August 19, 2018

"I don't want to go," Will said for what felt like the millionth time.

"Shut up," Brady responded for what felt like the millionth time.

"Can I just go back to bed?" Will sniffed, pushing his glasses further up his nose.

"We did not go to all this trouble for you to ruin this," Brady informed him. "Eric and I have planned the perfect bachelor trip. And would it kill you to put on something nicer? Show off your assets? Go put on those pants you were wearing in that Insta video with that Brian douche."

Will, face blank, said, "sure, Brady. Let me go put on my tightest pair of pants for my grandfather and his friends."

"At least put on your contacts, work with me here, Horton."

"I have it on good authority I am equally if not more attractive in the glasses."

Eric sighed and grabbed a throw pillow. He put it on his lap and patted it.

Will flopped his head down, throwing his legs over Brady.

They were waiting for everyone else to arrive. They had an entire day dedicated to John's bachelor party. It was just past six in the morning and they planned to hit the road by seven.

"Maybe Will shouldn't come if he's still not feeling well," Eric said, frowning down at Will. "He's looking a little peaky."

Brady put his hand on Will's forehead and shrugged.

"No fever. He took some meds. He's fine. And if not, he can cuddle with Paul in the car."

Will groaned, kneeing Brady in the stomach.

"Ow, you little shit," Brady pinched the back of Will's thigh. "I'm starting to think you're not worth all this hassle."

"Children, behave," John said as he walked into the room. "We haven't even left yet and you're arguing."

"He started it," Brady insisted.

"Where are we even going?" Will asked, rolling onto his back. "And why do I have to be up at this ungodly time?"

"Who woke Will up and didn't feed him?" John asked with an amused quirk to his lips. "Or give him coffee?"

"I got it covered," Paul said, walking through the door.

He balanced two bags of pastries and several cups of coffee.

"Gimme, gimme, gimme," Will said, leaping off the couch.

He ignored Brady and Eric's pained cries when his flailing limbs attacked them to reach Paul.

"Hi," Will grinned, gazing at Paul through squinty, slightly puffy eyes.

"Hi," Paul responded, face lighting up at the sight of Will. "You look better."

"No, I don't," Will replied with a head shake. "But you're sweet."

"Right," Paul nodded. He looked at Will for a few beats before sticking his arm out. "Here, for you."

He handed Will a specific cup and waited for Will to take a sip.

Will's eyes lit up when he tasted it.

"Coffee and whipped cream," Will beamed.

"Your favorite," Paul smiled back.

"Where's my favorite?" John asked with an odd look on his face.

"Huh?" Paul finally tore his eyes away from Will. "Oh, I just got a regular coffee for everyone else."

Brady and Eric shared a smile.

"Did both of you pack what I asked?" Brady wondered while John's eyes flickered between Will and Paul.

"Yeah," Paul replied. "Bag's in my car still."

"Where are we going that we need tennis shoes, flip-flops, a swimsuit, and an overnight bag?" Will asked.

No one told him.

By 6:45 they were on the road in three cars. John, Steve, Bo, and Abe in one car. Eric, Brady, and Austin in another. For some reason, Will and Paul ended up all alone in Paul's despite it being the largest vehicle.

"Do you know where we're going?" Will asked, rubbing his nose with his wrist.

"Yes, and stop that," Paul ordered, knocking Will's hand aside.

"Where are we going?" Will repeated.

"Someplace down south," Paul explained. "Makanda, Illinois, Brady said it was an hour and a half away. Not sure what we're doing, though."

"Must be something I won't like if they won't tell me," Will frowned. "Jerks."

Then he sneezed into the crook of his right arm.

"Wow," Paul tried not to laugh. "You should have stayed home."

"I tried," Will crossed his arms with a huff. "Brady dragged me out of bed and said I had to go."

"Why?" Paul wondered.

"Uh -," Will trailed off. "Not entirely sure."

Will wasn't ready to tell Paul about their combined family's insane plan to get them together. Not when they were so close to the wedding.

Will wasn't going to ruin Marlena and John's big day nor was he going to cause a rift between Paul and the rest of the family.

