Hey guys!

I'm back! Was I missed? Hahaha -shameless-. Anyway, it's great to be back, even though I didn't really stray very far away from CoD fanfic, you would have probably realised I have been reading and reviewing all this while oooooooooooooooops! Okay, just a quick guilt trip for me, I accidentally pressed 'kiss me'. Yes, I know, scream at me now, I can't forgive myself for it either. But I swear I didn't mean to do it, I thought if they ended up fighting they would just get sent back to counseling so I thought that was the best choice! And also timed options freak me out like really. I always panic when I face them, so I didn't really consider my options carefully before choosing. Yeah you guys can pretty much close this window now. ): But anyway, if you didn't close this window, I hope my new chapter makes up for it! Yeah I promised you guys I would have a new chapter when I get back so here it is. (: It's really long though, it's like 2.5k words O: YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED! Okay I shan't impede your attempts to read here you go! :D REVIEW PLEASE!

P.S. I know my paragraphs are really long, and it's really hard to read, and I'm really sorry! If it helps, read it in the 1/2 style (the setting is on the upper right-hand corner) it's easier! Sorry!
P.P.S I really really hate spelling, grammar, punctuation, and typography errors. So please PLEASE let me know if you find any! :D
P.P.P.S. I do not own Cause of Death or any of the characters. However, the story line is my work, so please no ripping! (:

NATARA scoffed. Then caught herself and said, "Sorry Amy, I didn't mean to do that, but maybe you are just reading too much into it, it's possibly just a client that Oscar is picking up. He did tell me just an hour ago that he was working on a new case." Amy's voice turned sympathetic on the other side of the line then… "Yes Natara, but… there's no need to make out with a client in the car right?"

MAL jumped when he heard a loud clatter coming from Natara's living room. He slapped down the washcloth he was holding, then rushed out of the kitchen. He saw Natara staring at the wall, her phone on the floor, and he could hear Amy shouting, "Natara! Natara!" Mal picked up the phone, "Hello? Amy! What happened to Natara?" Mal was practically shouting into the phone and he felt bad, but he would apologise later. He needed to know what was wrong with Natara first. "M–Mal… Oh thank goodness you're there, please take good care of Natara. S–She…" "WHAT HAPPENED?" Mal was sure he scared Amy, but he could not allow Natara to get hurt even more. Oscar was enough of a jerk as he is.

"It's…It's…"
"God Amy, I'm sorry, I'm just very worried." Mal took a deep breath and then said, "Could you just please tell me what happened?"
"Okay, it's this. I saw a woman get into Oscar's car opposite the street I am standing on, and now they are fervently…well, let's just say, it is very inappropriate."

Mal literally saw red. He was so fuming mad and shaking with fury with every word Amy said that he felt his insides getting hotter and hotter. Mal unconsciously swore, caught himself and let out a gruffed "Thanks-Amy-I-will-settle-this", before slamming down the phone down and gathering Natara in his arms. Natara was crying and her shoulders were shaking from both shock and devastation. Mal pulled her down into his lap and let her cry, let her face bury into his shoulder. Mal closed his eyes and felt his own heart squeeze with sympathy for Natara. "Natara, don't cry, please. He's not worth your tears. You can find someone better, much better." He heard shuffling and sniffling, and felt Natara moving on his lap. Natara's eyes met his. He could see her tears clinging to her eyelashes and deep inside he could see her hurt, her sorrow, her disappointment. Mal's heart broke.

He understood. He understood completely. The betrayal, the sadness, the shock. It hit him once. It went straight to his gut. A bullet to the foot at point-blank range would have hurt less. He knew what it felt like to know that the one you love had been supposedly committed to you but yet was outside screwing around with someone else. Mal did not like it. It took him so long to get out of it, and he would be damned if he allowed Natara to wallow in her misery. Even if she wanted to, she would not be alone. Mal gently cradled Natara's cheeks in his hands. "Natara, look, I understand how you feel. I understand completely. But please, while you're feeling upset here, he hardly even realizes what he is doing. Don't bother Natara, someone else out there will love you more." Me.

