AN: I hope you are enjoying my first attempt at BtVS fanfiction. I am working hard on the following chapters so please be patient with updates. Reviews and feedback are welcome and demanded!

Summary: Two months have passed since "Not Fade Away". Buffy is living in the States again with the Scoobie Gang. Angel has finally found Buffy after months of searching and has wonderful and promising news for Buffy. She can finally have the relationship she always wanted with the one person she has ever loved. Buffy and Angel work things out in order to have that relationship. B/A...with slight fluff.

I beg you, please review! I want to know what fellow BtVS fans think of my story and if I should continue writing it! Please submit any form of review. They are all welcome! Creative criticism is welcome! REVIEW PLEASE!

Chapter Three: Questions Answered

"…so I infiltrated the Circle of the Blackthorn after receiving information about their uprising and we then destroyed them one but one, but not before losing some lives." Angel sipped his tea, taking a breather from his long-winded explanation of the past three months.

He laughed inwardly at his audience. Xander and his eye patch, a reminder of his close encounter with Caleb; the red-haired witch Willow; the not-so-young anymore Dawn; and –

And Buffy. His beautiful Buffy.

Angel mentally kicked himself. She's not yours unless she wants to be again.

Willow asked the dreaded question: "Who survived?"

Angel sighed. "Just me, and I barely made it." Thinking about his dead family weighed down his shoulders so much he had to lean forward. "Gunn had a severe wound to the stomach, Wesley had been killed before the battle, Fred was possessed by Illyria who used the last of her power to close the portals, and Spike," he turned to look at Buffy, "was overcome by a cluster of demons. He sacrificed himself by pulling them back through one of the portals; he couldn't get back through before it closed." Angel stopped there. The rest of Spike's story was only for Buffy – at a later date. She was clearly shaken up by his walking-in-the-sun appearance and Spike's demise.

"That's all good and dandy, but that doesn't explain why you're out walking in the sun. And why I can't taunt you with 'Dead Boy' anymore," Xander pointed out, disappointment in his voice.

Angel took a deep breath. No one had known about the Prophesy besides his L.A. family…and now they were all gone. He had even hidden it from Buffy in case it didn't come true. The Day That Never Happened replayed through his mind on fast forward. He wanted that day to be real once again.

"During my first year in Los Angeles, I infiltrated Wolfram and Hart. I felt drawn to this ancient scroll and took it with me before escaping. Wesley later translated it. It was called the Shanshu Prophesy and it spoke of a vampire with a soul being rewarded with humanity after playing a pivotal role in an apocalypse. We had assumed it would be me until Spike showed up, but at the end he gave it up and I became human once more."

Angel could see Willow's fascination. "Did the change happen immediately?"

"In order to become part of the Blackthorn I had to give it up, but the Powers That Be still granted me humanity. The oracles say that it was my destiny no matter what I had done. Shortly after the portals closed, this bright light engulfed me and I woke up with a beating heart."

Dawn huffed. "If it happened right away, how come it took you so long to show up?"

"Well after Buffy hospitalized my source in Italy, I had no clue where you were. It took a good part of the past month tracking you down." He looked over at Buffy. "Before that I had some things I needed to put in order."

Buffy looked at Angel with watery eyes. She couldn't believe what she was hearing. Angel was alive, beating heart, out in the sun, the whole nine yards. I still haven't figured out what that means. The dreams she had been having started right around the time Angel said he became human. They must have been trying to tell her she actually had a future with someone, and it turned out to be with the only one she ever pictured her future being with. She didn't know what to do.

Willow must have sensed the sudden tension. "Why don't we leave you two alone to talk for a bit? I gotta run some errands in town. Xander, Dawn, why don't you join me?" After some protest, Xander and Dawn followed Willow out the front door. Buffy and Angel were left alone, sitting across from each other.

What could he say to her? After all this time apart, he shouldn't expect her to welcome him back open arms. But their last encounter gave him hope; maybe she was done baking and would allow someone to fully enjoy her cookie goodness. Angel decided to let the overwhelmed blond before him make the first move. All he did was move to sit next to her on the couch.

