Spike stepped out on the porch just in time to see an old Citroen come to a halt on the street just outside his house. The driver – a man in his early forties – jumped out and quickly hurried around the car, bending down to look at something a couple of feet away. That was when he noticed his son, slowly moving towards the car and staring at something on the ground. Spike went over to see what it was that had caught the boy’s attention.
When he saw Spike approaching, the man got to his feet, a devastated look on his face. “The cat just jumped out in front of the car, I didn’t have a chance to stop.” He removed his glasses and started wiping them, nervously, with a handkerchief he found in his pocket.
“Oh, bloody hell!” Spike finally spotted the white cat, lying in an immobile heap in a large puddle of blood. He glanced at Billy. “Is that...?” The boy just nodded, never taking his eyes off the cat.
“Dear lord!” The man seemed to notice Billy for the first time. “Did the poor thing belong to you?”
“No.” Turning his attention back to the older man, Spike shook his head. “Know who the owner is, though. I’ll take care of it.”
“This is absolutely terrible; I can’t tell you how sorry I am about this.” The man shook his head, sadly, then cleared his throat. “Oh well, I might have a blanket somewhere in my car. I’ll be right back.” He turned around and hurried back to the car, opening the trunk.
Billy swallowed hard, still staring at the cat, like hypnotized. “We have to take her to the vet. Maybe she’ll...” His voice trailed off as he turned to his father, a pleading look on his face.
Letting out a sigh, Spike shook his head. “There’s no point. I’m sorry.”
“You don’t know that!” Billy glanced at the cat again. “If we hurry...”
“Billy...” Spike waited until he was sure he had the boy’s full attention before he went on, a serious note in his voice; “It’s too late.”
Billy was quiet for a moment. “We can’t just leave her here,” he finally mumbled.
Spike shook his head in agreement. “We won’t.”
“Oh God, Leia!” Buffy stared in shock at the small, lifeless bundle in Spike’s arms. “No...” Tears started welling up in her eyes as she reached for her beloved pet. “What happened?!”
“She got hit by a car, just outside. I’m so sorry, luv.” Spike handed her the dead cat, suddenly feeling beyond awkward.
“What was she doing there?” Buffy sniffled a little, tenderly stroking the animal’s bloody fur. “She’s afraid of cars; she would never run out in the middle of the road.”
Spike shrugged, apologetically, about to tell her that he had no idea, when Billy spoke up; “There was a big dog. He chased her out in the street, right in front of the car.” He kept his eyes on the floor, not wanting to meet his father’s, or Buffy’s eyes.
“Oh.” Buffy wiped away a tear from her cheek. “Makes sense. She’s afraid of dogs as well. She’s...” She stopped, correcting herself; “She was afraid of a lot of things. My poor baby...”
Spike didn’t know what to say. A part of him just wanted to take Buffy in his arms and comfort her, but wasn’t sure how she would react. “Right...” He cleared his throat. “We should get out of here, give you some space. You probably wanna be alone right now.”
“Wish I could.” Buffy sighed. “But I have to go to work, I’m already late.” She walked over to one of the arm chairs with the cat, still wrapped up in the blanket, and carefully put her down with another sigh. “I’ll bury her when I get back.”
Billy looked up. “You gonna bury her? Where?”
“Oh, somewhere in the backyard, I guess.” Buffy’s eyes started filling with tears again. “She really liked it out there.”
Nodding in understanding, Billy was silent for a moment. Then he looked at Buffy again, a hopeful expression on his face. “Can I help?”
Buffy looked a little surprised. “Sure, as long as it’s okay with your dad.” She glanced at Spike, who just nodded. “All right, I should be home again by four-thirty. You can come over then if you want.” The boy nodded, eagerly.
“You know, you could come over to our place for dinner when you’re done. If you want, that is.” Spike hesitated, suddenly nervous. “I mean, if you’d rather be alone tonight... You don’t have to feel like you have to, I just thought...”
Giving him a small smile, Buffy interrupted his ramblings. “That would be great, I’d love to.” She paused. “But I thought I was the one who was going to invite the two of you over.”
“Yeah, well...” Spike shrugged. “You can do that some other time. Tonight, I’m cooking dinner. You’re gonna love it.”
Billy gave his father a doubtful look. “You’re gonna cook? I’d much rather order a pizza.”
Spike snorted, clearly offended. “Yes, I bloody well am going to cook, and you’ll just be quiet and enjoy it.” The boy rolled his eyes.
Buffy couldn’t help but giggle, despite the fact that she had been feeling utterly miserable just a moment ago. “Well, I’m looking forward to it. I’ll see you tonight.”
“Great!” Spike looked relieved. Then he turned to his son. “Let’s go, Billy.” He gave Buffy an almost shy smile before heading out the door, Billy following without a word.
Closing the door behind them, Buffy remained standing there for a while. She glanced at the cat, and felt another wave of sadness welling up inside her. Poor Princess Leia, she just couldn’t believe her precious little kitty was gone. She forced back a sob, deciding that there would be time to mourn later. Right now, she had to go to work. Not like she really felt like it after what had just happened, but she didn’t have much of a choice. If she wanted to be able to keep the house, she needed the money.
As soon as Billy and Spike had gotten back to the house, Billy hurried up the stairs and into his room, closing the door behind him. He sat down on the unmade bed with a sigh. A part of him felt really bad for lying to Buffy about what happened, but he just couldn’t tell her the truth; that it was all his fault that her cat was dead. Buffy was nice and he really liked her; he couldn’t stand the idea of her being angry at him. Not to mention the fact that his dad would freak out, again.
For as long as he could remember, Billy had always felt like whatever he did, he was always the cause for other peoples disappointment. It wasn’t like he actually tried to be difficult, but for some reason, he was just very good at getting himself in trouble. And most of the time, he found that lying was easier than telling the truth. He had learned that the hard way. Because sometimes, the truth could be a lot worse than any lie he could come up with.
TBC