Hey everyone! I know you all might wonder why I started a new story and I have a reson or two. 1. I do have the right to do so, so I will. 2. My chapters for the ongoing stories that I have are curently on the Dell laptop that got packed 'cuz we are moving. I use my moms laptop as well and lukily, this story had been started on this laptop. Yay!!!

Also, another thing. I know I take a while to update, but it takes time for me to be able to come up with the right way to portray all of my ideas. I know how I want the stories to go and how I want them to end. The problem is getting them onto paper the way I feel is right. So, I do appologise for being a slow updater, but I feel I have a right to make sure that it is done to my satisfaction. I also like to please my readers in the ways I can so reviews are a really appreceated thing. It tells me what I did good and what I did wrong and it helps me improve how I write.

So, now that, that is all done and said, on with the story.

Disclaimer: I do not, in any shape or form own, nor do I claim to own Ghost Hunt. I do however own the plot to this story.

Mai Taniyama jerked around at the light touch to her arm. Her eyes were immediately dawn to the face of Kazuya Shibuya. She raised an eyebrow in question then looked down to the hand held white board that he lifted up for her to read what he had written on it.

Are you sure you're going to be alright here alone?

She nodded silently and flashed a half hearted smile at him to ease his worries. She grabbed the white board from him, erased what he had written on it, and then began to write something new on the board. After a few seconds she handed it back to the dark haired boy.

Don't worry, I'll be fine. I'll need to start adjusting to it sooner or later. It's best to start right away than to be afraid to try, no?

Kazuya looked up from reading and sighed. She was right, again. Reluctantly, he nodded and erased what was on the board before starting to write again.

Mai shifted slightly when she felt the vibrations of many people walking up behind her on the floor. She glanced up when she felt a hand on her shoulder and looked at all of the people standing to the side. They were done going through the house.

Houshou Takigawa smiled encouragingly down at her. She watched as he gestured to the clock hanging on the wall then to the door. He had to go.

She looked back to everyone else that was crowded around and they all nodded in agreement. They all had to go. She grinned gratefully all of them and accepted hugs from them all as they shuffled out. She turned back to the man in front of her to see him watching her patiently.

When she was facing him again, he handed her a cell phone. Mai took it and looked at it quizzically then looked back up at Kazuya expectantly. He handed her the white board.

This is for you. It's a gift. We all pitched in to help pay for it and the line. You don't have to worry about paying the bill. All of us will do that when the time comes for it monthly. I have already programmed all of the numbers that you can reach all of us on. That includes work numbers, house numbers, and cell numbers. If you need anything, anything at all just send any of us a text at any time, no matter the time. Our request and condition is that you always have it on, it's always charged, you always have it on you, and that you can always feel it.

She grinned brightly at him and lunged at him with a hug. He stiffened then slowly relaxed and returned her hug. When she finally let go, he took the white board back and wrote one final message.

It's your first night being alone after the accident. You'll have trouble sleeping because every little movement and vibration will startle you awake. You'll get used to it after a while, though. I'll come by to marrow morning to pick you up for work, if you still want to go. Now, don't worry. It's going to be hard, but we are all here to help you. Good luck. Remember, all of us are only a text away.

She looked up when she finished reading and nodded.

'Thank You', she mouthed to him gratefully.

He reached out and squeezed her shoulder gently before turning around and walking out the door to her apartment, gently closing the door behind him.

Mai sighed and turned to look into the confines of her apartment. Glancing at her living room, she walked into her room and grabbed a couple pillows and blankets. She trudged back to the living room and laid the bedding on the couch. After going back to her room and changing into her night wear, she turned off all the lights in the house but the kitchen light. The kitchen light shown right into the living room illuminating all of the corners in a soft glow.

After settling down into the blankets, she slowly drifted off to sleep, hoping that a nightmare would not come that night.

~*~

Kazuya sighed from his position of leaning against the side of Koujo Lin's car as he watched Mai through her window. She moved around for a couple of minutes before all the lights but the kitchen light went off. He saw the shifting of her shadow in the living room and knew that she had decided to sleep on the couch.

"So, what happened to the guy from the accident," he heard Ayako Matsuzaki ask from his left "none of us heard much because we stayed in her room most of the time."

Kazuya waited a few second before he turned to the Miko and sighed gravely.

