Café

Inu-Tenshi

No character I use from Inuyasha belongs to me.

"Life is a tragedy for those who feel, and a comedy for those who think." -La Bruyere

Day 5

Early in the morning, Kagome had left the house, determined to take back what was hers. Now, she stood just outside of her, or rather, Narumi's house. She knocked on the door forcefully, ignoring the doorbell on the side. Knocking the door unusually hard was one way to release your anger.

By the time Narumi opened the door, Kagome had calmed down slightly.

"What is it so early in the morning? Do you have any idea what time it is?" Narumi spat out.

Kagome smirked. "Six in the morning. You have realized that I'm doing this just to spite you, haven't you?"

Narumi glared. "What do you want?"

"I'm not discussing this out here. Let me in," Kagome demanded.

Narumi refused. "No."

Kagome may be a kind person, but she wasn't someone who would let people like Narumi push her around. Especially after all that time she spent thinking about what had happened in a stranger's house. Well, Sesshoumaru was practically a stranger. He was only her co-worker and they didn't know much about each other anyway.

"Fine with me," Kagome shrugged. "But when bones start breaking, just remember --you asked for it."

Narumi seemed to reconsider. She knew Kagome wasn't just making an empty threat.

"Alright, I suppose you could come in." She sniffed haughtily.

Kagome snorted and pushed past her rudely. No use wasting mannerisms on people like Narumi.

They sat down in the kitchen, across from each other. "Well?" Narumi asked, impatient.

"Return this house to me." Kagome said, getting straight to the point.

"Didn't I say that grandmother gave it to me?" Narumi threw back defensively.

"Then where's her will? Show me where it says that and I'll let you have this house." Kagome stared at Narumi, waiting for an answer.

For a few minutes, Narumi was stumped. "...They burned it."

Kagome gaped at her, finding it hard to believe what her ears had heard. "Let's get this straight, Narumi. You say they burned it? I find that hard to believe." She folded her arms.

Kagome continued, "Okay, let's just cut it out. You and I both know that grandmother never really favored you. Explain why she would give you the house that she clearly gave to me first. Return it before I sue you."

Narumi had run out of excuses. "My God! Fine, you can have the house back, but I really don't want to go home yet! Can I live with you for at least a few months before I leave? You won't even know I'm here."

Pfft.

Kagome decided to negotiate. "Alright, let's make a deal. You have to help with the cleaning and cooking. And at most, you can only stay for one month, but feel free to leave after a week if you want to."

Feeling defeated, Narumi replied with an unenthusiastic "fine".

Kagome giddily left the house, but not before forcing Narumi to give her the new house keys.

By the time Kagome arrived at the café, it was 8:00 AM. She helped set up the tables along with Kouga and Sesshoumaru before putting the "open" sign on the glass door.

By 10:00, the café was full.

"Order of blueberry muffin, bagel with cream cheese, cappuccino and hot chocolate for table 3!" Kagome called out to Kouga who was currently working in the kitchen. He emerged moments later, balancing two trays of orders.

He looked in her direction and winked. "Let's catch up later. I've got customers to serve."

"You've been coming here a lot lately, haven't you?" Kagome asked, finding it funny.

"Only because you started to work here," Kouga grinned.

"Didn't you say you had customers to serve?" Kagome folded her arms, watching him. He only chuckled before going off to table 3.

"Welcome," Kagome automatically greeted as the door opened. "Oh my... what the heck are you doing here?"

"Now, now. Is that any way to treat a customer?" Narumi flipped her hair. "No, actually, I'm here for a job."

Kagome looked skeptical. "No, really, what are you here for?"

Narumi huffed. "Alright, alright. I heard there was a hottie here. But I am looking for a job, you know."

Kagome sighed. "I've never been the type with luck on my side, but this is just crossing the line," she muttered.

"Did you say something?" Narumi eyed her strangely.

"Nope." Kagome shifted her eyes to the side innocently and started talking to a customer. "Anything I can get you?"

"Sure. Do you have strawberry cake here?" the girl asked.

"Yes, we do. How many slices would you like?"

"Umm... two would be fine, thanks."

Kagome smiled at the girl before walking off, humming as she went.

Kouga, noticing someone standing there, went over. "What can I get you?" he asked.

Narumi examined him from head to toe. "So are you that hottie everyone's coming here for?" she asked, inching closer.

"What?" Kouga said, confused. "Oh, you mean Sesshoumaru? He's over there." He jerked his thumb and pointed in the opposite direction. Narumi stood on her toes to get a better view. "My, he is a hottie." She giggled.

She walked over daringly. "Excuse me, are there any positions available right now?"

Sesshoumaru ignored her. She tried again. "I mean, I'm looking for a job."

He turned and walked to another table, taking the orders of the three women sitting there.

