Complications

Willie's leg started to shake nervously up and down.

"I - I asked you not to go in the attic. Y-you…you promised." He was squeezing his eyes closed as tight as he could, his jaw clenched. He was humiliated and she seemed to have no boundaries.

"Willie…please… look at me." She laid her hand down on his trembling leg, but he turned his head in the opposite direction. He couldn't possiblely look at her, he needed to get away from her.

"Willie…don't…please don't turn away."

Willie stood up and dragged his hand through his hair. "It's not what you think."

"Then what is it? Huh? What he did to you…Willie... When I think of you in that attic...attached to one of the posts… and what he did." Her voice started out strong and assertive, but as soon as she pictured him up there and helpless she started to cry. "How could you let him do that to you?"

Willie started to grow angry. To save your fucking life! That's why I let him do it! Shit! The words ran though Willie's head but he knew he couldn't tell her. The anger and frustration however started to rise in him, not just towards her, but towards IT. He felt close to exploding and was trying desperately to hold it back. Anger was not a feeling he was allowed to have in this house, but at this moment it started to build deep within him. Anger for Barnabas, anger towards Nick, anger for being imprisoned both mentally and physically. Mostly anger at himself for unleashing the beast all because of his foolish greed.

Abigail stood up and walked over to him and put her hand on his shoulder. He turned around and her heart burst into pieces seeing his soft blue eyes brim with tears.

"How many times Willie? How often does he do this? Willie I want to kill him for what he did to you... He must have known when he showed me those that I would figure it out. "

Willie's voice grew loud and angry, he couldn't control it. "N-No! NO! " He yelled into the woods...and then he turned and grabbed Abby by the shoulders firmly. "You can never talk about it. Do you understand? You can never bring it up again…not to him...not to anyone! It never happened okay? Just leave it be Abby. Just leave ME be okay? This isn't any of your concern. I made a deal with the devil Abby and you need to just leave me be!"

Abigail stared up at him and her heart began to sink. "None of my concern? Jesus Willie, are you that dense? How have you not figured it out by now? I think I'm falling in love with you Willie."

"No NO! You can't!" Willie let her go and turned his back to her, choking back the tears. "Y…You need to leave me alone. I don't want to be loved Abby…not by you…not by anyone." Willie's voice dropped almost to a whisper, he was trembling as he sat back down on the park bench.

"This can't be…it can't".

Abigail sat down next to him and pulled his face between her hands. "I don't believe you Willie. I think you're scared. I don't know what the hell he has over you, but I know you have feelings for me. You can deny it all you want."

Willie pulled away from her wondering if there was some way out of this.

"Abby...if you ever bring it up...if you ever mention it... it will happen again. If you really care about me please...never utter a word of it." It was then that the pounding started. No… It was calling him. Willie put his hands over his ears as the pounding got louder and louder. He needed to go to It.

Willie looked at Abigail and lied. "And you're wrong...I don't care about anything. You need to go in. I'll walk you back to the house." Willie didn't say another word to her and she followed him heartbroken. She knew he had feelings for her, she wasn't going to give up that easily.

He walked her back up to his room, the pounding was so loud he could barely hear himself think. He quickly built her a fire in silence.

Just before he left she called out to him.

"Willie… wait…please…please don't leave like this…"

"Just leave me alone Abby. You are safe here, just get some sleep. I'll come back later and make sure the fire is still going. Please just stay here."

He sat in the woods out by the driveway of the house. He was furious and his head was throbbing. How dare that little piece of shit interfere with my life. He knew that they went back to the old mansion, he had already been to her uncles house and the only thing there was a drunk old man passed out in the chair.

He began to walk slowly up the driveway, making sure to stay in the shadows and out of site. He wasn't sure what he would do once he got to them, but he was determined to kill Willie. If he couldn't have her there was no way some pathetic little loser would have her either.

Nick paused as he heard dogs howling in the distance. He looked around the woods and shook off the chill that shot through him.

He continued to walk closer and closer to the house and the sound of the dogs grew louder. He paused again and looked around.

"What the fuck?" Something had run past him in the dark. He couldn't make out what it was, but he could feel the draft from it as it passed.

Suddenly his feet were swept from under him and he fell hard to the ground.

"Shit!"

Something then grabbed the back of his jacket and began to drag him deep into the woods. He was screaming and pulling against his shirt.

