Battle Wounds: Solangelo Soulmate AU

FORTY-THREE

WILL POV:
I've never been scared of Nico before, but in the moment he got up and stormed out I was. I thought he was coming at me and I couldn't help but flinch away. When he threatened me I knew he wasn't bluffing, he was 100% serious. Some of the things he said in Italian, though I didn't understand, I knew he was bringing out some truly awful Italian insults.

I couldn't stop my self from bawling like a baby.

Seeing the love of your life look at you like they were planning your murder and were wondering what size coffin you would need really stung. I never thought Nico would look at me like that.

"I didn't mean to cause that to happen," Officer Barrette apologizes.

I can't even get words to come out of my mouth, I just sink onto the couch in Walkers office and curl up into my self. The officer seems to understand that now is not the time to talk to me because she sits there quietly doing whatever she could to avoid looking at me.

30 minutes later the door opens and Walker and Nico walk back into the office. Nico is wearing a carefully blank expression, but I can read the minute details that told me he was not here willingly. The set of his jaw and the way his eyebrows were pulled lower than they were naturally told me all I needed to know. Saying he was majorly pissed off would be the understatement of the year.

"Tell Will what you just told me," Walker demanded of Nico.

Nico is looking anywhere else but at me and doesn't say anything. I don't know if I want him to look at me or not.

"Cmon Nico, you promised you'd try to talk to him," Walker adds.

"I'm mad at you," Nico said, as if it wasn't obvious already.

"I think he knows," Walker says blandly. "Tell him how you feel."

"Why, he's just gonna go tell someone anyways. Not like I can trust him."

My heart shatters, just as I thought I had fully gained his trust this happens. Don't get me wrong, I don't regret reporting his abuse. His dad deserves to be locked away where he can never touch my Nico again, but I didn't think Nico would react this badly.

"Nico feels like you took his chance at having his dad back away," Walker finally says, clearly realising that Nico isn't going to talk.

I sniff and take a deep breath though my voice still comes out strained and raspy. "What do you mean?"
I ask, not understanding what he could mean by that.

"He wasn't like this before Ma died," Nico admits. "If I only gave him some more time he might have got his drinking under control and I could have had my Dad back."

I open and close my mouth a few times trying to decide what to say. I had never asked Nico what his Dad was like before he started to abuse him. Nico never offered the information up so it never crossed my mind how he always said he started abusing him after his mom died. I never considered the possibility that a man who could hurt Nico so much could have ever been a good father.

"I didn't know you thought that," I say. "I'm sorry, you should have told me."

"It wouldn't have mattered," Nico hugs his arms across his chest. "You would have fucking reported it anyways."

"I'm not gonna lie and say I wouldn't have because I don't know if I would have or not. But I wish you would have told me, maybe Mom and I could have helped you try to find a way to get him into rehab or something. I didn't mean to make you feel like I was taking your father away."

Nico scoffs and rolls his eyes. "Sei un rompicoglioni. It wouldn't have mattered, I should have never trusted you in the first place."

"You can trust me Nico, I was just trying to look out for you. I didn't want to betray your trust."