Sonny pushes the door to his place. As painful as it is to be back, he has to do it eventually. He's always been proud of his capacity to overcome and move on from anything, so even though this is the hardest he's ever experienced, he'll have to be strong.
He's not ready to sleep in the bed, though. The couch is also covered with vivid memories of Will and him, yet he settles for it. He spends half the night with his eyes open, staring in the blue-ish darkness, his heartbeat a little too fast. Then, exhaustion finally wins him over and he dozes off, catching some needed sleep.
The knocks on the door do not make sense at first. In his state of half-sleep, an insane idea passes through his brain. It could be Will? He hasn't fully regained his sense that he's already opened the door. The disappointment is soon replaced by annoyance, especially as he's gotten a glimpse at the clock "Are you out of your mind to come so early, T? For once, I was sleeping OK..." T grimaces, embarrassed and waves his hand "Well, it can't wait, you see. Can you come with me, right away?" Sonny looks down at his pajamas. Luckily for T, those aren't revealing, they even have long sleeves. Will loves it, he thinks it suits him and never let him keep it for very long. Sonny ignores the pinch to his heart, while T insists "Listen, Sonny, if you could get ready quickly, really..." "What is it about? Common Ground?" T sighs "Yes. I'm sorry. Chad told me to..." Sonny closes the door and shouts "Tell him I'll be there in twenty minutes."
When he walks in the hallway, T is still there. Sonny is starting to have doubts. "I was thinking I could drive you..." "And how will I go home later?" "I'll be there." If it wasn't such a stupid idea, Sonny would wonder it T isn't interested in him. He represses a yawn and considers accepting, not to have an accident. He climbs in Tad's old car and falls asleep on the way over. He's woken up again, this time by T's rough parking maneuvers and is about to complain when he realizes they aren't at Common Grounds. They're next to the airport.
"Sonny hear me out before refusing. Will has left, on a train, the day after... Anyway, I found you a cheap ticket and that way you'll get there faster and you'll be less tempted to change your mind." "Are you out of your mind?" "No." This is the first time T has used that firm tone with him and it shuts Sonny up. "Will is my oldest mate and he's very important to me... Of course, not in the same way he's to you... Oh you get it!" Sonny nods "And I know he's feeling horrible and so are you and I'm like, f..., this is so stupid! I need to see my friend again and you need to talk to him. So, here's the ticket and an address. I'm not asking you to be back together but to persuade him to come back so that his friends can really help him."
And that's how Sonny finds himself next to the plane's window watching the sun rising and trying to analyze what has just happened and mostly, mostly, trying to prepare himself for what will happen in a few hours. He doesn't even know what is going to happen with Will, he doesn't know what he himself wants and he feels like crying but not in this crowded airplane. T has explained his plan to Chad, so it seems Sonny had two free days to sort this, and two return tickets in his pocket, with no date on them (T has added "Come back together or separately, but come back!").
As no one is waiting for him, he roams around the airport, looking for the taxi terminal. He shows one of the drivers the address but the man frowns and shakes his head "It'll cost you an arm and a leg to get there. And I'm not interested in that ride. There's a bus line, further along, you should try there."
The bus terminal counter is still closed, so he goes from vehicle to vehicle, asking the bus driver if it's on their route. "Not exactly but I can make a small detour. Are you going fishing?" "No, I'm visiting someone." Someone. Not his companion, not his boyfriend, not his ex. Just someone. Someone he loves more than anyone else and for whom he would go to the end of the world for... well he's not far from doing that.
The bus stops so many times. This "quest" is becoming more and more unreal, the trip lengthening and he's starting to think it won't work. The bus is now empty and the miles go past. The driver shouts him out of his thoughts "Sir, you're at your destination!" Sonny thanks him and goes out, hands in his pockets, with no idea how he'll come back, as he doesn't know where the actual bus stop is. He should have asked. He looks for a satellite map of the area but they're all blurred and too vague.
Suddenly, he spots a woman going to the mailbox on the side of the road and his heart constricts. It's Marlena.
She takes him to her small country house, where she has invited Will to stay. Where he is right now. Sonny feels a pang of pain pass through his whole body but goes on with determination. They walk around the house and on one of the terrace benches, he sees Will. Their eyes meet.