#one of the mops is missing its head too like. thats a stick. why is there a stick in here

[forestryfae]

i literally just need a real dresser and ill be completely set and i can properly clean in here. like. i havent washed the floors or really finished unpacking or been done tidying or moving in here in a week and staff are wholly unhelpful

the dressers they have are just too small and i need a bigger one so i can actually fit everything without filling it to the brim but somehow the only answer i get is "well how will you bring it with you when you move" and "we have dressers you can have one from us" like no? just buy me a bigger one or fucking. help me buy one. the ones they have are not big enough at all if you own anything made from thicker materials than jeans and tshirts.

also would help if they could get rid of the MASSIVE dining table i will 100% not use and do not need, the gaming chair i have absolutely no need for, or the extra chair in my room that im using to store some of my clothes. its taped on the armrests cus its old and used. get rid of it??

will be trying to move a shelf thingy and put it somewhere though so ill have real space to store clothes that isnt just on top of the desk ive been using a storage space. if only theyd get rid of the dining table so i can move the desk and have somewhere to draw

i have a couch area w like 4 seats, 5 if you count one of the chairs, along with the kitchen which has two chairs and a table. its a one/two person apartment and theres a table in the kitchen that fits two people just fine along w two couches. come on.

like its just a short period of time ill be living here, maybe a year ish since ill eventually be done w the program here and stuff. but itd still be nice if i could like. be comfortable and not need to deal with a million dumb things that should be neccessary to deal with

like there genuinely isnt enough space in here for this bullshit. the bedrooms are too small to fit the shit they put in them. my bedroom had a bed, tiny dresser, chair, actual livingroom table, one of those dumb fucking Aesthetic Hang Your Clothes Up As Decoration thingies, and a lamp. where the FUCK am i gonna fit my stuff?? why is it SO full???? i dont have a closet or dresser or desk in there wtf. the other bedroom is being used as a laundry and drying room and there isnt even enough space in there. the closet is full of clothinghangers, blankets, various lamps ive removed from places they didnt fit, pillows, and a mattress, theres a vacuum and two norwegian flags?? a board for steaming and unwrinkling your clothes, and i moved the dumb fucking aesthetic clothinghanger bullshit.

staff ofc are protesting my every request for some kind of cooperation where they remove stuff and put it in storage so i can actually use the apartment and livingroom like a normal person. like. the massive dining table, four dining chairs, old taped chair, gamer chair, fuckton of plates and glasses and cups that match w absolutely nothing, two waterboilers, two kitchenmachines??are they old breadmachines?? the addons to the breadmachines, like 17 pot and pan tops with NO matching pot or pan, the broken footrest, coffeeboiler i wont be using, coffe bullshit i wont be using, extra coffeepot w no machine? the aesthetic clothinghanger and the norwegian flag none of these are neccessary in here. literally none of them. they SHOULD go into storage

anyways im gonna see if i cant move the shelf out of the other bathroom soon so i can atleast store my clothes SOMEWHERE. it doesnt even fit in the bathroom its in, its in the way for the only space where laundry could go that isnt the hallway in to the bathroom.

[all-hail-the-witcher]

I came back to you

look at that yall, your eyes do not deceive you, I actually did write something.

this is part two to this horrific angst mess

also uhhh shouts to mikey for describing a kiss to me (wink wonk) and doin the plan and shouts to fizz for being fizz and scalping me for making a Terrible Mistake

_______

genre: happy floofy make up stuff (I almost wrote angst ha lol)

ship: ralbert off and also married blush cause We Stan

warnings: hmm al is still paralyzed, race’s shoulder is still fucked, I think someone mentions depression or anti depressants or smth, fighting, screaming, I think thats it

editing: lkdfjghlkaghj

words: 3000 something

______

Mush ran full force down the hallway straight into his husband.

“Whoa, Mushy,” Blink said grabbing his shoulders so he didn’t topple over. “What’s going on? Is hell chasing you?”

“Sorta,” Mush said before toning down him voice. “We need to talk. Right now.”

Blink raised his eyebrows. “Is everything okay?”

“Depends on your definition of okay,” Mush said. “Can you spare ten minutes?”

“Now?” Blink’s eyebrows knitted together.

