Chapter 4
“Buffy! Thank the lord!” She was attacked by Giles and pulled into his crushing embrace. “You never called, William, and your phone was not picking up.”
“Sorry, dad. I had the thing turned off. We lost track of time...”
“You both look awful! Have you been out all night?” Giles ignored son’s weak explanations and paid attention to Buffy. “Where were you? You scared us so much, young lady.”
“Giles, I’ll tell you but back up little. Can’t breathe.”
“Oh, sorry. Explain.”
Buffy paused, realizing how very similar Rupert and his son was. “I stayed with a friend…”
William made a grunting noise, walking away and into the back of the house.
‘What’s his deal now,’ Buffy wondered.
***
William grabbed the nearest box of snack food and sat in front of the television, suddenly not so tired.
‘I wonder if dad even knows how to turn this bugger on?’ He brushed dust from the buttons of the TV remote.
‘I don’t wanna get mad at her,’ he thought, shaking his leg and trying to get his mind off of Buffy and her stay with her ex boyfriend.
He watched flipped through the channels until he felt her presence behind him.
“You can take off your grumpy jealous pants now.” Buffy’s eyes widened, “Damn, me and my way with words--you know what I meant, nothing happened with Angel.”
“Sure, nothing did. You always come out of a bloke’s apartment buttoning your blouse.”
Buffy kept her distance, staying behind the couch. He had never turned to face her so she was glaring holes into the back of his head. “Grow up, Spikey. He tried to feel me up and I left. That’s all that happened.”
“That wanker! He--.” Furious, William turned to address Buffy but she was gone. William turned back to the TV and sighed when he heard her bedroom door close.
‘Wanker.’
***
“So, what are you getting Buffy for her birthday?”
“Dad, she’s in the shower. I don’t think you need to whisper.”
“Ah, see, you don’t know about the ears of a teenage girl, unstoppable they are. So?”
“I haven’t the foggiest.”
“You only have two days.”
“I know, I know. You’ve reminded me hourly. You know, dad, I think you’re more excited than she is.”
“Eighteen is an important age, William.”
‘Don’t I know it? She’ll be an adult and then one of my biggest excuses for not shagging her to death will go right out the bloody window.’
***
“Hey, didn’t I just see you making tea? God, Giles you’re a tea making machine.”
“Well if that was a compliment, thank you.”
“Take it any way you’d like,” Buffy said, grinning widely.
“You’re in an awfully good mood. Tea?”
“Birthday happiness.” She looked down, noticing lint on her shirt. She brushed it away. “Giles after these past few months, I never want to see tea ever again. I shall deem myself tea free.”
“Oh?”
Buffy grinned, loving how Giles made faces in reaction to the way she spoke and played with words. “My, what pretty tea cups you have.”
“They’re quite lovely aren’t they?” Giles sat next to her and tipped his cup to admire it. A half grin appeared on his face, “They belonged to William’s mother.”
“Oh?” Buffy hadn’t heard any mention of William’s mother and wasn’t sure if the subject was open to her. “Can you tell me about her? I am missing mom so much lately, especially with my birthday and all.”
“Of course.”
***
“Dad, why are you still here? I thought the opening was at six?”
William was home from his last day of work in England and Buffy searched his face for emotion, as they’d never talked about how he felt about the move. He just looked tired as he set down the bag that held his laptop. She bit her lip watching as he ran his fingers through his hair. He’d bleached it the day before and Buffy had peeked as he walked into the bathroom with a towel around his shoulders and with hands full of Sweet ‘n’ Low.
She stared, in a daze, checking him out from head to toe. He was wearing a purple tie and she silently decided it was her new favorite color. She had rarely seen him is his work clothes; on a typical day he would nearly run past her to change in his room.
‘God, don’t let me drool.’ She held her breath as he wiggled out of his casual suit coat and hung it in the nearest closet.
‘Hell, his ass even looks good in loose pants too.’
