***
Chapter 4! Angel's story and some other fun stuff ahead *g*
IMPORTANT: ~after~ this part is where the two different endings break off. The non-B/A ending will be labeled 5a & 6a, and the B/A ending will be labeled 5b &6b. I'll be posting the non-B/A one first. I hope you will all take the time to read both because I think each has something to offer.
Thank you so much to everyone who has sent feedback. The response to this fic has been overwhelming and I'm so glad you are enjoying reading this fic!
~Isis
***
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Part 4
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~New Orleans – approximately five years later~
Angel disinterestedly lagged behind Willow as she window shopped on one of the quaint New Orleans streets. He didn't know why she'd made him come on this trip with her. She'd specifically flown up from Arizona and barged into his apartment telling him he was going to accompany her on the business trip she had to go on. When he asked why she told him he needed to stop sitting in his dark apartment brooding and get out for a little while. He tried to tell her no, but she practically twisted his arm and made him go pack.
So now he was stuck following her around New Orleans while she did a little shopping in her free time. The happy, laughing people that kept brushing past him made him nauseous. He didn't like being in crowds. Staying back at the hotel had been his activity of choice for the afternoon, but Willow demanded he go shopping with her and pushed him out the door before he had a chance to say no. Why couldn't people just let him brood in peace?
A burst of flirty laughter drew Angel out of his internal monologue and his eyes rose to land on a young couple sitting on a bench, locked in a loving kiss. His heart ached at the sight. They looked so happy. He couldn't fight the pangs of regret that shot through him. Nor could he stop the little voice in his head that told him he could have been like that couple if he hadn't made such a mess of his life. It wasn't shocking, he supposed, that he'd screwed up yet one more thing in his pathetic existence. His life, dating back to his original human days, was rife with mistakes, and it didn't seem like he'd be stopping that pattern anytime soon.
Nearly five years ago, despite all that happened, he'd gone ahead and married Nina anyway. In retrospect, it was the wrong thing to do. Not only had he cheated on her the day before the wedding, but he'd been forced to realize that his heart would always be with Buffy. Still, he pushed all that aside and continued on with the marriage. He thought he owed it to Nina not to back out.
The blonde werewolf had become a bright spot in his dark lonely world over the years. He helped her learn to cope with the demon inside of her, and then later she was there for him when his Shanshu finally occurred. His reward came with the final defeat of Wolfram and Hart and with that everything changed. Becoming human again hadn't been an easy adjustment for him. He was no longer a demon, no longer drank blood, no longer feared sunlight, no longer had super strength, no longer fought evil, and so many other things. It overwhelmed him at first, but Nina was there through it all. She pushed him out into the real, human, living world and got him back on his feet.
Their friendship grew into more over the following months, and he allowed it. Thoughts of another blonde, a feisty Slayer, occasionally plagued his thoughts, but in those times he reminded himself of Willow's words about Buffy's new life. She was happy and settled. Her life, for so long had been a constant battle and had what he'd always wanted for her. She certainly didn't need him barging in and ruining everything that she'd worked so hard for. So he focused his attention on Nina, and when his friends pushed and encouraged him to take the next step he followed, and proposed marriage. She happily accepted and they spent months planning a lavish wedding for their friends and families to attend.
Angel knew now he should have called it off. The encounter with Buffy just before the wedding changed everything, changed him. Feelings long buried once again rose to the surface and he was lost in the unconditional love she'd always bestowed upon him. He should have never let what happened with Buffy occur before they had a chance to talk, but they'd both succumbed to their passions before either knew what hit them. Then he'd broken her heart by telling her of his upcoming marriage.
Gods, he was stupid. He'd had every intention of going to Nina and telling her he couldn't marry her, but then Willow's call came explaining to him her encounter with Buffy. He knew then that it was hopeless. Any chance of making things right was lost. So instead of going to his future wife and breaking things off, he went to her and begged her forgiveness for cheating on her the night before. He never told her the specifics then and let her assume it was a drunken encounter at his bachelor party. She forgave his mistake, and the wedding went on as planned.
