Title: I'll Stand by You
Author Name: Spike's Slayer Vixen
Author Email: sara_pridmore@yahoo.com

Distribution: Most of the chapters of my fics can be found on my
webpage at https://www.angelfire.com/tv2/youvebeenslayed If you are
interested in having your work
posted there or would like to post any of my work on your site,
please just e-mail me.
Disclaimer: You know I don't own them, I know I don't own them, but I
have to say it anyway so Joss won't sue.
Pairings: B/A/S
Category: Drama
Rating: PG-13
Summary: Buffy tells Angel and Spike about the results of her
pregnancy test.
Spoilers: This picks up where "Strangers in the Night" left off.
Author's comments: Here you all go...the sequel. I hope that you all
enjoy it as much as you did "Strangers".
Feedback: Of course, I would love feedback. It is my favorite thing
in the whole world.

A month earlier...

Buffy sat on an examination table, tugging self-consciously on her
paper gown. She could hardly stand the wait for the results of her
test. Even though she felt a little bit better about things after
last night, she was still a nervous wreck. She hadn't even been able
to concentrate on her trig test. The numbers had seemed to swim
around on the paper before her eyes. She hadn't even eaten a bite of
her lunch. Now she sat there in the examination room, feeling as if
her life was hanging in the balance.

Another fifteen minutes had passed before the door swung open, and
her doctor walked in with her chart in his hands. "Miss Summers," he
said in his very professional voice. "I have your test results for
you." She was sure that her heart actually stopped beating as she
waited for the doctor to give her the results. Half of her had
actually grown used to the idea of having a baby, of having a life
growing inside of her, of being a mommy. That half of her was excited
about the prospect of having a baby. The other half of her was
completely terrified. She held her breath, waiting for her answer.

When she walked out into the waiting room a few minutes later, Willow
was waiting for her, flipping through a magazine to keep herself
occupied. When the redhead looked up and saw Buffy, she immediately
stood up and went to her. Buffy's expression was hard to decipher and
tears streamed down her face. "Are those good tears or bad tears?"
Willow asked her anxiously.

"I don't know, Will," she whispered to her friend. "I honestly don't
know."

"Well, are you pregnant?" Willow whispered nervously.

"I-I can't talk about it here," Buffy said, glancing around at all of
the staring faces. "I have to get out of here. Please, Will, get me
out of here," she begged. Willow put her arm around her friend's
shoulders and gently steered her out of the doctor's office, through
the parking lot and to her car. She unlocked the door and helped
Buffy climb in and then scurried back over to the driver's side. She
slammed her door shut and reached into the back seat for a box of
tissues, handing them to Buffy, who took them gratefully.

"C'mon, Buffy, you have to tell me what happened," Willow prodded
her. "Are you-?"

"Yeah, I am," Buffy said, nodding her head sadly.

"How far along are you?"

"One and a half months," Buffy said, sniffling. "Oh, Will, what am I
gonna do?" Willow sat there in silence. She was always the one that
Buffy turned to for advice. She was the levelheaded one that her
friends could always count on to make everything alright. Not this
time though. She didn't have a clue what to say to Buffy to make her
feel better. She knew that her friend was in for a long, hard road
and she didn't know how to help her. She didn't say a word, but just
sat there and held Buffy while she cried.

After about an hour, Buffy had finally calmed down. "Will, you have
to promise me that you won't tell Angel or Spike about this," she
pleaded. "Please, you have to swear."

Willow looked at her uncertainly. "I don't know, Buffy. I really
think that you should tell them."

"I will, I swear. I just have to have time to think," Buffy said
quickly.

"As long as you promise to tell them..." Willow said hesitantly.

"I promise," Buffy said.

Present...

Buffy sat fiddling with her straw, swirling the ice around in her cup
as she waited for Willow to show up. It was Monday, the day that the
girls always met after school for a weekly dose of shopping,
gossiping, and otherwise catching up with each others' lives. They
usually met at three thirty at the food court in the mall. Buffy
glanced down at her watch. It was four o'clock. She was beginning to
worry about her friend. Willow was never, ever late for anything.
Buffy pulled her cell phone out of her purse and was just about to
dial Willow's number when she saw the redhead round the corner and
hurry towards her. A smile lit Buffy's face. She really looked
forward to these little weekly get togethers. She feel like she
hadn't seen Willow enough lately. "Will! Over here!" Buffy called,
giving Willow a little wave.

The redhead scurried over to the table and plopped herself down in a
chair. "Whew, I thought I was never gonna get here. So I'm so late,
but I had to stay late at school to finish up a few things. So,
what's new with you?" she asked breathlessly.

"Oh not much. You know how it goes. I've been having the weirdest
cravings lately. Last night, I made Angel go out and get me a jar of
pickles so that I could have some with some cheese. He looked at me
like I had grown a second head. I guess it does sound kinda gross,
but it was surprisingly good," she said, taking a sip of her soda.

"Oh, that reminds me," Willow said, her eyes lighting up. She began
fishing around in her backpack. "I went to the mall this weekend and
found the cutest little baby outfit. It's a neutral color, so it
would be good for a boy or a girl," she said excitedly. She pulled
out the tiniest little outfit that Buffy had ever seen in her life.
It was a cream colored sleeper with the little feet made in and
everything. "Isn't it the cutest thing you have ever seen in your
life?"

Buffy smiled warmly, taking the article of clothing from her friend
and running her hands over it gently. "It really is adorable, Will.
Thank you so much." She leaned over the table and gave her friend a
big hug.

"So, uh, speaking of your pregnancy, have you told Angel and Spike
yet?" Willow asked casually.

Buffy busied herself with looking at a menu so that she wouldn't have
to meet her friend's eyes. "Actually, no, I haven't," Buffy said. She
quickly glanced up, just long enough to see Willow's look of
disaproval. "Look, I'm two and a half months pregnant. That gives me
six and a half more months to figure out what I'm gonna do and how
I'm gonna tell them if it comes down to that."

"Okay, first of all, they are gonna know sooner than six and a half
months, Buffy. It's not going to be long before you start showing,
and I mean in a big way. Second of all, what do you mean if it comes
down to that?" Willow asked her suspiciously.

Buffy looked very uncomfortable at Willow's question. "I mean, if I
decide to even have the baby."

"Buffy, you can't be serious! You aren't seriously thinking about
terminating your pregnancy are you?" Willow looked at her friend
closely. "Oh my god, you are, aren't you? Buffy, no. You can't do
that. You would regret it for the rest of your life. You know that
all you used to dream of was one day having a child with Angel, and
you would cry and cry because you knew that you couldn't because of
him being all grrr. Well, now you can have a baby, and you are
*going* to have this baby."

"Willow, you don't understand. If I decide to have this baby, I've
gotta tell them about it. If I tell them about it, they are gonna
wanna know who the father is. That will completely rip us apart! I
can't let that happen. Besides, how am I supposed to tell my mom that
she is gonna be a grandmother? I'm still in high school," Buffy
cried.

"I won't let you have an abortion, Buffy. I'll tell them the truth
first. I'm sorry, but it wouldn't be fair to Angel or Spike for you
to end this pregnancy without even given them a choice. You're not
even giving them a chance. Furthermore, you're not being very fair to
them right now by keeping this pregnancy a secret. You promised me
that you would tell them! They deserve to know, Buffy. I know that no
matter what, Angel will stick by your side. I don't know Spike very
well, so I can't really speak for him, but if he walks out on you
then the bastard doesn't deserve you anyway."

"I know that you're right, Will, but it's so hard. I mean, how am I
supposed to break the news? Do I just walk in and say 'Hi, guys, I'm
home and guess what? I'm pregnant.'? I can't believe I let myself get
into this mess. I'm so stupid," she said, smacking her forehead with
the palm of her hand.

Willow took her hand gently. "No you aren't, sweetie. I mean, come
on, a few months ago, you didn't ever have to worry about getting
pregnant by Angel or Spike either one. It's pretty obvious that they
didn't think about it either, because they didn't use condoms. Stop
blaming yourself, 'cause it's not gonna get you anywhere. Go tell
them, Buffy. Let them help you deal with this, because you are going
through a rough time and you need them to be there for you."

"You're right, Will," Buffy said, sniffling. "I will." She grabbed
her purse and jacket, pushing her chair back with a loud scrape. She
flashed her friend a nervous smile. "I'm going to tell them right
now." Willow stared after her friend as she hurried off. She said a
silent prayer for her friend, hoping that everything would go well
for her.

Spike and Angel were lounging around the living room watching daytime
television when Buffy got home. Willow's words echoed over and over
again in her mind. They gave her the courage to do what she knew
needed to be done. No matter what the consequences, Angel and Spike
both deserved to know that she was carrying a child, and that it
belonged to one of them. She owed them that after all of the love
that had given her. She only hoped that they wouldn't hate her for
waiting so long to tell them.

Spike craned his neck to look around the corner when he heard the
front door open and close. "Luv! This is a pleasant surprise! What
are you doing home so early? I thought that today was the day of your
weekly meeting with Red. Did she not show?"

Buffy walked into the living room and sat down on the
couch. "Actually, no, she was there. We just cut it a little short
today because there is something that I need to talk to you about,"
she said seriously. Her hands shook as she picked up the remote
control and flipped off the television. Angel and Spike exchanged
worried looks, sitting up and leaning forward, giving her their full
attention.

"What is it, Buffy? Is everything okay?" Angel asked her in a
concerned tone. He looked at her with his warm, brown eyes and she
felt her heart give a little leap. He always looked at her with such
love. What if the baby wasn't his? Would he still look at her that
same way? "You know that you can tell us anything, right?"

"Y-Yeah, of course," she said nervously. "Everything is fine. It's
just that...well, I was wondering something today. You know I love
you both very much, and I love what we have together. It's just
that...well, what if something happened? I mean, have either of you
ever thought about marriage or having children now that you can? Is
that something that you think you may want in the future?"

Angel looked thoughtful for a moment. "Well, I haven't really given
it much thought," he said slowly. "Are you worried that one of us
will want to get married and leave or something? Because you don't
have to worry about that, Buffy. I would never, ever leave you."

"That goes for me, too, luv," Spike assured her. "There is no other
woman in the world for me. And as for having children...well, to be
honest, I really wouldn't mind having one or two. Don't think that
I'm pushing you or anything though. I can leave without 'em. I know
that having little ones would probably put a strain on what we have
going here."

Buffy paled at his words. She could fear the tears forming behind her
eyes. Angel looked at her in concern, noticing that she was on the
verge of tears. For the first time, it occurred to him what might
have brought this topic up. Angel took her hand gently in his,
looking at her closely. "Buffy, is there something you want to tell
us?" he asked her gently.

"What about you, Angel?" she asked, ignoring his question. "How do
you feel about the prospect of children? You never answered me."

"Nothing would make me happier than for you to have my children,
Buffy, but I have to agree with Spike. I would never push you into
anything you weren't ready for," he told her. "You have my answer.
Now, is there something you want to tell us?" he asked her again.

"Yeah, there is," she said, her voice cracking slightly. "I don't
know how you are gonna take it though. I'm scared that you will hate
me if I tell you. I don't want to ruin everything that we have. I
love you two so much, and if I lost you, I don't know what I would
do." She was crying now, hot tears streaming down her face.

Spike scooted down beside her on the couch, pulling her into his
arms. "C'mon now, luv, it can't be all that bad. There isn't anything
I can imagine you saying or doing that could make me love you any
less," he said, trying to reassure her. "I know that Angel feels the
very same way. Come on then, out with it. It's gonna be alright."

Buffy took a deep breath, mustering up all of the courage that she
possessed. "I'm pregnant," she said simply. She watched as their
expressions changed from worry to complete shock. "I know that this
is probably the last thing you want to hear right now, but I thought
you deserved to know. I'm sorry," she said, dissolving into tears. "I
didn't mean for this to happen. You probably both hate me now."

"Are you s-sure?" Spike managed to croak out. He felt numb with
shock. This was the last thing that he had expected her to tell them.

"I'm positive," she said tearfully. "I went to the doctor about a
month ago. I'm sorry that I didn't tell you before now. I just didn't
know how."

"How far along are you?" Angel asked her quietly. He too was in
shock. He couldn't believe that she was pregnant. He could be a
father!

"Two and a half months," she mumbled. She looked up at them sadly,
tears still flowing freely down her cheeks. "Do you hate me?" she
asked them in a tiny voice.

"Buffy, we could never hate you," Angel told her. "It's just a bit of
a shock, that's all. How did this happen?"

"How do you think?" she wailed. "I've never been on the pill because
there was never any need, and we never used condoms. I was so stupid.
It's just that we never had to worry about it before. I just didn't
think...I mean, it never even occurred to me that I might get
pregnant. I'm a complete idiot, I know."

"Um, luv, do you know whose child it is?" Spike asked her gently. She
shook her head in shame. Spike took a deep breath, letting it all out
in a loud whoosh. "Well, it's going to be alright, pet. We're gonna
be here for you through the whole thing. Don't you worry," he said in
what he hoped was a comforting voice. She snuggled up against him,
burying her face into his chest. He looked up at Angel with a
helpless expression. What the bloody hell were they gonna do now?

Part 2

Angel and Spike waited until Buffy had fallen asleep before creeping
downstairs to discuss the bomb that she had dropped on them earlier.
They had done their best to comfort and reassure her, but now it was
time to discuss what this meant for all of them. In the kitchen,
Angel poured cup of coffee and offered it to Spike. "No thanks,
mate," Spike said, waving away the coffee. "I think that caffeine is
the last thing I need right now." Angel nodded his head in
understanding, opening a cupboard door and taking down a fifth of
Jack Daniels, passing it over to Spike. "Thanks," Spike said, taking
the bottle gratefully. "That's more like it."

The two men sat around the kitchen table in silence for a long
moment, neither knowing quite what to say. Angel stared down into his
coffee cup and Spike tipped back his whiskey bottle, each trying to
gather their mixed up thoughts into some kind of coherent order.
Finally, Angel broke the silence. "What are we going to do, Will?" he
asked in a quite, worried voice.

Spike looked at him with tired eyes. "We are gonna do just what we
promised her. We are going to be here for her through it all, no
matter what. At least that's what I'm gonna do. I don't care if the
little one is mine or not, I can't just up and leave her."

"Nor can I," Angel said, sighing heavily. "I was doing some research
on the Internet earlier while you were getting her to sleep. You
know, as much as I hate to admit it, this damn modern technology is
pretty useful. If we hadn't gotten it for Buffy, I would have never
in a million years tried it. Anyway, I was...um, surfing...the
Internet and found out that there is a way to find out the paternity
of the baby while it is still in the womb. It's a process called
amniocentesis."

"Yeah? And what the bloody hell is that?" Spike asked suspiciously.
He had always been weary of modern medicine. The bloody doctors
pumped people so full of medicine these days that they walked around
like zombies. When he had been a vampire, he couldn't even make a
kill without being able to taste traces of some kind of medicine or
another in their blood.

"It's a procedure that they perform on pregnant women. They take a
long, hollow needle and insert it in the mother's womb. They then
draw amniotic fluid from her abdomen and conduct tests on it. The
fluid contains cells that can be tested for paternity as well as
abnormalities," Angel explained.

"What's the catch?"

"There is no catch. There *is* a slight chance of miscarriage, but-"

"No bloody way!" Spike interrupted. "They aren't doing anything that
might cause her to lose that baby. She couldn't handle it, and
neither could I. What if the baby is yours, Angel, and she
miscarries? Could you live with that?"

"Look, I said there was a *slight* chance," Angel said
defensively. "It's a really, really, *really* small chance. I would
never do anything that I thought would cause Buffy or that baby harm.
The procedure is performed successfully everyday. Aren't you even the
slightest bit curious about whether or not this child is yours?"

"Of course I am, but not enough to risk any harm to Buffy or the
baby," Spike said sternly. "Isn't it a little early to be thinking
about doing a procedure that is so invasive? I mean, she's only two
and a half months along."

"Not really. The procedure can be done any time between fourteen and
twenty months. That's as early as three and a half months and as late
as five months," Angel informed him. "Trust me, it will be fine. She
will be perfectly safe, and so will the baby."

