Chapter 2:
……..........The Same Night At The Bronze….............…
Buffy usually arrived 10 to 15 minutes before her shift at The Bronze would start. After making a quick stop at the entrance to say hello to the bouncer who was currently working, and would most likely be there for the next 6 hours, she gave him a smile and entered the night club. The place smelled of smoke and beer and Buffy tilted her head back, closing her eyes to take it all in. Inhaling deeply, Buffy finally opened her eyes and looked around the room. She realized that, so far, only a few people had arrived at the club, but the night was still young and many more were likely to come.
Making her way between the tables and the small groups of people who were huddling close to the dance floor, Buffy walked up to the bar. It was situated at the far end of the club, leaving the stage at the front, close to the entrance. There was also a small kitchenette/café, serving hot beverages and some food. Buffy smiled as she noticed her boss, who looked up at the exact same time and spotted her. Returning the smile, he handed her a tray with a couple of drinks. Blushing, she tucked some hair that had fallen out of her ponytail behind her ear. Looking for her fellow co-workers, who would be on the same shift as her, Buffy noticed them standing next to the bar, waiting for their boss to give them their orders. She hurried over to join them.
"Alright guys, tonight's gonna be a busy one. I want Stacy, Harmony and Buffy at the tables. Gary and Parker, you guys are with me at the bar. Let’s go people, the place will be crowded soon!" Their boss, Ben, nodded and made a shooing gesture with his hand, indicating that they should get to work. Harmony and Stacy both sighed, starting towards the occupied tables to take the costumers orders. Gary and Parker made their way to the bar, Ben following. Ben was the owner of The Bronze, and had been for the last 2 years. He had done a lot of changes to the place; intending to make it more hip and less arty farty, hoping to attract a younger crowd. And he’d succeeded; the club was packed every weekend.
"Hey Ben, what time are we closing tonight?" Buffy asked as she tied an apron around her waist. She wore a black skirt, ending at her mid thighs, with a white button down dress shirt, and she’d pulled her hair back in a ponytail with a few loose strands framing her face. A thin, black headband was finishing the look. Buffy never wore much makeup; just some eyeliner along with a light shaded eye shadow, as well as some foundation to bring a little color to her cheeks.
"11:30, why?" Ben asked suspiciously, glancing at Buffy while holding up a half filled class mug of beer. He knew that Buffy liked him, but he was already taken. His, oh so beautiful, Glory. Thinking of her made him sigh, happily. She was the love of his life, and he wouldn't give her up for anything, or anyone, any time soon. He had told Buffy about Glory, but she kept making small conversations with him, obviously trying to drop little hints. Ben had brown hair, neither long nor very short. He might not have been the fittest guy on the block, but who was complaining? Certainly not him. Besides, his Glorificus liked him just the way he was.
Now Buffy let out a nervous laugh, having seen the look on Ben's face; the same look he gave her every time she tried to talk to him. He was already taken. 'A girl can still try, right?' Buffy thought.
"Nothing, don't worry." There was a pause, then Buffy looked up again. "I-I finished my new song, I can play it for you before we close up tonight if you want," She was fiddling, nervously, with the ties of her apron. Ben smiled softly, nodding. Buffy smiled back, then picked up her pen and note pad, heading towards a nearby table.
.............................Giles Apartment .....................................
Giles was reading his book, intently. He was sitting on the edge of his seat, waiting for the huge twist he knew was coming. Suddenly there was a knock on the door. Letting out a deep sigh, he placed the book on the coffee table in front of him, making sure to leave it open on the page he was reading, not wanting to miss anything. The knocking started again.
"Hang on!" Giles called, muttering to himself about impatient people. How could they expect him to open the door after merely seconds? As his hand reached for the door knob, there was another knock. Pulling the door open with a growl, about to deliver a loud series of complaints, he saw who was staring back at him.
