BPOV

Angel and I spent hours in his apartment just talking the way we did the day before. I learnt more about his 'eccentricities', to be polite. Angel's apartment was elegantly put together and nothing was ever out of place. He defended himself weakly by simply saying, "It's easier to find stuff when you know exactly where it is."

A few light and fun criticisms later and we were both stuffed with pasta, lying on the sofa together. We sat in comfortable silence wrapped in each other's arms. Angel ran his fingers down my arms and along my sides, repeating the circuit continuously. My head was on his chest, his heart thumping steadily under his shirt. I sighed and thought, 'this is what I could get used to.'

"My sister would love to meet you." Angel said, breaking the silence.

I tilted my head so I could look at him. "I would love to meet her as well."

Angel laughed and held me tighter. "Then I would be sure to arrange that sometime soon. I would like to actually go on a date with you before that happens though."

I quickly scoured my memories of the past couple days. It was true, we still have now officially been on a date. I laughed quietly at the realisation that we did everything in reverse order. Angel sat up so we would be eye level with each other. He looked at me with reverent eyes and held my hands in his. "Elizabeth Summers, would you do me the honour of accompanying me to dinner sometime?"

My laughter escaped me before I could rein it in but I was glad to see that Angel was laughing right along with me. "If that is what you wish, dear Sir." I replied through a fit of giggles.

We had one last laugh until Angel kissed my lips softly, my cheeks and rested his forehead on my own. "Thank you, Buffy."

My breath caught as I revelled in the intimacy of our position. For the past few days, Angel did not pass up an opportunity to express his care and love. After the disaster of my previous relationship, Edward did everything that I would have never again expected from a man. The simple way he held my hand, brushed hair out of my face and even looked at me made my heart jump.

I was not yet able to open up as much as I would like to, but I was getting there. Angel deserved to have a girlfriend who could be as romantic, loving and caring as he is. We kept still on our position, foreheads together and breathing each other in. I pulled away and looked into his eyes, seeing what I always did – passion. His eyes burned with it and I would not fight that fire. Angel raised his hand to my face and trailed the back of the fingers from my temple to my jaw. The sensation brought goosebumps to my skin and I could not hold back any longer.

Leaning into his arms, I eagerly pressed my lips to his. Angel's lips were forever soft and sweet. I traced his bottom lip with my tongue and was awarded with the warm breath from his mouth. Angel lazily massaged my tongue with his while my hair was wrapped around his hand bringing me closer. My hands played with the hem of his shirt, lifting it up high enough to feel the warmth of his skin. He was the perfect combination of strength and tenderness. I leaned back onto the sofa, Angel now on top me. His mouth was now at my neck, covering my skin in warm and wet kisses.

The shrill ringing of my phone made us jump and our movements stopped. I groaned and reached across the coffee table to answer my phone.

"Hello?"

"Buffy," Darla said on the next line, "I'm getting takeout, want anything specific?"

Angel must have seen the worried look on my face because he sat up and pulled me up with him. I mouthed 'Darla' to him and he held my hand, lending me some support. I cleared my throat before answering.

"No, nothing specific, just the usual."

"Okay, great. I should be home in forty minutes so keep that appetite."

I laughed so as not to sound out of place. "Sure. Don't forget they pack the fortune cookies."

Darla's musical laughter rang through the phone, "Of course, Buffy. See you soon."

"See you."

We hang up and I turned sadly to Angel. He understood without my saying anything as he rose to his feet and tugged my hand up to meet him. His arms wrapped around my waist tightly and he kissed the top of my head.

"I should get going." I whispered reluctantly.

Angel pulled away from our embrace and placed a butterfly kiss on my lips before getting our coats and his keys. He held my hand as we walked out of the apartment and down to the car. The weather was ghastly cold as the threatening thunder clouds rolled in the skies. When we entered the car, Angel put the heat up and faced most of the vents to me.

