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7:30pm. The faucet turned slowly, left to right, the water pouring down from the showerhead. Steam filled the small bathroom; its lone occupant held her hand under the water, checking the temperature, making sure that it was, in fact, as hot as it appeared.
Kagome Higurashi sighed as the water caressed her hand and dripped down, over her fingers, merging with the rest of the shower water as it drizzled into the drain below. It had been an exceptionally long day. She’d been on her feet since 7am that morning: a full day of teaching 19 second-graders, who had a morning math test, and then who spent the afternoon learning how to do science “experiments,” which consisted of shooting a dump truck and a bulldozer off a ramp and measuring how far each went, over and over (five times each, to be exact), and then determining which ultimately went further, and why, and which of the students predicted what correctly. It had been a lot of recording on the whiteboard, followed by a lot of walking around the room to make sure everyone was copying the numbers correctly—back and forth, up and down the aisles. She had worn flats that day, but regardless, by the time school was dismissed at 3:30, Kagome was weary...but her day wasn’t over yet.
She then started her second job: helping out with the aftercare program. She managed the students in her class who didn’t go home at dismissal (and a few other second-grade classes): taking them outside, helping them with homework, leading them in activities. The pay was low, but she needed the extra money to help with her student loan debt, and she really did love getting to spend a little extra time with her students after school. They had invited her to play kickball on the playground, and when all those little faces stared at her and begged her to be the pitcher, how could she say no?
She couldn’t.
So, for an hour on the playground, she had pitched, and the students kicked, ran the bases, and chased after the ball. When their outside time was up, they traipsed back into the library for their snack and homework time, filthy, but happy.
And when the last student had gone home, just before six o’clock, Kagome returned to her own classroom, sank down into her desk chair, and began to grade math exams. They were only second-graders, so the exams weren’t long, but still...it wasn’t until nearly seven that she had finally locked her classroom door, said goodnight to Miroku, the custodian, and left the school to begin her walk home. She only lived a ten-minute walk away, but her feet hurt, and she was limping by the time she let herself in through the front door. She had kicked off her shoes, dropped her bag, and made straight for the bathroom, where she now stood, letting the water run over her hand, her eyes closed at the expectation of the sweet ecstasy of the complete and total relaxation.
The water finally at the right temperature, Kagome removed her hand and dried it on the towel on the sink. She took a moment to strip down, each layer peeling away the dirt, the stench of sweaty children, and the soreness of her muscles, leaving her fully nude. As she pushed back the curtain and stepped in, the water gently rinsed over her weary body.
Kagome stood, facing the shower, and closed her eyes, letting the water stream over her face, her shoulders, and down her torso. She took a moment, enjoying the feel of the heat, the gentle pressure massaging her tired muscles.
Slowly, the exhaustion of the day faded, and Kagome was left herself again: refreshed, warm, happy, calm. She reached for her shower gel, and, squirting a generous amount into her palm, she began to lather up, cleaning away her own sweat, her own grime.
And as she washed, she started to sway in the shower; and as she swayed, she heard a song creeping into her head. And whenever Kagome swayed in the shower, and felt a song creeping into her head, she couldn’t help but let it out…
As loud and as determined as she could.
You can be amazing
You can turn a phrase into a weapon or a drug
You can be the outcast
Or be the backlash of somebody's lack of love
Or you can start speaking up
Nothing's gonna hurt you the way that words do
When they settle 'neath your skin
Kept on the inside and no sunlight
Sometimes a shadow wins
But I wonder what would happen if you
As she washed under her arms, around her stomach, and down her legs, Kagome sang: forcefully, emotionally, proudly:
Say what you wanna say
And let the words fall out
Honestly I wanna see you be brave
With what you want to say
And let the words fall out
Honestly I wanna see you be brave
With each word, each little turn of phrase, each note, Kagome felt the day falling away from her, farther and farther, and she felt her body relaxing, more and more. Kagome sang, and washed, and sang, and washed, and sang.
What she didn’t know was that her bathroom window was open, and, outside, in the neighboring yard, there were two soft, furry, downy-white, triangle puppy ears jaunting past.
Two ears that stopped, and twitched, under her window, before continuing on their way.
Artwork by nartista
Every day that week, Kagome didn’t return home from work until late. But every night, no matter how tired she was, each step towards her house got a little bit lighter, because she knew that, at the end of the walk, she would be kicking off her shoes, stripping down to nothing, and hopping into that hot, soothing water. She found that it gave her solace, ten minutes out of the day where she didn’t have to think about lesson plans, or Rin and Shiori arguing over who was going to get to sit next to Shippo during snack, or Bankotsu and Renkotsu getting into a fight (again), or Naraku crying because Kagura called him a spider (again). It was ten minutes where the world fell away, and it was just her, and the hot water, and whatever song was on her mind that night.
