Buffy awake slowly, her body drifting away from the languid sleep. As her mind came awake, she slowly stretched her lithe body against the cool sheets, and smiled. Buffy’s arm slowly reached to the side, and came up empty. Opening her eyes, she propped herself up on her elbows, and glanced at the empty space beside her. The pillow was still indented from where Will’s head had been.

What the-, she thought to herself with a frown. Great, he has his fun and leaves. Buffy wrapped the blanket around her shoulders, and slid from the bed. Her clothes were tossed about, and she quickly gathered one piece and then the next. As she did, however, Will came up the stairs behind her quietly, his arms laden with a tray covered in lunch.

Buffy was in the middle of stomping over to her jeans when she heard him chuckle behind her. Stiffening her back, she straightened and turned, then felt the tension drain away at the site of him with the food.

“Thought you might be hungry, pet. You a’right?” He asked her as he sat the tray on her table.

“I- yeah, it’s stupid, I just… you weren’t here.” Buffy finished lamely.

“Well, I was only gone a coupla minutes, just wanted to make sure you had something to eat, s’all. Now, sit. It’s my turn to be all domesticated. You’ve got work in a few hours, and you need to keep up your strength.” He winked at her as he removed a cloth napkin from the first plate on the tray, and then the second. Buffy started to laugh softly at the slices of gooey pizza on the plates.

“Domesticated, huh?”

“Hey, I called the pizza joint, AND paid, AND put it on the plate. Took note from your breakfast this morning, pet. You want steak, you can pay next time.” He winked once more as they both sat down to eat.

While Buffy chewed, an almost awkward silence filled the room. Buffy wrapped the blanket more snuggly around her body, and let her free hand pick at a slightly frayed edge.

“So, this is kinda awkward, innit?” His clear eyes met hers as she looked up in surprise. She quickly nodded her agreement, however.

“It’s just new, that’s all.”

“No feelings of regret?” He almost looked scared of what her answer would be as he asked her softly.

Shaking her head no, Buffy frowned slightly, wondering why he seemed almost nervous over her answer. “No, no regret here, Will. It’s just, well, new, and… I need time to adjust. That make sense?”

Will nodded and chewed as he thought on the matter. After swallowing, he bestowed a charming smile on her. “Makes enough sense for me, Buffy. Now, eat up, s we can snuggle up and watch a movie.”

*

Buffy glared at the little old lady who was poking her hands into the various bins of ‘magical’ herbs, her goal being to try and find the best of the best. Scowling at the woman’s back, Buffy turned to glance at the clock. It was already ten minutes past closing, and she was supposed to be meeting Will for dinner soon.

“Ma’am, are you certain I can’t help you?” Buffy asked gently as she came up beside the woman.

The lady just shook her head and muttered about people minding their own business, then triumphantly held up a root that looked identical to all the other roots, at least to Buffy’s eyes.

Buffy sighed in relief as she rang up the customer, and then sent her towards the door with an overly bright smile. Buffy trailed right behind her, and after showing her out, locked the door quickly. She hurried through the closing tasks, and shut the lights off, before leaving by the back door.

Buffy muttered under her breath as she waited for the next bus, which wasn’t due for a few minutes yet.

*

Will waited at the table he had managed to reserve at the last minute, and scowled at the time. Shoulda picked her up, he thought to himself. He started to smile as the chair in front of him was pulled out, only to scowl when he realized it was Drusilla and Angel. Great, just bloody great, he thought.

“That seat’s taken, so leave.” Will glared up at the pair, before glancing towards the door.

“Oh, my little Spikey’s upset, my love. He doesn’t want to see me.” Drusilla turned a pout towards Angel before turning back to whimper at Will.

“Name’s not Spike, Spikey, or any of the other sick little names you came up with. It’s Will. Now leave, before I have management remove you.”

“Now, William, is that anyway to treat an old friend, and the lady you hold a torch for?” Angel’s silky voice purred as he reached over and took a drink from Will’s glass.

“Yes, it is, and I don’t hold a torch anymore. Got a new one. Scurry on off, go eat your young or something. I’m busy.”

“Oh, but we’re eating here, too. Hope your date doesn’t keep you waiting much longer.” Angel held his hand out, and Drusilla placed her daintily into it, before standing. She blew a kiss to him, and they stepped away, but only moved a few feet. Their table was only over by a row, and back one. They would be right there the entire time, watching and mocking him.

Will scowled, and trained his eyes on the door, just as Buffy came through in a flurry. She looked flustered, her hair was wind swept, and there was what appeared to be a root sticking to one side. She was shown to the table, and without a word, Will smiled, and plucked the root from her hair.

Buffy’s blush was instant, and she ducked her head with an embarrassed sort of smile.

“Sorry I’m late, we had this woman in there who just wouldn’t leave.”

“S’not a problem, love.” All ready, Will had pushed the thoughts of Angel and Drusilla out of his mind, and focused on the flustered girl in front of him.

**TBC**

Chapter 17

Buffy spotted Drusilla towards the end of the meal, and couldn’t keep her mind off the dark haired woman sitting just a few feet away. She had a feeling Will already knew, but she would be damned if she was going to mention it. Dinner had been a bit tense, but nothing really bad, and now that Buffy saw Drusilla, she knew what caused the tension.

Other then the tension, dinner had gone great. Buffy had even ditched her female tendencies to starve, and ordered a large slice of fudge brownie pie. Just as dessert came, and the couple was relaxing, Drusilla and Angel got up to leave.

Unbidden, Will’s eye was drawn towards their table. He saw the glint in Dru’s eye, and braced himself. They walked quite casually over to where Will and Buffy were cringing, and Drusilla stopped while Angel kept walking.

“William, my sweet, you really must call me soon. I’ve missed your company.” Drusilla drawled in her lilting accent. She leaned over, and brushed a kiss on Will’s cheek, and while Buffy was distracted by the kiss, Drusilla reached over and knocked over a full glass of red wine onto Buffy’s pale yellow flowered dress.

