"You are definitely spoiling me," Will commented to Sonny.
"You deserve it," Sonny insisted. "Now, sit and eat."
"I'm not sure what I did," Wil sat down. He eagerly dug into the breakfast Sonny prepared. "But I'm not complaining."
"You don't have to do anything. Just being you is enough," Sonny smiled.
"You're giving me a complex, I swear," Will laughed.
"Hey, I'm just doing this because I want to," Sonny sweetly responded. "It's not a competition."
"It's a good thing because I would so lose," Will huffed teasingly.
Sonny watched Will eat for a few moments before getting started on his own food. He could admit he was going overboard a bit. But he couldn't help it.
Sonny wanted to shower Will with as much attention and love as he could.
'If I do that maybe I won't feel so guilty,' Sonny thought.
Will washed the dishes while Sonny got Arianna dressed.
Will thought of everything Sonny had done since Will returned.
'He does so much for me,' Will realized. 'I need to think of something good for him. I was the idiot who left him here. He shouldn't be doing all this.'
'I'll think of something perfect for him,' Will decided. 'Something to prove I deserve him.'
"You've got everything?" Sonny questioned.
"Yeah," Will nodded nervously. "I've got Ari's bag all ready for the babysitter. I've got everything I need. Well, actually…"
Will put his laptop bag on the ground and pulled Sonny into a big kiss.
Sonny sighed into Will's lips. He rubbed his hands up and down Will's back.
'This is everything I need,' Sonny knew. 'Will and Ari are it.'
"Now, I'm ready," Will declared.
"Wait," Sonny grabbed Will's left hand. He slipped Will's wedding ring off. "I need to borrow this for a few days."
"What?" Will pulled his hand away defensively. He attempted to steal the ring back. "Sonny!"
"Nope, it's a surprise," Sonny took his ring off to. He put both of them in a ring box and shoved it in his jacket pocket.
Sonny smiled when he saw Will's put-out expression.
"Trust me," Sonny requested. "You'll love this."
"It feels weird," Will complained. He looked at his empty ring-finger.
"I know," Sonny agreed. "But it's only for a few days. You'll get it back soon."
"What are you up to, Kiriakis?" Will wondered.
"Don't you worry your pretty little head about it," Sonny kissed Will's cheek.
Will put his hand to his cheek, beaming.
Sonny gazed at Will. Seeing Will's happy, carefree smile eased the guilt in Sonny's chest to a dull ache.
Will walked up to the concierge desk at the Salem Inn. Breathing in and out slowly, Will attempted to calm himself down.
'He's just a guy. He isn't going to want me to interview him if I act like a fanboy,' Will ordered himself. 'It's just a baseball player. Just a famous, important baseball player. Just a famous important, good looking baseball player.'
"Welcome to the Salem Inn. How may I help you?" a bored voice greeted Will.
"Um, I'm here to see George Herman," Will stated in a low voice. "Could you let me up?"
The hotel employee looked Will over, suddenly much more interested in him.
"Is he expecting you?" the guy answered with narrowed eyes.
Will nodded his head.
"Alright," the bellboy indicated for Will to follow him.
Will knocked on the hotel room door, anxious.
'Play it cool and professional,' Will reminded himself. 'I can do this. This could be the biggest story of my career. I have to do this.'
The door opened quickly.
"That was fast…" Paul trailed off. His eyes looked up and down the blonde in front of him. "You're not room service."
Will's eyes dipped towards the exposed, wet skin in front of him. Clearly Paul had not finished dressing. Focusing, Will smiled.
"No, I'm Will Horton, the writer," Will explained. "Is this a bad time? I can come back later."
Paul shook himself out of his surprise.
"No, no, um now is fine," Paul pushed the door open. "I just didn't expect you so soon."
Will ducked into the room and passed Paul.
Paul shook his head as he closed the door. He finished buttoning up his shirt, getting a good look at the writer.
"Like I said," Will politely responded. "I can come back in a while if you're expecting room service."
"Stay," Paul gestured toward the table nearby. "I don't mind, honest. It gets pretty lonely hiding out in a hotel all alone."
"Thanks," Will smiled briefly. He tried not to notice the way Paul's shirt clung to his damp skin.
Paul sat across from Will. He looked Will over before smiling.
"Okay, full disclosure," Paul began. "I'm surprised to see you at the door. But it wasn't because of the room service."
"Oh?" Will frowned. "What was it?"
