This chapter was what my brain was leading up to when I first came up with the idea. I hope you enjoy the product that was written while eating cheese and crackers, and drinking wine.

This was the second night in a row that Mai had struggled with sleep. Like the previous night, it was due to the many thoughts racing through her mind, all of which circulated around a certain narcissistic man that she loved, perhaps foolishly.

It wasn't much after 6am that she decided to get up and shower, giving up on the prospect of sleep. She thought that perhaps the events of that morning would exhaust her enough to grant her some sleep.

She had decided to give the team the opportunity to properly say goodbye to Naru and Lin and had agreed to meet at her apartment. After Mai confirmed with Lin if she and the others were still welcomed, they agreed that they would take Monk's van (usually reserved for band purposes) to the airport.

Mai had given herself multiple pep talks over the course of the ride to the airport. Her ultimate aim was to remain calm and make this as painless as possible.

Masako had also remained quiet throughout the journey after a brief conversation with Mai. Their rivalry over Naru seemed to have evaporated overnight and as a result, had spent the ride grasping each other's hand in support.

Whilst the men were rather confused at the sudden change of heart, Ayako had realised that something like this would likely bring the two young women together. With Masako's admission, the air had cleared and Mai had forgiven without hesitation.

Unbeknownst to Mai, the group (and Lin) had decided that they would all say their farewells first, and then allow Mai some time alone with Naru.

When they reached the terminal, she was able to easily find him standing alongside Lin who easily towered over most people. Naru was dressed in his standard dark coat and black suit, his back to them as he looked at one of the screens.

As she slowly approached them, she wondered if part of the reason he dressed in dark colours was as a sign of mourning. It wasn't an appropriate thing to ask though, so she decided she wouldn't even bring it up with anyone.

Yasu gave her a slight push with his hand which startled her. She hadn't noticed that she had stopped, causing Yasu and John to bump into her. Before she had time to apologise to them, Lin turned and nodded in greeting upon seeing them.

Whilst Lin didn't show any surprise at the sight of the SPR team, Naru was surprised that they were there. He briefly narrowed his eyes when he saw Yasu supporting Mai. Yasu simply gave him a knowing smirk before releasing Mai. Lin and Yasu locked eyes, knowing full well that Lin had been supporting Naru from the moment he left Mai's apartment.

Naru turned to face them, looking paler than usual, and gave them all a brief nod. "Lin, we need to check the baggage in." He looked at Mai as he said, "We'll be back." and, as if to prove a point, left two laptop bags with her.

After about 15 minutes, they returned. There was a slight awkwardness in the air which was broken by Yasu who stepped forward and held Lin's hands, much like he had done with Monk shortly after meeting him. Lin looked slightly alarmed as Yasu said dramatically, "Despite my love for Monk and Mai, my life will be dimmer without you in it." He turned to Naru and gave him a captain's salute, "And you. You know where to find me!" Before either man knew what was happening, they received a cheeky kiss, although thankfully not on the lips, from Yasu who simply laughed and winked at Mai as he stepped past her.

Ayako walked past Yasu, smacking him lightly upside the head, and bowed to Lin and then Naru. "Thank you for everything. If you ever need help cleansing an earth-bound spirit, you know where to reach me." she said with a grin.

Monk stepped forward next and placed a hand on Lin's shoulder, "You're a good man to have around. I'm glad that Mai knocked into that camera and you. If she hadn't, I wouldn't have a little sister. For the record, you were a pretty good father to her!"

The group all laughed at the memories of Masako and Mai being possessed by the young child, and Lin being put into the position of a father to them. As the laughter eased off, Masako grabbed Mai by the hand and tugged her along up to Naru, who raised an eyebrow questioningly.

She manoeuvred Mai next to Naru before giving them both a formal bow. Mai had an inclination on what she was going to say. It was confirmed when Masako looked at Naru.

"I have nothing to say for myself with how shamefully I behaved. I tried to project feelings onto you, that in retrospect weren't accurate. I had developed a crush on the famous Oliver Davis, without actually knowing you. I am sorry for using your own identity against you, and for the distress that caused. I don't expect your forgiveness, nor accept my apology."

She turned her eyes to Mai, "I'm sorry…for everything. You risked so much to save me. I should have been a better friend, especially since you never seemed to hold anything against me." Mai cut her off and hugged her without speaking.

Masako gave Naru and Lin a final nod before she stepped back in line with the others.

John was the final one from the group who gave them his classic warm smile and wished them a safe journey, along with the offer of a prayer for good health.

"Let's go and get some coffee, '' Ayako said, as they all began walking in the direction of a cafe they had seen on the way in. Monk placed a hand on Mai's shoulder, giving it a tight squeeze, "We'll be back soon."

As they left, Mai turned to face Lin. They had already had a light heart-to-heart but regardless, he brought her into a light hug. "I'll discuss your progress with Madoka and we'll be in touch. You know I'm just a phone call away if you find yourself in need of assistance. Remember, ask for help if you need it. You have many people who care, and are no longer alone."

Mai sniffled and hugged him tighter. She stepped back and wiped her eyes, before saying cheekily, "I'll remember that…father! Have a safe trip, and say hi to Madoka for me!". He smiled at the Christmas memory before giving her hair a slight ruffle.

