"You'll be fine," Alex rolled his eyes as he grabbed Will's hand and their bags and dragged him out of the waiting area and out to the tarmac.
"Daddy," Ari skipped beside them tightly holding Will's other hand, "You are so silly. It's just an airplane. It's not scary."
Will, looking distinctly green and sluggish, tried to shake Alex's hand off but his grip was too strong. He kept looking back at the safety of the airport wistfully.
"No running away," Alex said trying not to sound too amused. He had the three of them get into line to walk up the stairs onto the airplane. "Besides that juice I gave you before we left the house that you said tasted funny? I laced it with a melatonin."
"Alex," Will scolded slightly dragging his feet.
"It was for the good of us all," Alex informed Will, "I can't deal with you the way I want since the kid is here so I figured I'd just knock you out."
"OK, kid," Alex looked at Ari who was bouncing around wearing a My Little Pony backpack, "Front of the plane or the back?"
"Front," Ari decided after a moment.
"I wanna sit next to an emergency exit," Will insisted in a tight voice.
"Uh, sure," Alex agreed before sharing a look with Ari and shaking their heads.
Climbing up the stairs Will glared at the flight attendants when they were greeted.
"Have a good flight," one of them said.
"No," Will answered gruffly before letting Alex pull him towards some seats.
"You're ridiculous," Alex laughed.
Will assisted Alex in putting their carryon bags in the overhead storage before sitting down. Will was in the middle seat but when he looked over at Ari sitting by the window he had a strong urge to pick her up and run away.
Alex sat down and took Will's hand again, "Seriously you are driving me crazy and we haven't even taken off yet."
"I told you I don't like flying," Will reminded him over a big yawn.
"How else would we get there?" Alex wondered.
"We could have taken a train," Will said in a slightly panicked voice.
"First of all," Alex stated, "No. Second of all, quit trying to break my hand." Alex forced Will to loosen his grip. "And third of all," Alex waved down one of the flight attendants, "I need as much vodka as you can bring me."
As the pre-flight instructions started Will watched avidly trying to make sure he knew exactly what to do in case of an emergency.
"Alex," Ari leaned over Will, "Why is he being such a weirdo?"
"Daddy doesn't like heights," Alex reminded her. "It's like when we go to Disneyland and he won't go on the fun rides."
"He is so embarrassing," Ari announced before hiding her face with her hand trying to pretend she didn't know Will.
As the plane began to taxi down the runway Will started breathing heavily.
"Oh god, oh god," Will repeated, "I want off."
"It was your idea to go to that godforsaken town," Alex put his arm around Will. He thought Will was being dramatic but he knew Will was genuinely afraid. He wasn't so much of an asshole as to ostracize him when Will needed help.
"Don't remind me," Will muttered before closing his eyes tightly when the airplane started gaining speed.
"Stop freaking out," Alex said as pulled Will closer to him.
"I"m not freaking out," Will shouted.
"Rrrrriiiiiigggghht," Alex gave Will a look before saying, "I know you've flown before," Alex rubbed against Will's neck with his thumb, "What did you do then?"
"Ari was only a toddler," Will remembered when he flew to and from Los Angeles when he was still married. "I was more concerned about her than about myself."
"You should do that again," Ari dryly replied as she leaned her elbow on the arm rest and lazily watched her daddy. "I'm much more interesting than anything else."
"What he needs to do," Alex pulled out the vodka the flight attendant handed to him before the seat belt sign went up, "Is drink this and take a nap."
Will reluctantly unscrewed the cap and quickly chugged the small 50ml bottle lips puckering together unpleasantly.
"That's so gross," Will complained as he handed the empty bottle back to Alex.
"Shut up and close your eyes," Alex ordered forcing Will to rest his head on Alex's shoulder. "And think about what we'd be doing on this ride if we didn't have the kid."
Several hours later, thousands of feet into the air, Will was fast asleep against Alex. Ari and Alex were sharing a seat and the headphones to Ari's kindle. Alex wasn't one for Disney movies but he was out voted.
("I don't have to share this, you know?" Ari told him when he complained about her movie choice and pulled back her earbuds.)
As Ariel and Prince Eric waved at Ariel's family after their wedding, Ari asked Alex bluntly, "When are you and Daddy getting married?"
Choking a bit Alex spat out, "What?"
"That's what happens, isn't it?" Ari wondered. "You meet, you fall in love and you get married and live happily ever after."
"Uh," Alex blinked several times internally panicking. "Not all the time…"
"Why not?" Ari turned to face Alex getting a bit upset. "Don't you want to be with Daddy and me forever?"
"Yes," Alex knew he was losing control of the conversation. "But getting married doesn't mean-"
"You said," Ari poked him harshly in the collarbone with a bony little finger, "That you weren't leaving, ever. So that means you're getting married."
"Being married does not mean you're going to be together forever, kid," Alex flicked her finger away.
"Why not?" Ari demanded again wrinkling her nose in confusion.
"Because," Alex looked over towards Will wondering if this conversation would be worse than dealing with a freaked out Will or not, "Sometimes things don't work out the way you intend for them to."
"Why not?" Ari repeated again.
"Well," Alex had no idea what to say now. He didn't know how to explain these things, "Getting married doesn't guarantee you a happy ever after. Stuff happens. I love Daddy but that doesn't mean I have to marry him."
"Why not?" Ari was getting upset.
"Why do you care?" Alex turned it around on her.
"Because that's what happens," Ari informed him immediately, looking at Alex like he was slow.
"Not all the time," Alex told her.
"That's what happens in all my movies and books," Ari argued. "If you love someone, you marry them."
"Do you know how many times grandma has been married?" Alex questioned her. "A lot and she's not married now."
"But grandma said it took her several tries to find the right one," Ari defended, "Like when we buy shoes."
Alex pursed his lips, "That's no where near the same thing."
Ari lifted one tiny shoulder in a shrug, "Sure it is. It's like in my story you tell me. Daddy was with the mean knight and now he's with his prince. So you have to get married."
"Boy am I regretting that decision now," Alex said under his breath. Speaking a bit louder Alex asked, "What about your dad and before you left Salem?"
"What about it?" Ari titled her head to the side in confusion.
"About being married," Alex felt as lost as Ari looked.
"Daddy's never been married," Ari insisted firmly.
Lifting his eyebrows in surprise Alex felt his mouth open with no sounds coming out.
'What the fuck do I even say to that?' Alex looked over at Will's sleeping figure again. 'Fuck, fuck, fuck.'
Ari took a moment to think about everything before asking, "Why don't you want to marry Daddy?"
Alex winced, "It's not that I don't want to really."
"Then what is it?" Ari didn't get half the things Alex was telling her.
"I just don't see the point," Alex admitted, "A piece of paper isn't going to change how I feel or how much I want to be with him."
"But how do you know?" Ari pressed, "What if it made everything better?"
"There's no way it would make it better," Alex shook his head. "Why do we have to get married? I want to be with him and he wants to be with me."
"Because I want you to," Ari confessed with an angry pout. "I want you to marry my daddy and be together forever."
Will, shifting against Alex, blearily asked, "What?"
"Nothing," Alex assured Will in a soft voice, "Go back to sleep. We still have a half hour or so."
"Are you sure?" Will sat up and looked between Ari and Alex in concern.
Alex, rubbing against his sore shoulder from where Will was resting against it, "I'm sure. We're just talking. I'll wake you up when we get there."
