Chapter 2 – Making Plans
*Beep, Beep, Beep, Beep*
The familiar sound of Kagome's alarm clock snapped her out of a pleasant dream. But today when she reached over to the alarm clock she turned it off and began stretching out her stiff muscles.
Kagome had had a restful night last night. She felt ready to take on the day even though her uniform still had not arrived from her old home. She decided that she would put on something that made her feel pretty, something that she had been saving for her first date, to help her mood stay on the positive side.
The light blue dress hugged her figure in just the right places and flowed down until the top of her knees. The sleeves were short but the collar was modest and her cleavage was well hidden. She decided that she would pull her long raven tresses into a professional bun that made her neck and collar bones visible. She finished the look of with a light bit of makeup that made her dark brown eyes seem just a little bigger and called it good.
"Good morning, dear. You look lovely today." Her mother commented as she walked into the room. The compliment made her feel more confident in her appearance as she sat down to eat breakfast. She smiled to herself hoping that today was going to be a better day.
"Wow! You look amazing, Sis." Sota exclaimed as she took her seat across from him. Kagome knew that he meant that because he was still a little kid and always says what comes to his mind first.
"Thank you, Sota. Where is Grandpa?" Kagome looked around the room but did not see him anywhere. This was weird because he hadn't missed a meal with the family since they had moved in with him. Where could he be?
"He had some inventory and cleaning to do so he had breakfast early. Nothing to worry about." Her mom chimed from her place at the kitchen sink. Okay. That's good. It is nice to see him working again.
After breakfast Sota and Kagome headed out for school together. Today Sota was much livelier and was talking non-stop about his day at school yesterday. It had apparently been a great day because he got to sit next to the prettiest girl in the class and he got first place in the 100 meter race in gym class. Kagome just let him talk in his excited and animated way nodding and giving the occasional response so as to not ruin his day with how bad hers was. She was thankful for the quiet when they parted ways though.
She loved her little brother but he could really talk. She smiled to herself at how happy her little brother was and realized just how thankful she was that he was not affected by the sudden move. She may be unhappy but her brother was definitely more important. Same with her mom, she seemed happier here than she had back home. I guess I am the only one who really isn't happy. Maybe I am just being stubborn. I think I will try to act happier from now on and maybe I end up actually feeling that way later.
Kagome was so lost in thought that she did not hear a person walking up behind her. He walked up to her with some caution and when she didn't notice that he was standing right next to her he tapped her shoulder.
She looked up at him slightly startled. This was in part due to the fact that she was lost in thought as well as the man wasn't who she was expecting. When she looked up her eyes met a golden pair looking at her with curiosity.
"Oh! You startled me. It's Inuyasha right?" She looked at him and wondered why he had approached her.
"Yes that's right. And you are Kagome. I noticed the lack of uniform and figured it was you and thought that I would say hello." He tried to keep his eyes on her face but he couldn't help but let them wander just a little and skim the outfit that she was wearing. It was beautiful. She knew exactly what to do to make herself look good. She dressed like a woman and not like a girl trying to act like a woman. The dress was modest but accented her body in all the right places.
"Hello. Um, is there something on my dress you keep staring?" She looked down towards the ground and blushed a deep scarlet. She had also stared at the way he looked in his uniform but when she looked back up at his face he was staring down at her dress. It made her feel a bit self-conscious. She wasn't sure why.
"Oh no. It's just that that dress looks very nice on you." Inuyasha hadn't realized just how long he had been staring and when he looked back up at Kagome's face he noticed that she was no longer looking at him. He also noted the dark scarlet that was spreading from her face down her neck. His own cheeks began to flush slightly as he noticed how she had left her soft neck exposed. He had to completely look away from her as to not start imagining what he could do to that exposed flesh.
He coughed loudly and she looked at him once more. He seemed really innocent in that moment. The sharp features on his face and jaw seemed softer with the pale pink that his cheeks had turned. This made her smile and laugh ever so slightly. He's sweet.
She had never felt so comfortable around a guy before. Her laugh was relaxed and her eyes lit up with amusement. At the sound of her laugh Inuyasha looked at her. He found the way her smile danced around her face made him want to return the favor. He hadn't honestly smiled in months and was surprised in the way she brought it out of him.
"I think maybe we should finish the walk to school before we are late." Kagome broke through his thoughts and he laughed.
"You are probably right." He couldn't believe how easy that laugh had been. He couldn't even remember the last time he had laughed without some sort of effort.
They walked together the rest of the way to school and he found conversation to be easy with her and full of laughs. He offered to walk her to her classroom so that the moment they were sharing would be prolonged for just a few moments more and she held no objections. His hopes of continuing the walk alone were dashed as her friend Hojo came running up.
