Chapter 5

The five teenagers, all stuffed into Reo Hojo's tiny red car, pulled into the parking garage at Hinata's apartment building and climbed out. If Kagome though the outside of the building was fancy, the inside was even fancier. The lobby was sleek and modern, oozing luxury at every turn from the high vaulted ceilings right down to the dark slate tile that clicked underfoot, the sound echoing through the vast expanse of the space.

"Welcome back Mr. Adachi, Mr. Hojo." The person at the front desk greeted, an older man dressed in a smart suit with his graying hair slicked back. He wore a warm smile on his weathered face, waving his hand in greeting. Hinata gave the man a curt nod, leading them to the elevator on the other side of the huge room.

He pressed the button going up with slim fingers, stuffing his hands back into his pockets again while they waited. After only a moment or two, the doors opened, and they all crammed inside. Even the elevator was fancy, all black and so shiny on the inside that she could see her own reflection in its smooth, glassy surface. She watched the numbers go higher and higher as they steadily climbed floors, expecting them to stop any second but they didn't, they just kept going up.

"Geez, Hinata, what floor do you live on anyway?" She asked, looking to the spiky-haired boy who grinned, pointing up.

"Top floor, baby." He said smoothly like he'd said it a million times before. Kagome could already tell that he was proud of where he lived and didn't mind showing it off. She chuckled, shaking her head at him. Of course, he'd live on the top floor. She could tell that the girls had already been here before. They were absentmindedly chatting amongst themselves, Yuka popping her gum loudly, looking a bit bored.

After another minute or two, they finally reached the top, the twentieth floor, the elevator doors opening with a soft chime. The hallway was painted in a stark white, leading to a sleek looking double door, painted a lustrous black with silver handles. Hinata led the way, a small smirk playing on his features as he went to open it with a flourish.

The penthouse was ridiculously huge, all sleek black lines and everything modern and stylish, the contemporary furniture accenting the space beautifully. Kagome couldn't help the gasp that escaped her as she stood, awestruck. Natural light flooded in through the magnificent floor to ceiling windows. The living room was sunken into the floor, with a huge sectional in the center and an even bigger tv hanging on the wall above a polished marble fireplace. The whole place gave off major bachelor pad vibes, with its dark rich color scheme and sparing decorations. As beautiful as it all was, it seemed almost sterile. It was like they'd just hired someone to decorate, as it was missing all those little touches that make a home.

She wasn't sure what she had expected, but it surely wasn't this.

"Wow, Hinata, this is… amazing." Kagome said, spinning around to take it all in. The great room seemed impossibly big, opening into a grand kitchen drenched in the same luxurious black marble as the rest of the space.

"Thanks." He smirked, as he plopped down on the white suede sectional, propping his feet up. Ayumi sat next to him casually, crossing her legs in a delicate sort of way.

"So, you said your Dad is away on business?" She asked, interested. She'd never been somewhere so lavish before. It seemed almost a crime not to take her shoes off, but the others didn't bother so neither did she.

"Yeah, he owns Adachi Tech, so he's almost always off doing something or other." The boy said dismissively as if it didn't matter to him at all. Her heart softened, knowing that he must get lonely being here by himself all the time.

She didn't say anything back, just nodded sagely and went to sit on the couch with the others, tucking her legs up underneath her to get comfortable. Eri was to her left, with Yuka on the other side of her. Reo came to sit next to Hinata, passing him a dark brown bottle as he opened his own, popping off the metal top easily. Kagome could have scooped her own jaw up off the floor as the bitter scent of alcohol wafted up to her nose.

"Reo," she said, using his name for the first time, "is that… beer?" she was sure her eyes were as big as dinner plates as he casually took a sip.

"Uh, yeah, want one?"

Kagome just stared at him, flabbergasted. She shook her head dumbly, unable to believe that Hojo, strait-laced Hojo, was actually some sort of secret badass.

"Don't be such a square, Kagome." Eri elbowed her in the ribs sharply, and her jaw snapped shut. She was right, what else did kids their age do for fun besides drink and cause havoc? She had just never imagined that Reo would be so… so cool.

