Always and Forever, but Never Say Never.
"Mai, tea." Naru told Mai . It was just another day at SPR. Everything was relatively back to normal.
By that I'm referring to when I, Taniyama Mai professed my love to my narcissistic boss, Oliver Davis. He had told me I loved Gene, and I didn't say anything. I just stood there, confused.
I didn't know then, but I do now that I don't love Gene. He guides me and protects me, and he's apart of the family I've made at SPR, but that's it. We had one case when Naru had come back to England, and Bou-san had made a crack at blind love.
When I told him that I thought blind love was beautiful, he said it was because I loved someone that was dead, right?
No, I told him. They were all shocked to say the least. We had all been in the office after solving the case, so Naru was there too. I told Bou-san that I didn't love Gene.
I was pretty sure Naru heard me, and nobody brought it up again. I think because by default since I didn't love Gene, I had to love Naru. And that's completely true. I will always love Naru.
I ponder over this as I wait for the water for the tea to boil. We act as though I never said it, as though my love didn't exist, and that Gene didn't either.
Gene had passed on when we found his body. Now it was just Naru.
I heard the bell on the door ring. "I'll get it!" I yell.
"Of course you will, that's what I pay you for" stated Naru coming out of his office to see whom it was.
"Stupid narcissistic idiot," I mumbled under my breath as I opened the door. There stood a man of about thirty with long blonde hair in a black tuxedo, looking as though he ran here.
"Mai, the tea." Said Naru. I realized I had forgotten the tea on the stove and I made a run for it back into the kitchen. When I had it all ready I come out to find the customer sitting down with Lin and Naru across from him.
"Here's your tea," I told them all, setting it on the table and sitting next to our guess. He really was quite handsome. Bright green eyes, and porcelain skin.
"Would you mind explaining your situation Witutru-san." Asked Naru.
"I came straight here from just outside Shibuya at an old theatre. Memory Theatre. This is no ordinary theatre, no one knows when it was built, or by whom. Ironic really, with its name. It was just always there. Its rather large, but the mystery is the tunnels. Intricate tunnels weave underneath the building. They connect in large stone rooms. Most of these rooms, are filled with skeletons.
I had a feeling he wasn't being metaphorical.
"You see, there many ways to get to these tunnels, actually it's more like passage ways, large stone hallways, never ending really. They contain chains as if used for torture, but like I said, no one really knows. Over the years, countless numbers of people have been lost to these passages underneath it. Maybe hundreds. "
"Where does the paranormal activity come in?" asked Naru, getting annoyed at him for wasting time. I glared at him be nice.
"Continue your story," I told him.
He smiled at me, "People are smart enough not to go down, not ever. But because people aren't as naïve about it now, the tunnels seem to pull them in. Gust of winds will come from behind paintings and bookshelves that are actually doors to the passageways underneath, and the victims are pulled in. There is no one there, and it can't be stopped."
I could see the grief in his eyes, he started to soften.
"Search parties never came back, more were sent, and they too were lost. We decided to burn down the building. It was a formal occasion, for what ever reason, sort of a wake for the lost souls."
He started to waver, his expression scared.
"It didn't burn. It seemed like it did. The place caught on fire, but it did nothing, and after a few hours it put itself out. Nothing was touched, not a hint of ash to be found.
I came here straight after, I couldn't wait. Please, help us."
"We will accept your case, be ready with several rooms for us to stay in, Mai, call everyone and tell them of the situation." Naru gathered the file and went to his office.
I was surprised really that he would accept so easily. I looked over the Wititru-san. He silently got up to leave, bowing, and walking out the door. He talked so much of the house, and then he just… left. Odd.
I put away the empty glasses, finding Lin had too disappeared somewhere, and made more tea.
I didn't bother knocking on Naru's door, I placed his tea by his side. He was sitting at his desk reviewing the case file. I leaned over his shoulder to try and get a peek.
"Mai, what do you think you're doing?" Naru asks icily.
"Just peeking at the file, I wonder how big the place really is, I hate it when I get lost during cases."
"This will be the largest estate we have worked at yet." He stated never looking up from his file.
"Larger than the mansion with that vampirish guy?" I asked shocked.
"Yes." Monotone answer as per usual.
I didn't like the sound of that. With regular people getting lost so easily, I'd be gone within the first three minutes.
"Someone is to accompany you where ever you go Mai." He says.
"What?! Why me?"
"Because you attract trouble, we will all be in pairs incase we are to be pulled into the tunnels, but you especially, no wandering off in this one." His tone was dead serious.
"I can take care of myself, I won't make any stupid mistakes!"
Now he stands up and moves in front of me, close enough for him to look down on me. Damn, why is he so tall. Stupid me and my flats, I should start wearing heals.
"You say that every case, but you always do. You will not be lost in those tunnels." He glared down at me, then turned back to go sit at his desk.
I walked out of the office in a daze, I'm not stupid, so I was angry at him. Yet, a little part of me liked that he worried. If that what it was. I gave up to easily.
"Stupid idiot is too handsome for his own good," I grumbled.
They next day we would depart for Memory Theatre.
TBC… bum bum bum…
Hey! So the beginning was just a recap, Gene has passed on, and now Naru's
gotta fess up. But uh-oh! NEW CASE!!
FYI, this is a happy funny but NOT OOC story. Naru will stay IN CHARACTER. But trust me, fluff will eventually ensue. And this is not a story where Mai dies. I hate those. MAI AND NARU LIVE!!!! Okay, so please please please comment.
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