Part Four
L.A.
6:05 pm
Cordelia screamed as Angel went down unconscious. "NOOO!" she ran to
him, and knelt by his side. She pulled his head into her lap, pushing
the hair back from his eyes. "I don't see any injuries," she
said. "Oh God, how do we know if he's dead or just dead???!" she
asked, beginning to panic. She'd lost Doyle to the Scourge, she
couldn't lose Angel too.
Wesley sighed, and knelt down next to her. He understood her meaning,
though in better circumstances he probably would have laughed at her
choice of words. He knew he had to keep Cordelia calm, and made an
attempt to be calm himself. "I don't know, Cordelia," he said,
placing his hand on Angel's chest. "It's not as if I can check for a -
-"
//Thud-thud//
"--What the fuck?" Wesley said uncharacteristically, unknowingly
speaking the same words as Angel did at that exact moment.
"What?" Cordelia asked, looking down at Angel. She touched Angel's
face again, and drew her hand back quickly. "Why is his skin warm?"
she asked with a frown. "His skin's never--" she gasped as Angel's
eyes flew open. "Oh thank God!" she said for the second time that
evening, and let out the breath she'd been holding.
Angel sat up carefully, he'd had his breath knocked out of him by his
sudden departure from the other dimension. He smiled. He'd had his
breath knocked out of him, that was a new experience for him.
"Angel, are you..." Wesley trailed off as he looked at Angel and saw
the answer in his eyes. He _had_ felt that heartbeat. "How?" he asked.
"How what?" Cordelia asked.
In reply, Angel took her hand and pressed it to his chest so she
could feel the answer for herself. "Oh my God..." she said in
disbelief. "OH MY GOD!" She grabbed him and hugged him, laughing and
crying at the same time. Angel hugged her back, joining her in the
reaction. Wesley being Wesley, he contented himself with sitting
there looking pleased.
Cordelia finally got hold of herself and pulled away. She stood up
and helped Angel up as well. She brushed the dirt off herself,
asking, "So twenty years is all it took?" She couldn't believe that
what they'd hoped for since the prophecy had been translated had
finally taken place.
"I'm afraid the new Oracles weren't very giving on the details,"
Angel shrugged. "But I got the impression that they think I've earned
it. They indicated that we averted the destruction of the human race
by defeating the Scourge for the second time. That, along with
everything else we've done in the last twenty years, apparently added
up to me getting a second chance. I can't believe it."
"Would somebody care to tell me what's so great?" Gunn requested.
"Angel's human," Cordelia said simply with a smile.
Gun's mouth dropped open in shock.
Wesley took pity on the man, and said, "There was a prophecy that
this would happen, it just wasn't clear _when_ it would happen."
"Oh. Wow," was all Gunn could manage in reply.
"I second that," Angel said with a nod. "Come on guys. Let's go
home," he added as they walked outside into the sunlight.
***************
L.A. 7:00 pm
They all returned to the haunted-hotel-turned-office-and-Angel's-
home, and settled in for a relaxing evening.
Wesley ordered pizza, which Angel devoured most of, to their
amusement. "Angel, we eat too," Cordelia said in irritation as he
reached for the last slice.
"Oh, sorry. Forgot how much I loved food," Angel said around a
mouthful of pizza. "And chocolate. Do we have any chocolate?" he
added, as he retreated to the kitchen to rummage through the
cupboards.
"Yes, but you're not going to find it in there," Cordelia said with a
sigh. She went into the office, and pulled a bag of Hershey's Kisses
out of the bottom drawer of her desk. She handed the bag to Angel,
and noticed his confused expression She sighed again,
explaining, "Wesley has a sweet tooth. If I kept them in an obvious
place I'd never get any."
"I resent that!" Wesley yelled in protest.
Angel simply grinned at their bickering. This he'd gotten used to in
the last twenty years, they made any place seem like home to him.
He'd probably taken them for granted at times, though he tried not
to. He found himself regretting now that Cordelia had never seen her
dream of Hollywood Stardom come to be. He also regretted that neither
of them had found spouses or started families of their own. They'd
given so much of their lives to The Cause. His Cause. And now...what
were they left with?
