Addicted

Chapter 14: The Future

As they departed from the bus, Shane could see Faye and Maree standing outside waiting for them, with their arms linked together. Faye was rocking on her heels while Maree was fiddling with the strings of her sweatpants. Neither of them really paying attention to the other, Maree's face only slightly lighting up as She saw Shane get off of the bus. When the four of them joined together, Shane wrapped his arm around Maree's shoulder, causing her to let go of Faye and lean into him. They began their trek with Jake and Faye in front, talking about growing up in a slightly smaller city and how his father, her stepfather, was in declining health as of late. Maree held Shane's hand, swinging their arms occasionally as she looked at the taller buildings and then at Shane as he talked. Shane tried to keep the conversation with her light, but continuous as he pointed to places he used to visit with Jas's parents, the place where they had met, the hospital Jas was born in, and the apartment building he lived in before moving to Pelican Town. Maree seemed almost uninterested as she zoned out into starring ahead of her while he talked, causing him to stop and turn to her. Faye stopped too and looked back at them, causing Jake to grab her arm and pull her to keep walking and to leave the couple alone. She hesitated but ultimately listened, knowing that Maree and Shane both had their cell phones and could contact them if they were separated for too long. "I'm sorry about this morning," he grumbled, trying to rub her cheek with the back of his hand. She pulled away from him and continued her walk, her hands in her pockets. "There's actually something I want to talk to you about, Maree." He said catching up to her.

The sound of her own name coming from Shane made her turn back to him, a slightly angered look on her face. She furrowed her brow in his direction letting out a huff, "that's not my name," she said, her anger giving way to an almost laugh, trying to pull the conversation in a different direction.

"You're right, Chick." He smiled at her, knowing she was at least feeling a little better, or at least better enough to be angry that he didn't use her nickname like he normally did. Shane let out a chuckle as he reconnected their hands. "I- uh- I don't know how to do this," he said gesturing between the two of them. "I don't know how to keep you in check, and I feel like we're going to drag each other down, or worse, go down alone, if we don't have an actual grow up talk. You've always been so up front with me, I didn't even realize something was wrong enough for Jake to intervene."

Maree frowned for a moment then looked ahead of them and spotted her brother, "Jake needs to just mind his own business." Maree's walk continued but slowed as she didn't want to get any closer to Jake and Faye.

"I can't just stand idle while you destroy yourself," said Shane, his voice a little deeper than before, more concerned and fatherlier than he had talked to her before. "I can't just 'let you die'. Do you realize how much satisfaction you would be giving Emily if you were just gone? She'd be doing a little happy dance in the Saloon and probably singing 'ding-dong the witch is dead' as she poured everyone a round on her." Shane laughed a bit at his own joke then turned his face towards Maree to gauge her reaction.

Maree's nose was scrunched up the way it always did when someone talked about Emily, or if Emily herself was talking. "I appreciate the effort you're trying to put in, to give me a reason to keep going, even if it's just spite." Maree half smiled at him, wiping at her nose. "I just don't want to, and if Emily wins, then so be it. Someone should win, why does it have to be me?"

Shane swung their hands up and pulled Maree's to his face, kissing the back of it. "Do you not see a future with me?"

Maree paused for a moment, thinking it over. "I can, but I don't think it's very realistic." Maree looked at her shoes as they walked, stepping over the seams in the concrete sidewalk.