Chapter 3
Smiling she went to her closet, any place away from this house and it’s occupant would be a thousand times better in her view. She stood in front of the open closet brimming with happiness, she hadn’t been able to just do something as meaningless like this in a while. To just stand in front of a closet and think ‘what should I wear?!’. She used to do it all the time too, going out every night was like a necessity before… She frowned. Before life intervened and ripped it all harshly away.
She shook herself and grabbed an outfit out of the closet. It was no time to be thinking of those things, tonight was just for her and her new friends. Her friends. God that was such a new concept, the definition of friends pure and simple was people who listened to you and cared. She slipped on her clothes and grabbed some strappy black heels that stood out from the rest.
Sure she had friends back in L.A but that was different. She had actually been popular then and friends when your popular aren’t really your friends. They were people that do your bidding wishing ever second that something would happen to you that would make them just a little closer to the shallow top. They hadn’t listened to her at all.
Turning off the lights she quietly made her way down the stairs of their enormous house hoping to god that she wouldn’t be caught. She really wanted to go to the Bronze tonight. She paused when the stairs made a soft creak. ‘Shit’ When she didn’t hear anything more she continued until she was at the front door. Smiling she brought her and to the handle and opened the door.
“Where the hell do you think you’re going?”
Her hands stilled and her eyes closed. Opening her eyes again she closed the door and turned around with a fake smile on her face. “Willow, my new friend, invited me to go to the Bronze.” She watched his reaction carefully, for a long time he just stood there watching her with a hard gaze, a glass of whiskey or some other alcohol held at his side.
“I will not have you going around and acting like a slut the first night you started school. How do you think that would look when I’m the most successful man in this town.”
She frowned. “I’m not a slut. It’s just with Willow!” She decided that keeping Xander out of it would be a smart thing to do in this particular situation.
He walked up to her with his hand raised, some alcohol splashing out the side and onto the carpet. “Don’t you dare raise your voice to me!”
Wincing at the proximity of his hand she just nodded. He had never actually hit her, but every day she was in the same house as him the belief that he wouldn’t got just a little weaker, at time like this, a lot weaker.
“Now get up to your room and stay out of my way for the rest of the night, Caren’s coming over.”
She walked past him and up to her room quickly shutting the door and taking a deep breath. Dam he made her sick, he called her a slut yet he was the equivalent of a male whore. No respect at all for her mother, her deceased mother…
With determination in her eyes she looked around her room until she spotted the window. Walking up to it she slowly slid it open and grinned triumphantly at the tree standing just outside. Grabbing her pillows she stuffed them underneath the blankets in the shape of her body and left the window open slightly so she could get back in later. Climbing out she dusted herself off as she hit the ground.
***
She found out later that finding the bronze, weather it was the only club in town or not, wasn’t that easy with no directions and no car wasn’t that easy. She hadn’t been able to take her car because she was afraid that Hank would have heard and found out she wasn’t in her room.
But finally she was there. Walking through the doors she looked around the smoky interior. For a small town club it wasn’t to bad. There was a nice sized stage by the dance floor, there was a bar and to her surprise even a second level to walk around on and not have to talk over the music.
“Buffy! Over here!” She saw Willow waving at her from a table near the stage and grinned.
“Hey Wills, this place looks pretty cool.”
“Yeah. But what took you so long?”
“My dad kind of didn’t let me come. So I took option B and snuck out, plus I couldn’t use my car and you didn’t give directions. Besides I walked all the way here in heels, give a girl some credit.” Willow looked at her sheepishly.
“Won’t your dad know you’re M.I.A?” Xander asked taking a gulp from his coke.
“Nah. He’ll probably be drunk and passed out by the time I get home. And if he decides to see if I’m in my room then I stuffed some pillows under my covers, he won’t come closer then the door frame anyways.” Willow looked at her wide-eyed. She didn’t think her dad was like that at all.
“I share your pain Buffster. My dads a drunk too.” Xander said indifferently.
“Don’t worry about it. So, is there anyone in here I should know, or know about?” Buffy asked quirking an eyebrow as she sat down.
“Well, you’ve had the displeasure of meeting Cordy and her band of morons over there.” Xander pointed to Cordelia sitting in a table in a far Corner closest to the stage with comfy looking chairs. “That’s their table. Never sit there if you value your life.”
Buffy laughed. “I like it just fine, not like she could actually do me any damage to begin with though.”
“And there are the Jocks, Riley, Gunn, Owen, and Graham. There’s still the guys in the band, but they’re not all on yet though. Their name is ‘Dingoes Ate My Baby’. You’ll know them when Willow starts drooling over the bass player Oz.”
Buffy laughed as Willow turned three shades of red and punched him in the shoulder. “Hey! I do not drool…”
“So you’re not denying you like him?” Buffy smiled as the redhead opened and closed her mouth.
“Well…”
“Point and case.”
Xander laughed before standing up with his genuine Xander smile. “Would you lovely ladies like to dance?”
Willow and Buffy looked at each other. “Dance, yes. With you?…” Xander pouted before they both laughed and got up following him to the dance floor.