Buffy felt the cold liquid dousing her front, and stood up, gasping. A bit away, Angel turned and looked at the table with an expected smirk on his face. He walked back as Buffy was busy trying to dab at the spreading stain.

“Drusilla, dear, you really ought to be more careful. Come, we’ve got things to do.”

Will looked up with a scowl and shoved Drusilla away from him before rising to flag down a waiter. As Drusilla and Angel made their get away, however, Buffy stuck her foot in the middle of the walkway, and Drusilla went down hard and fast, and not entirely without noise. A loud screech filled the air, and stopped many of the people around them from talking and eating.

Heads swiveled in the direction of the two couples, and watched opened mouthed as the pretty young girl picked herself up off the floor, and the other one dabbed at the ruined dress.

*

Will was still laughing as they pulled in the parking lot nearly 20 minutes later. Buffy had calmed down fairly quick, especially after seeing the bright red blood pouring down Drusilla’s face. They had, however, all been asked to leave the restaurant. As the two went into the front hall, they were laughing loud enough that a neighbor stuck his head out the door, and told them to quite down.

Still giggling, though quietly now, they made their way into the apartment. Xander looked up from the computer, and grinned at the two of them.

“What are you smoking? Don’t you know that Buffy and drugs are unmixy?” Xander’s voice was high pitched as he said the last line, and he fluttered his eyelashes for effect. Buffy rolled her eyes as she sat down on the sofa, and kicked her shoes off. Will shrugged and slid onto the seat next to her.

“We just had a good time, that’s all. Nice innocent fun,” Buffy told Xander while opening her eyes wide and smiling innocently.

“Innocent? You? I haven’t bought that story in years.” Xander snorted after stating what he thought was the obvious, and turned back to the computer. In their short time at the new place, Xander had quickly gotten addicted to the internet, and had since been spending any free time he could on it. It was a secret source of amusement to Buffy.

Will slowly linked his fingers through Buffy’s, and tugged on her hand as he stood up. Blushing lightly, she stood with him, and they were soon disappearing down the short hall. Will stopped outside his room, and leaned into Buffy until her back was against the door. Her arms wound around Will’s neck, and pulled him in for a searing kiss that had been needed for most of the night.

Will pressed against her body as he responded to her urgent kiss. His mouth pulled back as the air in his lungs began to burn. Will sucked in a deep breath, before his mouth was planted on her neck. As Buffy’s eyes closed, her hand fumbled against the door, and finally found the knob. She gave it a quick turn before they went stumbling into the room.

Will pulled off of Buffy laughing as they crashed to the floor. Her own giggles soon followed as she sat up with an awkward and shy smile. With another quick intake of air, Will ducked his head to hers, and placed a soft kiss on her lips. When he pulled back, she was looking up at him with her eyes half lidded with desire. He sat back and shook his head slowly.

“Maybe we ought to take this a bit slower, pet.” He sat back on his heels and watched her for a moment as uncertainty gripped his heart.

“Slower?” Buffy blinked, wondering where that had come from.

“It’s just, the thing with Dru started fast, and I never got to know her, and I want to do this right and proper. Seeing that she-demon tonight showed me just how fast we went already.” He looked up at her and waited for what felt like an eternity before she finally responded.

“I guess that’s not a bad idea. It’s usually the woman’s idea, but not a bad one.” Buffy and Will both laughed nervously. “And… I suppose that means I should be off to bed.” Buffy pulled herself up, and straightened her clothes. Before she could change her mind, Buffy was out the door, and it shut with a soft click.

**TBC**

Buffy stared at the alarm clock for a few minutes. It was just about time for Will to get home from work. Nearly a week had passed since they had agreed to take it slow, and for the most part, they were still taking it slow. That is, if slow meant spending every waking available moment together.

Will had even changed his sleeping patterns to adjust to remaining awake until Buffy was out the door for her own two jobs. Likewise, Buffy had started getting up earlier and earlier so that on her off days, she could go back to sleep when Will came home.

And sleep they did. Since that first day, they had laid off the sex, which frustrated both of them. When they climbed into his bed together- it was bigger than hers- they would lay close to one another, snuggled under the warm blankets. Buffy reveled in the feeling of falling asleep in his arms.

Comfort wasn’t something she had ever thought a man could provide, but Will provided it in droves. Comfort, safety, friendship, and love were all things she identified feeling when she thought of Will.

Blinking groggily, she yawned as the minutes ticked by. The thought of love rose in her mind again. It wasn’t so much that she felt she loved him, as she just loved being with him. At least, I don’t think its love, she thought. Maybe it is, what do I know? It’s not like I’ve felt it before.

With a sigh, she sat up in bed, and slid out. Her fuzzy piggy slippers were waiting near the bed for her feet. The storms lately had made the weather dreary and cold, and she’d unearthed the slippers she had once received as a joke to compensate the cold feet syndrome that Buffy equated to morning coffee with Will.

It was funny how much she had started to equate to her morning’s with him. She had so many feelings and reactions that tied in with the small morning ritual. Glancing back at the clock again, Buffy pulled on a thick warm robe, and stumbled down the stairs to make coffee.

Will stuck his time card into the little electronic machine, and went towards his locker. The company had provided a room filled with small square lockers for people to store their belongings after several people were fired for stealing. He pulled his duster out, and slammed it shut.

On his way out, he glanced at the clock, and saw that he was running late already for his morning with Buffy. With a bit of a scowl, he pulled a cigarette out, and put it between his lips. She hated his smoking, but didn’t tell him he had to stop. It was one of his only vices, and Will was damn well going to keep it.

Just as he reached his car, he felt a hand on his shoulder, halting him. He cursed under his breath, and turned around. As he did, a large fist slammed into his face. Cursing loudly now, Will stumbled back against the car, and looked towards his assailant.

“Oh, bullocks, peaches! What the bloody hell was that for?” He held his nose and squeezed his eyes shut against the pain for a moment. From his lips, the now broken cigarette dangled, threatening to fall at any moment. The damn chilliness in the air accentuated the pain.

