Part 6: Preparations For Thanksgiving
#
Willow flinched when the door opened, closing her eyes and cursing herself for a moment. It had been two weeks, she reminded herself. Two weeks with no further sign of Spike. They had done the spell on their dorm to revoke his invitation. He could not come in and she would certainly never again invite someone without looking who it was.
Still, it did not help much. She was still shaky from the vampire's attacking her. It was a bit strange. Harmony had come much closer to killing her. Spike had barely even touched her, much less sank his fangs into her neck. Somehow, though, it was hard to see Harmony as a true danger. Spike, though, was a whole different story.
She was afraid of him.
"You all right, Willow?" Xander asked, seeing the look on her face.
"Peachy," she said, plastering a false smile on her face. "I just ... I was afraid it would be Buffy and she'd ask me where all that food I was supposed to get is and I haven't gotten it yet, so she might be mad at me for wrecking her Thanksgiving dinner and ..."
Xander walked closer, putting a hand on her shoulder to stop her babbling. He knew exactly what was bugging his best friend. They had both come rather close to being killed by Spike once upon a time and though he tended to do things off with a joke and a smile he had not been any less frightened.
"Hey, it's okay. We'll get the foodstuff in time for the big Buffy-dinner, okay?"
For a moment Willow allowed herself to relax. These days she often felt as if life itself was out to get them. Oz had left. Spike had almost killed her. Her best friend was hurting every bit as much as she did, even though she had had more time to get over it. Getting over being left by the guy you loved was not really a matter of time, she guessed.
Ever since Spike's attack Buffy had been out every night, patrolling for hours on end to find and kill the bleached vampire once and for all. It tired her out and had yet to produce any results. Willow was afraid what would happen should she come upon Spike in that weakened condition.
Tonight, though, they would have their big Thanksgiving dinner. Maybe all their problems could wait until tomorrow.
"Okay," Willow said, squeezing Xander's hand in return. "Let's get the foodstuff."
#
Riley had called in sick for a few days after the nearly lethal encounter with Spike in the dorms. The other teams had looked all over Sunnydale to find the vampire, but had come up empty. Which, considering Team 2's track record fighting him, might not have been the worst thing that could have happened to them, Riley had to admit.
By now they knew that vampire did not necessarily equal vampire. Fighting those that regularly prowled the many graveyards of this town was tough, but most of them were not skilled in any form of martial arts, had nothing but brute strength and inhuman speed going for them. Spike had been a different matter, though. He knew how to fight.
By now Riley knew that their capturing him as easily as they did had been equal parts carelessness on Spike's and good luck on their own part. The second time around they had not been lucky and that had nearly spelled the end for Riley and his teammates.
Worry over the still free vampire had also managed to distract him quite nicely from the thing he had planned to do just before Spike had broken free. Truth to tell he had barely seen hide nor hair of Buffy these last two weeks. She had skipped some classes (and gotten a thorough chewing-out by Walsh in return) and when she was present she looked tired and worn out. Not once had she even looked in his direction.
So when they ran into each other at the all-night supermarket neither of them knew what to say.
"Uh ... hi, Buffy," Riley said after about a minute of awkward silence.
"Hi," she answered, shifting the shopping cart she had with her back and forth.
"I ... it's been a while, but remember that I wanted to ... you know ... invite you for a cup of coffee?"
Buffy just nodded, not meeting his eyes.
"Well ... the offer still stands and ... I was kinda hoping you'd take me up on it."
She remained silent, then looked up with an earnest expression on her face.
"Riley, listen. I ... I like you. A lot, actually. You're a great guy, but ..."
"Sentences that start that way usually don't end well," Riley mused.
A small smile graced Buffy's lips. "How about another cliché then? It's not you, Riley. It's me. I ... I've been in a pretty long and ... intense relationship until about four months ago and ... I'm just not ready for something new. Or someone new."
Riley nodded. He had actually expected something like that from the hurt look he had often seen flash in her eyes. He was a psychology major, after all, and Buffy showed all the textbook signs of someone who had been hurt on a very personal level.
"Bad break-up?" he asked.
"No. Yes. I ... the break-up ... well, as break-ups go, I guess it wasn't the worst. We didn't part hating each other or anything, but ... I still miss him and ... and I like you too much, Riley, to make you into rebound guy."
