As the minutes flew by and they suddenly had five minutes left to go before the competition ended, both Spike and Buffy put the finishing touches on their creations and hoped to God that they’d beat each other. Willow and Anya quickly made sure all of the cookies were ready and put a generous amount of pink sprinkles on them so they’d match the cheesecake even more.
“How is it going over there?” Willow asked as Buffy put the spun-sugar twirls on top of the cheesecake, arranging them around the top of it into a circular pattern. “Wow, that almost looks hypnotizing.”
“Exactly the effect I was going for,” Buffy answered, finishing up and looking at the cheesecake. “This is possibly the best thing I’ve ever made. Far better than the mini wedding cake I had to make for my final exam in culinary school.”
“I wish I could see what Spike’s crew is making,” Anya said, staring over at the men. “But Andrew’s been blocking it for the last half an hour.”
“I’m not worried,” Buffy said, shrugging. “I’m proud of this, and if it doesn’t win, then oh well.”
“You’d better not be willing to accept defeat, missy!” Anya replied shrilly. “Willow and I worked our asses off, too- we had better win.”
“Don’t you want your stallion to be victorious?” Willow asked, smirking.
“Well, sure, but I’d rather have him be depressed and in need of a good ride or two after this,” Anya said, putting the cookies on a tray and missing the disgusted looks on her friends’ faces.
“Alright, it’s almost time,” Buffy said, taking a deep breath. “Ready for this?”
“Definitely,” Willow said, trying not to sound as nervous as she felt.
* * * * *
“The judges are about to come around,” Xander said quietly as Spike finished putting red-frosting rosettes all over the perimeter of the two-tiered chocolate cake he had made. “That looks good, man.”
“I’m just happy we decided to put a layer of cherries in each tier,” Spike said, smiling. “That’ll make this even more delicious.”
“And the gold-leaf draperies Andrew put on the sides make it look even better,” Xander said, studying it. “It reminds me of something from Gone with the Wind for some reason, but I like it.”
“What?” Spike asked, confused. “Does it look Southern or something?”
“I guess,” Xander said, shrugging. “Either way, it should beat Buffy.”
“Yeah, I damn well hope so,” Spike said, looking across the room at Buffy’s work station, watching as the women crowded around something. “Have either of you seen what she came up with yet?”
“No,” Andrew said, sighing. “I turned around before to look, but Buffy was blocking something.”
“I wonder what it was,” Spike said, raising an eyebrow. “But there’s no way it looks better than this.”
“No, I think this one takes the cake,” Xander said, laughing at his own joke. “Get it? Cake?”
“You’re too lame for your own good sometimes,” Spike mumbled, watching as a group of judges went to the first station, beginning to talk to one of his competitors. “Are you both set for this?”
It was as he asked the question that Xander watched Buffy and Anya move away from what they were hiding from view, practically unveiling the cheesecake to his eyes.
“Umm, guys?” he asked quietly, his eyes widening. “It is just me, or is that a cheesecake?” Spike looked over at the women and felt his jaw slowly drop.
“But… what happened to the cookies?” he asked, confused. “I thought… What’s going on?”
“Looks like she made both,” Andrew said, noticing the tray of cookies Willow picked up. “They might get extra points for making two things.”
“That tricky bitch,” Spike said in a low tone, clenching his jaw. “Why didn’t we make two things?”
“Because we had our hands full enough after you screwed up the cheesecake mix,” Xander answered.
“Shut up,” Spike managed to get out, leaning on the counter in front of him and looking at the cake only inches away from his hands. “Just because she made two desserts doesn’t mean she’ll win. The taste of this cake alone will beat her cheesecake.”
“Not to mention the amazing amount of presentation points we should earn,” Andrew chipped in, hoping to calm Spike down. “I wouldn’t worry.”
“Oh, I’m not,” Spike said, raising his eyes to look over at Buffy again. “She’s not going to win.”
* * * * *
“Oh my god,” one of the judges cooed as she finished sampling the piece of cheesecake she was handed. “I think this is the best thing I’ve ever had in my mouth.”
