Author: Emily
E-mail: DoylesPrincess@aol.com
Disclaimer: All characters belong to Joss Whedon and all the other Powers
that Be, even though they may not deserve them... please don't sue! The song
"Chasing Daydreams" belongs to Shades Apart. They are very cool - kinda
strange, but highly recommended! :-)
Rating: Nothing worse than the show.
Feedback: Is the best give you can give an author. So it would be much
appreciated... :-)
Distribution: If you want it, just ask.
Notes: I wrote this story pretty much in the middle of October, or whenever
we found out the horrible news that was Glenn leaving... so this is my way of
how I thought "Hero" might have happened...
I woke up that morning, a cold feeling inside of me. Almost felt as
though something was gonna go wrong, one of those feelings you can't shake
but you can't place. I pushed it to the back of my mind, knowing that Angel
would need me at the office, plus I'd get to see Cordelia. She brought a
little sunshine to my day, whether or not she spoke decently to me. It didn't
matter. The way her eyes flashed when she got angry with me, the way she
flipped her hair… those were the little things about her that I had fallen
for. Although I'm sure many other guys had felt the same way about her and
had their hearts trampled all over, just as I was. But I wouldn't give up on
her that easily, I'd try to eventually crack her exterior, to get through to
the person I knew was deep down inside of her. The phone rang, jolting me out
of my thoughts.
"Hello?" I picked up the phone, almost knocking over the lamp. The icy
voice on the other line I recognized from long ago, and it sent chills up and
down my spine.
"Doyle…" It breathed, hard and deep. I swallowed almost a little too
loudly, then managed to find my voice once again.
"…Yes…" I couldn't have just hung up? Wrong number? Bad connection? He's
not home right now, call him back later? Nope. Yes. I had said yes. Probably
the biggest mistake of my life.
"You haven't done what you said you would do…" Damn. I had so hoped they
had managed to forget that - after everything Angel had done to those people,
and they still kept bothering me.
"I…I realize that…really, I do…but right now…" And I had even tried to
sound manly. Yet my voice betrayed me, making me sound like a scared child.
Seemed to do that whenever I tried to be my bravest…
"We don't want to hear your sob story, Doyle. We want the money by
tonight…or you're gone." The line went dead, and I hung up the phone. Those
people were so over-dramatic - they had been saying that for months now and
I'd gotten nothing more than a few threats. Sure, the last time was a close
call… but they wouldn't do anything worse than that… at least, I didn't
think they would…
**********
I walked through the doors of the office and Angel was already behind his
desk, brooding as usual. Feeling sorry for poor ol' Angel. What about poor
ol' Doyle, huh? Geez. I was the one with my neck on the line here and all he
ever thought about his long lost love. Makes me sick, the amount of time he
spends thinking about her. He's lived almost 245 years and dealt with worse
things, move on with his life already. I closed the door loudly, actually
startling him.
"Doyle." He sat up from the desk, shaken from his thoughts. I nodded at
him and glanced around the office, noticing that Cordelia wasn't yet there.
"Where's Cordelia?" I questioned, trying not to make it extremely obvious
that I was looking for her, yet he already knew.
"She's coming in late today. Doyle…what's wrong?" I had to give that boy
credit - he sure could read my mind. I didn't want to tell him, he'd give me
a whole speech again about not hiding and everything.
"Nothing...why would anything be wrong?" And if there was an award for
the worst liar in the world, I would win it - easy. Angel stood up.
"Doyle… tell me what happened." I could tell him bad night, or that my
breakfast wasn't exactly sitting well - which was the truth. And yet I opted
with the truth once again. What was with me and all the truths I was telling
today, anyway?
"They called me again." I wasn't one for long explanations, Angel knew
that. At my words, he sat on top of his desk.
"Who called you again?" He crossed his arms, and you could tell he was
genuinely concerned.
"I owe them money…you remember, from a few weeks back…" I hung my head
in shame, he had told me to get rid of them, to repay them with whatever I
had to. But I hadn't listened to him - I didn't have the money that they
needed, and I couldn't exactly ask a vampire for a loan.
