~~~Chapter One~~~


William 'Spike' Pratt was sitting in the unemployment office, waiting to be seen for, what felt like, the millionth time. He had been here, in this same predicament, two, maybe three, times a month. He just could not seem to keep a job. No matter what he did, there was nothing that he could do.

A woman came in the room from behind him, and walked over to her desk, sitting in the chair behind it, "Well, Mr. Pratt, it seems we have a bit of a problem keeping a job. Why would that be?"

He sighed, "I'm not sure. I do everything that my employers ask of me, but I just can't seem to do it right. I'm not sure if there is anything that I can do right."

She looked at his folder again, and then back at him, "Well, it seems that there is only two other options, and we'll try both if one of them fails," She took a piece of paper and wrote down an address and a phone number, "Here is the address and number of a local diner. You might try there."

He took the piece of paper, "All right. I guess it couldn't hurt. We've tried everything else. Might as well try this, too. " He stood up, as well did the woman, and shook her hand, "Thanks again. Hopefully I won't be seeing you anytime soon."

She laughed as she watched him leave her office, "You, too, Mr. Pratt."

*******************************************

Spike had gotten home and called the diner. They seemed eager to meet him and for him to start his job coming Monday morning. He plopped down on his couch, reaching for the remote to turn the television on, "Well, let's just hope that this job goes a lot better than all of the other ones that I've had recently."

He sat as he watched a soccer game of Manchester United. He kept thinking about all the jobs that he had been involved in for the past few months.

He had been a bouncer at a local club called 'Night'. That job wasn't exactly every thing that he had hoped that it would be, but he decided that he would at least give it a try.

It turned out that the kind of person that they wanted to be their bouncer was supposed to be big, buff, bronzed, and gorgeous. Well, he had 2 out of 4. That's what they had told him anyways. Apparently, he had the buff and the gorgeous, but not the big and bronzed.

They told him if he could change his appearance then he could keep his job, but he had told them that he refused to look like a pansy. So they fired him.

The job after that, he was an assistant. He thought that maybe he could try that, just for the heck of it and to see if he could do something like that. Something different and new.

Turns out, he didn't do that stuff for a reason. He sucked at it. He lost files, lost appointment dates, and he could never answer his phone, on account for trying to find the lost appointment dates and the lost files, so that job didn't last very long.

Then he had the worst one ever. He was a house keeper. Commonly known as a maid, but he refused to call it that. Said that it made him look and sound like a ponce.

That job didn't last very long. Mainly because he sucked at cleaning. He didn't clean his own house. How did people expect him to clean theirs? He tried his best, well, the best that he could put forth, but it just didn't work out.

Now he had this new job as a waiter, and he was determined not to loose this job. He had screwed up so many times in the past with all of his jobs, and he refused to let himself screw this one up, too.

Now, if only he could actually commit to that determination, then he would be in good shape. He had never served people food before. That was definitely something new and different.

He just hoped that he was good at this job. He needed to keep a roof over his head, clean clothes on his back, and food on his table. Not to mention the occasional alcoholic beverage in his fridge.

He decided that he would just focus on the game in front of him and worry about all the things that he could do wrong in this job on Monday. Tonight, he was going to sit back and relax.

He pushed all the thoughts of the new and different job in the back of his mind. He sat back, and watched the Manchester U game, and hope that they won.


~~~Chapter Two~~~


Spike walked into Mel's Diner. He was nervous, which for him was normal at a new job. He just hoped that this job would end up better than all the others. Maybe he could keep this one for more than a month.

He sighed as he walked towards the woman at the counter. She looked up at him and smiled, "Hello. Can I help you?"

He smiled back at her, "Yeah, I am supposed to come in for an interview today. Name's William Pratt."

Her smile seemed to get even bigger, "Great! My name is Willow. I am the general manager here. Well, the interview was just for me basically to see if you had any unwanted appearances!" She explained as she looked him over, "Well, doesn't seem to be a problem. Why don't we get you a uniform and you can start today if you like?"

He nodded, "Definately. I would love to," they started walking towards the back of the diner, "I'm not so sure about how good I am going to be at serving, but I will do my best."

She stopped at an office, using her keys to open it, "I'm sure that you will do fine. None of my employees knew how to serve when they started either," she rummaged through a couple of shirts and handed him one, "Okay, here you go. If this one doesn't fit, then come find me and I will give you a different one."

"Alright," he headed towards the bathrooms to change, but stopped when he heard her voice.

"William!" He turned to look at her, "Welcome to Mel's Diner."

And with that, she turned and headed towards the register and he headed, once again, to the bathrooms.

****************************************************

Once he changed, he walked to Willow, "Okay, what should I do?"

She smiled, "Wow. That was a fast change!" She laughed, "Okay. I guess you can start with that table over there," she pointed to a table near the window, where a young woman and a man sat across from her, "I know that that table will be easy for you. Just let her know that you just started today."

He looked at her skeptically, "How do you know? Know her or something?"

"Yeah. Her name is Buffy. She is one of my best friends. She'll be easy, now, the guy across from her, I'm not so sure about. I've never actually hung around him enough to form an opinion."

He sighed, trying to prepare himself for this, "All right. Best get this over with fast."

She giggled, "That's the spirit!"

He turned and walked to the table by the window, "Hi, my name is William. I'll be taking care of you all today. Do you know what you would like or do you still need a few minutes?"

