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Part One
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Buffy punches the puffy-suited Xander, taking out all her frustrations about the recent revelation that Spike wants her. She simply cannot comprehend the idea and is repulsed and confused by it. It seems so sick. Spike is stealing my underwear and has a shrine of me, for the love of God. Am I so messed up that he's the only type of guy who'll want me?


"Spike!" She hits Xander. "Spike wants me, how obscene is that?" she asks as her arms are thrown in the air in frustration.


From behind her, she can hear Giles as she continues to hit Xander. "Well, it is very strange. I can't imagine what he's thinking." He stands up and begins to take back what he feels may have been somewhat insulting. "Uh, not, not that you're not, uh, attractive…"


Buffy stops her assault on Xander. "I feel gross, you know, like, like, dirty." Her eyes narrow at the thought of Spike actually thinking that she had given him any hint that she would want him like that and she once again begins pummeling Xander, forgetting he was in the padding.


"That's ridiculous, you can't be responsible for what Spike thinks or, feels," he tries to assure her.


Buffy stops punching again. "Well, aren't I responsible? I mean, something about me had to make him feel that, right? Something that made him say, 'woof, that's the one for me!'" She imagines Spike is the target she's punching and begins to violently hit it. She punches several times, each hit harder then the last and then finishes by viciously kneeing its groin area.


Giles is worried about her violent outburst. "Buffy I think perhaps you should calm down."


"Me too."


Buffy immediately remembers who she was attacking and a look of horror passes over her face. Oh God, I hurt Xander. "Oh! Puffy Xander, uh, I'm sorry, I got... guess I got carried away." She removes the fencing mask he was using to shield his face and gives it to Giles. Xander's mouth hangs open as he tries to take in large gulps of air to replace what was forcefully expelled from his lungs by Buffy's venting. "Are you okay?"


By the sound of his voice he is obviously hurt. "I'm alive. I can tell 'cause of the pain."


"Do you wanna sit down?"


His head slightly shakes side-to-side in a negative. "I'm not that bendy." His eyes light up as he looks to the wall hopefully and points to it. "I could lean."


"I'll get some ice," Giles says before leaving them alone.


Buffy helps Puffy Xander waddle over to the wall and leans him against it. Xander sighs loudly, thankful to be off his feet.


"Comfy?" Buffy asks.


"Oh, yeah. This leaning? This is the stuff."


Still not fully finished with venting her frustration, Buffy begins to rant. "That's my secret to attracting men. You know, it's simple really, you slap 'em around a bit, you torture 'em, you make their lives a living hell-"


"Buff…"


"...and sure, the nice guys, they'll run away, but every now and then you'll meet a real prince of a guy like Spike who gets off on it."


Tired of Buffy blaming herself, Xander decides to reassure her. "Buffy..." He jerks his head sideways trying to get the momentum to standup on his own, but he fails miserably and succeeds in only wobbling a little. "Stand me up." Buffy helps him stand up straight. As he begins to lose his balance and slants toward Buffy, she puts her hands on the puffy stomach to stabilize him. Xander wishes he could look at Buffy in the eyes better but the large puffy suit inhibits that. "The problem is not you. Don't do this to yourself, please."


"It's just..." Buffy looks down feeling slightly embarrassed talking about this to Xander. "I just wanna know that there's gonna be another good one. One that I won't chase away."


Xander's eyes express a compassion and sense of love that Buffy had to admit she had many times been curious about. Nothing in those eyes would ever hurt her on purpose. His voice resonates with honesty as he tells her, "There will be. Promise. He's out there, he could come along any minute."


Not wanting to feel comforted despite the emotion in Xander's deep, beautiful, brown eyes, Buffy responds in a resigned tone, "Yeah, and the minute after that I can terrify him with my alarming strength and remarkable self-involvement."


"What? I don't think you're like that." He's so beautiful when his eyes do that.


Thinking this conversation is allowing her emotions to run into a very dangerous path, Buffy changes the subject. "Maybe I could change. You know, I could, I could work harder. I could spend less time slaying, I could laugh at his jokes, I mean, men like that, right, the, the joke-laughing-at?" Oh please Xander, don't keep looking at me like that.


