Well, it was never easy being the new kid at school, and God knows Spike was crapping himself more than most kids, considering that his new school was on an entirely different continent to his old one. Yep, for some insane reason his mother had decided that gaining custody over him in the divorce settlement had given her a new lease of freedom, and the best way to appreciate said freedom would be to uproot everything she had built with her ex husband, and take their one and only child to a strange and foreign country.
So voila, half a week later and here he was, pulling into a parking space that was far too small and understated for his baby [his baby being a pretty badly beat up old Desoto that he’d managed to salvage from a nearby car auction on the second day in his new home] and ready to start his first day at Sunnydale High. Spike stepped out of his car, one black boot at a time, and he noticed a couple of girls stopping to watch his jean clad legs follow.
It made him smirk, and he was glad that he was having a similar effect on these girls, as he did the ones back in England.
Half an hour later he was registering in the Head’s office, collecting his papers and books, listening to some little rat-faced man drone on about strict disciplinary techniques, and glancing down at the school map he’d been given. After that he was all but ready to start.
His first lesson of the day was English Literature, and he had to admit he was a little bit pleased about this. After all, it wasn’t so long ago that poetry had been his one true love, and being forced to read it again [whilst obviously pretending to detest the topic] was something Spike didn’t mind doing at all.
Unfortunately he was ten minutes late for the lesson, and had to suffer the humiliation of entering an already settled classroom.
“Ah- William Abbot I presume.” said the teacher, setting down her glasses on the desk. “You have a seat- right there.” she pointed to a chair positioned next to a very pretty looking girl with long, dark hair. “I presume you have the relevant reading?”
Spike held up the selection he’d been handed, never taking his eyes from the girl as the teacher worded her approval of his books.
She wasn’t looking back at him; rather, she was looking down at the book in her hands, her finger tracing the words as her eyes danced with wonder at whatever it was she was reading. It made Spike smile, and he thought that perhaps showing love for English Literature wouldn’t be such a bad thing after all.
“Feel free to find your seat in your own time William.” his new teacher said dryly, and he reddened slightly, realising that every single person, bar the girl, was watching him intently.
“Sure.” he said, making his way toward his new desk and sitting down lightly beside the girl who he now saw was engrossed in a fashion magazine, hidden behind a thick volume. It made him smile slightly at her rebellion, despite the slight disappointment he felt at discovering she wasn’t really engaged in something literary.
“Hi.” he said, and she looked up as if she had failed to notice his presence until that precise moment. “M’names Spike.”
He saw her giving him a quick once over with flickering dark eyes, and smirked when he saw satisfaction darken her gaze slightly.
“Is that so?” she asked in a silky voice, and her accent instantly spoke volumes to him.
“You’re English too?” he asked, and she smiled brightly at that.
“Yes. Born in New York, but raised in the Midlands.” she allowed herself to sigh slightly, “My parents decided to make the move to California after a particularly cold winter, about three years ago. You?”
“I’ve lived in London my whole life.” he said, “My mum’s just on a bit of a freedom kick right now.”
The pretty girl smirked, and then subtly eyed him up again. She leaned back in her seat, seeming to be deciding something.
Finally, she looked back into his eyes; smiling slightly.
“I’m Drusilla.” she said.
And Spike smiled back.
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When the lesson ended and Drusilla showed Spike to the next room, it became evident that she was an incredibly popular girl indeed. The group of friends that flocked around her talked of frivolous things; giggling and laughing together, whilst wearing the most fashionable outfits, and being the most attractive people he’d ever come across.
They all questioned Drusilla about him instantly; despite the fact that he was stood right beside her, but she merely smiled and said that he was hers now.
He kinda liked that.
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The next lesson went by in a blur, and Spike barely even noticed the quiet little blond next to him, too intent on thinking about his Drusilla. His dark princess. His.
Okay, so he’d always been a little possessive, but an intense feeling had welled in his chest the very first moment he’d seen her, and he didn’t think it was something he’d be able to just shake over night. Might as well accept that she was going to be the girl he’d spend the next six months mooning after if she decided to reject him.
He always was love’s bitch.
“Oooooh, who’s this?” asked a grinning little blonde as Spike and Drusilla made their way toward the cafeteria.
Drusilla merely looked at the girl with disinterest, saying “Out of your league Harmony.” dismissing the girl with a flick of her hand.
“That’s the tenth time I’ve heard you say that today.” Spike said with a small smirk, “You must think a lot of me pet.”
“You know, I think I do.” she replied, a small smile of her own tugging at her red lips. “Or perhaps I just want you all to myself.”
Spike smirked at Drusilla’s flirtatious behaviour as they turned the corner; far too lost in the alluring girl’s eyes to notice the small blond hurtling around the bend in the opposite direction. He was busy watching Drusilla’s eyelashes flutter as he felt Buffy Summers crash into him; and the collision did little to draw him away from the object of his affection.
Drusilla, however, did look to the distraction, and her lips drew back in an ugly sneer as her eyes settled on the small girl scuffling around on the floor, trying to recollect her fallen books.
“In a hurry?” she asked in that lacy voice of hers, “Are we supposed to believe that you actually had some place to be?”
Buffy glared at Dru, getting to her feet, “So what if I do?” she snapped, and Spike blanched; immediately disgusted by her brash character.
Drusilla let herself flinch in feigned shock; glad to see that Spike was drawing closer to her in genuine concern.
