Fic: Everyone else could see it (1/3) B/W NC17

["TheBear" <thebear@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Title: Everyone else could see it.

Author: The Bear

Rating: NC-17 overall (this part is PG-13)

Pairing: Buffy/Willow

Spoilers: Nothing specific- takes place in season 4 sometime soon after
Hush.

Disclaimer: Obviously, I don?t own them. You can tell by the fact that
I let them have some small measure of happiness.

Summary: It?s obvious to everyone around them, now everyone?s sharing?

Author?s note: No kink in this one. It?s a free standing story- not
related to any of my others, and not likely to become a series.

***

Part 1

It was 6pm on a Friday night, and Buffy and Riley were sitting at the
espresso pump waiting for her cousin Julie and her husband Jim to
arrive. Buffy had been ?officially? seeing Riley for a couple weeks now
and they were hooking up with Julie and Jim for a sort of dinner date.  

She hadn?t seen Julie since she had moved to Sunnydale, but they kept in
contact with frequent letters and phone calls. Julie didn?t know about
the slaying, but she knew about pretty much everything else that had
happened in Buffy?s life. She knew about her friends, boyfriends; even
her watcher- though she didn?t know he was her watcher, of course. She
just knew that Giles was like her surrogate father.

Buffy smiled at Riley, he, of course, stupidly smiled right back at her.
Not that Buffy thought of it as stupid, more like? automatic. Anyone
else would have described it as ?stupidly?. (There was an unfortunate
bovine similitude to Riley?s intellect and conversational ability.)  

Though only ?official? for a couple of weeks now, they had spent a month
getting to know one another and such, so really it was more like a six
weeks. Buffy thought was a really great guy, well built, classic
American good looks and totally devoted to her. She told anyone that
would listen that he was pretty much the perfect boyfriend.

?So why don?t I love him?? she wondered, not for the first time.

***

Willow Rosenberg was heading to the espresso pump for some much-needed
caffeine. She?d had a long day of classes and homework and needed a
pick-me-up. (Yes, she had her entire weekend?s homework done by 6pm
Friday. She was Willow Rosenberg, after all.) 

She noticed Buffy and Riley sitting at one of the tables and walked over
to say hi. She didn?t particularly like her roommate?s boyfriend. It
wasn?t really that she hated him? If he weren?t dating Buffy, she
probably wouldn?t have any opinion about him at all.  

Unfortunately, Willow was madly in love with her best friend. She was
just too cowardly to admit it in the face of Buffy?s unrelenting
heterosexuality. Thus, it was pretty much a guarantee that she was not
going to like anyone Buffy chose as boyfriend.

?Hey you two! Friday evening Caffeine fix, huh? Great minds must think
alike!? Willow said as she bounced over to the couple. Mentally she
only included Buffy in the description, but Riley would never know that.

Buffy smiled that smile that sharp observers had come to think of as her
Willow Smile. ?Hey Will! What?s up??

Willow grinned, ?School hard, Need Caffeine.? She said in a
mock-imitation of Buffy?s time as ?cave slayer?- always guaranteed to
get a blush out of Buffy. ?What?s up with you guys,? she added, trying
not to obviously cut Riley out of the conversation. She always
supported Buffy, even if she was dating a cardboard cutout.

Riley said, ?Hi, Willow. We were just waiting for Buffy?s cousin to get
here. She and her husband are supposed to meet us for dinner.? He
tried not to be obvious about wanting Willow to leave, but subtlety had
never been one of his strong points.

Riley didn?t know why Willow bothered him. She was a nice girl, smart
and a good student; she was Buffy?s best friend. Maybe he was just
jealous of the time Buffy spent with her, or the way Buffy went on and
on, Willow this and Willow that. If Willow had been a guy, Riley would
have worried about the competition.

Willow was able to see the subtext of Riley's comment- after all, it was
printed in big block-style letters, how could she miss it? ?Oh, ok.
I?ll leave you guys alone,? she said brightly, as though it was no
problem what so ever.

Buffy frowned slightly at her boyfriend and caught Willow?s hand before
she could take off. ?No Will. Stay and hang out, at least till they
get here.?

Willow couldn?t resist a smile from Buffy, especially when she didn?t
want to anyway. ?Ok Buff.?

***

Riley tried not to glower as Buffy and Willow chatted, ignoring him
almost totally. Willow occasionally tried to draw him into the
conversation, but Buffy had eyes for no one but Willow.

About 10 minutes later Buffy?s cousin showed up.

?Buffy! God, it?s been years! How are you!? Julie fairly shouted,
running up and grabbing Buffy in a hug.

