Summary: Naru has to pick up his daughter from school one day, and finds that a boy is flirting with his daughter. This isn't going to end well...
A/N: This is apart of my apology for my lack of updates with my story "Obsession." Don't worry! I am determined to continue it, no matter what! Life, however, has been disagreeing, and is using everything in its power to make sure updates are slow...*sigh* Alright, that's of an author's note. Onto the story we go!
Disclaimer: I do not, in any way shape or form, own Ghost Hunt, now matter how many times I'll try. The lawyers, sadly, agree...
In Naru's eyes, peace and quiet were one of his favorite things, considering SPR usually wasn't quiet. The only sound that filled the air in the small office was the ticka ticka of a keyboard. Naru sighed and ran a hand through his hair. So much work to get done in such a short amount of time...
Naru's gaze flickered to the photo on his desk. His eyes softened ever so slightly, and he smiled. In the picture, Mai was holding their then-two-month year old daughter, Miu. The next picture, however, showed all three of them almost seven years later, and was obviously taken only a few months ago. Mother loves taking pictures of us without us knowing it, Naru suddenly grumbled and returned to his work.
Naru finished typing the second paragraph, and was just about to hit send when his personal phone went off. He gave a bit of a jump-after all, no one really calls him. He looked at his caller ID and groaned. Why did Luella have to call now? Unfortunately, his phone stopped ringing before Naru could take any action. He sighed and counted to five before the phone rang again. Knowing very well his mother would continue to call until her son picked up, Naru answered the phone.
"Oliver Davis, did you just ignore my call?!" Naru winced and held the phone at arms distance. Really, Luella didn't have to yell so loud! "You shouldn't ignore your mother when she checks up on you!"
"Mother, I was working-"
"If you had to save your work or me, you'd save your work, wouldn't you?"
"You know that's not true, mother."
"It is true!"
"No, it's not."
"Yes, it is!" Naru sighed. He loved his mother, he really did, but why was she so loud?
"You're always working, you and Mai. You need to take a day off and relax! Go shopping with Mai and Miu! Or better yet, bring me another adorable grandchild-"
"Mai and I are not taking a day off, Mother." Naru interrupted, choosing to ignore his mother's suggestion.
"But Noll, dear, you and Mai just have to take a day off from work! You're going to give your poor mother a heart attack from fear of you two overworking!"
"Mother." Naru groaned and pinched the bridge of his nose. He could have been working, but noooo. Luella just had to call right when Naru was sending an important email. Heaven forbid he hang up on Luella-that was practically suicide. So, for the time being, Naru just had to stick through everyone one of his mother's loud pitched squeals...
"Don't, 'Mother' me, young man! You haven't even told me how my adorable grandaughter Miu is doing!"
"We've only been talking for a little while, mother, and the whole time you've been yelling at me to give Mai and I a day off."
"It's not my fault you call Mai for tea four times every hour, or that Lin has to deal with you and Mai arguing all the time, or that-"
"Naru, I have your tea!" A knock interrupted Luella's rant. Naru sighed in relief and called Mai in. She stopped when she saw Naru on the phone. Mai titled her head to the side and mouthed, 'Luella?' Naru replied with a groan. Mai giggled and set the tea cup down in front of him. Really, a twenty-nine year old man shouldn't look so annoyed when his mother calls. Then again, this is Naru and Luella I'm talking about... Mai's thoughts trailed off. A sudden wave of fatigue came over her, but Mai yawned it off.
"Are you even listening, Noll? Don't make me send Yasu and Madoka over there! Really, you're going to scare your wonderful, old mother! And if you even-"
"Mai would like to talk to you, Mother." Naru interrupted and handed the phone to Mai. Mai glanced at the phone, then back to Naru.
"How did you know that-"
"You always want to talk to her whenever Mother calls me." Naru dead panned. "And you're an open book." Mai rolled her eyes and held the phone up to her ear.
"Mai! My dear, how is Noll treating you? He's not overworking you, is he? Oh, I bet he's working you to the bone!"
"Ah, I actually haven't had much work to do-"
"Are you only saying that to keep me from worrying?"
"N-"
"Aha! I know you two work so hard all the time. If you two don't give yourself a day off, Madoka and I are personally coming over and dragging you two away- What was that, Martin? I'm not doing anything! Oh, Madoka! Come here for a moment!" Mai glanced at Naru and raised a brow.
"Mai-chan! I hear that Naru is working you to death!" This time, it was Madoka talking.
"Madoka!" Mai grinned. "Actually-"
"Tell him he better make you two take a day off, or I'm coming over there, stuffing him in a cosplay costume, and taking a thousand pictures so he'll never forget it! Oh, hello, Martin! What! I wasn't making a threat! Oh, here's Luella-" The phone was passed around on the other line. This time, Luella talked.
"I'm sorry, dear, but I have to go. Send Miu my love!" There was a click, and the conversation had offical ended.
