"I love you." Just three words, but the moment I say them the whole world changes, like Magic!

Today I'm going to say them to you!"

It had been several weeks since the Shikon No Tama had been completed and since she had been forced home, barely having time to say goodbye to her friends and loved ones. She screamed and cried and kicked at the side of the well. She begged the jewel to take her back to the past.

Several weeks had passed since Kagome Higurashi was forced to return to the modern era, and she was barely able to say goodbye to her friends and loved ones.

She wanted nothing more than to break the jewel in a thousand tiny pieces again. That was how her mother found her daughter. Slumped on the ground, the jewel discarded off to the side. Her mother called for Souta and together the two of them coaxed her out of the well. Souta swiped the jewel from the dirt and pocketed it, he'd make sure to give it back to her later.

Her mother set her in a chair and cleaned the dirt, blood, and grime from her face. She looked absolutely broken and devastated.

"Kagome…" Her heart broke as fresh tears fell from her eyes.

"The Well sealed itself…" she whispered, her voice hoarse from the screaming and crying.

"Oh, Kagome," she pulled her daughter into a loving embrace. Throughout the night, her mother managed to get the gist of what had happened. The floor and table were littered with tissues from the tears Kagome and her mother shed. After she had settled down, she promptly passed out on the couch.

Souta brought out a blanket and covered his sister with it and gave her a pat on the head, "I hope she'll be okay."

"Your sister is strong, she'll get past this. She has the support she needs from us," Her mother smiled, "now, off to bed with you! You have a soccer game coming up!"

Weeks passed by, and Kagome slowly came around. She still sat beneath the Goshinboku and mourned the loss of her friends.

"What's all of this?" Kagome asked her mother one evening. On the dinner table were scattered letters.

"While you've been…moruning," Her mother started, "I took the liberty of trying to find a High School that will accept you last minute…"

"And with poor attendance and grades." Kagome smiled and sat down across from her, "I appreciate you, Mom. How's it going?"

"Oh, this is nothing dear," her mother sighed. "It hasn't been easy. All the surrounding high schools have declined your applications, so unfortunately, i've had to branch out to neighboring cities."

She slid an envelope across the table.

Kagome opened it, "Yagami High, eh?" She would be lying if she said she wasn't anxious to start a new school in a new place with people she's never met. Especially after everything that's happened. It still felt like the Well had closed itself off yesterday.

"I reached out to an old high school friend of mine, and she agreed to allow you to stay with them until you feel the need to find an apartment," Her mother said. "Of course, I arranged a meeting with her and her son. I didn't want you to feel so awkward."

Kagome truly appreciated her mother. She had been supportive of her no matter what she did.

In the coming days, Kagome was set to meet her mother's friend and her son. It wouldn't be long before they showed up and got acquainted with one another. Kagome bit her lip nervously as her leg bounced up and down. It wasn't long before a knock sounded throughout the house.

"Coming!" Her mother wiped her hands clean and greeted her guests at the door. "Please, right this way!"

Kagome's mother showed them to the kitchen, where Kagome was anxiously waiting to meet them. "This is Karasuma Ooji and his mother!"

"You must be Kagome!" his mother pulled Kagome into a hug, "My, you're a beauty!"

"T-Thanks!" she smiled at the woman before her. Her son nodded his head in her direction

"Please, have a seat! The snacks are just about done!"

The two of them sat across from Kagome and fell into a sort of awkward silence. "So! I hear you'll be attending Yagami High with Oji here, correct?"

"Oh, um, yes, that is correct," Kagome answered. "Well," The woman wrung her hands together, "As much as I would love for you to stay with us, Kagome. My husband and I are planning on going to America for a while."

"Oh…" to say she was disappointed was an understatement; she'd been denied every high school in the area, and there was no way she could gather enough money to get a small apartment in the time she had.

"I-I mean, well, that is, we would love for someone to house-sit for us!" Mrs. Karasuma beamed at the young girl, "I do owe your mother quite a lot."

"Oh, nonsense, I hardly did anything!" Kagome's mother set a plate full of cookies in the middle of the table.

