This is it. This is the last of any stories for 'Return'. I know some of you are disappointed but...if you want you can continue with the story. All I ask is that you inform me that you wish to do so and possibly email me a copy of the story before you post. Thank you! Oh, an like always...review!
Naru was typing away at his computer in his home when the door opened slowly and Naru looked up and saw his six-year old daughter sticking her head through the door and looking at him curiously. He cocked his head at her curiously and she blinked before she slowly entered the room and Naru watched as she turned around slowly closed the door carefully. She jumped over to him and he groaned as she jumped into his lap.
"Arielle, what are you doing up?" he asked as he looked at the clock on his desk and he realized that it was nine o'clock at night. Arielle was never up past eight-thirty and yet she was wide wake. And she had that curious look in her eyes that Naru realized as Mai's look.
"Um…I want to ask a question." she said softly and Naru saw that she was very curious. She was almost bursting at the seams with her curiosity. Naru gently ran his hand through her black hair as she kept looking at him.
"Ask away, Ari-chan." he said and he saw her face light up. Her favorite game when she was with him was twenty questions. He was sure that he had explained why his parents lived in England nearly sixty times and he had been forced to explain to her the difference between being a daddy and an uncle.
"Well…I don't mean to be mean…but why is Mommy's lap disappearing?" she asked and Naru frowned for a moment before it disappeared and he looked at Arielle curiously.
"What do you mean?" he asked and Arielle rolled her eyes as though she were exasperated with her father. Naru couldn't help but chuckle. He recognized that look very well, having given it to Mai countless times before.
"Mommy's lap is disappearing because her stomach is getting so big! Why is that happening? I miss sitting in Mommy's lap." Arielle said softly and Naru chuckled before wrapping his arms around his daughter and she snuggled into his chest and he kissed the top of her head.
"Remember how Mommy and Daddy told you that you were getting a brother?" Naru asked he had given up on trying to convince Mai that she wasn't having a boy. She was convinced and since it was one of her 'feelings' then he knew she was right. Arielle nodded to his question.
"Well the baby is inside Mommy." Naru said and Arielle frowned before she looked down at her hands as they rested in her lap and Naru studied her as she digested the information before looking back up at him.
"Why is he inside Mommy?" Arielle asked and Naru smiled softly at his curious daughter. He shook his head. He was glad that his daughter was so curious but why couldn't she go to her mother ever so often? Was it so hard to go to her mother?
"Because…" how was he supposed to explain this? Where was Mai when he really needed her? "When babies are first created, they're very tiny. Don't ask how they're created, I'm not telling you. But anyway, babies can't survive for the first nine months of their life so they stay in the Mommy. Mommy is nourishing your baby brother until he's strong enough to come out and see you." Naru said. His face felt extremely red. He was going to kill Mai next time he saw her, why was he having to answer his daughter's questions?
"Please tell me how babies are created." Arielle said and Naru felt his whole face flame up.
"No." he answered.
"Please?" she had her mother's puppy dog eyes. That was one of the few things he wasn't resistant to. He swallowed and closed his eyes and steeled himself before he reopened his eyes to meet Arielle's begging eyes.
"Absolutely not." he said stubbornly and Naru watched as Arielle stuck out her bottom lip. What was Mai teaching her after school?! No child had the right to be that cute. And that included his daughter, even though she was cute.
"Pretty please?" she begged and Naru looked away as he refused to meet eyes that mirrored his own. He was as his face was not going to break down! He would not!
"Forget it, Arielle. I've already told you once. The answer remains the same!" he said and that's when she added the one thing he was weak to. Especially with his wife and now he realized he was weak when his daughter did it. Tears were welling in his daughter's eyes and Naru felt an angry frown pulling at the corners of his mouth.
"Pleeeeaaaaase?" she asked tearfully. Naru sighed as he felt his face turning extremely red before a thought popped into his head.
"Would you believe me if I told you that the stork was responsible?" he asked and Arielle frowned before shaking her head.
"How could the stork bring the babies if Mommy is taking care of baby brother in her stomach?" Arielle asked and Naru winced. He should have known that his daughter was sharp. She remembered and he wished that she didn't.
"Well…you know that Mommy and Daddy get along." Naru could feel his face turning permanently red. He could see Arielle's bright smile at the fact that he'd finally given in to her.
"Mommy and Daddy love each other! That's what Mommy says all the time!" Arielle said with her bright smile. Naru decided that Arielle had inherited her facial expressions from her mother. She was very good at using her mother's expressions to get what she wanted from her father. Especially from her father.
"Yes, well…Mommy and Daddy kiss and when they kiss…a baby…Arielle, let's just say that when Mommy and Daddy get along very well a baby is created." Naru said and Arielle smiled obviously please with the answer before she wrapped her arms around Naru's neck and he hugged her back.
"Then I'm going to have lots of siblings, aren't I?" she asked brightly and Naru felt his eyes widen before he ruffled Arielle's hair.
