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So to make this clear I don't own any thing!

This will be slash (male/Male)

I'm dyslectic and English isn't my first language so plz forgive me for mistakes I'm without a beta, so if anybody wants to volunteer pls do

That's about all the things you need to know so enjoy.

Italics= thoughts

Bold= writing (a book or letter)

Chapter 8

Xander was closing the fridge door for the 10th time that evening. He didn't take anything from it, just stared at the contents before he decided there was nothing there and closed the door again. He went back to the couch to watch some TV show that didn't really interest him.

Anya was out with the rest of the girls, on their weekly girls-only night…no boys allowed, not even gay ones. With a sigh, he sat down again and started switching channels, hoping to find something good. Then, someone knocked on his door.

"Xander? It's Mark" a voice yelled. Xander opened the door and took a step aside. Mark rolled his eyes and walked inside. Xander smiled.

"Hi Mark, what brings you here?" the brunet asked.

"Well, since the girls are out without us, I thought it would be nice to have our own night out. I hoped you would join us. Nothing fancy, just some beer and pool. What do you think?" Mark asked.

"Did Buffy put you up to this?" Xander questioned. Mark shook his head.

"Nope. This is all me. Come on, my friends want to meet the guy who survived Willow and Buffy as long as you did." Mark told him.

"Ok, just give me a sec." After putting on some clean clothes, Xander and Mark went to a sports bar. Mark's friends were already there.

"Xander, those are my friends, John, Mike, Kevin and Dan." Mark introduced them.

"Dan was with me when I met Buffy." Mark explained.

Xander recalled the first time Mark and Buffy met. It was when he and a friend (Dan apparently) were prepped to be sacrifices to some snake demon. Dan was a shy looking blond and looked younger than the rest. Next to him was John, the embodiment of a jock, right down to the sports jacket draped over the back of his stool. Mike and Kevin where twins and the way they carried themselves reminded Xander of the Weasley twins. They both had the exact mischievous smile he always imagined when he was reading about them in the books.

"So, Xan man. Can we call you that? Willow always does." John said while shaking Xander's hand. Before Xander could answer, one of the twins had taken his hand.

"Willow told us so much about you." He smiled, while his twin furrowed his brows.

"Where are the Hawaiian shirts? Willow told us you wore Hawaiian shirts." He pouted. Xander smiled.

"Yeah, Wills isn't used to me not wearing them. I just moved back and while I was away my style changed. No more oversized Hawaiian shirts for me." Xander explained. It was completely true; while in the past, Mrs. Pratt and Lee made sure he only wore clothes that actually fit him. Outside work clothes, Mrs. Pratt took him to the best tailors in London. He had always joked that he was the best dressed carpenter on that side of the pond. When he came back, he wasn't going to go back to the crap he wore before meeting them. Tonight he was wearing a slim-fitting red shirt and dark, almost black, blue jeans. When he bought them, Buffy had huffed that it looked like something Spike would wear.

"So Xander, take a seat while I get us something to drink," Mark said. "What's your poison?" Xander sat down next to Dan while answering.

"Scotch - no ice" He told the other man. The other guy's at the table all asked for another beer and Mark went up to the bar.

"So Xander, how do you do it?" One of the twins asked.

"Do what?" Xander asked, puzzled by the question.

"Be around all those chicks without a serious case of blue balls." The other twin said. Xander laughed.

"Wills had me and Jessie whipped by the time we were 5. I once thought I had a crush on Buffy. She kind a knocked that out of me. I discovered I was gay not long after that, so yeah, that helped." Xander explained.

"You're gay?" John asked. Xander let out a sigh. Of course, the jock needed to focus on that part of the story.

"Yes. Is that a problem?" Xander asked him.

"Of course not," John said. "It's just…you don't seem the type." John tried to explain.

"The type? So what do you think is the type to be gay?" Xander asked him.

John was a little taken back at the cold tone.

"Hm, well, Dan here." The blond of the group immediately went red and one of the twins slapped the Jock against the back of his head.

"You know damn well Dan hates it when you do that." The other one scolded.

"What? It's not like Xander will have a problem with Dan being gay! He's gay himself." Jack defended himself. The twin that had hit him was about to open his mouth when Dan stopped him.

"That's not the point, John," He said. "It's my life and my choice when, or even if, I share that with anybody. And Kevin," He said as he turned to the twin who hit the jock. "It's great you want to protect me, but I'm a big boy and I can stand up for myself." The blond turned to Xander. "Sorry about that, the twins are my foster brothers and a little overprotective of me. They sometimes forget I'm not the scared little six year-old that needed their protection 24/7 anymore." Dan explained. Xander smiled.

"No problem. The girls are the same. They're still not used to the fact I'm every bit as capable of defending myself as they are." Dan raised his eyebrows a little. It surprised him to hear this, but he didn't interrupt Xander.

"So, Dan, if you're not six anymore, how old are you?"

"I'm 19, the twins are 21, just like John. They played baseball together." Dan told him.

Mark was finally finished at the bar and came back his hands full.

