Sonny wakes at first daylight. Will had curled in on himself in his sleep, but Sonny can still see he has his arm in between them and a fist clenched over his chest. Like he's protecting his heart, Sonny thinks. The small key lays in the palm of Will's hand.
Sonny wants nothing more than to lift that hand up, to uncurl those fingers one by one. Expose Will's heart to him, Sonny realizes. Will already has his own. Has had it, Sonny decides, since the first time he saw Will.
It's a shock to the system, especially for a gay man such as himself who had just started to believe he wasn't worthy of loving someone. Not unless you count family or friends. His thing with Paul, who everybody--including Paul himself, behind closed doors--had thought was perfect for him, convinced him he'd blown the best chance he'd ever have, at a long term relationship with a gay guy.
That had been hard to swallow for a man who, at the very core of who he is, wants a family, to get married, build a home. And it's because he was forced to swallow it, Sonny realizes, that he'd been so restless and unhappy that it never left him alone, like the paparazzi, for months.
Now here he is, looking at the man who could be the answer he's been looking for. The man who, Sonny's sure, won't give him a chance to ask the question.
So Sonny's just gonna have to convince Will. Come hell or high water, sooner rather than later.
Because he'd meant every word from last night. They belong to each other.
Sonny considers waking Will up, reminding him of how compatible they are in bed. He can't think of a better way to start the day, especially looking at Will all soft and warm, and hanging off of him.
But it wouldn't be fair to wake him up when they haven't really gotten the chance to sleep. Will's work day starts much later than his own.
Sonny slides out of bed, away from Will, with some regret, and stands up. Will stirs, humming in his sleep, before rolling into the warmth he'd left.
Sonny grabs his pants and goes straight for the bathroom to shower.
You can tell a lot about a person just by looking at their bathroom. Will's is both ridiculously clean and well decorated. Thick baby blue towels offset the white fixtures, seeing the diamond pattern scattered across the tiles.
A plant hangs on the windowsill, and there's bottles everywhere, colored blue and green that hold lotions as well as bath salts. Apparently Will likes fancy soaps, Sonny noted, keeping them on display.
He apparently has longer lasting hot water than Sonny does. Sonny smiles during the whole fifteen minutes he takes in the shower that covers the whole room in steam like a hot sauna.
Will's still asleep when Sonny finally steps out, but now he's all sprawled out on top of the sheets, the morning light cast over his naked back. Sonny forces himself to not immediately get back in bed with Will, instead thinking about making coffee.
Will's living room has tall ceilings and dark wood flooring. He'd taken a sponge to the walls with the paint, making it look like a burnt orange.
Hanging on the faded walls were several posters. Artwork posters, Sonny notes. Elegant line drawings, a poster of the Las Vegas sign, with life in place of the Las Vegas words.
A cream colored sofa sits in the middle of the room, adorned with only one pillow and a blanket.
Sonny decided he likes Will's taste. Modern, but still used tables and complementary colors. And he really likes seeing his peonies on the able as well.
Sonny walks into the kitchen, unable to stop himself from smiling. Will apparently appreciates good coffee just as much as he does.
Sonny does his best to make as little noise as possible so he doesn't wake Will up. And while the coffee brews, he stands at the entrance to the kitchen, looking out the window at his view of Horton Town Square.
He hears the sound of feet sliding onto the floor, then walking towards him.
He wears his low hung boxers, eyes still riddled with sleep, and a lazy smile.
"Oh, I'm sorry. I thought I was quiet with the grinder."
"You were." Will takes a breath. "But I can smell when it's almost ready. You gonna make me breakfast too?"
"How about toast? House special."
"You sure? Cause I'm pretty sure I had a fair helping your house special last night." Still smiling, Will struts right over to Sonny. "How about another?" Will says, before grabbing Sonny by the neck and pulling him in for a kiss.
He'd felt lonely when he'd woken up, convinced himself he'd just up and left. He's not in the habit of letting men stay the night. It's too easy for them to sneak out while he's still asleep. Better to send them on their way, to sleep by himself than to wake up and find they're not there.
Then he'd seen Sonny's shirt, his blazer and shoes, and he'd been so happy. Too happy. When a guy has that much control, it's time to take it back. And the best way to do that is to distract him with another round in bed.
"Why didn't you roll over and wake me up?"
"I seriously considered it." Still considering it. "But I thought since you're working tonight, you should get some actual sleep that isn't a quick nap. But now that you're awake…"
Will laughs, backing away, "Now that I'm awake, I want coffee." Will opens a cupboard, shooting Sonny a knowing look over his shoulder. "And if you ask nicely, I just might make you breakfast."
"Do I have to get down on my knees and beg?"
"You have my attention, Sonny. I'll make you toast." Will tells him, but when he sees Sonny's face fall, he adds, "French toast. I still have some brioche bread left over." Will hands him a mug filled with freshly brewed coffee.
"Thanks. Since you can cook, we won't even need to hire a cook when we get married and have two kids."
"Just two?"
