Help Wanted Ads.
It's better to receive help, than to become helpless.
"Is she going to be okay?"
"Hn. "
"Well?"
"Sango dear, let the man work."
The world was spinning, spinning and sending a barrage of muffled voices.
Unbeknownst to her yet, Kagome had in-fact blacked out when once again- everything came crashing down on her. Everything was just a nauseating mess. She couldn't tell what happened let alone feel much with her senses currently dull. No, currently it felt like Kagome was in a wonderland of sorts, having fallen down a well to a land foreign to her.
"I know!" A female voice cried amongst the haze.
She felt so heavy- swimming in a semi pleasant fog. Kagome felt so free and careless of the world around her. Her worries and guilt melting away into a blissful- stench?
What is that god awful smell! A frown marred her lips and a groan of retaliation soon came through from Kagome. She really didn't want to leave this land but this smell! What was it? It was... it was... What was that!
Eyes groggily opening finally to the waking world, Kagome turned her head in a daze and drunken stupor to look around her surroundings. Making sure she was indeed- in the modern world. Quickly assessing her location, the young woman came to focus on the worried expressions of her dear friend Sango and Miroku, whom seemed to be rubbing his chin in thought analyzing her as if she were a creature of some sorts; this earned them a small frown. Tipping her head back and feeling movement with something warm and soft beneath her head, Kagome came to see the third person within their reunion to reality. Hazel eyes...
Instantly, her posture stiffened, her eyes darted along his face and body to make sure he was in-fact real and not a mirage. Despite the fact in his hand was a smelling salt, and though again he was here to help her by coincidence and though she had known he was nothing but always a good samaritan- she still did not want to see this man. Because-and perhaps this was more her fault and doing than his but... despite his kindness, she seemed to drag him-and her; down into the deeper realms of misfortune.
Once again she relaxed and her eyes grew heavy- not from exhaustion but from guilt bubbling up inside her heart.
"Look she's fading out again!" cried Sango with worry.
Slap!
"Stay with us Kagome!" Miroku pleaded as she was left in a daze yet again from the sheer force and unexpected sting of the mans hand with a yelp to prove it vocally.
Salt abandoned, the man resorted to a firm slap across Kagome's poor cheek, "Ouch! I wasn't fading out idiot!" she yelled to the man rather than her friends.
Hand resting upon her now fevered cheek, Kagome writhed with a childish pout and whimper here and there all the while her dear friends looked to each other with a sheepish smile and shrug. She swore she saw a flicker of something akin to-amusement in those hazel, almost golden eyes; and she could attest to in court if needed-that on her fathers grave there was the faintest tug of a smile on his usual blank face.
Is this man a sadist? and with that thought, Kagome shoved herself rather forcefully from the man. And to her dismay, the man had no reason to hold her therefore slamming her head into the floor with a thud. To which her friends flinched with a hiss of pain for Kagome, and to which she laid there-rolling in agony yet again. Argh! Life is a sadist and I the masochist!
Attempting to stand whilst cradling her poor and beating head, Kagome rose to her feet albeit shakily.
Sighing the stranger rose to full posture before reaching with firm hands now and braced the stumbling mess of a woman to her righted posture.
"Look, I don't know who you are and what- magic you have. But, every time you help me, something bad happens. Thank you for everything you've done and I'm sorry that I've ruined your reputation." She was utterly embarrassed, yet again-she made a fool of herself in front of this man.
Huffing a deep sigh, Kagome shifted her weight to lean on one leg before folding her arms across her chest.
"Are you done pouting like a child?" commented the stranger with a bored expression, his arms arms folding across his broad chest.
"No!" she cried wanting to be defiant right now, her head turning aside as she flinched feeling a throbbing wave of pain, after all- she did hit her head on the floor...twice.
Glancing to each other with brows raised, Sango and Miroku exchanged a silent message of sorts in both awe and shock of how the two now seemed to bicker. Nodding her head off in the direction on the store counter and kitchen, Sango and Miroku decided to let the angry couple; and that was what they seemed like. Sort their mess out hopefully, in the most human way.
"You're a jerk! You left me behind in the garage!"
"You wouldn't stop complaining."
"You let me hit my head on the floor just now!"
"You shoved yourself away from me."
"Why are you here?"
"For coffee."
"Why are you so damn calm!" Kagome demanded in a heated manner.
This time, a deep sigh rolled off the mans lips as his eyes fell shut once again and this lips thinned practicing what she assumed, was patience. "Why am I on the front page of the tabloid?"
"What? You think I control what they put on there?" Brows furrowed as the young woman was taken aback.
"Do you realize what situation this puts me in?" Pinning her down quickly with a firm gaze. Kagome felt her mouth suddenly dry- he was lecturing her like a father would to his child. "Do you know who I am?" Again, his voice showing authority that had her silent and mouth agape though eyes fiery before she shook her head.
Sighing; something she noticed that this man really loved doing. The stranger tapped his foot against the wood floor of the establishment before pausing then and pursing his lips. "I am this country's..." and then it dawned on her.
In the manner of a slow motion film, she let her eyes wander to his lips feeling her heart rate increase. She had to lip read to make sure what she finally realized matched what he was answering. Her anger fading so fast and her arms falling limp to her sides, it made sense why he hid his face from the cameras. Not many people had this mans looks save for a few, and it all came to this; face slapping, salt smelling, luggage tripping, and creeping baggage claim demands for it to finally make total sense,"...Prime Minister."
Stunned, astonished, awestruck, flabbergasted, stupefied-these were not perfect enough words to describe how she felt at this moment! How long would it take for the inner-workings of the tabloid community to find the true identity of this man? Not long- it never took them long. It was their job to find out who was who and did what.
