1) The first time Sonny asks Will to marry him it's as a joke.

It's about month after they've started dating and they're walking through the town square discussing T and Lucas. They come to a stand still near the wall across from the couch and Sonny blabbers on about how it sucks being in the closet. All of the sudden, he's on the topic of gay marriage and how things are changing.

"You know, I think one day, you and I will be able to get married right here in Salem," Sonny says, smiling. "And that would make me the happiest guy in the world."

Will stares at him incredulously.

Undeterred, Sonny takes Will's hand in his and asks, "Why don't we do it? Let's get married."

Will's mouth drops open in shock and confusion and he barely registers the words coming out of Sonny's mouth, which are describing a whole detailed plan of where they should elope to and where their honeymoon should be.

Suddenly, Sonny bursts out laughing. "Will, I was kidding," Sonny tells him.

"Oh my god! That is so not cool," Will laughs and gently pushes Sonny. "When you have my parents, marriage isn't something you joke about. And anyway I don't think I'm gonna ever get married."

Sonny frowns slightly but grins a second later.

"Besides, I like the way things are right now," Will admits, motioning for Sonny to come closer.

"I do, too. I do, too," Sonny says, eliciting a laugh out of Will before he grabs Sonny's head and pulls him in for a kiss.

2) Sonny next proposes to Will a little less than a year later on the anniversary of their first kiss in the same place that it happened.

Will practically skips into the Brady Pub that morning, despite having been up all night with the baby who had been sick and crying. He spots Sonny sitting at a table in the back and brightly greets his boyfriend with a smile and a kiss.

"Happy Anniversary," Will says immediately, sitting down and ordering a plateful of eggs and homefries from the waiter.

Sonny grins at him and replies in kind. There's a silence for a minute as Will gets served his breakfast and then Sonny queries, "Did you have a good night? I missed you."

Will's lips turn up in a smile but he shakes his head. "Arianna was up all night crying. I think she's getting sick. I only slept a few hours. Price of being a dad."

Sonny chuckles and confesses, "I love seeing you with her. Fatherhood suits you."

Will smiles bashfully and silently agrees with Sonny; he loves being a dad even though it happened so unexpectedly.

When Will finishes his food, Sonny throws a twenty dollar bill on the table and the two of them exit the pub.

Will is almost in the square when he realizes Sonny isn't next to him. He turns around and notices Sonny standing in the spot where they had their first real kiss. Will strolls back over to Sonny and asks, "You okay?"

"A lot's happened since we first kissed."

Will nods and looks at Sonny curiously. Sonny takes one of Will's hands in his own and says, "I'll be honest, when things were rough those first few months we were together, I wasn't sure we'd make it through. But all that only made me love you more deeply and more sure than ever that I wanted to be with you always."

He pauses, searches Will's eyes, and drops to one knee. Will gasps a second before Sonny asks, "Will you marry me?" He doesn't pull out a ring for which Will is eternally grateful.

Will bites his lip and gently guides Sonny off his knee into a standing position.

"Is that a 'no'?"

"It's a 'not now'," Will responds. "I want to marry you Sonny, I do." They both giggle as Will realizes what he's said. "But I'm still getting used to being a dad and I don't think I'm ready to add being married on top of that."

Sonny nods. "Yeah."

Will beams and slams their mouths together in a kiss, which is much more confident and well-practiced than the ones they had shared here a year ago.

3) Will collapses onto his and Sonny's bed, exhausted from a long day of chasing Arianna around the park. Once she had started walking a few months ago, she had begun running around non-stop to the point that Will could barely keep up with her.

Sonny chuckles as Will rubs his hands over his face. "Arianna giving you a run for your money again?" Sonny lays down on the bed and props himself on his elbow so he can look at Will.

Will groans and rolls over onto his side to face Sonny. "It's like now that she's got the hang of walking she doesn't want to sit anymore."

"My mom said I was like that. Apparently I wouldn't ever sit still once I figured out how to walk."

Will grins and leans over to kiss Sonny. Although he is sure that it had started gentle and soft, Will is suddenly on his back, Sonny on top of him, their tongues battling for dominance as they kiss wetly and sloppily.

Within seconds, they are naked and rutting against each other, their kisses becoming messy and uncoordinated. Will wraps his legs around Sonny's waist and his arms around Sonny's neck, pulling him closer for better friction. They easily slide into their well-practiced rhythm of rocking, which quickly turns erratic and clumsy. Will grunts into Sonny's mouth and tightens his grip on his boyfriend's body, as they push harder and frantically against each other in their need to reach their climaxes.

