A/N: This is my first fanfiction so I have no idea about posting and stuff. Not sure about the divider lines either. Anyway? I can't get enough of this paring. I think I've read just about every LinxMai on ffn.

Disclaimer: I always see these. I don't own Ghost Hunt. All characters belong to the Goddess Ono Fuyumi-sama.

Edit: Just working on formatting. This story is complete. Also, I appreciate anyone's thoughts.

"Dinner?"

When he asks her to dinner, it's without any hesitation or worry. They're standing in the office kitchen, the quiet evening settling in. Naru had already left for the day.

"Okay," she says quietly as she makes tea. Strangely, she isn't nervous. When she turns to grab the tea cups from the cabinet, he's leaning gently back, hands braced on the counter. His face, half-hidden by his long forelock, is impassive. It doesn't bother her. It's always been like this, these last four years.

After tea, they grab their coats. The restaurant is foreign, in order to accommodate his strict diet. Conversation over dinner is minimal. Such a circumstance would have bothered her years ago, but she has since grown accustom to this quiet sway of life.

After dinner, he drives her home, then walks her to her door. He kisses her lightly on the lips; it's not overly romantic or demanding, but it's enough to let her know he's interested. So she simply walks into her apartment, leaving the door ajar to let him know he's invited.

He follows her inside, quietly closing and bolting the door. He looks around the dark space, catching sight of her standing in her bedroom doorway, waiting for him. He goes to meet her and she pulls him inside the room before removing her shirt.

She's never done this before, but that fact doesn't cause her any amount of concern or worry. 'What is this?' she wonders, 'Apathy?' She pushes that thought away as he embraces her. She wraps her arms around his waist, her head resting on his chest. They stand silently for a few moments. 'This is nice,' she thinks.

It's unrushed, gentle. Their hands remain clasped above them, foreheads touching, breath hot between them. She can't describe this feeling. Everything seems hazy. Hypnotic. She remembers that time she was under hypnosis. It could be comparable.

Afterwards, he holds her from behind as they quietly sit in the bath. It's eerily silent, but the occasional sound of lapping water from a gentle movement lets her know she's still there with him. She begins to feel sleepy, so she towels off before pulling on a night shirt and lying down on her bed.

He stays in the warm water for a few minutes after she leaves. He wonders what this is. He doesn't hazard any guesses. He'd never draw a conclusion with so little data. Instead, he leaves the bath, draining it before drying off.

When he finds her asleep, he silently dresses himself. He allows himself a moment to stare down at her sleeping form before he leaves, locking the front door with one of the spare keys she gave to him and Naru in case of emergencies.

At work the following day, nothing changes. Neither of them mentions what happened and neither of them really think about it. They go on like they usually do. Weeks go by without another occurrence; they have a few small cases and work goes on as usual. It isn't until a particularly vicious rainstorm that they find themselves alone in the office together. Naru had decided he'd take the day off to work on his next thesis.

"Would you like a ride home, Taniyama-san?" he asks as he cleans up his work for the day.

"Yes, please!" she responds happily. She wasn't looking forward to finding her way home in this weather. "Thank you so much, Lin-san."

He smiles lightly, nodding before going to grab his coat. He drives her to her apartment and they end up outside her door again. She doesn't hesitate to invite him inside this time. After they remove their shoes and coats, he leans down to kiss her.

She wraps her arms around his neck and he lifts her to straddle his hips. The kiss is more comfortable this way. It's not quite the same as the last time. It's still not overly passionate. The kiss is still gentle and undemanding, but it lasts longer. They end up on the couch this time, with her still straddling him. They hardly remove any clothing. It's quiet and gentle, and just as satisfying as the last time.

They bathe together; it's comfortable this way. She's the first to leave again. He leans back to stare at the ceiling, letting out a soft sigh. 'What is this?' he wonders. He doesn't allow himself to think on it long. He finishes his bath and dresses unrushed.

When he finds her, she's lying on her side in bed. It isn't late yet, so he decides to stay a while longer. He lies down beside her, quietly holding her from behind. She entwines their fingers lightly. 'What is this?' they wonder jointly.

Again, nothing changes at work. They remain the same and don't mention a thing. It leaves them wondering why this happened. Was it just a fluke? After two months go by, they wonder if it ever even happened at all. Regardless of this occasional inner turmoil, they can't find it in themselves to feel overly anxious or embarrassed around one another. 'Shouldn't it be different?' they think. But it remains the same.

A week later, things began to change. It really had been just an ordinary day. Lin was working in the Resource Room, the door ajar. Mai was sitting out in the front office. When Lin hears the sound of the office door opening, he stops typing.

"Oh! Yasuhara, what brings you in today?" he hears Mai ask.

"I have some files the Big Boss asked me to pick up for him," Yasuhara replies. There is a moment of silence. "Say Mai," Yasuhara begins.

"Hm?" Mai replies, seemingly preoccupied. She's working on transcribing some previous case notes and had momentarily forgotten Yasuhara's presence.

