Hey, hey! I'm back again with another update!

Just to clarify if some of you need it, this story is not told in chronological order. Certain chapters are told from a previous time. I do not specify when these chapters are set in the past rather than the present, but it should be fairly obvious. I hope this helps anyone who was not sure and wanted to confirm that it was the case!

Also, a quick thank you to those of you who reviewed and/or favorited the story! I have been having a fun time writing it and I am glad that others enjoy it as well!

Mai watched as Naru raised his eyebrow at her.

"I am aware that he is mine, there is a strong resemblance." He looked over to where Ren was running around the playground. "I have other questions, however, that you owe me."

She knew deep down that his calm demeanor was fraudulent. His eyes gave away a fear that Mai was familiar with. It was the same one she had when she found out she was pregnant, and then again when she held Ren for the first time.

Crossing her arms at his request, she glared at him. "If I'm to tell you anything, I want to see a different attitude to a conversation about your son."

That got to him. Slamming a fist on the table Naru glared back at her with a furry Mai hadn't seen. "Damnit, Mai." He let out a breath and looked much calmer. "When did you find out you were pregnant?"

"It took a while for me to catch on, but when I didn't have my period, I knew something wasn't right. The following day, I bought eight different types of pregnancy tests to confirm what I knew in my gut." She sighed thinking back to that night and all the tears she shed, and then the epiphany she had regarding her child.

Naru pinched the bridge of his nose. "How on earth did this happen? We were careful. This cannot be possible."

Mai rolled her eyes. "Even with protection, there is still a chance of pregnancy. Nothing is guaranteed."

"I am aware." He had his eyes shut in irritation.

"Look, Naru, I'm not asking you for financial help, and I am in no way asking you to be a father." She looked down to stare at a mark on the wooden table. "I know that this isn't something you asked for."

Naru looked at her incredulously. "'Something I didn't ask for'? Mai, neither one of us asked for a child this early in life." He clenched his fist. "Why the hell didn't you tell me?!"

"And say what, Naru? That I was pregnant? What would you have done?" She raised her arms to the side of her in a huff. "You were in England with your family. Where you were known by name, and where you are worshiped like a star. It wasn't like we were dating when we meet at the conference. I didn't want to risk your parents hating someone who hasn't even been born." Mai looked toward her son.

"I wish you would have told me. God." He sounded defeated and Mai looked up to watch him. This was the most uncharacteristic she had ever seen him get, which would have surprised her if it were different circumstances. He looked up and into Mai's eyes. She was slightly taken aback by his intensity. "Would you let me…be a part of his life?"

Mai watched him for a moment. "I'm not going to keep you from your son, Naru. But I need you to promise me something." His patient stare was an 'okay' for her to continue. "You need to keep him safe. He is not to be out of your sight or around people you do not trust or know." She then thought about something. "Once you start this, you cannot just leave, Naru. You will not toy with his feelings like that."

He nodded and watched as she narrowed her eyes at him. "You have my word."

Mai nodded. Turning back to the park she stood up. "Ren! Can you come here please?"

Naru watched as his son hardly hesitated to run to his mother, smiling the whole time. He knew where he got his smile, his happiness. It was a strange sight - seeing someone who looked so much like him smile when the only other person who did was buried.

"Yeah, Mama!" He ran right up to her and Mai wrapped her arms around him and brought him to sit on her lap. He was sweaty from running around so much and was sporting a new burn on his arm from sliding down the slide. Ren immediately looked at Naru with a big grin.

Mai looked to Naru with a raised brow and then gestured to her son with her head.

Clearing his throat, Naru looked his son in the eyes for the first time. "I'm your father, and I would very much like to get to know you. Would that be okay?" A small smile overtook his lips and he felt a warmth wrap its way around his heart. The feeling was almost painful and a part of him thought he might start crying.

Ren smiled even bigger if that was possible. Nodding his head up and down he wiggled out of his mother's lap and ran over to Naru. Without hesitation, he threw his little body into Naru's unexpecting one. Wrapping his arms around Ren to ensure he wouldn't fall, Naru felt his son's arms hug him.

"Yes please!" His answer made very little sense, but the words hit Naru directly in his heart. Ren nuzzled his head into Naru's chest.

Mai watched with admiration. Of course, part of her wanted to laugh at the panic that was dancing through Naru's eyes. But she knew that he would learn in time.

Ren looked up and over to Mai. "Does this mean that he's staying with us today?!"

Mai smiled. "It's up to him." She looked to Naru who smiled down at Ren and nodded.

"Sleepover! Yay!"

"Sleepover?" Monk said walking over to the group. Ayako and Maki were following behind him. "Sleepover where?"

Ren sat in Naru's lap and looked at Monk proudly. "My house! Daddy's coming with!"

Monk chuckled. "No fair, that sounds fun! I want to come hang out at Mai's too!"

Naru glared at the monk, which he expected, but Mai's glare was not. Putting his hands up in defense he backed away from the two.

