Title: Through the Fire (6/6)
Author: X_tremeroswellian
Email: faithboscorelli1@yahoo.com
Disclaimer: Not mine, but I wish they were. Okay, well, I don't wish Cr*z or Fr*d were mine. Ed Bernero can keep them ;)
Rating: PG-13 for language, violence and sexual content
Spoilers: Up through and including "Crime and Punishment II"
Summary: Sergeant Cruz's true plans for Bosco are finally revealed and they're not good. Will Faith be able to help him? Or will she be too busy trying to protect her own family?
Distribution: My site, Only Time
Category: Story
Subcategories: Drama/angst/friendship...could evolve into romance, but we'll see ;)
Feedback: Is essential to every writer. Helps keep the muses flowing.
Author's Note: I know I'm in the middle of writing "Between Time" and my 'There For You' series, but this story was demanding to be written and wouldn't leave me alone until I gave in.
Author's Note II: The song in this part is "Have a Little Faith in Me"
Dedication: For everyone who dislikes Sgt. Cruz as much as I do. This is not to confuse the wonderful actress, Tia Texada with her character.
When your back's against the wall
Just turn around,
you will see I will catch ya
I will catch your fall
Just have a little faith in me
Have a little faith in me
Have a little faith in me
Have a little faith in me
Have a little faith in me
Well, I've been loving you for such a long,
long time baby
Expecting nothing in return
Just for you to have a little faith in me
You see time, time is our friend
Cause for us there is no end
All you gotta do is have a little faith in me
I said I will hold you up, I will hold you up
Your strength gives me enough
So have a little faith in me
Hey baby, oh, baby
All ya gotta do is have a little faith in me
All ya gotta do is have a little faith in me
A little faith in me
Through the Fire (Part Six)
Faith was in the middle of peeling potatos when she heard a knock on the front door. She wiped off her hands, frowning a little as she glanced at the clock. It was too early for the kids to be home from school and Fred was still at work.
She cautiously unlocked and opened the door, surprised to see Bosco there. "Hi," she said, her eyes widening slightly.
"Hey." His hands were stuffed into the pockets of his leather jacket, his gaze fixed on her intently. "Can I uh...can I come in?"
"Yeah. Sure." She stepped aside and allowed him to come in. She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear as she closed the door and turned to face him.
"Sleep okay?" Bosco asked, his voice and eyes equally soft.
Faith nodded. "Like a rock. I didn't even wake up when Fred left for work."
He almost smiled. "Are you busy?"
She gave him a confused look. "No, I was just making some potato salad for dinner."
"Should you be up doing stuff like that? With your injuries?"
She smiled. "I'm all right."
He studied her, worry in his eyes. "Are you sure?" His voice was quiet.
"Yeah. It's no big deal."
Bosco nodded, dropped his gaze to the floor. He was silent.
"Boz? What is it?" she asked softly.
"I'm sorry. That I lied to you." He swallowed hard and lifted his eyes to her face once more.
Faith gazed at him. She didn't have to ask what he was talking abouit. She knew. "It's okay."
"It's not." He shook his head. "It's not okay. I'm not okay with it. How can you be?"
"Bosco--"
"Faith, just hear me out. I shouldn't have lied, but I did it because I didn't want to take you down with me if it came down to that. I wanted to--"
"Protect me," she finished for him.
"Yeah."
"I know that, Bosco."
There was a moment of silence.
"But it didn't work, did it?" His voice was soft, defeated. "You still got hurt."
"That's not your fault," she told him.
"The hell it's not. Even after I lied to you, even after I avoided you for weeks, you still tried to warn me, to save me from Cruz and you got hurt because of it. Because of my stupidity and blindness. You shouldn't have bothered, you should have just let me take the fall."
"No, Bosco." Faith took a step toward him. "I got hurt because that bitch ordered it to happen. Not because of anything you did."
"It's still my fault."
"Look at me."
He reluctantly did so.
"If our situations had been reversed, tell me you wouldn't have done the same thing."
Bosco stared at her, opened his mouth to speak, but couldn't.
"You can't do it because it wouldn't be true. You would have done what you could to help me, regardless of the circumstances. Because that's what partners do." Her voice softened. "That's what friends do."
"So we're still friends then?"
"Of course we are," Faith whispered. "Bosco, for nine years, you've been my best friend, the one person I can count on. You think I'd let you go that easily?"
He swallowed hard, hesitated a moment, then moved forward and wrapped his arms around her waist, careful not to hug her too tightly.
She was a little thrown off guard by his gesture, but she quickly slid her arms around him and hugged him back. She closed her eyes tightly.
"I don't think I could do this without you," he whispered.
"You don't have to." She pulled away to look at him. "We're partners, remember?"
Bosco gazed at her and nodded slowly. "Partners," he echoed.
She smiled. "All right, Partner. What do you say you help me peel potatos for this potato salad?"
"I say you're pushing the whole friend thing a little too far." He grinned at the expression on her face. "Kidding. Only kidding."
Faith raised an eyebrow. "Good thing for you." She turned and headed into the kitchen.
Bosco followed her. He took the bowl of potatos and the spare potato peeler she handed him and watched for a moment as she began to work on peeling a potato over the sink. "Thank you."
She turned to look at him, understanding that though his words were light, the meaning they had was not. She smiled at him. "You're welcome. Now get busy peeling." Faith winked at him.
"Yes, Ma'am," Bosco replied with a grin. "So do I get to have some of this potato salad I'm about to slave over?"
She chuckled. "Don't push your luck," she said, grinning back.
"Oh, come on. I'm really good at it."
"And that's no joke," Faith said, her eyes twinkling with amusement.
Their eyes met and they smiled.
Bosco felt as if the weight of the world had been lifted off his shoulders. For the first time in a long time he truly believed things were going to be okay.
All he had to do was have Faith.
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