***
Next chapter of FA. The last one was basically an introduction, this one stars in on the storyline.
Important note: For you guys here at ff.net, I had to cut out the middle scene because of ratings restrictions here. You don't miss out on any of the plot by not reading it, but if you want to read the full chapter, go to my profile page and click on the link to my site and go to the fiction page there.
Oh, and did I mention there was a cliff? A really, really big cliff? *g*
Enjoy,
~Isis
***
^-^-^-^-^-^-^-^-^-^
Part 2
^-^-^-^-^-^-^-^-^-^
"Angel?" she repeated louder this time, as though she needed to convince herself it was really him.
It couldn't be him, she kept telling herself over and over. But it was, and he was walking closer and closer to her still form. He was really there. Angel, her Angel, was only feet away, standing unaffected by the bright light of the sun. The only thing she could think was, how? Then he was there, right in front of her in all his muscular, gorgeous glory.
"Buffy," his sweet voice called to her.
"Angel?" What was she, a broken record?
"Hey," he spoke also in shock at suddenly seeing his former lover.
"I...but...you're...how?" she finally settled on, voicing the resounding question in her head.
Angel looked down, unable to meet her eyes. When he raised them again, he simply reached for her hand and lifted it until he could place it over his heart; the heart that was now beating. The unexpected finding made Buffy gasp and wildly pull her hand away. She took a step back from him, feeling suddenly faint. Nothing could have prepared her for the truth, that Angel was human.
Her body began to sway, overwhelmed by the vivid reality staring her straight in the face. The sun suddenly seemed too bright, the air too thick. She stumbled backwards in her need to find something to grab hold of, but came up empty.
"Are you okay?" the cause of her altered state questioned worriedly.
"I-I...I'm...fine," she stuttered uneasily, practically unable to look at him. "J-just need to...sit down."
Buffy nearly sighed in relied when her body came into contact with the bench she had previously been sitting on. Slowly, the world started to come back into focus, her heightened senses returning to normal. Her eyes followed Angel as he cautiously sat down on the opposite end from her, leaving plenty of space between them. She didn't mean to stare at him, but it seemed like the only thing she could do.
A multitude of thoughts began racing through her mind. Angel was alive, truly alive, as in heartbeat, sunlight, normal food alive. And he was sitting right next to her. Once upon a time, her every teenage fantasy had involved this very occurrence. Now that it had really happened, she was awe-struck. There were questions she knew she should be asking, but they were drowned out by the sheer exhilaration of seeing Angel in the sun.
Ever so slowly, her hand crept forward until it once again landed on the steadily beating heart in Angel's chest. It was a marvelous rhythm to her familiar fingers. She could still vividly recall the hollow silence that had once been there. How was she supposed to reconcile the idea that her vampire ex-lover was now human? Was there anyway to process that concept? If there was, her mind couldn't seem to do it.
"How is this possible?" she heard herself ask.
If she'd been fully alert, Buffy would have noticed the guilty look that instantly spread across Angel's face, and the downward direction his eyes went, but she didn't. She was still stuck somewhere on Angel, sunlight, and heartbeat.
"It...I, uh, I earned my redemption...I-I did enough good that my humanity was returned," he finally answered after debating the question for a short while.
"Human," was the only word Buffy could force between her lips.
"Yes," Angel answered although it wasn't necessary. He wasn't nearly as dazed as Buffy by their sudden meeting, but even so, he was utterly shocked by it all.
"You're really human," she spoke barely above a whisper, the hand that had been over his heart sliding upwards.
The moment her silky smooth fingers glided across his cheek, Angel was lost. The rest of the world dimmed out of view and all he could see was her: hazel eyes, golden hair, tanned, muscular body. So familiar yet so completely new. Vaguely, he thought he heard himself mumble that she looked even more beautiful in direct light, but he wasn't sure. He was too focused on the sensual pull of her eyes to his.
