Title: Amores Illuminata 2/2
Author: Neena
Email: varscona_pal@yahoo.ca
Pairing: Giles/Xander
Rating: NC-17 (SLASH)
Spoilers: Set during 2nd season—no specific episode.
Disclaimer: These characters belong to Joss Whedon and whoever currently has the rights to the show. I’m just tinkering.
Additional Info: Part 2 sees the weekend heating up a bit, and the consequences…
Rupert Giles awoke several hours later. The morning sun streamed through his open window, blinding his sleepy eyes. A limp arm, not belonging to him, was thrown casually over his stomach.
Xander Harris. Sleeping peacefully beside him on a sunny Saturday morning. Giles mentally filed the situation under ‘bizarre’, cross-referencing it under ‘unexpectedly wonderful’. He took a long moment to simply enjoy the warm presence next to him—watching Xander’s chest rise and fall, and the way his lips curled up in a tiny smile, even as he slept.
Suddenly, Giles’ stomach grouched loudly beneath Xander’s arm. God, he was starving! Xander, no doubt, would also be famished when he awoke. Giles gently removed the arm from across his belly and padded quietly to the window to close the blinds. Let the boy sleep a while longer. He looked back at the bed, where Xander had flopped onto his back. The sheet was tented over his obvious erection. He’ll need all the rest he can get.
Giles grabbed his housecoat and went downstairs to use the shower. Then he set to work making breakfast. He found himself humming as he mixed together a batch of pancakes, and he smiled. When was the last time he’d felt like humming?
He was firing up the griddle when he heard movement upstairs. Xander was having a shower. The image that popped into Giles’ head stirred up a bees’ next in the pit of his stomach. Part of his mind told him that he should be ashamed of those thoughts—but the larger part told him that fighting it would only make this situation awkward, or possibly even dangerous. He rationalized that his new-found feelings for this young man (all right—boy) were nothing more than a natural physical reaction to long overdue sexual gratification—nothing more.
Then why did his mouth go dry and his heart skip a beat when a freshly-scrubbed Xander appeared in the doorway? He looked adorable, swimming in the shirt Giles had dropped on the floor last night. He couldn’t help but notice that that was all he was wearing.
“I smelled food. I followed my nose. It led me here.”
“Yes—a brilliant piece of deduction, that,” said Giles with a little smirk.
“Pancakes?”
“You like?”
“I love.” Xander came up to him and lazily wrapped his arms around him, running them up and down the Watcher’s spine. He nuzzled his nose into the crook of Giles’ neck, revelling in the warm, clean scent of him. Giles felt a tingle running from his neck right down to his groin, and decided to put a stop to it now or they would starve to death.
“Xander, we must eat. I insist on it.”
“Food is good. This is better,” Xander slipped one hand inside Giles’ housecoat and placed it over his heart. Giles closed his eyes as he felt the soft fingers trailing down his body, playing briefly with his nipples on the way.
“No, I mean it,” he said with reluctance. “We’ll never survive this weekend if we don’t eat.”
Xander flashed his large brown eyes at Giles and pouted. When had he become so sexy? But he gave up on his groping and opened the oven door. He was greeted by a warm waft of deliciously scented air. A golden-brown stack of pancakes sat waiting on a platter. Xander’s stomach growled loudly in response.
They ate standing in the kitchen, almost making a race of it. Xander complimented the chef through a mouthful of syrupy pancake goodness, although he was eating way too fast to really enjoy them. Giles couldn’t believe how fast the stack had disappeared.
Xander started cleaning up, but Giles stopped him; “The dishes can wait.”
Xander beamed back at him, then got an idea that made his grin go even wider. He held up the nearly empty syrup bottle in front of him. “Sorry, Rupert—I think we used up most of your syrup. Good stuff, too…Canadian maple…hate to see the dregs go to waste.” He poured a small drop of the golden liquid onto his finger tip and advanced towards the older man.
“What are you doing?” asked Giles, but he already had a pretty good idea.
