The music was deafening at the Bronze as Willow and Xander struggled to talk to each other over the band.
“I wonder when Buffy will be here. You don’t think she’s hurt do you?” A very concerned Willow asked.
Xander drew his eyes away from the female band, and gave his best attempt to lip read his friend. He shook his head. “Nah. She’s probably just having a busy night. She’ll come.” Yet his words failed to calm her.
She checked her watch again, and then looked up still worried. “But she was supposed to show an hour ago.” She yelled.
Once again forcing his eyes away from the stage, he said, “Relax Will, she’ll be here.” She gave up on trying to talk to him, and tried to calm herself by listening to the band. She didn’t notice Buffy come up behind her.
“Hey” Buffy greeted the two. She wore a plain black dress, which hugged her just right and extremely high stilettos, which showed the muscles in her legs nicely. Her hair was slightly wild, as she had loosened it from a high bunch before she had entered the Bronze.
“Oh hey!” Willow replied enthusiastically, the relief showing on her features. Xander greeted her, raising his hand, giving a slight wave, half distracted by the band. She nodded in return.
“What’s with the glum faces?” Buffy quizzed.
“Oh, I was just a bit worried, that’s all. You know with the dangerous slaying and all. You really shouldn’t go patrolling alone, Buffy.” Her concern was genuine.
“I got held up in Weatherly Park. There’s been a lot of vampire activity there lately.” She explained. She observed Willow’s face and added, “You shouldn’t worry Will. I’m a Slayer, it’s my job to be in danger.”
“I know. It’s just that, if something bad happened, and you were really hurt none of us would know, and we wouldn’t be able to help you. And I hate thinking that.”
Buffy’s heart went out to her. How could she explain that it was her job to put herself at risk. It was her duty to kill demons, no matter if she came out alive. She knew there would be another slayer to take her place. “I know.” Was all that Buffy could offer her. She was about to take a seat, swiftly changing the subject when she spotted three men talking at the bar. She studied them for a few minutes, before coming to the conclusion that they were vampires. They headed out each with girls, snickering to themselves. “God! When do I get a break?!” She let out frustrated.
Willow had followed her eye line and knew what she had to do. Buffy gave her a sympathetic look and Willow nodded, accepting her job. “Sorry.” Buffy said as she removed herself from her stool. She said goodbye to Xander, giving him a touch on the shoulder, then darted towards the exit. Willow watched her go, and then slumped to watch the band again.
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Buffy ran out into the alley from the Bronze, and scanned for the vampires. She heard a loud crash of trash cans from around the corner, and sprinted towards it. She halted as she came round the corner to see the vampires already being wailed on, or at least two of them were. She figured the other had bailed. She backed up a little hiding herself around the corner, and watched the man who was fighting them.
She followed his every move, impressed by his speed, and the sheer force of his punches. He stood tall for a split second, allowing her to see his face, and a handsome one at that too, she thought. Everything about him intrigued her and she wanted to know more.
She was about to help him out when the third vampire dropped from the rooftop of the Bronze, knocking her to the ground. It didn’t take long for her to flip to her feet and meet him in a fighting stance.
“You know you should really bend your knees when you land.” She mocked, offering him a swift roundhouse kick, which he ducked from. “That way you wouldn’t have to use me as a cushion.” She added, lunging at the vampire.
She blocked his punches with ease, giving a few successful ones herself. She was about to dust him, when he launched an unexpected trash can at her, sending her to fall hard against the wall. She fell to the ground unable to shake her disorientation off, attempting to get to her feet. Before she could the vampire jolted her head back by her hair, baring her neck to him. She whimpered slightly at the pain of her neck being forced so far backwards. She came to focus just as the vampire bore down on her neck. She let out a sound of protest but was unable to push him off.
She winced, preparing herself for the feeling of his teeth to sink into her neck, but blinked shocked when it never came. Then she found herself coughing with the dust that showered over her. When it cleared she saw the handsome man hovering over her. He extended his hand, and she accepted as he pulled her to her feet with ease. She rose to come inches away from him. The closeness startled her when she felt pangs of electricity shoot through her.
“Are you okay?” He asked softly.
She could have melted when she heard his voice. Instead she dusted herself off, and adjusted her dress, answering, “Yeah. I’m fine.” She looked back up and was taken aback by his intense gaze on her, and then shook her head as if she had forgotten something. “Uh…thanks by the way. For saving me.” She added offering a short but sweet smile.
“You’re welcome.” He said a smile creeping on his lips as she floundered.
“Nice moves.” She complemented. “How’d you learn to fight like that?” She asked, wanting to hear his voice again.
“I’ve been around.” He replied mysteriously. “You’re not so bad yourself.” He returned the complement, cleverly changing the subject off him.
She smiled at the flattery, and then looked confused. “So you know what those things were?”
“Vampires.” He replied flatly. Looking away for a second.
“Yeah.” She confirmed in amazement. What were the chances of her meeting an extremely hot guy who she didn’t have to lie to. There must be a downfall somewhere, she thought. “How did you know?” She prodded.
“I’ve travelled, you pick these things up if you pay attention.” He said simply. “And you’re the Slayer right? Buffy Summers?” He took the opportunity to look her once over, assessing her body. He had expected her to be slightly taller, but she certainly used that as an advantage when fighting, he thought.