His skin felt so warm and sun-soaked as her palm rested against his cheek. No longer was it so dissimilar to her temperature, but that realization hardly registered in her mind. Just as Angel was lost in her, she was lost in him. It'd been so long, too long, since she felt the all encompassing thrall of his presence, and now that she was near him again, it sensitized each and every part of her body.
In the back of his mind, Angel knew there was something he should be telling her, that they should be talking, but the feeling was fleeting. The only thought he could grasp was that Buffy was inches away from him, her soft, pink lips beckoning to him. Unable to fight the urge, he heeded the call, leaning over until his mouth touched hers the slightest bit.
Spontaneous combustion. That's how either would have described it if asked later. The seemingly innocent brush of his lips upon hers set loose a firestorm of passion that quickly escalated. Mouths opened, tongues dueled, fingers tangled in hair greedily clambering for any touch to bring them closer. The camera that hung lazily around Buffy's neck was haphazardly pushed around to her back, allowing their chests to press against each other.
Buffy struggled to be nearer, completely forgetting the public setting, swinging a leg over and straddling his lap. Their mouths continued to battle, breaking only to gather much needed oxygen. Angel's arms pulled her against him, her aching nipples rubbing against his clothed chest. At the same time, Buffy ground herself down on him. She could feel the insistent bulge of his arousal between her legs.
"Angel." The breathy moan encouraged him further as he trailed kisses across her chin and down her neck, stopping every so often to nibble on patches of her sweet skin.
"Beautiful. So beautiful," he murmured between kisses, rocking her against him.
"Need you. Need you now," was all she found she could say.
"Where?" He couldn't very well throw her down right here in the park. He could, he supposed, but he didn't want anyone seeing her in the throes of orgasm except for him.
"Hotel. Few blocks away," she groaned as his fingers deftly pulled at her nipples through the light-weight sweater she wore.
He didn't bother to ask 'what hotel?' just clutched her in his arms and stood. Those nearby watched the odd couple as they stumbled out of the park, some with amused smirks, others with wide-eyed shock. How they managed not to fall was anyone's guess.
^-^-^-^-^-^-^-^-^-^
The following morning, Buffy slowly drifted back to consciousness. She was immediately aware of the feel of coarse hotel sheets against her naked skin. Naked? Since when did she sleep naked? Had she gotten drunk the night before or something and shed her clothes before going to sleep? No, she hadn't gotten drunk. It was the or something. Images of the day before began flashing through her mind.
Angel.
Angel and sunlight.
Angel and sex. Lots and lots of sex. Everywhere.
Her body flushed, heat zinging through her veins at the memories. There probably wasn't a surface in her hotel room that they hadn't made love on, or in some cases against: the door, the floor, the bed, the shower wall, and probably a few others, some more than once. If she didn't remember the whole sordid event, then the absolute soreness of her body would definitely clue her in. It was a good kind of ache though.
Yes, it was undeniably a good ache, one that caused her to smile in her still drowsy state. There was nothing for her not to smile about. Angel was now human, therefore curse free, and they'd spent many, many wonderful hours...reacquainting...themselves with each other. Not since the night of her seventeenth birthday had she felt so warm, complete, and well, satisfied.
This was it. They'd finally made it. No longer were they forced apart by their natures, or gypsy curses, or friends and family, or the need to grow as people. They'd made it past all that, and now was finally the time for them. For so long she'd believed that they would never get this chance. There was just always too much in the way. But not any more. Happiness was knocking at the door and she planned on answering it.
Starting right now.
Eyes still closed, Buffy reached out her arm to pull Angel closer to her. She was startled to find the space next to her empty and cold. Her hand grasped around the sheets, hoping to come into contact with her lover's body, but to no avail. Buffy briefly wondered if perhaps it had all been a dream. She was sure it wasn't, though. Angel had been there with her, had made love to her. And now he was gone.
Memories of her birthday came back vividly. The joy, the pleasure, and then the heart wrenching terror. It couldn't have happened again. It just couldn't. There was no way it was possible. So then why wasn't Angel with her? Why wasn't he holding her close? There had to be a reason.
