Title: You Called Them

Word Count: 867

Summary: Naru would have preferred that his parents had not known he was in the hospital. Lin called them anyway.

Notes: In the manga volume 11, Mai notes that nobody from Naru's family visited him while in the hospital. Here's my take on it. Setting is during the first few days Naru had been in the hospital. If you've only watched the anime, it would be right after the last case: The Cursed House.

Naru had stopped acknowledging his guests a long time ago.

Not that he had given them much attention to begin with, Lin thought.

Ayako came up behind Mai and Masako and tapped them on the shoulders. "I'm your ride to the Yoshimi home," she reminded them. "It's already eight p.m., I'd like to go."

The girls glanced at each other, to see who would decide to get up first. They ended up standing in unison.

"Bye, Naru and Lin," Mai said.

"Good night," Masako said softly.

Naru inclined his head slightly, and the three girls left.

His hand flitted across his notebook, and Lin sat with his laptop on a nightstand he had dragged over for a makeshift table.

All was silent and peaceful, but Lin knew that it would not last because of an action he had taken earlier in the day.

.*.

Less than half an hour later, Naru's cell rang.

Naru's pen paused. He slowly turned his head to look at the phone.

His attention moved to Lin. "You called them," he said.

"I knew you had no intention of doing so."

"You have only caused them worry," Naru said.

Each sentence was interjected by the phone's ringing.

"They have the right to decide if they want to worry about you," Lin said.

Ring.

"It is not going to answer itself," Lin added.

Ring.

"That is the point."

The phone went silent. Naru tried to go back to his writing, but snapped the book shut when Lin's cell immediately started to ring.

Naru set the notebook in his lap and folded his arms. "Tell them I am resting."

Lin turned away as he answered it, but he could feel the younger man's eyes boring into his back. Lin had a feeling that Naru would have gotten up and forcibly taken the phone if he had been able.

"He is resting," Lin repeated into the cell. There was a moment as he listened to the answer, then he said to Naru, "They don't believe you."

"That isn't a surprise."

Naru's arms remained folded when Lin offered the phone to him.

"You are acting childish," Lin said.

"Excellent observation."

.*.

Lin clicked the speaker phone button on the cell and turned up the volume. He set it next to his laptop on the nightstand.

"Hello Professor Davis," Lin said.

"Good afternoon," Martin Davis said, his voice having a slight echo to it.

"It is evening here, father," Naru said.

They heard a female voice say, "Give me the phone." There was some crackling as the phone changed hands, and then Luella Davis said breathlessly, "Oliver?"

"Yes?" Naru answered.

"Are you all right?"

"Yes."

"See, Martin? He's fine," Luella said.

They heard Martin's voice faintly. "Luella, he's lying in a hospital bed in a far-off country. I'm sure he has had better days."

"With only Lin for conversation," Naru said.

"If I had known you were craving companionship," Lin said without removing his eyes from the computer, "I would have told the girls to stay."

"What girls?" Luella asked.

"They would have slept on the floor for you," Lin continued.

"I would not be so sure of that for Miss Hara," Naru said.

"What girls?" Luella repeated.

There was a light clatter as the phone was passed around again.

"Masako Hara?" Martin said, "The TV medium?"

"Yes," Naru said.

"Now look what you've done," Luella said in the background. "He has gone back to one word sentences."

"Are you up to telling us what happened?" Martin asked.

Naru was silent. Then he closed his eyes and sighed. Lin saw his face soften. It was an expression that Naru saved for his adoptive parents – very few outsiders saw it.

"I exorcised a spirit of god-like status," Naru said. "I knew in doing so I would overextend myself, but the other members of the group were not capable."

"I could have called in one of your father's people to finish the job," Lin said. "You were provoked and acted irrationally."

"Who provoked him?" Luella asked. Lin had a feeling that they had turned their own phone on speaker to avoid the passing back and forth.

Naru looked down, so Lin answered, "Mai – the other girl."

"You allowed a girl to provoke you?" Luella and Martin said together.

"In my defense," Naru said, "You don't know Mai. She can be rather difficult."

"I say that about your mother all the time," Martin said.

Luella made a 'hmph' sound, then said, "Oliver, we could be there tomorrow if you wanted, you know that?"

"I know," Naru said.

"Then we will stop pestering you," Martin said. "Contact us if you need anything."

"The next time you hear from me," Naru said, "It will be because I have finished what I came here for."

There was a pause, and then Martin said, "Of course. Good night, Noll."

After he hung up the phone, Lin disconnected his cell and went back to his computer.

.*.

Naru picked up his notebook. He had no intention of sleeping. All he had done during the case was sleep.

"Lin?"

Lin's eyes flickered over to him.

"Thanks."

Lin nodded. He did not have to ask what for.

Second note: In the manga, the Yoshimi family invites the SPR members to stay in their home while Naru (and Yasu, though for not very long) is in the hospital. But seriously…I think I would have rented a hotel room. I would have never slept in the zombie house, even if it had been cleansed.

But maybe that is just me?