Chapter 40
“Oh, my God! I never thought I’d get this excited over a stupid school play but…” Buffy inhaled sharply as she walked along the sidewalk, her hand occasionally squeezing Spike’s. “… when I saw my name on that list, it just… clicked, you know?”
Her eyes seemed brighter than ever, a certain twinkle in the corner gave new life to the green in them as she looked up at the boy walking next to her.
“I guess… somehow, Miss. Addams was right. I really didn’t know what I wanted out of life. I mean, everyone’s been going through college applications and I just seemed to be going through the motions, you know? I’ll apply to Sunny U and then I’ll decide my major is going to be - that was basically as far as I thought about it… but now? I don’t know! It’s just so exciting! Finding something that I actually like and I really, really want to do and…” Her eyes drifted over the scenery around them and landed over Spike just in time to catch him concealing a yawn from her. “I’m babbling, aren’t I?” She asked with half a frown.
“No, no you’re not.” Spike denied vehemently.
“Did I ever tell you that you’re the world’s worst liar?”
“Sorry, luv. But I am glad you’ve found something you’re interested in.” He replied, leaning in to place a light kiss over her forehead.
She smiled and came to a full stop when she reached the front entrance to her house. Her hands wrapped around his waist as she brought him closer to her and she looked up at him with a smile over her lips.
“Thanks.” She whispered as she buried her face in his chest.
“For what?” He asked with a frown.
“For not freaking out over the play.” She explained before looking up at him again.
“Why should I freak out?” He pretended not to know.
At that she tilted her head sideways and threw him a scolding look.
“I know you saw the rest of the cast list.”
Without a witty comeback, he let his head drop in defeat.
“A-are you really ok about this?” She asked nervously.
“Well…” He trailed off, not bearing to look at her, but he was forced to when her small hand came to rest under his chin to guide his gaze to meet hers. She took a deep breath and paused for a second.
“I-If you want me to quit the play… I will.” She said without much conviction. He could tell that, deep inside, she was begging him not to force her to make that decision. And how could he? He had witnessed her excitement when she had read her name on that paper, the way she wouldn’t stop smiling, giggling over the silliest jokes. God, she had even laughed at Xander’s pathetic Sean Connery impersonation! He had never seen her this happy. No, he couldn’t do that to her. He had no right.
“Don’t be silly.” He tried to sound nonchalant about the subject. “Of course you’re not gonna quit.” He paused for a second and then added with a more serious tone: “I want you to be happy and, if this makes you happy, I am 100% ok with it.”
“Are you sure?”
There it was - the sparkle - it was right back in her eyes.
“I’m fine, Buffy.” He reassured her.
In an instant, her arms were wrapped around his neck, her mouth easily finding its way to meet his for a long kiss. Her head rested against his when their lips finally parted; a mischievous smile dancing over them.
“My mom’s not going to be home for another two hours.” She announced suggestively as her fingers lingered over the lapels of his duster, tugging at them as she walked backwards towards the house.
“Oh, really?” He questioned, raising one scarred eyebrow as he walked up the steps of the front porch.
~+~
One slender hand hovered over the lines on the page, while the other played with long, golden threads.
“Hey…”
Buffy was snapped out of her daze by the familiar voice. With a smile on her lips she looked up to find him standing next to her.
Hey, Spike.” She replied, scooting over and patting the spot on the bench next to her as her eyes returned to the papers she held in her hands.
“What are you doing?”
“Just going over a few lines.” She explained, never looking up at the person sitting next to her.
“I thought you knew those by heart.”
“I-I do. I just want to make sure before the first rehearsal.” She continued, staring at the page, a deep frown over her eyebrows.
He simply nodded and let his eyes drift over the football field that spread out before them.
“It’s today, right? After school?” He asked.
“Uh-huh.” She mumbled. There was a beat, as she pondered whether or not to invite him to the rehearsal. She had done it every time and every time he had come up with some lame excuse. She shook her head and returned her attentions to the paper.
They sat in silence until he moved to stand.
“Well, I’ll be off then.” He said, standing next to her, his gaze inspecting her, waiting for her to glance up at him, but she never did.
“Oh, ok...” She replied, still too absorbed in her reading.
“Bye.” He waited a moment until she realised he was still there.
She was brought back to reality when she felt soft fingers thread though her dishevelled hair. She shook her head and looked up.
“Don’t I get a kiss?” He asked with a half smile.
She returned the grin as he leaned down and placed a quick peck over her lips.
“Bye.” He repeated.
“Bye.” She replied, her attention quickly returning to the sheets she held.
~+~
“Whelp!” Spike shouted as he made his way through the crowd of teens that filled the corridor.
“Bleach-man!” Xander greeted back as the platinum blond reached him.
“What you doing?”
“Getting ready for torture.” Was Xander’s unenthusiastic reply.
“Come again?”
“Play rehearsal.” He explained.
“Oh… I guess you’re not up for some football after school then.”
“Sorry.” Xander sighed, rolling his eyes.
Noticing the strange look on his friend’s face he added:
“I take it you’re not too happy about this whole play thing, huh?” The brown-haired teen asked.
“Of course I am.” He lied through his teeth. “Makes Buffy happy, makes me happy.”
“Right…” Xander said with a hint of sarcasm. “Cause seeing your girlfriend stage-macking with her ex is so fun.”
“Don’t push me, whelp.” Spike grumbled as he tried to erase the mental picture that suddenly popped into his head.
“Look, I’m sorry. I just think you should talk to Buffy about this. It’s been two weeks and you two haven’t said a word about it.” Xander noted.
“We talked.” Spike argued.
“Really?” Xander asked, rolling his eyes once more.
“She asked if I was ok with it and I-“
“Lied about it.” Xander cut in.
“Hey!”
“I’m just saying… I’m just thrilled that Cordy is the worst actress in the world cause I don’t know if I could handle seeing her kiss Angel.” Xander explained.
“I’m ok with it.” Spike insisted as the anger slowly boiled up in him.
“Are you sure?”
“I’m fine, so just bugger off!” Spike growled, storming away.
~+~
“Hey, Spike!” Willow greeted with a smile as she looked up from her plate to see the bleached teen take a seat in front of her.
“Hey, Red.” He replied, picking up his fork and knife. “Where’s Buffy?” He asked.