Xander smiled a wicked little smile and raised his syrupy finger to Giles’ lips, smearing the soft skin with the sticky substance. Then, using the tip of his tongue, he leisurely licked the syrup off. At last Xander’s tongue found the even sweeter taste of Giles’ mouth. He drew out the kiss, taking time to feel the different textures—the hard, strong feel of teeth and the responsive quickness of the other man’s tongue.
Giles was soon lost in the playful curiosity of the kiss. He felt as if Xander was trying to lay bare his very soul with it, and his body responded with absolute acceptance and readiness. A hand had once again found its way inside his housecoat, but this time he didn’t stop it as it reached down to grasp his penis.
Giles let out a quick gasp before retuning his attention to the boy’s mouth. The tentative grip of Xander’s hand on his erection became more assured as they kissed. Giles’ deep, grumbling purr vibrated in Xander’s mouth and seemed to permeate his entire body with longing.
A loud knock at the front door made both of them nearly jump out of their skins. Xander barely had time to duck down below the serving window separating the kitchen from the main room before the door swung open.
Buffy stuck her head in. “Giles? You here? You left the door unlocked—Oh, there you are.”
Giles clutched his housecoat closed and leaned into the main room through the window. He feared she would see the signs—the messed hair, the kiss-swollen lips, his rapid breathing—but her attention was focused elsewhere.
“Have you seen Xander? Or heard from him at all today?”
Giles felt hot, giggling breath against his legs and gave a small jump. What on Earth did Xander think he was doing under there?
“No. I’m afraid I haven’t heard from him since we split up yesterday.” He found it difficult to speak normally as he felt a drizzle of thick, cool syrup being applied to his hard-on. Oh, dear Lord!
“Well, neither have I. And Willow called his place, and his mom said he was over at Oz’s place, but I just called there, and …”
Oh, dear God, dear God, dear God! Giles had to bite his lip to hold back his shout as he felt Xander’s hot tongue and lips cleaning up the syrup.
“…to Oz, and he hasn’t seen Xander either. Do you think he’s okay? I knew I should never have let him…”
Oh God, this was torture! Couldn’t she see? Wasn’t it written all over his face? Surely she must have noticed something when Xander engulfed him in his mouth—he’d stopped breathing entirely, for God’s sake. He felt as though he might pass out.
“Hey, wait! She said, and Giles’ heart tripped in apprehension. “You made pancakes!”
“Yes…yes, I did,” he answered, letting out the breath he’d been holding.
“Have you got any left?”
“Unhhhh…” Giles moaned as Xander slid his tongue along the underside of his penis.
“What?” Buffy asked, looking over his shoulder to the empty griddle behind him.
“Uh—no. Sorry. It was a small batch.” He didn’t think he was going to make it—the feel of his cock sliding in and out of Xander’s mouth while he tried to divert Buffy’s attention…He didn’t think he’d ever been this aroused before, and that thought frightened him a little. How could he possibly be getting off on this? ‘How could you not be?’ he answered himself.
“Well, if your griddle’s still warm, do you mind if I whip up another batch? I haven’t had a thing to eat since lunch yesterday, and it smells incredible.”
“No, of-of course I don’t mind. Oh, wait. No. I’m afraid I’ve used up the last of the syrup.” He could feel Xander shaking against him, silently giggling with his mouth still around his penis. Giles couldn’t hold back any longer. His hands gripped the window ledge and his eyes and jaws clenched shut as his balls tightened. He ejaculated silently into the boy’s mouth.
“I’ll pass, then. You can’t have pancakes without syrup…Giles? Are you okay? You look a little…I don’t know—weird.”
“It’s nothing, he said, trying to control his breathing in the wake of his orgasm. “Just a little headache. Why don’t you keep looking for Xander? He probably just wanted to get out of the house for a bit. He’ll turn up eventually, I’m sure.”
“You’re probably right—after all, if he’d been attacked by demons, it’s not likely they would have given him a chance to call home to make an excuse. But you’ll call me if he comes here?”
