Miroku sat back down next to Hideko and Sango had traded places with Neyo, so she could sit on the other side of Howard. She wanted be far away from Miroku as possible.
What they were doing had to stop, and she was already telling herself mentally that it couldn't happen again.
Miroku was relieved to see that they were only at the G's when he sat down. He hadn't missed Amber, or her boyfriend for that matter. He sighed with relief has he settled down in the chair. That cigarette didn't do shit for his nerves, he was still shaking. Or maybe that was because he just kissed his best friend. Again.
When Amber walked across the stage to get her diploma, Miroku clapped and shouted, mostly just to embarrass her the best way he could. She simply grinned up at him as she took her seat again.
A loud, midi-file ring suddenly went off and Miroku scrambled for his phone. He could have sworn he turned it off. He pulled out his sleek-looking phone only to discover that it was indeed turned off and he looked over to see Howard exchanging some words over the phone.
Sango glanced at her fiancé. "You are supposed to turn that off!"
He held up a finger at her, and nodded. "Yes. OK. I'll be there. Bye." He clicked it off. "I have to go."
She watched him. stand up and he pushed his way past Miroku, the two exchanged looks of disdain. "Howard…"
"I'll call you when I get to Chicago, my flight leaves in an hour. I have to hurry, baby. Love you." Howard rushed off before Sango could say another word and her eyes met Miroku's for a brief instant, then she turned away. He leaned back in his chair. Ah, so Howard was going to be in Chicago for a while. Good news for him. Miroku immediately felt himself relaxing at that thread of information.
The ceremony seemed to pass by rather quickly after Howard had left and before he knew it was over. Thank Buddha for that because he was beginning to get bored and he wanted another cigarette. Plus, he wanted a chance to speak with Sango.
Miroku faced a very uncomfortable ride to the restaurant Amber had picked out. Sango kept her gaze out the window the entire time and Miroku decided not to push it right now.
He walked into the restaurant, feeling a bit out of place. When was the last time he had gone to dinner with his family? Nelly had chose to spend his graduation day with Amber, and she even had met up with some of her friends from school, who of course were looking at him and giggling.
Dinner had passed by quite awkwardly and Miroku spent most of his time humoring his sister's friends, some were even bold enough to flirt with him. Sango had displayed little jealousy, but then again she probably didn't see the flock of just barely legal girls as a threat.
Not that she was worried about what Miroku did. She was getting married very soon and Miroku didn't matter to her. She really didn't even care if he stayed for the wedding or not.
Miroku had turned into an egomaniac over the past 7 years. He was cute, funny and charming and he knew it. He certainly wasn't the same person she used to know, he was neurotic to a point. He always seemed to be on edge, yet he still managed to put on a front as if he didn't care about anything.
Such as her relationship with Howard. He just waltzed right in, takes control of her emotions and doesn't even blink. How did he manage to do that? And why was she staring at him? She was admiring his face, his hair, even the way he chewed.
What was wrong with her?
He even started to playfully flirt with one of Amber's newly graduated friends, who went by the name of Raven. The young girl was obviously enjoying his attention and for some reason Sango felt like slapping both of them.
Maybe it was because she was angry over the fact that Howard had left so abruptly like he had. She really hoped he'd be back in time for the wedding, then again her world had been so upside down since Miroku came back, she wasn't even sure how she felt anymore.
She always thought since 12 grade that Howard was the love of her life. The one she was going to marry and have children for. But then, Miroku came back and all of that changed. She had a new yearning inside. It was hotter and more passionate then ever, though she would never admit that out loud.
Those feelings only haunted the recesses of her mind, she would never admit them to anyone but herself.
Sango had barely eaten anything by the time dinner was over. And why was that? Because she was too busy dreaming about her best friend? She was too busy dreaming about the way his body would feel on hers, or the feel of his lips on her skin.
She stood up and gathered her purse. She wasn't that hungry anyway and she really just wanted to get home. Being out in public like this was getting to her, being around Miroku like this was getting to her as well.
Once they got home, Miroku found it strange that Sango quickly retreated to her bedroom. Not that that was unusual for her, she had done that when she was mad and angry with him just a day before, but he hadn't done anything this time, except kiss her. Maybe she was angry at him about that.
Amber, Hideko and her very flirtatious friend, Raven were in the living room together. Miroku walked through the living room backwards just to get to his room so he could avoid Raven's constant stare on his backside. Of course, that didn't stop her from looking at other things.
Miroku quickly closed the door, grateful that ever part of his body was now concealed from her. She was kind of creepy and maybe she took his flirting a bit too seriously. He really needed to learn to stop flirting with girls he really didn't like because it pushed the one girl he really did like away from him.
