See? Odd, right? But, believe it or not, it got even odder (is that even a word...?) as it went along. It had been a few weeks since the whole thing, and it had died down to the point where we could be around each other and not feel awkward. His sleep-walking had stopped, thus, so had our conversation. We were back to the same old routine. Yes, odd was the word for it.
Okay, okay, fuck odd. It was getting downright retarded. Of course, anything involving Spike has to be. Especially when he's drunk.
"Are you kidding me! Absolutely NOT, Jet!" Faye shouted through her door. Jet sighed irritably, placing his metallic hand on his hip and rubbing the bridge of his nose with his other.
"For Christ's sake, Faye! It's only for the night! I'll be back in the morning," he said with as much calm as he could muster. He heard her hop off her bed before her feet padded quickly towards the door.
"Well where are you going that I can't go with you? And why can't we leave the brat and her little shit here with him!" she screeched. Jet growled low in his throat; Faye was very irritating.
"Because the brat and the shit are coming with me. I'm going to see an old friend of mine about a lead on our latest bounty," he said, his hand moving to rub his temple. He heard her twist a couple of locks before the door was snatched open to reveal a very peeved Faye.
"I don't want to play baby-sitter to a drunk ass Spike! He'll be all the more annoying! You know how we get along while he's sober!" she exclaimed. Jet's frown deepened.
"Faye... do you really think it'd be a good idea to leave an intoxicated Spike home with Edward...?" he asked her. Faye looked thoughtful for a moment, then devious as she began to snicker.
"Oh, I don't know, it could be fun--" she began. Jet held up a hand to interrupt her. He knew where this was going.
"NO, absolutely not. It wouldn't be funny, you ass," he said to her. "You're watching him and that's final." With that, he spun and went on his way to the hangar. Faye, of course, was on his heels in a flash, her pretty little face scrunched into an annoyed scowl as her feet pattered behind him.
"How do you know I don't already have something planned tonight? How do you know I don't want to go out?" she asked angrily. Jet shrugged.
"We can't always get what we want. For instance, I want to slap you right now, but I can't do that, now can I?" he asked her smartly. Faye snorted.
"You can if you want to lose your other arm..." she muttered.
"I heard that, too," Jet said nonchalantly. Faye sighed.
"But Jet--!"
"You heard what I said."
"Aw, Jet, c'mon! You know I--"
"I don't want to hear it."
"Jet!" She hollered, stopping to stomp her foot childishly. Jet stopped a few paces in front of her but didn't turn around.
"Faye, it's fifteen million," he sighed. He was hoping to keep that little fact to himself, seeing as Faye just happened to be the money-hungry chick she was. It was quiet for a few moments then he sighed and began walking again.
"You just make sure I get my fair cut of that..." he heard her mumble as he continued down the hall.
"Fuck. Fuck, fuck, fuck..."
Faye swore to herself as she entered the living room. Spike, who was sitting on the floor with his head rested on the couch and his legs spread in front of him, was peering into an empty vodka bottle. She made her way around the filthy old couch to stand beside him and stare him down.
"This is just pitiful. Even for you," she sneered. Spike sighed, dropping the thick bottle to let it roll across the floor.
"There's no more..." he mumbled forlornly. Faye snickered, fisting her hips as she peered down at his crumpled form.
"Where are your shoes?" she laughed as she reached a foot out to kick at his leg playfully. He sighed again, rolling his half-lidded eyes to gaze up at her. Then he looked down at his feet, wiggling his toes underneath his navy blue socks.
"Dunno..." he answered with a shrug. Faye cocked her head to the side, her silky hair swaying like a violet curtain.
"What did you do with them?" she asked him. This time he glared at her, his lips pressed in a thin line.
"I said: I... don't... know," he repeated slowly. Faye beamed down at him, clearly amused by his tone of voice.
"Well, aren't we the moody one?" she teased as she plopped down beside him. She sighed, running a hand through her hair.
"Ok, let's get this straight. You're drunk, and I don't want to be here, so let's just--"
"I'm not drunk..." Spike interrupted. Faye looked over at him.
"Yes. You are," she told him. He scoffed, folding his arms on his chest.
"No. I'm not," he told her.
He opened his mouth to say something else when his face suddenly lit up as a thought struck him. He twisted around and lifted up a couch cushion just enough to fit his hand underneath. His hand made contact with something solid and he quickly snatched it up. He then dropped the cushion and upon turning around, Faye was able to see it was another bottle of vodka. She shook her head as he twisted open the cap and took a swig from it. Then he turned to look at her again.
"As I was saying, I think I know when I've had enough to drink, thank you," he told her smartly.