Tonight, yes, it was Sara again, and yes, Kagome couldn’t help but belt out the lyrics to one of her favorite songs. It had been a day: her class had had gym, and had come back exceptionally riled up. Every time they answered a question during social studies, they shouted, and every time they worked out a math problem in class together, everyone got up and jumped around the room in glee. Kagome was exhausted; it was Friday, and the kids were basically caged animals waiting to be unleashed on Fridays anyway, but when Kagura pulled Kanna’s flower out of her hair and threw it out the window, then blamed Naraku, Kagome had had enough.
Everyone had gone to their seats; no one had been allowed to move. It was rare that Kagome was cross enough to make the students sit down at their desks, but it had been a week and she had had enough.
And now, there was a bottle of white wine in the fridge, a chicken breast roasting in the oven, and leftover rice and veggies from the night before waiting to be reheated. Kagome planned to shower this particularly hellish week away and then sit down with her dinner, a bottle of wine, and watch the Escaflowne movie: a classic film for a night when Kagome needed comfort.
A perfect Friday evening.
And as her hands soaped up her body, washing it clean of sticky fingers and glue sticks and ketchup stains, Kagome felt the urge to sing overtake her, and she let it all go:
Let it begin, let Adam in
Step one: original sin
Underneath the leaves, Adam found Eve
Both of them found something sweet under the apple tree
Then it was over, roads divide
Step two: learning how to lie
Let me ask a question to present day
How the hell did Eve end up with all the damn blame?
All the damn blame
The lyrics overtaking her, Kagome washed her hair, singing loudly, believing her words, the notes escaping her lips with a passion she rarely experienced in her own life. But here, alone, in her shower, Kagome could be herself: completely free, completely her own person. She was no longer Ms. Higurashi, second-grade teacher and disposer of snotty tissues. She was Kagome, and the sound of her voice, being used for herself, and only herself, caused her to belt out the notes with all that she had: with all that she was.
To all the dirty looks, the kitty cat calls
To the ones who try and throw us up against the back walls
Let me tell you something you'll understand
Only the little boys tell you they're a big man
To all my sisters and all our friends
We have to thank them, please
Strength means blessed with an enemy
The lyrics took Kagome higher, and higher, and she turned so that her back was to the shower head, and as she rinsed her hair, finally free and washed clean of the nightmare that was that week, Kagome let it all out, her voice crisp, clear, and a little bit squeaky.
She didn't care.
She was free.
Until Monday, anyway.
Kagome stumbled out of her house the next morning, shielding her eyes against the bright, late morning sunshine. She squinted, and looked down at the end of her front walk, where the mailbox sat, its flag up, perkily letting her know that she had mail.
She grunted as she made her way down the walk. How much had she had to drink the night before? At least the whole bottle of wine, maybe more. Because she’d had a fit about some of the differences between the Escaflowne the anime series and Escaflowne the movie.
Such a hack job, Kagome thought sourly. So much cut from something so exquisite! She had reached her mailbox, and tugged on the handle to open it. The metal groaned, but refused to give.
Fanfuckingtastic. She grimaced as she began yanking frantically on the door, which squeaked, and squealed, but refused to give.
“Need some help with that?” a gruff voice said from behind her. Now it was Kagome’s turn to squeak; she jumped as she spun around, and came face-to-face with her next-door (smoking hot) neighbor, Inuyasha Taisho.
His long, silver hair was tied back in a high ponytail. His white, fluffy, triangle ears that revealed he was a half-demon (and that she thought were maybe the sexiest thing about him), were trained solely on her. His (muscled) forearms were crossed over his (sculpted) chest, and pressed against his ribbed white tank top. He wore black track pants, which clung to his hips attractively, and on his feet were white running shoes. A light sheen of sweet adorned his golden skin, indicating he had just been out on a run. His eyes, a darkened and glowing amber, looked at her, amused, and his handsome mouth was shaped into a fanged smirk.
“Need some help?” he asked her, and Kagome eeped in response.
“Ohhh...nooo…” she stammered (unbelievable that he was there, all glistening and gorgeous, and there she was, nursing a hangover and in a pair of old pajama shorts and a tank top). “Really. It’s fine. I got it.” As if to prove her point, she pulled on the handle; the mailbox door groaned at her, and did not budge.