Willow had a momentary pang of jealousy seeing this lithe, 5? 10? blonde
running up and hugging her Buffy, more so even than she felt when she
saw her and Riley together. ?Probably ?cause it?s another woman,? she
thought. She realized that she was being silly. Buffy was into men,
not women. And, even if she did like women, this was her cousin. Not a
potential rival. ?Rival?? Willow rolled her eyes at her own overactive
imagination.

?God, it?s good to see you Julie!? Buffy said as she returned the hug.
Breaking away, she looked at the handsome Man just over her shoulder.
He was 6? 1?, built like a swimmer- long and lean. Very masculine
facial features and his chestnut locks were styled in a smart, short
haircut.

Julie half turned and pulled the man to he side, ?This is Jim!? she
gushed.  

Jim stuck his hand out, giving Buffy a firm shake. He didn?t even raise
an eyebrow when Buffy matched his strength, nor did he try to squeeze
harder. This earned him several brownie points in Buffy?s book- usually
men were instantly threatened when she demonstrated a strong grip.  

Buffy turned back to Julie and said, ?Oh, this is Willow.? She was
going to say more, when Julie interrupted.

?Willow Rosenberg?? she said, looking at the redhead. ?God, I finally
get to meet the legend??

Willow?s eyebrows climbed and she turned to look at Buffy, the question
clearly showing on her face.

Buffy blushed fiercely, and avoided everyone?s gaze.

Willow turned back to Buffy?s cousin, trying to figure out what she was
talking about. ?Legend??

?Oh my God! Are you kidding me? Buffy talks incessantly about you.?
Julie pulled Willow into a startled hug.  

?Uh, nice to meet you too?? Willow said hesitantly when Julie pulled
away.

Julie laughed out loud, ?She?s just like you described her, cuz!? she
said to Buffy, who was still not meeting Willow?s eyes.

?Ok, so Buffy?s cousin is a little? enthusiastic. That?s ok, I guess,?
Willow thought.

Jim stuck his hand out to Willow and she tentatively shook it, ?It?s
good to meet you, Willow,? he said. ?I get the backlash from these
two?s conversations as it is, are you joining us for dinner??

Willow realized that no one had even spoken to Riley, yet. While she
didn?t really like him, it was rather inconsiderate of Buffy not to even
introduce her boyfriend. It was also rather inconsiderate of Willow to
keep intruding, so she stopped. ?No, no. I?ve got study group tonight.
I just stopped in for coffee and saw Buffy and Riley and stopped to chat
for a little bit. So, it was great meeting you guys, and I hope you
have a good time.? Turning to Buffy, she ducked a bit, trying to catch
her gaze and saying, ?And when you get back to the dorm tonight, you can
explain to me what your cousin was talking about!?

Buffy blushed again and said, ?Uh, she?s exaggerating, Will.? Glancing
up and seeing the clear disbelief in Willow?s expression, she added,
?Really!?

Willow just shook her head and, saying her goodbye?s once again, bounced
off to get her caffeine fix.

Jim, confused, asked, ?Who?s Riley??

Buffy grabbed the aforementioned automaton, er? person and said
brightly, ?Oh, this is Riley. My boyfriend.?

Greetings were more subdued this go-around. 

As, Riley was trying, and failing, to assert his Alpha status via the
traditional male handshaking ritual, Julie saw Buffy watching Willow
walk away. The look on her face was a combination of pleasure, desire,
longing, and excitement.  

?Oh girl, you?ve got it bad?? Julie thought.

***

By the time they got through dinner, Riley was thoroughly pissed off.
He?d been humiliated by everyone fawning over Willow and completely
ignoring him when Buffy?s cousin first got there. Add to that the fact
that Buffy and Julie spent most of the evening sharing and reminiscing
over anecdotes of which he had no knowledge. Even that would have been
ok, a chance to get to know a little more about his girlfriend; however,
all of Buffy?s stories had starred ?Guess Who?? *Willow!*

He?d tried to start a conversation a couple of times with Jim, but
received only monosyllabic answers in return. Either Jim didn?t like
football, or he was actually captivated by the two girls discussion.
Riley thought Jim was kinda boring; ?What guy doesn?t like football??he
thought.

***

Between the entrée and desert, Julie grabbed Buffy and dragged her to
the tittle-tattle room. As Julie powdered her nose and added lipstick,
she pressed Buffy on the Riley issue.

?Well, what?s the deal with your boyfriend?? she asked.

?Whaddya mean?? Buffy asked, confused.

Julie looked at her like she was daft, ?Well? he?s kinda? boring.?

?He?s not boring, he?s a nice, normal guy!? Buffy protested. Her
objection sounded a little weak, even to herself.

Julie turned around and looked at her cousin with something akin to
disdain on her face. ?Yeah. Boring. I said that already.?

?Hey, after my last few boyfriends, nice and normal aren?t such a bad
thing.? Buffy defended herself. If her defense against vampires had
ever been that weak, she?d have been vamp-chow ages ago.

