FRAMED - Cowboy Bebop fanfiction

Session 33

{If you skipped session 32}

Quinn wakes up next to Vicious, as they are mid fuck, they here a noise.  It's the sound of a ship landing in the water outside. They get dressed and run downstairs. 

...

It couldn't be- was she being too hopeful? Quinn didn't know, but as she watched Vicious frantically dress himself before pulling his katana off the wall display, she figured he must've been thinking  the same thing as her. Vicious sprinted out of the room with his blade in hand which, unlike his clothing, was completely free of blood. 

Quinn was quick to hurry after him. Vicious was quick to run down the staircase, but as the the front door busted open, the both of them knew it was too late for him to flee. Quinn stopped at the bottom of the staircase as she listened to metal screws jump from the door frame and clatter onto the hardwood flooring. Whoever had kicked the door in was not there to be friendly, and unfortunately, the door had opened inwards, causing Quinn's view of whoever was behind it, to be obscured. 

There was silence for a moment. The only sound being the gentle, sloshing of ocean waves coming from the massive body of water that surrounded the lighthouse. A delicate ocean breeze soon wafted into the house, carrying along the smell of salt and cigarette smoke. 

Quinn's eyes widened as the scent hit her nose.   

"Nice to see you again, Vicious," a painfully recognizable voice suddenly called out. Immediately, Quinn knew who it was, and upon hearing his voice, a weak  smile began to grow across her face. 

"Spike, thanks for giving me a second chance to kill you," Vicious replied menacingly before taking a step forwards. Quinn felt her heart leap out of her chest. In an instant, all the air she had in her lungs was suddenly sucked out. Her stomach began to flutter and her body began to tense. The man she had been shamefully envisioning all morning was standing no more than a few feet away from her. His body, obscured by the door, was so close to hers. Quinn was relieved, but more importantly, she was happy that he had proven her wrong. All this time she thought he wasn't coming to find her, but there he was. 

"SPIKE!" Quinn called out, her voice shaking with excitement.

"Don't move," Vicious demanded before throwing his arm out, grabbing Quinn by the waist  and yanking her to his side. He positioned the blade of his katana underneath her chin. Quinn flinched as the tip lightly pierced the skin along her jawline. Quinn, now at Vicious' side, now had a clear view of Spike. 

She began to observe him. He looked worse than usual. His eyes were dark and his skin was alarmingly pale. Quinn could tell that he hadn't been getting much sleep, and by the way his tie was half knotted and how his suit looked like it hadn't been washed in days,  it was clear he hadn't been taking any time for himself. 

Spike had his gun pointed at Vicious' head, but his eyes were locked with Quinn's. 

"Quinn," Spike's usual blank expression suddenly twisted into something Quinn couldn't quite make out. There was a certain pain behind his eyes that was pushing through his harsh disposition, something she hadn't seen before, and by the way it made her stomach twist, something she hoped to never see again. 

"I knew you weren't dead," Spike added, causing Quinn to shiver as his eyes suddenly shifted towards Vicious. Quinn wondered if he had fumbled his thoughts. Did he really think she was dead? Did Vicious say he had killed her? Certainly not, Vicious had told her he tried to make a compromise with Spike- a compromise that involved Quinn being turned over safely. Had Vicious lied to her?

Quinn watched Spike's brow furrow. His finger shook against the trigger of his gun while Vicious remained suspiciously silent and unnaturally still. Because Vicious did not rebut Spike's statement,  Quinn knew there had to be some sort of truth behind Spikes word. Spike was arrogant, but he wasn't an idiot, especially when it came to life or death situations. There had to be a reason why he thought she could have been dead.