{"id":4035,"date":"2015-07-06T00:48:16","date_gmt":"2015-07-05T23:48:16","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/goteamfiction.com\/?p=4035"},"modified":"2015-07-06T00:48:31","modified_gmt":"2015-07-05T23:48:31","slug":"bad-timing-27","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/goteamfiction.com\/index.php\/2015\/07\/06\/bad-timing-27\/","title":{"rendered":"Bad Timing. 27"},"content":{"rendered":"

Part 27<\/b>: The Anti-Joss Whedon (a.k.a. \u201cHappy\u201d) Ending<\/em><\/p>\n

When Cordy and Buffy walked back into the hotel, Willow was once again staring at the closed door to the basement. Only this time, Fred, Gunn, and Lorne were standing there with her. Xander was still eating and Dawn was rocking Connor.<\/p>\n

When the two women got closer, they could hear more crashing noises coming from the basement.<\/p>\n

\u201cGeez,\u201d Cordy huffed. \u201cWho\u2019s down there banging now?\u201d<\/p>\n

Buffy smirked. I know who was banging down there twenty minutes ago!<\/i><\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s Angel and Spike,\u201d Gunn told them. Both girls made faces.<\/p>\n

\u201cUh, Spike came upstairs a little after you two went outside,\u201d Willow explained. \u201cAnd I guess Angel, he, um, smelled something.\u201d<\/p>\n

Cordy laughed. \u201cI thought he already knew about Spike and Buffy and the hot monkey sex.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHey,\u201d Buffy cried out. \u201cIt is not monkey sex.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHe did know,\u201d Fred told her. \u201cHe was mad about it happening in the basement.\u201d Buffy and Cordelia started to giggle. Fred continued with the story. \u201cHe started yelling about how if he couldn\u2019t have sex in the basement like he\u2019d wanted to for the past six months, than there better damn well not be other people having sex down there.\u201d Giggles turned into full blown laughter. Because let\u2019s face it, a frustrated Angel is a funny Angel.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd then he went downstairs and saw the mess you two had made,\u201d Gunn told Buffy.<\/p>\n

Suddenly more bad sounds emerged from below, along with some yelling they couldn\u2019t really make out.<\/p>\n

\u201cShould we go down there and break it up?\u201d Willow asked.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, no, it\u2019s good for Angel to work off some of his \u2018tension,\u201d she told the group as she walked over to Dawn and took the baby from her. \u201cIt\u2019s not like I can help him with that one.\u201d When she turned back around, the group near the stairs was staring at her. They all had huge dorky smiles on their faces. \u201cWhat?\u201d she asked, even though she knew.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo, it\u2019s official,\u201d Fred asked. She looked like she was going to hyperventilate.<\/p>\n

\u201cOfficial? Well, I didn\u2019t sign any papers,\u201d Cordy said, stalling. You can take the Drama Queen out of Sunnydale\u2026but she\u2019ll just move to LA and become a bigger Drama Queen.<\/p>\n

Willow sighed, frustrated. \u201cShe means, did you both finally admit the mutual crushage?\u201d<\/p>\n

Cordy smiled in what she thought was an enigmatic way. The group didn\u2019t have much trouble figuring out what she meant.<\/p>\n

\u201cOh yeah girl,\u201d Gunn drawled.<\/p>\n

Fred clapped her hands. \u201cKyerumption conquers all!\u201d<\/p>\n

Xander walked over with a carton of Moo Shoo Chicken. \u201cKye-what?\u201d he asked Fred.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s when two great heroes meet on a field of battle and recognize their mutual fate,\u201d Fred told him.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s also a grog made out of ox dung,\u201d Willow informed the group. \u201cBut I believe that definition is considered slightly archaic.\u201d Willow picked up on the fact that most of the room was staring at her. \u201cWhat? Look, I\u2019ve been researching for six years. You pick a lot of stuff up in six years.\u201d<\/p>\n

Shifting Connor so she held him with one hand, Cordelia reached over and started picking at Xander\u2019s Chinese food. \u201cThis is pretty good. Who paid for all this?\u201d Cordy inquired.<\/p>\n

\u201cWesley. OR at least Wesley\u2019s company credit card,\u201d Gunn said.<\/p>\n

Speaking of Wesley\u2026 \u201cWhere is Wes by the way?\u201d Cordy said. \u201cI haven\u2019t seen him since yesterday afternoon.\u201d<\/p>\n

Fred gulped and her eyes darted nervously around the room. \u201cHe got a lead on something he was researching. He had to drive to San Francisco to meet with some shamen in order to verify it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Cordy was confused. \u201cWhat was he researching? We don\u2019t even have a case right now?\u201d Fred just gave a tense smile and shrugged.<\/p>\n

