Yes, I know it's been forever since I've updated, but here's the next chapter! Hope you all enjoy it! :)

Chapter 8

Mai's POV:

I stretched my arms over my head and let out an embarrassingly loud yawn. It was just past one in the morning but ever since my concert was cut short last week, I felt obligated to make it up to my fans. There was no way I could hold another concert at the same level after everything that happened, but I definitely had to deal with the press. Who by the way, were driving me crazy after seeing my paranormal burst. Normally I would never have used my PK that recklessly, especially in public, but seeing my family like that…seeing Naru like that…

I heard a key being inserted into the door and looked up to see Brittany come in with a bag of takeout.

"How did you find something open at this time?" I barely even looked at her as I tore into the boxes of falafel and pita. She flopped down on a chair next to me and dug into her own bag.

"I bribed the owner of the Mediterranean place down the street."

The two of us ate until we couldn't anymore and then laid on the floor of the hotel room, taking a few minutes to clear our minds before attacking the pile of work that had built up. I felt eyes on me so I glanced over to see Brittany with a troubled look on her face.

"What is it?"

"It just..." she sighed, clearly struggling with her words.

"Brittany, come on, you've known me for so long now. What is it?"

"Why haven't you told them it was you?" I sat up slowly, the smile gone from my face. Brittany sighed, sitting up as well. "You can't just push them out forever."

"I haven't! I've talked to Ayako and Madoka and Masako. They all know."

"I'm not referring to the three of them. In fact, I'm only really talking about one person." She stood up. "Oliver loves you, Mai. Whether he knows it or not, we can all see it every single time you two are together." I pushed myself up and sat back down in my chair, ignoring my agent and the spasm of pain in my heart. Regardless of her words, I already knew the narcissist's feelings much better than anyone here and had known them for quite some time now.

"I have to get back to work," I said quietly, pulling my laptop closer. It wasn't as simple as whether or not he loved me and Brittany knew it. My PK was a power known only by very few people close to me. I hadn't even mastered it well enough to use it at the level I did in the auditorium. If Naru and the others were to realize the effect my powers had on me, were still having on me, they'd want to help. And I couldn't let them do that.

I couldn't let someone else get hurt.

Meanwhile in the Davis house…

Naru's POV:

"Mou, Naru-bou, have you still not heard anything from my Jou-chan?" Bou was draped along the length of the leather couch in the mansion's living room, idly stirring his glass of iced tea. The rest of the gang was similarly scattered around the room. Although they had more than wrapped up the case with the help of Mai, they were all insistent on waiting for Mai to come back before leaving.

"Takigawa-san, you know as much about Mai's lacking presence as much as I do. Please refrain from asking the same, unnecessary question. My answer remains the same." I snapped, flipping through another case note in his binder. Unknown to the rest of them, I was focusing on the mystery of Taylor Veran.

I found it impossible that there was no connection between Mai Taniyama and Taylor Veran. And I was determined to find the connection, no matter how large or miniscule. Flipping through my notes again, I summarized what I had found so far.

'Taylor Veran' had come into existence a little over two years ago. Her agent, Brittany Sherman, discovered her in a local bar, the name of which I was still looking for. According to these articles, Ms. Veran had a 'natural talent' for vocals and signed on with a record label not to long after. Her first hit single, Haunted, was released a mere two months after her signing and she followed that up with an album titled 'Never Before, Never Again'. She was a sensation in Japan. Although her most recent concert ended…unfortunately…her international fans were slowly increasing in number as well. Much to my dismay, she had no previous affiliation with the paranormal world. There was no history, no family or friends to contact besides her agent, who I knew would not give up any information about the star.

I leaned back into my chair, lacing my fingers together. Speaking straight from the facts, there was no relation between Mai Taniyama and Taylor Veran. To anyone it would seem like they were just two people who simply existed on the same planet. But there was something in her eyes that drew me to her. Something about Taylor was so familiar that I-

"She's holding a press conference!" Madoka interrupted my train of thought, shoving her laptop forward. I frowned. 'She' was a completely arbitrary and vague reference. Thankfully, Ayako voiced my question.

"Who are you talking about?" Madoka leaned forward gleefully.

"Taylor Veran!" Everyone, except for Lin and myself of course, simultaneously gasped and crowded around Madoka's laptop. Reading from the screen, she continued, "Ms. Taylor Veran, the subject of many recent and questionable events, has agreed to attend a press conference to be hosted this Thursday. Her agent, Brittany Sherman, as per usual will be accompanying her to this event." Yasuhara sighed dramatically.

"If only I could get a ticket to the conference to see the beautiful, angelic Taylor-chan once more!" He threw himself towards Takigawa-san for comfort; who promptly flung the boy off and relocated to the other side of the room, looking horrified.

"Shounen I thought we agreed you would stop that!" Yasuhara responded with a mischievous smile to which Takigawa responded by hiding behind Ayako. Ignoring the pair, I turned back to Madoka.

"Is there any way we can get access to the conference?" Being there would give me an opportunity to gain the answers to some of the questions I still had. Maybe I'd even find the connection I was looking for.

"Now why would you want to be there?" Madoka grinned slyly. "Perhaps Noll has caught a fatal attraction for the popstar?" I glared at Madoka.

"I'm going simply for investigative purposes, Madoka-san. You know just as well as I do that having an unstable PK user could become a dreadful threat to the psychic community and the advances we've made yet. We need to make sure that she understands her powers." I continued, "Surely as a prominent paranormal investigator you of all people would understand that." Madoka simply huffed and turned back to her computer.

"Fine, be a spoilsport. I'm going to get us those tickets." Her fingers flew across the keyboard and I turned back to my notes. Madoka glanced at Naru. She knew it was only a matter of time before he began to draw connections, if he hadn't already. She just hoped Mai-chan knew what she was doing. Pausing mid-type, she chuckled. If anyone could handle Naru, it would be Mai. They needed each other, whether they knew it or not. And it wouldn't hurt if she just gave them a little push. Locking her eyes on the screen, she grinned.

"Eight tickets for the press conference, coming up!"

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