These are a collection of stories that take place between some of the more major ones. In all honesty, it's complete OCD, in needing to fill in all the gaps of the story...I'm trying not to do this...mostly random nothingness. But I wrote it...so here it is.
May 24, 2004
Buffy was curled up next to Angel in the bed; he was fully recovered from his run-in with three bullets, only a sore chest and a bruised ego to show. Buffy didn't mind, alive was alive. They had just made love again, for the how many-ith time now? She hadn't a clue.
As she lay there, listening to his heartbeat, she realized something. 'He's human…so does than mean he can have kids? Can he get me pregnant? Oh god, what if I already am?' Suddenly unsure if she was happy or terrified at the prospect of children, she wormed her way from his sleeping grasp and tossed on some clothes.
She scratched a quick, 'Be right back. P.S. I love you.' Signed with a kiss, her lipstick leaving a perfect imprint of her lips and placed it on his chest.
She slipped out of the borrowed apartment and to the corner store across the street. Cautiously she went inside, the structure wasn't as badly damaged by the earthquake as the department store had been, but she wasn't about to take any chances.
She stopped walking when she reached her destination, "Hmm, which one" she wondered aloud as she stared at the collection of condoms on the wall, well the ones that were still on the rack after the earthquake.
"Ultra thin, ribbed, bareskin…Ooh what's this, Fire and Ice. I'll grab one of these. 10 pack? Really? Only 10? That's like the warm-up" she grinned to herself and kept looking for others.
"Hmm, durex pleasure pack, I'll sang one of these and…Trojan Ecstasy…ok, I'm game. She was about to walk off when she spotted Trojan Her Pleasure, she grab one of those too."
Arms now full she was about to head back home to try her new toys when she walked by the pregnancy tests. 'Too soon to tell but I might as well grab a few.'
She pulled a plastic bag from behind the counter, loaded up her goodies, and was off.
...
She snuck back in, she knew Angel was up and didn't want him to see what she had got, not just yet anyways. Thankfully he was in the shower, so she slid the bag under the bed, removing the pregnancy tests and hiding them in her slayer bag.
The door to Giles room was still shut she noticed as she walked into the kitchen to find something to munch on, 'Hmm, is he still sleeping? Always known him to be an early bird.' She wanted to knock, but didn't want to wake him if he was asleep.
Her attention drifted as a pair of damp arms wrapped about her waist.
"You're wet." She giggled as Angel kissed her cheek from behind, his wet hair brushing against her.
"Where did you run off to this morning?" he asked, honestly curious.
She turned in his arms, wrapping her arms around his waist, he wore nothing but his sweats, his bare chest pressed teasingly against her. "Wanted to get a few things, I'll show you later." She finishing by letting her lips brush his.
They kissed, it was sweet, not entirely innocent, but that wasn't a problem anymore. When they pulled apart he grinned down at her, "Good Morning." He greeted, remembering he hadn't said it yet.
She smiled up at him, "Yes, it was." She teased, think about their earlier loving.
After a moment they pulled apart, a grumble from his stomach alerting her that food was a necessity, he agreed, figuring there was always time for pleasure afterwards.
He made them pancakes again, there wasn't a whole lot to choose from, no power still and not much left in the cupboards by now.
'All we've done in the last few days is make love and eat…I could get used to this…' she thought happily as he watched him cook.
True to her earlier thought, after they satisfied their hunger, they had something else they wanted to satisfy.
To the casual observer, their near constant attention to their desires may seem a little over the top; but both had loved one another deeply for years, and neither could ever act of that love. Now, after years apart, and without any consequences, they were free to love. They took advantage of the situation, both making up for way too much lost time.
Angel had spent nearly a century celibate, overwhelmed by guilt and remorse after his soul was restored, he hadn't given much thought to sex.
Another century of physical Hell, a vast wasteland of demons, and fire, and pain; his tortured soul had found no love in Acathla's dimension, save for what little memory of Buffy he clung to.
Now, he had it all; a heartbeat, no curse, Buffy in his arms and nearly two centuries worth of lost love. He didn't question it, never even thought to. He was determined to make up for that lost time.
Buffy hadn't spent two century without love, but it often felt like it to her. Ever since her 17th birthday, before his curse broke, she had wanted nothing but to feel him forever.
His demon mocking their love had devastated her, but not more than the fact his turning meant he was now denied to her, that she would never get to experience him the way she really wanted to. Her innocence had stood as a barrier, a hurdle that had to be climbed before she ever could have enjoyed him the way she wanted to. It wasn't in the cards then.
A few months later, she killed him, and she felt as a part of her heart died with him. After his return, it was worse. He was within reach, but in the same breath, completely out of love only grew, but had no outlet.
Once he left, her heart tired to release the stored love Angel unconsciously build within her, but no man she was with had the right key. She tried, even attempted to force the lock a few times, some even got close to cracking it, but in the end, only Angel could release it from her. And right now, he was, the locked door was open, and he was completely invited.
She felt his lips on her neck, a trail of fire blazing in his wake. The soft mattress pressing against her back as he positioned atop her, the feel of his arousal, the very power she had over him, slipping down against her.
Then she remembered the condoms.
"Wait!" she yelped pulling herself back from him. He jumped back immediately, as if stung. "What? Did I…are you ok?" he asked confused and worried he did something wrong.
"I forgot something." She said, leaning over the edge of the bed and fishing out the bag she stuffed under it earlier. Once retrieved, she settled back onto the bed and reached inside, yanking open the first box and grabbing out a small foil wrapper. She let the bag fall to the floor and held the item out to him.
