Chapter 15
“Is this some kind of sick joke? What the hell is he doing here?”
Hank Summers took a step forward. “I know I’m probably the last person you wanted to see, Buffy, but I came here to check up on both of you. Joyce called me in drunken hysterics the other night and told me everything that happened; I came as soon as I could. I’ve moved back to Los Angeles for the time being, I’ve talked it over with your mother and she thinks it would be best if you both came to live with me. I have a big enough place for the three of us.”
Buffy gave a humorless laugh. “You have to be kidding me. I’m sorry the midlife crisis didn’t work out the way you hoped, but you left us for some halfwit and you expect to just be forgiven for that? No, I’m not going anywhere, especially not with you. God, Mom, how can you even agree to this?”
“You don’t know how hard it’s been these last few weeks, Buffy. I can’t be here anymore, it’s just too much. Everywhere I go people are whispering about me, taking pity on what I went through. I’m so tired of the judgmental looks. I used to be a strong woman, and it took one man to break me of that. I know your father hurt us in the past, but now he’s come to make things better. He promised not to abandon us again.”
She threw her hands up in the air. “And he never lies, right? This isn’t just about you, Mom. Do you think you were the only victim? I have to listen to judgmental idiots every day, but I’ve learned how to deal with it. Running away won’t solve anything, you can leave this town behind all you want, but what he did will still be there. You think I don’t know how hard it’s been these last few weeks? I’ve been the one to put up with your mood swings, to make sure you eat a decent meal. I’ve tried to get you to talk to me, but you wouldn’t budge. Instead, you tell all of our problems to him. This is only about him playing the big hero, wanting to save us. I guarantee it has nothing to do with our wellbeing. If you just want to give up, fine, that’s on you. Leave with him for all I care, but I’m staying here. This is where my life is now, even with all the shit I’ve been getting, I’m not about to run away.”
Hank tried to take his daughter’s arm, but she jerked out of his reach.
“Don’t touch me,” Buffy spat. “You are not my father anymore. I remember everything about our life in LA, all the crap you put us through. You two were miserable together, and I’ll be damned to put up with it again.” She left the house then, not looking back once.
* * * * *
“Thanks for letting me stay over, Will. I’m sorry to show up so late.”
The red head shrugged. “It’s fine, you can stay for as long as you need. Are you sure you don’t wanna talk about it?”
“There’s really nothing to say. My dad showed up, basically saying all kinds of crap about wanting to do right by us. He wants us to go back to LA with him, but it’ll be a cold day in hell before that happens.”
Willow nodded, taking in a deep breath. “I think you should tell Spike about what’s going on. Things have taken a more serious turn; you would want him to know if the situation was reversed.”
Buffy let out a sigh. “Yeah, I guess you’re right.”
“I’ll give you some privacy,” Willow said, making her leave.
She took out her cell phone to make the call, dreading the conversation that would take place.
* * * * *
“Are you mad at me?”
“I’m not mad, love. I just wish you would have told me sooner,” Spike explained on the other line.
Buffy nodded, even though he couldn’t see her. “I know, but I didn’t want to ruin things for you. It’s not like you could really do anything. I just never expected to see my dad again. I can’t believe she called him. What do you think I should do?”
“I can’t tell you that, but just know that whatever you decided to do, it won’t change things with us. Whether you live in Sunnydale or LA, I’ll be right there with you. I can get a flat anywhere.”
“That takes some of the pressure off,” she admitted. “I’m only two months away from graduation, and I’m determined to finish up this school year if it kills me. I’ll make a decision then, but I’m not about to leave everything behind just because things haven’t exactly been perfect. My mom just doesn’t get that.”
“So, do you have a date for the Prom yet?”
Buffy smiled at his subject change. “Obviously not since you won’t be here, I’ll probably just skip out on it. I’ve never really been one for school dances before; it won’t be a big deal.”
“It’s your Senior Prom, love, you have to go. I’m not saying I want you to go with another man, but you deserve to have some fun. You can go with Willow if she hasn’t gotten the prat to ask her out himself.”
She rolled her eyes. “I really don’t see that happening, he’s just as oblivious as always. I’m not making any promises.”
“That’s more than enough for me, just do me a favor and talk to your mum about this. I know you regret how you left things with her, make her see your side of it. This whole ordeal has been just as hard on you.”