"Obviously, you don't, Lunkhead," she said. He spared her a quick glance before he tilted his head back and proceeded to guzzle the contents of his bottle. He relinquished the bottle and sighed, leaning his head back to rest it on the couch once more.
"You don't want to start calling names, Valentine. I've got a shitload for you," he muttered. Faye rolled her eyes.
"Oh no, let's not have that conversation again..." she said. He looked at her out the corner of his eye, a smirk on his lips.
"Why are you here, anyway? I don't need your company," he told her. Faye returned his smirk with one of her own as she leaned over a bit.
"On the contrary, my good man," she said, snatching the new bottle from his hand, "you do need my company, according to Jet." Spike closed his eyes and ran his fingers through sweaty curls.
"Ah, that explains it..." he mumbled. Faye took a swig from the bottle as well, her eyes tearing as the liquid burned a hot trail down her throat. She whistled and shook her head, setting the bottle on the table.
"Not that I don't enjoy your company," she rasped, "it's just that, under certain circumstances, you can be quite the asshole." His brow furrowed as he sat up to peer at her again. Drunkeness often leads to memory loss.
"What the fuck are you talking about?" he asked her. Faye stared at him for a moment before she shook her head, deciding not to argue with him while he was in his drunken stupor.
"Never mind, Spike. How many bottles have you had to drink, anyway?" she asked instead.
He looked up at the ceiling as if thinking, his lips moving silently. Then he lifted his hand and looked down at it to count on his fingers, his brow furrowed in concentration. He squinted, bringing it closer to his face. After a moment he dropped his hand and looked over at his comrade, a crooked grin on his face as he shrugged.
"My fingers won't stop splitting up so I can't really figure it out," he laughed. Faye smacked her lips, shaking her head in dismay.
"My lord..." she whispered. Spike began to pat himself down, in search for cigarettes, no doubt.
"Yes, Faye," he sighed, "I am your lord." He chuckled as he found his pack, smacking it twice in the palm of his hand then plucking a stick out.
"Shut up," Faye snapped, snatching his cigarette out of his hand. Spike tried to swat her hand way, but to no avail due to the fact his senses were in a haze. By the time he had moved his hand out of her reach, the cigarette was already between her lips. He looked up at his empty hand then glared back at her, letting his hand drop into his lap.
"Thief," he huffed, his eyes narrowed menacingly at her.
She shrugged, leaning over to dig into his jacket pocket. She frowned. His Zippo wasn't in it's usual pocket. She leaned even further over him, draping her body over his as she dug into his other pocket. She was so close, Spike went cross-eyed trying to focus on her. Soon, his brain began to pound. He placed his hands on the sides of his head and squeezed his eyes shut.
"You're giving me a headache..." he groaned. Faye tossed her hair as she began to dig into his inside pocket.
"Suck it up. I need a light," she told him.
He scowled, an angry retort boiling in the back of his throat when he truly realized how close she was. Her soft, clean scent wafted past his nostrils, and he found himself leaning into her. She didn't notice, though, and she began to explore his pants pockets. Suddenly his hand shot out and caught her wrist, and Faye briefly wondered where he had mustered the speed. She turned her face to look at him and he grinned foxily, leaning closer to leer at her.
"Faye... if this was what you wanted... all you had to do is ask..." he whispered, his hot, liquored breath dusting across her face and down her neck. For one of the rare times since she'd met Spike, she was stunned to silence. She felt heat rolling around in her chest as her breath quickened. Then she felt a hand... sliding... up her thigh... to her ass.
She blinked once.
Twice.
Then she frowned as her sense came back. She snatched her wrist back and swatted his hand from her ass, gathering a fistful of his jacket with her other hand. Then she started to shake him. Hard.
"What the hell is your problem! Did I say you could touch my ass! Did I!" she hollered in his face. His grin only grew as she shouted, until he was finally laughing. The loud, gaudy noise filling the whole room. She stopped mid-shake, her face scrunched in confusion.
"What's so funny, you jerk?" she asked through gritted teeth as she yanked him close to her face. Spike stopped laughing, lifting a hand to languidly wipe a tear from his eye.
"Your boobs were bouncing," he chuckled mirthfully. Faye's face quickly drained of color before it flushed again, and she shoved him away from her. She picked her stolen cigarette off the ground before she rose to her feet and dusted her shorts off.
"Prick..." she muttered as she threw a glare in his direction. He only watched her in return, his mouth turned in a lopsided grin as he rested on his elbow in the position she had shoved him into. She studied his features, and nodded to herself as she decided he looked like a hobo.
"You need to take a bath. You look awful," she told him as she folded her arms across her chest. His grin widened.
"Thank you," he replied happily. She frowned.
"And you stink," she added.