Mush nodded and grabbed Blink’s hand, dragging him down several twisting hallways to a storage closet. He looked around for several seconds before yanking open the door and unceremoniously pushing Blink inside.

Mush flicked on the old light, casting a faint yellow glow on him and Blink. “We need to get Race and Albert back together.”

Blink stared at him for several long seconds before shrieking “What?”

“They’re totally miserable!” Mush groaned dramatically. “Race is convinced that Albert is paralyzed because of him, and Albert is convinced that Race doesn’t want him anymore and it’s driving me insane. Do you know how many of Albert’s check ups consist of him asking about how Race is? Every. Single. One. I can’t take it anymore. And it’s not just that, it’s making it harder for him. He was supposed to be all healed like three months ago. He was finally cleared last week. It’s not supposed to take six months to heal from a shattered pelvis! Three to four maybe, but six is insane. And don’t even get me started on Race, that kid is a disaster. He’s come to see me four whole times about his- babe, why are you laughing?” Mush cut himself off when he noticed Blink’s hysterics.

“Babe, I thought that you were hurt or we were about to be attacked,” Blink said as he fought to compose himself. “I wasn’t expecting you to lecture me on Albert and Race’s well-being.”

“But it’s truuueee!” Mush exclaimed, flailing his arms around dramatically. “For the safety of their health and wellbeing we have to get them back together.”

“Are you sure about this?” Blink asked. “They might not want to get back together and we don’t want to make it worse.”

“Blink, I’m their doctor and it’s affecting their mental health. I’d much rather try than have to prescribe them antidepressants,” Mush said.

“Alright,” Blink sighed poking Mush’s chest. “But if this backfires, I don’t know you.”

“Babe,” Mush sounded confused. “We’re married.”

“Then I’m printing divorce papers,” Blink said with an air of sarcasm.

Mush fake gasped. “You wouldn’t dare.”

“Oh I would, Race is very scary when he's angry.”

“Yeah,” Mush agreed, “but he’s a stick. Albert is way more intimidating.”

“Yes,” Blink agreed. “But albert is also paralyzed, I doubt he’d be able to beat me up.”

Mush lightly slapped Blink upside the head. “Now now,” he scolded in his best doctor voice, “don't be ableist.”

Blink rolled his eyes. “When was the last time you saw him get in a fight?”

Mush considered for a minute. “Ah, yesterday actually. Romeo took his cookie at lunch.” He smirked mischievously. “See? Your point is invalidated.”

“You’re lucky I love you,” Blink scowled.

Mush popped his foot, smiled over his shoulder and batted his eyelashes playfully at Blink who groaned again before opening the door to the hallway.

“I think Race is scheduled for lookout tower duty today with Buttons, but Buttons already told me he has to call off for some reason so if you really want I can put Albert on with him,” Blink said as they headed down the hall back to central command.

“Depends,” Mush said. “Can we watch them make up on the security cameras?”

Blink looked at him incredulously. “Is that even a question?”

Mush jumped up and down and clapped his hands together. “I’ll get the popcorn!”

•••

Albert wheeled himself out of the rickety elevator and over to the door of the lookout tower. Why Blink has decided to put him on lookout tower duty at the last minute was beyond him - he knew it was a pain in the ass for him to get to.

He knocked loudly on the heavy wooden door. He hadn’t quite caught who he was on duty with so he was slightly horrified when a sadly familiar mop of blonde hair peeked out.

“Hey,” he tried to say casually. “Blink put me on duty with you last second, Buttons had a thing.”

Race merely nodded and opened the door, staring at the floor the entire time. He closed it behind Albert and wordlessly went back to his seat in front of the binoculars.

Albert sighed, not looking forward to nearly three hours of this, and wheeled himself over to the other chair - which was much too close to Race for his liking. With practiced ease, he maneuvered himself from his wheelchair into the other chair so that he could use the binoculars. He didn’t miss how Race kept his eyes averted the entire time.

“Who are you covering?” Albert asked almost reluctantly. He wasn’t sure if he was ready to hear Race’s voice yet.

