An Unexpected Love Story

Chapter Seven:

Part One: Vegas

Chapter Seven:

We enter the decorated ballroom and I feel the walls closing in as my exits disintegrate.

I feel Sesshoumaru's hand close around mine as he steers me to our seats. This is when auto pilot turns on.

I speak when spoken to, laugh when queued, nod when appropriate, and smile always. Sesshoumaru stays his composed stoic self as always. People I'm supposed to know call out my name from hundreds of different directions.

"Oh Kagome I haven't seen you in so long!"

"Look how beautiful you are!"

"You clean up so well! Who's your friend?"

The questions are all the same. Sesshoumaru answers almost all of them as I stand beside him smiling. Girls I haven't seen since college ask me how my job hunt is going while giving me back handed compliments about finding a job with my degree. Boys who I once helped get out of the residence building after Mel snuck them in look enviously at Sesshoumaru by my side.

There are so many people here it feels like I am drowning.

Crossing the ocean is difficult when there are so many obstacles. Dinner is about to start, and promises that won't be fulfilled of meeting up later are tossed out into dead air. Sesshoumaru looks at me blankly and raises an eyebrow.

"Speeches." I whisper, he does nothing but nod before returning to his blank expression.

I wish I could do the same, but my no longer sincere speech is up next. I am called upon. I stand, clear my throat, and suddenly feel naked. I feel like I'm completely butt ass naked standing on stage and I'm supposed to be singing opera, but I never learned the music and I was never classically trained so I start to dance but I never learned the dance. So I just stand, and take a deep breath.

"I've known Mel for almost six years now, we were roommates, back in college. I had just gotten off a plane from a long flight, she had just hopped off a bus from Pittsburgh. She offered me a slice of her mom's homemade banana bread. We became such fast friends, sharing almost everything." I pause and take another breath. I can see Mel crying a few tables over, my hands shake as I hold the piece of paper with my short speech written on it.

"Of course when I say almost everything I mean next to nothing. We are polar opposites of one another in the best of ways. We had no classes together, we majored in completely different things, yet here I am today, six years and many exams later. Standing as the maid of honor, at my best friend's wedding. Through all the ups and downs that school had to offer we made it, which just goes to show the resiliency of this gorgeous girl. I love you Mel and I will always be here. Good luck, and good life to you Melanie and Ted Brooks." I smile, holding my glass up. Mel holds hers up in a shaky hand as she blots away the tears.

More speeches ensue and dinner is eaten as we converse mechanically with our fellow table guests, a senior couple who are hard of hearing, and a young couple who are convinced Sesshoumaru and I are married.

"So how long have you two been together?" The young woman who is actually older then I am asks.

"Well, we were uh...we were friends in Japan where we both lived. I moved here and we lost touch, then reconnected somehow and we've been together ever since." I say smiling. A lie within the truth, that's all it is.

I take a deep breath and Mel approaches.

"Come on Kags! Get ready, we're about to start the dance!" She disappears again amongst the tables. Sesshoumaru raises an eyebrow.