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Chapter 19
They were having a family breakfast the next morning, against Buffy's wishes. She didn't think her thoughts had ever been that jumbled before and she wasn't sure how to handle it.
"Oh, Buffy? William? Did either of you two hear anything last night? Rupert and I thought we heard a noise last night, but Rupert told me I was hearing things."
When he looked at him, William thought that his half-brother might know more than he was letting on.
"Buffy and I went swimming last night. Dunked her a few times, probably heard her being a big baby about it," he explained.
'He'd be good at helping keep a rela--Bad Buffy! No thinking that William would be good at hiding a relationship. You don't have a relationship. And you're not going to.’
"Well, I'm glad it was just Spike," Buffy didn't catch the name that time, "being mean. If something were actually happening and you didn't check..."
Knowing that her mother would be investigating from now on, would help her not get into things like that with Spike again.
"First: Spike? And second: I have you two to investigate, nothing for me to worry about."
Well there went that plan.
"Spike's just a nickname, Joyce," Spike explained when he saw Buffy wasn't answering. "Thought with Buffy and I living together we shouldn't be so formal."
"You'll forgive us if we call you by your given name still?" Giles asked, meaning him and his wife.
"Of course. I never expected otherwise."
Buffy wondered if he'd let her call him Spike if they'd met under different circumstances. Didn't matter though, they hadn't.
"Do you think I could be excused?" Buffy asked suddenly.
"But Buffy," her mother argued, "we haven't even started breakfast really." It was true; their plates were still full with the eggs benedict and sausage that Joyce had made them all.
"I know and I'm sorry. I'm just not feeling very up to eating right now. I don't feel so well."
"I suppose that you can then," she said reluctantly, noticing that Buffy did look a little under the weather. "But only if you take your plate with you and promise me you'll try to eat something."
"I can do that," Buffy said, already getting up. "Sorry for messing something up again."
"Nonsense, dear," Giles assured her, though her mother wasn't so quick to agree. "You just rest up and feel better soon."
William thought he knew what Buffy seemed so uneasy over, but wasn't sure.
"I can come with you," he offered. "Don't want you all lonely while you're sick."
"No!" She protested too loudly, causing them all to look at her strangely. "I think I just need to rest."
"Okay, well if you need anything..."
Buffy could just tell that she was going to be hearing from her mother soon just how sweet William was. Yeah, he was sweet. And that was the problem. He was supposed to be a jerk like all the other guys had been.
"I'll be fine," she said grumpily and left the house, carrying her breakfast plate with her as promised.
They all watched silently as she left and no one said anything for a few moments afterward.
"So, William," Joyce interrupted. "Buffy is being nice to you isn't she?"
"She'd being an excellent host," William told her. "We've been having a great time. Haven't done too much so far."
"That's nice though. I'm glad you two got to go swimming and everything. Make sure that you know you can use the pool whenever you wish. You don't have to wait on Buffy."
"It's much more fun having some company." And he really did mean it. "But I will remember that; sometimes it's nice to get a nice swim in early in the morning, a few laps at least."
"I didn't know you were a swimmer, William." Joyce was glad that they'd found a nice topic of conversation, one that didn't involve the daughter that she was understanding less and less with each passing day.
"I was on my school's swim team back in what would be high school here. For a bit in university too, but not as seriously; I focused more on my classes then."
"And did you enter into any competitions?" Rupert knew he needed to get in on the conversation, even though he didn't know for sure what to say.
"The school ones. Our school did fairly well for a few years there. Got into the finals or whatever they're called my last two years; was a great way to end things and helped me get into some schools for uni."
"You must have done fairly well then, yourself," Rupert was glad he'd found something.
“Guess so," Spike answered humbly, "Was just something I found fun in. Haven't done too much of it recently."
"Oh. Why is that?" Joyce wondered.
"The usual: met a girl and she didn't think it was cool so I changed to make her happy."
"I'm sorry that happened." Joyce could tell he was saddened by the way the woman had treated him. "I hope you know that you should be able to be whoever you want to be."
She sounded so much like his mother.
"I know she was no good for me. She wanted me to be someone other than who I was. I'll admit I was...pretty out of it, still am, but I met someone not that long ago who gave me a new goal."
"Oh? Would it be intrusive for me to ask about that?" Joyce questioned.
"Not at all: Now my goal is to convince them that they're as good a person as I know they are. They have a pretty horrible view of themselves and I want to change that."
"That's very noble of you, William," Rupert intoned.
"Oh, I don't know about that. Started as a way to get me distracted from myself. Didn't exactly have the noblest of intentions."
"But you've stuck with it, that shows something," he argued.
"I suppose."
The rest of the meal was accompanied by bits of small talk, each of them bringing up little things they'd heard lately or were curious about. It wasn't anything sophisticated, but William was glad for that. He'd gotten awfully close to saying something when he was talking about that 'person' that would have let them know he was talking about Buffy.
But he'd held back. Maybe some day they could know he had been talking about Buffy...some day, but not today.
"This was a great meal, Joyce," Spike said as he finished eating. "Thank you."
"Oh, it was nothing. Just thought it was a nice chance for us all to get together. I'm sorry Buffy wasn't able to stay," she added.
"I'm sure Buffy's okay."
Buffy was not okay.
She and William had had fun last night. Fun. Of the non sexual kind. Well mainly of that kind.
Last night Spike had proved to her that he could spend time with her, enjoy doing things with her, that didn't involve sex. The only 'sex' that had occurred had been asked for by her and done to her....nothing for him.
She'd tried several times too. He didn't want that; he wanted to just....have fun.
That threw her whole view of things off. Spike was supposed to always want sex from her--whenever and wherever she offered it.
Was supposed to, but didn't.
And now she was left worrying about relationships and why she wanted sex more than he did. Maybe he just forgot who--or rather what, she was.
She'd have to remind him.
TBC........Please review...and the new story should be up this week (that not fun out of town thing took longer than it should have or it'd already be up)