Chapter 93: Schmalentine's Day

One Month Later. BPOV

I love the mornings when I wake up before the alarm goes off. I used to love sleeping in and when I was a teenager, on the weekends I was never out of bed before ten if I could help it. But I'm not a teenager anymore, and this time of the morning is a time I cherish. It's the precious minutes when I'm still just Buffy. I'm not Mom or Mommy and no one is asking me to do something for them or complaining about something their sibling did or whining that they're hungry even though they can see I'm cooking breakfast. Nope, right now I'm just Buffy snuggled up against my wife Faith and watching the adorable expression on her face while she sleeps.

If I had to guess I'd say she's having a dream where she's up to no good. I wonder if she's getting up to no good with me. Maybe I shouldn't start thinking about it or I'll just upset myself at the thought of who else she could be getting up to no good with. Anyway, even though she looks like the dictionary definition of adorable and it's making me smile from the inside out, I really want to wake her up so we can share this time together. But I'm going to let her sleep in this morning. Today isn't just another day, after all. Today is Valentine's Day, and normally on Valentine's Day Faith wakes up early and makes me breakfast in bed, but this year I want to do something different. I want to do something different because we're in a Valentine's Day rut.

The last couple of years we've done the exact same thing. She makes me breakfast in bed and we share it, usually with the kids, we go out to dinner, exchange gifts, come home around eleven, then I wear some sexy new lingerie, and go down on her until she comes four or five times. Then we make love with the strapless toy. Any other Valentine's Day and what I just described would be perfect, but this year I want to do something special. You may be asking why. I want to do something special because this is our twentieth Valentine's Day together. Yep, this year Faith and I will have been together for twenty years. Sure, we've only been married for the last eight, but you have to look at the big picture, and the big picture is we've been together for two decades.

So you can see that this year is special. So I want the holidays to be a little more special than they normally are. I don't know exactly how to do that since we've always made sure to go out of our way to make things great, but I want to at least try. So this year instead of doing the same routine for Valentine's Day, I want to surprise Faith. Surprising her isn't easy because she's one of the smartest people I know, and she's really good at guessing. She ruins Christmas for herself almost every year because all she has to do is pick up a present and she knows what it is. I have no idea how she does it, she's just amazing at guessing. But I really hope today I'll be able to keep her on her toes. And why am I worrying about all of this when I should be focused on how exactly I'm going to wake this beautiful woman up?

"Faith," I say and run my hand along the smooth skin of her stomach. I know I said I was going to let her sleep in but I changed my mind. I really want to do something else with her that requires her participation. She lets out a little groan and tries to roll away from me but I have a pretty firm grip on her body. "Faith, baby, it's time to get up." I start placing soft kisses along her neck and this time when she groans she doesn't try to move away from me. Nope, this time her legs spread just a little more and I can't help but smirk. I'd really love to be down there right now pleasuring her, but she hates it when I do that when she's still asleep. You'd think it would be an amazing way to wake up but she doesn't like the thought of me doing that while she's still dreaming and accidentally saying the wrong name. That's happened before and it didn't end well at all.

"Faith, it's Valentine's Day. I have something special I wanna give you," I whisper right against her ear. I know this was meant to wake her up and turn her on at the same time, but I'm getting really worked up just doing this. And I'm not talking about a little worked up, no. I mean my nipples are rock hard, and my clit feels like it's going to burst soon from the pressure if I don't get some release. I want this to be about her so I need to focus. I think living with Faith all of these years has rubbed off on me and not in a good way. Anyway, I run my hand a little further up her shirt, lightly groping her breasts. I kiss her neck more, softly nibbling on the skin, and I grind against her. Damn, she needs to wake up soon because I can't stand this. "Faith, sweetie, wake up."

"B, the boat's rockin hard," she mumbles and I can't help but smile. See what I mean about her talking during a dream? It's adorable but I really need her to wake up so I can give her some special attention. I'm not saying that oral sex is reserved for a special occasion. No, we don't have a stereotypical marriage where giving head goes out the window the moment you say 'I do'. But since we've had kids, morning sex has almost all but disappeared and I really want to give her a really good morning. I whisper softly in her ear, telling her the boat is fine, and it's time to wake up. I pull back and look at her face and I can just tell that she isn't really asleep. What a freaking faker. "We can't let the captain find us or we'll have to walk the plank." I stifle a giggle and move some loose strands of hair out of her face.

"Why can't we let the captain find us?" I whisper and the smirk she gets on her face is so naughty if I wasn't turned on before I would be right now. I think it's a little insane that after twenty years of being together we're still so attracted to each other. Maybe because deep down I never really thought we would last this long. We've had a few rough patches in our relationship and almost every time I thought that was it. I thought I was going to end up like my mother: a single, lonely mom. But we're still together and we love each other and she still gets me really hot under the collar. But I shouldn't be thinking about any of that right now. Right now I should be focused on whatever little fantasy she has running around that beautifully filthy brain of hers.