"Or maybe you could just be Buffy, he'll see your amazing heart, and he'll fall in love with you."


And just like that every wall she had ever put up around her heart came crashing down.


Every pang of pain that she wasn't good enough for anyone. Every insecurity about her personality. Every hurtful memory that callused her soul. Everything. It all melted with the simple heartfelt words of this beautiful, beautiful, man.


He had touched her very soul with his essence.


Now she wanted to hold him.


She needed to hold him.


"Xander, that's..." Words failed her. She never knew what to say at times like these. "Aw!" That sound escaped her lips as pure joy. Her soul spoke. And it hadn't uttered a single word. She rushed to him and put her hands around Xander's neck. She was surprised to find that her head rested on his strong, full, chest instead of the massive puffy suit from earlier. Rather then question she closed her eyes, moaned softly and deepened her grip around him, enjoying the prickling, pleasant tingle it was releasing deep within her chest.


"This is the day you choose to hug me?" He shakes his head and sighs in an amused manner.


Those words held such a deeper meaning. Why? Why had she not allowed herself to be touched like this by him. To be held and caressed by him. To truly be one with him. To feel at peace with him? It was always there.


Why did she wait until now? Now that he couldn't love like her like that anymore? Now that he completed the spirit of another?


"Buffy?" She hoped she understood the tone in his voice the right way. Because if she did then she could still feel that love for her. She opened her eyes in response and grunted a contented noise of acknowledgement. "You ever think maybe the reason you haven't found a great relationship on the Hellmouth is... because it's a Hellmouth? Seems to me it's a pretty terrible place to try to build anything."


She looked up at him and spoke from the soul. With no barriers of fear of what it could do to the friendship they had together, for that was how he left her. With no walls. If she waited… If she allowed herself the time to rebuild those walls she would never have the courage to say and do what she wanted to right now. "Or maybe… I just haven't looked in the right place?" Her hands raised to touch his chin and ruffle his hair in her fingers.

Xander had touched her in an unbelievable way mentally. Their eyes met and she pleaded silently for him to do the same… physically. Kiss me, Xander. Oh god I need you. Kiss me please! Another moan escaped her. This one slower and sultry.


"I need you, too." His voice was low, husky and quiet.


It made her melt. Her breath hitched and she felt sparks at the small of her back where his hands made contact with her body.


"How?" She dared to ask. "How do you need me?"


"I need you to wake up."


