Dreamer (5/5)
Haddie has some questions.
This chapter is rated FRT.
Chapter Five
Haddie and Evan jumped up and down excitedly when they saw the school bus at the end of the street. Haddie turned and grinned at her parents, who were sitting on the front steps of the house.
“Do I get to ride the bus with them when I go to school every day next year?”
Buffy laughed at the horrified expression on Giles’ face and then gave her daughter a wink. “We’ll talk about it when it gets closer to time, okay?”
Haddie nodded quickly and glanced at Callie, who was lying calmly next to Giles with her head on his thigh. “How come Callie doesn’t want to jump around with us?”
Giles smiled softly. “Oh, she wants to. But, we’re teaching her that it’s better manners to wait.”
Evan stopped jumping immediately and looked at Giles. “Better not ta jump?”
Giles chuckled and shook his head. “It’s quite alright for you to jump…not so much for a dog.”
Evan laughed brightly and resumed his jumping. He pointed at the approaching bus and giggled.
“Is gettin’ closer!”
Giles chuckled and leaned back, resting his back against the wooden handrail post. He looked down as Buffy slid closer to him and placed her hand on his thigh, her fingers brushing along the inner seam of his jeans.
“Buffy…”
“Huh?” She asked, genuinely puzzled at the warning tone of his voice. “What’s wrong?”
It was then that he realized that she wasn’t aware of what she was doing. He smiled and covered her hand with his, stilling her movement.
“Probably shouldn’t be doing that right now…”
She glanced down at their hands, a smile forming on her face when her eyes wandered to his groin. “Sorry…I didn’t realize I was…um…”
“It doesn’t take much, love.” He whispered, giving her hand a gentle squeeze before releasing it. “Come on, now…the bus is almost here.”
“Is here! Is here!” Evan shouted in excitement.
Giles arched an eyebrow as he smiled. “See?”
Buffy laughed and removed her hand from his thigh, turning her eyes to watch their two youngest children greet their two oldest. Braden rolled his eyes as he jumped off the last step and into the yard, but laughed as Evan tackled him. Lucas handed something to Haddie, who smiled brightly at him, before dropping his bag and joining in on the wrestling match with his two brothers.
Haddie ran over to her parents, waving the construction paper covered piece of posterboard. “Look what Lucas made for me!”
Buffy smiled as she looked at the artwork. Lucas had obviously put a lot of effort into it. It was basically a snapshot of what was going on in the front yard right now…made from construction paper.
Buffy traced Haddie’s image with her finger, sighing softly. “Haddie?”
“Yeah?”
“Do you ever wish you had a sister?”
Giles cast a quick glance at his wife, who was looking intently at their daughter. Haddie met Buffy’s eyes and furrowed her brow.
“Is that what you and Daddy were doing? Making a sister for us?”
Giles coughed heavily and Buffy’s eyes widened. “Excuse me?”
Haddie shrugged a shoulder and ran her tiny hand through her golden locks. “Braden said that sometimes when a Mummy and Daddy lay down for a nap, they make a baby. You and Daddy had a nap, did you make another baby?”
Before either Buffy or Giles could answer that question, she quickly asked another.
“How do you make a baby anyway? Braden wouldn’t tell me that part. Is it magic?”
“Magic?” Buffy asked, smiling at Giles’ panicked expression.
“Yeah, like…is it a doll and then you make a real baby from it?”
“Not exactly.” Buffy offered, curling a strand of Haddie’s hair around her finger.
That seemed to satisfy her curiosity for the moment, a fact that surprised both Buffy and Giles. She took a deep breath and smiled as she watched her brothers play.
“I don’t think I want a sister, Mummy.”
“Why’s that, sweetie?”
Haddie looked up at her and gave her a brilliant smile…the smile she had inherited from her father. “If I have a sister, then I won’t be the only princess anymore.”
She handed the handmade portrait to Buffy and climbed down the stairs, running off to play with the boys. Buffy watched her, leaning against Giles and placing her hand back on his thigh.
Giles cleared his throat, causing her to look up at him. She smiled sweetly and rubbed his leg.
“You okay?”
“Hm? Oh…yes.” He smiled gently and took a deep breath. “That was…a little closer than I was expecting.”
Buffy chuckled, lightly scraping her nails over the denim. “You know that she’s going to ask soon, right?”
He sighed heavily, placing his hand over hers and, once again, stopping her movement. “Yes. Which means you’ll finally have a turn at ‘the talk’.”
