Chapter 2
The next day during family dinner Buffy's parents bombarded her with questions about her future plans.
"Buffy, are you sure you want to do this? I mean, honey it's a great opportunity for you its just that... it's so far away from home. And I know you won't be able to come home to visit that often." Joyce, Buffy's mother said.
"I thought you wanted to stay at school here pumpkin." Her father added. He didn't like the thought of his daughter all alone half way across the country.
"Please mom... dad. I need to do this. This is such a great opportunity for me and I know I'll regret it if I don't take it right now. Please let me go and do this. I'm not your little girl anymore. I need to grow up on my own and explore the world for myself. Please don't make me choose between my family and my ambitions." Buffy pleaded.
Spike couldn't help but ask, "When on earth did you decide this? Just a couple of days ago you were all ready to apply to Sunnydale College then out of nowhere you drop this bombshell! I just don't get it Buffy."
Buffy couldn't help but get mad. Was this the same Spike? The same Spike that always said she was a prick, a nuisance and always told her to go fall off the face of the earth?
Buffy, filled with rage asked, "What Spike? All of a sudden you care? Shouldn't you be happy that I'll be out of your hair, your life or anything? Didn't you hate me around, always around your buddies, etc?"
Spike, a bit stunned that she felt his way simply replied
"I didn't know you felt that way. You know how it is. Not everything that comes out of my mouth is totally true."
"Well," Buffy said bitterly. "Things change. I'm changing. And don't worry. You won't have to worry about me anymore like you've been complaining about for the past 17 years of my life."
Joyce couldn't help but sigh. She was clearly determined to go. She knew this day would come. She just didn't realize how soon it would arrive.
"Are you sure honey? This is a big major step and I need to know you will be able to handle it, especially on your own. Once you made this decision there's no backing out now."
Joyce wanted to scare her daughter a bit, try to make her see the limited flexibility on her choices but was stun with her daughter's determination when Buffy said,
"I'm more confident than anything I've ever wanted to do with my life. This is my goal, something I need to achieve. I can make something out of myself, really become something and if you don't give me my blessing I'll just go upstairs right now pack my things and just leave right now and don't count on me looking back. I have enough funds that'll support me for quite a while."
Hank, Buffy's father couldn't bare to leave his family in this kind of disarray and have his daughter leave in such bad terms. He knew he had no choice but to give in. In the end he believed it might be for the best. Buffy would make them all proud he knew it.
Hank finally said, "Well my dear, if that's the case. So let it be. We'll let you go. You deserve to choose where you want to go, after all you worked hard for it and if you want to pursue your career halfway across the country, so let it be. After all, Harvard is one of the best schools in the country."
Buffy, filled with joy couldn't help but run to her dad and give him a huge hug.
"Oh thank you, thank you daddy! You won't regret this! I'll make you so proud!"
Spike, who was extremely pissed stormed off and went upstairs. Buffy couldn't understand why he was so mad. She thought he would be the one congratulating her for finally getting out of the house and out of his life.
Spike just sat there in his room, wondering why he was so angry. But deep down he knew why. She was his only sister after all and even though they never always got along, she was always apart of his life and the fact that in a couple of months he would barely see her would be a huge change in his life. He knew he was going to miss his sister incredibly.
...
The next few months that Buffy had in Sunnydale flew by really fast. She avoided Spike and his friends at all costs and was proud that she actually hadn't seen Angel since the day he said those words about her. She was now ready for the new chapter in her life.
It wasn't easy though, avoiding Angel. He always came by often to their house so she had to compensate by going out a lot more, spending time with her friends and just having a blast. She never realized how much time she spent with Spike and his friends until she completely stopped hanging out with them.
Of course Spike was even more upset that with the precious time he had with her she never spent it with him anymore. He even reached as low as begging her to spend time with him but she always said she was busy or had plans. It hurt that she didn't want to spend time with him anymore. If he only knew it was because of Angel.
