She then looked back into his eyes. "And it's like you said isn't it? We have a lot of catching up to do, you and I."

Spike smiled crookedly at her, and brought their joined hands to his lips and kissed her fingers. Resting his chin in his other hand, he said "That we do, 'Bit".

"Don't." Dawn said in a steady voice.

Spike looked at her, confusion showing in his eyes again. "Don't. . . what, Nibblet?"

"That, don't call me that. Don't call me any of it. I'm not Nibblet anymore, and I'm certainly not your 'little bit'. You lost all rights to that when you left."

Spike didn't say anything, and a silence stretched over the two. After a few moments Dawn said in a harder tone, "Not that I expected you to know I've changed. You leaving me and all. How could you do that Spike? Stop-- " she was cut off mid sentence by Spike kissing her cheeks softly. She tried to regain her composure and finish her thought but was cut off again by his finger being pressed to her lips.

"Shh, Nibblet. Just listen, okay?" He said, pleading with his eyes. She was about to open her mouth and correct him, but he beat her to it. "Sorry love, Dawn"

For a moment he relaxed when he saw love flood over her features. But only for a moment, for it was quickly replaced with a look of fear.

"No. Why should I listen to you? I'm not your pet anymore. I'm not your platelet or nibblet. I'm not YOURS Spike." She said all this looking him right in the eye, her voice never wavering. After she finished, she moved to get up off the couch.

IN one swift movement, Spike swung his right leg over her, and pinned their still interlaced fingers gently to the sides of her head. She gasped, and he almost grinned at her wide-eyed deer-in-headlights look. He mouth hung open in shock, but she couldn't help the longing in her heart to be closer to Spike. She missed the feel of his cold body holding hers, and the comfort he used to bring to her. Even in this situation, as strange as it was, she felt safe under him. But her pride got the best of her as she screwed her face up into a scowl.

"Get. Off. Of. Me. Spike." She said, pronouncing every word as to get the point across.

"No." He said simply.

"What? Yes! Get OFF! I'm not going to let you-" She started struggling harder than ever, beating her clenched fists against his chest. Fury overtook her as she screamed at him.

"Dawn Summers, you are going to bleeding listen to me. I'm not going to leave you alone, I'm not going to get off of you. I'm going to park myself right here until you shut that pretty little mouth of yours and let me answer all those questions you bottle up in your heart." He leaned in closer as he said this, and waited patiently for her response.

Silence. Dawn couldn't think of anything to say to him. He knew her way to well for her to pretend she didn't care. He knew her inside and out, whether she had changed or not. She couldn't tell him to get off again because number one, she knew he wouldn't, and number two, she didn't really want him to. She could think of nothing to say to him, so she did the only thing that made sense at that moment.

She started crying.

Tears spilled from her big blue eyes, leaving tiny trails down her cheeks. Spike leaned in closer to her, and released her hands. Instead of pushing him away, they flew around his neck within seconds. Spike leaned to his right, and laid his body between the back of the couch and Dawn. He wrapped his arms around her waste and drew her up close to him, stroking her hair and whispering nothings to her, trying to comfort her.

He wasn't too experienced at the whole 'emotional support thing'. He had never felt so responsible for a single person his entire life, or unlife. He was overtaken with so many emotions he didn't know which to deal with first.

He hated himself, he hated that it had come to this. His Dawn, a shadow of the light she once was, crushed and beaten. He wanted to show her how sorry he was, but he couldn't think of where to start.

He took one of his hands and cupped it under her chin gently, making her face him. He studied her blue eyes carefully. Honest blue eyes. He could see her love for him. He could see how much it had torn her inside out when he left her. He could feel the loss in her, it was all around her, hovering thick in the air above their heads. He leaned in and kissed away the tear trails on her cheeks gently. He felt her long lashes brush against his own cheeks as her eyes closed.

