"You're acting nervous."

"Excited," Angel corrected as his eyes drifted over to where her bags sat beside his. He was sure before long it was going to kick him in the ass soon enough but he'd hardly even been able to sleep last night, his head too filled with ideas of what the next week and half could be filled with.

She nodded. "Well, it's certainly the most alive I've seen you at this time of day," She looked around the room while he threw the last of his toiletries into his final bag once he was done with them. "I have a weird feeling that I'm forgetting something."

He chuckled. "That's normal. And you'll probably realize exactly what that something is about five minutes after we're in the air."

"That's encouraging."

"In my experience, that is just how things go," he shrugged before reminding her she was already on the clock for the plan of her not using any magic.

"Yeah, yeah," she waved him off before asking him if he wanted to eat something quick here or what the plan for breakfast was.

"Mmm, let's grab some overpriced coffee on the way out of town and go from there."

OoOoO

Not only had she never been on a plane, but she'd never been inside of an airport in all her time either, and she was finding it nothing but chaos as she walked along beside Angel. She was thankful he at least seemed to know what they were doing and where to go.

Her eyes looked around as they walked, taking everything in while he listed off some places they still had time to stop in at and get something in their stomachs before take off when suddenly she caught a glimpse of someone and her whole body stopped moving.

Angel made it several more feet ahead of her before realizing she wasn't walking alongside him anymore, he called her name several times before walking back. "What's wrong?"

She shook her head, her heart squeezing in her chest as she watched the small group gathering together off in the distance. Once upon a time she had known the woman sitting there in the middle of it all, her arms reaching out for the youngest member of the family and dragging him onto her lap.

It was one thing to know someone's wish came true, or to be able to take a look at their file even years and years down the line and see little tidbits added to the end and another to actually have the rare chance to see how things were holding up for one of her old charges with her very own eyes.

Following her line of sight he too watched the small family, at first he couldn't help but think of how awful it must be to travel with children, but then it hit him. "She's one of yours, isn't she?" Without thinking his hand went to the small of her back, "One of the people whose wish you granted?"

Leaning into his touch a bit she let out a long sigh just as who she assumed was Victoria's daughter came running back to her mother, a small lollipop in her hand. She nodded, not sure she was capable of forming words at the moment. She wasn't sure what had her so choked up, Victoria was a great girl, well at least she had been, she'd made wish on her eighteenth birthday, she was a bit younger than her normal charge, but Buffy had quickly learned that the girl had lived and been through more in her short eighteen years than most people had in their entire lives.

A childhood leukemia survivor, her hair had only just begun to grow back when she first popped into her life. According to all of her doctors any wish she had for a family of her own down the line, should be thought about in more non-traditional ways. At the time the medical community hadn't even been sure surrogacy was an option, unsure of what the quality of her eggs would be after years of chemotherapy and the multitude of other drugs she had to take in order to survive.

If she remembered correctly the poor girl had ended up with the captain of her high schools football team, admittedly it was a bit cliché and Buffy had had her reservations at first but the more she saw the two of them together the more she thought that just maybe he would end up being Victoria's happily ever after, after all. The whole kid thing was news to her though, even she couldn't perform miracles like that. Thinking back she tried to calculate how long ago it all had been, ten, fifteen years maybe, but there was no denying it, one way or another the two of them had successfully in creating the family she knew the girl desperately wanted, and judging from the two little one's bright red hair, and mother's eyes, she highly doubted they'd been forced into the route of adoption.

Just then the small girl looked up and sent a shy wave in their direction, seeming to snap Buffy out of her trip down memory lane. Without even thinking Buffy's hand seemed to find its way to his, linking their fingers, she shook her head a bit, "Sorry," she muttered a bit embarrassed, though even she wasn't sure exactly why.

"It's not a big deal," he shrugged, "It must be weird seeing someone you spent so much time with that doesn't even remember who you are."

She nodded, squeezing his hand a little tighter, seeing Victoria, seeing her happy, that all made her ecstatic, it was literally the validation of a job well done. However in her current situation it was also a slapping reminder of just what she was getting herself into. Victoria got her happily ever after, she wasn't allowed that, and if things kept up the way they were going, she was becoming more and more certain Angel wasn't going to end up with his either.

Sensing her thoughts, an ability he was afraid was starting to become all too natural to him, he shrugged off the small duffel bag he was carrying and let it fall to the floor as he pulled her fully against him. "Stop it," he whispered against her hair.

"Stop what?" she asked, even though they both knew exactly what he was talking about.