“That was paybacks. Ain’t life grand?” Angelus smirked cockily as he pulled his hand back again. Balling it into a loose fist, he swung forward. Just before his meaty weapon made contact, however, Will ducked down. Cursing at the sound of his car window cracking, Will darted forward towards Angelus’ legs.

Barreling into them, he wrapped his arms around the knees, and shoved. Angelus went down quickly, but came right back towards him swinging fists. A lucky fist caught Will on the chin, and sent his head backwards.

“Naughty, naughty, naughty. Angel, don’t bloody him. I wanted to do that.” Behind the brawling pair, Drusilla stood in a long red coat. She was making a tsk-ing sound with her mouth, and shaking her finger at the two of them.

Angelus scowled up at her as Will drew his own fist back, and caught Angelus in his nose. Blood splurted forth from his nose after a satisfying crunch could be heard. Angelus cussed loudly before laying back in on the muddy gravel drive way. Will took the opportunity to pummel Angelus’ face with his fists.

Drusilla screeched, and leaned behind him to try and knock Will away, and caught an elbow to her midsection. As she fell backwards, Angelus used a burst of strength to push Will off of him. He quickly pulled himself up from the mud as Will stood and glared at the two.

Buffy stood glaring outside. It was 10 after 8. Will gets out of work at 7:40, home by 7:55, she thought with a scowl. She pushed her cereal around the bowl, and stared at the coffee pot.

“Now, now, Spike, is this any way to treat a couple of old friends?” Angelus smirked at him as Will wiped blood off his own face with a hanky. Drusilla was standing next to Will, ranting and raving into his face about the fight.

“I don’t see any friends here, just a bunch of wankers. I’m late, what the bloody hell do you two want?”

“Spikey, we wanted to tell you, and you were nasty! I don’t think we shall tell you after all.” Drusilla plastered on a fake looking pout as she stared up at Will. Angelus smirked as he watched the two.

Buffy stood up, and dumped her soggy cereal into the trash. She tossed the coffee down the drain, and walked back to the stairs. It was nearly 9am now, and still no Will. She was worried, but she was also mad. He could be hurt, sure, but her rational mind told her that he just got held up with something. Too bad her mind couldn’t read his and find out what was keeping him.

“Spit it out, then, Dru. I ‘aven’t got all day. Tell me what the bloody hell you want, and leave.” Will scowled at the two of them as he held a rag to his face.

Chapter 19a

AN: This chapter came out short, and I was a bit skitter brained to come up with anything more at this point. I figured it’d be better to at least post this bit, than to wait for more to come to me.

Drusilla’s lips curved into a smile, something that looked almost out of place on her darkly made up face. Angel leaned into her, and kissed the side of her face while keeping his eyes on Will.

“We’re getting married, Spike, baby. Angel and I want you to join us at the nuptials. Won’t it be lovely? A midnight ceremony in a garden of lovely white moonflowers, blooming under the full moon. And we can dance, pet, dance and dance and dance…” Drusilla’s eyes were clouded over as she stared off into space.

Will glaring at the pair, and opened his car door. Scowling at the broken window, he slid into the seat.

“Bloody fanaticals. Enjoy life. Leave me out of it.” Will started the car, and threw it into reverse as he stomped the gas pedal, and pealed out of the drive. The car tossed up wet gravel as he drove out the front gates.

Buffy was pacing around her loft, and glancing at her alarm clock every 20 or 30 seconds, then cursing Will again. He still wasn’t here, and it was nearly ten in the morning. She couldn’t figure out why he wasn’t, and why he hadn’t called. Her belly was doing flip flops from the nerves as she paced.

Will sat down in the cheap plastic booths of the small diner, and looked at the menu, which was part of the table. His mood was black, nearly as black as the bruises on his body from the fight. He hadn’t gone home, even though he knew he should have. Instead, he drove around, until he ended up in some podunk town in the middle of nowhere.

“Special’s eggs and ham, with toast, for $3.99. What’ll it be?” A tired looking middle aged waitress stood looking down at a small scribble pad in her hands. Will looked up and down the column’s on the menu, and finally ordered some strong coffee and the special.

While he waited for the food to come, Will dug around to find some change in his pocket, and then made his way over to the pay phone he’d spotted in the rear near the restrooms. With a quick glance at the clock, he picked the phone up, and plunked his two quarters in.

The ringing shrillness of the phone jerked Buffy from her pacing. She stood staring at it for a moment, then practically pounced on the noisy object.

“Will? Hello? Is that you? Where are you, why aren’t you here, what the hell happened?” Buffy practically yelled into the receiver.

“Buffy, love, slow down. I’ve had a bad morning, and I needed to do some driving around. I don’t know where the bloody hell I am right now. I’m sorry I wasn’t there this morning. I’ll be back late tonight, likely. Maybe not before I go to work. I’ll try to call, though.”

Before Buffy could respond at all, the phone clicked a few times, then a dial tone sounded in her ear. Frowning, she held the phone out in front of her, and eyed it in confusion.

After a moment or two, Buffy sat the phone back down, hanging it up. She watched it for a moment, then finally got up and stomped around the room, talking to herself as she went.

Will drove into the parking lot, his eyes trained on the dark apartment as he pulled up front. He waited late into the day, knowing that Buffy had to work at the magic shop until 9. Will had to be to the factory at 10, so he’d just make sure to leave right at 9, so as to avoid her.

It wasn’t her that he was avoiding; so much as it was her questions. He fancied himself well and over Drusilla, but her announcement that morning had left him feeling unsettled and anxious. Old feelings clashed with new ones as he remembered the ill-fated romance between Dru and himself.

Once inside the apartment, Will quickly grabbed a bag of chips, and sat down at the computer. With a bit of hesitation, he finally pulled up a file where he saved all the things he had of hers, of Drusilla.

Buffy glanced at the clock as she waited for the older man to finish picking just the right herbs for some love incantation he planned to do on his wife. She smiled and nodded when appropriate. Mr. Giles was waiting in back for her to finish up, so they could go through and do inventory.

Buffy still didn’t know how she managed to get roped into it, but at this rate, she wouldn’t be home until around midnight, possibly later. They had roped Tara into coming in as well, though she said she might not be there until 10, as she had a study group until around 9:30. Will hadn’t answered the phone, much to Buffy’s consternation.

