Sorry it's been so long. But it will be worth the wait I promise!

This chapter is a bit confusing, but hopefully you should get the 'just' of it by the end (as they say).

Doesn't include anyone except Buffy and Angel, so some will be bored... I suppose.

Enjoy!!!!

Buffy stared at the familiar figure standing in the doorway. He hadn't changed a bit.

Silence captured them, both afraid of what to say.

Finally Angel broke the silence; "I'm sorry."

Suddenly, realising that he had said something, Buffy broke out of her trance.

"What?"

"I'm sorry," Angel repeated, feeling really stupid.

Buffy didn't bother to accept the apology; there was no way that she could.

"Where have you been?"

Angel hesitated; he didn't want to answer this one.

When he didn't answer, Buffy tried again but with more anger and force.

"Where have you been?"

"LA. I stayed with my father for a bit, then got a job and moved out."

Buffy braved another question.

"Why didn't you call me?"

"I never had the time," Angel turned away, he felt so ashamed of lying to Buffy.

"You've been gone 2 years and you never had the time to call me?" Buffy asked, tears rolling down her face.

Angel looked back at her. He shouldn't have come here, he should have called instead... no wait, she would have hung up if he had called her.

"I'm sorry Buffy, I should never have thought of coming here in the first place," he turned to leave.

"No wait!" Buffy shouted. She didn't want him to leave.

Angel turned to face her again.

"Why did you leave Angel? You heard what you wanted to hear so why didn't you stay?"

Angel stared down at the floor under his feet. He didn't know how to answer.

"I don't know," Angel answered, simply and hopefully affective.

"Do you still love me?" Buffy asked, feeling pain fill her with every word she said.

"Yes, I have never stopped loving you..."

"So why haven't you been there for me? When I needed you most why weren't you there? When I needed someone to hold me, why weren't you there? When I needed someone to talk to why weren't you there?" She felt the tears burst out, a cascading waterfall.

Memories of loneliness filled her head. Times where even Willow, her best friend, could patch up the sadness in Buffy's heart. Times where she needed someone who would understand, where she needed someone to cry into and where she didn't want to sleep alone.

"I'm sorry," Angel said seeing the hurt in her eyes.

"You don't even know what's happened, how do you know what to be sorry for?"

"Why don't we go for a walk and you can tell me what's happened," Angel suggested, afraid that she would turn him down.

Buffy nodded. "I'll just get my jacket."

The were sitting together on a bench, watching children feed the ducks in the pond. Nothing had been said since they had left the house

"So... what's been happening since I've been gone?" Angel asked, watching as a little girl threw bread into the pond.

"It's a long story..." Buffy tried to avoid the story; it hurt too much to even think about it.

"I've got all the time in the world," Angel said, realising what Buffy was trying to do.

"Well... about a few months ago me Xander and Willow decided to go to the mall, and my mom had promised to pick us up. So when we were finished shopping we met my mom outside the mall and she said something about a terrible headache. But I didn't take much notice of her and sat in the back with Willow, while Xander sat in the passenger seat in the front. So while me, Willow and Xander were talking about something we had seen in the mall, we didn't notice my mom black out and the car went into a brick wall." Buffy stopped, and waited for Angel to respond.

He didn't.

"So then we were all rushed to hospital, Xander and my mom died and Willow is still live and kicking like me, of course."

Angel looked up from the floor. He looked at her face, she was crying again. He rested his hand on hers, and when she didn't pull away he gripped it.

Buffy suddenly felt that he had never left her and that he had always been there for her. Even though it wasn't true, Buffy decided to forget about everything that had happened between them. She rested her head on his shoulder and closed her eyes.

With his thumb he wiped away the clear tears from her cheeks and any new flowing ones. He wanted to make up for everything, but he knew that nothing that he could do would ever make Buffy fully forgive him.

"Please stay," Buffy said, without moving.

There was no reply from Angel for a while.

"Of course I will."

They sat there together until sunset, and hand-in-hand, they walked away. Nothing said, but both knew where they were heading.

Please, please review!!!!