| A Quiet Saturday Night by Michelle |
| It was Saturday night, date night, and Xander was alone in his apartment. Willow had asked him to go to the Bronze with her, thinking he needed some comfort time after being single for so long. He had politely turned her down, saying that he was fine and just wanted a quiet evening at home. And he was looking forward to a quiet night. He'd been looking forward to this all week, not that anyone believed him. They couldn't quite understand his desire to be by himself, but it didn't matter. As long as they left him alone, he was fine with their confusion. At 7:50, he made some popcorn, grabbed a beer, and then headed into the living room. He turned on the TV just as the theme music and opening sequence started. Grinning, he got comfy on the couch and settled down for two hours of Trading Spaces heaven. The first hour was good, although the designers weren't his favorites. Not exactly what he had been looking forward to, but he could still admire Amy Wynn's carpentry and inwardly make fun of some of the designs. He just couldn't understand the motivation to paint a room completely brown - and it was brown no matter what the designer called it. The second hour was much better. Frank and Vern were the designers, and he loved their designs. He really wished he could do some of the stuff from the show in his apartment, but his landlord wouldn't let him. Besides, he hoped he wouldn't be in the apartment long enough to have to do that kind of serious decorating. The second hour also had Ty, who all by himself was reason enough for watching. He was so engrossed in the show he didn't even notice Spike come back from his nightly patrol and wandering. The vampire walked in and glanced over at Xander before coming to a stop in puzzlement. Xander normally questioned him about his outings, or at least said "hey." Spike hadn't even received a grunt of recognition. Curious, he walked behind the couch to see what Xander was so involved in he didn't realize he had company. And was surprised to find out it was a decorating show. "I didn't realize you were one of those decoratin' types," Spike said. Xander jumped in shock, sending popcorn over the edge of the bowl and onto the couch. "What are you doing here?" he asked crossly as he picked up the spilt popcorn. "I live here, mate. Thought you knew that." "That's not what I mean, Spike. I thought you were out for the night." Spike shrugged. "Things were slow, decided to wrap up early. Why, you didn't want me to catch you watchin' a girly show?" "It's not a girly show," Xander said fiercely. "And I don't care if you see me watching it. You just startled me. I thought I'd have the place to myself." "Well, I'll be gettin' out of your hair." He paused, though, partly because he was still baffled. "Just tell me, why do like this stuff?" Xander eyed the vampire warily, before shooting a desperate glance toward the television. "Why do you want to know?" "Just curious." Spike shifted from one foot to another, wishing he'd left well enough alone and gone into his room. "It's a good show. It's funny, addictive, and I've learned some stuff about creative carpentry from it." He turned back to the screen and sighed when he saw who was on. "Plus, Ty is totally hot." Spike studied the man on the screen for a moment, then nodded. "So he is." Slowly, Xander faced Spike again. "You agree with me?" "I always did have a thing for carpenters," Spike said, an honest leer on his face. Xander's eyes widened as he stared at the blond, television completely forgotten. If he didn't know better, he would have sworn Spike was hitting on him. It couldn't be . . . could it? "Always?" Xander repeated. "Well, for about two and a half years, at any rate." He studied the expression on Xander's face, then, satisfied with what he saw, nodded to himself. "I'll be in my room, if you want to talk more about . . . carpentry." Spike walked away, leaving a stunned human staring after him. Xander couldn't believe it. How had that bastard known Xander had a crush on him? The brunette had been very careful to keep his lustful feelings and urges to himself. Or maybe Spike didn't know and was taking a shot in the dark. After his last disastrous date with a demon woman, Xander had given up on the female sex accepted he liked men. Maybe Spike really was interested. But why make the moves then? After a moment, Xander decided he didn't care. If Spike was offering, he'd take. The vampire had a soul now and hadn't jerked any of the Scooby Gang around in a while, so chances were he was serious. And damn, Xander wanted him bad. Turning off the TV, Xander stood up and walked over to Spike's room. He hesitated a moment before opening up the door and walking inside. Spike was pacing around the small space, but stopped the minute Xander entered the room. "So," Xander began, sticking his hands in his pockets. "I take it you really don't want to talk about carpentry." Spike bit his lower lip and closed the distance between them. "Well, we can if you want, but I did have somethin' else in mind." "Something like this?" Xander asked, and lowered his lips to Spike's. At the first press of lips against lips, Xander knew he was lost. Spike's lips were dry and smooth but very eager. Xander wanted more of those lips, wanted to taste the mouth connected to them, so he opened his mouth and offered his tongue to Spike. The blond accepted Xander's offering and deepened the kiss, bringing his hands up to fist in Xander's shirt and hair. Xander moved his hands out of his jean pockets to wrap around Spike, cradling his head and moving the other man closer. They both tried to get more, each movement and touch of their mouths igniting cravings for more. The burning in his lungs brought Xander back to his senses and he pushed back. Spike looked at Xander with wide, lustful eyes. "Yeah, somethin' like that." They stared at each other for a moment before diving in for more. When he felt slightly cold hands worm their way under his shirt, Xander jumped back. "Hold on," Xander said, trying to catch his breath. Instantly, Spike shut down and withdrew. "Sorry. Just be on your way then." "No, don't do that." Xander sighed impatiently and grabbed Spike, bringing him close. "I'm not pushing you away, we just need to slow down. We just realized we liked each other - I don't think we should be jumping into bed just yet." "Why not?" Spike asked petulantly, burrowing against Xander. "Well for one, I've got pesky emotional baggage. I've done the rushing-into-things thing before and it didn't work out so well. I don't want to make that same mistake twice." Spike sighed, hating that he agreed. "All right. Then what do we do?" "We go back into the living room and finish watching 'Trading Spaces.' After that, we'll see what happens. Sound good?" "I suppose." Spike tried his best to sound put out, but he couldn't quite mask his delighted grin. Xander grinned in return. "Come on." He grabbed Spike's hand and pulled him out of the room. As Spike nestled against him, he allowed himself a wiry smile. He never would have thought his quiet Saturday night would turn out quite this way. Spike and Ty. What more could he want? Back to the archive |