Chapter 7
With a triumphant grin, Spike's lips descended upon hers as he kissed her again, loving the way her lips felt as they caressed his own. Slowly but surely, the kiss deepened as he gently took her lips between his teeth, biting it softly before kissing it again. Her mouth opened slightly, allowing his tongue entrance as he took the invitation graciously. They went on kissing like this for a long time, neither one wanting the moment, their moment, to end. The need to breathe forced Buffy to pull away, gasping for air as she did so, sweet smile on her face mirroring the happiness in her heart. He leaned his forehead against hers, opening his eyes slowly as they both panted for air.
Out of nowhere, a bright white light flashed up to their faces, blinding them for a moment before Spike raised his hand to block some of it out. He could barely make out the figure of a man standing at the bottom of the large chair shining a flashlight on them.
"Hey!" He yelled. "What are you doing up there?"
"Oh, sodding hell." Spike said, standing quickly as Buffy did the same.
"What's going on?" Buffy asked.
"Can't you read? You're not allowed on the stands!" The man yelled.
"Uh oh." Buffy said, the seriousness of the situation just now dawning on her.
"Beach Patrol 151, this is 212. We've got a code 14 over at chair seven." The man said in to the two way radio at his side.
"Come on." Spike said as he pulled her to the other side of the large chair.
"What about our stuff?"
"Leave it, let's go!" Without a second thought, the two jumped off of the chair, landing with a soft thud on the sand below. Spike quickly pulled Buffy to her feet and the two ran as fast as they could down the beach and back toward the bonfire.
They made it back to the large crowd in record time and were lucky enough to find Willow and Oz as soon as they arrived. "Sorry to cut this short," Spike said as they reached them, "but we've got to go."
They didn't give them the time to ask questions as they pushed them off of the beach and over toward the car. Oz had apparently learned how to open Spike's doors and quickly did so before jumping inside, moving to the far end so Willow could follow in suit. Spike quickly opened Buffy's door for her before sprinting to his own and getting inside. He quickly started the car and sped off, giving one last glance back to the beach where he saw two other beach patrolmen pull up in a white golf cart.
"What's with all the rent-a-cops?" Oz asked after they had gotten a safe distance away from the beach.
"Yeah, and where are your shoes?" Willow asked.
Buffy looked down at her feet, she had almost forgotten that she'd left those behind. She and Spike glanced at one another, both trying to stop the bout of laughter brewing inside of them. It was no use. Within a matter of seconds the entire car was filled with the sound of their joint laughing as Oz and Willow looked on in curious confusion.
What a night it had been.
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Friday and Saturday had come and gone quickly as far as Buffy was concerned. She had spent the majority of the time working, both days being particularly busy, and she had hardly even found the time to talk to Spike. When she did, though, it always seemed to bring a smile to her face and put a spring in her step. When they had been put in charge of getting the cake for Clem's surprise party together, she had immediately turned down Spikes offer to order one.
"It'll mean more if we make it ourselves." She had insisted.
He had known immediately that it would most likely end in disaster, but he never would have imagined all the carnage and mess that now littered his kitchen to even be possible through one attempt at making a cake. Flour and sugar were scattered all over the floors and cabinets, egg shells littered the sink, and a bit of spilled milk was splattered on the counter. All of the ingredients they had used were still sitting on the island and Buffy was carefully placing the cake batter in to the oven.
"Safe to say you've never made a cake before, yeah?" Spike asked.
"Well," she hesitated, "no, but I didn't think it would be that hard."
"You're the one who wouldn't settle for the box mix. Had to make it all from scratch."
"I thought it would be fun." She shrugged. "And it's not like you did much better than me."
"Says the girl who couldn't crack a single egg without getting shells in it."
Out of nowhere, a handful of flour was thrown his way, hitting him in the face and spreading down his black shirt. He quickly spit what little flour had gotten in to his mouth out as he wiped his eyes with his arm. When he finally opened them, he saw Buffy standing across the kitchen from him, hand dusted white with leftover flower from her throw.