"William? W-what are you doing here? Not that I'm disappointed, you’re quite welcome, it was just a bit of a surprise is all. Please, do come in!" Giles stuttered, moving to stand by the side of the door, holding it open. Spike had lowered his hand from the knocking position as soon as Giles had opened. The group of people behind him followed as he entered his uncle’s apartment. Closing the door behind his surprise visitors, Giles eyes widened at the sight in front of him. Xander, Anya and Angel had already made themselves at home, slumping down on his couch. Oz and Spike remained standing. His single recliner, the one he’d been sitting in a moment earlier, was luckily left untouched. The book was still lying on the table, waiting for him to pick it up and continue reading.
"We have a problem," Xander started, interrupting Giles’ thoughts as he sat down in the recliner. Glancing wistfully at his book, Giles sighed before turning to Xander with raised eyebrows, waiting for him to go on.
"Yes. A very big one." Anya smiled, patting Xander's thigh. Giles just stared at her, wondering if that woman could ever be less than happy. It was just not natural to be so perky all the time.
"Alright, I don't know what I can do to help, because you haven't explained the situation to me. How is the music business coming along? We don't hear much about the big stars here in Sunnydale, just little bits here and there. Last thing I heard was that your album went platinum," Giles said, looking at Spike who had a gloomy look on his face, realizing that it was obviously not a good sign. The expressions on the other band members’ faces were about the same.
"Here’s the thing, Rupes. Devin left." There was a pause. "He was our lead vocalist, and our tour’s starting in September. We’re royally fucked is what we are!" Spike sighed, running a hand through his platinum hair.
"Oh dear… 4 months, that's so soon," Giles removed his glasses, reaching for a handkerchief in his pocket, then starting to clean them. Xander, Anya, Oz, Angel and Spike all just looked at him, waiting for him to come up with some brilliant plan that would save their asses. But Giles just continued to slowly wipe at his glasses, oblivious to the looks they were giving him.
"We were hoping that you might be able to help us with that part," Oz finally said, looking at Giles. Giles gave him a confused look, putting his glasses back on his nose.
"What part?" He looked from Spike to Angel, to Oz and to Xander, and finally at Anya who met his eyes with a bright smile.
"The part where you help find us a new vocalist," Spike said, hope evident in his voice. Giles stared at him in disbelief, wondering how the bloody hell he was supposed to do that.
"Do you know if there are any talented singers here, at all?" Angel asked, gesturing towards the town behind Giles's apartment.
"Oh! Well, there are some talents, all right." Giles let out a laugh. "There's just the small problem of finding them." He sighed, eying the band members again.
"Auditions! HELLO!" Anya smiled, proud at herself for coming up with the idea.
"Yes, that's good, but first you have to find a place where they could be held at, and find out what it is going to cost. Then get pamphlets out to let people know what's happening, and last but not least siting through the grueling hours to sort out all untalented idiots who will show up just to get a chance to meet you. You'll have to find someone quick, and they have to be familiar with all your songs and lyrics, " Giles explained, watching their faces fall at his statement.
"Do you know of a place we can use in such short notice?" Angel asked hopefully, looking at Giles.
Letting out another sigh, Giles eyes softened. "You could try a place called The Bronze; they have the equipment and the space. I think they’re closing at 11:30 tonight. Ask for Ben, he's the owner, I'm sure he'll be happy to help." Giles reached for the cup of tea he’d been drinking while reading, sending the book another wistful glance.
"Thanks Rupes, your a life saver! Um, do you mind if we crash here for a few nights?" Spike asked, looking around the small apartment, then back at his uncle.
"Uh, no... no that's fine. It'll just be a bit… cramped," Giles answered weakly as the others looked around the room again.
"We’ve lived on a bus for months, Giles, I think we can handle a little cramped." Angel let out a laugh, Xander joining in.
"Ok, then I vote we’ll go to the Bronze, wherever that is. Better get going soon if we’re gonna book the place for the weekend." Oz smiled, pulling his keys out from the pocket in his jacket. They all thanked Giles before leaving the apartment.
