[Reviews - 59]
-
Table of Contents [Report This]
Microsoft Word Chapter or Story | ePub eBook Chapter or Story | Printer Chapter or Story

Has been viewed 3122 times

- Text Size +




Buffy sat alone in a tiny hotel room on Malibu beach waiting for Angel to return. She'd wanted to spend time at the ocean, having never seen it before, so Angel had booked them into this hotel even though it was a long drive to Hollywood. Now he'd been gone for three days and she was beginning to get worried, especially since her money was almost gone and Angel had the rest of it. She was just getting dressed to go down to the beach when the door opened and he walked in with a nervous grin on his face.

"Hi Buffy," he said sitting down on the bed avoiding her loving gaze.

"Angel, I've been so worried. Did you find any auditions? Where have you been?" She asked sitting down next to him and wrapping him in her tiny arms. Angel moved away from her and gently pulled her arms from his shoulders.

"Yeah, I've had a callback actually. In fact I have an appointment soon with a possible agent," he said standing up and moving nervously towards the door. "I need to go, for good Buffy. I met a girl who's helping me out and I'm going to crash at her place."

"Wha--What are you saying Angel? I don't understand!" Buffy said walking towards him, trying to take him into her arms once again.

"I have to go Buffy. Here's twenty bucks for food. I always told you this was temporary." Angel tossed the bill onto the bed and quickly slipped through the front door. Buffy quickly followed, walking behind him out into the parking lot.

"Angel, please. How can you leave me here alone. I know I've never been worthy of you but--Please Angel, just stop and look at me!" Buffy pleaded, tears beginning to stream down her face as the realization of what was happening began to sink in.

"I can't take care of you anymore Buffy. You're going to have to look after yourself from now on." Angel jumped into the car and ripped out of the parking lot, leaving the dazed girl watching him speed down the PCH to leave her behind. She collapsed onto the cement and began to wail until she felt an arm pull her up and sit her on the curb. She continued crying as she heard a voice speaking to her from far away.

"Check out time is at ten miss. I realize this is a bad time, but you're going to have to gather your stuff up and go if you can't pay for the room." Buffy looked up at the blurry outline of the manager in the morning sun. She wiped the tears from her eyes and took the hand that he offered her and got to her feet.
She walked back to the room in a daze and began pushing her few belongings into her backpack. She still couldn't believe what was happening. Where should she go? She'd spent all of her money on the trip down from Butte. Oh God--what was she going to do? She looked at the twenty dollar bill Angel had left her and a wave of anguish slammed her in the gut. She ran for the bathroom and heaved up everything that was left in her stomach from dinner the night before. When she came out of the bathroom she grabbed the bill without looking at it and shoved it into the pocket of her jeans, then shouldered her pack and headed out the door.

-----------------------------------------------------------

Spike got up and left Cordelia sleeping in bed. He hated it when she stayed the night because as soon as she woke up she'd come out and start bitching at him about how much she could improve his place if he'd let her move in with him. Like that would ever happen. She was fully aware that he had five other women he slept with just as often as her, liked better than her, and besides, he enjoyed his house just as it was. He loved to sit in his rickety old chair--that Cordelia had tried to throw away twice--and gaze out at the beautiful hills to the distant ocean. Best place in the world to enjoy a morning smoke. Perhaps he'd head down to the beach today as soon as Cordelia left. If she did leave--Bloody annoying woman. He hoped she had work to do or he'd have to find some excuse to kick her out. The girl was determined to own his ass. She knew Spike was far richer than his lifestyle let on but Spike knew that she knew and what she didn't know was that she would never get anywhere near his money. Never. 'Why in the hell did he sleep with the stupid bint', he wondered to himself as he got up to go get a cup of coffee. He liked that Faith chick a lot better. A fantastic lay and gone before he woke up in the morning. He'd have to give her a call next weekend. She was definitely more his style but she was often out of town. There was always Harmony. The girl had a fantastic body but that voice--

"Spike!" Cordelia's yelled out onto the patio.

So much for my peaceful morning Spike thought, taking another drink of his coffee and settling back into his chair.

"What Cordelia?" he yelled back, making no effort to hide his annoyance.

"There's a filthy homeless person sleeping out by your shed. I'm calling the cops." Spike heard her pick up the phone and begin dialing. He got up from his chair and headed over in the direction of the shed. There were lots of homeless people who lived out in the hills but most of them were harmless.

