It was Saturday night, and that meant movie night at Spike's house. The house formerly known as Spike and Drusilla's. It was a little over a year since eight friends had first started getting together at least once every two weeks to watch bad movies, eat and drink, and laugh themselves stupid.



They'd met at the local nightspot, The Bronze, and become fast friends over games of pool, spicy wings, drinking and dancing. They were a fun and diverse group, all paired off. Willow and Tara, Xander and Anya, Spike and Dru, and Buffy and Cordelia. That was the old lineup, before the breakups. Three months ago, Spike's fiancée, Drusilla, left him and ran off to Brazil. One month ago, Buffy's girlfriend, Cordelia, had broken up with her and moved to L.A. to pursue her dreams of becoming a famous actress.



This week, like the past several weeks, Spike and Buffy were both missing their exes and hurting, and really weren't in the mood for the usual get-together. But neither wanted to disappoint their friends, and it would do them a lot more good to socialize than to shut themselves off from the world and brood. With that in mind, Spike had told everyone it was cool to come over to his place tonight, as usual.



He'd bought the beer and ordered the Chinese food in preparation, and it made him actually clean the place up for visitors. He hadn't been much in a cleaning mood since Dru broke his heart. But he didn't just lay around all day feeling sorry for himself. He worked as a photographer during the day, and at night he had the responsibility of taking care of Sunshine, the tan-colored, black-faced, fluffy Shih-Tzu puppy that Dru had brought home six months ago.



Spike hadn't been happy about her bringing home a pet without talking to him about it first, though that kind of thing was a typical 'Dru thing' to do. But it hadn't taken long for him to fall in love with the puppy. The dog quickly became more attached to Spike than Drusilla, making Dru jealous. They'd even had arguments with Dru accusing him of loving 'that bloody dog' more than her. Sunshine was like their child, whom Dru had abandoned along with Spike. He was grateful to have Sunshine in his life, it made him feel less lonely to have her to care for, and he slept better with her curled up on his bed at night.



Spike switched off the vacuum cleaner when Sunshine jumped up from her doggy bed and ran to the front door barking. He put the vacuum in the corner, and then went to answer the door.



"Better than a bell, you are. And much better company," Spike said with a smile and bent down to pet Sunshine on the head. She licked his hand then backed away from the door, excited to see who their visitor was. Spike straightened up and opened the door.



"Hey, Spike." Buffy was feeling blue, but was determined not to let herself get mired in sadness or bitterness again. Hanging out with her friends would be good for her, and she would do her best not to bring everybody down. She'd let their buoyant moods bring her up, not the other way around.



"Hey, Buffy, glad you could make it." He looked at the full-to-bursting paper bags she was carrying, seeing cartons of takeout Chinese food sticking out of the top. "Oh, you brought food? Shit, I ordered --"



"No, this is the stuff you ordered. I drove up at the same time as the delivery guy."



"You paid him?"



"No, he just handed it over 'cause I'm so hot," she laughed. "Yes, I paid him."



"You had $80 in cash on you?"



"Yeah, I was going to buy a new pair of boots but didn't get to the store. It's cool, the gang can just reimburse me for their share instead of you this time."



He gratefully took the bags from Buffy. "Come on in. I'll put the food in the kitchen," Spike said, turning and walking to the kitchen.



"Hello, Miss Sunshine! Hi, girl!' Buffy crouched down to pet the dog and get some wet kisses. "Someone got a haircut, looks so beautiful and smells so nice, too!" She giggled as the dog licked her chin.



"Thanks!" Spike said jokingly from the kitchen. "I got a trim today, how nice of you to notice."



Buffy shook her head and laughed. She stood back up, and then closed the front door. "Yes, and Sunshine looks lovely, too."



She went into the kitchen with Sunshine following. Spike was taking the cartons of food out of the bags and placing them on the kitchen island.



"Here, I can do that," Buffy said, starting to take cartons out of the other bag.



"Thanks. I'll get the plates, spoons and chopsticks."



"I'm the first to arrive, huh?" Buffy asked.



"Yep. You're actually early for once. Imagine that!"



She stuck her tongue out at him. "I'm not always late... Just occasionally, to be fashionable."