"Because you're the captain's wife and he'd kill us if he found out you had a lover on the side," she says with a big smirk on her face. Hmm, I've never heard this particular fantasy before so it's either new or she was saving it. Is it strange that most of our role playing fantasies revolve around adultery? I'm always married to someone rich or powerful or both and she's my secret lover. I think I'm going to not analyze it at all or I might find something out about myself that I don't really want to know. I lean down and place a soft kiss on her lips and she doesn't hesitate when she kisses me back. Sometimes she does because she likes to tease.

"Well, then I guess we have to be very, very quiet," I whisper against her lips and kiss her again. I know I've said it a million times before, but it needs to be said again. I love kissing Faith. It's probably one of my favorite things to do. Yeah, we have morning breath and her mouth is kinda dry so her tongue is a little sticky and truth be told it feels kinda gross, but it never fails to get my heart rate up. She kisses me and the whole world just fades away. When I was with Angel and Riley, I thought I knew what love was but I was so wrong. Being held tightly and kissed like I'm the most important person in the world, this is love. I know I sound like some cheesy Valentine's Day card, but 'tis the season and all of that.

"Come here, wench," she says and pulls me on top of her before I have a chance to react. I start laughing but try to keep it quiet. She helps me by covering my lips with her own. I feel her hands work their way under my shirt and she caresses the skin of my back. It makes me moan into her and I smile into the kiss when I feel her pulling my shirt up. She isn't wasting any time. I guess I did turn her on when I was "waking her up". I still can't believe she did that. What a brat. "Damn, you feel so good, B." She cups my breasts and teases my already rock hard nipples. She knows exactly where and when to touch me. That's another perk from being together so long. It makes having a quickie so much easier.

"Baby, get your shorts off," I say and try to get her bed shorts off of her but she's being a tease again. She isn't lifting herself off the bed a little so I can slide the cotton blend off her body. No, instead she's moving her hips this way and that to try and get my hands off her. And she has a smirk on her face the entire time. What a freakin brat. Instead of getting irritated, I decide to play along. God knows why she's acting like this, but if she wants to be coy then I can work with that. Another perk of living with someone for so long: you learn exactly how to manipulate them to do exactly what you want. So I put my lips right against the shell of her ear and whisper, "We have to be quick, lover, or the captain might find us." I nibble on her earlobe and she lets out a long moan. Her ears have always been sensitive.

"What's life without a little danger?" she asks and maybe I was wrong. I thought acting all sexy and whispering to her like that would do the trick, it has before in the past, but she's being difficult. Alright, I guess it's time to stop fucking around. I gently nibble on her neck, down the side of it and to the hollow of her throat. I open my mouth wide and put my teeth over her very tender neck and bite down. Not very hard, not hard enough to draw blood or make it difficult to breathe, but she knows what I mean. "I guess there's enough danger right here." Wise move, Faith, very wise move. This time when I try to pull off her bed shorts she doesn't hesitate before she lifts her ass off the mattress and I very quickly slide them down her legs. Now nothing can stop me from giving her an amazing Valentine's Day morning.

"Mom, Brother ate all the cereal and we're gonna be late for school!" Addison yells and starts knocking on the door. "Could you make pancakes?" Holy mother of God! Why won't the universe, just for once, let us have morning sex without the kids interrupting in some way? I let out a loud, irritated groan and rest all of my weight against Faith. I bury my face in her neck and she wraps her arms around my back and gently rubs my tense muscles. I know she's trying to be sweet and help me calm down but it's actually kind of annoying. I'm not annoyed with her, but the rubbing is doing nothing but putting me more on edge. I'm so turned on I'm about to explode, and not in a good way, and the touching isn't helping. This is supposed to be our morning, dammit! I guess that's what happens when you have kids.

"Why are you so mad? You're the one who wanted kids," she says and I know she's just kidding but at this moment it's not really all that funny. But I can't get too upset about it. I mean, we brought them into the world, to be irritated when they interrupt our moments would just be stupid. They don't know what we're doing behind that door, thank God, so why wouldn't they knock and ask for food? And I think I'm going to teach the kids how to cook. I mean, I know they won't be able to make anything elaborate, but they're old enough to make their own breakfast. Teaching them some basics would definitely help, especially since Faith likes to get out of the house as fast as she can in the morning and leave me to get the kids ready for school by myself. Trust me, that is not an easy thing to do.

"No, that was you. If I remember correctly, I wanted a Chia Pet," I say and she lets out a little laugh. I place a few more kisses on her neck, and lean back just enough so I can look into her beautiful eyes. Just because we can't have a morning quickie doesn't mean I can't spoil her rotten in other ways. "You stay in bed, ok? I'll get the kids ready for school and make you breakfast in bed." She tries to say something, probably a protest because she hates just lying around while I do all of the work, but I kiss her before she can speak. "I mean it, baby. Let me do this for you, ok?" She nods and I give her another quick kiss before getting out of bed. Today is going to be amazing, if we can go without being interrupted every time we try to be intimate. God, I hope I didn't just jinx us.

