"Aftermath"

Author: Pamela
Contact: destructo-girl@cox.net

Angel awoke to the sound of sirens and people shouting. Opening his eyes, he found himself in the backseat of Buffy's car. There was someone standing with the passenger side door open, trying to talk to him. But all he could focus on was Buffy. She was in the driver's seat, and she wasn't moving.

As the seconds passed, Angel noticed that the entire side of the car Buffy was on was damaged. They'd been hit, on Buffy's side.

"Buffy!" He screamed, trying to get to the front seat to see his wife, but hindered by the seatbelt.

"Sir, are you okay?" The man who was leaning in the front passenger door asked, touching Angel's knee and bringing him closer to reality.

Angel nodded, then unbuckled his seat belt. "Buffy, baby are you okay?"

The man touched Angel's shoulder to prevent him from leaning forward into the front seat, but he couldn't stop the determined former vampire.

Buffy's head lay limp on her right shoulder, and Angel saw blood flowing from a wound on her left temple. Her eyes were closed and he couldn't tell if she was breathing.

"BUFFY!" He shouted, his heart racing.

"We've called an ambulance, they're on the way. We can't move her until they get here." The man explained.

Angel looked at him sharply. "She's alive?"

The man nodded. "She has a pulse. As soon as we get the other car out of the way we will open the door to take a closer look."

"Oh God... what about the baby?"

"She is indeed pregnant? We were pretty sure. How far along is she?"

"Almost seven months.. um.. twenty-seven weeks." Angel answered, his voice wavering in fear. He might lose her.. the thought terrified him.

It seemed like hours, but in reality, it was just a few moments while they waited for the paramedics to get there. They forced Angel to get out of the car as soon as they were sure his back was all right. He watched anxiously as a paramedic sat in the passenger seat and gave Buffy a cursory exam.

While they were checked out, a tow trunk arrived to help pull the car that had hit them away so that they would have an easier time getting Buffy out.

"Mr. McKellen, have you been drinking?" asked the man that Angel had first talked to in the car and had later introduced himself as Officer Sands.

Angel nodded and explained "I was at a bar... and I got drunk. Buffy had to come get me.. oh God this is all my fault!"

"Calm down, Sir, this was an accident. You couldn't have foreseen this, and she was obeying all traffic laws."

Angel ran a hand through his hair and tried to calm down. "How did the accident anyway?"

Officer Sands bit his lip. "We were in pursuit of a criminal and he ran a red light, crashing into your vehicle."

Angel's blood began to boil at the knowledge that there was a man responsible for the situation his wife and child was currently in. "Was he hurt?"

The officer shook his head. "No, we've taken him into custody, he's in the backseat of a car over there." He informed the other man, pointing to a cluster of police cars some fifty yards away. He knew he was playing with fire; he had a wife and two children himself and if he were in Angel's shoes, he would want to kill the guy. However, it was for that exact reason that he felt compelled to give Angel the chance to face the man responsible, and perhaps scare the living daylights out of him at the same time.

Angel began marching with purpose over to the cars, a determined look in his eyes. Officer Sands followed, with half hearted pleas to Angel to remain calm.

Angel knew right away who it was that caused the accident when he saw a man sitting sideways in the back of a cruiser, his hands cuffed behind his back. He stopped in front of him and hauled him up by the neck.

"You ASSHOLE!" Angel shouted as he shoved the man back against the side of the car. "Look what you've done! Look! My wife and my baby might die because of YOU!"

"Mr. McKellen, please, he's not worth it!" Officer Sands pleaded, as he and several other officers stood ready to pull Angel off the man, although they would all prefer to let him beat the crap out of him.

"You had better pray that they are okay, because if they aren't you will be SORRY! I'll make sure of it!" Angel vowed.

"Let's go back to your car, Mr. McKellen. The tow truck is pulling the other car away so we can get her out." Officer Sands said, knowing Angel would want to be there when Buffy got out of the car.

Angel released the terrified man, gave him one more menacing glare, then walked back to Buffy's car as the tow truck pulled the other car away. As soon as they had space, a fireman wrenched Buffy's door open with a crowbar.

