Buffy and Xander stared at each other in tense silence, both waiting for the other to speak first. Xander appeared to have come prepared for a confrontation, standing with his arms crossed across his chest and wearing a defiant expression.

Buffy was the one who eventually broke the standstill. "How did you know?"

"I heard you and your watcher arguing about it yesterday," Xander informed her, shooting Giles a pointed glare behind her.

"So you knew that I was planning on telling Willow about Angel?" Buffy asked, unable to keep the hurt out of her voice. She had assumed Xander had told Willow because he thought she wasn't going to. To find out that he had learnt she was about to tell Willow and rushed to tell her before she could was hurtful.

"No! I heard Giles demanding you to tell Willow. Which you still didn't!" Xander argued.

Seeing his animosity made her feel strangely justified in her own anger, this was just Xander being vindictive because he hated Angel. "I went to her house to tell her after my patrol. I just needed some time to-"

"Time?! You have had over three goddamn weeks to tell Willow. Or me for that matter."

All her anger drained away at the accusation. Unable to bear his judgemental gaze she looked down at her at her feet and softly admitted, "I didn't think you would understand."

"Well you were right, I don't understand," he confirmed, his voice sorrowful.

She didn't know how to respond. Angry Xander she was used to, hurt and betrayed Xander was a different matter. It had been agonizing to realize how she had failed Willow with her actions, and now she was beginning to understand that she had hurt Xander as well. Suddenly she felt more miserable and alone than she ever had before.

Suddenly the doors flew upon again and Cordelia walked in. "There you are, how come whenever I need you, you are always in the library?" Cordelia asked, looking at Xander in fond annoyance. When she eventually became aware of the strained atmosphere in the room her expression turned curious, "Jeez, what's with the sour faces?"

"I'm sure Xander will fill you in, he's very keen on that," Buffy told her, her voice breaking on the last word. Then without waiting for a reply she turned and fled from the library.

Giles waited until the last bell for the day had rung before making his way to Jenny's classroom. She was walking along the rows of computers, making sure everything was put away. He took a moment to observe her in silence, he had missed her greatly these last few days and he was well aware that this conversation may spell the end of their relationship.

She came to an abrupt halt when she turned and saw him standing there. His heart ached when he saw the guarded look come over her face, the usual affection painfully absent.

"Willow didn't show up for class. Do you know where she is? Is she okay?" she asked, crossing her arms across her chest.

"Uh," he stuttered, unsure how to answer her question. He had planned out wanted he wanted to say in excruciating detail, but now that the moment was here he found himself struggling to find the words.

"Oh god…" Jenny groaned.

Realizing that his hesitation had led her to make a distressing conclusion, he hurried to reassure her, "Willow's alright. I'd guess she didn't feel up to coming in today, which is understandable given the circumstances."

"What circumstances?"

He took a deep breath to steel himself, "The ritual to restore Angel's soul was successful."

"What?" Jenny exclaimed, her eyes widening in shock. "I don't understand, did you perform the ritual again?"

"No, it worked the first time. Buffy... made the decision not to tell anyone," he confessed somewhat reluctantly. While he understood that Buffy had been in a difficult position, her deception was still somewhat of a sore spot. "I believe she was worried over how Xander and Willow would react."

"Oh my god, Willow."

"She knows," he quickly assured her. "Xander told her."

"Xander?" she questioned, her expression turning impassive.

"He overheard myself and Buffy discussing the subject and decided to take matters into his own hands."

"How long have you known?" she asked, her voice nonchalant.

"Buffy told me last week," he admitted apologetically. He felt unsure of what to make of her detached demeanor. He had expected to be meet with anger and resentment, but her lack of reaction was somehow much worse. He suddenly had the horrifying thought that his confession might be too little too late and that she had already decided their relationship wasn't worth the effort. "Jenny, I'm sorry. I wanted to tell you, but Buffy didn't want anyone to know before she had the chance to tell Willow."

"How did Willow take it?" Jenny asked, ignoring his apology.

"She is… understandably upset," he acknowledged. "Jenny-"

"Am I to gather that this is the reason why you started avoiding me all of a sudden?" she interrupted, her tone short.

Strangely relieved to hear an underlying anger in her voice he reached out and grasped her hand in his. "Jenny, I'm so sorry. I couldn't stand the thought of lying to you… I thought I could just keep my distance for a day or two until I could tell you what was going on. Unfortunately, Buffy was somewhat reluctant in telling Willow and I…"

Jenny stared at their joined hands, her response hushed, "I don't know what to say."

"I wanted to tell you, I really did," he avowed, desperate for her to believe him.

"Rupert, I'm not angry that you didn't tell me about Angel", she exclaimed in exasperation, untangling her hand from his. "No, you know what, that's not true. I am angry you didn't tell me. And I realize that makes me sound like a total hypocrite after what I hid from you."