“Absolutely.”
She was almost out the door when she turned and said, “You look exhausted, Giles. Maybe you should just go back to bed. Don’t worry about training and stuff—I’ve got it covered. See you Monday.”
When the door thumped closed behind her, Xander burst out laughing and pulled himself to his feet. Giles looked at him crossly, but couldn’t maintain the expression. Soon they were both clutching at each other, laughing until their sides hurt.
Giles wiped a happy tear from his eye and pulled himself together. Xander, however, was still clutching on to him, and it took Giles a while to realize he was no longer laughing. He looked down at the head buried in his housecoat.
“Xander? Xander, are you all right?”
Xander never answered—he’d gone limp in Giles’ arms. Giles fought to remain calm, thankful for his time on the Hellmouth for giving him so much practice. He carried Xander over to the couch and lay him down. He checked his pulse and breathing and decided he didn’t like the state of either.
“Xander, can you hear me?” he asked, tapping his cheek with the back of his hand.
Xander’s eyes rolled under their lids as if he was trying and failing to open them. When he spoke, Giles had to strain to hear him “Giles, help…please help me. It, it hurts so much.”
“Stay with me Xander—don’t you leave me.” He began covering the young man’s face with kisses, but Xander had lost consciousness. His skin had gone a sickly ashen colour, with the exception of his erect penis, which was a livid, angry purple. Giles was amost afraid to touch it, fearing he might cause him more pain—but Xander’s fever had taken a deadly grip on him, and if it wasn’t alleviated immediately, it would completely consume the boy.
Giles took Xander’s erection into his mouth, being extra cautious not to scrape him with his teeth. Xander’s hips bucked slightly under him—a good sign, he hoped. He wasn’t able to take his full length into his mouth, but he did the best he could and used his hand to massage the base. He kept at it for a long time, and he was starting to get worried, when Xander at last showed some response. He started to writhe slowly beneath him, and the colour started slowly seeping back into his skin.
At last Xander’s eyes flickered open and he took in a huge gulp of air. The first thing he was aware of was the fire burning in his belly. He lifted his head and peeked down his body and saw Giles bent over him.
“Oh, God,” he gasped. Giles stopped and looked up at him. “No,” said Xander, “Don’t stop. Please, God, don’t stop now.” He was so close…
Giles renewed his ministrations, flooded with relief. That was too close. There was no way he was going to let Xander out of sight until this was all over.
Xander’s entire body tensed and he started whimpering so desperately that Giles had to fight his instinct to stop. Instead, he sucked harder and faster until Xander cried out and came in long spurts. Giles swallowed some of it, surprised that he didn’t find it in the least bit repulsive. The rest he caught in his hand and used it to lubricate Xander’s penis.
Xander looked at him, confused.
“You’re not done yet, Xander. You’re still very hard, and you look feverish.”
Xander nodded, licking his dry lips. “Rupert?” His voice was tiny, and edged with fear.
“Yes, Xander?” Giles asked, his British accent making the words soft and soothing.
“I’m scared. I—I think it’s getting worse. Why is it getting worse?”
Giles frowned. He’d been thinking the same thing, but he didn’t want to say anything that might frighten Xander. “I admit, you took a turn for the worse, there, but I promise you I’ll get you through this.” He continued to massage Xander’s penis, using slow, gentle strokes from base to tip.
Xander sat up suddenly, fighting to breathe—his deep brown eyes were laced with raw panic.
“Xander? What is it?” Giles asked, his own eyes mirroring Xander’s fear. Xander’s teeth clenched, the tendons in his neck standing out, taut with strain. He pushed Giles away, stood up, and instantly began pacing.
Giles froze, sensing a dangerous change in his young friend. He looked wild and frightened, and Giles wasn’t sure what to do. He approached Xander the way he’d approach a wild dog, afraid of doing anything that might set him off.
Xander saw the Watcher edging cautiously towards him. He wanted to yell at him to run away—get as far away as he could—because he knew his lust was out of control. The last thing he wanted was to hurt Giles, but that’s what would happen if he did what his body was screaming at him to do.
