Fic: Question to the World 2/4

[allyndra]

The day after Pike saved Xander.

Xander was even more fidgety than normal. Considering that he often had two Twinkies and a Coke for breakfast, that was saying something. He jiggled his knee and made an effort to look like he was reading. Willow had told him once that if he put as much work into studying as he put into getting out of studying, he'd get straight As. Xander thought she was missing the point. He twisted in his seat to look at the clock. 11:30. Had someone added extra hours to the morning? That had to be it. Xander wondered if he could get Giles to stop researching Flaghilth demons and start researching the time-adding demons instead. Somehow he doubted it. He turned a page and faked a frown of concentration.

 

Giles was leaning against the counter, skimming through the books he'd deemed too dangerous for the children to look through. Xander had wanted to challenge the word 'children,' but he'd learned not to fight battles that would earn him more work. Willow was sitting across the table from Xander, avidly reading her own book. *Her* look of concentration wasn't phony. She was even taking notes. If Xander hadn't reaped the benefits of Willow's geekiness so many times in the past, he would pull her aside and try to rescue her from herself.

 

Xander ducked his head lower behind his book and snuck another glance at the clock. 11:37. On their way back down to the page, his eyes coasted over Buffy and decided to rest awhile. It wasn't that unusual an occurence; some days he spent more time watching Buffy than he did watching TV. It got annoying sometimes. Just last week he had endured another of those 'I'm so glad you're just one of the girls' speeches because Buffy had caught him staring at her in History. Today when Buffy caught him looking, Xander gave her a sympathetic smile. She was clearly nervous about seeing Pike again, tapping her nails on the page of her book and checking the clock even more often than Xander was. She accepted Xander's sympathy with an embarrassed smile. Xander didn't see what reason she had to be embarrassed. After all, she was the one who would be facing one of her few remaining friends from her time at Hemery. Her tension made total sense.

 

Xander, on the other hand, had absolutely no excuse for being so jumpy. He had talked to Pike for ten minutes, max. Granted, he had snuggled up to Pike on the back of the motorcycle for another ten minutes, but he was trying hard not to think about that. Partly because thinking about it made Xander confused, but mostly because thinking about it made him feel all squishy and hot and completely unsuited to being in the middle of a library surrounded by his friends. It was 11:45. Fifteen minutes left until Pike got here. Xander sighed and slumped in his chair.

 

He had called Buffy as soon as he'd gotten in the door last night. He had stood at the door, clutching the phone in his hand and watching the street as though he might see a certain motorcycle again. He'd gotten right to the point. "Do you know a guy named Pike?"

 

"Pike?" Buffy's voice had been disbelieving, which Xander took as a great big 'yes.' No one gets all breathless over a person they never heard of.

 

"If you do, he really wants to see you again."

 

"I - God! He's here?"

 

"Yup. I told him to come by the school tomorrow, but if you don't want to see him, I can give him the brush off for you." Xander might not be able to protect Buffy from monsters, but he could probably fend off a teenage boy. Even a cool boy with a leather jacket.

 

"No! No, I'd like to see him. It's just ... It's been a long time. I haven't seen him in over a year. I met him right when I was getting Slayer 101 from my first Watcher. Pike was great," Buffy said, her voice getting soft. Xander had only heard her sound that gooey over Angel, so he figured Pike must have been more than just a Slay-buddy. He sighed. Even though he *knew* he should be happy just to be friends, it hurt that she never sounded that way about him. She cleared her throat and continued in a stronger tone. "I had family problems, and then I went away for a while, and we just went kablooey."

 

"Bad kablooey?" Xander asked, concerned.

 

"Non-dealy, non-talky kablooey. We broke up, and then I moved." Xander could almost hear her shrug.

 

He waited for her to speak again, but the line was silent. Finally, Xander said, "So, I'll see you tomorrow, and I'll bring Pike in around noon, okay?

 

"Yeah, okay. Thanks, Xander."

 

"No problem."

 

And it shouldn't have been a problem. So why was Xander watching the clock, unable to concentrate on anything? Why did he keep flashing back to the feel of his arms wrapped around Pike's waist, and the way his eyes had crinkled up when he smiled? Xander pretended to stretch a kink out of his neck so he could get another look at the clock. 11:57. Close enough. He sprang up out of his chair.

 

"Hey! I'm gonna go get some air for a sec." They all looked up at him, Willow and Giles with mild curiosity, Buffy with excitement. She hadn't told Willow or Giles about Pike's visit. He didn't know why, but he wasn't going to force the issue. He just headed out the door, restraining himself to a walk until he was out of sight. Then he picked up speed and trotted through the halls. When he got to the front doors, he burst through them with the sense of relief that always swept over him when he left the building. Ahhh! The air even smelled better when it wasn't corrupted by evil and education.

