A/N: Well, here it is! My first chapter fic for Ghost Hunt! Kinda nervous, but after how much you all latched onto and loved "Afterglow" and "Reunion", I'm hoping you'll like this too!

I'm not promising regular updates. I'm a college student, so school has to come first! But I am determined to have this done in a reasonable time and not take years to finish. (My goal is to post every other week, but PLEASE don't hold me to that!) I'll do one case per story so I can develop the story more and not have to worry about how fast or slow I should take the case.

Thank you all for the kind words on "Afterglow" and "Reunion"! Means a lot! Therefore this first chapter is dedicated to all of you who reviewed and encouraged me to continue the series after "Afterglow"!

A BIG thanks to Ishval for the idea behind this first case! I hope it comes out well and to your liking :)

Well, here we go!

Disclaimer: I do not own Ghost Hunt! (This'll be the only time I say it on this fic. Because sadly it won't ever not be true.)

Chapter One: An Early Lunch

Mai POV

My eyes open to the black abyss that is the Astral Plane. I stand up and hear a familiar voice call out my name.

"Mai."

I turn around to see Gene. I haven't seen him in months! I run to him and hug him.

"Gene! I've missed you. Wait... I thought you moved on."

"Nope. Just been tormenting my brother and keeping an eye on you. I'm not ready to move on. Not yet. Not until you master your skills. Or until I feel that I can't help you anymore. Whichever comes first."

"Ok," I smile at him. "So, what is it you want to show me?"

"Nothing right now. But I am here to warn you. This case will be dangerous. Don't ever be alone. Always be with Noll, Lin, Monk, John or Yasu. Same goes for Ayako, Masako and Madoka. Now, I think if you don't wake up soon, Noll will get mad at you... again."

And before I knew it, Gene was sending me back to the real world.

...

I open my chocolate eyes to dark indigo ones.

"Mai, why are you sleeping?"

CRAP! I fell asleep at work!

Naru backs up as I spring up from the couch. I moved too fast and had to sit down again to stop the room from spinning.

I hear Naru softly chuckle. "Baka," he mumbles to himself.

We may have been officially dating for a month now, but that narcissist still wants work like the way it was before. I remember him saying 'We will keep work professional.' Or in other words, 'no PDA at work unless a client or clients son is hitting on me'.

That happened the first case we took once JSPR opened. I thought Naru was going to kill the poor boy! Fortunately, he was possessed and remembered nothing about the flirting. And then he sent us a curveball. He said I wasn't his type. The poor boy then started hitting on Naru! I had to physically pull Naru out of that house before his PK did something he couldn't control and would later regret.

"Mai."

His voice pulls me back from my memories.

"Hai?" I ask.

"Grab your stuff."

"Why? It's only…" I look over at the clock on the wall. "11:30."

Naru grabs at the bridge of his nose. "Just do it. Please."

Did... Did I hear Naru right? Did he just say please? He rarely says that!

I stand up from the couch and go over to my desk as Naru heads for his office. On our way out, Naru stops at Lin's door. He pops inside and says something to Lin that I can't quite make out through the closed door.

Naru reappears seconds later and I scurry away from the door.

"Let's go," Naru says as he shakes his head, probably at me no doubt.

…

Naru POV

"Mai, Tea!"

No answer. Weird. She usually answers me right away.

"Mai," I say as I open my office door. I notice she's not at her desk. I glance over to the couch and see her unconscious. Typical. Asleep while at work.

"Mai," I say as I hover over her sleeping form.

Her eyes pop open and grow two sizes. I back away and she bolts from the couch, only to sit back down again. Does she ever learn?

I chuckle softly. "Baka," I mumble.

"Mai."

"Hai?"

"Grab your stuff."

"Why? It's only…11:30."

I sigh as I grasp at the bridge of my nose, trying to hold back my impatience with Mai. "Just do it. Please."

I turn on my heel and head to my office to grab my keys before I say anything that I would later regret. I head over to Lin's office.

"Hey Lin," I say as I entered. I closed the door behind me and walk over to the chinese man. "I'm taking Mai out for an early lunch. We haven't had any time together since the last case."

Lin just looks at me. "About time," he mumbled.

I roll my eyes. "We have a client coming in at 1. We'll be back before then," I say over my shoulder as I walk out.

Ever since Mai and I started officially dating, I've shown a little more emotion when a client was not around. A small request from Mai. To be perfectly honest, since finding Gene's body, my mask has been slowly letting up. I have no clue if it's because I know my brother is finally at peace, if it's because Mai has slowly been rubbing off on me or both.

As I open the door, I see Mai scurry away from the door. Shaking my head at her, I say, "Let's go."

...

"So, where are we going Naru?" Mai asks as soon as I close the door behind me.

"Mai, we are going on a date," I told her flatly.

"Huh?" She raises an eyebrow. "No asking me. Just 'we are going'. Don't I have a say on when we go out?"

"I'll let you choose where we eat. But somewhere close by. We have a client interview at 1 today."

I hear Mai sigh. "Fine. But next time, I choose when we go out."

"Alright," I answer, chuckling.

...

Mai POV

Naru seriously surprises me sometimes. But, I like this new side to him. Having an impromptu lunch date was a pleasant surprise for sure.

Since we had to be back at the office soon, I decided on the new noodle stand that just opened down the street.

Naru and I sat there in silence while we waited for our lunch. I seriously hate when he gets quiet, I had to break this silence.

"So, Naru," I began. When Naru looked at me, I continued. "What's this client's story?"

"A man called the office earlier this week while you were out restocking on tea. He did not tell me much. Just that a spirit has been tormenting and hurting his wife and two children. But, the panic in his voice is what made me want to make an appointment with him."

I turned my head away and looked at the counter. "Wow."

"Mai, I do have a heart."

"I know," I said.

I looked away from Naru. He may be a narcissistic, tea-addicted, workaholic jerk sometimes, but it's all a facade. I'm glad I get to see this side of him.

"Mai."

"Yeah Naru?"

He paused. What is it now? He goes quiet like this before asking something of me. Sometimes I want to hurt him afterwards because of the request. What would make him go silent like this now?

"Naru?" I placed my hand over his fisted one. At the touch he softens.

"What would you think about… meeting my parents?"

His eyes meet mine. Now it's my turn to go silent. Why would he want me to meet his parents? They live in England. So, unless they came here, which is a high possibility now that SPR became an official branch of BSPR, or I would have to go there. I'm not sure I'm ready to go to England for a guy. Let alone meet his parents.

"Mai?"

"I… I would love to!" I smiled.

"Good. They're visiting next month for a few days to look over the branch here. Though I highly suspect mother's motives are to meet you."

"Isn't that a good thing though?"

"Once you meet my mother Mai, you'll understand."

We finish our lunch in silence. I wonder why Naru was so nervous to bring up his parents? Well, I guess I'll figure that out when they visit next month.

My mind goes back to what Gene said earlier. If Gene was talking about this next case, I'll need to tell Naru about his warning. I'll tell him after the client meeting.

So, here's chapter one! I honestly had no clue how to open this story, so sorry if it's not the best! I promise the next chapter will be better because next chapter will start the case! :D

If you have any suggestions for a future case, drop them below in the reviews or shoot me a PM! See you guys in chapter two!