Note: I'd like to thank my first reviewer Cresenta's Lark: thanks for the nice review. And yeah, there will be more emotional parts and a lot of drama with Miroku, Sango, Inuyasha, and the others. Not all chaps will be in songfic forms, and Kagome will come into the story too. Soon, hopefully.
Disclaimer: you know the drill. (Insert disclaimer here) I hate not being able to own Inuyasha and KC's (Kelly Clarkson's) music. –sigh–
Chapter 3: Miss Independent
My heart was still beating like crazy by the time lunch rolled around. I walked to my usual table with my head spinning. It was still a shock to me that Miroku had actually brushed my bangs away and complemented my eyes. My friends were the only ones who did, and even then I didn't have many friends.
I sat down at the table in between Kagura and Ayame, and across form Inuyasha, who sat next to Koga. I sighed and leaned back allowing my mind to wander absently until I felt someone shaking me. As soon as I realized it, I cringed and pulled away.
"Oops!" Ayame exclaimed. "Sorry. I forgot that you didn't like anyone touching you. I'm sorry."
"It's okay," I replied. "So what is it?"
"You don't have a lunch."
"I know. I'm not hungry, anyway."
Kagura rested her head on her hands and remarked, "Your sure seem to be off in dreamland today, Sango. Mind telling us why?"
I tucked a loose strand of hair behind my ear and told them what happened.
"Wow," Koga said. "A Popular actually sat next to you? And you didn't tear his throat out? Nice."
"Don't let your guard down," Kagura warned. "I don't trust him and neither should you. You know Miroku's a player. He doesn't care about you. You'd be better off if you just avoid him."
"Aww, I think it's cute!" Ayame protested.
"Feh." Inuyasha leaned in closer and locked his eyes onto mine. "I think Kagura's right."
"Really?" Kagura's eyes widened in disbelief. "You never agree with me! Wait until Sesshomaru hears about this."
Inuyasha growled slightly, but never broke eye contact. "Listen, Sango. You know my ex- Kagome, right? Well, she told me before she moved away that she dated him briefly. Within a week or two, he had a new girlfriend and just left her in the dust. You trust that boy and you'll get your heart broken."
"Who says it was ever whole to start with?"
Inuyasha scowled and said, "Fine. Be that way. But don't say I didn't warn you."
"Oh, don't worry. I won't."
/Miss Independent;
Miss Self-sufficient;
Miss Keep-your-distance/
I reached out and took Koga's milk carton. Ignoring his protests, I flipped it open and tipped its contents over Inuyasha's head. "Instead I'll say: Got milk?" I pinched the tip of his wet ear between my thumb and forefinger and tugged on it until he growled softly.
Koga snickered. "You're gonna want to wash that off before it spoils."
"I know that!" Inuyasha snapped and pushed his chair back, leaping up and stalking off in a huff.
I grinned and tossed Koga his empty milk carton. "Here ya go. You can have it back now."
"Oh gee, thanks."
I rolled my eyes at his sarcasm and stood as well. With a quick wave goodbye, I left the table feeling somewhat better. Too bad it got worse as I passed the table Miroku was sitting at. "Hey! Sango!" he called.
I froze, clenched my teeth, and walked on a little faster, hoping he wouldn't notice. Too bad for me. He did. So did everyone else at the table.
Most everyone at the table stood up and crowded around, glaring through narrowed eyes. They asked me question. Lots of them. Thing like: "How do you know Miroku?" or "Who the hell do you think you are?" or "Why did you talk to him?" You know, things like that. I flinched away warily. I didn't know what would happen next. But I did know one thing: I wouldn't let myself be intimidated. Not this time.
/Miss Unafraid
Miss Outta-my-way
Miss Don't-let-a-man-interfere, no/
I bit my lip and imitated Inuyasha, growling a warning before I pushed them away. I forced my way through the crowd, or tried to. They didn't seem to keen on letting me out yet. Some still seemed mad that Miroku knew me, and others seemed surprised. But one person was mad. Miroku's girlfriend—Shima.
She stalked up to me in the crowd and glared at me. "Why were you talking to my boyfriend?" she demanded.
"He was the one who sat next to me," I corrected. "Not the other way around."
"Just stay away from him."
"I'll stay away from him," I assured. "You just better make sure he stays away from me." I shouldered my past her and made another attempt to reach the door. "Oh, and by the way," I added, "you might want to put him on a leash."