The marriage lasted not even two years. He stopped being the man she helped him become after his Shanshu and retreated into himself. Guilt ate away at him over his treatment of Buffy and marrying Nina even though he was never really in love with her. He didn't know if she was ever in love with him, but they had always been comfortable with each other. Their relationship was one built upon deep friendship. After the wedding, though, even that disappeared.
She tried her hardest to make things work between them, but one night they got into a particularly loud argument over his lack of interest in pretty much anything. Everything came out that night; his one night stand with Buffy before the wedding, his returned feelings for her, his previous relationship with her, his thoughts of calling off the wedding, his guilt over getting married anyway, everything. Nina was utterly shocked by it all, never before knowing about the woman named Buffy, and she knew in an instant that anything she had or might have had with Angel was over. Three weeks later she filed for divorce.
They managed to part amicably, both agreeing the marriage should never have occurred. Once a month they still talked, but their friendship was irrevocably damaged by all that happened between them. A year ago, she married a writer and he was happy for her. The couple was now pregnant with their first child and Angel found himself glad that at least he hadn't ruined her life.
His, though, was another story. The three years since the divorce seemed darker than any he spent as a vampire. His days were spent floundering in his apartment painting bleak visions on white canvases. If he wasn't painting, he was sketching. Myriads of drawings, most of a certain blonde, littered the walls and floors of his apartment. And if he wasn't sketching he was sitting in the dark brooding. It was a lonely life, but he felt he deserved it.
Not long after the divorce he tried to find Buffy. No one had heard from her or seen her since the confrontation two years earlier. She never returned to her hotel or her apartment in San Francisco. It was as if she fell off the face of the earth. A little hacking by Willow right after her disappearance revealed to them the large cash withdrawl at an ATM the night of their argument. From there, not a trace of her could be found. Willow actively looked for a year after their fight, and kept Angel informed, but eventually she gave up. He renewed the search for her after the divorce, but never found even the slightest clue as to her whereabouts. Buffy had managed to hide herself away some place where no one could find her.
That was close to three years ago and since then his life was a vast wasteland of loneliness, regrets, and guilt precipitating Willow's little forced vacation. He didn't want to be here in this city with all of its bubbling happiness. He wanted to be back in his apartment alone with a good bottle of Irish whiskey and his thoughts. Another two days of this annoyance and he'd be back in LA where he swore he was never going to answer his door again.
"Can we go back to the hotel yet?" he nearly whined to Willow who was gazing at a ruby necklace in the window of a jewelry store.
"In a little bit," she sighed and rolled her eyes. "You really know how to suck the life out of everything you know that? No pun intended."
"I don't like it here," Angel grumbled, stuffing his hands in his pockets.
"Fine. I just want to go to that toy store up ahead and pick up something to send to Xander," she explained, referring to her friend who married three years earlier and had a two year old daughter.
Angel rolled his eyes and groaned but followed anyway. A toy store was the last place he wanted to go. The place was likely to be swarming with kids running up and down the aisles. Not that he didn't love kids because he did, really. They were just another reminder of how empty his life was. If he hadn't of royally fucked things up years ago he could be with Buffy right now and have children with her. But he had ruined everything, and now he was alone.
The two quickly reached the toy store and entered into the small shop. Angel was glad to find that the place wasn't overly busy. There seemed to be only a few adults and children milling about. Not knowing what else to do in a place he had no use for, Angel merely trailed behind Willow as she searched for a gift to send to her friend's child.
Willow turned to face Angel when she noticed that all he was doing was following her. "You could actually, ya know, look around."
"Why?" Angel looked at her and frowned.
"Because we're in a store. A place where people shop so you should...shop," she told him as if it were obvious, and stepped backwards without paying attention.
"Willow, watch out!" Angel swiftly warned her when he saw she was about to walk into someone bending over looking at something on a low shelf.
"What? Oomph!" Too late. The redhead tripped over the other shopper kneeling near the ground, knocking him over but managing to keep herself from falling by grabbing onto the closest shelf.
"Oh, Goddess! I am sooo sorry!" Her face flushed red in embarrassment as she apologized and offered a hand to the man pulling himself up off the ground.
The man in question froze at the sound of her voice. His head shot up, eyes widened, as he took in the face of the person who had tripped over him. "Willow?"
