Faith rolled off the couch the next morning and rubbed at her sleepy eyes. Her mind thought back to the previous night, and Bosco's suggestion of checking out a movie. She glanced at the clock and saw that it was just after 9:00; probably still too early for Bosco to be up. Besides, he'd said that he would call her.
Faith rubbed her eyes one more time before padding down the hall to the bathroom to take a shower. Her bathroom floor was littered with used towels, many of them still damp. A few shirts and pairs of pants were scattered amongst the towels. Maybe a load of washing was in order for the day.
Turning on the tap, Faith stuck a hand under the stream of water and waited until it was hot enough. Then she shed her pyjamas and started the shower. The hot water felt great as it pounded down on her back and shoulders.
After ten minutes in the shower, Faith decided she'd had enough and dried herself off. She threw on a robe that was hanging on the back of the door and wandered out into the kitchen to see if she could find anything to eat.
"Hey Faith."
Faith drew in a sharp breath and whirled around to see who had spoken to her. She found Bosco laying, sprawled out on her couch.
"Bosco? What the hell are you doing here?" Faith asked and tried to pull her robe closed a bit more.
"Sorry to scare you. I woke up early today, so I thought I'd drop by and bring some breakfast with me. When you weren't answering your door, I figured you were in the shower, so I let myself in."
Faith glanced at the kitchen counter and saw a brown paper bag sitting on it. "Bagels?" she asked.
Bosco sat up. "With some of that gourmet cream cheese stuff." He stood up and walked into the kitchen. "I thought I'd wait for you."
Faith pulled open the bag and took out a bagel; it was still warm. Bosco opened the fridge door and took out a small container of cream cheese. "I didn't get any coffee though." Bosco said, "But I figured we could probably make our own."
Faith nodded and started the coffee machine. "Thanks for doing this. I really didn't have anything to eat."
Bosco grinned. "I know, so I thought you might appreciate it. I checked out the movie listings by the way. There's a movie starring that guy that you like in theatres right now."
"That guy that I like?"
"Yeah, you know that one with the hair? And the voice? You saw one of his other movies and wouldn't shut up about him for a week afterwards?"
Faith shrugged and stuck out her bottom lip a bit. "I don't know, there's a lot of guys that I like. What's the movie called?"
This time Bosco shrugged. "Don't remember, but if you have the paper, we can check it out."
"Ummm...it should be somewhere by the couch. Did you look there for it?"
Bosco spread a thick layer of cream cheese on his bagel and took a bite. "No, I didn't look for it yet." he said with his mouth full.
Faith also spread some cream cheese on her bagel, not as much as Bosco had though. She took a bite. "These are great bagels." she commented.
Bosco nodded. "The best in the city."
Faith leaned back against a counter and pushed a chunk of wet hair back from her face. Bosco was chewing on his bagel and staring at her. Faith glanced down to make sure that her robe was completely closed. Beside them, the coffee maker happily burbled away.
"So, are you gonna look for the paper?" Faith asked, wanting to get Bosco to stop staring at her.
"Mmm, right. Forgot about that." Bosco mumbled and went over to the couch. He dug around on the coffee table and end tables before finding the paper folded up and partially hidden under the couch. He brought it into the kitchen and spread it out on the counter.
After flipping through a few pages, Bosco paused and ran his finger down a page. "Here it is," he said. "That guy."
Faith looked down where Bosco's finger was pointing. "Oh yeah, him. Yeah, he's cute. Nice butt."
Bosco rolled his eyes. "So you wanna see that one then?"
Faith nodded. "Sure, sounds good. How about we catch the 9:00 show and that way we can go out for dinner before. Probably cheaper to eat out than it is to buy snacks at the theatre."
Bosco finished off the last bite of his bagel. "Great, that just leaves us with all morning and afternoon!"
"I was planning on cleaning up this place." Faith said and gestured around with her hand. "It's disgusting. I have dirty laundry all over my bathroom floor and I should pack up Fred's stuff."
"I'll help you then." Bosco said and looked eagerly at Faith.
Faith shook her head. "You don't have to. Surely there must be something else that you have to do."
"Nope, I'm taking a break from dating, remember? All my girlfriends are dumping me for Doherty. And my apartment is actually pretty clean. So, no, I have nothing else to do."
Faith shrugged. "Suit yourself. I'll get changed and then we can start."
Bosco glanced quickly at Faith's chest. "Are you sure? I mean, you could just leave the robe on..."
Faith's eyebrows shot up to her hairline. "I don't think so Bos."
"Just thought I'd try." Bosco replied. "Well, you go get changed, and I'll get the coffee ready, okay?"
