Nothing But You
by Whedonist
Chapter 5
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Chapter 5
Buffy found herself shopping with Cordelia, Faith and her sister. The mid-terms were closing in and she needed to relieve some stress. They were currently at the mall and it seemed that nothing was working. She had put a sizable dent in her mom's emergency only credit card and knew she was going to catch hell at the end of the month when she got the bill.
"So Buffy how's the pining over the redhead working out for you?"
Buffy shot a glare at Cordelia. "I'm not pining. We are friends and nothing more."
"Puh-leeezzz. Buffy look you can lie to yourself and be convinced that's fine, but this is me and your ex. I know pining when I see it. "
"She's right B. Come on, we used to go out have fun picking up girls, remember the last trip out to LA and the sisters we picked up? You were quite the ladies...eh...lady? Look all I'm sayin's that red maybe a hottie. No doubt about that, but she's also straight and worse than that she's got you in the friends only column."
"And," Dawn chimed in, "the more you hang the more you don't even look at any other girl. Sis. That's not healthy. I mean not that you were a big slut or anything, but you had at least a new girl every other week and now, it's like you're Sister Buffy of Our Ladies of Will Not Get Any From Willow. I love Wills, really she's great, smart, and funny, and all the good stuff, but she's...she's not into you or for that matter anyone at all."
"Yeah, remember the past 50 times we've been to the Bronze, A few guys have asked her to dance despite the death glares you shoot them and she's turned them ALL DOWN. Is she celibate?"
"Awe, Queen C not everything is about sex, but you're right on the shoot downs. I don't think I've seen her check anyone out."
Buffy looked around at her friends and sister and couldn't believe what she was hearing. Sure since meeting Willow two months ago, she's lost interest in other girls, but it's not like she hasn't tried to go out with other girls. There was one girl from the Gay, Lesbian, Straight Alliance group on campus that she went out with, but she just found herself to be bored. Like uber-bored. There was no sparkage and so she called it an early night.
"Thank you all for your interest in my love life, but seriously not needed. I'm not pining. Willow and I are friends. That's it. So thanks again, but butt out."
"Fine B you wanna play it that way, but don't shut people out cuz' you're all mopey."
Buffy stuck her tongue out at Faith and left.
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"So Willster, help me out. I don't get it. The tangent is the cosine over sine or sine over cosine and what the hell is a cosine and sine?"
Xander rested his head in his hands and sighed. They had been studying math and history for the past two hours and he was done. Midterms were coming and despite the impending doom to his GPA he couldn't muster up enough energy to study anymore.
"Xan, it's ok. The Tangent is Sine over Cosine. Let's start here." Willow stopped when he groaned and she thought she saw his eyes well up. "Or we could stop for tonight?"
His face lit up at the suggestion and he threw his arms around his newest best friend. "Oh thank you great giant head. I really don't know how you do it Wills. I'm ready to crawl into a whole and die. What's say we blow this joint and grab some dinner on me."
Willow shook her head yes and began to pack up. The past two months had been the best of her life. School was great. The quest for knowledge was not frowned upon like it was at her high school and everyone she met was always really cool. She didn't know what she would be doing if she hadn't met Xander and Buffy. They were so nice. Just what she had needed. Buffy was always there just being supportive and forcing Willow outside of her dorm room when she went in to what the gang had called "research mode." Xander despite the lameness of the jokes always made her laugh. It was a little overwhelming in the beginning, but the three had fallen into a comfortable rhythm. Buffy would spend the night once or twice a week to get help from the redhead with some of her other classes and Dawn would get to spend the night with Xander once a week. Joyce wasn't entirely thrilled, but seemed to relent once she realized that it was probably better Dawn get some of those experiences in before she left for college.
She got to talk to Fred and/or Tara at least once a week and even though they didn't get to see each other that often; they did plan on at least once or twice a month visit. After midterms there was a four day weekend and she had intended do invite Buffy, Xander and anyone else that wanted to go down to LA for the weekend. Her parents were on a trip to Europe for a guest lecture spot and so the house would be empty.
Xander took her to the grotto to get some mildly edible food and then they both decided that some frivolous fun was in order. They went back to the dorm room and popped in a movie.
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"Wills, Xan wake up." Buffy gently shook the two sleeping on the bed.
"Uh...whatimeist?" Xander said swiping at his face for traces of drool.
Willow shook her head and rubbed her eyes. "What?"
"Hey sleeping beauties wake up." Buffy said again. Both of her friends were bleary eyed and still half asleep. "It's like 9. Did you guys do any studying?"
"Loads. My brain hurt and Will took some mercy and decided to cut me slack." Xander said.
"What you do Buff?" Willow asked while rubbing the sleep from her eyes.
"Shopping. It was not as therapeutic as it usually is. You guys wanna go to the Bronze?"
"Can't Buffster. I promised Dawn I'd go over when you came back. Have some fun with out me."
