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Author: Moe
Rating: PG
Pairing: B/R with a little W/Gr, X/Anya on the side
Disclaimer: I own nothing! Joss and Co, Mutant Enemy, Fox, etc owns
everything
Distribution: The Finnatics and anyone I have given permission to use
my fics may have it. Anyone else please ask first. Emmy may review.
Feedback: I want it, I need it, I crave it.
Spoilers: Season 4
Dedication: To starcrossed for all she does for me! You're a great
friend. To all the wonderful people who have offered me
encouragement and support on this fic, you guys are the best!
Part 7
The soapy water had grown cold a while ago but Buffy barely noticed. Her fingers, long since pruned, meticulously scrubbed the plate until it sparkled. She had thrown all her concentration into the task at hand, hoping to escape the thoughts that kept bubbling up. Yet, as she caught her reflection in the porcelain, she had just scoured, thoughts of him flooded her mind once again.
*He was single!* Her mind shouted at her in glee. She couldn't believe it. Here he was, so close and available. It seemed to her for a moment, while they were in the kitchen together, the barriers that had separated them had bent a little. They were able to look at each other, talk with one another. Just being near him for those few moments had left her with some kind of hope.
But then the darker thoughts betrayed those that sought to fill her heart with happiness. Could he ever forgive her for her behavior all those years ago? And if he did, was there a chance that they could rekindle the passion and love they had once shared with all the pain he had endured at her hand? Or what if he isn't over Jessica? What if the break-up was one sided, was his heart scarred beyond repair from Jessica leaving him? Had he been deeply in love with her?
The look on his face when Riley had told her Jessica had left him still haunted her. He looked so lost, so alone. From what she had seen of Jessica and Riley together, they had been the perfect couple. They looked so in love and content. Buffy feared that Jessica still held Riley's heart. A heart that Buffy desperately wanted back.
"Whatcha thinkin' about?" Willow asked as she added more plates to the `to be washed' pile. Next time they were definitely using paper products.
Buffy quickly rinsed the plate she was holding, before she set it aside to be dried. "Oh, uh, nothing in particular."
"Nothing in particular, huh? Buffy, you were staring at that plate for five minutes. I timed you." Willow grabbed the dish towel next to the sink and began drying the dishes. "So spill."
Buffy knew that she couldn't get anything past her best friend. Soaping up the next plate, she took a deep breath before beginning. "Riley. He, uh, he broke up with Jessica."
Willow's head whipped around. "He what?"
"Riley said that he and Jessica broke up and that she has gone home to Huxley." Buffy said as she handed the plate she had been scrubbing over to Willow.
"That's great news Buffy!" Willow exclaimed. The wide grin that had appeared upon hearing the news slowly disappeared when she saw that Buffy didn't share her excitement. "Isn't it great news?"
"I don't know Will! I mean I hurt him so deeply. What if ...what if he can't forgive me? What if he is still in love with her? I don't want to get my hopes up only to have them come crashing down....again. Every time I get close to having something I want, it gets ripped away from me. I don't think I could handle getting rejected by Riley." Buffy's eyes welled up with tears as she tried desperately to blink them back.
"Oh, Buffy!" Willow grabbed Buffy's arm, leading her over to the counter. Pulling out a stool, Willow made her sit down before sitting herself. "Buffy, I don't know what I can say to make this all better for you. You can't change what happened between you two in the past. You can only move forward. I know Riley and I know that he was once deeply in love with you. He would have moved heaven and earth if you had asked him to. That kind of love doesn't happen every day Buffy. The chance that he has found it again with Jessica is very doubtful." Willow gently wiped a tear away that had found its way down Buffy's face. "Did you know that Riley asks about you every time he calls Graham?" Buffy lifted her eyes to meet Willows, the disbelief reflected clearly in the green depths.
Willow nodded her head. "Its true Buffy. He still cares deeply about you. Graham once told me that Riley blames himself for the breakup. Did you know that?"
Buffy shook her head. How could he possibly blame himself? She was the one who.... God, did he really feel guilty about something she had done?
"Buffy, I know that the two of you can get through this. If you two lunkheads can stop acting like stubborn two year olds that is and stop blaming yourselves for thing that happened in the past."
Buffy smiled at her friend through the tears. Taking a deep breath, Buffy smiled. "You're right. If I want him back, I'm just going to have to win him over. When I'm through with him, Jessica will just be a faded memory."
