Chapter 9

"What's wrong Kagome?" Inuyasha asked his girlfriend as he held her in a soothing hug. Through the many years he'd known this amazing girl, he'd never known something like this would bother her so much. It pulled at his heart to know that he had no idea about it. He was her best friend dammit! He was supposed to know what made her cry. What made her happy. What mad her smile the smile he had absolutely fallen in love with. It was his job to be there for her and he wasn't.

As Kagome calmed down, her head still resting on his chest, her arms still around his shoulders, she attempted to tell him about her past. The one she had kept from him the summer of tenth grade year. "Remember when I left for the summer Inu?" she asked.

She waited silently for the hanyou to nod before continuing. "Well, obviously I never told you what happened, but that's where this whole thing is coming from."

Inuyasha remembered. The day she came back, he was there at the train station to meet her, and when she had gotten off the train, she looked nothing like the Kagome that left. Her hair was flat and seemed dry and unkempt, not the usual bouncy, waviness that her hair was, her clothes were all dull colors and looked like she had just gotten out of bed and threw on whatever was on the floor. It was a very big change for him to adjust to and when he tried, he found that he didn't want to. This wasn't his Kagome.

As they were walking to his car, he tried asking what was wrong, what happened, but she either ignored him or changed the subject. Sensing that she didn't want to talk about it, he backed off. After they had gotten into the car, the ride to her house was silent and the air around the two was tense. Inuyasha wanting to know what was wrong, Kagome not willing to give up the information. Arriving at the Higurashi household, Inuyasha helped her with her things and she entered the house without a word, closing the door behind her.

Inuyasha was dumbfounded. Usually she would have invited him in and they'd have lunch or play games together, but he got nothing. This definitely wasn't Kagome. He stared at the door in utter disbelief before he turned around and made his way back to his car. If he knew Kagome (and he did), she would be back to her normal self in, give or take, a few days.

Too bad it took almost a week for her to get over it. During the week, he'd tried calling her cell phone, but it was forever turned off it seemed. He'd tried going over to her house a few times, but every time, her mother would tell him that she wasn't taking visitors. The next week at the start of school, he saw her and she looked absolutely gorgeous. Nothing like what he had witnessed the past week. Her smile was brighter than he'd normally seen it, her laugh was contagious. She looked so…different. When she glanced his way and caught sight of him, he did a one handed wave and she smiled back at him before making an excuse to her friends and heading over in his direction.

He stood and waited for her to make her way over to him and when she did, he was enveloped in one of the biggest, sincerest hugs he'd ever been in. It was probably the first time he'd ever acknowledged the feelings he'd had for her because he could remember the blush that was staining his face.

As she held him in her embrace, her face against his chest, she apologized for the way she'd been treating him the past week. He, being her best friend, found no need for her to apologize. Everyone had one of those days, hers just seemed to be a week, and he told her as much. Nonetheless, she profusely apologized for her behavior and said she wouldn't stop until he accepted, which of course he did. What else could he do? He just wanted to know what caused her to act that way.

She expressed to him that she didn't want to talk about it and gently explained that she would be grateful if he didn't bring it up again. He agreed, but it never stopped him from thinking about it from time to time. He never brought it up again. He was just happy he had her back. Now that he thought about it, it was totally not in his character to be worried about anything so emotionally charged as that situation had been, but she was his best friend. If he didn't worry about her, then who—besides her parents—would?

"What happened Kagome?" he asked.

Kagome heaved an inward sigh before she began her story.

*~*

Meanwhile, Miroku and Sango were in the car after they had found it in the massive parking lot. Who knew you could lose a car?

"So what do you think is wrong with Kagome?" Sango asked, Miroku helping her into the passenger's side.

"I don't know." Miroku replied closing her door and making his way over to the drivers side, and situating himself in the seat, turning the ignition. "I do remember Inu telling me that she hadn't seemed like herself one summer, but he never elaborated on it."

Sango turned to look out the window at the city nightlife. "I hope she's okay." She murmured.

"I hope so too." Miroku remarked, not sure her comment was meant for him to hear or not.

