Title: Sewer Talk

Author: S J Smith

Rating: K+

Summary: Of course, Buffy finds Angel in the Sewer.

Note: Written for Sasha B's prompt: Angel, Buffy, Taciturn.

Disclaimer: If you think I own any of this, I've got some bog land in Indiana to sell you.

Buffy couldn't say she was surprised to find Angel in a sewer beneath the city. "What," she said, "you couldn't save this for a more appropriate place?" She waved her hand around before he could say anything, "Oh, wait."

He stood there, expressionless, mostly a giant hunk of vampire, staring at her, hands in his coat pockets. Buffy hadn't quite but almost forgotten how much he didn't talk, compared to her other lovers. Spike would've been lighting up a cigarette and saying something quippy, Riley would've at least said hello, how are you, do you want to see pictures of my kids, and Nathan would've given her a hug and a kiss and – well, that was Nathan, and Angel wasn't like any of them. "Are you going to say anything?"

"I've been looking for you," Angel said.

Buffy couldn't help rolling her eyes, because, duh. God, she felt like a stupid teenager again with a stupid teenage crush. Except the last she'd heard, Angel'd gone back to the bad, and Spike was still alive, and some giant fight had taken down L.A. with them fighting on the side of some Smurf-blue hell god named Illyria, and that changed things. "Why, so you could explain to me about how L.A. got destroyed?"

"No," Angel said, and Buffy caught a flash of narrowed eyes, and maybe a mumble of, "I thought Giles would explain that," but then he moved and his hands grasped her shoulders and – oh, God - his palms were warm and his fingers were crushing her shoulders, tight enough to bruise. "I came to tell you I'm human," he gave her a pull, cradling the back of her head with his big hand as he guided her ear to the space over his heart – his heartbeat – "that's all."