"So, what do you guys wanna do?" Hinata asked, flipping through the channels on the massive tv idly. "I'm not really in the mood for another movie."

"Yeah, me either," Hojo said, taking another sip of the beer.

"We could, um, we could hang out in the hot tub again," Ayumi suggested quietly, a blush already coloring her fair cheeks. Eri rolled her eyes.

"We don't even have our swimsuits, Ayumi."

"Oh…" The wavy-haired girl said as if she hadn't thought of that.

"Oh, I know!" Hojo said excitedly, "We could go hang out in the game room, there's a pool table."

"Yeah, that could be fun!" Yuka spoke up.

"well… I don't know how to play…" Kagome said uncertainly, brushing a lock of her hair behind her ear.

"Don't worry, we'll show you. "Hojo reassured her, smiling. "Hinata here kicks ass."

They all got up, following Reo and Hinata down a long hallway, going through one of the first doors on the left. The room was large, decorated in much the same way as the living room. Arcade machines lined one of the walls, with a massive tv screen on the other, and a shelf beneath it holding every gaming console and more video games than she could count. There were leather recliners, and a pool table placed in the center of the room.

As promised, Hojo and Hinata showed her the ropes. The objective of the game was pretty simple, all you had to do was get the ball of whichever team you were on, either solids or stripes and use the cue to shoot it into one of the holes that lined the edges. It sounded easy enough, in theory, but when it was her turn, she couldn't help but laugh at herself as she struggled to even aim the large wooden stick, missing the ball completely. The other girls weren't much better, which she was grateful for, but Hojo had been right when he said that Hinata kicked ass at this game.

They played a few rounds, and by the time they were wrapping it up, Kagome was actually starting to get the hang of it. But it was getting late, and Ayumi needed to get home before her parents flipped out, so they all loaded back up in Hojo's car again and he sped off into the night.

They dropped her off after Ayumi, and she left them with a series of thanks and promises that she would see them all again soon, probably that Friday if she could convince InuYasha to come.

When she finally got back home, it was almost 10 o'clock and Kagome couldn't believe that they had been hanging out for so long. She couldn't remember the last time she'd stayed out so late with a group of friends, but she'd had such a good time that she didn't care how late it was. She made sure to feed Buyo before making her way upstairs, stripping out of her clothes and tossing them in her hamper when she'd made it into her room. She took a quick bath, forgoing washing her hair, and plopped straight into bed, falling asleep as soon as her head hit the pillow.

It was the next morning, and Kagome was excited. Today was the day that InuYasha had said he would come to visit, and she wanted everything to be perfect for him. She spent the morning cleaning the house, going around and dusting almost obsessively. She wasn't sure what time he'd be coming, but she hoped it was soon because she was getting antsy.

She missed him, badly.

More than anything, she wanted him to sweep her up into his arms again and kiss her like he had that night at the hot springs. She wanted to feel that delicious rush as his hands roamed her skin, as his mouth claimed her.

She grew hot even thinking about, and that warm feeling in her belly was back again. Struggling to brush her more wicked thoughts away, she got back to work.

A few hours later, she was in the kitchen, cooking up some beef noodles, humming to herself happily as she did. When a pair of strong arms wrapped around her midsection suddenly, her immediate reaction was to elbow whoever it was, but she felt that unmistakable presence wash over her, so she leaned into the embrace with a deep sigh of contentment. "InuYasha…"

"Kagome…" his voice was rough, muffled as he had buried his face into her hair. She felt like the sea of emotions inside of her had calmed instantly with his touch, its waters becoming smooth and glassy as it grew still. She turned in his arms, forgetting about the noodles, only worried about touching him as much as she could. His woodsy smell, something musky and all his own enveloped her, and she breathed it in as much as she could as she settled herself against him. "You weren't scared when I snuck up on you?" he said, looking down at her with those burning amber eyes that captivated her.

"No," she shook her head, smiling. "I knew it was you."

He drew her closer, brushing his lips against her own in a sweet kiss. Being held by him, kissed by him, she swore that nothing, nothing could ever feel this good. He let her go, and she came back to reality, realizing that her beef was on the fast track to burning. She turned, quickly tending to the food. His large hands settled over her hips again and he leaned over her shoulder, sniffing.