The little troll of a man finally came to the register, a perpetual scowl on his face even as Buffy smiled at him while ringing up the items on the counter.

“That will be $18.56, sir.” The man scowled as he slapped down a $20, and she quickly handed him his change. Without a word, he left.

Buffy followed him out the door, and taped up the closed early sign, and turned the lock before turning the flashing neon ‘open’ sign off. Another long night, she thought.

Will came home right on time the next morning, and found a nervous Buffy sitting at the table waiting for him with a cup of coffee. She had bags under her eyes, and he frowned slightly.

“Have you slept a’tall, Buffy?” He asked as he pulled his boots and duster off.

“Not a whole lot, no. Inventory last night, remember? We didn’t get done until nearly 1am. Didn’t sleep real hot even after I got home. Where were you?”

Looking up Will couldn’t help but notice the slight frown on her face, and the hurt expression her eyes held.

“I had to do some driving, love. I know you were worried, but I needed to get away from here for a while.” Will closed his eyes and leaned back in the chair, letting his head drop back until it was facing up towards the ceiling.

“Oh,” was all Buffy said in response. The one small word, said so quietly, was about all Will could stand, but at the same time, he felt the need to push away from her. Drusilla and Angel had left him feeling the need to protect his heart from any more painful shards of glass. Sighing, he opened his eyes.

“Look, baby, why don’t we go lay down. I need the sleep, and it looks like you do, too. We’ll talk about yesterday later some time.” Will stood up, and held a hand out towards her. Buffy looked up at him with large eyes, then took a deep breath, and stood, placing her hand in his.

They silently walked towards the stairs, but Will veered off into the bathroom to change first. Buffy stood staring at the door and trying to sort her own emotions over the entire matter. She felt hurt that he didn’t share what was bothering him. Even more than the hurt, though, was the confusion over why he would just disappear for a day without telling her why, or where he was.

Will came out of the bathroom dressed in a pair of gym shorts, and a t-shirt, and took her hand again. They walked silently up to her room, and crawled into a bed they were starting to both refer to as their bed, rather than her bed.

“Willow, I don’t know what’s going on in his head. He won’t say anything, and it’s been almost a week.” Buffy was talking to Willow on the phone as she hurriedly got ready for work.

“Maybe there isn’t anything to tell, Buff. I mean, he might have just gone to Vegas for the day, or something.”

“It isn’t just that. He’s been pulling away since that day. He almost never comes home straight from work, and when he does, he tells me he’s tired, and disappears into his bedroom.”

“I don’t know what to tell you, Buffy. Just give him time and space.” Willow sounded sympathetic as she tried to give her best friend advice on men, something she didn’t have great knowledge in.

“Yeah… I should just let him alone. Thanks for talking with me, Willow. I need to get to the diner. I’ll talk to you later.”

The girls said their goodbyes, and Buffy hung up the phone. For a moment, she stared at Will’s door, then sighed, and left the apartment.

Will stared at his door as he heard Buffy talking to Willow. He closed his eyes with a deep sigh, and shrugged off the feelings tugging at his heart. He didn’t care to explain it to her, because he knew she wouldn’t understand everything.

After he heard the door click shut, Will got up and pulled on his jeans. Glancing around the room, he spied a button down crumpled on the floor. Will pulled it on, and buttoned it all the way down. Time to do laundry, he thought as he glanced at the growing pile in the corner.

Normally, they did it together, but he had left early for work that night, ensuring that he wouldn’t have to be alone with Buffy for too long. Childish and petty, sure, but the more he was around her, the less he felt the need to hide away. For his own good and survival, he needed to keep his distance.

Will gathered everything up, and nabbed his pouch of change before leaving the apartment and heading for his car. There was a laundry room in the building, but it was small and quite often the few machines were filled. Instead, they always went to a laundry mat down the road.

“I’m so sorry to bother you, but could I trouble you for bit of soap?” A perky brunette was standing in front of Will, holding out a cap from her own empty bottle of soap. “I ran out with only one load left.”

“Sure, ducks.” Will took her cap and poured some soap into it before handing it back, and turning back to the rather boring, 2 year old copy of Cat Fancy. She hung around looking at him for a moment, and then turned back to her own laundry. His mind was on Buffy still, wondering what she was doing, what she was thinking.

No, he had to forget about her that way. She was a roommate, nothing more. With a resigned sigh, he set the old magazine down, and stood up to nab his laundry from the washers, and take it over to the dryer. He could feel the girl watching him again as he put the clothing into the dryer.

He smiled towards her as he sat back down, and she wandered over towards him again. He watched her advance with mixed thoughts. The girl was cute, not like Buffy, but cute in her own right. She was someone he might even have asked out once upon a time.

“I can’t believe these things are so old here,” she said as she held up the copy of Cat Fancy. “I mean, can’t they at least spring a few bucks for something new?”

Will laughed and nodded as his mind started churning. Maybe the best way to forget how Buffy felt in his arms was to put someone else in them.

“So, you wanna grab some lunch after our laundry’s done?” Will asked her. Her smile showed that she had been waiting for the question.

“I’d love to,” she replied.

“Name’s Will, by the way.”

“Anya,” was her response.

Chapter 20

Buffy glanced at the empty apartment and frowned for what felt like the 75th time in 2 hours. Will still wasn’t home, hadn’t been all day. She knew it was his day off, and had hoped they could talk tonight over dinner.

She felt like he was pulling away from her, though, and that wasn’t good from her point of view. Scowling, she went upstairs and changed out of her work clothes, and into a comfortable pair of sweats and a black t-shirt. Frowning down at it, she realized it was his. With only a few curses, she pulled it off, and tugged on a tank top instead.

As she pulled a brush through her hair, she heard the door open. Hurrying over, she pulled the canvas ‘wall’ aside, and peeked over the edge. Her shoulders fell when she saw Xander.

“Hey Buffster, what’s the what?” Xander smiled up at her as he tossed his light jacket over the back of a chair, before making his way up the stairs to her room. He plopped down on her bed, and watched her stomp around the room.

