"Hands of Destiny"

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She stepped into the dark, crowded club, overcome by the sound of the rock band playing onstage. Bodies swayed in motion to the music, the scent of sweat and arousal evident in the air. At the bar, she smiled at the bartender and ordered a cola. The young man poured her drink, slipping a piece of paper with his phone number written on it under the glass. Biting her lower lip, she shoved it into her pocket and took a seat in a darkened corner.

Sipping her soda, she watched with envy all the teenagers and twenty-somethings dancing, talking and laughing. How she wished she could be like them – carefree and young again. But too much had happened to her, too much time had passed and she was jaded. She could never be young and carefree. She'd never be one of them.

A group of teenagers sitting near the dance floor caught her eye. Two tall, dark-haired males and three females – two brunettes and a redhead. They were laughing and smiling, the redhead pointing to one of the band members. One of the boys caught her eye and she looked down at her glass to avoid his gaze.

"That girl over there is looking at you, Angel," Xander Harris told his best friend. "And she's quite the hottie."

Angel Sullivan rolled his eyes at Xander's comment. "Okay, I bite. Which one? There are a lot of pretty girls in here tonight."

He pointed to her. "The blonde one in the corner. You see her?"

"Yeah."

Xander was right, the girl was pretty. Despite all the pretty young girls in the club, she stood out among the crowd. With her shoulder-length blonde hair and shy expression on her face, Angel found himself intrigued. Why was such a beautiful girl sitting alone in a crowded, noisy club? Something deep within him needed to find out why.

"Are you gonna say something to her?" he wanted to know.

Shrugging his shoulders, Angel sipped his soda. "I don't know. Maybe. In a little while."

Underneath the table, his sister Faith kicked his shin. Angel jumped in pain and glared at her. "Angel, you are such a guy! If the girl is checking you out, you should at least go over there and say hi. Stake your claim before someone else does."

"Speaking of staking, don't you have vampires to dust and scaly puss demons to behead?" he asked pointedly.

"I'll go on patrol once you've gone over there and spoken to that girl. What are you waiting for, an engraved invitation? She's cute and she's interested. Go for it."

He sighed. "Faith…"

"Fine, I get it. Just answer me this. When was the last time you went out on a date? A *real* date, not Cordelia or Willow."

"Hey! I take offense to that," Cordelia Chase complained, backhanding Faith across the upper arm.

"Shut up, this isn't about you, it's about my brother and his pathetic excuse for a love life. What's your deal, Angel? You're a muffin, all the girls at school think so," Faith said.

It was over, he knew it. In the fifteen years since his sister had started talking, he'd never won a single argument with her. Angel often wished he'd been an only child. "If I go over and talk to her, will you leave me alone? As in leave the building?"

"I'll go. But you have to do more than just say hi. It has to be an actual conversation," Faith told him.

With a sigh, he relented. "Fine. Consider me gone." Taking one last sip of his drink, he stood up and walked over to the table where the girl sat alone. It simply blew his mind that she didn't have a date.

"Hi!" he greeted over the loud music once he'd reached her table.

She looked up, a surprised look in her eyes. 'I can't believe it. The cute one came over. Now what do I do?' It had been such a long time since she'd had a conversation with a member of the opposite sex. "Hi," she replied back.

'Why did I let Faith talk me into this? Oh yeah, to get her off my back. And because I haven't had a date in six months,' he thought. "Are you here with someone? Or are you meeting your boyfriend later?"

She shook her head. "Nope. I'm all by myself." 'Literally.'

There was one thing he could say about the pretty blonde girl, she certainly wasn't making things easy for him. 'Damn you, Faith…' "My name is Angel Sullivan."

The sound of her warm laughter warmed his heart. "An angel. Just my luck," she commented.

"Excuse me?"

"Nothing."

Angel just nodded. The girl was mysterious, not at all forthcoming with information as he had hoped. Something about her intrigued him. "What's your name?"

'My name? He wants to know my name! What do I tell him?' "It-It's Buffy. Buffy Summers," she answered.

"Buffy, huh? That's an interesting name."

"Yeah. It's an old nickname my sister used to call me. I guess it stuck after all these years."

"You're not from around here, are you? I've lived in Sunnydale my entire life and I don't recall seeing you before. Did you just move here?" Angel wanted to know.

