my mental rehearsal when I feel my back pressed up against my front door. Sesshomaru has me pinned against the wood with his hips. One arm is above my head and the other has its fingers placed beneath my chin. He tilts my head up to look him in the eyes, and he slowly leans in. My eyes widen when I see what is coming, and I surprise even myself with what I do to stop it.

With my hands on his chest I push him away, but keep him close enough to connect a good slap clear across his face.

"What do you think you're doing?!" I gasp. "You can't give me the cold shoulder the rest of the night and think you've earned yourself a goodnight kiss. It doesn't work that way."

He regains himself and touches the red mark that is left on his right cheek. I ready my keys and turn to unlock the door. "Goodnight, Inutaisho-sensei. I'll see you tomorrow at school," I angrily say placing the key in the lock and turning the knob. I step in and turn around to slam the door in his face. Before it shuts, I catch a glimpse of amusement dancing in his eyes. I stand there holding my breath until I hear his footprints fade away on the other side of the door. Letting it go, I cross the threshold taking off my jacket and pulling my dress up and over my head. I toss the sheath to the side, somewhere on the floor, and fall backwards unto my bed. I try to sort through everything going through my head as I lay on my back with my face turned towards the windows. "Am I about to let some young, beguiling teacher treat me with such disrespect? Hell, no! I may be reformed, but dammit, that does not mean I won't hit him again! His cologne smells so good mixed with his natural scent… What the hell? Where did that come from?! I'm confused. He confused me. Jerk! It's going to be really awkward at school tomorrow…" I groan out loud before kicking off my pumps then turning on my side. I squeeze my eyes shut and let sleep take hold.

Today is the last day we have to study before finals begin. The exam schedule goes as follows:

Wednesday: 1st and 2nd Period Finals

Thursday: 3rd and 4th Period Finals

Friday: 5th and 6th Period Finals

Saturday: No School

I am thankful that after today I will not have to see him for two days straight. It is hard enough right now sitting in homeroom forcing myself to focus on a book I am reading. The rest of the students are reading quietly as well, so no one except myself notices the pair of gold eyes fixed on me. I can feel the orbs burning holes at my side, but I ignore it and keep my face blank as I skim the words on the pages. It is an easy Tuesday as the teachers cycle through the classrooms and we review everything we learned this term. I am all but excited when 6th period rolls in and an uptight teacher with it. We get into our study groups for this class, and I make a point to turn my desk so it does not face him.

"Uematsu-senpai, are you in some kind of trouble?" girl number two asks me. "Sensei is keeping a close eye on you. Did you do something scandalous?"

My paranoia kicks in at her last question. "How does she know I went on a date with him last night?!" I inwardly want to shoot him an I-told-you-so glare. Girl number two's face looks genuinely ignorant, so I just shrug and utter to her that I have no idea what crawled up his ass. I sigh and flip through my textbook. Then, I have girl number one test me on different methods to write a poem and paragraph formation. Finally, the clock strikes three, and Inutaisho-sensei dismisses us. I hover in my seat until the minute hand hits twelve, so I bolt out the door before he can finish his sentence.

The two days straight without seeing him or being near him were a much needed break. They were much needed, but too short. I just have to get through these last two hours. I find it hard to focus on my test because I can feel gold eyes watching me, but every time I glance up he is looking down at his desk. I shrug it off. Then I answer the few questions I have left and quickly jot down the essay part. I refold the packet taking a deep breath and stand up. I slowly make my way to his desk bracing myself for the first bit of contact since our date.

"Finished already, Uematsu?" he questions looking up into my eyes.

"Yes, it wasn't a very difficult exam," I respond trying my best to be nonchalant.

"I see. You can leave early if you would like. No point in staying now that you're all done. Enjoy the summer break."

I nod to him and head back to my desk to grab my things. I hear the pens and pencils scribble faster on paper when everyone notices that Inutaisho-sensei will let them leave when they are done. "He blew it, Sakura," I think to myself as I walk through the quiet school halls. "He's the one who spoiled his opportunity, so you shouldn't feel bad. It's not your fault he lacks common sense." I do my best to make myself not regret Monday night's events, but I find myself replaying and repainting the scenes in my head. I pause just before the front doors and lean against the wall. I cannot be helped. I rethink different scenarios: in one he was not such an ass; in another I just let him be my first kiss instead of pushing him away; finally, I let the events unfold as they did except I do not call him Inutaisho-sensei which ended the whole trial. With only the wall holding me up I begin tapping my head against the hard surface in an attempt to knock those thoughts out of my mind and move on. I stop when I feel a headache coming on and someone clears their throat behind me. I turn and feel a pang of delight when I see Inutaisho-sensei standing there.