Lin looked over at Naru who had been standing off to the side, "I'll wait for you just past security. There isn't much of a queue so don't worry too much about time."

That left Mai alone with Naru. She hadn't been expecting that, but then realised that was silly. Of course they were going to do that to her. She clamped down on her emotions, willing herself to avoid further tears. The last thing she wanted was for her final moments with Naru to be filled with discomfort.

As she turned to face him she attempted to say "Safe trip."

All that did was release traitorous tears. She looked up at him and, in her usual manner, frantically waved her hands, "Don't mind me! You know how I get, I'm just overly-emotional. I've never been good at goodbyes."

Naru looked at her with an unreadable expression she had never seen. Had she been paying closer attention instead of avoiding his intense look, she would have noticed the emotions rushing past his eyes, along with his never-ending amusement at her antics.

The urge to hug him was strong as she took a step towards him but she stopped when she was within arms reach. NO! Don't ruin things! Just do your usual goodbye bow! Keep it light!

She brought her head in a light bow but before she could say anything, she felt his hands on her shoulders, slightly pushing her upwards. Her eyes locked onto his and, before she could say anything, he stepped closer.

Despite the silence between them, a million thoughts and emotions seemed to appear. One of the biggest and brightest was Trust. As if seeking permission, he lowered his arms and slowly wrapped them lightly around her waist and pulled her into a hug, ensuring she could step away if she wished to do so.

Mai's brain short circuited for a moment before she returned the embrace. She had realised that he kept a safe distance between them and, without thinking, tightened her embrace by properly wrapping her arms around his neck.

To her delight (and heartbreak), he tightened their hug further.

A minute.

An hour.

Years.

Eternity.

She wasn't sure how long they remained like that. Much like Cinderella and her pumpkin carriage, she knew the clock was ticking closer to midnight. She knew she would have to let him go, even if it broke her heart.

As they began to pull back, he seemed to be on the verge of saying something but stopped. He had never been one for many words, unless they included the word 'tea' she thought, as she gave him a slightly watery smile. She briefly hid her face into his chest and felt the light weight of his head on hers as she regained control. She resumed pulling back, and gave him another smile. He kept his gaze on her as he gave her a smile of his own.

They knew no words needed to be said. Actions spoke louder than words. As they released each other, she started to turn away before suddenly stopping. It was now or never.

Before she could talk herself out of it, she raised herself just enough to reach him properly, placed her hand on his cheek and whispered, "Safe trip" before she gave him a soft kiss on the corner of his mouth, trying to pour all of her love and emotions into it. She felt him freeze ever so slightly and saw that he had closed his eyes. His eyes opened as Mai began to walk away. He remained rooted to the spot.

Mai began walking away, knowing full well that this wasn't a movie. She wouldn't be whipped around suddenly, and experience a firework-inducing kiss. Naru wasn't like that and she knew that she wouldn't have fallen so in love with him if he had been like everyone else. She also knew that despite her best efforts, her life wasn't a shoujo manga. Life simply didn't work like that.

What she didn't know was that as soon as she turned away, Naru unfroze and touched the spot her lips had kissed, quite literally feeling every emotion she had left. Before he could do or say anything, he heard Lin call to him.

Mai approached the SPR group, tears streaming down her face. It was a sign of how well they knew her. Anticipating this, Yasu was the first to reach her, shortly followed by Masako. He enveloped her in a hug before releasing her to Masako, who handed her an incredibly soft handkerchief which seemed to emit a feeling of comfort to her.

Masako linked arms with her and said in a quiet voice, "That's actually Naru's. I asked Lin if he could give us one for you." That brought Mai out of her crying and made her laugh as they rejoined the group.

Yasu lingered and caught Naru's eyes before nodding at him. He knew that Naru had seen everything and hoped it might open his eyes to what had been in front of him just moments ago.

Author's Note:

This was possibly one of the harder chapters for me to write. It required a lot of angst-filled music, as well as lighter friendship music. I hope my beautiful readers enjoy this heartache of a chapter. All I did was imagine myself having to say goodbye to someone I love and write notes from those thoughts.

That said, I also thought of the airport scene when Hugh Grant's character (The Prime Minister) says over the images and video clips of people, "Whenever I get gloomy with the state of the world, I think about the arrivals gate at Heathrow Airport. General opinion's starting to make out that we live in a world of hatred and greed, but I don't see that. It seems to me that love is everywhere. Often, it's not particularly dignified or newsworthy, but it's always there - fathers and sons, mothers and daughters, husbands and wives, boyfriends, girlfriends, old friends." (You can read the full quote on the "Love Actually" IMDb page - AO3 isn't a fan of me adding links in.)

A song that rang through my mind during their hugging scene was "So Close" (by Jon McLaughlin) as seen in Disney's Enchanted.

Additional Note:

I apologise for the changes in tense, particularly towards the end of the chapter - I've tried my best to keep it consistent but certain parts seemed to flow better as written. If you have alternative suggestions or have noticed a "in-your-face" grammatical error, I am all ears! I did write this angsty piece under the influence of cheese and wine.