Title: Empty Rooms: Story #5 in the "Who I Am, What I'll Become" series

Author Name: X_tremeroswellian

Email: X_tremeroswellian@yahoo.com

Disclaimer: Cordelia, Angel, Wesley, Gunn and Dennis all belong to Joss Whedon. Please don't sue.

Rating: PG

Spoilers: Up through "Are You Now, or Have You Ever Been?" This story is a bit of a re-write for the ending of that episode.

Author's Note: Okay, assume that "Judgement" and "Are You Now, or Have You Ever Been" did happen, but all the events that took place at Cordy's apartment in those episodes actually took place at the new Angel Investigations office the gang acquired from David Nabbit in the first story of this series, "Illusions."

Distribution: Just let me know the link.

Category: Story

Subcategory(ies): Friendship, hinting at slight romance in the works; a touch of angst

Summary: Angel moves out of Cordelia's apartment and into the Hyperion Hotel.

Feedback: Would be appreciated. :)

Dedication: To Windsor, for all the feedback on the previous stories in this series! Thanks! :)

Empty Rooms

Cordelia Chase sat on the countertop of what had once been the front desk of the Hyperion Hotel. Of course, that was before it had been closed down, due in part to the fact that a big ugly demon had taken up residence in it. But now, thanks to a little help from Charles Gunn, and a cool glowing orb that reminded Cordelia of the Orb of Thessela they'd used to help restore Angel's soul a couple years ago, the demon was gone for good.

She glanced around, admiring what had the appearance of being a previously grand, classy hotel in its time. She wondered exactly what Angel's history there had been.

Cordelia tilted her head to the side and stared at the winding staircase. The banister was made of fine, expensive wood, and the floors made of marble. Her eyes traveled up to the chandelier hanging above her. The place had definite potential. With some major cleaning, the hotel could look amazing in no time.

"I'm telling you, the best way to kill a vampire is with a crossbow. It entails the least amount of physical danger to the person doing the killing," Wesley insisted.

"Yeah, but where's the thrill in that?" Gunn demanded.

"Thrill? It isn't a game," he argued.

Cordelia rolled her eyes. Since the two of them had met a few days ago, Wesley and Gunn had done nothing but argue constantly. It was getting *really* annoying.

"I know it's not a game, but a crossbow's not even a fair fight."

"A vampire versus a human isn't a fair fight period. Vampires are much stronger than your average human."

"Guess I'm above average," Gunn replied with a smirk.

"Just not mentally," Wesley muttered.

"Guys, knock it off," Cordelia and Angel said at the same time. She turned to see Angel coming down the stairs, a look of surprise on his face. She slid off the counter and folded her arms across her chest.

"We ready to head out?" Gunn asked.

"For today, yeah."

Cordelia furrowed her eyebrows. "What do you mean?"

He looked around. "I mean, no one else is using this place, so...we're going to."

"Angel, we already have an office," Wesley reminded him, confused.

"Yeah. We do," he agreed.

Cordelia blinked. "We're going to use it as a safe haven. For people in trouble."

Angel's gaze landed on her and he smiled gently. "Exactly."

"Well, Angel, that's a wonderful idea as usual, but...who's going to run it? We're at the office every day..." Wesley's voice trailed off and the three members of the Angel Investigations team all turned to look at Gunn.

"What?"

"Welcome to your new home," Angel told him.

"I'm not leaving my friends," he responded immediately.

"You don't have to. There are a couple hundred empty rooms in this place. Plenty of space for you and your friends," Cordelia pointed out.

"I can't afford to pay you all, but it would be free rooms for everyone."

"I don't know." Gunn hesitated.

"Gunn, you and your friends are already helping fight evil. It would be sort of the same thing only having a warmer place to stay," Angel said, and Cordelia nodded in agreement.

Gunn looked thoughtful. "It'd probably benefit my men if they weren't all living underground. What exactly would we have to do?"

Angel looked over at Cordelia. "Well, protect anyone who might be staying here for one."

Gunn raised an eyebrow. "We'd still be going on nightly hunts."

"As long as there are always a few people here to keep an eye on things, that's up to you," Angel said.

Gunn smiled. "All right. Cool. When can we move in?"

"Anytime you're ready."

"You'll probably want to clean this place up a bit, though," Cordelia said, wiping a layer of dust off the wall with her index finger, then wrinkling her nose in disgust.

"Okay, so...there's no catch?" Gunn asked carefully, eyeing Angel.

"Well, I'll be living here, too," Angel admitted.

Cordelia stared at him but remained silent as they finished their talk.

"All right. I'll be seeing you tomorrow," Gunn called as he headed out the door.

Angel turned to Wesley. "You have your bike, right?"

"Yes. Do you need me to do something?" Wesley asked, a bit too eagerly.

Cordelia rolled her eyes.

"Uh, actually, I was going to say you could head home for the night," Angel informed him.

"Oh. Of course. Cordelia, do you need a ride?" he offered.

Before she could even open her mouth to respond, Angel answered, "I'll make sure she gets home safely."

"All right then. I'll see you tomorrow morning at the office." Wesley waved as he left.

Angel turned to look at Cordelia. "You ready?"

"Yep." She followed him to the door, which he held open for her. "Thanks."

"Sure." He reached into the pocket of his duster and pulled out his car keys. Glancing at her sideways,
Angel held them out and jangled them in front of her.

Cordelia looked at the keys, then over at him. "What?"

"You drive."

She stopped in her tracks. "That's a joke, right?"

"No."