"Fine. Spoil sport."
"Whatdya have in mind?"
"Dunno, but Bronzing is a great fall back."
"Could be interesting. Why not. Let me go get changed and we can leave."
"Cool."
Willow got up, grabbed her bag and left to change.
"You guys want a ride?" Xander asked getting ready to leave himself.
"Nah, it's a nice night. Walking is good."
"K, have fun Buff. Tell Will I said bye."
"Bye Xand."
The girls walked into the club. Buffy had seen the Bronze dead before, but not like this. There were about 10 people total in the entire place and the music was at best lack luster.
"So, I've seen livelier things at a cemetery. You want to stay?"
"Up to you Buff. I'm along for the ride tonight."
Buffy looked around and weighed their options. Sunnydale by most standards was a safe town. Deciding that the Bronze was not the place to be she grabbed hold of the redhead and walked out. They made a quick stop at a 7-Eleven and continued to walk.
"Buff, where we going?"
"It's a surprise. Just hold your horses we're almost there."
The girls had passed a few large houses on Crawford and Buffy stopped to point out the house that belonged to Angel and Faith.
"They live there?"
"Yep. Pretty nice. You'll have to come by one day and have Faith give you a tour."
"Definitely."
"Come on this way." Buffy resumed holding Willow's hand and took off for a path in the woods.
They walked for about 15 minutes and reached a clearing. It was on an incline and Willow was a little faster than the blonde. Smiling back at her companion Willow forged ahead. The redhead stopped when she got to the top and looked down. The place Buffy had taken them looked out on the whole town. The place kinda looked like LA at night and Willow sighed.
"This is one of my favorite places to be. It feels like you can see the world from up here."
Buffy sat down and patted the grass next to her. Willow sat down and leaned her head on Buffy's shoulder.
"Hey Wills, can I ask you a question?"
"Shoot."
"Well, while I was shopping today, Cordy, Dawn, and Faith brought up an interesting observation about you and it got me kinda curious."
"K, what would that be?"
"It...just that...it seems that when we go out to the Bronze you turn down almost everyone that wants to dance with you. I was just wondering why? I mean some of the guys weren't hideous beasts. And well you've just never shown any interest in anyone. I was wondering why?"
"Ah," Willow sighed. She had been debating whether or not to tell the blonde about what happened with her and Eddie, but she still hadn't come to a decision. Looking up at her friend, she thought that it wouldn't be a big deal if Buffy knew or not. "There's a reason for that. You remember me mentioning my ex?"
"Yeah."
"Well, see we...he..." sighing, Willow sat up and ran her fingers through her hair. She didn't think it would have been this hard talking about it. "It was the night of our school's senior night out. They had planned this big trip to Six Flags. There were a lot of us that just got hotel rooms so we didn't have drive up that day. It was me, Ed, Tara, and Fred in one room. I had been seeing him for over a year and despite a few attempts hadn't got much further than third base. That day I got a little sick and he took me back to the hotel room. I don't know what it was, hot dog, something, but it just made my tummy all rumbly and I needed to leave. I was better a while later, but we decided to stay in ya know?"
Buffy couldn't believe Willow was telling her this. She saw the pain remembering reflected on the features that she had come to adore. Sure she couldn't ever have Willow; she talked herself out of that the first week of their friendship, but she could be her friend. She took the redhead's hand and squeezed.
"Well, like I said I got better. Eddie and I decided to stay in ya know? Make it a night in. We started fooling around. We had this conversation before: no sex. Heavy petting and oral, but as for sex, sex under no circumstances. I just wasn't ready. Things got a little out of control. I...he took it too far. If it hadn't been for Tara coming back to the room for whatever it was she forgot, he...I...well...he tried, but didn't succeed. My tarebare busted him over the head with a lamp. So the dating thing. I've sworn off. At least for awhile. That's why."
Buffy let out a soft, "Oh." She wasn't really sure how to respond to that. It had unnerved her that someone would do that to her friend. It pissed her off that the bastard only got beaned with lamp. There in the pit of her stomach burned a rage so intense she was shaking just as bad as the girl in her arms.
"Oh, Wills I'm so sorry. I didn't well I I'm so sorry."
"Don't be you didn't do it. It's not as bad as it sounds. In the moment it was just so surreal. I couldn't believe that he would. You know? You spend a year with someone and then that. It's just the aftermath that's been the hard part to deal. For a while I wouldn't go anywhere without Tare or Fred, but it's gotten so much better since I moved here. You and Xander have been great. Don't get freaked. I'm not as freaked as I look. It's just you're the first person I've talked to about this that hasn't known me since 4th grade. "
"I get it. Sorry I drug it up."
Pulling herself together Willow let out a sigh. "It's good. Thanks."
"You OK?"
"Surprisingly yeah I feel better. So that was my trauma. Would you like to share any dark painful secrets?"
