Chapter 14-Mai

The first thing she noticed was the noise, it was loud and it was constant, pounding out discordant drumbeats all around her.

She groaned and pushed her eyes open. They were heavy and slow to respond.

She didn't remember it being so dark out. Hadn't it been afternoon? Her vision cleared a bit more and she could pick out the grey interior of the car. Beyond it, heavy rain left an impressionist view of blurred blacks and greens, bright swaths of white washing them out in the middle.

With a whir the wipers cleared the water away and, for a moment, tall trees loomed before her. She didn't have the chance to take in much more as the streaming rain made quick work of obscuring her view once more.

Her chest felt like lead, the weight of it preventing her from taking in more than short shallow breaths. How had she gotten here? And where exactly was here? She brought a numb hand to her head.

She blinked, her body once again taking too long to respond to the request. She looked around the car for some hint of what was going on. There was a familiar bass-shaped air freshener hanging from the mirror. And it hit her, this was Bou-san's car. She looked to her right hoping for long bleached hair, a ridiculous tee-shirt, and a bone crushing hug.

But the seat was empty.

How? What had she been doing? Mai grabbed at her head with numb fingers. It was still thrumming painfully with the sound of the rain hitting the car. Her eyes tried to close. To shut it all away. If she could just sleep...

Her head jerked up, her body! She had been trying to get back her body.

Mai grabbed at the rearview mirror and let out a small cry of relief as her own familiar features looked back at her.

She had made it. But, how? Where was Elosie? And where had Eloise left her?

The door flew open, rain and wind whipping in and buffeting her face and side.

"Time to get up, sleepyhead." Yuuki was drenched, but he was smiling as he reached across her to turn the car off.

"Yuuki?" Mai asked, dumbfounded.

Yuuki turned to her, eyes blinking away beads of rain that fell from his hair. "Good morning! Well, evening technically, but that doesn't matter." He leaned forward and gave her a quick kiss before she could reply.

Mai's eyes went wide and a flood of new questions short circuited her brain. But then he was unbuckling her seatbelt and backing out of the car. Leaving the cool rain pattering in through the doorway where it landed against her flushed face. His hand came back in and he said something to her. Her head churned the phase over slowly. Something about a train?

He took her arm and pulled her out of the car and into the cool shower.

He pulled her close. "Did you hear me? I said we have to hurry if we are going to catch the train."

"Why, not the car?" Mai felt the sentence fall out sloppily.

"They could track it."

Mai stared back. "They?"

"I know none of this makes sense to you." Yuuki reassured her. "Just trust me, okay? I'll take care of you. Just like I promised." He grinned, his eyes shining in the dim light. Mai felt inclined to believe him. She could feel herself begin to smile back. But, what promise?

She needed time to think. She had been talking to Naru. She could remember that much. It was, something about emotions, a way to find her. Something had pulled on her. Then she had been in the car. How had she gotten here?

He took her hand gently, his thumb running smoothly along the damp of her wrist. Something was wrong here.

"Don't worry. We're going to get out of here. Just like we planned."

Planned?

"Eloise, are you alright?"

Eloise? The name sent a jolt down her spine. How did Yuuki know about her? Why did he think that was who she was?

She could see her own face smirking up at her from a car window. Then it was gone, and she had feared it would be gone forever.

She looked back at the car. That had been this car. She turned back to Yuuki and he smiled at her his eyes bright.

The story. Eloise has been the name of the woman in his story.

He placed a hand on her shoulder, but his touch made her jump and the smile fell from his face.

Had he known about the spirit all along? Why hadn't he said anything?

"I'm sorry, but we have to go, we don't have much time." Yuuki gave her hand a tug, but Mai pulled back on reflex.

"Eloise?" He squinted at her, his grip tightening with his gaze.

"Yuuki," Mai began, she was determined to let him down as gently as possible. "I'm not—"

"No," Yuuki's fingers squeezed her shoulders as he continued to stare at her.

"She's not here, Yuuki." Mai was pretty sure that was true. As least, it didn't seem like anyone else was in her head. Though would she be able to tell if there was or not?

