In Love: part 5:The Hospital
by Creana
Angel hated to call on Spike for help, but it was pouring rain outside, and they needed a car. Calling an ambulance would be a good idea except this mansion was supposed to be abandoned. They would definitely ask too many questions. Picking up his almost brand new phone Angel dialed the number for Willy’s, a bar that he knew Spike would be at. Now that he was “fixed” Spike couldn’t get his own blood and Willy’s was local. He waited impatiently while Willy went to fetch Spike. He glanced at Buffy who was now barely conscious on his bed.
“Hello?” Spike asked with his English accent.
Angel wasted no time. “ Spike, I need you to get over here in your car now.”
“Angel, is that you? What the hell are you calling me for?” Spike asked with his characteristic attitude. Angel did not have time for this.
“Buffy is hurt real bad. I need to get her to a hospital.” He explained hoping he had his attention. It took Spike a second to reply, but when he did Angel was relieved.
“ Alright, I’ll be there in five.”

Xander pulled on some jeans and glanced at Anya , who was already dressed and ready to go. For ounce they were both silent and grim.
Buffy, in the hospital? Xander thought getting in the car. He couldn’t imagine Buffy going back in a hospital after what happened the last time that she was in one. She must be really sick, he realized speeding up.
“I’m sure she’s fine. Everything’s going to be alright.” Anya said comfortingly. She grasped his hand.
Xander could only nod and drive, all of the horrible possibilities running through his head. Maybe she got attacked, maybe she got bitten, Xander thought speeding up. He hadn’t known what t think when Willow had called at three forty five in the morning, saying that Angel was taking Buffy to the hospital. At first she hadn’t believed her thinking it was a sick joke, but his common sense knew that Willow of all people wouldn’t joke about something like that.
“Xander slow down, or we’re going to be in the hospital.” Anya said squeezing Xander’s wrist.
“I’ve got to get to the hospital.” Xander replied clearly upset. He didn’t care about anything accept getting to Buffy, and Willow.

“Come on, baby. I’ve got to get you downstairs.” Angel lifted Buffy off the bed gently. Spike’s car had just pulled up outside and he was on his way upstairs. At that moment he could hear him knocking on the door. “ Come in.” He called.
“Angel, bloody hell, are you ever going to redecorate. I’m sure this place hasn’t changed in the last hundred years.” Spike said walking in and looking around in mock scorn.
“ I don’t have time for this.” Angel called from his bedroom. He adjusted Buffy’s weight in his arms and headed for the front room. With every second his fear increased. He could feel Buffy shaking and sweat rolling off her face.
“ What happened?” Spike asked hurrying to his side when he saw the immobile Buffy in his arms.
Angel was surprised to see concern and fear on Spike’s face. Even though he knew that he and Buffy had “been” something, he had never really taken Spike’s “love” for her seriously. “We need to get her to the hospital now. I don’t know what’s wrong with her and that scares me.”
Without a word Spike opened the door for Angel and helped him get Buffy down the stairs and out to his beat up car. They climbed both climbed in to the front seat with Buffy in the middle, propped against them. They were both very aware of her body against theirs. They could feel her body temperature sky high and the trembling of her legs.
“ Is she…” Spike asked unable to finish his sentence. All the cockiness and attitude had drained out of him.
Seeing his disposition Angel decided to be blunt and honest with him. “ Dying?” He asked completing Spike’s sentence for him. Spike nodded wordlessly. “ I don’t know.”
“ Angel?” Buffy’s milky eyes fluttered open and she gasped his hand tightly. “ It hurts so badly, make it go away.”
“She’s awake.” Spike said stating the obvious. Angel held Buffy up.
“Spike, is that you?” Buffy asked looking around desperately. Spike took her other hand and slowed the car down.
“ I need to tell the both of you something”, she said grimacing and breathing heavily. “ I love you both, so much. More then I’ve ever loved before. I want you guys to be friends in the future. Please with or without me.”
Spike’s face went even paler, and Angel’s eyes filled with tears. They exchanged stricken looks. “Buffy don’t talk like that, you’re going to be fine.” Angel said almost pleading, but Buffy was unconscious again. “ Drive.” Angel commanded. Spike sped up.
They drove in silence for a few minutes before Angel spoke. “ In a normal circumstance I would not ever even think of asking you this, but this is not normal. Do you love her?” He asked awkwardly.
Spike swerved a little. “ In a normal circumstance I would have ignored that question, but again with the not so normal. Let me break it down for you, buddy. Ounce upon a time I hated the slayer more then anyone else in the world. I lived to kill her. Then I went and got myself into a sticky situation, and guess who saved me? The slayer. From their I was like a broken puppy, beyond hopeless. I got to know Buffy and suddenly I was no longer William the Bloody, or even Spike the bloodsucking vampire. I was Spike the vampire without a soul who was in love with the slayer and playing for the good side. It wasn’t until she left me for you that I actually realized I was in love with her. So to answer your question, yes I love Buffy, it’s you I’m not crazy about mate.”
Angel gave him a look of disbelief. “ You mean to say that you weren’t using her? You really were in love with her?”
“ Don’t look so shocked Angel. All of the men in her life had left her high and dry, and I provided comfort. I’ve never felt that way about anybody until her. Then just when I’m bloody happy Angel her prince of darkness comes marching back into town and history repeats itself. Did you have fun in hell, again? You know I had thought that maybe you guys had learned a lesson the last time that you tried to play house.” Spike replied letting his anger get the best of him.
Angel’s jaw clenched. Spike’s words were to right, too close to home. “ I know I’ve made mistakes, but Buffy doesn’t want it this way between us.”
Spike sneered at Angel. “Well bloody hell Angel what are we supposed to hug and apologize? After everything we’ve said and done to each other? You ruined the only good thing I’ve ever had going for me. I’ve never been able to compare to ‘Angel’. I stopped wanting to a long time ago.”
Both were relieved to see the hospital drawing nearer. There was so much each of them wanted to say, but knew the damage was already done, and nothing could ever fix it.

