Ok…
I was debating posting this fic. I thought it wasn’t good enough..but hey, why not give it a try, right? So..here it goes!


Title: 66 - The road of dreams

Author: onlykaren

Feedback: Yes please, if you want to.

Distribution: Ok.

Disclaimer: I don’t own any of Buffy the Vampire Slayer characters.

Spoilers: None.

Setting: AU.

Rating: PG through to R, maybe a little NC-17.

Pairing: W/T eventually.

Summary: A trip that changes everything.

Note: This is my first attempt at a fic and English is my second language, so I apologize for any misspelling or grammatical errors.

Note2: All the information about Route 66 I got from the Internet, so if there’s anything wrong, I apologize.

***

“If you ever plan to motor west
Travel my way, take the highway that's the best,
Get your kicks on Route 66!

It winds from Chicago to L. A.
More than two thousand miles all the way.
Get your kicks on Route 66!

Now you go through St. Looey, Joplin, Missouri
And Oklahoma City looks mighty pretty.
You'll see Amarillo, Gallup, New Mexico
Flagstaff, Arizona; don't forget Winona,
Kingman, Barstow, San Bernardino.

Won't you get hip to this timely tip
When you make that California trip.
Get your kicks on Route 66.”

Words & Music by Bobby Troup


Part 1


That year wasn’t like the others. It was different not only to the world, but especially to me. It was 1970. The year of the freedom revolution, ‘Peace and Love’…it’d been only a few months after Woodstock. Kids were listening to Beatles, wearing gel in their hair, twirled skirts and stuff like that.

It had been only a few years after President JFK’s death. Well, everything was different, everything was new. And of course, it all began in a quiet neighborhood. The kind that we used to see on ‘The Wonders Years’, with the fathers washing cars, the mothers in the kitchens, the oldest daughters with a Beatles record in hands or a knapsack on their backs.

And who didn’t like that? Well, who didn’t like it, tried to make their own revolution and seek their own freedom. And that was what I did.

But I didn’t do it by myself.

The Summers were a big family that lived beside our house. With time, our parents became friends and we ended up growing up together.

There wasn’t a time when you could not see us together. At school, at home, at the lake. We even had a band called “The Girls”, but that didn’t turned out okay. Well, they were almost like my own sisters.

I say they because there were three of them. Buffy was the oldest sister and also one of my best friends. She used to help me a lot when other kids made fun of me at school and also was always there for me when my mom had passed away. Then there was Dawn, Buffy’s little sister. Well, she was kind of my own little sister too, at least I considered her that way. She was the youngest of us, but not less important. And at last, there was Willow. She wasn’t a Summers sister, but she lived with them most of the time because her parents were never home. She even had her own bedroom there. She was also my best friend and was the one I felt most connected to. Not having our moms there for us, in my case, literally, we looked for comfort in each other - in good times as well as bad.

Our favorite pastime was to go to the lake and climb trees. Then we’d play pretend or just swim. But more than that, at night, we loved to hear the stories of my brother.

I was younger than my brother. He wasn’t with us anymore, he had gained the world. I remember he used to be my idol. He would take us in his lap, play with us at the lake, but one day he kissed the four of us and then he was gone. He went to the Vietnam War and never came back.

I saw my mom crying on the couch one day…Willow and I didn’t understand anything at the time and went back to play, without knowing how important that was.

It was my brother that put in our head the reason I’m here now, telling this story. I remember he was one of those people that loved the world. He had pictures, videos and used to show them to us at night and would tell us all these amazing stories. Our eyes would get a sparkle and we’d be very quiet, listening to it all.

I had been only seven when all of this had happened. It was 1960. In 1961 he left. Now I was 17, it was 1970, and I still remembered it all. Not only remembered, but I had this idea in my head…and not only in mine, but in the mind of the four of us.

That was the summer after we’d graduated from high school, except Dawn of course. As usual, it was hot and in the backyard of the Summers’ house, Mr. and Mrs. Summers were doing the typical Sunday barbecue.

The four of us were sitting in front of the house, waiting for something cool to happen.

“Well, this sucks.”

Dawn was at my side, drawing with a chalk on the street. Buffy was sitting in front of me and Willow was lying on the grass.

“Buffy, i-is the TV in your house working yet?”

“No, I don’t think so…”

I shrugged.

“Let’s hear some music?”

“Oh no, not Beatles again…” Willow complained, moving to lie in my lap.

“Let’s swim?”

“Good idea”.

We stood and went running down the street. When we arrived at the lake, Willow climbed the tree. Our tree. All the times that we wanted to be alone, without our parents, we’d go to the tree. All of our initials were written there.

We took off our clothes and jumped in the lake. Well, the 70’s could be called ‘liberal’, but not literally. I mean, any person could pass by, so we’d swim in tank tops and panties, not totally naked.

“Wow, I needed that…” Willow said, shaking her hair out of water.

Even living in Chicago before, it wasn’t the way that it was today. We lived a little far from the city, so it was really cool.

Soon we were all in a water fight, laughing and having fun…like it always used to be.

We stayed there until it started to get dark.

“Guys, I think we should head back now, I’m kind of hungry.” Buffy suggested, getting out of the water.

“Gee Buffy, you only think of food.”

Dawn stepped out of the lake, got dressed and took off running, followed quickly by Buffy.

“Come on”.

Willow and I got out of the water slowly. We picked up our clothes and started getting dressed.

I put my jeans pants on, tied my hair up in a ponytail and put my shirt on. Because I was still wet, the shirt was sticking to my chest, but I didn’t care, it would soon dry up anyway.

I looked over at Willow. Her short red hair had been pulled back loosely, but the weight of the moisture caused strands to escape and stick to her face. I realized she was staring at me with a strange look.

“W-what?” I asked confused.

She shook her head, closed her mouth and resumed dressing.

“What is it, Will?”

She didn’t say anything.

“Will.” I grabbed her arm.

“It’s nothing, Tara. Let’s go, Buffy and Dawn are probably waiting for us.” I noticed her cheeks were a little flushed, but I let it go.

We walked barefoot in silence the way back.

***

“Girls, where were you? Aren’t you hungry?” Buffy’s mom asked us as we entered the house.

“S-sorry, Mrs. Summers, we went swimming and must have forgotten the t-time.”

“That’s fine dear. Why don’t you go inside and grab something to eat?”

“Thanks.” Willow nodded.

We made our way to the kitchen. Buffy and Dawn were already there, eating something.

“What took you guys so long?” Buffy asked with a mouthful of food.

“We didn’t feel like running.” Willow answered softly as she sat down.

***

It was already night. We went to the Summers' front porch and sat there talking. I was playing with Willow’s hand.

“Tara, the day is coming.” The redhead said softly.

“Yeah, I-I mean, we’ve waited for so long, we’ve planned it so much that it can’t go wrong.” I replied, staring at the sky. It was clear, without any clouds. The stars were shining brightly.

“Are you sure tomorrow they aren’t gonna leave early?” Buffy asked.

“Yeah… I double-checked. We don’t have to w-worry about that.”

“And I helped.” Dawn added, smiling triumphantly.

“Okay, so, don’t forget. Tomorrow, at six.”

“Six?” Willow pouted. I giggled at her.

“Will…” I said, caressing the back of her hand with my thumb.

“Ok, I know…”

We stayed in silence for a moment, contemplating the idea of what was going to happen the next day, before I noticed the lights in my house being turned on.

“Tara!” I heard my dad calling me.

I stood up. “I h-have to g-go. It looks like it’s o-one of those n-nights. Don’t forget to take your bikes tomorrow, ok? We’re going to the city.”

“Yeah,” Willow sighed. “Bye Tare.” She kissed my cheek.

“Bye.”

They also stood and walked back into the house.

When I got home, my dad was in the living room. Three empty bottles of beer were lying on the floor.

“G-good evening, s-sir” I said, lowering my head and letting my hair cover my face.

“I just got home and you weren’t here! What were you doing out ‘til this time? Go fix me something to eat!”

I sighed. “Yes, s-sir.”

***



Well… What do you think? Should I continue? I know there isn't almost any interaction between W/T in this first part, but it’ll get better, I promise.

wow..uve sparked my curiousity. OF COURSE u should continue! i cant wait to find out what theyve been planning! and see more WT goodiness!

~K~

_________________
Shall I compare thee to a summer's day? Thou art more lovely and more temperate, Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May, And summer's lease hath all too short a date
Read My New fic: Just Breathe

Tara's dad is a pooooop head...

I like what you've got so far...please continue?

xoxo
Emms

_________________
G Wing

wow! please continue... this has my curiousity peeked too! i can almost feel i'm there:) kinda has the feel of 'Now and Then' to it, but yet hippish style to it. hehehe...i like the willow spark of relizing about tara. I can just imagine her looking at her and at that moment her brain going, 'look how beautiful she is...' but still being so young and confused by it. Hehe... but so natural together still. I love it! Please continue!
-Musey

Wow…I still can’t believe people left me feedback! Hehe… Thank you very much for all those reading and responding. Here is the next part, but before, some replies.

SakuraEtsuko: Hey, thanks for reading! In this next part, you’ll see what they’ve been planning. Oh, I really liked your avatar.

Miss Kittys Ball O Yarn: Yeah, Tara’s dad is definitely a poop head! Oh, and thanks for reading, I’m glad you liked it.

RoseWitch: Thank you so much! I also thought it kinda looked like ‘Now and Then’, being four friends in the 70’s and all. And yeah, that was exactly what I wanted to show, Willow’s reaction to Tara, hehe. Hope you like this next part.

***


Title: 66 - The road of dreams

Author: onlykaren

Feedback: Yes please, if you want to.

Disclaimer: I don’t own any of Buffy the Vampire Slayer characters.

Spoilers: None. AU.

Rating: PG through to R, maybe a little NC-17.

Pairing: W/T eventually.

Note: This is my first attempt at a fic and English is my second language, so I apologize for any misspelling or grammatical errors.

Note2: All the information about Route 66 I got from the Internet, so if there’s anything wrong, I apologize.

***


Part 2


That morning I woke up really early. The sun hadn’t even come out yet. I changed clothes quickly, tied my long blond hair back with a band and slipped my feet inside my boots, tying the laces up tightly.

I walked over to the window and quietly stepped out of my room. I couldn’t risk waking my father.

I glanced at my watch. Almost six o’clock. I went to the garage and retrieved my bike, making my way slowly to the Summers and stopped just below Buffy’s window.

“Ouch!”

I looked up at the sound and saw Dawn climbing the five feet down, followed shortly by Buffy.

“Shh, Dawn! Do you wanna wake the whole neighborhood?” Buffy whispered, slightly exasperated.

“Sorry…” Dawn replied sheepishly as she dropped to the ground.

Buffy also dropped to the ground. “Hey, Tara.”

“Hey,” I replied, before biting my lip. “W-where’s Willow?”

“I’m coming.” I heard the redhead whisper. I looked up and saw she lifting her leg out the window carefully, first one, and then the other.

Quickly she made her way to the ground.

“Hey, Tar.” Willow smiled brightly. “See? We’re right on time.”

I giggled. “Yeah, I noticed it.”

Willow smiled and stood there looking at me. I could do nothing but stare back…she was smiling so cutely, so heart-warmly. Wait…cute?

Buffy’s voice startled me. “So, ready to go?”

I shook my head and turned to face her. “D-did you guys get the account numbers?”

Buffy pulled a folded piece of paper out of her back pocket.

“Here.”

“Okay, then let’s go.”

I stood waiting for them to take their bikes and soon we were heading towards the city. It wasn’t too far; we went singing and laughing all the way. That was our childhood dream and now we were finally making it true.

“My belly is all rumbling.”

“Hey Dawn, relax. Everything is gonna work, you’ll see.” Willow comforted.

***

Soon we arrived in the city. It was almost 8 o’clock. The stores were already open and there was a lot of movement there. We stopped in front of an ice cream shop.

“So…” Willow began. “We’re all by ourselves now. Remember, ok? Everything according to the plan.”

“I heard this plan so many times that I think I even talk in my sleep about it.” Buffy said, a funny look on her face.

Dawn looked at us. “Sorry guys, but I don’t know if I can do it, I’m a little scared.” She spoke, hiding behind my shoulder.

“Dawn…” I lifted her face. “I guarantee you that this is going to be the best a-adventure of your life, and I-I’m gonna be there with you through the whole time, so you don’t have to be scared, ok?”

She nodded nervously. Actually, we were all children wanting to see the world, and acting like grown ups to do it.

***

“Here.”

Willow and I pulled to a stop in front of the bank. We had split up so we could do things faster.

“Where is the paper?” The redhead asked. I could see she was as nervous as me.

I handed her the paper. She grabbed it and took a deep breath. As she turned to step inside, I pulled her back.

“Willow…”

“What?” The redhead asked. “What’s wrong, Tare? Are you thinking of giving up now?” I flinched at her words.

Her face softened and she grabbed my hand.

“I’m sorry…I think I’m a little scared too, but I know that things are going to be okay. See, you’re here with me, so I don’t have to worry, you know?” She reassured softly as she looked into my eyes.

“But what if my d-dad finds out? I mean, you know what he would d-d-do.” Suddenly I wasn’t sure if I wanted to go on anymore.

Willow slowly put her arms around my shoulders and held me tight.

“He won’t find out. And I won’t let anything happen to you, ok? Do you trust me?” The redhead asked, her voice calm and soft.

“I do.” I replied, gazing at her. I didn’t know why, but at that moment I was suddenly overcome with affection for Willow.

“What?” She asked softly.

“You are one of the m-most important people in my life, you know that, r-right?” My voice was full of emotion.

“Yeah…since you’re mine.” Willow smiled adoringly and I smiled back. “So, are you ready?”

“Ok”.

We stepped inside.

***

“May I help you?” An old lady behind the counter asked us.

“We’d like to withdraw the money from our saving accounts”. Willow answered seriously.

“Let me see your social security numbers.”