“I’ll talk to her tomorrow, but right now I really could use some sleep. I miss you,” Buffy finished, wishing more than anything that he was there with her. Having a long distance relationship sucked beyond the telling of it.
“I miss you, too. Get some rest, we’ll talk later. Love you, baby.”
“I love you,” she replied, right before he hung up.
* * * * *
“Look, I know we’ve had our ups and downs lately, but I like you. I mean, I really like you. I’m sure you’ve noticed by now, but what I’m trying to say is, would you go to Prom with me?”
Buffy rubbed her temples, feeling a migraine coming on. “Are you seriously asking me that right now? I have a boyfriend, Xander. Why can’t you get that through your head? There’s a girl in this school who actually worships you, and you’re too blind to see it. You and me, we’ll never be more than friends. Maybe not even that if you keep pissing me off.”
He was taken aback, but chose only to hear a certain part of her rant. “Who worships me?”
“It’s so obvious, but you’ll have to figure that out for yourself. I have more important things to worry about than a stupid dance.”
Xander watched her go, a confused expression on his face.
* * * * *
“I get that you’re scared. You think Dad’s here to help, but I know he can’t be trusted. I can’t move back with him, Mom. I just can’t. It took me so long to finally get over what he did to us, and even with the hell Ted put me through, I still can’t let dad back in my life. I’m not saying it’ll never happen, but I’m just not ready. I’m almost eighteen now, about to be a high school graduate. You won’t have to take care of me anymore, so if you want to go with him, that’s your choice. I can’t exactly stop you, but to me he’ll always be the man who left us.”
Joyce nodded, tears in her eyes. “I just want you to be safe. I feel like I was a horrible parent for not seeing what that animal was doing right under my own roof. I should have seen that something was wrong, you tried to warn me many times, but I wouldn’t listen. I make awful decisions, like when I decided to contact your father. I knew it wasn’t the right choice, but I just wanted to feel safe again. He used to make me feel wonderful, that I could do anything I wanted. No other man had ever been able to do that, and I tried to force a relationship on Ted that didn’t even exist. I trusted him, I brought him into our home, and he repaid me by coming after my child. Despite all that your father has put us through, I felt safer in Los Angeles than I ever did here. I know the man is dead now, but I still have nightmares about him coming back. I see him attacking you, and I can’t do anything to stop him. I woke up and your father was the first person I thought of, I wanted him to protect us.”
Buffy put an arm around her sobbing mother. “It was just a bad dream, he’s never coming back. Dad can’t protect us from this, Mom. The shadow of Ted will always hang over us, but we’re the only ones who can truly defeat him. We have to be strong for each other and not let him get the best of us anymore. I’ve had nightmares, too. It’s hard just being in this house after everything that’s happened, but running away is like we’re saying he wins. We’re giving him all the power to hurt us, but I believe the only way to finally get over this is by not giving in. Dad doesn’t understand anything about what we went through, it’ll be just like it always was with him before. He’ll give us several lame excuses about why he has to work late, and when he is home, he’ll just ignore us like we don’t even matter. We don’t need him anymore; all we need is each other.”
Joyce wiped her eyes, giving her daughter a small smile. “My brave girl, you’re so grown up. I don’t know where I would be without you. I didn’t really want to go back with him, you’re right about everything. I just thought it was the most logical option, but I know better now. Did you see the earring?”
Buffy laughed, feeling more lighthearted than she had in a while. “Unfortunately, the midlife crisis is still going strong. I bet the halfwit talked him into getting it. I wonder what happened between them.”
“Oh, she left him for a younger man. It was so hard not to laugh at his expense, but I decided it wouldn’t have been appropriate.”
Buffy rolled her eyes. “Well, serves him right for dating someone in her twenties. They only stick around for so long.”
Joyce patted her hand. “Prom is coming up; we could shop for a pretty dress if you want.”
She shrugged. “I don’t know if I’m going. I promised Spike that I would at least think about it, but it won’t be the same if I can’t go with him.”
“Don’t worry, honey, I’m sure everything will work out.”
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Author's Chapter Notes:
I'm off to Atlanta tomorrow for Dragon*Con, but wanted to get this chapter in before I left. It's a little longer than I normally do, we're almost coming to the end now.