"He is currently being held at the local police station waiting for trial," he explained quietly, a shadow over his eyes "he apparently feels horrible but that doesn't excuse that he was dead drunk."

Silence followed his brief explanation as everyone got lost in their own thoughts.

After a while, John Brown spoke up, asking the question that had been gnawing at Shibuya Psychic Research's irregulars and Koujo.

"What exactly happened, Naru?"

Kazuya's eyes darted back and forth as he went through the information in his head as if he were reading a mental piece of paper.

"I'm not entirely sure myself," the dark haired boy finally admitted after a period of long silence "I believe that Mai was walking home from a friend's house after spending the day with her. I was told that she was seen being hit by a car that came shooting around the corner as she was crossing the street."

He paused and took in a deep shuttering breath as he tried to control his frayed emotions. He glanced at all the faces watching him with grave expectancy before he looked back at Mai's window.

Kazuya continued "as we know nothing life threatening happened. No major injuries. Other than cracking her skull against the ground, she was perfectly fine," he sighed again "nothing short of a miracle."

"How did you find out, Naru," Osamu Yasuhara inquired as he sat down on the gravel next to Houshou's car.

Asked boy gave a slight humming sound before he replied.

"I was the first person on her emergency contact list. I had gone down with her to help her change all of the information after our second case as a team."

By now everyone was sitting down on the ground in one place or another but him. Giving off another sigh, he slowly slid to the ground as well.

"When they finally decided she was okay enough for them to take the time to figure out who she was an hour later, they called me," he continued, looking down at his hands "I went straight down to the hospital.

"When I got there they told me she was in a comatose state and that I had to wait to see her. That's when I called all of you."

Houshou took over from here "by the time we all got there Mai had woken up. Other than what seemed like a concussion that they wanted her to stay overnight for to make sure that she didn't go into a coma, she seemed perfectly fine."

"Until the doctors realized that she couldn't hear them," Masako Hara finished softly.

Another long period of silence ensued.

Kazuya gave another sigh and stood up. The others followed suit.

"I gave her the phone," he informed them as they started off to their respective cars "told her our agreement and our conditions."

Ayako turned and gave a grim smile "good."

Just as Kazuya was opening his car door someone shouted his name. He turned to see Houshou watching him.

"Is she still going to work as S.P.R." the Monk asked. Everyone paused, waiting for the answer.

"That's entirely up to her," the young boss said without a second thought "as far as I see it, there is no reason why she couldn't continue to work for me."

Houshou grinned and continued to get into his car.

Kazuya sat in his car as he watched the others drive away.

For a few more minutes, he just watched Mai's window as he got lost in his thoughts.

With a final sigh, he put his hand on the gear shift. He jumped slightly when his cell phone went off just as he put his car into reverse.

Reaching across the center console and grabbing the chirping devise from the passenger seat, he flipped it open and looked at the screen. It was Mai.

As he pressed the button to read the message, his gaze shot back to the window. The living room light was on. Frowning slightly he looked to the screen and read what was there.

Are you still in the parking lot?

Kazuya raised an eyebrow at the girl's accuracy. He figured she could have looked out her window but she didn't know what his care looked like, let alone that he even had one. He punched in a reply.

Yes. What are you doing up?

He cringed at his choice of words. They didn't exactly sound very caring.

After an excruciatingly long pause, his cell phone melody rang through the car as it went off again.

I had another nightmare…do you think you could come up?

Kazuya's frown deepened. When was she going to stop having nightmares? He knew why she was having then but that didn't stop him from worrying.

Shifting his car back into park, he turned off the vehicle and sent a reply.

Yes.

Half way to the door of the building, he got another text.

Thank You.

Kazuya slowly retraced his steppes from earlier. Upon reaching Mai's door, he didn't even stop to realize what he was doing when he knocked.

Two minutes passed with no answer. He knocked again, this time louder.

This time he heard scurrying footsteps. They became louder as they got closer to the door before suddenly stopping.

Kazuya raised an eyebrow. When he realized what she was doing the corner of his mouth twitched. He raised his arm and knocked again, this time in a rhythm.

Rat Tat Tat Rat Tat Pause Rat Tat

The door swung open to reveal a slightly spectacle Mai. When she saw him, her expression turned to one of humor.

She raised an eyebrow and mouthed 'What was that?'