A sliver of sunshine managed to escape the dark clouds as I thought of the symbolism. I was about to more or less crush Darla with the news of Angel and I, and I still did not think if I could go through with it. But the one sliver of light in the dark circumstance that faced me was Angel. My heart clenched as I thought about the lengths he would go to, being with me and Darla again just so I would not have to hurt Darla.

I looked out the window at the passing trees as Angel drove back to the University. Our hands were still entwined and resting on my lap. His thumb traced circles on the back of my hand as we sat in silence. We came a long way today and it felt as though we had been like this for years rather than mere days. I never experienced something this intense and to feel it for someone who mirrored my own feelings placed me on a high.

We were back at my apartment in less than a half an hour giving me at least fifteen minutes to prepare myself to face Darla.

"Let me walk you to your room." Angel offered as he opened the door to let me out of the car.

"No, its okay. I need some time to get everything in order for Darla."

"Oh. Buffy, if there is any way that I can help make this easier, please, tell me." His face was full of concern and worry.

I placed my hand against his cheek in an effort to comfort him. "Angel, it's going to be okay. Darla is my best friend and she loves me. This is going to be hard for her to hear, but she will okay knowing that I'm happy." I assured him, as well as trying to reassure myself in the process. A part of me needed to believe that what I said is true to make this easier.

Angel bowed his head and nodded. "Letting you go alone is going against every bone in my body right now, but if you are sure, then I respect your wishes."

"Thank you, Angel." I tugged his chin up so I could look into his emerald eyes once more. They were full of sadness which would hopefully be gone soon. I tiptoed to press my lips to his quickly and turned away without another word, walking back to my room.

I could feel Angel's eyes still on me as I walked away but I fought the urge to turn back; Darla would be home soon and I needed to prepare. I got the dishes we usually ate in ready on the coffee table as well as some drinks. The silence in the room was deafening so I put on the television and just stared at the screen, not observing what was going on. I was not going to tell Darla about this while we had dinner. Only if she asked, I would tell her outright.

The key turning in the lock alerted me to Darla's arrival. I tried to look nonchalant at her entrance knowing that my face was an open book at times. It was not until she closed the door did I look in her direction and gave her the best smile I could muster at that point.

"Hi, babe." She greeted as she walked over to the sofa, gave me a quick kiss on the lips and began to empty the takeout boxes from the bags.

"Hi back." My voice seemed to falter between the two words and I started to panic. I was not expecting this to be easy, but I did not expect it to be this hard.

"How was your day? Library all day?" Darla asked.

"Yeah, pretty much. I'm letting the workload pile up a bit too much."

"Don't worry about it, you'll get it all done before you know it."

"How was your day?"

"Argh, terrible. The lab was so crowded I could hardly make two moves without bumping into someone. Some idiot spilled some acid on my coat so now I have to get a new one, and the Professor wants us to complete an experiment which has a time period of a week in two days. Idiots." She scoffed.

Uh-oh. I tried to make her feel better by saying that everyone has an off day, this was probably one of hers.

"Thanks, Buffy. I think some half hour sitcoms should help as well, I have yet to laugh today."

We ate through an episode of The Big Bang Theory, How I Met Your Mother and Two and a Half Men. Darla did indeed laugh at every episode and I was glad to see that she was smiling again. I was still thinking of the best way to approach the topic before I determined that it was perhaps better to wait for the opportunity to be presented.

When the shows finished, we cleaned up the living room and was in the kitchen before Darla asked me the question I'd been dreading.

"So, Buffy, did you see Angel today?" She asked, leaning on her elbows on the island looking at me on the high chair.

"Yes, I did." I kept it short. I was still battling in my head.

"Well… what did he say about this weekend?" Darla prodded.

Time to face the music. The entire thing would be easier if Darla did not look so damned excited about what I would tell her. I was still torn between hurting Darla and being with Angel. I frowned and shook my head. I was not prepared to go through with this. I couldn't.