Then with a softer tone, he said, "Didn't know if you'd come... It was a nice surprise to see you on my doorstep."



Buffy smiled at him. "Thanks. I knew I'd have a lot more fun here than sitting at home. I'm glad you're... up to hosting the evening."



He nodded. "I figured, why not? Like you said, it's a lot better than sitting around doing nothing."



They were avoiding delving too much into the reasons they were feeling gloomy. Getting weepy or sulky about having been dumped wasn't conducive to a jovial party mood.



"Well, the place looks great. Sunshine looks happy and freshly groomed, as do you. You're clearly not falling down on the job around here."



"Thanks, luv. It's not easy being a single father," Spike said, trying to joke.



Buffy patted him on the back, "Aww, you take such good care of her. You're a good doggy daddy. Careful you don't spoil her though."



"Shih-Tzus like being pampered."



"Who doesn't? She's got you wrapped around her dewclaw, doesn't she?" Buffy giggled.



Spike shrugged, smiling at her with a crooked smile. "She's my girl. I like spoiling her."



"Did you take her to the groomer?"



"Yeah, just yesterday. Had her a haircut, nails clipped, and a bath. Got her a new squeaky toy that's shaped like a postman, and bought some mint flavored bones."



Sunshine got a drink of water from her stainless steel water dish, and then trotted out to the living room, slightly wagging her tail as she went.



"She lives up to the name Sunshine. Sweet li'l doggy," Buffy remarked.



"Figures that Dru would name the dog after acid."



"No... she named her Sunshine because... she's such a vibrant and happy puppy. Please tell me I'm right."



"That's what I'm choosing to believe now. But Dru wasn't a stranger to dropping a tab or two."



Buffy bit her tongue, wanting to say, 'What the hell did you see in that weirdo?' Spike didn't need to hear that kind of shit any more than Buffy needed to be questioned about her former lover.



"You can watch some TV if you want until the others show up," Spike said as he bent over to look into the refrigerator.



"I'd rather help you get everything in readiness." She couldn't help looking at his butt. Buffy raised an eyebrow, a naughty smirk making the corner of her mouth twitch. His black jeans hugged his lower body in a very good way.



"That would be appreciated. I think everything's as ready as it's gonna get though."



Buffy looked away from his butt before he caught her leering at him. What was up with the leering? He was a guy, therefore not on the menu. But... something about him -- tonight especially, since the moment he'd opened the front door -- was making her think about him differently than she normally did.



From the moment she'd laid eyes on him when he'd opened the front door, Buffy had felt and thought peculiar things. Her first thought had been, 'Damn, Spike looks hot!' Then she was able to get a whiff of his scent. His very clean, very manly, very yummy scent.



Over the past year, she'd thought he was a gorgeous guy, and even felt an attraction to him. But she'd been in a relationship with Cordelia and wasn't 'looking', especially not looking for a guy. So why was she suddenly having naughty thoughts about her male friend?



'Must be a side effect of being dumped by my girlfriend... Maybe I'm subconsciously thinking about trying something with a man so it'll be the opposite...? And he's undeniably hot... And then there's the buildup of horniness...'



There was also the fact that she knew Spike had been hurt not long ago in much the same way that she had. It was a bonding kind of thing to have been burned badly by the ones you loved. She knew he completely understood the kind of heartache she was experiencing. Buffy figured that Spike had it even worse than her, he and Dru had been together longer, they'd been planning to get married when she'd up and left him.



Buffy became unnerved when Spike closed the refrigerator door and smiled at her. 'Poor Spike, why would she leave him like that? He's a good guy, so good-looking and, oh my, he has such a sexy smile... Did I just think he was 'sexy?' Oh boy, this ain't good...



"I-I think I'll go in the living room and make sure it's spic-and-span."



"Okay... thanks."



Buffy hurried out of the kitchen.



Spike frowned for a moment, then shook his head. Buffy seemed a little strange just then. It was probably just the whole Cordelia thing. He knew firsthand how hard it was to move on and get back to being yourself. The first month without Drusilla had felt like it would kill him. But he'd come out on the other side of that dark tunnel, and he'd help Buffy get there too if he could. So she'd be acting a bit weird from time to time, that was to be expected. Spike wanted to put on an extra brave face for Buffy, to let her see that she would be okay (in time) too.



