"Hey," Nico said breathily as he flopped into the chair opposite Will.

"You okay?"

"Yeah. Just-" He gestured around wildly. "People being annoying." His chest was heaving; had he run here?

"Oh. Well, coffee makes everything better. What can I get you?"

"No, no, I won't make you pay." He was now fumbling with his brown leather messenger bag.

"Come on, you need to get your papers ready. It'll just be easier for me to grab it for you. What do you want?"

"Are you sure?"

"Positive."

"Well, I'll pay for you next time, then. Just a caramel macchiato for me, please?"

Will clenched his hand in his pocket as he made his way toward the counter. Next time. There was going to be a next time. The thought made him strangely excited, but he couldn't figure out why.

"One espresso and one caramel macchiato, please," Will told the barista. She smiled at him and nodded, beginning to prepare the drinks after taking his card. Will glanced back at Nico, who had now spread sheet music and written documents all over their table and was straightening them out nervously.

Why was he nervous? Well, he still barely knew Will. That was probably why.

Will grabbed their drinks and sat back down at the table, smiling. Nico smiled back, albeit reluctantly, and gingerly took the cup, as if afraid to brush Will's fingers. When Nico saw Will's drink, he raised his eyebrows.

"Just plain espresso? That's more bitter than I expected from you, mister sunshine."

"That's Doctor Sunshine to you, Death Boy."

Nico scowled, living up to his new nickname, but then quickly shook his head, throwing off his dour demeanor.

"Okay, let's get started, then." He picked up a stack of papers.

"Yeah. What exactly are we gonna do?"

"Well," he held up a particular piece of music. "I wrote a song. And you're gonna sing it with me. Can you read sheet music?"

"Uh, yes," Will said, insulted. "Of course I can."

"Just checking! A lot of people can't."

"Yeah, well, I've been playing guitar since I was like, three, so..."

"Okay, okay, jeez. You're awfully touchy about your musical capabilities."

Will shrugged.

"But that's good. Here." He handed Will the notebook. "I think it should be in your range."

Next to each of the lines, there were labels written: 'Me' for one and '?' for the other. Will guessed that he was '?'. He scanned the paper, looking for notes that were too high or too low for him. As he worked to decipher Nico's small, cramped handwriting, he couldn't help but admire the lyrics. They were about pain, loss, growing up and leaving the old behind, but picking up new things along the way. Much more eloquent than anything Will could've written.

He had attempted to write a song once or twice, but the lyrics had been childish and simplistic, and he'd condemned the songs to the dark depths of some drawer somewhere, never to see the light of day.

But this… this was nothing like Will's lyrics. Nico was clearly an experienced songwriter.

"How long have you been writing?" Will asked, finally breaking the comfortable silence that had settled between them. "Music, I mean? Lyrics?"

"Mmm… eight-ish years? Started when I was thirteen."

"Wow. You're really good. This is amazing."

Was it just him, or did Nico's cheeks redden a little bit? "Please. It's not that good. And trust me, my songs were not nearly as complex back when I started. God, I think I've still got a few of them hanging around. If I showed you one of those, you'd lose all respect for me instantly."

"I seriously doubt that," Will said honestly, looking Nico in the eyes. "I doubt anything could do that." They hovered there for a second, which gave Will time to think about what a stupid thing that was to say. He started to feel his hands get clammy under Nico's gaze. Finally, Nico looked down, clearly uncomfortable with Will's sudden openness.

"A-anyways," he stammered. "Can you sing it?"

"Yes!" Will nearly jumped out of his chair, eager for the opportunity to change the subject. "Yeah, I can."

"Great." Nico gave Will a small smile as he took the paper back, but there was still a lingering wariness in his eyes left by Will's too-forward comment. "I'll- uh- I'll email you a digital version- made with an actual sheet music program. I doubt you want my intelligible hand copy. And maybe we can start in the studio next week? When are you free?"

"As long as it's after five, I'm free every day.

"How about next Tuesday at five-thirty, then? I'll send you the location when I email the music."

"Perfect." By now, they had both finished their coffee, and Nico began to pack up.

"Thanks for the coffee," Nico said. "And for talking with me. This was fun."

"Yeah! And I can't wait to get started on the song."

Nico smiled at him, a real smile, and Will found it hard to breathe. "Oh, and one more thing," Nico said, his eyebrows furrowing as he thought. "Have you ever heard any of my songs before?"

The truth was that Will hadn't before he met Nico; it's not like Nico was super mainstream or anything. But after that day when he'd- for some reason- said yes to being on Nico's next album, Will had gone home and listened to his entire repertoire.

And loved it, too.

"I've heard a couple," he lied.

"Oh, good. I wanted to make sure you knew this wasn't some bright bubbly pop song you were getting into."

"Excuse me, Death Boy, are you assuming what kind of music I like based on my appearance? You know what they say about assuming…"

Nico rolled his eyes, but Will could tell he didn't mean it. "See you on Tuesday, Doctor Sunshine." He slung his bag over his shoulder, and with that, he was gone.

As soon as he was alone, Will buried his head in his hands. "Oh, I am so, so screwed."

A/N Woo! Told you I'd get the next chapter up quickly! I haven't written in forever; this chapter was so fun to write. Thank you for reading!