She raised her eyebrow at him in wonder. “Okay, this is getting a little too weird. Even for me.” She admitted. “How do you know my name? And more importantly how do you know I’m the slayer? And who the hell are you anyway?!”
He chuckled slightly at her, as she grew frustrated with him. “My name’s Angel. And I’ve seen you around…fighting.”
She took that in, and then drew in her breath standing taller. “You’ve watched me fighting?” She asked, observing his nod. “Spying on me?” She corrected her voice grew stern.
He raised his eyebrows, shocked at her suggestion, and held his hands up in defence, shaking his head. “No. I haven’t been spying. I meant that I’ve just seen you fighting, when I’ve been passing. That’s all.”
She wanted to believe him, but she found the whole situation just too wacky, even after she had seen so much. “Well, thanks again for saving me.” She said politely, and it became obvious that she didn’t trust him. “Night.” She finished, and headed down the alley.
He kicked himself for saying that and followed after her, stilling her gently by her arm. She felt her skin quiver at his unexpected cold grip, and turned to face him, unable to look away from his deep penetrating eyes.
“Look I want to help you.” He said quickly.
“Sorry, but I’m kind of a one woman show. Night” She informed him as she shook his hand off her and continued to walk away. He watched her go, wondering whether or not to chase after her. He thought better of it – not wanting to get on her bad side, and headed the other way.
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“So he was tall, dark and handsome, and you just blew him off?!” Willow asked Buffy as they sat in the Library. Giles was on his lunch break with Miss. Calender, and Xander had popped out to get candy, leaving the two of them alone.
“Yeah.” Buffy said sounding slightly disappointed with herself. “But there was something weird about him.” She said abruptly, defending herself. She thought again about the instant attraction she had felt towards him. She wondered if he had felt the same.
“What was his name?” Willow prodded, still in fantasy mode that she often slipped into when on the subject of boys.
“Angel.” Buffy answered, still trying to figure out what they had felt last night. Willow chimed his name, sounding rather poetic, snapping Buffy back to reality. “Will, he saved me from a vampire. We barely even spoke. I’ve never seen him in my life before. I doubt that we’ll be hooking up any time soon.” She chided herself, hoping that she would be proven wrong.
“Hey, I still available for the hooking!” Xander interrupted as he returned to the library munching on a candy bar.
Willow frowned slightly as the discomfort of Xander, being interested in everyone but her. “Actually we were talking about Buffy’s new boyfriend!” She told him, putting an immediate stop to any flirting, which may have followed.
“Really?” Xander asked, intrigued. “And who might the lucky guy be?” He added.
“Angel. And he’s not my boyfriend…he just saved me last night.” She straightened in her chair moving to a more strict position, adding to her stern words.
“Yeah Will. Just because a guy saves her doesn’t mean that he’s into her. He was just being heroic. I’m sure Buffy thanked him and made her way home in good haste!” He turned to Buffy looking for approval and smiled when she gave a little nod.
“But there must have been a spark. Even the smallest of one…?” Willow said, searched for Buffy to spill the truth, raising her eyebrow.
Buffy looked sheepish for a moment and then said, “Well…it was pretty cool how he could fight like that. And he already knew about vampires, which meant I didn’t have to cover!” Her voice grew dreamier, thinking back at how he had moved so fluently in his fighting.
“But I’m sure that being the stud you say he is, he’s probably already hitched.” Xander cut in, desperate to stop her from continuing her thoughts.
Buffy slumped a little, considering the possibility. “He said he wanted to help me.” She was mainly talking to Willow, avoiding Xander’s agitation.
“What did you say?” Willow quizzed, a bright glow appearing on her face. It soon faded when Buffy said, “No.”
“Dammit! How could I be so stupid? I come across this extreme hunk, who saves me, and then offers to help me, and I turn him down!”
“That’s life.” Xander said bluntly.
They were about to go deeper into the conversation when the school bell rang. They stood and collected their bags, and then headed out of the library.
“I don’t know. Maybe I’ll see him tonight at the Bronze” Buffy said quietly to Willow, so Xander couldn’t hear. Willow grinned over excited at the thought as they entered the biology lab and took to their desks.
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The Bronze was verging on dead as Buffy, Willow and Xander talked around a table. Buffy hadn’t done much talking, as she had been too busy scanning the room to see if Angel would show.
“Man does this suck!” Xander stated observing the lack of people around them.
Willow offered a sweet nod, half disagreeing with him. She had been quite happy just talking to him about irrelevant things.
“Yeah.” Buffy yawned. “I think I’m gonna go. Maybe do a quick sweep of the cemetery on the way home. I’ll see you guys tomorrow.” And she left the table, putting on her jacket as she made for the door.
“Why can’t we have something better to do?” Xander quipped frustrated.
Willow was a little offended that he didn’t enjoy talking to her as much as he did Buffy. “This isn’t so bad.” She offered.
“No. It’s torture!” He retorted. They fell silent as they slumped on their stools, resigning to watch the band.
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Buffy, strolled slowly through the graves stones of Sunnydale Cemetery, tapping her stake between her fingers. She felt disappointed that she hadn’t seen Angel again, especially when she had gotten all pretty, she thought. She wore a very skimpy black skirt, which clung to her hips nicely, and a vibrant red corset, which apart from being very striking, also illuminated her skin. To add to it she had chosen to wear her best stilettos, and she had pinned her hair up, to show off her collarbone. However, it had all been for nothing. She hadn’t seen Angel, and she got the feeling that she had blown her chance. She drew her jacket closer to her, shivering as a cool breeze passed her way.