As soon as they had left, Giles sat back down and finally picked up his book. He had just re-read the paragraph he had starting on before he had gotten interrupted, when the phone rang. Glaring at the offending item, he simply ignored it, leaning further back into the chair.
"I'm not home right now, please leave a message after the tone and I'll get back to you as soon as possible." Giles smiled as his pre-recorded voice on the answering machine took the call. Focusing on his book, he continued to read. Who ever it was, he would call them back later.
.........................The Bronze 11:00 pm.....................
The crowd at The Bronze had definitely cleared out. Only an hour earlier, the air had been so thick that breathing seriously became a problem; the hot, muggy scent of mixed cologne and body spray was overwhelming and people had been packed in the open space of the nightclub. Now it was almost as quiet as it had been when Buffy’s shift first started. Just a small amount of people remained, comfortably occupying the tables around the dance floor.
"Hey Ben? D-do you want to hear my song now?" Buffy asked, fiddling with her apron as she made her way over to her boss, who was currently cleaning glasses and stacking them on the shelves.
"Sure, why not?" He smiled. Buffy looked over at Gary, nodding for him to enter the stage with her, as well as Stacy. Stacy and Gary both attended UC Sunnydale, and were in her music class. One of the major assignments they had been given for the semester was to compose a song and present it in front of the rest of the class by the end of the term.
"You guys remember this one, right?" Buffy laughed, removing her apron and grabbing an electric guitar. Stacy made her way over to the keyboard, situated on the left side of the stage, and Gary walked over to the drums. They were both grinning back at her, the looks on their faces screaming ‘hell, yeah!’.
Buffy might not have been the most confident person on the planet, and she definitely wasn’t used to preforming in public; in fact, she preferred to just sing at home in the shower when she was all alone. Jitters and nerves almost consumed her, as she had a tendency to chicken out when she knew people were watching her. But there were times when she did manage to push herself, just that little bit extra, and actually get up on the stage and sing. Times like that, the adrenaline rush really brought out the best in her.
"This is just something we wrote for school. So, here goes!" Buffy said nervously into the microphone, glancing around the now almost empty room. She nodded at Stacy, who started to play. Then she closed her eyes, and started singing:
"One night to you, lasted six weeks for me, just a bitter little pill now, just to try to go to sleep, no more waking up to innocence, say hello to hesitance, to everyone I meet, thanks to you years ago, I guess I'll never know, what love means to me but oh, I'll keep on rolling down this road, but I've got a bad, bad feeling…"
Gary started hitting the drums, smiling at the blonde in front of him. Buffy looked up at Ben, who seemed to be surprised at her vocal capabilities.
"Right, which one do you think is Be…?" Spike, who had just arrived with the others in tow, was looking around the club when a beautiful voice, coming from up the stage, suddenly cut him off.
"It's gonna take a long time to love, It's gonna take a lot to hold on, It's gonna be a long way to happy, yeah, left in the pieces that you broke me into, torn apart but now I've got to keep on rolling like a stone, cause it's gonna be a long long way to happy…"
Buffy closed her eyes again, concentrating on her guitar. Gary started playing a little louder.
"Left my childhood behind, In a roll away bed, everything was so damn simple, now I'm losing my head. Trying to cover up the damage and pad out all the bruises, do you know I had it, so it didn't hurt to lose it, didn't hurt to lose it, no but oh, I'll keep on rolling down this road, but I've got a bad, bad feeling…"
Looking up again, Buffy found that the few remaining people had now moved over to the dance floor, swaying to the beat. She spotted a couple of new faces in there as well, all of them staring at her.
"It's gonna take a long time to love, It's gonna take a lot to hold on, It's gonna be a long way to happy, yeah, left in the pieces that you broke me into, torn apart but now I've got to, keep on rolling like a stone, cause it's gonna be a long long way…"
Buffy was almost yelling the words out, the pain she’d been feeling when she’d written the lyrics evident in her voice.
