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snoggedTitle: How To Mend A Broken Heart (The Missing Limb Remix)
Author: snogged
Disclaimer: Joss Whedon and many other corporations own the characters of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. I don’t. Please don’t sue.
Pairing: Willow/Riley
Rating/Warnings: FRT/PG
Word Count: 1571
Summary: To try to get Willow back out there after Oz leaves, Buffy drags her on a double date with Riley and Graham. Willow finds out that having a good friend in her corner makes for a world of difference.
Setting: BtVS, Season 4, set after “Wild At Heart”
Beta Crew: The lovable velvetwhip. All other mistakes are mine.
Author’s Note: Written for the Which Willow 2013. Many thanks to dragonydreams for her continued efforts that support this fabulous challenge. I hope for many more Which Willow challenges in the years to come.
Emotional amputation-
A term that refers to the feeling of losing an arm or a torso after the person you love most in the world hurts you in the worst possible way. See: Oz. See also: having your heart ripped out and stomped on.
Wait…What?
That wasn’t right. Willow had been reading about…Freud, hadn’t she? Or was it Erickson?
Willow sighed and rubbed her eyes, closing the psychology textbook. All work and no play were clearly making her a very dull girl.
She pulled open the desk drawer and shoved the book inside. It had been 13 days, six hours, and seven minutes since Oz had left her sobbing on the dorm room floor. Not much had changed since then either. She still cried herself to sleep at night, staining the standard-issue paper-thin pillowcase with salty tears. She still had Dingoes Ate My Baby CDs playing on repeat. Even the garbage can was still overflowing with Milky Way wrappers and Ben & Jerry’s ice cream cartons from Buffy’s chocolate therapy regimen.
Speaking of Buffy….
Buffy was supposed to back from patrol 10 minutes ago and had made a promise before she left that when she returned they would do something that would knock Willow out of funky-town. Not that Willow wanted to get a one-way ticket out of funky-town. It was perfectly reasonable for a girl to mope and be sad after the love of her life walked out the door. Certainly more reasonable than running away to Los Angeles and becoming a waitress named Anne….
“Willow?”
Willow jumped out of her chair and jerked her head toward the sound.
“Geez- you scared me. I didn’t hear you come in.”
A grin played at the corners of Buffy’s lips. “Sneaky Slayer: that’s me. Gotta keep the ninja skills up-to-date or the vamps get restless, you know. Are you ready for tonight?”
Willow gulped. She knew the gleam in Buffy’s eyes all too well. It was Buffy’s Big Idea Time. The kind of Big Idea that either led to stealing weapons from an army base to defeat a big bad or to wild dancing at the Bronze. It was a little surprising how much Buffy’s expression looked the same for both scenarios.
“Well…I know you said we were going to make me less funky and more…um….”
“Willow-y?” Buffy prompted as she glided across the floor and pulled open several dresser drawers.
Willow winced. It wasn’t like she had stopped being Willow just because Oz had left. She was still very much herself. She just wasn’t…the version of her that Buffy liked best, which was a good version, but right now felt like a distant memory.
“Buffy, I know you have the best of intentions, but I think…maybe…we should just stay in and watch bad foreign films. We could watch the one about the chiropractor? Or was it the one with the lover and the gold coins and the big maypole…fish thing?”
Buffy’s eyes softened and she draped the pair of pants over her arm before walking back over to Willow. Willow felt Buffy’s fingers on the back of her hand and she locked eyes with her best friend.
“Break-ups suck, Will. I mean, seriously, I had to literally stab Angel in the heart just to save the world. But I’ve moved on. Riley and I are….blending. We’re like a tasty smoothie and it’s refreshing and cool and….”
Buffy paused as Willow’s eyebrows rose in bewilderment.
“…And I know it’s a totally weird analogy, but it doesn’t matter because tonight we are going out and getting you your very own college hunk-flavored smoothie.”
“Buffy, I don’t….”
“Will, no don’t’s tonight. Just do’s. Please? Pretty please? With a cherry on top?”
Willow sighed, knowing there was no escape from Buffy’s puppy dog eyes. They were equally as effective as her own Resolve Face.
“Put these on.” Buffy shoved the pants into Willow’s hands and then grabbed a white ruffled top with a violet-flower design that curved up the side. “Please? The boys will be here any minute.”