That did it. I must've been asking for a fight the way I said it, cause the next thing I knew, Shima had grabbed my arm and dragged me back, spun me around with a quick twist of her hand and glared daggers at me. "Keep away from him," she repeated, more threateningly.
"Hey. Let go of her."
/Miss On-her-own
Miss Almost-grown
Miss Never-let-a-man-help-her-off-my-throne/
I looked up to see Inuyasha looming over Shima. His hair was soaking wet, as was his shirt from the shoulders up, but he still looked pretty threatening with his flattened ears, bared fangs, sharp claws, and flaming amber eyes. "I said, 'Let her go,'" he growled.
"What are you, her boyfriend?" Shima asked, turning face him.
"Worse," Inuyasha hissed. "Her brother." He cracked his knuckles, and I knew he really would crush her skull if she didn't back down.
"Um…Shima." Miroku weaved through the crowd and took hold of Shima's arm, and pulled her away from Inuyasha. "Shima, don't fight with him. He'll tear you apart without a second thought—"
"Damn right," Inuyasha interrupted.
"He's an animal. He has no conscience. He will kill you."
"Hey! I have a conscience," Inuyasha snapped. "But I don't use it when someone's assaulting my friends or insulting me!"
"Inuyasha!" I stepped in and grabbed his arm, digging my fingernails into his skin. "This is my battle. Stay out of it."
Inuyasha scowled at me, then marched off with a quick "Feh." But he didn't leave. I saw him stop at the cafeteria doors and lean against the door, watching.
"Thanks for that," Miroku said, holding out his hand in a friendly gesture. "That could've turned ugly."
I didn't take his hand."
"It already was ugly!" Shima said loudly, giving me the Evil Eye.
Calmly I replied, "Yeah, she's right. It was already ugly because she showed up."
Shima's eyes narrowed into dangerous slits and she warned, "Watch it."
I rolled my eyes.
"Well, anyway, thanks," Miroku repeated. He offered his hand in a handshake again, but I just fixed him with a cold-eyed look. He let his hand drop and looked away awkwardly. I felt an air of satisfaction as I turned and pushed my way through the crowd, rejoining Inuyasha. Well, I listened to you Kagura, and you too Inuyasha, I thought. I won't trust him in the least. But I couldn't help but feel as if I were lying to myself.
/So, by keeping her heart protected
She'd never ever feel rejected
Little Miss Apprehensive
I said ooh, she fell in love/
Miroku sat next to me in Feudal History It felt…weird. The only other boys who have ever voluntarily sat net to me were Inuyasha, Koga, on occasion, and Bankotsu when we were dating. It made me uncomfortable. But I really freaked when I dropped my pencil near the end of class.
I was reading out of the text book, working on an assignment when my pencil rolled of my desk. I bent to get it, and Miroku did too. His fingers brushed over mine as I took hold of my pencil and his fingers took hold of it as well. My head bumped Miroku's as I looked up and I winced as the pain from last night's beating resurfaced.
"Oh, I'm sorry," Miroku apologized, pulling his hand back.
"No, it's all right," I replied. I pulled myself back up and tightened my grip around my pencil and tried to concentrate on the assignment.
"Are you okay? When our heads bumped, it looked like you were in pain."
"I-I'm fine."
He grabbed my hand in his left one and laid his right one on my shoulder. Twisting me around in my seat so faced him, he pressed, "Are you sure?"
I blushed slightly and pulled my hand out of his grasp. "Yeah, I'm sure." I found myself sighing as the bell rang and the teacher dismissed us. "Uh…thanks for worrying, though…" I added, seeing his look of disappointment. "I have to go." Then I gathered my belongings and fled the class.
/What is feeling taking over?
Thinking no one could open the door
Surprise! It's time to feel what's real/
"Sango, Sesshomaru needs me to pick up Rin—you remember her, right?"
"His adopted daughter, yeah, I remember."
"Yeah, so I can't drive you home," Inuyasha said. "You'll be okay walking home for today, right?"
"Don't worry about it. I'll be fine."
"Okay." Inuyasha's face creased worriedly. "Be careful." Then he made his way to his car.
I sighed, and held my backpack tighter as he began my long walk home. About halfway across the schoolyard, I felt a light tap on my shoulder and heard Miroku's voice. Of all the rotten…! "I heard what happened. Do want a ride?" he offered.
I stiffened. "What about Shima?"
