Have A Little Faith (Faith Seed) (discontinued)

7. C17H21NO4

Everything about Faith is alluring. The way she walks, the way she talks, the way she dances, the way she sings, even the way she looked at him. To Marcus, everything about Faith was alluring. Yes, she was alluring to everyone because of the bliss but it was so much more for Marcus. Everything about her was real, not some sort of hallucination or false attraction brought on my a drug, she was real and the way he felt was real.

The mystery that surrounded her was alluring too, the way she could pretty much appear and disappear silently, always leaving Marcus wanting more. Everything about her was just...delightful. 

Marcus finished his sales for the day and closed the door to his trailer, throwing his jacket onto the sofa. He was just about to throw himself down on the sofa until he heard music coming from outside. At first he waited, thinking that it might be a radio of a car passing by, but when he realised that the music wasn't going away he peaked out of the window. He didn't know who was playing the music, but he was hoping for a certain person.

He looked out of the window and saw Faith, dancing among the tall grass behind his trailer, her fingers grazing against the top of the grass that came up her thighs. She sang along to the music that was playing, unaware that she was being watched. 

Faith danced happily, waiting for Marcus' return, she arrived a few minutes ago but the trailer was empty so she decided to entertain herself. She could feel Marcus' eyes piercing into her back, she smiled to herself but didn't turn to face the man in the window. She knew that he would come out to meet her.  

Marcus turned and walked out of the trailer, leaving his jacket on the sofa, before walking around the back of his home. He stood at the edge of the tall grass, looking around to find the source of the music. The sound was coming from a radio that was sat on top of a metal barrel, the song that was playing was an Eden's Gate classic but Marcus wasn't particularly familiar with it. 

Faith gracefully turned to face him, a soft smile on her face as she held out her hand. Marcus smiled back, completely intoxicated by the woman, as he walked towards her and took her hand. "You don't dance much, do you?" she asked, giggling at the way he stood so still and tense. He was a hunter, he was used to having to stay still and focused but she wanted to see him let loose. 

"I'm not much of a dancer" he chuckled as Faith took his hands in hers, guiding them to her waist. Marcus took the hint and held her waist gently but securely. 

"It's easy" she smiled, lacing her fingers together behind his neck making sure to hold him close and securely.

She swayed to the music and Marcus just followed her lead, swaying with her. "Do you always wear that dress?" he asked, glancing over her white dress that was decorated with pale flowers.

"Do you not like it?" Faith asked, frowning a little as she looked down at her dress.

"No, I like it a lot. I was just wondering since you always seem to be wearing it" Marcus smiled, rubbing his hand up and down her waist to reassure her. He did think that she suited the dress but he has realised that each of the Seed siblings had their own distinctive look, and he wondered how many copies of the same clothes they had.

"Well, I like it and other people seem to like it too. I do have other clothes though" she giggled again, wrapping her arms around her shoulders a little more.

"It looks good on you" he complimented her, wrapping an arm around her waist and continuing to run his hand up and down her waist. Faith laughed at the distracted look on his face as he examined the dress on more time, before meeting her gaze again. She quickly stood on her toes and lent up to kiss him quickly, it was a quick peck on the lips that caught Marcus off guard but made him smile.

Faith smiled, almost childishly, as she pulled Marcus further into the grass, spinning them both around to the music. Marcus laughed a little, enjoying the relaxed feeling between them as their bodies pressed flush together. 

She smoothly pulled away from him, taking his hand in hers and pulling him through the grass. Marcus smiled at her, even though she wasn't looking back at him, something about her just made him smile. His gaze drifted from the back of her head and down her arm until his gaze landed on their intertwined hands. He smiled a little to himself before noticing some black ink on her arm. A tattoo.

Marcus furrowed his brow as he read it, it was a chemical formula. He wasn't exactly familiar with the formula, he understood how chemical formula's worked from school but he didn't know what this one was. He suddenly stopped walking, causing Faith to stop as well, tuning to him with a confused expression.

He used both of his hands to gently turn her arm around so that he could see the tattoo on her forearm fully. Now he could actually see the full formula "C17H21NO4". When Faith noticed what had caught his attention, she pulled her arm out of his grasp. "What is it?" Marcus asked, genuinely curious about what it was and why she had it tattooed. 

"It's...I...erm" Faith stumbled over her words and Marcus found himself almost shocked. She always spoke so smoothly and so sure, she looked nervous and maybe even scared.

"Faith? Are you alright? You can tell me, you know that right?" he asked as he took her hand in his again. Faith just nodded and sighed, before looking up and meeting his gaze.

"It's the chemical formula for cocaine" she told him but he just looked at her expectantly, wanting her to explain further. "My parents...they were not good people. I was abused, I was ostracised. I couldn't take it anymore...I had nowhere else to turn so I fell into a habit of using drugs. When I met Joseph, when I joined the project they had a strict code of no alcohol and no drugs. I had to recover from my addiction" Faith explained the story, tears brimming in her eyes.

"Faith...how old were you when you met Joseph, when you joined him?" Marcus asked, stunned by her confession. He wrapped an arm around her waist and pulled her close to him, using his other hand to cup her cheek and use his thumb to wipe away a tear that fell.

"I was seventeen...a child" she told him, placing her hands on his chest and leaning into his touch. 

Marcus pulled her into him, wrapping his arms around her body and letting her bury her face in his chest. He kissed the top of her head gently, before stroking her hair and her back in a comforting manner. 

Faith never cried into his chest, but she did smile. It felt like such a long time since somebody had shown her this kindness, even her brothers. Marcus made her feel like the person she was before the Project, in the best ways, instead of the herald of Henbane River.