The Next Afternoon
Willow leans against the closed door listening to Angel sobbing. * I wish I knew what to do, Buffy. How to stop him from destroying himself. But I don't know where to even start. *
She slowly moves away and down the hall, moving quickly past the bloodstains, the reminders of Buffy's battle. She steps into the atrium and turns her face towards the afternoon sun. She opens the envelope and begins to read.
Dear Willow,
I know that I am going to face certain death tonight. The oddest thing is, I am at peace. I know that I am making the right decision and the world will be a better place for it. My only real regret is that I will be leaving all of you. At least I can say goodbye with these letters.
I love you, Will. I don't know that I've said that often enough over the years. You are the best person I have ever known. You always complained that no one ever noticed you. But you were wrong. Maybe you never had the dazzling popularity that Cordelia had. So what? You have something better. You are the kindest soul I have ever met. People are drawn to you without even understanding why. I know why. You radiate warmth and goodness and understanding.
And I'll let you in on a little secret. You're strong. You have an inner core of steel that people may not see, but they come to depend on it without realizing it. I know I did. So many times, I jumped into the fray without thinking. You may have believed I didn't notice you were there. But I always knew in my heart that you were close, supporting me, helping me. It was the thing I counted on. And you never let me down, not once. But I know I let you down over the years and I'm sorry. I'm sorry for all the times I shut you out when you were trying to help. For all the times I didn't include you because I didn't think you could handle it. For all the times I wasn't the friend I should have been.
Now, here comes a last piece of advice for you and my final request. You've probably read my burial requests by now. I figure you and Giles will be the ones to tell my mom. (See strong - what did I tell you?) I picked the song "I Will Remember You" by Sarah McLachlan for a reason. "Don't let your life pass you by, Weep not for the memories." I don't want any of you to waste a precious moment mourning me. Consider this the great selfless act of my life. (I was about due for one anyway, right?) I'm telling all of you to go forward and find happiness while you can. Wherever you can. Life is short. Live every moment to the fullest.
Carpe Diem,
Buffy
Willow sits in the sun for a long while, holding the precious letter to her chest, tears streaming down her face. "I love you too, Buffy. I'm not exactly sure how, but I will do my best to honor that request." Then slowly a smile begins to form. "Fish of the Day, indeed." She stands up and gets her laptop and then sits back down and begins to write her eulogy.
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