Chapter 15: Out of sight…

Title: Reunion time.

Author: Nikka

Author notes: Hi everyone, If you need to know about summary, rate and all the rest it's all in chapter 1 I'll just remind you that English is not my native tongue so you may find some spelling & grammar mistakes, you're more then welcome to let me know about them but remember you may find them while you read the story. Have fun.

Disclaimer: Angel & Buffy's characters are not my creation (wish they were) they belong to Joss Whedon and David Greenwalt. Other characters that are not familiar from the show do belong to me.

Author's remark: My chapters as of ch 12 will no longer be reproof by Sigma due to the fact that I have no internet and I'm asking someone else to post the remaining chapters for me. I want to take this opportunity and thank sigma for all the help. And I hope you will continue reading my story even without the excellent work sigma has done. Thank you again sigma for all your great work.

He turned to face her. Buffy seemed a bit embarrassed that Angel caught her staring.

"Hi." She said and walked straight to the kitchen. Angel followed her to the kitchen not before giving Cordy one last look.

"So, had a nice walk." He tried not to throw all his questions at her all at once. He wanted to give her time so she can tell him herself.

"Not really." She poured herself a glass of juice and set on one of the stools. "I went to see Spike."

"SPIKE!" angel said his name a bit louder then he intended to, almost like a shout. Buffy looked at him. He didn't want to upset her so he changed the tone. "Ho, Spike."

"I know you're surprised. You're probably thinking why Spike, right?" Angel didn't say anything although that's exactly what he was thinking.

"Spike is the only one who gets it. He's the only one who knows how it feels to feel completely happy and then all at once miserable." Angel set beside her; he didn't say anything he just let her talk. "I know his circumstances are different and more sick then mine but the feeling is the same. He listened to me when no one else could. I couldn't tell my friends, my family it would have hurt them too much. Look at today, I wasn't there but I'm sure they were all in shock when Cordelia told them." She looked at Angel waiting for something, some kind of a reaction.

"I get why you had to talk to someone other then your friends." Buffy looked at him disbelieving. "Really I do. But I don't get why you chose Spike?"

"Whom else could I have turned to?" He seemed upset by her question.

"Me." She looked at him. "When we met you could have told me I would have helped."

"Really Angel, you would have helped? How exactly?" She looked at him with an angry face.

"What do you mean 'how'? I would have talked to you and helped you through this."

"But you have a life of your own now." Angel looked at her trying to understand, she caught that. "Don't you get it? Hell I got it, just now when I saw you kissing Cordelia that was my final approval." She stopped took a drink from the juice.

"Buffy I…" He didn't know what to say.

"I watched you while you were here I still watch you. I could see how you care for one another how she takes care of your son, how everyone regards her as his mother, how you protect her and want to keep her safe. I could see all of that. I know you love her." Those words echoed in the room, it caught Angel off guard. "I know you love her differently, not like you loved me. I know this is more intense, more real. You've changed, everyone changed. The Cordelia chase I see today is not the same Queen C I used to know. She's changed. She's not selfish anymore. What she did for me, what she does for people…" Buffy stopped there; she knew he got the point.

"How could you tell?" He asked hesitantly.

"Angel I was your love, I knew you completely and many things may have changed but I can still know what you're feeling, and what you feel for Cordelia is more then a friendly love, it's just love, the real deal, like we had but more."

"More how?" Now he was curious.

"More mature. You two have a life, a child, and a job. You have everything we couldn't have because of who we were, what we wanted out of life was different." She stopped for a second. "Well what I wanted out of life was different. I wanted to be normal, to go to college have a normal boyfriend and keep the slaying business as far away as possible." She smiled, apparently life had a different idea then she did. "But Cordelia… I don't know, I guess some how along the way she changed her dreams and decided to scarify her life, a normal life to help you, to help others. She gave up the idea of been an actress I assume?"

"Yeah she did but the curse…" Buffy cut in.