Willow nodded and Buffy clapped her hands in delight.
Minutes after Willow had changed clothes, there was a knock on the door. Buffy hurried to open it and smiled when she revealed Riley and…Riley’s friend who was definitely not the sort of guy Willow pictured as a smoothie. He was more like a sweater-clad, All-American, bulging-bicep guy who she had absolutely zero interest in…drinking tonight.
Willow shot Buffy a look that she hoped got that message across, but Buffy didn’t seem to take notice. Instead, Willow was forced to smile and wave politely at their guests. At least Riley was decent company….
“Hey,” Riley said. “This is Graham. Graham, this is Buffy and Willow.”
“Nice to meet you both,” Graham offered, shoving his hands into his pockets. Judging by the look in his eyes, he appeared to be more interested in Buffy’s cleavage than hanging out with sad, broken Willow.
“So…to the Bronze!” Buffy chirped, putting the kibosh on any awkward silences that might have threatened the little foursome.
Buffy pushed her way through the door and Graham stepped in line beside the Slayer. Willow sighed and flashed a desperate look at Riley. Riley offered her a small shrug and a half smile. He was dutifully trying to be a good boyfriend and go along with Buffy’s plan, but Willow had to admit she felt some sort of solidarity with the corn-fed boy from Iowa.
They reached the Bronze in record time and Graham bought the first round of drinks and an onion blossom to share.
Willow clutched the Pabst Blue Ribbon in front of her as if it were a life preserver, gulping down half the bottle before she realized how clichéd that looked.
Cue the sad girl drowning her sorrows in alcohol.
She probably looked like one of those girls (or guys) in the country songs that Xander listened to whenever his heart was broken.
“Come dance with me, Will,” Buffy urged, gently placing her hand on Willow’s shoulders.
Willow shook her head, grateful that the waitress had brought out the steaming hot appetizer and had placed it directly in front of her on the table. She knew she was about to become one more broken-hearted cliché by numbing her feelings with food, but she didn’t really care because she knew it was the way to get Buffy off her back for a few minutes. “Get me on the next one, Buffy. I need to eat this onion blossom before it gets cold.”
“I’ll dance with ya,” Graham offered, getting up from the table. He flashed a brief look at Riley that communicated the purity of his intentions and the two of them quickly moved out into the surging crowd of people.
Willow took another long swig and tried to swallow past the lump in her throat.
“I know this isn’t where you want to be,” Riley said. “But I’m glad you came anyway.”
“Um…thanks,” Willow replied, still feeling lumpy-throated. “Also…thanks for, you know, saving me and stuff. I mean, I…. I was pretty unstable and if it hadn’t been for you, I would have…ended it. You did a good thing, I guess.”
Riley smiled, shifting his barstool closer to hers. “You’re a good person, Willow. “ He paused, taking a sip of his own beer. “I think the world would be a lot worse without you in it.”
Willow bit down on her lip, not sure how to respond. The words were nice to hear and everything, but Riley was Buffy’s guy and he should be out doing the bump and grind on the dance floor instead of playing therapist to Buffy’s best friend.
Riley must have noticed the look on her face because he grabbed her hand with his and brought the other hand up to her cheek, turning her head towards his so their eyes locked. “Look, you told me once that a vague disclaimer is nobody’s friend so here’s the message I want you to hear. I am sitting at this table because I want to. You were my friend before Buffy was part of my life, hell, you helped orchestrate that part of my life so whatever you need right now…I want to help make that happen for you.”
Willow inhaled sharply and finished off her beer. There were loads of things she wanted to do. She wanted to go back in time and find a way to be with Oz. She wanted to find that part of her body that had gone missing when he left. On the other end of the spectrum, though, she wanted to be mad. She wanted to lash out at him for the pain he had caused. She wanted to….
“Got any rusty shovels handy?”
Riley chuckled softly, obviously catching her reference to a conversation they once shared. “Not handy, but I do know a few guys who could take him out for you. No strings, no questions asked.”
Willow allowed a smile to cross her face. It felt good to have a friend tonight and oddly enough, it felt even better that the friend was Riley.
“How about bad foreign films and popcorn?”
“Sounds like a plan, Rosenberg.”
Willow knew it wasn’t the final solution. She knew that movies and food were not going to mend the broken pieces of her heart, but this was a start and that was enough for now.