Getting Ren to separate from Naru was a lost cause. Like bees to honey, Ren took to his father's presence at home. Immediately tugging Naru over to some drawings he made and then over to the block tower he was building. While Mai knew that this might be a little too much for him at one time, she also welcomed the break.

Starting on dinner without having to entertain a child was an unfamiliar feeling, but not necessarily a bad one. She started with something easy and decided on spaghetti and meatballs. Although she replaced some of the meat with a vegetable substitute. She found out quite quickly that Ren hated certain veggies, despite the fact that she had intentionally eaten healthy when she was pregnant to hopefully ensure that her baby would end up linking vegetables. But secretly mixing them in with meat seemed to work fairly well.

It had only been about twenty minutes until Ren ran into the kitchen tugging on Mai's apron.

"Mama! Come look, come look!" He smiled up at her and tried to lead her into the other room. "This is important!"

Turning the gas burner off so the meatballs wouldn't burn, Mai sighed allowed herself to get pulled into their living room.

"What is it?" She asked him as he kept tugging.

"You'll see~!" He sang.

When they did enter the living room, Mai was met with a disheveled Naru decorated with a prince crown and a small cape that was clearly meant for a child.

"Tada!" Ren waved a hand to his father.

Mai stared openly for a few moments. The slightly red tint to Naru's cheeks told her he was embarrassed, and the angry face she was seeing dared her to laugh.

"See! Daddy's a prince and he's going to save you!"

At that, Mai broke, laughing so hard her stomach hurt. She is only human. After a minute or so, she looked back up to a furious Naru. Ignoring him, Mai looked to her son and tilted her head. "Save me from what?"

"See? You're happy! Daddy is mommy's happiness!" Ren said jumping up and down excitedly.

Mai looked away from Naru's questioning stare, and towards her son. "Honey, I am always happy, you know that." She wasn't going to tell him that he was wrong about his conclusion because, in all honesty, he wasn't entirely wrong. In the past, it was always Naru that made her happy. Seeing him happy made her happy. But a shift occurred when he denied her feelings. Granted she was young and maybe that wasn't the best time to confess her feelings, but they were honest. He broke a part of her honesty and trust in people. She was careful now. Didn't swim too far out to sea and made sure to not let others have a permanent spot in her life.

Unfortunately, she couldn't help but make new friends and trust a few throughout her life.

Ren shook his head. "You're sad sometimes." He looked at the ground and bit his lip. "I want you to be happy."

Mai felt her knees buckle a bit. Was that true? Was she not happy?

No, no.

Ren made her happy. Her job made her happy. Wasn't that enough?

No.

She craved more. A different kind of love and friendship. But she had given up on that. There was no point when her job already put her and her son's life at risk. No need to bring another person into it.

She kneeled and took her son's shoulders in her hands. "Honey, you make me happy. Seeing you happy, makes me happy."

Ren shook her hands off. "I know that, Mama. But Daddy does too. I want you to be even happier. You do a lot."

Her son was stubborn, she'd give him that. But she also knew where it came from.

"Mommy and Daddy will talk."

Surprise hit her and Mai looked to Naru like he was crazy. How in the living hell were they going to salvage any kind of anything from their history?

Dinner wasn't an entirely awkward affair, thankfully. And now Ren had been put to bed, by Naru who also read to him. Mai came in and kissed him on the cheek and tucked him in. She showed Naru to the guest bedroom and warned him that Ren has been worried about monsters under his bed, so he might climb in bed with either of them for safety.

Currently, it was late, well into the night, and just pushing onto the early morning. Mai knew she should turn in, but she thought the same thing an hour ago. This was the only open window she had to really look into some information she had to check out. So, she made her way into her office after everyone turned in, and began her nightly project.

Sighing, Mai massaged her temples. The lead she had gotten was another dead end, and she was starting to lose her patience.

A small knock sounded on the door, and she sat up straight and turned the monitor off.

"Ren, you need to go back to bed." She said. She fully expected him to come in anyway, so seeing the handle turn and the door push open wasn't unexpected.

However, her son was not on the other side of the door. Taking a quick look over to the night vision child camera she had in his room, she noticed that he was sound asleep and snoring loudly. She let out a breath of relief and looked to Naru, who was standing in the doorway.

He was wearing his pajamas that he had gathered from his apartment and looked like he was still slightly tired, but she cursed him for his good looks.

"To what do I owe the pleasure?" Mai said sitting back and switching the monitor back on.

"What are you doing up?" He said moving more fully into the room. He crossed his arms and scowled at her.

She almost wanted to laugh. How the tables have turned. "Not that it's any of your business, but I'm working."

"I can see that. And it is entirely my business." Mai raised her eyebrow. "Do you think being dead on your feet is good for any mother?"

Narrowing her eyes Mai sighed at the glare he shot her. It seemed like all he did was glare at her. "Stop glaring at me. It makes you look like an old man."

A moment of silence passed between them until he spoke up. "What are you doing, Mai?"

