Chapter 6
Parking at Spike's soon became a habit for Buffy. If any of the others were heading into uni at the same time they would take advantage of this as well but generally it was just Buffy, as her lectures seemed to clash with everyone else's.
She was especially grateful for the routine that day. The weather had steadily worsened through November, the frequent rain steadily getting colder and, on the days when it didn't rain, frost generally covered the ground in the morning. This had been one of those days. She'd had to scrape the ice off her car that morning before heading in and she had had a full day of lectures and seminars but at least she'd avoided freezing at the bus stop.
She arrived back at her car to see a white scrap of paper pinned to her windscreen by the wipers, gently flapping in the light breeze. She leaned across the car and rescued it, unfolding the paper to read the words scrawled on it:
Come on up.
Kettle's on.
-- Spike
Buffy smiled and walked towards Spike's flat.
"Finally!" He exclaimed when he opened the door and let her in. "I thought you'd've been here hours ago."
"When did you put that message out there?" Buffy asked, shrugging off her coat as she followed him up the stairs.
"Around lunchtime." He shrugged. "Thought you finished early on a Tuesday."
"That's Thursday."
They stood awkwardly at the top of the stair for a minute. Buffy had never actually been into his flat before and Spike hadn't really thought she'd respond to his impulsive invitation.
"Well. Tea then." Spike interrupted the silence.
"Please." She followed him into the kitchen and lent against the worktop as he made the drinks.
"Here you go," he handed her a mug. "I'd recommend we take these into my room. It's only us here at the moment but the others will be home in a bit and I really can't face them."
"They can't be that bad." She said, following him out of the kitchen and back along the corridor.
"That's what I thought when I moved in but I soon changed my mind. No, I generally avoid them. It's best that way. Here we go," he opened the door in front of them and gestured for Buffy to enter the room. "This is me."
Buffy looked round the small room. "I see what you meant when you said that there wasn't much space." She stood in the middle of the room looking for somewhere to sit. Finally she gave up when she realised there were no chairs and sat on the single bed, propping her back up against the wall. Spike sat down a little further along the bed.
"I s'pose if you were trying to be optimistic you could call it cosy," Buffy ventured, sipping her tea.
"And if you weren't it would be cramped." Spike grumbled.
"Ever the pessimist, aren't you?"
"Oi! I prefer cynical or realistic if you don't mind."
"Whatever."
They sat in silence for a few minutes, sipping their drinks.
"I didn't think you'd come." Spike eventually said in a voice almost quiet enough to be a whisper looking determinedly down at his mug of coffee.
Buffy looked at him, puzzled. "What made you think that?"
"Dunno. Glad you did though. 'S nice to have you here." He wouldn't meet her eyes.
She looked at him, intently staring at the contents of his mug, and frowned. "You can be really strange you know," she stated. "Really, really weird. Why wouldn't I come up? You're a friend, you invited me round, and so I came. That's a normal thing you know."
Spike raised his eyes and looked at her in earnest, "So you're saying I'm a friend?" he asked tentatively.
"Of course." Buffy wondered where this was going.
"So, in that case I'm not just an annoyance that's always hanging round your house, like you keep calling me?" A smirk started to form on Spike's face.
Buffy realised that she'd just been cornered into losing her favourite way of winding the other blonde up. "Okay, I admit it. You're okay."
"Just okay?"
"So, maybe I quite like having you around." She mumbled.
Spike's smirk erupted fully formed now, "Knew I could get you to admit it!" he crowed triumphantly.
"Oh, god – I'm never going to hear the end of this one, am I?"
Buffy took another sip of her drink and shivered slightly.
"Don't you have central heating in this house? It's freezing in this room!"
"Ah. And we add yet another downside of Casa del Spike to our ever-growing list. No central heating." He shrugged. "I'd love to say that you get used to it, but you don't. I have the redeeming feature of an extremely thick duvet." He indicated the bed covering and lifted up a corner. "Help yourself."
Buffy gratefully climbed under the duvet at the bottom of the bed as Spike did the same at the top. They sat there is companionable silence, each sipping their drinks, glad of the warmth in the otherwise cold room.
Buffy finished her tea and sighed slightly, looking at her watch. "Is that the time? I really have to go."
"Already?" Spike looked at her as she moved to climb out of the bed.
"Yep. Have some work to do on my next paper tonight and Riley's coming round."
"You two going out tonight then?"
"No. He's just coming round." She stood up. "This was nice. Maybe I could come round again sometime?"
"Sure. I'll make sure to leave you a little note again next time I'm in." He smiled.
"Great. I'd like that. Well. I guess I'll see you next time you're round ours?"
"And that would probably be tomorrow then."
"Oh, right. I guess I'll see you tomorrow then. I take it you'll be wanting the bed again?"
