Title: Blue Eyed Devil Author: Pattyanne snapkik@yahoo.com Disclaimer: None of the BtVS characters belong to me. Feedback: Love some, thanks! Rating: Up to NC-17 Summary: AU. Spike Devlin is the lead singer for the band 'Blue Eyed Devil'. Buffy Summers is the local preschool teacher he falls in love with shortly before leaving for a nationwide tour. Part thirty-one.... Sometime during the night, the rain had stopped for good. Fat, black clouds began to dissipate, leaving behind a bright, full moon. They slept spooned together at first, but at some point Buffy had rolled onto her back. The resultant jostling of the mattress woke Spike up for a moment. When she settled back into a deeper sleep, he moved down a little in the bed and placed his head on her breast to listen to the strong beat of her heart. He passed several moments this way, utterly at peace with the world, lulled by her soft, steady breathing. But at the instant he was about to slip back into his own sleep, dark thoughts began to prey on his mind, the sort of thoughts that always seem to make themselves known when a person woke up in the small hours of the morning. Despite the evidence to contrary that was beating steadily in his ear, he began to feel terribly afraid that he was going to lose this girl. Not lose her love, but lose HER. In three days he had to pack his bags and leave. What if something happened to her while he was gone? The world was fast becoming a dangerous place, and no one seemed to be immune to it. He'd be unable to protect her. Anything could happen to her. She could have a car accident...or she could be mugged in front of the ATM. California seemed to have a regular problem with earthquakes, which were usually followed up by raging brush fires. Without him realizing it, his arms tightened around her. Or she could get sick. Oh, god...what if she got sick? Yes, her heartbeat sounded strong and healthy, but he was no doctor. What if there was something there...some little genetic flaw never de- tected? It happened all the time, perfectly fit people just dropping dead suddenly for no apparent reason. A veritable laundry list of horrible possibilities began to run through his mind, giving him no peace. All he could think to do was hold her tighter and make silent pleas to whatever God might be listening. He begged and promised and offered deals, willing to do anything...ANY- THING...to keep her safe and well and with him. The next thing he knew, Buffy was gently shaking him awake. ****************************** "Boy, you weren't kidding when you said you were hard to get up in the morning," she said, smiling down at him. "You misunderstood," he replied, his voice slurred with sleep. "I said I'm hard AND up in the morning. Want to feel?" She retrieved her hand before he could lead it under the sheets. "Love to. Can't. Got to go to work." Spike pried his eyelids open. Grey morning sunlight filtered in through the window. "What time is it?" "Nearly 7:30," Buffy said, leaning over to slip her shoes on. "You don't have to get up yet. I put clean towels in the bathroom and I set up the coffee maker. There's cereal and eggs. Help yourself to anything you want." "I want YOU," he muttered, trying to make a grab for her. "You smell good." "Showers will do that for a person." She stood in front of her vanity mirror and slipped her small gold hoops into the tiny holes in her earlobes. Her hair was neatly braided, and she took one last look in the mirror to check her appearance. "I have to go now," she said, leaning over to kiss him goodbye. "Much as I'd love nothing better than to spend the day here in bed with you." His expression had a definite element of 'pout' to it, but she steeled herself against it and slipped away before he could tighten his hold on her. "Hey!" he complained. Sitting up in bed, the covers pooled around his waist, he looked at her plaintively. "Aren't you forgetting something?" She thought it over for a moment. "I don't think so." "Well!" he grumbled, folding his arms across his chest. "That's just fine. Go ahead and leave without telling me you love me. See if I care." Buffy leaned against the door jamb. "Spike?" she said softly, blowing him a kiss when he glanced at her. "I love you. And later tonight....I'll show you how much." "You promise?" he asked. Laying back down on the bed, he stretched his arms over his head and arched his back, briefly tensing his muscles, putting on a little show for her benefit. "Okay, honey-baby. I'll see you later." Although she badly wanted to jump back into the bed and show him just what she thought of such teasing, her mother-ingrained sense of responsibility forbade it. She would, however, make him pay for it...later. ****************************** The door to her classroom squeaked open slowly during quiet time. Buffy looked up, hoping to see Spike, and was disappointed when Willow walked in. She perched on the side of Buffy's desk, her back towards the sleeping children. "All right, you," she said, a giddy twinkle in her eye. "Talk! I