College Girl (Book Four, BTVS)

~~Angel~~ "In the Dark"

Welcome to LA.

Oz drove us down the road through the night.

I smiled, laughing. "Oh, gig was fierce."

Oz smiled. "Glad you liked it."

"Liked it?" I repeated. "Loved it."

"Well, we are getting a little better, if I do say so myself," Oz told me.

I smiled, looking at Oz for a moment, letting the smile fade, leaning closer to kiss him. Oz returned the kiss while still driving.

After a few moments, we pulled to a stop in front of Angel's apartment building, getting out, walking inside to see a man standing across a desk from Cordelia.

"Hello, LA," I told them.

Cordelia was in shock. "Zoey? Oz?" She stood. "Oh, my God." She walked around the desk toward us. "Guys. It's so good to see you." She embraced Oz, pulling away. "Good old Oz." She looked at me. "Childhood frenemy Zoey. Do we hug?"

"Considering that the last time I saw you, we were under attack by a giant snake and that was four months ago, I guess I can make an exception," I told her.

We smiled, embracing.

"Then we go back to insulting each other without taking a breath, right?" Cordelia asked.

"You can count on it," I told her, pulling away.

Cordelia smiled, looking at the man, pointing to Oz and me. "Zoey and Oz."

The man looked at Oz and me. "Let me just take a stab at it. You'd be Zoey and Oz?"

"Good guess," Oz told him.

"This is so cool," Cordelia told us. "I mean, you guys here in LA, and you're the total embodiment of all things Sunnydale."

"Well, then let the insult game begin," I told her.

Cordelia smiled. "We have some serious catching up to do? How is everything? How's--how's the Bronze?"

"The same," Oz answered.

"And the gang?" Cordelia asked.

"They're good," Oz answered.

"Good?" Cordelia repeated. I nodded. "Good. Good."

There was a moment of silence.

"Are we done?" I asked.

"Completely," Cordelia answered.

"Good," I told her. "'Cause it seemed like you would have heatstroke if you pretended to care for a minute longer."

The man chuckled, looking at Oz. "They weren't joking, were they?"

"No, sir, they were not," Oz answered. "But, oddly enough, it's weirdly entertaining."

I smirked.

Cordelia walked toward the desk, sitting down. "Oh, this is Doyle. He, air quote, works here."

Oz shook Doyle's hand. "Hey." Doyle shook my hand. Oz put his hands in his pockets. "So, we heard the rumors, but you guys can fill us in on the real deal here. So, you guys are, like, detectives?"

"No," Cordelia answered. "I'm an actress."

"And quite a captivating one at that," Doyle told us.

"And between my many gigs, I sometimes choose to help Angel," Cordelia told us. "He's the detective."

"Translation: You can't find work and you're here almost all day every day?" I asked.

"I call that an exaggeration," Cordelia told me. "Like you're helping Salvation Army by being a returning customer each and every time you go shopping."