Series: Who I Am, What I'll Become (Story 19)
Title: Beginnings (3/3)
Author: X_tremeroswellian
Email: X_tremeroswellian@yahoo.com
Disclaimer: The Angel Investigations gang belongs to Joss Whedon and David Greenwalt and the WB. The Roswellians belong to Melinda Metz, Jason Katims, the WB, UPN, and a bunch of other people that I have absolutely no affiliation with whatsoever. "Ice Cream" is by Sarah McLachlan and appears on her albums, "Fumbling Towards Ecstacy," "The Freedom Sessions" and "Mirrorball." The song "Take My Hand" is by Dido and appears on her album, "No Angel."
Rating: PG-13 for adult content and mild language
Spoilers: Up through and including "Destiny" for Roswell and "Are You Now or Have You Ever Been" for Angel, plus the entire "Who I Am" series thus far.
Timeline: Five days after "Strays Like Us."
Summary: The Angel Investigations crew celebrates New Year's Eve with the Roswellians.
Distribution: Any A/C sites that want it, Stranger Things, Jessi's fanfic site. Anyone else, just ask.
Category: Angel/Roswell crossover
Subcategories: Friendship/romance/fluff
Dedication: This one's for Julia. :)
Beginnings (Part Three)
"Your love is better than ice cream
Better than anything else that I've tried
Your love is better than ice cream
Everyone here knows how to fight..."
"Wow. She really has an amazing voice," Cordelia whispered to Angel, impressed. They watched as Maria sang with Alex's band, The Whits.
He nodded in agreement.
"Cordelia!" Liz appeared at her side suddenly. "Could you do me a favor?"
"Sure. What's up?"
"Can you help me find Isabel?"
Cordelia frowned. "Is she missing?"
"Yeah, and I have to find her before Maria's done with this song." There was a touch of urgency in her friend's voice.
She didn't quite understand what was going on, but she agreed to help.
"It'll be quicker to split up," Liz told her.
"Okay." Cordelia glanced at Angel.
"Want me to come with you?"
"No, I'll be back."
Angel nodded and she headed off in the opposite direction as Liz. She wandered around the room, scanning the crowd, but didn't see Isabel anywhere. Then she caught a glimpse of red out of the corner of her eye and she turned and made a beeline for the door. "Isabel!" she called, pushing her way through the people.
Isabel turned and gave her a little wave.
Cordelia quickly caught up to her. "Liz is looking for you."
"Liz? Why?" Isabel asked, puzzled.
"I don't know. But it sounded urgent."
"Where is she?"
Cordelia looked around, then spotted Liz and waved at her.
Liz hurried over. "Isabel! I was afraid you'd left."
"Actually, I was just about to. What's going on?"
"I need you to come with me."
"Come with you where?" Isabel asked in confusion.
"To the back of the cafe. Michael's back there and he's had some kind of vision. He says he has to talk to you right away."
"Is he okay?" Isabel asked, her eyes widening.
Cordelia frowned slightly. Something wasn't right about this. She couldn't quite put her finger on it.
"Yeah, he's okay, but he says he needs to talk to you now."
Isabel nodded and without another word, she turned and headed towards the back room.
Liz gave Cordelia a mischevious smile.
She raised her eyebrows, but before she could ask what was going on, Liz had disappeared into the crowd.
"Thank you, thank you. That last song was called, 'Ice Cream' and is originally performed by Sarah McLachlan," Maria told the crowd. She looked out at the crowd briefly and spotted Liz, who winked at her, then hurried forward. She rushed up to Maria, pretended to whisper something into her ear, then stepped away.
Maria turned and looked at her other best friend. She covered the microphone up with her hand and said, "Alex, you have an urgent phone call from your mom."
"What?"
"Your mom's on the phone. Some sort of family emergency. Take it in the back of the Cafe."
Alex quickly set his guitar down, looking worried as he headed towards the back.
Maria looked at Liz again, and they exchanged smiles.
Isabel chewed nervously on her lower lip and re-read Michael's note.
Iz,
Stay put. Went out for air. Be right back.