"I'll only agree to it if you agree to wait until she is at least
four months along," Spike said reluctantly. "By the way, have you
given any thought to how we are going to pay for all of this stuff? I
mean, she needs to go to the doctor regularly, and it's gonna cost a
lot when it's all said and done."

"I'll pay for it," Angel said dismissively. "It's not like I don't
have the money. After more than two centuries, I think I have enough
to cover Buffy's pregnancy. Hell, I have enough to buy the whole damn
hospital if I wanted to. Why? Don't you have some money saved up?"

"Not exactly. I'm not like you. I sorta blew the money I had and
stole anything that I needed or wanted," Spike admitted
sheepishly. "Okay, so now that we know who is going to pay for all of
this, are we agreed on waiting on the amnio-whatever?"

"Agreed," Angel said. He stood up and walked over to the kitchen
sink, dumping his now cold coffee down the drain. He rinsed the cup
absentmindedly and set it in the sink, returning to his seat at the
table. "You know, I'm not quite sure what to think of all of this. I
mean, it's exciting but also very scary."

"Just think about how Buffy must feel," Spike pointed out. It was
just like Angel to be thinking of himself at a time like this. "I
mean, she is still in high school and now she's gonna be a mum? Talk
about scary. Poor girl must be terrified." He twisted the lid back
onto the bottle and leaned back in his chair. "I think that she must
be a little excited though. Found this in her book bag," he said,
reaching over and rummaging around in her backpack until he found the
gift that Willow had given Buffy for the baby. "Look at this thing,"
he said, holding up the tiny little garment. "Have you ever seen
anything so little in your life?"

Angel took the garment from Spike, holding it up to look at. "What
the hell are we going to do with a baby?" he asked, glancing back at
Spike. "There's no way I can take care of something so small and
fragile. Hell, I'd probably break the thing trying to change its
diaper."

"First of all, I don't think that you can technically *break* a
baby," Spike said, chuckling softly. "Secondly, we are going to
*learn* how to take care of the baby so that we can help Buffy out.
We are going to be there for her and the little bundle of joy no
matter what. I don't mean to sound all sappy here, but I've always
believed that no baby is an *accident*. I have always felt that they
were tiny little gifts. Think of the nibblet as a symbol of our love
for each other. The three of us have been through a lot together.
This is just another hurdle, and we can make it."

"Yeah? And how are we going to explain to the kid the reason that we
both sleep with its mommy? What if it's yours? Is the kid going to
call me Uncle Angel? And if it's mine, is that going to make you big
brother Spike?" Angel asked warily. He buried his head in his hands,
groaning softly.

Spike looked at him carefully. "What's really wrong, Angel? Do you
not want this child? Are you not ready to deal with the consequences
if it is mine? Yeah, it's going to be hard, but it's also going to be
wonderful. You and I, we have to be strong for Buffy right now,
because if we don't, who is going to? She doesn't have anyone else.
She depends on us. I'm not going to let her down. How about you?"

Angel looked up at him with tired eyes. "I'm not going to let her
down either. Of course, I want the baby. Even if the child is not
mine, I will love it as if it is. You act like I'm planning on
abandoning Buffy or something, but you know better than that. You
know how much I love her. I just worry, that's all."

"You worry too bloody much," Spike scoffed at him. "Anyway, now that
we have that settled, there are other matters that need to be
discussed at some point."

Angel looked at him curiously. Uh-oh. Spike had that look on his
face. He arched an eyebrow, wondering what the blonde had up his
sleeve. "Like what?" Angel asked suspiciously.

"Like names. Oooh, and nursery themes. I myself fancy teddy bears and
the like. You know, cute kiddie stuff. 'Course that will be up to you
and Buffy, too. I'm just giving my opinion."

Angel looked at him incredulously. "You are getting off on this,
aren't you? You are enjoying all of this talk about babies."
Unbelievable! This man who used to be called William the Bloody, the
self-proclaimed Big Bad, had baby fever!

"Well...yeah. So what if I am? Come on, Angel, you have to admit that
it is a miracle. I mean, how many vampires do you know that not only
have the chance to become human again, but also get the chance to
have a child? Open your eyes, mate. We're human again but with all of
the strength, speed, and endurance of vampires, we have the woman we
love, and now we've got a child on the way. Life doesn't get better
than this, Angel. We have been given all of these gifts, and we don't
deserve them, so don't treat them as if they are burdens," Spike
scolded him.

"I'm not treating them like burdens," Angel said defensively. "I know
how lucky I am, how lucky we are. It's just a lot to absorb. I guess
it's just because I gave up on the idea of ever having kids a long
time ago. I suppose it doesn't feel real."

Spike stood up and walked around beside Angel, placing a hand on his
shoulder. "Come on, I want to show you something." Angel looked up at
him questioningly but stood up and followed him obediently up the
stairs. Spike pushed open the door of Angel's bedroom quietly. There,
lying in the middle of the bed, Buffy was curled up fast asleep with
her favorite stuffed pig, Mr. Gordo. "You see that, mate? That is an
angel here on earth, and she is very real. She is real and so is the
child that is growing inside of her."

Buffy shifted slightly in her sleep, letting out a soft little snore,
and Angel couldn't help but smile. "I love her, William. I love her
so much that sometimes I think that I can hardly bear it. I would
walk through the fires of hell just to see her smile," he said
quietly. "No matter if the child is mine or not, I will stand by her
side and love the her and the baby unconditionally."

"Good man," Spike said proudly. "That's the kind of talk I like to
hear. That girl is going to need a lot of support, especially when
she has to break the news to her mum and to Giles. She going to need
*you*, Angel, and she is going to need me. She's going to need us to
tell her how beautiful she is when her ankles are swollen and she
feels bloated. She's going to need us to pamper her and give her
bubble baths every night."

"You know what? The more we talk about it, the more perfect it all
sounds," Angel said, gazing upon his little lover with adoration.

Buffy woke up to wonderful smells that were wafting up to the bedroom
from the kitchen. She stretched languidly, a sleepy smile creeping
across her face. She sat up, rubbing her eyes and yawning. She looked
towards the doorway and noticed Angel standing there, watching her
with a smile. "Good morning, sleepy head," he said softly.

"Mmmm, morning," she said lazily. "What smells so good?"

"Oh, you mean this?" Spike said, appearing beside Angel. "This is
just a tray of breakfast that I made for you to eat in bed this
morning," he said casually, producing a tray piled with food.

"Breakfast in bed? For me?" she asked incredulously. She licked her
lips, staring at the food hungrily.

"Well, not *just* for you," Angel said lightly. "You *are* eating for
two now, you know." He gave her a little wink as he moved aside to
let Spike pass through the doorway.

Spike carried the tray over to her bed, balancing it carefully. He
sat down on the side of the bed, setting the tray up over her
lap. "That's right. You'd better eat up," he said, planting a soft
kiss on her lips. "Don't want the little one to go hungry now, do
you?"

She sighed happily, taking a forkful of fluffy scrambled eggs and
stuffing them into her mouth. "Mmmm, these are wonderful," she said,
savoring the delicious taste. She picked up a strip of crisp bacon,
munching on it happily. "I haven't had a big home cooked breakfast
since...since...I can't even remember when," she said. She knew it
had to have been before her parents divorced, because after that, her
mother stopped bothering with the eggs and toast and just had vodka
for breakfast, leaving Buffy to fend for herself. "You spoil me."

"Well, get used to it because this is just the beginning," Angel
said, walking over and kissing her on top of her head. "We are going
to spoil you rotten, and when the little one gets here, we are going
to spoil him or her, too. We are just warming up."

"I like the sound of that!" Buffy said enthusiastically, taking a big
gulp of orange juice. "Man, I can't believe how hungry I am! I feel
like I could eat my weight in this stuff. Must be the pregnancy."

"Well, hurry up and eat or you are going to be late for school,"
Spike scolded gently. "Angel is going to drive you to school today
and I will be picking you up. I also plan on making you a doctor's
appointment today. You need to go regularly, and besides, there are
probably prenatal vitamins you should be taking or something."

"Wow, I feel like a princess," Buffy said in amazement. If the news
of her pregnancy had upset them at all, they sure weren't showing it.
She had never felt so pampered in her entire life. She smiled to
herself as she realized that Willow had been right. She had worried
all this time for nothing. She should have known that the two loves
of her life would stay by her side no matter what. They even seemed
to be...happy about the news. Amazing.

She scarfed down her breakfast in a hurry so that she would have time
to take a shower and fix herself up a little before school. As she
wrapped herself in a towel, she used her hand to wipe away the fog
from the mirror and looked at herself closely. She smiled as she
realized that she was absolutely glowing. She guessed that this was
what true love and pregnancy did to a person. Maybe she would even
suggest to the guys that they go shopping for baby things this
weekend. She vaguely wondered when it was exactly that she had made
up her mind to keep the baby and how she could have ever considered
terminating her pregnancy. She had just let her fears get the best of
her, but she knew now that this was right.

Fifteen minutes later, she bounded down the stairs, feeling like a
brand new woman. She gathered her books and jacket and bounced into
the kitchen where she found Angel and Spike having coffee. "I'm all
ready to go," she announced. Spike tossed her an apple, which she
caught with ease. "What is this for?" she asked curiously.

"It's a snack," he informed her. "You know, in case you get hungry
throughout the day."

"Come on, cutie, let's get you to school," Angel said, grabbing his
keys from the kitchen table. He took her backpack from her, putting
his other arm around her and guiding her out the door and to the car.
He opened the car door for her, tossing her backpack into the
backseat before climbing into the driver's side. He buckled his
seatbelt, waiting for her to do the same, and then backed down the
driveway. "You know, Buffy, I thought that maybe this weekend we
could go shopping for a few things. I mean, I know that we have a
while to go until the baby is born but I thought that we could buy a
few basic things. Besides, it would be fun to window shop for the
future, wouldn't it?"

Buffy's eyes widened in excitement. "Really? I was thinking the same
thing this morning. It will be so great! We'll have so much fun!" She
sat there quietly for a moment, thinking about how wonderful the guys
were being. "Angel?" she asked hesitantly. "Does it bother you that
we don't know who the father of the baby is yet?"

Angel thought for a moment before he answered, wanting to make sure
he said just the right thing. "Not at all, sweetheart. I am going to
love that baby no matter who the father is."

"I'm glad," she said with a smile. "It makes me feel better knowing
that you and Spike are going to be there for me no matter what.

Part 3

Willow was standing out in front of the school that morning when
Angel pulled up with Buffy. Buffy hopped out of the car and
practically skipped up the sidewalk to where Willow was standing. The
redhead eyed her friend suspiciously. She had never seen Buffy so
happy before and she couldn't help but wonder what was up. Of course,
she would rather see Buffy smiling than crying any day, but she
couldn't help but wonder what it was that had her friend smiling so
brightly now when she had been moping around all week.

"Hey, Will!" Buffy said cheerfully. "How are you doing this morning?
It's a great day, isn't it? By the way, I really like that shirt.
It's a great color on you and really brings out your eyes."

"Okay, Buffy, what is going on? I haven't seen you this happy
since...well, ever. Yesterday, you were all about being Miss Mopey,
and today your smile could blind somebody. What gives?" Willow asked
curiously.

"Well, I don't really want to say here. Let's go to the restroom so
that we can have a little more privacy," Buffy suggested, grabbing
Willow's arm. Before the redhead could utter a word, Buffy had
dragged her through the double doors and down the hallway. She pushed
open the door to the ladies' room and pulled Willow inside. "Just let
me make sure that no one else is in here first," Buffy said, bending
over and peering underneath each stall. "Okay, looks like it's all
clear," she said, straightening up.

"Good," Willow said, leaning against one of the sinks and crossing
her arms over her chest. "You can tell me what is going on now."

"Well, you remember what we talked about yesterday afternoon at the
mall? Well, you were very convincing and I did just as I promised you
that I would. I told Angel and Spike about my being pregnant last
night," Buffy blurted quickly.

"And I take it from your mood this morning that everything is okay?"
Willow guessed. "I mean, I assume they took it well or you wouldn't
be all chipper, right?"

"They were great about the whole thing," Buffy said happily, her eyes
twinkling. "It was so awesome, Will. I am so lucky to have the both
of them. I mean, how many girls do you know who have boyfriends that
would be so understanding if they found out they were going to have a
baby? None. I on the other hand have *two* totally wonderful,
understanding boyfriends who are actually happy about having a little
one on the way." Buffy seemed to positively glow from happiness. "You
were right, Will. I spent all of these weeks worrying for nothing. In
fact, we are going shopping this weekend for baby things. I'm so
excited!"

"See, I told you," Willow said, walking over and giving her friend a
big hug. "I knew that Angel and Spike wouldn't let you down. I'm just
glad that you finally told them. You were making *me* a nervous
wreck!"

"I know, and I am really sorry, Will. I don't know what I would have
done without you these past weeks. You really are the best friend in
the whole world," Buffy said, hugging her friend tightly.

"I try," Willow said with a smile. Suddenly, the bell sounded in the
hall, causing both of the girls to jump. Willow looked at her watch
and frowned. "We'd better get a move on. We are going to be late for
class and you know how Mrs. Wilcox is about tardiness."

Buffy rolled her eyes. "Do I ever," she said in irritation. "I have
three tardies in her class already. If I get one more, it's detention
for a week for me. That woman is such a troll."
Buffy paused just before they walked out the door, touching Willow on
the arm. "Listen, Will, I told the guys about the pregnancy, but I'm
not ready for anyone else to know yet. Please don't say anything to
anybody about this, okay?"

"You know I wouldn't do that," Willow said reassuringly. "The
important thing is that you told the guys. You can tell everyone else
when you feel like it is the right time."

"I know you wouldn't tell," Buffy told her. "It's just one of those
things that I feel like I have to say, you know? I know it's silly,
but it just reassures me." The girls continued to chatter away
happily as they opened the door and walked out into the hall to go to
class.

A few seconds after the door had closed behind them, Cordelia Chase
hopped down from her crouched position on top of the lid of one of
the toilets and swung open the stall door. An evil smile crept across
her beautiful features as she processed all that she had just heard.
Buffy Summers was pregnant! Not only that, but she was screwing Angel
AND Spike? This was all just too much. She was dying to share the
news with somebody, and she had one person in particular in mind. Of
course, she would spread the news around to the whole student body
later, but for now, *she* wanted to be the one to break the news to
the person it would shock and disappoint the most. She smiled to
herself as she sauntered out of the bathroom and towards the library,
her heels clicking merrily against the tiled floor.

It was mid-morning when the phone rang shrilly, startling Angel and
causing him to almost drop the book he had been absorbed in. He
didn't think he would ever get used to having a phone in the mansion.
For many years, he had managed to avoid the confounded contraption,
making due with a cellular phone that could easily be turned on and
off. Of course, when Buffy moved in, they had to have one installed.
Every since then, it seemed like the phone rang constantly with calls
from telemarketers and people who had called the wrong number.
Glaring at the offending piece of technology, he sighed heavily and
put down his book, reaching for the receiver. "Hello?" he said dully,
not bothering to hide the irritation in his voice.

"Angel? This is Giles. I need to see you and Spike immediately. Can
you come to the library right now?" Giles asked in his clipped
British accent.

"Uh, yeah, sure," Angel said uneasily. "Is something the matter with
Buffy?"

"I would rather not get into this over the telephone, but rest
assured that Buffy is not in any danger. It is imperative that you
come here as soon as possible. Both you and Spike," Giles added.

"We'll be right there," Angel said. The only response was the hum of
a dial tone on the other end of the line. Giles had hung up on him.
Angel felt his stomach drop to his feet. He knew that something was
wrong...very wrong. As quickly as he could, he rounded up Spike and
screeched out of the driveway, determined to get to Buffy as fast as
possible. He had a sinking feeling that she was really going to need
them.

Buffy was sitting in her sixth period history class, daydreaming as
usual, when the intercom beeped loudly, interrupting her teacher's
droning about the Industrial Revolution. "Mrs. Benson, Buffy Summers
needs to report to the library, please. Buffy Summers needs to report
to the library."

