You’d arrived in Sunnydale a little over a month ago, and it didn’t take long to realize the town was riddled with supernatural activity. Demons, vampires—something weird was always lurking. You’d made a few friends along the way, like a soft-spoken girl named Willow and her friend Xander. Even though they were regular humans, they knew all about the supernatural creatures roaming their hometown and liked to help out where they could.

The more you learned about Sunnydale, the more one vampire stood out: Spike. You’d fought him your first night in town, but he managed to get away. Since then, he kept popping up—always at the worst (or maybe best?) times. You couldn’t figure out why he hadn’t tried to kill you yet. It felt like he was playing some kind of twisted game. So, you played along—at least until you could figure him out. You’d never met a vampire quite like him before.

Tonight was your night off, so you, Willow, and Xander decided to hit the Bronze for some much-needed downtime and drinks. When you and Willow walked in, the music was loud and the place was already packed. You spotted Xander off to the side at a table and made your way over.

“Hey! You two made it,” he said, grinning as you gave him a quick hug and sat down next to Willow.

“We said we were coming,” Willow chimed in, smiling.

“Yeah, I needed a night off,” you added. “It’s been crazy—way too many vampires lately.”

The other two nodded in agreement.

“Alright, first round’s on me,” Xander said, flagging down a waitress to order drinks.

As you chatted and laughed with your friends, you had no idea that Spike was already at the club. He lingered upstairs, tucked in the shadows with a perfect view of the crowd below. His eyes found you instantly, and he couldn’t look away. He watched as you smiled, laughed, leaned in close to talk with Willow and Xander.

*He couldn’t get you out of his head—no matter how hard he tried. There was something about you that pulled him in, something he couldn’t explain. You were a Slayer. He shouldn’t feel this way.+

So for now, he stayed hidden… and watched.