"I didn't expect you to be so…" Paul took a moment to clear his head. He almost said something he would have regretted. "Young."
"Young?" Will repeated. "What does-?" Will shook his head. "There's not anything I can do about that."
"No, I know," Paul insisted. "I was just expecting someone older. When I requested you I thought you were at least my age."
"You requested me?" Will asked. He could barely believe that.
'Someone like Paul Narita read my work and wanted me?' Will thought, dazed.
Will's confidence in his writing took a hit after the LA debacle. Will wanted, needed to prove his worth with this article. He needed to prove to everyone he wasn't a giant failure. But most of all Will wanted Sonny to be proud of him.
Hearing that Paul Narita enjoyed his writing filled Will with confidence.
"Yeah, didn't Zoe tell you?" Paul tilted his head.
"Uh, no," Will shook his head. He looked down at his lap and fiddled with his laptop bag.
Paul admired the pink shade to Will's cheeks.
"So," Paul leaned forward on the table. "How old are you?"
Will swallowed heavily. He pulled out a pad of paper, a recorder, and his IPad.
"Do you, um, mind if I record this?" Will questioned. He tried to sound professional. But he had to admit that Paul's stare was intimidating.
Paul shook his head.
Will pushed the record button.
"I'm 20, by the way," Will looked up into Paul's eyes.
"Bullshit," Paul responded, incredulous.
"No," Will laughed. "I swear. I was born November 16, 1995."
"There is no way," Paul shook his head. "I refuse to believe that."
Will pulled his wallet out of his pocket. He handed over his ID.
Paul examined the card.
"How are you this young with this job?" Paul wondered. "Did you even go to school?"
Will put his ID back and nodded.
"Yeah, of course," Will insisted. "I just got a lot of college credits from an internship. So, I was able to graduate early."
"This is insane," Paul said incredulously.
'20, huh?' Paul thought. The idea of being with someone that young was exciting.
'You're getting ahead of yourself, Narita,' Paul thought.
Steering the conversation back towards Paul, Will smiled.
"It's not any crazier than how you started out," Will replied. "How old were you when you made your MLB debut? 19?"
"Yeah," Paul smiled. "I guess we have that in common."
Will pressed his lips together. Paul's smile affected him more than he wanted to think about.
Sonny walked into the jewelers with a spring in his step.
"Hey," Sonny said walking up the counter. "My name's Sonny Kiriakis. I called you yesterday about engraving some rings."
"Of course," the elderly woman nodded. "Mr. Kiriakis, why don't you show me what you brought?"
Sonny pulled out the ring box with both his and Will's wedding rings.
"I want to get our wedding rings engraved," Sonny explained.
"Do you know what you want them to say?" the woman asked. She pulled down a pair of glasses from the top of her head. She examined the rings.
"Yeah," Sonny pressed his hands on the counter and smiled. "I know exactly what I want them to say."
"Seriously," Will insisted. "You keep getting off track. We're talking about you."
"We're getting to know each other," Paul argued. "How am I supposed to open up to you if I don't know you?"
"I guess that makes sense," Will reluctantly agreed.
"But fine," Paul decided. He smiled over the rim of his mug. "Shoot."
"Okay," Will licked his lips. He messed with the cup of coffee Paul ordered him.
Will wanted this interview to be amazing. He knew it was a once in a lifetime opportunity. He couldn't screw this up like he did the LA venture.
'I have to make sure Paul is comfortable,' Will knew. 'That he can trust me, keep him relaxed.'
With an impish smile, Will thought of a question.
"Do you always get dressed before you're completely dried off?" Will asked. Will's eyes ran over the wet patches on Paul's shirt, damp from his shower.
Paul laughed.
"Uh, no," Paul responded. He licked over his teeth.
Paul was attracted to Will from the first moment he saw him. The bright eyes and the blonde, messy hair caught Paul's attention. The age and the form fitting jeans continued the intrigue. But Will's personality, the easy way they interacted, it did things to Paul.
Judging from the way Will smiled and teased, Paul had a hunch Will might feel the same way.
Will glanced at his watch before sighing.
"Um, I hate to leave so soon," Will said. "But I have to get going."
"Hot date?" Paul teased.
"No," Will shook his head. "Just some family business I need to deal with. But I can meet with you again tomorrow, if you're up for it."
Paul stood up and walked Will to the door.
"Yeah," Paul agreed. He looked Will up and down. "I'd like that a lot, Will Horton."
"Alright, Paul Narita," Will mocked with a smile. "I'll see you tomorrow."