"What?"



~~~~~~***~~~~~~



"Wake up Buffy. Wake up."


Buffy opened her eyes to find deep brown eyes staring at her. "Xander?" she said quietly.


"That's my name. Don't wear it out."


Buffy didn't even bother to roll her eyes at the tremendously immature joke. She was upset. She liked her dream and wanted to go back to it. Back to the place where Xander had feelings about her.


Back when they were about to…


"Umm, Xander?"


"Yeah."


"Why did you wake me up? I was enjoying my nap."


"Yeah I bet," he said nervously and quietly.


"What does that mean?" He doesn't know, does he?"


"Well… Buffy… You were…heh… um," He blushed a little. "You were…moaning," he finished quietly.


Oh God. Oh God. Oh God. Please tell me I didn't say anything. Riley used to say I talked in my sleep. She tried to cover her embarrassment by looking at the floor and hoping that Xander wouldn't see the cheeks which she knew had to be reddening by the second. "I… I do not moan," she protested.


Seeing an opening that would probably never present itself ever again, Xander decided to milk this for all it was worth. "Oh of course not. The sexually loaded noises you were making were completely in sync with someone dreaming about pink, fluffy, clouds."


"I was not moaning," she said more forcefully trying to not smile.


"Buffy, either you were moaning or you have the most arousing snoring on this planet."


"I don't snore!"


"Ah-hah! You admit it! You were moaning!" he said with his face smug.


"Okay! I may have been having less then… peaceful dreams. And before you come back with a remark may I say, 'Let he who is without sin, cast the first stone.'" Buffy crossed her arms waiting for Xander to continue.


Well, she has me there. "Understood. No stone casting for this sinner. But if you wouldn't mind you should probably take your raunchy sex dreams out of the store. I have no idea what I would have had to say if a customer, or worse, Giles, was here hearing you do THAT."


"Well if you were Anya, you'd probably get the customer to think I'd just drank some kooky aphrodisiac that we make in the store, and then sell him that purple stuff that smells funny."


Xander looked down. "Yeah that, uh, that does kinda, uh, sound like something Anya would do." He began to turn away.


Oh my God. What kind of insensitive bitch am I? "Oh, Xander… I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to… I just… I'm sorry." Buffy felt heartbroken. She hadn't meant to bring up Anya around Xander, knowing how sensitive he still felt about it.


"It's okay, Buff. I know you didn't mean anything by it. I'm just still… Well the word depressed wouldn't really do me much justice."


"That bad?"


His voice was quiet. "Yeah. But I guess it serves me right. You all tried to warn me about her but I refused to listen. I sure know how to pick 'em, huh? Mantises, mummies, witches, slayers, vengeance demons. I cannot believe the closest thing to normal was Cordelia!"


"You shouldn't beat yourself up over this, Xand. It's not your fault."


"Really? 'Cause my lack of happiness would like to differ."


"Xander… One day-"


"I'm not in the mood, Buffy."


"Well, get in the mood because I'm sick and tired of seeing you moping about something that wasn't your fault."


" If I hadn't been so hard on Anya about doing that spell she never would have left me."


"Maybe. And maybe if I had run faster then I could have caught Riley's helicopter and he never would have left Sunnydale. Maybe if I had gone home right away instead of flir- um, talking with you then I could have gotten my mom to the hospital quicker and she'd still be alive… Maybe. Maybe, maybe, maybe. You can't punish yourself with maybes, Xand.


"Buffy I… I'm scared, okay. I'm twenty-one, and I'm scared to death I'm never gonna find love again."


"Oh, Xander." Buffy moved to him and pulled him into a comforting embrace, which he accepted gladly. Sometimes words don't do justice to express how a person feels. "Xander. You're going to find someone. Someone amazing. Someone who'll love you the way you deserve. You're too special a guy to not have someone." Buffy hurt on the inside even if she didn't show it externally. She wished she could be that someone, but she knew it would never be. She had wasted her chances and hurt him far too often for that to happen now.


"I hope you're right. I don't want to be alone."


Buffy's grip on him increased and she soaked in as much of Xander as she possibly could. I don't deserve to have him. But at least for a few moments, in the universe I've created in his arms, he can be mine.


"You're not alone, Xander. I wouldn't let that happen."



~~~~~~***~~~~~~



Bry should have been alert, or at least more aware of his surroundings then he was at the moment. He twirled his stake in his fingers, using the movement to keep his mind somewhat planted in the present so he wouldn't get himself killed. His mind kept wondering to a certain teenager in long brown hair.


God, she had pretty hair. It was so soft and flow-y. He could remember the way it smelled of strawberries and kiwi in the morning's when her hair was still a little damp from her shower. It was always mixed with the scent of Dove soap. Kiwis and strawberries. That reminded him of how thirsty he was. A snapple would really hit the spot, right about now-


He heard a dull thud. He looked at the ground to see that the stake he had been twirling in his fingers had fallen out of them.


Right. Focus, Bry. Focus. Graveyard. Waiting for dead guy to rise. Must stay alert. As he picked up his stake he let out a yawn.


"Tired, Bry?"


Bry turned toward his friend and love coach, Xander Harris. "Yeah. Sorry Xand, but I stayed up last night reading for a test I had this morning. Y'know, people are always like, 'No biggie. I'll read the book tomorrow.' Then after a few weeks you find out there's a test for it 'tomorrow' and you end up spending 'tonight' reading the dang thing. By the way, 'Great Expectations': highly over-rated and nothing like the movie. 'One of the greatest pieces of English literature', my ass!"


"I take it you failed."


