A/N - I did edit it but not that well, I am very tired and sick lately. ((Drinks my tea)) Anyway I hope you enjoy the Buffy/Angel spat moment, I know I did. Just for reassurance and so I can hear it BUFFY AND ANGEL WILL BE TOGETHER IN THE END of this fic!

-Hyperion Hall-

Angel made sure it took him a few extra minutes to reach his destination. He wasn't sure how the conversation was going to start and he wasn't sure what it was going to be about this time but he knew Buffy needed to let something out. There was no way the Buffy he used to know would freak out like that so soon in the game. It also occured to him that maybe he didn't know her anymore but he quickly dismissed the thought because to him Buffy Summers was always going to be the same secretly scared, alone fragile woman he was with before. His reason for the freak out came down to her needing to let something out and he was going to find out just what that was.

-Training Room-

Buffy went straight to the bag without taping up her hands or changing. Her body had been begging for something to release her tension and she ran tot he first thign she knew, violence. Each time she'd hit the bag a new picture of Angel and Cordelia would pop into her head or some evil thing she had seen lately. She had no doubt that Angel and cordelia were probably curled up on one of the chairs pretending to read while really thinking about how good it felt to be close to the other. The same thought ran through her head though. If Angel had broken up with her for all these reasons what made him think all those restrictions weren't still there with Cordelia? Was it because he loved her more? Was it because she knew him better?

Just the thought made her even more angry. Her fists hit the bag harder, to the point where she didn't even know she was hitting anything while thinking. Her knuckles were red but she didn't feel anything. Buffy herself couldn't even believe she was stressing over this. It's not like she hadn't tried to move on, it's not like there wasn't other guys in her life, and it's not like she expected Angel to be alone forever, it's just that... It hurt her to think that Angel thought he had a better chance with Cordelia. It hurt her even more that Angel hadn't tried to talk to her about it. The fact he had called he rimmature and every fight before was out the window now that Cordelia and Angel were on her mind.

There was so much more going on that the slayer should be worrying about, so much she should be thinking about and yet all she could think about was Angel, he was always all she could think about. She had been so tranced out with her thoughts that she didn't even know she was punching the bag anymore.

So when Angel walked up to her and put his hand on her shoulder... "Buffy!" ...she turned around and socked him extra hard in the nose.

The vampire fell back to the floor and Buffy finally realized how hard she was breathing and what she had done. She ran to kneel by his side, "Angel, I...I'm so sorry. I thought I told you that I train alone."

Angel sat up on his elbow still holding his nose witht he other hand, "I thought it was a good time to talk to you."

Buffy tried to touch his nose but he winced and she pulled back, "Oh god, I'm so sorry. You should knock or warn me while I'm training."

"I did. For like five minutes. You were a little..." He stared at the bag, "...busy."

Buffy was suddenly embarassed. She couldn't imagine what she looked like then, "In all fairness to me I told you I wanted to be alone."

Angel finally took his hand off his nose and took the hand Buffy offered to help him to get to a standing point. He continued to stare at the bag, "Why'd you want to be alone?"

Buffy shrugged, "I like to train alone and I like to train while I think. I do have to come up with a plan for Drusilla."

Angel nodded and slowly let go of buffy's hand, "That's it?"

Buffy sighed, "What do you want Angel? You said you wanted to talk to me about something."

Angel didn't even know what he was saying until the words came out, "Why was it so hard for you to ask me for help?"

Buffy couldn't give him the real reason so she shrugged, "It's hard for me to ask Xander for help. Don't take it personally."

"It sounded pretty personal to me."

Buffy shook her head, "It wasn't."

"Buffy..."

Buffy couldn't believe it, "You have a life going for you here and I didn't want to mess that up."

Angel was at least grateful for the fact he got somewhere, "I promised you I would always be there for you."

Buffy nodded and walked a little more towards the bag, "Then you left town. Then I stopped seeing you and then I stopped hearing from you. Suddenly you weren't there for me. Plus it seems like you've got a lot going on here with your son Conner and your wannaba girlfriend who just happens to be one of my old friends...kind of!"

"Buffy, just because I don't live in Sunnydale, or just because we're not together anymore it doesn't mean I wanted out of your life completely."

Buffy nodded, "I know, you just wanted me out of yours." Angel was suddenly silent and speechless, "It's so easy for you isn't it, when you're the one to take care of me, to watch me, to me help me but god forbid you feel what I do when you have all these things going on in your life and I don't get to find out about them until you're almost dead."

