Oz sighed. He had been listening to Devon talk about how to pick up girls. But frankly, Oz didn’t care. There was only one girl that Oz was interested in and he didn’t even know her name. He remembered the first time he saw her. She standing at the edges of the Bronze, wearing an Eskimo costume. He didn’t know what attracted him to her, but he didn’t care. Then he remembered the second time he saw her, strutting across the street in an outfit that he would normally consider slutty, but on her, he thought it was beautiful. He looked away from his friend and focused his attention on the outside doors of the school and then he saw her, walking with one of her friends, laughing about something. They stopped walking and leaned against the banister. He turned back to his friend, wondering if he would ever find out her name.

Willow Rosenburg and her friend, Buffy Summers, walked outside to enjoy the sun, and get away from the library. They stopped and leaned against the banister as Buffy continued her story. Willow looked around at the people walking by, but stopped when someone caught her attention. A short boy with strawberry-blond hair who, by the look on his face, was obviously annoyed by the person who was talking to him. She didn’t know why he caught her attention or why she was attracted to him. “Hey Buffy?”

“Yeah?” Buffy replied, slightly annoyed at being interrupted.

“Do you know who that guy is over there?” Willow motioned with her hand to the boy sitting on the step about 10 feet away from them.

“I don’t know. Why?”

“He’s cute.” Buffy stared at her friend with amazement. < Is she finally getting over Xander? >

“What about Xander?” Willow looked at Buffy with a genuinely confused look on her face.

“Xander who?” < Yep. She’s over Xander. > “Xander Harris. Your life-long best friend. Your crush of over 7 years.”

“Oh yeah. Xander. Sorry Buffy, what were you saying?” Buffy glanced over at the boy that caught Willow’s attention. She stared at him, swearing that he was looking at them. < Maybe he’s… >

“Willow, look at me and keep your eyes on me. I’ll be right back.” Buffy walked away and kept staring at the strawberry-blond boy. Then she looked at Willow, who looked very confused, then back at the boy, who was staring at Willow intently. < Oh yeah. He’s definitely checking her out. But I won’t tell Willow. I’ll play matchmaker and set those two up. That’ll hook those two up. If only Willow knew… > She smiled and walked down the steps. She reached the bottom step, turned around, and called to her friend. “Hey. Come on. Let’s go to my house.” Willow walked down the steps and as she was walking, Buffy was sort of eavesdropping on Willow’s new crush and his friend.

“So Oz,” his friend said, “tonight at the Bronze, while you’re up on stage…” < Ah, a band member and his name’s Oz. Very cool. Well, looks like we’re going to the Bronze tonight. >

“Hey Will? Want to go to the Bronze tonight?” she said as Willow approached her. She said it loud enough so Oz could hear, but not to loud as to sound suspicious.

“Sure. Come on, let’s go to your house,” Willow said, sneaking a side-glance at the object of her affection before walking to Buffy’s house.

< She’s going to the Bronze tonight. I swear it seems like her friend’s trying to set us up or something…nah that’s impossible. But, she’ll be at the Bronze. Maybe I can finally talk to her… > Oz let his thought trail off as he watched them go.

Willow and Buffy entered the Bronze and sat at their usual table at the edge of the dance floor. Buffy glanced around the club and looked up at the stage. She saw Oz standing up there, playing the guitar. < Ooh, a guitar player! She has good taste. > “Come on Willow, let’s dance. Ya know, the group dancing thing.”

“Ok.” On their way out to the dance floor, Willow spotted Oz on the stage.

“Buffy, there he is. On the stage.” Buffy smiled inwardly as she looked up at the stage. “Well, so he is. Cool. Come on, dance.” Willow looked away from the stage and danced with Buffy to the upbeat song.

There she was. Dancing below the stage with the same friend as he’d seen her with earlier. He stared at her, trying to remember every detail about her. Her hair, her eyes, her smile. His eyes widened with surprise as she glanced up at him. < Did she just look at me? ‘Cause if she did, that would be cool. > He looked down at his hands, changing chords. He looked back at Willow and Buffy, who had stopped dancing. < Wonder what they’re doing? > They turned around and faced some guy Oz didn’t know. < I wonder who he is? >

Buffy and Willow turned around to find Angel calling them. “Hey Angel. What’s up?” Buffy asked.

“Giles wants your help at the library. Research or something.”

“Gee what a surprise. What do you say Willow. Up for research?”

“Yeah sure, just let me get a soda before we go, ok?”

“Sure, go, take your time.” Willow walked off in the direction of the bar.

“Hey Angel.”

“Yeah?”

“Do you see the guitarist on the stage?”

“Yeah. Why?”

“Willow has a crush on him.”

“So.”

“So…he has a crush on her. I caught him checking her out earlier this afternoon. I want to get them together and I have a plan, but I want you to help me.”

“I understand. What’s the plan?”