Once Will closed his eyes again Ari caught Alex's gaze for a few moments before saying, "Can we watch another movie?"
Will, drowsy and barely awake, carefully put Ari's booster seat in the back of their rental car. While Alex dealt with their bags, Will was slowly waking up. Will didn't want to admit that Alex's booze and supplement cocktail worked for the plane ride. Mostly because he felt kind of ridiculous that he left Ari and Alex alone the whole trip.
'And now I'm almost back in Salem,' Will thought as he closed Ari's door once she was settled. 'The place I swore I would never go back to. OK, you can do this, don't freak out.'
"Alright," Alex said as he sat down in the drivers seat once Will came into the car, "On to Salem. Who is excited?"
"No one," Ari admitted loudly.
"Where is our first stop?" Alex looked towards Will briefly checking him over. 'Hopefully this trip ends up worth it.'
Rubbing his eyes Will requested in a small voice, dreading this the closer they got to Salem, "Coffee?"
Alex drove down the recently repaved road leading into Salem.
Passing by a Welcome to Salem sign Alex remark, "That seemed ominous."
"Yeah," Will said in a quiet voice. Passing by trees and buildings he recognized Will's heart started beating faster against his chest. 'Deep breaths, Horton. Deep breaths.'
'There's no time to worry about you,' Will reminded himself. 'Just worry about Arianna. That's who this whole trip is for.'
"Anything looking familiar, baby girl?" Will looked back at Ari seeing her face pressed against the window.
"No," Ari told him with a peculiar expression on her face, "Should I remember it?"
"I guess not," Will said before looking at Alex, "What about you?"
"It hasn't changed that much," Alex replied. "Although I spent most of my time trying not to get anyone else pregnant."
Will snorted and rolled his eyes, "Sleep with a lot of guys after that experience?"
"Huh?" Ari loudly asked.
"Never you mind," Alex dismissed Ari before seeing a recently constructed Starbucks on a corner and pulling in.
"Why were you sleeping with boys?" Ari questioned as she unbuckled and tried to open her own door.
Will, having put the child lock on the door, opened it for her before grabbing her My Little Pony backpack.
"Yeah, Alex," Will smiled brightly as he took Ari's hand, "Why were you sleeping with boys?"
Narrowing his eyes Alex replied, "You know I don't like sleeping alone."
"Sure," Will patted Alex's forearm as they walked inside.
With their drinks in hand the three decided to go on a walk.
"You sure you're warm enough?" Will questioned Ari frowning at her lightweight jacket.
"It's not even that cold out, Daddy," Ari sighed dramatically. "Plus I've got my hot chocolate."
"You know he's a pain in the butt worrier," Alex slipped his hand into Will's back pocket for emphasis.
"Sure, make fun of me," Will lightly complained. "I see how it is."
"Don't worry, Daddy," Ari squeezed his hand, "After me you're everyone's favorite."
"Excuse me?" Alex demanded wanting to distract both Will and Ari from being in Salem.
"It's true," Ari giggled. "It goes me, Daddy, and you're last."
"You take that back," Alex urged.
"Mmm," Ari pretended to think, "No."
"That's it," Alex handed his coffee over to Will as Will took Ari's away as well, "Come over here and say that to my face!"
Squealing in laughter Ari took off down the sidewalk with her backpack flopping against her loudly. Looking back over her shoulder to make sure Alex and Daddy were following after her Ari swung herself into the park and behind a bush hoping to scare Alex.
Slowly jogging over Alex stopped in front of a bush and loudly said, "Damn, I never will be able to find her now."
Ignoring the tiny giggles giving away her position, Alex told Will once he caught up, "We're finally child free. Let's go run off and ditch her."
"Hey," Ari shouted before putting her hand over her mouth.
"Got you," Alex declared before lifting Ari up and over his shoulder.
Will laughed while watching Ari complain and struggle before giving in and letting Alex carry her off.
'This is such a difference from the last time we were in Salem,' Will thought. 'Ari's laughing and playing. She's not crying and screaming.'
"So," Alex said getting Will's attention when he noticed he was beginning to drift, "Anything interesting happen in this park? My stories aren't appropriate."
"Well," Will linked his arm with Alex, "We used to play basketball that way," Will pointed in one direction. "That way is where the Fourth of July picnic always was," Will pointed in another direction. "Your brother was stabbed back there," Will used his thumb to gesture behind him.
Staring off into the distance Will found himself getting trapped in the past again. In the Starbucks he had seen some familiar faces even if he never knew their names. Will was so worried about being in Salem he never really thought about the little things like seeing people he recognized on the street.
"Busy park," Alex remarked loudly purposely startling Will. "I'll tell you about my park experiences sometime."
"I'll pass," Will smiled knowing Alex was trying to distract him from getting caught in his own head. "Wait, exactly who were these people you were with? Anyone I know?"
"It's a small town," Alex shrugged, almost dropping Ari in the process, "Probably."
"Did I go to the park?" Ari asked as she looked around the area.
"Of course," Will told her, "We would come here all the time. Any memories yet?"
Ari shook her head, "Not really. I remember never walking anywhere."
"Really?" Will looked up at her resting over Alex's shoulder.
Ari nodded, "Yep. You would carry me places and I would hold onto you and you always made me feel safe."
"Yeah?" Will smiled glad that the few memories she held were positive.
Ari smiled back before kicking Alex in the stomach, "Unlike someone else."
Grunting Alex paused and let Ari slip to the ground.
"Rude," Alex said.
"Will?" a voice questioned from behind them.
Turning around Will blinked a few times when he saw who it was, "Chad."
"Hey," Chad came closer and pulled Will into a hug, "What are you doing here?"
"Uh," Will patted Chad on the back, feeling slightly uncomfortable, "Just visiting."
Alex and Ari both stared at Chad with matching disapproving glares.
"I never really thought I'd see you around here again," Chad admitted once he pulled back. "But you look really good, great even."
Ari cleared her throat pointedly. 'Who is this idiot?'
Chad's mouth dropped open when he finally looked away from Will and noticed Ari. "Holy crap," Chad said, "That cannot be Ari."
"Yes it can," Ari answered moodily. She didn't like being around strangers and she especially didn't like it when they touched her daddy or knew who she was.
"Wow," Chad dropped to his knees, completely ignoring the fact that his suit was getting covered in dirt, "Arianna, I'm Chad. Do you remember me?"
"No," Ari, seeing her daddy nodding his head, took Chad's offered hand and shook it before quickly pulling her hand back. "I don't remember anyone."
Chad frowned slightly before giving her another smile, "Well I used to hang around your daddies a lot."
"I only have one daddy," Ari told him firmly, "And one Alex."
Chad nodded, "That's what I meant." 'Well then,' Chad thought to himself.
Alex, already annoyed, went to pick Ari up at the 'daddies' comment. Only Will's strong, reassuring hand on his arm held him back.
"Actually," Chad sensed that he was encroaching on a dangerous topic, "I think I have something here." Chad pulled out his phone and searched through his pictures until he found what he was looking for, "Here."
Ari looked at the picture and bit her lip,"That's me?"
"Yep," Chad showed it to Will quickly, "I was babysitting you right in this park."
"I was adorable even back then," Ari decided.
Alex snorted, "That's debatable."
Chad, realizing he was being a bit rude, stood up and offered his hand to the man in front of him, "Hi, Chad DiMera."
Reluctantly Alex shook his hand, "Alex Kiriakis."