DPOV

Don't you just hate the days when it's only noon and you've been so busy and so rushed you feel like you've been up for three days and you still have a million things to do? I don't. I love those days. I know it sounds a little weird, but it reminds me of Sunnydale whenever a big bad would try to take over the hellmouth. Everyone would be scrambling, trying to find the answer as to why they're trying to take over, how to stop them, and what might happen if they didn't and the big bad won. Only I'm not living on a hellmouth anymore, and the closest I've come to fighting a big bad in years is trying to impress the editor of one of the country's biggest fashion magazines, and believe me when I say she makes Meryl Streep's performance in The Devil Wears Prada look warm and fuzzy.

I can't complain at all about that, though. Because of that article my work is now selling out, and we're no longer just a local brand. Nope, we've gone national, which means longer hours, shorter deadlines, and about twice as much Advil consumption. But I wouldn't give this up for the world. It's what I love to do, it's my passion, and I'm really freaking good at it, if I do say so myself. I don't want to brag, but I am the youngest designer to ever be featured in that magazine, and because of the increase in business I'm thinking about buying a vacation home in Southern California. I'm thinking a house somewhere by the coast so my boys can be near the ocean whenever we stay there. It's sad that I got to grow up near a beach but they don't.

Anyway, but today I seem to be off my game. Normally I would already have these new sketches approved or denied by now, but I just can't make up my mind. I've narrowed it down to two choices, but something seems a little off about both of them. All of these seem a little off. I think it's because I didn't get much sleep last night. Alex has a really bad cold, and he slept in my bed with me. I think he might have a little bit of slayer blood in him because he can kick harder than any little kid I've ever seen. So Alex kept me up all night kicking, but I don't think I would have slept much even if he hadn't been. My boyfriend, Eric, slept at his place last night, and I never sleep well when he's away. He never fully explained why he wanted to sleep at his place. He just said he would see me today around lunch time so he should be here any minute.

"Miss Summers, there's a man here who wants to speak with you. He won't give me his name and you don't have any appointments this afternoon," my assistance's voice says over the intercom. That would be him now. She's new so she doesn't know who Eric is yet. My first assistant quit a long time ago because she finally got her teaching degree. She turned out to be Faith's new step-mom, which was all kinds of weird. Ever since she left I just haven't found an assistant who's as good as she was. But that's beside the point. I pull my little mirror out of my drawer and give myself a once over. I mix my hair a little, but everything else looks ok. I stand up and straighten out my clothes and take a small calming breath. We've been together for a while now, but I still get butterflies whenever he visits me in the office. How much of a school girl am I?

"It's ok, Patricia, send him in," I say and sit back down and try to look busy. It isn't hard because these sketches are not going to pick themselves. Maybe I should have Martin and Savannah come in here and help me figure out what is off about these pieces. I don't normally ask for a second opinion, but they've helped me in the past and it worked out great. That line sold faster than almost every other we've produced. After Eric leaves I'm definitely going to call them up here, and pay them extra because they'll have to come in on their days off to finish their work on time. Unless they want to work late tonight, which I don't see why they would since it's Valentine's Day. There's a soft knock on the door before it opens and in walks my guy. "Hey, babe." I get up and walk around the side of my desk and give him a soft kiss on the lips.

"Hey, sweetness. You look amazing," he says and takes a step back to run his eyes all over my body. I can't help but blush but it makes him smile a little wider so I guess it's a good thing. I would compliment him, but he doesn't like it when I talk about how sexy he looks in his uniform. Once I even tried to get him to wear it in the bedroom because he does look really fine in it, but there was no way he would. It's his work uniform, and he doesn't want to feel sexy in something he has to wear around a bunch of other guys. That I can get, but one time isn't going to hurt anything, right? "So why are you holed up in here instead of out on the floor?" I let out a little sigh and look over at the sketches on my desk.

"I can't decide which I like best. They both seem a little…I don't know. I'm having trouble getting into the right headspace," I say and turn back to him. How I got such a sweet man to fall in love with me I'll never really know. But it does kind of bother me that he stays at his place a couple of times a week. He didn't used to, it was only a couple times a month deal when we both needed our space, but then it stopped happening as often, and now it's happening more than before. It's really bothering me, even though deep down I know it shouldn't. But I shouldn't let it fester. Festering only causes bigger problems. I wrap my arms around him and gently rest my head against his chest. The sound of his heart beat never fails to calm me down. "I missed you last night. You've been staying at your place so often. I think it's throwing me off my game." Ok, that was totally passive aggressive, but I don't want to sound like I'm accusing him of anything.

"I'm sorry, sweetheart. I didn't mean for that to happen," he says and pulls me a little tighter against his body. I let out a big sigh and relax against him. This is what I missed the most last night. Even though we've been together for a while, most nights he holds me while I fall asleep. Even when it gets too hot to cuddle, just having his hand on my hip is calming, and last night I had a hard time falling asleep without his touch. I smile a little bit when I feel something hard press against my thigh. Normally I would crack a dumb joke, say something like "is that a roll of quarters in your pocket or are you just happy to see me?", but I can tell it's a box. It's probably a Valentine's Day present. Hmm, should I ignore it and wait until tonight, or should I tease him about it now? I think I'll tease him about it now.