After they come with mumbled cries of each other's names and hurried 'I love yous', they lay against the pillow's, their legs intertwined and their fingers interlaced. Will sighs contentedly and snuggles closer to Sonny.

"That was a great way to relieve the tension I had from running around with Arianna."

Sonny laughs loudly, his whole body shaking. When he's able to catch his breath again, Sonny says, "Marry me." He doesn't mean to ask it like this; it just slips out.

Will grins, shakes his head, and responds, "Not yet, but keep asking me. One time I might just say 'yes'."

Sonny's lips turn up into a small smile and his eyes twinkle, encouraged for really the first time that he'll get the answer he's so desired for three years.

4) The fourth time Sonny asks Will it's most definitely not on purpose and in a hotel room in Dubai where they are on vacation, partially so Sonny can show Will where he grew up and partially for Sonny's brother Alex's wedding.

They've come back from back from a long night at the rehearsal dinner and they are both incredibly tipsy. They giggle together like teenage girls as Sonny clumsily opens the door to the room and Will trips over himself as he walks inside.

It's the first time since she was born that Will has been away from Arianna for more than a day and it'd made him anxious the first couple of nights that they were here. But lots of sightseeing and multiple rounds of fantastically kinky sex had taken Will's mind off of his daughter and he had actually been able to enjoy himself at the dinner.

Which is how he ends up falling onto the bed, Sonny underneath him, their heads so cloudy with alcohol that they can barely kiss properly. They laugh loudly as they struggle to get out of their suit jackets and loosen their ties and Will squeaks as Sonny rolls on top of him.

They're both too drunk and uncoordinated to actually have sex but Sonny sloppily peppers wet, open-mouthed kisses down Will's neck, pausing occasionally to bite and suck hickies into his favorite places he's found over the five years they've been together. Will lets out a breathy sigh and attempts to flip them over, but fails miserably. Sonny chortles and falls onto the bed next to Will.

After they've both calmed down and are clearly falling asleep, they manage to shift their bodies so they are chest-to-chest. As they kiss lazily, Sonny mumbles, "We should get married," against Will's lips. Will murmurs a quiet "Maybe" in response, closes his eyes, and is asleep within five seconds. Sonny quickly follows.

In the morning, their recollection of the conversation from the previous night is so vague they each secretly think was a dream.

5) The fifth time Sonny pops the question, he's planned it all out, sure that Will will say yes this time. He's asked Maggie to book them a quiet table for two in the corner of Chez Rouge, but she's gone one better and booked the whole place for them.

Will is dropping Arianna off at Gabi's for the night when he gets the message to meet Sonny at the restaurant and 'to dress nicely'. Will smiles and hurries home to change.

When he opens the door to Chez Rouge, Will is greeted by a table lit with glowing candles, soft music filtering through the speaker system, and Sonny holding out a rose to him. Will's eyes sparkle as he takes the rose and follows Sonny to the table, sure he knows what's going on.

They eat in silence, occasionally glancing at each other with shy smiles. When their plates are cleared, Sonny laces their fingers together on the table top and nervously looks at Will. Will tilts his head to the side slightly in mock curiosity, although he's certain of what Sonny's about to do.

Sonny licks his lips and takes a deep breath before he divulges into a speech Will knows he planned at some point while he wasn't home. "Will, we've known each other for over five years now and over that time, I've watched you struggle so much. Each thing life threw at you, your sexuality, Arianna, your great-grandmother dying, your parents testing your patience," he pauses and Will laughs, "has only made you a stronger person and made me love you more for how you've handled it all. I couldn't be prouder to be your boyfriend and to have watched you become the person you are right now, sitting across from me."

Will smiles at him, inwardly thinking he should stop Sonny, tell him he's still not ready, but he doesn't. Instead he watches as Sonny lets go of his hand, slips his own into one of his pockets, and easily slides onto the floor so he's kneeling on one knee. Will turns in his seat and stares down at Sonny, who pulls a ring box out of his pocket and opens it to reveal a thin silver band.

Sonny chuckles as he says, "I love you, Will. With all my heart. You are the love of my life and I want to spend the rest of my life with you. I know I've asked you before, but you told me once to keep asking, so, will you marry me?"