Thankfully though, Race apparently wasn’t ready to talk yet and he pointed to three moving dots on the computer screen that was built into the tabletop. Race was watching JoJo and Henry, Smalls and Checks, and Finch and Spot, leaving Albert with Specs and Sniper and Mike and Ike.

Lookout tower duty essentially meant that you sat in the tower and kept tabs on the scouts who were out on patrol. They all had trackers on them - a new improvement since Albert’s accident - which transmitted their location to the digitized map on in the table. The scouts could send up a distress signal if they were in range and it was the people in the lookout tower who were responsible for sending them backup or medical assistance. Lookout tower duty also involved keeping tabs on the enemy and alerting the scouts if they got within range. It wasn’t a hard job, but it was generally improved by conversation.

•••

“This is the worst movie I’ve ever seen,” Mush groaned, slamming his head down on the table.

“That’s cause it’s not a movie,” Blink said, checking over some papers. “It’s real life.”

Mush groaned again and flopped onto Blinks shoulder. They had been watching Albert and Race on the security cameras for almost an hour but so far Albert had only said a few sentences and Race hadn’t said anything at all. For once in their lives they were actually doing their work, and merely sitting stiffly and sneaking glances at the other every few minutes. It was enough to make Mush’s head explode.

“Blinkkk,” Mush whined, “why couldn’t you have given them a job where they actually have to interaccttttttt?”

“Look, I told you not to meddle in their love lives,” Blink reminded him. “And this was what Race had. Albert hasn’t really been cleared yet to do stuff that involves interaction.” He paused. “Which you would know, because you’re his doctor.”

Mush whacked him on the arm with his badge.

“Besides,” Blink continued, “this is usually a job that requires talking, I’m surprised they haven’t said anything to each other yet.”

Mush stared at the array of buttons on Blink’s control panel. “Well,” he began sheepishly, “maybe we could contact one of the scout groups and have them send up a distress signal, surely that would get them to talk?’

Blink spun his chair around and gave Mush a cold, hard stare. “No,” he emphasized. “Distress calls are complicated and take a lot of people to answer, and they’re also dangerous. I am not risking the security of this entire operation just so our friends can talk.”

“You’re no fun,” Mush grumbled, shifting in his chair and looking back at the monitor that was displaying the security camera footage. Much to his surprise, Albert was turned slightly toward Race and it appeared that he was about to say something.

Mush leaned over and cranked up the sound. “Finally,” he sighed happily. “Babe, pass the popcorn, its finally getting interesting.”

“We don't have any?”

“Then go grab some. We’re gonna need it.”

•••

It felt like he had been sitting in silence for hours when finally Mike and Ike moved to a different location on the map. Albert reached for his pen to make note, only to discover that it had run out of ink. He groaned internally upon seeing that the pen cup was on Race’s side of the table.

“Hey, uh-”

Race jumped at the sound of Albert’s voice and Albert gave him an expressionless smile.

“Sorry. Could you just, uh, pass me a pen? Mine’s outta ink.”

Race nodded and wordlessly passed him one. Albert couldn’t help but notice the stiff robotic movements he was using - his shoulder was bothering him, and by the looks of it he hadn’t done anything to help it.

Albert opened his mouth, he couldn’t just let Race suffer in silence. Even after he had dumped him, he just couldn’t sit by and watch while he was in pain, it just wasn’t in his nature.

“Race?” Albert asked gently.

Race paused his writing but said nothing.

“Is your shoulder bothering you?” When Race didn’t respond, Albert took it as an invitation to proceed. “You’re holding it weird, and it looks painful. Have you been taking your meds? Do you want me to rub it for you?”

Race sighed, throwing his pen down onto the table and rubbing his temples with his hands. “You shouldn’t still care this much about me, not when I did- I did that to you.” He pointed at Albert’s wheelchair.

“Is that why you left me?” Albert felt anger bubbling up inside him. “You couldn’t own up to your mistakes?”

“No, I-”

“Then why else did you break up with me over a note?” Albert was furious now. “You could have at least done it in person!”

“No you don’t understand! I couldn’t bear to see you like that!” Race’s voice was scratchy - almost as if he hadn’t used it in awhile - and it cracked as he began to yell.

“You didn’t want me because I was disabled?”

“Al I didn’t want it to happen that way, you have to believe me!” Race begged.

