Days in the Sun
Through the living room window, safely in the shade of the large tree in front of the house, Spike watched his family in the driveway. They were done washing Lisa’s new car, and were now ready to apply the new paint under the teen’s direction. William was trying again to convince her not to do it, and Spike could hear them laughing as she shook her head. Will was torn, Spike knew, between being happy for his sister – and himself, too, since he was going to benefit from her car – and being horrified at the thought that the sleek new red beetle would soon be covered in large black dots to resemble a ladybug. Lisa wasn’t letting him distract her, though, she had announced her plans at the second she had been given the keys. Jay unsurprisingly sided with her sister, all too happy to be allowed to help. Buffy was just smiling at their children’s antics, laughing with them, too. And Spike was watching them all from inside, wishing more than ever before that he could have joined them in the sun.
Lisa was excited as she walked around her soon to be car. It wasn’t new, alright, and it looked, well, like it had seen better days. But it was normal for a car almost as old as Joyce Anne, and she didn’t care about how it looked anyway as long as it ran. She wanted a car that was hers, that she could take whenever she wanted without caring that Joy had a swimming lesson or that her mother had errands to run. Since there was no way she was risking herself in her father’s car – black paint on the windows and windshield weren’t exactly its safest features – it just meant that she needed her own wheels. And she soon would have them.
Or not.
A simple look at her father, and she knew his answer already. Yes, it was her money – all of her savings, actually – but he had said he wanted to approve of the car before she actually bought it. And it was clear by his frown that he didn’t approve.
“It runs better than it looks,” she said with a wide forced grin before he could start objecting. “And it’s a classic.”
Spike snorted. “The De Soto is a classic, luv. This is a piece of junk.”
The current owner of the car, the older brother of one of Lisa’s classmates, took offense of this rough assessment of his property, but Lisa protested faster than him.
“It’s a very good buy, and since it’s my money…”
“It’s not about money,” Spike interrupted her. “It’s about my daughter’s safety. It’s about you having an accident or being stuck who knows where because this… car suddenly stopped working. We’re going now.”
She glared at his retreating back, quickly told the would be seller that she would convince her father and not to sell the car to anyone else in the meantime, and followed back to the De Soto, slamming the passenger door shut as she got in. Spike started driving without seeming to take notice of her bad temper.
“Why can’t I use my own money as I wish?” she began arguing right away. “I’ve worked hard for it. And I need a car. You’re just being mean for no reason.”
Spike didn’t turn to look at her, and as she scowled at his profile she could see his mouth curling up in that infuriating smirk of his.
“You can use your money as you wish,” he said in a too reasonable tone, “unless it affects your health or safety, which I am sure this car would. I don’t care what the mechanic told you, luv. I’ve seen enough cars in my years to know which ones to stay away from. And I won’t let you drive that thing, however hard you pout.”
She realized, then, that she was indeed pouting, and tried to appear a little more mature – looking like she was five wasn’t going to help her convince him.
“And I am not being mean,” he continued before she could find another argument. “I said you couldn’t have that car. I didn’t say you can’t have a car at all.”
He stopped driving, then, and when he opened his door she could see that they weren’t home. Far from it. She quickly joined him outside, and recognized the dealer’s lot. It was the same one where they had gotten Buffy’s new minivan a few months back. The only one in Sunnydale that remained open a couple of hours after dark.
“Dad, I can’t afford a new car,” she pointed out quietly.
He flashed her a quick smile. “Just look around, baby, and let me worry about the money, alright?”
A salesman was already approaching, apparently recognizing Spike, and Lisa could almost see the little dollar signs in his eyes. She was suddenly feeling very uncomfortable. When she had started thinking about getting a car, it had always been clear in her mind that she would pay for it, and not ask money from her parents. As far as she knew, the Summers family didn’t have money problems – at least, she had never heard anything that could suggest it – but that didn’t mean they were rich. They didn’t live in Sunnydale’s most classy neighborhood, didn’t have a pool or these things that some of her classmates had, and Lisa was suddenly acutely aware that her father hadn’t had a new book published in many months.
“You know who you look like right now? Peaches. All broody and gloomy.”
Startled out of her thoughts, Lisa turned to glare at her father. The comparison was not exactly flattering as far as she was concerned. She noticed that the salesman was some distance away, talking to another potential customer, and was glad for the privacy.
“You really don’t have to do this,” she said, almost pleading. “I’ll find a better car, one I can afford and that you’ll approve of.”
The grin on Spike’s face disappeared almost instantly, replaced by surprise.
“But I want to do this,” he replied, tilting his head slightly. “Can’t I make a gift to my own daughter?”
“Just buy me a CD, if you want to give me something. Not a car!”
She bit her own lips before adding that it was just too expensive, but she could see that Spike had followed her train of thoughts.
“It’s about money, isn’t it? Money exists to be spent, luv. It makes no one happy when it’s just sleeping in a bank.”
She shook her head incredulously. This was going against all she had been taught about being responsible.
“You haven’t published a book in months,” she said, wincing at the preaching tone of her own voice. “And shouldn’t you discuss this with mom? It’s her money, too, and…”
She stopped herself as he startled chuckling softly, and felt her cheeks burn in shame. Was he mocking her? That wasn’t like him to do such a thing.
“Honey, first let me tell you that I’m proud. You’re being very reasonable and responsible here, and that just tells me you’ll do fine with your own finances. But I have to say also that you worry too much. I write books because I need something to occupy my days. And your mother works for the same reason. We could both stop working today, and not change a thing to our spending habits, and we would all be fine for a good century or two.”
As she blinked several times, Lisa tried to make sense of what he was saying.
“You mean… you mean we’re rich?”
An amused glint shone in Spike’s eyes. “No, luv. Your mother and I are rich. You still have to live like anyone else, to the exception of an occasional gift. The last thing we want is to spoil our children.”
That made sense, in a way, and Lisa started relaxing for the first time since she had come out of the car.
“But aren’t you spoiling me today?” she asked teasingly as she let her eyes wander around the lot.
Spike chuckled again. “If you had asked for it, I would have said no. And don’t expect anything on your next birthday either.”
Buffy left the kids in the driveway, the three of them armed with tiny brushes and black car paint, and returned inside to her husband. She had seen Spike hovering behind the window, and he looked awfully lonely. She approached him from behind, and slid her arms around him as she looked over his shoulder toward their children.
“I love to see them laugh,” he said quietly.
“Me too. Almost as much as I love seeing you laugh.”
She pressed a soft kiss to the back of his neck, delighting in his soft sigh.
“Just thinking that some day…”
Her hand moved up to press to his lips and prevent him from finishing that thought. Just the anguished tone of his voice was enough to tell her what he was thinking.
“Then don’t think about it,” she admonished. “Just think that they are happy, now, today, and we will both do all we can to keep them happy as long as possible. You’re a wonderful father, love. You will always be.”
He turned in her embrace so that he was facing her, and gave her a lopsided smile before pressing his mouth to hers.