Chapter 14
She dragged her feet across the threshold, not bothering to turn on the light and moving about in the darkened living room. She let her backpack drop from her shoulder and threw it on the coffee table. Inhaling sharply, she sprawled on the couch, resting her forearm over her closed eyes.
A frustrated moan escaped her parted lips when the familiar ring tone reached her ears. With some effort she stretched her arm and reached for her backpack, digging her ringing cell-phone out from under her books and her clothes.
“Hello?” she practically groaned.
“Buffy? It’s Parker.”
“Hey.” She was so tired she didn’t even bother with hiding it from her tone.
“Are you ok?”
“Yeah, just kinda tired.”
“Are you sure?”
“Uh-huh.” She mumbled, fighting to keep her eyes open.
“You don’t sound too good.”
“I know. I got a job waitressing at the Expresso Pump. I just got home.”
“Really? How long have you been working there?”
“Since Monday.” She replied after a small pause. It was getting harder by the minute to stay up.
“Oh, so that’s why you haven’t answered my calls.”
There was no reply.
“Buffy?” He called from the other side of the line.
“Huh? What?” She was jolted back to reality. “Sorry, what did you say?”
“I just figured that that’s why you haven’t answered any of my calls this week.”
“Oh, I’m sorry. It’s just been kinda hectic this week, with the new job and classes. I’m sorry.” She apologized.
“It’s ok. You’re forgiven.” She heard him say sympathetically. “I was just calling to ask if you wanna go to this party tomorrow.”
“Party?” She mumbled sleepily.
“Yeah. It’s sort of a pre-Halloween party.”
“Pre-Halloween party?”
“I know.” He giggled. “We make up the stupidest reasons to have a party, don’t we? So, are you coming?”
“Um… I really don’t know. I’ve let these reading assignments pile up during the week. I should really focus on them.” She said, trying to avoid the night out. She was just too tired to move, let alone dance.
“Oh, come on. You owe me.” He begged over the line.
“I just…”
“It’ll be fun. I promise and if you want to get home early I’ll totally understand. Just give it a chance. Please?” He continued.
After a long pause she gave in.
“Ok, I’ll go.”
“Great. I’ll pick you up at eight?” He asked.
“Sure.”
“See you then.”
“Bye.”
“Goodnight.”
“Night.” She replied, thankful to be hanging up.
‘Finally. Sleep.’ Was the last thought to cross her mind.
~+~
They stumbled into the apartment between her hysterical laughs and his bored sighs. With her arms tangled around his neck, she clung to him, burying her face in the collar of his shirt while he was forced to practically drag her across the room. Without warning, she jumped up into his arms and wrapped her legs around his waist attacking his mouth. He didn’t protest; he was actually glad that her incessant giggling fit had come to a halt, or, at least, was now muffled by his lips.
His hands came to grab her thighs and bring her closer to him while he staggered along until he hit the back of the couch. She broke off the kiss and trailed her lips down his neck, his head feel back for a second as he tried to block out her high-pitch chuckles.
One of her hands was snaking under his shirt when he opened his eyes and saw a shadowy figure curled up on the couch.
“Hey, Harm.” He whispered.
“What?” She mumbled against his collarbone, dragging her nose along his skin.
“You’re roommate’s here.” He said; his eyes fixed on the small form as the streams of light coming from the partially closed blinds allowed him to see her face more clearly.
“So what? She’s probably asleep by now.” Harmony said dismissively, continuing with her task.
His hand grasped her wrist just as her fingers tried to slip inside his jeans.
“No. I mean she’s right here.” He hissed.
Reluctantly, Harmony looked over her shoulder to find Buffy sleeping on the sofa. With a sigh, she jumped off the back of the couch and, grabbing his hand, proceeded to drag him towards the corridor that lead to the rooms.
“You’re just gonna leave her there?” He said in a low voice, stopping in his tracks.
“Yeah.” Harmony replied with a shrug. “Let’s go.” She said cheerfully, taking his hand in hers and making her way to her bedroom.
She was forced to stop when he wouldn’t move.
“You can’t leave her there.”
“Why not?” Harmony asked, starting to get frustrated with the conversation that was postponing their bedroom session.
“She’ll… um… She’ll… It’s cold.” He finally blurted with a frown.
“So what?”
“So…So she’ll catch a cold and…um…” He struggled for a quick answer as she looked at him accusingly. “And then you’ll get it and I don’t want you to get sick.”
‘Stroke of genius.’ Spike silently congratulated himself.
“Oh, blondie bear.” She said babyishly, wrapping her arms around his neck and attacking his lips. “You’re worried about me?” She asked a little too loudly.
“Harmony, keep it down, will you?” He grumbled, pulling away from her.
“You’re so sweet.” She insisted in using that annoying tone.
“Yeah, I’m a human-shaped sugary delight.” He said dismissively, his eyes on the girl sleeping on the couch.
She was fast asleep, her hands tucked under her head, her hair still tied in a binding ponytail, even though a few blonde strings managed to elude the elastic band to curl down her neck.
