Author's Note: Here it is, part 4! Thanks to Out-Of-Reality, lilsoccercutie55, Sanity Fair, mistymidnight, melody, and charisma for reviewing. Heehee, you all liked my ending. I knew you would never see that one coming! And yes, I am evil XD. However, I would like more reviews. I see stories out there that get 300 plus reviews. The Good Life got over 100, but this story only has 18 so far, not even putting it on track to get that many. So I am begging you to please review, I want at least 10 reviews for this part! It is so nice to know that people are reading and appreciating my story. Just a few words is all I ask! Some more is explained in this story, notice that now I have flashed back to everything important except that one night, and that final puzzle piece will fall into place very soon. And please note that everything in italics is thoughts or dreams. Enjoy, and please R&R!
Part 4
March 31st, 2015
Buffy and Angel rode in silence to the hospital. Neither one of them had slept last night, they had just sat there and cried in each others arms all night. This morning Joyce had come to stay with Serena while Buffy and Angel went in for the procedure. She had been in tears when she arrived and had reached out to hug her daughter, but Buffy couldn't deal with it and had pushed past her and ran to the car.
"I don't know how long the...procedure is going to take, but I'll be there when you're done," Angel said, sounding strained. "We just have to be strong. For Serena."
Buffy nodded. They pulled into the lot at the hospital and walked inside, hand in hand. What a sight we must be, Buffy thought. She had just thrown on some old clothes and pulled a brush through her hair before leaving, and she was sure the evidence of tears was visible. They walked up to the check in desk and Buffy told the nurse her name.
"What are you here for, Mrs. O'Leary?" the nurse asked tiredly.
"Um...an induction and stillbirth," Angel said for her, tightening his grip on her hand.
The nurse's eyes widened, and she looked sympathetic. "Oh. I'm so sorry for your loss. Well Mrs. O'Leary you and your husband can go right into cubicle 5, a doctor will be right in to talk to you about the procedure." Buffy and Angel nodded and entered the cubicle.
After five tense minutes Buffy's doctor entered the cubicle. "Good morning. Again I'd like to apologize that we couldn't accommodate you for the procedure last night. We can begin shortly, but there are just a few questions I have to ask first. First you both have to sign this, it just says that you are authorizing us to remove the baby." She handed them a form on a clip board. "And you need to decide what you would like to do with...the remains."
Buffy looked up, startled. "W-what?"
"Most couples chose a cremation, because the stress of a funeral would probably be too much to bear. But if you would like, we could discuss-"
"We'll have the cremation," Angel said tightly.
The doctor nodded and handed them another form to sign. "You also need to decide what you would like to do with the ashes. We have a selection of urns-"
"We don't need them. It would just be a...a constant reminder," Angel said quickly. Buffy looked up in surprise but she was too sad and exhausted to argue.
The doctor nodded sadly. "Don't worry, you are not the first couple to make that decision."
Angel handed the forms back to the doctor. "How long will the procedure take?"
"It should only take around two hours. But Buffy will be given very strong pain medications so she should feel very little pain. If everything goes smoothly, you should be able to go home this afternoon." Buffy nodded.
The doctor sighed. "Mr. O'Leary, I'm going to have to ask you to step out now. This is Nurse Colleen, she is going to prep Buffy for surgery." A plump, red haired woman appeared in the cubicle.
Angel turned and gave Buffy a quick kiss. "I'll be here when you're done." Buffy nodded, feeling a little nauseous.
When she was prepped, the nurse rolled her down the hallway on a stretcher. Buffy placed her hand on her stomach, while more tears fell.
Friday, June 23rd, 2020
When the alarm clock went off the next morning Buffy actually welcomed it. She hadn't slept well again, and she would rather be up than lying next to Angel, whom she knew was mad at her. She didn't waste any time in getting up. She was headed downstairs when Angel called out to her. She turned around as he climbed out of bed.
"Buffy, can we please just put what happened yesterday behind us? For Serena's sake, at least. She knew that something was wrong yesterday and I don't want our problems to bother her," he said quietly.
Oh, so you're admitting that we have problems now? "Sure," Buffy said, trying to smile.
Angel smiled. "I knew you'd understand." He gave her a quick kiss before heading to the bathroom.
Buffy sighed and headed downstairs. She had learned from years of experience that pretending the problem didn't exist didn't make it go away.