“Tell you later. Here she comes. Act normal.”

“You guys ready? I got my soda.”

“Yeah sure. Let’s go,” Buffy said as she exited the Bronze with her boyfriend and her best friend.

Later in the evening, Angel was walking Buffy home and Buffy was explaining her plan. “So once we get them to the Bronze on Thursday, which is the night that it’s closed, we blindfold them so they can’t see each other, but we put them together so they’ll talk and then we have them dance.”

“Buffy, explain why we’re blindfolding them again?”

“Because if Willow knows who it is, she won’t talk to him. She’ll get shy. He’ll probably get the same way. After a few hours, we have them take the blindfolds off. I know it sounds confusing, but it’ll all make sense when you find out how it works. I need your help in setting up the Bronze.”

“Why? If they’re going to be blindfolded, what’s the point?”

“It’s for after they take off the blindfolds. Ok well, today’s Tuesday, so we have two days to set up this thing.”

“Ok Buffy. I’ll help you”

“Great. Willow will be so happy.”

The next morning, Willow met Buffy with a smile on her face. “Why so happy Will?”

“I had a dream about him.”

“You mean the boy at the Bronze?”

“Yeah. It was a really good dream.” They walked down the halls of the school while Willow was describing her dream. “…So then he stops kissing me and he’s about to tell me his name when I wake up.”

“Wow Willow. Pretty vivid dream there.”

“Yeah. I just wish I knew who he was.” Buffy glanced over Willow shoulder and saw Oz looking at Willow. < You’ll find out soon enough. >

Buffy and Angel were at Buffy’s house discussing the plan for the next night. Buffy was sitting on her bed, holding the school directory and she was losing her patience. “Oh there you are Oz. Ok Angel. Tomorrow evening, you’ll go to Oz’s house and bring him to the Bronze and I’ll get Willow to the Bronze. Blindfold him and stay outside until I call you guys in. When you bring him in, Willow will also be blindfolded. We’ll let them talk for a while and if all goes well, we’ll have them dance. Then we’ll take off the blindfolds. They’ll be so surprised to find out that they’ve been talking to their crush. What do you think Angel?”

“6:30. The sun will have set by then. At 6:30, you’ll go to his house,” Buffy handed him Oz’s address, “and tell him that someone wants to meet him.”

“Ok, but it might take a while to convince him.”

“That’s ok. You don’t have to be there for a half an hour.”

“Buffy, this is going to be fun.”

“Glad you see it my way.”

“Hey Will!” Buffy called as she ran down the hallway after school the next day.

“Buffy! Is something wrong? Does Giles need our help?”

“No, no, I just wanted you to come to the Bronze with me tonight.”

“But I thought it was closed tonight?”

“Oh, it is, but there’s something I want to show you.”

“Ok, sure. I’ll go.”

“Great. What time is it?”

“Quarter to six.”

“We have to go now.” They arrived at the Bronze a 6:15. Buffy pulled out a piece of cloth and moved towards Willow. “Buffy! What are you doing?”

“I’m blindfolding you.”

“Why?”

“Because, for the beginning of this thing, you have to be blindfolded. I’ll take it off when it’s time.”

“Ok, fine, blindfold me.”

“Yea.”

Angel looked at his watch. < 6:20 > He was standing outside Oz’s house and he could see Oz through the window. < That’s it. I’m bringing him early. Besides, if they really like each other, the earlier the better. > He knocked on the door and stood there for a moment. Oz came up and answered the door. “Yes? What do you want?”

“Hi. My name’s Angel. I have a friend who wants to meet you.”

“Do I care?”

“If you knew who it was, you wouldn’t be saying that.”

“What are you talking about?”

“If you don’t meet her, you’ll regret it.” Oz was in no mood to argue with Angel or anyone for that matter. “Ok. Fine, I’ll go. Just let me get my jacket.” He grabbed his jacket and walked out of the door. “Hey Angel, that’s your name right?” Angel nodded. “Don’t I know you from somewhere?” Oz continued. Oz thought about it for a moment. “Yes I do. You were at the Bronze last night with the blond girl and the red headed girl.”

“Yep that was me.”

“Do those girls know the girl that you’re taking me to meet?”

“Yes and as a matter of fact, one of the girls knows her very well.” They got to the Bronze and Buffy was waiting outside holding a blindfold. “Hey Buffy. Where’s Willow?”

“She’s inside waiting. Oh and Angel, here’s the blindfold.” She handed him the blindfold, kissed him and walked back inside.

“Wait. I’m meeting a girl I don’t even know and I’m not going to get to see her?”

“You will. Later on. This is just part of it.” Angel proceeded to tie the blindfold around Oz’s head. < Ok, I’ll just imagine her as the Eskimo girl. >

Buffy walked back to Willow. “Ok, can I take the blindfold off now?”

“No. You’re meeting someone who I want you to meet.”