"He's been kinda off lately," Paul admitted. "Brady, I mean. He's been asking all sorts of questions about Sonny, my relationship with him. It's weird."

"Huh, yeah, odd," Will dismissed.

He sighed in relief when his phone buzzed, giving him something to distract him.

Another message from Brian asking how he felt. Of course, he laced it with some inappropriate innuendo but it made Will laugh.

"What?" Paul asked, glancing between the road and Will. "What's that smile?"

"Brian," Will answered without thinking. "Uh…"

Paul sighed and gripped the steering wheel tight.

"Yeah," Will nodded, playing it cool. "Asking how I'm doing. I'm kinda his unofficial patient."

"Why?" Paul asked, trying not to look at Will.

"I was with him when I got sick," Will revealed. "Actually, I was at the lake by myself and ran into him and some other guys. He went into doctor mode."

"Right," Paul nodded, lips pressed together.

"He brought me home, gave me some meds, told me to go to sleep," Will added. "And then a certain someone woke me up."

"That was an accident," Paul insisted. "And I fed you, so don't complain too much."

"I wasn't complaining," Will promised. "It was nice. I wouldn't mind waking up to your face more often."

Paul was saved from answering when Will's phone went off.

Brian

"Hey – uh – now isn't a good time," Will said when he answered.

"You're stuffed up," Brian ignored Will. "Are you still taking a decongestant?"

"Yes, Doctor," Will rolled his eyes. "But seriously, not a good time."

"Alright, fine," Brian replied. "Call me later then. I've got something important to tell you."

"Okay, yeah, I'll talk to you later," Will said. "Gotta go, bye."

"Brian?" Paul asked after a few seconds of silence.

"Yeah," Will nodded. "He has to tell me something."

"Could be important," Paul replied with a frown. "Maybe you should call him back."

"I doubt it," Will said. "And besides, I don't want to talk to Brian right now."

"No?"

"Why would I? I'm with you. Now," Will grabbed Paul's phone from an empty cup holder. "What song do you feel like singing first?"

Paul kept his eyes on the road but he couldn't stop a grin from spreading across his face.

"No," Will said when Paul parked the car. "Absolutely not."

"What?" Paul asked, looking at the area. "This looks fun."

"Nope," Will crossed his arms and refused to unbuckle his seat belt.

Will's car door opened and Brady poked his head inside.

"Will's not moving," Paul pointed out.

"I planned for this," Brady told Paul. "Don't worry."

"Don't you touch me," Will threatened. "I will sneeze all over you."

"Your idle threats mean nothing to me," Brady said, unbuckling Will and wrapping his arms around his waist.

Will held onto anything he could grab, cup holder, seat of the car, seat belt, all while kicking at whatever he could get of Brady.

"Should you be doing that?" Paul asked torn between amusement and concern.

"I'm a trained Will professional," Brady said as he struggled with Will's limbs. "Eric, a little help."

Brady and Eric dealt with Will's thrashing limbs, Brady holding Will's front, Eric with the legs.

"Don't hold him like that," Austin warned, hands reaching out toward Will. "Brady, move your hand."

John, Bo, Steve, and Abe stood on the sidelines laughing without a single offer of help.

"Brady!" Austin hissed when he didn't listen.

"If he'd stop being a big baby, I wouldn't have to do this," Brady said, through clenched teeth.

Paul laughed, arms outstretched.

"Here."

Eric put Will's feet on the ground in front of Paul.

"You deal with him," Brady said as he let Will go.

Austin yelled while Will teetered on his feet.

"I got you," Paul grabbed Will by the waist and held him close when he tried to run off.

"I'm not doing this," Will insisted, head shaking back and forth over and over.

"Hey, hey," Paul cupped Will's jaw with both hands. "What's wrong?"

Will didn't say anything but his eyes were huge and his face looked even paler than before.

"Hey? Will? What's wrong?"

"He's terrified of heights," Austin said, making a fist and hitting Brady in the bicep within a blink of an eye. "Which you know so why did you bring him here?"

"It'll be fun," Brady shrugged, rubbing his arm where Austin punched him.

