February 9, 2016

Paul ran. Despite the burn in his lungs and legs, he pushed himself harder, faster. He continued down the road for a good amount of time before his legs began to feel like jelly. He paused, putting his hands on his knees to catch his breath. Eventually he looked up, the road ahead of him blurring out of vision. He put his hand to his head thinking it would pass but felt nausea rise in his throat. He tried to run, but once again bile rose in his throat. He leaned against the nearest tree, retching.

From somewhere behind him he heard the unmistakable sound of crunching snow.

"Paul?"

He turned his head slightly, a blur of blonde hair came into view. As the figure became focused he let out an annoyed sigh.

"Dr. Evans," he said between ragged breaths.

"Please, call me Marlena," she said warmly. She observed him carefully, noting the paleness of his skin. In spite of the bitter cold, he was sweating profusely. She gave him a worried look. He let out a muffled cry of pain. "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine!" He snaps, wincing at the unexpected pain. "Now, if you'll excuse me..."

He started to walk away, but Marlena moved in front of him, stopping him in his tracks. "Your body has its limits, Paul."

"I know what I'm doing." He sighed once more. "Just stay out of this."

He bumped into her, almost knocking her down.

"Paul," Marlena yelled. She watched, terrified, as he took off running.

"Hey, it's Tyler…but you already know that... I'd rather talk about this in person but it seems like that's never going to happen. Listen, Paul, I..." his words were cut off by a spat of coughing.

Paul paused the playback of the message and tossed his phone on the table. For a moment he lay there on the couch and stared up at the ceiling. Eventually he got up from the couch annoyed and groggy. Dressed in only a pair of boxers, he walked to the bathroom and splashed water on his face. He turned the faucet off and looked into the mirror. Though everything looked fine, he felt disgusted with himself. A wave of dizziness washed over him. Breathe, he told himself. Just breathe. He closed his eyes, shaking hands gripping the edge of the sink. But he couldn't relax. Out of anger and sheer frustration, he punched the mirror. "Fuck!" he cried out, staring at the shards of glass. He sank down to the floor, sobbing.

January 1, 2016

"Ding!"

The door to the elevator opened and Lucas and Adrienne quickly exited. As they made their way down the hall, the sound of Adrienne's heels clicking on the marble floor could be heard.

Noting the sound of footsteps, Will glanced down the hall. The color drained from his face at the sight of the pair. As his father looked around, Will turned his head away, hoping he wouldn't notice. "Crap. What's he doing here?" he mumbled.

"Who?" T looked towards the elevators. "Oh." He scratched the back of his neck awkwardly. "I called him."

"You what?"

"I thought her condition was worse. Sorry."

Will ran his hands over his face and sighed, "That's alright. It's not him I'm worried about, though."

As soon as Lucas spotted Will, he shook his head. The disappointment was written all over his face. He approached Will, with Adrienne trailing behind him. He raised his hands up in the air in exasperation. "What were you thinking? Letting someone who's practically a stranger take care of my grandchild. Are you insane?"

"I know!" Will blurted. They looked at him shocked. "Just…listen, okay?" he said more calmly. His father sighed and nodded slowly. "I—"

"I half expected something like this might happen." Adrienne cut in.

"Excuse me?" Will said, taken aback.

"Well, it's not like you've been making a lot of good choices lately, It was only a matter of time before—"

"Adrienne!" Lucas gave her a stern look. Adrienne just shrugged unapologetically.

Will looked between the two of them before sighing, "Maybe you're right, maybe I was bound to fail as a parent. But it's not like I have any support." Lucas frowned at him. He shrugged, "Mom's halfway across the country. And you're never available."

"Your father's a very busy man, you know." Adrienne defended.

Will raised an eyebrow, amused. "You don't have to make up excuses for him."

She huffed and looked away a moment.

"Anyway as I was saying now that Sonny—"

"Here we go again," Adrienne muttered.

Will put his hands on his hips. "What?"

"Here's the part where Sonny's blamed for everything, am I right?"

He shook his head. "Actually, I—" he tried going on once again but she cut him off.

"You know what I think? This isn't the first time he's been at the house."

Lucas looked at her, confused, and cocked his head. "What are you saying?"

"He's been fooling around with Paul, once again." Will looked at her, his mouth agape. "Sonny's gone, so you took the closest thing to him." she continued.

Silence fell among them.

Then Will started laughing. "You're joking right." He continued to laugh.

"This is very serious, Will." Lucas said.

Will paused, then looked at Lucas. "You don't really believe her, right?"

Lucas sighed. "Listen, son, I—"

Will stopped moving, and his smile fell from his face. He looked towards T. "Tell them, T. Tell them that nothing's going on between me and Paul."

T shrugged. "I haven't noticed anything unusual, if that's what you mean." Will slapped his hand to his forehead. Feeling a wave of anxiousness pass over him, T cleared his throat. "But I trust him." He paused awkwardly once more, and Will motioned him to continue. "He wouldn't do something like that. He's not that type of person." T looked at Will. He nodded, pleased.

