disclaimer: none of it's mine. curses.

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I gotta tell you. I hate this game.

I mean, how the hell are you supposed to not drop the friggin ball?!

I threw down the controller, and grumbled angrily as the screen flashed 'GAME OVER'.

"Damn Spongebob Bubble Bounce. Stupid frickin thing won't let you get past level 40."

Just then, my irritating little sister Dawn waltzed into the room, changed the channel to MTV, and sat down.

Glaring at her, I snatched the remote back. "Excuse you?"

She looked at me confused. "What?"

"You can't just walk in here and change the channel when someone's already watching something."

"So, your form of entertainment is watching Spongebob stare at you because you couldn't get past level 40?"

"Uh...yeah."

"Riiiiiiiiiiight."

Unable to think of any other argument, we went back to watching MTV. The new music video by 'Dingoes Ate My Baby' came on, and I immediately sat straight up. Pointing the remote at the TV, I turned up the volume, and sang along to the song.

Do you have the time
to listen to me whine
About NOTHING and EVERYTHING
all at once
I am one of those
Melodramatic fools
Neurotic to the bone
No doubt about it

Dawn rolled her eyes, and crossed her arms over her chest. She hates to admit it, but she told me once that I have a pretty good singing voice.

That and a major crush on Spike Giles, lead singer of 'Dingoes'.

Sometimes I give myself the CREEPS
Sometimes my mind plays tricks on me
It all keeps adding up
I think I'm CRACKING UP
Am I just PARANOID?
Or am I just STONED

I went to a shrink
To analyze my dreams
SHE says it's lack of sex
that's bringing me down
I went to a whore
HE said my life's a bore
So quit my whining cause
it's bringing HER down

Dawn turned to me and said, "Have you ever noticed how he goes to a male-whore? Does that mean he's gay?"

That stopped me dead in the middle of my song.. Turning to Dawn, I said, "Dawn. He's not gay. First of all, he broke up with his fiancee, Drusilla Rayne like, 2 months ago. I highly doubt he's gay."

"Really? Cuz the hair-"

"No. He doesn't have gay hair. The drummer has gay hair."

"Andrew? That's because he is, Buffy."

"....oh."


Sometimes I give myself the CREEPS
Sometimes my mind plays tricks on me
It all keeps adding up
I think I'm CRACKING UP
Am I just PARANOID?
Uh,yuh,yuh,ya

Grasping to CONTROL
So I BETTER hold on

Sometimes I give myself the CREEPS
Sometimes my mind plays tricks on me
It all keeps adding up
I think I'm CRACKING UP
Am I just PARANOID?
Or am I just STONED

I clapped when the song was over. I mean, I know they can't hear me, but it's a nervous habit thing. I think Willow rubbed off on me. She does it whenever she's excited. Curses.

I picked up the remote to turn the TV off, but stopped when I saw the words 'WIN A DATE WITH SPIKE GILES' flash across the screen.

Inside, I screamed. 'Oh my god! OH MY GOD! Win a date with Spike Giles! Write down the number! WRITE DOWN THE ADDRESS!'

After I had copied down the number in a frenzied panic, I turned to Dawn, who was backed up against the couch, looking at me with a frightened expression.

"What?!"

"You are so obssessed."

"Am not."

"Spike Giles."

"Where!?"

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AN-----haha. demented, i know. just something i thought up on the spot. i was really bored. sorry if this isn't good. i'm sleeeeeeeeeeeeepy.

PLEZ REVIEW! I WANT TO KNOW IF I SHOULD CONTINUE!!!!!!!

Disclaimer: I own nothing. Damn u joss for not sharing!!!

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Buffy crossed the kitchen as the phone rang. Picking it up, she held it to her ear with her shoulder. “Hello?”

“Hello, this is Lilah Morgan. I’m calling for a.....Buffy Summers?”

“Yes, this is she.”

“Ms. Summers, I’m calling to let you know that you have been selected as the winner for the ‘Win A Date With Spike Giles contest’. You have won the grand prize of spending the day with Mr. Giles and getting to know him better. The ‘date’ will take place on the 17th of July. We hope you have a nice day.”

There was a click and a dial tone as the woman hung up.

“Oh my god!” Buffy screeched. “OH MY GOD!”

***

Spike groaned as his PR told him that they had selected a contest winner. “Lilah, why the fuck do I have to do this? And what kind of name is ‘Buffy’?”

“Because it’ll help your image some! You need to get rid of the whole ‘bad boy, bad ass’ thing. It’s not good!”

“Sodding hell, woman! That image took forever to get and now you want me to bloody throw it away?”

“Yep.”

"I hate you.”

***

July 17th rolled around too quickly for Spike’s liking, and too slow for Buffy’s. Spike sighed and slicked back his hair and knocked on the door. A small, teenaged brunette answered, and she eyed him up and down.

“Buffy!” she called up the stairs, never taking her eyes off of Spike. “Your lover-boy’s here!” She smiled at Spike’s raised eyebrow, and held out her hand. "I’m Dawn, Buffy’s little sister.”

He took her hand in his strong one, shook it as he said, “Spike Giles.”

“Yeah. I know.”

Spike’s eyes drifted to the stairs as Buffy descended them. His breath hitched slightly in his throat as he got a good look at her. Her hair was piled up, with a few stray tendrils brushing against her neck. She wore a black dress that cut off at her knees, and had a low neckline.

She smiled at him, and said in a soft voice, “Hi. I-I’m Buffy.”

He nodded, and held out his arm for her to take. She accepted and as they walked to his car, they heard Dawn yell out, “Don’t do anything crazy, you two!”

Buffy smiled, and Spike’s attitude changed immediately. Gone was the poet, and back was the bad boy he had come to be known as. “Crazy? I can think of a few crazy things I’d like to do.” His eyes roamed over her body, and his tongue curled behind his teeth.

He watched as a confused look crossed over Buffy’s features. ‘He’s so different,’ she thought. ‘He’s so different than I would have thought.’ “Wh-what?” she asked in a small voice.

“Well, it’s just that you go out dressed like that and expect to not look slutty?” Spike didn’t know why the words were coming out of his mouth, and he knew he didn’t mean them. He looked on as hurt settled over her features, quickly masked by anger.

“You know what?” she said in a hard voice. “Can we just get this over with and tomorrow we can pretend it never happened?”

“Gladly,” he replied and shut the door hard after she had climbed into his car.

***

The trip to the restaurant was made in silence, and Buffy mused over her feelings for the bleached man sitting next to her. ‘He’s so mean....when did he get mean? I mean, I’ve always read about how sweet and kind he is to his fans....were those just lies? Why am I here? Oh yeah. Dumb ass contest. Ugh, with the way he’s talked to me so far, I can’t wait for this night to be over.’

They pulled into Caritas, and Spike opened his arms in a grand gesture, grumbling, “We’re here.”

Buffy climbed out, and headed into the restaurant/dance club, ignoring the arm that was offered to her by Spike.

He sighed, and followed her into the building, each thinking the same thing.

‘This is going to be a loooooooooooooooooooooong night.’




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AN-------ok listen up. This story isn’t gonna get lovey dovey until later. So there might be a bit of a wait until they understand each other. In their world, four years will pass until that time comes. In our world, it will only be in 2 or 3 chapters.

Please REVIEW!

disclaimer: ok i know i said this before, but i type that word in on autopilot. i shouldn't be able to do that@! it's insane!!!!


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Buffy opened her eyes blearily, and looked at her surroundings as she stretched languidly, the satin sheets caressing her naked bod---

Wait.

Naked?

Buffy sat straight up in bed, clutching the sheets to her chest. She appeared to be in a hotel room, and there was an indent the shape of a body next to her on the bed.

Yet she was completely alone.

There wasn’t any trace that she had shared this room last night, only her clothes remained.

Buffy pressed the heels of her hands against her eyelids, desperately trying to remember last night.

***

The night before.....

Buffy sat down at the table, and Spike asked her what she wanted to drink.

“What do they have?”

“They have some JD, they have wine.....” At her worried expression, he assured, “They don’t have an age restriction here. Although, most kids can’t afford this place.”

Buffy flushed with anger. ‘Kid?’ she thought. ‘Did he just call me a kid?’

“Wine. White,” she spat.

Spike raised an eyebrow at her, and said to the waiter, “Whatever the lady wants.”

1 hour and 2 wine bottles later.....

“An-And then,” Buffy slurred. “He said, “You’re a bitch! Y-You should put out for me, you prude!” Can you believe that? I mean, just ‘cuz I’m a ver-veeeer-virgin, doesn’t me-mean that-that I’m stuck up!”

“Of course not!” agreed Spike drunkenly. "I mean, I’d do ya!”

“Reaaaaaaally?” Buffy scrunched up her nose at him.

“Hell yeah!”

“Ya know,” she giggled, "I dreeeeeeamed of-of-of having...” her voice dropped conspiratorially. “....sex with you.”

“Didja now!”

“Yep!” Buffy said, popping the ‘p’.

“Well, do you wanna live out that fantasy?”

“SURE!” Buffy agreed.

The two stumbled out of the restaurant drunkenly, hand in hand, neither thinking of the consequences.



***

Buffy felt tears pricking her eyes, and she whispered, “No....”

She stood up, and walked to the desk in the corner of the room, hoping to find a note.

Nothing.

Spike Giles had taken her heart, her happiness and her virginity and walked away with them, leaving her with something shattered.

***

4 weeks later......

Buffy rested her cheek against the cool toilet seat. She breathed in and out shakily.

That was the 8th day in a row that she had thrown up in the morning, and she had a sneaking suspicion what that meant.

Buffy groped on the counter, looking for the small plastic stick that she had used earlier and stared at it, eyes wide at it’s results.

Positive.

She was pregnant.

With Spike Giles’ child.

TBC.........

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AN----------------don’t worry, he’ll meet her late on......in their time, 4 years will have passed, but in our time, it will only be one more chapter.

REVIEW!!!! ....please?

Disclaimer: not mine, cuz joss is evil


also, i have a site!!! http://buffywilliams.bravehost.com

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Four years later…


Buffy flicked through the pages of the file, then sighed and tossed it onto her desk as she walked towards it. Sitting in the rolling chair, she sighed, and looked down at her desk, wondering where she would start.


She fidgeted for a moment, then straightened the picture on her desk. Smiling back at her from the frame was her baby boy, blue eyes twinkling as she held him. He was reaching out, supposedly for his Aunt Dawn, who had taken the photo. He had a party hat propped sideways on his head, and he was smiling, showing his baby teeth. The picture had been taken on his third birthday, three months ago. She sighed, bringing her hands away from the picture and onto the file, opening it once more.


“Lets see, lets see…hmm, new Sandra Bullock movie, I’ll look into that… The Grudge...oh god…oh, no…” She let the file fall from her hands and hit the desk, the information staring up at her.


SPIKE GILES, DANA HALLIWELLL, CHRISTINA LYONS ---NEW MOVIE --SCHIZOPHRENIA.

John Thornton (Giles) is a doctor in the mental ward and a widower left alone with a six year old daughter (Lyons). One of the patients named Drusilla (Halliwell), a schizophrenic, becomes obsessed with John; breaks out of prison a stalks him. She gets jealous of the attention he pays to his daughter and kidnaps her. John goes on a frantic search for his daughter, receiving clues only in the form of notes attached to dolls


Buffy dropped her head into her hands, threading her hair through her fingers. “This…is NOT what I need right now.”


She felt someone rap her on her head, and she looked up. “Wills!” she said, depressed feelings dissipating as she greeted her best friend. “What’s up?”


“Got a new assignment…” She waved the file under Buffy’s nose. “Guess where?”


Buffy frowned, and took the file away from the red head. She opened it up, and her eyes widened. Her head snapped up and she stood. “Fresche?” she asked. “Oz’s restaurant?”


Willow nodded, a light appearing in her eyes at the thought of her fiancé. “Yep. On the 24th. Wanna come with?”


Buffy nodded. “Hell yeah!”



*~::~*



Spike sighed, leaning his head against the window. He looked out the window as they drove past a sign, marking how far they were from their destination.

He pulled his head away from the glass, and rested it on the seat. He restlessly stared out the other window for a moment, before sitting up straight and reaching up towards the sun roof button. Pressing it, he amused himself for a few minutes with the sliding of the glass. Bored once more, he let his arm drop down, and reached for the mini-fridge. Opening it, he pulled out a Pepsi, and noticed with a grimace that it had his face on it.

He still couldn’t believe that Cecily, his agent, had sold him out like that! He wanted to be a respected actor, not some kind of moron who does everything he can for publicity.

After finished the soda, he managed to sit still for about ten minutes, before reaching up to play with the sun roof, barely registering the sign he passed that read:

SUNNYDALE 3 MILES







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[a/n]----I FOUND THE DAY OF THE EPISODE THAT JAMES IS IN OF 'THE MOUNTAIN'!!!!! I DON'T KNOW IF EVERYONE ALREADY KNOWS THIS, BUT I GOT IT FROM TVTOME.COM

October 08, 2004
Buffy/Angel star to Guest Star

James Marsters will guest star as the father of Penn Badgley's character on The WB's The Mountain. He'll guest star in at least one episode (which will air on November 3 at 9 p.m.). His character should be named Ted Tunney and the episode he's in is 1.07 "A Piece of the Rock".

Someone out there review plez!!

Disclaimer: not mine. EVIL!!!

HAPPY ALMOST HALLOWEEN!!!!!!!! ok listen, for you who are wondering, they ARE seeing each other for this first time in, like, forever, but they are NOT going to say anything to each other. and, they will NOT be talking in the next chapter. this story (i hope) is going to be long. well, longer than any of my other stories are. spike and buffy have been through some really bad shit and it's gonna be kind of....well, REALLY hard for them.

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“Buffy?” Willow called from the front door, and Buffy looked in its direction from her position in front of the
highchair. “It’s almost 6:45, we should leave soon.”


“Okay, Will!” She turned back to William, who was sitting in his baby seat, playing with his bananas. “William, baby, mommy’s going out for a while, and…no, don’t throw that, put it in your mouth. Grandma’s coming…” She stopped as she heard Willow go, “Hey, Mrs. Summers!”


“Hello, Willow.” Her mother greeted. “Buffy! Where’s my grand-baby?”


“In here, Mom!” She turned to William, who was blowing spit bubbles. “Sweetie, no, don’t do that. Eat your mashed bananas…DON’T throw them! William! Oh, no…Mom? I need you to clean up the refrigerator for me, Will decided to have a food fight with it.”


Her mother appeared in the kitchen, and smiled. She crossed over to her messy grandson and hauled him out of his chair. She rubbed noses with him, despite the spittle that still glistened on it. When she was done, she looked over William’s head and said to her daughter, “Go! Eat food!”


Buffy nodded, and began to walk out, before pausing and turning back. “Mom?” she asked, hand resting one the doorway. “You know what to do, right? I mean, bath, story time, and then in bed-”


“By 8:30, I know! And no milk before bed. And,” she added, seeing her daughter getting ready to open her mouth. “No TV. Only movies.”


Buffy nodded, and began to walk out the door. She stopped again, and said, “One more thing…” She crossed over to her sun and kissed his forehead. Then she smiled and walked out the door.


Joyce waited until her daughter’s foot steps faded away and the car’s sound faded into the distance before turning to William and said, “C’mon. Time for ‘Pooh Bear’.”