“He STILL isn’t here, and he STILL avoids me like… like… well, like I have the plague.” She glimpsed at the clock, and saw that it was nearly 7pm, and scowled at it. “What is wrong with me? Or him? Is it Will? No, it can’t be. He must hate something about me.” Buffy began to ramble on as she talked more to herself than to Xander.

Xander grimaced along side her this time. “Buffy, I don’t know what the deal is, but I don’t know of any guys who find anything wrong with you.”

Buffy stopped moving, and sighed softly as her shoulders drooped. She sat down next to him on the bed, and pulled a pillow over her face.

“I phath ghym,” she mumbled. Xander smirked, and pulled the pillow away.

“You what?”

“I hate him,” she said once more, unmuffled this time. For good measure, Buffy stuck her tongue out at Xander, and pulled the pillow back over her head.

Will unlocked the security door and laughed along with a story Anya was telling him about some of the guys she had gone out with in the past. For the most part, the evening had been pleasant enough, but that special spark was missing. She was only a replacement for what he really wanted.

“So, I told him that if he ever brought me any more rabbits, I would curse him for all time. Where’s your place?” Anya had a habit of moving directly from one line of thought to the next without giving Will a chance to catch up first.

“Huh? Oh, the flat, right. S’up the steps. First door there at the top.” Will followed behind her up the steps, and suddenly felt sick to his stomach. He had been thinking that Buffy worked at the magic shop that night, but had recalled as he approached the door, that she had traded tonight with another employee. She’d be home. Waiting. Seeing him. With another woman.

Great bloody time to be thinking of the consequences, you wanker, he told himself. Just bloody great. You start this mess, might as well finish it. Break it off with this bint, and Buffy, and lock my ballsy self away for eternity. Sounds good, he thought.

With a sense of unease, Will slowly unlocked and opened the door. He didn’t hear anyone right off as he peeked his head in first, then entered. Anya was hot on his heels as he came in.

“Oh, this place is great! I love it.” Anya’s voice unfortunately rang out through the apartment, and Will cringed just moments before both Buffy and Xander’s heads popped over the wall in the loft.

“Will?” Buffy asked with uncertainty as she watched Anya weasel in close to him.

“Xander?” Anya asked as she looked up at her neighbor’s son.

“Buffy, look…” Will said with a distinct feeling that he was going to be butchered.

“Anya? What are you doing here? And with captain peroxide?” Xander asked at the same time Will tried to reply to Buffy.

Xander suddenly frowned at the closeness and turned towards Buffy, who had already disappeared from view of the lower section. She was sitting on the bed, pale as can be. Downstairs, he heard Will ask Anya to take a seat as he made his way up the stairs.

“Buffy, look…” Will repeated, only to have Xander shake his head and point back down the stairs.

“Man, not now. Go back to Anya. Leave me to pick up the pieces.” Will frowned and started to step forward, but Buffy turned her back to him, and he stopped. With a resigned sigh, he made his way back down the steps to talk to Anya.

Anya was flipping through stations, obliviously unaware of the tension between the other three people in the flat.

“Oh, you guys get Cinemax! There’s this movie I have been just dying to see, but I don’t have cable.” Will looked at her for a minute, then headed for the small balcony while reaching into his pocket for his cigarettes.

“I’ll be out here. Anya, why don’t you join me? I think we should talk a bit.”

Anya looked up and nodded, before joining him out on the small balcony.

Upstairs, Buffy was tossing a few things into a duffle bag, and slipping on a pair of shoes. She grabbed a book from her shelf, opened it, and pulled a wad of cash from the hallowed out inside.

“Buff, you can’t just leave. Where will you go?” Xander was following close on her heels while trying to talk some sense into his friend.

“Maybe Willow’s… or I could treat myself to a night in a hotel. What about Tara? I can find a place for a night or two. I just need to get away, Xander. No big. Just time alone.”

Xander shook his head and placed a hand on her shoulder to halt her movement.

“And after that? You can’t move, you have a lease, and there’s nothing else you can afford right now anyway. Just calm down. If you really need to go somewhere else tonight, then we can both take a vacation. Rent a room in a hotel, do the swimming, room service thing.” He smiled his trademark smile and pulled her towards him.

Buffy sighed softly, and looked around, before nodding. Xander nodded with her, and stepped back, while letting her arm go.

“Good, then, I’ll go grab my bag, and we’ll check into the Hyatt for the night.”

Will came back in with Anya, and without a word to his flatmates; he left with her, to take her home. The conversation had been minimal on the way, after he explained his relationship and feelings towards Buffy. Anya had been understanding, but bored with the conversation afterwards.

He dropped her off at home with a brief hug, and a wave, then left. On his way back towards the flat, he veered into a convenience mart, and seized a bottle of somewhat cheap wine from a shelf, and the nicest bouquet of flowers they had. He had some major butt kissing to do once he got home.

On the way to the Hyatt, neither Xander nor Buffy spoke with one another. Xander was thinking about the sudden appearance of Anya, while Buffy was mulling over the ‘date’ Will had brought home.

Sure, she reasoned with herself, Anya might have just been a friend, but Will looked entirely too guilty. Her eyes closed as they pulled out of the lot in Xander’s truck. She felt so tired, so exhausted.

Chapter 21

Thank you to the 50+ people who all took the time to either email me directly, or post a new review, or hit my tag board. You are all WONDERFUL! I needed that, a lot. I was shocked when I had gotten around 10 the first few hours after posting. 40 some odd later, I’m flabbergasted. Simply in shock. For the people who don’t like the story, well, you aren’t the writer, and no writer has a fan base made up of every last person in the world. If I’m not pleasing you with my turn of events, click that little X in the top corner. It’s a magic button, and makes the offensive material go away. Buffy and Spike/Will, in any form, are not REAL PEOPLE. They are fiction, no matter how much we’d love for them to be real. No matter hat we make them do, we deviate from the original characters. If we made them identical, then what we write would have been an episode. Any deviation from the show changes the characters. AU takes the show and flips it off before forcing it to bend over and kiss the pearly white flowers growing out its ass. Point blank, I write the characters, as I always wanted them to be. Shy, loving, and confused. If you want perfect, write it your damn self. Enjoy the story, because this is how it’s going to be written. Don’t like it, refer to AN number 2, listed above. Like it? Email, tag, blurty, review, etc. I love the fact that so many people out there DO like my vision. But I accept that it isn’t for everyone. People have different tastes, and this is mine.

