๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ #1
๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐ ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐
โง
ANOTHER DAY, ANOTHER BOUNTY.
That was the life that Spike had occupied himself with. Bounty after bounty, and yet he still found himself broke by the time a new bounty appears. He was tired of these small fries, but every time he was close to catching something big, it would slip right through his fingers.
The card that held the money he received from this weekโs job twirled lightly in his thin fingers. The other hand was occupied with holding a lit cigarette. The whiff of smoke would enter his nostrils along with actual smoke entering his lungs. This was a much needed remedy after a long day.
As he walked through the empty hallway of the Bebop, he could hear a young femaleโs laughing blending in with Jetโs. He rolled his eyes with a mental groan thinking that Jet had invited some girl over for the night.
Oh well, at least heโs getting some.
The laughter finally reached his ears as the door to the main room slid open. The cigarette in his mouth lifted as he pursed his lips looking out at the scene in front of him. Jet was leaned against a chair that stood across the bright yellow couch. His metal arm lifted against the chair and held his head up. His eyes glanced up at Spike making his lips curve into a lighter grin.
โThere you are, Spike!โ Jetโs husk voice put all the attention on the slender man. โI was just telling our guest about you.โ
The so called โguestโ whipped her head around and Spike finally got the full view of her. The top of her head was blanketed with curly strands of pale gold tied back into a low ponytail. Her eyes were as bright as a blue summer sky. Her skin was more tan than his was and her cheeks even had a small sunburn. Her face was littered in freckles and when she smiled at him, he saw that she had a small gap between her teeth. She wore big overalls with a strap hanging off her shoulder. A black tank top sat underneath her overalls along with some goggles tied around her neck.
She stuck her hand out as her eyes glimmered in excitement, โHi!โ He stopped for a moment and thought about the way her voice sounded. โIโm Val.โ Upon further realization, he noticed that her voice had a strong french twang to it.
He raised an eyebrow and reluctantly took her hand, โSpike.โ He leaned his head over to make eye contact with Jet. Once their eyes met, he motioned towards the blonde.
โOh!โ Jet clapped his hands together and pushed himself up from his chair. โSpike, Val has offered, herself, to be our official mechanic.โ
With his eyebrow still raised high, he took his hand back from her, โWhy?โ He stopped and turned back to Val. โI mean, Iโm not complaining or anything, but this is just out of the blue.โ
Jet opened his mouth to answer, but she already had one ready, โSo that I can have a place to stay.โ
Spike was taken aback by her answer, โWhat? Iโm sorry,โ He held his hand up and performed a fake laugh, โcorrect me if Iโm wrong, but arenโt we supposed to come to you?โ His eyes panned over to Jet. โI wasnโt informed weโd be getting a permanent mechanic.โ
He walked over to Spike and slapped his hand down on his shoulder, โI didnโt need to ask you because she came in and she said she would do it for free!โ
His friendโs smile plastered all over his bearded face. Spike faked a smile and gently pushed his hand away, โI still wouldโve liked to have been told about this, Jet.โ
Spikeโs eyes narrowed on Jet as he copied his fake smile, โWell, Spike, I shouldnโt have to remind you whoโs ship this is.โ
Now their eyes were having a competition on who could perform a more nasty glare. Tension was obviously bubbling between them. Val jumped off the back of the couch and pushed the two men apart.
โI can leave if itโs going to be a problem,โ Her big blue eyes shot a guilty look at Spike causing him to growl at her.
โYouโll be just fine, Val,โ Jet pushed her behind him so he could whisper/yell at Spike. โListen, she says sheโll do all the work for free as long as we give her a bed and some food.โ
He looked back at the girl, who gave him a quick smile before he turned away again, โHow do you know this isnโt a scam?โ
Jet turned to Val again who gave him the same smile. She wasnโt even a foot away from them so she could hear everything that was going on, but pretended not to so they could have โprivacy.โ
He turned back to Spike, โIt could be yeah, but I donโt want to risk it. Youโre too reckless, Spike and Iโm tired of paying so much to repair your ship along with mine.โ
He glared at Jet and then pointed to the girl, โShe is not touching my ship!โ
โHey listen! She gave me plenty of references and they all were praising her. I promise you your ship is in good hands.โ
โShe couldโve made up those references!โ His voice grew louder now.
Val stepped in between them with a smile, โYou can fake references?โ
Spike watched her for a moment not sure how to respond. Having a woman on their ship could easily put things out of balance. Heโd have to deal with the constant whining and her complaining about boy problems. It would ruin the peaceful cycle he had just gotten into and he wasnโt sure how to feel about it. But when he looked into Jetโs eyes he knew that there wasnโt much he could do in this situation.
He groaned lightly with an eyeroll, โFine. She can stay.โ Her eyes lit up again behind his hand, but before she could celebrate he continued. โBut, donโt bother me, because if you do Iโll kick you to the curb.โ
Valโs warm hand wrapped around his wrist to pull it away from her face. Her smile lit up the room once more as her happiness grew more evident on her face, โOh my gosh! Thank you so much!โ Her eyes kept going back and forth between Jet and Spike then finally landed on Spike. โI promise I wonโt bother you at all. You wonโt even know that Iโm here.โ
But even Spike knew that was a lie.
โง
Hi! Thank you for choosing this book to read!
This is a little bit of a mess for the first chapter and I apologize for that. I had ideas, but as soon as they came to me, they disappeared so I had to work with what I remembered. I hope everything made sense and I hope you enjoyed reading this!
Feel free to give feedback!
