Chapter 2
Buffy walked out of Stevenson Hall later that day and saw Spike waiting by the car. She walked over to him and he gave her a smile.
“So, how was the first day?” he asked and opened the door for her.
She shrugged and got in. “It was okay,” she replied.
Spike closed the door and went to his side of the car. He got in and started the car up and then drove away from the college. Spike, once more, found the silence too confining. “How were classes? I bet the teachers were boring.”
Buffy smiled and thought about Professor Donovan, then wiped the smile off her face. “Yep, very boring. Could hardly keep myself awake.”
Spike nodded in understanding.
“Right, I forgot. I’m not talking to you,” she said and looked out the window.
Spike rolled his eyes. “You know, you really are a brat.”
Buffy turned back to him and stuck her tongue out.
He flashed her his trademark smirk. “I suggest you don’t do that, unless you want me to bite that tongue off.”
Buffy immediately put her tongue back in her mouth and continued to look out the window, without talking to him the rest of the way home.
* * * * *
They got home and Buffy went right upstairs, without saying anything to her mother.
Joyce shot Spike a glance. “I see it went well,” she said sarcastically.
Spike shrugged. “You know how she is; she’s still mad at me and basically pissed at the world. She’s a typical teenager. I wasn’t that bad, was I?”
Joyce smiled at him. “You weren’t as bad as you are now.”
Spike returned her smile, taking it as a compliment. “I was wondering if I could stay here tonight. I really don’t feel like going to my apartment. It can get lonely sometimes.”
Joyce nodded in understanding. “You still have your room. You know you can stay here anytime you want. Your father called and said he would be working late.”
Spike rolled his eyes. “What else is new? He’s hardly ever around these days. Doesn’t that bother you?”
Joyce shook her head. “He has an important job; it’s understandable.”
Spike laughed at that. “An important job? The man is a high school librarian. He’s not saving the world.”
“Well, it’s an important job to him. He likes being around kids.”
Spike’s voice took on a sad tone. “Yeah, except his own.”
Joyce put her hand on Spike’s shoulder. “You know how much your father loves you,” she said.
“He has a weird way of showing it. I know I don’t get to see him much because I moved out, but I never really did even when I lived here. Buffy was telling me the other day that she feels like she hasn’t seen him in weeks. It seems he’s never here for you or her.”
Joyce nodded. “I can handle your father, Spike. I know how much he loves this family.”
Spike nodded as well, and decided to drop the subject. “I think I’m gonna head upstairs now. Maybe take a nap, feeling a bit knackered,” he explained and then went upstairs.
Joyce thought about what he said. She married Hank right out of college when they were young and in love. Buffy had come along and all that seemed to change. Hank decided that he was too young to deal with the responsibility of a child and he left when Buffy was only a year old. They haven’t heard from him since. When Buffy was six, Joyce met Rupert. He just moved there from England after the death of his first wife. She fell for him instantly and a year later, they were married. After the wedding, Rupert and little William moved into their house and they have been a family ever since. Joyce wasn’t worried. She knew Rupert was a good man. He would never do anything to hurt his family.
* * * * *
Later that night, Buffy headed out of her room to the lavatory. She stopped when she heard a guitar coming from Spike’s old room. She walked over and opened the door a crack to see Spike sitting on his bed, manipulating the strings. She smiled; it was something she hasn’t seen in a while. She opened the door wider.
He stopped playing the second he saw her and put his guitar down. “You still mad at me?” he asked.
She waved her hand in the air and walked into the room. “I’m over it. I just wanted to give you a hard time. It’s in my nature.”
Spike smiled. “Don’t I know it.” He sighed when she said nothing. “Come over here,” he said.
Buffy smiled and jumped on his bed.
He laughed at her antics.
Buffy tried to make herself more comfortable. She rested her head on his shoulder. “I miss this. Why did you have to move?”
He let out another sigh. “You know why, Buffy. It wouldn’t be cool if I still lived with my parents. I have to live my own life.”
Buffy looked up at him. “Why can’t I move in with you?”
Spike laughed until he realized she was serious. “You know Joyce wouldn’t allow that and I can’t look after you all the time.”
His words made her angry. “I don’t need you to look out for me! What part of I can take care of myself does no one get? You’re supposed to be different and yet you still treat me like a kid, just like them. I need to get out of this house if I ever want to grow up because mom sure as hell isn’t letting me.”
Spike put his arm around her and pulled her back down on the bed. “It’ll take time, your mum just worries about you. You know that.”
Buffy sighed this time. “I know that. She also wants to keep me here because she doesn’t trust me.”
Spike looked down at her. “That’s not true.”
“Oh, really? Who was the one that burned down the gym in high school? Which was so by accident, but still caused me to get suspended. Who was the one that got pregnant at fifteen and had a miscarriage? Who was the one that got caught smoking in the bathroom at school, which led to another suspension? I can go on.”
Spike nodded and held up his hand. “Okay, so you made some mistakes. Who hasn’t? May I remind you the many times I was caught smoking? Or the time I was found having sex in the janitor’s closet at school?”
Buffy smiled at that. “Yeah, that was a good one.”
Spike slapped her leg lightly and grew serious again. “You see my point. We both made mistakes and Joyce is still there for us. She loves you and only wants what’s best for you.”
Buffy looked away. “She never wants me to leave this house. I’m going to grow old here, I can tell. I'm gonna get married and end up raising my kids here. If you made just as much mistakes, how come you were allowed to move out?”
Spike sighed for the millionth time. “I’m older than you. When you’re older, you’ll be allowed to move out also. You only turned eighteen recently. You just have to be patient.”
Buffy glared at him. “I’m not a very patient person.”
He grinned when he thought of something. “No, but you are a very ticklish one,” he replied and then started to tickle her stomach.
She laughed and tried to push him away. “Stop, you jerk! That’s not fair!”
Joyce walked upstairs and heard what was going on in Spike’s room. She looked in to find Spike tickling Buffy. Joyce smiled when she saw her daughter. It has been a while since she’s laughed like that. She always liked how Spike could bring that out of Buffy. They may fight constantly, but Joyce knew that they really cared for each other. She would soon realize just how much.
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Author's Chapter Notes:
Don’t worry about Angel; he won’t cause any problems for our favorite couple. I’m also an Angel fan and I like to put him in the stories whenever I can. He’s not really the type that would get with his students. Well, he was in my other version of this story. In that one, I had Buffy end up with her professor and there wasn’t anything between her and her step-brother. Of course, I had to change all of that. I still like the way this one turned out=)