The ball bag fell onto the floor next to the cart bag. A soft sigh fills the room and she walks to the door. She could hear the sounds of the team practicing rotation drills and leaned against the doorway. A small tinge of pain pinched in her wrist and she slowly massaged it away while listening for the drill in the gym to end. When the volleyballs stopped smacking the floor she walked down the hall into the gym.

The coach had the girls in a circle and was talking to them about the next meet, which is tomorrow. Slowly she gathers the ball carts and pushes them out into the hallway. As she moves them into the office, she hears the coach dismiss the team. The girls run down the hall to grab their bags and leave and she parks the carts in the bathroom in the back of the office. When she turns the lights off, she pulls the door shut and walks down the hall to head home.

As she walks through the main gym, she can see the girls getting into their vehicles and disappearing for the night. When she stepped out of the gym, she let out a deep breath and made her way across the parking lot to her pick up. The old thing was her favorite set of transportation and she pulled herself up into the cab. As the engine idled to life, she put her purse on the floor next to her and turned the radio on. Oldies came through the speakers and she smirked.

She slowly put the truck into drive and pulls out of the parking lot. It takes her around seven minutes to drive from the school to her home. She pulls in the drive a little after six and stops the truck. Quickly she hops out and opens the garage so she park the truck out of the weather. As she walks back to the truck, the sound of barking comes from the house and she smiles at her welcoming.

Then she hopes into the truck and parks it in the garage. As soon as the engine was off, she grabs her bag and purse and slip out of the cab. She walks over to the door, puts the garage door down, and walks out through the side one. When she reaches her back door, she quietly opens it and kicks her shoes off on the back porch. Then she opens the door into the kitchen and is greeted by her black lab, Gusi.

Gusi licks her hand while following her through the house to the stairwell and plunges up the stairs ahead of her. When she reaches her room, she drops her bag in her room and then changes into a tank top and a pair of jean shorts. Then she pulls her hair back from her neck and heads back downstairs. Her eye caught sight of a yellow note on the table and she picks it up. Her eyes roll slightly as she crumbles the note up and then she opens the fridge to find something to make for dinner.

When she finds nothing but sandwich meat, she pulls the bag out and grabs three slices of honey-loaf ham. Then she grabs a bottled water and walks over to the counter where paper plates rested. She placed the meat on the plate and walked over to the bar. When she sat on the stool, she let out a deep breath and ate her dinner. As she ate the last bite, the telephone rang.

When she picked it up, she heard the one voice that gave her the strength to push through the day and a smile conquered her stoic face. Slowly she cleaned up her plate and tossed it into the trash. Then she walked upstairs to her room and stretched on her bed. Her eyes followed the patterns in her ceiling tiles as she talked on the phone.

"Anyone at your house?"

Her amber eyes flashed a small flame and she said, "Nope. Just me...again."

"Do you mind if I come over?"

A smile pulled on her light red lips and she said, "Not at all."

"Good. I'll be there in ten minutes."

She sat up and said, "I'll leave the door unlocked."

Then she hung up the phone and took it back downstairs. As she walked back to the stairwell, the door opened and she turned around. Her mother walked into the kitchen and she held her tongue. The woman wasn't suppose to be back from New York until Monday and her dad was going to be working until tomorrow afternoon. She was suppose to have the house to herself, but now her lover was on his way over and here stood her mother ruining her night.

She took a deep breath and asked, "What are you doing home so earlier?"

The woman turned her hazel eyes on her and said, "I needed to check to see if the house still stood standing."

Bitterness hung on the tip of her tongue and she said, "I suppose you'll be going back then."

"Yes. I'm leaving tomorrow morning."

Her breath caught in her throat and she said, "Well, then I'll talk to you whenever."

Then she ran upstairs and picked up her personal phone. She dialed her lover's cell number, but she only got his voice mail. Then she heard him pull into her drive and dropped onto her bed. Her mom was going to flip when she found them still together. With as much courage she could muster up, she pulled herself up onto her feet and forced herself downstairs.

When she reached the bottom of the stairwell, she found her mother standing at the door looking at her with complete disapproval on her face. She rolled her eyes and walked to the door. When she opened it, he stepped inside and she closed the door behind her. She took his hand quietly and led him past her mother and upstairs to her room. When they reached her room, he closed the door and she sat on her bed looking at him.

She loved his short blonde hair and his creamy brown skin. His blue eyes always fascinated her and the muscles that rested under his shirt remained imaged perfectly in her mind. When she came back from her thoughts, she looked at the clock and felt him sit down next to her. His arm circled her waist and they lay back on the bed. Her hair was let loose and she watched him put the tie on the headboard just as her eyes fell closed.

He brushed his knuckles along her cheek and whispered, "I love you...Faith."

A small smile flashed on her lips and she said, "As do I...Jesse."

His hand brushed hair from her face and he kissed her good-night. Then she let her mind finally calm itself and fell into the soft and relaxing sleep she only gained by being next to her lover.

PGS