Title: This Magic Moment

Rating: K+

Summary: Buffy breaks up with Jack.

Disclaimer: I claim ownership of nothing except the plot. Buffy belongs to Whedon, and the Montgomery's and Taggert's belong to Jude Deveraux.

Feedback: I would most certainly appreciate it!

Note: Thanks to Toniboo, fairieangel, greeneyes, Dilvish, Nikkie, WhiteWolf 3, onlimain, fan, francesca and wolfbainKohaku for reviewing!

greeneyes: Yeah, I hate stories where everything is just so happy and... normal after what the Scoobs did to her.

Dilvish: Yes, the self-sacrifice crap. I didn't much like the way they portrayed Buffy the last few seasons. She was so dark, not like the Buffy I'm used to.

WhiteWolf 3: Of course Jack isn't going to just accept it point-blank. He'll respect her wishes, of course, but he won't just leave her alone. Thanks for the review!

Onlimain: Okay, long review. Here we go. You raised some valid points that I didn't even think about. I think that the Scoobies couldn't really tell Buffy that they "missed her" because they were kind of uncomfortable and uneasy with the way things went. They don't want to broach the subject, choosing instead to forget that it ever happened. Telling her that she needed to stay in Italy was their way of telling her that they need her, without actually telling her that they need her.

No, Xander wasn't lying when he was telling her about the prophecy. Just uncomfortable with the fact that she could look him in the eye, and he could barely speak to her without feeling guilty. As I said, only Buffy could defeat it, and for her it should be 'pretty easy to kill'. The other Slayers were mistakes, intentional mistakes, but mistakes none the less. Only Buffy can defeat the demon. That's not important, though. The demon is barely going to be mentioned.

No, the Slayers are not all in Italy. I realize the folly of that. It would just be plain stupid. They are scattered throughout the world, but the headquarters are in Italy. Xander and Willow view Buffy staying in New York as kind of running away, of abandoning her Destiny. Buffy wouldn't tell them about Jack because she doesn't feel that close to them anymore.

Sorry for not explaining all this in the story, but I'm trying to cut down on my words and make the chapters shorter. Thanks for reviewing!

fan: Yeah, Jude Deveraux is just an awesome author. I'm so glad she's not one of those authors who doesn't like fans to write fan fiction about their stories. It sucks that Nora Roberts is one of those authors, though, because I would love to write stories with her characters. Thanks for the compliments. That makes me happy.

francesca: Well, Jack is pretty normal. Wonder how he'll react when he finds out Buffy's un-normalness.

WolfbainKohaku: I was wearing a shirt with a picture of a milkshake on it, and I that song just popped into my head. Thanks for the review!

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Friendly Magic

The next morning, after arriving home from Italy after midnight, Buffy realized that just marching to Jack's office and breaking up with him wouldn't be the best idea. So, she called at 11:00 instead. At first she couldn't reach Jack because he was in a meeting, but she left a message with his secretary for him to call her whenever he had the chance.

Fifteen minutes later, the phone rang and Buffy nervously answered it.

"Hello?"

"Hey, Buffy. It's Jack. Is everything okay with your sister?"

Buffy smiled softly, more sad than she was before because Jack remembered her excuse for leaving their date. She had told him it was her sister, but it was really just the prophecy Giles found. Great, now she felt guilty for wanting to break it off with Jack.

"Yeah, it's fine. Just some school problems. Listen, Jack, I need to speak with you. Is there any way I can meet with you?" She asked.

"Of course. I'm free at 12:00. We can go to lunch," Jack suggested.

"I can't," Buffy said regretfully. "I have someone I need to interview at 12:30. It will only take a minute, though, so I'll just come by your office. How's that?"

"Fine. Come on by. My office is on the third floor."

"Thanks, Jack. See you," and then she hung up.

Flopping onto her bed, Buffy practiced what she was going to say.

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The minute Buffy walked into Jack's office, he shut the door after her and then drew her into his arms. Buffy closed her eyes as Jack slowly kissed her, savoring the feeling, knowing she wouldn't have this anymore.

"I missed you," Jack whispered when he lifted his head.

"Jack, we need to talk," Buffy said, stepping out of his embrace and straightening her shirt.

Jack didn't like the way she said that, or the look in her eyes. She seemed...regretful. Sad, somehow. Shaking his head, he told his thoughts to shut up and gestured Buffy towards a chair, knowing that he wouldn't like what she had to say.

Ignoring the proffered seat, Buffy looked around Jack's office. Comfy chairs, good artwork. She wandered towards a picture on the wall. It was of a woman, dancing. Her dress was floating around, her hair flying. It was poetry, beautiful.

"It's lovely," Buffy said, turning her head to look at Jack.

"I bought it the other day," Jack told her, not mentioning that he had bought it because it had reminded him of her.

Quit stalling! Buffy reprimanded herself, turning her whole body to face Jack. She studied him, his handsome features, muscular body incased in a gray pinstriped suit. "I don't think this is going to work." Buffy blurted out, wincing because she hadn't meant to be quite so blunt.

Jack blinked, wondering if he had heard her incorrectly. "Excuse me?" He asked.

Taking a deep breath, Buffy finally sat down just as Jack stood up. "I like you Jack, I really do. But I don't think I can do this."

"This? What's this?"

"This," Buffy pointed to herself and Jack. "Us. I don't think this can work."

"And why not?" Jack asked angrily. He couldn't believe what he was hearing. Buffy was breaking up with him?

"I... I've been going through a lot these last few years. I need to have some time alone, some time to start my life here. I want us to be friends, Jack, because the last thing I want is to lose your friendship." Buffy said, hoping she just hadn't destroyed her chances of still being friends with him.

Friends? She wanted to be friends? Fine, Jack thought, an idea forming in his head. I know what she felt when we kissed. That was in no way a kiss of friendship. We'll be friends, but who says it'll stay that way? He'll respect her wishes, of course, and if, in the end, she really does just want to be friends, he'll understand. But until then, there was no way he was going to just take it laying down. He grinned smugly, knowing that, deep inside, Buffy wanted to be more than friends.

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End

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