Chapter 15: I think it's time we try to open up our eyes, look away from the very thing that's made us cry.

Faith walked into work, hanging her jacket up on the hook. Her manager, Wesley, grabbed her jacket off the hook and pressed it back into her hands. She raised her eyebrow in question.

"We need you to head over to the Barnes and Noble store today for your shift - some of their staff has caught the flu, and they're shorthanded."

Faith whined in protest. "C'mon, Wes. Isn't there anybody else you can send?"

Wesley frowned. "Not really, no. Everyone else is accounted for, and I thought you'd relish the chance. Last thing I heard was that your girlfriend was working over there and you were thinking about putting in for a transfer. Did you two break up?"

Faith sighed. "Not break up. Just going through a little bit of a fight."

"All the more reason for you to go over there and make things right." Wesley advised. He laid his hand on her shoulder, a silent show of support. "The first fight is always the hardest, believe me. The longer you let wounds fester, the harder it'll be to make amends. You've been happier than I've ever seen you for the last few weeks - don't let that go without a fight."

"""

Faith looked straight ahead as she walked into the Barnes and Noble, going through the routine of opening up a register and selling coffee without obviously looking at the counter on the other side of the room where she was sure Buffy was. She watched Buffy all morning out of the corner of her eye, watched as she sold books and rang up customers with a cheery smile. Faith could tell it was just a mask. When Buffy slipped in the back for her lunch break, Faith slipped off her apron and followed her into the employee lounge.

"Hey." Faith said, pausing in the doorway, unsure of where they stood now.

"Hey." Buffy sat down at one of the small round tables, motioning towards the other seat. Faith sat down, and they both said at the same time, "I'm sorry."

They offered each other shy smiles. "Me first." Faith said, and Buffy nodded. "I'm sorry, I've been a total head-case these last few days. Something hurts Xan and it sends me straight into mother tiger mode, and I have a hard time thinking logically. He's closer than a brother to me, and I can't stand to see him other than happy."

"I know." Buffy replied, "I feel the same way about Spike. He appears to be all cocky and bad-ass attitude, but that's all a front. He's so shy and gentle when you get to know him; I'm so afraid that one of these days someone's going to break his heart enough that he won't be able to recover. Or worse, he might forget that the bravado is only a mask and lose himself in it." She took a deep breath, folding her hands on the table. "When I first heard Xander call in about the book, I thought it would be cute to have Spike wait on him. He was so insecure about finally having a book of his poetry published, that I figured it would be an ego boost to see someone who sounded like they were a big fan. I had no idea they would click so well, and I know Spike never wanted to hurt Xander."

Faith laid her own hand on top of Buffy's clasped hands. "I know that, now. It took me a little while to get over the knee-jerk anger, but I'd have to be blind, deaf, and dumb not to see how much they love each other."

"Spike's been walking around like a ghost since the signing." Buffy said, holding Faith's hand between her own. "Willow took one look at him this morning and sent him home to get some rest."

Faith nodded. "Xander's taken to moping in his apartment, when he's not working his ass off on the stage. I can hardly get him to answer his phone, much less leave his apartment for anything besides work." She hadn't even realized the moment when her second hand joined the first, and their fingers had intertwined. "You got any ideas of how to fix this?"

Buffy shrugged. "Besides locking them in a closet for a few hours? Not at the moment." She nibbled her lip as they grew silent, each consumed by their own thoughts.

"Are we going to be okay?" Buffy asked after a little while, her eyes watering as she kept her gaze on their combined hands.

Faith's thumb brushed against Buffy's index finger. "Yeah, I think so. I mean, I'll have to beat you and Spike up for hurting Xander, and then Spike can beat me up for walking out on you-"

Buffy laughed through her sniffles. "One big shovel-whacking and we'll all be fine?"

Faith winked. "Well, they say violence is good for relieving tension and solving problems."

"Hmm." Buffy replied. She lifted their tangle of fingers and kissed Faith's hands. "I love you." she whispered. "Can't sleep anymore when you're not next to me." She lifted her tear-sparkling gaze to pin Faith in place. "Promise you won't walk out again, no matter what. I don't care what happens or how angry we get, we never leave. Okay?"

Faith used their combined grasp to tug Buffy to lean over the table. "I promise." Faith said, leaning in to kiss her. "No matter what, my love. I promise I'll never leave."

"""

Okay, the whole 'woe is me, my lover betrayed me' attitude was starting to get on her nerves. As much as she loved Xander, this depression had to stop. One week was long enough. She wasn't sure what she could do to put Spike and Xander back together again, but she was going to have to do something soon. Buffy's idea of locking them in the same room was starting to look more and more appealing.

"He said he loved me. How can I believe anything he ever said?" Xander moped, hands curled around a mug of hot chocolate. Faith sat next to him on the loveseat in his apartment, rubbing circles into his back. "God, all those conversations you and I had, analyzing his poems - I never even suspected it was Spike."

Faith frowned as something about the poems caught her attention. She couldn't quite put her finger on what was bothering her, but... "Hey Xan. Do you still have the receipt for his poetry book?

Xan's brow wrinkled as he wondered what a receipt had to do with anything. "I was using it as a bookmark. Why?"

"They dropped by the stage the day after you bought the book, didn't they?" Faith pulled the book off the shelf and found the receipt. She went over to his computer and logged on the internet, opening William's webpage. "When was your first date?"

"That Saturday." Xander sat down next to her. "What are you doing?"

"Waiting for the page to load." She checked the dates on the poems, and turned to Xander. "'Serendipitous Adonis' was written the night you two met, and 'Hansel in Reverse' was written right after your first date. The poems are about you. There's your proof. He does love you, Xander."

Xander leaned forward, eyes searching the screen like a starving man devouring food. She was right, how could he not have figured it out? He reread the poem again, his epiphany shining new light on the meaning behind the words. Before he'd just thought the pretzel thing was a strange coincidence, and he'd been a little jealous about the idea of William kissing anyone, but now it was so very obvious that the poem had been written about their first date.

Hansel in Reverse

I ran from my parent's house
Sister-friend at my side
Bits of pretzel, a peace offering
Bread trail guiding me home.
Lips sweeter that gingerbread
Mouth hotter than the witch's oven
You've caught me, burned me alive
I yearn for the cage of your arms.

Faith watched as Xander stared at the screen, wondering why he seemed more sad when he was in silent shock than he had when he had been moping.