"Probably. Gonna be another all-nighter by the looks of things."
"Fine – one bed booked for the night! If you're lucky I might feed you as well."
"Ooh, aren't I the lucky one? Or not." He frowned as a thought occurred to him. "Can you actually cook?"
"Yes! I'll have you know that I have mastered the ancient art of stir-fry." She watched the slightly sceptical look appear on Spike's face. "Okay, okay. So I can throw some meat and veg into a pan with a sachet of flavouring. I'll have you know it's very good." She nodded affirmatively. "Riley likes it."
"I'm sure he does, pet." Spike grinned at her. "That would be great – thanks. Tomorrow night then."
"Sure, see ya then."
Buffy turned and left with a smile on her face.
Riley was waiting for her when she arrived home.
"I thought you'd be back an hour ago – where've you been?"
"Oh, Spike left a note on my car asking if I wanted to come up for tea. He wasn't kidding when he said that he had a really small room, you know. It's tiny." She shrugged off her coat and wandered into the kitchen. "You want a drink?"
"No thanks." Riley followed her in. "You were at Spike's?"
"Yeah, we had some tea and chatted for a bit."
"Oh." Riley looked down at the small woman. "I missed you." He pulled her into his embrace.
"Yeah," she smiled slightly and pulled herself out of the hug, "missed you too. I thought you weren't coming over until later? Not that I mind," she hurriedly clarified, "but you know that I have work to do on my latest paper tonight. I've been putting it off for days now and I need a good grade on this one or I'll have to ace the exam and I really don't want that kind of pressure come summer."
"I just came round to say 'hi' really. I know that you have all this work to do at the minute. And then you weren't here so I thought I'd wait 'til you got back. But if you're too busy to spend time with me..."
"Baby, you understand, don't you? How about you come round at about 8:30 tonight? I should be done by then, okay?"
"Okay. I'll see you later then." He kissed her softly and then turned to leave.
Buffy watched him go and then sagged back against the worktop. Riley had been spending more and more time at the flat these days and, as a result, her grades were slowly slipping. She just didn't seem to be able to get anything done. And her friends weren't too happy about it. It had been weeks since she'd been out with them. She knew that Riley wouldn't stop her going out with them; it was just that he got this hurt puppy look on his face whenever she said that she wanted to spend time with anyone else. She hated that look and the guilt it made her feel, so she put off doing anything other than being with Riley.
Parking at Spike's soon became a habit for Buffy. If any of the others were heading into uni at the same time they would take advantage of this as well but generally it was just Buffy, as her lectures seemed to clash with everyone else's.
She was especially grateful for the routine that day. The weather had steadily worsened through November, the frequent rain steadily getting colder and, on the days when it didn't rain, frost generally covered the ground in the morning. This had been one of those days. She'd had to scrape the ice off her car that morning before heading in and she had had a full day of lectures and seminars but at least she'd avoided freezing at the bus stop.
She arrived back at her car to see a white scrap of paper pinned to her windscreen by the wipers, gently flapping in the light breeze. She leaned across the car and rescued it, unfolding the paper to read the words scrawled on it:
Come on up.
Kettle's on.
-- Spike
Buffy smiled and walked towards Spike's flat.
"Finally!" He exclaimed when he opened the door and let her in. "I thought you'd've been here hours ago."
"When did you put that message out there?" Buffy asked, shrugging off her coat as she followed him up the stairs.
"Around lunchtime." He shrugged. "Thought you finished early on a Tuesday."
"That's Thursday."
They stood awkwardly at the top of the stair for a minute. Buffy had never actually been into his flat before and Spike hadn't really thought she'd respond to his impulsive invitation.
"Well. Tea then." Spike interrupted the silence.
"Please." She followed him into the kitchen and lent against the worktop as he made the drinks.
"Here you go," he handed her a mug. "I'd recommend we take these into my room. It's only us here at the moment but the others will be home in a bit and I really can't face them."
"They can't be that bad." She said, following him out of the kitchen and back along the corridor.
"That's what I thought when I moved in but I soon changed my mind. No, I generally avoid them. It's best that way. Here we go," he opened the door in front of them and gestured for Buffy to enter the room. "This is me."
Buffy looked round the small room. "I see what you meant when you said that there wasn't much space." She stood in the middle of the room looking for somewhere to sit. Finally she gave up when she realised there were no chairs and sat on the single bed, propping her back up against the wall. Spike sat down a little further along the bed.
"I s'pose if you were trying to be optimistic you could call it cosy," Buffy ventured, sipping her tea.
"And if you weren't it would be cramped." Spike grumbled.
"Ever the pessimist, aren't you?"
"Oi! I prefer cynical or realistic if you don't mind."
"Whatever."
They sat in silence for a few minutes, sipping their drinks.
