William's lips were soft against mine. The first kiss I bestowed upon him was short and sweet, a prolonged peck on the lips. I pulled back slightly, nuzzling his nose playfully. I could feel his smile against my lips. Slowly, I leaned back in, kissing him fully this time. I felt him nervously stiffen a little at first; after all, this was most likely his first ever kiss. He kissed me back tentatively, placing his hands awkwardly on my waist, as if it were the 'proper' thing to do.

But as I tenderly touched his face, I felt him start to relax. He quickly began mimicking my movements, and his kisses became blissfully familiar.

Always the fast learner, eh Spike?

His lips felt deliciously soft and full; they were the same lips I'd kissed countless time, and had ached to kiss ever since.

And I know exactly what other things those sinful lips are capable of...

I moaned slightly. Kissing him was both a familiar caress and a new, exciting experience. I was tantalizingly reminded of kissing Spike, but this kiss was also distinctly William.

Our first kiss...

His shy hands were journeying upward from my waist, and I sighed against his lips as he gently cupped my face with both hands.

I wonder if French-kissing was a thing in the 1800s?

I ran my tongue over his lips, begging for entrance. I felt William's sharp intake of breath at this foreign sensation. Instinctively, he parted his lips slightly, allowing me access; I hungrily plunged my tongue into his mouth... how I craved his taste! Our tongues entwined in the most sensual of dances, as William's (no longer shy) fingers reached up to tangle in my hair. A deep, erotic moan resounded in his throat as I gently bit down on the plush pillow of his lower lip. He pulled me flush against him; we were now both kneeling upright on the grass, arms wrapped around each other in a tight, amorous embrace. Our kiss was one of pure, heartfelt love paired with awakened, unbridled passion...

I could feel William's prominent arousal pressing against my stomach, and could not repress my moans of pleasure.

God, I've missed how this feels...

As if on cue, William abruptly broke our kiss. My moans this time were of distress, at the mournful loss of his lips. We both sat back on our knees, eyes locked on each other in a lustful gaze, breathing heavily.

"My God... Elizabeth," he breathed. His voice was a rich, irresistible concoction of silk, honey and velvet. "That was... wow. Gosh. Well, there simply are no words."

"My darling poet... with no words?" I teased.

With a roguish smile that set my heart aflutter, William bestowed a loving kiss to my cheek. "Exquisite, perhaps?" He then began peppering the rest of my face with kisses, interspersing each kiss with a different adjective. I giggled as he graced my other cheek, my forehead, my eyes and my nose with sweet, light kisses. "Sublime... Delectable... Heavenly... Beauteous... Transcendent..." He hungrily found my lips again, and I kissed him back with equally fervent need.

After a blissful while, he broke away for the second time. "Elizabeth, we must desist," he said softly, looking as disappointed and regretful as I was. "Whilst I'd happily keep kissing you forever," – I smiled with great satisfaction at this notion – "I'm afraid it is greatly frowned upon to behave in such an, um, amorous manner outdoors, in public space. I, uh... I'm especially weary as I presently happen to be... well, um..." he trailed off awkwardly, an adorable blush staining his cheeks as he sheepishly glanced down. My eyes eagerly followed; there was still a rather significant bulge in his trousers.

Baby steps Buffy... remember, we're still living in repressed Victorian times!

And my William is still an innocent.

An innocent with a devastatingly sensual, sex-obsessed Spike lying dormant inside him, aching to be freed...

"Shall we head back to yours?" I proposed coyly, smiling up at William. "Ya know, so we can... 'keep kissing forever'?"

His smile was pure and adoring. Without another word, he took my face in his hands and kissed me; this time, his kiss was spine-tinglingly slow, as soft as the brush of a butterfly wing. I felt my body melt into his embrace, as we sighed against each other's lips.

"How I love you, Elizabeth Summers," William whispered as we eventually pulled away, his adoring eyes brimming with emotion.

"I love you too, William."

It feels so good, so freeing to finally be able to say it. Like, I'm finally living my truth, being myself. Loving who I truly love.

"Okay, c'mon," I sprung agilely to my feet, outstretching my arms to him. "Let's go!"