“She’s rehearsing for the play.” Willow explained digging through her plate to find something remotely eatable. Her face crunched up in disgust.
“I thought they only had rehearsals on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays.” Spike questioned with a frown.
“Miss Addams says they’re getting closer to the opening and that they have a lot of work to do.”
“Oh…” He said trailing off before adding: “So! Why aren’t you there? You know? Standing by your man?”
“I thought I’d take a bit of a break from the whole Shakespeare experience.” Seeing Spike’s narrowed eyes she admitted: “It’s just too painful to see Cordelia ‘act’.”
“Yeah! Heard it was pretty bad.” He chuckled when he saw Willow’s facial muscled twitch at the memories.
“It’s bad. *Very* bad!” She confirmed. There was a moment of pause as she wondered whether or not to approach the subject. In the end, she opted for the former: “Why don’t you go check it out for yourself? I-I mean, you could go to one of the rehearsals. Miss Addams will probably force you to handle stage work, b-but other than that she’s pretty cool about it.” Willow explained nervously.
“Nah, don’t really want to see you yanks murder some of the best work in English literature ever. I’ve got Hollywood movies for that.” He joked, but the uneasiness was clear in his voice.
Willow gave him a weak smile before setting her fork down to look up at the boy sitting across the table from her.
“She really wants you to be there, you know?”
He didn’t say a word, his gaze buried in the unrecognizable pulp on his plate.
“She said so. You should go and see her. Maybe you’ll realise it’s not that bad.”
“Right…” He mumbled sarcastically before finally looking up at the redhead.
“If you hurry you’ll still catch the last few minutes.” She insisted.
Without a word he stood up and started to head out but stopped in his tracks to glance back and whisper:
“Thanks, red.”
“You’re welcome.” She replied to his retreating form.
~+~
“He jests at scars that never felt a wound. / But, soft! What light through yonder window breaks? / It is the east, and…”
Angel’s annoying, histrionic voice seemed to fade away as he saw her walk out on stage. Her hair was tied up in a messy bun, high on the back of her head, a few unruly threads escaping to frame her face. She leaned on the balcony, staring off into the distance while, below, the quarterback went about saying his lines.
“O Romeo, Romeo! wherefore art thou Romeo? / Deny thy father and refuse thy name; / Or, if thou wilt not, be but sworn my love, / And I'll no longer be a Capulet.”
Spike stared in awe. She was actually good at it. He ignored the exaggerated replies that came from the brown-haired teen; his gaze fixed on her as she continued to speak. The words flowed freely, as if she had just thought of them; sincere longing flooded her eyes, giving them a glassy appearance. God, she was beautiful!
He lingered in the shadows, watching in trance as she now walked about on stage, the beefy quarterback trailing behind her. He felt his stomach turn in protest, but he ignored it as he focussed on the small figure now giggling on stage. Maybe Willow was right. Maybe it wasn’t as bad as he had imagined it. As the thoughts hurried through his mind he found himself relaxing, leaning against the wall. Maybe he had overreacted, it-
He felt his entire body freeze as the suddenly, moment he had dreaded the most was played out in front of him. He watched, in silence, as Angel’s hands came to rest on her waist. A blank, idiotic expression settled on his face, a passionate one on Buffy’s as he leaned in and captured her lips between his.
Then, all he saw was red. Anger boiled in his veins, making his heart violently hammer against his chest, the sweat cursed down the sides of his face, his mouth instantly becoming dry, his vision blurred. He was snapped out of his rage by the feel of a hand resting on his shoulder.
“Hey, man.” Oz’s monotonic voice reached his ears.
Spike shook his head and glanced down at the shorter teen. He didn’t say a word.
“You, ok?”
Miss Addams’ screeching voice, accompanied by her enthusiastic applause, interrupted the conversation.
“Wonderful! You were amazing! Bravo!”
The two teens glanced at the stage where Buffy and Angel were turning bright red under the praise. Turning his gaze back to Oz, Spike practically growled between clenched teeth before storming away:
“I’m fine!”
~+~
“Hello? Giles? Hi, is Spike there?” Buffy asked, twirling her index finger around the plastic cord of the phone.
“No, he hasn’t come home yet.” Was the reply from the other end. “Do you want to leave a message?”
“Just tell him that I called, ok? Thanks. Bye Giles.”
She let the receiver fall back into place and lay back on the bed. Oz had told her about Spike being there during the rehearsal. She raced through the halls in the hopes of finding him, but he was gone. She had looked for him during the rest of the day, but there was no sign of him. Calling Giles was the first thing she had done when came home and apparently he was still MIA.
She instantly stood up straight when she heard the front doorbell ring. She jogged down the stairs, her heart racing as she swung the door wide open.
“God, I thought you- Mom!“
“Surprised to see me?” Mrs. Summers asked as she handed her daughter a few of the grocery bags that she carried.
“No… It’s… um. Why’d you ring the doorbell?” Buffy tried to mask the disappointment in her voice as she followed her mother into the kitchen.
“I forgot my keys.” She explained, setting the bags on the counter. “How was rehearsal?”
“It was fine.” Buffy replied with little enthusiasm as started helping Joyce take out the groceries.
“Just fine?” Mrs. Summers frowned. “Usually you’re so psyched about the whole thing and now it was just fine? What happened?”
“Nothing.” Buffy shrugged.
Mrs. Summers let out a deep sigh and paused for a second, looking at her daughter.
“Buffy… What’s wrong?”
The blonde teen stared down at the counter. God, she wished she could tell her mom about this!
“It’s nothing. I’m just tired, I guess.” She lied.
“Are you sure?” Joyce insisted, still not convinced.
“We’ve just been rehearsing for so long, I’m just tired.” Buffy maintained.
“If you say so.” Mrs. Summers decided to drop the subject. She knew her daughter well enough to know when to push a subject. This wasn’t one of those times.
“I’m going to take a shower, ok?”
“Ok, honey.”
Without another word, Buffy made her way upstairs.
~+~
With a racing heart she walked down the hall, her gaze bouncing off the familiar faces she encountered on her way to class as she searched for him. She felt a pang when she saw him, standing by his locker, his head resting on the metallic door.
“Hey.” She greeted shyly, hugging her books tightly.
“Hey.” He replied meekly as he turned to look at her.
There was a moment of silence between them as they looked at each other; Buffy was the one to break it.