“…must go, Buffy. I’ll be back later this evening,” Giles said, touching her shoulder
“Huh?”
Giles laughed and called out to William as he walked out of the house, “Take care of her, son.”
***
“I’m gonna wash up, pet,” William said, wanting to get away from her hungry stare.
“Huh?”
He chuckled as he retreated to his bedroom.
***
William looked down when he was safely behind his closed door and rolled his eyes at the sight of his tented pants.
‘And that, mate, is why you can’t be seen around her wearing trousers.’
***
‘I have no shame.’
Buffy pressed her ear to the bathroom door, gasping and radiating with pride each time she heard William moan her name over the sound of the running shower.
***
Buffy lay on her back, staring at the ceiling of her bedroom.
‘I have to leave here soon.’
Buffy’s eyes filled with tears thinking of how much she’d miss Giles, the shopping, and the English weather.
‘I’ll miss living with William, so, so, much.’
She had a roommate and dorm waiting for her at UC Sunnydale.
‘What can I say? I’m so sorry. I can’t live on campus. Why? Because I am hopelessly in love with my dead mother’s fiancée... I want to live with him and bear many of his children. Yeah, I know, it’s icky, immoral, and just plain bad.’
Legally she was free because it was her birthday. She was an adult now and no longer required a guardian.
Buffy knew William wouldn’t leave her completely. ‘I have no job. I can’t drive. He won’t leave me, he can’t. I need him. He loves me.’
***
“…Happy Birthday, dear Buffy—William, I can’t hear you—Happy Birthday to you!” Giles clapped his hands, grinning ear to ear, wearing a pointy birthday hat.
“Thank you, Giles, you’re really sweet,” Buffy said, kissing him on the cheek.
‘Not fair. I want one, too,’ William pouted.
“Oh, Giles. It’s beautiful,” Buffy cooed, hugging the fuzzy red sweater.
‘Bloody sweater. Sod it all,’ William rolled his eyes, ‘I’m sitting here, jealous of a bloody piece of fabric. The fabric that will surround her, encase her vanilla scented skin...’
“This is from William…”
Buffy’s heart raced as she was handled the pale pink bag.
‘Pretty bag.’ She peered inside and pulled out the jewelry box. Her eyes filled with tears, recognizing it as her mother’s. The box had been hand painted and constructed by Joyce during her college years. It was the piece of work that had received the most praise from her professors, pushing Joyce to declare art as her major.
“Open it,” William softly urged.
“I…I don’t know what to say,” she whispered, touching the necklace that was tucked inside. “Wow, William.”
“Here, love, let’s see how it looks on you.” He moved until he was behind her and she lifted her blonde hair out of the way as he fastened the chain.
Buffy took a deep breath and walked towards the mirror. ‘The jewelry box was from mom,’ she thought, ‘the necklace was from William.’
Turning, she looked at him, her eyes shining. “I love it.” She hoped that her words would also reveal how much she loved him as well.
When William looked away embarrassed, she pounced on him, holding him in a tight hug, not caring that Giles was still in the room. “Love it so much.”
***
Giles cleared his voice a few times, took off his party hat and tapped on William’s shoulder. “William?”
Minutes later the couple separated, with Buffy wiping her eyes and announcing that she was going to bed early. Saying thank you again, she scooped up her gifts and walked out of sight.
“Night, dad. I think I’m gonna call it a day too.”
“William?”
“Yeah?”
“I know that it’s a cliché but I think that Joyce would understand.” He paused to take off his glasses. “But hurt that girl, son...”
William nodded.
***
Buffy lay in bed and twisted to reach underneath the mattress, retrieving her nightly reading material. She had stolen the book from one of Giles’ many shelves and hidden it under her shirt like a five year old. She wanted the book because it reminded her of William, but she was too embarrassed to ask Giles if she could borrow it.
‘I am such a dweeb—the biggest, hell, the queen even. Just call me Buffy, Queen of Dweebonia.’
She snuggled in her covers and began reading where she had last stopped in the book of poetry.