Angel couldn't help but also notice the absence of Buffy. He was so used to seeing her almost everyday. Ever since that day she revealed she was going to Harvard he hadn't seen her since and it was such a dramatic change. He was so used to seeing her smile, hearing her talk about her day, what she did and now when he came over to Spike's house it felt... empty. She was never home anymore and never spent time with either him or Spike as he had heard the complaints from Spike constantly. He didn't know that whenever she spotted him coming to her house she nearly ran out of the back door and hid until he was in her house to go elsewhere.
At first it didn't bother Angel not seeing Buffy as much. Not only was what she was wearing attracting his attention bother him but it was the fact that she was Spike's sister... who since he can remember had a crush on him. But as weeks past, then months without seeing her he felt... alone. Now he realized she would be off and away across the country to pursue her career.
He had known Buffy since forever, even helped out with her scrapes and scratches since she was a kid. Now she was growing up and it was becoming more aware to him that she was becoming a woman. That was the scariest part for him. As well she stopped seeking out for his attention, hell it was if she was avoiding him and it pissed him off. He came to Spike's house more and more just to clear his notion, just to see her to reassure himself that she wasn't avoiding him but she was never there to be seen.
As the day of Buffy's leaving approached, Angel wanted to come and wish her farewell. As he called the Summer's home he had an unexpected voice popped onto the phone line.
"Hello?"
"Buffy?"
"Angel?" Buffy became stiff. On her last day she had manage to stay well clear of him only for her plans to be sabotaged on her last day.
"I guess this is your last day huh?" Angel asked. He, never in his wildest dreams thought she would go through with it.
"Yep." Buffy decided to make her conversation with him short and snippy.
"Scared? I mean, I honestly wouldn't be surprised if you came back home in a month beginning to return and transfer back to a college close by."
Buffy couldn't believe him. He was ruining her day.
"What's that suppose to mean? Do you think I won't be able to handle it on my own?" Buffy tried to say politely but couldn't help adding a bit of rudeness.
"No. Its just that, who knows you might get homesick." Angel could feel Buffy's anger rising and didn't want to cause tension between them – especially on her last day. He hadn't even remembered the last time she'd ever snapped at him.
Deciding to change the topic he wanted to get to the main reason to why he called.
"Well Buffy I've decided that I might as well wish you off knowing that I won't see you for awhile since you've become like my kid sister and all. What time is your flight?"
Buffy hesitated for a moment. She didn't really want to tell him since she certainly didn't want to see him before she left. Who knew how his presence might affect her and even might make her change her mind. If she refused to tell him she was sure he would call later or get a hold of Spike to make Spike tell him about the time. She decided to lie about her flight time.
"Oh," Buffy said casually. "My flight leaves at err... 7 pm."
"Great. I'll come to your house at 6:00 pm ish and we'll leave then."
"NO! I mean..." Buffy was thinking quickly. She didn't want him to come with them. She thought he would simply meet them there. She remembered there was another flight going for Boston one hour earlier. She hoped she could change her flight schedule to an earlier one. Yes she was this desperate to avoid him.
"Yea, you know what. Come around then." Buffy said coolly. She figured once he come to the house he would notice they were gone so he would go back home anyways.
"Well, I gotta get going. Got lots of stuff to do before I go." Buffy said.
"Oh. Okay Buffy. See you then."
"Goodbye Angel."
"Bye Buffy."
Buffy knew that would be the last thing she would never say to Angel for a long time.
Buffy quickly dialled the airport and was relieved when they had room in the earlier flight to Boston. After she arranged her flight time to be changed she quickly told her family and got ready to go. She now had one hour less to get ready.
As they were about to leave Buffy looked back to her house and whispered to herself,
"I'll miss ya home. I'll be back someday." And headed towards the car.
As they got to the airport she couldn't believe how smart she was, concocting her plan of ditching Angel. She felt guilty for a moment but flashes of him and his breathtaking smile came in her head and she knew she realized it was for the best after all.