"I think Luella and Madoka are in trouble." Mai smiled sheepishly as she handed back the phone.
"Did Father catch them spurting threats?"
"Yep."
"I knew it." Naru sighed and took a sip of his tea.
"Anyways, Luella said that we had to take a day off or she and Madoka would force us to. By the way, Naru, what are you going to do tomorrow on your day off? And before you object, I know you wouldn't dare disobey Madoka, even if she isn't here." Naru sighed.
"Read. And you?"
"Shopping." Mai quickly decided. Naru raised a brow, and Mai frowned. "What? Ayako and I haven't gone shopping in so long!"
"You don't need so many things, Mai." Said person scoffed and crossed her arms.
"I'm going to warm up your tea, it's probably lukewarm by now."
"Getting out of the argument, Mai?"
"Of course not!" Mai sputtered and grabbed the tea. When she grabbed the tea and nearly opened the door, Mai felt herself get hugged from behind. Her breathed hitched when she felt hot breath tickle her ear.
"You were trying to escape the conversation, weren't you?" Naru whispered.
"M-Maybe..."
...
"Alright, I was..."
"That's all I needed to hear." Naru stepped away and returned to his desk. Mai blinked for a minute before her face flushed angrily.
"Naru!"
"The tea's cold, Mai. You better warm it up."
"JERK!"
"Mommy! Daddy! Mommy!" Mai and Naru weren't even able to close the door before a tiny blur bolted down the hallway and engulfed them in a hug. Miu stepped back and jumped up and down excitedly. "You're home! Finally! I've been playing hide and seek with Bou-chan for hours, and he's a terrible player!"
"It's not my fault you're an amazing seeker." Bou-san grumbled as he walked out. As evident by the dark bags under his eyes, he was obviously tired from babysitting the almost-seven-year old for so long.
"It's because Mai and Miu play hide and seek all the time." Naru rolled his eyes. Miu may have gained Naru's intelligence, but Miu and Mai both shared many interests, one being hide and seek.
"Bou-chan brought me a book about oceanology and marine science again." Miu beamed and bounced on the balls of her feet to the tip of her toes. "I've been reading it all afternoon." She cast Bou-san a sideways glance. "Bou-chan falls asleep whenever he reads me stories. He snores really loudly, you know."
"Oh, I know very well." Naru rolled his eyes. Once, Naru and Bou-san had to share a room on a case. Needless to say, Naru didn't get very much sleep on that case.
Before Bou-san could reply to Naru, Mai spoke up.
"Thanks for babysitting, Bou-san." Mai chirped. "I think you might want to get home quick, though. Ayako sounded really angry. I don't know why, but it's never good to make a pregnant woman angry." Mai smiled sympathetically. That's right, Bou-san and Ayako have been married for four years. I think Ayako got pregnant near the end of last year...
"I hate pregnant lady hormones." Bou-san face palmed. Mai giggled and held up his coat. After she waved goodbye, Mai could have sworn she heard Naru say, "You're not the only one who hates pregnant lady hormones..."
The next morning...
"I can pick you up after school today, Miu." Mai hugged her daughter as the rest of the kids got onto the bus. It was a bit too long of a walk to the bus stop, so every day Mai or Naru drove Miu to the bus stop.
"Ooh! Please pick me up! Please! I hate riding the afternoon bus with the second years." Miu made a face and rolled her eyes. "I don't know why they hate us first years so much. I mean, it's not like-" Miu wasn't able to finish her sentence when Mai interrupted with a loud, "Gah!"
"The bus is leaving!"
"What?!" Miu spun around, and her mouth dropped to the floor when the bus doors closed. "Wait! Stooop!"
"Miu almost missed the bus again." Mai shook her head as she closed the door behind herself. Naru looked up from his book as Mai sat next to him on the couch. She yawned and leaned her head against Naru's shoulder.
"Eight-thirty AM is too early in the morning..." Mai mumbled. Naru chuckled and kissed the top of Mai's head. She yawned once more and stretched out. "I wanna go to bed so badly, but Ayako and I are going shopping in half an hour..."
"What're you two going shopping for?" Naru absentmindedly asked. He knew that if Mai would fall asleep, Ayako would yell at himself, and the last thing anyone needed was a pregnant lady yelling at them.
"Hmmm...clothes, I suppose. Maybe some more maternity clothes for Ayako." Mai snuggled into Naru more. Naru set the book down on the table beside them and wrapped his arms around Mai. He buried his face in her hair and, in return, Mai relaxed against him. Naru loved moments like this-his family wasn't in danger from anyone, (alive or not), Mai was in his arms safely, there-
"Mai! Are you ready to go!" Ayako called. Naru groaned.
"Mai, did you get the times wrong?"
...
...
"Mai..."
"I think I might have," came a small reply.
"Are you two going to let me in or what?!" Ayako banged on the door. "Mai, are you throwing up again?!" Naru's head snapped towards Mai with a frown. Mai nervously laughed and rubbed the back of her head.
