Hello all, so sorry for not posting in over a month. Life has been difficult and exhausting - I won't bore you with the details but I hope you understand. We are all just trying to do our best!

*Threw a very small NARU POV into the mid of the chapter ~~~~ just thought it was cute3

I cracked open my eyes but could barely see through the tears. Mr. Satori had just passed away, and he visited me before he moved on. I'm touched to have had one more moment with him but it was surreal to think that he was actually gone.

I sat up in bed and pulled the covers off. I needed some tea and a moment to collect my thoughts. Mindlessly, I left my room and went to the kitchen. I was on autopilot as I started to heat the water on the stove.

I felt my mind pull itself inward as I kept repeating to myself. Mr. Satori died. He's gone. Another person I cared about has been taken away from me too soon.

My emotions were causing such havoc inside me, that I didn't even notice that the tea pot was whistling, until an arm reached around me to pull it off the hot stove.

"Mai. What are you doing?"

I blinked through my tears and looked behind me. My eyes met a wide chest. I looked up to see Naru staring down at me. Was that worry in his eyes? Or something else?

I tried to say something, but more tears continued to flow and I couldn't find my voice. I looked down again and started sobbing, unable to hold myself back. I clapped a hand over my mouth trying to muffle myself but it was useless.

Suddenly arms gently turned me around and pulled me into a tight embrace. Without thinking I held onto Naru and cried. I let all of my pain and sorrow consume me and I cried harder than I had in a long time; even harder than I had when I lost my apartment.

I don't know how long we stood there like that, but Naru said nothing the entire time. He just held me and allowed me to cry, my tears soaking his shirt. Not until I had stopped crying and only sniffled did he finally say something.

"Go sit on the couch."

He released me and I walked over to the couch and sat down. My grief still felt so raw, so held my face in my hands trying to hold myself together. I sat like that for a minute or two until I felt the couch dip next to me. I looked up to see that Naru had sat close to me and held up a cup of tea, along with a few napkins. I grabbed both from him and took a sip before blowing my nose and dabbing my eyes. We didn't speak as I drank my tea and wiped my tears. I was thankful for that. We hadn't spoken in two days and suddenly I'm clinging to him crying; it was almost embarrassing. I've gone through so many emotions in the past 72 hours that I was giving myself whiplash. I couldn't help but chuckle.

"What's so funny?"

"Oh god, I'm just a mess."

He paused for a brief moment. "Did you have a dream?"

"You could say that." I finished my tea and I could feel more tears coming.

"I projected to my astral plane, which tonight looked just like the bakery. I was in the bakery alone, but then Mr. Satori showed up. He passed away, and he visited me before he moved on. We talked and shared tea, and then he said goodbye."

Just saying it outloud made it real, and the tears flowed again. I started sobbing all over again. Once again Naru pulled me into his chest and I cried. Now I had thoroughly soaked his shirt by the time my tears stopped.

"I'm sorry about your shirt. It's completely ruined."

"It's fine. It'll wash out."

I sniffled for another minute. We were leaning against the back of the couch and I was still leaning on Naru's chest. His heart was beating strong and steady under my ear. His arms were still around me and he made no move to release me. I felt embarrassed, and I could feel my face heating, but I didn't want to move. Being here with him, I felt safe and secure, even if it was a little embarrassing. But he didn't push me away or say anything, so I stayed. Minutes passed by as I sniffled, but we still remained in that position. I finally broke the silence, deciding that I should apologize.

"Naru, I'm sorry."

"Mai, I already said it was fine. I can wash my shirt and it'll come out."

"No, not about your shirt. Well, I am sorry about your shirt, but that's not what I'm apologizing for this time."

I picked my head off his chest and sat up. His arms released me slowly. I tucked my legs under myself and turned so I was angled towards him. We still sat close but I tried hard not to focus on that as I set out to apologize to him.

"I'm sorry for what I said the other day. After some reflection I realized what I said about testing my powers was unsettling and reckless. I said it without thinking about what would happen or how I would be hurting everyone if something happened to me. I'm sorry for being reckless and for taking for granted all that you and everyone else in SPR does for me. I'm really thankful that you're helping me and I'm sorry for going too far. I understand if you don't want to help me anymore or if you want me to move out. I just hope you'll still let me work with SPR and that you'll forgive me." We still sat so close, and I attempted to bow a little during my apology which only put us closer.

I heard him sigh. "Mai. I'm not going to stop helping you or kick you out of the apartment. I also got too carried away the other day and said some things I shouldn't have. I am also sorry."

I looked up at Naru who was watching me. I couldn't discern the look in his eyes, but it made my heart flutter.

"So, you're gonna continue to help me? And I can stay? Are you sure?"

He rolled his eyes and he looked at me with his usual bored look. "Isn't that what I just said?" I smiled at his words even if he took up his usual Naru-ish tone. I leaned my head on his shoulder, ignoring my embarrassment. I was too tired to truly care.

