His embrace was warm, yet somehow kept her safe from the summer night's heat. Okay, so that didn't really make sense when you said it outloud, but it was perfectly logical when she thought it in her head.

The perspiration that had covered both their bodies had finally cooled, and they were both laying somewhere between sleep and awake. It was peaceful, and calming, yet made her tingly inside all the same.

She stared at his ceiling as he stroked her hair soothingly. Shining up above them was their own private night sky, made out of glow-in-the-dark stars. Willow smiled softly, and cuddled up closer to him, hugging him around the waist.

After a few more moments of silence, Oz dropped a kiss on the top of her head, and then spoke, his voice soft and calming. "You're not talking."

She was so interested in the stars on the ceiling that she didn't really hear what he'd said. "Hmm?"

He continued to stroke her hair. "You're not talking. You usually do, after we... is something wrong?"

Willow picked her head up off of his chest, and looked at him, smiling gently. "No! Something's very *not* wrong... I just, can't think of anything to say. Plus, I figure you must get tired of me just rambling on and on and... oh there I go."

Oz smiled lazily. "You know I love it."

She nuzzled his nose softly. "You know I love you."

Oz kissed her softly, and then she lay her head on his shoulder.

"Do you want me to talk?" She asked, pulling the sheets up closer around them.

"I'll admit I've become accustomed to post-'panic' conversation." Oz replied. "It's up to you."

She grinned at their indecisiveness. Then she decided to do something about it. Her eyes slid closed, and her face took on a pensive expression as she thought for a moment. Finally, a soft smile crossed her face again. "Tell me something."

"Sure." He agreed. "What?"

She shrugged. "Something you've never told me before."

They were silent for a moment. Oz was obviously trying to think of something he hadn't told Willow, which was kind-of hard, seeing as how she knew more about him than anyone else. Finally he thought of something. After taking in a breath, he spoke. "Her name was Meghan."

Willow again looked up at him, slightly puzzled. "Whose?"

Oz pulled her closer, almost protectively. "The girl I lost my virginity to."

Willow stiffened for a moment. "Oh." Again, her head was on his shoulder. "Wh..um, how did you know her?"

"The band. She was one of Devon's groupies, but she got tired of his relentless affair with himself and by association I was next on her list."

Willow just nodded, softly, not pulling away when he took one of her hands and laced his fingers in hers. "What was she like?"

She could feel Oz's slight smile at her question. He'd known it was coming. "Outgoing. Flirtatious. Bleach blonde. But she had a charm. And pretty eyes." He paused for a moment. "Anyway, I went out with her more because of pressure from Devon to find someone than interest, though I hate to admit it. He was down on me 'cause I was the only guy in the band that hadn't slept with anyone by then. And I was tired of the harrassment."

Willow snuggled in a little closer to him. "Was she nice?"

"She was the first girl I'd gone out with that didn't spend the whole night complimenting me on my guitar skills or my 'soulful' eyes." He chuckled slightly. "I liked that about her. And she was independent." They were quiet for a moment. "I wasn't unhappy with her, and Devon stopped harrassing me, so we dated for awhile."

"Awhile?" Willow urged him on.

"About four weeks." He breathed. "But that was a long time for me, relationship-wise, then, anyway. I usually couldn't stand a girl past the first date."

Willow squeezed his hand softly. This obviously wasn't something he liked talking about, but he wanted to get it off his chest. "So, you guys...?"

Oz sighed, softly. "She threw this party, one night, and had the Dingoes play. So, afterwards I stuck around, and we snuck up to her bedroom. We were making out, and things were getting pretty intense. I didn't want to rush it or anything, but she told me that she loved me." He was quiet again for a moment. "For some reason, at that moment I could believe it. And it just happened."

Willow hesitated before asking her next question. "Did you love her?"

Oz kissed Willow's forehead. "No. I can't even really say I liked her much. I tolerated her. She wasn't as pretentious or self-centered as all the other girls I'd been around so I mistook it for something other than it was." He rubbed her shoulders softly.

She was content at that answer. "So what happened?"

"We kept it up for another couple of weeks. And then she met this Trent Reznor wanna-be and fell madly in love."

Willow emitted a soft sigh. "Oz, I'm sorry."

He looked down at her. "Why?"

She met his eyes. "You don't deserve that."

He gave her a soft smile. "I can't regret it fully. I mean, I do wish I had waited until I was atleast more emotionally attached... but doing that, being in that relationship... made me realize that being patient, that waiting for something that feels right... is what I wanted. And so I did."

Willow kissed him, sweetly, allowing herself to feel all the warmth and love and happiness that was surrounding them. She pulled back slowly, still looking in his eyes. "Did it feel empty?"

He looked slightly dazed. "That?"

She smiled. "No, I mean... with Meghan."

His features relaxed into a more serious expression, but not an unhappy one. "Yeah, it did. After we... you know, we were laying there together. I just remember thinking that I didn't feel *anything*... I didn't know what I was supposed to feel, but I knew it wasn't that."

"But..." She supplied.

"No but." Oz smiled softly. "And. And... well, after you and I ... I knew *that* was what I was supposed to feel."

Willow's face lit up entirely. "That's a compliment if I ever heard one." She tilted her chin up and kissed him again. He slid his arms tighter around her, and let himself forget about the world for a moment. Again, she pulled away, and locked eyes with him.

"No more empty?" She asked, hopefully.

A smile spread across Oz's face. "No more empty."

---

The End.
Next fic coming soon!

Can you hear me whispering in your ear? Feee-eee-d-baaaa-aack~Make your own fun