___


Spike sighed as they pulled into the parking lot of the restaurant. He glanced up through the tinted windows at the neon sign that glared at him in neon blue. He looked over at the empty seat next to him and sighed, wishing that someone was sitting next to him.


He never, EVER, had wished for someone, some glorious, beautiful woman to sit next to him, guide him along the way.


All that had changed a few years ago, during one of his many one night stands. He didn’t remember her all that well; just a turned up nose and sparkling green eyes. But after that, he had found himself miraculously unable to commit to ANY woman for a long period of time.


Soon, when he had had his numerous one night deals, he imagined that the woman beneath him, no matter how dark their skin or hair, had a turned up noise and a set of twinkling green eyes that lit up the room, and warmed the creases of his heart.


The same green eyed girl whose heart he had broken.


The same green eyed girl that he had, unknowingly, left with a child.


The same green eyed woman that he was about to see again.


But since he didn’t know ANY of this, he merely glanced once more at the sign that read ‘Fresche’

___


Buffy had to set down her glass as she laughed, Willow’s face bright red from the reading the message on her plate. ‘If you were anymore gorgeous, I’d have to eat you up.’


“Oh…my god,” gasped Buffy, tears forming in her eyes. “D-Do you think that OZ actually wrote that? I…I mean, it’s just so not…Oz-ish.” She giggled, “Eat you up…”


Willow laughed, cheeks still burning in embarrassment. “I know! I think that he got someone else from the kitchen to write this…” She turned the plate back into her direction and flushed even more. “Oh, god…” Then, she looked up, and her face blanched, and this time when she said, “Oh, God…” it was for a different reason.


Buffy frowned and turned around in her seat, and her face went white as she caught the eye of a man that she had grown to despise with all her being in the past 4 years.


Him…


___


Spike’s blue eyes widened as the little blonde who had been laughing so freely a minute ago, turned around and caught his eye, exposing her green ones and her upturned nose.


Her…

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Someone review!

Disclaimer: not mine. EVIL!!!

this chap goes out to: Kerry, VamptasticA, theladyofspike, and CordyKitten!!! thank's y'all!
__________________________________________________________________

Buffy kept her eyes trained on Willow, refusing to turn her head around and see the man behind her. Refused to admit that he was real, that he was there. She smiled warmly at something Willow said about William.

“I mean, he’s just so cute! With his big blue eyes, and little fingers…” Willow gushed, turning her attention back to her blonde haired friend. She was pretty sure that Buffy was fully aware that the peroxided movie star was staring holes into her back. He would occasionally glance at the two men at the table, say a few words, nod, and then turn to look at Buffy again.

She remembered the shock she had felt when her friend had showed up on her doorstep on the morning of July 18th, shirt inside out, and tears running down her face. She had sat on the couch, head in her hands, and told Willow the whole sordid tale.

Willow, who had also been an avid fan of Spike Giles, became one of his most loyal haters. Every time that she saw him on a movie poster, she would make a face at it.

Every time she heard one of his songs on the radio, she would change the channel.

Every time she heard teenaged girls talking about how sweet they heard he was, she would turn around in and uncharacteristic rage and inform them that her friend had met him, and he had ‘wham-bam-thank you ma’am-ed’ her. Since the town was so goddamned small, every man, every woman, and even every child, teenager and their cousins in different cities knew what had happened to the happy, peppy blonde, and knew who was responsible for it.

And every time that she saw her godson…she would thank that stupid, bleached Brit that he had allowed this child to come into the world.

And then she would internally curse him for the circumstances of which the child came about.

This child was so pure…so happy and bright, that it astounded her that he was the product of a drunken one night stand. This child should have been created with love and tenderness, not drunken stupidity. This child’s mother shouldn’t have had to raise him by herself.

This child’s father should have stayed around.

This child’s father shouldn’t be glaring holes at her friend.

This child’s father…would never, EVER, hurt her best friend again.

She would make damn sure of that.

---

Spike was trying his hardest to listen to Ethan Rayne as he drawled on and on about his new film idea, really, he was! It’s just…it was as if the blonde kept on drawing him back in.

After locking eyes with her, her green orbs had grown cold, and a frown took over her pretty features. She had turned away from him and back to the red head, picking at her napkin.

He had taken a small step towards her, but the hand on his arm, and the disapproving glare of Angel had him sighing and turning towards the table.

So here he was, trying to listen as the elderly man explained his idea, while an irritated looking red-head sent glares in his direction every once in a while.

But SHE wasn’t the one he wanted to be turning around to look at him. No, he wanted the petite blonde to be the one to turn around and pay him some attention, dammit!

But she was ignoring him, talking to her friend. They talked for a bit, before pushing their chairs out and standing up, getting ready to go. The blonde slung her purse over her shoulder and placed her jacket over her arms before pushing her chair back in. She turned around, and her eyes flickered towards him, before settling on the exit. She began to walk towards it, chin high in the air, her red haired friend following her. She left the building about 30 feet ahead of the other one, and Spike stood up, ignoring the protests from his dining mates, and began to walk towards the exit, trying to stop her.

But the person he came face to face with, was her cutie pie friend.

“Listen up, bub,” she said, eyeing him with evident dislike. “She knows you’ve been looking. And she didn’t look back because she wants nothing to do with you. So, leave her the hell alone, and get out of Sunnydale. You aren’t welcomed here.” She turned her head away, as if the sight of him disturbed her. “Sunnydale hates you.”

And with that, she left the mega-movie star standing in the restaurant, a confused look on his face.

“‘Sunnydale’?” he echoed.

---

“Oh, god, Will,” Buffy sighed, letting her head hit the head rest behind her.

“I know, Buffy,” Willow said as she buckled herself in. “That was hard, wasn’t it? Seeing him there?”

She nodded, burying her head in her hands and letting a few tears trickle through her splayed fingers. Willow rubbed her back comfortingly, and after a few minutes, started up the car.

Buffy sniffed and sat up, wiping her eyes with the back of her hand. “Okay,” she said, gaining her composure. “Just get me home to Will.”

Willow nodded and put her foot on the gas, setting off towards 1630 Revello Drive.

---

Spike opened the door to his hotel room, sighing.

Everywhere that he had gone tonight, he had gotten dirty looks or glares. Several people had turned away in disgust at the sight of him, and several had given him the finger.

He was un-used to this kind of treatment; more used to the kind where teenaged girls wanted to HAVE him, and men wanted to BE him. He was used to being stopped on the street by a fan who wanted an autograph. He was used to being stalked by the paparazzi and having his picture being splayed on billboards, magazines and posters.

But now…he couldn’t find a single magazine with his picture on it. He was used to going into a 7-11 and finding every magazine imaginable with his face printed on it, but in this town…

…there seemed to be no. such. Thing…

…as Spike Giles.

Guess the red-head hadn’t been lying.

This town hated him, and wanted him gone. _________________________________________________________________
TBC…

[a/n]---just so ya know, i'm watching 'showtime' and i'm currently sobbing my eyes out. that has nothing to do with this story, but w/e.
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His fingers threaded through his hair, disarranging the bleached strands. He looked out the window of his hotel room, and took in the beautiful scenery. He had managed to find a decent hotel by the beach, one that would take him in.
 
Three weeks had passed since Spike had had the run-in with the two women at the restaurant. He had tried desperately to remember what the blonde looked like, but found that the harder he tried to picture her, the more she faded away. Now, all he had was the memory of bright green eyes, round and bright.
 
He had spent most of his time walking around this one Starbucks town, trying to find somewhere that would let him stay there for more than a few days. Where ever he went, people would serve him with reluctance and distaste, or refused to serve him at all. Truth be told, the isolation and lack of craze over him was…rather welcomed.
 
But the lack of remembrance over that blonde? That was slowly driving him insane.
 
He sighed, standing up and grabbing his duster. He needed to get out of this room. He grabbed his keys to the rental car and walked out the door, heading to Sunnydale Mall.
---
 
Buffy tucked her hair behind her ear, glancing in the rearview mirror. Her son was bobbing his head along to the music blasting from her car speakers. Her son had an unbelievable obsession with the cartoon ‘Spongebob Squarepants’, and she had bought him the soundtrack, which he listened to constantly.
 
“William,” she said, catching her baby’s attention. “Sweetie, what AREN’T we going to do at the mall this time?”
 
“Play wif shoos.”
 
“Good. We don’t want a stack of high heels falling on you today, now do we?”
 
“No.”
 
“Good,” she said, turning the steering wheel and pulling into a space. She unbuckled her seat belt, and climbed out of her car. She opened up the side door and reached in, pulled the seat belt out of the buckle and lifted her son out of the car seat. She balanced him on her hip as she closed the door, opened the trunk and got out the stroller. Setting him down on the trunk, she opened the carriage and placed his favorite blanket in it. Then, she picked up her son, placed him in the stroller and walked inside the mall.

---

Spike pulled the rental car into the space and cut off the engine. He sat in front of the wheel for a few minutes before climbing out. His eye caught on the license plate on a dark blue Honda CR-V which read ‘Slayer’. He scoffed, and headed inside.

Passing through the double doors, he was greeted with the buzz of the mall and the unnaturally cold air that resulted from the high air conditioning levels.

He glanced around the overly crowded place and muttered, “Where to start.”

---

“Where to start,” Buffy sighed to Faith. The two had been friends since ‘The Incident’ after a guy had accused Buffy of being a slut and selling her body to Spike Giles. Faith, who had been on the receiving end of this comment and knew how much it hurt, had promptly become pissed off. She had decked the obnoxious teen and earned Buffy’s tentative friendship which grew into them becoming best friends.

Faith had been on a trip to San Juan for the past four weeks; just getting home the day before. She had gone to the mall where she had run into Buffy, who was now filling her in on what had happened.

“Well, Willow and I are sitting in Fresche, right? Well, I’m teasing her about her and Oz and she gets really pale and goes, “Oh, my god”. So I turn around and who do I see?”

“I dunno, B. That’s why YOU are telling ME.”

“Quiet. Anyway, I turn around and there, standing in all his glory, is HIM.”

Faith’s eyes widened. “Damn, B! I’m gone for four weeks and Blue blows back into town?” She whistled. “Maybe I should go on va-kay more often.”

“Faith, be serious. The father of my baby is here!”

The brunette looked around the food court. “Where?”

“No, not ‘here’ here. Just...in California. Sunnydale, maybe. I don’t know.” She shruged. “He could have left the coun...Faith, what are you looking at?”

“Uh, B? I don’t think he left the country.”

“Why not?”

“Because he kind of just walked into the food court.”

---

Spike glanced around the crowded place with mild amusement. People were gathered everywhere; lines meshed into each other, babies cries mixed together, and he was almost going deaf from the dull roar of the room.

Sighing, he decided that he’d come back when the whole of Sunnyhell WASN’T here, and walked right by a blonde and a brunette with a stroller, not paying them one more glance.

---

Buffy heard the light rustling of leather by her right ear and refused to turn. Faith twisted in her seat and watched the movie star as he crossed to the escalators on the other side of the room.

When his bleached head disappeared from sight, she turned around. “B, he’s gone. You can move now.”

Buffy opened her eyes and glanced around then sighed. “Too close...”

She jumped slightly when a hand clamped down on her shoulder, and a familiar British voice said, “Hello, Buffy.”

---

Spike sat on the edge of the fountain, playing with a pen that he had found in his pocket. He distractedly clicked the pen, looking down at the flor with disinterest.

He stopped his noisemaking, sighed, and put the pen next to him on the cool stone wall. He ran his hands over his face and then through his hair and dropped his right hand so that he could rub the back of his neck with his left. Dropping that hand, too, he sighed, impatiently tapping his foot. He glanced down at the offending limb and rolled his eyes before muttering “Sod it,” and walking out of the building.

---

Buffy let a grin steal over her features and turned in her seat. “Well if it isn’t Wesley Wyndam-Pryce.” She stood up and grabbed him into a hug. “How are you?”

The scraggly looking Brit hugged her and said, “Never better. And,” he added, pulling away from her. “how’s my favorite little boy?”

“Wezey!” cried the child, holding his arms up. “Up! Up!”

He laughed and swung the boy out of the stroller and into his arms. Buffy watched, amused, as Wes played with her son. “How’s Winniefred?”

The man rolled his eyes, bouncing William uup and down on his hip. “She’s fine, Buffy. And she wishes you would call her Fred, you’ve known her for two years.”

“Um, B?” Faith interrupted. “Who’s this?”

“Faith, you’ve never met Wesley?”

“No.”

“Wow...might have something to do with the boarding school...”

Wesley shrugged. “Maybe.”

“B?”

“Right, sorry. Faith, this is Wesley. Wesley, Faith. Wes is my step-brother, and ‘Fred’ is his sisters.” She leaned forward and whispered in Faith’s ear, “And he’s engaged. Don’t. Even. Think. About it. So,” she said, pulling back. “Who wants to go to Build-A-Bear?”

_______________________________________________________________________

[a/n]--i am sick + hopped up on meds. WHEEEEEEEEEE!

Disclaimer: Joss Whedon owns all.

[a/n]—this is just me, but last night I saw the commericial for the WB episode of ‘The Mountain’ that James guest stars in. It looks really really funny.
___________________________________________________________________________

Buffy wheeled William around to the front of the store, pushing him slowly past all the deflated animals that were waiting to be stuffed. She glanced ahead of her at Faith and Wesley, who were standing by the Fluff machine. She laughed when she saw Faith run a finger down Wesley’s arm, causing her step-brother to look flustered, turn to her and mouth ‘HELP ME!’

“’Top!” demanded William. “Doggy!”

Buffy looked at the choice William had made and smiled. “A Yellow Lab? Are you sure?”

“Yes.”

“OK,” she said, taking the floppy thing out of her son’s arms and pushing him towards where Faith and Wesley were.

“Buffy!” cried out Wesley, quickly walking away from Faith. “Oh, look, it’s Buffy! Buffy, let me help you with William!” As he stood next to his step-sister, he whispered in her ear, “And keep that woman away from me!”

She laughed, punching him on the shoulder. “Well, I tried to explain to her that you’re engaged, but I don’t think it worked.”

“Damn it,” was the good naturedly muttered response.

Buffy handed the stuffed animal to the clerk, who asked William to pick up one of the fabric hearts, rub it over his heart, and then kiss it. The child did so, and watched in awe as the Fluff Machine started its magic.

---

Spike sat in his car, head leaned against the steering wheel. He had walked through the double doors, found his car, laughed at the ‘Slayer’ license plate once more, and climbed into his car. He hadn’t moved since.

“Damn it,” he muttered. “I’m going to put the sodding key inside the sodding ignition and be on my bloody way. There. It’s a plan.”

Five minutes passed and he did nothing. Something in his gut was telling him not to move; to not leave this place and to search it until he found someone.

“Oh, bugger,” he sighed, opening the car door and stepping out. “Bleeding conscience got a hold of me.”

He didn’t even laugh slightly when he passed by the ‘Slayer’ license plate.

---

“Sweetie, I don’t think Marc needs a tutu.”

“Pweeze?”

“No, baby. You wanted to name it after Marc, and that means it’s a boy doggy. Boy doggies don’t wear ballerina tutus. I’m sorry, but that’s the way it is.”

---

Spike pushed his way through the double doors for the second time, and glanced around. Not stopping, he walked towards the escalators and made his way towards the third level.