Fighting off the nauseating fear, she finally peeled open her eyes. The harsh sunlight blinded her momentarily, but through the bright glare she could make out Angel's form near the window. All the tension that had seized every muscle in her body relaxed. He was still there. He hadn't left her.
Needing the reassurance of his strong embrace, she climbed out of the bed. The room was a little chilly so she pulled on the sweater she'd been wearing the day before which had been thoughtlessly thrown onto the desk chair. Once partially dressed, she padded silently across the room, coming to a stop just behind where Angel, dressed in only his navy blue silk boxers, was standing. In his quiet brooding, he hadn't even noticed that she'd awoken yet.
"Morning," she murmured softly, her arms slipping around his waist.
Angel startled at the contact, having been so lost in thought that he hadn't noticed she'd snuck up on him.
"Sorry!" Buffy giggled unrepentantly, resting her head on his naked back. When Angel said nothing in response, she began to grow worried again. "Hey? You okay?"
Still not speaking, Angel carefully pried himself from her grip before turning and walking toward the bed. He sat down wearily, not looking at her as he finally spoke. "Everything's...everything's fine."
Buffy's arms crossed over her chest, her eyes boring into his retreating form. "Why don't I believe you?"
The instant he raised his eyes, she knew. It didn't matter that she didn't know whatever it was that was bothering him. She just knew that it was going to shatter her heart and crush every dream that had taken hold inside her mind. The look on his face was enough to tell her that. She should have known that something would go wrong. It always did. She wasn't meant to have this kind of happiness in her life.
Angel didn't answer her. He just stared at her, waging, as she could tell, a mental war inside his head. The longer the seconds dragged out, the more she knew that whatever he had to say was going to be worse than she could have ever imagined. And suddenly she didn't want to know. Just as soon as that thought came, he finally spoke.
"I'm getting married tomorrow."
^-^-^-^-^-^-^-^-^-^
TBC!!
Next chapter of FA. The last one was basically an introduction, this one stars in on the storyline.
Important note: For you guys here at ff.net, I had to cut out the middle scene because of ratings restrictions here. You don't miss out on any of the plot by not reading it, but if you want to read the full chapter, go to my profile page and click on the link to my site and go to the fiction page there.
Oh, and did I mention there was a cliff? A really, really big cliff? *g*
Enjoy,
~Isis
***
^-^-^-^-^-^-^-^-^-^
Part 2
^-^-^-^-^-^-^-^-^-^
"Angel?" she repeated louder this time, as though she needed to convince herself it was really him.
It couldn't be him, she kept telling herself over and over. But it was, and he was walking closer and closer to her still form. He was really there. Angel, her Angel, was only feet away, standing unaffected by the bright light of the sun. The only thing she could think was, how? Then he was there, right in front of her in all his muscular, gorgeous glory.
"Buffy," his sweet voice called to her.
"Angel?" What was she, a broken record?
"Hey," he spoke also in shock at suddenly seeing his former lover.
"I...but...you're...how?" she finally settled on, voicing the resounding question in her head.
Angel looked down, unable to meet her eyes. When he raised them again, he simply reached for her hand and lifted it until he could place it over his heart; the heart that was now beating. The unexpected finding made Buffy gasp and wildly pull her hand away. She took a step back from him, feeling suddenly faint. Nothing could have prepared her for the truth, that Angel was human.
Her body began to sway, overwhelmed by the vivid reality staring her straight in the face. The sun suddenly seemed too bright, the air too thick. She stumbled backwards in her need to find something to grab hold of, but came up empty.
"Are you okay?" the cause of her altered state questioned worriedly.
"I-I...I'm...fine," she stuttered uneasily, practically unable to look at him. "J-just need to...sit down."
Buffy nearly sighed in relied when her body came into contact with the bench she had previously been sitting on. Slowly, the world started to come back into focus, her heightened senses returning to normal. Her eyes followed Angel as he cautiously sat down on the opposite end from her, leaving plenty of space between them. She didn't mean to stare at him, but it seemed like the only thing she could do.
