Will's sitting at the bar of Brady's Irish Pub. It's just him, and he's fine with that, but it's like something is missing. Something really important, but he can't really remember what it is. He's not thirsty, and doesn't have anywhere he needs to be, which is odd in itself, because who knows how long he's been sitting here, could be days.
The tap hasn't stopped flowing, the lights haven't turned off unexpectedly. The same ripped up photograph sits in front of him, too ripped up to see who it's a picture of. The same cold beer he'd poured for himself sits by it, and he's content for the time being, but there's something he wants more than all of it combined, just beyond his reach.
He rubs his chest again, trying to ease some of the ache that's insisting on staying right where it is.
"Will."
Will startles so badly, he almost falls off of his bar stool. All this time, he's been alone, and he liked the quiet, but he's been fighting himself to not scream the name that's right there on his lips-- but he doesn't know what that name is supposed to be, so he just sighed, and stayed put.
He turns around abruptly, only to be confronted by two people. One is a man in a suit, the other an older woman in a pink sweater, with blond hair. Will just stares at them for the longest time, trying to figure out why he feels himself relaxing, like these people will make everything okay. He doesn't know them, he's pretty sure.
"Who are you two?" Will finally asks, suspicious as the man walks right up to him, the woman hanging on his arm. They both take their own seats on the bar next to him, pouring drinks for themselves.
"Will." The man repeats, cutting his eyes across the counter, then to Will's face. "You're dying, and your heart is about to stop. Sonny needs you to live."
At the name Sonny, Will gasps, doubling over. He sees their whole lives behind his eyelids, and in all of them, is a man named Sonny, laughing with him, yelling at him, and loving him. And he remembers it all, every single minute, so clearly, it's almost too much.
"Andre. Grandma Caroline." Will finally manages to say, grabbing them both in a hug. "Are you really here? Is this a dream?"
"Both." Andre tells him. "I'm here in your coma dream. I haven't intervened because I haven't needed to, but Caroline knew we couldn't just watch this time."
Will looks at both of them, still breathing through the pain of his entire life coming back to him, away from that unnerving silence in his head. He misses them both, so so much. Grandma Caroline had told them such a beautiful story at his and Sonny's wedding.
And he would take losing them all over again if it meant not losing Sonny. He knows he should hate himself for that, but he's pretty sure they knew that too.
"It's really good to see you." Will says, looking at the ripped photo, which he can now see was a picture of them, of him and Sonny.
"I never got to marry Sonny again. And instead of a lifetime of love and laughter, I left him with such unbearable pain."
"Sonny." Andre repeats, then snaps his fingers, and a screen appears in front of them. On it, is the the worst thing Will can imagine. Sonny, sitting by his hospital bed, next to Liam, holding hands. But somehow, he can feel what Sonny's feeling. Sonny's thinking about him, while Liam's thinking about Viv.
"What am I doing here?" Will asks, looking away from the screen, refusing to think about how they've both been privy to the fact that Sonny slept with someone else. Which means they know what they had to do to get here, and he's positive he'll never be forgiven for that. "How long would I have been stuck here if it weren't for you? I knew something wasn't right, like someone else should be here too, but I had no idea. It's like I was an amnesiac all over again. I was fine just staying here until something happened."
"It's your bridge. You're here until you decide to stay or go. You don't remember what happened?" Andre asks kindly.
"Sort of." Will admits, thinking hard. "I remember driving back from Liam's house. Talking to his son about something. Sonny asked me to ditch with him, so I was going home to change and-- I remember getting hit on my side of the car. Pain, blood in my mouth. Car spinning. Then it all goes black. I--." He trails off.
"Go on, Will." Andre encourages when Will doesn't continue. "What's the matter?"
"I'm never gonna hear the end of this from Sonny when I wake up." he groans. "He told me over and over how unsafe my car was, and I didn't listen. What if it had been him? The way he drives, it's a matter of time before he gets in his own accident. Or worse!"
Both Andre and Caroline smile at him, like it's not a surprise at all to hear Will, in his coma dream, worrying about Sonny. Then, Andre says, "You should know we both couldn't be happier for you. And for Sonny. We both knew you were meant to be together, even if it took you this long to figure that out. To leave Salem, start over somewhere you could just be happy. I worried your families or something else would never let you be together. So worried about each other you forgot to just be happy with the other. We're proud of you both. If anyone deserves it, it's you two."