“Um… Oz told me you went to the rehearsal yesterday.” She started, her gaze suddenly dropping to the floor.
“He did, huh?”
She nodded before glancing up at him.
“Look, I-“
“I’m sorry.”
Buffy frowned. That was definitely not what she was expecting to hear.
“For not calling you back yesterday. My da told me you called.”
She remained in silence, still a bit shocked. He tilted his head, leaning on the row of lockers as he stared down at her.
“It’s just that… seeing you… and…” He swallowed hard as he tried to push back the anger that threatened to resurface. “…him and… Everything turned red, you know?”
She nodded once more.
“I just knew that if I talked to you last night I would have ended up saying something stupid.” He explained.
There was a beat between them as they stood in silence once more.
“A-are you still angry?” She managed to ask.
“A bit.” He admitted. “Most of it is kinda gone now.”
Sharp ringing sounded around them and instantly the hoard of teens began to move in the hall.
“You wanna talk about it?” She questioned.
“After class? Meet you by the bleachers?” He suggested.
“That’d be good.” She replied with a weak smile before awkwardly turning around to leave.
~+~
Buffy anxiously tapped her pencil on the table, her eyes glued to the clock over the blackboard. She let out a sharp sigh of relief when the bell finally rang. In a heartbeat, she was out of the classroom and heading down the halls. She quickly made her way through the labyrinth of corridors until she found the door that lead to the football field.
She pressed the palms of her hands against her jeans as she sat down and patiently waited for him to arrive. Glancing at her wristwatch she nervously twirled the small pencil in her hands. The tension in her shoulders seemed to build up when she finally saw him coming towards her.
“Hey!”
“Hey”
“So…” he started.
“So…” She repeated.
“There actually is kissing in the play.” He suddenly blurted out when the silence threatened to settle between them again.
She swallowed hard; she hadn’t expected for him to be so blunt about it.
“It’s Romeo and Juliet.” She stated the obvious. “It’s kinda required.”
“Yeah… I guess.” He muttered; his elbows rested on his knees as he played with an unlit cigarette between his hands; his gaze buried in his combat boots. “It was just kinda of a shock; the whole lip locking thing.” He explained.
“D-do you want me to quit?” She dared to ask after a beat.
He paused, taking his time as he tried to gather his thoughts.
“I’d be lying if I didn’t say I hate the idea of you and Peaches kissing… but… No, I don’t want you to quit.” He finally admitted.
His stomach turned when he felt her relax next to him.
“You love this, and I’d be a complete pillock if I tried to take that away from you.” He continued, finally turning his head sideways to look at her; a ghost of a smile over his lips.
She smiled back at him, her hand reaching out to stroke his wild locks into place. He nuzzled against her touch, brushing his lips against the palm of her hand. Wrapping his fingers around her wrist he pulled her closer to him, his mouth finding hers for a soft kiss.
“I guess I’ll just have to get used to the idea, huh?” He mumbled.
“I’m sorry.” She said sincerely.
“There is nothing to be sorry about.” He replied, wrapping his arms around her and bringing her head to rest on his chest. They remained embraced for a few seconds, his fingers unconsciously playing with her hair.
“Say, how long till this thing’s over?” He finally asked.
“Four weeks.”
He let out a small growl.
“I’ll talk to Miss Addams to see if she can cut down on kissage.” Buffy offered looking up at him.
“You do that or Romeo is going to end up having to a shining new black eye for the premier.” Spike warned.
At that Buffy chuckled.
“I’m serious!” He insisted with a grave tone.
“I know you are. I’m surprised you didn’t jump on stage and start pummelling Angel right then and there.”
“It’s what I wanted to do.” He admitted.
“Thanks. For not going all psycho on me.”
“You’re welcome.”
She leaned down to rest her head on his chest once more before she remembered.
“By the way, what’d you do afterwards?” She asked.
She felt him freeze under her. With a frown, she looked up at him.
“Spike?”
“Um… I-I kinda gotta tell you something.” He stuttered awkwardly.
“Spike… What did you do?” She questioned, a hint of worry evident on her face as she raised her left eyebrow high on her forehead.
Chapter 41
“YOU WHAT?” Buffy shouted as she stood up and started pacing around.
“Look, I’m sorry! I was fuming and I just wanted to get back at you. I’m sorry.” He tried to excuse himself.
“Wanted to get back at me? For what?”
“I was angry.” He mumbled, dropping his gaze to the floor.
“So you asked Drusilla to be you lab partner in Bio?!” Buffy inquired coming to a halt.
Spike tilted his head apologetically and let his lower lip jut out as she began walking in small circles again.
“It’s not that big of a deal. We’re gonna work together on some silly experiment…” He tried to reason, then added in a low voice: “Not like we’re gonna be lip-locking or anything.”
“What?” She asked stopping in front of him, her hand resting on her hips.
“Nothing.”
“No! You’re still not over this whole kissing thing. Are you?” She demanded.
“Well, what am I supposed to do? Go all ‘yippity-do-da, my girlfriend is smooching with her ponce of an ex’?” He asked raising his voice.
“Do you think I’m happy about this? Do you think I wanna kiss Angel?” She questioned.
Spike didn’t answer, mumbling something under his breath instead as his stare returned to the cement under his feet and the pout was back on his lips.
“Well?” She insisted.
“No…” His voice was a mere whisper.
Buffy sighed audibly, letting her arms fall at her sides as she sat back down next to him. They stayed in silence for a while until Spike spoke up:
“Do you think Miss Addams would be willing to switch Romeos?”
At that Buffy frowned:
“You’re offering to be in the play?”
“Maybe.”
A soft smile spread over Buffy’s lips.
“That’s sweet.”
“More like terrifying. I hate acting. Always had the worst stage fright.” At Buffy’s inquiring glance he added: “Third grade. Played a raisin in a school play.”
“A raisin?”
“It was sort of a fruit-play. Don’t ask.” He exhaled and continued: “Anyway, everything was fine. Rehearsal an’ all. I was bloody brilliant. Well, at least until the actually *day* of the play, when I walked out on stage and completely froze.” He shuddered a bit at the memory.
“You played a raisin?”
“Yes, we’ve covered that already. Fruit-play, remember?” He grumbled.
“I’m just trying to picture you in a raisin suit. You must have looked adorable.” She smiled.
“Don’t remind me.” He mumbled. “Anyway, do you think Miss Addams would let me try out for the part?”