"Nice to meet you," Chad replied. "Uh, I'm guessing you've already had enough of explaining how that happened to other people."
"Yes," Alex answered bluntly.
"I see," Chad nodded, 'I probably shouldn't admit that I've been keeping tabs on Will the whole time he's been gone and already know all of this.'
"How have you been?" Will asked politely instead, rubbing up and down of Alex's forearm soothingly.
"I've been well," Chad admitted with a smile. "Not as good as you," Chad joked.
Ari, still looking at the picture of her on this Chad persons phone, tried to concentrate very hard to strain her memory. 'Nothing,' she thought sadly.
"That's good to hear," Will nodded. He wasn't entirely sure what he should say to Chad. They weren't particularly close once Will and Ari left Salem. They were close once but over time Chad became closer to Sonny than to him. 'That's probably true about a lot of people.'
Chad rubbed the back of his neck, "Will, I just wanted to say that I really missed you when you were gone. And I was sorry to see you go but it looks like it was for the best."
"It was," Will agreed with a smile. Lacing his fingers with Alex's, Will proudly stated, "I am much happier and healthier than I've ever been."
Alex smirked happily at that.
"Good," Chad nodded, "Now, I don't really know what your plans are while you're here but if you want some peace and quiet I've got a suggestion for where you can stay."
"I've got it taken care of," Alex assured Chad standing up straighter and looking him in the eye.
"OK," Chad lifted both of his eyebrows up, 'We'll see about that once Alex realizes what went down at the Salem Inn.'
"Thank you, though," Will said, "It's really thoughtful."
Slowly taking his phone back from Ari, Chad handed it to Will, "Why don't you give me your number and if you change your mind you can let me know."
Alex shot Chad an annoyed glance. 'Does this guy ever give up?'
Putting in his information Will handed the phone back to Chad, "I'm definitely glad the first person I bumped into back here was you."
"Me too," Chad agreed before saying, "I need to get going. It was really great seeing you. Maybe next time," Chad pointed at the Starbucks cups Will was still holding, "You can not go to my competition though."
"I can't make any promises," Will joked with a smile. He had forgotten how nice it was to be around Chad. 'I guess there are some people in Salem I missed more than I realized.'
Giving Ari a fist bump, a nod to Alex and a quick hug and a kiss on the cheek for Will, Chad rushed off.
"I don't like him," Ari and Alex said at the same time.
"He's a nice guy," Will insisted, "And completely straight so stop looking at me like that."
"Sorry," Alex reluctantly replied. He still didn't quite understand why he got so possessive over Will when he was never like that before.
"I don't mind," Will reminded Alex. 'I probably like that side of you a little too much.'
"What's straight mean?" Ari looked at Alex knowing he always gave her answers.
"It means he likes girls and not guys," Alex told her quickly.
Ari nodded, "But daddy likes boys and you like both, right?"
"Yep," Alex confirmed.
"OK," Ari shrugged, "That explains why you love me and daddy. And daddy, of course, loves me because I'm the best."
"Uh," Alex wasn't sure if he should clarify that or not. 'Eh, whatever.'
Hearing his phone go off Will saw he had a text from Chad and one from his mom.
"Well, according to my mother's spies, my grandma and your dad are running a big meeting today," Will read over his message. "Should be ending in a little bit."
"Want to go get some payback?" Alex asked Ari.
"Always," Ari decided with a big smile.
"Thanks," Will smiled at the assistant who showed them to his grandma and Justin's office. He didn't think he had ever been here before and he had to say it was nice. It was much easier being in Salem in locations he didn't really know and around people that were not familiar. 'Unfortunately that's the exact opposite of what Ari likes.'
"No problem," the man looked Will over a bit obviously before catching sight of Alex and his aggravated expression.
Glaring at the man Alex smirked, "Uh huh, thank you, get out."
Crossing her arms over her chest Ari humphed when the man left, "I don't like him."
"Me either," Alex agreed. "We should get him fired."
"What's fired mean?" Ari wondered immediately liking the sound of it.
"It means you can tell them to go away and never come back," Alex told her while lifting his eyebrows up and down obnoxiously.
"You can't fire someone for smiling at me," Will shook his head before wandering around the large office. "Besides you have nothing to worry about."
"You like when I act this way and you know it," Alex shot back. Glancing around the room Alex frowned, "Why the hell do they share an office? Do they literally spend all day together?"
"Looks like it," Will replied. He loved Alex, he really, really did, but he could not imagine spending every second of the day with him.
Ari, bored, sat down at one desk and opened her backpack. Pulling out a pad of paper and markers Ari began coloring a picture.
Looking at the pictures on Kate's desk Alex asked, "How many kids does your grandma have?"
"Uh," Will thought, "I'm not even that sure. Six?"
"How do you not know?" Alex gave Will a quizzical glance.
"To be fair she didn't know for a long time either," Will defended. "At least I know how many I have."
"It better only be one," Alex momentarily panicked at the idea of another one popping up out of no where.
"Well, I've only been with one girl like that," Will put his arm around Alex's waist, "So I'm pretty sure it's only the one."
Ari, looking up to make sure her daddy and Alex were still nearby, frowned when she realized what they were talking about.
"I don't want a brother or sister," Ari declared informatively.
"Thank god," Alex replied exhaling in relief.
"Really, baby girl?" Will questioned a bit surprised.
"Why would I want to share you?" Ari looked at her daddy in exasperation. Glancing at Alex, Ari continued, "It's like he doesn't know me at all."
Seeing that Will looked like he was going to say something about the topic, Alex immediately grabbed a picture off Kate's desk, "Is this you?"
Will, closing his mouth, looked at the picture recognizing himself from high school.
"As embarrassing as it is," Will painfully smiled, "Yes, that's me."
"Aw," Alex pouted, "Look how cute you were."
"Oh shut up," Will smacked Alex lightly on the chest. "If you saw me back then you wouldn't even take a second look."
"I would have," Alex insisted in a low voice so the kid wouldn't hear, "Look how innocent you seem? I would have thoroughly enjoyed wrecking that."
Feeling his cheeks warming up Will took a step away from Alex, "You stop talking right now."
"I know what we're roleplaying the next time we're alone," Alex teased.
"Who's playing?" Ari demanded not wanting to be left out.
"Nevermind," Will put the picture back before moving over to Justin's desk. Ignoring the picture of Sonny, Joey and Vic, Will picked up a photo he recognized, "And look at what we have here."
Alex crossed his arms as he looked over the photo. "I didn't know you gave him that," Alex admitted finally.
"Well I noticed how much he enjoyed it," Will shrugged, "And here it is on his desk."
Seeing the familiar picture of himself staring at Will and Ari's smiling faces, Alex shrugged, "It's not that exciting." 'Although I guess it's nice.'
"Uh huh," Will rolled his eyes while putting the frame back.
Knocking quickly on the door, the assistant from before poked his head in the door, "The meeting is over and they're on their way."
"Excellent," Alex clapped his hands together once.
"You," Ari pointed at the guy, "I'm in charge now and if you don't bring me a hot chocolate I'm gonna fire you."
"That was tedious," Kate handed over a few papers to Vic as she saw her assistant loudly exclaim in relief when someone brought him a hot cup and he rushed it into her office.
"When isn't it?" Justin sighed as he adjusted his tie.
"What is this?" Kate stopped her assistant just outside her office when he reappeared without the cup.
