A/N: First off, I wanna thank all my reviewers. It means a lot that you guys read it and enjoyed it, I really appreciated it:) Okay, and to reassure you all, no, Buffy isn't dead. I'd never do that lol. Also, as I'll explain soon, the bomb was planted after they arrived at the hotel. I also want to apologize for the wait, I was gone for a while and couldn't update, and then my computer crashed and I had to rewrite most of the chapter. Thank you all for being patient, I hope my story was worth it. Alright, I'll let you read it now before I give everything away. Oh, and a big thank you to my beta Katie aka Ani8.
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Angel rushed into the hotel, carrying a bloody, unconscious Buffy in his arms.
Gunn walked out from behind the counter and followed Fred over to Angel's side. "What happened to her?"
"There was an explosion. We need to get her to the hospital." Angel's voice was filled with concern for Buffy's safety. "Gunn, can you drive us?"
"Yeah, sure." Gunn made his way out to the car and opened up the door for Angel, who was still holding Buffy. "Here, I'll take her."
"No." Angel clutched Buffy a little bit tighter to his chest and looked down at her battered face. "I've got her." He got into the car, cradling Buffy in his arms all the way to the hospital.
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Buffy awoke to the faint beeping sound of a heart monitor, and the rhythmic dripping of an IV that was connected to her hand. Her eyes fluttered open, revealing a dingy hospital room. The curtains were pulled shut, but in the dim light of the room she could see Angel sitting in a corner, diligently watching over her. "Hey, there." Her voice was low and raspy and Angel snapped his head up quickly at the sound of it.
"You're awake." Angel smiled and moved his chair closer to her bedside. "How are you feeling?"
"Kinda like I got hit by a mack truck and fell off a ten-story building." She strained out a light smile. "I'm kidding."
Angel glowered at her, not buying it.
"Alright, so I'm not kidding. But I'll be okay. Slayer strength, remember?" Buffy lifted up the hand with the IV in it and moved it around as a display. "See, I've got full use of my limbs and everything."
"The doctors said you were in pretty bad shape. That explosion hit you full force." Angel felt a pang of guilt as he mentioned the explosion.
"Explosion?" Buffy thought back to the events that had happened before. "The car. I was trying to drive back to Sunnydale and… oh my god. I have to get back!" Buffy sat up in the bed and pushed back the thin blankets covering her body. "Willow and everyone, they need me. I have to—"
"Buffy, stop." Angel placed his hands firmly on both of her shoulders and gently pushed her back down onto the bed.
"Angel, no, you don't understand. She's going to end to world. I have to stop her!" Buffy tried to get up again, but Angel's strong hands held her in place.
"No, you don't." He removed one hand from her shoulder and pulled the blankets back up over her. "Everything's fine."
"What? No, it's not!" Buffy stared at him in shock, wondering what the hell was wrong with him.
"Yes, it is. I called Giles while you were asleep, everyone's okay." Angel let go of her shoulder and brought his hand up to her face. He carefully brushed a strand of hair back behind her ear before letting his hand drop down to the edge of the bed.
"Giles?" Buffy tensed up at his name, thinking back to what Willow had done to him.
"He's fine." Angel leaned back a bit in his chair.
"What about Willow?" Fear ran through her body again and she prayed that they hadn't killed her.
"She's okay too. Apparently Xander stopped her." He scoffed a bit at the thought of Xander doing something helpful.
"Xander saved the world?" Buffy's fear melted and she smiled again.
"I guess so." Angel tried his best to keep from rolling his eyes.
Buffy laid there in silence for a moment, then looked all around her and shut her eyes tightly. "I hate hospitals."
"I know." Angel looked down at his lap, not wanting to look directly at her. "I'm so sorry, Buffy. This is all my fault."
Buffy's eyes flew open as she turned to look at him. "How is this your fault? You didn't put that bomb in there, did you?"
"No, of course not. But I'm pretty sure that Connor did. He must have followed us home and done it when we were inside." Angel shook his head. "He was trying to hurt me."
"Angel." Buffy reached out her hand and placed it under his chin, lifting his face up so she could see it. "I was the one who ran out there. If anyone, it's my fault. Okay? Don't blame yourself." She smiled weakly and removed her hand from his cheek. Her hand dropped down into his lap and she intertwined her fingers with his.
