an- sorry it's so long in coming. I re-read Flat Mates yesterday, and got a great big kick in the ass to get it finished up soon. Also, when I searched the hard drive for where I had hidden them away, I realized that all this time, I had about a third of this chapter all ready finished. Hope you enjoy. I expect there will be 1 more chapter after this, is all. Read and Review, as always. -Gilly
Buffy looked out the window of the diner. She had been working for 2 hours already, but every time the door opened, she expected to see him walk through. She had been a coward, and sent Xander home to retrieve the forgotten uniform, though he reported that if Will was home, he was locked away in his room, dead to the world. Still, Buffy couldn't shake the feeling that he was going to show up, and possibly cause trouble.
"Hey, where's my food? I ordered it nearly 20 minutes ago!" Buffy glanced at the surly trucker at the counter, and apologized before going into the back to grab the tray. It had been set under a heat lamp for several minutes, and very nearly burned her fingers as she carried it to the man.
Will observed the diner from the front seat of his car, debating on whether or not to go on in. He didn't want to trouble her more, and causing a scene might just do that. Nevertheless, at the same time, he was concerned about her. No, he thought, no just her, us.
Lying awake in his bed, Will had heard Xander come in quietly that morning, but he remained still. No sense in upsetting the lad again. No, he thought, that'd wait until later. He couldn't even be sure they would be home tonight. Or where they were staying.
With a resigned sigh, he threw the car into drive, and squealed his tires as he drove from the small parking lot. On his way out, Will glanced over and noticed her standing in front of the window, watching him with a shaken expression on her beautiful face. Great, she saw, he thought to himself.
Great, he was here, she thought to herself. Several surprised patrons had looked up at the sudden tire squealing in the parking lot, and watched as the old car tore from the drive as though the hounds of hell were licking at it's feet.
The apprehension Buffy had been feeling lifted a bit, but it still worried her that he had been out there, watching her. Who knew how long he'd been there, either. She found herself shivering, and looked back to the table before pouring coffee with an artificial smile.
Will sat at the table scribbling furiously on a notebook. It had come to him that morning, as he'd waited at the diner. It was her song, about her, about how he felt for her. Since she'd moved in, he'd been on a dry stint with his song writing, but now, it was back. I suppose I have my heartbreak to thank for this, he thought.
With the pencil in his mouth, and the notebook in front of him, Will began to strum out the music on his guitar. After a few mishaps, he had the melody he wanted. A haunting piece of music filled the flat while his foot tapped out a measured rhythm. He started to hum the words along with it, nodding as he went.
This would be his apology, his heart bared for her, no matter how painful it would be for him. Losing her was an even greater wound, and a greater failure. That was to be avoided at all costs. Finally, when he had it down in his head, he pulled out a sheet of blank music paper, and began to fill in all the blanks of the song he simply titled Her.
Buffy waited inside the diner until she saw Xander pull up, and with a glance either way, her small form darted out the door, and into the truck. She pulled the door shut, and looked at Xander.
"He was here, Xan. He came by and was watching me through the window." She looked at the window as they pulled away from the diner, her pale green eyes looking specifically for him. Xander sighed heavily.
"Buff, maybe it's time to go home and talk to him. We don't know what happened yesterday, not without talking to him, first." His eyes were on the road, but he see out of the corner of his eye that Buffy was sitting still, staring out the window. He could hear her sighing.
"Yeah, sure, I guess. I don't want to, but I see your logic. When did you get with the logic?" Buffy turned towards him, and teased him just a bit, before turning to look back outside.
"Oh, you know me, I'm just logic boy. It's a gift, really." Xander's tone was a tad sarcastic, with a bit of teasing gilt on the edge, as well. Buffy turned back towards him with serious eyes.
"Don't leave me there alone? Stay with me?" Her eyes were hopeful, as her teeth tugged at her lower lip. Xander sighed and turned towards her.
"Buff, you need to deal with it, and I can't always be there to hold your hand. Talk to him. I'll be waiting down here until after you talk." He pulled the truck up in front of the building, and nodded to the upstairs window, where lights were on. "Go, listen to him. And for the love of my things, don't throw stuff. And stay out of my room! I still remember the great Parker fest."
Buffy turned and scowled at him, before opening the door, and sliding out of the truck. She stood on the pavement for a moment, the door held open still, her eyes staring up at the shared apartment. Drawing in a deep breath, she propelled herself forward, and slammed the door shut as she hurried towards the front entrance.
Will's ears perked at the sound of the main door downstairs slamming shut. He held his breath as he looked at the door to the apartment. The guitar was balanced on his knees, his arms around it on the right chords.
When he heard the key inserted into the door, his eyes drawn down to the door handle. Almost as if it were in slow motion, Will watched the handle being turned, and then saw the door gap open a tiny bit, almost hesitatingly, before it opened further. Buffy's head poked through, focusing on the living room to the front of her. It took her a moment to see him sitting in the dark, at the kitchen table.
"Will…" she said quietly, as she noticed him. Her eyes were down cast, and she shivered just a bit.
"Buffy, baby, I'm glad you came home." His voice was quiet, and sincere. Will's pale blue eyes were on her, though she wasn't looking up at him. "I know things got out of hand, and I never intended for you to go through it."
Buffy nodded slowly, as her fingers nervously fiddled with the edge of her grease stained apron. Will was silent as she fiddled, and finally, her head rose slowly, until her eyes were locked with his.
Under her eyes were puffy bags, whether from crying, or lack of sleep, Will wasn't certain. He offered her a small smile, hoping she would return it. When she didn't, his feel from his lips.
"I didn't do anything with her, Buff. We talked a lot, and grabbed something to eat, and then she came back here to watch a movie. I… I can't say it felt good, or even innocent, but nothing happened."
"Will, stop. Just stop."
His heart lurched as she asked him to stop. A slight frown wrinkled at his brow as he waited for her to speak again.
"Can we just go back to last week, when things were fine? Before you disappeared? When you acted like you enjoyed being around me?" Will sighed deeply as he listened to her, and his own head dropped this time, his eyes drawn to the carpet under foot.
"Buffy, love, I know you want to know what happened, and I'm sorry I didn't talk to you sooner. Maybe this whole thing could have been avoided, if I had." During a slight pause, Will lifted his head again, and it tilted slightly to the side as he looked back into her eyes.
"Then tell me what happened. Trust me, Will." Her words were spoken quietly, but he could hear the pleading in them.
"That morning, when I didn't come home, Dru and Angel showed up at work. Got the snot beaten from me, before they told me they were getting married, and wanted me there. Now, it doesn't seem like anything, but it hurt." He drew in a steadying breath, and watched her carefully "Compared to how I've made you and myself feel this week, last week was like a bloody prance through a park."
Emotion darkened eyes looked back at his, and Buffy nodded briefly, while waiting for him to finish.
"Point is, Buffy, I've been a daft pounce. Forgive me? I saw you there, in front of me, giving me your heart. But more than that, I saw you taking mine, and I got scared. I… well, to get strait to it, I love you, Buffy."
A small gasp left her mouth, barely audible, as she dropped her nervous hands to her sides. Finally, she nodded her head and took a small step closer to him, as her eyes threatened tears.
"I… I forgive you, Will. Just, can we not do this again? Can we just talk to each other when we need to?"
He smiled again, this time a happier one, and he nodded himself. "Aye, love, we can."
"Will?"
"Yes, love?"
"I love you."
"I love you, too."