Paul glanced around them. They were in a densely forested area with majestic and lush trees. At the entrance of the parking lot, and what caused Will to freak out, was a large sign.

Shawnee Bluff's Canopy Tour – Strap in. Set off. Soar.

Complete with an illustration of a person ziplining.

Will let out a pathetic whine when the sound of a woman screaming in the distance reached them.

"Hey, it's okay," Paul pulled Will into a hug. "You don't have to do this."

"Well, everyone else is going," Brady said. "You could at least walk around with us even if he isn't gonna do it."

"Yeah, you only have to climb a few steep hills and look off a platform," Eric replied. "Not too scary or anything, right?"

Will clamped his hands over his ears, shoving his face in Paul's neck.

"Really?" Paul asked with a sharp glare.

"Hey, if he doesn't wanna come, here," Brady held out his keys. "He can wait in my car and we'll go."

"Are you kidding? I can't leave him like this," Paul said. "He's trembling for goodness sake."

"I'll stay," Austin insisted.

"No, it's fine," Paul held Will tighter. "I've got him. You guys go ahead."

"We've got reservations at a restaurant in a city about a half hour away from here," Eric said. "Let me send you the details. We can meet you both there."

"Unless you wanna stay, Paul," Austin offered. "I can peel Will off you. It's not a problem."

"No, it's fine," Paul replied. "Honest, you guys have fun and we'll meet up later."

"Wait," Eric said, calling everybody over. "Picture real fast."

Everyone crowded nearby with smiles on their faces. Except for Paul who glared at the camera and Will who kept his face buried in Paul's neck.

As the others walked into the forest, Eric looked back at Will and Paul.

"Well, that's one way to get them alone," he said.

"Although someone didn't have to hit me," Brady spat towards Austin.

"You didn't tell me you were gonna drag him out of the car," Austin shrugged. "I thought you were gonna tease him, not terrify him."

"It worked, didn't it?" Brady gestured behind them to the parking lot. "Paul's not gonna let Will out of his sight, now."

"What are you boys saying back there?" John asked with a raised brow.

"Nothing, Dad," Brady responded, jogging ahead. "Now, let's race to the first track."

Back in the parking lot, Paul ran his hands up and down Will's arms, trying to relax him.

"I should have stayed home like I wanted," Will mumbled against Paul's neck.

"I don't know why they dragged you here," Paul replied, trying not to focus on Will's lips brushing his skin. "Especially when you don't feel good still."

"I'm sorry you're stuck with me," Will said with a sigh.

"Hey, it's okay," Paul said. "I've done ziplining before. I'm not missing out. It's fine."

"But it's your dad and you don't need to babysit me," Will argued.

"I'm not complaining and I'm not leaving you alone. So, let's go back in the car and get away from here. I'll get you some more coffee and everything will be fine."

"Okay," Will agreed but still clung to Paul.

"You have to let me go," Paul pointed out with a wide smile.

"Can't," Will shook his head again.

"Come on," Paul shuffled Will towards the car, keeping his arms wrapped tight around Will's waist.

Paul managed to open the passenger door and get Will to sit down, slowly inching away despite Will clinging to the back of his shirt.

"Hey," Paul smiled when he saw Will's face again. "Your glasses are all smudged."

Will could barely see out of them after shoving his face against Paul's skin.

"I don't wanna be here anymore," Will whispered, eyes watering.

"Woah, hey, it's okay," Paul promised, tilting Will's head up. "I'll get you out of here."

Paul rushed to the other side of the car and got inside. He started the car and drove off, eyes glancing between Will and the road every few seconds.

"Sorry," Will mumbled as he threw his glasses on his lap, covering his face.

Paul didn't know if Will's sniffling was from his cold or from actual tears.

Most likely, a combination of them both.

"It's fine," Paul replied with a gentle tone. "Everyone's afraid of something."

"Not everyone cries like a baby when they even think about it," Will argued.

He scrubbed at his face before cleaning his glasses on his shirt.

"Maybe not," Paul said. "But you already don't feel good and Brady tried to kidnap you. Besides, I don't care if you cry around me."

"You just want me to barnacle myself to you again," Will said around a watery laugh.