"Oz?" the redhead yelped, stumbling back a few steps in shock. She was wholly unprepared to find herself face to face with her former boyfriend.
"Uh, yeah," the stoic musician finished pulling himself up off the ground, warily studying the redhead. Unnoticed to her, his eyes nervously darted to the left for a moment before returning to meet her gaze.
"I...umm....hi...uh...look, Angel...it's, uh, Oz," she stammered uncertainly.
Oz's head whipped around to face the person he hadn't even known was there. He startled slightly at finding the former vampire fidgeting behind him. It took a moment for him to gather his bearings before greeting the other man. "Angel."
The coldness in the werewolf's voice was immediately obvious to Angel and his brow furrowed as he wondered at the unfriendly salutation. "Hello, Oz."
"So, you're, uh, here...in New Orleans," Willow moved around to stand near Angel.
"Yeah," Oz answered simply all the while wondering if he'd be able to get rid of the two before things got ugly.
"H-How long have you been here?" Willow asked for lack of anything better to say. She was still trying to get over the shock of the random meeting with someone from her past.
"Few years," he shrugged in response. Every so often, his eyes would glance to the left as if watching out for someone.
"Oh, uh, we're...well, me actually...I'm here on, uh, business...and, umm, I made Angel come along," she babbled out the explanation for their presence in New Orleans.
"Cool," Oz stated in his usual lack of words. His eyes suddenly widened when he heard giggling laughter reach his ears. Only moments later, the pitter patter of little feet followed and he felt something latch onto his leg.
"Wanna get ice cream now!" a child's voice spoke causing Willow to gasp. She watched as her ex-boyfriend reached down to pick up a little boy who appeared to be three, maybe four years old.
"It's a little early for ice cream, don't ya think?" Oz ruffled his hair as the little boy settled into his arms.
"I-is that your...," Willow trailed off, not wanting to say the final word.
Oz turned to face the two people from his past and looked at them for a moment before sighing. "This is Jared."
The little boy clung to Oz as he noticed the strangers staring at him. He tugged at Oz's sleeve and pointed to the new people. "Who they?"
"They're some old...friends," Oz hesitated in his answer.
"Oh," Jared cocked his head and studied the two people for a second before smiling. "Hi! I'm Jared!"
"H-Hi, Jared. I'm Willow," the redhead forced herself to say. When Angel said nothing, she elbowed him out of his trance. "Angel! Say hi!"
Angel snapped his mouth, which had been gaping, shut. The presence of the little boy had surprised him, but even more so there was something familiar about him. "Uh, hello Jared. My name is Angel."
"Angel," Jared giggled. "That's a silly name!"
Angel couldn't help but grin at the child's exuberance. "Yeah, it is."
"Jared!" a new voice, a familiar voice, sounded loudly from nearby. "Didn't I tell not to run around the store?"
All four heads turned to watch as the speaker rounded the corner of the aisle and walked toward them. The female's head was down looking into her purse so she didn't notice all the eyes on her. They all noticed her, though, and the shock left them speechless.
"Oz? Do you-," her words abruptly cut off as she finally looked up and found herself the focus of not just Oz and Jared's attention, but also others. Two others who she dearly wished she wasn't seeing. The stuffed dinosaur she held in one of her hands fell carelessly to the ground.
"Mommy!" Jared shrieked giddily and squirmed out of Oz's arms. Once on the floor he picked up the dinosaur and reached for Buffy to pick him up. It took him a minute to get her attention, but she eventually complied.
Angel's jaw dropped once again at the sight of the woman who forever haunted his memory. He couldn't believe she was standing in front of him staring with the same level of shock in her eyes as his. She looked absolutely beautiful, as she always did. Her body was a bit fuller than before, but it looked good on her. His heart couldn't help but clench as he watched her holding the little boy in her arms.
"B-Buffy," he whispered hoarsely.
The stunned silence Buffy found herself in quickly wore off. Her shoulders straightened as she realized she had no choice but to face the two people from her past. "Angel," she spoke not coldly, but not in a friendly manner either.