"Are you seeing anyone?" Yasuhara asks.

Lin turns towards the door, inhaling sharply in surprise. 'Is this kid really trying to ask out Taniyama-san?' he wonders to himself.

"Eh? What do you mean?" Lin hears her ask.

"I mean," Yasuhara begins again, "do you want to grab something from the cafe downstairs?"

"Oh! Sure," Mai replies pleasantly, thinking he meant to ask if she was meeting someone for lunch, "I was about to take a lunch break anyway. Just let me finish this up." A few quiet minutes pass before Mai says, "Okay, let me just tell Naru. Would you like me to give those to him for you?"

"Please," Yasuhara says brightly.

Mai walks towards Naru's office, passing the Resource Room on the way. When she sees Lin sitting facing the door, she smiles at him, but he quickly turns away from her and starts typing. She immediately stops walking. 'Is something wrong?' she wonders.

"Lin-san," she probes cautiously, "is everything alright?"

"I'm fine," Lin responds immediately, more forcefully than he had meant to. He wasn't sure what he was feeling right now. Anger, jealousy, betrayal? It was all too confusing and he didn't want to talk about it right now. It was true that it had been months since they had been together, but he had thought that they had something. 'Did we have something?' he wonders.

Mai's definitely sure something is wrong now. "I'm going to go out to lunch with Yasuhara," she begins, watching his back tense, "then we can discuss this, okay?"

"Fine," Lin replies, still not looking at her. 'Why am I being an idiot?' he questions himself.

Mai thinks his voice sounds more angry and less robotic than normal. Worrying, she turns away, starting towards Naru's office once again. She knocks on his door, waiting for permission to enter. When it comes, she opens the door and leans inside.

"I'm going to take my break now. Also," Mai says holding up the files, "Yasuhara brought these for you."

"Fine," Naru says impassively, holding out his hand for the files.

She hands him the files then exits his office, closing the door behind her. 'Wow, he didn't even ask for tea,' she thinks as she walks along. She stops in front of the Resource Room again. She stands there nervously, toying with the bottom hem of her shirt as she stares at Lin's back. It's been many years since she felt nervous around him; things between them have become so easy. Now, she desperately wants to say something to fix whatever is wrong.

And in his mind, he desperately wants to say something to make her stay. 'It would be so easy,' he thinks. 'Plead with her, tell her not to go,' he tells himself. 'Choose me,' he thinks desperately. He wonders if he had assumed too much.

She doesn't know what she can say. They've never needed words before. Perhaps she has grown too comfortable if she can't even find the words to soothe the man she cares for.

"Lin-san… I will go and come right back. Don't be angry, please."

Something in her words soothes his wounded ego, but he doesn't respond.

Mai turns, sighing, before going back up front to get her coat, then leaves with Yasuhara. She wonders if Yasuhara is the reason Lin is so upset. 'Perhaps I've misinterpreted the situation.'

Once they're on the escalator, Mai turns to Yasuhara saying, "Sorry Yasuhara, I'm not really in the mood to be around a big crowd right now. I think I'll just grab something and head back to the office."

"It's okay, that's fine," Yasuhara replies, unperturbed.

It takes them less than ten minutes to grab drinks and pastries. Mai immediately returns to the office, Yasuhara tailing her.

'Geeze,' Mai says inwardly, 'I thought he'd get the idea that I wanted to be alone.' She had been hoping for the chance to sort things out with Lin.

After entering the office, Mai goes to the table in front of the couches to set down her tray of drinks.

"Just a minute, Yasuhara," Mai says, "I got something for Lin-san as well. I'm just going to check if he wants to join us."

Yasuhara grows a little annoyed at the statement. 'I just wanted some alone time,' he thinks, hoping the older man will recognize this.

Unaware of Yasuhara's irritation, Mai walks back to the Resource Room to talk to Lin.

"Lin-san," Mai calls, "I got something for you. Will you come join us? Please?" She's practically begging him.

Without answer, Lin gets up with his laptop and walks past her, immediately going to sit on the couch opposite Yasuhara. 'I was stupid not to say anything before,' he thinks.

When she returns to the front office, both men sit expectantly, one more obvious than the other, waiting for Mai to decide who to sit beside. 'This is too weird,' Mai thinks before sitting next to Lin.

Lin has to admit that he feels relieved that she chose him. But the relief is short lived as Mai and Yasuhara begin to chat amiably, Lin continuing to type.

Mai laughs politely at all of Yasuhara's jokes. Lin takes this as a sign that she's enjoying the young man's company. 'Maybe she would be better off with someone younger,' he thinks woefully, suddenly doubting himself.

At the same time, Mai is just hoping Yasuhara will leave. So, after twenty minutes of conversing, Mai finally thanks Yasuhara for stopping by to chat but tells him she needs to return to work.

Just as she is standing to walk him out, Yasuhara blurts out, "Go on a date with me!"

"Why?" Mai asks bluntly, staring at Yasuhara in surprise.

