Chapter 7 A Way Out

Damn my bad memory. Oh well, here goes some more writing.

Sunlight poured through the broken out windows onto Faye's face. She squinted her eyes, trying to block it out. It came anyway, and she pulled herself into a sitting position. Whichever way she had slept, it was murder on her back. She stretched and heard it pop, and a bit of relief ran up her spine and made her shiver. Spike wasn't awake yet, and if he was, he wasn't in the living room. Faye rubbed her eyes and adjusted her clothes, and stumbled into the kitchen. After their purge of the kitchen last night, there really wasn't much left. Faye pulled out a box of noodles and cooked them. She carried them back into the living room and sat back on the couch. She wondered where Spike was planning to go today. She hoped it wouldn't be too far. She was still tired and really wanted to go back to sleep. She finished the last of the noodles and lit a cigarette. She leaned against the couch and closed her eyes. She cursed the sun. It was so damn bright. Spike had entered the living room. He sat down heavily and started eating. Faye decided not to say anything for a while, at least until he had finished eating. He sat his empty noodle container down and lit a cigarette.

"Well?" Faye asked.

"Well what?" he replied, taking a long drag off his cigarette.

"Where are we walking today?" she asked.

"Oh. I don't know; maybe keep going the way we were. Since there's a house here there has to be more. The only problem is finding it in all this land". He thought for a moment. Faye ran her fingers through her hair. She wanted him to say they'd take the day off and crash here, but no such luck. She simply nodded.

Around an hour later, they had packed up some water, food, and blankets, in case they didn't come across a house and had to sleep in a cave, or worse, in the open. They sat out and Faye took one last look at the house. She was beginning to grow quite fond of it, but there was no way they could stay there. They began their walk. Faye thought it was a bit cooler out today, but then again she was probably just losing her mind. They hadn't been walking long when Spike saw something that resembled tire tracks. They followed them for nearly an hour, before they saw another small house, this one looking like it was fit for human habitation. When they got closer, they saw an old woman sitting in a rocking chair, a grey cat lying on her lap. She looked up when they approached, and smiled.

"What's a couple o' kids like you doin' way out here?" she asked. Her voice was kind and scratchy. Spike explained their situation coolly, and Faye just stared off into the distance. She hoped the woman could help them; Faye wanted to get out of here so bad. But she didn't know exactly what was going to happen when they did. She didn't want to arrest Spike, but if Narcissa found out she didn't, she'd be pissed. But if she did arrest him, she'd feel like shit. Spike was kind of in the same spot. The Red Dragons would surly be after him. What was he going to do? Well, that was something they'd have to figure out when they got off of Earth. Faye tuned back into the conversation.

"I've got an old space craft in the barn. It probably needs some fixin' up, but it should get you kids to wherever you need to go. Get down Boots" she said to the cat. The cat obeyed, and the old woman stood up and led them to the barn. The ship looked in good condition, just very old. The old woman left them to it, and Spike began poking around it. Faye sat on a bucket and stared off in the distance again. She didn't really think about anything, she felt like she was semi-conscience. Every now and then she'd get a glimpse of Spike walking by her, but that was pretty much it. She must have nodded off to sleep, because when she woke up, Spike was standing in front of her, waving his hand in front of her face. She jumped up with a start.

"Huh?" she asked stupidly.

"I said I could fix it, but it'll take a while. I'm gonna finish up here quick and I guess we can ask the old woman if we can stay here or something" he said. Faye nodded. He wiped his hands on a rag, and they walked out of the barn. Again, Spike did all the talking, and Faye just stood there, feeling like an idiot. She really didn't know what to say. The old woman told them she only had one bedroom, but they could stay in there for as long as they needed. Faye finally managed to say thanks, and the woman led them upstairs. The room was small, and there was only one bed.

"So…how is this gonna work?" Faye asked after a while. Spike had evidently been thinking the same thing. The room was too small to fit another bed in, and all the furniture there was in the room was an old dresser and a mirror.

"I guess…I guess we'll have to sleep in the same bed" he said finally. Faye blinked. She supposed so, but that didn't make it any less weird. At least the bed wasn't small, it could probably let them both fit on it comfortably. Faye stretched out on her back, and Spike sat down next to her.

"Where are you gonna go after we get off of this planet?" Faye finally asked. Spike looked a little alarmed by this question, but thought for a moment.

"Hell if I know. I guess I'll just be pursued all my life. There's not really anywhere for me to go" he replied. "What about you?" he asked.

"Same. If my partner found out that I didn't arrest you but had the chance, she'd kill me for sure. And I don't really want to be a bounty hunter anymore. So I guess I have nothing either".

"Why won't you arrest me if it's your job?" he asked. Faye didn't really want to answer that. The truth was, she didn't know why she couldn't arrest him. He was a good person, he just got tied up in a mess. He kept looking at her, waiting for her to answer.

"I don't know" she said simply.

"There has to be a reason" he pressed. Faye sighed.

"I don't know. I guess it's just because I feel like you don't deserve it. You're a nice guy Spike, you just got messed up" she replied. She looked down at her hands, afraid of looking stupid. Spike just smiled at her.

"Well, as weird as it is, we're gonna have to get some sleep. Goodnight, Faye" Spike said. He laid down in the bed, and Faye pulled a blanket over her. She didn't know what was going on. It was weird to be sleeping in the same bed with him, but at the same time, she felt, safe. He had evidently fallen asleep. Faye turned over and smiled at the wall. She had a feeling her feelings were growing for Spike.