"No need to be so shy, dear," Mrs. Karasuma grinned, "After all, you are the sole reason I met my current husband. We have a beautiful child and a beautiful home, all thanks to you. If you hadn't set us up, I'm not sure where I would be today! So please, allow me to do this for you."

"I don't want to be a burden…" Kagome mumbled, playing with the end of her skirt.

"Oh no! You wouldn't be a burden at all! It would make me feel LOADS better knowing someone is there watching over things while we were away!"

"Well… if you insist…"

"I do, very much so!" She grinned at Kagome, "You'd be doing us a huge favor."

In the end, Kagome agreed. She'd be living in a nice home, alone. In a stranger's house. She glanced at the young boy sitting quietly beside his mother. He hadn't said much of anything at all. She was sure he hadn't even blinked! He was very stoic-like, in her opinion.

"As much as I would love to stay and chat some more, there are things we have to do!" Mrs. Karasuma rose from the table, "I would also like to prepare the guest bedroom for your daughter!"

Her mother walked their guest to the door. Kagome spared one more glance at the Karasuma boy before retiring to her room for the evening. She really needed to soak in a hot bath.

A few more weeks passed by, and Kagome found herself getting ready to board the train to head to her new, temporary home.

"Make sure you call us and let us know how things are going, dear." Her mother gave her a tight squeeze. "I'll have the rest of your things sent to you throughout the week."

"Thank you, Mom, for everything you've done for me!" Kagome wiped a tear that threatened to fall from her eye. "And you," she turned to her brother, "Make sure you give them hell on the soccer field!" She ruffled his hair.

"Before you go, sis…" Souta fished something out of his pocket and presented it to the former priestess. Her smile slightly dropped at the small jewel that laid in the palm of his hand.

She hesitated before taking the cursed marble from him. "Thanks, Souta. I don't know what would have happened if it had gotten into the wrong hands." The Shikon No Tama was to be protected at all times. It affected not only demons but also humans. She hugged her little brother and winked at him.

She waved goodbye to her family as the train pulled up, and she boarded. "Wish me luck!"

The train ride felt like it took an eternity. She was on the train for a few hours before she began to doze off. She was startled awake by the train coming to a halt and the doors opening to let passengers on and off. She let out a relieved sigh, gathered her bag, and quickly stepped onto the platform. said her son would be waiting for her at the train station when she arrived.

"Miss. Higurashi?" a soft voice spoke from suddenly behind her. She turned around with a quiet gasp.

"You scared me!"

"I apologize for that," he said and grabbed one of her bags. Without so much as another word, he began walking. He didn't seem like he was the type to engage in conversation.

They walked in silence, Kagome took in the sights as they strolled through the neighborhood.

By the time they arrived at the house, she concluded that Karasuma Oji was kind of boring. He hadn't spoken a single word during their entire walk home. She was partially glad for that.

Once they arrived at his home, he gave her a small tour of the house. "I already picked up your schedule and uniform. Mother took the liberty of decorating your room and left a note on your bed."

"Ah, thanks," she smiled at him as he walked away to go do whatever he did. "This is going to be a long week." She shook her head and opened the door to her new bedroom. On the bed was the uniform and small letter, just like Karasuma had said.

She examined the uniform and smiled. She kind of liked it. The skirt was red and a little longer than her old one and it was cute. A much-needed change.

She picked up the letter and read over it.

Dear Kagome,

I do apologize that we were unable to see you before we left for America! Believe it or not, Karasuma did a lot of the decorating and choosing things he thought you might like. I dare say he did a splendid job. We'll make sure to send you some money! Enjoy your stay, Kagome!

-Sincerely

Mr. and Mrs. Ooji

Kagome smiled at the letter and tucked it safely in a drawer for safe keeping. Perhaps it wouldn't be so bad living in the Karasuma household. Alone. She had a week to adjust to her new surroundings before school started. She had a hard time getting Karasuma to show her around, but she found a way to get what she wanted out of the stoic boy.

Turned out Karasuma Oji was utterly in love with curry, and she used that to her advantage. It was on a night that she decided to make the meal he loved oh so much when she caught him practically drooling at the sight of it. She smirked.

"Hey Karasuma~" she sang and spun around to face him.