“Buffy, I was only enquiring; worried about your welfare.” Drusilla said; allowing herself a smirk that Spike was too close to her to see.
“Oh for God’s...” Buffy muttered. Then she flipped her slightly dirty looking blond hair over her shoulder as she growled, “Don’t even start with me today Drusilla. You see, I’m in a really bad mood right now, and I’d hate to see you being hurt, so maybe you should think about getting the Hell out of my way before I-”
“Hey now!” interrupted an angry sounding voice, and Buffy turned with annoyance to glare at its bleached owner.
“Oh don’t even start.” she snapped, not even bothering to look at his worthless face, “I don’t need this.”
She tried to charge past him, but he caught her, pushing her back.
“No,” he said, “You don’t get to talk like that to her. She was only-”
“Who the Hell do you think you are?” Buffy snapped, narrowing her eyes dangerously. “You don’t know anything about me so just- just stay the Hell outta my way.”
With that, she stormed past him; crashing into his shoulder without apologising, and not noticing as one of her books once again slipped from her shoulder bag.
She kept walking despite the looks she knew she was getting. She kept her head down, and her eyes focused on her feet; desperate not to let them see her cry.
She’d be fine, just as soon as she made it to
‘The Library’
The huge sign loomed down at her, and she wiped her eyes harshly, not wanting Giles to see how she was hurting. Once she was sure she’d composed herself, she plastered a huge, false smile across her face, then pushed the door open slowly.
“Giles?” she called as she walked into the room, “You in here?”
“Hey Buffy.” said Willow, the sweet girl she seemed to be spending the majority of her spare time with these days. “Are you okay.”
“I’m fine!” she said brightly. Too brightly, but Willow didn’t press the matter as Giles walked out of his office, thinking she would leave it to him to discover what was troubling the poor girl.
“Buffy?” he asked as he saw her smiling in the centre of the room; her eyes bleary and watery. “Are you okay my dear?”
“I’m fine!” she repeated, and that horribly fake smile was back again. “Seriously. I’m just here to hang guys. Where’s Xan anyway?”
“He went home to grab some lunch.” Willow said, looking at her strange new friend closely. “You sure you’re-”
“I’m fine!” Buffy interrupted, but this time her voice wavered a little bit, and she had to sit down very quickly, hiding her head so they didn’t see her tears. “Oh God, I’m so sorry you guys.” she said quietly, and they were both at her side in an instant, offering her words of comfort.
Willow and Buffy’s friendship had blossomed about a year previously, right after Buffy was mocked and deserted by all of her once so-called friends. Willow and Xander had been the only people in school who would even look her way, and admittedly, Xander hadn’t been so keen on her to start with, following all that had been said about her, not to mention the way she had treated him before.
After all, before the terrible thing happened, she had been the most popular girl in Sunnydale High, and back then she’d had very little time for the ‘nerds’ who she now considered to be her best friends.
“They were following me again.” she said quietly, her head still in her hands as she stared down at the wooden table beneath her elbows, “Calling names out at me- and laughing when I sped up to get away. It’s not even that I care what they think anymore, it’s just when they start saying things about Harry; I kinda flip. I can’t stand to hear them say such derisory things about him; it’s just so heartless.” she sighed, finally looking up as Willow’s hand rubbed soothing circles across her back. “And then, being the stupid idiot that I am, I run straight into Dru and that new guy, and despite everything, she’s already made him hate me, and he yelled right at me when I tried to defend myself against that bitch. I just can’t ever seem to get it right!”
“Sshh, Buffy, it’ll be okay.” Willow said, and Giles was quick to agree.
“Karma comes around Buffy, and these children will find out later what it means to suffer; I’m sure of it. No one should be so unkind to you, especially without reason.”
Buffy chuckled, almost sardonically, “The idiots think they have reason.” she said, and she dropped her head into her hands once more. “And now they have a new member for their stupid little gang. Ugh- my life sucks.”
“Hey, it’s not all bad.” Willow argued, pushing Buffy slightly on her shoulder. “You still have Harrison. And...” she added hesitantly, “Us?”
“Oh, God...” Buffy said, pulling back to look at her friend, “I didn’t mean to insult you Wills- you guys are the only thing that keep me going. I know just how lucky I am to have you as friends.”
Willow beamed adorably at that, and the two girls shared a hug that made their kindly librarian smile broadly.
“I just hate them all so much. I can’t believe I really used to be one of them.” she pulled back to look at Willow sincerely. “You know that anything I ever said to you- anything- it was all just egotistical bull. Trying to fit myself in; trying to make myself feel good.” Willow nodded, looking down, and Buffy quickly added, “And Wills, I’m so so sorry. I am not that person anymore; you know that right?”
Willow smiled kindly as she looked back up at her friend.
“Of course I know that.” she replied. Then she added in a much lighter voice, “Anyway, you know I wouldn’t take that kinda crap from you now!”
Buffy giggled, and barrelled the other girl back into a close hug.
“You’re the best.” she said softly, “All of you. I don’t know where I’d be without you guys.”
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A/N: Please let me know what you think so far, and [as if I even need to bring this up] I just thought I should mention that this is definitely a Spuffy fic, so don’t panic about the temporary Dru-love. I’m afraid it’s necessary.
Anyway, thank you for reading chapter one :]
Love and stuff, Dee xx
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