Willow stood outside in the ever-increasing rain and pounded on Giles’s door. The raindrops ran down her face mixing with her tears. She heard a crash from inside and Giles’s groan before he answered the door.
“Willow what are you doing…” He fell silent when he saw her face. “ Come in.” He took her hand and gently brought her inside where she stood dripping while he ran and got her a towel. She shivered and bit her lip, as she tried to regain control of herself and stop crying. Without the disguise of raindrops it was too noticeable.
“ What’s wrong?” Giles asked wrapping her in a soft t towel. Concern was written all over his face.
“ Buffy, she’s in the hospital,” was all Willow could manage without sobbing. She tried to tell herself to get a grip but couldn’t.
“ What? How?” Giles asked alarmed. He looked down at the ruffled redhead and refrained from being alarmed. “ Start from the beginning.” He said gently.
Willow shook her head to clear her thoughts. “ No time. We have to get to the hospital.” She said standing. Giles followed suit without asking questions.
Soon they were driving through the pouring rain in Giles’s beat up car. Willow flipped on the heater and began to tell him about the events that had up to that moment. “ Buffy has been acting a little weird lately, but all of us have put it off as boy trouble, or to much work. Tonight her mom called me and told me about these other problems Buffy’s been having. Loss of appetite, lack of sleep, excessive headaches, and too many to be normal nosebleeds,” Willow counted them on her fingers. “ She also told me that Buffy had disappeared through her window around three o’clock. So I flipped and began calling around. I got a hold of Oz, who said he had gone to talk to her earlier this evening. He wouldn’t tell me what they had talked about, saying that it was kind of private.”
Giles raised his eyebrows questioningly. Just before he could ask a question Willow shot him a glare. “ Don’t interrupt,” she said before continuing. “ Anyways, after I got off the phone Angel called.”
Giles turned to look at her. “ Angel? I thought he wasn’t in town anymore.” He looked at Willow suspiciously.
Willow gave him a sheepish look. “ I saw about two months ago. He asked me not to tell anyone.”
“ Willow do you know what position that puts us in? Angel told me after their last “little” problems that he was leaving, for Buffy and for our mission here. If Buffy had found out that he hadn’t left she would have been thrown off game, and that could have cost us much more.” Giles said clearly angry.
Willow almost hung her head but suddenly something snapped inside of her. Maybe it was the stress, or the lack of sleep, but whatever it was it felt good to let loose. “ I love Angel like a brother. I couldn’t tell Angel to leave his home and the women he loves. He staid to help us the only way he could. Can you really blame him? He’s fighting the same war we are, Giles. We should thank him. We don’t know how many times he’s saved our butts.”
Giles looked at her, surprised by her passion. “ We’ll talk about this later. Right now we have to worry about Buffy.” He squeezed her hand comfortingly. It was odd how she made him feel so guilty. They were both thrilled to see the hospital, not so thrilled when they realized the weather had gone from bad to worse.
“Time to face the music, and the storm.” Willow said setting her jaw.
Giles nodded and gave her hand one last pat. “ Shall we?” He said following Willow’s example and jumping out of the car. On the other side Willow was hit with an icy cold blast of wind. Within seconds she was drenched to the bone.
I wish I was in front of a blazing fireplace, wrapped in a fuzzy blanket, Willow thought miserably as they ran across the street and into the crowded emergency room.

