Chapter Four


Clutching the little toy dog that Spike had won for her at the game booth, Buffy let out a contended sigh. Of course, he hadn’t won it after her good luck kiss. It had taken another five dollars and two balls to knock all the bottles down. There was no way that game wasn’t rigged. If a slayer and a vampire couldn’t knock down the bottles, then there was something decidedly shady going on. And Spike was still arguing that fact.


“Spike, let it go. You won poochy here so everything’s good.”


He frowned. “Sorry luv. You’re not gonna name it poochy are you? That’s a poofy name.”


She smiled. “No. I can’t decide. I’m either going to name him Rex,” she smiled at his frown of disapproval, “or Spike.”


He smirked at her.


“Both classic dog names but you know, one has sentimental appeal,” she said, looping her arm back through his.


“That right,” he said, slowing his pace more so they were strolling rather than walking.


“Uh-huh.” She grinned up at him. “Rex was the name of the boy I first kissed.”


She started giggling when Spike’s step faltered and her turned and scowled at her.


“But maybe I’ll go with the other one instead. He’s pretty nice too,” she said, smiling up at him.


Spike’s scowl turned into a small smile. Buffy frowned when he unwound his arm from hers but felt a small flutter in her stomach when he gently took her hand in his and she clasped their hands together. He smiled down at her and started leading her towards another cluster of rides. As they neared the ride Spike was intending to go on, Buffy pulled back abruptly and tugged on his hand.


“No, no, no, no, no,” Buffy stated. “I’m not getting on that.”


Spike frowned down at her where she was pulling on his hand. “What’s wrong luv? It’s just the Ferris wheel.”


“I know. And I’m not getting on it.” She started pulling him in the other direction. “Pick another one.”


He stopped, forcing Buffy to stop as well since she was still holding onto his hand.


“Buffy, luv, what’s wrong? Why don’t you want to go on the Ferris wheel?” He asked softly. He tilted her chin up and saw the worry in her hazel eyes.


“I don’t like the Ferris wheel. You go up in this little bucket thing with no kind of safety bar or anything and they rock back and forth and you can just fall right out and sometimes they just stop right at the top and you’re stuck there for God knows how long and something could go wrong and you’d be stuck up there forever.”


She stopped her frightened rambling and took a deep breath to calm herself. Spike ran a hand through her hair and cupped her cheek.


“How is that you can ride a roller coaster six ways to Sunday but not a little wheel that goes slowly around?”


“That’s just it. The roller coaster-it’s fast and it’s over and you’re strapped in. That,” she said, pointing to the wheel, “is slow and it gives you time to think exactly how far up you really are.” “And how far you can fall,” she whispered to herself.


Spike slid his hands down to her arms and gently grasped them.


“Buffy, if you really don’t want to go on this, just say the word, and we won’t. But if we do, I promise you, I won’t let you fall.”


She looked up at him and took a deep breath, slowly letting it out as when he clasped her hands again.


“Ok,” she said. “I trust you.”


His face lit up and he squeezed her hands.


“But no rocking. There can’t be any movement of any kind.”


He smiled and crossed his heart. “No rocking.”


Slowly leading her back over to the Ferris wheel, Spike quickly handed the attendant the tickets and put his hand on her lower back to guide her into the bucket. She sat down and Spike steadied the bucket so it wouldn’t rock, even though they were still on the ground. She smiled up at him gratefully and slid over to him when he sat down. She moved a little closer and Spike put his arm around behind her, letting Buffy snuggle into his side comfortably.


The wheel started and Buffy tensed up, her hand gripping his thigh tightly. Spike pulled her closer and leaned down, brushing a soft kiss across her hair. She slowly loosened her grip on his leg as they rose higher and higher in the air while Spike softly stroked her arm. Buffy turned her face towards his and silently gasped when she saw his blue eyes lovingly gazing back at her. Parting her lips, she ran her tongue along them and saw that Spike’s attention was now focused on her mouth. She slowly breathed in and leaned forward, her attention being drawn to his mouth when he wet his own lips. He began to lean forward as well and Buffy closed her eyes.


Suddenly the ride jerked to a stop and Buffy screeched and clutched at Spike. He cursed and looked over at the attendant where he was waiting for them to get off. Buffy peered over Spike and saw that the ride was over.


Wow, she thought as Spike took her hand and led her off the ride, I totally forgot where we were. I can’t believe I rode the Ferris wheel. I can’t believe I almost kissed Spike!


He was still holding her hand and she realized with a start that she liked holding his hand. She enjoyed spending time with him and that if anyone were to look at them right now, they’d think they were a perfectly happy couple in love. She closed her eyes and thought what her friends would say if they saw them like this. They would completely wig or think they were under a love spell or something. She frowned and opened her eyes.


Well, she didn’t care what they thought. They could keep their opinions to themselves. If she wanted to go out and have some actual fun with Spike, then she would. They didn’t have any say in the matter. Not after what they had done. She knew she shouldn’t blame them when they didn’t even know what they had done, but that made it all the worse. She couldn’t tell them. The only one who knew her secret was the vampire walking beside her.


“You ok?” He asked, squeezing her hand.


She tilted her face up towards his. “Yeah, I really am.”


He smiled down at her and she squeezed his hand back.


“Come on, I think I’ve had enough fun and frivolity for one night.”


“All right, let’s get you tucked into bed,” he said as they walked back to the car.