"Jenny-"

"But mostly I'm angry that you didn't trust me enough to understand why you couldn't tell me about his," she clarified, her voice laced with frustration. "I know that being a watcher has to come first, I may not always like it, but I accept it. And If anyone understand about having responsibilities towards people that sometimes have to take precedence it's me. But instead of trusting that I would understand you started pushing me away."

"I'm sorry," he repeated, aware of how utterly inadequate those words sounded.

"I know you are," she assured him, her expression sympathetic yet resolute. "But we can't keep doing this push and pull every time things get tough. We have to be able to trust each other otherwise this relationship is never going to work."

"Jenny… ever since I accepted that I was meant to be a watcher I've resigned myself to a life of solitude. And I was perfectly content with that. Then I meet you, and you managed to turn my entire world upside down." He reached out for her again and to his immense relief she responded in kind. "I suppose I'm so used to being on my own that… it's sometimes hard to let someone in, even if I want to."

"I know, it's hard for me too. Just promise me that you'll try, and that you won't push me away again."

"I promise," he vowed, reaching up with his free hand to gently cradle her face.

In answer she tilted her head up and covered his lips with her own. Kissing Jenny felt like coming home. He moved his hand to the back of her head, his other arm slipped around her waist and gently pulled her closer. She moaned in appreciation, deepening the kiss and carding her hands through his hair.

The sound of people running in the corridor penetrated the haze of arousal that was beginning to cloud his mind and he broke away with a gasp. "Perhaps not the… ideal place for this," he apologized, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear.

Jenny nodded in agreement, a devilish grin spreading across her face. "Let's find somewhere more private."

Buffy stood at the top of the basement stairs, quietly watching Angel. He was sitting on the battered old couch, reading a book. He must have sensed her presence, for he raised his head and meet her gaze.

His brow furrowed in concern as he took in her countenance. "Are you okay?"

"No," she admitted, to emotionally drained to even attempt pretending otherwise.

He stood up as she came down the stairs. "What's happened?"

Ignoring his question, she grabbed him by his collar and pulled him against her, their mouths crashing together in a heated kiss. Instantly his arms came up around her as she clung to him, deepening the kiss.

She wished this moment could last forever, that she could just forget about the world and get lost in the feeling of his arms holding her tight, the taste of his lips. But all too soon he was pulling away, his breathing hard as he reached up to grasp her hands which had made their way up into his hair and gently pulling them down.

She kept her eyes shut tight, not wanting the moment to end and reality set in. It wasn't until she felt him reach up to wipe away the tears running down her face that she realized she was crying.

"What's wrong?" he asked, the concern in his voice and the love shinning in his eyes making her heart ache painfully.

"I screwed up," she admitted, taking a step back. If she was going to do this then she needed to keep her distance. "I didn't tell anyone that your soul was restored."

"Why?"

"I was scared they wouldn't understand."

"After what I did… they can hardly be expected to want to have me around," he chided. "You should still tell them. It will be worse if they find out some other way."

It was good advice, too bad it was a few days too late. "They know… I had to tell Giles. Then Xander and Willow found out." She didn't elaborate on how they found out or what their reactions had been. She knew he was plagued by the things he had done as Angelus and she didn't want to make him feel worse than he already did.

"I'm sorry."

"It's not your fault," she insisted, even though she knew he wouldn't believe her. "You're not responsible for the things Angelus did."

"But I am. He' a part of me, whether I like it or not. That's never going to go away. It would have been better if you'd just ki-" he cut himself off, avoiding meeting her gaze as the unspoken implication hung heavy between them.

"I risked everything to save you," she confessed, her voice thick with tears.

"I'm sorry," he repeated, the words leaving her with a hollow feeling in her chest.

"No, I'm sorry. Because the truth is… I would do it again. I'd choose you over my friends, over my duty as a Slayer… even though I know I shouldn't."

"Buffy-"

"I love you," she declared, needing him to know that before this went any further. Taking a deep breath, she forced herself to say the hardest words she had ever spoken, "Which is why I can't ever see you again."

His shocked gaze seeked out hers. "What?"

"I thought it could be enough. That we… that we could go back to the way things where before… before any of this happened. But I can't stop loving you, and I'm not strong enough to stay away from you. Which means the only way I can keep everyone safe, keep you safe, is to not have you be a part of my life."

Part of her hoped he would object, that he would insist that he wasn't willing to leave her. She knew if he did she wouldn't be able to resist him. Instead he nodded in understanding, all too willing to give her up.

"I wish things were different," he professed. Stepping closer, he lifted one hand to gently cradle her face. "You know I'll always love you."

Tilting her head up, she pressed her lips to his in a soft kiss and whispered, "Goodbye Angel."

Knowing that if she didn't do it now, she wouldn't be able to, she forced herself to pull away. She could feel his gaze follow her as she hurried up the stairs. It took all her willpower not to look back.