If you hate the taste of wine

Why do you drink it until you're blind?

And if you swear that there's no truth and who cares

How come you say it like you're right?

Why are you scared to dream of God

When it's salvation that you want?

You see stars that clear have been dead for years

But the idea just lives on

In our wheels that roll around

As we move over the ground

And all day it seems we've been in between

The past and future town

We are nowhere, and it's now

We are nowhere, and it's now

And like a ten minute dream in the passenger seat

While the world was flying by

I haven't been gone very long

But it feels like a lifetime

I've been sleeping so strange at night

Side effects they don't advertise

I've been sleeping so strange

With a head full of pesticide

I've got no plans and too much time

I feel too restless to unwind

I'm always lost in thought as I walk the block

To my favourite neon sign

Where the waitress looks concerned

But she never says a word

Just turns the jukebox on and we hum along

And I smile back at her

And my friend comes after work

When the features start to blur

She says these bars are filled with things that kill

By now you probably should have learned

Did you forget that yellow bird?

How could you forget your yellow bird?

She took a small silver wreath and pinned it on to me

She said, "This one will bring you love"

And I don't know if it's true

But I keep it for good luck

---

Spike dropped his lighter.

He was stood next to the old yellow sofa. Faye (crazy shrew woman she was) had eviscerated it in a deranged attempt to locate his secret weapons arsenal. The only problem had been he had no secret weapons arsenal and if he did he would not have hidden it in a fucking couch. So he spent several long hours restoring the thing back to its former glory with the help of some duct tape and a few old newspapers. Actually, he thought it was comfier now than it had ever been. It was comfortable, comforting. It was home.

Faye slept on its worn cushions, her small frame cradled by the mould of his body he had so carefully created over the years via many hours of dedicated sleep. She was wearing the Bruce Lee t-shirt she had given him. He wasn't sure he had worn it at all. But that was okay. She belonged to him now, like the t-shirt; her wearing it marked her out as his. She'd claim she hated the idea if he ever expressed it, something about male chauvinist pigs would fall from her lips, but he would know she secretly relished it; he could read her so perfectly now. And anyway, he belonged to her as well.

Spike knelt down on one knee, unlit cigarette hanging from his lips like an extra appendage, one hand resting on Faye's partly exposed stomach to steady himself. (That was a lie. He just wanted to touch her.) He picked up the lighter and flipped open the lid.

Faye opened her eyes. She could feel Spike's hand against her skin, creeping under her (his) t-shirt until his fingertips brushed along the edge of her breast. She turned her head to find Spike down on one knee, a small metallic box held open in his other hand. Oh my God. What the hell was he doing?

Spike flicked the lighter to life and lit his cigarette. As he exhaled the smoke he noticed Faye was awake and she was giving him the oddest look.

"You're awake."

Her expression returned to the default setting in less than a second.

"No shit Sherlock."

"What is it?"

"Nothing. You woke me up."

"Spit it out."

"No."

"Tell me."

Now she was blushing. He let his thumb run along the curve of her breast. He heard her sharp intake of breath and inwardly grinned.

"It's just…"

"Go on."

He was trying to kill her. That was it. And he was still down on one knee. His thumb brushed over her nipple.

"Stop that!"

"No. And quit stalling."

She placed her hand over his, stilling the sweet torture he was inflicting upon her, her gaze focused on the ceiling fan up above. Spike could feel her heartbeat quicken beneath his fingertips.

"I just thought you'd deliberately woken me up to ask me something… something important."

She looked back at him then. Okay, so Spike wasn't as skilled at reading her as he liked to think.

"But as it turns out you were just acting like the stupid, horny lunkhead I know and love."

He loved hearing her say that word. He loved her voice (tone deaf as she was). But he still had no idea what she was talking about.

"What do you mean 'something important'?"

"Christ Spike, what do you think it means when a girl wakes to find her boyfriend bent down on one knee?"

Boyfriend: he loved hearing her say that word as…

"What!"

He flew back, crashing against the coffee table behind him. He could hear Julia's voice from the kitchen asking if everything was okay.

"Well it certainly is good to know how you feel about the idea."

Marriage: the elephant in the living room so to speak; the thing they never spoke of. He wasn't sure the idea had ever crossed his mind. These past few months (months, years, weeks even…) he'd been happy. It took a long time. At first he had spent each and every day inwardly terrified. If any of them so much as coughed, suffered a paper cut he would hear Kennedy's words echo in his head. Then he learnt to take each day as it came. He learned to enjoy it. And Faye made him happy.

"I'm going out for groceries. You sure you guys are okay?"

Spike looked over his shoulder. Julia was stood near the entrance to the hangar putting on her coat and giving them a look which said: 'Please just say yes and let me be on my way.' It was strange. She was so much a part of the Bebop now, of them. She cooked, she cleaned. She was even learning to make basic repairs on the Redtail and Hammerhead (baby steps; the kid was not ready to touch the Swordfish yet). Ed and the mutt had disappeared back to Earth, probably to live with Ed's equally crazy father. The way she'd taken Jet's death, well, Spike doubted they'd ever hear from her again.

"We're fine. We'll see you later."

Julia took her cue to leave, turning and practically running from the ship. Spike watched her go before turning back to Faye.

"Wonder what's for dinner?"

Faye glared at him at first; then her expression softened. She reached out and ruffled his hair affectionately.

"I miss him, you know? Sometimes I even miss his cooking."

"Yeah."

Spike pulled her hand away, ending the topic of conversation. She knew he didn't like to talk about Jet. Sometimes, when he wanted time to himself, he would go and sit with the overgrown bonsais. He would light a cigarette and sit there in silence, sometimes for hours. He never spoke of Jet or Mercury; he never spoke of any of it. Maybe he would one day. She always struggled not to push him.

"So…"

Spike scratched the back of his head awkwardly. He was still propped against the coffee table, his long frame folded into the space between it and the sofa. Faye turned to face him, sitting cross-legged on the edge of the sofa cushion.

"So…"

He looked up at her and Faye held her breath.

"Do you?"

Faye bit her lower lip. He loved it when she did that. God help him, he loved everything about her. God help them all. It could be months, years, weeks even…What the hell were they waiting for?

"Do you?"

"Yeah, maybe."

Faye smiled. Spike smiled. He ran his hands up her thighs, pulling her closer to him.

"Why now?"

Their lips were mere millimetres apart, their breaths merging.

"Why not?"

There's no time like the present, Spike thought as their lips finally met.

There's no time.

FIN.

---

A/N: Okay, here it is, the end, over, caput. I know everyone was a bit thrown by the last chapter but I wanted to end on a hopeful note and I hope (heh, heh) that came across. Thank you all so much for the ride. I've loved it all. As to whether I have any more stories in the offing I probably won't be starting another epic anytime soon but maybe the odd one-shot. I'd like to perfect my skills at that though I can't promise any masterpieces along the lines of sidewalk serfer girl. Is it me or is there a sort of Bebop fanfic renaissance going on at the moment? There's ssg, MaryGoneMad, disposablehero… if you haven't read their work, what are you still doing here? Go now and discover for yourself. Oh and the song at the beginning is called 'We are nowhere, and it's now' by Bright Eyes. The yellow bird line makes me think of Julia (no, not the new one). So farewell friends, until the next time…