Nudging her head back with his, he waited for her to finally look up at him. "Stop thinking that you're taking something away from me, or that you being around is only aiding me in a distraction." More than anything he wanted to kiss her again, to remind himself just how perfect she felt against his tongue, but they were only just starting this little journey and he feared it was a bit soon to be making any such bold move just yet. Instead his lips softly brushed against her forehead, "I can't help it," he grinned, the corners of his mouth lifting more with each word, "I'm afraid I just find you entirely too irresistible Mrs. Angelus."

Rolling her eyes, she playfully pushed herself away from his chest and out of his arms. Sometimes she really had no idea what she was supposed to do with him. "Summers," she corrected once he'd picked up his abandoned bag and grabbed her hand all over again. Figuring it was pointless to object at this point, she just went with it, "My last name," she clarified.

"Summers," he repeated slowly, almost like he was testing the feel of it on his tongue.

"What?"

He shook his head, "Nothing," that grin he'd been wearing giving way to one of his famous smiles that she could almost swear had the ability to light up the whole room. "I just like the sound of the other better."

"The other what…" she started confused, but then the full implications of what he was saying hit her, and she shoved at his arm again. "Don't even start mister, just because this is supposed to be a vacation doesn't mean I won't start reciting all those rules you just love to ignore."

He rolled his eyes, "Ya, ya, trust me, I'm pretty sure I could recite the stupid things to you as many times as I've heard them."

Thankful for the distraction, he tugged her towards the line for security. It was a good thing they had decided to come early, Buffy wanting some time to take it all in and all, because judging from the rows of people waiting to get through, they would be lucky if they got to their terminal within the hour. Sitting his own bag on top of her roller suitcase, he briefly wondered where her luggage had even come from, if she had bought it especially for their trip, or if it was just something she had lying around her place like normal people. Probably the former he'd decided draping his arms around her from behind, especially after their whole conversation regarding the odd concept of someone actually packing everything they may need before a trip.

"We're supposed to be married, remember," he leaned down to whisper against her ear when he felt her tense a bit. It was a weak excuse, but it did hold a bit of merit, they were going through security after all, and it would probably look more than a little suspect if they were going back as though they didn't even know each other.

She giggled, "Or siblings."

He groaned, he didn't care how many universes, dimensions, galaxies or whatever the hell existed out there, he was absolutely positive that they were not siblings in a single one. "I don't think so," he told her. He doubted it would be anything anyone really looked to any which way... but there was no way he, at the very least, could pull of pretending to be any sort of relative to her if his life depended on it. All feeling he had toward her were far from brother and sister bonds and anyone who spent even a few seconds in their presence were bound to pick up on that, too.

Buffy laughed harder, just letting that sit.

After that point she didn't engage with him still, with any of his small passing touches or small comments he would make, but she didn't push him away either. The most he got were a couple of eye rolls and one annoyed stare down when they had stopped to eat, having finally found something that looked appetizing as they walked through the rest of the airport. By the time they'd finally made it through security he was damn near starving.

OoOoO

Normally, Angel found that he hated airports, flying wasn't his go-to means of travel either but it wasn't always avoidable. The actual flying part never bothered him, short trips had been enjoyable even a number of times, but there was always so much rushing around, crowds, usually having a horrible time trying to find where he needed to be... usually he would go in as late as he could manage to just get in and out but not today. The nearly full day ahead of flying and the trip itself didn't seem like enough, plus he knew Buffy was worried about how this would all go, so he'd made sure to arrive earlier than he would as if he were alone.

And he couldn't have been happier with that decision.

There was something endlessly entertaining about simply watching Buffy in this setting... she was so fascinated with just sitting there, watching the crowds of various people everywhere you turned, she'd smile brightly at the families reuniting, make funny cringe faces at the parents so close to losing it while their kids were running wild in the little waiting area across from them, for awhile she'd entertained him with guessing games about the random strangers around... where they were going, why, how their flight was bound to go...

Every now and then her nerves would slip through and he was almost equally endeared with how she would ask him to confirm their seating, the times for when they were supposed to do one thing or another, what was allowed on the flight and not.

OoOoO

Angel insisted she take the window seat so she could get "the full experience of take off" so she quickly sat, looking out, taking in the view from the lot, watching the large cart of bags getting closer, a few scattered people walking about. Her stomach felt tight with nerves and excitement that she wasn't quite used to.

All of today seemed to be giving her those feelings actually. She'd never really worried too much about fitting in anywhere, especially not in the human realm. She had really never thought twice about if she seemed out of place to others in general but there was something about this whole idea of being more or less stuck on the flight for nearly a full day's worth and this whole no magic challenge he'd put out there that had her second guessing herself quite a bit. It was like she kept waiting for someone to point out she didn't belong to her, and she'd never really worried about that before.

