Disclaimer: All of the characters do not belong to me, but to Joss Wheedon and his crew for Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

Note: Thank you so much to those who reviewed my last chapter. Thanks for your comments and suggestions--they were much appreciated. I had a total brain laps when I was writing that chapter and had Fred as one of the characters. So I took her out, nothing really changed, just a couple names here and there. (Thank you, REALbluelightsaber) Hope you like this chapter! Please read and review.

Rating: PG-13: for language

Chapter 2

Different Sensations

Buffy stooped down, grabbed a small axe and through it at Angelus. He ducked, and it was embedded in the wall behind him.

"What are you doing." Angelus asked, bewildered.

"Don't play games with me," Buffy advanced towards him. "I saw you in the hotel room with Darla. What do you think I am? Some kind of dummy?"

Buffy swung her sword at her opponent, but he dipped down and turned around, standing up behind her. Buffy instantly got between him and Cordelia and Gunn.

"Buffy, wait--stop!" Angelus kicked the sword out of Buffy's hand. "Please, I need to--to talk to you."

"Talk to me? What are you playing at?" Buffy kicked him, and he flew across the room and hit a table. The glass vase on top of it fell off and shattered on the floor. "Oh, sorry Cordy didn't see that coming." Buffy walked over to Angelus, who was now on his feet, she through a couple punches at him, but he blocked them. After the third punch failed, Buffy kneed him in the stomach, then back handed him, knocking him on the floor. "Why aren't you fighting back?"

"Wait, please, I ju--" Angelus stopped to block a kick and then a punch.

"Wait for what? For you to explain--is that it? I saw you fucking Darla for Gods sake!" Buffy yelled, punching him, and then hitting him with a crescent kick. "You got your one moment of happiness. Therefore your soul is gone. It's not that complicated, I even understand it and it's not even my soul." She propelled her fist toward him, but only to be caught in one of his hands and pushed away.

"No, Buffy," Angelus backed away. "You don't understand."

Buffy let out a merciless laugh, "Right…I saw you two--that pretty much explains everything that needs to be understood."

"No, it doesn't!" Angelus blocked another couple strikes. "Hold it, just a second…please Buffy. You don't know the whole story, I'm not Angelus--I'm Angel, soulful Angel."

"Yeah, okay, now let's make up." Buffy said, her voice dripping with sarcasm. She pulled back her fist, readying herself for another move when she froze. She just realized what Angelus (?Angel?) had said to her. "What?" She said quietly.

"I have my soul--I'm not Angelus. Angelus would be fighting back, notice that I haven't hit you once."

"Yeah, well--that, ah…." Buffy stuttered, she still hadn't lowered her fist.

Angel sighed, "Oh, God, I--okay, there's no denying that I slept with Darla, but she didn't give me one moment of perfect happiness."

"What do you mean?" Buffy said, slowly.

"Just what I said, I still have my soul."

"But how can that be, sex is your trigger. And you had sex with--"

"Sex with you can make me lose my soul…. You're the one and only person that can give me that one moment of perfect happiness…."

"Buffy, I don't know if he's telling the truth…." Cordelia said from the other side of the room.

"He is." Buffy said simply.

"How do you know?" Gunn asked.

"I can sense him, and the sensation I get when Angel is around and when Angelus is around are completely different…. I didn't realize it till just now." Buffy slowly relaxed her arm, then crossed her arms across her chest.

"Are you sure, Buffy?" Cordelia asked.

"Positive." Buffy answered.

"I need to explain about what happ--what I did." Angel looked into Buffy's eyes. "I don't know why I did it, I don't know where I've been the last couple weeks. I wasn't thinking."

Buffy gave a little laugh. "No, really?"

"I--I don't expect you to understand, and I'm very sorry if I hurt you." Angel said.

"If?" Buffy tried swallowing the lump in her throat, as she looked down and blinked to keep back the tears. "And hurt is a little bit of an understatement." She looked up at him as a tear rolled down her cheek and whispered. "How could you? God, I mean I know we're not together anymore, but that doesn't mean that I don't lo--care for you. It doesn't mean that you can't hurt me." Her voice cracked.

"I didn't --it wasn't like I planned this so that you could walk in on us." Angel said, his brow creased.

"I--I know that, but that doesn't change the fact that you don't love me anymore." Another tear streaked down Buffy's face. When Angel stepped toward her she moved back. "Don't!"

"No, no, I--I didn't mean--I…I still love you, and I always will. Nothing is ever going to change that--nothing can."

Buffy looked up at him, "Oh, God." She whispered.

"And if it makes you feel any better, I'm disgusted with myself. You're not the only one that's feeling pain…."

Cordelia broke the silence, "Um, so Angel your back to your regular self?"

"Yeah, I am." Angel turned to look at her. "I'm really sorry for the way I've acted. I've been--I dunno a jerk to say the least….Where's Wes?"

"Hold on," Gunn walked around the corner and came back pushing Wesley in his wheel chair. "He's not Angelus, and--"

"You don't have to explain, I heard everything." Wesley said.

"Cordy, do you have a broom and a dust bin; so I can clean this glass off the floor?" Buffy had pulled herself together.

"Yeah, just a sec." Cordelia left the room. "Here ya go." She handed Buffy the stuff she'd asked for.

"Thanks, I'm really sorry about the vase. Was it expensive?" Buffy asked as she leaned down and started to sweep the shards of glass into the bin.

"God, no, it just looks it. I got it a garage sale."

"Oh, good." Buffy finished sweeping up the glass and dumped it into a near by trash can.

"I'll put that away." Cordelia took the broom and bin out of Buffy's hands. When she came back into the room she said, "Um, you two probably have some issues you wanna talk over, maybe--I dunno."

"I think that might be a good idea." Buffy looked at Angel who nodded.

"Do you wanna stay at the hotel?" Angel asked.

"Yeah, that would be nice. I'll see you guys tomorrow, then." Buffy hugged everyone and then walked out of the apartment with Angel.