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Chapter 14 – Rescue


Buffy held onto Spike as he walked her to her front door later that night.
She smiled as he pulled her into his arms, leaving a soft kiss on her
forehead.

“You’re amazing,” Spike whispered.

Buffy blushed, her smile fading as she looked over his shoulder.

“What’s wrong, luv?”

“I didn’t leave the lights on.”

“Maybe Fred or Gunn decided to stop by and check on you.”

“It’s their night off, Spike. They would call, not come over.” Spike
could feel the tension in her body as she stared at the front door. “He’s
back early.”

“You don’t know that,” Spike whispered, running his hands up and down her
arms, trying to put her at ease.

“Yes, I do,” Buffy replied, clutching at Spike. “I don’t want to go in
there.”

“Do you want me to go with you?”

Buffy saw the light in her father’s office switch on and felt her body go
rigid before turning to face Spike. “I don’t want to go,” she whispered as
tears began streaming down her face. “I want things to stay the way they
are. I want to be happy…I don’t want to be here,” she cried as Spike pulled
her against his chest, feeling tears fall from his own eyes as she buried her
face against him, sobbing.

“I don’t want you to go either, luv,” he said in a choked whisper, not
willing to let her go.

The minutes seemed to fly by as Buffy slowly pulled away from Spike, wiping
her eyes as she turned to the door.

“Buffy,” he whispered. “You don’t have to go in there now.”

“I know,” she said, trying to be brave. “But the sooner I go in, the faster
it will be over.”

“I want you to call me later,” he said, tucking her hair behind her ears as
he held onto her.

“I will,” she promised, pulling him down for a long, tender kiss as she tried to control her tears. Stepping
away much too soon for either of them, Buffy managed to hold back the next flow of tears as she looked into
his bright eyes. “Tonight was the best night of my life,” she whispered
with a watery smile.

“Mine, too,” Spike replied, trying his hardest to smile against his tears.

* * * * *

Spike sat next to the phone for nearly two hours, waiting for Buffy’s call,
lunging for it when it finally rang.

“Spike?”

“It’s me, luv. What’s wrong?”

“I-I need to…”

“What? Buffy, talk to me.”

“I had to call…I can’t see you anymore.”

Spike felt as if his heart was about to stop. “Buffy-“

“I need to go.”

“Buffy, are you okay?”

“I’m sorry,” she whispered.

“Is he there?”

“Yes.”

Spike held the phone away from his ear as the dial tone signaled that she’d
hung up.

”Damn it!” he cried, resisting the urge to throw the phone. “DAD! MUM!”

Jenny and Giles ran into the living room, both looking panicked at their
son’s outburst.

“What’s wrong?” Jenny asked, running over to Spike.

“It’s Buffy. Her dad came home tonight, and I think something’s wrong.”

“Like what?” Jenny asked worriedly.

“She said she couldn’t see me anymore.”

“Son,” Giles spoke up. “Are you sure she just-“

“Don’t even say it,” Spike interrupted. “She said she didn’t want to go in
that house when I dropped her off. She’s happy when she’s with me.”

“Rupert,” Jenny began. “We’ve talked about the possibility-“

“Say no more,” Giles said. “Jenny, stay here. Spike, come with me.”

“What possibility?” Spike asked as they practically bolted out the door.

“That Hank’s temper might get the best of him.”

“You know about Hank?”

“I knew his wife left him because he turned into an abusive bastard,” Giles
replied. “You’re mother and I have discussed the possibility that Buffy
might be in danger eventually.”

“And you didn’t think that maybe I should be included in any of these
conversations?” Spike asked angrily.

“As long as you were spending time with Buffy, giving her someone to listen
to or simply be with, we didn’t think it should be relevant. You were with
her when she needed someone. Your mother and I couldn’t do anything with our mere opinions.”

* * * * *

Five minutes later, Giles was coming to a screeching halt in front of the
Summers Mansion. Spike was out of the car before it stopped moving, running
up to the front door, and began incessantly knocking.

He glared when Hank opened the door. “Where is she?” he asked through
gritted teeth.

“I’m sorry,” Hank replied with false politeness. “She doesn’t want to see
you anymore.”