He raised an eyebrow at her, playful smirk appearing on his lips. "You want to play, do you?"
Buffy laughed as she took a step back toward the counter behind her. "Maybe."
"You sure about that, Goldilocks?" He asked, slowly walking toward her.
She raised her chin in a defiant way as she stepped backwards again, her body coming in contact with the counter top. "I can take you."
He let out a soft chuckle. "Can you now?" He asked stepping up to her. She hadn't even noticed him grab the measuring cup still half filled with milk from beside her. "Let's just see about that."
With that, Spike lifted the measuring cup above her head and tilted it toward her, sending the liquid pouring over her head and down her shoulders and back. She squealed in surprise, jumping as the cold hit her body. The next thing Spike knew, Buffy had an egg in her hand and was cracking it over his head. She pushed against him and tried to run out of the kitchen, but it was all to no avail. He grabbed her around the waist and pulled her back to him, taking a handful of sugar and dusting it through her hair from behind. This gave her plenty of time to grab the water bottle she had been drinking from and with one quick turn had it pouring over his bleached blonde head.
"Christ! That's cold!" He yelled as Buffy laughed.
She pulled herself out of his one armed grasp and ran for the living room. Unfortunately, she wasn't fast enough and Spike caught up with her quickly, practically pouncing on her as the two fell on to the black leather loveseat. He let her turn herself over underneath of him before she settled on the couch, admitting defeat in this battle.
"Nasty little bint." Spike said as he looked down at the golden goddess. She was covered in milk and sugar with a huge smile plastered on her face, she had never looked more inviting. "Now what was the point of that?"
She shrugged. "I dunno," she said, "but it was fun."
"No argument there." He said as he rested his forehead against hers, just enjoying the moment while he could. The closeness of her body and the intimacy of the moment was almost too much. This girl drove him crazy, up the wall and back down tenfold, and every day his adoration for her grew.
"What are we doing here, luv?" He asked suddenly.
Buffy's eyes shot up to his, confusion clear in the forest green orbs. "What?"
"What is this?" He asked again, there was no anger in his voice, no malice or annoyance. His tone was soft and calm, his eyes were gentle and his facial features were relaxed. "What do you want it to be?"
"I don't know," she said, glancing away from him, "but I don't want to be just some fling."
He let out a soft laugh, shaking his head. "Would I go through all this trouble just for some passing fancy?"
"I don't know." She said quietly.
"Despite what the press and gossip mags may say, I'm not some modern swinger and I've never been the groupie type. In point of fact," he said with a small smile, "I'm actually quite the hopeless romantic."
"I'm just worried." Buffy admitted quietly, voice near a whisper.
"Look at me," he said, his own voice lowering to the tone that hers had been as he moved one strong hand to gently graze her cheek, prompting her to move her eyes back to his face, "what's got you bothered, luv?"
She sighed, moving a strand of hair from her face as he looked back down at her. "What happens when you go back on tour?"
A sad smile appeared on his face, he knew this would be coming up any time now. "I've got a few more weeks here, pet, we can cross that bridge when we get to it, no need to make any decisions just yet."
"I know," Buffy said, "it's still something to think about."
"I've made my intentions perfectly clear," he said, an edge of seriousness coloring his tone, "I want nothing more than for you to be my girl, for it to be you and me against the world, but only if you'll have me. Only if it would make you happy."
She sighed again. "It would make me happy."
Every nerve in Spike's body jumped, shocked and excited by the sudden admission. "Then what's stopping us, pet? Let's give it a go, throw caution to the wind and jump in feet first."
She laughed softly, running her hand through her hair. "What if you go back on the road and you meet some leggy blonde with big boobs and a pretty smile and forget all about me?"
Spike shook his head, genuine smile on his face at her ridiculous comment. "Wouldn't happen, pet, ever."
"Oh, come on," Buffy said, "I'm not that great."
Spike raised an eyebrow, something finally clicking together in his mind. "So that's what this is about then."
