I own nothing. By the way, I understand that Will and Aiden wouldn't be fixed so soon. They aren't, really. They're just better.
"How'd it go?" Heather asked. She sat with Charlie, feet tucked under her body on the couch. Charlie had an arm around her, but was looking at the television set, trying to avoid looking at Will. Will remembered Heather's pregnancy, spending most of it on the couch that still sat in his apartment, hidden away in his bedroom. The last place Will wanted to be was too close to the married couple, so he sat on the floor on the other side of the coffee table. Heather caught his eye and smiled.
"Pretty well, I think. There was a little bit of yelling-"
"We heard."
"-but I think that it was all for the best." Will finished his sentence, looking at Charlie. "I hope you don't mind. I didn't feel great about it, but he's an awful lot like I was at that age, and yelling was sort of required for me." Charlie and Will looked at each other uncomfortably, not sure of what to say. As it was with Heather and Will, the two would never quite have a perfectly normal conversation that didn't have hints of the underlying relationship.
"So what'd you end up telling him?" Heather tried breaking the tension. She mentally thanked God that she didn't have to put up with this sort of thing every day. Heather was straightforward most of the time, and would have ended up bringing up the unease, cracking the surface of Will and Charlie, the surface that said that they were comfortable with each other.
"I told him about the city."
Heather breathed out heavily and ran a hand through her hair. Both men almost smiled at the familiar habit. "Are you sure that was wise?"
"He wanted to know. And if he were to change, he'd have to know why he should. Johnny's the best example, but I couldn't just say that Brad turned him into that. I'm not going to lie to my son." Charlie shifted in his seat.
"Still, I don't think he should think that running away is an option."
"I sincerely doubt he thinks that."
"What makes you say that? You know just how easy it is to say you agree with someone."
"Well I explained that some things need to keep you from running away."
"Like what?"
"Heather." Will looked Heather in the eye. "What kept me from running away?" Heather stared at Will. She sighed, and looked at Charlie out of the corner of her eye. "That's the one thing that really hooked Aiden. He wanted to know your past."
"You told him about my wife's past, without her permission?" Charlie didn't sound mean, he just sounded surprised. He himself avoided that area most of the time, because it brought out an angsty and still undecided version of Heather. "That's gutsy, Will."
"He needed to know. And now he does, and I think that he really understands what he has that needs to keep him at home and doing well."
"Which is?" Will couldn't look Heather in the eye this time. He didn't want to look at Charlie either, so he found himself studying the coffee table.
"Love." he muttered. "And home is where the heart is, so he's gotta stay home."
Will didn't see it, but he heard Heather's smile. "Someone had to teach him. May as well be someone who knows it well."
Stupidly enough, Will felt himself blushing a little bit. He gave a half smile. "Well, I'd better be getting home. Papers to grade and all."
Heather got up to walk Will to the door. "Don't be a stranger," Charlie called. It was an empty sentiment, but it was better than ill will filled with spite.
"Thank you for coming." Heather tucked a hair behind her ear. The two stood in the doorway, and Heather leaned against the framework.
Will smiled. "Anytime." He turned to leave, but Heather stopped him by clearing her throat pointedly.
"I never thanked you."
A quizzical look shone through Will's face. "I'm pretty sure you just did. Three seconds ago."
"No, I mean I never thanked you for staying with me."
"Oh." Will coughed. "Well, what else would I have done? I mean.. you were my girl. It was Heather and Will, Will and Heather."
"More like Johnny, Tunny, Will, and Will's girl, but alright."
Will grinned and rolled his eyes. "Well, to me it was Heather and Will, Will and Heather."
"Yeah, yeah." Heather smiled softly. The same look came over her as when she'd opened the door to him hours earlier. Decision time. "Anyways. Thank you." Quicker than he wished, Heather stood on her toes and kissed him quickly in the doorway. She looked up at him with a bittersweet smile. She started turning, and he ended up outside the house while she stood inside.
He stepped down from the doorstep. "You're welcome." The door closed, and Will walked to his car. He sat there a moment, changing the radio station and watching the clouds roll in. He thought about what he'd said. To him it had been Heather and Will, Will and Heather.
"Past tense is a bitch," he said to himself. Then he went home.