She was about to continue her moping when she heard a rustling sound from behind her. Gripping her stake firmly she spun as best she could in her shoes, stake raised. She stopped as she saw that Angel held her arm still. She couldn’t help a small yelp of happiness escape her as he lowered her arm for her.
“Hey.” He said simply. “You should be more careful with that thing. You could put someone’s eye out with that.” He chided, giving a small smile.
“That’s usually the idea.” She retorted, as she slid the stake up her sleeve and returned to look at him. “You should be more careful who you sneak up on. I almost got you there.” She returned the warning.
“I’ll keep that in mind next time.” He half joked.
Her heart skipped a beat at his words. There’s gonna be a next time, she wondered. “So…” she began. “What are you sneaking up on me for?”
“I just came to see how you were…after last night.” He answered coolly.
“I’m good. How about you? You took some hard blows.” She moved forward to inspect his face running a finger along his jaw line, but stepped back a little surprised that he showed no signs of bruising.
“I don’t bruise easily.” He explained, smirking slightly as his skin was left tingling from her touch. He had never known anyone make such an affect on him. Not to mention that she was the slayer.
“I guess we’re both okay then.” She stated. He nodded, not removing his eyes from hers. He wondered what had made him come tonight. He knew she’d be okay, but he felt he needed to see her, wanted to see her.
“I still want to help you.” He started.
She was about to respond when she was forced to the ground by a large scaly demon. It was twice the height of her, and long sharp blades protruded from each of its three fingers as it slashed at her. She rolled away, but one of its blades caught her leg, slicing easily through her flesh. Angel was already attacking it, aiming for its legs in an attempt to bring it to the ground. He was quick to dodge its blades, however, not quickly enough as it ripped a few times at his chest.
Buffy clambered to her feet ready to take it on. Together they rushed it knocking it off balance for a few seconds before it returned to slice the air around them.
“It’s too fast.” Angel told her.
Buffy knew he was right, and sprung high in the air, offering a roundhouse kick to its face, disorientating it further. While it stumbled backwards she grabbed Angel’s arm, urging him to run with her.
“Run!” She ordered. He followed. She was surprised at how well he kept up with her. However, she found it hard to run due to the searing pain shooting through her body from her leg. She wondered how much damage Angel had acquired. They continued running.
They ran down Rovello Drive, Buffy’s house in sight. She spared a quick glance behind them as they sprinted up to her porch. She quickly unlocked the door and ran in holding the door open for him, but he halted in the doorway.
“Quick get in!” She ordered. The tension fell away from his face as he ran inside. She locked the door behind him, and checked out the window that it hadn’t followed. Satisfied, she turned away from the door and headed through to the kitchen. She returned with a first aid box.
“Here, sit down. Let me take a look at those for you.” She gestured for him to sit on the sofa. He did so, as she knelt on the floor, placing the box on the coffee table.
“I’m okay. It’s just a few scratches.” She ignored him and lifted his shirt to inspect his injuries.
“Yeah right.” She scoffed, as she searched for the antiseptic in the box.
“Honestly.” He protested lowering his shirt. He moved to the edge of the sofa and gently touched her leg. The coolness of his hand against her skin made her stop, and she drew her head up to look at him. But he didn’t return her gaze; he was assessing the deep gash on her thigh. “I’m more concerned about you.” He said.
She winced in pain as he pressed gently on the skin around the cut. “We should clean this up first.” He told her, looking up to notice the longing look she was giving him. He fumbled as he realised that his hand was still resting on her leg. They both looked away for a moment, and then he took the box off the coffee table to find the antiseptic himself. He placed the box back down as he found the bottle. He gestured for her to sit on the table, and she did so.
“Okay.” She gave in. She removed her shoes, and then slid her jacket off, pushing them aside. He was taken aback at what she was wearing, he hadn’t really had chance to notice. He had never been this close to her before, and he took in her pure beauty as she sat before him. Loving every inch of her radiant skin. He took in her scent, almost able to feel the softness of her skin.
Shaking it off, he held her hips and moved her closer to him, to get a better look at the cut. She shifted slightly uncomfortable at being so close to him. She breathed him in, observing his features from so close, as she straightened her injured leg out for him. He dabbed a drenched cotton bud around the wound to clear the blood.
“It’s already started healing.” He told her.
“I guess being the slayer does have its perks then.” She offered nervously. He gave a little smile at her, appreciating her efforts to change the atmosphere. “So what’s your deal?” She continued. “Why do you choose to fight vampires?”
“The same reason as you.” He replied.
“Yeah, but its not like you’re the slayer, its not you’re job. How did you find out about them?” She quizzed, relaxing dramatically.
“My parents were killed by a vampire.” He said sadly, having to look away from her.
“Sorry.” She offered.
“It was a long time ago.” He told her, wanting to steer away from the topic.
“So its like a revenge gig for you?” She prodded.
“Something like that.” He said simply, wanting to tell her the truth, about how he had come to fight against demons, but instead he kept silent and tended to her leg.