“But…you’re so good at it.” Buffy protested playfully. “I mean, you’ve done it twice already…you’re like a pro or something.”
He gave her a mock-glare and shook his head. “That was the deal. I’d talk to the boys, you’d talk to the girls. You’re not getting out of it, Buffy.”
She laughed heartily, leaning up to give his lips a light kiss before settling against him and watching their children…and Callie…play happily in the front yard.
* * *
After a quick afternoon snack, all four children ran off to the backyard to finish their banner for Ethan and Michael. Buffy had gone outside to supervise the use of the paint that the children were using. Giles pulled a bottle of beer from the refrigerator and sat down on the couch, smiling as Callie jumped up beside of him.
“Just us for right now, Cal.” He spoke softly as he lovingly rubbed her head.
Taking a long drink from the bottle, he allowed his eyes to roam over the pictures lining the mantle. He sighed softly as his gaze rested on the most recent family portrait. It had been a fairly relaxed shoot…and it showed. It was probably one of Giles’ favourite pictures of his family.
They were all sitting on the floor, Buffy and Giles smiling at one another…their four children surrounding them, playing with one another…Callie sitting next to Giles, her paw resting on his thigh. For a professional photograph, it was extremely candid.
And that’s what he loved about it.
He smiled as he looked down at Callie and rubbed his thumb over one of her ears. Her brown eyes were bright, her tail thumping against the cushions, as she smiled back up at him. Giles chuckled, remembering how long it took for Buffy to believe him that Callie was indeed smiling.
Suddenly, Callie looked towards the front door. Giles chuckled again as he stood up and drained the bottle, finishing just as the doorbell rang.
She jumped off the couch and followed him to the door, sitting obediently as he swung the door open. Her tail began wagging even harder when she saw the visitors.
Ethan’s smile disappeared quickly as he saw the large bruise on the left side of Giles’ head. “What the hell happened?”
“It looks worse than it is.” He stepped back from the door and smiled warmly as Ethan rushed in, Michael right behind him. “How was your trip?”
“Yeah, good.” Ethan muttered. “Tell me what happened.”
Giles sighed and glanced down at Callie, who was still sitting but becoming impatient. “Would you please say hello to Callie? I’ll grab a few beers and then…I’ll explain why I look such a state.”
* * *
Giles rolled his eyes as Ethan carefully slipped his fingers into his hair. “Ethan…”
Ethan ignored him, parting the hair to get a better look at the laceration. Narrowing his eyes, he glanced at Buffy. “He didn’t need stitches?”
Buffy snorted a laugh and took a sip of her husband’s beer as she leaned back in the chair. “Oh, it probably did. But, he was being difficult. The bleeding stopped on its own though…I’ve been checking it for any signs of infection.”
Giles pulled away from Ethan and gave him a glare. “I told you…I’m fine.”
Ethan arched an eyebrow as Giles grimaced from the movement. “Yeah…I always look like I’m in pain when I’m fine. Ask Michael…it happens all the time.”
Michael tilted his head slightly, carefully regarding Giles. “You hurt your shoulder as well?”
“Mm.” Giles mumbled, taking his beer back from Buffy and glancing at the children playing happily in the yard. “I landed on a rock or something when I fell.”
“Brick.” Buffy stated, causing Giles to look at her. “You landed on a brick. Well, more like a cinder block than a brick. You’re lucky you didn’t break something.”
Michael bit his lip as he thought. He caught Ethan’s eye and asked a silent question, turning back to Giles when Ethan had given a silent answer.
“Would you mind if I had a look at it?” At Giles’ questioning look, Michael continued. “I…well, I was in medical school for a couple of years before I decided to become an accountant.”
Buffy smiled. “Doctor, accountant…pretty big change there.”
Michael returned her smile. “Not so much. I still take things apart and fix them…it’s just numbers instead of bodies.”
Giles chuckled at that and slowly unbuttoned his shirt. As the material fell from his injured shoulder and Michael knelt on the floor to get a better look, Ethan gasped.
“Jesus…”
Buffy nodded solemnly. “Yeah, I tried to get him to let me take him to the hospital…”
Giles winced as Michael gently prodded the bruised and swollen flesh. “I didn’t want - ”
His sentence was interrupted by footsteps clambering up the stairs to the porch, followed by a sharp gasp.
“Dad?”
Giles turned his head quickly, finding Lucas’ eyes brimming with tears as he stared at his father’s shoulder. “Lucas…I’m alright. Come here.”
