When I Come Around

Disclaimer: Still not mine. The PTB’s refuse to let me take control.

Rating. Uh, PG-13 overall, but some chapters will be less. I doubt it will get to R, except possibly language. No smut from me, peeps. Sorry. Although some stuff will be left to the imagination. Do as you please.

Summary: It’s another High School fantasy fic. I know, it’s been done, but I wanna give it a shot. Buffy, her sister, and her mom move to Sunnydale to escape her deadbeat dad and the lingering bad memories. Buffy soon makes friends, and even has a boyfriend, Angel. When transfer student William ‘Spike’ Matheson moves to town, everything begins to change. SPUFFY!! AtS characters are also included.

A/N: I know, I know. I should be working on ‘Feelings’, but the idea for a HS fic has been nagging me. Constantly. My muse is evil. She threatened my penguins. Anywhoo.... Expect this to be a songfic for the most part. Because I like songfics, and I think I’m better at writing them. Artists and song title will be given at the end of a chappie that includes lyrics, but unless otherwise stated, they are ‘original’ to the characters. Expect rock stuff, like Evanescence, Green Day, Velvet Revolver, and Ghost of the Robot. Don’t be surprised if I’m sneaky and manage to get Reel Big Fish in there, however. If you need to hear a song....well....I don’t really know a good site to listen, but if you can find one 1) tell me 2) more power to ya. Trust me. It’ll help. Student and teacher names that you don’t recognize are probably that of people at my school. Maybe even personalities. I won’t be in there, though, because let’s face it; I don’t have much of a life. Tee-hee. And if someone seems particularly evil or something, it’s prolly cuz I don’t like them much. Well, I think I’ve gone on long enough. On to the story!!

Feedback: Yes, please. Reviews are the antidote goodness to my self doubt.


Ch. 1: No Time to Search the World Around


Buffy gazed up at the large building in front of her with disdain. School had officially started over three weeks ago, but despite her lateness, she was terrified. Hordes of students pushed past her, barely noticing the petite blonde standing still. Buffy took a deep breath and took her first step toward the beginning of her junior year.

She arrived at the central office to find a kindly woman with brown hair behind the desk.

“May I help you?”

“Uh, yeah.” Buffy fidgeted with the hem of her fitted black Reel Big Fish tee. “I’m Buffy Summers. I’m new.”

The secretary-Ms. Gleason, as her plaque read-smiled. “Of course. Hold on for just second.” She picked up the phone and dialed an extension. “Mr. Stevenson, would you please send Willow Rosenburg down to the office as soon as she gets in? Uh-huh. Okay, then. I guess you can send her now.” Ms. Gleason hung up the phone and looked back at Buffy. “Willow is one of our top students. She’ll be the one who helps you out these first few days.”

Buffy smiled nervously. “Thank you. I-I appreciate it.”

The door opened, and Buffy turned to see a girl with long red hair standing in the doorway. She seemed rather shy, but there was a underlying power and confidence that had yet to be discovered residing there also. She smiled shyly.

“Hi! You must be Buffy. I’m Willow Rosenburg.”

The corners of Buffy’s mouth twitched. “Yeah. Buffy Summers.”

Willow nodded her head . “Cool. Okay, um, did Ms. Gleason give you your schedule yet?”

Buffy glanced to the older woman. “N-not exactly.”

At that moment, Ms. Gleason grabbed a paper out of the printer. “And now I have. Hot off the press. I guess that’ll be it for now. Have fun, girls.”

Willow clapped her hands excitedly. “Yay! Okay, Buffy, time to go meet my friends!”

Buffy nodded and smiled. “And so it begins.”

*****

Buffy was surprised at how well she was adjusting to her new school. She had already integrated herself into Willow’s circle of friends. It was at lunch that she was introduced to Cordelia, Xander, Oz, Winifred-or ‘Fred’ as was preferred by her, Gunn, Wesley, and the darkly handsome Angel. He seemed to be more of an outcast than the others, however Buffy found herself instantly drawn to him. She caught him staring at her a few times, but whenever she looked up he would immediately turn his eyes back to his chemistry homework. Oz, Gunn, Wes, Angel, and Fred were all seniors, much to Buffy’s surprise. Especially Fred, who was actually sixteen; the same age as most sophomores. It was soon explained that she skipped first and second grade in order to get to more challenging classes, which awed Buffy.

