It would have to have been a pool party... and Buffy frowned and tugged the heavy coat closer before looking over to where Cordelia was lounging in a black bikini.

"Are you cold?" Angel asked quietly.

"I'm good."

A loud splash came from the pool, followed by, "Spike!"

"What luv?" he asked as he held up his hands in surrender. "I didn't mean to get you wet." There was some laughter and catcalls before Drusilla dove into the pool with a snarl and pulled him under.

"You know you don't have to sit here with me, right?" Buffy asked quietly. "If you want to swim, go ahead."

"It's alright," he answered. "I don't trust Spike not to pee in the water." She shot him a look, and his eyes lit with amusement.

"Spike?" Doyle deadpanned as he walked over. "Yeah, he does that."

"You guys aren't serious." Buffy looked at them before turning back to the pool with a frown. "Shouldn't they have come up by now?"

"They're fine," Angel murmured before taking a sip of blood.

"You know the guy's a total goner for Dru." Doyle sat down. "He told me he was thinking about asking her to move in with him after graduation."

"Really?" Angel asked.

"Yeah." He hesitated before snorting. "Heck I'd be willing to move in with Cordy if she were ready to settle down... but she says she's not going to consider that until she's 23."

Angel grinned at Doyle before looking at Buffy. She was still frowning at the pool, and he thoughtfully finished his drink.


It was almost five am when the party moved inside and Cordelia closed wooden shutters over the windows before moving front and center. "Who wants to play couples?" she asked. There were agreements from around the room, and Angel got to his feet.

"Come on," he murmured as he looked at Buffy before turning to Cordelia. "Cord," he called in a louder voice, "Buffy and I are going to shoot some pool." He didn't wait for a reply as he led her down a flight of stairs and into a game room set up to resemble a bar. It was complete with a jukebox, counter, and large pool table, and Buffy looked it over with interest before turning to watch Angel set up the game.

"What's couples?"

"It's a game," he answered as he continued to alternate striped balls with solids.

"How do you play?"

He glanced up uncertainly before purposely turning his attention back to arranging the pool balls. "It's a blood game. The guys write their names on six different papers... and the girls draw out a name every five minutes."

"And?" she pressed.

He sighed before walking over to pick out a couple of pool cues. "They feed from each other before changing partners... and after the first 15 minutes or so, it gives you a buzz." He turned toward her and held out the pool cues. "Take your pick," he offered with a faint smile, "although... having first choice probably won't help you."

She hesitated before looking thoughtfully into teasing brown eyes. He'd won the last two games they'd played at the Blood Well, but right now pool just didn't interest her. She took a moment to consider what she was about to do before taking both of the cues and laying them across the table.

"Buffy?" he asked with a perplexed frown before following when she started to pull him toward the sofa. She pushed him the last foot, and he took the hint and sat down.

"No biting," she ordered.

He swallowed before tilting his head back to look at her. "No biting," he agreed.

She took a breath and looked him over. She'd never felt this much power over a guy before. It was a turn-on, and she waited for him to protest as she took slow sensuous movements to straddle his lap. "At our parties," she murmured, "we couple too."

He didn't move a muscle, and she studied his features before kissing his forehead, nose, and cheek. Forcing back misgivings that he'd taste like blood, she settled her lips over his and made a quiet sound of contentment when he deepened it. The difference in temperatures was strange... but it wasn't a deal-breaker, and she curled fingers through the short hair at the back of his neck. A soft sound filled the silence, and she drew back in surprise. The purring stopped, and he looked at her intently.

"Did I do something wrong?"

"Uh... no." She looked at him curiously before leaning in for another kiss... and Angel returned it before starting to purr again when her hand returned to its previous spot.

She wasn't a virgin, she reminded herself as a hot flash of need ran through her, and he seemed... willing. She broke away and drug in a breath. "Angel." She shifted to nuzzle into his cheek before dropping down to do the same to his throat, "Do you have a condom?"

