A/N: This is where our story takes a sweet turn!

It was nothing but a blur. The day after the Closing Ceremony, the girls had joined the hoardes of US Olympians returning to the United States. They had been flown straight to New York City, where they had been whisked into a media frenzy like no other. Interviews, sponsorship opportunities, media appearances… it had all come, one after the other.

Throughout it all, JJ hadn't been able to keep her mind away from what was waiting for her at home. In London, it had been easy to tell herself that she would tell Will how she felt about him. But now that she was back on home soil, just days away from returning to Pittsburgh, her resolve was melting away. How in the hell was she supposed to tell him? They'd been best friends for ten years… what if he didn't feel the same way? What if it made things awkward and their friendship never recovered?

But finally, on August 20th, over a month after she had left home for the training camp, she was walking up the air bridge towards the terminal in Pittsburgh. As amazing as the last month of her life had been, she was more excited than ever to be back home with her family.

She reached the end of the air bridge, walking through an open glass door into the cool air of the terminal. Her eyes immediately met her parents, standing just away from the gate, Will and Lani behind them.

"Hey peanut!" her dad said happily as she reached them. JJ beamed, throwing her arms around him in a tight hug as he kissed the top of her head. "I'm so happy to have you home"

"I'm happy to be home," JJ said softly, pulling away and hugging her mom. She was quick, stepping back and allowing her dad to lift her backpack off her back before she moved over to two of her best friends.

"You were seriously freaking amazing," Lani gushed, pulling her into a tight squeeze. "I cried watching the team final, I went through so many tissues!"

JJ laughed, stepping back. "Did you watch everything?"

"Everything," Lani said proudly, tipping her chin up. "We're practically your personal cheer squad JJ, next time you compete in Pittsburgh, watch out!"

Laughing, JJ turned towards Will, who was standing patiently with his hands in his pockets. Without any words, he lifted them out, stepping towards JJ and wrapping her in a warm hug. Her heart leapt in her chest as the silence seemed to engulf them. Surely someone was going to catch on to how she felt.

"We thought we'd come in here and get you, Jaybird," Michael said, casually breaking the silence as JJ and Will pulled apart and shared a smile. "It's madness out in the arrival hall. You're a hometown hero"

JJ's eyes widened as they started walking together towards the baggage claim. "How many people?"

"There's at least a hundred. Mostly little girls who want pictures with you," Will piped up, the first words he had spoken to her. "Probably the odd weird dude who also wants a picture with you"

The others laughed as JJ nudged him in the ribs and shook her head.

Before too much longer, they were heading towards the exit, all her bags in tow. JJ couldn't help but feel a little nervous. They had been told to expect the attention… but in her eyes, she was just a normal girl who happened to be really good at her chosen sport. Becoming an overnight superstar in the world of gymnastics was already making her feel a little overwhelmed.

The glass doors parted and she was met with a waiting crowd. It took a moment for them to realise that she was before them, but when they did, an enormous cheer went up, filling the hall completely.

Her dad clapped her on the shoulder as she smiled at the excited little girls before her.

She was just going to have to handle it as best as she could.

After what felt like hundreds of photos, signing pictures, and talking to little fans, JJ was finally home.

Her friends and family were already there, waiting to welcome her home with a little spread of cheeses, chips, and other snack foods. Hugs and congratulations were shared all around, but JJ was feeling antsy. Even though she loved them all dearly, she was starting to wear a little thin.

And so, she had decided to take her bags upstairs and get five minutes to herself in the relative privacy of her own bedroom. Well… that had been the plan.

"Hey, let me grab that," Will said, jumping in as she tried to lug her backpack up the stairs behind her.

"Thanks," she chuckled, ignoring the butterflies in her stomach as his hand brushed against hers. Smiling, she grabbed her duffel with both hands once Will had her pack, and started up the stairs to her room. She dragged it until it was sitting just inside her room, trying to get it out of the doorway. Once it was out of the way, she let it go, turning on her heel and flopping backwards onto her bed with a dramatic sigh. Will laughed as he came into the room behind her, sliding the backpack off his shoulder and setting it down beside her nightstand.

"Sounds like you're glad to be home," he said, crossing the room and taking a seat on the edge of her bed. JJ said nothing, just burrowing her face into her pillows as Will laughed.

"I missed my bed," she whispered, grinning up at him from the pile of pillows she'd worked her way into. "The Olympics were amazing, but I really missed my bed"

"The important things in life," Will laughed. JJ suddenly popped up, an excited smile on her face as Will jumped slightly at her sudden movement.

"Do you wanna see the medals?" she asked.

"I was thinking you'd never offer," Will teased, watching with a grin as she clambered off the bed and walked over to her backpack. She lugged it across the floor, not having the energy to lift it up again, before dropping it by Will's feet.

He watched quietly as she unzipped the backpack, lifting out five sleek black boxes, emblazoned with the Olympic rings in gold. She opened them one by one and placed them down beside Will on the bed. Picking up one of the gold medals, she removed it from the box, allowing the deep purple ribbon to unravel before splitting it with her hands and slipping it over Will's head.