Faith nodded and then turned and headed down the hall to her bedroom. She kicked aside a few things and threw open the closet doors. A pair of jeans and a blouse would be perfect for today, she decided and put on her nicest jeans and a white blouse. Her hair was still damp, but she ran a brush through it and then slapped her cheeks a bit. "Perk up." she muttered and pursed her lips.
When Faith emerged from the bedroom, Bosco handed her a mug and then he sat down on the couch. "So, what's the plan of attack?" he asked. "Bathroom first?"
"Hadn't really thought about." Faith replied and sat down next to Bosco. "But I guess bathroom first works."
Bosco sipped carefully at his coffee and then set the mug down on top of a magazine on the coffee table. "I don't think your place was this bad even when Charlie and Em were here."
"No, it wasn't. I shouldn't have let it get this bad, but I just haven't felt up to cleaning for ages now."
"Got any Christmas cds?" Bosco asked, looking in the direction of the stereo.
"You want to listen to Christmas music?" Faith asked, staring at Bosco with mild disbelief.
"Cleaning music." Bosco stated. "Do you have any?"
"Ummm, I might have a few." Faith said and stood up. She went over to the entertainment centre and scanned over her cd collection. "Here's one." she said and popped it into the cd player.
"Nice." Bosco said as the song began to play.
"I think I bought it for Emily." Faith said and sat back down beside Bosco. "She was complaining that all our Christmas music was boring choirs and orchestras."
Bosco picked up his mug and took another sip. "Well, I guess we'd better get cleaning then. How about I do the laundry and you can do the actual cleaning thing."
Faith laughed slightly and smiled. That sounded exactly like Bosco. "Sounds good to me." She stood up and carried her mug into the bathroom where she set it down next to the sink. She gathered up an armful of towels and handed them to Bosco. "Here you go." she said.
"Thank you ma'am." Bosco replied and headed off for the washing machine.
Faith dug around in the cupboard for toilet cleaner and cleanser. She heard Bosco start the washing machine and smiled again. Bosco could definitely be helpful when he wanted to be.
"Hey Faith, do you use that liquid detergent or the powdered stuff?" Bosco asked as he stuck his head in the door.
"Use the powdered." Faith replied. "I use the liquid for my uniforms."
Bosco's head disappeared and Faith began scrubbing her sink and toilet. When she was done, she found Bosco sitting on the bed in her room, flipping through a book.
"This book looks kinda interesting." Bosco said when Faith walked into the room.
"I bought it for Fred last Christmas." Faith said sadly. "I don't think he ever read it."
"I'm not much of a reader." Bosco admitted. "But do you mind if I borrow it?"
Faith shook her head. "No, go ahead. Keep it if you want. I've already read it."
Bosco set the book down on the floor and Faith sat down on the bed next to him. "All my energy is gone after cleaning the bathroom." she said quietly and ran her hand over the quilt.
"More coffee?"
Faith shook her head. "No, I don't think that will help. I'm just putting off tackling all this stuff."
"Can't put it off forever." Bosco replied. "How about we start with the stuff on the bed. Do you have any boxes?"
"In the closet, there's some. They have to be put together though, I'll grab some tape." Faith went into the kitchen and grabbed the packing tape that she'd used yesterday to tape up the parcel for Charlie and Emily.
She returned to the bedroom and found that Bosco had hauled several flat boxes from the closet and was clearing a space on the floor for them. Faith handed him the tape and he taped the boxes up. "Alright." Bosco said. "Now, you go through and toss whatever's Fred's into the boxes."
Faith picked up a pile of socks and threw them in one of the boxes. Bosco sat down on a chair and watched as Faith sorted through the stuff. In the end, all three of the boxes was filled and Faith had a bed again.
"Guess I have no excuse for sleeping on the couch now." Faith said.
Bosco shook his head. "Nope, no excuse." He stood up and hovered over the boxes. "Do you want me to tape these up now?"
"Might as well. We're not going to get anything else into them; they are full."
Bosco put a few strips of tape over the tops and patted them down. "See, now that's done. Anything else?"
"The living room and kitchen could probably use a once over, but I just want to veg out."
Bosco glanced at the clock beside the bed. "Sounds good to me. It's only noon, so it's still a bit too early for dinner."
"Ya think?"
Bosco slipped the roll of tape onto his wrist and walked out of the bedroom. Faith followed him into the living room. The cd had been playing on repeat, so Faith stopped it and put it back in its case. "Thanks." Faith said, looking at Bosco and sitting down on the couch.
Bosco sat down and picked up the singing Santa again. "Doesn't really feel like it's almost Christmas, does it?"
"No, not really." Faith admitted and looked a bit sad.
"Don't forget that you're joining my mom and I for dinner."
Faith smiled. "Don't worry, I won't forget. And even if I did, I'd have you there to remind me."
