A/N: Originally it was 3 chapters long, but this third chapter was twice as long as the other two PUT TOGETHER. So it's now 4 chapters.

Last chapter, Jounouchi, who has spent the past three years trying to track Mai down, discovered that she's been in Domino the whole time. It may be too late, though, someone is about to jump off the roof of an apartment building, identified as hers by her now-ex-boyfriend. Jounouchi to the rescue!

This fic has garnered my longest review ever. Wow. I don't even write reviews that long. Kudos to The Rainwalker.

Jounouchi was still sprinting when he reached the building. A small crowd of people--residents, Jounouchi guessed--gathered around. Jounouchi pushed through. Closer to the front was the lone news group, and a police car. An officer was standing nearby, radio in hand, calling for assistance. His back was turned. Jounouchi looked up at the roof, towards the shadowy figure. It was too dark for him to clearly tell. From out of nowhere, a light shone at the roof. Jounouchi turned to see the policeman shining his flashlight on the mysterious figure. She raised a hand, and Jou couldn't see her face, but his heart started pounding. He hadn't known her for this long, been through hell, thought about her every day for three years to not recognize her without looking at her face.

Then, the light lowered. The officer moved farther away from Jounouchi and turned his attention back to the radio. Jounouchi took his chance and dashed towards the door.

His hand was closing around the handle before anyone noticed. The policeman yelled for him to stop, but Jounouchi wasn't going to listen. He burst through the door and went up the closest staircase.

Jounouchi ran up the steps two at a time. Please, let her still be there, he thought. He strained to hear over his pounding footsteps and heavy breathing. If something had happened, he would hear it, right? The crowd would surely react if she... he pushed that thought out of his mind, the image of her lying on the ground... Oh god... he ran faster.

Turning a corner, he came to the door. Jounouchi wrenched open the handle and bounded out onto the rooftop.

"Mai!" he shouted, desperately scanning the roof for her. "Mai!!"

"Jounouchi?"

His heart leapt in his chest as he whirled around towards her voice. The panic that had been wrapped around his throat like a vise loosened and a smile broke out on his face. He was here now; she wouldn't jump.

After 3 long years, they were finally face to face again. Mai had her back to the street, wind whipping through her now short blond hair. Her face was tearstained, but just as beautiful as Jounouchi remembered it.

"Mai," he breathed in relief. "Thank god--"

"What're you doing here?" she asked in a small voice. Jounouchi's smile lessened a bit. What was going on? She shuffled closer to the edge of the building.

"I... I wanted to see you, Mai," he said, trying to keep the panic out of his voice. Stay calm. "I'm here now. It's okay."

"'Okay'?" Mai looked at him like he was crazy. "How did you find... No, no, it's not okay! What d'you think you're doing? You..." She trailed off, just staring at him in disbelief. Jounouchi had to keep from cringing. Even when she'd described the events that led up to Doom... he'd never imagined anything like this. What on earth had happened? His chest tightened again, not just with panic, but guilt. This happened before because he wasn't there. If she... the image of her lying on the ground came into his mind again. He pushed it aside. He would NOT let that happen.

He had expected her to keep talking, but she just let the sentence hang in the air. He edged forward, testing how much closer he could get without her noticing.

"But... I thought you wanted to see me," Jounouchi said, recalling his conversation with Takeru in the bar. "He said..."

"Who said?" she asked, leaning forward. Jou inched a few steps towards her. "Who have you been talking to?"

"N-nobody," Jounouchi stammered. The last thing he wanted to do was bring up her ex-boyfriend. Mai glared at him; Jounouchi flinched, giving it away.

"You--!" She spat. "You had no right to talk to him!"

"I didn't mean to--Mai, NO!" She turned her back to him and leaned over the edge. He started to sprint towards her, but Mai glanced over her shoulder and saw him coming.

"Stop!" she cried. Jounouchi froze. "I'm not kidding, here, Jounouchi!"

"Why?" Jounouchi asked, grapsing at straws. He had no idea what to do now. Stupid, arrogant idiot! He didn't have any plan past just showing up. He thought that would be enough. All she needed was to see him, right? That's all she wanted, was him.

Idiot! Just because she meant everything in the world to him... he had no idea what was going on in her life, besides that jerk in the bar.

"'Why', what?" she shouted back. "Why am I not kidding?"

"Why are you doing this?" he begged. "Why are you..." He looked away for a moment, unable to say 'kill yourself'. "Standing on the edge of your building when I'm asking you to come down!?" He looked at her again, pleading.

"What does it matter?" She asked, throwing her hands in the air.

"Mai..." he started, trying to think of what to say.

"Don't," she cut him off. "Just stop it. I haven't seen you in three YEARS, Jounouchi. You don't have the first clue what's going on with me, and you think everything's going to be okay because you showed up on my roof--ra only knows how you found me--"

"I don't have a clue because you're not telling me!" he shouted back, angry.
"You don't need to know--"

"Yes, I do!" He cut her off this time. "I want to know what's going on, Mai. Please!" She shook her head, glancing down. Jounouchi knew he shouldn't keep pressing her, but he blurted out anyway. "You owe me that much!"

