"I haven't been to the Bronze in ages. You're sure Willow won't mind that I'm coming?" Cordelia pulled out of Buffy's driveway. Cordelia had called earlier that day, complaining again that Buffy hadn't gone to the party the night before. Feeling guilty, Buffy asked if she wanted to come to the Bronze with her that night. Oz's band, Dingos Ate My Baby, was playing, and Willow had been insistent that Buffy come hear him play.
"I'm sure they'll be fine. I'm more surprised that you're willing to hang out with us." Buffy pulled down the passenger side vanity mirror to check her makeup.
"Hey, I can hang out with whomever I want. Besides, the Bronze is cool. This will be fun! Wait. Is Xander going?"
Buffy smiled and slowly nodded. "I think so."
"Crap."
When they pulled into the parking lot, Cordelia reached into the backseat and pulled out a colorful gift bag. "Happy Birthday!"
Buffy took the present with glee. "You remembered!" Inside was some scented lotions and bath oils. "They smell nice. Thanks."
"Of course I remembered. Now, lets get inside before all the good tables are taken."
Buffy left the gift bag in the car and walked with Cordelia to the club. Since it was the only club in town, they allowed minors. People who wanted to buy alcohol had to wear a bracelet the bouncer gave them after showing some id. Recorded music was playing while some the people were setting up the stage. The place was crowded, and Buffy couldn't see any free tables.
"Buffy!" Willow ran up to where Buffy and Cordelia were standing. "I got a table over there." She pointed to where two tables had been pushed together near the stage. Oz was sitting and talking to some members of his band. Willow looked past Buffy, and her eyebrows shot up. "Cordelia?"
"Hi, I heard how great the band is now and wanted to check it out." Cordelia walked past Willow and Buffy and made her way over to the table.
"I invited her, is that okay?" Buffy looked for any signs of tension in Willow.
"Well, if she's okay with it. I don't know how Xander's going to react, though."
Buffy shook her head with a smile and followed Willow to the table. Cordelia was talking to Oz. She used to date the lead singer, Devon, when the band was first starting up. The rest of the band had gone back to the stage to set up. When Buffy reached the table everyone turned to her with smiles.
"Happy Birthday," a voice said behind her. She turned and saw Xander holding a birthday cake with eighteen lit candles.
"Oh! How did you know it was my birthday?" Buffy looked between Xander and the smiling group at the table.
"A little bird told us." Xander set the cake on the table and indicated for Buffy to sit next to Cordelia. He sat down next to her.
"That would be me." Dawn, holding birthday gifts, appeared from behind the speakers. Spike was standing next to her with more presents.
Spike and Dawn set the gifts in front of Buffy. Willow started singing "Happy Birthday" and the rest of the table joined in. Buffy just looked at them with awe. She had real friends, and they cared.
Oz raised an eyebrow when Buffy didn't move. "I think you should blow the candles out. They're really not allowed."
Buffy gave a little laugh, and blew them all out.
"Open the presents!" Cordelia picked up a medium wrapped box and handed it to Buffy.
"Cut the cake!" Xander gave Buffy a knife and glared at Cordelia.
Buffy looked down at the knife and present she held in each hand. "Guys, we can do both. You cut the cake," she said to Xander, handing back the knife. She opened some of the gifts while eating the cake Xander handed to her.
"This one's from Spike." Cordelia handed her a small box with a red bow. Spike was biting his lip and watching his hands, occasionally glancing at her.
Pulling off the ribbon, Buffy opened the box. There laid a gold necklace, reflecting some of the dim light of the club. It didn't have a charm, but it was as beautiful as it was simple. "Oh." Buffy was lost for words. Its quality was high, so it was obviously expensive. She loved it, but what did it mean? Did he think they were getting back together, because of what happened yesterday? Was he trying to buy her back? Or maybe he just thought she would like the necklace. Part of her wished that he wanted her back, because she wanted him. The other part hoped that he didn't, because she wasn't sure if she could or should go back with him. It was too soon.
"If you don't like it, I can return it and give you something else." Spike reached for the box.
"No, it's just that you shouldn't have. How much did this cost?" Buffy regretted asking that when Spike's expression became pained. "I like it. Look, I'm going to wear it now." Buffy pulled the necklace from the box and put it on.
The rest of the table was silent and uncomfortable. Cordelia spoke up, "It's very pretty. The gold looks good with your skin tone." She gave Spike a small smile. Spike seemed to relax a little.
Oz had to get back with the band before they started playing. Willow turned her chair to face the stage and was immediately mesmerized. Cordelia looked at Spike and raised her eyebrow at Buffy. She was probably wondering why Spike was there and why he bought her jewelry. Buffy never told Cordelia about the attack, she thought, glancing at Spike. There was a scab on his eyebrow where he was hurt yesterday. She would never forget how he helped her.