"What is it, Miss Higurashi?"

"You can have a plate of this curry," she moved the plate side to side, watching as he followed it, "IF you show me around tomorrow. To get to know the area."

"Alright then," he agreed without a moment's hesitation. Kagome smiled and handed him the plate. She dished herself a plate and sat across from him. She let out a sigh, It seemed just like yesterday she was running around in Feudal Japan with blood-thirsty demons chasing after her and her jewel shards. Now, she was having dinner like a normal teenage girl. "Well, for the most part…" she thought about the jewel hiding beneath her shirt. It was still a thing to be protected from the greedy hands of humans. She scowled at that damn jewel. It was nothing but a burden.

After dinner, Karasuma offered to clean up, seeing as how she cooked dinner. Kagome nodded and decided to take a bath and then go to bed.

"Don't forget about tomorrow!" She called to him from across the room.

"I won't," he replied softly.

Kagome: 1

Karasuma: 0

Karasuma and Kagome had spent the rest of the week going into town. He showed her around the area, allowing her to take in the sights and learn her way around. "As a thank you, I'll make curry tonight! Just for you!" She grinned as he perked up at the mention of the thing he loved the most. She was pretty sure he smiled, too.

Throughout the week, she learned that he could eat curry and nothing else and be satisfied with just that. Kagome, on the other hand, was tired of the same old dish. So, she made single servings for him and made something else entirely for herself. A girl simply couldn't live off of curry for the rest of her life. Karasuma, maybe. Kagome, not so much.

Before she knew it, Kagome was standing in front of a mirror looking over herself in her new uniform. Her first day of high school. She was nervous, and her nerves only grew as she and Karasuma walked closer and closer to her new school.

She prayed that Karasume wouldn't leave her as soon as they stepped onto school grounds. Unfortunately for her, that was actually what happened.

"Hey, Karasuma!" a voice called out as soon as the duo stepped onto the school grounds. Both Kagome and Karasuma turned around to his friend. The male completely ignored her as he all but whisked Karasuma away. "See you later, Miss Higurashi," he told her as the other guy took him away.

Her eye twitched. Who was going to be her school guide now?

After standing there looking like a lost puppy, she noticed a girl a little younger than her spacing off. She seemed friendly enough. She took a step towards her but froze when she noticed her pigtails twitch. "Are they alive?" Kagome gaped at them. She was so caught up in her twitching pigtails that she almost missed her entirely. On instinct, Kagome reached out and snatched her wrist. "Huh?" the girl turned towards her.

"S-sorry, I didn't mean to grab you like that all of a sudden," Kagome released her wrist and gave her a quick bow. "I'm new here, and my guide was just whisked away from me. Would you mind showing me around?"

"Sure! I'm Tenma Tsukamoto!" she giggled at the priestess as she held out a hand for her to shake.

"Kagome Higurashi." Kagome couldn't help but smile at the bubbly girl; she radiated nothing but positive vibes.

"Let's go see what class we're in!" She grabbed Kagome's arm and dragged her off to where a large group of students were crowded around several bulletin boards.

Tenma looked up at the board. "I'm too nervous to look." She closed her eyes and folded her hands in front of her. "Oh, please let Karasuma be in my class." Kagome blinked. Karasuma... Oji? She was about to say something when the sound of a motorcycle and screaming students interrupted her. Kagome glared at whoever was causing all the ruckus.

"Tenma!" Three girls approached Kagome and Tenma, drawing her attention away from the student wearing sunglasses.

"Hey girls, what's going on?" Tenma greeted the three girls who approached her.

"Did you hear the good news?" The girl with long blond hair tied into pigtails. Her eyes were a beautiful amber color that reminded her slightly of Inuyasha. She swallowed the lump in her throat and turned to the other two.

"We're all in class 2-C." Kagome looked at the second girl with the shorter, lighter shade of blue hair and eyes to match them.

"Including you." And finally, the shorter of the three finished. Her face showed hardly any emotion, but somehow managed to show more emotion than Karasuma.

"Really? Hurrah! My three best friends, all together, it's wonderful! I knew today was going to be my lucky day! But-" she dramatically turned to look at the board with all the classes on it.

