A VERY LITTLE TALE – CHAPTER 2
The Saturday afternoon session at Bob’s Skateaway Ice Rink was three-quarters of the way over. It was couples skating time. The lights were lowered, and a big-hair-band power ballad was playing on the speakers. It serenaded the few pairs of middle-schoolers that were brave enough to skate in a circle holding hands in front of their classmates.
One pair in particular, a boy and a girl, skated around and around, stealing as many looks at each other as they could. Another pair, another boy and another girl, sat in a booth at the dark end of the snack bar watching them.
The skating girl said to her boyfriend, “Wow, Angel. I don’t know what to say. You guys are still fighting? I mean, you’re still not talking to each other. Or hanging out, or anything?”
Angel adjusted his grip on Buffy’s hand. She almost slipped away as they went around the curve at the far end of the rink. He sighed, “Yeah, it’s been almost a month. We got really mad at each other one day, and I hit him.” Angel didn’t mention that Spike had gotten him back pretty good with a kick to his nuts. No way he was going to tell her that.
Buffy remembered seeing Spike with the busted lip. She said, “You never told me. What was the fight about anyway?” She almost slipped away again. “Hey! Let’s slow down. Here, put your arm around me.” She looped hers around Angel’s waist, and he put his across her shoulders. They skated slower and were careful to make sure they didn’t tangle their feet together.
Angel was glad that Buffy got distracted from her question. He didn’t want to tell her the fight had been about her. But then she asked again. He had to answer, “I- I don’t remember what we fought about. You know Spike. Such a hot-head. And always spoutin’ off about shit, I mean, stuff he knows nothing about.”
Buffy wanted to say that she was sorry about the whole thing, but she really wasn’t. She hated Spike. He was so rude and crude all the time. His jokes were always totally gross. And especially she hated the way he was always staring at her. Like he thought she didn’t notice. It was creepy. No, not creepy, but it bothered her.
But Buffy didn’t say anything. Angel and Spike had been best friends for a long time. She felt bad for Angel, but secretly she’d be relieved if Spike wasn’t going to be around anymore.
As the song got near its end, Angel slowed them down and steered Buffy towards the center of the ice.
“What’s going on, Angel? What are we doing?”
They stopped, and Angel turned to face her. He looked into her eyes and said, “I- I want to kiss you, Buffy.”
Buffy glanced around surprised. “Right here? Right now? Why don’t we wait? There’s that place on the walk home where we usually… I mean, everyone’s gonna see.”
Angel had been scared shitless about his little plan. He totally was, but he found that he could still say the words. “Yes, Buffy. Right here. Right now. I want to kiss you, and then I’m going to tell you something.”
Buffy’s silent answer was enough. He moved in and pressed his lips to hers. His arms wrapped around her back. Her heart pounded and a million thoughts raced through her head. What was Angel going to tell her? They were already going steady. Was he going to give her something. A ring to wear? No, probably not. Besides, she thought, Mom would never let her wear one anyway. Was he going to say… *that*? No. Was he? Was he going to say he loved her? Maybe he was. She hadn’t been sure before about what she thought, but now she was. She loved him too. When he said it, she’d say it too.
Buffy didn’t hear the whistles and hoots from the side boards while she opened her mouth to let Angel play with her tongue. She was tingly all over and couldn’t wait to hear what Angel was going to tell her.
*******
The other boy said to the other girl, and to the world in general, “Careful there, Angel. Better come up for air soon, or you’re gonna choke to death on a mouthful of Buffy.” Spike sat in a booth in the snack bar. He was where he had a clear view of the ice. His arm was around the shoulders of a dark-eyed girl with long dark hair. He said to the girl, “So you say he’s moving? Where’d you hear that kind of shit, Dru?”
The girl, Drusilla, was pressed up as close as she could get to Spike. Under the table she kept her hand planted firmly on his knee. She said, “I promise you, it’s all true, Spike. Angel’s big sister Darla told me. Their father’s got a new job. In Los Angeles. They’re leaving next week.”
Dru leaned up to kiss Spike’s ear. Normally Spike would be totally in favor of this. They could get away with a short make-out session before it was time to go. And if the angle was right and he could block the view enough, he could probably sneak in a little booby-squeeze before the final horn sounded.
But while part of Spike’s boy-brain zipped through that scenario, he was miraculously too distracted by Dru’s bombshell to carry it out.
He and Angel had been buds forever, minus the last month. And that cutesy little blond bitch had busted that up. Why’d he have to hang around with her so much? She was so goody-goody. And Angel was so, ‘I’m a goofy moron’, when he was around her. Yeah she’s pretty, and her boobs *are* bigger than Dru’s. So what? Fuck! Why couldn’t she be the one leaving? And then stuff could get back to normal with him and Angel.
Suddenly Bob’s voice came over the speaker system. He said, “All right you two out on center ice. Break it up now, or I’ll have to call your parents.”
Spike smirked at that, and Drusilla giggled. Angel and Buffy untwined. Spike could see Angel talking to her now. The next song started, and single skaters clomped out onto the ice. Angel stopped talking and Buffy said something. Her hands dropped their hold on his and fell to her sides. Angel pushed back away from her a few feet. Buffy spoke again. To Spike it looked like she said either, ‘No, no’, or ‘Don’t go’. And then she was crying. Spike smiled at the sight of her pain at first, but then stopped. Tears streamed down her face and her chest convulsed pathetically. Then Angel just turned and skated away.
Spike kept his eyes on Buffy until she buried her face in her hands and turned away from his direction. Dru was doing a number on his neck now. Spike wasn’t sure how, but he came to a decision that he didn’t expect. He took his arm from around Drusilla and pushed her away.
“Drusilla…, we’re breaking up now.”
Author's Chapter Notes:
This is the first actual story I’ve ever posted anywhere. Hope I haven’t scared you off already. It’s short and it’s finished. There are four chapters and I will post one per day. Any and all comments will be helpful and appreciated. Thanks for taking a look. And thank you, B.