"Sorry, Ms. Roberts," the man said, "But our new boss is really demanding."
"New boss?" Kate asked suspiciously.
"What is this all about?" Justin demanded. 'If this is Victor interfering once again I swear to god,' Justin angrily thought.
"All I know is she's scary, threatening to fire everyone and brought a protective detail," the guy lifted his hands up innocently before getting back to work.
Vic and Joey exchanged a look before following after their father and Kate towards the massive office.
Justin, attempting to open the door, frowned when he found it locked.
"Hmm," Joey stroked his chin before walking over and knocking.
"Go away," a deep, muffled voice called from inside.
"Uh oh," Joey said before stepping aside.
"What the hell is this?" Kate hissed before pushing Justin aside and trying the door herself. Stumbling through the door when it swung open, Kate geared herself up for an argument when she saw who was sitting at her desk.
Ari, sitting at Kate's desk, slammed the phone down that she was playing with before folding her hands together and saying, "You're all fired."
Taking a sip of her fresh hot chocolate Ari smiled widely at everyone unable to keep up the serious act for long.
"Whaaaa?" Joey grunted out before realizing who was actually talking. "You scared the crap out of me, kid."
Vic looked around the office before he turned to the side and saw Alex and Will leaning against a bookcase.
Justin, features switching from aggravated to shocked, took a moment before smiling widely, "Ari!"
Finally pleased that someone was properly acknowledging her, Ari pushed her hot chocolate to the side so she could scramble over the desk and jump into Justin's open arms.
"Hi, Grandpa!" Ari greeted with a wide smile as soon as he caught her. "I'm the boss now, you have to listen to me."
"I'm pretty sure you were the boss already," Justin gave her a quick kiss. Handing Ari over to Kate, Justin turned to Alex and Will, "What are you guys doing here?"
"Yeah," Vic added, "I never thought we'd ever see you here."
Alex, slipping his arm around Will's waist, answered, "It's pretty complicated."
Joey, stealing Ari from Kate, wiggled his way in between Will and Alex, "Well, brothers, this is the best you're-not-actually-fired firing I've ever had."
"No," Ari nodded seriously, "You're still fired."
"Hey," Joey pouted. "I thought I was the favorite."
Vic, picking up Ari and putting her on the ground, told Joey, "You think that about everyone."
Justin rolled his eyes before putting a few things on his desk, "Why don't we all just finish everything up and get out of here?"
"Come on, Ari, you can go boss around another floor," Vic held her hand as he started guiding her out the door.
"Daddy, Alex," Ari turned back to look at Will and Alex in a panicked state, "Come with me!"
"Wow," Ari gazed around Vic's office, "Your work is boring."
Vic chuckled, "Yeah, it really is."
Seeing someone wander by Vic's office Ari smiled before yelling, "You're fired!"
Seeing the startled look on the woman's face Vic lifted his hand, "You heard the princess."
"I like this part of work," Ari decided. "Daddy, can I fire people at your work?"
"Probably not," Will told her, "But you can fire Alex anytime you want."
Alex, hand in Will's back pocket, squeezed him tightly, "I'll remember that."
"So," Vic, putting away some files and papers, "You going to tell me exactly why you're here?"
Ari, seeing a fancy looking pen, sat at the desk before drawing on whatever paper she found first.
"I need that," Vic started to say before giving up, "Oh whatever."
Moving closer to Vic so the kid wouldn't overhear, Alex informed him, "Just came to battle some old demons."
Glancing at Will, seeing him with an awkward smile on his face, Vic nodded, "I see."
"I'm hopeful that this is going to help both of us," Will added. 'I'm just glad the both of us have been able to keep it together so far. But it's still early.'
Hearing an obnoxious knock, no one was surprised when Joey paraded into the room.
"I'm ready, let's go get the old people," Joey declared.
Getting off the elevator at Justin and Kate's floor everyone walked back towards their office. Ari, asking Vic rapid fire questions, paused when she saw two strange men talking to her grandma and grandpa.
Alex and Will shared a glance before they both rolled their eyes a bit.
"Hey," one of the guys called, "If it isn't my cousin and my nephew."
"Man this family is screwed up," Joey said under his breath.
"Brady," Will greeted with a small smile while giving Paul a perfunctory nod of his head. "Um, how are you?"
"Good, good," Brady nodded at Will, "Surprised to see you here actually." Flicking his eyes towards Alex, he continued, "Together, really."
"I somehow doubt that," Alex blankly replied. Shaking Brady's hand quickly Alex glanced behind Brady to see Paul practically twiddling his thumbs.
"Well," Brady admitted, "I can't say it's exactly a secret at the mansion anymore but it's still a bit weird to think about."
Will winced slightly when Alex's grip on his ass increased.
"Sorry," Alex grumbled towards Will.
Ari, not liking her daddy and her Alex talking to strangers, moved to stand in front of them.
"There is no way this is Arianna Grace," Brady gasped. "She's a giant."
"How dare you?" Ari crossed her arms in annoyance, "I am not a giant."
"Sorry," Brady laughed, patting her on the head, "I just meant the last time I saw you, you were a tiny little thing. I'm your uncle Brady."
Glaring at the man for messing up her hair Ari turned and gave Alex an exasperated look.
"So, Alex," Brady gave him a slight smile, "How is the, uh, nude photography business?"
"Just fine," Alex licked over his front teeth before asking in a polite tone, "How is the whole letting your grandfather take care of you even though you're a grown ass man business?"
Vic tried to cover a snort with a cough before quickly saying, "You do know that pretty much your entire family works in the same business, right?"
"Everyone that hasn't been handed a job and has to actually work to succeed raise your hand," Alex entwined his hand with Will's and lifted them in the air.
Ari giggled, gathering that Alex was making fun of people.
"I thought we were leaving," Alex loudly called to his father once he saw the aggravated looks on everyone's faces. 'Another job well done by me.'
"We are," Justin agreed shaking his head at Alex. "Brady, Paul, we'll see you on Monday."
Ari, eyes drifting towards who she assumed to be Paul, furrowed her brows as she stared at him.
Will, keeping a close eye on his daughter, took her hand, "You OK?"
"Yeah," Ari turned away from Paul. Tugging on her daddy's hand she waited for him to bend over so she could whisper, "I don't like him."
"You don't even know him," Will reminded her, "Now come on, it's time to go."
Alex, overhearing the whispered conversation, smiled widely, unsettling Joey a bit.
"What's with that look?" Joey wondered.
"I know the next person she's firing," Alex responded happily.
"Now," Kate siddled over to Will, "There's a new restaurant I think we should all go to."
"OK," Will nodded, 'At least there's no chance of me having an adverse reaction in a new location.'
Brady, moving back to stand next to his brother, clapped him on the shoulder, "Are you going to tell Sonny about this?"
"I don't know," Paul admitted as he rubbed his lips together. He couldn't get the angry look Arianna had in her eyes while she was looking at him out of his head.
"Well he should probably hear it from you," Brady pointed out. With a long-suffering sigh Brady explained, "Just like I'm going to have to tell my grandfather."
Full and content, everyone was gathering their coats and things once their dinner was over.
Alex, holding Ari's backpack while she meticulously arranged her markers and papers. Alex was pleased that Will and Ari both seemed to be doing well all things considering. Alex knew that Kate had picked this location because it didn't have any lingering memories for Will or for Ari.