“Doubt it.” She replied, a dreamy look taking over her eyes as she stared at him.
“Why?”
“She needs Angel’s star-pull.”
“Star-pull?”
“You know, popular guy draws in the crowd for the play. Why do you think Cordy’s even in the play? Have you any idea just how bad she is?” Buffy explained.
“I’ve heard. Even though, by what I’ve seen, Peaches isn’t that good either. He plays Shakespeare just as well as a Mexican soap opera actor.” Spike shuddered once more.
“I know. Sometimes it’s actually hard to focus on my lines. What, with trying to dodge those exaggerated arm swings and all. It’s tough.” Buffy said, erratically moving her arms in the air and getting a chuckle from Spike.
After a few seconds their combined laughs ceased and silence returned. A peaceful stillness engulfed them as Spike’s arm came to wrap around Buffy’s waist bringing her closer to him. They stayed like that for a long while, until the sharp ringing of the school bell echoed through the football field.
“We better go.” Buffy was the first to speak when neither of them moved.
Spike simply nodded as the silence settled between them again.
“Are we ok?” Spike finally spoke when Buffy stood up.
“You’re still not off the hook on the new lab partner thing.” She grumbled as she headed towards the school building with Spike trailing behind her. “Owe me a whole lot of grovelling for that one.” She warned him, poking a menacing finger into his chest as he held the door open to her.
“Grovelling?” Spike asked raising his scarred eyebrow.
“Lots and lots of grovelling. Lots of making up to be done.” She assured him.
“I wonder how I can do that.” He murmured, wrapping his arm around her waist when they came to a stop.
“Oh, I’ve got a couple of ideas.” She mumbled suggestively as her finger traced the lapels of his duster.
“Mr. Giles? Care to join us?” Mr. Grey’s low voice snapped the two out of their embrace, leaving Buffy nervously brushing her hair back into place while Spike stumbled into the classroom. “Miss Summers I take it you have somewhere else to be?”
“Y-yes, of course!” She stuttered as she clumsily turned around, running straight into someone. “I-I’m s-sorry.” She stammered before looking up to find Dru staring back at her.
“Miss Garden, you’re late.” Mr. Grey noted looking at his watch.
The two teens eyed each other for a few moments longer before the dark-haired girl turned in her heels and entered the room.
~+~
She smiled when she saw the redhead walking up to her, setting her tray on the table and taking her seat around the table.
“Hey, Will.” Buffy greeted.
“Hey. Have you talked to him?” Willow asked taking her fork into her hand.
“Yeah.”
“And?” A hint of worry filtered into her voice.
“Everything’s fine, Willow.” Buffy assured her best friend.
“Oh, thank God!” The other teen sighed in relief. “So, no more jealousy fits?”
“I don’t think so.” She replied as her gaze looked over her best friend’s shoulder to scan the cafeteria. “At least none coming from him.”
“Huh?”
“Guess who’s Spike’s new lab partner?” Buffy questioned as she twisted her mouth in disgust.
Willow looked up at her with a puzzled look.
“Dru.” The blonde supplied.
“Ouch!”
“Yeah, ouch. And guess whose bright idea it was.” After a beat Buffy answered: “Spike. He asked her to be his lab partner.”
“Double ouch!” Willow said, her eyebrows coming together for a sympathetic frown.
“I know.”
“Are you angry?”
“I was. Now I’ve kinda adjusted to the idea.” Buffy sighed playing around with her food. “He was a bit mad and all…”
“You’re not too happy about it, are you?” Willow asked recognizing the look on her friend’s face.
“No, I’m not!” Buffy immediately admitted letting her shoulders relax. “I hate it!” She grinded her teeth for a second. “But if I’m asking him to trust me, I should be able to trust him too, right?”
“Plus, lab reports usually don’t involve as much touching as playing Romeo and Juliet.” Willow couldn’t help but point out.
“You’re right.” Buffy sighed once more. “But lab reports involve a lot of unsupervised alone time with your partner.” She mumbled in a low voice, but loud enough that Willow could still catch it.
“And you don’t trust Spike being alone with Dru?”
Buffy pondered the question for a while and finally breathed:
“I trust him.” She reluctantly admitted before adding with a disgusted tone: “It’s skanky Goth-Girl that I don’t trust. If she so much as tries to touch him I’ll…” She held the knife tightly in her hands, squeezing the handle with all her might. “I-I’ll…” Struggling with the words she finally settled for: “I’ll cut any body part of hers that comes into contact with him.”
“It’s nice to see you have this whole anger issue under control.” Willow replied sarcastically, earning a smile from Buffy who finally released the knife from her clutches.
“I’m not that psychotic about it. I-I’m just…”
“Jealous?” Willow offered.
“Afraid.” Buffy corrected, causing the teen sitting opposite her to frown.
“Afraid of what?”
“I-I don’t know.”
The lines over Willow’s brow got deeper, making it obvious that she didn’t believe that last reply.
Buffy dropped her fork to press her fingers against her temples before suddenly blurting out: “Of Spike spending too much time with her and suddenly realising he’s not actually over her?”
“What?! Why do you think that would happen?”
“Come on, Willow… Spike’s been head over heels for that-that… *thing* ever since I can remember. It was actually scary.”
“Yeah, but it’s over now. He’s with you. I mean, he had the choice to pick Dru when she was all over him before Christmas and he didn’t. He chose you.” Willow pointed out.
Buffy stopped massaging her head for a second to look up at her friend.
“I guess you’re right.” She paused and then rephrased more emphatically. “You’re right! I’m stupid. This is all stupid. He chose me, he likes me. No matter what that stupid vampire-wannabe does.” She paused, taking in a deep breath as if she was trying to convince herself, and repeated: “You’re right!”
“Who’s right?”
Spike’s voice snapped her out of her thoughts as she turned around to see the bleached teen taking a seat next to her.
“Hey!” She greeted with a smile as she stretched up to give him a quick kiss on the lips.
“So, who’s right about what?” He questioned again.
“Nothing. Just girl talk.” Buffy replied.
Spike narrowed his eyes at her for a moment but, when he realised there was no way she was going to answer his question he simply shrugged and resigned himself to the gruelling task of fishing out the actual pieces of food from the pasty mush on his plate.
“Hey guys!” Xander’s peppy voice reached them. “How are you all doing?”
