Disclaimer: All characters from Inuyasha are owned by Rumiko Takahashi, but this story belongs to me. This is an Alternate Universe story. Events that happened in the manga and anime have not happened in this particular universe, so slight differences in how the characters act and speak should be expected.

Disclaimer Part II: Chapter One is loosely based on the lyrics of the song "Should've Listened" by Nickelback. I don't own that either. Dang it.

Chapter One: I Should Have Listened

Where's Kagome?

Inuyasha kicked at the small pile of his shirts on the living room floor. It looked like the laundry hamper exploded. It wasn't the clothes that were bothering him though, there was something else. Something was wrong.

"Kagome?"

Her scent. He couldn't smell her perfume. Not even a trace.

"Hey Kagome!"

Looking around began to notice other things that were out of place. There were blank squares on the wall, clean spots where pictures had hung the last time he looked. His heart began to speed up as he touched one of the blank spots. Maybe... maybe she was getting them re-framed. Or maybe cleaned. The three baseball sized holes in the wall... well... maybe she was playing ball in the house. It wouldn't be the first time the clumsy girl had broken something. He swallowed the lump in his throat and went back to the door to see if her car was in the driveway.

It wasn't.

But there was something lying in the middle of their yard. Inuyasha pushed open the screen door and went to inspect what was glinting in the moonlight.

It was his wallet.

Maybe she dropped it on her way to the car to go to the store. Wasn't she always dropping one thing or another? He picked up the wallet, wondering at the light feel, then opened it up. It was empty. Just some lint and an expired coupon for frozen pizza. He had left her the wallet and just taken his license and one of the credit cards when he left on his trip. Odd that she would take all the cash and the other credit cards though. Maybe she bought him a new wallet for a present.

All the 'maybes' were beginning to make Inuyasha nervous. Tucking his wallet in his back jeans pocket he went back in the house. He looked at the clothes lying around. His clothes. Kicking around the fabric he searched for even one article of hers, but found none. His palms began to sweat. Taking a step back he stepped on something sharp and swore. Looking down he saw the broken fencing trophy lying in the fireplace. His. Pictures lay scattered around the room, crumpled. And they were only half pictures, Kagome's image had been ripped from his, leaving his as trash on the floor.

Maybe... maybe... he couldn't think of any maybes for this.

She was gone.

Kagome left him.

I don't understand, Inuyasha mourned. He dropped to a crouch to pick up a broken photo frame, the silver one that he had engraved for her after they had been together for a year. It was cracked and dented with little left of the broken glass, as if someone had taken a hammer to it. He hung his head.

I've had enough, Inuyasha! I can't do this anymore!

Inuyasha remembered her words. But they had talked about it! They had worked things out. Hadn't they? He swore to her that this would be the last business trip. Yes, things had been stressful. Yes, his temper had been shorter than usual lately. But he had apologized, swore that things were going to change. He thought that she had understood.

Did he miss something?

Maybe he was wrong. Maybe she had just thrown a temper tantrum (destroyed half the house, but he could forgive that) and was with Sango and Miroku. He pulled out his cell phone and paused. He couldn't allow himself to think about what would happen if she wasn't there. He cursed himself and speed dialed his friend.

It was okay if she wasn't talking to him right now, she'd let off some steam then he'd apologize. Or maybe they'd fight some more then turn it into a fight about something stupid and laugh it off. Or maybe she'd just yell at him a bit and feel better and come home. Or maybe he'd...

"Hello?"

"Is Kagome there?"

There was a yawn. "Inuyasha... it's... Honey, is that a four? It is? Than.. Ow! Inuyasha, it is FOUR o'clock in the morning. This had better be good. Sango, my love, that is going to leave a bruise."

"Is Kagome there, Miroku?"

"Why would Kagome be here?"

Inuyasha let his head fall back and he closed his eyes. "She's gone."

There was a short pause. "Give me fifteen minutes."

Inuyasha closed his phone. Then threw it against the door. What was one more trashed possession?

"Aw man. Not my stereo." Sure enough, it had been gutted. He was almost afraid to go check the damage to the bedroom and bathroom.

"Meow!"

Inuyasha blinked. Was that a meow? "Buyo?"

The meow turned into a howl as the cat scratched on the back door. When Inuyasha let the disgruntled cat in he gave him a glare then headed for his food bowl. It was empty, and the black and white cat voiced his displeasure. Loudly.

"Yeah, well, you ain't the only one having a bad day."

He went to the cupboard to get the cat some food anyhow. It shouldn't have surprised him that even the food in the cupboard had been mutilated. Kagome must have been really REALLY mad at him.

Regardless of the feline's mood, Inuyasha was thrilled to see him. It meant that Kagome wasn't gone for good. She would never leave her cat. Their cat. Ok, he was hers. So if her cat was still here then she was coming back! Even if she just planned to grab the animal and take off again at least he would have the chance to see her and get her to talk. Whatever was wrong, he would fix it.

He would fix it.