Will hesitates, his words stuck in his throat, his heart at war with his head. His heart wants to accept this time but his head is still telling him not to. In the end, he follows his rationality and gently closes the lid of the ring box. He nearly cries when he sees Sonny's face fall in disappointment, but answers, "Soon. I promise. Just give me a little more time. Please be patient with me."

Sonny sticks the box back in his pocket and stands up, Will following suit. Sonny's trying to hide that he's upset, but Will knows him too well by now. Feeling guilty, Will wraps his arms around Sonny's neck and holds him close.

He hugs Sonny tightly and whispers in his ear. "You're the love of my life, too. And I'd love nothing more than to be your husband. I'm just not ready yet but I'm almost there. Okay?"

Will pulls away to look at Sonny. Sonny melts when he sees a look of fear and inadequacy in Will's eyes, something that hasn't been there since Will first came out. Sonny nods, cups Will's face in his hands, and kisses him gently.

When they break apart, Sonny says, "I'll wait forever for you to be my husband and I certainly won't stop asking until you agree."

Will chuckles softly, entwines their fingers together, and leads Sonny out into the cool night air.

As Will falls asleep a couple hours later, he makes a promise to himself that next time Sonny asks, his answer will be 'yes'.

+ 1) When Sonny proposes for the sixth time, it's a day or two after Arianna starts pre-school. Will is having a crisis in which he rambles on about his concerns and how old he feels despite only being twenty-five.

"What if the other kids are mean to her," Will worries, popping potato chips into his mouth as they sit together on their bed, the TV flickering softly. "I remember my first few days of pre-school. The kids were NOT nice. And they're even more vicious now. She's shy. What if she doesn't make friends? What if her teacher is too hard on her?" He pauses for breath and finds Sonny smirking at him. "Oh my god. I sound so old."

Sonny chuckles. "No you don't. You sound like a father who's concerned for his daughter's well-being. Which you are."

Will smiles and leans against Sonny's side as Sonny wraps an arm around Will's shoulders.

They quietly watch the movie on TV for a few minutes and then Will says, "Thank you."

Sonny looks at Will, surprised. "For what?"

"Being you. Being patient with me. Standing by me with all of this. I know it couldn't have been easy on you."

"I've told you before. I love seeing you with Arianna. You're such a good dad. And whatever doubts I may have had in the beginning completely vanished after a few months. I love you and you couldn't get rid of me if you tried."

Will grins widely and captures Sonny's lips in a firm yet gentle kiss. When he pulls away, Will mutters "I love you so much. I don't know how I got so lucky."

Sonny smiles softly and leans over for a chaste kiss after which Will wraps his arms around Sonny's neck and embraces him tightly. Will buries his face in the crook of Sonny's neck and hums contentedly.

They hold each other in a comfortable silence and then Sonny asks the familiar question, "Marry me?"

Will pulls away slightly so he can look at Sonny. His eyes search Sonny's for a couple seconds before he answers with a smile. "Yes."

Sonny's eyes widen in surprise at the response, by now used to Will's rejection. Will smiles serenely at him and nods an extra assurance of his answer.

"Yeah?" Sonny asks breathily, his eyes sparkling and his face alight with joy.

Will grins at him and replies, "Yeah. I'm ready now."

Sonny beams and smashes their lips together. Will laughs as Sonny breaks the kiss to push him on his back, only to attach his lips to Will's neck. Will wraps his arms around Sonny's back as Sonny mutters "I love yous" against his skin, each declaration punctuated by alternating butterfly kisses and bites which will be hickies in the morning.

After a long and heated make-out session, Will and Sonny lay together side-by-side, their heads on the pillows and their fingers interlaced. They bask in each other's quiet company, their hearts beating out a same rhythm. Will squeezes Sonny's fingers and grins dopily at Sonny, each too lost in their own thoughts and feelings to express them to the other:

Sonny's almost dizzy with bliss as he lays next to Will who's finally, finally his fiancé. It hadn't happened as he'd planned for it to happen, no candles, no soft music, no ring, no big declarations of love. But this is better, more them, it happening here in their little apartment as they watch TV. It's simple and unadorned, but so, so real.

Will's sure he's never felt quite as happy as he is in this moment, not when he and Sonny kissed outside the pub all those years ago, not when they made love here in this bed for the first time, not even when his daughter was born. No. Knowing that he's going to marry the love of his life has made him the happiest man alive and he's all of the sudden wondering why he hadn't said 'yes' before.