Leaning against the moving rail, he looked out over the crowd of people and whistled. “Good God, I never knew this town could fill up a house, let alone a mall.”

His eyes lit up as he spotted the one shop that he had never gotten a chance to visit, but had always wanted to. “Build-A-Bear Workshop. Sod adulthood, I’m gonna make me a bear.”

---

Buffy laughed at Wesley, who had several bows tied into his hair, as they made their way out of the toy shop. The Brit was trying to get the ribbons out and only succeeding in pulling his hair.

“Oh, bloody…OW!” he yelled as she yanked on the hairs.

“Wes,” she laughed, “stop being such a baby.”

“I’m not being a baby!”

“Please. William’s acting more mature than you.”

“He is not! He’s sodding asleep!”

“My point exactly. He’s not talking or saying anything, therefore being more mature than you.”

“He’s ASLEEP!” he yelled , running his hands desperately through his hair. “And get these bloody ribbons off of me!”

She picked up the last few ribbons and smiled up at her step-brother. As she pulled the last one free, she teased, “Poor wittle Wes. Can’t keep up with the three year old.”

“William’s not the one who did this.”

She raised her eyebrow. “Who was then?”

“Your friend. Hope or whatever. I explained to her that I couldn’t be with her, never mind not want to be, because I’m engaged. She got slightly angry and tied all my hair up. Keep her away from me until the wedding, understand?”

“Gotcha,” she nodded. “No more Faith until two weeks from now.” She hugged her step-brother and whispered, “Congratulations to you and Alyson.”

He smiled and hugged her back, neither noticing the bleached movie star watching them from about ten feet away.

---

Spike had just glanced up when he saw her. Same golden hair, sparkling green eyes, upturned nose, babystroller…

Wait.

Babystroller?

He watched as the girl of his dreams played with the hair of the man next to her. He moved closer, and heard the worst thing he could imagine.

“William’s not the one who did this.”

“Who was then?”

“Your friend. Hope or whatever. I explained to her that I couldn’t be with her, never mind not want to be, because I’m engaged. She got slightly angry and tied all my hair up. Keep her away from me until the wedding, understand?”

“Gotcha. No more Faith until two weeks from now.”

And he watched, sadness etched in his eyes, as they hugged.

______________________________________________________________________________

[a/n]—to clear things up, Buffy was 19 when she and Spike went on their pseudo date.
==============================================================

“Oh, Spikey boy,” called Angel as he entered the hotel room. “Get up.”

The mass of comforters on the bed groaned, and said, “Go away, Angel.”

“Whoa there,” said the older man, raising his hands. “Must be bad for you to not show up for three days AND to call me ‘Angel’.”

He turned on the light and heard Spike groan again as he crawled out of the blankets. “Light…bad. Must repel light…”

“Whoa!” said Angel, getting a good look at the actor for the first time. “Damn, did you get hit by a truck?”

“No. But,” he added, pressing his palm against his eye. “Sure fucking feels like it.”

His hair was disheveled and the roots showing through. His eyes were bloodshot and tired, large dark bags under each of them. He looked thin, as though he hadn’t eaten in days. He was wearing the same shirt and jeans that Angel had last seen him in, telling the man that Spike hadn’t been out of the hotel in days.

“Well, get your ass out of bed.”

“No,” Spike said, trying to smirk.

It had been three days since he had seen the girl at the mall with the man he could only assume was her fiancé. The two had walked away, both having a hand on the stroller. Tears had rolled down his face; he had found her, finally found the girl he had been waiting for, and it turned out she was getting married and had a child.

Life was fucking with his head at the worst times possible.

Like right now.

“You have to, Captain Peroxide. You’ve got a meeting with B. Summers in forty-five minutes.”

---

“So, G-Man,” Buffy said, walking into her bosses office. “Whatcha got for me?”

“I wish you wouldn’t call me that, Buffy. And you have an interview with Spike in about an hour.” Buffy’s face hardened and her eyes darkened considerably. Giles sighed, knowing what was going through her brain. “Buffy, I know that my nephew is…well, an ass, but I’m sorry. I don’t choose who you interview.”

Buffy sat down on Giles’ desk. She had nothing against Spike’s Uncle, nothing at all. He was a sweet, kind old man who had the misfortune to be related to Spike. But she had met him after she had graduated college, and William was around two years old, and she had come to him looking for a job.

---
1 year ago…

“Come in,” Giles called as someone knocked on his door. A young blonde woman entered, looking around nervously.

“Uh, hi,” she said, giving him a small wave. “I-I’m Buffy Summers. I had a two o clock appointment?”

“Oh, yes,” he said, smiling. “Do sit down.”

She did so, nervously. He glanced up from his paper work and smiled at her again. “So you have a major in writing. What kind of writing would you like to do?”

“Well…nothing political. I don’t understand, um, politics. Also, I don’t want to be a gossip columnist person because I don’t want to get my information wrong. But I would like anything that gets me to go to cool places! L-Like the travel section…or the food critic. I don’t really mind.”

Giles smiled, and looked over at the chart of positions. “Well, both our Travel and Food sections are taken up, but there seems to be an opening in the Movie section.” He glanced up at her. “Are you sure you’re ready for this?”

“Yes, Mr. Giles.”

“Please, just Giles.”

“OK, Gi…” she stopped, her eyes growing wide. “W-wait. ‘Giles’?”

“Yes,” he said, beginning to frown. “Is something wrong.”

“As in, related to Spike Giles?”

The British man sighed. “Yes, he is my nephew.”

“Oh god,” she said, pushing her chair away from his desk and burying her face in her small hands. “Oh, god, Ohgod, Ohgod, Ohgod…”

“Ms. Summers?” he asked, getting out of his chair and walking over to her. He rested a hand on her shoulder. “What’s wrong?”

She looked up at him, tears making their way down her face. “About three years ago, Sp…your nephew had a contest. ‘Win a Date With Spike Giles’. Well,” she laughed bitterly. “I won. And he…I…we…” She buried her face in her hands again. “And he left…”

“Ms. Summers, what are you…” he trailed off, what was happening hitting him. “No…did you two…”

“Yes…I’m so sorry,” she whispered.

“Don’t be sorry, dear girl. Don’t be sorry.”

---

“So, Buffy,” Giles said, breaking her away from Memory Lane. “Are you ready to face him?”

She sighed, “Do I have a choice?”

---

“So?”

“Spike, I don’t think you’re hearing this. B. Summers is going to be interviewing you. This person is the meanest, rudest, bluntest, hardest critic in the whole goddamned USA. B. Summers’ thought is the one that counts. Not only does this interview get posted in the Sunnydale Times, but also in the NEW YORK TIMES. People everywhere base their opinions on this column, so you better get your ass out of bed.”

“Fine,” he grumbled. “I’ll go bloody wash up.” As he walked towards the bathroom, he turned around and pointed at Angel. “I blame you if this interview is shit.”

“Oh, trust me, Spikey. It’ll be one hell of an interview.”

_______________________________________________________________________________

[a/n]—in this chapter, you find out who Wes’ fiancée is. just to let you know before hand, I wanted to make Willow and Wes get together and then I realized that I had already paired her off with Oz. So, i tried to make it so that he was paired with alyson hannigan, but then i didn't like that. so i changed it AGAIN!


Also, thanks to Beth for the idea.
_______________________________________________________________________

Buffy looked up from her papers as Harmony knocked on the door. “Boss? Wes is on line 2 for you.”

Buffy nodded, and picked up the phone. “Buffy’s House Of Pancakes, how would you like your flapjack flipped?”

“Oh, for the love of…do you HAVE to answer the phone like that?”

“As a matter of fact, yes. I do.”

She heard him sigh on the other line and laughed, leaning back in her chair. “So,” she said, pushing her feet lightly against the desk so that she could spin slightly. “to what do I owe this WONDERFUL phone call, dear step-brother?”

“Well, Buffy, Alyson…what are you doing? Give that back! Don’t you--”

There was a rustling on the other end, and after a few minutes Buffy grew worried. “Uh, Wes? What are you doing?”

The rustling stopped, and she heard the familiar voice go, “Hey, Buff!”

“Alyson! How are you?”

Alyson and Wes had met through Buffy about one year ago. She had just finished interviewing the red haired movie star about one of her movies, when Wesley had showed up to take Buffy to lunch. Noticing the almost immediate sparks between the two, Buffy had asked Alyson to join them. Buffy had watched, amused, as the two talked animatedly to each other for almost two hours, until Buffy had had to remind Wes that she needed to get to work.

Her step-brother, completely flustered at the interruption, had asked Alyson for her number, which he received with an eager smile. The two had grown serious extremely fast, never leaving the other’s side. After their seven month anniversary, Wes had proposed to her and she had accepted. When Wesley had called Buffy, she hadn’t been able to conceal her excitement when she heard that he was marrying Alyson Daniels on the twenty-first of November.

“I’m good,” came the response from the other end. “How’s my favorite little almost-step-nephew?”

Buffy laughed, turning her chair so that she faced the window in her office that out looked the town. “One: I don’t think that could sound anymore confusing. Two: He’s good. A little temperamental since I make him sit in the stroller when all he wants to do is walk around.”

“Has he picked up on that wonderful accent that his step-uncle has? Or his step-grandpa?”

“Ugh, thank god, no! I have too many British people in my life. There’s my step-dad, Roger, and Wes, and Fred, and then Giles and then…then…Him.”

There was a silence on the other line and then, “You still never told him, have you?”

Buffy laughed through her closed mouth. “Well, I couldn’t really call up a movie star and go “Hey, guess what? You’re the father of my child!” Now could I?”

“Well, you could…um, maybe…uh…no, I guess you couldn’t.”

---

Spike groaned as he stepped out of the car, the light burning his tender irises through his Oakley sunglasses. “God, someone turn off the bloody sun.”

He placed his hand over his eyes, palm down, blocking the sun as he looked up at the grey building. “Well, if that isn’t the happiest block of concrete in the world.” He sighed, then walked into the building.

He looked around the surprisingly large lobby and whistled. “Bloody hell.”

“William?”

Spike turned, ready to give hell to whoever had called him by his real name, when he saw who it was. “Uncle Rupes?”

“William, dear boy, how are you?”

Spike took a step back as Giles tried to hug him. “’ll be a lot better when I’m out of the land of the overly cheery relatives.” He winced, bringing his palm up to his eye. “And the land of the intensely painful hangovers.”

Giles turned, and began walking with his nephew towards Buffy’s office. “Yes, well, good luck with that.” He came to a stop in front of Harmony’s desk, and said to her, “Spike Giles, 11:00 am appointment?”

Harmony sifted through her papers and said, “Um…oh, here it is! Go on in.”

Giles turned to say something to his nephew, and found he wasn’t there. “William?” He looked down the hall at Spike who was standing in a dark corner. “William, get the bloody hell over here. You’ve got an interview right now with-”

“B. Summers, yeah, I know,” was the grumbled response as Spike staggered towards him. The two Brits headed towards the office once more, and Spike said, “How long am I going to have to talk to this bloke, because I really don’t want-”

His words were cut short when Giles opened the door, and the sweetest voice drifted out to him.

---

“Oh crap,” Buffy said, glancing down at her watch. “Listen, Aly, I gotta go. My eleven’s almost here. Can you put Wes on the line for me?”

“Sure.” There was the familiar rustling for a few minutes, and then Wesley’s voice came over the line. “Yes, Buffy?”

“Listen, Wes,” Buffy said, sitting up straight as the door to her office opened. “I need you to pick William up from daycare today.”

“Why?”

“Because, I’ve got an interview with Matthew Lillard at 1, and I can’t be done in time with my other things in time to pick him up. Please, Wes?”

She heard a sigh on the other line, a sure sign that she had won the argument. “Fine. You KNOW I’m only doing this because you’re my step-sister, right?”

“Yeah,” she teased, wrinkling her nose although he couldn’t see it. “But you love me, don’t you Wes?”

There was a small laugh on the other line, and then, “Yes, you bloody bint. I love you.”

“That’s all I wanted to hear. Love you, too, Wes.”

She spun around in her chair and tried to place the phone back in the holding when she realized that all of her spinning had caused it to get tangled around her chair. “Dammit!”

She picked up the phone and spun around in the chair, trying to untangle it. “Now if I just…to the left…No! To the right and…damn. Maybe if I…”

She stopped talking to herself when she heard a throat being cleared and looked up at her doorway sheepishly. “Uh…hey, Giles!” Her smiled faded as soon as she noticed the man standing next to her boss. “And…um…hi.”

---

As had happened three days before, Spike walked in on what could only be described as the worst part of the conversation for him to hear.

“Listen, Wes. I need you to pick William up from daycare today.”

“…”

“Because, I’ve got an interview with Matthew Lillard at 1, and I can’t be done in time with my other things in time to pick him up. Please, Wes?”

“…”

“Yeah. But you love me, don’t you Wes?”

“…”

“That’s all I wanted to hear. Love you, too, Wes.”

She turned around, and the breath caught in Spike’s throat.

It was her…

She struggled with the phone line that she had managed to tangle around her chair until his uncle cleared his throat. She looked up shyly at them, and went, “Uh…hey, Giles!” Her smiled seemed to falter as soon as she registered his presence. “And…um…hi.”

Speechless, Spike merely raised his hand and gave a small wave. THIS was B. Summers? Who, according to Angel, was “the meanest, rudest, bluntest, hardest critic in the whole goddamned USA”? No.

NO.

He refused to believe that.

Unfortunately for him…he had to.

Because as much as he wanted to avoid this harsh truth, it was a bit hard, considering the even harsher reality that seemed to be repetitively smacking him in the face this month.

Because this woman, this bright eyed, apparently ruthless reporter, was the girl of his dreams.

And if all of these crappy reality checks kept up…

…he was pretty sure that soon, she would be the thing of his nightmares, too.

---

He was staring.

She wondered if he knew that he was staring at her.

Normally, she would be blushing and flustered when a huge celebrity such as himself, blatantly stared at her.

But that would be NORMALLY. Her life was anything but normal. Just ask the big guy in the sky who apparently decided that messing with her life would make for an amusing past time.

“Mr. Giles,” she said, internally wincing at how tight her throat was. “I mean, Spike…please. Sit.”

He did so, not taking his eyes off of her face.

“So, uh,” she said, turning her eyes down towards her desk. “I’m just going to ask you a few questions about your new movie, Schizophrenia. What was it like working with Dana Halliwell and Christina Lyons?”

He seemed to snap out of his stupor, and shook his head, “Right, well, Dana and I had worked on a movie together before, so we got along fine. She’s always been a breath of fresh air. And Christina? God, she’s adorable.”

Buffy’s head snapped up from her tape recording. “So…you LIKE children?”

“Like ‘em?” he said, laughing. “I love ‘em. Nothin better than a little kid thinking you’re the best thing in the world.” He paused, frowning. “That wasn’t supposed to make me sound like an ego-maniac. I meant that…it’s nice. Being the most important thing in someone’s life.” He smiled, looking past her head and out the window. “Makes me feel all manly.”

She smiled slightly, and opened her mouth to ask another question when her office door was opened, revealing Harmony. “Buffy?” she asked, looking slightly panicked.

Buffy immediately set her recorder down on her desk and said, “Harmony? What’s wrong?”

“Tara MacLay just called, from William’s school?”

“Oh, god.”