Buffy's eyes darted back and forth in a confused motion. "What?" She asked.
He got up quickly, jumping off of the loveseat and standing in front of her as she moved herself to sit upright. "This was never about me, or Angel, or your father or anyone else. It's about you."
She shook her head and shrugged her shoulders. "Not following."
He pointed a finger at her in an excited way, like he had just figured out a complicated math problem. "You have low self esteem."
She narrowed her eyes at him. "What?"
"No, no, it's true." He said, pacing back in forth before her, shaking his head with an almost relieved look on his face. "Some bloody ponce fucked up that pretty little head of yours by acting like a right git and going for some queen of the dead wannabe and now you can't see your own worth. Should have seen it before."
"I have plenty of self esteem." She said.
"This entire time I thought it was me, that I was doing something wrong, that I should have been doing more." He laughed, completely ignoring her statement. "I was doing enough, plenty, but they weren't the right things, they weren't the reassurance that you needed. You need someone to show you just how special you are, not how special they could be for you."
"Spike, what the hell are you talking about?" Buffy asked.
"That's why you can't figure out if you want to be with me or not, it's not that I'm not good enough, it's that you don't think you are." All of a sudden he was knelt down on the floor in front of her, cupping her cheeks in his hands and kissing her gently. "Oh, Buffy, you crazy bint you, I'm gonna show you just how precious you are, all that worry and self-doubt, I'm taking it away."
"Yeah?" Buffy asked. "And how exactly are you going to do that?"
He smirked, that famous, mischievous little half smile that always meant you were in trouble. "Tomorrow night I'm gonna prove it to you. I'm gonna show you and all your friends just how much of a star Miss Buffy Summers is in these eyes, baby. You'll see."
Suddenly, a high pitched beeping sound filled the entire apartment, making both of their heads turn toward the kitchen doorway. The smoke slowly oozing from the neighboring room was the only thing that made them remember what had gotten them in to this position in the first place.
"The cake!" Buffy yelled, jumping off of the loveseat and running toward the kitchen, Spike following close behind. The entire room was filled with smoke and the fire alarm was going off loudly above their heads. "Can you turn that thing off?" Buffy yelled over it.
"Bit busy at the moment!" He yelled back as he opened the door to the oven. He was greeted by a cloud of black smoke as he shoved his oven-mitted hand in to the abyss. He pulled the cake out and quickly threw it in to the sink, turning the water on to cool it down.
Buffy was jumping up and down with a kitchen towel in her hand, swinging it back and forth under the fire alarm. Spike pulled a chair over from the island and quickly stepped on top of it. He reached up and undid the small compartment on the front of the alarm, pulling the battery out and ceasing the high pitched beeping. Buffy opened the kitchen windows and slowly but surely, the smoke began to leave the room.
Spike quickly stormed out of the kitchen and made his way back in to the living room. "What are you doing?" Buffy called.
"Ordering a bloody cake!"
Buffy laughed quietly to herself, she wouldn't be cooking in Spike's kitchen again for a long time.
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Anya Jenkins, party planner extraordinaire, made her way to The Shadow Gallery like a woman on a mission. Her arms were filled with bags holding streamers, balloons, table cloths, and multiple other party necessities. She walked up to the door and kicked it three times with her tiny, booted feet. After a few seconds without an answer, she kicked it again, this time with much more force that before.
"Come on your idiot! Open the door!" She yelled. As if on cue, Xander opened the door with an annoyed look on his face. "About time." Anya said pushing in past him.
Xander rolled his eyes. "Well, hello to you, too."
"There's a helium tank in my car across the street," she called over her shoulder, "go get it."
Xander looked across the street and saw a shiny white convertible, large metal helium tank sitting in the back seat. He grabbed the cart he had been using to move boxes around the bar and made his way toward the car, lifted the tank from the back, and rolled it inside effortlessly.
Anya looked over at him in shock. "You got that in here all by yourself?" She asked.