She gritted her teeth and winced as he passed the cotton bud over a fresh area of the cut. He looked up at her seeing her eyes fill slightly. In that moment he wanted to take all her pain, and all the burdens she carried for being the slayer. It wasn’t fair that she had to face this, it isn’t right that she should be going through this at sixteen, he thought.
He finished by placing a square of gauze over the cut and taped around it. As he lay the final strip of tape to her leg, he traced over it with his thumbs pressing it firmly to her skin. He didn’t realise when he wasn’t touching the tape anymore and continued down the sides of her leg. She just watched as she felt the coolness of his solid hands against her skin. He paused as his hands slid passed the barrel of her leg and found themselves dangling in air, and he was jolted back to reality.
“Done.” This time he found himself feeling nervous. He patted gently on her knee and leaned backwards on the sofa, widening the space between them.
“Thanks.” She said, taking a deep breath to expel the sexual frustration she found building up inside her. “Now lets take a look at you.” She said leaning in towards him.
“I can fix myself up.” He said kindly, pushing her hands away. “Thanks.”
She understood what he was saying and gave a small nod of agreement, as she pushed herself to her feet. His eyes traced her body, as she stood tall above him. “Well in that case, why don’t you sort yourself out here, and I’ll go upstairs and get changed.” She headed for the stairs when he nodded. He watched her go and then returned to the first aid box, and began to take his shirt off.
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Buffy lay on her bed staring blankly at the ceiling, in her pyjamas. What am I doing? She asked herself. She wondered whether or not she should go back downstairs but decided to leave it a few minutes longer. Instead, she remained there, still, not moving, letting the world pass by as she put everything into perspective. She snapped herself out of her trail of thought, when she heard footsteps on the stairs. She went to meet them.
“Hey.” Angel said with a smile, observing the clothes she was wearing. He was amazed at how she could make even the plainest of clothes look stunning. She wore loose fitting pyjama trousers, which hung off her hips perfectly, and a tight fitted spaghetti top, which also moulded to her just right. He loved the wavy hair that hung over her shoulders
She was taken aback at the sight of him with his shirt off, and couldn’t help but sneak a glimpse of his body, as he put he buttoned his shirt back up. Her mouth was open to talk but somehow she just couldn’t find the words to say.
“I think I should go now.” He told her, knowing what she was thinking, as he too was sharing her thoughts. Ever since he had seen her he had wanted her, back at Hemrey High. But he couldn’t tell her that, it would simply be too weird.
“Why?” She managed to blurt out.
“It’s late. You need to get to bed, and I’m sure your mom will be back soon.” He explained.
“Mom’s in LA, shopping for the gallery.” She replied. “And I can’t let you go.” She looked away at what she had just said, hoping he hadn’t taken it the way it had sounded. She realised from his look that he had. “I mean you’re hurt. And it’s not safe. The demon could still be around” She recovered herself.
He chuckled slightly at her innocence, and then said, “I’ll be fine. I live nearby. I’ll be home before you know it” he attempted to convince her.
“Not with injuries like those. I’m afraid you’ll have to stick with me on this one. Plus, my house…my rules.” She mocked, raising an eyebrow at him.
He laughed out loud, and then a look of amazement flashed across his face. He couldn’t remember the last time that he had laughed, and he found himself feeling fulfilled by this one girl, who he stood before. “Your rules?” He quizzed, returning the raised eyebrow at her.
“Yep” She replied chirpily. “Whatever I say goes.” She added with a nod.
He took that in, nodding to himself, and then brought his head up to look at her. “And what do you say?” He prodded further, allowing a cheeky grin to spread across his lips.
“I say…” She started, looking up to the ceiling; thinking. She dropped down a step, to bring herself closer to him, and then rounded her head down so that their lips were inches apart. He was taller than her, so the difference in their height on the stairs made them level with each other. “…You’re staying here until the morning, when we know that the demon has definitely gone. And…” She continued, edging even closer to him; closing the space between their bodies.
His body stiffened a little, at the feeling of her warm body against his, and then easily relaxed, enjoying the sensation. He saw that the smirk had faded away from her face, and that she had turned to give him a more serious look; a lustful look. He feared that he was betraying himself by reflecting her feelings, but he found that he wasn’t able to ignore them now; she was too close.
She leaned in further to meet his lips, and a feeling of relief filled her when he returned the kiss. His lips were unusually cold, and she shuddered slightly as she felt the hairs on the back of her neck stand on end. She had only intended for it to be a short kiss, yet she found that she couldn’t pull away, and he was making no attempt to either. She caught her breath for a second as she felt his cool hands snake around her waist, and in return she wrapped her arms around his neck, twizzling strands of his hair. He pulled her closer as he backed down the stairs; she fell into step with him, as if she had known that he would do that.
The kiss grew stronger, and they found themselves clinging to each other; wanting each other. He lost his footing on the bottom step, and fell backwards taking her with him. She landed atop him, yet they continued kissing. Neither of them seemed to take notice of the hard impact they made with the hard wooden floor. She brought her knees forward, to straddle him, as she ran her fingers through his hair. As she did so he slid his hands from her shoulders down to her hips and gave a small squeeze before he slipped them up, underneath her top, taking in the heat from her skin.
The kiss slowed, and she pulled away pushing herself up on his chest. He winced as she did so, and she shot her hands back immediately, remembering he had injuries there. “Sorry!” She apologised.
