Raye came into the inn, and went straight for the bar. She grabbed up a bottle of whiskey. No glass. No nothing. She made for the couch and drooped like a sack of flour onto it. She hadn't slept and it showed. She unscrews the bottle and begins gulping.

Moments later, as clandestinely as a man of Chuckie's size could, he slipped in through the kitchen entrance. He'd cut his hair short, sick of the small curly ponytail. Now a mop of curls on top of his head, every which way. A long-sleeved striped rugby shirt with the sleeves pushed up, and the usual rancher's jeans. A push and a gentle walk through the swinging door that connected kitchen to backbar, jungle-green eyes on the common room. Whose enblazoned mess of hair was that? Looked like someone he knew very well. A grin curling one edge of full gypsy lips.

Raye sipped and sighed. She was brooding, and fretting. For a woman that wasn't particularly emotional, she sure looked it. She was oblivious to the approaching freight train. Lost in her own thoughts and the bottle.

"'Ow'stha't'ehn?" Chuckie said in her general direction, the end bit off as a cigarette was pinned to his lips. The hard snap of matchhead on wood

"Wha?" She snapped out of it, not quick enough to pick up his words. Raye pushed herself to one side of the couch, knees pulled to chest as she looks up at him like a caged cat.

An arch of his eyebrow, a slightly amused expression on his face. Watching her in silence for a minute, before bounding over the couch and dropping onto the part not occupied by her. "Saeihd'ow'stha't'ehn?"

"Oh..." She falls silent, not answering. She just takes another sip from her bottle. Raye peers at him from over her bent knees, shoulders slumped. She's still in the corner of the couch, avoiding contact.

Further arch of his brow, sucking on the cancerstick, he plucked it from between his lips, leaning over, after exhaling through his nostrils. "Cah'gah'y'tohng' louhvelaehy?"

"Don't call me that... " She said softly with a sigh. She shook of her head. A hand is raked through hair, long and slow, almost violently. She can't meet his gaze. LIfting the bottle, she took another swig.

Chuckie was oblivious. But that made him pull his head back a little. Cigarette nestled deep between two fingers. "Sohme't'ihn'uhp?"

Wow he really was oblivious, Raye mused. She examined him for a minute. It made her smile to watch him. Relaxed, hillarious... her lip trembled a moment. She didn't want to cry. She wouldn't. Just remember this moment... and then ruin it. That was the plan. "Yeah... something's up." She said quietly.

"Gouhnnahcuh' maeihnahni'? Ohrshoulh'Oistaehr'guehssihn'?" Of course he was! He had no reason to suspect anything wrong beyond the usual. Or maybe she'd shot the wrong person in her new line of work...

"Remember when I told you about my finger....?" That was as far as she was getting right now. She let her legs fall to the floor with a gentle thump...thump. Silently, she watched him. Her expression had become unreadable.

He nodded slowly. "Aye."

"I ran into the guy again last night." Ran into was not the case, she'd been followed. But Raye was way too proud to admit that. She leaned down to put the bottle at her feet, turning completely to face him now.

"T'goiuybaeihn' y'ehcks'uhsbahn', aye?" He placed the cigarette back to his lips, after he ashed it over the side of the couch.

Raye shook her head slowly. "No, no.. someone looking for him." She flinched, just a tad.

"Och. An'? Tha'sw'a'gah'y'ahll ji'haehrraehy?" A tilt of his head, watching her. "Spihllt'rehs'ou'Raehye. 'Mahbihgbaehy."

She cringed and the lip quivered again. She was going to cry, wasn't she? Not yet, though... no. She swallowed, hands pulling on her pants for a moment. She was staring at the part of the couch between them. Her voice a whisper. "I'm going to help him.... find Miles...."

He leaned. Massive hand under her chin, tugging at her face to look at him. "An'?" A pause. "W'oiydouehst'ihssaeehm loikemaehreovahbihgdaeahl t'ahnjehs'gouin't'foihn' sohmewhone?"

She took a long breath. Hiss of air coming out, now. "I think I may still be in love with him." That was barely a whisper... more air with shape to it. "I need to know."