"Whatcha cooking? Smells good."

She smiled, happy at the thought of cooking him something that he might actually enjoy. "Beef noodles." She answered, adding her veggies to the pan and stirring them around. The feel of him so close was distracting. His warm breath brushing over her cheek sent shivers running down her spine.

She finished up the food, and they went to sit at the table together. Eating with him felt intimate on a whole different level. It was perfectly domestic, watching him slurp up the noodles with fervor, making her laugh. It felt so easy between them, natural. He told her about the happenings in the village while she'd been gone, nothing too interesting except that a couple of people had fallen ill. He said it wasn't too serious, so they didn't linger on it and moved on to lighter topics.

"Shippo misses you. The brat's been following me around nonstop since you left." He said, setting his empty bowl down. She could feel the heavy weight of her own heartache settle down inside her chest, immediately wiping the smile off her face. She felt so guilty every time she had to leave the little kit; it broke her down a little more each time. He was just a little boy, really. Without a mom or a dad, she knew that he got lonely easy. Even though he had Sango and Miroku with him, she knew that he didn't rely on them in the same way as he did her.

"I miss him too," she said quietly. "I just wish that I could bring him here."

"yeah," InuYasha agreed, picking up on her change in mood easily, "your mom would really get a kick out of that little tail of his." He coaxed a laugh out of her at that and he was glad. The sound reverberated through him, spreading warmth everywhere it went.

"you're definitely right about that." The smile was back, bright and aimed directly at him. He would do anything to see her smile like that again.

The late afternoon sun filtered in through the windows, smattering her in a mosaic of golden light that reflected off the warm brown of her eyes, turning them the color of thick honey. InuYasha could've sworn that she was just getting more and more lovely with each passing day. She was wearing a simple… oh, what had she called it again? A dress? It was white, patterned with red flowers that reminded him of his own robe, and he wondered if she had worn it simply because of that. The thin straps left her slim shoulders exposed, and his eyes greedily drank up every inch of her porcelain skin, a small smirk twisting at his lips.

Kagome reached over the table to gently slide her hand into his own, eyes trained on him as if to gauge his reaction. When he laced their fingers together, he could practically see the relief wash over her. She relaxed instantly; her skin practically glowing. He was awed that something so simple, could make her so happy. That he could make her happy. He never imagined in a million years that he could feel this good. Even with… Kikyo things had never felt this way. But he shook away that thought almost as soon as it came, pushing it to the back of his mind and locking it away. These days, he was doing his best just to not think of her so much. But it was still hard.

He'd seen her soul catchers again last night, twisting and turning up into the air above the forest. His forest.

And though he loathed to admit it, the only thing that had stopped him from running off to find her had been the thought of seeing Kagome.

He had imagined the look in her eyes when she'd found him with Kikyo the first time, the shattered look that he would never forget. He'd tried to tell her without words then, that he would never choose her. It would always be Kikyo. That she should just go home and forget about him, that he didn't need her. After, when she'd left without saying goodbye, he never imagined that he'd see her again. At the time, he'd been mostly relieved but also a little sad. She was someone who wasn't afraid of him. Someone who didn't want him to be anything other than what he already was. But then… she'd done something that he still couldn't explain, even to this day.

She'd come back. But not only that, she'd come back for him. She'd promised that she would always be by his side and do anything she could for him. He still didn't get it. He'd treated her badly at times, so much so that he knew if their roles had been reversed, he would've walked away and never looked back

Kagome was strong in ways that he wasn't. She had a light inside her that drove her to care for people, even people that didn't deserve it, like him.

But she still smiled at him like he'd hung the moon in the sky, just for her.

"oh!" she said suddenly, getting up from the table with an excited gleam in her eye. "I have a surprise for you. Hold on just a sec, ill go grab it." she ran up the stairs, and he waited anxiously at the table, chewing on the inside of his cheek until he could taste blood.

She was back in a flash, holding a big bag in her hands, looking at him bashfully through her dark lashes. He could tell that she was worried about his reaction, and to be honest, he was too. What could it be? He didn't think anyone had ever gotten him a gift before.

She pushed the bag in front of him on the table, worrying her bottom lip between her teeth.