He took it with a still confused expression. "What is it?"
She raised an eyebrow, "You're kidding…right?" she asked.
He returning looked proved he wasn't.
"It's a condom, you know, a rubber, safe-sex, protection…."She explained.
A light flickered in his eyes, "Oh, yeah." He mumbled, looking worried. Another thought suddenly surface, "Oh god, I'm human…I can…you can…we could…" she leaned forward and placed a kiss on his panicked lips.
"That's what these are to prevent." She said plucking the package from his hand and opening it. "How could you not know what this was?" she asked him, shaking her head, "It's like the first thing guys learn."
He looked at her a moment, the told her blandly, "They didn't have those when I was last human, and pregnancy's not much of and issue when your dead."
She handed him the unwrapped condom. He took it and looked at it a moment, "I don't think I'll fit." He deadpanned, seeing it as nothing but a flat disk.
She laugh and told him to just put it on. After a second, she realized he had no clue how. She snatched it back from him and prepared to show him how. "Well first we need to fix that." She mumbled disappointed at his current lack of arousal.
"Oh, sorry." He shrugged, her sudden yell of 'wait' had stolen his 'moment'.
She smiled, "I can fix that." She said drawing his lips to hers and inviting her tongue in to play. With one hand around his neck the other slid down his chest, then to his stomach, then to his groin.
He groaned into her mouth as her hand stroked him back to attention. Base to tip, base to tip, steady pressure, a little squeeze when she got to the tip.
When she was satisfied he was aroused, she let go of him and drew his attention back to the little piece of plastic. "So, to put it on, you just place it on top." She held up two fingers, put the condom on them and showed him how to unwrap. "But make sure it's right side up, or else you have a little hat and not much else." She demonstrated with her fingers.
He chuckled despite his complete hate at something that will get between him and Buffy on an intimate level.
Instead of handing it to him, she reached down and placed it of his member, and very slowly pushed it down his length. He leaned forward and groaned into her neck.
"How's it feel?" she asked, laying back down and pulling him with her.
"Like I have a piece of plastic on my dick." He mumbled annoyed.
"Oh come on, it's can't be that bad." She said kissing him.
He held his tongue, or would have if Buffy's wasn't warring with it. He figured if her bare body wasn't pressed as tightly against him as if was, his arousal wouldn't have lasted two seconds with the rubber on it.
"I think it's too tight." He whispered into her hair. "It's supposed to be tight." She replied, "So it stays on."
His thoughts faded as she drew him against her, resuming where they had left off.
Actually he forgot everything but her for at least half an hour.
"Ok that's unpleasant." He cringed at the feeling of the condom as they lay together, resting for the moment.
"It's only good for one round." Buffy said sitting up.
"One? What's the point then? Wait…do I need to put a new one on every time!" he exhaled.
She nodded, "Kind of the definition of 'one time'" She shook her head at him acting like a little kid at being told to brush his teeth every night.
She got up and grabbed the wastebasket by the bed, "Here."
He looked down at the crumbled mess that was a used condom, peeled the wet plastic off, and tossed it. "Gross." He cringed.
She shook her head again, "Baby."
"It's unnatural." He muttered.
She placed the basket close and jumped back into bed, snuggling up against him.
"Well…it's either that…or celibacy." She said, not meaning it but just wanting to see what buttons she could push.
His eyes widened in alarm, "You wouldn't." he defended.
She just shrugged.
After a moment of silence, "What about those pills…birth control." He asked.
She looked up at him, "Doesn't work with Slayers." She countered.
"How do you know?" he returned.
"Slayer's don't have a typical reproductive system, we're built different than normal girls." She replied.
"Seems pretty normal to me." He grinned.
She giggled and slapped his chest, "Inside. Not out. Think back, do you ever remembering me having a period?"
The question caught him and he did think, as a vampire he would have smelled the blood, no questions asked. He couldn't remember even once smelling her menstrual cycle; Willow, Cordy, just about every other woman…not Buffy…or Faith. "No, I guess I haven't." he answered, a little shocked he never noticed.
"Yeah, it's part of the whole Slayer package, so the Chosen One doesn't have to skip a week of slayer every month because the vamps can smell her coming a mile away." She paused a moment, letting her head rest on Angel's shoulder. "According to Giles, and a few of his books, some Slayers did have children. Or at least they conceived them. Most didn't survive to term."She said sadly.
Angel looked over at her, sorrow etched on her face. "Slayer's can't carry to term?"
She shook her head, "No, they can physically. Just they're still Slayers, the world's only defense against the darkness. They either loose the baby fighting, or they're slowed down just enough and they fail, they die." She said sadly.
He understood her fear of conceiving now, he kissed her temple, "Let's just leave the children talk to far, far from now…ok" he asked.
She nodded against his chest, "Ok."
After that talk, neither felt anymore desire.
...
A knock of the bedroom door caught their attention.
They dressed and found Giles sitting at the kitchen table, a radio in his hands.
"What's the word?" Buffy asked upon seeing the device.
Giles looked up at them, "Ah, good, you're up. I've been listening for a few days now." He told them, indicating the radio. "Seems like recovery crews are beginning to re-enter the city. Reconstruction starts today, on the outer limits of the city. Crews from all over are being imported to help with such an immense undertaking. I believe by this time tomorrow, we will no longer be alone." He concluded.
"Well, there you have it. Oh, I guess we need to move then, I don't think the owners would be thrilled to know we've been sleeping in their bed." Buffy mentioned.