"Is there something wrong?" the shorter girl asked.

"Oh, definitely not! No problem here!"

"So, who's your friend?" the blonde haired girl, pointing a finger at Kagome.

"A-ah, I'm Kagome Higurashi. Nice to meet you." Kagome gave them a small bow.

"Kagome, these are my friends, Eri, Makoto, and Akira," Tenma pointed out who was who as she introduced the three of them to her.

"Nice to meet you!" she smiled at the three girls.

"Looks like you're in our class as well," Eri pointed out. Kagome turned to look at the board; sure enough, there was her name under Karasumas. She felt slightly relieved to have him in her class as well.

Kagome felt herself being pushed back with the crowd as the guy with the sunglasses approached the board. He stopped in front of them, and then his aura flared around him for a few seconds. The other girls didn't seem to pay him any mind, talking amongst themselves.

"D." a boy with tall blonde hair said. "Just face it Harima, I saw you on the D list."

The one named Harima punched the guy in the cheek. Kagome slapped a hand over her mouth to keep from laughing at the guy. "What was that for?" he asked, clearly in pain from the punch he received.

"That was just a love tap. That's what happens when people distract me," he said. When he could not find his name on the list, he looked at the 2-D list. "Kenji Harimashi!" Harima turned around and landed another punch on the poor boy. "That's not my name! You upset my vibration for nothing! You vibe killer."

"Sorry! I-I didn't know you were vibrating!"

Kagome snorted. She didn't mean to eavesdrop on their conversation, but she had nothing better to do at this point. "Hey! Is there something funny?" Harima pointed an accusing finger at her. Kagome shook her head, and he turned back towards the other guy. "Try to be a little bit more sensitive from now on. Ya know, like me." He looked back at the board. She rolled her eyes. She could hardly believe that he was a sensitive guy.

He checked each of the classes, and his name wasn't under any of them.

"Harima..." one of the teachers approached the confused badass. "Why are you checking the level two list? You were held back, don't you remember?"

He face-palmed, muttering an 'oh crap' under his breath and then proceeded to walk away.

As soon as he was gone, everyone crowded around the board once more. Kagome shook her head and turned her attention back to the other girls. Tenma held her hands in a prayer-like motion as another girl approached her. They looked similar, like sisters, maybe?

"How did it go? Is he in your class?" she asked Tenma, who fidgeted in her spot.

"Can't... Look..." she mumbled.

"Would it be easier if I looked for you?" the girl turned to look at the board.

Tenma let out a dramatic gasp. "No! I've got to see this with my very own eyes!" She looked at the board, scanning over the names. "Oji Karasuma!" her hands went to her mouth. "We're in the same class!" She made a punching motion at the girl, who was quick to block it in excitement.

"Good for you!"

As Tenma was distracted, Eri approached her. "Hey Kagome, what's up with you and Karasuma? We saw you two walking together this morning. Are you guys together?" she questioned her.

"Oh hell no!" Kagome proclaimed. "I live further away, much further. My mom and his mom are best friends from high school. They made arrangements so that I could attend school. I'm just living with them temporarily." Kagome explained, running a hand through her long raven hair. "I do believe he is in a committed relationship though."

Eri let out a small gasp. "With who?"

Kagome smiled, "Curry."

The two of them let out a fit of giggles.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Tenma and her friends were gracious enough to show Kagome around the school. She quickly became one of their friends. After school let out, Kagome separated from the girls and met up with Karasuma at his shoe locker. In his hands he held a giant scroll.

"What's up with the scroll?"

"I'm not sure," he said as he opened the scroll and began reading through it. "Go on without me."

"I imagine he'll be here awhile."

First day of high school? Success.

She didn't know how long she waited for Karasuma to come home, but it was well after she had gone to bed. She left him a note and a plate of curry in the microwave. "Surely he wouldn't want it to spoil." She smiled and headed for bed.

She would never admit it out loud, but she was going to miss Karasuma. Supposedly, he was leaving for America super early in the morning. She sighed; she wasn't looking forward to living in this house all by herself.

The next morning, Kagome found herself walking to school alone. She assumed Karasuma was on a flight to America. She let out a sigh.

