The Guy Thing 1/?
AUTHOR: Otsoko
E-MAIL: otsoko@hotmail.com
SUMMARY: Xander catches up with Riley at Willey's Place.
RATING: PG-13
CONTENT: Sort of slash, but not really. Almost slash. Maybe just
Riley/Xander friendship. Not sure. Let me know. <g>
SPOILERS: Through BtVS 5.06: Family.
FEEDBACK: That would be quite nice, actually.
DISTRIBUTION: any place slash-friendly who lets me know
*DISCLAIMER: All characters belong to Joss Wheedon, Fox and the WB. I am
just playing.
ACK. EMMY.esq! Who did the fastest Beta turn-around in history on this
one! And, as always, found the howling mistakes that I failed to find in
six rereadings on my own. Thanks, luv. And to the JENeral, the Proph, and
the Becca and the rest of the #RF gang, for whom I have *finally* written a
Riley Finn story.

Note: Readers who know my stuff also know that a lot of my scribblings are
song-fics, but the songs are generally really obscure, and rarely in
English. OK, I'm over the top this one on the obscurity front. Riley's
POV in this is from a Ska song by the Puerto Rican group, los Pies Negros.
You're probably never gonna find any of their stuff off the island (unless
maybe you get lucky on napster). But they *rock* in a serious way. OK,
it's ska, so it has the happy happy joy joy upbeat sound, but the lyrics
aren't so happy. The song is called 'Pesadilla' (Nightmare). I like the
contrast between the happy boppy surface and the desperate angst underneath
for Riley.

Cuerpo explotando en la oscuridad.
Ojos que me miran con intensidad.
Y unas manos que me aguantan
y no me quieren soltar.

A body exploding in the darkness
eyes that watch me with intensity.
and hands that support me
but don't want to let me go.

Veo que mis pasos
no van a ningún lugar
torpe he sido por lo que he visto
que no sabes lo que es el limbo.

I can see that my footsteps
aren't leading anywhere.
I'm being dense given all I've seen
but you don't know what it's like living in limbo.

Xander's POV is also a bit obscure. It's from a Spanish pop song from the
70's , Quiero Ser Libre (I wanna be free) by los Chichos. The key verse is:

en la celda en que yo estoy In the cell I'm in
hay un buen amigo mio there's a good friend of mine.
el me cuenta sus penicas He tells me his sorrows
y se consuela conmigo and lets me console him.
(y salgo al patio llorando (And I run into the yard crying
igual que si fuera un niño.) just as though I were a kid.)
 

The Guy Thing 1/?

Riley was exactly where Spike had snidely said he'd be, exactly where he
feared Riley'd be. He stood at the door for a minute and watched him
sitting there, hunched over, unmoving, glass in hand. He sighed and walked
over and sat at the bar next to Riley. The bartender gave him a scowl that
wasn't exactly welcoming. He responded with his best attempt at a tough guy
grin and asked, "Willie's not here?"

The bartender just shook his head, and turned his back.

Riley looked over and nodded at him, his face void of emotion.

"Hey" Riley said to the bartender and pointed at Xander. The bartender put
down a glass and poured him a shot, hesitating when Riley pushed his own
glass forward. Before he poured, he looked at Xander. "He driving?""

Xander shook his head. The bartender nodded and poured.

"So," said Xander taking a sip of the Irish whiskey and trying to hide the
grimace. "Why you turning into this crazy party weasel, big guy?"

Riley pointedly ignored the question, raising his glass and clinking
Xander's unmoving glass. "Cheers." He took a healthy swallow.

"Back at ya." Xander managed a smile of sorts.

Xander took another sip, studying Riley's face as he stared into the middle
distance. "The door man here knows your name. I'm not taking that as a
good sign."

Riley didn't look at him. His jaw muscles clenched tight. "You here to read
me the riot act?"

"I try to avoid the reading thing as much as possible."

Riley glanced over at him and gave him a hint of a smile. He looked down at
Xander's glass. "You don't like it much, do ya?"

Xander shook his head, "Better than turpentine, I guess. Not that I've
drunk that much turpentine. Although I hear that Home Depot is the place
for your better turpentine."

Riley looked up at the bartender. "Get my friend here a beer." It was
pretty much an order.

The bartender leaned down and opened the bar fridge.

Riley suddenly realized that he hadn't even asked if a beer would be better,
"That OK, Xand?"

"Yeah, thanks."

The bartender held up a bottle, Xander nodded that it was an acceptable
brand, and reached across the bar for it, shaking his head at the offer of a
glass.

"It's on the house if you can get him to move to someplace less conspicuous.
You both kinda have a rep among my clientele."

Xander grinned at the bartender, pleased with having a rep. He stood up,
and put a hand on Riley's shoulder. "Come on."

