“Yeah, Bit. I’ve got plenty of dosh stored away. Besides, who else is going to stay with you? Big Sis is at work all day, and the witches, too. With the ex-demon at the Magic Shop still, and Xander working, there’s no one else to make sure you get all your vitamins and what not.”
“Speaking of Xander…” Dawn grinned. “I hear he was pretty impressed with your show.”
“Was he?” Spike asked disinterestedly, flipping through Dawn’s CD rack.
“Apparently. I talked to Cordelia on the phone? I guess he was drooling. She said the top of his head nearly flew off when you took off your shirt.”
“That so?” again, all too disinterested. Spike raised one eyebrow, though.
“And I guess he wants to spank you till your ass turns pink,” Dawn continued.
“He wants to WHAT?!” Spike cried, looking at her in shock.
“Well, okay, maybe she didn’t say that, but I had to get some kind of a rise out of you!” Dawn said, giggling.
“Bloody hell, Dawn.”
“Oh come on. Admit it. You think he’s cute.”
“He’s like a puppy,” Spike said with distaste.
“A puppy you’d like to shag?” Dawn replied, staring Spike straight in the eye. He stared her down for a moment, then finally relented.
“Possibly,” he grumbled. Dawn laughed.
*~*~*
Spike had been staying for a week. When the sun went down, he and Buffy would do some patrolling together, while either Anya, Willow and Tara, or Xander would stay with Dawn. On the weekend, with the construction crew shut down for the day, Xander came to spend Saturday and Sunday with Dawn while Buffy, Anya, Willow and Tara went shopping in L.A. with Cordy. Xander stepped up to the Summers door with a bag of videos and a larger bag of snacks. Buffy opened the door, still fluffing her newly shortened hair.
“Hi Xan,” she said, turning away from the door. Xander stepped in and closed the door behind him. “Spike’s just getting Dawn from her room, he’s gonna put her on the couch.”
“Okay,” Xander said, putting the videos beside the television, then moving to the kitchen to set up the snacks. As he was putting the chips and dip in bowls, and pulling out a giant slab of chocolate, Buffy, Willow, and Tara were running around the house trying to get ready.
“Will?” called Tara, pulling on one sock. “Have you seen my necklace? The one you gave me for Hanukah?”
“It’s in the bathroom, in the drawer,” Willow called back. Tara went to the bathroom and came out fastening the little silver chain with a large amethyst stone encased in the pendant.
“Where’s my blue purse?” yelled Buffy from her bedroom.
“It’s in the front closet,” Dawn called from her room.
“Don’t yell in my ear, Bit,” Spike said from the same place. “Vampire hearing and all, yeah?”
“Sorry,” she said. Xander listened to the exchanges going around in the house with a contented smile on his face. This was the way things should be. Anya would be arriving to pick up the women soon, and then Xander would be spending the weekend with Dawn and Spike.
He wasn’t really sure about how he felt about that. Dawn was fun to hang with, and she made him feel younger. Not that 26 was old, but it was nice to feel 20 again. And Spike…well, Xander would be lying if he said that he didn’t like the guy. And that he didn’t want to hang out with him more. And that he didn’t think Spike was gorgeous. Spike was all blue eyes and blonde hair, tight, compact muscle, hard but soft, smaller than Xander and with that little smirk on his face all the time. Instead of the tight black jeans and T-shirts Xander was so used to seeing him in, Spike had been walking around for the past week wearing blue jeans and soft knit sweaters. He hadn’t gelled his hair, and it stuck out and curled adorably.
The doorbell rang, jerking Xander out of his reverie. He moved to pull it open. Anya stood there, smiling.
“Hi Xander. Are the girls ready yet?”
“Hey, An. No, they aren’t. Soon, though. Come inside, have a snack with me,” Xander told her.
“Okay, Xander. You’re still gay, right? You’re not trying to romance me away from Mark?”
“I’m still gay, An.”
“Okay. Just checking.”
“We’ll be down in a second, Anya,” Buffy called from upstairs. Tara came down the stairs with a proud smile. Willow followed her, looking slightly mussed and more than a little sheepish.
Anya and Xander exchanged a knowing look. Xander had thought the witches were a little too quiet upstairs.
Dawn giggled again. Spike was trying to lift her up without hurting her, and he kept making adjustments to make sure she was comfortable.
“I told you, Spike, I’m fine. Let’s just get downstairs. Xander said he was going to bring a surprise.”
