FRAMED - Cowboy Bebop fanfiction

Session 3

When Quinn awoke she could tell hours had passed while she was asleep. Her wrists were no longer chained to the railing, and as she wiped the tiredness from her eyes, she saw that a plate of food had been left out for her on the coffee table. It looked like some sort of noodle and vegetable stir fry and next to it was a glass of water and a pair of chopsticks.

Quinn yawned as she stretched her arms over her head. Somehow she had managed to sleep quite comfortably on the armchair and she figured after she ate, she'd move herself to the couch to nap. She pulled the armchair up to the edge of the table and began eating. The food had clearly been left out for quite some time based on how cold the dish was, but even though the temperature wasn't ideal, she was starving, and within minutes she had finished the entire plate.

When she was done, she figured before she fell asleep again she'd look for a bathroom before she actually needed to use it. She wished her captors would have at least had the decency to show her around, but then again she was a complete stranger to them and they were in no way obligated to be kind to her.

After leaving the living space, it didn't take long for her to find the bathroom, and once she was finished, she continued on exploring the ship. As she wandered through the empty halls she wondered where everyone else was sleeping. There were plenty of doorways along the walls, but they all looked identical. She wondered how any of them were able to tell them apart. 

In fact, she wondered how none of them lost their minds on a ship as drab as this one. Of course Quinn didn't expect much from some low ranking bounty hunters, but any sort of decoration or splash of colour would've been a nice touch for such a lack luster ship. 

Eventually during her exploring,  Quinn found herself in a corridor that had multiple, large, circular windows lined along one of the walls. She walked to the end of the corridor and took a seat next to the last window. It was rather peaceful there, and as she peered through the glass she couldn't help but enjoy the feeling of being alone. It was a feeling she had slowly came to love, and for just this one moment, despite there being nothing much to look at, she felt truly calm. 

She was grateful to be safe for once, and she couldn't remember the last time she was perfectly  content. But even now her comfort had a limit. She trusted that the trio actually believed her story, but then again she had met plenty of people like that in her life and they always ended up betraying her in the long run.  As paranoid as she was, she let the feeling dissipate. There was no point in worrying. It wasn't like she had anywhere else to escape to. 

"There are plenty of other places to watch the stars on this ship," Spikes voice suddenly cut through the silence causing  Quinn to shake herself out of her thoughts. She jumped as his voice echoed throughout the corridor, and as he approached, she could smell cigarette smoke already beginning to fill the encompassing air.

"Should I not be sitting here?" Quinn asked tiredly as Spike made his way to the end of the corridor. He was wearing black sweatpants and no shirt. It was dark, but in the starlight Quinn was able to make out that he had a scar that stretched across the entire length of his abdomen. She wondered how he'd gotten it, but she had a feeling he wasn't particularly in the talking mood.

"Yeah," he replied as he leaned his back against the wall.

"Why's that?" Quinn asked, as she turned her face back towards the window.

"This is my spot," he explained. There was certain coldness to his tone that Quinn was beginning to become familiar with. It was always achingly frigid, but for some odd reason Quinn enjoyed the chills that it gave her. 

"And who are you to claim something you got to last?" Quinn retort. She heard Spike exhale  slowly as he allowed his smoke to wrap around her head. He didn't reply, and suddenly the corridor was just as silent as it was before.

She wondered what made him so arrogant, but at the same time his eagerness to help her clear her name was more than enough to convince her that he had a good heart. She continued to wonder what made him so rough around the edges, but as much as she wanted to ask him, she didn't want to be the one to break the silence.

So for awhile, they both existed in the stillness of the night, and as more time passed, Quinn felt her eyelids becoming heavy. Sleep threatened to strike at any moment, but the menacing tension that had grown between her and the silent cowboy was enough to keep her awake. 

Eventually the tension snapped Quinn in half. Between all the alcohol she had consumed that night and the tiredness that was slowly eating her alive she figured she'd push her pride aside just this once.

"Why are you so silent?" Quinn finally spoke, but Spike didn't reply.

"I mean, you just look like you've got so much to say but for some reason you don't," Quinn paused as she bit her tongue.

"I didn't mean for that to sound so personal, but I mean -" Quinn began to apologize, but as she turned her head she noticed the space behind her was empty.

She peered down the corridor, but it was empty as well. There wasn't even as much as a disappearing shadow. Spike had managed to slip away without making a single sound.

Quinn blushed as embarrassment boiled within her. Even though no one was there to watch the awkwardness unfold, it still bothered her that she pushed her pride aside for someone who wasn't even there.

She couldn't believe Spike had just walked away from her like that. How could the man be that vain? It made no sense to her, and the situation only fueled her burning curiosity. She needed to know who this man was, and if she didn't find out soon she felt as if her head would simply explode. 

"Typical," Quinn scoffed under her breath as she got up from her spot on the floor. She began walking back to the living room, and once she arrived she took advantage of the empty couch space.

Unfortunately there wasn't anything around to use as a blanket, and all she had on was a cropped t-shirt and oversized khaki pants. Her outfit wasn't particularly meant for cover up other than the fact that she always wore black wrist gloves that extended up to her elbow.

They were the only warmth she had for the night, and as she lay down upon the couch she shivered slightly. She wished she could've been more comfortable, but it seemed like this was the best she was going to get. Besides, it was much better than being cooped up in her pod for the night.

As she slowly felt herself slip into sleep, she prayed that her fighting would soon be over. Makenna's reign of power would eventually be done with, and then Quinn could return to her regular routine.

But even though Quinn yearned to return to normal, something about actually going back made her slightly upset. She wanted Mack to get the punishment she deserved for sure, but after all that had happened, Quinn wondered how she'd feel when she actually got her life back.

She worried she was going to be underwhelmed. Ultimately, she had come to enjoy her lonesome, and if it weren't for Mack, she wouldn't have ever been able to grow like she had over the months she had spent on her own. 

There was beauty within the pain, and Quinn worried she was coming to enjoy the pain more than the beauty.