"What did they say to you?" That's it? No, 'I told you what you had to
do, Doyle'? That was a change.
"They want their money by tonight…" I didn't want to tell him the rest, I
really didn't. Because I knew Angel. He would overreact, and instead of doing
what he had to do he'd be trying to help me. I never expected that of him.
"What did they say they'd do if you didn't get them the money?" I glanced
away from him, not wanting to answer. "They threatened you, didn't they?" Why
did he always know these things?? Geez, there he went reading my mind again.
My not answering said it all. "Doyle, this needs to end tonight. You need to
get those guys their money and end all contact with them. You can't live your
life like this - " And so went the speech I had been waiting for. I put a
hand up to stop him.
"Angel, I told you before - I can handle these guys. It's not a big deal…
I'll just stay away from my place tonight, and eventually they'll give up
looking for me…"
"No, Doyle…" There was actual sternness in his voice. I stepped back,
almost afraid that he was going to bite me. I mean, I didn't really believe
that he would, but I didn't know the limits of his temper, he could get angry
with me and then just put on his game face and it would be dinner time for
the vampire, so long Doyle.
"What's with the somber faces?" Cordelia's voice filled the room, I
turned around to face her. She looked lovely, as usual. I could almost forget
what we were arguing about. I looked back to Angel, begging him not to say
anything.
"Nothing…" Angel turned away from us and went to sit back in his chair,
Cordelia shrugged it off as she so normally did.
"Okay, whatever. Sorry I'm late, Dennis kept me up again last night - he
likes to listen to Barry Manilow til weird hours of the morning for some
reason…" I didn't like the fact that he was living there, invisible and all.
He could see her at all hours - whether she was aware of it or not. That just
gave me the creeps…or maybe it was jealousy…
She paraded over to a chair in the corner and sat down, crossing her
legs. "So what's on the agenda for today?" She questioned, glancing at her
nails. I looked to Angel for an answer.
"Well, I was hoping that I could talk to Doyle some more…" He looked me
straight in the eye…"Alone. Maybe you could run to the store, pick up some
coffee?" He looked at her hopefully, but I personally wanted no more part of
this discussion.
"Actually, Angel, I think we're done with this conversation for now… I
could go with Cordelia… she doesn't like pushing a shopping cart or carrying
one of those little baskets…" She glared at me, I smiled for the first time
that day.
"Doyle… we're not done with this - "
"I think we are…" I walked over to Cordelia and took her by the arm,
pulling her out of her sitting position. "Shall we?" She glanced nervously
between me and Angel, then nodded.
"All right - let's go…" We walked out the door and left Angel back to his
brooding.
**********
"So what were you and Angel talking about in there?" She questioned, almost immediately after we stepped outside. The sun was bright this morning, hotter than it had been in awhile. I was momentarily blinded but once my eyesight adjusted to the light, I looked over at her.
"Nothing concerning you…" I really wasn't up to explaining it to her - she'd say I was stupid to let them walk all over me, plus she might find out I'm part demon…which I didn't want to share with her just yet. I started to walk down the street when she grabbed my arm, stopping me.
"Doyle - what's wrong?" Was that concern I heard in her voice? Or just the fact that she was the only who didn't know what was going on that was bothering her? I couldn't really tell with her.
"It's…it's a long story…" I wanted to tell her, I really did. But it wasn't her job to worry about it.
"That's it? That's all you're gonna tell me?" She rolled her eyes in her princess-like fashion and started to walk. "Boy, you and brood-boy up there sure do make a couple…" She muttered sarcastically. I ran to catch up to her.
"Why do you do that?" I questioned…she was doing that too often. Using her sarcastic ability to hide what was truly bothering her.
"Do what?" She asked back. Now either she was hiding it again, being the actress that she was, or she truly had no idea what I was talking about.
"That. Say something witty to avoid what you were talking about in the first place. Or to hide your emotions…" She stopped her power-walking at that and turned to face me.
