This made me cry. I always thought she did mean it, but it was for a totally stupid reason. In the commentary, Joss Whedon said the actors had trouble with the scene the first run through, so he told them to pretend nothing was happening in the background, that the world wasn't ending. He told Sarah Michelle Gellar to mean it when she said she loved him, so I took that at face value.
However, I like yours better.

Author's Response: Oh, thanks so much! You know, I keep wavering on how I feel about the end of "Chosen" and whether she really meant it or not... This, obviously, was one of those days when I didn't believe her.

yeah i think all of us thought this same thing at the end. poor spike.

i wish you would have changed this, gave them a happy ending, it's just the same thing from the show. if i wanted that, i could just watch it, and i still believe that buffy truly loved him, no matter what her thoughts were in this. if she said the words, then she meant them, just my opinion. now i need to find something happier to read.