"The wrongdoer is more unfortunate than the man wronged."
~ Democritus
Buffy and Spike walked hand in hand looking at the houses on the list that Oz had handed them. Willow had used his computer to do some house hunting and Oz had checked off houses in the parts of the neighbors that were safe and nice. Spike thought that was just fine since he could now enjoy the nice and safe part of living.
Buffy smiled saying, “I really liked that last house but I didn’t like the fact there were no spare rooms. Dawn would need a place to stay when she visited along with Giles. I would prefer that they didn't have to sleep on the couch.”
Spike nodded in agreement as he spoke up, “It was a little cramped. This one says three bedrooms which is more than enough. Plus it has an attic and basement for further space to expand.”
Buffy grinned jumping up and down excitedly, “And a two car garage so you can teach me to drive!”
Spike rolled his eyes dreading that moment of his life but didn’t say anything as they opened the door and looked inside.
It reminded Buffy of her home in Sunnydale. They walked into a little foyer just like that house although the sides of the house were different. On the right side was the living room. It had a big cathedral ceiling with a large bay window and patio doors. On the left was a little sitting room with normal ceilings and blue walls. Past the foyer was the kitchen. It was large and roomy filled with wooden cabinets, a large oven and a brand new large refrigerator. The place seemed to be a dream come true.
It was the backyard that caught Spike’s attention. There was a full already tilled spot in the yard for a garden. Flower gardens were also surrounding the house. Spike turned around happy with the house as he peeked into the basement to see a normal cement floor basement complete with unfinished walls but a friendly looking washing machine and dryer in the corner of the room. He smiled as he remembered the cot in the basement he had at Buffy’s place and how she and him had made use of it a few times. He then went off to search for Buffy upstairs.
He found Buffy staring at all three bedrooms and the two bathrooms in tears. She whispered, “We never had two bathrooms but other than that, it’s really similar to my house back home. I want this house, Spike. Is it okay with you?”
Spike chuckled at her enthusiasm as she took his hands in his and bounced slightly. He couldn't help but bounce himself as he exclaimed, “I saw the garden and flower beds and wanted it as well. I think this is the right house. Buffy, I can feel it.”
Buffy smiled and whipped out her phone, “Let’s make some calls then.”
Spike snatched the phone out of her hand along with the paper that Oz had printed and the pamphlet for the house that the dealer had handed out, “I need to call the bank first so we can just hand her cash.”
Buffy looked shocked, “It’s $120,000. You can just pay cash for that?”
Spike shrugged, “We will get it back with the changes I’m planning to make to the house. With Xander’s carpenter skills and Oz and my strength, we can finish off the basement downstairs easy enough to make it into a really nice living area. The attic we will make it into a really nice extra room. When we sell the house, we can advertise live-in apartment, which will be a nice kicker for parents of older teens or live-in grandparents. Plus 4 bedrooms would allow Giles, Dawn and whoever Dawn dates, as well as someone else to visit at one time.”
Buffy smiled and leaned against him making plans on how to make this house theirs.
After the housing arrangements were made, Buffy walked out of the hotel leaving Oz and Spike to discuss the changes to be made. Willow was napping at Oz’s place to recoup after having transported herself back to Italy to check up on things and then over to Faith to inform her of Buffy’s plans.
Buffy wasn’t feeling 100% yet and in fact was feeling a bit off but figured it was the rush of things. Her life was changing so fast and for once, she didn’t feel the need to control it.
She kicked a stone on the sidewalk as she continued to think about her life. She had grown up too fast she figured. Having to fight demons at a young age and getting into trouble for it, had really made her grow up. She had to learn to think fast and fight actively. She had to learn to lie and sneak out to continue her double life. She had to learn to balance being a good daughter, a good slayer and a good student.
She sighed realizing her schoolwork probably took the brunt of a lot of that. She kicked the stone again thinking about her sister arriving, followed shortly by her mom dying.
Spike was there to help pick up some of the pieces but she wouldn’t let him. He wanted to care for her even back then but she was so pig headed she had refused. Would she have had a better life for Dawn and would she have died if she had let Spike care for her?
She shrugged not liking that train of thought and kicked the stone again. She thought then about dying and coming back. She had felt so empty and lost. The only one who she could count on to understand was Spike. She and Spike had tumbled into a love hate relationship. She kicks the stone again but harder.
Well the love and hate was so harsh perhaps it was just violent. She shrugged and kicked the stone having picked up her pace. She was so busy in her thoughts, she never noticed the white van that had pulled up beside her and stopped to put a cloth over her face to pull her inside.
Next thing she knew, the world was black.