DISCLAIMER AND AUTHOR'S NOTE: All Buffy The Vampire Slayer stuff belongs to Joss Whedon, Mutant Enemy and Warner Brothers. No copyright infringement was intended in the writing of this fiction. All other characters that appear belong to me. This story cannot be sold or used for profit in any way. Copies may be made for private use only and must include this copyright notice and disclaimer. There is some subtext in this story. If this kind of stuff is not legal where you live, if you're under 18 or if you don't like the notion of two women being in love, then you should find something else to read. This story was inspired by faithful_chickie's story Marooned. Situated after the Buffy episode Who Are You.

Stranded
By Kristjan Brezovnik

When Buffy woke up, her whole body hurt. She groaned and slowly got up. She looked around and was relieved when she saw Faith lying near by. She carefully approached her and checked the ties. They were still holding, so she picked her up. She groaned under the burden, still weak from all the swimming. She carried Faith into the shadow of the trees and then sat down to rest. She looked around and saw pieces of the 747 floating all the way to the next island. She lay down, closed her eyes and tried to make sense of what had happened.

She had been taking Faith to England after she had gotten her body back. She didn't want the Council to kill Faith, but she wanted them to rehabilitate her. So she took her to England herself, so that she would tell the people who would be rehabilitating Faith that if they killed her, she would be very mad. But then something happened. She remembered looking out the window as the pilot announced that they were entering the Bermuda Triangle. It was a sunny day and not a cloud was in sight, but then they hit a turbulence and the sky suddenly became cloudy. She wasn't sure what happened next, it was all a blur. The next thing she remembered was the pilot telling them that they were going to crash land and the flight attendants begun to give instructions. She remembered running to the cargo area to make sure that Faith would be okay. It had taken her a while to locate the box in which Faith had been strapped in. She had taken it apart and freed Faith, who was still under drugs, which were being administered to her by an IV. The plane had hit something and now that she looked at the wreckage, she guessed that it had hit the peak of one of the neighboring islands. It had completely fallen apart. She had put Faith on the remains of one of the crates and then swam toward the nearest island, dragging Faith behind her.

And now they were here, stuck on an island god knew where. As she looked around, she tried to remember her geography lessons. The more she thought about it, the more she doubted they were anywhere near the Bermudas and she didn't think there was any other island group near by. Besides, it looked more like she was somewhere in the Pacific, not the Atlantic Ocean. But then again, she was not an expert. She sighed and opened her eyes again.

She looked at Faith and rolled over to check her pulse. It looked like Faith would be out for a while. She sat up and looked around. There was still debris from the plane floating around and she decided to see if there was anything salvageable. She searched her pockets for the key to Faith's chains and then chained Faith to a palm tree. Then she took a deep breath and went to the ocean.

A few hours later, Buffy was exhausted. She had managed to save a few of the cargo boxes. The content of most was useless, but at least they had a makeshift shelter. She emptied the boxes and then dragged them toward the forest. She then set up three in the shape of a cross with the fourth end missing. She found some canvas and connected the three boxes, making a sort of roof. She made sure there was enough of the canvas so that she could lower it in the event of rain. Then she made a hole in the back of the box closest to the forest. She carried Faith into that box and then pulled the chains through the hole and around the tree behind it. She knew she would have to change that, because Faith would definitely struggle when she would try to chain her again after taking her to pee and stuff.

Then she went through the stuff from the boxes. She managed to find a few books and magazines and some clothes. She doubted the clothes would be useful, but she saved them anyway, in case they were cold. Then she looked around to figure out how to make fire and weapons. She wondered what kind of animals there were on the island. Hell, she hoped there were animals, period. She wasn't exactly a fan of fish.

She was in the middle of cleaning up when she heard Faith moan. She sighed, knowing that Faith would be angry when she woke up. She slowly headed back to their shelter, sat down and waited.

A few minutes later, Faith's eyes focused. She blinked a few times and then looked around, puzzled.

"Where the fuck are we?" she demanded, her voice raspy.

"I don't know," Buffy said.

Faith blinked.

"Don't fucking play with me, B," she snarled. "You dragged me on the plane like so much cargo, so don't fucking play with me!"

She tried to shake loose her chains, but she couldn't.

"They're Slayer proof," Buffy said.

Faith stopped and looked at her.

"Fuck you." She looked around. "Where are we?"

"I don't know," Buffy said. "Really," she added when Faith gave her an angry look. "The plane crashed. We're the only survivors."

Faith stared at her for a few moments.

"Are you serious?" she then asked.

"Yes."

Faith thought about it for a few moments and then tried to sit up. She succeeded and looked around again.

"So you're telling me we're stuck with one another on some god forsaken island in the middle of nowhere."

"Yes."

"Great. So now I'm your prisoner."

"Yes."

"Fucking crap," she murmured. She looked around. "Where did you get this stuff?"

"It was floating around in the sea, so I pulled it out."

Faith didn't comment.

"I'm gonna try and find something with which to make us a fire," Buffy then said and left.

As soon as she was gone, Faith tried to free herself again, but she quickly realized that she couldn't break the chains. Which meant she had to try something else.

They went to sleep hungry that night because Buffy didn't find anything to eat and she didn't catch anything either. Buffy felt a bit uneasy at having to sleep so close to Faith, but when Faith fell asleep, she relaxed enough to fall asleep as well. But it felt as though she hadn't fallen asleep at all when she was awoken by a scream.

She looked around, disoriented, and quickly remembered where she was. Where they were.

"Faith?" she asked, but Faith didn't respond. She listened and could hear that Faith's breathing was quick. "Faith? I know you're awake."

"So?" Faith said quietly, her voice raspy.

"Are you okay?"

"Five by five," Faith murmured as she tried to calm down after the nightmare.

Buffy stared into the darkness for a few moments and then lay back, confused.

"Morning," Buffy said in the morning when she saw that Faith was already awake.

Faith just glared at her.

"I'll go see if I can get us something to eat," Buffy said and quickly left.

Faith stared after her, angry. She could barely move enough to sit. She doubted that Buffy would unchain her to eat and she wondered what would happened when she needed to pee. She wanted to stretch, but the box wasn't that big. She started rubbing her wrists again, hoping to be able to get them through the chains eventually. It hurt like hell and she knew she would bleed, but she was determined to free herself. And while she was trying to free herself, she observed Buffy as she attempted to catch some fish.

Buffy finally came back at noon with two fish. Fortunately she had found a sharp piece of metal and was able to cut them open and clean them. It disgusted her, but she knew she had to do it. She first tried to prepare one fish, hoping that what she had seen on TV actually worked in real life. She failed on the first try as the fish got burned, but the second fish came out okay if not exactly a delicacy. She fetched two more sheets of metal and used them for plates. She ate one half of the fish and then took the other half to Faith.

"With your hunting skills this vacation will be very short," Faith commented sarcastically.

Buffy glared at her.

"Shut up, Faith," she said, "or you can starve."

"I'll probably live longer," Faith commented.

"Fine, then starve," Buffy said, went to her part of the shelter and ate the other half of the fish.

Faith glared at her, angry, but Buffy just smiled at her and ate the fish.

After Buffy was done with the fish, she went to the forest to see what kind of wild life there was. She just wanted to take a quick look and then get back in case Faith got any ideas. She saw there were a few monkeys and birds and some animals she didn't recognize. But when she wondered how to capture one, she quickly realized that she had a serious problem, because she didn't think she could kill an animal. Except fish, luckily, and even that made her a bit sick.

"We have a problem, Faith," she said when she got back.

"Really?" Faith said sarcastically and Buffy glared at her.

"Yes, really. There are some animals, but I don't think I can kill them. Too bad I can't let you loose, you'd have no problem with that. But then again you'd probably gut me as well."

"You know me so well, blondie," Faith said, hiding just how much that comment hurt her.

"I'm going fishing," Buffy then declared. "Hopefully I'll catch something for dinner. And if you behave, you just might get some," she said and left.

Faith just glared after her and furiously tried to free herself again.

There were fish again for dinner and this time Faith kept quiet. Fish weren't very good, because Buffy hadn't learned to prepare them yet, but she didn't comment, she was too hungry. She felt ridiculous being fed, but she knew Buffy would never release her. So she kept quiet and let Buffy feed her like a baby.

Eight days after they had arrived to the island, Faith finally managed to free herself. They hadn't eaten much as Buffy was still struggling with fishing and she had not gone hunting, so Faith didn't need to go pee and there was no need for Buffy to unchain her. Which suited Faith just fine as she slowly, millimeter by painful millimeter, managed to pull her hands out of the chains. It hurt like hell, but she was determined.

When her hands were finally free, Faith rested, waiting for Buffy to come within her reach. She couldn't free her legs the way she had freed her hands, so she needed the key, which she supposed was somewhere on Buffy. She closed her eyes and tried to ignore the pain in her hands as she listened for Buffy.

An hour later, Buffy finally returned from her fishing trip and she prepared the fish. She then first ate hers and then took Faith's to Faith.

"Faith," she called, but Faith didn't move. She put the makeshift plate aside and crawled closer. "Faith, wake…"

Faith growled and hit her in the face. Then she grabbed her by the shirt and pulled her into the box. She grabbed her head and slammed it into the side of the box a few times until Buffy was too dizzy to defend herself. Then she straddled her and started to strangle her.

When Buffy finally went limp in her hands, Faith snapped out of her murderous rage. She blinked, startled. Then she noticed the blood on Buffy's neck and her stomach sunk. She looked at her hands and her eyes went wide.