His arm shifted to move behind me and I sunk closer to his side. He didn't say anything or move away so I remained where I was. Just being so close to him felt comfortable, and I could already feel myself getting sleepy again.

"Hey Naru? I need to tell you something." He didn't say anything but I could tell he was listening. I stifled a yawn and decided that I had to tell him. If he got mad I could just apologize again, I was already doing a lot of it at the moment.

"When you asked me in the hospital if anything else happened while I was in my coma, you were right. I didn't exactly share everything. Something happened, but I was too afraid to talk about it." I felt him tense a little but his voice came out neutral.

"What happened Mai?"

"When I converged with Reika, my soul ended up somewhere else, somewhere far away. I don't know where exactly. But it was dark, and heavy and it surrounded me on all sides."

"It wasn't your astral plane?"

"I don't know. I don't think so? I have control in my plane but there, well, I had nothing. I didn't even know who I was. I sat there for a long time just staring into the darkness. I felt as empty as the darkness around me. Every once in a while I would see flashes of my memories, but I didn't know that they were my memories. I saw everyone in SPR and gradually I remembered everyone. But I didn't remember who I was until just before I woke up. Or at least I think so. I don't know how time moved in comparison but it felt like I remembered who I was just before I woke up. I was able to figure out my name and once I knew my name my memories started coming back to me, slowly at first but eventually faster. But I felt so lost, almost as if I didn't even exist. I felt so lonely and empty. After thinking about it for so long, I realized just how close my soul had come to completely disappearing."

I shivered and I felt Naru pull me closer. I was almost distracted by the action but I pulled my thoughts back, needing to finish what I had to say.

"I don't want to ever go back there, Naru. Thinking about it kept me up at night and prevented me from sleeping if I was alone. I was afraid I would fall asleep and never wake up again. That's why I want to learn how to control this ability, or at least prevent it." I took a steadying breath realizing how shaky my voice had become.

"I feel vulnerable and if I end up there again, I don't know if I'll be able to find my way back."

We sat in silence and I worried what Naru was thinking. I could still feel how tense he was next to me, but I refrained from looking up at his face.

"Well, this does add another level of complexity to the current situation and your abilities. It's something we'll have to factor into learning about your powers. I'll have to do some research to see if there is something out there, maybe in regards to astral projections."

I rolled my eyes at such a Naru-like response. Typical. I just poured my heart out to him and he thinks about work. I yawned again and mumbled my thoughts.

"Stupid narcissist. I just shared my deepest fears and you think about work." I heard him sigh as I yawned again.

"Go to bed, Mai. We can talk more in the morning."

I yawned again and fell asleep quickly. My tears and emotional distress had worn me out so much that I didn't even think twice about falling asleep where I was.

Naru sighed as he watched the brunette fall asleep on him. In her defense, he did tell her to sleep. But he hadn't been expecting her to fall asleep on him. But he didn't mind. At least she wasn't crying and they were talking again. He had realized after he spoke how cold his word were. Emotions were never his forte, and their argument had just been another prime example of how callous he could be with people. If Luella or Madoka had been present, he would have had an earful.

But as always, Mai had forgiven him, and even went as far to apologize to him. After hearing her out, Naru felt angry and guilty for hurting her and casting her argument aside. Especially after she confided her fears. He found it troubling to hear the new information Mai provided, and he wanted to protect her from the darkness she feared.

"So troublesome..."

Naru watched the brunette as she made a funny face in her sleep. He sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. Seeing her in emotional distress was difficult, and he didn't know what to say, so all he could do was hold her until her tears ended. Other than that he wasn't sure how to comfort her.

'Gene would be so much better at this.'

After watching Mai for another few minutes, Naru could feel the exhaustion in his strained eyes. He pulled her closer and closed his eyes, hoping he could get a few hours of sleep before he had to get up and begin researching the darkness that Mai had described.

I could feel myself waking up, but I knew it was Saturday and I didn't want to wake up I was too comfy and I snuggled closer into my warm cocoon. I tried to pull my knees up but they seemed to be stuck. I tried to roll over but I felt like there was barely any room. I tried again but a grunt stopped me.

"Mai, if you keep moving I'm going to fall off the couch."

I cracked my eyes against the light that pooled in from the window to realize that I wasn't in my bed.

I was on the couch.

With Naru.

My body immediately tensed as I lifted my head from his chest. I looked up to see him looking at me with sleepy eyes. I could feel my face heating up and embarrassment made me squeal and try to get up. I realized as soon as I sat up that I was sandwiched between Naru and the back of the couch. I tried to use my arm to prop myself but it gave out and I fell back onto Naru's chest. He grunted and I tried to get up again while apologizing, but his arm snaked around my waist and pulled me back down.

"Mai. Stop. If you do that again I'm docking your pay."

The moment he pulled me back down, I froze. My heart was beating wildly and my face was burning hot. I could barely breathe.