Today was in general a very strange experience already.

"I need my notebook," she told Angel when he reached for her bigger bag to put it away.

He paused and shook his head. "No you don't."

"Angel-"

"No, because anything you want to write down I already know you have memorized in that pretty little head of yours. No, because you're not going to spend the whole time obsessing over women on this flight or how to hook me up with them. No, because we have all the time in the world to deal with that... we can enjoy at least some time just... being."

Her eyes narrowed, "We don't have all the time in the world," she corrected him.

His eyes rolled, finishing with the bags and taking his seat next to her. "We still have the better part of a year. It's going to be okay. Enjoy yourself a little, alright?"

She sighed, sure that arguing with him would get them nowhere, and that little voice inside of her quickly reminded herself of the last time she'd tried this whole lightning up and enjoying herself without being fully focused on the mission at hand. "Fine. What am I supposed to do then?"

Angel smiled, patting her hand. "You sit and you make small talk with me, you wait for everyone to get loaded on here and in their seats, the airplane to be given the go ahead. You wait for all the flight instructions to be demonstrated. You relax. You talk about our plans and how excited you are."

OoOoO

As the plane started to move, her eyes stared out the window, her fingers moving on their own to grip around the armrests to either side of her.

"It's okay," Angel said softly, linking his hand with hers closest to him.

She nodded but couldn't seem to say or do anything as they started to lift away from the safety of the ground, and it all seemed like a blur there for awhile as they got higher and higher, houses and buildings all getting smaller and smaller, the view getting grander by the moment.

Finally looking away and back toward Angel, she smiled brightly, "Okay, this is pretty fun."

He chuckled and asked her to keep that in mind when a few more hours had passed, then he went on to asking her questions she knew he knew better than to ask and for the millionth time explaining to him in harsh whispers that she wasn't a fairy and that she didn't have wings when he started going off the deep end with flying by other means questions.

OoOoO

Blinking slowly, Angel tried to put together exactly when he had apparently drifted off and how much time had passed since, with one eye opening he noticed the same movie he'd been watching earlier was still going so figured it couldn't have been much of a nap, then his eyes shifted over to the seat next to him and he felt his whole chest start to squeeze as he took in Buffy's own sleeping form.

'How am I supposed to not be in love with you?' he thought before quickly telling himself it wasn't love, it was just... something.

Shaking those thoughts away, he continued to take her in, the slight soft puffiness to her face, how her lips barely stayed parted, the light breathing noises that came between them.

Brushing a few strands of loose hair out of her face first, he covered her up in a requested blanket, hoping she wouldn't wake up too uncomfortable with how she was huddled up in the small seat. He'd splurged, wanting to give her the best experience, so they were in first which meant their seats were far more comfortable than those of the unfortunate passengers behind them, but it was still leaps away from what he'd consider a luxurious sleeping arrangement.

Wanting to give her a bit more room to stretch out, he lifted the small armrest between them. Pushing the little button to recline their seats he chuckled as she mumbled a few unintelligible phrases, then held his breath when without warning she turned to curl against his side. As if he had a choice, he let his arm fall around her, her head now pillowed against his chest he shifted in his seat until he too was as comfortable as he was going to get. Though with her in his arms, he wasn't quite sure he could be convinced to be anywhere else regardless.

OoOoO

Angel had woken before Buffy again, and he briefly wondered if she'd been getting enough rest with all the back and forth she'd been pulling between his world and hers. Somehow she had managed to snuggle even closer to him while they slept, her arm locked firmly around his waist he couldn't have moved if he tried. Glancing at his watch, he noted that they had managed to knock out nearly three hours of the flight so far. He wasn't sure how, but he was almost certain that was the best sleep he'd had since she came fluttering into his life.

He wasn't sure just how well he was supposed to be behaving during this little adventure of theirs, but he hoped that she relaxed, if only a little in regards to her whole hands off approach. He had made sure to specify a bungalow with double beds, but that still meant they were going to be sleeping within the same four walls and he'd been worried about that since about the moment after she'd agreed to it all. He wasn't some animal that couldn't control himself or anything but having her so close and yet so fucking far was going to be a brand new kind of torture.

The first thing she realized as consciousness started to claim her, was the warm body pressed so intimately against her. Without even opening her eyes she knew whose chest she was smushed up against, recent memories trickled in, one after another. Their trip, the flight, her promise to forgo all magic, his inability to keep her out the forefront of his mind, and her distinct lack of control whenever it came to absolutely anything concerning him.