"No. No. No," she whispered, shocked. "No!"

She backed off and tried to run away, but her legs were still chained. She quickly searched Buffy's pockes and found the key. She unchained her legs and then ran to the ocean. She submerged her hands and tried to rub off the blood. She screamed as the pain in her hands increased. It took her a few moments to realize that the blood was hers, not Buffy's. She stopped rubbing her hands and stared at them for a few moments, shocked. Skin was missing in some places and they were full of cuts. It hurt like hell, but what hurt even more was the fact that she had almost killed Buffy.

Her vision blurred and she realized she was crying. She furiously wiped the tears, refusing to cry. She took a few deep breaths to calm down and then turned her head and looked at the shelter. Her heart started to beat faster as she suddenly realized that Buffy might be dead after all. She stared at Buffy for a while, shocked. Then she got up, knowing that there was only one way to find out. She swallowed hard and then slowly started to walk back to the shelter.

When she reached it, she hesitated for a moment and then kneeled beside Buffy. She immediately noticed that Buffy was breathing and she let out a sigh of relief. She closed her eyes and took a few deep breath to calm down again. Then she checked Buffy's neck and was relieved that the blood wasn't Buffy's.

She took a deep breath and thought for a moment. She looked around and quickly located the chain key she had dropped when she had ran to the ocean. She picked it up and then chained Buffy to the tree.

When she was done, she stared at her for a few moments and then looked around. She saw the fish and her stomach growled. She picked up the plate and quickly ate the fish. Then she got up and stretched. All her muscles hurt a bit from not being able to move for so long. She finally remembered her wrists and she looked around for something to wrap them in. There was a pile of clothes in the third box of the shelter, so she crawled closer. She checked out the clothes and then picked up a T-shirt. She tore it into strips and then wrapped her wrists. They still hurt, but at least they didn't bleed.

Then she looked around the shelter and went to Buffy's box, which was now hers. It was much more comfortable than hers. She sat, leaned back and stared at Buffy, trying to ignore the pain in her wrists.

When Buffy finally woke up, her head hurt. She took a deep breath and tried to move, but she couldn't. She blinked and then realized she was chained. She lifted her head and looked around.

"Faith," she said when she saw her.

"B," Faith said.

"Unchain me," Buffy demanded, struggling.

"I don't think so, B," Faith said. "Oh, and if you try to free yourself, I'll tie you so tight you won't be able to move at all."

Buffy glared at her for a few moments.

"So now what?"

"I fish, you play my pet."

"I should've let the Council take you when they had the chance."

"Ain't life a bitch," Faith said with a grin. "Too bad you escaped from them, they might have rehabilitated you, B."

"I'm not a psychotic killer, Faith, you are."

Faith was on her in a moment and she slapped her. Buffy gasped, and Faith just stared at her, shocked.

"You don't know me, B," Faith said through clenched teeth.

"I know you better than you think, Faith."

"Shut up, B."

"You're…"

"Shut up!" Faith screamed and slapped her again.

"See, I…"

Faith grabbed the remains of the shirt she had torn and stuffed them into Buffy's mouth, silencing her.

"I told you to shut up, B," she said, glaring at her angrily.

Buffy spat the fabric out.

"What's…" Buffy started again, but Faith stuffed the fabric in her mouth again.

"I guess you'll have to learn it the hard way, B," Faith said, reaching for a shirt. She tied the shirt across Buffy's mouth, so that Buffy couldn't spit the fabric out. "Next time, do as you're told," she said and left the shelter.

She went to the fire place and checked it out. Buffy's comment about her being a killer had upset her, as had her slapping Buffy, she didn't want to think she was turning into her own mother. And even though her stuffing Buffy's mouth reminded her of her mother, she didn't do anything about it, she didn't want to talk to Buffy, she knew they would only argue.

She shook her head and concentrated on checking out what Buffy had done around the beach.

In the afternoon, Faith went fishing. She had managed to improve Buffy's fishing spear and quickly caught a few fish. She had a bit of a problem when it came to cleaning them, but she quickly got used to it. Then she ate her portion and took Buffy's to Buffy.

"I'm gonna remove the gag, B," she said when she kneeled in front of her. "I suggest you keep quiet or you ain't getting any. Got it?"

Buffy nodded and Faith removed the gag. Buffy wanted to say something but changed her mind when Faith raised an eyebrow.

"That's my girl," Faith said mockingly and started to feed her while Buffy stared daggers at her.

The next day, Faith first checked Buffy's ties and then caught them some fish for breakfast. Since she caught more than they needed, she decided to use the nearby stream as a freezer. Then she prepared the fish, ate her portion and finally fed Buffy, who, much to Faith's relief, kept quiet.

After the breakfast, she took the makeshift spear and went to the jungle to hunt. But when she came across a small group of monkeys and prepared to kill one, she started to tremble. In her mind's eye she could see Finch and the blood on her hands. She ran back to the shore and tried to relax.

When she was calm again, or as calm as she could be, she thought about what to do. She decided to take a look around the nearby jungle to see if Buffy had hidden anything there or if maybe she could find something interesting, preferably of the edible variety.

She wandered around for a while and soon found some trees with fruit. But since she didn't recognize them and didn't know if they were edible, she left them alone. Fortunately, however, she came across another group of monkeys and saw them eating the fruit. She decided that if it was safe for them, it was safe for her as well. She climbed up and started picking them. Since she couldn't carry them all, she took off her shirt and put the fruit in it. Then she returned to the camp.

She first washed the fruit. Then she tried one. It tasted sweet and it didn't make her sick. Yet, anyway. She ate the fruit and then took one to Buffy, leaving the rest in the natural freezer.

"Here, B, something refreshing," she said.

"What is it?" Buffy asked, eyeing the fruit suspiciously.

Faith shrugged.

"Don't know, but the monkeys ate it, so it should be good for us."

"Monkeys?" Buffy asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Yeah. I tried one, they're sweet. Want it?"

Buffy hesitated for a moment and then nodded.

"Yes," she said, and Faith fed her the fruit, which Buffy eagerly ate after she tasted it.

"I'll see if I can find some other fruit," Faith said when Buffy was done.

During the next six days, Faith managed to find three more different kinds of fruit and even a few crabs. It wasn't much, but they weren't hungry. And the natural freezer worked nicely, but she did have to rotate the food in it every few days. Fortunately the monkeys didn't come to the shore and she didn't have to worry about them stealing their food.

When she went fishing, she was doing well, she had caught five fish, but then she stepped on something and she felt intense pain in her foot. She looked and saw a fish swim away. She immediately knew that it was a poisonous fish. She grabbed the fishing basket and quickly went to the shore.

She barely managed to reach the shore and she dropped she spear and the basket as soon as it was safe. She was already feeling dizzy, but she forced herself to concentrate. She needed to get to Buffy and free her or she was dead. She knew Buffy would chain her up, but at least she had hope of another escape, dead was just dead and hopeless. She reached into her pocket and took out the key to the chains. She managed to get closer, but then her legs gave out and she felt to her knees. She managed to catch herself on her hands. She crawled on determinedly, but soon everything was a blur.

"B!" she called.

"Faith?"

Faith turned her head toward the voice and then threw the key, hoping Buffy caught it. Then she continued to crawl, but she quickly lost consciousness and collapsed.

Buffy had heard Faith scream. She didn't know what had happened, but when she saw Faith stagger to the shore, she got worried. When Faith dropped to her knees, she knew something was definitely wrong. She thought for a moment and remembered Faith looking down. She realized Faith must've stepped on something, something sharp and poisonous, probably a fish. The key had landed two meters away from her. She quickly started to free her hands. She wondered how long it would take her, after all, it had taken Faith eight days. Then again Faith had to do it secretly, she didn't.

Three long and painful hours later, Buffy finally managed to free her hands. They hurt like hell, but she didn't have the time to think about it. She crawled toward the key, but it was just out of reach. She panicked for a moment, but then she started to dig a hole. The key quickly slid down the small slope and she grabbed it and freed her legs. Then she got up and wanted to run to Faith, but her legs were weak from not moving for so long. She staggered and slowed down.

When she finally reached Faith, she checked her pulse and was relieved that Faith was still alive. She checked her forehead and saw that Faith was burning. She rolled her over on her back and tried to pick her up, but she was too weak, so she slowly dragged her back to the shelter. There she put her in the box in which they had each been chained. She rested for a moment and then looked at Faith's feet. They were full of sand, so she cleaned them up a bit. She quickly noticed small punctures on Faith's right foot. She had no idea what to do, so she made sure that Faith was comfortable. She considered chaining her up, but she changed her mind. She didn't want to take care of Faith like she was a prisoner and Faith also seemed to get around better than she did. And besides, after the initial abuse, Faith had treated her well, she didn't abuse her or anything like she had expected. She stared at her for a while, hoping that she would be okay, she didn't want to be left alone. She finally took a deep breath and decided to take a look around to see what Faith had been doing. After, she then remembered, she had taken care of her wrists, which were still bleeding.

When Faith woke up four days later, she was cold. Sure, she was covered and it was hot outside, but she still felt cold. It took her a few minutes to warm up again. Then she opened her eyes and blinked a few times as the bright sunlight blinded her. She quickly got used to it and she looked around. She immediately noticed that she wasn't chained. She looked around and saw Buffy in the distance, fishing. She stared at her for a few moments, wondering why she hadn't chained her again. Then she realized that she didn't know how long she had been unconscious. She remembered stepping on a poisonous fish and then passing out on the beach. Buffy had apparently freed herself and helped her out.

