Author's notes:

Takes place right after the events of Cowboy Bebop. Faye is drinking late one night and quite up to chance, she meets someone she knows. I suck at summaries and I don't want to give it away. Read it. It's really good. Rated PG-13 to R.

Thoughts are in italics and flashbacks are separated by a line.

Disclaimer: I don't own a damn thing! Except that cutie Reic!

Blues in the Night

By roxyravette

Chapter 1 Drinking and Walks in the Rain at Night Don't Mix

            The 'NightLite Bar' had been Faye's home for the past two weeks. They were always open and always played good music. Not to mention all drinks were free after 3 a.m. Though the place was in dire need of a major facelift, it was still one of the best bars on the planet. This was where Faye had dragged her emotionally drained body after Spike left the Bebop. There she drank away her pain and sorrows. She would come back every night and do the same thing: Drink. Sulk. Stare. Drink some more.

Faye sat on a barstool in the far corner alone. Hair she once took pride in was now a disheveled mess and her face was still puffy from intensive crying. Her eyes were bloodshot and empty of all emotion and she took no notice of her surroundings. The bar was empty except for the bartender. He gave her a look but decided it was against his better judgment to ask what was wrong. Faye met his eyes and he went back to wiping the counter. She looked back at the half empty glass. She sighed and smiled a sad smile.

"Or maybe the glass is half full?" 

She frowned and took a swig of her drink. Meaningless nonsense. She didn't care. Why should she? Nothing mattered anymore now that the world as she knew it had shattered. The crazy kid and the dumb dog had left to go off to God knows where. She stormed off the ship as soon as the Red Tail was fixed, leaving the Bebop and Jet behind her. She was alone again. Not that that was anything new. But it was different this time. She was beyond upset and what had hurt her most of all… was that he was gone.

Spike Spiegel…out of her life forever…all because he was so goddamn stubborn. He was such a hypocrite. The nerve of him to tell her that the past could be forgotten! He was living in the past himself! She didn't want him to go…but no…he had to. Didn't he know that his death would accomplish nothing? He'd left her behind. Even with the threat of being shot, he turned his back on her. And that had hurt. Much more than what Witney had done to her. She had let her emotions get the better of her again and now she was paying for it. It was silly of her to fall in love with Spike. He was in love with another woman, besides he didn't think of her as anything special. It had all been for Julia. To Spike, women like Faye were a dime a dozen. His subtle rejection was something she should have anticipated. She had ached to tell him how she felt, but she would never get a chance now. He was dead.

Faye drank the rest of her drink and set it down angrily. He was dead, and as much as she didn't want to admit it, he had to be. Faye had no idea why she was still in this hellhole. Well she actually had an idea of why. It was hope. She clung to the belief that Spike was still alive somewhere. But as the time went on, that hope started to dim. For the last two weeks, she had been searching in vain for Spike in hospitals, morgues, and hotels. Yet she found no trace. He was simply gone. It frustrated her to no end. She asked around, but some people just didn't want to open their mouths and spill the beans. She had never felt more helpless and abandoned. Faye sighed and got up from her seat. She left a wad of bills on the counter and made her way out of the bar. It was raining hard outside.

"Great. Just fucking great!" Faye shouted to no one in particular." I never get a break!"

Pulling her thin jacket around her shoulders she walked out into the rain. Faye cursed as she narrowly avoided slipping in a puddle of water. She was halfway to the hotel when suddenly she was pulled into an alley.

"What the-?!" she cried as her arms were pulled behind her back. "Get off of m-." Faye slammed against the wall of the building. Her head swam as she was pressed up against the wall. Faye struggled against her attacker's grip but it only tightened to the point where Faye cried out in pain.

"This is not my day." she thought. "Look I don't have any money."

"Well you are gonna be outta luck for quite awhile Poker Alice." Her attacker said harshly. Faye froze and she felt her heart speed up.

"That voice…it can't be…" her mind raced. " What do you want Reic?"" she asked carefully.

"Oh so you do remember me…" he chuckled in her ear. Faye's eyes widened as a large heavy hand traced the hem of her shorts. His breath tickled her ear as he spoke.

"I want lots of things Faye," he whispered. "But you, Lady Luck, owe a sizable amount of money to us." Faye could almost see him grinning. "Does 602 mil sound familiar to you?"

"I thought that was taken care of." She replied cautiously.

"Did you really think that you could get away so easily?" Reic laughed. Faye smirked.

"Is that a rhetorical question?"  Reic suddenly threw her against a dumpster nearby. He grabbed her roughly and forced Faye onto her feet.

"Look Faye, I don't want to hurt you." Faye opened her eyes slowly. Emerald green eyes met stormy gray ones that were almost invisible under a head of dark hair. Faye was unprepared for the kiss, and Reic was forceful, almost bruising. Reic broke off the kiss and Faye was motionless. He laughed.

"If I had known you would have stayed still, I would have kissed you earlier."

"I said let go of ME!" she screamed as she wiggled out of his grip. Faye drew a knife from her pocket and slashed at Reic. He caught her wrist and with fluid like motion, he had her in his grip again. Reic tsked at her and brought up her wrist to her throat. Faye gasped as cold steel touched her throat.

"You are being very naughty Faye." He whispered. "Should I teach you a lesson just like before?" Faye gasped as a hand lay on her thigh.

"NO!"

With a burst of strength and sheer willpower, Faye pushed Reic off of her. She felt the knife graze her abdomen but she ignored it. Right now she wanted to just get away. Running out of the alley she felt rather than saw Reic behind her. Gunshots fired at her only confirmed what she was thinking.

"Faye!" she heard him yell. "Get back here!" Faye kept running clutching her wound. She didn't realize she was running in oncoming traffic until a car narrowly missed her. The driver honked the horn and gave her the one-fingered salute.  Behind her she heard tires screech and the sound of a body hitting the hood of a car. Faye turned around and saw the mess on the road. She saw what looked like Reic on the hood of a small car. Already people were getting out of their cars and crowding around. Faye turned around and continued running.

It wasn't until she slipped in the mud that she noticed the seriousness of the knife wound. Blood was gushing out and upon seeing it she felt dizzy.

"Shit." She cursed. Faye tried dragging her body but her muscles gave in, tired from her previous escapade.

"I must look so pathetic right now." She thought. Faye fought to stay awake but the loss of blood was finally kicking in. In the end Faye lost. Rain pelted her body as she lost consciousness.

To be continued…