Chapter 10

            The following week, Willow and Buffy were walking down the strip to a local Italian restaurant. Since they had met up at Willow's apartment, the redhead had done nothing but prattle on and on about her sordid love life. At one point, she said something that actually peaked Buffy's interest however, and the blonde turned to her friend in surprise.

            "You actually sent yourself flowers?"

            Willow nodded morosely. Then she waved her hands in the air in aggravation. "Sixty dollars I spent on this stupid big floral arrangement, with this little card I planned to leave where Xander would just 'happen' to notice it."

            "What'd it say?"

            Willow sighed. "Please say yes. Love, Jonathan."

            Buffy's hand flew to her mouth in an attempt to stifle a laugh. "Oh, Wills, not Jonathan." Off her friend's nod, Buffy asked, "So, what'd Xander say to that?"

            Willow blew air out through thinned lips and shook her head. "He never even came over. Got roped into some charity thing his bitch-wife Anya was throwing." She turned to Buffy with expressive doe-eyes. "He's never going to leave her."

            Buffy sighed as she felt the urge to shake some sense into Willow by force. "Of course not, honey. We all know this."

            "You're right," the redhead responded, trying to convince herself. "You're right, you're right. Definitely." She paused then sighed. "It's just… This whole thing is enough to make me just want to become a lesbian."

            Buffy laughed and shook her head.

            "So," Willow asked. "Where is this place?"

            "Somewhere in the next block or so."

            "I can't believe I'm doing this."

            "What, eating dinner?" Buffy asked in confusion.

            "No, doofus," Willow replied. "Letting you set me up."

            "Look," Buffy rationalized. "Spike is one of my best friends. You are one of my best friends. If for some reason you two manage to hit it off, then we can all remain friends, instead of drifting apart if you both find other people."

            Willow looked at her with a funny expression. "We haven't drifted apart since I started seeing Xander…"

            "If you wound up with Xander and he ever actually left Anya, we would," Buffy insisted.

            "He's never going to leave her," Willow pouted.

            Buffy rolled her eyes discreetly. "Of course he isn't."

            This was followed by another litany of "you're right" by Willow as they continued walking to the restaurant.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

            Oz shook his head at Spike as they continued from their end of the sidewalk towards the restaurant as well. "I can't believe I let you talk me into this, man. If she's so great, why aren't you going out with her?"

            "Look, mate," Spike said, blowing out the smoke he had inhaled from his cigarette. "I told you, we're just friends."

            "So, you're saying she's not that attractive?"

            "Hell no! The bint's gorgeous!"

            "But you said she had a great personality," Oz protested.

            "Well, she does." Spike shook his head as he muttered to himself. "Bloody great personality."

            "Look," Oz rationalized. "Whenever someone's described as having a 'great personality', that means she's too fugly for any guy in his right mind to take out."

            Spike felt a pang of offense on Buffy's behalf before insisting. "Oz, man, if I'd only said that she had a great personality, you might have had a point. But I also told you the bird was a looker. What more do you want?"

            There was silence before Oz asked again, "So, which one is she?"

            "She's bloody attractive as hell."

            "But not beautiful, right?"

            Spike only glared at his friend in response.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

            Once the four had met up and sat within the restaurant ordering drinks, conversation began to progress between them. Buffy and Spike struggled to avoid each other's gaze, for fear that they wouldn't be able to see their plans to match their friends up with them through.

            "So, luv," Spike drawled casually to Willow. "Where are you from?"

            "New York City," she replied bouncily. "You?"

            "I'm from Sunnydale, California."

            Willow's brow creased in a small frown. "I've never heard of it."

            "It's a nice place to live," he said.

            "Oh, I'm sure it is," she agreed politely.

            Everyone traded awkward glances before staring at their menus. Buffy sighed as she re-read the same list of entrees for the umpteenth time.

            Spike watched her twirl a strand of hair around her finger and wondered again why he was talking to her friend instead of taking Buffy home and pressing her into the mattress of his bed. "So," he said to the group. "Are we ready to order yet?"

            Willow sighed and shook her head. "I can't make heads or tails of the menu. I mean, I've never eaten at an Italian restaurant before. I always eat Chinese."

            A smile quirked Spike's lips as he looked Buffy in the eye. "Well, luv, we can't exactly eat Chinese nowadays."

            Willow frowned. "Why not?"