The next Saturday night, everything seemed to change. It was Oz’s idea, but nobody opposed him. They were taking a group outing to the local hot spot, the Bronze. Oz’s band, The Dingoes Ate My Baby, was playing that night for the last time. Three of the band members were moving, so they had no choice buy to split up.

Everyone arrived at the club at 7:30 sharp, and Buffy was amazed at each person’s transformation from their school personas to their weekend-clubbing selves.

Cordelia was the least changed of the group-she merely decided to show more skin now that there were no dress codes being enforced. Her long, dark hair was pulled into a half ponytail and set in loose waves. She was wearing a low cut red halter top with a black leather mini, which seemed to attract the eyes of many guys-especially Xander.

Gone were the baggy shirts that usually dominated Fred’s wardrobe. Instead, she wore a dark pink tank top and tight denim jeans that showed off her petite frame without making her look scrawny. She opted to wear her contacts instead of her glasses, for fear of losing them. Her hair was pulled back into a sleek ponytail that exhibited her slender neck beautifully.

Willow had decided to wear some of Buffy’s clothes, though it took some persuasion. Her long, red hair was parted down the center and hung stick-straight down past her shoulders. She chose to wear a tight maroon V-neck T-shirt and dark jeans that rested low on her hips, making her flat stomach seem even longer.

Buffy settled on her red leather pants and a black tank top. She wore a simple cross necklace that rested just below her collarbone. She put her hair into a messy bun that somehow managed to look chic, which completely confused Willow.

Gunn actually went without his grey zip-up hoodie for a change. He wore a cherry red ‘Independent’ T-shirt and baggy, faded, blue jeans.

Oz’s hair was a dark bluish-purple, and he wore a yellow tee with a button up blue plaid shirt over it. He wore a bit of eyeliner, but not hardly enough to notice.

Wesley was wearing a light blue button down over his plain white tee. This was paired with baggy jeans and a wallet chain that he borrowed from Gunn. Buffy had to admit to herself, when he was relaxed, he was kind of hot–in a geeky nerd way.

Xander even managed to find a Hawaiian shirt that wasn’t overly loud. It was dark green with hula girls and flamingoes, which greatly amused Willow.

Angel-or Liam, as Buffy discovered his name to be-also let loose, but it seemed to be inverse from his usual. He wore no color; instead he wore black jeans that were slightly baggy, a tight black T-shirt, and a black leather jacket. His hair, which normally stuck straight up, was now gelled down. It almost looked as if he had been caught in the rain, but either way, Buffy liked it. Angel may not have been the skinniest of the guys, but he was one of the most physically fit.

After a lot of coaxing from Gunn and Xander, Angel and Wes finally decided to loosen up and join the rest of the group with a dance. Buffy hadn’t really heard Wes talk much before, so she was quite surprised to discover that he was from England. As it turned out, Gunn, Buffy, Xander, and Willow were the only California natives. Cordy was originally from Vegas, which didn’t surprise anyone. Fred was born in Texas, and lived there until she was eight. Angel moved form Ireland to California when he was two, so he remembered very little about his birthplace, and his accent was completely gone.

When the Dingoes finally decided to play a slow song, couples began to pair off. Wes and Willow danced together simply because Oz was unavailable. Fred and Gunn went off on their own, as did Cordy and Xander; which left Angel and Buffy looking at each other rather awkwardly.


Angel seemed to be very interested with a spot on the floor for a while before he finally spoke up. “So, uh....Do you...” He sighed heavily and looked up at the ceiling with a shy smile. He shook his head and chuckled. “God, I’m stupid.”

Buffy grinned broadly. “Well, you’re a guy. That goes without saying.”

Angel gave her a look of mock hurt and slapped a hand over his heart. “Ouch. That was brutal....Well, uh, where was I? Oh! Do you, um, do you wanna dance with me?”

Buffy’s giddy grin turned into a soft smile. “I’d love to.” Angel gave her another shy smile as he grabbed her hand and led her to the dance floor.