"The large blanks on my test would probably agree with you." Bry yawned again. "Oh man. When you go help fight evil they don't mention the long hours of nothing in the brochure. How come you're not going insane?"


"I guess I'm used to it. Been doing this since I was sixteen. After awhile you learn to take this time to reflect upon yourself and ponder your next step in life."


"And for someone like me, who doesn't have the foresight of 'two hours from now'?"


"Buy a Gameboy."


"Check."


After about fifteen seconds, Bry decides to keep the conversation going. "So… What's the battle plan? How do we take this bloodsucker down?"


Xander turned to him amused. " You want something more detailed then 'stake in the heart'?"


"Well, when you put it like that… yes."


"Alright. We're here waiting for a Jake Phillips to wake up. Spike is circling around the perimeter in case his sire or anything else undead-like shows up. He'll be watching our backs, keeping us safe… Man that sentence would have sounded so weird a couple of years ago…This is a simple extermination. Take care of the vamp before it becomes a problem."


"Cool. I love it when they go 'poof'. It justs looks so… Houdini. Hey, Xander?"


"Yeah, Bry?"


"What do you say you let me take him down?"


"I don't think that's a good idea."


"Oh come on! Why not?"


"You don't have the experience-"


"Well, of course, I don't. And how do you expect me to gain any if I don't do it myself? I'll be real careful and you'll be there to back me up. I trust you."


"It's not about trust here. It's about a very real chance of dying. I don't think deadness would agree with you."


"Come on. This is about as close to a bunny slope for demon fighting as I'm going to get. You said it yourself, I should know how to defend myself."


Xander closed his eyes and mentally debated the pros and cons of this situation. He decided, after a moment, that it was probably not a good idea for Bry to try to take on the vamp on his own, but the Hellmouth, being what it is, was unpredictable at best and therefore it was necessary for them to be prepared in the future. This could very well save their lives. Bry was right. He would have to learn how to deal with vamps sooner or later. And besides, it was better that the first vampire he staked not have a familiar face on it.


"Okay-"


"Alright!"


"… But, I'll be right behind you in case anything goes wrong. And if you breathe a word of this to anybody, I swear to God, you'll wish you died here. Is that understood."


"Yes sir!" Bry jumped to attention and mock saluted.


Xander stared at him disbelievingly. "Buffy's gonna kill me."


"Yeah we wouldn't want Slayer to know about this, would we?"


"Gah!" Xander turned around rapidly, his defenses ready, only to find a smirking bleach blond vampire leaning on a tombstone smoking a cigarette. "Jesus, Spike!"


"Actually I don't think J.C. was a smoker, but thanks for the comparison."


"You almost gave me a heart attack."


Spike's eyes looked almost innocent for a second as he spoke, "Really? You're not just saying that?"


Xander rolled his eyes and tried to remember why he doesn't kill Spike, now He looks after Dawn. He looks after Dawn. He looks after Dawn. He looks after Dawn. He looks after Dawn. "Spike… Did you find any trouble out there?"


"Nah. Just one bleeding vamp. This feller's sire, I'm guessing. Probably wanted to start his own brood. Brings back memories it does." Spike's eyes glazed over with a wistful remembrance of times as the Big Bad, starting his own little family.


"That's… Disturbing." Bry interjected. "Anyway I'm glad you're alright." He shook his own head at the notion of feeling worry for a vampire. But damn, life is complicated.


"Ahh, I almost forgot why I interrupted you two wankers." Spike directed his eyes to Xander, his mouth turned up in the most mocking grin he had ever seen. "Slayer be right upset she found out you were putting the runt in any danger. Might be worth something for her not to find out, don't you think?"


"You're fleecing me for money."


"Yeah. Don't you love it?"


"Okay. How much?"


"Oh I'm thinking a hundred oughtta cover it."


"A hundred dollars! You're crazier then you're ex-girlfriend, if you think I'm going to pay that!"


"Well if you just want me to go and fetch Buffy then-"


"Twenty."


"You're outta your 'ead, boy. Eighty."


"Thirty. A penny more and I tell Buffy myself."


"Fifty."