“I’m sorry,” was all he managed to say before his needs overwhelmed him. He pounced on Giles, sending them both sprawling to the floor. Xander pinned Giles underneath him, then clamped his mouth over his lips, bruising them. His hands were busy ripping away Giles’ housecoat, and then tearing the shirt off his own back. The second they were both naked, Xander flipped Giles over almost effortlessly and crouched over him.
Giles knew better than to struggle, even though his natural response was to fight back. Instead, he offered himself—raising himself off the floor until he was on his hands and knees in front of Xander. He felt teeth sinking into his left buttock—thought the boy may very well have drawn blood—but he made no sound. Xander continued to nibble and lick the soft flesh in front of him until…Giles’ breath caught in his throat. The boy had licked his way between his legs and (dear God in heaven) was now rimming Giles’ opening with his tongue. The sensation floored him and he felt himself pushing back against Xander, his heart pounding in his chest.
Xander’s body had taken over. There was no thought in his mind except a primal need for Giles—to be in him—to consume him. Still slick with his own semen, Xander mounted Giles, forcing the tiny aperture to accept the full length of his cock. He heard the hiss of pain but was incapable of stopping. He rode him hard for a while before settling into a slower, less frenzied rhythm.
Giles had expected the pain, but he hadn’t expected the pleasure. With the first thrusts, there was fire—he had to grit his teeth to keep from crying out. Then, once he’d stretched and the pain died away, he began to thrill at the sensation of being penetrated. It was fascinating, feeling the pressure deep inside—so incredibly intimate it made him want to weep.
The edge was wearing off Xander’s craving, and his head started to clear. It suddenly hit him what he was doing to his high school librarian—Buffy’s Watcher. This was the only man he’d ever met that he truly looked up to, and here he was defiling him on his living room floor. And yet he couldn’t stop. Nothing in his life had ever felt so good or so right as being with this man. And now there was zero likelihood of Giles ever being able to look him in the eyes again.
Giles heard Xander’s stifled crying and looked back over his shoulder. Head hung and shoulders slumped, the boy looked utterly dejected.
“Xander, what is it? What’s wrong?”
“What’s wrong?” Xander’s voice was tight with controlled emotion. “After what I’ve just done...what I’m doing to you, you ask me ‘what’s wrong’?” He turned his face away; he couldn’t bear to have Giles look at him.
Giles thought for a moment, and when he spoke it was in his kindest tones. “Xander, I’m all right. You haven’t hurt me, if that’s what you’re worried about.” The boy still wouldn’t face him. “I’m actually rather enjoying it.”
This elicited a response. Xander looked at him, clearly doubtful.
“No, honest. Here, give me your hand.” With a bit of weight shifting, Giles freed a hand and reached back towards Xander. Xander gave him his hand and Giles guided it around his body to feel his own straining erection. “Does it feel like I’m not enjoying it?”
Xander let out a small, relieved laugh and sniffed back the last of his tears. “Well, since I’m there, would you like me to give you a hand?”
Giles groaned at the pun, but inwardly he was glad to hear some of the old Xander coming back. They were now both more relaxed. Giles shifted into a more comfortable position, and in doing so, he inadvertently triggered the most incredible stimulation he’d ever felt.
“Ohhhh, Xander,” his voice hitched in a gasp.
“Did I do that?”
“Yes. Keep…keep doing that.” His senses were being assaulted at both ends, and he was quickly losing the battle. His back arched as he came onto his discarded housecoat and over Xander’s hand.
Giles sagged against the floor in exhaustion, but Xander was still inside him, unable to find his release. He’d retrieved his hand and was adding Giles’ come to his own to lubricate his penis.
When it became clear that they were going to be there for a while, Giles grabbed a couple of cushions from the sofa and got as comfortable as possible. Xander’s hands began roaming over Giles’ body, as if the fingertips were trying to record every curve and freckle to memory. His hands finally found their way back to Giles’ ass. He brushed his fingers gently over the bite mark he’d made.