Bosco examined his fingers for a while before sighing a bit and leaning his head back. "I think I woke up too early. I'll be lucky if I don't fall asleep in the theatre."
Faith chuckled. "I'd wake you up if you started to snore!"
"I don't snore."
"Yeah, you do." Faith said with a laugh.
"How would you know? You haven't slept with me."
"No, but I've seen you sleeping and you snore. Not loudly, but you do."
"Whatever." Bosco closed his eyes. "Wake me up when it's time for dinner, 'kay?"
Faith smiled softly and moved closer to Bosco. She surprised herself when she laid her head down on his shoulder and he surprised her even more when he moved his arm around her and drew her closer. "Nap time?" Bosco mumbled.
"Nap time." Faith said and closed her eyes.
_________________
"What time is it?" Bosco mumbled and rubbed his sleepy eyes.
"Just after five." Faith replied. "I can't believe we slept for five hours."
"Must have needed it." Bosco said and stood up. "Ugh, I'm stiff."
Faith stretched her legs out in front of her and raised her arms above her head. "I think it's probably dinner time now."
"I'm starvin'."
"Well, all we ate was a bagel." Faith said and stood up. "I have to use the bathroom and brush my hair, then we'll go."
"I'm in line for that bathroom after you."
Faith headed down the hall and used the bathroom. When she was done, Bosco rushed in. "Don't forget to put the seat down!" Faith called in after him.
"Yes mom!" Bosco called back.
Faith chuckled and went into her room to brush her hair. When she looked in the mirror she sighed. Her cheek had the imprint from Bosco's sweater pressed into it. She rubbed a bit at her cheek before giving up. "Oh well, just looks like I fell asleep on my boyfriend's shoulder." she muttered.
"Faith, you ready to go?"
"Yep! Just a minute!" Faith picked up a tube of lipstick and applied just a light coating to her lips. Just enough to give them a bit of colour. Then she left the room and went to the door where Bosco was waiting for her. He was just pulling on his jacket.
"Where did you want to eat?" Bosco asked as he buttoned up his jacket.
"Doesn't matter. If there's a restaurant near the theatre, we might as well eat there."
"Okay, so we'll just take the train to the theatre then. Makes things easier."
Faith pulled on her jacket and grabbed a hat and scarf. "Did you bring a hat?"
Bosco shook his head. "No, but it's not really cold out."
"Okay, if you're sure."
Bosco nodded. "I'm sure. Let's go."
They headed down the stairs and out onto the street. Once on the sidewalk, Bosco reached for Faith's hand. When Faith felt his warm hand close over her own she smiled. She'd been smiling a lot that day, she realized and then smiled again.
The train was crowded so they ended up standing the entire way to the theatre. As they headed back up the street level, Bosco again took Faith's hand in his own. Faith wanted to ask why he was doing that, but she wasn't sure whether she wanted to bring that up. They were having a nice time together and she didn't want to ruin it.
As it turned out, there was a cafe next door to the theatre that wasn't too terribly crowded. Bosco and Faith took a seat there and ordered their dinners. As they waited for their meals, they passed the time with idle conversation about Christmas, among other things.
They ate dinner in relative silence and finished fairly quickly. Bosco checked his watch once they were through. "It's just after 7:00." he said, "The movie doesn't start for another two hours. I don't think they'd appreciate us being here for that long."
"We could check out some of the shops." Faith said and finished off the last of her iced tea.
"Could we get the bill please?" Bosco asked as the waitress walked past. The waitress nodded and hurried of to do Bosco's bidding. "I thought you were done shopping."
"I am, but there's nothing wrong with just looking."
"Okay fine." Bosco relented and the waitress returned with the bill.
Bosco paid for the meal, despite Faith's protests and they headed back out onto the streets. Faith dragged Bosco across the street and into a shop dedicated to just Christmas.
"I think I'm all Christmased out." Bosco groaned as they entered the small shop. Tinkly carols were playing over the speakers and there were several over decorated trees greeting them as they stepped inside.
"Hello!" said one of the employees. "Can I help you find anything?"
Faith shook her head. "No thank you, we're just looking."
"Okay," the girl said with a smile. "But if you need anything, I'll be just over here!"
"Thanks." Faith said and began walking down an aisle.
"What the hell is this?" Bosco asked as he held up a stuffed something.
Faith frowned and took it from his hand. "Umm...maybe it's supposed to be a snowman?"
"Sure as hell doesn't look like any snowman I've ever seen before." Bosco said and took it back from Faith. "It looks like it's got a dick."
Faith snorted with laughter. "What, you telling me that you never put a carrot anywhere other than its face when you were younger?"
Bosco put the maybe snowman back on the shelf and laughed. "Hell no, I'm not sayin' that!"