Inuyasha chuckled. “It looks to me like ya don’t,” he replied, planting his hands on her shoulders and gently steering her out of the way. Kagome couldn’t help but shiver at his touch.
To say that she had a crush on her handsome half-demon neighbor would be an understatement. She often saw him in the mornings, when she left for school; he would be out running, earpiece tucked into his ear, already on the phone with Japan or the Netherlands or some other place in the world. His father owned a tech conglomerate, and why a Taisho Corp Vice President of Operations (she knew; she’d Googled him) lived in a modest two-story craftsman home right next door to her, she couldn’t say. But she certainly enjoyed the view. A lot.
Until today. When he was looking at her like she was a weak little girl who couldn’t lift a five-pound weight. (She could, thank you very much.) Smiling at her inquisitively, hands still on her shoulders, his eyes holding hers in an intense gaze. She...why was he so close?
Kagome blinked, and the spell was broken. “Here,” Inuyasha mumbled, dropping his grip from her shoulders and turning back to the mailbox. He hooked a clawed finger in the handle, and placed his other hand on top of the mailbox to hold it steady. He tugged, gently, working the door back and forth until at last it let out a mighty, screechy sigh and fell forward, revealing its contents to them both.
Inuyasha grinned at her triumphantly, one fang poking out of his mouth gleefully. “See?” he said to her, his voice weirdly husky and making her body feel pleasantly hot. “All it needed was a little TLC. I just had to massage it a little.”
Kagome was sure she was bright red. “Yeah…” she murmured. Why didn’t she think to take it easy and work it open slowly? She was an idiot .
“Looks like this could use some WD-40,” Inuyasha commented, and that was when Kagome realized with horror that he was now inspecting her mailbox. He looked up at her. “Ya got any?”
“Got—got any—what?” she managed to gasp out.
“WD-40,” he repeated slowly. “It’ll help to grease the joints a little.”
What...what was he asking her for?
He sighed. “Should I go home and get mine, and come back and do it for you?”
“Do...do what for me?” Oh, she was not all there this morning. Dammit.
He grinned at her. “I’ll go get it now,” he told her, then turned to head back to his house. He stopped, turned back and his smile got even wider. “You know,” he said, “you should say what you wanna say, and let the words fall out.”
What? What?
“Because honestly,” he added impishly, “I wanna see you be brave.”
Kagome froze. He...he couldn’t...he couldn’t know.
His ears wiggled at her excitedly, as if they knew what she was thinking. “This is one time where it’s not like I need them,” he added, jerking his thumb towards the waving appendages. “You sing loud enough for the entire neighborhood to hear.”
Ground. Earth. They could open up and swallow Kagome whole. Fast. Please. Now.
“You know,” Inuyasha said, giving her a playful grin, “I like a girl who’s not afraid to sing in the shower.” He gave her a careful once-over, and Kagome quivered under his intense glare as his eyes dropped from her own and traveled down her body. “It shows that she knows how to let loose, be free.” His smile got even wider. “And I like that.”
With those final words, Inuyasha took off towards his own house at a slow trot. “I’ll be back with that WD-40,” he called. “See ya in a bit. And Sara Bareilles is great.”
He left Kagome standing there, her hand at her heart, her shoulders still tingling from the place where he had touched her.
Had he...just told her that he liked her?
I like a girl who’s not afraid to sing in the shower.
Kagome quivered again, grabbed her mail, and flew into the house.
After that morning, Kagome found it impossible to sing in the shower anymore. Now, every time that she tried, she thought of Inuyasha, and his adorable ears, listening for her, wondering if she was going to burst out into song at any moment while the shower ran.
It had been three weeks since she’d run into him at the mailbox. Three weeks since he’d come back and fixed her mailbox, which she had watched him do from the comfort and safety of her living room, because she had been too mortified to go back out there and talk to him. Not when he had admitted that A) he could hear her singing in the shower, but also that B) the entire neighborhood could probably hear her, and, finally, that C) he liked it.
Oh, the trifecta of embarrassment, right there.
So, Kagome went to school each day, came home, showered (in silence), and went back to rewatching the series of Escaflowne, because she couldn’t handle another night of drunken anger at how much they changed the series to squeeze it into a film. Even the thought made her rage.
She couldn’t help but wonder if Inuyasha had ever seen Escaflowne. What he thought of the film. If he’d seen the film.
