Standard disclaimers apply.

A/N: Sorry for the delay in updates! I've been busy with another story, "Love after Loss", but here I am again! A thousand apologies!! In this chapter, Sango finds herself caught in a funny little situation where she has no choice except to face the very thing she is trying to evade.

Thank you for reading and please review!

Title: Rewind

Chapter 16: Nowhere to run

(Sango's POV)

Yesterday morning, we received the fantastic news that Sesshoumaru was finally out of his coma.

A miracle had really occurred, and all we could do was to thank the gods above for making this possible. Looking at a radiant Kagome, who was now happily eating her breakfast of egg porridge with great relish, I couldn't help but smile at her.

"Would you like to have more?" I asked, for she has only been able to finish less than half a bowl for the past few days.

She nodded, before pushing the empty bowl towards me. "Yes, please. And Sango-chan, I have no idea why, but I really feel like having dorayaki."

"I see that someone's famous appetite has returned!" I teased, spooning more of the home cooked porridge into the bowl.

"I'm happy, that's why! Or maybe I have a greedy little thing growing in me now." Kagome replied with a cute little smile. "Thank goodness he's awake…it just seems so surreal now!"

I nodded in agreement before continuing, "Kagome-chan, you know, Asami really wants to apolog-"

Kagome shook her head with a wave of her hand.

"Sango-chan. I do not hate her, really. What matters the most now is that Sess is alright, and I do not ask for more. Besides, these few days, I've done some thinking." She took a deep breath and set her spoon down.

"I almost lost Sess, and the mere thought of it was enough to make me want to die. She lost the one she loved too, Sango-chan…and if there's anything I feel, it'd be more of sympathy than anything else. If I hated her, wouldn't I be doing exactly what she was doing? What basis will I have to base my hate on then? The entire hating cycle will never end. Don't you agree?"

I could only nod in agreement. My best friend was right. Maybe it was sheer bad luck that thrown Asami into our lives, but her presence also made us realize how we should always treasure what we have.

"Just let her know I'm not mad at her, alright?" Kagome continued, patting my hand gently. "How about you, Sango-chan? How about you and Miroku?"

I kept silent, and Kagome instinctively knew as a friend that I needed more persuasion to go in the direction of talking.

"Do you remember why you left him?" She asked softly.

I nodded. It was infidelity that resulted in me leaving him.

"But you should know better than anyone else he did not do it." Kagome continued. "Then in this case, isn't it very unfair to Miroku? To be punished and suffering for something he did not do?"

"But-"

She cut me off. "He is also a victim of this entire incident."

"It's…it's not just that…" I muttered in exasperation with myself. Somewhere in my heart, I knew whatever my best friend was saying was right. My sentence died.

I could not bring myself to forgive myself…not when throughout the entire ordeal, I was distrusting of Miroku. I did not even try to hear his side of the story, while he was perfectly honest and I…I don't deserve a man like him.

"You see? You can't even find reasons for yourself anymore." Kagome pointed out gently but firmly. "Give him a second chance, alright? And I have a small request to make of you."

"Yes?"

"I wish to go to Asakusa temple when we get discharged, Sango-chan." She said, before placing a hand over her middle. "I want to thank Kannon-sama for watching over all of us, and of course, blessing me with this little one. Shall we go together?"

Relief flooded me as the topic switched.

"Of course. We will all go when you and Sesshoumaru get out of here." I smiled, before placing the spoon back in her hand. "Now eat up before we go over to visit your husband in his ward."

At the mention of her husband, Kagome nodded eagerly in agreement before finishing the rest of her breakfast quickly, resembling a young child as she did so.

As we reached Sesshoumaru's ward, Kagome pushed open the door eagerly, only to find the room empty. The wheelchair was neither in sight, and we could only wonder where he had gone.

"Where could he have gone to?" She asked absentmindedly, more of a statement than a question.

"Shall we go back to your ward then?" I asked in reply. "We'll come by later, alright?"

She nodded, but before I could turn her wheelchair in the other direction back to Kagome's ward, the sounds of another wheelchair turning around the corner drew our attentions.

It came gradually into sight, and we saw Sesshoumaru, with…him pushing the wheelchair along.

I felt a suffocating feeling engulf me, as if someone dipped me in ice water, and the only thing I wanted to do was run. As fast as I can, away from him.

"Sess! There you are!" Kagome squealed, before reaching out with both hands at her husband. Honestly, I could clearly see why Sesshoumaru adored her, treating her like a precious gem. She had a magical way of being beautiful, smart, cute and kind at the same time. "Where did you go?"

Kagome's enthusiasm at reaching her husband and him reaching out for her simultaneously only gave us no choice but to push the wheelchair closer to each other. Every step I took only brought me closer to Miroku, whom I knew clearly, was looking at me.