"What are you talking about?" The sharpness in her voice startled me - I got it a lot from her, but wasn't exactly expecting it at that moment. Well, Angel did say I had to start facing things, right?
"You'll say something…when you start to act like the person you really are inside, when you take down the walls that have held you prisoner for so long… once you realize that you're acting like you're caring about someone other than yourself you build up the walls again. You'll see one shred of kindness inside of yourself that slipped out and all of a sudden it's gone. You don't want anyone to know who the real Cordelia Chase is…" I almost wished I could have taken that back - because if looks would kill…well, I wouldn't still be alive.
"How dare you even try to judge me, Doyle. You walk around, all mysterious… you know more about my past than Angel and I combined know about yours. Yet you refuse to tell either one of us what's going on - you try to handle everything yourself and that's going to get you killed." Wow. I never realized she had ever thought that much about me before. The analyzing she must have had to do… "Cuz, well, me and Angel were talking about it yesterday while you were out getting lunch… and he's...well…we're kind of worried about you…" What? What had he told her? But more importantly…she was worried about me? Cordelia Chase, worried about something that wasn't her nails, or her hair, or herself? I could have fallen over dead right then.
"What did he say to you?" The urgency in my voice must have startled her, for her face went from one of hostility to a flicker of concern.
"Just that you were in trouble and refused to get help…but he didn't know how you were doing since you hadn't said anything in weeks…" I shoved my hands in my pockets and began to walk down the street slowly, she followed.
"That's actually what we were talking about this morning…" So I was going against what I had said before… she was listening to me and actually showed concern. I had to take my chances on that. "Look, can we go to my place and talk about it? The grocery store isn't exactly my idea of a good place, the office Angel won't stop telling me what to do, and your place has a ghost haunting it…" Cordelia could do nothing but nod, so I showed her to my apartment.
**********
We stepped through the door and I glanced inside, praying there was no one there waiting for me. Luckily there wasn't and I closed the door after she came in, locking it immediately.
"Uhhh, have a seat…" I said, gesturing towards the couch.
"Where…?" She questioned, I finally saw what she meant. I guess I hadn't really been taking care of the place lately. I walked to the couch and pushed the clothes and other items cluttering it to the floor and she sat. I sat next to her, she shifted a little further away from me. Figures, from her. "So…now that you've led me here, fess up." She said, more of the edge back in her voice.
"Well…" I sighed heavily, not sure exactly where to begin. "Do you know any of it?" She shook her head "no", I rubbed my eyes, then looked at her. "All right. These guys did a favor for me… and I told them I'd pay them for it. But I never got the money. They showed up a few weeks ago, the week you got your apartment, in fact…"
"The bruise…"
"Was caused by them. Yes. They basically threatened me, but Angel got rid of them. Til this morning that is, when they called me up and told me to have the money by tonight…" I didn't have to say the rest. She knew what would happen. She sat back against the couch, then looked back at me.
"Wow." That one word pretty much summed it up. "Doyle…I'm sorry. I've done nothing but treat you horribly when you've done nothing but fight for your life. I should have let up on you, but I had no idea…"
"Cordelia…" Where did that come from?
"Hmmm?"
"You have nothing to apologize for. Anything you've ever said to me didn't affect what was going on with me personally. Don't worry about it." I glanced up at the clock - we'd been gone almost two hours already. "Oh, geez. We better get that coffee and get back to the office. Angel's gonna be pretty angry when we get back…"
"Doyle…" The tone of her voice got me to stay seated.
"What?"
"You were right. About everything you said before…" I said a lot before - what was she talking about? "You know, about me building a wall. I sometimes say things I don't mean, and it's because I'm afraid of becoming friends with anyone ever again. I let myself be me in front of a group of people that I never imagined ever being friends with, only to be crushed in the end. So I'm sorry if I've been mean to you because you've only been nice to me since I got here… "
"Cordelia - " I stopped her from speaking, not only because she was rambling but because I didn't want her to be saying these things only because she felt sorry for me for the moment. "We don't need to have this discussion right now. Let's just go get the coffee and go back to the office, all right?" She nodded, standing only after I did. She had me wondering now… wondering if she meant what she said, or if she was only saying it to make me feel better. I pointed her towards the door. "After you…" She stepped forward but then stopped in front of me, glancing at me almost nervously. "What?" I asked her, confused by her action.
