Part 8
With the force from Angel's punch, Lorne was sent sliding across the floor on the chair he was still tied to. Gunn held up the battle-axe defensively, pushing Fred behind him. She moved over to where Wes, Cordy, Willow, and Xander stood.
Buffy stood in a fighting stance, stake gripped in her right hand. The way she was looking at Angel made his unbeating heart break.
The smoldering look didn't really mask the hurt in her eyes. She felt betrayed because she really liked him.
"It's not… He just…" Angel began.
"Well our mystery is solved," Wesley said bitterly.
"Is this a convenient time to point out that I hit on a VAMPIRE? I mean, imagine, he could've bit me when we were making out or something!"
Everybody did their best to ignore Cordy's pointless ranting.
Angel was now surrounded by Buffy, Gunn, Wesley, and Xander, the girls watching from the outskirts.
"Please," Angel softly pleaded, "I don't wanna hurt anyone."
He met the green-blue eyes of Buffy and he heard her mutter sadly, "You already did."
Just then, a stake shot out from Wesley's forearm and hit Angel's side, he apologized, but quickly mended it with a "HA!"
After vamping out, Angel defended himself when Gunn attacked. The souled vamp wrestled the axe away from Gunn and threw him across the room. He mumbled an apology when Xander came at him and then kicked him fiercely, making him land on the opposite side of the lobby with one blow to the stomach.
Cordelia found shelter behind Lorne, while Fred and Willow ducked behind the counter, all of them watching with frightened eyes.
After Wesley activated his swords from his sleeves, he swung at Angel, but he avoided it by punching Wes' nose and sending him to the floor.
With an instinctive growl, Angel whipped around to come face to face with Buffy. She had been still during the battle, waiting for the right time to fight him.
For a few moments, they just stared at each other. Suddenly, Buffy lunged at Angel, and they were soon trading powerful blows. The fight was so intense it went from the lobby to the storage room of the hotel.
Buffy flipped him into the cement floor and she quickly straddled him, pinning him down so he couldn't move in the process. She raised her stake, ready to strike and turn him to dust, aiming for the heart.