Buffy looked up at him smiling, "Hi. I don't recognize you. Did you just start?"

He smiled, he liked her, "Yeah. Just started today."

"Oh! Well, welcome then. I'm Buffy," she stuck her hand out for him to shake, which he did gratefully, "And this is my boyfriend, Riley."

He turned to Riley, who was sticking his hand out for him to shake and he did, "Nice to meet you both. Do you all just want to start out with some drinks and I'll be back for your order later?"

She thought for a bit, then looked at him, "Yeah. That would be great. I'll take a coke."

He wrote it down then looked at Riley, "All right. And you, sir?"

He smiled, "I'll have a coke also. Thanks."

"Great. I'll be back in a moment to take your orders," and with that, he turned and walked to the pop machine, getting two glasses out and filling them with ice and coke.

Willow walked up to him, "So? How was the first meeting? Did it go well? Looked like it did."

He put the cokes on a tray, along with his order paper and pen and looked at her, "Yeah. She noticed right off that I was just starting. She's pretty nice. The bloke next to her was okay. Barely said two words to me."

She scoffed, "Yeah, that's typical Riley. Don't worry, things will get better," she patted him on the back and walked away.

****Meanwhile, at the table****

"What the hell was that, Buffy?" Riley asked, steam could have been seen coming out of his nostrils.

She looked at him as if he had lost his mind, "What are you talking about?"

He pointed at her, "You! Flirting with that waiter! You were practically throwing yourself at him!"

"I was not! You are taking things way out of proportion. I was being nice! It's his first day! I remember when I started working here when it first opened. I would have liked a nice customer to be my first impression."

He scoffed disbelieving her, "Whatever."

William made his way back to the table, setting the glasses down in front of them along with two straws. "Here we go. Are you ready to order?"

Buffy smiled at him, "Yep."

He grabbed his pen, clicking it open, "All right. What can I get you?"


~~~Chapter Three~~~


Spike walked into his apartment, dropping everything that he had in his arms right on the floor, not caring where it ended up. He was exhausted. He thought he was gonna drop, literally. He never thought that working at a diner would make his feet hurt so bad.

He had table after table today. Apparently, people enjoyed seeing new faces at Mel's Diner, so they all sat in his area today. Not all of his tables were that bad, actually. He had one table in particular that he hated, but then she came.

Buffy. His first customer. She was beautiful today. As if she wasn't every time that he had seen her. She wore tight jeans, stiletto heals, and a petite, black, sleeveless shirt, that dipped just low enough in the front to show a bit of clevage to make her look extravagant. She had her hair pulled in a messy bun, which he thought looked absolutely sexy on her.

He hadn't seen Riley, Captain Forehead as he called him, in a few days, and assumed that things with them weren't so great right now. He had to admit, though, he didn't hate the idea that they might break up. He reveled in it. He hoped that they did, then he could show her how she should really be treated.

She shouldn't be taken to a diner for dinner, she should be taken out to a fancy place where everyone there just shrunk in comparison to her. Although, to him, no one could hold a candle to her.

He plopped down on his couch, barely able to lift his legs to rest on the coffee table in front of him. His mind was running a thousand different ways all at once. He finally began to argue with himself, and if he had told anyone else that, they would have thought he was crazy.

'Why can't you stop thinking about her?'

'Cause she's gorgeous that's why.'

'That doesn't mean that you have to think about her all the time! She's just a chit. Just like the rest of them.'

'Just keep telling yourself that, mate. She's not like the others and you know it. She's something spectacular and you can't help but want her to yourself.'

'But you're never going to get her, you idiot. She's with that insipid Riley bloke.'

'He's no good for her. You need to get her away from him.'

'Oh yeah? Well how do you expect me to do that, mate? She doesn't even know me. Why the hell would she trust me? The only conversations that we've had is when she came into the diner for lunch.'

'But they've still been conversations. That says something right there. Admit it, you've never had so much fun just talking to a chit before, have you?'

The second Spike was silent, as if his answer was evident.

'That's what I thought. Just thinking about how you all hit it off when you speak gets you missing her doesn't it? You miss her and you barely know her. So don't sit there and act as if you've got nothing to do with her, you ponce. And stop arguing with me, if anyone else were to know about what's going on inside your brain right now, you would be locked up for sure. Then you would never get to see her. Wouldn't that just piss you off? Now, get up, go to bed, and get some sleep. I'm tired.'

Spike thought that he was losing his mind, arguing with himself like that, but he had to admit, his second voice did make a lot of sense. No matter how much he hated to admit it, he was falling for this girl that he barely knew.

All he could think about was her golden hair, her tanned legs, how she swayed her hips as she walked out of the diner, away from him. He sighed, struggling to stand up.

He headed to his bedroom, deciding to take a detour to the bathroom to take a leak and brush his teeth before he went to bed. Once done, he slowly waltzed to his bed, barely getting his clothes off before crawling under the covers.

Once again, unable to think of anything but her, he growled in frustration. He couldn't think of anything or anyone else. At that instant, he knew, without a shadow of a doubt, that this was going to be one hell of a night for him. Sleep would not going to come easy.

Tonight was going to be hell.

~~~Chapter Four~~~


BUZZ!!!!!! BUZZ!!!!!!!! BUZZ!!!!!!!!!!