Buffy stopped fishing, and Faith quickly closed her eyes and pretended she was still out. As Buffy approached, Faith thought about whether she should knock her out and capture her, but she decided against it, she didn't want to treat Buffy like a prisoner anymore.

She heard Buffy approach and she tensed a bit. She forced herself to relax. She heard Buffy enter the shelter and she nearly jerked when Buffy touched her forehead. Buffy was apparently satisfied with her temperature and she left. Faith waited a few moments and then opened her eyes a bit and spied on Buffy.

Buffy was cooking lunch for herself, wondering when Faith would wake up. The wounds on her foot had healed, there was no infection, and her temperature was back to normal. Now all she had to do was wake up.

While Buffy was busy cooking lunch, Faith looked around the shelter. She had decided to run away and be on her own. Sure, she wasn't a prisoner anymore, but she didn't want to talk to Buffy, she just wanted to be alone.

Several hours later, Buffy finally went fishing for dinner. Faith quickly grabbed a few clothes and waited for Buffy to turn her back on her. When she did, Faith quickly ran to the fire and picked up a burning piece of wood and the piece of metal sheet she used for a plate. Then she ran to the stream, picked up some fruit and some fish, wrapped them in one of the shirts and then disappeared into the jungle.

When Buffy finally caught enough fish for herself, she started to walk back toward the shore. But when she looked toward the shelter and saw that Faith wasn't there, she stopped for a moment, surprised. Then she ran to the shelter.

"Faith!" she called when she came closer, but there was no response. "Faith!"

She looked around, suddenly worried.

Faith kept running until she reached the other side of the island. She had only stopped a few times so the fire wouldn't go out. When she reached the other side, she stopped and looked around, wondering where to go. She decided to go left. She first went to the ocean and then walked through the water, so she wouldn't leave tracks.

She walked slowly, scanning with her eyes for a suitable spot. She soon came to a rock. She stared at it for a few moments and then approached it. When she came closer, she realized that it looked less promising than she thought it was. She decided to check it out anyway. To her surprise, she discovered a small hole in the rock which was obscured by some bushes. She stared at it for a few moments and then decided that this was where she would settle. She put everything down and then frowned as she realized that she didn't have a freezer. She thought for a moment and then decided that her first priority was the fire.

After she had built a decent fire and settled in, she went into the jungle to look around. She was relieved that there were enough fruit trees nearby that she wouldn't have to be stuck with fish. She wandered around and soon heard the sound of running water. She followed it and quickly came across a small streamlet. It was a bit too shallow to serve as a freezer, so she walked along it and quickly came across a small pool, which was just big enough.

She returned for her food and put it in the pool. Then she climbed up a palm tree and tore off several leaves. Then she returned to the ground, used two leaves to cover the pool and then took the rest to her dwelling.

When she couldn't find Faith, Buffy returned to the shelter, wondering what Faith would do. After several days, she was a nervous wreck. Faith hadn't showed up, but instead of calming down, she worried, wondering what Faith was up to. She finally decided to go look for her. She first went straight across the island, following the few tracks that she had found when she had first searched for Faith. And when she got to the other side, she went right and she didn't find Faith. When she returned to the shelter, she first checked if anything was missing. It wasn't, so she continued around the island.

She actually passed Faith's new place without noticing it. But when she made a pause and turned around, she noticed Faith fishing. Buffy stared at her for a few moments, quietly observing her, and then went to her.

Faith, who had been at the freezer before, had not seen Buffy pass, and since Buffy had walked through water, there were no tracks. And if it weren't for her Slayer senses, she wouldn't have heard her approach either. So when she felt her, she quickly turned around, her spear ready. Buffy immediately stopped.

"I'm not here to fight, Faith," Buffy said.

"Then why are you here, B?" Faith asked.

"I just wanted to see if you were okay."

Faith snorted and lowered the spear.

"Right. You were worried I was planning something."

Buffy blushed, but Faith didn't notice it because Buffy's skin had darkened during the past couple of weeks.

"How are you?"

"What do you think, B? I'm stuck with you on an island in the middle of nowhere."

"Hey, it's not like it's my fault the plane crashed."

"I didn't say it was," Faith said.

They stared at one another.

"So, are you okay? Do you have food and…"

"Cut the crap, B. I know you hate my guts, there's no need to pretend that you like me or that you're worried."

"I am, about me," Buffy said. "For all I know you really could be making up some kind of plan."

"You know me so well, B," Faith said sarcastically. She spread her arms. "So, you gonna try to kill me or take me prisoner again?"

"I'm not gonna kill you."

"How do you know?" Faith asked and ran her hand across the scar Buffy had given her, causing Buffy to flinch. "Do you think you'll be that lucky the second time?" She took a deep breath when Buffy didn't respond. "Go away, B."

Buffy stared at her for a few moments.

"Why did you leave?"

"I thought that was obvious, B. I got tired of playing the prisoner."

"I didn't tie you up after you stepped on that fish," Buffy pointed out.

"Tough luck, B."

"No, I didn't want you to be my prisoner anymore."

Faith snorted.

"You trust me enough to be there with you, but not enough for me to be alone on the other side of the island. Make up your mind, B."

"Yeah, well, if you hadn't just ran away, I might have trusted you."

"Yeah, right, trust a murderer not to kill you, especially one that holds a grudge against you. I'm surprised you didn't listen to your Scooby friends, B, they all want me six feet under."

"I don't want you to die."

Faith laughed.

"You have a short memory then," she said and ran her hand across her stab wound again, thinking. "Then again, that would be an act of mercy compared to what the Council would do to me."

"They just want to rehabilitate you."

"Don't fool yourself, B, they hate my guts. They don't want to rehabilitate me, they want me dead and you're playing right into their hands. It's cheaper to train a new Slayer than save a rogue one." She thought for a moment. "Then again that's an ideal way out for you, B. You can tell yourself that you gave me a chance at rehabilitation and that your consciousness is clean. And you wouldn't have to worry about me ever again since I would die in an accident." She smiled. "See, B, I know you better than you know yourself." Her smile faded. "Now leave me alone, I got some fishing to do."

Faith concentrated on fishing again, but she didn't turn her back on Buffy.

Buffy stared at her for a few moments, shocked by what Faith had said. She finally turned around and slowly left.

When Buffy was gone, Faith waited a few minutes and ran after her to see if she had really left or was she snooping around. She saw that Buffy was really leaving, so she returned to her camp. She stared at it for a moment and then started to pack.

When Buffy returned to the shelter, she stared at it for a few moments and then sat down. She thought about her conversation with Faith and quickly realized that Faith wasn't trying to insult her, at least not on purpose, nor was she trying to provoke a fight, she was just… bitter. Buffy frowned as the word bitter came to mind. She thought about it and realized that Faith was indeed bitter. And sad. And self-deprecating. And, strangely, not angry.

She sighed, wondering just how well she really knew Faith. She quickly realized that she didn't. She knew nothing of her past, except that she was from Boston, had a rough childhood and was forced to watch as Kakistos tortured and killed her Watcher. But beyond that, nothing. They didn't hang out as much as she and Willow and Xander, or even Cordelia. She knew Faith liked to party and to flirt. And to have sex, of course. Which, unfortunately, didn't tell her a whole lot about Faith.

But then she remembered the body swap. She remembered how the Council hit men treated her like scum, and she didn't like it. Then she realized that she too had treated Faith like scum, she had pushed her away after the Finch incident. And after Wesley messed up by trying to kidnap her, she should've stood by Faith. She knew that Faith's phrase 'five by five' was only a cover and she realized that she should've been more insistent instead of leaving Faith to her own devices. It was no wonder, she realized, that Faith went to the Mayor, at least he protected her, made her feel like she mattered. She sighed, realizing she had been a bad friend.

About a week later, Faith was fishing for breakfast when something caught her eye in the distance. She looked and saw it was a ship. Her first instinct was to go tell Buffy so that they would attract the attention of the people on the ship, but she stopped. She crossed her hands on the spear and stared at the ship, suddenly realizing she didn't want to leave. It surprised her, she never thought she'd actually like staying on a lonely island with no club. But the more she thought about it, the more she understood why she wanted to stay. Here, in the middle of nowhere, she didn't have to worry about abusing her power and hurting someone and, even more importantly, she didn't have to worry about someone hurting her.

She took a deep breath, realizing she was actually happy about it. She thought about telling Buffy that a ship was coming, but she decided against it, knowing that Buffy would want her to come along just so she could turn her over to the Council. She felt a bit guilty about it, because she knew that Buffy wanted to leave, but she decided it didn't matter. She sighed and returned to fishing.

Another week later, it was Buffy who noticed a ship. She ran to where she had last seen Faith, but Faith wasn't there. She looked around and quickly discovered Faith's shelter. She noticed, surprised, that it was abandoned. She looked around, puzzled, wondering where Faith had gone. She started to run in the wrong direction.

After a while, she reached her own shelter. She stopped to catch her breath. She looked at the ocean and saw that the ship was already very far away.

"Damn," she murmured.

She thought about what to do and decided to locate Faith again. She continued to run on.

Faith was in the middle of frying her lunch when Buffy found her. She noticed Buffy from far away. She stared at her for a few moments and then returned to cooking with a sigh.

She looked up again when Buffy came closer.

"Now what?" she asked her.

"Why did you move?" Buffy asked back.

"I didn't want you to come over for a visit."

"There was a ship."

"So?"

Buffy frowned.

"So? It's our only way out of here."

"Why didn't you call it then?"