***<\/p>\n

Spike sat down on the basement stairs. He was breathing hard (it was a force of habit rather than necessity). Every bone in his body was aching. God he\u2019d missed quality time with his sire. The first couple punches had been fun. Family bonding. But enough was enough.<\/p>\n

\u201cChrist man, are we done yet?\u201d Spike whined, mopping up the blood dripping from a cut over his eye. \u201cYou know you\u2019re not really mad.\u201d<\/p>\n

Angel leaned against the wall. \u201cSpike,\u201d he stated matter-of-factly as he tried to asses his own injuries, \u201cyou fucked my ex-girlfriend in my basement.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cTwice mate,\u201d Spike corrected. \u201cTwice in your basement. And you know you\u2019re not mad.\u201d<\/p>\n

Angel glared at Spike for a moment before slumping to the floor. Spotting a scrunchie of Cordy\u2019s, he picked it up and fingered it. \u201cFine, I\u2019m not mad,\u201d he admitted. I guess I just needed to\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWork off some of the cheerleader?\u201d<\/p>\n

Angel grimaced at the way Spike had phrased it. \u201cYeah,\u201d he agreed, because Spike, while crude, was right. None of his anger had been about Spike, or Buffy, or Spike and Buffy. IT had been coming back from Cordy\u2019s and realizing the very strict physical limits their relationship would have. It was going to be very hard. I\u2019m going to be very hard.<\/i><\/p>\n

Spike cleared his throat to get Angel\u2019s attention. \u201cSo I\u2019m guessing all your newfound tension means you two crazy kids worked things out?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNot the way that you and Buffy got to work stuff out,\u201d Angel said petulantly, gesturing around at his destroyed training room.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd what a work out it was,\u201d said Spike, who wasn\u2019t above rubbing a little salt in Angel\u2019s wounds.<\/p>\n

Instead of getting annoyed, Angel just looked at Spike with a half smile on his face. \u201cShe loves me,\u201d he told his childe in what could only be described as a shy voice.<\/p>\n

Spike rolled his eyes. \u201cTo quote our favorite half-demon, \u2018Well duh.\u201d<\/p>\n

The two sat in comfortable silence. Spike watched as Angel\u2019s face subtlely grew darker and darker. He knew something wasn\u2019t right. He didn\u2019t look like the guy who\u2019d just gotten the girl.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo, if you love her and she loves you, why aren\u2019t you happier? I mean, I know why you aren\u2019t perfectly happy. But still, shouldn\u2019t you be more, I don\u2019t know, cheerful? I know if I just had that woman licking on my neck, I wouldn\u2019t be wasting time beating the crap out of a dear old chum and sulking in the basement.\u201d<\/p>\n

Angel looked down at his hands. \u201cI am happy. I was happy. But now that I\u2019ve had more time to think, to realize\u2026I don\u2019t deserve this. I don\u2019t deserve her.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is another time where I could use the chit\u2019s \u2018well duh,\u2019 but since I love you, I won\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n

The faint scent of Cordy drifted up from the hair band in Angel\u2019s hand and his throat got tight. \u201cI\u2019m not just a vampire, I\u2019m a cursed vampire Spike. I can never really show her how I feel. I can\u2019t give her sunlight or picnics. Or babies. Or anything.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWell by that theory, I don\u2019t deserve Buffy either,\u201d Spike said indignantly.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m not arguing with that one,\u201d Angel said, looking back up and raising his eyebrow.<\/p>\n

Spike leaned over, resting his elbows on his knees. \u201cAngel. Do you know how many times Buffy has left me bleeding and broken\u2014and I don\u2019t mean in a good way, the way she has recently? That girl, she put me in a wheelchair. She brought your alter ego back into my and Dru\u2019s life. She broke my robot and never gave her back.\u201d Spike stood up. \u201cI don\u2019t just deserve that woman. I\u2019ve earned her.\u201d Walking over to his sire, Spike added, \u201cAnd you\u2019ve earned Cordelia.\u201d<\/p>\n

Angel met his childe\u2019s eyes. His expression was thoughtful, as he recounted all the trials and tribulations he had faced for the woman he loved. \u201cWell, I did go shopping for her. And I went to another dimension. Twice.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNow see,\u201d Spike said in a firm voice, offering Angel a hand and pulling him up off the floor. \u201cYou\u2019ve put your time in. You\u2019ve more than earned the right to a smart, bossy, incredibly flexible brunette\u2014err, blond.\u201d Spike frowned at the thought of the sad turn Cordelia\u2019s hair had taken. \u201cBy the way, you should really talk to her about her hair\u2014but be careful. The last time I mentioned Buffy\u2019s hair she went and chopped it all off,\u201d Spike warned.<\/p>\n

