The lady on the other end frantically told him all about the vampire problem she'd been having, and before he could even consider doing otherwise, Connor had gotten the address and headed out there with his weapons. They hadn't turned out to be much of a problem for him, though, and he disposed of them quickly.
"Here," the woman said, reaching into her purse and getting her checkbook. "What do I owe you?"
"Oh," Connor said uncomfortably. "No. Nothing."
"That's no way to run a business," the woman said, frowning.
"On the house," Connor said, giving her his most charming smile. "Special offer for a first time customer."
"Are you sure?" she asked skeptically.
"Positive," Connor said. "Don't mention it. Really. Don't."
The woman reluctantly let him leave without paying him, and as Connor walked to his apartment and the adrenaline from the slayage wore off, he started to feel a little uneasy about what he'd just done. Not so much about killing the vampires—they had been right outside the woman's house two nights in a row, terrorizing her—but because he knew Angel would be upset with him if—hell, when— he found out. He heated up some leftovers for his late dinner and eventually went to bed, figuring it wouldn't do much good to worry about it.
School the next day was … school-like. Connor really questioned why he had taken some of these classes. Was it to torture himself with boredom? He attended each one diligently, however. He hadn't missed a class since Spike got back, and he was making extra sure to do all his homework. He was studying that evening when a brisk knock at the door brought him to his feet.
"Dad," he greeted uncertainly. "The sun just went down. I hope you were careful getting here."
"Yeah," Angel answered shortly.
"What's up?" Connor asked.
"I was hoping you could clear something up for me, Connor," Angel said, and Connor really didn't like the tone of his voice.
"Wh-what's that?" he asked innocently, which came out sounding guilty.
"Maybe you can explain to me why I got a visit from a woman today who said she just didn't feel right about not paying us for our services. A woman I'd never seen before, and neither had Gunn, Spike, or Illyria. Can you explain that to me, son?"
"It was nothing," Connor said, swallowing hard. "It was sort of an emergency situation, and you were gone."
"It was nothing, or it was an emergency?" Angel asked coolly. "It can't be both."
"It was nothing for me and an emergency for her," Connor argued hotly.
"All you had to do was call me," Angel said, pointing his finger right in Connor's face.
"I didn't need to call," Connor said, taking a step back. "I knew I could handle it myself."
"You deliberately disobeyed me," Angel said.
"I did not!" Connor said desperately, feeling his face heat up when Angel started throwing around words like "disobey."
"You didn't?" Angel asked. "What would you call it, then? What would you call running off on your own when you just agreed that you needed to do some refresher training before you even came out with the rest of us?"
"But I didn't need any 'refresher training,'" Connor insisted. "I was fine. I was good, Dad!"
"You obviously need a reminder about consequences, little boy," Angel said ominously.
"I don't," Connor said weakly, staring at the carpet underneath him. "I remember. There are always consequences."
"You could have gotten hurt!" Angel said angrily. "Or killed!"
"But I didn't!" Connor argued.
"I guess this is my fault," Angel said sadly.
"It isn't," Connor replied automatically, having no idea what Angel even meant by that.
"It is," Angel said. "I've been too lax lately, and you seem to have forgotten that when I say something, I mean it."
"I know you do, Dad," Connor said meekly, wishing his heart would stop hammering so hard.
"You are in so much trouble, young man," Angel said, and it was all Connor could do not to reply, "Duh!"
"I'm sorry," he offered instead. "I didn't think it was a big deal."
"If that were true, you wouldn't have hidden it from me," Angel pointed out.
"Sorry," Connor repeated in a whisper.
"I'm gonna let you choose," Angel said. "You can be grounded for a week, or you can get your bottom warmed. What'll it be?"
Connor knew he should be grateful, because honestly, he'd been expecting both of those things to happen, but somehow he couldn't seem to muster up the gratitude.
"Just spank me," he mumbled after a moment, remembering how miserable being grounded had made him the last time. A spanking made him miserable every time, but at least it was over quickly.
Angel reached for him, seemingly happy to oblige, but he stepped back.
"What?" Angel asked.
"It's just..." Connor said, glancing nervously at the wall. "I mean, I have neighbors. Do you have to do it here?"
Angel looked around as though he really hadn't considered the possibility of the neighbors hearing or interfering, and for a moment he looked uncertain.
"I'm not trying to get out of it," Connor added quickly. "I just... Can't you do it later? At your house? At least there everyone already knows."
"Okay," Angel agreed. "But not later. Now. Get in the car."
"All right," Connor said, already regretting his decision.
Angel stood back to allow him out the door first, and as he passed him, his dad gave him one hard smack on the bottom to hurry him along. Connor kept his head down and quickly got in the car. Angel joined him and they had a long, silent ride to the Hyperion.
Connor headed straight up the staircase without a word to Gunn, who was in the lobby, but he met Spike in the hallway before he could escape into Angel's room.
"You in trouble?" Spike asked.
"Yeah," Connor said, nodding toward the staircase at the sound of Angel's footsteps.
"Right. Well, good luck, then" Spike offered, disappearing back into his own room even though he'd clearly been on his way downstairs.
Hoping to be spared more lecturing, Connor got himself right over the end of Angel's bed before his dad had even made it into the room. Of course, he also hoped that when his father saw this agreeable display of cooperation that he would let him keep his jeans on. He sensed Angel hesitate when he came through the door, but he didn't look around until he heard him rummaging in his closet.
"What are you doing?" he asked nervously as "No more wire hangers!" ran through his mind.
"Just getting a belt," Angel said almost casually.
"Oh," Connor answered, thinking that his dad had been dead wrong—ha, dead—when he'd said that a strapping no longer struck enough fear into his heart. It seemed to be striking plenty now.