"Because I was searching for you."

"Bummer," Faith said and checked her food.

"Bummer?" Buffy said, upset. "We're stuck here for god knows how long."

Faith sighed and looked at Buffy.

"Look, B, I ain't leaving this island."

Buffy's jaw dropped.

"What? Why?"

"I like it here," Faith said and looked at her food.

"But you're a Slayer, you have a duty."

Faith laughed bitterly and looked back at Buffy.

"You're talking to the wrong girl, B. I've already betrayed my duty, remember? So spare me."

Faith looked back at her food, trying to calm down.

Buffy stared at her, dumbfounded. She would never have thought that Faith would actually like to stay here.

"Why?" she asked after a few moments.

"Why what?" Faith asked and looked at her.

"Why do you want to stay here?"

Faith thought for a moment and then looked at the ocean.

"I like the view."

"Right," Buffy said, glancing at the ocean. "You think the Council won't find you here?"

Faith looked at her.

"Why are you asking the questions if you already know all the answers?"

Buffy glared at her.

"You're leaving with me," she said.

"Over my dead body, B," Faith said calmly. Then she frowned. "Or yours."

"Still the psycho. I would've left you here, but then a new Slayer wouldn't be called."

"What makes you think I care? It would spare another girl all the bullshit of slaying. And besides, I thought you didn't like the competition, B."

Buffy frowned.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

Faith thought for a moment and then sighed and shrugged.

"Nothing," she said and tasted a piece of the fish.

Buffy stared at her for a few moments.

"I'll tell the Council where you are and then they can come fetch you."

Faith chuckled.

"What's the matter, B, can't finish off what you started?" she asked and ran her hand across the scar Buffy had given her. "You know they won't bother to capture me. They'll just come with machine guns and play a little game of Slayerfest."

Buffy flinched, remembering how she and Cordelia had been fleeing from a bunch of game hunters two years earlier.

"What makes you think I care?" she then said.

"Nothing. I know you don't. And you don't have to pretend. Now go away."

Faith then put the fish on a makeshift plate made of a palm leaf and started to eat.

Buffy just stared at her, surprised.

"God, I don't even know why I bother," she then said. "You're just a psycho, a waste of time," she said as she turned around to leave, giving up.

"You know me so well," Faith said quietly, hurt by Buffy's words but refusing to acknowledge that fact.

Buffy stopped in her tracks. She thought about their previous conversation and about her own contemplation of Faith and then slowly turned around.

"You're right, I don't," she said and went closer.

Faith looked at her, surprised, but then quickly looked away.

"Go away, B."

"No," Buffy said and joined her by the fire. She thought for a few moments. "You never opened up enough, Faith, I don't know much about you." She hesitated for a moment. "But I want to."

Faith looked at her.

"Cut the crap, B," she said angrily. "The only thing you're worried about is your own consciousness."

"That's not true."

Faith wanted to say something, but she changed her mind, deciding it didn't matter.

"Whatever."

Buffy stared at her for a few moments.

"I do want to know about you, Faith. I want to help you."

"I don't need your help," Faith said, upset.

"You do, Faith. You need to talk about what happened."

"It doesn't matter what happened, B, nothing matters anymore."

"It does."

Faith cocked her head.

"A couple of minutes ago you were ready to have me killed and now you're acting all concerned. Make up your mind, B."

Buffy sighed.

"I hope we could be friends again."

Faith raised an eyebrow.

"Again? We never were."

Buffy frowned.

"Of course we were."

"Don't lie to yourself, B, we weren't."

"But we were," Buffy insisted.

Faith stared at her for a moment and then shrugged.

"Whatever."

Buffy frowned again. She knew Faith was just trying to get rid of her, but she honestly thought that they had been friends.

"Look, Faith…"

"B, I don't care and it doesn't matter," Faith interrupted her. "Go back to your shelter and leave me alone."

"No."

Faith raised an eyebrow, surprised. She stared at her for a few moments.

"Whatever," she then said.

Buffy sighed, realizing this was going to be very hard.

"I do care, Faith."

"But I don't, B," Faith countered and then licked her fingers as she finished her lunch.

Buffy stared at her, wondering how to get through to Faith. For some reason she really wanted Faith to talk to her. She realized she'd have to piss Faith off first. She thought for a moment.

"So, you've decided to just waste away your gift," she then said.

Faith snorted.

"Some gift," she muttered.

"It is. You have the power to help people, protect them," Buffy said and saw Faith flinch for a moment. "But you're too selfish, aren't you? You could've helped so many people, but instead you killed them."

Faith glared at her.

"Shut up, B, you have no idea what you're talking about."

"Oh really? I wanted to give you a second chance after you woke up from coma."

Faith grinned.

"Oh, I got a second chance. Your body felt quite nice, you know," she said and Buffy bit her teeth, realizing things were about to get messy. Faith hesitated for a moment. "But your boy toy was a disappointment."

Buffy blinked, surprised.

"What do you mean?" she asked, having a bad feeling.

"Well, I wanted to see what was so special about him." She thought for a moment. "A nice guy, but he's not so great in bed, very unimaginative and afraid to try anything other than the missionary. Hell, Xander was better."

Buffy stared at her, feeling angry.

"You're lying."

Faith grinned.

"Am I? Hmm, let's see… Nope. Remember that little scar on his left butt cheek?" she asked and Buffy's eyes went wide.

"How…"

"Told you, B, I had sex with him. Well, I tried to, but he insisted on making love."

Buffy stared at Faith for a few moments, speechless, her resolve to get Faith to talk not as strong anymore.

"What's the matter, B, cat got your tongue?" Faith taunted her.

Buffy glared at her.

"You're such a slut, F." She thought for a few moments, trying to think of a way to piss Faith off. "You're a complete loser. You couldn't protect your Watcher, you betrayed your friends, your calling. You're a worthless whore and a murderer."

Faith's eyes became cold.

"You're right, B," she said. "So one more isn't gonna bother me that much."

She threw a handful of sand into Buffy's face and then punched her in the face. Buffy rolled back, but it took a few moments for her to clear her eyes of the sand and in those few moments Faith had hit her several times. But then she could see again and she fought back.

They fought for several minutes, neither holding back. But finally Faith tripped and Buffy straddled her. Faith struggled, but Buffy grabbed a piece of wood from Faith's fire place and pointed it at Faith's throat. Faith froze for a moment and then grinned.

"Come on, B, do it," she said. "I know you want to. Come on, finish what you started."

Buffy stared at her for a few moments, trying to clear her head.

"Aww, come on, you're not having second thoughts, are you, B?" Faith taunted her. "I'm a monster, B, you'd be doing the world a favor. And nobody would ever know. Come on, B, do it. Do it!"

"No," Buffy said.

Faith blinked, surprised.

"B, if you don't kill me, I'll kill you. Right now is your only chance."

Buffy stared at her for a few moments, wondering how things got so out of hand.

"Damn it, Faith. I don't want to kill you."

Faith snorted.

"Right. Anyway, you have to. 'Cause if you don't, I'm gonna kill you. One way or the other this ends here and now." She paused for a moment. "And quite frankly I don't care which way it ends," she then added, her face serious. "Come on, B, you'll be doing us both a favor."

Buffy frowned, surprised.

"Do you really wanna die?"

"I don't care, B."

"What are you afraid of?"

Faith laughed.

"I just told you that I don't care whether I die and you want to know what I'm afraid of?"

"You don't want to leave this island and you don't care whether you live or die. That means you're afraid of something. Of living."

Faith stared at her for a few moments.

"Fuck you, B," she said and started to struggle again.

"Stop it, Faith."

"No can do, B. I'm gonna end this."

Faith's struggling got so fierce that Buffy had to decide what she wanted to do. She decided to knock Faith out. Then she threw the piece of wood away and sighed. She got off Faith and thought about what to do. She considered tying her up again but decided against it. She though some more and then decided to hide until Faith woke up and see what her reaction will be.

When Faith woke up a few minutes later, her head hurt a bit. She was confused for a moment, but then she remembered what had happened. She sat up and looked around. She saw that she was not tied up and that Buffy was nowhere to be seen. She sat for a few moments, confused. Buffy had left her alive. She wasn't sure if she should be happy about it or what. She recalled what Buffy had said to her and tears welled up in her eyes. No matter how hard she tried to protect herself, she always ended up hurt. There hadn't been many people that she cared about. Her mother betrayed her when she was little, she herself had failed her Watcher and she had betrayed Buffy. And what hurt her the most was not the fact that Buffy hated her but the fact that she thought for her as a worthless whore.

She screamed, frustrated, as a few tears slipped down her cheek. When she was done screaming, she cuddled up and started to cry.

Buffy had been watching Faith from the bushes, thinking about Faith sleeping with Riley. She wondered if she should be angry at Faith for sleeping with Riley or at Riley for not being able to tell the difference.

She jerked when Faith screamed and then gasped when Faith started to cry. She had finally gotten Faith to drop her walls and she had to be very careful about her next step. She slowly approached her.

When Faith finally sensed her and opened her eyes, Buffy stopped. Faith's eyes went wide and she backed off.

"I'm not going to hurt you, Faith," Buffy said. "I just want to talk. Please."

Faith didn't respond, and Buffy sighed.

"Look, I'm sorry. I didn't mean any of the things I said about you, I just wanted to piss you off so you'd open up to me. Though it didn't go quite as I planned."

Faith stopped backing off, and Buffy slowly approached her. When Faith wanted to back off again, Buffy stopped and sat down, leaning her back on the rock.

