BY: ECHIDNA

She had successfully avoided him for a week now. She neglected patrolling the parts of the cemetery that surrounded his crypt, stopped going to the Bronze, basically, she had stopped going any place there was a remote chance of bumping into him.

“I guess he got the hint.” She thought to herself as she made her way back home from yet another boring night of patrolling. She had kind of gotten used to having him along when she was off fighting baddies.

“Hasn’t stopped by the Magic Shop or here, hasn’t followed me around.” She continued with her inner monologue as she climbed up the stairs and opened the door to her sister’s room.

She found Dawn sound asleep, curled up in the sheets in her warm bed. Buffy smiled tenderly at the sight, she looked so peaceful and quiet. Her eyes drifted from her sister’s face to her arm. It was wrapped in thick plaster, consequence of last week’s wreck. Buffy sighed, carefully closing the door behind her and heading towards her own bedroom.

“Hasn’t even talked to Dawn after everything. Maybe he left town.” As the words formed in her head so did a lump in her throat and she felt as if someone had just punched her right in her stomach, but she quickly pushed the feeling aside, discarding it as being a sign that she needed to plunder her fridge. She opened the door to her room and walked in, kicking off her shoes and throwing herself on the bed. It screeched in protest of the sudden burden it was under. She sighed once more and closed her eyes. Slowly, she turned her attention towards the window and the strings of garlic that framed it.

“Guess I won’t be needing this anymore.”

Getting up, she walked over to the window and proceeded with taking down her garlic strings.

Somewhere inside of her it seemed like an invitation to someone but once more she ignored the thought.

“I’m only taking this down because I don’t need it anymore. Even if he’s still around, I’m cured.” She told herself. The only way she could convince herself that Spike had no longer any control over her was if she could stand up to him. “I’m the Slayer! I’m not going to hide from anyone… Anything!” and with that she reached for her shoes, put them on and stormed out of her room.

**************

“I’m not going to him, I’m simply gonna stop avoiding him” she spoke to herself nodding as she marched through the cemetery.

She walked freely, without the self-imposed restrictions of the last week and somehow she found herself 10 feet away from the entrance to his crypt.

“Ok! I’m here! I’ve proven that he doesn’t have any effect on me anymore. Now it’s time to leave.” She told herself, as she turned on her heels and started to walk back home.

“Leavin’ so soon, pet?” she heard his voice coming from behind her.

She didn’t answer, she just kept on walking.

“Wha’? You gonna keep avoidin’ me. Is that the master plan, huh?”

She stopped dead in her tracks and turned around promptly.

“I’m not- “ she was caught off guard by his proximity. He stood about two feet from her. She raised her eyes and they drifted from his chest to his face. “I’m not avoiding you.” She managed to say; a lump forming at the base of her throat, her heart ferociously pounding against the walls of her chest. “Too close…” she thought, instinctively taking a step back.

“Sure looks like it to me.” He responded grinning. “Too far away...” he contemplated the distance between them and took a step towards her.

This time she stood her ground. It was time to show him that, to her, he was nothing.

“I don’t care what it looks like to you.” She spat out.

“I thought you’d finished patrolin’ for tonight. Why’d you come back? Miss something?” he asked, the cocky grin still dominating over his lips.

“You’ve been following me?”

He was caught by surprise. He didn’t want her to think he had spent the entire week stalking her without her knowing about it.

“No!” he said immediately, but it didn’t come out as convincing as he had wanted. “I was just passing by and I saw you headin’ home.”

“Whatever!” she sighed, shaking her head and trying very hard to look as uninterested as possible. She turned to leave when she felt his hand on her arm. It sent shivers down her spine and she closed her eyes for a second, relishing in the feeling, but when she turned around all Spike could see was a razor sharp look on her face.

She was going to leave, it was time to change strategies. He had missed her too much the last week, he wasn’t about to let her leave so soon. The entire week had felt more like a month. He had spent it mostly looking at the entrance of his crypt wishing and hoping that she would just kick the door open and burst in like she usually did. God, he missed that - the electricity that ravaged its way though his entire body every time he would see her.