Willow had yet to say a word. Her mind was racing, her eyes darting between the people before her. Oz. Buffy. Child...Oz....Buffy. She didn't like where her thoughts were taking her. But when Buffy raised her hand to shift Jared in her arms her suspicions were confirmed. A shiny gold band rested on Buffy's ring finger. A quick check of her ex-boyfriend revealed that he, too, wore one.
"Oh, Goddess...you...you're...but..." Tears formed in her eyes as she struggled to form a coherent sentence. Not able to face what was obvious, Willow turned and fled from the store.
It took only a moment for Angel to realize what had thrown Willow so severely. Even if he hadn't seen the rings, though, he would have known. They were together, and obviously had a child. Any remaining whole piece of his heart shattered. Buffy was truly gone to him. Whatever passive hope he still had somewhere inside of him that someday they'd reunite was effectively crushed.
"I-I....I better go," he stuttered uncomfortably. Being around Buffy when she was obviously happy was too much. "It was good to see you." Without waiting for a reply, he followed Willow's lead and left.
Oz and Buffy stood in silence in the aftermath of the unexpected confrontation. The last thing they thought would happen on their outing to the toy store was a chance meeting with their former lovers. It was a little unnerving to say the least.
"You okay?" Oz turned and faced Buffy.
"Yeah," Buffy sighed, forcing a smile onto her face for Jared's sake. "It's just...well, you know."
"Yeah," Oz nodded his head in agreement. Seeing Willow again after such a long time wasn't something he could just forget about.
"A-are they...together?" Buffy wondered out loud.
Oz thought for a second, relying on what his enhanced sense of smell told him. "I don't think so."
"Mommy! Ice cream!" Jared interrupted and lightly pulled on Buffy's hair.
"Oh, yeah," Buffy pulled herself out of her distraction and focused her attention on her son. "Let's go pay for this, huh?" she held up the stuffed dinosaur Jared had picked out.
"Yay!" he cheered, hugging the animal to his chest.
All thoughts of their exes were pushed from their minds as they went and paid for the toy and then left the store. Neither Buffy nor Oz noticed as they walked down the street arm in arm, laughing over something Jared said, that they were being watched by two broken hearted people.
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TBC!!
Chapter 4! Angel's story and some other fun stuff ahead *g*
IMPORTANT: ~after~ this part is where the two different endings break off. The non-B/A ending will be labeled 5a & 6a, and the B/A ending will be labeled 5b &6b. I'll be posting the non-B/A one first. I hope you will all take the time to read both because I think each has something to offer.
Thank you so much to everyone who has sent feedback. The response to this fic has been overwhelming and I'm so glad you are enjoying reading this fic!
~Isis
***
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Part 4
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~New Orleans – approximately five years later~
Angel disinterestedly lagged behind Willow as she window shopped on one of the quaint New Orleans streets. He didn't know why she'd made him come on this trip with her. She'd specifically flown up from Arizona and barged into his apartment telling him he was going to accompany her on the business trip she had to go on. When he asked why she told him he needed to stop sitting in his dark apartment brooding and get out for a little while. He tried to tell her no, but she practically twisted his arm and made him go pack.
So now he was stuck following her around New Orleans while she did a little shopping in her free time. The happy, laughing people that kept brushing past him made him nauseous. He didn't like being in crowds. Staying back at the hotel had been his activity of choice for the afternoon, but Willow demanded he go shopping with her and pushed him out the door before he had a chance to say no. Why couldn't people just let him brood in peace?
A burst of flirty laughter drew Angel out of his internal monologue and his eyes rose to land on a young couple sitting on a bench, locked in a loving kiss. His heart ached at the sight. They looked so happy. He couldn't fight the pangs of regret that shot through him. Nor could he stop the little voice in his head that told him he could have been like that couple if he hadn't made such a mess of his life. It wasn't shocking, he supposed, that he'd screwed up yet one more thing in his pathetic existence. His life, dating back to his original human days, was rife with mistakes, and it didn't seem like he'd be stopping that pattern anytime soon.
Nearly five years ago, despite all that happened, he'd gone ahead and married Nina anyway. In retrospect, it was the wrong thing to do. Not only had he cheated on her the day before the wedding, but he'd been forced to realize that his heart would always be with Buffy. Still, he pushed all that aside and continued on with the marriage. He thought he owed it to Nina not to back out.
