A week later, Paul and Will sat in the waiting room of the hospital. Paul had his arm draped on the back of Will's chair as Will played some mindless game on his phone. He honestly didn't know what it was about and he was pretty sure Arianna had somehow downloaded it on his phone.
Will watched as the animated witch cheer that he'd won the level and kind of wondered why the witch wanted to pop all the bubbles.
"Is that Ari's game?" Paul asked suddenly.
"Yup," Will said simply, popping his lips at the 'p'.
Paul snorted out a laugh and went back to the message he'd been typing to his dad, explaining why he couldn't come in to work on the case they were currently taking today. He wanted to take the entire day off in case Will had a bad reaction to the serum. He knew they had a pretty big caseload, with cases John had taken but as well as them taking on Leo for Sonny...and for a discounted price, since it was a favor.
Paul moved his arm so it was more securely around Will's shoulders, keeping him close.
An experimental serum was going to be in his boyfriend's system very soon, he was allowed to be a little nervous, okay? He had no idea how Will would react to it, especially given his medical history.
Will had finally managed to get his medical records from the hospital so he could at least see if he was even allergic to anything, after he finally gave them proof that he wasn't, well, dead.
Paul put his head on top of Will's, finally causing him to pause the game and look up at him.
"You okay?" Will asked, blue eyes staring at him in concern.
Paul took a deep breath and then nodded, "Yeah...yeah, I'm just worried, y'know," he smiled weakly at him.
Will turned to him and put his hand on his, "I know...I am, too. But I have to do this."
"I know," Paul told him quietly, "Will-"
"Paul, I love you," Will breathed out, staring up at him.
Paul stared at him in shock, "I-"
"Will?" Kayla called, walking over, "Hey, sweetheart, we're ready for you."
"Come with me?" Will asked Paul, turning back to him.
"I...yeah," Paul said quickly, "Of course."
"Mar- Grandma," Will said, obviously surprised when he walked into the room and saw his grandmother.
"I wanted to be here," Marlena told him, a warm smile on her face.
Will gave her a weak smile, "Thanks," he said, holding hands with Paul. He felt nervous and excited a the same time...he didn't know how that was possible. He also didn't know how it was possible that Paul must have sensed it, because his partner gave his hand a reassuring squeeze.
Will squeezed back briefly, a silent thank you for being there.
"I, uh…" Will trailed off, looking at the syringe that was lying capped on the metal tray, eyeing the nurse nervously, "Grandma...c-could you maybe…" he trailed off, looking at the nurse, "No offense," he mumbled, shifting closer to Paul a little bit.
"Guess I got my own personal bodyguard," Will remembered saying in the mausoleum. He looked up at Paul, studying his face. He knew that Paul was still skeptical about the serum...and he was too.
"Are you sure?" Marlena asked.
Will nodded, "Yeah, I...uh...if that's okay," he swallowed.
Marlena smiled and whispered something to the nurse, who left with a soft smile on her face.
"Here, sit up on the table and pull up your sleeve," Marlena said, patting the gray table.
Will nodded and moved, sitting up on the table slowly.
He had to let go of Paul's hand to do so, but the moment he was situated, Paul had grabbed his hand again. Will's eyes moved to his face and saw a reassuring smile on his face, though it was a little forced.
"I hate needles," Will mumbled, looking away as Marlena wiped off the spot on his arm, "Always have, shots and everything," he said bluntly, "That's not a memory, by the way," he added quickly, "I'm just up to date on my vaccinations."
Paul chuckled, rubbing his shoulders, "Same here," he admitted, trying to make casual conversation as he made eye contact with Marlena.
"Will, you need to understand that what's in this vial is completely untested. We have no idea what this could do to you, i-it could do nothing or-" Marlena started.
"It could kill him," Paul cut her off and stood up, not letting go of Will's hand, "Look, I think it's fair to say that we're all scared. I know I am, but, uh...Will and I have discussed this in length and we know his risks, physical and...otherwise," he forced out, "This is what he wants. I think we need to set aside our fears and support him."
"Plus," Will added, trying to lighten the mood, "It's not like I can test this on a forgetful lab rat, right?"
"I know what you're saying and I respect it," Marlena said, "But we just got you back...I can't be responsible for anything happening to you."
"It's my choice, no one would blame you," Will said, looking confused.
"Maybe Sami would," Marlena laughed weakly.
"I know you're worried but you don't know what it's like to have a part inside you that you can't access. I know there's going to be bad memories, like for example Ben trying to kill me. But there are all these amazing experiences and times that I shared with my family; birthdays, holidays, times I spent with Ari, times I spent with you, times I spent with Sonny!" Will said, getting upset now.
"Honey, I want everything that's good for you," Marlena told him, "It's just very difficult for me to be a part of a process that could go very wrong here."
"Maybe I shouldn't have involved you with this," Will sighed, "A-And if you're not comfortable, we'll explore other options-"
"Okay, all right then," Marlena cut him off, "So, we'll take some more time, think it through-"
"No, no, no, no," Will said quickly, "I don't need more time. Don't get me wrong, I'd love your help, but I'm doing this with or without you," he said seriously, "One way or another this is happening."
