“Shh!” Xander admonished, looking around nervously. “I told you. He gave me his number.”
“Spike gave you his number? To call him? Like, to call him and go on a date?”
“I don’t know. Just to call him, I guess.”
“Well?” Cordy said after a moment.
“Well what?”
“Are you going to? Call him?”
Xander sighed. “I don’t know.”
“What do you mean, you don’t know. He’s hot. You just about lost it last night when we were watching him dance.”
“I did NOT almost…”
“You so did, Xander,” Buffy said, entering the room. Xander jumped.
“Please, why doesn’t everyone commune in my room,” Xander said sarcastically, trying in vain to change the subject.
“Just admit that you thought he was hot, Xander,” Cordy told him. And he’s not an asshole like he used to be. We actually had a civil conversation, and he promised to call us all and tell us how it was going.”
“I know I’m going to have a few words with Dawnie for not telling us he was a stripper,” Buffy said.
“Why would she think you cared? You slept with him, remember?” Cordy said tactlessly.
“I thought we agreed not to mention that in the hotel!” Buffy hissed.
“Right. Sorry,” Cordy replied sheepishly. The three held their breath, but apparently Angel hadn’t been in even vampiric hearing range, because he didn’t barge in and demand to know what happened. They breathed a collective sigh, and then continued their conversation.
“You should call him,” Buffy told Xander.
“But why? I mean, it’s Spike!”
“It’s new and improved Spike. It’s nice, polite, friendly, super-hot and wants to get in your pants Spike,” Cordy added.
“I hate you both,” Xander muttered.
“Because we’re right,” Buffy said.
With that, the two girls left the room, smiling, and Cordy called back behind her shoulder as she closed the door, “Call him,” before she and Buffy giggled and started to make their way downstairs. Xander made his way to the bathroom to shower before getting ready to go home.
Xander had just stepped out from under the hot spray when he heard the phone ring. He paid it no mind, since this was Angel’s hotel, and he started to get dressed and brush his hair. Halfway through his shaving, a frantic fist pounded on the bathroom door.
“Xander?!” cried Cordelia.
Xander jerked open the door quickly to see Cordelia’s panicked face. “What? What’s wrong?”
“It’s Dawn.”
*~*~*
Xander drove faster than normal. Buffy was near hysterics as they made their way quickly back to Sunnydale with Anya. After promising Cordy they’d call when they knew more about Dawn’s condition, they’d left the hotel and started speeding down the highway toward home.
Willow had called in a panicked voice, crying and upset. Dawn had been in a car accident with a few friends. A regular, non-Hellmouthy accident, but she had been seriously injured. She was about to go into surgery, and Buffy, Xander and Anya wanted to get to the hospital in Sunnydale as soon as possible.
When they finally did arrive, and were greeted by a sobbing Willow and an apologetic Tara, Xander remembered Spike. He walked over to a phone and dialed the number he’d been given, and Spike answered sleepily on the third ring.
“Oi,” he muttered into the phone. “It’s bloody early. Who’s this, then?”
“It’s Xander, Spike.”
“Xander. Nice of you to call, pet. What can I do for you?” Spike’s voice grew silky, and Xander was slightly taken aback.
Xander shook his head once, and cleared his throat. “It’s Dawn.”
“What? What’s wrong, Xander?” Spike was fully alert, and sounded worried now.
“She was in a car accident. We’re at Sunnydale Memorial. It was pretty serious. Can you get here?”
“I can.” Spike disconnected, and Xander hung up his end before returning to the girls.
“She’s in surgery now,” Tara was saying. “We got the call this morning, fairly early. We came down here, and then we called you.”
“What happened, though?” Buffy asked.
“She went out with some of her friends last night. I guess they’d gone driving, um, four-by-fouring out in the woods. They rolled the jeep that they were driving. Um, somebody found them this morning, and called 9-1-1. I guess the jeep had been rolled for a few hours. We-we slept in, so we didn’t know she hadn’t come home. We’re so sorry, Buffy,” Tara said, her voice cracking with emotion.