Buffy felt everyone's eyes on her as she gathered up her books and
walked out the door. She was confused herself. She knew that she had
been slacking on her Slayer duties since she had found out she was
pregnant, but Giles had never called her out of class before, even in
the middle of an apocalypse. He had always drilled the importance of
education into her head, scolding her when he thought she was letting
her schoolwork slide. Worry and a slight sense of panic welled up
inside of her as a million different thoughts hit her all at once.
Was it her mother? Had something happened to her?

Buffy found herself jogging down the hall toward the library, pushing
through the doors hastily. She skidded to halt just inside the doors
when she saw Angel, Spike, and a very solemn looking Giles waiting
for her. "What's going on here?" she asked in confusion. "What are
you two doing here?" she asked Angel and Spike.

"I asked them to come here, Buffy," Giles said in a grave tone. "I'm
sorry to have had to call you out of class, but there are some things
that we need to discuss immediately. Have a seat," he said, gesturing
towards a chair.

Buffy sat down uneasily, trying to read the everyone's expressions to
determine what the problem was. "So what is the dire, Giles?"

Giles cleared his throat, pacing back and forth in front of her in
agitation. "I'm going to be very blunt with you, Buffy, as I have
done with Angel and Spike. It has came to my attention that you
are...er, with child. I have also been informed that you have taken
both Angel and Spike as lovers and consequently do not know whom the
child's father is. I must say, Buffy, I am very disappointed in you."

Buffy sat, stunned into silence for a moment. Suddenly, her senses
kicked back in and anger flooded through her like liquid fire. "And
just where did you get this information?" she asked angrily.

"That is really not the issue here, but if you must know, Cordelia
informed me," Giles told her in a cold voice.

Buffy felt the blood pounding in her head, making her feel like her
skull would split open at any moment. "That bitch!" she hissed. "Why
can't she just mind her own business?"

"Well, I for one am glad that she told me," Giles said. "It's quite
obvious that *you* weren't planning on filling me in, so someone had
to do it. I suppose that you were going to wait until the baby was
born to let me in on the secret. What were you thinking, Buffy?
Taking in two lovers, getting pregnant, and then keeping it all a big
secret. What would your mother think?"

Buffy stood up abruptly, her chair scraping loudly against the
floor. "Oh you mean my alcoholic mother? The one who used to beat me
because she stayed in a drunken rage all of the time? To be honest,
Giles, I don't really give a damn what she thinks about me. This is
my life and my business. The only other people who have any say in
this at all are Angel and Spike. I'm sorry if you are disappointed in
me. I'm sorry if my life is just too scandalous for you, but I am
*not* sorry about any of this because for once in my life I am
happy." Tears streamed down her face as she continued to shout, her
face turning redder by the second.

"Buffy, love, I think that you should just calm down," Angel said
gently, standing and walking over to her to try and persuade her to
sit down. He glanced over at Spike, exchanging a worried look with
him.

"No! I will *not* calm down," she said, jerking her arm out of his
grasp. "I am so sick of this. For once in my life, I am actually
happy and I have to stand here and listen to one of the most
important people in my life tell me what a disappointment I am. I
guess that maybe I should inspire to be like my drunken mother, huh?
I guess that would make you proud of me, wouldn't it, Giles?" she
shouted. Suddenly, she doubled over, clutching her stomach in pain.
She sunk to the floor, gasping loudly as the pain overtook her,
rendering her unable to stand on her own.

"Buffy! Are you okay, luv?" Spike asked immediately, jumping to his
feet so quickly that he knocked over a chair.

"I...I think...something is wrong," she gasped. "I think it's the
baby."

"We have to get her to a hospital," Angel said in panic. He kneeled
down, sweeping her up into his arms and carrying her towards the
door. "Spike, you drive," he ordered. He carried her down the hall
and out the door with Spike close on his heels. Spike opened the back
door of the car and Angel climbed in with Buffy still in his arms. He
cradled her in his lap all the way to the hospital, while Spike drove
as fast as his piece of junk car would allow him to go. As soon as
they arrived at the hospital, Spike ran around and opened the door
for Angel and they both rushed in through the door of the emergency
room.

"Somebody help us!" Angel shouted, trying to get some assistance. A
nurse came rushing over to find out exactly what the problem
was. "She's two and a half months pregnant and I think she may be
having a miscarriage," he said in panic, trying to keep his voice as
low as possible to keep from broadcasting the news. "Please, you have
to help her."

Before she knew what was happening, Buffy found herself being lifted
onto a gurney and wheeled into a room. "It hurts," she cried
pitifully. "Please, make it stop hurting." Pain tore through her body
and all she could think of was that she might be losing her baby at
that very moment. She found herself surrounded by nurses and a doctor
who gave her some kind of shot that he said would help to ease her
pain. She began to feel a little bit woozy as she heard someone tell
her that she needed to try to relax, and she found herself complying
with their orders.

Outside in the waiting area, Angel was pacing back and forth
anxiously while Spike was puffing nervously on a cigarette. "Sir, I'm
afraid you can't smoke in here," a young nurse told him in a stern
voice.

"Bloody hell, woman, it is one bleedin' cigarette, okay? Just one.
Not like it's going to hurt anything or anybody for me to smoke this
one cig, so just sod off," he growled angrily. The nurse glared at
him for a moment before turning on her heel and stalking off in a big
huff. "Stupid bint," he muttered under his breath.

Suddenly, the door to the emergency room swung open, banging against
the walls, as Giles came hurrying over to the nurses'
station. "Please, can you tell me the status of a Miss Buffy
Summers?" he asked in an urgent tone. Angel and Spike stiffened
noticeably at his presence, watching as the nurse mumbled something
to him about Buffy's status being unknown at this time and asked him
to please take a seat and wait. Giles muttered something
unintelligible at her and then made his way over to the waiting area.
He looked startled to find Angel and Spike there.

"What? Did you think that we were going to just leave her here all by
herself?" Spike growled at him. "Don't think so, mate. That's our
girl in there, and unlike you, we don't turn our backs on the ones we
care about."

"Listen, I am terribly sorry about what happened in the library,"
Giles said sadly. "I suppose that I shouldn't have been so hard on
her. I can't help but feel responsible for all of this."

"Well, you should because you *are* responsible," Angel hissed at him
in fury. His angry tone attracted the attention of the nurses who
were now eyeing him warily. He glanced at them, lowering his voice
considerable to avoid having security called on him. "Don't feel too
bad about it, though, because if anything happens to Buffy or that
baby, you will pay for everything you have done. If she or that baby
dies, I will kill you."

"I don't appreciate your threats, Angel," Giles said, narrowing his
eyes at the other male.

"Oh, those aren't threats he's making, mate," Spike piped up. "Those
are promises. If anything happens to Buffy or the niblet, we are
going to make damn sure that you pay dearly. You don't *know* the
meaning of suffering, but you *will*."

Just then the door of Buffy's room swung open and a doctor stepped
out into the hallway. He walked over to the nurses' station and
whispered something into one of the nurse's ear. She nodded and began
to shuffle through a stack of papers, making notes here and there.
Then the doctor made his way to the waiting area, calling for the
family of Buffy Summers.

"That's us," Angel said, gesturing to himself and then Spike. Spike
stood immediately and walked over to stand beside Angel, pushing
Giles out of the way. "Please, doctor, is she okay?" Angel asked
anxiously. He prayed to whatever power would still listen that Buffy
and the baby were all right.

Part 4

"I'm afraid the news isn't very good," the doctor said solemnly.
Angel and Spike paled, each feeling their heart drop down to their
feet. Giles felt his stomach twist into a knot as he realized that if
anything happened to Buffy or the child she was carrying, he was
going to have to live with the guilt for the rest of his life.
Fortunately for him, it probably wouldn't be that long once Angel and
Spike got a hold of him.

"What is it, doctor?" Angel choked out. "Is the baby going to be
alright? Is Buffy okay?" He felt like he couldn't breath as he waited
for the doctor to answer his many questions. He hadn't realized until
now how much he wanted the child that his love was carrying. He
wanted the baby to be *his* and even if it wasn't, he wanted to be
there to see it grow up.

Similar thoughts were flooding Spike's head at the moment. His
stomach clenched as he thought about all of the things that could be
wrong with Buffy and the baby. He couldn't imagine losing either one
of them, and he was determined not that he wasn't going to if there
was anything he could do about it at all. He found himself holding
his breath as he waited for the doctor to tell them the news.

"Both Buffy and the baby are fine...for now," the doctor said,
emphasizing the 'for now.' "However, she did come close to losing the
child. She simply cannot be put under stress right now. I'm afraid
that if she doesn't take it easy for the rest of her pregnancy, she
may lose the baby the next time. I do want to keep her here tonight
for observation, but she can go home tomorrow if all goes well.
However, I am going to strongly recommend that she come back in two
weeks. The baby looks fine, but I would like to run some tests to be
certain that everything is all right. One of the tests that I would
like to perform is called amniocentesis. This will help test for any
abnormalities, as well as paternity. Are you familiar with the
procedure?"

"Yes, we are," Angel confirmed. "We *were* planning on having the
procedure done anyway, but we were planning on waiting a little
longer. Of course, if you feel that it a good idea to go ahead and
have it done, that is fine."

"I do feel it would be best," the doctor said. "I assure you that
there is no more danger in performing the procedure at three months
than there is at five months. Of course, the chance of any negative
side effects at all is quite small."

"Yes, we understand. Can we see her?" Spike asked anxiously.

"Of course," the doctor said. "However, I would like to request that
you keep your visit limited to fifteen minutes, and no more than two
visitors at a time."

"You mean we can't stay here with her tonight?" Spike asked in
disappointment. "I don't want to leave her here alone tonight if we
don't have to. Even if only one of us can stay, if there is any way
possible, I want one of us to be there for her tonight. This is a
very difficult time."

"Well, I will see what I can do," the doctor said hesitantly. "I
realize that this is a very delicate matter, so I may be able to bend
the rules a little since it is just for one night. I'll let you know
within the hour, but for now, I have to go and make rounds."

"Of course, we understand," Angel said, shaking the doctor's
hand. "Thank you so much, doctor." He waited until the doctor had
walked off before turning to Giles. "You are not welcome here,
Rupert. Go home. I will not have you upsetting Buffy anymore than you
already have. Count yourself lucky that she and the baby are okay,"
he growled.

Giles opened his mouth as if to protest before thinking better of it
and snapping it shut again. "Yes, I suppose you are right. Please
give Buffy my best," he said, giving them a curt nod before turning
and walking away. There was a great sadness in his eyes, and his
shoulders slumped in defeat. He knew there was no one to blame but
himself.

Spike let out a sigh of relief, leaning heavily against the wall. "I
thought that we had lost one or both of them this time, Angel," he
said in a weary voice. "And I have never been so fucking scared in my
entire life."

"Yeah, I know the feeling," Angel said, running a hand over his
face. "Thank God everything turned out fine. We should go see her
now, though. She shouldn't be alone right now." Both men took deep
breaths before pushing open the door to Buffy's room and walking in.
She looked so small and fragile in the hospital bed that it nearly
broke their hearts. Her eyes were closed, but as soon as she heard
them come in, her eyelids fluttered open slowly.

"Angel," she said in a raspy voice. "Spike. You are here. Please, is
the baby okay? I didn't lose it, did I?" she asked, her voice
trembling. "Please tell me that I didn't lose my baby. I couldn't
bear it."

Angel sat down on the side of the bed, kissing her forehead
gently. "The baby is fine, love. Everything is okay."

She breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank God," she whispered, tears
sparkling in her eyes. "I don't know what I would have done..."

"Don't even think about it, pet," Spike said soothingly. He dragged a
chair over to the other side of her bed and sat down, taking one of
her tiny hands in his. "There is no need in worrying about it because
everything is fine. The doctor said that you are not to be under any
stress for the rest of your pregnancy, and that is a direct order. He
wants to keep you overnight for observation, but we are going to try
to make sure that at least one of us stays with you tonight. And when
you get home, it's bed rest for you."

"But what about school?" she asked uncertainly. "How can I be on bed
rest? If I don't go to class, I won't get to graduate."

"I will go talk to your principal and teachers tomorrow," Angel
promised her. "I'm sure that there is something we can work out.
These *are* kind of extenuating circumstances."

"Don't worry about a thing, luv, we will take care of everything,"
Spike promised her, kissing her fingertips. "You just concentrate on
relaxing and getting some rest."

They were interrupted by a light knock on the door. The doctor poked
his head around the door and motioned for Angel and Spike to join
him out in the hallway. "Can I please see you two gentleman for a
moment?" he asked politely. "Don't worry, Miss Summers, this will
only take a minute. How are you feeling, by the way?"

Buffy smiled weakly. "I'm feeling a lot better now. Thank you,
doctor."

Angel and Spike shuffled out into the hallway and closed the door
behind them. "I have pulled a few strings and arranged it so that one
of you can stay here tonight. I'm sorry that both of you can't stay,
but I did what I could. We will be moving Buffy into a private room
tonight and one of you can stay in there with her."

"Thank you, doctor," Angel said gratefully. "We really appreciate
this." The doctor smiled pleasantly and gave a little nod before
excusing himself. Angel and Spike turned to one another, knowing that
only one of them could stay and the other would have to go home to a
big, empty house. "You can stay if you want," Angel offered quietly.

"No, you should stay, mate, but I appreciate the offer," Spike said
reluctantly. "You have always been the nurturing one. She could
probably use you more than she could me right now. I'll be fine,
really. It's only for one night, right?"

"Thank you, William," Angel said sincerely. Impulsively, he pulled
Spike into a hug. It had been such a long day and they had been
through so much, but at least they'd had each other to lean
on. "Well, I guess we should get back in there to her," Angel said,
breaking the embrace after a few moments. Spike nodded and they
walked back in to Buffy's room together.

"Is everything alright?" she asked anxiously.

"Everything is just fine, luv," Spike assured her. "The doctor just
wanted to let us know that one of us can stay with you tonight. He
said that they were going to move you into a private room, and Angel
is going to stay with you. When I come back tomorrow, I will bring a
change of clothes for you." He bent down and kissed her gently on the
forehead. "I guess I ought to be going now. You get some rest now,
okay? Angel will be here to take care of you."

"Thank you, Spike," she said gratefully. She grabbed his hand and
gave it a little squeeze. "I love you," she said in a shy little
voice.

"Love you too, pet," he said smiling. "I'll see you tomorrow. If you
need anything, just call." He gave a little wave to Buffy and Angel
and walked out the door, shutting it quietly behind him.

About an hour later, Buffy had been moved into a private room and was
getting all settled in. "Today sure was a long day, wasn't it?" she
asked Angel in a tired voice.

"Yes, it was," he agreed. "You gave us all quite a scare."

She looked at him sheepishly. "I know, and I am really sorry. I
just...it's hard knowing that I have let everyone down, you know?"

"Buffy, love, you haven't let anyone down," he insisted. "Giles was
just surprised and probably a little hurt that you didn't tell him
about your pregnancy. He overreacted. Don't get me wrong, there is no
excuse for the things he said to you, but you didn't let anyone down.
He even came to the hospital to make sure you were all right. We sent
him home because we didn't want him to upset you anymore than he
already had, but he sent his best."

"Really?" she asked uncertainly. Angel nodded in confirmation, and
she sighed in relief. "I'm just glad that the baby is okay.
Everything *is* okay, right?"

"Everything is fine," he assured her. "Will you please stop
worrying?" He gave her a reassuring smile. "The doctor said
everything was fine. He *does* want to do a few tests on you though,
just to be absolutely positive. One of the tests he wants to do is
called amniocentesis. It will test for any abnormalities." He paused
for a moment, trying to choose his words carefully before
continuing. "It will also tell us the paternity of the baby."

"Oh." Buffy paled a little at the thought. She wasn't sure that she
was ready to deal with the issue of paternity right now. She had been
hoping that she could put it off for a while, because even though the
guys had been nothing but supportive, she still couldn't help but be
a little scared that once they found out who the baby's father was,
it would change things drastically.

Angel seemed to be able to read her mind. "Buffy, honey, you know
that no matter who the father is, Spike and I will always be there
for you. Nothing is going to change how much we love you, and I know
that we both love that baby as well. You have nothing to worry about,
baby, I promise you. That baby is going to be the most loved child in
the whole world."

