“I guess it all started when my dad cheated on my mom. I’m not sure how long it was going on before I found out, but I caught them a few days after I turned fourteen. It was a complete accident; I didn’t even suspect a thing. But I saw them together… Anyway, my dad took me aside and made me swear that I wouldn’t tell my mom. I resisted, I really did, but he eventually persuaded me under the condition that he would end it. Needless to say, he didn’t.
“Her name was Anne and she worked at the library with my mother. I guess my father visited one too many times because my mom found out too. At first, she was calmly suspicious. Then one day, she burst into my room furious as hell. She asked if I knew about the affair and I said no like my father asked me to. Of course, at this point I thought he ended it. But then she ranted about finding some trollop’s underwear beneath my parent’s bed. I felt betrayed because he promised me he wouldn’t, so I told my mom the truth. Apparently, that wasn’t such a great idea.
“My mom started screaming about living in a house full of liars and how she couldn’t live like that anymore. She told me to go to my room and stay there. Then, my dad came home and found all of her stuff gone. My mom left us and she didn’t even tell me.” Buffy pulled into her driveway, but remained in the car with him as he continued his story. She itched to ask him questions, but felt it was better to wait it out.
“Anyway, my house turned into a house devoid of any human emotion. It was always cold. My friends stopped coming over a few months later. I could have gone to their houses, but at the time… I don’t know. I guess I kept hoping she would come back. I blamed myself in the beginning, but then blamed my father who was too lost in his own head to notice. I acted out in school to rebel against him; it was nothing terrible or hurtful, just some graffiti and stuff. But Rupert never cared or paid any attention and that hurt most of all.
“Nearing the end of last term, I was particularly angry and set fire to a desk. I did not expect it to go up like that,” William snapped his fingers loudly. “If the teacher hadn’t smelled the smoke in the classroom, it might have spread to the rest of building or it could have killed me. She pulled me out of there and hit the alarm.
“That woman grabbed my arm and brought me to the principals’ office before the first drop spurted out of the sprinklers. Luckily, the fire went out just as quickly as it began. But my principal was not happy. He suspended me for a month when the police services decided it was an accident.
“And finally, I got what I wanted: my father’s full and undivided attention. He screamed at me, called me names… I wasn’t sure if he was just drunk or unable to think logically in the rage. When I couldn’t take sitting there anymore, I had my first real fight with him. I don’t want to get into it, but I was utterly petrified of my dad at the time. He had never hurt me before, but I didn’t know what to expect. So when he told me to get out of his house, I did.
“I ran away for three months. To this day, I don’t know when my father realized I was gone or when he actually reported that I was missing. Either way, it seemed no one was coming for me. At first, I slept at the houses of the few friends I had left. When they all kicked me out, I started playing my guitar at clubs and bars to make some cash. Some of the owners let me crash in their buildings at night if I promised to be gone by morning. Eventually, I made enough money to rent a small room in a crappy part of town. It wasn’t the life I wanted, but it was better than going back to a man whom I thought hated me.
“They found me in mid-august. My school didn’t want me back so I spent all of my time at home. While I was gone, my dad started drinking, not enough to be called an alcoholic, but pretty damn close. When I came back… it was like someone turned the lights back on in his head. He broke down in front of me, apologizing and promising to make things better…”
“But things didn’t get better, did they?” Buffy interrupted.
“Well, sometimes they did. Life was certainly better at home. We both accepted that mom was gone for good and that the Giles men had to stick together. After a few months though, we started fighting again.
“Little things became bigger things until we fought just to communicate. One day, my dad had had enough. He basically said, ‘that’s it, we are moving’ and we moved here to Sunnydale. He wanted a fresh start between us and I get that, but he took me away from everything and everyone that mattered.”
“Do you miss them?” she whispered.
“Sometimes.” he took her hand and held it in his. “But it was all worth it because I met you.” He rubbed circles on her palm sending shivers up her spine. “You matter to me more.”
“Really?”
“Really.” William looked up at her with such honesty and intense feeling that she practically melted all over the car floor.
“Oh William, that’s so sweet.” She could not stand it anymore and smashed her lips to his. All the pain and sadness he expression morphed into pure, undiluted passion. He smoothed her hair with his hands and tried to move closer to her. His other hand wandered, of its own volition, to the hem of her shirt and began to sneak up.
Then, someone tapped on the window.
Trying to remember where they were, Buffy and William looked around in total confusion until they saw the culprit of their disturbance. Angel stood in front of the window proudly, blocking out the sun with his large frame. He gestured emphatically to roll the window down. He received a middle finger from Buffy and a backwards peace sign that he didn’t understand from William. Angel wagged his finger back and forth, tsking at their naughty behavior, then whistled as he walked to the front door of the house.
