Author: Emba
Disclaimer: Not mine!
Authors Note: Sorry about the last chapter and its weird misspellings and how it was...just kinda of messed up. This is my first ff.net story so I'm still trying to figure everything out. On another note, I think I'm going to stay with Buffy's POV for the most part, but I might change to Angel's once in a while, if the mood strikes me. Oh yes, and there are a few *gasp* bad words. Well, a few and I guess they're bad. Oh well, don't say you weren't warned! Enjoy this chapter!
*
Silence. Complete silence. Well, at least at our table.
This is the scene: Cordelia asking Angel out, Angel stuttering like an idiot, Xander laughing, Willow frowning, and me chewing on my lip and musing about how this is the way I'm going to die.
And it's true.
"Uh...tonight?" He asks, trying to stall. Or at least I think he's trying to stall. Maybe he's overcome with joy and he can't even speak!!! Or maybe the idea of Cordelia and himself going out makes him...stutter. Those were too many or's!
Cordelia nods, her demeanor lessening in pride after hearing Angel question her. "Yeah. Tonight. Bronze. You. Me. Some other people. You can't hang out with these losers all the time."
"Losers?" Xander repeats.
Cordelia nods again, and sighs. Hah! She's obviously frustrated. "Yes, you, Alexander 'My Parents Are Drunks' Harris, Willow 'I Have No Life' Rosenburg, and Buffy 'I Only *Have* One Parent' Summers."
Oh no she didn't!
Xander's parents are not drunks! Mrs. Harris actually bakes really good...pre-made cookies... And Willow always has something to do, whether it is school, or an extra curricular activity, or ANYTHING. She DOES have a life!
And I don't want to comment on what she said about me. I do have one parent. Big deal. My dad was a jackass.
Angel looks uncomfortable; he looks at each of our faces, mainly at mine, to see any inch of pain. He then looks back to Cordelia, and opens his mouth to say something...
"Well, I guess I'll see you at the Bronze, Angel! Be there at 8:00 sharp!" She says, cheerily, walking away to her entourage.
I glance back at my empty tray, where my jello was once. Well, I obviously can't eat. Why am I still here? I grab my bag from my chair, right before Angel places a hand on my shoulder. "Are you okay?"
I smile weakly. Hopefully not too weak. "Peachy." I walk away before he gets to say anything else.
My life is crap.
*
"Buffy, wait up!" I turn around to find Angel chasing after me. School's over and I managed to get through the day without a break down. I'm that talented.
I stop and patiently wait for Angel to catch up, all the while asking myself why I thought Angel wouldn't see me walk home because we live RIGHT NEXT TO EACH OTHER. I knew I was dense!
He finally catches up to me, and asks this question again, "Are you okay?"
"Me? I'm fine!" I flash him my fakest, and brightest smile. He frowns instantly. I knew he wouldn't buy it. "No, you're not."
I sigh and shrug. He continues, saying, "I know what Cordelia said upset you. I know you don't like to think about your father... at all."
"I wish I couldn't think about him. But, the wounds are still fresh, you know? He doesn't even return mom's calls. The last time I heard from him was...three years ago when he told me he couldn't take me to our annual ice show." I sigh again, and this time, I don't hold back a small sniffle.
He puts one of his large arms around me and guides me over to the little swing chair in front of his house. See? He has to stop it with this stuff! It only makes me swoony!
He holds me as I cry and I could care less if he's going to the Bronze and Cordelia's going to be pawing at him all night or if I ever hear from my dad again because...well, this is all I need right here. My best friend.
*
"Honey, I'm home!" My mother yells, entering our house. I debate the notion of going over to her, or staying in my room.
Well...that debate didn't take long. I'm going to stay in my nice, comfy, air-conditioned room.
"Buffy? Are you going to come down here? I have a present for you!" My mother calls again, this time I suspect she's in the kitchen.
Oooh present! I have to go down there now. This present is either bribery or...no, it's probably just bribery for something.
I run down the stairs and enter the kitchen, and I notice I'm already smiling. Presents make happy!