"Kagome! How are you?" Hojo came over with a smile. Kagome couldn't help but notice the new uniform that he was wearing and her smile waned just a little bit.
"You got your uniform. How sad I was looking forward to not being alone. I am good. You remember Inuyasha right? Inuyasha this is my friend Hojo from home." As she spoke Inuyasha couldn't help but notice that her smile seemed forced even though it had been natural and easy a second ago. He also noticed the slight hurt in the guy Hojo's face when she used the word "friend". It became apparent that he liked her and that she was clueless.
"Yeah. I remember." Both boys said in unison with equally flat tones. They stared each other down for a moment but were interrupted by the sound of Kagome's voice.
"Well we better get to class it is getting late. Inuyasha I think I will take a rain check on the escort to class because you still have to get to your class. I will see you later?" Kagome said this with a shy smile and looked apologetic.
"How 'bout we meet up for lunch in the same place as yesterday?" Inuyasha did not want the moment to end but it was clear that she wasn't going to let him take her to class with the bell looming near. He had to settle for seeing her later at lunch if she agreed.
"Yeah. That sounds like a great idea. I will head over there with what's her name…Songo…Yeah that's it! See you later." She said as they parted ways. She went into the north building with Hojo while he went into the south building.
Inuyasha couldn't place why he felt so cranky that he couldn't walk her to class but Hojo could. It just bothered him. He watched the pair walk away feeling a churning in his gut. Just when he thought he was going to lose his temper she looked back in his direction just before turning the corner and then waved at him. He raised his hand and waved back while his stomach did an excited little flip. She turned the corner and then disappeared. But his spirits stayed up because he would get to see her at lunch. And with that he walked off to his own classroom.
The morning passed by slowly for both of the teens. With four hours until lunch the slow crawl of the school day was eating at their patience.
For Inuyasha the time did not move fast enough because he was slightly late to class and his homeroom teacher not only busted his ass for that but also ragged on him for his "unnatural" hair color. Every adult he ever met thought that he dyed it that way to get attention but it was 100 percent natural and came from his head that way. It was the only memento that he had received from his father before he died. There was no way he was going to dye it just to get other people to stop looking at him funny.
He didn't even have the chance to talk to Miroku about their plans for lunch with Songo and Kagome. They had made plans the night before to go off campus and Inuyasha knew Miroku would be happy with and mad at him at the same time. He would be happy that they would be spending lunch with beautiful girls – Songo in particular. But he would be mad that Inuyasha made plans with someone else without consulting him. Well it's going to be an interesting day he thought to himself.
For Kagome the morning moved slowly because not only were her classes covering things she already knew like the back of her hand but because of how everyone stared at her as she walked into the room. This included her homeroom teacher. After a quick glance in her direction he began a lecture about her lack of uniform but the words died in his throat when he looked at her directly. It was strange watching her teacher's face go from stern to utter surprise to slight desire.
The way he started to look at her made her extremely uncomfortable and she walked over toward her desk trying to sit as quickly as possible. She did not quite make it in time to avoid the cat-calls, looks of desire from the boys, and looks of anger/jealousy from the girls. The only person who wasn't looking at her with hate or desire was the brunette behind her.
Songo was looking at Kagome with wide eyes that told her that Songo admired her. It was odd being looked at with such sincere admiration. There was no hint of jealousy in her eyes even though every girl she had ever met – even her best friends – would have a subtle indication of jealousy hidden there.
"Wow Kagome. You look amazing. Anything special going on today?" Songo said with a smile.
"Thanks. No I just wanted to make today better than yesterday and I thought that I would start with how I looked. Is that silly?" Kagome had been snapped out of her thoughts to answer Songo.
"No not at all. I totally get it. Do you want to hang out at lunch?" Songo looked at her with anticipation.
"Oh actually I already promised Inuyasha that I would have lunch with you guys." Kagome told her.
"Really? When did that happen?" Songo cocked her head in surprise and curiosity.
"This morning. We walked part of the way to school together. He seems like a nice guy." Kagome thought back to a few minutes ago when she and Hojo were walking into the building together. She had stopped to get one last look at the guy with the exotic silver hair and was surprised to find him in the same spot that she left him. He was staring after them and Kagome couldn't keep herself from giggling. So before she knew it she was waving at him. And then Hojo mentioned that they might be late and they entered the building.
"Alright everybody let's get started." Kagome was snapped back to class and turned toward the board effectively ending her conversation with Songo.
