Ok, so all of you, my wonderful readers, have full license to throw a book at my head for not updating sooner. *ducks a flying volume of War and Peace* However, before you give me a concussion with that book in your hand, let me say that I'm being a good little author and writing AND updating BOTH of my stories today. Now I can't write if I'm unconscious, so be a nice reader and put that book down. You'll only end up pulling a muscle anyway...
---
Faith's Point of View
"Knock, knock. It's me. Can I come in?" I asked as I rapped lightly on B's bedroom door. I heard her sniff and clear her throat. Did I make her cry?
"Yeah," her voice broke. I walked in and closed the door behind me before looking around the room. B was curled up on her bed facing the window so I couldn't see her face. I shifted from one foot to the other, awkwardly for a minute, debating whether or not I should approach her. I fought my urge to just jump out the window and I crawled onto the bed, pressing my front into B's back and putting my arms around her.
"I'm sorry for just running out earlier. I just – I wasn't sure what to do. B, I love you so much and I – I don't know how to deal with it. I've never had anybody really love me…and it's just…there's no way to explain it. No way to explain how much I love you. I'm not running, B. I'm going to stay – unless you don't want me anymore…I guess I could just go."
"No!" B started crying a little harder. "No, Fai, don't – don't go. I need you. I love you so much, I really meant it and I was so afraid that you didn't feel the same way and-"
"Shh, B. Don't cry, and you don't have to explain," I wrapped my arms tighter around her and kissed her hair. "I feel the same way." She sniffed and turned around in my arms so she was facing me. Her face was streaked with tear stains. I frowned and wiped them away. She smiled a little and then hiccuped. Damn, she was cute.
"Isn't Mom taking you to your motel room to get your stuff soon?" she asked. I almost forgot about that.
"Yeah, I don't wanna get up though," I groaned.
"Hmm. Do you want some company? I don't really have anything else to do for the rest of the day here."
"I think I'll be alright, babe. Somebody's gotta be here with Dawn anyway," I said. B frowned at me. "Hey, it's not that I don't want to be around you. It's just that it's going to be pretty boring and it won't take that long," I kissed her on the forehead. "I'll be back before you know it."
"Fine. But I don't like it." I laughed.
"I know, babe." I kissed her and hugged her closer to me for a moment before sliding off the bed. B got up and gave me another hug before I went out the door.
When I got downstairs, Dawn told me that Joyce was just finishing putting her things in the car, so I headed outside.
Joyce's Point of View
Oof. These crates of sculptures are much too heavy for me to carry. I have two slayers living in my house, why do I insist on doing these things by myself? Oh, here comes Faith.
"Hi, honey, are you ready to go?" I asked.
"Yeah, I'm set. Thanks for the ride."
"Of course." Faith looks a little preoccupied. I wonder if there's something wrong. I climbed in the driver seat and went to grab the keys out of my purse but I realized that I had left my purse in back of the jeep. Faith was just opening the passenger door to sit down.
"Faith, I think I left my purse in the back of the car. Could you grab it for me?"
"Sure, Mrs. S," she said and went to the back to grab it. When she came back she was frowning slightly. She handed me my purse and I got my keys and started the car. While putting my seat belt on, I tried to gauge her mood, but with Faith, that's nearly impossible, even with mom perception.
"You know sweetie," I said, backing out of the driveway, "If there's something wrong, you can talk to me about it. It's not a bother or anything; I like to hear what goes on in that head of yours. Buffy doesn't talk to me about things very often, so I'd kind of enjoy a good mother-daughter conversation," I finished with a small smile. She sighed and looked from her lap, out the front windshield, then at me, then the windshield again.
"I've been thinking about my parents a lot is all. Kinda miss them, even though they were pretty shitty." Well that's understandable.
"That's perfectly understandable. Parents are still your parents and you're supposed to love them."
"Yeah, thing is, aren't parents supposed to love their kids? Mine never loved me. My dad was a deadbeat…not even sure who he was really, my mom always had so many guys. And she was just a barrel of fun…always OD-ing and drinking. My childhood could have been a lot better. Every once and a while we'd get a check from my mom's uncle…trying to get her into rehab. She always spent the money on more alcohol or drugs. Didn't have time for me," she paused and sniffed. I patted her arm gently but stayed silent. She looked at my hand oddly and then smiled bitterly. "Nobody had time for me. Nobody loved me or cared about me. And now I've got all of this – you and Dawn and Buffy. I just – what if I'm just dreaming? What if none of this is real? Or what if it is real and then something happens and one of you dies? That seems to happen a lot to the people I end up caring about." I never expected her to open up this much to me. In fact, I never expected her to open up this much to anyone. Maybe to her it felt as though she was just talking to herself – especially if she didn't think it was real.
"Well Faith, if this isn't real, and I'm only a figment of your imagination, I can't imagine why you would invent someone such as myself," I said. She laughed fairly humorlessly.
"You're the mom I never had, Mrs. S. My screwed up life would not be complete without another mom to screw me over. And who says it has to be my head? Could just be some hellmouth thing."
"Hmm. Well I feel real. In that case, maybe you're just something in my head," I laughed.
"Yeah I think that's pretty impossible. Seriously, how could someone as nice as you think up something as screwed up and awful as me?" I paused at that.
"I guess I just need another daughter to mother," I said after a moment. Faith was quiet. Maybe things just needed to sink in a little bit. Suddenly she laughed, breaking the silence.
"Ha, what am I thinking? A hellmouth trick? You'd need a really smart super villain like…like…Giles or sumthin'!" Faith said, laughing.
"Well I don't think he's evil. Last time I checked, he seemed like a gentleman. Well, except for on that police car," I smiled. And then I realized what I just said and my eyes got so big that they had a good chance of popping out of my head.
Faith's Point of View
"What?" What the hell is she talking about? What cop car? And what about her and GILES on a cop car? If this is a dirty sex story like I think it is, I am not going to be the one to break the news to B. No way. "Mrs. S! Don't tell me you were getting all down and dirty with G-man on a cop car," I said, smirking. Damn, her eyes were huge.
"D-down and d-d-dirty?" she sputtered. Now I know where B gets that from when she's nervous. Joyce's knuckles whitened as her grip tightened on the steering wheel.
"You know, sexin' it up?" I said, my smirk growing.
"What? N-no, we – I uh, no we didn't – I mean how did you-" she stuttered and paled.
"Woah, hey, it's ok. I'm not gonna go blabbing it around. I just think its kinda funny is all. Does B know?"
"Does Buffy know? God, no! Can you imagine?" she looked at me and then continued under her breath as she turned into the motel parking lot, "How did I let that slip?" My smirk widened again.
"See? This is how it should be. I tell you about my shitty life, and you tell me about your sex-capades. And there will be no talking about any kind of slipping with B, alright? Don't worry, your secret's safe with me," 'cause there was no way in hell I was going to be the one to tell B. Mrs. S was looking at me like I was the most vulgar thing since porn. Damn. Now she's looking like she's going to throw up.
Joyce's Point of View
Thank the Powers that Be we are at the motel! There was no part of that conversation that I enjoyed. I think I can take Faith at her word that she won't tell Buffy though. Faith is still smirking at me.
"Don't worry about it," she repeated, jumping out of the car and closing the door so she could talk through the window, "I'll be back in a sec. I don't exactly have a lot to pack," she said and then disappeared inside her motel room – had she left the door unlocked? That wasn't very safe.