It was a lie, of course. He had smelled wonderful when she was so close to him raiding his pockets for his lighter... so obviously masculine. His scent was strong, but not inconveniently so. It was so nice, in fact, that several times she had caught her thoughts drifting somewhere around nuzzling his neck... or licking his ear. Somewhere in that vicinity.
"So do you," he laughed. Faye rolled her eyes.
"You're just saying that. I just got out of the shower, thank you very much, shit-head," she said with a nod. Spike frowned.
"You couldn't have waited for me?" he huffed. Faye blinked. He looked sincerely upset. Then she laughed, turning to leave the room.
"Where are you going?" Spike said as he sat up to quickly grab her wrist. She turned and looked at him, then down at his hand.
"To my room. I'm done with you for tonight," she said as she lifted an eyebrow. Spike frowned.
His grip tightened on her slender wrist and he tugged at her. She tugged back, confusion written on her face. Then he yanked, and she found herself stumbling over his feet and into his lap. He pried her knees apart and set one leg on either side of him, making her straddle his waist. Then he let go of her wrist to grip her bottom, pushing her closer to his chest. She gasped lightly, a sudden heat painting across her face. His eyes began to drift shut as he leaned forward to brush the tip of his nose down the column of her throat. He sighed contently, his hot breath fluttering down her T-shirt and between her breasts.
"Who said I was done with you?" he whispered so quietly she almost didn't hear him. Faye's mind went blank.
"Um... uh... who?" she said. He chuckled, the deep, throaty rumble reverberating from his chest to hers.
"You're so funny. And pretty, Faye. You're so pretty. Did you know that?" he sighed against her skin. She shivered, unable to respond to his words. Yep, he was drunk. If there was any doubt before, that statement clenched it for her. In all the time she'd known him, Spike had never told her she was... pretty.
He wasn't the type of drunk that would slur his words and babble over nonsense. He was the type of drunk that would tell you his dirty little secrets (but not the dirty big ones) without a second thought. He could keep up conversation, as long as his attention span would allow, anyway. As solemn as he was when sober, he was chatty and talkative when under the influence. He'd answer all of your questions truthfully, but wouldn't remember shit in the morning. For that part, she was grateful.
"I've never told you that, have I? That I think you're pretty... which you are," he said. She shook her head slowly, biting her bottom lip as his own crept slowly down her neck. He shrugged.
"Now you know," he mumbled against her collarbone. She gulped hard, her hands clenching the fabric of his dress shirt tightly. She had to do something. This was getting out of hand.
"Spike... let me go..." she pleaded weakly. She gave herself a mental slap. Way to protest, Valentine.
"What... was... that?" he said between kisses. Faye inhaled sharply. When had he started doing that!
"I don't think... we should be doing this..." she muttered, her head lolling back unconsciously as he bit down softly on her skin. He licked her heated flesh then hummed some slow tune against it. He chuckled to himself as he pulled away from her, and Faye came back from her faze.
"You know what I think, Faye?" he asked her, cocking an eyebrow. Faye's mind was a jumble. She didn't know where this whole situation was going, or where it had come from, for that matter. It would be nice to have his opinion, although, it was pretty clear what he was feeling at the moment...
"What do you think, Spike?" she asked him hoarsely, her voice heavy with the heat she was feeling, the lust he had pushed out from within her with the softest and smallest of touches. He took her head in his two hands and moved her face to look at him, his face tight with seriousness. He didn't look so drunk then...
"I think you love me," he told her bluntly. Faye's lidded eyes snapped wide open suddenly, her heart thumping so fiercely in her chest she was afraid it would break a few ribs. She slid off of his lap to sit on the side of him, her legs still draping his own. She shook her head slowly, lifting her hands to grasp his own. She removed them from her face, her brows furrowed in question. How did he know?
"What...? What do you mean?" she asked him hesitantly.
Her mind was now on high alert; she was treading into unsolicited territory, somewhere she'd wanted to evade so she'd been avoiding him altogether. She knew she had been shedding away her skins, letting how she really felt for him show through to her exterior. Not on purpose, mind you. She cursed herself mentally. She should've let him sleep-walk his ass wherever the hell he was going the first time she saw him. But no, she had to play savior. And now she was stuck in this... mess.
She swallowed hard, trying to force the sound of her blood pumping through her veins from her ears.
"You don't know what you're saying," she said. She tried to laugh, but it came out dry, rough. Nothing was really funny. She was just uncomfortable.
"I do too know what I'm saying, Faye," he told her sternly, wringing his hands out of her grip to place them on her face once again, "And you know what else I think?" Faye swallowed, slaking her dry throat. She was almost afraid to ask.
"What do you think, Spike?" she asked him again, her voice wavering as her eyes began to water. Why was she crying? Why was she crying!
