[Reviews - 25]
-
Table of Contents [Report This]
Microsoft Word Chapter or Story | ePub eBook Chapter or Story | Printer Chapter or Story

Has been viewed 5345 times

- Text Size +




For the next week, Buffy tried to occupy herself with work and anything to keep her mind off of William’s arrival. After the phone call, she was a little uneasy about seeing him, but that didn’t stop her from taking time off work to get her hair done and pick out the perfect outfit, the day before he was supposed to be there.

That Saturday morning, Buffy went out to run some errands before he got there. Her hair was down and slightly curled, and she wore a deep red V-neck tank top with dark jeans. She had just arrived back home and was unlocking the door when a black BMW pulled in the driveway.

She took deep breaths to try and slow her heart beat, but as soon as the car door opened, she knew she was lost. He looked the same as when she had seem him last, with bleached hair she was still trying to get used to seeing. She was pleased to see he had decided to integrate color into his wardrobe, with a short sleeved royal blue button up shirt and khaki pants.

He approached her with a small smile on his face. She couldn’t help but return it when he stepped up to her and said, “Hello Buffy.”

He reached out to give her a hug which she lightly returned with a “Hey Will, good to see you.”

They stood there for a moment, both trying to decide what should come next, and Buffy finally spoke up.

“Uh, why don’t you come inside?”

William’s smile grew even more as he said, “Yeah, ‘d like that.”

Buffy let him inside while she went back to her car to gather the items from her errands that morning. When she came in, William was exploring her CD collection by the stereo.

“Mind if I put one in?”

“No, go right ahead. I’ve got to go put this upstairs, so I’ll be right back.”

Buffy went upstairs to put her things away and take a few deep breaths before heading back down to what she was sure would be an awkward conversation, at best.

As she headed back down, she heard the sound of the Beatles playing from the stereo. She closed her eyes and said a quick prayer that he hadn’t put in the one with the song that always reminded her of him…the one with “Yesterday” on it.

Their junior year passed fairly quickly, and it was time for midterms before they knew it. Overall, Buffy was as happy as she could be with their secret relationship. There were times that she felt overwhelmingly confused, though. She knew that the only place they could be truly affectionate with each other was in their storage building during lunch hour, but there had been occasions when she would try to be friendly to William in the hallway, and he would just nod and smile and keep walking. She guessed she understood, but would it have been too much to ask for him to talk to her? After all, to everyone that didn’t know about them, they were still supposed to be friends, weren’t they? She thought it best not to bring it up because she knew their relationship was hard enough on both of them as it was without bringing up issues that couldn’t be helped.

The night before their English final, Buffy had a question about one of the plays they were studying, “Romeo and Juliet.” She debated about whether or not to call William, since he knew it forwards and backwards. She finally decided to, knowing she had a good reason for the call. She was extremely nervous as she dialed his number, but her nervousness quickly dissipated when he answered the phone.

“ ‘Lo?”

“Uh, hey, William, it’s Buffy…I have a question about our test tomorrow.”

“Oh, ok…,” she heard him turn away from the phone and say, “Faith, stop that…you’re supposed to be studying so I can ask you questions when you’re done.”

After she heard him say Faith’s name, Buffy found it exceedingly hard to breathe for a few moments. Finally William brought the phone back and said, “What’d you need to ask me?”

Buffy took a deep breath and said, “Um, just…do you know if our teacher is going to ask about…um…why is Faith over there?”

“Now why would our teacher ask if Faith was…Oh! I’m helping her study. She was having a bit of trouble with Shakespeare, so I offered to help her with it.”

“I see…and no one has a problem with her being over there?”

William completely missed the implication of her question, and he responded, “Not at all. ‘S matter of fact, Da’ actually suggested she come over here to study.”

“Uh-huh…well, William, it sounds like you’re busy enough already. I’ll just call someone else to answer my question.”

“Buffy?” William lowered his voice, “Luv? What’s wrong?”

If possible, Buffy’s tone became even more icy than it had already been, “Nothing, William, nothing at all. What could POSSIBLY be wrong?”

All of a sudden, it clicked. Giles didn’t have a problem with Faith being over at the house when Buffy had never had the chance to be invited in the first place.

“Luv, ‘m only helping her study. That’s really all it is. That’s why Da’ suggested inviting her over. Just to study.”

Buffy sighed heavily, “William, I have tests I need to study for. I don’t think I can have this conversation with you right now. We’ll talk later this week.”

Buffy hung up the phone before William could say anything else. He went back in the living with Faith and sat down, dejectedly running one hand through his hair.

Faith looked around to make sure William’s father wasn’t nearby, and she quietly asked, “Trouble in paradise?”

“She’s upset, and she’s jealous. I don’t know what to do ‘bout this whole thing. I wish she would jus’ understand you’re a good friend that ‘m helping out.”

Faith smiled sympathetically, “I know, Willie. I wish she’d understand that, too. I mean, don’t get me wrong, you’re a pretty hot guy, but I’m not the type to step in when there’s already a situation going on. Tried that once, and the outcome was not pretty.”

“ ‘ll deal with it later,” William said, “Let’s get back to studying.”

After Faith left that night, William couldn’t concentrate on studying. All he could do was think about Buffy and what he could do to keep her happy and still have Faith as a friend. William decided to give up on studying for the night and wake up early to finish reviewing instead.

Unfortunately, sleep was another luxury William mostly did without that night. The last thing he remembered was seeing his clock flash 3:00 AM. He woke up the next morning at 7:45, 15 minutes before the English exam was scheduled. He jumped out of bed, threw on some sweatpants and a sweatshirt and ran to school. He got there 5 minutes late and hurried in to start his exam.

An hour and a half later, he dejectedly threw his exam on the teacher’s desk and began his walk back home since that had been his only exam for the day. He knew he had done awful, and it wasn’t hard to figure out why. Although he knew the material like the back of his hand, all he had been able to do was concentrate on his lack of sleep and Buffy.

Half a block from the school, he felt a hand softly touch his shoulder. He turned around and saw Buffy standing behind him with a concerned look in her eyes.

“William? Are you ok?? You look awful!!”

He couldn’t even manage a smile at seeing her as he answered, “Yeah, feel pretty bloody awful, too, luv. I didn’t sleep well last night, and now it’s going to show on that exam.”

“Are you sick? Why didn’t you sleep well??”

William lowered his eyes and muttered, “Because I was too upset that you were mad because Faith was over here.”

Now, it was Buffy’s turn to lower her eyes as she said, “I’m so sorry, William. I should’ve given you a chance to explain. I was just too upset last night, and I had to study because my grades have never been good in that class anyway, and…”

“Buffy,” William cut her off, “I would love to continue this, but right now, ‘s all I can do to keep my eyes open, luv. I really need some sleep.”

“Does your dad have to work for the rest of the day at the library?” Buffy asked shyly.

“Yeah, he does, so ‘m goin’ to take advantage of it and sleep for the rest of the day.”

Buffy’s next statement was even shier as she said, “My mom has to work until 5. Why don’t you come over to my house?”

When William comprehended what she had said, he was immediately awake. Her suggestion was incredibly tempting, but he would have to leave in time to get home before his Da’ did. It only took him a minute to make his decision.

William’s smile returned as he said, “ ‘d love to. Lead the way, luv.”


"Yesterday" will be explained in one of the next chapters. I know chapters are taking longer, and that is because grad school is kicking my butt!! I'll get them out as soon as I can, though, and reviews inspire me to work faster :)





You must login (register) to review.