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Chapter 7








Buffy tossed and turned in her bed before she finally threw her covers back and sat up. She hadn't been able to sleep because her thoughts constantly drifted to Spike and what happened at the Bronze earlier that night. She felt almost bad for lying to Xander but at the same time her annoyance at having to hide Spike and whatever it was between them was eating her up inside.



She knew Spike wouldn't say anything to any of her friends about what was happening between them and that thought also saddened her. She didn't want to hide her feelings for him or not be able to act like a somewhat normal couple in public. Xander was her biggest fear. It was no secret that Xander hated Spike with an unhealthy passion. The rest of the gang's reaction, although not quite as verbal as Xander's, wasn't much better. The looks of disgust aimed at Spike made Buffy's heart break, remembering that she had looked at him the same way not so very long ago. She still didn't understand what was going on as far as her feelings were concerned but something definitely had changed.



Standing, Buffy let out a long breath before walking across the room and opening her door. The occupants of the house were all sleeping and she walked quietly to the steps before going down. She made her way into the kitchen, opening the refrigerator and looking inside before sighing and leaning her head on the door as she stared at its contents.



"The food won't just jump out at you," Dawn said softly, smiling as Buffy jumped and slammed the door shut.



"Geez, don't do that," Buffy scolded. "You trying to give me a heart attack?"



"Sorry," Dawn smiled.



"It's okay," Buffy told her as she leaned back against the counter and stared at her sister. "What are you doing up anyway?"



"Couldn't sleep."



"Must be going around," Buffy commented.



"Seems so," Dawn told her as she walked to the island bar and sat down. "So, what's up? Why can't you sleep?"



"I just have a lot on my mind is all," Buffy told her before joining her at the island.



"Any of this happen to be about Spike?"



"Shh, keep your voice down," Buffy told her, glancing behind her to make sure Willow wasn't also up and about.



"Sorry. So, what's got you so worked up? Did something happen?" Dawn whispered.



Buffy laughed quietly before shaking her head. "Boy did it ever."



"Well, come on, spill," Dawn grinned.



Buffy looked over at Dawn and smiled as she stared at her. She wasn't sure how much she could trust Dawn to keep quiet about the Spike stuff but she desperately needed to talk to someone. She was getting more confused by the day. "You promise you won't mention this to another living soul?"



"I promise," Dawn beamed. "It'll be our little secret."



Buffy smiled back at Dawn, knowing she had ignored her little sister for months now. Maybe this was what they both needed, a little bonding time - and nothing brought sisters closer than talk of boys and secrets.




~*~*~*~



Buffy made her way into the Magic Box and smiled as Anya greeted her before making her way to the table and sitting down. She had talked to Dawn for over an hour the night before and everyone's concern over her missing the meetings was enough for her to show up. No matter how much she wanted to run to Spike's crypt, she couldn't let mindless mistakes draw more suspicion onto her and Spike's doings. As the others slowly made their way inside, she swallowed heavily as Xander practically stared a hole through her head.



"Well, look who decided to make the meeting," Xander said sarcastically as he took a seat.



Buffy just stared at him and she didn't know whether to be mad or hurt by his tone of voice. Who did he think he was anyway? He was living with an ex-demon. What made him any better than her?



"Xander, remember what I told you?" Anya asked angrily from her spot behind the counter.



Xander glanced over at Anya before sighing heavily and leaning back in his chair and crossing his arms over his chest. Sure the prospects of no sex were a little disconcerting, but letting Buffy carry on with Spike was unacceptable. He knew what he saw and no matter how many times Anya told him he imagined it, he knew he hadn't. He had seen Buffy and Spike kissing. Something was definitely wrong with her and he was going to find out what.



The meeting was uneventful and Buffy had to force herself not to yawn as the conversation drew lengthy. She was itching to get out of there but wasn't about to end things to quickly in fear of sending Xander off in another overly dramatic rant. After running through every excuse she had, Buffy finally managed to escape alone for patrol. She couldn't believe how much Xander had persisted he accompany her. She hadn't had the gangs help in ages. Why would she need it now?



