They'd expected The Bronze to be more crowded. Normally, Tara didn't like crowds, but she'd have preferred probable anonymity to sharing this too-small table with Faith. Sitting across from her, with no vampires to attract her attention, Faith had clearly made it her mission to unsettle Tara, which was more than a little disconcerting, because Faith had a way of unsettling Tara when she wasn't even trying to. Tara's big mistake had been to show it. Faith didn't love a challenge, she loved a game. She was playing one now, stirring the toothpick in her martini. The toothpick was stacked with olives, and Faith took one between her teeth and ate it slowly, too slowly, so that Tara could see her tongue.
Why can't you just look away? Tara asked herself, but she didn't want to listen for the answer. Her seltzer, she decided, wasn't fizzing enough and that's what had her on edge.
"So who are you when you drop it?" Faith asked.
"Drop…drop what?"
Faith smiled. Tara hated when Faith smiled. Her smile always looked cruel, like she was going to say something vicious, which she was, and it was also impossible to look away from, because Faith — Tara couldn't deny this, and she would never try — was beautiful.
"You know what. The whole look at me look at me I'm so shy and soft and timid…thing," Faith said, gesturing toward Tara's face and body, implying everything about her was part of this act. "Don't get me wrong, the whole uberfemme deal is hot, I can see how you turned our Willow, but it's gotta get old, right? Acting like you don't have your own opinions?"
"I don't act like that," Tara said, the syllables coming out in staccato. "I have opinions."
"Yeah?"
Faith smiled again. Tara was really hating this. "What do you think of me?"
"I think you're…"
Faith plucked another olive off the toothpick with her teeth, theatrically licking it this time.
"You think I'm hot?"
"I—"
"You can tell me," Faith said. "If you do. I won't tell anyone."
"I think you're…"
"You can also tell me if you don't," faith assured her, sipping her martini. "I can take it. I'm not everyone's cup of tea."
"I…I think you probably are," Tara ventured.
"Oh yeah?" Faith ate her last olive, this time rolling the green sphere with her tongue. "That's flattering. You're saying everyone would bang me if they had the chance?"
"I don't see w—why not," Tara answered.
"Yeah well. I don't see why anyone would turn you down either. But you act like you don't know what you've got."
"I don't…I mean…"
"Come on," Faith said, slamming down her now-empty martini glass. "Those hips? Those bedroom eyes? Those sensuous-as-fuck lips and those soft, soft curves of yours? You know exactly what you are. You'd have to."
Tara gulped down her seltzer and stifled a burp. "I thought you didn't like girls," she said. "I mean like that. I thought you didn't like girls like—"
"You thought I don't fuck women?" Faith assisted. "I mean. Not many. I'm a fan of the D, it's true. A big fan. Especially if it's big a D. But I've met a Suzy here and there who can do a lot of things with her tongue. That's you, right?"
"I…"
"Drop it, Tara."
"There's no 'it'!" Tara shouted, standing up instinctively. The clusters of people on the dance floor turned and stared. "Sorry," she said to them. "I thought I saw a cockroach." Sitting back down, she looked at Faith. "I really am like this," she whispered through gritted teeth.
"What if I told you that martinis tend to get me going," Faith said. "And I had a couple before you got here, and now I wanna go somewhere and feel everything you can do with your tongue, maybe get those hips grinding against me? What would you say to that?"
"I…that sounds…I mean…if…you're…"
Right at that moment, Tara felt Willow's familiar arms slide around her shoulders from behind. "Hey, honey, sorry I'm late," she said, kissing Tara's cheek. "What'd I miss?"
Faith laughed. "Miss? You see any bleeding bodies here yet? There's nothing to miss if no vamps or demons are keeping things exciting. Nothing ever happens in this shithole."
"No one said you had to stay in Sunnydale if you hate it that much," Willow said. "We've got things under control here. Me and Buffy and—"
"You do, don't you? All of you are exactly where you're supposed to be. Maybe I will leave." She looked at Tara. "Would you miss me, if I did?"
Tara bit her lip. "I think that's one! A vamp I mean. Right—never mind."
"Are you okay?" Willow asked.
"Fine," Tara said. "Just thirsty."
"Are you?" Faith said. "That's a shame. You shouldn't have to be left like that. Thirsty."
"I'll get another drink," Tara said.
"Good, you do that."
"What's going on here?" Willow asked.
"Same thing that's going on every night, Pinky," Faith drawled. "Absolute fuck-all."
"I'm gonna go get myself a vodka and cranberry, you two want anything?" Willow asked.
"I'm good," Faith said.
"Me too, I'm good," Tara said. "I'm fine." She picked up her seltzer to drink the last sip, forgetting that her glass was empty.