Music was playing loudly when William arrived home. He grinned to himself; Buffy was blasting The Sex Pistols. One more item for the “Ways Buffy is Perfect” list he carried around in his head and added to daily.
William walked into the house to find the living room deserted. “Hello?” he called over the music. He deposited his satchel on the couch and continued down the hall to the bedroom. He quickly changed into his more comfortable costume of jeans and t-shirt. Wandering into the kitchen, William caught a glimpse of movement in the backyard.
He stepped onto the back porch just as Buffy performed a series of cartwheels and flips across the grass. He admired the flash of her bronzed limbs, bared by a pair of cut-off denim shorts and a skimpy pink tank top. She landed in a panting heap at the foot of the stairs and smiled crookedly at him.
“Hi honey, you’re home,” she said. “How was the first day of school, Professor?”
“Not near as much fun as home, it would seem,” he replied. He pulled her up off the ground and into his embrace for a long kiss. “How was your day, pet?”
“Oh, it was an ass-grabbing good time!” Buffy said with brittle cheer. At William’s questioning look, she continued. “One of my customers got a little handsy during the lunch rush. So I – whoops – dumped a milkshake on his head.”
William laughed. “Good on you.”
Buffy sat on the steps with a sigh. “Yeah, go me, girl power, rah. But then there’s the part where I got fired.”
William sat next to her and wrapped an arm around her shoulders. “I’m sorry, kitten.”
Buffy shrugged. “Kind of hated the job, anyway, so no big. Although it had its perks. Most notably that it wasn’t the Doublemeat Palace, where I will be reporting for work bright and early Monday morning.”
They sat together in silence for a time. Then William had a thought. He jumped up, patting Buffy on the shoulder as he did so. "You stay put, sweetheart. I'll be back in a mo'." He hurried into the house and quickly threw a few essentials into a duffel bag, which he stowed in the trunk of the DeSoto before returning to Buffy's side.
"C'mon, let's go for a ride," he said with a smile.
"Where are we going?" she asked suspiciously once they were seated in the car.
"It's a surprise," he answered. "Trust me?"
"Yes, I do," Buffy said softly. She slipped her hand into his and squeezed it tightly. She kept hold of it for the entire drive.
***
William pulled into the empty parking lot atop a cliff overlooking the ocean. "Here we are," he announced.
"Oh, wow," Buffy breathed. "I haven't been to the beach in... it’s been so long, I can’t even remember." She turned to him with a grin. "Too bad I don't have a suit, I'd love to go swimming."
William smirked at her. "This is a pretty secluded beach, pet," he said. "Don't rightly know that you need to wear anything." He pulled her across the front seat for a kiss, which was interrupted by the shrill ring of Buffy's cell. She dug through her bag for her phone.
"Hello?" she said. "Dawn, sweetie, how are you?"
William slid out of the car and retrieved the duffel from the trunk, wanting to give Buffy some privacy for her conversation. He perched on the hood of the DeSoto, looking out at the gentle waves below. Then he heard Buffy's voice rise.
"Dawnie, don't say that! You know I do." She started to cry. "Of course I do! Please don't... Dawnie?"
William yanked open the passenger side door just as Buffy's cell phone went sailing through the window. It landed in the scruffy shrubs lining the cliff top. "What's wrong?" he asked gently.
Buffy looked up at him with big, teary eyes. "I... well, I told my stupid sister that I was at the beach with my boyfriend, so obviously that means I don't love her and I'm glad she's gone and I don't miss her at all."
William thought that, had it been anyone else making his girl cry, he would have been in a rage. When he thought of Dawn, though, all he felt was the same protective instinct he felt for Buffy; that unknown girl halfway across the country was just as alone and just as hurt as Buffy was. He wrapped Buffy in his arms and rocked her back and forth.
"You know she doesn't mean it," he whispered against her hair. "Shh, little girl, it's okay."
He was unprepared for the hard fist that landed in his ribs. "Don't. Call. Me. That." Buffy growled at him. "I hate that!"
William grabbed her wrists when she aimed another fist in his direction, holding her off of him as he stared at her unfocused eyes. "Buffy!" he said loudly. She looked up at him with dawning horror as if she were just realizing who she was attacking.
"Oh, god, I'm so sorry, William," she whispered. "I just... he always called me... I hate it, okay?"
William nodded slowly, his brain reeling. "D'you... d'you want to talk about it, Buffy? What he did to you?" He wasn't sure what he wanted her answer to be.
Buffy peeled away from him and headed for the shrubs to retrieve her phone. She stood there for a long time before finally turning back to him. She hopped up on the hood of the car, and William took a seat beside her.
“You want all the nasty little details?” she sneered. William opened his mouth, but she spoke before he could say anything – not that he knew what he would have said in any case. “Honestly, pedophilia aside, he was pretty fucking vanilla. I never even knew the girl could be on top till I met you.”