The blonde werewolf had become a bright spot in his dark lonely world over the years. He helped her learn to cope with the demon inside of her, and then later she was there for him when his Shanshu finally occurred. His reward came with the final defeat of Wolfram and Hart and with that everything changed. Becoming human again hadn't been an easy adjustment for him. He was no longer a demon, no longer drank blood, no longer feared sunlight, no longer had super strength, no longer fought evil, and so many other things. It overwhelmed him at first, but Nina was there through it all. She pushed him out into the real, human, living world and got him back on his feet.
Their friendship grew into more over the following months, and he allowed it. Thoughts of another blonde, a feisty Slayer, occasionally plagued his thoughts, but in those times he reminded himself of Willow's words about Buffy's new life. She was happy and settled. Her life, for so long had been a constant battle and had what he'd always wanted for her. She certainly didn't need him barging in and ruining everything that she'd worked so hard for. So he focused his attention on Nina, and when his friends pushed and encouraged him to take the next step he followed, and proposed marriage. She happily accepted and they spent months planning a lavish wedding for their friends and families to attend.
Angel knew now he should have called it off. The encounter with Buffy just before the wedding changed everything, changed him. Feelings long buried once again rose to the surface and he was lost in the unconditional love she'd always bestowed upon him. He should have never let what happened with Buffy occur before they had a chance to talk, but they'd both succumbed to their passions before either knew what hit them. Then he'd broken her heart by telling her of his upcoming marriage.
Gods, he was stupid. He'd had every intention of going to Nina and telling her he couldn't marry her, but then Willow's call came explaining to him her encounter with Buffy. He knew then that it was hopeless. Any chance of making things right was lost. So instead of going to his future wife and breaking things off, he went to her and begged her forgiveness for cheating on her the night before. He never told her the specifics then and let her assume it was a drunken encounter at his bachelor party. She forgave his mistake, and the wedding went on as planned.
The marriage lasted not even two years. He stopped being the man she helped him become after his Shanshu and retreated into himself. Guilt ate away at him over his treatment of Buffy and marrying Nina even though he was never really in love with her. He didn't know if she was ever in love with him, but they had always been comfortable with each other. Their relationship was one built upon deep friendship. After the wedding, though, even that disappeared.
She tried her hardest to make things work between them, but one night they got into a particularly loud argument over his lack of interest in pretty much anything. Everything came out that night; his one night stand with Buffy before the wedding, his returned feelings for her, his previous relationship with her, his thoughts of calling off the wedding, his guilt over getting married anyway, everything. Nina was utterly shocked by it all, never before knowing about the woman named Buffy, and she knew in an instant that anything she had or might have had with Angel was over. Three weeks later she filed for divorce.
They managed to part amicably, both agreeing the marriage should never have occurred. Once a month they still talked, but their friendship was irrevocably damaged by all that happened between them. A year ago, she married a writer and he was happy for her. The couple was now pregnant with their first child and Angel found himself glad that at least he hadn't ruined her life.
His, though, was another story. The three years since the divorce seemed darker than any he spent as a vampire. His days were spent floundering in his apartment painting bleak visions on white canvases. If he wasn't painting, he was sketching. Myriads of drawings, most of a certain blonde, littered the walls and floors of his apartment. And if he wasn't sketching he was sitting in the dark brooding. It was a lonely life, but he felt he deserved it.
Not long after the divorce he tried to find Buffy. No one had heard from her or seen her since the confrontation two years earlier. She never returned to her hotel or her apartment in San Francisco. It was as if she fell off the face of the earth. A little hacking by Willow right after her disappearance revealed to them the large cash withdrawl at an ATM the night of their argument. From there, not a trace of her could be found. Willow actively looked for a year after their fight, and kept Angel informed, but eventually she gave up. He renewed the search for her after the divorce, but never found even the slightest clue as to her whereabouts. Buffy had managed to hide herself away some place where no one could find her.
That was close to three years ago and since then his life was a vast wasteland of loneliness, regrets, and guilt precipitating Willow's little forced vacation. He didn't want to be here in this city with all of its bubbling happiness. He wanted to be back in his apartment alone with a good bottle of Irish whiskey and his thoughts. Another two days of this annoyance and he'd be back in LA where he swore he was never going to answer his door again.