He looked around for something to write on until he noticed her watching his mouth. The thought that she could read lips flashed through his mind like lightning and he cocked his head slightly.

"I did it to let you know who was knocking," Kazuya said aloud, testing his theory.

Her humor increased. She smiled at him and quietly laughed.

Kazuya suppressed the urge to roll his eyes and walked into the apartment when the auburn haired girl beckoned him inside.

Without being told to, he walked into her kitchen pulled out a tea pot from one of her cabinets and filled it with water before turning on the stove and setting the pot on the burner.

He turned around to face the girl again and raised an eyebrow once more in a silent question. He watched as she drew an invisible picture on the small kitchen table with her finger. He could just make out a tree and a small jar. She wanted Apple Spice.

Switching his focus to a new cabinet, Kazuya reached inside and pulled out the tea and held it up to her. At her enthusiastic nod, he shut the cabinet and set the tea down next to the stove, before turning and grabbing two tea cups from a separate cabinet.

Just as he was finishing arranging the cups, a tap on his shoulder made him turn around only to have a the white board that he had given her put in front of his face with new lettering on it. He read what it said.

Why are you still here?

He lowered the board and made sure she was watching his mouth before replying.

"All of us were still here until just a few minutes ago," he explained to her "we were watching your window and such to make sure you got to bed alright. We are all still worried."

Mai frowned in a rebellious gesture then her face cleared and she smiled softly. She started writing on the white board again.

Despite the fact that I need to start learning to take care of myself like this, I still appreciate your guises concern and help. Thank You.

Kazuya nodded and turned around to tend to the whistling tea pot. After putting together the tea, he picked up the two cups and handed one to Mai before her sat down at the table with her.

He watched her as she absently watched her finger swirl the tea around in her cup. Studying her face, he noticed how exacted she looked.

He lightly tapped her shin with his foot making her gaze shoot up to look at him.

"Are you okay," Kazuya quietly asked when her attention was on him once more.

She frowned and cocked her head in a confused manner.

He gestured to her tea referring to what she was doing and repeated his question.

'Tired', she mouthed back.

Kazuya sighed then reached over and took her cup from in front of her and set it on the counter along with his before she had time to make any objections. He walked back over to her and took her hand and led her out of the kitchen, back to the living room, and back over to the couch where he laid her down and covered her up.

Trekking down the only hall in the house, he left the living room and came to a stop in front of the hall closet. Opening the doors he grabbed the extra blanket and pillow that he had hopped was there and walked back into the living room.

Right before he lay down next to the couch on his make shift bed, he made sure Mai was looking at him before speaking.

"I'll stay here tonight and we can decide whether you're up to going to work tomorrow or not," he paused and waited. When she nodded he continued "if you need anything, just wake me up. I'm a really light sleeper so it shouldn't be a problem."

The smile that she gave him then would have made any member of the Shibuya Psychic Research believe that the girl in front of him had not just lost her hearing.

'Thank You,' she mouthed for the second time that night 'Good night."

He watched her roll onto her side, her back facing him. He didn't lie down on his makeshift bed until he could see the even rise and fall of her shoulders indicating that she had fallen asleep.

With a final sigh, Kazuya lied down next to the couch and got comfortable before he too, fell into a light sleep.

~*~

Shadows.

Always shadows.

That tended to be the first thing she saw whenever she had these dreams. The shadows always ended up turning into something horrid. Especially now, as she was facing a dark shadowed corner and could hear agonized screams right behind her. It was dreams like these that made her wonder why she hadn't gone insane yet.

Not wanting to, but knowing she had to, frightened eyes closed tightly and a petit frame slowly turned to the horror filled scene she knew was going to be there and was unavoidable to watch.

One breath. She nearly gagged at the sudden over powering metallic stench she had turned to.

Two breaths. A scream so filled with pain, fear, and horror it was unbearable. Something splattered against her face, torso, and arms. Her own fear filled scream was smothered by her hand.

Three breaths. The screaming suddenly stopped. Heavy breathing was heard in front of her. It got closer and closer. It was right there. She could feel its cold breath on her face. Fear kept her immobilized. Something brushed her hand then was gone.

A long minute and she steeled herself against what was to be seen; what was in front of her. Ever so slowly she opened her eyes.

And screamed at the vacant stares of the bodies scattered around the room drenched by a river of blood.

Thank You so much for reading. I hope you enjoyed it! Please, Review.