"Where is she? She has to be here. Bring her back, bring her back right now."

Mai's face scrunched in confusion. "I can't."

"You won't!" Yuuki pulled at her shoulders, and the world tipped.

Mai spun sideways, crashing into the parked car. Her head bounced off the side of the frame with a heavy thud that sent a tremor rippling through her whole body. Her legs crumbed beneath her and she slid down the side of the car, hitting the hard, wet ground.

She gasped, and struggled to lift her head. Why was she on the ground? The world refused to hold still, it pitched beneath her hands and knees. Her mouth tasted like yen and her jaw had joined her head in throbbing with pain. She didn't understand what was happening. How had she ended up on the ground? Where had Yuuki gone?

She fought to push herself up, grabbing at the car, but her fingers only slid across the slick surface and then she was on the ground again. Hitting her shoulder before rolling onto her back. Above her the night sky roiled with dark clouds. Water dripped into her mouth and threatened to drown her.

There was a sound next to her. She tried to get her eyes to focus on the two dark shapes that wavered above her, forcing them back to form one solid body. "Yuuki?" Wouldn't he help her? He had always been so willing to help. "Yuuki?" She tried to lift a hand.

"Bring her back!" He crouched over her, covering her mouth and nose with his hand. "Bring her back!" He pressed down on her face, pushing away her air. "Go to sleep and bring her back!"

Mai struggled to focus, spots still in her vision from the fall. She tried to pull at his fingers, to kick her legs beneath his weight but she couldn't get them to listen, to move. It was as if all her bones had turned to sand, heavy and impossible to control. She tried to call his name, but she could hardly hear herself muffled and breathless beneath his hands.

"Go to sleep," he repeated over and over pressing harder with each word. Small streams of water slipped down his arms and through the cracks in his fingers. Her lungs were burning, water creeping up her nostrils.

Light spilled over Yuuki's face, and Mai got a clear look at the manic anger that was contorting his features. How could this be the same boy she had met just a few days ago? Yuuki had made her hot chocolate when she had been upset; he had blushed when she had asked about his school, his story.

Confusion smoothed out the sharp lines of his face when the lights didn't move away.

Yuuki's hands relaxed, the suffocating streams flowing away from Mai's nose and mouth and she took a deep breath, choking and coughing on the air and water mix that made it to her starved lungs. She could feel his hands start shaking as they rested on her shoulders. Her addled brain told her to move, to take advantage of this distraction.

And with as deep of a breath as she could take, she brought up her arm and palm-heeled Yuuki in the nose. He reeled back, and she commanded her disorganized limbs to move.

She fought against the rolling ground and the pull of gravity to get to her feet. Then she could see it, the source of the light, a new car stopped in the parking lot only a few yards away. Its driver's door was open, the dome light glowing like a small halo. She could see someone standing in the light between them, the brightness of the light leaving them as little more than a dark outline. "Mai!"

Her heart nearly burst with relief. Her jaw aching against the pull on her lips. She wanted to run, but something had her arm. She looked back, Yuuki was up from the ground and had hold of her wrist once more. His face was a bloody mess, she had likely broken his nose with that strike. He pulled on her arm, twisting it painfully behind her back and drawing her back towards him.

The light shifted as the figure advanced on them, finally dimming enough to show Yasuhara just out of arm's reach. She was surprised at the disappointment she felt. She knew better than to have expected it to be Naru. But she had thought, for some reason…

Yuuki scrambled backwards pulling at Mai as if to use her as a shield. "Stay back!" He waved a pocket knife at Yasuhara with his free hand.

"Oshiro-san, let Mai go and we can talk." Yasuhara said, holding his arms up as he held his ground.

But Yuuki didn't answer him, instead he brought his mouth to Mai's ear. "You have to help us. It could be temporary, until we find someone else."

Mai watched the knife move, glinting in the headlights. He couldn't be serious.

"You saw what her life was like, Mai. She deserves a second chance. I can give her the life she deserves."

"But," Mai had to work to get the words out. "She's dead."