Buffy didn't appear to be suffering. On the contrary, she looked happy, fresh and well-kept. Spike knew that appearances could be deceiving though. He really had been happy to see her on the other side of the door, he wasn't sure she'd come. Buffy looked just as beautiful, bubbly, and smelled just as wonderful as she always did. And, damn, didn't her ass look great in those blue jeans?



Spike had thought many times about how beautiful Buffy was, how he would love it if she gave him a chance to convert her back to the hetero team. He'd do mankind proud if he got the chance. When he'd been with Drusilla, it had been just passing thoughts about Buffy, he didn't seriously contemplate leaving or cheating on Dru even if Buffy had expressed interest in him. But after Dru left he'd thought about it more and more often. Thinking about Buffy -- or Buffy and Cordelia -- coming to him and 'helping him get over Dru'. It wasn't a good idea to start thinking of one's friends in those ways, but the thoughts still snuck in. Buffy and Cordy had been one of those lesbian couples that usually only existed in the world of porn: two very hot lipstick lesbians. He would've had to have been dead below the waist not to imagine a wicked threesome with the girls. And imagine it, he had. Not that Tara and Willow weren't beautiful girls too, but they had a more wholesome vibe than his other lesbian friends. He thought of them more as the little sisters he never had, or at least cousins.



Buffy was definitely great fantasy material with her shampoo commercial blonde hair, green eyes, bright smile, and adorable little upturned nose. Sweet, tight body on her too. Tits that looked high and firm; and she had a gorgeous tan he'd spent a fair amount of time speculating about whether she had tan lines or not; and that aforementioned great ass.



Spike took a breath and chided himself, 'Stop it, you wanker! She's your friend -- your gay friend! Ain't gonna happen, so stop it! Focus back on getting everything ready for your other friends -- who are also off-limits sexually -- to arrive.' He would only succeed in making himself crazier if he didn't stop that line of thinking. It wasn't easy though, Spike was going batty with horniness lately. It had been three months since Dru left, and three months since he'd had sex, which was an eternity to him. Spike was a very sexual being, needing it almost as much as he needed oxygen and food. He might have to breakdown and find some pretty girl to frolic with soon. But no relationships. He was done with that shit. Just sex. Unless he really liked her... Spike was also a truly romantic guy, he preferred sex when it was combined with love and affection. Why couldn't he find a great girl like Buffy? She was fun, beautiful, strong, compassionate, and so sexy. He needed to find a girl just like her for his next relationship -- except it would have to be a version of Buffy who liked dick. Oh, if only Buffy were straight...



The phone rang, helping to snap him out of the Buffy-induced trance he'd been putting himself in.

---

Buffy heard Spike in the kitchen talking on the phone, and she heard Xander's name. Spike didn't sound pleased. She waited out in the living room, sitting on the couch and petting Sunshine who had jumped up on the cushion next to her.



Spike came out of the kitchen a minute later.



"What's up?" Buffy asked.



"Xander and Anya can't make it," he said, obviously irritated. "I bought all that bloody food -- well, technically you bought it -- but I ordered all that food and bought all that beer!"



Sunshine didn't like when Spike was upset or when there was yelling. She jumped off the couch and went to her doggy bed, curling up and trying to put herself into a self-induced sleep. That was how she dealt with unpleasantness, by going to sleep, and then everything was usually okay when she woke up again.



"Shit... why aren't they coming?" Buffy asked.



Spike growled and made a dismissive gesture with his hand. "Something about her needing to stay late at her shop and him staying to help her. I said that he could still come, but he doesn't want to without her. So bloody whipped. He cancels fifteen minutes before they're due here!"



"It's okay, we'll just be two people less tonight," Buffy said calmly. She wasn't happy about it either, but she could see that Spike was upset and she wanted to help him cool down.



"I'll make up the money for the food that they should be paying for. Not fair that you'd get burned."



"I just got paid, and I got a little extra money this time. Don't stress about it, Spike, okay? We'll still have fun. They're the ones who are missing out."