“I’m not going to be able to see him?”

“Just imagine him as someone you want him to be.” < I’ll imagine him as the guitarist from last night. > Angel led Oz in and sat him down at the table they set up for them. “Buffy, he’s here.”

“Ok.” She dragged Willow to the table and sat her down. “Angel and I couldn’t help but notice that you two would be cute together so we decided to take some action. So I’ll make the introductions. Willow, this is Oz. Oz, this is Willow. We’ll tell you guys when you can take the blindfolds off. We’ll be watching.” Willow took the opportunity to speak up.

“Yeah right. You’ll probably end up making out.” Buffy and Angel smiled at one another.

“We’re going now. Don’t take off the blindfolds.” With that, Buffy and Angel went to the other side of the room. Willow turned to Oz and said,

“This feels really weird. I’m talking to you and I don’t even know what you look like.”

“I feel the same way, but since they’re not going to let us take the blindfolds off, lets ignore them.”

“Ok,” Willow said and they started talking.

2 hours later, Buffy and Angel decided it was time for them to dance. They turned on the music and walked over to Willow and Oz, who were having a great time. “Ok, time for you two to dance.” Buffy put their hands together and led them to the dance floor. They awkwardly started dancing. He had his arms around her waist and she had her arms wrapped around his neck. “I’m having a fun time tonight, even though I can’t see you,” Willow said as she swayed to the music.

“Me too.” Willow put a hind on his face, right next to his mouth. She leaned in, hoping her aim was right, and kissed him. Her aim was right and he kissed her back. They stood there, kissing when Willow took Oz’s blindfold off. He did the same, taking hers off as well. They stopped dancing and stood there kissing. Buffy and Angel, who had been watching, had left the Bronze when Willow leaned over and kissed Oz. They slowly pulled apart and stood there with their eyes shut.

“Should we open our eyes?” Oz asked her.

“Yeah. On the count of 3. 1…2…3.” They both opened their eyes. Oz was paralyzed with shock and Willow, of course, fainted.

Oz ran to her side, looking for Buffy and Angel, who were no where to be seen. He knelt down beside her; shocked that he had been kissing the girl that he was absolutely in love with. He picked her up and carried her to the couch. He put his hand on her face. “Willow, Willow. Wake up Willow.” Her eyes fluttered open and she sat up muttering, “Oh my god. Oh my god.”

“What?” Oz asked her.

“You wouldn’t believe me if I told you.”

“Yeah I probably would.”

“You look exactly how I imagined you. Actually, I didn’t make up the image. I saw you a few days ago.”

“Outside of school?”

“Yeah how did you know?”

“I saw you too. I’ve actually seen you before that. Remember the ‘Cultural Exchange Dance’?”

“Yeah?”

“When I saw you in that costume, I said to myself ‘I have to meet that girl’ . I never imagined that I would be kissing you though. I’ve dreamed about it.”

“I dreamed about it too. We were kissing. We stopped and you’re about to tell me your name and I wake up.”

“I had the same dream. Where were you?”

“Here,” she said sheepishly.

“Same here. Maybe it’s a sign.”

“I hope so,” she said as she kissed him. His heart skipped a beat as she pulled him closer to her. “Let’s dance,” Willow said as she led him out to the dance floor.

Later in the evening, Oz took Willow home. He walked her to the front porch and they sat down on the futon that was there. “Hey Oz?”

“Yeah?”

“You want to know something?”

“Sure.”

“You know why I fainted?”

“Because before I met you I had a crush on you.”

“So did I.”

“Yeah, but you didn’t faint”

“But I was too shocked to move after I found out that I was kissing the girl that I had a big crush on.” She looked up at him and put her arms around his neck. “Do you know how weird that is? We both had a crush on each other but we were too shy to go to each other. Life is most definitely ironic.”

“Yes it is and may I say something?”

“Yeah, sure.”

“Did you know that you’re really beautiful?” Willow blushed and looked away.

“No one’s ever told me that before.”

“Well you are really beautiful.” He kissed her gently. “I should probably go. Do you want a ride to school tomorrow?”

“Yeah. That would be nice.” She kissed him again and went inside. “Bye Oz.”

“Bye Willow.”

The next morning, Buffy was looking for Willow to ask her how it went. She found Xander first.

“Hey Xand, do you know where Willow is?”

“No. Haven’t seen her. Why?”

“Oh, just wanted to ask her a question. Come on. Let’s go check in with Giles.” They walked into the library to find Willow and Oz standing next to the table kissing. Xander’s mouth dropped open in shock and Buffy smiled. “Question answered.” She pulled Xander out of the library.

“Was that Willow?” Xander asked.

“Yes.”

“Who was that with her?”

“Oz. He’s a senior and he’s Willow’s boyfriend.”

“Wow. Go Willow,” and with that, they left Willow and Oz making out in to library as Buffy explained the evening before while they walked to their first class.