"That wasn't room for negotiation, Spike. That was a final offer. Either take the thirty so I can avoid a headache or don't and I'll just go ahead and tell Buffy myself."


"You drive a hard bargain, Monkey Boy. You're just like your gal… Oh wait, she left you to become a demon. Willingly. That must just eat you up, huh?"


With those familiar words echoing in his brain, Xander jumped toward Spike and delivered a nasty right cross. Spike staggered for a second before Xander followed up with a kick to his abdomen, which caused him to buckle over and fall.


Spike's vamp face took over his features but he restrained from hitting Xander, knowing that the chip would simply not allow it. I promised Buffy I'd protect Nibblet. But if I ever get my chip out this wanker's going down. "What's the matter? Touch a nerve there, droopy?"


"Shut up Spike."


"Hey, if it means anything to you, I liked the girl. Always knew where I stood with her. Which is more then what I can say with that Slayer. Always acting so high and mighty even after she kissed me-"


"Whoah! Back up there, Evil Dead. You're flashbacking to your Buffy-Bot days… Buffy never kissed you."


Spike scoffed, amazed that he now had new ammunition to attack Xander with. "Oh, I see. Miss Back-From-the-Dead didn't tell you, eh? Me and the Buff One shared a very special, very passionate, very loving, kiss. And if I do say so myself, we connected Droopy."


Xander didn't want to believe it. He wanted to believe that Buffy wouldn't willingly do something like that to herself. But then again, he never thought Buffy would be capable of sleeping with someone after the first date, either. He trusted Buffy. "You're lying. Buffy wouldn't kiss you. Not if she was in her right mind."


"Oh she was in her right mind alright. Hell, she tricked me into kissing HER."


Bry watched as the freshly placed earth on top of Jake Phillips grave began to shift and part. A hand emerged from the soil and grabbed the ground, seeking leverage for the ascent into the open air. For vampires this was symbolic of the struggle to rid one's self of the vile existence known as humanity. Although it would be much easier for a sire to simply take his newly made child to their nest; many preferred to make their children earn their right to be reborn. Much like seeing God at the end of the tunnel, they would make sure the first person they would see was the one they would call "Master". So that they would know who to thank for their new existence.


"Um… G-Guys?"


The argument between Spike and Xander waged on.


"What do you mean, 'she tricked you'?"


"She dressed as the Buffy-Bot and made me kiss her."


"Hey Guys," Bry sing-songed urgently.


Jake Phillips now had both of his arms out and his head was poking out from the grave. His features were fully vampiric. He looked very hungry.


"What?!? Buffy wouldn't seduce you!"


"What's a matter, Monkey Boy? Jealous?"


Bry looked at Jake Phillips and figured that this was his chance. I can handle one measly vamp. No problem. He jogged over to Jake, stake in hand, ready to deliver the killing blow that would make this vamp Houdini.


Bry stopped right in front of him, pulled back his right fist, which held his stake, and let it fly. He was rewarded when it connected with a smooth "whack" and the sight of Jake's head thrown back. His Cheshire-cat smile was evidence to his pride in his handiwork.


Jake slowly turned his head to Bry, an expression of annoyance instead of pain on his face. "What the hell was that?" he asked annoyed.


Bry looked to his fist disbelievingly. "Unfortunately… My best punch. GUYS!!" he called out.


"WHAT?!?" the two answered simultaneously. They took in the scene and ran to help Bry, their argument momentarily forgotten.


Bry, who had turned to face Spike and Xander, didn't notice when a certain Jake Phillips grabbed him from behind and threw him in a collision course for his patrol mates. Spike caught Bry but was thrown down with him due to the momentum of his flying through the air; Xander, however, avoided the whole mess and went on to charge the newly risen vampire.


Xander shoulder-tackled him. He dove for his body as soon as it hit the floor, his stake leading. Jake used his unnatural speed to dive to the side. Xander's stake missed the heart but nailed his shoulder instead. A howl of pain violated the graveyard's silence.


Meanwhile, Bry and Spike had untangled themselves. Bry was the first one up due to Spike's indifference. I hope Droopy falls on his own stake. , he thought.


