Neil, arm wrapped securely around Will's waist, lead Will around town. They spent the entire evening together after Will's classes. Neil was on his best gentlemanly behavior. He opened doors for Will and pulled out his chair. On top of that he made sure to take Will places Paul wouldn't catch them.

Neil enjoyed everything about being out with Will, but he particularly loved the envious looks he received. Will was ridiculously hot and the poor kid had no idea. Neil was proud to be the one to snag him first. Seeing Will on that couch between Sonny and Paul at the party was like getting struck by lightning. Ignoring everyone else at the party his feet brought him to Will and before he even realized what he was doing he invited Will for a game. 'I should have known then how much trouble his friends were gonna be. Although I guessed it would be Sonny freaking out and not Paul. Guess there's trouble in paradise there.'

Neil knew he had to have Will. After their make-out session, Neil would have done anything to keep Will to himself. Shoving Will against that alcove had to be one of the hottest things Neil's ever done. The way Will clung to his shirt and responded so beautifully got to Neil so bad. Despite Will shoving him away Neil couldn't get the boy out of his head. Sonny warned him that Will was still confused but Neil wasn't; he knew exactly who Will was going to be. Neil knew Will Horton was the type of person that needed guidance. He was so insecure that Neil could get him to do anything. That Will would follow any order if it meant keeping his partner. There was something so exhilarating about being able to mold Will into exactly what Neil wanted. About taking such an innocent pretty little boy and absolutely wrecking him.

So, Neil tracked down Will and convinced him to go to the club with him. Neil thought that Will would feel more at ease if he had a few drinks in him. However, Neil just couldn't resist the way Will's face brightened the more he drank. The looser he became, so clingy and desperate. How he practically came apart when Neil licked salt off Will's collarbone for their body shots. Will was willing and eager to follow him in that bathroom. 'And he wanted it,' Neil knew he did. He could see it in Will's eyes. Unfortunately their night was cut short.

Their first date ended in disaster but Neil was determined to make this date count. 'Especially if his stupid friends stay away.'

Neil wasn't stupid. He could see the way Paul looked at Will. Neil thought the dude was incredibly selfish to try to keep Will to himself when he was already engaged. But it's not like Neil could blame him.

Glancing over at Will, Neil smiled, positive the night had gone well. He tried not to do anything untoward. Neil was willing to work to keep Will, positive he could make Will see his true potential. As they cut through the park to get Will home, Neil saw the one couple he would give anything to make disappear.

Paul and Sonny walked arm and arm from The Brady Pub. For the first time in a long time they had a whole meal without arguing. Paul was almost reminded of when they first moved to Salem. He thought his whole life was going to be over when he had to retire and have that surgery. But at least he had Sonny.

Before Paul even knew it Sonny was completely invested in Salem. He fit in so perfectly and made friends so easily it intimidated Paul. But nothing unsettled him worse than Will Horton. The way Sonny would talk about Will or smile at him made something unpleasant roll around in his stomach. When Sonny confessed to Paul that he suspected Will was gay Paul almost freaked out. However, after Sonny invited Will with them to the party near the square Paul began to see Will differently.

Paul too struggled so hard with coming out. It took almost losing Sonny for him to admit to the world who he really was. So, Paul decided he couldn't let Will go through the same thing alone. Will would come over almost everyday while Paul recovered and the two talked. Sometimes it was about Paul struggling to come out but a lot of times it was just about their lives themselves. Paul learned all about Will's problematic childhood and his many insecurities. Soon enough Paul began to look forward to meeting up with Will. He found himself charmed by Will's obliviousness and timidity. That he was so open and trusting with the world when the world had never been too kind to Will. Practically overnight Will was all Paul could think of.

However, when Sonny suggested the two of them go out to dinner Paul readily accepted. It had been too long since he spent any time with his fiancé where they weren't at each other's throats. Paul controlled himself by not talking about Will all night. Which was hard since they were eating at his great grandma's pub and all Paul could remember was how good Will looked in his uniform.

But here they were, arm in arm walking through town on a beautiful evening. Paul had almost forgotten how nice it was to be with Sonny. However, when Sonny paused mid-sentence Paul, glancing at him, followed Sonny's gaze across the park.

