AN: There's going to be triggers for rape and abuse here on out. This is your warning
Nico wasn't expecting anything when he went to pick Will up from campus a week later, but he found Will with tears streaming down his red face and one of the guiltiest expressions Nico had ever seen.
He parked the car and nearly flew over to his boyfriend, his arms crossed. "Who did it? Who the fuck made you cry? I'll kick their sorry ass to next-"
"No you won't." Will grabbed Nico's shoulders. "You're too short to win a fight so you're not going to start one."
Nico scowled. "I'm not that short."
"You're 5'5, Neeks."
"I think you're lying."
"Why would I lie-"
"Just tell me what happened," Nico cut in. "Who did it?"
Will sighed. "Promise not to do anything?"
"Hell no."
"Nicooo," Will whined. "Let's just go home. Who's got Bi?"
"Hazel's teaching her how to do her own hair." Nico looked around the campus. "Was it that new sister of yours? Or her brother? Or her boyfriend?"
"I don't even think she has a boyfriend, Nico-"
"So it was her. What'd she say?"
"Nico, it's not that big of a deal-"
"You're crying, Will." Nico frowned. "You're crying."
Will sat on a nearby bench and took a deep breath. "Nico...where do I start? She was going off again about what dad did to her mom. Horrible details."
"Like...?" Nico asked, sitting beside him.
Will dried his face off. "He beat her. Bad. Apparently so bad she had her twins two months early."
Nico whistled. "And they survived?"
He nodded. "Barely. And then he left, got with another girl, probably didn't wear a condom again. The mom remarried soon after to another asshole who did the same thing to her. Mary blames dad, obviously, but she also is pissed at me because he actually stayed to raise me. Why did he, Nico? Why did he stay for me and no one else?"
"You need to talk to your dad, confront his ass," Nico stressed. "Because if that's true, you need to know."
"But he was always so perfect with me," Will said. "I mean...I barely remember my childhood, all my memories are from freshman year up. But all I remember of him was good times."
"Has your mom ever seemed scared of him?" Nico asked. "Ever?"
Will shrugged before frowning. "I don't know...I spent most of my time in my room, back in Texas." He moved a hand to his head. "You know I hate thinking back on those days. I think I'm starting to purposely forget them."
"I have an idea, but we should do it tonight while Bianca's sleeping at Hazel's," Nico offered. "Are you up for it?"
"What is it?" Will asked.
"We're going to invite your mom over. Just your mom," Nico explained. "You're going to sit her down and you're both going to have a glass of wine and you're going to talk Texas over. I...I don't like the look on your face when you mention that place. I just don't. And I want this to be over."
"What do you think she's going to say?" Will asked. "That dad used to secretly abuse her when I was hiding in my room?"
"No, not exactly." Nico sighed. "Just trust me on this, okay? We need to figure this out before I ever trust Bianca in his care again."
Will nodded. "We're not leaving her with anyone we have doubts with. I can agree with you on that."
Nico elbowed him lightly. "See? We think alike. Come on, let's get going. I'll cook whatever you want."
Will once again made sure his face was dry and normal looking before standing up. "How about your four-layer lasagna?"
Nico used Will's arm to pull himself to his feet. "You know how to pick out dinners, all right."
Will took a shower after calling his mom, his thoughts continuing to go back to what Nico said. Why did he want to know about Texas so bad? Why did that wound still ache?
Nico knew him better than anyone, this he knew. So why was Nico looking at him like that before? It had been pity in his eyes, sympathy. But why?
Will's face screwed up in discomfort when he hit that certain spot on his back with the bar of soap. It always created an odd sense of wrong and anxiety, which used to always lead to awkward conversations during their first acts of intimacy, when they barely knew each other's bodies, when they didn't know what triggered the other.
He couldn't help but chuckle at the memories. Yeah, Nico had always been the right one for him. He would never say otherwise.
When he was done showering he found his mom on one of the couches, looking through Bianca's coloring book while Nico sat beside her, pointing certain things out.
"Mom, you got here fast," Will greeted as he sat beside her. "You weren't doing anything?"
She gave him a quick hug. "Not at all, just waiting for your father to get back from work. What did you need to talk about?"
Nico cleared his throat. "It's time I stepped out. I'll be in the kitchen if you need me."
"No, you don't need to go," Naomi grabbed his arm before he could escape. "You and Will tell each other everything, I've learned that by now. I don't mind if you just stay with the conversation, honey."
Nico glanced at Will in awkward silence before nodding. "Okay..."
"There, that's settled." Namoi turned to Will. "So, what's up?"
Will stared at her for a minute in silence before speaking. "Well...I...I met more half-siblings of mine on campus. Twins, actually."
"Oh, really?" Naomi laughed the information off. "I'm lucky that the twins gene didn't come from your father's side."
"That's not the point," Will dismissed. "It's what one of them told me. Mary Davis, her name is. She said...she said that dad abused her mom pretty bad when she was pregnant."
Naomi's smile turned fake. In a span of three seconds, her face looked more like a doll's than a human's. "Oh, that must have been a shock to you..."
"Nico and I...we were wondering..." Will leaned forward. "Did he abuse you when I wasn't there to notice, or when you were pregnant with me? Why didn't he ever hit me? What was so special about me that turned him around?"
That fake expression of hers sent shivers down Nico's spine. Her eyes were like a corpse's.
"I'm sorry, I don't understand what the point of this is, Will." She rubbed at her right wrist. "You of all people should remember..." She stood up. "Do you have any wine? I'm feeling a little parched."
Will's face was red. "Remember what, mom? What did he do to you?" He stood up beside her. "Did he use to hit you?"
"Will, calm down." Nico grabbed his clenched fist.
That fake expression broke. A tear ran down that troubled face. "Oh, honey..." Naomi put a hand on Will's cheek. "You don't remember anything, do you? Nothing of your childhood?"
Will stared into her eyes. "Momma..."
"He got better towards you, a lot better, when you started to make him proud." She rubbed his cheek with her thumb. "You were such a bright child. By high school, he had no hate towards you. You were his pride and joy."
"But you, he continued to hit you?" Will asked.
She stared at him for another minute before grabbing her purse, quickly wiping tears from her face, trying to fix her broken mask. Her smile started to paint itself back on. "I have to go, I have dinner in the oven. It was nice to see you, baby, and you as well, Nico." She kissed each of their heads before hurrying out the door, leaving Will staring into the empty space where she once was.
"Will..." Nico started.
Will broke from his trance and started up the stairs.
"What are you doing?" Nico called after him, being quick to follow.
Will burst into their bedroom with one thing on his mind, and one thing only. "Getting my baseball bat."