The couple swayed silently as the band launched into another ballad. Buffy found herself surprisingly content, but deep down she knew that something was missing. She didn’t know what, but there was a tiny hole that had yet to be filled.

Halfway through the second song, Angel broke the silence. “Buffy, can I ask you something?”

“You just did. But go ahead, please, continue.” She tilted her head back to look up into his soulful eyes.

“Will you go out with me?” he blurted.

Buffy smiled slyly and looked away before returning her gaze to Angel’s face. “You mean, like, be your girlfriend, or ‘I’ll meet you at the Bronze at 7:00 on Friday’?”

Angel chuckled, a sound almost foreign coming from him. “The first one.”

Buffy faked a look of deep concentration. “Okay. I think I could agree to that.” She smiled form ear to ear before taking a step closer to her new boyfriend, so that now their bodies were touching. She tentatively rested her head on his broad chest, and when she received no objection she closed her eyes and sighed contentedly.

From across the club, Xander watched as Buffy and Angel became closer, and a twinge of jealousy hit him. It was true, he had had a crush on Buffy since she arrived at Sunnydale High, but right now he had Cordelia, and no room to complain. Cordelia, on the other hand, had always had a thing for Angel. Now that Buffy was in the picture, she knew that she had no chance.

*****

When Buffy returned home that night, she found her twelve-year-old sister, Dawn, waiting for her. Buffy opened her mouth to say hello, but was cut off by a sharp kick to the shin.

“Ow! Dawnie, what...”

“You ditched me. Again.”

“What? Dawn, I...”

“Was macking on your new boyfriend. I know.”

“I was-hey! How the hell do you know that?”

Dawn crossed her arms and smirked. “I have my ways.” She shook her head. “But that’s not the point. Tonight was movie night. Buffy, I....I...I had to watch Sleepless in Seattle with mom! You KNOW how she gets during that movie.”

Buffy gasped and pulled her little sister into a tight hug. “I’m so sorry, hon. I’ll tell you what, tomorrow the two of us will go see any movie you want. Deal?”

Dawn grinned. “Deal.”

*****

Buffy was sitting in the living room watching TV when her mother entered the room and sat down beside her on the couch.

“So, Dawn tells me you have a boyfriend now?”

Buffy ducked her head and smiled shyly. “Yeah. I still wanna know how she found out, though.”

Joyce laughed heartily. “So do I. So, Buffy, what’s he like?”

Buffy grinned. “Well, his name is Angel...okay, not really. It’s actually Liam something or other. Didn’t catch his last name. He was born in Ireland, but moved here when he was like, two,” Buffy gushed. She took a deep breath before plowing on. “He’s really tall, so dancing can be a little on the tough side...”

At this point, Joyce interrupted, a playful smile on her face. “Sweetie, everyone is tall compared to you.”

Buffy shot her mother an evil look. “That wasn’t very friendly.” She paused to pout for a second, but couldn’t stay silent for long. “Anywhoo, Angel has these deep, penetrating brown eyes. They’re so...soulful. And he has dark brown hair that usually sticks straight up, but he gelled it down tonight and it looked SO hot!” She stopped when she realized her voice was hitting a shrill pitch that Dawn would’ve been proud of.

Joyce laughed at the expression on her elder daughter’s face. “Okay, I get that he’s ‘hot’, but what is he like?”

Buffy contemplated this for a second before starting to speak again, though this time it was in a softer, calmer voice. “He’s really quiet...broody, I guess is the best word. But when he opens up, he can be pretty funny. He’s so sweet though. I mean, It’s crazy. Although the shyness might have something to do with that. I really like him. He seems so much different than the guys in LA. I suppose that’s probably what I like best about him.”

Joyce’s look darkened almost imperceptively as she said quietly, “Looks can be deceiving.”


TBC in chapter 2...



A/N2: I’ve decided that I’m gonna throw Anya into the mix eventually, because of what I have planned. Probably Tara at some point, too. I’m sorry for all the Bangel, I really am, but it needs to be set up before Spike can enter the equation. Also, the Dingoes breaking up was another necessity. Sorry if I upset anyone somehow. You’ll see why eventually. R&R if you like it, R&R if you don’t. Either way, let me know.





You must login (register) to review.