Getaway 10
"Fred?" Bosco said following her gaze. Fred stood on a dune his arms crossed, thunder in his eyes.
"I gotta go. Thank you, Bosco, for everything."
"Yeah, well. I'm gonna take off unless you need me to stay," Bosco said watching her stare at Fred.
"No, I'm okay. It's probably better if you're not here right now. I'm sorry 'bout this. I thought he wouldn't get here so soon," she said quietly looking at Bosco one last time before smiling and walking away and back to her husband.
"Be careful goin' 'cross that bridge," he called out to her before walking in the opposite direction.
"I didn't think you'd get here until tomorrow," Faith said moving to hug her husband.
"You're soakin' wet. Let's get your stuff and get outta here," Fred said stepping away.
"How'd ya find the place?" she asked walking toward the stairs. Rounding the corner, she found the basket and blanket. Tucked into the folds of the blanket, a slip of paper peeked out. She pulled it out - Erin's phone number - then tucked it back where she'd found it. She decided to leave everything there for Bosco to carry up later.
"I stopped at a rental office. Some ditzy girl said she'd rented this place to the Boscorelli's," he said. Faith didn't turn to look at him, but she could hear the sneer in his voice. Instead she concentrated on navigating the stairs.
"She's a friend of Bosco's."
"Should you be walkin' around like this? You should be takin' it easy, Faith," he said walking ahead of her onto the deck. "Where are your crutches? I'll go get 'em and then I'll pack up your stuff so we can go home."
"I can pack up my own stuff, Fred," Faith snapped finally making it to the top step.
"Wouldn't want me findin' out what's been goin' on here?"
"Nothin's been goin' on Fred. Come inside," she said opening the door. She walked into her room, Fred right behind her.
"Which drawer's got your stuff and which stuff is his?"
"All the drawers have my stuff in 'em. Bosco slept on the other side of the house. For somebody who claimed to want to forgive and forget, you're bein' a real ass ya know."
"I just wanna get outta here. Then we'll talk," he said pulling open drawers and piling the contents on the top of the dresser. He went to the closet and pulled out her bag, stuffing her things in it without any thought of neatness.
"Stop it Fred. Let me do it!"
"Take off those stupid sunglasses," he replied stomping out into the living room.
"Hey, where's your friend Hope?" Erin asked sitting next to Bosco at the bar.
"Faith. Her husband came to get her."
"That was quick," she said.
"Yeah. You done with work for the day?"
"It's slow. This is the off season. Have you walked out on the pier yet? It's a nice place to watch the moon rise," she suggested moving closer.
Bosco smiled at Erin, but couldn't shed the memory of watching Faith in the moonlight the night before. She leaned forward, an invitation clearly written in her eyes. A happy couple for a couplea hours he thought as he took a sip of his beer. Shaking his head, he paid for his drink and rose from the stool. "Sorry, but I can't. It's not the right time."
"Hope's one lucky lady," Erin said rising. She kissed his cheek then sauntered over to a group sitting in a booth plopping down next to her friend with a shrug.
Bosco walked out of the bar chuckling to himself. He looked toward the cottage wondering if Faith and Fred had left yet. The wind had picked up and it was getting cooler. Looking toward the west Bosco saw storm clouds. It looked like their wouldn't be a moon tonight anyway.
Faith sat in the truck watching the traffic come toward them across the pontoon bridge and feeling the now familiar helpless returning. Fred had made her use her crutches once she'd gotten down the stairs for the short walk to where he had parked.
She played with her cheap pink sunglasses as the storm clouds built in front of her. The stream of traffic stopped and Faith expected to see the light turn green, ending her time here. Instead, the bridge began to move.
"Oh great. Now we gotta wait for a boat to go through. You couldn't pick someplace normal like everybody else could ya?" Fred asked.
Faith propped her elbow on the door, resting her forehead in her hand. She felt miserable for the first time in the few days since she'd looked out the window waiting to see if Bosco would come to get her. A flash of blue caught her eye then a butterfly flew into her open window landing on the sunglasses she held in her hand.
It was dark blue with black outlining its wings. It sat there in sharp contrast to the glaring pink of the glasses its wings fluttering, waiting to take flight again.
"Since we have to wait, Fred, let's get somethin' to eat," Faith said hopefully.
"Yeah, I guess," he grumbled his answer then maneuvered the truck around to head back to a diner they'd past a moment before. "Roll up the windows, it's gonna rain looks like."
Faith climbed out of the truck before Fred could get around to help her down. He reached inside the truck for her crutches, but Faith stopped him. "I don't need those."
Fred shrugged and turned to go inside. Faith watched the butterfly drift away then followed him. Once they were settled, food ordered, Faith took a deep breath. Reaching across the table she took Fred's hand in hers. "I can't go with you."
"You can and you will," Fred insisted.
"I can't be who you want me to be. I love you, Fred, but I'm not happy. I'm tired of fightin' you tryin' to make you see who I am."
"Is it Bosco?" Fred asked linking his fingers with hers. His sudden calm suprised Faith more than the question.
"No, Fred it's me. Me and you. We're makin' each other miserable. I wanna be happy again."
"We haven't been the same since Emily's trouble. He was out there with you lookin'," Fred conceded.
"This isn't about Bosco."
"I know that. I do, but you don't know how hard it was for me to sit at home knowin' you were out drivin' around all night with a guy who was in love with you," Fred said playing with her wedding band.
"Nothin' ever happened, Fred. How long....I mean how did you figure..."
"I started to think he had a thing for ya that day I won the truck. You showed up in that outfit and he said somethin' about how you looked. After that I'd watch him whenever he was 'round at Christmas and when you'd come to stuff while you were workin'. Then Emily's overdose - I saw him watchin' you cry. I've never seen a guy with that much control. I thought he was gonna pull his gun to get me away from you when you were screamin' at me," Fred said smirking. "For as big a jerk as he is, I knew he wouldn't ever try to break us up on purpose. Still I always worried you'd find out and that'd be it."