"Present? Where?" I say, looking around the kitchen for it. My mom chuckles and leans down to pick something up from the ground. "Well, it's not a permanent present, unless you want it to be."
What could *not* be permanent? Shoes? Oh I love shoes! Or maybe a whole outfit! With shoes!
She picks up whatever she had on the floor and...
"It's a puppy. Since, your birthday is coming up very soon, and you don't have any brothers or sisters, I thought you'd enjoy this." She looks at my face and then continues on, "It was a woman at the gallery's, but her kids hate animals so she wanted to know if anyone wanted it." Since my expression is STILL surprised she says, "It's only temporary if you want it to be." She sighs, as no reaction is coming from me.
"I know you probably wanted shoes, but I think a change was in order. It's a golden retriever boy, named Sunny. I thought you would like it." She comes over to me and hands me the puppy.
"What do you think, Buffy?"
I smile at her. "Well, I can't say I was expecting this...I was actually thinking about shoes...but, puppies are cute." I beam at her, trying to my best to convince her.
"Good. It's settled. I think I'll like having a dog around, won't you?"
And she gets it in one. I knew I could count on my mom to be fooled.
"Oh, yeah. Dogs are great."
Actually, I don't know how I feel about this puppy thing. It's a cute puppy, believe me. Dogs are cute and stuff...But, I can't take care of things. I broke my giga-pet when I sat on it. My goldfish always died because I'd either give them too much to each or I would forget to feed them at all! So how am I supposed to take care of a *puppy*?
This is typical Joyce Summers. She buys me something that (usually) I can't handle. Like those goldfish! Goldfish are hard to take care of, you know? Well, at least when you're me.
"Honey, I'm going out to dinner with a friend, there's some left overs in the refrigerator, okay? I'll be back soon! Love you!" And with that, the door slams shut.
So, here I am, holding a puppy, in my kitchen, and staring the refrigerator. What left overs is she talking about? When was the last time we *ate* dinner together? Like, July 1999? Those left overs are probably ancient! They probably have dust and mold on them!
Looks like I'll be having a pizza night tonight.
Yippee.
*
"That'll be $19.99." The delivery guy says as he hands me the pizza. I swear, Bob's Pizza O' Rama is getting pricey lately. And I'm not rich! I don't even have a job. It's sad, really...
I hand him the money and he nods, and walks off to his great big (dorky) pizza delivery car. And suddenly, I'm glad I don't have a job. Well, at least one that makes you drive around in that 'make fun of me' machine.
I set the pizza down and the back door swings open. I jump and turn to see who's there. "Hey! I thought I smelled something good."
"Angel! What the hell are you doing?" I ask, as my mystery guest opens up MY dinner and takes a piece. "And *how* exactly can you smell the pizza if you live all the way next door?"
He shrugs casually and eats away. "It's a sixth sense." Angel looks around the empty kitchen. "Your mom not home again?"
"She's going out with a friend... or a client or something." I say, taking out the dog food my mom bought and pouring it a bowl. I look up and Angel's looking at my curiously. "Dog food? Interesting choice for dinner even though pizza's right here."
I narrow my eyes at him. "Pizza that *you* are eating." He polishes off his second piece, which leaves the rest for me. "So, what's with the dog food?"
"Mom bought me a dog for my birthday." I can almost hear him choke on his last bite of pizza. "What? She...wants a change or something."
He's laughing so hard his face is red. "You can't take care of a dog! Remember when you killed Goldy?" He always brings up Goldy! I told you, it's hard to care of gold fish!
"Yeah, well...this time, I'll remember to feed the thing." I place the bowl down and the puppy runs to it, munching away at the food.
Angel chuckles a bit, and sighs. "Are you coming to the Bronze tonight?" He says, suddenly serious.
I sigh too. This isn't a subject I was *dying* to discuss. "I don't know. Maybe." I reply, trying to give my best performance with the 'I don't really care' act. Maybe it's working...
"You're mad at me, aren't you?" Oh crap.
"No, why would I be mad at you?" I ask, keeping my eyes away from him. "Because, I didn't say no to Cordelia, the bitch of the year."
