Chapter 12
Buffy woke the next day and stretched – smiling at the fact that she was alone. After her conversation with Willow last night she'd decided that she just couldn't face Riley and so bribed her friend into telling him Buffy wasn't feeling well and would talk to him in the morning. She'd had a long, relaxing bubble bath and an early night.
And the bribe? Buffy smiled as she thought of the shopping trip they would be going on today. Okay, so it wasn't much of a bribe. But, hey – did the trick! She rubbed her hands together, Ooh, so many shops, so little time – this is going to be fun.
She bounced out of bed and grabbed her robe before making her way downstairs to make herself some breakfast. Nothing like a good shopping trip to help you forget about those little problems in life. Suddenly everything seemed much less complicated.
She jumped down the last few steps and into the living room.
"Someone's in a good mood. I take it that you're feeling better?" Riley asked from the sofa before taking a mouthful another mouthful of cereal from the bowl he was holding.
"Riley? It's 8 am – what are you..." She paused, frowning slightly. "Is that my cereal?"
"Yeah, I ran out, so I was just having a bite to eat and then I was going to come and check on you. You're obviously feeling better – you fancy doing something today?"
"Can't – have a shopping trip with Willow and Tara."
"That's okay – I need to go into town anyway. I'll tag along."
"Riley. You hate shopping. You'll be bored out of your mind!"
"It'll be fine – when do we leave?"
Suddenly, Buffy's little problems all decided to come back with a vengeance.
"Ooh, what do you think of that one?" Buffy pointed to a red dress hanging in the shop window.
"I think it would look great on you, sweetheart. But then, everything looks great on you." Riley tried to sound interested. It had been his idea to tag along on the shopping trip in the city centre, but six hours later the crowded Saturday streets and Buffy's seemingly never-ending ability to shop were beginning to grate.
"I'll interpret that as 'I don't really care, but I'm bored and so I'm trying to say what you think I want to hear' then shall I?" Buffy said sarcastically. She'd really had enough of him today. She hadn't wanted him to come in the first place – she'd known he would be bored – but he'd insisted. So along he came and the complaints, moans and general digs on girls and shopping had started about half an hour into the trip.
At first the girls had laughed it off. It was, after all, a fairly normal guy response to a major shopping trip, but by lunchtime it had all worn a little thin and Willow and Tara had looked apologetically at Buffy and given thinly veiled excuses before leaving Buffy and Riley to shop alone.
Once they'd left he hadn't gotten any better and Buffy was having a hard time controlling her temper. But this was her shopping trip and she was damned if she was going to let him ruin it for her. She looked at him and raised an eyebrow.
"Well...?"
Riley shrugged, "Sorry sweetheart, but we've been shopping for hours now and..."
"Look, why don't we just go home?" She sighed deciding that she was obviously damned because he'd ruined it.
"Sounds good to me." Riley looked instantly happier and they started the walk back towards the bus station.
"Ooh!" Buffy squealed and dragged Riley towards the shop window. Riley groaned, but gave in to the irresistible pull of his girlfriend's hand on his. "Sorry, I know we're on our way home, but this won't take long. You know that it's Dawn's birthday in a couple of weeks and I thought that I could buy her a pair of earrings, a really nice pair. And look – jewellery shop." She indicated the brightly lit display window in front of them before proceeding to examine what seemed to Riley to be hundreds of pairs of earrings looking for the 'perfect pair'. He gave into the inevitable delay and wandered further down the window, hoping that there would be something more interesting to look at.
Several minutes later Buffy was once again at his side, clutching a small bag, which held her new purchase.
"Come on then," she said as she took his hand. "Let's go." She moved to pull Riley away from the window, but was stopped when he didn't move. She followed his gaze which was fixed on the display of small diamond rings.
"Riley?" She asked cautiously. He turned to her.
"Buffy. I've been thinking, about us. We've been going out for ages now and, well we practically live together and well," He paused and she could see him thinking of the words to say Oh, God, please don't let him be about to ask what I think he's about to ask she prayed.
"Well, maybe we should get married." He looked at her, expectantly.