***
William was up early because of his bladder.
‘This is what happens every time dad forces all that fizzy drink in me,’ he grumbled, not happy about having to leave his warm bed.
He had slept soundly, at ease because of Rupert’s words. William was happy to know that his father didn’t think his feelings for Buffy were sick.
‘That’s if I ever grow the balls to do anything about my feelings.’
William walked out of the bathroom and glanced at Buffy’s closed bedroom door. Her light was on.
‘Maybe she fell asleep with the lights on…’ William was standing in the hallway, facing her door, when it opened.
***
“Eep!” Buffy moved quickly to close her robe because her tank top was see-through.
“Sorry, love—eh—I was coming out of the bathroom and--.”
“It’s too early for me to care,” she pointed at her barely opened eyes and messed up hair. “See, I’m sleeping even as we speak.” Walking over to him, she moved her hands, shooing him away. “I need to pee.”
***
Buffy rested her forehead on the closed bathroom door. ‘Well, it’s good to know that looking good in the morning isn’t just a myth.’ She cringed at her own reflection. ‘Great, now I’m wide-awake.’ She opened the door and peeked out, seeing that William had disappeared and that the door to his room was still open.
‘Smoke break,’ she thought, smiling because she knew him so well.
***
Buffy giggled behind her hand.
“I’ve never had a dream come true, ‘till the day that I found you. Blah-ity blah bla bla bla bl-a. You’ll always be, my baby.” William stopped singing and hummed more lines of the song, deep in thought while he watched the cigarette burn as he rolled it between his fingers.
“I knew it! You are so into S Club 7!”
William turned around quickly, burning himself in the process. “Bloody hell! If you breathe a word of this to anyone I’ll--.”
“Sing again?” Buffy laughed, sitting down next to him on the porch as he sucked on his burnt finger.
“Ha, bloody ha. You’d better watch it, princess, or I’ll--.”
“Oh, oh, I know pick me! You’ll threaten to rip out my intestines and then wear them as a hat. I’m so shaking in my booties.”
“That’s right,” he said, smirking.
“And you said I make you bonkers. I think you come to it naturally, Spikey.” Giggling, she patted his wild hair.
“Bite me, pet.”
“In your dreams.”
William’s voice dropped, “True, each and every night.” At her silence, William cursed himself. “May the awkwardness begin...So sorry, love.”
“It’s okay, I’m getting used to it,” Buffy said, shrugging.
“Oh, is that so?”
“Yup,” she exaggerated the ended making her mouth pop. “Sometimes I wish we’d just stop this. It’s gets annoying because we are always dancing around each other. I want you. You want me. I think we could be really happy together, and when I think that we’re being denied a happy ending, it sucks. A lot.”
“Buffy--.”
“Don’t interrupt me, mister. Anyway, but I think without this,” she wiggled her pointer finger between them, “life would be boring, you know?”
“I’m afraid so.”
“So we live on unhealthy amounts of unresolved sexual tension and awkward moments until one of us explodes, right?”
“That sounds like the plan.”
“Ok, then, I bet you that I’ll last longer than you.”
“You think you can resist my insanely good looks and charm?”
“God, conceited much?”
“You’re on, princess,” he chuckled, amused. “What does the winner get?”
“Oh, I don’t know. We’ll decide when we have to, when you cave into my insanely good looks and charm, okay?”
***
I guess I won.
***
“Ow.”
“You’re still whining over that finger?”
“Yup, it’s a second degree burn.”
“Yeah, sure it is. Let me see.” Buffy carefully held his hand and cooed, “Poor baby, I’ll kiss it and make it all better.”
William held his breath, allowing his head to recall Buffy Fantasy Number 76, one of his favorites, involving Nurse Buffy and lots of boo boos that needed kisses.
“There, better?” She placed a tiny kiss on his red finger. The small contact with her lips left him hard and speechless. “William, do you know how to cook?”
“Huh?”