"Among other things." Angel mumbled just loud enough for her to hear.
She elbowed him lightly. He just pulled her back against him, him arms hung loosely around her waist.
"Yes, Buffy." Giles said, "We must look for other accommodations."
"I know a place." Angel supplied. "If it's still standing." He added a second later.
...
Within hours, they packed whatever personal items they had into the car Angel hot-wired earlier and were making slow progress thought the debris crowded streets.
Angel sighed in relief when the Hyperion hotel appeared from around a corner, relatively intact. They got out of the car and headed inside to check for unseen issues.
Twenty minutes later they stood in the hotel lobby, "Well I've seen it worse." Angel admitted.
Giles nodded, "Yes, the hotel seems structurally sound enough. How do you know we won't be disturbed?" he asked the former vampire.
"I own it." Angel admitted.
"You own it, as in this place…the whole thing?" Buffy asked, stunned.
He grinned, "Yeah, couldn't have done it without David Nabbit, it's incredible what that man can do with money."
"Did you say David Nabbit? As in one of the richest people in the world?" Giles asked.
"Yeah, he's a major nerd, but he's smart…kinda scary smart." The Irishman verified.
The trio decided to clean up the hotel as much as they could, knowing it would more than likely be 'home' for a while.
Angel led Buffy to his old room and Giles picked one out well away from them. He heard more than enough noises from their closed bedroom door; and quiet frankly, he wished to never hear anything even similar again.
Before the people arrived, Giles, Buffy and Angel went on a shopping spree, gathering all the items necessary to live at the hotel. Food, clothes, linens, toiletries, etc...
That night, the three were sitting in the lobby, discussing the finer points of living, over a few bottles of fine wine.
"So that's how it is then huh?"
They turned to see Spike standing in the doorway.
"We all risk our necks for you, fight the good bloody fight, and do we get? Left to rot while you prance off with the girl. Typical." Spike swallowed his anger at being denied entry to the hotel by the barrier across the threshold.
"Spike?" Angel stammered, having completely forgetting about the souled vampire. He quickly got to his feet and walking up to the stairs to the doorway. "Listen, I meant to come back…" he began, feeling two inches high for leaving his team as he did.
"Yeah, yeah, I get it. Got yourself a heartbeat and out goes all the fight in ya."spike said rolling his eyes.
Angel shook his head, "By the time I recovered, the fight was over. Not to mention I then had Wolfram & Harts assassins after me…" he cringed.
Spike sent his a mock yawn, "Yeah well good for you. I'm happy for you, really."
Angel didn't need superhuman powers to sense the hurt and anger in Spike. They had fought bitterly over the Shanshu prophecy but the outcome wasn't for them to decide. However Spike did win the fight between them that day, and the blond honestly felt he should have gotten something for his efforts; well in addition to the huge ego boost following whipping Angel's ass.
"Spike, the assassins made me mortal, this isn't the Shanshu prophecy." The newly living vampire admitted.
Spike's blue eyes perked at that, "Really? Now that's something interesting, so with you being all non-vampire with a soul now…" Spike thought aloud.
"Does that make you the only candidate." Angel finished for him.
Spike nodded, "Something like that."
Angel took a deep breath, letting it out slowly, "I should tell you, not long before the fight, I was forced to sign away the prophecy. Looks like it's yours now." He said, almost sad he wouldn't be living the destiny he thought he would.
He cast a glance at Buffy, sitting still to give the two a moment to clear the air, and suddenly didn't give a rat's ass about the Shanshu, he had a destiny, her.
"So, you gunna lever me here standing in the cold forever?' Spike asked annoyed.
For the first time Angel noticed the barrier keeping the vampire out, he had never needed to, or been able to, invite anyone into his home before. He grinned, realizing the power in it. "I could." He realized with a smirk.
"You asshole." Spike mumbled under his breath.
"Fine, Come in, Spike." Angel spoke, watching the nearly invisible barrier vanish.
"About bloody time" the blond vampire muttered as he walked past him and towards Buffy.
'I hope I didn't just make a huge mistake letting Spike have free range of my home.'
Angel looked over at Giles and the watcher sent him a glare that screamed, 'Why did you just bloody do that?'
Angel shrugged. 'Well I did nearly get him killed…plus he is one of the good guys, usually.' He tried to convey to the alive Englishman in the room.
"Left me standing pet, thought we had a date." Spike grinned as he slid into Angel's empty seat beside Buffy.
She shrugged, "Sorry, kinda took place at noon…you know…with the sun shinning bright and all deadly like."
He shook his head and leaning back, making himself quite at home. "I guess we'll need to reschedule…" He would have continued, but Angel's iron grip on his shoulder pulled the blond vamp off the couch.
"She's busy." He growled to the vamp as he sat back in his place.
Spike chuckled, mockingly wiping the spot Angel's finger had dug into his shoulder as he tossed him from the seat, "Oh? Is that right Buffy? Does Dragon Breath here make all your decisions for you now?" Spike knew he was pushing some major buttons, but he needed to know exactly where Buffy stood. If there was even the slightest change to be with her…he would jump head first.
She turned to Angel, curious how he would answer that question.
He looked back at her a second, uncomfortable with Spike sticking his cold nose into his business. 'What else is new? He's done that since the night Dru brought him home with her like some hungry puppy.'
"No, I don't make those kinds of choices for her anymore." He pause a moment, a little smile of triumph on his lips, "I have no power over who she associated with, but… I will not abide my girlfriend making dates with anyone but me."