Abruptly they stopped and he found himself again alone standing there. He began to run, not knowing what direction to go and as he ran his feet were again swept from beneath him.

Nick stood up again and started to run in the opposite direction only to be dropped again to the ground.

"Come on! Come on out! I'll face ya right here and now!" Nick was turning in all directions when his eyes landed on a figure emerging from the woods.

"You have made a terrible mistake… Nick is it?"

"Who the fuck are you?" The figure walked towards him, Its eyes were black and Its skin was white and lifeless.

"You should have left my things alone. I do not like it when someone tries to take things that belong to me."

"What the hell are you talking about? I don't even know you."

"Willie belongs to me and you attempted to kill him, this is a problem. I have much time invested in Willie, he is a valuable possession…you should not have tried to kill him."

Nick stood there and was completely confused, he just stared at the thing until he found some ounce of courage and tried to run.

The vampire reached out and snatched Nick up by the back of the neck. It then pulled his neck to the side and sunk Its fangs deep into the veins in his neck.

"Barnabas! What the hell? My God… W- what are you doing?!"

Abigail sat down in the chair next to the fire. She had her blanket pulled around her and she clutched Willie's sweater that had been sitting on the bed. She never expected to feel like this about someone, and she never thought she would find herself in such an impossible situation. She had spent so much time with him over the last few weeks she was sure that he had some feelings towards her. She thought about him and how he looked at here even today when Nick was threatening him, his concern always for her.

Her thoughts turned to Barnabas and anger grew in her belly. Why...why would he do something like that and why would he show her. She thought perhaps it was a warning to stay away from Willie. For the moment she would do what Willie asked and keep her mouth shut, but only so that he wouldn't have to endure the punishment for her actions. She wouldn't give Barnabas the satisfaction.

She climbed up into his bed and wrapped herself in the blankets, still clutching his sweater and staring into the flames as they danced against the wood. She tried to close her eyes but each time she did an image of Willie, hanging from one of the posts in the attic, being brutally beaten and helpless jumped into her head. It made her sick. She pulled his sweater up to her like it was a life line and continued to stare into the flames, afraid to close her eyes as tears streamed from them.

Willie found the Vampire in the woods not far from Widows peak, blood dripping from its mouth. Nick was lying on the ground looking up at Willie, fear exploding from his eyes.

"Barnabas! Shit! He needs to be found! He needed to be taken to prison…you should have turned him in…but now y-you've messed it all up! He knows what you are now…my God!"

Willie was pacing…

"He was coming to the house Willie to finish what he started. You realize he was going to try to kill you both." The vampire looked at Willie perplexed.

"Yes! I realize that…but he can't just disappear! God… She needs to know he is gone so she can feel safe. He can't just disappear never to be seen again. Now what the hell are we going to do?"

Nick was attempting to scoot across the ground but as soon as he started to move the Vampire reached down and grabbed him.

"What is that thing?" Nick was addressing Willie. "What is it? It's not human…"

"Barnabas…" Before Willie could say another word the vampire pulled Nicks head to the side and sunk his teeth deep into his veins.

"Barnabas..no NO!" Willie was frantic. "They can't find him like this…what are you doing?" Willie looked at Nick whose eyes were slowly slipping behind his head. The Vampire was draining him completely.

Barnabas pulled out of his neck and Nick dropped lifeless to the ground.

"You killed him. God you killed him!" Willie was pacing around the woods. When he turned around Barnabas was dragging Nick through the woods up towards Widow's Peak.

"Wh…what are you doing? Where are you going?" Willie chased It through the woods. It didn't stop for anything; It walked directly to the cliff and without even a second thought it tossed Nick off of the cliff, his body landing on the jagged rocks below.

Willie turned away and covered his eyes. "God forgive us."

"Calm your nerves Willie. The police will find him in the morning and they will assume he jumped."

"Barnabas…" Willie was standing in front of It, his voice firm and shaking his fist. "They will find him drained of blood. What do you suppose they will make of that? This wasn't the way…there was another way to deal with this."

"You should be thankful Willie. He is no longer a threat."

"Thankful? Thankful?!..." Willie laughed and spun around. "Yeah…I'm downright giddy with thankfulness. You know what I'm thankful for?" Willie was losing control. "I'm thankful for unleashing a Monster into this world who has enslaved me and beaten me repeatedly. I'm thankful for being so frightened of the dark ..I'm worse than a child..and I can't bear the thought of it." Willie was ranting and the Vampire was watching in awe.

