I hope you guys like this chappy. I hope it doesn't confuse you too much, but I swear, it'll all be explained. Maybe not all in this story, but definitely in the sequel which I have already started planning =D

Disclaimer: I do not own Ghost Hunt

Chapter 2: Brotherly Fighting

Naru sat in his office on the window sill, staring down into the city. He wasn't seeing any of I though. His mind was focused on the lingering memories of his deceased brother. He remembered the days they had spent with a blonde cheerleader while still in high school.

He was so caught up in his thoughts that he didn't see or hear the part-timer standing in front of his desk until she spoke. "Hey Naru, are you feeling alright?" Mai asked, setting the tray of tea on his desk.

Naru startled, turning to look at her. He stared at the tea she held out to him for a long moment before taking the cup. He didn't answer her question, but instead asked one of his own. "What's the picture you're hiding under your bra strap?"

Mai almost dropped the tea tray. "Nothing," she said too quickly. She jumped around, trying to make for a quick escape.

"You think I'm going to believe that?" he asked her with a scrutinizing gaze, standing up and making his way over to her. She went rigid as she felt him standing behind her.

His hands started to reach around her, crawling across her stomach and up her front. Before he could pluck the photo from her shirt Mai spun around, dancing towards the door. "I'm going to go home and get my bag packed. See you tomorrow," she called, making her escape.

Naru sat back down on the window sill, taking a sip of the tea Mai had brought him. He sighed and stabbed a hand through his hair. What was he going to do with her?

…..

The moment Mai shut the door behind her she slumped against it. She pressed her trembling hand to her chest, feeling her heart throb through her ribcage. That was a close one. He'd been so close. His hand had trailed across her skin. He'd almost gotten the photo. She could still fell his touch.

Her mind jumped between two different sets of thoughts and emotions. Relief at the fact that the little secret she'd discovered had not been uncovered just yet. And disappointment at the fact that she didn't have his touch anymore.

Shaking her head dismissively, Mai pushed off from the door. Gathering her belonging, she disappeared from the SPR office before a certain narcissist could attempt anything else. Her hand stayed pressed against her chest right over the photo. It wasn't until she was safely on the train home did she pull it out.

The happiness just emanating from the happy participants in the photo saddened her. She wondered if she'd ever find a love like the one she saw there.

"Ex-boyfriend with a new girlfriend?" asked a tall boy behind her, giving her a teasing and flirtatious grin, "That must be a hard cookie to swallow. For a foreigner she's a beautiful flower, but so are you."

Mai blushed immediately. She wasn't sure if it was from the thought of Naru being her boyfriend, the proximity of the boy, or compliment she'd just received. He was nearly leaning over her to look at the picture. "Uh, no. Um, this is my boss. His twins gave me the picture," she explained in a stutter. Her hands tightened around the cold metal pole she was currently attached to.

"Oh, twins you say? He seems pretty young to have children. How old is he and his children?" the guy asked, leaning closer to examine the picture more closely.

Mai didn't know what prompted her to tell the truth, but it came spilling from her mouth none-the-less. "He's 21-years-old and his twins are five. They said this was taken when he was fifteen so it's kind of old," she explained, looking longingly at the picture.

"Woo, twenty-one and already has children. That's a blow to the self-esteem. I'm gonna wager a guess and say you're nineteen or twenty," the boy said with a whistle.

Mai's head jerked up, making eye contact. She noted the difference between Naru's blue eyes and the boy's hazel eyes that seemed the perfect mixture of chocolate brown and emerald green. He was obviously foreign and as handsome as Naru. "Yeah, how did you know?"

"Just a guess." He smiled down at her. "So, what kind of job do you have?"

Mai laughed. "'I'm a ghost hunter at Shibuya Psychic Research," she unwittingly told the boy.

His beautiful eyes grew large. "Whoa! That's so cool!" he exclaimed. The train began screeching to a halt. As it stopped, Mai was shoved into the boy's chest.

"Sorry," she said quickly, pushing away from him, her face hot with embarrassment.

"No problem," he said cheerfully, "Well this is my stop. Stay cheerful, pretty flower. I'm sure we'll see each other soon." He waved to her as he disembarked the train.

She gasped and flung herself at the door before it could close. "What's your name?" she called, spotting him in the crowd in an instant.

"Ash," he said, turning towards her. The smile he gave her was breathtaking. "Ash Willows." Then the doors slid shut, and Mai was speeding away from the boy, her cheeks burning neon red and the picture still clutched in her hand.

…..

Mai's eyes roamed in and out of focus, her mind on other things. Throughout the morning, she'd periodically space out leaving her wondering what had occurred during those times. Seeing as the picture was still safely stashed in her pocket each time, she hadn't come into contact with Naru since coming to work. Hopefully. Well, at least while out of it.

At the moment, the resident narcissist was hidden in his office. Waves of brooding anger flooded under the door prompting both the assistances to give the room a wide berth.