"You always know what to say, you know that?" she said, looking up at
him with pure love and adoration. "No matter how bad things seem, you
always find a way of making me feel better." She tugged at his hand,
pulling him closer to the bed. "Angel, will you make love to me?" she
asked in a tiny voice.

Angel looked at her with a startled expression. "Is that even...can
we? I mean, will it hurt the baby?"

She smiled at him. "It's not going to hurt the baby at all. Just
because I'm pregnant doesn't mean that we can't have sex for nine
whole months."

"I don't know, Buffy," he said hesitantly. "I mean, we are in a
hospital. Someone could walk in at any time."

"There is a lock on the door, you know," she said. "And besides, the
nurses make rounds at regular intervals. They were just in here a few
minutes ago, which gives us about an hour or so before they come
back. Please, Angel, I need to feel you inside of me," she pleaded
with him.

Angel took one look at her desperate eyes and felt himself give in.
He walked over to the door and locked the door with a quiet click.
Then he went back over to her bed, laying down beside her and pulling
her against him. He kissed her softly, brushing her hair back from
her face gently, savoring the taste and smell of her. Their kisses
quickly became much more passionate as Angel's hands began a slow
exploration of her body. His hand traveled the length of her body,
finally coming to rest on her stomach. He rubbed it in slow, small
circles, gazing into her eyes intently. "I love you, Buffy," he said
in a low, husky voice.

"I love you, too," she said as she pulled him back down for a kiss.
She plunged her tongue into his mouth as she pressed up against him,
smoothing her hands over his broad chest. "Please," she said
breathlessly. "I need you now." Angel was a bit hesitant at first,
wanting to take his time worshipping her the way she deserved, but he
quickly discovered that how impatient his little lover was. Within a
matter of minutes, his pants were around his ankles and his cock was
positioned at her entrance. With one quick thrust, he entered her
completely, beginning a slow, steady rhythm. She arched against him,
meeting his every thrust. She felt like heaven to him as he thrusted
in and out of her tight, wet channel, burying his head in her chest
to muffle his moans. When he felt her body stiffen and her legs
tighten around him, he knew that she was on the edge and reached down
between them to pinch her clit. Instinctively, he clamped a hand over
her mouth as he felt her begin to spasm around him, muffling her
screams of ecstasy. He continued to pump into her a few more times
before his own orgasm washed over him and he spilled himself into
her. He collapsed against her, breathing heavily as he listened to
the racing of her heart. He felt her run her fingers through his hair
lazily and he closed his eyes, wondering what he did to ever deserve
such a perfect angel.

Angel sat up quickly when he heard voices outside of the door. He
quickly pulled his pants and underwear up and straightened his
clothes before pulling the covers up over Buffy and rushing over to
unlock the door. He stuck his head outside the door, only to find
that the two nurses who had been talking had walked right past
Buffy's room and were continuing down the hallway. He breathed a sigh
of relief, closing the door and walking back over to a couch that sat
against the wall.

"See? I told you that we had plenty of time," Buffy said, giggling at
how jumpy he was.
He scowled at her playfully in response. "Excuse me for not wanting
someone to walk in and catch me making love to my "sick" girlfriend.
They would throw me right out on my ass! Now, why don't you lay down
and get some sleep, love? The doctor said that you needed your rest."

"Will you hold me until I fall asleep?" she asked him softly. "This
bed is really big. There is plenty of room for both of us."

"All right, love, if it will make you feel better and help you rest,"
he said patiently. He sat down on the bed and scrunched up his large
frame until he was laying beside her, his body molded to hers.

"Angel?" she whispered against his chest.

"Yes, love?"

"It's a good thing that we are going to find out the paternity of the
baby, right? I mean, it's always better to know. The sooner we know,
the sooner we will be able to deal and adjust, right?" she asked in a
shaky voice.

"Yes, love, it is a good thing," he said reassuringly, even though
secretly he wasn't sure he really felt that way at all. She sighed
softly in relief and snuggled up against him. He held her tightly in
his arms as they both drifted off to sleep, but it took a while for
that to happen. They were both plagued with the thoughts of what news
the tests would bring. Across town, Spike was tossing and turning in
his lonely bed, thinking similar thoughts. Finally, out of sheer
exhaustion, they all feel into a deep and dreamless sleep.

Part 5

"Come on, luv, get a move on!" Spike shouted up the stairs. No
answer. He growled in frustration, running his hand through his
hair. "I'm serious, Buffy. We are going to be late if you don't hurry
it up."

"I'm coming!" she shouted back down to him. "I'll be down in a
minute, okay?"

"Angel is going to be back with the car any time now, and if you
don't have your cute butt down here by the time he gets here..."
Spike warned. No answer. "That girl," he muttered under his
breath. "If we were on the brink of an apocalypse, she'd asked if it
could please wait until she had changed clothes just *one more
time*." He knew that she took forever getting ready, but today she
really seemed to be dragging her feet and he knew why. Today they
were going to learn something that was going to change their lives
forever. Today, they were going to find out the results of the
paternity test, so he could definitely understand her reluctance.

Spike himself was filled with a mixture of excitement and fear. He
wanted that child to be his so badly that he could taste it. What did
fatherhood taste like? Kinda chalky, actually, but definitely not
bad. However, he knew that there was a good chance that he was not
the father, and the thought made his heart clench painfully in his
chest. He tried not to think about it as he paced around the living
room, waiting for Angel to get back from filling the car up with gas
and washing it. While Buffy had chosen to deal with her anxiety by
trying on every article of clothing she owned, Angel had chosen to
busy himself with anything and everything he could think of to fix,
wash, or otherwise fiddle with. Spike had chosen to remain as calm as
he could and to think about other things as much as possible.

It had been three weeks since the miscarriage scare, only a week
since Buffy had gone in for the tests that the doctor had scheduled
for her. Spike remembered how nervous Buffy had been about having the
amniocentesis procedure done, how nervous he and Angel had been for
her. He had been so afraid that something would go wrong, that they
would have made it through the miscarriage scare only to lose the
baby because of the test. He remembered very clearly the look of
panic in Buffy's eyes when she had seen the size of the needle that
they were going to use on her.

"It's going to be okay, luv," he had told her, brushing the hair back
from her face gently. "It will all be over with before you know it.
Everything is going to be just fine, I promise."

"Will you stay with me?" she asked desperately. "Please don't make me
go through this alone. I need someone here to hold my hand."

It had taken some doing, but after all was said and done, he had
gotten the doctor to agree to let one of them stay with her during
the procedure. Since Spike had been anxious about the procedure from
the beginning and Angel had been the one to stay with her at the
hospital the last time, Angel decided that Spike should be the one to
be with her during the procedure. Spike was pretty sure that it was
because Angel didn't have the stomach for it, but whatever the
reason, he was glad to be able to stay with her when she needed him.
She had squeezed his hand so tightly that he had to bite the inside
of his cheek to keep from groaning in pain. He carefully throughout
the whole procedure, making sure that the doctor and nurses were
being as attentive and careful as possible. He watched in fascination
as the doctor took a long, thin needle and inserted it into Buffy's
abdomen very slowly. Spike frowned deeply, thinking that the whole
thing was a little too invasive for his comfort. He watched as the
doctor drew up some of the amniotic fluid and gently withdrew the
needle. Only then did he breathe a sigh of relief. Apparently
everything had gone off without a hitch.

"I want her to go home and rest," the doctor had told him after it
was over. "I want you to make sure that she stays off her feet as
much as possible for the next twenty-four hours. Slight cramping is
normal after this kind of procedure, but if she starts to experience
intense pain or feels that something is just not right, please do not
hesitate to bring her in. It is always better to be safe than sorry."

Spike and Angel had taken her home and waited on her hand and foot,
making sure she had extra pillows to prop herself up on and bringing
her a heating pad when she complained about cramps. She hadn't
experienced any problems, thank God, and so everything went back to
normal. They all went through the motions that week, waiting for call
from the hospital saying that the test results were in. Finally, the
doctor's office had called, informing them that the results were in
and setting up a day for Buffy to come in. Well, today was that day.

Just then, the sound of a horn honking outside snapped Spike out of
his reverie. "Buffy, that is Angel right now!" he called up the
stairs impatiently. "Get down here now!" To his relief, he heard the
sound of footsteps on the stairs.

"All right, all right already," Buffy said, walking into the
room. "You know, it's not my fault that it takes me so long to get
ready. Almost none of my clothes fit anymore, so it takes awhile to
find anything that I can wear," she said defensively, rubbing her
stomach. At a little over three months and with her tiny frame, her
tummy was already poking out a little underneath her clothes. "I
finally just gave up on finding any jeans that would fit, so I just
had to leave them unbuttoned.

"You look fine," he said, grabbing her purse and shoving it into her
hands before shooing her out the door and locking it behind them. He
ran over to the car and opened the door for her, shutting it securely
after she had climbed in and buckled up. Then he climbed into the
backseat and they were off to the hospital.

When they arrived at the hospital, they all piled out of the car and
walked together into the lobby and down the hall to the doctor's
office. Buffy went and signed herself in and then joined Spike and
Angel in the waiting area. She sat between them in a hard plastic
chair, holding their hands for dear life. Her appointment was at
eleven thirty that morning. She glanced at her watch and squeezed her
eyes shut to try and calm herself. Eleven fifteen. In fifteen more
minutes, she would know who the baby's father was. Suddenly, she felt
as if she couldn't breathe. Spike gave her hand a reassuring squeeze,
trying his best to calm her down although his own heart was pounding
in his chest.

The doctor was running late that morning, and the three sat there for
a full hour before the receptionist finally called Buffy's name. She
had decided on the way to the hospital that she wanted to go in
alone, wanting to have a chance to absorb the news before she had to
break it to the guys. When she heard her name being called, she stood
on shaky legs and allowed the nurse to escort her down the hall into
an examination room. There the nurse took her temperature and blood
pressure and told her that the doctor would be right with her. After
the nurse left, Buffy leaned back on the white paper that covered the
examination table and concentrated on breathing deeply, trying to
fight back the sudden waves of nausea that were washing over her. It
seemed like an eternity before the door opened and the doctor strode
in.

"Miss Summers, good to see you again. How are you feeling this
morning?" the doctor asked her in a pleasant voice.

"I'm feeling pretty well, but I *am* a little nauseous, not to
mention anxious to know if everything is okay with my baby," she said
bluntly. Gathering up all of her courage, she squared her shoulders
and took a deep breath to prepare herself for what she was about to
hear. "So, doctor, what were the results of the test?"

Spike and Angel sat together in the waiting room, both staring at the
door through which Buffy had just disappeared. This was it...the big
moment that they had been waiting for. They would soon know who the
father of the baby was. "I don't know if I can bear the suspense,
mate," Spike said finally, breaking the tension a little.

"I know the feeling," Angel responded. "I don't think I have ever
been so nervous in my life." He wiped his sweaty palms against his
jeans, trying to calm his nerves a little. "I hope that everything is
okay with the baby."

"Yeah, me too," Spike agreed. "Listen, mate, I've said this to Buffy
a million times, but I don't know if I've ever taken the trouble of
telling you. No matter what happens, no matter who the father is, I'm
going to be there through thick and thin. I love you both so much.
There is no way that I'm gonna let you go now. No matter what
happens, we can work through it," he said sincerely.

"That means a lot to me, William," Angel said. "I want you to know
that I feel the same way. No matter what, I'll always love you both
and be there for you. That's a promise."

Just then, the door opened and a nurse stuck her head around the
corner. "Um, is there a Mr. Angel here?" she asked.

"That's me," Angel said, standing quickly from his seat.

"Mr. Angel, Miss Summers would like to see you in the examination
room for a moment," she informed him in a professional voice. "If you
would just follow me," she said, opening the door wider for him to
enter. Angel exchanged a nervous glance with Spike before
disappearing behind the door. Spike wondered what he was thinking as
he watched him walk through the door. He was probably hoping that
everything was okay with the baby, but most of all, he was probably
anxious to know whether or not he was the baby's father. He probably
wondered whether or not Buffy calling him back first meant that he
was the father. That was what I would be thinking if I were in
Angel's shoes, Spike thought to himself. Walking down that hall,
Angel looked like he was walking to his final judgment, leaving Spike
behind in the waiting room, staring after him.

Spike felt his heart drop in his chest. She had called Angel back
first, and he was sure that it was because Angel was the father. He
couldn't help but feel disappointed and was surprised by a deep sense
of loss. *He* had wanted to be that baby's father, damn it! He was
the one that would make a good father, the one with the patience, the
one that had spent years and years taking care of Drusilla, who was
more like a child than an adult. He winced at her memory, which was
still a giant sore spot on his heart. He had thought that staking her
had been the hardest thing he would ever have to do, but now he knew
he was wrong. He was going to have to live with the knowledge that
the baby Buffy was carrying was Angel's. He would have to live with
that disappointment and heartache everyday, but put on a happy face
so that no one would know how he really felt. If he let his real
feelings show, he could lose the only good thing in his life forever.
Sadness and jealousy roared up inside of him as he thought about
having to stand by and watch Angel teach the child how to read, how
to ride a bicycle. He wouldn't be the one to hold the child in his
arms and feed it, or the one to change its diapers, the one to sing
it a lullaby until it fell fast asleep. Angel would be the one, and
even though Spike felt a little guilty for feeling the way he did, he
didn't think that Angel deserved to the father. He was sure that no
one could love that baby like he could have.

Spike groaned, burying his head in his hands. This was going to be
more difficult than he thought. Pure torture was more like it. He
vaguely wondered how he was going to ever get through it. How was he
going to be able to deal with being "Uncle Spike" instead of "Daddy"?
Thing that probably hurt his heart the most was that he didn't think
that Angel really even wanted the baby, at least not at first. Didn't
seem fair that he should be the father, since from the moment Spike
had found out Buffy was pregnant, all he had thought of was nursery
themes and baby clothes. Didn't seem fair at all.

He sat there for what felt like an eternity before that damned door
swung open again and Angel walked out, looking a little shaken. Spike
was startled by the look on his face. He immediately began to panic,
thinking that something was wrong with the baby. He rushed over to
Angel, grabbing his by the shoulders and shaking him slightly,
ignoring all of the stares they were getting. "What's wrong? Is it
the nibblet?" he asked in a strangled voice.

"No, it's nothing like that," Angel said quietly. "It's...she wants
to talk to you," he said, pointing toward the door. He clapped a hand
on Spike's back and then took a seat.

Spike took a deep breath before walking through the door, certain now
that he wasn't the father. That clap on the back from Angel had been
pure sympathy, his way of saying "sorry you weren't the one." Now, he
supposed Buffy wanted to break it to him gently, spare him his pride
in case he didn't take the news well. Well, he was determined to put
one a brave face and take it like a man. He could always hole up in
his room and cry later, when he was alone.

It took him a few minutes, but he finally found Buffy's examination
room. He took another deep breath before knocking lightly. He waited
until he heard her familiar voice tell him to come in and then pushed
the door open slowly, poking his head in. He saw her sitting there on
the examination table, staring down at the floor and he knew
instantly that she was crying. She always stared down at her feet or
the floor when she was crying, trying to hide her tears from
everyone's sight. He stepped inside and shut the door quietly behind
him, walking over to her and taking her into his arms wordlessly. He
held her, rubbing her back gently until her tears had subsided and
she was able to talk again. "Shh, luv, it's okay. I already know," he
said to her softly, trying to calm her down a bit.

"Y-you do?" she asked in a small voice. He nodded, not quite looking
her in the eyes. "And how do you feel about it? Are you disappointed?"

"Well, yeah," he said honestly. "I am. I wish that it could have been
the other way around."

Buffy looked at him sadly, fresh tears springing to her eyes. "I-I'm
sorry," she squeaked out. "I thought that you might be happy, but I
guess that was just wishful thinking."

"I thought that I had made myself pretty clear on how I felt," he
said in a sad voice. "I'm sorry that you thought that this would
be...what, a relief to me? Nothing could be further from the truth.
Angel is a very lucky man, and I envy him very much. I wish that I
were in his shoes right now."

Buffy let out a little sob then, burying her face in her hands. Spike
looked at her in concern, wondering what had her so upset. "What is
wrong, luv? Are you disappointed in how things turned out?" he asked
quietly.