Willow handed her both hers and mine, and also the accounts numbers.

“I’ll see what I can do for you.” The lady walked over to a desk and talked to a man that kept looking at us.

“Will, h-he is staring at us”.

“Maybe he thinks you’re beautiful?” The redhead smirked.

I laughed. “Very funny, silly”. Only Willow could make me laugh at times like that.

“Okay, she’s coming” She turned serious again.

“I’m sorry, but you’re under age.”

What? I hadn’t think about that. Actually, I didn’t even know you had to be at least 18 to take your own money out of the bank.

“Sorry lady, but see, it’s because me and Tare here, well, we want to visit our grandmother. She’s very sick and she lives far away from here, but our parents don’t want us to go there, you know, ‘cause she’s sick and all that and they think we’d be very sad if we saw her. So we don’t want to tell them, but we’d really like to visit her. Maybe you could help us? Please?” Willow said without pausing for a breath. I had to control myself not to laugh, chewing the inside of my lower lip.

The old lady glared at us for a minute. I was really nervous. I looked over at Willow and her eyes were wide open, looking like two baseballs. She grabbed my hand and squeezed it.

The lady took a deep breath. I thought she was going to call the police, or our parents, but no. She opened a drawer and started taking the money out and putting it on the counter.

“Here,” she said. “Take it, I’m only doing this because I know when you want to do something and your parents just get in the way…” She trailed off. “Done. Now go before they catch me doing this”.

Willow grinned and put the money inside our bag.

“Thank you so much.” She said, smiling widely.

“Okay, now go…” The bank lady said, a smile on her lips.

We got out of the bank.

***

“I can’t believe you did it, Willow!” I exclaimed, smiling widely.

“Tell me something I can’t do.”

She gave this really cute smile and moved to tie the bag to her bike. I kept looking at her, the way she was setting the bag, and then she would get this cute frown on her face as if something had gone wrong.

“Come on Will, let’s go…” I said, shaking the confusing thoughts out of my head.

The redhead looked up at me and said a little harshly.

“Hold on, I’m so nervous that I can’t get this thing right.”

“Let me.” I went to her bike and tied the bag to it with the short rope. She helped me and we were able to get it right. “Ok, now we can go” She said.

We rode back to the settled place, the same one that we had split up.

***

Buffy and Dawn arrived a little while later.

“Here.” Buffy gave me a big US map, with all the places we wanted to go.

“Nice.”

“Have you gotten the money?”

Willow opened the bag.

“Wow.” Dawn exclaimed. “That’s a lot!”

“Yeah, you guys h-had to see Willow talking to the lady, I mean, I still can’t believe she bought that story.” I said, grinning.

Willow gave this little pout.

“I’m kidding, Will,” I flashed her my lopsided smile and squeezed her hand. “You were brilliant! If it weren’t for you, we would never get the money.” I kept giggling.

She stuck out her tongue at me. “Yeah right, keep mocking me, but it wasn’t you that had to make up a whole story to try and convince the lady.”

“I see you guys had a lot of fun there, huh?” Buffy chuckled. “But now we have to go, Tara?”

“O-okay. Will, you want to stay here?” I asked.

“Yeah, you can go. I’ll stay here with Dawn”

I let go of her hand and Buffy and I went to the used cars store.

***

“Good morning, how can I help you ladies?” A man wearing glasses asked us. I stood beside Buffy.

“We want to see a car, not so expensive, but a big one.”

“We have just what you want.” He led us to the back of the store, full of cars.

We followed him. I didn’t like it so far and decided to check out the rest of the store. There were a lot of cars, ones that were impossible for us to buy and others that were impossible for us to want. It was the 70’s, but we didn’t want an old car, right?

When I had given up and was walking back to Buffy, I saw it. I just stood there, with my mouth open. Then I went near it and opened the doors. It was perfect. I checked the price, we could afford it!

“Buffy!”

She came running towards me. “What?”

“Look!”

Buffy also loved it. “It must be really expensive.”

“No! We can buy it, see?” I was just too excited.

“Ok, that’s the one!”

We went to the office to get the paperwork done. I couldn’t believe it; everything was turning out like we had planned.

***

“So? Have you guys bought it?” Willow asked as soon as we got back.

“Of course, but it’s a surprise.”

“Oh, come on Buffy, I wanna know!” Willow whined.

“You know Will, you sounded just like Dawn.” Buffy giggled.

“Hey! I do not sound like that!” Dawn protested. “But I agree with Willow, come on you guys, tell us!”

“Oh my god, I can barely bear one whinny Dawn, but two?” Buffy said laughing.

“Tara?” Both Willow and Dawn looked at me with puppy dog eyes.

“No way, I’m not gonna t-tell you. You’ll just have to wait until tomorrow”. Willow kept looking at me. “And don’t do the eyes, I won’t f-fall for them, not this time”. I said wearing my resolve face.

“Fine”. They both pouted. I laughed.

With all things done, we rode back home. Although we were faster during the way back, we arrived a little later than we had planned and when I got home, my dad was already awake. I had to make up this really big lie to explain where I was, but still I couldn’t get away from him.

***

It was late afternoon. I was lying in my bed, staring at the ceiling and thinking about our trip when I heard a soft sound coming from the window.

“Will, what are you doing here?” I asked as soon as I opened up the window to find Willow standing outside.

She entered my room.

“Hi to you too. I came to see how you were doing. Since you haven’t showed up since we got back from the city, we thought maybe your dad had caught you. Are you ok? Did he do anything to you?” I could sense the worry in her voice. That warmed me a little.

“Hey, I’m sorry. Yeah, you k-know. It’s the u-u-usual, but I’m okay, really. And thanks for w-worrying about me, I mean, you didn’t have to.” I answered a little self-conscious.

The redhead looked at me with an incredulous look on her face. “I can’t believe you still think that way, Tar. You know we worry about you, especially me. I hate how your dad treats you. I hate not being able to help when these things happen. But you know that I’ll always be here for you, right?” She reassured as she gazed deeply at me. Her eyes were the most beautiful green that I’d ever seen. I couldn’t believe how lucky I was for having Willow in my life…she meant so much to me. Suddenly, I had this surprising urge to pull her and kiss her lips…what? Kiss?

I forced that urge down in confusion. I was just happy, I told myself…grateful for all that Willow had done for me.

“Right?” Willow repeated, bringing me out of my thoughts.

“Yeah, right.” I smiled and moved to sit cross-legged on the bed.

“So, are you ready for tomorrow?” I was glad she changed the subject. She sat by my side. “I mean, we have dreamt about this for ten years and now we’ll finally be able to do it. Aren’t you excited?” She asked in a high-pitched voice. I giggled; Willow was just too cute sometimes.

“Why are you laughing?” She asked with a confused look on her face.

“You’re just too cute, you know that?” I let out impulsively, feeling my cheeks burn. Why had I just said that?

Willow smiled adoringly. “You’re just changing the subject”. I saw the blush creeping on her cheeks also.

“No, really. But I’m excited too, about tomorrow I-I mean. I just can’t wait for it, you know?” I decided to change the topic again.

“Me too! And the best part is that you’ll be with me the whole time.” Willow grinned.

“Um, but I think you’ll be the one with me, since I had the idea.” I said, wearing my lopsided grin.

The redhead giggled and took my face in her hands, caressing my cheeks with her thumbs. Suddenly, we both got serious. Willow was staring at my eyes with such an intensity I’d never felt before.

“I think I’m gonna go…” She lowered her gaze. “See, Buffy wanted to come here to see how you were, but I didn’t think it was a good idea, ‘cause we could make noise, being three of us, and your father could hear something, so I said to her that I would come and then I’d would tell her about what happened later. But I’m here for a while now and I said I wouldn’t take long, so I think it’s better for me to go, tell her that you’re okay, okay? And we will see you tomorrow, right? I mean, yeah, of course, since tomorrow is the big day. So I’ll meet you at the tree. Buffy and Dawn will get the car and meet us there. And I hope you’ve already packed, but if you haven’t, that’s okay, I mean, we still have time and…”

“Willow!” I giggled, stopping her. “Okay, w-we’ll see each other tomorrow. Now g-go before Buffy comes here to get you.”

“Sorry, you should have stopped me before.” The redhead said sheepishly.

“That’s okay, you know how I l-love Willow babble.”

She smiled, stood up and then headed out the window.

***

Hey!!!
I finally had a break from College - there's a "paralisação" at USP today, so I have a little free time before I start researching for my Documentary project again =D

Anyway, I'm glad you decided to post this story! And I'm sorry for being such a lousy beta.

What I like the most about this chapter is the way Willow made up that excuse about their grandmother in order to help Tara. It was really brave for someone who used to be scared of skipping class =P

Thank God - actually, thank YOU - this Willow has a reason to be... creative ~.^

I used to wonder what it would be like for Tara if she had met Willow earlier in her life, you know, if she would have come out of that "shell" sooner... In your story it's great to see it happening the other way around. With Tara being there Willow was able to be more confident while growing up. But Tara still has that parent issue... which is probably why she is still shy and stuttering Tara.

Great work!

_________________
-soup-chef-
"i wish that i was half as good / as you think i am"

this is so good
i like it a lot!
more more more!

_________________
come into my darkened room where im waiting...to please you...

Ok…
Here’s the next part, but before it, some replies.

soup-chef: Again, thank you so much for reading and commenting! =D I actually thought Willow’s excuse about their grandmother was kind of silly, you know? So, I wasn’t sure if I should leave it there, but I’m glad at least someone thought it wasn’t that bad And you’re right about shy and stuttering Tara. I mean, with her mom’s death and her dad being mean to her, she didn’t grow up that confident like Willow…so, this kinda explains why she’s like that. Anyway, thanks again!

Fleiss: Hey! Thanks for your comment, here’s more!

***


Title: 66 - The road of dreams

Author: onlykaren

Feedback: Yes please, if you want to.

Disclaimer: I don’t own any of Buffy the Vampire Slayer characters.

Spoilers: None. AU.

Rating: PG through to R, maybe a little NC-17.

Pairing: W/T eventually.

Note: This is my first attempt at a fic and English is my second language, so I apologize for any misspelling or grammatical errors.

Note2: All the information about Route 66 I got from the Internet, so if there’s anything wrong, I apologize.

Note3: I wanna thank soup-chef for helping me out with this…so, thanks! =)

***



Part 3


I woke up late. I looked at my bedside table clock and jumped out of the bed. It was already late and I hadn’t packed my stuff yet. I took a quick shower, put on a pair of jeans and a tank top. I grabbed my brother’s old bag, the one that he’d take to those crazy camps that he used to go. It was really big, so all of my things fitted in it well.

My dad had already left for work. I just had to write the note before I could go.

With one last glance at the house, I left the note on the kitchen island and headed off towards the Summers’ to see if Willow was still there.

I could see the car wasn’t in the garage; Mr. and Mrs. Summers had probably left for work also.

“Will? Buffy? Are you g-guys here?” I asked as I knocked on the front door.

“Hey Tara, wait a minute!” I heard Willow shouting from inside, followed by a muffled thump and a door opening.

“Hi.” She said sheepishly as she finished butting up her shirt. I thought the redhead was so cute, standing there all flushed. I frowned. Why couldn’t I stop thinking of Willow that way?

“You ready to go?” She asked obliviously, stepping out in the front porch and closing the door behind her.

“I t-think so. Has everything gone all right with Buffy and Dawn?”

“Yeah, their parents were already gone when they left to pick up the car.”

We made our way to the sidewalk and headed towards the lake. It was just a fifteen-minute walk, so it wouldn’t take long.

***

“What are you thinking?” The redhead asked as she kicked a pebble on the sidewalk.

“Nothing…” I replied, before biting the inside of my lower lip. “I m-mean, I still can’t believe this is happening, you know?”

“Yeah, I know what you mean,” She said, a thoughtful expression on her face. “But see, it’s going to be the best thing that we’ve ever done in our lives.” She smiled.

I smiled back and suddenly remembered something. “Oh, I forgot to say, I left a note to my d-dad.”

“What? A note?” The redhead asked surprised, ceasing walking abruptly.

“Don’t worry.” I stood beside her. “It’s just so h-he knows that we weren’t kidnapped or something. I didn’t s-say where we were going.”

She arched her eyebrows. “Yeah, it’s probably a good idea. But we’re gonna write them while we’re on the road, right?” We resumed walking.

“Of course.” I smiled.

***

When we arrived at the lake, the sun was already shining brightly. We sat down cross-legged in silence and leaned against the tree.

I was playing with the grass by our feet. I sensed a look on me, so I lifted my gaze. Willow was staring at me with a twinkle in her eye. I smiled and she smiled back.

“I guess this is it. I’m gonna miss this place.” She said with a hint of sadness in her voice.

I didn’t say anything. I didn’t need to. I was feeling the same way and Willow knew it. That place meant a lot to us and I didn’t even know if I would come back alive.

I shrugged, took a deep breath and stood up, getting the dirty out of my pants.

“Let’s go?”

The redhead smiled and we picked our bags off the ground. We crossed the grass and walked through the wood to a shortcut that would lead us to the road. Willow started to sing and jump.

“Will, what are you doing?” I asked giggling.

“Oh, come on! Aren’t you happy?” She had this big smile on her face.

Then she took off running, still singing. I followed her and soon we were looking like two kids, giggling and laughing, immersed in the moment.

When we neared the road, we noticed it was completely deserted. We put our stuff down. I looked at Willow and she had this amusing smirk on her lips.

“W-what?”

She laughed and started tickling me. I was laughing so hard, I couldn’t take it anymore. I fell to the ground with Willow on top of me.

“Willow, stop!” I was squirming, trying to get the redhead out of me.

“I’ll only stop if you give me a good reason to!”

“Because!” I squealed laughing.

Finally, I could get hold of both of the redhead’s hands. She looked at me surprised. Our giggles faded away and we just stared at each other. I was supporting all of Willow’s weight, but I didn’t care. The only thing I knew was that the redhead’s body felt so good against mine…I didn’t want to let her go. That thought scared me a little.

