Ch. 7 The Talk
I stared at Naru, his eyes intense. This was the day I feared would come, but I couldn't forestall it much longer. What was weird was Lin wasn't here at all. I wondered if everything will be fine if he wasn't here to help Naru control his temper.
I led Naru into the kitchen then shut the door when I saw Bou-san ready to charge. Thankfully, John and Ayako held him down. I walked over to the counter. "Do you want some tea, Naru?" I thought it was a good idea. Tea always calmed him down.
"Sit down, Mai." Apparently not today.
I sat at his command. His venomous tone frightened me a bit. I sat across from Naru and put my head down so I couldn't see his face. I never felt this tense before. I could feel Naru's firm stare taunting me. "To what do I owe the pleasure, Naru?" I asked in an impudent manner.
"You know exactly why I'm here, Mai."
I sighed heavily. I couldn't stall anymore; now was the time to face my fear and actually talk with him. "How long have you known?"
"Since the 'incident' that happened to us several months ago." I knew he was talking about the dream, but he made it sound like a nightmare (not that I enjoyed it, either). "I wasn't very certain about it, but then Masako told me she could sense ghostly aura whenever she was around you."
That bitch!
"And your strange behavior made me wonder, too. Your friends started to call my office, telling me that you weren't going to school. How long have you been planning on keeping this a secret from me? As your boss, I'm required to have the medical records of all my employees. You wouldn't want to worry your friends, would you?" I didn't reply. "Look at me, Mai." I hesitated. Then he sighed. "The sooner you talk, the sooner we can solve this little problem. Now tell me why you didn't inform me about this little problem earlier."
It seemed like hours until I finally decided to clear the air. "… I was… afraid…" The look on his face told him he wanted a more specific answer. "… of your rejection."
Naru still looked confused, but then his expression turned stoic. "You're not serious about keeping this child, are you?" I nodded. "Mai, you're too young."
"I'm 17. I'm practically an adult. Besides, it's my responsibility. Our responsibility."
"Don't be stupid, Mai."
"Stop avoiding it, Naru!" I said in a mocking tone. "Don't you even care that your child is in danger?" I stood up from my seat, careful of my stomach.
"Mai, you need to realize that this child isn't the problem we need to focus on. The ghost-"
"I knew it." I turned my head away from him in distaste. "That's why I didn't tell you when I found out. Getting rid of that ghost is all you ever care about. Once the job is done, you're only going to wait for your next case. You don't care about this baby and you don't care about me!"
"Is that what you really think?"
"That's what you make it sound like! If you never meant to get me pregnant, then why did you take advantage of me like that?" I snapped at him.
That was when I struck his patience cord. I knew he was about to yell at me, but then the look on his face changed. Naru suddenly fell to his knees and the kitchen started to shake. I held onto something to prevent myself from falling. I was kind of surprised Naru caught himself from cursing in my face, but then I saw his face again. He was in pain. I could hear Naru scream in agony. I never heard him scream before; it was something I couldn't believe. It sounded so ear-piercingly unbearable. I never heard something so terrible!
As soon as the shaking stopped, I went to Naru's aid. He was lying on the floor, almost unconscious. I knelt down and put my hand on Naru's head. It was burning up. "Naru!"
"I'm alright… Mai." His voice was shaky. He tried sitting up but it was too painful for him. I had a great feeling that this was my entire fault. I caused Naru pain and I didn't even know how I did it.
I was close to tears. "Naru… I-"
"I'm sorry, Mai."
"Wh-What?"
"I got so worked up about this predicament; I forgot you were in a delicate situation of your own. I was being careless."
"Naru…" The tears fell uncontrollably. Why was he making this more difficult than it already is? He apologized so suddenly. Something was wrong.
"Let's continue our discussion."
"O-okay."
I wiped away my tears then I unsteadily stood up. Naru did the same while putting a hand on his head. He looked really exhausted. My motherly instincts told me to help him (it was a good thing I wasn't not his mother. I felt really old when I said that). As soon as Naru sat down, I went to the sink and soaked a towel. I dabbed Naru's forehead a bit before he took it away from him.
"Thank you, Mai." I nodded before sat down. Then I watched Naru. His eyes were closed as if he were deep in thought, and his hand continued to dab his forehead.
"What just happened, Naru?" I asked. "Why was the ground shaking?" He still didn't say a word. He was probably still shaken from all that commotion. Then again, he probably already knew, but he didn't want me to worry about it because it's "none of my business."
"In order to prevent this little incident from happening again," he began, which was a typical Naru answer, "I just want to clarify a few more things, before I leave. How far along in the pregnancy are you?"
"Four months."
"Do you really want to keep this baby?"
"Hai."
"Then you're not safe here. At least not without me."
What is he getting at? I thought. He sounded suspicious.
"You'll be moving in with me until the time being. Pack the things you need and I'll pick you up tomorrow."
"Hai, Naru..."
3...
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1...
"WHAT!"