"That box in your pocket, is that a present for me?" I ask and I feel the small chuckle rumble in his chest, but he doesn't say anything. Eric can't lie. Whenever he tries to lie he stutters, and his face gets really flushed, and it's adorable. Most of the time, instead of saying anything, he won't say anything at all. "It is a present for me, isn't it?" Again, he doesn't say anything, but he tenses up a little bit. I can feel him trying to move his hips away from me, and whether or not he's doing it on purpose doesn't really matter. Whatever is in his pocket is for me, and before I was just teasing him, but now I really wanna know. It must be a big deal if he's getting this tense. If it was something small he would say something like "just leave it alone" or something like that, but he's not saying a word.

"You'll find out tonight," he says and leaves a little kiss on the top of my head. I should just drop it, I should just give him a kiss on the cheek, tell him I love him, and get back to work to see can get back to work as well. But I just can't. I'm too curious about it now, and if he's getting this tense about it I kinda wanna see what he'll do if I try to take it. So I reach into his pocket and wrap my fingers around the box. "Dawn, stop." He tries to move but he isn't fast enough, so when he jumps back a little, it ends up helping and the little box is pulled from his pocket. I don't have a very good grip on it, though, and it falls to the ground with a little thud. He has this totally panicked look on his face and I can't help but laugh a little bit. Ok, so maybe the nickname "Brat" wasn't completely undeserved when I was a kid.

"You should see your face right now," I say with a little giggle in my voice. I can't help it if I like picking on him sometimes. He really is an easy mark. "Classic." He bends down to pick up the box and I glance down and get a look at it for the first time. Holy shit. That's a freakin ring box. Holy shit; holy shit; holy shit. My heart starts beating really fast and I get a little light headed. That's a really nice looking ring box which means the ring inside must be really expensive so it's most likely an engagement ring. Eric wants to get married? We've never talked about getting married before. Oh my god, holy shit!

"You should see your face right now," he says and stands up, the box still in his hands. I can't take my eyes off of it. I want to, I want to look at his face, ask him if that's really what I think it is, and maybe freak out, but I can't look away from the box in his hand. "It's classic." Ok, sure, make a joke at my expense. Can't he tell I'm about to have a melt down? We've been together for a while now, he should know when I'm about to have a freak out. I feel his fingers gently caress my cheek and the unexpected touch sends a shiver down my body. I'm finally able to tear my eyes away from the little black box, and look at him. I don't think I've ever seen him look that serious before.

"I was going to wait until tonight, but I guess the surprise is out there," he says and opens the box. I gasp like an actress in a melodrama who's overacting when I see the ring. It's beautiful. Three emerald cut diamonds on a platinum band that are sparkling so brightly in the light my eyes are starting to water up. I look up into his eyes, and I can tell he's a little nervous. He always purses his lips when he's nervous. "Dawn Summers, I love you. You have filled my life with so much joy, made me feel like I'm the only man in the world who matters. And I love your kids so much. I know it sounds totally cliché, but will you make me the happiest man in the world and be my wife?" God, what is happening? Ok, so I know what's happening but why is this happening?

"Eric," I say and put my hand on his chest. I feel like I'm falling down, but I'm standing completely still. Everything around me goes silent and all I can hear is the sound of his breathing. I don't know what to do. What the hell am I supposed to do? "I don't know what to say." His face falls a little bit, and I can tell he's getting upset. What am I supposed to do, lie to save face? This is a huge decision, and I don't know what to do. I think I'm freaking out. "I'm sorry, but this is just sudden. I'm completely thrown. I mean, we haven't even been together that long." Well, by the look on his face I'd say that was the wrong thing to say.

"We've been together for almost four years. Things have been going great, I thought this was inevitable," he says and puts the box down on my desk. Ok, so maybe we have been together for a while. Ok, so I need to explain. Explaining would involve making words come out of my mouth so he won't be so upset with me. Seriously, what is wrong with me? I'm normally really good in high pressure situations. Hello, I grew up in Sunnydale! Ok, Dawn, think. I take a deep breath and hold onto his hands. I'm looking deeply into his eyes and I can see all of the hurt and frustration. I feel bad that I'm the one that put it there but he just sprung this on me. Alright, so maybe it was partly my fault. I did steal the ring, but that isn't the point.

"I'm sorry for freaking out. It's just, I've been burned more than once by guys that I was serious with, and so I try really hard not to over think our relationship. I've taken it day by day because the thought of waking up one morning and you not being there for good breaks my heart, Eric," I say and I so didn't mean to get all teary eyed but it's a good thing because his expression softens. He takes me into his arms and places a small kiss on my forehead. I feel him let out a big sigh, and I tighten my grip on him a little more. I love it when he holds me like this. It always makes me feel so safe. Like nothing bad in the world can get to us. Maybe if I close my eyes, and want it bad enough then that will come true.