Sighing, I reached out tentatively and tucked a strand of loose red hair behind Willow’s ear. I noticed her breath deepen. Her eyes drifted down towards my lips, and her head began to move slowly downwards. I froze. I wasn’t sure of what was happening.

Suddenly, we heard the sound of a car approaching. Willow frowned and pulled away from me, standing up and holding out her hand.

“T-thanks.” I stood beside her, picking at the hem of my shirt and chewing the inside of my lip, unsure of what to do.

The redhead kept staring at the horizon in silence. What would have happened if we weren’t interrupted? What would Willow do? Was she really going to…what? Kiss me? Did I want Willow to kiss me? A lot of questions were running through my mind. I didn’t know exactly what was going on, but somehow it didn’t feel wrong.

I shook my head, forcing the thoughts out of my mind. Maybe I was just imagining things.

I decided to break the silence. “Will, do you think we could s-stay in Santa Monica?”

Willow looked at me with a frown. “Stay?”

“Yeah…” I trailed off.

“Tara, we just want to go there. It’s an adventure…”

I stayed quiet.

“Are you thinking of…”

“N-no, n-never mind,” I cut her off. “Where are they? I mean, they should be here by now”.

We looked at the road and saw dust being lifted up.

“Look!”

“Is it them?”

“Yeah, only Buffy could drive that bad.”

I chuckled. We took our bags off the ground and waited for the car to approach.

Buffy pulled to a stop right in front of us, the radio playing loud music. The car was a white Cadillac, with red leather seats. At that time, Cadillacs were those popular cars and everyone wanted one. Besides, it was really beautiful.

“Wow!” Willow said in awe.

“Look at this! I mean, it’s our dream!” Dawn exclaimed from the passenger seat in a childlike voice.

Smiling, Buffy got out of the car and opened up the trunk so we could put our bags in. Then we jumped inside the car. It had a convertible hood. Well, at least I think that’s the name it’s called. Anyway, the car was perfect and we’d paid a cheap price for it. Buffy was really happy behind the steering wheel.

“So, you guys ready?”

“Yeah!” We screamed. “The Route 66 is ours!” Buffy started the car.

“The world is ours…” Willow looked at me with a smile on her lips.

***

“Tara? Are you home?” He entered the kitchen and found the note. Without thinking twice, he headed off to the neighbors.

“Joyce, look at this!” He shouted as he entered the Summers’ house, without knocking.

“Steven? What’s wrong?” He handed her the note.

She read it out loud. “Dad, when you find this note we’ll probably be far from there. Don’t try looking for us, because you won’t be able to find us. We’re okay and we’re gonna call you as soon as possible. We’ll keep in touch. Don’t worry about us, because we’re all together and believe me, this is very important to us and we fought to make it happen. There are people that dream; there are people that make it real. And we did. We’re really happy about it. Tell Mrs. Summers not to worry. We’ll call and write you soon.”

She dropped the note on the floor.

***

Ok...here's next part...


Title: 66 - The road of dreams

Author: onlykaren

Feedback: Yes please, if you want to.

Disclaimer: I don’t own any of Buffy the Vampire Slayer characters.

Spoilers: None. AU.

Rating: PG through to R, maybe a little NC-17.

Pairing: W/T eventually.

Summary: A road trip across US.

Note: This is my first attempt at a fic and English is my second language, so I apologize for any misspelling or grammatical errors.

Note2: All the information about Route 66 I got from the Internet, so if there’s anything wrong, I apologize.

***


Part 4


Hours had ticked by. We had laughed, sung, counted cows on the road. Since the beginning we knew that it’d get a little tiring. We had talked to this old man, Mr. Hillary, who lived near Lou Michell’s, a diner right in the beginning of the road. He explained to us almost the whole route, that’s why in the latest afternoons our visit to the restaurant became constant. He told us about how the road was used in the World War 2, which he made a part of. He was a really nice guy. And for what he had told us, it was normal to get a little boring, but it’d be worth it.

***

“Second verse, same as the first. I’m Henry the Eighth, I am Henry the Eighth I am, I am. I got married to the widow next door, she’s been married seven times before…”

“Dawn, shut up!” Buffy let out angrily.

“Oh come on Buffy, I’m bored.” Dawn whined.

“Yeah, but I can’t hear it anymore. Stupid radio that doesn’t get any station.” Buffy mumbled. I chuckled at that.

“We’re in the middle of nowhere, of course it wouldn’t work.” Willow explained.

“Hey Will, you’re supposed to help me out here, or do you want to listen to Dawn singing again?” Buffy looked at her through the rearview mirror.

“You’re right. No singing Dawn, we’re three against one here.”

“Fine”. She pouted and turned to stare out the window.

We stayed in silence, each lost in their own thoughts. Till now, no car had passed. We were the only ones on the road.

Willow took my hand and started playing with it. She’d caress the back of it with her thumb and then she’d pull my fingers. I could tell she was in deep thinking.

“Tare, do you think your dad has already read the note?” The redhead asked softly.

I sighed. “Probably”.

“Wait, there’s a note?” Buffy asked, a little confused.

“Yeah,” Willow replied. “See, Tara wrote it so they wouldn’t worry so much before we call to say we’re okay, you know?”

“Oh, okay. Good idea...” She trailed off. “Do you guys want to eat something? I’m hungry.”

Dawn looked at us. “Me too.”

“Me three”. Willow said. I giggled and stuck out my tongue at her.

“Will, open the map. Mr. Hillary marked some good places to eat…and cheap ones. From now one we can’t spend much money”. Buffy pointed out.

“I think it’s gonna be a little difficult, Buff. I mean, we have to sleep and eat every day”. Willow responded as she opened up the map.

“Well, we could sleep in the car if the weather is good.”

The entire area of the road was dangerous at night, because there were rainstorms and hurricanes. We’d have to stay in some place to rest.

We took the map and looked up the marked places.

“The next stop is in McLean. There’s a diner there.”

“Ok, it’s almost one. That’s gonna be our lunch.”

We stayed quiet. It would be like this from now on. We knew we didn’t have much money to spend…so it’d have to be one, maybe two meals a day.

The radio started to play something. Buffy turned the volume up. It was so good to know that we still had a long way ahead of us. A lot could happen in the mean time, many surprises. Now we belonged to the world.

Willow smiled and tilted her head back. I knew she thought the same way I did.

***

“Here”. Buffy pulled the car into the driveway.

The parking lot was full of trucks. I didn’t like it so much.

We got out of the car. The muscles in our bodies were tense after being sat in the same position for so long. At our side, there was a big sign written in some erased letters that said ‘Dixie Truckers Home’.

Buffy and Willow went first. Dawn grabbed my hand and we walked slowly towards the entrance.

The diner was full of cigarette smoke and there were a lot of men, probably truckers, drinking beers and talking loudly.

“Don’t let go of me”. Dawn said, squeezing my hand tighter.

“Don’t worry, sweetie.” I reassured, trying to calm myself as well. We saw Willow and Buffy already sitting at a table.

“This doesn’t s-smell good”. I said after we sat.

“Yeah, all of this smoke”. Buffy replied shaking her hand in front of her face.

“No, I mean, all these m-men here…”

Willow took my hand in hers. “Relax, Tar. We have to get used to this from now on. No more clean plates, napkins…” She trailed off as a small blonde woman came to take our orders.

We ordered and waited in silence. My eyes drifted around the room before I shifted my gaze to Willow, who was sitting across me. She was humming something that I couldn’t make out. I noticed how her freckled skin was a little tanned and how cute she looked when her brows furrowed. The blonde waitress, who came back carrying our burgers, fries and cokes, brought me out of my daze.

“Here”. She put the plates and drinks down on the table and walked away.

“It doesn’t look so bad”. Dawn said eyeing the food.

“It doesn’t taste bad either”. Buffy was already eating.

When I started to eat, I suddenly realized how hungry I was. It wasn’t the best food in the world, but it would do.

After we finished eating, we decided to order some sandwiches for later. We didn't know if we’d find another nice place to eat that day. We paid for it all and headed out of the diner. In the end, we ended up spending a good amount of money.

***

“You wanna drive, Will?” Buffy asked already sitting in the back seat, next to Dawn. “I’m a little tired”.

Willow nodded and got in the car. I sat down in the passenger seat. The redhead started the engine and made it to the road.

“Guys, I think we have to establish how much money we can spend in a day. I mean, today for example, I think we’ve spent too much.” Willow pointed out.

I opened up our wallet and counted the money. Buffy grabbed a small notebook and began writing down what I was saying.

“Well, we had 700 dollars. And now we have 675.”

“Um…and now what? I mean, we still have more or less 15 days left.”

“So we should spend near…” I trailed off.

“50 dollars per day,” Willow said.

We all sat in silence.

“50 dollars?!” Buffy exclaimed suddenly. “There’s no way we could spend only that.”

“Yeah, I mean, we have to eat and sleep and…” Dawn agreed and soon we were all talking at the same time.

“Guys!” Willow exclaimed loudly, silencing us. “Don’t worry, it’s good enough to eat and pay for a motel”.

“Yeah, a stinky motel with mattresses on the floor and dirty bathrooms.” Buffy was already panicking. “Come on Will, this money isn’t enough. We spent too much on the car…” She trailed off.

“We’ll find a way…” I reassured.

We all stayed in an unsure silence. What would we do with only 50 dollars a day?

After a long moment, Willow’s voice broke through the silence. “What’s our next stop? I think it’s time to look for a place to spend the night”.

“It has to be a nice motel, with at least a phone so we can call our parents”. Dawn sounded a little dejected.

It was already late and it wasn’t a good idea to be on the road at that time. We’d driven very fast for the first day. Being excited and all, in only 10 hours we’d arrived in St. Louis. We had driven over 350 miles!

***

St. Louis was a big city. We stopped at the first motel we saw, but we didn’t stay, the guy there wanted 50 dollars for a single room.

We went to five more places.

“There’s no way, I mean, they all want a fortune for a regular room!”

“Guys, we’ll just have to share single beds.”

“You mean…” Willow said, eyes widening.

“Yeah, two in a single bed.” Buffy confirmed.

Seeing the strange look on Willow’s face, I had to ask. “What’s w-wrong, Will? We have d-done t-this before”.

“Nothing...” The redhead replied quietly. That was weird. I wondered what she was thinking. I sighed.

***

We stood in front of an apparently nice motel. There was a small board hanging by the entrance that read ‘Double rooms for $25’. We picked up some of our stuff and stepped inside.

“Excuse me, we want a double room.”

“Twin beds or a double bed?” A man asked us from behind the counter.

“Twin beds.” We answered.

The man gave us a strange look.

“Follow me”.

He led us to a long hallway and opened the door to a tiny room, but very warming. It had two narrow beds, a small TV settled on a table and a phone.

“The bathrooms are down the hall.” He gave me the bedroom key and left.

Dawn went straight to the phone as Willow threw herself over one of the beds. Buffy and I exchanged a look and made our way to Dawn’s side.

“Hello? Mom?” Dawn sounded like she was about to cry. “We’re okay mom…no, I can’t tell where I am…please don’t cry mom…no, we’re not going back…we have money…yes, I came ‘cause I wanted to…I love you too, mom”. Dawn was already crying. Buffy took the phone out of her hand.

“Hey mom…yeah, everything is fine…I’m taking care of her…no, you don’t have to worry about that…ok, wait a minute”, Buffy covered the phone mouthpiece. “Hey Tare, your dad wants to talk to you”.

She handed me the phone. I shook my head. “I don’t wanna talk to h-him Buffy, just tell him I-I’m okay, please?” I really didn’t want to talk to him. What would I say? That I was glad ‘cause I finally got away from him?

Buffy gazed at me for a second before she spoke into the phone again. “Hey Mr. Maclay, Tara isn’t here right now, but you don’t have to worry about her, she’s okay. We’re all taking care of each other…” She trailed off and stayed in silence for a moment. “Oh, hey mom…no, we’re not going back…I have to go now, but I promise we’ll call you another day, ok? I love you”. She hung up.

Dawn was crying really hard. I moved to hug her. “Shh Dawn…”

“Tara, I miss them so much…I wanna go back!” She said squeezing me tighter.

“Don’t worry Dawn, everything is going to get better, you’ll see.” Buffy hugged us.

Soon all the three of us were crying.

“I don’t know…we don’t have much money, we’re all alone and I miss home so much…” Dawn continued to sob.

“Shh…it’s okay sweetie…”

I looked over at Willow and we locked our gazes. She wasn’t crying, but I could tell she was also affected.

“I’m gonna take a bath.” The redhead stood, grabbed her stuff and walked out of the room. I frowned. I knew something was bothering Willow. I just wished she would talk to me about it. We used to tell each other everything, but now it seemed different somehow.

Buffy’s voice brought me back to reality.

“I’ll go talk to her”. She let go of us and went after Willow.

Noticing Dawn was starting to calm down, I asked softly, “Dawn?” I lifted her face. Her eyes were red from crying. “You want to lie down?”

“Okay, but don’t leave me”.

And we ended up sleeping that way. I was on my back with Dawn almost on top of me and I had my arms wrapped around her. She needed that comfort as much as I did.

***

And the next part...

Title: 66 - The road of dreams

Author: onlykaren

Feedback: Yes please, if you want to.

Disclaimer: I don’t own any of Buffy the Vampire Slayer characters.

Summary: AU. A road trip across US.

Rating: PG through to R, maybe a little NC-17.

Pairing: W/T eventually.

Note: This is my first attempt at a fic and English is my second language, so I apologize for any misspelling or grammatical errors.

Note2: All the information about Route 66 I got from the Internet, so if there’s anything wrong, I apologize.