Angel smiled. I never dreamed Spike would prove so helpful in the advice department. <\/i>He went back over what Spike had just said. Then he frowned.<\/p>\n

\u201cHow do you know that Cordy is incredibly flexible? I\u2019m in love with her and *I* didn\u2019t know she was flexible, let alone INCREDIBLY flexible. And what exactly constitutes being \u2018incredibly flexible\u2019? I don\u2019t think you\u2026..<\/p>\n

***<\/p>\n

On the stairs, eavesdropping, a slayer and a seer giggled into their hands as the two vampires they loved started pushing each other again.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy hair isn\u2019t that bad, is it?\u201d Cordy whispered to Buffy.<\/p>\n

Ignoring the question, Buffy whispered back, \u201cCordelia, how does Spike know you\u2019re so flexible?\u201d<\/p>\n

***<\/p>\n

\u201cCordelia?\u201d Angel called, walking out into the courtyard. The Scoobies had taken off around nine and the whole hotel seemed calmer now. IT was the perfect opportunity for a little one on one time with his\u2026my girlfriend. Cordy, Cordelia Chase is my girlfriend. Okay, a vampire with over two centuries doesn\u2019t need to be running around giggling about having a girlfriend. I\u2019ve got to stop acting like this. <\/i>\u201cCor?\u201d Angel called again. He scanned around the garden, he knew she was out here, he could smell her when he had opened the door. \u201cFred said you wanted to talk to me?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOver here,\u201d she cried out.<\/p>\n

And there she was. Lying on her back on a blanket in the grass, propped up on her elbows. She wasn\u2019t exactly dressed for seduction\u2014she wore the blue jeans and tee shirt she had changed into at her place\u2014and yet nothing had ever been more inviting.<\/p>\n

There was a basket with a bottle of wine sticking out of it and there was his son, also lying on his back, sucking noisily on his bottle. His entire world lay there on that blanket. Angel prayed the happiness clause didn\u2019t kick in right there.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat\u2019s all this?\u201d he asked quietly. Scooping Connor up, he placed him in the baby carrier next to the basket and took his son\u2019s place on the blanket next to Cordelia.<\/p>\n

\u201cIsn\u2019t this nice?\u201d Cordy gushed. \u201cThis night is perfect, don\u2019t you think? You can see the stars. You can hardly ever see the stars in this city. Wine?\u201d she asked.<\/p>\n

Angel nodded absently. It was nice. But he didn\u2019t get it. \u201cSeriously Cordelia, what is all this?\u201d Not that I mind being wined and dined by a beautiful woman.<\/i><\/p>\n

Cordy studied the man before her. He looked pleasantly surprised, but more than a little wary. She could tell he had spent way too much of the time thinking since they had returned to the hotel. Not thinking. Brooding. Brooding and creating reasons to not enjoy this.<\/i><\/p>\n

\u201cI heard you with Spike today,\u201d she told him. She sat up and reached for the wine glasses. \u201cI heard you, when you said how you couldn\u2019t give me sunlight or picnics or babies. That you couldn\u2019t give me anything.\u201d She said all this calmly, handing Angel a glass of wine.<\/p>\n

He didn\u2019t bother taking a sip, instead placing the glass on the ground next to him. He waited until Cordy had poured a glass for herself before taking her cup and putting it down too.<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, it\u2019s true Cordy,\u201d he said, reaching for both her hands. He loved her hands. They were soft and feminine, manicured perfection. And yet, underneath the parrifan wax treatments and the pink polish and the lotions, there was strength. Strength often overlooked by beauty, but strength just the same. That\u2019s how it was with Cordelia. That\u2019s why he cherished her. That\u2019s why he respected her. And because he respected her, he felt he owed her the truth. \u201cThere\u2019s so much you\u2019ll be missing out on, giving up, to be with me. I\u2019m not sure it\u2019s worth all t\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAngel, look around.\u201d<\/p>\n

He quickly whirled his around, making sure there were no intruders in the courtyard.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo silly,\u201d Cordy said, unsuccessfully trying to hold back a snort of laughter. \u201cHere. What do you see here?\u201d Angel gave a blank look, and Cordy realized she would have to fill in those blanks. \u201cPicnic,\u201d she said, tapping the basket. \u201cThe best baby in the whole entire world,\u201d she told him, reaching over his body to tickle Connor\u2019s foot.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo sunlight though,\u201d Angel stated, almost automatically looking up at the night sky.<\/p>\n

