Chapter 2: Escape From New York
Author's Notes: We're still in back-storyville right now but don't worry, there'll be Spuffy along in the near future. Thank you for your review.
Author's Note #2: I am a first time writer so constructive criticism is welcome. This is definitely a spuffy story but the tale is long and there's ground to cover before any spuffy action is involved. This is not a fluffy spuffy fic, however. Also, there is within the story sexual assault and rape, although not graphically described, so if you do not wish to read about that I will notate it when it appears so that you may skim over that section.
Author's Note #3: The federal, state, and municipal laws referenced in the story are very complex and underwent massive federal and state changes in the late 1990s and early 2000s, and also vary widely from state to state and city to city in how they are enforced or interpreted. It is therefore not possible for me to pin down exact laws, in exact places, at exact times, as they are exactly enforced or not enforced by local law enforcement and social service agencies, there's too much variation. I've researched up the yazoo to be as accurate as possible but there will always be some differences between the law and how any particular law enforcement agency or social service worker decides to interpret or misinterpret it, even within the same local agency. Where a club mentioned in the story is concerned I have chosen to entirely ignore recent California laws that make certain club rules vastly different than the reader would expect and went with what worked best for the story.
Never underestimate the importance of good friends, especially good friends who are as naively optimistic as you are. It never even occurred to Buffy that her plan might fail, or be dangerous, and her stubborn optimism was infectious. She slipped out to a pay phone in the lobby; a few discreet calls later and Buffy's friends were on a mission. Amy Madison slipped into Buffy's house by climbing up the tree and into a bathroom window, just as Buffy directed her, and packed a carry-on bag of her clothes and some personal items, including the money Buffy had been saving from Christmas and birthday to buy new post-pregnancy clothes. Amy took the bag to the agreed rendezvous site and waited.
At eight-thirty that night Buffy was permitted to visit with her baby alone in her room 'one last time' before she had to give her up forever.
A different nurse brought the baby to her this time, and Buffy told her she wanted to give the baby her name now.
"Well, the baby is being adopted right away, and I'm sure the new parents will wish to name her," the nurse gently reminded her.
"I know. And they can change her name when she's adopted, but I want to give her a name I've chosen, so that for a little while she'll have been mine too. You know?" Buffy begged tearfully.
"If you really want to do that, then I guess that's not a problem. I'll get the papers for you."
"Thanks." Buffy smiled gratefully.
Well quickly, then. She had to come up with a name for this baby
now. She hadn't really given it a lot of thought previously, as she believed she wouldn't have anything to do with the baby, and both her parents and the staff had told her the baby was going to another home right away. So, what name would she put on the birth certificate?
When the nurse returned with the papers, Buffy filled them out quickly and signed them. There. Her baby was now officially Katharine Marie Summers, for her great grandmothers. Buffy may not be able to give her daughter her family right now, but she could give her her heritage. She thought maybe Gramma and Nana would look down from heaven and be pleased with their beautiful little namesake, and perhaps watch out for little Katharine as well. She'd take help from anywhere that offered it right about now.
When the nurse left the room with the signed birth papers, Tara McClay saw her opportunity and slipped in quietly. The two girls hugged and Tara made over the baby a minute, while Buffy dressed quickly. With Tara acting as a lookout, Buffy made her way out of the hospital via the emergency stairs, her daughter tucked under her coat. Tara had brought a bag with sterile bottles filled with water, diapers, a pacifier, and some infant clothes and blanket belonging to her little brother. The fact that the blanket and clothes just screamed 'boy' was a plus, as anyone looking out for Buffy would think the baby was a boy and not a girl and perhaps not make any connection. For the first time since she could remember, Tara was glad for her large family, and her newest little brother's recent birth had come in very handy.
By the time anyone realized they were gone, Buffy and Tara had met up with Amy at Penn Station, where Amy had bought a ticket for her under an alias with a fake ID. By midnight, Buffy and baby were well on their way to California and Amy and Tara had slipped back into their homes with no one the wiser, proving once again that God does indeed watch over children and fools.
****
Buffy didn't know a lot about babies, but she was infinitely grateful that hers slept so much her first few days of life. It made the train ride much less stressful for both her and her fellow passengers. She couldn't be sure the passengers would forget riding with a young mother with a baby 'boy', but she was certain they would remember a two day trip with a screaming infant. She took the fact that her baby was pretty easy to quiet down as another sign that she was doing the right thing, that she was meant to go down this road she had set herself upon.