Lucas moved slowly, his eyes not straying from the purplish-black colored skin. “I…I don’t remember it looking like this.”
Ethan’s brow furrowed. “What’s that, mate?”
Lucas swallowed and glanced at Ethan, shrugging his shoulder. “It didn’t look this bad in my dream.” His eyes darted to Michael, his voice dropping to a whisper. “Is it going to be okay?”
Michael nodded slowly, offering the boy a tender smile. “I’m pretty sure it’s just bruised, Lucas. It’s bruised badly…”
Giles sighed in exasperation. “I’ve always bruised badly.”
Ethan thought for a second and then smiled. “Yeah, that’s true enough.”
“Is it broke?” Lucas asked, gliding his fingertips over the top of his father’s shoulder.
“Broken.” Giles corrected automatically in a gentle tone. “And, no…I’m fairly certain that it isn’t broken. But, why don’t we ask Dr. Michael?”
Lucas looked at Michael expectantly. “Is it broken?”
Michael shook his head, his smile growing. “No, just swollen and sore. Basically, it means that he won’t be able to throw a ball with you for a while.”
Lucas looked confused. “Why not? He’s left-handed…like me and Haddie.”
Michael chuckled. “My mistake. I forgot that he’s left-handed. In that case, it just means that he’ll be a bit sore for a while.”
“Okay.” Lucas took a deep breath and looked into Giles’ eyes and smiled. “I love you.”
Giles’ eyes twinkled. “I love you too. Oh…how was school today?”
Lucas grinned, his green eyes sparkling with excitement. “Great! Miss Quigley said I’d make a good drummer.”
Giles narrowed his eyes in confusion. “I’m sorry?”
“Oh, we were having music class and I was hitting my pencil against the desk. She said it sounded good and that I should talk to you about it. ‘Specially since Bay plays guitar…and she knows you used to be in a band.”
Buffy’s eyebrows rose. “And how does she know that?”
Lucas smiled shyly. “I kinda told her. Can I? Tommy’s learning piano. Can I learn drums? Please?”
Buffy and Giles exchanged a quick glance, a decision made within seconds. Giles nodded slowly, his fingers buttoning his shirt back up but leaving the top three buttons undone.
“On one condition.”
Lucas grinned. “What?”
“Will you tell me why you wanted to come to work with me yesterday instead of going to school?”
Lucas’ grin faded and he took a deep breath. “I thought maybe if I stayed with you…you wouldn’t get hurt.”
Giles breathed a sigh of relief and quickly pulled his son into his arms. Michael noticed the tears in Giles’ eyes and looked at Ethan. Ethan arched an eyebrow at his husband, plainly stating that he wasn’t sure what was going on, and then looked at Buffy. Buffy looked from Giles to Ethan, her own eyes glistening.
Gently rubbing Giles’ back, Buffy cleared her throat and answered Ethan’s unspoken question. “We’ll explain a little later, okay?”
Ethan nodded slowly and sat back in his chair, running his fingers through Michael’s hair when Michael lowered himself to the porch floor and leaned his back against Ethan’s leg. “Everything’s alright though, yeah?”
Buffy smiled warmly, watching her husband kiss their son’s cheek. “Yeah…everything’s okay.”
“Some would say ‘nearly perfect’.” Giles added, lifting his head and nudging Lucas. “Go on…go play.”
Lucas grinned and took off back into the yard, stumbling on the last step. He picked himself back up, dusted the loose dirt from his jeans, and took off again…without even the slightest whimper.
Ethan chuckled, causing Michael to turn his head upwards to look at him. Ethan laughed again and shook his head in amusement.
“He’s a clumsy kid. I’m pretty sure I know what side of the family that came from.”
Buffy snorted as Ethan started chuckling once more. Even Michael grinned as Giles narrowed his eyes and stared at his best friend.
It was only a few seconds before his glare softened and his own laughter joined the mix. Any residual concern about his memory loss slowly dissipated. What was nine hours compared to a lifetime? It still bothered him that he wasn’t able to remember certain aspects of the missing nine hours, but there was nothing he could do about it.
He glanced at Buffy, his smile widening as she laughed at Ethan’s retelling of one of his travelling adventures with Michael.
He’d just have to make more memories tonight to take the place of those he’d lost. He relaxed in his chair and rested his hand on her thigh. She looked up at him with desire in her hazel eyes as she covered his hand with hers.
He gave her a slight nod and gently squeezed her leg as he turned his attention back to Ethan and Michael.
Yes, he’d do what he could tonight.