BPOV

"Are you ok?" he asks and it snaps me back to right now. I can't believe I zoned out like that. It's hard to describe, but I feel really weird right now. "You're being really quiet." He's right about that. I haven't said a word in the last twenty minutes or maybe it's been longer. I kinda lost my sense of time. I just don't feel like talking right now. I never feel like talking when I'm trying to process something, and this is something big. So instead of saying something I just nod my head. He doesn't get mad because he knows when I get like this I'm not doing it to be annoying or anything. That's one thing I really love about him. He gets me, even if he doesn't understand it he still gets it's not something I'm doing on purpose or doing to hurt him. Everyone else gets annoyed but he doesn't. "Do you want to listen to music?" Hmm, that's a good question. Do I want to listen to music? I shake my head no.

I go back to staring at the ceiling, and I start to feel a little guilty for being this quiet, but I can't help it. This was supposed to be a life changing moment or something, but I don't feel any different. Maybe everyone is right. Maybe there is something wrong with me. I break my staring contest with the ceiling, and snuggle up to him. I bury my face in his neck, and he wraps his arms around me. It feels a little weird. Not the snuggling, we do that all the time, but with one huge difference. We've never had all of our clothes off, and been close like this before. You probably just guessed right now that we had sex, and you're right. Today is Valentine's Day so we thought it would be the perfect day to give each other our virginity. I thought afterwards I would feel different, more grown up or something, but I don't. I feel exactly the same.

"Babe, you're shaking. What's wrong?" he asks and I let out a little sigh. I'm not shaking because I'm upset. I know that probably sounds like a lie, but it's not. I'm really cold right now. The covers were kicked off when we were still making out. I guess we got a little out of control, and now I have goose bumps all over my body, and I'm shivering. I glance down at the blankets, and back up at him. Normally I don't need to say anything for him to get me. I don't know if it's a slayer thing or an "us" thing, but I can tell by the look on his face that he got it. Without saying a word, he sits up, forcing me off of him, and grabs the blankets. He pulls them over us, and I snuggle against him again. When he wraps his arms around me I let out a big sigh, and a little smile pulls at my lips.

"Is that better?" he asks, and I look up at his face. He doesn't look as worried anymore because I'm not shivering, but I can tell he knows something is up with me. I nod my head yes, and leave a little kiss on his shoulder. I don't feel any different, but I know that things between us have definitely changed. They can't stay the same, can they? I mean, we had sex for the first time tonight, so that changes our relationship, right? I'm just worried what it means for us. Is he going to change? Is he going to be mean and distant like everyone says guys always get after sex? Is he going to want to do it all the time now? "Hey, you can talk to me, you know." His soft voice pulls me back to reality again. "You don't have to be scared." He normally gets me completely, but this time he just doesn't get it.

"Yes, I do," I say, and hold onto him a little tighter. He's the only person in the world who I can hug, and not hurt. I'm not one of those cliché girls who think that me being able to hug him and hold him without hurting him means we're meant to be together, but sometimes that's a nice thought. I try not to think about stuff like that, though. We live in a world that's so fragile that I try really hard not to think about our relationship for more than a week at a time. "Things are going to change now, Matt. I don't want us to change. I want things to stay the way they have been." He squeezes me a little tighter, and leaves a kiss on top of my head. Then he gently lifts my chin so I'm looking into his beautiful brown eyes.

"Listen to me, I know what you're thinking, and it's not going to happen to us. I'm not going to turn into one of those fucking jerks that sleep with their girl and then don't give a shit about 'em," he says, and I don't think I've ever heard him sound so serious before. "I fucking love you, Brooke. But if I do start acting like a dick, just smack me upside my head, ok? You're strong enough to knock some sense into me." I can't help but laugh a little, and I can feel most of the tension that was in my body leave. He kisses me, and I close my eyes. I love him so much, more than anything on this planet, and the thought of him actually doing that, turning into an asshole and only using me for sex, makes me want to cry my eyes out.

"I love you too," I say, and my voice sounds all fucking weird. It probably sounds like that because I'm trying really hard not to cry. I can't help it, though. Tonight has been so…I don't even have the words for it. I gave myself to him, completely, and he understands why I'm so afraid. He's totally perfect, even if he is trying to make a move when I'm going through something emotional, and don't want to have sex again. His hand is on my thigh, tracing little patters that are slowly working their way higher. Right before he reaches my pussy, I pull back from the kiss, and grab onto his hand. "I can't again. I'm still too sore." He got a little rough when we were making love. When he first went inside it didn't hurt as bad as I thought it was going to, but when he started to get close he was thrusting pretty hard.

"Did I hurt you?" he asks, and he looks really worried again. He puts his hand on my hip, and he looks deeply into my eyes. I love it when he does that. He has amazingly expressive eyes, and looking into them like this is one of my favorite things to do. "You should've told me if I hurt you. I'm not an asshole, Brooke. I care about your body, and what happens to it." I get a little smile on my face, and gently lay my hand on his cheek. All of the fears I had, all of the anxiety I was feeling just melts away. He's not going to change. If anything he's going to get even more protective. He's the love of my life, and I'm the love of his. I don't know why I got so in my head about this. I guess I need to work on not doing that.