Meanwhile...
When Angel reached the Summer's house he saw that none of their cars were in the driveway. He cursed to himself and started racing towards the airport. He didn't think they would leave so soon. Especially when he came early to help pack up Buffy's things.
As he got to the airport he rushed inside the terminal searching for any sign of his friend or any one he knew. He suddenly saw Spike's peroxide hair and aware that Buffy might be around tried as much as possible casually walking towards them.
Instead they were actually walking towards Angel which confused him.
Joyce, noticing Angel said, "Oh hi Angel. What are you doing here?"
"I was hoping to wish Buffy farewell."
"Well," Joyce started, "You're a bit too late. Her plane just went into the air. Didn't you know her flight was at 6:00pm?"
Angel stunned for a bit echoed "6:00pm? Buffy told me 7:00pm."
Spike butted in and said, "Well that was the case at first but she changed it this afternoon, something about finding out her friend was going on that plane as well and wanted to have some company or something. She didn't tell you mate?"
"No... she didn't." Angel said softly. He was hurt that she didn't bother on telling him she changed her flight time. Like he didn't matter. It was so unlike Buffy. The same Buffy that always tried to get his attention since they were kids.
Spike walked up to where Angel was and patted him on the back.
"Well it was nice that you wanted to wish her farewell now mate. I'll tell her that. I bet she wouldn't mind knowing that." Spike winked. He continued on, saying,
"No worries. You'll see her on thanksgiving or something."
"Yea. Sure." Angel said.
Who ever thought that the next time they would set eyes on each other would be 6 long years later...
Now let the real story begin
Authors Sides NotesWell! Yea. I know this chapter is quite long but I really needed to finish this up so that the real story began. Can you believe both these chapters are like just like the background info to set up the real story? Thanks for all the great reviews I've gotten so far. I'm quite surprised by the great feedback I've been getting for this new story of mine. Tell me what you think so far. It's greatly appreciated and makes me write faster.
Feedback feeds the soul =)
The next day during family dinner Buffy's parents bombarded her with questions about her future plans.
"Buffy, are you sure you want to do this? I mean, honey it's a great opportunity for you its just that... it's so far away from home. And I know you won't be able to come home to visit that often." Joyce, Buffy's mother said.
"I thought you wanted to stay at school here pumpkin." Her father added. He didn't like the thought of his daughter all alone half way across the country.
"Please mom... dad. I need to do this. This is such a great opportunity for me and I know I'll regret it if I don't take it right now. Please let me go and do this. I'm not your little girl anymore. I need to grow up on my own and explore the world for myself. Please don't make me choose between my family and my ambitions." Buffy pleaded.
Spike couldn't help but ask, "When on earth did you decide this? Just a couple of days ago you were all ready to apply to Sunnydale College then out of nowhere you drop this bombshell! I just don't get it Buffy."
Buffy couldn't help but get mad. Was this the same Spike? The same Spike that always said she was a prick, a nuisance and always told her to go fall off the face of the earth?
Buffy, filled with rage asked, "What Spike? All of a sudden you care? Shouldn't you be happy that I'll be out of your hair, your life or anything? Didn't you hate me around, always around your buddies, etc?"
Spike, a bit stunned that she felt his way simply replied
"I didn't know you felt that way. You know how it is. Not everything that comes out of my mouth is totally true."
"Well," Buffy said bitterly. "Things change. I'm changing. And don't worry. You won't have to worry about me anymore like you've been complaining about for the past 17 years of my life."
Joyce couldn't help but sigh. She was clearly determined to go. She knew this day would come. She just didn't realize how soon it would arrive.
"Are you sure honey? This is a big major step and I need to know you will be able to handle it, especially on your own. Once you made this decision there's no backing out now."