“And I’m gonna lick you *all* up.” She growled naughtily, running her tongue along the side of his face and snapping him out of his daze. “Well, let’s get her to bed.” Harmony said, marching her way towards the couch.
His hand was around her arm in a flash.
“What are you doing?”
“Waking her up.” Harmony said the obvious.
“You can’t wake her up.”
“Huh?”
“Then she’ll start nagging and yapping on and on about the noise.” He improvised.
“Oh.”
“I better carry her into her bedroom.” He suggested innocently.
“Ok.” She agreed before leaning in. “I’ll go take a shower. Maybe you can join me after?” She muttered mischievously into his ear between giggles before scampering off into the bathroom.
He was left there in the living room with her, the occasional honk of a passing car being the only thing breaking the silence. The sound coming from the leather as he slipped his hands into the pockets of his duster and made his way around the coffee table filled the room. He squat down in front of her and a smile spread over his lips. Poor thing must have been exhausted juggling school and work.
Before he knew it, he was brushing away one of the loose strings of hair that fell over her face. Her nose wrinkled a bit and her hand came up to scratch it for a second before hiding back under her cheek. The sound of water running shattered the moment and he went back to his assigned task.
He carefully snaked his right hand under her neck, resting it against the back of her shoulder. He stopped when he saw her face scrunch up in protest at the imposition. After a few seconds, she relaxed against his arm and he slipped his other hand under her bare knees, lifting her up in one smooth motion. He tried to ignore the pair of tanned thighs that were revealed as the grey skirt hiked up and gathered around her hips.
He mechanically walked the small distance to her bedroom door, pushing it open and entering.
Cautiously, he placed her on the mattress, but instead of turning around and leaving, he found himself still crouched in front of her, somehow drawn to her misleading angelic form. She looked so soft and helpless, curled up on her side, still wearing her waitress uniform. There was no trace of the wild creature he had seen the first time they’d met, or of the no less fiery girl he had come to know and quip with afterwards.
He wondered which side he liked best – the sharp, opinionated version, or the fragile, soft one he was presented with tonight.
His eyes drifted up and down her body, unconsciously memorizing every slope and every peak. Inevitably, his fingers decided to join in, coming up to graze over her bare arm, down her side, across her hip and finally brushing along her right thigh.
‘So soft.’
His gaze snapped up to her face when she mumbled something and dragged her face over her pillow as she tried to find a more comfortable position. His hand abandoned her leg and recoiled back, resting on the mattress as he continued to stare intensely.
The longer he stayed there, the harder it became to deny the strange effect her presence had on him.
“Spike.”
Suddenly, he was up. He turned around to find a soaked Harmony standing at the foot of the door, wrapped in a towel.
“There you are. I missed you in-“
“Shh!” He hissed, quickly closing the distance between them, dragging her into the corridor and closing the door behind him.
“-the shower. What took you so long?” She wondered in her usual babyish tone.
Her arms were once again wrapped around his neck and she practically dangled off him.
During the last few weeks, Harmony had become increasingly exasperating. Her voice was too shrilly and her conversation had grown so boring, it didn’t seem worth the trouble. Not even for sex!
Gradually, even her figure, which was probably the only thing that had drawn him to her in the first place started to annoy him. Suddenly, her hair was too blonde, her shoulders too broad, her chest… God, even her breasts were too big. ‘When did breasts get to be too big?’ And the weirdest thing was the fact that he was beginning to think she was too tall. Since when didn’t he like tall women? Dru was tall and that was one of the things that he loved about her. He always hated the whole ‘petit’ thing. His women were supposed to be… well, women and not little girls.
Point was that the woman that was now crawling over his body as he lay on her bed was definitely starting to get on his nerves. So why was he still with her? Instinctively, his eyes diverted to the wall that separated the two bedrooms. His gaze clung to the wall for a few seconds before he shook the frightening thought away.
“Oh, Spike.” Harmony’s moan brought him back to reality.
“Um… Harm.” He tried but she seemed too entertained with his bare chest to hear him.
“Harm.” He called out, holding her by her arms and eventually getting her attention.
She looked up at him with large eyes.
“Do you mind if we don’t… tonight?” He asked.
“Why?” She whined with a frown.
“I’m just too tired, I guess.”
‘Since when do I get too tired for sex?”
“Since when do you get too tired for sex?” She sulked.
“I just am.” He said, helping her roll off him and sit up.
“Are you ok?” He heard her ask. “You’re not sick or anything, are you?”
“What? No. I just don’t feel like having sex.”
‘I can’t believe I just said that.’ He thought.
“Oh.” She moped.
“Harm…” He started, but gave up, standing up. “I better go.”
“You’re not staying?” Harmony asked with a hopeful glint in her eyes.
“I better get home.” He replied walking out of the room. “Night, Harm.”
“Night.” She mumbled just before she heard the front door open and close.
~+~
She sat on the couch, feet neatly tucked under her with a bowl of cornflakes in her hand while she watched the TV screen. Her spoon froze in the air, halfway to her mouth, when she saw Harmony enter the living room and cross it only to go back into her bedroom the next second. With a sigh, Buffy set the bowl down, slid her feet into her slippers and dragged them to Harmony’s bedroom. The door was open and she leaned her shoulder on the threshold and watched as her roommate walked around in circles in the middle the pink room.