"I can't help but feel responsible. He's my son, and I let you get involved." Angel gently tightened his grip on Buffy's hand as he spoke.
"You didn't let me do anything. I believe Willow was the one who decided to stick me out on that beach to help you." She returned the squeeze of his hand. "Speaking of which, why'd you pick such a romantic spot to have a fight? I was just curious. Some father-son bonding time gone awry?"
"No. He wasn't even supposed to be there. I was… umm, I was…" Angel's eyes widened as a wave of realization hit him.
"Angel? You were what? What is it?" Buffy searched his face in an attempt to read his expression, but she couldn't muddle through the confusion.
"I have to go." He abruptly shot out of his chair and released Buffy's hand. Without another word, he grabbed his coat and rushed out of the hospital room.
"Angel? Angel!" Buffy yelled as loud as her voice would allow, but it was no use. She sunk back down into her pillow in exhaustion, completely baffled about Angel's strange reaction.
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Angel rounded the corner and saw Fred and Gunn waiting patiently in the lobby. He walked up to them as he slipped his long coat on over his shoulders. "Watch her." He nodded his head in the direction of Buffy's room.
Gunn got up out of his chair with a look of puzzlement on his face. "Wait, where are you going?"
Angel yanked his coat up over his head. "There's something I have to do." He pushed open both of the glass hospital doors and stepped out into the dim morning light. He kicked open the nearest manhole and disappeared into the sewers.
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Angel busted open the door to Connor's room to see the scruffy teenager rummaging through some of his things.
Connor turned around to see Angel standing menacingly in the doorway. "Oh, hey Dad." He laughed at the arrogance in his voice as he sarcastically said 'Dad'. "So, who's the new girl?" He flippantly asked the question as he continued to go through his drawers. "She another one of those poor idiots that you tricked into believing you weren't a heartless bastard?" Connor barely had the chance to turn around before Angel slammed him in the wall by the throat.
"Where is she?" Angel's voice was barely above a growl.
"I don't know! She was with you!" Connor grabbed Angel's hand and pulled it off of his neck.
Angel regained his hold on Connor's throat and pressed him harder into the wall. "Not her. Cordelia."
"What about Cordelia?" Connor strained out his words due to the pressure on his vocal chords.
"You did something to her." The desperation was clear in his voice. He loosened his grip and removed his hand from Connor's neck.
"Why would I do anything to Cordelia? She wasn't the one who murdered my fa…" He closed his eyes for a second. "Holtz."
"I didn't kill him!" Angel slowly took in a deep breath. "Cordelia was supposed to meet me last night when you attacked me."
"And you just assume that I did something to keep her away. Did it ever occur to you that maybe she didn't show up because she realized the truth about you?" Connor smirked and started shoveling clothes and other items into a duffel bag. "I wouldn't hurt her."
Angel sighed. He knew that Connor wasn't lying. "I believe you." Angel closed the distance between him and Connor. "Now get out of my house."
"Gladly." Connor picked up his bag and ran into Angel's shoulder as he pushed by him.
"Oh, and Connor?" Angel watched as Connor turned around to face him. He swung back and delivered a hard right cross to Connor's cheek.
The force of the blow caused Connor to drop his bag and slam into the door frame. He brought a hand up to nurse his swelling face. "I told you, I didn't—"
"I know. That was for Buffy." Angel picked up the bag and shoved it into Connor's arms, keeping a firm hold on the handle. He pressed himself closer to Connor and glared down at him. "If you ever do anything to hurt her again, you'll get a lot worse than a black eye, understand?" He let go of the strap and pushed the bag into Connor's chest as he backed away.
Connor didn't bother to respond, he just slammed the door behind him as he left.
Angel listened to Connor's footsteps until he couldn't hear them anymore. Once he was sure Connor had left the building, he sunk down on the bed behind him. He let his head drop down into his hands and absent-mindedly ran his fingers through his hair as he contemplated what to do next.
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Buffy walked into the hotel with her arm draped over Gunn's shoulder for support. "Where is he?" She took a quick look around the lobby but didn't find Angel.
