Author's note: This chapter takes place primarily on June 28, 2011. This is the day after Will's high school graduation party and it is the night that Justin and Adrienne take Sonny out to dinner as a welcome home. While at dinner with his parents, Sonny meets Chloe and she is holding her baby Parker. This story is an AU where Will, frustrated with his relationship with Gabi, breaks up with her and comes out to his family and friends prior to graduating from high school. Will is not with Gabi and does not meet Sonny when Sonny is with Abi. They will meet just slightly later.

Will is stretching as he wakes in his bedroom in the loft. 'Ahhh no school' he thinks to himself as he remembers his graduation party last night at his Grandma's pub. The party was smaller than originally intended, but it was still nice and even mildly fun. His family was there or at least those that were currently in Salem and his few remaining friends were there. He reminded himself to focus on who was there to celebrate with him rather than who was missing. Things had gotten harder for him in some ways, but so much easier in others as he was no longer living a lie.

He wasn't ready to get up just yet, and he didn't have any commitments until his date tonight, so he took advantage of the opportunity to reflect on the past month.

He remembered back to his time as Gabi's boyfriend. He really did care for her, but his time with her felt he was 'doing time', 'hard time'. The emotional energy it took to try to pretend he was attracted to her left him exhausted and emotionally drained after every date. Toward the end, he had come up with a system to make sure to touch her some way just before she would notice he wasn't. He had gotten pretty good and was able to avoid the suspicious looks and worries from her on a few occasions. Ironically, the better he got at the charade the more it was eroding his soul and it was exactly this success that led to that overwhelming moment of frustration combined with an inner courage he never knew he had.

He was walking Gabi home and his system was working, which had the undesired side effect of making her even more physically affectionate. As she reached to caress his back one time too many, his mind and body were united in a sudden and impulsive rebellion. He abruptly jerked away turning to face her and blurted out, "Gabi, we need to break up. I'm gay."

Of course it wasn't that easy. First, she didn't hear him or the words didn't fully register and he had to repeat it and that turned into a long discussion about their feelings filled with Gabi's tears. In the end, Will spent a good thirty minutes trying to convince Gabi she was sexy even though she wasn't sexy to him. Finally, he had carried out his prison sentence with her, and as she closed the door behind her, Will felt free for the first time in his life.

That feeling of freedom carried him home and into a deep peaceful sleep that quickly turned into a series of nightmares as his subconscious started to play out what must come next for him now that he had admitted his truth albeit to only one person. As he woke the next day, his comforter felt like it was made of lead carrying all the responsibility that lay ahead for him. He sincerely wished he could take it back and go back to pretending. He wasn't proud to admit that he probably would take it back except that he would then have to go through another seemingly endless conversation with Gabi to try to convince her he wasn't serious when he said he was gay. Avoiding that was just enough to keep him on his current path. He managed to get up that day and so far every day after that.

It took him about two weeks to talk through his news with everyone he felt he needed to. He started with the easy ones Abi and Grandma Kate and worked up the tough ones like his mom, Rafe and T. He finished off with his international calls to Grandma Marlena, his dad and his Aunt Carrie and Austin. Not all of these conversations went well, of course, but the clear standouts for the worst were his mom and T.

He was completely floored by his conversation with his mom. How could she actually think he would make something like this up just to make her feel like a bad mom, but after about a week, and some coaching from Rafe, she came around. Now he felt like she was one of his biggest supporters. Their relationship was stronger than it had ever been as she was there for him through the last trying weeks leading up to graduation.

Rafe surprised Will. Even though Will's news hurt his sister personally, Rafe was proud of Will and helpful with his mom. Abi was great. He knew Chad would be good, but it was a bonus that he didn't even need a minute to adjust. It really didn't change a thing between them and he was very grateful to count him among his surviving friends.

The casualties were T, Kinsey and Gabi. So he was a few friends short at the party, but it still felt great to be in a room of family and friends who now knew the secret he carried so heavily for so long and they still loved him.

T had been talking about getting a place with Will and now he wouldn't even speak to him, and Kinsey just went along with him. Gabi said she was fine, but whenever he saw her it was like he was a ghost. She wouldn't look at him or talk to him, and that hurt after being so close. Unfortunately, they had to see a lot of each other as they were both working at the pub for the summer and his mom was married to Gabi's brother. He wasn't going to spend time worrying about this, as he really believed in time they could be friends again.

Also missing were the friends he hadn't made yet. There were only a few weeks left of school when he started sharing his news. He did know there were a few guys in his school that were openly gay, but it seemed awkward to try to start a friendship the last week of school so he didn't try.

His first attempt at making friends came when he attended the freshman welcome event at Salem University last week. He was in a large atrium where they had tables set up to promote sports and other extracurricular activities. He boldly walked right up to the Student LGBT Organization without looking back or to either side to see might who be watching him. It was that action that led him to today. Tonight he was going on his first date. His first real date. His first date that he was counting.

When he reached the, table all but one of the three guys were already helping someone. So, he continued his false bravado and connected with the pair of green eyes that were nonchalantly watching Will's approach.

"Hi, my name is Will," Will said while trying to steady the shake in his voice. He started to raise his hand for a handshake, but he noticed just in time that it wouldn't be returned so he awkwardly dropped his hand and casually took a visual of the man in front of him. He was striking.

"Hi, I'm Brian. What do you need help with?" he said with what could only be characterized as boredom, but that didn't stop him from slowly lowering his eyes and raising them to take in a full view of Will.

"Um, um I don't need anything really, I was just ahhh," Will's bravado was definitely fading fast, but he was saved by the guy to the left of Brian.