“I’m so gonna win,” she smiled. “Cook, you know, mix together ingredients and stuff to make yummy edibles?”
“Got ya, pet. Yeah, I know my way around a kitchen.”
“Good, come on, let’s make breakfast. Buffy needs pancakes.”
***
Giles woke up to two distinct peals of laughter. “What are you doing to my kitchen?” He yelled.
“Dad--.”
“Giles, it was all his fault.” Buffy was covered in flour and other various baking ingredients.
William pointed a dirty finger at her. “Is not! She--.”
“I don’t want to hear it. Clean this up. Now.”
Giles walked back to his room mumbling about ‘bloody children’ under his breath and growing more disgusted as their laughter continued.
***
“I don’t see why we have to pack already.”
“Buffy, we’re leaving tomorrow.”
“I know.”
“Now, pet, we can always come back, yeah? For holidays and whatnot.”
“Yeah.”
William didn’t want to leave either but he was moving for her. “Love, can you help me with the boxes in my room?”
“Sure.”
***
“Bye, Giles.”
Rupert’s eyes twinkled as he hugged Buffy and whispered in her ear, “Visit anytime, dear. Take care of our William and make sure he’s well-behaved.”
Buffy nodded in response, pulling back from their embrace.
William was waiting for her in the taxi. She got into the car and waved until Giles was out of sight.
“So William, Wheetabix or those fried onion thingies?”
***
“Whatcha reading?” Buffy leaned over, taking off her headphones, disappointed by the flight’s choice of movie.
“A book.”
“Oh really?” She giggled as William tried to move out of her reach. “Let me see.”
“No.”
“Please? Why are you hiding it? Did you buy one of those seedy romances at the airport?”
“No! Keep it down, people are looking.”
The plane was not completely full and they had the row of seats to themselves. Buffy sipped on her drink, patiently waiting for him to talk about his reading material.
“It’s one of my bloody books, alright?”
“Yours? What’s it about?”
“It’s poetry.”
“Read it to me.”
“Since when are you into poetry, princess?”
“I like poetry, just not writing it. Way too personal. Read.”
“But--.”
“No excuses allowed, mister. Just read quietly,” she whispered, folding up the armrest that separated them. She moved closer to his side and rested her head on his shoulder.
“Your wish is my command.” He cleared his throat and started on the first page.” Effulgent….”
***
“Where are we gonna stay?”
“I talked with Red and she said we can crash at her place for a few. It’ll be cozy though and I’ll probably get the couch.”
Buffy didn’t respond, knowing it would be inappropriate for her to offer him her bed, especially with her in it. “Are you going to get a new car soon since we had to ditch the De Soto?”
“What are your thoughts on a motorbike, pet?”
“Eww, too dangerous.” Buffy recalled her ex-boyfriend’s motorcycle. He’d used the bike and its close seating arrangements as an excuse for constant touching and groping. At the time it had been nice, but just thinking about sitting, arms around William’s muscular body, on an overgrown vibrating machine was just too much. “Way too dangerous. I’ll miss the De Soto.”
William tried to hide his smirk; she had hated his car so much when she first laid eyes on it. “Yeah, we had some good times.”
Buffy suddenly looked out the window, very interested in the bottle-necked California traffic. Her face glowed with a blush, “Yeah, great times.”
***
“Should we have called first? It doesn’t look like she’s home.” Buffy and William tiredly looked at Willow’s dark house, weighed down with luggage.
“Not to worry, love, I’ve a key.”
***
“Mmm, Oz, lower, baby.”
“Eeek!” Buffy dropped her bags. William did the same, covering Buffy’s eyes with his hands and pulling her into his chest.
“Willow!”
“Oh my God! Oh my God! Wait a minute! I’m so sorry!”
Buffy and William were fused together, waiting for the sound of shuffling clothing to end. “Take your time, Willow,” William urged softly.
“Ah, you can open your eyes, now, all dressed. God, I’m so embarrassed.”
“Red, Nice to, er, see you again.”
***
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