Remember Me

Chapter 1 - The Ring

Buffy met Spike for lunch the following week to discuss their plans for
the trip. She still wasn't sure this was a good idea, and had been
having second thoughts since the moment she'd agreed.

When Spike arrived he could tell that Buffy was ready to back out.
"Hello, kitten." He kissed her lightly on the cheek as he took the seat
across from her. He knew better than to pretend that everything was
okay, so he took her hand in his and leaned forward. "Buffy, you
know I would never want to make you do anything you find
uncomfortable. If you've changed your mind," Spike shrugged and let
out a heavy sigh. "I'll deal with it, luv. It's not the apocalypse after
all." He smiled to reassure her.

Buffy melted. Spike was willing to risk his own embarrassment and
possible work related repercussions to make sure that she was okay.
How could she not help him? When she knew if the situation were
reversed he'd be there for her in a heartbeat. "No, Spike. Of course,
I'll do it. I said I would. I won't let you down."

"That's my girl." He kissed her cheek again, then let go of her hand to
reach for a menu.

Buffy studied him while he went over his choices for lunch. He wasn't
the most handsome man she'd ever met. When they'd first met she
remembered only thinking that he was, well, nondescript would
probably be the word for it. He'd been shy and bookish, but his open
face and bashful smile had caught her attention.

Over the years, she supposed she'd just gotten used to having him in
her life. She hadn't noticed all the changes he'd gone through, hadn't
really blinked an eye when he insisted she start calling him Spike,
rather than William. Although she did occasionally still risk calling him
Will now and then. Secretly she loved to call him Will because it felt
like her own special name for him. He never allowed anyone outside
of the office to call him that, not even Dru.

Buffy didn't know when she'd first taken a second look at him. One
day they'd been sitting having lunch just like today, when she'd looked
up and seen him. Really seen him for the first time in years. The
skinny boy she'd grown accustomed to had become a lean, muscular
man while she wasn't looking. His appearance was no longer
nondescript, but chiseled and sexy. She had to admit though she'd
always found his startlingly blue eyes an attractive feature, even way
back when they'd first bumped into each other trying to get to the
same seat in class.

"Do you know what you want, pet?" Spike asked, breaking into her
thoughts.

Buffy was startled to see the waitress standing by their table. She
hadn't even noticed the woman's approach. "Oh, sorry!" She
blushed. "Yes, I'd like the cobb salad and another iced mocha,
please. Oh, and can you bring another basket of bread?"

"Sure, hon," the waitress turned to Spike. "And what'll you have
handsome?"

Spike smirked and winked at the woman. "Just a roast beef sandwich
with fries, luv. Thanks." He handed back the menus.

Buffy and Spike made small talk until the food came. Buffy talked
about the girl's night out she'd had with Willow, Tara, and Cordy the
previous Saturday. She had Spike laughing out loud when she
repeated some of the lame pick-up lines that some bloke named Riley
had tried to use on her.

When the food finally arrived they both dug in. Spike shot Buffy a few
surreptitious glances from beneath his lashes. He was worried about
her. She'd been acting strange for the past 6 months or so, and he
worried that there might be something wrong. But she hadn't said
anything and all his attempts to pry information from her so far had
been met with either silence or denials.

Lately it seemed as if she was nervous around him, but for the life of
him he couldn't figure out why. *He* had always been the nervous
one, with a perfect right to it. When she'd first begun talking to him in
that far away English class, he'd been shocked and almost
speechless. He remembered thinking how utterly beautiful she was,
and knowing that she had somehow made a mistake by sitting next to
him. But when she continued to do so, and then began asking him to
join her for study sessions, Spike just counted his blessings.

He knew Buffy was way out of his league. She was the kind of
woman to date football players, or even movie stars, not a shy,
wannabe poet. He contented himself with being her friend, and made
sure never to push her for more in fear that she'd take even that small
part of her away from him. Over the years he'd grown accustomed to
being the one she came to when her heart had been broken, but
never the one she wanted to give her heart to. He'd even come to
accept it.

But he wouldn't be able to bear losing her now. He hoped that he
was just overreacting and that there truly was nothing wrong. But one
of Spike's motives for inviting her on his upcoming business trip was
to get to the bottom of whatever was bothering Buffy. He wanted to
make sure it was something he could fix before it became too late.

"So did you get the plane tickets changed to my name?" Buffy asked
in between bites.

"Sure, no problem. We're you able to take the time off at work,
okay?" He answered.

"Yeah, I've got loads of overtime, so they owe me." Buffy was PA for
a small movie studio. It definitely wasn't a glamorous job, but it had
its perks.

"There's really only one thing we have left to take care of, luv."

"Hmm? What's that?" Buffy queried looking up from her salad.

"The ring. You'll need one if we're going to convince people we're
actually engaged."

"Oh." Buffy thought back to her meager jewelry stash, mentally going
through each ring in her possession. "I'm not sure I have anything
appropriate."

"No worries, luv. I'll buy you one." Spike answered, shrugging his
shoulders nonchalantly.

"What? No, you can't do that!" Buffy said. "That's too expensive!
What about Dru's ring?"

"I told her to keep the bloody thing!" Spike spit out. "I never wanted
to see it again anyway."

"Spike! You shouldn't have done that. You could have returned it, or
sold it somewhere else!" Buffy reprimanded him, although secretly
she was glad not to have to wear Dru's castoff.

"I didn't want the reminder, Buffy. And it's only money."

Buffy felt horrible, she was only making him feel worse when all she
wanted to do was make him happy. "Okay, I'm sorry Spike. But you
still don't have to buy me one."

"No, I want to. It'll be a thank you for everything you're doing for me."
He smiled at her. "So, what kind of stone do you want?"

"Oh, um…cubic zirconia is nice and no one can tell the difference."
She hedged. She didn't want Spike spending his money on her. She
never wanted Spike to associate her with the women who'd chased
after him early on when he'd made his first million.

"Buffy! I'm not buying you any bloody cubic zirconian ring!" Spike
huffed. "Just finish eating and we'll go out to the shops this
afternoon."

Reluctantly Buffy accompanied Spike downtown, where they entered
the first jewelry store tcamecame upon. Spike had to practically drag
Buffy into the store, wrapping his arm around her waist he tugged her
through the door. Once inside he let his arm slip down, his fingers
grabbing onto hers and entwining them together. He pulled her
toward the display case and let the gentleman behind the counter
know that they were in to see engagement rings.

Buffy's whole body was flushed. Since her realization that she was in
love with Spike, she'd found herself getting flustered and excited
whenever he made any significant contact with her. That basically
meant any contact whatsoever, but at times like this, when her hand
was firmly ensconced in his she felt like a whole colony of butterflies
had made a home in her stomach.

Buffy bit back a sigh of disappointment when he let go of her hand to
point at a few rings in the display. Dutifully she leaned forward to see
what he had pointed out, frowning slightly at the clearly expensive
rings he was picking. When the clerk pulled the case out of the glass
so that they could get a better look, she tried to pick a smaller less
elt rit ring, but Spike would have none of it.

"Don't just pick the smallest one, Buffy." He chided her. "Here, try
this one." He pulled out a beautiful one carat Ruby ring, surrounded
by two small clusters of 1/4 carat diamonds on each side. The band
was made of white gold. He slipped it on her finger, smiling and
holding her hand while he admired the fit and waited for her approval.

Buffy's lip trembled and she tried to suppress the tears that
threatened to spring from her eyes. This was too real. It didn't feel
anything like a charade, and Buffy's heart ached. When Spike looked
up at her face he noticed her disconsolate look, and hastened to
reassure her. "If it bothers you that much, you don't have to keep it.
I'll bring it back after the trip, or sell it, or something. But we do have
to have something people would actually believe I'd buy for my one
and only true love. Okay?"

Buffy nodded, not trusting her voice.

"Is this the one you want, luv?" Spike asked, concern in his
expression and worry in his voice. Had he done something wrong?
He knew he shouldn't have pushed her to agree to his crazy scheme,
but he hadn't been able to help himself. He hoped he hadn't pushed
her too far. But he had given her an opportunity to back out, and she
hadn't taken it. He figured that was as good a sign as any.

"It's beautiful." She managed to whisper the words.

Spike brought his hand up and cupped her cheek, forcing her to look
him in the eye. "Are you okay, kitten?"

She gave him a tremulous smile, and nodded once again. She fought
the urge to lean her cheek into his warm touch. "Fine. Just tired. It's
been a long day."

Spike didn't believe her for one second, but knew that he wouldn't get
anything else out of her. "Okay. I'll just pay and we'll get you home."

"Thanks." Buffy tried another smile this one came out just a shade
brighter than the last.

When Spike disappeared into the back room with the sales clerk to
ring up the final purchase, Buffy breathed a sigh of relief. This whole
thing was already way too intense. How was she going to get
through the week?

She twirled the ring on her finger, letting the longing ripple through
her in a rush. This was what she wanted. This was her dream.
Maybe it was something she'd never have. The thought made her
shudder. Maybe this week would be the only chance she'd ever get
to play the part of Spike's love.

Buffy straightened her shoulders and made a decision. This may well
be her only chance, and she was going to make the most of it. She'd
be allowed, expected even, to touch him, and kiss him, and show her
love for him all week. And by god, she was going to do it! She'd
worry about the consequences later. But for now she was going to
take the opportunity that had been presented to her. She was going
to be everything Spike wanted and needed in a woman. At least for
this one week.