Angel couldn't believe what he was hearing, "I never said I wanted you out of my life. Do you know what it was like for me when you died? How it felt knowing that you weren't in this world anymore?"

Buffy started to get a little defensive now, "Of course I know. I'm the one who sent you to hell remember. You had to deal with guilt for the fact that maybe you could of done something while I was the one who had to deal with the fact that I actually killed you."

Angel was almost speechless now, "I don't know what to say."

"You don't need to say a thing Angel. You're the one who wanted to talk to me and nwo that you have nothing to say I don't think there's anymore conversation that needs to be happening. I should get back to training."

When buffy pointed to the bag Angel noticed how red her knuckles were and walked close enough to buffy to grab her hand, "Why haven't you wrapped your hands?"

Buffy took her hand away, "I was lazy, now please leave."

"No. You are not going to trap yourself in here and take out everything you're not saying to me on the bag. The bag doesn't deserve that kind of pain and niether do you.

"There's nothing I'm not saying to you Angel."

Angel smiled sarcastically, "Really? I don't believe you."

"That's your problem."

Angel held in his anger and continued onward with his plan to get buffy to talk, "Oh, I must of really pissed you off if you're not even wrapping your hands. What was it Buffy? Maybe it's the fact I didn't tell you about Conner? Maybe I should of told you about Darla? Are you mad because I called you immature? Well it could be the obvious, Cordelia." Angel saw the reaction on buffy's face when he spoke the seer's name and knew instantly what had got her so mad. "It really is Cordelia isn't it?"

Buffy on the other hand was starting to get really mad, "How dare you? You can't come in here, interrupt me, bring up all these problems and then expect me to talk to you about them. Who the hell do you think you are?"

Angel looked around before sititng on a bench, "Well, I thought I was the guy that you could talk to about all these problems."

Buffy was suddenly cold, "Then you thought wrong."

"So, now you can't talk to me. I try to move on once and you go into a dramatic very violent training session which causes a giant mood change and yet you move on with a few different people and I'm supossed to act all calm and accept it."

Buffy shook her head and leaned on the bag, "You don't understand Angel. You left me so I could move on which it turns out I can't do but it's different with you."

Angel was suddenly the defensive one, "So you get to move on but I can't."

Buffy calmed the conversation down a bit after a deep breath, "It's different with you because of the reasons you left me. We stood in the sewer, you looked me in the eye and you gave me every single reason why we shouldn't be together..." She was starting to hold back tears now, "...now unless you meant it when you said you just didn't want to be with me then all those reasons and restrictions are still there with Cordelia. The only reason in this world you should be able to move on is if you don't love me like you used to. Now if you haven't noticed I still love you and I don't take rejection too well so I'm dealing with that my way."

Angel had been waiting for the truth the whole conversation and now that it was there he couldn't believe it. I guess he always knew what Buffy said was true but hearing it out loud and in Buffy's voice could of broken him. "I don't know how to answer that."

"I'm not asking you to Angel, I didn't ask for any of this conversation. You came in her hoping to find a reason for my mis-directed anger and you found it. Now I think you should talk to Cordelia before you try and cheer me up. I also think I'm done sharing my thoughts now."

Angel sighed, "Buffy, it's not that simple."

"Yes it is Angel. I still think you're the greatest thing that ever happened to me and you may love me but I'm not in your life anymore, you made sure of that. Cordelia is though and I hope with everything in me that once you guys talk you can finally be happy. The only thing left we have to talk about is how to save the world."

Angel could feel the weakness in every word buffy spoke. He knew they were hard for her to say and it was killing him that he was the cause of so much pain. He stood up from the bench still completely oblivious on what to do, looked Buffy in the eye and said the only thing he knew at that moment for sure, "I do still love you."

Buffy couldn't help but shed a few tears upon hearing the declaration. She missed hearing those words directed to her and spoken in such an angelic, soft voice. She had to be strong though, as always, "It wasn't enough for you in the past but maybe it will be enough for you in the future."

Angel didn't have time to respond because Xander came running up tot hem and stopped at the door, "Buffy, Dawn and Conner are back."

Buffy nodded and finally found the strength to look away from Angel's eyes. She smiled, "I'll see you later Angel."

She quickly walked out of the room while Xander stared at Angel. It took him a few seconds but Xander finally found the words to speak, "You know Angel, you never get over Buffy, Nobody ever does. She's an amazing woman and I think you did the right thing in leaving her all that time ago. She was so young."

Angel didn't feel like listening anymore, "Xander..."