“Then why didn’t you ever come see me? I was in the hospital for over a month and you couldn’t drag your sorry ass there to at least pay me a visit!”

“Albert I-”

“No, face it, you didn’t want me because I’m broken now! I’m not good enough for you because I can’t walk anymore, right! Well I’m still the same person, Race! It’s still me! And I still love you, even if you don’t love me!” Albert angrily turned back to his work, blocking out Race’s attempts at an apology.

•••

“MUSH!” Blink shrieked. “Stop this nonsense right now, can’t you see they’re fighting!”

Mush stood, transfixed as he watched Albert and Race scream at each other on the cameras. This had been a bad, bad idea.

“Mush!” Blink yelled again, shaking his arm. “We have to do something here before this gets bad!”

“Yeah, yeah, I’m thinking okay?” Mush rubbed his hand across his forehead.

“Well think harder! I don’t wanna deal with blood later!”

Mush sighed, “Blink would you just-”

“Hey Blink could you run- oh hey Mush, what are you guys doing?”

The two of them looked up, utterly startled to see Jack standing in front of them, leaving through a folder of papers.

“Uh, paperwork,” Blink said immediately, picking up the stack of paper closest to him and looking it over casually. Mush followed suit, picking up another stack of paper, only to realize he was holding it upside down.

“Yeah….o kay,” Jack said uncertainly. “I can come back later...alright? I don’t wanna get caught in the middle of your married weirdness.” He backed up a few steps before running down the hallway.

“Paperwork?” Mush asked. “Really?”

Blink rolled his eyes. “Thank me later, let’s just get back to making sure that they don’t kill each other, okay?”

Mush looked at the screen again, and then looked twice. Albert and Race seemed to be, talking? Not screaming?

“Blink wait-” he said. “I think they’re doing it themselves.”

•••

After several long minutes of Race profusely apologizing, Albert had had enough. He had to face the facts: he was still very much in love with the idiot in front of him and he’d be damned if he didn't take this opportunity to make things right.

“I’m sorry for yelling at you,” Albert spoke softly, anxiously twirling his pen in his fingers. “It’s just...I’m tired of there not being an us anymore. Ever since my accident I’ve been so alone. I….fucking hell, I need you Racer.”

“Albie,” Race sighed, staring down at his map, “I need you too. It’s been so painful not being around you. But I don't want to hurt you any more that I already have.”

“Listen, I’m not pointing any fingers because I know that this could have happened to anyone, okay?” Race nodded limply. “You leaving me in the dust like that though? That hurt more than the actual injury, or the surgeries, or the pt.” “Al, I’m so sorry, I’m so, so sorry. I never meant to hurt you, physically or emotionally, I just-”

“Oh would you shut up and get over here?” Al interrupted, suddenly very much aware that there was far too much space between them. “I need to hold you.”

Race got up and moved slowly toward Albert, frowning when he patted his lap. “Aren’t I going to hurt you?”

“If you were I wouldn’t be able to feel it,” Albert shrugged. “I can’t feel anything from my hips down.”

“Al, I-”

“Don't you dare say ‘I’m sorry’ it’s not your fault, okay?”

“Okay.”

“Good,” Albert smiled, pulling Race onto his lap and sighing in content as he wound his arms around his shoulders.

“God, I missed you so much,” Race sounded close to tears as he nuzzled his face into Albert’s shoulder, breathing in deeply.

“Never leave me again, okay?” Albert whispered, his breath tickling Race’s ear as they melted further into each other.

“Kiss?” Race blushed as he pulled away from Albert slightly.

Albert smiled and pressed a soft kiss onto Race’s lips which he returned, gentle and slow. When their lips broke Race snuggled back into Albert’s shoulder. “Did I kiss it better?” he asked, reaching up to play with the ends of Albert’s hair.

Albert could only describe the emotion that overcame him as love. “Yes,” he breathed contentedly, “yes you did.”

•••

“TAKE THAT!” Mush screamed in excitement, throwing a fist full of popcorn at Blink. “I TOLD YOU MY PLAN WOULD WORK!” He continued his victory dance around his husband as Race and Albert held each other tightly on the cameras.

