December 23, 1997
London, England
Buffy was in the living room, sitting on the sofa, with several rolls of wrapping paper on the coffee table before her, along with the necessary accoutrements. She smiled to herself as she heard her husband rushing around in the bedroom, attempting to get dressed. She tore a piece of tape free from its dispenser. She pulled the loose end of the wrapping paper around the gift, making it taut, before sticking the tape down. A loud crash from the bedroom startled her.
“Will? Is everything okay?” she called out, concerned.
“Bloody hell!” The bedroom door swung open and Spike rushed out. “Buggering hell, I’m late. Final rehearsal for two weeks and I’m not there.”
“Will. Calm down,” Buffy said, standing to approach him. “It’s okay. While you were getting ready, I called Angel and let him know. He said he’ll run the songs with the band until you get there.”
Spike released a relieved sigh, “Thanks, pet.”
She gave him a leering smile, “Besides, it’s kinda my fault you’re running late in the first place.”
Spike laughed and wrapped his arms around her waist, dropping a deep kiss on her mouth. “I don’t recall complainin,’ love.”
“Besides,” she said, her nose scrunching, “With both our parents spending the holidays with us, we won’t be able to - you know.”
Spike laughed, “You’re bloody adorable. And, don’t worry, I won’t forget to swing by the airport to pick up your parents after rehearsal.”
“Okay. And your mom also called while you were in the bedroom. They’re on their way. Should be here in a few hours.”
“You’re fine to greet them on your own?”
Buffy smiled, “Of course. Now-” she pushed him towards the door, “-go. Don’t keep the guys waiting longer than necessary.”
“Alright.” He gave her one last kiss and was out the door.
A Few Hours Later
The door opened quickly after the first knocks, revealing Spike’s parents, Anne and Rupert Giles.
Anne smiled warmly at her daughter-in-law, “Buffy. It’s been a long time.”
“Mrs. Giles. Mr. Giles.”
“Please, Anne. Call me Anne,” the older woman said, before enveloping her in a hug.
“Anne,” Buffy conceded.
They parted and Buffy looked at her father-in-law.
“Just Giles,” he said kindly before also hugging her briefly.
As the in-laws entered the home, Buffy said, “Will’s at rehearsal right now. Afterwards, he supposed to pick up my parents at the airport and bring them here.”
“That’s fine. It gives us time to catch up,” Anne said with a smile.
“Could you show me where we’re staying? I feel like I could take a brief kip,” Giles said, carrying the luggage.
“Oh! Of course. You’ve had a long drive. Of course, you’re tired,” Buffy babbled. “This way.” She led him up the flight of stairs to one of the guest rooms she had prepared.
“Thanks, dear.”
********
Buffy and Anne laughed over their hot chocolate as they relayed stories about William.
“So, we were walking down the street, near the studios, and there was Sarah Michelle Gellar, that actress he swears looks just like me on that new vampire show. And Will, despite playing it very cool at the BRITs with all those celebrities, yelled out, ‘I love you, Sarah!,’” Buffy said with a grin as she retold the story from their previous time in LA.
“Oh, my,” Anne said, laughing. “And what did he do after that?”
“She turned around to look, but Will dodged behind a building. He was so embarrassed,” Buffy finished with a giggle.
“I’ll bet.” Anne took a sip of her cocoa. “So, Buffy, how far along are you?” She smiled when Buffy did her best impersonation of guppy crossed with a deer caught in headlights.
“How did you -”
“I can just tell.”
Buffy’s hands fell to her abdomen, “Does it show?”
Anne shook her head, “Not yet. Does William know?”
Buffy unconsciously let out a relieved sigh when the front door opened, effectively ending that line of conversation. She simply wasn’t up for having that conversation with her husband’s mother just yet.
She quickly stood up from the breakfast bar she and Anne had been using to greet her parents and husband. She threw herself into the waiting arms of Joyce. Behind her, she heard Anne embrace her son. After her mother, Buffy hugged her father.
“Oh, I missed you guys. How was the flight?” Buffy asked, grinning happily.
“Long,” Joyce said tiredly.
“Oh, I thought I heard voices,” Giles said, coming into the room, rubbing the sleep from his eyes.
“Hello, son,” he said when he spotted Spike.