I turn to him, this time locking our eyes. "Yes, and *why* exactly is that?"
"I don't know. I didn't say 'yes' or 'no'. She invited me and then told me to come at 8:00. I didn't have time to protest."
Oh, sure. "Lovin' that excuse, Angel." Angel sighs, "I knew you were mad."
"It's not that I'm mad...It's just...Do you remember that time Willow, Xander, you and me started the 'I Hate Cordelia' club? You were President! It's just a little weird to think you and her are going out on a date."
"It's not a date. I don't even think I'm going to go." He states, peering in to the pizza box again.
Oh thank GOD! He might not go! That'll show Cordelia she can't get everyone she wants. "Oh. How come?" I say as casually as possible.
"Because I don't like her. In any way." Inwardly, I'm smiling so hard my face could get stuck that way. And that would be bad because....ow.
I nod and pick up Sonny, the puppy, and pet him. "What're you gonna do then?"
He shrugs, and then suddenly smiles a full-blown smile. I love it when he does that! It's so cute because he hardly ever does it and--
"How about a movie fest? Remember? We used to have them all the time when we were kids." He says, interrupting my thoughts.
I smile wistfully. "Of course I remember. Like the time we watched 'It' and after you were totally afraid of clowns."
"I am not afraid of clowns. They're just... creepy. And you were scared too! You almost cried." He answers defensively. "Hey! At least I *almost* cried, compared to you who *did*!" I reply, laughter lacy through my statement.
"I did not cry! It was the onion dip for our chips. It made my eyes water."
"Sure, whatever."
"It's true!"
"Okay, you keep telling yourself that."
TBC...
This wasn't a much-needed chapter, but I wanted to have one with mushy best friend stuff, even if Buffy's got a crush on Angel. And a huge thank you to Tariq, Jennifer, Maleah Daila, Cape, Shahid, Angel Davies, BwoulwBme, and spoiledsquish. Please keep reviewing! It makes life that much better! And, to those who wanted me to add some other BtVs characters, I am. Either next chapter or maybe the next two ones. Hope you enjoyed this chapter!
Disclaimer: Not mine!
Authors Note: Sorry about the last chapter and its weird misspellings and how it was...just kinda of messed up. This is my first ff.net story so I'm still trying to figure everything out. On another note, I think I'm going to stay with Buffy's POV for the most part, but I might change to Angel's once in a while, if the mood strikes me. Oh yes, and there are a few *gasp* bad words. Well, a few and I guess they're bad. Oh well, don't say you weren't warned! Enjoy this chapter!
*
Silence. Complete silence. Well, at least at our table.
This is the scene: Cordelia asking Angel out, Angel stuttering like an idiot, Xander laughing, Willow frowning, and me chewing on my lip and musing about how this is the way I'm going to die.
And it's true.
"Uh...tonight?" He asks, trying to stall. Or at least I think he's trying to stall. Maybe he's overcome with joy and he can't even speak!!! Or maybe the idea of Cordelia and himself going out makes him...stutter. Those were too many or's!
Cordelia nods, her demeanor lessening in pride after hearing Angel question her. "Yeah. Tonight. Bronze. You. Me. Some other people. You can't hang out with these losers all the time."
"Losers?" Xander repeats.
Cordelia nods again, and sighs. Hah! She's obviously frustrated. "Yes, you, Alexander 'My Parents Are Drunks' Harris, Willow 'I Have No Life' Rosenburg, and Buffy 'I Only *Have* One Parent' Summers."
Oh no she didn't!
Xander's parents are not drunks! Mrs. Harris actually bakes really good...pre-made cookies... And Willow always has something to do, whether it is school, or an extra curricular activity, or ANYTHING. She DOES have a life!
And I don't want to comment on what she said about me. I do have one parent. Big deal. My dad was a jackass.
Angel looks uncomfortable; he looks at each of our faces, mainly at mine, to see any inch of pain. He then looks back to Cordelia, and opens his mouth to say something...
"Well, I guess I'll see you at the Bronze, Angel! Be there at 8:00 sharp!" She says, cheerily, walking away to her entourage.