"I think I love you too... and I'm not afraid anymore. I don't want to run anymore," he said softly, shaking his head slowly. Faye blinked, her green eyes large and round and just... beautiful. She was always beautiful to him.
But what about her? What about his Angel, the woman who still plagues his life as well as his dreams?
"I don't love her, Faye. I don't want her anymore. She's not even here anymore!" he laughed as if he knew what she was thinking, knew her insecurities. "Do you believe me?"
Faye sighed. She hadn't a prayer in heaven in all of this. She didn't even have time to respond before he was pulling her face closer to his own, and his lips were pressed soundly to hers. He exhaled through his nostrils, the searing air causing her own breath to quicken. She raised a hand to run it through his lovely curls, finding them tepid and moist with sweat. But she didn't care. If she loved him, then she loved all of him.
And suddenly his tongue was moving forward, swooping in on her mouth to wreak all sorts of habit to her libido. It dipped past her lips, grazing her own velvety appendage and then retreating as his lips closed over hers. And then it was there again, delving into her cavern and making her weak in the joints. Her kissed her slowly, adoringly as if weaving the most passionate of spells...
And then the spell was broken when she felt a hand on her right breast. It squeezed once... then again before she felt Spike smile against her mouth as he chuckled. Talk about spoiling the mood. She had forgotten he was drunk. He was so damn goofy.
She pulled away from him, licking her lips as she looked at him. He was smiling deliriously, his hand sliding downward to rest on her waist. He looked so childishly happy.
She smirked, shaking her head slowly at his carefree demeanor.
"You won't remember this in the morning, you asshole," she muttered. He nodded, brushing his thumb across her cheek with his other hand.
"Yes I will. I promise," he whispered. She smile sadly.
"How do you know?" she laughed. He shrugged, his eyes closing slowly in a lazy blink.
"I'm sure I'll remember when I wake up and you're under my blankets ass-naked," he mumbled. Faye snorted. How presumptuous of him.
She stood up once again, reaching down to pick up her cigarette (which had fallen again...) and stuck it behind her ear. She reached out for his hand and he studied it for a moment before he took it. Then she hauled him up. He stumbled forward, bumping into her and she took his arm and draped it over her shoulder.
"Don't count on it," she told him as she scooped up the vodka bottle and started towards a long corridor, Spike in-tow. He sighed, leaning his head on top of her own.
"Why not?" he asked her forlornly. She smiled slowly, letting her hand drift down his back to squeeze his ass. He jumped in surprise, looking down at her with clear shock in his eyes.
"Hey!" he screeched. She looked up at him, mischief dancing in her evergreen irises.
"Because you'll be waking up in my bed..." she purred. Spike grinned.
"Way to take advantage of me..." he teased. She laughed as she lead him to her room, the soft sounds bouncing off the walls of the dark hall.
"Faye, we're back! Wake the hell up! And where the fuck is---" Jet began to holler as he busted into her room. He stopped mid-sentence when he saw the bounty hunter in question sit up abruptly, a hand covering his eyes.
"Get the fuck out, Jet! The light's in my eyes!" he shouted. Beside him Faye moaned and rolled over, ducking her head underneath his arm to hide from the light as well.
"Yeah, get the fuck out..." she agreed wearily.
Jet gaped openly, slack-jawed and flush-faced. He shook his head quickly, hoping this was some kind of sick joke. Spike growled, grabbing a pillow and flinging it at him.
"Get out!" he hollered as it hit Jet square in the face. That woke Jet from his daze and he stepped back to slam the door shut.
"S-sorry!" he stuttered as he hurried back down the hall. As he neared the living room, he slowed his pace, a deep frown setting in his face. Oh shit, he thought. They're gonna' be goin' at it like jackrabbits now... I'll never get any peace! He sighed, wiping his hand over his balding head.
"Something told me to leave the brat instead..."
AN: Yay! I'm done guys! I hope this was good. It only took me eight hours to write, so I feel like it's lacking... :shrugs: Oh well, it's done now. :D Nothing more I can do. Thank you to EVERYONE who reviewed, and I really mean that. I can't name everyone... I'm just lazy... But know this: I DO love you!
Also, if there are any mispellings or errors in this, IT AIN'T MY FAULT! I ran this thing through edit about twenty times, but seems very faulty these days... The editing system is crazy. So don't be surprised if my AN is copied twice or if the sentences where there are s'posed to be two punctuation marks only have one and they look misplaced. (for instance, if it says, "why was she crying!" instead of "why is she crying question mark, exclamation point>")
Get it? I hope so.
And a belated apology to the readers out there. I KNOW it's taken a long time for me to update this, and for that, I am truly an asshole. No excuse. Just laziness. So, in the future I'll strive to update MUCH sooner.
Hugs for everyone!