Will pulled into the parking lot to find Xander’s truck gone, and the lights in the flat off. With a bit of a frown, he shut the engine off, and stared up at the flat. Without going up, he just had a gut wrenching feeling that she wasn’t there.

Finally, he pulled the flowers and wine from the seat beside him, and got out of the car. Will walked slowly up to the door, and unlocked it. His feet seemed made of lead as he traversed the flight of stairs towards his shared apartment. Silence and darkness greeted him when he finally opened the door. She was gone, and it was his fault. He messed up bad, he thought.

Buffy sighed as Xander talked to the clerk at the Hyatt. It would only be for a few days, she thought. Buffy had never actually met the girl, Anya, but she’d heard plenty about her from Xander. She had a different date nearly every night, and had few misgivings about sleeping with more than a few of them.

Buffy scowled and trudged along behind Xander as the walked towards the elevator that would carry them to the 5th floor. Her thoughts were tangled, like she was trying to wade through waist deep water at a full out run.

Xander slid the small key card into the door and Buffy blinked, and tried to recall the actual elevator ride. With another grimace, she resigned herself to her muddled state of mind, and entered the large room. Xander came in behind her, and closed the dead bolt on the door.

“Ah, home sweet hotel. So, Buffster, room service?” Xander smiled a bit, but Buffy could see that he was also upset over the events, both about how Will acted, and the sudden appearance of Anya.

“Not hungry, really. I think I’ll go sit on the balcony.” Buffy moved past him, and opened the door to the microscopic balcony that overlooked the picturesque... well… parking lot. There were no chairs, so instead, Buffy slid down against the glass door, and blinked her dry eyes once.

It was like Parker, all over again. Ok, perhaps not as bad, she reasoned with herself, but bad enough. This time, she at least protected her body, if not her heart. Her body would be fine, but her heart, that would take some time to heal. Quite a lot of it, actually.

Xander stood inside the room looking at his best friend as she slumped against the door, and felt a stab of white-hot anger course through him. He liked Will, liked him a lot, but he loved Buffy. She had been in his world for years, and he hated the idea of her being hurt at all.

After the whole fiasco after high school, Xander had watched over her closer, watched her dates, and comforted her when they didn’t work out. He had never seen Buffy throw herself so completely into a relationship, especially one that was so new.

Later, he would likely reason with himself, and claim he wasn’t thinking right, but as he picked up the phone and dialed their apartment, he knew he was thinking straight. About as straight as he had ever thought in his life. Xander waited with a grim set to his face while the phone rang.

Will looked over at the phone, and felt his stomach hitch as he hurried to answer it. He knew it wasn’t likely, but he couldn’t help but hope that it was Buffy.

“Hello? Buffy?” He asked in a hurry, before the person on the other end could reply to the hello.

“You have a lot of nerve, Will, you know that? I don’t know what the hell is going through your mind, but you just hurt one of the only girls I’ve ever loved. I sure as hell hope you are happy with yourself.”

“Xander, mate, it’s not like that. I wasn’t thinking-“

“You’re damn right you weren’t thinking! Do you know what she’s doing right now? She’s sitting outside, trying to hide the fact that she’s bawling.” Xander glanced at his friend again, and lowered his voice.

“Where are you guys at? I need to talk to her, to explain. So stupid, really, but it was my fault, all of it.”

“I don’t think she wants to talk right now, and we won’t be back. At least, we won’t be back tonight. You have some major ass kissing to do, for both of us. You lost major points.” Before Will could respond to Xander, Xander hung the phone up on him. He glanced back out the window at his friend, whose shoulders were hunched down, with her arms wrapped around her legs.

Will held the phone to his ear until it started beeping at him, and then let it slip from his hand. A feeling of cold dread clenched at his stomach. He sat down on the chair, and stared unseeing ahead. His eyes were blank, the blue nearly as pale as ice.

She’s gone, and you did it, mate. Bloody good show, he thought. Leaning back, his eyes slipped closed, and an arm came up to cover them. He realized he messed up, but Drusilla had been his heart for so long. How was he supposed to learn to accept that she wasn’t, now? That Buffy had silently slipped in, and taken over?

Shaking his head to clear the thoughts coming to mind, Will stood up, and with a clear mind, headed up to her room. With a sign of relief, he noticed that her room seemed to be almost completely intact still. In fact, there was very little at all missing. Even her uniform for the diner was in her closet.

With a smile, albeit a weak one, Will walked back down stairs, and went to hide in his room. He had no doubts that what Xander said was true, that he’d broken her heart. It wasn’t so much even bringing Anya home, as much as he had avoided her this week, and had distanced himself.

Earlier in the week, it would have taken everything to pull the betrayal he felt from Dru and Angel out. Now, he could only wish Buffy would be back, so he could explain himself to her. That is, if it wasn’t too late. But it can’t be, he thought. I can’t have lost her so soon.

Chapter 22

Buffy looked out the window of the diner. She had been working for 2 hours already, but every time the door opened, she expected to see him walk through. She had been a coward, and sent Xander home to retrieve the forgotten uniform, though he reported that if Will was home, he was locked away in his room, dead to the world. Still, Buffy couldn’t shake the feeling that he was going to show up, and possibly cause trouble.

“Hey, where’s my food? I ordered it nearly 20 minutes ago!” Buffy glanced at the surly trucker at the counter, and apologized before going into the back to grab the tray. It had been set under a heat lamp for several minutes, and very nearly burned her fingers as she carried it to the man.

Will observed the diner from the front seat of his car, debating on whether or not to go on in. He didn’t want to trouble her more, and causing a scene might just do that. Nevertheless, at the same time, he was concerned about her. No, he thought, no just her, us.