Well, that...uh. That took Chuckie a moment to process. He kept his hand under her chin, but had almost pulled it away as a first reaction. Better to have a hard heart than let it be broken, that's what he'd learned early. Had he let it soften at the wrong time? The wrong person? A work of his mouth, though no words came out right away. "Ehm... Wehllihf'ny've gah't'foihn'ou', y'vegah't'foihn'ou'."

Raye started to cry. Why now? She finally let it all go... took out the trash, and suddenly she woke up with it in her livingroom. It killed her to do this. Anger and hatred and love and sentimentality mixed inside her.. a deadly concoction. "You're not mad?" A squeek through tears. Had she ever cried in front of him? Had she even cried in the past three years? She forgot how much it could hurt.

"Ah'caehrse'Mmahd." A little chuckle. Shake of his head, and he pulled her close, first snuffing out the cigarette. "Buh'tha'douehsnah maeahn'Mgouin't'bae anaehrse'ole ahbouh'i'. Ihf'nOishouh'an't'rouhw t'ihn's..'Mjehs'chaehsin'y'ahwaehyt' 'im. Ahf'aehrsaeeihn'm'brot'aehr an'C'aehrnah, Oikihnnahstahn'ihn t'waehyov uhnshuhrefaeehlihn's." A lean away, and fixing her with a look. "Buh'ihf'ny'laeahve an'goulooukin'f' 'im, 'Llnaebae'erew'ehny'geh'bahck."

Raye hardened at his touch, not feeling deserving of it. A small nod. Huh, this was a lot like Rory and Charna, wasn't it? Her hand went back through her hair as she was getting the tears under control again. Though it was hard with that last part. "I....I can't stay and not know...it wouldnt' be fair, Chuck."

He nodded. "Oiknouhw."

"I dont' want to do this to you.... " There went the composure again, tears falling down freckled cheeks. "I...I was sure this wouldn't happen again. I never would have.. let myself... " She cut off to try and stop herself from sobbing. Raye Howard doesn't sob.

A pull of her tiny frame back into his mammoth one, hugging her close. "Shh. Douhnnah."

"Stop being so nice to me, " she whispered.

"W'oiywouhl'Oidoutha'?"

Raye kept her voice at a whisper, "Hate me. You should hate me.... " She hid her head between him and the couch, it muffled the sob good enough.

"Y'venaedouhne aenaehyt'ihn' f'maet' 'ae'ey'. Y'dihnnahchaeah'ahnmae, dihnnahb'traehy maeihnaenaehywaehy.. Sohmetoihmest'aeaset'ihn'sdouhnnah lahs'."

"I really wanted it to." She would rest against him, then. The crying having stopped. Just a shell of a person, really. "I wanted my life to work out this time."

"Yerloifeihswaehrkihn'ou'. Yerahloihve." A minute grin.

She chuckled a single chuckle. "You're an amazing person." A hand to her mouth then, staying the crying from starting again.

"Nae. 'Mnae. Oidouhw'a'Oikihn."

"I'll see you again... someday? We don't have to pretend this never happened...." She was staring at the opposite couch, examining its ever fiber as best she could.

"Oicouhl'nae'aehrprae'tehn't'ihs nae'er'appehn'd."

"Me either...." She said softly.

Oh, how later he would destroy so many things. He was really quite surprised with himself for how well he was handling it. He wanted to crush anything he could see, aside from her. And how she wanted him to destroy things... to hate her and yell and be anything but nice to her. She wanted to be beat to a bloody pulp for it... this was more painful than any of that would be. She wasn't prepared for it.

"'Owlahn'aehrey'gouin't'baegahnef'?"

"I'm not sure yet... I'm supposed to see Tobais again tonight." A pause, wetting her lips. "A month, maybe two... could be less, I would hope not more."

