3 years ago.


“William, do you think we’ll be friends forever? Even after we start to grow up and start High School?” Asked Anne looking up into the sky at the passing clouds. “Well of course love. Why would you ask that? Here I’ll make you a promise. I promise, from this day on, I’ll never leave you, not for better friends, not to go live somewhere else, even going on vacation will take tremendous effort.” Smiled William, stroking a strand of her blonde hair away from her face. “Pinky promise?” “Of course.” Anne laid there, her head in William’s lap for hours, they spent many days like this now, just laying there, watching the sky and talking. He’d become her best friend, perhaps even someone she thought she might love. When the sun began to go down and both their parents called them in for supper Anne stood reluctantly and hugged him, “Goodnight William.” Anne smiled, waving to him as she crossed the backyard to her porch. “Goodnight Anne.” He waited until she disappeared indoors before pushing aside the broken section of fencing that separated their yards and from that night on, their lives.

Anne’s(Buffy) POV

“Hi mom, what’s for supper? Where‘s dad, he‘s later than usual.” She quickly quieted herself, seeing her mother on the phone, and nodding slowly. Suddenly the receiver was dropped to the counter top and her mother’s face was sickly pale, and obviously tear streaked. She seemed to be choking back sobs. “Mom? Mom, what’s wrong?” Anne crossed the kitchen quickly and put her arm around her mother, “Mom, tell me what’s wrong!” Her mother looked up slowly, rubbing her hands back and forth nervously, “There was an accident... and your father he’s.. he’s” Her mom collapsed into sobs, “Mom, is dad okay?” She shook her head slowly, “Your father was killed in a car accident on his way home.” Again her mother was overcome by sobs, but this time she was not alone. Anne fell to her knees on the tiled floor shaking her head and crying, wrapping her arms around herself and shaking, repeating to herself over and over again, “No, please no.”

William’s(Spike) POV

The first thing William noticed as he walked into his house was screaming, again. His parents had fought a lot in the past few days, all he wanted was for the yelling to stop. On his way up to his room he was stopped by his mother, carrying her luggage and crying violently, “I don’t have to stand for this Giles! I have someone who can truly love me. Not just his work. I won‘t stay here and be your whore!” His mother yelled coming down the stairs, “Darling I’m a doctor what do you expect? I can’t help my schedual. I’ll try to change it!” Called his father after her, desperately trying to keep the family together. “Goodbye Giles, I‘m leaving you. Getting married to you was a mistake anyway, but you should be happy now, you have you precious son. The divorce papers will be in the mail.” Then she was gone. William watched as his mother walked out the door, walked out on him. He had always known his mother thought getting married to his father and having a child was a mistake, but knowing it and hearing it were completely different. He slid down the wall, his back to it, and wrapped his arms around his knees and sobbed into them, whispering to himself, “No, please no.”

Present Day

“Buffy Anne Summers wake up! It’s time for school!” Yelled Buffy’s mother as she pounded on the girl’s door which was frequently kept locked. Buffy groaned and turned over, “Don’t ever say my middle name!” She yelled back, yawning afterward. She had long ago “dropped” her middle name and began going by Buffy, Anne seemed too innocent she’d decided, too easy to hurt. She looked around her room with it’s walls plastered with posters of all her favorite bands, Green Day, Aiden, Scene Aesthetic, she’d taken to this new “emo/hardcore” trend whole heartedly with most of the other outcasts at Sunnydale High. She’d even almost given her mother a heart attack after dying her gorgeous blonde locks black. Slowly, she prepared herself for the day ahead of her, a day full of skipping classes, drawing on desks and kissing in the parking lot. School. ‘It’s not so bad if you break most of the rules.’ She thought to herself with a smile while applying her eyeliner.

The walk to school was never a bad one, not as long as she had her friends Dru, Oz and Angel with her. Along with their “posse” of fans, they approached the school like the black plague. Everyone knew them and everyone got out of their way, that is if they wanted to avoid Angel and Oz ripping them limb from limb. Unlike herself and Dru, Oz and Angel stuck religiously to their metal, and this made them vicious, they felt they must protect their “Dear, injured emo girls”. The hall crowd parted that day as usual like the Red Sea, that is until a bleach blonde boy came out of the principal’s office, running directly into Buffy and knocking her to the ground.

The entire crowd seemed to gasp and freeze, like a scene from a badly made “teen-movie” as Buffy fell. Before she could even register what had happened, Oz had wrapped his hand securely into the boy’s shirt and slammed him against the wall. “Don’t you think you should apologize to the lady? You must be new, and since you are, I’ll let you off easy, won’t even break your nose. Now when I let you down, you go apologize to her.” Growled Oz, dropping the blonde to the floor. The boy stood and moved over to Buffy, offering her a hand up and sincerely offering a “Sorry.” To her, until their eyes met. “Anne?” He asked in disbelief, “Anne is that you?” Buffy slapped his hand away and stood, “I don’t know anyone named Anne and I most certainly don‘t know you. Fuck off..” Then walked away. But she did know him, and he knew she did. He could see it in her eyes.