Serena sat at the counter, quietly eating her breakfast. That dream last night had really freaked her out, and she hadn't slept very well afterwards. She had tossed and turned for hours thinking of that poor girl in the alley, and of why she had that dream. It didn't make any sense. The girl was obviously a slayer, but why would she be having dreams about slayers?
"Are you excited about the big sleepover tonight?" Buffy asked cheerily.
Serena looked up, snapping out of it. "Oh, that's tonight? I forgot."
Buffy frowned. "You forgot, I thought you'd been looking forward to this. Are you okay honey?"
Serena forced a smile and nodded. "Of course!" She polished off her cereal and grabbed her bag. "I'd better go, don't want to miss the bus."
Buffy kissed her daughter's cheek. "Have a nice day at school. Last full day!"
"I know." Serena waved goodbye and headed outside to catch the bus. I just hope I don't have that dream again tonight. The last thing I need is for the few friends I actually have to think I'm a freak, waking up in a cold sweat from a dream about some slayer a hundred years ago.
Serena rang the bell at Liz's house later that night. Her friend answered the door, joined by Mary-Beth and Stacey. Liz was about the same size as Serena, with short, dirty blonde hair wearing ripped jeans and a t-shirt. Stacey was shorter than them with light brown hair and a more conservative outfit, and Mary-Beth was a little on the chubby side with blonde hair and a bright smile.
"Hey Rena," Liz said, calling Serena by her nickname that only she used.
"Hey Liz." Serena moved inside, followed by her parents, who were helping carry her stuff. Liz's mother joined them, wiping her hands on her apron. She was petite, and only a few years older than Buffy.
"Buffy! Angel, Serena. Hello, it's nice to see you all," she said kindly.
"Hi Helene. It's nice to see you too," Buffy replied.
"Serena dear, why don't you go put your stuff in Liz's room?" Mrs. Chester said.
Serena took her sleeping bag and pillow from Angel and kissed both her parents. "Bye. See you in the morning."
"Bye sweetheart. Have a nice time," Buffy said. Serena ran upstairs with the other girls.
"I think it's so nice that they're all getting together, they worked so hard this year," Helene said thoughtfully.
"Yes, it is. We know Serena always has a great time here," Buffy said with a smile.
"Well we'll be going, we don't want Serena to get mad at us," Angel joked. Like many teenage girls, their daughter was often embarrassed by her parents hanging around while she was with her friends.
Helene laughed. "Yes, but we should do something soon, Buffy. Lunch maybe."
"I'd like that," Buffy said. "Well, good night."
They finished their goodbyes and Buffy and Angel went back to the car. They drove home most of the way in silence, the tension between them still visible.
"Angel, you never really answered my question last night," Buffy said suddenly.
Angel looked at her. "What question?"
"Do you ever think about Liam?" Buffy asked simply, hoping for a straight answer.
Angel inhaled slowly. "Buffy, I told you, it's not healthy to dredge all of this up."
"It's also not healthy to keep it all bottled up inside," she replied quickly. "Answer me, then I promise I'll drop it."
There was a brief, heavy silence. "I do sometimes. But it's fond memories, not regrets or sadness," he finally replied.
Buffy closed her eyes. There weren't any fond memories of Liam. There were fond memories from the pregnancy, sure, but Liam had never been born, giving them no opportunity to have memories of him. Once again, Angel had failed to be straight with her. Buffy sighed, and they spent the rest of the ride home in silence.
"Do you guys want to go out in the yard?" Liz asked a few hours later. The four girls were in their pajamas, listening to music and flipping through magazines and their new yearbooks.
"It's dark out," Serena said nervously.
Liz raised an eyebrow. "Are you afraid of the dark Rena?" she teased.
Serena smiled. "Of course not. It just...might not be that safe out there."
Serena was never comfortable going outside after dark, ever since her parents had told her the truth about the real things that go bump in the night. Especially when I'm having dreams about ancient slayers that I don't even know the meaning of, she thought wryly.
"We could go in the yard, it's perfectly safe. Mom's asleep, we won't get in trouble. I need some fresh air," Liz said, standing up.
"I don't know. Can't we just stay up here?" Stacey asked. Serena silently thanked her.
Liz shrugged hesitantly. "I guess. What do you want do to instead?" She sat back down on the floor next to her best friend.
"We could watch a movie," Mary-Beth suggested.
"Sure, what do you want to watch?" Liz asked.