“It’s okay.” He panted, recovering from the kiss. He came up on his elbows and gave her a warm smile.
“I forgot about that.” She explained. She brushed back her hair and took in a deep breath, returning to reality. Then she came to see his still smiling face. “What?” She asked curiously. His smile grew wider as he looked down at his chest, where she was sat, and then came to look at her again. “Oh.” She said in a fluster, blushing slightly, as she clambered to her feet. She adjusted her pyjamas, as he got to his feet also.
“So…” She said, unsure of what exactly to say.
“Yeah.” He replied, feeling unsure himself of what to do. He had never been in this situation before. He wondered how he had found himself in this position. She’s the slayer for god’s sake, he thought. He wanted to tell her the truth, but he didn’t want to ruin the moment. He knew she would find out eventually, and he wondered whether or not if he should be getting involved, but it was too late for that, he was involved, and he couldn’t control how he felt. He found himself falling for the slayer.
“It’s late. I guess we should get to bed.” She suggested.
He nodded. “I’ll take the sofa.” He told her, not wanting to cause any confusion for her about where he would sleep.
She widened her eyes in protest. “No. You’re hurt. You take my bed, and I’ll sleep in mom’s room.” She offered. He simply nodded, feeling unusually nervous at the unfamiliar territory he had found himself in.
“Good.” She said, almost reassuring herself that there was no reason to be nervous, as she turned and headed up the stairs, switching the light off as she went. He followed.
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She walked out from the bathroom and crossed the corridor to enter her room, where Angel was closing the curtains. He didn’t need to see her to know that she had walked in; he felt her. Slowly, he turned around to face her. She stopped at the doorway, twiddling her fingers.
“Uh…do you want another pillow? I prefer to sleep with one but there’s another in the…” Angel cut her off.
“I’m fine.” He reassured her, with a nervous tone in his voice. “Are you sure it’s okay for me to stay here?” He forced out. “Because I can…” This time she cut him off.
“I’m sure.” She said reassuringly. She thought for a moment wondering what to say. “I’ll just be across the hall if you need anything.” He simply nodded, unsure of how to react. “So I guess this is the part where we say goodnight then.” She carried on.
“Yeah, I guess so.” He said smiling as he came to stand in front of her. “Goodnight.” He continued smiling inside.
She couldn’t believe the effect he had on her. She would never have dreamed that she’d be letting a complete stranger into her home. Something just felt so right, and she found that she wasn’t in control of herself anymore. She observed his perfectly shaped lips, and wanted to meet them with her own so badly, but a part of her knew that she needed to sleep. So instead she smiled sweetly saying, “Night,” as she turned down the hall and disappeared into her moms room.
He watched her go, and then closed her bedroom door and lay down in her bed. The scent of her perfume, and the simple essence of her burned at his nostrils, and he relaxed, closing his eyes; smothered by her.
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The closeness of the sun prevented him from dozing, and he sat upright in Buffy’s bed. He felt his skin crack under the rays that threatened to blaze through the curtains. He listened for footsteps in the house to see if she was awake but there were none; he figured she was still asleep.
She lay in her mother’s bed, awake. She hadn’t had much sleep, she couldn’t take Angel off her mind, and knowing that he was in the room opposite hers made things even worse. She couldn’t hear any footsteps, and assumed he was still asleep. Looking at the clock, she slid out of bed and slapped a hand on the doorknob. Her eyes widened and she couldn’t hold back a tiny smile as she was greeted to Angel opening her bedroom door also.
“Hey.” She said, letting her eyes adjust to the bright light of the hall.
He couldn’t help but chuckle slightly as she did so. He half envied her because she was able to feel thing that he knew he would never feel again. “Morning.” He offered.
“I had hoped to get to the bathroom without you seeing my disastrous bed head.” She chided, offering a hand to her hair in an attempt to smooth it down neatly.
He laughed. “I’m not a morning person either.” He told her, there being more truth to his words than she realised.
“You sleep okay?” she asked, making conversation.
“Yeah. You?” He wanted to tell her that she had been on his mind all night but couldn’t.
“Like a log.” She lied. “You want some breakfast?”
He shook his head. “Actually I’m not too hungry.” He told her.
“Okay, then seeing as though you’re dressed you can go downstairs if you want while I magic myself into a presentable state.” She chided, blushing slightly at the situation of him seeing her in the slumbered state she was in.
He gave a short nod and stepped out into the hall, closer to her. He flicked shot her a cheeky smile and came to her ear and said, “I’m sure that won’t take much,” in a quiet voice, and then headed downstairs.
She couldn’t help but beam at his comment. She had only known him for less than twenty-four hours and already she felt a connection with him. But there was something else; something she was missing. She shrugged it off and entered the bathroom, closing the door behind her.
He carefully set his feet on the stairs, avoiding the large rays of sunshine that set the room on fire. He wondered how he had let himself get into this situation, and knew that she would find out eventually. He knew there was nowhere he could go to avoid the sun, and remained at the bottom of the staircase in the partial shade.
She gave him a puzzled look as she too came downstairs a few minutes later. She walked through to the kitchen saying, “You sure you’re not hungry? ‘Cause we have…” Her voice trailed off when she realised he hadn’t followed. She turned to him and saw his troubled expression. “Are you okay?” She asked, her voice sounding more serious as she came to stand before him.