“William’s been throwing up. They took him to the nurse so he could lie down, and she took his temperature. It’s 102.7. He’s really sick, Buffy.”

Buffy paled, and stood up from her desk, gathering all of her stuff. “This is NOT my morning! First, my car runs out of gas and now…” She trailed off, glancing up at Spike. “I’m really, really sorry. My son…”

He nodded, and said, “Listen, do you need a ride there?”

She lifted her wide eyes to him, and said, “Really? I mean, I would love it, but are you sure that-”

“It won’t be a problem.”

---
20 minutes later…

Buffy rushed inside the nurses office, trying desperately to get to William as quickly as possible, Spike hot on her heels. The nurse, a pretty blonde named Darla Aurelius, looked up and said, “Oh, good, you’re here. Right this way, Ms. Summers.” She led Buffy over to one of the small beds, where a small form was huddled. “He stopped vomiting about ten minutes ago, but he’s been coughing and sniffling up a storm, not to mention his high temperature.”

Buffy sat down on the bed, rubbing the spot where her son’s back was. “Thanks, Darla.”

“No problem.” With one last glance to Buffy and then to Spike, she left to take care of the other children.

“Hey,” Buffy whispered. “Will, baby. It’s mommy.”

A small, honey blond head peeked out from under the blanket and a small, congested voice said, “Mommy?”

“Yeah, sweetie.” She leaned forward, kissing his head, forgetting that Spike was still there. “How are you feeling?”

A small wheezing cough was her answer.

“Oh, baby…” she whispered, gathering him into her arms. “Shh…it’s ok.” She pushed the blanket down his small form and picked him up, and he immediately curled into her body. “C’mon, sweets. Lets go home.”

---

On the car ride to Buffy’s house, Spike glanced over at the sight next to him.

Buffy was staring out her window, her chin resting on William’s soft hair. The boy’s eyes were closed, face flushed and his breathing ragged.

Spike winced; he had been sick with the same thing about a month ago, and it seemed to be spreading around. An uncomfortable combination of what seemed to be strep and a migraine, it was definitely one of the least pleasant experiences of his life.

He broke out of his reverie when Buffy said softly, “We live here.”

The car came to a stop, and she gathered her bag up in her arms and opened the car door. Before closing it, she looked up and locked eyes with him. “Thanks…for helping us.”

She closed the door, and made her way up the walk to her door, adjusting William on her hip.

And as she closed the door, he whispered, all alone in the confines of his car, “You’re welcome.”

_______________________________________________________________________________

Spike threw his head back, cursing when it hit the headboard. Rubbing the sore spot, he mumbled, “Damn it.” Sighing, he lowered his hand to his side, tapping his fingers impatiently on the bedspread.

Two hours had passed since his pseudo interview, and he had absolutely nothing to do except wait and see if they would call him back to finish it up. Two hours had passed since he had seen Buffy, since he had helped her with her son.

She had a son.

He laughed to himself bitterly. She had a SON. She had a son with someone else.

Someone who wasn’t him.

He reached his hand over to the nightstand and picked up the envelope that had dropped out of her purse and landed on the floor. It was a plain white business envelope, nothing special about it. It had been opened; the edge torn and jagged, presumably by her. He hadn’t dared to look at its contents, but knew that she would probably want it back.

He sighed, swinging his legs over the edge of the bed. He reached over and grabbed his duster, standing up and putting it on. Reaching inside his pocket, he grabbed his car keys and headed out of the hotel.

He swung himself inside of the black convertible and put the keys into the ignition. Starting up the car, he buckled his seatbelt and grabbed onto the steering wheel, tearing it out of the parking lot.

---

Buffy stirred William’s chicken soup, turning the back burner down to ‘simmer’. She turned around at the sound of a small sniffle and a quiet, “Mommy?”

“William, sweetie, you should be in bed. What are you doing up?”

Her baby shrugged, before padding over to her and nuzzling into her jean clad leg. Buffy leaned down and picked him up from under his armpits. Settling him on her hip, he snuggled into her neck, sniffling every once in a while. Buffy turned off the burner, picked up the ladle and spooned the soup into a bowl before grabbing a spoon and setting the soup and her son down at the table. She picked up the spoon and was just beginning to feed it to William when the doorbell rang. She looked up and then swung the dishcloth in her hand over her shoulder and walking to the door. Opening it, she was greeting with a slightly shocking sight.

“Spike…”

---


Spike pulled into the familiar driveway, shutting off the ignition. He sat in the car for a few seconds before opening the door and climbing out. Walking up to the door, he took a few moments to gather himself together before ringing the bell.

He stood on the stoop for about 10 seconds before the knob turned and he came face to face with Buffy.

Her eyes widened slightly in shock as she registered his presence with a mumbled, “Spike…”

He waved his hand. “Hi. Can I uh…” he gestured to the inside of the house. She looked behind her shoulder for a second before turning around. She wiped her hands on her jeans nervously before saying, “Yeah, c’mon in.”

He walked inside, glancing around the interior. After surveying it for a few minutes he said, “Nice place.”

She glanced up at him, “Thanks. Listen,” she said, gesturing over her shoulder and into the kitchen. “my son…”

“Oh, right. I just wanted to give you this.” He reached into his pocket and took out the plain envelope and held it out to her. “You uh, left it in my car. Earlier, when…” he gestured to the kitchen with the envelope. “your son…”

She took it out of his hands, frowning at it. Turning it over, she reached inside and took out a piece of hard paper. “Oh,” she said, her eyes widening. “It’s just the invitation to my step-brother’s wedding.” She held it up to his face, “See?”

He took it from her, and sure enough it read:

Wesley Wyndam-Pryce and Alyson Catherine Daniels wish to invite you to their wedding on the 21st of November…

He glanced up at her. “Your uh, step-brother?”

She nodded, beginning to walk into the kitchen. “Yeah. The person I was on the phone with yesterday when you walked in. He’s kind of like you.” Turning around, she saw his raised eyebrow and said, “He’s British.”

He frowned, the memory of three days before flashing before his eyes.

“William’s not the one who did this.”

“Who was then?”

“Your friend. Hope or whatever. I explained to her that I couldn’t be with her, never mind not want to be, because I’m engaged. She got slightly angry and tied all my hair up. Keep her away from me until the wedding, understand?”

“Gotcha. No more Faith until two weeks from now.”

He started laughing, full blown laughter that was ripped from his throat. Looking up, he stopped his laughter when he realized that she was staring at him as if he was quite insane. “Sorry,” he apologized. “It’s just…was he at the mall with you three days ago?”

She raised an eyebrow, slightly on edge from his crazy behavior. “Yeah…Why…?”

“No reason,” he said, feeling slightly better than he had three days ago. “So uh,” he gestured to the kitchen again. “How’s your boy?”

She shrugged, heading into the kitchen, Spike trailing behind her. “The same he was two hours ago.”

“Right,” he said, glancing around her kitchen. His eyes stopped on the picture that was mounted on the wall. Narrowing his eyes, he said, “Where did you get that?”

“Get what?”

“That picture.”

She glanced up at the picture in question and paled slightly. “You really don’t remember, do you?”

He shook his head, eyes still fixed on the picture of him with the girl he had gone on a fixed date with. He was wearing a tuxedo, and she was wearing a black dress that cut off at her knees, and had a low neckline. Her hair was piled up, with a few stray tendrils brushing against her neck. “I don’t. But how did you get this?”

She walked over to the picture, her index finger resting on the girl. “That’s me.”

He turned to her and said, “THAT is YOU?”

She nodded, and opened her mouth to speak when they were interrupted by the small, “Mommy?”

They turned, and Spike found himself lost in the bright blue eyes that matched his own.

And he knew.

---

Buffy knew that she was in trouble when his eyes went wide, his face pale, and his irises dark and dangerous. “William, honey, eat your soup. Mommy has to talk to her friend.” When he nodded, she grabbed Spike by the hand and took him up the stairs and into her bedroom.

As soon as the door was closed, she turned and inhaled sharply to find Spike standing dangerously close to her, nostrils flaring slightly. “Were you going to tell me?” he asked.

“Tell you…tell you what?” she asked, turning her head away from him.

“Tell me that…look at me, dammit, look at me!” He grabbed her chin and forced her to stare him in the eyes. “Were you ever going to tell me about him?”

Her features hardened and she retaliated with, “Were you ever planning on NOT abandoning a 19 year old after you slept with her? Were you ever going to even call her to apologize?”

“This isn’t about me, dammit!”

“That’s where you’re wrong!” She wrenched her chin out of his grip and crossed over to the other side of the room. “This is ALL about you, Spike! You slept with me, left me there without so much as a ‘good-bye’, or a note or ANYTHING! You slept with me, left me in the morning and I found out that I was pregnant!”

“Well you should have called me or something!”

“What makes you think I didn’t TRY?!” she struck back. “I did, several times in fact. But some she-bitch named Cecelia or Cecil or something told me NOT to call back ever again! My friends all tried to get me to try again, my step-brother’s fiancée tried to get me to do it yesterday, but you know what? I did. So many times, but apparently agents don’t like it when teenaged girls call up and say that their client got them pregnant.” During her rant, she had taken slow steps towards him, and was currently staring him down. “So don’t even TRY to pin this on me, you self centered son of a bitch.”

His nostrils flared even more, and he looked as though he was going to say something but stopped. She was startled when his eyes began to tear up, and he sat on her bed, head buried in his hands.

“You’re right,” he whispered. “Oh, God, you’re right…”

Disclaimer: not mine. Don’t sue!

[a/n]—don’t kill me! I’m so sorry that it’s been over a week since I last updated. It’s just, I was sick and spent my time making up the work that I missed.

_______________________________________________________________________

He sat on her bed for ten minutes, crying through splayed fingers.

She had left him there, unable to offer any form of comfort, no “It’s alright,” no sympathy or empathy.

The look on her face had been of discomfort, obviously unused to having emotional men break down in her bedroom. Especially if those men were famous AND the father of her child.

Her son.

THEIR son.

He had a son.

A son, whose eyes were so much like his, who was three years old.

He had missed three years of a child’s life. Worse, his child.

A soft knock on the doorframe made him look up. Buffy stood in the hallway, a peacefully dozing William balanced on her hip. “Hey,” she said. “After I put him to bed, do you want to talk some more?”

He nodded, his bloodshot eyes fixated on his child the entire time. “Yeah.”

She nodded, then padded down the carpeted hall. Spike sat on her bed for a few seconds before rising shakily to his feet and following her. He leaned on hip against the doorjamb, his left hand gripping the wood frame in a white-knuckled grip.

Buffy kissed William on the top of his head before laying him down in his race car bed. As soon as his head hit the pillow, he turned over in his sleep, legs drawn towards his chest slightly, hands resting by his face, his small, open mouth breathing small bursts of air onto the pillow. Buffy smoothed his hair back, then laid the back of her hand to his forehead. Sighing, she lifted her right knee from where it had been resting on the carpet, but stayed in a crouch as she leaned over and kissed him on the forehead.

---

Buffy handed Spike a mug of hot chocolate as he sat at her table, slowly flicking through one of William’s baby books.

As she held her steaming mug in front of her, she said, “So here’s a question: you recognized me in the restaurant, but when you saw a picture of me from four years ago, why didn’t you know who I was?”

He shut the thick book and pulled his drink towards him. “Well,” he began. “I knew you from somewhere, I just couldn’t remember where exactly. Four years ago, I went on as many one-night-only deals; so many women that you got lost in them. So, I just remembered your face, not where I knew you from.”

She didn’t say anything, and he went on the defensive. “I HAVE changed, though. I mean, I’m 27, for God’s sake!”

She shook her head. “No, I know you’ve changed. It’s the fact that you admitted to me being a one night stand that hurts. I mean, I knew it all along, but it just…hurts more.”

He opened his mouth to say something when the door opened and someone called out, “Buffy, I got your phone call. I brought Alyson; we came to see William.”

Spike glanced at Buffy, whose face was lit up. She pushed the chair out and away from the table and made her way into the hall. Spike stood up as well, following her path just in time to see her hug the man he now knew as her step-brother.

“Wes,” she said, voice muffled. “Thanks for coming.” He hugged her back, resting his chin on her head, eyes closed. Then, he opened them and they came to rest on-

“Buffy, who’s that?” Wes asked about the bowed head of Spike.

Spike raised his head and Aly gasped. “Spike?”

He smiled slightly and gave a small wave. “Hey, Alyson.”

Wes let go of Buffy and stepped closer to Aly. “How do you know each other?”

“We were in a movie together once,” Alyson said, glancing up at her fiancé. Noticing his darkening look, she said, “Wes, he’s just a friend.”

“Right,” Wes said, his eyes now lingering on his step-sister. “Buffy, a word?” he inclined his head towards the kitchen. Taking her by the elbow at her wary nod, he pulled her into the kitchen.

“Buffy,” he whispered harshly. “What are you thinking?! Bringing the father of your child into this house!”

“I didn’t call him over!” she hissed. “He just…showed up at my door with an envelope! He’s also the one who helped me get to William because my car broke down. Just…” She sighed. “ Don’t make a scene, ok?”

He pinched the bridge of his nose, closing his eyes tightly. “I’ll try,” he conceded.

She leaned up and kissed him on the cheek, then hugged him briefly. “Thank you,” she whispered. “Thank you…”

---

Spike looked up as Buffy walked back in with her step-brother. He felt a small smile pull at his lips as he took in her change of wardrobe for the first time.

Her hair lay piled on the top of her head, strands falling free every once in a while. All make-up had been scrubbed free, leaving her face natural looking. On her legs were some loose dorm pants with ‘SDU’ written on the left leg. But it was her shirt that made him smile.

A plain white cotton tee, it read in print ‘WORLD’S BEST MOM’. Under that lay a slightly smudged red hand print and a giant, scribbled ‘W’, obviously both put there by William.

“I like your shirt,” he said softly.

Buffy held out the hem of the garment and smiled. “He made it for me about a month ago.”

“’S nice,” he said.

“Yeah…thanks.

---

Two hours later, Spike sat in the large butterfly wing chair in William’s room, legs spread out, elbow propped up on the armrest, hand pressed against his chin. As the small child shifted in his bed once again, Spike drew up his legs and rested his forearms on his knees.

“It’s nice, isn’t it?”

He jumped at the sound of Buffy’s voice and looked up to see her leaning against the door, arms behind her back. “What’s nice?”

“Watching him sleep.” She shrugged. “He looks so…”

“Tiny.”

“He’s three, Spike. He IS tiny.”

He didn’t respond, and she walked further into the room. “Earlier today…you commented on my shirt.” He looked up at her, and noticed that she was fidgeting with the thing behind her back. “You know, the ‘WORLD’S BEST MOM’ one? Well, it’s just that…when he made the mom one…he made this one too.”

She held out the shirt to him, and he took it in his large hands. He ran his fingers over the handprint, and whispered, “‘World’s Best Dad’.”

_________________________________________________________________________________

a/n---ok, something reallll quick: evil intentions, I am so jealous of you! You got to hang out with James Marsters! He’s my idol; he seems so…happy about what he does, and that makes him so cool in my book. You are one lucky person!!!

***

He threw the shirt away from him, holding in a sob. The garment landed on the edge of William’s bed, the part with the word ‘DAD’ hanging off the side.