"I'm thankful for being shoved and locked into closets, and tied to chairs, and hung up from posts and getting whipped brutally. I'm thankful for having no life, no future. I'm thankful for finally feeling the tenderness of another person and wanting to be with her knowing I can't and it rips my heart out whenever I see her." Willie had now collapsed onto the ground. "I'm just totally fucking thankful for everything Barnabas."

Barnabas stared down at his servant who clearly was having a moment of weakness, it disgusted him.

"Return to the house Willie after you have pulled yourself together. You can sleep in the chairs in the great room tonight. Don't be too long, I do not want to find myself having to retrieve you. I could just as easily take you now to sleep in the cell in the basement."

Willie grunted and grimaced at the thought. The vampire started to leave but Willie called out to It.

"Wait...Barnabas why...why did you take her to the attic?"

Barnabas just looked at him and smiled. "It was a warning Willie. She is far to curious and you care for her far to much. Your only loyalty is to me Willie and I warn you I am getting close to testing it. Perhaps now she will be careful with her curiosity, understanding it is you who will suffer the consequences." With that it turned and left him, but Willie did not linger long. He pulled himself up and headed back to the house.

Willie walked into his bedroom and Abigail was lying on the bed. His heart tugged when he saw her gripping his sweater tight to her as she lay there.

He pulled more wood and built the fire back up, warmth filling the room. He turned back and looked at her and gently kissed the top of her head and whispered "I'm sorry". He knew that this would be the last time he would ever be this close to her.

He turned and walked out of the room and returned to the great room. He built up the fire in the fireplace and pulled a kettle of water over the flames. He grabbed a blanket and made himself a cup of tea and tried to fall asleep, it would prove to be a challenge for him.

Abigail continued to stare into the flames when she heard the door slowly open. She instantly shut her eyes pretending to be asleep.

She could hear him in the room and could feel the warmth of the fire once again, she peeked her eyes open to get a glance of him as he poked at the fire. She quickly closed her eyes when he turned around and then she felt him bend down towards her and kiss her head. His words ripping at her insides. She forced herself to stay lying there pretending to be asleep and as soon as he left the room she sobbed deeply into the pillows.

Morning came and Abigail wandered downstairs finding Willie asleep in one of the chairs in the great room. She walked over to him watching him sleep and then reached down and stroked his arm.

"Willie…"

He jolted awake and saw her standing in front of him. They both then jumped when there was a knock at the front door.

Willie opened the door and the skinny police officer and another one stood there.

"Hi Willie...Is Ms. Chilton here?"

"Y-yeah..." Willie opened the door and allowed them both in. They pulled Abigail to the side and she stared up at them in disbelief as they talked to her. She walked away from them and looked at Willie... "The found him...at the bottom of Widow's Peak on the rocks. He's dead. They mentioned that there was something in question...that they would be back later"

She threw herself at Willie and he embraced her.

The police looked at the pair and tipped their hats. "Someone will be around a bit later to take several more statements. Please just stay put for a bit. We will have everything straightened out by this evening."

Abigail turned and looked at them both. "And Alex? Have you heard anything? There is no phone here... I can't call..."

"He is in the hospital. He's gonna be okay. You can go see him tonight."

They left and Willie shut the door behind them. He knew what their questions would be. The rest of the day was filled with officers coming in and out of the house. They asked him questions for hours and her as well. Drained of blood... curious don't you think? It added a level of stress to Willie that he had not counted on. He played dumb and she had no idea how to react to that, it was as much a surprise to her as it was to them. Finally they realized there was no explanation to be found here and it was close to four when the last officer walked out. Willie looked outside and knew there would only be another thirty or forty minutes before Barnabas would rise. He would wait for him and then take her home.

Barnabas came into the Great Room finding Willie there straightening up the bookshelf.

"Has the girl gone?"

"N-No Barnabas. She is upstairs, she will be down in a moment."

No sooner did he say it she was descending the stairs with her bag and her blanket.

The minute she laid eyes on him she felt the rage build within her belly. She hated this man knowing what he did, but she would not play his game. She quickly regained control and pasted a smile on her face.

"Mr. Collins...did Willie share the news with you? They found Nick. He's...he is dead."

"Ah...I see." It paused for a moment pretending to be surprised. " A shame for the young man. Will you be staying with us another night?"

"No...I want to go back to my apartment if that's okay." She didn't want to stay there another night. Something about that house disturbed her and she wished she could take Willie with her.