Angel immediately knelt beside his wife and grabbed her hand. He saw that she was unconscious, her head still slumped over, and blood covering half her face. The sight broke his heart. All he could do was hold her hand as tears streamed down his face.

A moment later, the paramedics pulled him away so that they could put Buffy on a gurney. He watched on with worry as they placed a neck brace on her and carefully pulled her out of the car. Before he could argue, Officer Sands put him in his patrol car as they drove Buffy in the back of an ambulance.

The waiting was the worst. Angel felt as though he'd been sitting in the ER waiting room for days, when in reality it must have been less than an hour when Joyce and Cordelia bustled in.

"Where's Buffy?" Joyce asked immediately as Angel stood.

Angel shrugged. "They just took her into a room and made me wait here."

Cordelia walked over to Angel as Joyce began to pace. She looked at him with concern in her eyes. "What happened? Mrs. Giles just called me and asked me to come pick her up because Buffy was in the ER."

"Yeah, what the Hell is going on? You called and said there had been an accident and Buffy was hurt, and I found my husband sleeping on the couch, reeking of alcohol! Where is his car?"

Angel took a deep breath and began his shameful tale. "Giles and I drank way too much. Willie called Buffy to get her to drive us home. We had just dropped off Giles when we were going through an intersection and some car hit us. I found out later that the driver of the car was running from the cops."

"Oh God." Cordelia replied, running a hand through her hair with worry. "And Buffy?"

"She got knocked unconscious. As far as I know she's still out of it."

"The baby?" Cordelia prodded.

Angel shrugged and tried not to cry again. "They won't tell me anything!"

Joyce kept shaking her head. "I cannot believe this! My daughter and my grandchild might *die* because of you two! Are you happy now?!"

"Mrs. Giles, please. It's not his fault." Cordelia defended Angel.

"The way I see it, is that if you hadn't gone out and got shit-faced drunk while you had a very pregnant wife, she'd be safe in bed right now." Joyce ground out, glaring at her son-in-law.

Angel had already felt incredibly guilty before they'd arrived, but now he felt like scum.

"Mr. McKellen?" A young man in a white coat asked as he approached Angel.

Angel nodded. "My wife?"

"She sustained a concussion, and no other injuries besides a few scratches and bruises. She'll have a sore shoulder in the morning." The doctor informed him.

Angel took a deep breath, thanking God for letting her be all right, but now he feared for their child. "The baby?"

"Perfectly fine." The doctor smiled. "Your wife is still unconscious, however. We're not sure when she'll wake up and we have to observe to make sure she does within a reasonable period of time, and also, just to make sure there are no other problems with the baby or otherwise, so she will be here at the very least overnight."

Angel nodded again. "Can we see her?"

The doctor looked over Angel's shoulder at Cordelia and Joyce, seeing their concerned faces, he decided it would be best not to deny them from seeing his patient. "All right, but I want no more than three people at a time.. and I want everyone who is not married to Buffy out of there in twenty minutes."

Joyce and Cordelia nodded, grateful for any amount of time they could see Buffy.

Walking into the hospital room and seeing Buffy with all these monitors attached to her was comparable to ripping his heart out. She looked so weak, so defenseless, so fragile. And it was all because of him.

He stood back and watched in despair as Cordelia and Joyce each took one of Buffy's hands and whispered words of comfort to her. The doctor settled them in, then told them if they needed anything, he was Dr. Klein and they could feel free to page him.

After twenty minutes, Cordelia stood. "Come in, Mrs. Giles, it's time to go."

Joyce shook her head. "I can't leave my baby like this."

"Angel will be here with her all night, right by her side."

"Hasn't he done enough already?" Joyce began to cry and Angel felt even more guilt.

"I am so, so, sorry that any of this happened. This is killing me, seeing her like this. I'd give anything to switch places with her right now!" Angel told her, his eyes pleading with her to believe him.

"Well, unfortunately that is impossible. You can wish all you want, but I trusted you to take care of her and my little girl is *still* lying in this hospital bed!"

Angel stopped fighting the tears and let them burn a course down his cheeks. Cordelia got Joyce to stand up and led her from the room. She turned back and walked over to Angel, giving his hand a gentle squeeze.

"It'll be all right, just take care of her."