"Now I'm numb as hell and I can't feel a thing, but don't worry about regret or guilt cause I never knew your name. I just want to thank you, thank you, from the bottom of my heart. For all the sleepless nights and for tearing me apart yeah yeah"
Spike was immediately drawn to the blonde woman up on the stage. Her voice was unique; not like any other voice he’d ever heard before. For such a small woman, she sure packed a punch. Singing with the voice of a thousand emotions at once, she caused a wave of goose bumps to appear on his arms.
"It's gonna take a long time to love, It's gonna take a lot to hold on, It's gonna be a long way to happy, yeah, left in the pieces that you broke me into, torn apart but now I've got to, keep on rolling like a stone, cause it's gonna be a long long way…"
"She's good," Spike said, not able to take his eyes off the woman, his face a mask of both awe and excitement.
"Hell yeah, and damn, she’s hot too!" Xander tilted his head to the side, looking at the blonde from a different angle, which resulted in a slap and a glare from his girlfriend, Anya.
"Who is she?" Oz asked. The rest of the band just kept staring at her.
"It's gonna take a long time to love, It's gonna take a lot to hold on, It's gonna be a long, long, long, long way to happy, yeah, left in the pieces that you broke me into. Torn apart but now I've got to, keep on rolling like a stone, cause it's gonna be a long long way to happy…"
Buffy strummed out the last few notes on her guitar, as Gary and Stacy finished singing. Backing away from the microphone with a huge smile on her face, they were rewarded with enthusiastic cheering and clapping from what was left on the the audience.
Thanking Gary and Stacy, Buffy descended the steps at the side of the stage, making her way over to the bar where Ben was now wiping off the bench. He had a stunned look on his face.
"I had no idea you could sing like that, Buffy. That was really good!" Ben smiled at her, causing her to blush.
"Can we go now, baby?" A blonde woman, dressed in a tight red dress, asked him impatiently before giving Buffy a look-over and obviously deciding that she wasn’t worth her time.
"Thanks, I'm uh… gonna go finish clearing off the tables now." Buffy smiled, putting her apron back on. Picking up a cloth and a spray bottle, she started towards a table, hearing Glory telling her to do just that.
"Giles was right about the talents in this town!" Angel smiled, watching the blonde's ass as she stretched over the table to reach the other end. Buffy's skirt rode up a little, her bare legs showing.
"Yeah, and it was just a matter of finding it, alright!" Spike smirked as the girl suddenly looked up, blushing as she realized he was staring at her.
squawks
05/18/17 04:16 am
pj! I remember wishing one of your stories would be finished seriously about a decade ago. Amazing. I just tried an old password I used to use and amazingly got in too. Memories!
pj
03/20/17 01:20 am
10 yrs later, i finally rem my username and password. Pari, you rock. Hope you are well.
Rabbit_moon1
12/23/16 01:12 pm
I donate every month. Please donate to keep this site up!
AudryDaluz1
10/06/16 08:34 am
Great post.
Chrissel
08/31/16 03:45 pm
And anyone else who loves this site, it's worth mentioning there's a nifty little "Donate" option just below the shout box here! ;)
Chrissel
08/31/16 03:43 pm
Just wanted to take a moment to thank Pari and all the mods for maintaining such a great site!
05/18/17 04:16 am
pj! I remember wishing one of your stories would be finished seriously about a decade ago. Amazing. I just tried an old password I used to use and amazingly got in too. Memories!
pj
03/20/17 01:20 am
10 yrs later, i finally rem my username and password. Pari, you rock. Hope you are well.
Rabbit_moon1
12/23/16 01:12 pm
I donate every month. Please donate to keep this site up!
AudryDaluz1
10/06/16 08:34 am
Great post.
Chrissel
08/31/16 03:45 pm
And anyone else who loves this site, it's worth mentioning there's a nifty little "Donate" option just below the shout box here! ;)
Chrissel
08/31/16 03:43 pm
Just wanted to take a moment to thank Pari and all the mods for maintaining such a great site!