Will silently closes the door behind him and lets out a shaky breath. He begins the decent to his car.
"Pull yourself together, Horton," he whispers to himself.
But Will can't stop the tears from sliding down his cheek and that crushing feeling that just keeps gnawing at his chest.
"You are nothing but an employee to him. Just accept it."
Will had begun to trust Sonny. Not only with himself, but also with his daughter. He can't even trust Ari with Brian. So letting Sonny watch Ari was huge for him. Ari was his life and he had entrusted that with Sonny. Only to find out that trust was misplaced. Will felt like such a fool for believing in Sonny and their friendship.
"I promised myself I wouldn't do this," Will begins yelling at himself as he gets in his car. "I promised I wouldn't bring people in and out of her life and what do I do? I let Sonny in. Ari is going to be crushed. How could I do this to her?"
Will places his hands on the steering wheel and then sets his head down. He finally lets the pain overcome him. The crushing hurt that he hasn't felt in so long. He sits in his car feeling like the biggest idiot for letting himself think that Sonny actually cared about him and his daughter. I bet they are up there laughing at me right now, Will thinks.
Will lifts his head and takes a couple of shaky breaths. He looks in the mirror to see his face damp with tears and his eyes bloodshot. He needs to pull himself together and go get his daughter. No time for self-pity, because his daughter depends on him. And at least he still has Brian. Not like that feels like much of a consolation prize anymore.
Will puts the car in drive and heads to his grandmother's house, knowing that the only thing that can make his heart hurt a little less in his amazing daughter. At least I have her. I will always have her.
Sonny grabs his coat and keys on his way out of the apartment.
"I can't believe you are seriously going after him!" Neil yells out.
Sonny turns around and glares at his boyfriend. "Well, someone has to do damage control. And you clearly don't give a damn about anyone but yourself."
"I care about you," Neil whispers.
"Clearly, you don't. Or else you wouldn't have spoken to Will like that."
"Why do you care so much about him? Do you even care that you are ruining our relationship because of this infatuation you have with him?" Neil yells, angrily.
"Ruining? Infatuation? Seriously?" Sonny asks, innocuously. "You are single-handedly killing this relationship. And if today is any indication to who you truly are, I don't know if I want you in my life anymore."
Sonny slams the door closed, as Neil looks on in shock. Sonny runs to his car, not quite sure where to even begin looking for Will. It's not like he knows who his grandma is or where she lives or which one he was even referring to. He knows they've been mentioned before, but he doesn't know much more about them. Sonny can feel his heart racing and he feels like his stomach is about to drop out of his body. He can't recall the last time he has ever felt this horrible. This guilty.
This is not exactly how Sonny foresaw this day going. Things didn't seem like they could get much worse.
Will knocks on his grandmother's door.
"Coming," she shouts from the other side.
The door swings open and she smiles at the sight of her grandson. "Well, hello, my precious boy." And she pulls him into a hug. "You weren't gone very long. I've barely had any bonding time with my adorable granddaughter."
Will attempts to smile and nods his head. "Sorry."
"What's wrong, sweetie?" Marlena asks him.
"It's nothing," Will whispers, as he looks to the ground.
Marlena pulls him in for another hug and whispers, "That's clearly not the case. Do you want to talk about it?"
Will can feel everything coming to the surface again and lets out a choked sob. "Where's Ari?"
"I just put her down for a nap. We just finished up lunch."
"Ok," Will says and nods.
Marlena releases Will and they walk into her loft.
"Are you hungry? Do you want something to drink?"
Will shakes his head and sits down on the couch. Marlena sits down next to him and places her hand on his knee. "So, tell me. What is it that has you upset?"
"I really shouldn't be upset about this, honestly."
"Well, what makes you think that?"
"It's just…" Will trails off. "I don't know."
"How about you start from the beginning?"
"Ok," Will whispers. "You know Sonny?"
"Your boss?" Marlena asks, surprised.
"Yeah. Well, he's really been helping me out since Gabi left town. He has voluntarily watched Ari so I can work. She has really bonded with him. And I thought maybe we were getting closer. You know, friends. But he proved today how off base I really was."
"You don't think your friends? Or is there something more you're not saying?"
Will can feel his face flush and he looks up at his grandma, who smiles at him. "I don't know. I just really have liked spending time with him. And I thought he liked spending time with me and Ari."
"And where does Brian fit into all of this?"
"I don't know. I can feel us drifting more apart, but it's not like that's anything new. Things were strained before I met Sonny."
"So, you're questioning your relationship with Brian?"
"Yeah. I guess so. Plus he has a weird relationship with Sonny's boyfriend, there is some kind of history there that he won't tell me."
"Sonny has a boyfriend?"
"Yeah. And apparently he and Brian have known each other for years. They both aren't happy with my and Sonny's friendship."
"Why do you think that is?"
"They claim something is going on between us, but Grandma, nothing has ever happened between us."
"Do you want something to happen with Sonny?"
Will looks at his grandmother with pursed lips, then sighs.
"Daaaaaaaaaaaddy!" Ari yells as she comes bounding down the stairs.
Will gives a quick look to his grandma, indicating they are done with this conversation. She smiles sadly and nods her head. Will turns his attention to his daughter, who is gleefully coming down the stairs. He has a huge smile plastered on his face. This was exactly what he needed to feel better. Will walks over to the staircase to greet his daughter, who jumps into his arms.
"I was told you just laid down?" Will asks with a smile.
"I wasn't sleeeeping," she replies.
"But you were supposed to be?"
Arianna looks into her father's eyes and says,"I heard you. I wanted to see you. I sorry."
"Baby girl, don't be sorry," Will whispers and kisses her on the head.