Lying awake in his bed, Will had heard Xander come in quietly that morning, but he remained still. No sense in upsetting the lad again. No, he thought, that’d wait until later. He couldn’t even be sure they would be home tonight. Or where they were staying.

With a resigned sigh, he threw the car into drive, and squealed his tires as he drove from the small parking lot. On his way out, Will glanced over and noticed her standing in front of the window, watching him with a shaken expression on her beautiful face. Great, she saw, he thought to himself.

Great, he was here, she thought to herself. Several surprised patrons had looked up at the sudden tire squealing in the parking lot, and watched as the old car tore from the drive as though the hounds of hell were licking at it’s feet.

The apprehension Buffy had been feeling lifted a bit, but it still worried her that he had been out there, watching her. Who knew how long he’d been there, either. She found herself shivering, and looked back to the table before pouring coffee with an artificial smile.

Will sat at the table scribbling furiously on a notebook. It had come to him that morning, as he’d waited at the diner. It was her song, about her, about how he felt for her. Since she’d moved in, he’d been on a dry stint with his song writing, but now, it was back. I suppose I have my heartbreak to thank for this, he thought.

With the pencil in his mouth, and the notebook in front of him, Will began to strum out the music on his guitar. After a few mishaps, he had the melody he wanted. A haunting piece of music filled the flat while his foot tapped out a measured rhythm. He started to hum the words along with it, nodding as he went.

This would be his apology, his heart bared for her, no matter how painful it would be for him. Losing her was an even greater wound, and a greater failure. That was to be avoided at all costs. Finally, when he had it down in his head, he pulled out a sheet of blank music paper, and began to fill in all the blanks of the song he simply titled Her.

Buffy waited inside the diner until she saw Xander pull up, and with a glance either way, her small form darted out the door, and into the truck. She pulled the door shut, and looked at Xander.

“He was here, Xan. He came by and was watching me through the window.” She looked at the window as they pulled away from the diner, her pale green eyes looking specifically for him. Xander sighed heavily.

“Buff, maybe it’s time to go home and talk to him. We don’t know what happened yesterday, not without talking to him, first.” His eyes were on the road, but he see out of the corner of his eye that Buffy was sitting still, staring out the window. He could hear her sighing.

“Yeah, sure, I guess. I don’t want to, but I see your logic. When did you get with the logic?” Buffy turned towards him, and teased him just a bit, before turning to look back outside.

“Oh, you know me, I’m just logic boy. It’s a gift, really.” Xander’s tone was a tad sarcastic, with a bit of teasing gilt on the edge, as well. Buffy turned back towards him with serious eyes.

“Don’t leave me there alone? Stay with me?” Her eyes were hopeful, as her teeth tugged at her lower lip. Xander sighed and turned towards her.

“Buff, you need to deal with it, and I can’t always be there to hold your hand. Talk to him. I’ll be waiting down here until after you talk.” He pulled the truck up in front of the building, and nodded to the upstairs window, where lights were on. “Go, listen to him. And for the love of my things, don’t throw stuff. And stay out of my room! I still remember the great Parker fest.”

Buffy turned and scowled at him, before opening the door, and sliding out of the truck. She stood on the pavement for a moment, the door held open still, her eyes staring up at the shared apartment. Drawing in a deep breath, she propelled herself forward, and slammed the door shut as she hurried towards the front entrance.

Will’s ears perked at the sound of the main door downstairs slamming shut. He held his breath as he looked at the door to the apartment. The guitar was balanced on his knees, his arms around it on the right chords.

When he heard the key inserted into the door, his eyes drawn down to the door handle. Almost as if it were in slow motion, Will watched the handle being turned, and then saw the door gap open a tiny bit, almost hesitatingly, before it opened further. Buffy’s head poked through, focusing on the living room to the front of her. It took her a moment to see him sitting in the dark, at the kitchen table.

“Will…” she said quietly, as she noticed him. Her eyes were down cast, and she shivered just a bit.

“Buffy, baby, I’m glad you came home.” His voice was quiet, and sincere. Will’s pale blue eyes were on her, though she wasn’t looking up at him. “I know things got out of hand, and I never intended for you to go through it.”

Buffy nodded slowly, as her fingers nervously fiddled with the edge of her grease stained apron. Will was silent as she fiddled, and finally, her head rose slowly, until her eyes were locked with his.

Under her eyes were puffy bags, whether from crying, or lack of sleep, Will wasn’t certain. He offered her a small smile, hoping she would return it. When she didn’t, his feel from his lips.

“I didn’t do anything with her, Buff. We talked a lot, and grabbed something to eat, and then she came back here to watch a movie. I… I can’t say it felt good, or even innocent, but nothing happened.”

“Will, stop. Just stop.”

His heart lurched as she asked him to stop. A slight frown wrinkled at his brow as he waited for her to speak again.

“Can we just go back to last week, when things were fine? Before you disappeared? When you acted like you enjoyed being around me?” Will sighed deeply as he listened to her, and his own head dropped this time, his eyes drawn to the carpet under foot.

“Buffy, love, I know you want to know what happened, and I’m sorry I didn’t talk to you sooner. Maybe this whole thing could have been avoided, if I had.” During a slight pause, Will lifted his head again, and it tilted slightly to the side as he looked back into her eyes.

“Then tell me what happened. Trust me, Will.” Her words were spoken quietly, but he could hear the pleading in them.

“That morning, when I didn’t come home, Dru and Angel showed up at work. Got the snot beaten from me, before they told me they were getting married, and wanted me there. Now, it doesn’t seem like anything, but it hurt.” He drew in a steadying breath, and watched her carefully “Compared to how I’ve made you and myself feel this week, last week was like a bloody prance through a park.”

Emotion darkened eyes looked back at his, and Buffy nodded briefly, while waiting for him to finish.

“Point is, Buffy, I’ve been a daft pounce. Forgive me? I saw you there, in front of me, giving me your heart. But more than that, I saw you taking mine, and I got scared. I… well, to get strait to it, I love you, Buffy.”