When she got to the school gates, she saw Akira, Eri, and Makoto hanging out by the gate of the school. Kagome waved and approached them, "Hey guys, whats up?"

"We're just waiting on Tenma to show up," Makoto grinned at her. While they all waited for the ditzy friend to show up, they made small talk, getting to know more about Kagome and eventually exchanging phone numbers. Kagome smiled at the contacts added to her phone. Other than her family, Eri, Yuka, and Ayumi, who never really talked to her much anymore, she didn't have many friends.

Makoto had also added Tenma's number in her phone as well.

"Hey, girls!" Tenma waved at them as she approached them. They all offered her a smile and a wave of their own.

"Ready to go?" Akira slung her bag over her shoulder

"Yep!" Tenma grinned.

As they walked the halls, Tenma let out a sigh of disappointment. "Tenma?" Kagome looked at the girl. "Are you okay? You seem kind of down today."

The girl instantly perked up. "Oh, I'm fine! Nothing to worry about here!" She let out a nervous giggle.

Kagome gave her a 'yeah right' kind of look but decided to let it go.

She was the first to enter their classroom and stopped dead in her tracks. "Karasuma?" she mumbled.

Beside her, Tenma gasped, "It's, it's, it's Karasuma!? But I thought he transferred to another school?"

"No. For some reason, he decided to postpone the trip," Akira commented.

"He managed to talk his parents into finishing the school year here." Eri chimed in.

"Why would he?" Tenma looked between the two girls. "How come?"

"No one knows for sure, but the rumor is someone asked him to," Makoto shrugged.

"Maybe that was what that giant scroll was about," Kagome confirmed with a nod. It had to be.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Kagome raised a curious eyebrow as Tenma sat beside Karasuma without realizing it. She set her pen down and waited for the young girl to notice. The books she was reading was quite interesting. "Wonder how this will play out." It didn't take long for Kagome to figure out that Tenma was in love with Karasuma. The question was... Why?

Kagome glanced at Karasuma, "I suppose he is attractive, but he doesn't seem like he has much of a personality, until it comes to curry."

She watched as Tenma began nodding off not ten seconds after opening her book and then trying to refocus on the text. She turned to Karasuma, "Oh? She's gonna talk to him." Kagome rested her head on her hand as she watched the scene before her unfold.

"Excuse me, what does this expression mean?" Tenma asked Karasuma.

"Oh, that. That means rabbit running away," he answered in his small, quiet voice.

"Oh, of course! Thanks so much for your help!" She gave him a stiff smile and turned away.

"Sure."

Kagome slapped a hand over her mouth to keep from laughing out loud as Tenma actually took off. "That's right, rabbit running away," he said, watching her dash away from the table.

Tenma was crouched onto the floor before returning, "Ow. My contact," the spark of mischief present in her eyes. "Could you read this phrase for me?"

"Sure thing!" Another guy leaned over, "Let me see it says 'I love you'. Hey, are you in high school? You're really cute." Kagome kicked the man from under the table. He looked at her and Kagome gave him a deadly glare. "Bug off." she mouthed.

Tenma rapidly flipped through the pages and practically shoved the book in his face. "Karasuma, what do you get from this?"

"Let's see. It says it's a thresher," he read from the book

Kagome could almost see Tenma fall into the depths of despair.

"Well, I guess it's about time I get going." Karasuma stood and pushed in his chair. Kagome followed suit. "See ya, Miss Tsukamoto." Her pigtails perked up.

"Ya sure, later Karasuma," she waved goodbye.

"Better luck next time Tenma," Kagome whispered as she caught up with Karasuma. Tenma watched the two go, her arms crossed over her chest in thought. Then it clicked inside her brain.

"Kagome and Karasuma are together!?" she practically screamed. "That's why he avoided saying it! It all makes sense now!"

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"What the hell is he doing?" Kagome wondered as her neighbor, Harima Kenji, leaned back in his chair. "What did that guy call it? Vibrating? Didn't he get held back? Why is he in this class?"

Kagome 'accidentally' bumped into his desk, successfully interrupting his…vibrating.

"Hey!"

"So sorry," Kagome batted her eyelashes at him.