“Ok, what’s up?” Buffy asked, causing Harmony to snap her head around and look at her.
“Nothing.” She replied with little conviction.
“You’ve gone around the living room and back here eight times in one hour. Something’s up.”
It wasn’t a very big surprise for Buffy how short lived Harmony’s initial reluctance was.
“He doesn’t want me.” She cried out, dramatically throwing herself on the bed and covering her head with her hands.
“He who?”
“Huh?” Harmony looked up, with growingly red eyes.
“Who doesn’t want you?” Buffy explained, still hesitant to enter the frighteningly pink room.
“Spiiiike.” She sobbed, letting her head fall on the mattress again.
“Oh.” Buffy tried to sound sympathetic. “Why do you think that?”
Harmony looked up before belching out: “Because he doesn’t wanna have sex with me anymooooore.”
“Oh.” Buffy’s eyes widened.
‘Maybe I shouldn’t get into this. The whole roommate bonding thing was a bad idea anyway.’ She decided, silently backtracking, but it was too late.
“Last night… *hiccup* we came here and… *sob* we were about to get all hot and wild and…”
Buffy couldn’t help cringing at the mental picture that popped into her head.
“And then I decided to take a shower while he got you into your room.”
‘Oh. So that’s how I woke up in my bed. I knew I had fallen asleep on the couch.’ Buffy put an end to the doubt that had been nagging her all day. ‘Wait a second! Backtrack a bit. Boink-boy carried me into my room?!’
In the meantime, Harmony continued to sob:
“And then we were on the bed and I was doing that thing that he likes. You know, nibbling on his nipple.”
“No, I didn’t know that.” Buffy said, pushing her lips together for a forced smile before muttering: “And I’m pretty sure I was a physiologically healthier human being without that bit of info.”
Harmony, however, ignored her.
“And then he’s all – I don’t feel like it today. I’m tiiired.” She continued.
Buffy remained at the threshold, questioning what to do next. This conversation was definitely taking a very bad turn. Her mind raced in search for a sympathetic reply. After a few seconds all it came up with was:
“Oh.”
“He’s never too tired for sex. And I mean NEVER.” Harmony emphasized, widening her eyes at the last word and sitting up on the bed. “Even after the fifth time in a row, he’s still up for more. I’m the one who has to stop him cause I’m too sore. Remember last week, when I skipped the first couple classes?” She asked before answering herself: “I couldn’t walk. We tried this new position where he-“
“Ok.” Buffy raised her hand instantly. “Too much mentally scarring information there, Harmony.”
“Oh. Sorry.” Harmony apologized. She paused for a second she wailed loudly: “He want me anymooooore.”
This time Buffy felt compelled to come closer. Awkwardly, she sat on the bed, her hand coming hesitantly to pat Harmony on the back.
“There, there.” She muttered.
She was about to frown at her choice of words, when suddenly found herself lost in Harmony’s crushing embrace.
“He doesn’t want me.” The ex-cheerleader’s cry came out muffled against the fabric of Buffy’s t-shirt.
In the meantime, Buffy snapped out of her initial shock and put her arms around her convulsing roommate.
“Of course he wants you.” She finally said.
“No, he doesn’t.” Harmony insisted.
“Yes, he does. Maybe he’s just… tired.”
At that, Harmony looked up – dark tracks of mascara ran down her cheeks.
“He’s *never* tired.” Harmony assured her.
“Well, maybe he’s having trouble… um… getting the machinery to work.” Buffy suggested awkwardly.
“Huh?”
“You know. He’s having trouble saluting.”
The questioning frown remained on Harmony’s face.
Buffy sighed. ‘So much for Xander’s euphemisms.’
“Maybe he’s having trouble having an erection.”
“Oh!” Harmony muttered. After a few seconds, realisation seemed to set in and she raised both eyebrows. “Oh!”
“Exactly. Maybe he’s having trouble and he’s just afraid to admit it.”
“That’s not it.” Harmony said with a pout.
“Why not?” Buffy frowned.
“Trust me, Buffy. That’s not it.” She insisted with a half-smile that made Buffy’s brow furrow even further. But she didn’t dare to ask any details. She was pretty sure Harmony would have no problems in providing vivid descriptions.
“Well, how many times has this happened?”
“Once.” Harmony replied, her lower lips jutting out.
“Once? He doesn’t want to have sex with you once and you start having a wailing fit?!” Buffy asked outraged.
“Yes.”
“It was just once, Harmony. It’s normal not to want to have sex *all* the time.” Buffy replied angrily, standing up.
“Not with Spike. He never-“
“He’s always up for it! I get it!” She cut her off. “He’s a sex-addict.” Buffy said turning to leave.
“It’s true.” Harmony replied to the now empty room.
“Well, it’s not normal.” Buffy shouted from the corridor.
“Of course it is.” Harmony shouted back.
Within seconds Buffy’s head popped into the room:
“Trust me, Harmony. It isn’t.”
And then she was gone.