Angel and Spike stood side by side and watched the doctors’ wheel Buffy through the swinging doorway. The last thing they saw of Buffy was her golden hair fanned out on the harsh, white pillows.
She looks so small, so hopeless, Angel thought feeling his heart convulse painfully. Spike glanced at him with the same pain in his eyes.
“ Look. Willow.” Spike said beckoning across the room. Angel followed his hand and saw some of the gang standing at the entrance of the ER. Angel saw Willow wrapped in a hug with Xander. Anya stood off to the side awkwardly. Giles was wiping his glasses with a tissue behind them. Angel was surprised at the eagerness he felt. He missed being around them. He missed Willow’s quirky, odd ways. He had missed Giles quiet wisdom, and even Anya’s problem with men that weren’t Xander.
“Oh no. Please say your not feeling the same way I am.” Spike whispered, staring across the room at the warm group too.
Angel looked at him quizzically then nodded. “ Never thought I would see the day when Spike had warm and fuzzy feelings about a group of people he claimed to hate. Could it be that maybe Spike’s more human then we all guessed?”
Spike shot him a feigned look of anger. “Be careful Angel, I might lick you to death.” He said, surprised at how well he and Angel were getting along. Angel seemed to notice and abruptly started over to the Scooby gang. Spike growled and followed him.
“ Angel” Willow said surprised. She threw caution to the wind and wrapped him in a tight hug. Angel, pleased, returned it warmly. He didn’t even mind that she was soaked to the bone and shivering.
Willow’s eyes widened when she saw Spike standing behind them. “ Spike.” She pulled gently away from Angel and took a step toward him and before he could protest she grabbed him in a hug. Angel watched with mixed feelings before turning to the rest of them. Giles gave him a mild nod.
“You’re here.” Xander said simply. Anya stood at his side and gave Angel a welcoming smile.
“Why are you so surprised?” Angel asked Xander. Willow was still hugging Spike, who was now returning her hug gently.
Xander and Giles exchanged glances before Giles spoke. “ You weren’t supposed to be here. We both know why and I thought you understood.”
Angel’s face darkened. “ I wanted to help, and whether you like it or not I care about Buffy. I can’t just walk away again. I’ve already done that and it cost us both a lot.”
Willow spun away from Spike to face both of them. The pained expression on her face stopped everyone in their tracks. “ I don’t understand how you two can stand their arguing at a time like this. I just don’t get it. For all we know Buffy could be dying and you two are fighting over something so trivial. How about we all act like the civil grownups we are and not like five year olds on a park playground.” She glared at them.
“Wonderful analogy.” Spike piped up breaking the awkward silence. Willow flashed him a grateful smile, that was a little to somber.
She looks older then I’ve ever seen her. It’s like the weight of the world is on her shoulders, Angel thought studying Willow closely. He had always shared a special connection with the young witch. He respected the powerful magic she contained, and loved the person in her. She was kind, soft spoken, and helpful, but their was power there too. He had no doubt that someday she would be in charge. He knew he could count on her in a crisis.
“You’re absolutely right, Willow. Our focus needs to be on Buffy for now. Maybe we should start at the beginning.” Giles said all business. He looked at Angel and Spike, who realized that it was their turn to talk.
Angel swallowed hard, knowing that he would have to quickly organize his thoughts. “Um, this isn’t all of us, is it?” He asked stalling. He wasn’t sure why, but he wasn’t ready to recall the events. They were almost too painful.
At his words Willow’s eyes widened. “ Oz and Buffy’s mom!” She said realizing she had forgotten all about them.
“ You should go call them, and I’ll go get coffee for everyone. I can tell it’s going to be a long night.” Xander said helpfully.
Willow nodded then started off but turned around. “ The suns going to be up soon. Are you two going to go?” She asked Spike and Angel.
They both shook their heads., wordlessly. At least, Angel thought, we can stay. That’s what’s the best about the hospital, no windows, and a tunnel access in the basement.
Everyone watched Willow hurry to a nearby phone booth. Silence descended on the small group left, as everyone turned to his or her own thoughts and worries.
My god, Willow is what’s keeping us moving. She and Buffy are the glue in this group. Spike thought, amazed. “ Well, aren’t we a fun little group.” He said out loud.
“Right now isn’t the time for sarcasm.” Angel growled as he sat down in one of the uncomfortable hard-backed chairs against the wall. For a second time nobody spoke. It was definitely going to be a long night.


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