Chapter Seven

Fourth Week in January - Week Seven

"Xander are you sure you want to go out tonight?" Willow asks looking between the window in the kitchen overlooking the racing snow and Xander who is dressed in preparation for his date with the woman Robin had set him up with.

"Wil, I'll be fine, unless you don't want me to go out, cause if you don't..."

Willow focuses on the outdoors, "I don't care of you go, you just aren't very used to driving on the snow."

"We've been here nearly a month, it's snowed most of the time we've been here, I'll be fine. Besides I'm only driving to Robin's, we're actually double dating. He's going out with a friend and I'm going out with a friend of Robin's friend."

"Robin's dating again?" Willow asks turning to face Xander again, slightly surprised by this news.

"Well yeah," Xander is startled by Willow's surprise at the statement, "why wouldn't he be?"

"Well he and Faith just..."

"I'm sorry Wil, but it's not as if Faith is one of those girls that once you've been with her you can't go back. And that's a good thing actually considering she's been with..."

"Xander," the severity in Willow's voice is the last thing Xander expects.

"Wil, what's with you tonight?" Xander asks, "are you sure you don't want me to stay home? If you're not feeling well I can just reschedule this date, it won't be a problem."

Willow shakes her head, "no, I'm fine. Just a little tired I guess, the kids were kind of off the wall today, probably because it was Friday. I think I'll see if Oria wants to order a movie off the TV tonight and then go to bed early."

"You're sure?" Xander clarifies.

Willow nods, "positive. Have a good time." Quickly Willow adjusts Xander's shirt and patting his chest she states, "alright you look good, have fun."

"Okay," Xander kisses Willow's cheek. "Get some rest, and call me if you want me to bring anything home."

"I will." Willow nods as Xander leaves the house.

"Bye Oria!" Xander calls before he slams the door behind himself.

Willow stares after Xander long past the time when she can see his car turn the corner and Oria startles Willow, "you love him, don't you?"

Willow turns to face Oria a blush creeping up her cheeks, "of course I love Xander. I'm having a baby with him and I've known him my entire life."

"That's not what I mean." Oria's dark eyes focus on Willow and they make her shift uncomfortably.

"Well that's the only way that I love him, or didn't they tell you in Rome that I'm not so interested..."

"Yeah, yeah gay and all that." Oria responds with a wave of her hand.

"Then why are you asking me this?" Willow asks.

Oria shrugs, "I've seen you two together, there's definitely something between you two."

Willow's eyes go wide with shock, "I really have no idea what you are talking about! I'm gay. I'm gay and I don't love Xander that way!"

Oria shrugs again, "if you say so. I'm just calling it like I see it and this is the way I see it."

"I'm going to my room, I'll see you tomorrow." Willow nearly snaps at Oria before quickly disappearing out of the kitchen.

Once in the quiet of her room Willow flops on her bed still annoyed that Oria would even say such a thing. She was gay, she had been for years. She'd loved Tara, and a part of her still loved Tara. She mourned after Tara's death and she'd loved and mourned for Kennedy as well. But everything she had ever had with Tara had been beautiful, like nothing she had ever felt before and that was how Willow knew that she was gay. She and Tara had completed each other and that was how Willow knew that she couldn't be in love with her best friend, maybe she had been when she was younger but not anymore.

Sure, there had been that thing last week but that was fluke, her hormones were out of balance. They may have been close to kissing but Willow had pulled away because she knew that there was nothing but crazy hormones to back it up and it would have weirded both of them out in the end. And God knows that things were already weird enough between her and Xander without the weirdness of them kissing on top of all of that.

Rolling across her bed Willow reaches for the phone, she needed to talk to someone, anyone, and her fingers nearly dial out the numbers to Rome before she remembers that she hasn't spoken to Buffy in a month and that a part of her is still mad at her best friend for not supporting her in this.

"So what do yo think of her, Xander?" Robin inquires once they have dropped both of their dates of at the apartment they shared.

"Well, she's not a demon." Xander responds.

"That's all you have to say?" Robin asks, "she's not a demon?"

Xander laughs, "no. Actually I liked her a lot, she's funny not to mention gorgeous. We're actually going to go out again. Come on, when you meet a girl and she doesn't A. Turn into a demon, B. Doesn't try to sacrafice you to a heathen God and C. Doesn't freak out when you explain that you are having a baby with your lesbian best friend you know she's someone you have to go out with again."

Robin nods with a laugh, "guess so."