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Chapter 10- School's Out

Well we got no class
And we got no principles
And we got no innocence
We can't even think of a word that rhymes
-Alice Cooper
- School's out

Willow Rosenberg was a bright and articulate woman. Always able to defend her position forcefully and logically during debates within the classroom setting; she also moderated her women's study group with aplomb. In her personal life, when extremely excited or flustered, Willow would cheerfully admit to babbling. When Tara completed repeating her conversation with Buffy's new boyfriend, Willow found herself in the rare position of having absolutely nothing to say. She had been completely and utterly stunned into silence.

Lying on her back on their bed, she rolled over and looked at Tara. She shook her head, trying to clear it. “Buffy's brand new boyfriend William is actually Spike, our favorite writer? The same Spike that you chose for your end of the semester project? That Spike?”

Seated in the chair next to the bed, Tara nodded in affirmation.

Willow continued. “The first man she's shown any interest in at all since Angel? The same man that I believe she's in love with?”

Tara nodded again.

“Who also has a reputation as the biggest drunk and womanizer in the entire literary world? Not to mention most other worlds?”

Tara shrugged. “Also rumored to have the worst case of writer's block ever. He hasn't produced anything new in almost two years.”

Willow stared at the ceiling and looked for answers. She mused aloud. “She doesn't even know any of this because he hasn't told her.”

She sat up abruptly, reached over and grabbed her purse. She looked at Tara and said grimly, “Let's go. I want to meet this guy.”

*****

Spike couldn't bring himself to lie to Tara and Dawn so he phoned England and talked to his brother and sister-in-law. They were thrilled that he was taking some time to regain his balance after the stint in rehab. They encouraged him to visit with them soon. After listening to cute baby exploits from overenthusiastic parents-she's already ahead of all the other babies--he hung up.

With nothing to do and several hours before he could leave for the airport, he sat down at the table and opened the laptop. The writing spark he felt after seeing Buffy the other night had become a raging inferno.

Although not sure that what he put down was actually worthwhile, Spike was overjoyed to be able to finally write again. It seemed he had found his muse once more. He had sorely missed the way writing always made him feel so calm and centered. Now, determined to see the book through to its conclusion, he was writing voraciously.

Writing this afternoon meant that he was stalling with regard to Buffy and he knew it. He hadn't seen her since early that morning when they had awakened together on his couch. Meeting Tara had only reminded him of all he needed to tell her about his personal life.

He was petrified that even though she had admitted to caring about him, she might still refuse to be with him when she discovered that he had deceived her. He had no contingency plan if she broke things off. He was extremely worried that her feelings weren't yet deep enough to give him the benefit of the doubt, especially with his past reputation.

After Buffy's confession last night and her declaration this morning, he knew that the longer he waited to tell her, the worse it would look.

There was also the added complication of her friends. Spike had no doubt that Willow would recognize him immediately and Tara would certainly comment to Buffy on who it was exactly that she was planning to date. He sighed. The explanation had to come from him, and not from someone else. Soon.

A knock at the door distracted him from his thoughts. He answered the door to find Tara, a slight smile on her face, standing on his porch. “I want to talk with you some more and….”

A thin redhead moved up beside her. “And introduce me. Hi, I'm Willow.” She reached in her bag and pulled out a book. “Will you autograph this for me Spike?”

He let out a bark of laughter and moved aside to let the women inside. He glanced at Willow and then back to Tara and drawled, “Well pet, I can certainly understand what you see in her.” He gestured toward the couch. “Why don't you ladies have a seat? I'll even play host. May I get you something to drink?”

Willow shook her head. “No thanks. It's a little early in the day for us.”

Spike dropped into an overstuffed chair across from the couch, slung his leg over the arm and replied dryly. “I meant lemonade or a soda. I haven't had anything except a couple of glasses of wine with Buffy at dinner since I left rehab two weeks ago and I'm determined to keep it that way.”

Willow blushed. “Oh, sorry, I didn't know.”

He gestured for her book. “There are a lot of things you don't know about me.”

Willow handed him the novel, watching him intently. “I really would like to get to know you better since you're seeing Buffy, so shall I call you Spike or do you suddenly prefer William?”

This time Spike had the grace to blush. “I guess the time for pretense is over, eh girls? You can call me Spike, everybody else I know does except for my old professor and my parents.” He looked down at the book. “Oh, it's Intermezzo Dreaming. You know, this is my least favorite book of them all.”