"Mai. Breath."

I took a deep breath and tried to calm myself. Naru slowly released my waist and he rolled up into a sitting position on the couch. He rubbed his tired eyes and yawned. It made my heart beat speed up again as I watched him wake up. Quickly I sat up and scooted back into the corner. My mind was scrambling to figure out how we ended up like that, when I remembered last night's events.

Sadness suddenly overwhelmed me as I remembered Mr. Satori, and my embarrassment was quickly forgotten. Tears began to prick my eyes but I wiped them away. I looked up to see Naru watching me; his eyes much more awake and observant than they were a moment ago.

"Are you alright?"

I nodded slowly unsure of what to say. Naru had comforted me last night, practically let me cuddle with him all night, and was asking me if I was okay. He was being so kind and it was almost overwhelming in addition to my grief.

'Why does he keep making me fall more and more in love with him?'

Naru stood up and headed back the hallway. I decided to do the same and I went to go change.

I closed the door to my room and I let the embarrassment consume me. I wanted to scream into my pillow but I know that Naru would hear it. I tried my best to school my emotions but it was hard. I wouldn't be able to look at Naru without blushing for a while! How embarrassing!

I grabbed my phone and looked at the time. It was almost 10am and I had a missed call from Ryuu. I knew exactly what the call was about. I changed into a tank top and shorts before calling him back. He broke the news to me and I did my best to act like I didn't know. Ryuu wasn't quite a believer and it probably would have seemed disrespectful to share with him that his father visited me in my astral plane. So I kept quiet and listened to him share the news and that the funeral would be on Wednesday outside Tokyo. It was a little over an hour's ride away. Fortunately I didn't have classes on Wednesday but I would have to figure out how to get there. We talked and cried for a little bit. After hanging up I cried a little more. I washed my face in the bathroom after I had my emotions under control. But it was almost 11am and I was worn out.

I went into the kitchen to find some food, but was pleasantly surprised to see Naru had already prepared an omelette for me. He was sitting eating his and drinking tea. He ignored my thanks as I sat next to him and took a bite of the food.

"Tomato and cheese. You remembered."

"It's not that hard to remember."

I took another bite smiling at how he remembered how I liked my omelettes. We sat in silence while I ate. I took my dishes to the sink and prepared more tea.

"The funeral is Wednesday. Would it be alright if i didn't go into the office that day? It's outside the city so it'll take a while to get there and back."

Without looking up from his phone Naru nodded. "That's fine. How will you get there?"

"Um… I'll check with some of the people from the bakery and see if they would like to go as well. I have to call them later and tell them the news." I sighed as I poured myself a cup of tea. That suddenly made me even more exhausted just thinking about telling everyone. Naru stood and handed me his empty tea cup. I rolled my eyes at how he didn't even say the word 'tea'.

"Speaking of the office, if you need to take this whole week off you may. You have your classes as well this week so you should focus as much as you can so you don't fall behind." I looked at him as he sat down with his tea. He was being awfully kind. I'm not sure how long it'll last though. My heart can't take much more.

"Actually I think the office would be a good distraction from everything else, if you're alright with me coming in."

Naru shrugged. "Suit yourself. I can't have you losing any more brain cells, so make sure you give yourself enough time to study." I was tempted to roll my eyes again at the thinly veiled insult, but I held myself back.

"Hey Naru, from now on, can we only work on my powers in the office? I just think that if we are going to live together for a little while, that maybe it would be best to keep the work and home life separate. At least for me. I just need somewhere I can relax."

Surprisingly he agreed. I think our recent fight must have made it awkward for him too.

The rest of the day remained emotional as I called all the employees and told them the sad news. I found myself crying all over again as I spoke to them. The day passed by agonizingly slow. Naru ordered Chinese food and we ate dinner in relative silence. I appreciated it after talking to so many people and after such an emotional day.

I went to bed early and slept like a log. I woke up late Sunday morning to find Naru gone. He had some business to take care of at the office, so I spent the day cleaning and prepping for my classes the next day. I put away some of my new clothes that had arrived. I made dinner for the both of us after he returned and the rest of the night passed by quietly. I had done a good job of keeping my emotions together, but I still felt wrung out and depressed. I did my best to smile in front of Naru though. I don't know if he bought it, but at least he didn't make any comments.

When I went to bed Sunday night, I tried my best to psyche myself up into being excited for the first day of my final year of college. As I laid in bed drifting to sleep I couldn't help but feel a gnawing sense of doubt in my heart.

This school year would be anything but peaceful.

OKay. So now we are going somewhere... I think the rating on this ff is going to go from T - M. I have some ideas but I don't want anyone to be surprised because they are going to get dark. I'll post a warning at the top of the chapter that officially changes the story's rating.

A priest, a teacher, and a nurse walk into a bar.

Jk. Bars are closed.

WEAR A MASK.