Oblivious
by HDGenscher
[reviews]
TITLE: Oblivious
AUTHOR: HD_Genscher
RATING: PG
PAIRING: B/W
DISCLAIMER: All characters and places belong to Joss Whedon, Mutant Enemy, et al.
ARCHIVE: Sure. Just let me know.
FEEDBACK: Please.
DEDICATED TO: Dan, in recognition of your great work as our list moderator.
SUMMARY: The one where Xander finds out.
AUTHOR'S NOTE: The lyrics quoted in the story are from "'Til The Day" by Blaze!.
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OBLIVIOUS
They'd always been close, as close as best friends can be. But lately, they seemed to have found a new level in that closeness, judging from the time they spent together.
I didn't feel left out, because there wasn't any reason to. We were still hanging out, we were going bronzing together, and we were still saving the world together -- except we were now operating from Giles' home, our new headquarters after the library (and the high school) had been destroyed during the Mayor's failed ascension.
Yet something was different. Different between the two, and between us.
I didn't know what it was, and that bugged me. I was afraid that it was about me. I hadn't been in the best of moods lately after the split-up with Cordy. She wanted to go to L.A. to pursue a career as an actress, and obviously I didn't fit into that plan (no, I'm not bitter here).
Where was I? Oh, right: Buffy and Willow. They'd declared it as another of their "girly afternoon things." And I was curious. In my dirty fantasies, I had a certain idea what this could be about. Little did I know...
It was a place right out of the picture books. Surrounded by moss-covered cliffs, the lagoon opened towards the sea, and it was only divided from it by a sandy strip that was flooded by some of the larger waves from time to time.
I knew from my last visit that the water was about 5 feet deep, just enough so you could still stand on the ground, and that its water was warm, as it must have been warmed by the sun all summer.
The tide had formed the lagoon over some hundred years. Or was it more like thousands? Maybe I should have paid attention in geography more often, instead of concentrating on Mrs. Parker's womanly attributes.
Anyway, that was where they were headed.
I'm quite sure that Buffy didn't know about this place before Willow had shown it to her. It was only known to Sunnydale's natives. I remembered when Willow and I had been there. Must've been some ten years ago. Hell, how much had changed since then! It was odd how simple our lives had once been. At least that's how it felt.
They climbed down the cliffs, while I carefully avoided making my presence known to them. Using some of the skills I still knew from my involuntary military career, I crawled forward on all fours until I lay behind some bushes, fully covered by its leaves, and hardly to be noticed if someone didn't really know where to look, but at the same time being able to see everything that would happen below me...
...which wasn't much beyond what you would expect first. Buffy got rid of her clothing, revealing a dark-blue swimsuit that nicely accentuated her muscular figure, and jumped into the water. She was soon joined by Willow, who was wearing a green bikini.
So far so good. I had seen a nice beach fashion show by my two friends thus far, who were now swimming and splashing about in the lagoon. Buffy splashed Willow, who tried to dunk her in return. Bad idea! I could've told her that there was no way in succeeding to dunk the slayer. As I had expected, Buffy turned the tables, and when Willow came up again, she was gasping for air. She got that air from her best friend, took it directly out of her mouth and... whoa! Did I just think that, my mind trying to find a rational explanation for what I just saw, but what it couldn't grasp? Was that Willow kissing Buffy? Was that really my old sandpit buddy kissing her best friend?
I looked at the vastness that was the ocean, then back at my friends, but my eyes weren't playing tricks on me: The redhead was in the blonde's arms -- and they were kissing.
That was when Buffy took Willow's hands into hers, and the wind carried over her words:
"I, Buffy Anne Summers, take you, Willow Danielle Rosenberg, as my wife, to have and to hold, to love and to cherish, in good times and in bad ones, from now until the day that I die."
And Willow answered, her voice trembling:
"I, Willow Danielle Rosenberg, take you, Buffy Anne Summers, as my wife, to have and to hold, to love and to cherish, in good times and in bad ones, from now until the day that I die."
Then their lips met again to seal the bond they'd just declared, a bond that I should've felt if I really deserved to be called their best friend.
I mightn't be the cleverest guy, but somehow I knew: With that final simple gesture, something so much bigger had been sealed than one might initially assume. I had witnessed a claim of deep, unconditional love.
It had felt wrong to be there, while only God should've been their witness; unmasking the motives that had led me to this place as just voyeuristic.
Ashamed, I sneaked away.
**
"Wanna dance?" Willow asked the slayer. The song was slow and the singer's voice filled the Bronze with an intensity that sent a chill down my spine, but in a positive way.
I will love you 'til the day that I die,
Or when the stars fall from the sky,
Or when the oceans all run dry,
I know that the feelings just won't subside.
And in the morning when you wake,
I will worship every step that you may take,
Even though you make me cry,
I will love you 'til the day that I die.
They were dancing close, lost in their love and oblivious to the rest of the world.
And for the first time I didn't wonder what had changed between them, or if I was the one who had changed.
Now I knew.
END