; s k y b o u n d

Inuyasha was the last of the threesome to crawl out of bed. Sesshoumaru had left first for an early morning lecture. Kagome had been second, tossing back the comforter for a shift at the bakery. And then came Inuyasha.

Long after the alarm clock had stopped its chiming, he peaked his head from under the sheets at the foot of the bed. Honey eyes blinked against the daylight streaming through the curtains that Kagome hadn't quite pulled shut. There was a mirror on the far wall and he stared at his rumpled hair, his bare shoulders, the hickeys on his neck in it's dim reflection.

Then he pressed his face back into the mattress. Stretching both arms above his head and over the footboard, he sighed lazily. He did get up, though. It took him a few more moments and several more stretching sessions but, at last, he set his feet on the floor.

And then... What? It wasn't like he had anything to do today. His shift at the garage had long since been given away. Unlike Kagome or Sesshoumaru, he'd never really been much for school. College had been given a solid try, of course, but he couldn't justify spending the money on classes he didn't attend anyway.

Maybe he'd get dressed and just laze about the house. Feel kept for a minute or two. His mother had been a kept woman, after all. How far could the fruit really have fallen from the tree??

He'd gotten his jeans on when the phone rang. . .

❝ Why wouldn't it? ❞ Lowering her cigarette and letting out a mighty exhale of smoke, Sango turned her gaze on the man that had once been her everything. Now what was he beyond the painful reminder of a life she'd never lived out. A reminder that he was living that life with someone else now, someone healthy, && she had been the one to facilitate his express lane to moving on. Her hands were shaking and it's all she can do to take in another deep inhale on her filthy, little habit. ❝ He's only your supposed best friend && you should've been here 3 hours ago. ❞.

She doesn't really care. Miroku and Inuyasha hadn't been close since the latter had refused to go to college. Growing apart had suited them and gave room enough for the disconcert to not arrive on time for get-togethers. Would Inuyasha have been there less than 3 hours late if Miroku were the one on the table. . ?

❝ Must've been one hell of a booty call. ❞ The words bite her lips as they pour over them with little restraint. Their daughter isn't there to witness the fallout and it's easier to be angry than feel everything else that seeing him bubbled up.

.:^:.

When the door opened on Kagome, Inuyasha couldn't take his eyes off of her. Partly because he worried, if he did, that he'd fall from consciousness. What if he didn't wake again? How could he let this be it?

She asked her question and it hurt to laugh around the swell and bruising.

❝ Handsome my butt... ❞ Even he knew he sounded groggy. Kagome's face was a bleary wash of colour that wouldn't focus into the features he had memorized. It had been so long since they'd faced each other, even in a crowded room like this. How could he have not realized how much he'd missed her?

And then he remembered. . .

She was his sister-in-law. Or, at least, she would be. Behind the murk and ache, he couldn't remember if he'd actually gone to a wedding or not. If he'd been left behind yet or not.