"He'll help you, you know. Both of us will…just ask. That's what we're all there for, right? To help those in need. And you're in need. He won't be mad if you're trying to fix things… but if you let them linger on, with no solution… he'll feel like he's not doing what he's supposed to. Okay?" I smiled at that, knowing what she was saying was true. Perhaps I should get some help from him after all.
"All right. I'll talk to him later…"
"Good." She smiled at that, then walked to the door. "So…are we going or what?" I followed after her and we left the building, headed to the grocery store.
**********
We stepped through the doors of Angel's office once again, he looked at us impatiently.
"Where have you two been?" He asked, an edge to his voice.
"The store…" I muttered, putting the can of coffee next to the pot. I leaned against the doorway and Cordelia went back to her chair. "Look, Angel… Cordelia convinced me to talk to you…" Angel arched his eyebrows at this, probably shocked that Cordelia took the time to notice. "Cuz, well, maybe you'd know a way to stop these guys…like before…" I looked downwards, ashamed to be asking him for help for the second time. I really should have just listened to him, it would have been easier.
"We can fight these guys, Doyle…" He said, thinking as he said each word. "We need to get them their money, first of all. I don't know where from…" I shook my head.
"Angel, I don't want ya to go and rob a bank for me…"
"I don't plan on it." Oh. Good. Okay… then where was the money gonna come from? "I don't know where exactly I'll get it, but I will. And if I can't, we'll just threaten them enough so that they'll leave you alone for the time being, until we can get their money…" Not much of a plan, genius. I thought you could have come up with something better than that. The last time we had to fight them wasn't exactly easy - we all could have been killed. And I'd rather it was just me than anyone else… "Now I won't be able to get there until after sundown, but we're assuming that they're coming tonight, right?"
"Yup. At least according to what they said…"
"Good. Cordelia, you go with Doyle back to his apartment, get weapons ready, whatever we'd need to fight them. I'll meet you as soon as the sun goes down and we'll be ready for them…" He was obviously satisfied with this, and Cordy wasn't gonna argue… I just hoped his plan would go as well as he had it playing in his mind…
**********
We went back into my apartment, again locking the door. I pointed towards a closet in the far side of the room.
"There should be some stuff in there… knives and swords… that's the only thing that'll kill them…" Cordelia glared at me when I said this, her face scrunching up at my words.
"What, do we have to chop off their heads or something?"
"Chop off their heads, stab them through the heart, whatever gets it done, right?" I laughed a little, trying to lighten the mood, but all she could do was shudder.
"How could you get yourself into this?" I couldn't really tell if she was literally asking me that or merely questioning me to herself, but I chose to answer anyway.
"Hey - I didn't exactly ask for them to come and try to kill me. You'd think they'd have given up already…" Yeah, in my dreams. Well, actually, in my dreams I'd be with Cordelia in a beautiful house with no cares in the world, but I didn't see that happening in the near future. Might be nice if one of my visions just for once had something nice for me to see…
"Ooh… that would hurt…" I glanced over at her, she had just pulled a sword out of the closet and was examining it closely. It was probably the scariest looking one I owned… even I was afraid to use it really. She placed it back inside just as a knock was heard at the door. I glanced quickly at my watch.
"It's only 5:30… Angel wouldn't be able to come til after 6…" I muttered and walked to the door, Cordelia following me. I looked through my peephole only to see darkness on the other side. That had to mean someone was covering it… "Someone's covering it…" I said, whispering to her.
"Who?" Look, princess, I couldn't exactly see through doors, okay? If I could, I'd be a much happier man. I decided to lay off the comment and just answer her without the sarcasm.