Kagome scoffed as she turned the corner for the last leg of her walk home. This week had been considerably better than the last few; her class of little hellions was finally starting to show some discipline, and Kagome felt a rush of warmth towards them, especially Kagura, underneath whose rough exterior lay the heart of a kitten. And like a kitten, she was soft, tiny, skittish, but Kagome had been extra time with Kagura, both before and after school, trying to get her to open up, and it seemed to be making a difference. Within days, Kagura’s shell was cracking; she had stopped calling Naraku “spider,” and was now offering to help Kanna find flowers for her hair, instead of tossing them out the window.
Yes, she thought as she walked up to her house, life was just fine.
Even if she couldn’t sing anymore.
As she approached her house, she tensed up slightly, because she had to walk past Inuyasha’s home first. As she had been doing the past few weeks, she tried to duck, to keep her head down, to go by as quickly as she could, because for sure the last thing she wanted was for him to catch her, stop her, talk to her, tease her.
Or was it? She didn’t know. Because as much as she had avoided singing, as much as she had done everything in her power to stay away from him, she had to admit…
She was also drawn to him.
Kagome couldn’t help but replay the moments by her mailbox over and over again in her mind. She thought about him, in that white tank top and those black joggers, his muscles clearly on display for anyone who wanted to see. The way that his eyes had taken her in: amused, but soft. The way that he had told her that he liked to hear her sing. In the shower. Naked. He liked to hear her sing when she was naked.
She nearly stumbled over the sidewalk at that one. Jeez, Kagome, she told herself fiercely, get it together.
But how could she? She’d made such a fool of herself: the one chance she had to have a real conversation with him, and she had blown it. He was probably in some luxurious European city right now, laughing with his brother and all their rich friends, about the silly small-town girl who sang in the shower with the windows open for the whole neighborhood to hear.
Let the bough break, let it come down crashing
Or...maybe he wasn’t.
Kagome stopped, stock-still, in front of Inuyasha’s house. Her entire body crackled as she leaned forward slightly, trying to catch the words coming through an open window, mixed with the sounds of water, like he was in the shower? Kagome instinctively turned her ear, trying to be sure that yes, she was hearing what she thought she was hearing.
Let the sun fade out to a dark sky
I can't say I'd even notice it was absent
Cause I could live by the light in your eyes
Could...could he be singing...about her?
No. Impossible. Nope. No.
But...he’d heard her sing Sara. He’d said he liked Sara.
I'll unfold before you
Would have strung together
The very first words
Of a lifelong love letter
She heard the water shut off, the window slam shut. Kagome frowned, then sighed, and started the last few steps towards her house.
She shouldn’t have gotten her hopes up.
She shouldn’t have thought that maybe yes, he was singing for her.
She should have just kept right on walking.
We are not perfect
We'll learn from our mistakes
And as long as it takes
I will prove my love to you
The front door to Inuyasha’s house opened, and Kagome turned, and gasped, as she saw him, wearing nothing but a towel wrapped around his toned hips, his body sparkling from the water still dripping down and onto the front porch. His hair was thrown up into a messy bun, and his eyes glowed when he saw her, standing in front of his house, her eyes wide at his appearance.
Her heart...was beating so fast..
Her body...was...moving?
Wait. Where was she going?
Him. Kagome was walking to him.
Her legs were carrying her, almost beyond her control, up his front walk, up the stairs, and face-to-face with the man himself, whose voice was loud, and booming, but whose eyes were soft, and full of affection for her.
When she got to him, he reached out and grasped her hands, holding them softly, but firmly. His eyes burned, a beautiful, molten amber, and Kagome’s breath hitched when she saw how serious they were—how serious he was, despite the fact that he was wearing a towel, on his front porch, visible to the entire street, and despite the fact that he had just been singing Sara Bareilles at the top of his lungs.
“Inuyasha,” she murmured, but he squeezed her hands and continued to sing: quietly, this time, but with all the intensity of before:
I am not scared of the elements
I am under-prepared, but I am willing
And even better
I get to be the other half of you
Kagome’s eyes were burning, and when she blinked, she realized that she was blinking away tears. What...why...when had she started to cry?
She felt him drop one of her hands to raise his own and cup her cheek. His thumb gently brushed under her eye, wiping away the tears that had gathered there. “Hey,” he said softly, “no crying. My singing’s not that bad.”