"Don't forget this," Alex said as he picked up a picture she had colored. Looking it over quickly he frowned, eyebrows drawing together, once he recognized what it was.
'Well, fuck,' he thought as he realized Ari had depicted a wedding.
Seeing that Alex was looking at her picture Ari explained, "That's me in my new dress I'm gonna wear when you marry daddy."
"Uh," was all Alex could get out before Ari hopped off her chair and took off with her backpack to stand next to Will.
Pocketing the picture Alex tried not to think too much about how detailed the drawing had been.
"Who wants to go out for ice cream?" Joey questioned with an exaggerated grin towards Ari. Seeing her happy expression Joey thought, 'Aha! I'll be the favorite now.'
Sitting down on the couch in the town square Ari happily licked her ice cream as she reclined with her head in Alex's lap and her feet in Justin's lap while telling her daddy, "I don't remember this either. I don't remember anything."
"That's OK," Will reassured her from Alex's other side. "But you're having fun though, right? I know you like everyone here."
"Yep," Ari rolled over onto her stomach, smearing ice cream everywhere, "I like being with my family. But I don't know if I like being here."
"You wanna know a secret?" Will asked her moving his face in closer. "Daddy doesn't like it either."
"Yeah?" Ari smiled. She liked it when her and daddy agreed on things.
"I like being at home much better," Will promised her.
"Good," Ari decided leaning forward and giving Will a sticky, cold kiss.
"You sure you're warm enough?" Will double checked, "We can move closer to the fireplace."
"I'm nice and warm," Ari gave him a sweet smile before turning to look at Alex, "I want your jacket."
"Then I'm gonna be cold," Alex complained despite immediately taking off his coat and putting it over the kid like a blanket.
"Thank you," Ari replied batting her lashes a few times.
Justin, observing them the entire time while Kate was talking with Vic and Joey, shook his head, "Sometimes it feels like I woke up in the Twilight Zone."
Alex, who was casually running his fingers through Ari's hair, immediately stilled his hand and said, "Oh?"
"Yes," Justin pointedly looked at Alex's hand. "This is just about the opposite of everything I'd ever expect out of you."
"Well it wasn't what I pictured either," Alex stated with a shrug, hoping to sound nonchalant, "But I'm happy where I am."
"You better say that," Will teased slightly.
Alex put his arm around Will and pulled him closer, "Pretty sure the both of you have your claws in me." Smirking slightly Alex said, "Hers across my eyes and yours down my back."
"Oh shut up," Will buried his face against Alex's shoulder so he wouldn't have to look at Justin.
Lifting his face up again Will, tuning out Alex and Justin's conversation, looked around the square. 'I have spent more time in this place than just about anywhere else,' Will recalled.
'I just never really thought that I'd be here with him,' Will angled his face to stare at Alex. Something about being in Salem with Alex made Will feel something strange inside his chest. 'Being in Salem makes me feel strange.'
Alex, feeling Will's eyes on him, glanced at him out of his peripherals. Seeing the lost look on Will's face Alex pulled him even closer against him.
With Ari curled up on Alex's lap and Alex's warm, comforting arm around him Will tried to relax. But a part of him couldn't help thinking, 'If I was still with Sonny would this be happening? Would his brother's want to be a part of Ari's life? Would Justin be with my grandma? Would Ari and I be as happy as we are with Alex? And god, what about Alex? Would he still be alone or would his family eventually realized what they were missing out on by being out of his life?'
Justin, despite enjoying his conversation with Alex, found his eyes drifting from Alex to Will. He didn't know exactly why they all decided to come to Salem but Justin could see it plainly written across Will's face that he was having a hard time with it. Just like Justin noticed Will couldn't stop looking at Alex. 'I never noticed Will looks at Alex in the exact same way Alex looks at Will.'
"Oh, sweetheart," Kate looked over and saw the mess Ari had made of her face. Standing up Kate offered her hand to Ari, "Come on, I'll take you to the restroom over there," Kate pointed to a small alcove behind them, "And wash your face."
"Um," Ari caught Will and Alex's eyes. She loved her grandma but she was not ready to leave her daddy or Alex's side.
"It's OK," Will assured her. "I can still see you," Will promised.
Justin pushed Ari's feet off of him, "I better go too. We all know grandma needs assistance in these things."
Shakily taking one hand from her grandma and grandpa Ari allowed them to lead her to the restroom turning her head to make sure her daddy and Alex were watching.
"So," Joey scooted over to take his father's spot. "That's a little new."
"She's been like that since I had surgery," Will informed Joey and Vic. "That's kind of the reason we're here."
"I don't think I'm following," Vic shook his head.
Alex rolled his eyes, "The kid's stupid therapist seems to think that if they were both here they could move on from all the bad shit and go skipping off into the sunset."
Giving Alex an annoyed look Will added, "She just thinks that if I can show Ari there's nothing to be afraid of she might let go of some of her anxiety about us leaving her behind. This is basically what she was like right before we left Salem and right after."
"OK," Vic could understand that. 'But I also understand why Alex hates it.'
"And are you?" Joey, sounding uncharacteristically concerned, "Showing her that there's nothing to be afraid of? I just mean that I care about the both of you and don't want any of you doing something that's going to upset you."
Will smiled warmly, he sincerely enjoyed knowing that at least some of Alex's family sincerely cared about Ari, 'And me.'
"Well," Will admitted, "It's not exactly easy being here," Will looked around the square again. "But it hasn't been too horrible."
"Have you seen or talked to that many people?" Vic questioned.
"Not really," Will divulged, "Just you guys, Brady and Chad."
'I'd say Paul but he didn't really say anything so,' Will internally shrugged.
"I see," Vic nodded. "Well, I guess as long as you have Alex around to help the two of you out you'll probably be fine in the end."
"Me?" Alex asked. "What help am I going to be?"
"Oh, big brother," Joey patted his arm before giving Will a sympathetic look, "I'm so sorry you're stuck with this idiot."
"What?" Alex demanded.
"Don't even try with us," Vic laughed openly, "We all know how you are with the two of them."
"Yeah," Joey agreed, "Give you those two blonde haired, blue eyed Hortons and you turn into a protective mama bear."
"What?" Alex blinked a few times having a hard time processing that statement.
"It's true," Will mock whispered, "You should see the way he would help me change my bandage."
Alex, feeling uncomfortable, sucked his bottom lip into his mouth.
"You know we tease because we love," Joey leaned his head on Alex's shoulder and stared at him adoringly.
"Off," Alex shrugged Joey away.
"But speaking of your bandages," Vic said while looking at Will, "How has your recovery been?"
"Easy," Will confessed. "It was really noninvasive so I just had to worry about the stitches and keeping my health up."
"Can we see your scar?" Joey asked sounding almost exactly like Johnny did.
"Sure," Will chuckled before unzipping his jacket and lifting up his shirt.
"Cool," Joey said sounding delighted. Reaching out to touch the scar tissue he wasn't even surprised when Alex slapped his hand away. "You need to learn to share with your brothers," Joey informed Alex teasingly.
"Pretty sure he shared with one," Vic said before putting his hand over his mouth. Giving Will and Alex an apologetic look he winced, "Sorry, I really didn't mean it like that."
"It's not exactly a secret," Will shrugged even though he felt a little awkward now.
Seeing the way Will's shoulders were hunching in Vic shook his head, "I really didn't mean to sound like an ass. I promise I don't think anything bad about you."