“Yes, yes,” Blink sighed, picking pieces of popcorn off of his precarious stacks of paperwork. “I’m very proud of you.” “Proud enough for a kiss?” Mush came to a stop in front of Blink, batting his eyelashes dramatically.

“Proud enough for a kiss,” Blink reluctantly agreed, squeaking in surprise when Mush dramatically dipped him, but enjoying his husband’s breathy laughter against his lips.

“Ew.”

The two of them looked up startled to see Romeo, Jack, and Davey staring at them with mixed expressions of disgust painted on their faces. The end of shift bell must have rung without them noticing.

“What are you two up to?” Jack asked suspiciously. “You were being weird when I was over here before too.”

“We got Race and Albert back together!” Mush exclaimed, clapping his hands together excitedly. Three sets of eyes widened. “Look!” Mush said, pointing to the cameras where Race was standing by awkwardly as Albert maneuvered himself back into his chair. The group watched with bated breath as Race leaned down to mush his lips against Albert’s before they exited the watchtower.

“HOW DID YOU MANAGE THAT?!” Romeo screeched, jumping up and down as he accosted Mush with questions. “I’ve been trying for weeks and it hasn’t worked!”

“I think we should just be happy that they did it,” Davey said, leaning against the wall. “Those two were driving all of us insane.”

“Tell me about it,” Jack sighed. “If i had to hear Race ask one more time how Albert was doing I was gonna punt him off the roof without a second thought.”

Davey glared at him sideways.

“Well, maybe there would have been some second thoughts,” Jack said quickly, trying to backtrack. “You know what? Just forget I said anything.”

“I still can’t believe you managed to get the two of them back together,” Romeo repeated, shaking his head in disbelief. “Those two are more stubborn than a pair of yaks who-”

“AL SLOW DOWN!”

Romeo was interrupted by Albert speeding into command in his wheelchair with Race seated on his lap. The two of them crashed into a wall, sending them flying in a heap of giggles.

“Ah, back to normal already I see,” Davey mused, stepping over the heap of woefully in love boyfriends. “On behalf of us all, may I say: ITS ABOUT DAMN TIME!”

“Jeez Davey,” Race said, pulling himself up to his feet and righting Albert’s chair. “You don't have to be so blunt about it.” He turned to help Albert, who was in the process of trying to get himself up by doing a terribly executed kick up before giving in and accepting Race’s assistance.

“Yes I do,” Davey said, gesturing to Blink and Mush. “If it weren’t for the co captains of romance here, you two would still be hopeless depressed disasters.”

“I’m right here!” Romeo whined.

“Oh no,” Blink said, ignoring Romeo. “It was all Mush, I had nothing to do with it.”

“Oh was it now?” Race said, marching over to Mush with a devilish glint in his eye. “We will be having words later, Dr. Medding In His Patient's Love Lives.”

Mush shrank back in fear.

“C’mon Race,” Albert said, wheeling over. “Leave the man alone, he was just trying to help us. I, for one, am incredibly grateful.”

“See, someone appreciates my efforts,” Mush scowled.

Race shrugged indifferently. “This is still not acceptable. Meet me tonight, three am, behind the supply closet. We’ll settle this the old fashioned way.” He cracked his knuckles for extra emphasis.

Mush scoffed and turned back to Blink as the two of them made their way down the hallway. “Did you see that, babe?” Mush said. “As if they could have gotten back together without my efforts. They’re so- wait, what's this?”

Blink had thrust a few sheets of paper at him while he had been rambling.

“Divorce papers,” he said simply, turning on his heel and walking off down the opposite hallway. “You’ll be hearing from my lawyer.”

Mush stared at the papers in his hands for a few long seconds before taking off after his husband.

“LOUIS GET YOUR SORRY ASS BACK HERE RIGHT THIS INSTANT!”

______

ah yes yes what good kiddos

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[percyinpanties]

25 Solgrace and 109 Solackson! THANK YOU! :D

okay first of all: this is an absolute and utter mess. it took a turn at some point i didn’t bargain for and im not sure its for the better lol.

second of all, I am so tempted to give the idea those prompts gave me what they deserve by actually writing a decent longer fic of a few chapters at least but… im not sure thats going to happen. i have a lot of feelings about the au i had in my head while writing this and I... want... to ... so badly....

