"Where are you going?"

"Out." Spike loosely saluted him before walking off the dock, on to the city limits of Huygens of Titan, outside of Saturn.

Jet scraped the wrench in his hand against his flushed face and observed Spike's departing figure. "Tskk… and to think he wouldn't notice." He groaned, rubbing the sweat from his brow with his arm, and returned his attention to the Zipcraft in front of him. It had been a month since Edie had disclosed her pregnancy to him and she had yet to break the news to Spike. The sooner the better, insisted Jet. And this was precisely the reason why. Jet huffed loudly. They drove him mad, those two were high between Spike and Edie and rather than bring up the issue, they preferred avoiding it. They avoided each other as if they were the bubonic plague. They never looked at each other, let alone, speak to one another. They couldn't stand each other's presence. One smoked almost 3 packs a day just to pass the time while the other constantly paced about with her nose in some health magazine. This unvoiced feud eventually slipped into the lap of Jet. He grew weary of the telephone act. They were acting like stubborn grade schoolers, waiting for the other to break and meager themselves to their knees.

Edie, shortly after, appeared onto the hangar in an oversized shirt and sweatpants. Her expression could be described as anything but pleasant.

"And where are you going?" Jet cursed as oil from the Swordfish spewed upon his tank top.

"Out." She growled, stomping to exit the ship and heading for the dock.

"Oh, you too eh? Edie, you better fix this shit. Cause if not, I'll lock the both of you bastards in a room and make you figure it out."

"I know!" She snapped back, shoving her clammy hands into the pockets of her pants.


Spike strolled the streets, another cigarette in his pressing grimace. This had to be his 20th today. Bitch. As if her cold disposition bothered him any. The ship was starting to feel too damn stuffy for Spike's taste; he needed some fresh air to clear his head. Jet and Edie didn't think he'd notice, but much to their, let alone his, surprise he caught on. He subtly noted how she didn't drink coffee in the morning, how she wore baggier clothing and no longer read her precious manga, but in their stead, read some stupid magazines. And last, but not least, Edie no longer participated in the retrieval part of the bounties. On the contrary to her usual personal preference, she remained on the ship when the Bebop took on jobs. Spike found himself either working alone or with Jet. And what was the kicker? Jet didn't say a word about it. Didn't complain or make a big scene about it. Instead, he huffed and puffed and repeatedly remarked he was "too old for this shit". They were hiding something. The two spoke in whispers and talked in the shadows of Jet's quarters.

"How does it feel to be inside her? Makes you feel like you're the only guy in the world, doesn't it? She'll get into your veins and consume you."

Spike's teeth clamped onto his cigarette, tearing into the filter. Fuck that guy, fuck her and fuck Jet. Some team. He didn't ask for this. Hell, maybe he did in giving into her advances. What made things go ass backwards? One minute they were banging each other until the wee hours of the morning and the next, they rival in their hatred of each other's presence. They couldn't stand to be in each other's company for more than a few minutes. Maybe more like seconds. I'm thinking too damn hard about this. Spike massaged the bridge of his nose and was relieved to see a bar just across the street.


"Stupid Jet. Doesn't think I see what's going on." Edie kicked at a nearby pebble, sending it soaring through the air and nipping a cat at its behind. Its high pitched yowl echoed through an alley and it scurried away. "'Just tell him,'" Edie mocked Jet's grumble. "As if it were that easy." She looked to the sky and counted the puffy white clouds that floated by. How carefree. Edie exhaled deeply and perused the streets, trying to pry her mind of the worries of today. But in the passing faces, she'd see Spike. She saw him in a man slurping ramen at a nearby noodle house. Spike tended to gulp down his ramen in haste, as if she were going to steal it from him. Edie smirked at the recollection. She saw him in a child, running past her, who laughed till he was blue in the face at his friends' blunders. Spike cackled like that child when he'd completed a successful prank on her or Jet or when they cracked pointless jokes. She saw him in a couple who bickered yet gazed at each other, longingly, afterward. Edie could swear she'd see that same glint in his eye after a heated exchanged between the both of them. She'd spy him studying her. He'd stare into her deep brown eyes and endeavored to figure them out. It only lasted minutes, but they felt like forever to her. It was the closest she ever got to feeling that "spark" with him.

His mismatched eyes had lost their shine once more. His eyes regressed to dull and lifeless. Like fish eyes. And she knew whose fault that was. It was her own. Edie tapped her pointer finger lightly on her stomach. She was keeping this from him. She was keeping his own child from him. The all-powerful, death-defying, female assassin scattered away like a bitch with her tail between her legs. And out of what fear? Fear of rejection? Fear of denial? As if she needed Spike to welcome her with open arms.

Images of their latest encounter flashed through her head and she, unconsciously, bared her teeth. She recalled their words and insults. They fought over something so meaningless, yet there was something more to it than just an argument over personal hygiene. Personal hygiene was just the beginning of the confrontation, somehow the discussion lead to each other's pasts. A "don't go there" topic for the both of them. But they went there and it got nasty quick. Before she knew what she was saying, she was insulting his love for his dead girlfriend. She had never seen his face heat up so fast and he smashed his fists against the walls aside of her. Edie didn't flinch and resumed to breath fire. Her wicked tongue slit his insides and deemed him desperate and alone. Spike's fingers itched to be around her neck and his hands sprang open, rooting his fingertips into the metal walls. He sank his teeth into her flesh, calling her a nobody, and told her to look in goddamn mirror. Reckoning she didn't even know who she was. Typical woman , he brutally scrutinized. Another lost soul looking for herself in the desolate black hole dubbed space. She was just as alone and just as desperate as he, Spike snarled. Edie screamed back that he didn't know a single damn thing about her and she wasn't alone, she had Jet. Spike sarcastically chortled at her words. He laughed at her and said she had proven his point. She was desperate to find some sort of love out there in the great expanse; willing to prey on anyone. Edie's eye burned and her hand raised itself to slap his face. The sound of the slap rang through the air, then dissipated, highlighting Edie's heavy breathing. She gasped at her sudden action and brought her hand up to cover her hanging jaw. Spike chuckled once more and pushed past her, heading for his room.

Yeah Jet, like this is the perfect time to tell him. Oh yes, I know we hate each other but, by the way, I'm pregnant with your child. Like hell, he would listen to her. Edie slowed her paced as she stood before the entrance of a large white building. A unexplainable shutter shoots down her spine and suddenly, she feels cold.