Buffy smiled at the word girlfriend, just as he hoped she would. "I'm your girlfriend?" she asked excitedly, having not been that stage for a long time and finding she really was looking forward to it.
"Of course you are." He agreed, drawing her in for a kiss.
Spike frowned at the kiss.
Giles poured himself a rather generous amount of wine into his glass. He then decided he was determined to keep his nose out of this awful love triangle so he took the glass and one of the bottles and headed for his room.
"Bet Nina wouldn't be too pleased to hear that." Spike said loud enough for Buffy to hear.
She pulled back from Angel's inviting lips a moment, "Nina? Who's Nina?" she asked her boyfriend.
'I'm gunna stake that son of a crazy bitch!' Angel raged in is head.
Spike grinned, "What? You didn't tell your girlfriend about your other girlfriend…shame, shame Angel."
Buffy's eyes stormed over, 'He has a girlfriend? I'm staking him for this!'
Buffy pulled back and Angel raised his hands in defense, "She was, past tense. It was never serious." He urged.
Spike laughed, "Like I couldn't smell the sex on you." Spike huffed.
'IFuckingHateHimRightNow!' Angel screamed in his head.
Buffy's eyes widened, "You…you slept with her!" she was off the couch by now, staking seriously close to one of the wooden chairs.
Spike had a grin like he was watching a much loved movie.
"Like you didn't have boyfriends!" Angel yelled back in defense.
"I wouldn't risk my soul if I slept with them." She hollered back.
"I didn't!" he yelled, then his shoulder slumped, "You're the only one who could have done that." He admitted quieter.
She turned to glare at him, "What do you mean by that?" she demanded.
He shook his head, collapsed back down onto the couch and held his hands in his head, after a moment he continued. "I've been with other woman Buffy, none of them ever made me happy. You're the only one who ever gave me perfect happiness. I think you're the only one who can."
Buffy digested that then asked, "So where is she now?" wondering what happened to this girl.
"Gone." He said simply.
"Where?" Buffy repeated.
"She left, I sent her away." He stood and paced, "Look, I cared for her Buffy, as I'm sure you cared for the boyfriends you've had. Cordy had just died, my team, my friends, were dealing with their own issues…and I needed someone. If you want to judge me for that…go ahead, I won't deny it. She wasn't the one I wanted…but I needed someone to talk to, someone to confide in. I let her ease the pain as best she could."
Buffy seemed calmer now, but still curious, "How did it end?"
He didn't try to hide anything, "She realized I couldn't give her my heart, that it already belonged to someone else." He finished looking down at the stone floor, not wanting to see the hurt in Buffy's eyes.
They had spent so much time together recently that he couldn't bare to see all their happiness purged from her eyes in only seconds.
She thought about that, she could relate. That is what eventually tore her and Riley apart…her heart had still belonged to Angel, whether she wanted it to or not…still did.
He looked up when he felt her fingers curl around his hand, "I know the feeling." She admitted quietly.
They stood still a moment, just letting the anger dissipate.
"I'm sorry I didn't tell you about her." He said after a while.
"No, it wasn't my business. I'm sorry I freaked on you. I guess I just got so used to the idea you couldn't be with anyone…I never thought you could…Is this how you felt when you found out about Riley?" she asked looking up at him.
She had never had to deal with Angel from this angle before, she had accused him once when she walked in on him consoling Faith, but that hadn't romantic. The idea of him with another woman hadn't even been conceivable. She figured it must have been the same for him.
He gave her a weak smile, "Pretty much."
"Can we take some time just talk, just tell each other about everything that happened in our lives? I don't want to hide anything anymore, and I don't want the past to come back and bite us again." She asked him, drawing closer.
He wrapped his arms around her, "Of course. We can start tonight." He offered.
She shook her head, "No, tonight…lets just…apologize? Get back to where we were?" she asked.
He smirked, "Make-up sex?" he asked.
She smiled back, "Maybe."
They leaned forward and sealed the deal with a kiss.
"Oh for god's sake! If you're just going to kiss and make up, I'm going to bed." Spike huffed out, arms tossed in the air for dramatic effect and he walked upstairs to find an empty room.
They ignored him for the moment. Just a moment.
When the kiss ended Angel went for the wooden chair. "I'm staking him, right here, right now." He grumbled as he prepared to shattering it and grab a shard of wood.
Buffy grabbed his arm and pulled him to a stop, she whispered something in his ear them turned and ran upstairs to their room.
Angel looked at the chair, then the stairs, after a second he decided and ran after Buffy.
...
What did she whisper?
"If you're not in bed with me in one minute, no sex for a month."
Kill Spike or sex with Buffy? No contest at all.
May 26, 2004
Only days after the entire city was deserted, the people were back. Jobs resumed, schools reopened, lives continued, like nothing had happened, that's what Californians do after a quake. Clean-up crews worked night and day to clear the rubble and rebuild what couldn't be salvaged.
In typical demon hot spot areas like L.A., no one seemed to remember anything beyond an earthquake hit the city, ruptured gas lines had caused it to be abandoned until they could be repaired. If they only knew what really happened, if they only knew about the demon army, or the law firm that had funded the entire project.
Wolfram & Hart seemed to have disappeared after the fall; their conduits to the senior partners severed, the Circle of the Black Thorn destroyed, their vast budget spent, and their war with Angel, filed as a total loss.
They weren't destroyed forever, but they certainly had no intentions of messing with that souled vampire again for a long, long time. The senior partners abandoned L.A., deciding that town was too much of a risk, an expensive and often painful risk.