"What do you want from me?" Faith asked, wiping her tears.

"The truth." Buffy thought for a moment. "Look, I can't hurt you… I mean, okay, I did hurt you by what I said, but, I mean, I can't use what you might tell me against you. I mean, once I go back to the shelter you can move again and we won't be able to talk again." She sighed. "Look, we're stuck together on this island and we might never be rescued. I thought we could be friends again."

Faith stared at her for a few moments with a frown.

"I told you, we were never friends," she then said.

"Well, okay, but we might become friends."

Faith sighed, moved to the rock and leaned on it.

"It's too late now."

"It's never too late."

"Don't tell me you're just gonna forget what I did to you, B?"

"No, but I wanna know why you did it."

Faith sighed and looked away.

"All I ever wanted was for you to at least be my friend and accept me as an equal," she said sadly.

Buffy thought about that.

"I'm sorry for not being a better friend, Faith."

"Doesn't matter," Faith said resignedly.

"No, it has to matter," Buffy objected and Faith looked at her. "I want it to matter."

"Why, B?"

"Because I don't want to hate you anymore. Don't get me wrong, I'm still mad at you, but I don't want to hate you anymore. I need to understand why you did what you did and I want you to understand why I did what I did." She hesitated for a moment. "I want us to be as close as we were the week before you killed… before we killed Finch."

Buffy shuddered as she finally accepted her part of the blame.

Faith stared at her, surprised.

"We?"

Buffy nodded.

"We. I'm sorry I blamed it all on you, I just couldn't deal with it."

They stared at one another for a few moments and then Faith looked in front of herself.

"I was scared," she said quietly. "I knew what I did was wrong, so I tried to convince myself that I didn't care." She hesitated for a few moment, reluctant to open up. "And it… hurt when I saw the look in your eyes, that you blamed me for all of it."

Buffy smiled a little, glad that Faith was finally opening up. She looked in front of herself so that Faith wouldn't feel nervous.

"I know, I messed up."

Faith glanced at her and was relieved when she saw Buffy stare in front of herself instead of at her. She took a deep breath and thought for a moment. She was confused. A few minutes ago she and Buffy were ready to kill one another and now they were talking. And, strangely, she wasn't nervous about it. Well, at least not as nervous as before when she even refused to think about it all. And Buffy accepting her part of the blame made her feel much better. Sure, she didn't want either of them to feel guilty, but she didn't want to shoulder all the blame anymore. At least not for Finch.

"You don't think I'm a worthless whore?" she then asked in a quiet voice, dreading the answer.

Buffy looked at her, surprised when she heard how vulnerable Faith sounded.

"No." She hesitated for a moment. "I'm sorry I called you that, and other stuff, I just wanted to get you upset enough so that you would, well, talk to me."

"Oh."

Buffy stared at Faith for a few moments, noticing how nervous she looked, and then looked in front of herself again.

"We don't have to talk right now," she said, "but I really do want to talk to you, when you're ready."

Faith sighed.

"No, it's okay," she said, "we can talk a bit."

"Okay," Buffy said and waited for Faith to continue.

Faith thought for a few minutes. She was surprised to realize that she wasn't as nervous as she had been before. In fact, she felt a bit better now. Buffy didn't criticize her and she had apologized for what she had said. Faith found herself believing her. Still, she was afraid of what she would do if Buffy was bullshitting her.

"B?"

"Yeah?"

"I hope you're not bullshitting me. 'Cause if you are…"

She trailed off, and Buffy understood how hard opening up was for Faith. And she realized that she felt positive about the fact that she wanted them to be friends. In fact, she found herself looking forward to it, in spite of all the bad things that had happened between them.

"I'm not, Faith," she said.

Faith sighed and thought for a few more minutes.

"When you stabbed me…" She paused for a few moments. "I wanted you to kill me. I wanted you to know what it's like to be a killer." She paused again. "But at the same time I didn’t, that's why I jumped." She sighed. "I don't know, it's so confusing."

"Can I ask you something?"

Faith hesitated for a moment.

"Okay."

"Is that why you poisoned Angel?"

Faith thought for a few moments.

"No." She frowned. "I'm not sure. I did it because the Bo… the Mayor wanted you to be distracted." She hesitated for a few moments. "And I felt jealous of him," she then added quietly, a part of her hoping that Buffy would hear it, a part of her dreading it.

Buffy looked at her, surprised.

"Really?"

Faith sighed.

"Yeah."

Buffy thought for a few moments.

"Why?" she asked and Faith tensed. "You don't have to answer, if you don't want to," she quickly added.

Faith took a deep breath, having a fierce internal struggle as to whether she should tell Buffy the truth or not. She finally decided she really didn't have anything to lose.

"Because I loved you," she said quietly and braced herself for Buffy's reaction.

Buffy's eyes went wide from surprise and she just stared at Faith for a few moments.

"You did?"

Faith sighed.

"Yeah."

Buffy looked in front of herself, thinking. She had a pretty good idea that Faith was, or at least had been, interested in her sexually, but she had never thought that Faith actually loved her. And as if that wasn't confusing enough, there was also the fact that she wasn't quite sure how she felt towards Faith. Sure, now she hated her, but what about the week before Finch? Or even before Angel came back? She remembered how good it felt to be with Faith, especially when they were slaying together. And training. And dancing. She smiled a bit when she remembered how she had cut classes and they danced for hours. She wondered if things might have been different if Angel hadn't come back. She had no idea. And there was the whole them both being girls thing. She didn’t know how she felt about it or how her friends would feel about it.

She glanced at Faith. Sure, Faith was a gorgeous girl, but she was a girl. She tried to imagine how it would feel to make love to her, to hold her in her arms as a lover and she shuddered as she felt a tingling sensation in her stomach. Okay, that question was answered. Then she suddenly realized something.

"Wait, loved? As in past tense?" she asked, looking at Faith.

Faith looked at her, surprised by Buffy's reaction, and then quickly looked away as their eyes met. She sighed.

"I don't know, B, everything's so confusing now," she said, nervous.

"Oh," Buffy said and looked in front of herself again. "Wow."

"Surprised that I could love?" Faith asked bitterly, and Buffy looked at her, surprised.

"No. I'm surprised that you loved me," she said and this time Faith looked at her, surprised.

They stared at one another for a few moments.

"You really have no idea what effect you have on people, do you?" Faith then said, making Buffy blush. "Trust me, B, even Red had a crush on you," she added, causing Buffy's blush to deepen.

"She did?" Buffy asked, surprised.

"Yeah, but she probably wasn't aware of it," Faith said and looked in front of herself.

"Oh," Buffy said and did the same.

They were quiet again for a while.

"B?" Faith finally spoke.

"Yeah?"

Faith hesitated for a moment.

"I need to think now."

"Okay," Buffy said and got up.

Faith did the same and they stared at one another for a few moments.

"Em, do you want me to come here or are you going to come over to the shelter?" Buffy asked.

Faith thought for a moment.

"I'll come to the shelter."

"Okay." Buffy thought for a moment. "Are you gonna move again?"

Faith thought about it.

"No," she said, and Buffy smiled a bit.

"Okay. I'll see you when you're ready then."

"Yeah."

Buffy hesitated for a moment and then slowly walked away.

Faith stared after her until she was gone. Then she looked around and took a deep breath. She realized she felt calm. And she had hope again. She didn't expect Buffy to love her back, but she hoped that they would at least be friends.

She looked at the ocean and decided to take a swim, hoping it would chase away the anxiety she felt because she knew she had to think about her actions so she could then explain them to Buffy.

As Buffy lay in bed that night, she thought about what Faith had said. She understood Faith better now and she hoped to understand her even better. But what surprised her most was the fact that Faith had loved her. As she thought about that, her face turned into a smile. Of course, there was the little problem called Riley. She didn't know how she felt about him. Sure, he was a good friend and he was normal, at least as normal as she could hope for, but, she realized, she didn't feel that tingling sensation in her stomach when she thought about making love to him. She wondered if that meant she was gay. She tried to imagine making love to Willow and Cordelia and decided she didn't like the idea very much. Sure, they were beautiful, but they left her sexually cold. Okay, so she wasn't gay. Was she in love? She wasn't sure and she felt that it was too soon to think about that. She decided to let them become friends first and then see if there could be something more between them.

A couple of days later Faith finally found the courage to go see Buffy again. She took the beach route, not wanting to surprise Buffy. When she reached the part of the coast where their shelter was, she stopped far away, waiting for Buffy to notice her. Buffy soon did and waved at her to come closer.

"Hey," Buffy said with a smile when Faith came closer.

"Hey," Faith said, nervous.

"Did you come to talk?"

"Yeah," Faith said and looked at her feet, trying to calm down.

"Okay. Let's go over there."

Buffy led the way to a nice spot in the shadow where, Faith noticed, Buffy had made two simple benches a couple of meters apart. There was also a small bush in between, which barely prevented them from seeing one another's faces if they turned their heads. Faith guessed that Buffy wanted to make her feel comfortable and she relaxed a bit. Buffy took the left bench and Faith took the right one. They sat quietly for a few, minutes staring at the ocean, before Faith started to talk.

"You know why I tried to kill Xander?" she started quietly. "I wanted to prove to myself that I was bad, that I was a killer." She sighed. "But you stopped me." She thought for a moment. "I was angry at you and Angel for chaining me at first, but then Angel started to make sense and I was ready to listen to him." She paused, biting her teeth. "And then Wes came and messed it all up. After that I didn't trust any of you again."

"Is that why you went to the Mayor?" Buffy asked when Faith didn't say anything for a few moments.

