Standard Break from Life
The overcast sky left Hannibal's office gloomy. Will knocked on the big door to be let into the familiar room. Hannibal sat in his usual seat, Will hesitated to sit down.
"What is on your mind Will?" Hannibal asked. Will blinked behind his glasses and thought.
"Not only am I being haunted by Garret Jacob Hobbs and you, Abigail has started wandering around my house," Will said feeling the heavy, sad presence of Abigail. She sat in the chair across from Hannibal, her eyes big and upset.
"How do we come to you Will?" Hannibal asked.
"You know about Hobbs. Abigail is sad, looking for an answer or something for what you did to her. You are something else," Will said looking down at Abigail.
"I'm not myself?" Hannibal asked, his voice actually giving rise to a slight inflection.
"You're a demon of a sort, some creature with antlers," Will said resting his hand on the back of the chair.
"Why do you say 'demon'?" Hannibal asked.
"Your presence comes with a terrible whirring noise, you're sunken in and all black," Will said imagining Hannibal growing antlers.
"A wendigo," Hannibal said nodding.
"What is that?" Will asked.
"A demon like you imagine. The person turns into one from eating human flesh." Hannibal answered.
"Cannibalism," Will said as Hannibal smiled. Will squinted at Hannibal. "Why?"
"That's a story for another time perhaps. We're here to help you now," Hannibal said. Will let the topic go for now, but it would keep gnawing at him.
"I've been thinking about Dr. Sutcliffe lately. I know why you killed him. What did he find in me Hannibal? What didn't you want me to know?" Will asked. Abigail had floated off towards upstairs and Will took a seat. If Hannibal had normal reactions, he would've sighed.
"Encephalitis," Hannibal said watching Will's eyes for a reaction.
"Why did you keep that from me? What exactly have you been doing to me?" Will was hurt.
"I was examining the effects it had on you. Personal interest and medical curiosity had me keep it from you so I could observe and study," Hannibal explained.
"So professionalism and ethics never- well I guess that makes sense now…" Will buried his head in his hands. He didn't know what to say for a while. He leaned back and slouched in the chair looking out the window. He wanted to be angry or at least scared. Instead he felt melancholy. There was no point in telling Hannibal what he could and could not do with a person.
Could he just peel away from Hannibal and start over somewhere else? Running away sounded appealing, but he wasn't sure he could really trust anyone now. And he would always have something to hide.
"I know that rationally I should keep away from you. I ought to take my dogs, cut ties and move to Florida or something. Instead I come to you. The one person who has lied and manipulated me so grossly it's a miracle I haven't hurt anyone," Will said to the window.
"Why do you come back to me Will?" Hannibal asked evenly.
"Moth to the flame? My own loss of control has me searching for a grasp, you were my anchor. Who better to turn to than the one man who likes to play God?" Will asked turning back to face Hannibal.
"I'm not the only person capable of being God, Will. I can show you that," Hannibal said.
"I don't want to kill anyone Hannibal. I can't even get Hobbs out of my head," Will said coldly.
"We'll get him out," Hannibal said. He stood up and walked over to his liquor cabinet. He poured them each two fingers of whiskey, neat and handed one glass to Will. Will took it and sipped carefully. Even if he could detect the subtle nuances in the liquor, no traceable note of poison could be discerned on his palate. Hannibal would never get caught. The Copy Cat murders had been gift wrapped for him personally.
"I'll make an appointment to get an MRI for you tomorrow. They'll find it and treat you," Hannibal said. He felt like he was trading one thing for another; he couldn't continually drug Will and expect to keep him as a friend. But Hannibal wasn't done experimenting. He had the power of his words which had proven to be enough on most minds. It would be beautiful to watch a clear headed and emotionally compromised Will turn to his much darker side.
"I want to go alone, I'll schedule it," Will said.
"Of course."
"Do you have any appointments after me?" Will asked sipping his whiskey.
"No, you're always the last one for the day. I like to keep my time open for you," Hannibal said. "Would you like to stay for dinner?"
Will forcibly bit his lip from sarcasm.
"Vegetarian," Hannibal smiled.