Her breasts were full and painful, so in spite of her complete lack of information on the 'how to' of nursing, Buffy gave it her all. That was another thing no one thought to mention to her, how much nursing
hurt. She did not recall seeing nursing mothers wincing in pain when their infants drank from them, and feared she might be doing it wrong, but since she could think of no better alternative to her full breasts and hungry infant, she set about enduring the feeding as best she could. The baby seemed to be content with the process, so Buffy decided she must be doing something right after all. Each time it hurt a little bit less.
Another thing Buffy had not anticipated was how much unwanted attention new mothers and babies attract, especially from older women. 'Mi baby es su baby' seemed to be the unwritten rule of the grandmotherly set. So she smiled and nodded and took any advice they cared to offer, no matter how strange it seemed to her. She made up a whole false identity for herself as the young wife of a soldier, on her way to California to live with her husband's parents while he was overseas. When asked her baby's name, she told them 'his' name was 'Jordan', after his father. By the time they arrived in California, she had spun so many wonderful tales about her courtship, wedding, and life with her young husband that she had almost forgotten that the story was untrue. When it was time to disembark in Los Angeles and the false identity was no longer necessary, Buffy found herself a little lost inside. It was time to be Buffy again, fifteen year old ignorant new mother with no visible means of support, and she thought how much better it would have been to be that beloved young wife of the soldier she had spun her stories around.
Buffy sat down in Union Station and began to have serious doubts about her ability to pull this off successfully. She worried her bottom lip as she thought of all the things that could go wrong. There was so much uncertainty in her life now, could she actually be a real mother to this baby? Was she being trailed already? Would she be found out and forced back to New York and all the terrible consequences her mother had threatened to rain down upon her? She suddenly felt very small, very young, and very much alone.
Lost in her dark thoughts, Buffy was caught by surprise by a tap on her shoulder. She leaped to her feet and whirled quickly around, letting out her breath in relief when she saw who stood before her. Her shoulders sagged as she mock-scowled her hello.
"Hey kid! Don't I know you from some place? It was that party last week at the Whiskey, right?" smirked the dark haired young woman standing before her.
Buffy rolled her eyes and smiled. "Hi Faith."
****
"I called my mom yesterday, and she said Aunt Joyce had called to say you'd run away with your baby and no one knew where you'd run to."
"Oh God, you didn't say anything did you?"
"'Course not, B, I told you you're safe with me here. Geeze, give me some credit." Faith frowned. "Actually, my mom was more upset with Aunt Joyce than with you running off. 'How can Joyce be so cruel to her own daughter? What was she thinking, telling Buffy all that crap about giving up her kid and putting her in juvie', and on and on. It was hard to get her off the phone she was going on so much, you know how my mom can be when she gets going on a subject."
Faith took a long drag off her cigarette and rolled down her car window to flick the ash out of the car. "Anyway, no one has any idea you've managed to come out here and from what my mom said she doesn't think Aunt Joyce and Uncle Hank are going to be looking too hard for you. 'She made her bed, let her lie in it' seemed to be Aunt Joyce's big phrase according to my mom. But I wouldn't take any chances, just lay low and no one will know you're out here and you can start all over, clean slate." Faith looked over at Buffy holding the sleeping baby in her lap, and frowned, "Well, clean slate plus one, anyway."
"Thanks." Buffy mumbled. "How far is Sunnydale?"
"'Another hour or so. You hungry yet?"
"No, let's just get to your place. I could use a real bath and some sleep."
"Sure thing." Faith looked hard at Buffy, "But one thing though - you're getting up with short stuff, not me. I've gotta go to work early in the morning and I can't be getting up all night taking care of your kid. Okay?"
"Of course. I've got it covered. My kid, my responsibility. So far she's pretty quiet too." Buffy assured her. "She's a good baby."
"Yeah, okay. Hope you're right. I need my beauty rest you know?" Faith smirked.
"Tell me about it," Buffy teased back, just ducking in time to avoid receiving a friendly smack to the back of her head.
"You can settle in for a few weeks, but eventually you're gonna need to work too, you know? Bring in some cash for food and stuff for the baby. I don't exactly make a lot of money at the auto shop and kids ain't cheap."
Faith glanced sideways at her cousin, and saw the sadness and fear in her features as she stared silently out the car window. "But hey, we'll do alright, don't worry. I know this girl who does housecleaning jobs for cash, she does pretty well for herself. I could hook you up with her, get you some work. Since it's all informal and cash and stuff, you wouldn't need to show ID or pay taxes or show up on anybody's radar or nothin'. It'd be enough for now."
Buffy thought about what Faith was saying and nodded with a small smile. That was another thing no one had ever told her about being a mom; that you'd take any crappy job you could get to keep you and your kid in food and shelter and be grateful for it.
Buffy looked long and lovingly at her sleeping little girl and sighed. Her own childhood had slipped away from her, and she had just now realized its passing. She was the grown-up now. She was mom. God help her.