Higher Education by SunsetMiko

Chapter 49

Each prompt is labeled with the challenge it goes to.

"Kagome," Sesshoumaru said softly, pressing his lips to her bare shoulder. "Wake up. Your alarm is going off." He smiled as she let out a groan and shifted in his arms and he released her as she reached towards the nightstand to silence her phone.

"Gods, this bed is too big," she complained as she was unable to reach it to stop that incessant chiming. She scooted closer to the edge, finally swiping across the screen to silence her phone. She snuggled back under the covers and Sesshoumaru closed the distance between them to hold her once more.

"Perhaps we should not sleep in the middle," he said with a smirk. "So, what do you want for breakfast? Toaster pastries, toaster waffles, toaster pancakes," he suggested, his smirk widening.

Kagome stopped him with a giggle. "You don't toast the pancakes. You microwave them."

"Oh. Well, that could have been bad. There should be coffee."

"Did you sneak out of bed on me again? I don't know how you manage to do that."

"Not this time. I set the timer on the coffee maker. So long as I did so correctly, it would have started ten minutes ago."

"You're sneaky," she hummed before sighing. "Okay, I have to get up."

"At least this is not your earliest class."

"Yeah, it could be worse, and it will be, in just a few days."

Sesshoumaru watched as she climbed out of bed, stretching her naked body, just as he'd told her he would when they were searching for bedding. His eyes never left her as she dug around in the various bags she'd brought in search of the clothing she'd chosen for the day. The sight of her with her ass in the air had his beast growling in his mind, demanding that he mount her, that she was displaying herself in such a way to tempt him. The taiyoukai hushed his more primal half without ever taking his eyes off the show.

Once she was fully dressed, the taiyoukai climbed out of bed and tugged on a pair of pajama pants he'd found in the bottom of one of his drawers while packing his things. He figured they were perfect for the morning because if he walked around naked, it was likely that Kagome would never leave the apartment.

"So, breakfast?" he asked her.

"Cake."

"Cake? For breakfast?"

Kagome giggled at his expression. "Sure, why not? Cake and coffee go well together. Who cares what time it is?"

Sesshoumaru shook his head but followed her out of the room, heading into the kitchen as she disappeared into the bathroom. When she emerged several minutes later, she smiled brightly. He'd cut her a moderately large piece of cake and it, along with a cup of coffee, awaited her on the counter. He paid close attention to how much creamer she added to her cup, hoping to be able to do it for her the next time.

She took a sip and made a face, turning back towards the counter before cursing softly. "Sugar. We didn't buy any sugar."

Sesshoumaru walked over to his desk and collected a notepad, writing 'Sugar' on the first line. "We will make a list. I am certain there are other things we forgot as well."

The miko added more creamer to her cup, hoping to cut down the bitter taste, since adding sugar wasn't an option. Finally, it was palatable and she took both it and her cake to the small dining room table. The taiyoukai toasted himself a few waffles and joined her. They ate in silence, neither sure what to say to the other. This was their first morning basically living together and it was more awkward than they would have hoped.

"Do you want me to walk with you?" he offered.

"Nah, I'm sure you have better things to do, like unpacking for instance." The taiyoukai nodded and carried their plates into the kitchen. Kagome followed, sighing in relief when she spotted it. "Yes, we have a dishwasher!"

Sesshoumaru chuckled. "You hadn't noticed that?"

"Nope. I wonder if there's any soap for it."

"Perhaps this evening we can peruse the cupboards and find out."

"Sounds like a plan," she said before leaning up and pressing a kiss to his chin affectionately. "I'm gonna go."

The taiyoukai watched her collect her backpack, which she'd already filled with the appropriate book and notebook, and head towards the door. He met her there and caught her, pulling her close and pressing his lips to hers.

"Now, that was a good-bye kiss," she said with a silly smile before heading off to the elevator as Sesshoumaru closed the door behind her.

As soon as she was gone, he headed into the bedroom and started unpacking his suitcase. It didn't take very long and he moved on to his desk area, arranging his texts and his book collection on the available shelves. He plugged in his computer and opened it, ready to do a little work on a project he was beginning to fall behind on. He knew she was a distraction, and yet he still wanted her close. For this to work, he was going to have to take advantage of every moment she was out of his presence and work like mad to get through his studies. At least he could also work while she did, once he managed to drag his eyes and mind off of her.

Prompt: Schmaltz: informal, exaggerated sentimentalism, as in music or soap operas. (Obscure Word Challenge)

"Kagome!"

She was just walking out of class when the sound of her name being called caught the miko's attention and she turned on her heel, concerned by the desperate tone of voice it had been yelled with. "Sango?"

"Thank the gods, there you are!"

"Was I missing?" she asked in confusion.

"I texted you a dozen times yesterday and you never answered, so I went to your room last night and you weren't there. I was worried!"

The miko fought down the desire to roll her eyes at her friend. She was being seriously overdramatic. "I was so busy yesterday that I didn't even glance at my phone. Besides turning off my alarm this morning, I still haven't. I had a class. What was so urgent you were ready to send out search parties? Sorority business?"

Sango shook her head while looking her friend over from head to toe. "I was just worried about you, you know, because of what happened the night before."

