Title: The Rules of the Game: Epilogue
Author: X_tremeroswellian
Email: X_tremeroswellian@yahoo.com
Disclaimer: Only in my dreams do I actually own anything. All are property of Edward Allen Bernero and John Wells.
Rating: PG-13 for language, violence and sexual content
Spoilers: Up through and including "233 Days."
Summary: Bosco and Faith find themselves in a predicament in which they can use only their instincts to survive.
Distribution: My site Only Time, 55-HQ, and fanfiction.net. Others, just ask and I'll probably say yes.
Category: Story
Subcategories: Action/adventure/thriller/suspense/romance/friendship/drama/angst...does that narrow it down too much? *wink wink*
Feedback: Makes me write faster.
Author's Note: I sort of got this idea from a third season episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. But just for the very general plot idea. The rest came out of my own messed up mind. :)
Dedication: For Dem and Bree
The Rules of the Game (Epilogue)
Faith sat curled up on her sofa in the darkness. The apartment was silent--too silent. Fred and the kids had left for the night so she could get some sleep and he'd promised to bring them back first thing the next morning.
The only problem was, she couldn't sleep. She'd laid in bed for an hour and had been unable to get comfortable, so she'd moved to the sofa. But she hadn't been able to fall asleep there, either.
Something wasn't right.
She couldn't put her finger on it, but something was bothering her. She sighed and laid her head back against the cushions.
She briefly considered getting up to take another shower, but disregarded the idea because there was no hot water left after the forty-five minute one she'd taken as soon as she'd gotten home that night from the precinct. Besides, it hurt to stand for very long, anyway.
Filing all the paperwork at the station had taken hours. Then she and Bosco had to talk to the detectives, to Sgt. Christopher, to Lt. Swersky, and then the FBI. It had been exhausting.
She didn't understand why she couldn't fall asleep.
Just then there was a knock on her door. It was soft--if she'd been asleep, she never would have heard it. Faith's gaze flickered to the clock on top of the television--11:21. Only one person in the world would knock on her door at that time of the night. She quickly grabbed her crutches and maneuvered her way over to the front door.
She peered out the peep hole just to be certain. She was still in New York City and one could never be too careful.
She smiled slightly, then unlocked the door and pulled it open. "Hi."
Bosco gazed at her. "Hey. I, uh...I couldn't sleep and I thought maybe you might still be awake, so.." His voice trailed off and his gaze dropped to the floor.
Faith moved aside. "Come in."
"Are you sure? You weren't asleep?"
"I'm sure. Come in, Bosco."
He gave her a half smile and slipped inside, glanced around the dark living room. His hands were stuffed into the pockets of his jeans--something he only did when he was nervous or unsure.
"You want some tea or hot chocolate?" she offered.
"I could go for some hot chocolate," he answered with a shrug. "You want some, too?"
"Yeah, just have a seat and I'll--"
"I'll get it," he interrupted.
Faith looked at him in surprise.
"You're hurt. You're the one who should be sitting down. Besides, I know where everything is," Bosco told her. He motioned to the sofa, then disappeared into the kitchen.
She reluctantly sat down and propped her feet up on the table, leaning against the cushions and staring up at the ceiling.
He emerged from the kitchen a few moments later, carrying two mugs. He handed her one, then sank down next to her on the couch.
Faith sipped the warm liquid and closed her eyes. Then she opened them again and looked over at him. "So you couldn't sleep either?"
Bosco shook his head. "No, I couldn't shut my brain off. I just kept thinking about..." He didn't finish, just stared down at his mug of hot chocolate.
She leaned forward, shifted her body so she was facing him. "What?"
For a long moment, he was silent. She didn't think he was going to answer her.
Then, "About what happened in that basement. I let you down, Faith. I'm sorry."
"Let me...Bosco, what are you talking about?" she asked, confused.
"I didn't protect you. He hurt you and I didn't stop him."
She set her mug down on the coffee table and touched his arm. "It's not your fault. He had you chained to a wall. There was nothing you could have done."