Marlena sighed, "Will, what can I say to make you think about this just a little more?"
"Nothing!" Will said, "Honestly, nothing! But if you don't want to participate I completely understand."
"Honey, I have serious reservations about this whole process," Marlena told him, getting teary eyed now, "I love you."
Will sighed, going to get off the table, but Marlena stopped him.
"All right, if this is what you really want, then I'll be there for you...all the way," she said finally.
"Thank you," Will sighed in relief.
Will watched as she stared at him for one last moment before grabbing the needle again.
"Okay, deep breath," Marlena told him, "This is gonna pinch a little bit."
Will squeezed his eyes shut and held onto Paul's hand when he felt a pair of lips that he knew was Paul's brush against his temple.
"I love you too," Paul told him softly in his ear, so quietly Will wasn't sure if he really heard it...but he did.
"Breath out," Marlena told him.
Will let out a breath and opened his eyes, staring up into Paul's dark eyes. They were watery, like they were full of tears.
"Can I move?" Will whispered.
Marlena nodded, teary eyed as well.
Will wrapped his arms around Paul's neck and hugged him tightly, "Call me crazy but...I got a good feeling about this," he choked out.
"Okay, how do you feel?" Paul asked quickly, "Any pain, any-"
"No," Will shook his head, "Just a little dizzy, but I'm pretty sure it's from the sight of that needle," he laughed weakly, earning a laugh from them both.
"Okay," Marlena told him, "I want you to monitor everything . If you feel even just a little off, I want you back here. I-If there's a bad reaction, I don't want you to call the hospital, I don't want you to call me, I want you to call an ambulance to bring you back here immediately, do you both hear me?"
"Trust me," Paul told her, a weak smile on his face and an arm around Will, "Anything goes wrong, we'll be back here immediately, right?"
Will nodded, "Right," he added with a smile.
"We could go out for dinner," Will said as they walked down the hallway to the apartment, "I could really go for a burger-"
"Will, if you want a burger, I'll go get you one. But there's no way you're doing anything but lying down in bed right now," Paul told him.
Will couldn't remember if Paul had let go of his hand since the hospital.
When they finally approached, the space between their apartment doors, Sonny was waiting there. Will would have thought he came from work, given the suit, but he'd figured out recently that those were just a staple with Sonny...given that he didn't have a job anymore.
"Uh, hey, Sonny," Paul said awkwardly.
"Everything all right?" Will asked, leaning on Paul slightly.
"Yeah, I just...I heard you were getting the serum today and wanted to stop by and check on you," Sonny said, sounding just as awkward as Paul.
Will had no idea how Sonny knew he was getting the serum today and he wasn't sure he wanted to know.
"We're just getting back," Will told him softly, "Paul, can you...give us a minute?" he sighed, turning and looking at him.
"Uh...yeah," Paul said, shifting away from Will, "I'm going to go get a change of clothes from my room, yell if you need anything," he said, pressing a kiss to his cheek and taking out his keys.
Will didn't say anything, making sure that Paul had unlocked his door and closed it behind him before he even looked at Sonny.
"How are you?" Will asked softly, "Any news about….about Leo's case?"
"No, everything's...the same, really," Sonny ran his hand through his hair, "But...forget about that now, this is about you . How are you feeling? Do you remember anything?" he asked eagerly.
Will shook his head, "No...not yet. It's experimental though," he added hopefully, "I could...maybe remember something later o-or-"
"Hey," Sonny grabbed his hands, "It's okay, Will. I know I've been...pushing lately, but you take all the time you need," he said, trying to get Will to look into his eyes, "I just...I really hope that you can...remember me and remember what we had ," he whispered, pulling him into a tight hug.
Will swallowed, closing his eyes for a moment and hugging back. It felt warm and...familiar. He wasn't uncomfortable like before.
He knew this feeling, somehow.
Will finally managed to pull away, giving Sonny the friendliess smile he could manage with what he was feeling right now.
Sonny looked up when Paul opened the door again and he let go of Will's hands, "See you later," he said quickly, walking away and brushing passed Paul as he did.
"You okay?" Paul asked almost immediately.
"I...yeah," Will said, shaking his head, "Just...surprised is all," he gave him a smile, "He was really...nice."
Paul shifted awkwardly again, "You, uh...still want that burger? I can go get it-"
"I think I'll settle for some cereal...and some alone time with my favorite person in the entire world," Will smiled, looking at him.
"Who? Ari? Pretty sure she's with Gabi right now," Paul gave him a bright smile.
"Okay," Will said, "Maybe my second favorite person, but it's a pretty close tie," he told him.
"Who?" Paul asked, giving him a playful smile now.
"You," Will said, laughing as he unlocked the door, "I just want to spend a night in...with the man I love."
"What a coincidence," Paul said as they walked inside, "So do I."
Next Time: Will gets some of his memories back. An old face returns.
