C.L.W.: LOL.. I don't think anyone has EVER asked for my consultation on wardrobe. I just pulled those outfits out of my.. well.. you know. Thanks for the feedback.. late is better than nothing!
I have two dedications for this update. One goes to Nickole... HAPPY BIRTHDAY, and thanks for the suggestions.
The other is from Jayma to her Karebear: "Dedicated to my loving and wonderful karen. I love you now forever, always and a day. Love your lil baby tinkerbell."
And now onto the date.
**********************************************
CHAPTER SIX
She took a deep breath and knocked softly on the door. She gripped the single rose she held in her hand. Mere seconds passed before she heard someone turning the knob on the other side of the door. As it opened to reveal its captive, she felt her breath catch in her throat. Before her stood a fiery goddess. Her eyes traveled the length of the form in front of her. Up the deep red skirt to the fitting black blouse that accentuated curves in all the right places. Up the long, white neck to supple lips, and then into blue depths. Staring into the eyes of the goddess, she finally spoke, her words coming out in a throaty whisper. “Wow, Tara… you look, beautiful.”
*KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK*
She heard the light rapping at the door. She moved to open it as she smoothed her shirt down. Turning the handle, she took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. Time seemed to stand still as the person in front of her was slowly revealed. There she stood. The most beautiful creature she had ever seen. She couldn’t help but stare as she noticed the outfit that set her mind wandering. She unconsciously licked her lips as her eyes gazed across a small expanse of stomach. She heard girl speaking. The woman said she was beautiful. “Thank you.” She whispered. “You look really beautiful too, Willow.”
It was then that Tara noticed the rose as Willow held it out to her. “I brought this for you.” She watched as Tara took the rose from her and brought the petals up to her nostrils. With nothing to hold onto, she dropped her hand back to her side.
Tara inhaled deeply. The scent of the flower drifted into her nose. “Thank you, Willow. It’s lovely. Let me just put it in some water and I’ll be ready to go. Please, come in.”
Willow stepped into the room and watched as Tara filled up a small vase with water, placing the rose inside. She looked around the room and smiled. The walls were painted black and there were Christmas lights hanging from the tops. A bookshelf and a small desk lined one wall. The opposite wall housed a small bed covered with a deep purple comforter and matching pillows. Various paintings adorned the walls, and candles were randomly placed throughout the room. She halted her self-tour of the room when she heard Tara say, “Ok, I’m ready to go.”
Willow smiled and moved to stand next to Tara. She lifted her elbow and offered her arm to the blonde. Tara willingly slipped her arm into the redhead’s and they walked out the door. Walking down the hallway Tara turned to look at Willow and gave her half-grin. “So, Ms. Rosenberg, since you insisted that I let you pick the restaurant tonight, where are we going?”
“I can’t tell you. It’s a secret.” Willow replied with a flash of white teeth.
“Please?” Tara asked with pouty lips and her best puppy dog eyes.
Willow’s knees went weak at the sight. She swallowed the lump in her throat. “Nope. You just have to wait and see. Now, stop that.” She said, playfully nudging her companion.
Tara smiled, knowing that if she had continued pleading she would eventually have gotten Willow to break down and tell. Apparently, Willow was a very thorough planner. Her excitement and curiosity grew as they got into the cab parked near her dorm. They rode for several minutes. Neither girl said much, but they sat close together in the back seat, arms still linked. Tara’s eyes grew wide when they pulled up in front of the restaurant. Willow got out first and held the door open for her.
As Tara got out of the cab she took the other girl’s hand and asked, “We’re going to Napoli’s?”
Willow laced her fingers with Tara’s. “I hope you don’t mind. Buffy said you went here a lot with your parents, but since they’ve moved you haven’t had the chance to come back. Is this ok?” She had thought this would be a nice place to go since Tara had shared many happy moments here with her family, but now she wasn’t so sure. She was about to mentally berate herself when she heard Tara speak.
“No, Willow, this is wonderful. I’ve wanted to come back for a while. I just hadn’t found the time to. Thank you.”
Willow smiled in response to the words. She then led Tara inside the restaurant. She started in amazement. It didn’t look like much on the outside, but on the inside it was absolutely beautiful. The lighting was dim. In the very center of the room the ceiling arched. A mural of clouds was painted there and was illuminated by hidden spotlights. Directly underneath the center of the arch was a beautiful marble fountain. The walls were lined with windows, but instead of looking out, they were backed by mirrors, causing the room to look bigger than it was. The tables were made of oak and were stained a deep brown.
Tara smiled at the look on Willow’s face. “Nice, huh?”
“It’s gorgeous. I never imagined it would be like this.”
As they approached the host, the man looked up and smiled when he saw the blonde. “Tara! How wonderful to see you again! How are your parents?”
“They’re fine. Living it up in San Francisco.”
“Wonderful! And who is the lovely redhead you brought with you?” The man smiled at Willow as he extended his hand.
“This is Willow. Willow, this is Ricco. He owns the place.”
Willow shook the man’s hand. “It’s nice to meet you, Ricco. This is a beautiful place you have.”
“Ah, Willow… such a pretty name for a pretty girl. Let me show you to your table.”
They followed him to a table in the back. It was secluded, but still offered a good view of the restaurant. They took their seats opposite each other and accepted their menus from Rico. “I’ll give you a few minutes to decide what you want. I’m personally taking care of you tonight.” He winked at the two girls as he went off to see to other customers.
“So, what’s good here?” Willow asked.
