Elliott - Chapter 2/8
Buffy woke slowly, sighing contentedly as she snuggled back against the warm body behind her. Giles answered with a sigh of his own as he gently squeezed her hip while softly nuzzling her neck.
“Giles?” She whispered, covering his hand with hers.
“Mm?” He murmured, placing a soft kiss on the side of her neck.
“What time is it?” She asked, tilting her head further into the pillow to give him more room.
His tongue lightly touched her skin, causing her to shiver. He smiled. “Five-ish…”
“Are we moving too fast or not fast enough?” She gasped as his lips nipped at her skin.
He pulled back slightly and gently rolled her onto her back so he could look into her eyes. “How do you mean?”
“This time yesterday, we weren’t even talking. And now, here we are…in bed together, having agreed that I should come back home.”
“Do you think we’re moving too fast? That we should take more time, to be sure?” He asked softly, brushing the hair back from her face. “We were in a relationship for almost seven years…apart for three months.”
“No…I kind of think that we’re not moving fast enough.” She smiled at the look of confusion in his eyes. Taking his hand, she slid it over her abdomen and down to the waistband of her pajama bottoms. “I think we should be making love right now.”
She saw desire flash in his eyes, followed quickly by guilt. She moved her hand from his to the side of his face. It didn’t go unnoticed that he didn’t remove his hand from where she left it.
“I know that today is going to be painful and confusing and terrifying. But, taking five minutes to ourselves wouldn’t be a bad thing, Giles.”
He nodded absently, then furrowed his brow. “Five minutes?”
Buffy smiled and leaned into him, pressing a soft kiss to his lips. “Just wanted to see if you were paying attention to what I was actually saying.”
“After three months, it may take less time that usual…” His fingers edged under the waistband and he sighed heavily. “But, I’m fairly confident that I could last longer than five minutes.”
She hesitated for a moment and then lightly bit her bottom lip. “So, you…haven’t?”
“No, I…it never crossed my - it was never a question, Buffy. I couldn’t.” He swallowed nervously and took a deep breath. “Um…you?”
She shook her head slowly, tracing his bottom lip with her thumb. “No, never entered my mind. I didn’t want to be away from you.”
“Are you…sure…you want this right now?” He asked on a whisper. “We can…wait. I wasn’t expecting…well, anything.”
“Neither was I. I’m very sure about wanting this though. But, if you need time…I’m okay with - ”
He cut her off with a kiss. A kiss that escalated quickly into obvious intention as he moved over her and settled between her thighs. They both groaned as he gently thrust his hips against her. He pushed himself up and looked down at her, smiling at the desire and love showing brightly in her eyes.
Licking his lips, he reached out and pulled the top two buttons free on her pajama top. As he pulled the third free, he allowed his fingertips to glide over the skin between her breasts. He leaned down, pressing a warm open-mouthed kiss to her sternum.
She gasped sharply, reaching over his shoulders to grab the back of his shirt. He sat back up, unintentionally helping her pull his shirt over his head. She smiled as he shot her a glare, his shirt wrapped around his elbows…prohibiting his movement.
“That glare is more sexy than scary right now. You know that, right?”
He raised an eyebrow and rested on his heels, a gentle smirk on his face as he pulled his arms free of his shirt. He tossed it to the floor, his eyes focusing on the buttons of her top.
“Go on, then…” He murmured, sliding his hands over her thighs.
“Huh?”
His eyes darted to hers. “You finish…take it off, love.”
She stared into his eyes as her fingers made quick work of the buttons. “I’ve missed that…”
“Hm?” He moved his hands to her hips, hooking his fingers into the waistband of her pants and tugging them down.
“The look in your eyes…when you’re about three minutes from fucking me.”
“Less than sixty seconds.” He corrected, carefully maneuvering her legs enough to pull her pants off. “And I have no intention of fucking you, Buffy.”
“Giles…” She whispered thickly, swallowing hard as he moved off the bed and quickly removed his own pants. She sat up and slipped her top off, tossing it in the general direction of the rest of their clothing. “I love you.”
His eyes glistened as he gently pushed her back down to the mattress and resettled himself between her thighs. She curled her legs around his hips as he leaned over her.
“I love you.” He whispered in return, reaching down and guiding his cock through her wet folds…spending a few seconds rubbing against her clitoris.
