Disclaimer: Obviously I don't own Angel, cuz if I did, 1) it would still be on the air, and 2) I wouldn't have time to write, I'd never leave the bedroom! lol!

Thanks to my faithful readers, you guys are awesome! I have a few more issues to work out, (something really bothered me in BtVS that I want to address), and then we'll see what we can do about our favorite forbidden couple!!!

"Hey Willow! Have you seen our favorite slayer around anywhere?"

Willow turned to Xander from the book that she had been researching. "I thought she was downstairs with the slayers."

Xander shook his head. "Nope. I was just down there."

Willow shrugged. "Well, there's only one other place I would imagine that she'd be."

"Yeah. With Angel." Xander couldn't seem to keep the resentment out of his voice. "I still don't know what she sees in him, anyway."

"Xander..."

"I mean, sure, he's got this whole 'being dead' thing going for him, we know how romantic that can be!" His voice dripped with sarcasm as he went on.

"Xander."

"Who needs a boyfriend with a heart that actually beats, when you can have one that drinks blood and broods all day!"

Willow's eyes widened as she looked behind him, and she tried once more to get him to stop. "Xander, you have to..."

"Sure, Angel's a great guy! He's..."

"He's what, Xander?" Buffy voice was deceptively quiet.

Xander spun around, coming face to face with her. "I...um,..."

Buffy stared at him. "Well come on. You were on a roll, there. There's gotta be more that you wanted to say."

Willow stood up. "I'm just...gonna..." She slipped by Buffy and out the door, closing it softly behind her.

"Hey look, Buffy! I'm just telling it like it is! A slayer in love with a vampire! It's just crazy! Romanticize it however you want, he's a demon, a monster!"

"How dare you! You have no idea what I've been through! What Angel's been through!"

"No, I don't, but then again, I've never killed anyone!"

Buffy reached out and slapped him. Xander looked at her in shock, his hand covering his cheek. "Buffy..."

"Oh, God! Xander I..." Tears came to her eyes, but she brushed them away absentmindedly. "I'm sorry. It's just..." She turned her back to him, trying to get her emotions under control. When she turned back to him, her eyes were dry. "I'm sorry Xander. Sorry that I couldn't love you, the way you loved me."

"Buffy, I..."

She didn't let him finish. "But that doesn't give you the right to hate Angel. To do the things you did to him. When he turned, you were all for killing him. Never mind that maybe Willow could actually do the spell, give him back his soul, you just wanted him dead! No matter what it would do to me."

"It didn't matter that he saved my life, and yours, countless times. All the good that he had done as Angel flew out the window when he lost his soul. You couldn't see the man behind the demon." She shook her head. "No, that's not right. You didn't want to see it. You just wanted him out of the picture." She closed her eyes, trying to keep the tears at bay. "No matter if it broke my heart in the process."

Xander didn't know what to say. She was right. He hadn't cared.

"You never told me that Willow was trying the spell again. So I wasn't prepared. I didn't have time to come to grips with the fact that it wasn't Angelus I might have to kill to save the world. And it wasn't. It was Angel." The tears were back, now running down her cheeks, and she did nothing to hinder them. "When he came back, were you even the least bit happy for me? That maybe now I wouldn't be so wracked with guilt? No, you tried to get Faith to kill him for you!"

"I was wrong." The words were whispered, and she almost didn't hear him. He walked to the bed and sat down, his shoulders sagging, as if he carried the weight of the world. "You were right. I was...jealous. I didn't want to see the good. I just wanted him out of the way, that maybe, if he was gone, you might look at me like...like you used to look at him."

"Xander..." She walked over to him, sat down beside him and took his hand. "I'm sorry if I hurt you. But I can't help that I love Angel. Any more than you could help loving me."

"I know that. And I'm sorry. More sorry than you know." He hung his head, he couldn't bear to look at her.

"Xander." She took her hand and brought it to his chin, tilting his head up to look at her. "I know you are." She smiled at him.

He took a deep breath. "So, are we okay now?"

"You and I are okay. You and Angel...well, I guess that's up to you." She stood up.

"Yeah. I guess it is." He looked up at her. "I love you, Buffy. I mean, as a friend, you know?"

"I love you too, Xander." She smiled. "As a friend."

BBBBBBBBBB

Faith quickly pulled her shirt over her head, then sat down on the edge of the bed and slipped her shoes on.

"You know, you don't always have to leave so quickly, luv." Spike sat back, his head leaning against the headboard, watching her.

"Sorry, blondie bear. I'm not interested in cuddling." She got up and started towards the door.

"Right. You're just interested in meaningless sex."

"You got it." She reached the door, but paused when she heard his next words.

"That's a lie. You feel something with me."

She turned back to him. "Yeah, Spike. Satisfaction. That's it, so don't get your hopes up."

"Then why do you keep coming back to me? You can have sex with anyone, pet."

"Maybe I just like having sex with a vampire." She smiled wickedly. "How do you know that when I'm with you, I don't just pretend you're Angel?!"

Spike frowned and sat up. "Are you trying to piss me off, luv?!"

Faith laughed, but inside she felt hollow. Why was she trying to hurt him? "Why? Is it working?" She shook her head. "Besides, we both know you're thinking about B."

He was out of bed in a flash, standing beside her. "You know you're not thinking of Angel when you're with me!" He grabbed her and kissed her passionately. She wrapped her arms around him, kissing him back, but as suddenly as he had kissed her, he let her go. "And I don't think about Buffy when I'm with you, either!" He pushed her towards the door, then turned and walked into the bathroom. "Go ahead and run, pet. But I'll bet the bloody bank that you can't run far enough to escape what you feel for me." He slammed the door behind him.

Faith turned and opened the door, practically running out into the hallway. She shut the door, then leaned back against it. He was right. She had to face it. When she was with him, crazy as it sounded, it felt...right. Like it was meant to be. She'd had a lot of sexual experiences in her life, but she had never felt the contentment that she felt when she was in his arms. And it had hurt her to think that he was only using her, pretending that she was Buffy. She sighed and shook her head. What a mess she had gotten herself into. She heard the bathroom door open, and she pushed off the door quickly, heading back downstairs. The last thing she needed was for Spike to catch her lingering outside his door.

BBBBBBBBBB

Buffy found Willow outside in the courtyard. "Hey, Will."

"Buffy." She looked at her best friend warily. "Are you okay?"

Buffy smiled. "Right as rain."

"And...Xander?" She was almost afraid to ask.

"He's fine, Will. We're fine."

She breathed a sigh of relief. She hated when her two best friends fought. "Good."

"So, Wills, tell me. Do you have good news for me?"

Her face broke out into a smile. "I have great news, Buffy! I know how we can contact the Powers That Be!"

Okay, sorry about my ranting, but was I the only one that wanted to slap Xander numerous times throughout the series? I liked him, but sometimes he could be a real jerk! Anywho, thanks for reading, please let me know what you think! And btw, I'm really liking where things are going with Faith and Spike! Who knows where they'll end up! Only my muse, and she's not telling yet!