A/N: A little flashback giving some further background to the Will-Angela-Diane relationship. Sorry no Alicia in this chapter, but more of her to come. This one is set before she returned to the law.
Rockstar (Nickleback)
Chicago, September 2008
Will, Diane and Angela are drinking coffee in Will's office.
At the sound of a beeper, Angela looked to her waist, "Use your phone?" Will nodded. Angela punched in a number, when the call was answered she gave her name then waited before saying, "OK, right, tell the co-coordinator I can be there in ten. How many casualties?" As she listened, she closed her eyes, muttering, 'Shit' under her breath, before sighing "OK" and hanging up. She placed her palms flat on Will's desk, leant forward, breathed deeply, then stood, wiped her hands on her trousers and turned to face them.
Will and Diane knew not to ask, instead waiting for her to speak. "There's been a crash on the L. Multiple casualties, I'm to be part of the first response team. Gotta go." She downed the remains of her coffee cup as she crossed the floor to walk up alongside Will, who was sitting in his leather chair. She placed the empty cup on the table in front of him, leant forward and took the red cup from his hand. She drank its contents and handed it back. Leaning to pick up her bag she nodded a goodbye to them and walked quickly out of the office.
"It amazes me how much coffee goes into that woman."
"And bourbon," added Diane, lowering her eyelids and nodding her head.
"Yeah, that too. She's in full commando mode, pity the people who get in her way," Will added, tilting his head to the side. They both laughed.
"How long have you two known each other?" Diane asked, already knowing the answer.
"Oh, seems like forever," Will chuckled, laying down the empty cup on the table, "ten years."
"Ten years," Diane repeated, raising an eyebrow, "some people have been married, divorced and remarried in that time," she noted.
"Yup. We've saved a fortune!" Will laughed.
"I remember when I tried to set you two up. Unbeknownst to me, you'd already met, fallen in love, parted ways then moved to Chicago together," she snorted a little as she laughed at the memory, raising her shoulders as she threw her head back with the laughter that pealed from her throat.
Will laughed, "Oh yes! I remember the evening well," he smiled at his partner. "It was just before we founded the firm, Ange was visiting Chicago for a job interview and was staying with me. I had a work thing,"
"Dinner at my house," Diane interrupted.
"Yes, dinner with you, Stern and some prospective clients," he nodded, "and she was having dinner with her Dad and some 'old friends'," he pointed at her. Grinning, he continued, "I picked out a dress for her and, as always, she looked gorgeous, as she wanted to make a good impression in case there were any hot men there! I complained that she didn't get dressed up to impress me," he lent forward to pick up a baseball from a bowl on the table and started squeezing it in his hand, "shouldn't have worried!" Diane joined him in laughing, "Yes, I told her there was a Hot Shot Young Lawyer I wanted her to meet – I thought, and still do," she emphasised, "that you are perfect for each other." Will shook his head and waved the idea away.
"When I arrived at your house I was quite nervous and you introduced me to several important clients of yours, then said, 'I'd like you to meet an old friend of mine,' guiding me towards a small group of men engaged in conversation. You tapped one on the arm and as he turned you said, 'Professor Austen, please meet,' and before you could finish, he said, 'Will," and you looked so surprised."
"Well, yes, I was. I didn't know you knew each other. Thinking retrospectively, all of us could have connected the dots," she acknowledged.
"Yeah," he agreed. "All David offered in response to your stammering, 'you know each other?' was 'Yes, Will used to date my daughter,' he was like a smiling assassin!" They continued laughing at the incredulity of the scene. "When I found Angela she was shocked to see me – more so because we worked for different firms then and she didn't really think we moved in the same circles." Diane nodded in agreement.
FLASHBACK:
Will stood in the kitchen doorway looking at figure in front of him. Angela had her back to him, busying herself mixing a drink. He slowly walked up behind her, "Hey," he said quietly.
"Oh my God! Will! What are you doing here?" She asked, allowing herself to be pulled into his arms.
"I was promised dinner, networking and a cute girl. Guess I got all three," he grinned. "Turns out my work thing was with your Dad's old friend," he said dipping his head forward and rubbing his left hand up her back.
"Uh-huh, so I guess you are the Hot Shot Lawyer Diane wanted me to meet," she teased.
"So you do get dressed up for me!" She laughed as he planted a kiss on her cheek.
….
Later that evening, Angela had returned to the SLG offices.
Will was sitting on the end of his couch reading a file. Angela was asleep on the couch, resting her head in Will's lap. Will noticed earlier that she had a smear of blood (not hers) on her face, but she looked too tired to care about it, so he tried to wipe it off with his thumb, but managed to make it worse. He was instantly grateful for the lack of mirrors in his office. As she slept, Will ran his right hand through her hair and down her back. He hoped to soothe her, but he also liked the warmth of her body on his hand, it made him feel closer to her, connected and if anything, it soothed him.
David Lee stood by the long wall of windows looking into Will's office. He smiled at the scene in front of him. Diane crept up behind him and asked what he was doing, he simply replied, "There's a lot of love there, not something I normally expect from him," nodding his head towards Will and Angela. "Yes there is," Diane replied.
"Do you think they'll ever make it official?" He asked.
"What? Get married you mean?" Diane reacted to his question. "No," she replied shaking her head gently, "Will's not the white picket fence type of guy."
"Shame, they make a good couple," he said, which Diane thought was surprisingly heartfelt and without any notion of dollar signs flying through the head of Family Law's finest.
"I've been saying that for years," she laughed, adding, "I'll tell you this though, if Will ever has kids, Angela will be their mother. Can't see him doing that with anyone else." Turning back to her office, she smiled at him, "Good night David."
"Night Diane," as he smiled and walked away, tossing a M&M into his mouth.