Faith smiled and moved on down the aisle. They browsed through the store for about ten minutes before deciding they'd had enough and moving onto the next store.
For another hour they looked through stores and then they decided that it was close enough to nine to head into the theatre. Bosco held the door open for Faith as they entered.
"I'm paying for this." Faith said firmly. "You paid for drinks last night and for dinner tonight."
Bosco nodded and let Faith get the tickets. "Do we need any snacks?" Faith asked, handing Bosco his ticket. "I'm still full from supper, but you seem to have a hollow leg."
"Just fast metabolism." Bosco countered. "I could go for licorice and a soda."
"Fine, I'll wait over here while you get that."
Faith stood off to the side while Bosco waited in line to get his snacks. The theatre was fairly crowded that evening. One of the movies finished and a large crowd of people streamed through the doors.
Bosco approached Faith a while later with a large soda in one hand and a bag of licorice in another. "I got a large," he said, "In case you wanted to share."
Faith wrinkled up her nose a bit. "Eww, Bosco germs." she said with mock disgust.
Bosco shot Faith a glare. "What theatre does it say our movie is in?"
"Number three, this way." Faith said and started walking to the right. Bosco followed and they soon found themselves in the darkened theatre, looking for a seat.
There was already a good twenty people sitting in the seats and Bosco and Faith chose seats nearer to the back. "Sitting up front is highly over-rated." Faith said knowingly. "Makes your neck hurt from looking up."
"I always liked the back better anyway." Bosco said and sat down in his seat. He put his soda in the cup holder on the arm of his chair and shrugged his jacket off. "Hot enough in here?"
Faith took off her own jacket. "No kidding. They must have the heat cranked way up."
More people trickled into the theatre and soon the movie started with the previews. "Why do they always show so many previews?" Bosco asked in a whisper. "I swear these are longer than the actual movie!"
Faith shrugged. "They're just trying to piss you off Bos."
"I knew it. This whole world is out to piss me off."
The movie finally started and Bosco sipped at his drink for a while before fighting with his package of licorice. "Shhhh!" whispered someone from a few rows back.
"Sorry." Bosco mumbled and finally got the package open. "You want a piece?" he asked Faith and shoved the package in her face.
Faith, not taking her eyes off the screen, fished out a piece and stuck the end in her mouth. "Thanks." she whispered.
Bosco ate a few pieces himself and then pushed up the armrest that was between his seat and Faith's. His arm then snaked around Faith's waist.
Faith finally took her eyes off the screen as she felt Bosco's hand on her side. He was definitely trying to put the moves on her, Faith decided and felt a bit uncomfortable having his hand there.
The movie continued and Bosco's hand began to gently brush against her. Her shirt was riding up and one of his fingers hit bare skin. "Bos!" Faith hissed and Bosco's hand stopped moving.
"Sorry." he mumbled, but didn't take his hand away.
Two hours later and the movie was finally over. Faith had enjoyed the movie, and Bosco had enjoyed having Faith so close to him. "So, what did you think of it?" Faith asked as they left the theatre.
Bosco shrugged. "It was alright. A bit too long though."
They walked for the exit and when they stepped outside they noticed it was snowing. "Snowing again." Bosco said, stating the obvious.
"Yeah, I noticed that." Faith said and looked up. "Kind of pretty actually."
When Faith looked down again, she saw that Bosco was looking directly at her. "Yeah, it is pretty." he said softly.
With people milling past them, brushing up against their backs to past them on the sidewalk, Bosco leaned towards Faith and brushed his lips against her.
"Bosco..." Faith whispered and closed her eyes.
"I'm sorry." Bosco said and pulled away. "I shouldn't have done that."
Faith opened her eyes again and looked down at the snowflakes that were gathering on her sleeve. "Did you know that no two snowflakes are exactly alike?"
"I'd heard that somewhere before." Bosco replied.
Faith nodded. "I always thought that was interesting."
"Yeah, it is."
Faith ran a hand over her face. "Bos..." she began and then stopped to take several breaths. "I'm just not sure I'm ready for this."
Bosco stuffed his hands in his pockets. "Like I said, I shouldn't have done that. Of course you aren't ready, I mean, it's only been a month since Fred left who knows if it's really over between you and him."
"I think it's over." Faith said softly. "I'm just not sure if..."
"You and I are a good idea?" Bosco finished for her. "Because we're partners and friends."
Faith nodded. "I'm sorry Bosco. I just can't be what you're looking for right now."
Bosco touched her arm. "Hey, I can wait you know."
Faith smiled and laughed slightly. "You can be sure that I won't go running for Jimmy."
Bosco laughed. "Yeah, that's always nice to know!"
"Come on, let's get out of this doorway." Faith said and grabbed Bosco's arm and pulled him down the street a ways. The snow continued to fall and Bosco wrapped his arm around Faith's waist.