            Buffy cleared her throat in a warning that Spike promptly ignored. "Buffy has seen to it that we are effectively persona non grata as far as the restaurant's managers are concerned."

            Buffy flushed bright pink as she glared at Spike, kicking him under the table for good measure. She stared down at her menu and derailed the conversation by announcing, "I'll have the fettuccini alfredo."

            Spike smirked and turned to Oz. "Mate, Buffy is a terrific orderer. It's not that she just always picks the greatest thing on the bloody menu, but she orders it in such a way that not even the chef could have predicted how great it would turn out."

            As Oz looked at him in amused confusion, Spike's other shin received an equally harsh kick. Looking up, he easily caught the murderous glint in Buffy's eyes. He smiled and shrugged politely.

            Willow leaned back and began humming softly. As she drummed her fingers lightly on the table, waiting for the waitress to come by their table, Oz looked at her in curiosity. She stopped and stared back at him. "What?" she asked politely.

            Oz shook his head. "That song, 'Drowning in You'? I wrote it."

            Willow looked at him, fish mouthed. "You did? You're the lead singer of Dingoes Ate My Baby? Oh my goddess! I love your band!" She shook her head. "I can't believe I didn't recognize you!"

            Oz smiled back at her. "Yeah, no one's ever sung one of my own songs to me before," he laughed.

            Buffy and Spike just stared at their friends as they appeared to hit it off with each other more than the people they were intended to be paired up with.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

            After the meal, the foursome practically waddled out of the restaurant, having eaten enough to support a small platoon. Spike stretched his arms over his head and groaned as his full stomach protested. "That was a great bite," he announced casually. "Want to walk around a bit?"

            The other three agreed and they started meandering aimlessly down the sidewalk. Somehow, Willow and Oz had become inseparable and fell easily into step beside each other. Buffy and Spike walked awkwardly in silence, trapped next to each other, neither of them admitting that they secretly preferred it that way. As they walked past a dress shop, Buffy felt herself yanked by the arm over to the display window. Turning, she saw Willow's flushed face.

            "Buffy," she gasped.

            "Do you like him?" Buffy asked hopefully. Please, oh please, Wills, she pleaded mentally. Take him off my hands so I don't wind up doing something he'll regret…

            "Spike?" Willow's frown reappeared. "Oh, yeah, I mean he's nice and all… But his friend, Oz?" She sighed dreamily. "Can I have him?"

            Buffy stood there, shocked for a moment. "Uh… s-sure… I guess," she floundered.

            "Oh, thanks, Buff!" Willow exclaimed happily, throwing her arms around her friend's neck in a hug.

            Patting her back, Buffy gasped, "Willow, oxygen becoming an issue, sweetie."

            "Oh, sorry," the redhead apologized, pulling back with a smile.

            "It's okay," Buffy sighed, wondering what she would do about Spike now. Hoping to stall her friend, she said conspiratorially, "It's just… Spike's been going through this rough 'alone time' and he's fragile now. Although, being the total guy, he'd never admit it… But, for his ego's sake, don't reject him right away, okay?"

            Willow nodded. "Oh, totally."

            Meanwhile, Oz had leaned over to Spike while they watched the girls have their secret conversation. "If you don't think you're going to call Willow, do you mind if I do, man?"

            Spike looked at the shorter man in surprise. "Well, no," he said slowly, not without a small glimmer of happiness in the back of his mind. "But, for Buffy's sake, wait a bit? The chit's been through hell in the dating world, lately. Give it about a week, eh, mate?"

            Oz shook Spike's hand and winked. "Oh, I completely understand. Thanks man."

            The women joined them and they continued walking, coming in short time to a spot on the street where the taxis were lined up, waiting for their fares.

            Willow stretched in a dramatic display of exhaustion. "Well," she yawned. "I'm beat. I think I'll be going home now. I think I'll just catch a cab…"

            Oz jumped in with, "I'll go with you."

            "Great!" Willow beamed, trying to hide her excitement, as they both jumped into the back seat of a nearby cab and it sped off.

            Buffy turned to Spike in surprise as he stared back at her. They stood in silence, contemplating their bizarre evening and the abandonment by their friends. Finally, Buffy raised an eyebrow and gestured down the street.

            "Baskin Robbins?"

            Spike nodded and lit a cigarette. "Bloody right."

            They shook their heads and laughed as they proceeded to the ice cream shop to drown their sorrows.