Maybe that's why Sango locked herself up in her room like she had. He knew she had felt something when she kissed him, he could tell by the way she had run off from him earlier. He clicked on his television, trying to drown out the sounds of the giggling girls in the living room. He even heard his name mentioned a few times and muted the sound of his TV just out of curiosity.
Miroku spent the next couple hours in his room, making phone calls back to the states, back to his job, and back to his reality. The reality that he didn't want to face. The reality that Sango couldn't be with him when he left, and now that Amber had graduated, the only thing to look forward to was Sango's wedding. And that was something he wanted to deny since he discovered these newfound feelings for her.
The house had quieted down after the girls went home, Amber had locked herself in her room and was chatting on the phone to Nelly. It was night time again, almost 11:00 and Miroku had, at some point, decided he wanted a snack. Just a small one before bed, and maybe a cigarette to help him sleep. His usual routine back home in New York.
He opened the door and was pleased to see that his parents had already turned in for the night. They were early birds, early to bed, early to wake, but Miroku himself had always been a night owl and it seemed that Sango was that way too. Light peeked beneath her door and the faint sound of the television could be heard just outside her door.
He wanted to go in there and talk to her, but she could have been asleep for all he knew. He didn't want to disturb her. After all, she was lonely tonight and he knew all too well what it was like to be lonely. It wasn't a nice feeling, sometimes it even made a tough guy like himself want to curl in a ball and cry.
Miroku leaned against the counter as he ate a small bowl of Cheerios. He was so enthralled in his own thoughts he didn't even notice someone had walked into the kitchen. He looked up and saw Sango standing by the fridge awkwardly in a pink bath robe.
Miroku sat his bowl down on the counter. "Hey, I wasn't sure if you were still awake."
Sango tuned her attention away from him almost as soon as he had looked at her. "Yea, I can't sleep. It's so lonely in there."
"I know the feeling." Miroku said, playing around with his cereal, which had become soggy.
"I want to talk about what happened between us, Miroku." She said, her voice quivered with emotion. She made only brief eye contact with him as she spoke and then turned her attention towards the kitchen wall again.
Miroku pushed off the counter. "Yea, I want to talk about it, too. I--"
"It has to stop." Sango told him, and she watched him become deflated as the words left her mouth.
His confidence and ego had just taken a hard blow, but he knew a cigarette wouldn't help him out this time. "Are you saying you didn't feel anything? Anything at all?" His voice held a sense of hope, and Sango realized he was serious about her.
Not that she already didn't know he was serious about her by the way he had kissed her earlier, but seeing his confidence and conceit shattered by her telling him it had to end was enough to break her heart.
She stepped towards him and resisted the urge to touch his very enticing shoulders. Even when he was dressed he was alluring to her and she suddenly found herself wondering what he would look like without any clothes at all.
"I didn't feel anything." Her dark brown eyes were shadowed by her thick dark hair and she didn't face him as she said it. She couldn't look him in the eyes
and tell him she didn't want to kiss him again, or maybe even do more.
Sango felt his fingers beneath her chin and he bought her gaze up to meet his eyes. "Look at me, and tell me. Tell me you didn't like the way I kissed you. Tell me I didn't set your world on fire. Tell me, Sango, because right now I have this crazy idea about being with you." His voice was rushed and hurried as he proclaimed his feelings to her.
"Miroku, I'm engaged to another man!" Sango reminded him, as if he needed a reminder. That fact had been eating him alive for the past two days, it wasn't like he was ever going to forget.
She sighed and placed her hand on her forehead. "Miroku, what we did, getting involved like that, could ruin our entire friendship, something we have had for years."
His icy blue stare was focused on her and he strode across the room, forcing her to look at him once again. "Tell me then. Tell me you want me to leave you alone and you're going to marry Howard. Tell me you never want me to kiss you again."
Sango tried to turn her head, but his grip tightened firmly on her chin. Her eyes shimmered with tears and before she knew what she was doing, she was kissing him again, knocking him backwards into the kitchen table.
Miroku was stunned, more by her kissing him then by the kitchen table knocking him in the rear. His hands rested on her hips and he allowed his hands to travel to her behind where he gave her a light squeeze.
Sango pulled away and for an instant Miroku thought he was going to get smacked, but instead she started to kiss his neck and a cocky grin came to his face. He knew she wanted him, just as bad as he wanted her and they had definitely crossed the line of best friends.
"You said you were alone tonight, huh?" He asked, as he enjoyed the feeling of her mouth on his neck, and the way her warm hands felt underneath his shirt. His only response was a soft moan. "I can keep you company tonight if you want?"
Sango stopped what she was doing and realization hit her once again. Miroku Keseki just asked her to go to bed with him! And now she was considering it! What was wrong with her?
