A/N : Hey, thanx to everyone who reviewed the first chapter of this story; ForeversEnough, leostorm, wicked-angel3, Scarlet Ibis, SweetSlayer810, Saltygoodness, Red, EnemaOfState, faith95, iluvglorfindel, BuffyandDracoLover, velja. Now I know it's worth carrying on with! To clear up a few points... 1 - Yes, this fic is based somewhat on the plot of the movie Grease 2, although I will try to use the least number of exact lines/scenes, since I don't want to write the film again with different names in it, I think that kind of fic is a little pointless. 2 - No, Dru will not be in this fic, sorry. 3 - Will William turn into Spike? Well, if you've seen Grease 2 you'll know by now if and how that happens, and if you haven't, well, it'll just be a nice surprise, won't it? ;-)
(For disclaimer, etc. - see chapter 1)
Chapter 2 - The New Guy
Buffy stumbled into class, five minutes late, getting a glare from the teacher as she mumbled an apology and moved to her seat at the back of the room. There were no assigned seats in any classes at Sunnydale High, but everyone knew better than to take the seat that one of Angel's gang or their girls chose to use.
As Miss Calendar continued with her English lesson, Buffy sunk down in her chair and doodled on her note book, really not listening to a word. What good was all this to her? Pulling apart poems and plays and writing essays about it, exactly how would that help her to get a job?
Art was more of Buffy's thing, though she did not take the class. It was considered an uncool subject by her friends and so her talent was hidden from them. Today as her mind whirled around ideas of the perfect man, Buffy found the pencil in her hand had sketched a leather clad guy on a motorcycle, who as yet had no face...
A loud clatter made her look up sharply, her hand skidding across her picture and ruining it with an ugly black gouge to the paper, right across the centre of her drawing. She blamed the young man that seemed to have fallen through the classroom door, making an absolute idiot of himself in the process and causing most members of the room to laugh at him, indeed it seemed as if even Miss Calendar was having a hard time stifling a smile.
"I'm so sorry" the clumsy boy apologised as he handed a piece of paper to the teacher, "I got lost"
"Okay" Miss Calendar nodded as she read the form he'd handed her, "At least you're here now...Class" she addressed the whole room as she gestured toward the same boy who'd almost knocked Buffy flying just a few moments ago, "I'd like you to welcome a new student, this is William Spencer, and he's just transferred here from London, England"
The students looked mostly unimpressed by the foreigner who attempted to smile and then thought better of it as thirty pairs of eyes glared at him. There was only one person who didn't seem to want to stare at him in distaste or to look at him at all for that matter, a girl he recognised immediately.
"William, why don't you take a seat next to Buffy" Miss Calendar suggested, gesturing to the very same girl. With a nod William did as he was told, grinning at the fact he now at least knew his dream girls name - Buffy.
Said girl seemed highly unimpressed at having to be within three feet of the clumsy idiot that had not only knocked her down before but had also ruined her latest piece of art. She screwed up her paper into a ball as Miss Calender turned back to the chalkboard, quietened the class, and went back to teaching her lesson.
Buffy's hands itched to throw the ball of paper right at the boy beside her, who she could see from the corner of eye as he made notes on what the teacher was saying, in neat handwriting that flowed across the page. She also noticed that when his eyes weren't fixed to the front they were casting glances her way and that made her roll her eyes and sigh in frustration. It seemed in all likelihood that the guy had a crush on her. Yeah, cos she really needed that complication right now! Her social life was on unsteady ground as it was, as soon as everyone found out she'd dumped Angel. To have the newest geek as her admirer would just be humiliating!
Buffy was getting increasingly annoyed as she walked to her next class. She could feel William's eyes on her back and she knew other people would notice that he was staring at her. Usually she enjoyed getting so much male attention but not from a guy like this, it wouldn't do her rep any good at all.
She was relieved when she turned into her Math class and realised that he hadn't followed, although buried deep underneath the relief she hated herself for feeling a tiny bit of disappointment...
"Person standing here!" Willow yelled as William ploughed right into her. His eyes were clearly not looking in the direction his feet were going, but rather through the glass panel of the door Buffy had just gone through.
"I'm so sorry" he apologised immediately, "I was, er.."
"Staring at my friend?" Willow would have smirked if she knew how, instead she kind of half-smiled and William did the same.
"You know, Buffy?" he guessed, his smile widening as the red-headed girl before his nodded it was true.
"I'm Willow" she told him.
"My name is William Spencer" he introduced very formally and Willow stifled a giggle, he seemed so..sweet, "I'm on my way to History class, room number..." he checked a piece of paper.
"Room 127" Willow told him with a smile, "I'm in that class too, I'll walk with you"
William smiled at her kindness, and they walked together down the hall, Willow, not at all worried that she was befriending a so-called geek, she too would have the same label were it not for her friendship with Buffy and her dating Oz.
"So, you like America so far?" Willow asked him, making conversation.
"Yeah, I think so" the young man beside her nodded "Though some things more than others..." he continued as he glanced through the door at Buffy as they passed by the same classroom again, travelling in the opposite direction this time "I'll bet she has a boyfriend though" he sighed dejectedly, and Willow kept her silence as she wondered what exactly she should tell him about Buffy and a possible boyfriend.
