InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Shocking New Love ❯ Miroku Confesses ( Chapter 21 )

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]

Back in the Feudal era, Inuyasha and the others sat in Kaede's hut, neither of them saying a word. Even though Inuyasha wasn't speaking, everyone in the room could tell how he felt about Kagome going back to her own time. Shippo lay down next to him, curling up into a ball. Inuyasha opened his teary eyes and looked down at the little fox demon on the floor beside him. Shippo had his back turned to Inuyasha, so Inuyasha couldn't see his face. Inuyasha craned his neck, trying to see Shippo's face. He wanted to know if he was being the crybaby that he always was.

“Shippo?” Shippo looked over his shoulder at him, his eyes wide with despair. Inuyasha frowned when he saw tears streaming down Shippo's cheeks. He grunted and closed his eyes, arms crossed.

“Stop crying, Shippo… Real men never cry, no matter what happens…” he said firmly.

“Y-you're one to t-talk! You're crying too! And you cried at the well earlier! Besides, you miss Kagome just as m-much as everyone else does, maybe even more. Just admit it!” bawled Shippo, an exasperated look on his face. Inuyasha growled and snapped, “All right, I admit it! I DO miss Kagome! And I AM ticked off that Kagome is in love with Sesshomaru! I actually wish she had never come here… Because if she hadn't, I wouldn't have been beating myself up whenever something bad happened to her and I kept thinking it was my fault! And I wouldn't feel like my heart's been ripped out and crushed in someone's hand right now! I'd rather be dead and pinned to that damn tree than feel this way!” Inuyasha's harsh outburst brought even more tears to Shippo's eyes, causing him to burst out sobbing. Miroku and Sango were crying too; something they rarely did. But since Kohaku hardly knew Kagome at all, he was merely sitting next to Sango, confused about why this Kagome girl was so important to them. Since he was under Naraku's spell before Kagome came to the Feudal era, he hadn't had the chance to learn her name and befriend her.

“Don't be so hard on yourself, Inuyasha. It's not because of you that she went home,” mentioned Miroku, finally speaking. Inuyasha clenched his hands into fists and glared at Miroku, his tears very visible in his eyes.

“What would you know about these feelings I have for her?! You go after any woman you come across, you don't have feelings for one woman in particular!” Now it was Miroku's turn to be angry.

“You shouldn't accuse me of such things, Inuyasha! You're no different! You love both Kagome and Kikyo! And apparently, you couldn't stick with one woman either!” he shouted.

“KIKYO IS DEAD! But Kagome is a living, breathing human, Miroku, and I love her! But I can't say the same for you, because you massage every female butt you see, you lecher! I feel bad for Sango; she has to put up with your perverted hands 24/7. One of these days, she'll end up getting hurt by your lecheries, monk.” Miroku had just about had it now with Inuyasha's harsh accusations.

“I LOVE SANGO! I would never do anything to harm her, Inuyasha! You should go to Hell for even thinking I would do such a thing to her!” he hollered. Sango, Kohaku, Shippo, Inuyasha, Kaede and even Kirara's eyes widened with surprise at what Miroku said. Inuyasha's ears twitched as he tried to determine whether he had heard Miroku correctly. But Sango knew she had heard the monk correctly and blushed a bright shade of pink.

“W-what did you say, Miroku?” she questioned shyly. Miroku moved closer to Sango and took both of her hands in his, smiling charmingly at her.

“I have kept it secret for so long… But I speak the truth. I love you, Sango, more so than any other woman,” he stated, glancing at Inuyasha as he said the last sentence. Sango blinked and pulled her hands from Miroku's, looking away. Miroku frowned slightly and wrapped his right arm around Sango, holding her close. Sango let out a small gasp and looked up at him, her cheeks terribly flushed. Miroku chuckled.

“Why, Sango, you're blushing,” he mentioned. Sango's brow furrowed and she pushed against Miroku's chest, trying to get away.

“Don't be ridiculous, Miroku! Now please let me go!” she cried, eyes closed tightly so she wouldn't have to look at Miroku's face. Miroku obeyed and removed his arm from around Sango's shoulders, smiling all the while. Sango blushed and stood up, shouldering her Hiraikotsu. Kirara hopped onto the opposite shoulder and looked up at her master.

“I'm gonna go outside the village and get some fresh air. And I'd like to go alone,” said Sango, walking to the door. Everyone except Miroku nodded and Sango walked out of the hut as fast as she could. Shippo turned his attention to Miroku and questioned, “You really love Sango?” Miroku nodded and answered, “Yes, I do. But she doesn't seem to love me back.” Inuyasha huffed and said, “Because you're still a lecher, that's why.” Miroku rolled his eyes and stood up, walking out of the hut.