"What?" he asked as he fought the urge to take control, to bite.

"We need a condom," she breathed. "Unless," she drew back, "you don't want to..."

Chocolate eyes met hers with confusion. "What's a condom?"

"Angel..." she broke off and dropped her forehead against his shoulder before pushing to her feet. "It's birth control." She ran a hand through her hair and looked at him. He was gorgeous, and she looked away.

"Birth control?" he asked with a frown. "But you don't..." he broke off. Silence fell, and Buffy closed her eyes before opening them with determination.

"Is... is there a bathroom down here?"

"Yeah." He motioned to a door, and she headed for it before coming back a few seconds later with a towel. He looked up docily, and she pushed his knees apart before kneeling between them. "I want to do this for you," she told him quietly as she met his eyes.

"Do what?" he asked as he started to shift uncomfortably before going still when she skimmed hands up his thighs.

"You've done this before, right?" she asked as she began to unbuckle his belt before moving to the button and then to the zipper on his jeans.

"Umm... what's... this?"

She looked at him with disbelief. "A hand job," she answered as she looked into confused eyes before reaching out to carefully pull his member out of his pants. His eyes closed and his nose scrunched before he dropped his head back against the sofa, and she couldn't stop a smile as she watched him. He was just so delicious... Well, she wrinkled her nose... she wasn't swallowing blood, but... She leaned down and licked at the tip of his shaft, and he gave a startled cry before closing gold eyes when she continued to experiment.

"Buffy," he managed a couple of minutes later.

She pulled back and reached for the towel before shifting up to his ear. "It's okay," she murmured as she nuzzled him. "Come on, Angel." He came a few seconds later, his body jerking toward hers before going still. It took a few seconds before he trusted himself to open brown eyes instead of gold, and when he did, he watched intently as she examined the towel.

His cum looked normal. She didn't know how it could and she thoughtfully dipped a small amount up with her finger before tasting it. It tasted like salt, and she smiled before looking up to see him watching. "Um..." her face flushed with embarrassment, "are you okay?"

He gave a slow nod. "Yeah. It was amazing... but is it normal?"

More embarrassment flared, and she got to her feet. "It's not done all the time... but it's pretty much... normal." Intense brown eyes studied her, and she motioned toward the bathroom. "I'll just... wash the towel," she stated awkwardly before leaving the room.

She'd already flushed the stool and had the water turned on in the sink when he wrapped arms around her waist. "So... I guess we're going to need birth control?" He looked over her shoulder to watch her scrub at the towel.

"Maybe," she finally answered. "I mean," she forced her eyes up to his, and they locked gazes in the mirror, "I don't really know how you feel... and I'm not sure..." she trailed off before shifting her attention back to the sink. "I guess I thought maybe we could try."

"I'd like that."

She looked at him almost cautiously before starting to wring out the towel, and he gently took it away from her and wrung it out drier than she could before handing it back.

"Thanks," she murmured before hanging it over the showerhead and turning to look at him. He was just as gorgeous as ever and curious as to what he'd do, she moved closer and tugged his head down for another kiss. He pulled away after a few seconds. "You taste different."

"No... That's what *you* taste like," she told him with a faint smile.

He studied her before leaning down for another kiss that lasted several seconds before she pulled away. "Just so I know, you're not a... virgin are you?"

"No. I've had normal sex before," he answered with a faint smile before frowning a few seconds later. "Um... You have too right?"

"Yeah. *Normal* sex... which doesn't include biting."

"Alright," he slowly agreed. "You're going to have to help me with that."

She snorted before scowling. "Let's just take it slow okay?" He nodded, and she ran a hand through her hair before looking tiredly at her watch. It was 5:30 in the morning. "I tried to get extra sleep yesterday, but," she broke off and gave a slight shake of her head, "I'm really tired."