For the first time in a long time, the Slayer was speechless. A single tear ran down her cheek. Angel reached up and used his thumb to wipe it away.

"Angel…" Buffy breathed. He loved the way she said his name, he loved the way the sun shone on her golden locks, he loved her more than anything. She brought her small hand up near his chest, hesitating before asking, "Can I feel it?"

Angel held her hand as he placed it over his heart – his beating heart – the heart that swelled with love for Buffy. He smiled when Buffy gasped. More tears fell from Buffy's green eyes. Angel took her face in his strong hands.

"Are you alright? I mean, with me suddenly showing up in your life again? I just had an insatiable desire to find you and tell you about the Prophesy," he looked her in the eye, "and about Spike."

Buffy sighed, wiping her own tears from her flushed cheeks. "I'm fine, I am just a little overwhelmed with all of this information at once."

Angel stood up. "I'll let you think things through and I'll come back to-" Buffy grabbed his wrist and pulled him down on the couch, and into a deep passionate kiss. When they broke for air, Angel struggled to regain his breath. Still not used to actually breathing. "Or I can stay here with you."

Buffy smiled. "I'm sorry. Not about the kiss, because it was a good kiss, but for springing it on you. I mean, you just become human and probably have a relationship or something," she paused, her intense gaze searching Angel's face. "Do you?"

Angel looked at her. "I – umm – sorta had a relationship right before the apocalypse…with a werewolf." Her eyes widened. He hadn't wanted to talk about Nina right yet.

Buffy cleared her throat. "And are you still – umm – seeing her…still?"

"No. After becoming human I sought her out and she nursed me back to health. I had been very weak after the battle and needed a few days to regain my strength." Angel leaned forward resting his head in his hands and his elbows on his knees. "I soon realized she didn't make me perfectly happy, and now that I was allowed to be at peace I wanted to. But the only person that ever had made me feel that way," he looked at Buffy, "had been you. And since you gave me a breath-taking kiss a few minutes ago, I would say that you are done with The Immortal…I hope."

Buffy smiled again. How I love that smile. "That relationship ended shortly after it began. We had our fun in Italy but he was more interested in angering you and Spike. I couldn't stand the jealously." She stopped. "How was Spike when his…time…ended?"

"At peace. He died a hero. A Champion. I didn't want to tell you in front of the others, but Spike made me promise to always take care of you no matter what. To tell you that he will never stop caring about you even when you won't care for him. And to tell you that I was a lucky man to love such an amazing and courageous woman, who always thinks of others before herself."

Buffy started tearing again silently. "He said all that? Without making fun of you?"

Angel laughed. "I wouldn't go that far."

Buffy smiled, a full smile this time. "Wow. I feel oh-so-special." She sobered up and reached for Angel's face. "I don't want to rush back into things right away, but if you want to I would be willing to try again. You and me. Relationship. Only if you also want to. We don't have to."

"No, I do want to…work on us being us again. But at your pace. When you are ready for me to enjoy your cookie-goodness, I'll be here."

Buffy laughed at Angel's use of her own metaphor. "I am finally done baking. But who are you now, Mr. Angel?"

"I'm just a 26-year-old man in love with a 23-year-old woman…and a strong craving for mint chocolate chip cookie dough ice cream." Laughing, Angel stood up and moved to the door. The sun had finally set. "I'll leave you to work things out and I'll come back tomorrow to talk some more." As he placed his hand on the door knob, Buffy laid her hand on his arm.

"Or you could stay here. I'm sure I've got a tub of ice cream in the fridge. And we could talk some more." She paused. "I don't want you to go yet. Could you – umm – stay with me tonight? It would be nice to have someone hold me all night long again."

"Buffy, I don't think we should spend the night together yet. We need to orientate ourselves back into each other's lives first."

Buffy blushed. "I didn't mean it in that sense. I just want you to hold me and I want to hear your heart beating beside me. I mean, you can stay if you want. We could relax and watch a movie."

Angel felt the innocence in her voice. Just like he would hear from her voice seven years ago before they spent their first night together. Well their only night together according to Buffy. He smiled. "Sure. So, you got ice cream? How about peanut butter?"