Riley hesitated a second before he stood up and followed Xander to a table
against the back wall. They sat across from each other. Riley rolled the
half-empty glass back and forth between his hands. He looked over at
Xander.
"This is the point when you're supposed to ask 'How 'bout them Steelers?'"

Xander grinned. "It's been a while since I've done the guy thing. Been
mainly hanging out with the girls for the last couple of years."

Riley tried to figure out if Xander was making fun of him. "The guy thing?
Are we doing the guy thing, here?"

"I'm trying. Quick check: How am I doing so far?"

Riley looked him in the eye, and gave him a bit of a smile. "Not bad."

Xander sighed in relief. "Good." He looked at him for a second, trying to
figure out how to broach the topic.
"So... how bout them Steelers?"

Riley managed a smile, but then he shook his head, his face betraying a real
sadness. "She loves *you*, ya know."

"Yeah, in an idiot kid brother kind of way."

"Yeah. But, she still loves ya. You should have heard her lay into me when
she found out I punched you out that night at Dracula's."

"I was sort of doing the in-the-thrall thing."

"You know she'd do just about anything for you."

"Yeah, almost anything." There was just the slightest trace of bitterness.

Riley's eyes flashed with a hint of anger.

Xander scrambled, "Forget I said that, OK?"

Riley smiled bitterly. "Yeah, between the two of us, we'd make her one good
boyfriend."

Xander had to smile at that. Then he put on a mock-worried face. "You're
not suggesting..."

Riley just gave him a weary smile. "Sorry, I pretty much like being with
one person at a time. Sorry if I'm blowing any fantasies for ya." Riley
looked at his empty glass before standing up and walking over to the bar.
Xander watched him as he ordered another whiskey and another bottle of beer.

Riley put the bottle in front of him. Xander pointedly picked up the half
beer he still had.

"Wimp." Riley chided, as he sat back down.

Xander chugged the rest of the first bottle and picked up the second. "I
take it we're getting drunk tonight."

Riley cocked his head. "It's what you usually do when you're in a bar doing
the guy thing."

"Right."

"So, why no guy thing? Where's the high school buds?"

Xander shrugged and swigged from the bottle too quickly. Riley was still
staring at him, awaiting an answer, when he put the bottle back down.
Xander met his stare for a second and then said simply "Vamps. Demons.
Sunnydale High, remember?"

"Yeah. Sorry."

"It's all right."

They both drank in silence.

"Have you asked her?"

Riley shook his head, unable to meet Xander's eyes. "It doesn't count if
you have to ask."

He picked up his glass and drained it.

Xander took a swig of his beer. Riley slid his empty glass over at him.
Xander picked it up, stood, and walked over to the bar. He got Riley a new
one, and decided to get himself another beer, rather than risk another
'wimp' comment..

He put the glass down in front of Riley. "Not sure I should be giving you
this..."

"We're doing the guy thing, remember?"

"Right. I forgot." Xander sat back down. He leaned back in his chair.
"So do we talk pro sports now?"

"You follow the Bulls?"

Xander shook his head. "Sorry."

Riley shook his head with a slight smile. "You really haven't been doing
the guy thing."

"Hey, I talk cricket with Giles every now and then."

Riley gave him a look that made him regret ever mentioning it. "Cricket?"

"Okay, okay." Xander admitted defeat.

"Isn't Anya expecting you or something?"

A shake of the head. "Nope, she's doing inventory or something with Giles
at the store. Buffy?"

"Quality time with the kid sister."

"It's kinda tough with her Mum being sick and all."

"Yeah." Riley looked at Xander and gave him a bit of a leer. "She's got
quite the crush on ya, you know?"

Xander started, "Buffy's Mum?"

Riley laughed, for the first time that night, and shook his head. "No,
Dawn."

"Dawn? You gotta be kidding."

"Yeah. Keeps asking me about you. What you like and stuff."

Xander blushed.

Riley said kiddingly... or half-kiddingly ... "I can see it, you got the
cute sensitive guy thing down. Girls go for that."

"Yeah, 13 year old girls."

"And Anya."

"Okay, 13 year-old girls and thousand year old ex-vengeance demons."

"I heard you were dating the cheerleaders in High School."

"One cheerleader, and it didn't end well."

"What happened?"

"She pretty much caught me and Willow ..."

"Damn, Xander! Can't you keep it zipped up?"

Xander saw that Riley was grinning at him. He smiled back, and shrugged.
"It was pretty zipless. Besides, we thought we had the 'we're about to die'
exception."

"Vamps?"

"Yeah, our very good friend Hostile 17 in his earlier and more dangerous
days."

"He's hasn't really mellowed much has he?"

Xander grinned and shook his head and took another swig of beer.

Riley picked up his empty glass, and stood, "My turn." He went over the
bar and got them refills. As he sat down again, he sighed, slightly
nostalgically,
"My first time was in a barn with a cheerleader."