"You didn't hurt me a lot," I say, and I guess that was the wrong thing to say because now he looks even more upset. I guess I also need to work on not putting my food in my mouth. That would be a good idea. "It's just the normal soreness, I guess. I had another person inside of me for the first time; it was going to hurt a little no matter what." He doesn't look worried anymore. He kisses me, and it's not too heated, but it lingers for a long time. I run my fingers through his shaggy hair, and pull a little. He presses his body more into me when I do that. He loves it when I pull his hair. I can feel my body heating up again, and that's not a good thing. I really am too sore to go again, and if we don't stop this soon I'm going to be frustrated for the rest of the night. I pull back from the kiss, and his lips go right to my neck. "We need to stop."

"Ok, I'll get right on that," he whispers in my ear, and I moan a little. I love the feel of his breath against my skin. I don't think he knows what exactly that does to me, but I know that if he ever does figure it out I'll be in big trouble. There are a few little things that he does that drive me crazy, in a good way, but I don't know if he does them on accident or if he knows they get to me. I swear, some days all he has to do is kiss my pulse point, whisper in my ear, and run his nails across the nape of my neck, and I get so turned on I'd let him get to third if he tried. He's too much of a gentleman, though. His moms raise him right, and sometimes that's really frustrating. But right now it's frustrating for a whole different reason. I push him away, and he finally gets the message. He pulls away from me, and has a little innocent smile on his face.

"Don't give me that look. You knew you were pushing it," I say, and I try to sound annoyed, but I have a smile on my face too. He leaves a little kiss on the tip of my nose, and he wraps his arms around me again. I let out another sigh, and snuggle in really close. Tonight was perfect, a little awkward at first, but after that it was perfect. I don't know what I did to deserve a guy like him, but I'm glad it happened. He saved me, literally saved him, from living on the streets. God knows what would have happened to be that winter if he hadn't found me. Now I can't imagine going a day without at least texting him. "You have to leave soon before Lily gets back, but I don't want you to go." I squeeze him a little, and he squeezes right back. I leave a little kiss on his neck, and shut my eyes and just let him hold me. Maybe if we get caught it won't be the end of the world?

"I'll stay until you fall asleep," he says, and leaves a kiss on the top of my head. See? I told you he's perfect. What other guy would say something like that, or do something like that? The other girls in the training house haven't been as lucky. They've hooked up with guys that are total jerks. They have sex, and then cuddle for maybe ten minutes, and the guy is ready to get out of there. It isn't just the guys, though. There are two girls who aren't into stuff like this. They just want to hook up, have some fun, and then leave. Maybe I'm not being fair. Maybe a jerk is a jerk, and it doesn't matter what the gender is. "Stop thinking so much. You're giving me a headache." He leaves another kiss on the top of my head, and I laugh a little bit. I try to stay awake, but it's useless as sleep slowly steals me from this moment, and everything goes black.

FPOV

Being a slayer and a mother has taught me a few very important lessons, but the most important one is: expect the unexpected. I know that sounds totally fuckin stupid, and more like some dumb gimmick for a cheap horror movie, but it's true. Being a slayer taught me to always be on my toes in any given situation 'cause you never know if the demon causing trouble is really under control by someone else, or if the prophecy was wrong, and that wicked bad thing that was supposed to happen is actually a good thing in disguise. Being a mom taught me that people are unpredictable, and just when you think you got someone figured out they do or say something that surprises you.

Over the years I've become kind of jaded to it. Of course Mattie is going to break all of the rules and get bad grades the moment he falls in love. Of course Addy is going to try to use the couple of spells Willow taught her to control a metric-fuck-ton of ants to carry Joey away. I stopped being surprised by all the weird shit my family does a long time ago. That's why tonight is so special. Today's Valentine's Day, and after twenty years together B actually managed to surprise me. I didn't think it was possible, but here I am, completely shocked, and loving this moment.

"Faith, thank God you're here," she says when she sees me and Officer Friendly, no joke that's his real name, and she stands up from the bench and walks over to the cell door. I can't help but smile and have to bite my tongue to stop myself from laughing. She stops looking glad to see me and now she looks really irritated. She gets that 'shut up or I'll stab your face off' look. You know, the same look she gets when someone tries to take food off her plate without asking. Normally it's scary, but right now it's really satisfying. "Don't you dare. This isn't funny, Faith. Will you just get me out of here so we can go home?" Oh man, she just doesn't know me at all, does she? We've been together twenty years; you'd think she'd know how I'd respond to this.

"Yeah, B, just one second," I say and take my cell phone out of my purse. She looks confused at first, until I hold it up and take a picture. Now she looks pissed again. "Got it. Man, this is so fucking good. I can't wait to post that on everything." I put my phone back in my purse, and I'm sure the smile on my face is bright enough to melt an ice cap. "So B, what's life like on the other side? Did you trade your emotions for a tougher skin? Did you have to sell yourself for some soap and a pack of cigarettes? Do you have any tattoos?" I shouldn't be having this much fun, but I am. B got arrested: best Valentine's Day ever.