"I'll wait for you as long as I need to." he said softly.
Faith rubbed her eyes one more time before padding down the hall to the bathroom to take a shower. Her bathroom floor was littered with used towels, many of them still damp. A few shirts and pairs of pants were scattered amongst the towels. Maybe a load of washing was in order for the day.
Turning on the tap, Faith stuck a hand under the stream of water and waited until it was hot enough. Then she shed her pyjamas and started the shower. The hot water felt great as it pounded down on her back and shoulders.
After ten minutes in the shower, Faith decided she'd had enough and dried herself off. She threw on a robe that was hanging on the back of the door and wandered out into the kitchen to see if she could find anything to eat.
"Hey Faith."
Faith drew in a sharp breath and whirled around to see who had spoken to her. She found Bosco laying, sprawled out on her couch.
"Bosco? What the hell are you doing here?" Faith asked and tried to pull her robe closed a bit more.
"Sorry to scare you. I woke up early today, so I thought I'd drop by and bring some breakfast with me. When you weren't answering your door, I figured you were in the shower, so I let myself in."
Faith glanced at the kitchen counter and saw a brown paper bag sitting on it. "Bagels?" she asked.
Bosco sat up. "With some of that gourmet cream cheese stuff." He stood up and walked into the kitchen. "I thought I'd wait for you."
Faith pulled open the bag and took out a bagel; it was still warm. Bosco opened the fridge door and took out a small container of cream cheese. "I didn't get any coffee though." Bosco said, "But I figured we could probably make our own."
Faith nodded and started the coffee machine. "Thanks for doing this. I really didn't have anything to eat."
Bosco grinned. "I know, so I thought you might appreciate it. I checked out the movie listings by the way. There's a movie starring that guy that you like in theatres right now."
"That guy that I like?"
"Yeah, you know that one with the hair? And the voice? You saw one of his other movies and wouldn't shut up about him for a week afterwards?"
Faith shrugged and stuck out her bottom lip a bit. "I don't know, there's a lot of guys that I like. What's the movie called?"
This time Bosco shrugged. "Don't remember, but if you have the paper, we can check it out."
"Ummm...it should be somewhere by the couch. Did you look there for it?"
Bosco spread a thick layer of cream cheese on his bagel and took a bite. "No, I didn't look for it yet." he said with his mouth full.
Faith also spread some cream cheese on her bagel, not as much as Bosco had though. She took a bite. "These are great bagels." she commented.
Bosco nodded. "The best in the city."
Faith leaned back against a counter and pushed a chunk of wet hair back from her face. Bosco was chewing on his bagel and staring at her. Faith glanced down to make sure that her robe was completely closed. Beside them, the coffee maker happily burbled away.
"So, are you gonna look for the paper?" Faith asked, wanting to get Bosco to stop staring at her.
"Mmm, right. Forgot about that." Bosco mumbled and went over to the couch. He dug around on the coffee table and end tables before finding the paper folded up and partially hidden under the couch. He brought it into the kitchen and spread it out on the counter.
After flipping through a few pages, Bosco paused and ran his finger down a page. "Here it is," he said. "That guy."
Faith looked down where Bosco's finger was pointing. "Oh yeah, him. Yeah, he's cute. Nice butt."
Bosco rolled his eyes. "So you wanna see that one then?"
Faith nodded. "Sure, sounds good. How about we catch the 9:00 show and that way we can go out for dinner before. Probably cheaper to eat out than it is to buy snacks at the theatre."
Bosco finished off the last bite of his bagel. "Great, that just leaves us with all morning and afternoon!"
"I was planning on cleaning up this place." Faith said and gestured around with her hand. "It's disgusting. I have dirty laundry all over my bathroom floor and I should pack up Fred's stuff."
"I'll help you then." Bosco said and looked eagerly at Faith.
Faith shook her head. "You don't have to. Surely there must be something else that you have to do."
"Nope, I'm taking a break from dating, remember? All my girlfriends are dumping me for Doherty. And my apartment is actually pretty clean. So, no, I have nothing else to do."
Faith shrugged. "Suit yourself. I'll get changed and then we can start."
Bosco glanced quickly at Faith's chest. "Are you sure? I mean, you could just leave the robe on..."
Faith's eyebrows shot up to her hairline. "I don't think so Bos."
"Just thought I'd try." Bosco replied. "Well, you go get changed, and I'll get the coffee ready, okay?"
Faith nodded and then turned and headed down the hall to her bedroom. She kicked aside a few things and threw open the closet doors. A pair of jeans and a blouse would be perfect for today, she decided and put on her nicest jeans and a white blouse. Her hair was still damp, but she ran a brush through it and then slapped her cheeks a bit. "Perk up." she muttered and pursed her lips.
