Chapter 29
Buffy sat anxiously in the Giles kitchen. For once she wasn’t there just to see Spike, but to show support to Dawn when she decided to tell them the truth. She was waiting for the other girl to show up and kept glancing to the back door.
Spike entered the kitchen and sat down in front of her, not knowing the real reason for her being there. He only smiled and placed a shoe box on the table.
Buffy raised her eyebrows in confusion. “You bought me shoes?” she wondered.
Spike shook his head, a nervous feeling in his stomach. “No, just open it.”
Buffy shrugged and removed the lid of the shoe box, even more confused to see a bunch of papers inside. She grabbed one of the papers, her eyes widening from what was on it. She browsed through a few of the others to see that they were similar, looking back up at Spike in astonishment. “You wrote all of these poems about me?”
He nodded. “I’ve been storing them in here for almost two years now. I always wondered if I would ever get the courage to show you. I know I’m not very good…”
She cut him off by pressing a finger to his lips. “These are amazing, Spike. No one has ever done anything like this for me before. Thank you, I can’t wait to read all of them.”
He sighed in relief. “Well, they’re yours to keep. I figured it was about time I handed them over.”
Buffy stood up and placed a kiss on his cheek. “I love you.”
Spike smiled. “I love you, too.”
Dawn walked through the back door at that moment, giving a small smile to Buffy.
She smiled in return and knew that it was time, praying that everything would turn out okay.
* * * * *
“I’m glad you’re all here, there’s something I have to say and I would like to only do it once,” Dawn started, squeezing Xander’s shoulder and standing next to Buffy. “There’s no easy way to say this, so I’ll just get right to the point.” She took a deep breath before continuing. “I’m pregnant.”
There were shocked faces all around.
Jenny gasped and brought her hand to her mouth. “Oh god, my baby is going to have a baby.”
Giles placed a comforting hand on her arm, not knowing what else to say, but feeling just as stunned.
Spike stood up, anger taking over his features. “How could you let this happen? Bloody hell, you’re only eighteen!”
Dawn felt just as infuriated. “You really have no room to talk, Spike. I’m not the only one in this house having sex.”
Jenny buried her face in her hands. She had a feeling that her children were sexually active, but she hoped to be wrong.
“Don’t make this about me, Dawn. You should know to use protection at all times.”
She threw her hands up in the air. “It was only once and we used a condom at the time. You know those things aren’t always accurate. I just didn’t end up as lucky as you, okay? It doesn’t even matter now, I’m pregnant and that’s not going to change. I’m keeping this baby.”
Buffy put her arm around Dawn to try and calm her.
Spike noticed and looked at his girlfriend now. “Did you know about this? How could you not tell me?”
Dawn glared at her brother. “Don’t get mad at Buffy, it wasn’t her place to tell you. I needed to talk to someone about it that wasn’t in this family. I knew you wouldn’t understand.”
“What about me?” Xander stated quietly.
Dawn glanced at her boyfriend, forgetting for a second that he was there. She moved to his side, taking both of his hands in hers. “I wanted to tell you first, but I was so afraid. I didn’t know how you would take it. I know we’re really young and probably not ready for any of this, but I want this baby. I just hope you want it, too.”
Xander caressed her cheek. “Of course I do, Dawn. I love you.”
Her eyes teared up at his declaration. She should have known that she would have nothing to worry about with him. “I love you, too.”
He smiled and pressed a kiss to her lips.
Jenny had to smile as well, squeezing her husband’s hand. “We love you very much, sweetie. This may be a surprise to all of us, but we’ll support you with whatever you decide to do. Isn’t that right, honey?”
Giles agreed. “Yes, what your mother said.”
Dawn sighed in relief. “Thanks, that means a lot.”
Spike had enough and stormed out of the living room.
Buffy took off after him, reaching him before he could leave the house. “Spike, what would you have done if it was me?”
He stopped to stare at her. “What are you talking about?”
“What if I was the pregnant one? Would you have just walked away from me?”
Spike shook his head. “You know I wouldn’t, but this is my sister. I can’t even imagine her having sex and I know I have no right to think that, but she’s my baby sister. I know, she’s only three minutes younger than me, but she’ll always be my baby sister. It’s just a lot to take in.”
Buffy stepped closer to him, wrapping her arms around his waist. “They’re in love, Spike. She needs her big brother right now. You’re going to have a little niece or nephew, that’s pretty wonderful.”
He had to smile at that. “I never thought about being an uncle, at least not anytime soon. And you’ll get to be an aunt; did you look at the bottom of the shoe box?”
She was confused at his sudden subject change. “No, I didn’t get a chance to yet.”
Spike pulled her over to the kitchen table. “Go ahead, I promise it’s nothing that will bite.”
Buffy laughed and did as he said, rummaging through the papers until she felt something hard at the bottom. She pulled the object out and gasped at the sight of the gorgeous, diamond ring. “Oh my god,” she claimed.
He took a deep breath. “My mum helped me pick it out, so she already knows I planned on asking you.”
“Asking me?”
He nodded. “Will you marry me, Buffy? I don’t mean anytime soon, I know we’re still too young for that. I just wanted to know that there would be a possibility. That maybe when we’re finished with college, you would consider being my wife.”
Buffy didn’t hesitate with her answer. “Yes, I’ll marry you. I don’t care when. It could be tomorrow or ten years from now. I love you so much, Spike.”
A bigger smile lit up his face as he took the ring and placed it on her finger to find that it was the perfect fit. “I love you, too. More than I ever knew I could love anything.”
Xander and Dawn watched them from the doorway, leaving her parents to talk amongst themselves about this new turn of events.
“Are you expecting a proposal, too?”
Dawn shook her head. “I don’t want you to propose to me because I’m pregnant; we’ll just wait for that. Besides, I wouldn’t wanna steal their thunder.”
Xander was relieved by her response. He didn’t even have a ring for her yet. He just wanted to bask in the fact that he was going to be a father; everything else could wait for another day.