Rebuilding Your Life in 10 Easy Steps
Part 5
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Buffy stared hopelessly at her reflection in one of the many cheerfully decorated store windows. 'Silver Bells' played in the background and more people than she thought lived in all of Wisconsin were crushing past her. And she had no idea what to buy for anyone.
Considering he was related to them, William had extremely limited knowledge of his family. How was she, the girlfriend, supposed to know what to buy if an actual blood relative didn't? All he managed to cough up were tidbits, most of which she already knew. Liam loved to act. Angel wanted to be a private investigator, and was quiet. Mr. Giles was a retired librarian. Jenny was into the occult. Darla was an aspiring model. Wesley was a prick. That's great. I'll just head over to 'Pricks R Us ' and pick something up. Fred was from Texas. How perceptive of him.
And up against the monumental task of buying for William's family came the impossible task of buying for William himself. This time it wasn't a matter of not knowing what he would like. There were dozens of possible gift ideas for him. The problem was deciding which. Was it too early to get him something romantic? How expensive should it be? Was he this agonized over her gift? It was the first gift giving holiday they would be spending together and she didn't know the protocol. Riley had never wanted to exchange gifts. That had seemed cold in LA, now it seemed very practical.
"Damn it all," she growled under her breath as a wind-up monkey waved happily from inside the store. Turning away, finally deciding there was probably no chance of the answers to her questions divinely appearing in a toy store window, she continued to stroll through the mall.
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"No, no, that's not right," William growled in frustration and massaged his temples as the very tense clerk bustled away. He was going through hell to find Buffy the perfect present. He'd never bought a present for a female non-relative before. Everything that came to mind, jewelry, candy, flowers, clothing, all seemed too…mainstream. He wanted something different. Something that would show Buffy how special she was.
Surveying the mall through the glass front of the shop, he gloomily took in the different offerings. His eyes fell on one smallish store front and he grinned suddenly. Perfect.
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"Presents, presents, shall I compare thee to a summer's day? Thou art far more enjoyable and thou add so much more to the pile of junk in my closet…" Fred giggled appreciatively at Liam's ode to his gifts. Darla just rolled her eyes.
"You know you can't open them till midnight," Angel commented from an armchair near the television. He was more relaxed then Buffy had ever seen him, watching a Christmas Eve marathon. She even thought she heard him humming along with the current musical number, which appeared to be about an elf who liked dentistry.
"Stupid family traditions," Liam sighed, replacing a brightly wrapped package to it's place under the tree. Everyone laughed this time, Buffy included. William had told her how his family always opened gifts at midnight on Christmas Eve with some embarrassment. But he didn't have to worry. She thought it was sweet, all the fun little quirks his family had. As her laughter died, she yawned widely. There were still several hours until midnight, but she was tired.
"C'mere Buffy," William said from the couch he was sprawled out on. She rose from the floor and walked over, eyes feeling a bit fuzzy from drowsiness, "You look exhausted…" She nodded slowly and wobbled a bit. She closed her eyes and suddenly felt herself being guided downwards. She opened them and discovered William had pulled her into his lap. Hands on her shoulders, he leaned her up against his chest and rubbed her arms soothingly. Smiling she closed her eyes gratefully. This was something she could get used to. Riley didn't like to touch. It was pretty much either making out in someone's room or strictly no contact. But William had showed her how much she liked to cuddle. Cuddling was fun…
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"Is
she asleep?"
"I think so…"
"Well, it's not like she's in an uncomfortable place."
"Can
we open presents without her?"
"No!"
"Then
let's wake her up."
"We can't just wake her
up!"
"Why not? Hey Buffy, wake up!"
Buffy blinked blearily and sat up slowly. Where? What? Her eyes cleared and she saw that Darla and Fred were both scolding Liam and Angel was sitting on the floor peering up at her.
"It's midnight," he said simply. It took her brain a while to work that out.
"Oh, presents," she said and yawned. She felt much better rested. She turned kissed William lightly, "Sorry…I didn't mean to actually fall asleep."
"No problem," he grunted, helping her to stand.
The seven of them gathered around the tree and Liam started to pass out presents.
"Aren't your parents coming?" Buffy asked.
"No, they're at a party," Wesley replied, which didn't really surprise Buffy. After all, Jenny and Giles were only, technically, Wesley's parents. Besides, they seemed to allow all the younger members of the Giles clan to their own devices.
"Open presents! Open presents!" Liam began to chant, sounding very much like a small child. Once everyone had stopped their conversations and were looking at him, he dramatically selected a package from the mound in front of him, "This one is from Buffy!" He ripped viciously through the paper to find a star-shaped mirror that was inscribed with 'The Face of a Star' all along the edges. After much oohing and aahing, Buffy selected her gift from Liam, in accordance with Giles' tradition.
It was a rather lacy, fairly skimpy lingerie set. Buffy blushed deeper than she thought she ever had in her entire life and Liam cackled brightly from across the room. Obviously this was his intended reaction. She managed to choke out a thank you before stuffing 'It' behind her quickly. Darla decided to open Buffy's gift as well and was very pleased to find a certificate for a free head-shot at a very popular photography studio.
Darla's present to Buffy was an extremely extensive manicure kit. She liked this present much more than the previous one. And so it continued. From Wesley, Buffy received a home spa kit. Fred had invented something for her that looked like it was either a rotating make-up display…or a toaster. Whichever, Buffy was flattered that Fred had invented something just for her. Fred and Wesley got matching eyeglass cases from her, and they seemed thrilled. From Angel was personalized stationary, to Angel, 'Where Cops Don't Go: Heroes in Private Investigation'. He loved it. But now it was the moment of truth. Time for Buffy and Spike to exchange gifts.
He presented his to her first. She gingerly took the box from him and slowly unwrapped it. Lifting the cover off the box, she couldn't help but gasp. It was a piece of stained glass…but special. The large dark scarlet rose attached to the hanger, and swaying beneath the rose was sort of a banner that read, in medieval looking script: 'Buffy'.
"Oh, Spike, it's gorgeous," she whispered and, carefully setting her gift down, kissed his cheek. He grinned widely, relieved she liked it. He had been so worried she would think it was weird. Now, Buffy shyly handed him her gift. He opened it unbelievably slowly and she wrung her hands with anxiety. What if he didn't like it? It had seemed like a good idea when she thought of it…but now…now she wasn't so sure.
But it was too late for not sures, he was lifting it out of the box. A black leather collar with silver studs along it. Smiling, he noticed the dog tags that hung from the center. The first one he read aloud.
"Spike," he let that one fall and grabbed the next one and began to laugh, "Property of Buffy Summers!" Buffy stared at him. Was this a bad sign? Laughing? Before she could puzzle anymore she was swept into a tight hug, with light kisses rained down on her hair. Oh…good sign.
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That's all for now! Terribly sorry it took so long to update, but I was really busy for the past couple weeks. I'll try harder now.