Spike smiled, “Da’.” The two men shook hands, as though they were too manly for hugs.
Later
The three men sat in the living room debating the difference between American football and British Football and why the Americans called their sport football when in fact, they didn’t use their feet at all.
The women gathered in the kitchen, preparing a small dinner before everyone went to bed. They were going to save the big dinner for the next day.
“Well, honey, you two have a very lovely home. Though, I will admit, your father and I thought it’d be…bigger,” Joyce said as she began slicing the vegetables to be added to the salad.
Buffy smiled, “Thanks, Mom. But we decided that we really didn’t need anything too elaborate. Nothing fancy. Just a place to call home.” And indeed, she was right. Their home was a standard sized home. Two bedrooms. Two bathrooms. While it was definitely true that they could have gone bigger, especially since William was raking in the dough, as it were, the couple simply wanted a typical house to call home.
“Of course, dear. Either way, it’s very beautiful,” Joyce said. Then, to change the topic, she added, “So, when does William start the tour with the band?”
Anne looked up from the dish she was preparing, “Oh, yes. I was just wondering that myself.”
“Late January,” Buffy said. “Through April, they’re here in Europe. Then they hit North America in the summer.”
Anne grew concerned, though she had yet to have her suspicions confirmed, “Sounds like he’ll be gone for a long time.”
Buffy gave a little shrug and smiled, “It is. But we’ll do fine. We’ll be okay. I won’t be able to join him the whole time because of my dissertation, but…don’t worry about us. We’ll be fine.”
Christmas Morning
Buffy opened the oven door and slid in the stuffed turkey. Closing the door, she leaned over the stove and carefully spun the dial on the timer, ensuring that she set it correctly. She wanted to make sure she got this dinner perfect tonight, so she was following the recipe verbatim.
She let out an involuntarily squeal when she felt arms wrap around her waist.
“Will!” she exclaimed, spinning around in his arms, playfully hitting him on the chest.
“Wha?” he asked innocently before kissing her on the mouth. “Come on, love. Are you ready yet? Everyone’s biting at the bit to open their presents.”
“Oh, pressies,” she said excitedly. “How could I forget,” she asked with a grin and disengaged herself from his embrace. Grabbing his hand, she led him into the main room, where their parents waited, along with Dawn and Willow, who they had invited over since she had no family in the country and was unable to get a flight out.
Several minutes later, most of the presents under the tree had been distributed among their recipients, save for one. Dawn pulled it out from under the bottom of the tree and read the label. “Here, Will. The last one is yours.”
Spike reached out and took the package from his sister and quickly removed the wrapping paper, already having an idea of what it was; the curved shape of the box was familiar to him. Wrapping paper removed, he realized that his instincts were correct. Spike pulled opened the case to reveal a beautiful guitar. It was acoustic. A Gibson. He caressed the neck and body of the instrument almost lovingly as he lifted it from the case.
“Wow,” he whispered. “How did you know, pet?”
Buffy blushed, fingering the pendant of the necklace Spike had given her, “I heard you talking about how you wanted to learn. I, uh, actually had some help from Angel on what kind of guitar to get.”
“Really?” he asked, looking up at her.
She nodded, then she appeared to get nervous. “Um, that’s not the only thing,” she said slowly.
From the corner of her eye, Buffy saw Anne smile.
“Oh?” Spike asked, placing the guitar carefully back in its case.
Buffy reached behind her spot on the sofa and pulled out a much smaller wrapped present. She held it out to Spike, knowing all eyes were on them.
He took it and looked at her questioningly.
“Open it,” she said, wishing he would.
“Okay.” He pulled at the corner of the wrapping paper, working on the gift much too slow for Buffy’s nerves. She fought down the urge to grab the thing from him and rip the paper off herself.
An eyebrow rose on Spike’s face as he noticed the gift was a book. Turning it over, he studied the cover. “The Expectant Father: Facts, Tips and Advice for Dads-to-Be.”
Buffy could hear the exclamations of excitement from their families all around them, but she was only concerned with one and only one reaction. His.
He looked at her, “Does that mean?”
She nodded, a smile forming.
“Yeah?” he asked, a wide smile growing, pulling her closer to him.
“Yes. I’m pregnant.”
END CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX