Come Down in Time

Chapter 9. Here We Are Again

Spike approached Faye's door, knocking once before letting himself in.

Faye lay sprawled across her bed, magazines and candy bars strewn atop the covers haphazardly. She glanced up and glared at him, dazed at his audacity to enter her room without her permission.

"What do you want?" she hissed at him as she sat up and swept away some of the mess that adorned her bed.

"Jet told me to check on you," he said.

She rolled her eyes at him.

Spike touched the door pad, and as the door closed with a hiss, he leaned back against it, crossing his legs and looking over at Faye.

"I don't know why it bothers you so much," he said calmly, waiting for her reaction.

"It doesn't." she spat back, looking away from him and back to what she was reading before she'd been so rudely interrupted.

"Then why are you avoiding him like he's got the plague or something?" he teased her.

"Fuck off, Spike," she retorted, knowing that he was right. She slid off the bed and stalked over to her dresser, her back to him. She rummaged through the top drawer pretending to search for something, all the while aware of his eyes on her. Such an idiot, she thought, feeling flustered and trying not to let it show.

He chuckled. He watched her, eyeing her curves that he'd held not so many hours ago. She was sinfully appealing, and he wanted the touch of her skin on his again. Faye brought out something in him, and though he tried to convince himself that it was simply lust as he watched they way she carelessly paraded those curves, knowing that he noticed, he knew that it was a lie, because if it were true, he could have sweet-talked her into sleeping with him ages ago. No, something else was going on in this warped brain of his, and he half wished he could turn it off, that uncomfortably tight feeling in his chest when he looked at her. He wanted her around him, and it wasn't just for her body. He just didn't know how to tell her that he felt more at ease with her nearby.

"Faye?" he called to her, waiting for her to turn around.

She stopped, and after a few long moments, turned to look at him. Her eyes met his, and he looked back at her.

He wasn't good with the words associated with emotions, smart ass mocking comments came to him easily and he was so much more comfortable with them. But he needed her to know how he felt. He swallowed the doubts within himself and walked towards her. Her eyes faltered for a second, then she boldly held her stance, her eyes narrowing as she stared back at him. He noticed how quickly she suppressed her surprise, assuming the girl-with-attitude stance, hands on hips, sneer on lips, and defiance in her eyes. He continued towards her, and when he was mere inches away, he stopped and gazed down at her, his hand reaching out to touch her cheek.

When Faye looked up at him, he tried to convey to her with his eyes, what he was feeling. And he could tell that what she saw was something that she didn't expect.

Faye could feel the heat emanating from him, his hand gentle and warm against her skin. Yet his body was still, his breathing measured. And what she saw when she looked at him was something soft and fierce, a strange combination of protectiveness and passion. She was afraid of her emotions when he was this close. He made her aware of her vulnerability, which both scared her and made her a little angry, because she did not want him to see how strong her emotions were when it came to him.

For the first time, Spike was willingly showing her who he was. That when he loved, he loved fiercely, just like everything else he did, like the way he drank, and the way he hunted. But what he didn't realize was that she had already discovered who he was. And it was why she felt the way that she did about him and why she always pushed him away. She drew in a shuddering breath.

He gently cupped the side of her face, his palm rough against her skin. She leaned into his touch instinctively, and emotions swirled through his eyes. "I see you, Faye," he said thickly, the emotions evident into his voice. "Please trust me. Understand?" As his eyes tunneled into hers, she saw in them what he couldn't say - please don't break my heart, Faye.

She swallowed hard and nodded. He bent forward and kissed her gently. She wrapped her arms around him as she instinctively responded to his kiss. The feelings that she'd kept locked away deep inside were surfacing, and she broke away, suddenly afraid.

Spike lifted her chin and smiled, his eyes locked onto hers, telling her that he understood. "No one else but me, Faye," he whispered as he caressed her cheek, then pulled her to him in a fierce hug.

Faye curled herself into the pillow, and Spike pulled her close to his chest, his hand resting on her stomach and her head tucked beneath his chin. She reached for his hand on her stomach and entwined her fingers with his as she closed her eyes and fell into a peaceful slumber. He held her tightly to him as she slept, and as he kissed her hair, he whispered, "I love you, Faye."