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"Let's get ice cream!" Ramie suggested on a giggle as we walked out into the cool autumn air. It was about nine thirty and all I wanted to do, was go home and read a book. Listen to some music. Was this too much to ask?

"Sure." Everyone was in agreement. Riley and Scott were talking frantically about some new video game as Ramie and Dawn talked about prom. Angel hung back with me and I glanced at him.

"Sorry, about in there, earlier." He says, grasping the back of his neck. I cast him a glance.

"What?" I ask and he glanced at me.

"Uh-." I cut him off.

"I don't know what you're talking about." I say giving him a chance to just drop it. His lips twitch, but he nods.

"You don't like Riley." He comments, slowly.

"Just now getting that, I see. Only took you, lying, deceiving and kidnapping me." I say, casually as I stare at the wall we walk by.

"You went of your own free will. I didn't call for ransom." He went along with my little overreaction of the entire situation. I smiled softly at that.

"You know I don't like movie theaters, Angel. You know that. You also know that I don't like boys or dating. So, who pressed you to do it?" I asked and he scowled, looking away from me and scratching his chin with his thumb nail.

"No one pressed me." he snapped and I flinched at his tone. Stilling my steps. He turned to face me, placing a hand on the wall next to us to either block me in or block me from view. Maybe both. He glanced behind him and took notice of the distracted four ahead of us before turning back to me.

"Goddammit, Buffy. Is wantin' you to date so fuckin' bad?" He seethed.

"Don't, talk to me like that, Angel." I snap, feeling my self-preservation rise like a phoenix out of the ashes.

We glare at each other and he releases his first. He looks at his hand before back at me with a guarded expression. "Don't you feel lonely livin' in your own little world, all the time?" He asked, his body shaking with barely restrained fury. I met his gaze head-on.

"Don't you feel powerless living in other's peoples worlds?" I returned and he swallowed, his eyes dipped down to my lips before immediately snapping back up to my own.

"I just want you to find someone." He says, shrugging and something inside me forced the words out. I won't ever understand why I said them or what courage filled me long enough to get them out, but I do know, that I believed them without a single shadow of a doubt.

"Or maybe you think that if I'm in a relationship you'll stop noticing me come down the stairs." I say and his straightens. His arm drops to his side and all emotion leaves his body.

"I love Dawn." He says and I stare at him. For the first time I actually doubted him. I couldn't believe it. Had his eyes always been so shuttered when he uttered those words? Had he always looked so guilty afterwards?

"I just want you to be happy, Buffy." He says, in a monotone kind of way. My eyes narrow.

"Maybe you should focus on the sister you're actually fucking." I bit out, walking around him before I could die of embarrassment or truly process the words that just came out of my mouth.

I arrived at the ice cream shop and Dawn gave me a confused look. "Hey, where'd you two go?" She asked, smiling as she hugged Angel around the waist.

"I tried to bribe him into taking me home. It didn't work out." I lied and her eyebrow cocked, completely believing. She really didn't have a reason not to. Dawn really didn't know me. No one did. Maybe Xander. Maybe even Angel, but Dawn – god she was so blind.

•••

Partners. They were my second greatest school fear, besides class presentations. I physically couldn't believe it. I was going to just sit down and not get up and try to mingle.

Angel sat next to me. "Partners?" He asked, without looking at me and I shrugged, nodding in agreement.

God, why did this boy bring me so much grief yet enough relief to counteract that at the same time? "Alright class I'm going to come around and have you pick out a name from this hat. Each slip of paper holds the name of a character from the play we are currently reading." Ms. Peck informs us and I scowl.

"Then, you'll create a presentation. A poster, a slide-show, etc." She waves her hand dismissively and passes the hat around.

"We got Romeo." Angel says and I ignored him.

"Listen, we can do a poster and you can hold it up while I present it – okay?" He asked and I ignored him, again. He crossed his arms and his knee started to bounce.

"Are we in a fight?" He hissed and I continued to ignore him.

"Fuckin' hell, Buffy. Would you grow up?" He seethed and I glared at him.

"Why don't you bite me?" I snapped, quietly and he leaned back. There was this blank stare that he gave me. His mouth moved as if he were saying something, but I couldn't make out anything past the vowel sounds.

"What?" I asked, confused.

"I would, but I have a feelin' we'd both like it too much." He snapped and my body went rigid. The entire class was distracted with different things and it was as if we were alone. So, I didn't have a problem leaning closer and glaring.

"Dawn." I seethe.

"What. About. Her?" He hissed and I bit my tongue.

"No." He growled, leaning in close. Far closer than what I considered socially acceptable.

"What about her, Buffy? Why do you keep sayin' her name whenever we're alone together, eh? Afraid that if we don't keep reminding ourselves who my girlfriend is that we'll just forget?" he asked and I looked away.

"You're arrogant and cocky and insufferable." I snarled. He flashed me a smile, it wasn't his normal one. Although, it looked familiar. Really familiar. It had just never been directed at me. What caught my attention was how forced it seemed – how fake. It was the same one he gave to . . . everyone. Even Dawn. I frowned.

"Don't smile at me like that." I breathe and he blinks, it dropped from his face.

"You don't feel happy, then don't smile. Don't ever fake that with me again." I say. I felt oddly betrayed. He looked away from me, sharply and I stared at him. Then I looked away and neither of us spoke for the remainder of the bell.