“I’m so glad you like it,” Buffy replied, grinning. “Have you tried the sugar twirl yet?”
“Is there a hint of strawberry in them?” another judge asked. “Because it was marvelous. Usually I don’t like eating pure sugar, but that was a treat.”
“Would you like a cookie, too?” Anya asked cheerfully, holding up the platter of them. Each judge happily grabbed one and tried them at the same time.
“Dear Lord,” the first judge said, swallowing what she had bitten off. “I must say, Miss Summers, you have definitely proven to us that new pastry chefs have something to teach your predecessors.”
“Thank you,” Buffy said, beaming. “If you’d like to take more cookies with you, please do.” The judges each grabbed a handful and smiled at her before moving on to the next station.
“Did you put drugs in your cookies?” Spike asked, suddenly appearing by them.
“What’re you doing here?” Buffy asked, raising an eyebrow. “Isn’t it against the rules for you to come over here?”
“Not once pictures have been taken of everyone’s work,” he answered, looking at the tray of cookies that Anya was still holding. “Can I grab three of those?”
“Why would I give you a cookie?” Buffy asked, crossing her arms.
“Haven’t you ever heard of sharing, luv?” he asked, and she narrowed her eyes at him. “What? I’d think you would want to show me what you’ve got.”
“Fine,” she replied, motioning for him to take a cookie. “Enjoy.” He took three of them and bit into one, biting back the urge to groan at how good it tasted. “And if you happen to choke on it, I won’t be held accountable for it.”
“Whatever you say,” he murmured, looking at the cookie. “This is just a simple strawberry filling, isn’t it?” She nodded. “Well, I must say, Summers, I’m impressed.” She quirked an eyebrow, tilting her head. “You whipped up something incredibly easy and made it taste like a masterpiece.” He turned on his heel before she realized he was complimenting her.
“Wow,” Willow said quietly. “Did I hear defeat in his voice?”
“Yeah, I think you did,” Anya agreed. “That and a bit of envy.”
“What? No,” Buffy said, shaking her head to clear it of the haze that was forming in her brain. Her friends looked at her and were surprised when she turned around and walked away, going in the same direction as Spike.
* * * * *
When Buffy arrived at Spike’s station, she looked at the chocolate cake in amusement.
“Wow,” she said, smiling. “That looks pretty good, guys.”
“Thanks,” Xander said, surprised that she was suddenly standing next to him. “Spike said yours looked good, too. And thanks for the cookie- it was incredible.”
“Well, if you ever want more, they’re at the shop daily,” she replied. “So, what’s inside of the cake? Is that cherry filling?”
“Yes,” Andrew said, confused when Spike leaned back against a counter and looked down, keeping his gaze averted from Buffy’s. “I think they’re about to announce the winners.”
Willow and Anya walked over to the group as one of the judges went up to a microphone and shuffled some papers.
“This is so exciting!” Willow said, slightly bouncing.
“Yeah,” Buffy agreed, clasping her hands in front of her and wringing them anxiously. “Good luck, Spike.”
“Thanks,” he muttered, not looking at her. Before she could ask him if he was okay, one of the judges cleared her throat and looked around the room.
“First, thank you to everyone who volunteered and participated in this event today,” she said, smiling. “But the time has come to announce this year’s winner of the Best Dessert in Sunnydale Competition.” Everyone in the room quieted down, and Willow grabbed one of Buffy’s hands in hers, squeezing it. “First place goes to… Buffy Summers!”
Buffy’s jaw dropped and tears sprang to her eyes as both Willow and Anya hugged her, trapping her in between them.
“Oh…my…god,” she said slowly, still in shock.
Spike watched her for a long moment before taking a deep breath and storming out of the building.
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Author's Chapter Notes:
Wow- thank you to everyone who read and reviewed chapter 5! I hope you enjoy this chapter, and I'll be posting chapter 7 very soon! Buffy and Spike begin to be on much better terms in the following chapters (groundwork for that is in this chapter), and I promise there is Spuffyness soon;)