"Here you go." She said lightly. And when he just stared at the bag for a few seconds, not sure what to do in that moment she spoke again, her voice gentle. "Open it."

He looked up at her, eyes searching her face for a moment before they traveled back down to the thing and his hands slowly came up to pull out the contents. His fingers brushed fabric first, and he grabbed whatever it was and laid it out of the table in front of him. It was soft, black and similar to a yukata, but it had no ties, just holes for his arms and head. He looked back up at her, confused but she urged him to keep going.

By the time the bag was finally empty, he had a whole myriad of items on the table that he pretty much had no clue about. It was clothing of some sort, obviously, but that was pretty much the extent of his knowledge. The bright red had immediately caught his attention. It was like a haori, meant to be worn as an outer layer but this was stiff and made of some sort of thick hide. He turned it over in tentative fingers, examining it closely.

"So, you… want me to wear these?" he asked uncertainly, his eyes still trained on the futuristic garments before him, eyeing the shoes wearily.

"well… you don't have to." She said, unable to hide the disappointment in her voice. "I just thought that, well, it might be nice to be able to blend in a little more while you're here, just in case we wanted to, I don't know… go out."

InuYasha's eyes flashed up, reading her face as her words sunk in. Slowly, he nodded. He still wasn't sure, but for her, he would try.

"I don't know-how… well, I just, you might have to- " He coughed awkwardly, cheeks burning madly. "You might have to help me a little."

She looked so happy; he would gladly do whatever she asked just to see that look some more.

"Thank you, InuYasha." Her eyes shone beautifully, capturing him. "Really, I mean it."

"Yeah, yeah. Now just show me how to put these damn things on so we can get it over with." He grumbled, getting up from the table to gather the garments back up again. She only smiled, nodding in agreement as she led the way upstairs.

She wasn't sure how exactly to get started. He stood facing her in her bedroom, arms crossed and a blush coloring his cheeks. By the look on his face, he didn't know what to do either.

"So, you should, uh, take that off." She said, voice wavering. He looked at her blankly for a long, drawn-out moment. She could've sworn that time stopped. The air between them grew thick with an undeniable tension, and she couldn't help but hold her breath as her heart fluttered uncontrollably in her chest. His eyes were locked onto hers, boring into her with an intensity that made her stomach do a nervous little flip.

As if in slow motion, his hands finally came up to untie the top of his robe, and she watched, mesmerized as it fell away to his hips, revealing a thin white yukata underneath and rippling biceps that made her mouth water.

"That too." She said, her voice sounding thin and shaky to her own ears as she gestured to the offending fabric. She waited with bated breath while he took his time undoing the thing, nearly groaning aloud when it finally fell to the floor. His chest was broad, hard with sinewy muscle stacked underneath his tanned skin, and Kagome couldn't help but appreciate the sight before her. The half-demon may as well have been a god because he sure was built like one. Her eyes raked over him, trailing down the solid expanse of his pectorals, to his rippling abdominals and all the way down to the cut v that was chiseled into his hips, and to the smattering of white hair below his bellybutton that trailed all the way down until it disappeared beneath the robe that still covered his legs.

She quickly realized that she'd been staring much too long, and a furious blush spread across her cheeks as she awkwardly cleared her throat. "okay so, lets start with this," She passed him the tee-shirt, their fingers brushing each other lightly as she did, sending a shot of electricity all the way down her spine.

He stared at the fabric in his hands for a moment, studying it. She knew that he was waiting on her to tell him what do, so she instructed him softly, hoping that she wasn't making him feel uncomfortable by all this.

Finally, after some struggling, he pulled it on over his head, the tee shirt hugging his impressive swell of muscle in all the right places.

"Did I… do it right?" he asked, looking at her uncertainly.

"Yep, exactly right." She nodded, hoping to reassure him with her confidence. "Now its time for these." She said, passing him the jeans. This was going to be the hard part, she thought as her blush intensified. "I'll just… turn around." His face was unreadable, but he nodded almost imperceptibly, and she quickly put her back to him.