"Now, that sounds more like the Will I know and lo – uh – like."

"Nice save," Will teased. He put his glasses back on and groaned. "That just made them worse."

"Look," Paul turned into a small shopping center. "Coffee and you can wash your glasses."

"And I get a cookie?" Will asked, lower lip protruding.

"And you get a cookie," Paul sighed, turning off the car and trying not to smile too big when Will cheered.

"I didn't even know you were afraid of heights," Paul admitted.

He and Will walked along a forested path across from the coffee shop. The day was hazy and overcast with a slight breeze. Perfect for a long walk in the middle of August.

"Not exactly something I like to brag about," Will replied, kicking a stray rock in his path. "I can handle some things, second stories and sitting in the nosebleed seats at concerts. But, anything that involves climbing high up or potentially falling to my injury-laden doom, nope."

"I don't think that was what was gonna happen," Paul remarked, nudging Will with his elbow. "Then again, I'm not afraid of heights, so I can't really say anything. Is there any particular reason you're that scared of them? Were you always this way? Did you fall off of something?"

Will frowned, focusing on the cup in his hands.

"Remember when we had lunch with your dad and I was joking around about all the terrible things that happened when I lived in Salem?"

"Who could forget that many kidnappings?"

"Well," Will took a deep, nasally breath. "I joke about the tiger but it still really scares me. It happened at a stupid, ridiculous circus and I was in this dumb clown costume as part of the show. And Mom and Dad were arguing and I ran off and climbed up a catwalk. When they found me, the tiger cornered us and Dad was yelling at me to climb and every time I looked down I kept thinking I was gonna fall and get mauled to death. And then we had to stay up there as people were panicking and Mom covered my eyes but I could hear the screaming and-"

Will broke off in a shiver.

"How old were you?" Paul asked in a low voice.

"Nine," Will answered. He gave Paul a small smile and added, "I don't like clowns anymore either."

"No one likes clowns," Paul chuckled.

Without thinking about it, he grabbed Will's hand, linking their fingers.

"I take it we aren't gonna watch IT together?" Paul said.

"I've seen that movie twice, actually," Will said with a smirk. "Never did make it past the clown room."

"Why?" Paul wondered.

"Hot date, scared Will, put two and two together, Paul, geez," Will laughed.

Paul rolled his eyes, infinitely pleased Will was sounding like his old self again.

Neither let go of the other's hand until they finished their drinks and headed back to the car.

Paul drove them to a town a half hour northwest, per the directions Eric sent him when they parted ways. It ended up being a lake town with a large expanse of beaches, a boardwalk, and several restaurants and shops.

"Now we know what we needed the swimwear for," Will commented as they parked and got out.

"Not that you should be getting in the water at all," Paul remarked.

"Fun times were had by all," Will grumbled to himself.

Paul and Will spent the next few hours walking through all the various tourist shops. They tried on cheesy hats and took pictures with ridiculous fishing gear.

It was well past noon by the time the rest of their group came into town. They all met for lunch at a marina where they explained how great of a time they had.

Will dealt with their teasing with only minimal amounts of complaining.

"What are we doing after this?" Paul asked once they finished eating.

He spread his right arm out where it just so happened to drape over Will's chair.

Something Austin, Eric, Brady, and John all noted right away.

"We're going out on the water," Eric gestured to the clear lake behind them. "We rented a yacht."

"Everyone get your bags and meet back here in ten minutes," John said, smacking his hand on the table.

They rented a yacht large enough to accommodate them all. They took turns fishing and jumping in the water, playing around, except for Will. He was banned from the water by just about everyone and found fishing boring.

It suited Will fine. Despite the sun hiding behind the clouds, he was content to lie on the deck in his swim trunks and let the ebb and flow of the water rock him to sleep.

(He would have preferred Paul rubbing his sunscreen on him but each time Paul offered, Austin elbowed him out of the way.)

Drops of water on his face woke Will and he opened one eye.

Paul, just out of the water, leaned over Will, dripping all over him.

"Hi," Paul smiled when he saw Will's eyes flutter open.

