It was comforting to have someone to sit with. No pressure, just company. When Elena got up, Buffy gave her a small smile. "Thanks," she said, and it might sound like thanks for the offer to listen, but really it was thanks for the companionable silence.
It was only after Elena had been gone for a couple of minutes that Buffy pushed herself up off the bench and realized that whatever else she might have gotten out of her interaction with Elena, she still didn't know the way back to the complex.