Since the people started to return, Buffy and Angel had to leave their temporary home, unsure of where to go, he suggested the Hyperion Hotel. It was close and still technically in his name. They set up home in his old room while Giles was called back to England to see to the new Slayer's school and training facility.
They all decided Spike should go with Giles, to help train new slayers. What better trainer to kill vampires than an actual vampire? The blond vamp had grumbled, but in the end, agreed. It was that or stay in the same hotel as Buffy and Angel, and frankly he wanted no part of that. All he could smell was their sex in the air. It made him want to heave.
...
Angel snuck back into the Hyperion; he didn't want Buffy to know where he had been. He would tell her, it was part of their 'terms' of starting a relationship again, but just not right now.
'Golden rule: No more secrets. You know something or I know something, we share. No more making rash decisions for each other without talking about it first.' Her voice echoed in his head.
He was still shaken by the news he just learned; he couldn't talk to her yet. He went into his old office and sat heavily in his chair, mind lost in thought.
"ANGEL!"
He snapped back to reality when Buffy practically yelled his name, "Huh? What? Why are you yelling?"
She quickly crossed the space between them and sat on the desk in front of him, "I wasn't, not the first three times I called you…What's up? Where were you?"
He sighed, "Sorry, I…was thinking."
She shook her head, "More like brooding. I thought we talked about you stopping that, or at least cutting back."
"I know. I'm sorry. I went for a walk earlier, to clear my head. It's just hard, being human again. I'm still working out the kinks." He answered, hated lying to her but hoping she believed him.
She slid off the desk and into his lap. "I want to help, talk to me." she said, running a hand along his cheek.
"I will, just…not right now. Ok?" he answered, wrapping him arms around her and holding her close.
She nodded against his chest, "Alright."
He had only been alive for a week and things between them had been very up and down the last few days. Mostly them moving their bodies up and down on each other in various positions around the clock.
She still had trouble believing this was real, that he was human, they were together, and that they had a shot at a life with each other, a semi-normal life. Things were still so new between them, she couldn't get enough of the fact he was warm, and breathed, and had a heartbeat.
'And now he's sneaking off and is constantly zoned out…why won't he talk to me?'
...
They walked hand and hand down the sunny streets of L.A. The recent trip to the ice cream shop earned them both a triple scoop Cookie Dough Fudge Mint Chip.
"Mmm…I love cookie dough" Angel mumbled as he eagerly licked his cone.
Buffy sent him an arched eyebrow, but he was too busy with his dessert to notice.
'Was he referring to the ice cream…or me? He's never going to let me forget that analogy.' She shrugged her shoulders and walked along beside him, until she realized he wasn't beside her. She stopped and looked back; he was standing on the sidewalk looking into the fenced in lot they had just passed.
"I'll be damned." He whispered then quickly ran into the office area.
Curious as to what he was doing, she walked back and read the sign. 'L.A. City Impound'. 'What the Hell does he want with the city impound?' she wondered.
A few minutes later Angel exited the office and began quickly walking back towards the hotel.
"Hey, what's up? Why are we rushing?" She asked as he hurried back home.
"It'll be a surprise." is all he said.
When they entered the hotel he went straight into his office and began digging thought some old file boxes. He seemed to find what he was looking for then was about to run out the door when Buffy grabbed his arm.
"Where are you going now? And me and surprises…not such a great mix. Splainy?"
He grinned then looked like he just remembered something; he opened a few drawers in the desk, grabbed a set of keys then said as he walked towards the door. "I'll explain when I get back, promise. We'll go for a drive." Then he was gone.
Buffy huffed and sat down on the desk, her fingers still sticky from the eaten ice cream. "Drive? Drive what?" she asked the hotel. "He has a car?"
Twenty minutes later a horn beeped outside, she walked over to the window and glanced out. She spotted Angel sitting in a black convertible.
'What the…' she wondered as she headed outside.
He beamed her the biggest smile she'd seen on him that day so far and he patted the seat beside him. "Wanna go for a spin?"
She shook her head but opened the passenger door and slid in. "Since when do you own a car?" She asked him.
"A car? Buffy, this isn't just a car. It's a 1967 Plymouth Belvedere GTX Convertible. Only 2,026 of these babies were made." He added with more than a little pride as he caressed the steering wheel.
Buffy nodded, "Ah huh." 'Wow, L.A. really changes people, now Angel has a sense of humor and an affinity for muscle cars. Wonder if he has any other surprises up his sleeve.'
...
Later that night Buffy pushed Angel off of her and rolled away from him. "What? What's wrong?" he asked sitting up, confused as to why he was being suddenly shunned.
"Your heart's not in it." She said curling around her pillow and still not facing him.
"What?" He asked again, "Of course it is…" he tried but she cut him off.
"No it isn't." She turned and faced him, sitting up. "You've been spaced all day! Something is obviously bothering you and except for the hour long rant about how great your car is, you haven't said a word! If you can't even talk to me about it…"
"Buffy, I'm sorry…" he tried, reached a hand out to her shoulder.
She ducked away from his hand, "No, stop saying you're sorry. I'm tired of hearing that."
They both sat silent for a moment. 'Is this how it's going to be? Are we going to fight forever? Are we too different now to be a couple?' Her mind asked, her mouth too afraid to open and express the ideas, fearing he would disappear from her life again, forever this time.
He took a deep breath then sighed, "I went to see a doctor today" he said slowly.
