“Morning.” He hesitated for a moment, stopping just inside. “Um, look, Joyce, about the other night...”
Joyce got up, raising a hand to stop him. “Spike, why don’t you come in and have a seat? If we’re gonna have this conversation, we might as well make ourselves a little more comfortable.” She gestured for him to follow her over to a small table at the back of the room.
Spike obeyed with a nod and went to sit down. “So...?” He gave her a questioning look.
“I owe you an apology,” Joyce started, looking him right in the eyes. “It was wrong of me to send you away without even asking for your side of the story. But you have to understand my reaction. I stand by my opinion; violence is not something I’m going to accept in my house. Ever.” Seeing how he opened his mouth, she hurried on; “On the other hand, I think I can understand you a little better after Buffy explained a few things to me.”
Here we go..., Spike thought. He gave her a somewhat wary look. “Right.”
“You don’t have to look so worried.” Seeing his reaction, Joyce obviously decided to back off a little. “Spike, I’m not stupid, nor am I completely insensitive. I’m not going to insult you by demand some kind of explanation for something that is clearly none of my business. Naturally, some things are just too personal to discuss with someone who’s still practically a stranger.” A pause. “Then again, if there’s something you do want to talk about, just remember that my door is always open.”
Unable to keep the relief out of his voice, Spike gave her a grateful look. “Thanks. I’ll remember that.”
“Good.” Joyce smiled a little. “I’m not blind, you know. It is obvious that my daughter is completely smitten by you. You mean a lot to her.”
Although it didn’t come as a total surprise, Spike still felt strangely touched by her words. “Yeah, well, I care a lot about her, too.”
Joyce nodded. “I can see that. I’m glad we sorted this out. It’s such a relief that I wasn’t wrong about you after all. I couldn’t stand the idea of my baby getting her heart broken.”
“Trust me.” Spike got a dead serious look on his face. “I’d never hurt her.”
“No.” Joyce watched him closely for a moment. “I don’t believe you would.”
”Thank you, sir. Welcome back to the Double Meat Palace, and have a nice day!” Buffy let out a sigh of relief as the last customer finally left the fast food restaurant. Her cheeks hurt from smiling so much and she felt like her legs were about to give in any minute. I really need to find another job, she thought, knowing that her hair and clothes would reek of meat and grease. Thankfully, her shift was over for the day so she could go home and take a nice, long shower.
Pulling the ridiculous hat off her head with a grimace, she grabbed a diet coke from the fridge and slumped down on a chair. Then it occurred to her that she could call Spike at the gallery and ask him if he wanted to meet up for lunch, after she had freshened herself up a bit, of course. She perked up at the idea and quickly finished her drink. Suddenly, the little bell on top of the door rang, indicating that someone had just entered.
Buffy looked up, her eyes narrowing as they landed on the dark-haired girl who had stopped just by the door, looking slightly uncomfortable. Fury started welling up inside her as she jumped up from the chair and made her way over to the intruder. “What the hell are you doing here?”
“Relax, B, I’m not here to cause any trouble.” Faith raised her hands in defense. “I figured you’d be here. I just wanna talk.”
“Really?” Buffy crossed her arms over her chest. “And why would you think I’d be interested in anything you have to say?”
“I take it you’re still upset.” Faith sighed. “Look...”
“Upset?” Buffy interrupted her with a snort. “Upset doesn’t cover it by a long shot. Try furious. Just who the hell do you think you are, Faith? You got a lot of nerve, showing up here after what you did.” Seeing that her cousin was about to say something, she quickly went on; “And don’t even think about blaming Spike for anything. You totally got what you deserved.”
“You’re probably right.” The brunette looked down at her feet. “I guess I owe you an apology.” Her tone clearly indicated that she wasn’t happy about it.
Buffy stared at her in disbelief. “Okay, even if I did believe you were being sincere, what makes you think I’d accept your lame apology? You crossed the line, Faith. Some things are just inexcusable.”
“Right.” Faith rolled her eyes. “Saint Buffy has spoken. You really think you’re ‘little miss perfect’, don’t you?”
“And what’s that suppose to mean, exactly?” Buffy glared at her. “I don’t stab people in the back, that’s for sure. What did I ever do to you that was so bad that you had to go and try to steal my boyfriend? Please, tell me. I’m dying to know!”
“It’s not about what you’ve done, all right?” Faith was obviously frustrated. “You just don’t get it. You got your perfect boyfriend, your perfect family, your perfect life...”