A general frown took over the three teens sitting around the table.
“What?” The brown-haired teen asked defensively.
“You’re too cheery, mate. You’re scaring us.” Spike explained.
“That’s because I come baring good news, *mate*.” Xander said with a goofy grin. The Brit sitting across from him cringed at his friend’s pathetic attempt at a British accent.
“What’s the good news?” Willow inquired.
“You’ll never believe it-“
“Hey, guys.” Oz greeted, taking his place next to his girlfriend. “Have you heard? Miss Addams called in sick, so rehearsals are cancelled for the rest of the week.” He quickly announced.
“Oh, man, I was the good news barer!” Xander objected dropping his fork in sign of protest.
Spike ignored his pout, leaning in to whisper in Buffy’s ear:
“That means you’re going home early today, right? Before your mom gets home?”
Buffy couldn’t help but giggle as the teen nuzzled into the nape of her neck.
“Hey, hey! Stop it, will you? The R-rated scenes are making me nauseous and I’m already having a bad enough day as it is.” Cordy grumbled as she plopped down on her seat.
“Cordelia, nice to see you in your usual good mood.” Buffy greeted sarcastically.
“Can you believe it? The rehearsals were cancelled for the rest of the week.” She continued making no notice of the blonde’s comment.
“Yeah, Oz just told us.” Willow informed her.
Xander saw his opportunity to protest once more and mumbled:
“I was the one who was supposed to tell the good news.”
“Good news?!” The cheerleader exclaimed. “I was just getting the hang of the whole thing. Now, with this unscheduled delay I’ll have to start from scratch.” She growled, shoving her tray away without having even touched her plate. “And I was getting so good at it.”
The entire group choked collectively.
“What?” She asked semi-outraged.
“Nothing, honey! You’re great.” Xander reassured, giving her a quick kiss on the lips while the others bit back a chuckle.
~+~
“Finally! You took forever!” Buffy breathed, wrapping her arms around Spike’s neck as he reached her.
“Sorry. I had to meet Mrs. Kennedy.”
“More poems?” Buffy asked with a mischievous grin.
“Yes.” Spike answered, opening the car door for her.
She waited for him to enter the vehicle before continuing:
“Any chance of you showing them to me?”
“Buffy, I’ve told you, I’ll show them to you when they’re ready.” Spike explained, turning the key in the ignition. He threw a glance in her direction to see her pout. “What?”
“It’s been almost a month and you haven’t shown me anything.” She mumbled.
“I’ll show them to you when they’re ready. Not now. They’re terrible now.” He insisted.
“I don’t care. I think it’s sexy.” She purred as she let her fingers dance over his denim covered thigh.
Buffy’s eyes turned brighter for a second when she saw him close his lids, keeping them that way for a second and taking a deep breath before turning his gaze back to the road. She felt her stomach twist in that wonderful way. She just loved the see the effect her mere touch had on him. He grinded his teeth together when her hand came dangerously close to his lap.
“Buffy… I-I have to drive.” He said in a low voice, his eyes glassy; his jaw muscles contracting and emphasising his chiselled features.
“So drive…” She whispered as she bit her lower lip.
“I-I can’t concentrate with y-“ He choked back the word when her fingers dove between his legs. “…With you doing that.”
“Doing what?” She asked pressing against the growing bulge.
She watched, amazed, as he tightened his grip on the wheel; his Adam’s apple bobbing up and down as he swallowed hard. She was snapped out of her daze when she was jerked back in her seat as his foot pressed on the gas.
“What are you doing?” She questioned, her ministrations coming to a halt as the vehicle gained speed.
“Trying to get you home faster.” He replied, giving her a leer and a quick glance before looking back at the road.
~+~
Buffy kicked the front door closed as her hands were too occupied tugging at Spike’s shirt. She was trapped between his arms, their mouth practically fused together as they blindly stumbled up the stairs. Tripping on one of the steps, the couple tumbled to the stairs. Spike hissed into her mouth when his back hit the hard wood, but the pain soon faded away when he felt her straddling, her groin rubbing against his.
“Ah…” He breathed, tearing his mouth away from hers for a second, before attacking it again.
His teeth captured her lower lip, lightly biting at it as her hand finally managed to dive under his clothes to explore his chest.
A surprised sound escaped her when she suddenly found herself being lifted up, her legs instinctively wrapping around his waist as he started climbing up the stairs once again. Eventually, after some struggling, they found their way into her room as the door slammed shut behind them. Buffy felt the air being knocked out of her when the two tumbled onto the bed.
“Mmh-mmh…” she mumbled into his mouth, her hand erratically tugging at the annoying fabric of his shirt.
She smiled contentedly when it was off and started working on the black fabric that remained covering his chest. This one proved to an easier task and soon the offending t-shirt was discarded on the floor along with her sweater. “My sweater? When did I take off my sweater off?” Buffy’s confused brain wondered, but the question was soon erased from her hazy mind when she felt Spike’s lips around her nipple. “I guess my bra is off too.” She was able to rationalize.
She arched into his warm mouth, her fingers diving for the buttons of his denims and undoing them. Spike mimicked her actions and soon two pairs of jeans decorated her bedroom floor.
Buffy blindly followed Spike when he slowly pulled away and the two ended up sitting on the bed, his tongue still tracing the contours of one erect nipple. She was too engulfed in the sensation to understand what he was doing but sighed contently when she found herself under the covers, Spike’s warm body covering hers.
“Good idea. It was getting cold.” She murmured.
She thought she heard a muffled ‘You’re welcome’, but it was lost to her ears when his tongue traced a snake-like path down her belly to the edge of her panties. She felt him hook his finger under the waistband of the soft material and slowly slid it down her legs.
Trembling hands found their way through his bleached locks as his mouth brushed over the sensitive skin of her inner thigh, coming close to her centre. Buffy gasped and her fingers fisted into his hair when his tongue slowly traced the contours of her outer folds. She felt him smile against her skin and she scolded herself for not being able to hide the effect he had on her.
He tasted her, probing and searched until he found the growing nubbin of flesh he had been looking for and took it into his mouth. Buffy arched her back off the mattress, one hand abandoning his head to blindly search for something to grab a hold of, while the other remained buried in his locks. She couldn’t suppress the mewls that escaped her lips when she felt his tongue twist around her clit. ‘God, how does he do that?’ She wondered.
“How…Oh, God!” Her question was cut short when she felt his finger exploring her opening before slowly sliding in.
It turned upwards, finding that perfect spot inside of her and making her gasp. She bit her lower lip, trying hard to keep from screaming as he sluggishly pushed in and out of her, slowly at first but quickly speeding up the pace. Her eyes snapped open when she felt her inner walls being stretched as he added a second finger.
“Spike! Oh-“ Just when she thought this couldn’t get any better, his teeth scrapped against her nub sending a powerful shock through her entire body. She was so close; he knew he just needed to – He gasped when she suddenly tugged at his locks, forcing his mouth away from her.
He froze, his fingers immediately slipping out of her core.
“Did I do something wrong? Are you ok? I-“ He wasn’t able to finish his sentence as she hurled him up her body until he was hovering over her.
“I want you.” She demanded. Her legs quickly wrapped around him.
“Buffy… Christ!” He cursed when she pushed her hips upwards and within a second he found himself buried inside of her.
She never gave him a moment to adjust, starting to gyrate her hips at the same time as she moved up and down, pulling him in and pushing him out of her.
“Fuck, wait…” He breathed, his eyes closing as he searched for control, but she didn’t seem to be listening. “Buffy, wait… I…” He mumbled incoherently. God, he loved it when she took charge and that only served to get him even more worked up. And that wasn’t good. Well, it was good, but not if he intended for this to last more than thirty seconds.
She attacked his earlobe, causing his to clench his teeth and roll his eyes back in their sockets. In a brief moment of clarity his hand was able to find her hips and pin them to mattress, successfully stilling her motions and slipping out of her heat.
“Wait…” He whispered.
He could feel her pouting against his ear and he turned to look down at her.
“How about we take it slow?” He asked with a cocky grin before lowering himself to nibble on her lower lip.
“Slow is good too…” she mumbled, smiling into the kiss.
Instinctively, she found herself holding her breath when he slipped inside of her once again. He moved in slow, long strokes, pulling and pushing. His lips mimicking the same torturous rhythm and he took his time, exploring and searching every inch of her mouth with languorous sweeps of his tongue.
She moaned into his kiss when she felt the heat build inside of her. She tried to push back the growing orgasm, this felt so good, so perfect; she just didn’t want it to end.
“Ah...” She mewled when his hand crept between their bodies to find one perfectly shaped breast. His thumb flickered over small pebbled of hard flesh he found there and that seemed to dig her in. “Mmm-mmm.” Her hard moan pushed into his mouth as the waves of an overwhelming orgasm washed over her entire body, causing it to contour and twist in delight.
Spike continued to thrust in and out of her, drawing her pleasure out until he found himself following after her.
When it was over, he finally tore his lips away from hers, his forehead slipping to rest on the pillow beside her head.
“Buffy, I lo-“
“I don’t know! Maybe Buffy has some in her room.“ A chirpy voice reached their ears as the doorknob turned and the door was opened to reveal a giggling Mrs. Summers. She came to a complete halt when she saw the teen couple in bed, the arms wrapped around her waist stilled too as Giles’ head peeked out from the nape of the older woman’s neck. “Buffy?”
“Mom!”
“William?”
“Da!”
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Author’s Note: *Drum roll*!!! The parents finally find out! AHHH! I know, I know awful cliffhanger! I’m sorry! Really, really sorry! I promise to be quick with the next chappie!
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Chapter 42
“B-Buffy?” Mrs. Summers repeated; her eyes widening in shock.
The four remained frozen in place, staring at each other.
“M-mom, I can explain…” Buffy stuttered, clutching the covers tightly against her chest.
Joyce remained speechless while Giles suddenly felt the compulsive need to thoroughly clean his glasses, taking them off and rubbing them with the hem of his pullover.
“D-Da, I-“ Spike tried but was interrupted by Mrs. Summers:
“You two, get dressed. Now.” Without another word she turned on her heels and left the room, an extremely confused Giles trailed behind her.
“Oh, my God!” Buffy breathed; her gaze unfocussed as the scene which had just occurred replayed in her mind.
“It’s gonna be alright, pet.” Spike tried to reassure her, rubbing his hand on her back.
“Ohmygod, ohmygod, ohmygod!” She repeated incessantly as she suddenly began to move.
Her movements were clumsy and uncoordinated as she struggled to find her clothes under the large pile scattered around her bed. Spike mimicked her actions with a little more precision and a little less trembling.
“Buffy, relax don’t-“
“Relax?! My mom and your father just caught us in bed together!” She practically shouted before adding: “Naked!”
“Yes, but-“
“What were they doing here, anyway?” Buffy didn’t even bother to hear what the bleached teen standing next to her was saying. “She is supposed to be at work. She’s not supposed be at home for another two or three hours.” She protested. Suddenly, another question popped into her head. “What is *your* father doing here? Isn’t he supposed to be at the shop?”
Spike had pretty much figured why their parents had come home earlier but, seeing the Buffy’s anxious state of mind, he decided it was best for her to figure it out on her own. So he simply shrugged.
“Ohmygod, ohmygod, ohmygod!” The initial mantra returned as she pulled her jeans on and flattened her sweater against her stomach.
She glanced over at Spike to find him completely dressed and sitting on the bed.
“What are we gonna tell them?” She wondered out loud.
“I don’t think the whole ‘It’s not what you think’ speech is gonna work here, so I suggest we tell the truth.” He offered standing up straight.
“Everything?”
“Well, it would be a good idea not to mention the nights at the cabin. Or the Chase’s New Year’s Eve party. Somehow I don’t think your mom could handle that right now.” Spike explained.
Buffy let out a long sigh.
“We better go then.” She mumbled, turning the knob and walking out into the hallway and down the stairs.
The two teens reached the living room to find Giles and Joyce standing in the middle of it.
“Sit.” Mrs. Summers ordered and the two blondes obliged, taking a seat on the couch. “Explain.”
“Well…” Buffy started; her heart pounding in her chest with such strength she was afraid it might jump out. “Spike and I are… dating.”
“Dating?” Joyce inquired.
“Spike has been my boyfriend since before the Homecoming dance.” Buffy blurted out nervously as she rubbed her sweaty palms together.
“How?” The older woman continued questioning.
The two teens exchanged a glance before Buffy continued:
“We kinda started hanging out together a lot and one thing lead to another and…”
“You ended up in bed together?” Joyce offered sarcastically.