Should he feel good or bad about that now, he mused. Buffy considered him a good guy, she liked him, and precisely because of that she did not want to go out with him. Somehow this really did not sound like a good deal.
Still, looking at her as she waited for his response, he knew that he, too, liked her even more now. She had bared her heart to him, or at least a small part of it, and somehow that made her even more beautiful than before.
"Wow," he finally muttered, brushing his hand through his hair. "I ... well, I didn't expect something like this."
"I know guys don't want to hear this," she told him, "but ... could we just be friends, Riley? You've helped me quite a bit these past few months. I don't want things to become awkward between us."
Riley sighed, looking away from her for a long moment. This really was not what he wanted, was it? He had worked up the courage to ask her out expecting to either be rebuffed completely, thereby freeing him up to really concentrate on a mission that was right in the middle of being fucked up, or to make it into a relationship that would serve as some sort of balance to all that darkness he suddenly found himself immersed in.
Becoming friends with her, though? Just friends? He really was not sure he could do that. How was he supposed to be friends with someone whom he not only really, really liked, but also would have to lie to all the time? Okay, the second would have been trouble in a relationship, too, but ...
"Too late for that, eh?" Buffy asked, pulling him out of his thoughts.
"I guess," he mumbled, looking at her again. "Buffy, I ... I guess I ... sorta hoped for something else, but ... I understand that you don't want to get involved again. And ... well, one can never have too many friends, right?"
Okay, so maybe that last line could have sounded a little less pathetic, he told himself. Still, if all she was ready to offer him at this point was friendship, then friendship he would take. For now.
"I'm glad," she said, taking his hand. "I really am."
He squeezed her hand back.
#
From outside the supermarket the dark shape watched as Buffy and that strange young man held hands and an unbeating heart ached with seeing it. This was what he had wanted, was it not? What he had told her to do. Find someone else. Someone human, someone who could give her all those things a good relationship should entail. All the things he could not give her.
Still, to see her actually doing it ...
Angel tore himself away from the scene and melded into the darkness of night. He was here for a reason and, though it did have to do with Buffy, there was absolutely no reason for her to know about his presence. It would only hurt her more.
He was only here to make sure she was safe and then he would leave again. Leave her to go on with her life, no matter how much it might hurt him.
TO BE CONTINUED
#
Willow flinched when the door opened, closing her eyes and cursing herself for a moment. It had been two weeks, she reminded herself. Two weeks with no further sign of Spike. They had done the spell on their dorm to revoke his invitation. He could not come in and she would certainly never again invite someone without looking who it was.
Still, it did not help much. She was still shaky from the vampire's attacking her. It was a bit strange. Harmony had come much closer to killing her. Spike had barely even touched her, much less sank his fangs into her neck. Somehow, though, it was hard to see Harmony as a true danger. Spike, though, was a whole different story.
She was afraid of him.
"You all right, Willow?" Xander asked, seeing the look on her face.
"Peachy," she said, plastering a false smile on her face. "I just ... I was afraid it would be Buffy and she'd ask me where all that food I was supposed to get is and I haven't gotten it yet, so she might be mad at me for wrecking her Thanksgiving dinner and ..."
Xander walked closer, putting a hand on her shoulder to stop her babbling. He knew exactly what was bugging his best friend. They had both come rather close to being killed by Spike once upon a time and though he tended to do things off with a joke and a smile he had not been any less frightened.
"Hey, it's okay. We'll get the foodstuff in time for the big Buffy-dinner, okay?"
For a moment Willow allowed herself to relax. These days she often felt as if life itself was out to get them. Oz had left. Spike had almost killed her. Her best friend was hurting every bit as much as she did, even though she had had more time to get over it. Getting over being left by the guy you loved was not really a matter of time, she guessed.
Ever since Spike's attack Buffy had been out every night, patrolling for hours on end to find and kill the bleached vampire once and for all. It tired her out and had yet to produce any results. Willow was afraid what would happen should she come upon Spike in that weakened condition.
Tonight, though, they would have their big Thanksgiving dinner. Maybe all their problems could wait until tomorrow.
"Okay," Willow said, squeezing Xander's hand in return. "Let's get the foodstuff."
#
Riley had called in sick for a few days after the nearly lethal encounter with Spike in the dorms. The other teams had looked all over Sunnydale to find the vampire, but had come up empty. Which, considering Team 2's track record fighting him, might not have been the worst thing that could have happened to them, Riley had to admit.