At 12:05 it was finally time for lunch. Songo and Kagome made their way from classroom 2-A to the little court yard where she had met Inuyasha for the first time. She couldn't help but feel excited for the easy conversation that he offered as well as the company of Sango and Miroku. They all seemed like really nice people even though Miroku was a bit of a pervert.
When the girls arrived at the court yard they were met with Inuyasha arguing with Miroku.
"Come on man it isn't that big a deal and besides if you minded so much you wouldn't have agreed to come." Inuyasha stated with irritation evident on his face.
"Yeah well you should think before you make plans with other people over your best friend. You are just lucky that they are pretty." Miroku said with a straight face.
"You know you are secretly happy you get to spend lunch with Songo. The only other difference is we won't be off campus. Get over it."
"Dude you are so hopeless. How can you fall…" Miroku's words died in his throat when he noticed the girls getting close. He didn't seem to notice the murderous glare that Inuyasha threw his way.
Songo waved her hand in the air and called to the boys when they were nearly standing next to them. When Inuyasha looked over at Kagome he couldn't help but smile. Conversation with her was so refreshing. She didn't ask him stupid questions or gush about how hansom he was with his silver hair. She just talked to him like he was anybody else. That made him feel like he hadn't in a long time.
"Hey guys." Songo said cheerily as the distance was closed between them.
"Hello. You look lovely as always Songo." Miroku looked at her trying to be charming while at the same time reaching for her butt.
"Hey!" A loud smack rang out as Songo's hand connected with his face.
Kagome couldn't help but laugh. This was the most fun she had had since she had gotten to Tokyo. This ragtag group of friends had such a strange relationship. She wondered how they could go from fighting one minute to smiling and laughing the next. This was perplexing to her because she had never seen such a relationship. Even her friends back home had a real hard time going from fighting to having a good time or vice versa.
The three looked over at her. She couldn't stop laughing. Eventually they joined in and all of them were just standing there laughing uncontrollably. It was the most Kagome had laughed in a very long time. It was nice to have no strings attached to the laughter. She didn't feel that it was inappropriate to laugh or felt she needed to laugh to make the friendship grow. She was having good old fashioned fun. It felt nice.
Miroku broke the laughter first.
"Wow. That's one hell of a dress." Miroku said while looking at her. "It was definitely worth it to stay on campus today." He wasn't looking at her with lust; he was looking at her with wonder. It was refreshing. Inuyasha looked at her the same way. It made her feel the way she had hoped she would on the first date she had planned to wear it for.
"Thanks. I needed to feel pretty today so I wore this dress. I was saving it for a special night but doesn't matter. It might have been a mistake though because I am getting a lot of looks that make me uncomfortable." Kagome shrugged her shoulders as she spoke.
"It was a great idea. You look stunning. May I ask what kind of special night?" Miroku spoke with the utmost curiosity. He really wanted to know the answer and Kagome felt she might as well give it. She felt really comfortable with them and felt that she didn't need to keep secrets.
"My first date. That is what I had it planned for." The shock was evident on Miroku's face. That was not what he had expected her to say at all.
All three of them spoke next at the same time, each with different looks of shock on their faces. "You've never been on a date!"
Kagome gave a meek "Yes" with a small awkward smile. She had no idea where this was going to go next.
"Alright then how about the four of us go out on a double date tonight. Me with Miroku and you with Inuyasha?" Sango chimed in. She looked really excited about the idea and Kagome notice that Miroku perked up with the suggestion.
"I don't know…"
"Oh come on. Let's put that dress to use. We can use it as a chance for you to get to know everyone better." Sango grabbed onto Kagome's arm and pleaded. She had a feeling that Sango would not let the idea go until she said yes.
"Are you sure it is a good idea? I mean I still don't really know my way around. I wouldn't want to be a bother." Kagome said unsure about what was happening.
"It's a great idea. Don't even worry about it. We will make sure that you are taken care of." Songo was still looking at her with pleading eyes. Kagome couldn't help herself.
"Oh alright." She had decided to agree rather than argue. What could it hurt anyway right?
"Great! Tonight we will all meet at your family's shrine. That way you don't have to try and find a place you aren't familiar with and possibly get lost. How about we all meet up at 7?" Songo looked visibly happier than she had earlier and she wasn't the only one. Everyone in the group seemed to be glowing. Even Inuyasha with his slightly surly demeanor.
Everyone agreed on the time and place and settled into easy conversation while they ate their lunches. When the bell chimed signaling the end of lunch they parted ways making sure to ensure everyone remembered the plan.
It is going to be an interesting night. Kagome thought to herself as she and Songo walked back to their classroom together.