All of his questions were making Buffy uneasy. She'd been looking at him because she thought he was cute; she never imagined he would come over and want to have a conversation. "Just moved here. A-A few weeks ago, actually."

When she flashed him a smile, Angel fell in love. "Are you going to be attending Sunnydale High? 'Cause I'm a senior there and I'd love to show you around. Not that there's much to see, but I can at least help you find your classes." 'Nice, Angel. Way to come off like a rambling idiot.'

Even though she didn't want to, Buffy liked him. He was different from other boys his age. "I don't go to high school," she informed him.

"Oh. You're in college, right?"

She looked down and smiled shyly. "Not exactly. I'm sort of taking up space at the moment. I don't quite know what to do with my life, but I have plenty of time to figure it out."

"Taking some time off before you start college?" Angel questioned. He wanted to know everything he possibly could about her. "You don't look much older than me, and I'm seventeen. Well, I'll be eighteen in a couple months."

"I am older. Much older than you think." Before Buffy could reveal anything else about herself, she stood up. "It was nice to have met you, Angel."

"Are you leaving?"

She nodded her head. "Yeah. I'm not really a club person. Crowds aren't my thing."

He understood, more than she could possibly know. "Me either. I only came here tonight because my sister and our friends dragged me along. But now I'm glad I came. Can I walk you home? Or is that too forward of me?"

Angel's question thrust her back through time, making her recall another young man his age who'd said the same thing; a young man lost to her forever. "No thank you. I can make it by myself."

"Are you sure? I promise I won't bite."

"You don't seem like the biting type," she flirted.

"I'm not. Truthfully, there's a lot of weird people out there and I just want to make sure you get home safe and sound."

"I appreciate the offer. But I don't live too far away. See you around. Perhaps tomorrow night around eight?"

Angel grinned from ear to ear. He had a date with an older woman. 'Wait 'til Faith and Xander hear about this.' "I'll be here."

---

Faith noticed the grin on her brother's face when he returned to the table. Even though she'd seen the blonde girl leave, she could tell by the look on Angel's face that the departure had been on good terms. "I'd say by that shit-eating grin on your face that everything went well," she noted once he reached the table.

"Something like that. We're meeting here tomorrow night at eight," Angel informed his younger sister.

"Well, congrats. Well, I'd love to stay and chat, but I've got undead to dust, so I'll see you later. Angel, I expect details when I get home tonight."

Angel sat back down in the seat he'd vacated earlier. "Later, Faith."

"Don't keep us in suspense, man," Xander complained, pounding his palm on the table. "What's the hottie's name? Her address, phone number, bra size…anything!"

"You are one sick little man, Xander Harris," scoffed Cordelia. "And I put the emphasis on *little.* Is sex all you ever think about?"

"Just when I'm awake. But don't worry, CC. You've never made an appearance in any of my fantasies."

She smirked. "Thank god for that."

"Angel, I'm listening," Willow Rosenberg told him, interrupting Xander and Cordelia's bickering. "What did you find out?" She felt bad for Angel, he always seemed to get the short end of the stick when it came to relationships. Over the past few months she and Oz had tried to set him up on several blind dates, but to no avail.

"Unfortunately, not a lot. Her name is Buffy Summers and she just moved to town a little while ago. And I have a date with her tomorrow night."

Xander stared at his best friend, his mouth agape. "You have a date with her? I worship at your altar, Angel Sullivan. How the hell do you do it?"

"It's called charm, personality and good looks, you dork. All of which you are severely lacking," the dark-haired girl cracked.

"You are a laugh a minute, Cordy."

"She doesn't go to school, you said?" Willow responded. "That makes her older than us, right?"

In mock aggravation, Xander slammed his glass on the table. "She's an older woman? As in an experienced older woman? Okay, this just isn't fair. Why can't I meet a beautiful older woman?"

With Xander leaving himself wide open for mockery, Cordelia couldn't help herself. "Like you'd even know what to do with an older woman. Aside from drool and fall flat on your face, that is."

"Hey, I've seen The Graduate."

"I'm sure it's one of your favorite movies. I hate to say it, you're not exactly Benjamin Braddock."