"Run out of guys?" Xander was looking at Cordelia, who looked irritated with the comment.
"What?"
"Well, it's Saturday night. I was thinking that maybe you ran out of guys, with you going through them so fast. Why else would you hang out with us? It being date night and all."
"Like you'd know anything about that."
Xander started to laugh. "Buffy, your friend here's a real hoot."
"You two can bicker all you want, but I'm not going to sit in the middle." Buffy stood up and walked to the other side and sat down next to Spike. He appeared a little worried. Thinking it was from the bickering between Xander and Cordelia, Buffy leaned towards Spike. "They'll be okay, " she whispered, "That's not anywhere near the wrath of Cordelia." She glanced at the couple and grinned. "I bet they end up going out."
The crowd started cheering as the band came on stage. Their first song was upbeat. They're pretty good, Buffy thought. Xander and Cordelia still bickered every once and a while, but were stopped by Willow's shush and glare.
"You wanna dance?" A young man, who looked older than Buffy, asked Dawn. I don't think so, Buffy thought.
"No!" Buffy and Spike answered at the same time.
"What? I can dance with someone if I want to!" Dawn protested, looking between Spike and Buffy.
"She's only fourteen." Buffy turned to the guy, who paled and walked away.
"Hey, she's just kidding!" Dawn called out to the retreating figure. She glared at Buffy. "Why'd you do that?"
"It was the truth." Buffy watched as Dawn's protest died down to a pout. Spike looked a little relieved, and it warmed her heart. He cared for Dawn like a big brother.
"Cordelia?" Harmony was standing in front of the table with a confused look on her face. "What are you doing?"
"Hey. I didn't know you'd be here tonight." Cordelia looked around a little nervously.
Buffy stiffened when Cameron stood next to Harmony. Her scratches on his face hadn't healed, giving him a sinister look. Even surrounded by her friends and in a crowded area, Buffy was afraid of him. He was really angry yesterday, and she bet that he hadn't gotten over it.
"If you want to be a freak, too, go ahead and stay here." Cameron stepped closer to Cordelia. "The cool people are sitting at a table over there." He pointed to a table across the room, where Gage and Dodd were sitting. Buffy could barely make out the bruises they sported.
"Excuse me?" Cordelia stood up. "I'm Cordelia Chase. I define cool. And right now, you are not it." She leaned in, lowered her voice, and gritted, "Don't mess with me." Leaning on the table, she shook her long hair back. "If I want to sit here and call it cool, then it is, no matter how lame they are."
Cameron looked around at the growing crowd, and finally left. He walked back to a table that was suddenly empty. Nobody wanted to be around Cameron after Cordelia said that he wasn't cool.
"Can I sit here, too?" Harmony widened her eyes in hope.
"No." Cordelia carefully smoothed out her dress and sat down.
"Now, that was the wrath of Cordelia." Buffy whispered to Spike.
"What are you looking at?" Cordelia was looking at Xander, who gaping at her. "He pissed me off."
Xander closed his mouth. Suddenly, he turned around. "Lame?"
* * *
While shopping for Buffy's gift, Spike had rejected necklaces with charms or jewels, because he didn't want her to think he was pushing her. The simple gold necklace seemed nice, without saying, "I love you." Sure, it cost some, but the inexpensive necklaces looked cheap. He wanted to give her something that she would want to wear.
But she wasn't happy when she opened the box. Everyone else had given her gifts that didn't cost very much. Remembering how she gave him that money back, he thought that maybe she didn't want to accept anything that might tie her to him. She was wearing it obviously to be gracious and not upset him.
Spike looked Xander and Willow. They hadn't really said anything to him tonight. He still had to make up for what he did to them - he knew they hadn't completely forgiven him. Their silence made him self conscious. Of course, he hadn't said a word to them, either. He opened up his mouth to say something.
"Can you get me a diet Coke?" Buffy stopped him in mid-speech. Relaxing, Spike nodded and left the table.
While he waited for the bartender, he saw that Buffy was talking to Cordelia. Xander wasn't at the table anymore, and Dawn was wistfully watching people dancing.
"I noticed you're sitting with William, what's with that?" Someone asked on the other end of the bar. Spike saw that Xander was talking to Jesse, an old friend of Xander's. Jesse used to be very close to Xander, but he found new friends and interests during high school, and the two didn't hang around each other very much. But, unlike Spike, Jesse still made it a habit to talk to Xander every once in a while.
Spike couldn't hear what Xander said, but he didn't look happy. They didn't seem to notice Spike, so he crept closer to them. He knew he shouldn't eavesdrop, but he wanted to know what they were saying about him.
"I think Buffy feels sorry for him. Personally, I think she's making a mistake, " Xander said when Spike was close enough to hear.
Spike didn't want to hear anymore. Mistake? Xander didn't know the first thing about what Buffy felt. Did he dislike him that much? Spike got Buffy's soda and walked back towards the table.