"Of course...Willie will drive you home."

She gathered up her things and before they left she turned and looked at Barnabas.

"Mr. Collins…I was wondering if you will be needing Willie on Thanksgiving? I would like to repay him for saving my life and have him over for dinner."

Willie was shocked. Here she was asking permission like he was a child. Abigail knew there was some sort of control that Barnabas had over him, so she decided to go straight to him and ask. Willie stood there looking at her and he felt ashamed and put his head down. How did she not realize how embarrassing this was?

Barnabas looked over at Willie and responded to her.

"I will require Willie during the day to make some deliveries for me, but he is free of his duties in the evening. Of course it is really up to Willie to do what he chooses in his free time."

"Wonderful…Willie I will see you at seven then?" She looked eagerly at him.

Willie looked up at her and was frustrated that she would not give this up. "Y-yeah…sure"

"Thank you for everything Mr. Collins."

"A pleasure. I am very glad that you are both safe." It glanced over at Willie.

Willie grabbed his keys and escorted her out the door. They climbed into his truck and started to drive.

"Willie can we stop and check in on Alex."

"Yeah…sure."

The drive was stiflingly quiet.

"Willie please say something…Willie I can't stand you being mad at me. Please…"

"I-I'm not mad, I-I just don't know what to say."

They continued the drive quietly. He parked the truck and they walked to the information desk to get Alex' room number.

Alex was lying on the bed with his head slightly up, several tubes running into his arms. She thought he might be sleeping at first but opened his eyes and a bright smile came over his face.

"Alex! Oh how are you… are you okay?"

Alex shook his head. "I'm okay, they said I lost a lot of blood but the shot missed anythin' important"

He then looked over at Willie. "Loomis…Thank You. You saved both of us. I can't begin to repay you."

Willie shook his head and looked down. "It's nothing. Yo-your welcome…I'll leave you two to talk. I'll wait outside." Willie left and closed the door behind him.

Alex looked at Abigail, "Are you okay?"

"Yeah…he's dead. They found Nick on the rocks, apparently he jumped. I still can't believe it."

"No shit. I wonder what made him snap."

"I..I don't know. I'm so glad you're ok Alex."

Willie carried Abigail's things up to her apartment and walked in with her making sure she was okay. He didn't stay long however.

"Lock the door okay?"

"Yeah... you're leaving already?"

"Yes. I have to get back."

"Willie…I'll see you Thursday okay?"

Willie shook his head, saying nothing. He had no intention of going there but right now he just wanted to get out of there and away from her. He needed to be alone.

A couple days passed and Willie focused on his chores and the restoration, pretending that he didn't think of her.

Abigail was kept busy caring for Alex and making sure that things were setup at work for an unveiling of one of the restoration jobs that she was overseeing downtown.

Tomorrow was Thanksgiving and she was looking forward to seeing Willie, but she was also nervous and she wondered if he would even show up; Willie had no intention of going.

The morning came and brought with it thunderous snow clouds. Willie stood outside pulling wood in from the pile and paused to look at the grey sky. The snow would fall hard today, big flakes like he remembered as a child.

He found his thoughts drift to a memory of a Thanksgiving long since passed. It was of himself and his dad sitting at the kitchen table, his mother gracefully walking into the room as she brought the small turkey in. He remembered being so excited as they ate dinner and rushing through it to get to dessert. He thought of the small apartment they lived in and of his father who would play violin after they finished eating as his mother danced around the kitchen. It was a perfect time, he was seven…maybe eight. It was the last and possibly the only memory he had of them before he lost them both. A week before Christmas that same year he was sent out with a nickel to get candy from the corner store. It was rare for him to get the treat, but his father had fallen into some extra money and there was no bigger joy he felt than to see his boy's blue eyes twinkle with delight. He kissed Willie on the head and reminded him to pick up one piece of butterscotch…his mothers favorite. When Willie returned smoke was bellowing out from the apartment building. He dropped the candy to the ground and went charging towards the door as a large arm reached down and scooped him up pulling him back away from the building.

Willie stood there realizing he was still standing out in the back of the old house, his cheeks were freezing and he shook the memory from his head. He turned around and walked back into the house and finished up the chores for the day.

Abigail completed prepping the entrance way to the theater. It was the first job the historical society tackled and it turned out beautifully, except now when you looked at the row of buildings that lined the street it stuck out like a sore thumb and made the other buildings look terribly run down.