***


Part 5


I woke up with the sun on my face. Dawn was still snuggled up to me, her arm resting around my waist. I slowly extricated myself from the bed. Buffy and Willow were still sleeping. I gazed at the redhead for a while. She was lying on her side, facing my bed. Her left foot was poking out from beneath the blankets.

She looked so peaceful. I watched her chest move as she breathed in and out. I realized I was doing that a lot lately, watching Willow. Suddenly I felt an overwhelming rush of affection for her. And that confused me a little. Why was I feeling like this? Willow had been my best friend my whole life and now I was having this sudden weird thoughts about how cute she looked or how I wanted to kiss her. I frowned. I’d never felt like this for Buffy, so why was I reacting this way to Willow? Actually, I kind of knew why…I just wasn’t ready to acknowledge the reason to myself. Well, not yet anyway. I shrugged. I didn’t want to think about it anymore, I had to clear my head.

I walked over to my bag and quickly located a pair of worn jeans and a shirt. I picked up a towel and my toiletry stuff and headed off to the bathroom.

Half an hour later, I entered the room again, feeling thoroughly refreshed. I looked at the beds; surprised to see the girls were still asleep.

I dropped the towel and placed the dirty clothes in my bag. Taking another glance at Willow’s sleeping form, I couldn’t help but smile. Even though I was confused about what was happening, the redhead meant so much to me and I’d always want her in my life. Letting out a sigh, I stood up and headed out the door again.

***

Getting near the lounge, I heard some muffled sounds. I realized they were coming from the kitchen.

“H-hi.” I said, biting the inside of my lip and letting my hair cover my face.

A short old man came out from behind the counter.

“Oh…hello. Are you looking for something to eat?”

“N-no. I just heard some noises and c-came here to check them.”

He bent down again. “Look, this kitchen has everything…everything out of place!”

I giggled at the way the old man was speaking.

He looked up at me with a curious stare.

“Do you want to help me?”

“H-help?”

“Yes. If you help me, I…I won’t charge you for your stay here.”

“Oh... really?”

“Yes. See, I’m the owner of this place. So, what do you say?”

“Sure…w-what should I do?”

“First, wash those dishes over there.” He explained, handing me an apron.

I went to the sink and started doing what he’d told me. All the while the old man was singing cheerfully. I remember he had a nice voice.

“So…” He began. “What are you children doing alone out here?”

“Us? Um, this is our d-dream.”

“Dream? How come? You’re only children. Do you even know what you’re doing?”

“Of c-course we d-do. We’re getting to know the world. Freedom…” I trailed off. I wasn’t feeling too comfortable with the way the conversation was going.

“And what about responsibilities? Have you ever thought about death? Jail, diseases?” He pressed.

“Yeah...Um, I’ve finished here.” I handed him back the apron. Then he asked me to set the tables and put away the dishes. I did everything quietly.

“D-done.”

He gave me a look. “Now you can go and I won’t charge you.”

“Thank you s-sir.” I smiled and went back to our room.

***

As I entered the room again, I saw Willow putting on her coat and Buffy brushing her hair.

“Where were you?” Willow asked me as I closed the door.

“You w-won’t believe it. I helped the owner with some tasks and he said he wouldn’t charge us the room”. I responded grinning.

“Really? What did you do?” Dawn jumped out of the bed.

“Just some kitchen stuff, n-nothing big.”

“Oh Tare, you’re amazing!” Willow put her arms around my shoulders and brought me into a hug.

I felt my face turning red. “It was n-nothing, really.”

“Nothing? You just saved us 25 bucks!” The redhead pulled away from the embrace, but kept holding my hand.

“Yeah, Will is right, Tara. Now I think we should go before he changes his mind.” Buffy said, grabbing her stuff and rushing out the door.

With a last glance around the room to see if we haven’t forgotten anything, we took our bags off the floor and made our way to the car.

***

As usual, it was really hot out there. I looked up at the sky; it was a clear shade of blue. The sun was already high and there were no clouds. We put our stuff in the trunk.

Buffy put her sunglasses on and leaned against the car. “I don’t feel like driving so much. Will, Tara?”

“Can I drive?” Dawn asked excitedly.

“No!” We let out at the same time. “Are you crazy? You’re only thirteen and you don’t even know how to drive.” Buffy said.

“It wouldn’t hurt to try.” Dawn pouted, getting into the car. Buffy followed and took a seat next to her.

“I guess it’s just u-us. Do you want to drive?” I asked Willow, I knew how she loved to drive.

“Okay!” The redhead grinned, and my heart skipped a beat. She was so cute.

Sighing, I moved to sit down in the passenger seat.

“Let’s go.” Willow pulled out of the driveway and onto the road.

***

We stayed in silence, listening to some jazz song on the radio. I was so lost in thought that I was vaguely aware of Willow’s voice.

“Tara?”

“Tara?” She repeated.

I shook myself out of my thoughts and turned to face the redhead, “sorry.” I said sheepishly, letting my hair cover my face.

“What were you thinking?” Willow asked curiously. “I was talking to you for like 5 minutes and you haven’t said anything.” She continued, staring ahead at the road.

I looked at Buffy and Dawn; they had drifted off to sleep. “It looks like they’re really tired, huh?”

“Yeah, I think the road does that to us.” The redhead replied. “I mean, we keep seeing the same scenery all the time, so it gets kind of boring after a while. Anyway, you haven’t answered my question, what were you thinking?” She took a quick glance at me.

“Well, it’s just, it’s n-nothing.” I lowered my head, chewing the inside of my lip.

“No, I know it’s not nothing Tar.” I loved when the redhead said my name like that, I’d get this warm feeling inside. She continued, “You know you can tell me anything, right?”

“I know…I-I mean, things are d-different lately. Don’t y-you think?”

“Yeah, I know what you mean. We are finally making our dreams come true and…” A sudden thought formed in my head and I lost track of Willow speaking.

What if I was the only one feeling that way? Having those thoughts? I mean, I could be misreading things or assuming something that wasn't there. Why would Willow feel the same way? Just because I thought she was acting different lately, like when she almost kissed me at the lake, it didn’t mean anything, right? I wasn’t even sure if she was really going to kiss me. I could just be imagining things.

And I definitely shouldn’t tell her about it. If she knew what I was thinking, she would probably get upset, or worse, she could get freaked. I was a girl and she was a girl. And that wasn’t the natural order of things.

I sighed. Right now was not the best time to think about such things. Whatever my feelings were, I'd think about them another time. I could be overreacting for nothing. Willow was my friend and sometimes when you like your friend so much, you can get a little confused by your feelings, right?

Her voice brought me out of my thoughts.

“You’re doing it again”. The redhead said.

“What?” I asked still in a daze.

“The spacing out thing. I was talking and then you just zoned out. Am I that boring?” Willow asked, wearing a mischievous smile.

I chuckled. “No silly...and I didn’t s-space out. I was listening to you, really”. I answered, hoping she’d believe me.

“Really? So tell me what I was talking about”. The redhead asked intrigued.

Oh no. “Um, about the dream?” I said giggling.

The redhead also giggled, “See? You weren’t listening at all! I was just saying that I wanted to go to the bathroom, but I haven’t seen any place so we could stop…and now I really need to go, you know?” She blushed adoringly and kept staring at the road.

Smiling, I decided to tease her. “Well, you could use the bushes.”

“Tara! That’s disgusting! I can’t believe you said that!” Willow let out, her face turning a deep shade of red.

I chuckled at that. “Come on Will, if we don’t find any place, what will you do? Keep holding it? You know it’s not good for the bladder.”

“Yeah I know…but the bushes? I mean, eww. Did you forget that there are wild animals out here? I could get bitten by a snake…or worse, a frog!” She squealed.

I laughed hard. “Will, frogs don’t bite.” I said after a while, wiping the tears out of the corner of my eyes.

“Yeah, but I don’t like them anyway.” The redhead pouted. I found the look on her face utterly adorable and felt a sudden urge to kiss her lips. I forced it down, trying to think of something else.

***

An hour later and we were still on the road. Buffy and Dawn were still sleeping in the back seat, and Dawn was lying in Buffy’s lap. Through the whole time, there was only us on the road, not a single car had passed.

“Tare, I don’t think I can hold it anymore. I’ll just have to use the bushes like you said.” Willow said in a childlike voice, almost as if she was afraid of something.

“Don’t worry Will, I promise you there will be no wild animals, ok?” I reassured.

“Ok…” She pulled over and stopped at the roadside.

I noticed Buffy and Dawn stirring. “Are we there yet?” Dawn mumbled half asleep.

“No Dawn, Will needs to p-pee.”

“Oh, okay.” She said, closing her eyes again.

Willow glanced at me and slowly got out of the car. I watched her walk into the woods. I looked away.

“Argh…” I heard Buffy say.

I shifted in my seat so I could face her. “Are you okay?”

“Not really...it’s too hot in here, don’t you think? I’m starting to melt!” She got out of the car. I did the same, stretching my legs.

A few minutes later, Willow came back. “What are you guys doing?” She asked as she approached us.

“Nothing, just waiting for you. It was too hot in the car”. Buffy explained, getting back in.

“You want me to drive Will?” I asked her. She could probably use a break, she was driving for hours.

“No, that’s okay.” Willow sat down in the driver’s seat again. I shrugged and went to my side. The redhead started the engine. It wouldn’t start. She frowned and tried again. Nothing.

“What’s happening?” Buffy asked.

“I don’t know.” Willow tried again and still couldn’t get it started. “Shit”.

We got out of the car. There was smoke coming out of the hood. Buffy opened it up, it was hot!

“Damn it!” She cursed. “We’ll have to wait until the temperature lowers.”

“Great.” Willow kicked the wheel of the car in frustration.

Dawn stood. “What are we gonna do?”

“Just wait. Maybe another car comes along.” Buffy replied as she got inside the car again and lay in the back seat.

“I hardly doubt it, Buffy”. I frowned.

Sighing, Dawn also made her way to the car, but took a seat in the passenger side and turned the radio on, changing the stations.

I glanced at Willow and shrugged. I moved to sit down on the ground, resting my back on the side of the car.

The redhead grabbed a bottle of water from her stuff and took a seat next to me.

***

We stayed in silence for a while. The sun was shining brightly above us. I started to sweat…it was a really hot day.

“Will, can you pass me the bottle?” Maybe water could help a little.

Willow didn’t answer me.

“Will?” I looked over at the redhead and watched as the frown lines on her forehead deepened. I wasn’t sure what she was staring at, but I felt myself flush nonetheless.

Was she looking at my breasts? Oh God.

“Willow?” I repeated louder.

I watched as the redhead shook her head and looked up at me. “Sorry.” She said, blushing furiously. “I guess I was the one spacing out this time. Maybe it’s the heat.” She gave an apologetic smile and lowered her head.

I couldn’t believe it. Was she really doing what I thought she was doing?

“T-that’s okay…c-can you pass m-me the bottle of water, p-please?” I swallowed hard, trying to stop the thoughts running in my head.

“Here”. Willow handed me the bottle.

I took a long sip, trying to calm myself down. I looked over at the redhead again and our gazes met. Her eyes were a deep shade of green. I noticed her pupils were dilated and she was breathing heavily. It was almost like she was…what? Aroused?

I shook my head…just some wishful thinking. Maybe it was the heat like she said.

“Do you think w-we’ll have to wait too long?” I asked after a while.

“I don’t think so…I guess the engine just heated a little ‘cause of the weather being too hot and all. I think we could try now. What do you say?” Willow said, standing up and holding out a hand to me.

“If you think so.” I joined her.

Buffy looked up at us. “What’s wrong?” She asked a little confused.

Willow chuckled. “I think we could try to get the car started, I mean, we’ve waited for a while now.” She explained.

“Oh, let me?” Buffy said, climbing into the driver’s seat.

“Please let it work, please let it work…” I heard Dawn chanting as Willow and I sat down in the back seat.

Buffy started the engine. It worked! She looked at us and grinned. “Let’s go, girls!” She pulled the car onto the road again.

***

Well...I haven't received many replies...so if this is bad, tell me and I'll stop. But if it's not that bad, then I'll keep posting it. =)

no no its not bad at all!!
i like it alot!!
looking forward to willow and tara actually telling each other how they feel

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come into my darkened room where im waiting...to please you...

hey onlykaren! sorry for not replying with the updates...i work nights and stupid work...no not:p anyways...like where this story is going. Sounds like the girls are going to grow up over the summer instead of live the dreams of freedom and fun. How things are so different then you thought. I did this with friends once. oh the stories to tell:p But i still think it's 'now and then' remake just kidding...but it is a lot like it, but unique in the buffiness. Hehe please keep going:)!!
-Museyness

Dude this story is totally awesome, you should definately continue with it!
The setting is sweet, the characters are spot on, and the plot can't get any better.

So I will be here.. (well really at work) waiting for an update!!

Ashleigh

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Here I stand, with everything to lose, All I know is I don't wanna ever see the end. Baby please I'm reachin out for you, won't you open up your heart and let me come back in. Lets be us again..

Bad? Are you insane ? This story was in my 'new story, read later' folder and I finally got around to do so... good thing I did! I love it! Pleeeassee continue soonish!

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"I don't get your crazy system!"
"System? It's called the alphabet!"

Yay! Thank you so much for all those reading and for the lovely feedback:

Fleiss: Hehe...I’m so glad you don’t think this is bad! Thank you a lot! Now…about Will and Tara actually telling each other how they feel…hum, that might take a while. Or maybe not =P Thanks again!

RoseWitch: Hey back! You don’t have to worry about that…I’m just very glad you’re enjoying this! =) And you’re totally right. I mean, I think that when you make a trip like that, you end up growing up, one way or another, you know? And you actually did that with your friends? Cool! Hehe… Hope you like this next part.

VixenyTarasHot: Really? Thank you so much! Here’s the next update, hope you like it!

WillowRulez: Ok…but I think nervous is a better word! Hehe…I mean really, I wasn’t too confident about this, you know? So I’m very happy you like it! Very happy, hehe… Here’s the next part.