"Cordy! Put the phone down. I'm going to go talk to him, there's no need to get the cops involved. He hasn't done anything." Spike said as he walked past the bedroom window. He could see Cordelia inside talking to someone on the phone and gesturing wildly with her arms. 'Too late,' he thought to himself as he moved up to the side of the sleeping man. 'He looks more like a young boy.' Spike reached down and gently shook the sleeping figure and then stepped back in shock when the figure turned over revealing the sweet face of a tiny young woman. She was still sleeping, but her nose twitched against the dirty blanket she was wrapped in. Spike stared at her, not sure what to do, when he heard Cordelia stomping towards them across the lawn.

"The cops are on their way. Did you wake him up? They said to just leave him and they'll take care of him." She said and then stopped when Spike blocked her way.

"It's just a young girl, Cordelia. I don't want to frighten her when she wakes up so please just--

"HEY, WAKE UP. YOU'RE ON PRIVATE PROPERTY AND THE COPS ARE ON THEIR WAY," Cordelia bent down and screamed into the girl's face. Buffy awoke with a start and looked up in fear at the faces above her. She leapt to her feet and started to run, horrified that she'd been caught sleeping in someone's yard and they'd called the police on her. She took off towards the hills, dropping her blanket when it got caught on a bush. She'd made it to the trail that she'd followed the night before when she felt an arm grab her from behind and stop her. She struggled to get away but the arms wrapped around her were too strong so she finally gave in.

Spike picked up the tiny girl in his arms and carried her back towards the house. She continued to struggle against him but she was so weak and exhausted that she couldn't put up much of a fight. He looked down at her as the tears began streaming down her small face, leaving a trail in the dust that covered her skin. He tried to assure her that everything would be okay, and that he would send the cops away but she continued to cry, looking away from him in shame. Buffy tried to speak at one point, but all that came out of her dry throat was a pathetic sob so she decided to just remain quiet. He'd said that he wouldn't hand her over to the cops, but she was still afraid. If only she could have gotten away from him.

Spike carried the girl into his house, walking past Cordilia, and set her down on the couch. That moment the doorbell rang and Spike went to get it. Buffy looked on in fear as the cops clomped into the entry way and looked in her direction, but they were quickly blocked from her vision when the blond man stepped in front of her.

"It's okay officers. The girl didn't do anything, she was just sleeping. I'm sorry we called you," Spike said firmly.

"Fine with us. Get lots of runaways out here by the beach. If she causes you any more trouble here's the number of a shelter," the tall officer said as pulled a card out from a binder and handed it to Spike. They both walked out the front door with a friendly wave and Spike closed it behind them. Cordelia turned towards Spike with a baffled look on her face.

"What are we supposed to do now? Give me that card for the shelter," she said with her hands on her hips. Buffy stood up and made her way towards the door. She wanted nothing to do with a homeless shelter. She was better off on her own until she could find a job.

"I-I'm sorry I was sleeping in your yard. I didn't mean to. Thanks for not handing me over to the cops. I'll just be on my way now." She said before she felt the blond man's hand on her arm holding her back gently.

"Wait, you're in no condition to leave pet. At least stay and have some breakfast." Buffy slowly turned towards him at the offer. She knew she should go but she hadn't really eaten anything but candy bars for the past five days and real food was hard for her to turn down at this point.

"SPIKE, I am so not eating with her. She's filthy!! Are you crazy!!!" Cordelia said walking towards the phone with the card for the shelter in her hand. "We'll drop her off at the shelter and be rid of her."

"Cordelia, I think you should go home now!" Spike said through gritted teeth.

"What! You're kicking me out so you can fix breakfast for this filthy--thing??? Fine, I'll go. I don't' want to catch TB or something from hanging around here," she sneared grabbing her purse and keys before heading out the door without turning around. As soon as she was gone Spike let out a sigh of relief. Buffy looked down after hearing Cordelia's words. It was true, she hadn't bathed since she left the hotel two weeks before. She must look and smell awful. She'd lost her pack when some teen boys had started chasing her, so she was wearing her only clothes. No wonder no one would hire her for a job. She must look disgusting.

"Now, what can I cook you for breakfast luv?" Spike said, guiding her back towards the couch. Buffy sat down but refused to look at him. She felt so humiliated in front of this man, but she wanted the food so badly she was forcing herself to stay.

"Anything you have. I'm not picky," she said quietly, her eyes glued to the floor. Spike reached out and took the girl's hand in his own and guided her down the hall.

"What's your name?" Spike asked.

"B-Buffy," she stuttered.

"I'm Spike," he said with a friendly smile. A sudden panic gripped her that he was taking her to his bedroom. Why would he want to have sex with her? She was so dirty and that dark haired girl was so beautiful. Even clean and well dressed Buffy knew she was nothing in comparison to the woman who she assumed was Spike's girlfriend. Her trail of thoughts stopped and she looked up at him in fear when they arrived in front of a close door.