She laughed. The sound made William flinch. “Mostly he liked it when I cried. That got him really excited, and then it would be over fast.” She shrugged, like she was discussing the weather or some other mundane topic.
“He didn’t do anything to me that I didn’t say yes to,” she said after a moment. Her voice was very calm. “I’m not… I wasn’t his victim, William. I knew what I was getting into. Hell, I was the one who suggested it.”
William ran a hand across his face. He was surprised when it came away wet. He stood up, took a few deep breaths to calm himself, and turned back to Buffy. Her eyes were wide, and she was watching him with fear evident on her face.
"Oh, kitten," he said. "Just because you agreed to it, Buffy, doesn't make it okay, what he did."
"I know that," she said fiercely. "You think I don't know that? Of course it wasn't okay, he was my fucking father!"
Buffy bounded up and stalked across the parking lot in a fury, then turned and stood in front of William, breathing heavily. "He offered to adopt me, too, when he adopted Dawnie. The only reason I said no was because I didn't want to hurt my real dad's feelings. Stupid me, I had no idea that my real dad had to give up his rights to me and Dawnie in order for Ted to adopt us. But I didn’t say no because I didn't love him, or because I didn't want him to be my daddy instead of Hank. But you know what? It didn't really matter. We had different last names, but he was still my dad. Until he wasn't anymore."
She leaned into William then, wrapping her arms around his waist. She craned her neck to peer into his face, then brought one hand up to wipe away his fresh tears. “I’m sorry,” she whispered. “I didn’t mean to make you cry.”
William grasped her hand in his. “Christ, Buffy, don’t you apologize to me,” he said. “I just… I can’t stand to think of you being hurt. I’d like to find that shite and beat his face in for him.”
Buffy laughed shakily. “Okay.” She pulled away from him and smiled. “So, skinny dipping? Last one in is a rotten egg!” She ran to the staircase leading to the beach.
William let out the breath he hadn’t known he was holding. Once again, Buffy’s mercurial mood swings had left his head spinning. Then he glanced down the wooden stairs and caught sight of her stripping off her tank top and bra, grinned, and chased after her.
***
William swam over to where Buffy was floating, arms and legs starfished out, her hair undulating on the waves. She turned her head as he neared her. “Keep your distance, Mr. Pratt,” she warned. “I think I’ve been dunked enough for one day.” She straightened up and began treading water, backing away from his questing fingers.
“Wanna play,” he said with a pout. He gave a quick burst of speed and managed to snag her hands, pulling her towards him. He swam backwards, leading them into shallower waters until he was able to kneel on the ocean floor and still keep his head above water. He positioned Buffy above him and drew one breast into his mouth. “Won’t dunk you anymore, promise,” he said, grinning before moving to the other breast.
Buffy twined her fingers in his hair and coiled her legs around his waist. “Mmm… William, do normal people have this much sex?”
William released her breast with a wet plop and glanced up at her. “What makes you think we’re not normal, pet?” he asked.
“Um, have you looked in the mirror lately, bleach boy? And I’m… well, I don’t know, I just never thought that I’d like sex this much. I mean, I want to do it all the time. Is that… are you sure this is normal?”
William laughed. “Buffy, there’s not one thing wrong with you. Or me, for that matter. It’s just… you get me all hot an’ bothered, and I do the same for you, yeah?”
Buffy nodded, then gave a little gasp as he slid smoothly into her. “Yes,” she cried.
William smiled against her throat, licked her pulse point. “It’s okay, baby,” he said. “This is us. Who cares ‘bout normal?”
“Okay, okay,” Buffy panted, moving with him frantically. Her legs clenched him tightly and her hips moved in a compelling circle. “Oh god, Will, don’t… don’t stop.”
“Won’t. Never.” William found her lips and drew her into a passionate kiss. When they parted, he gave her a wicked grin. “Hold your breath, pet. Wanna see if I can make you come before we need to come up for air.”
He could.
***
They snuggled together in the blankets William had packed, watching the sunset.
“Thank you,” Buffy said, turning her head to place a soft kiss on his bare chest.
“For what, kitten?”
“For bringing me here. For listening to me. For putting up with Crazy!Buffy.”
William turned on his side to face her. Her skin was glowing in the golden rays of the setting sun. “You say that like it’s a hardship,” he said, running his fingers through the damp curls spilling around her face.
Buffy shrugged. “I know I’m all kinds of messed up. Sometimes I can’t stand myself, but you…”
William pulled her to him. “Aw, sweetness, wish you could see yourself the way I do. You’re… god, you’re bloody amazing. You take my breath away. You make me crazy, yeah, but in a completely good way. Bein’ with you… it’s the best thing that’s ever happened to me. Nothin’ hard about it.” He smirked and pulled her hand down his body. “Well, maybe one hard thing…”
“Pig,” Buffy said. She didn’t relinquish her grasp, though.