"Yeah," Xander said, "well me and the cart, but to be fair I did do most of the work."
"It took two guys to get that thing in to my car, you must be very strong." She commented.
Xander shrugged, goofy shy smile appearing on his face. "Well, I do work out in my apartment."
Anya smiled and cocked her head to the side before turning quickly and opening up one of the plastic bags filled with supplies. She pulled out the table cloths and began covering the high tops as Xander went back to work in the supply room, writing down what had come in that day. To say he hadn't been immediately attracted to Anya would have been a lie, the comment about his muscles had made him turn in to the awkward boy he had been as a teenager. He had noticed her dry wit and bluntness and, to be honest, it had made her that much more appealing to him. He liked a girl that would speak her mind, who said what everyone else was thinking no matter how crude the comment may be.
"Hey." he heard from behind him. He turned and was a little surprised to see Anya standing there with a 'Happy Birthday' banner all packaged up in her small hands. "Do you have a knife or some scissors or something?" He glanced around and quickly located him box cutter, closing it up before handing it to her. She cut the package open and handed it back to him. "Thanks." She turned to leave the small room, but was stopped by a hand on her wrist. She turned back around slowly, mischievous glint in her eyes.
Out of nowhere, the two practically lunged at one another and Xander was pushed against the shelves behind him, Anya's lips attacking his own.
To the outside world, The Shadow Gallery was closed and calm, but the two inside were getting as busy as two people possibly could.
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"The cake looks awesome." Buffy said from her spot in the back of Spike's car. Willow sat next to her, plates and plastic ware in a large bag on her lap, as Spike drove the three of them, plus Oz and Bob, to The Shadow Gallery.
"Much better than that mutant thing we brought to life." Spike commented with a smile.
"I bet the maid was pissed." Oz said.
"Good ol' Georgia's cleaned up much worse than that, believe me." Spike said. "Remember Bob's twenty-second birthday party I threw there? Didn't know so much vomit could come out of one bloke."
"Watermelon Vodka just doesn't agree with me." Bob said in casual defense.
"Really?" Oz asked. "Is that why you had thirteen shots of it?"
Buffy glanced over at Bob in shock, he just gave her a proud smile in return. "Lucky number."
Buffy shook her head, she and Willow laughing softly as she glanced forward. She wasn't surprised to see Spike glance back at her in the rear view mirror before quickly turning his eyes back to the road. She smiled to herself as she looked out the window, she had never had a large group of friends, even in Sunnydale, and she had to admit that this was pretty nice. She had had Willow and Xander since she had moved here, that was true, but adding a few more faces to the mix, well, it was nice.
Spike pulled up to the front door of the bar and put his foot on the brake. "Alright, everybody out."
Buffy tried to open her door, but with his ridiculously damaged handles she knew it was pointless before she had even tried. "How do you suppose we do that?"
Spike turned and looked at Bob, an expectant look on his face. "I'm going, I'm going." Bob said as he did a little magic jiggle with the handle, it opened easily and he slid out of the car.
"You really need a new car." Buffy said as she began to slide across the back seat.
"No," Spike said, "you just need to learn how to open the doors."
Buffy raised her eyebrow. "I know how to open normal car doors," she said, playful tone in her bantering voice, "yours are just in need of replacing."
"Says the girl depending on me for a ride." He said as Willow stepped out of the car, amused smile on her face as she met up with Oz on the sidewalk.
"I can always take the bus." She retorted.
"Ungrateful chit." He glanced around quickly, making sure they were alone and not under the gaze of any prying eyes. "Kiss me."
Buffy laughed as she leaned forward, gently touching her soft lips to his. The kiss was short and sweet, but everything about it was completely perfect.
"You look great today, luv, really." He said quietly, making the moment that much more intimate.
She looked down at herself quickly. She was wearing a light gray sweater-like top that was pulled snugly around her small body, but with slightly larger, three quarter length, sleeves that hung loosely from her arms. She wore a pair of dark gray skinny jeans and a simple pair of black heels. Truthfully, the outfit was nothing special, but Spike had always insisted on showering her in compliments.