Joyce wanted to scare her daughter a bit, try to make her see the limited flexibility on her choices but was stun with her daughter's determination when Buffy said,
"I'm more confident than anything I've ever wanted to do with my life. This is my goal, something I need to achieve. I can make something out of myself, really become something and if you don't give me my blessing I'll just go upstairs right now pack my things and just leave right now and don't count on me looking back. I have enough funds that'll support me for quite a while."
Hank, Buffy's father couldn't bare to leave his family in this kind of disarray and have his daughter leave in such bad terms. He knew he had no choice but to give in. In the end he believed it might be for the best. Buffy would make them all proud he knew it.
Hank finally said, "Well my dear, if that's the case. So let it be. We'll let you go. You deserve to choose where you want to go, after all you worked hard for it and if you want to pursue your career halfway across the country, so let it be. After all, Harvard is one of the best schools in the country."
Buffy, filled with joy couldn't help but run to her dad and give him a huge hug.
"Oh thank you, thank you daddy! You won't regret this! I'll make you so proud!"
Spike, who was extremely pissed stormed off and went upstairs. Buffy couldn't understand why he was so mad. She thought he would be the one congratulating her for finally getting out of the house and out of his life.
Spike just sat there in his room, wondering why he was so angry. But deep down he knew why. She was his only sister after all and even though they never always got along, she was always apart of his life and the fact that in a couple of months he would barely see her would be a huge change in his life. He knew he was going to miss his sister incredibly.
...
The next few months that Buffy had in Sunnydale flew by really fast. She avoided Spike and his friends at all costs and was proud that she actually hadn't seen Angel since the day he said those words about her. She was now ready for the new chapter in her life.
It wasn't easy though, avoiding Angel. He always came by often to their house so she had to compensate by going out a lot more, spending time with her friends and just having a blast. She never realized how much time she spent with Spike and his friends until she completely stopped hanging out with them.
Of course Spike was even more upset that with the precious time he had with her she never spent it with him anymore. He even reached as low as begging her to spend time with him but she always said she was busy or had plans. It hurt that she didn't want to spend time with him anymore. If he only knew it was because of Angel.
Angel couldn't help but also notice the absence of Buffy. He was so used to seeing her almost everyday. Ever since that day she revealed she was going to Harvard he hadn't seen her since and it was such a dramatic change. He was so used to seeing her smile, hearing her talk about her day, what she did and now when he came over to Spike's house it felt... empty. She was never home anymore and never spent time with either him or Spike as he had heard the complaints from Spike constantly. He didn't know that whenever she spotted him coming to her house she nearly ran out of the back door and hid until he was in her house to go elsewhere.
At first it didn't bother Angel not seeing Buffy as much. Not only was what she was wearing attracting his attention bother him but it was the fact that she was Spike's sister... who since he can remember had a crush on him. But as weeks past, then months without seeing her he felt... alone. Now he realized she would be off and away across the country to pursue her career.
He had known Buffy since forever, even helped out with her scrapes and scratches since she was a kid. Now she was growing up and it was becoming more aware to him that she was becoming a woman. That was the scariest part for him. As well she stopped seeking out for his attention, hell it was if she was avoiding him and it pissed him off. He came to Spike's house more and more just to clear his notion, just to see her to reassure himself that she wasn't avoiding him but she was never there to be seen.
As the day of Buffy's leaving approached, Angel wanted to come and wish her farewell. As he called the Summer's home he had an unexpected voice popped onto the phone line.
"Hello?"
"Buffy?"
"Angel?" Buffy became stiff. On her last day she had manage to stay well clear of him only for her plans to be sabotaged on her last day.
"I guess this is your last day huh?" Angel asked. He, never in his wildest dreams thought she would go through with it.
"Yep." Buffy decided to make her conversation with him short and snippy.
"Scared? I mean, I honestly wouldn't be surprised if you came back home in a month beginning to return and transfer back to a college close by."
Buffy couldn't believe him. He was ruining her day.
"What's that suppose to mean? Do you think I won't be able to handle it on my own?" Buffy tried to say politely but couldn't help adding a bit of rudeness.
