Starting over

Pairings: Lex/Salene (romance) + Amber/Slade (Romance)

Sentences: "You are this close to being knocked in the head with a baseball bat!", "I'd rather drink gasoline and take a leak on lit match!", and "I've never met someone so annoying...it's a real turn on."

Words: Motherly, rugged, monkey, jabber-jaw

Location: The boat after the virus in season five

Disclaimer: I don't own a thing. Cloud 9 owns the tribe.

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It seemed her entire life was filled with problems. One after the other. Always hurt or being hurt by someone. It started when she was five- her father left. Her mother and her two older sisters said they didn't blame her but she knew they did. They would often just ignore her.

Salene was just average, always average. Her sisters were always getting praise and awards and what was she getting- nothing. Nothing at all. Her bulimia- well it happened even before she met The Mallrats. It started sometime around when everyone was getting sick.

When they acted like kids were doing it- she blamed herself for her mothers condition. Her sisters all died from the virus as well. Salene again blamed herself if they weren't adults they would live- and if Salene wasn't a child then maybe they couldn't have gotten it from her.

Her guilt increased as time went on- always blaming herself. Things with the food didn't help either. Life was getting better when she got pregnant- okay so she didn't love Ryan- she could deal with how that went… then she lost the baby. Soon life was out of control.

Pride. Her balance. Her serenity. Pride was going to save her. They were going to get married and be happy but then he died. A new level had hit her along with a new habit. Drinking. Drinking it solved everything that bothered her even if for only when she was drunk. It let her drink it all away until she was a wreck- then she had a light. May. May was her light. Until- she decided that she liked Salene. Salene freaked out. She couldn't handle it. She was straight not gay.

She was back to drinking again. Well not yet- she was considering it. She sat there looking at the drink- she wanted it so bad. So very bad. She was so focused on that she almost didn't notice Lex enter the cabin and sit across from her.

He was looking rather rugged these days his depression of Siva's death along with the frustration of trying to get to Tai-san was slowly getting to him. He had gotten less snappish lately and people were starting to think maybe he had a problem of his own.

"I'd rather drink gasoline and take a leak on lit match then drink that! The same should apply to you," Lex said looking at her.

Salene snapped from her thoughts, "Oh I'm sorry I didn't see you there- shouldn't you be with Gel or something?" she asked turning to him in her same depressive mood her eyes still though more focused on the drink than Lex.

"The Jabber-jaw is busy flirting with Sammy. She finally wised up that dating an old man was a bad idea," he said with a dark snort.

"Lex you're 21"

"By the standard that entire society crashed and only we were left- off hand I'd say that's old," he remarked.

"You have a point".

"You shouldn't do it," he said finally.

"Why not? When did you care about anyone but yourself anyway? Because your sex life needs a pick up?" Salene demanded looking at him with a bit of a bite in her tone.

"When I realised we all suffered in hell together and if everyone else could do it- then maybe I should too, but you're making me regret it right about now. You're acting like a real bitch when I'm trying to help," Lex said angrily.

"You are this close to being knocked in the head with a baseball bat," Salene proclaimed looking over at Ruby's bat wondering how hard he could hit him for that.

"You aren't the first to hit me either- but you won't," he informed her.

"Why not?" Salene said looking at him bitterly.

"Because you'll be focused on this," Lex said as Salene shot him a questioning look but before she could ask what he meant- then leaned in and kissed her on the lips.

The last thing Salene remembered was his tongue in her mouth and then it was like she floating- and her body just remained behind.

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(Outside on the boat)

Amber wasn't in the mood for a party or to even be around someone else. Not after the week she had. Trudy was pregnant- and Jay was now back with Trudy. Amber was alone. Salene was slipping so now she was being turned to for motherly advice from EVERYONE on the boat it seemed except Ebony and Slade anyway.

She just wanted to be alone- so she took Bray jr. dropped him in May's room with his stuffed monkey and headed outside to watch the stars. She really wanted off this boat now.

"Room for a two?" a voice asked from behind.

Amber turned sharply, "Listen Slade if you've come here…" she started.

"Uh no- I don't take advice no offense. I've come here to offer company seeing as you look like you need it," he said.

"I really don't," she replied.

"I'll argue that point," he said sitting down beside her, "I've seen that look- the one I had on my face when Ebony announced she was leaving me- I assume Jay is involved".

Slade had lost Ebony earlier that week too- Amber had forgotten that. Ebony had decided that she didn't need to hang around with Mega's brother and was now basically whoring herself around again. Amber wondered when they could get rid of her but continued to say nothing on the subject.

"It might be," she confessed.

"You get over it. Everything hurts for a while. It just goes away. You gotta just keep surviving and doing what you do," he said with a shrug.

Slade was hardly good with advice or being "nice", he was a rebel with a cause with a face for fun and danger. Good guy wasn't in the job description. Nor was advice giver. He was the last one to be lecturing anyone. He did things all the time.

He admitted though that ever since the attack- his interest in Amber had grown- she was a nice woman. Very strong and passionate. Ebony and her had a lot in common but lived in that denial. Only Ebony had an attitude problem that Amber didn't- she had more of a Ruby sweetness to her.

He had to admit it was very hard to show interest in a girl like that- the only problem he with the good girls never worked out right.

"You know Ebony- I've never met someone so annoying...it's a real turn on or was anyway… and you could be her double. What I mean to say is- you remind me of Ebony in your own way. Everything I liked about her- I see you in and everything I didn't- I don't find in you. She was annoying at times, and so were you too just for different reasons. I can see why Jay liked both of you- so it only figured that if he left her…" Slade began.

"That'd he'd leave me as well. I never really considered that but I see your point. So you think I need a personality adjustment or her?" Amber asked.

"Her. Your good the way you are. Not my cup of tea of course but it holds an appeal," he remarked.

Amber laughed, "Thanks for the opinion. You know- I can see what she saw in you".

"Really?"

"Yea, and I see what annoyed her too- you're also pretty annoying as a boyfriend type," Amber said to him.

"Thanks"

"Your welcome- and Slade?" she asked.

"Yea?"

"Thank you," she replied as she leaned in and kissed him on the lips, "For helping even if only a bit in understanding".

Without another word she moved to jump and leave however what she didn't expect was for him to join her and before she could leave- he then kissed her back.

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The end. Opinions required.