Her green eyes shot up at him, "What? Why? Is something wrong? Are you OK?" She scooted over to him and looked him over quickly, fear clearly blazing in her green orbs.
He met her eyes, "I'm not really sure. I went in…because I needed to know I was healthy. I wanted to make sure…I'd be around for awhile. That I would be here for you."
He remembered vividly when Darla was resurrected she wasn't fully restored to health, the syphilis that was killing her in life had returned, Angel had been terrified that could have happened to him.
'Am I sick too? Did Darla pass it on to me? Could I pass it to Buffy?'
Even if Darla didn't pass it to him, he had been 'around' even before Darla fixated on him, he slept with nearly every eligible woman in Galway.
'I can't do that to Buffy…give her a disease.'
As soon as the concept occurred to him, he made sure the condoms she had supplied a few days earlier were always in reach. He was determined to protect her from the possibility.
Today, the doctor's office reopened, and he went.
Her eyes never left his, "And?" she asked.
He took another deep breath, "They took some tests, blood work." He half smiled, "Something tells me I failed. He tried to have me admitted. Kinda went on a rant about how 'it's not possible', and 'this is unprecedented'…I didn't hang around long enough to hear anymore."
The sexually transmitted diseases, for some unknown but extremely thankful reason came back negative. But the other blood work…not so much.
She looked panicked, "So you left?! What if you're…you need to go back!"
"Buffy"
"What if you need medications?"
"Buffy"
"Or…or an operation? Or maybe…maybe…"
"Buffy!" He said again and grabbed her in a tight hug.
She clung to him, like his life depended on it, and cried into his chest.
"Shh, Buffy. We don't know it's bad. I could be perfectly fine. I mean, my body was dead for 250 years, well 350 including hell, but that's beside the point, it could be normal to fail those test under the circumstances."
She looked up at him, tears streaking her face, "I just got you back, I don't want to lose you…I can't lose you…I don't know what I'd do."
He held her tighter. "I don't feel like I'm dying, and I should know, had a lot of experience in that field. I'm sure everything will be fine."
After a few minutes she calmed down enough and sat back, her back resting against his chest as he sat against the headboard.
"Buffy, there is one test I got back you should know about."
She turned, looked up at him again, fearing the worst.
"It's won't impact my health" he reassured her, "But it might impact us."
She crinkled her brow, "What is it?"
He looked down a moment, then back at her, "I…I can't have children."
She blinked a few times, a huge weight crushed down on her heart, but she refused to let him see how much it hurt. 'No.'
She shook her head and put of a convincing front, "Well it's not like you could before anyways, I guess…it makes sense. Plus kids and me, not a good combo. I'm so not ready for kids, way not ready."
'I really wanted your babies.' She curled up against him, head resting on his shoulder, her hand resting over his heart, "Even if I wanted them someday, we could adopt, or get a donor…we could still raise a family…if you wanted to."
He reached up and took her hand in his, "I'd like that
Buffy shivered as she woke up, she looked down and noticed her bare body was exposed to the cool night air permeating through the Hyperion's walls. She turned her head and looked at the man sleeping beside her.
Angel had once again stolen the blankets during the night.
'Man's been cold as, well death, for 250 years, and now he's a blanket hog. Go figure.' She glared at the sleeping form, was trying to decide whether to wake him up or just yank the sheets away from him.
"This is the third time this week you've stolen the covers." She grumbled to him out loud, "You leave me here all bare, cold, and shivering…"
She would have continued to rant, but Angel's arm wrapped around her waist and she was pulled snugly against him.
Her body instantly warmed being pressed so close to his.
"Mmm, this is more like it." She mumbled. "You can keep the lousy blanket, you're much warmer."
As she fell back to sleep, she thought, 'Angel, my favorite blanket.
"This isn't going to work." Angel said aloud while staring off at the ceiling. Buffy, who had been dozing against his chest, instantly snapped back to full awareness. "What?" She sat up and said quickly; alarmed he meant them as a couple wouldn't work.
He glanced down at her a second, "The Hotel." He clarified, and then looked back up at the ceiling. "It's too big and costly and isn't homey enough for us. I mean, yeah, I did live here for a last few years…but it's just doesn't feel right for us. We need a smaller place, a real home."
"You want to buy a house?" Buffy asked, not hiding her enthusiasm for the idea. 'He wants to live together! In a real house! Our house! Yay!'
He looked at her, "Why not? Unless you don't want to…" He started wondering if he was pushing too far too fast.
"No! No I do. A house sounds good…great even. I'm just a little surprised you suggested it. You know, you're not really known as Mr. Stay-in-town."
He winced at the accusation, but wasn't actually able to deny it. He had left her on numerous occasions.
"I know what the past has been like, but it's different now, I'm different now. I want us to get back on track, and before I left we were sorta at the move in together stage, well at least the 'have some of your stuff at my place' stage. I just thought maybe we can take it one step further, see how it goes from there?" He finished looked to her for an opinion.
She smiled, "Yeah, yeah that sounds good." She said resting her head over his heart again. "Where will we move? When? Will Dawn come with us? Do we have the money?" She asked and turned her head to look down at him.
He grinned his little half smile. "I guess we have some things to talk about."
June 5, 2004
Buffy was sitting in the lobby, sharpening a pile of stakes for tonight's patrol. Not that they usually found much while patrolling, normally they just ended up repeating her high school years with smoochies in a cemetery, which was just fine with her.
The hotel's front door opened and a young man walked in. She looked up surprised since the hotel was obviously not open for business. She instinctually tightened her grip on the stake in her hand, suspicious and more than a little willing to get her Slay on.