The girls glanced through Liz's limited DVD collection and eventually decided on Legally Blonde. They settled in front of the tv in their sleeping bags. Having already seen the movie several times, and plagued by her lack of sleep from the previous night, Serena zoned out on her pillow, once again thinking about her dream.
Maybe it was a fluke. Maybe it was just one of those really random dreams, like the time I dreamt I went office supply shopping with Orlando Bloom. But maybe it wasn't. Maybe it means something. I bet Grandpa Giles would know. But I don't want to freak mom out by bringing it up. She's been stressed enough lately. Maybe I can ask him when we're alone, or better yet, I can get alone with his books. She was beginning to feel very drowsy.
If it doesn't happen again, I'll just forget about it. But if it does, I'll do something about it, she decided, before drifting into sleep.
Somewhere in Europe during the Middle Ages, a peasant girl wielding a large stake walked slowly through an alley. Her breathing was ragged, and her clothes filthy and torn. She knew something was lurking in the shadows.
A moment later a vampire jumped out in front of her. She ducked expertly, avoiding his blow. She rolled across the filthy alley and jumped up behind him. He was clumsy, and she easily had the upper hand. She staked him easily.
Pleased to have something positive to report to her Watcher, she started back down the alley in the direction she came from. She shrieked when another vampires took her by surprise. She started to back up, but realized there were three more behind her. She felt panicked. She was trapped.
"The Slayer killed Roland. For that she will pay," the one in front of her said angrily.
She attempted to fight, but the four easily overpowered her and forced her to the ground. She squirmed and shrieked as the leader climbed on top of her.
"I've always wanted to taste slayer's blood." He morphed, and leaned in; his fangs pierced the flesh of her neck...
"NOOO!" Serena screamed, struggling against the arms holding her down.
"Rena! Rena, it's just a bad dream. It's me, Liz," her friend shouted, sounding terrified.
Serena stopped struggling and opened her eyes. The frightened faces of her three friends came into focus. On the tv, the end credits of Legally Blonde were playing. She sat up, panting.
"Serena, are you okay?" Liz asked, sounding very concerned and a little scared.
"Yeah, it was just a bad dream. I don't even remember it," Serena lied, trying to hide how shaken she was.
Liz's mom knocked on the bedroom door. "Girls, is everything okay? I heard screaming."
"It's okay, Serena just had a nightmare," Liz replied.
Her mother opened the door and peered in. "Serena dear, are you okay?"
Serena nodded shakily. "Yeah, I'm fine now."
Mrs. Chester seemed unconvinced, but nodded anyway. "Well that's good. I'll be in my room if you need anything." She closed the door behind her.
Liz removed the DVD and turned off the television. "What did you dream about?"
"I said I didn't remember," Serena said, a little more forcefully than she had intended.
"Okay, sorry." Liz sighed. "It's late, we should go to sleep."
The four girls settled into their sleeping bags and Liz turned off the light. They said their good nights and then it was silent.
The other girls drifted off to sleep, but Serena was wide awake. What is happening to me? She made up her mind that the next day she would try to get some answers. She tried to get comfortable, but she was afraid to fall asleep again. It was so terrible, the things that she had seen happening to these girls. She also felt sure that these dreams had really happened. She lied there for over an hour, willing herself to stay awake, but eventually she couldn't help but fall asleep.
March 31st, 2015
Four hours later, the nurse led an exhausted, stone faced Buffy back to the waiting room. "Mr. O'Leary, the procedure went very smoothly, no complications. Buffy was in recovery for the past hour, and we think you can take your wife home now. She needs some rest, and I prescribed this pain medication, but it's not bad enough to warrant an overnight stay. Two tablets every four hours as needed." She handed Angel a bottle of pills. "If you are interested in grief counseling, we have an excellent specialist right here-"
Angel cut her off. "That won't be necessary. Thank you." He took his wife's arm. "Buffy? Are you okay?"
"They just forced me into labor to remove my dead baby. Do you really think I'm okay?" Buffy said loudly. A few people stared at them.
Angel led Buffy toward the doors. "You know I didn't mean that. I meant, are you ready to go home. You have been through a lot, and if you want to stay here-"
"You know I hate hospitals. Please, just take me home," Buffy begged quietly. She was on the verge of tears again, and she didn't want to break down in front of a roomful of people.
Angel led his wife to the car and helped her inside. He got in the driver's seat and started the engine. He opened his mouth to speak, but then closed it. He placed his foot on the gas and they drove home in silence.