NATARA heard Mal's words, but they were not sinking in. She looked at Mal, looked in his eyes, then looked away. She was afraid of what she would see in his eyes if she did. Pity. She did not want Mal's pity. She wanted… she wanted… Hell she did not know what she wanted. But she knew she did not want Oscar. She did not want Mal. So why was she crying? Natara sniffled and buried her face in his neck, breathing in his light cologne, the one she had bought for his birthday last year. It had reminded her of Mal, invisible but there. When she had first met Mal, she thought he was hostile and was worried when she had to work with him. But over the years, she had developed a strong sense of trust towards him. With Mal she felt secure. She was secure. Natara bit her lip, trying to stem the flow of tears, but they spilled over anyway. "Mal, I… I don't know why I'm crying." She felt Mal's hands on her shoulders before he gently pulled her to sit up. "If you don't know why you're crying, then don't cry Natara."

"It's– it's just… I never thought this would happen. Sure I knew we would not last, but I– I really did not expect Oscar to betray me like this." Natara hiccuped and felt her tears rising up again, and she looked up at the ceiling, trying to stop them. She sniffed. "I– I suppose it is not really his fault… I am always at work, and he is always at his… He must have felt lonely because I am not spending enough time with him. Plus, I'm sure the girl is a million times better than me, it's not really his fault if he found me lacking because I am." Mal tipped Natara's head up to meet his gaze and said, "Natara. Enough. That bastard doesn't know how to appreciate you. It's his loss. Stop degrading yourself. You are perfect just the way you are. He doesn't know how to appreciate you, but I do. You are the most perfect woman I have ever met in my life, and I do not want you to doubt who you are and what you can do. You are my best friend Natara, and I don't want to lose you." And Mal hugged Natara tight back into his chest. Natara's head was tucked underneath his chin and she stared at a spot on her wall, the same spot she had been staring at when she had dropped the phone in shock. But this time, it was different. Natara felt her heart grow fuzzy and she closed her eyes, concentrating on Mal's body warming hers, making her feel safe. Natara still had tears streaming down her cheeks, but she felt a smile kicking up the corners of her mouth. She wrapped her arms around his neck and whispered, "Thanks Mal."

Sometime later, Natara felt the light strokes of Mal's hand on her hair and she snapped back to consciousness. She must have dozed off sometime while she was on Mal's lap, although a quick glance at the clock showed that only twenty minutes had passed. Then she heard Mal softly calling to her, "Natara."
"Hmm?"
"Feeling better now?"

Natara turned her head up towards his and gave him a genuine smile, before nodding. "Apart from the pounding of my head and the soreness of my eyes, I'm fine. Thank you Mal, you are one awesome guy." She saw Mal's face glow with pride, "I am, aren't I?" "Now don't go around getting a big head Mal." Natara scolded, even though she was now grinning herself. She pushed up off him, and stood up to stretch herself. Then she realized she was still in her robe, her hair unkempt, and she would bet on her entire life that her face was totally messed up. Natara freaked out, something which she seldom did, and then heard Mal's throaty laugh over her shriek. She whipped around and heard Mal holding his sides and trying to speak through his laughter, "Natara… you should have seen your face… oh my god..." Natara whacked Mal on the arm as hard as she could and wanted to melt into a mortified puddle. Mal flinched but then continued laughing, and she purposefully held her chin up high and strode back into her room. She was going to have to clean herself, and she was not going to say goodbye to Mal. Mean old grumpy guy.