Author: snogged
Disclaimer: Joss Whedon and many other corporations own the characters of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. I don’t. Please don’t sue.
Pairing: Willow/Riley
Rating/Warnings: FRT/PG
Word Count: 1571
Summary: To try to get Willow back out there after Oz leaves, Buffy drags her on a double date with Riley and Graham. Willow finds out that having a good friend in her corner makes for a world of difference.
Setting: BtVS, Season 4, set after “Wild At Heart”
Beta Crew: The lovable velvetwhip. All other mistakes are mine.
Author’s Note: Written for the Which Willow 2013. Many thanks to dragonydreams for her continued efforts that support this fabulous challenge. I hope for many more Which Willow challenges in the years to come.
A term that refers to the feeling of losing an arm or a torso after the person you love most in the world hurts you in the worst possible way. See: Oz. See also: having your heart ripped out and stomped on.
Wait…What?
That wasn’t right. Willow had been reading about…Freud, hadn’t she? Or was it Erickson?
Willow sighed and rubbed her eyes, closing the psychology textbook. All work and no play were clearly making her a very dull girl.
She pulled open the desk drawer and shoved the book inside. It had been 13 days, six hours, and seven minutes since Oz had left her sobbing on the dorm room floor. Not much had changed since then either. She still cried herself to sleep at night, staining the standard-issue paper-thin pillowcase with salty tears. She still had Dingoes Ate My Baby CDs playing on repeat. Even the garbage can was still overflowing with Milky Way wrappers and Ben & Jerry’s ice cream cartons from Buffy’s chocolate therapy regimen.
Speaking of Buffy….
Buffy was supposed to back from patrol 10 minutes ago and had made a promise before she left that when she returned they would do something that would knock Willow out of funky-town. Not that Willow wanted to get a one-way ticket out of funky-town. It was perfectly reasonable for a girl to mope and be sad after the love of her life walked out the door. Certainly more reasonable than running away to Los Angeles and becoming a waitress named Anne….
“Willow?”
Willow jumped out of her chair and jerked her head toward the sound.
“Geez- you scared me. I didn’t hear you come in.”
A grin played at the corners of Buffy’s lips. “Sneaky Slayer: that’s me. Gotta keep the ninja skills up-to-date or the vamps get restless, you know. Are you ready for tonight?”
Willow gulped. She knew the gleam in Buffy’s eyes all too well. It was Buffy’s Big Idea Time. The kind of Big Idea that either led to stealing weapons from an army base to defeat a big bad or to wild dancing at the Bronze. It was a little surprising how much Buffy’s expression looked the same for both scenarios.
“Well…I know you said we were going to make me less funky and more…um….”
“Willow-y?” Buffy prompted as she glided across the floor and pulled open several dresser drawers.
Willow winced. It wasn’t like she had stopped being Willow just because Oz had left. She was still very much herself. She just wasn’t…the version of her that Buffy liked best, which was a good version, but right now felt like a distant memory.
“Buffy, I know you have the best of intentions, but I think…maybe…we should just stay in and watch bad foreign films. We could watch the one about the chiropractor? Or was it the one with the lover and the gold coins and the big maypole…fish thing?”
Buffy’s eyes softened and she draped the pair of pants over her arm before walking back over to Willow. Willow felt Buffy’s fingers on the back of her hand and she locked eyes with her best friend.
“Break-ups suck, Will. I mean, seriously, I had to literally stab Angel in the heart just to save the world. But I’ve moved on. Riley and I are….blending. We’re like a tasty smoothie and it’s refreshing and cool and….”
Buffy paused as Willow’s eyebrows rose in bewilderment.
“…And I know it’s a totally weird analogy, but it doesn’t matter because tonight we are going out and getting you your very own college hunk-flavored smoothie.”
“Buffy, I don’t….”
“Will, no don’t’s tonight. Just do’s. Please? Pretty please? With a cherry on top?”
Willow sighed, knowing there was no escape from Buffy’s puppy dog eyes. They were equally as effective as her own Resolve Face.
“Put these on.” Buffy shoved the pants into Willow’s hands and then grabbed a white ruffled top with a violet-flower design that curved up the side. “Please? The boys will be here any minute.”
Willow nodded and Buffy clapped her hands in delight.