"Can I help you with something?" she asked the kid, getting to her feet and walking towards him.
He looked around, as if he was trying to remember something. "Umm, maybe. I…ahh…I used to know the people who lived here. Do you know where they went?" he asked.
She looked him over, he looked to be in his late teens, longish brown hair, and blue eyes…something about those eyes gave her pause.
"Depends, who specifically are you looking for?" she asked.
He shrugged, "My fa-… ahh… Angel. I'm looking for Angel." He finished more confidently.
She looked him over again, closer now she could see what had given her a minor wiggins, he looked like Angel. His eyes were a different color, but the likeness was obvious. Her eyes widened as she looked at the boy, suddenly realizing who he was.
Angel and she had spent a few days just talking…talking about everything in their lives the past few years. He told her everything about Darla and Connor. This boy was obviously their son.
"You're Connor aren't you, you're Angel's son." she asked almost in disbelief. She believed Angel when he told her about the boy and the circumstanced of his birth and life, but seeing him in the flesh was something else entirely.
He looked back startled; he didn't expect her to know him. He knew Angel had altered reality so everyone's memories of him were erased. He only remembered everything after Wesley destroyed the Orlon Window used in the spell on him, and he defiantly would have remembered the beauty in front of him had she been in the old memories.
"Ahh…yeah…who are you? How do you know me?" he asked curious, also sizing her up incase he needed to fight her. Looking at her he didn't think that would be a problem if it came to that, he didn't sense vampire in her.
She smiled and stepped forward, "Angel told me about you, well I kinda had to wrestle the info out of him. I'm Buffy." she said offering her hand to Connor.
He was reluctant at first, but shook anyways. "Wrestled?" he asked, wondering how a little thing like her could compete with a master vampire.
She squeezed his hand, tight. She grinned, "Sometimes I let him win." She answered vaguely. She had no intentions of going into the details of her and Angel sex life to his son.
He was surprised by her strength. "What are you?" he asked, this close he could sense something more than human about her.
She grinned, "Angel never told you about me huh? I'll guess I can't blame him, we were kinda seeing other people at the time. He said you met Faith, do you remember her?" she asked.
He nodded, defiantly recalling the sexy dark Slayer. He nodded in understanding, "Oh, I heard there were two Slayers, you're the other one."
She nodded, not used to being referred to as 'the other one'. "Yeah, more than just two Slayers now, but that's beside the point."
He suddenly stiffened, "Wait, if you're a Slayer…" he asked, suddenly noticing the stakes and afraid she was there to kill his father, or already had.
She raised her hands in surrender, "Whoa there, easy. I'm defiantly not here to slay Angel, besides he doesn't exactly qualify anymore." She said to disarm him.
He looked at her, "What do you mean 'doesn't qualify'?" he asked.
She shook her head, "It's not my place to tell you, I'll leave that up to Angel. He should be back any minute now." She said as she hopped back up onto the counter and began to sharpen stakes again.
"Where did he go" Connor asked as he sat on the weird circular bench in front of her.
"Went to grab a bunch of newspapers and realtor catalogs." She said as she sharpened.
Connor was curious as to why Angel would A, want them, and B, need them badly enough to risk going out during the day for them.
He was about to ask when a familiar voice called coming in from the front door, "Hey they have a three bedroom in near Cleveland, it's got a back deck and some land…" Angel stopped short when he noticed Buffy wasn't alone, and his mouth almost fell open when he realized who she was with.
"Uhh…" was he managed to gurgle.
Connor was equally as surprised, had he not just watched Angel walk in from the sunlight?
"Connor." Angel finally managed as he walked closer.
Buffy jumped off the table and grabbed the papers from Angel, "I'm just going to take these upstairs and have a look." She said and quickly left father and son alone to talk in private.
They watched her retreat up the stairs. Angel then walked up to his son, still nervous about being around the boy. Things were never easy between them. "Connor, what are you doing here? Shouldn't you been in class?" he asked, happy to see him but confused as to why he wasn't at Stanford.
Connor ducked his head, "Hey, Angel. Yeah, well…I'm kinda not enrolled anymore." He mumbled.
Angel was strangely disappointed, "What? Why? I thought you wanted to go to college?"
Connor shrugged, "I did…I do. It's just…I got kicked out."
Angel crossed his arms over his chest, "And why is that?"
The boy looked uncomfortable, "My umm….parents…they…remembered I'm…not theirs."
Angel's arms fell to his sides. "Oh." He was silent a moment. "Damn Wolfram & Hart! They must have voided our contract when I crossed them. I'm sorry Connor, it's my fault. I didn't realize my fight would ruin the life I set up for you."
Connor shook his head, "No, don't apologize; it's not your fault. You did the right thing, I helped fight too, remember?"
Angel nodded, "Yeah, you probably saved my ass showing up when you did." He said with a smirk.
Both men were silent a moment, not sure what to say next.
"So" Connor ventured, "was I hallucinating…or did you just walk in sunlight without getting instant char-broiled?"
Angel laughed, which kinda freaked Connor out, "Yeah, about that. Seems I'm not a vampire anymore."
Connor's eyes widened, "What? Really?"
Angel offered his wrist, "Feel for yourself."
Connor was reluctant for a second, but then took his father's wrist in hand and felt the warmth of his skin and the strong beat pulsing in his veins. "Wow." He whispered, fascinated.
"Yeah" Angel said with a grin, "tell me about it."
"How?" Connor asked.