When Natara came out of her bath, her hair was combed neatly and she was wearing an oversized T-shirt over a pair of shorts, just perfect for sleeping in. She walked into the kitchen to get herself a drink of water, when she suddenly felt two arms snake around her waist from behind, pulling her back onto a solid chest. Natara screamed, and one of the hands covered her mouth before turning her around. Natara looked up at the face of the intruder… then blinked in shock. "Oh my god, what the hell! Malachi Charles Fallon! You scared the crap out of me! I thought you left?"
"No, I didn't. You mean you didn't know? Wow, FBI Special Agent Natara Williams. You can't sense motion even in your own apartment. What a revelation!" Natara's eyes narrowed. "Well, the lights were off and I couldn't see if your car was still there since my blinds were drawn. Plus, you weren't even moving, how was I supposed to know?" Mal cocked his head to the side and just looked at her with amusement. Natara sighed. "Anyway, what are you doing here? It's already close to midnight, you should leave." Mal looked at Natara for a while more, then he crossed his arms and said, "I figured you might need someone to hold you tonight." Natara felt even more fuzz growing around her heart. "Wow, thanks Mal, yeah, maybe I do."

Mal's arms were around her waist again, his hands locked at the small of her back, something which she figured was an unconscious act of his. However, that did not make him any less sweet, and Natara wanted to laugh with the sweetness of it. Great, just great, Natara Williams, since when have you turned so cheesy! Natara inwardly groaned at her thoughts, but was stopped short because she realised Mal was looking straight into her eyes, another unconscious thing that he somehow always wind up doing. His beautiful eyes had turned dark and stormy, and were now more cobalt than sky blue. Natara found herself leaning in closer to him and he whispered, "You're welcome." Before she knew what had happened, Mal had given her a quick peck on the lips and walked into her room.

Natara stood in stunned silence. For a moment, she could swear Mal was going to kiss everything out of her, and then suddenly he was walking back to her room. Sexual frustration and just pure frustration made Natara want to throw a tantrum like a hormonal ten year-old kid, but she caught herself. What was it she promised herself just that afternoon? Yes, she was Mal's partner. He was out of bounds. Natara slumped down her shoulders in defeat and walked into her room. Mal had already stripped down to nothing except for his boxers. Natara looked at him and tried her best not to blush. This was awkward. Very awkward. So Mal was just going to hold her through the night in nothing except for a piece of underwear? She slapped her hands onto her cheeks, thinking of something to say. "Uh…"

However, Mal just sat at the edge of her bed, looking like he slept with women in his boxers every day. In fact, he looked comfortable. Mal looked at Natara and a chuckle slipped past his lips. "Don't worry Natara, I won't bite or anything. I swear I'm just going to hold you through the night, but you can't expect me to sleep in my shirt and jeans right?" Natara chewed on her bottom lip and replied, "No, I wasn't worried! It's just…you know what? Never mind, forget it, will you turn out the light?" Natara slipped in between the sheets, and then she felt Mal's hands around her waist, his legs tucked alongside hers. Natara felt herself being pressed into his pretty-much-naked chest and tensed up against him, but after a while, she relaxed and settled back. She closed her eyes and heard Mal speak, "Sleep well, Natara, you don't have to go anywhere tomorrow so don't worry…" Natara was conscious enough to reply, "No I'm meeting Captain Maria at nine tomorrow morning…" She was aware that Mal's breath had hitched, but was too lazy to do anything as she fell asleep.

MAL heard Natara's words right before her breathing evened out. He stroked Natara's hair, his mind churning. He knew she was going to be told the news tomorrow. He prayed that she would handle it well. He knew that even though Natara was always denying it, she trusted him implicitly on so many levels. Would she be able to fly solo now? He certainly hoped so. He looked at Natara, her beautiful hazel eyes shut closed. She was so… perfect. So beautiful. And now that she was here, sleeping, in his arms, Mal felt like he was the luckiest man alive. No one could be so flawless, so angelic, so pure. Mal wrapped his arms tighter around her, before he himself drifted off, Natara on his mind.

Okay so here you go. The next few chapters will be about how Natara handles the loss of Oscar AND Mal, but don't worry they won't be getting together anytime soon! HAHAHA :D But anyway, thanks for reading, review please!

Love,
KokoKookieKreme