"This is your favorite spot?" Willie heard Alex ask as they gazed up at the Hollywood sign, towering over them.

Willie grinned and nodded. "Yup. It's so peaceful and quiet. No one's ever up here. I'm all by myself. No one bothering me." No Caleb hovering over my shoulder, tracking my every move, he thought but didn't say.

Alex began shuffling his feet and looked down at the ground. "Do you want me to go?"

Willie's eyes widened and he shook his head violently. "What? No, of course I don't want you to go! Why would you . . ."

"It's just, you said this was your quiet place, where no one bothered you, so I just -" Willie kicked himself mentally. He should've known Alex's anxiety would kick in.

"No, Alex, I didn't mean you, I -" he reached out and grabbed the blond-haired boy's hand. "You could never bother me, Hotdog." He smirked when Alex's face turned pink. Willie took utmost pleasure in seeing him blush.
Familiar arms wrapped around Willie's waist and Alex's chin tucked over his shoulder. "Hey, Wils."

Willie smiled softly and leaned back into his partner's arms. Alex pressed a kiss to the base of his neck, and Willie spun around to face him. "Hey, Hotdog."

"What're you doing?"

"I'm just trying to figure out what boxes have what in them. This one's just full of my old art."

Alex's mouth turned up in a happy grin that made him seem seventeen again when he saw the canvas laying on top. God, he loved that smile. Willie threaded his hand through Alex's soft blond hair and left a quick kiss on his lips.

Alex's smile softened and he looked at Willie with loving confusion. "What was that for?" He whispered.

Willie shrugged. "I just felt like it. You had that cute smile on your face, the one you always get when you're really happy - I couldn't resist."

Alex laughed and Willie felt like he was melting where he stood, especially when Alex's soft lips met his own again. He'd known Alex since he was eighteen, he'd been with him since not long after, yet the younger boy still had the ability to make Willie turn to goo in his shoes. When they broke apart, Willie leaned his forehead against Alex's and let himself be pulled back into his own memories.

"Come on." Willie tugged on Alex's hand and pulled him down to lean against the second 'O' in Hollywood.

"So what do you do when you're up here?" Alex asked, settling back and resting his head on Willie's shoulder. Willie slipped arm around Alex's shoulders and let his head drop against the blond's.

"Nothing really. I just think, you know, about things."

Alex lifted his head up slightly and raised his eyebrows at Willie. "Things?"

Willie nodded. "Yeah. Things."

Alex shook his head and dropped it back onto Willie's shoulder. "Things." He muttered sarcastically, but Willie could see the smile on his face. "Am I one of those things?"

"Oh, definitely. I sit here all day just thinking about whether Alex likes me or not, what it feels like to hold Alex's hand, what it would feel like to hug Alex, what it would feel like to kiss Alex . . ." He shrugged and trailed off, then laughed at the look on Alex's face from the last one.

Alex shoved him lightly and sat up, not meeting his eyes. "I'm being serious."

Willie reached out and grabbed his hand again, running his thumb over Alex's palm. He nudged Alex's shoulder until he looked up at him. "Hey. So am I."

Willie felt a soft tapping against his temple. "Penny for your thoughts? Are you willing to tell me what's going on in that beautiful brain of yours?" Alex asked.

Willie smiled and kissed him again. "Mostly just you."

Alex smirked and flipped his hair which now fell down to his shoulders. "I get that, I mean, I am me. How could you not think about this amazingness all the time?" He gestured towards himself.

Willie fought back a laugh and pressed his finger to Alex's lips. "Baby?"

"Hmm?"

"Shut up." He leaned up for another kiss that Alex happily accepted, but he had to burst his bubble. "Luke's hotter." He mumbled into the kiss.

Alex jerked backwards and shoved him. "Dude! Come on!"

Willie cackled. "What? It's a statistically proven fact. Luke ranks higher on the sexiest people alive list than you."

"I'm number three on that list!"

"He's number two. I still can't believe Julie beat you all out for number one."

"I hate you." Alex grumbled.

Willie nodded and pulled him into a hug. "You love me."

"I love you."

"I care a lot about you, 'Lex. I'm not joking." Alex just shook his head and looked away. "Alex. I mean it. I'm . . . I really want to kiss you."

Alex's head shot up and he looked at Willie. "Seriously?"

"Yeah. Of course. I mean, why wouldn't I? You're this amazing drummer, a little bit anxious sometimes, but really amazing." At the grin on Alex's face, he continued, "And you're really hot, not gonna lie, and-" Willie was cut off by a sharp tugging on his wrist. His nonexistent heart began to beat ten times faster and he had to concentrate all his energy just to not poof out. He hopped up onto his feet, with a very confused Alex looking up at him.

"Wils? You okay?" In the moment, Alex's hand in his own was the only thing keeping him in place. His face held no judgement at all, just pure innocent worry, and Willie hated that he had to lie to him.

"Yeah, I'm fine, I just realized that I - have to - have something to do."

Alex scrambled up and didn't let go of Willie's hand. "Willie, is something wrong?"

Willie frantically shook his head. "No, I just - I've gotta go. I'll see you later, Hotdog."

"Wait, Wil . . ." He didn't hear the rest of the reply before he poofed out.

Willie shook his head, not unlike how he did in his memory, to clear his mind of the flashback. He saw Alex staring down at the canvas, and he suddenly asked a question they'd always tried to avoid. "When you left that day, it was because Caleb was calling you, wasn't it?" Alex shuddered at the name and Willie couldn't help doing the same.

"Yeah. I don't even remember what he wanted me to do, I just remember it was him."

"I'm sorry, Wils."

Willie shook his head yet again and pulled Alex into another hug. "Don't be, it wasn't your fault. Let's stop thinking about that, it's so depressing." Right on cue, the doorbell to their new apartment rang, followed by several knocks and loud pounding.

Alex laughed and ran a hand through his hair. "That'll be Luke and Reggie." He gave Willie a quick kiss before pulling away to answer the door.

Willie looked back down at the canvas one last time for the day. He didn't know why he had painted it the way he had, with him standing up and Alex still sitting on the ground leaning against the Hollywood sign, holding onto his hand. Maybe because he wanted to feel like there was someone who wanted him with them, who was willing to hang onto his hand and keep him there. Maybe he just wanted to show himself that he was stronger than Caleb, that there were people in the world who loved him and were willing to fight for him. It felt like so long ago, that he'd still been under the control of Caleb, that they'd been ghosts.

Whatever the reason was, now was not the time to figure it out. Willie had a graduation party to get to with his best friends and the most amazing boyfriend in the world.