Angel took his hand back and stuck them both deep in his pockets, "Failed assassination attempt." He said just a shrug.
"Assassination attempt…" the teen repeated in disbelief. "By bringing you to life?"
Angel chuckled, "Yeah. I guess they figured it's too hard to kill a guy that's already dead. Although, they didn't have much luck alive either."
The boy nodded, and then they fell silent again.
"So…Buffy?" Connor asked.
Angel smiled, "The love of my life." He said simply and easily.
Connor looked confused, "Huh, that was fast."
Angel shook his head, "We were together years ago, circumstances changed and…we had to separate. We're trying again now that I'm human."
"Cool" the youth said.
"So, where are you staying?" Angel asked his son. The boy looked uncertain. Angel understood, "Then you're staying here, there's plenty of room. I won't take no for an answer."
The teen nodded, "Ok, thanks."
...
Buffy skipped down the stairs, "You boys playing nice?" she asked with a smile.
They looked up at her as she glided next to Angel. "Yes." They agreed.
"Good." She said with a smirk, "I'm not interrupting anything am I? I can become scarce if you need some time." She asked, hoping she wasn't spoiling a father/son moment.
"No beloved, you're not." Her boyfriend reassured.
They sat in the lobby for awhile, Buffy mostly keeping the conversation running between the two strong, silent types.
"So…anyone getting hungry?" she ventured when the current topic died down after a lengthy discussion.
Angel nodded and Buffy sent his a look, "You're always hungry." She accused. He shrugged, "Hey, I've got 250 years of non-eating to make up for." She rolled her eyes and turned to the youth sitting beside him, "You?"
Connor nodded, "Yeah, I could eat."
...
After a short discussion Buffy dragged the two men out the door. Buffy had agreed earlier in the week that every meal would be something different, from somewhere different. Angel was eager to try every food available, and she was loving it too.
After dinner, Buffy suggested Angel drive to the mall so they could get some supplies for Connor. He agreed and told his son pick out some cloths and supplies.
Connor was hesitant so Angel pulled him aside to talk.
"Listen Connor, I know we've never really been…close…but I'd like to try and amend that. You might not feel like it, but this is hard for me too. I mean the last time I felt really connected to you, you were a month old and drooling on my shirt. Try and remember the childhood you deserved wasn't just stolen from you; it was stolen from me too. Ever since I saw you on the ultrasound, I loved you. I wanted you. I wanted to raise you, see you grow. I just never got the chance. I'll regret that I couldn't save you every day for the rest of my life. I still curse myself for being too slow, for not realizing what was happening in time. I let you down, and I live with that every time I look at you."
Connor was stunned, and not just because he never heard Angel say so many words at once. He felt tears well up in his eyes, knew the truth and love shinning in his fathers too.
Without really thinking, he drew his father into a tight embrace, the ex-vampire hugged back equally strong. The rift between them wasn't magically closed, but a decently build bridge would set things on the right path.
Buffy watched the two embrace from around the corner, giving them their privacy, but wanting to know what happened between the two.
She had only known Connor for a few hours, but she already felt a strong connection with him. He almost felt like a son to her as well.
She loved Angel with all her heart, and this boy was half Angel. Buffy couldn't help but love Connor a little too.
Granted his mother was a total b*tch in her mind, nearly killing her mother Joyce and Angel, not to mention herself. However she also realized the woman who gave her life to birth her baby wasn't the evil psycho she remembered.
She wouldn't hold any grudges she had with Darla against her son.
A ping of remorse washed over the blond as she thought, she wished she had known what Angel was going though at the time. Maybe she could have helped him, maybe if she had been around, his son would have been spared a childhood spent in a hell dimension.
Maybe she shouldn't think of sentences that began with 'maybe.'"
...
That night Buffy turned to look at Angel beside her in the bed, for the first time in a long while, he seemed lighter. One of the many burdens that still hung to the ex-vampire like a shroud finally broken free.
About a month later: June 25, 2004 – Right outside Cleveland, Ohio.
"We own a house together" Buffy said as she lay in bed next to Angel, their first night in the new house.
He smiled at her, "We do."
She snuggled closer, "I still can't believe it."
He chuckled, "Should I go get the deed, let you look at it for a few more hours?"
She tossed him a mock offended look and lightly punched his arm, "I did not stare at it for hours! Besides I'm comfy, so you are not allowed to get up."
He smiled, "Good, I wasn't planning on it."
'This is incredible. We're happy. We're alive. We have a house! And the world hasn't almost ended in like…forever…o crap…I just jinxed it by thinking it…damn…good job Buffy…'
"Is it too big?" she asked, "I mean, what are we going to do with all these rooms?"
"You didn't ask that when we lived in the hotel." He joked, "Besides, there's only 2 spare rooms." Well at least as long as Connor's here, he'll be living at Stanford during the school year. "We could make one a study, or an office, or library, maybe a guest bedroom or two. I'm sure we'll find a use for them."
'Or bedrooms for our children? If we ever decide to adopt or get a sperm donor.' She thought.
"You gotta love Hellmouths; the high death rate keeps down the property tax and the mortgage." He joked. "Heck, what better location? Right outside of town, close enough to help out the newbie slayers, but far enough to give them space. We're only two miles from the nearest cemetery, plenty of trees when you're short on stakes, and we have our own personal magic barrier. Willow defiantly gave the best housewarming gift. So much better than that creepy plant Giles brought."
Buffy laughed along with him, she loved his less broody, more laughy personality lately. She hadn't seen him smile so much in the past seven years than she had in the last month.
...