She was about to yell at him as well, but closed her mouth and thought a moment. Jounouchi held his breath.

"So I do," she sighed. Jounouchi breathed in relief as she stepped down from the ledge, if only for the moment.

"...what happened when you dueled Malik, Jounouchi?"

"I--huh?" he stammered, thrown off by the random question.

"After the duel," she said impaitiently. "What happened to you?"

With a horrible sinking feeling, Jounouchi realized that he never told Mai about his duel. He'd figured that out during her time with the Orichalcos, and meant to tell her, but in that last few seconds they'd had together, he didn't exactly have time.

"I don't really know..." he said. "I... uh... passed out at the end of the duel." Something told him this wasn't the time to tell her he had--however briefly--been legally dead after his duel with Malik.

"And...?"

"And I had a weird dream and I woke up," he finished lamely. "What does this have to do with anything? Whathisface said this was... well, it was about me!"

She looked at him strangely. Jounouchi started to panic. He'd been wrong. This wasn't about him, and now he had no way to stop her.

"That is what he would say," she said in a low voice.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Jou shouted, confused.

"Takeru was a jealous, arrogant... aagh!" she yelled. "He didn't give a damn what happened to me when he left. You bastard!" she shouted over the side of the building. "How could you just LEAVE me?! You knew what was I was going through!" She whirled around to Jou, her eyes shining with new tears, her voice breaking. "He knew, Jounouchi. He knew, and he just walked out!"

Their eyes met, and Jounouchi could see her reaching out to him through her despair. Jounouchi jumped at his new chance. "What are you going through, Mai?" he asked. She shivered and turned away again.

"Mai?"

"I still have nightmares," she blurted. "The ones... from my duel with Malik."

"What... is it that bad?" Jounouchi asked.

Mai paused, and answered with a question. "What are you afraid of, Jounouchi?"

"Me?" He stammered, thrown by her question. "Uh..." Bakura's occult deck came to mind. "Stupid stuff." He hesitated, not sure if his childish answer was what she wanted. She beckoned, and he blushed a bit.

"Ghosts. Zombies. Occult stuff," he mumbled. "Why? What about you?"

"Being alone."

Her answer cut into Jounouchi like something from Malik's duel. Being alone. Exactly what he did to her after Battle City. What he'd been doing to her for years. What her idiot boyfriend had done hours before.

Before Jounouchi could say anything, Mai continued. "Malik trapped me in an hourglass. Alone. Watching all the people I know ignore me, and then losing the memories of them even existing. And when they were all gone, and I couldn't take it anymore... I'd die."

"It's the same dream. I'm alone, in an hourglass, and it's filling with sand--" Jounouchi started. He hadn't heard about that part before. Mai didn't notice and continued "--and he tortures me, and I'm as alone as anyone could ever be."

The leftover pieces from their adventures three years ago started to click together. "That's why... you went to..." Jounouchi trailed off.

"To Doom. I know I shouldn't have. But... Varon..." she sighed. "I didn't know what to do."

"Is that why you're here now?" He asked hesitantly. "You don't know what else to do?"

"No. Doom's over and done with," she said with resolve, but looked out at the edge of the building again. He tensed, ready to spring forward if she started to jump. "I'm sorry for what I did, but I don't..." she paused, and Jounouchi swore she chuckled. "I don't lose any sleep over it."

"I don't understand," Jounouchi tried to buy more time. "The Mai I knew wouldn't do this. Even with all that stuff."

"I'm not the 'Mai you knew'," she spat. "I was pathetic for joining Doom. I'd never do that again."

"And this is better than that?!" Jounouchi accused, starting to lose control. She gave him a long look.

"Yes," she replied, serious. Jounouchi faltered.

"I... don't blame you for that, though," he offered. "For the Orichalcos stuff. It wasn't your fault. No one blames you."

She snorted. "Of course they do."

"No!" he protested, but she cut him off.

"It doesn't matter, anyway," she shook her head. "Doom's over. Even if it wasn't, you'd say whatever you had to until I got down." Mai accused. Jou winced. She was exactly right. Sighing, she turned away from him.

"Honestly... this isn't about Doom or you, Jounouchi." She smiled sadly. "How could it be? You were always good to me. Maybe we'd ruffle each other's feathers, but you were there when it counted. When I didn't deserve it."

"Mai, that doesn't mean you have to--" Jounouchi tried to cut in. He knew it was pathetic, he knew it was sterotypical and probably didn't mean a thing to her, but he had to say something.

"No. I do. Don't worry, there's more for you than me, Jounouchi. There's got to be," she added in a whisper.

"Mai..." he pleaded. "Don't do this."

"...goodbye, Jounouchi," Mai murmured, stepping back on the ledge.

A/N: Did you think she was going to kill herself because of Doom? Did you think seeing Jou would snap her out of it? Did I manage to surprise you in any way? I'd love to know!