Her friends tell her to go out.  Visit the bronze, talk to some guy.  Socialize, Giles tells her.  It will make her feel better.  So she goes. 

Steps inside and feels the dancing bodies pulsing all around her, people laughing and calling each others names.  Having fun.  Being normal.  Normal is what she's going for, so Buffy orders a drink. 

She's asked to dance so she goes, bounces and grinds with some guy who reminds her of Riley with his cornflower blue eyes and bulging muscles.  Allows him to kiss her and lead her back to the table, where they try to make small talk.

            "So, why'd you move here?" 

His name is Brian.  An innocent and common name.  Just a normal guy asking normal questions.

            'Well see, Brian, this idiot of a watcher decided it was time to end all the good in my life, so after I set fire to my old school, we moved here, so I could kill more vampires'. 

She doesn't think that's the answer he's looking for. 

            "Oh, you know.  Mom got a job offer and we moved.  Nothing special."

See, that's better.  He's nodding and telling her that he moved because his mother had a job opportunity too, and look how much they have in common. 

            "You an only child?"

            "No, well technically, I kinda…but not really," she tells him lamely and blushes when he stares.

            'Well see, really, up until a few years ago, I was an only child, but then these monks made me a sister out of a huge green ball of glowey energy.  So technically, she's thousands of years old.  And oh, I've got other sisters.  They're all dead except one, but we're still sisters.  Kind of like Soul Sisters.  Like the song.  Get it?  Hahaha…'

            "I have one, but you know, I mostly ignore her, so sometimes I forget."  And she flashes him a winning smile.

Brian smiles too, and tells her he knows exactly what she's talking about, and wouldn't it be nice if those little buggers could just disappear? 

            "I really like you Buffy," he tells her.  "I just feel like we've got so much in common, it's amazing.  Maybe we could get together some time?  What are you doing on Friday?"

            'Friday?  Oh, nothing much, you know, the usual for a vampire slayer.  Gonna sit through a night of Scooby-ing with a smile plastered to my face, then gonna go patrol and kill some vampires, probably with a vampire who's stranger than I am.  Then going to go get yelled at by my key sister for who I killed myself.  Then I'll probably try to sleep.'

Brian's still staring, politely puzzled, because really, this shouldn't be such a hard question.  Not for a normal, California girl.  But it is for her.  Because no matter how hard she tries, she's not that girl. 

            "I-I'm sorry, I have to go now."

She gets up and leaves, leaving Brian sitting there.  Brian, the innocent, normal guy that can never understand her. 

And then she feels it, the distinctive prickling on the back of her neck.  Buffy smiles.

            "Wanna go kill stuff, pet?"

Loops arms with her strange vampire, and smiles.

            "Yeah.  I really do."