And with that, she turned and left him alone in the room with his wife. Angel stiffly sat in the chair Joyce had been occupying. He took his wife's hand and gazed at it. He was still amazed at how tiny it looked compared to his own. He pulled her hand up to his mouth and kissed it.

"Baby, you've got to wake up. Please, I really need you now." He pleaded, his tears soaking his face. "Please, Buffy, wake up. I'm so.. so sorry that this happened. It's all my fault. Don't you want to wake up so you can yell at me?"

He sighed sadly when he got no response. For the next few hours, he didn't once move from his position. He ceaselessly held her hand, whispering soft words of love and pleas for her to wake up before he finally gave into sleep himself.

As the first rays of sunshine began warming his skin through the window in Buffy's room, Angel awakened. He looked up, hoping to see her eyes open, but to no avail. Angel simply lifter her hand to his mouth and kissed it softly.

Much to his surprise, Buffy's eyes began to flutter. She turned her head towards him and narrowed her eyes as if trying to remember him. "Angel?"

Angel broke into a grin; at last, she was finally awake! "Oh, God, Buffy, I was so scared!"

Buffy's eyes continued to remain upon him narrowed. She yanked her hand away and hissed. "Get away from me!"

"Wha- what?" Angel replied, dumbfounded.

"YOU got drunk and now look what you did to me, you asshole!" Buffy accused.

"Buffy, I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to get drunk, I swear!"

"I'm pregnant with your baby, Angel, and you put our lives at risk. Do we mean nothing to you?"

"No! You mean everything to me!" He pleaded.

Buffy shook her head at him disdainfully, then smiled at something behind him.

Angel turned to see Xander walking into the room and over to the other side of the bed.

"Look what you did now, Dead Boy." Xander scolded. "Actually.. I suppose I should thank you. After all, it's because of you that Buffy can now be with me." He told him as he bent down and kissed Buffy on the top of the head.

"Oh Xander, I'm so glad you are here." Buffy said, smiling at Xander lovingly.. just like she had done to Angel a mere few days earlier.

"Angel. Angel. ANGEL!"

Angel's head shot up from where it lay on Buffy's hospital bed. Cordelia stood next to him with her arms crossed. He looked up at Buffy and found her unconscious. The momentary relief at seeing it has just been a dream was quickly outweighed by the heavy guilt he felt over putting her in that bed.

"What time is it?" He asked groggily.

"It's just after nine." Cordelia told him as she moved to sit in the other seat on the opposite side of Buffy's bed. "Nothing new happened?"

Angel shook his head. "She hasn't woken up yet."

Cordelia sighed heavily. "Why don't you go home and get some rest? Maybe shower and eat?"

"I can't leave her, Cordelia." He replied, shaking his head fervently. "I have to be here when she wakes up."

"She won't wake up until you get back, I'm sure. I know how you two like to be dramatic. Besides, if she wakes up and finds you all stinky and haggard she'll be mad at the both of us."

Angel gave her a firm look. He couldn't leave his wife.

Cordelia rolled her eyes and continued in a more serious tone. "Angel you need to be strong now more than ever. She is going to need you when she wakes up. You have to take care of yourself to take care of her." Because this approach wasn't working, she tried again. "Look, if her doctor's see you all ragged and stuff, they're going to try and force you to leave...they'll only let you visit at certain times... do you want that?"

Angel looked down at his wife sadly, admitting to himself that Cordelia was exactly right. He looked back up at the brunette and gave her a slight nod. "If anything, and I mean anything at all happens, you have to call me."

Cordelia smiled and nodded. "I swear I will."

Angel walked wearily into the hospital in the middle of the afternoon. He'd gone home and showered, then laid down to rest, but was interrupted by the doorbell ringing. He'd forgotten all about the baby furniture. He spent the next hour arranging it all, then opted to check up on his wife before assembling everything else. Nobody had called, yet he still hoped against hope that Buffy was awake.

He was almost to his room when an unshaven, grungy dressed Giles approached him, looking very depressed. "Angel.. please, you've got to tell me, how is Buffy?"

"You can't go see her yourself?" Angel asked, having a good idea of the answer.