"He's probably up in his room, I'll take you there." Gunn offered up a smile as he steered Buffy towards the stairs.
"Thank you." Buffy readjusted her arm to make sure she wouldn't fall.
Once they reached Angel's door, Gunn slid Buffy's arm off of his neck. "Here you go."
"Thanks." She smiled weakly as she reached for the door knob. She quietly pushed the door open to reveal Angel sitting in a chair with his sketchbook.
Angel's head snapped up at her presence and quickly stopped drawing.
"So… you feel like telling me why you ran off and left me in hospital bed this morning?" There was a hint of anger in her voice when she spoke.
"Buffy, you're back." Angel got out of his chair and helped Buffy over to sit on the bed.
"Yeah. The doctor said I didn't have any major injuries. Which you would have known if you had stuck around." She looked up at him accusingly.
"I'm sorry. I just had something I needed to take care of." Angel felt a pang of guilt for leaving Buffy.
"Would that something have anything to do with why you were on that bluff last night?"
Angel sighed and sat down next to her. "Yeah."
"You feel like sharing?" Buffy knew he didn't, but she wanted to know anyway.
"I was supposed to meet Cordelia." Angel could feel the guilt swelling in his chest.
"And you're afraid that Connor did something to her." Buffy was starting to understand.
"That's the problem, he didn't do anything." Angel almost wished Connor had done something, only because it would make things simpler.
"Then what's with the dire? One night isn't exactly grounds for panic. She'll turn up." Buffy smiled sweetly and rested her hand comfortingly on Angel's knee.
"I hope so." Angel placed his hand overtop of Buffy's, enjoying the feeling.
"Wait." Buffy pulled her hand back. "Why were you meeting Cordelia there in the first place?"
Angel looked into Buffy's eye, not wanting to tell her the truth.
Buffy started rambling in an attempt to rationalize the situation. "What, did she have one of her vision things, and she had to tell you right away, so you guys just picked a convenient spot because it was—"
"I was going to tell her that I loved her."
The shock was evident on Buffy's face as she stopped talking. "You mean like friend love? As in 'I appreciate all you do for me' kind of love?" Buffy's heart sank when she didn't receive an answer. "I see."
"Buffy, I didn't mean to hurt you." Angel attempted to touch her, but she abruptly got off the bed.
"Hurt? Who's hurt? I'm fine." Her actions betrayed her words as she paced around the room. "It's not like I expected you to be hung up on me forever." She knew that was a flat out lie, but she hoped that Angel couldn't tell.
Angel got off the bed and walked over to her. "Buffy, stop." He grabbed her by the shoulders, stopping her pacing. "I'm sorry."
"You moved on. No need to be sorry." She was trying her hardest to be cruel to him, even though she really didn't want to.
Angel's dark brown eyes had pain etched all through them. He did love Cordelia, but he couldn't even imagine loving her the way he loved Buffy. "It doesn't mean that I—"
"Don't." Her eyes stung as hot tears started streaming down her face. "Don't tell me that you still love me, because when it comes to you and me I have this tendency to go catatonic."
Her words struck him like a blow to the stomach. "I remember."
"Oh, no." She shoved his arms off of her shoulders. "You don't get to play the good guy."
"Buffy, come on. You even said yourself that you've done things that you weren't proud of." Angel didn't want to hurt her, but his temper was flaring.
"Don't turn this around on me. You're the one who fell in love with a slut!"
"She is not a slut." Angel's words were punctuated by a growl.
"Oh, real cute, Angel. What are you gonna do, hit me?" She walked closer, daring him to do it.
"You know I wouldn't do that." Angel's voice was still filled with anger towards her.
"I seem to recall you did it before. While you were protecting yet another skanky brunette." The memory of that day only spurred Buffy on further. "I mean, speaking of things we aren't proud of, what about your little prison buddy Faith?"
"Don't bring her into this. I only meant that you have no room to judge me when you aren't exactly perfect either."
"I may not be perfect, but I'm not the one telling people I love them on romantic beaches!" The pain rang out in her voice.
"You were the one who told me you made mistakes." Their bodies were dangerously close now, his face only inches away from hers.