She could hear the last bit of his robe fall to the floor, causing her heart to beat against her ribcage at an impossible pace, threatening to burst from her chest and run off on its own. The thought of him being almost completely exposed, and so close to her, made that all too familiar heat to converge low in her belly again, wetness gathering at the spot where her thighs joined. She wasn't sure what to do with herself in that moment. Her body was betraying her, her knees weakening while her skin flushed pink.

"um… just slide your legs through the holes, one at a time." She said breathily, forcing the words past her teeth when they threatened to stick in her throat. She could hear him struggling, cursing under his breath while he fought with the garment. A long moment passed and all she could hear was the soft rustling of the jeans, and she prayed that they would fit him.

She fought the urge to turn around, calling out to him instead. "How's it going?"

"I think… I mean, they're on but I don't know… how to, uh, fasten them." He coughed uncomfortably, and she could practically see the look on his face in her mind's eye.

She slowly turned around, swallowing the gasp that nearly passed her lips when she saw him there, shirt hugging his chest and jeans riding low on his hips, the button popped open revealing even more of that smooth tanned skin to her hungry gaze. "Do you want me to… help?" she gulped, wringing her hands nervously on the hem of her dress.

His eyes locked onto hers, he nodded slowly. As if on their own accord, her feet started moving, closer and closer until there wasn't but a scant few inches between their bodies. She could feel the heat coming off his skin, her fingers shakily reaching out to fasten the button on the jeans. She avoided his eyes, not knowing what would happen if she were to look at him now.

Her hands were unsteady, it took her several tries, but she finally managed to secure it and she let out a long breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding. "There." She said, triumphantly, finally looking up to meet his gaze. It was intense. The way he was looking at her… it stirred up all sorts of feelings she didn't know what to do with, and she quickly backed up, putting a few feet between them so she could think a little more clearly.

"Now these are easy." She said, grabbing the shoes as she desperately tried to shake off the heated feeling that was rushing through her blood. "All you gotta do is shove your feet into 'em. But you gotta put these on first." She passed him the socks, guiding him to sit on the bed so he could do it a bit more easily.

She was surprised at how little he complained while he was grappling with the shoes, knowing good and well his aversion to anything covering his feet. But he took it all in stride, eventually managing to pull them on. He stood back up, testing them out with a curious look in his eyes.

"So, how do they feel?" she asked, unable to hide the anticipation in her voice as she looked him over. He was every bit as handsome as she imagined, even more so, actually.

"Okay, I guess." He shrugged noncommittally.

"Not too tight?" she probed further, taking a step closer to fully inspect him. He shook his head no, eyes never leaving her face. "okay good." She smiled, grabbing the red jacket from its spot on her dresser. He took it from her, sliding his arms through it easily. The hat completed the look, and she slid it around so that it was sitting on his head backward, a tuft of his white bangs peeking out.

"Wow…" she breathed, drinking him in. "you look… so handsome." She wanted to squeal with delight, thankful to Reo and Hinata who'd helped her pick it all out. It was perfect, even the heavy beads of subjugation around his neck added to the outfit, making it entirely his own. "Here, come look." She grabbed his hand, pulling him to stand in front of her full-length mirror.

He looked at himself, almost disbelieving that it was his own reflection staring back at him. "I like this…" he said, fingering the red leather. "what do you call it?"

"A jacket." She answered, not bothering to hide the smile that stretched across her face. "I couldn't help but think of you when I saw it." She added softly, as an afterthought.

He turned, and he was so close she could feel his breath brush against her cheek, the feeling provoking goosebumps to erupt across her skin. "Thank you." He said, voice soft as he looked down at her. His calloused hand grasped her own smaller one, pulling her even closer until she was pressed against him. Before she had time to react, his lips were capturing hers in a soft, tender kiss, one that left her breathless and wanting more.

She never wanted this moment to end.

He pulled away, all to soon and looked down at her with that smirk that she loved so much. "We should go out and… I don't know, take a walk or something. Ya know, since you got me all dressed up and everything."

"That sounds perfect, InuYasha." She said, stretching up onto her tippy toes for another one of his addictive kisses.

A/N: hey there! This chapter was so fun to write and honestly, I just love fanart of modern InuYasha so I basically just couldn't help myself haha. As always, I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter as much as I did and thanks for reading!