She smiled, raising a hand to his cheek and pulling him in for a second, slightly longer kiss. She pulled back, adorable smile still plastered on her face. "Thank you."
"You ready for your surprise?" He asked, tip of his tongue meeting the front of his teeth.
"Tonight is about Clem," Buffy said, "not me or your ridiculous attempts to woo me."
"Woo you?" Spike asked, his tone mocking. "Who says the word 'woo' anymore?"
She gave him a sideways glance as she began to slide across the back seat and over to the open door. "Go park your car."
He laughed as the door closed behind her. Tonight, he hoped, would be life changing.
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The Shadow Gallery looked good on a normal night, but tonight it looked exceptional. The high tops were all covered in deep purple, plastic table cloths and there were matching streamers and balloons everywhere. The black plates and cutlery that Willow had been told to bring went with them perfectly and she had made quick work of setting up each table with a small pile of each. Everyone was running around doing something as Anya continued to bark orders at them, even Giles was following her lead. Before long, everything was ready and Xander was given the go ahead to call Clem.
"Hey Xan Man, what's up?" Clem's happy voice practically shouted through the speakerphone.
"Hey, Clem, I'm sorry to call you right now and all but you need to get down here." Xander said, perfect serious tone in his voice.
"Is everything okay?" Clem asked.
"I don't know, some kids must have gotten in here while I was doing inventory and, well, you'd just better get down here." Xander said, covering his mouth with his hand to keep from laughing.
"What do you mean some kids? Did you call the police?"
"Yeah, I did, and they said to get you down here. I don't know anything about insurance or any of that stuff." Xander said.
Clem sighed. "Alright, I'll be right there." With that, Clem's end of the phone went dead.
"Wow, not even a goodbye." Faith said shaking her head.
"He's really upset." Buffy said.
Cordelia shrugged. "It'll make the real surprise better. I'll go keep a look out."
"Everyone get to your hiding spot!" Anya yelled. "Clem only lives six minutes away so be ready."
All of the co-conspirators made their way to their earlier determined hiding spots. Willow and Oz were on the side of the bar as Xander stood behind it. Faith stood next to one of the large speakers on the side of the stage while Cordelia got herself ready to jump in to the employee coat closet at the first sign on Clem's arrival. Giles and Anya were simply standing at the edge of the hallway that lead to the store room as Buffy and Spike stood between the opening of the curtain on stage.
A soft chuckle sounded from Spike's throat, causing Buffy to glance over at him curiously. "What's so funny?"
"This is where we first met." He said simply.
Buffy tried to not smile as she rolled her eyes. "That last time I heard that I was watching Titanic and the ship was about to be sucked in to the water."
"Just ruin everything, don't you, Summers?" He asked.
She laughed softly. "I try."
"He's here!" Cordelia yelled as she moved in to the small closet.
Everyone in the room crouched and moved in to position as Spike let the curtain fall closed. They stood face to face, but their entire attention was focused on what they could hear from beyond the curtain. They heard the front door to the bar quickly unlock and Clem's fast, heavy footfalls make it past the small foyer.
"Xander!" He yelled, panic evident in his voice.
"Behind the bar." Xander called back.
They heard Clem take a few steps before stopping quickly. "What is all this?"
"SURPRISE!" Everyone cried as they jumped out of their hiding spots.
Clem jumped back in surprise as he put a hand over his chest, but there was soon a smile that took over his entire face. Everyone rushed over toward him, the girls enveloping him in hugs as the men all shook his hand. Clem was usually a happy person, but it was evident to any onlooker that this had meant a lot to him. That alone made the past few hours of Anya's dictatorship completely worth it.
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"Autographed hard back V for Vendetta!" Clem yelled in excitement. "How did you get this?"
Spike shrugged. "Alan Moore's a fan, called in a favor."