Hannibal tied on an apron and began to work. Will sat at the island and watched the show in front of him. Long fingers grasped a hold of different knives, all knowing expertly how to slice and chop herbs and vegetables.
"What do you usually cook Will?" Hannibal asked.
"Fish or anything that goes in the microwave," Will said. Hannibal made a face as he slid basil off of his knife.
"I can teach you how to cook," Hannibal said.
"That might be pushing it," Will said adjusting his glasses up the bridge of his nose.
"You buy the meat, I'll provide everything else," Hannibal said taking no offense.
"Hannibal…"
"I'll show you that you can trust me again."
"If you insist," Will said watching Hannibal's hands. He rested his chin against his knuckles and let his eyes follow Hannibal's tiny details. Hannibal took notice and a smirk played across his lips. He seemed to always find himself smiling around Will, feeling more satisfied than alone.
Pasta cooked in a stainless steel pot and vegetables lay strewn across various cutting boards. The aroma of herbs and the distinct smell of Hannibal's house filled the air. Will was wondering how he could be feeling warm and so at home in this kitchen. A kitchen were human organs had been turned into delicate, beautiful meals.
A pit knotted itself in Will's stomach. It rolled and settled. He recognized it as anxiety, but a particular brand he had recently had with Alana weeks before. She had witnessed his chimney torn apart and he worked up the nerve to kiss her. 'Unstable' she had said.
"What's on your mind Will?" Hannibal asked straining the pasta in the sink. His back was towards Will.
"If I had gotten treatment sooner I might've had something with Alana," Will mused.
"Do you still want that after you do get treatment?" Hannibal asked arranging the pasta on the plates.
"No. I can't be fully honest with her and she would recognize that in an instant," Will said looking up at Hannibal for a reaction. Nothing.
"If you could tell her everything, would anything else stop you?" Hannibal poured homemade tomato sauce atop the pasta.
"Yes, Alana deserves someone better than me," Will said shamefully.
"Better how?" Hannibal asked quickly mixing butter and crushed garlic in a small dish.
"I've never been the epitome of social grace and desirability," Will said. "I have hard time maintaining eye contact."
Hannibal uncovered some bread that had been cooling under a dish towel. As he took it out of the bread pan and began slicing it, he spoke.
"I find you desirable, even if you can't look me in the eye very long," Hannibal said now plating the vegetables. A slight blush spread across Will's cheeks. "Help me carry the silverware and glasses in please Will." Hannibal gathered the dinner plates.
Will followed Hannibal to the dining room and set the table. Will sat for his food and Hannibal disappeared for a bottle of wine. He poured the white wine upon returning and sat himself.
"Did you and Alana ever-?" Will asked.
"That's personal, Will. But no, we never did," Hannibal said. "Let me ask you, who do you think you deserve to be with if Alana is too good for you?"
"You," Will said without missing a beat. The anxiety ball in his stomach spread through his body with excitement. The back of his thighs developed goose bumps. He kept his eyes down to avoid facing his words in Hannibal's face.
Heat rolled in Hannibal's heart. His never-changing pulse of seventy-two skipped a beat for only a moment.
"How so?" Hannibal asked. He was not trying to embarrass Will, he just wanted the interesting answer.
"You understand me; you don't shrink away from what my mind does. Instead you find it beautiful and intriguing enough to manipulate. You would never be afraid of me," Will laughed, "and because I can understand you and unfathomably accept you, you deserve me." Will didn't know where his bravery surged from. Something inside felt comfortable around Hannibal.
"I like that very much," Hannibal said placing his hand on Will's.
Will smiled awkwardly. This feeling of attraction was so curiously different than how he had felt before with Alana or any other woman. He had found boys attractive before through physical and mental attributes, but seldom did he make a move. He'd had a few girlfriends in school, one very serious. Men were different creatures and at the very least the ones he found himself drawn to were straight. He avoided embarrassment and skipped making any advances, instead he asked girls out.
Strong personalities and intelligence always caught his eye. Now he sat adjacent from the most intriguing and striking man he'd ever come across. He just happened to be a monster.