Title: High School Highs and Lows

Pairing: Buffy/Faith

Summary: Faith has a secret that prevents her from being intimate. Will Buffy finally be the girl to get Faith to open up?

Notes: Faith has a certain medical condition below the waist.

Disclaimer: Disclaimer: I don't own Buffy the Vampire Slayer or any of its affiliated sources, characters, or concepts. Don't own any of this. I don't profit from the BtVS series. I'm just having fun.

Xander tossed a piece of popcorn into his mouth. "This is the life." He broadly grinned, happy the Willow, Faith, and him were together again. "Horror movie marathon. The best selection of junk food, and my two favorite girls."

Willow nodded in agreement. She was having a good time watching scary movies in Faith's bedroom. The three of them had been having a good time, but she could tell that Faith seemed to be slightly nervous. Her friend seemed distracted. "I think if you had to choose between us and the snacks we'd lose." She playfully replied.

Faith was feeling anxious. She couldn't entirely relax, not when she had something very important to tell her friends. If Buffy's reaction was any indication her two closest friends would be accepting, at least Faith hoped that they would understand. Halfway through the second movie she paused it, leaving the young women in peril with the killer holding a machete over her. It didn't look good for her, and Faith was beginning to feel the same way about her own predicament.

"Hey, it was just getting to the good part." Xander protested.

"We've seen this a million times." Willow pointed out, instinctively knowing Faith had something she needed to say.

"Maybe this time it'll end differently." Xander replied.

"It doesn't." Faith hesitantly replied. "I've got something I want to tell you. Buffy and me - it's getting serious."

Xander and Willow shared a look. Both of the unsure of where Faith was headed.

"She's - I really like her, and she feels the same about me." She briefly smiled, fondly thinking of her girlfriend.

"You two going to run off and get married?" Xander joked.

Faith shrugged. "Maybe." She lightly replied. The idea of marrying Buffy wasn't something she thought about, but the idea of it wasn't odd to her.

His eyes widened in surprise. "That serious?"

Faith nodded. "Yeah, that serious. I've told her something about myself that I haven't told anyone else. I didn't want to keep it from you two, but I just didn't know how to say it."

"Whatever it is Faith we're here for you." Willow encouragingly stated, offering their support.

Xander nodded. "Yeah. The three of us stick together." He briefly paused. "I can't offer you an alibi if you and Buffy have been holding up convenience stores." He went for a joke, wanting to break up the tension he could feel building.

She shook her head, going a long with the joke. "We haven't reached that stage of our relationship."

Willow smiled. "I hope you don't."

"I've got a medical situation." She confessed. Willow's expression was one of panic. "It's not - I'm not sick or anything -"

"But you've got a medical situation, that can't be good." Willow argued.

"You're not sick are you?" A look of genuine concerned graced Xander's face.

"I just said I wasn't sick." She sighed, feeling terribly awkward the longer she dragged out this explanation. "I'm fine. For the first time in a long time I'm feel good about my situation." She paused, thinking of Buffy's acceptance to encourage her. "I'm not like other girls. I was born with an extra part I shouldn't have and I've never been comfortable about it."

He furrowed his brow. "A third nipple?"

Faith briefly glared at her friend. "You think I'd be this nervous to tell you I have a third nipple? Which I don't have by the way."

Xander shrugged. "I don't know. I just - it's something."

"I've got what you have, Xan." Faith resorted to using the shortening of his nickname, wanting to appear casual, but it came off as awkward. "I was born with a certain appendage that shouldn't be there, but it is and I've just got to live with it."

His eyes widened in realization at what Faith was telling him. Willow was stunned as well. Her wide eyed look matching Xander's. They both continued to stare at her at a loss for words. There was an uncomfortable moment of silence between the three friends. "Come on, guys." Faith nervously laughed. "Say something. Anything."

"That's quite the secret to keep." Willow stammered.

"You've had one all this time?" Xander asked.

"Yeah," Faith sighed, feeling a invisible weight lifted off her shoulders.