“Does that hurt?” he asked.
“Not really. Stings a bit, maybe.”
Xander ran his fingers over the wound again, and noticed for the first time a number of very fine white scars criss-crossing Giles’ cheeks. They were obviously old. Xander started to trace them with his finger, but Giles tensed up and he stopped.
“Sorry. I didn’t mean to…”
“It’s all right, Xander. It happened so long ago I sometimes forget I have those scars.”
Was that what you were talking about last night? Did the Watcher’s Council do this to you?”
“It was part of their punishment, but not the worst part.” Giles let out a heavy sigh. He knew he was about to tell Xander his most painful memory, and he was thankful he didn’t have face him as he told it.
“I was fifteen—‘randy’ doesn’t begin to describe my mental state at the time. Michael Doyle was my best friend—just turned sixteen. He’d come back from Christmas break full of tall-tales of his sexual exploits with Doreen, the girl he’d had a crush on for almost a year. I doubt any of it was true, but at the time I believed him, and I kept asking him what it was like. I’d never even kissed a girl, so naturally I was curious.
“One day, after I’d pestered him endlessly to give me details, Michael pulled me into the lavatory and gave me a demonstration. We were kissing, and he’d started undoing my pants, when a prefect walked in on us.
“The headmaster made an example of us, parading us in front of the entire school while lecturing on the dangers of lust. He said that Watchers couldn’t afford to indulge in the pleasures of the flesh—he said we’d only be endangering the other person. And to prove his point, he forced Michael to give me forty lashes while all the other students watched.
“It was nearly a month before I could sit without pain, but Michael suffered far worse than I. I didn’t understand just how badly he was suffering until it was too late.”
“What do you mean, too late?” asked Xander, who’d stopped his thrusting and stayed, motionless, inside Giles.
“It was near the end of term. In his note, Michael said he couldn’t face living without love. He hanged himself one night while I slept soundly in my bed, completely oblivious.
“I blamed myself, of course. I’d let the Council come between us, and I never got the chance to tell him how I felt about him. It was more pain than I was able to cope with on my own, and I made the mistake of going to my father for help. I guess you’d say he ‘freaked’. He told me I was a disgrace to the Council and to the family, and said I was no longer welcome in his house. We haven’t spoken more than two words together since.”
Wow, thought Xander, and here I thought my father was a bastard.
Xander pulled himself out of Giles and lay down next to him on the floor, facing him. Xander held his hand, interlacing their fingers, and simply looked into his eyes. Giles may have been alone back then with no one to turn to, but Xander wanted him to know he didn’t have to be alone now. He snuggled up against him and felt Giles’ strong arms wrapping him in a tight hug.
Giles wasn’t sure how long they lay there, simply holding each other. The quality of the light had changed—it had to be nearing sunset when they finally pulled apart.
Giles brushed his lips against Xander’s forehead. It still felt too hot, and a nagging fear tickled at the back of his thoughts—what if all he had to offer wasn’t enough to pull Xander out of this? He pushed the thought away and did his best to smile reassuringly at the boy.
“Are you hungry? I think it’s safe to say we missed lunch.”
“Are you kidding? I’m so hungry I could even eat British cooking.”
Giles laughed. “I would never do that to you. I was thinking more along the lines of pizza. I could order in?”
Xander drooled at the thought. “Now you’re talking. How about you order us up a mess of pizza—I’m gonna take another shower, if that’s okay.”
“No!” said Giles sharply. “I don’t want you out of my sight even for a second. Stay with me while I order, and we can shower together.” Xander couldn’t help feeling a little warm and fuzzy at the Watcher’s concern. It was sweet.
“Whatever you say, G-man,” he grinned.
Giles phoned in the order, then grabbed Xander by the hand and led him to the upstairs bathroom. Xander turned on the water, testing the temperature with an outstretched arm. It was then that he became aware of Giles’ gaze studying him, and he felt a charge of excitement. He stepped into the tub, holding the curtain open for Giles who was right behind him.