Julie rolled her eyes. ?How long have you been seeing this clown
anyway??

?About a month or so? and Hey! Enough with the Riley-bashing already,?
Buffy whined. 

?Is he at least any good in the sack?? Julie asked, looking for some
reason her cousin was staying with this loser.

Buffy blushed and ducked her head, not saying anything.

Julie jumped on it, ?Aha! Lemme guess, missionary only, 5 minutes of
sweating and you have to fake it, ?cause he?s done.? Not getting any
response she continued, ?And, I bet he constantly asks you how good it
was, am I right??

Buffy just glared at the other blonde.

?I don?t hear a denial!? Julie sing-songed.

?Can we not talk about Riley for a minute?? Buffy asked plaintively.

?You know Jim and I have been seeing Tracy.? Julie said.

Confused at the non sequitor, Buffy shook her head before responding,
?Yeah I still can?t believe you?re having a ménage a trios!? she said,
acting shocked.

Julie smiled broadly, ?Well, I think you should really consider hooking
up with Willow,? she suggested.

Buffy choked, ?What! Where the heck did that come from??

?I?m serious, Buffy,? Julie said.

Buffy was stunned, ?You think I should try to get Willow involved with
Riley and me?? she asked, slowly, as if trying to grasp the concept.
The image of Willow- naked, flushed and whimpering beneath her- popped
unbidden into Buffy?s mind.

Julie actually shuddered at the thought of Riley touching the physical
perfection that was her cousin and the sweet redhead. ?No! God, No!?
she exclaimed.

Buffy was relieved and confused, ?Oh, well I thought??- the image of
Willow in the throes of passion remained in her head.

Julie interrupted to clarify her advice. ?No Buffy, you need to kick
Bland Boy there to the curb! I think you and Willow would be very
happy together.?

Now Buffy was truly shocked. When she found her voice, she said ?Oh my
God! Julie! Neither of us is into girls! How could you even think??
Buffy almost shouted.

Julie stood there, hands on hip like she was taking to a child, ?Buffy,
I saw the way you looked at her when she left us earlier this evening.?
She pressed on, overriding Buffy?s protestations of heterosexuality,
?Buffy! I hear the way you talk about her, and I?ve read the way you
write about her. I think the only reason you haven?t considered it is
because you are stuck on the fact that she?s a woman.?

?Well, of course I?m stuck on that!? Buffy almost shouted. ?Julie,I?m
not gay! Or bi- or whatever! I?ve never??

Julie put her hands on Buffy?s shoulders, interrupting her once again.
?Buffy, it?s not about having a preference for one gender over the
other. Jim and I aren?t with Tracy just for the sex. We both love her,
and can?t imagine being without her, or without each other. That?s why
we?re together.?

Buffy tried to interrupt, ?But??

Julie cut her off, giving her a little shake, ?Who do you spend most of
your free time with?? she asked.

?Well, we live together?? Buffy began.

?When you think about going out and having a great time, who do you
think of?? Julie pressed, making Buffy answer without giving a lot of
thought.

?But we?re best friends?? Buffy started to explain.

Julie smirked. ?God, she?s being stubborn about this,? she thought.
?Think about the most fun times you have had in the last twelve months.
Who were you with?? 

?Well, uh?? Buffy trailed off, realizing the answer to all of the
questions was the same; Willow.

Julie was relentless. She knew from letters and phone calls that Buffy
loved Willow like no one else, she just had to get her cousin to see it
for herself. ?When you need a shoulder to cry on, or someone to talk
about stuff with, or just someone to be with to cheer you up, who do you
think of before anyone else?? she asked, softly.

?Willow,? she whispered; almost surprised by the answer herself.

Thinking she had the last nail in the coffin, Julie asked, ?How long
have you been dating Riley??

Buffy was suddenly wary, not wanting to have to defend her boyfriend
against any more put-downs, no matter how accurate or well deserved they
might be. ?Uh, about three or four weeks??

?In the last month you and I have talked on the phone three times, and
you sent me, like ten emails, right?? Julie asked.

Thrown by the apparent change in topic, Buffy had to think about it for
a moment. ?Yeah, I guess so, why??

Julie smiled warmly at her beloved cousin. ?In all that you never once
mentioned that you were even dating someone, let alone gave me his name.
But you never failed to mention the latest thing you and Willow were
doing.? She gave Buffy?s shoulders one last gentle squeeze and then let
them go. She turned to leave the bathroom, saying, ?Think about that
for a minute Buffy. Just think about it.?

***

Please feed The Bear!- 

Also, my website has moved- and I?ve added some Buffy/Willow,
Willow/Tara, and just plain Willow Pix. (as well as my fics)

TheBear!

thebear@xxxxxxxxxxxxx

http://www.papa-bear.com