"Oh, Spike, that's really neat, thank you." Clem said, getting up and almost running over to the glass display case behind the bar. He opened it and put the autographed graphic novel front and center.
All in all, Clem had made out pretty well. Xander had gotten him a wireless headset to use while playing his random online games that he enjoyed so much while Cordelia had gotten him a gift certificate for a massage and some aromatherapy candles targeted toward relieving stress. Faith had somehow gotten him a large bottle of Absinthe that he had immediately gone to hide away in his office. Bob had bought him a very detailed and realistic Star Wars light saber and Willow and Oz had complimented that gift with a customized Darth Vader costume. Anya and Giles had both pitched in together to get him a small Ipod, knowing from an earlier conversation that he had never bought himself one. Buffy had gone with Spike's suggestion and gotten him a sixteen inch model of Rorschach from The Watchmen which was currently sitting in the display case right next to Spike's graphic novel.
"I think that was his favorite." Buffy said as Clem made his way around the room, thanking everyone.
"I've known Clem since I was a kid," Spike said, "you know the name of the bar comes from that book?" Buffy shook her head. "Yeah, V's hideout, he calls it The Shadow Gallery. It's where he puts all the art and nicknacks, and, well, Evey when he gets them. All his illegal stuff is there."
Buffy smiled. "Is someone a closet nerd?"
Spike took a swig of his beer. "No secret there, luv, why do you think we did a song for The Watchmen soundtrack?"
"I never really thought about it." Buffy admitted.
"Was a favorite of mine as a kid, still love it." He said. "That and The Crow."
"The Crow, like the movie with Bruce Lee's son in it?" Buffy asked.
"Yeah," Spike said, "but the comic was so much better, bloody butchered it they did."
Buffy shrugged. "I liked the movie."
"I did, too, but the book and the movie, their incomparable." Spike said before going off on a tangent comparing the two. Buffy smiled and nodded, loving how she had just uncovered another one of Spike's great loves. She knew from the few interviews she had caught that he was a big fan of the soap opera Passions, but comics were something she wouldn't have known he'd have such an interest and love for. There was no doubt about it, Spike was full of surprises.
"So are you two like a thing?" Cordelia's voice rang out over the small crowd. Buffy noticed Cordelia's gaze shoot down to the hands interlocking on the table between them, fingers entangled as they held one another close. She felt the blood rise to her face and she knew that her cheeks must be a lovely shade of pink by now.
"Um," Buffy stammered, "well, no, but-"
"Well why not?" Faith interjected. "You two are awful friendly over there."
"I know, aren't they? I thought I was the only one noticing it when I walked in the other day and now they're here holding hands." Cordelia said.
"They've been like that for a few days now." Bob said, earning a surprised look from just about everyone. "What? I notice things."
Everyone turned their attention back to the couple in question. "So what's going on?"
Spike squeezed her hand gently, a comforting gesture on his part that caused Buffy's eyes to move to his face. He had a smile on his face, a reassuring look in his eyes. "That's for us to know." He said.
"Oh come on," Faith moaned, "we're your friends, not some paparazzi gang."
"Yeah!" Cordelia agreed. "We deserve to know!"
"Guys." Xander attempted to warn as Willow and Clem just glanced back and forth between everyone, not knowing what to do.
"I heard you beat up that Angel guy." Faith said turning her attention to Spike. "Good for you! That guy is a total creep."
"He is, isn't he?" Cordelia agreed. "You know, he's always trying to hit on me and-"
"Cake!" Anya yelled suddenly. The conversation stopped as everyone looked over at her, Buffy had never been more thankful for a single person in her life. "It's cake time. Buffy, could you go get the cake?"
Buffy said nothing as she stood quickly, almost sprinting to flee the now tension filled bar floor. She hardly noticed the footsteps following behind her.
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She made the quick turn to go down the small corridor that lead to Clem's office and the store room where Anya had put the cake. Her heart was racing and she had to fight the urge to just run from the bar to avoid going back in to the lions den a few feet away. She walked in to the store room and momentarily wondered why it looked so messy inside.