"Can we go back to the hotel yet?" he nearly whined to Willow who was gazing at a ruby necklace in the window of a jewelry store.
"In a little bit," she sighed and rolled her eyes. "You really know how to suck the life out of everything you know that? No pun intended."
"I don't like it here," Angel grumbled, stuffing his hands in his pockets.
"Fine. I just want to go to that toy store up ahead and pick up something to send to Xander," she explained, referring to her friend who married three years earlier and had a two year old daughter.
Angel rolled his eyes and groaned but followed anyway. A toy store was the last place he wanted to go. The place was likely to be swarming with kids running up and down the aisles. Not that he didn't love kids because he did, really. They were just another reminder of how empty his life was. If he hadn't of royally fucked things up years ago he could be with Buffy right now and have children with her. But he had ruined everything, and now he was alone.
The two quickly reached the toy store and entered into the small shop. Angel was glad to find that the place wasn't overly busy. There seemed to be only a few adults and children milling about. Not knowing what else to do in a place he had no use for, Angel merely trailed behind Willow as she searched for a gift to send to her friend's child.
Willow turned to face Angel when she noticed that all he was doing was following her. "You could actually, ya know, look around."
"Why?" Angel looked at her and frowned.
"Because we're in a store. A place where people shop so you should...shop," she told him as if it were obvious, and stepped backwards without paying attention.
"Willow, watch out!" Angel swiftly warned her when he saw she was about to walk into someone bending over looking at something on a low shelf.
"What? Oomph!" Too late. The redhead tripped over the other shopper kneeling near the ground, knocking him over but managing to keep herself from falling by grabbing onto the closest shelf.
"Oh, Goddess! I am sooo sorry!" Her face flushed red in embarrassment as she apologized and offered a hand to the man pulling himself up off the ground.
The man in question froze at the sound of her voice. His head shot up, eyes widened, as he took in the face of the person who had tripped over him. "Willow?"
"Oz?" the redhead yelped, stumbling back a few steps in shock. She was wholly unprepared to find herself face to face with her former boyfriend.
"Uh, yeah," the stoic musician finished pulling himself up off the ground, warily studying the redhead. Unnoticed to her, his eyes nervously darted to the left for a moment before returning to meet her gaze.
"I...umm....hi...uh...look, Angel...it's, uh, Oz," she stammered uncertainly.
Oz's head whipped around to face the person he hadn't even known was there. He startled slightly at finding the former vampire fidgeting behind him. It took a moment for him to gather his bearings before greeting the other man. "Angel."
The coldness in the werewolf's voice was immediately obvious to Angel and his brow furrowed as he wondered at the unfriendly salutation. "Hello, Oz."
"So, you're, uh, here...in New Orleans," Willow moved around to stand near Angel.
"Yeah," Oz answered simply all the while wondering if he'd be able to get rid of the two before things got ugly.
"H-How long have you been here?" Willow asked for lack of anything better to say. She was still trying to get over the shock of the random meeting with someone from her past.
"Few years," he shrugged in response. Every so often, his eyes would glance to the left as if watching out for someone.
"Oh, uh, we're...well, me actually...I'm here on, uh, business...and, umm, I made Angel come along," she babbled out the explanation for their presence in New Orleans.
"Cool," Oz stated in his usual lack of words. His eyes suddenly widened when he heard giggling laughter reach his ears. Only moments later, the pitter patter of little feet followed and he felt something latch onto his leg.
"Wanna get ice cream now!" a child's voice spoke causing Willow to gasp. She watched as her ex-boyfriend reached down to pick up a little boy who appeared to be three, maybe four years old.
"It's a little early for ice cream, don't ya think?" Oz ruffled his hair as the little boy settled into his arms.
"I-is that your...," Willow trailed off, not wanting to say the final word.
Oz turned to face the two people from his past and looked at them for a moment before sighing. "This is Jared."
The little boy clung to Oz as he noticed the strangers staring at him. He tugged at Oz's sleeve and pointed to the new people. "Who they?"