He stepped closer and encircled her in his arms. "Do you know the park that's about 2 blocks from the school?" She nodded. "Why don't we start meeting there before classes start?"

She glanced up curiously. "You mean like half an hour early or something?"

"Half an hour would be perfect," he agreed before releasing her.

"Um... alright." She slowly shifted away as she started thinking about where she'd left Angel's coat, and where her keys were. Her keys were in her pocket, and she pulled them out as she headed for the stairs.

They were just getting ready to enter the living room when Buffy stopped in the doorway. Everything was silent except for a soft growl once in a while. There were 10 'couples' that sat unmoving with their fangs buried in each other's arms. Gold eyes flitted her way, and she swallowed uneasily as she looked back.

"It's just a game," Angel told her quietly.

She turned to stare at him for several long moments before turning to look into the gold eyes of his friends. A moment later, she looked away. "I... um... I'll see you tomorrow." She started toward the door and he caught her after a few steps and handed her his coat.

"You won't forget to meet me Sunday night, will you?" he asked quietly.

She took the coat but didn't look at him. "I'll be there."

"Good." He released her and watched with regret as she walked into the early morning dawn.

The timer sounded, heads lifted, and most of the eyes in the room landed on Angel. "Well now," Spike breathed with amusement, "look who joined us."

Rolling his eyes, Angel turned to face him. "Yeah. And I think it's time I called it a night."

"Not so fast," Spike stated as he got to his feet, and wavered slightly. "There's no blood on either of you, but you've had sex and she hasn't."

Angel's eyes sparkled with gold before he gave a faint smirk. "Bye Spike," he called before heading back into the basement to access the tunnel system.


They were playing volleyball again. It was a new week, and new teams had been picked. Buffy smiled when she got behind the net and Angel took a position at her side. Mr. Sullivan tossed the ball to Penn, and he served it.

The ball came at her a few minutes into the game, and Buffy tried for it... and was surprised when no one took it away from her. She awkwardly bumped it into the air and sent it away from the net. Doyle sent it to Angel who spiked it for a point.

"Nice," Angel murmured as he tossed her a teasing grin.

She rolled her eyes and returned his smile before turning back to the game with more interest than she had before.

There were 10 minutes left of class with the teams tied. The ball was moving fast when it came over the net toward Buffy, too fast. She lunged for it... and ran into Angel when he slammed it back. The hard collision sent her stumbling a couple of steps back before landing on her butt, and she got to her feet with a hint of irritation.

"Are you okay?" he asked.

"Yeah, just awkward," she answered before moving toward him and taking her spot at the net. She didn't notice that he'd tensed at the first scent of her blood. It wasn't light this time, and Angel quickly looked her over before turning back to the net. A moment later, he ducked his head, switched into game face and purposefully cut his lip on a fang before shifting back.

"Who's bleeding?" the coach called.

Buffy froze, her face turning red as she looked at the teacher uneasily. Her periods had stopped being a problem since she'd started using tampons, but it looked like she'd run out of luck today.

"I bit my lip," Angel answered. "It's nothing."

"I'll clean it for you," Cordy called with a grin.

Angel grinned back. "I got it, Cord."

The ball went back into play, and he cast a quick appraising glance at Buffy before turning his attention back to the game.

Coach Sullivan blew a whistle ten minutes later. "Go change," he ordered before watching them head toward the locker rooms. "Angel."

The teen walked over, and the coach looked at his cut lip. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah."

He nodded. "Alright. Get changed."

Angel walked over to Buffy when he saw her standing outside of the girl's locker room. "You're not changing?"

She looked up uneasily. Angel might have cut his lip, but bumping into him had sent her sprawling. There was no way she wanted to take a chance on who's blood they were smelling. "It's my last class," she stated with a forced shrug before studying his lip and wincing. "Sorry."

"It's fine... and it wouldn't have happened if I wasn't trying to take the ball away from you."

"Yeah, but I wouldn't have been able to hit it. I was way too slow."