When Faith emerged from the bedroom, Bosco handed her a mug and then he sat down on the couch. "So, what's the plan of attack?" he asked. "Bathroom first?"
"Hadn't really thought about." Faith replied and sat down next to Bosco. "But I guess bathroom first works."
Bosco sipped carefully at his coffee and then set the mug down on top of a magazine on the coffee table. "I don't think your place was this bad even when Charlie and Em were here."
"No, it wasn't. I shouldn't have let it get this bad, but I just haven't felt up to cleaning for ages now."
"Got any Christmas cds?" Bosco asked, looking in the direction of the stereo.
"You want to listen to Christmas music?" Faith asked, staring at Bosco with mild disbelief.
"Cleaning music." Bosco stated. "Do you have any?"
"Ummm, I might have a few." Faith said and stood up. She went over to the entertainment centre and scanned over her cd collection. "Here's one." she said and popped it into the cd player.
"Nice." Bosco said as the song began to play.
"I think I bought it for Emily." Faith said and sat back down beside Bosco. "She was complaining that all our Christmas music was boring choirs and orchestras."
Bosco picked up his mug and took another sip. "Well, I guess we'd better get cleaning then. How about I do the laundry and you can do the actual cleaning thing."
Faith laughed slightly and smiled. That sounded exactly like Bosco. "Sounds good to me." She stood up and carried her mug into the bathroom where she set it down next to the sink. She gathered up an armful of towels and handed them to Bosco. "Here you go." she said.
"Thank you ma'am." Bosco replied and headed off for the washing machine.
Faith dug around in the cupboard for toilet cleaner and cleanser. She heard Bosco start the washing machine and smiled again. Bosco could definitely be helpful when he wanted to be.
"Hey Faith, do you use that liquid detergent or the powdered stuff?" Bosco asked as he stuck his head in the door.
"Use the powdered." Faith replied. "I use the liquid for my uniforms."
Bosco's head disappeared and Faith began scrubbing her sink and toilet. When she was done, she found Bosco sitting on the bed in her room, flipping through a book.
"This book looks kinda interesting." Bosco said when Faith walked into the room.
"I bought it for Fred last Christmas." Faith said sadly. "I don't think he ever read it."
"I'm not much of a reader." Bosco admitted. "But do you mind if I borrow it?"
Faith shook her head. "No, go ahead. Keep it if you want. I've already read it."
Bosco set the book down on the floor and Faith sat down on the bed next to him. "All my energy is gone after cleaning the bathroom." she said quietly and ran her hand over the quilt.
"More coffee?"
Faith shook her head. "No, I don't think that will help. I'm just putting off tackling all this stuff."
"Can't put it off forever." Bosco replied. "How about we start with the stuff on the bed. Do you have any boxes?"
"In the closet, there's some. They have to be put together though, I'll grab some tape." Faith went into the kitchen and grabbed the packing tape that she'd used yesterday to tape up the parcel for Charlie and Emily.
She returned to the bedroom and found that Bosco had hauled several flat boxes from the closet and was clearing a space on the floor for them. Faith handed him the tape and he taped the boxes up. "Alright." Bosco said. "Now, you go through and toss whatever's Fred's into the boxes."
Faith picked up a pile of socks and threw them in one of the boxes. Bosco sat down on a chair and watched as Faith sorted through the stuff. In the end, all three of the boxes was filled and Faith had a bed again.
"Guess I have no excuse for sleeping on the couch now." Faith said.
Bosco shook his head. "Nope, no excuse." He stood up and hovered over the boxes. "Do you want me to tape these up now?"
"Might as well. We're not going to get anything else into them; they are full."
Bosco put a few strips of tape over the tops and patted them down. "See, now that's done. Anything else?"
"The living room and kitchen could probably use a once over, but I just want to veg out."
Bosco glanced at the clock beside the bed. "Sounds good to me. It's only noon, so it's still a bit too early for dinner."
"Ya think?"
Bosco slipped the roll of tape onto his wrist and walked out of the bedroom. Faith followed him into the living room. The cd had been playing on repeat, so Faith stopped it and put it back in its case. "Thanks." Faith said, looking at Bosco and sitting down on the couch.
Bosco sat down and picked up the singing Santa again. "Doesn't really feel like it's almost Christmas, does it?"
"No, not really." Faith admitted and looked a bit sad.
"Don't forget that you're joining my mom and I for dinner."
Faith smiled. "Don't worry, I won't forget. And even if I did, I'd have you there to remind me."
Bosco examined his fingers for a while before sighing a bit and leaning his head back. "I think I woke up too early. I'll be lucky if I don't fall asleep in the theatre."