Spike woke with a startled expression and a large jerk in his body. He was dreaming of Buffy, of course. When was he not dreaming of her? He had just put the tip of a strawberry in her mouth on the picnic they were having when the buzzing noise rudely awakened him.

He looked to his digital clock on his night stand next to his bed. '3:45 am' it read. Spike sighed, throwing the covers off of his body to go vehemently scream at whoever was buzzing his apartment in the middle of the night.

He reached the button just as they were pressing it again, "Who the bloody hell is it!?"

He waited for an answer from a very peeved Xander, but was met with the voice of an angel that he had only just dreamed about, "Spike? Is that you?"

Spike was stunned, to say the least. What was Buffy doing here so late? More importantly, why was she buzzing his apartment? He didn't know, but he was determined to find out, "Buffy? Luv, what are you doing here?"

"I was looking for Willow. I guess I pushed the wrong button. I'm sorry. I didn't know you all lived in the same building. Do you think you could buzz me in so I could go bang on her door? I really need to talk to her."

He could hear the distress in her voice. He soon felt horrible, knowing that he would have to tell his goddess that Willow wasn't there. He had spoken to her when she was leaving. He had went to get his mail when he bumped into her. He sighed, "Sorry, luv, she's not here. I spoke with her when she was leaving. Her and that Oz character were going to go to LA for the weekend for some type of concert thing."

He heard her sigh, making his stomach drop. He knew she was disappointed, he just hoped that he could help, "Why don't you come on up? I'll make us some coffee and you can tell me what's wrong, eh? Sound good?"

"I don't know Spike. It's not exactly something that you just blurt out. Willow knows what's going on, maybe I should just wait for her to come back," her voice sounded uneasy, unsure.

He wanted her to trust him, hell, he just wanted her, but he knew that wasn't going to happen so long that Soldier Boy was still around, "It's up to you, pet. You can trust me. I know we don't know each other a whole lot, but we're friends, yeah?"

Buffy didn't say anything for a long time, then suddenly, "Buzz me up."

Spike smiled from ear to ear, "Just a second, luv." He pushed the unlock button so she could come in, "Apartment 25, pet."

He knew she wouldn't reply because she was on his way here, on her way up to his apartment, and he hoped that it would be happening a lot more. A soft knock snapped him out of his reverie. He was at the door in two swift steps.

Swinging the door open, he was met with a Buffy that he hadn't seen before. Her hair was tussled, she wore grey sweatpants, a black tank top, and tennis shoes. He looked her over, smiling at her innocence, "Hey, luv. Come on in."

He stepped aside as she made her way in. She stopped as she looked around the room. Turning to him, "You have a really great place here. No offense, but I thought it would be just like any other guy's apartment."

He tilted his head to get a good look at her, "You mean messy, full of porn, and bear cans everywhere?"

She blushed, guiltily, she answered, "Yeah. Sorry, it's just what I have been experience to. Every guys apartment that I've been to has been messy with Playboy everywhere and just really bad."

He smirked at her, "Well, I'm not most guys." There was an awkward silence between them for a few minutes. Spike got fed up with it, "Why don't we sit down and you tell me what's got you in such a hustle? Sound good?"

She gave him a shy smile, "Sure."

He led her to the couch, almost missing the small shiver that went through her body as his hand touched the small of her back to guide her. Almost. He had seen it, hoping that it meat something.

They sat on the couch. Buffy nervously shifted to face him. He noticed that she was uneasy with this whole thing, hoping that she would open up to him. He desperately wanted to be a large part of her life, "So, where do you want to start?"

She sighed, "I don't know how to say this. It's kinda hard. Only Willow knows what's going on and she's doing everything that she can to help me, but there's nothing that anyone can ever do to help me. I'm going to stuck with him. I can never leave him."

Buffy started to cry, which frightened Spike. He hated to see her cry. It was killing him. He wanted to kill whoever made her feel this way and he wanted it to hurt, "Who, luv? Who's hurting you? Is someone hitting you?"

He pulled her into his arms as she nodded her head yes. He felt her grab him by the waist, holding on for dear life. She was petrified and he could feel it radiating off of her, "Who, luv? Can you tell me who?"

She sniffled, silent for a long time before finally answering him. He barely heard the answer, but when he did, his whole body stiffened. He felt rage rush through him as he felt the need to go kill someone. Hearing her say that one name, made him feel something that he had never felt before.