"Sango," Kagome started with a sigh. "I'm fine. Of course I'm fine. You're blowing things out of proportion. So what if my boyfriend got in a fight? Guys do that. You don't know the whole story. You don't know a thing about it. Inuyasha deserved everything he got and more."

"You had to stop him or he was going to kill his own brother!" she exclaimed urgently.

"You don't know that's what would have happened. I don't get it. You've seen guys fight before. Why is this such a big deal? Why are you so convinced that I'm in some kind of danger? Because I'm not! I am never safer than when I'm in his arms. He loves me."

"You've known him for how long now? A few weeks, tops, right? And he's in love with you? Has he said that?"

"No," the miko replied slowly, "but he doesn't have to. I can see it in his eyes. I can feel it in his touch. It's obvious. He went through so much trouble for me, for us. He's the most romantic man I've ever met."

"What do you mean, trouble?"

Kagome had a feeling telling Sango about his surprise would be a bad idea, but she wasn't going to lie to her friend about it. There wasn't any point. She would find out eventually. "He got an on campus apartment, so we can sleep together every night. Pulled it all together in just a couple of days, all for me, for us, so we can be together."

"Oh, Kagome," Sango scolded. "You're not moving in together."

"No, not yet."

"But that's where you were last night, when I was banging on your door thinking you were dead in there, that he'd hurt you like he had his brother."

Now the miko really rolled her eyes. "You thought he'd killed me? Really? That's ridiculous. I told you, he would never hurt me. I don't know why you can't accept that!"

Sango winced as Kagome's voice increased in volume, gathering the interest of all the students within earshot. The miko didn't care who heard. Her friend was being stupid and dramatic, making something out of nothing, and she was tired of it.

"Fine, he won't hurt you," she conceded before noticing the strangely shaped bruise on Kagome's forearm. "What... What's that from? It looks like a bite mark."

Instantly, the miko's cheeks flushed a brilliant red. The bruise was from Saturday night, before the party, when she'd bitten down on her own arm to keep from screaming in pleasure so that the whole floor could hear her.

"It is! It's a bite mark! I thought you said he wouldn't hurt you."

"He didn't hurt me, Sango. I did that."

"You did?" the girl asked skeptically. "You're just making excuses for his behavior. That's how it starts, you know. He hurts you once, begs for forgiveness, and swears it will never happen again, but it does. It always does. No matter what you say to excuse his behavior, no matter how you rationalize it, he's doing something wrong."

"He didn't bite me, but if he did, it would be perfectly natural. He's inu, for gods sakes. He's very oral." The last part slipped out without considering how it sounded and when she heard herself, her blush darkened.

"So you honestly think it's okay for him to hurt you?"

"You aren't listening to me, Sango!" Kagome yelled, her frustration growing. "He didn't bite me. I did, to keep quiet while we were, while he was... Ugh! None of this is any of your business!" When the miko turned to walk away, Sango followed her.

"Where are you going? The dorms are back that way."

"I'm going to Sesshoumaru's apartment, not that that is any of your business either."

"So you're staying over every night?"

Kagome growled in frustration. "Yeah, you got an opinion on that too?"

"You don't think this is moving a little quickly, sharing a bed every night? I'd give it a week before you're living there completely, and another week or two before you're out on your ass, moving into the sorority house because you already lost your dorm room."

"You know what? You might be right. I might just move in with him completely. It's tempting. But you're wrong, too. He'd never kick me out. He got the place so we could be together! You just don't get it, Sango. I love him. I'm in love with him. That's not going away, and neither is his love for me. If you gave any one guy your attention for more than one night, maybe you'd know what I'm talking about. Just because you don't like the idea of monogamy doesn't mean I can't be perfectly happy with just one person."

"Did you just call me a whore?" Sango asked, shocked by Kagome's words.

"No," the miko replied as calmly as she could manage. "I don't care who you sleep with or how many. I'm just saying that you have no experience with a real relationship, so who are you to try to judge mine? It doesn't matter to us that we're moving quickly. We're both happy, and as my friend, I would have thought you would be happy for me, not trying to ruin everything."

"You don't get it either, Kagome. I know guys. He'll fuck you a couple more times, get bored with you, and go out looking for something new. You're not in love, you're in lust, and he went through all the trouble of getting an apartment so his pussy wouldn't dry up," Sango told her, using words the miko had never heard pass her friend's lips before.

"You're wrong again, Sango. We haven't even had sex yet. This isn't about that, it's about wanting to be together all the time, because I want him to hold me while I sleep and he wants to do the same. It's amazing, feeling so safe and warm wrapped in his strong arms, like nothing in the world can hurt me, like nothing can possibly be wrong so long as we're there together. Have you ever felt that? Have you ever been held like that? I know I hadn't, before him. And he's not like most guys. He would never get tired of me and want to move on."

"I still think you're making a huge mistake."

"And I think you're being a bitch," Kagome snapped back. "And the most unsupportive friend I've ever seen! Now, just back off and mind your own business. If this falls apart, then it does, and I'll deal with it, but I'm not afraid of that. He's worth getting my heart broken. He'd worth losing my dorm room. He's worth the risk, because I love him."

The miko turned her back on her friend and stomped off towards the apartment building, still outraged by Sango's assumptions and comments. As she walked, better comebacks and arguments popped into her mind and she grumbled in frustration, her anger only growing as she reached the elevator. She was going to explode if she didn't find an outlet for her rage, and soon.