***
It was on the drive back to Sunnydale that William brought up the idea that had been fulminating in his mind all evening. “Love, do you really want to work at the Doublemeat?”
Buffy glanced at him briefly. “No, of course not, but hello, high school dropout here. Not a ton of options, you know?”
William nodded. “Right. I wanna give you an option. What if, instead of going to work Monday morning, you, uh, movedinwithme?” he got out in a rush.
“What?”
“Move in with me, Buffy. You’re at my house all the time, anyway, only difference’d be you wouldn’t have to go to that flat of yours for a change of clothes.” He looked over at her and was presented with the back of her head. She was staring fixedly out the window.
“I… I can’t do that, Will,” she said finally.
“Why not?”
“Because! Because I can’t be an unemployed high school dropout mooching off her boyfriend! That’s, like, so far beyond tacky.”
“I want to… I want you to have opportunities. If you weren’t working, you could concentrate on finishing your diploma, yeah?” She nodded silently and he continued. “An’ then you could get to work on college. No more dead end jobs. ‘S what you want, right?”
“Well, yeah, but I… We’ve been together for, like, a month, and you want me to move in with you? I mean, are you hearing yourself? This is crazy!” Buffy was looking at him now, he noted with small satisfaction. “And I can’t move in with you just because it would be convenient for me!”
“Thought it was a month and a half, pet,” he said.
Buffy let out a yell of pure frustration. “William, could you please be serious?”
“I am bein’ serious. I, William Pratt, want you, Buffy Summers, to move your clothes and sundries into my house, where you spend ninety-nine percent of your time already. I want you to not be trottin’ your sexy little self over to the nasty part of town every time you need fresh skivvies. I want you to get an education instead of wasting your time serving greasy and dubious food to an already dangerously-overweight American public. How much more serious can I be, love?”
Buffy folded her arms across her chest and sat in a sulky silence until they reached the city limits. “Take me home,” she said.
“What?” William turned to her in surprise and narrowly missed clipping the “Welcome to Sunnydale” sign.
Buffy sighed. “You heard me, I want to go home.”
“But…”
“William. I’m serious. Take me to my apartment, or I will jump out of this car and walk there.”
“Fine. Home it is.”
Not another word was spoken between the two until William pulled up in front of Buffy’s flat. He reached for her arm as she moved to open her door.
“Buffy… please, pet, I wasn’t tryin’ to make you angry.”
“Oh, congrats, imagine what a bang-up job you’ll do when you put some effort into it.”
“Tell me you’ll at least think about it,” William pleaded. He slid across the seat and pulled her stiff form into his arms. “Please.”
Buffy relented then, relaxing into his embrace and reaching a hand up to caress his cheek. “I’ll think about it,” she said quietly.
“Not too mad at me then, are you?”
Buffy laughed softly. “How could I be?” She stretched up and kissed him. “William… thank you again. I, I really don’t deserve you, you know that?”
William tucked her hair behind her ear and traced the curve of her cheek. “You deserve so much more than I could ever hope to give you, Buffy,” he said. “Maybe someday you’ll start believing that about yourself.”
She smiled at him, a sad little smile that nearly broke his heart. “I’ll talk to you later, William. Good night.” With one last kiss, she was gone, and William drove home to his empty house.
***
The phone’s persistent ringing pulled William from sleep several hours later. He turned a groggy eye on the clock next to his bed.
“What?” he growled into the phone. “It’s three in the sodding morning, this better be a bloody emergency!”
There was a beat of silence. “William?” Buffy’s voice was very small and quiet.
He was wide awake in an instant. “Buffy? Love, what’s wrong?” Even as he spoke, he was climbing out of bed and searching for his clothes.
“I… I couldn’t sleep,” Buffy said. “I’ve been thinking about you, about what you asked me…”
He couldn’t make words come.
“Will, I’m so tired of saying ‘no’ to the things I want. And I want you, William. I told you I couldn’t move in with you because… because I wanted it so much, it just seemed like one more thing that I shouldn’t have. Because there’s something wrong with the world if I’m not miserable, right?” Her voice cracked on a sob.
“Oh, kitten,” William said. He longed to hold her, to soothe her tears and her fears. “You can have whatever you want, you just tell me what it is.”
“You,” Buffy said. “Just you. Please.”
“You’ve got me, Buffy. I love you, pet, love you so much it scares me.” There were silent tears tracking down his face now. “Can I… can I come get you, baby? Right now?”
“Uh-huh.”
He made it to her flat in record time. Less than an hour later, they were curled up in bed, Buffy back in his arms where she belonged, and her tatty stuffed pig watching them from the bedside table.
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