***


Title: 66 - The road of dreams

Author: onlykaren

Feedback: Yes please, if you want to.

Disclaimer: I don’t own any of Buffy the Vampire Slayer characters.

Summary: AU. A road trip across US.

Rating: PG through to R, maybe a little NC-17.

Pairing: W/T eventually.

Note: This is my first attempt at a fic and English is my second language, so I apologize for any misspelling or grammatical errors.

Note2: All the information about Route 66 I got from the Internet, so if there’s anything wrong, I apologize.

***


Part 6


“But I don’t want to go!” Dawn begged for the third time.

“Oh, come on Dawn, it’s gonna be fun!” Willow replied excitedly.

We had just passed by a sign that indicated that a few miles over ahead, there was the famous bandit Jesse James’ hideout.

“But I’m…I’m hungry!” Dawn tried again.

“Okay, we can eat,” Buffy said. “But after it, we’re going to see the caves, ok?”

“I guess…” Dawn trailed off.

Since we were in Stanton, we decided we could eat there and then we’d see the caves. I wasn’t too thrilled by the idea either. What was the big deal in seeing a bunch of caves? The guy was dead anyway. I shrugged, but decided not to say anything. If they wanted to go, I could give it a try, at least it wouldn’t harm. I hoped.

Arriving at a small diner, Buffy parked the car. We climbed out of it and made our way to the restaurant.

There were only a few people inside. We sat down at the counter. An old woman came and took our orders.

We stayed in silence as we waited for the food. I glanced around the room and noticed a couple sitting at a far table. They were kissing passionately and the guy’s hand was inside the woman’s shirt. My eyes widened at the sight.

“It seems like those two could get a room.” Buffy smirked, looking towards the couple.

I nodded uncomfortably. “Yeah…” I cast a glance over at Willow and noticed a thoughtful expression on her face as she also stared at them. Maybe she wanted a boyfriend too? I sighed.

“Food!” Dawn let out as the woman came back with our orders.

We ate quickly. The food there wasn’t so good, but we were too hungry to care.
We paid the bill and headed off towards the car.

“Now, cave fun!” Willow exclaimed as Buffy started the car. I chuckled at that. Maybe it could actually be fun.

***

The place was empty. We had to park the car a little away from the entrance and climb down a small precipice to get there.

I held strongly on to Willow’s arm so I couldn’t fall.

“Come on!” Buffy grabbed Dawn’s hand and dragged her into the cave.

“Buffy!” I heard Dawn’s faint scream.

We continued to walk. “Buffy always does that. They go first and leave us behind. We could lose each other here.” Willow complained as she helped me pass through a hole.

We walked slowly towards the cave entrance. They weren’t there.

“Buffy? Dawn?”

No one answered.

“Come, let’s get in to see if they’re inside.” Willow said as we entered the cave.

“B-buffy?” I asked. I was starting to get worried.

We continued walking. Staring ahead, we saw Buffy and Dawn standing on the edge of a high cliff, looking down at something.

“You guys have to see this”, Buffy whispered as we approached them.

“What?”

Then we shifted our gazes to where they were looking at. We saw a huge lake with a small waterfall on the right side. It was one of the most beautiful things I’d ever seen.

“Wow, it’s beautiful.” Willow stole my thoughts.

“Yeah,” Buffy replied. “We have to try it!” She ventured, excited.

“Are you crazy”? Dawn squeaked.

“What do you mean, try it?” Willow asked nervously.

“I meant what you heard, try it.” Buffy said simply. “Come on, with all that hot outside we could really use a swim right now. So, who wants to join me?” She asked as she started to undress.

“I do.” I replied, and began taking off my shoes.

Willow’s eyes widened. “Tara, I knew Buffy was crazy, but you too?”

“She’s right, Will. We could use a swim right now, with all that hot…” I grinned teasingly at her.

Willow fidget uncomfortably. “Uh...yeah…but…but it’s too high up here and we don’t know what’s down there!”

She was right. It was kind of dark and we couldn’t see the bottom of the lake.

“Come on Will, stop worrying so much. It’s gonna be so cool!” Buffy neared the edge, standing only in her underwear.

“Buffy don’t do it! What if it’s too shallow?”

“I guess I’ll just have to prove it!” The blonde screamed as she jumped down into the lake.

“Buffy?!”

“I’m okay, guys!” We heard her yell. “The water is amazing! You have to come… Willow, Tara, Dawn!” Buffy shouted from down there.

“Really?” Dawn asked hesitantly, also taking her shoes off.

“Yeah, come on!” Buffy encouraged.

Dawn looked at me. “Tara, are you coming?”

“No!” Willow blurted out. “Neither are you, Dawn! Are you guys crazy?”

“Willow, Buffy’s okay.”

“Hey guys, I’m waiting for you!” We heard Buffy shout again from down there.

“See?” Dawn said nearing the edge of the cliff.

Then she also jumped. “Woo hoo!” I laughed.

I looked over at Willow and she had this scared look on her face.

“Will, you don’t have to be afraid. There’s nothing down there, only water.” I tried to reassure her, placing a hand on her shoulder.

“But Tara, I don’t like it…it’s too dark.” The redhead whispered, almost embarrassed by her words.

I took her hand. “I’ll take c-care of you, ok? Come, with me?” I asked as I looked into her eyes.

The redhead gazed back at me for a moment before she let go of my hand and began taking off her shoes and pants. I smiled. I was glad that she trusted me like I trusted her.

Dressed only in our respective tank tops and panties, we reached the edge of the cliff.

I took a glance at Willow and suddenly felt breathless at the sight. Standing only in that small tank top and underwear, she looked incredibly sexy. I’d never thought of Willow that way, but I couldn’t deny it…the girl was intoxicating. I just couldn't take my eyes off her.

Frowning, I forced the errant thought out of my head. I shouldn't be looking at the redhead that way.

“Will?” I forced my mind to focus. “Are you ready?”

“Okay…just don’t let go of me.” She said as she grabbed my hand.

“Never”. I replied.

We closed our eyes and jumped.

Wow! The water was incredibly refreshing! The lake was huge and it was deeper than I’d thought.

We swam for a while, enjoying the place.

“This reminds me of our lake back in Chicago…” Willow said softly.

“Yeah…but this place is so good and cool!” Buffy replied, taking a dip in the water.

Willow looked at me. “Well…it’s better than good, it’s amazing and beautiful…” She said flirtatiously, as she stared into my eyes. I felt myself blush. “Don’t you think, Tare?” She flashed me a smile.

I simply smiled back, not knowing what to say. I was floored by the way the redhead was talking. The flirtatious tone of her voice, the look in her eye, the way she smiled…what did that mean? Was this really happening or was I just imagining it again?

“Guys!” I shook my head and looked up at Dawn’s scream. “We can climb up these rocks and jump down here again from up there!” She shouted, already climbing up.

“Dawn, I thought you were the one that didn’t want to come here in the first place.” Buffy replied, heading towards her.

“That was Willow. I was just a little scared, but I didn’t realize it was gonna be this cool. Come on!”

Willow and I joined them and soon we were jumping down in the lake again, laughing and enjoying our playfulness. It was so good to be there with my best friends.

***

“I’m tired…how long have we been here?” Buffy asked.

“I don’t know, m-maybe 2 hours?” I guessed.

“I think we should get back. It’s gonna be dark soon.” Buffy suggested as she got out of the water and headed towards the rocks.

“Yeah…and I’m a little cold…” Dawn agreed and followed Buffy.

Willow playfully threw water at me. “Let’s go, Tar”. She smiled.

Also smiling, I started to slowly approach the rocks, but the redhead pulled me back.

“What?” I asked confused, turning to face her.

Willow didn’t say anything. She just stood there, staring at me with those incredible green eyes of hers. I couldn’t read her face expressions, but one word came to my mind: gorgeous. She was wet, with her hair thrown back and water up to her waist. Her eyes were a beautiful shade of green and there were small drops of water trickling down her cheeks. Her top was sticking to her chest, showing perfectly the outline of her breasts.

Wow…I swallowed hard. Willow’s breasts. How had I never noticed them before? The girl was incredibly beautiful…I was pretty sure I started to drool at the sight.

By then, I didn’t hear Buffy yelling anymore; maybe they had already gone out of the cave.

“Tara, I need to tell you something…” Willow whispered as she looked into my eyes.

She closed the distance between us.

“What?” I felt my heart pounding strongly in my chest.

“It’s just…”

“Hey you two!” Buffy shouted from up there, startling us. “Are you still gonna come or what?”

Willow looked away and moved to get out of the water.

“Here, let me help you”.

“N-no, wait. What did you want to t-tell me?” I asked curiously. What was she going to say? Willow was acting a lot weird and I really wanted to know what was going on with her. Why were we always interrupted?

“Just forget it…” The redhead avoided my gaze. “Are you coming?”

Then she looked at me in a way that left me weak in the knees. That wasn’t the same girl that I’d grown up with. It wasn’t her that would swim with me in the lake or sit with me at school. Or the girl who I had slumber parties and slept with so many times before. It wasn’t her anymore. The redhead was a woman now…the most beautiful woman that I’d ever seen. And I could feel I had just changed at that moment, by looking at her.

Shaking my head, I moved to follow her. We picked up our clothes and shoes and headed back to the car.

“What took you guys so long? Sit down so we can dry up”.

We sat down in silence and didn’t have to wait long. The sun was still hot.

We got dressed and entered the car again. Willow started the engine and made our way back onto the road. I was quiet through the whole time, but the three of them wouldn’t stop talking about that place. I kept looking at Willow driving, out of the corner of my eyes, but decided to shift my gaze and just stare out the window.

***

UGH!!!! They were so f-in close! Your a horrible, horrible times infinity pie squared, and thats alot!!!

Wow, English is not your first language? There are a lot of writers who don't do this well in their first language. Well done.

The premise is simultaneously frightening and exciting: the four of them setting out on this adventure. I really like that this is told from Tara's pov. She is quite adorable with her dawning realization of her feelings for Willow and it certainly seems that Willow is right there with her. That is very well done.

It seems to me that the girls could get much farther on their money if they bought some groceries and made sandwiches or something as they went rather than eating at diners. I hope they think of that.

Good job.

_________________
"I'm Elvis!" -- JustSkipIt
"Graceland of Sensuous Intoxication" -- watson

I totally love your story, Keep writing, it's great !!! I want Tara-Willowy goodness,lol

_________________
' I am your creation and I am proud ' (Bette, Loud and Proud, The L Word)

*sings* go on and kiss the girl.. sha la la la la la la *stops singing*

haha sorry that totally popped in my head at the end there... but for real dude! they totally gotta hook up quick, cuz i think they're gettin a little frustrated

More sooon please
Ashleigh

_________________
Here I stand, with everything to lose, All I know is I don't wanna ever see the end. Baby please I'm reachin out for you, won't you open up your heart and let me come back in. Lets be us again..

Hey! Some replies before we move on:

ShyTemptress: Hehe…thanks?

Graceland: Well... I’m not really that good, but thanks anyway Hum, I’m glad you like that this is told from Tara’s pov. I wasn’t really sure which one I should pick when I started writing it, but I guess I chose Tara’s cos I think I’m more like her, you know? So…I’m glad you like it =) Oh, and thanks for the tip. Maybe I’ll use it in the next parts =)

witchydebie: You really like it? Thank you so much! Here’s an update…I hope you enjoy it also.

VixenyTarasHot: Hehe...great song by the way =P Hum…I assure you that they’ll hook up. But I don’t know about the ‘quick’. I guess you’ll just have to wait and see

***

Title: 66 - The road of dreams

Author: onlykaren

Feedback: Yes please, if you want to.

Disclaimer: I don’t own any of Buffy the Vampire Slayer characters.

Summary: AU. A road trip across US.

Rating: PG through to R, maybe a little NC-17.

Pairing: W/T eventually.

Note: This is my first attempt at a fic and English is my second language, so I apologize for any misspelling or grammatical errors.

Note2: All the information about Route 66 I got from the Internet, so if there’s anything wrong, I apologize.

***

Part 7


We drove until it got dark. Everyone started to get sleepy and since we had barely eaten, we started to get hungry also. We decided to call it a day before the rain that was forming poured.

We’d arrived in a small town called Cuba. In the map, it was marked the name of a nice place to stay, ‘Wagon Wheel Motel’.

As we arrived there, we noticed the motel looked really cute, like a doll’s house.

“Look at this place! Who might be the attendant? Barbie?”

We laughed at Buffy’s comment.

After taking our stuff from the car, we walked over to the entrance and stepped inside. The ambience was really warm and cozy. There were a man and a woman watching TV and a little boy with a dog.

“Hello”. The man seemed to be really nice.

“Hi, we wanted a room to spend the night.”

“Only one?” He asked surprised.

“Yeah. We don’t have much money and…”

“Don’t worry,” he interrupted. “The rooms here aren’t expensive. It’s 25 dollars, but come to see how homey they look!”

We followed the man through the stairs. Everything looked like a family house, with nice smells and all things in place.

“See? What do you think?” He asked as he opened the door to a room.

Each bedroom had two single beds and its own bathroom. It seemed very clean and nice.

“Ok…we’ll take two.”

“Great! At this time of the year we don’t receive many people, and we’d love to have company. It’s going to be wonderful to have you here, teenagers and all…” The man kept talking. I giggled at the way he was speaking.

“Anyway, here are the keys. Feel at home, if you need anything, you can call us. The TV is downstairs, and you can watch it anytime, ok?”

“Oh, thank you”. Buffy smiled.

“And the kitchen also, if you’re hungry or anything…” He continued. We were all feeling really cared, with him being so nice to us and everything. “Ok, I’ll let you get settled.”
With a last smile, he left us standing in the hallway.

“So guys, who is going to sleep with whom?”

“I-I don’t know…” I stood awkwardly, chewing the inside of my lip.