"No. Its just that, who knows you might get homesick." Angel could feel Buffy's anger rising and didn't want to cause tension between them – especially on her last day. He hadn't even remembered the last time she'd ever snapped at him.
Deciding to change the topic he wanted to get to the main reason to why he called.
"Well Buffy I've decided that I might as well wish you off knowing that I won't see you for awhile since you've become like my kid sister and all. What time is your flight?"
Buffy hesitated for a moment. She didn't really want to tell him since she certainly didn't want to see him before she left. Who knew how his presence might affect her and even might make her change her mind. If she refused to tell him she was sure he would call later or get a hold of Spike to make Spike tell him about the time. She decided to lie about her flight time.
"Oh," Buffy said casually. "My flight leaves at err... 7 pm."
"Great. I'll come to your house at 6:00 pm ish and we'll leave then."
"NO! I mean..." Buffy was thinking quickly. She didn't want him to come with them. She thought he would simply meet them there. She remembered there was another flight going for Boston one hour earlier. She hoped she could change her flight schedule to an earlier one. Yes she was this desperate to avoid him.
"Yea, you know what. Come around then." Buffy said coolly. She figured once he come to the house he would notice they were gone so he would go back home anyways.
"Well, I gotta get going. Got lots of stuff to do before I go." Buffy said.
"Oh. Okay Buffy. See you then."
"Goodbye Angel."
"Bye Buffy."
Buffy knew that would be the last thing she would never say to Angel for a long time.
Buffy quickly dialled the airport and was relieved when they had room in the earlier flight to Boston. After she arranged her flight time to be changed she quickly told her family and got ready to go. She now had one hour less to get ready.
As they were about to leave Buffy looked back to her house and whispered to herself,
"I'll miss ya home. I'll be back someday." And headed towards the car.
As they got to the airport she couldn't believe how smart she was, concocting her plan of ditching Angel. She felt guilty for a moment but flashes of him and his breathtaking smile came in her head and she knew she realized it was for the best after all.
Meanwhile...
When Angel reached the Summer's house he saw that none of their cars were in the driveway. He cursed to himself and started racing towards the airport. He didn't think they would leave so soon. Especially when he came early to help pack up Buffy's things.
As he got to the airport he rushed inside the terminal searching for any sign of his friend or any one he knew. He suddenly saw Spike's peroxide hair and aware that Buffy might be around tried as much as possible casually walking towards them.
Instead they were actually walking towards Angel which confused him.
Joyce, noticing Angel said, "Oh hi Angel. What are you doing here?"
"I was hoping to wish Buffy farewell."
"Well," Joyce started, "You're a bit too late. Her plane just went into the air. Didn't you know her flight was at 6:00pm?"
Angel stunned for a bit echoed "6:00pm? Buffy told me 7:00pm."
Spike butted in and said, "Well that was the case at first but she changed it this afternoon, something about finding out her friend was going on that plane as well and wanted to have some company or something. She didn't tell you mate?"
"No... she didn't." Angel said softly. He was hurt that she didn't bother on telling him she changed her flight time. Like he didn't matter. It was so unlike Buffy. The same Buffy that always tried to get his attention since they were kids.
Spike walked up to where Angel was and patted him on the back.
"Well it was nice that you wanted to wish her farewell now mate. I'll tell her that. I bet she wouldn't mind knowing that." Spike winked. He continued on, saying,
"No worries. You'll see her on thanksgiving or something."
"Yea. Sure." Angel said.
Who ever thought that the next time they would set eyes on each other would be 6 long years later...
Now let the real story begin
Authors Sides NotesWell! Yea. I know this chapter is quite long but I really needed to finish this up so that the real story began. Can you believe both these chapters are like just like the background info to set up the real story? Thanks for all the great reviews I've gotten so far. I'm quite surprised by the great feedback I've been getting for this new story of mine. Tell me what you think so far. It's greatly appreciated and makes me write faster.
Feedback feeds the soul =)