I glance back at my empty tray, where my jello was once. Well, I obviously can't eat. Why am I still here? I grab my bag from my chair, right before Angel places a hand on my shoulder. "Are you okay?"
I smile weakly. Hopefully not too weak. "Peachy." I walk away before he gets to say anything else.
My life is crap.
*
"Buffy, wait up!" I turn around to find Angel chasing after me. School's over and I managed to get through the day without a break down. I'm that talented.
I stop and patiently wait for Angel to catch up, all the while asking myself why I thought Angel wouldn't see me walk home because we live RIGHT NEXT TO EACH OTHER. I knew I was dense!
He finally catches up to me, and asks this question again, "Are you okay?"
"Me? I'm fine!" I flash him my fakest, and brightest smile. He frowns instantly. I knew he wouldn't buy it. "No, you're not."
I sigh and shrug. He continues, saying, "I know what Cordelia said upset you. I know you don't like to think about your father... at all."
"I wish I couldn't think about him. But, the wounds are still fresh, you know? He doesn't even return mom's calls. The last time I heard from him was...three years ago when he told me he couldn't take me to our annual ice show." I sigh again, and this time, I don't hold back a small sniffle.
He puts one of his large arms around me and guides me over to the little swing chair in front of his house. See? He has to stop it with this stuff! It only makes me swoony!
He holds me as I cry and I could care less if he's going to the Bronze and Cordelia's going to be pawing at him all night or if I ever hear from my dad again because...well, this is all I need right here. My best friend.
*
"Honey, I'm home!" My mother yells, entering our house. I debate the notion of going over to her, or staying in my room.
Well...that debate didn't take long. I'm going to stay in my nice, comfy, air-conditioned room.
"Buffy? Are you going to come down here? I have a present for you!" My mother calls again, this time I suspect she's in the kitchen.
Oooh present! I have to go down there now. This present is either bribery or...no, it's probably just bribery for something.
I run down the stairs and enter the kitchen, and I notice I'm already smiling. Presents make happy!
"Present? Where?" I say, looking around the kitchen for it. My mom chuckles and leans down to pick something up from the ground. "Well, it's not a permanent present, unless you want it to be."
What could *not* be permanent? Shoes? Oh I love shoes! Or maybe a whole outfit! With shoes!
She picks up whatever she had on the floor and...
"It's a puppy. Since, your birthday is coming up very soon, and you don't have any brothers or sisters, I thought you'd enjoy this." She looks at my face and then continues on, "It was a woman at the gallery's, but her kids hate animals so she wanted to know if anyone wanted it." Since my expression is STILL surprised she says, "It's only temporary if you want it to be." She sighs, as no reaction is coming from me.
"I know you probably wanted shoes, but I think a change was in order. It's a golden retriever boy, named Sunny. I thought you would like it." She comes over to me and hands me the puppy.
"What do you think, Buffy?"
I smile at her. "Well, I can't say I was expecting this...I was actually thinking about shoes...but, puppies are cute." I beam at her, trying to my best to convince her.
"Good. It's settled. I think I'll like having a dog around, won't you?"
And she gets it in one. I knew I could count on my mom to be fooled.
"Oh, yeah. Dogs are great."
Actually, I don't know how I feel about this puppy thing. It's a cute puppy, believe me. Dogs are cute and stuff...But, I can't take care of things. I broke my giga-pet when I sat on it. My goldfish always died because I'd either give them too much to each or I would forget to feed them at all! So how am I supposed to take care of a *puppy*?
This is typical Joyce Summers. She buys me something that (usually) I can't handle. Like those goldfish! Goldfish are hard to take care of, you know? Well, at least when you're me.
"Honey, I'm going out to dinner with a friend, there's some left overs in the refrigerator, okay? I'll be back soon! Love you!" And with that, the door slams shut.
So, here I am, holding a puppy, in my kitchen, and staring the refrigerator. What left overs is she talking about? When was the last time we *ate* dinner together? Like, July 1999? Those left overs are probably ancient! They probably have dust and mold on them!
Looks like I'll be having a pizza night tonight.
Yippee.
