Disclaimer: I don't own Ghost Hunt
Chapter 34: Playing Poker with the Girls
Mai's POV:
"Y-you guys know each other?" Sai stuttered, staring as Julie and I got reacquainted and she crooned over my swollen stomach like a doting mother.
"Of course we know each other, you silly goose," Julie teased in her high pitched voice, "She's the nice ghost hunter I told you about that helped me at the hot springs. So you missed your period because you were pregnant? That's awesome!" Wow, she can really switch topics at the speed of light.
Sai stared at us with wide eyes for a long moment before quickly saying, "I, uh, have business to attend to." With that, he turned and all but sprinted back into the inn. Wonder if he's worried about his little sister finding out that he's a player who hits on pregnant, married women.
"Oh, I'm sorry about my brother, her can be such a douche sometimes," Julie apologized with an overly bright smile and voice making everyone except for Naru and Lin burst into laughter. The ice cubes cracked small smiles though.
Julie laughed with us. "I'll take you to your rooms. We have you guys on the top floor since the bottom is full of guests. There will be some on the top floor too, but not many," she said, bouncing through the halls with us trailing her.
"Holy crap, she's like the energizer bunny," Monk whispered as she disappeared around a corner.
"She has a sarcastic bite to her too," I whispered back with a grin, remembering when I met her at the hot spring. We turned the corner and she was no where in sight.
"So she's basically like you and November," he said with his own grin.
"Minus the pregnant part," Julie whispered in Monk's ear, making him yelp in surprise. Monk backed into a wall, breathing hard and holding his ear. Julie grinned and opened a door.
The girls laughed and Naru just shook his head, setting down his load. "Takigawa, don't drop any of the equipment you're carrying," Naru said before going to get more stuff with the other boys.
"That leaves us to set up shelves," I said once I had finished laughing, wiping a tear out of my eye. Monk was blushing furiously, grumbling something under his breath as he left.
"I'll take my leave then. Mai, when you get some free time come and find me. We'll take a walk on the beach and you can tell me all about your pregnancy and marriage," she said, backing up through the door. She threw a wink at me before bouncing off to do god-knows-what.
I sighed. "Is the energizer bunny supposed to sap you of all your energy?" I asked with a tired smile.
"I don't know, but I'm sure beat. Let's get these shelves put together before the boys get back," Ayako said with a yawn before setting Mizuki down next to Makoto and grabbing shelf parts.
"Yeah! Let's show those men what we women are made of!" November shouted, competition burning in her eyes, beginning to build the shelves at warp speed. The rest of us just laughed and continued at a saner pace.
…..
The boys stepped though the door fifteen minutes later and stopped. "Wha-?" John started, his eyebrows scrunched together in confusion.
"What?" we all asked in unison, looking up at them.
We each had five cards in our hands, sitting around the low coffee table that had been set in the room. A mountain of sweets was piled in the middle. I had a green sun visor pulled down over my eyes and a chocolate cigarette sticking out of the side of my mouth.
"What are you guys even doing?" Monk asked from the doorway, not daring to come towards our little gathering of women.
"Playing poker. What does it look like?" Ayako asked, throwing her cards down, "I fold."
"Three of a kind," Masako immediately said, spreading her cards across the table for all to see with a smirk.
"Straight," November said proudly, spreading her cards in an arc and grinning like the demon that was her great-grandfather.
"My lovelies, this game has been decided," I said, flicking up my hat with a grin, slamming my hand down and spreading my cards, "Royal freakin' Flush."
"Dammit!" Ayako and November cried. Masako shook her head from where it lay on the table in defeat. "Mai, you suck," she muttered.
"Better luck next time girls," I said, pulling my prize towards me and into a draw string pouch, "This is going to get me through my last weeks of pregnancy since I'm not allowed to indulge my cravings right now."
The boys were still standing in the doorway, watching the exchanges with varying degrees of amusement and confusion. "Why are you playing poker instead of working?" Naru asked, readily oblivious to the already built shelves.
"Hey! We did our part! You guys were the ones moving slow. The shelves are built if you haven't noticed," I said smugly, nodding with the rest of the girls and even Jamie who giggled.
"So they are. Well then, if you have so much free time, go see if you can sense anything and take a thermometer with you. Check the temperatures of all the rooms where someone was taken from, which are marked on this list, and also take temperatures from a few rooms that haven't seen any activity," he said, holding a thermometer and a clipboard out to me.
I popped a butter scotch hard candy into my mouth. "Making your pregnant wife walk this huge place to do work. How uncouth," I said around the candy, taking the things he offered with a grin.
"Love you too," he said, kissing my lips lightly," Mm, you taste like butter scotch now."
"Now I know where I get the craving for it from," I whispered, kissing him again.