"Okay," Angel finally said.
"Do you always take this long to pick out clothes?" Connor asked jokingly, but the first lick fell hard before he'd even gotten all the words out.
"Are you going to take this punishment seriously?" Angel asked. "Or do your pants need to come down?"
"Yes," Connor said, breathing hard and trying to recover from the sting of that first horrible swat. "I mean yes, I'll take it seriously. Sir."
"You don't have to call me sir," Angel said, smacking him again, lower and just as hard. "But I'd appreciate it if you'd mind me when I ask you to do something."
"I'm sorry," Connor said, finding that he meant it.
His apology got him three good and hard overlapping whacks, which he took stoically except for the girlish squeak that escaped his throat on the last one.
"I'm sorry!" he repeated, burying his face in Angel's bedspread and blinking away the tears that threatened to fall.
"Okay, pal," Angel said, returning his belt to the closet.
Connor didn't at all register those words as a sign that it was over, so he stayed put.
"Come on," Angel said gently as he sat down next to him. "Get up, unless you're inviting me to continue."
"Oh," Connor said, embarrassed. "I didn't... I thought..."
"I'm done," Angel said, pulling him up and hugging him around the shoulders.
"I'm really not grounded?" Connor asked, just to make sure. "Like, that was my punishment?"
"Did you want more?" Angel asked, amused.
"No," Connor said quietly, slipping his hands underneath him. "And I don't want you to think I don't take it seriously. I just... I get nervous, and I babble. I know you think I'm trying to be a smartass, but I'm not."
Angel just patted him on the back in reply, and Connor found himself doing exactly what he'd just said—babbling.
"I mean, I'm not saying I want more punishment," Connor mumbled. "I just thought you were gonna be harder on me. After what I did. I... I feel bad, Dad."
"Come here," Angel said, pulling him right across his lap and not really giving him a choice in the matter.
"No," Connor groaned. "I don't feel that bad."
"You could have gotten yourself hurt," Angel scolded, smacking him soundly across the bottom.
"You're hurting me now!" Connor protested.
"You'll recover from this," Angel said, unfazed. "You can't recover from death."
Connor didn't have any snappy comebacks for that, so he lay there and took the rather mild spanking that Angel dished out with a minimal amount of protest.
"You're hurting my hand," Angel complained after a minute.
Connor snorted. "Sorry?"
"Should get a paddle for you," Angel threatened, releasing him and gathering him into another sideways hug.
"I'm bad enough to need my own paddle?" Connor asked sadly, only half joking.
"Probably not," Angel admitted. "But that doesn't mean I won't get one anyway."
"You don't have to do that," Connor said hotly, embarrassed. "Geez."
"I'm only kidding," Angel assured him. "Kinda. But you just pull another stunt like that and see if it doesn't happen."
"Got it," Connor murmured.
"Until you're cleared for solo demon fighting, what are you going to do?" Angel asked.
"Let you handle it," Connor said, defeated.
"That's right," Angel said, nodding.
"Gunn's gonna have a field day with this," Connor grumbled, staring at the floor.
"You just don't worry about Gunn," Angel advised. "He won't be on your case. He'll come around soon enough. You'll see."
Connor didn't feel like continuing that conversation, so he attempted to change the subject.
"Are you gonna give me a ride home, or do I have to walk?" he asked, standing and stretching.
"You wanna drive?" Angel asked.
"Really?" Connor asked excitedly. "You'd let me?"
"Sure, pal," Angel said, pulling his keys out of his pocket and dropping them into Connor's hand.
"Awesome!" Connor exclaimed happily, wrapping his arms around Angel. "You're the best, Dad!"
"Yeah, well," Angel murmured uncomfortably, trying to hide his pleased smile.
"I'm going to the car!" Connor announced. "Hurry up!"
"I'll meet you down there in a minute," Angel told him.
Connor flung Angel's door open and headed toward the stairs, but Spike's voice stopped him.
"Hey!" Spike called.
"Yeah?" Connor asked.
"Where you off to in such a good mood?" Spike asked suspiciously.
"Home," Connor said.
"Mind if I come along?" Spike asked hopefully, already pulling his coat on. "We haven't had any quality television time together in awhile."
"Sure," Connor said, and then held up his dad's keys. "Angel's gonna let me drive!"
"Oh," Spike said, suddenly sour for some reason. He glanced at Angel's bedroom door and added, "Never mind," before ducking back into his room and slamming the door.
Connor shrugged. He'd find out later. He sprinted down the stairs and waved hello and goodbye simultaneously to Gunn, who was still in the lobby. He knew he was being kinda rude, but he didn't want anything spoiling this positive turn of events he was having.
"Okay," Angel said nervously when he finally got in the car. "You have your seat belt on?"
"Check," Connor answered.
"Mirrors adjusted?" Angel asked.
"Check."
"Parking brake off?"
"Dad, I do know how to drive," Connor said flippantly. "It's just that I never get to. I've had my license since I was sixteen!"
"You weren't even here when you were sixteen!" Angel said, looking at Connor's feet and clearly wanting to make sure he knew the brake from the gas.
"I've got this, okay?" Connor said. "Stop being so uptight."
Angel set his mouth in a grim line and nodded for Connor to start the car. Just as Connor had expected, he drove with perfect precision to his apartment, despite Angel clinging desperately to the door grip the entire time. Angel begrudgingly admitted that Connor had done a good job, and he smiled triumphantly as he cut the engine off, but the smile faded when he spotted a familiar SUV in the lot.
"What's wrong?" Angel asked.
"My parents are here," Connor said tightly.