Work Text:
Chose To
by Ragna
"He chose this, right?"
Buffy stopped punching the punching bag. "Willow, why are you worrying?" She looked at her best friend. "Cordy's vision hasn't been wrong yet."
Willow watched as Buffy sent a kick towards the bag. "But still...he's acting like..."
"He's a lawyer? Because last I heard, that's what he was."
Willow shook her head. "No, like he wants to be back in LA. Like living here isn't exciting enough."
"I could take him on a patrol with me," Buffy offered, punching the bag with a quick series of jabs.
{When will you come clean Clean and lean and mean
When will you come clean Clean and lean and mean
When will you come clean Clean and lean and mean
When will you come clean Clean and lean and mean}
"No, thanks anyway," Willow said, sitting back and watching Buffy take a portion of her aggressions out on the defenseless punching bag. She had a lot of it, but vampires saw most of it. "What can I do?"
"Have you told him you feel that you're a bit on the left out side?" Buffy said, taking a break from the punching bag.
"Not exactly," she said. "I'm supposed to see him later."
"Well, then, tell him." Buffy fixed her ponytail and looked at her best friend. "For all we know, maybe he's got something to say to you that he just can't...what's the word?"
{Come so far I can't go back
Come so far I can't go back
Come so far I can't go back
Come so far}
"Articulate?"
"Yeah, that's it. Articulate."
Willow nodded, then stood up and paced in their dorm room. "All right, then I'll go find him and tell him. Or maybe I won't...I mean, what am I gonna tell him?"
"How about how you feel?" Buffy said, going to their mini-fridge and getting some water.
"Oh, yeah. 'Lindsey, I think I've fallen in love with you and since I think I have, are you going to stay in Sunnydale?' Yeah right, Buffy. That's what I'm going to tell Lindsey."
"Tell me what?"
{When will you wake up
And try to love yourself
When will you wake up
And try to love again}
Willow stood still as a board, then slowly turned to find Lindsey standing in the doorway. "Uh...that I think I might have a great place for your law office," Willow said, glad she actually *did* have a good idea for one.
Lindsey nodded. "I was hoping we could get together now. I have a dinner date this evening."
Willow's heart felt like it was going to break. "Really?"
Lindsey nodded. "Yeah, it's sort of important."
Buffy looked at the two of them. "You know what? I'm going to grab a shower," she said, getting a towel and leaving the room.
{When will you come clean
When will you come clean
When will you come clean
When will you come clean}
Willow sat back down on the bed. "So, now what are we going to do?"
"Did you want to show me the place?"
"Why do you act like you don't want to be here?"
"Come again?"
Willow stood up. "If you want to leave Sunnydale, go ahead." She looked away from him. "I mean, there's always places looking for lawyers, and you don't have to stay here if you don't want to."
Lindsey sighed. "It's not that I don't want to be here..."
{Come so far I can't go back
Come so far I can't go back
Come so far I can't go back
Come so far I can't go back}
"Then what is it?"
"I...I don't know. I just don't really think life is worth living right now. Maybe it's just me, I don't know." He looked over to her. "I'm not going to find another rooftop, I promise."
Willow smiled sadly. "Well, if you were, I would go up and bring you down again."
"You would, wouldn't you?"
"Yeah," she said, standing up. "Well, I have things to do, so..."
{When will you come clean
When will you wake up
Watch out another comes
Watch out another stops}
"The dinner date's with a possible partner for the firm," Lindsey said. "And since you said you were going to be helping, I was hoping you would go with me."
Willow nodded. "All right."
Lindsey paused. "Afterwards, I was wondering if...never mind," he said, shaking his head and heading towards the door.
"What were you wondering?" Willow asked.
"Never mind."
{Clean and lean and mean
Clean and lean and mean}
Lindsey was almost at the door when Willow slammed it shut with the first spell she learned well. "Tell me or I won't go to the dinner."
"I told the partner you were my friend. He was bringing a date, so I said I'd bring someone. But I'd like it if it really was a date and you weren't going out of some sort of obligation you felt towards me."
"Obligation? Why would you be an obligation?"
"Cordy's vision."
"But you aren't an obligation! Wait...how much did she tell you about the vision?"
{Come so far I can't go back
Come so far I can't go back
Come so far I can't go back
Come so far
Come so far...}
Lindsey walked over to the stereo and turned it off. "That you were supposed to save me and then I was going to come here, and then things would happen."
"Well, yeah, things are supposed to happen," Willow said, relaxing a bit. "And you aren't an obligation. I haven't felt like...this...in a long time."
"Felt like what?"
"Well, like someone needed me. I thought you thought I was an obligation, that you were doing all this for me."
"I was doing part of it for you," Lindsey said quietly.
Willow was taken aback. "Which part?"
"Staying here. If you weren't here, I wouldn't stay."
"Why, because I'm such a good friend?" Willow said, shaking her head.
Lindsey lightly took Willow's arm, turned her around and kissed her just as lightly as he'd grabbed her arm. "No, because I'm falling for you."
She looked up at him, her breathing heavier, her heart pounding a million miles a minute. "Lindsey, I wanted you to stay, and I still do, and..."
She stopped talking and kissed him again, using her free hand to pull him closer for a kiss that swept them both off their feet, evidenced by the fact that they fell backwards onto Willow's bed.
But the kiss never stopped.
Buffy opened the door, looked in briefly, and then shut it again, muttering something about now having to meet Riley wearing just a towel. At least they worked their problems out...