"Yeah..." He looked over at the dog when he heard her snore loudly. "Dammit, I upset Sunshine by raising my voice. Sorry, girl..."



She responded by making a sighing sound in her sleep.



"That's a neat trick, being able to put yourself to sleep almost instantly. Wish I could do that," Buffy said.



"I'll apologize to her again when she wakes up. I could go for one of those beers now. How 'bout you?"



"Hell yeah."





A minute later, the phone rang again while Spike was getting the beers. Buffy and Spike both hoped it was Xander calling to say he was coming, after all.



But she could tell that wasn't the case by the irritated look Spike had when he emerged from the kitchen.



"More bad news," Spike said as he came back into the living room with their beers.



"What now?"



"Willow and Tara said their Wicca group is going to run late. They can't beg off 'cos Willow's Vice President."



"Geez, they aren't coming either?"



He shook his head. "I can't believe this shit! All four of them call to cancel, with just minutes to spare before they were due here. Bloody rude is what it is! We're stuck with the bills for the food and beer. Not to mention that I was looking forward to a night of fun that isn't gonna happen now."



Buffy took the beer bottle from Spike, and then twisted off the cap. "Yeah, it surely does suck."



"Guess it wasn't meant to be. We can try for next week. You want to call it a night?"



Buffy thought about it for a moment. "Nah, it's still early and we got all this food and drink, and some groovy movies to watch. Let's have fun and make them sorry they didn't come."



He laughed and nodded. "Yeah, okay, let's do that."

---

They had some Chinese food and more beer, first watching a movie called 'Death Bed: The Bed That Eats People'. Many laughs were had and snarky comments made during movie-time. Sunshine had behaved herself, as usual, only begging for a bite or two of their food before retiring to her doggy bed again.



Spike went to the DVD player to switch discs.



Buffy shook her head and chuckled, "Wow, that was a baaaad movie!"



"With a title like that, who would've guessed? I was expecting something akin to 'Citizen Kane'," Spike joked.



"Shame the rest of the gang had to miss it. Was one of those movies that must be seen to be believed."



"Their loss. Would've been good to hear Xander's riffing though." Xander was usually the standout riffer in the group, never failing to come up with some hilarious comments on whatever they happened to be watching.



Spike made a growly noise, bending over to look at the front of the DVD player and poking at the buttons with his index finger.



"Something wrong?" Buffy couldn't help admiring his butt when he bent over, just like she had in the kitchen earlier. 'Damn, that's a nice ass... for a guy.'



"Bloody disc won't eject. I had fun watching the movie and all, but I'll shoot myself if I broke my player from watching 'Death Bed: The Bed That Eats People'."



Buffy smirked. "Should be funny when the repair guy sees what you were watching though. At least it wasn't some raunchy porn."



"I'd rather it was porn. Damn, it's not opening!"



Buffy took the remote and pressed a few buttons, seeing that they were still able to bring up the disc info and player functions. "Not totally broken. See? Other stuff still works."



"Guess I can try jimmying it open tomorrow. Probably break it good an' proper then."



"You've got one of those carousel player thingies, right? Did you put any other discs in?"



"Uh... I'm not sure. Let me check it out. You can take a bathroom break if you need to, and get a couple more beers from the kitchen."



Buffy smiled, looking at him sideways. "Is there some movie you have queued up that you don't want me to know about? 'Cause you're acting twitchy."



"I'm not acting twitchy." Then he sighed. "Okay, there might be a porn disc in the player, too. I didn't even think of it 'til you mentioned porn before. I think I took it out, but..."



"I don't care if you watch porn. It'd be weird if you didn't. Gotta say that I'm curious what straight guys like watching -- porn-wise."



Spike ducked his head, rubbing the back of his neck. "I'm not every straight guy. We all have our own personal likes and dislikes."



"Okay, then I'm curious as to what you, as a straight man, are into."



"Let's steer clear of porn-talk, yeah?" Spike went over to his DVD shelves, opening the special compartment at the back to reveal his X-rated movies. "Ah, the one I thought might be in there is put away, so no added embarrassment if I have to take the machine in to be serviced. Unfortunately, the player being jammed means we can't put any more movies in, and I didn't put any others on the carousel. I thought we could have a vote about the next one we watched. That was when I thought there'd be six of us, not two."