"I don't know…" We both jumped as the door was pounded on again, she almost let out a scream but I covered her mouth too quickly. She pushed my hand away, glaring at me.
"That was uncalled for!" She shouted in a whisper.
"We'll fight about it later, I promise…" I retorted.
"Doyle…are you in there?" Came a deep voice on the other side. I shuddered at the sound, wishing the sun would hurry up and set already.
"Oh no…they're here early…" Cordelia's eyes widened in horror, she began to retreat to the closet. She came back a second later with two swords.
"Are you gonna let them in?" She asked…what was she out of her mind? I wasn't Angel, I wasn't this strong man who could fight someone with one hand tied behind my back, all right? Geez.
"I'm not exactly planning on it…" I answered as she handed me a sword. I nodded as though to thank her, and we both backed away from the door. I gestured towards the bathroom since there was a window in there, we could possibly try to get out that way. We went inside, closing and locking the door silently.
"Did they go away?" She questioned the second we were inside. I shook my head sadly.
"I don't think so…they're waiting for me. They want me to think that they left, but I know they didn't…I know their games…" I laid the sword down on the floor and walked over to the window, trying to push it open. And as luck would have it, it refused to even budge. I cursed silently under my breath, she looked over at me.
"What is it?"
"The window won't open…"
"Dammit Angel...where are you when we really need you??" She asked desperately, I couldn't help but stare at her. She was here with me, to help me fight off these guys that wanted me dead. While she knew that she'd be risking her life - but thought that Angel would be here to help. Looks like he wasn't gonna make it. It was up to me to get her out of there alive, whether or not I was. That poor girl…she had suffered so much and I didn't want her to die because of me. She didn't deserve it.
"Cordelia…I'm gonna get you out of here…" I said, she looked at me when I said that.
"How?" You could hear the wood of my door splinter outside the door, announcing their entrance. I didn't have an answer for her.
"Doyle!" The loud voice echoed off the walls, and you could tell Cordelia was on the brink of tears. I leaned over and picked up my sword.
"Stay here…" I said, motioning for her to stay in the corner, so that she would hopefully not be found. I looked at her, shaking in fear and wanted nothing else than to wake up from this nightmare that I was living.
"Doyle…" She said, her voice trembling.
"Yes?"
"Be careful…" I smiled at her, a smile that was filled with fear, but I hoped it was more reassuring. At that moment I didn't want to do anything more than to walk over to her and kiss her…because who knew if I would ever get that chance again?
"Search the place!" You could hear one of them yell, and I knew I had to go out there or risk her dying.
"I will…" I replied to her, and she went to the corner, hiding as best as she could. I took in the sight of her, somehow giving me courage and stepped out to face my fate.
"What, can't a man take a leak before he answers his door?" I said, trying to mask my fear with some sarcasm. Guess these demons don't take kindly to that.
"Where's the money, Doyle?" The one growled… he was big, a typical demon. With pointy horns and sharp teeth… I'm not gonna lie to you - he scared the living daylights outta me.
"I…uhhh… it might be coming today?" I croaked out, he roared in anger.
"Doyle! I told you to have it here or you would pay dearly!" I shrunk back towards the bathroom door, wishing I had never come out of there. He reached one arm behind him, and pulled out a knife. "I've killed many little demons with this knife…ones who haven't repaid me… and I plan on adding you to that number…" The two with him stepped on either side of me, so I couldn't get away.
"Oh, come on. You can do better than that…" I raised my sword, but it shaking gave away my fear. The demon laughed at me.
"You're pathetic!" He bellowed, then turned serious again. "Grab him!" He ordered the two, they picked me up and held me against the wall, he grinned devilishly at me. "So long, Doyle…" He raised the knife and I closed my eyes, afraid of what was to come.
"Get away from him!" And there was Cordelia's voice again. I opened my eyes to look to my right, where she stood at the doorway of the bathroom, sword in hand. She shoved the sword into the demon, but only managed to get it in his stomach. He pulled it back out, and her eyes widened in fear.