~ End
This chapter is rated FRT.
Chapter Five
Haddie and Evan jumped up and down excitedly when they saw the school bus at the end of the street. Haddie turned and grinned at her parents, who were sitting on the front steps of the house.
“Do I get to ride the bus with them when I go to school every day next year?”
Buffy laughed at the horrified expression on Giles’ face and then gave her daughter a wink. “We’ll talk about it when it gets closer to time, okay?”
Haddie nodded quickly and glanced at Callie, who was lying calmly next to Giles with her head on his thigh. “How come Callie doesn’t want to jump around with us?”
Giles smiled softly. “Oh, she wants to. But, we’re teaching her that it’s better manners to wait.”
Evan stopped jumping immediately and looked at Giles. “Better not ta jump?”
Giles chuckled and shook his head. “It’s quite alright for you to jump…not so much for a dog.”
Evan laughed brightly and resumed his jumping. He pointed at the approaching bus and giggled.
“Is gettin’ closer!”
Giles chuckled and leaned back, resting his back against the wooden handrail post. He looked down as Buffy slid closer to him and placed her hand on his thigh, her fingers brushing along the inner seam of his jeans.
“Buffy…”
“Huh?” She asked, genuinely puzzled at the warning tone of his voice. “What’s wrong?”
It was then that he realized that she wasn’t aware of what she was doing. He smiled and covered her hand with his, stilling her movement.
“Probably shouldn’t be doing that right now…”
She glanced down at their hands, a smile forming on her face when her eyes wandered to his groin. “Sorry…I didn’t realize I was…um…”
“It doesn’t take much, love.” He whispered, giving her hand a gentle squeeze before releasing it. “Come on, now…the bus is almost here.”
“Is here! Is here!” Evan shouted in excitement.
Giles arched an eyebrow as he smiled. “See?”
Buffy laughed and removed her hand from his thigh, turning her eyes to watch their two youngest children greet their two oldest. Braden rolled his eyes as he jumped off the last step and into the yard, but laughed as Evan tackled him. Lucas handed something to Haddie, who smiled brightly at him, before dropping his bag and joining in on the wrestling match with his two brothers.
Haddie ran over to her parents, waving the construction paper covered piece of posterboard. “Look what Lucas made for me!”
Buffy smiled as she looked at the artwork. Lucas had obviously put a lot of effort into it. It was basically a snapshot of what was going on in the front yard right now…made from construction paper.
Buffy traced Haddie’s image with her finger, sighing softly. “Haddie?”
“Yeah?”
“Do you ever wish you had a sister?”
Giles cast a quick glance at his wife, who was looking intently at their daughter. Haddie met Buffy’s eyes and furrowed her brow.
“Is that what you and Daddy were doing? Making a sister for us?”
Giles coughed heavily and Buffy’s eyes widened. “Excuse me?”
Haddie shrugged a shoulder and ran her tiny hand through her golden locks. “Braden said that sometimes when a Mummy and Daddy lay down for a nap, they make a baby. You and Daddy had a nap, did you make another baby?”
Before either Buffy or Giles could answer that question, she quickly asked another.
“How do you make a baby anyway? Braden wouldn’t tell me that part. Is it magic?”
“Magic?” Buffy asked, smiling at Giles’ panicked expression.
“Yeah, like…is it a doll and then you make a real baby from it?”
“Not exactly.” Buffy offered, curling a strand of Haddie’s hair around her finger.
That seemed to satisfy her curiosity for the moment, a fact that surprised both Buffy and Giles. She took a deep breath and smiled as she watched her brothers play.
“I don’t think I want a sister, Mummy.”
“Why’s that, sweetie?”
Haddie looked up at her and gave her a brilliant smile…the smile she had inherited from her father. “If I have a sister, then I won’t be the only princess anymore.”
She handed the handmade portrait to Buffy and climbed down the stairs, running off to play with the boys. Buffy watched her, leaning against Giles and placing her hand back on his thigh.
Giles cleared his throat, causing her to look up at him. She smiled sweetly and rubbed his leg.
“You okay?”
“Hm? Oh…yes.” He smiled gently and took a deep breath. “That was…a little closer than I was expecting.”
Buffy chuckled, lightly scraping her nails over the denim. “You know that she’s going to ask soon, right?”
He sighed heavily, placing his hand over hers and, once again, stopping her movement. “Yes. Which means you’ll finally have a turn at ‘the talk’.”