Giles shook his head. "Joyce won't let me near her. She's furious with us, as I'm sure you know. She wants me out of the house. I just came here to hopefully see Buffy for a few moments before I packed up a few of my belongings to go stay at a motel."

Angel sighed, feeling even more guilt. "Stay with us."

"Oh no, I couldn't... besides... Buffy probably won't want me there.. understandably."

"Giles, you are like a father to her. She won't hate you. If she hates anyone, it'll be me."

Angel saw Joyce wall out of Buffy's room down the hall, carrying a crying Toby to the restroom. Seeing his chance, he headed to Buffy's room and gestured for Giles to follow.

The two men entered and found Buffy still lying unconscious on the bed, with Cordelia seated next to her. The brunette smiled up at them in surprise.

"No change?" Angel asked, sitting on the opposite side of the bed.

Cordelia simply shook her head as Giles looked over his step daughter in guilt. Why had they been so immature? A contest to see who could handle their liquor better: the Irishman versus the Englishman.

Angel turned Buffy's head towards him, then, at Cordelia's questioning look, explained "I want to be the first thing she sees when she wakes up."

Cordelia rolled her eyes before standing. "I need caffeine. Want to keep my seat warm, Giles?"

The older man smiled gratefully at the girl before sitting in the seat and taking his slayer's and in his own.

Cordelia stopped at the foot of Buffy's bed and looked at the two men. "Did you guys want anything?"

Angel was about to answer when he noticed Buffy's head was moving on its own. She turned it back to the ceiling and opened her eyes, seeing her best friend at the end of her bed. "Cordelia?"

All Cordelia could do was laugh, after Angel's previous remark about being the first thing she sees.

Then all hell broke loose.

Giles pushed the call button to get a doctor, Angel began to cry and kiss a confused Buffy's hand as he apologized profusely, Joyce came back in the room and had a fit when she saw Giles in there.

"That's it! Everyone out!" The doctor who had arrived to see Buffy ordered. He was never going to be able to take care of his patient with all these people screaming at each other.

Reluctantly, they all filed out the door. Cordelia crossed her arms over her chest and debated calling Xander. She was sure he would already be mad that she had not called him yet, and if she didn't call him now he'd be furious. On the other hand, with Joyce angry with Giles and Angel, any more tension and accusations. Cordelia shrugged, she didn't *really* care if Xander was furious at her, she could use a good argument.

Joyce stood with her arms over her chest, as Toby laid in his carrier at her feet. Giles looked down, trying to avoid her icy glare.

Angel altogether ignored her, focusing his mind solely on his wife in the hospital room.

After a few moments, the doctor reemerged, only to be swarmed by Buffy's worried loved ones. After he calmed them down, he let them know Buffy would be fine. They just wanted to keep her under observation for another night. He wanted everyone to leave her alone so she could rest for an hour, and then Angel could go see her. The doctor would check up on her in a few hours, and if she was well enough they could all visit her.

"I'm going to go call Buffy's *father*." Joyce announced pointedly. "He should be here for his little girl."

As she turned and headed to the pay phones, Giles sighed sadly and Angel shook his head. Hank was the last thing he needed right now.

"Let's go get some coffee." Cordelia suggested before walking towards the cafeteria.

Seeing no better option, the two men followed.

Angel took a deep breath and pushed the door open. Just as he'd been hoping, Buffy was asleep. It was funny that all night he'd just wanted her to wake up, and now she had and he wanted her to sleep. He need time to plan his pleas for her not to divorce him like he so richly deserved.

However, as soon as he sat down and caressed her hand, her eyes fluttered open. She looked at him dazedly before granting him a small smile.

"Hi.." she greeted.

"Hey Baby." He smiled warmly.

"What happened, Angel?"

Angel took a deep breath. "Last night.. you were driving me home from the bar.. we got in an accident."

Buffy nodded, vaguely recollecting the events of the night before. Then she remembered the child growing inside her and gasped. "The baby?!"

"The baby is fine, don't worry Honey." Angel reassured before taking a deep breath. "I'm so sorry, Buffy.. can you ever forgive me?"

"For what?"

"If I hadn't been so stupid and irresponsible, you would have never gotten hurt!"