"Yeah, but--"
Faith touched his face, turned his chin so he was looking right at her. "Bosco, listen to me. You being there is the only thing that got me through. Maybe you couldn't save me physically, but you kept me sane."
He swallowed hard, shut his eyes tightly. "I wanted to kill him, Faith. If you hadn't stopped me, I probably would've." She could feel the tension in his jaw beneath her hand. He opened his eyes and looked at her.
"I'm okay, Boz," she promised, giving him a reassuring smile.
He nodded, exhaled slowly. Then he sipped his drink again. "Hey, Faith." When he spoke this time, there was a timid, nervous edge to his tone.
Her heart sank a little. She knew without a doubt what he was thinking about now. Her mind flashed back to the kisses they'd shared on the island--particulartly that second one, the one he'd initiated. She felt heat rise to her cheeks as she thought about it.
She vividly recalled the feel of his hands on her back as he'd pulled her down on top of him, remembered the feel of his lips on hers, on her neck, her shoulders. She wondered what would have happened between them if the hunters hadn't interrupted.
No one had ever kissed her with that much passion before. Not passion, she corrected herself, a sadness pulling at her heart. They'd been in a high-stress, dangerous situation with only the other to count on. And in those kinds of situations, people did things they normally wouldn't. It didn't mean they were soulmates, or that the kisses actually meant anything.
At least not to him.
Faith realized she hadn't yet answered him, so she fixed her gaze on a spot on the wall behind him and stared at it, preparing herself. "Yeah?"
"I think that, uh...we need to talk."
She could hear the hesitation, the dread in his voice. He was trying to figure out how to tell her what she already knew without hurting her feelings in any way. Wanting it to be over with, she took a deep breath. "I know what you're going to say."
Bosco frowned, his eyebrows furrowing. "You do?"
"Yeah, and it's all right. I understand."
"Understand what?" he asked slowly.
Damn it, he was going to make her say it. She didn't want to because saying the words would make them real. She picked up her mug without taking a drink and gripped it tightly in her hands. "That what happened on that island between us was a one time thing."
He stared at her, then leaned back against the sofa.
She shifted uncomfortably under his gaze. "It happens--fear and danger and stress make us do things we wouldn't at other times. There's no reason it should effect our partnership, or our friendship." Faith bit down on her lip, trying to will away the tears she felt building. It was so stupid. She could be brutally tortured by a psychopath and not cry, but here she was, reduced to tears by the only person on the planet she trusted absolutely with her life. She inwardly cursed herself.
"I...uh....so we're just gonna go back to the way things were before? Pretend like it never happened?"
She swallowed hard, her heart aching even more. "Yeah. Seems like the most logical thing to do."
"Logical," he repeated. "Right." He stared down at his mug. "And you're okay with that?"
"Yeah. You're off the hook."
"I'm off the hook?" He stared at her. "If you remember correctly, you kissed me first!"
Faith sighed and closed her eyes, chiding herself for the remark. After all, he had a point. "Sorry. I'm just tired. I don't even know what I'm saying."
"I don't believe you," he answered matter-of-factly, setting his mug on the table and refusing to look away. He felt a spark of hope ignite inside him.
She opened her eyes and glared at him. "Excuse me?"
"I think you're pissed at me."
"No, I'm not."
"Yes, you are."
She set her mug down, too, and folded her arms across her chest. "Are you calling me a liar?"
"If the shoe fits..."
Faith's eyes narrowed. "Be glad you have a concussion because that's the *only* reason I'm not kicking you out of my apartment."
"What if I said I wanted to be on the hook?" he asked suddenly, ignoring her comment.
A look of utter confusion crossed her face. "What?"
"You said I was off the hook for kissing you. What if I don't want to be off the hook?"
"Bosco--"
"No, seriously. Maybe you're okay with telling yourself that what happened between us was just because of the situation and the fear, and I don't know, maybe that was part of it. But when I thought you were dead, Faith...I've never been that scared in my whole life."
"That's normal, Boz. We're partners," she said softly. "You would have been just as upset if something had happened to Davis or Sully or any of the other officers at the 55th--"
"No, you're wrong," Bosco interrupted, shaking his head. "Yeah, I would've been upset, but it wasn't about losing a partner. It was about losing *you.* You, Faith. Not someone I work with. Someone that I--" He stopped, stunned by the words that were on the tip of his tongue.