Faith chuckled. "I'd wake you up if you started to snore!"
"I don't snore."
"Yeah, you do." Faith said with a laugh.
"How would you know? You haven't slept with me."
"No, but I've seen you sleeping and you snore. Not loudly, but you do."
"Whatever." Bosco closed his eyes. "Wake me up when it's time for dinner, 'kay?"
Faith smiled softly and moved closer to Bosco. She surprised herself when she laid her head down on his shoulder and he surprised her even more when he moved his arm around her and drew her closer. "Nap time?" Bosco mumbled.
"Nap time." Faith said and closed her eyes.
_________________
"What time is it?" Bosco mumbled and rubbed his sleepy eyes.
"Just after five." Faith replied. "I can't believe we slept for five hours."
"Must have needed it." Bosco said and stood up. "Ugh, I'm stiff."
Faith stretched her legs out in front of her and raised her arms above her head. "I think it's probably dinner time now."
"I'm starvin'."
"Well, all we ate was a bagel." Faith said and stood up. "I have to use the bathroom and brush my hair, then we'll go."
"I'm in line for that bathroom after you."
Faith headed down the hall and used the bathroom. When she was done, Bosco rushed in. "Don't forget to put the seat down!" Faith called in after him.
"Yes mom!" Bosco called back.
Faith chuckled and went into her room to brush her hair. When she looked in the mirror she sighed. Her cheek had the imprint from Bosco's sweater pressed into it. She rubbed a bit at her cheek before giving up. "Oh well, just looks like I fell asleep on my boyfriend's shoulder." she muttered.
"Faith, you ready to go?"
"Yep! Just a minute!" Faith picked up a tube of lipstick and applied just a light coating to her lips. Just enough to give them a bit of colour. Then she left the room and went to the door where Bosco was waiting for her. He was just pulling on his jacket.
"Where did you want to eat?" Bosco asked as he buttoned up his jacket.
"Doesn't matter. If there's a restaurant near the theatre, we might as well eat there."
"Okay, so we'll just take the train to the theatre then. Makes things easier."
Faith pulled on her jacket and grabbed a hat and scarf. "Did you bring a hat?"
Bosco shook his head. "No, but it's not really cold out."
"Okay, if you're sure."
Bosco nodded. "I'm sure. Let's go."
They headed down the stairs and out onto the street. Once on the sidewalk, Bosco reached for Faith's hand. When Faith felt his warm hand close over her own she smiled. She'd been smiling a lot that day, she realized and then smiled again.
The train was crowded so they ended up standing the entire way to the theatre. As they headed back up the street level, Bosco again took Faith's hand in his own. Faith wanted to ask why he was doing that, but she wasn't sure whether she wanted to bring that up. They were having a nice time together and she didn't want to ruin it.
As it turned out, there was a cafe next door to the theatre that wasn't too terribly crowded. Bosco and Faith took a seat there and ordered their dinners. As they waited for their meals, they passed the time with idle conversation about Christmas, among other things.
They ate dinner in relative silence and finished fairly quickly. Bosco checked his watch once they were through. "It's just after 7:00." he said, "The movie doesn't start for another two hours. I don't think they'd appreciate us being here for that long."
"We could check out some of the shops." Faith said and finished off the last of her iced tea.
"Could we get the bill please?" Bosco asked as the waitress walked past. The waitress nodded and hurried of to do Bosco's bidding. "I thought you were done shopping."
"I am, but there's nothing wrong with just looking."
"Okay fine." Bosco relented and the waitress returned with the bill.
Bosco paid for the meal, despite Faith's protests and they headed back out onto the streets. Faith dragged Bosco across the street and into a shop dedicated to just Christmas.
"I think I'm all Christmased out." Bosco groaned as they entered the small shop. Tinkly carols were playing over the speakers and there were several over decorated trees greeting them as they stepped inside.
"Hello!" said one of the employees. "Can I help you find anything?"
Faith shook her head. "No thank you, we're just looking."
"Okay," the girl said with a smile. "But if you need anything, I'll be just over here!"
"Thanks." Faith said and began walking down an aisle.
"What the hell is this?" Bosco asked as he held up a stuffed something.
Faith frowned and took it from his hand. "Umm...maybe it's supposed to be a snowman?"
"Sure as hell doesn't look like any snowman I've ever seen before." Bosco said and took it back from Faith. "It looks like it's got a dick."
Faith snorted with laughter. "What, you telling me that you never put a carrot anywhere other than its face when you were younger?"
Bosco put the maybe snowman back on the shelf and laughed. "Hell no, I'm not sayin' that!"
Faith smiled and moved on down the aisle. They browsed through the store for about ten minutes before deciding they'd had enough and moving onto the next store.