A small gasp left her mouth, barely audible, as she dropped her nervous hands to her sides. Finally, she nodded her head and took a small step closer to him, as her eyes threatened tears.

“I… I forgive you, Will. Just, can we not do this again? Can we just talk to each other when we need to?”

He smiled again, this time a happier one, and he nodded himself. “Aye, love, we can.”

“Will?”

“Yes, love?”

“I love you.”

“I love you, too.”

'Epilogue

'8 months later

'Buffy’s hands nervously smoothed down the taffeta of her dress. Her hair was perfect, the long tresses curled and arranged artfully with small white flowers woven in and around the curls. A simple strand of tiny pearls was fastened around her neck, with a pair of matching earrings at her lobes. Her feet were encased in a lovely pair of satin shoes, and her legs were shrouded in silk nylons. The finishing touch would be the bouquet, which was still sitting off to the side on a small table.

'Willow stood behind her, helping to fasten the back of the dress. She placed her hands on Buffy’s shoulders, and smiled at the reflection in the mirror of the two friends.

'“Everything will be fine.”

'“I know. Things will be fine. In a few hours, it will be over with, and we can celebrate.”

'Buffy smiled and turned to her friend.

'“Well, it’s time.”

'Will frowned at the stubborn tie around his neck, and finally scowled as he dropped his hands.

'“Xan, mate? Little help here?”

'Xander chuckled and bit back a teasing comment before he reached up and quickly tied the bow tie at Will’s neck.

'“You ready for this, man?”

'“As I’ll ever be.”

'“Good, cause I think we’re supposed to be out there now.”

'Will nodded, and with one last adjustment to the tie, he followed Xander out the door.

'Buffy peeked into the room, which was packed with more people than she’d ever even known. With a deep breath, she smiled over at Willow, and nodded.

'“Let’s go.”

'Willow grinned, and walked towards the entrance way, and started to arrange the bridesmaids up with their groomsmen. She frowned and looked at Anya.

'“We’re missing someone”, she said quietly.

'“Yeah, I know. He’ll be out here, or I swear, I’ll cast a hex on him. It might not do anything now, but one day, when he least-”.

'“Yes, yes, yes, I know. Can we save the hex’s for after the wedding?”

'Anya just huffed, and nodded.

'Willow caught Buffy’s eye and rolled her own, while mouthing the words, “Drama queen”. Buffy stifled a giggle, and nodded, before slipping into her place in line. Finally, Will came sprinting out, and stepped up next to her. He placed a kiss on her cheek.

'“You look beautiful,” he whispered. She smiled and thanked him softly as the music inside the church began.

'“Alright, it’s time, so get out there and get me married!” Anya said in a loud and gleeful voice. Willow and Buffy again both rolled their eyes.

'Buffy sat at the head table sipping a glass of wine while the music played. The bride, no matter how annoying she could be, looked radiant, and Xander looked happy, as well. Will had disappeared just before the bridal dance had started, and Willow had gone to talk with one of Xander’s cousins. The meal was served, the drinks were flowing rather freely, due to the Harris clan, and everyone was having a good time.

'No matter how much she tried not to picture it, every few minutes, Buffy’s mind melted away, and she was imagining what her own wedding would look like. Xander had moved out of the loft just a week ago, and Willow would be staying with them, at least temporarily.

'As the song ended, Will looked at the DJ and nodded. Xander pulled Anya from the floor with some protest, and artfully stopped her from protesting too much with a kiss. The lights in the room were dimmed, with a single spotlight still on from the bridal dance. It swiveled over to Buffy, who looked up in surprise. Over the microphone, the DJ asked if everyone could please cast their attention to the girl in the spotlight. Her cheeks flaming, Buffy stood up to move, but the light followed her.

'“Sorry, doll, but we have a young man here who says to keep the light on you,” came over the speaker again. There was some laughter from the guests, before the mic was handed over to Will.

'“Buffy, love. Can you come out here, please?” Buffy’s belly about dropped out from her as she moved quickly over to where Will stood on the middle of the dance floor. The spotlight followed her the entire time. “I know, this isn’t the most ideal place, and Anya’s likely going to hex me for this, but Buffy, love, I had to ask. Will you do me the honor of becoming my bride?”

'Her mouth dry, Buffy just stared at Will, who was doing things right and proper, and down on one knee. In front of him, he held a small black velvet box up towards her. With a shaky hand, she reached for it, and snapped it open. Inside, nestled in white satin, was a gold ring with three diamonds on the band. The center diamond was larger than the other two, but all were fairly good sized.

'Blinking back tears, and failing just some, Buffy looked back at Will, and finally nodded. The audience, minus Anya who was now pouting rather loudly, all started to cheer and clap. Will stood up and dropped the mic as he took her in his arms and swung her around in a tight hug.

'“Oh, love, you’ve made me happy, not just for this, but for the past year. You made me complete.” Buffy laughed even as tears came unchecked down her cheeks.

'“You stole that from a movie, Will.” She accused him playfully. With a devious grin, Will nodded.
“Yeah, I did. What are you going to do about it, little one?”

'“I’m going to love you forever.”

'“Good, that’s what I was hoping for.”

'“Are you two done yet? This isn’t your night, it’s mine!” With a groan, Will looked back towards Anya, who now had the mic in her hands. The audience again laughed, and music started back up again as Will lead Buffy off the floor. As they left, Willow and Xander both came up to congratulate the happy couple.

'“So, love, now that you have me all to yourself, what are you going to do with me?” Will asked her later that night.
“I’m going to ravish… this ice cream.” With a grin, she swiped her finger through the ice cold confection, and dotted his nose.

'Before she could run, he tossed a pillow at her, which is how the couple spent their night: pillow fighting.

'The End

'I hope you’ve enjoyed the story, which I enjoyed writing. It took a long time, and many breaks, but the end came. I hope everyone got what they wanted from the story. Perhaps, someday, there will be a sequel, but I make no promises. For now, I will simply try to finish off more of my other stories as I can.

Thank you for sticking with me, and for the hundreds of reviews, emails, and posts on my tag board. They have helped me finish the story for you.