"I may not have been feeling well lately..." Naru frowned again. "It's only been a couple times! Besides, I feel a lot better today." Mai pouted, knowing Naru couldn't resist them. Naru stared at her for a moment before sighing in defeat.
"Mai! I can hear you! Open up!" Ayako's voice got louder with every word.
"I'll be out in a minute!" Mai called as jumped up. Naru couldn't help but mentally sigh. Now Mai's going to come back with five bags full of clothes and no idea where to put them, he thought sullenly. Before Mai opened the door to leave, Naru pulled her close and kissed her.
"Be safe," he murmured once they broke apart.
"You worry too much, Naru. I can handle myself." She pecked him on the lips.
"Just-"
"Call you before I head back. I know, Naru." Mai smiled and rolled her eyes. During their first year of marriage, Naru always went with Mai almost anywhere and everywhere. At the time, the thought of leaving Mai alone was unthinkable to Naru. What if something happened and he wasn't there to protect Mai?
Ayako, however, soon got so frustrated she even went as far as to taking self defense lessons. It had worked a little bit-Naru could relax the tiniest amount, knowing someone else could protect Mai from living humans.
Mai stepped away from him and waved goodbye. "I'll be back around noon, Naru." She smiled before closing the door. Naru sighed and ran a hand through his hair. I'd better make room in the closet...
Mai was definitely not back soon. In fact, Naru waited all day, and was in quite a bad mood. He didn't have any tea, there was nothing for him to work on without Madoka or Luella finding out somehow, and Naru had read just about every book in the house (twice). He tried calling Mai at least three times, all of which came to voice mail. Maybe if-
His phone rang, and Naru immediately picked it up.
"Naru! I'm just calling to say I'll be late coming home-"
"You're almost two hours late, Mai. Where are you?"
"Ayako and I are shopping. And I have a good reason to be late!"
"Like?"
"I can't really say it right now, not until it's confirmed..." Naru raised a brow.
"Confirm what?"
"I just need you to pick up Miu, alright? And then I'll explain everything."
Naru waited, and waited, and waited, and...well, you get the idea. Since Naru predicted there would be traffic, he left his house earlier than usual. Unfortunately, there wasn't as much traffic as Naru perceived to be, so that left him sitting in his car waiting. Speaking of waiting...
What is Mai waiting to tell me? Naru pondered. He had pressed his wife for more information, but Mai didn't reveal anything more.
"Ayako and I are...doing something important." Was all Mai had said. What bothered Naru the most, however, was that Mai sounded...thrilled. Breathless, even. As to why, he had no idea. They better not be redecorating SPR, Naru thought darkly as he drove towards the school. He parked and waited as kids ran past his car, with parents following quickly after. However, a uneasy feeling tatted to gnaw at Naru's gut when his daughter still hadn't come out.
Naru was just about to rip the door off the car and search for his daughter when she finally came out. He breathed in relief when he saw Miu's familiar shoulder lengthed brown hair bounce up and down. Naru stepped out of the car and closed the door when he froze.
Miu tucked a strand of hair behind her ears, an action Naru was all too familiar with. Any female that used to be (or are) infatuated with him did the same action every single time around him. Miu perked up again, and her face erupted in a fiery blush.
"Miu-chan, you sure like to walk fast!" Naru's eyes narrowed. Was that a...boy?
"R-Really? A lot of people say I'm fast, so I leave everyone behind in the dust. I don't mean you're slow, t-though! I mean you're really smart and I'm really smart, but I'm not bragging or anything. It's just that-" The boy laughed.
"I know what you mean, Miu-chan. I never asked you this, but how're you so smart? It's really rare to find a smart and pretty girl these days." Naru growled when the boy scooted closer to Miu.
Oh.
Hell.
No.
Naru slammed the car door shut so loud Miu and the boy jumped apart. She paled when she turned around and saw her father approaching with a deadly glare. Miu could have sworn she heard a whimper from her friend. Naru stopped right next to his daughter, but his eyes stayed on the boy. This isn't going to end well... Miu nervously laughed.
"Hey, daddy, this is my friend Kenta-chan. Kenta-chan, this is my daddy, Naru." Naru continued to glare daggers at the poor boy. Kenta started it fidget, and Miu swore she could see beads of swear on Kenta. An awkward silence filled the air, and Kenta stepped backward ever so slightly.
"W-Well, Miu-chan, I'd better-" What?! No! Don't leave me! Miu screamed. Before she could even consider what she was thinking, the next sentence tumbled out of her mouth.
"Kenta-chan, would you like to come over for dinner?"
A/N: This was supposed to a one-shot, but I just had an idea pop into my head, and there is no way I'm going to ignore it! Soooo, next chapter, we get to see a very tense dinner! (With another guest included, too!) To be honest, it felt really nice to get a break from Obsession and write a new thing. Okay, enough rambling-time to type~!