"Oh my god, you two! Do that somewhere else! Like in private!" Monk shouted, turning his back on us this his hands covering his eyes.
"What are you talking about? It's not anything dirty. I'm eating a butter scotch candy," I said, my eyebrows scrunching together in confusion. What was his major malfunction?
"Are you sure about that?" Naru asked in my ear, grinning slyly.
"Don't be a pervert!" I shouted, hitting him on the arm with the clipboard and giggling before taking Jamie's hand and walking out the door, "Come on, Jamie. Let's go take a walk."
"Okay Aunt Mai!" he said happily, skipping alongside me.
November, Masako and Ayako caught up to me with sly grins twisting their features. "So, has anyone else noticed how much Naru's changed since we've met him?" Masako asked the group at large.
"Yeah, even I've noticed and I've only known him for three months!" November exclaimed, nodding vigorously.
"Nuh uh," Jamie shouted up at us, "Uncle Naru is the same!"
"You're so right. Naru is the same as ever," I said, smiling and hugging him, "Why are you brining this up?"
They ignored my question completely, continuing their conversation. "Not true, he's more open with his feelings, only towards you though and only around us. Remember our first case together? You were the only one he showed that he was angry at himself to. Then the next case he was like a robot," Ayako said, pointing her finger as if she were a teacher.
The thermometer beeped and I took down the temperature of the first room. "Well, that is true, but I guess to you guys it's weird to see him show so much emotion. You should feel honored, it means he trusts you guys enough to let his guard down. I'm used to it though," I said, biting the end of my pencil as we went into the next room.
"What? You mean he's been like that for awhile? Well, I guess he would have to be for you guys to even think of having a baby," Ayako said with a thoughtful look, "He seems great with kids though, which most hot guys aren't."
"Shouldn't you be calling your hubby is hot and not a married man?" I asked with a teasing grin.
Ayako shrugged. "Just telling it like it is. You can't fudge facts, but you're right. My boyfriend is very handsome, nice and funny," she said with a smile.
"All of our hubbies are handsome and funny and great with kids," November said, picking up the thermometer as it beeped and read off the temperature.
"You're right. Everyone has changed in one way or another though. Even us and Lin. I guess being apart for three years and having children make that happen," I said somewhat sadly, a nostalgic feeling overcoming me.
"Yeah, I miss the old days even though I love these new ones," Masako said with a far off look.
"Remind me to show you my pictures when we get back to bass. Maybe we can make the boys blush," I told November with a bright smile, giggling at the thought.
She grinned back at me. "And you remind me to show you mine. I even have some from when Ciel was still human. I found them in his old study."
I laughed, thinking of the ones I had found. "Alright, will do."
We settled into some small talk as we went about our work. It wasn't long before we had finished and we were standing outside. "Let's go take a walk by the ocean," I suggested, breathing in its briny smell.
"Good idea. Maybe we'll 'sense' something," Masako said in case Naru was listening because somehow he always knew everything that happened during a case. With his little magical self.
"Don't say that or Mai's presence will end up jinxing us," Ayako joked, earning a slap to the arm from me.
We all laughed and grinned at each other. It was cold down by the water, but its beauty made up for that. Jamie giggled as squealed, staying just out of reach of the water when it rolled in and chasing it when it rolled out.
It was quiet between the for of us so it was easy to hear a little girl's voice whisper, "All of them, despicable. They never do what they promise."
I gasped, drawing my head up to stare down the coast at a little girl who was about six or seven and who's back was turned to us. It was badly burned. "What is that little girl doing? It's freezing cold today!" I cried.
The little girl that I was staring at had nearly, if not, white hair and fair almost translucent skin. A thin white sundress fluttered around her fragile form. I gagged, the smell of smoke, burned flesh and blood reaching me on the gentle breeze.
Masako's hands were covering her mouth and her eyes were wide. "That awful smell, is it coming from her?" she wondered, staring at the girl.
"What are you two talking about?" Ayako and November asked, staring at the two of us with worried eyes.
"You can't see her. So that mean sh-she's a ghost," I stuttered, turning my eyes back to the girl. She was staring at me with sad, pleading, but angry eyes. Her hair draped over one side of her face as blood ran down that cheek. Dark red stains marred the once pretty dress. Black smudges covered her skin and blood ran down the inside of her thighs. "Men are despicable creatures. They can't be trusted. They won't save you even if they promise," she said in an angry voice before it became sad and pleading, "Help me. Please."
My back erupted in pain as she burst into flames bringing a wave of unconsciousness over my mind.
Hope you liked chapter 34 ^-^ I had a request from another reader to make it longer so that's what I tried to do. It's a bit longer, but if not as long as you like I am deeply sorry *bows deeply* Look forward to the next chapter and review please! You guys are seriously the ones that keep me going!