William watched for days as Anne or Buffy as she was choosing to call herself now, roamed the halls, apparently she and her friends were feared throughout the school. Well, those two boys were feared, Oz and Angel. Buffy and Dru however were lusted after, they were something every boy in the school wanted to have a piece of and apparently most had had Dru at least once. He had to get close to her again. And he tried, over and over again. But ever since the day he’d moved, she’d cut him out of her life forever. He’d broken their promise she’d said, and she’d never forget that, she’d hate him until the day he died.

William sat in english class one day, listening to Buffy recite another poem. This seemed to be the only class she bothered to come to and for that, he was grateful. Before she could sit down and catch him in the act he quickly scrawled a note onto a piece of paper and slipped it onto her desk.

Anne or Buffy, whoever you are now... I need to talk to you. I know you’re not who you used to be, but if there’s even just a little of who you used to be under that hard exterior please meet me in the backyard today after school is over. I want to be friends again, please just let me back into your life. Please Anne, give me another chance. We can change, be who we used to be again.

William

The bell rang dismissing school and class and as William stood, he felt something tugging on his shoulder. He turned slowly hoping it was as he’d hoped, only to come face to face with Ms. Harmony, the English teacher and a very very upset Buffy. “Excuse me, but note passing is against the rules. You both have detention after school today, so have a seat. I have eyes like a hawk Mr. Giles.” As Ms. Harmony stepped outside, he turned to Buffy, “I’m sorry.” The burning in his cheek nearly brought tears to his eyes as he realized she’d slapped him.

“I hate you William. I told you I’d always hate you and I meant it. I’m not changing just because you came back. You promised you’d never leave me, and you did.” She stepped away from him and took a seat at the front of the classroom. He didn’t dare approach her here again. In fact, he walked out of the room, the fact that he had a detention escaping his mind as he walked home.

His house was empty, as usual, when he got home. And for that he was glad. He leaned against the wall by the stairs and slid down it, just as he had many times before since the night his mother left, as though recreating the night would bring her back. This time, he wasn’t trying to bring his mother back, he was trying to bring Anne back, back to him. “Alright, he thought, she won’t talk to me, then I’m through with her. I don’t need her. I can make it on my own. And if she wants to hate me, fine. I’ll be everything she hates, to make the job easier.”

He climbed the stairs, falling onto his bed and watched out his window. He saw her come home with that boy. And the bitter taste of jealousy crept into his mouth, knowing what could be going on over there. He should run over, beat the hell out of the boy and sweep her off her feet, make her listen to him. Tell her everything. Make her relive their past. But how could he, when he himself was running from the past, trying to escape it. ‘I never should have come back here’ he thought as he looked out his window at the clouds, being painted by the setting sun and couldn’t help but to whisper aloud, “I miss you Anne.”

-Meanwhile-

Buffy sat alone in the classroom, until 4:00 as she was supposed to, sobbing most of the time. When the bell rang dismissing detention she walked weakly into the hallway. It was empty of course, after all it was only Monday, too early for most to get into trouble. “Rawr...Hey there gorgeous.” Growled a low voice in her ear as two strong arms wrapped themselves around her waist. She wiped away the last of her tears and turned to smile half heartedly up at Angel. She’d come to be very close to him, even intimate at times, but as far as the rest of the world knew Angel was Dru’s body guard, nothing more, though Buffy liked this situation, this way no rumors emerged and she was happy. “Oh come now, don’t cry. Cheer up emo kid Angel’s here.” For the first time in her life Buffy felt that she needed someone, and thus flung her arms around Angel’s neck crashing her lips to his as he gladly obliged and kissed her back, pulling her tiny frame tight against his body. When the kiss was broken off they both gasped for breath and silently started for Buffy’s house.

When they arrived, Buffy’s mom was at work as usual and Buffy turned at her doorstep chewing her lower lip in thought, before asking shyly, “Do you, umm, want to come in?” The second he stepped into her house he was on her again, kissing her roughly and letting his hands roam over her body. Giving her exactly what she wanted, or so she thought. And when it was over and they lay there in her bed, him asleep and she wide awake and feeling more empty than ever she thought to herself exactly what was it that she wanted? Release? Pain? Emptiness? Guilt? That’s all she got. He hadn’t realized she was a virgin, hadn’t even asked. He’d been so rough with her and she could see the bruises forming on her arms, legs, and even one on her hip bone. She laid there staring up at her ceiling, wanting to be happy, desperately wanting to feel good, as good as Dru had promised she felt every time she had sex but not feeling anything but empty. Eventually she fell asleep and when she woke, he was gone. Not a surprise, she should have known he would leave, but she couldn’t help but feel as though he owed her something... not an apology, but what then? Looking out her window at the sun as it began to set and paint the clouds delicate shades of pink and orange, she couldn’t help but to think to herself, ‘I miss William.’ But she quickly shook that thought away and turned over, deciding she could go without dinner and slept.