"Yeah, I am. I mean, I was sort of hoping for a different reaction
from you than this, you know? Do you have any idea how hard it is to
know that the father of your baby doesn't want it?" she asked in a
broken voice.

"What are you talking about?" he asked in bewilderment. "What do you
mean the father doesn't want the baby? I mean, I know that he is a
little less than open with his feelings sometimes, but I know that
Angel is very happy that he is the father," Spike said sincerely.
Buffy stopped sniffling for a moment, staring at him blankly until he
began to grow uncomfortable. "Why are you staring at me like that,
luv?"

Buffy continued to stare at him for a long moment before taking a
deep breath and finally speaking. "Because Angel isn't the father of
my baby, Spike. You are."

Part 6

Spike tried to speak, but suddenly his vocal cords were not in the
cooperating mood. His mouth felt like someone had stuffed a handful
of those little cotton balls in his mouth, which could have been
possible considering his jaw was now on the floor. He struggled to
form a coherent thought, but found that he couldn't. He thought that
maybe he had heard wrong. He stood there, staring at Buffy in
disbelief and blinking quickly. "Uh, pardon?"

"I *said*, you are the father of my baby," Buffy repeated loudly,
still sniffling a little. "I know that is not the news you wanted to
hear, but you don't have to be so mean." She looked at him with green
eyes that were brimming with tears of hurt and disappointment.

"No, no, luv," Spike said quickly, the news starting to sink in a
bit. "You don't...look, I thought that you called me in here to tell
me that Angel was the father, okay?" He stared down at his feet,
unable to meet her eyes. "It broke my heart to think that the little
niblet wasn't mine."

Buffy was touched by the sincerity of his tone. "You mean, you wanted
the baby to be yours?" she asked in a tiny voice. She was a bit
surprised by the news. She had really pictured Angel as the more
sensitive of the two, the one that was mostly likely to want to be
the father, but she believed that Spike meant what he had said. "This
is all just too much," she said, putting a hand to her head. All of
the events of the day were beginning to overwhelm her. It had been so
hard to have to break the news to Angel that the baby wasn't his. She
knew that he was hurt and disappointed, but he had handled it well.
He told her that he was going to go get Spike for her so that she
could break the news to him. Then, when she told Spike, she had
thought that he didn't want the baby. She was very relieved to know
that was not the case now, but she was starting to get a headache.

"So are you free to go now?" Spike asked her.

"Yeah, I can go. I just need to set up my next appointment and I'll
be good to go," she said, standing up and following Spike out the
door of the examination room. When they walked into the waiting room,
Angel was nowhere to be seen. Buffy and Spike exchanged nervous looks
as Buffy rapped sharply on the glass window separating her from the
receptionist. "Excuse me," she said when the receptionist slid the
glass back. "There was a tall, dark haired man in here a little while
ago. Can you tell me where he went?"

"Your name, please?" The receptionist asked, glaring at Buffy over
her glasses that rested on the bridge of her nose.

"Buffy Summers," Buffy said impatiently.

"Ah yes, I remember him," the woman said, raising her eyebrows. "Very
handsome. He told me to tell you that he was going to run some
errands for a while. He left a note for you," she said, handing over
a folded slip of paper. Buffy took it and turned it over in her
hands, looking at the piece of tape that sealed it carefully. "Well,
I didn't open it if that is what you are thinking," the receptionist
huffed.

"Look, I just need to set up another appointment, okay?" Buffy said
irritably. "In fact, why don't you just call me at home later and let
me know what you have available." Without waiting for a response,
Buffy turned on her heel and walked away, leaving the receptionist
fuming. She opened Angel's note, unfolding the paper with shaking
hands. In his perfect script, he had written:

'Dear Buffy,

Please do not misunderstand why I left. I am not angry with you in
any way. I just thought that it would be best to give you and Spike
some time to absorb the news. Please know that although I wish the
child had been mine, I am sincerely happy for you both. Send my
congratulations to Spike. Also know that even though the child is not
biologically mine, I will love it as my own son or daughter. Please
do not worry about me. Don't worry about dinner tonight either,
because I will bring take out with me when I return home later this
evening. Go home and talk things out with Spike...you two have a lot
to discuss. I love you, my darling. Please remember that, and do not
fear, because nothing will ever change the way I feel about you,
either of you.

All my love,
Angel'

"What is it, luv? What does it say?" Spike asked anxiously, peering
over her shoulder. "He didn't..."

"No!" she said quickly. "He didn't leave...not for good anyway. He
went to run some errands, you know, to give us time to discuss
things."

That was pretty decent of him, Spike thought to himself. He would
have to remember to think him later, but right now he had a pregnant
little blonde to attend to. "So...we should probably get you
something to eat. Where would you like to go?" he asked.

"Actually, I'd rather just grab a bite to eat at home," she said,
folding the note back up and sliding it into the back pocket of her
jeans. "I'm kind of tired and it's been a long day."

"Right then," Spike said agreeably. "I suppose since Angel took the
car, we shall have to call a cab." He went to a pay phone and called
the local cab company and then ushered her outside to wait. Finally,
the little yellow car pulled up to the curb and he helped her inside
before climbing in himself and shutting the door. He leaned back
against the seat on the ride home, thinking about his new role in
life. He was going to be a father. He smiled at the thought as Buffy
laid her head on his shoulder. This was probably the closest he would
ever get to Heaven.

When the cab dropped the off at home, Spike unlocked the door and
followed Buffy inside. There on the table in the foyer was a big
bouquet of roses with a bunch of colorful balloons that
read "Congratulations!" Buffy rushed over to the table and searched
for a card, finally finding a tiny white envelope. She gently opened
it and pulled out a small card. "They are from Angel," she said
softly. "It says that he just wanted to congratulate us both. It also
says to look in the kitchen." She and Spike exchanged curious glances
and then wandered into the kitchen to find the dining table covered
with a beautiful white linen cloth, lit candles, and two plates with
silver covers over them. There was also a large bucket of ice and a
bottle of champagne in the middle of the table. There was a little
card that read "For Spike."

"I guess this is his way of showing us that there are no hard
feelings, that he really is okay with everything," Buffy said softly.

Spike picked up the bottle of champagne and snorted in disgust. "Only
a poof would give me champagne as a gift. The bugger has no taste. I
mean, come on, where is the Jack Daniels?" Buffy shot him a dirty
look and he held up his hands in defense. "Sorry! Didn't mean to step
on any toes," he amended. "It was a very nice thought, and that is
what counts. I'll be sure to say thank you, I promise," he said,
using his index finger to trace an imaginary 'x' over his heart.

"Good," she said sternly. She sat down in one of the chairs and
lifted the lid off her plate, staring hungrily at the food that was
displayed there. "Wow, this is amazing. It all looks so delicious!
Come on, sit down here and eat with me. We should talk
about...things."

Spike joined her at the table, and they immediately dug into their
food. "This is actually quite good," Spike said in surprise. "I don't
usually go for this gourmet stuff myself, but I've had worse things
to eat." He shoved another forkful of food into his mouth, chewed,
and swallowed before he spoke again. "I am really glad that Angel is
taking this so well," he said seriously. "The last thing that I would
ever want would be for him to get hurt."

"Me too," Buffy said around a mouthful of food. Spike gave her a
disgusted look, and she clamped her hand over her mouth in
embarrassment. "Sorry about me," she said after she had swallowed,
grinning sheepishly. "I'm just so hungry! I am eating for two after
all. So are you sure you are okay with all of this? You want the
baby?" she asked, moving on to the real subject at hand.

"Of course," he said honestly. "I have never been so happy about
something in my life." He reached across the table and took her hand
in his, gazing deeply into her mossy green eyes. "Buffy, I want you
to know that I am going to be here for you and this baby, no matter
what. I am going to be here to love you both and to take care of you
both. Please believe that. I love you and our baby more than anything
in this world. There is nothing...and I mean *nothing*...that I
wouldn't do for either of you."

"I know that, William," she said quietly. She rarely ever called him
William unless they were having a very intimate moment. "And I thank
you for that. I love you for that." They smiled at each other, and he
sat back, content with the fact that she knew how devoted he was to
her and their child.

After the big meal, Buffy stood up and headed toward the
stairs. "Whew, I need to lay down after all of that," she said,
patting her stomach happily. "Do you want to join me?"

Spike raised his eyebrows slightly. "I would love to," he said,
standing up from his seat and tossing his napkin onto the table. He
followed her up the stairs, making sure to stay close behind her in
case she lost her balance or stumbled. She paused once, looking over
her shoulder at him and smiling before continuing up the stairs. Much
to Spike's surprise, she headed straight to his set of rooms when
they reached the second floor.

"I hope you don't mind," she said, pushing open the door.

"Not at all," he said, a smile playing on his lips. "Do you think
Angel will?"

She sat down on the edge of his bed and looked at him seriously. "I
think that Angel gave us time alone to celebrate our good news. I
don't think he would have a problem with it at all. So what do you
say? Do you want to celebrate with me?"

In an instant, he was on the bed beside her. "There is nothing I
would like more," he said before capturing her lips with his, his
tongue delving into her warm mouth. Even though he was now rock hard,
he was prepared to take his time and do it right, but she would have
none of it. She reached down and yanked her panties off, not
bothering to remove her skirt.

"I'm so wet that I'm dripping for you, William," she said in a sultry
voice. "I'm ready." She let her knees drop open, pulling him down on
top of her. He fumbled with the zipper of his pants, finally managing
to pull it down, and his cock sprang free. She reached down with one
tiny hand to grab his shaft and position him at her entrance. "Now,"
she hissed, and he was happy to oblige. With one quick thrust, he was
fully sheathed in her scalding heat. He had to remain still for a
moment, much to her frustration, to keep himself from losing control
as soon as he had entered her. After he had a moment to regain
control, he began to thrust in and out of her slowly. He had pulled
his pants down only as much as he had to, leaving them bunched up
around his knees, and she squeezed his bare buttocks tightly. She
arched up to meet his every thrust as the speed of his movements
began to quicken. "Oh William, oh god, yes!" she moaned, her
fingernails biting into his flesh. "Please...don't stop! Oh yeah...oh
yeah...oh...OH!" she screamed as her orgasm overtook her. She flung
her head back, screaming in ecstasy. "William," she murmured as her
body spasmed in pleasure.

Spike continued his thrusts, causing the headboard of the bed to bang
into the wall rhythmically. He felt her vaginal muscles spasming
around him and fought for just a few more moments before he let
himself go. He groaned her name into her hair as white-hot pleasure
shot through his body. His cock jerked inside of her as he spurted
his seed into her tight channel. He pulled out of her and rolled
over, pulling her over against him and stroking her hair.

"That was nice," she murmured, sighing contently.

"Yeah, it was," he agreed. It seemed like a perfect moment...until
the champagne Spike had consumed earlier got the best of his
senses. "Buffy, I want to be with you forever. I want to have a
family with you, a real family. Will you marry me, luv?" he asked her.

Buffy sat up, startled by his question. "What?!"

"I want to marry you," he repeated, propping himself up.

"William...Spike...I can't marry you," she said in a flustered tone.

"Why not?" he wanted to know. Then it dawned on him. "It's because of
him, isn't it?"

"Well, yes," she admitted. "You know what the arrangement is. We
can't just get married. Where would that leave Angel? I mean, I don't
want to lose him, and that would be like shutting him out for good.
In fact, I actually thinking of marrying Angel, or at least just
going through the motions."

Spike stared at her in disbelief. "But why? Why does he get to be
your husband?"

"Because you get to be the father of my child," she said simply. "It
would be perfect, actually. I mean, how else are gonna explain our
arrangement to the child when he or she gets old enough to start
asking questions. It all makes sense if you think about it. You live
here because you are the father and Angel lives here because he is my
husband."

"Why can't you just be with me? It's because you don't love me, isn't
it?"

"Of course not! You know I love you."

"You love him more," he said in an accusing tone.

"No, it's not that," she said weakly.

"Then what is it?" he demanded.

She stared down at the comforter, not meeting his eyes. "I love you
very much, but what we have is fairly new," she said slowly. "I have
loved Angel for a long, long time..."

"You loved him first," Spike finished in a bitter voice. She still
refused to look at him. "So that makes him better than me?" he asked,
hurt shining in his ice blue eyes.

"No, it doesn't," she said in frustration. "It just means that I love
him, and have for a long time. I think that I owe him some loyalty,
don't you?"

"Whatever, Buffy."

"I don't want to hurt you," she said tearfully," but you know this is
the way it has to be. If this is going to work, if we are all still
going to be together, this is the way it has to go. Can you accept
that?"

"I guess I have to, don't I?"

"Please just try to remember that *you* are the one who is the father
of my baby," she reminded him gently. "No one can compete with that."

"Yeah," he said, but her words didn't ease the pain in his broken
heart. He knew that this was the way it had to be, that he wouldn't
have even suggested such a thing had he not been under the influence,
but he still felt crushed. It wasn't bad enough that she had turned
him down, but she actually wanted to marry Angel instead of him! As
much as her rejection had hurt him, however, he knew that it was a
pain he would have to live with and get used to. He also knew that
Angel was dealing with a completely different kind of pain. He only
hoped that when the baby got here, all of that would be forgotten in
the joy of the birth. He reminded himself that it wasn't as if he had
lost Buffy, just that he had to share. He vaguely wondered when that
had become such a difficult task. Hadn't seemed like much of a
problem before.

Part 7

When Angel arrived at home later that evening carrying a big sack of
Chinese takeout, he found Buffy curled up on the couch watching one
of her favorite movies to cry to. Uh-oh. She only watched those
really sappy, emotional movies when she was upset or feeling down. He
set the sack on the table and sat down on the couch beside her, but
she didn't even look at him. Gently, he took one of her tiny feet in
his hands and began to massage it. When she still didn't look at him,
he was forced to use dirty tactics. He began to tickle her feet,
which he happened to know were very, *very* ticklish. She squealed in
protest, trying to jerk her feet away from him and shooting him a
dirty look.

"Finally she acknowledges my existence," he said lightly, releasing
her feet and ending her torture. "Why the long face, love? What's got
you down? And where is Spike?"

"He's up in his room, and *he* is the problem. He's up there sulking
right now, and when I try to talk to him, he won't say more than two
words to me. I think I really hurt his feelings, but I only did what
I had to do," she said defensively.

Angel sighed and resisted the impulse to roll his eyes. Buffy had
really been something else lately with her mood swings and crazy
hormones. He could only imagine what she had decided to pick a fight
about with Spike. He was hoping that they would make peace with the
fact that Spike was the father and celebrate. Instead, it sounded
like the mansion had been a war zone while he was gone. "What
happened?" he asked in a neutral voice.

"Well, we had dinner, which was lovely by the way, and Spike had some
champagne," she began.

"Then we went upstairs to celebrate...you know what I mean. Anyway,
after it was over, I guess the alcohol took over because he asked me
to marry him!"

"And you said no?" Angel asked. He wasn't at all angry with Spike
because he knew that his emotions go the best of him when he was
drunk and that Spike said things that he didn't mean. He could
definitely understand why Spike was upset if she had turned him down,
though. Spike always was a very sensitive, tenderhearted person. That
is why he had been a poet in life before he had been turned. He truly
had the soul of a poet.

"Of course I said no!" she exclaimed. "I told him that it couldn't
happen because it wasn't fair to you. I also told him that I was
actually thinking about proposing marriage to you. I mean, that way
no one would really question the fact that we all live together.
Spike's the father, you're my husband, and we all live together for
the benefit of the child. Spike got his feelings all hurt, and now he
is shutting me out," she pouted, crossing her arms over her chest.

"So not only did you reject him, but you then told him you wanted to
marry me instead?" Angel said quietly.

"Well, when you say it like that, it kind of sounds bad," Buffy said.

"Buffy, that is enough to completely break a man's heart in two,"
Angel groaned. "I mean, that is pretty harsh, sweetheart."

"Well, I'm sorry, Angel. Excuse me for not jumping at the chance to
marry Spike. I would have thought that you would be more
appreciative, considering *you* are the one I want to marry," she
huffed indignantly.

"Buffy, I'm honored, really I am, but we can't get married either,"
he said gently.

"W-what? Why not?" she asked, her voice filled with hurt. "Don't you
want to be with me?