"That's the Buffy I know and love." Patting her friend on the leg, Willow stepped over to the sink to take over the dish washing responsibilities. Buffy grabbed the dish towel from the counter and began drying, her head a lot clearer and her heart full of hope for the future.
******************************
"She said that?" Graham asked, the phone cradled between his ear and shoulder as he finished buttoning up his shirt.
"Yep, said she was going to win him back." Willow sounded so happy. He could just see her sitting on her bed, a huge smile across her face, bouncing a little on the bed with all the excitement.
"Well, that will certainly make our jobs a lot easier. Now if we can only knock some sense into Riley." Graham sat down on his bed as he pulled on his shoes.
"How was he last night?" Willow asked.
"He was really quiet, like he was lost in thought. Didn't even flinch when a cheerleader gave him a lap dance." Graham said.
"WHAT?" Willow exclaimed.
"I'm joking, Will." Graham loved teasing his soon-to-be bride.
"You better be or it will be a *very* long honeymoon. So do you think we can get them back together?"
"It'll be tough, they both are so stubborn, but I know Riley loves her. All they need is a push in the right direction. And we're going to shove them." Graham said smiling into the phone.
"Let's hope so. Oh, the gang just got here. We are going to pick up the cake. I'll see you at one." Willow said, hoping that Graham remembered the rehearsal.
"I'll be there. I love you!"
"I love you! Bye!" Graham waited until he heard the click on the line before placing his own phone in it cradle.
Grabbing his gym bag, he headed out of the apartment that in less then two days he would be sharing with Willow. That thought always made him smile. He was so lucky to have found the woman of his dreams. He just wished Riley would grab onto his.
**************************
The adrenaline was pumping through his system as he charged once again for the basket. Basketball was always such a release for him. When Riley was on the court it was as if the rest of the world disappeared and his cares and worries with it. There was just the ball, the hoop and the opponent. The opponent, being Graham, was less than thrilled at the moment. Down by seven, Graham's chances of recovering were slim. Riley rolled right, pushing past Graham with ease as he leapt for the basket. The ball was slammed through the rim as Riley grabbed onto it for a moment, suspending his body in the air before returning to the ground, a huge smile of victory across his face.
"Man, you are on fire today. What gives?" Graham asked as Riley checked the ball for him.
Tossing the ball back to Graham, Riley just offered him a smile. "Just in the zone I guess."
The moment Graham stepped onto the court, Riley was on him again. His defense was ruthless, Graham never stood a chance. Riley stripped the ball from him before he could even think. Graham stood in silence as he watched his friend perform a flawless lay-up, thus sealing the game.
"That's game, buddy!" Riley said as he tossed the ball to Graham.
"Yeah, figures. So I guess I owe you breakfast." Graham smiled at his friend who seemed to be in a rather chipper mood this morning.
"Yep, and I'm starved." Riley toweled off his face as Graham prepared to leave. "So you nervous?"
"About your appetite? Yeah, you could eat me out of house and home." Graham said as he pulled on his button down shirt.
"No, I mean about tomorrow. About getting married." Riley asked as he took a swig from his bottle of water.
"Nah. I feel exhilarated. Rye, nobody has ever made me feel the way Willow does. She's absolute perfection. God, I'm so blessed. I don't feel complete unless she is with me, I can't sleep unless she is next to me. It's like she has this power over me, I'm mesmerized by her very existence. Do you know what I mean?"
Riley smiled as he nodded his head. He had once felt the same way a long time ago. "When Buffy would go out on patrol alone, I felt like I couldn't breathe until she was back safe and sound in my arms."
"You two shared something very powerful!" Graham patted his shoulder as Riley picked up his gym bag.
"Shared being the operative word there." Riley said as he began to walk off the court. He could still feel the impression of her hand on his. It had been so warm, comforting. That brief moment had felt so good, so right. But then she had jerked away from him like he was diseased. Riley knew that she must still loathe him for what he had said. That little reaction to touching him had been enough to shatter any hopes he had of getting back with her. Buffy was gone and he would have to accept that.
Graham hung back a little, watching Riley as he walked to the car. Though Riley had just had an incredible win on the basketball court, to the casual observer noting the demeanor of the two men, Riley would look like the loser. Defeat etched through Riley's frame as he hung his head in shame.
To Be Continued..