"I didn't think you'd come." Spike eventually said in a voice almost quiet enough to be a whisper looking determinedly down at his mug of coffee.
Buffy looked at him, puzzled. "What made you think that?"
"Dunno. Glad you did though. 'S nice to have you here." He wouldn't meet her eyes.
She looked at him, intently staring at the contents of his mug, and frowned. "You can be really strange you know," she stated. "Really, really weird. Why wouldn't I come up? You're a friend, you invited me round, and so I came. That's a normal thing you know."
Spike raised his eyes and looked at her in earnest, "So you're saying I'm a friend?" he asked tentatively.
"Of course." Buffy wondered where this was going.
"So, in that case I'm not just an annoyance that's always hanging round your house, like you keep calling me?" A smirk started to form on Spike's face.
Buffy realised that she'd just been cornered into losing her favourite way of winding the other blonde up. "Okay, I admit it. You're okay."
"Just okay?"
"So, maybe I quite like having you around." She mumbled.
Spike's smirk erupted fully formed now, "Knew I could get you to admit it!" he crowed triumphantly.
"Oh, god – I'm never going to hear the end of this one, am I?"
Buffy took another sip of her drink and shivered slightly.
"Don't you have central heating in this house? It's freezing in this room!"
"Ah. And we add yet another downside of Casa del Spike to our ever-growing list. No central heating." He shrugged. "I'd love to say that you get used to it, but you don't. I have the redeeming feature of an extremely thick duvet." He indicated the bed covering and lifted up a corner. "Help yourself."
Buffy gratefully climbed under the duvet at the bottom of the bed as Spike did the same at the top. They sat there is companionable silence, each sipping their drinks, glad of the warmth in the otherwise cold room.
Buffy finished her tea and sighed slightly, looking at her watch. "Is that the time? I really have to go."
"Already?" Spike looked at her as she moved to climb out of the bed.
"Yep. Have some work to do on my next paper tonight and Riley's coming round."
"You two going out tonight then?"
"No. He's just coming round." She stood up. "This was nice. Maybe I could come round again sometime?"
"Sure. I'll make sure to leave you a little note again next time I'm in." He smiled.
"Great. I'd like that. Well. I guess I'll see you next time you're round ours?"
"And that would probably be tomorrow then."
"Oh, right. I guess I'll see you tomorrow then. I take it you'll be wanting the bed again?"
"Probably. Gonna be another all-nighter by the looks of things."
"Fine – one bed booked for the night! If you're lucky I might feed you as well."
"Ooh, aren't I the lucky one? Or not." He frowned as a thought occurred to him. "Can you actually cook?"
"Yes! I'll have you know that I have mastered the ancient art of stir-fry." She watched the slightly sceptical look appear on Spike's face. "Okay, okay. So I can throw some meat and veg into a pan with a sachet of flavouring. I'll have you know it's very good." She nodded affirmatively. "Riley likes it."
"I'm sure he does, pet." Spike grinned at her. "That would be great – thanks. Tomorrow night then."
"Sure, see ya then."
Buffy turned and left with a smile on her face.
Riley was waiting for her when she arrived home.
"I thought you'd be back an hour ago – where've you been?"
"Oh, Spike left a note on my car asking if I wanted to come up for tea. He wasn't kidding when he said that he had a really small room, you know. It's tiny." She shrugged off her coat and wandered into the kitchen. "You want a drink?"
"No thanks." Riley followed her in. "You were at Spike's?"
"Yeah, we had some tea and chatted for a bit."
"Oh." Riley looked down at the small woman. "I missed you." He pulled her into his embrace.
"Yeah," she smiled slightly and pulled herself out of the hug, "missed you too. I thought you weren't coming over until later? Not that I mind," she hurriedly clarified, "but you know that I have work to do on my latest paper tonight. I've been putting it off for days now and I need a good grade on this one or I'll have to ace the exam and I really don't want that kind of pressure come summer."
"I just came round to say 'hi' really. I know that you have all this work to do at the minute. And then you weren't here so I thought I'd wait 'til you got back. But if you're too busy to spend time with me..."
"Baby, you understand, don't you? How about you come round at about 8:30 tonight? I should be done by then, okay?"
"Okay. I'll see you later then." He kissed her softly and then turned to leave.
Buffy watched him go and then sagged back against the worktop. Riley had been spending more and more time at the flat these days and, as a result, her grades were slowly slipping. She just didn't seem to be able to get anything done. And her friends weren't too happy about it. It had been weeks since she'd been out with them. She knew that Riley wouldn't stop her going out with them; it was just that he got this hurt puppy look on his face whenever she said that she wanted to spend time with anyone else. She hated that look and the guilt it made her feel, so she put off doing anything other than being with Riley.