-Michael
She hoped he got back soon. She wanted to know what was going on. It crossed her mind that maybe she should find Max and Tess, but then she wondered why they weren't already there. She'd seen Max dancing with Liz not that long ago. Surely if Liz knew Michael had a vision, Max did, too.
So why isn't he here? she thought.
Before she could debate the answer to her question, the door opened and she turned, expecting to see Michael.
Instead she saw Alex.
"Isabel, what are you doing back here?" he asked in surprise.
"Michael had a vision. I'm waiting for him." She held up the note and he quickly read it. "What are you doing?"
"My mom's on the phone. A family emergency." His voice was tense and he reached for the telephone that was sitting off its hook. He pressed it to his ear. "Mom?" He frowned and hung up a moment later. "That's weird."
"What?" she asked, concerned.
"It was just the dial tone."
Isabel frowned and looked at Alex. Realization suddenly dawned on her and from the look on Alex's face, he'd come to the same conclusion.
"We've been set up." Alex voiced the shared thought.
She nodded in agreement and looked away, suddenly feeling uncertain.
"About earlier...you know...with you and Tommy...it's okay. I don't want you to feel weird or awkward about anything. I'm completely fine with us just being friends."
Isabel jerked her head up and stared at him wide-eyed. He was looking at the floor.
"I just...want to say that you look really beautiful tonight, Isabel." Alex lifted his gaze to her face. "I should probably get back to my band." He turned to go.
Fear bubbled up inside of her, but she ignored it. "Alex, wait!"
He paused, but didn't turn around.
"I don't know why I agreed to dance with Tommy. I didn't really even want to. It's just...I saw you there and I panicked. I know it's stupid, but...the way you feel about me...it's scary, Alex."
Alex faced her, but remained silent and waited for her to continue.
Isabel took a deep breath. "No one's ever felt the way you do about me. None of the other guys at school see me the way that you do. I've always been able to date them and be around them because I was never afraid they'd get too close. But you're different. You see me in a way that no one else ever has. And it scares me."
"Because you're afraid of getting hurt? Isabel, I would never do anything to hurt you," he said quietly.
"Alex, there are so many reasons...what if I have to leave someday? It doesn't seem like a reality right now, but it is a possibility. And we know are enemies are close, but we don't know who they are yet. If we go forward with this and I have to leave...I'm not sure I could leave you behind, Alex." Tears shimmered in her eyes. "And what if you get hurt because of me? If anything ever happened to you because of who I am...I'd never be able to forgive myself."
He stepped closer to her. "Isabel, you're talking about a lot of 'what ifs.' This is life. Life is a risk. Anything could happen at anytime. One of our good friends could turn out to be evil and go on a killing rampage. We don't know. But if you live your life according to your fears of something bad happening...yeah, you might avoid some bad and unpleasent experiences, but you'll also be missing out on all the happy ones."
Isabel stared at him for a long time. Was he right? Was she denying herself the chance at happiness for something that might not even happen? She thought about how much happier Max was when he was with Liz. And even though he'd probably deny it, Michael was happier with Maria than without her.
And if they could be happy, even if it was just for a little while...wasn't she entitled to that same happiness?
She was pretty sure Alex could make her happy.
At that moment, Maria's sultry voice floated into the back room.
"Touch my skin and tell me what you're thinking..."
Isabel made her choice and stepped closer to Alex. "I'm willing to try...if you'll still have me," she said softly.
"Take my hand and show me where we're going..."
"No ifs, Isabel. Don't ever doubt that you're the one I love, that you're the one I want to be with," Alex said seriously, gazing at her.
An unfathomable amount of joy burst inside her at his words.
He reached his hand out and waited for her to place her hand in his. "May I have this dance?"
Isabel nodded and slid her hand in his wordlessly.
"Lie down next to me
Look into my eyes
And tell me, oh tell me
What you're seeing..."
"It's a beautiful night," Kate commented.
Wesley looked up at the brightly lit night sky. "Yes, it certainly is."
"One of the things about living in a big city is you forget what it's like to see stars. Not that they're not there in the city, but they don't seem quite as bright somehow."
