Chapter 17

"Wow, I never would have guessed that about Faith. Not that I have a problem with it or anything." Spike said as they walked on the beach together. "That would explain why she never hit on me." Buffy rolled her eyes.

"Not every girl hits on you, Spike. You're not that special." She said with a smile and Spike glared at her.

"You're gonna get it, missy." Buffy then took off running, with Spike chasing after her. She laughed as Spike tackled her from behind. They fell to the ground and Spike got on top of her. He pinned her arms above her head and smiled. "You surrender, love?" Buffy looked into his eyes.

"Always," she whispered and the game was soon forgotten as Spike lowered his lips to hers. They kissed until they both needed to breathe. Spike then rested his head on hers.

"God, I love you." He said with so much emotion in his voice. "You're the best bloody thing that's ever happened to me, you know that?" Buffy nodded and felt tears in her eyes.

"I feel the same way. I don't know what I would do without you." Spike let her arms go and brushed some hair out of her face.

"Let's not find out, pet. I already know that you're the one I want to spend the rest of my life with." He told her and Buffy nodded again. She couldn't stop the tears from falling down her face.

"I feel that way, too. I love you so much." Spike kissed her again, with all the love and passion he felt for her.

Buffy and Spike walked into the house later that night. They walked to the living room and were about to head upstairs, when Buffy suddenly stopped. Spike stopped also to see what was wrong and noticed that his father was sitting in the living room with another man. The look on Buffy's face told him who the other man was. "Dad?" She said in a shaky voice. She didn't expect to see him so soon. The two older men stood up when they noticed the kids walk in. Buffy still couldn't believe that her father was there. "You came back?" She asked a little unsure. A part of her believed that he would never come back. Giles walked over to Spike.

"I think we should let them talk." Spike nodded and was about to walk away, when Buffy grabbed his hand.

"It's okay, I want you to stay." Buffy said as she turned back to her father. "You're back early; did everything go okay in New York?" Hank nodded and thought about what he would tell his daughter.

"Yes, everything's fine. I actually only returned to get a few things and then I would be going back." Buffy nodded also and Spike noticed the sad look on her face.

"So, you just stopped by to check up on me?" She said with hope in her voice that her father cared enough to visit her, but Hank just shook his head.

"You don't understand, Buffy. When I say I'm going back, I mean indefinitely. I'll be moving to New York, I was transferred there." Buffy was shocked and couldn't believe what she was hearing.

"You're...You're never coming back?" Hank shook his head again.

"There would be no need to. You would be coming with me. I came here to take you back to the house, so you could pack your belongings. We leave the day after tomorrow." Buffy was surprised again and then grew angry.

"What? I can't move to New York. This isn't fair; I have a life here now. A life I actually like, you can't just keep moving me around until you find a place that works for you." Hank was startled by his daughter's attitude. Spike held Buffy's hand tighter and also became angry. He just found her and there was no way he was letting this man take her away from him. He didn't care if he was her father. He wasn't a good one and he could never take care of her.

"This isn't a discussion, Buffy. You're going with me and that's final. You have no say in this until you turn 18. Get your stuff and let's go." Hank told her and Buffy shook her head.

"No, I'm not going." She said as she squeezed Spike's hand tighter this time. Hank rolled his eyes and didn't have time to deal with a child right now. Spike didn't know what to do and looked at his father.

"Dad, do something. You can't let him take her." He pleaded and Giles didn't know what to say. Hank looked at Spike and finally noticed how Buffy was clinging to him.

"What's this about?" He asked and Buffy looked at him with unshed tears in her eyes. She wouldn't cry in front of him.

"I'm with Spike, dad. We've been seeing each other recently. We're in love and I'm not leaving him. I like it here." Hank seemed to be angry at that.

"This is not why I brought you here. I didn't bring you here, so you could be with this punk and go back to your old ways." Spike felt like hitting him, when Giles finally spoke up.

"I assure you, Mr. Summers. My son has been good for your daughter and she has been good for him. It wouldn't be right to separate them." Hank turned his glare on Giles.

"You're supposed to be the adult, Mr. Giles. How could you let this happen? She's just a child." Spike then couldn't take anymore.

"She's not a child. She's more than that, but you wouldn't know anything about her. You abandoned her here when she needed you the most and now you're going to take her away from the one home that she feels comfortable in? What kind of father are you, mate?" Spike stated and was satisfied by the look Hank had on his face.

"How dare you talk to me like that! I will not stand here and be insulted by a teenager! We're going, Buffy." He stated as he grabbed her other hand, but she pulled away from him and moved closer to her boyfriend. She looked into her father's cold eyes and said what was on her mind.

"You don't want me to live with you. If you did, you never would have brought me here in the first place. You could have taken me with you when you had the chance, but you didn't because you didn't want me around. You're only here now to make yourself look good. I know I screwed up, but that doesn't mean you should hate me for of it. A father is supposed to love his children no matter what mistakes they make. You gave up on me a long time ago and I'm only 16-years-old. You just wanted to forget about everything after mom died, including me. It is not my fault she died and it's not fair for you to blame me for something that I had no control over. I love you, daddy. That will never change, but I have a new life here. I'm doing better and I have real friends and a boyfriend that really cares about me. I won't let you take that away." Spike was proud of Buffy as he gave her hand a comforting squeeze. Giles stepped forward and looked at Hank.

"I would be willing to let Buffy stay here. We don't mind having her around. We won't need anything from you. All you have to do is accept it." Hank thought about it and realized that she would be getting in his way if she came to New York with him. She seemed to be happier here, even if he didn't believe she was dating the right man. He supposed she could do worse. He wasn't in the mood to argue anymore and just nodded.

"Fine, she can stay here. I don't want you to call me saying how difficult she is. She's your responsibility now." Giles nodded and Spike was relieved along with Buffy, even though she still felt hurt by what he was saying.

"I'm sure we wouldn't have a problem." Giles said and Hank looked back at Buffy.

"Goodbye, Buffy. I don't want you to call me to say that you change your mind. This is your choice and you're going to have to live with it." He stated and Buffy nodded.

"I think I'll manage." Hank nodded also and after giving her one more look, he walked away and out of the house. Spike sighed in relief when he was gone and grabbed Buffy in a hug, kissing the top of her head. He was so terrified that he was about to lose her. He knew that he would never let her go, no matter what.