He grinned. "We won the game."

Steps came out of the girl's locker room, and he glanced up at the freshman that had already changed. "Cordelia's not the only one that can clean your lip you know," the redhead stated as she looked at him with interest before shooting a cool look at Buffy. "And shouldn't you be changing?"

"Maybe you should mind your own business," Angel answered before looking over his shoulder when he heard someone coming out of the locker room behind him.

"Well now," Spike looked at Buffy with a smile, "hello there."

"I've got to get my stuff," she murmured self consciously as a few of the girls that had already changed headed back to the bleachers.

"And I've got to get changed," he answered before they headed in opposite directions.

Spike hesitated before following Angel. "Never thought you'd be blood bait mate."

Angel glanced at him as he started to undress. "If I were blood bait I'd cut myself before going into a bar," Spike. I'm in *school*, and it was an accident."

"Besides," Lindsey started as he stopped on his way out of the locker room, "the girl he wants probably wouldn't go for blood bait."

Angel shook his head before giving a faint smile. "I only wish she would."


Friday night:

Angel glanced over the Blood Well before pulling Buffy in a different direction than they usually went.

"How about this one?" he asked as he stopped at an empty table.

"It's good," she answered as she slid out of his coat and dropped it over the back of a chair.

"I'll be right back," he murmured before hesitating. "Is coffee okay?"

"Yeah."

He headed for the bar, and she sat down and glanced over the crowd that was becoming familiar. Jonathan waved, and she scowled before abruptly turning to look at the three guys that had walked over and were taking seats at her table.

"Hello darling," Lindsey greeted as he looked at her with interest. "We were just wondering if you'd show up tonight."

"Yeah," Doyle agreed as he gave her a charming smile. "I mean, neither of you are showing up early for school anymore. We're starting to think you're trying to ditch us."

"And why would that be?" Spike asked as his eyes dug into her. "It's almost like something happened at Cordy's party that we can't quite figure out."

"Three bright guys like yourselves?" she asked with a hint of amusement. "That's hard to believe."

"It is isn't it?" Doyle spoke up. "Anyway, we were wondering if you could fill us in."

"Have you asked Angel?"

"He's not talking," Lindsey answered. "We were hoping maybe you would be willing to."

"Be willing to what?" Angel asked as he set a cup of coffee in front of Buffy and scowled at the guys sitting at his table.

"Oh, nothing really," Spike answered as he looked at Angel with a curious interest. "We just thought she could tell us what you two were doing in the basement last weekend."

"We played pool," Buffy answered before shrugging, "and then I left." She looked up at Angel. "Is that the way you remember it?"

He grinned at her before turning to them. "She pretty much put me in my place... I mean, when we started playing, I was just... floored."

Buffy's eyes widened as she stared up at him, and he reached out a hand. "Dance?"

"Um... yeah." She took his hand and followed him to the dance floor.

Silence fell as Lindsey and Doyle exchanged looks and Spike narrowed his eyes. "Well, that's more than we've gotten out of him all week," the bleached blonde stated.

"Yeah... but what does that mean?" Doyle asked as he ran a hand through his hair with frustration.


It was almost 2 in the morning when they walked out of the Blood Well and started toward the parking lot. Angel abruptly stopped, and Buffy looked at him with a frown. "What?" she asked curiously.

"No," a girl suddenly hissed. Buffy quickly looked back across the street before following Angel when he headed toward an alley.

"Go on," a guy urged. "She's taking blood-booster shots. Just take a slow sip and she'll be fine."

"Kaki," the girl said in a quivering voice. "Please don't let him bite me."

"Shhh," he soothed. "Trick's an old friend, and you really don't mind do you? I mean, if you don't want me to bite you anymore, I can give you some time off, Faith. Would you like a week away from me?"

"N... No," she answered before twisting her head off to the side.