For another hour they looked through stores and then they decided that it was close enough to nine to head into the theatre. Bosco held the door open for Faith as they entered.
"I'm paying for this." Faith said firmly. "You paid for drinks last night and for dinner tonight."
Bosco nodded and let Faith get the tickets. "Do we need any snacks?" Faith asked, handing Bosco his ticket. "I'm still full from supper, but you seem to have a hollow leg."
"Just fast metabolism." Bosco countered. "I could go for licorice and a soda."
"Fine, I'll wait over here while you get that."
Faith stood off to the side while Bosco waited in line to get his snacks. The theatre was fairly crowded that evening. One of the movies finished and a large crowd of people streamed through the doors.
Bosco approached Faith a while later with a large soda in one hand and a bag of licorice in another. "I got a large," he said, "In case you wanted to share."
Faith wrinkled up her nose a bit. "Eww, Bosco germs." she said with mock disgust.
Bosco shot Faith a glare. "What theatre does it say our movie is in?"
"Number three, this way." Faith said and started walking to the right. Bosco followed and they soon found themselves in the darkened theatre, looking for a seat.
There was already a good twenty people sitting in the seats and Bosco and Faith chose seats nearer to the back. "Sitting up front is highly over-rated." Faith said knowingly. "Makes your neck hurt from looking up."
"I always liked the back better anyway." Bosco said and sat down in his seat. He put his soda in the cup holder on the arm of his chair and shrugged his jacket off. "Hot enough in here?"
Faith took off her own jacket. "No kidding. They must have the heat cranked way up."
More people trickled into the theatre and soon the movie started with the previews. "Why do they always show so many previews?" Bosco asked in a whisper. "I swear these are longer than the actual movie!"
Faith shrugged. "They're just trying to piss you off Bos."
"I knew it. This whole world is out to piss me off."
The movie finally started and Bosco sipped at his drink for a while before fighting with his package of licorice. "Shhhh!" whispered someone from a few rows back.
"Sorry." Bosco mumbled and finally got the package open. "You want a piece?" he asked Faith and shoved the package in her face.
Faith, not taking her eyes off the screen, fished out a piece and stuck the end in her mouth. "Thanks." she whispered.
Bosco ate a few pieces himself and then pushed up the armrest that was between his seat and Faith's. His arm then snaked around Faith's waist.
Faith finally took her eyes off the screen as she felt Bosco's hand on her side. He was definitely trying to put the moves on her, Faith decided and felt a bit uncomfortable having his hand there.
The movie continued and Bosco's hand began to gently brush against her. Her shirt was riding up and one of his fingers hit bare skin. "Bos!" Faith hissed and Bosco's hand stopped moving.
"Sorry." he mumbled, but didn't take his hand away.
Two hours later and the movie was finally over. Faith had enjoyed the movie, and Bosco had enjoyed having Faith so close to him. "So, what did you think of it?" Faith asked as they left the theatre.
Bosco shrugged. "It was alright. A bit too long though."
They walked for the exit and when they stepped outside they noticed it was snowing. "Snowing again." Bosco said, stating the obvious.
"Yeah, I noticed that." Faith said and looked up. "Kind of pretty actually."
When Faith looked down again, she saw that Bosco was looking directly at her. "Yeah, it is pretty." he said softly.
With people milling past them, brushing up against their backs to past them on the sidewalk, Bosco leaned towards Faith and brushed his lips against her.
"Bosco..." Faith whispered and closed her eyes.
"I'm sorry." Bosco said and pulled away. "I shouldn't have done that."
Faith opened her eyes again and looked down at the snowflakes that were gathering on her sleeve. "Did you know that no two snowflakes are exactly alike?"
"I'd heard that somewhere before." Bosco replied.
Faith nodded. "I always thought that was interesting."
"Yeah, it is."
Faith ran a hand over her face. "Bos..." she began and then stopped to take several breaths. "I'm just not sure I'm ready for this."
Bosco stuffed his hands in his pockets. "Like I said, I shouldn't have done that. Of course you aren't ready, I mean, it's only been a month since Fred left who knows if it's really over between you and him."
"I think it's over." Faith said softly. "I'm just not sure if..."
"You and I are a good idea?" Bosco finished for her. "Because we're partners and friends."
Faith nodded. "I'm sorry Bosco. I just can't be what you're looking for right now."
Bosco touched her arm. "Hey, I can wait you know."
Faith smiled and laughed slightly. "You can be sure that I won't go running for Jimmy."
Bosco laughed. "Yeah, that's always nice to know!"
"Come on, let's get out of this doorway." Faith said and grabbed Bosco's arm and pulled him down the street a ways. The snow continued to fall and Bosco wrapped his arm around Faith's waist.
"I'll wait for you as long as I need to." he said softly.