"Anymore," Will commented with a small smile. "And it's fine. It's not the worst thing I've ever heard."
"Just let him grovel," Alex insisted, "It's much more amusing."
"Oh shut it," Vic rolled his eyes knowing that was Alex's own way of saying to drop it.
"But speaking of that," Joey figured they might as well talk about it now, "I was going through some stuff the other day and saw the article you wrote about Paul. It was really good."
Will gave him a blank look, "Thanks, I guess."
"No," Vic added, "It really was."
"It's just the knowing the details that lead up to the article that make it weird, right?" Will asked feeling a mix of exasperation and amusement.
"...Yeah," Joey agreed after a moment. "I mean, after I read it, it was really hard to look at Paul and no imagine you two rolling around."
Alex, lips curling, was ready to snarl something at his idiot brother when Will put a comforting hand on his chest.
"Well," Will licked his lips, "I don't really know how to respond to that."
"Sorry," Joey shrugged, "It's just a weird situation." Moving away from Alex so he wouldn't be hit, Joey asked, "How do you even sleep with someone that you're interviewing anyway?"
Will, chuckling when Alex made a fist and started wildly swinging trying to reach Joey, said, "Long hours in a hotel room? Honestly I have no idea and I don't really want to think about it."
Alex, having already discussed this several times with Will over the course of their relationship, told his brothers, "Enough about this."
"OK, OK," Joey said before adding, "I'm sure Alex would love a tour of the Salem Inn later. It can be on the Will Horton tour of important moments."
Will rolled his eyes fondly. He knew Joey was only joking around.
"What about the Salem Inn?" Alex barked.
"That's where I slept with Paul," Will said casually, "And technically where I spent my honeymoon."
Seeing the way Alex's eyes were getting bigger and bigger Vic almost laughed, "Alex, didn't you say earlier you made the reservations for where you were staying?"
"Wait, what?" Alex rounded on Will and glared.
"I didn't know that was where you made the reservations," Will chuckled a bit. He recognized the familiar glint in Alex's eyes. He knew it probably wasn't very healthy to enjoy how jealous Alex got but Will couldn't help it.
"There is no way in hell I am staying in the same place you went on your fucking honeymoon," Alex hissed. "Or where you fucked the baseball bicycle."
"Sorry," Will moved closer to Alex and slipped his hands up and down Alex's chest. Kissing Alex warmly on the lips Will said, "We can find somewhere else to stay."
Face stony and jaw set Alex was unmoved, "You know I don't like thinking about you with either of them, especially while we're here."
"And you don't have to," Will assured him, linking his hands together behind Alex's neck, "Being here or being there, doesn't change the way I feel about you."
"Which is what?" Alex demanded a bit harsher than he intended.
"That I want to be with you," Will easily admitted, "Always."
"Forever?" Alex pressed feeling a bit unnaturally needy.
"Of course," Will nodded. "What's this about?"
Feeling the corners from Ari's drawing pressing against his thigh in his pocket Alex pressed his lips together, "It's nothing. I just don't like being here."
"Well, truthfully," Will confessed, "Either do I. Actually if we would have gone to the Salem Inn I probably would have made you find another place to stay anyway."
Angling his face Alex kissed Will gently before pulling away to say, "I am going to enjoy cancelling this reservation."
"Oh," Will said, "While you do that maybe I should call Chad and take him up on his offer."
"We are not staying with him if that's the offer," Alex said decisively as they both pulled out their phones.
Dialing the number Chad sent him Will waited for him to respond, "Hi, Chad, it's Will."
"I had a feeling you were going to call," Chad casually said.
"OK," Will felt a bit confused about that, "Um, do you think we can talk about your offer from earlier?"
"Of course," Chad acknowledged. "Why don't you just meet me here in about an hour? I'll text you the information."
"Right," Will wrinkled his nose in confusion. 'I'm pretty sure I remember where the mansion is.'
"Great, see you then," Chad hung up with a smile on his face.
"That was weird," Will said once he hung up. "But we've got somewhere to stay."
"Which is where?" Alex demanded once he put his phone away too.
"I don't know yet," Will gave Alex a small, scared smile.
"We'll be fine either way," Alex told Will before touching his cheek slightly and pulling him into another kiss.
"How does this always happen to me around them?" Joey turned to look at Vic.
"I have no idea," Vic said turning away from Will and Alex when they started kissing again. "Maybe it's a sign you need a girlfriend."
Meanwhile in the single unisex public restroom Ari let Kate and Justin help her wash her face.
"There we go," Kate finished getting all the chocolate off of Ari. "Back to being gorgeous."
"You know," Justin looked over Ari, "You do have all of your daddy and mommy's best features."
Smiling proudly Ari said, "Yep."
Standing still for a moment Ari starting squirming, "I need to potty."
Moving out of the way, letting Ari pull down her leggings and lift up her skirt, Justin and Kate tried not to look at Ari while she sat on the toilet and did her business.
"I didn't expect our Friday night to be like this," Justin confessed giving Kate a rueful smile.
"Definitely not," Kate agreed before hearing the toilet flush.
"All done," Ari proclaimed as she pulled up her panties and leggings and tried to deal with her fluffy skirt.
Kate, smiling slightly before pulling the back of Ari's skirt out of her leggings, helped her reach the sink and wash her hands.
"So," Justin asked Ari, "How have you been princess?"
"Good," Ari told him, "Daddy and Alex said I've been weird but I don't think so. I just love them and don't want them to go. Do you think they're still outside?"
"Of course they are," Justin knew about Ari's behavior. Alex, Will and even Sami had explained it to him. Now that he was thinking about it, it didn't exactly take a genius to figure out why Will suddenly decided to bring her to Salem. "You know they'd never leave you."
'And soon enough they never will,' Ari thought before getting a paper towel and drying her hands.
"What's that look for?" Kate asked Ari suspiciously. She'd seen that look on Sami and Will's face way too often over the course of her lifetime.
Justin caught Kate's eyes and they both turned to face Ari.
Ari gave them both a sickly sweet smile, "I'm going to get Alex marry my daddy."
Justin and Kate both raised their eyebrows in alarm.
"Excuse me?" Justin questioned definitely needing that repeated.
"I'm convincing Alex to marry my daddy," Ari nodded and smiled with a slight hint of a smirk behind it.
"And are you sure your dad and Alex want to do that?" Kate wondered feeling a bit concerned.
"Alex does," Ari replied confidently.
"You sure about that?" Justin was skeptical.
"He practically told me," Ari informed them. "They'll get married and me together forever and I'll be the happiest girl ever."
Ready to go back to her daddy and Alex, Ari lifted her arms up wanting her grandpa to carry her.
"Can you two detach?" Joey asked as he reached forward to flick Alex in the ear.
"Do you mind?" Alex hissed at his brother.
"Alex?" a feminine voice questioned.
"Will?" a deeper voice echoed.
Turning to face the voices Will and Alex both sighed when they saw Adrienne and Lucas.
'Why do they always show up when no one wants them to?' Alex wondered keeping his arm firmly locked around Will.
"Dad, Adrienne," Will finally said, wiping his wet mouth with the back of his hand, "Um, hi."
"Um, hi?" Lucas shook his head, "What are you doing here? And why didn't you call me?"
"I don't know," Will responded honestly. "I just, um, wasn't really sure if we were going to be here or not."
'And I wasn't sure if seeing you would be a good thing or not,' Will thought.