Solgrace  - longdistance relationship kept alive through disgustingly cute snapchats au

Solackson – fell in love while backpacking acrossEurope together

Will had never seen a real castle before. Hiking upthe hill, spying the pale towers and high walls through the trees, Will findsit hard to breathe as awe fills him. As far as castles went it wasn’t that big,or that old, but before coming to Europe Will had considered a hundred years tobe an unimaginably long time, so this definitely didn’t fail to impress him.

He adjusts the straps of his backpack to stop themfrom digging into his shoulders and continues on his path. It’s still early,but Will doesn’t want to waste any time that he could spend exploring thisbeautiful place instead. The sun is just starting to filter through the clouds,bathing the view in a fairy tale light.

The road is empty, maybe because of the early hour orWill choosing to walk the path most people just take by car. It’s peaceful andWill could lose himself in it – almost does, when suddenly the noise of a bikeapproaching rips him out of his thoughts.

He half turns where he stands, unable to help hiscuriosity. The bike is coming racing up the hill, with a lot more ease thanWill’s slow hike, but instead of zinging by, the stranger stops his bike rightnext to where Will has stopped in his step.

 The motor shuts off, the quiet returning as Willwatches silently while the stranger removes their helmet – revealing a mop ofmussed black hair and a pair of bright green eyes. He’s gorgeous, Will catches himself thinking and only just stops himselffrom staring with his mouth half open.

 “You going up to the castle?” The guy asks him,English with a distinctive New York accent even though they are standing on aroad in France.

 Will blinks slowly, just processing for a second, butthen he nods slowly. The stranger grins at that, and Will ignores the way thatsight makes him feel. It’s bad news, in more ways than one.

 “Me too. You want a ride?” The offer is casual, nonchalant,and the smile on the stranger’s face is genuine enough that Will wants tobelieve he’d have offered this to anyone found hiking up the same trail. “Thename’s Percy, by the way.”

 ~*~

Somewhere along the way, Will actually picks up some French.It’s not a lot, and he keeps getting it mixed up with the Spanish he’d learnedin high school, but it comes in helpful more often than not. The people seem toappreciate Will trying more than anything – and if whispering some words toJason on the phone makes the other all flustered, that’s just a bonus.

 Will is in the empty hostel kitchen – up early to beable to chat to Jason before he goes to bed – taking a snap of himself with bedhair and sleepy eyes, dressed in only one of Jason’s jersey’s and a pair ofboxers. He knows exactly how much Jason loves seeing Will wear his clothes,especially when they’re apart, and there’s little else he can do to feelconnected when they’re on different sides of the world.

 It’s only when Will lowers the phone to type out amessage that he sees Percy in the background of the photo, walking by andsticking his tongue out – even more sparsely dressed than Will. It shouldn’tsend a rush through Will’s body, but he can’t help it either way. For a second,Will considers retaking the photo, then shakes his head and sends it as it is.

There is nothing to hide there, and Will doesn’t likethe implication that comes with keeping Percy and Jason oblivious to each other’sexistence.

 It’s not even a minute before he gets a snap return,although the photo is dark, Jason already curled up in their bed at home withglasses perched on the bridge of his nose.

 “Is that the guy you’re pretending not to moon over?”reads the caption and Will blushes darkly before quickly swiping the photo awayand with it all evidence of Jason catching on to Will’s unsubtle crush.

~*~

 After France, they cross through Belgium into theNetherlands. Will isn’t sure when or how they’d decided to travel together fromthere on out, but Will doesn’t find it in himself to protest or complain. He enjoysPercy’s company too much to walk away from it when there’s no need to – andthings have become a lot easier than they were when he was still all byhimself.

It’s still a while before he’s flying back home – backto Jason – but Will can squash any pesky feelings and attachments down untilthen. It’s not like Percy has shown any interest anyway and Will tells himselfthat it’s not just because he knows Will is already taken.

 When they decided to stay in Amsterdam for remainderof the month, in a tiny rented apartment in De Pijp that a friend of Percy’s gotthem into, Will hadn’t realised just how much harder ignoring his affectionwould become.