\u201cUghhh,\u201d Cordy groaned in frustration. \u201cOkay Mr. I\u2019m President of Pessimists Anonymous.\u201d She reached for him, placing her hand on his cheek and pulling him back to meet her gaze. \u201cI\u2019ll have you know that moonlight is ten times more romantic than the sun.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, it\u2019s nice Cordelia, but there\u2019s so much I can\u2019t give y\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAngel!\u201d Cordy moved to sit on her knees in front of him. \u201cLook at me. Who I am? You gave that to me. You gave me the chance to become the woman you could fall in love with. You do love me right?\u201d she teased.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou know I do.\u201d There was no joking in his tone.<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, most of me, the best parts of me, are you. What you\u2019ve taught me, how you\u2019ve changed me. You don\u2019t need to worry about giving me anything. Because you\u2019ve already given me everything.\u201d She brushed a soft dry kiss on his lips before leaning back. \u201cWell, except for the boat. And you never did come though with the ski condo.\u201d<\/p>\n

His expression never changed and Cordelia was slightly disheartened. Maybe he just wasn\u2019t going to get it. Maybe her assurances wouldn\u2019t be enough, would never be enough.<\/p>\n

All of the sudden he yanked her into his lap and kissed her breathless. Kissed her beyond breathless. Kissed her until she was mindless.<\/p>\n

Angel hoped it would always be like this. That even if they were together for the next 70 years, it would always be like this. That his whole life would be divided into \u201ckissing Cordy\u201d and \u201ceverything else.\u201d<\/p>\n

He heard his name being called. Good, I\u2019m glad one of us is still functioning because speech is pretty much beyond me. <\/i>He caressed the soft exposed skin of her lower back, between where her shirt ended and her jeans began, and felt her shake. Feeling that, feeling what he could make her feel, made him even hungrier. In the distance he heard his name again. Wait a sec. Cordy\u2019s voice is not that deep.<\/i><\/p>\n

He pulled away slightly and shook his head, trying to gain focus. Cordy buried her face in his neck, panting, trying to catch her breath.<\/p>\n

\u201cAngel, Come ON! Get your ass in here.\u201d It was Gunn. Yelling from inside the hotel.<\/p>\n

Cordelia started to pull away and Angel growled, pulling her back into his arms. \u201cI don\u2019t think so. It can\u2019t be that important. You would have had a vision,\u201d he told her, his lips preparing to descend again.<\/p>\n

\u201cDawg, it\u2019s important,\u201d Gunn called. \u201cYou get your ass in here too Barbie.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cArrhhh,\u201d Cordy groaned, putting both hands on Angel\u2019s chest and pushing him away.<\/p>\n

\u201cSeriously you two. Wesley just got home. He really needs to talk to you about what he\u2019s been researching,\u201d Fred added.<\/p>\n

Cordy staggered and stood up. Her legs still felt weak. To calm her heart, she reached for Connor, bouncing him in her arms and kissed his head, letting the perfect baby smell combat the frustration that was racing through her brain. She turned to Angel.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou know, I\u2019m happy we finally found each other. Overjoyed. Floating in air. Well not literally. But, really, very happy. At the same time, you have to admit, we have incredibly bad timing,\u201d she told the vampire, who was standing up rather\u2026cautiously.<\/p>\n

Suddenly, Fred\u2019s voice cut through the quiet night sky. \u201cYou guys, Wesley says it\u2019s about Angel\u2019s curse.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t know Cordelia,\u201d Angel drawled, unable to hide the excitement shining in his eyes. \u201cSounds like pretty good timing if you ask me.\u201d They both turned and raced inside.<\/p>\n

Neither one aware, that as Wesley explained what he had learned, as perfect happiness seemed more and more likely for Angel and Cordelia, a plane was landing at LAX. Neither aware as they climbed into bed that night, cradling Connor between them and dreaming about all that would soon be possible, a message was being left on Cordelia\u2019s answering machine.<\/i><\/p>\n

\u201cCordelia, honey. Guess who!!! It\u2019s Mommy and Daddy. We have business on the west coast and thought we\u2019d pop in to see our little baby. It\u2019s been too too long darling. We\u2019re staying with friends in Brentwood. I heard the strangest little tale from Aura\u2019s mother, about you working in a hotel. I guess we\u2019ll just run by there tomorrow morning. See you then!\u201d<\/p>\n

Talk about bad timing.<\/i><\/p>\n

End.<\/b><\/p>\n

Kelly22<\/a><\/b><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Part 27: The Anti-Joss Whedon (a.k.a. \u201cHappy\u201d) Ending When Cordy and Buffy walked back into the hotel, Willow was once again staring at…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4035","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-completed-fics"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/goteamfiction.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4035","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/goteamfiction.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/goteamfiction.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/goteamfiction.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/goteamfiction.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4035"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/goteamfiction.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4035\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/goteamfiction.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4035"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/goteamfiction.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4035"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/goteamfiction.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4035"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}