He replayed the past part of what he had heard. Knowing that the answer would still be the same, "Riley."


~~~Chapter Five~~~


He replayed the past part of what he had heard. Knowing that the answer would still be the same, "Riley."

He wanted to kill Riley, wanted to cause him bodily harm. But he knew that if he let go of the girl in his arms, he would never get this chance to prove to her that he wanted her here and that she could trust him, "Riley? He did this to you? He's made you this way?"

Buffy nodded against his chest. He felt the tears soaking through his shirt, knowing that this shirt would never be washed, he wanted to keep her scent on him forever. He tightened his grip on her.

"Luv, why can't you leave him? Why can't you just get away or call the police?"

Buffy leaned out of his grasp, but still held onto his shirt, "Do you not know what Riley is? He's a cop. There's no way I could call the police and they would believe me. They would just joke about it with him and he would tell them to write it off as a prank that I was playing.

Then he would come and find me, then beat it into my head that I would never be anything without him. And I never will be, I know that. There's no denying it. I know the facts and the fact of the matter is, I'm stuck, no matter what."

He cupped her face in his hands, making sure that she didn't look away from him as he spoke, "You are not nothing. You are the most extraordinary woman that I have ever met. The fact that you are telling me this now tells me that you are the strongest woman that I have ever met.

You don't ever believe him again. Do you hear me? Never believe him. He has to hit you to make himself feel better. No man should ever do that. You deserve better than that. You deserve to be treated better."

She shook her head, even though it was hard with him holding her head, "No, you're wrong. No man will ever want me. Riley and I have been together for years. Ever since high school we've been together. There's no one else that will ever want me. It won't take a scientist to tell me that."

Spike sighed heavily, "Oh yeah? Then what does this tell you?"

She was about to respond when Spike crashed his lips to hers. He pulled her close as he felt her stiffen under his lips. Soon, she was kissing him back, matching the fervor that he had.

He nipped at her bottom lip, begging her for entrance. She gladly allowed him the entrance that he wanted. She opened her mouth, moaning as she felt his tongue battle hers for dominance. She wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling him as close as she possibly could.

Spike thought he was going to explode. He needed her, wanted her, craved her. He felt her pulling him extremely close, not caring if things were going too fast for them or not. He lifted her into his lap until she was straddling him.

He wanted her to know that she had all of the control, so she would feel safe. He wanted her to feel safe with him. Spike gripped her hips, hoping to get closer than he already was.

They pulled apart, resting their foreheads together, when breathing became an issue for both of them. They didn't want to release each other, but knew they had to to be able to breathe.

Once their breathing became normal again, they hesitantly looked into each other's eyes. Buffy didn't feel embarrassed, shy, or anything else that would possibly be able to hide her true feelings.

Spike chuckled, looking into her eyes. She eyed him suspiciously, "What's so funny?"

He wrapped his arm leisurely around her waist, "You never answered my question."

Now she was shy. She didn't know what to answer, or how. How did she explain that he had kissed her with such intensity that she had never felt that way before in her life? She was speechless, almost, "Well, I don't think I can."

Spike pouted, "Why not?"

It was her turn to laugh now, "Because I don't think anyone ever invented words for what that just told me. You feel it, too, don't you? You feel that thing that's there?"

He did. He felt the way that she was. They couldn't explain it. They felt like they belonged together. As if they had known each other for their whole lives. He knew that he never wanted to let her go again. And it warmed his heart to know that she felt the same way, too.

He pulled her to him, smiling as she nestled her head in the crook of his neck, "Yeah, sweets, I feel it, too." Adding in his mind, 'and it feels bloody great.'


~~~Chapter Six~~~


It had been four days. Four days since he had seen her.

Spike was worried out of his mind about her. He was afraid that Riley had done something to her, hurt her in any way. He cringed at the thought of it. He never wanted her to leave that night. He wanted to keep her with him, wanted to keep her safe.

Buffy knew that she couldn't stay. She had told Riley that she was going for a run since she didn't feel tired. She wanted to stay, too. She had told him that, but it wasn't enough for Spike. He wanted to know that she was okay.

He was filling the cups of coke for his customers when he felt her. He felt her near. He looked up, seeing the vision in front of Willow, smiling and laughing as if everything was okay.

He set the drinks on the table telling his customers if they needed anything they should just yell and he would be back. He headed to Buffy then, only just seeing that someone was following behind her.

Riley.

He was there, and he wanted to kill him. Spike wanted to get Buffy away from Riley for good. He had talked to Willow about it, making a pact that they would do whatever it took.

He headed to Willow, who looked distressed from listening to Riley talk. She was about to make up some type of response when Spike interjected, "Hey, Willow, do you think you could help me find the folders in the back for the inventory?"

Willow noticed the pleading in his voice, knowing exactly what it meant, "Um, actually, I'm kinda busy right now. Riley was telling me some very interesting stories about some calls that he got. I was hoping to listen to some more." She looked at Buffy, "Could you help him? You know as much about this place as I do. Would you mind?"

Buffy knew what they were doing, hoping that Riley didn't, "Sure. Why not. I'll be back, Riley."

He brushed off the fact that Buffy was walking away with another man, pleased that WIllow seemed to be interested in hearing stories from his nightly calls in his job, "Sure, honey. Go along now."

Buffy did just that. She followed Spike to the back room for the inventory, barely making it into the room before being pushed into the closed door, and lips plundering down on her.

She had missed him. She felt it, he felt it, hell, if anyone else was in there, they would have felt it, too. They had never felt this way about anyone before. Spike felt his inner William coming out to play when he softened the kiss. He glided his lips over hers, just wanting to take in the taste of her.

He pulled back a bit, giving her time to breathe, stealing gentle kisses in between. Sighing, he reached a hand to stroke her hair that she wore down more often now. Mainly because she knew how much he liked it, "God, I missed you."

She smiled up at him, "I know what you mean. I missed you, too."

He pulled her to him, just wanting to feel her in his arms, making sure that she knew that she was safe with him. After a few minutes, he pulled back, looking her in the eyes, "I talked to Willow. We're going to get you away from him."

Buffy gently pushed him away, moving around him, hugging her arms around herself, "No, you can't do that. I won't let you. You'll get hurt, both of you. I won't let you get hurt, either one of you, just because of me."