"I just told- "

"No, you didn't." He said. He sat on the couch off to the side of the room. "What happened?"

Mai was immediately defensive. "Honestly, Naru, why on earth would I tell you anything more about me?"

"If you weren't listening tonight, you would know that it appears that our son is concerned about your wellbeing."

That stopped her train of thought. She watched him for a moment. Honestly, hearing him say that Ren was their son was foreign to her ears.

"Nothing pressing, if that is your concern." She looked back to the screen and typed in a few more things.

"Mai, stop looking at the screen, we need to talk."

She knew he was right, but she didn't want to rush into anything quite yet. Caving, she saved what she was doing, and turned her desktop off.

"Go ahead."

Naru watched her. "Why didn't you tell me anything?"

"I already explained this to you."

"You aren't telling the whole truth."

"How do you know?" She raised her brow.

"Because I know you."

Mai frowned and she felt the life leave her for a moment. "You 'know me', huh? So, then explain to me why you dismissed how I felt? Why did you leave? Why did you come back to my apartment with me?"

Naru shut his eyes and took a breath.

"You claim to know me, but you have no idea, do you?" She scoffed. Hurt crept its way into her heart and she teared up at the pain.

"Mai,"

She looked away from him.

"Look at me."

She didn't budge from her current gaze on the floor, and she felt like a child for being difficult.

"For God's sake," She could hear his footsteps getting closer. His hands on the armrest of her chair, he turned the chair so that she was facing him. "Look at me."

Taking a breath, she complied.

He looked at her in worry and kneeled to the ground in front of her. "I'm sorry." She could feel her eyes starting to well with tears. "I'm so sorry, Mai."

"What are you apologizing for? I'm fine."

"No, you're not." He placed a hand on her cheek. "You had to go through pregnancy all alone, and you have to deal with awful circumstances and cases at work. You had to find out you were pregnant all by yourself, and no one to help you through it all."

Mai wiped at a tear on the opposite side of where his hand was.

"It wasn't all bad. I had some help. I did fine."

Naru shook his head. "You did amazing." His voice was shaky and the sound tore a quiet sob from her throat.

She broke.

After weeping into her hands for a moment, she looked up at him. "I tried, I really did, but it was so hard." She thought back to the threats to her unborn child she had received from multiple killers she had interviewed over the years. Those who were all talk were never an issue, but when some got too close for comfort, she almost went insane. "God. I'm so sorry that I didn't tell you."

Naru wrapped his arms around her and tugged her into his arms. He held her as she cried into his neck. Gritting his teeth at the sound, Naru rubbed her back.

"I will never be able to make up for those times, and I'm so sorry for that. But if you'll let me, I want to be there for you now and later in life."

Mai chuckled a bit and leaned away from him so she could look him in the eyes. "I think this is the most emotion I've seen you show, honestly."

"No, I don't think so." He brushed her hair back from her face. "Do you remember what I told you that night?"

Mai smiled at him. "Yes, but I think you know that I had no idea what you said considering it was in Italian."

He smiled gently at her. "That may be true, but we also did have a few drinks."

Mai looked down and worry was shown on her face. "I'm not going to lie; I don't know how this is going to work. You know how I feel about you, but," She shut her eyes. "Naru if you don't like me or even want to be around me, that's fine. I'm just more worried about Ren and I hope you can be there for him regardless of what happens between us."

Naru cupped both her cheeks. "If I have to spend every day of the rest of my life showing and telling you how much you mean to me, I will."

She wanted to believe him, more than anything. Her hesitation must have been apparent because Naru took her hand in his.

"I cannot promise that I will be expressive with my emotions all the time, I assume that it will be a teaching moment. But I will never love you any less." He had a little red on his cheeks, and with wide eyes Mai watched him look away for a moment. "When I went back to England, I thought I would never see you again, and I reasoned that knowing you was enough. But when I saw you at the conference, everything I felt rushed back in. I was extremely selfish that night and I didn't think we were going to go so far. I played with your feelings and you had no idea that I felt the same."

Naru thought back to the following morning that night. He knew in the back of his mind that he should have expressed more, said more, done more. Her career had just started and it was obvious that the crimes she was exposed to haunt her even now. While she did a good job of hiding it, she still had the same disturbed look.

"Mai, if you can ever forgive me for all of my wrongdoings, I will do anything to make you me." He took in a large amount of air. "Mai Taniyama, I love you, can we start over with our son?"

Mai felt something in her crumble and she wrapped her arms back around Naru and he pulled her close and laid his head on hers, not letting the opportunity leave him.

"Is that a yes?"

He felt her head nod. "I want to do that. Start over, with you, with Ren."

There you have it! I actually really like this chapter, and I am looking forward to future chapters between them! I think it will be interesting seeing how they develop!

Just a note: I will be taking an all-day exam next week and it will likely take a little out of me, so the next chapter might be a day late! I want to mitigate that this weekend and write as much as possible before I get into the next week.

I will be here again next week, until then, you all stay safe!

Cheers!