"Can I see the DVD case for the porn one?" Buffy asked, batting her eyes and smiling sweetly.



"Aw, you don't want to see that..."



"Yeah, I do. Pwease?" she pouted.



Spike rolled his eyes. "Fine. You want to see it, you got it."



He took the DVD case in question and handed to her, and then sat on the couch again.



Buffy giggled looking at the cover. It was called 'Three's Cumpany', and was an adult movie version of the TV show, according to the description. "Ah, the two girls fantasy. I've had that one too... though I guess it would be a three girl fantasy, counting myself. Very hot."



On the cover was a blonde wearing black stockings and a teddy, and a brunette wearing white stockings and a teddy, with a guy wearing a goofy smile sitting between them. The girls were on either side of him, pressing their voluminous bosoms against the sides of his head.



"Now you've seen the case, happy?" Spike asked, a bit uncomfortable.



"I'd be happier if we could watch... but with the player being bitchy, guess I'll have to settle for this."



"You'd... have no problem watching porn with a guy?"



"Not after I've had a few beers, no. Porn can be really funny, too. Fertile ground for riffing."



"Yeah, some of them are pretty stupid... Only the fact that there are people shagging makes it worthwhile." He sighed. "Damn, guess we can't watch any other movies. Unless you want to watch 'Death Bed' again?"



Buffy laughed. "Uh, no. Once a night is good enough for me. Once a decade would be enough."



Spike smiled, but felt a little sad thinking that she would be leaving soon. For some reason he didn't fancy being alone tonight. It felt like one of those nights where his spirits were going to sink once he was by himself. Buffy was excellent company and he wasn't anxious for her to go home.



"I s'pose... you'll be heading for home soon?"



Buffy didn't want to go home. She was having fun with Spike. And she really didn't want to be alone. "I'd rather not drive right now since I've had a few. Would it be okay if I maybe stayed overnight?"



Spike brightened. "Yeah, of course!" Then he reined in the enthusiasm a bit, not wanting to seem like a needy git. "No problem, luv. I can make up the spare room for you."



"Great! Then I can really start sucking down the brewskis since I won't be driving until tomorrow." She grinned and got up. "I'll get a couple more. Maybe we can find something on TV to watch. Channel surf while I procure us some fresh drinkies."



Spike smiled and watched her backside as she sashayed her way to the kitchen. 'Damn, that's a perfect ass, wouldn't mind...' He took a breath and rolled his eyes away from the perfect butt. He was ecstatic that Buffy was staying the night, he wouldn't have to face being alone until he went to bed. But with Buffy staying, maybe he wouldn't be alone at bedtime... He told himself, 'Stop with that shit! Stop thinking like a bloody porno! If you try anything on her, you'll lose a good friend and upset her. Keep it in your fucking pants!'



Spike dug the heels of his hands into his eyes. When he finished rubbing his eyes, Buffy was back and standing next to him.



"Here you go, sir," Buffy said, handing him his bottle.



"Thanks, luv."



"Find anything good?" she asked as she kicked off her boots and socks.



"Hmm?"



"On the TV." Buffy sat back down next to him.



"Oh, uh, didn't check. You can do the honors." He picked up the remote and set it on her lap.



A suntan lotion commercial came on, with a woman who looked a lot like Cordelia, but it wasn't her. Still, it made Cordy pop up in their minds.



"Have you heard anything from Cordelia since she moved to L.A.?" Spike asked without thinking.



Buffy frowned, clicking past the offending commercial. "Nope, not a peep. Probably too busy on casting couches to even think about me."



Spike instantly regretted asking the question.



Before he could say he was sorry, she asked, "Have you heard from Dru since you came back?" She wanted to change the subject from Cordy and wasn't thinking how her question would affect him either.



Spike had gone down to Rio de Janeiro after Drusilla left him, vowing to get her back and show her how much he loved her and how devoted he was to her -- first making sure to leave Sunshine in Willow and Tara's capable hands, of course. Buffy had thought what Spike did was terribly romantic, just like in the (good) movies. But Spike had come back a week later, Dru-less. Drusilla had told him it was over, she didn't love him anymore, and she had a few new lovers to take his place. Spike had been despondent for a month after that, and now Buffy regretted asking the question.