"Poor little girl… " He raised his hand and slapped it across her face, knocking her into the wall.
"Cordelia!" I yelled, fighting my way out of the grasps of the two holding me. I got down on the floor beside her, lifting her face to look at me. Her jaw was already swelling up and blood was trickling from her forehead. "Are you all right?" I asked her desperately, she nodded.
"Doyle - look out!" She cried to me, I turned around and the larger demon picked me up, holding me up against the wall himself.
"What I did to her doesn't even compare to what I'm about to do to you…" He growled, then shoved the knife into my gut. I had never felt such immense pain in my entire life - and Cordy's screaming didn't exactly help. I felt queasy and light-headed all at once, and the feeling was only amplified as he slid it in again, then once more. He finally let me slide down onto the floor, my blood smearing all over the wall. I looked over to Cordelia who was curled up in a ball against the wall, trying to block out what was happening. I didn't blame her… I could feel myself lose consciousness, slipping into death. I reached for Cordelia but was out before I could find her.
**********
I'm not sure how long I had been out, but I assumed not long. I woke up and was looking up at Cordelia - we were still in my apartment and my head was resting on her lap. She was crying hysterically and running her right hand over my hair, her left hand around my shoulders.
"Cordelia…?" I asked, hoping she'd be able to explain what had happened to me.
"Doyle!" She cried, smiling despite her tears.
"What happened? Are you all right?" Funny. Here I was bleeding to death and yet all I still cared about was her.
"I'm fine…but you…"
"What happened to them?"
"They thought you were dead…they left…"
"But they didn't kill you?"
"They said they had no use…" She said…I could detect a sadness in her voice that I had never really heard before. I didn't like seeing her like that.
"And Angel?"
"He's not here yet…the sun hasn't set…"
"How long have I been out?"
"About ten minutes…"
"How bad is it?" Her choked sob was all I needed to tell me what I already knew. It was bad. I wasn't gonna live through this… "Cordelia - go find Angel. Tell him to go after those guys, kill them for me.."
"I'm not leaving you here!" She practically shouted at me, and you could feel her body tense up.
"Please, Cordy…"
"No! He'll come here and then we'll tell him to go after them…okay?" That was that. No sense in messing with her. When she made up her mind, you better not get in her way, I'll tell ya that much… I could feel the room closing in on me, and I had all I could do to focus on her. She was what was keeping me going, keeping me from focusing on the fact that I wouldn't be alive in a matter of minutes. But I wasn't afraid… she was there and that was all that mattered. But she needed to know that.
"Cordelia…I…I have to tell you something…"
"What is it?"
"It's gonna sound crazy…"
"No it won't…" I mustered up whatever courage I had left and began.
"I've never met anyone like you, Cordelia. With all that spunk and wit… the second I saw you I was hooked. I had fallen… I don't know if it was love, really… but it was something… "
"Doyle…"
"Let me speak…" She nodded, I managed to continue. " You were beautiful. Your hair cascading over your shoulders, your sparkling eyes that always gave away your pain. I hope that I never contributed to that… but I was always too afraid to say anything to you, afraid you'd turn me away yet again…"
"I'm sorry…"
"Don't be. It was part of your character… you were used to your defenses and you were sticking by them… but I just wanted you to know… " I closed my eyes for a moment, refusing to let the pain overtake me.
"Doyle!" I opened them again at the urgency in her voice. "I'm sorry…I shouldn't have treated you like that. It wasn't fair of me and I just wish I could take it all back, do it all over. I never realized how good of a person you were… you were gonna give up your life for me… you might very well…" Her voice cracked at that, and her tears dripped down onto my forehead. She reached to wipe them away. "I'm sorry…" She whispered, and I could do nothing but look at her and smile. She sniffled a little, and I reached up to wipe some of her tears away.
"It'll be all right…" I said, then tried to sit up.