“Now remember, we’ve only got about half an hour, so…” Xander kissed him, cutting him off mid-sentence. They soaped each other up, until they were both slippery from head to foot. Giles kissed Xander deeply, ignoring the ache in his bruised lips. He let his slick hands glide over the contours of Xander’s muscled body, luxuriating in the erotic pleasure of having another man in his arms. Xander’s cock was rock-hard and tender, and he winced when Giles finally took it in his hands.
“Sorry,” Giles whispered in his ear, “I didn’t mean to hurt you, love.”
Xander’s orgasm hit him hard and unexpectedly, making his knees buckle. Giles managed to catch him, and held him up until the last drop of semen fell to the bathtub floor. Xander’s entire body felt as if it was made of Jell-O. He kept his arms wrapped around Giles’ neck as they rinsed off under the hot stream of the shower.
As they towelled off, all Giles could think of was having a quick bite to eat and falling into a deep sleep. He could tell that Xander, too, was fighting fatigue—but at least he had some of his natural pink colour back. If it weren’t for his stubbornly erect penis, Giles would have thought the fever had broken. He sighed inwardly, unsure how much longer he’d be able to keep at this.
Giles threw on his jogging sweats and a white t-shirt and gave Xander his somewhat tattered terrycloth bathrobe to wear. When the pizza arrived, Giles signed for it, doing his best to ignore the look they received from the delivery man.
They ate curled up together on the couch. Giles put on some CCR, which was the only album of his Xander had heard of. Between bites (and quite often during), Xander bantered on about everything under the sun. Giles was quite happy to let the boy ramble on, enjoying the youthful exuberance of his voice. He was content with playing with Xander’s damp hair and putting away more pizza than he thought humanly possible.
At some point he must have nodded off, because Giles suddenly found himself being shaken awake by Xander.
“Sorry to wake you up, Rupert, but I need you.” Giles shook his head to clear away the cobwebs. It was pitch black outside, and the music had stopped.
“How long have I been asleep?” he asked.
“I think you dozed off somewhere in the middle of my eighth grade science fair story. Don’t worry about it, though,” he added, sensing the other man’s guilt. “You know, you look really cute when you’re asleep.”
Xander got up and headed up the stairs, leaving Giles blinking in surprise. Did he just say I was cute? Giles’ terrycloth robe fell from the loft above, and Giles took the hint. He stripped off his clothes as he climbed the stairs, and when he reached his bedroom, he found Xander on the bed, waiting. Giles crawled onto the bed, looking for all the world like some big cat on the prowl. Xander closed his eyes, feeling the mattress dip on both sides of his body as Giles crawled up over him.
When Giles took the head of his penis into his mouth, Xander couldn’t keep still—Giles had to pin his hips down to keep him from thrusting. Xander let out a loud, incoherent shout as the usually-timid librarian slowly drew his tongue across his balls, then sucked them gently into his mouth. Xander thumped his head back into the pillow over and over until Giles stopped. He opened his eyes and saw Giles grabbing for the bottle of conditioner they’d used last night. Giles poured a large dollop into his hand.
“Do you want this?”
“Yes—of God, yes, please.” Xander bit his lower lip in anticipation, writing in impatience until he felt the older man’s finger’s slide up between his thighs. He was more than ready when a long, slender finger found its way inside him, followed by a second one.
Unbelievably, Giles found himself getting hard again. He hadn’t had stamina like this since his Ripper days.
“I’m close, Rupert! Hurry—I want you inside me.” Xander rolled onto his stomach, presenting Giles with his glistening backside. Giles added more lubrication than was necessary and rubbed his shaft between Xander’s thighs a few times before introducing it into the boy’s opening. He intended on going slowly, but Xander pushed back hard against him, impaling himself. Xander was setting a frantic pace, meeting every thrust with one of his own—a continuous moan coming from his throat. Giles was tiring quickly, finding it increasingly difficult to keep up with Xander.