"They're some old...friends," Oz hesitated in his answer.
"Oh," Jared cocked his head and studied the two people for a second before smiling. "Hi! I'm Jared!"
"H-Hi, Jared. I'm Willow," the redhead forced herself to say. When Angel said nothing, she elbowed him out of his trance. "Angel! Say hi!"
Angel snapped his mouth, which had been gaping, shut. The presence of the little boy had surprised him, but even more so there was something familiar about him. "Uh, hello Jared. My name is Angel."
"Angel," Jared giggled. "That's a silly name!"
Angel couldn't help but grin at the child's exuberance. "Yeah, it is."
"Jared!" a new voice, a familiar voice, sounded loudly from nearby. "Didn't I tell not to run around the store?"
All four heads turned to watch as the speaker rounded the corner of the aisle and walked toward them. The female's head was down looking into her purse so she didn't notice all the eyes on her. They all noticed her, though, and the shock left them speechless.
"Oz? Do you-," her words abruptly cut off as she finally looked up and found herself the focus of not just Oz and Jared's attention, but also others. Two others who she dearly wished she wasn't seeing. The stuffed dinosaur she held in one of her hands fell carelessly to the ground.
"Mommy!" Jared shrieked giddily and squirmed out of Oz's arms. Once on the floor he picked up the dinosaur and reached for Buffy to pick him up. It took him a minute to get her attention, but she eventually complied.
Angel's jaw dropped once again at the sight of the woman who forever haunted his memory. He couldn't believe she was standing in front of him staring with the same level of shock in her eyes as his. She looked absolutely beautiful, as she always did. Her body was a bit fuller than before, but it looked good on her. His heart couldn't help but clench as he watched her holding the little boy in her arms.
"B-Buffy," he whispered hoarsely.
The stunned silence Buffy found herself in quickly wore off. Her shoulders straightened as she realized she had no choice but to face the two people from her past. "Angel," she spoke not coldly, but not in a friendly manner either.
Willow had yet to say a word. Her mind was racing, her eyes darting between the people before her. Oz. Buffy. Child...Oz....Buffy. She didn't like where her thoughts were taking her. But when Buffy raised her hand to shift Jared in her arms her suspicions were confirmed. A shiny gold band rested on Buffy's ring finger. A quick check of her ex-boyfriend revealed that he, too, wore one.
"Oh, Goddess...you...you're...but..." Tears formed in her eyes as she struggled to form a coherent sentence. Not able to face what was obvious, Willow turned and fled from the store.
It took only a moment for Angel to realize what had thrown Willow so severely. Even if he hadn't seen the rings, though, he would have known. They were together, and obviously had a child. Any remaining whole piece of his heart shattered. Buffy was truly gone to him. Whatever passive hope he still had somewhere inside of him that someday they'd reunite was effectively crushed.
"I-I....I better go," he stuttered uncomfortably. Being around Buffy when she was obviously happy was too much. "It was good to see you." Without waiting for a reply, he followed Willow's lead and left.
Oz and Buffy stood in silence in the aftermath of the unexpected confrontation. The last thing they thought would happen on their outing to the toy store was a chance meeting with their former lovers. It was a little unnerving to say the least.
"You okay?" Oz turned and faced Buffy.
"Yeah," Buffy sighed, forcing a smile onto her face for Jared's sake. "It's just...well, you know."
"Yeah," Oz nodded his head in agreement. Seeing Willow again after such a long time wasn't something he could just forget about.
"A-are they...together?" Buffy wondered out loud.
Oz thought for a second, relying on what his enhanced sense of smell told him. "I don't think so."
"Mommy! Ice cream!" Jared interrupted and lightly pulled on Buffy's hair.
"Oh, yeah," Buffy pulled herself out of her distraction and focused her attention on her son. "Let's go pay for this, huh?" she held up the stuffed dinosaur Jared had picked out.
"Yay!" he cheered, hugging the animal to his chest.
All thoughts of their exes were pushed from their minds as they went and paid for the toy and then left the store. Neither Buffy nor Oz noticed as they walked down the street arm in arm, laughing over something Jared said, that they were being watched by two broken hearted people.
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TBC!!