"Miroku…"
"I don't want to push you into anything that will make your life difficult." He said, rubbing her cheek lightly with his thumb. "Just let me know if you want a real man to love you."
Sango stared up at him and he could see the hesitation in her eyes. He didn't want it to happen like this, if he was going to sleep with her, he wanted her to have no doubts and no reservations. He turned from her.
"I'm sorry." He said, sighing. It was much easier to ignore the way she made him feel if he wasn't looking at her. "I got carried away, I shouldn't be asking a very happily committed woman to sleep with me. Especially my best friend."
She briskly walked towards her bedroom door and opened it slightly before turning around and facing him. "I just need time to think…"
Miroku held his hands up as if to surrender. "You do whatever you need to do. I'm…just going to go to bed. Maybe go have a smoke…I don't know." He was so confused right now he didn't even know his own damn name, much less of what to do with himself.
Sango simply shook her head and disappeared into her bedroom, closing the door behind her with a click.
Hideko Yasha pulled the hem of the dress to the floor and peered back at the seamstress. "About two inches off the bottom, paired with a 4 inch heel." She reported and then peered up at Sango who stood on the high platform.
Her bead embroidered, white lace dress seemed to fit her perfectly, except it was just a bit too long. Sango stepped down off the platform and held her dress up then sat down on the bench near the far wall. She had been doing this all morning and it was already past noon. Her stomach growled and she desperately wanted to go pick up some lunch.
"Hey guys, why don't we take a break and let them alter this dress while we get something to eat." Sango suggested.
Kagome was examining a pair of white heels and she turned to face her friend. "Yea, I'm pretty hungry, too." She said standing up from her kneeling position by the shoe rack.
Hideko peered down at her watch. "Wow. I lost track of time. You're right. We better get something to eat. Where to?"
"Chizukanah Café?" Amber suggested from behind a rack of bridesmaid dresses.
"Good idea!" Kagome exclaimed, snatching her purse up from the coffee table that was littered with magazines. "I'll help Sango get dressed back into her normal clothes. You guys wait on us in the car."
"Alright." Hideko said, as she rushed Amber out to the car.
Within 15 minutes the quad of girls sat at an outside booth at the café. Hideko had noticed Sango seemed a bit quiet today.
"Sango-chan, are you alright?" The blond girl asked from across the table.
Sango peered up at her taken back by surprise. "I'm fine…why do you ask?"
"You just seem a bit quiet." Amber butted in. "I mean you're always quiet, it's just you seem a little…" She searched for the right word.
"Preoccupied." Kagome finished, receiving an agreeing nod with Amber.
Sango bit her lower lip contemplatively and closed her menu. "I've…just been thinking."
All three girls suddenly became interested and they were staring at her as if she was in a freak show. Sango darted her gaze around the table at the three girls.
"What?"
"It's Miroku-sama, isn't it?" Hideko asked, standing up.
Sango couldn't hide the blush from her friends and she looked down. "I…"
The waiter stepped up, interrupting Sango from what she was about to say, which she was secretly grateful for. She wasn't sure how to formulate her response. Here she was, out shopping for a wedding dress and was thinking about another man. She never thought she would have been the fickle type, especially at 21. And she never pictured herself to be kissing another man, who was also very attractive, 2 weeks before her wedding.
Yet, she was and she didn't want to stop.
On top of her mental berating, the waiter was her ex-boyfriend Jayceon Taylor. He had cheated on her just before she met Howard Bailey the summer before her senior year in high school. She had seem him kiss Shima Urameshi, which was also one of Miroku's ex-girlfriends, at the summer festival that year.
They never really forgave each other but time had healed everything and she could at least stand to be in the same room as Jayceon now.
She was pulled from her thoughts when Kagome nudged her in the side with her elbow. "Earth to Sango."
Sango looked up at Jayceon, he wore a cocky grin and he figured she must have been thinking about him to be so distracted that she didn't even realize it was time to order.
Of course, it was mostly thoughts of Miroku that had distracted her, but she would let him live in the moment.
Sango quickly scanned her menu once again. "Uhm, just Ramen with a side order of rice."
Jayceon gave her a small smile and Amber giggled. "We're ordering drinks, Sango."
This caused her to blush even more and she quickly ordered a sweet tea, not making eye contact. Jayceon smiled and walked away.
"You must really have something on your mind." Hideko commented. "It's not like you to be so scatterbrained."
Sango peered back and saw that Jayceon Taylor was out of sight. She desperately wanted to talk about her feelings for Miroku. That's what females do. They talk to other females about their emotions and problems they might be having and right now, Sango was having a big problem.
It was now or never. She took a deep breath, gathered her courage. If she could trust anyone in the world it was her three best friends.
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