"Nice even number, one from each of us. I like the artwork you have hanging. Pretty unique."
Will takes out a skillet. "Cooking's another art, and can be unique if you know what you're doing."
Will gets out a bowl, and Sonny watches as he cracks an egg on the side, and drop the egg and white with one hand.
"Now I get it. Do it again."
Will chuckles as he cracks another egg. "How about you go put on some music? Won't be long now."
They eat at the table by the kitchen, close to the little window overlooking the square.
"Who taught you to cook?" Sonny asks Will.
"My grandma Marlena. Tried to teach me how to knit, but that didn't work out too well."
"Surprised you own a bar instead of a restaurant."
"I like cooking at my own pace, whenever it strikes my fancy. Not every second of the day, hot and perfect."
"That is true. So how'd you end up being the co owner of Doug's Place?"
"I like being my own boss. When someone else is your boss, you gotta follow this rule and that rule. So I went to Salem U for a business degree, and I thought, what kind of business do I want? Don't care about selling souvenirs, or gentleman's clothing. I thought, they've already got all of that in Salem, but what's the one thing that keeps people coming back? Imbibing. Some harmless drinking, and a good time to be had, that's where people go when they want to feel good. And so...Doug's Place."
"How long have you and Doug been co owners?"
"Let me see." Will's already eaten his one piece, so he goes for the four he'd plunked on Sonny's plate. "It's almost been 4 years."
"You've had that bar since you were 24?"
"How the hell do you know how old I am?"
"Chad."
Will looks up at the ceiling. "Goddamnit. I'm gonna tan his hide for that. He should know better than to ever reveal someone's actual age. What else did he blab to you about?"
Sonny turns his whole focus onto his breakfast, "This is really good. What did you put in it?"
Will doesn't say anything for exactly ten seconds. "Oh my god. He just couldn't stop himself from bragging about his one gay experience, could he?"
Unsettled, for both his own and Chad's sake, Sonny's quick to refute, "No, no, it wasn't like that. It was reminiscing. And really sweet. You were important to him. Still are."
"Lucky for him I already know that. And it goes both ways. Do you still remember the first guy you slept with, Sonny? And do you still remember him fondly?"
"Brian. A really good looking brunette. I was with him throughout the early years at Salem U."
Will likes how quickly Sony gave him a name. Even if the guy doesn't actually exist. "So what happened?"
"He dumped me because he could tell I wasn't as into him as he was into me. Still pisses me off just a little. But to put the focus back on you--and don't think I didn't notice how you redirected the conversation away from you, but I was the CEO of Titan Industries. As I was saying, how did you pull something like that off? 24's still ridiculously young to start a business, one that's clearly managed to get past the three year hump."
Will leans back. "What's it to you? Boss."
"Fine." Sonny shrugs as he keeps eating. "I'll just assume you stole money, have connections with the Mob, or charmed and murdered the previous owner-- after he signed the place over to you. And are still running illegal gambling and whores in the back room."
"Now you know why I'm really so busy. But your story's better. Compared to the truth, which is really boring. Worked every day at the Brady Pub after school and during the summer, saved my earnings. I'm ridiculously good at saving money when I absolutely have to. Then I started working as a bartender, serving drinks, while getting a business degree at Salem U part time. And then, right before I turned 23, my stepgrandfather, passed away. Shot in the head on a dangerous assignment as a PI."
Will's eyes water as he says it. "I guess I'm still angry at him."
"I'm so sorry." Sonny covers Will's hand with his. "You two were close, weren't you?"
"I loved him more than any guy I've ever been with. John Black, with his silver hair and strong hands. He treated my grandma Marlena like a princess, and always put her first. Always." Will blinks away tears. "He had this insane insurance policy, much bigger than it should've been, all things considered. Part for me, part for Marlena and the rest of the kids. But my grandma all but forced me to take hers too. Nothing I said made any difference, she wouldn't budge. So I made a few wise investments, and a year later, me and Doug opened the bar."
"There's nothing boring about any of that, Will. You know how to run a bar."
"Indeed I do." Will stands up, picking up their plates. "You should get dressed, if you want me to drive you home."
Sonny couldn't convince Will to come inside, so he settles for a dizzy kiss before Will finally pushes him out of the car and drives away.
Showing up at his own house at 8 in the morning, in wrinkled clothes gets him a smile and a whistle from one of the workers, as they move dead tree branches into a pile.
"Somebody got lucky last night, Mr. Kiriakis."
Got something, Sonny thinks, rubbing his chest, before heading inside to get to work.
Will refuses to see him later that night, or the next night after that. Sonny has to resort to talking on the phone, giddy as a little schoolgirl as he walks around the mansion with his phone, wracking his brain for any witty anecdote that could persuade Will to not hang up.
St. Patrick's Day celebrations and business are in full swing, Will tells him. And as long as they are, Will can't spare any time playing around.
Sonny is well experienced in knowing when someone's testing his patience and putting him off and messing with him. And decides to let Will ride it all the way out.
Until Sonny's brought him to shore.