It was one thing to be out and exploring with Percy,to see the cities and cites and landscapes they travelled through, and to crashinto a shitty hostel bed at the end of the day amongst six or more other travellers.It was something entirely different to be living together in a place that wasessentially their own for the time being, with no one to disrupt and distractfrom whatever was or wasn’t going on between the two. The way things are going,Will isn’t sure he’ll make it to the end of the month.

 “Hey…”

Will looks up from the window he’d been standing by,brooding. Percy is close, one hand half reached out to Will’s arm buthesitating to touch without permission.

“Are you alright?” He asks, and now Percy’s concern showsclear on his face.

Will opens, then closes his mouth. He isn’t sure howto even begin answering this if he doesn’t want to lie, and most of the time,Percy can tell if he isn’t honest to begin with.

“Just thinking.” Will says, trying to avoid thequestion. It’s not quite like he can tell Percy that it’s killing him how muchhe wants to kiss his dumb face, or that despite Jason’s permission(encouragement even) Will can’t bring himself to because there is no way thatwouldn’t end in heart break.

 Will wouldn’t be flying home until Christmas, and heknows that Percy has no plans to return any earlier than that. Even before Willhad left North America, long before Percy stumbled into Will’s life, Jason andhe had decided to open up their relationship for whatever more they might find along the way. The problem now isn’t that Willcannot or should not give whatever he was feeling for Percy a try – the problemis that he isn’t sure that after once he’d had a taste of it, he’d ever be ableto let it go again.

Percy hands comes to rest on Will’s arm after all, andafter a second, pulls him close against his side. All Will can do is clench hisfists at his side so he doesn’t just melt into the embrace.

“Homesick?” Percy asks, and while that isn’t far off,it’s the entirely wrong conclusion.

“I guess so.” Will replies even so. He does missJason, and their friends, but that’s not what gnawing at him at the moment.

“You’ve always got me here.” Percy says gently andwhen Will looks up at him, there is a small, almost shy smile on Percy’s face. “Forwhat it’s worth.”

Will doesn’t answer, just studies Percy’s face foranother moment before finally giving in and allowing himself to lean into thehug.

“It’s worth more than you think.” He whispers, voicesmall. Will isn’t sure he even wants Percy to hear, and if Percy has, he doesn’tsay anything in response.

~*~

“New York isn’t that far.” Jason tries. His voicesounds distorted over the phone, but Will has gotten used to that by now.

He’s sitting on the balcony, looking down at theslowly emptying street of Amsterdam. It’s a warm evening, one of the last fewbefore fall will properly set in. Percy is out – Will isn’t entirely surewhere, but he’s grateful for the privacy of this conversation.

“It’s on the other side of the country, Jason.” Hereplies and even to his own ears, Will sounds like a kicked puppy. “And evenso, who says he’d even want to see me again once this is all over?”

This isn’t the first time the thought has crossed Will’smind, and it’s the one that’s holding him back the most. Even if Percy wouldwant him now, for the convenience or thrill of it, there is no guarantee he’llhave any interest in Will once they are both going back to their lives. Willcan’t get into this just for his heart to be broken.

“Why wouldn’t he?” Jason says, always the voice ofreason. “Baby, anyone would be lucky to have caught your attention like that.And you’ve stuck together this far, why should that change?”

Will huffs. Jason doesn’t get it, not quite, and Willisn’t sure he could explain it properly even if he tried.

“It’s convenient now, there is no one else.” Willsays. He doesn’t hear the apartment door unlock, despite the exit to thebalcony wide open behind him.

“We’re friends because it makes sense for now. Theclosest we’ve got to home over here and it’s easier than traveling alone. If youreally think that’s going to last further than that, you’re even more naïve thanI thought.” He doesn’t mean the words to come out as spiteful as they do, buthe is scared of getting hurt, and he’s scared of admitting how much it alreadymakes him ache to know he is right.

Jason sighs exasperated. Sometimes Will wonders wherehe takes the patience from to put up with Will’s whining.

“That’s not true.” He says simply. “Give him morecredit than that, give your friendship more credit than that.”