"Mmm," she groaned, forcing herself away from him, while silently praying to all the powers that she hadn't drooled or done something else incredibly embarrassing, like snore. "Sorry," she mumbled, but Angel shook his head, seemingly in some sort of trance he leaned his head just enough to brush his lips across hers. Per usual what he'd intended to be chaste, soon had them both panting near desperate, and momentarily forgetting where they were.

Swallowing hard when they finally broke apart, he threaded their fingers together, her face about matched the thin red zip up she was wearing, but he found her positively adorable nonetheless. Plus after the last few times he'd found himself losing control he couldn't help but be grateful that she couldn't go and disappear on him.

Not sure she would ever get used to the way her whole entire being seemed to pulse when they kissed, a feeling she was also growing far too accustomed too. Much to his surprise, not only did she not completely disappear or jump up and run off, letting out a long sigh, she laid her head back against his shoulder. "We really have to stop doing that, ya know?"

His own head tilted to lean against the top of hers, "For the life of me I can't seem to remember a single reason why," he whispered, breathing her in. He smirked against her hair, "I mean that's what the second or third time now," he waved around, "No rain of fire yet."

"Fourth," she corrected without thinking, "I mean," she stumbled, lowering her voice she continued, "Not that I'm keeping track or anything."

What the hell was she doing, losing her freaking mind that's what. For all the pep talks she'd given herself these last twenty-four hours she sure was allowing the exact opposite to go down between them. Already there was no question they'd completely sabotaged any chance he had with that cute little auburn girl a few rows across from them. Judging from her envious glare, there was no doubt in her mind she'd been witness to their transgression.

So lost in her own thoughts, she almost hadn't even noticed the flight attendant approach. Angel being the little sneak that he was, slid one of his hands around her thighs as they listened to their flights dinner options, not wanting to cause a scene or draw any unwanted attention she tried to ignore the small tingle it seemed to ignite inside her belly.

After a bit of back and forth each of them finally decided on the pasta, neither too much trusting the quality of meat on a plane. Plus, Angel had ordered them each a drink, something else he knew that she usually steered clear from. It wasn't that alcohol was forbidden or anything, if it was she was pretty sure Doyle and Lorne both would have been cast out long ago, but it was just something she had never really grown a taste for. Not to mention the couple of times the guys had peer pressured into giving it a try, she'd ended up with her head draped over the edge of a toilet bowl while she prayed to whoever that might listen to spare her life.

And yet here she was, with a full selection of miniature wine bottles displayed before her, well at least as much of a selection that was available on the aircraft anyway. Angel kept pouring a few sips into one of the clear plastic cups the stewardess had provided to let her try while they waited for their food to be prepared. So far they had discovered that she was not a fan of anything red, dry, or sparkling. Judging by the look on her face, whites seemed to be her favorite, though from the way she was giggling he couldn't tell if she was actually enjoying the flavor, or if the alcohol had already obliterated her taste buds.

"Easy," he warned when she forewent the cup all together to sip straight from the bottle. The last thing he wanted to do was cause her to get sick on a plane, he couldn't really think of a worse start to their vacation if he were being honest.

Never more grateful to receive a couple of plates of pre cooked pasta, he made sure to ask for a couple of water bottles before the attendant took off. Buffy was far from drunk, but he could definitely tell she was feeling the effects, not that he minded, especially not with the way she was suddenly more touchy-feely with him, or how any lingering doubt in his mind about what her feelings toward him might be all seemed to quickly disappear with her lowered defenses, with every lust filled glance she shot his way, how her every expression when she looked at him seemed to completely convey the battle going on inside of her with her own wants when it came to him and what it was that she was supposed to be doing.

Swallowing audibly, he told her she should try to eat at least a little of her meal to try and keep her stomach better balanced. When their attendant returned, he opened one water bottle for himself then hers before setting it up beside her plate.

After getting her to take a few bites, Buffy leaned impossibly close and whispered something along the lines that their meal wasn't the best she'd ever had. He would have probably chuckled at her and the pouty tone she'd taken but he found himself lost in haze instead, not daring to move an inch as she didn't pull away after the quick complaint. Instead, she seemed to be in a trance of her own, staring at him from the mere inches away where she sat, her breath warm against his skin.

Out of the corner of his eye he could see her arm starting to come up, fingers itching to reach for him, and he held his breath waiting to see what she would do. Disappointment flooded him however when she snapped out of it, her hand jerking back and she pulled herself back together. "You told me not to bother with bringing along any snacks and I'm starting to resent you for it," she muttered, picking back at her food.

He dared a better glance at her, promising she could get whatever snacks she wanted on the flight that they offered, and he would do his best to make up for the less than stellar meals once they were back on the ground.

ButImBroken:

Co-written with Scribes1015!