And then there was Gunn. His all-consuming need for vengeance had
never been quenched. He had become a member of the Angel
Investigations team shortly after he'd had to stake his sister-turned-
vampire. Angel accepted him as a member of the team, understanding
the need Gunn had to do what he could to get back at the demons who'd
destroyed his sister. Angel also knew, though, that chasing vengeance
was completely unsatisfying. So he was glad when Gunn had found
another way to channel his energy. He had started up several
successful troubled-teen outreach centers around the city, thus
helping the hopeless in a different way.
"No chocolates for The Brooder!" Cordelia walked up to him and
snatched the bag out of his hand, glaring at him. "I did NOT wait
twenty years for this to see you all broody still. And WHEN THE HELL
ARE YOU GOING TO CALL BUFFY ALREADY?!"
Angel looked at her in shock. He swallowed hard, and looked away.
Buffy. It wasn't as if he hadn't thought of her every second of every
day for the past twenty years. And it wasn't as if he hadn't thought
about her the moment it had sunk in that his once-dead heart was
beating again.
But so much had happened to her because of him, what right did he
have to walk back into her life now? After all, he'd been the one to
leave _her_. Twice, though she only remembered one of those times.
He'd hated himself so much for hurting her. But the possibility that
he might someday be able to give her what she deserved was what had
kept him from ending his life. As much as Cordelia, Wesley and Gunn
meant to him, in Buffy he had had the hope of true happiness someday.
But now that the one thing really keeping them apart was no more, he
was afraid. What if she didn't want him back, after all these years?
What if she wasn't...
"You still my girl?" he asked, feeling that his existence depended
on the answer.
Buffy looked back at him, sadly, and said, "Always," before walking
away.
"Sometimes always isn't forever," Angel said, before going upstairs.
"Okay, you are SO NOT THE KING OF LAST WORDS!" Cordelia yelled before
running upstairs after him.
Gunn and Wesley looked at each other for a moment. "Wanna go get a
drink?" Gunn asked.
"Hell yes," Wesley nodded, and followed Gunn to his car.
*************
L.A.
6:05 pm
Cordelia screamed as Angel went down unconscious. "NOOO!" she ran to
him, and knelt by his side. She pulled his head into her lap, pushing
the hair back from his eyes. "I don't see any injuries," she
said. "Oh God, how do we know if he's dead or just dead???!" she
asked, beginning to panic. She'd lost Doyle to the Scourge, she
couldn't lose Angel too.
Wesley sighed, and knelt down next to her. He understood her meaning,
though in better circumstances he probably would have laughed at her
choice of words. He knew he had to keep Cordelia calm, and made an
attempt to be calm himself. "I don't know, Cordelia," he said,
placing his hand on Angel's chest. "It's not as if I can check for a -
-"
//Thud-thud//
"--What the fuck?" Wesley said uncharacteristically, unknowingly
speaking the same words as Angel did at that exact moment.
"What?" Cordelia asked, looking down at Angel. She touched Angel's
face again, and drew her hand back quickly. "Why is his skin warm?"
she asked with a frown. "His skin's never--" she gasped as Angel's
eyes flew open. "Oh thank God!" she said for the second time that
evening, and let out the breath she'd been holding.
Angel sat up carefully, he'd had his breath knocked out of him by his
sudden departure from the other dimension. He smiled. He'd had his
breath knocked out of him, that was a new experience for him.
"Angel, are you..." Wesley trailed off as he looked at Angel and saw
the answer in his eyes. He _had_ felt that heartbeat. "How?" he asked.
"How what?" Cordelia asked.
In reply, Angel took her hand and pressed it to his chest so she
could feel the answer for herself. "Oh my God..." she said in
disbelief. "OH MY GOD!" She grabbed him and hugged him, laughing and
crying at the same time. Angel hugged her back, joining her in the
reaction. Wesley being Wesley, he contented himself with sitting
there looking pleased.
Cordelia finally got hold of herself and pulled away. She stood up
and helped Angel up as well. She brushed the dirt off herself,
asking, "So twenty years is all it took?" She couldn't believe that
what they'd hoped for since the prophecy had been translated had
finally taken place.
