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Author's Chapter Notes:
Okay, so I know I *just* posted chapter 4 but whatever =P.


1) Thanks, Christine, for beta-ing this! :) You rock! *muah*


2) Thanks to PhotographyNut for reviewing the last chapter! You're so awesome! But, I would really appreciate and value reviews from any other readers as well! Don't be afraid to just leave a little comment, I won't bite. Much. :P LOL.


Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. No money is being made from this work. No copyright infringement is intended.
“It’s okay, Buffy. I’ll go easy on you,” he soothed her “worry” with calm words of comfort. She couldn’t fathom why this lousy hunk of jerk would think he could beat her. As if.


“Just get in net, Parker.” She gritted her teeth. She knew she had to break up with him. Today. She couldn’t put up with his condescending, patronizing attitude anymore.


Parker had finally agreed to play a round of soccer with her and she was excited. She hadn’t played all week since it was March Break and Mallory was on vacation. She had missed practice and well, Parker was really the only decent competition around. He was an intermediate soccer player, having quit lessons a year earlier so he could join the town’s band, Fear Revolution. He wanted to “invest his whole self fully and…uh…wholly”, to make the “band experience so much stellar, y’know?”


Buffy had always been a little bit concerned about his academic life. He didn’t seem to have much of one...


“Hit me with your best shot,” Parker taunted her, a leer on his features. She fought the urge to roll her eyes at the cliché and instead backed away from the ball and gained momentum as she quickly gauged his “favorite” spot. Faith had taught her that every goalie had a favorite spot, though they denied it. It was the spot they unconsciously defended better and more so. It could be the casual lean of their bodies in the direction of the spot or perhaps a flick of the eyes, but a player could always determine the goalie’s favorite spot. Buffy watched with hooded, careful eyes as he adjusted himself, his right arm leaning farther out into the right end of the net. She grinned inwardly.


Bingo.


Sprinting forward, she kicked the ball with measured strength, angling her foot in the right direction so it would land in the left-side of the net. She cheered loudly when he leaned in desperately to grab the ball, the right arm swinging around floppily to come to his net’s defense.


Groaning in defeat, he watched as the split seconds passed while the ball sailed into the net with a resounding “whoosh” and landed happily on the ground. He stared at it for a second, resentment evident in his features before spinning around to glare daggers at Buffy.


“I didn’t know you could hit like that,” he said, his voice carrying a hint of anger.


She shrugged. “I figured it would be the perfect touch to the end of our…well, whatever we have.”


His eyes widened in disbelief, the shock comically etched onto his face. Parker “Pretty Boy” Abrahms was getting dumped? No. Fucking. Way.


“What?”


She chuckled as she strode forward to collect her ball, turning to face him with her ball in tow. “It’s over. I’m sick of you and your attitude. Go find some other slut to fill the void in your life where the IQ is missing.”


Parker gaped at her, his jaw open with surprise. “Huh?” he stuttered, scratching at his head, not fully able to understand what was happening.


“See you around.”


And with that, Buffy walked off with a light bounce in her step and a smile on her face.


***


Faith had died just before Buffy’s first year of high school. She had recently turned fourteen. Buffy had been devastated to come home on the last day of school, a wide grin on her face knowing she could spend the entire summer playing soccer with Faith, only to find out that her most special friend in the entire world had left her.


Apparently, Faith had been diagnosed with breast cancer about a year after she had started coaching Buffy, when Buffy had been eight. She had told no one, considering she didn’t have much of a family and as far as Buffy knew no serious relationships either. She had kept the news to herself but as the years passed and the cancer had become progressively worse, Faith had been distressed to find out that it couldn’t be treated and it was now terminal. Initially, radiation therapy hadn’t been an option because of money but when Faith found out that the cancer was much worse than it had been six years ago, she had no choice but to enjoy the last few months of her life.


Buffy remember the day quite clearly, the painful emotions still swirled a torrent of grief deep within her…

(Flashback)
Sunnydale, California 2004


Buffy whistled cheerfully as she walked quickly down the street, her tiny body aching to move faster so she could find Faith to tell her all about how Johnny Ronson had kissed her as a “last day of school gift” or something like that. She couldn’t remember what he had said, still relishing the feel of his soft lips on her cheek. She squealed at the memory, blushing. She already missed Johnny’s cute freckles and adorable curly brown hair but brushed it aside. She’d see him in high school and they’d fall in love and get married, right?


Humming a cheap love song to herself, she wandered through the suburban area of Revello before finally reaching 1630, a wide smile on her face.


She entered her house with a loud “I’m home!” and closed the door quietly behind her. She was surprised to see her mother sitting on the couch, her face expressionless, her eyes empty and flat with…grief? Shock? Buffy couldn’t gauge her feelings and wondered if something had happened at the gallery.


“Mom?” she said the maternal name softly, watching as her mother looked up with lightening speed and a flash of emotions went through her face. Buffy’s naïve nature didn’t bother to analyze them all and settled herself next to her mom. She laid a reassuring hand on her arm.


“What’s wrong?” she asked carefully, an encouraging smile on her features.


Joyce stared at her daughter through regretful eyes, hating how her daughter was so happy and how she had to be the one to destroy it. She placed her shaking hands in her lap and braced herself for what the next few hours were about to be like. She knew she had to be strong for her baby. Six years wasn’t just some friendship to quickly mourn and get over. It was a friendship, a bond that could pull anyone into deep depression. Joyce was determined not to let that happen. Not to her Buffy.


“Sweetie, there’s something I have to tell you,” Joyce said gently, wishing desperately for an easier way to say this.


Buffy’s eyes narrowed with confusion but she nodded with trust. “Okay,” she said, her voice small with uncertainty.


“Sweetheart, Faith…she died today.”


There. She had said it.


And the destroyed look, the anguished sobs that had followed…Joyce had never hated herself more.


****
Faith had been Buffy’s coach, friend, confidante, strength, and guide. She had been everything Buffy strived so hard to be and while Faith was a bit more than fucked up, she had her share of lessons that she stressed Buffy to learn.


Never have sex when you’re sixteen. It will kill you, your reputation and your future career.


Don’t talk garbage about other people. They might find out and one day, they might be your boss.


Make like a tree and leave people’s problems to their problems. You’re not here to carry the entire weight of the world. You’re here to fend for yourself and that means keeping your nose in your business only.


Don’t play soccer like it’s just a game.


Play it like it’s your life.


TBC


Chapter End Notes:
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