Bry rushed over to help Xander.


Xander tried to remove his stake in order to try for the killing blow again, but the damn thing was stuck. More yelps of pain were heard from Jake as the stake violently shifted in his shoulder. Angrily, he punched straight out with full force, clipping Xander in the shoulder. While not enough to seriously hurt him, this was more then enough to throw Xander back a few feet, allowing Jake the time to get up and reorient himself.


Or it would have been if not for the sharp piece of wood that suddenly poked out of his chest… on the opposite side of where the heart would be. Once again the feral screams of a Jake Phillips broke into the air.


"Xander!! He's not poofing!!"


"The heart's on the other side! The other side!"


The stake was removed and replunged, this time in the correct place. Xander swore he saw Jake Phillips mouth a "thank you" before he exploded in ash. Once the dust had settled, Xander saw Bry doing what could only be described as a happy dance.


"I got one! I got one!"


Xander smiled despite the sore in his shoulder that was becoming more apparent now that his adrenaline levels were dropping back to normal.


Spike sauntered up to them now, puffing a cigarette lazily. "Yeah good for you, runt." He turned to Xander. "Can I have my money now?"


Xander's eyes narrowed. "Not until you apologize for what you said about Buffy."


Spike smirked. "You don't believe me? Tell you what, keep your money. But why don't you go ahead and ask Buffy, and when she denies it, look into her eyes and you'll know that I got to her." Spike threw his cigarette to the ground and stepped on it. "You don't know you're sweet Buffy as well as you think. Sweet dreams kids." And with that he left.


