Summary: Buffy tries to start a new life in Paris, but a familiar face shows up to stop her.
Disclaimer: All of the characters belong to the almighty Joss, except Julia. And I don't own Tim Horton's.
Distribution: Feel free to post it on your site, as long as you give me credit for writing it.
Spoilers: Up through Season 5, except this is a little different, because Riley is abusive and Joyce didn't actually die, although she almost did.
Rating: PG-13 for language
Authors Note: Part 2 of the Untitled Series, make sure you read Runaway or this wont make sense. I'm sorry it took so long to write this, it should have been out sooner, I know, but I wrote this 7 times before I was happy with it, and I'm still not entirely sure I like it. I wish there were more B/A in this, but oh well. Tim Horton's is a Canadian coffee/donut chain, most Americans have probably never heard of it, but I'm Canadian so that's why I used it. Oh last thing: there will be plenty more B/A in Chapter 3 (*wink*)
Dedication: For everyone who sent me feedback, especially Zineb.
Feedback: Yes, please!!! It's what keeps me going and inspires me to write more!!!

The ride to Paris was really long, and really smooth. It think it would have been better if there had been turbulence. You know, just a small jolt to let me know that it wasn't a dream.

I know everything that happened at the airport would have been a blur. It should have been a blur. It should have been simple and dull. But nothing in my life can ever happen the way it's supposed to, or play out the way I want it to. Hell, I should have learned that by now.

I was standing at the top of the escalator, the real big one that descends downstairs. Some people had friends or family waiting for them at the bottom. I absentmindedly scanned the crowd for a familiar face, even though I knew I wouldn't find one. Or so I thought.

"Buffy?" he asked in disbelief. He shook his head and looked up at me again. I flinched, and turned away. I knew that I couldn't run, he had already seen me. I stepped off the escalator and made my way towards him.

"What are you doing here, Buffy?" he asked in a confused voice. I couldn't blame him. After all, I wasn't entirely sure I knew what I was doing here.

What do I do? I asked myself. I figured that I had to lie, didn't I? What was I supposed to say, 'Dad, I decided to run away from home for the second time in three years.' Yeah, right. I took a deep breath and managed to say, "Vacation."

I looked up at him, and saw that he hadn't changed very much since I had last seen him. The same rich, coffee-coloured hair, that same strong jaw. He opened his mouth as though he were about to speak, but a woman came up behind me.

"Hank!" she called out with a slight accent. I turned and saw that she was tall, much taller than me, though most people are. Thick black hair framed her face, and heavy gold jewelry hung from her wrists. "How are you, my darling?"

"Um, good," my father managed to mumble. "Julia, this is Buffy. Buffy, my girlfriend Julia." I shook hands with the woman, whom I estimated to be in her early 20s.

A voice in my head was screaming, 'His girlfriend?!' I mean, I had always thought of my dad as a good guy, y'know? Sure, he fought with my mom a lot when they were still married, but he had never physically hurt her. When we had hung out on weekends back when I was in high school, he was always the same decent guy he had alwasy been. Dozens of thoughts swam through my head, but I plastered a smile on my face nonetheless.

*~*~*~*

We found a nice little table in the airport foodcourt and sat down amidst the awkward silence. I couldn't believe that my father was hooking up with some whore that was only a couple years older than I. It was sickening.

"So Buffy," my father started. "How do you like France so far?"

I silently shook with laughter. What did it really matter to him if I was enjoying myself? I knew the only thing on his mind was Julia, and many, many fantasies involving her. My stomach gave a slight jolt at the thought of that, so I decided I wasn't going to have any more thoughts that contained both my father and sex.

"Well, I haven't exactly seen much of it," I replied. He nodded, and turned to Julia. They began whispering to each other, and smiles crept across their faces. Julia began to giggle quietly.

"Y'know what?" I said, although they were both ignoring me. "I'm going to grab something to eat." Before she starts nibbling on your earlobe, I thought to myself, disgusted.

I stood up and walked towards the nearest Tim Hortons, itching for some coffee. As I patiently waited for the line to move, I noticed how empty the food court actually was. I guess in the confusion of my father and Julia, I hadn't really looked around much since I got off the plane.

Suddenly, I saw several men rush past, and I knew who they were immediately. Commandoes. Some of the Initiative's men. Dammit, I thought. How'd they get here so fast? I hurriedly stepped out of line and headed back to the table.

"Dad, something's come up," I explained. I picked up my luggage and prayed that the commandoes wouldn't come past here again.

He looked away from Julia just long enough to look me in the eye, and say, "Hmm-mm." Then he waved his hand as if to say goodbye and turned his attention back to his whore.

I looked at him for a moment. I was stunned that he didn't care enough to give me a proper good-bye. Maybe he had changed more than I thought over the past few years. I shook my head and turned away, only to see several more commandoes run by.

My mind started swimming with thoughts. I hurried down a large corridor, fairly certain that they weren't chasing me. Nonetheless, I looked behind me ever so often as I ran. As I glanced behind me once more, I ran straight into a stranger.

I looked into his face and I swear my heart stopped for a moment.

"Angel?"

Go to the next story, Emotions

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