A multitude of thoughts began racing through her mind. Angel was alive, truly alive, as in heartbeat, sunlight, normal food alive. And he was sitting right next to her. Once upon a time, her every teenage fantasy had involved this very occurrence. Now that it had really happened, she was awe-struck. There were questions she knew she should be asking, but they were drowned out by the sheer exhilaration of seeing Angel in the sun.
Ever so slowly, her hand crept forward until it once again landed on the steadily beating heart in Angel's chest. It was a marvelous rhythm to her familiar fingers. She could still vividly recall the hollow silence that had once been there. How was she supposed to reconcile the idea that her vampire ex-lover was now human? Was there anyway to process that concept? If there was, her mind couldn't seem to do it.
"How is this possible?" she heard herself ask.
If she'd been fully alert, Buffy would have noticed the guilty look that instantly spread across Angel's face, and the downward direction his eyes went, but she didn't. She was still stuck somewhere on Angel, sunlight, and heartbeat.
"It...I, uh, I earned my redemption...I-I did enough good that my humanity was returned," he finally answered after debating the question for a short while.
"Human," was the only word Buffy could force between her lips.
"Yes," Angel answered although it wasn't necessary. He wasn't nearly as dazed as Buffy by their sudden meeting, but even so, he was utterly shocked by it all.
"You're really human," she spoke barely above a whisper, the hand that had been over his heart sliding upwards.
The moment her silky smooth fingers glided across his cheek, Angel was lost. The rest of the world dimmed out of view and all he could see was her: hazel eyes, golden hair, tanned, muscular body. So familiar yet so completely new. Vaguely, he thought he heard himself mumble that she looked even more beautiful in direct light, but he wasn't sure. He was too focused on the sensual pull of her eyes to his.
His skin felt so warm and sun-soaked as her palm rested against his cheek. No longer was it so dissimilar to her temperature, but that realization hardly registered in her mind. Just as Angel was lost in her, she was lost in him. It'd been so long, too long, since she felt the all encompassing thrall of his presence, and now that she was near him again, it sensitized each and every part of her body.
In the back of his mind, Angel knew there was something he should be telling her, that they should be talking, but the feeling was fleeting. The only thought he could grasp was that Buffy was inches away from him, her soft, pink lips beckoning to him. Unable to fight the urge, he heeded the call, leaning over until his mouth touched hers the slightest bit.
Spontaneous combustion. That's how either would have described it if asked later. The seemingly innocent brush of his lips upon hers set loose a firestorm of passion that quickly escalated. Mouths opened, tongues dueled, fingers tangled in hair greedily clambering for any touch to bring them closer. The camera that hung lazily around Buffy's neck was haphazardly pushed around to her back, allowing their chests to press against each other.
Buffy struggled to be nearer, completely forgetting the public setting, swinging a leg over and straddling his lap. Their mouths continued to battle, breaking only to gather much needed oxygen. Angel's arms pulled her against him, her aching nipples rubbing against his clothed chest. At the same time, Buffy ground herself down on him. She could feel the insistent bulge of his arousal between her legs.
"Angel." The breathy moan encouraged him further as he trailed kisses across her chin and down her neck, stopping every so often to nibble on patches of her sweet skin.
"Beautiful. So beautiful," he murmured between kisses, rocking her against him.
"Need you. Need you now," was all she found she could say.
"Where?" He couldn't very well throw her down right here in the park. He could, he supposed, but he didn't want anyone seeing her in the throes of orgasm except for him.
"Hotel. Few blocks away," she groaned as his fingers deftly pulled at her nipples through the light-weight sweater she wore.
He didn't bother to ask 'what hotel?' just clutched her in his arms and stood. Those nearby watched the odd couple as they stumbled out of the park, some with amused smirks, others with wide-eyed shock. How they managed not to fall was anyone's guess.
