"Dozens"
Author: DH Artemis
Email: dhartemis@hotmail.com
Spoilers: Another Buffy and Angel moment I wish they had shown on camera.
This takes place during the episode "Earshot."
Notes: This story was inspired by Buffy's comment to Willow: "We talked,
and then he ripped out the heart of a demon and fed it to me, and we talked
some more." It occurred to me that we didn't get to see the second conversation,
and that Angel would have been trapped at Buffy's house for the rest of the
day after bringing her the demon heart.
Buffy closed the front door slowly, the exhaustion of the last few days finally overtaking her. Her hand shook slightly as she released the doorknob, from the stress of her confrontation with Jonathon in the clock tower and the physical exertion of stopping the lunch lady. She was still worn out from her overwhelming brush with telepathy, and all she wanted was to go to bed. She slowly made her way up the stairs to her bedroom.
As she opened her bedroom door, it took her a few moments to comprehend why the curtains were closed tightly, the room illuminated only by the lamp on her desk. Turning, she saw Angel stretched out on her bed, fast asleep. As she took a step forward, his eyes opened and held hers.
"Hey," she whispered. "I didn't mean to wake you. I just forgot you would still be here."
"That's okay," he replied. Cocking an eye toward the window, he added, "I couldn't exactly leave." She was surprised when he kept talking; his relief that she was okay was manifesting itself in strange ways. Rather than his usual brooding self, Angel almost seemed lighthearted. "Actually, it reminded me of the last time I got stuck in your room during the day. I even looked around for your diary, but I couldn't find it," he teased, prompting her to give him a playful dirty look. He watched her as she removed the tennis shoes she had thrown on before going to school. "You look tired."
"I am," she admitted. "I just spent two days nearly going insane, talked a kid out of suicide, and stopped a homicidal lunch lady." Without a word, he moved the blanket aside so there was room for her on the bed as well. She only hesitated a moment before climbing in next to him with a soft sigh. "That feels much better." He put his arm around her, and she laid with her head on his shoulder. Shifting a little to make herself more comfortable, Buffy had a sudden thought. "Is my mom home?" she asked, eyes wide.
Angel chuckled. "No, she didn't come back after she dropped you off at school," he replied. "I think I make her nervous."
Buffy smiled in response. "I think seeing us in my bed would make her even more nervous," she laughed. "Oh, well, it's not like she doesn't know..."
"What exactly does she know?" Angel interrupted.
"Um, mostly everything." Buffy paused to think. "She knows all about slaying, but I don't think she realizes that Faith joined the Dark Side. She knows we're together, but she and I don't talk about it very much. Judging from how much she wigged last year, I think she's just trying to repress."
"Last year?"
Buffy looked away, not really sure how to explain. "Um, when she found out we slept together," she finally muttered. "She didn't take it very well."
Angel was silent, and Buffy started to worry that she had upset him. "Angel?"
"I didn't ever apologize for that specifically," he stated, almost candidly. "I'm sorry I told your mom."
"Yeah, that was really rotten ... of ANGELUS," Buffy replied, exasperated, but also surprised by how little pain the topic brought up. The tone was almost conversational, and not at all brooding or recriminating. Better take advantage of it while she could. "Angel," she began, "remember how you said 'Next time just ask'?"
He nodded, and pulled her a little closer to him. "What do you want to know?"
"Are you ever still mad at me for sending you to hell?"
"Buffy, I was never mad to begin with," he replied immediately. "Confused, at first, but it didn't take me too long to figure it out. I knew what really happened."
"But, with Faith, you said..."
"It was an act, Buffy. I thought it would convince Faith that I hated you. I never wanted to convince you." He paused for a moment, looking at her her to make sure she understood and believed him. "What else do you want to know?"
She hesitated, unsure if she really wanted to ask her next question. "With Faith, it was just kissing, right? I mean, of course you didn't ..." Buffy found herself unable to finish the question. "Because Faith is the type who ..." She floundered again, and gave up, looking up at Angel nervously.
Angel looked at her incredulously. "Buffy," he sounded amused, "I'm not THAT good of an actor. Just kissing her was bad enough. Nothing else happened." He looked down at the relieved expression on her face, and smiled.
Buffy let out a breath she didn't realize she had been holding. "I didn't think so," she confessed. "Do you have any questions?" she asked suddenly. "As long as we're having an honesty-fest, it's only fair."
Angel thought about this for a moment, as he took her hand in his. "Tell me about Scott," he asked quietly.
Buffy was a little surpirsed, but took a deep breath and tried to explain. "He kept asking me out at the beginning of the year, and I think I was just flattered." She shook her head quickly, "No, I did actually like him, I guess. A little. He seemed like everything everyone told me I wanted. And I was trying to move on, be strong, all that. He actually figured out before I did that he wasn't what I really wanted. We kissed a few times," she continued hurriedly, "but that was all."
Angel nodded, slowly stroking the back of her hand with his thumb. When he didn't speak, Buffy ventured, "One more question?" Without waiting for him to respond, she grinned and asked, "*Dozens*?"
Angel froze for a moment. "Weren't you really tired? You probably want to get some rest."
"You said, and I quote, 'I've been with dozens of girls like that -- more.' Dozens, like thirty? Fifty? One hundred? How many more?"
He propped himself up on his elbows, half-sitting. "I've been alive for a long time," he stalled.
Buffy was off and running, her curiousity getting the better of her. "And what do you mean by you've 'had' dozens of girls like that? Had, as in *had*? Or just dated? And do vampires really date? Are there vampire bars where you pick up girls? Or, oh, was this after you got your soul back?"
Angel sat up completely. "The sun's going to set soon; I better go."
"Oh, come on," she teased, climing into his lap. "I thought this communication thing was going so well!" Determined not to answer her insane line of questions, but not really knowing how to avoid them, he leaned down and kissed her. She immediately twined her arms around his neck, and his hands twisted in her hair and stroked her back. It seemed like the kiss would last forever, but eventually the reality of their situation began to intrude. They broke apart slowly. Buffy smiled a little ruefully, looking around her room. "Is this reminding you of the dream we had at Christmas, too?"
Angel nodded instantly. "Oh, yeah," he agreed quickly, already beginning to move away from her so he could stand.
"Nap time's over," she commented needlessly. They both dashed for the doorway, nearly knocking each other over in their haste to leave the bedroom. "Come on," Buffy called over her shoulder, "I think I heard my mom pulling up oustide, anyway."
The End