Spike looked down at Buffy and was shocked to see the terror in her giant green eyes. Then he realized what was wrong and opened the door.

"Why don't you take a shower while I cook us breakfast. There are towels under the cupboard and one of my girl friends is about your height. She left some clothes here a while back. Let me get them for you," he said disappearing into another room down the hall and then reappearing with a pile of clothes. Buffy exhaled in relief. Not that she would have minded having sex with Spike in exchange for food at this point. He was incredibly good looking and she'd been faced with worst prospects over the past two weeks. But she was weak and filthy and the whole idea was just too overwhelming to even think about. Besides, she laughed to herself, it was absurd to think he'd be interested in her. He was way out of her league. He looked like he could be a movie star or something.

Spike went back down the hall to start cooking. 'One of my girlfriends,' he cursed himself. 'What the hell was she going to think of him.' He had a feeling the girl was hungry. She had that look in her eyes of someone who hadn't eaten in a long time. He pulled a package of turkey sausages out of the freezer and a dozen eggs from the fridge. He'd make her a right feast, he thought to himself smiling as he pictured her eyes when she got out of the shower. Those eyes. Those huge, green, innocent eyes looking up at him. Spike shook himself and went back to cooking breakfast. Last thing he needed was another woman to add to his list of trouble.

Buffy got out of the shower and looked in the mirror. She hadn't really looked at herself since she left the motel. She looked thin and very tan from being outside so much. She pulled on the clothes that Spike had given her and they fit perfectly. She hadn't felt so good in a long time. She carefully cleaned up the bathroom with her towel and walked out into the kitchen where the air was filled with the most wonderful smells--her stomach growled in anticipation and Spike turned around to face her.

'My god she's so cute,' was the first thing he thought when he saw her standing there in Darla's clothes. Then he realized he was staring and smiled, waving her over to the dining room table that was stacked with pancakes, sausages, eggs, muffins and everything else Buffy had been dreaming about for the past few weeks. She sat staring at the food with a wild look in her eyes. She reached up and wiped her mouth, paranoid that she was drooling.

"Go ahead and start, I'll be over in a minute. Do you drink coffee?"

"Oh yes, that would be wonderful," Buffy said smiling like a little girl in a candy store.

They both sat and ate in a comfortable silence. Spike watched amazed as the tiny girl put away the mountain of food on her plate. Buffy blushed when she realized she must look like a pig, but she was so hungry she couldn't stop herself.

"It's all so good. I must look a big glutton," Buffy said with her mouth full. Spike smiled at her and shoveled some hash-browns onto her plate.

"When was the last time you ate?"

"Like, real food? A couple weeks ago," she said, a wave of sorrow overtaking her as she thought of Angel. Spike noticed her saddened expression and avoided asking her any more questions.

An hour later nearly all the food was gone and Buffy realized it was time for her to go.

"Thank you so much. That's the best breakfast I've ever had in my life," she said standing up and gathering her dishes together. "Can I help you clean up?" She was hoping he would say yes so she could hang around for a few more minutes. She hated the idea of leaving, Spike had been so kind to her.

"No, I can take care of this but Pet--"

"I'll return the clothes later, when I get some more. I-I'll be sure and clean them too," she said, worried he was going to make her change back into her smelly clothes.

"Oh no, you keep them. Darla has plenty. What I was going to ask is where are you going now?"

Buffy started walking slowly towards the door. She wanted to avoid talking about the fact that she had nowhere to go. She felt embarrassed about it.

"I'm going to look for a job. I've wanted to apply at a cafe down the road actually, and now that I'm all clean I just might have a shot at it," she said smiling at him appreciatively.

"That sounds good, but until you do find a job why don't you stay here with me." Spike watched her carefully, bracing for any sign that she might not accept so he could look for another excuse to get her to stay. He wasn't sure why but he couldn't let her go, not just for her sake but for his as well.

"You've already done so much for me Spike, I couldn't--"

"I have a guesthouse out back. It's very private. You could live there until you figure things out," he said softly, praying she would accept.

Buffy looked at him in shock. He was offering her a place to stay? 'Take it! Take it!' a voice whispered to her in the back of her head.

"Okay. But I promise I'll pay you rent as soon as I have some money and I can do work around the house. Or I can just stay out of your way," she said nervously biting her lip, her eyes once again riveted to the floor.

Spike wanted nothing more than to take this tiny girl into his arms and protect her with a fierceness he'd never felt before. The feeling baffled and frightened him.

"I just want to see you get back on your feet pet, and no I don't want you doing any work around the place. You'll be my guest," he said, taking her arm and guiding her out the back door so he could show her around the guest house.





You must login (register) to review.