Will shakes his head, "You mean to tell me all we had to do was leave Salem, all this time?"
Andre shrugs, "Did you ever wonder why nobody's reached out since you came to Melas? Why the authorities haven't hauled you away in handcuffs? I know you and Sonny, with your guilt, still read the Spectator sometimes, to stay caught up with what's going on in Salem. Sonny's uncle Victor sent his best men to keep you safe. To make sure nobody would ever find you, and you didn't go back out of guilt. He's done everything in his power to make sure you two are well taken care of."
Will rubs his chest again, the ache returning tenfold. "Andre, Grandma Caroline. It's so good to be able to talk to you again. I'm glad you found me, because I have no idea how long I'd be stuck here if you hadn't. But I, I want…" Will clenches a fist around his heart, the pain now spreading deep into his bones.
"You love him." Andre explains. "He loves you. That's who you're feeling right now. In your heart. His hurt. That's what he's feeling right now."
"A bit unsettling." Will remarks, looking back at the screen. "I want to go back. Can I?"
Andre just looks at him, before sighing, "Your body has to decide if it's going to move on or stay. But it wouldn't be so bad to move on, Will. You could just be at peace, waiting for Sonny to join you. A lifetime memories to keep you company until he does. Your shared memories."
Finally, Will panics. "What? No! I would never be satisfied with just memories of what was for who knows how much longer, instead of reliving them with my husband. Where were Victor's men when I got hurt?"
Andre looks surprised by Will's outburst, but Will's nowhere near finished.
"You said his pain I'm feeling is coming from Sonny? What he's feeling? Well it feels like someone's trying to pull all of my organs out my body one by one. Look at him!" Will gestures to the screen. "He's crying his eyes out at my bedside, wasting away. Why isn't someone protecting him?"
"The men were there to stop anyone from sending you to jail, Will. Leo didn't hire someone to run you off the road. Just an irresponsible driver."
But Will isn't listening. "I have to go back. And to anyone listening whenever me and Sonny die, we have to go within moments of each other, old and senile. And we will not spend another waking moment apart ever again. Do you understand me?" Will's heart is pounding by the end.
"Will, please. I'll do what I can to pass that along." Andre assures him, a little put out by Will's speech. "I'm so sorry Will. It was not my intention to upset you. All I was trying to say was that since now's not your time, you more than likely won't be here much longer."
The scene on the screen changes, and Will watches in horror as someone dressed in black hold a chloroform handkerchief over his nose, knocking him unconscious.
Will stands up, exclaiming, "No, stop him! What the hell is he doing?"
Andre puts a hand on his shoulder, "He's here to help you. It's just a precaution so he can give you the serum without being interrupted."
At that, Will pauses, confused. "Serum?"
Andre explains, "When you were hurt in that accident, it hit a tumor that had been growing all this time. The drug you took, to get your memories back, caused it, and it had been lying dormant all this time. I won't lie to you, Will. The doctors tried to stay upbeat for Sonny's sake, but you have a huge inoperable tumor in your head. Without that man's help, you could die."
"If he hurts Sonny, so help me--."
"Can you trust me, Will?" Andre asks, hand squeezing Will's shoulder. "All we both have ever wanted was the absolute best for both of you."
Will looks at the screen again, then looks at Andre, and nods. "One time, Andre. I will trust you on this."
As they watch the man administer the drug into Will's IV bag, Will asks, "I want to remember this. Sonny will want to hear it too."
"As you wish." Andre concedes. "But right now, you can rest. When the light clears, you'll wake in your hospital bed."
Will looks down, and miraculously, the ripped photo is whole once again. It's their wedding photo, both of them smiling at the camera like they don't have a care in the world.
Then, suddenly, grandma Caroline stands up, pulling Will in for a hug. The second she touches him, she tells him, clear as a bell,
"Now is not your time. It's time for you to go back. Back to Sonny and Ari."
Will has no idea what she could mean by Ari, because he hasn't seen her in months, but before he can ask her, a bright light shines over the pub, and Will stares right at it, never letting go as he lets the light pull him towards the only home he's ever known.