Willow and Tara both looked intrigued. Tara smiled at him. “I know the beginning of a story when I hear it. Why do you say that? It's probably one of your most lyrical works. Actually, I based an entire term paper on it.”

Spike grimaced. “I hope you got a passing grade.” Shrugging his shoulders, he looked down at his hands. “Okay, I guess I really do need to explain. I don't want you beautiful women to think I'm just being a ponce.”

He settled back against the chair and lit a cigarette. “It just has some bad memories attached to it. For one thing, it took almost three months to finish it. I got the flu and was bedridden for almost a month right in the middle of the book.”

He chuckled. “During the intermezzo you might say.” He took a drink of his lemonade. “Drusilla, my ex, kept trying to force feed me deli chicken soup for days. She couldn't cook and I was too sick to do anything for myself,except she never heated it.”

He looked down at his hands. “She just never cared enough to bother. Have you ever eaten cold congealed chicken soup? It's pretty disgusting, trust me on that point.” He sighed. “I'm pretty sure there aren't any recuperative powers in it, either.”

He looked over at the two women sitting on the couch. “I've always tried to please the women in my life. No matter what they did or thought about me in the end.” He smiled thinly. “You might say that I've always been a fool for love.”

Sitting up straighter he added. “And that's why you're here, isn't it? Because it's always about love and trust. You love your friend and need to decide whether you can trust me where Buffy's concerned.”

Tara smiled shyly at him and replied, “You asked for the chance to talk.”

Willow looked intently at Spike. “Buffy has been my closest friend since freshman year in high school. I have to know that you're not going to hurt her. I know she's told you about her past and you must realize that she's still very fragile. You're the first man she's even tried to be interested in for almost two years. Frankly, I'm worried, after all it's only been a few days since you two met. It didn't inspire a lot of confidence, either, when I discovered Buffy doesn't even know who you really are.”

He looked intently into her face. “When you walked in here, I offered you a drink and you immediately assumed something about me. I understand that, I have a reputation that precedes me everywhere I go. It's my fault and I won't make excuses. That's why when I came here I wanted a chance to leave Spike behind and just be William for awhile. I don't want to be that person anymore. Frankly, he's become exhausting. Then I met Buffy.”

He exhaled loudly. “Obviously I don't have to tell you how wonderful she is, but I do need to tell you that I saw it instantly. And she likes me just for me. No assumptions. In my world, that's a very rare quality.” He chuckled. “Actually, I don't even think she's read any of my stuff at all. It's refreshing.”

He turned back to Willow, his face earnest. “Willow, I promise you can trust me with Buffy. The relationship is very serious for me, and I want to be with her for a very long time. I just hope she feels the same way. For what it's worth, I never meant to really deceive her. I just needed to be free of Spike for a bit. I do plan to explain as soon as I can. I've already mentioned to her that I have some things to tell her.”

Willow was thinking about what he'd said. To give her a few minutes, he turned to Tara.

“Pet, I was serious about having that discussion about writers. So just who does the public university system believe to be study- worthy these days?” He smirked. “I mean, other than me of course.”

Tara laughed and launched into a lively discussion with Spike. She soon discovered that he was very well educated. He had read many of the various writers within her field and offered some knowledgeable and insightful opinions about their work.

A few moments later, Willow laughed when Spike made an amusing and pointed comment about a particular writer. A truce had been reached. Willow and Tara discovered that they both really liked Spike, both the man and the writer. They could see what Buffy had realized and understood about him. He was a unique man and he had some wonderful underlying qualities.

Willow finished her lemonade and set the glass down. “Spike, we're going to leave. We've plans to take a walk on the beach.”

She looked pointedly at him. “Buffy is going to be home alone the rest of the afternoon.” She picked up her book and stood up.

Spike accompanied them to the door. “Ladies, it's been a very enlightening afternoon. I truly enjoyed every moment.” He held the door for them. “Thanks.”

He looked at Willow once more. “I think I'll go and see Buffy.”

As they walked down the path to their own cottage, Willow flipped open her book and looked at the inscription Spike had penned.

To Willow,
Noble woman and lover of exquisite Tara.
You are indeed the queen of laissez-faire.
Plato said “The beginning is the most important part of the work.”
Here's to our beginning.
Your new friend,
Spike

Willow erupted into laughter. Laissez-faire indeed. Oh, he's perfect for her.

She turned to her perplexed girlfriend and handed her the book. “Tara, I really like him. He's going to be so good for Buffy.”





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