“Oh god…” She moaned, lightly scratching her nails over his ribs.
He closed his eyes briefly as he pushed himself inside, pausing when he was completely embedded within her. He licked his dry lips and opened his eyes to find her staring up at him, so many emotions swirling in her eyes.
“I’m sorry…for the lack of foreplay. I just…I can’t right now. I need to be with you…”
Her right hand moved from his side, up to his chest where she gently stroked his skin. “You get that I’m not exactly complaining, right?”
“I’ve missed us, Buffy.”
It was a simple statement, yet it held so much pain and regret. Buffy’s eyes filled with tears nearly instantly. She nodded slowly, her hand sliding to the back of his neck and gently pulling him down.
“I’ve missed us too.” She whispered, kissing him warmly.
As he began to rock his hips against her, she gasped and let her head fall back onto the pillows. He smiled down at her, knowing without a doubt that they had finally found their way back to one another.
* * *
The sun was beginning to make its appearance…and they were still in bed. Bodies glistening with sweat from exertion, breathing beginning to return to a semblance of normal, legs tangled together, the bedclothes in an unruly heap on the floor at the foot of the bed.
Giles smiled as Buffy placed a soft kiss just below his collarbone before resting her head on his chest. He lightly stroked her back with his fingertips, his eyes staring towards the ceiling but focusing on nothing in particular.
“That was fairly amazing.” He murmured.
“Mm-hm.” Buffy replied with a soft chuckle. “But, then…when were we not?”
“I can’t think of a time.” He furrowed his brow, his hand stopped moving against her back. “Except for once…”
She lifted her head and looked at him. “Huh? When?”
“Years ago. I was high, you were drunk. We couldn’t get anything to work right.” He met her eyes and gave her a wink. “We ended up falling asleep and trying again in the morning. That was amazing.”
“The night Sunnydale imploded. I vaguely remember that.” She smiled as he arched an eyebrow. “The night. I remember the morning in vivid detail. You fucked me in every room in that suite…and against most of the walls. I have very fond memories of the fridge…and the counter…”
“We stayed in that suite for days.” His eyes darkened slightly as the memories flooded his mind. “That was when I actually admitted to myself that I was in love with you.”
“But…you let me walk away.” She propped her head up with her hand and looked at him curiously. “And so began my Italian adventure. Probably the stupidest two years of my life.”
Giles chuckled softly. “And still not as stupid as my rebellion. It was something you needed to do…and then you worked through it and came to me. And Elliott. I’ll tell you something, love…you worked through it much quicker and safer than I did.”
“Giles…what are we going to say to Elliott?”
His smile faded at the sudden detour and he took a deep breath. “The truth.”
“What does that even mean?” She asked as she sat up next to him.
She shivered lightly and leaned over the edge of the bed, pulling the sheet and blankets back up onto the bed. Giles pushed himself up and leaned back against the headboard, watching her pull the sheet up to his waist.
“It means that I don’t want to lie to him. I don’t want to go in and say ‘this is the diagnosis, but don’t worry…everything’s going to be fine’…because that’s not necessarily the truth. Maybe things will be okay. But, they probably won’t. I also don’t want to make everything sound completely hopeless. And therein lies the true danger.”
“Should we…make a plan of what to say?”
“I considered that.” He admitted softly, folding his hands on his lap. “But it would just sound scripted and…cold. And that would scare him more than me fumbling my way through an explanation. What do you think?”
“I think that each time you have ever tried to have a well-thought out, planned discussion with me…about anything…it’s backfired. But, if you just talked to me…no matter how flustered you got, or how much you stumbled over your words…I felt like everything was going to be okay, even though the world was ending most of the time. Literally.”
“So…we just wing it?”
She leaned over and kissed his shoulder. “No matter how we go about it, it’s going to be a difficult conversation. If we overthink it? I think it has the potential to go from difficult to disastrous. So, if that’s winging it…then, yeah. We wing it.”
They sat in silence for a few moments, the weight of the day beginning to make its appearance. He closed his eyes and inhaled deeply. As the light began to peek in around the curtains, he opened his eyes and turned to look at her.
“Thank you.”
She tilted her head slightly. “For what?”
“For coming last night. Ethan was right. I need you.”
