A/N More of an insight into Buffy’s home-life in this chapter and the story takes a slightly darker turn. Nothing unthinkable, but I did feel it warranted a warning.
Chapter 4 - Interactions
Buffy was nervously going through her closet on Saturday night. She wasn’t
thinking about impressing Riley- as far as she was concerned, this was just a
friendly date. No need to send him romantic implications when she didn’t
necessarily feel that way about him. Buffy was nervous because this would
be the first night she was out of her comfort zone. Xander and Willow
weren’t planning on attending the party, and Buffy didn’t want to feel
completely dependent on staying with Riley the whole night. She was hoping
to meet some new people.
Finally making a decision, Buffy pulled out a black leather skirt and a
silky, white sleeveless shirt that was more draped in the front, showing off
just a hint of cleavage. Buffy looked at the clock and realized she was
running late, hurriedly dressed, and slipped on her shoes. Hearing the
doorbell, she smoothed her hair, which was pulled back in a loose bun with
some pieces left down to frame her face, and quickly reapplied her lip
gloss before walking downstairs.
Buffy smiled when she saw Fred talking to Riley, giving her version of the
third degree, which wasn’t much, but it was sweet that she wanted to make
sure Buffy was safe.
Riley turned to Buffy with a smile when he saw her descending the stairs.
“Wow,” he said. “You look sensational.”
Buffy blushed at the compliment and smiled back. “You look pretty good
yourself.”
Buffy saw that Fred had to restrain from clapping her hands in excitement
when Riley offered Buffy his arm. Buffy wished she would have talked to the
older woman to let her know this date wasn’t a romantic intention, merely a
friend, but she would have to do that later.
Waving good-bye, Riley led her out the door to his sports car, opening the
door for her and helping her in.
Buffy and Riley made small talk on the way to the party.
“So, whose house are we going to?”
“Parker Abrams,” Riley replied. “Have you met him?”
Buffy shook her head. “I haven’t met many people this week.”
“Well, you know me now,” Riley said, throwing a smile her way, which Buffy
returned. She really did like Riley. She didn’t feel butterflies or get
nervous around him, but he seemed like a genuinely nice guy, and she was glad she met him.
Pulling up to a large house close to Buffy’s neighborhood, Riley escorted
Buffy into the house. She had to refrain from groaning as she encountered
Spike and his girlfriend close to the door. Thankfully, Spike barely even
glanced at Buffy, giving her the once-over before turning back to his
conversation.
Buffy looked around the huge house. The foyer and the living room were
connected, leaving an open area for all of the high school students. A
curving staircase was to her right, leading to the second floor, where a
balcony ran the length of the room and several students were already dancing
and partying, to overlook the downstairs.
Riley excused himself to get some drinks as Buffy stood close to the wall,
surveying the area. She smiled when she saw Cordelia Chase walking toward
her. She knew Cordy was considered one of Sunnydale High’s resident snobs,
but the girl had been nice to her the few times they had spoken.
“Buffy,” Cordy greeted with a smile. “Glad you could make it.”
“Me, too,” Buffy said, smiling back at the taller girl. “You look great,”
she continued, looking at the red Versace dress.
“Thanks, you do, too.”
Buffy was grateful for the sincere compliment. “Are you here with anyone?”
“Not tonight,” Cordy said with a shake of her head. “I’m currently in
between boyfriends, so tonight is for Cordelia Chase to have fun and relax.
Where did Riley run off to?”
“Oh, I think he went to get us some punch.”
Before Buffy even finished talking, Riley appeared behind her with two
glasses of punch, offering one to Buffy.
“Cordelia,” Riley said with a nod in greeting. “Good to see you.”
“You, too, Riley. Well, I’m going to leave you two alone. Have a good time
tonight, Buffy,” Cordy said as she passed by them.
* * * * *
Two hours later, Buffy stood on the balcony, looking over at the party. She
had met several people tonight, but most were too drunk to even remember who
she was. Riley had disappeared about twenty minutes ago with a group of his
football buddies, and Buffy was getting increasingly bored.
The party was in full swing, but Buffy had already danced most of the night
and was soon tiring of the packed house.
“Not good to be all alone up here, pet.”
Buffy didn’t turn around as she heard the distinct British accent, but she
was surprised when she felt his warm breath caressing her shoulder. She was
even more surprised at the tingles that seemed to spread through her body.