Shit, shit, shit! He asked it. Oh, how the hell am I going to get out of this one? Buffy paused for a minute to internally examine her reaction. Sure, she'd thought about Riley proposing before, she'd even daydreamed about it. Surely she should be falling into his arms at the moment and accepting without a moment's pause. But she wasn't and it all suddenly seemed, well, so sudden.
She looked up at him, standing there, waiting for her answer and she suddenly realised that she couldn't marry him. It would be wrong. A really, really bad idea I mean, I'm not ready to give up on this relationship
Yet her little voice added.
I'm going to pretend I didn't just think that. I am not ready to give up on this relationship, but I can't agree to take it any further. God, I'm already feeling claustrophobic as it is now and we're not even officially living together. But if I turn him down flat he'll think that I don't want to be with him at all. Which I do.
Do you?
Yes! Yes, I do. Just not quite this together!
No, she couldn't marry him. Not right now. She just wasn't ready for that yet, she was too young. But how to say 'no' without actually saying no? She looked again at the display in front of them and was suddenly struck with an idea.
"Riley, don't take this the wrong way, it's just that, ever since I was a little girl I've had the dream that when I got engaged I would be proposed to with a ring in a box and everything." She smiled up at him and then quickly continued as she saw him start to eye up the rings in the window. "And everybody knows that an engagement ring is meant to cost a whole month's salary," she cringed inwardly at how materialistic this was making her sound, but it was all she could come up with at short notice. "And you don't even have a job at the moment. I've never really wanted a long engagement either – I believe that you get engaged to get married, not just for the sake of being engaged - and we can't afford to get married yet." She hoped that he was buying this and looked up at him.
"I understand, Buffy."
"You, you do?" Buffy suddenly looked surprised – she really didn't think that anyone would buy the crap she just came out with - before forcing her expression into a smile. "You do? Good."
"And you're right – we can't afford to get married, yet." He looked back at the display. "But why don't you give me some ideas as to what type of ring you would like, just so that I know for the future."
Buffy forced a smile and turned her attention to the window, trying not to think about why she suddenly didn't want to commit to a future with her previously 'perfect' boyfriend.
Buffy woke the next day and stretched – smiling at the fact that she was alone. After her conversation with Willow last night she'd decided that she just couldn't face Riley and so bribed her friend into telling him Buffy wasn't feeling well and would talk to him in the morning. She'd had a long, relaxing bubble bath and an early night.
And the bribe? Buffy smiled as she thought of the shopping trip they would be going on today. Okay, so it wasn't much of a bribe. But, hey – did the trick! She rubbed her hands together, Ooh, so many shops, so little time – this is going to be fun.
She bounced out of bed and grabbed her robe before making her way downstairs to make herself some breakfast. Nothing like a good shopping trip to help you forget about those little problems in life. Suddenly everything seemed much less complicated.
She jumped down the last few steps and into the living room.
"Someone's in a good mood. I take it that you're feeling better?" Riley asked from the sofa before taking a mouthful another mouthful of cereal from the bowl he was holding.
"Riley? It's 8 am – what are you..." She paused, frowning slightly. "Is that my cereal?"
"Yeah, I ran out, so I was just having a bite to eat and then I was going to come and check on you. You're obviously feeling better – you fancy doing something today?"
"Can't – have a shopping trip with Willow and Tara."
"That's okay – I need to go into town anyway. I'll tag along."
"Riley. You hate shopping. You'll be bored out of your mind!"
"It'll be fine – when do we leave?"
Suddenly, Buffy's little problems all decided to come back with a vengeance.
"Ooh, what do you think of that one?" Buffy pointed to a red dress hanging in the shop window.
"I think it would look great on you, sweetheart. But then, everything looks great on you." Riley tried to sound interested. It had been his idea to tag along on the shopping trip in the city centre, but six hours later the crowded Saturday streets and Buffy's seemingly never-ending ability to shop were beginning to grate.
"I'll interpret that as 'I don't really care, but I'm bored and so I'm trying to say what you think I want to hear' then shall I?" Buffy said sarcastically. She'd really had enough of him today. She hadn't wanted him to come in the first place – she'd known he would be bored – but he'd insisted. So along he came and the complaints, moans and general digs on girls and shopping had started about half an hour into the trip.