Don't you love me?"

"Yes, of course I do," he said. "The same way that you want to be
with Spike, the same way you love him. But I also can't marry you for
the same reason you couldn't marry Spike. Buffy, that would hurt him
way too much. It *is* true that he is the father of your baby, but
that in itself doesn't bond you two together. Look at how many people
get divorced, even after they have children. The bond is between the
parents and the child, not between the parents. It wouldn't be right
for us to take holy vows and be united in marriage and leave Spike
out in the cold."

Buffy's eyes widened in disbelief. "I can't believe you! You are
actually sitting there, telling me you don't want to marry me! Well,
if I would have known that you felt like this, maybe I would have
told Spike yes when he proposed to me. At least *he* wants me!" she
rambled, nearly hysterical. "I just can't believe this! Spike wants
to marry me, and I say no. I want to marry you, and *you* say no.
This can *not* be happening."

"Buffy, love, you really need to calm down," Angel said softly.

"Don't tell me what to do! Don't tell me to calm down, Angel!" she
shouted angrily. "Look, I am going upstairs to *my* room, and I won't
to be left alone, okay?" She started to stalk out of the room but
stopped mid-stride and spun around. "You know what? You and Spike
deserve each other. Maybe *you* should get married." Then she stomped
out of the room and up the stairs, slamming her bedroom door behind
her.

"Jesus Christ," Angel muttered under his breath. "I wish her fucking
mood swings would stop already." He had talked to the doctor
privately and was told that the first trimester and last trimester
were the worst for mood swings. Buffy was about three months along
now, maybe thirteen weeks, and it was obvious that her mood swings
were in full force now. He just prayed that they would die down a
little soon, or he was going to lose his mind.

He decided that maybe he should go upstairs and check on Spike. If
Hurricane Buffy had been raging all night long, Spike was likely to
be in bad shape. Poor bastard. It was no wonder he had sought refuge
in his room. Angel jogged up the stairs easily and made his way down
the hall to Spike's suite of rooms. He knocked lightly on the door
and listened for a response.

"Sod off," Spike bellowed from behind the door.

"It's Angel, Will. Let me in," Angel called.

"Angel?" After a few seconds, Angel heard the click of Spike
unlocking the door and it swung open. Spike stood there in the
doorway with red, puffy eyes. His bare chest peeked out from
underneath his unbuttoned shirt, and Angel inhaled sharply at the
perfection of his former childe. "Go ahead, lay into me. I know that
she probably told you what happened and that you probably want to rip
my head off, so just go ahead and get it over with."

"She *did* tell me what happened, William, but I'm not angry with
you," Angel said gently.

"Y-you're not?" he asked in confusion. "But I thought-"

"Can I come in?" Angel asked, cutting him off. He didn't wait for an
answer before pushing past Spike and entering his bedroom.

"Be my guest," Spike said dryly, closing the door behind him. He
walked over and flopped on the bed, laying on his back with his hands
behind his head. He stared at the ceiling for a moment, ignoring
Angel in an attempt to make him go away. He really wasn't feeling
very sociable at the moment. All he really wanted was to be left
alone to nurse his bruised ego, but Angel wasn't taking the hint.
Spike sighed heavily, knowing that Angel would stand there all night
if he didn't acknowledge him. He looked at Angel from beneath hooded
eyelids. "So you aren't mad at me then?" Angel shook his head. "So
then why are you here?" Spike asked him bluntly.

Angel ran his hands through his thick, dark hair and sat down on the
bed beside Spike. "I'm here because I figured you were upset and
maybe wanted to talk. I know how Buffy can be when she has one of her
mood swings. It isn't pretty and she can be pretty harsh."

"Where is little Miss Sunshine, anyway?" Spike muttered.

"I'm pretty sure that she locked herself in her room. We probably
won't see her again until tomorrow at the earliest. She was pretty
pissed off at me," Angel said, smiling his trademark half smile.

"Yeah? What did ya do to her, look at her the wrong way?" Spike asked
sullenly.

"I told her that I couldn't marry her," Angel informed him.

Spike's eyes widened in surprise. "You did *what*?" Spike croaked
out. "No bloody way!"

"Yeah, I did," Angel said with a chuckle. "Needless to say that she
didn't take it well. In fact, the conversation ended with her yelling
that maybe you and I should get married."

"Bloody hell," Spike muttered under his breath. He stared at Angel
curiously. "So, uh, why did you turn her down, mate? Don't take this
the wrong way or anything, but have you lost your bloody marbles? Any
red blooded man would give his right arm to marry a chit like
her...even if she is a bit moody."

"Well, I told her that I couldn't marry her for much the same reason
she gave you. It wouldn't be right for she and I to get married.
Where would that leave you?"

"But she said that since I was the father of the child-"

"William, please just accept that fact that nobody in this mansion is
getting married, okay? I love Buffy dearly, but I'm not about to do
something that would cause me to lose you. I love you, too," Angel
said sincerely, gently trailing a finger along Spike's cheekbone.

"I can't believe you aren't mad at me for what I did," Spike said
quietly. "I had no right to ask her to marry me."

"Will, I don't *care* about that, alright? I know how you feel about
Buffy, and I also know how emotional you get when you've had large
amounts of alcohol," Angel said in frustration.

"But-"

"Will, just shut up," Angel growled, grabbing Spike's face and
crushing his mouth with his own. Spike's lips parted to allow Angel's
probing tongue entrance into his hot mouth. Angel groaned in pleasure
as his tongue battled with Spike's, fighting for dominance. His eyes
widen as he felt Spike begin to suckle his tongue, nipping at it
every so often. Their hands roamed each other's body, frantically
pulling and tugging at their clothing. They broke apart long enough
for Angel to strip Spike's shirt off and then tug his own over his
head, and then they were kissing hungrily once more. Angel pushed
Spike back gently onto the bed, never breaking their kiss, and began
to fumble with the fly of his pants. Spike's nimble fingers assisted
him and soon, Angel's jeans were in a heap on the floor, along with
Spike's. Spike hissed in pleasure as he felt Angel's hand encircle
him and begin to pump up and down.

"Oh my god, yes!" he groaned, gripping the sheets of the bed tightly.
He threw his head back in pleasure, almost arching completely off of
the bed when he felt Angel take him into his mouth. Angel smiled
slightly as he sucked lightly on Spike's member, continuing to pump
him with his hand. It wasn't long before Angel's ministrations had
taken Spike to the edge.

"Angel, you might want to stop. I'm gonna come," Spike managed to
rasp out, but his words only made Angel suck harder. Soon, Spike was
spilling into Angel's mouth.

"Th-that was incredible," Spike said breathlessly.

"I'm glad that you enjoyed it, my boy, but *that* was nothing," Angel
said in a lustful tone. Before Spike knew what was happening, Angel
had flipped him over onto his stomach.

With his large, gentle hands, Angel began to massage Spike's tense
muscles, expertly working out all of the knots that the evening with
Buffy had caused.

"That feels like heaven," Spike moaned, letting his body go
completely limp.

"If you think that feels good, then this is going to feel great,"
Angel replied, snagging a bottle of massage oil from the drawer of
Spike's nightstand. He had put it there one day without telling
Spike, saving it as a surprise for a night just like this one. He
poured some of the oil out into his palm, rubbing the oil between his
hands until he felt it begin to heat up. Gently but firmly, he began
to rub the oil over Spike's well-muscled back and shoulders. He
continued kneading the muscles until every fiber was relaxed before
moving down to his firm buttocks and legs. He didn't stop until he
had covered the better part of Spike's body with a coat of the oil.

"Now it is my turn for pleasure," Angel said silkily, bending over
Spike so that he was right next to his ear. "On your knees," he
commanded. As Spike took the familiar position,

Angel poured more of the oil into his hand, coating his cock with the
slippery substance. He positioned himself at Spike's entrance,
entering him slowly and gently. He paused for a moment once he was
completely inside, allowing Spike time to adjust to the
invasion. "Are you okay?" he asked in concern.

"Never...been...better," Spike gritted out impatiently. "Can you
please fuck me now?"

His words ignited a fire in Angel that could not be contained. He
began to thrust into Spike hard and fast, his fingers digging into
Spike's pale flesh with a bruising pressure. He pounded against him
so hard that Spike's arms gave way, and the blonde let his head come
to rest on the bed, his ass sticking up in the air, giving them both
a slightly different angle to enjoy. Spike buried his face in the
comforter to muffle his loud moans and grunts of pleasure. As Angel
felt himself nearing climax, he reached around and grabbed Spike's
shaft, pumping him in rhythm with his thrusts. Spike came in his hand
the same time that Angel's orgasm crashed over him and he filled
Spike's channel with his own come. Angel slipped out of Spike and
flopped over onto his back weakly. Spike immediately snuggled up
beside him, resting his head in the crook of Angel's shoulder.

"Now *that* was amazing," Spike murmured, tracing imaginary patterns
across Angel's bare chest. Angel stroked his hair affectionately,
closing his eyes and relaxing back against the pillows. They laid
there together in companionable silence and were just beginning to
drift off to sleep when they heard the door creak open. Both of them
shot up quickly, startled by the noise. There they saw a tiny blonde
figure standing in the doorway.

"Buffy, love, what are you doing?" Angel asked. "I thought you were
in your room."

"I was," she said quietly, padding into the room. She stopped just
beside the bed and just looked at them for a long moment.

"Um, is something wrong, pet?" Spike asked uneasily.

"N-no, it's just that-" she began, but her voice broke before she
could finish her sentence,

Tears spilled down her cheeks and her bottom lip quivered. "Do you
still love me?" she blurted, a sob breaking free from her chest.

"Oh, Buffy, honey, of course we love you," Angel said, pulling her
onto the bed to sit between them. "What would make you think that we
don't love you?"

"B-because I t-turned Spike down when he asked m-me to marry him, and
y-you turned me d-down when I asked you," she wailed miserably.

"Oh, Buffy, don't be ridiculous. We have told you a million times
that there is nothing you could do that would make either one of us
not love you anymore," Spike told her.

"R-really?"

"Absolutely," he reassured her.

"I'm sorry about how I acted. It's just my damned hormones. I can't
control them and they make me act awful."

"It's *alright*, love."

"Can I sleep in here with you two tonight?" she asked in a tiny
voice. "I don't feel like being alone. I want to be close to you."

"Of course, love," Angel said softly. "Lay back here and let us hold
you, alright? And, Buffy, know that we love you, that we will always
love you." She gave him a little smile and laid back, still
sniffling. Angel reached down and pulled the covers up over all three
of them and they all snuggled up together. It didn't take long before
they all had all drifted off into a peaceful slumber, a tangled mass
of arms and legs.

Part 8

Months had passed since the father's identity had been revealed, and
Buffy, Angel, and Spike all learned the joys and pains that came
along with pregnancy. They had gone through all of the doctor's
appointments and tests, all of the mood swings and swollen ankles.
They had felt the baby kick for the first time, and saw the baby's
heartbeat during ultrasounds. It all seemed like a miracle to them
and every day brought new experiences and challenges.

During her fifth month of pregnancy, Buffy had gone to the doctor for
an ultrasound to determine the sex of the baby. After all, they
couldn't very well decorate the nursery until they knew if the baby
was going to be a girl or boy, Spike had pointed out. All three of
them held their breaths as they stared at the monitor screen,
watching the fetus wiggle around inside of Buffy's womb.

"It's a boy," the doctor announced, which set off a series of whoops
and high fives between Angel and Spike. Buffy merely rolled her eyes
and complained that there was already too much testosterone in the
mansion. Spike and Angel had goofy grins plastered all over their
faces as they talked about names for the baby later that night until
Buffy had burst their bubble by announcing that since *she* was the
one that was going to have to push the child out that *she* was going
to be the one to make the final decision on a name.

Everything was going along great for the three lovers. Thanks to
arrangements made by Angel and Spike, Buffy was able to do all of her
schoolwork from the comfort of home, and her grades were better than
they had ever been in her entire life. Despite her worries and fears,
she was going to get to graduate with her class in May. Buffy had
eventually broken the news of her pregnancy and the paternity to all
of her friends and was relieved that they all accepted it just fine.
Well, Xander had a little trouble with it all at first, but he
eventually came around. She had even been able to forgive Giles for
everything that had happened between them. Even he had came to accept
Angel and Spike as a major part of her life, as well as the new baby.

The three of them had spent hours and hours working on the nursery,
wanting everything to be just right when the baby was born. Spike and
Angel painted and wallpapered, strictly forbidding Buffy to do
anything that would require her to climb up on a ladder or lift
anything heavy. That meant that putting together all of the furniture
also fell on their shoulders, but it was a burden that they didn't
mind bearing at all. It was all a lot of hard work on all of their
parts, but the end result was beautiful. All of the furniture was
made of solid oak, including the crib, changing table, and even a
matching rocking chair for Buffy. The walls were painted a soothing
powder blue at the bottom, while the upper portion was covered with
wallpaper that was the same shade of blue, covered by fluffy white
clouds. The theme of the nursery had been an issue of great debate.
Buffy had found the cutest little teddy bears, all of them holding
either a football, soccer ball, a baseball, or a basketball, but
Spike had vetoed it right away. He himself had never been an athlete
and bristled at the mere thought of anything of the sort
being "pushed" onto his child. He wanted to decorate the nursery with
teddy bears on motorcycles, but that was a big no for Buffy and
Angel. Finally they decided on the cloud motif, suggested by Angel as
a compromise.

The nursery project had taken months, and now here they were with
Buffy, eight and a half months along in her pregnancy. The baby was
due in two weeks, though Buffy had already been experiencing minor
contractions. Today was going to be yet another busy day for the trio
because their friends were throwing a big baby shower in Buffy's
honor. The shower was supposed to be at one o'clock in the afternoon
and so they all spent the morning trying to get ready. Angel and
Spike didn't really need all of that time, but by now Buffy was
*very* large and it was a struggle for her to do even basic things at
times. Her present predicament was an excellent example.

"Spike! Angel! Somebody help meeeeeeeeee!" she wailed from her
bedroom. Almost immediately, Spike was standing in her doorway, his
face a mask of concern and worry.

"What is it, luv? What's the matter?" he asked anxiously.

"I need your help," she said in frustration. She was laying on her
bed, on the verge of tears. "I want to wear sandals today to the
shower and so I wanted to paint my toenails but I can't do it. I
can't even see my feet!" she wailed.

Spike sighed heavily and sat down on the bed beside her. "Give me the
damn bottle," he said reluctantly. She handed it over and he began to
apply the polish as best as he could. Thankfully, he had some
experience with this kind of thing, even though his color of choice
used to be black, not the pale pink that Buffy had selected.

By the time everyone was ready, they had just enough time to get to
the Magic Box where the shower was being held. When they arrived,
they found all of her friends there, hovering around a huge pile of
gifts. There was cake and punch and opening of the presents, and
everyone was having a great time. Then Giles approached Buffy,
looking more than a little nervous.

"Buffy, I have a surprise for you," he said gently. "Wait right here,
and I'll bring it to you." He disappeared into the back quickly,
leaving a very curious Buffy behind, and returned a moment later with
Joyce in tow.

"Oh my god," Buffy said softly, her hand flying up to cover her
mouth. "Mom? What are you doing here?"

"Hi, honey," Joyce said nervously. "Rupert arranged things with the
clinic so that I could have leave for the day to come and see you."

"That's great, Mom," Buffy said uncertainly. "So I guess it is pretty
obvious that you know the big news," she said, gesturing to her large
stomach. Buffy hadn't visited her mother once since she had been
checked into rehab. It sounded cold, but Buffy just couldn't face her
mother after all of the abuse that she had been subjected to. She
hadn't wanted her to know about her pregnancy either, and made Giles
swear not to tell her. He was the only one that ever visited her
mother. Now Buffy waited on pins and needles, not knowing how her
mother was going to react to the pregnancy. Would she be as harsh as
Giles had been when he first found out? Because she just couldn't
deal with a repeat of that.

Joyce smiled at her gently. "Yes, I know, and I just want you to know
how happy I am for you. Rupert has told me how well you are doing in
school and how much happier you are now. I am glad for you, Buffy. As
your mother, I have always wanted you to find happiness. It looks
like now you have."