“That’s something you’ll never need to thank me for, Rupert.” She reached over and slipped her hand between his, lacing their fingers together. “Last night was needed for both of us.”
“Which part?” He asked warily.
“All of it.” She replied, squeezing his hand. “But, the talking was the most important. I learned a few things…admittedly, things that I should’ve already known. So, I’m sorry for that.”
“What things?”
She paused for just a moment and looked into his eyes. “To never just…leave. Step out to diffuse the situation, yeah. But, to leave? That was a fucking stupid thing to do. And if I do leave the house…come back. Yell, scream, throw things…but fucking come back. I can do life without you…I’ve been perfectly self-sufficient for the past three months. But, I don’t want to do life without you. So…I won’t just leave again.”
A small smile played at his lips. “I know that it wasn’t my question that made you leave. I know it was what was behind the question. Your feelings about certain discussions…no.” He shook his head lightly and started again. “Your feelings about all discussions will not be disrespected nor discounted again. I’m truly sorry that I fell into that trap. I won’t make that mistake again.”
She pressed a soft kiss to his lips, which he returned. Apologies given and accepted between the both of them.
He lifted his hand and ran his fingers through her hair. “But…if you ever change your mind…tell me?”
“You’d be the first to know.” She whispered, kissing him again.
He pulled from the kiss before it escalated too far and cleared his throat. “Shower, coffee, breakfast?”
“Shower together? Or do you need some time to yourself?”
His eyes glistened as he shook his head. “I think I’ve had enough time to myself, if you’re okay with that.”
She fingered the hair above his ear and nodded. “I’m okay with that.”
They sat there for a few more minutes, the silence warm and comforting. And then they slid out of bed and made their way to the bathroom.
* * *
She watched him as he pushed the eggs around on his plate. When he lowered his fork and picked up his coffee mug instead, she lowered her own fork.
“Are you okay?”
“Mm.” He mumbled, swallowing a mouthful of coffee. “I apologise for my…breakdown…in the shower. I think I’m out of spoons already.”
She smiled at the comment, remembering the conversation she’d had with him years earlier about the spoon theory in relation to mental and physical health. “That breakdown was needed, Giles. You probably emptied a few spoons, but if you need more…you can always borrow some of mine…”
“I wasn’t expecting to fall apart like that.” He met Buffy’s eyes and gave a small shake of his head. “I can’t do that in front of Elliott. And I’m terrified that I will.”
“Maybe not while we’re talking to him today. But, there is nothing wrong with showing him that you’re affected by this…that you’re scared. You’re human, Giles…he’s seen you cry before.”
He pushed the plate away from him and curled his hands around the mug. She glanced at the plate and reached over, running her index finger over his thumb.
“Not hungry?”
“I feel that if I eat, I’ll be sick. Obviously, my nerves are working in overdrive at the moment.” He glanced down at his clothes and narrowed his eyes. “Do I look okay? Not too…somber?”
“You’re dressed like you’re normally dressed for work, Rupert. Don’t overthink this part of it, okay? We’re keeping things as normal as we can. You go in there dressed in jeans and a casual button-up, he’s going to panic within five seconds.”
He smiled softly, turning his hand under her touch and wrapping his fingers around her palm. He glanced at the clock, squeezing her hand gently as his smile faded.
“We, uh…we should go. I’d like to be there before classes start. I…don’t want to pull him out in the middle of a class.”
“Okay.” She returned the squeeze and then carefully pulled her hand from his as she stood.
She watched as he walked over to the desk and picked up the envelope that held the test results and images. He hesitated for a moment and then took a deep breath, turning towards her. He pulled the keys from the hook on the wall and gave her a nod.
He was as ready as he was ever going to be.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Buffy and Giles walked through the halls of the dormitory. Neither really paid attention to the gasps and exclamations from the students, particularly the older ones, when they were recognised. Buffy did offer one boy of about 15 years a grin when he whispered to his friend ‘oh my God, that’s Mr Giles! And Buffy…his Slayer!’. She held her chuckle when his friend answered with ‘holy shit, she smiled at you!’.
They stopped in front of the door to Elliott’s room. Giles took a deep breath and then lifted his hand to knock. When he hesitated, Buffy placed her hand on his back. He closed his eyes to compose himself. And then he swallowed and knocked on the door.
Buffy lowered her hand from his back as the door swung open. Elliott’s roommate stood there…eyes wide in surprise.