"The curse was a part of it but the main cause was that I wanted a normal life. I tried so hard for so long to deny the slayer in me, I regarded it as a job, and sometimes I still do. And when I finally came to except the fact that I can't run away from it I tried to hide it and keep it away from my life as possible. I wanted the extraordinary part of my life to stay far away from my ordinary part, and I guess you already know which category you belonged to." Angel looked at her, his eyes filled with pain, pain for the girl he loved so. How she changed, how bitter she became. Life did this to her, not slaying. He always feared that slaying would make her into a bitter person who fights not just real demons but also the one's inside her. But as it turned out life did for her, her ordinary life as she called them. They took her mother, her freedom, and her laughter and now they took away her peace of mind as well.

"Angel" she called his name and he looked at her. "Where were you?"

"Thinking." He stopped and held her hand, which took her by surprise. "Buffy, I'm sorry." He said softly.

"Angel there's nothing for you to be sorry about…"

"No, there is. I'm sorry I wasn't there for you when you needed me the most. I'm sorry life have been so hard on you and took so much from you." Soft tears appeared in her eyes. "I'm sorry being the slayer made life such a living hell for you. I'm sorry you're alone, I'm sorry your peace was stolen from you and most of all I'm sorry you shut love out." By now tears were running down her cheeks. She looked at him and he took her into his arms and she cried and cried and all he did was hold her.

They set like this holding for so long that they didn't even notice they had company. In the entrance to the kitchen stood Cordelia while in the backdoor entrance stood Spike both looking at the two not even seeing one another. They both had a shocked look on their face, a misbelieving look.

Cordy backed up and hit the wall by mistake Both Angel and Buffy jumped. They looked straight at Cordelia who still had a confused look on her face.

"I… I'm sorry." She was barely able to say that much.

"Cor I didn't know you were up." Angel said as he got up from the stool and walked towards her.

"I heard a sound and got up". She explained.

Suddenly Buffy heard a noise from the bushes. "There's someone out there" she said and grabbed a stake and walked out.

"Stay here Angel ordered Cordy and walked out with Buffy. Cordy used the opportunity to take a big breath and sit down for a moment.

Outside Buffy saw a figure walking away she recognized it. "It's okay Angel I know who it is I'll be right back" and she ran after that person. Angel who also had a slight idea who that person was turned around and walked back into the house.

"Spike, wait." He didn't stop walking. "Would you wait a minute I know it was you out there what are you trying to do? Stalk me like before? Don't tell me the sick love thing is back again."

"No luv, why should it. I'm nothing right? Just a beast that listens to you complain about the world right? I'm here to serve you." He bowed down and then kept on walking.

"Stop, you idiot." She grabbed his jacked and he turned to face her. "What are you mumbling about? And no fooling around." He looked at her seriously.

"I just came to see how you were doing. After our talk you seemed upset so… I wanted to make sure you were fine. But no worry if Angelus is here I'm sure you're happy, now that your boy toy is back." Buffy gave him a look that said you're an idiot. "Hi why don't you shag the fellow and we can have real fun in this town for once." He smiled his annoying smile.

"Spike, I stand corrected you're not and idiot." He looked surprised. "You're a complete idiot. Is that what you were thinking? Did you really think Angel and I are back together? Have you no eyes or brain at all?"

"What do you mean?" Spike got curious.

"Cordelia you dumb ass he's obviously in love with her." Spike looked at her not sure what to make of this.

"Then what were you two doing hugging each other so tightly?"

"Not that it's any of you're business, but we were talking and it got really personal and he helped me, that's all."

"Talking… about what?" He inquired.

"That's non of your business. It's personal and now I'm going home." She turned around and walked away.

"No wait." He ran after her grabbing her arm. She stopped.

"What now Spike?"

"I just thought they might need some time alone."

"Who? Angel & Cordelia? Why?"

"For a slayer you're not that bright, are you?" Buffy gave him a nasty look. "She probably got the wrong idea like I did, and they need some time alone to work it out." Buffy thought about it for a moment and then kept walking. "Didn't you hear me luv?"

"I heard you but I still need to sleep. Where do you suggest I do that?"

"Well pet, actually you can always stay at my comfortable…"

"No way spike, I'll take my chance, thank you." She turned and walked away.

"Are you sure, cause if you change your mind you can always…."

"Not likely, I'll sneak in by the back door they'll never even notice me."

"Your lost my pet, your lost." He called after her and when she was gone he turned around and kept walking back to his crypt.