"Looks aren't everything, you know!" Narumi yelled after him angrily. Nice talking to you, too, she thought sarcastically.

Just then, Kagome walked out of the kitchen, carrying a tray of freshly brewed coffee and ice water. Before she knew it, she had slammed into someone. First, the coffee tipped over and burned her hands because she couldn't stop it in time, then the ice water was so cold it made her jump. "Sh--!" She said under her breath.

It wasn't any better for Narumi. The coffee had spilled all over her outfit and had burned her chest, leaving a large red area just below her neck. Half of the ice water had spilled into her cleavage, leaking down to her underwear. She screamed in frustration. Luckily, Kagome had used the tray to balance the cups so that they didn't fall.

"That's gonna stain." Kagome grimaced as she saw Narumi's shirt.

"Kagome! You owe me an outfit!" Narumi shrieked.

"Hey, it wasn't entirely my fault. Who walked right into me?" Kagome argued.

"I don't care, you owe me!" Narumi said unreasonably.

"Alright, just stop yelling. We're causing a scene as it is. I'll pay for the shirt, okay?" Kagome whispered.

"And the pants," Narumi added.

"And the pants," Kagome agreed.

"And you're getting me a job here," Narumi said slyly, trying to get more out of this little incident.

"And I'm getting you a job here," Kagome nodded.

"Promise?" Narumi asked hopefully.

"Promise."

Narumi smirked triumphantly. Then Kagome realized what she had agreed to.

"No, wait. Get the job yourself."

"You promised. Don't break your promise." Narumi reminded her.

Kagome paused and decided to negotiate. "Only if you don't flirt while we're working."

Narumi frowned. "Fine."

When the "closed" sign had been put on the door, Kagome took off her uniform, revealing the outfit she had worn inside. She slumped in the couch located in the back room.

Narumi had already returned to the house after the manager had given her the job she wanted. She was to start work tomorrow.

Kagome rubbed her head and smacked it with her hands a few times to stop an oncoming headache.

"What are you doing?" Kouga asked as he walked in, dressed in normal clothing.

"Are you getting off right now?" Kagome asked.

He took a seat beside her. "Yeah."

Kagome leaned back and was ready to close her eyes when she noticed something. She leaned forward again. "Hey, who is that?" She squinted, pointing to a picture.

Kouga looked in the direction she was pointing.

"Isn't that Inuyasha?"

"Are you kidding? That's Sesshoumaru." Kouga laughed.

"Are you sure? Sesshoumaru? Are you certain?"

"What are you getting so worked up about?" He asked, startled for a second.

"It's because I have so many photos from back then, and I always thought it was Inuyasha in all of them." Kagome reluctantly admitted.

Kouga sighed. "Kagome, you know we're childhood friends. We met Inuyasha in high school whereas we were friends with Sesshoumaru since elementary." If you could even call us his friends, Kouga thought.

Kagome gaped. "Really?"

"What? You forgot?"

"No, I already told you, I mistook him for Inuyasha. I never remembered his name. Rather..." Kagome tilted her head. "Did he ever tell us?"

They looked at each other.

"I always knew it was Sesshoumaru." Kouga shrugged.

Kagome jumped up from her seat. "I'll see you tomorrow."

Of course, she just had to bump into Sesshoumaru. Kagome looked up and flushed. "Sorry." Then she ran out of the café. Her heart was racing.

You're telling me he was my childhood crush instead of Inuyasha?

I put Narumi in this chapter and made her interact with Kagome more because she's going to become one of those characters that appear frequently. So mainly, this chapter was for character interaction, which explains all the dialogue.

orpheus: I was planning on Kagome avoiding Sesshoumaru after this chapter. Yes, I have done some research on cafés, I even asked some of my friends who have worked as waitresses in cafés, but I now know it wasn't enough. Thanks for telling me that, I'll try to do better. And thank you for taking the time to read and even review.

Youko's play toy: Yup, it takes place in America, but I don't have a specific place, I couldn't find or think of a suitable one. What I can tell you though, is that the café is in a popular part of a city. Thanks for reviewing.

Spirit of insanity: Thanks for reviewing, it's fixed now.

Tokia: Thanks for all your comments. I sent you a PM. Maybe I'll use your version in some other story. I wasn't planning on being too descriptive for this one at first (I was testing something), but I've been getting reviews telling me to do so.

Ezarine Bloom: I'm not a good writer, so I tend to forget little things here and there, and the plot gets confusing for readers. Actually, my writing itself is confusing, but I'm still learning. Thanks for reviewing.

Again, thanks to those who actually read Café and to those who reviewed. If I ever start another story when I'm finished with this one, I hope my writing improves after all your comments. Thanks. I really, really, appreciate it. (: