The Birthday Present

Chapter Nine

Lindsey and Spike spent most of the next week together. Lindsey, for the first time ever, missed class. He just couldn’t bear to leave Spike for the day. He soon forgot that Spike was still drugged to make him feel the love for him that he did. They really did feel like a proper couple. Spike’s speech seemed to be slowly improving, and it had amused Lindsey to realise that his lover was English. He wondered how an English vampire had come to be in the States but soon put the thought from his mind. He didn’t like to think of Spike as a vampire. Spike was slavishly devoted to Lindsey, and the sex was out of this world.


This afternoon, however, Lindsey was a little nervous. He planned to take Spike out with him, on a sort of a date. He wanted Spike to be able to mix with his friends. He hadn’t told them of his birthday present, and was hoping that he could pass Spike off as his boyfriend. He glanced over at Spike who was waiting patiently for him to finish getting ready. The piercing in his nipple showed through the tight fitting black t-shirt that Spike was wearing. It was great to see Spike able to dress himself, and left to his own devices, he always slicked his hair back from his face.


Lindsey put the finishing touches to his own appearance and then went over to where Spike was sitting. He reached over and tousled Spike’s hair. He loved it when he had that ‘just got out of bed’ look.


Spike scowled and took hold of Lindsey’s hand. “No. Makes me l…look like a g...girl.”


Lindsey laughed and dropped a kiss on the pout that Spike was forming. “No it doesn’t. It makes you look gorgeous. I love what it looks like when it’s like this.”


Spike smiled at him. “Yeah? I like it too then.”


“No, you don’t,” laughed Lindsey. “But leave it like that for me today, okay?”


“Okay.”


“Are you looking forward to meeting my friends?”


Spike shook his head. “Like having you t…to myself. No sh…sharing.”


Lindsey drew Spike into a hug. “No sharing. You’re all that I want. So don’t worry.” He was rewarded with one of the broad smiles that Lindsey found so irresistible. “Come on, let’s go.”


They strolled hand in hand to the car.


“Can I drive?” asked Spike gazing longingly at the keys in Lindsey’s hand. He hadn’t been afraid of the car since that first journey.


“You don’t know how to drive,” replied Lindsey.


“I do,” said Spike sulkily.


This was another strange hangover from Spike’s previous life and Lindsey, didn’t like reminding of it.


“When did you learn to drive?” he snapped, feeling awful when Spike cringed. He hated upsetting him.


“I…I…can’t remember…but I can d…drive, I re…reckon that I can.”


“Maybe one day I’ll take you somewhere for you to have a drive of the car, but today I have to drive. You can’t drive on public roads because of the injuries that you suffered.”


Spike nodded. “I know. Bad car wreck. I was hurt bad.” He glanced over at Lindsey. “I’m g…getting better.”


“Yes, you are. I’m really proud of you. So, shall we get in the car now?”


Spike smiled at him and got in to the passenger seat of Lindsey’s two-seater sports car.


As they travelled to the café, where they were meeting Lindsey’s friends, Spike got more and more nervous. He knew that he wasn’t as smart as Lindsey was, and he hoped that he didn’t let him down. Lindsey parked the car and together they walked across the road to the café. The friends that they were meeting all knew that Lindsey was gay, but this would be the first time that he’d brought a boyfriend to meet them.


He glanced at Spike; he could see that he was feeling nervous. Lindsey worried whether he should have got his pals to come to the house. He hadn’t taken Spike anywhere apart from clothes shopping and he hadn’t had to really interact with anyone then.


“It’ll be fine,” reassured Lindsey, giving Spike’s hand a squeeze. “You’ll be fine.”


Spike turned and peered at Lindsey through his lashes. “D…don’t…w…want to dis…disa…” He stopped in distress; he just couldn’t get the word. “I’m…dumb.”


Lindsey pulled him to a standstill. “Hey! You are not dumb. Just try to relax. You’ll be okay. You can talk just fine when it’s just me and you. Do you want to go home? I can call them and tell them I’m sick or something.”

Spike stared at Lindsey for a moment. He wanted nothing more than to go home to where he felt safe. But he knew that Lindsey had really looked forward to him meeting his friends and would be sad if they didn’t go. Spike couldn’t bear for Lindsey to be sad.


He took a deep breath. “No. I w…want to go. I’ll be g…good.”


Lindsey kissed him and laughed. “I know you will.” He kissed him again. “Come on then.”


They walked over to the café, and Lindsey soon spotted his friends at an outside table.


“Hi, guys.”


Three heads turned to look at them. Spike nearly lost his courage, but Lindsey squeezed his hand tightly and he felt stronger.


“So, this is the reason that you’ve been skipping class all week?” joked Charles Gunn, leaning back in his seat with a grin.


Spike stared at him, taking in the closely cropped hair and ‘street-style’ clothes. No one looking at him would ever know that he was in the top three of his year in studying to become a lawyer. He looked like a ‘hood’ and he did it on purpose.


“Don’t mind him,” said the boyish faced, brown haired boy sitting next to him. He half stood and offered Spike his hand. “I’m Alexander Harris, Xander. The lout here is Gunn, his name’s Charles but he’ll never answer to it. And this is Oz, Daniel Osborne.” He indicated the last of the three.


Spike reached out and tentatively shook the offered hand. “I’m Spike.” He breathed a sigh of relief when he managed to speak without stuttering.


A chorus of ‘pleased to meet you’s’ accompanied Spike and Lindsey as they sat down at the table.


Gunn leaned close to Spike. “Man, you’re nearly as pretty as me.”


Spike didn’t know what to say, but luckily didn’t have to say anything as everyone burst out laughing.


“In your dreams, Gunn,” said Lindsey. “He’s way prettier!”


Xander grinned. “He’s right. Man, he’s so hot that I fancy him and I’m strictly hetero!”


Spike squirmed in his seat. He didn’t like being called pretty.


“Cut it out guys,” said Oz, noticing Spike’s discomfort. “They’re mostly harmless. Just don’t think before they speak half the time.” The red-haired boy smiled at Spike.


Spike returned the smile gratefully. He decided that he liked Oz. The guys were soon deciding what to order. “So what are you having Spike?” asked Xander.


Spike cast a panicky look at Lindsey. “Um.”


Shit! Lindsey had forgotten that Warren had given him very strict instructions that Spike should only have the pre-packaged formula feed provided from his manufacturer and never to have anything by mouth.


“Sorry, Spike,” he said putting a hand on his knee to reassure him. “You, know what the doctor said. You’ve got to stick to your special diet for now.”


“Okay,” he said with relief.


“Special diet? You look like you need to gain weight not lose it,” teased Gunn.


Spike decided that he didn’t like Gunn very much at all. “Was in bad car wreck. H…hurt a lot.”


The three boys exchanged a glance at the way Spike spoke. They noticed the scar on his neck from where the tube had been removed, that Warren hadn’t been able to disguise fully, even when he coated it with silicon.


“Shit, man. I’m sorry,” said Gunn.


“’S okay,” said Spike. “I’m getting b…better.” He glanced at Lindsey. “You think so t…too don’t you?”


“Yes, babe. You’re doing real well.” He leant over and kissed Spike on the mouth. Spike fell on him in relief. He brought his hand up to the back of Lindsey’s head and kissed him back passionately.


Lindsey’s three friends were amazed at the open display of affection. Up to now, Lindsey had always kept things pretty low key when he was with someone; they’d never even met his previous boyfriends.


“So has everyone decided?” asked Lindsey. “I’ll go and get it.”


They all gave their preferences and Lindsey stood up. Spike went to stand too but Gunn was too quick for him.


“You stay there, Spike. I’ll help you Linds.”


“Me, too,” said Xander as they started to walk away.


Spike stared after Lindsey, fighting the urge to follow him. He became aware of Oz staring at him intently.


“So how long have you and Lindsey been together?” he asked.


Spike thought for a moment and then opted for the truth. “I’m not s…sure. Ca…can’t re…remember much.”


“Man, it must have been some wreck. Lucky to be alive, huh?”


“Yes,” agreed Spike.


Oz nodded. “Did you know Lindsey before the crash?” Oz was intrigued to find out whether Lindsey had been attracted to him before he got so damaged and was maybe staying with him out of sympathy. Mind you, there had been nothing sympathetic about that kiss.


“Before,” said Spike. “He c…came to see me in h…ho…hospital.” He smiled as he remembered how happy he’d been to see him after so long.


“It’s good that he did,” replied Oz. He could clearly see that Spike was nervous and embarrassed at the difficulty that he had speaking. Every time that he stumbled over a word, he dropped his eyes.


Spike met his eyes and smiled. “Yes. He was very good to come to see me.” It was the first whole sentence that he’d managed without stuttering, but it was one that he said to himself a lot. “I got th…this done…to say th…thank you.” His fingers gently touched the ring in his nipple.


Oz’s mouth fell open. “Um…er…” What the hell do I say to that? “Did he like it?” Oz cringed as the words came out of his mouth. He couldn’t believe that he’d said it.


He needn’t have worried. Spike’s face lit up as he nodded rapidly. “Yes, he said that he loved it.”


“So,” said Oz, “what do you do?”


Spike frowned for a second. “I make Lindsey happy.”


Oz smiled ruefully. That wasn’t what he had meant at all. The poor guy must have had some bad head injury. “No, I meant what’s your job?”


Spike was confused. He searched his limited memories for the answer. “Th…that is m…my j…job. I d…do…wh…what makes Lindsey happy. That’s all that m…matters.”


Oz stared at him in horror. This didn’t sound like a relationship – it sounded like abuse. “What about before the car wreck? What did you do then?”


Spike shifted back in his seat when he saw Oz’s expression. He began to tremble slightly. He didn’t know what Oz meant. The only thing that he could remember was loving Lindsey and wanting to please him. For a second, he thought that he could remember something else, something that he couldn’t quite reach. He shook his head in frustration and glanced over at where Lindsey was standing with Gunn and Xander. He wanted to run over to him; he half stood before he felt a hand on his arm.


“Man, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to upset you. None of my business. I’ll stop with the questions.” Oz felt terrible. “Okay?”


Spike glanced at Oz’s face, blinking rapidly to dispel the tears that were threatening to fall. He suddenly got hit with a feeling that he could trust Oz. He didn’t know why but he felt it. “O…okay,” he said shakily. “S…s…sorry.”


“Nothing to be sorry for,” replied Oz. “It was my bad.” He squeezed Spike’s arm before taking it away. He didn’t miss how Spike flinched when he did it. What is going on with Lindsey and this guy?


Spike resisted the urge to rub where Oz had pressed on his arm. He knew that it didn’t make it feel better, just made it hurt more. Lindsey had told him that he had very sensitive skin, and so he knew that Oz hadn’t meant to hurt him. He glanced at Lindsey and saw to his relief that the three men were walking back to the table.


00000000000


“So,” said Gunn with a grin as he walked with Lindsey and Xander to the counter, “where did you find him?”


Lindsey stared at him. “What do you mean, where did I find him?” Did he know what Spike really was?


“Well, I’m guessing that he just didn’t turn up in your bed with a ribbon around his neck. Although by the looks of that kiss that’s where you both wish that you were!”


“Oh,” Lindsey sighed. “He’s the son of one of the guys my dad knows through work. I met him a while ago now. We’d just really got together when he was in the…er…when he got injured.”


“Why didn’t you tell us?” asked Xander. “It must have been awful for you when he was in hospital.”


“It wasn’t fun,” said Lindsey honestly. He’d worried about Spike the whole time that Warren was working on him. He glanced over to where Spike was sitting. As usual, the sight of him made his heart sing. “But he came out of it okay, thank God.”


“He…er…seems a bit…” said Gunn.


“A bit what?” snapped Lindsey. “He’s doing good. He couldn’t speak for a while and it’s worse when he is nervous. It’s easier for him when it’s just me and him, but he’s got to get used to being out in the world again.” It was partly true, he reasoned.


Gunn held up his hands. “Hey, cool down. I didn’t mean anything by it.”


“What are we having then?” asked Xander, trying to diffuse the situation.


Lindsey and Gunn turned their attention back to the menu. They selected coffees and a cake each before walking back to the table.


“I feel a bit mean eating a cream cake when Spike’s not having anything,” said Xander.


“You should feel sorry for your waistline, man, not Spike,” said Gunn with a grin.


“Hey!” protested Xander, always a little touchy about his weight.


“He won’t mind. He’s used to it by now,” said Lindsey.


They sat down and Lindsey pushed a cake and a coffee across the table to Oz.


“You okay, Spike?”


Spike took hold of Lindsey’s hand, needing to touch him. “Y…yes…I’m good.” He glanced at Oz hoping that he wouldn’t tell Lindsey that he’d been so dumb.


“Had a nice talk, didn’t we, Spike?” said Oz.


