"Hey, Willow. You ready for your debut?" Oz asked jumping off the stage.
"Uh, actually no," Willow said.
"What do you mean?"
"There are people here. They'll be watching me. I can't sing
in front of
people. I .."
"Get stage fright?"
"Yes."
"Willow, there is nothing to be afraid of. It's still early,
and there
aren't that many people here yet," Oz assured her.
"There are plenty of people. Too many people! I'll go up there
and my
throat will close
up and I'll start sweating ... and when I try to sing, I'll
be horrible."
"Willow, you sing wonderfully and besides I'll be on stage with
you the
whole time."
"You will?" Willow asked hopefully.
"Of course. I'm in the band remember," Oz teased, as his heart
soared at
the tone of her
voice.
"Oh yeah. But the people-"
"They'll love you," he said firmly.
"But, my throat ... and," she said.
"Have you ever sung on stage before?"
"Well, no. But ... "
"Then you can't be sure how you'll react."
"But-"
"And now, we have a guest singer. Miss Willow Rosenburg singing
'Come to
My
Window'," the lead singer announced. Her friends looked up in
amazement,
with their
mouths hanging open.
"Oh no!" Willow said, beginning to freak out again.
"They will love you. Now, let's get up on stage," Oz said.
"Right. You'll be there?" Willow said, trying to regain her confidence.
"I'm right behind you," Oz said, as they got up on stage. Willow
approached
the
microphone as Oz picked up his guitar.
"Umm ... This song is for a good friend of mine and for all couples.
And I
hope she
knows who she's supposed to be with for this one," Willow said,
attempting
to crack a
joke. The crowd giggled and Buffy mouthed a thanks. The intro
music began
to play, and
Willow began to sing. Buffy sat and cuddled with Angel, as she
watched her
friend sing.
Despite Willow's fear, she sang beautifully. By the end of the
first verse,
Willow was
totally relaxed. She was jamming with Oz during the instrumentals
and
looked like she
was having the time of her life. Buffy could only think, that
if Oz could
bring this out in
Willow, he must be the best thing for her.
The song was soon over. The crowd broke into applause, as the
song ended.
Willow
made a sweeping bow, before leaving the stage. Her checks were
flushed and
she was
wearing a huge smile. "I don't think anyone wants to follow
that, so were
taking five," an
announcer said, as the band piled off the stage. Willow was
jumping up and
down at the
stage side ecstatically.
"You were wonderful!!" Oz told her.
"I've never had so much FUN! Once I got over my stage fright,
I was fine.
It was
great!!" Willow replied.
"I told you you'd be wonderful"
"I'd have backed out if it wasn't for you," she told him. Suddenly
a
wonderful thought
occurred to Willow. She stopped jumping up and down and a suspicion
glint
came to her
eyes. "I'd like to thank you," she told him sweetly.
"Oh, I don't-" Oz began, but Willow effectively interrupted him
by placing a
hand behind
his head and kissing him. For a moment, Oz's eyes widen in surprise,
before
he returned
the kiss. It was quick kiss, but it got both their attentions.
Willow had
suddenly lost all the resolve she had had moments ago. She could
only stare
into his eyes.
"Wow. You know I don't usually like thank yous <Willow blushed
and turned
away. He
put his hand on her cheek and turned her toward him, but she
avoided his
eyes> but I like
thank yous from you," he told her sincerely. Willow blushed
and looked into
his eyes.
"I'm not usually so forward," she said drawing away.
"I'm going to ask you something, but I'm still nervous 'cause
it's Willow,
you know."
"I understand. Well sort of, I mean I understand, but it's the
other way
around for me."
"Oh," Oz said, a little confused.
"You see I'm naturally shy, 'cause I don't want to risk saying
something
wrong. But with
you, ... it's you," she finished rather lamely.
"Oh," he said dejectedly.
"No, no. That's a good thing. It means ... your worth the risk,"
Willow
said, trying to get the right words out. Oz visibly brightened
and a smile
lighted his face.
"Well, the band doesn't have a gig tomorrow night. You want to
go with me
to the
Bronze tomorrow?" Oz asked.
"Sure," Willow replied happily.
"Great," Oz said. The band started finishing what they were doing
and
coming back
towards the stage.
"I'm sure the band will be great tonight," Willow said, abruptly
changing
the subject.
"I hope so. We're still trying to get past the 'we suck' stage."
"Oh, well good luck."
"You know sometimes, a kiss is given for good luck," Oz said.
"Well then, good luck," she said, smiling and giving him a kiss.
"Come on, Oz" Devon said pulling Oz away from Willow and interrupting
what
was
becoming a very, deep kiss. Oz had a glazed look of contentment
on his
eyes
that fairly
matched the one on Willow's as he picked up his guitar.
"Wow," he breathed. Willow watched him for a while before walking
back
towards the
rest of the gang. The glaze had left her eyes, but she still
looked
extremely happy as she
was assaulted with praise of her performance.
"What took you so long, Will?" Xander asked, genuinely puzzled.
"I was just talking with Oz," Willow replied, with seeming lightness.
"Just?" Buffy asked teasingly. Willow blushed a little and looked
up at Oz.
Buffy laughed
and Xander looked shocked. "I'll want all the details later,"
Buffy
demanded. Willow
nodded and smiled to herself. She would tell Buffy about the
kiss, but not
about how
forward she had been. It was just something that, if you hadn't
been there,
you wouldn't
believe it.
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