Don't Be Afraid
Chapter One: Interaction
ACHOO!
Faye sniffled as she jerked up in bed. Down the hall she could hear the rhythmic metal clanging of Jet at work. Shuffling out of bed she grabbed her robe and headed for the shower. Afterwards she pulled on her tank top and a pair of loose fitting sweat pants, rather than her normal attire. She was still feeling chilly and she wanted to get rid of her cold as soon as possible.
Walking to the docking bay she found Jet working on her craft. She called up to let him know she was up, then left to find something to eat.
"Damn that woman." Jet grumbled. "How can she do this much damage in such a short amount of time?" He wiped the sweat from him brow, then resumed using the rag to wipe off some of the ships parts. After a few minutes of tinkering her closed the hatch he was working in and climbed down to the ground. He clapped his hands together to remove some of the grime, then headed to join Faye.
"So what are we gonna do?" The leggy woman asked as soon as he stepped in. He shrugged and opened the fridge. "Guess we could look for a bounty or two. Little extra money never hurt anybody."
Her mouth full, Faye thrust a pack of paper at him. He looked them over while she finished off her sandwich. It looked like all the latest bounty head postings for the past three days. The top right corner had been bent down on some of the pages. He flicked one corner, curious.
"Those are our best bets."
Jet looked up and nodded. Faye leaned over to see which page he was on and continued talking. "There aren't too many big ones I'm afraid, but to be honest I'm too tired to go chasing someone all over the galaxy. All the ones I flagged haven't been moving around much so they'll be easy to find. They're only worth a few thousand woolongs each but it'll add up."
Jet looked at her with surprise. "So you're saying you actually don't care if we don't get a huge reward?"
"There are more important things in life Jet." Faye answered solemnly.
"But what about your debts?"
"Make money bit by bit, pay it off bit by bit. No other way of doing it really. Guess I can't go gambling for a while though." She sighed, blowing her hair out of her face. It was odd to see her like this. Normally she had a "take it and run" attitude, but now she lacked that careless fire.
Shrugging again Jet leaned back. "If that's what you wanna do, then fine.
The next few days followed a pattern of catching bounties, and dropping them off. It went so quickly Jet wondered why they hadn't taken this route sooner. There weren't any huge payoffs, but at the rate they were going they'd make a lot more money. Of course, it wasn't nearly as much fun as bounty hunting had been with Spike around. He'd never say so to Faye, but he missed the thrill of tracking down elusive criminals; the excitement of the chase.
After cashing in their last payment, the duo headed back to the ship. Over the course of a week they'd collected nearly 100,000 woolongs, split evenly. Sitting across from each other in the living quarters they discussed what their plans would be next. Jet was anxious to go back to looking for Spike, but that was a long weary path. This was the first time in a while he was able to relax.
"A spa."
"Huh?" Jet's eyes slid to meet his partners, wondering if he'd heard her right.
"We should go to a spa. We deserve it after all the work we've done."
Jet considered the thought, eyebrows raised slightly. He shook his head and leaned back. "That's the kind of thing you women enjoy, not men like us."
"Us?"
"Sorry." Jet's face fell as he realized what he'd said. Faye leaned forward, just as she'd done the past week, and many times before.
"I know you miss him Jet. I do too. But you can't keep living like this or you'll drive yourself crazy. You were always the stable one Jet, and I can't take seeing you like this. You gotta relax a little, liven up. If you don't, there's no point to us being here."
He knew she was right, but it was hard to accept. He and Spike had been together so long he couldn't remember how they'd joined up in the first place. He was his partner, his friend. They been together through everything and he couldn't stand the fact that he was gone.
Jet let his eyes rest on Faye. She was all he had left now and he knew she was the reason he was able to get through the past few months. She'd been there for him, to listen and offer support. His gaze rested on her eyes, deep set emeralds, sharp in appearance but they provided a soft comfort. He felt himself reaching for them, his palm resting on her cheek.
Faye stiffened as she watched tears forming in his eyes. After everything this was all that was left. She felt her own eyes mist, biting her lip she barely realized Jet was moving toward her. She closed her eyes and pulled away painfully slow. She needed to be held more than anything then, but that didn't feel right. Shaking her head Faye pulled back further. "I'm sorry Jet, I can't."