Xander's mouth was wired shut. His doubts stinging his mind like bees. Buffy wouldn't do that… Would she?



~~~~~~***~~~~~~



Bry, sat in Xander's car completely unable to move. He had sent several messages to his legs and the reply kept coming back as a big "Not in this lifetime!" After a while Xander was forced to get out of his car, open the passenger side door and physically pull Bry out from his vehicle.


Bry looked up at Xander. "Y'know, I was just about to do that."


"Sure you were."


Bry looked at the new Sunnydale High and reminded himself of all the advice Xander had given him. He gulped loudly and prayed that today would be a good day. God, I've been fairly good lately. What do you say we call a truce and let me have some of that good luck I keep hearing about, eh?


"Earth to Bry!"


"Wha? Oh sorry there, Xand. Kinda spaced out there for a moment. I was praying. I figured it'd be a good idea to have Him on my side."


"Nervous, huh?"


Bry scoffed. "Nervous?!? Ha! I wish I was nervous. Nervous would be me tittering uncontrollably. Nervous would be me with sweaty, cold, clammy palms. Nervous would be a relief from what I'm feeling now. This is mind-numbing, paralyzing, stomach-rolling, heart-clenching fear."


"Well at least you're not nervous."


Bry stared at Xander wide-eyed.


"Careful. Your eyes might fall out of their sockets."


"Oh God, I'm doomed."


"You're too uptight. You're gonna have to relax, Bry. The last thing you wanna do is come up to Dawn and start babbling like a brook."


Bry smiled genuinely. "Dawn's really cute when she starts babbling. Her nose does thing. And her eyes- What?", he said at Xander's odd look.


"You better tell Dawn how you feel before someone else notices that thing with her nose, doncha think?"


"Yeah. You're right. I am now motivated. Things will start happening. I shall begin to move, find Dawn, tell her how I feel and hope she feels the same way." Nothing happened.


"You're not moving."


"You noticed that, too?"


"Come on Bry, you can do this. Where's the Bad Ass Bry that helped me take down a vamp and then dusted him with his own stake?"


"Bad Ass Bry isn't home right now. But if you'd like to leave a message he'll get right back to you."


"Stop stalling. You know this is right. You can't just keep your feelings bottled up. There's nothing more painful then regret. Once you tell her, the weight will be lifted and you can breathe easier."


"Actually…" Takes a deep breath. "It isn't all that heavy and I'm breathing just fine. Well thanks anyway Xand-" Xander gives him another look. "Alright. I'm can do this. I WILL do this. I am a man."


"You are THE man," Xander corrected.


"I am THE man. See you later, Xander. There's a beautiful woman in there dying to get to know me." Bry began walking triumphantly towards the school. His back was arched, his chest puffed out in front of him and his body was swaggering with confidence. After about six steps he froze and clumsily hurried back to Xander.


"Are you sure no one's ever died of rejection?"


"GO!"


"Going."


Bry entered his high school preparing to tell Dawn his feelings. He and Xander had jokingly dubbed their plan "Operation: Dead by Dawn" and this was D-Day. It seemed very fitting to Bry. Although, he seriously wondered if the folks planning the invasion of Normandy had any where near the fear he has now. He will find Dawn and tell her how he feels. Of that there is no doubt. He knows there's a very good chance that she may not feel the same way and is prepared in that event to understand, step aside and be just her friend.


I just need to know where I fit in her life. Hopefully it'll be next to her snuggling, warm and cozy. Oh my God. There she is.


He saw the object of his affections at their usual meeting place of the Quad talking to Lisa. Feeling a last second moment of uncertainty he decides to go to the bathroom first and look himself over.


He stepped into the Boy's Room and checked his reflection in the mirror. His brown hair was slicked backed instead of forward like he usually wore it using more then his normal amount of hair gel. He was clean shaven and dashed with a little Old Spice along with a hint of his brother's CK-1. The real stuff not the imitation crap. He wore a brand new pair of dark blue wide-leg jeans complimented by a tight black undershirt and a blue shirt over that.


He was definitely "dressed to impress," as the saying goes.


Bry took out his Tic-Tacs from his backpack and chewed one quickly, enjoying the immediate release of minty freshness invading his mouth.


"Now or never," he whispered to himself.


He stepped out the bathroom and felt great. There was no more nervousness or fear just a resigned calm. Bry felt at peace and was willing to see what else lay ahead. This one's for you, Danny.


"Hey, guys!"


Dawn and Lisa, who looked to be talking to one another ecstatically, both waved him over.


"Ladies. How are things this fine morning?"


Lisa noticed the cheery attitude and the clothes. "My, my. Aren't we feeling fresh as a daisy this morning? Looking for a date to the Dance coming up, like the rest of us?"


"I wouldn't be opposed to the idea."


"Cool! If you get a date then that means we all get to have someone there with us. I'll be with my boyfriend, Steve, and Dawn will be there with Kevin."


And just like that the Universe imploded for, one, Brian Anthony Miller.


"Kevin? You mean rich, popular, all-girls-drooling-after-him, Kevin? Why would he want, Dawn?"


Dawn looked upset. "What's the matter. Don't you think someone like Kevin would want me?"


Danger Will Robinson!! Danger!! "No, no. Wh-What I meant was uh, uh… Congratulations?" he finished weakly.


"Thanks for the vote of confidence, Bry. What's the matter? You don't like Kevin?"


Actually. Now that you mention it, I think I'd like to kill Kevin. Yes. It's all clear to me now. Kevin must die.


"Bry? Answer me."


Damn. I'm spacing out again. Think Brain! Think! Bry need Brain, now!


"No, no. I think he's a dream boat." I think he's a WHAT?!?! "Umm, that didn't come out the way I thought it would." Okay. Better. "See? What I mean is… Guys like Kevin usually don't notice how wonderful girls like you are. They usually go after brainless, pretty-packaged airheads, like Kirsty."


"But that's what makes Kevin so great. He doesn't like girls like Kirsty. He's willing to look at the person inside. He likes me for me. You don't know how hard it is to find someone like that."


Actually, I think I'm getting the picture.


"Yeah it's hard. I know. I'm sorry I reacted the way I did. It's just-"


Bry was interrupted by the tone for first period. He would have continued but Dawn interrupted him by putting her fingers on his lips. He had to resist the urge to kiss them. "You don't have to say anything else, Bry. I know you're just looking after me. I appreciate it." Then she hugged him and left for class.


"Where's a vampire when you need one?"



******To*Be*Contiued******