InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ The Neighbor ❯ The Truth Amuses ( Chapter 8 )

The Truth Amuses

 

 

InuYasha happily ran his claws through Kagome's hair, loving the way she snuggled closer against him to enjoy the caress. It was about time to take her to bed, he noticed; she'd been nodding off and jerking awake in about ten-minute cycles for the last hour and a half.

 

He was just trying to figure out how to get out from under her without jarring her awake (she was slumped over his chest, one leg between his, and a hand tangled in the hair draped over his shoulder, so this was not an easy equation)… when he was startled by a knock at the door.

 

`The hell?' Who would be visiting them at that time of night? InuYasha ran through the list of friends in his head but couldn't pick one - most everybody either lived too far away to visit this late on a whim or would have called first. After a few moments of silence, InuYasha shrugged. `Must have mistaken the address or something.'

 

At InuYasha's movement, Kagome stirred again and blinked sleep-dazed eyes up at him. He grinned - she was too adorable like that - and nodded. “Hey wench, nice nap?”

 

She smiled and snuggled tighter against him, as though burrowing into his chest. He smiled and shifted so she lay mostly on the couch and was using him as a pillow. His hand drifted to her still-flat stomach and his face took on a shining quality.

 

`My kid!'

 

Another knock rang through the apartment and InuYasha's ears perked up. Much to Kagome's displeasure, he transferred her grip to a long pillow and wiggled out from under her, headed to the door.

 

He began ranting before he began opening the door. “Do you have any idea how late it-”

 

`Police?'

 

Two uniformed officers stood flanking his door; one had an official-looking clipboard and looked ready to take notes.

 

“Um… can I help ya'?” InuYasha leaned up against the doorjamb, arms crossed. This was not something he needed at minutes to midnight when he had to work the next day.

 

“Would you mind answering a few questions, sir?” the female officer asked kindly. She seemed honest enough and InuYasha had nothing to hide.

 

He shrugged, “Sure, I guess. Is there a problem?” He answered a few obligatory opening questions: his name, age, that sort of thing.

 

Then the male officer dropped the bombshell. “How well do you know your upstairs neighbor?”

 

`Oh, hell. I should have known she'd be involved.'

 

InuYasha sighed. On one hand, she seemed harmless enough, if completely oblivious. On the other hand, lying to the cops was not something he made a habit of; sure, he'd gotten out of a ticket once or twice, but this seemed a bit more serious.

 

“I've run into her a time or two,” he admitted cautiously. “Usually I just see her in passing… to be honest, I try to avoid her as much as possible,” he said with a sigh.

 

“And why is that?”

 

“She's kind of a dumb broad,” InuYasha responded easily enough. “Not harmfully stupid, but just not… aware, sometimes.”

 

“Have you ever run into her male acquaintance?”

 

He should have figured this had something to do with the guy loaded with cash. Kagome had remarked in passing how strange it was that The Neighbor's last boyfriend was all but “white trash” - this new boy-toy of The Neighbor's was always buying her gifts. It was an intriguing change.

 

“Not really. I think I met him once in the elevator. Made some small talk.”

 

The woman narrowed her eyes at InuYasha. “Has either one of them ever attempted to sell you or your wife drugs?”

 

InuYasha's jaw dropped. This was too good to be true. Oh, sure, he wasn't actually hoping the chick got hauled off in cuffs, but… it'd certainly make his life a bit easier.

 

He realized how dumb he must look standing there flapping his jaw and shut it with a click. “Nope,” he answered truthfully. “Not Kagome, either… at least, not that she told me. Do I have to get her? I'd rather she stay asleep if possible…” InuYasha trailed off.

 

“No, that will be fine.”

 

“He's always buying her expensive gifts, though,” InuYasha added on to his previous answer. “The guy, I mean, and our neighbor. Television, game systems, that sort of thing.”

 

“How would you know that?” The male officer seemed suspicious.

 

“They've gotten stuck in the stairwell and tied up the elevator for hours,” InuYasha said, jaw a bit tense as he remembered. “It made me late to work one time; they managed to wedge a couch in the stairs somehow. Stupid humans,” he scoffed, before remembering that he was speaking to two said humans. He cringed. “No offense.”

 

“None taken,” the woman responded, though the man looked like he wanted to beat InuYasha with his nightstick. Flashlight. Whatever the hell round thing was in the guy's belt.

 

There was a moment of silence.

 

InuYasha shifted uncomfortably. `Way to go, moron. Insult the police. That'll go over real well.'

 

The silence grew unnerving and InuYasha finally cleared his throat. “Is that all?”

 

“Do you have any more to tell us?”

 

He wracked his brain. “Not that I can think of.”

 

“Call us if you think of anything,” the female said while handing him a business card. InuYasha took it with a nod and waited for them to walk away before closing and locking the door.

 

InuYasha busied himself with getting ready for bed: turning the sheets down, getting Kagome some water to take her vitamins with… he'd just bent over to pick her up when he heard a commotion outside.

 

“InuYasha?”

 

He remained bent over her, ears and eyes pointed at the door. Kagome managed to push him aside, curious as to what would have drawn his attention. The two slowly stepped outside; InuYasha wondered if he might score more free comics tonight.

 

What he saw was even better.

 

“I ain't done sellin' no drugs, man! You can't prove a thing! I pay taxes, damn it; I pay your god-damned salaries! Leave me the fuck alone!” The two officers who had questioned InuYasha earlier had a man leaned up against the squad car, hands cuffed behind his back. When one pulled a large baggy filled with white powder from his pocket, the young man froze for a breath before his flailing renewed with even greater intensity. "You-- that--" he sputtered, obviously not capable of lying well. "You can't prove that's mine!"

 

Above them, The Neighbor shouted through tears. “You can't take him! I love him!”

 

InuYasha cringed. So much as he hated to hear women cry… who could stick up for a drug dealer of a boy-toy?

 

The police ignored her crying as they continued to frisk the angry, thrashing young man. They pulled another bag - this one with pot inside, if InuYasha had to guess - from his jacket. The suspect's stammering continued as he tried to talk his way out of the trouble he'd found himself in.

 

“We can make a deal, right? I mean, I've got money. I've got some friends who can hook you up with stuff… anything you want, man!”

 

`Is he really that stupid?' InuYasha gaped. `He's… actually trying to buy off the police?'

 

Next to him, Kagome had her hand over her mouth in shock. The next thing they heard was even more mind-boggling.

 

“If you take him, do I have to give all the stuff back?” The Neighbor called out, again ignored by the cops.

 

InuYasha felt like slamming his head on the wall as the police drove away; The Neighbor hung over the railing, still shrieking at the thought of losing her ill-gotten gains. After all, she hollered to anybody who would listen, it wasn't her fault! She didn't know! She was innocent!

 

Seemed like nobody would be sleeping well tonight…

 

But, InuYasha consoled himself, the wench upstairs would stop getting shit stuck in the stairwell. He could live with that.

 

 

----

 

 

Disclaimer: Unfortunately, I do not own nor rent InuYasha or the characters of… I have a new t-shirt, though! The “real” InuYasha belongs to the genius of Rumiko Takahashi.

 

“The Neighbor” is a collection of nine pieces set in an Alternate Universe. The collection was written for the LiveJournal Community FirstTweak, for the “SFX” challenge.

 

“The Truth Amuses” was written for the “Kon Kon” (or “Knock Knock!”) prompt.

 

“The Truth Amuses”, coming in at 1,306 words, was posted on LiveJournal on December 8th, 2009.