"Ma'am, will you please confirm whether or not this is your wife? We have a lot of other people waiting," Officer Friendly says, and I look behind B at all the other people in the drunk-tank. There's gotta be at least fifteen people in there. Damn, I'm going to give her so much shit about that. This is seriously one of the best things that's ever happened. Should I tell him this is really her or should I just play along and say that I'm not sure if this is the real Buffy Summers-Lehane? By the look on her face if I do that I'm going to be sleeping outside like a dog for the next year. Well, I shouldn't even say "like a dog" 'cause our dogs sleep in the house on their overpriced dog beds. So maybe more like, I dunno, a stray dog? Whatever, it doesn't matter. Point is, she's going to kill me if I make her suffer through this any longer.

"Yeah, Officer, that's my wife," I say with a big cheeky grin, and as the cop unlocks the cell I take another picture. B glares at me and I know I'm going to get a lot of shit for this, but I really can't help it that she's such a bad driver. The sad thing is I'm the one who taught her to drive so I guess I shouldn't be giving her any shit for it. Yeah, that would be bad 'cause then she'd use it against me. Good thing I thought that shit out before I opened my mouth. Guess I really have grown as a person over the years. I step back and watch as B walks out of the cell. Everyone else in there is busy talking to each other, or just zoning out, and I think she was sitting by herself. I doubt she would try to socialize with anyone right now since she's so agitated.

"This is so embarrassing," B says, and pulls her coat around herself a little tighter, like she's trying to save what little dignity she has left. Yeah, right, like I'm going to let that shit happen. Come on, I may not make fun of her driving so she won't throw it back in my face, but I'm still going to give her shit for this. The reason why I'm giving her so much shit for all of this is because she did kind of ruin Valentine's Day. I have no idea why, either, she wouldn't say over the phone. All she said was she's in holding at the police station, and she needed me to bail her out. It wasn't too expensive so I have no idea what the fuck she did that was so minor I only had to pay eight hundred.

"Tell me about it," I say, and she gives me another glare as we're lead down the hallway and into the lobby or whatever the fuck it's called. We need to wait to get B's stuff so it's probably going to be a few more minutes. "What? It was embarrassing for me too, B. I was sitting in the restaurant waiting for you to show, and then I get a call and have to rush out of there. Everyone saw me leave alone. They probably think I got stood up or something." She gives me another glare because she knows I don't really care about that shit. "So, what happened, anyway? All I know is I'm waiting at one of the best restaurants in town, and then I'm gettin a call sayin I need to be down here. What gives?"

"I really don't want to talk about it right now, ok?" she says, and I let out a little sigh. This must be serious if she isn't willing to joke around about it. She's been arrested before when we were living in California. Cops thought she was drunk 'cause she kept serving on the road and shit. Turns out she wasn't drunk, but apparently applying makeup while driving is harder than it looks. When I bailed her out that time she was laughing about it, calling herself a danger to the public at large and all that shit. So how come it seems like she lost her sense of humor in that cell or something?

"Here are your personal affects," the officer behind the glass says, and slips a bag under the slot. Buffy reaches out and picks it up, and lets out another sigh. "One cell phone, one wallet, one set of keys, five pieces of jewelry; a pair of earrings, a bracelet, an engagement ring, a wedding band, and a watch. Next time put your phone on Bluetooth before you answer it. Every car has had that feature standard for the last fifteen years. There's really no excuse." Wow, what a condescending asshole. So Buffy got pulled over talking on her phone, and she didn't have the patience to set up it up in the car first. It's really not that hard. You just push a button on the console and it automatically syncs up. So who the fuck was she talking to?

"Thank you, Officer," B says as she signs the paper stating that she received all of the shit they took off of her, and she's trying to sound nice, but it just isn't coming through. That's the thing about B, even when someone is an asshole to her she's always fuckin nice. Something about being nice to someone is the easiest thing in the world and even if someone is being a dick it's important not to sink to their level. Though, sometimes she does kind of lose it, which is always fuckin awesome to see. It makes me feel like I'm not the only one who can't always control their emotions. "Have a nice night." See what I mean? "Come on, Faith, we need to get home." She holds onto my hand and I can see how fuckin tired she looks. Ok, so what the fuck happened that has her so exhausted? Today started out such a good fuckin day and now she looks like she's been up for weeks.

"B, what's wrong?" I ask, and I sound more worried than I wanted to. If she is upset who knows how she's going to interrupt my tone of voice, and I don't want her thinking I don't trust her or something. I look over at her, and now her chin and bottom lip is quivering, and it's pretty obvious she's trying not to cry. God dammit, what the fuck happened tonight? Why won't she just fuckin talk to me? "Buffy, I'm not playing anymore. What the hell happened tonight?" Ok, so I really need to work on controlling my voice. I didn't mean to sound a little irritated with her. I let out a little sigh. "I'm sorry. That came out wrong. I'm just worried about you." I put my hand on her back but she pulls away. Ok, what the fuck?"