 

Xander had expected to have to wait a while, but as soon as he got to the top of the steps he saw him. Pike had parked his motorcycle and was standing beside it, his hands shoved deep in his pockets. The pose made his shoulders hunch up, which somehow made him look younger. He looked up at Xander and smiled. His eyes did the crinkling thing and Xander's heart thumped. He clattered down the steps.

 

"Hey."

 

"No need to get all mushy," Xander joked, trying to gain control over his body, which had chosen to blush and quiver for some reason. "So, Buffy said she has so many ex-boyfriends with wacko names that she can't be sure, but she thinks she might remember you."

 

Pike shook his head. "Oh, she would remember me," he said confidently.

 

"Really," Xander raised his eyebrows and tried to look doubtful. It was difficult, because he had trouble imagining anyone ever forgetting Pike.

 

"I helped her burn down the gym. You don't forget a thing like that."

 

"You make a good point," Xander conceded. He led Pike into the school and down the familiar route to the library.

 

"So, you just hang to the school? I don't wanna call that lame, but ... isn't that kinda lame?" Pike looked at him out of the corner of his eye.

 

"Is it my fault Giles is the librarian?" Xander asked. He saw Pike's confused expression and backtracked. "Buffy's Watcher is the school librarian. We help with the research, which requires books, and this is where the books live."

 

"Helping the Slayer cancels out some of the lameness," he said, as though granting a favor. "But not all. Sorry, man."

 

"That's okay. Lameness and I have a long and storied history." Xander pushed open the swinging doors of the library and called out, "Look what followed me home, mom. Can I keep him?"

 

Willow and Giles both looked up, startled by the interruption, but Buffy launched herself across the room and into Pike's arms. The newcomer twirled her around, his arms tight around her. The moment she started to pull back, he set her down. "Buff," he said, his voice expressing a casual greeting. "Long time no see."

 

"Pike," she replied, mimicking his careless tone and nonchalant posture. Then she grinned and slapped him on the arm, "Dork!"

 

"Ow! Buffy, not all of us are Slayers, you know." Pike rubbed at the placed she'd slapped. He didn't seem to notice the startled look Giles shot him. "Did you miss me," he asked with a grin. Xander was *not* jealous to see him grinning at someone else. Not at all.

 

"Of course I did! Hey Giles," Buffy said, turning her head, "it's lunch time anyway, so I'm going to take off with Pike for a while. I'll be back in an hour," she promised. She linked her arm through Pike's and led him away. Xander stared at the doors, waving behind them. When he turned, he faced two pairs of inquiring and slightly accusing eyes.

 

"Who was that? And how did he know Buffy? And how come you knew he was coming but we didn't?" Willow asked.

 

"And how did he know that Buffy is the Slayer?" Giles added, rubbing a hand tiredly across his forehead. "Honestly, has that girl ever heard of a secret identity?"

 

"Umm, I'm not an expert on their relationship, but that was Pike," Xander said, looking back at the doors and wishing they would return. He told himself it was only because he wanted a rescue. If he tried really hard, he almost believed himself.

 

"Pike?" Willow said, her brow furrowed. "Isn't that a fish?"

 

Xander looked up at the clock on the wall, wondering how long it would be until Pike and Buffy came back. 12:15. He sighed.

 

It was 1:33 when they returned. Xander noticed that Pike didn't look heartbroken, and he wondered if Buffy hadn't told him about Angel. Or maybe she had told him and Pike was just over Buffy. He wondered if Pike was looking for another relationship. Maybe Buffy hadn't told him because she wasn't really that serious about Angel. Xander wondered if he had a shot if Buffy and Angel broke up. He wondered if it was possible to become schizophrenic from crushing on multiple people with multiple genders at the same time.

 

While Xander was speculating on future relationships and trying to sort through his emotions, Pike and Buffy were saying goodbye. When they finished, Pike came over to Xander.

 

"Hey."

 

"Chill, man! I told you that emotional stuff makes me uncomfortable," Xander said.

 

"I was wondering," Pike said, his head ducked uncertainly, "if you wanna show me around town. Buff said you'd lived here all your life."

 

Xander smiled what was possibly the biggest smile of his life. Pike and Buffy had talked about him. Pike wanted to spend time with him. It was like Christmas without the yelling.

 

"Sure," he managed. He turned around, a little dazed. "I'm gonna bolt, guys. I'll see you Monday."

 

Giles glanced up from his interrogation of Buffy to acknowledge his goodbye. Buffy herself gave him an uninterpretable smile and a wave. From Willow he got a warning to be careful and to study for his geometry test. Xander nodded and followed Pike out. He only hoped that the time-adding demons would play fair and let him enjoy a long, slow ride on Pike's bike.