Her body was shaking with suppressed sobs, but she gathered everything she had and pulled away from him. She looked into his cerulean eyes again. Oh, how she loved those eyes. They had always captured her, had always been able to bend her will and melt her heart. She needed to know.

"Why, Spike?"

He didn't have to ask what she was talking about. He knew bloody well. He thought for a moment, and said honestly, "Because I love you."

"Wh. . . what?" Her voice shook with emotion and she drew a hand up to her mouth to keep from crying more.

"I know you heard me. I love you, Nibblet. You were and are the best friend I have ever had in this hell of a world. You alone understand me. You alone never looked down on me for being a. . . for being what I am. You always accepted me and made me feel wanted." He squeezed her hand again, but frowned at what came out of her honest mouth.

"No, Spike. Stop confusing me with Buffy. I'm not my sister. It's my sister's company you always wanted. Unless leaving loved ones is a common sign of loyalty to vampires."

Spike never looked away from her eyes, trying to read every emotion coursing through her.

"Dawn, I'm not going to lie to you. There's not bloody point, I was infatuated with your sister. But you know how she treated me. Like an evil, disgusting thing that wasn't worth substituting in for a doormat. The vampire side in me loved to be challenged, thrived on being beaten down constantly. Yes, I loved Buffy, but in a very different way. I know who she was. And I know who you are. You are not and never will be Buffy. Don't ever think I get confused about you. You've been the same since the start. Bright and loving. A little twinkling light in my world of darkness. The Dawn to my sunset. "

Dawn had stopped sobbing, but silent tears ran more readily down her face. She pulled her bottom lip into her mouth. Spike smiled at the familiar expression and kissed her nose.

"You are still my Nibblet no matter what. You are everything to me, I want to take care of you with every part of me. I miss you so bad, Dawn. I miss our conversations, and I miss you asking the Big Bad for advice, I miss you coming into my crypt at night, and I miss catching you doing things you shouldn't right under slayer's nose. I miss you pushing the envelope every chance you could, I miss you dancing and humming and not caring what anyone thinks 'bout you. I miss being able to be a bloody git around you, and you just loving me more for it. I miss us and our friendship but the most painful of all 'Bit, I miss you"

Dawn stared at him in amazement. She would have never expected any of this to come out of his mouth. She then looked down and broke their eye contact for the first time.

"Then. . . why did you leave? If you love - loved me, then why would you leave me?" She started to cry again. "Please, make it make sense, Spike. You have no idea how much it hurts, it's eating me away."

"I left because I love you. In my head I thought I was doing the right thing. You have to understand, I haven't been fighting the good fight for all that long, pet. I'm not really one to know how to care for another. But I saw you sliding away from the light you once held in you. The light that made me love you in the first place. You clung so much to me, I felt like I was the reason for your . . . depression. I knew you had lost so much, and I didn't want you to change completely by hanging around me all the time. I thought it would be . . . better for you to live with the other humans and let you have a semi-normal life. Believe me, please. It was the hardest thing I have ever done, and if I could take it back I would. I just wanted you to be happy, and I knew you could never be happy with rubbish like me."

Dawn lazily traced her fingers in unknown patters through his hair. Snuggling closer to him she signed against his chest. For a long while they lay like that. Spike listened to the lullaby of her heartbeat, and tucked her head under his chin. "Bit, I am so sorry I left you. I will never leave you again. I promise."

Dawn only clung closer to him, and gave the smallest of smiles. He felt this through his shirt and sighed unnecessarily. "I'm just. . . so happy to have you back. Can we just lay here forever?" He voice was becoming heavy with sleepiness and relaxation.

"Forever is a long time, pet" He whispered into her ear in his husky English accent.

"Perfect."

****

I'm sorry if this chapter was completely crap, I might rewrite it if you complain. I had a concert tonight so I am exhausted and can barely think. I'm sorry for all the spelling and grammar mistakes, I'm so tired! I just needed to get this scene in typing before I forgot it. Review PLEASE!!! And to those who reviewed, thank you! I love you! : )

Brianna