"Will, was it? Hi! My name is Neil. Would you like to hear about our student organization on campus?" he said with a warm smile.

"Yes, please," Will replied with an obvious exhale of relief.

Will listened as Neil told him about the meetings, the social event, free counseling and more. While he was listening, he was observing Neil as much as he could. He wanted to understand how Neil and Brian got to this point where they were so comfortable and open and he was trying desperately to figure out how he would get from where he was today to where they were today.

Will took the pamphlets Neil was offering and decided it was time to go as he had no idea what questions to ask. He smiled one last time connecting with Neil's soft gray eyes and then he left.

The next day Will was working at the pub and Neil came in with a couple of guys. Unfortunately, they sat in Gabi's section, but that didn't stop Will from carefully observing them as his own educational plan. He was trying to make sure he was discreet enough that they wouldn't notice, but Neil caught him staring. Fortunately, he smiled and waved Will over. Not knowing what else to do he walked over to the table.

"Hi," Will said shyly when he reached the table.

"Hi, Will. Let me introduce you to my friends. This is Mike and this is Chris. I didn't know you worked here. I love the food here," Neil said smiling and looking at Will with piercing eyes. Will felt somehow exposed and he didn't understand it. He decided to wrap this up quickly.

"Yes, I work here. Nice to meet you all," and he quickly turned and headed straight for the kitchen. He was just standing there waiting for time to pass when Gabi came back and stood right in front of him.

"Who are your new friends, Will?" she asked with a painfully tight smile.

"Uh, they aren't friends. I just met them last week at the Salem U Freshman night," he intentionally left out the details as he could see her mind was working overtime coming up with her own conclusions anyway. What he said was true. They weren't his friends, but he wished they could be. Will left Gabi standing in the kitchen and got back to work.

The next day, Will was shocked to see Neil was back at the pub. This time alone and this time he sat in Will's section. Will had, had a day to recover from their last encounter and he did need to make some friends so he walked up to Neil's table with what he hoped was a friendly warm expression.

"Hi, you must really like the food here," Will said in a feeble attempt at humor to break the ice.

"You're right I do, but I have to admit I am not here for the food today. I came to see you," he said with a wink.

Will's heartrate jumped and he felt the blood rush to his cheeks. He was just trying to make a friend. He was pretty sure he wasn't ready for this. He tried to breathe and put together a reply, "Oh, well good. You see I don't know many people at Salem U and I was hoping to make a few friends this summer before I start school in the fall," he spoke a bit too quickly and inhaled obviously when he finished.

Neil, pretending not to notice his nervousness continued, "That sounds good, but I actually wanted to ask you out on a date. Would you go to dinner with me next week sometime?"

"Uh . . . I would like to get to know you, but I have to be honest I am not sure I am ready for a relationship. This is kind of new for me still. I mean being 'out' . . . " Will trailed off a bit as he tried to think of what else to say.

"Will, don't worry. It's not a relationship or a commitment. It's just dinner, OK? No strings attached," Neil finished and then waited patiently for Will to collect himself and answer.

Will was looking was looking worriedly toward the kitchen trying to figure out if it was OK to say yes. He was nervous about the prospect of an actual date, but he didn't want to pass up the opportunity to possibly make a friend.

"OK, sure," he replied a little too softly, but loud enough for Neil to hear him."

"Great! There is this nice restaurant not too far from here. It's French, Chez Rouge. Is that OK with you? Why don't we meet there Tuesday night at 7pm?" Neil asked looking satisfied with himself.

Will liked that he suggested they meet there. That took some pressure off by having his own separate transportation. "Sure that sounds good. Tuesday works."

"OK, give me your number so we can reach each other if anything comes up," Neil requested.

Will gave Neil his number and then Neil sent him a quick text so Will had his number too. So, it had been an eventful month for Will and tonight would be a big milestone for him. Just then his phone vibrated on the bedside table and Will took that as sign that it was time to get up. He was going to start the day with a run to clear his head and then he was hoping to hang out with his brother and sisters as they always helped him to feel normal. Lastly, he would allow plenty of time to get ready.

Will opened the new text on his phone.

Neil: Looking forward to seeing you tonight. We are still on for 7p, right?

Will: Yes, 7pm meeting you at Chez Rouge. C U then.

Neil: Can't wait! C U tonight

Will parked his car and walked up to the front door of Chez Rouge. It was 6:50, but he didn't mind being early. He was extremely nervous and was trying to keep his palms from sweating by shaking them in the air. Then he realized if anyone saw him he would look ridiculous. He positioned his arms casually at his sides as he walked into the restaurant. Since he was early, he thought he would head to the restroom to wash his hands and check his look. He had been here before, so he walked to the back of the restaurant to the men's room.

Will was walking out of the men's room when a scene in the middle of the restaurant caught his attention. There was a young man talking to a blonde baby being held by what he presumed to be the mother. The young man's smile was startlingly white and for some unknown reason it captivated Will and he was frozen in place just outside the bathroom door. He was unable to take his eyes of the man. The man's eyes were bright and lively in a rich chocolate brown, a perfect match to his smile as he gently touched the baby's hair. Finally, Will got his senses back and he was beating himself up. Here he was ready for his first date and he is taken in by what he can only guess is a happily married man with a baby. He allowed himself one last look and this time noticed his shiny dark hair and his perfect olive skin. Then he saw the mother leaving with the baby and the man was left alone with what might be his parents, so maybe it wasn't his baby after all.

Will shook himself to try to loosen up and then he headed to the front of the restaurant to find Neil with images of the beautiful man lingering in his brain.

To be continued . . .