He grasped her upper arms softly, "You listen here. I am not going to just sit around and watch some jack ass hurt you. I won't do it. We are going to get you away from him, you hear me? No matter what it takes."

She sighed, stepping back into his arms, locking her hands behind his back, "I don't want to be with him anymore. God, I don't want to. I just don't want you or Willow to get hurt. Especially not you."

He kissed the top of her head, "Why not, sweets?"

"I don't know. I think I'm falling for you. Hard. Harder than I've ever fallen before, and it scares me. I don't want to get hurt again."

Spike's heart soared. She was falling for him, and she openly admitted it. She was going to love him and he would cherish it forever, "I know exactly what you mean, sweetheart. I'm falling for you, too. I've been falling since the first time that I first saw you."

She looked at him astonished, "Really?"

He kissed her lips gently, "Really. Don't ask me how or why because I can't answer that. But I know that I have. And I don't want to risk losing you. Not ever."

She pulled him into another soft kiss, taking him by surprise. She had never initiated the kisses. It was always him, but he decided that he liked this part of her. She pulled back after a second, "We need to get back out there. Not only will Riley eventually get suspicious, but I'm betting Willow is about to die from hearing those stories."

Spike chuckled lightly, not really wanting to go back out there, "Okay. Give us one more kiss."

She smiled and kissed him once more before pulling back, grasping his hand to lead him out of the inventory room. He knew the instant that he saw her go back to his side by Willow that Riley was too dense to even notice that they had been gone for longer than 30 minutes.

Willow and Spike had a plan. They were going to get her away from him and get him sent to jail. No matter what it took, he would make sure of it. No one hurts the woman he loves.

~~~Chapter Seven~~~


"What's your favorite movie, luv?"

"Um, I don't know. I guess, Titanic."

Spike snorted, "Titanic?"

Buffy playfully punched him on the shoulder, "Yes! It's so sweet. I love the idea that Jack loved Rose enough to die for her. It's just so romantic."

They had been playing sixty questions for the last hour. They made plans to meet up at his apartment for dinner, ending up with her laying on top of him on his couch.

Spike still hadn't figured out how he and Willow were going to get her away from Riley, but he knew that it had to be fast. She had shown up at his apartment with a hand print bruise on her upper left arm.

Buffy had explained to him that Riley thought that she 'wasn't paying enough attention to him while he was telling her what he had done that day at work.'

Spike tightened his hold on her as he thought of the bruise, "Okay, luv. It's your turn."

She sighed, thinking for a moment, "Okay, if you could do anything in the world, without consequences, what would you do?"

He didn't have to think or hesitate on his answer, "Take you away from Riley. Then get away from here and make love to you for hours and treat you like you deserve to be treated."

Buffy felt her eyes water. No one had ever said anything like that to her. She had never felt this way for anyone as she felt it for Spike. She snuggled her face into his chest, silently asking, "Think you could do that second one now?"

Spike had barely heard her request. Shocked, he pulled her face from his chest so he could look in her eyes, "Buffy? Are you sure?"

She nodded, "Yes, I'm sure. Will you?" She sat up, pulling him with her.

Spike smiled from ear to ear, scooping her up in his arms, he stood up, carrying her towards the bedroom, "I'd be honored to, sweetheart."

(*(*(*(**)*)*)*)*)

Buffy looked down at the sleeping Spike in her arms. He looked so peaceful. Sated. So was she. She had had the best experience in her life not more than thirty minutes ago.

She looked around the room, trying to get a feel of what he liked. She had never been in his bedroom until now. They had always stayed in the living room or kitchen. But they had never ventured into this part of the house.

Now, they were sure to make this their first stop of every visit. And she wasn't complaining. She was very happy that she had asked Spike to make love to her. He was attentive, caring, and just fantastic.

There was no comparison. And she knew that this was a big step. Technically, she was cheating on Riley, but he hit her. He abused her. And he had cheated on her countless times, so she didn't really see what the big deal was.

She knew that Riley would see it as a big deal though. If he ever found out about her and Spike, she knew that he would try to kill Spike, or her. She was used to the abuse by now. Did it hurt any less, scare her any less, or make it seem okay? No. Nothing would ever make it okay.

But she never wanted Spike to get hurt. She felt a slight fall in her heart as she thought about Spike getting hurt because of her, because she couldn't keep her mouth shut and just wait until Willow got home.

She had put Spike in this position, the position to get hurt. She wanted to keep him safe, she never wanted him to get hurt. She knew why, but she wouldn't say it out loud. She had thought it countless times, she loved him.

She knew that it should be too soon to love him, but she did, and she didn't care what people thought. As soon as she was away from Riley, she would tell him. To say she was scared would be an understatement. She was petrified. Mainly for the thought that he wouldn't love her back.

She glanced at the night stand to see what time it was, noticing the drawer open. She peeked inside, seeing a black notebook. It looked like it had been through the ringer. Stains on it, crumpled sides of the pages.

She knew that she shouldn't be looking in it, but she couldn't help herself. She opened the cover, careful to not wake up Spike. She saw, in beautiful, Victorian cursive, something that made her heart flutter.

She understood now, why he was helping her. Understood why he wanted to get her away from Riley. She had always thought that it was because he thought it would be the right thing to do. But know she knew.

She knew now why, it was clearly simple. On the first line, it said, "How to save the girl I love."