"Someone that you what?" Her voice was so soft he barely heard her.
"Someone that I love." He swallowed hard. There it was. All out on the table. He held his breath, waited for her response.
Faith looked away. "I think that...you should go."
He stared at her, thrown by her words. "What?"
"I don't want you to say things that you're going to regret in the morning, so--"
"What? You don't think I know how I feel?" he demanded, starting to feel angry. "Or do you just think I'm not capable of loving someone and not screwing everything up?"
She turned back to him, shaking her head. "Bosco, that's not what I meant."
"What did you mean?"
"Look, I think that you're just overwhelmed by everything that's happened and maybe--"
Frustrated, he cut her off, pressing his lips against hers and pulling her closer to him, his hands tangling in her hair.
She laid her hands on his chest, felt the beating of his heart beneath the palm of her hand. She felt his arms wrap around her waist, pull her even closer until she was sitting on his lap. He reached up and cupped her face in his hands, caressed her cheek with his thumb.
He broke the kiss a few seconds later and gazed at her as both of them tried to catch their breath.
Faith gazed back at him, feeling a little light-headed and dizzy as her heart raced. She wanted to say something, but her mind couldn't concentrate on a single thought long enough to form words.
"Tell me you didn't feel that, Faith," Bosco whispered. "Tell me you didn't feel anything between us just then and I'll leave."
"Don't."
"Don't what?"
"Don't go," she said softly.
Before he even had a chance to respond, she was kissing him again. Relief washed over him and his eyes drifted shut as he returned her kiss. "I love you," he whispered between kisses. He laid down on the sofa, pulling her on top of him.
"I love you, too," Faith whispered back. She laid her head down on his chest.
Bosco smiled. "You know, I kinda wish Chevchinko wasn't dead."
She pulled away. "What?"
He shrugged, reached up and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "I didn't get to thank him for making me realize that the only woman I could ever be happy with has been by my side for the past eight years."
Faith's expression softened and she smiled gently as their eyes met. "You know, I never would have though you'd feel that way about me."
His eyebrows furrowed. "Why not?" he asked as she rested her head on his chest again.
"Because...I don't know. I'm not like the other women you've gone for in the past," she replied, shrugging a little.
"Trust me, that's a good thing."
She relaxed even more as she felt one of his hands rest on the small of her back as the other gently played with her hair. "And we're so different..."
"That's why this is going to work. I keep you on your toes and you keep me grounded."
"Except when we're leaping off waterfalls," she answered with a grin.
He chuckled. "Yeah, except then." He kissed the top of her head, heard her yawn. "You should get some sleep."
Faith raised her head again and looked at him, uncertainty in her eyes. "I don't want you to leave, Bosco."
"Who said anything about leaving?"
She returned his smile. "Maybe we should go somewhere more comfortable."
"Oh, I don't know, I'm pretty comfortable right here with you for a blanket," he told her with a grin.
She chuckled and shook her head, sitting up. She started to reach for her crutches, but he stopped her. Wordlessly, he stood up, reached for her hand, then pulled her to her feet. Then he picked her up, smiling when her eyes widened with surprise. He kissed her briefly, then carried her back to the bedroom. He gently sat her down on the bed. She pulled the blankets back, then scooted over to make room for him, looking up at him in the semi-darkness.
Bosco crawled under the covers beside her and laid down on his back, holding his arms out to her.
Faith smiled and moved closer to him, sighing contentedly as he wrapped his arms around her. She rested her head on his chest and instantly relaxed as she listened to his heartbeat. Her eyes drifted shut and she fell asleep within minutes.
He felt a sense of inner peace settle in him as he focused on the quiet, steady sound of her breathing. Somehow he knew instinctively that he wouldn't have any bad dreams that night. Not as long as he was with her.
They'd survived the game and they were both safe. Together.
And for the first time in his life, Maurice Boscorelli felt whole.
He fell asleep moments later, a smile on his face.
The End