Kagome giggled in spite of herself. “Why—what—why are you doing this?” Her voice was hoarse, like she hadn’t used it in a long time. “I—I thought that—”
“I told you,” he gently reminded her, “I like a girl who sings in the shower.” He frowned, and stroked her cheek again with his thumb. “I see you,” he said to her; Kagome could hear his voice catching with emotion. “I see you every morning, leaving your house, going to school. And I see you every night, trudging home, so tired from such a long day. And then when you run the shower, and you sing, and it sounds like you’re allowing the weight of the world to slip off your shoulders? It’s a beautiful thing, Kagome.” He dropped her other hand, and now caressed her face with both hands gently. “Just like you’re a beautiful woman. A woman who I...who I wouldn’t mind getting to know better.” He paused, and chuckled. “But you are a tough one to talk to, Kagome. I have been trying, every morning and every night, for the past three weeks, but you always scurry by so fast that I don’t have time to get outside and catch you.”
“How did you catch me tonight?” she wondered, taking in the feel of his palms resting on her skin. He was warm, and she was cold, despite her walk, and she leaned into his touch.
Inuyasha looked sheepish, his ears drooping just a little. “I...I know you always walk home a little after seven,” he confessed. “So a few minutes after, I opened the window in my bathroom, turned on the shower, and started singing.”
“That I get,” Kagome said, grinning now, and admiring how adorable he looked when he was a little regretful. “But how did you know when to come out?”
Inuyasha was now blushing. “I...I am half dog demon, you know,” he told her. “And as such, I do have certain...heightened senses...that told me that you were close by.”
“Senses?” Kagome allowed him to caress her cheeks while she considered her response. Which of the five senses would be the one that Inuyasha would use?
“Hearing?” Kagome asked him. “You could hear me?”
“I—I could, I guess,” he said. “But you...um…”
His voice dropped to no more than a whisper. “You smell delicious.”
Kagome was stunned. She smelled delicious? “I—I do?” she asked.
He nodded, and leaned forward so that their foreheads rested against each other. “You—you do,” he breathed. “Like lilies, and lavender, and it’s so sweet and soft that every time I see you, I want to...I want to hold you, and drink you in.”
This was it. Her moment. Kagome could feel that she was close—so close—to something huge, special, magnificent. The way he had sung for her—the way he was holding her—told her that yes, he liked her, and that yes, he wanted her.
Kagome couldn’t help but feel the same way.
“Do you have to just want to do it?” she whispered. “Or would you actually do it?”
Inuyasha’s eyes blew open wide. “Ka—Kagome,” he breathed. “You...do you…?”
Kagome smiled. “Yes,” she replied, and slid her arms up his biceps, over his shoulders, and around his neck. “Yes,” she added as her hands drew him closer, lower, as she pressed her lips to his.
And, oh. It was everything Kagome could have dreamed of, kissing Inuyasha. His lips were soft, and massaged her own sweetly. She felt his hands drop from her cheeks to wrap around her waist as he held her close, and the fire that was pooling in her belly and spreading outwards was definitely not unpleasant.
This was a kiss she would not mind repeating over, and over, and over.
“Kagome,” he whispered, breaking the kiss but still pressing her to him. “Would you...would you like to come inside?” He gave her a teasing grin. “I’ve got Sara Bareilles on the streaming service, and, if you like, white wine chilling in the fridge.”
“Oh,” she replied immediately, “I would love to, but…” She looked down at her clothes. She felt grimy and gross after a day of chasing after seven and eight-year olds, and while she wanted to spend time with Inuyasha, she also wanted to take her own shower, put on something comfortable, and then maybe have some of that wine.
“Tell you what,” he said gently. “You go home, and shower, and change.” He grinned. “I’ll be over in thirty with the wine, and maybe we could order some take out? Eat, drink…” He blushed again and looked down. “Talk?”
Kagome smiled, her heart swelling at the thoughtfulness of his offer. “Sure,” she said softly, reaching up for another kiss. “Eat, drink, and...talk...sounds perfect.”
She giggled at the way that his ears perked up at her agreement. “Great,” he said enthusiastically, and her body grew heated again at the way his eyes lit up, a glowing amber, just for her. “I’ll get dressed, and see you…”
“...in thirty,” she finished.
“Don’t take too long,” he teased, dropping his hold on her and heading towards his own front door.
“Don’t you take too long,” she shot back, but she was grinning, and so was he, and he offered her a wave, and a wink, before going back into his house.
Kagome turned, jumped down the steps that led up to his front porch, and started towards her own house.
“Oh, and Kagome?” she heard Inuyasha call. She looked back, and he was standing at his front door, arms crossed, that smirk that made her weak absolutely everywhere back on his face.
“Don’t forget to sing in the shower,” he said.