//I have fallen, I have stood up, I've had the patience of a tree
You have trembled, you have stayed still, you have tumbled like a weed
All the mountains, all the deserts, go for miles and miles around
We have driven for years now, baby, just to get back to a place we had already found//
//Now you're driving me downtown, baby, on this rainy night
You're driving me crazy, baby, is this really life?//
//In the wildest times of the world
Oh I never thought I would be here with you tonight
In the wildest times of the world
Let's stay together in this lonely and crazy life//
"The Wildest Times of the World" by Vonda Shepard
October 31, 2017
Downtown Hollywood
7:00 p.m.
Buffy paid the driver and got out of the cab. Looking around the streets she wondered if the people around her were dressed for Halloween or if these were their normal outfits. Thinking back, she realized that Southern California hadn't changed much in the years she'd been gone. Pushing past a Dracula wanna-be she shook her head. "Not even close pal" she muttered.
She walked down the street with no particular destination in mind. The neighborhood seemed like a place Angel would stay, rundown and abandoned buildings mixed with seedy clubs and topless bars. She hoped that her Slayer sense would tingle like it always had when he was near but realized that it had probably deteriorated like everything else as she got older. If she had asked, Willow probably would have given her his address, but after twenty years she was afraid to show too much interest in front of the new Watcher. She would demand to know why Buffy was ending a twenty-year separation after all this time, and that was a reason she wasn't willing to share right now. Willow's off-hand remark, a carefully veiled update, that Angel was living in L.A. was all the information Buffy needed to start looking for him.
Hours passed as she walked. The streets became more crowded as people came out in a frantic rush to use the excuse of the holiday to expose their general weirdness. Once or twice Buffy felt the tickle of a vamp, but her Slayer sense was so off that she couldn't tell if they were next to her or four blocks away. She pushed those feelings to the side. At almost thirty-seven she was no longer able to kick vampire butt as easily as she used to. She continued on, waiting for that special feeling that affected not only her dwindling Slayer sense but her heart as well.
It was well after midnight when she finally felt, something? Looking around she saw she was in front of a youth center. Looking at the sign she saw that it was called Janna's Place. Crossing her fingers she walked through the door.
A party was in full swing. Dozens of costumed teenagers danced as Frankenstein spun records on a makeshift stage. To the one side of the room the remains of a pizza feeding frenzy could be seen. It reminded her of happier times in the library as the Slayerettes spent a long night looking up the latest demon. Smiling to herself she looked around, half expecting to see Xander eating Ho-Ho's in a corner. She was still smiling as a counselor came to her side. "Can I help you?" Buffy turned to see a Klingon woman staring back at her. Startled, she was speechless for a second. Quickly recovering her voice she began to explain her quest, hoping all the while that her story didn't sound half as hopeless as she felt.
"You see, I'm looking for a friend of mine. I know he's in L.A. and I can picture him being involved in something like this. In fact the name of this center reminds me of a mutual friend we had. I know this is crazy, but I had a hunch. The guy I'm looking for is about twenty-two or so. He's really good looking and would usually keep to himself. His name is Angel." Buffy finished her explanation in a rush and watched the woman's face for signs that she was in luck. It was hard to do through all the layers of Klingon make-up. Remarkably the woman smiled.
"Your hunches must be pretty good. Do you have any advice for lotto numbers? The guy you described sounds a lot like the guy who funds this place. It has to be him, how many guys have a face to match their name? He was around here earlier; he might still be in the office in back. I'll show you."
Buffy followed the warrior woman through a maze of dancing bodies and into a computer room. She smiled at that. She could see a door marked Staff Only and stopped the woman just before she knocked. "Would you mind if I went through alone? It's been a long time since I've seen him, and I'd like to surprise him."
Klingon woman shook her head and smiled. "Go on ahead. Hey, have you ever known him to really smile? He seems like he has the weight of world on his shoulders some times."
Smiling sadly Buffy shook her head and responded "Once or twice maybe. But it's been a long time since then."
"Well maybe an old friend will cheer him up. Tell him we're gonna start getting the kids outta here soon. It's about time all the ghosts and goblins got home to bed. Let him know we'll take care of out front so you don't have to interrupt your reunion. Hope he's surprised." With a cheerful grin that contradicted her warrior salute she left the room.
Stopping for a second to take a deep breath, Buffy then reached out and softly knocked on the door. The answering "Come in" stopped her in her tracks. It was his voice; she had found him. Turning the knob she opened the door and walked in. Angel's back was to her as he muttered over a computer. "I'll be right with you as soon as I figure out what the hell I just did here," he said. She laughed to herself as he snarled "Compute this!" at the computer as he turned it off in preparation for a reboot.
"You know" she said, "that would work a lot better if you had Willow configure it for you."
Angel stopped dead at the sound of her voice. He slowly turned around and faced her. His face was frozen. "What are you doing here?" His voice sounded as cold as his eyes looked.
"Looking for you. I would think that's pretty obvious." Her voice was soft as she took a step towards him. This wasn't the way she had pictured their reunion. She had believed he would be a lot happier to see her. But looking into his eyes, into the pain hiding behind the ice, she knew what had happened. Knew it because it had happened to her also. He had taken his pain and anguish at their parting and hidden it away inside his heart. He let his heart grow cold and numb because living with the pain would have driven him insane. She had done the same, had kept her emotions hidden and shielded until recently, when she took them out for the comfort they gave her at long last.
Lifting her hand she softly touched his cheek. "It's been a long time Angel" she whispered. He continued to stare at her and as she watched, the ice melted in his eyes, melted into a single tear that ran down his cheek. With her fingertip, she brushed the tear away. His hand came up and caught her hand as she went to pull it away. He held it captive and tenderly brought it up to his lips. After a tender kiss to her palm, he dropped her hand and reached out for her. Pulling her close he held her tightly. And at that moment she was content to stay where she was forever.