"Shh... it was an accident.. not your fault. Nobody will blame you."

Angel kissed her on the forehead, more grateful than he could ever imagine that she didn't despise him with every fiber of her being. Deciding it would be better if she found out in a calm controlled situation than by witnessing it firsthand, he explained "Actually, your mother does blame me.. and Giles. I don't want you to get upset when you see how mad she is at us."

"What? That's crazy!" Buffy argued.

"Don't get upset, Baby, you *have* to stay calm." Angel ordered. "Don't even worry about it now. I told Giles he could stay with us... you aren't mad, are you?"

"No, of course not. My mother is kicking him out?"

Angel nodded. "I'm hoping after she cools down they will get past this, but in the meantime... oh, and she also called your father."

"Whoa... this must be bad... she would only do that because she knows it will piss Giles off and Daddy will make your life Hell."

"Don't remind me." Angel replied, sighing loudly and calculation how much time he had left before Hank arrived.

As soon as the doctor gave them the go ahead, Hank and Joyce bustled into Buffy's hospital room. Angel was still seated beside Buffy. He hadn't even left when she'd drifted back off to sleep because it was such a great hiding place.

Buffy was feeling a lot better, already trying to get the doctors to release her, and making Angel, the doctor and the nurses work hard. When her mother and father came in, followed by a calmer Cordelia, an annoyed Xander, a cool Oz and a depressed looking Giles, she was a bit stunned.

"Oh Baby, I'm so glad you're okay!" Joyce gushed as she squeezed Buffy's face.

"I knew not to trust him! I knew it!" Hank declared, glaring at his son-in-law.

"*Nobody* thought to call me, can you believe it Buff? I'm only one of your *best* friends!" Xander fumed.

"Don't worry, Buffy, you can stay with me." Joyce assured her daughter.

"And I will be staying with you two for a while so I can be sure that... bad influences don't bother you." Hank added with a pointed look at Giles and Angel.

"Everybody quiet!" Buffy shouted. "I'm not feeling great right now, and I don't need you all screaming about how you're pissed off. I don't care! I think that to blame Giles and Angel for this is insane, so I am not going to live with you, Mom. I am going to live in my home with my husband."

Hank and Joyce both shook their heads disapprovingly at their daughter, but didn't argue.

"Xander, I was kind of unconscious for all of the night and half of the day, so I *couldn't* call you. However, knowing what kinds of things you would have been saying to my husband, I'm glad they didn't." Buffy continued.

Xander rolled his eyes. "You don't know that I would have blamed him! I'm supposed to be your best friend, but nobody thinks I might want to be here?"

"You are here now... and now is when I am awake... that's all that counts." Buffy answered. "Angel, Giles, Cordelia and Oz, thanks for being here you guys, I'm so lucky to have you in my life."

Cordelia smiled triumphantly at Xander, Buffy liked her better. Oz just gave a cool nod while Giles gave her a small smile. Angel leaned over and kissed her forehead.

"Faster, faster, I want out of here!" Buffy ordered as Angel docilely pushed her down the hall of the hospital. Upon his insistence, he had come to take his wife home alone. He was even speaking to Joyce... just to be civil, however. Giles had moved in Buffy and Angel's guestroom the previous night, and was going to cook them dinner that night.

"Buffy, calm down. We'll be out of here soon enough." Angel replied.

Buffy tried to sit still as he pushed her out the doors to where his car was parked. At last she was seated in the passenger seat of his 4Runner and he was pulling out of the parking lot.

"I'm going to need a new car." Buffy noted. "Mine was totaled, huh?"

"Very." Angel replied, before taking a deep breath. "You're probably going to get mad at me... this isn't something I think you want to hear... but I have to say it. I am so very sorry, Buffy. So so so sorry. I'm a stupid asshole."

Buffy rolled her eyes. "Angel, I agree that getting drunk wasn't the best thing you've ever done, and had we not gotten into the accident, I might have been annoyed with you for a while. but it would have been token annoyance. It was an accident. Which means, not on purpose. And the baby and I are fine. So chill out."

Angel smiled as he stopped at a light and leaned over to kiss his wife softly, then sat back and let his loving gaze wash over her.

She was his life.

The End

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