Title: Of Tea, Ghosts, and One-Word Prompts

Summary: Theirs is a common love story- A bright young girl, a cold young man. But it gets complex and confusing when you add in the paranormal factor. 100 oneshots based off of one-word prompts, merging the simplicity and the supernatural of the Ghost Hunt we love so much. Naru/Mai.

Rating: K.

AN: This prompt was requested by ffn user rissajade17! Thank you for requesting this prompt. Up next is the request put forth by ffn user AmyNChan ^-^ Alright so I'm not super proud of this or whatever, but it's okay. It's also the shortest chapter yet, haha. Read, review, enjoy!

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It stung.

His scathing words, laced with venom and intending to maim- no, to kill- cut into her skin, her bones, the very essence of her being. All she had done was fall asleep- and despite him constantly telling her that he doesn't pay her to sleep, dreaming was the only way she could be useful. Ad sure, he might be angrier than usual due to Gene being in her dream- he was supposed to have moved on, after all- but that doesn't mean he gets to say those kinds of things to her.

Mai fumed, angry at her boss, and sniffed quietly, not wanting to give up her hiding spot in the bathroom. But it didn't really matter- nobody would be looking for her. Nobody really cared, especially not Naru. After all, he was the one who lashed at her mind, reopening old wounds and creating new ones, saying she was worthless, he was a fool to hire her, and that she would never be taken on a case again as soon as this one was over.

Oh yes, it stung.

And the worst part was, Mai forgave him.

Yes, she forgave him for hurting her, knowing he was hurting as well. She knew he said things he shouldn't have, knew he had gone too far this time, but she still found it within her 18 year old mind to forgive him. Hopefully, he would forgive her as well. She should have been doing her job correctly, should have been recording the temperatures with Yasuhara. It was her fault for being too weak to resist the call to leave her body to go to the astral plane.

Suddenly, Mai understood. The problem was not that Mai had fallen asleep in the hallway- all that would grant her was a derisive glance and a sigh. No, she had bit fallen asleep- she had been astral projecting. She left her body completely defenseless, and hadn't called out to Yasuhara. That was why Naru was angry. This was a particularly dangerous case, they had already experienced enough to know that. And despite this, Mai still was too weak to let somebody know that she was being pulled towards the astral plane, like Naru had instructed her to do. Mai stood, wiping away stray tears pooling at the corner of her eyes. Shaking, she left the bathroom, and walked toward the base, where Naru was sure to be. Opening the door, she poked her head inside, glancing around.

She jumped slightly, gasping breathlessly- Naru was almost right in front of the door, staring at it patiently, but with a trace of... some unknown emotion (that might be construed as worry) in his eyes. Had he been waiting for her? She noticed that he was standing from the chair that he had pulled over to the door, and was preparing to say something. Remembering the case at Yasu's school, she was determined to get the first word in this time.

"I'm sorry, Naru! Please forgive me!" Her head bowed in subordinance and shame, she didn't see the shocked expression on Naru's face.

Why was she apologizing to him? Naru was wordless for the sorry sight in front of him. His hand moved of its own accord, reaching out to caress her soft hair. Catching himself just in the nick of time, he snapped his hand back. But the urge to touch her was still there, so he did something he never would normally do.

He hugged her, wrapping his arms around her stiff torso, cradling her to his chest.

"There's no need to apologize to me, Mai. I'm not angry, you du... I'm not angry."He had nearly used his teasing nickname for her, but quickly thought better of it when he realized she might still be sensitive to his insults. Naru sighed. "In fact, I think I should be the one who is sorry. I lashed out unfairly when you mentioned that you dreamed of Gene. Just... please don't scare me like that again."

Mai tensed as he grabbed her, ready for him to yell at her once more, but when that turned into an embrace, she was just shocked. She quickly hid her face from his by burying it in his shirt, but that just made her more embarrassed. Soon realizing she could find no relief from her condition, she relaxed in his arms.

Listening to him speak, she realized that he truly was scared, never angry. He just doesn't have very good communication skills. Understanding the situation more clearly, she looked up into his cobalt eyes, which were staring into hers, pleading. She said only two words.

"I promise."

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