A/N: I do not own Buffy the Vampire Slayer or the characters (it would be nice though), they belong to Josh Whedon (a genius if I say so myself) and UPN. This is also my fist Buffy fic so comments are welcome, but please no flames.



1 ALWAYS, I PROMISE



After one late night of working at the Doublemeat Palace and slaying vampires around town Buffy was beat. Intending to take a shower and rest before her shift at the Doublemeat the next day, but these intentions stopped when she passed by Dawn's room to hear muffled cries. Slowly Buffy opened her sister's door and saw the young girl with puffy eyes, a red face, sitting on the bed and squeezing a pillow with all she had in her fingers. "Dawnie, what's wrong? What happened?"

With a rage Dawn looked at her sibling, "Perhaps a miracle for you, Buffy. Spike is leaving Sunnydale."

Buffy stumbled. Spike. Leaving. The words knocked the wind out of her. "What do you mean he's leaving," she asked. "Answer me Dawn!"

"When I went to see Spike today he was packing up his things. When I asked him what he was doing he said that 'he was no longer needed in Sunnydale.' I told him I still needed him but he said 'I love you Lil Bit' and that I knew how to take care of myself and that he had to leave. Would you know anything about it Buffy?"

Buffy, still completely shocked stood in one spot, "Has he left yet Dawn?"

"He didn't tell me when he was leaving, but knowing him he already did."

"Dawn I'm going out for a minute, go to sleep," Buffy exclaimed as he ran as fast as she could leaving Dawn with a small smile of hope.







With all the power Buffy possessed she ran to Spike's crypt. When Dawn told her that Spike was leaving time stopped. She knew that she couldn't let him leave, she wouldn't lose someone else. She got to the crypt and flung the door open looking eagerly for Spike. She spotted him on the couch packing up his last things into a tiny suitcase. Buffy ran over and stopped him from putting more in.

"What the bloody hell do you think you're doing slayer?" Spike shouted.

"You can't leave," Buffy said forcefully.

"Why can't I slayer? It's what I'm doing right now isn't it?"

"You can't leave," she repeated.

"Tell me why, Buffy."

"Because I love you," she exclaimed before realising what was coming out of her mouth. She loved Spike; this revelation just popped up.

"What do you mean?" Spike gasped. Does she mean it? He though.

"I- I love you, William," she hadn't called him that since the morning that she told him it was over. Seeing the expression on his face she began to explain. "Spike, every man I have ever loved or cared for has left me. First there was my dad who left for Spain with his secretary and didn't bother to remember that he has two daughters. Then there was Angel," Buffy saw Spike flinch at the name then looked into his eyes, "He was the first person I loved in a romantic way, and like my father he left.

"When Riley came along I was still healing. I was scared to love him so I kept myself from doing just that. As you know he went to seek love from other sources. The night he left Xander of all people made me realise that I loved him. I ran as fast as I could to where Riley's helicopter was, but I was too late, it was already taking off.

"One of the big blows came was when Giles told me he had to go. I though Giles would always be there, standing around in a tweed suit, drinking tea. I know he left to help me but it still hurt a lot.

"Having every man I love leave I wouldn't open up my heart again, too scared that maybe that if it happened again it would never heal," Buffy looked away while twisting her hands nervously in her lap, "I wouldn't let myself love you. When Dawn told me you were leaving I knew I had to stop you."

Spike lifted Buffy's face to look into his eyes. "I wont leave you love, I promise."

"You promise, always?" Buffy said sounding childlike.

"Always, I promise," in one sweep Spike gathered Buffy into his arms while in the first time for a while she had tears of joy running down her face.