“But…you’re so good at it.” Buffy protested playfully. “I mean, you’ve done it twice already…you’re like a pro or something.”
He gave her a mock-glare and shook his head. “That was the deal. I’d talk to the boys, you’d talk to the girls. You’re not getting out of it, Buffy.”
She laughed heartily, leaning up to give his lips a light kiss before settling against him and watching their children…and Callie…play happily in the front yard.
* * *
After a quick afternoon snack, all four children ran off to the backyard to finish their banner for Ethan and Michael. Buffy had gone outside to supervise the use of the paint that the children were using. Giles pulled a bottle of beer from the refrigerator and sat down on the couch, smiling as Callie jumped up beside of him.
“Just us for right now, Cal.” He spoke softly as he lovingly rubbed her head.
Taking a long drink from the bottle, he allowed his eyes to roam over the pictures lining the mantle. He sighed softly as his gaze rested on the most recent family portrait. It had been a fairly relaxed shoot…and it showed. It was probably one of Giles’ favourite pictures of his family.
They were all sitting on the floor, Buffy and Giles smiling at one another…their four children surrounding them, playing with one another…Callie sitting next to Giles, her paw resting on his thigh. For a professional photograph, it was extremely candid.
And that’s what he loved about it.
He smiled as he looked down at Callie and rubbed his thumb over one of her ears. Her brown eyes were bright, her tail thumping against the cushions, as she smiled back up at him. Giles chuckled, remembering how long it took for Buffy to believe him that Callie was indeed smiling.
Suddenly, Callie looked towards the front door. Giles chuckled again as he stood up and drained the bottle, finishing just as the doorbell rang.
She jumped off the couch and followed him to the door, sitting obediently as he swung the door open. Her tail began wagging even harder when she saw the visitors.
Ethan’s smile disappeared quickly as he saw the large bruise on the left side of Giles’ head. “What the hell happened?”
“It looks worse than it is.” He stepped back from the door and smiled warmly as Ethan rushed in, Michael right behind him. “How was your trip?”
“Yeah, good.” Ethan muttered. “Tell me what happened.”
Giles sighed and glanced down at Callie, who was still sitting but becoming impatient. “Would you please say hello to Callie? I’ll grab a few beers and then…I’ll explain why I look such a state.”
* * *
Giles rolled his eyes as Ethan carefully slipped his fingers into his hair. “Ethan…”
Ethan ignored him, parting the hair to get a better look at the laceration. Narrowing his eyes, he glanced at Buffy. “He didn’t need stitches?”
Buffy snorted a laugh and took a sip of her husband’s beer as she leaned back in the chair. “Oh, it probably did. But, he was being difficult. The bleeding stopped on its own though…I’ve been checking it for any signs of infection.”
Giles pulled away from Ethan and gave him a glare. “I told you…I’m fine.”
Ethan arched an eyebrow as Giles grimaced from the movement. “Yeah…I always look like I’m in pain when I’m fine. Ask Michael…it happens all the time.”
Michael tilted his head slightly, carefully regarding Giles. “You hurt your shoulder as well?”
“Mm.” Giles mumbled, taking his beer back from Buffy and glancing at the children playing happily in the yard. “I landed on a rock or something when I fell.”
“Brick.” Buffy stated, causing Giles to look at her. “You landed on a brick. Well, more like a cinder block than a brick. You’re lucky you didn’t break something.”
Michael bit his lip as he thought. He caught Ethan’s eye and asked a silent question, turning back to Giles when Ethan had given a silent answer.
“Would you mind if I had a look at it?” At Giles’ questioning look, Michael continued. “I…well, I was in medical school for a couple of years before I decided to become an accountant.”
Buffy smiled. “Doctor, accountant…pretty big change there.”
Michael returned her smile. “Not so much. I still take things apart and fix them…it’s just numbers instead of bodies.”
Giles chuckled at that and slowly unbuttoned his shirt. As the material fell from his injured shoulder and Michael knelt on the floor to get a better look, Ethan gasped.
“Jesus…”
Buffy nodded solemnly. “Yeah, I tried to get him to let me take him to the hospital…”
Giles winced as Michael gently prodded the bruised and swollen flesh. “I didn’t want - ”
His sentence was interrupted by footsteps clambering up the stairs to the porch, followed by a sharp gasp.
“Dad?”
Giles turned his head quickly, finding Lucas’ eyes brimming with tears as he stared at his father’s shoulder. “Lucas…I’m alright. Come here.”