All she could do currently was stand there with her mouth open like some- well, like some doll that was blown up for sexual favors. Raising a silver brow, the man watched as the woman once again fell into a silent stupor. This was something he found must be a common thing for her; not only did her mouth run often but so did her brain.
Finally, she moved. Grabbing the paper from the floor she had dropped; having seen the tabloids front page. She ripped open the pages- skimming through all the columns with a demon-like speed, slamming the paper on the table before running her fingers along the ink staining them. "What are you doing?" he demanded with faint curiosity.
This woman was indeed an oddity. In two days, his world went from normal and controlled- to chaos and now total disaster out of control from his grasp... for now. And what interested him yet irked him at the same time- he could not for the life of him, understand her.
"I'm looking through the 'Help Wanted' ads. There has to be someone out there who can fix this mess!" Cerulean eyes skimmed the ink so quickly in haste.
"Woman,-"
"Kagome." She interrupted.
"Kagome," the man growled in slight frustration."I highly doubt there is a way to remove yourself from the tabloids via the 'Help Wanted' columns."
"Well, I am at least trying. You on the other hand-Mr. My-pants-are-too-tight. Have yet to try anything."
Rather than retaliate right away, the man scoffed with a roll of his eyes, turning aside. And Kagome took that opportunity to take a quick peek -if her come-back was worth anything. So it is.
"Staring is rude." came his smooth voice, the faintest glimpse of a smirk on his lips. Gone before she could register if it was really there.
Huffing and brushing a lock of ebony hair behind her ear, Kagome continued to skim through the ads, turning the pages with haste, "You know, you never told me your name. It's easy to find mine despite the fact I had to inform you of it just now." she sounded a bit too bitter, and she knew why.
"I should tell you my name?" He asked rather incredulously. "You live in this country and you don't even know the Prime Ministers name?"
"I hate politics." was her simple reply with a simple shrug of her shoulders.
Now it was his turn to feel a headache coming along. Pinching his fingers to the bridge of his nose all before adjusting the glasses upon his face, the man sighed at the child-like woman before him. There he goes again, sighing. Is that how he breathes? Kagome thought with a small frown. "Sesshomaru."
Pausing from her adventures in the 'help wanted' ads, Kagome looked up to the man before offering a smile-which for the faintest moment, Sesshomaru thought the woman beautiful. "Sesshomaru- that's a very nice name,"
"Thank y-"
"Very fitting for a man like you." she continued before nonchalantly returning to the ads.
No! How dare he have thought for that moment, this woman was for the slightest instance attractive. If she perhaps kept her mouth shut maybe he would have thought that yes, she had her moments of beauty. But her mouth just had ruined that. And he was very sure she did not care.
Reaching into his coat pocket with a frown, Sesshomaru narrowed his eyes dangerously at the woman whom now ignored his existence in favor of a false hope. Pulling out his phone, the man turned his back to the woman sliding his free hand into the pant pocket of his sleek slim fit suit. At that moment, he seemed like the epitome of the model business man for a designers billboard.
"Jaken... Find who did this and shut down the article. Remove all existing tabloids from the city. Now." Ending the call and with the coldest smile standing proud, the man looked down to the hunched over woman who was looking at him once again with a frown. "There, matter solved."
Narrowing her eyes in a silent threat, Kagome glared at Sesshomaru. If that was all it took, then why did he delay this long! He did this on purpose she surmised... to make her look like a fool- and that smug smirk on his face. Her eyes scrunched further at him whilst she rose to stand at proper height still having to look up to him. He thinks he's better than me!
Of course he knew what he was doing and just to see that defeated glare made his blood run in excitement of having taken over the situation in his favor. He indeed felt above and better than the mess of the woman before him. However, his victory was short lived; despite Jaken en-route with helpers to cleanse the city of the papers, there were still some that were bought and perhaps internet articles that made it through. He would have to explain himself.
Kagome herself felt belittled and vengeful. Her stranger/ good samaritan became the cold and rude Sesshomaru, the Prime Minister from hell. With the sweetest smile she could muster-this made Sesshomaru very weary; he knew women and how... creative they could be. Kagome walked to the table in the corner and finished her coffee before gathering her belongings. "Well then Sesshomaru. Since we have no reason to see each other again, it was nice seeing you and I hope to never see you again."
Walking out the door and adjusting her bag and coast Sesshomaru shook his head feeling the weight of pressure from being stuck with this woman again lifting. Turning aside, he wnt to the counter for his coffee he had ignored before and grabbed his suitcase with the cafe owner Sango there in wait.
Ding!
"Oh!" Kagome popped her head back in the door with a wicked smile, "Thanks for buying me coffee Prime Minister! You sure are a swell guy." She all chimed before leaving abruptly with a dumbstruck and glaring Sesshomaru clutching to his wallet. She had gotten her revenge on him.
"Ehem."
Pulled from his death glare, Sesshomaru looked to the woman whom did not seem one bit phased by his expression and held her hand out waiting for the total charge to be paid. At that moment, Sesshomaru knew, he would find out every little thing he could about this woman and he would in turn gain the sweetest revenge. And Kagome whom spied at the other side of the window laughed watching the man pay for her coffee. Her stomach fluttering with laughter and life- this she felt for the slightest, was how... how her life was once.
Smiling a bit sadly the young woman walked away from the cafe to the park near by. She would perhaps try to use this current sensation to maybe... inspire her! She missed so deeply writing-yet the fear to do so was still present. Maybe this run in with that man would help her.
Maybe.