“Uh… didn't Sango say she wanted to be alone?” asked Kohaku. Shippo, Inuyasha and Kaede nodded.

“Indeed she did,” said Kaede. Kohaku sighed.

Outside of the village, Sango was sitting on a small hill, looking up at the starry sky. She was still pondering over and over about what Miroku had said: I love you, Sango, more so than any other woman. Sango blushed at the thought of Miroku loving her out of all the women that fell prey to his perverted hands. She shook her head, trying to get the thoughts out of her mind. Kirara mewed curiously.

“What a load of nonsense! He doesn't love me; he's just toying with me for his own sick amusement. Well, I'm not going to fall for it,” she assured herself and Kirara. No sooner had she said this, she heard a familiar voice from behind her that nearly made her jump; it was Miroku's. She looked over her shoulder at him and saw him smiling at her; she tried to hide her blushing. Miroku stepped closer to her and sat beside her, opposite of Kirara.

“I told you I wanted to be alone…” mumbled Sango, trying not to look at Miroku.

“What can I say other than I like being with you?” questioned Miroku, looking up at the sky. Having nothing to say, Sango kept her mouth shut.

After a long silence, Sango said, “Miroku, I…” Miroku closed his eyes, looked down, and smiled.

“Sango, I know what you're thinking; you're thinking that I'm just pulling your leg by saying I love you, right?” he asked knowledgably. Sango nodded.

“Yes… But you sounded so serious when you said it, so I don't know what to think,” she said.

“That's understandable. But Sango, I really was serious when I said it. I really do love you,” stated Miroku truthfully. Sango shivered and said, “Stop, Miroku, just stop it! Quit saying that you love me! Besides, even if you loved me, you'd still flirt with every pretty woman you see!” Miroku's expression changed from affectionate to hurt.

“Is that… really how you feel?” he asked.

“Well, yeah… I hate it when you come on to other women like that and ask them to bear your children… You aren't very reliable around them…” answered Sango, tears beginning to well up in her eyes. Suddenly, a small smile appeared on Miroku's face.

“You mean you get jealous when I fondle other women and ask them to bear my children?” he questioned. Sango gulped softly and nodded.

“Uh huh…” Miroku moved closer to Sango and asked, “But why do you get jealous if you don't have feelings for me?” Sango blushed madly and thought, Oh no, if I answer him honestly, he'll rub it in my face… Oh well, it's worth a try… He told me how he feels, after all. Sango gathered up her courage and, finally, turned to face Miroku. She looked deep into his eyes and whispered, “Well, I get jealous because… stupid as it sounds… I love you…” with tears rolling slowly down her cheeks. Miroku's eyes widened at Sango's words. He was both surprised and overjoyed.

“You mean that, Sango?” he asked, just to be sure. Sango sniffled and nodded. Miroku beamed.

“So you are serious!” he exclaimed, throwing his arms around Sango and pulling her into an affectionate hug. Sango gasped at the sudden embrace, unsure about whether she should hug back or not. She decided that she would and wrapped her arms around the monk, muttering, “If your hands go any lower than my back, I swear that I will kill you, monk.” Miroku laughed and pulled away from the hug, tilting Sango's chin up with his right hand.

“I'm happy to hear how you really feel about me. And I promise that I will try to control myself around beautiful women,” he vowed. Sango smiled and nodded.

“Good…” Miroku and Sango began leaning closer and closer to each other, their lips closing in. Kirara watched intently with her large red eyes, her two tails waving back and forth slowly. Within moments, the demon slayer and the monk's lips met and they shared the one kiss they had been afraid to share all the time they had known each other. Sango wrapped her arms around Miroku's neck, kissing him passionately. Miroku felt tears well up in his eyes, but they weren't tears of sadness; they were tears of joy. He was happy to know that Sango loved him, even if she did slap him a lot because of his lecheries.

Sango felt tears stream slowly down her flushed cheeks. Part of her knew that she was really kissing Miroku, but the other part kept telling her that it was too awkward to be real. She was shocked at how well Miroku was kissing her and idly wondered if he had learned how to from another, probably prettier, woman. Then she wished that she hadn't thought such a thing because it made her jealous again. Even though Miroku probably couldn't tell, Sango really didn't like smacking him.

A few minutes later, Miroku broke the kiss, removing his lips from Sango's. He gazed into Sango's eyes and frowned when he saw that she was crying.

“What's wrong, Sango?” he questioned, concerned. Sango shook her head and looked away, trembling slightly. Miroku leaned down and to the side a bit, trying to catch a glimpse of Sango's face. He saw that she looked really upset and assumed that it was because of him. He put his left hand on her right shoulder, saying in no more than a whisper, “Whatever's wrong, please, tell me, Sango. I'll do whatever I can to help.” Without warning, Sango whipped around to Miroku and threw herself into his arms, sobbing into his chest. Miroku was surprised at this and, uncertainly, held Sango in his arms. This was more of a comforting act than anything to Sango and she rested her cheek and both hands on Miroku's chest, closing her tear-filled eyes.