“And why not?” Buffy asked in a much shakier voice than she intended.
Buffy felt her breathing become shallow as Spike stepped behind her, putting
one hand on each side of the railing that she was leaning against,
effectively blocking her in. She could smell the faint scent of alcohol,
but she knew that he was more sober than the majority of the house.
“You never know when some nasty might try and get a taste of you,” he
whispered.
Spike didn’t know what was coming over him. He had seen Buffy standing
alone, the way she had been most of the night, and felt himself drawn to
her. He didn’t understand why he was up here, and he really didn’t
understand why he was having to fight the urge to brush his lips over the
bare skin of her shoulder, but for some reason, she wasn’t as infuriating to
him right now.
“And that’s not you?” she asked in a whisper, trying to fight the trembling
that seemed to course through her.
“Maybe,” he replied in a husky voice.
Buffy’s brow furrowed as she looked around the crowded room. “Where’s your
girlfriend?”
“Probably off flirting with one of my teammates,” Spike said, looking over
her shoulder.
“And that doesn’t bother you?”
“Couldn’t really care less, luv.”
Buffy trembled slightly when she felt his hand gently running over her
shoulder to trail up and down her arm. “Don’t we hate each other?” she
whispered softly.
Spike smiled before leaning in close. “We can still hate each other,” he
whispered as he let his hands fall down to the hem of her skirt, his
fingertips trailing slightly underneath. “It doesn’t stop what you want.”
Buffy finally snapped out of the daze that she’d been in, spinning around to
face the arrogant man behind her with a glare. “You’re a pig, Spike! You
expect me to just jump into bed with you after the way you’ve treated me.”
“I wouldn’t throw stones, pet,” he said with an arrogant smirk.
“Yeah, I’d really want to be with a winner like you,” she said
sarcastically. “Someone who would willingly cheat on his girlfriend just
to get some action.”
Spike’s gaze hardened as he stared at her. “You don’t know anything about
me or my relationship,” he growled.
“I know more about you than you know about me,” she shot back. “And
relationship? I’m willing to bet that you two are no more than bed warmers
for each other. Just an easy fix that happened to turn into a so-called
committed relationship.”
“Tread lightly, Summers,” Spike said in a deadly tone.
“What’s the matter, Spike?” Buffy asked, widening her eyes in false
innocence. “I got a little too close to the truth, didn’t I?”
Buffy watched as Spike clenched his jaw before turning and walking down the
stairs. Buffy knew she was a little too hard on him, but her mind kept
flashing back to some of the hateful things he said to her, and she didn’t
feel as bad as she probably should have.
* * * * *
Riley dropped Buffy off, leaving her with a chaste kiss on the cheek. Buffy
quietly entered her house and jumped when she saw her father standing next
to the front door.
“Daddy!” she squeaked in surprise.
“Where were you?” Hank asked in a low voice.
“I-I told you…remember? I went out with a…with a boy from school. You said
it was okay.” Buffy hated herself for the terror in her voice.
“You’re back a little late, aren’t you?” he asked, a cool edge to his voice.
“I-it’s before my curfew,” she said softly.
“So you went to a party,” he said with a false warmth. “And how many boys
did you screw while you were there?”
Buffy’s eyes widened at the question. She shook her head as she answered,
“None, Daddy, I promise.”
Hank stared at her for a few moments before turning and walking away.
Buffy breathed a sigh of relief as she quickly ran up to her room. Shutting
the door behind her, she felt some of the tension leave her body as she
leaned against it, grateful that her father hadn’t said anything
else…tonight.
Hank Summers tried to play the role of the perfect father in front of other
people, but he had no problems degrading his daughter when they were alone.
In the few weeks since she’d moved in, Hank was certain that Buffy was the
town slut. He had no facts to base this opinion on, but it apparently made
him feel good about himself to humiliate his only child. Buffy knew that
Fred and Gunn were worried that he would start to take out his anger on her
physically, but she just told them she’d cross that bridge when she got to
it.
Hank never wanted a daughter to begin with, and he detested the idea of being
saddled with a teenager, especially when the women he brought home were not
much older than Buffy. She was a constant reminder that he was getting
older, and he hated her for that, among other things. Buffy was biding her
time until she graduated and could leave this Hell dimension that was
camouflaged by money.
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