There, with his arm possessively draped across a boy, was Neil. Paul rolled his eyes, fists clenching just thinking about him. When Neil turned his body, in unison, Sonny and Paul gasped out together, "Will!"

When Neil met Will outside of his last class Will felt rather anxious. Will wasn't even sure why. Neil was a nice guy who was interested in Will. He acted like a total gentleman and gave Will all of his attention. 'And he actually likes me,' Will thought longingly. But Will just didn't feel that spark when Neil touched him. The hand on his waist was nice but whenever he accidentally touched skin Will didn't feel much of anything. Not like when Sonny's fingers brush Will's when handing over his coffee and Will gets goosebumps. Not like when Paul pats Will on the back and Will gets butterflies.

Will, mind wandering, jumped when he heard his name called. Looking up, Will froze seeing Sonny and Paul, "Oh, hi guys," Will meekly told them. He wished Neil would let him go. 'Well crap.'

"What the fuck are you doing with him," Paul demanded heatedly. If he could he would rip that arm right off of Will.

Will shifted uncomfortably, surprised at Paul's language and anger. He winced a bit when Neil's arm tightened its hold. Will wasn't sure what to say to Paul. How could he explain that he needed to go out with Neil so he could get over Paul and his fiancé? Will glanced at Sonny and shied away from his intense stare.

Neil tried to school his features into something friendly, "Will and I are just finishing up our date." If Neil had his doubts about Paul's real intentions towards Will he had answers now. 'No one is that upset their friend is on a date.'

"I wasn't talking to you," Paul spit out. Turning to face Will, Paul continued, "Will, how could you go out with him after what he did to you?"

"He didn't do anything to me, Paul," Will whispered. He felt strange with the way everyone was looking at him. He just wanted to curl into a ball until Paul left him alone.

"That's bullshit, Will," Paul growled. He couldn't believe what he was hearing.

"No, it's not. Neil explained what happened between us," Will elaborated, hoping Paul would calm down. Will was also unnerved by Sonny's silence. "I told him I needed to go pee and I'm the one who got on my knees." Will blushed fiercely completely humiliated.

Paul stared at Will incredulously, "He's lying to you. I know what I saw. You wouldn't do that."

Sonny cleared his throat and shifted around, 'Right.'

Paul glanced at Sonny harshly knowing exactly what he was thinking.

"I do dumb things when I'm drunk," Will mumbled. Tears stinging his eyes, feeling completely demeaned.

Seeing Paul was going to keep arguing with Will, Sonny finally stepped in, "God, Paul, lay off of him." Sonny's own emotions were a chaotic mess. He was having a great time with his fiancé and now this. Sonny didn't know what to feel. He was shocked by Paul's open hostility. But at the same time he understood. Sonny hated seeing Will wrapped in Neil's arms but also couldn't help but hate Paul's reaction to it as well. Sonny's heart ached though at the embarrassed look on Will's face. Over being angry at Paul or Neil all Sonny could feel was the need to protect Will.

"You cannot be serious right now," Paul complained. 'How am I supposed to just let Will stay with this creep?'

"Will's not a little kid. He can make his own decisions," Sonny rationally told Paul. "Just leave them alone. It's only one date. They said they were on their way home. Now, can we get back to our own date," Sonny said pointedly. He too wanted Neil away from Will but he wasn't sure what he could do. Will was obviously uncomfortable. Sonny also couldn't help but think that if Will was with Neil he would get over his crush on Paul. If that happened maybe Paul would get over Will. 'Maybe I could too.'

Neil, who stayed silent throughout most of the exchange, raised his eyebrow at Paul and Sonny. Neil didn't miss the way Sonny stared at Will, 'Jesus, do they both want Will?'

Paul huffed loudly, "No, I'm sorry Sonny but I'm not letting Will stay with this douchebag." Standing to his full height Paul crossed his arms and glared.

Neil, finally releasing Will, stepped closer to Paul, "What did you just say?" Neil was so done with this situation, 'Fucking Christ, seriously.'

"Oh my god, what is your problem," Sonny demanded in exasperation. "Both of you knock it off now."