Angel walked back to the house and into the kitchen Cordy wasn't there. He walked to the living room and saw her on the couch staring at the TV that was on.

"Anything interesting?" he asked and he by her. She moved a bit to create a distance between them, but she made it look like she's giving him room to sit, but he got the message.

"Not much." She turned off the television set and grabbed a magazine that was on the coffee table.

"Do you want to talk about it?" he asked. She kept browsing through the magazine.

"Talk about what?" She played it dumb.

"Come on Cor, you saw Buffy and me…" he didn't know how to put in to words.

"Reunion?" She completed the sentence for him, still her eyes were on the magazine but it was obvious she wasn't reading it.

"Could you please put it down"? He said as he grabbed the magazine and throw it on the coffee table. She turned to look at him and she was obviously upset.

"What Angel? What do you want from me? You're a big boy and you can do what ever you want with whom ever you choose to. As long as you two don't do the crazy dance I'm fine."

"Crazy dance?" he wondered out loud.

"Sex Angel. S-E-X, need a drawing to understand?"

"Very funny Cor, I know what you mean I just don't know where you get these ideas?"

"I'm a creative person, plus your little show back there kind of made it clear for me." She grabbed the magazine again.

"Made what clear?" Angel tried to follow her lead but he lost her some where along the way.

"That you're still in love with her, that you never got over her and that all the talks we had about you telling me how over you are on the Buffy thing were just crap."

"I didn't lie to you, and I'm not in love with Buffy."

"Well you could have fooled me, angel."

"Cor, listen". He took the magazine away and held her hands making her turn so she can face him. "Buffy was upset, she needed a friend. So we talked and things came out and she cried, so I comfort her that's all. That's what you saw. I promise you that I'm not lying to you. I will always care about Buffy but I don't love her like this, not anymore. Do you believe me? Do you trust me?"

Cordelia looked at him she knew he was telling the truth, but what she couldn't understand was why she was so upset to see him and Buffy like that. What does she care, she have seen them like this a million times in the past, why now?

"Yeah, I do. I'm sorry for my behavior."

"Why did you get so upset?" She hoped he wouldn't ask that question, after all she didn't know herself. So she improvised just like a true actress does.

"Just seeing you, I thought you'd go all Buffy crazy and deiced to move back here with Conor and leave the AI team and I didn't want you to leave me… us, our work." Angel looked at her, he wasn't sure she was telling the truth, it didn't sound like the Cordy he knew, but what else could it be. He just thanked god she didn't hear the complete conversation that really could have been embarrassing. "And you can say I'm crazy" she kept talking pulling him away from his thoughts. "Or that I'm over reacting but let's remember who we're dealing with. This girl made you go all evil on your friends then sent you to hell then dumped you for a solider boy. She has some kind of holding on you, she always had." She looked at him praying he'll believe, heck she believed it by now.

"Okay I get your wordiness, but really there's no need for it. I'm not going anywhere except back to L.A. with you, Conor and the gang. I promise." He smiled and gave her a short friendly hug. Maybe if she said something else maybe if that wasn't the reason maybe he could tell her how her really felt. Maybe.

"Well speaking of home, when are we leaving Sunnydale?" Cordy asked all of the sudden. Angel didn't know what to answer her. On one hand he wanted more time with Buffy, to help her and be her friend. But on the other hand he had obligations and a job and employees he couldn't stay here much longer.

"One more day. We'll give it one more day and then we're gone, okay?" he smiled at her.

"Okay" she smiled back and got up. "Now let's go to bed, I'm so tired." He nodded and they both went up the stairs laughing.

She could hear them laughing from her room. Her heart felt heavy. She opened a drawer in her night dresser where she put all her personal things. She took out a bag and took out of it a silver cross, a ring and a book. There was also and old high school notebook that she wrote all over it Buffy & Angel 4 ever. She looked at all the things and old, good, happy memories flooded her. She took it all and put it back in the bag and shoved it in her closet deep inside. Out of sight….

She went back to bed and turned off the lights.

Hi ppl,

I hope you'll enjoy this chapter. Again sorry for the delay with update. I still want to write one more chapter, maybe even 2 more, so tell me what you think about that idea. And as usual I'm always glad to get reviews good and not so good they're all welcomed. So please review.

Thanks Nikka.