"Good girl," the brown haired guy murmured as the younger one moved forward to blanket her before sinking fangs into her throat. Her breathing hitched before increasing into heavy pants as she reached up to hold Trick's head to her throat with a whine of need.

Angel listened to her breathing with a frown before starting to move closer, and Buffy grabbed his arm. "What are you doing?" she almost hissed.

He glanced back. "There's something wrong. She's having an asthma attack or something."

She looked at him with confusion. "She's having sex..." she broke off as her face turned red, "or something," she added uneasily. "Let's go."

He stared at her intently before turning back to watch the girl slide to the ground as the two guys stood over her.

"I told you," Kakistos said with a laugh before he looked over at the two watching. "It's been a while, Angel. How have you been?"

"I'm good," he answered as he moved away from Buffy and crouched down beside the brunette on the ground. "Are you okay?" he asked as he stared into passion-drugged eyes that were full of tears.

She panted lightly as she looked at him. "Yeah."

"She's fine," Kakistos answered as he looked Buffy over with interest. "I'd heard you were dating a human. Have you drank from her yet?"

"No," Angel answered as he stood.

"I suppose in this town you've got to be careful," Kakistos agreed. "Los Angeles is a little different though... " He gave a smile before changing the subject. "I hear you've got a good chance at getting a dome."

"Yeah, we do."

"That'd be cool. I might even have to move back to town for that. Mom and dad would be thrilled," he stated before scowling.

Angel gave a faint smirk before looking down as the girl slowly shifted. Trick offered a hand, and she looked up uneasily before taking it and climbing to her feet.

"Do you want a go at her?" Kakistos asked. "Her bark's a lot worse than her bite."

Angel looked at him with an unreadable expression before shaking his head. "No thanks."

Kakistos nodded and looked pointedly at Buffy. "Don't suppose you'd let me have a go with yours?"

"No," he stated firmly.

"Excuse me?" Buffy hissed angrily. "He doesn't own me... and what's wrong with you anyway?"

He gave a quiet laugh before holding out a hand. "I'll buy you a drink if you'll give me one," he murmured silkily.

She stared at him incredulously before looking at the other girl. "You really need to ditch this guy. He's got serious problems."

"That's easy for you to say," the brunette replied before giving a shake of her head. "They're not that easy to replace."

"This one could be replaced," Buffy answered grimly.

"Let's go." Angel turned to look at her and motioned toward the Blood Well parking lot.

Buffy frowned before looking back at the girl. "We can drop you off somewhere if you want."

She shook her head. "I'm alright."

"See?" Kakistos spoke up as he gave Buffy a smirk that turned her stomach. "She's alright... better than that really. Such a very good girl," he murmured sickeningly.

She started toward him angrily, and Angel caught her around the waist. "Let's *go*," he repeated before starting to pull her back across the street.

"If you get tired of her, let me know and I'll take her off your hands," Kakistos hollered after them.

Buffy tried to jerk away and gave up angrily when Angel only held her tighter. "Damn it, Angel," she snarled.

"She's an addict," he answered quietly. "You can't help her."

"Do you have any idea how sick that is?" she hissed before shifting away from him when he released her.

He didn't answer as they walked back to the Blood Well parking lot, but when they got back to the car he trapped her between it and him. "Her breathing was normal?" he asked as he looked down at her intently.

She looked up with confusion. "You want to talk about her *breathing*? Didn't you see what happened back there?"

"Yeah, but... I mean, you would sound like that if we..." he broke off at her glare and changed gears. "I didn't like it, but there's nothing we can do about it."

Buffy looked away. Faith had gotten off on it, and it was that part that bothered her the most. Not that she'd liked any of it, but... She looked at Angel with a troubled frown. "She liked it... How could she have?"

"I like it," he answered.

"Yeah, but you're a *vampire*."

He gave a faint smile. "Holding it against me, Buff?" She didn't answer, and he sighed before walking around the car to slide into the driver's seat.