“Harder…harder, please!”
Giles tried to comply. Slamming himself into the boy, holding back only enough to prevent tearing the delicate aperture.
“Harder!” Xander shouted.
“I can’t, Xander—not without hurting you.”
“Please! I need you to.”
“Xander…”
Frustrated, Xander reared backwards, throwing Giles off him. Then, in one seamless motion, he pushed Giles onto his stomach, emptied the bottle of conditioner over himself and penetrated the man up to the hilt.
Giles shouted in pain, still raw from their earlier encounter. The growls and groans coming from Xander’s throat were barely recognizable as human, and growing steadily louder. Giles could feel the boy’s urgency—his desperate need to reach one last climax. This would be the one. They both sensed it. Giles tightened his muscles against Xander’s plunging erection, making the young man moan even louder. Soon they were drenched with sweat, Xander’s body shaking with strain.
“Nothing’s happening,” Xander said, breathlessly. “I can’t…I can’t…”
“Yes you can, Xander.”
“I-I can’t.”
Giles felt Xander collapse against his back—heavy and lifeless. Giles rolled onto his side and Xander slid off him, flopping onto the bed like a rag doll.
“Xander?” said Giles, shaking the boy by the shoulders. No reaction. “Xander, don’t you dare do this to me.” His worst fears were being realized—Xander was slipping away despite all his efforts to save him. “I don’t know what else to do. Tell me—what am I supposed to do?” He bent down and kissed Xander; the broad mouth he’d gotten to know so well didn’t even twitch in response. Giles felt lost. He had no answers—for all his studying and research, nothing had prepared him for this.
“Please, Xander, I’m begging you. Don’t die. I can’t lose you…I love you.”
Xander’s body jerked. His eyes flew open as he sucked in a vast gulp of air. Giles’ shock turned quickly to joy—Xander was alive and smiling up at him. Giles took the boy’s head in his hands and kissed him thoroughly, receiving the response he’d hoped for. Xander erupted like a volcano, spraying his seed at record distances. Afterwards, he lay weak and panting on the bed. Giles quickly brought himself to orgasm and collapsed next to him.
“How are you feeling?” asked Giles.
“Like a bicycle tire that been filled so full of air that it finally popped.” They both looked down at Xander’s deflated penis.
“An apt description.” Giles got up off the bed with a grunt of effort, feeling as if he’d just survived some deadly skirmish. He had the same feeling of triumph and buoyancy he always got after doing battle—it was the only thing keeping him going at this point.
“Where ya going, G-man?”
“Back in a minute, love.” Giles disappeared into the bathroom and returned several minutes later smelling of soap and minty toothpaste. He had a steaming, sudsy washcloth in one hand and a towel in the other. Giles sponged Xander down, being delicate but thorough, then handed him the towel to dry off. He then changed the sheets on the bed, playfully prodding at Xander to get him to move out of the way. When he was satisfied, he crawled back into bed where Xander was waiting to be properly snuggled. Within a minute they were both sound asleep.
The next morning Xander woke up feeling bone weary, but happier than he’d been since God knows when. He felt Giles’ warm body spooning him and decided he just wanted to spend the entire day wrapped in this man’s arms. He felt so safe…so loved. A distinct memory surfaced from the night before of Giles talking to him from what seemed like a million miles away. He’d said he loved him. Xander grinned and leaned back against Giles’ chest.
It was then that he heard the door close downstairs, followed by Buffy’s voice.
“Giles? I thought I told you to lock your door. What kind of example are you setting for all the other Watcher’s?”
“Wow, his place is a mess. That’s so not Giles.”
Xander stopped breathing—that was Willow’s voice. Great, now Buffy and Willow were roaming around downstairs with him lying naked in Giles’ bed. With a naked Giles. Who was softly snoring in blissful ignorance.
“Looks like he had a party, or at least a shindig.”
Terrific! Oz was there, too. Did the entire Scooby Gang have to do everything together?