"I know exactly what you mean." He glanced around the virtually empty street. "It's also nice to be able to walk around at night and not have to worry so much about...well, vampires and demons."
Kate's forehead wrinkled. "Why is that, anyway?"
Wesley thought for a moment. "You know, I'm not really sure. But as there are certain places such as Sunnydale that attract evil, I'm sure there are other towns like Roswell that just...don't, for one reason or another."
She looked at him sideways. "How did you get to be involved in all of this stuff?"
He paused for a moment. "Cordelia and Angel have probably mentioned to you about vampire slayers?"
Kate nodded.
"You see, every vampire slayer is assigned a watcher. Someone who trains her and does research on various demons and the like. From a very young age, the watchers are chosen and are placed in the care of a council of former watchers. They're trained on what it is to be a watcher and when a new vampire slayer is called, one of the chosen are sent to be the girl's watcher."
"You're a watcher?" Her eyes widened in surprise.
"Was," he corrected her quietly, old guilt resurfacing. "I made some mistakes...big mistakes. And I was fired by the watcher's council."
Kate looked at the ground as they walked along. "Everyone makes mistakes," she said softly. They walked in silence for awhile, until she turned and said, "Thank you...for having me along on this trip. Cordelia said that it was your idea."
For a brief moment, Wesley was confused. Then his mind put the pieces together and realized what Cordelia had done. "You're welcome." He hesitated, but then quickly added, "I enjoy spending time with you."
Kate looked at him, pleasently surprised. "I enjoy spending time with you, too."
They smiled at each other.
"Thanks for the dance, Kyle," Tess said sincerely as they pulled apart.
"No problem. Hey, do you want something to drink?" he offered.
"Yeah, that'd be great."
"Okay, you stay here and I will be right back." Kyle turned and disappeared into the crowd.
Tess glanced around and caught sight of Max and Liz, still dancing to their own silent music. For some reason it didn't bother her as much as it would have a few months ago. She saw Cordelia and Angel standing over in the corner by themselves. She found herself agreeing with what Isabel and Maria had said the night before--there was defintely a vibe between the two of them that was more than friendly.
"Can I have everyone's attention, please?"
She looked up, startled when Kyle's voice was suddenly amplified by a microphone and speakers. He was standing on top of the counter, microphone in one hand, looking slightly apprehensive.
"What the hell are you doing?" she muttered under her breath.
"Today is a very special day. Not just because it's New Year's Eve, but because someone that we all know--someone who is here tonight--is celebrating her 17th birthday." Kyle gazed at her. "She's someone whom I've come to care very deeply about and who means a lot to me. Give me a big hand for my best friend, Tess Harding!"
Tess stood, rooted to the floor, stunned as everyone in the cafe turned to smile at her and applaud.
"Let's sing happy birthday to her!" Kyle said. At his request, they all did, with him leading.
She stared up at Kyle with tears in her eyes as he gazed down at her. "Thank you," she whispered.
He smiled.
"I had no idea it was your birthday. I'm really sorry," Liz said honestly awhile later.
Tess shrugged. "No one did. It's okay." She looked at Kyle.
"Well, happy birthday," Cordelia said with a bright smile.
"Yeah, happy birthday," Max said quietly along with their other friends that had gathered around.
Isabel gave her a quick hug, as did Maria and Liz.
"Thanks, everyone." She glanced around at the group until her gaze settled on Kyle again. "Well, I don't know about you guys, but there's a half hour until midnight and I'm in the mood to dance. Kyle?"
Kyle grinned and pulled her back onto the dance floor.
Alex looked at Liz and Maria, then at Isabel. He leaned close and whispered something to her. She nodded and smiled at him. He draped an arm around each of his best friends. "Ladies, I need to talk to you for a moment." He pulled them away from the others. "I know what you guys did for me and Isabel and...I just want to say thanks." He hugged each of them.
"So how are things going with the two of you?" Liz asked curiously.
"Yeah, because you've been pretty inseparable all night," Maria agreed.