Buffy smiled at the attempt and shrugged. "Not much for the dark and painful. I mean there's my real dad, but he's just a womanizing louse. It was the best having mom meet Giles. They are cute together."
"He's very British."
"Yeah he is. Oh, Mom is having dinner Saturday she said to make sure you come."
"Nifty. So what's the story with you and Faith? I mean you guys seem to still like each other still. Why aren't seeing each other?"
"Just seemed to die out is all. We want different things I guess. She really is a good person. When she first moved here there was such a chip on her shoulder, but Xander and I worked through that. She's just...we grew apart as lame as that sounds it's really the only way to describe it. Then she started seeing Angel's partner Kate about 4 months ago. Despite the age difference, both of them are pig headed enough to make it seem like a workable plan."
"And Angel?"
"Angel worked for a law firm in Boston. He took Faith in while he represented her mom on multiple counts of fraud and murder charges. Angel says that he saw a lot of his younger self in her. He legally took custody and they moved out here to get away from some people in Boston. They really aren't very sharey with the whole ordeal, but at least they had each other to lean on."
"Ah, that explains some things."
"So tell me more about the elusive Willow Rosenberg. What about your parents?"
"They're professors at USC. They travel loads and are never home. Most of my childhood was spent with Tare at my house. She got away from her crappy dad and brother and I got a friend. What about you?"
"Well, my mom and dad got divorced when I was 11. He moved off to L.A then San Francisco, then New York where he still might be living. My mom raised us anyhow so it was better. Things were normal for me. Except the gay thing which wasn't a big freak factor for my mom. When I told her she was just what ever makes you happy. It did take her a while to get used to Faith though. She and Giles got married last summer and well they are so happy it's sickening. Dawnie is a year younger than me and a royal pain."
"Dawn's not that bad."
"You never had to live with her. She's a pain. Although she's gotten tolerable since her and Xander started dating."
"You and Faith?"
"Like I said we were good for awhile, but eh it's just...we're much better friends."
"I don't know, the way I see you look at her sometimes..."
"No looking...more like deep thought of what we could have done if we worked through are mess."
"Mess?"
"Well, she had one minor indiscretion...she cheated on me with a bartender at the Bronze. And well, it was more of a heavy make out session one drunken and regrettable night."
"Ah the plot thickens."
"No, nothing like that. I was pissed she cried and said it was a mistake and then we tried to get over it, but I just couldn't. Cheating of any variety is not my thing and as sorry as she was I just couldn't seem to get over it."
"Do you think you would ya know get back together?"
"Right now? No. I have lost interest in dating for right now. Just doesn't seem on the forefront of my mind." Buffy smiled at the redhead and hoped that the lie seemed convincing.
"I get it, totally." Willow smiled and resumed resting her head on the blonde's shoulder.
"So what is it you want to do at UC Sunnydale?"
"I dunno. I'm good at math and science, but it just seems kind of cold. I want to do something interesting. Like something I won't get bored with for the rest of my life."
"Same here. Angel says I've got a head for investigation. It seems kinda interesting and I'll have a job if I want."
"Oh, you could be like Matlock except with out the being old or a man...wait nevermind I don't know any cool PI figures."
"Nancy Drew?"
"She was lame. Sure sure a pioneer for the time, but in the 20th century she's lame."
Buffy looked down at the girl and noticed she had on her thought face. For Buffy it was probably the cutest thing she's ever seen next to Willow's resolve face. Thought face was punctuated with pursed lips where the tip of a tongue protruded between teeth and squinty eyes. Buffy couldn't resist wrapping an arm around the redhead and snuggling in. To her surprise, Willow leaned in to the embrace.
"Oh, oh, I've got it. How about Scooby Doo? Xander is very much Shaggy, you can be a female version of Fred, I can be Velma, and Cordy seems sufficient to be Daphne. "
"What about Faith?"
"Uh...I dunno...Scooby Doo?"
Buffy wrapped her mind around the mental picture and started laughing. Adding to Willow's characterization of her family she pictured Dawn as Scrappy Doo and busted out laughing.
"Oh, picture it...all of us dressed that way. God that would be so funny."
"Well," Willow drawled, glad that she could make the blonde laugh like that, "Halloween is around the bend. We could probably convince everyone to play the parts."
"That would be picture worthy. Let's see if we can talk everyone in to it."
"Would Faith where a dog costume?"
"Well, probably not, but we could at least get her to wear a collar."
The night wore on with plans of trying to convince everyone to dress up like the cast of the famous cartoon. Before long Buffy yawned and noticed the sun was starting to rise.
"So Wills, you ready to go?"
"Don't wanna. It's nice up here."
"It is, but it's almost 6"
"No...it's not..." Looking down at her watch she did a double take. "or maybe it is. Ok, ok let's go."
The girls got up, stretched and walked back to the dorms.