The older man nodded shakily, letting out a low sigh. "Yeah, I know."
Dinner that night was filled with an awkward silence. Rather than sitting through it, Faye grabbed her food and headed back to her room. A chill ran through her as she realized he must have been watching her as she walked away.
Settling on her bed, Faye tried to sort things out. Why had he done that? Was it the heat of the moment? Was he trying to escape the pain he was obviously feeling? Or was it something more deeply rooted?
Jet was just another person she accepted as part of her life. Her feelings for him were that of a companion or friend, at most she saw him as a father figure. Right now he was the only family she had left but her feelings never ran deeper than that. It scared her to think that he might feel more for her. What scared her more was the fact that she'd have to turn him away and then she'd be alone again. Or would it be better to go along with it, to spare herself that pain?
Putting her plate on her dresser, Faye decided to go to sleep early that night. Not bothering to change she slid into her bed and tucked her blanket tightly around her. She felt safe like that, surrounded completely. She could imagine she wasn't alone at night, and it would ease her fearful dreams.
Jet rested on the couch, his feet propped up on it's arm. He stared intently on the ceiling, while he mentally cursed himself for his actions. Making a move like that was risky at best and he hadn't planned on doing it. In that moment he wasn't able to help himself. It was like he was losing himself in her eyes. That look of concern... It reminded him of Alisa and the way she worried about him. He had to admit he found the young girl attractive. He laughed as he called her that, after all she was actually older than him, but what did it matter?
She hadn't pulled back right away, he recalled. She was probably in shock, he mused, shifting his arm to rest over his eyes. But that look in her eyes, like she was as lost as he was in this. He couldn't help wishing she'd wanted him to go further. But even still, he knew her heart would never be there.
Jet sat up with a sigh. No matter what, no matter how much time passed, Spike would be there and he knew it, even if Faye denied it to herself and others. He'd seen the pain in her eyes as Spike left that day, and the way the fire went out of her eyes from that point on. There was no doubt about it in his mind, Faye's heart was set on Spike and no other.
SEE YOU SPACE COWBOY...
Chapter One: Interaction
ACHOO!
Faye sniffled as she jerked up in bed. Down the hall she could hear the rhythmic metal clanging of Jet at work. Shuffling out of bed she grabbed her robe and headed for the shower. Afterwards she pulled on her tank top and a pair of loose fitting sweat pants, rather than her normal attire. She was still feeling chilly and she wanted to get rid of her cold as soon as possible.
Walking to the docking bay she found Jet working on her craft. She called up to let him know she was up, then left to find something to eat.
"Damn that woman." Jet grumbled. "How can she do this much damage in such a short amount of time?" He wiped the sweat from him brow, then resumed using the rag to wipe off some of the ships parts. After a few minutes of tinkering her closed the hatch he was working in and climbed down to the ground. He clapped his hands together to remove some of the grime, then headed to join Faye.
"So what are we gonna do?" The leggy woman asked as soon as he stepped in. He shrugged and opened the fridge. "Guess we could look for a bounty or two. Little extra money never hurt anybody."
Her mouth full, Faye thrust a pack of paper at him. He looked them over while she finished off her sandwich. It looked like all the latest bounty head postings for the past three days. The top right corner had been bent down on some of the pages. He flicked one corner, curious.
"Those are our best bets."
Jet looked up and nodded. Faye leaned over to see which page he was on and continued talking. "There aren't too many big ones I'm afraid, but to be honest I'm too tired to go chasing someone all over the galaxy. All the ones I flagged haven't been moving around much so they'll be easy to find. They're only worth a few thousand woolongs each but it'll add up."
Jet looked at her with surprise. "So you're saying you actually don't care if we don't get a huge reward?"
"There are more important things in life Jet." Faye answered solemnly.
"But what about your debts?"
"Make money bit by bit, pay it off bit by bit. No other way of doing it really. Guess I can't go gambling for a while though." She sighed, blowing her hair out of her face. It was odd to see her like this. Normally she had a "take it and run" attitude, but now she lacked that careless fire.
Shrugging again Jet leaned back. "If that's what you wanna do, then fine.