"No…don't do that…"She replied to my action, I settled myself back down and pushed a strand of hair out of her face. She looked at me for a minute, and I couldn't really tell what she was thinking. "Doyle…you can't leave me… You…what you said to me… no one has ever said before… sure, they've complimented me on my looks, but not me personally… you somehow seemed to know me better than anyone… you can't leave me now! Please…" I reached up to her and she leaned closer to me, finally kissing me. It was what I had wanted for so long, and if that was my dying moment, it would have at least been a happy one. It was what had lived in my dreams but in reality, and if I had to die for it, then so be it. But my moment of happiness was interrupted by yet more pain, and I slowly began to slip away. I could hear her voice cry out to me, but it sounded so distant. I wasn't part of that world anymore, but I could hear her. But then Angel was there, and you could tell he wanted vengeance. He left Cordelia there to weep over my dead body…I don't know how he had the strength.
**********
I woke up in my bed, sun streaming in through the windows. Was this what heaven was like? Or was it hell? Was I doomed to remain in that apartment forever, to fight that guy over and over again?
"Angel! He's awake!" Cordelia. This sure wasn't hell. She walked through the door and smiled at me, although nervously. What was happening? Angel came in after her, Cordelia pulled the blinds closed. "We weren't sure when you were gonna wake up…" She said softly, then came over and sat on the side of the bed.
"What…what's going on? Am I dead?" Angel actually smiled at this.
"No…we managed to save you." Save me? How in the hell did they manage to do that?
"I killed the demon…the one who almost killed you. But since you were part demon, only a demon's blood could cure you…we took his blood and poured it into your wounds…" Way too much information.
"Okay, that's enough…" I said, trying to get the imagery out of my head. I didn't even want to think about it.
"But Doyle…" I looked back at him.
"What?"
"You lost your visions." What? What does he mean? "Something with the other demon's blood… you won't be getting your visions anymore…"
"Really? No more mind splitting headaches? That's great!" Probably the best news I'd heard in a long time.
"Nope." He turned and walked out of the room, leaving me alone with Cordelia.
"Thank you…" I don't think I'd ever been so happy to see her in my entire life. I don't care if we hadn't known each other for that long… it didn't matter.
"Look, Doyle…I meant what I said last night. If you did…"
"Of course I did…"
"Good. I want to talk to you…possibly go out for lunch or something…but when you're better, all right? Me and Angel are gonna take turns taking care of you til you're better… hopefully soon. So I'll go make you something to eat right now and be back in a few minutes, okay?" I nodded at her, she stood up. "I'll be back…" I watched her walk out of the room with promise of something good coming out of my almost death, and with all the possibilities in mind, I decided to change how I was living my life. No more debts, they'd get paid off. Oh, who was I kidding? I'll probably never pay the old ones but I won't make any new ones… I don't plan on getting myself in any more trouble, and I'll listen to Angel when he gives me advice the first time and not the tenth.
Later that night Cordelia stayed to watch over me, falling asleep against my shoulder while rambling about Aura and how she claims that Harmony just plain disappeared. I watched her sleep for awhile, eventually falling asleep myself. She risked her life for me, battled forces that she shouldn't have to know about, especially at her age. It felt good to know that for right now we were safe, that no matter what was going on outside we were in here. And I was alive. I hadn't appreciated my life for what I could have until that moment, and anything that came after that I knew I'd look at from a different perspective. She had changed my life, and I'd give her the world if I could…if only a little piece at a time.
CHASING DAYDREAMS
By Shades Apart
Watch the night sky at my window
While the world is fast asleep
I stare into the unknown
I will have no fear as long as you're with me
I will catch your fall - I'll keep the world away
Chasing after daydreams - I am unafraid
Catch me if I fall - in your arms I'm safe
Chasing after daydreams
World gone mad outside my window
Try to buy a higher life
I won't need another thing
I will go on dreaming if you stay with me
Let them tell secrets about us
Jaded words don't mean a thing
We are just beginning
There's no limit - we will go on chasing dreams
The End
Go to:
Main Page
Angel Fanfiction
Buffy the Vampire Slayer Fanfiction
Crossover Fanfiction