"Now you're suddenly so concerned, huh?" she asks, and she sounds fuckin pissed. But she also sounds like any minute she's going to start sobbing. Fuckin Buffy, stop being so fucking stubborn! She's upset and she's taking it out on me to avoid talking about whatever it is that's bothering her. That's a classic Buffy move, and I'm getting really sick and tired of it. How long is she going to deflect before she can just talk about what's on her mind? "Five minutes ago you were asking me if I whored myself for soap and cigarettes, and now you're worried about me? Let's just go. I need to get home and they towed my car." She stomps off towards my car, and I can't believe that just happened.

"B, you know it's not like that," I say, and all the frustration and anger is out of my voice. Now all I sound is worried. I don't want this to turn into a big thing, but I really need to know what the fuck is going on. I'm her fucking wife. What's so bad and scary that she can't talk to me about it? "You didn't look like you were going to have a breakdown five minutes ago." She stands by the passenger side of my car with her arms crossed over her chest, and she doesn't look pissed anymore. Now she's fighting off tears, and my hearts fuckin breaking right now. I wrap my arms around her, and she squeezes me so tight I feel like I can't breathe. "Babe, please, just tell me what's wrong." If any of those bastard cops touched her wrong I'll rip their fucking arms off.

"Faith, I need to get home," she says, and her voice sounds all choked up. I feel hot tears burn my skin, and it sends a shudder throughout my whole body. I wish she would just open up and tell me. What's so bad that she just can't tell me? "Please, baby, just take me home." I let out a little sigh as I gently rub her back. Ok, I'll admit I'm being an ass trying to get her to talk about it here. We're out in public, in the parking lot of the police station and I'm asking her to tell me something that's obviously really fucking hard to talk about. Total fuckin dick move on my part. I pull back from the hug a little and leave a kiss on her forehead. I guess I really have become a mom over the years.

"Ok, babe, we'll go home," I say and pull my keys out of my purse. I am a little disappointed that we didn't get to celebrate tonight. I mean, B got us reservations at the best restaurant in town, and I dressed up for it. Oh well, nothing we can do about that now I guess. I leave one more kiss on her forehead and I unlock the car and open the door for her. She doesn't say anything as she gets in and buckles her seat belt. As soon as I shut the door I see her shuffling through that plastic bag and the first thing she does is put her engagement and wedding rings back on. I get in the car, and pull out into the street. I'm driving extra careful 'cause the last thing I need is a ticket after what just happened. As soon as I'm driving down the road B pulls out her cell phone.

"As soon as we get home I need to pack a bag," she says, and she sounds a little mumble-y. Great, there's proof right there we've been together too long. Anyway, my point is she sounds like she's talking more to herself than she is to me, and I'm totally confused. "I'll need clothes and my toothbrush, and I should take the photo albums with me. He'll want to see those." What the fuck is she going on about? I try to keep my eyes on the road instead of looking over at her too much, but she's really starting to freak me out and it's getting hard to concentrate.

"B, what are you talking about?" I ask, and she doesn't even look over at me. Ok, what am I, chopped liver? She's scrolling through something on her phone, and I swear she looks like she's starting to panic. I'm going to start freaking out soon if she doesn't explain to me what's going on. I stop at the red light, and let out a big sigh. I need to stay calm or it's just going to make everything worse. "Buffy, please tell me what's going on. What happened tonight? Why did I just have to pick you up from a holding cell?" Again, it's like I'm not even here.

"A plane will take too long," she mumbles again, and she keeps scrolling through shit on her phone. She's on the internet looking up…I can't see the screen well enough to tell, but I know she's looking something up. "I need to call Willow and have her teleport us there. Sky might want to go, but I don't know what to do about the kids. But Willow has to go. Andrew probably already called her. God, I hope he already called her." She sounds like she's about to break at any second and I glace over at her and see big tears streaming down her face. The light turns green, and I go with the flow of traffic.

"Buffy, what the hell is going on?" I practically yell, and it seems to snap her out of it. She looks up at me, and now she's openly sobbing. She went from tears to sobs in less than a minute. Now I'm really fuckin scared. The tension rolling off of her body feels like it's trying to strangle me, and if something doesn't give and soon one of us is going to break. It'll probably be me because she's always been the stronger one. "Buffy, please, you're freaking me out." She wipes at her eyes and drops the phone to her lap.

"Andrew called," she chokes out, and wipes at more tears, but they just keep coming. Her perfect, angel face is all smeared with makeup, and her eyes are getting really red and puffy from crying. Just seeing her like this is making me want to cry. "We need to get to the school, Faith, we need to get there before it's too late." What the fuck is she talking about? "He said Giles is sick. He said Giles has cancer and he didn't tell anyone. He said Giles only has a few more days at best." What the fuck is she talking about? I slam on the breaks, and turn in my seat until I'm facing her. My whole body feels like it just went numb. This can't be happening. It's Valentine's Day. This kind of shit doesn't happen on Valentine's Day. Guess from now on they gotta call it Schmalentine's Day 'cause this right here is fucking bullshit.