"No, that's the amazing part, don't you see, she doesn't have to be."

Mai tried to take in the statement. But she couldn't get it to stick. What was he thinking? There wasn't any coming back from death. She would know. If there had even been some small chance, wouldn't she know?

"Yuuki."

"She just needs a body, then we can be together. We can be together forever."

A new thought was pushing its way through the sludge, crying out for her to grasp it. Together? Planned? Mai thought of the kiss he had given her so casually and her stomach turned. He was in love with Eloise.

He had fallen in love with the ghost.

The fog that had been cluttering her mind and making it so hard for her to think clearly washed away. And in its place, empathy pulled up a flurry of emotions she wasn't sure she could deal with right now.

She leaned back, pressing her back against him as she hugged his arm to her chest. "Oh, Yuuki. I'm so sorry."

His grip relaxed around her and he pulled at her shoulder to turn her to face him once more. She could see it now, the desperation that came from love, it was there in the way his eyes searched her face for someone he wouldn't find. "She has to move on, and so do you."

Yuuki's face dropped again. "No!"

"Mai!" Yasuhara's voice called out a warning, but Mai was already moving.

She slammed a foot down onto Yuuki's and she shoved him. She shoved him hard. "Stop it!"

Yuuki stumbled back a few steps and stared at her, eyes wide.

Her breath was heavy as she scowled at him. "Just stop it, Yuuki! She's dead!"

"But, we're sp—"

"Special?" Mai spat the word with a venom that coursed through her whole body. "You're not special. You're delusional! Are you even listening to yourself? You are talking about stealing someone's body, someone's life. A second chance? Eloise killed people, Yuuki. She killed her own daughter!"

Mai advanced on Yuuki and he took another step back, forgetting about the knife in his now lowered hand. "Second chance? Where was my father's second chance, Yuuki? My mother's? Huh? Where's Gene's second chance? Why should she get to live again when the people I love don't?"

She yanked his jacket, her stinging eyes glaring up into his confused ones. "Tell me Yuuki! Tell me why I deserve to be alone and you don't."

Yuuki's mouth gaped, but no sound came out. In fact, the whole parking lot seemed to have gone silent.

There was movement behind Yuuki, and her eyes fell on a familiar figure. Mai's hands went limp as she took a wobbling step backwards. A shudder passed through her, the tears falling from her eyes. "Gene?"

Another tear fell, her vision and mind clearing enough that she recognized her mistake. His dark clothes had blended him into the growing night. But now, he was stark, exposed in the bright glare of the headlights. "Naru."

Why was her chest aching, her cheeks flaring with heat?

He stared at her, his blue eyes unreadable, his face as stoic as ever.

She had called him Gene. He had come to help her, and she had called him Gene. Wasn't he angry? Hurt? Anything? Didn't he care?

Why did she want so badly for him to care?

Anger boiled back up in her veins. How long had he been back there?

Yuuki turned to follow Mai's gaze and jumped back with a sharp, 'hey' when he noticed Naru. He brandished the newly recalled knife wildly, swinging it from side to side as he attempted to cover himself.

Naru reached out, casually running his hand along the slick hood of the car, pushing together thick droplets of rainwater to splash up and over his unbandaged fingers.

Mai wanted to charge, to barrel right though Yuuki until she took out that apathetic dark spot that was playing with puddles so patiently behind him. They were both ruining everything.

"Mai, come over here." Yasuhara said from behind her. But Mai was still looking at Naru. Something hummed in the back of her mind. What was he doing?

Yuuki's gaze flicked between the two of them, but he seemed unsure as to which was the greater threat.

A faint prickling sensation ran the length of Mai's body, the hairs on her arms standing up.

Mai looked at the water that dripped from Naru's finger tips.

The stun gun. It could knock Yuuki out, it had worked last time on the Sasakuras. He could end this.

But her instincts were screaming that something bad was about to happen. She looked back up at his face, his bruised and bandaged face. Last time, Naru had had Gene there to help him. Last time, he hadn't looked ready to fall over from sheer exhaustion before he had even started to use it.