“It’s not your fault. She’s 20 years old. She makes her own decisions. I just hope she’s okay. What about her friends?” Buffy replied, taking a deep breath to hold in her tears.
“Mostly okay. Dawnie was the most serious. She…she went flying out of the jeep, landed on her back. I guess she hit her head. But the doctors said she has a good chance,” Willow said, finally calmer.
“So, what? We just wait?” Xander asked.
“That what they said,” Tara answered him. The group sat down on the chairs in the waiting room.
“Have I mentioned lately that I hate hospitals?” Buffy said quietly after a moment. Xander put an arm around her.
“Not lately. Want anything? Coffee? Snack?” Xander offered.
“A…a glass of water would be good,” Buffy replied, looking up at him, her eyes shining with unshed tears. He gave her another squeeze before standing and moving to get a glass of water for her.
They waited for three hours. Spike came after two and a half. He must have sped pretty hard from L.A. So had Xander, though. Spike parked in the back of the hospital, in the shade, and came in through a back door, so that he could get inside without catching fire. He sat with them in the waiting room, not speaking, just pacing back and forth across the small room. Xander was getting dizzy watching him.
“Will you just sit?” Xander told the vampire after twenty minutes. Spike looked at him for a moment, then wordlessly plopped into the chair next to him. He glanced at Buffy, once, who was staring hard at the floor, her tears dried now. They continued to wait.
Finally, a doctor came out, blood on his green gown. He smiled tiredly at the small group, and they all stood to hear the news.
“Dawn’s okay,” he said quickly. The group sighed collectively. “There was major head trauma, but nothing was damaged so much that we couldn’t repair it. She may have trouble with motor functions for the first while, but I’m sure she’ll make a full recovery. Her leg’s fractured in two places, and her arm is sprained, but she will heal.”
Buffy sat down heavily. Her sister was okay. Relief washed over the group.
“I’ll go call Cordelia,” Anya said, moving toward the phone.
“Can we see her?” Buffy asked.
“She’s still asleep from the surgery, but she should wake up in an hour or so. You can see her then, all right?” the doctor replied with a smile. “For now, why don’t you folks go get something to eat?”
Xander nodded and the doctor turned away. Buffy stood, a small smile crossing her face.
“She’s okay,” Willow breathed. “Thank the Goddess.” They made their way to the cafeteria, and sat down to soup and sandwiches. Then they headed up to Dawn’s room.
“Dawnie?” Buffy said gently, poking her head in the door. She stepped inside gingerly, looking at her sister’s pale form on the bed.
“Buffy?” Dawn said weakly from the bed, her voice deep and gravelly. Buffy hugged her gently, so as not to jar her aching bones. The rest of the group stepped into the room, with Spike bringing up the rear.
“Spike?” Dawn said in surprise. “How did you find out…?”
Spike smirked, easing the frown lines that had been etched into his smooth face all day. “Funny story, actually, Bit. Your sister and her pals caught my show last night.”
Dawn smirked and chuckled softly. “I’ll probably laugh later,” she told him. “When I’m not all hopped up on morphine, that is.” Spike smirked at her.
“Show?” Tara asked.
“Don’t ask,” Xander begged. “Please, just don’t ask.” Willow studied him for a moment before turning back to Dawn.
“How are you?” Buffy asked her sister quietly.
“You mean besides the fact that they gave me morphine?” Dawn grinned. “I think I’m okay. My leg and my arm hurt. And my head feels really big. But everyone’s here, so I’m okay.”
“We’re glad, Dawn,” Xander said softly.
Dawn narrowed her eyes and stared at Xander before an evil grin crossed her bruised face. “So, Xander. How’d you like the show?”
Buffy, Anya, and Spike laughed when Xander blushed beet red. Willow and Tara suddenly remembered what show it was that their friends had gone to see, and after looking back and forth between Spike and Xander for a few seconds, joined in the laughter.
“I really am in Hell,” Xander sighed.