Sonny sat a table in the back of TBD. In front of him were his laptop and a small folder.
Sonny glanced at the time before rolling his eyes.
Chad was late, again.
'What's the point in these meetings if he never bothers to show up?' Sonny thought.
Several minutes later, Chad finally sauntered inside.
Chad reclined in his seat, perfectly content.
"We doing this or what?" Chad asked. "I've got a full schedule."
"Really?" Sonny asked pointedly. "Maybe you should actually be on time then."
Chad, ignoring the remark, grabbed the laptop. He yanked it in front of him, starting to look over their expense report.
Chad's forehead wrinkled the longer he looked.
"What the hell is this?" Chad demanded.
Sonny crossed his arms and pursed his lips.
"We haven't had as much business this quarter," Sonny replied. "Our suppliers have all increased their bids. Competition, the economy, I don't know."
Chad searched through the paperwork frown becoming more and more pronounced.
"Are you seriously switching insurances?" Chad glared at Sonny across the table. "Please tell me it's to cut back."
Sonny sucked in his cheeks, diverting his eyes. He didn't want to explain he had to change insurances to keep up his lie to Will.
"Oh my god," Chad put his hand on his forehead. "Why didn't you tell me about this before? That things were getting this bad."
"Every time I try to talk to you I get the run around from your secretary," Sonny defended. "You are too busy with DiMera Enterprises to care about your crummy first business."
"I do when it's losing me money," Chad shot back. "If you can't handle being in charge of this place anymore then-,"
"Hey," Sonny cut Chad off. "I am doing everything I can."
"Yeah and look where that's getting us?" Chad huffed.
Chad pushed away from the table.
"Brainstorm ways to get us out of this mess," Chad ordered. "Or I'm pulling the plug."
Sonny slammed down the lid to his laptop as Chad walked away.
Will pushed Ari's stroller out of the grocery store.
"Good thing your stroller has a big basket, huh, baby girl," Will told Ari. "Now we can go try to surprise Daddy Sonny. Well, try our best at least."
Will pushed Ari down the street. Will hoped Sonny would appreciate his effort.
'Sonny puts up with so much from me. The least I can do is try to make him dinner,' Will thought.
As they were walking home, Will saw Adrienne Kiriakis coming down the street.
"Hey," Will greeted with a smile. He hadn't seen his mother-in-law in a long time.
"Will," Adrienne nodded curtly. She leaned down to greet Ari. "There's my sweet girl," Adrienne cooed. "I missed you."
Will noticed she didn't extend the sentiment towards him.
"Well," Adrienne stood up. "I'm glad you're back. Here," Adrienne shoved an armful of dry cleaning against Will's chest. "You can deal with this now."
"Uh, what?" Will asked.
"Sonny's clothes," Adrienne explained. "Now that his husband is finally home," Adrienne gave Will a pointed stare. "You can do his errands for him."
"I'm pretty sure Sonny can do that himself," Will commented. He carefully put the dry cleaning across the shade screen of Ari's stroller.
"He works all day," Adrienne huffed. "He's busy. You should be taking care of him. Considering your writing doesn't make that much you should be doing that much at least."
Will frowned, head downcast. Adrienne reflected the same thoughts Will had earlier. It sounded much worse coming from her.
"I'm not a househusband," Will mumbled.
"Even if you were," Adrienne hitched her purse high on her shoulder. "You'd make an awful one."
"Anyway," Adrienne continued. "Tell my son I said hello. I am glad you're back," Adrienne admitted. She squeezed Will's forearm. "Sonny wasn't himself without you here."
Will nodded as Adrienne walked away. As soon as she was out of earshot, Will checked on Ari.
"I wish people would stop talking like that in front of you," Will commented.
"Good, you're still here," Adrienne remarked as she walked into TBD.
Adrienne headed over to the table Sonny was standing near.
"I just saw Will and Arianna," Adrienne revealed.
"Mom now is not a good time," Sonny grunted a reply. He could feel a headache building in the back of his skull. "I want to get the hell out of here."
Adrienne frowned at Sonny's tone.
"Well, before you do that," Adrienne grabbed Sonny's arm and pulled him in close. "You need to tell Will that Paul is here."
"Mom," Sonny pulled his arm away. "I can't do that."
'For more than one reason,' Sonny reminded himself.
"Sweetheart," Adrienne shook her head. "Don't you think he deserves to know that your ex is in town? The ex that you still have feelings for."