“Yeah, yeah, Niblet. Tell me again why I let you talk me into spending the weekend with you and Xander?”
“Because you can’t say no to me.”
“Bloody right.”
“And because you think he’s hot.”
“Ri - hey! That was tricky, luv,” he told her, glaring at her.
“It’s true, though, isn’t it?”
“What say I leave you here and take Xander to go drink beer and play manly pool instead of hanging around you lot watching sappy videos?” Spike threatened.
“Oh, please. Don’t start the bad-boy act with me again. Look at you. You’re, like, a normal guy. Okay, normal vampire guy, but still normal. You’re not even Spike anymore.”
“Am so,” the vampire replied indignantly.
“No, you aren’t even,” Dawn laughed. “We just call you Spike out of habit. You’re Wil now.”
“That’s my stage name, luv. I wear leather, then.”
“You just go by Wil because too many people know the name Spike. It should be the other way around.”
“Can we not have this conversation? Big Sis is about to leave. Let’s go say ta, then, shall we?”
“Fine. But we’re so talking about this later.”
“IF you say so, Bit.”
“Darn right.” Spike finally picked Dawn up and trudged down the steps easily with her light form in his arms. He set her down easily on the sofa, and put a pillow behind her back to lean against. Finally, Buffy rushed down the stairs, and pulled her jacket from the closet. She slipped it on.
“Okay, guys, we’ll be back just after dark tomorrow. Don’t let Dawn do anything I wouldn’t let her do.”
“Bye, girls. Have a good time,” Xander called from the kitchen.
“Bye,” the girls called as they left.
“Those women suck the energy right out of me,” Spike said, leaning back beside Dawn. Xander stepped into the living room with the snacks and set them on the coffee table. Then he sat down on Spike’s other side, leaning against the arm rest.
“So what did you bring me for a surprise, Xander?” Dawn said excitedly. Xander pulled his bag into his lap and pulled out a gift-wrapped box. Dawn tore into it happily, and squealed in delight when she found the CD inside. “How did you know I wanted Melanie Doane?” She asked him, smiling.
“Lucky guess?” Xander tried. Dawn just stared at him. “What? It’s not like you’re secretive about what you want. I saw you circle it in that Columbia House catalogue.”
“You’re so good to me,” she said, reaching across Spike to squeeze Xander’s hand. Spike just rolled his eyes, and leaned back on the couch.
“Let’s pop a movie in, okay?” Xander said, standing up. He popped one in, then sat back down, not quite as far away from Spike as before, and the three settled in to watch.
Halfway through, Spike went into the kitchen and came back with a mug of heated blood. Then he promptly reached into the bowl of chips and dunked one in the blood.
“Oh. Wow. That’s really disgusting,” Dawn said, looking on in horror.
Spike just grinned and bit into the blood-sodden chip.
“Oh, ew,” Xander said, making a face.
Spike just chewed the chip. His grin fell, and his nose scrunched up in the cutest way Xander’d ever seen.
“Right. That is pretty gross,” Spike admitted, swallowing forcefully. Xander and Dawn broke into laughter while Spike took a large drink of the blood to take out the sour cream and onion flavor of the potato chip.
All Xander could think about was how cute Spike had looked with his nose scrunched up like that. He’d just wanted to kiss him. Except for the blood taste that was sure to be in his mouth. But other than that… Xander shook his head again and they turned back to the movie. Through the whole of it, Xander didn’t pay attention. He was too busy thinking about the hard body sitting next to him, remembering the way that body looked in a black leather G-string and nothing else. His breath had grown erratic within five minutes.
“Okay. What time is it?” Dawn asked after another movie.
“Still light,” Spike said.
“I’m bored,” Dawn replied.
“Poor thing,” Xander teased.
“Entertain me,” Dawn sighed petulantly. Spike and Xander shared a look.
“And how do you propose we do that?” Spike asked. He instantly regretted it.
“You could…do your dance for me, Spike!” Dawn said, an evil glint in her eye.
“What?” he laughed. Xander’s face blanched.
“Spike is not going to strip for you, Dawn,” he started.
“I’m twenty years old. It’s not like I haven’t seen a naked…” Dawn trailed off at the dark looks she was getting. “What? Oh, come on. Xander’s already seen your act. I never have. It’s only fair. I mean, I’m an invalid! I need entertainment.”
“Nothing on this earth is going to make me strip for you and Xander,” Spike growled. He and Dawn glared at each other for a long time, neither backing down.