“Dawn, you sleep with me. I think those two need to talk.” Buffy said and entered a room, followed by Dawn. “See you guys tomorrow, good night.” She closed the door.

What? I was confused. Why did Buffy say that? Had Willow told her something?

“Is this okay with you?” The redhead asked.

“No problem…”

***

We both stepped inside the next room. Willow threw herself on a bed.

“Hey Tare, it’s soft, looks like yours.” She flashed me a smile.

I smiled slightly back at her. “Can w-we afford this?”

“I think so, we need to count the money though.” The redhead stood and grabbed the notebook that Buffy had written on.

“Ok, let’s see”.

We counted how much money we had spent and the result was 94 dollars so far.

“It’s g-good, right?”

Willow looked at me.

“I think so, we need to spend less though, but since we didn’t pay for the room last night, I think for today this is affordable.” She grinned and put the notebook away.

I lay down on a bed and Willow sat down next to me.

“Tar…” I looked at her and our eyes met. “Do you...do you miss home?” She asked softly.

“N-no…what about you?” I replied and reached out to take her hand.

“Not so much either,” Willow answered softly. “I mean, I think that’s kind of weird, but at the same time, I’m loving to be here…with you…” She trailed off, avoiding my gaze. We stayed in silence.

Strange. Why was Willow saying that? We were always together and she’d never said anything like that.

I stood up. I needed to think. So many questions were passing through my mind. What was happening? Before, I thought I was just imagining things, but now I wasn’t so sure anymore. What if Willow was feeling the same way I was? In the cave, she wanted to tell me something, what could it be? I didn’t want to ask, push the issue. I figured if she wanted to talk, she would take her time. But that was getting really confusing. I didn’t want to take my hopes high, but what if Willow was thinking that same way? She could be scared and confused too, that was a new territory for both of us.

I sighed. I wished I could talk to someone…maybe Buffy could help me figure things out? No…that wasn’t a good idea. She could freak out. But why did she say Willow and I needed to talk? She had to know something or maybe she could have heard something.

“Tara…” Hearing Willow’s soft voice, I stopped pacing and looked over at her, noticing she had her eyebrows raised questioningly. “What are you doing?”

“I-I don’t know.” I replied a little embarrassed. “I, I think I’m gonna take some air, get to know the p-place…” With a last glance at her, I headed out the door, closing it behind me.

***

I walked down the stairs. The TV was turned off. I made my way to the kitchen and found the old lady cooking some food.

“Hello!” The lady greeted me eagerly. “You’re the new guest, right?” She asked, smiling brightly.

“Yes…”

“My name is Mary, what’s yours?”

“T-tara.” I replied not so eager like her.

“Um…and who are the other girls? Your sisters?”

I noticed she was the kind of talkative. I liked her. It felt good to be there, thinking of something else.

“No…they’re my neighbors.” I replied.

“And where are your parents?”

Oh no. Maybe I didn’t like her that much.

“Our p-parents? They’re in…uh, Santa Monica…we’re going there to see t-them.” I lied.

“Will you take the Route 66?”

“Yeah…we’ve b-been taking it since C-chicago.”

“Wow! That’s great! A road trip with your friends must be awesome!”

I chuckled at that. “It’s kind of an adventure.”

“Are you enjoying it?”

“Till n-now yes…the m-money has been a problem, but w-we’re managing it so far.”

While Mary talked to me, she kept cleaning the kitchen and cooking some food. Then she put a plate full of cookies that smelled deliciously right in front of me.

“You can grab one”.

I didn’t have to think twice. I continued to talk as I ate.

“Aren’t your parents afraid of letting you travel alone? Four girls on a road, it could be dangerous.”

“N-no…There wasn’t another way for t-them to get us.”

“I see. Well, I wouldn’t let Douglas do it.”

“Is he your s-son?”

“Yeah, the little boy that was in the reception when you arrived here.”

I smiled. “Oh, he was so cute, p-playing with the dog.”

Mary grinned. I could tell she felt proud of her son.

“Isn’t there another p-person staying h-here?”

“Yes, of course. But this time of year the place gets kind of empty, you know? It’s too bad because we love to have the house full of people. And especially your age. I’ve always wanted to have a daughter of your age. Here, you can take more cookies, it’s for free.” Mary smiled warmly.

I took another one. She kept looking at me.

“Did you want some warm milk before you go to sleep?”

Wow, she reminded me of my mother. I smiled gratefully.

“Yes, p-please.”

Mary went to the stove and warmed some milk. She stood looking at me while I drank and ate quickly.

“You must be really hungry.”

I smiled sheepishly. “Yeah, we don’t eat very well. T-today we had only a small lunch and…”

“Really?” She cut me off. “But don’t worry. Tomorrow morning I’ll make a big breakfast for you and your friends and you won’t have to pay anything.”

“T-thanks, but w-we couldn’t…”

“Of course you could! I want you to accept, alright?” She didn’t give me room to refuse. And well, I didn’t want to.

“Ok, thank you so m-much Mrs. Mary.”

“Without the Mrs.” She smiled warmly.

“Oh, thank you Mary, you’re being really n-nice to us.”

“Don’t worry, dear.”

I stood. “I should probably head back now. I don’t want to wake my f-friend.”

“Okay…”

As I turned to go, she called me.

“Tara? Can I ask you something?”

“Of c-course.” I turned towards her.

“Can you give me a goodnight kiss? It’s just, you look like the daughter I never had.”

Poor woman. She was being so nice to us that I couldn’t refuse. I walked over to her and kissed her cheek. “G-good night”.

She smiled. “Thank you, your mother must be really proud of you.”

I felt a wave of sadness hit me. It had been so long since I had thought of my mom that way. And that old lady really reminded me of her.

“Yeah, I should g-go now. Thank you once m-more, Mary.”

I turned and walked back to the room.

***

I opened the door slowly not to make any noise. The room was low dimmed; only the lamp on the bedside table was on. As I turned around, my jaw dropped in shock.

Willow had just taken a shower and was standing topless in the middle of the room, toweling her hair dry. Only one word could describe her…breathtaking. I felt my desire mounting as I noticed her breasts. Her nipples were stiffened from exposure to the cold air. The redhead squeaked as she saw me and covered herself with the towel.

“Tara!” She squealed. “What are you doing standing there?” Her cheeks turned the color of her hair.

“Sorry”. I felt myself also blush, “I thought m-maybe y-you were asleep and I-I didn’t w-want to w-wake you”. Closing my eyes briefly, I attempted to curb my desire.

“That’s ok”. The redhead calmed a little. “I was just drying my hair.” She walked back into the bathroom. After a moment, as I tried to calm myself as well, Willow came back wearing a low cut tank top.

I felt my gaze drift downward once again, pausing as it reached the exposed area of Willow’s chest. I could still see her nipples pointing out through the material of the top. I forced myself to look away.

We had grown up together, but suddenly things were different. I couldn’t believe how aroused I was. I’d never felt that way before. My heart was pounding, my mind was blank and I could feel the wetness between my legs, as the throbbing sensation intensified, becoming almost unbearable.

“Are you going to take a shower?” The redhead asked obliviously as she knelt down to put her stuff in her bag.

“You bet I am.” I replied without looking at her. I really needed to take a shower and a really cold one. I walked over to my bag and searched for something to wear. After I located a clean pair of shorts and my sleepy shirt, I grabbed my toiletry kit and entered the bathroom, closing the door behind me.

***

Letting the water rush over me, I couldn’t take my mind away from the sight of Willow. Sighing, I grabbed the shampoo and ran it through my hair, trying to stop those thoughts.

A few minutes later, as I rinsed my hair, my mind drifted back towards the redhead. I couldn’t help but imagine what it’d be like to kiss Willow…to taste her and caress her luscious lips. I imagined how soft Willow’s lips would feel against mine. I’d capture them with my own, savouring them. I imagined what it would feel like to run my tongue along them as she opened her mouth, letting our tongues touch. We’d taste each other for a while, enjoying the feel and sensation of it.

Then I’d pull away from her mouth to run my tongue down her jaw and her neck, tasting her softness. With my hands now free, I’d probably run them down her gorgeous body, to feel more of the girl’s skin. Realizing I wouldn’t be able to resist it, I’d reach my hands down beneath her top…along her back, as I dragged the material off her body.

Pulling back a little, I’d stare at her for a few seconds, taking in the sight of her half naked body before reaching out to touch and caress her small, perfect breasts. I’d hold them in my hands, cup them, take in the feel of their weight before gently pinch the girl’s nipples. Then, not being able to control the need, my head would reach down and my mouth would suckle at her breasts, letting my tongue circle around them.

Meanwhile, my hands would roam over Willow’s body. They would reach down, move inside her thighs, between her legs, teasing her-

“Tara?” Willow’s voice broke through the door, startling me.

I immediately forced my thoughts to a halt. Oh God. Willow was standing just outside and I was thinking of those things about her. What kind of person was I?

“You’ve been in there for almost an hour, are you okay?” The redhead continued.

An hour? I hadn’t really noticed. Maybe thinking of Willow did that to me…made me forget everything else but her.

“Yeah, Will. I’m just f-finishing here.” I replied, before biting my tongue.

“Okay, but don’t take too long.” She answered back.

I sighed heavily. Wow, that was close. I grabbed the conditioner and squirted it into my hands. As I ran it through my hair, I couldn’t believe what had just gone through my mind. Sure I had thought about this kind of things before, but not like that, and especially not about another girl. I could practically feel the redhead next to me. I just couldn’t believe what was happening. No one had ever made me feel that way, only Willow…my beautiful, sexy Willow. Wait a minute, my?! Where did that come from? I sighed again. How was I ever going to sleep with those kinds of thoughts in my head?

Stepping out of the shower, I towelled myself dry and got dressed, wrapping my hair up in a towel. Turning off the lights, I opened the bathroom door and entered the room again.

***

Hope you like this!

of course we like dude!
This story is great! All with the sweet old ladies and sexy showery goodness

They gonna get it on soon hmm? lol

I can't wait to read more
Ashleigh

_________________
Here I stand, with everything to lose, All I know is I don't wanna ever see the end. Baby please I'm reachin out for you, won't you open up your heart and let me come back in. Lets be us again..

You are killing me! And I love every second of it.
Please update soon!!!
ETA: YMKA, you are not alone, I wondered about that too...

_________________
"I don't get your crazy system!"
"System? It's called the alphabet!"

More please??

_________________
' I am your creation and I am proud ' (Bette, Loud and Proud, The L Word)

Hey there!

I really enjoy reading this story Everytime you say that someone is going to help them....I expect them to get screwed.... I'm such a cynic sometimes .... ....

I have a question for you. I'm into numbers (oh my god...I'm channeling watson......) . In one of your updated you wrote... ". We’d driven very fast for the first day. Being excited and all, in only 10 hours we’d arrived in St. Louis. We had driven over 60 miles! ".....now my question is....10 hours from chicago right? and 60 miles from their last stop right? Cuz at first I thought they drove 60 miles as in total...nd then I was like...wait....6mph is NOT that fast...you can walk faster (well...maybe not...but still ) .... Sorry I got all confused....prolly just me

Can't wait to read more!!!

Thanks!
M.

_________________
"...to be human is to be capable of the most heinous crimes in nature" - Wicked
"..the only person you care about is yourself. You can’t get into someone else’s head, you can’t get into their soul, so in the end, they mean nothing to you. You blink--And they’re gone" - Chance

I love love love this story.

_________________
look me in the heart and tell me you wont go, look me in the eye and tell me no love is like our love.

Hey everyone! Just wanted to thank you all for reading. I hope you’re continuing to enjoy the story. Another part is on its way, but first, the individual replies.

VixenyTarasHot: I’m glad you like this! Thanks so much for the support. It’s good to get some encouragement, you know? =) And…get it on soon? Hum, don’t worry, they'll get there... you know, eventually Thanks for reading!

WillowRulez: Thank you Next part is on its way. I hope you continue to enjoy it. Thanks again for reading! And as for YMKA’s question, I’ll correct it right now…thanks!

witchydebie: Thanks for the feedback! More on the way =)

YMKA: Hey back! I’m glad you enjoy reading this =) And why do you expect them to get screwed? Hehe, I wouldn’t do that to them…well, not yet =P Oh, and about your question, now that you’ve mentioned it, it’s actually confusing, because I put 10 hours, as in total (like you said), including their stop, and the distance only between that last stop and St. Louis. So, thanks for pointing that out, I’ll fix it right now Hum, and feel free to comment on anything, okay? Corrections are pretty welcomed. Thanks for leaving me feedback!

lovetypething: Thank you so much for reading and leaving feedback. Update heading your way!

***

Title: 66 - The road of dreams

Author: onlykaren

Feedback: Yes please, if you want to.

Disclaimer: I don’t own any of Buffy the Vampire Slayer characters.

Summary: AU. A road trip across US.

Rating: PG through to R, maybe a little NC-17.

Pairing: W/T eventually.

Note: This is my first attempt at a fic and English is my second language, so I apologize for any misspelling or grammatical errors.

Note2: All the information about Route 66 I got from the Internet, so if there’s anything wrong, I apologize.

***


Part 8


“I thought you’d never come back. Is something wrong?” Willow asked me as soon as I stepped inside the room again. I blushed at the question…she had no idea. I let my gaze drift towards her lips, and once again I imagined what it would be like to kiss those soft luscious lips of hers and then I’d…no! I stopped the thought before it escalated.

“S-sorry. There’s nothing wrong. I’m fine… I just, I must have forgotten the time”. I replied as I walked over to my bag and placed my clothes in, pushing the thoughts away.

“Are you sure?” Willow sounded concerned. I smiled at her as I nodded.

My hair was still wet, so I bent over at the waist to towel it dry. After a moment, I felt a look on me. I lifted my gaze and met Willow’s. The way she was staring at me left me speechless. It was as if she thought I was sexy or something to be desired. And I didn’t quite know how to deal with it. Was I having the same effect on her as she was having on me?

“Want help?” Willow stood and walked over to me.