“Oh…oh, hi sir.”
Giles offered the boy a smile. “Hello, Jack. Has Elliott left for class yet?”
Jack turned and looked towards the other side of the room, shaking his head slowly. “No. I’m not sure he’s going to class this morning. He woke up earlier…but said he needed a rest after he got dressed.”
“Alright.” Giles glanced at his watch. “You best head on out, you’ll be late. Could you let the professor know that I’m here and Elliott will not be attending classes today?”
“Of course, sir.” Jack darted his eyes between Buffy and Giles before looking back at Elliott. “Is he okay, sir?”
“I think he’s a bit more poorly than he thought.” Giles answered carefully.
“So, it’s not from football practice then?”
Giles shook his head slowly. “No. No, it’s not.”
Jack looked as though he had a few more questions that he wanted to ask. But, he also looked as though he didn’t want to ask them. Buffy was very relieved when Jack exhaled slowly and grabbed his bag.
“Let me know if there’s anything I can do, okay?”
Giles smiled appreciatively at him, placing his hand on Jack’s shoulder. “Thank you. Have a good day in class.”
“Yes, sir.” Jack looked at Buffy and smiled. “Good day, Miss Summers. Elliott will be so happy to see you.”
Buffy smiled brightly at him. “The feeling is definitely mutual. Off you go, you don’t want to be late.”
Jack grinned and slipped out the door.
Giles stepped inside and held the door open for Buffy. As she made her way over to Elliott’s bed, Giles closed the door and ran his hand through his hair in a nervous gesture.
Buffy sat down on the edge of the bed and reached out, gently stroking Elliott’s soft curls. Elliott opened his eyes with some effort and a slow smile appeared.
“Mum…you’re here.”
“Yeah, I am. I’ve missed you, Elliott.” She whispered, leaning down to kiss his forehead. “You feeling okay?”
“I’m so bloody tired.” He mumbled, rolling over to face her.
“Language, Elliott.” Giles chided playfully as he made his way over to the bed.
Elliott furrowed his brow. Buffy thought, not for the first time, how much Elliott really was like Giles.
“Uncle Ru? What’s wrong?” Elliott pushed himself up and leaned back against the headboard.
“Wrong?” Giles asked, tilting his head slightly.
“You never come by before classes.” He glanced at Buffy and then returned his gaze to Giles. “And you’re both here…so something is either really wrong or really good.”
Giles sat down next to Buffy…Buffy automatically rested her hand on his thigh. Elliott’s smile returned.
“Are you guys back together? Please tell me you’re back together…”
Buffy and Giles looked at each other and then back to Elliott. Giles nodded as he smiled. “Yes, Elliott. We’re back together.”
“That’s great! I’m so happy!” He leaned forward and wrapped an arm around each of them, kissing Buffy’s cheek and then Giles’.
Giles rubbed Elliott’s back and placed a kiss on top of his head. Elliott pulled back and looked up at him, his smile fading a little.
“But, that’s not why you’re here, is it? I mean…you could’ve come by at lunch or after classes to tell me that.”
Giles placed his hand on Elliott’s shoulder, his thumb rubbing light circles against his collarbone. “No. No, it’s not.”
Elliott sighed and lowered his eyes. “Is it…is it Dad?”
Buffy reached out and lovingly ran her fingers through his hair, careful not to snag his curls on her rings. “No, honey. Your Dad is…well, your Dad’s the same.”
“So, you guys are okay. Dad is okay. That leaves me.” He looked at Buffy, then Giles. “What’s wrong?”
Giles glanced at Buffy, sighing when she gave him a barely perceptible nod. “Well…you know all of those tests that Dr Naylor performed?”
“Uh-huh…”
“They were tests for all sorts of things because…well, it’s not normal for a child of your age and fitness to be this tired all the time.”
“Yeah…” Elliott looked at Buffy. “Not normal…like how it’s not normal to have scans too, right?”
“The scans were looking for things inside of you.” Buffy replied hesitantly.
“You didn’t know I was having scans, did you?” When Buffy didn’t reply quick enough, Elliott looked back at Giles. “Why didn’t you tell her I was having scans?”
“Because I didn’t want to worry her.” Giles replied softly.
“But, you did tell her…and now you’re both here talking about them. So…there’s obviously something to worry about. Right?”