"Just… don't let it happen again, you got that?"

"Yeah, sure, whatever, pal." Kagome took her seat on the other side of Harima.

School, as expected, was boring, and she felt like it would never end. When the bell finally rang she sat there until the class emptied out before letting out a sigh of relief.

"Hey, Kagome!" Makoto peeked her head in the classroom. "Wanna go catch a bite with us?"

"Sorry, but I think I'll pass. Maybe next time for sure!" Kagome bid her friend farewell and left the room herself. As she was passing by the shoe lockers, she noticed Harima throw something in Tenma's, "Read this, the greatest love letter in the history of the world." Kagomed crossed her arms over her chest.

"Well, well, well, what do we have here?" Kagome smirked as Harima tensed and visibly paled.

"You saw nothing!"

"Oh, but Harima, I'm pretty sure I saw you toss a love letter in Tenma's shoe locker!" Kagome said.

"No, I didn't!" he yelled.

"But you did," Kagome walked towards him and stopped when she was right in front of him. "You blew your cover when you said, 'The greatest love letter in the history of the world," she mocked in a deep voice.

"Damn it! Don't tell her anything!" Harima demanded.

"I didn't plan on it, in fact," she smirked, and it was in that moment that Harima decided he didn't like that smirk of hers. "I think I'll go with you, to see how this whole thing plays out." She patted him on the shoulder.

"F-Fine!" He grumbled, "Behind the gym at 4! Don't be late!"

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

As Kagome waited for the badass to arrive, she connected the dots. "So, Harima is in love with Tenma, who is in love with Karasuma, who is in love with curry. What a weird love triangle... square, whatever."

When Harima arrived, Kagome put a finger to her lips. They peeked around the corner, sure enough, there was Tenma and another big guy. "What the hell!? Aw crap! I forgot the challenge set for the same time and place! What are the chances!? I can't believe this, I can't go out there now and let Tenma see me fighting that gorilla!"

"Idiot..." Kagome muttered under her breath.

"Hey! Shut up!"

"Shh! Look!" Harima turned to see the gorilla man turn to Tenma, wondering why she was there.

"Uh, I beg your pardon, miss," she looked up at him. "Sorry, but what's a nice girl like you doing in a place like this?"

"Um? Meeting someone?" she skeptically answered.

Harima's anger flared as the gorilla man talked to his beloved Tenma.

He leaned down to her height, "A letter?"

"Well yes, it-" "Do you mind if I-" He plucked it from her hands. "Hey! Give me that!"

"Bastard!" Kagome grabbed Harima's arm and pulled him back before he could reveal himself.

"If she sees you kick his ass, she'll never want to talk to you!" Kagome hissed. Harima growled as Kagome released his arm and turned his attention back to the scene.

"It's a love poem," The gorilla man began to read it aloud. "Lord, thank you. An epic poem of gratitude. Oh, thank you, to the heavens for sending you to Earth. Oh, thank you to your parents, twas they who gave you birth! Hahahaha!"

Kagome couldn't catch the words he said because of Harima's big mouth. She slapped a hand over his mouth, "Ya know that was kind of cute actually, I'll give you props for that one Harima."

"I think you're wrong." That caught their attention. "I know I'm not very smart, but I think whoever wrote this was very brave to say what he felt in his heart. It's a beautiful, sensitive, wonderful letter, and I just adore it!"

Kagome heard Harima sniffle. "Are... are you crying?"

"I'm the luckiest guy in the world to have fallen in love with a girl like Tenma," Harima mumbled.

"That's great," the gorilla man took hold of Tenma's hands. "Cause I wrote the letter. I love you."

Kagome nearly fell over from shock. What a sudden turn of events. Harima punched the wall beside him, leaving a fist-sized crater in it. The piece of wall collapsed and hit him square on the head.

"Harima... Are you ok?" she gently put a hand on his head where the bump that had formed was.

"Fine," he answered as if he was unaffected by the large piece of cement wall. He swatted her hand away.

"Thank you!" Tenma smiled at him. "That's very sweet, but I'm in love with somebody else." she bowed and took off. Harima recovered from his current injury and stepped forward. The gorilla man turned around with tears streaming down his face.