"She's already gone home with her other friends. So what about it?"
"…I guess…"
"Great. My car's parked behind the school. C'mon." He took my hand gently and led me in the opposite direction. After a moment, he commented, "You sure gave in pretty easy."
"Yeah, well, my house is pretty far away, and my…" I swallowed. I still found it difficult to call him father. "…my father gets mad when I'm late."
Miroku must've noticed my uneasy pause, because his smile faltered and he frowned slightly. He didn't say anything about it though.
An icy winter glade (strong wind) cut through the air and blasted me. I shivered. Damn…I really regret letting Ayame borrow my sweater. I shivered again, and slowed a little as the bruises on my legs began to sting. Miroku must've noticed this too, because a second later, I felt something heavy around my shoulders. A flap of gray fluttering near my collarbone caught my attention.
Miroku's jacket.
I looked at him questioningly.
"You were cold," he said simply. "By the way, where's your sweater? You had it this morning."
"I let Ayame borrow it."
"Oh."
I pulled the jacket tighter around me.
/ What happened to Miss Independent?
No longer need to be defensive
Goodbye, old you, when love is you is true/
/Miss Guarded-heart
Miss Play-it-smart
Miss If-you-wanna use-that-line-you-better-not-start, no/
Miroku turned the heater up full blast in his car, but he didn't tell me to remove his jacket, so I didn't. I shifted in my seat and leaned my head on the window. I sighed for the umpteenth time that day and my breath fogged up the glass. I pull Miroku's jacket tighter around my shoulders and closed my eyes.
/But she miscalculated
She didn't want to end up jaded
And this miss decided not to miss out on true love/
/So, by changing her misconceptions
She went in a new direction
And found inside she felt a connection
She fell in love/
I felt myself shaken awake and when I came to, I found the car had stopped. I sat up and stifled a yawn. I was pretty shocked when I saw my house. I didn't even know that Miroku knew where I lived. "How'd you know where my house is?"
"I heard that you lived on the same street as Inuyasha and I know where Inuyasha's house is."
"How?"
"We used to be friends."
"What happened?"
"Kagome happened. Kagome was one of Inuyasha's best friends, but after I broke up with her, he hated me."
"I figure as much." I unlocked the passenger door and opened it. Before I could get out, though Miroku took hold of my arm and pulled me back. "What the hell…?!"
"Does your father hit you?"
I froze in shock. No one had ever asked me directly. "Wh-what makes you think that?"
"Don't play dumb with me, Sango," Miroku said. "I've been watching you. Whenever someone around raises their hand or moves towards you, you flinch away like you're afraid they're going to hit you. And when I was walking you to my car, I heard your voice crack when you said 'father.' So answer me, does he hit you?"
"…"
"I'll take that as a yes."
"Forget it," I said. "Just forget it." I slipped his jacket off and tossed it to him. "Thanks for the ride."
Before I could leave, Miroku called me back. "Here," he said, holding out a slip of white paper. "This is my cell phone number. Call me if you want to talk." I took it from him without a word.
And I left. Well, ran actually. I shoved the key into the lock and turned it; slamming open the door and I darted inside. I forced the door shut as a powerful gust of wind blew towards it and twisted the lock.
/ What is this feeling taking over?
Thinking no one could open the door
Surprise! It's time to feel what's real/
/What happened to Miss Independent?
No longer need to be defensive
Goodbye, old you, when love is true/
My heart beat wildly in my chest as I scrambled up the stairs. My head spun and I felt lightheaded. I cursed myself for feeling this way, and mentally kicked myself. I hated this feeling! I knew I shouldn't trust him, but still…
/When Miss Independent walked away
No time for the love that came her way
She looked in a mirror and thought today
What happened to Miss No longer afraid?/
/It took some time for her to see
How beautiful love could truly be
No more talk of, "Why can't that be me?"
I'm so glad I finally see/
I bit my lip. I knew this feeling, but that didn't mean I wanted to feel it. If anything, this'll just get me into trouble, and that's something I can't afford right now. It's probably best if I just avoided him for now…yeah, that's what I'll do. But still, the feeling nagged at me, and wouldn't go away. What was it? I think…
/What is this feeling taking over?
Thinking no one could open the door
Surprise! It's time to feel what's real/
/What happened to Miss Independent?
No longer need to be defensive
Goodbye, old you, when love is true/
/Miss Independent/
…is it…love?