"Yeah, I made mistakes, but I was never in love with Spike!" The second the words came out of her mouth she wished she could take them back.
They stood there in complete silence for a few moments, unsure of what to say. Finally Angel stepped back from her. "Spike?"
Buffy shut her eyes tightly before meeting Angel's gaze again. "We were… I've been sleeping with him."
Angel chuckled at the thought of it. "Who's the slut now?"
Buffy couldn't believe he said that. She brought her hand up and slapped him across the cheek, leaving a red hand print. "How dare you? You don't know how hard it's been for me. I was torn out of heaven and the only time I ever felt anything was when I was with Spike. He made me feel loved."
"He wanted you as a trophy. You were just another slayer for him to obsess over." Angel's whole body was pulsing with jealousy. The thought of Spike getting his hands on Buffy made him want to do some serious damage.
"No. He really did love me. But I was just using him, so I broke it off." Buffy shook her head. "He tried so hard to make me love him." Images of Spike's attempted rape flashed through her mind. She shut her eyes and winced at the painful memories.
Angel's jealousy was replaced with worry as he saw Buffy's actions. He could sense that there was something she wasn't telling him. "Buffy." Angel moved closer to her to get a better look at her face. "Did he do something to you?"
The tears were back in Buffy's eyes. Xander had seen what had happened to her, but she hadn't told anyone else about it. "He-- he tried. I stopped him."
"He tried to rape you." Angel was overwhelmed with sadness and anger.
Buffy felt Angel's strong arms wrap around her body as he pulled her into a tight embrace. Sobs racked through her body as she cried into his shirt. She just felt so dirty.
Angel lightly stroked her hair as she cried. "I'm gonna kill him." He let her go and made for the door.
Buffy grabbed his arm. "Angel."
"No. I'm going to Sunnydale right now and I'm going to rip his head clean off his body." Angel tried for the door again, but Buffy placed her hand on his chest.
"You can't." She appreciated Angel's intentions, but couldn't let him go after Spike.
"After what he did? I'm going to do that and a lot worse." He removed Buffy's hand from his chest and squeezed it.
"I know. But he's gone. He took off somewhere."
"Then I'll just have to find him." Angel moved past Buffy, but he felt a small tug on his hand.
"Please. Can you just stay with me?" She smiled sweetly at him, glad that the fighting was over.
"Sure." Angel glanced over at the curtained windows and noticed that there was very little light shining through. "It's getting late, I'll let you rest." He led her over to the bed and let go of her hand.
Buffy laid down and watched as Angel went to sit in his chair. "Angel?" She knew it was risky, but she asked anyways. "Could you stay here?" She patted the bed beside her and looked up meet see his reaction. "Will you just hold me?"
The look on her face was enough to make his heart melt. He couldn't say no to her. He walked over to the bed and crawled beside her. He cradled her in his arms as she rested her head on his chest. His mind drifted back to another time he had held her like this.
"This is the first time I've ever really felt this way."
"What way?"
"Like a normal girl… falling asleep in the arms of her normal boyfriend."
They were the furthest thing from normal at this moment, but having her in his arms made everything feel right. He softly planted a kiss on the top of her head.
Buffy closed her eyes and snuggled closer to him. She knew that this didn't really mean anything and that tomorrow they would have to go back to their painful lives. But when she felt his lips press against her head she knew that this was exactly where she needed to be. The worries of Cordelia and Spike would just have to wait until later.
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Up in the clouds, on some other plane, a shimmering figure watched over the couple. The figure's face slowly became clearer, and looked like a very pissed off woman. Cordelia Chase watched from above as Buffy fell asleep in Angel's arms. She huffed angrily. "That bitch."
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A/N: So, it's been awhile, and again I apologize. This wasn't the way I had intended the chapter to end, but I needed B/A cuteness. Plus I enjoyed Cordelia's reaction. And yes, I realize that the cuddle scene was very much stolen from Episode 7x20, Touched. But it was just too good to pass up! And so much better when it was with Angel hehe. Oh, also—Angel's memory quote was from Episode 1x8, I Will Remember You. So, please review and tell me what you think:D