At first the girls had laughed it off. It was, after all, a fairly normal guy response to a major shopping trip, but by lunchtime it had all worn a little thin and Willow and Tara had looked apologetically at Buffy and given thinly veiled excuses before leaving Buffy and Riley to shop alone.
Once they'd left he hadn't gotten any better and Buffy was having a hard time controlling her temper. But this was her shopping trip and she was damned if she was going to let him ruin it for her. She looked at him and raised an eyebrow.
"Well...?"
Riley shrugged, "Sorry sweetheart, but we've been shopping for hours now and..."
"Look, why don't we just go home?" She sighed deciding that she was obviously damned because he'd ruined it.
"Sounds good to me." Riley looked instantly happier and they started the walk back towards the bus station.
"Ooh!" Buffy squealed and dragged Riley towards the shop window. Riley groaned, but gave in to the irresistible pull of his girlfriend's hand on his. "Sorry, I know we're on our way home, but this won't take long. You know that it's Dawn's birthday in a couple of weeks and I thought that I could buy her a pair of earrings, a really nice pair. And look – jewellery shop." She indicated the brightly lit display window in front of them before proceeding to examine what seemed to Riley to be hundreds of pairs of earrings looking for the 'perfect pair'. He gave into the inevitable delay and wandered further down the window, hoping that there would be something more interesting to look at.
Several minutes later Buffy was once again at his side, clutching a small bag, which held her new purchase.
"Come on then," she said as she took his hand. "Let's go." She moved to pull Riley away from the window, but was stopped when he didn't move. She followed his gaze which was fixed on the display of small diamond rings.
"Riley?" She asked cautiously. He turned to her.
"Buffy. I've been thinking, about us. We've been going out for ages now and, well we practically live together and well," He paused and she could see him thinking of the words to say Oh, God, please don't let him be about to ask what I think he's about to ask she prayed.
"Well, maybe we should get married." He looked at her, expectantly.
Shit, shit, shit! He asked it. Oh, how the hell am I going to get out of this one? Buffy paused for a minute to internally examine her reaction. Sure, she'd thought about Riley proposing before, she'd even daydreamed about it. Surely she should be falling into his arms at the moment and accepting without a moment's pause. But she wasn't and it all suddenly seemed, well, so sudden.
She looked up at him, standing there, waiting for her answer and she suddenly realised that she couldn't marry him. It would be wrong. A really, really bad idea I mean, I'm not ready to give up on this relationship
Yet her little voice added.
I'm going to pretend I didn't just think that. I am not ready to give up on this relationship, but I can't agree to take it any further. God, I'm already feeling claustrophobic as it is now and we're not even officially living together. But if I turn him down flat he'll think that I don't want to be with him at all. Which I do.
Do you?
Yes! Yes, I do. Just not quite this together!
No, she couldn't marry him. Not right now. She just wasn't ready for that yet, she was too young. But how to say 'no' without actually saying no? She looked again at the display in front of them and was suddenly struck with an idea.
"Riley, don't take this the wrong way, it's just that, ever since I was a little girl I've had the dream that when I got engaged I would be proposed to with a ring in a box and everything." She smiled up at him and then quickly continued as she saw him start to eye up the rings in the window. "And everybody knows that an engagement ring is meant to cost a whole month's salary," she cringed inwardly at how materialistic this was making her sound, but it was all she could come up with at short notice. "And you don't even have a job at the moment. I've never really wanted a long engagement either – I believe that you get engaged to get married, not just for the sake of being engaged - and we can't afford to get married yet." She hoped that he was buying this and looked up at him.
"I understand, Buffy."
"You, you do?" Buffy suddenly looked surprised – she really didn't think that anyone would buy the crap she just came out with - before forcing her expression into a smile. "You do? Good."
"And you're right – we can't afford to get married, yet." He looked back at the display. "But why don't you give me some ideas as to what type of ring you would like, just so that I know for the future."
Buffy forced a smile and turned her attention to the window, trying not to think about why she suddenly didn't want to commit to a future with her previously 'perfect' boyfriend.