A light came on in his head. He could show Xander that Buffy didn't feel sorry for him. He could take advantage of the fact that she was speaking to him to become a better person. He could be strong. Putting on a big smile, he placed the drink in front of Buffy.
"I'll be right back." Spike headed towards the restroom. He looked into the mirror. There were still dark roots showing in his messy hair. He ran his fingers through, slicking his hair back to try and get it to look decent. He pulled his red shirt out of his jeans, rolled the sleeves up a little, and unbuttoned the top three buttons. He was glad that he had continued to wear his contacts.
He turned away from the sink, satisfied with his appearance. The door swung open, and Cameron staggered in. Spike's heartbeat sped up in fear.
"I hate you." His breath reeked of alcohol. "Next time, you won't be around to save Buffy."
An rage, unlike any that Spike had felt before, burned up in him. He grabbed Cameron by the front of his shirt and slammed him into the wall. "If you go anywhere near Buffy, I'll kill you."
Cameron gave a nervous laugh. "You don't have the guts," he spat back.
Xander walked through the door and gawked at them.
"I'll show you who has guts." Spike pulled Cameron off the wall.
"Spike, no." Xander pushed his way between the two.
"See, even your loser friend knows you shouldn't mess with me." Cameron smirked. "You're pathetic and will always be pathetic. Those like me will always come out on top."
Xander turned to Cameron. "Really? Is that why Cordelia Chase is sitting with us, and not you? Why nobody will sit with you tonight? I feel sorry for you. All your friends will abandon you if they think their own popularity is in jeopardy."
Cameron started towards Xander with his fist raised. The door opened and a huge bouncer walked in and paused, looking at them.
Seeing the raised fist, he walked up to Cameron. "There's no fighting in this establishment."
"Hey, we were just.." Cameron was interrupted by the bouncer dragging him out the door. The room was silent as Spike and Xander gaped at the door.
"Why did you stop me?" Spike turned on Xander. "I could have handled him."
"And you would have been kicked out like Cameron was." Xander pointed towards the door.
"I don't want Buffy to pity me." Spike straightened his shoulders. "Or make a mistake."
"What are you talking about?"
"You think Buffy's making a mistake with me. I overheard you talking." Spike wanted to hear him try and deny it.
"I just don't want you to be hurt." Xander put his hand on Spike's shoulder.
Spike shrugged it off. "It sounded like you were worried about Buffy."
"What? No, you misunderstood me. I don't want Buffy accidently leading you on, because it would hurt you. It would be a mistake." Xander sighed. "I know you have strong feelings for her. You bought her that necklace."
Spike took a minute for the words to sink in. "You don't think Buffy has the same feelings?" He asked softly.
"I don't know. She never talks about you, and but she had a sad look on her face whenever she saw you by yourself. I could tell she felt bad for you."
Spike's mood dropped. "But, she said yesterday that she needed to think things over." He thought that she still had some feelings for him.
"She probably just didn't want to turn you down."
But, he saved her yesterday, and she was grateful. Spike touched the scab on his eyebrow. Who was he kidding? He got his ass kicked, and Buffy had to save him. She must think he was a big loser. "Why do you care? I would think you would be happy to see me hurt," Spike finally said.
Xander smiled sadly. "We were friends for a long time. That doesn't just change."
Spike gave a small smile. "Thanks," he said, leaving the restroom.
* * *
Buffy played with her empty glass. There had been some excitement in the club when word went around that Cameron had been kicked out. Apparently, he had been beating someone up. Buffy wondered where Spike had run off to, and was suddenly afraid that he was the one that Cameron was hurting.
She sighed with relief when she saw Spike step out of the restroom. He had rolled up the sleeves of his shirt, changing his appearance. Her heart sped up as he neared the table.
"I was wondering where you were." Buffy smiled. Spike didn't return her smile, so her own faltered.
"I need to go home. I just wanted to wish you a happy birthday." Spike put on his jacket. Then, he turned around and walked towards the main door.
"Spike?" Buffy ran after him. What upset him? He had been quiet all night, but he seemed happy to stay.
When Buffy got outside, Spike was unlocking his car. She ran up to him.
Spike looked up at her, as he opened the door. "Go back inside with your friends. You don't need to worry about me."
Buffy pushed the car door closed. "What's wrong?" He looked so sad.
Spike closed his eyes. When he opened them, his stare burned right through her. "I love you, and it hurts to be around you because I know you don't love me." Spike gave her a sad smile. "I'm going to move on, now. You don't have to pity me anymore."
Buffy stood stunned. He loved her? She knew he was attracted to her, but she thought he was just desperate when he begged her to take him back. Her heart started to swell up with happiness, until the rest of his words sunk in.
"Goodbye, Buffy." Spike got in his car and started the engine. He drove his car away, leaving Buffy in the parking lot.
She didn't want him to move on.
TBC
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