Making her way quickly down the sidewalk, Buffy's mind was on one thing and one thing only. Finding Spike. She walked quickly across town to where she knew he was waiting for her. As the graveyard came into view she smiled before she broke out into a slight jog. Of course things never worked the way she planned. As she made her way inside the cemetery gates a distant scream sent her running to the rescue of another unlucky victim.




~*~*~*~



It didn't take him long to find her and Spike smiled as he saw Buffy crossing the graveyard. His steps quickened and the closer he got to her the stronger her scent became. It wasn't the usual scent he associated with her but her blood. He was running before he even saw her stagger.



Buffy saw him coming toward her and she smiled best she could before everything started to blur. He looked panicked and she tried to stay on her feet but as she blinked her eyes everything started to spin before it went black.



Spike caught her before her body hit the ground. He was breathing heavily, heaving in large amounts of unneeded air as he pulled her into his arms. "Buffy, luv, what happened?" He asked her as he laid her down. He realized she had passed out as he began to check her for injuries. There was a large gash down her right arm extending from her shoulder to her elbow. Scratches marred her face and the bright red spot that soaked the front of her shirt caused Spike to growl softly as he lifted the hem of her shirt. There was a large gash across her stomach and the sight of her blood forced him to fight back his demon.



Picking her up, Spike turned and practically ran back to his crypt. Kicking the door open he crossed the room and laid her on the sarcophagus before he turned and jumped down the opening to the lower level. He came back a few minutes later with his first aid supplies and clean water.



He ripped her shirt up the center and clenched his jaw as he saw all the blood she had spilled. He didn't know what had done this to her but he knew that if Buffy hadn't already killed it, that it would be sorry it had ever crossed her path when he found it.



He silently cleaned her wounds and was relieved to see that her injuries weren't as serious as he had initially thought. The smaller cuts had already closed and the two larger ones had stopped bleeding. He didn't realize how bad his hands were shaking until he tried to tape the bandage across the cut on her stomach. He stopped for a minute, taking deep breaths as he closed his eyes and tried to get a hold of his emotions. When he felt warmth cover the back of his hand, Spike opened his eyes and let out a breath as he saw Buffy looking at him.



He smiled at her before leaning down and kissing her. The bandages were forgotten as he ran his fingers through her hair and he inhaled deeply to take in her scent. He savored the taste of her, drinking her in like fine wine before pulling back so she could breathe. He covered her face with small kisses and when he felt her hand on the back of his head, he buried his face into and neck.



"I'm okay," Buffy said quietly as she held him to her. She could feel him shaking against her and she had felt the desperation in his kiss. The look on his face when she woke up told her everything he was feeling. She had never seen Spike scared but she knew he was now. The mere thought that her being injured had scared him made her smile as she closed her eyes and sighed.



Spike wasn't sure how long he awkwardly held her as she lay on the cold stone sarcophagus but giving her neck a small kiss he finally lifted his head and looked at her. "You okay?"



"Yeah," Buffy smiled. She watched him as he smiled at her before he stood up straight again and finished covering the wound on her stomach. Then started on her arm. He worked silently and she could still see the fear in his eyes. She couldn't help but smile as he tended to her. His touch was gentle and as he finished up and turned his eyes to her, she smiled. "Thank you."



"No need to thank me Buffy," Spike told her. "There isn't anything I wouldn't do for you."



Buffy knew at that moment as she looked at him that she would do everything in her power to get the gang to see him for who he really was. He wasn't the same demon who came into town boasting about how many kills he had made. He was a man. A man who loved her. She could see it in his actions, hear it in the sound of his voice and see it in the way he looked at her. He loved her no matter what.



