It felt like an eternity, but when Willow looked over at her digital alarm clock, she saw that she had only been lying in bed for about twenty minutes. She already knew that this was not going to be a good night for her. She wasnÕt getting to sleep any time soon, that was for sure. As long as she could stop thinking...

Willow rolled from her side onto her back and sighed. This was just unbelievable. Things like this should only happen to actors in bad horror movies, not to her.

The guy she liked was a werewolf.

Just her luck. Who else could this happen to but her? Well, despite the fact that Buffy and Xander had both dated some kind of creature... This was the second time she was faced with her boyfriend being something other than what she thought, and she didnÕt like this trend. But she was sitting right on top of the Hellmouth, after all. The center of mystical convergence. That was the reason this was happening. Normal things did not occur here. It wasnÕt like it was her fault or anything.

No, it wasnÕt her fault and she knew that. She didnÕt blame herself for anything that happened here. But where did this leave her now? Willow really did like Oz- a lot- and she actually felt something for him that she had only before felt for Xander. Oz made her feel special, and he didnÕt ignore her, like Xander sometimes did.

Then she had to ask herself the big question. Was she going to be able to handle dating a werewolf?

Buffy had been able to handle dating Angel, but look how that one had turned out. Now he was sending her ÒpresentsÓ in the form of dead friends, a fact that did not rest well with Willow. Teresa was the first, but who was next? She dismissed the thought. That was another worry altogether. This one was about Oz. She could deal with the Angel situation later, like tomorrow.

There were differences between the suddenly-canceled romance between Buffy and Angel, and WillowÕs potential relationship with Oz. For one, Angel was a vampire all the time, and they couldnÕt change that. Oz was only a werewolf for a few days out of the month, and only at night. Plus, he could be restrained. HeÕd had those chains out, so he was willing to lock himself up. Besides, Giles had assured her that as long as he didnÕt scratch or bite her, that she would be all right.

For a brief moment, WillowÕs head cleared of these horrid thoughts and it was a good moment. Maybe she could actually stop thinking and get some sleep tonight. But as soon as she closed her eyes, she remembered him standing over her back in the forest, having absolutely no recognition for who she was, or what she meant to him in his human state-

What did she mean to him in his human state? Oz had been extremely standoffish to her the last few days, ever since they had gone to see that movie. She doubted that it had anything to do with him being a carnivorous creature of the night. At least not yet.

He had warned her to get out of the house when she came over, though. But she just had to get it all out and tell him what was on her mind. Now that she thought about it, that probably wasnÕt the smartest move she had ever made, but at least now she knew the truth. He did want to protect her. But would he have ever told her his secret? God, why was he so hard to figure out?

Willow sat up in bed and let out a deep sigh, running her fingers through her hair. She was only seventeen, give or take a month or two, and she had to make a decision on whether or not it was worth her sanity to date a guy who mauled and ate people on a regular basis. Although to be truthful, he had never killed any people, just some animals.

ÒOh no,Ó Willow gasped. They had found all those poor little bunnies and... It had been Oz that did that? But actually, it wasnÕt really Oz who did it. Was it?

The gasp turned into a groan and she plopped back onto her pillow. This was not going to be easy. She looked back at the clock. Buffy had told her that she was welcome to call at any time tonight if she needed to talk, but she could guarantee that Buffy was probably out slaying, even thought it was pretty late. She was on her own for now. She had to get through this, and she didnÕt want to bring everything sheÕd been thinking up to Buffy, especially the comparisons to Angel. She could do this. She kind of had to.

It wasnÕt really OzÕs fault that he was like this, was it? He had never asked to be turned into a werewolf. He was apparently pretty freaked out about it, judging from what she had seen when he backed away from her tonight in the library. It wasnÕt like he still wasnÕt Oz. That was why she had tried to convince Giles and Buffy that he didnÕt mean to be a werewolf. And then she shot him with a tranquilizer.

Oh, yeah. That.

Willow hated the thought of shooting Oz, even though it was harmless to him. Just the thought that she had pointed something at him, pulled the trigger and shot him... She was having a lot of bad thoughts tonight. What if Oz remembered that, and he couldnÕt forgive her for that? SheÕd also hit him with a garbage can lid... Never mind that he had basically tried to kill her.

What was this? Was she actually having these thoughts? This was just so inconceivable... She needed to go to sleep. If she slept, she wouldnÕt have these thoughts anymore.

When she wasnÕt able to stand laying in the same place anymore, Willow got up and went downstairs to her kitchen. Her mom would always tell her to try chamomile tea, but caffeine of any kind didnÕt work well with her system. It would just make her more jumpy.

She got a glass from the cabinet and poured herself a glass of ice water from the refrigerator. Maybe it wouldnÕt help her get to sleep, but she couldnÕt just sit in bed and do nothing but think anymore. She needed to move around a little. After downing the water, she went back up to her bedroom.

She started to get into bed, then noticed the fish tank on the table. ÒI forgot to feed you today, didnÕt I?Ó she said. Willow took the container of fish food from next to the tank and sprinkled some in. The fish went right for it. She watched them for a minute. ÒI bet you donÕt stay up late dealing with stuff like this,Ó Willow murmured. ÒLucky fish.Ó

What was scary was that she was almost jealous of those fish now, but that might have been the lack of sleep talking. Time to go back to her bed and try again to get to sleep. The problem was that Willow wasnÕt even tired anymore, which she knew was a bad sign. SheÕd be going to school with bags under her eyes tomorrow...

Tomorrow was not going to be fun. If she hadnÕt seriously injured Oz by shooting him, she would have to see him at school. And then what? What was she going to say to him? /iOh, IÕm really sorry for shooting you last night. And as for you trying to kill me, donÕt worry. I forgive you for it. /i

Which brought a not-so-horrible thought to her mind. Did she forgive him?

That one small idea brought a smile to her face for the first time tonight. What was there really to forgive? Technically, it really wasnÕt Oz that had tried to kill her. He was still the same sweet, wisecracking guy still working on that diminished ninth chord. And they could deal with not seeing each other for three nights a month. At least she knew she could. Willow wasnÕt about to wonder what Oz thought about it. As of now he could still be chained up in his basement or something.

She actually did feel better. And she almost felt tired. She knew how she felt about this situation, about her and Oz. Now to see how Oz felt about it. But it was out of her hands now. The rest was up to him.

Willow got into bed, pulled the covers over her and closed her eyes, and was asleep in under a minute.