A/N: Yay for reviews! You guys made my day! Much love to everyone. Hope you enjoy this chappy. Promise the next one will be up soon.

//

Spike was pissed. Because Julia was pissed. There was no way he was getting any of that any time soon. To add, he wasn't just pissed. He was pissed at her. Which just made it a million times worse! Spike had been trying to forget the whole scene, but the looming thought of an angry Julia caused the reason to replay again and again in his mind. Faye's body pressed to his. The feel of her breath on his face...

"STOP!!" Spike exclaimed aloud, his shout reverberating off his office walls. A few RDIs gave him puzzled, annoyed looks from their glass offices. Spike spun around in his chair and looked out the large glass window. "Damn," he said through grit teeth as a certain part of his body had started acting up at the memory. But it wasn't just the memory that was bugging him. It was something else.

When he had found Julia she had been hunched over, crying in the corner of her room. Despite his macho attitude, he couldn't stand to see a woman cry. He'd leaned in, consoled her, held her close. He felt guilty, he realized, but not as guilty as he should have felt. Maybe that was the reason he even felt guilty, period. Regardless, they weren't even together and yet he felt like he had betrayed her in some way. Julia had fallen asleep in his arms after she'd spent her tears. He'd tucked her in, looking at the face of what he'd always imagined an angel's must look like. Shutting the blinds, he'd shut the door, stopping an inch before he closed it completely to gaze once more at the sleeping beauty.

He'd felt different early this morning. Seeing how Julia had truly cared for him should have made him the happiest man on earth. But he was angry. Angry at Faye because ever since she had shown up things had been going wrong. After years of pining after Julia, she was finally ready to admit her feelings, be his. And Faye was ruining it. Ruining it in a way he didn't want to admit. He loved Julia, dammit! Still, the emotions that had flooded him when he'd held Faye in his arms....

He concentrated his gaze outside; a helicopter craft was disappearing into the distance.

"I have to talk to Mao."

//

Faye was in the Red Dragon Gardens examining some fiery red daffodils—she'd never seen such a vibrant red color on the flower. She asked Vicious if he had ever seen one. He had invited to show her around the grounds, going on about how the gardens provided almost absolute Zen and was essential for any Red Dragon warrior to visit after a battle to escape.

"Mmm." His thin lips curled into a gentle smile, amused at her childlike behavior as she darted to a koi pond covered by tall reeds, already forgetting she'd asked him a question.

She stooped low next to the pond, pointing at a rather big koi that was making an "O" with its mouth, causing water to pop above its head. "I'm going to name him...Oleander," she decided, looking at Vicious for his approval.

He couldn't help but laugh. "Oleander it is. Faye, you're the cutest girl I've ever known."

Out of the reeds came a scuffling, half-snorting sound. Vicious and Faye had already taken a martial arts stance when a rather freaked out Lin stumbled out of the reeds with his hands held up in mock surrender.

"Lin," Vicious practically growled.

"Were you SPYING on us?!!" Faye finished for him.

"What? Whoa, no!!" Lin took a step back. "Honestly, I came here to get Vicious."

"Then why didn't you just take the path?" Vicious asked coolly.

"I—uh, really Vicious, Mao wants to talk to you."

"Avoiding the question, eh?" Faye grabbed Lin and noogied him while Vicious looked on majestically.

"Faye, I should get going if what this pervert is saying is true."

"Right." Faye let go of Lin, giving him his chance to escape.

"I'll see you soon, Faye." He moved towards her, glanced in the direction Lin had sprinted away in, then leaned in and gave her a feathery kiss on the cheek.

Blushing furiously, she watched as Vicious turned to wave at her, then disappear down the path that led back to the RDI building.

As the redness from her face faded, she couldn't stop herself from thinking about the green-haired man that had been dominating her thoughts all day. Her brow furrowed as she willed herself not to think of his lips inches away from hers...his breath, light and airy. And the feelings she'd felt...

After her initial response to Spike's rude behavior, or him dumping her on the floor, she'd realized that she was what she'd always dreaded to be—a home wrecker. It had dampened her anger and made her feel guilty, though, she thought, there was no reason to feel guilty. She hadn't done anything! Had she? Was there something she had done to make him react in such a way? After wracking her brain she decided that it was simply because he was a man. Men couldn't control themselves when it came to women. It had nothing to do with the fact that there had been a connection between them, that when his mismatched eyes looked into hers they had looked into her heart, into her soul.

Faye sighed, annoyed at the fact that she couldn't stop thinking about the almost-kiss. She wasn't even able to get to sleep afterward. She'd gone out to the local quickie mart to pick up a pack of cigarettes. Although she was trying to quit, she knew there was no other way to get him out of her mind than to distract her brain with nicotine. But it wasn't her head that was the problem. She'd returned to the building, only to climb the stairs all the way to the top of the building. Sitting on the very edge she'd puffed on several cancer sticks until, finally, she felt the realm of sleep call to her. But sleep wasn't what she needed. Even in dreamland, she couldn't escape him.

"Faye."

She froze, paralyzed by the sound of his voice. It was serious, deep. Spike was standing a few feet away from her, looking at her like she was a stranger. It hurt her for some reason, although the way he'd said her name made it seem like they'd known each other for years.

"There's something we need to discuss." He stayed where he was, she noticed, only shifting his stance slightly. "I don't think..." he paused. "I talked to Mao and we've arranged for you to have a new instructor. Vicious."

Faye just stood quietly, unable to formulate words. She fought to keep the hurt out of her voice. "Why?"

"Well, Faye..." Spike wasn't sure what to say. That he couldn't stop thinking about her? That Julia was the one for him and that not seeing one another would make these sudden, bothersome feelings go away? "Vicious, he requested for you to be his pupil."

"Oh..." Faye knew it was a lie, but she dropped it. She knew why. "Spike, I want to apologize." She met his auburn eyes. "Sincerely. I don't know...I don't know what happened. I didn't mean to mess things up."

"You didn't mess things up, Faye. I did." Spike meant it. "I'm going to make things right, so don't worry." He offered her a goofy grin. "I know you'll become a vital syndicate member, Vicious is a great instructor."

"Thanks." She managed a weak smile. "I trust you."

Spike felt like his heart was plummeting. He fought against it as hard as he could. "Another thing, Faye. Julia and I have been given an assignment on Jupiter. I won't be seeing you for two years or so." He let it sink in. "I expect you to be our number one assassin by then, got it, student?"

Faye was fighting against combating emotions—relief and heartbreak. "Yeah, I got it. Don't you worry."

"Alright then...I'll be seeing you...Faye."

"See you...Spike."

//

A/N: Alright guys! There you have it. Sorry that this took awhile to get up. I was a bit discouraged by the lack of reviews BUT you guys have totally motivated me again!!! I love you all, you guys are just great!!!