"Is this gonna be a habit?" Will asked around a yawn. "Anytime I try to take a nap, you're gonna wake me up?"

"I wanted to check on you," Paul admitted with a wince. "I can go if you want me to."

"Naw," Will sat up and yawned again. But didn't miss the opportunity to eye Paul's wet body, scrambling to put his glasses on. "It's kinda lonely here by myself."

"I'm sorry," Paul frowned.

At the moment, everyone else was in the water. Paul could hear them laughing and roughhousing. Someone found a beach ball floating in the water and they'd taken to playing water polo with it.

"You don't have to apologize for having fun," Will said. He leaned back on his hands, gazing at Paul. "Besides, I am more than enjoying my view."

Paul let out a breathless chuckle and looked away.

"Brady said they rented a cabin on the water," Paul ignored Will's shameless staring and pointed to a cluster of houses on the other side of the lake. "One of those ones. That's where we're staying for the night. And you're sharing a room with Austin. He was quite insistent."

Will rolled his eyes.

"Even if I wasn't in his room, I'd end up there. A year or two ago, I went with Carrie and Austin to Sweden for a week. My hotel room connected to theirs and every five minutes Austin was knocking on the shared door or sending me a text. I don't know what he thought I was doing in there."

Paul gave Will a pointed look.

"Not with them in the next room. I don't have a death wish," Will huffed. "Eventually, I gave up and just left the connecting door open because he would not give me a moment's peace."

"He loves you a lot," Paul said with a shrug. "I can't say I blame him for being so overprotective. You do find yourself in pretty ridiculous situations. I mean, I love my dad and the relationship we've built, but I would have killed to have something like you and Austin."

"John loves and respects you," Will told Paul, as earnest as he knew how. "Trust me, every time he ever talked to me about you, even in the beginning when he first learned who you were, he got this super proud, fond look in his eyes. And Austin's amazing and I love him but try having three father figures in your life and then talk to me about wanting my relationship."

"Yeah, how does that work?" Paul wondered with a wide smile.

"Not well for me," Will revealed. "The one time Dad, Austin, and EJ were all in Zurich at the same time was when I graduated from university. And I had a boyfriend. Or I did until all three of them scared him off. I still don't know what they said to him but every time I bump into him with mutual friends he turns tail and runs the other way, literally."

Paul laughed.

"It's not funny," Will insisted even though he was laughing too.

"It is," Paul argued. "And I don't know. I know my dad loves me. But sometimes I wish he was more, I don't know, Dad-like? Maybe?"

"What do you mean?" Will moved closer to Paul so their bare knees brushed against each other as they sat cross-legged on the boat floor.

"Like all the drama I dealt with about Sonny and Brian," Paul crossed his arms over his chest. "My dad was supportive and told me to hang in there and go after what I wanted. Which is great, it is. But he never told me his opinion on the matter. He never told me if he liked Sonny or if he thought I was making a mistake. He never told me if I was doing the right thing sticking around. He'd never sit Sonny down and threaten him or anything. I don't know. I guess I want that kind of a relationship."

"Oh," Will licked his lips and sniffled. "I bet John wants to. I'm sure he'd love to let Sonny know what he really thinks of him. Maybe he didn't think you'd appreciate it. I know he's stuck his nose in Brady's, Belle's, my mom's, Eric's, and even Carrie's relationships before. Maybe he's trying not to make the same mistakes with you. And, hey, if it makes you feel better, he did tell me to leave you alone."

"What?" Paul frowned, eyebrows furrowed and forehead wrinkled.

"I'm not exactly subtle with how I feel about you," Will's face and neck heated up, drifting down his chest. "And he was pretty clear that I needed to let you be with Sonny since you've wanted that for such a long time."

Will flashed Paul a small smile before letting it drop.

"So, I've been trying," Will added, lifting one bare shoulder in a shrug. "Probably failing spectacularly but, hey. I'm a work in progress and, at least, I know you're happy with Sonny. He's who you want to be with, right?"

Will poked Paul in the side, trying to liven up the tense mood.

"Right," Paul nodded, lips pressed together. "That's who I want."

If he ignored the lurch in his stomach, Paul could almost believe it too.