She'd been working in the mall for about a week now, and honestly the Bebop was too quiet. Jet had to confess that he missed a lot of the chaos that ensued between Faye and Spike when they were both here.

Not to mention that Faye had become extremely polite and helpful around the house lately. She cleaned up after herself and did the dishes almost every night if she wasn't working late. Faye was also the one who made coffee most mornings now. Jet still usually did the cooking, but he no longer did the majority of laundry and other chores. Faye constantly asked if he needed help. Often they worked together on these tasks.

Ed was ecstatic with the changes in Faye's life. "Faye-Faye, let's play a game."

"Ok, Ed, What game?"

"Dance Party."

"Ok, what song this time?"

Ed was obsessed with the radio and pop music right now. She would play the same songs over and over. Then she would leap wildly around the living room. Faye recently had started joining in on this. Ed picked up Ein and danced with him, then she grabbed Faye's hands and they spun in circles.

Jet sat on the couch and looked up from his newspaper periodically to watch what they were doing. Faye seemed a lot younger than her 24 years lately. She seemed more on a level with Ed at this moment. It wasn't that she lacked maturity. Her spirit simply seemed freer right now than Jet had ever seen it before.

Spike came in from his room. "Guys you need to turn it down. Your stereo's conflicting with mine."

"Spike-Spike, come play dance party. You can dance with Faye-Faye." Ed squealed.

"Jet, get them to turn it down."

"Ed turn it down just a little bit. It's bugging Spike." Jet himself had just learned to ignore it. Dance Party made Ed happy, and now it seemed to have a similar effect on Faye. Too bad it couldn't work on Spike.

"Spike-Spike, dance with Faye-Faye."

Faye looked expectantly at Spike who instead flopped into a chair. "Spike, don't you want to dance?"

"Not really."

Faye turned down the stereo and sat down on the floor next to the couch. She leaned against Jet's leg. Jet's hand casually ran through her hair. She didn't stop him. She faced Spike.

"Is everything Ok?" she asked him.

"Yeah, why would something be wrong just 'cause I don't want to play dance party."

"You're just gone a lot lately."

"You've only noticed because you've been home a lot more since you've started working."

That was true. Normally in the evenings, she would spend her time drinking in bars celebrating her wins or mourning her losses from her day's betting. She would come in late, stay up half the night watching movies, and she would sleep until late afternoon. Spike kept a similar schedule, but he spent a lot more of his afternoons tracking bounties than Faye did.

Spike spent most of his nights out as well. Living with three people accorded him no privacy; no one respected his space. Jet always asked him where he was going, when he'd be back, and if he'd managed to pick up any women. Faye was always trying to get him to go out with her, or sometimes just to sit and talk. It's not as if he had anything to talk about with her.

Faye and Ed were spending a lot of time together as well, and Spike found it creepy. After Faye left for work one morning, Spike asked Jet what had changed.

"Don't you think that it's weird that Faye is spending all this time with Ed?"

"She seems really happy. Ed's a lot happier too. Faye's treating her more like a friend than an annoyance."

"What is going on with Faye, anyway?"

"I don't know," Jet confessed, "But I have to admit I like it. Things are a lot easier on me. Not to mention that since we've got a steady income, the food's gotten a lot better. We can actually make stir-fry with meat in it."

"We've been in one spot too long."

"Most of the high-priced bounty-heads come to Mars eventually anyway. Don't worry so much."

Jet was actually a little worried that Faye had finally snapped. The only reason he could think of that she would be saving up money was that she was getting ready to pick up and leave again. Then again, she didn't really seem to be saving. She bought a few groceries, a butterfly coloring book for Ed, two bottles of nail polish, and a magazine about Bonsai trees for Jet with her last paycheck. The magazine was put out by an expert Bonsai gardener who had zillions of creative and exciting ways to arrange Bonsai trees. It also showed readers how to make and buy Bonsai garden accessories. Jet had never instituted any of these ideas into his Bonsai room because he preferred to spend what little money he had on practical things. From time to time, however, he wished that he could put something like that together.

As far as Faye's change in attitude, he merely thought that this was the first time she's seen herself as an adult. Everyone has to go through life figuring out how to take care of him or herself and where they belong. He just hoped she realized she didn't have to do it alone, and that he longed to be there with her.

Not that he harbored any illusions that Faye returned his affections. Even though Spike ignored her, she still had feelings for him. Jet was merely a constant in her life; a source of stability. Jet himself had to admit that he lacked the excitement and charm that Spike possessed. At the same time, he lacked the arrogance, irresponsibility, and recklessness that also plagued Spike. He was also insecure because he knew that he couldn't compete with Spike's good looks. The only advantages that Jet had were the small acts of kindness that he showed Faye day in and day out.