Adrienne shook her head, "Now you're dragging T into your mess. I knew I never liked you for a reason."

Will pushed his hand through his hair in frustration. "If you just came here to pick a fight, I suggest you leave."

Adrienne looked offended. She put her hands on her hips.

"He's right. Just go." Lucas said. She stared at him in disbelief. Turning on her heel, she quickly walked down the hall. "I'll call you," he shouted after her as she continued to walk towards the elevators. Once she was out of sight, he turned towards Will. "I called your mother."

Will rolled his eyes. "Why on earth would you do that?"

"She's your mother. She needs to know." Lucas glared at him. Will held his gaze without flinching.

"Maybe I should go," T said, sensing the tension.

Will shook his head. "Stay."

T swallowed the lump in his throat and nodded.

"You should go." When Lucas raised a brow, Will shrugged. "Arianna's doing fine now. So there's really no point staying."

"Fine. But if there's any change, call me."

Will nodded. "I will. I promise."

Lucas nodded slightly at him, before leaving.

January 6, 2016

As Paul was finishing his last set, he sensed someone standing near him.

"Would you mind spotting me?"

He looked up at the guy and offered him a friendly smile. "Sure."

Paul thought the man looked familiar, but he couldn't put his finger on where he'd seen him. And that was mainly due to the fact the man's sweaty, matted hair was covering part of his face. The man pushed his sweaty hair back. Paul's face fell. The guy smirked.

Paul got up and Chad took his place. As he lifted the heavy bar he glared up at Paul, who stood looming over him. "You're pretty brave," Chad said.

Paul narrowed his eyes. "I'm sorry," he said, completely taken aback.

"Showing your face around here." Chad grunted.

"I did nothing wrong."

"So says the guy that didn't even bother to stay to see if she was alright."

"Honestly, I thought she was okay." Chad snorted, shaking his head in disbelief. "I kept checking the Salem newspaper to see if if there was any news. I figured she must have survived."

"You mean, you actually read!"

Paul could feel his anger start to boil up, but he took a few breaths and willed it down. He looked around the room. People were starting to stare at them. "I care for Will and Arianna," he finally said, choosing his words cautiously.

Chad put the bar back onto the rack and quickly sat up. "You're unbelievable, you know that." Paul gave him a confused look. "I mean, come on — you really expect me to believe that? I know your type. You don't give a shit about anything." He stood up and walked up to him so that they stood face to face. "Admit it Paul, you just wanted to get into his pants. And you tried to get through to him by using his daughter."

"No, it's nothing like that." Paul paused briefly before continuing, "I don't need to explain myself," he said harshly.

"No, go right ahead. Tell me I'm wrong." Chad challenged.

Paul shook his head.

Chad rolled his eyes, "You are pretty pathetic."

"He's intelligent, understanding," Paul began. "And I hope I haven't ruined our friendship. He's—"

"You know, I'm not buying that whole saint crap. The doctors said she had scarlet fever." Chad shrugged. "I find that hard to believe."

Paul looked at him with disgust. "You think I did something on purpose?"

"Why not? You just enjoy destroying people's lives." Paul glared at him. Chad looked around the room before lowering his voice. "There's nothing left for you here. So why don't you just leave? Look, I'll even pay for your ticket. How's that sound?"

"No, thanks."

"Suit yourself. But if you ever hurt Will again, I'll make sure you disappear for good," he growled.

Paul looked at him scared. Chad just smiled.

February 9, 2016

Abigail blinked her eyes open and looked to her right. Chad lay beside her, his arm over her waist. Glancing past him, she caught sight of a drawer left slightly open. Carefully she picked up his arm and moved it off her.

She slowly got up from the bed and tiptoed to his drawer. Opening the drawer, she spotted a small piece of folded paper. She quickly grabbed it, but before she could unfold it she felt arms wrap around her waist.

"Hey, babe," Chad said sleepily as he moved her hair away and started to plant small kisses on her neck.

"Chad," she sighed. Distracted, she dropped the paper to the floor. He continued planting kisses on the back of her neck. "Later," she told him. He nuzzled his face against the side of her neck and breathed deep. She said his name again but he ignored her. She squirmed in his grasp. "Stop it!" He continued to ignore her. She untangled Chad's arms from her waist. "I said stop!" she yelled. She pushed him away and he fell to the floor.

He looked up at her, shocked, and rose slowly to his feet. He took a step back, putting some distance between them. "Whoa, what's gotten into you?"

She pointed an accusing finger at him. "What do you know about Paul?"

Chad started backing away. "What are you talking about?" He paused in his steps as realization dawned on him. He shook his head, eyes closing as he pinched the bridge of his nose. "You've been talking to Will haven't you?"

She crossed her arms over her chest. "Well?"

He shrugged. "There's nothing to tell."

Irritated, she blew a stray strand of hair from her face and narrowed her eyes. "Don't lie to me."

"I can't tell you."

She shook her head in disbelief. "Why not?"

He looked away quickly, sitting at the edge of the bed. "It's personal."