Lucas moved slowly, his eyes not straying from the purplish-black colored skin. “I…I don’t remember it looking like this.”
Ethan’s brow furrowed. “What’s that, mate?”
Lucas swallowed and glanced at Ethan, shrugging his shoulder. “It didn’t look this bad in my dream.” His eyes darted to Michael, his voice dropping to a whisper. “Is it going to be okay?”
Michael nodded slowly, offering the boy a tender smile. “I’m pretty sure it’s just bruised, Lucas. It’s bruised badly…”
Giles sighed in exasperation. “I’ve always bruised badly.”
Ethan thought for a second and then smiled. “Yeah, that’s true enough.”
“Is it broke?” Lucas asked, gliding his fingertips over the top of his father’s shoulder.
“Broken.” Giles corrected automatically in a gentle tone. “And, no…I’m fairly certain that it isn’t broken. But, why don’t we ask Dr. Michael?”
Lucas looked at Michael expectantly. “Is it broken?”
Michael shook his head, his smile growing. “No, just swollen and sore. Basically, it means that he won’t be able to throw a ball with you for a while.”
Lucas looked confused. “Why not? He’s left-handed…like me and Haddie.”
Michael chuckled. “My mistake. I forgot that he’s left-handed. In that case, it just means that he’ll be a bit sore for a while.”
“Okay.” Lucas took a deep breath and looked into Giles’ eyes and smiled. “I love you.”
Giles’ eyes twinkled. “I love you too. Oh…how was school today?”
Lucas grinned, his green eyes sparkling with excitement. “Great! Miss Quigley said I’d make a good drummer.”
Giles narrowed his eyes in confusion. “I’m sorry?”
“Oh, we were having music class and I was hitting my pencil against the desk. She said it sounded good and that I should talk to you about it. ‘Specially since Bay plays guitar…and she knows you used to be in a band.”
Buffy’s eyebrows rose. “And how does she know that?”
Lucas smiled shyly. “I kinda told her. Can I? Tommy’s learning piano. Can I learn drums? Please?”
Buffy and Giles exchanged a quick glance, a decision made within seconds. Giles nodded slowly, his fingers buttoning his shirt back up but leaving the top three buttons undone.
“On one condition.”
Lucas grinned. “What?”
“Will you tell me why you wanted to come to work with me yesterday instead of going to school?”
Lucas’ grin faded and he took a deep breath. “I thought maybe if I stayed with you…you wouldn’t get hurt.”
Giles breathed a sigh of relief and quickly pulled his son into his arms. Michael noticed the tears in Giles’ eyes and looked at Ethan. Ethan arched an eyebrow at his husband, plainly stating that he wasn’t sure what was going on, and then looked at Buffy. Buffy looked from Giles to Ethan, her own eyes glistening.
Gently rubbing Giles’ back, Buffy cleared her throat and answered Ethan’s unspoken question. “We’ll explain a little later, okay?”
Ethan nodded slowly and sat back in his chair, running his fingers through Michael’s hair when Michael lowered himself to the porch floor and leaned his back against Ethan’s leg. “Everything’s alright though, yeah?”
Buffy smiled warmly, watching her husband kiss their son’s cheek. “Yeah…everything’s okay.”
“Some would say ‘nearly perfect’.” Giles added, lifting his head and nudging Lucas. “Go on…go play.”
Lucas grinned and took off back into the yard, stumbling on the last step. He picked himself back up, dusted the loose dirt from his jeans, and took off again…without even the slightest whimper.
Ethan chuckled, causing Michael to turn his head upwards to look at him. Ethan laughed again and shook his head in amusement.
“He’s a clumsy kid. I’m pretty sure I know what side of the family that came from.”
Buffy snorted as Ethan started chuckling once more. Even Michael grinned as Giles narrowed his eyes and stared at his best friend.
It was only a few seconds before his glare softened and his own laughter joined the mix. Any residual concern about his memory loss slowly dissipated. What was nine hours compared to a lifetime? It still bothered him that he wasn’t able to remember certain aspects of the missing nine hours, but there was nothing he could do about it.
He glanced at Buffy, his smile widening as she laughed at Ethan’s retelling of one of his travelling adventures with Michael.
He’d just have to make more memories tonight to take the place of those he’d lost. He relaxed in his chair and rested his hand on her thigh. She looked up at him with desire in her hazel eyes as she covered his hand with hers.
He gave her a slight nod and gently squeezed her leg as he turned his attention back to Ethan and Michael.
Yes, he’d do what he could tonight.
~ End