Disclaimer: All characters belong to Joss Whedon.
More Than I Deserve: Chapter Five
When he showed up at her motel room favoring his left side, blood seeping through his fingers, she panicked. She was the Slayer, she'd gotten used to the injuries, although they'd never been this bad. She had learned early on how to deal with the pain and the blood, but it was different this time. This time, she wasn't the one who had been hurt. It was Lindsey and in the last six weeks, he'd come to mean a lot to her.
"What happened?" she asked as she slipped under the arm he wasn't using to hold pressure on his wound and helped him into her room and over to her bed.
"Client got pissed off. Took his anger out on me."
"I hate that you work with demons."
He smiled and cupped Buffy's cheek as she sat down on the edge of the bed. "I know. You've told me before."
"Well, I'm telling you again."
"Anne." He grabbed her hands, stopping her in the process of unbuttoning his shirt. "I'll be okay."
"Says the man who's bleeding all over my bed." She stood up and made her way to the bathroom. After taking the first-aid kit from where it stayed under the sink, she closed her eyes and let out a shaky breath. It wasn't that bad. It couldn't be or he would be in the hospital. Unless he had refused to go. It would be just like him to—no, she wasn't going down that road. Not until she knew how badly he was hurt. She took another deep breath and then crossed the room to her bed.
"I think you're more worried than I am."
"I'm sorry. My boyfriend shows up at my door bleeding and acts like it's an every day occurrence, I reserve the right to be freaked out."
Lindsey sat up and cupped her face in his hands. "I'll be okay. It looks worse than it is."
"That's not a whole lot of comfort because it looks like you should be in the hospital."
He smiled and brushed his lips over hers. "I trust you."
She sighed and rested her forehead against his. "If you die, I'm bringing you back and killing you myself."
"Is a physical contract okay?"
"That's not funny."
His mouth curved in a half smile as his thumbs brushed away her tears. "It's a little funny."
"No," she protested as he pressed another kiss to her mouth. "It really isn't."
"Sweetheart, it's going to take more than a little blood to keep me away from you."
"I want a written contract and it has to be signed, dated and notarized."
"Should I sign it in blood?"
"Lindsey."
"Hey, I'm not going anywhere. You know that, Anne. I'm here."
"Always?"
"Always."