Will, eyes wide and arms wrapped around himself looked back and forth between Paul and Neil, horrified by what he was seeing.

"Stay the hell away from him," Paul commanded, stepping into Neil's space. His entire body was tense and he wanted to smack the self-satisfied smile right off of Neil's stupid face.

"Since when are the boss of him," Neil questioned patronizingly, shoving Paul away from him. "Will doesn't seem to have a problem with me, only you. Why is that, huh?"

All of Paul's pent up frustration and guilt over Will finally caught up to him and before he could even think about it, his fist slammed into Neil's chin. Before Paul could even register the pain in his knuckles Neil punched him right in the cheek.

As Sonny was screaming in the background, Will ran forward and wiggled his way in between Neil and Paul. He was jostled around as he begged the two of them to stop it, "Paul, Neil, stop it!" But both were too far gone in their anger and frustration to listen. It was only when Will was knocked to the ground with a grunt did Neil and Paul realize what they were doing.

Sonny rushed to Will's side and helped him up. After ensuring Will was fine, just a sore elbow from getting knocked to the ground, Sonny rounded on Paul, "What the hell is the matter with you?" As Paul opened his mouth, Sonny screamed out, "Shut up! I don't care right now."

After an intense stare down with his fiancé, Sonny managed to yank Paul away from Will and Neil. Yelling out, "I'm so sorry Will," over his shoulder, Sonny marched Paul towards home. 'I physically had to drag him kicking and screaming from someone else. What the hell does that mean?'

Paul anxiously gripped Sonny's hand with his left, the right one was bleeding and throbbing. The two walked to their apartment in complete silence. The ease they felt with one another earlier was gone. As soon as they walked inside of their studio Paul headed toward the freezer for some ice and spun away from Sonny. After placing the ice on his knuckles, he took his phone out of his pocket and sent a quick text:

We're talking about this tomorrow.

Sonny, glancing at Paul's back, rolled his eyes. Throwing his jacket on the table Sonny stomped into the bathroom, slamming the door behind him. Looking at himself in the mirror Sonny sighed. He knew he needed to figure out his own jumbled feelings. The idea of Will dating someone like Neil made him nauseous. But what else could he do? He asked Paul to marry him. He couldn't just throw that away. However, Paul clearly had feelings for Will. "But so do I," Sonny finally admitted out loud.

Neil walked Will to the door at his mother's apartment, adrenaline still coursing through his veins. "I'm really sorry I messed things up," Neil told Will, turning to look at Will's eyes, holding both of his hands.

"I'm pretty sure that was my fault," Will conceded thumb tracing over his split knuckles. "I'm so sorry he hit you. I don't know why Paul reacted that way. I've never seen him like that before."

"I think we both know why Will," Neil said eyebrows rising in exasperation. 'So cute but so dumb.'

"Well I know he's protective but he really should let me figure this out on my own," Will said, a bit unsure what Neil meant.

"Will," Neil explained, rolling his eyes, "Paul doesn't like me because I like you."

"But why would Paul care about that," Will wondered, head tilting in confusion. "He was really supportive when I finally came out."

"Because Paul wants you the way I do," Neil clarified slowly, as if Will was stupid.

Frantically Will shook his head, "No that's crazy. Paul is engaged to Sonny. He just wants to make sure I don't get hurt."

"No it's not, Will," Neil told him starting to get annoyed. "Why do you think Sonny was so pissed off at him? They were on a date and he ruined it, for you. Sonny's getting sick and tired of Paul panting after you, Will."

Eyes watering Will shook his head, " No. No that's not true. It can't be true." Will didn't know what to think or what to do. This all seemed so ridiculous.

"You need to set everything straight with Paul and Sonny before something happens and you lose both your friends. I mean, I can't blame him for wanting you but you should tell him to back off," Neil goaded Will. Hoping to manipulate him into doing what he wanted.

Will, unable to process what Neil was telling him, stayed silent, head bowed toward the ground.

Neil cupped Will's face tenderly and stroked his cheek, "You don't want to ruin their relationship do you?" Neil looked at Will's trusting face and inwardly smiled.