He heard Buffy inhale sharply at his movement and she crossed to William’s bed to pick it up. She walked back over to him and held it in front of him expectantly, but he pushed it away.

“Spike, take it.”

“No.”

“Take it.”

“No!”

“Spike-”

“NO!” he yelled, then lowered his voice in fear of waking William. “I don’t want it.”

“Why-”

“Because I don’t deserve it! I don’t deserve to get something that tells me that I’m…”

Her eyes softened, realizing his distress. He was angry with himself for not being there. And this shirt wasn’t going to help him to be any less mad.

“‘World’s Best Dad’,” he scoffed, burying his face in his hands once more. “Didn’t even know I was a dad, and now I’m suddenly the best.” He looked up and glared at the offending item. “Why did he make it, anyway? I’d assumed he’d been told I was dead or something.”

“Well…it was the ‘or something’ part. He asked where his dad was…and I just old him that you and I didn’t get along and you left.”

“Oh, wonderful! Now he’s going to think I abandoned you. Just make this bloody worse, why don’t you?”

“Spike, just…calm down.”

“No! I won’t calm down, and I probably will NEVER calm down!”

“Can you try?” she asked, undeterred by his yelling. “Or can we take this somewhere else because our son is trying to sleep.”

He seemed to relax at that, glancing over at the small child. “Yeah,” he sighed, rubbing his eyes. “Yeah.”

---

“Wes?” asked Alyson as she lay in their bed that night.

“Hmm?” he hummed from where his face was buried in her neck.

“Do you think that Spike and Buffy can ever…” she trailed off, then shook her head slightly. “I don’t know what I’m thinking.”

“Well,” he said, lifting his head. “Honestly? I think they can, I just hope that they don’t.”

“What?” she said, turning around. “Why would you say that? Spike is a nice guy, and yeah, he had that whole thing with getting Buffy pregnant, but-”

“Well, he wasn’t a nice guy afterwards.”

“How would YOU know?” she asked. “I thought you didn’t know her yet.”

“Aly, I DID know her. Our parents were dating then, and I had been at the house when she burst into the house, crying. Do you think that she wasn’t hurt?”

“Well, I’m sure she was hurt, but-”

“No, Aly! He abandoned her the day after he slept with her, and didn’t look back! Now, he’s facing the results of his actions and they just happen to be in the form of my step-sister and her young son.”

She was silent for a few minutes before asking softly, “It was bad, huh?”

He sighed, and tightened his arms around her. “Yeah. It was bad.”

---

William opened his eyes, blinking sleepily. Wondering where his mom was, he pushed the covers down, grabbed Mr. Teddy, and padded over to his door. “Mommy?” he said quietly. “Mommy?”

He slowly made his way toward the stairs, then gripped the railing as he made his way down. He heard his mom in the kitchen, and that strange man who had been there while he was eating his soup.

He stood in the doorway to the kitchen, clutching Mr. Teddy to him and clad in his jammies. “Mommy?” he asked again, quietly. But the two grown-ups ignored him.

---

“Spike, listen to me,” Buffy said as they made their way into the kitchen. “He doesn’t know who you are yet.”

“‘Yet’?” he echoed. “As in, he’ll know eventually?”

She sighed, leaning against the counter. “Spike, sooner or later he’s going to need to know. I figure the sooner the better.”

“So, when are you going to tell him I’m his dad?”

“Well, I-”

“Mommy?”

Buffy and Spike froze, turning to the doorway. “William,” Buffy whispered. She threw a glance at Spike before crossing over to him. Kneeling on the ground, she said, “William, baby, what are you doing up?”

He shrugged, his sleepy blue eyes still fixed on the blond in the kitchen.

“Well,” Buffy said, picking him up. “You’re a sicky, so we need you to rest and get all better.” She made her way to the stairs and started up them, Spike right behind her. “And once you’re all better, we just might go see The Spongebob Squarepants Movie.”

He nodded, still looking over her shoulder at Spike. And as she lay him down to sleep, he whispered to her, “Night, Mommy.” She kissed his forehead, pulling the blankets up his body. When she pulled back, she noticed he was still looking at Spike. She turned around and tilted her head towards William. “You want to say good-night to William, Spike?”

His head snapped up, and he suddenly looked unsure of what to do. “Uh…”

Buffy smiled, turning to her son. “Will, do you want Spike to tuck you in?” He nodded, blue eyes wide.

Spike sighed and walked to the bed, crouching next to Buffy. He tentatively reached out one hand and brushed the blond hair out of his son’s eyes. He cautiously leaned forward and placed a small kiss on his forehead. As he pulled back, the little boy grabbed his finger with one hand. He tugged, bringing Spike’s ear next to his mouth. He whispered something inside of it before letting go of the finger.

Spike inhaled sharply and drew back, pulling out of his crouch. He ran his hand through his hair, and turned and walked through the child’s bedroom door.

After a few minutes, Buffy followed. “Hey,” she said, standing next to him. “What’s wrong?”

“Did you hear what he said?”

“No. Why don’t you tell me?”

He took in a shaky breath, before saying, “He said, ‘Night, Daddy’.”

_______________________________________________________________________________

*coughs* wow…I uh, I meant to post this on the 21st…but I got caught up in family stuff. So, sorry this is two weeks late!

The song is ‘collide’ by howie day
_______________________________________________________________________________

Spike knocked on the door, standing nervously on the ‘Welcome!’ mat. The knob twisted and the lock clicked as Buffy opened it.

“Oh,” she said, brushing the hair out of her eyes. “Hi…”

“Hey,” he said, lifting his hand in a small wave. “Listen, I was…” he stopped when he noticed what she was wearing; a light blue, floor length gown that molded to her every curve. She nervously adjusted the straps, and he stared when the gown shimmered like water at the slightest movement.

When she glanced back inside nervously, he asked, “Am I…interrupting something?”

---
The dawn is breaking
A light shining through
You're barely waking
And I'm tangled up in you
Yeah
---

“What?” she said, turning around to face him. “Oh, no. It’s just…” She turned again and looked towards the now shut door. “It’s not a good time.” She turned to him. “My sister, Dawn, is here, and she…she kind of hates you.”

“Buffy, this whole TOWN hates me. I think I can-”

“She bought a poster of you, wrote ‘BASTARD’ on it and then lit it on fire. And that’s before any of this happened. ‘This’, meaning you and me.”

“Oh,” he said, raising his eyebrows. “I guess this IS a bad time then.”

---
I'm open, you're closed
Where I follow, you'll go
I worry I won't see your face
Light up again
---

“Yeah,” she said, still turning around every few seconds to look at the door. “So, what are you-”

She never got to finish her sentence, because at that moment, the door swung open, revealing a brunette in her late teens. “Buffy, what’s taking so long? I was beginning to get worr-” She finally caught Spike in the corner and narrowed her eyes dangerously. “You. You know, I’ve always wondered what it would be like to castrate someone. Looks like I get to find out.”

---
Even the best fall down sometime
Even the wrong words seem to rhyme
Out of the doubt that fills my mind
I somehow find, you and I collide
---

She began to move forward when her sister’s arm shot out and she said, “Dawn. Not now.”

“What?” Dawn frowned, turning to face her sister. “Why?”

“Because. If he came here to talk, then we’re going to talk,” Buffy said, using her best Mom-voice. “Now, go get ready for the wedding.”

Dawn rolled her eyes before storming up the stairs, muttering to herself.

“Oh,” Spike said, casting his eyes to his shoes, which were very interesting all of the sudden. “’S right…the twenty-first and all.”

“Yeah,” she said, rubbing her hands up and down her arms. “Listen, it’s cold. You want to come inside?”

“Nah,” he said, waving his hand dismissively. “I’ll just go.”

---
I'm quiet, you know
You make a first impression
I've found I'm scared to know
I'm always on your mind
---

He was halfway down the sidewalk and to his car when she spoke. “William…he wants to see you.”

He turned around, staring at her.

“I-I mean, you ARE his father…he’s been asking where you went. That’s all.”

He continued to stare at her, and she grew uncomfortable. “Unless, you don’t want-”

“Oh,” he said, shaking his head and bringing him out of his trance. “I’ll come. It’s just…kind of surprised me there. It is a truckload of manly responsibility come flying out of nowhere.”

She offered a small, tentative smile before walking back into the house.

---
Even the best fall down sometime
Even the stars refuse to shine
Out of the back you fall in time
I somehow find, you and I collide
---

___

“Da!” William shrieked as soon as he saw Spike. “Da!”

“Hey, buddy,” Spike said, swinging the boy into his arms. “How’s my guy?”

William scrunched up his small face and pulled at his church clothes. “Ick,” he said.

“‘Ick’?!” Spike gasped in mock horror. “Oh no! Not the dreaded ICK!” He held William a small distance away from him, and ran his eyes over the boy’s form as if inspecting him before hugging the child to him. “You know,” he whispered. “The only way to cure ‘ick’…is TICKLING!” He dug his fingers into his son’s stomach, sending the child into a fit of giggles.

When he stopped, William smacked his tiny palms against his father’s cheeks. “Silly Da,” he giggled.

Spike grinned despite his attempts to look horrified. “Silly, am I? I’ll show you silly!”

---
Don't stop here
I've lost my place
I'm close behind
---

He untucked William’s shirt, exposing his son’s small belly, before placing his mouth on the soft skin and blowing a raspberry on it, launching the boy into giggles.

And Buffy watched them, unnoticed, and a single thought flickered in the back of her mind:

My boys…

She shook her head when she realized that Spike was snapping his fingers in front of her face. “What?”

“Hey,” Spike said, balancing William on his hip. “What you thinking about?”

“Oh…um, nothing, really. I just…” she trailed off, unsure of what to say to him. Nervously, she glanced at the clock in the kitchen. Her eyes widened and she held out her arms for William. “Good God, we’ve got to be at the church in ten minutes!”

Spike handed their son over to her, and said, “So you’re what in this wedding?”

“Maid of honor. Have you seen my purse?” Not waiting for an answer, she walked to the foot of the stairs. “Dawn!”

“What!”

“We’ve got to go, have you seen my purse?”

“The blue one with the silver chain?”

“Yeah!”

There were a few stomping noises, and Dawn appeared at the top of the stairs in a gown that matched Buffy’s. “It’s by the door,” she said, walking over to the mirror and putting her earrings in.

Buffy walked over to the door, picked up her purse, and said, “Hey, Spike? Can you open the door for me?”

“Sure.” He opened the door for her, and she distractedly kissed him on the cheek as she walked out.

Dawn followed her, pausing at the door. She turned to face the star and said, “Listen. I don’t like you. I hate you, and I really wish that you had never come to this town.”

Unfazed, he said, “Okay.”

“That’s it? No snarky, cocky remark?” He shook his head, and she glared at him suspiciously. “What do you want with us? You’re famous, you could have anyone you want and throw them to the side. I mean, you’ve never had a problem with it before. What are you trying to prove, showing up here?”

“I don’t know.”

“You don’t know?” She rolled her eyes. “How original. But if you don’t know what you’re going to do with my sister, then get the hell out of Sunnydale.” She walked out the door, not sparing him another glance.

He watched from their doorway, a contemplative look on his face as he remembered her question: “What are you trying to prove?”

“I don’t know, Niblet. I just don’t know.”

________________________________________________________________________________________________________

reviews are pretty

(does a little dance) whooo! Look at me, being UPDATED-FASTER-THAN-LAST-TIME girl!

I apologize to all I freaked out with my ‘reviews are pretty’ thing. It’s what happens when you give me Benedryll.

Ok, and also, there is something in here that makes it sound Bander or Xuffy or w/e the hell Buffy/Xander is. But, c’mon. would this be here if it were? Uh, no.
_______________________________________________________________________________

Buffy pulled the pot off of the burner, placing it on a hot pad and sighing. Last night had been tiring; all the dancing and crying and laughing and keeping track of William…

Not to mention the “horrendous emergency” that Giles had called her about during the car ride home.

She had left William with Dawn and headed to the offices, silently fuming at the prospect of going to work so late.

Catching up with Cordelia Chase had made up for it, though.

Buffy had met the brunette at college. They had never been close in the beginning, until Parker Abrams had called Buffy a whore and a whole lot of other worse things since she was a single mother. Buffy, still feeling tender from the experience with Spike, had cried. She had been called a ‘whore’ and ‘slut’ before, it was how she met Faith. But Parker was the first who had demanded that since she was so desperate, that she should sleep with him.

Cordelia had jumped into the argument, reminding Parker that he was the one with the STD.

He had slunk away, defeated, while Buffy walked away with a new friend.

Cordelia had helped Buffy in her journalism major and with caring for William, and Buffy helped Cordelia with her fashion design major, helping create a few of C. Chase’s better known dresses.

“Buffy!” Cordelia had greeted, air kissing each of the blonde’s cheeks. “How ARE you and William?”

“I’m good,” Buffy had said, sitting down in her plush leather chair. “William is fine, he was sick a few days ago, though.” She had paused, debating whether or not to tell her old friend about the most recent tilt on her axis. “And…his father’s good, too.”

“Whoa, back up there, sweets. ‘Father’?”

“Oh…yeah, it’s nothing, Spike came back to town, Wesley got married, and hey! Why are you here?” Buffy had said, hoping Cordy wouldn’t dwell on the subject of Spike.

Her hopes had been dashed when the blinding smile on Cordelia’s face dimmed, and she’d said, “Spike…came back?” She had slammed her palms down on the desk, the skin colliding with the wood with a loud ‘BANG’. “That bastard! I’m gonna-”

“Cordy,” Buffy had interrupted. “The thought is appreciated. Really, really appreciated, but not needed.”

“Fine,” the brunette had said, pulling her hands back to rest in her lap. “But if you need someone to kick his ass…”

“I’ll call Faith.”

***

“Mommy?” William asked, pulled at his mother’s pant leg. “Mommy, what’s lunch?”

His mommy didn’t answer; she was staring out the window. William pulled on her elbow, wrapping his arms around it before hanging himself off of her forearm.

THAT got mommy’s attention.

“Oh, William! Where did you come from?”

“Bat’room.”

His mommy smiled at him, bending so that she was looking him in the face. “What were you doing?”

“Playing wif toof paste.”

His mommy stopped smiling and said, “Oh, no,” before running into the bathroom.

“Mama? What’s wrong? Mama?”

***

One hour later, Buffy lay exhaustedly on the couch. It had taken forever for her to scrub the Colgate out of the tiles and off of the walls. Not only had William squirted it on the wall, but he had somehow managed to mash it into the shag carpet in the bathroom.

The doorbell rang and she groaned. “Not one minute of rest.”

Sighing, she lifted her tired body off of the couch and walked towards the door. Opening it, she groaned again. “Oh, god. Who are you?”

The man smiled, undeterred by her rude greeting. “Hallo, miss,” he greeted in an Irish lilt. “The name’s Doyle. I’m Ms. Chase’s chauffeur. She would like to invite you to dinner with her tomorrow night. She also requests that you bring your son along with you.” The hat that had been clutched in both hands was placed back on his head, and he nodded in goodbye before walking back towards a black limo.

“Great,” Buffy sighed, leaning against the doorway. “Just what I need right now.”

Just as she spoke, a car pulled up into her driveway and a young, brown haired man in his mid-twenties stepped out, eyeing the house through his sunglasses. He walked up the drive, a brown paper bag clutched in his hand. He jogged up the stairs and stood on the welcome mat, looking down at her. “Buffy Summers?”