Spike’s hand shot out to block the door, seconds before Hank shut it in his
face. “I’m not leaving.”

“Then I’m calling the police to have you arrested for trespassing.”

“Yeah?” Spike asked with a smile, seconds before his fist connected with the
older man’s nose. “If I’m going to be arrested, it’s going to be for a
better charge than trespassing,” he replied, throwing another punch at his
stomach. “Like assault and battery.”

Spike raised his fist again and was surprised when it was caught in a strong
grip. Turning to face his father, he saw the look that he had only seen one
other time in his life. The look in his eye that he had a few years ago
when a co-worker turned stalker wouldn’t leave Jenny alone. Ripper.

“Spike, go check on Buffy. I’ll handle things down here.”

Spike wasn’t about to argue as he quickly made his way up the stairs,
practically running for Buffy’s bedroom. Opening the door, he scanned the
darkened area, finally seeing her curled up in her window seat, hugging her
knees to her chest. She didn’t see him as he slowly walked toward her.

Spike couldn’t tell anything was wrong as he looked at her. She was wearing
her favorite jeans and a dark green turtleneck sweater, but Spike knew she
wasn’t wearing that when he’d dropped her off a few hours ago.

Getting a few feet away, Spike stopped. “Buffy,” he whispered softly.

Her head snapped around to face him before she seemed to withdraw into
herself, cuddling her legs closer to her body. "You shouldn’t be here,
Spike,” she said hoarsely.

“I’m going to turn on a light, luv,” he said softly, reaching for the lamp
on her nightstand. The shadows seemed to diminish as the soft glow spread
through the room, bathing the young girl in a golden light. She was facing
the window again, and Spike could see her body shaking with the sobs that she was trying to
suppress.

“Look at me, Buffy,” he whispered, walking over to her. Crouching down at
her side, Spike reached up, slowly turning her head to face him. He felt
his jaw clench when he saw her split lip and swollen cheek. The cheekbone
already had a shade of purple spreading along her skin.

“You shouldn’t see me like this,” she whispered, fighting the tears in her
eyes. Spike didn’t say anything as he picked her up, only to turn and sit
down in the seat, letting her curl into him. “I tried to…I tried to get
away,” Buffy said softly as she clutched Spike’s strong shoulders.

Spike closed his eyes, feeling the anguish rip through to his soul as he
held her. “Are you hurt anywhere else?” Spike asked in a choked voice.

Buffy shook her head, trying to stop the flow of tears, hating herself for
being weak.

“You’re sure?”

Buffy sighed. “It’s just my shoulder,” she whispered. “I’ll be fine.”

“And he didn’t…”

Spike couldn’t even get himself to finish that sentence.

“No,” Buffy said softly.

Spike was about to reply when he heard a movement in the doorway. Both
turned to see Giles walking into the room. He seemed to pause when he saw
the tender display before his face hardened when he saw the damage
inflicted on his son’s girlfriend.

“Pack your things, Buffy,” Giles said. “We’re getting you out of here.”

Spike gave his father a grateful look as he glanced at Giles’ hands and
noticed his bruised knuckles. With a nod to his father, he turned to see the
shocked look on Buffy’s face.

“Wh-what’s going on?” she asked.

“You’re moving in with us,” Giles replied.

“But my father-“

“Is no longer a problem,” Giles said with a soft smile. “It seems he is
very agreeable to the fact.”

Buffy’s eyes widened as she turned to look at Spike.

“Go pack, Buffy. We’ll wait,” he said with a smile, kissing her temple
before she climbed out of his lap.

Spike smiled as Buffy walked over to Giles, throwing her arms around him.
“Thank you, so much,” she whispered, with tears evident in her voice.

Spike’s smile broadened at Giles’ flustered look. One second, Ripper would
be shining through, and the next, he was back to a bumbling librarian.

“Come on, luv,” Spike said, gently putting a hand on her back. “Let’s get
you out of here.”




A/N Okay, I really need some opinions right now. I'm in a position where I can wrap this story up in a few chapters or continue until I get really sick of writing it :-) So, I'm asking you if I should drag on the angst/drama or if our couple should get a slightly premature happy ending. Please let me know what you think, I will appreciate any comments. Thank you!





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