William remained seated. "Yes, yes, let us go..." he paused, looking slightly embarrassed. "Although, would you mind awfully... um, waiting a few minutes? Just a minute... or two."

Realization dawned on my face as my eyes, once again, drifted downwards. I giggled girlishly. William blushed.

"Aw, William, it's okay – I'll wait. And it's nothing to be embarrassed about, trust me!" I winked at him, and his blush deepened. I resumed my position sitting cross-legged next to him. "Just think of... oh, I dunno – Vincent? Yeah, yeah, Vincent! Oh my god, Vincent... having sex!" I cackled with laughter at this mental image, particularly the thought of his giant twirly moustache flopping around hilariously. William looked horrified.

"I'm sorry... what?"

"Vincent. Having sex." I said plainly, wiping tears of mirth from my eyes. "Believe me, it's a tried and tested theory. Thinking of something that does the opposite of turning you on will... well, turn you right off."

"I still cannot fathom the way you speak sometimes," William chuckled lightly, his expression one of curiosity and awe. "I can confidently say that I have never encountered anyone quite like you before, Elizabeth."

"I'm one of a kind, baby," I grinned at him. He paused for a second, looking vaguely into the distance, before shuddering with disgust.

I burst out laughing again. "...Did it work?"

William looked down. "Yes. Yes, it most certainly did." He looked truly traumatised.

"See, works like a charm! Now, back to your humble abode we go," I proclaimed cheerfully, pulling William to his feet.

"I fear I may need some form of therapeutic treatment to burn said image from my brain..." William grumbled as we began walking home, arm in arm. I gave him a pacifying kiss on the cheek, and he couldn't hide the smile which flickered on his lips.


We arrived back at the Pratt's household, where I still felt a sad tug at my heart at the absence of Anne.

"Mrs. Payne?" William called out, eyes scanning around the room. "She must have gone home for the evening," he checked his pocket-watch, "it's already past six o'clock." He looked at me, a mischievous glint in his eyes. "It appears we are quite alone, Miss. Summers..."

Who is this man, and what has he done with my shy, softly spoken William?

I gave a little shriek of delight as William suddenly ambushed me in the hallway, pressing me against the wall as he paved a path of pleasurable kisses up my neck. My arms slowly wound round his neck as his lips eventually descended upon mine in a heated frenzy of passion.

"So..." I panted, between kisses. "I take it you... rather enjoy kissing me?"

"Kissing you, Elizabeth, may just be my favourite thing in this world," William breathed, his eyes alight with the flames of passion, which flared and danced in those shimmering azure orbs. He had never looked more like Spike.

He placed a gentle kiss to my nose. We were both still breathing heavily. "Speaking of the time..."

"Oh y-yeah," I stuttered, fanning myself with my hand. "...Six o'clock, you said."

"You must be famished!"

"I guess I am kinda hungry, yeah," I giggled at William's typically exaggerated way with words.

"What would you like for dinner? I'd love to cook for you," William's eyes lit up excitedly.

"...You can cook?"

Well, this is definitely news to me...

"Don't look so surprised," William tutted, giving me one of his Spike-like lopsided grins. "I used to love helping Cook in the kitchens when I was a boy. Mother found it rather strange, at first; she said that it 'wasn't my place' as 'the man of the house'..." he sighed, shaking his head slightly. I felt my heart lurch.

Awww, what a cutie. I can just imagine him as an excitable little boy with a mixing bowl...

"However, I did not let this deter me!" William smiled earnestly. "Even now, I like to help out where I can. Besides, I'd love to be able to serve you something that I'd made myself. I want to utterly spoil you, you see."

Be still, my beating heart.

"Although, you don't... think me any less of a man, do you?" He chewed his lip worriedly.

Stop drawing attention to those lips, you rascal...

"Of course not! You're lovely, William," I stroked his cheek fondly. "If anything, it makes you more of a man in my eyes."

That's my William – sod the patriarchy!

His face immediately lit up. "In that case, I shall go and tell Mrs. Morris to take the night off! If you'd like, Elizabeth, you may peruse my array of literature in the library, while you wait." He looked suddenly shy again.