As for the cause of sudden rise in emotion, both were quite unsure. All Mai knew was that it had begun during one of her blackouts when she'd apparently brought the young businessman tea. She was hesitant to find out the cause.

Though the silent Chinese man would not give any indication, he had some ideas swirling in the back of his mind about his charges sudden dark mood. None of them seemed to benefit the boy in the least. Half of them included the girl standing in front of him. It would be some time until they found out that the reason was much simpler than either of them could ever imagine.

…..

It was early in the morning. Naru sat on his windowsill once more, watching the people down on the streets. His mind still rested on the picture Mai had hidden from him. He spotted a certain brown head on hair weaving in and out of people flowing against her, dragging a small bag behind her. He glanced at his watch. She was an hour early. If he'd had less control of his face he'd have let his jaw drop to the floor.

With a sigh, he slid back into his chair. He had a file open on his legs and his cheek in his hand when Mai stumbled in. Her eyes were flat as if she had died and then been resurrected in the last few hours. They stayed focused on the ground, not taking their usual room around the office. After she'd set the tea cup on his desk she stared off.

Naru watched her cautiously, waiting for her eyes to flick to him. They didn't. "Mai…" he said cautiously. And again, they didn't move towards him at all.

Instead, the word, or rather name, that slipped through her lips made him stiffen. "Ash," she murmured, turning and taking her leave, "Such pretty eyes." Irrational jealousy filled him, spilling out in a torrent. Try as he might to suppress it, it reared its ugly head making itself well known. It dredged up anger with it as its companion in ruling. Confusion followed even as he tried once again to stuff the feelings into a tiny box.

Naru pulled a mirror out of the top right hand drawer of his desk and stared into it. He called out to his brother, and waited. An hour later he was still staring into it with no answer. It remained infuriatingly silent. For the past hour he'd been attempting to contact his dead twin to no avail. He was obviously ignoring him.

"Gene, I do not appreciate being ignored, respond already!" Naru said through tight lips and clenched teeth, repressing the urge to shake the mirror. That would get him nowhere. "Seriously Gene, stop being an immature asshole. I'm not in the mood for games."

His image slowly morphed to that of a younger fifteen-year-old version of himself. The mirrored version was laughing. "Aw, can't you take a little joke?" he asked.

"Not when I'm looking for important answers," Naru replied disdainfully.

Gene scoffed. "Important my ass. You're just jealous that Mai might be interested in a guy other than you. You're scared that she won't take a second glance at you and the guy will sweep her away like Cinderella," Gene said with a smug grin. When Naru didn't deny it, his grin grew evil and mischievous. "I'm right. Oh, that's so cute, little brother, but sadly, I am not her stalker and do not know how much help I will be. Here's an idea, why don't you just tell her everything?"

Instead of answering, Naru changed the topic, something he rarely had to resort to. "Do you remember Christina? The cheerleader from high school?" he asked, his eyes scanning his office absent mindedly like he'd find something on the bare walls.

"'Course I do. I dated her for a year. She was amazing. Why do ya' ask?" he asked, tilting his head to the side like a curious dog.

"I took this case yesterday. It seems rudimentary, a simple haunting," Naru said slowly, looking back at his twin.

"Yeah, so?"

"The man, the client I took the case from, had a pair of children with him, twins by the way they acted and looked. They looked like…us," he said slowly, looking away from his brother as he conjured their image in his mind, "They had your personality and they're five-years-old."

Gene was silent for a long moment, contemplating. "Could it have been a coincidence?" he offered cautiously as if he'd get bombed for the mere suggestion.

"I don't believe in coincidences," Naru said matter-of-factly, "I don't know why they and we are so similar, but I will find out the reason."

Silence fell between them. Neither boy looked at the other, taking to staring off in random directions. After a few moments Gene finally spoke, "So, about Mai and this new guy-" Naru cut him off.

"No," he said simply.

"But if you tell her first-"

"There's nothing to tell."

"That's a load of BS and you know it. Who are you trying to kid Noll? It may not be obvious to the others, but it is me. The longer you deny it, the further she'll drift from you," Gene reprimanded, his temper flaring.

"No one can drift from me if no one is close to me. I'm not denying anything."

"Are you really that blind?" Gene finally started shouting, "The longer you lie to yourself, the longer you'll be unhappy. I'm dead and you can't change that no matter how much you want to! It's time to move on. Face it, you're on love with-"

"Shut up!" Naru shouted, slamming the mirror face down onto his desk. He could barely hear it shatter through his fury. He shook with it, wanting to punch a wall and throw things. What right did he have to talk to him like a child? He was perfectly fine alone…

He anger slowly ebbed away as he felt the bite of pain spread up his arm, leaving him feeling empty and shaky. He sat down heavily in his chair, covering his have with his hands. What was he going to do?

Hope you liked it. I certainly loved writing it. Stayed tuned next week for a new chappy. Review please :D