Buffy was stunned. She hadn't known what to expect from her mother,
but she definitely hadn't expected *this*. Her eyes filled with tears
as she struggled to her feet and walked over to wrap her mother in a
tight embrace. "Thank you, Mom. I love you."

"I love you, too, sweetheart."

After the shower, Angel and Spike had lugged all of the presents back
to the mansion and hauled them up to the nursery. They let Buffy go
take a nap because they knew that she got tired very easily these
days, and they set about putting things up. When they were finished,
it was considerably later and their stomachs were growling in hunger.
They decided that they would take Buffy out for a nice, romantic
dinner at her favorite restaurant. They managed to wake her up and
get her ready and out the door without too much of a struggle. She
was still in a good mood from her reunion with her mother.

Unfortunately, it seemed as if everyone else in Sunnydale had the
same idea and had chosen the very same restaurant because parking was
a nightmare. Angel dropped Buffy off at the door with Spike and went
to park the car while they got a table. He met them inside and they
were seated after only a fifteen minute wait. And so they dined
together, enjoying wonderful food and wonderful company. Angel was
even able to persuade Buffy out onto the dance floor for a short slow
dance while they waited for their dessert to arrive.

When dinner was over and the check was paid, they walked out into the
warm night. "I will go get the car, okay? You two just stay right
here," Angel said, fishing around for his keys in his pocket.

"Don't be ridiculous!" Buffy told him. "You couldn't have parked that
far away. Spike and I will just go with you."

"Buffy, I don't think that is such a good idea. It will just take me
a second to go get the car," Angel insisted.

"Good. Then it will only take us a second to get there, too. Just
because I'm pregnant doesn't mean that I can walk across a parking
lot," she said pointedly.

Spike sighed heavily. "How far is the car, mate?" he asked Angel.

"Not very, but we have to cut through that alley over there to get to
it," Angel said, pointing to a dark alley that ran beside the
restaurant.

"Then what is the problem? Afraid that some demon or vamp is going to
try to attack us? Hello! Slayer here," she said, pointing to herself.

"A very pregnant Slayer," Angel reminded her. "You would be no match
for an attack in your condition."

"He's right, luv," Spike said. Angel gave him an appreciative glance
for the support.

"Okay, well, I'm still with you two. You're human, but let's not
forget that you still have all of the strength and speed of vampires.
I'm sure we will be perfectly fine," Buffy said stubbornly.

Spike and Angel looked at each other helplessly for a moment. Spike
grabbed Angel's sleeve and pulled him aside, speaking in a low
voice. "Look, she's got her resolve face on. We aren't going to
change her mind, so we might as well save ourselves some time and
just let her have her way."

"I still think it's too dangerous," Angel protested.

"I agree with you, but what choice do we have? She's right, you know.
She has the two of us to protect her, two men with supernatural
strength and speed. We'll be okay, Angel. You know I wouldn't go
along with it if I thought that she or the baby were in any real
danger," Spike told him seriously.

"Yeah, I know," Angel said in frustration. He ran his hands through
his hair, letting out his breath in a loud whoosh of air before
finally nodding his head. "Okay, let's just go. But let's be very
careful and keep our eyes out. This *is* Sunnydale."

Spike nodded his head in agreement. "Right then," he said. "Come on,
luv, let's go."

Buffy smiled triumphantly and hurried over to grab both of them by an
arm, practically dragging them into the alley. "You'll see," she said
confidently. "Everything is going to be just fi-"

Just then, a dark figure stepped out in front of them, blocking their
path. Spike pulled Buffy back, turning to go back the way they came,
but there was another man behind them, blocking their way. Spike took
a deep breath, gritting his teeth as he realized that they weren't
getting out of here without a fight. Spike stepped in front of Buffy
protectively, Angel at his side, and addressed the man in front of
them. "Can I help you with something, mate? 'Cause if not, we really
should be going."

"Yeah, you can give me your wallets and the lady's purse, and we'll
just be on our way," the man said with a smirk.

"They aren't giving you anything," Buffy said loudly, pulling away
from Spike and marching over to stand right in front of the man
before anyone could stop her. "You don't know who you are dealing
with, buster. Let me introduce myself. I'm Buffy, as in the Vampire
Slayer, and you-" she was stopped short when the man grabbed her,
twisting her arm around her back painfully. Her muscles tensed as she
prepared to defend herself, but a faint clicking sound made her
freeze. Everyone held their breaths as they looked at the gleaming
blade of the switchblade that was pressed against Buffy's pregnant
stomach. The mugger held her tightly, one arm around her chest, the
other wrapped around her stomach, holding the knife.

"Now, gentleman, let's not be stupid about this," the man said
nervously. "Just hand over the wallets and purse, and the lady won't
get hurt."

Spike and Angel looked on numbly, frozen in terror as they took in
how unstable the man was and how the hand holding the knife was
trembling. Spike shot a glance at Angel quickly, trying to read his
expression. Their eyes met in understanding as they realized what had
to be done. They could hand over all of their money, but it was
obvious that the guy was so wired that he was liable to hurt Buffy
anyway. They *had* to get her away from him as soon as possible.
Spike waited until he saw Angel give him an almost imperceptible nod,
then sprang into action. Spike launched himself at Buffy's attacker,
while Angel spun around to face off against the other mugger. Thanks
to his enhanced speed and strength, Spike was able to grab the guy's
arm and pulled Buffy from his clutches, pushing her out of harm's
way. Unfortunately, he wasn't fast enough to avoid having the knife
plunged deeply into his own stomach. His mouth fell open as he stared
at the mugger with wide eyes, screaming out in pain when the man
twisted the blade inside of him. He fell to his knees and slumped
against the side of the building as their attacker made a hasty
retreat. Angel wasn't aware of what had happened until he heard
Buffy's screaming hysterically. He immediately shoved the second
attacker to the ground and ran over to where Spike was laying in a
pool of blood.

"Angel, we've got to do something!" Buffy screamed. "We can't let him
die."

"Buffy, get your cell phone. Call an ambulance," Angel ordered,
trying to assess how bad Spike's wound was.

"We don't have time! By the time he gets here - oh no! Not now," she
groaned.

Angel glanced over his shoulder at her. "What's wrong?"

"My water just broke. The baby is coming," she said in a panicked
voice.

"Get in the car," Angel commanded, bending down to scoop Spike into
his arms. "I can get us there faster than any ambulance."

Part 9

Buffy sat in the backseat with Spike, cradling his head in her lap
and using a blood soaked handkerchief to try to stop his bleeding.
She whispered soothing words to him between her contractions as Angel
sped towards the hospital at top speed. Spike's face was as white as
a sheet and he was losing an incredible amount of blood. He slipped
in and out of consciousness the whole way. When they finally arrived
at the hospital, Angel was out of the car in a flash. He raced into
the emergency room, grabbing the first nurse that he came across.

"Sir, are you alright?" the young nurse asked in concern.

"I'm fine. It's the two people out in my car that need your help. One
has been stabbed, and one is in labor," he gasped, sucking in deep
breathes of air.

The nurse's eyes widened in horror. "Oh my goodness! You wait right
here. I'll get someone to help immediately," she said. She raced
around the desk and picked up the phone, quickly punching some
numbers and murmuring something unintelligible into the receiver.
Almost immediately, nurses and doctors were racing around everywhere.
Two stretchers were taken out to Angel's car, and Buffy and Spike
were loaded up and rushed off in two separate directions.

"Where are you taking them?" he asked the young nurse.

"The young lady is definitely in labor," she informed him. "They took
her back to the delivery room. The man was injured very badly. They
are taking him up to prep him for an emergency surgery. He has lost a
lot of blood, sir, and his injuries are quite serious. They weren't
sure if he was going to make it," she said gently.

Angel stumbled back against the wall, suddenly having difficulty
breathing. He felt as if his whole world was crashing down around
him. Buffy was having the baby prematurely, and Spike could be dying!
What was he going to do?

"Sir, is there anything I can do? Do you need me to get you anything
or call anyone for you?" the young nurse asked in concern.

"I-I don't know," he said dumbly. "I don't know what I need." He felt
torn in two. He needed to be with Spike *and* with Buffy, but he
couldn't be in two places at the same time. He decided that there
wasn't anything he could do for Spike while he was in surgery, so he
opted to go find Buffy. "Can you tell me how to get to the delivery
room?" he asked in a daze.

"I'll do better than that," she said with a worried expression. "I'll
take you there myself. It's on the second floor, so we'll have to
take the elevator. Please follow me." Angel followed her obediently,
unable to really form a coherent thought. The young nurse kept
glancing over at him every few seconds, a concerned expression on her
face. "Are you the father, sir?" she asked finally.

"N-no, I'm not. The father was the man they took up to surgery," he
said quietly.

"Oh my goodness," the nurse said. "How awful! That poor girl must be
scared to death having to go through this by herself and having to
worry about whether or not the father is going to make it. If you
don't mind me asking, what on earth happened?"

"We got mugged, and one of the muggers held a knife to her stomach.
Spike got her away from the guy, but he got stabbed in the process.
We were about to call an ambulance when her water broke and I
realized that we didn't have time."

"Wow, that is quite a story," the nurse said. The elevator dinged
then, and the doors slid open. Angel followed her out of the elevator
and down the hallway to a door that said 'Delivery Room' on the
outside. "Well, this is it. I take it that you are a friend of the
family?" she asked him.

"Yeah, you could say that," Angel said.

"Well, since the father cannot be in there with her, would you like
to? I can get you some scrubs and we can get you washed up, and then
you can go in there. I hate for the poor dear to have to go through
this alone," the nurse said sympathetically.

"Yeah, that would be great," Angel said. The nurse led him into a
little room with a sink to scrub his hands with disinfecting soap and
to put on a set of scrubs, then ushered him into the delivery room
where Buffy was howling in pain.

"Angeeeel!" she wailed, her face bright red from exertion. "Oh god,
it hurts so much! I can't believe this baby is coming so quickly,"
she panted. Angel rushed over and grabbed her hand, biting the inside
of his cheek to keep from crying out in pain when she nearly crushed
his hand in hers. Within a few moments, the contraction had passed
and she was more coherent. "Angel, is Spike okay?" she asked, her
brow furrowed with concern.

"He's in surgery, Buffy," he told her gently. "They are working on
him as we speak."

"Is he...is he going to be okay?" she asked in a tiny, frightened
voice.

"You know Spike, sweetheart. He's a fighter. I'm sure he'll be fine,"
Angel lied, trying to reassure her. He knew that the last thing she
needed to hear right now was that the father of her baby might be
dying. "How much longer do they think it is going to be before the
baby gets here?" he asked.

"The doctor says it may be awhile. They told me that I haven't fully
dilated and all," she informed him. "Angel, we have enough time for
you to call everyone and let them know. Can you do that for me
please? Can you call Giles and Xander and Wills and everyone and let
them know? I really want them to be here for this," she said, tears
sparkling in her eyes.

"Of course, luv," Angel said, brushing her damp hair back from her
face. "I'll go do it right now but don't worry. I'll be back here
with you when you get ready to deliver." He kissed her gently on the
forehead before heading towards the door.

"And Angel?" she called to him.

"Yeah?"

"Will you check on Spike for me? I need to know if he is okay. He
can't die without seeing this baby," she said, her voice cracking a
little.

"I will, luv, I promise," he said, giving her a little smile before
pushing through the doors. He went back downstairs and found the
nurse who had helped him before. "I need you to do me a favor," he
told her. "I need you to take my cell phone and call everyone in the
phonebook and let them know that Buffy is having the baby."

"Certainly, sir," the nurse told him.

"And can you tell me where I can go to find out about Spike? The man
that they took up to surgery?"

"I can call up and ask about how the surgery is going," she offered,
picking up the phone. "Just give me a second." She punched in a few
numbers and waited for a moment, waiting for someone to pick
up. "Hello, this is Nurse Carson from the ER. A patient was brought
up there a little while ago for emergency surgery. Can you give me an
update on his status please?" She paused, listening carefully. "And
what room will he be moved to? Okay, thank you very much," she said,
hanging up the phone. "Well, they said that your friend's injuries
were quite bad, even worse than they first thought. Apparently, when
he was stabbed, the knife was twisted inside of him. They are having
trouble repairing the damage and closing the wound. I'm sorry, sir,
but it doesn't look good," the nurse said quietly.

"Could you just call everyone please?" he asked in a tired voice.

"Yes, sir," she said.

He walked over to a set of chairs and slumped down into one. What was
he going to do? How was he supposed to go back in there and face
Buffy knowing that Spike was probably not going to make it? She would
be absolutely devastated by the news. He sat there for a long time,
agonizing over what to do. A small, feminine hand on his shoulder
derailed his train of thought. He looked up to see the worried face
of Willow and realized he must have been sitting there longer than he
thought. "Willow," he said, taking her hand in his. "I'm so glad you
are here." He stood up to give her a hug and noticed that Xander and
Giles were standing behind her, troubled expressions on their faces.
He walked over and shook both of their hands, thanking them for
coming, and then proceeded to spill the how story

"How is she, Angel?" Willow asked anxiously.

"She is doing fine. They took her back to delivery the minute we got
here," he informed them. "She wasn't hurt, but if it hadn't been for
Spike, who knows what would have happened."

"And Spike? How is he?" the redhead asked him.

"It doesn't look good," Angel said, fighting back his tears. "He
just...he lost so much blood, and the wound was really bad. The last
time I checked, he was still up in surgery. They were having trouble
repairing the damaging and closing the wound." He had been so wrapped
up in getting Buffy and Spike to the hospital and making sure that
Buffy was okay that he hadn't really had time to stop and think about
what all of this meant. Now that others were there to help ease his
burden, the situation really hit him. He could very well lose Spike
forever, and he didn't know if he could handle that. Spike had been
his companion for years and years. They had fought both against one
another and together, side by side. They had loved each other and
hated each other, hurt each other and kissed the tears away.

"Oh, Angel," Willow said sympathetically, wrapping her arms around
him in a comforting hug. "He's going to be just fine, I know it. I'm
going to go to the nurses' station right now and have them call up to
check on him."

"Thanks, Willow," Angel said in appreciation. He watched her march
down hall purposefully and then turned his attention to
Giles. "Rupert, I know that she would love to see you right now.
Don't worry, the last time I was in there, it looked like the little
one was taking his own sweet time."

"Yes, of course," Giles said, patting Angel on the back. "I think
shall go see her. Thank you." The Brit headed down the hall in the
other direction, searching for an elevator that would take him up to
the floor that Buffy was on. Angel and Xander were left standing
there awkwardly, neither of them saying a word, until Willow came
back.

"Angel, they said that Spike is out of surgery and they are taking
him to the recovery room as we speak. They said that over the next
few hours, he would be in and out of consciousness," she informed him.

"Was the surgery a success?" Angel asked hopefully. "Is he going to
be okay?"

Willow's expression grew somber as she looked at him with sympathetic
eyes. "They said that they did all they could for him and that we
would just have to wait and see what happens. He lost an awful lot of
blood, and the trauma was so great that they just don't know. It's
too soon to tell," she said softly. "But in the meantime, we can do
something to help. Spike had to have a lot of blood, and if he
continues to bleed as heavily as he has been, he is going to need
more. The nurse suggested that anyone who was able to give blood
should do so." She looked around, noticing for the first time that
someone was missing from the group. "Where is Giles?"

"He went to see Buffy," Angel informed her. "I didn't want to leave
her alone, and since he is the closest thing to a father that she
has, I thought that seeing him would be a great comfort to her. I
just couldn't bring myself to go in there and face her knowing that
Spike might not make it. I'm not sure that I could keep my emotions
hidden. Buffy has always been able to tell when something is
bothering me. I didn't figure that she needed that extra stress right
now."

"I definitely agree," Willow said, nodding her head. "That was good
thinking. Xander, why don't you go find Giles? You can say hi to
Buffy and let Giles know *discreetly* that when he is done visiting
with Buffy, he should donate some blood. I'll be with you in a
second. I just want to talk to Angel," the redhead told him.

