These Words Are My Own
Will and Mac have a late night conversation.
Nina Howard was not Mackenzie McHale. This he knew. Nina Howard was a warm body, a lovely warm body that was nice and funny and smart. But Nina Howard was not Mackenzie McHale.
Before Nina, Will had a rather large rolodex of eagerly waiting women that he would call on the nights that he either really wanted to stick it to Mackenzie or on the nights when his heart ached at the sight of her smiling at him. Or sometimes both these circumstances had him picking up the phone and dialling the number of some blond.
But now the work was done for him. Nina was there when he got out of work, waiting outside his apartment door with take out and a smile and sometimes with nothing on under her coat. It was a nice change of pace from the parade of cheerleaders and "actresses." At home, with Nina curled up beside him, Will could almost convince himself that he was over Mackenzie, that their relationship was strictly platonic and nothing more. Then every morning he would walk into the newsroom and see her leading the rundown meeting, laughing with Kendra, making fun of Don and he just seemed to fall in love all over again.
He knew that he would eventually have to break it off with Nina. He couldn't use her anymore, because he didn't want to be lonely. Plus, she was there every single night and although he liked Nina, it was starting to approach something he wasn't ready for, at least not with her.
Late one night, after being in particularly fowl mood all day, he texted Nina to say he would be staying late to do research. What he really intended to do was get wasted and smoke through an entire pack of cigarettes in his office…and maybe do some research. While on his third cigarette and second glass of bourbon, the good stuff Charlie had given him for Christmas he noticed that the entire newsroom was dark except for the light of another office. Stubbing out the cigarette, he walked out to see who was here at such a late hour.
There she sat, with her hand resting in her hair, elbow perched on the table, glasses on the end of her nose, so focused on the paper in front of her.
"Are you competing for employee of the month? Because I have to say, me buying pizza last Thursday for everybody really put me in the running." He said entering her office.
She looked up a bit startled, then pleasantly surprised.
"What are you doing here this late?" She asked.
"Research or something like that." He replied, "You?"
"The same."
He quickly ripped the paper out of her hand.
"What the hell, Will!"
"This is a resume. This is your resume."
"Yes. Yes, it is."
"Why?"
"You don't update your resume?"
"I'm a news anchor."
"Right."
"Are you quitting?"
"I don't see how that's any of your business."
"Mac!"
"Can you just get out, Will? Honestly. It's been a long day. My apartment was flooded and until they clean it up, I have to go to a hotel. And I've had to deal with your PMS all day. So if you could just save this little talk until there's a day when I'm emotionally ready to handle your bullshit, I'd really appreciate it."
"Right." There was silence there. He knew that he had given her a hard time all day, all week, all month really. He knew that she knew about Nina Howard and to Mac's credit, she had been respectful when Nina had shown her face at the newsroom or when anyone dare bring the name up in conversations. Mackenzie had put up with a lot, probably more than he would have.
"Will, I received a job offer. I have until Monday to decide." Her eyes filled with tears but they did not come.
"Are you going to take it?"
"I don't know. I don't know if there's anything left for me here anymore."
"Give me one night."
"What?" She asked.
"Come home with me right now. Give me one night to talk you into staying."
TBC