“No! It wasn’t like that.” ‘Well, come to think of it, it was exactly like that.’ Buffy’s mind reminded her, but somehow, admitting that to her mother didn’t seem like a very sane option at the moment so she mumbled: “W-we really like each other and we’ve been going out together for a while and… yes, we did have sex.” Buffy finally confessed.
“Then why did you lie to me and tell me he was gay?” Mrs. Summers inquired outraged.
“I didn’t!” Buffy defended herself sticking out her index finger. “I-I never said he was gay. You just assumed that he was because I told you I definitely wasn’t his type.”
To that Joyce seemed to have run out of ideas.
“So, you two…” Her finger pointed from Buffy to Spike and back to Buffy.
“Yes, we’ve together.” Spike spoke up for the first time.
“Well, I don’t know how Rupert feels about this but…” Mrs. Summers, who had, single-handedly, lead the inquiry up to that point, trailed off and turned to Giles for an opinion.
“Um… I… um…” He mumbled, being caught off guard by the sudden attention. Truth was there was only one question hammering in his mind: “Does this mean you’re not gay?” He blurted out with a confused frown over his eyebrows.
“No, da, I’m not gay.” Spike sighed, running his hands through the thick locks of his hair.
“Oh, thank God!” Giles breathed; the relief evident as his square shoulders relaxed noticeably. “N-Not that there’s anything wrong with that, understand.” He stiffened again when he felt Joyce swat him across his arm
“Rupert, is that all you have to say?” She asked a bit shocked.
“W-well, n-no, of course not, b-but…” The shopkeeper stuttered, taking off his spectacles and once again cleaning them with his pullover. “W-what you two did was… um… wrong. I mean, misleading us like that, i-is just inconsiderate and… um… wrong and… Oh, bloody hell…I’m just happy that my son isn’t gay.” He finally admitted.
“Rupert?!” Joyce scolded. “I think we need to have this conversation alone.” She announced. “Buffy, come with me. Spike, you stay here and talk to your father.”
Buffy glanced at Spike for support and he brushed his hand over her shoulder, patting it lightly as she stood up to follow her mother into the kitchen.
The teen took her place on one of the stools while her mother remained standing across from her. They stood in excruciating silence for a while until Buffy couldn’t take it anymore and uttered:
“Look, mom. I’m really sorry. I realise what we did wasn’t right, going out behind your back but it all just happened so fast and we really weren’t together yet when all of a sudden you brought Giles home for dinner and announced that he was your boyfriend.” She pointed out as the words seem to rush out of her mouth, never giving her time to inhale properly. “A-and then we started getting along but then we fought and broke up a-and then we made up and we have been trying to tell you guys about us but it’s all been so confusing.” She came to a halt for a sharp intake of breath.
“Are you done?” Was Mrs. Summers’ simple reply.
“Please don’t be mad.” She begged with a painful frown.
Joyce let out a sigh, walking over to the refrigerator and taking out a carton of orange juice. She poured it into two glasses and handed one to Buffy.
“I’m not mad.” She reassured her daughter and the teen relaxed. “I’m just hurt.”
Buffy winced at that. She hated when her mother did that. Most of the times she would prefer having her shouting, screaming at her, anything was better than seeing the look her mother had that instant.
~+~
“So…” Giles started taking a seat on the couch.
“So…” Spike replied. He sat next to the older man, his elbow resting on his knees, his hands clamped together.
“You a-and Buffy…”
“Buffy and I…” The teen repeated.
“You-You’re…” Giles waved his spectacles in the air.
“Together?”
The shopkeeper nodded.
“Yes. We’re together.”
There was complete silence between them, the only sound breaking it came from the heel of Spike’s boot as he nervously tapped it on the floor.
“S-since when?” Giles inquired, tilting his head.
“Since before the dance.”
“Oh, that long…”
Silence…
~+~
“I thought you and I had a special relationship, Buffy. I thought that you could tell me anything. No matter what.” She paused and then added: “I guess I was wrong.”
“Mom…” Buffy trailed off.
There was a ghostly silence between them and Buffy could swear she could hear her own heartbeat.
“It’s not like you tell me everything.” She finally whispered. “You didn’t tell me about Giles until two mouths after you started dating him.
“That’s different.”
“How come?”
“First of all I am the mother and you are the daughter. Not the other way around.”
“Ah, so I have to tell *you* everything, but you don’t tell me anything?” Buffy demanded. “That’s not fair!”
“Too bad! That’s the way things are. You are still under age and-“
“I’ll be eighteen next month.” The teen countered raising her voice a bit.
“Exactly! Till then you are still under age.”
“But-“
“No, ‘but’s young lady.” Mrs. Summers warned her.
“So what? You are just going to forbid me to see Spike? Is that it? ‘Cause I’m telling you I am not going to stop seeing him.” Buffy finished by crossing her arms over her chest.
“Do you really think I would do that?” Joyce asked a bit surprised.
“Yes.” Buffy answered weakly.
“Oh, Buffy. Since when have I ever told who you could or could not date?” Joyce sighed exasperated.
“You weren’t too happy when I started seeing Angel.” Buffy noted.
“But I never told you that you couldn’t see him.”
“Yeah, but you made that face every time he came by.”
After a beat Joyce mumbled:
“I never really liked him…”
At that Buffy chuckled. Both felt the tension melt away as the silence returned, this time a much more comfortable one.
“So…” Buffy started. “You are not going to stop me from seeing Spike?”
“Of course not. Why do you kids have to make everything into an overdramatic, modern tale of Romeo and Juliet?” Joyce wondered taking the two glasses and putting them in the sink.
“Oh, thank you, thank you, thank you!” Buffy jumped off the stool and swung her arms around her mother for a bear hug.
“Calm down. You’re still not off the hook.” Joyce assured when she was finally able to disentangle herself from the embrace.
~+~
The silence between the two Brits was overwhelming. Spike sat in his place, pressing his hands together, tapping his foot, while Giles nervously adjusted his glasses back on.
“Spike…” He finally spoke up. “You-You know that you should have told me about this.”
“I tried. You were too busy trying to get me to embrace my ‘true self’ as far as I can remember.” Spike explained, narrowing his eyes at his father.
“Oh, yes… sorry about that. I-I just thought that… Um… you were…”
“Gay.” The teenager offered when the older man seemed to be stuck with the word.