“You d-don’t have to…”

“But I want to, ok?” The redhead reached for my hands. “Let me?”

I couldn’t do anything but nod. How could I refuse? Especially when she was looking at me that way.

Willow took the towel and started to dry my hair. Then she gathered it up and squeezed the moisture. I felt she move away but not a second passed before she came back, with a hairbrush in hands. As she started to brush my hair, I was really enjoying the sensation of it. She’d run the brush through my hair and her fingers would occasionally brush up against my neck. I sighed. We used to brush each other’s hair all the time when we were little, but everything seemed different. Every sensation, look, touch seemed new, as if it was happening for the first time. I didn’t know why I hadn’t noticed it before, but I realized one thing at that moment…I could no longer deny the truth, I was having feelings for Willow. Strong, intense, special feelings for her. Not the friendship-type feelings, no…it was something else, something that I’d never felt before, and it left me excited and terrified at the same time. Just the thought that Willow might have feelings for me too gave me a really warm feeling inside. I didn't think I could handle being rejected by her.

“All done”. The redhead said softly as she stepped away, putting the hairbrush down and the towel back into the bathroom. Moments later, she came back and sat down on the bed, motioning for me to do the same. I took a sit next to her.

“Where were you before?” Willow asked softly.

“Before?”

Sensing my confusion, she explained. “Before you came back here and saw me almost naked…” She trailed off, turning bright red.

“I’m s-so s-sorry about t-that, Willow. I didn’t know you’d be that w-way and…”

The redhead interrupted. “No Tar, it’s okay. I don’t care, really”. She took my hands and started to caress them with her thumbs. “We used to see each other naked all the time before, remember?” She smiled wistfully.

“Yeah…”

“We used to run around the house and then your mom would tell us to put some clothes on, but we’d never listen to her, and we’d keep running and playing that way.” She lowered her head. “I just wish sometimes things didn’t change, you know? It’s just, I’m so confused right now and I don’t know what to do with all these things that are happening to me…”

I noticed the redhead’s eyes were full of tears. I reached out tentatively and put my arms around her shoulders. “It’s okay, W-willow.”

“Oh Tar, I’m so scared…” Willow started to cry. I held her tightly against my chest as I felt tears well up in my own eyes. I wanted desperately to comfort her, protect her and make all the pain go away. I didn’t know exactly why Willow was so upset, but I figured it probably had to do with all that was happening lately. Maybe she was as confused as me about her feelings.

After a long moment, I could feel Willow begin to relax as my hands stroked her hair softly, soothing her. I started to pull away, but the redhead wouldn’t let me. Maybe she wasn’t ready to let go yet. I felt her hands come up to my face, locking our eyes together, as she caressed my cheekbones with her thumbs. Seeing the hurt and the tears, I felt my own tears come back. I just couldn’t bear to see her in pain.

“Willow…” I whispered as I stared into her eyes. I wanted to comfort her, let her know everything was okay.

Overwhelmed by emotion, I leaned in slowly and pressed my lips softly against Willow’s. Closing my eyes, I let my lips linger, as I took in the feel of hers, unable to break away.

Suddenly, the redhead pulled back, staring at me with a frightening look on her face.

“I can’t...” She moved off the bed abruptly.

“W-willow?” I asked confused.

“I just… I just can’t…” The redhead made her way to the door. “I’ll come back later.” She said as she headed out the door, closing it behind her.

As soon as Willow left the room, I suddenly burst into tears, unable to control them. It quickly escalated into full-blown sobs. I curled myself up on the bed as the tears continued to fall, letting the pain wash over me. Why did I have to kiss Willow when she was feeling so confused and scared? What on earth had made me think she would ever have feelings for me? I didn’t have any right to do what I’d done…it was like I had taken advantage of her. What if she had freaked? What if she felt disgusted by the kiss? I knew we both had never kissed anyone before… we thought it should be special and romantic. And what had I just done?

Although it hadn’t lasted long, it was a kiss nonetheless. A kiss. In the moment, I hadn’t really been thinking. I’d just let my emotions and memories consume me. But Willow probably hadn’t felt the same way. She was just looking for comfort and suddenly was kissed by me. A girl. Of course she would freak…

I cried for almost an hour before I became too worn out to cry anymore. I stayed on the bed and sleep just wouldn’t come. I started to worry. It had been a while and Willow hadn’t been back yet. She must have freaked out badly to avoid sleeping in the same room as me. I felt like I was about to start crying again. I sighed heavily. That was going to be a long night.

***

I woke up as the first beams of sun shone through the window. I cast a look over at the other bed and it was empty. I sighed. Willow hadn’t come back. I stoop up and walked over to my bag. Grabbing my toiletry stuff, I made my way to the bathroom to freshen up.

A moment later, I came back and went to my bag to search for something to wear. I decided on a pair of shorts and a t-shirt. Dressing quickly and putting my shoes on, I made my way to the door.

***

“Good morning, Tara!” Mary greeted me warmly as I walked down the stairs, nearing the lobby area.

I smiled sadly as I replied. “Good…”

“What’s wrong? Didn’t you sleep well? Didn’t you like the room?” Mary asked, obviously concerned.

“N-no. I liked it, it was g-great actually”. I tried to sound more cheer.

“Good”. Mary smiled and made her way to the kitchen. She looked so happy. I sighed.

Casting a glance around the place, I noticed there was no one else there. I sat down on a couch. Maybe Buffy and Dawn were still asleep. I wondered where Willow was. I turned on the TV and stayed there watching some show about sports.

After a few minutes, I heard someone walking down the stairs. I froze. What if it was Willow? Would she still want to talk to me? Look at me?

“Hey Tara, what are you doing down here all by yourself?” Buffy asked as she approached me. I let out a breath I didn’t even know I was holding.

“Hey Buffy, I w-was just waiting for you.” I answered. “Where’s Dawn?”

“She’s finishing dressing,” Buffy replied. “I was kind of hungry and decided to come down here to see if there’s something to eat.” She continued as she sat down next to me.

“A-actually, I forgot to tell you…Mary, the lady from yesterday, said she’d make a big breakfast for us and we wouldn’t have to pay.”

“Really?” Buffy asked surprised. “How come?”

“I don’t know. I think she’s just being nice…”

“Cool! Remind me to thank her later.” She smiled and cast a look around the room. “Where’s Willow?”

I swallowed hard, not expecting the question. “S-she wasn’t w-with y-you?” I stuttered. If Willow weren’t with them, where had she spent the night?

“No…you mean, you don’t know where she is?”

“I-I…” I took a deep breath. “She l-left the room last night and d-didn’t c-come back.”

“Why? What happened?” Buffy asked, obviously concerned.

“I kind of d-did something I wasn’t supposed to d-do.” I hesitated, not knowing what to say.

I wanted to tell Buffy what had happened, but I wasn’t sure if it was a good idea. What would I say? That I’d kissed Willow? That she had probably freaked out and would never look at me again? As far as we knew, girls didn’t kiss other girls…especially at that time. And I knew Buffy thought that way.

“What do you mean?” Buffy continued. “Did you guys have a fight?”

“Kind of…I…” I lowered my head and tried to push away the tears.

“Hey…” At the sound of Willow’s voice, I instantly lifted my eyes from the floor.

The redhead looked so miserable. There were dark circles under her eyes as if she hadn’t slept the whole night. And that was my entire fault.

“Hey, Will.” Buffy stood and walked over to her. “Where were you?”

“In the car…” The redhead lowered her head. “I’m gonna take a shower.” She smiled sadly and turned to go.

“Wait, Will! I’m going with you.” Buffy stood beside the redhead.

“No…that’s okay Buffy.” Willow declined. “I just need a shower right now.” She didn’t wait for a response and headed off towards the stairs.

“Wow…what happened to you guys?” Buffy turned towards me. “Will looked so sad…I don’t like seeing you two that way. Can I do something?”

“T-thanks Buff, b-but this is s-something we have to figure out by o-ourselves.”

“Is it that bad?” She walked over to me and sat down again.

“I-it’s just…” I felt my eyes full of tears. I tried to force them away. I didn’t want to cry again, and especially not in front of Buffy.

“That’s okay Tare, you can cry.” Buffy moved to hug me. I couldn’t hold it anymore and the tears began to flow uncontrollably down my cheeks. I didn’t deserve to be comforted. I was the one that had screwed up. Willow was so confused and scared and the last thing she needed was for me to rush things. And I hated myself for it. I hated what I was putting her through.

After a while, I pulled away from the embrace, wiping my tears with the back of my hands. “T-thanks, Buffy…”

“No problem, Tare. You know I’m here for you and you can tell me anything, right? I just don’t like seeing you that way. If you want to, I can talk to Willow and…”

“No!” I interrupted. “I, I’m the one who should talk to h-her”.

“Okay…if you say so…” She trailed off.

Suddenly, I remembered something. “Buffy?”

She looked at me. “What?”

“W-why did you say yesterday that Willow a-and I needed to t-talk?”

“Oh…” Buffy began. “‘Cause I noticed the way you guys were with each other…Willow wouldn’t stop looking at you, as if she wanted to tell you something, you know?”

I nodded, silently asking her to continue.

“And I realized last night could be a good opportunity for you two to talk…but I guess it didn’t turn out okay, so…” She hesitated, as if she was afraid she would hurt me.

“I k-know…but thanks anyway, Buffy.” I said sincerely, attempting to smile a little.

“No problem.” She smiled back. “And don’t forget, Willow isn’t the only one you can talk to, okay?”

“Okay…”

We shared a moment of silence before Buffy’s stomach chose to remind us how hungry she was.

She chuckled. “Breakfast?” She asked, moving to stand up.

“Yeah…” We made our way to the kitchen.

***

As we entered the kitchen, we saw the little boy, Douglas, and the man of the reception, probably his dad, sitting at a table full of food.

“Good morning girls. How are you? Look what Mary made for you. She really liked having you here…don’t you want to stay here today? You can leave only next week! I promise you I won’t charge!” He said eagerly. I smiled. He seemed to be a really nice guy.

“Thank you sir, but we can’t.” Buffy responded. “We have to finish our trip, we’re just at the beginning.”

He made a face like he understood. “That’s okay…but come, sit. You should eat before it gets cold. Where are your sisters?”

Just then, Dawn and Willow appeared.

“They must be in here…” Dawn looked up at us. “Oh, hey! Is this breakfast?” She squealed, a wide smile breaking across her face.

“Yeah…Mary made for us…so, let’s eat ‘cause I’m hungry!” Buffy said as she sat down at the table. We did the same.

While we were eating, Mary showed up and joined us. Everyone looked really happy. Buffy and Dawn wouldn’t stop talking to Mary and the man, Jeff. Well, everyone, but Willow and me. We ate in silence and I kept casting glances at her. She looked so sad and I couldn’t shake my own sadness. The redhead was sad and I was the responsible for it. I didn’t even enjoy the free food, and I was pretty sure that she also didn’t.

After we finished eating, we went back to the bedrooms to take our stuff and put them in the car. Through the whole time, Willow didn’t say a word. I thought maybe I could try talking to her, apologize, but I figured it wasn’t the right time. Things were too fresh in my mind and I needed to distance myself from them or I could say something I would regret or worse, do something I’d definitely regret. Besides, we didn’t have time; Buffy and Dawn were probably waiting for us.

We made our way downstairs. Everyone was gathered in the reception, saying good-byes.

“Thank you so much Mary! The food was delicious!” Buffy said.

“Yeah…I really liked the apple juice.” Dawn added shyly.

“Oh, thank you dears. Are you sure you don’t want to stay here? Just one more night?”

“Yeah, I wish we could, but we have a road to take.”

“I understand. But don’t forget, you can come back here anytime, ok?”

“O-okay, Mary. Thanks again f-for everything.”

“It was my pleasure. Now, be careful, ok? This road can be dangerous.” We nodded and made our way to the front door. “Bye girls!”

“Bye Mary! Bye Jeff!” We headed off towards the car.

***

“Wow…they’re really nice people!” Buffy let out as we walked over to the car. “Mary is so great, she reminded me of mom.”

“Yeah…” Dawn agreed, smiling wistfully.

As we loaded the trunk, I thought maybe I could drive that day. At least I would keep myself busy and try to clear my mind from all that had happened lately.

“B-buffy, if you don’t mind, I think I’m gonna drive today.” I ventured.

“Really? It’s no problem. I’ll just relax then, I think I ate too much.” Buffy sat down in the back with Dawn.

I turned towards the redhead. “Do y-you m-mind, Willow?” I stammered, before biting my lower lip.

“No, you can drive. If you didn’t, I would ask Buffy anyway, I’m kind of tired…” Willow trailed off as she sat down, avoiding my eyes.

I did the same, quietly.

***

awesome.
update please?

_________________
look me in the heart and tell me you wont go, look me in the eye and tell me no love is like our love.

:( so sad... made me all teary...

Hopefully it won't take too long for them to talk and get something straightened out. I'm with Buffy.. I don't like the two fo them that sad :(

Ashleigh

_________________
Here I stand, with everything to lose, All I know is I don't wanna ever see the end. Baby please I'm reachin out for you, won't you open up your heart and let me come back in. Lets be us again..

Replies:

VixenyTarasHot: Yeah…it was kind of sad. But hey, hopefully this update will cheer you up a little. And thanks again for reading =)

lovetypething: Okay

Now, the update:

***

Title: 66 - The road of dreams

Author: onlykaren

Feedback: Yes please, if you want to.

Disclaimer: I don’t own any of Buffy the Vampire Slayer characters.

Summary: AU. A road trip across US.

Rating: PG through to R, maybe a little NC-17.

Pairing: W/T eventually.

Note: This is my first attempt at a fic and English is my second language, so I apologize for any misspelling or grammatical errors.

Note2: All the information about Route 66 I got from the Internet, so if there’s anything wrong, I apologize.