Harima patted his shoulder and put an arm around him. "There, there. These things happen to everyone." he punched the guy right in his face, knocking him out instantly. "Except me!" he repeatedly kicked the guy. "That's for laughing at my masterpiece! If there's one thing I hate, it's criticism."

After he was satisfied, Harima left him there. "Let's go," he said to Kagome. Harima tucked his hands in his pockets as Kagome followed awkwardly behind him.

This was the beginning of a beautiful friendship.

Harima approached a motorcycle and tossed her a helmet. "Huh?" Kagome looked at him in confusion.

"Its getting kind of late out, and a girl shouldn't walk home alone after dark." he started up the motorcycle.

"Well yeah, but-"

"Get on," he left no room for an argument. Hesitantly, Kagome swung her leg over the bike. "Where do you live?"

Kagome gave him the address, Harima took off without any warning. She let out a squeak and wrapped her arms around Harima's midsection. Kagome was thoroughly embarrassed. "Great. Here I am on this guy's motorcycle! He's practically a stranger, and I'm holding onto him like my life depends on it! How embarrassing." They stopped at a red light, and Kagome loosened her grip.

"If I could just find a way to spend more time where she would notice me. I've gotta find more time..." Harima mumbled to himself. Kagome opened her mouth to say something, but the ringing of a bicycle made Kagome look up.

"K-Karasuma!?" She gaped. She made eye contact with him for the briefest of seconds. She could have sworn she'd seen his eyes grow a little wider.

"Riding a bicycle!" Harima suddenly said and took off without so much as a warning.

"Eep!" Kagome screeched.

"Thanks for the, uh, ride, Harima." Kagome got off the motorcycle and handed him the helmet.

"No problem. Hey...I don't know your name," he said. "How the hell do you know mine?"

"People talk. I'm Kagome Higurashi." She shrugged her shoulders.

"Ah, well, see ya around Kagome." he made a quick u-turn and sped away.

Did she just make friends with Harima Kenji? The 'badass' of Yagami High?

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"He could at least offer to give me a ride too," she waved goodbye to Karasuma as he took off on his bike, "But then again at the speed he's going, I don't think it would be safe. The speed he's going would put even Inuyasha to shame."

She made it to school just as Karasume sped on by, he nodded at her as he passed her. Hot on his heels was Tenma, cycling with all her might. "Wow! Look at her go!" Kagome cheered her on. But that wasn't the end, not too far behind Tenma was none other than Harima Kenji. The amount of force he exerted was enough to nearly knock her off her feet.

Further up the slope, she met up with Makoto, and the two of them met with Eri.

"Nice hairdo," Kagome snickered as they approached the disheveled blonde girl.

"Bad hair day, Eri?" Makoto asked.

Yeah, you could say that," she answered. "You'll never guess what happened."

"Karasuma came by on a bike, and Tenma was following right after?" Akira came up from behind them.

"What does that mean?" Makoto asked.

"Gee, what do you think?"

"Ahh, now I get it," Eri said, finally understanding.

"Huh? Get what? Get what?" Poor Makoto still in the dark about Tenma's feelings for Karasuma.

"But wait, I'm pretty sure I saw a third person chasing after them..." Eri trailed off.

"They didn't see Harima...?" Kagome thought. "How could they miss him?"

"Hey! You don't think Tenma has a thing for Karasuma, do you?" Makoto asked the two girls. Kagome set a hand on her shoulder.

"Oh, you poor soul…"

"Come on! Just tell me!"

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

When class rolled around, Kagome saw Harima and Tenma both passed out. "Well, the two of them rode a freaking marathon." As Tenma slept, her elbow knocked her eraser off of her desk. Karasuma picked it for her.

"Miss Tsukamoto, here's your eraser." Karasamu tried handing it to the sleeping girl.

"Thank you," she mumbled in her sleep. He leaned over and placed it beside her.

"Gosh, that's too bad," Eri spoke while watching with amused eyes. "She just missed out on a good chance there."

"This doesn't bode well for the rest of the school year," Akira said with her usual unimpressed expression.

Kagome smiled to herself and silently thanked her mother.