"When you were drinkin' he actually convinced me to give you another chance," Faith replied. "I never thought any of this would happen when I called him to come get me outta the house. I was gonna go somewhere alone."
"I've known for a long time this was comin' I think. I never wanted to admit it, but I knew. After you got shot, I knew it was only a matter a time. I had a lot of time to think on the way down here. Honestly, I didn't think you'd even get in the truck with me. I just didn't want anythin' to change."
"How could you know? I don't even know how I feel 'bout all this."
"When you woke up before they took you to surgery? I was there. I was holdin' your hand talkin' to you. The only thing you said when you came to was his name."
"I'm not leavin' you for him. I need you to know that."
"I know that. I don't think either of us has been what the other needed for a long time. We've been together since we were kids. I see you, Faith. What I saw scared me. We grew up in different directions. I tried to change you into what I wanted a wife to be."
"I'm sorry."
"I can't say it won't hurt seein' you and Bosco together. It's gonna be hard for the kids too I think. You gotta know Emily's not gonna believe that all this started out innocent," he said motioning as if to include the whole island as well as the situation.
"I don't know we're gonna be together, Fred. I'm not leaving you for him."
"If your not, I think you'll regret it," Fred replied his tone more like a friend than a husband losing his wife.
"He might not want things to change from workin' together," Faith said uncertainty creeping into her voice.
"Then he's a bigger idiot than I thought. I can't believe we're talkin' about this," Fred said squeezing her hand in his.
"Me neither," Faith said chuckling.
"There's this woman I work with - she's divorced, got a kid- I think I might see if she would wanna go see a movie or somethin'," Fred said slightly embarrassed.
"How'd her kids take it? I don't want to tear Emily and Charlie apart over this."
"We talk sometimes. She and her ex try really hard to keep things from gettin' ugly. I don't want things to get ugly."
"I don't think things haveta be ugly. We're a pretty good team."
"Yeah, we're a good team," Fred said smiling as their supper arrived.
They sat watching the spring storm outside the window while they ate, waiting until the heaviest rain had past before Fred dropped Faith off outside the cottage.
"You'll give these to the kids and tell 'em I'll be home in a few days?" Faith asked fishing the souvenirs out of her bag and handing them to Fred.
"Yeah, we're gonna go stay at my parents house until I find somethin', so you can pick 'em up there when ya get home."
"Be careful drivin' back," Faith said squeezing his hand one last time.
"Be happy," he said starting the truck and pulling away.
Bosco sat on a dune watching the lightening flash in the distance. The air had cooled since the storm had moved through. Still he sat barefoot, his toes buried in the sand. He'd pulled on a sweatshirt and came outside as soon as the rain had passed.
He wondered how far Faith and Fred had made on their trip home. It was only about a fifteen hour drive, but Fred had already made that drive once today. Bosco hoped Fred was smart enough not to drive through the night and fall asleep at the wheel. He knew from experience how easy Faith fell asleep in the car so she wouldn't be any help. He thought about leaving then, following them back, just to make sure they made it. He reminded himself of Swersky's words again, he didn't need to cause anymore trouble.
He watched the lightening flash, waiting for the sound of the thunder to make it back to shore. The wind from the storm blew off the waves pulling at his shirt.
"I've never seen lightening like that," Faith said sitting next him on the dune.
"Me neither. Where's Fred?"
"On his way home," she said shivering in the cool wind.
"You okay?"
"A little cold. The storm really cooled things off," she answered.
"That's not what I meant," he said pulling her to sit between his knees. He wrapped his arms around her, rubbing her bare arms.
"Yeah, I'm okay," she said leaning her cheek against his.
"I could go in and get your jacket or you can have my sweatshirt if ya want," he whispered in her ear snuggling closer.
"Promise me you'll never take my crap lyin' down."
"Done," Bosco agreed as they sat watching the storm disappear over the horizon. "Promise me..."
"What, Bos?" Faith asked when he didn't finish his sentence. She turned in the shelter of his arms. They were only a whisper away from each other. Bosco's eyes filled her vision. She saw the pain there of words he didn't want to say.
The moon broke through the clouds as the memory of that night months ago filled her. The pain she saw then mirroring the pain she saw now. The words he spoke were jumbled with his tears. She felt his hands on her, pressing down to stop the blood. They were rough, desperate, but when he leaned over her, his kiss was so gentle. She touched his face then, the last thing she remembered was trying to soothe away that pain. She touched his face now, hoping this time she could.
"Let's go inside, Faith. It's gettin' colder out here," he said pulling her with him as he stood. He took her hand linking his fingers with hers. Nodding, Faith followed him inside.
"You sure about this?" Bosco whispered hugging her to him as they lay stretched out on the couch, her head cradled against his shoulder.
"I'm not even sure what this is, Bos. Fred and me breakin' up had nothin' to do with you. We just decided we couldn't keep on the way we were. This is just nice," she said squeezing him around he waist.
"Yeah, it is," he agreed squeezing back.
"You aren't responsible for me, you know. I didn't leave Fred expectin' somethin' from you other than what we had before," Faith said.
"I don't think I can go back to before, Faith. I don't have a very good record with women and I'll understand once we get back to the real world if you wanna forget all this. I guess with all the others, my heart wasn't in it."
"I won't forget it."
"Promise me if you ever wanna sneak out your window to get away, I'm the only one you'll call," Bosco said guiding her chin so that he could look into her eyes.
"Done," she replied kissing him gently.
And in the end the love you take is equal to the love you make
Lennon/McCartney