"Partly. I knew I could be an asset to him and I knew he could protect me from the cops and the Council." She hesitated for a moment. "And he… In a way, he cared for me. I know he was a nutcase, but I didn't care, we were both evil."

"He cared for you?" Buffy asked, surprised.

"In a way." She hesitated for a moment. "He's the closest thing I had to a dad."

"Oh," Buffy said, surprised.

Faith sighed.

"I slowly started realizing that what I was doing was wrong, but I didn't want to admit it to myself."

"Is that why you told me his weakness?"

"Yeah."

They were quiet for a few moments.

"How did you kill him?" Faith then asked.

"I pissed him off and then lured him into the school," Buffy explained. "We packed it full with explosives and when I got out, Giles blew it up."

"And him."

"Yes."

Faith thought for a moment.

"Did many students die?"

"Not as many as there would've been if you didn't tell me his weakness." Buffy thought for a moment. "He was pretty pissed off when I told him I stabbed you, so I guess he did care for you."

"Yeah," Faith said, remembering.

They were quiet for a while.

"You know, I could've asked Mom if you could move in with us. Or with Giles," Buffy then said.

Faith thought about it.

"I probably wouldn't."

Buffy frowned.

"Why not?"

"I wanted to be independent."

"Oh."

Faith hesitated for a moment.

"Plus, I had just lost my Watcher and I didn't want to get too attached to anyone." She hesitated again. "Especially since I soon realized I had a crush on you," she finished quietly.

"Oh," Buffy said.

They were quiet again for a while, both thinking.

"B," Faith then spoke.

"Yes?"

Faith hesitated for a moment.

"Do you think I could come back here?"

Buffy smiled a bit.

"Sure," she said. "It gets kinda lonely."

"Yeah."

Another silence followed.

"Faith?" Buffy then spoke.

"Yeah?"

"When we get back, what are you going to do?"

"You really think we're gonna get back?"

"Yes."

Faith sighed.

"I don't know."

"Will you go back with me or do you still wanna stay here?"

Faith thought about it.

"I'd like to go back," she then decided.

Buffy smiled.

"Good. And what will you do?"

Faith sighed again.

"I don't know, B. I mean, I know I have to apologize to your friends, but…"

"You don't have to," Buffy interrupted her.

"Huh?" Faith said, surprised, and looked toward her. "What do you mean?"

"You don't have to unless you want to," Buffy clarified.

"Oh." Faith thought about it. "I want to," she then decided and Buffy smiled again. "Do you want me to turn myself in?" she asked.

Buffy thought about it.

"No, I don't think so. I mean, you couldn't do any good in jail."

Faith hesitated for a moment.

"Do you trust me?" she then asked in a quiet voice.

"I trust you enough to give you a chance to redeem yourself. And I'll help you."

Faith swallowed.

"Thanks."

"You're welcome."

Another silence followed.

"You know why I wanted to stay here?" Faith then asked.

"Why?"

"Because I didn't want to risk abusing my powers again and I was too big a coward to kill myself."

"Oh," Buffy said and thought about it. "I don't think you're a coward, I think you were still hoping for a second chance."

Faith considered this.

"I don't know. Could be," she allowed.

"I prefer to be optimistic," Buffy said. She thought for a moment. "Are you gonna stay for dinner?"

Faith looked toward her and thought about it. She was a bit unsure, but they seemed to be getting along fine and she thought they could start socializing outside of their talks.

"Sure," she said.

"Okay."

They sat like that for the next few hours, occasionally talking, but mostly just enjoying the feeling that they were on the same side again.

A couple of weeks later, Faith finally decided to go back to their shelter. She had been visiting Buffy every few days at first, but then more and more often, until she was there every day. She soon realized that it would be better if she just moved there, but she was nervous at the prospect of being with Buffy twenty-four/seven.

After she finally got over her nervousness, she packed what little belongings she had and the food and then went to the shelter. She was worried about Buffy's reaction, but when Buffy smiled upon realizing she was coming back, she relaxed.

"Welcome back," Buffy said when Faith came close enough.

"Thanks," Faith said.

"You got your food?"

"Yeah."

"I'll take it to the freezer."

"Okay," Faith said and gave her the food.

"Fish?"

"A couple."

"We better prepare them now. You up for an early lunch?"

Faith shrugged.

"Sure."

"Okay. Make yourself at home."

Buffy went to the box where she kept the cooking stuff and put the fish and some fruit on it. Then she went to the natural freezer to put away the fruits.

Faith went to the shelter. She saw that Buffy had removed the chains and closed the hole. In fact, she was sleeping in that box now. She put her stuff in the box opposite Buffy's and then looked around. She noticed the fish and decided to start preparing them since Buffy wanted an early lunch. She went to the kitchen box and started checking out if there was anything new.

When Buffy returned, she smiled when she saw Faith checking out the kitchen box.

"Are you gonna cook?" she asked.

Faith looked at her, nervous.

"Okay."

"Okay."

They stared at one another for a couple of moments and then Faith concentrated on cooking, and Buffy went to the benches, sat down and observed her.

After a week, they got along pretty well. They started training together and both had to admit it to themselves that they enjoyed it. At night, after they went to bed but before they fell asleep, Faith would tell Buffy about herself and Buffy did likewise.

One day Faith noticed Buffy staring at her thoughtfully. It made her nervous, but she decided to ask Buffy about it.

"Is something wrong?" she asked.

"Huh?" Buffy said, startled. "Oh," she smiled, "no."

Faith hesitated for a moment.

"You've been staring at me."

Buffy blushed a bit.

"I've been thinking."

"About?"

"You."

"Oh," Faith said, getting nervous by the moment.

Buffy sighed.

"You know, I don't hate you anymore," she said.

Faith gasped.

"You don't?"

"No. I mean, I'm still angry about it sometimes, but at least I understand now."

"Oh," Faith said, relieved.

Buffy hesitated for a moment, nervous.

"And I… I love you," she finally admitted.

Faith just stared at her, surprised.

"You… do?"

Buffy smiled.

"Yes. Took me long enough to admit it to myself."

Faith thought for a moment.

"What about Riley?"

Buffy sighed.

"He's okay, I guess, but now that I've had time to think about it, he's… not you. Or even Angel. Don't get me wrong, he's a great guy, he's just… not you." She thought for a moment. "And neither is Angel."

Faith raised an eyebrow, surprised.

"You mean that?"

Buffy smiled, blushing.

"Yes."

Faith sighed and thought for a few moments.

"I… I still… love you," she then admitted, and looked at her feet, nervous.

Buffy's eyes went wide.

"Really?" she asked, excited.

"Yeah."

Buffy smiled.

"That's great."

"Yeah." Faith took a deep breath. "Feel like sparing?"

"Okay."

Another week passed and both finally felt at ease with one another. They knew they loved one another, but neither did anything about it, so finally Buffy decided to change that. A perfect opportunity came when they were sparring and Buffy ended on top of Faith. They stared at one another and then Buffy started to lean in for a kiss. When Faith realized that, she gasped.

"Eh, B?"

"Yes?" Buffy asked, still leaning closer.

"What are you doing?"

Buffy blushed.

"Trying to kiss you."

"Don't."

Buffy frowned.

"Why?"

"Because you're with Riley."

"So?" Buffy said, confused. "I love you, not him."

Faith felt flattered, but she knew she had to stop this.

"I know, but you're still with him."

"But I'm going to break up with him."

"But you haven't yet."

Buffy sat straight and frowned again.

"And if we're stuck here for good?"

Faith frowned and looked away.

"Then we're never gonna be together," she said quietly.

Buffy stared at Faith for a few moments, thinking, and then got off her.

"I understand."

Faith looked at her, worried that she had messed up again.

"B, I didn’t mean it like that," she said, sitting up.

Buffy smiled.

"I know. You're worried that you'll end up hurt."

Faith gulped, nervous.

"Yeah."

"That's okay, I understand. I'm sorry I tried to kiss you."

Faith started at her for a few moments and then chuckled.

"I'm not," she said. "I just wish the circumstances were different."

Buffy smiled again.

"Me too." She looked at the ocean. "I wish someone would rescue us soon."

"Me too," Faith said.

They stared into one another's eyes for a few moments and then Buffy got up and offered Faith her hand. Faith accepted it and got up as well.

"Ready for more?" Buffy asked.

Faith grinned.

"Bring it on."

A week later, Faith was fishing when she noticed a ship approaching.

"B!" she called. "B, look!"

Buffy came running to her.

"What?"

"A ship. There."

Buffy looked at where Faith was pointing.

"I'll go light the pyre," Buffy said and started to run toward the pyre they had built.

"B, wait!" Faith suddenly called.

Buffy stopped.

"What?!"

Faith stared toward the ship intently.

"Shit." She glanced at Buffy. "They're pirates."

Buffy frowned.

"How do you know?" she asked and ran back to Faith.

"They're shooting," Faith said and started to run toward the stream, from where she could see farther.

Buffy looked at the ship and also noticed the smoke from a cannon being fired.

"Damn," she said and ran after Faith.

"There's another ship, B!" Faith called back.

"What kind?!"

"A yacht!" She glanced at Buffy, who finally arrived. "They're trying to board them."

"Damn. Can we do anything?"

"No, they're too far from the shore and we can't get there in time."

"Damn."