Willow spoke up. "Why did you wait so long to tell us? We don't care. I mean we do, but it's -"

"I know." Faith replied, a small smile on his face. "I just didn't want you to think I was a freak."

Willow shook her head. "We don't. Do we, Xander?"

"We don't. I meant it when I said the three of us stick together." He grinned.

"Thanks." Faith couldn't believe it'd been so easy, but she was grateful to have such understanding and openminded friends.

"Buffy's alright with it?" He curiously asked.

"Yeah, she's completely accepting of someone like me." Faith replied.

"There isn't anything wrong with you. Something would have to be wrong with her to not accept you." Willow pointed out. Xander nodded in agreement.

(- - - -)

Faith beamed, continuing her story. "They were cool with it, B."

Buffy lovingly squeezed her girlfriend's hand. "That's great."

She nodded. "Yeah, then we went back to doing what we usually do. Watching movies, eating junk, drinking soda, and eating pizza."

Buffy laughed. "A bunch of party animals."

Faith shrugged. "What can I say? I'm wild. How was the Bronze?"

"Just sat around. I thought about you the entire time." She confessed.

"That doesn't sound like a lot of fun." Faith replied, not liking that Buffy hadn't enjoyed herself.

"I'd rather be with you." Buffy pressed a soft kiss to Faith's mouth. They were alone, cuddled up on the couch in Faith's room. Her girlfriend hadn't tried anything. Faith could be respectful to a fault. It was endearing to Buffy, but sometimes she wanted nothing more than her girlfriend to paw at her. She thought things would change after Faith's secret was out in the open, and they had to a certain extent. Faith wasn't pushing to get her into bed, and take their relationship to the next level. Buffy felt that it would be up to her. "Wouldn't you rather be with me?" She whispered against her girlfriend's mouth.

Faith was hesitant to reply. She still had this fear that this could be taken away from her. Buffy would wake up and leave her. It was difficult to admit how much she wanted Buffy. She simply nodded, returning Buffy's kiss with one of her own. Buffy straddled her girlfriend's hips, deepening their kiss. "Tell me."

She continued to kiss Buffy slipping her hands onto her girlfriend's back and caressing her though the tank top she was wearing. Buffy pulled back, staring expectantly at Faith. "Tell me, Faith." Buffy had something of a serious look on her face, leaving Faith quite confused.

"Tell you what?" Faith asked, willing to tell Buffy whatever it was she needed to hear if it meant they could go back to kissing.

"Tell me you'd rather be with me." She replied, expectantly waiting to her Faith repeat her words.

Faith smiled, gently running her hands up and down Buffy's sides. "I'd rather be kiss you than Xander." She laughed, leaning up to press a playful kiss to Buffy's mouth.

"Who would you rather spend time with?" She asked, her tone still serious. Buffy needed to be reassured of Faith's devotion to her.

"It's different, B. I mean - Xan and Will are my friends." She tried to explain.

"I'm not?" She crossed her arms over her chest.

"You are too, but it's different like I said. You're my girlfriend." She hesitantly replied, unsure of what had turned Buffy's mood from wanting to smooch to talk about her friends.

"I am." She smiled, pressing a soft kiss to Faith's mouth, siding her hands onto her girlfriend's belt. "And, you'd rather spend more time with me, right?" She lightly ran her hand over the front of Faith's jeans.

She inhaled shakily. "Yeah," It was true. In that moment with the way Buffy was touching her there wasn't anyone that Faith would've preferred to spend time with.

Buffy grinned, feeling rather triumphant. It was a big manipulative, but she just needed reassurance that Faith liked her as much as she liked Faith. She pulled back, grabbing the bottom of her shirt and slowly pulled it over her head. Faith stared wide eyed. She'd seen Buffy like this plenty of times before, but every time she still got this incredibly goofy look on her face. Buffy reached behind herself, and undid her bra, and tossed it to the floor. She reached out, grabbing hold of Faith's hands and pressed them to her breasts. "Don't be shy." She whispered against Faith's mouth, kissing her deeply, and sighed contentedly as Faith rubbed her thumbs back and forth over Buffy's nipples.

End of Chapter 15