A red carpet was laid down and everyone was eagerly waiting to see it. The restoration project was a big deal in Collinsport, and the entire Collins family was there beaming with pride. All but Barnabas. Abigail found it odd that he never seemed to show up during the day, always away on business. She thought for sure he would come today…and yet there was no sight of him.

The opening went perfectly but she was distracted. She hurriedly barked out orders to the rest of the team so that she could leave. She needed to stop at the store before she went home to pick up some things for dinner. She was getting nervous to see Willie.

Once at her apartment she was preparing things and a sad thought about Nick entered her mind. Such a tragedy she thought. She felt bad for his family, they were good people. She decided not to attend his funeral, but she spoke to his parents. They informed her that even before she left him he got himself into trouble with money and made deals with the wrong people. He apparently started to fall into the wrong circles and it was a downward spiral from there.

Abigail looked at her watch, it was 6:30pm and she anxiously paced the apartment, straightening the same pillows over and over again.

Willie stood in the great room lighting the candles when he heard Barnabas walk through the door.

"Willie…I will be going out this evening."

"O-okay…"

"You are going out too. You are to go to Ms. Chilton's tonight."

"What?" Willie spun around and looked at him. "No…I-I'll be stayin' here."

"No Willie…You will go. It is not a question. It is an order. I gave my permission. I do not want her thinking that I would not allow you to go."

"What?...W-Why? Why do you want to make me do this? I-I don't understand? You told me yourself to stay away from her…you made it clear I was to keep distant. And now you want me to go to her… I don't get it…Barnabas…it will kill me! Please let me just be alone if that's what ya want. I-Its not fair..please don't make me go…"

"You will go Willie, and if you do not leave now you will be late."

"No… please! Barnabas don't make me go…I can't bear the thought of her close to me again. Please! Why! Why are you doing this to me?"

Barnabas looked at him and roared loudly. "GO NOW WILLIE!"

Willie backed up from It and pulled the keys from the table. He grabbed his coat and obeyed.

Willie pulled up in front of her apartment and desperately wanted to turn and leave. He walked up to her door and knocked and she answered.

"Hey…" She smiled at him and her stomach fluttered as he walked in.

"H-Hi." There was an awkward pause between the two of them.

"I-I'm sorry Willie…for the other night." She was surprised that he actually showed up. She was almost certain that he would have canceled.

"Please don't apologize. It's okay." Willie was still keeping his distance from her hoping to just get through dinner and then leave.

"Let's just pretend there is nothing else around us tonight okay? Just two friends enjoying dinner. No complications." She looked at him eagerly hoping he would take her up on her offer.

"No complications." He shook his head and sat down on the couch.

"Dinner's ready Willie." He walked over to the kitchen table and looked at the food on the table and he grinned and looked back up at her.

"Turkey soup, rolls and cranberry tea..." She smiled as she pulled the chair out for him to sit. "Oh and don't forget dessert!" She pulled out a plate of hard candies, butterscotch and peppermint. He stared at the plate and then quickly dashed the small tears from his eyes with his sleeve.

"Shall we?" She knew he couldn't possible eat the standard Thanksgiving feast so she did the best she could to provide something.

They both sat down and ate. They made small talk and she talked about the opening of the theater. He found that he got more comfortable as well, the tension seemed to melt away, he would try and play by the 'No Complications' rule even though he knew he would probably regret it in the morning.

It didn't take them long to eat, and he helped her clean up afterwards. He grabbed a piece of the butterscotch and wondered if the taste would make him sick. He opened it and the smell was pleasant. That was a good sign. He popped it in his mouth and found it tasted good. One more thing he could now add to his list of edible foods.

Willie sat on the overstuffed couch and she joined him. The threatening snow clouds that hung around all day finally delivered a wet heavy snow that they watched out the window.

Abigail stood up and turned on the TV to a Thanksgiving special. Even though he knew he shouldn't do it, he grabbed the blanket and held it up inviting her to nestle in next to him on the couch. She climbed in close and she whispered to him… "No complications". He pulled her into him and it felt good. Neither of them said a word, the snow fell outside and it wasn't long before they both fell asleep, exhausted from the events of the days before. They were both finally content for the first time.

A/N: A little thanksgiving warmth... maybe too cheesy but had to give the poor guy a break. Thank you everyone for reading... things are about to get interesting for the pair.