*
"That'll be $19.99." The delivery guy says as he hands me the pizza. I swear, Bob's Pizza O' Rama is getting pricey lately. And I'm not rich! I don't even have a job. It's sad, really...
I hand him the money and he nods, and walks off to his great big (dorky) pizza delivery car. And suddenly, I'm glad I don't have a job. Well, at least one that makes you drive around in that 'make fun of me' machine.
I set the pizza down and the back door swings open. I jump and turn to see who's there. "Hey! I thought I smelled something good."
"Angel! What the hell are you doing?" I ask, as my mystery guest opens up MY dinner and takes a piece. "And *how* exactly can you smell the pizza if you live all the way next door?"
He shrugs casually and eats away. "It's a sixth sense." Angel looks around the empty kitchen. "Your mom not home again?"
"She's going out with a friend... or a client or something." I say, taking out the dog food my mom bought and pouring it a bowl. I look up and Angel's looking at my curiously. "Dog food? Interesting choice for dinner even though pizza's right here."
I narrow my eyes at him. "Pizza that *you* are eating." He polishes off his second piece, which leaves the rest for me. "So, what's with the dog food?"
"Mom bought me a dog for my birthday." I can almost hear him choke on his last bite of pizza. "What? She...wants a change or something."
He's laughing so hard his face is red. "You can't take care of a dog! Remember when you killed Goldy?" He always brings up Goldy! I told you, it's hard to care of gold fish!
"Yeah, well...this time, I'll remember to feed the thing." I place the bowl down and the puppy runs to it, munching away at the food.
Angel chuckles a bit, and sighs. "Are you coming to the Bronze tonight?" He says, suddenly serious.
I sigh too. This isn't a subject I was *dying* to discuss. "I don't know. Maybe." I reply, trying to give my best performance with the 'I don't really care' act. Maybe it's working...
"You're mad at me, aren't you?" Oh crap.
"No, why would I be mad at you?" I ask, keeping my eyes away from him. "Because, I didn't say no to Cordelia, the bitch of the year."
I turn to him, this time locking our eyes. "Yes, and *why* exactly is that?"
"I don't know. I didn't say 'yes' or 'no'. She invited me and then told me to come at 8:00. I didn't have time to protest."
Oh, sure. "Lovin' that excuse, Angel." Angel sighs, "I knew you were mad."
"It's not that I'm mad...It's just...Do you remember that time Willow, Xander, you and me started the 'I Hate Cordelia' club? You were President! It's just a little weird to think you and her are going out on a date."
"It's not a date. I don't even think I'm going to go." He states, peering in to the pizza box again.
Oh thank GOD! He might not go! That'll show Cordelia she can't get everyone she wants. "Oh. How come?" I say as casually as possible.
"Because I don't like her. In any way." Inwardly, I'm smiling so hard my face could get stuck that way. And that would be bad because....ow.
I nod and pick up Sonny, the puppy, and pet him. "What're you gonna do then?"
He shrugs, and then suddenly smiles a full-blown smile. I love it when he does that! It's so cute because he hardly ever does it and--
"How about a movie fest? Remember? We used to have them all the time when we were kids." He says, interrupting my thoughts.
I smile wistfully. "Of course I remember. Like the time we watched 'It' and after you were totally afraid of clowns."
"I am not afraid of clowns. They're just... creepy. And you were scared too! You almost cried." He answers defensively. "Hey! At least I *almost* cried, compared to you who *did*!" I reply, laughter lacy through my statement.
"I did not cry! It was the onion dip for our chips. It made my eyes water."
"Sure, whatever."
"It's true!"
"Okay, you keep telling yourself that."
TBC...
This wasn't a much-needed chapter, but I wanted to have one with mushy best friend stuff, even if Buffy's got a crush on Angel. And a huge thank you to Tariq, Jennifer, Maleah Daila, Cape, Shahid, Angel Davies, BwoulwBme, and spoiledsquish. Please keep reviewing! It makes life that much better! And, to those who wanted me to add some other BtVs characters, I am. Either next chapter or maybe the next two ones. Hope you enjoyed this chapter!