I've been back in college for like two weeks...that's kind of a scary thought. But who knows, maybe the professors will take pity on us all and ban finals from ever taking place! That'd be sweet...Yeah right.

*****

Don't Leave Me Now

Part 9

*****

"These are some damn good eggs, Jet." Spike commented as the crew of the Bebop sat eating breakfast together. "They aren't runny or weird or anything."

"Yeah, what'd you do, take some cooking lessons?" Faye asked, downing another bite of her own eggs.

"Ah...actually, Ed made the eggs." Jet admitted, looking extremely bashful.

"Ed?" Spike's eyes went wide as he cast a wary glance at his forkful of eggs.

"You let her cook?" Faye dropped her own mouthful before it could reach her. "Are you crazy?"

"Ed makes the best eggs!" Ed exclaimed happily. "Ein helped too." she added, giving the dog a friendly pat on the head and a piece of toast.

"Ein...helped?" Faye looked extremely worried about this development. "How did he help?"

"He stirred." Ed explained, making a broad stirring motion with her hands. "Good eggs, yeah!"

"Um...did you watch what she put in these?" Spike asked Jet, who shrugged and shook his head.

"They look fine to me." he replied. "Plus, she made them before I got up."

"Well...they taste good, so I guess it must be alright." Faye shrugged, finishing off her plate.

"Gods, Ed can cook better than you, Jet." Spike shook his head and laughed, pulling out a cigarette and letting it rest between his lips as he began searching for his lighter.

"Hey, she can probably do better than either of us too." Faye pointed out. "I don't know about you, but I can't cook for shit." she smirked at Spike's confused face as he took off his jacket and began searching the pockets. "I have it, you dolt." she produced the device, handing it over to him with a warm smile.

"Oh yeah, forgot about that." Spike smiled at her as though they shared some great secret, taking the lighter back. "Thanks."

"No problem." she shrugged, her smile becoming increasingly dopey as she watched him light his cigarette and take a few puffs.

"What...the hell?" Jet shook his head and took a swig of his coffee. "What did I miss? What's with that look on your face, Faye?"

"Hmm? What? Oh, I...um, nothing." Faye answered, proceeding to fidget with her napkin, trying to hide a blush that widened Jet's eyes even more.

"Are you...blushing?" he asked, looking from Faye to Spike, who looked overly pleased with himself. "Oh. Oh, I see."

"Huh? What do you see?" Spike sounded a little worried.

"Nothing, never mind." Jet stood, clearing his place. "By the way, it's about time, you two." he called over his shoulder before he left the room.

"Eggs, pegs, stinky old rags!" Ed sang happily, dumping the rest of the eggs on her plate and proceeding to bury her face in the pile. Spike and Faye looked at each other, both looking surprised at Jet's comment.

"Do you think...he knows?" Spike asked, looking as though he was on the verge of a panic attack.

"So what if he does?" Faye shrugged, standing so that she could wrap her arms around him, but Spike backed up, avoiding her attempt at affection. "What?"

"I don't...think we should do that in front of her." Spike pointed at Ed, lowering his voice. Faye furrowed her brow in consternation.

"Why not? You wanna be with me, right?" she asked him, crossing her arms.

"Faye...could you be a little quieter? Jet's in the next room..." Spike warned her.

"So what? Why can't anyone know about us?" Faye wanted to know. "What's with you? You're full of promises and all that lovey mush in private, but as soon as we leave our rooms, you act almost like you did before."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Spike asked.

"I mean you act like a dick! Like you don't care one way or the other if I'm here or not!" Faye yelled at him. "You want me to leave you alone? Cause I will!"

"Faye, dammit, can't we talk about this later?" Spike asked her, pulling her toward the relative privacy of the hallway.

"No! We can talk about it right now!" Faye pulled out of his grip. "What's this about? Your fucking reputation? Wouldn't want anyone to think that you give a shit about another human being, now would we?"

"Faye, you don't understand." Spike shook his head in frustration.

"Like hell I don't! I've had to deal with your ego and your damn reputation for nearly two years! You think I don't see the front you put on for everyone? You put it on for Ed, Jet, even me! The only time I get to see who you really are is when we're alone." Faye's fists trembled with anger and restrained tears.

"How do you know if that's the real me?" Spike shot back. "What if that's the front?"

"What, so you can get in my pants?" Faye's voice was viciously angry, tears brimming at the corners of her eyes.

"Worked, didn't it?" Spike smiled at her, an angry, humorless grin.

"Gods Spike!" Faye lunged forward, slapping him. Her angry face slipped for a moment into one of disoriented shock, but she shook her head and regained her bearings. "You drive me nuts, you know that?"

"Same to you, Faye." Spike crossed his arms, resisting the urge to rub at his stinging cheek lest she know that she'd actually hurt him.

"Fine then! If you..." Faye stumbled for a moment, her face slipping back to that of disoriented confusion. "If you don't..." she closed her eyes, trying to regain her missing sense of balance, but her world went bright white and she collapsed, much to Spike's shock and dismay.

"Fuck! Faye, what the hell?" he caught her just before she could hit the ground, pulling her up so that she was in a standing position, but her muscles refused to work, and her eyes wouldn't open. "Faye? Dammit Faye, what's wrong?"

"What are you two..." Jet entered the room and saw a panicky looking Spike cast him a hopeless glance as he scooped Faye up more fully. "Shit, what's wrong?"

"I...don't know." Spike shook his head, carrying her to the couch and laying her down. "Maybe those eggs?"

"Faye-faye! Wakey wakey now!" Ed zoomed over, pulling Faye's cheeks into strange faces in an attempt to wake her.

"Faye, come on, wake up." Spike slapped her lightly, wanting to get her attention. "Faye, come on!"

"Man, you really do care about her, don't you?" Jet asked quietly. "You shouldn't lie about things like that to a woman."

"Faye, what the hell?" Spike shook her, and finally she made a soft noise of protest, her lids fluttering open. She took in the faces crowded over her. Ed looked as though she was curious, Jet looked mildly concerned, and Spike looked like he was having a fit.

"Huh? What happened?" she asked, looking at Spike doubtfully. "I'm...mad at you." she stated, as though he might not know.

"Yeah, I know it." he gave her a lopsided smile before leaning down for a kiss. Ed squealed in fascination, and Jet chuckled slightly as Faye finally gave into the kiss, letting him break it and nuzzle her cheek. "Don't fucking do that again."

"What happened?" Faye asked. "I remember we were fighting..."

"You passed out." Spike supplied. "Scared the shit out of us."

"Us? More like you." Jet shook his head, rolling his eyes and going back to the kitchen. Ed wandered after him, probably to finish her eggs.

"I remember feeling dizzy...maybe it was the eggs." She shook her head to clear it, sitting up under Spike's watchful gaze. "I'm not gonna break, you know."

"Don't do it again." Spike repeated.

"I wasn't planning on it the first time." she smirked. "Though it seems to have won the argument for me."

"It was a stupid fight." Spike admitted.

"Yeah, pretty stupid." she smiled at him. "I suppose...we should go make up, huh?"

"Damn, that's right." Spike smiled back at her, helping her up. "Gotta make up. Make sure we aren't mad anymore."

"And later..." Faye kissed him on the cheek. "I'll go to the doctor, alright?"

"Alright." Spike led her into his room, shutting and locking the door.

*****

The End (Of Part 9, That Is)