"No. And I don't want to hear from the bitch either," he said gruffly. "All I got for my trouble for going to Rio was a sunburn and a broken fucking heart. And a very brassed off Sunshine upon my return. She didn't like me leaving her like that."



"Sorry... I shouldn't have brought it up."



Spike sighed. "Well, I brought up Cordy... I started it. We were on the subject of exes."



"Women," Buffy growled, shaking her head, "can't live with 'em..." She got the reaction she wanted when Spike smiled and laughed.



"They're the worst, aren't they? Almost makes me consider switching teams. If it weren't for the facts that I love women, love making love to women, and would heave if I had to touch another guy's hairy ass, I could easily be gay."



"Poor you," she laughed, lightly slapping his knee. "Guess you'll have to put up with dames and their craziness then."



"The right one is out there, for both of us. Just gotta find her. I thought Drusilla was 'the one', but I was obviously sadly mistaken."



"Same with Cordy. She could be so much fun, and was so beautiful... Wooo, the body on her!"



Spike raised his brows and nodded. "Don't have to tell me. I noticed her assets too."



"Ooh, you're bad. Checking out my girlfriend when you had a girlfriend," Buffy said teasingly.



"I've got eyes, I can look but not touch. Not that Cordy would've wanted me to touch. You two were happy together, and I was happy at the time, too. I just looked when I was sure no one else was looking." Spike left out that he had noticed Buffy's assets as well.



Buffy took a drink and then sighed. "You know, I think I was shallow and looked past the stuff that bothered me about her. Just because she was great looking and built, I ignored her personality defects."



"It was more than that, Buffy. You and Cordy had fun going out together, you had lots of laughs, and lots of likes and dislikes in common. And great sex from what you've said and intimated."



"Yeah... all true. Still, she could be a major bitch to other people, and I wouldn't say anything except something like, 'Oh, that wasn't nice, babe'. And then she started being a bitch to me more and more often. Then I found out that she was sleeping around -- with both men and women -- behind my back. To 'further her career'. What a giant ho-bag."



"You're well rid of her, luv. You deserve much better." Spike raised his bottle of beer.



"Yeah, damn right! You deserve better, too." Buffy clinked bottles with him. "I couldn't say anything when you were still together, but Dru was strange. All that her thinking she was psychic stuff and talking about pixies weirded me out. And you could get somebody way hotter."



"Thanks. I found Dru's quirks charming at one time... You can and will do better too, Buffy."



"I bust my ass everyday in that store, selling rich bitches clothes that I'd have to save months to afford. I paid for so many goddamn headshots and other shit for Cordy when she didn't have the money. Getting cheated on and then discarded like a used Kleenex is how I got thanked! Grrrrr! I was so stupid!" Buffy put a hand over her eyes, wanting to weep just from the frustration alone.



Spike put his arm around her shoulders, giving her a little hug. "No, you weren't stupid. You were doin' it because you loved her and wanted her to be happy. I did plenty of things for Dru that she didn't appreciate, too. Not our faults that the ones we picked proved unworthy of our love."



Buffy rested her head on his shoulder, deciding that she definitely liked the way Spike's arm felt around her.



They both sighed and slumped a bit on the couch with sad expressions on their faces.



"Hey," Spike said, bumping her knee with his, "how did we start talkin' about depressing shit? We were having fun until we brought 'them' up."



"You're right. Let's not let those bitches ruin an otherwise delightful evening. I'm sorry I got so emotional..."



Spike gave her an understanding smile. "No worries. You can always talk to me about it if you feel the need to vent."



"Thanks, Spike. You're so sweet..."



"Yeah, yeah, I'm the sweetest." He gave her shoulder a little squeeze, then took his arm from around her. He wanted to give her comfort, but it probably wasn't a good idea to hold her for too long. He might start getting those pervy ideas again. "Want to help me put the food away and clean up a bit?"



"Sure." Buffy missed his arm being around her the moment he took it away. He really was very sweet when he wanted to be... and he was so amazingly good-looking and sexy... It might be fun, as well as educational, to see if anything could happen between them tonight...