GOING ONCE (3/?)
Willow left the noise of the Bronze, breathing in deeply as the cool
night
air washed over her. Her head cleared as she welcomed the silence.
The
remainder of her evening had been filled with the bickering of Buffy
and
Anya. Both girls seemed to be out to win the silly bet while forgetting
that
it was Spike they both wanted to beat. He had easily taken their little
game
of needling him and turned it into an all out war while simply sitting
back
and laughing. He knew her friends well, having spent months studying
them
all. Anya and Buffy would be out for blood, both wanting her respected
boyfriend to win the highest auction bid. She still had to believe
that Spike
would take the highest bid. If the women weren't blind and stupid that
was.
Willow started to walk back towards her parent's house. Since Buffy
had
decided to live at home that term, she had done the same. She really
didn't
mind, having never liked sharing a bathroom with a dozen other people.
It was
really nice having her own private space back. But it could get very
lonely.
Buffy had Riley and her family. Xander had Anya. She had no one. Sure,
she
spent a lot of time with them all but it wasn't the same. They had
their own
lives that did not include her. She couldn't fault them for that. She
did
sometimes wish that there was someone she could come home too though.
Someone
she could spend time with just watching television or simply in silence.
It
was an elusive dream though. Since Oz had left, she just hadn't been
able to
connect to anyone that well. Plus there was her silly crush on Spike.
How could she ever date a guy when she always compared them to Spike?
None of
them could ever surpass him. There was just something about him that
got to
her. She couldn't even explain it. It had caught her off guard when
she had
begun to realize that she had feelings for him. It had been nearly
a year
since the first feelings had begun. At first she had thought it was
a
reaction due to Oz's leaving and the fact that Spike had seemed to
be the
only one that had cared. After months had passed and the feelings had
not
only remained but had gotten stronger, she had to accept that she was
falling
in love with him. He had betrayed them to Adam, helping them in the
end only
to save his own ass, yet she still loved him. In the months since the
initiative episode, he had begun spending more time with their group.
She had
to agree with Buffy that he seemed to reluctantly like being with them.
She wasn't sure though if it was necessarily them he liked or if he
was just
tired of being alone. Loneliness could do many things to a person,
even make
them enjoy spending time with their enemies. She hoped that it was
more than
that though. She honestly hoped that he really did like them, even
if he
wanted to deny it to himself. That meant he might be around a bit longer.
She
didn't want think of a future without him in their lives. He made things
interesting. She had to laugh as she remembered the easy way he had
set her
friends up just that evening. Playing their egos against each other.
Poor
Riley and Xander were getting drafted into a bet that neither seemed
to want
to participate in. It would at least make Mrs. Harris' auction a lively
event
to say the least.
Willow walked through the quite streets, thankful that all the nasties
seemed
to be home and not out. Buffy had offered to walk her home but she'd
turned
the slayer down. She'd wanted some quite after all the good natured
and not
so good natured arguing. Besides, Riley had been trying to get the
slayer
away from Anya for nearly an hour. Willow had suggested a late patrol
to the
blonde and Riley had jumped at the idea, taking the slayer away with
a
thankful look at Willow. Willow had left soon after, leaving Anya and
Xander
alone. Spike had taken off soon after the bet had been made, presumably
to
find Harmony for some shagging. Stupid blonde bitch, Willow thought
with a
scowl. Harmony had always had everything in high school, now she was
dead and
she still got the guy. Life just was not fair sometimes.
Willow finally made it home, thankful that she had had no reason to
need the
slayer. The walk had been relaxing, letting her clear her head just
a bit.
She could honestly say that she had no idea who would be the winner
of this
auction bet, but she would sit back and watch the proceedings with
interest.
She walked up the sidewalk to her house, feeling in her pocket for
the key.
She frowned when she didn't feel it. She moved her purse, looking inside
to
see if she may have dropped it in their by mistake. Feeling around,
there was
nothing except a notepad, some pens and her billfold. She closed her
eyes and
sighed, wondering how she could have possibly lost her key. She walked
up the
stairs of the porch, irritation on her face. Of all the stupid things
she had
ever done.
As she reached the porch, the door swung open, bathing her in a soft
glow of
light. Her eyes widened as she stumbled back, nearly falling off the
porch in
surprise. "What the....."
Spike leaned against the doorway, crossing his arms in front of his
chest as
a lazy smile crossed his handsome face, "Honey, you're home!"