want to know everything. Don't leave out one single detail." "About what?" Buffy asked innocently. Willow placed her hands flat on the desk and leaned closer. "Don't play games with me, young lady. I'm not your mother. Now, spill your guts." After making a point of neatening up a desk that didn't need it, Buffy sighed. "After you left the club that night...." A few minutes later, having told the story as concisely as she could without being too evasive or giving away too many personal details, Buffy sat back in her chair, her chin propped on her hand. Willow's eyes were as round as silver dollars. "That's just...that's an amazing story. God, I wish he didn't have to leave. I hate that he has to go!" she said, upset on Buffy's behalf. "So do I," Buffy replied. She could feel a wave of unhappiness approaching. To avoid being swamped by it, she forced herself to smile. "But, he'll be back. He promised." "And you believe him?" Willow's question wasn't mean spirited in any way. It was simply her way of ascertaining the depth of Buffy's commitment and trust towards a man she hadn't really known for very long. "I have faith," Buffy said firmly. "He'll come back to me." "And then what?" That was a very good question, and one that Buffy had no ready answer for. Spike had promised to return, and she knew he would keep that promise, but she had no idea as to what might happen after that, or what kind of long range plans he had. It was the one worry that just wouldn't stop nibbling at the edges of her subconscious mind, the thing that she'd been fretting about from the moment she'd acknowledged her attraction to him; the differences in their lifestyles and their long term goals in life. Spike was destined for success...for stardom. It was obvious to anyone who watched him perform and heard his music. He was going to soar high, and he wouldn't be one of those shooting stars that flared for a brief moment in time and then burned out. He was just too damn good for that. And what did that mean for her? What exactly did he want from her, from this love affair that they'd entered into rather recklessly? Would he stay here with her? Would he ask her to go away with him, and if he did, what would her role in his life be? A girlfriend? A lover? A wife? They'd never talked about their future together, so Buffy had no idea how he felt about the subject of marriage. Suppose he wasn't inter- ested in that sort of commitment? What would she do then? Could she compromise her own values, pretending that it didn't matter, even though it did? All these tough questions were causing her to work up the beginnings of a really juicy headache. "I don't know," she finally answered her friend's question. "I'll think about it when I absolutely have to." It was clear that Buffy wanted to end the conversation, and Willow prudently let the matter drop. ****************************** "I want all of you to look through your stack of letters and find the ones that spell your name," Buffy said, handing each of the children a sheet of construction paper. "When you think you've found them, let me know and I'll give you a glue stick and some glitter." As the kids rooted through the paper letters, Willow popped her head in through the open door. "Phone call in the office," she informed Buffy. No one ever called her at work, and Buffy's heart flip-flopped in her chest. It had to be Spike. She turned her class over to Willow's supervision and almost ran to answer the phone. Stepping into Willow's private office, she closed the door. "Hello?" "I just called...to say...I love you," a husky voice sang in her ear. "Oh, brother." Buffy rolled her eyes and dropped down into the desk chair. "Whhaat?" Spike asked. "Too cute?" She laughed. "No. Just cute enough. Don't move or you'll spoil it." "How's school? Is my favorite audience behaving themselves and minding Miss Buffy?" "I haven't had to put anyone in time out, so yeah, I guess they are." She glanced at her watch. Almost two o'clock. "Are you still at my house?" "No. Matter of fact, that's why I'm calling. I have to drive to Los Angeles and take care of some business." "Oh." She tried not to sound too crestfallen. "Tour business?" she went on, hating to ask about the unpleasant subject. "'Fraid so, love." "Will I see you later?" He hesitated. "Um...I don't know. I mean, I'm not sure how long it'll take. If it gets real late then I'll probably spend the night in a hotel, come back in the morning." It was the last thing she wanted to hear, but she didn't want him driving back if he was tired, so she made an agreeable response. They exchanged "I love yous" and went their separate way. ******************** The phone rang as Buffy finished loading the dishwasher. "Hello?" "Hi, sweetheart." "Hi. Where are you?" "Too far away from you. I'm at the Marriott. Room 506." "Is it nice?" "Oh, yeah, it's quite posh. All the amenities." "That's nice." "How was your day, love?" "Pretty good." "Do you miss me?" "You know I do." "Yeah?" "Yeah." "So....what are you wearing?" TBC...