She rolled her eyes. "Since when have you ever cared about Paul?"

"I don't…it's just…it's not my place to say." She gave him an uncertain look. "Look, if Will really wants to know what's wrong with Paul, he'll just have to ask him."

Abigail slowly nodded in agreement.

It was late in the morning by the time Will fell deeply asleep. He woke up to his alarm blaring. He let out a groan while he fumbled around for the snooze button. Pulling his blanket over his head, he felt the weight shift in the bed as his daughter laid next to him.

"Papa?"

"Hmm?" he muffled into the pillow.

"I had accident."

He removed the blanket from his head and turned his head to look at her. Her nose red, eyes puffy from crying. "It's okay, come on." he told her as he took her to the bathroom to get cleaned up.

Minutes later, he helped her get dressed in her pretty pink clothes. As he finished buttoning her coat, there was a knock at the door.

Will headed to the door. "It's Abigail."

Arianna jumped up and down with excitement.

Upon seeing her, Abigail's face lit up. She got down to her knees and Arianna jumped into her arms. They remain hugging for quite some time.

"Tough morning?" Abigail asked with a glance at Will's attire.

His cheeks turn red quickly as he was still in his pajamas.

Arianna pulled away, still smiling. "Can I get toy?"

"A toy." Abigail gasped dramatically and put her hands on her hips. "I don't know, Ari. Have you been good?"

She nodded her head. "Uh-huh. I make Papa better. Papa sad."

Abigail gave Will a worried look. He turned his head away from her.

She looked back at Arianna. "Alright, but we'd better hurry."

"Yeah!" she screamed.

Abigail gently placed her hand on his shoulder and gave it a light squeeze. "I talked to Chad."

"Does he know something?"

She hesitated, then nodded. "He think it's best if you talk to Paul yourself."

He sighed. "I guess it was bound to happen eventually."

Abigail studied him for several moments. She allowed herself to linger on the large bags under his eyes. "Are you sure you're going to be okay?"

He nodded. "I'll be fine. Just go."

She gave him one last glance before heading out. Arianna hugged him close before she followed Abigail out the door.

He watched them till they were out of sight. He then closed the door. Suddenly, he felt his phone vibrate. He reached into his back pocket and pulled out his phone. Zoey was calling him. He waited a moment before answering. "Hey, Zoey."

Will entered the café and quickly scanned the crowded room. Even with people pushing, shoving he somehow managed to spot Zoey in a creamy, fur coat, sitting in the farthest corner. As he approached her, she lowered her sunglasses and raised an eyebrow.

"You're early."

"You said it was urgent."

"Why don't you sit down?" she said as she took off her sunglasses and put them in her purse.

"Uh, okay." He mumbled as he shrugged off his messenger bag and sat down. She slid a glass across the table at him. "I'm not that thirsty," She glared at him. He put his hands up a little in defense. "Alright, alright." Will took a sip of his drink, then he glanced down at the small notebook she'd set on the table in front of him. "What is that?"

She rolled her eyes. "Narita's journal. What else would it be, Will?"

"Why do you have it?"

"It doesn't matter."

"Yes, it does. To know someone's innermost thoughts without their permission. That's just wrong." he fired back.

She scoffed. "Oh, please. We've done worse before. Besides, nothing stays a secret forever, wouldn't you agree?" Zoey smirked and took a long sip.

Will sighed and let his shoulders slump. "But—"

"Look, let's just cut the chase, shall we? I want you to write another article on Narita. Find out what he's hiding." His face paled and he shook his head. He started to speak, but she cut him off. "Don't worry, it'll be completely anonymous." When he remained silent, she shrugged. "If you say no, I'll find someone else."

"I don't think that's a—" he began, but before he could continue she leaned forward across the small table and immediately silenced him by placing a finger on his lips.

"Just think about it, okay?" He nodded. She leaned back in her seat and studied her fingernails. Will shifted awkwardly in his seat and glanced down at the notebook. "That's your cue," she said briefly, without looking up.

He quickly got up from his seat, taking his bag with him and walked out of the café.

"Yeah, I feel great." Paul replied, the smile evident in his tone.

The counselor nodded. "That's good to hear. Now, have you been keeping up with your journal?"

"Yes, I have. It's been helpful." he said. Then he paused. "Actually, I brought it with me." He grabbed the backpack off the floor, hefting it up on to his lap. "I thought I'd—" Paul suddenly froze.

"Paul, what's the matter?" He remained silent. "What's wrong?"

"I swear I—it's not—" he stuttered.

"It's not what?" she questioned.

"My journal...it's not here." He put his hands over his face. "No, no!"

"Relax and just breathe, okay?'

"No, you don't understand."

"I'm sure it's somewhere safe." She said calmly. "Let's just breathe." Paul nodded.

January 1, 2016

Will whistled a tune as he stuffed his belongings into a duffle bag.

"Knock, knock, knock."

He sighed, "What now?"

He trudged to the door. When he opened the door, his jaw dropped. In front of him stood Sami, suitcase in hand.

"Surprise," she beamed.