"Thank you William, I'd love to! Gotta get started on those classics, eh?"

"Indeed! I will return imminently with tonight's menu..." William grinned at me, and began heading towards the kitchen, before abruptly turning back, as if he'd forgotten something. He took my face in his hands, and deftly kissed me on the lips. I returned his smile, tingling literally everywhere.


As William had suggested, I was 'perusing' his library when he popped his head round the door, several minutes later.

"Would you prefer grouse, pheasant or chicken? I sincerely do not mind which – "

"Chicken! Definitely chicken, please."

I've certainly never 'perused' either of the other two... so chicken sounds like the safest bet to me.

"Chicken it is! I'll call upon you when it's ready," He rewarded me with of his sunniest smiles. "Happy reading!"

He's too cute for this world.

I fingered the spines of the countless hardback books adorning the shelves. An affectionate smile graced my lips when I saw how well-thumbed they all appeared to be.

Ah, William. My adorable little bookworm.

Hmm, what to read... I wonder if there's a 'classic' equivalent to a rom-com here?

Pride and Prejudice? Great Expectations? Far From the Madding Crowd?

Oooo, Wuthering Heights...

I'd never read the whole thing, but distinctly remembered it not being known as the happiest of books... although, it is renowned as one of the most famous romances of all time.

So a rom-com, without the 'com'? That'll do, I guess...

I skipped through the first few chapters (who is this Lockwood guy, anyway?), keen to get straight to the good stuff.

Ah, here we go... the star-crossed romance of Heathcliff and Cathy.

I remembered we talked about the book in class once. Heathcliff is supposed to be this ultimate 'Byronic Hero', which means – wait, what was that quote again? Oh yeah... "Mad, Bad, and Dangerous to Know".

Well, three guesses for who that reminds me of...

I found myself quickly engrossed in the story; I could have been sat there for hours for all I knew – I was truly captivated. Whilst it swiftly became pretty obvious that all the main characters were utter dickwads, I couldn't help but see some of Cathy's fire and spirit in myself; as well as, of course, visualising Spike as my dark, brooding, fiercely passionate Heathcliff. There were also so many eerie parallels, particularly the constant obstacles which barricaded their love. I was surprised to find my eyes filling up with tears at the haunting familiarity of Cathy's weakness, worrying what others would think, that Heathcliff was beneath her. And the irrevocable, transcendent power of their love...

"Whatever souls are made of, his and mine are the same."

Even if he doesn't actually have a soul any more... whatever. It still resonates, m'kay?

A delicious smell was wafting through the door. Wiping my eyes, I closed the book (and all the unwanted emotions that accompanied it), just in time to see William practically skip through the door, wearing a proud smile on his face.

"Dinner is served, my Lady!"

When he escorted me into the dining room, I was truly awe-struck by the sight before me. The table was beautifully laid with silverware, vases of flowers and flickering candles. The food looked utterly magnificent; William had lovingly prepared a majestic-looking roast chicken drizzled with some kind of creamy sauce, resting on a bed of assorted vegetables. There were baskets of bread flanking either side of the main dish, and a bottle of plum-coloured red wine.

Well, Spike certainly kept this talent well-hidden... is there anything he can't do?!

"Oh my gosh William, this all looks amazing!" I turned to face him, beaming. He smiled back shyly.

"Really? I do hope it all caters to your taste, Elizabeth."

"Are you kidding? This is like... fancy restaurant standard! No one's ever done anything like this for me before," I said softly, gazing adoringly into his eyes. He grinned bashfully. I kissed him on the lips, a golden-hued happy feeling bubbling up in my chest.

"You deserve the world, Elizabeth," William said sincerely. "Serving you dinner is the least I can do!"

We tucked into our delicious food, laughing and chatting as the wine glasses kept refilling. But as I relished mine and William's first ever 'dinner date', I couldn't help thinking back to the novel I'd just read, and the world I had to go back to... where life for us could never be this blissful and easy. One particular worry, which I'd been trying to keep confined at the back of my mind, was whether my amateur dabbling with time-travel could lose me both Spike and William forever...

"Be with me always - take any form - drive me mad! Only do not leave me in this abyss, where I cannot find you."