Cordelia stared at him. "You want *me* to drive *your* car? You never let anyone drive your car. Well, except Doyle that one time, but you'd just been shot a whole bunch of times."

"I trust you."

Their eyes met and her heart skipped a beat. Then she reached out and accepted the car keys, unable to stop the smile from creeping onto her face as she all but ran to the sleek black convertible.

Cordelia frowned deeply as she folded up another of Angel's shirts and placed it into her spare suitcase he was borrowing. She glanced around the nearly empty guest room. Actually, it hadn't really been full to start with. Most of Angel's things had been destroyed in the explosion at their old office. They'd been able to salvage a few weapons, but not much else. He'd had to buy all new clothes.

But now...

Now the room seemed incredibly empty.

She sighed and tried to push away the sadness she felt.

"Tea."

She looked up and saw Angel standing in the doorway, cradling a mug in his hands. He held it out to her. "Thanks."

Angel glanced around the room. "Well, you've almost got the place all to yourself again."

A pillow flew off the guest bed and smacked him in the back of the head.

"Sorry, Dennis," he amended quickly.

The pillow returned to its place.

Cordelia smiled. "He's going to miss you, you know."

Angel looked at her. "Really?" His voice was quiet, more serious than it had been.

She nodded.

He sat down next to her on the bed. "I appreciate you letting me stay here all this time."

"No problem. And don't feel like there's a big rush to move out."

"What? You're not sick of me yet?" he joked.

She smiled. "Just used to having you around." Cordelia stood up, suddenly feeling her chest tighten.
"Gonna miss having someone around to cook me breakfast every morning."

Angel chuckled. "So *that's* why you let me stay."

"Yep. That's the only reason," she said in a teasing voice as she turned away from him, pretending to search the closet to make sure all of his stuff was packed. Her eyes started to fill with tears, but she quickly blinked them back.

"Glad to know I'm good for something."

Cordelia took a deep breath and turned to face him. "Are you sure you don't want to stay here tonight?"

He smiled. "I think I should go ahead and move into the hotel. I want to get there before Gunn and the others do. Check things out. Make sure everything's safe."

"Okay." She forced herself to sound cheerful. "Well, do you want me to help you with all your stuff?"

Angel looked down at the bed, then back at her. "I think I can handle the suitcase." He smiled gently.

"Right." She grabbed the suitcase off the bed and handed it to him. "Good luck. And if you need anything, call me on the cell phone." She followed him down the hallway and towards the front door.

He stopped and turned to face her. "Thanks, Cordy," Angel said quietly. He leaned forward and kissed her forehead. "I'll see you at the office tomorrow."

"Yep. Tomorrow," she echoed as he stepped outside the apartment.

"Don't forget to lock the door," he reminded her.

Cordelia rolled her eyes. "I used to live in Sunnydale. I *always* lock my door."

Angel gave her his famous, sexy half-smile. "Goodnight, Cordelia."

She leaned against the doorframe as he walked away. "'Night, Angel," she said softly. He disappeared around the corner. She sighed and closed the door behind him, locking it promptly.

Cordelia glanced around her living room, a shiver running down her spine.

Angel walked up the stairs towards the rooms. The hotel was completely silent and it gave him a strange feeling. He'd been staying with Cordelia for nearly three months, and it had never been this quiet at her place. Not that she was loud, but she almost always had the radio on low, or one of her neighbors was watching television.

He'd grown accustomed to the low-level noise. He wasn't sure he would be able to sleep without it.

Angel opened the door to the room he'd had so many years ago, and set the suitcase on the floor. The room was much bigger than Cordelia's guest room had been, but it wasn't nearly as warm, or clean...and her room had definitely never seemed as empty as this one did.

It was kind of ridiculous. The hotel room had a bed, a table, some chairs and an old tv, and technically that made it not empty. But it was.

It was devoid of life.

He rubbed his eyes wearily and wished he'd just stayed at her place for the night like she'd offered.

His gaze dropped to the cell phone that set next to him on the bed. He reached for it, then hesitated.

Cordelia was probably already asleep. He didn't want to disturb her. He shivered as a chill ran down his spine.

Cordelia stared up that ceiling, unable to sleep. Not a good thing when she had to be up by 6 to be at work by 8 and it was already 2 in the morning. She sighed heavily and pushed back the covers, swinging her legs over the edge of the bed.

She stretched her arms above her head and walked down the hall towards the kitchen, hoping a glass of hot chocolate would make her sleepy. She only made it a few steps before she paused in front of the guest room. The door was open a crack.

Cordelia pushed it open the rest of the way and stepped inside, surprised by how cold it was in there. She rubbed her hands over her arms and frowned.

"Dennis, you didn't turn the heat down, did you?" She left the room, pulling the door shut and padding down the hallway barefoot. She examined the thermostat--it was the same temperature she'd set it for before she went to bed.

Cordelia shrugged. She moved to the kitchen and quickly fixed herself of a mug of hot cocoa. She sat down at the kitchen table and sipped it slowly, letting her eyes close. Her apartment was dead silent. The realization startled her. She couldn't remember the last time it had been that quiet.

She rose to her feet and moved to the living room to turn on her stereo. She turned the volume most of the way down, satisfied that the silence was shattered. Then she paused again. It was no longer dead quiet, but something didn't *feel* quite right.

Something was missing.

Her apartment felt...empty.

Cordelia returned to the kitchen table where she sat sipping her hot chocolate and frowning deeply. She didn't know how she knew, but she suddenly had this overwhelming feeling that everything was about to change.

~The End~

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