Mood broken, the two teenagers sat and stared aimlessly into space. Buffy eventually concluded the silence.
“Maybe we should…”
“Yeah…”
“I’m really sorry about…”
“I know…”
“But thanks for telling me,” she finally turned her head and caught his attention with a sympathetic grin. It slowly faded as she considered his story. “That must have been awful, living like that.” Not wanting to scare her with the disturbing details of his time on the streets, he spoke of the only thing that kept him going.
“Nah, it wasn’t too bad. Besides, I got pretty good at the guitar,” he said as he smiled fondly. She lightly hit his arm.
“Yeah, the guitar that you were quote ‘really not that great at.’” She giggled.
“Oh no!” he placed his hand over his heart and gasped melodramatically. “You’ve figured out my secret! You’ve gotta pay the price now, luv,” he said with a mischievous gleam in his cerulean eyes. He tickled her menacingly, lightheartedly ignoring her cries of submission.
When he decided she had had enough, he smiled adoringly and kissed her on the nose. Buffy wiggled it cutely in response. “Time to go inside now, pet.” William lifted her up, undid his seatbelt and walked with her to the front door.
……………………
Somehow, the mood returned by the time they reached her bedroom. After almost a half hour make out session, Buffy pushed him away for a moment.
“Maybe we should stop. I mean, my mom is out there and Angel could walk in on us…”
“Do you really care what captain forehead thinks?”
“No, I don’t. But don’t you think it would be a little embarrassing if he walked in and saw me half naked?” William smirked at her.
“How ever did you figure out my evil scheme?” he said in a high-pitched voice.
“Come on,” she hit him gently on the arm. “I don’t want him to see me like that. He’ll end up going to Dru and rumors will spread and-“ William interrupted with a kiss to her neck.
“You know you don’t really mean that.” His voice was husky and his eyes shone black with tamed desire. He kissed her again, licked a long stroke up her neck and breathed hot air in its crook. “We’ll only be five minutes.” William nipped at her and caused a squeak. A chuckle thrummed in his chest when she frantically kissed him again.
“Only five minutes?” she giggled.
“Only five minutes.” William rolled on top of her and caressed her cheek. “You are beautiful,” he breathed. But before she had a chance to respond, Angel opened the door.
“Hey guys! What’s going on? Hope I’m not interrupting anything, oh well, I guess I did. So sorry folks!” Angel crossed his arms and raised his eyebrows as Buffy and William scrambled to a more appropriate position.
“Don’t you knock!!” she yelled as she straightened out her top.
“Don’t have to sis you know, since we are family now and all.”
“Would you just get out of here?”
“Tsk tsk tsk Buffy, moving on from a hunk like me to a wannabe punk like him.”
“Well you’re just a, a… um, a mean person!” she shouted. William looked at her in disbelief.
“Oh Buffy! Such harsh words!” Angel feigned a stab wound through his heart, and then grinned evilly. “See you later doll,” he said as he saluted her casually. He finally slammed the door behind him leaving William and Buffy in awkward silence. Eventually, Buffy found her voice again.
“I told you that would happen!” she whispered angrily.
“I know but I didn’t think he’d actually do it!”
“Well you were wrong!”
“What about you? You didn’t even defend me!”
“Defend you? At least I tried. You didn’t defend me either.”
“How did you need defending?”
“He basically called me a slut! And you just let him!”
“Buffy, you are taking this completely out of proportion. I think-“
“I think you should go,” she said with a sigh. “Look, I just don’t think we’ll be able to get anything accomplished by yelling and since the mood is completely destroyed now… I don’t know, maybe you should go.”
“No.”
“No?”
“What are we, rhyming now?” he asked incredulously causing Buffy to giggle a bit. William realized what he said and how completely random it sounded and he laughed as well. After a few minutes, William spoke again. “Do you really want me to go? Cause I will, I mean, if you want me too.”
“No, it’s fine. I was just really freaked. You should stay.”
“Alright… So, what do you want to do?”
“Um, watch a movie?”
“Sounds good, pet. Sorry about before. I think I was freaked too.” They smiled at one another then moved to the DVD cabinet.
……………………
Angel stood with his ear to the door, angry that his plan had come so close to succeeding, but failed last minute. He walked away nervous at the thought that Dru would not be happy about this. He would just have to try harder, then. Angel smiled.
And he knew exactly what to do.
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Author's Chapter Notes:
Hey! I'm so glad everyone still enjoys this story. Sometimes I think the story is getting crappy... but I still have readers, so awesome! I hope you guys have a great weekend in case I don't post until sunday. I am writing like crazy, but I may not have enough time to write the long chapters ahead. Please review and enjoy!
Chapter End Notes:
Oh Angel... tsk tsk tsk