“Wait, don’t tell me!” Buffy let out a bitter laugh. “Is this where you’ll tell me some pathetic sob story about how difficult it is being you? And then what? You expect me to feel sorry for you? ‘Cause in that case, I can save you the trouble. Not gonna happen.” She could see Faith’s eyes darken. “Thought you said you were gonna apologize.”
“What’s the point?” Faith snorted, clearly annoyed. “You’ve already made it clear that you won’t listen to me.”
“Not if you’re gonna make yourself come out as a victim, I’m not.” Buffy was getting frustrated as well. “What’s your problem, Faith? Really? You already got Angel. According to yourself, he chose you over me. So where do you go off complaining about how my life is so damn perfect?”
“You think I got Angel? Well, think again!” Faith grunted in disgust. “The guy’s completely obsessed with you. You’re all he talks about – Buffy this and Buffy that. Makes me sick.”
“What?!” Buffy stared at her in exasperation. “Oh my God! Are you jealous of me and Angel, is that what this is about? Look, Faith, I’ll try to make myself as clear as possible: I. Can’t. Stand. The. Guy.” Faith opened her mouth to object, but Buffy wasn’t finished. “I already told you what he did to me. What part of ‘he tried to rape me’ didn’t you get?!”
Faith was quiet for a moment. “You’re really serious,” she then mumbled.
“I told you!” Buffy was fuming. “You actually think I’d make something like that up?!”
“I... I don’t know, all right?” Faith suddenly looked uncertain. “Angel said...” Her voice trailed off.
“Oh, and I suppose that makes it true, then. ‘Cause Angel said...” Buffy lashed out, sarcastically. “Look, Faith, I know you don’t wanna believe me, but Angel’s not a good guy and I don’t know what you see in him. Trust me. Stay with him, and you’ll just end up getting hurt. I mean it. It has nothing to do with jealousy.”
“All right, I hear you.” Faith hesitated a little. “Look, maybe you just misunderstood his intentions. Maybe he...”
“No, Faith.” Buffy suddenly felt beyond tired. “I didn’t. Believe me.”
For a moment, Faith just looked at her. Then she lowered her eyes. “I do.”
“Huh?” Buffy frowned, wondering if she had heard correctly. “But you...”
“Don’t get me wrong.” The dark-haired girl raised her head again, stubbornly meeting Buffy’s eyes. “He hasn’t hurt me or anything. Honestly, I don’t think he would. But...” She hesitated for a moment. “Let’s just say I’ve never given him a reason, if you know what I mean.”
Buffy didn’t say anything. She understood. Faith would never turn Angel down. A part of her couldn’t help but feel a little sad. Surely a relationship shouldn’t be like that. She really hoped Faith knew what she was doing. Then again, she supposed her cousin was fully capable of taking care of herself.
“By the way, I was just wondering...” Faith eyed her a little carefully. “The other night, at your party? You mentioned something about Spike, and...”
“Don’t!” Buffy interrupted her, giving her a warning look. “That’s not a discussion we’ll be having, ever. It’s none of your business. I mean it.”
“Okay, okay!” Faith raised her hands, apologetically. “Sorry. Forget I said anything.” She paused. “So, are we okay?”
Buffy stared at her, incredulously. “I wouldn’t go that far. Look, Faith, what you did was wrong. If you ever try anything like that again...” Faith opened her mouth but Buffy went on; “Let’s just say that Spike’s not the one you’ll have to worry about the next time. ‘Cause I’ll be the one to kick your ass. Believe me; that’s a promise. You don’t wanna mess with any of us again.” She could see that Faith was about to come with some sarcastic remark, but was luckily wise enough to decide against it.
Instead she nodded. “Fair enough.”
“If you’re really sorry, you’re gonna have to prove it,” Buffy went on. “Forgiveness is something you have to earn before it’s given to you.”
“Yeah, I get it.” Faith sighed. “Tell blondie I’m sorry, all right? I never meant to hurt anyone. I just...” She shrugged. “Guess I just didn’t think.”
“No big surprise there,” Buffy muttered. Then she let out a sigh. “Was that all? I really gotta go.”
Faith looked disappointed for a moment, but quickly covered up. “Yeah, sure. I’ll see you around?” She sounded a little uncertain.
“I guess.” Buffy grabbed her jacket and headed for the door, leaving her cousin to look after her.
TBC