She eyed him, standing up straighter. “Yes, may I ask who you are?”

He extended the hand that wasn’t holding the paper bag. “Xander Harris, guitarist for the Dingoes. Spike asked me to drop something off for you. It’s a demo of our newest CD that we just finished recording yesterday. I think that he came to give it to you yesterday, but something about a wedding popped up. So,” he shrugged, grinning. “I am messenger Xander, Bringer of the Stuff.”

She smiled, liking this man more and more. “Well, Bringer of the Stuff, would you like to come in for some coffee?”

He lifted his sunglasses to the top of his head before glancing down at his watch. Shrugging, he said, “I don’t have anything better to do.”

She grinned up at him as he walked inside, shutting the door behind them both.

+++

Xander walked into the hotel suite, smiling to himself.

Coffee with Buffy had been nice…VERY nice. The more and more he had talked to her, the more he liked her. And William was absolutely adorable. He could tell why Spike wanted to be around her so much.

Well, other than the fact that William was his kid.

But Buffy…she was something special.

He sighed, flinging himself onto the bed, closing his eyes in happiness. The way that her nose crinkled when she laughed…her eyes were the most lovely shade of green, and her son was just an added bonus.

He could have no problem falling in love with Buffy Summers.

Hell, he was halfway there.

Too bad that Spike was, too.

The door flew open, hitting the wall with a ‘BANG’, and Xander sat up straight, looking for the intruder.

“What,” Spike demanded, standing in the doorway. “The bloody hell took so long? You were only dropping off a CD!”

Xander sighed, flopping backwards again. “We had coffee…really nice coffee.” He raised his head. “Your kid’s cute.” Folding his arms behind hid head, he lowered it once more. “So is his mom.”

He could tell without looking at him that Spike had just gone rigid. “What?”

“She’s nice…what can I say? Smart, funny, cute kid…beautiful eyes…”

Spike crossed the room, sitting down in the chair. “You fancy her,” he said dully.

“Mm-hmm,” Xander said, closing his eyes again. “She makes really good coffee.”

“You fancy her.”

He opened his eyes and turned his head, fixing his friend with a raised eyebrow. “We’ve covered this; the fancying of Buffy. And I believe it was a ‘yes’.”

“You…fancy HER.”

“I…fancy HER, yes.”

Spike was silent when he stood up, silent when he opened the door, and silent when he left.

Xander sighed, not out of contentment, but self-disgust for saying that to Spike…

…who he knew was in love with Buffy.

+++

Buffy opened up the brown paper bag and took out the CD, inspecting it. It was in a thin, clear jewel case, and the CD had the word ‘DEMO’ written across it in black permanent marker. “Well,” she said, “here goes nothing.”

She put the CD in the stereo, waiting for the music. A guitar started playing, sounding out a familiar tune. It wasn’t until the words had begun that she recognized it.

She was a fast machine
She kept her motor clean
She was the best damn woman that I've ever seen

Unlike any other remake she had heard before, this one was actually…good. Not sped up, sticking to the original melody, and Spike…

He was singing like she’d never heard before.

She had the sightless eyes
Telling me no lies
Knockin' me out with those American thighs
Takin' more than her share
Had me fighting for air
She told me to come but I was already there

'Cause the walls start shaking
The earth was quakin'
My mind was achin'
And we were makin' it and you -

Shook me all night long
Yeah you shook me all night long

Working double t-

She pressed the button for the next song, shaking her head. That was more than enough that she could take of that song. The digital reader said 2, and she got ready to listen to the song.

+++

Buffy was laying on the couch, contentedly listening to the CD as it finished up track twelve.

Her eyes snapped open when she heard Spike talking in the beginning of the last track.

“This, uh…” his voice said. “This song was inspired the other day by a little blonde and her son. So…I hope you enjoy it, Buffy and William.”

I sing for you and only you
Wherever I go I find you
You’re in the sound of every hello
In everything I do
You’re the song I was destined to know
And I only sing for you

Buffy looked up as William walked into the room and over to her. He held his arms out, and she lifted him onto her lap, and they listened to the song.

I went away. I should have known
You leave so many dreams behind you
Thought you’d be fine just being alone
I didn’t have a clue
But my heart had a mind of its own
And would only sing for you

You’re in the sound of the rain
Clouds in a winter sky
In a thousand unsaid words
In a thousand crazy reasons why
You were meant to fly

So fly for me and day by day
I’ll keep hoping your heart reminds you
Nothing but love can stand in our way
But love can see us through
Maybe that’s all I wanted to say
I will always sing for you
I will always sing for you

Buffy and William were quiet for a few moments, until William looked up at Buffy with those crystal blue eyes. “Mama? Daddy…”

Buffy smiled, letting a tear roll down her face. “Daddy sang for you.” She hugged him to her, and he buried his small face in the side of her neck. “Daddy sang for you…”

++++
He sang for you.
---
I sang for both of you.
I love you both.
So much.
++++

TBC…


a/n--i'm just letting all of you know that i might not be able to post before december 17th. my teachers have recently decided to overload us before break. so sorry!!

A/N---woo! chapter sixteen!

this chapter introduces Christopher Richards, a guy who replaced Andrew in the band. We're going to leave WHY Andrew was replaced for later.
_____________________________________________________________________________________

"So..." Cordelia drawled, stirring her diet ice tea with a straw. "What's the deal with Spike?"

Buffy sighed as she attempted to spoon mashed potatoes into William's mouth. "I'm not sure. He just kind of...blew into town for an interview with me."

Cordelia raised an eyebrow. "And..."

"He proclaimed his undying love and devotion for me, and I reciprocated, so he threw me on the desk where we made wild, passionate love." Buffy sighed dramatically, placing her hand over her heart before moaning, "It was SO romantic."

Cordelia scowled at her, "You're mocking me."

"No, really?"

"And you've not only managed to corrupt William, but you've also smeared potato on his shirt."

Buffy frowned and turned her gaze to William, who grinned at her through a mess of mashed potatoes. "Great, more mess." She cleaned off his face with a napkin, pouting at him. "You're just being trouble, aren't you?" She deposited the dirty napkin on her plate before saying to Cordelia, "Where were we?"

"What REALLY happened?"

Buffy sighed, "He DID blow into town, but then he gets to my office and acts all...not jerky, and then writes this amazing song for me and William, therefore confusing the hell out of me."

"One: you corrupted William again, Two: he wrote you a song? Geez...the guy's deeper than I thought." She glanced at William. "What do you think, Willy boy? Is your daddy a nice man?"

William nodded, smiling brightly. Buffy sighed at her son's response, saying, "He's been smiling all day?"

"Really? Will," she said, taking on her 'Aunty Cordy' voice. "How's my best buddy?"

"Good."

"Really?" Cordelia said, turning in her chair slightly. "That's wonderful. Guess what would make this better?"

William's eyes lit up, obviously recognizing what was about to come. "Pezzies!" he squealed, clapping his small hands together. "Pezzies!"

Cordelia nodded, her smile growing into un-Chase like proportions. "That's right," she singsonged, pulling out a large paper bag. "Prezzie for William AND his mommy."

William eagerly took to the package that she placed in front of him, tearing at it with impatient hands. His blue eyes went wide when the contents were revealed to him, joy brimming in his irises.

"Oh, god," Buffy said, turning to her friend. "If that...whatever you bought him, if it makes noise? I am hunting you down, Chase."

"Easy there, Summers," Cordelia laughed, raising her hands. "You won't hate me once you see it."

"Ma," William said, spinning the present towards her. "Look."

Buffy's eyes went wide. "Oh, my god."

---

When he walked into the hotel room, Spike was sitting on the king sized bed, strumming his guitar.

Once the ENTIRE band had made it to Sunnydale, hotels and townspeople had warmed up to them, offering them all they had. Spike, however, was still eyed with distaste.

"Hey," he greeted, interrupting Spike's playing.

"Hi," Spike said quietly, avoiding his eye. "What..."

"Oh," he said, shrugging. "You know...tuning my drum set, reading, watching two of my best friends fight..." Spike's cheeks tinged pink a bit, and Chris sighed. "Wanna tell me why the silent treatment is going on?"

"Not particularly, no."

Chris turned around, grabbed the rolling chair and pulled it so that it was positioned across from Spike. "Why?"

"Because."

"You know, for a twenty-seven year old, you're acting seventeen years younger."

"This coming from the twenty-four year old," Spike said, finally raising his eyes to Chris'.

Chris shrugged, "I'm still being more mature than you, and I don't even know what the hell is going on."

"That's right," Spike agreed. "You don't know a damn thing, so why don't you drop it?"

"Because," Chris said, keeping his tone indifferent. "If it's bugging you so much, you'll keep it inside yourself until you go insane. So if you want to lose all sanity, go ahead. But, record sales won't be the same if you're convicted to an asylum."

Spike groaned, realizing that he was not going to be left alone about this until he gave in. "Fine. You want to know, you annoying sod? It's about Buffy."

"Oh," Chris nodded. "The hot woman with your kid?"

Spike raised an eyebrow at him, anger simmering in his eyes. "How do you-"

"You have a picture of her right next to you, dumbass."

Spike turned to the photo that was indeed resting on his night stand. He had swiped it from one of Buffy's albums, hoping she wouldn't notice.

She and William were at a beach somewhere, her in a white bikini and sarong set, him in some small blue trunks and floaties. William was balanced on her hip, her sunglasses perched on his tiny nose and almost taking up his entire face.

"Right," Spike said, turning back around. "Her."

"And she has what to do with Xander?"

"He fancies her."

"And...she fancies him?"

"I don't know."

"Right," Chris said, standing up. "You don't know. So why don't you ask her before trying to murder Xander with silence and glares?"

He walked out of the room, leaving Spike alone for a few seconds before walking right back in. "Where the hell am I going? This is my room, too. You leave."

Spike raised an eyebrow at him before grabbing his duster and walking out of the room.

---

Buffy was sitting on the living room couch and watching TV, having just put William to bed, when the doorbell rang.

She muted the TV and stood up, walking over to the door. Opening it, she stepped back to reveal..."Spike."

He was looking into her driveway at her dark blue Honda CR-V. "Hmm?"

"Is there something you would like to tell me about my car?"

He started, turning back to face her. "Your, uh...your license plate is 'SLAYER'."

She raised an eyebrow. "Is that why you're here? To tell me my license plate? That's, uh...nice of you."

He shook his head, "No, not that. Listen, can I come in?"

"Sure," she said, stepping aside to let him in.

Once she had closed the door, she turned around and jumped slightly when she came face to face with him. "Okay, you've managed to freak me out several times now. What do you want?"

"Xander."

"You want Xander? You're telling me this...why?"

"No, I don't bloody well want Xander, I want to know what you think about him."

"What I think about him?" He nodded, and she said, "Uhm...he's nice...and sweet, and funny..."

"Is he your type?"

"My ty...my WHAT?"

"Your type. Do you like him?"

"I guess...as a friend? Yeah. As something above platonia? No, I can't say that I like him that way. Why are you asking me this?"

He sighed, running a hand through his hair. "I...I don't know. I don't know anything when I'm with you. Two days ago, your sister asked me what I was trying to prove, stopping by your house. And I told her I didn't know. That's just the thing, Buffy. I don't know. When I'm with other women, one of us is trying to prove something. They're trying to prove they can get a rock/movie star, and I'm trying to prove that I'm bigger than anyone can imagine. And then you came along...and I lost sight of what I was trying to prove. It's like, everything has a reason for me to be there, and then you walk in and I just...I don't KNOW anything anymore. In the past couple weeks, you've managed to turn my life upside down and backwards, and I don't know if I hate it."

"Uh...thanks?"

"See, that's the thing!" he pointed at her, as if trying to prove a point. "Half the time, I don't know what the HELL we're talking about when we have a conversation, and the other half...I'm thinking about our son. And it still manages to boggle my mind that I have a son! A son, whose first word I missed, whose first steps I missed, whose first tooth I missed, whose...whose birth I missed. I'd always been so convinced that I would never miss out on anything. And then I came to this random ass town in California...and there you were, ready to show me all the things that I didn't have. So, what I want to know is, will I ever have those things with you? Can you answer me that, Buffy?"

---

The opposite of love is apathy, and hate is really the same as love. If you're so consumed with hatred for someone, you might as well be loving them because you're thinking about them for the same amont of time.

---

_________________________________________________________________________________________________

feedback is nice...good for the soul.

[ A/N—okay, I’m warning y’all that this chap skips Thanksgiving because I’m trying to get the chapters that are coming centered around Christmas. Also, massive pimping of my hometown. You’ve been warned! Also, I’m not kidding when I say that it snows a LOT here, and it’s always freezing in the winter. ]

Also, about the lines at the end of the last chapter? I thought that it described the relationship between Buffy and Spike; both on the show and in this fic.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Buffy stood in shocked silence as Spike finished his rant, her eyes widening to epic proportions.

His hair was tousled and in disarray from the numerous times he’d run his hand through the bleached strands. His ice blue eyes; the same ones that William had, were swirling around with mixed emotions. Fresh worry lines that no twenty-seven year old should have were becoming more and more prominent, and his nostrils were flaring lightly.

And all of the sudden, there it was.

The same uncontrollable, unfathomable desire that had consumed most of her youth. So, without even registering her own actions before it was too late, she grabbed him by the back of his head and pulled his lips down to hers.

___

When she’d first reached out, Spike had been sure she was about to hit him.

So, needless to say, it was a bit of a surprise when he found her lips firmly fused with his own. In his brief shock, he didn’t respond, causing her to pull away, eyes wide and fingers lightly pressed against her slightly swollen lips.

And those beautiful green eyes lowered to the floor as she whispered, “I-I’m sorry.”

He snapped out of his stupor at that and grabbed her forearms tightly. “Don’t be sorry,” he said fiercely. “Never be sorry.” Then he pulled her towards him once more, his mouth desperately seeking hers.

His warm tongue traced her lips, causing her to moan and grab the back of his head. Tongues battled persistently and teeth clashed as they used their suppressed hormones to let four years of pain, anger, and wanting to spill over and consume them. Their hands desperately clung to any part of the other’s upper body, needing to keep contact between them.

Then, what started out as an angry passion, slowly drifted into tenderness. Her hands unfurled from the tight grip they’d had on his bleached locks, coming down to cup the back of his neck. His large hands slowly unweaved the path they’d dug in her hair, both traveling down her body to clasp her small hips loosely.

When oxygen became an issue to both of them, they pulled away long enough for a few deep breaths before their lips met again.

---

Twenty minutes later, Buffy and Spike were sitting on her couch, his arm around her shoulders and Buffy’s head leaning against him.

“So,” Spike said, turning his head to look at her. “What are you doing for Christmas?”

Buffy shrugged. “Not much. Will and I were just going to stay here and pretend it’s snowing.”

“Oh,” Spike said, raising his eyebrows. “You’ve never seen snow before?”

“I mean, I HAVE, but it was on TV.”

“Hmm. Listen, how about this: I take you and William to somewhere where it snows a lot in the winter, sometimes even until April.”

“You’re taking us to Alaska?”

Spike laughed, ruffling her hair a bit. “No, little girl. Baltimore. I’ve actually got a gig there on the twenty-first…you want to come?”

---

ABOUT A MONTH LATER, DECEMBER TWENTIETH, 12:30 PM

Buffy yawned once more, trying to clear her ears. She turned her head to look over at the sleeping forms of Spike and William and smiled, remembering the past few weeks.

She and Spike had embraced a tentative relationship, both being worried about what would happen to William if they were to ever break up. Spike had stayed at their house for Thanksgiving, though it had been a bit odd for him to not have it with his band mates. And Xander…

She sighed, staring out the window. Xander hadn’t been happy about their relationship…in fact, he’d been downright pissed off. But, he took it out on Spike the most, only speaking to him when he had to. He still talked to Buffy, but all conversation either became awkward or stopped completely when it came to the subject of Spike.

She had been informed by Spike of the extent of Xander’s crush on her, and had been slightly shocked. She knew that if they had ever dated, it would have been strange since his best friend was her baby’s father.

She felt something soft fall around her shoulders and she looked up at Spike, part of the blanket still in his hand. “Thanks,” she whispered, leaning her head on his shoulder. She could almost FEEL Xander’s eyes boring holes into the back of her head, and she buried her face into his shirt. “What’s the weather like in Baltimore?”

“I asked them before the flight and they said that it’ll be snowing lightly by the time we land. So, you’ll have a white Christmas after all.”

She pulled the blanket tighter around herself, using it and his body to keep her warm. “Where are you playing again?”

“It’s a stage downtown called POWERHOUSE LIVE. It’s by a children’s place called Port Discovery. ‘ve heard it’s really fun, think Will would like it?”

“He likes everything. Who’s going to be babysitting him while we’re at your gig tonight?”

“Ah,” he said, shifting around to give her a bright smile. “That I’ve figured out. See, I have this friend named Clem…”

---

8:00 PM

“Bye, Clem!” Spike called into the suite as he closed the door. Turning around, he grinned and offered his arm to Buffy. “Shall we?”

She giggled, “We shall.”

---

POWERHOUSE LIVE

“All right, you lot,” Spike said into the microphone as he slipped on his guitar. “I had to bloody fly from California; WARM, SUNNY California, to be in soddin Baltimore. But, I came because it’s because of you all that I even HAVE a singing career, and I promised someone they’d see some snow. So, here’s a song from our newest album highway 1964.”

There was a loud cheering as a few childish voices that sounded like they’d come out of the Muppets sang out: Deck the halls with boughs of holly fa la la la la la la la la
Tis the season to be jolly fa la la la la la la la la

Spike grabbed his guitar and began playing as Chris began to drum, before grabbing the microphone and singing.

Outside the carolers start to sing
I can't describe the joy they bring
Cause joy is something they don't bring me

My girlfriend is by my side
From the roof are hanging cicles of ice
Their whiny voices get irritating
It's Christmas time again

So I stand with a dead smile on my face
Wondering how much of my time they'll waste
Oh god I hate these Satan's helpers

And then I guess I must've snapped
Because I grabbed a baseball bat
And made them all run for shelter

It's Christmas time again
It's time to be nice to the people you can't stand
all year
I'm growing tired of all this Christmas cheer
You people scare me
Please stay away from my home
If you don't wanna get me down
Just leave the presents and let me be alone.

Backstage, Buffy clapped her hands and laughed, enjoying seeing Spike onstage for the first time in four years.

He was so alive…jumping around on the stage and laughing at some points. He looked so happy, a shocking contrast to how he had been when he’d first shown up in her house.

Well I guess it's not cool to freak on Christmas Eve
Cause the cops came and arrested me
They had an unfair advantage

And even though the jail didn't have a tree
Christmas came a night early
Causes a guy named Bubba unwrapped my package (hot damn)

It's Christmas time again
It's time to be nice to the people you can't stand all year
I'm growing tired of all this Christmas cheer
You people scare me
Please stay away from home
If you don't wanna get me down
Just leave the presents and then leave me alone

---

An hour passed by quickly, and Spike wiped the sweat off of his forehead. “Jesus. You people have an inch of snow outside, and it’s a thousand degrees in here. I knew Maryland was strange. Anyway, sorry to say this, but this is our last song of the night.” The crowd groaned and he laughed. “Oh, come on! I’ve been here for an hour, singing to you lot! I just want to get back to my hotel and curl up in my bed! But seriously, this next song is, uh, dedicated to two very important people in my life: my girlfriend and our son.” There was a smattering of shocked gasps from the crowd and he nodded. “Yeah, I have a son. Honestly, I didn’t know about him until a few weeks ago, but he and his mum have slowly taken over my life. So, Buffy, want to come out here?”

Buffy’s eyes widened as Chris began to pull her out, shaking her head vigorously. “No,” she shrieked, though it was lost over the din of the crowd. Eventually, she found herself standing next to Spike, who slung an arm over her shoulders. “Everyone,” he yelled. “This is Buffy Summers. Buffy, meet everyone.” He turned to her and whispered in her ear, “Go sit on the stool behind you.”

She did, and he said, “This one’s for you,” before starting to sing.

If you want me to wait
I will wait for you
If you tell me to stay
I would stay right through
If you don’t wanna say anything at all
I’m happy wondering

Since was a young man
I never was a fun man
I never had a plan and no security then
Ever since I met you
I never could forget you
I only wanna get you right here next to me

Cause everbody (whoa) needs someone that they can trust and...
You're somebody (whoa) that I found just in time

He stood next to her while Xander played a slight solo and dropped a light kiss on her lips before pulling back and singing once more.

If you want me to wait
I will wait for you
If you want me to stay
I would stay right through
If you don’t wanna say anything at all
I’m happy wondering

Now my life is changing
Its always rearranging
It always getting stranger that I thought it ever could
Ever since I found you
I wanna be around you
I want to get down to the point that I need you

Cause everybody (wow) needs someone that they can trust and...
You're somebody (wow) that I found just in time

If you want me to wait
I will wait for you
If you tell me to stay
I would stay right thru
If you don’t wanna say anything at all
I’m happy wondering

---

When the applause for the Dingoes finally died down, Spike took off his guitar and said into the microphone, “Well, it’s been fun, but I really need to get back to my son.” He winked out at the audience. “And I believe my girl and I would like some time alone.”

Little did either of them know that what Spike had said to the audience that night would cause an avalanche of gossip to come their way…

Gossip that would almost tear them apart.

__________________________________________________________________________

TBC…

Okay, I’m not really happy with the way that chapter ended, but I can’t be all that picky about it. Anyway, I’m hoping to have this updated before Christmas, but incase I don’t, MERRY CHRISTMAS to those who celebrate it!!

Dedicated to: Cordykitten, BuffyandSpikeforever, the lady of Spike, Beth, and VamptasticA

A/N--i'm so sorry about taking so long for the updates!!

also, in this chapter the shit is DEFINITELY about to hit the fan.

please please PLEASE go to this site! It's dedicated to William/Buffy, and it's a site related to sinister-attraction.

http://www.sinister-attraction.org/poetic/
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Buffy threw down The Sunnydale Sun, sighing in disgust. "Spike," she said, addressing her pacing boyfriend. "This is getting ridiculous. These...reporters are saying that an "exclusive, inside source" told them that you've been hiding me in the proverbial closet all this time."

The two of them had arrived home two days ago; on Christmas Eve, just in time for Joyce's Christmas party. William, though exhausted, insister that he stay at Grandma's for tonight, leavin his parents all alone in Spike's hotel room...

All alone, with the exception of the tabloids.

"I know," he gritted out. "I fucking know, okay?" He ran both hands through his hair, sighing loudly. "Maybe I shouldn't have said anything about it. Maybe...keeping you and William a secret would have been a better idea."

She looked up at him, visibly wounded by his words. "So...you don't want people knowing about us?"

"What?" he frowned, turning back around to face her. Seeing her expression, he said, "Buffy, no..."

"So," she said, emotions getting the better of her. "Is that all I was? A...a pity girlfriend?" When he did nothing to answer her but gape open mouthedly at her, she grew near hysterical. "You know what, Spike?" she asked heatedly. "You can take your pity, your music, and your shitty movies and shove them up your ass."

She gathered up her jacket, purse, and shopping bags and slammed out of his hotel room, leaving him and his protests behind her.

---

Buffy tore through the spinning doors, tears streaking down her face. God! How had she been so stupid? To think that Spike actually wanted her, not because she had given birth to his son, but because he actually wanted her?

"Excuse me, miss?"

She turned around at the interruption and came face to face with a handsome, dark haired man, clad in a chauffeur's uniform. "I'm Lindsey McDonald. Spike gave me directions that I was to take you back to your house."

She stood still for a moment, then nodded, stepping into the limo.

And the sight that greeted her from the inside was not a friendly one.

As soon as her backside came in contat with the seating, two large burly men seated themselves on either side of her, nearly squashing her. Across from her, a woman was situated in a short red rube top dress and was fingering a dangerously sharp looking nail file.

"Hey," the woman said, not looking up at Buffy. "I've got two lessons for you. One, don't get into cars with strangers, even your son probably knows that. And two, munchkin, next time you try and sink your fashionably manicured nails into a star?" She looked up at Buffy and smiled chillingly. "Make sure he hasn't broken anyone else's heart."

---

THE NEXT MORNING

Spike cursed as he failed for the thirty-first time to call Buffy's home number. Sighing, he searched through his address book, found her cell phone number, dialed it, and cursed once more when he came across her voice mail.

He pulled into her driveway, frowning when he saw Joyce running out, panic written on her features.

"Joyce?" he said, stepping out of the car. "What's wrong?"

"Is Buffy with you?" she asked, craning her neck to see into his car.

"No," he said. "I thought she came to your house last night, after I called you."

"She didn't come, so I thought that she'd be here. She's not here, Spike. She didn't come home at all today."

"How do you know?"

"She has a calender that she keeps on her refrigerator. Each day, she crosses it off. If she misses one day, she goes crazy. Today isn't crossed off, Spike. She didn't come home."

"Fuck," he breathed. "Fuck. Get William; we're going to the hotel."

---

"Listen," Spike tried again. "You must have seen her. About five foot one, blonde hair, green eyes?"

Scott Hope, the doorman, thought for a few moments before his eyes lit up. "Ohh, her! Pretty little thing; too bad she was crying. Yeah, she left with your chauffeur."

Spike frowned. "She didn't," he argued. "I already called Ethan, he didn't pick her up last night. What did this guy look like?"

When the sandy haired man didn't answer for a while, Spike barely managed to restrain himself from hitting him. Panic was coursing through his veins, threatening to overwhelm him if he didn't get some answers, and fast. "What did he look like?! Did you get a name?"

"Name? Yeah, a name...it began with an 'L'...Logan? Larry? Laurence...oh!" He snapped his fingers. "Lindsey. Lindsey McDonald."

Spike's eyes widened, fear finally consuming him. "Fuck," he whispered again. "Not him."

"Spike?" Joyce said, tears in her eyes. "What...what's wrong? Who is Lindsey McDonald?"

Spike turned around to face her just as a tear rolled down his face. "He's bad news," he croaked out. "He works for Glory."

"He works for glory? Well, that's an odd thing to work for," Scott commented.

"Glory?" Joyce asked.

"She's...a mistake I made a couple months ago. I was with her for about...two months, and she became too attached. I broke it off, she trashed my hotel room..." He shook his head, heading to his car. "This is not good, Joyce. This is not good. She's psychotic; she'll kill you if she has to. She told me so."

Joyce gasped. "You mean..."

Spike nodded. "She has Buffy, and God knows what she's going to do with her." He shut his door hard, anger etched onto his features. "But I'll be damned if she's going to get away with it."

_________________________________________________________________________________________________

A/N--the calender thing is what my friend does; she's slightly OCD.

disclaimer: not mine. all is joss whedon's...he is god.
____________________________________________

Buffy sat in the rather comfortable chair, her wrists tied behind her back and her ankles tied to the front legs of the chair.

"You know," she said, addressing one of the bulky men watching her. "I still can't believe you parents named you Dreg. I mean, thank God I went with William."

The man shrugged. "I'm pretty sure they were high or drunk. And what about your parents?"

"Are my parents high and/or drunk?" Buffy asked, raising an eyebrow.

"No, what were they thinking; naming you 'Buffy'?"

"Well," she said, shifting around in her seat so that her rear didn't fall asleep. "It's not my real name. My little sister, Dawn, she couldn't say 'Bethy', which is what my parents called me." She shrugged. "Buffy."

"Yeah, well," groused the other large man. "My parents were perfectly sober, and they STILL named me Jeeves. Jeeves! It's like they wanted me to be a fucking butler."

"Hey," Buffy offered in consolation. "You've got a cool nickname though."

"Jinx?" he scoffed. "That's because I was such a screw up in high school, and it just stuck."

"Still, Jinx is cooler than Dreg. No offence," she added.

"None taken," Dreg said, waving away the apology.

- - -

THE NIGHT BEFORE

"Look," Buffy sad, looking nervously between the men that were on either side of her. "What ever my...boyfriend did to you, I'm really sorry. Why are you taking this out on me?"

"Because," the woman said, inspecting her nails. "You've got everything he wouldn't give me; a real relationship, his love, even a little brat." She looked up at Bffy again and tilted her head towards the elderly gentleman next to her. "But if he hadn't left me, I wouldn't have met Quentin, now would I have, Quenty?"

Buffy watched as the man gave her an endearing smile in response, and couldn't help but think 'This is going to be the most stupid kidnapping ever, isn't it?'. But out loud, she said: "But, if you two are . . . together, then why the seeking of revenge?"

She stopped smiling. "I want to make him sweat a little," she said, tenting her fingers together. "Make him panic. Make his heart crack slowly until it shatters and there's nothing left but a disgusting, oozing, bloody mess!" She calmed, smoothing down her hair. "I told him once that I'd kill someone if I had to. I don't think he knows I wasn't serious. I mean, come on, prison stripes are not flattering."

Buffy stared at her for a few minutes, then, "You're just full of the crazies, aren't you?"

She smiled again. "Maybe. Possibly. Oh, and by the way, the two idiots next to you are Dreg and Jinx. They'll be your body guards. You'll be staying in my penthouse and if you want anything, just ask them."

"You're awfully calm for someone who just kidnapped a person," Buffy observed.

"You're awfully calm for someone who's just been kidnapped."

---

TWENTY FOUR HOURS MISSING

"How are you this calm?!" Spike yelled into the phone. "Buffy has been kidnapped, and you're bloody snoggin' your secretary!"

There was an angry sounding retort on the other line, and Spike snarled, "Same to you."

"Spike?" Joyce asked, coming downstairs from tucking William in. "Who was that?"

"Hank," the man bit out. "I'm going to call the girl."

"What girl?"

"Red. The one that's named after a bleedin' tree?"

"Oh," Joyce said. "Willow. Listen, why don't you let me call her? She's...not too fond of you."

Spike sighed. "Yeah, I know. 's understood. I'm gonna go . . . call the band."

---

"So," Buffy said around a mouthful of a grilled cheese sandwich. "You two are going to get me out of here, quit from Glory Inc., and do . . . . what?"

They exchanged looks. "We were wondering if maybe you could get us jobs with the Dingoes," said Jinx. "As bodyguards."

"yeah," Dreg added. "And we don't want to work for Glory anymore. Plus . . . we like you. And we figure that you want to see your son and fiance again, right?"

"Well, I-" she started, then stopped. "Fiance? Oh, we're not . . . engaged. We're just dating."

"That's not what the magazine said," Dreg commented, lifting up the offending object for her to look at.

Buffy gasped as she read the title:

FAMOUS ACTOR AND SINGER, SPIKE GILES, HAS CANCELLED HIS BAND'S TOUR IN ORDER TO SEAR FOR HIS MISSING FIANCEE!

"Crap."

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[a/n]--well, there's another chappie! and i'm halfway done with the next one, so it should be posted soon.

A/N==AAAAAAAAAAAH!!! DON'T HURT ME!! my computer has been extremely evil lately, and i only just got it working again so that i can post!!

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Buffy grimaced as Dreg tightened the ropes around her wrist. They had let her loose for about an hour to regain the feeling in her hands and feet, but had begun to tie her back up when Jinx had gotten a call that Glory was on her way up.

"Sorry about this," Dreg muttered, pulling even harder on the thick rope. "But it's only temporary."

"That's..." she winced again. "...okay."

"We're going to get you out of here," Jinx added. "As soon as Glory gets here, we're going to go through with the plan, ok?" He looked towards the door and hid next to it. "She's coming," he said in answer to their questioning looks. "I'm only getting into position."

Dreg rolled his eyes, standing up and assuming his body guard post next to Buffy's chair.

The clicking of high heels sounded louder and louder with each step that Glory took towards the door, until the doorflew open (and nearly hit Jinx), revealing Glory.

Her eyes narrowed on Buffy and she shook her curly hair out of her face. "Listen, midget, this is how this is going to..." she stopped, looking around the room and finally realizing that one of her 'devoted' henchman was missing. "Where's Jinx?" She glared at Buffy. "What the f-"

She was cut off as Jinx wrapped his arms around her and pressed a chloroform soaked cloth over her face. She let out a gasp and struggled against him, scratching his arm and face with her long, blood colored nails.

After a few minutes, she finally went limp in his bulky arms, and he tossed her unceremoniously to the floor. "Come on," he said, gesturing towards them. "We don't have a lot of time."

Dreg hurriedly untied her wrists and feet, glancing up at her. "I think it's time that you went home."

---

Spike ran his hands over the smooth picture frame that encased a signed photograph of his band.

'To my biggest fan,' was what his inscription read. 'From, Spike Giles'.

"How," he said, chucklng. "In the hell did this get here? Joyce," he called. "Where did Buffy get this?"

Joyce popped her head out of the kitchen to see what he was talking about. "Oh, that," she said, giving him a toothy grin. "Cordelia bought it for her and William."

"Where did she get it?"

"E-Bay."

Spike glanced at the pricey piece of memorabelia. "Huh."

Truth be told, Spike was being extremely calm, considering the situation he was in. But then again, if you took a close look at him you would see that his eyes were slightly glazed over and his hair was tousled.

He was either in shock, or drunk.

Or both.

The doorbell rang, startling him out of his reverie.

"Spike?" Joyce called. "Will just threw his food at the refrigerator so I need to clean it up, can you get the door?"

Spike heaved a long sigh and sauntered towards the door.. He threw it open, and was greeted by Wesley's fist.

---

The only trouble that they had run into had been Lindsey McDonald, and Jinx had quickly solved that problem with a quick blow to the head.

"Come on," Dreg said, ushering Buffy into the car. "We need to drive, and we need to drive FAST."

Buffy closed the door behind her after she climbed in, and began nervously rubbing at her raw wrists as Jinx fumbled with the keys.

Finally getting them into the ignition and starting up the car, Jinx tore out of the hotel parking lot and began the drive back to Buffy's.

Back to home.

---

"You son of a bitch!"

The cry came from two people, both having heavily British accents, though one was slightly muffled.

"You bloody bastard," Wesley spat, barely being contained by Alyson. "I knew from the day I found out that you were back, I KNEW that you were going to be NO BLOODY GOOD!" He started for Spike again, but Alyson squeezed his bicep, and he backed down slightly.

"I'm no good?" Spike asked, finally bringing his hand away from his bloodied face. "Tell me, mate, what have I done to her to be no good?"

"Everything!" he spat. "You took advantage of a nineteen year old girl! You bloody well left her alone the morning after you took her virginity, and left her with a son! She's had to raise that boy by herself for the past few YEARS, and he's grown up so far without a FATHER! Do you not realize that that's the exact same way Buffy spent HER childhood? Fatherless?"

"Wesley!' Joyce reprimanded, coming to joing the fray.

"I'm sorry, Joyce," he said. "But I cannot STAND this man! Hes the bloody bane of my step-sister's existence, and..."

He trailed off when he noticed that Spike wasn't paying attention to him, but rather looking out the door, past Wes' shoulder.

He turned around and saw a black Rolls Royce pull up, the windows tinted so dark that you couldn't see inside.

"That..." Spike said, swallowing hard. "That's Glory's car."

A car door opened and a large, burly man stepped out.

"Oh, this can't be good..."


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AAAAAAAH!!!! IT'S ALMOST REUNION TIME!!! I JUST TOTALLY SPELLED THAT WRONG!!!! WOOOOOOOOOOT!!!

Disclaimer: AAAAAAAAAH!!! I OWN NOTHING!!!!!!!!

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“Shit,” Spike said, turning around and running to the kitchen. “Joyce, I’m going to get William. You get the-”

“Spike,” Alyson called. “Someone-”

“Not now, Aly,” he snapped, scooping William into his arms. He wiped his own face with a wet cloth, and then taking another one and wiping William’s. “We’re going to be okay, alright?”

“Spike!” Joyce called. “I think that you-”

“Not now!”

Another day is going by
I'm thinking about you all the time
But you're out there
And I'm here waiting


“But-”

“NO!”

“Would you-”

“No!”

“SPIKE!!!”

The bleached blond winced as the three voices rang out, demanding that they not be ignored. “All right,” he called. “I’m coming, I’m coming.” He hoisted William up further onto his hip and walked down the hall towards the door. “Now what did you…” he trailed off, seeing who was standing at the bottom of the sidewalk.

And I wrote this letter in my head
Cuz so many things were left unsaid
But now you're gone
And I can't think straight

“Joyce,” Alyson warned. “I think you might want to take Will from Spike.”

William’s grandmother did so, and just in time, because Spike took off and out the door, running as fast as he could towards Buffy.

Her smile was wide and brilliant, beckoning him closer with each giant leap that he took. The force he ran at her with caused them both to fall to the ground when they collided.

He tackled her to the grass, pressing kisses all over her face and neck while she giggled. “Spike,” she laughed. “Stop! That tickles.” She grabbed his face and brought it towards her own. “I’m okay, see? I’m right here, so stop panicking.”

Spike rolled his eyes, causing the tears that lay dormant in his eyelids to fall out. “Stop panicking, she says.” He leaned his face closer to her. “I’ve just been through the worst few days of my life, and you want me to stop panicking?” He dropped a light kiss onto her lips. “Not going to bloody happen.”

And with that, he pressed his lips more firmly to hers.

This could be the one last chance
To make you understand

After a few good minutes of making out on her lawn while everyone looked on a bit uncomfortably, Buffy pulled back from him. “By the way,” she said, glaring up at him. “When the HELL did you propose to me?!”

He frowned down at her. “What?”

“The newspapers?” she said as though it were obvious. “They said that you had cancelled your tour to look for your ‘fiancée’. When were you going to tell me that we were getting married? Because I wouldv’e like to have known, and-”

He cut her off with another kiss, and one of his hands left hers to search around in his pocket. When his fingers hit the small velvet box, he pulled it out and held it in front of her. “When you came back to me seemed like a good time,” he whispered, and flicked the box open.

I'd do anything
Just to hold you in my arms
To try to make you laugh
Cuz somehow I can't put you in the past
I'd do anything
Just to fall asleep with you
Will you remember me?
Cuz I know
I won't forget you

Buffy gasped as she came face to face with a princess cut sapphire engagement ring, diamonds surrounding the larger gem.

“Buffy,” Spike asked. “I love you…so much. Will you marry me?”

Buffy took the box out of his hands, stared at it for a few minutes…

And then grinned.

---

FOUR MONTHS LATER…

Buffy smoothed down her dress, trying to get the creases out of the fabric. “Hey Willow?” she called out nervously. “Do I look OK?”

Willow walked up behind her and smiled at her friend’s reflection. “You look fine,” she said, then began struggling with the zipper on the wedding dress. “But this zipper is evil.”

Together we broke all the rules
Dreaming of dropping out of school
And leave this place
And never come back

With a few more tugs, the zipper finally rose to the top and they snapped it together. “There,” Buffy sighed. “All good.”

A knock at the door caused them to jump slightly, and Buffy called out, “Who is it?”

“It’s me, love,” came Spike’s voice. The door began to creak open. “Can I come in?”

“No!” Buffy shrieked, throwing her weight against the door. “You can’t see the bride before the wedding!”

“I um, I didn’t realize that those rules applied to me,” Spike said, sounding confused.

“Well they do,” Buffy retorted. “Now go leave and make sure that Oz is ready.”

With a few grumbled curses, Spike did as he was told and walked down the hallway.

“Okay,” Buffy said, letting out a sigh and turning back to Willow. “It’s time to get married.”

---

Buffy leaned her head against Spike’s tuxedoed chest as they danced, and watched Oz spin Willow around, her beautiful white wedding dress fanning out around her.

“They’re so cute together,” Buffy sighed, moving her head so that she was looking up at her fiancé. “The wedding was just beautiful.”

“Yeah,” Spike said, smiling down at her. “They deserve each other.”

So now maybe after all these years
If you miss me have no fear
I'll be here
I'll be waiting
This could be the one last chance to make you understand
And I just can't let you leave me once again

“And just think,” Buffy said, grinning. “That’s going to be us in two months. I can’t WAIT to walk down the aisle.”

Spike waggled his eyebrows suggestively at her. “I can’t wait for the wedding night,” he whispered into her ear.

“Spike,” she giggled, slapping at his chest playfully. “Stop it.”

He grinned at her, running his hands up and down the sides of her light blue Maid Of Honor dress, effectively tickling her.

“Spike,” she whined, trying to squirm out of his grasp. “Stop it!”

I'd do anything
Just to hold you in my arms
To try to make you laugh
Cuz somehow I can't put you in the past
I'd do anything
Just to fall asleep with you
Will you remember me?
Cuz I know
I won't forget you

He wrapped his arms around her and lifted her slight body clear off the floor, spinning her around.

“Hey!” Willow called. “Stop stealing my spotlight!”

Buffy grinned against Spike’s chest as she buried her face in it, her cheeks flaming bright red.

“It’s okay, love,” Spike said, dropping a kiss onto her hair. “Don’t pay any attention to them. It’s only me.”

She looked up at him, admiration shining in her eyes. “I love you,” she sighed out.

“I love you, too,” he smiled. “And I’d do anything to stay with you forever.”

I close my eyes
And all I see is you
I close my eyes
I try to sleep
I can't forget you
Nanana
And I'd do anything for you
Nanana
I'd do anything
Just to hold you in my arms
To try to make you laugh
Cuz somehow I can't put you in the past
I'd do anything
Just to fall asleep with you
Will you remember me?
Cuz I know
I won't forget you
I'd do anything
To fall asleep with you
I'd do anything
There's nothing I won't do
I'd do anything
To fall asleep with you
I'd do anything
Cuz I know
I won't forget you

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A/N—well…it’s over. 21 chapters, and my baby’s over. Great, now I’m depressed.

Thanks to all of you who reviewed for this story and who put up with me and my FRIGGIN RETARDED COMPUTER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

disclaimer: i don't own anything of BTVS.

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"I don't understand why we're doing this, luv. We've already done this."

Buffy looked up at her husband of two months and smiled. "Because the last time we tried to do this interview, we had to cut it short because William was sick, remember?"

Spike sighed, rubbing his hand across his face. "Fine. Where did we get to with it?"

Buffy hit the plaly button on the tape recorder and they heard:

BUFFY: So, uh, I’m just going to ask you a few questions about your new movie, Schizophrenia. What was it like working with Dana Halliwell and Christina Lyons?

SPIKE: Right, well, Dana and I had worked on a movie together before, so we got along fine. She’s always been a breath of fresh air. And Christina? God, she’s adorable.

BUFFY: So…you LIKE children?

SPIKE: Like ‘em? I love ‘em. Nothin better than a little kid thinking you’re the best thing in the world...that wasn’t supposed to make me sound like an ego-maniac. I meant that…it’s nice. Being the most important thing in someone’s life. (pause) Makes me feel all manly.

The tape player stopped, having gotten to the end of the tape. Buffy picked it up, eyed it for a couple seconds before pointing it in Spike's direction. "I cannot believe that you said that."

He groaned, leaning his head back onto their couch and throwing his arm over his eyes. "Join the bloody club."

Buffy laughed at him, tossing one of the throw pillows at him. "Come on, we have to get this done and over with; your movie comes out in a month!'

He groaned again, not moving from his position. "Don't remind me; I hate premieres."

"Aww," she teased, reaching over to ruffle his hair. "But that was before you met me."

He opened his eyes, grabbed the hand mussing up his hair and kissed the fingertips. "True."

She giggled, withdrawing her hand from his grasp. "Thank you. Now, shut up so that we can get this over with."

"Fine," he sighed, sitting up straight on the couch. "Fire away."

---

Giles put the interview down on his desk, and lookd up at his most prized reporter. Taking off his glasses to clean them, he said, "Well, Buffy, I must say, despite your feelings when you first got the assignment, you managed to make my nephew sound like a decent person..."

"And a good husband," Buffy added, rolling her eyes. "I know, I know, I put him in the spotlight of the good people. Call me selfish, but I didn't want people to think that I married a self-righteous..." she glanced over at William, who had come to work with her, and covered his small ears with the palms of her hands. "...bastard." She took her hands off of William's head and grinned at her boss.

Giles shook his head, standing up from behind his large mahogany desk. He walked around it and stopped next to Buffy as she stood up. "Well done, Buffy." He gave her a small hug. "You did a good job."

She bent down and picked William up, placing him on her hip. "Thanks, Giles. I'll see you tomorrow, okay?"

Her boss nodded, and she walked out of his office and straight into Spike.

"Hey," she said, her eyes lighting up. "What are you doing here?"

"What?" he questioned, wrapping an arm around William and Buffy. "I can't come to visit my wife?"

She grinned and kissed him on the cheek as they began to walk out the building together. "You can visit me anytime."

"Good," he said, pushing the doors open. "I plan to."

"Butthead."

"Did you just call me a butthead?"

"...yes."

"God, I love you."

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SCHIZOPHRENIA

As many of you know, I never used to be a big fan of Spike Giles. It might have had something to do with the fact that he got me pregnant when I was nineteen, and left me alone for the next four years. But...he's come a long way since then. Now, he's a decent man, a good husbnd...and a wonderful father to our three and a half year old. When he blew back into town a couple months ago, I didn't know WHAT to think. Would he be an ass? Would he remember me? Would he want to get to know our son? Would he find out about our son?

I didn't know.

But everything worked out for the better, and our life together now only began with this interview.

So, if he sounds a bit too goody-goody...well, I'm sorry, but he's my hubby and there's nothing you can do to change that, because I know that he'd do anything for me.

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a/n---yes, this IS the end...for real this time!!

thanks for reading the extra chapter for this fic!