Spike stiffened a little but nodded in response. Oz had been watching Spike carefully as he spoke and realised that Spike was worried by what he had said. Oz looked at Lindsey and smiled.


“He really loves you, man.”


Oz had figured that most would be a little embarrassed by such a declaration in front of people they’d only just met – not Spike. He grinned at Oz with obvious delight. Lindsey looked a little uncomfortable and smiled awkwardly.


“Yeah, I know. We love each other,” said Lindsey, squeezing Spike’s hand.


It was all that Spike could do not to kiss Lindsey. He’d worried for nothing. Lindsey still loved him and so everything was all right.


The conversation moved on to their college courses and Spike fell silent as he didn’t understand most of what they said. He watched with interest as they drank their coffee and ate the cakes. He wondered if he’d be able to eat proper food like Lindsey one day. He didn’t know why he couldn’t have something to drink. He was allowed to swallow Lindsey’s semen. It was good for him so Lindsey said, but it looked like what they were swallowing now was good for them, so why not him?


Car wreck. Hurt bad, that’s why.


Spike stared at Lindsey with such intensity as he brought the cream cake to his lips that Lindsey put it down again. He dipped his index finger in the cream and offered it to Spike.


“Here, just don’t complain if it makes you ill,” he said with a smile. Spike looked at Lindsey’s finger stupidly for a second before Lindsey added. “Go on, clean it.”


Spike took Lindsey’s hand in both of his own and guided the digit to his mouth. He licked at it tentatively before smiling at Lindsey almost shyly. This tasted much nicer than Lindsey’s spendings did. His expression was one of bliss as he took the finger in to his mouth and sucked on it. The slight moan that escaped his lips made Gunn, Xander and Oz exchange uncomfortable glances.


Oh, Christ. Lindsey felt his jeans tighten at his crotch. The sight of Spike sensuously sucking his finger was making him hard. He caught Gunn’s eye and came back to earth. He whipped his finger from Spike’s lips, startling him.


“S…sorry,” said Spike in a small voice, though he didn’t know what he had done wrong. Lindsey normally liked it when he did that.


“It’s okay, it’s just that we’ve got to go now,” replied Lindsey. “Sorry, guys. Forgot I have to do something for my dad. Come on, Spike, we’ll be late.” He grabbed Spike’s hand and almost pulled him from his seat.

Spike jumped up. He knew that Lindsey wanted sex. He could always tell. He smiled; he always felt happy when he was doing what Lindsey wanted. He licked his lips.


Oz, Gunn and Xander watched the two of them hurry away.


“Well, that was just…strange,” said Xander.


“Damn straight, it was,” agreed Gunn. He turned to Oz. “So what did ‘sex on a stick’ say to you while we were at the counter?”


Oz thought of how nervous Spike had been and how he’d flinched when he’d squeezed his arm. Something was off about him. Maybe just because of the injuries, but even so, the relationship between them wasn’t quite right. He looked back at the faces of his friends. It wasn’t that he didn’t trust them, but he decided he’d try to find out a little more before he shared his worries.


“Just told me about being in the hospital. Talking’s not easy for the poor guy right now.”


“Yeah, I noticed,” replied Gunn. “Lindsey’s protective of him. Nearly chewed my head off when I mentioned it.”


Oz rolled his eyes. “I’m not surprised, you idiot. It’s got to be hard to deal with that.”


Oz then successfully changed the subject, but wondered what he could do to find out more.


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Lindsey marched across the street to the car with Spike almost trotting at his side to keep up.


“W…w…was I b…bad?” asked Spike anxiously.


Lindsey paused. “What? No, no you were fine. It’s just you turned me on so much that if you don’t get your sweet mouth around my cock, I think I’ll explode.”


Spike grinned at him and tilted his head on one side. “I’ll m…make you explode.”


Lindsey groaned and half ran with Spike the rest of the way to the car. Once there, he slid behind the wheel as Spike got in the passenger side. Lindsey opened his jeans and pushed them down his hips so that his balls and erection were free from their confines. Spike stared at Lindsey.

“Now?” he asked, reaching out and gripping Lindsey’s cock.


“Now,” replied Lindsey with a moan.


Spike bent his head to Lindsey’s lap, shifted in to a comfortable position and went to work. It didn’t take long and soon the sweet taste in his mouth of the cream was replaced with a more familiar one.


tbc