“Actually I’ve been thinking…about us.” He forced himself to say the words.
“About us?” She repeated suspiciously.
“It’s not good for me to be here…around you.” He waited for her reaction.
“Why?” She asked growing more concerned.
“I can’t explain. It’s complicated.” He told her, wanting too much to tell her the truth, but he knew that she would have to kill him when she found out.
“Then try.” She prompted, giving him a worried and confused expression.
“I can’t it’s…I think it’s best if we don’t see each other again…before anything starts to happen.” He gritted his teeth in frustration. It was so hard for him to tell her this when it was the complete opposite of everything he wanted.
She almost found herself laughing. “Don’t you think something already has happened?” He didn’t answer. “Last night, we kissed.” She reminded him, hoping to spark something in his mind. “Or is that just your average night – help a girl escape from a big old nasty demon, come back to her house, maybe get a little but steamy and then…” He cut her off.
“It’s not like that!” He protested.
“Then why?” She asked simply.
“Look, last night…I didn’t mean for anything to happen. It just did.” He tried to explain himself but found that he was clouded by his feelings for her.
“It just happened?” She took in his words. “So you don’t feel anything?” She slowly edged closer to him, making it so that their lips were almost touching. He did not answer. “Right now, you don’t feel anything? Nothing?” She looked deep into his gaze, knowing that he was frustrated with her being so close. She moved even closer, making it impossible for him to not look at her.
He could feel her body warm his as she remained there. He couldn’t stand her being so close, yet not touching her. With that he whipped his arms around her waist and forced her against him as he brought his lips to hers. She was taken aback at his speed, and the lust that oozed from him. She found herself returning the kiss instantly, wrapping her arms around his neck, both pulling herself up to him, and urging him closer. His hands moved to support the lower of her back as she hopped up to wrap her legs around him, bringing her to his height. Moving swiftly he backed her up against the banister, leaning his body against hers to keep her there, and then he laced his fingers with hers, pressing her hands against two of the railing.
He was so lost in her he didn’t realise that his hand was in direct sunlight. Feeling the searing pain swell around his hand, he back away immediately, causing her to drop to her feet. He leaned against the wall opposite her recovering from the intense kiss, gripping his hand in pain. She looked up in disbelief and saw his face was etched with apology, but he couldn’t bring himself to speak.
“No.” She whispered. “No, no.” Her voice grew louder. “No way!” She exclaimed. He could do no more than watch her, he had lied to her, what could he say to apologise. “Why?!” She demanded. He couldn’t answer; he didn’t know where to begin. Seeing his reaction, she ran out of the house. He could do no more than watch her go.
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“He’s a vampire?!” Willow asked Buffy shocked at the news she had just been told.
“Yep.” Buffy said glumly. They sat at the large desk in the centre of the Library. Giles had popped out for a meeting with Ms. Calender, which left them alone.
“But he didn’t look like a vampire.” Willow said confused.
“What is a vampire supposed to look like Will?” Buffy replied
“Well I know vampires can be anyone but he just looked so…normal.”
“I know. I knew it was too good to be true, that I’d finally met a gorgeous guy who knew who I was.” The depression filled the room.
“Wow who died?” Xander mocked as he burst through the Library doors. He joined them around the desk, throwing his bag on the chair next to him.
“Well technically Angel. He’s a vampire.” Willow told him.
He didn’t appear too distressed, but then he hadn’t been keen on the idea of Buffy seeing him anyway. “Well that’s life for ya! Nobody is ever who they seem.” He assured them.
“Where is he now?” Willow addressed Buffy, ignoring Xander’s comment.
“I guess he’s still at my house.” She replied. “I mean he couldn’t have left, it’s day.”
“At your house? You invited him into your house?!” Xander quizzed.
Neither of them regarded Xander as they continued their conversation. He really wasn’t much help on sensitive situations. “It just doesn’t make any sense. He could have killed me when I was asleep, but he didn’t.”
“He spent the night?!” Xander prodded further. “Buffy he’s a vampire, you’re the slayer…I think it’s clear what you have to do.” This time Buffy took note of what he said. She knew he was right, but all she could think of was how passionate their kiss had been. She couldn’t accept that it was a charade; they had wanted each other. She looked at Willow for support but even she couldn’t disagree with Xander. She took a deep breath in. “You’re right. I have to kill him.” She admitted as she headed over to the cage at the far side of the Library. She slid a few stakes up her sleeves and down the back of her jeans, and grabbed her bag. “Life is so unfair.” She sighed as she headed out the Library. Her two best friends watched her go.
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The sun would be set in half an hour and Buffy knew she had made sure she got to her house before then. She stalked up the path to her house, and came onto the porch to peer inside. The door was wide open how she had left it. There was no sign of Angel. She crept inside, dropping her bag to the floor and scanned the lounge. Knowing he wasn’t there she headed upstairs.
He wasn’t in the bathroom, or her mom’s bedroom. Walking back down the hall she stopped at her bedroom door. Slowly she turned the doorknob and revealed her empty room. He wasn’t in the closet either. Returning back downstairs, she passed through to the kitchen, wondering where he had gone. She poured herself a glass of water and leaned on the island in the centre of the kitchen wracking her brains for his whereabouts. Taking a sip from her glass her eyes came to settle on the basement door. Bingo, she thought.