^-^-^-^-^-^-^-^-^-^
The following morning, Buffy slowly drifted back to consciousness. She was immediately aware of the feel of coarse hotel sheets against her naked skin. Naked? Since when did she sleep naked? Had she gotten drunk the night before or something and shed her clothes before going to sleep? No, she hadn't gotten drunk. It was the or something. Images of the day before began flashing through her mind.
Angel.
Angel and sunlight.
Angel and sex. Lots and lots of sex. Everywhere.
Her body flushed, heat zinging through her veins at the memories. There probably wasn't a surface in her hotel room that they hadn't made love on, or in some cases against: the door, the floor, the bed, the shower wall, and probably a few others, some more than once. If she didn't remember the whole sordid event, then the absolute soreness of her body would definitely clue her in. It was a good kind of ache though.
Yes, it was undeniably a good ache, one that caused her to smile in her still drowsy state. There was nothing for her not to smile about. Angel was now human, therefore curse free, and they'd spent many, many wonderful hours...reacquainting...themselves with each other. Not since the night of her seventeenth birthday had she felt so warm, complete, and well, satisfied.
This was it. They'd finally made it. No longer were they forced apart by their natures, or gypsy curses, or friends and family, or the need to grow as people. They'd made it past all that, and now was finally the time for them. For so long she'd believed that they would never get this chance. There was just always too much in the way. But not any more. Happiness was knocking at the door and she planned on answering it.
Starting right now.
Eyes still closed, Buffy reached out her arm to pull Angel closer to her. She was startled to find the space next to her empty and cold. Her hand grasped around the sheets, hoping to come into contact with her lover's body, but to no avail. Buffy briefly wondered if perhaps it had all been a dream. She was sure it wasn't, though. Angel had been there with her, had made love to her. And now he was gone.
Memories of her birthday came back vividly. The joy, the pleasure, and then the heart wrenching terror. It couldn't have happened again. It just couldn't. There was no way it was possible. So then why wasn't Angel with her? Why wasn't he holding her close? There had to be a reason.
Fighting off the nauseating fear, she finally peeled open her eyes. The harsh sunlight blinded her momentarily, but through the bright glare she could make out Angel's form near the window. All the tension that had seized every muscle in her body relaxed. He was still there. He hadn't left her.
Needing the reassurance of his strong embrace, she climbed out of the bed. The room was a little chilly so she pulled on the sweater she'd been wearing the day before which had been thoughtlessly thrown onto the desk chair. Once partially dressed, she padded silently across the room, coming to a stop just behind where Angel, dressed in only his navy blue silk boxers, was standing. In his quiet brooding, he hadn't even noticed that she'd awoken yet.
"Morning," she murmured softly, her arms slipping around his waist.
Angel startled at the contact, having been so lost in thought that he hadn't noticed she'd snuck up on him.
"Sorry!" Buffy giggled unrepentantly, resting her head on his naked back. When Angel said nothing in response, she began to grow worried again. "Hey? You okay?"
Still not speaking, Angel carefully pried himself from her grip before turning and walking toward the bed. He sat down wearily, not looking at her as he finally spoke. "Everything's...everything's fine."
Buffy's arms crossed over her chest, her eyes boring into his retreating form. "Why don't I believe you?"
The instant he raised his eyes, she knew. It didn't matter that she didn't know whatever it was that was bothering him. She just knew that it was going to shatter her heart and crush every dream that had taken hold inside her mind. The look on his face was enough to tell her that. She should have known that something would go wrong. It always did. She wasn't meant to have this kind of happiness in her life.
Angel didn't answer her. He just stared at her, waging, as she could tell, a mental war inside his head. The longer the seconds dragged out, the more she knew that whatever he had to say was going to be worse than she could have ever imagined. And suddenly she didn't want to know. Just as soon as that thought came, he finally spoke.
"I'm getting married tomorrow."
^-^-^-^-^-^-^-^-^-^
TBC!!