Dangerous Souls

Healing

Chapter 3-Disappearance

March Day 2, 7:33 A.M.

Very carefully, Naru lifted his arm off of Mai's waist and proceeded to snake it away from her. When she stirred, he froze. So much for not having to worry about me being professional.

But she simply adjusted where her pillow was and continued to sleep. Naru let out a breath and continued to detach himself from his assistant. Once his arm was freed he was able to sit up. Mai lay still on her side, facing the window. That could have been bad, Naru thought to himself.

Who would of thought that Naru was a cuddler?

Seeing the time, Naru went to his suitcase to grab his clothes. "No..." he heard the whimper as he gathered his clothes in his hands. "No, stop..."

"Mai? Did you say something?" Naru asked, looking at the sleeping form in the bed. His first thought was that she had woken up and he had to explain himself, but she was still asleep. She wasn't as peaceful as she had been a moment ago. Her head was moving back and forth and she gripped the sheets furiously.

"Leave me alone!" She must have mean to scream it, but if only came out as a distressed whimper. She started to kick her legs as though to run, and her thrashing became violent. It reminded him of another case where he had to wake her up. He hoped he wouldn't have to resort to the same tactic.

"Mai," he said firmly as he put down his clothes and crossed the room to her side of the bed. She was tangling herself in the blankets as he sat down on the edge of the bed. He placed a hand on her shoulder. "Mai, wake up." She was still thrashing and whimpering and...crying?

What on Earth was she dreaming about?

Naru placed his hand on both shoulders and shook them gently. "Mai! Wake up!" His voice was loud for him, but nowhere near a shout. "Wake up!"

With another shake, Mai's eyes fluttered open and she gasped for breath. She shot up to a sitting position as her boss leaned back. Breathing heavily, she gripped the sheets, desperate to calm her racing heart.

"Are you okay?" He asked as Mai finally realized who exactly woke her up.

She ran a hand through her hair and took a deep breath. "Yeah." Another breath. "It was just another nightmare." She rubbed the sleepiness out of her eyes. "What time is it?"

"Not even eight," he answered, standing back up. "You've been having nightmares?"

"Yeah," Mai answered with yet another breath. She combed her shaky hands through her hair. She shrugged when she looked up at him. "Pretty much the reason why I'm not sleeping."

"Did it have anything to do with the case?" he asked, grabbing his clothes from the bed.

Yes, just not this one, Mai thought as she remembered her dream. Nakajima was groping her just like he did when they were exorcising him. Ugh, I still get chills when I think about it.

"Mai?"

Mai shook her head. "Sorry, and no, it doesn't have to do with the case." She sat up a little straighter and put on a fake smile. "It's just a stupid recurring nightmare I have. It's no big deal, sorry if I scared you."

She knew he wouldn't buy it, but he didn't make any further comments. He just nodded and headed for the bathroom. Mai sat still until she heard the shower turn on.

Geez, I must have been screaming or something for Naru to come barging in- And like the idiot she felt like she was, she realized she had forgotten one key part of this case, once again. God, I'm an idiot!