Mai gasped. He couldn't handle it, she could feel the truth of it in the pit of her gut. And what was worse, something told her that he knew it as well. "No, Naru don't!"

But he was already moving towards them. His hand came up and struck flat against Yuuki's shoulder. Yuuki swung the knife towards Naru, but his fingers jumped open, the weapon falling from stiff digits. And Mai was there, wrapping her fingers around Naru's arm. Desperate to stop what she feared she was already too late to undo.

For an instant, it tingled, but then the burning came. White hot pain searing up her arm and moving inward. It was growing, it wanted to consume her. She pushed against it, lashing back. Anything to make it go away. She felt it recced. The heat was flowing back out the way it had come.

Naru let out a small grunt. His eyes going wide as they met with Mai's for just a second before they rolled up, his legs crumpling beneath him as he joined Yuuki on the pavement in front of her.

Yasuhara ran over and crouched between the unconscious men. "Mai, what happened?"

Mai stared at the steam that was still coiling up from her burning fingers. What had she…

"Mai?" Yasuhara repeated.

The pain was retreating, but the sense of wrong was not. It slithered, oily over her skin and rested its weight across her shoulders. Had she? Was he?

"Shit," Yasuhara stood and took Mai by the shoulders. "Mai, are you ok?"

"Don't—" She pushed Yasuhara back. The pain in her right-hand flaring with the contact. "It was so hot… I just wanted it to go away. I didn't mean to. Are they…?"

"They are unconscious, but alive. But if we want them to stay that way, I have to get help. Can you stay here and watch over them?"

Mai nodded. Even though she wasn't sure if that was true or not. Yasuhara grabbed Yuuki's fallen knife from the ground and held out the hilt. "Here, just in case."

"I can't," Mai told him, recoiling from the blade.

"You sure?" Yasuhara looked back at the unconscious Yuuki. He tried offering the knife once more.

Mai didn't answer. She looked down at her aftermath. This was her fault. He was gone.

They were both gone.

"Fine," Yasuhara threw the knife into the woods. "I'm going to be right back."

"Yasuhara." Mai reached for him as he walked by and he took her hand in his own with a squeeze. Their eyes met and tears once again threatened to spill. "I can't…" Her voice caught on the lump in her throat.

She could feel his thumb run across the back of her hand. "Look," He led her to kneel besides Naru. He pressed Mai's palm against Naru's chest. "Can you feel it?"

Mai's brows scrunched in confusion. Then, she felt it. Her hand, it was rising and falling with the slow flow of his breath.

"He's alive, Mai," Yasuhara told her. "And you are going to keep him that way, right?"

Mai stared at Naru. He was breathing. He was alive. "Mai?"

Mai nodded, her fingers gripping at the cool wet cloth beneath them as she heard Yasuhara's retreating footsteps.

She looked at Naru's slack face. Her fingers moved to the closures above his eye pressing down on an end that had popped off. It refused to stick against his wet skin and lifted with her finger each time she let the pressure go. Mai found her fingers lingering. Her thumb moving to the bandage as the other digits slid into his damp hair.

"What happened? Naru, what do I do? What did I do?"

It was all her fault. He had tried to help her, again. And where had that gotten him?

"I'm sorry." She ran her hand through his hair once more, abandoning the bandage to slide deeper into the dark tresses. "And this time you can't tell me not to be." She attempted a laugh, but the sound was hollow and felt more like the beginnings of a sob.

Her hand moved back to his face. His beautiful, dumb, face. What if this was the last time she saw it?

Mai shivered. Remnants of the passing storm's wind chilling her wet clothes as they stuck to her.

It was getting colder.

She flattened her palm against his cheek.

Naru, was getting colder.

"Naru?" She brought her hand back to his chest. She waited, was it moving? She couldn't tell. "Naru." She couldn't feel it anymore. Why had she moved her hand? "No," she demanded. "No, you don't get to go."