Will shook his head quickly. Is that what was really happening? Was Will ruining his friends relationship? Was Sonny angry with him, especially since Will admitted he had a crush on Paul? But Paul would never like Will. Who could even notice Will when they had Sonny?

Hey," Neil said softly, tilting Will's chin up, "It's OK. Everyone knows you'll do the right thing." With a sweet smile Neil leaned forward and kissed Will deeply. Maybe it was a bit too intense for the situation at hand but Neil couldn't help himself. With the way Paul had acted around Will Neil felt like he had to stake a claim.

Will, confused and scared, slowly reached up and wrapped his arms around Neil's head. He suddenly remembered a flash of something, Neil holding him against a door and kissing him fiercely. Will mentally shook his head but could remember nothing else. Will closed his eyes tightly and focused on Neil. Praying that he would feel something for Neil, Will opened his mouth.

Neil couldn't help himself from roughly grabbing Will's hair and holding him in place. Lips twisting upwards when Will moaned. Walking Will back against the door Neil aligned them so his body completely covered Will. Just as Neil's free hand firmly grabbed Will's ass the door behind them opened.

Will would have fallen to the floor if Neil didn't react so quickly. Slowly righting themselves Will turned to find his mother staring right at him, arms crossed, and that look on her face. The look Will was used to seeing right before she went off on someone. 'Oh my god could this night get any worse?'

"What in the hell is going on here," Sami Brady demanded impatiently. "Is that blood on his fists?"

Hoping to quickly diffuse the situation Will turned to Neil, hands rubbing his chest up and down, "Um, thank you for a nice evening Neil. I'm really sorry about Paul."

Neil would never admit he was intimidated by Sami Brady, but he was completely intimidated by Sami Brady. Holding Will's hand against his chest, Neil smiled, "I did too. I'll talk to you tomorrow." Neil leaned down and lightly pressed his lips to Will's discreetly nipping them before he turned, "And you are definitely worth getting punched in the face over."

Will closed the door behind him and before his mother could even open her mouth Will turned to her and said, "Don't even say it Mom."

Sami huffed, "Fine I won't say anything, especially about the tall hunk with his hands on your butt. Or that your face is bright red."

"Ugh," Will said before taking off his jacket and taking out his wallet and keys.

"But I think we do need to talk about what I just overheard. Did Paul get in a fight with that guy," Sami questioned. Inwardly she was dying to gossip with her son over his first real date with a boy. But some things were more important than gossip and making sure Will was safe was one of them.

"It was just a misunderstanding," Will said as he tried to walk to his room. "Paul's just really protective of me and doesn't like the idea of me dating Neil."

"Uh huh," Sami said suspiciously. As Will told her goodnight Sami immediately ran to her phone. Despite their current difficulties Sami didn't hesitate to dial the number in front of her. As she heard a greeting over the line Sami immediately began, "I think something is going on with that Paul guy and Will. I need you to keep an eye on it."

A gruff chuckle sounded over the line, "Of course Darling. I'd do anything for my favorite little intern."

Will threw himself on his bed with a loud sigh. He couldn't believe his mom saw that. Rubbing his face, Will groaned. Kissing Neil physically felt good, particularly when he yanked his hair and shoved him against the door. Unfortunately, Will knew he didn't feel a connection to Neil. But how could Will turn him away when he was the only one who would like Will?

Will was more confused than ever about his feelings.

Will exhaled loudly before getting off the bed and undressed. Before heading into the bathroom Will took out his phone. Upon seeing Paul's message Will almost cried. 'God, what am I going to do?'

OK.

Author's note:

Uh oh, Sami and EJ are getting involved now. Paul might be in for some serious trouble if Sonny doesn't kill him first.

Will is so close to realizing his feelings aren't unrequited. But don't think that Neil is giving up without a serious fight.

Also a big shout out to all of my guest reviewers! Thank you so much for reading and taking the time to review.

Please review and let me know what you think. Does the progression make sense? Is everything moving along too fast or too slow? If you have a request or suggestion for what you want to see let me know.

I heard that Freddie was leaving DOOL is that confirmed or just a rumor?

Up next: Will and Paul's meeting is rudely interrupted.