~~~Chatper Eight~~~


For Buffy, things had changed that night she spent with Spike. She had never felt anything like she did for him. She still hadn't told him that she loved him, even thought, she thought it was obvious that he loved her, too.

She had seen it. On his notebook, she had seen the words. She would never tell him that she saw it. She didn't want him to think that she was snooping. She wasn't nosy, it was just something that had pulled her in.

She had looked through the notebook that night, finding things that she hadn't even thought of. Like, she could just pack all of her things and tell him that she was going to take her clothes to Goodwill and she was going to buy new ones.

Spike thought of it, but there must have been something wrong with that, because he had marked one straight line through it. There must have been something wrong with that plan, so she moved on to the next, and the next, and the next, amazed at how much thought he was actually putting into this.

She was sitting in her office, simply thinking about all the things that have happened to her in the last few weeks. Her whole world had changed, and it was because of one man. One man that had shown friendship to her, who she now loved.

She wanted to be with him, no matter what. Suddenly, she got courage from somewhere she didn't even know existed. She grabbed her purse, running out of her office, telling her assistant that she wouldn't be back that day and to lock up when she left.

She rushed home, hoping to get there before Riley got back. He was supposed to be training new officers. She hoped that she would be done and gone by the time that he had gotten back.

However, when she reached their apartment building, she spotted his car in the parking garage. She sighed heavily, this was it. This was when everything changed. She parked her car then headed up the stairs to her apartment, hopefully for the last time.

She opened the door, and was greeted by an overly happy Riley, "Hey babe, what are you doing home so early?"

She didn't put on that fake smile that she always gave him when she first got home. She didn't ignore the little voice yelling in her mind telling her that she didn't need or want to be here with him, she simply refused to act anymore.

She walked to the couch, sitting on the opposite end of him. He frowned, "Why are you all the way over there?"

She looked him in the eyes, a gesture that rarely ever happened, "Riley, we need to talk."

He situated himself into a more comfortable position facing her, "What do you mean?"

"Riley, there's no easy way to say this, so I'm just going to say it. I don't think that we should be together anymore. I think that we need to break up."

Buffy could practically see the steam rolling off of him, he was angry, and she was starting to get scared. She wanted Spike there and she needed him to protect her. She was fearing for her life now, Riley had stood up, advancing towards her.

He grabbed her by the upper arms, hauling her up and towards his face, "What the hell do you mean that you don't think we should be together anymore and that we should break up!?"

Riley slung her across the room, landing her on the small, wooden, round table, breaking from the force of the throw. Buffy struggled to push herself up, but it didn't matter. He had grabbed her and shoved her against the wall so she couldn't leave.

"Who is he!? Huh!? Who is the fucker that you're leaving me for!?" He banged her against the wall, her head bouncing from the impact, "You're not leaving me! I won't let you!"

He yanked her off of the wall, throwing her to the door. Once she was on the floor this time, she was sure that she wouldn't be able to get up on her own. Stalking towards her, Riley slammed his foot into her ribs, causing a cracking sound.

He pulled her up from the ground, only to slam her right back down into it. Buffy was slowly slipping away. She wasn't sure how much longer she would be able to stay conscience. She felt Riley's boots digging into her sides every time that he struck her.

The last thing that she remembered was hearing him yelling, "You'll never leave me! I'll never let you leave me!" before her world became a world of black.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Spike was sitting on his couch, watching a new episode of 'Passions'. He couldn't believe how lucky he had gotten. Not more than a week ago, he had Buffy in this apartment, making her feel ways that he was sure that no one else had ever made her feel.

He, himself, had never felt those things. He loved her, and he would be damned if he ever let Riley hurt her again. Thinking about what Riley could be doing to her, he got angry.

Jumping up from the couch, he turned his television off, grabbed his keys, and left the apartment. He had reached the bottom of the stairs, getting ready to walk out the main entrance, when a very rushed Willow bumped into him, "Spike! Oh thank God! I've been looking for you every where!"

Spike chuckled, "Why, you really need me to work tonight? Sorry, sweets, I'm on my way to confront Soldier Boy and get Buffy away from that pillock before he does something to her that could kill her."

He started to make his way around her, but she stopped him, "Spike, you're too late."

He turned to face her, fear written all over his face, "What do you mean I'm too bloody late?"

She sighed, resting a hand on his left arm, "That's why I was in such a hurry. Buffy went home to tell Riley that it was over and that she was leaving him. He freaked out. He hurt her pretty bad."

Spike closed his eyes, unable to keep the tears at bay, "How bad?"

"She's in the hospital. When they brought her in, she was unconscious. She still hasn't woken up," she pulled him into a hug, letting his tears fall, "She will want to see you as soon as she wakes up. I'm sure of it."

He pulled back, wiping at the tears on his face, "Then let's go. I'm not letting my girl go now. Not ever." And with that, they made their way to the hospital. Spike was angry, scared, aggravated, and felt useless.