"In a *barn*?"

"Iowa, remember?"

"You *are* the farm boy!" Xander chortled.

"Come on. Yours?"

"In a cheap hotel with a slayer."

Riley's eyes got very intense, very fast.

"*Not* the Buffster!"

"You mean ... Faith?"

Xander nodded. Riley stared at him. "Something else we have in common."

"Yeah, but I knew it was Faith. At least you had a good excuse."

"So, were you two ... an item?"

Xander shook his head. "No, she pretty much tried to kill me the next time
we got together."

"Nice."

Xander scowled, "I didn't think I was that bad."

Riley broke up laughing. "According to Anya, you're pretty much the life of
the party in the sack."

Xander blushed, and stammered. "I keep telling her that there are some
things she needs to very much NOT talk about."

"It's kinda impressive, actually."

Xander smiled, and blushed.

Riley looked down at the glass.

"What?"

"Nothing."

"Hey, if I can talk about Faith..."

Riley didn't look up. "It's just that before the Doc fixed me up, I was
pretty much..."

"... Superman?"

Riley nodded.

Xander got it. "And now you're just a regular guy..."

Riley nodded once, without looking up. Xander sighed. He reached across
the table and gave Riley a pat on the shoulder.

"I don't think she's into you for that..."

"She's real understanding about it." Riley said with a trace of bitterness
as he finished his glass.

Xander stared at Riley's face as the former commando looked down at his
glass. Sometimes the girls knew exactly the wrong thing to say.
"Oh, Shit. I'm sorry, Ri."
 

========================

The two walked out of the bar.

"You're a good guy, Xander."

"As opposed to a bad guy?"

"Dork! I'm just sayin' you do the guy thing good."

"Thanks. Wasn't sure I had it in me. Tell me one thing, Ri. Why were we
drinking at a demon and vamp hangout?"

Riley looked straight ahead, nodded his head with conviction and answered,
"Cause."

Xander replied with equal seriousness. "Ok. So long as there was a good
reason."

Riley gave Xander a play punch to the shoulder, Xander boffed him on the
back of the head.

Riley started to respond, but saw Xander wince, and instead put his arm
across his shoulder.

"Sorry about that night at Dracula's."

"'S'alright. It wasn't me, really."

Riley said as though making a resolution, "I really gotta stop punching out
guys I like."

"I'm all for that one." Xander gave him a smile. Riley gave his shoulder a
squeeze and let his arm fall back to his side.

"You're all right, Xand ... for a dork."

"You, too ... for a bonehead."

They flashed grins at each other and walked down the street in companionable
silence.

=====================

"Here's my place. Come on in. I've got a bottle somewhere."

"That's OK, not sure I need another."

"Wimp."

Xander wagged a finger at Riley. "You think you can get me do to anything
just by calling me a wimp if I don't, don't you?"

Riley grinned and nodded "Yup."

Xander grinned back. "OK, but just one."

Riley fumbled a bit with the key, but managed to get the door open. Xander
followed him in. Riley turned on the lights and noticed that there was a
message on the answering machine. He hit the button. The electronic voice
said "Hay ... un ... mensaje."

"Bought it in Tijuana. Got a deal." Riley explained.

The beep sounded. A deep voice spoke. "Hey, Ri. Just calling to see how
you're doin'. Give me a call, OK? 555 - 867-5309."

Xander looked at Riley questioningly. Riley sighed, and looked at Xander,
"Graham."

He sat down hard on the bed, and put his head in his hands. Then took a
deep breath, collecting himself. "Where's that bottle?"

"You miss'em, don't ya? The Initiative guys? The whole Initiative
thing?"

"Yeah. I guess."

Riley found the bottle of Bushmills whiskey and rinsed out a fairly skanky
looking coffee cup and a relatively clean glass. He handed the latter to
Xander, and poured them both a fairly stiff belt. He walked back and sat on
the bed. Xander took the chair. They clinked glass and cup.

"Cheers."

"Cheers." Xander took a bit of a sip. It tasted better after several
beers. "Graham's the one you decked when he came up with the doc?"

Riley nodded.

"He doesn't sound too pissed off about that, at least."

"Not my finest hour." Riley took another swig. He looked at the floor.
"They want me back."

Xander let that sink in. He nodded. "Back on the team."

Riley nodded, still staring at the floor.

"Gotta say, the Initiative was pretty impressive, if you overlooked the
whole creating monsters to take over the world part."

Riley grinned up at him.

"What?" Xander asked, and lifted the glass to his mouth.

"Buffy told me when you first saw the Initiative, you said you wanted to
have sex with me."

Xander choked on the whiskey, spewing it all over the floor.

"That was just ... I mean ..."

"So you did ... say it?"

"Yeah. But I didn't mean I actually wanted to have sex with you."

"Wimp."