"I don't have feelings for him," Sonny maintained. "Trust me. Everything between Paul and me is settled. There's nothing to worry about."
"Nothing to worry about," Adrienne repeated under her breath. "Right," Adrienne sighed. "You are making a big mistake keeping this from Will. If he finds out any other way he's going to-,"
"I know," Sonny loudly protested. "Okay, I know. That's why Will is never going to find out about Paul, ever."
Adrienne looked at Sonny oddly.
"You know what secrets do to relationships," Adrienne pointed out. "If Will kept something like this from you, wouldn't you feel upset?"
Sonny diverted his eyes.
"Wouldn't you be suspicious? Wondering why he never told you? Wondering what else he's keeping?" Adrienne pressed.
"That isn't going to happen," Sonny maintained, confidently. "Will and Paul are never going to meet each other, ever. Now stop bringing it up."
"Sonny," Adrienne tried once more. "When Will kept Arianna a secret from you, what happened?"
"No," Sonny picked everything up he left on the table. "Just drop it."
Adrienne watched as Sonny stormed out the door. She desperately hoped this wouldn't blow up in her son's face.
"Ari," Will laughed. "That's way too much paint."
Will, with Ari's help, had dinner in the oven. He found the easiest recipe he could find on Pinterest. Will wasn't expecting any miracles but he hoped it was at least edible.
In the meantime, Will and Ari were painting. Will thought Sonny would appreciate an Arianna Grace original.
'It's not a ring,' Will thought. He attempted to put some paint back in the jar. 'But it's definitely from the heart.'
Ari swirled her globs of paint around the pink piece of paper. She held her paintbrush in her fist despite Will's constant corrections.
"That looks beautiful," Will praised. "What else should we use?"
Will gestured to the box of craft supplies in front of them.
Ari pointed to a bottle of glitter.
"You want the glitter?" Will picked it up. "Can you say glitter?"
Ari nodded, "L'tter!"
"Yeah," Will encouraged. "I think Daddy wants lots of glitter."
Sonny, holding his laptop and several papers, shouldered open the apartment door. He didn't know what he expected when he opened the door but it wasn't this.
The entire table, Will and Ari included, were covered in paint and glitter. There were gobs of it all over the place.
Ari, giggling and squealing at a high pitch, saw Sonny and clapped her hands together.
"Hey," Will greeted with a beam. He had a tiny pink handprint on his cheek.
Ari bounced around in her high chair, spilling glitter everywhere.
"Hi," Sonny tersely responded. His leftover frustration from the conversations with Chad and his mother bled over. Not to mention the pounding in his head.
Will's smile dimmed.
"Um, Ari and I are crafting," Will explained.
"Yeah, I see that," Sonny pulled out a chair to the table. He deposited his papers and laptop. "I need the table to work on."
"Oh, yeah, I can clean it up once it dries," Will offered. "Just let me…"
Will trailed off as he went to grab some cleaning supplies. He grabbed a washcloth to clean up Ari first.
"How was work?" Will asked conversationally. He started wiping Ari's hands and face.
Sonny groaned and rubbed his forehead.
"Awful," Sonny responded. He walked over to the refrigerator to get a beer.
"Apparently," Will mumbled. "What happened?"
Will gathered all the craft supplies. He screwed on caps and put everything away.
"What's that smell?" Sonny asked seconds before the smoke alarm started beeping.
"Oh, crap," Will panicked, putting the paintbrushes on Ari's high chair tray.
Will turned off the oven and opened the door. Smoke billowed out.
"Damnit, Will," Sonny growled.
Sonny pulled over a chair to reach the smoke alarm and turn it off. Next, he opened the front door and all the windows to air the place out.
"I'm sorry," Will put the blackened dinner on top of the stove. "I-I forgot to set the timer and got so distracted with Ari."
"Fantastic," Sonny complained. "It's going to stink for the rest of the night. Why did you even bother cooking anything anyway? It never works out."
"I just wanted to try," Will muttered.
Ari, bored, reached over and picked up one of Sonny's papers. She took one of her paintbrushes and smeared some pink paint all over it.
"Well don't," Sonny swung the door back and forth to get some circulation.
Will turned on the oven vent. As he turned to switch on the ceiling fan, he spotted Ari and her new art project.
"Ari!" Will shouted. He ran over and took the paper from her.
"Will!" Sonny yelled back.
Will tried to wipe the paint off the paper.