Going through Miroku's mind was a whole myriad of things. How Kagome and Inuyasha were doing, how to feel being alone in the car with Sango, so close to her, but mostly how to tell her that he liked her. So he just blurted it out into the silence.

"What?" was her initial response, her head turning sharply and her eyes forming into the shape of saucers, and her mouth dropping open.

Miroku's face stained with color and he kept his eyes downcast or staring forward, anywhere but at Sango, hands clenching the wheel. He was acting so unlike himself, but none of that mattered he figured if it was for the girl he really liked.

Sango's eyes eventually moving back to the window, Miroku continued on. "Umm…" he started out. "I like you." That seemed like a good point. "I really like you." Miroku wanted to kick himself. 'Great, now that we've established that, maybe we can say something else.' He chastised himself. "I…uh…" he scratched his head nervously. "You're really cute and I like your personality and I've liked you since I first met you, which is why I was so happy when you agreed to go on the date."

Sango was surprised to say the least. She never thought in her wildest dreams that he would admit that he liked her and be serious about it. "What about her lecherous ways?" was the first thing out of her open mouth. 'You just had to bring that up didn't you?' she thought.

"Everyone I ever did that to I never really liked…except you of course." He quickly amended. "I always thought they were cute, yeah, but I never saw myself being with them, nor did I see anything that could last with them. You're the first one I ever saw myself really being with. If you were my girlfriend, I couldn't promise that it would never happen again, but what I could promise is that I would try to devote as much attention as I could to you and be there for you whenever you need me." Miroku finished. He waited for Sango to say something…anything while silence filled the car. Honestly he would have been happy if she would have made a comment about how the wind messed up her hair, but he knew that was so not Sango.

Sango turned to look at him for the second time since the start of the conversation. "I- " she started. "I sort of like you too Miroku." She admitted.

Miroku turned around with a surprised look on his face. "R-Really?" he managed to stutter out.

A cute blush stained Sango's features. "Well, yeah. I always thought you were cute. I loved the fact that you played sports. It made you cuter." Okay she was totally blushing now, the red becoming brighter and more prominent on her face and reached all the way down to her neck, and could no longer maintain eye contact with Miroku, so she looked away. Though she felt Miroku didn't have a problem with that because of the things she was saying. She didn't want to spill her whole heart to him (though she sort of just did), and she said, "So yeah…that's what I think about you."

Miroku on the other hand looked like he'd died and gone to heaven. He was certainly surprised at Sango's admission, but happy nevertheless. At this moment, she could have told him to go jump off a fifty foot bridge, and he happily would have done it. Not wanting to push his luck, but wanting oh-so-much more to come from this confession he asked, "Sango would you consider…I mean…would it be okay…w-would you be my girlfriend?"

At this, Sango turned back around. "Really?" she squeaked out, her eyes going wide and a smile spreading across her features. Then, as if just realizing what she did, she hurriedly composed herself. "I-I mean really?" she said in the calmest most non-girly voice she could muster.

Miroku chuckled at this. He loved how cute she was and that certainly took his nervousness away. "Yeah, really." He said. "So will you?"

"On one condition." She amended.

"What's that?"

"That hand of yours…" she pointed at Miroku's "cursed" hand and gave him a knowing look, "comes nowhere near me." She finished. "Or anyone else for that matter." She quickly added, not wanting him to get any ideas.

Miroku smirked, "Condition granted, though you should know that it probably won't last very long, though I'll try."

"I'll deal with it as long as you try." She stated.

"Okay. You've made me very happy Sango." He told her as he reached out to lace his finger with hers.

A/N: I'm so very sorry for taking too long to post anything. I won't even count the years, and I can give you no excuse other than laziness. I'm too lazy for my own good. I'm currently putting off writing a paper that I've put off for at least two weeks, and here I am uploading this… I would have made it longer, but I felt that this was enough. Maybe I'll come back and redo it. Yeah, maybe later.

Well, it would be mighty fine if you all reviewed and told me what you think of the chapter, and go back and read the others, if you haven't already, because I changed some stuff in there. Thanks again, and don't forget…

Review please!