While they helplessly watched the pirates shoot at the unarmed yacht and then board it and execute the crew and the passengers, they failed to notice that the pirate ship wasn't alone. Its companion ship had moved around the island, trying to corner the yacht, which turned out not to be necessary. As the crew raced toward the yacht so they would not be cheated out of the booty, they noticed Buffy in Faith, who were observing the attack on the yacht. They also noticed their camp and the captain quickly ordered a boat to sail to the island and capture them.

By the time either Slayer felt there was something wrong, the pirates were on the shore and running toward them.

"Shit," Faith said when she noticed them.

Buffy looked and cursed herself mentally.

"Time to kick ass," she said, slipping into Slayer Mode.

"Time to run," Faith said. "They got guns," she explained when Buffy looked at her, puzzled.

Buffy looked at the pirates again.

"They're not holding them," she said.

"Yet. If we engage them and they reach for guns, we're pretty much screwed. Unless you're bulletproof and haven't told me."

"Good point," Buffy said. "Run."

The Slayers started running toward the forest and the pirates followed them. One of the pirates took his AK-47 and started firing in order to stop them from escaping. Faith simply jumped over the stream of bullets, but Buffy tried to stop and she tripped and fell. Faith stopped and helped her up, but then the pirates caught up with them and they had to defend themselves. They managed to beat them up, but then the pirates decided that they were too much trouble and they took their guns.

"Run!" Buffy yelled and started running.

Faith didn't hesitate and she quickly followed her, but then she noticed that one of the pirates was aiming at Buffy.

"Watch out!" she yelled and ran into the stream of bullets that was closing in on Buffy.

She gasped as the force of impact threw her on the ground.

Buffy immediately felt that something was wrong. She turned around and her eyes went wide.

“Faith!” she screamed and ran to her.

“B,” Faith moaned before everything went black.

In the kitchen, Joyce was just serving Dawn her breakfast when they heard Buffy’s scream over the baby phone. They looked at one another for a moment and then ran upstairs.

Buffy suddenly gasped as everything changed. She looked around, puzzled.

“Faith,” she said, relieved, when she saw her lying beside her.

Faith moaned and slowly opened her eyes.

“B?”

Buffy quickly lifted the cover and was relieved when she saw that Faith was okay.

“You’re okay, you’re not bleeding.”

Faith looked at herself, also relieved. Then she looked at Buffy.

“You?”

“I’m fine,” Buffy said and hugged her.

Faith wanted to hug her back, but she couldn’t, something was holding her hand.

“B.”

“Yes?” Buffy said and let go of her.

Faith looked at her wrist, and Buffy followed her look.

“You’re chained,” she said, surprised.

Faith then looked at her other wrist. Buffy felt the movement and she looked as well.

“Buffy?” Dawn said as she barged in.

The Slayers both looked at her.

“Dawn,” Buffy said, surprised.

“Buffy!” Dawn squealed, ran to her and hugged her.

Buffy hugged her back with her free arm.

“I can’t believe you’re finally awake,” Dawn said, happy, and let go of Buffy. Then she looked at Faith, nervous. “Em, hi, Faith.”

Faith just stared at her.

“Dawn, what’s going on?” Buffy asked. She looked at her mother, who arrived at that moment. “Mom?”

“Buffy,” Joyce said with a smile, happy. “How are you?”

“Confused, Mom.” She looked around. “What happened? Why are we chained?”

Joyce glanced at Faith, who looked away, gulping.

“Well, Riley found you both in that church. You were unconscious.” She frowned. “You are you, aren’t you?”

“Yeah, Mom, I’m Buffy,“ Buffy said.

“Good,” Joyce said, relieved.

“Why are we chained?”

“Mr Giles thought it would be best if we took care of Faith, but he didn’t want her to run away again, hence the chains.”

“Can you remove them?”

“Are you sure?” Joyce asked, glancing at Faith.

“Yeah, Mom, she’s not running anywhere.”

“Okay,” Joyce said.

She got up, went to the nightstand and took out a key from the drawer.

“You kept the key in the nightstand?” Buffy said, surprised.

“Yes. It was close and we didn’t think anyone would look there for it.”

“Oh.”

Joyce unchained Faith from them hospital bed on which they were both lying, and then from Buffy.

“How long?” Faith asked.

“What?” Joyce said, startled, and looked at her.

“How long were we out?”

“Oh.” Joyce thought for a moment. “A little more than four months.”

Faith froze.

“Faith?” Buffy asked, feeling that Faith was very upset.

“Four months,” Faith said quietly.

“It felt that long, yeah,” Buffy said.

“No! You don’t get it!” Faith yelled. “Four more months of my life are wasted. Plus the eight from before. That makes a whole year, B. A whole fucking year of my life wasted!”

“Oh,” Buffy said.

Faith ripped out the IV drip and other wires and then got up. Joyce backed off, not sure what state of mind Faith was in. Buffy got up as well and she confronted Faith.

“They weren’t wasted, Faith,” she said. She reached over and took Faith’s hands into her own. “At least the last four.”

“The hell they weren’t, B,” Faith said, upset, and tried to pull her hands free, but she couldn’t.

“They weren’t, Faith,” Buffy insisted. “We were on that island together and…”

“It wasn’t real, B, it was just a dream.”

“So? Does it really matter whether we were there for real or just in our heads? The important thing is that we talked.” She thought for a moment. “I mean, when we switched bodies for the first time, nothing happened, but the second time we both ended up in coma. There has to be a reason for that.” She paused and gently squeezed Faith’s hands. “You got a second chance, Faith,“ she said softly, “please don’t waste it.”

Faith stared at her for a few moments and then slumped with a sigh. Buffy hesitated for a moment and then hugged her. Faith tensed, surprised, but she slowly hugged her back.

They remained like that for a few moments and then Buffy’s stomach growled. She let go of Faith and looked at her mother, who, along with Dawn, stared at her, confused.

“Mom, can you make us something to eat?”

“Yes, of course, honey,” Joyce said, relieved that Buffy had managed to calm Faith down.

“Thanks.” Buffy looked at herself and then at Faith. “We need to take a bath.”

Faith looked at herself as well and then at Buffy.

“Yeah.”

“Come.”

Buffy let go of one of Faith’s hands and then led her to the bathroom.

“Okay, what am I missing, Mom?” Dawn asked when they were gone. “I thought they hated one another.”

“So did I,” Joyce said, puzzled.

“And what island was she talking about?”

“I don’t know, honey.”

“I’ll go call Giles.”

“No,” Joyce said.

Dawn looked at her with a frown.

“Why not?”

“Let’s give them some time for themselves.”

“Oh.”

“I’ll run us a bath,” Buffy said when they got to the bathroom.

“Eh, B,” Faith said, nervous, “I don’t think we should bathe together.”

Buffy looked at her.

“Why not?”

“Because it’s very… intimate and you and Riley are still together.”

“Oh,” Buffy said, disappointed. “Right.” She sighed. “But would you mind if I take a shower at the same time as you take a bath?”

“I can take a shower.”

“No, it’s alright, Faith, I’ll take a shower.” She hesitated for a moment. “Em, will you at least help me shave me legs?” she then asked, uncertain. “And I’ll help you shave yours, of course,” she quickly added.

Faith thought about it.

“Okay,” she then agreed.

Buffy smiled.

“Great.”

After they were washed and shaven, they went to Buffy’s room.

“Pick what you’d like to wear,” Buffy said after she took out the clothes for herself.

“You sure?” Faith asked, surprised.

“Yes,” Buffy said with a nod.

Faith hesitated for a moment and then checked out Buffy’s clothes. She picked a pair of jeans pants and a black tank top. She added a pair of socks and a pair of panties and then glanced at Buffy, who was already dressed. Buffy turned away to give her some privacy, and Faith quickly dressed.

“I’m done,” Faith said when she was done.

“Pick your shoes,” Buffy said and pointed at the shoes.

Faith looked at them and quickly picked a pair of Docs. She put them on and then looked at Buffy.

“Ready?” Buffy asked.

Faith took a deep breath.

“Yeah.”

Buffy smiled encouragingly.

“Come then,” she said and led the way downstairs.

Faith followed her, suddenly very nervous at the prospect of having to face Joyce and Dawn again. And the Scoobs. She gulped and followed Buffy.

“Mom,” Buffy said as they entered the kitchen.

Joyce turned and smiled.

“Buffy.” Then she looked at Faith. “Faith.”

“Hi,” Faith said nervously.

Joyce stared at her for a couple of moments, making Faith very nervous, and then looked at Buffy.

“We didn’t call Mr Giles yet,” she told her.

“Good.”

“Are you very hungry?”

“Starving.”

Joyce smiled.

“Good. Sit down.”

The Slayers sat, and Joyce served the food.

“That way great, Mom,” Buffy said when they were done.

Joyce smiled.

“Good.”

She put the remains of the food away and then Dawn helped her put the dishes into the dishwasher while the two Slayers relaxed, though Faith was anything but relaxed. When they were done, Joyce and Dawn sat down as well.

“What island?” Dawn then blurted out.

“Dawn,” Joyce chided her.

“No, it’s okay, Mom,” Buffy said. She thought for a moment. “We… shared a dream,” she then said. “Or coma, whatever. In that dream we were stuck on an island somewhere in the Pacific. We didn’t get along at first, but eventually we did.” She smiled at Faith. “And Faith earned herself a second chance.” She looked back at Joyce. “At least as far as I’m concerned.”

Joyce thought for a moment.

“Are you sure?”

“Yes, Mom.”

Joyce sighed.

“Alright. But you’ll have to convince your friends and Mr Giles.”

“I know.”

“When will you call them?”

Buffy looked at Faith.

“Faith?”