Elliott was trying very hard to stay calm, but his panic was rising at an exponential rate. Giles took a shaky breath and nodded, deciding to not delay any further.
“There is. But, we don’t know exactly - ”
“What is it, Uncle Ru? Just tell me.” Elliott interrupted, biting his bottom lip.
“Osteosarcoma.” Giles replied quietly. “It’s a type of…of cancer.”
Elliott stared at him for a moment, his green eyes beginning to glisten. “Cancer? Jack’s uncle had cancer. He died right before Christmas.”
Elliott looked at Buffy, his bottom lip beginning to tremble slightly. “Am…am I going to die too?”
Buffy quickly pulled him into her arms, holding him tightly. He reached out and grabbed Giles’ tie, tugging him towards him as well. Giles shifted slightly, curling his arms around the both of them. He kissed the top of Elliott’s head, closing his eyes when he heard Elliott sniffle.
“Am I?” Elliott whispered, shifting his weight and resting his cheek against Giles’ chest.
“I don’t know, son.” Giles whispered truthfully, lovingly stroking Elliott’s back.
“Is this why I’m so tired all the time?”
Elliott’s fingers toyed with Giles’ tie clip. Something he’d done when he was nervous since he was four years old. He’d rest against his uncle’s chest and play with his tie clip. If Giles wasn’t wearing a tie, he’d toy with a button on his shirt.
“I think so. But, uh…Dr Naylor will be able to give us some more information and answer our questions. Unfortunately, Buffy and I…well, we don’t know much more at the moment.”
Elliott lifted his eyes to Buffy’s, but didn’t move from the comfort of Giles’ chest. “Are you back together because I’m sick?”
Buffy shook her head quickly, stroking her fingers through Elliott’s hair. “No, honey. We’re back together because we love each other.”
Elliott closed his eyes, snuggling closer to Giles but also reaching out to pull Buffy closer. They were all quiet for long minutes, no one quite knowing what to say.
“I think you should come home, Elliott.” Giles said softly, breaking the silence.
“I have a test tomorrow.” Elliott replied absently.
Buffy ran the backs of her fingers down his cheek. “We can probably get that rescheduled. Right, Rupert?”
Giles nodded in agreement. “Absolutely.”
Elliott lifted his head slightly and furrowed his brow at Buffy. Buffy tilted her head in return.
“What is it, Elliott?”
“You called him…Rupert.”
Buffy smiled, glancing at Giles. “It happens on occasion.”
“You won’t leave again, will you, Mum?”
“No, sweetheart. I won’t leave again.”
“Good. ‘Cause he didn’t take that very well. I didn’t either really.”
“I know.” She whispered, a tear rolling down her cheek. “I’m sorry that I hurt you too.”
“Well, you didn’t just leave like Everton’s mum did. He hasn’t talked to her since before he came here. You didn’t leave me.”
“No…no, I’d never leave you, Elliott. I promised you a very long time ago that I would always be here for you…no matter what.”
“I was still a little mad at you.” Elliott whispered. “Uncle Ru told me that it wasn’t all your fault…that it was his fault too. But…he was so upset and…I’m just not used to seeing that.”
“I understand that, Elliott. To be honest, I’m not surprised you were mad at me. It’s okay to be mad at me over it. It’s even okay to be a little worried that it might happen again. But, I can promise you that what happened before…it’s not going to happen again, okay? So, I want you to try not to worry about it.”
“So, we can go home now? The three of us?”
“Definitely.” Buffy replied with a smile.
Giles pressed another kiss to the top of Elliott’s head and then leaned over, brushing his lips across Buffy’s.
“Let’s go home.” Giles whispered.
For a brief moment he allowed himself to believe that they were simply going home as a family. When he heard Elliott sniffle and then watched him curl into Buffy’s embrace, the moment ended.
He cleared his throat and made his way over to the closet. He swallowed the lump in his throat as he pulled Elliott’s bag out and began to pack a few things for him.
There was nothing simple about this situation. Nothing at all.
Chapter Three: Parenting
Warning: Elliott’s diagnosis, prognosis, and treatment will be discussed in great detail in chapters 3-5.
This entry was originally posted at https://froxyn.dreamwidth.org/356558.html. However, you can comment here or there...I'm still around! :)