"I think that's something your mother and I have to talk about. Now, let's go say good-night to Mommy." he said as stood up with Arielle on his hip and he headed towards the sounds of Mai working in the kitchen. He stopped at the door with Arielle on his hip and watched as she put the last of the plates up from dinner.
"Arielle! What are you doing up?" Naru knew from his wife's tone that she had already put Arielle to bed.
"She came into my office and asked me how babies were made." Naru said and he saw the horrified look that his wife shot at Naru.
"And what did Daddy tell you?" Mai asked as Arielle wrapped her arms around Mai's swollen stomach. Naru shrugged at the horrified look his wife was giving him over Arielle's head and was obviously upset that Arielle had gone to Naru instead of her.
"That because you and he get along so well that you make babies!" Arielle said brightly and Mai blinked before sighing.
"And what brought on all this." she asked. She watched as Arielle went back to Naru and he picked her up. He went over to his wife and put his hand on her stomach that had swollen over the last seven months.
"Arielle was a little upset that she can't sit in your lap anymore and the fact that you don't pick her up anymore." Naru said and Arielle nodded. Naru bent down and whispered in Mai's ear. "I think she's a little jealous."
"Aw, Arielle, you have nothing to worry about. You're going to have a brother to watch out for." Mai said with a wink and Arielle smiled before once again climbing out of her father's arms and going to her mother and Mai was surprised when her daughter put her head on her stomach. Mai felt the baby kick and Arielle jerked back in surprise before looking at her mother.
"It's alright. He's just happy that he's got a big sister." Mai told Arielle and the girl frowned suddenly at Mai's stomach.
"You be nice in there, nii-chan! No more kicking Mommy!!" Arielle scolded and Mai rolled her eyes before smiling at Naru who shook his head before picking the girl up.
"Aren't you supposed to be sleeping?" he asked and Arielle giggled as her father tickled her as he headed towards her room.
When Mai woke up in her bed and it was still nighttime outside she knew instantly she was dreaming. She sat up and rubbed her stomach as the baby within shifted. She watched as Gene appeared looking as though he were a younger version of Naru.
"Long time, no see, Gene." she whispered and she saw him give that gentle smile that he was known for.
"My sleeping periods are getting very hard to break. I see you're showing again." he reached his hand out before he stopped and gave her a curious look. She nodded and he gently placed his hand on her stomach.
"Can I ask you something?" she asked as she watched the look on his face as the baby kicked against his hand. Mai had a feeling that the baby knew who was touching her stomach when he kicked. Gene met her eyes with wonder shining in his and she smiled as she remembered the look Naru had when Arielle first kicked against his hand.
"Yes." he replied and Mai laughed as he returned his attention to her stomach. His reaction to being an uncle wasn't much better than Naru's. Except that he hadn't fainted but he had twirled Mai around until she was dizzy.
"Well, could you look at my face instead of that thing I call a stomach?" she asked and Gene looked up and she saw the blush that was on his cheeks. She couldn't help but laugh before she continued.
"Naru and I want to name our son after our fathers." he gave her a confused look. He was undoubtedly wondering how this affected him. "But we want to give him a third name. And that's the name we want to call him." she could see him urging him on with his eyes and she laughed at his eagerness. "Tanaka Martin…and Eugene, if you'll let me."
"Mai…" Gene felt faint. That is if he could faint. He was dead and therefore couldn't faint. He gently put his hand on her cheek and he saw her smile at him brightly and he saw the tears in her eyes. He wondered how someone could smile and cry at the same time.
"I just thought it would bring Naru closer to you and I think it would help him heal. He's not recovered completely from your death." Mai whispered and she saw Gene shake his head gently with a smile on his face.
"I would like it very much if you named your son after me, Mai." he whispered and Mai felt her smile spread across her face before Gene gently touched her forehead and she was sent back into her real dream world. Five hours later she was waking up to see Naru's sleeping face.
Naru's eyes slowly opened and he stroked Mai's face and she gave him a gentle smile. She covered his hand as it rested on her cheek and they lay there staring into each other's eyes before she squeezed his hand.
"He said yes." she saw Naru frown. "Gene said he would like it if we named our son after him." Mai whispered and Naru couldn't help but smile.
"Mai, why are you so determined to name our son 'Gene'? Surely you want to name him something that you want to name him?" Naru said and he saw Mai frowned angrily.
"I want to name him after your brother. I mean…he's helped me so much that it seems like he's my brother too. He lived to help people…I want our son to be like that so I thought if we give him the name of someone that did that then…our son would be like that." she whispered and Naru nodded.
"Well then…" Naru kissed her and she giggled. "If we have another girl…I want to name her Mai." and Mai blinked.
"Why?" she asked and Naru rose an eyebrow.
"For the same reason that you want to name our son Gene." he didn't give her a chance to reply as he kissed her.