“I usually get the Fettucini Alfredo. I’ve heard the Lasagna is good too though.”
“I’ll try the Lasagna. That way I can taste yours and get to try both.”
Ricco returned moments later and took their orders. It didn’t take long for their food to come out. They talked as they ate, enjoying the quality of the meal, and the company of the other. Willow did indeed taste Tara’s food, however, Tara would not allow her to feed herself. Instead, she guided the fork into Willow’s mouth, never taking her eyes off the green ones in front of her. The act itself was innocent, but both girls couldn’t help but feel its effects. As Willow’s lips slid off of the fork, Tara had to tighten her grip on the handle to keep from dropping it. Willow flashed her a sexy smile when she noticed Tara’s grip tighten. Tara gave her an equally sexy smile in return.
Willow paid for their meal and they said goodbye to Ricco. Tara wondered what Willow had planned for the rest of the evening, but didn’t have to wait long as Willow leaned in to whisper in her ear.
“I thought maybe we could go back to your dorm and watch some movies. Does that sound good?” She smiled as Tara shivered.
“Umm… that sounds nice, but umm… I was wondering if I could show you something before we go back. It’s still light out, and there’s this place not too far from here. We can walk there. Not many people know about it, but I like to go there sometimes by myself. If you wanna see it, that is.”
“You go there alone? How come?” Willow asked.
“I don’t know. It’s just some place I found and it became special to me.”
“If it’s a special place I wouldn’t want to invade it.”
“I wouldn’t have asked you if I didn’t want you to see it. I think you’re special. But, we don’t have to if you don’t want to.” Tara said, slightly ducking her head.
Willow reached forward and lifted her chin. “If you don’t mind sharing your special place with me, then I would love to see it.” She smiled and her hand found its place within Tara’s once again. Tara led her away from the restaurant and she happily followed.
They walked along the road for a few minutes before Tara ventured off into a clearing. They climbed a small hill and went through a small group of trees. When they emerged from the trees, they were standing on a small cliff. Before them lay the entire town of Sunnydale. The sun was directly in front of them, its pink and orange rays casting a peaceful glow over the buildings beneath them. Somewhere in the distance, Willow heard the gentle trickling of a stream. Standing in this spot, she couldn’t imagine the town being overrun by vampires and demons. It was almost surreal. She looked over at Tara and her breath caught in her throat. The rays of the sun cast a heavenly glow around the beautiful girl. To Willow, she looked like an angel. So intent was her gaze that she barely noticed Tara turning her head to look at her. Only when green eyes met blue did she blink herself out of her haze.
“It’s nice, isn’t it?” Tara said.
“Beautiful.” Willow replied, never taking her eyes off of the girl in front of her.
She moved closer to the blonde and wrapped her arms around her waist. Tara instinctively placed her hands on Willow’s shoulders. She began to play with the hairs on the back of Willow’s neck, and smiled when she noticed the redhead mimic the action at the small of her back. At the same time, both heads moved towards each other. Eyes closed, and mouths exhaled slowly as their lips touched for the first time. The kiss was soft and delicate, fitting of their surroundings. It embodied the serenity each felt being in this place, together. They pulled apart and stared into each other’s eyes. Both were speechless, but the emotion shown in their eyes spoke more than any words ever could.
After several minutes, Tara noticed the sun sinking lower in the sky. “We should get back before it gets dark.” She whispered.
Willow just nodded, too stunned by the kiss to form any words. They walked back to Napoli’s hand in hand. Once there, they hailed a cab and made their way back to Tara’s dorm. Back in her room, Tara showed Willow her movie collection and offered to let her pick. Willow looked over the collection and finally decided on The Princess Bride. They placed some pillows at the end of Tara’s and lay side by side as they watched the movie.
They both tried hard to concentrate on the movie, but found it difficult lying so close to one another. They laughed during the funny parts, cried during the sad ones, and sighed when true love finally won. As the credits rolled, Willow turned to look at Tara. She knew her feelings for the blonde had moved beyond a physical attraction. She felt herself falling in love, and it excited yet scared her at the same time.
“Tara… can I tell you something?” she shyly asked.
“Of course. You can tell me anything, Willow.”
“Ok. Just hear me out before you say anything.”
Tara nodded and turned on her side to give Willow her full attention. Willow took a deep breath. “I know that we’ve only known each other for a little over a week, and I don’t want to scare you, or push you away, but Tara, I… I’m falling in love with you, and I totally understand if you don’t feel the same way, but I just needed you to know that because I don’t want to keep any secrets from you and…” The rest of her words were swallowed by Tara’s lips.
The kiss was more passionate than it had been on the crevice. Willow opened her mouth as she felt Tara’s tongue slide along her bottom lip. A jolt of electricity surged through their bodies as tongue met tongue. Willow grabbed onto the back of Tara’s head and crushed their mouths closer together. She shivered when she heard Tara moan, and answered with her own. They released, breathing heavily, gasping for much needed air.
“Wow…” Willow choked out.
“Oh, Willow. I’m falling in love with you too. No one has ever made me feel this way. Kiss me, again?” She didn’t wait for an answer as she meshed their lips together once more.
They lay there for several hours, simply kissing, mapping out the other’s mouth. As sleep began to overtake them, they crawled under the covers and held tightly onto each other.
**********************************************
Hope you enjoyed! Sorry it took so long...
------------------------------------
"Madness has now come over me..." Disturbed - Down With the Sickness
Edited by: sunspud at: 1/3/03 2:52:50 pm