Xander nodded his head in agreement and walked down the hallway in
search of an elevator. He wasn't exactly comfortable being around
Angel, especially in a situation as stressful as this one. Willow
waited until he was out of earshot before grabbing Angel's shirt
sleeve and pulling him over to the set of chairs that he had been
sitting in when she had first arrived. After they had both taken a
seat, she looked him squarely in the eye and took a deep breath
before speaking. "Angel, I know that this is hard on you. You
probably feel like you are being torn in two, part of you wanting to
be with Buffy, part of you wanting to be with Spike. I know that you
wish you could be two places at once, and normally that is
impossible, but then we are on a Hellmouth here. I want to help you,
so let me lay out a few options for you. One possibility is that you
can go and be with Spike, and I will keep you up to date on Buffy's
condition telepathically, or vice versa."

"That won't work," he said. "I told her that I would be there with
her when she gave birth. I can't let her down, and I can't *not* be
with Spike. He needs to know that there is someone here who cares
about him, and he is going to want to know how Buffy is doing when he
wakes up."

"That brings me to option number two," she said. "I can split you
temporarily. Basically, there will be two Angels running around for a
short time. Part of you can be with Buffy and part of you can be with
Spike. Of course, both of...you...will be conscious of what the other
one is seeing and experiencing. It sounds completely bizarre, but you
will literally be able to be in two places at once and be aware of
what is going on in both places simultaneously."

"That sounds great, Willow, but what is the catch?" he asked warily.

"The catch is that it is going to hurt *a lot* when I split you," she
said apologetically. "And you will have to be able to act as if
everything is fine when you are with Buffy, no matter what is going
on with Spike. Do you think you can do that? Is it even something you
want to consider doing?"

"I would do anything for them," he said in a voice that was husky
with emotion. He looked at her for a long moment. "Let's do it," he
said finally. "What do I have to do?"

"Just sit there and close your eyes," Willow said in a low voice.
Angel did as he was told, sitting perfectly still with his eyes
squeezed shut. Willow placed both of her hands on either side of his
face and closed her eyes as well. In a whispered voice, she began to
recite an incantation over and over. The place where her hands met
his face began to glow faintly, casting a pale green light all around
them. Angel felt a surge of magic flow from Willow's body into his,
and suddenly he began to feel very intense pain course through his
body. He felt as if he was literally being torn in two, and the pain
was worse than any he had ever experienced before, even worse than
when he had lost his soul. The pain became more and more intense with
every passing second, and just when Angel thought that he could take
no more, the pain left him and he slumped limply in his chair. He
must have lost consciousness for a moment because the next thing that
he remembered was being shaken awake by Willow. He opened his eyes
and her face swam before him, his vision refusing to focus. He closed
his eyes again and shook his head to clear it, then opened them again.

"Angel, are you okay?" Willow asked in concern.

"Yeah, I'm fine," he said weakly. "Did it work?"

"See for yourself," she said, offering him a hand to help him to his
feet. He stood up and turned to look at what she was pointing at. He
was shocked to see himself still slumped in one of the chairs.
Willow walked over and shook the other Angel awake and helped him up
as well. The two Angels stared at one another in confusion for a
moment. "It's going to be okay," Willow reassured Angel. "When I
split you, it caused some disorientation. Just close your eyes and
take a few deep breaths. Your two halves need to get back in sync
with one another." Angel closed his eyes and took a deep breath,
letting himself relax as much as possible. After a moment, he began
to feel better as he realized both halves of him felt the same way.
Even though he had been split, he retained one consciousness.

"I think I'm okay now," he said, smiling slightly.

"Good," Willow said with relief. "Now, one of you go find out how
Spike is doing. The other half of you can come with me to see Buffy."
She paused for a moment, thinking about how bizarre her words
sounded, even to her own ears. "Man, this is too weird," she said,
giving the identical Angels a smile. Both smiled back at her and
nodded in understanding.

"I'll go check on Spike," one half of Angel said, turning to walk
down the hall to the left.

"And I'll go with you, Willow," the other said. He gave his other
half a little wave and followed Willow down the hall to the right.

Part 10

Angel and Willow rode the elevator up to the second floor and walked
silently towards the delivery room. Their casual pace turned into a
jog down the hallway, however, when they both heard Buffy screaming
in pain. Angel grabbed a hold of one of the nurses that he saw come
out of Buffy's room. "Is she okay?" he asked in concern.

The nurse smiled at him reassuringly. "She's fine, just fine. She's
going to be having that baby really soon," she told him. "She's just
in the normal amount of pain that comes along with giving birth."

"She's going to have the baby soon? But the doctors told her that it
was going to be a long while yet," Angel said, his brow furrowed in
confusion.

"Well, when she first got here, it looked that way, but the
contractions are coming closer together now. She is dilated
considerably more than she was when she first arrived as well. Trust
me, sir, it won't be long now," the nurse said, giving him a
comforting pat on the hand before scurrying off.

"Oh my gosh," Willow breathed. "Buffy is about to become a mother! I
just can't believe it. It seems like just yesterday we were
patrolling together, staking vamps and complaining about Algebra
tests, and now she is going to have a baby!"

"Calm down, Willow," Angel said with a smile. "Let's get washed up
and get into some scrubs before she has that baby!"

Willow and Angel washed up and put on their scrubs quickly, marching
into the delivery room to find a very frazzled looking Giles. "Oh,
thank heavens you are here," he said in relief. "I didn't want to
leave her here all alone, but I know nothing about babies or pregnant
women. I swear, at first I thought she must surely be possessed or
something. She nearly crushed poor Xander's hand during one of the
contractions. Well, if you'll excuse me, I'm off to go give blood
now," he said, hurrying out the door before anyone else could utter a
word.

"Hey there, luv," Angel said, stepping closer to the bed and taking
Buffy's hand in his. "I hear that the baby has decided to speed
things up a bit."

"What can I say?" she said, smiling weakly. "This baby is just as
impatient as his father." Her expression grew somber, and Angel knew
what she was going to ask before she even spoke. The question shone
in her eyes. "Is Spike...how is he?"

"He's out of surgery and in recovery," he told her honestly, trying
to keep his voice neutral. "I'm sure he'll be fine, Buffy. He has too
much to live for."

She tried to smile bravely, but her bottom lip quivered slightly. "I
hope so," she said quietly.

The other half of Angel finally found his way to the recovery area
where be knew Spike was being kept, though it took him a good half
hour of just wandering around. During that time, he became aware that
Buffy was going to have the baby sooner than they had first thought.
He was glad that Willow had performed her spell because he would have
hated to not be there for the birth. He walked up to the nurses'
station, clearing his throat anxiously to get the nurse's attention.

"Can I help you?" she asked in a professional tone.

"Um, I have a friend here who got out of surgery about half an hour
ago. His name is Spike, and he was a victim of a stabbing. I was
wondering if you could give me an update on his condition and if I
might be able to see him?" Angel said.

"Hmm, let me see," the nurse said, shuffling a few papers around on
the desk. "Oh, yes, I know who you are talking about. He is in
Recovery Room One. I'm afraid that even though he has stabilized for
now, he is still in critical condition," she informed him. She
glanced at one of the papers and then down at her watch. "He has been
out of surgery for about forty-five minutes. In another fifteen
minutes, he is going to be moved to the Critical Care Unit. He should
be in and out of consciousness right now. We really aren't supposed
to do this, but I suppose that I could let you see him. Only for a
few minutes, though," she said sternly.

"I would really appreciate it," Angel said, giving her one of his
half smiles.

"Please follow me then," she said, walking around the desk. She
stopped at a door with a big number one painted on the outside,
looking around to make sure that no one was looking. When she was
satisfied that the coast was clear, she opened the door quietly and
stepped aside to let Angel pass through. "Remember, only for a few
minutes, and if anyone catches you in here, I don't know how you
managed to slip past me," she whispered.

Angel nodded his head. "I understand," he told her in a low
voice. "Thank you." She gave him a small smile and then headed back
over to the nurses' station, giving Angel some privacy.

Angel walked into the room quietly, not wanting to disturb Spike. He
felt his heart drop down to his feet when he saw how pale and weak
Spike looked in the hospital bed. There were tubes and wires
connected to him everywhere, and in the corner, a small monitor
beeped steadily, monitoring his heartbeat. Angel walked over to the
bed and sat down on the edge, taking care not to disrupt or disturb
any of the tubes and wires that were connected to his lover. He
reached out and gently stroked Spike's hair, fighting back the tears
that threatened to fall as Angel was reminded how near Death's door
Spike really was. Spike's eyelids fluttered open when he felt Angel's
touch and he struggled to sit up, falling back against the pillows in
pain. "Shh, love, don't try to move," Angel whispered to him
gently. "Just lay back and try to relax. I'm here with you now."

"B-buffy," Spike whispered hoarsely from between dry, cracked
lips. "Is she alright? Is the baby okay?"

"They are both fine," Angel assured him. "What you did was very
brave, and it saved her and the baby. In fact, she's in labor right
now. She's a little premature, but the doctor said she would be fine."

"Is she mad at me?" Spike rasped.

"Mad at you? Why on earth would she be mad at you?" Angel asked in
confusion.

"Figured that she would say I was stupid for what I did," Spike
whispered.

"She is *not* mad at you, Will," Angel told him firmly. "If anything,
I think she is mad at herself for putting you in a situation like
that."

"She shouldn't blame herself," he managed to get out. "I'd gladly die
for her and our child any day." Spike closed his eyes briefly, and
for a moment Angel thought that he had drifted off to sleep again,
but with great effort Spike managed to open them again. "Am I dying?"
he asked weakly, tears shining in his clear blue eyes.

"Of course not," Angel said, trying to sound sure of himself. "The
doctor said that you are going to be just fine."

"You are a terrible liar, Peaches," Spike said with a small smile. "I
know I'm dying. I can feel it. I want you to promise me something,
Angel," he said seriously. "I want you to promise me that you will be
there for Buffy and the baby. Promise me that you will be a father to
my child, the father I won't get the chance to be," he choked out
through his tears.

"Will, please don't talk like that," Angel begged him. '"You are
going to be that baby's father. You are going to be the best dad in
the world. You are going to get through this, and you are going to be
there to watch your son grow up into a man. I won't let you leave me,
Will. I need you. Buffy needs you. Your *son* needs you."

"Promise me, Angel," Spike whispered stubbornly.

"I promise you, Will," Angel said solemnly. He watched as relief
flooded Spike's face and his eyelids began to droop. Before he
drifted off to sleep, Angel whispered to him, "I love you, William."

"Love you, too, pet," Spike murmured before closing his eyes once
more.

"Ahhhhhhhhhh!" Buffy wailed in pain, clutching Angel's hand tightly
in hers. "Get this thing out of meeeeee!" The contractions were only
a seconds apart now, and the drugs that they had given her didn't
seem to be helping much at all. "Angel," she cried, tears streaming
down her face freely. "Please make it stop. It hurts so much, I don't
think I can take it anymore."

Angel pushed her back so that she was resting on the pillows and
smoothed her damp hair back from her face. "Shhh, love, I know it
hurts, but it is almost over," he told her gently.

"Don't you tell me that you know it hurts! You don't have any idea
how excruciating the pain is," Buffy snapped at him. "You don't know
what pain is. Get away from me!"

Angel looked up at Willow helplessly, unsure of what to do. Buffy had
become so disagreeable that Xander and Giles had vacated the room as
soon as they possibly could, using the excuse that they were going to
give blood. Willow and Angel had been the only ones brave enough to
stay and bear the wrath of Buffy. Willow nodded her head slightly at
Angel and he back away from the bed. Willow took his place, patting
Buffy's hand sympathetically. "Are you okay, Buffy?" Willow asked
softly.

"Oh, Wills, it hurts so bad," Buffy sobbed, burying her face in
Willow's stomach. "Men are evil! Evil!"

"It's gonna be okay, Buffy," Willow said in a soothing tone. "Here,
have some of these ice chips, okay? They will make you feel a little
bit better. And don't forget to breathe through the pain. Deep
breaths in and out. You can do this, sweetie. You are the Slayer."

"I'm so glad that you are here, Wills," Buffy said, sniffling. "I
don't know what I would do without you."

"I'm not leaving your side, Buffy," the redhead promised her
friend. "We are going to get through this together." She glanced over
at Angel's worried face. "Angel, can you go get a nurse? I want to
ask them if they can give Buffy anything else for the pain. The shot
they gave her earlier just isn't doing the job."

"Sure," Angel said, hurrying out the door to find a nurse. He came
back a few minutes later with a nurse in tow.

"Can you give her anything else for the pain?" Willow asked the
nurse. "She is really hurting and the contractions are so close
together that it almost seems like one big, long contraction."

"Let me check her," the nurse said, walking down to the foot of
Buffy's bed. "I need to see how much she is dilated." The nurse
peeked discreetly under the blanket that covered Buffy from the waist
down. "Oh my goodness, she is ready to go," the nurse said
anxiously. "I'll be right back. I have to go page the doctor." She
rushed out of the room, and a few seconds later they heard Buffy's
doctor being paged over the intercom.

"This is it, Buffy," Willow said excitedly. "It's time to deliver
this baby. I'll be that when the doctor tells you to push, with your
Slayer strength that baby will come right out." The two girls giggled
at the thought.

About that time, the doctor came rushing into the room with two
nurses hot on his heels. He repeated the nurse's previous actions,
peeking under Buffy's blanket. "Gee, I feel like I should be selling
tickets or something," Buffy said dryly. "It doesn't seem right for
everyone to be getting a look for free."

"It's good to see that you have managed to keep your sense of humor,
Miss Summers," the doctor said with a smile. "You are going to need
it now because it's time for you to have this baby. Now, I want you
to push for me, okay?"

Buffy nodded her head, throwing her head back against her pillow as
she pushed with all of her might.

"Okay, Miss Summers, you are doing great. You are crowning," the
doctor informed her.

"Is that a good thing?" Buffy panted.

"Yes, it is a very good thing," the doctor told her with a smile. "It
means that-"

"I can see the baby's head!" Willow blurted in excitement.

"Exactly," the doctor said. "I need you to push again, Miss Summers."

"I can't," she cried, her face bright red from exertion. "I'm too
tired. I can't do it."

"Yes, you can," Willow said, holding her hand tightly. "You can do
this, Buffy, but you have to push now. It's gonna be worth all of the
pain when you get to hold your brand new little boy in your arms for
the first time."

"Come on, love, push for me," Angel said, squeezing her other hand
lightly. "Your son is ready to make his appearance."

Buffy nodded her head, her eyes shining with tears as she thought
about her precious little boy that had been growing inside of her for
the past eight and a half months. "Okay," she said, taking a deep
breath. "Just one more push." She squeezed her eyes shut as she
pushed, her faced contorting in pain.

"Here he comes!" Willow said in excitement. "Oh wow, Buffy, I can see
him. He's beautiful!"

A small cry pierced the air as the baby took its first
breath. "Congratulations, Miss Summers. You have a beautiful baby
boy," the doctor said.

At that same moment, Spike's heart stopped beating, the machine that
had been monitoring him showing a flat line. Angel felt his heart
clench in his chest. "I have to go," he said quickly, sending an
apologetic glance in Buffy's direction. "He's beautiful, Buffy, and
I'm sorry that I have to rush out, but I have something that I need
to take care of," he said quickly, pushing out the door and heading
towards the stair well, not wanting to waste any time waiting for the
elevator. He had to get to Spike *now*.

Buffy watched Angel rush out of the room in shock. What on earth was
wrong with him? She soon found her attention focused elsewhere,
however, as the doctor handed her the baby, all bundled up in a soft
blue blanket. She looked down at the tiny little baby laying in her
arms. "He's perfect," she breathed, looking down at her child in
adoration. The baby stared back at her with his father's clear blue
eyes.

"He really *is* perfect," the doctor told her. "Ten fingers, ten
toes, and best of all, perfectly healthy. Even though he was a bit
premature, he's absolutely fine."

"What are you going to name him, Buffy?" Willow asked, sitting down
on the edge of the bed and looking down at the baby.

Buffy looked at her little one carefully, watching in fascination as
he wrapped his tiny little fingers around her much larger index
finger. He was absolutely precious, with his father's blue eyes and a
shock of hair that was so blonde it was nearly white. "There is only
one name that is suitable for this little boy," she said firmly. "I'm
going to name him William, after his father."

"William," Willow repeated, smiling broadly. "I like it."