Xander shook his head and continued, "She's grown up a lot since then and she's become an even more amazing woman. I heard about the whole almost Cordelia love confession and I couldn't believe it. Personally I still hate you and if you do confess your undying love for Cordelia Chase I have nothing to offer but thanks because then Buffy will finally be able to see me or some other guy. I don't know what you're going to do but the one thing I do know for sure is Buffy was a lot happier when you were around, she was nice, friendly and even a person but the day you left she was more slayer then human. She put up a wall no one can break but you. It's not really my place Angel to tell you which way to go but I just thought you should know, despite me being miserable for the rest of my life no matter which choice you make, the sooner you make it the better for all of us."

Xander didn't wait for a response either before walking back to the lobby. He left Angel to wallow in and ponder the thoughts he had recieved. The only thing Angel could think about was how bad he messed things up. Things were going to be awkward, people were going to be jealous and it was all his fault. It was her turn to act on instinct as he swiftly tuned towards the punching bag and delivered a kick that sent the bag flying off the hook. Suddenly he understood Buffy's dealing methods a little more.

-Lobby-

Buffy smiled and hugged Conner, "You have fun?"

Conner nodded, "I can't wait until we go out for fast food. I loved it."

Buffy gripped his hand, "Good. That's my second favorite part."

Conner looked at Dawn, "Thanks. I'll be upstairs in Angel's room."

Buffy nodded and watch him take off upstairs. She then stared Dawn in the eyes and guided her to a sitting position on the couch. The slayer then proceeded to fidget uncontrollably as Dawn grew more and more nervous. Dawn finally had enough and grabbed Buffy's hands, "You okay? I bought you a really nice necklace that might cheer you up."

Buffy shook her head and finally found out how to say what she wanted to, "I know you're going to hate this Dawn but I can't stress enough how important it is to consider."

"What's going on buffy?"

Buffy took a deep breath, "I think you should stay with dad for the remainder of this year."

Of course Dawn went off the railing, "Are you kidding? I wouldn't do that."

Buffy stood in front of her sister, "There's a lot going on, the world could end in three different ways if you count Willow and I looked mom in the eye and promised her I'd protect you. I'm not going to be able to do that when things get rough. Dad is back in L.A. and I think it's safest that you stay with him until all this is over with."

Dawn still couldn't believe what she was hearing, "I can't just abandon you all like that, I won't. I can help with research and...and the little small demons

Buffy sighed, "Dawn when I became the slayer it didn't mean that you did too. I'll call and update you every day and..."

"No. Buffy... Don't you want to take care of me anymore?"

Buffy wrapped her arm around Dawn's shoulders, "I do, more then anything. You know I don't like dad but I really think this is best for you. If you stay in L.A. there's a guarantee that you'll survive."

Dawn turned towards Xander who has arrived a little earlier, "Do you think I should stay in L.A?"

Xander shrugged, "We love you, so much. You're part of the family, part of the group but things are getting heavy Dawnie. There's a lot going on and plus we're riding back with Drusilla. Now if you want to ride in a car with little Miss Insano that's your decision."

Dawn stared back at buffy, "You'll come get me when this is all over right?"

Buffy hesitantly nodded, "I will."

Dawn sighed and grabbed Buffy's hand, "You're not aloud to die."

Buffy nodded and took back her hand, "So that means you'll stay with dad?" Dawn only nodded sadly, "Then go call him now, we'll drop you off before we go out for Drusilla."

Dawn made her way slowly towards the front desk as buffy threw herself onto the couch and sighed into her hands. Xander threw himself beside her and wrapped an arm around her. Buffy wrapped her hand in his, "I don't know what I would do without you."

Xander shrugged, "You'd probably still be insane and sleeping with Spike."

Buffy gripped his hand harder, "You know, Angel thinks he might love Cordelia."

Xander nodded, "I know."

"He thinks that things will change just because it's a different girl."

He nodded again, "I know"

"Sometimes I just wish I could of loved Riley."

"I know."

"Things would be so much simpler if I didn't love him."

"I know." Buffy glared at him so he smiled and actually spoke words, "You know as well as I do we can't help what the heart wants. If it was meant to be he'll come around and if it wasn't I'll always be here for you. At least if him and Cordelia do end up all coupley then you'll know you can move on."

Buffy shook he rhead and rested her head on Xander's chest, "I don't think so. I'm going to spend every relationship from here on out wondering if it should of been Angel. I'm going to need you a lot the next few weeks."

Xander smiled, "I know."

Those two sat there for a long time just enjoying the company while Angel watched with intense eyes from around the corner in the dark hallway. Although he was dying, things seemed a little more simpler under the ocean.