Then finally, she spoke. “I just can't help but wonder how you learned to do that so well, Miroku… I mean you act as if you've never kissed anyone before, but if that were true, you wouldn't have kissed me so well. In other words, I believe that you already kissed someone else before me… And after what we just did, to me, that's heartbreaking…” Miroku had a blank look on his face and Sango finished with, “It's stupid, I know… But I can't help but feel jealous…”

Miroku nodded understandingly and hugged Sango firmer, rubbing her back gently.

“It's okay Sango, I know how you are, no offense.”

“None taken…”

Miroku smiled. “But Sango, that was indeed my first kiss.”

Sango harrumphed and her eyes narrowed suspiciously. “Somehow, I don't believe you…”

“Sango, I swear on my grandfather and father's graves that I have never once kissed anyone other than you in my whole life.”

The insistance and sincerity in Miroku's voice made Sango open her eyes wide with surprise and let out a small sound of relief. She pulled away from Miroku and stood up, placing the Hiraikotsu's strap around her left shoulder and chest and picked Kirara up.

“Okay. Come on, lets head back to the others,” she said finally. Miroku smiled and nodded, standing up.

“I love you, Sango.” Sango smiled.

“I love you too…” With that she went back through the village to Kaede's hut with Miroku at her side.

Meanwhile, in the western lands, Sesshomaru was at his castle, sitting in his study. He hadn't left since he had arrived there and he kept the door closed. He hadn't even spoken to anyone, not even Rin. It had been five hours since he last saw Kagome and he was more depressed than he ever had been in his whole life. He was also beating himself up over the incident at the well. He finally got the chance to tell Kagome how strongly he felt about her but he missed it entirely.

Sesshomaru heard a knock on the doorframe outside of his study and said, “Come in…” The door slid open and his servant Myra stepped into the room, her hands clasped in front of her. Like Sesshomaru, she was also a dog demon. She had shoulder-length silver hair and wore an indigo kimono adorned with flower designs. But the most amazing of her features was her sea-green eyes.

“Pardon my intrusion my Lord, but might I ask if I can get you anything?” she questioned with a patient air to her voice. Sesshomaru sighed and replied, “No thank you, Myra… But if you would be so kind as to check on Rin and see if she's okay, that would be most appreciated.” Myra frowned at this.

“I already tried my Lord, but she said she would not open the door. She seems as upset about Kagome-san leaving as you are. I think you are the only one she will respond to,” she stated. Sesshomaru nodded and stood, sauntering past Myra and out the door.

He stood in front of Rin's door and rapped gently on the doorframe. From inside, he heard Rin's little voice say, “Myra, I already told you, I'm not going to open the door!”

“Rin, it's me, Sesshomaru. May I come in?” Sesshomaru heard Rin make her way to the door and she slid it open, looking up at him with misty eyes. Sesshomaru knelt down to her level and looked into those big brown eyes of hers.

“Are you alright?” he questioned calmly. Rin cried out and threw herself at Sesshomaru, latching onto him. Sesshomaru wasn't very surprised and wrapped his arms around her lightly. Rin sobbed against his armor, eyes closed tightly.

“Oh Lord Sesshomaru! She's gone! Kagome went home and she's never coming b-back!” she howled distraughtly. Sesshomaru made a small quieting sound and lifted Rin, striding over to the little girl's bed and placing her down on it.

“I know Rin, I know… I… I miss her too… But there's nothing we can do now. Inuyasha attempted going back through the well but he just ended up landing at the bottom. He didn't end up in Kagome's era. We'll just have to get along the way we did before Kagome ever came along,” he said softly, placing his right hand on Rin's head.

“Do you think… we'll ever see her again, Sesshomaru-sama?” asked Rin.

“Perhaps someday…” replied Sesshomaru with a slightly hopeful tone in his voice. He stood up, and was about to leave the room when Rin called out, “Lord Sesshomaru, wait…” Sesshomaru looked over his shoulder at her and saw the desperate look on her face.

“Yes?” he questioned.

“Can you stay here with me until I fall asleep? Please?” Sesshomaru nodded and walked back over to Rin, lying beside Rin on the bed. Rin smiled and huddled next to him, her little hands holding onto his left sleeve. A protective feeling passed through Sesshomaru and he closed his eyes, weary from the night's events. I couldn't protect Kagome from Naraku when he killed her… I'll make sure a similar occurance doesn't happen to Rin, he thought.