"He said that he won't do it."

"What? Why? Did he say?" Darl's face fell immediately and it ate me up inside for being the one responsible.

"No, he didn't. I guess he didn't enjoy it as much as we thought."

"Oh. Well that kinda sucks."

I looked down at my shoes so she would not see my face. "Yeah… it does. I'm sorry, Darla. I knew how much you liked him."

"No, its okay, Buffy. They come and go, don't they?" she tried to give a small smile but her sadness was still there.

I walked to her and put arm around her waist. "Don't worry, Darla. There will be someone else."

She turned around to face me and enveloped me in a tight hug. "I know. Thank you." Darla pulled away and kissed my cheek. "Now, time for bed?"

I nodded weakly. "You go ahead; I'll finish cleaning up and be there soon."

I watched as she walked back to our room before turning to the dishes. I could slap myself for chickening out like that but it just was not in my nature to hurt Darla after her crap day. Even though she was somewhat hurt over the Angel's 'rejection', it was better than telling her about us. She would soon forget and get over whatever feelings she had for Angel and move on to someone she fancies again. I thought after that it would have been easier to tell her that Angel acquiesced to her invitation but I could not bring myself to letting that happen. It must have sounded possessive to a person, and it probably was but being with Darla and Angel once again would be too much strain.

The dishes were finished, the kitchen was cleaned and Darla was already in bed before I entered the bedroom. I took a long hot shower and crawled into bed with her. I desperately needed sleep at this point but my insides kept hammering at me. I hugged Darla under the covers and whispered "I'm sorry" once more before sleep took her.

When her breathing came long and deep, I pulled away and turned my back to her. I could not be with her like this while I knew that I was lying to her. I then thought of Angel and what he would think when I told him that I did not tell Darla about us. Knowing Angel though, he would not blame me and pawn it off on my 'caring' nature and inability to hurt anyone. I eventually fell into a restless sleep, letting my dreams turn into nightmares of Angel leaving me because of my cowardice and Darla leaving because of my betrayal.

~*~

I awoke with the sun shining in my eyes. It was already 11am. I did not have any classes until one today. I sat up and looked over to Darla's side. There was a note on her pillow,

Buffy,

I know you don't have early classes today so I let you sleep in. You seem troubled last night and this morning when I woke. You looked tired even in your sleep so I did not have it in me to wake you up as I usually do.

Take care of yourself today and I'll see you later.

Love,

D.

I groaned out loud. She heard my fussing about my dreams. Darla would now ask me about it and want to help in whatever way she could. I freshened up and ate breakfast while packing what I needed for my classes today. I had no classes with Angel today either and I hoped that I would not encounter him in any lonesome corridors again.

My entire day passed by in a daze. Lectures seemed blurred together and whatever I studied in the library did not stick. I chanced the walk to the cafeteria for lunch hoping that I would not see Angel. Thankfully, I got there without any hassle but after being spoiled by lunch with Angel, the cafeteria food was severely lacking something.

I was dragging my feet back to the apartment when my phone beeped with an incoming message.

Buffy, I miss you. I hope everything went as you hoped with Darla. Please get back to me as soon as you can. – Angel.

As much as I wanted to ignore the message, I knew it would just worry him more. I quickly sent him a reply.

Tell you about it when I see you. I miss you, too.

I would eventually see him again tomorrow at one of my lectures and thanked God that I would have more time to prepare myself for Angel than I did with Darla.

When I opened the door I heard voices coming from the living room.

"Darla?" I called.

Darla came rushing to the doorway with a smile on her face. "Buffy! Come meet a friend."

I was thoroughly confused at this point. Darla usually bounced back pretty well from disappointments but this was the fastest I ever noticed the transition. As she led me to the living room and I was struck with the sight of her friend on the sofa, I understood.

"Buffy, this is Parker."

