Noll could have just about killed Mai… Her obnoxiously loud grumbling and shifting was driving him absolutely mad. He did, however, remain quiet and continued to act as if he were asleep. If Noll was to alert Mai of his consciousness he would most certainly have gotten to hear all about his lack of manners for making her sleep on the floor. Really, though, Mai should have been used to sleeping on the floor. She lived in Japan, where sleeping on the floor was common practice. Noll was much more accustomed to an actual bed, therefore it clearly made much more sense that he slept on the sofa. He saw absolutely nothing wrong with his logic, but then again, Noll rarely saw flaw with his own logic.
"Stupid, selfish jerk…" Mai mumbled, just barely loud enough for Noll to hear. "Can't be a gentleman, can he? Everyone else got a bed…"
And it appeared that Noll got to hear one of Mai's rants, regardless of his attempt to pretend that he was asleep.
"Or a futon…" Mai continued, "But no, Mai has to be stuck with nothing more than a flat pillow and a blanket… On a hardwood floor…. All because stupid Naru couldn't man up and forget about his pride for one night…"
Exhaling loudly, Noll opened his eyes. He was never going to get to sleep if Mai didn't shut up… "Taniyama-san… please… can you keep your thoughts to yourself? Some of us would actually like to get a little rest."
"Oh!" exclaimed Mai. "So sorry to wake you from your beauty rest, your highness."
Noll, irritated only further, sat up. He glared down at the foot of the sofa, where Mai laid. "Is there really any reason for your hostility? Honestly, since I have returned I can't help but notice that you are quite rancorous towards me in private."
Mai looked at him as if he had blown a hole into another dimension. "Is it really imperceptible to you? God, you're so dense…"
"Then why don't you enlighten me." Noll stated - more like commanded - with an icy tone. He drew back slightly when Mai suddenly leaped up from the floor. She was on her knees, and her nose was inches from his own.
"Ever since you got back you've been a total ass to me. Before you left, I thought we were friends, but when you came back you made it clear that I was mistaken. I… I could handle that…. But at every turn you find something wrong with me, or the way I do something. It was different before you left. Yeah, you pointed out some of my flaws and mistakes then, but the way you went about it felt different. Now… it just seems cold and totally uncalled for, and it's constant. You had never complained about the way I organized your files, but suddenly I'm doing it all wrong? And somehow my tea totally sucks now, and isn't worth drinking? Don't think that I haven't noticed you dumping it in the plants in the office! And now…" Mai's face had begun to splotch with red patches as her eyes watered. Her throat tightened and her voice heightened in pitch "I'm the one who's left to sleep on the goddamn floor? If you're trying to say something to me just say it!"
At a loss, Noll could only manage to stare at his assistant. He couldn't overcome his sudden spell of muteness until Mai collapsed into a fit of sobs. Noll watched in a stone-like state as she crumpled to the floor and held herself while she shook. It was while watching her that Noll began to truly realize the pain he had been inflicting upon Mai. And it sickened him that it had been somewhat intentional. He did wish to distance himself from Mai, but never did he want to really hurt her…
"Mai I-" Noll froze. He hadn't meant to use her first name, but it had just slipped out… He was supposed to maintain distance.
At the sound of her name, Mai lifted her head. Her puffy eyes met with Naru's and her crying began to die away.
She was looking right at him, and Noll couldn't find it in himself to break eye contact. He could see how deeply she had been wounded by his words and actions, but there was something else in the look she gave him. Something that had been there since they first met.
"I… I… apologize for causing you such distress." Very hesitantly, Noll reached out and touched Mai's shoulder. "I did… have my own intentions for causing such trauma, and I see that no matter my own personal interests, that my actions were inexcusable. It has taken me until now to realize this."
Sniffling, Mai asked, "Why? What reason did you have to be like that?"
Noll remained silent for a long while. He knew telling Mai his reason for treating her rather poorly would upset her, and he didn't think that he could handle watching her completely breakdown again. Just one of her fits had rattled him, he couldn't imagine what another would do. But he couldn't bring himself to lie either.
"I was distancing myself...from you…" Noll's response was much slower than he would have like it to have been. With each syllable spoken he felt even more guilty and he felt even less justification for his treatment of his assistant.
"From… Me…" Mai repeated with a whisper. "I see…" She pulled herself away from Naru's grasp and laid back on the floor. With her back turned to him, Mai sighed, "I'll resign as soon as this case is finished. You won't have to worry about ever seeing or hearing from me again."
Chest tight, Noll inhaled sharply. That wasn't what he wanted. He didn't want Mai to just vanish. Not when she needed a job, one that paid well.
"No." Noll removed himself from the sofa and knelt to the floor. Again, he took hold of Mai's shoulder. "I don't want you to leave."
Turning her head back, Mai frowned. "Then what do you want? You said you wanted to distance yourself from me… And now you don't want me to do the one thing that would guarantee it?"
"You can't afford to do that." Noll quickly declared.
"Naru… I don't want your pity."
"I don't pity you."
Mai sighed, "Then how do you feel towards me?"
Something very strange happened to Noll in that moment. Never before had he felt his heart pound so aggressively when faced with such a simple question. The feeling was completely unnatural to him, and it very much perplexed him. He had an inkling as to why he felt as he did, though he had been denying such a thought for weeks.
But… perhaps for whatever reason, as irrational as it seemed, maybe the feelings he had been dismissing and or ignoring were real… Could he give his feelings a chance? Was he willing to?
It was obvious that Mai was losing any hope she had while waiting for Noll to say something. She turned away from him again, figuring that she wouldn't get an answer.
Noll frowned as he crossed his arms, "I don't know."