“What?” she hissed.

His mind raced for an answer. He wasn’t about to go back to being her little puppy that obeyed her every command, not now, when he had finally gotten his stones back.

“How’s Dawn?” he asked. For a moment it looked like there was disappointment in her face. Was she expecting him to beg her to stay?

“She’s fine. Keep away from her. She doesn’t need you.”

“Is that a fact?”

“Yes!”

“Well, I’ll keep seeing the lil’ nibblet for as long as she wants.”

“I’m warning you. STAY AWAY!” she threatened.

“Look, whatever this is” he started, pointing to her and to himself “it’s between me and you, the lil bit has nothing to do with it. You don’t wanna see me, fine. That’s your loss, but-“

“My loss? You are so, so”

“So what? Good?” he asked with a swaggering smirk.

Buffy furrowed her eyebrows as she closed her eyes in anger, pausing before continuing:

“Conceited, egotistical, overconfident, haughty…”

“Been studying your dictionary, hav’ you? Wha’? Can’t find a more interesting way to stop from thinkin’ ‘bout me?”

“You think you’re so great? Believe me, you’re so… NOT!” She growled in satisfaction.

But her words didn’t seem to affect him at all. The smug grin still danced on his lips.

“Really?”

“Really. You’re not that …” as she spoke he took as step towards her and snaked an arm around her waist. He leaned in and started to nibble at her earlobe. “good.” The word came out with a powerful sigh as she started to feel out of breath.

“So if I do this it does nothin’ for you.” He asked as his tongue conquered the part of her neck just below her ear.

“Nope…” she was getting more and more breathless, and the words refused to leave her month. After a pause she was finally able to say: “not a thing.”

“What about this?” his left hand crept its way from her hips to her neck. It was a slow journey, it gave Buffy more than enough time to answer:

“Nothing, nothing at…” at that moment his hand was midway to its destination, just on the transition between her stomach and her chest. She was panting, as the hand brashly ignored her breast, barely brushed over it and settled on her collarbone. “all.” The last word came out sounding a lot like a maimed sigh.

“Is that so?” he asked cockily. He loved this game. God, how he missed her body, her scent, the sound of her voice when she was in need. He felt so powerful, so aroused. He continued nibbling and kissing his way around her neck. Suddenly, the arm that remained around her waist made its way south and roughly cupped her behind and pushed her pelvis against his own. She could feel his painful erection pressing against the lower part of her stomach.

“Yes” she gasped. It was supposed to be an answer to his question, but somehow it sounded more like the way her body had found to outburst the intense pleasure that travelled through her.

“So, you want me to stop, is that it?” he asked breathing heavily as he now ravaged her collarbone with his mouth and slowly made his way to the hedge of her shirt; the top button coming undone under the pressure of his face against it and he gain full access to her lace-covered breast.

Buffy whimpered in pleasure as his tongue moved between her bra and her soft skin. For a moment she lost all coherent thought, the only thing she remembered was that the right answer to his question was:

“Yes.” She breathed.

Immediately, Spike pulled away from her, his arms raised in the air:

“If that’s what you want.” He smiled cockily, but deep inside he was amazed at how he was able to stop this interlude.

Buffy was startled by the sudden loss of contact. Her first instinct was to grab him, throw him on the ground and straddle him, impaling herself on him over and over again. But, as always, she was able to restrain herself. From the battle that raged inside of her, the emotion that won was anger. How dare he stop now? How dare he make her admit what she truly came here for? A dark shadow fell upon her face, the lustful anger in her eyes faded and was replaced by the usual cold and lifeless look she had.

“That’s exactly what I want. All I want from you is distance.” She spat out.

Spike was surprised. He never thought that would have been her reaction. He thought his thrall over her was greater than that. But he recovered quite quickly and readily answered back:

“For someone who only wants distance from me, you sure as hell come over to my home very often. Need I remind you in the two times that we met since we-“

“Don’t say it!”

“Wha’ ? Don’t say wha’? That we-“

He was silenced by Buffy’s fist, which connected with his jaw. When he recovered from the punch it was too late. She was gone.

Review Story

Back to Fiction