By now they knew that vampire did not necessarily equal vampire. Fighting those that regularly prowled the many graveyards of this town was tough, but most of them were not skilled in any form of martial arts, had nothing but brute strength and inhuman speed going for them. Spike had been a different matter, though. He knew how to fight.
By now Riley knew that their capturing him as easily as they did had been equal parts carelessness on Spike's and good luck on their own part. The second time around they had not been lucky and that had nearly spelled the end for Riley and his teammates.
Worry over the still free vampire had also managed to distract him quite nicely from the thing he had planned to do just before Spike had broken free. Truth to tell he had barely seen hide nor hair of Buffy these last two weeks. She had skipped some classes (and gotten a thorough chewing-out by Walsh in return) and when she was present she looked tired and worn out. Not once had she even looked in his direction.
So when they ran into each other at the all-night supermarket neither of them knew what to say.
"Uh ... hi, Buffy," Riley said after about a minute of awkward silence.
"Hi," she answered, shifting the shopping cart she had with her back and forth.
"I ... it's been a while, but remember that I wanted to ... you know ... invite you for a cup of coffee?"
Buffy just nodded, not meeting his eyes.
"Well ... the offer still stands and ... I was kinda hoping you'd take me up on it."
She remained silent, then looked up with an earnest expression on her face.
"Riley, listen. I ... I like you. A lot, actually. You're a great guy, but ..."
"Sentences that start that way usually don't end well," Riley mused.
A small smile graced Buffy's lips. "How about another cliché then? It's not you, Riley. It's me. I ... I've been in a pretty long and ... intense relationship until about four months ago and ... I'm just not ready for something new. Or someone new."
Riley nodded. He had actually expected something like that from the hurt look he had often seen flash in her eyes. He was a psychology major, after all, and Buffy showed all the textbook signs of someone who had been hurt on a very personal level.
"Bad break-up?" he asked.
"No. Yes. I ... the break-up ... well, as break-ups go, I guess it wasn't the worst. We didn't part hating each other or anything, but ... I still miss him and ... and I like you too much, Riley, to make you into rebound guy."
Should he feel good or bad about that now, he mused. Buffy considered him a good guy, she liked him, and precisely because of that she did not want to go out with him. Somehow this really did not sound like a good deal.
Still, looking at her as she waited for his response, he knew that he, too, liked her even more now. She had bared her heart to him, or at least a small part of it, and somehow that made her even more beautiful than before.
"Wow," he finally muttered, brushing his hand through his hair. "I ... well, I didn't expect something like this."
"I know guys don't want to hear this," she told him, "but ... could we just be friends, Riley? You've helped me quite a bit these past few months. I don't want things to become awkward between us."
Riley sighed, looking away from her for a long moment. This really was not what he wanted, was it? He had worked up the courage to ask her out expecting to either be rebuffed completely, thereby freeing him up to really concentrate on a mission that was right in the middle of being fucked up, or to make it into a relationship that would serve as some sort of balance to all that darkness he suddenly found himself immersed in.
Becoming friends with her, though? Just friends? He really was not sure he could do that. How was he supposed to be friends with someone whom he not only really, really liked, but also would have to lie to all the time? Okay, the second would have been trouble in a relationship, too, but ...
"Too late for that, eh?" Buffy asked, pulling him out of his thoughts.
"I guess," he mumbled, looking at her again. "Buffy, I ... I guess I ... sorta hoped for something else, but ... I understand that you don't want to get involved again. And ... well, one can never have too many friends, right?"
Okay, so maybe that last line could have sounded a little less pathetic, he told himself. Still, if all she was ready to offer him at this point was friendship, then friendship he would take. For now.
"I'm glad," she said, taking his hand. "I really am."
He squeezed her hand back.
#
From outside the supermarket the dark shape watched as Buffy and that strange young man held hands and an unbeating heart ached with seeing it. This was what he had wanted, was it not? What he had told her to do. Find someone else. Someone human, someone who could give her all those things a good relationship should entail. All the things he could not give her.
Still, to see her actually doing it ...
Angel tore himself away from the scene and melded into the darkness of night. He was here for a reason and, though it did have to do with Buffy, there was absolutely no reason for her to know about his presence. It would only hurt her more.
He was only here to make sure she was safe and then he would leave again. Leave her to go on with her life, no matter how much it might hurt him.
TO BE CONTINUED