At his introduction, the russet skinned man stood and extended his huge hand. I timidly offered my own and he smiled. When our hands met I was fascinated by the contrast of our skin colours. He was beautifully tanned next to my pale alabaster. He stood tall next to both Darla and I, at least two feet taller. His smile was warm and bright he has short black hair and brown eye. He was gorgeous and I saw exactly why Darla liked him so much.

"Nice to meet you, Buffy. Darla's told me a lot about you."

"Nice to meet you, as well."

He gestured to the sofa as I sat at one end, Parker and the other and Darla came in the middle. "The pizza will be here any second." Darla said. "Buffy, Parker is in a couple of my own classes and I got paired up with him today for an assignment."

Parker laughed. "And I'm pretty thankful for it, too. Darla here is as good as they come. I'm sure it's going to help my GPA significantly."

Darla laughed along with Parker while I tried to join in, only coming up with weak laughs.

The pizza indeed came quickly and as we ate, I stayed quiet as Parker and Darla discussed their assignment and laughed along to whatever television programme they were watching. I engaged in their small talk whenever it was directed at me but I kept quiet because I knew what this entire thing was about.

It was not until 11:30pm that Parker left. He said cheery goodbyes and gave Darla a peck on her cheek before leaving. The second he left, Darla hurried to my side and squealed like a teenage girl.

"So, what do you think about Parker?" She asked quickly.

"He's great. Really knows how to have fun, doesn't he?"

"Yeah, great sense of humour, never a downer. So… I was thinking that if you liked him… maybe we could invite him over this weekend?"

I knew the question was coming. "Darla, you were so sad about Angel last night, are you sure this is a good idea? So soon?"

"Buffy, yes, I was broken about Angel's rejection but what do you want me to do if he doesn't want us? And I really didn't plan on inviting Parker this weekend. We've spoken in class a couple times but today he just seemed to be that person who got me out of that bad mood."

My feeling of guilt surfaced once more at her words. It was my fault that she was so ready to jump into bed with Parker. I admit that he is a nice person but it was still too soon. I wanted to make her happy again and before I knew it, my mouth had a mind of its own agreed to the weekend with Parker.

Her face broke into one of the most delighted expressions I ever saw and even though my heart was screaming at me to take it back, I couldn't say anything more. I was still shocked at my agreement and was now worrying about facing Angel for another reason tomorrow.

**********

APOV

Tell you about it when I see you. I miss you, too.

Buffy's reply was short and terse and still sent me worrying. I know that telling Darla would be a difficult task for her so I decided to give her some time to process everything. I would see her tomorrow and she would tell me. I would comfort her when she needed it and be there for her in every way that I could.

When I walked into the lecture hall the next morning, Buffy had her head bent low in her books as if she were hiding. I took a seat next to her and held her hand which was at her side, giving it a gentle squeeze with a warm smile. She smiled back weakly and turned her attention back to the front of the hall where the Professor just walked in. Her silence had me wracked through the entire class. I wanted to just take her out of there and let her vent everything to me while I held her in my arms.

Not soon enough, the lecture ended and I waited until everyone filed out before I addressed Bella. I took both of her hands in mind and kneeled next in front of her.

"Buffy, sweetheart, tell me what's wrong."

She looked up at me with red and teary eyes. "I didn't tell Darla about us."

I could understand that. I knew she would have had difficulty going through with something like that. "Honey, its okay. Really. I understand that you weren't ready for something like that. Can you tell me what happened?"

Buffy let out a quiet sob and cleared her throat before speaking again. "Darla asked me if I saw you that day and if you had a reply to her invitation. I told her that you didn't want to do it and that you didn't give a reason as to why."

"Buffy, that's okay…" she stopped me before I could finish.

"Darla was pretty sad about your rejection. The next day however, I got home to find her with one of her lab partners and friends, Parker."

My heart clenched as I realised where her story might be headed.

"Angel, I did something stupid."