"Buffy!" Spike called as he followed a few feet behind her. She turned and waited for him, hand on her cheek as she leaned against the wall. "You alright, pet?"
She nodded, taking a deep breath. "Yeah, I'm okay. I just wish people could let it be."
He hooked and arm around her neck, pulling her toward him with little effort. "People are gonna get curious, luv."
She nodded, wrapping her arms around his middle. "I know."
"Paparazzi's even worse. Can't get a bloody burger without being hassled about some tabloid rumor. Just something you get used to. I'm surprised they haven't come at you yet." He said.
Buffy sighed. "Why does this have to be so hard?"
Spike chuckled. "Tip of the iceberg, luv."
"What is with all the Titanic references tonight?"
"Was on last night," he admitted with a shrug, "might be in the back of my brain a little bit."
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The remaining guests dispersed to random tables and places at the bar, all waiting for the cake that Spike and Buffy were getting. Oz and Willow sat at the table closest to the bar while Bob, Giles, and Clem sat at one across from them. Faith and Cordelia sat at the end of the bar talking with Xander and Anya. No one even noticed when another man, dressed in dark jeans, black hoodie, and a ski mask, walked in to the bar with a gun raised in his right hand.
He pulled the trigger once, launching a bullet in to the roof above him. "Everybody listen up! This is a robbery!"
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Both Buffy and Spike's attention shifted as a loud bang went through the air.
"What the hell was that?" Buffy asked quietly, glancing down the hall for signs of an answer.
"I don't know." Spike said, turning around and standing in front of her, grabbing one of her hands in his.
Spike slowly made his way out of the room and down the hall, keeping Buffy close behind him the entire time. He stopped just short of the end of it and poked his head around the corner. He saw the man dressed in dark clothing standing in the middle of the room, facing the bar and away from them, gun pointed in the general direction of where their friends were sitting.
"No heroes today, do what I say and we'll all be just fine. Nobody has to get hurt." He said loudly. "Everyone needs to put their hands up and walk slowly behind the bar."
"What's going on?" Buffy whispered from behind him.
Spike turned quickly and put a hand over her mouth as he gently pushed her against the wall. "There's a man with a gun," he mouthed more than spoke, "stay behind me and don't make a sound."
Buffy nodded, fear evident in her eyes. Spike released his hand from her mouth and turned back to the scene unfolding before them, making sure to keep his body in front of hers.
"Which one of you knows how to get in to the cash register?" The gunman asked.
Xander glanced over to Cordelia and Faith, no way was he going to let them get involved in this. He turned his attention to Clem who was staring at the man in sheer terror, clearly this was up to him. "I do."
The gunman turned his attention to Xander, pointing the gun at him. "Open the register and bring me the cash."
Xander walked over to the register and pressed a few keys. The register popped open with a metallic clang and Xander quickly collected the money, it was no more than a thousand dollars. He raised his hands in a surrendering motion as he made his way from behind the bar and approached where he was standing. He handed the cash over to him before dropping his arms to his sides.
"Is this all of it?" He asked.
Xander nodded. "Yeah, man, that's it."
"What about the safe?" The gunman asked, shoving the money in to a plastic grocery bag, never moving the gun from Xander's form.
"The safe?" He asked. A motion on the other side of the room caught his attention and he quickly focused his eyes on the hallway leading to the store room. He saw Spike standing in the doorway, he cocked his head to the side in a 'come here' motion. Xander nodded quickly before turning his attention back to the gunman.
"Yes, moron, the safe. Where is it?" He asked, cocking the gun and raising it toward Xander's head.
"It's in the office." Xander lied quickly, truly an amazing feat with a gun pointed in his face.
"Show me."
Spike spun around and grabbed Buffy by the arm. He lead her in to the store room and quickly got her to crouch down in the corner. "Xander's bringing him this way, stay down and stay hidden." He lowered his lips to her forehead, kissing her softly in an attempt to calm her. "You're gonna be alright, luv, I promise."