"When did you get here?" Adrienne really wanted to let go of Lucas' hand and pull Alex into her arms. 'But I know he would hate that.'
"Just a few hours ago," Alex explained with a shrug. He felt a little unsettled under Adrienne's intense stare.
"What's happening? Why are you here?" Lucas couldn't even make sense of Will being in Salem.
Ever since Will's accident and subsequent surgery Lucas had made more of an effort to get in contact with Will, 'But it still must not be enough. He came all the way to Salem and I didn't even know about it.'
"Just tying up some loose ends," Will said not wanting to get into that with his dad or Adrienne. The two had been much better about being involved but they certainly weren't as close to Will and Alex as Kate and Justin were. 'For all their best efforts Dad and Adrienne just can't seem to figure out how to be there for us, really there.'
Unfortunately for Lucas and Adrienne the two had each decided to make a better effort with their children but not with their partner.
"Where's Ar-?" Adrienne started to say before seeing Justin and Kate coming out of the restroom with Ari holding on tightly to Justin. 'Oh,' Adrienne looked away from the sight of Justin and Kate. She still had yet to accept that partnership.
"Daddy," Ari exclaimed happily when she saw him again but did not let go of her grandpa.
"You're looking much cleaner," Will praised smiling slightly seeing Ari curled up against Justin as they sat back down.
"All clean," Ari yawned, eyes drooping, head resting against her grandpa's chest.
Lucas felt something inside of him constrict at the sight of his granddaughter in Justin Kiriakis' arms. Back when Will and Sonny were together Lucas wouldn't have cared about this at all but now that everything had changed in their lives it bothered him entirely.
'How is Ari so close to him? Adrienne explained how rough Alex and Justin's relationship was. Have they really gotten so close after Alex got together with Will? How? How did this even happen?' Lucas thought.
Kate, sitting down next to Justin, pushed Ari's hair back from her face, "Looks like someone is getting pretty tired."
"We should probably get going," Alex said wanting to get away from everyone. He could handle being around most of his brothers and his dad and Kate. 'But Adrienne and Lucas just make things weird.'
"Yeah," Will agreed. Leaning over Alex to talk to Ari, Will said, "Baby girl, you ready to tell everyone goodnight?"
"No," Ari complained, holding on tighter to Justin's shirt. "Not ready."
"We can see them again tomorrow," Will promised. "But you are about to fall asleep and we have a big day tomorrow. Do you remember what we're going to do?"
"See mommy," Ari smiled remembering. Ari hugged Justin tightly, "See you tomorrow, Gampa," yawning around the word. "Love you," she sloppily kissed his cheek before moving over to Kate.
"Love you, Gamma," Ari said hugging Kate tightly, words slurring slightly.
Joey cleared his throat, "Where is my hug?"
Ari, easily hugging Joey and then Vic, dragged her feet over to Alex and slumped against him, "Carry?"
Alex heaved her up and wrapped his jacket she discarded earlier around her shoulders.
Seeing Adrienne and Lucas standing in front of her Ari furrowed her brows before waving lazily and saying, "Bye, bye."
Seeing the affronted looks on his dad and Adrienne's faces Will quickly said to everyone, "We'll let you know when we get back from seeing Gabi."
"OK," Kate tried not to smile too smugly as Justin put his hand on her lower back.
"Just let us know," Vic agreed happily. Despite the occasional setbacks he really did enjoy seeing Alex with Will and Ari.
Addressing his dad Will said, "I'll send you a message tomorrow too."
"Good," Lucas stated quietly. "I hope we can see you all again before you leave."
"See you," Alex said already feeling Ari becoming a dead weight in his arms. 'Almost asleep already.'
"Come on," Will took Alex's hand, "We need to find our way back to the restaurant and find out where Chad is sticking us."
"Alright," Alex agreed as they walked off, "But no going through the creepy park."
"You got her?" Alex questioned Will as he watched him get Ari out of the car.
"Yep," Will smiled at him, "You get the bags."
Getting everything out of the car and slinging the My Little Pony backpack over his shoulder Alex looked up at the building in front of them, "So, this wasn't exactly what I was expecting."
"Me either," Will confessed as they walked toward the lobby of the DiMera Towers luxury apartments.
"Didn't you say EJ had you living here once?" Alex remembered as they walked inside and over to the concierge desk.
"Yep," Will confirmed, "When I was working as his intern when he was running for mayor."
"Which was when he was married to someone that's not your mom but after they already had Johnny and Sydney?" Alex was determined to keep up with the entire history of Will and their family.
"Right," Will was always impressed when Alex recalled things like that.
Talking to the man at the front desk briefly Will turned around when he heard the elevator ding with Chad walking out of it.
"Hey," Chad greeted. Waiting for the man at the desk to hand over a set of keys to Will and Alex, Chad gestured for them to follow him back into the elevator, "I've got everything all taken care of."
"That seemed to happen really fast," Will remarked a bit suspiciously as he adjusted Ari in his arms.
"Well," Chad figured he should be honest. "I kind of already knew that you were coming and figured you wouldn't want to deal with anyone bothering you. I'd say here you're pretty safe. No one is going to know you're here so they can't bother you."
"How did you know we were coming?" Alex demanded suspiciously. "We didn't tell anyone."
"Sami has her spies and I have mine," Chad answered vaguely. With his hands in his pockets Chad shrugged, "I know I wasn't entirely the greatest friend in the world to you before you left," Chad acknowledged, "But I've been doing my best to make sure you and Ari are OK."
"Which means what?" Will wondered not sure if he should be worried or appreciative.
"Nothing," Chad said, "It wasn't really that hard either, so quit looking at me like that," Chad told Alex, "I was in charge of Sonnix you know. Whenever you were hired for a new job they called me for a reference. It wasn't that hard to get them to tell me some details about their company."
"Oh, right," Will flushed with embarrassment. 'I can't believe I forgot about that.'
"Hence how I know you're doing fine," Chad told them once the elevator finally stopped. "Now, don't freak out about how high up we are. I already fixed it so the curtains cover the windows. You're still afraid of heights aren't you?"
"Yeah," Will nodded a bit surprised Chad remembered at all.
"Here," Chad unlocked the door to the apartment, "I was staying here for a while before I moved back into the mansion. But I kept it around. If you ever feel like coming back for another visit you can stay here."
"Thanks," Alex replied as he followed Chad inside. Looking the place over he had to admit he was impressed. 'Well, it's definitely going to be private. And I don't have to worry about who Will boned in it.'
Will, recognizing the familiar layout, immediately went to lay Ari down in the bedroom. Taking off her shoes and jacket carefully Will opened up the blankets and waited for Ari to roll over to the middle of the bed. Making sure she was alright Will walked back over to Alex and Chad.
"So," Chad started to say as soon as Will left the room. "You're the guy in Will's life now."
"Yes," Alex crossed his arms as soon as he dropped the bags to the floor. "Got a problem with that?"
Chad looked Alex over before saying, "No. Will and Ari seem happy so that's all that matters."
"Exactly," Alex agreed.
"Just so you know," Chad informed Alex, "Your brother is supposed to be back in Salem tomorrow."
"Why would I care about that?" it took all of Alex's effort to not cringe.
Lifting one eyebrow Chad shook his head, "Really? I heard all about the awkward wedding in Vegas. You don't think it's going to be even worse seeing each other in Salem?"