Angel had had about enough of their bickering. "Give it a rest, you guys. Is it possible for the two of you to go five minutes without arguing?" He paused, expecting an argument but was rewarded with silence. "Thank you. Willow, she told me she doesn't go to school. I'm assuming Buffy's only a year older than me. Probably eighteen at most."

"What kind of a name is Buffy?" Cordelia asked. "Seriously, who names their kids Buffy anymore? Where is she from, the Valley?"

"It's a nickname." Angel needed to get away from his friends, mainly Xander and Cordelia. "Look, I'm heading home."

Willow eyeballed him, figuring something was up. "Are you okay, Angel?"

Glaring at his two friends, he replied, "Suddenly, I have a splitting headache. See you at school tomorrow."

"What did I do?" Xander innocently asked after his friend had walked away.

Cordelia rolled her brown eyes. "You acted like yourself, that's what. God, do you even think before you speak?"

"I think you both got on his nerves," Willow stated. "I can't for the life of me understand why."

"I know why," Xander piped in. "Cordelia's jealous."

"Me? Jealous? Of what?" the pretty brunette questioned.

"Buffy obviously. She's older, prettier and certainly attracted to Angel. He likes her back. And you're jealous because he has a date with her."

She did her best to keep from laughing in his face but couldn't contain herself. "Oh please. Angel and I dated for a whole two weeks in junior high. Give me some credit, I'm not mooning over one of my best friends. Unlike *some* people in this group, Xander." With a huff, Cordelia got up and left.

"That was bracing," he commented sarcastically.

"I'm confused. What was she talking about?" Willow asked.

Xander shook his head. "Nothing. You know Cordy." 'I'm gonna kill her. If Faith had heard that I'd be a dead man.'

---

At twelve-thirty, Faith walked into her older brother's bedroom and turned on the light. Angel lay in his bed sleeping, the blankets covering him up to his chest. She plopped herself down next to him and tickled his bare chest until he opened his eyes.

"Faith, what are you doing?" he demanded groggily. "It's the middle of the night and we have school in the morning."

"Yeah, I know we have classes but it's not the middle of the night. It's only half past twelve," she stated simply. "This can't wait."

Angel closed his eyes, the light blinding him. "Are you dying?"

"No."

"Hurt?"

Faith shook her head. "Nope."

"Then it can wait."

She groaned at her brother's lack of cooperation. "Come on, Angel. You promised you'd give me details about your talk with the blonde. And I want them now."

"When I said that I didn't expect you would come into my room right after you got back from patrol. Please, I'm tired. Let me sleep."

"No. I am not letting you sleep until you tell me about your new honey. Name, age, bra size…whatever info you managed to get from her."

"You sound just like Xander, you know that?" Angel complained, sitting up in bed. "He said almost the exact same thing."

Faith scoffed at the comparison. "Oh please. Give me some credit for brains, Angel. You're gonna see her tomorrow night, right?"

"Not if I don't get any sleep I won't."

"Did she sound interested in you?" she wanted to know.

He smiled, seeing the pretty blonde in his mind's eye. "I'm assuming she is or she wouldn't have asked me out."

"Do you know her name at least?"

"Yes, Faith. It's Buffy Summers."

She raised her eyebrows, biting her lip to keep from laughing out loud. "Buffy? Are you serious? What kind of a name is Buffy?"

"Okay, now you sound like Cordy."

"What is this, Pick on Faith Night?"

"You're the one who woke me up. Anyway, her name is Buffy, she just moved to Sunnydale recently and is taking a year off before starting college. That's all I know right now. I'll try to get more details next time."

She patted his knee and grinned devilishly. "What's wrong with this Buffy girl?"

"Nothing!"

Faith wasn't convinced. "This is you we're talking about. You haven't dated a normal girl since Cordelia four years ago. Remember Amanda Stevenson, the Brachen demon?"

"That was an isolated incident."

"And Miss French, the science teacher your sophomore year? Was that an isolated incident when she tried to mate with you to produce her young?"

"Xander was the one infatuated with her, not me. I was just an innocent bystander, caught up in something I couldn't handle."

She stood up, laughing in amusement. "Okay, whatever. Your love life has made for some interesting entries in the Watcher's Diaries. Can't wait to find out what happens this time."

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