As the distance between us closed, Sesshoumaru grabbed Kagome's hands in his, before replying, "I went to your ward to find you, but you were not there."

Looking up at me from the wheelchair, he greeted me. "Good morning, Sango."

"Good morning, Sesshoumaru." I returned his greeting with a small bow, before awkwardly extending the morning greeting to the other individual with him. "Good morning, Miroku…"

"Good morning, Sango…" He replied, equally softly. "Good morning, Kagome."

It was awkward to say the least. The mounting tension in the air between the two of us could be cut with a knife; it was so thick and suffocating.

"Sango-chan, Miroku, can you bring us to my ward? I have something to show Sess." Kagome asked brightly, almost too brightly, giving away her hidden intention of trying to lighten the obviously tense atmosphere between me and him.

I looked away and involuntarily tightened my grip on the handles of the wheelchair, while Kagome talked non-stop about everything that happened to her in the past few hours of being separated from Sesshoumaru, even including details about her breakfast of egg porridge. Her husband would smile and nod, his attention clearly more on the woman herself than the words she was saying.

I was not jealous or whatsoever of their wonderful relationship and strong rapport, but I felt terribly uncomfortable with watching how close they were with my own eyes. Not to mention at that moment, Miroku was just beside me. This is even worse than the time when he turned up out of the blue at the izakaya in front of me. At least at that time, I could hate him freely with my heart.

Now, I could not. Not when I know he did not make any mistakes. It was so much worse, for I knew he was innocent but yet I could not bring myself to do anything about it. It was as if I keep banging into a barrier.

I dislike myself for that, but there was nothing I could do.

Faced with no other option in this situation, we had to walk beside each other at the same pace to allow Sesshoumaru and Kagome to talk along the way. It was weird to say the least, because he was just right beside me, and we were synchronizing our pace and footsteps without verbal communication.

"Why are the two of you so quiet?" Kagome asked abruptly. "If you're tired, we can push oursel-"

"No," We answered at the same time, causing us to look awkwardly at each other for a moment.

"Make some noise then!" Kagome laughed at the synchronized response to her question. At that time, I missed the conspiratorial grin she gave Sesshoumaru.

When we finally reached Kagome's ward after what seemed like to longest walk I've ever taken, we left Kagome and Sesshoumaru in the room to have some time to themselves, while we waited outside.

Sitting on the cold, hard plastic chairs, I felt his presence ever so strongly in the proximity. He was looking at me again, and I knew it. I didn't know what to do, and until I did, I would keep quiet.

Silence reigned like an invisible field above us, and for some unknown reasons, the silence seemed jarring. Was there even such a thing as noisy silence?

"Sango."

That voice snapped me out of my reverie. I hesitated for a moment, before I replied, "Yes?"

"Why are you avoiding me?" Miroku asked, his voice soft and low. He didn't seem to hold traces of anger, but he did point out that I was avoiding him. He didn't even bother to ask if I was, all he wanted is to know the reason. That's always the problem with being confronted by one's loved ones…they know too much about you for you to evade.

"I'm not." I could think of nothing else but denial.

"I heard that you are adopting Asami's baby…Is that true?"

I noticed he gave up questioning me on my avoidance of the issue.

"Yes…I thought she seemed like a sweet little thing, and she does not deserve this fate."

He was silent for a moment.

"Sango…the baby deserves nothing but the best, right?" He started, only to continue when I gave a nod. "Can we give her a complete family together?"

I inwardly gasp, and the nervousness I felt caused the entire roof of my mouth to go dry, and my heart rate escalated.

He…he just mentioned giving the child a complete family. The implications of his words were clear. Meanwhile, I remained silent, like the useless woman I am.

"Sango, the truth is now out, isn't it?" He sat down beside me, placing his hands on either side of my shoulder to bring me to face him directly. "I did not have an affair with Asami, neither did I have a child. There was no mistake in our marriage, we are all victims. What's holding you back now?"

"I…I…" I looked at his face, feeling the familiar sensation of oncoming tears prickling at the back of my eyes.

"We love each other, Sango. If not, neither of us would be in so much pain."

"I…You don't understand, Miroku…The problem lies not with you anymore." I whispered, emboldened by his directness in facing the incident. "It lies with me…I…I have been so doubtful of you even when we are supposedly married, and was quick to believe Asami's lies…"

"No, no…I don't mind that at all…I don't blame you…" He shook his head, mumbling softly and almost incoherently.

"That's the problem!" I cried out, not caring if my voice was raised. "You are too forgiving, too nice and too good for me! But yet I did not believe you...how can you still be so nice to me? How can you still want to talk to me? I…I don't deserve you at all, Miroku!"

To be continued…

A/N: This has got to be the most evil cliffie ever, eh? Lol. Sorry for that, it's really not that I want to torture you guys…lol but I need to get to bed! Mom's nagging at me. See you guys in the next chapter!