Chuckie nodded. He instantly wondered why he'd even asked. It wasn't a vacation that he couldn't go on with her. It was her leaving forever. Once she walked out the door, she was never coming back, and he wouldn't let her come back into his life even if he wanted to

"I am coming back... " That was more for herself than for him. A reassurance that she wasn't leaving here for good. She liked it here... what she had made of it. No, even if she found herself hopelessly in love with MIles again... she'd be back. Another, shorter, nod. He was studying the bottle in her hands now. He was going to kill as many braincells as possible as soon as possible. Notices the look and hands it over, wordlessly. She was feeling that plan. A notch of his eyebrow, watching her. He hadn't made a move to open the bottle. Not in front of her. It'd look like malicious "watch me ruin myself" drinking. Well, she wasn't so into appearances. She went for the bottle. A way to distract herself, and keep herself from saying anything else.

Chuckie was already closing and locking doors that hadn't been opened for so long they'd needed oil. Now they were shut again. They would not open soon. They slammed with a firmness that settled the matters. At the same time, Raye seemed to immediatly regret this. Gambling was not her thing... and she was all in. If she got there... and realized it was Chuckie all along. She'd lost everything. Her mouth opened, perhaps she was about to take it all back... but it closed again.

A sigh. He stood, watching her for another moment.::

"You're leaving." A statement. Sadly said. Another sip from the bottle.

" Nae. <I>Yer</I>laeahvihn'." He was a nice guy, but not always. He was young, too. Sometimes it got the better of him.::

She took the hit with grace. She deserved it. Her lips pursed and she nodded, just a little. "It may not be forever..." She'd try it. Just this once. Hedging her bets...

"Oitouhl'y', Oiwihllnaebae'ere w'ehny'geh'bahck. Oiwihllnaewaeih'." He did, however, have the decency to look at her as he said it. Never a coward, that much was true. "Sou, aye, i'ihsf'aeh'er."

He was so much taller than she was. And now he was standing over her. A tower to look up at. Blinking away tears she would nod again. Raye had never felt so small. So childlike. "I know." she whispered. A long moment, gripping the bottle as if it were holding her up. Her voice lowered even more. " Thank you. For making me believe in life again... even if...if I ruined it all."

"Y'dihnnahrouihn' i'ahl.." He grinned wiping away one of her tears.

"Then what am I doing right now....?" Her eyes closed at his touch, just for a second.

"Yerchoousihn'ahdihff'rehn' paht'. Whoney'vegah't'wahlk."

Raye had never realized how smart he was. How sensitive to it all. How had she missed it. She had to get out of there... before she took it all back. before she threw herself on him and begged. A scrambling step to her feet. "I should go."

A silent nod. He was working another cigarette out of the pack, placing it to his lips unlit. It bobbed as he spoke. "Goouhdluhck."

Raye looked down at the bottle, then up at him. She would take his hand, closing it around the bottle, holding it with both of hers. "You too." And she would let him go, taking one backwards step away from the couch.

A sigh, looking at the bottle, back up at her. "Oimaeahni' Raehye. Y'laeahve... i'so'er" He gave her a firm look, his eyes wet and ringed with a hard sort of sadness.

Another backwards step and she would stop. "Are you asking me to stay? "

"'Mnaeahskihn'y't'gou." The words turned ever so carefully on their edges. He nodded, then, watching her. "Ihf'ni'sihny' 'aeahr't'gou..wouhl'dounae goouhd t'cahnvihncey't'staehy. Y'dahlwaehysraegreh'i' wit'sohmepaehr' ovy'saehlf... Buh'.."

"But what?" She was rooted in place now.

"Buh' Oistihllwahn'y'."

Her eyes shut. She took a long long moment there. Thinking. It seemed like an eternity to her, before she opened them again. "I'll always regret going, too. " Another long pause as she studied him, memorizing him then. "I can't stay not knowing.... I can't do that to you."

He nodded. "Aye"

Nothing left to say really. She took another look over him. A snapshot in her mind. It wasn't how she wanted to remember him, but it would have to do for now.::

A firm set of his jaw, staring past her almost blindly for a second. Focussing back on her, a close of his eyes and he opened them again. The last door shut. It clicked and turned the lock with a finality in his head. "Ahlroigh't'ehn." He lit the cigarette with another miniature explosion of fire and sulfur. It hung in the air where he had been standing, now turning on a heel and heading for the front door. Freighttrain on the move.

Chuckie gave a last glare at Raye, then slammed the door shut behind him, rocking it slightly in its hinges.