Snorting a bit Alex thought about it. 'Do I really want to run into Sonny while Will and the kid try to figure out how to deal with what happened the last time they were here?'
"Exactly," Chad insisted. "But don't worry about it. I've got it covered?" Seeing Alex's inquisitive glance Chad continued, "I plan on putting him to work at the club, make him deal with everything there as punishment for ditching me for months."
"Who are you punishing?" Will asked as he came back into the room.
"Sonny," Chad answered honestly. "He's supposed to be back tomorrow."
"Oh," Will picked up Ari's backpack and matching carryon suitcase. "Well hopefully you aren't too hard on him."
"Isn't it going to be weird for you?" Chad was worried about Will's reaction.
Will shrugged a bit, "I expected it to be if we do see him or anyone else. As long as he doesn't set Ari off I really don't care."
"Really?" Chad double checked.
"I already said everything I needed to say the last time I saw him," Will confessed. "Besides that's kind of the point of being here. Getting over everything and officially saying goodbye."
"Right," Chad nodded. "I guess you and Alex are going to want to be alone. Hopefully you can let me know when a good time would be to see you again. I don't want to go the rest of my life without seeing you."
"That sounds nice," Will admitted to Chad. Putting the suitcases on the couch Will went back to stand by Alex and taking his hand, "And thanks for doing all of this Chad. You really didn't have to."
"It's no problem," Chad promised, "If there's anything you need or people you need taken care of just let me know."
Hearing a tiny, distraught voice coming from the bedroom Will told Chad goodbye one last time and hurried into the bedroom.
Alex, leading Chad to the door, took a deep breath before offering his hand again, "Thanks or whatever."
Amused Chad nodded, "Like I told Will, it's no problem. I should have done more when they were here and alone."
"Yes," Alex bluntly agreed.
"OK," Chad chuckled, "Well, I just wanted to say thanks for taking care of them."
"How do you know that's what I've been doing?" Alex demanded.
"I told you two earlier," Chad reminded Alex, "I've got my own spies. I wasn't just going to let them go and not make sure they weren't safe."
Alex nodded understandingly, "Good."
"Alex," Ari screamed from the bedroom.
"Looks like you're being beckoned," Chad said, "I'll see you later on."
Closing and locking the door Alex headed into the bedroom. Barely sitting down on the bed Alex found himself with a small, wet face pressed against his neck.
"Where did you go?" Ari cried softly, "I couldn't find you."
"I was just in the other room," Alex explained as he kicked off his shoes and swung his legs onto the bed. "I wouldn't leave you," Alex said comfortingly.
Ari whimpered a few times before reaching her hand out for Will. Once she had both Alex and her daddy pressed against her she started to relax a bit.
"What's it going to take to get you to realize we're not leaving, hmm?" Alex wondered.
"I told you on the plane," Ari confessed in a quiet voice. "I told you what I wanted," Ari said.
"What did you say?" Will didn't understand what she was talking about.
Alex, not giving either any time to question it further, said, "I've got another story for you."
"Yeah?" Ari pulled back to look at his face.
Alex nodded carefully as he put Ari back in the middle of the bed with Will and himself on either side of her. Wiping the tears still on Ari's face, Alex cleared his throat before saying, "Once upon a time there was a pretty princess who lived with two handsome princes."
Ari, cuddling against her daddy's side, listened avidly to Alex. Drifting off to sleep again Ari smiled slightly hearing about how the two handsome princes lived together forever with their princess and lived happily ever after.
"That was a bit of a different story for you," Will told Alex as they quietly left the bedroom.
Alex shrugged, "I guess. It's what she wants to hear though."
"Well it was sweet," Will admitted even though he felt like there was something off about that explanation. Figuring it was the situation, the stress of being in Salem, Will decided to let it go.
"I know something sweeter," Alex wrapped his hands low on Will's waist before dragging them down to his butt.
"You're kind of an idiot," Will told Alex with a bright smile.
"Just with you," Alex confessed. "With anyone else I was always smooth and I never said anything stupid."
"I like you better this way," Will assured Alex before kissing him gently.
Moving one hand to Will's face Alex traced his thumb along Will's cheek, "And I like you better when we're not in Salem."
"Me too," Will nodded. "I don't know what it is about this place but it makes me feel different. I know I'm stronger, better than when I left but I don't know," Will shrugged, "Being here is weird."
"We can still leave you know?" Alex said. "I've got the flight plan memorized for the next two days."
Smiling appreciatively Will replied, "That's good to know but I think we need to at least see Gabi. I don't think either girl would forgive us if that didn't happen."
"Eh, they'd get over it," Alex shrugged despite knowing Will was right. "But seriously, just say the word and we are out of here."
"Good," Will nodded before hugging Alex tightly.
"Are you OK?" Alex questioned quietly.
"I hope so," Will answered. "I hope for Ari's sake and your sake and my sake that everything goes the way I want it to."
"What about," Alex swallowed heavily, "Seeing Sonny?"
"I meant what I told Chad," Will said, "I've said what I need to say to Sonny. Ari doesn't really remember who he is and I don't know if we should tell her he was the one that left her. That would probably just upset her."
"Yeah," Alex agreed. "That wouldn't end well for him." Remember his conversation with Ari on the plane Alex asked, "Just out of curiosity, does Ari know that you were married to Sonny?"
"I'm not sure," Will admitted a bit sheepishly. "After I explained that he wasn't coming back she never let me talk about him and frankly I didn't want to either. And when I started seeing you and I explained everything with us I told her about the last time I was with someone. I didn't go out of my way to keep it from her but I also didn't want to upset her either. All she really remembers about Sonny is that he left."
"No," Alex understood, "I get it."
"Why do you ask?" Will wondered.
"Just something she said today," Alex honestly replied, "She said you had never been married before so I was curious."
"Oh," Will bit his lower lip, "Maybe we should talk to her about it, especially if she sees Sonny. I don't want her getting confused."
"I guess we'll see what happens if we run into him," Alex answered. "We don't want to piss her off without reason."
"No," Will agreed, "But I don't want her not knowing the whole truth either. That's what being here is for, right? To really get over everything."
"Yeah," Alex nodded thinking about exactly why Ari was talking about marriage.
"Today was a relatively good day," Will told Alex, "Probably because we didn't see that many people."
"I'm sure over the course of the next few days we'll see more than we want to," Alex made a face just thinking about it. Remembering earlier when they saw Brady and Paul, Alex sighed, "And I'm sure my uncle and my brother are both going to know we're here sooner or later."
"Then we should probably get some rest," Will suggested. "I get the feeling this weekend is going to be a long one."
Grabbing their bags and carefully going into the bedroom, making sure not to wake up Ari again, Alex and Will changed and got ready for bed.
Taking off his jeans Alex dug out the drawing Ari made during dinner. Despite not being able to see much in the dark room Alex clearly remembered everything in the drawing. Folding the picture again Alex stuffed it in his suitcase before pulling on a pair of pajamas and switching shirts.
Following after Will into bed Alex leaned across Ari and kissed Will deeply.
"I love you," Alex declared smiling softly when Will echoed him.
Listening to the familiar sounds of Will and Ari's breathing, Alex wondered if he would be able to give Ari exactly what she wanted in the end.
Author's note:
So ends the first part of their visit to Salem. There will be two more chapters of them in Salem.
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And as always a big thank you to iluvh0rs3s for putting up with my incessant questions about this story. I honestly feel like I would be lost and floating off into a metaphorical sea without you.