He nodded. "We're going to try it."
"Alex, that's great! I'm so happy for you!" Liz beamed.
"What about you two? What's going on with Max and Michael?" Alex questioned, looking back and forth between the two of them.
"Max and I are together. But we're taking things slowly," Liz informed him.
"Michael and I are still together, amazing as that seems."
"How'd you get him to wear a tie?" Liz asked suspiciously.
Maria batted her eyelashes and grinned cheekily. "I'll never tell."
Liz and Alex both laughed.
"Only one minute until midnight!" Maria announced enthusiastically into the microphone. She stepped down off the counter and walked over to Michael. "So, Spaceboy. Have any New Year's resolutions you care to share?"
"I don't do New Year's resolutions. I'd just break 'em anyway."
"Somehow I figured that."
"Why's that?"
"Because a New Year's resolution is a form of committment and we both know that you fear that C-word."
"Hey, I'm here, aren't I?" Michael asked defensively.
"Yeah, for now," she retorted.
"They're at it again, aren't they?" Max commented, jerking his thumb towards Michael and Maria.
Liz smiled. "The day they stop fighting is not something I personally look forward to."
"Why?"
"Because it would be the end of the world."
He grinned.
"Only thirty seconds until midnight!" Alex informed Isabel, watching the clock on the wall.
She nodded and moved towards him. "Why don't we have that New Year's kiss now?"
"You don't want to wait until--"
"I don't want to waste anymore time, period." Isabel wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him.
Alex didn't protest.
"It's not midnight, yet!" Kyle protested as he caught sight of not only Alex and Isabel locked in a passionate embrace, but Maria and Michael, as well. He turned to look at Tess. "Weren't they just fighting a second ago?"
"All that frustration leads to really great sex," she told him.
His mouth dropped open and he stared at her.
"What? I read it in Cosmopolitan!" Tess rolled her eyes.
"10, 9, 8, 7..."
Kyle closed his mouth and looked at her. "Uh, Tess?"
"Yeah?"
"6, 5, 4..."
Without another word, Kyle leaned forward and kissed her on the lips.
"3, 2, 1..."
Liz and Max looked at each other somewhat uncertainly. Then she smiled at him and he smiled back. Then he leaned down and kissed her softly.
Kate paused mid-step as a distant church bell rang, announcing the arrival of midnight. She took a deep breath, ignoring the twinges of nervousness that were in her stomach. "You know, it's an American tradition to kiss the person you're with at midnight on New Year's Eve."
"Oh?" Wesley answered.
"Yep."
"Well, we wouldn't want to break tradition now, would we?"
"Of course not." Kate looked up at him, her heart beating double-time.
Wesley swallowed hard and cupped her face in his hands. Then he brushed his lips over hers gently.
Electricity.
Kate moved closer, stood on her tip-toes and pressed her lips against his more firmly. The kiss deepened, their tongues touched and dueled.
After a moment, they broke apart, panting heavily.
"What a wonderful tradition," Wesley commented, dazed.
"Yes," she agreed breathlessly.
They looked at each other and kissed again.
Angel smiled at Cordelia as confetti rained down on them. He reached out and gently brushed a few of the sparkly papers out of her hair.
She was smiling her beautiful smile and looking around at all of the couples kissing.
Angel tore his eyes away from her long enough to realize they were the only two people in the room *not* kissing. His eyes dropped to her lips and he wondered again if they were as soft as they looked.
He told himself it was a bad thought--he and Cordelia were friends. Best friends. They could never be anything more.
But God he wanted to kiss her. Just once to see what it was like. And he could do it now, under the guise of New Year's tradition.
He swallowed hard, debating.
Before he could make a decision, Cordelia looked up at him, reached up with one hand and touched his cheek. Then she very gently pressed her lips against his.
For a second, he was stunned. Then he applied just the slightest pressure on his own lips and kissed her back.
Cordelia pulled away a moment later, her eyes a stormy hazel sea of unreadable thoughts and emotions. "Happy New Year, Angel," she said quietly.
"Happy New Year," he echoed.
They stared at one another.
The End