The next few days followed a pattern of catching bounties, and dropping them off. It went so quickly Jet wondered why they hadn't taken this route sooner. There weren't any huge payoffs, but at the rate they were going they'd make a lot more money. Of course, it wasn't nearly as much fun as bounty hunting had been with Spike around. He'd never say so to Faye, but he missed the thrill of tracking down elusive criminals; the excitement of the chase.
After cashing in their last payment, the duo headed back to the ship. Over the course of a week they'd collected nearly 100,000 woolongs, split evenly. Sitting across from each other in the living quarters they discussed what their plans would be next. Jet was anxious to go back to looking for Spike, but that was a long weary path. This was the first time in a while he was able to relax.
"A spa."
"Huh?" Jet's eyes slid to meet his partners, wondering if he'd heard her right.
"We should go to a spa. We deserve it after all the work we've done."
Jet considered the thought, eyebrows raised slightly. He shook his head and leaned back. "That's the kind of thing you women enjoy, not men like us."
"Us?"
"Sorry." Jet's face fell as he realized what he'd said. Faye leaned forward, just as she'd done the past week, and many times before.
"I know you miss him Jet. I do too. But you can't keep living like this or you'll drive yourself crazy. You were always the stable one Jet, and I can't take seeing you like this. You gotta relax a little, liven up. If you don't, there's no point to us being here."
He knew she was right, but it was hard to accept. He and Spike had been together so long he couldn't remember how they'd joined up in the first place. He was his partner, his friend. They been together through everything and he couldn't stand the fact that he was gone.
Jet let his eyes rest on Faye. She was all he had left now and he knew she was the reason he was able to get through the past few months. She'd been there for him, to listen and offer support. His gaze rested on her eyes, deep set emeralds, sharp in appearance but they provided a soft comfort. He felt himself reaching for them, his palm resting on her cheek.
Faye stiffened as she watched tears forming in his eyes. After everything this was all that was left. She felt her own eyes mist, biting her lip she barely realized Jet was moving toward her. She closed her eyes and pulled away painfully slow. She needed to be held more than anything then, but that didn't feel right. Shaking her head Faye pulled back further. "I'm sorry Jet, I can't."
The older man nodded shakily, letting out a low sigh. "Yeah, I know."
Dinner that night was filled with an awkward silence. Rather than sitting through it, Faye grabbed her food and headed back to her room. A chill ran through her as she realized he must have been watching her as she walked away.
Settling on her bed, Faye tried to sort things out. Why had he done that? Was it the heat of the moment? Was he trying to escape the pain he was obviously feeling? Or was it something more deeply rooted?
Jet was just another person she accepted as part of her life. Her feelings for him were that of a companion or friend, at most she saw him as a father figure. Right now he was the only family she had left but her feelings never ran deeper than that. It scared her to think that he might feel more for her. What scared her more was the fact that she'd have to turn him away and then she'd be alone again. Or would it be better to go along with it, to spare herself that pain?
Putting her plate on her dresser, Faye decided to go to sleep early that night. Not bothering to change she slid into her bed and tucked her blanket tightly around her. She felt safe like that, surrounded completely. She could imagine she wasn't alone at night, and it would ease her fearful dreams.
Jet rested on the couch, his feet propped up on it's arm. He stared intently on the ceiling, while he mentally cursed himself for his actions. Making a move like that was risky at best and he hadn't planned on doing it. In that moment he wasn't able to help himself. It was like he was losing himself in her eyes. That look of concern... It reminded him of Alisa and the way she worried about him. He had to admit he found the young girl attractive. He laughed as he called her that, after all she was actually older than him, but what did it matter?
She hadn't pulled back right away, he recalled. She was probably in shock, he mused, shifting his arm to rest over his eyes. But that look in her eyes, like she was as lost as he was in this. He couldn't help wishing she'd wanted him to go further. But even still, he knew her heart would never be there.
Jet sat up with a sigh. No matter what, no matter how much time passed, Spike would be there and he knew it, even if Faye denied it to herself and others. He'd seen the pain in her eyes as Spike left that day, and the way the fire went out of her eyes from that point on. There was no doubt about it in his mind, Faye's heart was set on Spike and no other.
SEE YOU SPACE COWBOY...