***

Part 9


We drove for an hour, consumed in conversation only now and then. Willow would only talk to me if I addressed her. Well, at least it was something, right?

I looked up and noticed there were clouds forming high in the sky, dimming the bright light of the sun.

“Buffy, c-can you give a look at the map?” I asked from behind the steering wheel.

“Yeah, just wait a sec, let me grab it.” Buffy replied from the back seat.

I heard Willow whisper something that I didn’t quite understand.

“Did y-you say something, Willow?” I asked her, without moving my eyes from the road.

“I just said that I could look at the map,” the redhead’s voice was hardly audible. “I mean, I’ve been looking at it since the beginning…and even though you knew that, you asked Buffy…”

Wow, I didn’t see that coming.

“I didn’t mean it like t-that, Willow. I thought maybe you were t-tired and I didn’t want to b-bother you…”

The redhead replied louder. “Yeah, right.” I winced as she spoke. “I don’t wanna know, ok?”

A heavy silence fell over the car. That reaction was the last thing I expected from the redhead. She sounded…angry? Pissed off? Well, I couldn’t blame her. She had the whole right to be angry with me. After what I did, I was surprised that she’d answered me at all. I sighed. Things had been so good before…why did I have to mess up?

“Hey Tara, I’ve got the map…so, where are we?” Buffy asked, clearly attempting to lighten the mood.

I shook my head, pushing away the threatening tears. “W-well, we m-must be near the Devil’s Elbow...it’s on the Interstate, r-right?”

“Let me see,” Buffy replied, pausing for a second. “Yeah. You have to take exit 160, in Hazelgreen, after we pass through the Devil’s Elbow, okay?” She explained.

“Got it,” I replied.

***

As I kept driving, I noticed a sign that indicated the entrance of Devil’s Elbow. Wow, that part of the road was really beautiful. It was a 4 lane divided section. There were a lot of dark trees on both sides of the road, with the sunlight illuminating through them, creating this really mystical vision.

I cast a glance over at Willow. She was curled up in her seat, staring outside, with her right hand under her chin. She looked so fragile. Beautiful…

Dawn’s voice snapped me out of my thoughts. “This place is so cool!” She exclaimed, bouncing slightly in her seat.

“Yeah, look at those trees!” Buffy agreed excitedly.

As I descend into a hollow, I saw that the road would make a wicked turn that actually looked a bit like an elbow. I realized that was supposed to be a particularly dangerous stretch, so I drove carefully.

Staring ahead, I saw the sign indicating the exit 160 and turned. The road in that part was unpaved and very narrow.

After driving for an hour or so, I had to pull over. Over ahead, the road was divided in three different ways.

“Why did we stop?” Buffy asked, confused.

I shifted in my seat so I could face her. “Which w-way should I go?”

Buffy looked at the road ahead of us. “I don’t know…in the map, it doesn’t say anything about crossways.” She replied, looking down at the map in her lap.

“Are you sure you’re reading it r-right, Buffy?”

“I think so...” She responded, frowning.

Willow whispered so low that I almost couldn’t hear her. “I told you.”

I sighed, slightly exasperated. “B-buffy, can I h-have it?”

“Sure.” Buffy handed me the map.

I turned to face Willow. “Here Willow…just s-stop acting like a child, ok?” I couldn’t stop the words from coming out.

The redhead arched her eyebrows in surprise. “Me? A child? And what about you, huh?” She asked angrily.

“You’re the one that is acting like a s-scared child, Willow.” I was also angry and didn’t even realize what I was saying.

“I’m not a scared child!”

“No? So why did you run away yesterday?” I asked, immediately regretting the question when I saw the pained expression on Willow’s face. Oh no. What had I done?

“Guys! Stop this!” Buffy interfered loudly. “What’s going on with you, huh? We’re here to have fun, not fight. I can’t believe you two!”

“Buffy is right, you guys,” Dawn interceded. “I don’t like this.” She sounded as if she was about to cry.

“Don’t worry Dawn, they’re not gonna fight anymore, right?” Buffy continued as she looked at us.

“R-right.” I said quietly. Willow just nodded.

We stayed in silence for a moment, contemplating what had just happened. Millions thoughts were running in my head. How did things come to this? Willow and I never fought. Even when we were little, we’d never fought with each other and suddenly we were saying these really awful things. Well, at least I was. And I knew I was wrong. I knew Willow was feeling confused and scared, so why did I have to throw that at her? I was a terrible person. And even if she wanted something with me before, she probably wouldn’t anymore. I felt tears well up in my eyes.

I cast a look over at Willow and our gazes met. She was looking at me with a sad expression on her face. Not angry, just sad. As if she regretted what had happened as much as I did.

Buffy’s voice broke through the silence. “Now, I’m sorry about the map. I know I got us to the wrong place, but I think we can fix this, right?” Her voice softened.

Willow shook her head before she replied. “I’m sorry too Buffy, but yeah. I think we can find the way back. Let me see here in the map.” She turned to face the map, speaking again after a minute. “Oh, we were supposed to take exit 169.”

“O-okay,” I stammered. “N-n-now, w-where s-s-should I-I g-go?” My voice sounded cracked and I internally chastised myself for it.

Willow looked at me for a second before she replied. “Just turn around and make the way back to the main road.” She said softly and quickly looked away.

I replied sadly. “O-okay.”

***

As we drove back to the main road, we realized we’d lost a lot of time. It was already getting dark. Willow turned the radio on and we heard news about an approaching hurricane next to the way out of Missouri.

“Guys, I thing it’s better for us to sleep here tonight.” Buffy suggested.

“I think so too. We don’t know how long we’re gonna take to get to some place to sleep, so it’s probably safer here.” Willow pointed out.

I pulled over next to a big tree. There wasn’t any sign of other cars.

“I think the w-wind won’t come h-here.”

“Yeah…”

We climbed out of the car and walked around the place. It was empty. There was nothing but grass. The sun was already setting.

We stood together and watched the sunset in silence. Another day in our trip had come to an end.

After a few minutes, Dawn shrugged and walked back to the car. “Is there anything to eat?” She asked, turning to face us.

“Yeah, Mary made us some sandwiches in case we were hungry…she’s the best, isn’t she?” Buffy smiled and walked over to the car, picking up a bag from behind the driver’s seat. Then she sat down on the hood, followed by Dawn.

Willow and I exchanged a look and joined them.

“Here.” Buffy unwrapped four sandwiches from a paper bag and handed us one each.

We ate in silence, enjoying the view. The sky was a mixture of orange and dark blue.

“It’s beautiful out here, isn’t it?” Buffy said to no one in particular.

“Yeah…it’s so peaceful.” Willow agreed.

Noticing Dawn yawn widely, I chuckled. “I t-think someone is a little sleepy.”

“Who, me?” Dawn asked as she yawned again. “Maybe you’re right.” She smiled sheepishly.

Buffy stood. “I think we should get some rest. We have to wake up early tomorrow.”

Dawn also stood. “Can I sleep in the front?” She asked as she opened the passenger door.

“Yeah, no problem”. Buffy answered and turned to face me. “What about you, Tara?”

“I think I’m gonna s-sleep by the tree…it’s so beautiful outside here.” I replied. True, it was really beautiful. I looked up at the sky and saw the first stars of the night appearing.

Buffy turned towards the redhead. “Will?”

“I don’t know, Buffy…” Willow responded. “I’m not really sleepy yet. I think I’ll just stay here for a while.”

“Fine, I’ll lie down in the back seat then. I don’t like grass so much.” Buffy replied, making a funny face.

I giggled at her. “If you say so”. I stood and walked over to the trunk, opening it and picking up my bag.

“Pillow”. I explained as I saw the confused look on Buffy’s face.

“Whatever”. She moved to lie down in the back seat.

I turned to go. “G-good night.”

“Tara, wait!” Dawn called me and got out of the car.

“What’s w-wrong, Dawn?” I asked concerned, turning to face her.

“Nothing.” She replied shyly. “It’s just…can I…hug you?” She sounded like a little kid.

“Of course, sweetie.” I moved to hug her. Poor Dawn. I could tell she really missed her mom. At least I could give her some kind of comfort. I looked up and saw Willow staring at us. As she noticed my gaze, she quickly looked away. I sighed.

Moments later, I pulled away from the embrace. “Good night, Dawnie.” I kissed her cheek.

“Good night.” She went back to the car.

“Good night, Tare.” Buffy said. “If anything happens, just call us, okay?”

“Ok”.

***

I made my way to the tree and put my bag down on the grass. I opened it and searched for a blanket. After I found a big one, I spread it out on the ground and lay down on it, resting my head on the bag. The moon and the stars were shining brightly above me as I stared at them. I didn’t know how much time had passed. I just lay there, staring at the sky and sleep wouldn’t come.

I looked over at the car. Buffy and Dawn were probably sleeping. I wondered if Willow was okay. Sighing, I shifted my gaze to the sky again.

I just wished Willow wasn’t angry with me. I wished things hadn’t happened the way they had and everything was okay, like it used to be.

Suddenly, I remembered something my mom had taught us when she was alive. We had to close our eyes and ask for something from the heart. Then we just had to open our eyes again and looking at the first star we saw, we had to repeat the wish.

I closed my eyes tightly and whispered slowly. “I want things to be okay between Willow and me.”

Suddenly, I heard Willow’s voice. “Making wishes?” She asked softly from behind me.

I sat up. Willow came and sat down next to me. She stared at the sky for a moment before she shifted her gaze to me, her eyebrows raised innocently as she waited for a response.

“Yeah…” I whispered.

“And what did you ask for?”

“N-nothing important…” I replied, looking down to my hands.

We stayed in silence. I looked up at Willow and couldn’t help thinking how beautiful she was. I just loved her fiery-red hair, her emerald-green eyes, her smile…Willow meant so much to me. I couldn’t bear to lose her.

“Can I make a wish too?” The redhead turned to face me. Wow. My mind went blank of all things but Willow. Her eyes were a wonderful shade of green, jade-like. And I knew I could get lost in them forever.

“Y-yeah…” I replied and reluctantly lowered my gaze again.

The redhead tilted her head back, closed her eyes and whispered something that I didn’t quite understand. Then she opened her eyes again and looked at the sky, tucking her legs to her chest and gripping them.

I stayed in silence, watching her for a moment. She looked at me.

“W-what…what did you a-ask for?” I asked quietly.

“Can I say it?”

“If you w-want to…”

“I wished you would forgive me for everything I did.”

I forced back a tear. “Oh,” I whispered. Her words had taken me completely off guard. But why would Willow ask for forgiveness? I was the one that had messed up and should be sorry and apologize to her.

I took a deep breath, feeling the need to voice my thoughts. “Will…” I began softly. “I s-should be the one asking for f-forgiveness, not you. I, I’m the o-one that have messed things up. You have the whole r-right to be a-angry with me…so I’m s-sorry…I’m s-so sorry for everything I did to you…a-and I n-never meant t-to hurt you…you’re m-my best f-friend and I don’t w-wanna l-lose you and…”

“Shh Tar…” Willow brought a finger to my lips, silencing me. “No more, okay?” She said softly, brushing a lock of hair behind my ear. “I just…I’m sorry too. I…I shouldn’t have left the room the way I did…and I shouldn’t have said those things to you…I don’t even know why I was angry…things have been so different lately…I just wish everything was normal between us, you know? You’re so important to me that I wouldn’t know what to do if I lost you…so, can…can we please be us again?” The redhead smiled sadly. Her eyes were shining wet.

I felt my own eyes full of tears. “Oh Will…” I put my arms around her shoulders and hugged her tight, letting the tears fall down against my cheeks.

We stayed that way for a long moment; Willow whispering soothing words against my ear. After a while, she pulled away from the embrace and began to wipe my tears with her thumbs.

“Want to lie down?” She asked softly.

“Okay.” I replied and moved to lie down.

As I lay down on my back, I got suddenly nervous. I was extremely aware of the redhead on my right and stiffened when I felt she lie down beside me, my heart increasing it's beat. How could I sleep next to Willow and not touch her, hold her, kiss her…? I realized it was too much for me. I was afraid to move, afraid to accidentally touch her and scare her away. After all that was said, I couldn’t do anything wrong again.

Letting out a sigh, I moved to lie on my side, turning my back to her. Suddenly, I felt Willow whisper softly against my ear. “Wanna snuggle?”

I gasped as she didn’t wait for a response and snaked her arm around my waist, bringing our bodies together. Oh God. The feel of Willow snuggled up to me was intoxicating. I could feel her breath on my neck, the softness of her breasts against my back, and the smoothness of her legs as they brushed up against mine. I was quickly becoming aroused by the feel of the redhead against me. I shook my head, trying to force the thoughts down. That was not a good time to think about those things. What if she noticed it?

I sighed again. Even though Willow probably didn’t want to have anything to do with me, it felt so right to snuggle together. I didn’t want her to leave. I snuggled up closer and tried to get comfortable enough to sleep. “Good night, Will”.

“Good night, Tar”. The redhead replied softly, her breath quickly becoming even. After a few minutes, I could feel myself also drifting off into sleep.

***

Hey you!

Damn....and here I was hoping for some tension.....blunt words.... yelling, arguments....but no....all it took were 2 wishes....

I really liked it that Tara said things...even if she did stutter!... good girl!!! That's the way...Talk talk talk....and some more talk. And it was very cute that Willow came over and apologized and snuggling....awww.... it's soo cute...but Willow has to let Tara know that she wants her too come on...we all know that!

Oh and...don't they need gas?....For some reason that's what I keep on thinking when they are on the road "they need gas...." .... I travel alot, actually I drive alot....I'm just being anal about it.... sorry

Oh...maybe you should post in update thread too....cuz I missed last update.... ops...sorry

Thanks!
M.

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"...to be human is to be capable of the most heinous crimes in nature" - Wicked
"..the only person you care about is yourself. You can’t get into someone else’s head, you can’t get into their soul, so in the end, they mean nothing to you. You blink--And they’re gone" - Chance