Lin stops typing to stare at Mai. He's suddenly in agony, trying his best to hide it. 'Please, just say no,' he thinks.

"Well," Yasuhara begins, "because I'm bored and I like you, Mai-chan."

'He likes me?' Mai wonders, 'Do I like him?' She turns to look at Lin, focusing on his visible eye. 'Lin is everything I want,' she thinks. She immediately knows that, no, she doesn't like Yasuhara that way. 'Not even close.'

"Sorry, but I refuse," she says turning back to him, leaving no room for argument in her reply.

Yasuhara instantly understands the exchange between Lin and Mai, and this realization helps ease the harshness of Mai's refusal. He completely understands. 'Hah,' Yasuhara thinks, smiling to himself, 'how did nobody notice before? They've kept it very quiet.'

"I completely understand. I'll leave you two to it then," Yasuhara says quickly before making his exit.

"Lin-san," Mai questions now that they're alone, "will you tell me what's wrong now?"

"There's nothing to tell," he responds. He's still trying to calm his frazzled nerves. He finally realizes that Mai really hadn't known that Yasuhara was trying to ask her out. She hadn't wanted Yasuhara's affections. He had overreacted and now he feels ashamed. 'She did choose me, right?' he wonders.

"Please," Mai begs, "don't shut me out again." Mai knows Lin has always been quiet, but there was the quiet of before and the quiet of the present. She doesn't want to go back to the way they were when they first met. 'I'll die if I lose whatever this is between us,' Mai thinks.

Lin is shocked at her words. He was hurting her with his silence when all he wanted was for them to return to their comfortable companionship. He immediately sets down his laptop, returning to embrace Mai.

"Please, Taniyama-san, don't misunderstand. I was jealous," Lin says solemnly. He holds her quietly for a few moments.

"Really?" Mai asks, unsure.

"You always seem to bring out my immaturity," he continues, laughing lightly.

"I'm sorry," Mai mumbles into his chest, trying to hide her face. She can't help but think, 'He smells really nice.'

The sudden sound of a throat clearing causes the pair to quickly break apart. Naru is standing behind them, taking in the scene.

"I think it's time you two get back to work before you go on apologizing ad infinitum," Naru remarks, smirking at the way their light blushes increase tenfold. As the two return to work without any further words, Naru stands wondering. He's slightly amazed that such polite affections actually exist. He had thought that these kinds of affairs where all idiotic, burning passion; not that he has any experience in those kinds of things. He suspects he might never be cable of feeling such things.

Lightly tapping his index finger on the back of the couch, Naru returns to his office. As he sits behind his desk, he contemplates his two investigators. They had a quiet, gentle love, which none of the Irregulars had been aware of. In fact, he didn't even think the two in question were aware of it. He himself is only aware of it because he's worked with the pair so closely and knows them so well. Thinking of this, Naru rises from his chair to open his office door.

"You're both idiots!" Naru yells to the pair before slamming his door shut.

At the end of the day, Naru leaves first, muttering, "Idiots," as he walks out the door.

Mai is wondering why Naru's being such a jerk when Lin comes into the main office.

"Dinner?" Lin asks, smiling.

"Okay," Mai replies, returning his smile.

They eat dinner at the same restaurant they had that first time they went out. Not much is said during dinner. They're too preoccupied with what's to come to hold a conversation.

They quickly return to Mai's apartment after dinner. To Mai, it seems far too long since the last time they had been together and she's starting to get impatient. She doesn't waste any time getting Lin out of his clothes, dragging him to her bedroom after removing his shirt.

This time there's urgency between the pair. Both still feel the strain that their relationship had come under today; it serves to fuel them in this endeavor. Their kisses are deeper now, leaving them breathless. This time is a more intense version of their first time; their hands are clasped tightly above them, foreheads pressed together. Mai lets out little, quiet moans while Lin sighs deeply. The climax is intense, almost jarring, leaving the pair to anchor themselves with the touch of their foreheads and heavy breathes.

"I love you," Lin breathes out lightly.

It all suddenly becomes slightly unbearable for Mai. She starts crying softly. 'Finally, that's what this is,' she thinks, 'this feeling of comfortable companionship, the mutual need to be close without regret or fear.' This whole time she had been wondering why things came so easily between them.

"I'm sorry," Lin whispers, gathering Mai in his arms. He starts to worry that his confession is unwanted. "I didn't mean to upset you."

"No," Mai says, "I love you, too."

"Then why are you crying," he asks, relief evident in his voice.

"Because, I'm happy."

They resume their embrace in the bath; he holds onto her tightly. 'It really is very comfortable,' he thinks. He entwines their fingers, bringing her palm to his lips. He kisses it before nuzzling into it contently. He doesn't ever want to lose this.

"I love you," he whispers again.

"I know, I love you, too," Mai says softly.

This time when she leaves the bath, he follows her. They dress together quietly before getting in bed. He holds her close, unwilling to let go. He doesn't want to leave tonight.

"Stay with me?" Mai asks.

"Always."