"Why didn't you take the paintbrushes?" Sonny demanded. He snatched the paper from Will.
Ari's eyes watered, lips trembling.
"I was going to," Will maintained. "But the oven and, and-,"
Sonny, exasperated with the situation, clenched his eye closed. He counted to three before saying anything else.
"I'm taking a shower," Sonny decided. "Then I'll find us something for dinner."
"I can make dinner," Will argued.
"I think you proved today you can't," Sonny shot back. He stormed off into the bedroom, door slamming.
Will watched Sonny walk away before taking Ari out of her high chair.
"It's okay," Will assured her.
Will rubbed her back and made soothing sounds.
"Daddy Sonny's just upset," Will explained. "He's had a hard day. It's not your fault."
Ari sniffled a few times.
Will booped her on the nose.
"No one would ever be mad at you," Will promised. "Now, do you want to wear the princess jammies or the bows?"
"Pincess," Ari answered.
"Princess it is," Will nodded.
Wil cleaned Ari in the bath quickly. Once she was free of paint and in her princess pajamas, Will made her a quick dinner.
Ari munched on her sandwich while Will scrubbed the table. After that, Will attempted to clean off Sonny's paper.
"Looks better," Will told Ari once he finished.
Thankfully, Will got the worst of the paint off. While it wasn't ideal, the paper was legible. Will knew it would still annoy Sonny though.
Realistically, Will knew Sonny wasn't upset with him. It was the stress from a bad day.
'Plus, no one wants to come home to a giant mess. Or for their useless husband to burn down the house,' Will realized.
Will stacked up Sonny's papers nicely and set up his laptop. Finding the picture Ari made for Sonny, Will laid it out for Sonny to see.
Will, wanting to prove he wasn't entirely hopeless, made Sonny a sandwich.
Sonny stood under the hot spray of the shower. The water proved soothing, washing away his anger. Once the shower was over, Sonny knew he overreacted.
Dealing with Chad, admitting that his business wasn't doing as well as he hoped, got to Sonny. Chad laying all the blame on him pissed Sonny off, plain and simple. Sonny put his everything into TBD. For Chad to say that wasn't good enough hurt Sonny as much as it angered him.
The conversation with his mom infuriated Sonny too. Didn't she understand, Sonny could never tell Will about Paul? It would lead to too many questions, open too many wounds. Will would doubt every moment of their relationship if he found out Sonny didn't get over Paul completely until a few days ago.
The mess at home wasn't as bad as Sonny made it out to be. Yes, there would be glitter everywhere for weeks to come but it could be worse. The paint on the table wasn't the worse mess Ari had ever made. Even the paper Ari painted could be replaced.
'And worst of all,' Sonny thought as he pulled on some clothes. 'I treated Will like crap.'
Deep down, Sonny knew it wasn't Will he was upset with. It was himself.
The guilt Sonny felt over cheating on Will, the lies he told, was eating him up. He didn't mean to take it out on Will but it happened.
'And now I need to apologize.'
Sonny walked out of the bedroom, an uncertain expression on his face. Will and Ari were sitting on the couch playing with her blocks.
Sonny's heart panged when he saw the perfectly set up table. His paperwork, the sandwich, and the adorable painting all made Sonny feel even worse.
"Hey," Sonny picked up the sandwich and moved to the couch.
"Hi," Will replied. He gave Sonny a nervous glance.
"Look, I'm sorry," Sonny began. "I had, I had a bad day and I took it out on you."
"I could have tried harder," Will lifted one shoulder up. "You know how careless I am when I cook."
"I do," Sonny nodded. "But I didn't need to make you feel bad about it. Or about the paint. Ari's a toddler. She's going to make a mess. So, I'm sorry."
"It's okay," Will insisted.
Sonny reached over to tickle at Ari's tummy.
"I'm sorry I got mad, princess," Sonny told her. "It's not your fault."
Ari handed Sonny a block, accepting his apology.
Sonny smiled and took a bite of his sandwich.
"This is good," Sonny offered Will.
"Thanks," Will smiled back. "I just wanted to help."
"I've got you," Sonny put his arm around Will. "That's all I need."
Will nodded, curling against Sonny. He couldn't help the small bit of doubt creep up his spine.
Author's note:
I kept Will's original birth age. No reason why I just enjoy the age difference. As you can see, things are starting to develop.
Please let me know what you thought.
Thanks for reading!
Also, as always, a big thank you to iluvh0rs3s. This story wouldn't take shape without their help!