Will scoffs. He’s bitter now, and there’s no stoppingthe words coming out of his mouth no matter how much he loathes them: “Thiswill be over the second I step onto the plane to come back to you. It meansnothing, not in the big picture.”

“Will, I know you don’t mean that –” Jason starts, butWill doesn’t hear him – only the soft creak of the balcony door, then the stepsas they hurry away. Will only catches a glimpse of Percy’s hurt expression, butit’s enough to shatter his own heart into a thousand pieces.

“Percy, wait!” He calls, already scrambling to hisfeet, cursing himself and all this, hanging up on Jason without another – he canexplain later, this is more important. Out of context, his words will havesounded even worse than Will meant them to be.

The front door slams shut before Will even getsinside, and he rushes to find his shoes and grab a jacket (it’s one of Percy’s,but Will doesn’t notice now) to follow. He calls out again into the hallway,hearing Percy’s feet running down the stairs, and they don’t stop at the soundof Will’s voice.

He almost falls over himself trying to get down thestairs as far as possible, and when he finally stumbles out onto the street,Percy is already halfway down the block.

“Please!” Will shouts, and he doesn’t care that he’smaking a scene, making the few people still around stop and stare at the sourceof the noise. “Percy, come on!”

Will catches up with Percy at the end of the road,facing one of the canals running through the city. He must have slowed down, orelse Will never would have been able to outrun him, and that’s all Will needsfor now.

 “I’m sorry, Percy, I’m so sorry.” Will pants as soonas he is close enough, out of breath from the race down the street. “It’s notlike it sounded, I promise.”

Percy doesn’t reply right away, but he turns around toface Will, arms hugged around his middle and eyes brimming with not yet shedtears. It’s like a stab to Will’s chest, knowing he is the reason for them.When he opens his mouth to speak, to explain, Percy shakes his head slowly.

“Nothing.” Is all Percy says at first, and the word chillsWill to the core. “That’s all, hm? Just…nothing.”

Will wants to cry. He should have seen this coming,but of course he didn’t. Shaking his head slowly first, then feverishly, Willtries to reach out to Percy only to have him step out of reach.

“No, no you got it all wrong.” He pleads and his ownvoice sounds more pained than he has any right being now. It’s not Percy whohas hurt him like Will had feared all along – he is the bad guy now. “It isn’tnothing it’s – ”

Percy doesn’t let Will finish. He barks a laugh,bitter and hurt and Will feels a tear spill down his cheek after all.

“Don’t” Percy says and his voice is as cold as ice. “Idon’t want you to tell me any lies, I’ve heard enough. I’m convenient andnothing more – should have known better than to make myself believe this meanssomething to you.”

He tries to turn away, leave Will with nothing butthis dismissal but Will can’t bring himself to let Percy go, not like this. Hereaches out, ignoring the way it hurts when Percy flinches away from his touch –but it makes the other stop long enough for Will to speak again.

“This, no, you- you mean so much to me.” He tries, but his voice breaks. This was not howWill had seen his confession going down, not that he had believed it to happenat all. “So much that is scares the shit out of me. I want this to be nothingbecause I can’t stand the alternative, that there’s something there that I canhave for a month only to lose it when you go back to your life and forget allabout the stupid boy you picked up on the side of some road.”

Will’s crying now, in the middle of the street,feeling like the single most horrible person on earth.

“Jason kept saying that I’m being stupid, but I couldn’trisk it and ruin all the good memories just because I couldn’t be content withwhat you gave already. I wanted it to be nothing because if it was something,then it was something I would lose.”

Will finally stops and Percy – Percy just stares athim. There is a wet track down his cheek where a tear has gotten away, but therest of his face is a stony mask. Will is sure he has ruined it for good now,that maybe having Percy believe Will didn’t care about their friendship wouldhave been better than letting him know how much deeper his feelings truly run.

Percy doesn’t say a single word, but he steps closer,into Will’s reach, then into his space. It seems surreal, like Will is watchingit happen from the outside rather than living in this moment. Hands cup hischeek, green eyes lock onto his own. Will thinks his heart has stopped, but hedoesn’t care, not now.

“And people tell me I’m oblivious.” Percy says quietlyand Will doesn’t catch onto what he’s trying to say until there is a pair oflips against his own.