Sitting up, Buffy smiled as Spike tried to get her to lie back down and she giggled as he growled at her for not listening. "Now don't go thinking you can boss me around just because I finally realized what a sweet guy you really are."



"Sweet?" Spike scowled. "'M not sweet slayer! Far from it. Big bad here, remember?"



"Oh yeah," Buffy laughed. "I remember."



Spike growled again before smiling as Buffy continued to laugh. He knew his threats were useless, not that they had ever worked before, but a guy had to believe something, right?



When a slight draft caused a chill to run up Buffy's spine, she looked down and her eyes widened before she quickly grabbed the sides of her torn shirt and held them together. She felt her face flame and her heart beat double-time in her chest before she saw Spike turn from her and jump down into the lower level.



She tried to get her breathing under control and her mind conjured up images of Spike looking at her in nothing but her bra. The thought made her already red face glow in the dim light of the darkened crypt. Hearing Spike coming back up the ladder, Buffy slid to the edge of the sarcophagus and put her free hand down to steady herself as she prepared to jump down.



"Hey, don't go hurting yourself," Spike told her as he made his way back to her. "Just stay put."



"I'm fine," Buffy told him as she leaned forward and tried to jump down.



"No you're not. Now don't move," Spike told her as he reached out and held her arm in an attempt to get her to stay put. He saw her holding her shirt together and sighed heavily before giving her a tiny smile. "I'm sorry about your shirt Buffy. I didn't mean to rip it all the way up. I just got a little anxious to stop the bleeding is all."



Buffy nodded her head and glanced up at him before she saw the white material he was holding in his hand. She smiled as he held it out to her.



"Not as nice as the lilac you had, but at least it's in one piece."



"Since when do you own anything that isn't black?" She smiled, trying to calm herself down as she took the shirt from him.



"Since my disastrous GAP phase," Spike grinned. "If I remember correctly, you weren't too impressed."



Buffy giggled slightly before shaking her head at him. "Turn around."



"Why? `S not like I haven't already seen it," Spike grinned.



Buffy tried desperately not to smile as he looked at her but failed. She felt her cheeks flush again before shaking her head. "Well you can't see it again until I'm ready for you to."



"So, that means I will, then?" Spike asked her as he took a step closer and positioned himself between her legs.



Buffy smiled as she looked at him before looking down as his hands slid to her waist. "Maybe," she said softly. "But not tonight."



"Tomorrow then?"



Another laugh from Buffy caused Spike to smile big before he leaned up and kissed her. He hated that she felt uncomfortable about being half-undressed in front of him and he really hadn't meant to rip her shirt as much as he had. To be honest he had barely even looked at her. His main concern was getting her patched up, not taking a peek at her half-clothed body. The more he thought about it, the more he wished he had paid more attention.



Buffy was the first to pull away from the kiss and she smiled as she looked at him. "Now turn around so I can change."



Spike sighed dramatically before turning his back to her and Buffy couldn't help but smile as she laid his shirt on her lap before slipping her old one off her shoulders. When the bloodied scrap of material hit the floor, she looked up as Spike turned his head to the side. "No peeking," she grinned as she grabbed his head and pushed it back the other direction.



"Taking all the fun out of everything," Spike mumbled with a huge grin as he crossed his arms over his chest.



Buffy groaned slightly as she lifted her arm and slipped it into the shirt before pulling it over her head. She smiled as the material slipped over her face and she was once again surrounded by Spike's scent. As she pulled the shirt into place, she sighed lightly before looking back up at him. "Okay, I'm finished. You can turn around now."



Spike smiled as he took a step toward her and when she reached out and her arms slid up around his neck his smile widened. "So, I guess patrolling isn't an option now, is it?"



"Nope," Buffy smiled.



"Guess you'll be going now?"



Buffy shook her head as she smiled before she leaned down and kissed him softly. "If you really want me to," she whispered against his lips.



"Not bloody likely," Spike smiled before he leaned up and deepened the kiss.





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