"I suspect that you are wounding yourself because you realized that you skipped an entire page of questions," he says handing me my exam packet. "They are on the back."

I take the packet and flip it over.

"Oh," I have nothing else to say.

"You can either finish it here or back at the classroom. Your choice."

"I have come to far to go back," I lightheartedly say glancing up the long hallway.

"Very well," he says leading me to a bench. "I have to be here to ensure that you don't cheat. Not that I suspect you would. Just school policy."

I nod my head and pull a binder out of my bag to provide a hard surface to write on.

"What about the other students?" I ask him and he raises his eyebrows.

"Were you that unaware of your surroundings just now? They already finished and many passed by you on their way out."

"Good times," I say before beginning to finish the exam.

I find myself taking my time; relishing in the moment of sitting with him on a bench even though it means nothing. My breaths are careful as I try to embed the smell of his cologne into my memory. In the back of my head, two pieces of me are at war: my heart and my brain. The smart thing to do would be to ignore these igniting feelings. Snuff them out because they are so wrong on a professional level and an ethical level. However, my heart aches and screams that even though it is so wrong it feels so right.

"Sesshomaru-kun! What are you doing here?" I look up to see Motosuwa-sensei walking down the hall.

"I am supervising a student as she finishes her exam," Inutaisho-sensei says getting up and walking towards him. They engage in a conversation, and I turn my head back to my work.

I finish, and they are still talking. Inutaisho-sensei stands with good posture as Motosuwa-sensei slouches and leans on one leg. I go back to contemplating my dilemma as I gaze at the beautiful man standing nearby. I find that my brain is losing the battle as my eyes take in all of his pleasing features. "What is he doing teaching? He is handsome enough to be an actor or a model!" I bite my lip as I make my final decision. While their eyes are averted, I pull a sticky note out from my bag. I quickly scribble on it and stick it inside the second sheet before folding the packet close. Satisfied, I fold my hands over my makeshift desk and focus my eyes on the two men; waiting patiently.

"Looks like Uematsu-chan is all done!" Motosuwa-sensei brings their conversation to a close. "I will see you around during summer school, Sesshomaru-kun! Damn, Minami and Motoko for having to attend!"

Sesshomaru begins walking and stops right in front of me. I watch Motosuwa-sensei exit through the front doors before turning my attention back to Adonis-sensei. I hand him the packet.

"There is a question on page three that you may want to bring your attention to," I say standing up as he takes the packet from my hands. "What's there… You may find intriguing."

I hurriedly walk to the front doors and push one of them open. Halfway through, I glance back at him. He holds the packet open to page three and looks at it intently.

Did I get an answer from him? No. What am I doing at the grocery store then? Preparing and hoping for the best. "Round 2? Dinner at my place at 1800 hours." I think about the note I left for him. I wonder from aisle to aisle to gather ingredients. For dinner I decide on making Italian cuisine in homage to the cities of love. The closest thing to a man's heart is his stomach, so I am glad that I have cooking skills and knowledge of different cuisines to make things interesting. I am not old enough to buy wine, so I grab the right syrup and some sparkling water to make Italian sodas instead. I go over everything in my basket thrice to make sure that I have all that I need. Confident that everything is there, I head for checkout then head home.

I time my cooking so that it will be finished a little after he arrives. Assuming, he gets here on time. Assuming, he even comes. About ten minutes until the hour I walk over to my laptop to play some background music. Then I walk to my bed where the dress I plan on wearing is and slip it on. After adjusting the fabric into the right places, I glance at the clock. It is 1600 hours exactly. My eager eyes turn to the door, and I wait for the knock.

Hello!

I hope you guys like this chapter! Right now I am a little stuck. I do not know if I want their relationship to develop now, later, or never. Currently, there are a few ways I have in mind for this story to go... So, sorry if the next update takes too long as I will be figuring things out and playing with scenarios!

Finally, shout-out to BatmanBVB69, Ciana wolf, and KillerKitten343 for the favorite/follow! I feel happy (and motivated) knowing you guys like my story! Even if you guys become the only readers I will continue posting chapters for all of you!

Until next time!