It was only a matter of time before they got it into their heads to come upstairs, and Xander couldn’t let them find the two of them like this—it would destroy Giles. Xander’s wracked his brain to come up with some plausible excuse as he freed himself from the older man’s embrace. He threw on Giles’ terrycloth robe and tiptoed down the stairs. There was no way he could hide from them, so he figured he might as well not even try. As he came down the stairs, he was met by four pairs of startled eyes. Jesus! Cordy was here, too. Xander’s felt the heat rising in his cheeks. No. Don’t blush—it’s a total giveaway.
“Will you guys try and keep it down? Giles is trying to get some sleep up there.”
Buffy’s jaw hung loosely on its hinges. The others sported similar expressions of disbelief (well, with the exception of Oz, perhaps). It was clear what they were thinking, so Xander used it to his advantage.
“What? Did you think…? Me—and Giles? Get your heads out of the gutter, people.”
Buffy found her voice at last. “Xander, we’ve been looking for you all weekend. Where have you been?”
“Yeah,” Willow chipped in, “we thought maybe went and got all eaten by a demon or something.”
“You could have called,” said Cordelia, “thanks to you, I think I might have developed a worry line. I’m too young to have worry lines.”
Sorry guys, I didn’t mean to freak you all out. I just needed to get away for a bit. Home’s been a bit…loud…lately. Decided to camp out. Then I got to wandering last night and ended up here. The light was on, so I popped in to say ‘hi’. No biggie, really.”
“And then you ordered some pizza…” Oz prompted.
“Uh-huh. I’m afraid I talked Giles’ ears off until the wee hours of the morning. Best to let him sleep for a while. No sense sticking around…”
“Xander, have you seen my glasses? I can’t believe I have no idea where I left them.” Giles got halfway down the stairs before realizing they were not alone. “Oh, dear Lord,” he said beneath his breath. All he had on were his jogging sweats. He felt absolutely naked. And mortified.
“Giles!” said Buffy sternly, making Giles wince. “Why didn’t you call? Remember? You said you’d call if Xander showed up here.”
Was she blind? Were they all blind? Or maybe they just chose not to see what was right in front of their eyes because it was him—their high school librarian and stalwart guardian of the Slayer.
“I would have, but it was very late. I didn’t want to alarm your mother.”
Buffy seemed to mull it over for a moment before nodding. “All right. I’ll let you off the hook this time. But next time I ask you to call me you’d better do it, Mister.”
“Y-yes, yes of course.” He looked down at his bare feet, as the silence in the room lengthened uncomfortably.
“Anyone else here hungry?” asked Oz, perhaps sensing more than the others some of what was truly going on.
“I could do lunch,” Willow added, quickly. The others followed suit and bailed out of there, leaving Giles and Xander spinning in their wake.
They stood facing each other for a while without speaking. Neither one wanted to face reality.
“Well,” said Xander, finally.
“Yes. ‘Well’.” Giles replied. Spotting his glasses on the table next to the couch, he went and put them on. In a way, that simple movement punctuated the weekend, symbolically drawing it to a close.
“So, I guess we’ve got to go back to business as usual?” Xander asked, plaintively.
“I’m afraid so. You know as well as I that what happened here this weekend must never be spoken of to anyone. The consequences…”
“I know.”
Xander remained silent for a long time, but Giles knew there was more that needed to be said.
“Giles?” he said at last.
“MmHmm?”
“Did you mean what you said last night, when—when you said that you loved me?”
“Yes, I did,” came the quiet reply. “I don’t think you’d be alive right now if I hadn’t meant it.”
“Giles?”
“Yes, Xander?”
“Can I ask you for one last thing? Can I have one more kiss?”
Giles’ heart ached for him, and his body ached for far more than just a kiss. He nodded, not trusting his voice.
Xander came up to him and ran his hands up Giles’ bare chest and around his neck. The kiss was sweet and they let it go on until they were both heady with desire. Xander brought his mouth to Giles’ ear and whispered: “I love you, too, Rupert Giles.”