Faith shrugged.

“The sooner the better,” she said quietly.

“Okay, I’ll go call Giles then.”

Buffy got up and left, leaving Faith alone with Joyce and Dawn, who were staring at her. Faith swallowed, nervous.

“I… Em… I’m sorry,” she then said, looking at Joyce, “for hitting you and terrorizing you and all.” She looked at Dawn. “You too, Dawn.” She took a deep breath, hesitating. “And thanks for believing in me when even Buffy didn’t,” she then quietly told Joyce.

Joyce nodded.

“Buffy may have forgiven you, but you’ll have to work hard to convince the others.”

Faith nodded.

“I know.”

As the hour of the Scoobs’ arrival drew near, Faith grew more and more nervous. She knew she’d messed up badly and she hoped that the Scoobs would be as forgiving as the Summers women. Though she doubted that Riley would be overly fond of her when Buffy broke up with him. She shook her head and pushed the thought away. Sure, Buffy claimed she loved her, but until she actually broke up with Riley, Faith refused to hope.

Then the bell finally rang and Faith nearly jumped. Joyce went to open the door, and Faith nervously waited for the Scoobs to enter. Dawn joined her and a moment later Buffy as well.

“Buffy!” Willow said, excited, when she entered and saw Buffy.

“Willow,” Buffy said and they hugged.

“Are you okay?” Willow then asked.

“I’m fine.”

“Hello, Buffy,” Riley said and approached her.

Buffy tensed, and behind her Faith did as well.

“Hi, Riley,” Buffy said and they hugged.

“Buffy?” Giles then asked and glanced at Faith, who was standing still as a statue.

“Oh, she’s okay. She’s earned a second chance.”

Giles frowned.

“She has?”

“Yes.” Buffy looked at Faith. “Why don’t you tell them what happened.”

Faith’s eyes went wide.

“Me?”

“Yes. I need to talk to Riley.”

“Oh,” Faith said and gulped.

“Riley, come,” Buffy said and dragged him away.

Faith looked at the Scoobs and they back at her.

“What happened?” Tara asked.

Faith looked at her, nervous.

“We shared a dream,” she said.

“A dream?” Giles asked, immediately interested. “In coma?”

“Yes.”

“What kind of dream?”

Faith shrugged.

“Normal.”

“What was it about?” Tara asked.

Faith hesitated for a moment.

“We were the only survivors of a plane crash.”

“A plane crash?” Xander asked. “What were you doing on a plane?”

“Buffy was taking me to England for rehabilitation.”

“Oh.”

“And then?” Giles asked.

“I don’t know. When I woke up, I was tied up in a shelter Buffy made. I escaped after a week or so and then I tied her up. A week later, I stepped on a poisonous fish and passed out. Buffy freed herself and took care of me. When I woke up, I took some things and left the camp. Buffy found me, we talked and we made up,” Faith made it short.

“That’s it?” Xander asked dubiously.

“Yeah.”

“And she forgave you?”

“Yeah.”

“Just like that?”

Faith shrugged, nervous.

“Yeah.”

“She has changed,” Tara said.

“What do you mean?” Willow asked.

“Her aura, it’s lighter.”

“It is?” Willow asked and looked at Faith.

“Yes.”

“Em, guys,” Faith said and flinched when everyone looked at her. “I’m sorry,” she then said.

Everyone stared at her for a few moments.

“Is it just me or did she just apologize?” Xander then asked.

Faith sighed.

“Look, I know I messed up big time and I’m not saying you should forgive me right away or just because Buffy had, but I hope you’d give me another chance.”

She thought she sounded pathetic, but she wanted to be their friend. For real this time.

“She apologized to us as well,” Dawn said.

“She did?” Willow asked.

“Yes.”

“What is it, Buffy?” Riley asked when they stopped in the kitchen and Buffy didn’t immediately start.

Buffy looked at him and sighed.

“Do you remember when you told me that if I wanted to break your heart I should do it quickly?”

Riley tensed, having a really sinking feeling in his stomach.

“Yes.”

“Well… God, I still can’t believe I’m doing this.” She sighed. “It’s over between us,” she said.

“Why?” Riley asked. “Is it something I did?”

“No, no, you did nothing wrong. Hell, you’re every girl’s dream boy.”

“But not yours.”

Buffy looked down, nervous.

“No,” she said quietly. She hesitated for a moment. “And there’s another thing,” she said.

“There is?” Riley asked, wondering what could be worse.

“Yes. Faith and me, we shared a dream while we were in coma and we… Well, we made up and we became close.”

“In a dream?”

“Well, technically it was more than just a dream. I mean, it wasn’t me dreaming about her and her dreaming about me, it was us dreaming together,” she babbled. “You know, interactive sort of thing.”

“And you got together?” Riley asked, surprised.

“Well, no, not together as in sleep together,” Buffy said, blushing. “I mean, I was all for it, I thought we were really stuck on that island, but Faith didn’t want to even talk about it.”

“She didn’t?” Riley asked, surprised.

“No. She didn’t want us to regret it if we were saved. You know, she’d slept with you and…”

“You know that?” Riley asked, surprised.

“Yes, she told me. And no, I’m not mad at you.” She sighed. “Look, I know it sounds complicated, hell, even I’m not sure about everything sometimes. You and Angel, you’ll always be special to me, but Faith…”

“I thought you hated each other.”

“We did. But there was a time when we were really close. At least it looked that way. I never really gave Faith a chance, there was always so much going on.” She sighed. “I don’t want to lose you, Riley. I mean, I’m losing you as a boyfriend, but I don’t want to lose you as a friend,” she said nervously. “You think we can still be friends?”

Riley stared at her for a few moments, too stunned to speak.

“I need to think about it,” he then said.

“Will you let me know?”

“Yes,” Riley said and left through the back door.

Buffy sighed and went back to the living room.

“Guys?” Buffy asked when she saw everyone was just staring at Faith.

“She apologized,” Dawn said.

“Oh.” Buffy went to Faith and took her hand, smiling at her when Faith looked at her with a raised eyebrow. “I broke up with him.”

“You broke up with Riley?” Xander said, surprised.

Buffy looked at him.

“Yes.”

He looked at their hands.

“And you and Faith…”

“We’re together now.” Buffy looked at Faith. “Right?”

“Eh, yeah,” Faith said, still shocked that Buffy had really broken up with Riley for her.

"You are?" Xander asked, confused.

"Yes," Buffy said. "It's a long story."

"Not according to Faith," Anya said.

Buffy looked at Faith.

"What did you tell them?"

Faith shrugged, nervous.

"The most important things."

"Oh." Buffy looked at the guys. "I'll tell you all about it later."

"So, everything is alright now?" Giles asked.

"Yeah," Buffy said. "Oh," she suddenly remembered and looked at her mother. "Mom, can Faith stay here?"

"Here?" Joyce said, surprised.

"Well, yeah. I mean, she doesn't exactly own much. She doesn't have any clothes and she can't even afford a motel room."

"Oh."

"Are you sure?" Faith asked Buffy, nervous.

"Yes," Buffy said. "Mom?"

Joyce looked at Faith and stared at her for a few moments, making Faith even more nervous.

"Will you behave?" she then asked her.

"Yes, Ma'am," Faith said.

"Okay, then. We'll make the spare room ready later."

"Thank you."

Joyce nodded.

"Oh, the police want to talk to you, Faith," she then remembered.

Faith tensed again and Buffy quickly squeezed her hand reassuringly.

"Hey, it'll be alright."

Faith took a deep breath.

"Yeah."

"Do you want me to get rid of the evidence?" Willow asked.

"Would you?" Buffy said.

Willow looked at Faith, hesitating.

"I'll get right on it. I'll call you when I'm done and then you can call the cops."

"Okay, thanks."

"Thanks, Red," Faith said.

Willow nodded and then she and Tara left.

"I take it that Faith will lie to the police," Giles said.

"Yes," Buffy said.

"Very well then. Call me when it's over."

Buffy nodded.

"I will."

"Good," Giles said and left

"Eh, I guess we'll go as well," Xander said, glancing at Faith.

"Okay," Buffy said. "I'll see you guys later."

"Okay."

Xander glanced at Faith one last time and then he and Anya left as well.

Buffy looked at Faith.

"Come on, let's go watch some TV."

"Okay," Faith said and let Buffy lead her to the sofa.

Dawn and Joyce stared after them and then Joyce went to the kitchen and Dawn upstairs.

"Ooh," Buffy suddenly realized when they sat down.

"What?" Faith asked, worried that something was wrong.

Buffy looked at her with a big smile.

"Okay, now we're together, right?"

"Eh, yeah," Faith said, puzzled.

"Good," Buffy said and kissed her.

Faith froze for a moment, surprised, but then she relaxed and responded to the kiss.

The kiss was short and gently, but it still left the two Slayers breathless.

"I wanted to do that for a long time," Buffy said and smiled sheepishly.

Faith smiled.

"Me too, B."

"So, there are no obstacles anymore?"

Faith shrugged.

"Just the cops and the Council."

"I know. I mean, you know, for us to do what other couples do," Buffy said, blushing.

Faith smiled again.

"Nope," she said and Buffy smiled.

"So, does that mean I finally get to ravage you?"

Faith blushed.

"Tonight?"

"If you're ready?"

Faith grinned.

"I was born ready, B."

"Good."

Buffy leaned back and put her arm around Faith. Faith hesitated for a moment and then leaned her head on Buffy's shoulder.

"I love you, B."

Buffy smiled, glancing at her.

"I love you too, F."

The End