"I missed you," she tells him sweetly, as she nuzzled herself into his body.
"I was only gone for a couple of hours, sweetie."
"I know. I miss you when you gone."
"Right back at ya, babe."
Will winks at his daughter and she goes into a fit of giggles. Marlena watches their interaction and smiles. She always knew he would make an amazing father, but never in her wildest dreams did she think he would be this amazing. He was meant to be a father, she thinks.
"I bet you miss your Mommy, too?" Will asks.
Arianna nods her head, then rests it on her father's shoulder. "Yeah."
"Well, I talked to her this morning. She should be back in a couple of days."
"Oh," Ari says, sadly.
"What's wrong, baby girl?"
"Does that mean I have to stay with Mommy again?" She asks, tearfully.
"Yeah," Will replies, sadly.
"Why can't I live with you, Daddy?"
Will places his daughter on the floor and kneels in front of her. "Baby girl, you know I would love for you stay with me, right?"
Arianna looks down at the ground and nods her head.
"Hey, look at me."
Will places his finger under his daughter's chin and lifts her face up, so she is looking him in the eyes. He can see that his daughter is on the verge of tears.
"But you have to live with Mommy. As much as I want you to live with me, and you know how much I want you to live with me, right?"
Arianna nods her head and whispers,"Yeah."
Will grabs his daughter and pulls her into a hug. "You know Daddy loves you so much, right? And that I would do anything to be with you all the time, right?"
Arianna nods her head, as she begins to cry. "I just wanna stay with you forever, Daddy."
"I know, sweetie. I know."
Will picks his daughter back up and she curls into his body. She is crying into his neck, which is breaking his heart.
"Thanks so much Grandma for watching her."
"It was my pleasure, sweetie," Marlena whispers with a smile.
"Can you tell Grandma Marlena goodbye?" Will asks his daughter.
She nods her head yes, removes her head from her dad's neck, and wipes her face with the back of her hand. Arianna then reaches out for her grandma. Marlena happily accepts Arianna into her arms.
"Bye, Nana," Ari whispers. "Thank you for watching me. I love you."
"Well, you are very welcome, my sweet Ari," Marlena coos. "And I love you so much!"
Arianna kisses her grandmother on the cheek as Marlena squeezes her tightly. Then she hands her back to her father.
"Now you be a good girl for Daddy, okay?" Marlena tells Ari.
Arianna nods her head yes and then snuggled into her father again. Will smiles down at his daughter and rubs her back.
"Thank you so much, Grandma," Will whispers. "I owe you for this."
Marlena smiles and says, "The only thing you owe me is more time with this adorable little girl."
Will smiles and nods his head yes. "And I will think about what we talked about."
Marlena's face turns serious and says, "You come talk to me if you need anything."
"I always do," Will replies. "Thank you and I love you."
"I love you, too, sweet boy," she says as she places a kiss on Will's cheek and then closes the door.
Will is holding Arianna as he walks to the car. "Are you feeling any better?"
Arianna nods her head and says, "Yeah."
"Okay. We are gonna go home and try this nap thing again."
"Will Sonny be there?"
Will feels like the wind just got knocked out of him. He wasn't expecting that question from his daughter. And the waves of hurt hits him again. Will takes a couple of deep breaths to compose himself enough to talk to his daughter.
"No," Will says sadly. "You won't be seeing Sonny today. He may not be around much anymore."
"Why, Daddy?" Arianna asks, sadly.
"He's busy, sweetie," Will says, as he puts Arianna in her car seat.
"Did I do something wrong, Daddy? Is Sonny mad at me?" She asks, tearfully.
"Baby girl, you did nothing wrong." Will says as he kisses her on the forehead and gets into the car.
This is exactly what Will was afraid of. He had tried so hard to make sure his daughter didn't get hurt by other people in his life. It was one of the things that Will wanted to protect her from, since he was never protected from that growing up. And he knew the kind of damage it caused when people were coming in and out of your life. Will looks in the rearview mirror at his daughter as he drives home, wishing there was something he could do to take it all back. To have Sonny not be a part of his daughter's life, because it was so hard for him to see Arianna so sad. Her blue eyes filling with tears and her lip quivering.
"Is he mad at you, Daddy?"
Will sighs. Not sure how to explain the situation to his daughter. "I don't think so, sweetie."
"Then why don't he like us anymore?"
Will wanted to say because he never cared about us. But he didn't want Arianna to be exposed to the cruelty of life at such a young age. She has had to endure so much in her 3 years, that it just didn't seem fair.
"I don't know, sweetie," Will replies sadly.
Will looks back at his daughter, who is sniffling. He can see in her eyes how sad she is about Sonny. She has never attached to anybody like this before, not that Will ever really let anyone get close enough to hurt her. The sight breaks his heart and Will feels at a loss for what to do.
"How about when we get back we have some snuggle time?"
Arianna smiles at her father and says, "Please!"
Her smile makes everything better for Will. Will turns on the radio so she can listen to her favorite sing alongs, which always puts her in a better mood. Arianna had fallen asleep by the time Will had arrived at his apartment. He gingerly lifts her out of the car seat and she curls into his body. She tightens her grip around Will's neck as they walk towards the apartment. Will is rubbing his daughter's back as she sleeps peacefully in his arms. He places a soft kiss on her head as they ascend up the steps. Will is searching for his keys as he feels his daughter begin to move and wake up.
"Daddy?" Arianna asks, quietly.
"We are almost there, sweetie. Then we can snuggle in Daddy's bed, okay?"
Arianna smiles into Will's neck and says quietly, "Yay."
Will finally reaches their floor when he sees something that surprises him.
"What are you doing here?" Will asks with a mixture of shock and anger.