The two new acquaintances were soon in the classroom where they belonged and Willow realised she needed to tell William the painful truth.
"Well..." Willow drew out as they took seats next to each other "y'see, it's like there's this hierarchy and right up top there you have Angel's gang and our group"
"Angel's gang?" William raised an eyebrow as he spoke the strange words.
"Liam O'Connor" Willow explained "they call him Angel, he has a kind of gang and they have these black leather jackets, it's kinda their trademark thing"
William nodded that he understood, and suddenly looked annoyed.
"The bunch of bastards who tripped me up this morning" he realised aloud, before it occurred to him what he'd said "oh please excuse my bad language" he apologised to Willow who couldn't help but giggle.
William smiled at what he considered to be strange behaviour.
"What?" he asked, completely bewildered.
"A guy who apologises when he curses?" Willow shook her head as her laughter subsided "You don't get many of those around here"
"Can't help it" the young man beside her shrugged "it's the way I was brought up, Mum hates to hear such language...anyway" he said suddenly, changing the subject fast, just knowing he was blushing "you were telling me about Angel's gang?"
"Oh yeah" Willow shook her head to clear her thoughts and make herself concentrate "Well, actually one of them is my boyfriend, but he wasn't with them this morning when they were mean to you" she made sure he understood her wonderful Oz would never be horrible to anyone "Oz is really sweet" she went on, her expression becoming dreamy "he's into music and he's gonna be famous one day..." as William looked at her strangely she realised she was off on a tangent again "anyway, then there's Xander" she said, coming back on topic "he dates Cordelia, and there's Angel...oh and Andrew but he's kind of only in the gang cos of his brother, it's a whole big thing"
"And Angel dates Buffy?" he guessed with a sigh, it seemed that was where Red's explanation was going.
"Used to" Willow nodded "but I think something happened over the Summer and now he seems to like the other girl in our group, Faith" she frowned as she thought about it. She really would have to ask Buffy what happened...
"So Buffy's available?" William dared to hope.
"Well, yes and no" Willow answered lamely, frowning harder as she realised she wasn't getting this right at all, plus she had minimal time as the teacher came into the room and was trying to quieten his class.
"It's fairly simple really" the red-head sighed "I just don't think I'm explaining it well. It's like our two groups kinda fit together" she tried to explain a different way, actually lacing her fingers together in front of him to show him what she meant "and some of them, especially Angel, don't like..." she stumbled over the word and decided in the end to use "...outsiders"
"Oh I'm starting to get it now..." William nodded slowly as he finally thought he understood "so the only way to date Buffy is to be a friend of Angel's, right?" he put it the way he saw it and Willow nodded once.
"Sort of, yeah"
"Can't be that hard" William shrugged, a grin on his face as the teacher called for the classes attention and the room went silence.
"Well, I..." Willow tried to protest, but William was no longer listening and the lesson had begun "Oh dear" she whispered to herself, what had she done?
Time passed and soon the bell signalling lunch time rang. As always, the guys, led by Angel, and the girls, led by Buffy, got their food and headed to the back of the cafeteria, dominating the two tables there and consequently the whole room. Today, Willow and Oz were missing. He was spending extra time in the music department, no doubt playing his latest compositions for her.
As the girls pointed at unfortunately dressed others and made fun of those with last month's hair, the guys picked out freaks and geeks that they could use for sport later on. These activities were punctuated by Cordelia and Xander's arguing and subsequesnt kissing sessions, and also of course by everyone's eating, the girls picking at salads and sipping water, whilst the guys shovelled in fries and brownies, and washed it all down with coke.
"Hello" said a voice in the centre of all of this and the entire group of six people looked over to see William standing there, tray of food in his hand and a nervous smile on his face, "Is this seat taken?" he checked, gesturing with his free hand to the chair opposite Buffy, who cringed at the thought.
"Well, if it isn't the new import" Angel smirked as he stood from his own seat near Faith and walked menacingly over to William's side, "Sitting there" he said in a low voice, "would be a very. bad. move."
"I just though that..." the Englishman began to protest but Xander was soon on the other side of him, slightly smaller yet none the less frightening than Angel as his voice sounded just as deadly.
"Don't think so much" he told him, "Less thinking, more leaving"
William shot a glance at Buffy, hoping she might defend him. She seemed like a nice girl, at least he assumed she was, but she was less interested in him than anything else in the room. As he looked down at her in her seat, she kept her eyes on her food, and all the girls noticed.
"I think I should go" William finally mumbled, turning to walk away.
"Good choice" Xander commented as Angel gave the new boy a shove on his way, and the two leather-jacketed young men went back to their seats.
"Oh my God, Buffy!" Cordelia gasped, "The new geek is so totally into you!" she giggled at the realisation, and Faith seemed to find it funny too.
"Don't worry, Buff" Angel told his ex, "I'll protect you from the big bad freak" he laughed at his own joke as Xander, Andrew, and the girls did the same.
"Screw you!" Buffy said angrily, pushing her tray away and storming out of the cafeteria. The last person she wanted smart comments from was Angel!
"Nice move" Cordelia reprimanded, suddenly not giggling so much and hurrying after her friend, Faith not far behind, leaving just the three guys at the table, looking confused.
To Be Continued...