There was nothing that he could do to keep her from feeling pain when she woke up, but he knew that without a doubt, that Riley would soon regret that he ever laid a hand on his girl. He would make sure of it. But not now, now, his girl needed him. And he would be damned if he didn't go to her.


~~~Chapter Nine~~~


As soon as Spike and Willow got off the elevator on Buffy's floor, Spike was rushing to the nurse's station, "I need to see Buffy Summers. What room is she in?"

The nurse had a smile on her face, turning to the computer to look up the patient in the database, her smile quickly faded from her face. She turned back to Spike and Willow, "I'm sorry, sir, but the doctor specifically said to not let anyone into her room. They are waiting for a family member to get here. I'm sorry."

Spike put his head on the counter between his hands. Lifting his head, tears streaming down his face, "She has no other family. Her mum is dead, her dad doesn't give a rat's ass, please just let me see her. We are the only family that she has. Please."

The nurse looked at him for a moment, before turning to the phone, dialing two numbers then waiting for someone to pick up the phone. Spike and Willow were worried that she was calling security, but their fears were soon put to rest, "Doctor Giles? Yes, the patient Buffy Summers? Her family is here," pause, "Yes, sir. I'll send them right there. Thank you. Goodbye."

The nurse hung the phone up, looking at them, "You can go in. It's room 517."

Spike gave a silent sob, glad that he could go see his girl, "Thank you, so much. You have no idea how much this means to me."

With that, Willow and Spike ran to room 517. Once outside, Spike stopped. He was trying to ready himself to see what that monster had done to his girl. He wasn't worried that he would find her repulsive. He knew that would never happen. He was scared that he would get too emotional. He felt as if it were his fault. He should have been there. Should have been there to protect her.

Taking a deep breath, he turned the knob of the door, opening it slowly. The door was completely open, and there, lying in the hospital bed in a gown, was the love of his life. She had cuts and bruises on her face. She looked so fragile, so weak, and he hated to see her that way. She had never been anything but strong, and this one monster, had changed her.

He slowly walked to her bed, to her side, not caring if Willow was behind him or not. She wasn't. Willow had left the room the second she saw him stop, staring at her. She knew that he needed time with her by himself.

He reached her bed, taking her small hand in his, stroking the back of it with his thumb. He fell to his knees, crying. He had never felt so weak in his life. He wanted to make her better and he knew that he couldn't. He couldn't believe that he had done this to her. Spike knew that Buffy would protest that he didn't do this, but to him, he might as well have. He wasn't there to protect her, and he felt horrible for it.

He kissed her hand, her arm, her shoulder, neck, cheek, nose, and finally her lips. He wanted to make her feel better. He remembered hearing her tell him that when he kissed her, that she felt better instantly. Spike knew it had to be a long shot, kissing her wouldn't make all of this go away.

He stood, only to sit down on the side of her bed next to her lifeless body. He palmed her right cheek in his right hand. Smoothing over the skin with his fingers. She had the most beautiful skin to him, even after what Riley had done. She was still beautiful to him. He leaned towards her ear, almost silently whispering to her, "Come on, luv. Wake up for me. Please."

No movement. No acknowledgment. Nothing. She hadn't moved. So he tried again, "Please, sweetheart. I need you to wake up for me. I need you to get better. Please. I can't go on here without you. Please, luv. I need you. I love you, baby."

Shifting on the bed to where he was lying next to her with her in his arms, he continued, "Remember when we were lying like this in my bed that night? You told me that you loved me and that no one had ever made you feel the way that I make you feel? You said that without me, you didn't know how you would go on? That's how I feel, too, baby. I'm sorry I didn't tell you then. I need you. Please don't leave me, baby. I need you here. Please come back to me, baby. I love you."

Spike felt like he was dreaming when he felt her hand twitching in his. He quickly sat up, looking at her face, amazed when he saw her green eyes looking right back at him. She smiled weakly, barely whispering out, "I love you, too."

~~~Chapter Ten~~~


****In The Previous Chapter****
Shifting on the bed to where he was lying next to her with her in his arms, he continued, "Remember when we were lying like this in my bed that night? You told me that you loved me and that no one had ever made you feel the way that I make you feel? You said that without me, you didn't know how you would go on? That's how I feel, too, baby. I'm sorry I didn't tell you then. I need you. Please don't leave me, baby. I need you here. Please come back to me, baby. I love you."

Spike felt like he was dreaming when he felt her hand twitching in his. He quickly sat up, looking at her face, amazed when he saw her green eyes looking right back at him. She smiled weakly, barely whispering out, "I love you, too."

****Currently****

Spike thoguht his heart was going to leap out of his chest when he heard her say those four words. Not only was she finally awake, she was going to be okay, but she loved him. SHE LOVED HIM! He knew that this moment was going to be one that he would never forget.

He gripped her hand tighter, trying to hold the tears from falling. She needed him to be strong right now. She needed him, and he would be damned if he would be weak in front of her when she needed him. He gave her the best smiled that he could, "Baby, you're awake. Are you feeling okay? Let me go get the doc."

He made a move to get up, but Buffy stopped him. He turned to look at her, "First, you are going to give me a proper hello." Spike smiled. Leaning down, he gave her a full kiss, not too hard, just enough to make her feel the love he had for her.

Finally releasing her lips, Spike turned to get the doctor. When he came back, he saw Buffy sitting up on the bed, legs dangling off the side. Rushing to her, he spoke, "Baby, you shouldn't be sitting up. You need to rest, sweetheart."

Buffy grinned at him, "Spike, I am feeling better. I just knew that I would have to sit up for the doctor. I am fine. Really." She gave him a sincere smile, laying a hand on his shoulder as he knelt beside her, "Thank you for caring."

