[Reviews - 53]
-
Table of Contents [Report This]
Microsoft Word Chapter or Story | ePub eBook Chapter or Story | Printer Chapter or Story

Has been viewed 2160 times

- Text Size +




DISCLAIMER: I don't own these characters. Neither do you, unless you are Joss Whedon and company. Ha ha, I kid.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The sound of her guitar didn't sooth her like it usually did. Buffy groaned. It had been three days, but she was still angry. And hurt.

She believed Spike when he told her he told Adam no. Part of her knew the bar was an accident, but she'd never been in front of a crowd that horrible. It was easier to blame Spike than to face the growing feelings she was having for him. Touching her lip, the memories of that burning kiss flooded back to her.

She had been so hurt when she found Spike with Adam. It wasn't that he thought his column was more important than her band. It was that he had agreed to hurt them for his own gain.

But then he said that he turned Adam down, and she was so confused. The confusion grew when he stopped her from leaving and stood so close. She knew in that moment that he wanted her. And she knew that she wanted him, too.

She wasn't in her right mind, she told herself. She had tried to push the memory of the kiss away, but it still nagged at her. She had never experienced a kiss like that. It had sparked in every nerve of her being. Since then, she never brought it up to him, nor did he.

Something had been bound to happen to break the growing tension between her and Spike. The kiss only intensified things. She had been afraid to talk to him - afraid of what might happen between them. The experience at the bar broke the straw. She didn't know if she could trust him, and firing him made it so she didn't have to.

The rest of the Scoobies were still upset. In all previous gigs, they had never even been booed, except for a few here and there. It would take a while and some better gigs to change that. Except, they still weren't getting many gigs.

The only good that came out of that horrible night was that they were still paid, and their equipment was still okay.

The door to the practice room opened and Riley stepped in. "Hi. Your mom said you were here."

Buffy smiled softly. "I wanted to practice. It's too distracting at home."

Riley pulled a chair over to her and sat down. "Want a break? We could get something to eat?"

"No, thanks. I'm not hungry." She placed her guitar down and looked around the room. "I need to go over our songs. Who knows if Spike's changes are any good? It wouldn't surprise me if he tried to make us worse."

"I'm sure they're okay."

"I need to try this song again." She picked up her guitar again and began to play.

They sat with only the sound of the guitar in the room. She played one of Spike's changes, but she couldn't determine if it was better than the original version. So, she played the original to compare the two. It didn't work. Her mind was a total mess.

"What did he do? I've completely lost the ability to determine what is good."

"Maybe you do need a break."

"I wouldn't be surprised if he was at home laughing at this."

"I'm sure he's not."

Buffy ignored Riley. "Urg, why did I trust him?"

Riley stood up suddenly, drawing her attention. "Can you not talk about Spike for five minutes?"

Her eyes widened, and she opened her mouth to say something, but nothing came out.

"I have an interview in Atlanta tomorrow. I leave late tonight. If I get the job, they want me to start next week."

Buffy found her voice. "You're moving to Georgia?"

"I hadn't made up my mind." Riley sat back down.

"When were you going to tell me about this?"

"Today. I got the interview a few days ago, but I wanted to think about it first. But, I think I'm going to take it."

A small pain hit Buffy. "Why?"

Riley gave her an apologetic look. "This relationship isn't working out."

"What?"

"I feel like you put me last. We never do anything alone." Riley gave her a grim look. "We don't talk, unless it's about Spike or your mom."

A shot of anger hit her. "My mom was sick. I was worried."

"And she got better. You haven't spent the night away from her since." He dragged his hand through his hair. "Can you convince me that I could be the most important thing in your life?"

Buffy didn't say anything. She couldn't drop her worries for him.

"I see," Riley said quietly. "Well, it was nice knowing you."

She watched, stone faced, as he left the Magic Shop. She picked up her guitar and began to play.

The finality of it hit her a half hour later. He was the one she didn't have to worry about, because he'd always be there. She realized that she took him for granted. She almost called him, then, but she realized that she couldn't give him what he needed. She didn't love him.

Her eyes began to well with tears, when her phone rang. Quickly, suppressing her feelings of loss, she answered the phone.

"Buffy?" Dawn sounded as if she was crying. "It's mom."

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

TBC

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

AUTHOR'S NOTE: Looks like I'm a little short with this chapter. It's going to mess up my flow if I add the next chapter to this one, so I'll just write a little here. (My other chapters are longer, so it'll work out in the end.)

Thanks for the reviews. I'm glad people are enjoying this story. This site is great. It's so busy and has so many stories on it. I love the characters Buffy and Spike. They are so flawed - it's great. I wish I had more time to write.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------





You must login (register) to review.