"A little help, please," He asked. They all took their drinks. To his own surprise, Xander really enjoyed the evening, especially talking to Dan. He loved his girls, but it was nice to talk about guy stuff. After an evening of sports and talk, the group was ready to go home.

"Kevin, your brother and John don't need to come with us tonight. Xander's home is in the same direction as mine and Dan's." Mike opened his mouth like he wanted to protest, but Mark interrupted him.

"Don't worry, we are safe with him." Mike nodded his head.

"Someday, you are going to tell us why you trust your girlfriend and her friends more than us." Said Kevin right before the three of them left.

"So they don't think you guys are safe with me or the girls?" Xander asked "What do they know?" Xander was suspicious of these guys. They acted like there was something more going on in Sunnydale. Of course it was true, but most people didn't see passed the ignorance curse on the town.

Dan shrugged. "Not much really. They know something is wrong with this city, they just don't know what." Dan started to explain.

"They come in handy avoiding 'the gangs on pcp', though." Mark cut in. That intrigued Xander.

"What do you mean?"

"Well, we don't know why, but if the scary things come within a half mile radius of the twins, Kevin knows it and Mike finds a way to avoid it." Mark explained.

"It's something they've done since we were kids." Dan told him. "So, now your question is answered I have some of my one."

Xander spread his arms.

"Ask away, I'm an open book."

"How are you as capable as a slayer, 2 witches, and an Ex-vengeance demon?" Dan asked.

Xander let out a small laugh. "You know them better than the rest of your group then."

"I was there; when Mark and I were set to be sacrificed, remember. I saw them in action. So yeah, I want to know how you top that." Dan said.

"Well, I don't think I top them, but I have powers of my own." Xander opened his hand and a small light bulb glowed above it. Sculpting it into a stake, he continued. "This little thing kills almost every nasty I have come across." Xander closed his hand again and the stake disappeared. Dan's eyes grew wide.

"So what…mutants are real, too?" Xander laughed.

"Don't worry. I'm not a X-man, just an energy mage. Don't feel bad though, I thought that to the first time it happened. You already know what Wills and Tara do?" Xander asked Dan nodded.

"Well, they use power they borrow from the earth. I, on the other hand, have my own supply of never ending magic energy. It's like a water spring, I can use as much as I want, as long as I don't take too much at a time. I tend to pass out when I overdo it. But after, like a shit ton of rest, I bounce right back." Xander explained.

"So you're like Scarlet Witch or a wiccan? You just wish something and it happens?"

"I don't wish, I learned long ago that's a dangerous business on the Hellmouth. But, you can compare it to them, yea."

"Ok then," Dan said. "That's kind of neat." Xander smiled.

"So want to tell me why the twins are so protective of you? Were you bullied as a kid or something?" Dan let out a sigh.

"I was a scared little kid, when I came to their home. My parents were killed when I was four. I didn't talk for 2 years and, even then, only to the twins or my foster mom. I never told anybody what really happened. Even as a kid, I knew nobody would believe me. I didn't really know what was going on, until Buffy saved us and explained the demon and vampire thing."

"What do you mean?" Xander asked.

"Well, I don't remember everything. But when mom and dad were still alive, dad used to show me his other face. It always made me laugh. Until one day, a group of things with my dad's other face stormed in. They wanted something from dad. He said he wouldn't come with them and then they killed him and mom. They didn't touch me. To this day, I don't know why they left me unharmed." Dan let out a small sob, Xander put a hand on the younger man's shoulder.

"I'm sorry that happened to you." Xander said. Dan squared his shoulders.

"Don't be. It was a long time ago. Like I told the twins, I'm a big boy now." Dan said.

"Doesn't mean you can't mourn you're parents" Xander said before changing the subject to comic books.

After they dropped Mark at the Summers' house, they walked to Dan's apartment, talking and laughing the whole way.

Xander pulled the boy into a hug, just like he would do with his girls. When he let go, Dan put a hand behind his head and kissed him. Xander was shocked; he never thought he was attractive to guys other than Lee. But when the shock wore off, he pulled his head back.

"Dan, what are you doing?" He asked. Dan's face paled.

"Oh, my god! I'm so sorry. You're not interested. I thought…I'm sorry, it's just…I don't meet a lot of single guys, let alone, one I like. And I thought you were sending me signals or something. I'm really sorry." Dan was about to apologize some more when Xander interrupted him.

"Dude, chill. I'm flattered, really, but I'm not single." Xander told him. Dan looked confused.

"But, Mark told me you were all down because of all the couplely stuff going on in the Scooby gang." The younger boy said.

"Yeah, because my boyfriend has been on a soul-searching trip, for about 6 months now." Xander explained. Dan hit himself.

"I shouldn't have assumed. I'm such an idiot." Xander laid a hand on the man's shoulder.

"Don't worry about it. Like I said, it's flattering. You know, you're like the first male friend I have made in ages. So, I would hate to see it go south because of something like a kiss. What do you say, friends?" Xander asked. Dan smiled.

"That would be great. What about the new X-men movie next week?" Xander punched Dan's shoulder.

"You and I think the same. Just let me know the time and place" Xander told him, before giving the boy a final hug and going home.