No, it isn't. But I don't think that Buffy's going over to Dawn's apartment and asking her to stick around- and she clearly isn't doing that for Willow, either. Idk, I don't go over to my friends and specifically ask that they stay in town, either, because they haven't expressed any desire to leave in the first place, plus, I'd think it's kind of selfish to hold them back if they wanted to (even if they didn't).

The fact that Buffy even asked for reassurance that Spike was staying (in the online comic) is more than she's done for anyone else, and only because he's been away and she doesn't take his presence for granted.

I agree with you. I think that Spike's looking for purpose, and he finds one working with the good guys in San Francisco- be they Buffy or the SFPD. It isn't a character flaw to want to do the right thing.

This is a panel in which Buffy thanks Spike for looking out for her.



We're doing this without interpretation, so I have no further official words on it, but she seems to be happy that he's there for her (and she openly admits that she'd miss him on the prior page, so if we're only taking the comics at face value, that seems confirmation that she likes him, not just his work- as is the fact that she invites him to a party in the first issue).