“Yes. Um… which apparently you are not.” Giles noted looking at his son for confirmation.
“Da, for the one thousandth time, I. Am. Not. Gay.”
“R-right, sorry.” Rupert stuttered, not able to contain the smile that spread over his lips.
The stillness returned and the tapping sound louder than ever.
“Do you mind not doing that?” Giles asked.
Spike looked down at his foot and back up at his father before stopping.
“Thank you.”
A moment passed before he spoke again:
“Do you… like her?”
“Buffy? Of course I do. I’m crazy about her!” Spike exclaimed.
“Good, cause I really don’t want her to get hurt. Not only because she is Joyce’s daughter, but because she is a good kid. She’s a very special girl and I don’t want to see her getting hurt.”
“Dad, relax, I’m nuts about her, I would never do anything to hurt her. Ever.” He reassured his father.
“Good.”
Silence.
“Who would have thought…”
Spike frowned and looked at the man sitting next to him.
“Father and son, dating mother and daughter.”
“Yeah, Freud would have a field day on that one.” Spike smirked causing his father to laugh out loud.
~+~
Buffy stared up at her mother, trying to hide the grin that threatened to take over her lips. This was just so great! No more hiding and no more lying to her mother. She hated doing that. Even though the whole hiding thing had it’s ups.
“You and Spike…”
“Yes…?”
“Y-you have… um…” Joyce struggled with the way to approach the subject as the blush took over her cheeks. “You have been having… relations.”
Buffy nodded.
“D-did you... did you take precautions?” She finally said it out loud.
“Yes, mom. I’ve been taking the pill since Angel, remember? You made me take it?” Buffy reminded her.
“Oh, yes… I just never thought… you know? I always thought it was more of insurance than actually…”
“I’m sorry I didn’t tell you.” Buffy mumbled; her gaze cast down to the floor.
“It’s ok…” Joyce replied, running her hand over Buffy’s cheek. “I just hope that next time you will be able to talk to me about these things.”
“I will.” She promised with a smile as she watched her mother start to leave the kitchen. “Mom?”
“Yeah?” Joyce came to a halt and turned to face her daughter.
“What are you and Giles doing home so early?”
At the question, Mrs. Summers’ face turned bright red.
“Oh… He… um… he was just here to help me with… um… the plumbing.” Joyce stammered the answer.
“Oh…” Buffy said starting to head out to the living room again before coming to a halt once more. “Why did you go into my room?”
“Um… I… um, we… I… we needed… um…”
Hearing her mother’s incoherent babbling made Buffy frown; her brain slowly trying to grasp the reason for such embarrassment.
“Mom?”
“We better go check on the boys.” Joyce blurted out with a plastic grin as she continued to walk, leaving Buffy behind.
Suddenly, a light switch flickered on in the teen’s brain; her face immediately distorting itself for a nauseated look.
“Oh, mom!” She groaned, following her.
They entered the living room to find the two men sitting on the couch, chuckling at something that Spike had just said.
“What are you two laughing about?”
“Oh, nothing, nothing.” Giles quickly replied standing up. “I-Is everything ok?” He asked when he saw the disgusted look on Buffy’s face.
“Everything’s fine.” Joyce answered.
“So Buffy and I can go out?” Spike asked. The anxiety evident in his voice.
“It’s fine by me.” She started before adding: “As long as you behave. Rupert?”
“Oh, it’s fine by me.”
Buffy and Spike smiled widely at that.
“Um, Spike? Can I have a word with you?” Joyce inquired.
“Sure.”
Standing up, the teen approached the smiling woman who leaned in to whisper in his ear:
“You do anything to hurt my daughter, I don’t care if you *are* Rupert’s son; I will hunt you down and cut something off.” All was said with a wide grin on, which only served to terrify Spike even more.
v‘Gee, like mother like daughter.’
~+~
“Your parents caught you?? In bed together?” Xander cried out, sprawling back in his chair while Buffy and Spike blushed furiously.
“Thank you, Xander, I don’t think the entire student body knew about that.” Buffy said, her eyes nervously scanning the room.
“Sorry! It’s just… wow! Talk about embarrassing.”
“What’s embarrassing?” Oz asked as he and Willow approached the table and took their seats.
“Buffy’s mom and Spike’s dad caught them doing the ‘wild thing’.” Xander replied casually, popping a French fry into his mouth.
At that the redness in Spike and Buffy’s cheeks intensified.
“Ouch.” Oz exclaimed monotonically, glancing at his girlfriend for a hysterical reaction, but it never came. “You already knew, huh?”
“Buffy called me last night to tell me.” She explained gingerly.
“Why didn’t you tell me?” Oz questioned without a hint of accusation in his voice.
“Cause I know you’re not obsessed about Buffy and Spike’s love life like Xander.”
“How could I not be? Their life is a soap opera. It’s addictive.” The brown-haired teen defended himself. “So the parents finally know, huh?”
“Yup.” Buffy replied with a smile.
“What and no drama?” Xander asked a bit confused.
“Nope. No drama. Just a very awkward conversation on prophylactics.”
“That’s no fun.” Xander mumbled earning a swat across the arm from Buffy. “Just kidding. I’m glad you guys are out of the closet. Speaking of being out of the closet…” his gaze fell over the Brit. “Your dad must have lit a few fireworks on finding out that you’re not gay.” He chuckled.
“I’m just glad I’m not going to have to listen to anymore of those ridiculous ‘you shouldn’t be afraid of being who you are’ speeches. They were driving me nuts.” Spike sighed in relief, letting his head drop into his hands.
“Poor Spikey!” Buffy mocked, running her fingers through his hair.
“So now you two and the parents are gonna go out on double dates or what?”
“Urg! No!” Both Buffy and Spike denied in unison.
“Gotta hand it to you guys, I have a twisted family but you-“
“Hey!” Buffy protested.
“What?!” Xander defended himself. “Do you realise that if your parents ever decide to tie the knot you two are going to be like siblings?”
“Step-siblings.” Spike and Buffy corrected.
“Whatever. It has the word ‘sibling’ in it.”
“Come on, Xander, stop being a meany!” Willow came to Spike and Buffy’s aid.
“I’m just kidding. Don’t worry! Though, I can’t wait to tell Cordy about this!” Xander said rubbing his hand together.
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