Spike stood up and kissed, not caring that the doctor was standing in the room, "I love you." Simple as that. He didn't need to say more. She knew, without a shadow of a doubt, that she was lost. She loved this man, and he loved her. Nothing else mattered.

That was, until the doctor cleared his throat, "I know that this must be very hard on both of you, but I do need to check her out. Make sure everything is okay. You are more than welcome to stay in here with us, Mr. Pratt. Something tells me that you won't be wanting to leave her side anytime soon."

Spike squeezed Buffy's hand, "That's right, doc." Buffy smiled at him, knowing that things would never be the same. She knew that now that she was free from Riley, she could be free with Spike, free of sneaking around.

Freedom.

That simple word meant everything, but it was hard to understand. She looked between Spike and the doctor, not hearing anything that they were discussing. Probably something about her health, but she wasn't focused on that. She could be with Spike.

She had never known what it was like to have a relationship that wasn't consisting of public displays of affection. Riley had never wanted that. He had always been so 'proper'. He didn't want anything to 'ruin his military image'. He had never cared about what she wanted with him.

She didn't even know what she had wanted with Riley, finally realizing that she was only with Riley because it was convenient, then it was terrifying. She had never been able to talk to him about anything. She could talk to Spike about whatever she wanted, or needed to talk about. She loved him. She could be with Spike now.

She could hold his hand when they were at the beach, hug him in the middle of the aisle at Wal-Mart, kiss him in front of everyone. All this thinking made her think about their future. When she suddenly spoke, not caring if she was interrupting their conversation, "Let's get married."

She looked up at Spike, head held high. His head snapped to her, shock spreading throughout his face, "What?"


~~~Chapter Eleven~~~


****Previously****

She could hold his hand when they were at the beach, hug him in the middle of the aisle at Wal-Mart, kiss him in front of everyone. All this thinking made her think about their future. When she suddenly spoke, not caring if she was interrupting their conversation, "Let's get married."

She looked up at Spike, head held high. His head snapped to her, shock spreading throughout his face, "What?"

****Currently****

The doctor looked between Buffy's confident face and Spike's shocked one, deciding that it would be better if he came back later and let them have a private moment for a bit. He quietly excused himself from the room, shutting the door softly, oblivious to either of the other occupants of the room.

Spike ran his fingers through his hair, "Did you just say what I think you said?" Hoping that she wouldn't mess with him this way. He had thought about it, no question in that, but to actually consider it? He honestly hadn't done that.

Buffy looked down at her hands, suddenly all too nervous, "Um, yeah. I did. I'm sorry, was that not a good thing to say? I'm sorry. I just-I just got to thinking and it-it all just started to-started to fall together. I'm sorry. Just-just forget that I said anything."

Hoping that he would drop it and he would go find where the doctor went to. Unfortunately, he didn't, "Is that what you want? To forget that you ever mentioned anything about us-us getting married?"

She blinked, 'No,' she thought to herself. She didn't want to forget about it. But she didn't want things to be strange between them just because she wanted to marry him. Hell, she wanted to spend the rest of her life with him. She didn't care if he wanted to marry her, just as long as she could spend the rest of her entire existence with him.

When she didn't answer, Spike asked again, "Buffy? Is that what you want?" When she looked up at him, she had tears in her eyes. He instantly felt like a git. He had never wanted her to cry, but he didn't want to forget that she had just suggested that they get married.

She shook her head, "No. That's not what I want. I just don't want things to be weird between us. What with the baby now, and then the whole finally able to be together, free of what Riley could possibly do..."

Anything else she had to say was cut off when she saw the look of awe and surprise on his face. She looked at him questioningly, "What? What's wrong?"

He barely got the words out at a low whisper, "What baby?"

She looked at him as if he had gone crazy, "What do you mean, 'what baby?'? Our baby. Wait. The-the doctor's didn't tell you?"

"No," He said sitting down beside her on the bed, "You're pregnant?"

She nodded. Buffy thought that they doctor would have told him that she was pregnant. She thought that it had to have come up when the doctor was explaining what was wrong with her and what needed to be done. But it hadn't. She had completely thrown him for a loop.

Spike got a goofy grin on his face, grabbing her hands in his, "I'm going to be a father?"

She smiled, squeezing his hands, "You're going to be a great father. The best father that this baby could ever hope for. And you know why? Because of the love that you give."

Spike smiled brightly at her, "You're going to be a fantastic mum. I just know it. I can already tell that you love the bit." Spike laid his head on her still flat stomach, trying to hear the heartbeat, knowing that there was no possible way that he could, "We're going to be parents, Buffy."

She played with the curls that the top of his hair had turned into when he kept running his fingers through it, "We're going to be parents. Great ones."

Spike kissed her stomach, then moved to kiss her on the mouth, but not before he whispered on her lips, "Marry me." Before she could answer, he kissed her so passionately that she thought she would pass out.

When they finally parted, she smiled at him, "That was my line. And you never answered me."

"Well, you never answered me," he said, putting his right arm over her to hold himself up over her body, slightly scooting up towards her, "So, what do you say, sweetheart? You wanna marry me? Like, tomorrow?"

She burst out laughing, "Tomorrow? No! Not tomorrow anyways. Now, next week, when I'm out of the hospital and I have a dress? Sure."

Grinning like a mad man, he kissed her on the lips, "Good, that gives me plenty of time to get you a proper ring, luv." He said right before he kissed her again.


~~~The End~~~