Putting the glass down she brought a stake out from her jeans and went to the door. She hesitated as she reached for the handle, thinking for an alternative. She didn’t want to kill him; she just wanted to know why. Shaking off the thought she quickly twisted the knob and stepped down onto the stairs.
She found it hard to see anything in the darkness of the room, but she knew that he would have no problem with seeing her. She felt uncomfortable as she felt his eyes on her as she reached the ground. “Did you think I wouldn’t find out?” she broke the silence. “So come on, what was your big master plan to kill me?” She added wanting him to reveal his position.
“I don’t want to kill you.” He sighed. His voice seemed to come from directly behind her but she couldn’t see anything.
“Well that’s makes my job a whole lot easier.” She retorted. Suddenly he came to reveal himself in front of her. A small feeling of relief filled her, yet she still felt tense with his presence.
“You gonna kill me?” He shot her a charming smile, which almost made her doubt that he was a vampire.
“Why?” She demanded. “Why save me? Why do all of this when you should be wanting to kill me?” She waited for his response.
“Why aren’t you trying to kill me right now?” He avoided her question.
“Because I want to know why.” She told him.
Frustration built up inside him and his face morphed into that of a vampires. He couldn’t explain why he felt this way about her. She gritted her teeth wanting his other face to reappear, but she faced the demon he was. Seeing her sicken at his face made him want to kill himself. He couldn’t stand feeling this way, he wanted her so badly but he knew it would never be possible. Grabbing hold of her arms he pulled her up to him, squeezing hard; showing her his true strength. She resisted but was unable to release his grip. He tightened his grip making her focus on him.
“You should kill me.” He told her forcefully.
“And you should kill me.” She shot back. He didn’t answer. “But you didn’t. You could have killed me last night. Why didn’t you?”
“Maybe I was waiting for the right moment.” He injected the thought into her mind, hoping that she would hate him enough to kill him herself.
“Go ahead! Kill me.” She ordered him, hoping that he would not obey. “It’s what you really want right?” With a sharp tug of her sleeve he caused the zip of her sweater to lower slightly, and revealed her bare shoulder. She was shocked at his roughness and found it hard to say anything.
He looked at her neck and felt overwhelmed by the opportunity, but resisted and came to look at her instead. He shook her closer to him, squeezing even tighter. She winced in pain at his grip, and wanted to be free, but she couldn’t find her feet as he had lifted her just so that her toes touched the floor. “No. That’s not what I want. I want you.” She was unable to react, hearing those words made her feel numb. “And I know that I shouldn’t because you’re the slayer. And it drives me crazy being around you because part of me knows that we should be wanting to kill each other, but I want you so badly, and I can’t stand it.” He sighed deeply and his face relaxed and returned to human form, and he released her taking a step back from her.
She pulled her sweater over her shoulder, and popped her stake away. “Well it looks like neither of us can kill each other…and I don’t think either of us want to.” Searched his expression for a sign that he agreed with her.
“No. But I want you.” He admitted, tired.
“And I want you too.” She said boldly.
“Well you shouldn’t!” He shouted and with that he went to leave. He was stopped in his steps when she clutched his arm; holding him back.
“And why not?!” She demanded.
“Because I’m a vampire!” He hated the demon inside him that now prevented him from being with her, yet he also hated himself for not being able to kill her, like he should. He shook her hand loose and headed up the stairs.
She followed him up into the kitchen. “You say it as if it’s a bad thing.” She mocked standing in the doorway of the basement.
He knew that she was hiding her true feelings about him, but he wanted to make her realise that a part of him was pure evil and capable of things she could never dream of. He shouldn’t be allowed to have her want him he didn’t deserve it. He whirled on her and she would have felt his breath on her if he were breathing.
“This is not just some game Buffy! This is real. It’s me and it’s you, no happy ending. Can you handle that?”
“I get it! No happy endings for Buffy, don’t you think I know that! If I could I would happily let you walk out that door right now…but I can’t. I want you, and it’s killing me! Is it so bad for us to want each other?” She reasoned with him.
He looked down at her and saw the innocence of her. The lust between them was palpable, and they both knew that they were feeling something much stronger than wanting each other. He lingered close to her, and his lips hovered over hers.
Feeling him so close, but not touching him was torture, and slowly she edged closer to meet his lips. The second her lips touched his he knew that he couldn’t walk away, ever. The kiss was different to the times they had kissed before; it was more meaningful and sensual. Both of them moved in complete unison as they slowly wrapped their arms around each other; feeling each other’s bodies, taking in every inch of each other. He clutched her waist lifting her higher up to him. She lost her footing as he did, and fell backwards through the doorway. He immediately shot his arms out to catch himself on the doorframe, and she clung onto him by her arms wrapped around his neck. Finding her feet again, she stayed leant back as they continued kissing. A smile crept on his lips as he returned the kiss, now fully aware that he was completely in love with her, and there was no way he could ever leave.
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Nothing exciting was going down at the Bronze as three friends sat around a table talking. Xander and Willow had been carrying the conversation mostly, and Buffy had added a few comments now and then, but her mind was elsewhere; she couldn’t stop thinking about Angel.
