He walked past the body of Willow. He walked past the bodies of Faith and Anya. He walked past the body of Giles, and past that of Xander, unknowing that Giles at least would wake up. Unknowing, too, that the others wouldn't. But he knew she wouldn't. Somehow, part of him just knew.
That didn't mean he was going to accept it. He stepped over Xander's lifeless form and knelt by her side. His black jeans got mud on them. He didn't notice.
"Buffy," he choked out, "wake up." He stroked her hair back from her face, and when he pulled his hand back, it was coated with blood. He sobbed upon seeing it, but his face remained dry. He looked back down at her with tortured eyes. "Come on, pet. Wake up."
Her own eyes stared back at him, oblivious, unseeing.
"Buffy, love, you've gotta wake up. You hear me? You've gotta wake up. You've gotta, cause I can't live without you." A small, sad, half-smile. "Couldn't barely unlive without you, so you can't leave me now, pet."
Tears started to trickle down his face, and Giles began to stir behind him. The man kneeling over the limp body of the woman he loved noticed neither.
"Buffy, please, wake up. You've gotta wake up. You've gotta see the nibblet graduate high school, love. You've gotta" He choked. "gotta give up slayin to Faith, like you said you were thinking on. And Buffy, love, you've gotta see this ring." He fished in his pocket, his hand unsteady, and pulled out a delicate emerald and diamond ring on a chain. "See this, love? Innit beautiful? I was planning on giving it to you, see, soon as we got through this." He began stroking her hair again. "It was my mum's, and I know she would have wanted you to have it, cause I love you so much. And, and she didn't have a daughter, so, well, I thought, a daughter in law…"
He wrapped her in his arms, then, stroked her hair, cradled her head, and held her tightly. Her arms didn't wrap around his neck like they should have. She didn't tilt her head back and look at him with sparkling eyes, so full of laughter. It was too much, and he began to shake her.
"Wake up!" He shook her again, harder this time, and her head lolled back. He steadied it with his hands again, and began rocked back and forth with her in his arms. "Cor, Slayer, don't you do this to me. Don't you finally tell me you love me, and finally make me the happiest I've ever been, ever, and then go and die on me. Don't you do that, Summers, don't you die! Don't you leave me, don't ever leave…"
A hand on his shoulder stopped him talking, but he continued to rock back and forth. His eyes, swollen and red from crying, looked emptily up to see Giles.
"Gi-," he tried, but choked on a sob. "Giles, do something." He swallowed, his throat dry, his voice broken, but continued to plead with the watcher. "Don't let her leave me, please. I need her. I…"
"Spike." Giles looked to the ground left of him, and of her, unable to look at Spike's face, and even less able to look upon the broken body of the woman he loved as a daughter. He was a watcher, he was her watcher, but he couldn't watch this. Never this.
He swallowed, his throat as dry as Spike's, and after a moment, forced himself to look the ex-vampire in the eyes. He looked so broken, so in need of someone to pick him up and pull him back together, but Giles couldn't be that person.
So instead, he spoke the words that neither of them wanted to hear.
"She's gone."
End.