Minutes after Willow had changed clothes, there was a knock on the door. Buffy hurried to open it and smiled when she revealed Riley and…Riley’s friend who was definitely not the sort of guy Willow pictured as a smoothie. He was more like a sweater-clad, All-American, bulging-bicep guy who she had absolutely zero interest in…drinking tonight.
Willow shot Buffy a look that she hoped got that message across, but Buffy didn’t seem to take notice. Instead, Willow was forced to smile and wave politely at their guests. At least Riley was decent company….
“Hey,” Riley said. “This is Graham. Graham, this is Buffy and Willow.”
“Nice to meet you both,” Graham offered, shoving his hands into his pockets. Judging by the look in his eyes, he appeared to be more interested in Buffy’s cleavage than hanging out with sad, broken Willow.
“So…to the Bronze!” Buffy chirped, putting the kibosh on any awkward silences that might have threatened the little foursome.
Buffy pushed her way through the door and Graham stepped in line beside the Slayer. Willow sighed and flashed a desperate look at Riley. Riley offered her a small shrug and a half smile. He was dutifully trying to be a good boyfriend and go along with Buffy’s plan, but Willow had to admit she felt some sort of solidarity with the corn-fed boy from Iowa.
They reached the Bronze in record time and Graham bought the first round of drinks and an onion blossom to share.
Willow clutched the Pabst Blue Ribbon in front of her as if it were a life preserver, gulping down half the bottle before she realized how clichéd that looked.
Cue the sad girl drowning her sorrows in alcohol.
She probably looked like one of those girls (or guys) in the country songs that Xander listened to whenever his heart was broken.
“Come dance with me, Will,” Buffy urged, gently placing her hand on Willow’s shoulders.
Willow shook her head, grateful that the waitress had brought out the steaming hot appetizer and had placed it directly in front of her on the table. She knew she was about to become one more broken-hearted cliché by numbing her feelings with food, but she didn’t really care because she knew it was the way to get Buffy off her back for a few minutes. “Get me on the next one, Buffy. I need to eat this onion blossom before it gets cold.”
“I’ll dance with ya,” Graham offered, getting up from the table. He flashed a brief look at Riley that communicated the purity of his intentions and the two of them quickly moved out into the surging crowd of people.
Willow took another long swig and tried to swallow past the lump in her throat.
“I know this isn’t where you want to be,” Riley said. “But I’m glad you came anyway.”
“Um…thanks,” Willow replied, still feeling lumpy-throated. “Also…thanks for, you know, saving me and stuff. I mean, I…. I was pretty unstable and if it hadn’t been for you, I would have…ended it. You did a good thing, I guess.”
Riley smiled, shifting his barstool closer to hers. “You’re a good person, Willow. “ He paused, taking a sip of his own beer. “I think the world would be a lot worse without you in it.”
Willow bit down on her lip, not sure how to respond. The words were nice to hear and everything, but Riley was Buffy’s guy and he should be out doing the bump and grind on the dance floor instead of playing therapist to Buffy’s best friend.
Riley must have noticed the look on her face because he grabbed her hand with his and brought the other hand up to her cheek, turning her head towards his so their eyes locked. “Look, you told me once that a vague disclaimer is nobody’s friend so here’s the message I want you to hear. I am sitting at this table because I want to. You were my friend before Buffy was part of my life, hell, you helped orchestrate that part of my life so whatever you need right now…I want to help make that happen for you.”
Willow inhaled sharply and finished off her beer. There were loads of things she wanted to do. She wanted to go back in time and find a way to be with Oz. She wanted to find that part of her body that had gone missing when he left. On the other end of the spectrum, though, she wanted to be mad. She wanted to lash out at him for the pain he had caused. She wanted to….
“Got any rusty shovels handy?”
Riley chuckled softly, obviously catching her reference to a conversation they once shared. “Not handy, but I do know a few guys who could take him out for you. No strings, no questions asked.”
Willow allowed a smile to cross her face. It felt good to have a friend tonight and oddly enough, it felt even better that the friend was Riley.
“How about bad foreign films and popcorn?”
“Sounds like a plan, Rosenberg.”
Willow knew it wasn’t the final solution. She knew that movies and food were not going to mend the broken pieces of her heart, but this was a start and that was enough for now.