"I'm afraid the new Oracles weren't very giving on the details,"
Angel shrugged. "But I got the impression that they think I've earned
it. They indicated that we averted the destruction of the human race
by defeating the Scourge for the second time. That, along with
everything else we've done in the last twenty years, apparently added
up to me getting a second chance. I can't believe it."
"Would somebody care to tell me what's so great?" Gunn requested.
"Angel's human," Cordelia said simply with a smile.
Gun's mouth dropped open in shock.
Wesley took pity on the man, and said, "There was a prophecy that
this would happen, it just wasn't clear _when_ it would happen."
"Oh. Wow," was all Gunn could manage in reply.
"I second that," Angel said with a nod. "Come on guys. Let's go
home," he added as they walked outside into the sunlight.
***************
L.A. 7:00 pm
They all returned to the haunted-hotel-turned-office-and-Angel's-
home, and settled in for a relaxing evening.
Wesley ordered pizza, which Angel devoured most of, to their
amusement. "Angel, we eat too," Cordelia said in irritation as he
reached for the last slice.
"Oh, sorry. Forgot how much I loved food," Angel said around a
mouthful of pizza. "And chocolate. Do we have any chocolate?" he
added, as he retreated to the kitchen to rummage through the
cupboards.
"Yes, but you're not going to find it in there," Cordelia said with a
sigh. She went into the office, and pulled a bag of Hershey's Kisses
out of the bottom drawer of her desk. She handed the bag to Angel,
and noticed his confused expression She sighed again,
explaining, "Wesley has a sweet tooth. If I kept them in an obvious
place I'd never get any."
"I resent that!" Wesley yelled in protest.
Angel simply grinned at their bickering. This he'd gotten used to in
the last twenty years, they made any place seem like home to him.
He'd probably taken them for granted at times, though he tried not
to. He found himself regretting now that Cordelia had never seen her
dream of Hollywood Stardom come to be. He also regretted that neither
of them had found spouses or started families of their own. They'd
given so much of their lives to The Cause. His Cause. And now...what
were they left with?
And then there was Gunn. His all-consuming need for vengeance had
never been quenched. He had become a member of the Angel
Investigations team shortly after he'd had to stake his sister-turned-
vampire. Angel accepted him as a member of the team, understanding
the need Gunn had to do what he could to get back at the demons who'd
destroyed his sister. Angel also knew, though, that chasing vengeance
was completely unsatisfying. So he was glad when Gunn had found
another way to channel his energy. He had started up several
successful troubled-teen outreach centers around the city, thus
helping the hopeless in a different way.
"No chocolates for The Brooder!" Cordelia walked up to him and
snatched the bag out of his hand, glaring at him. "I did NOT wait
twenty years for this to see you all broody still. And WHEN THE HELL
ARE YOU GOING TO CALL BUFFY ALREADY?!"
Angel looked at her in shock. He swallowed hard, and looked away.
Buffy. It wasn't as if he hadn't thought of her every second of every
day for the past twenty years. And it wasn't as if he hadn't thought
about her the moment it had sunk in that his once-dead heart was
beating again.
But so much had happened to her because of him, what right did he
have to walk back into her life now? After all, he'd been the one to
leave _her_. Twice, though she only remembered one of those times.
He'd hated himself so much for hurting her. But the possibility that
he might someday be able to give her what she deserved was what had
kept him from ending his life. As much as Cordelia, Wesley and Gunn
meant to him, in Buffy he had had the hope of true happiness someday.
But now that the one thing really keeping them apart was no more, he
was afraid. What if she didn't want him back, after all these years?
What if she wasn't...
"You still my girl?" he asked, feeling that his existence depended
on the answer.
Buffy looked back at him, sadly, and said, "Always," before walking
away.
"Sometimes always isn't forever," Angel said, before going upstairs.
"Okay, you are SO NOT THE KING OF LAST WORDS!" Cordelia yelled before
running upstairs after him.
Gunn and Wesley looked at each other for a moment. "Wanna go get a
drink?" Gunn asked.
"Hell yes," Wesley nodded, and followed Gunn to his car.
*************