"Holy crap that's heavy," he exclaimed as it settled around his neck. JJ laughed.

"Pretty much my first thought on the podium," she said with a grin, watching as he turned it over in his hands, examining every inch of it.

"It's incredible Jayje… I can't believe you're an Olympic champion," he said softly, lifting his face to look at her.

JJ let out a soft laugh, reaching over towards the other medals as Will stood up. "Trust me… it hasn't sunk in for me yet either"

As her fingers brushed against her silver medal, Will stopped her, lifting the gold medal from around his neck. With a warm smile, he placed it back around hers. His fingers brushed against her skin, sending little jolts of electricity rushing through her. "Where it really belongs," he said, his voice barely above a whisper.

Lifting her eyes up to meet his, JJ suddenly realised how close they were standing. If she just leaned forward, they would be touching. His cologne was more noticeable than ever, a strong yet very attractive scent. Her heart raced in her chest as Will brought a finger beneath her chin and tipped her face up towards him. The butterflies that had started accompanying any interaction she had with Will were going crazy in her stomach.

Then, the almost nonexistent gap between them closed as Will wrapped an arm around her waist and leaned down towards her. With the softest touch, he brought his free hand beneath her chin, tilting her face up towards his. His lips met hers gently, sending her heart rate through the roof as she realised what was happening. He was kissing her! Will, her best friend, the guy who had been there through everything in her hectic life… was kissing her!

Needing to hold onto him, she lifted her right arm, draping it loosely over his shoulder as her hand came to rest on the back of his neck. She parted her lips as Will gently captured her lower lip between his own. The gold medal was still draped around her neck, the weight of it heavy against her stomach as it rested between them.

And then, as if on cue to ruin her perfect moment, a painfully sensible thought popped into her head, making her pull away from him as her gaze fell to the floor. Silence fell around them, before Will reached out, gently taking one of her hands.

"JJ?" he asked softly, suddenly worried.

"This isn't a good time," she whispered, finally looking up to meet his gaze. But she just as quickly looked away, casting her eyes to the side.

"What do you mean?" Will breathed.

"I'm going on tour for two months… this is just… it's not a good time for anything to happen… because you'll probably find another girl you like more anyway, I don't want to tie you down-"

"Hey," Will said softly, taking her hands and guiding her over to sit on the edge of the bed. "Don't do that… don't sell yourself short"

"But you will… you'll find someone… normal," JJ said sadly. She kept her head hung down towards the ground, the butterflies and racing heart now long gone. She'd only just faced her feelings for Will in the last couple of weeks… she'd finally faced up to the admittedly wonderful idea of them graduating from a friendship to a romantic couple. But surely he couldn't actually want to date someone who had a hectic life at best… someone who'd never even kissed a guy, let alone had a boyfriend.

"Hey," Will said again, tipping her chin up as he broke her from her thoughts. "What if I don't want normal?"

JJ almost rolled her eyes, tilting her head towards him. He gave her a soft smile. "JJ… it's always been you. The entire time I've known you, I've just been so… taken by you. And if two months doesn't matter to you, it won't matter to me"

"But it's two whole months," JJ reminded him softly.

"I'll wait. I've waited ten years to get this far, two more months won't kill me. We don't have to decide what this is right now… we can wait, and we can have that conversation when you get back, or whenever you're ready," Will said gently.

JJ broke into a shy smile. "You've really had feelings for me for that long?"

Will chuckled. "Yeah… couldn't you tell?"

JJ laughed, a feeling of warmth shooting through her entire body as he put his arm around her shoulders. One hand resting on her medal, she tipped her face up towards him. "Ok… but I don't have to agree to define it now to get you to kiss me again, do I?"

Will chuckled, shaking his head.

"I think I can do that," he murmured, before bringing his lips to hers again, drawing the arm around her shoulders a little tighter. Lifting her hand to his cheek, JJ relaxed into his embrace, enjoying the moment as the happiness of it all began to wash over her. Right here… she was sure she had never felt as happy as she did right now.

When they broke apart again, she let out a little laugh, the smile on her face never faltering.

"I'll leave you to get settled back in… or Lani's definitely going to come looking for us," Will chuckled. Leaning in, he pressed a gentle kiss to her temple, sending her heart aflutter in her chest yet again. "I promise we'll talk after tour. And until then… I'm not going anywhere. I promise," he said softly as he rose from the bed. He walked towards the door, turning back and giving her a reassuring smile before he disappeared out onto the landing.

She sat still on her bed for a few moments, her mind reeling from what had just happened. Still somewhat in shock, she slowly removed the gold medal from her neck, setting it down beside her on the bed. A little laugh escaped her, her fingers coming up to rest lightly on her lower lip.

Will had kissed her. A real, serious kiss. Not mucking around, not forced during a game of Seven Minutes in Heaven… a real kiss. Not only that… he had liked her for that long. Basically as long as they had known each other.

She laughed softly again.

All that worrying in London had been for nothing.