She nodded as he stood and made his way to the doorway of the store room, positioning his body so that whoever came walking down the hall would never see him. The second the gunman's body passed the doorway, he was throttled in to the wall across from him by a flash of black and blonde. The force of the impact caused the gun to fall from his hand as Spike's fist connected with his masked face.
Gaining his bearings, the man pushed Spike away from him and took his chance to knee him in the groin. As Spike fell to the ground, Xander took his opportunity to deliver a swift blow to the back of his head. The man turned quickly and surprised Xander as his fist met his face, hitting him hard enough to break his nose and cause a steady stream of blood to pour from it.
The gunman was suddenly hit from the side by a crowbar to the ribs, his surprise only grew when he saw the small blonde girl who had delivered the blow. He grabbed her by the arms and threw her with all of his might against the wall, her body crumpling to the floor as she let out a startled yell.
"Buffy!" Spike yelled, back to his feet in an instant. He ran at the man and tackled him to the ground, grinding a knee in to his rib and punching the man square in the face. Unfortunately, he didn't notice how close they had landed to the gun or that the man had even grabbed it until the base of it cracked in to the side of his face. Blood poured from the cut on his eyebrow, coating the side of his face and temporarily blinding his left eye.
The gunman stood back up, gun in hand, and pointed it in Buffy's direction. Spike jumped up from the ground and grabbed the gun, trying to wrestle it from his hands again. All motion stopped as a shot rang out, nobody sure of who it had hit. The gunman took his chance and ran from the area and out the front door, leaving the money and all thoughts of a safe behind.
Buffy looked up from her spot on the floor just in time to see Spike's hand clench his rib, blood oozing through his shirt and covering his hands as he fell to the floor.
"Spike!" She screamed, crawling over to him on all fours. His face was covered in blood from his eyebrow to the collar of his shirt and a pool of blood was forming underneath of him from the bullet hole. It looked like something out of a horror movie.
"Someone call an ambulance!" Xander yelled, running over to the blood covered couple on the floor.
"Bu-Buffy..." Spike muttered, breathing labored and tears filling his crystal blues.
"I'm here," she said as she grabbed his hand between hers, "I'm here."
"A-are... are you?" He tried to speak.
"Shh," Buffy said, running her free hand through his bleached hair as the tears fell freely from her eyes, "it's okay, you're going to be fine."
"S-st-stay with me." He breathed.
Buffy squeezed his hand gently. "I'm not going anywhere."
Within minutes they were surrounded by people and medical equipment as the paramedics rushed inside. There was a stretcher and multiple black bags as the hallway filled up, but all Buffy could concentrate on was the man laying on the floor covered in blood, the man holding her hand, the man who had just saved her life.
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Author's Chapter Notes:
Sorry for the wait, my loves. I was in the hospital for a few days and the infection that I had last week or whenever spread to my kidneys and is making me very ill. All I've been doing lately is laying down watching movies and, of course, plenty of Buffy episodes.
My lovely reviewer, ACeH-aH, and I were talking about how watching Once More, With Feeling always makes me feel better when I'm sick. She replies with the following...
"The first time I watched it, during Coda I thought that Spike said "I die", as in, when Buffy touches the fire she freezes, and when he touches the fire he dies. HAHA I get it now..."
Honestly made my week and I felt the need to share it with the rest of my Buffy lovers out there.
Love you, S, you made my week. :)
My lovely reviewer, ACeH-aH, and I were talking about how watching Once More, With Feeling always makes me feel better when I'm sick. She replies with the following...
"The first time I watched it, during Coda I thought that Spike said "I die", as in, when Buffy touches the fire she freezes, and when he touches the fire he dies. HAHA I get it now..."
Honestly made my week and I felt the need to share it with the rest of my Buffy lovers out there.
Love you, S, you made my week. :)
Chapter End Notes:
I'm not 100% happy with this chapter and I'll probably re-write it later, but I hope someone out there enjoyed it just a little. Reviews? :)