Just when she was contemplating on heading home or not she felt a bolt of electricity shoot up her spine and turned so see him standing behind her.
“Hey.” He offered, unsure of how to approach her after last night.
“Hi.” She smiled.
Xander and willow couldn’t help but stare at Angel. However, Xander was staring for a different reason; he hated the fact that Buffy was swooning for some other guy, and not him. He hadn’t expected Angel to look as handsome, and he felt an overwhelming feeling of jealousy pang through him. Willow on the other hand was completely taken aback by his sexy features, and thought that she should envy Buffy but didn’t; she was happy for her best friend.
“Can we talk?” Angel asked politely, not looking away from her. He could sense the irritation of Xander, and immediately wondered what connection he had to Buffy to be so worked up about it. He found that he wanted to know everything about her, but resisted to quiz her.
“Uh…sure.” She remained looking at him, admiring his dark feature in the dim light of the Bronze.
“Uh…. I should go…. we should go.” She cut in, urging Xander to move with her. He however, was very reluctant, and didn’t respond.
“It’s ok. Angel can walk me home.” She said almost asking Angel to. She picked up her coat in response to his nod. She flashed a wide smile at Willow and then they headed out the Bronze.
Willow was beaming as she watched them go. “Am I invisible?!” Xander exclaimed. “You’d think there was only the two of them in here the way they act with each other.”
“Yeah.” Willow sighed in a dreamy tone, imagining the thought of her and Xander being like that. Then she quickly dismissed it as she saw the frustrated face on Xander, and wondered if he would ever notice her.
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Buffy wrapped her coat around her as she stepped out into the cool breeze. She noticed how Angel did not react to the cold, and remembered that he never would.
“So….” She offered. “Let’s talk.”
He nodded, agreeing with her. “How’s your leg?” He asked. He had planned on coming here to talk to her, but he hadn’t planned on what he was going to say.
She lifted her knee length skirt up, and bent her knee forward to reveal the half healed wound. “It’s healing.” She told him. He found it hard to focus on just the wound and not to wander over her perfect leg. She dropped the skirt and came to look at him again. “No doubt yours have fully healed, what with your vampire strength and all.” She mocked.
He smiled. “Pretty much.”
They both turned and began to walk slowly down the alley. “We need to talk about us.” He told her, yet not wanting to start the conversation.
“Us.” She said to herself, liking the sound of it, and then she turned serious. “Look, I think you’re right…about the whole us thing. It just wouldn’t work. I mean you’re a vampire and I’m the Slayer, and the two just don’t mix.”
“Right.” He said bluntly, he had agreed with that last night, but he had done a lot of thinking since then.
“Not to mention that you’re two hundred and forty something, and I’m only sixteen.” She continued, trying to persuade herself, more than him.
He simply nodded, accepting her views, and his rejection. “So what do we do?” He asked.
“Well we obviously can’t kill each other. I guess we could just not see each other.” She had his full attention then, as he shot her a sharp look. “I mean it’s not like we have uncontrollable feelings for each other right?” She asked and they both stopped to turn to each other.
He felt the urge to scream at her and tell her exactly how he felt, but shook it off. “Is that what you ant?” He asked her.
“Is it what you want?” She answered, not wanting to answer for fear that she would betray herself.
He did not answer either. Instead he stepped into her and leaned down to kiss her. She gave in for a second, and then pushed him back reluctantly. “We can’t.” She told him.
“Right.” He said. He would have been out of breath if he could. Every time he was close to her he felt like he was human, and he didn’t want to lose that. “Because it wouldn’t work.” He added.
“Right.” She confirmed. “So we should walk away now.”
He nodded, yet neither of them made any attempt to do so. Instead, they edged closer to each other and resumed kissing again. The kiss was strong and full of pure lust. They clutched at each other as if tomorrow would never come. She found it even harder to break away this time, but she managed to with some effort.
“No, really. We should go.” She told him, but she left her arms around his neck, not making the effort to let him go.
He smiled down at her, also not releasing her either. He waited to see if she had anything else to say and then went to kiss her again. She found it so easy to just melt into his arms and kiss him all night, but she knew that their relationship would never end happily. Instead of pushing him away she tried a different approach to end the kiss, and stepped backwards, planning to drag her lips away from his. But he knew her game, and advanced on her immediately, pulling her into him, almost lifting her off her feet. Once he did that she couldn’t pull away. Feeling him so close was too overwhelming and she found herself wanting more, clinging to him.
Eventually he was the one to pull away, and he put her down, keeping her in his arms still, afraid to let go. He slowly came back down to reality.
“Well I think that pretty much settles it.” She breathed. “I guess there’s nothing else to talk about.” And with his nod she slowly moved forward to kiss him again. However, this kiss was sweet and gentle, and oozed passion. She wondered what she was letting herself into, and tried to imagine what would happen between them, but easily pushed it to the back of her mind and concentrated on what was happening now. That was all that mattered right now.
To be continued...
Note: I have tried to remain true to the characteristics of the characters as best I can, and I would really appreciate any comments or suggestions you have to offer. It doesn’t take a minute to e-mail me and tell me what you thought. I don’t care if you hated it, I would just really like to know what you think so I can improve it! Also, I would love to read any of your fanfics and comment on them, so please e-mail me!!!!! lec223@hotmail.com Thank you for reading!!!!!!
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