Because there was no other option.

He couldn't live without her.

The thought of her being out of his life left him feeling shaken to the core. Without Kagome… No. He couldn't think about that. She wasn't gone. She wouldn't leave him. She vowed to never leave him. And Kagome always kept her promises. Except for the vow that she'd never touch chocolate again after they had gorged themselves on it one Valentine's Day. Or the vow that she'd never cheat on her diet, but really, that one was doomed for failure. Or the vow that the movie wouldn't be too scary for her. But those were small promises, not really the important ones. She never backed down on an important promise.

It wasn't until there was a knock at the door that Inuyasha realized that his head was resting on his arms as he sat at the table. Wiping his face he stood up and headed to the front door.

Kagome would be back. She wasn't gone. She loved him. As much as he messed up, she loved him.

"Hey," Inuyasha greeted his tired looking friend as he opened the door.

""Hey."

Opening the door wider, Inuyasha stood back and let Miroku enter. He waved at the angry looking woman in the driver's seat of the car. Her wave was more of a… gesture. He didn't have time, or even really cared for that matter, about Sango's sudden abrasiveness. The woman always had a volatile temperament. Since her pregnancy, it was even worse.

"I think if we split up to look for her, we can cover more territory," Inuyasha said as he began hunting for where he had dropped his car keys. "I'll take…"

"Inuyasha…"

The silver haired man shut his eyes tightly and clenched his fists. He took a deep breath before starting looking for his keys again. "We have to find her, Miroku. What if she's hurt? What if she's in danger? What if she's scared?"

"What if she left you because you can't keep your lips to yourself?"

That stopped his mad search. "What?"

"Inuyasha. She knows." Miroku slumped onto the sofa, kicking at the debris.

"Knows what?"

Clearing his throat, his friend shifted so that he was leaning forward with his hands resting on his knees. It was the position he always took when he was about to lecture. Inuyasha folded his arms in front of his chest. The position HE took when he was about to endure one of those lectures.

"Kagome and Sango saw you kissing Kikyo."

His arms dropped to his sides. That wasn't at all what he expected. But it sure did explain Sango's sudden expressive hatred for him.

"I didn't kiss her," he denied vehemently, "She kissed me!"

"Yeah, that explanation never works. Trust me."

"No, but it's true."

"Inuyasha, she could have held you under a mind control spell and frozen you in place while she climbed you like a monkey and kissed you, and that explanation still wouldn't fly." He leaned back again. "Things were going so well, Inuyasha. Why'd you have to go and mess things up? Kagome was willing to give you guys a second chance."

"I didn't… Miroku, it's not like it…" His hands were shaking. "She… left?"

"Yeah. She left, man. I'm sorry."

The thought made him sick.

"She… um… also knows you lost your job almost two months ago. That you haven't been going on business trips. I know you're my friend, Inuyasha. But," he stood up, glaring at the floor, "I can't let you hurt Kagome anymore. Please, if you care for her at all. Stay away from her."

"I've been going on job interviews," he said softly, unable to believe how truly horrifying this was. "I was going for the third interview, and they offered me the job. We were going to move closer to her family… she misses them… I thought it would make her happy." He ignored Miroku's soft curse. "I was stopping by the coffee shop to get some caffeine for the road, Kikyo happened to be there." It was all a nightmare. "She's getting married next month, moving across the ocean, she was wishing Kagome and me luck. She kissed me for luck, just on the cheek."

"I'm sorry…"

"Where is she?"

"Look, Inuyasha…"

Exploding in rage, he grabbed his friend by the collar and slammed him against the wall. "WHERE is SHE? Where did Sango tell her to go? Are you hiding her?"

It wasn't his first time to be slammed against the wall, so it didn't faze Miroku at all. He remained calm. "I have no idea. Until you called, I was unaware she had left."

Dropping him, Inuyasha took a step back. Kagome wasn't leaving him. She was just upset. Maybe she went to her mother's house. He reached into his pocket, then remembered that he smashed his phone.

"Give me your phone," he demanded.

Miroku shrugged, then fished his phone out of his pocket. He yawned, stretched, and headed for the bathroom. Inuyasha was about to dial the number when he heard Miroku curse, which was actually a rare thing.

"She's majorly steamed," he announced as he stood looking at the mirror.

Inuyasha's blood went cold when he read the words written in bright red lipstick. It's over, you selfish HALFBREED. I HATE you! I never want to see your DOG FACE again. Don't look for me, don't even think about me. Just DIE!

"She didn't leave me," he whispered, walking to the mirror he put his fingers close to the word 'halfbreed'.

Miroku turned slowly to his friend, incredulous. Then looked back at the mirror. "Even you can't be that dense, Inuyasha."

"She didn't leave me, Miroku. She was taken."

ooOOooOOooOOooOOooOOooOOooOOooOOoo

Author's Note:

Chapter one is based on the song. The following chapters are about what happens after. This is a drama. Which may shock some of you who've read some of my other stories.