Her eyes burned as she pressed down harder, searching for that telltale movement. Her hand ached, the heat from her burns prickled up her arm. Her stinging eyes left Naru blurring, blending into the dark. He was fading away, slipping through her fingers once again.

"Stop leaving me," she grabbed his shirt and shook. He was heavy and cold. Resistant to her touch even now.

She fell forward with a moan her head resting atop her hands on his chest. A familiar pain left her shoulders shaking. It wasn't fair.

"Not you too," she whispered, her hands wrenching at the cloth. "Not again. I can't…" Tears scorched down her face, hot streams running between stinging fingers. If only she could make him warm. If he was warm, then he was alive. "Please," she begged, "please, live."

Thus, began her mantra.

The night stretched on, the chill deepening. She held him tighter, she would keep him warm.

"Please," she chanted.

Yuuki stirred, a groan escaping his lips. But she didn't move.

"Please."

The bright lights and blaring sirens of emergency vehicles surrounded them.

"Please."

"Are you hurt?" A voice asked reaching for her shoulder. She brushed it away.

"Please."

"Mai, come with me." Yasuhara told her as he helped detangle her arms from Naru. She let him help her stand, shivering as a blast of crisp wind hit.

Off to the right she saw police officers leading Yuuki to a car. Their eyes met for a second and Mai recognized the pain that leaked from his. It echoed the emptiness that filled her. He ducked into the car the door slamming with a dull thud.

"Hey, can you hear me?"

Mai's head whipped back around. The paramedics had swarmed around Naru. His skin flashing pink in the intersecting emergency lights.

"Damn, he's burning up." The paramedic said to her partner. "Lets get him up and get an IV going."

"What are they doing?" Mai asked Yasuhara as the paramedics lifted Naru onto the gurney and proceeded to cut open his shirt.

"They're helping him, Mai."

Mai felt her skin crawl as their hands ran over Naru, poking and prodding as they gleaned answers from his flesh. They were ruining his clothes. And why wouldn't they stop touching him?

"Stop that." Mai said, tugging against Yasuhara's grip.

But they ignored her, continuing to callout information to one another. She could see the burn on his arm as they cut away at the sleeve. Her own fingers throbbed in sympathy.

"Don't touch him." Mai's voice grew as she took a step towards them.

"Mai," Yasuhara's voice was soothing but he tightened his grip on her.

"He doesn't like to be touched."

One of the paramedics gave her half a glance as they started pushing Naru into the ambulance.

"Mai, they have to touch him. It's their job. It's okay."

"No, it's not." Mai started forward once more only to have Yasuhara's arms wrap all the way around her.

"Mai, let them work." Yasuhara told her with a squeeze.

"But they don't know. He'll be so angry." Mai explained as the ambulance began to pull away.

Yasuhara leaned closer to her ear, his voice overlapping the wail of the siren.

"But, he will be alive."

Alive. He was alive. Mai leaned into Yasuhara her arms pulling his closer.

"This ambulance is turning left. Please note." Announced the synthetic voice of the ambulance as it pulled from the parking lot.

She was getting so tired now. Her body dragged, limbs heavy, and her eyelids seemed to press against her. She tried to track the ambulance. Crimson flashes diming with each slice through the thick trees, the high-low of the siren fading into the distance.

"You're really hot, Mai."

Mai gave Yasuhara what she hoped was a decent approximation of an indigent stare but her draining energy left her with little faculty over her face. "Not now, Yasuhara."

"No, I mean, hot as in temperature. Are you feeling, alright?"

"I'm tired." She said, sagging against him, eyelids drooping. Maybe if she slept, she would wake up and none of this would be real.

"Mai? Whoa, Mai." Yasuhara made hasty work to keep her from sliding to the pavement. "I think we need to make our own trip to the hospital."

Mai replied that she just needed to sleep. But she wasn't sure if she remembered to move her mouth.

"Okay, we're going."

It was too much effort to decide if she didn't want to go or simply couldn't argue. Instead, Mai focused on the fuzzy warmth that was buzzing in her chest and filling her head.

And soon there was nothing else.

Technical & Developmental edits completed 3/22/19