No Strings Attached

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

Will's house was a fairytale cottage, straight out of a Disney movie. It even had the sloping nature of the building. Apollo's Mercedes looked like it belonged in our time, but the house looked a few centuries too old.

A tower rose up from behind the house, leaning too much on one side, and it had a single window at the very top. A garden of snarling plants obstructed the view of the house, but I could tell between carnations that there were peeling paint on the walls. Even the door had an old-fashioned knock.

"We wanted our vacation house to be an escape from the urbanisation we see so much today," Apollo explained to my bewildered self. He grimaced. "Although, it does look overgrown. We'll need to call someone to fix it."

Will grabbed my hand and led me to the bottom of a spiral staircase, twisting high. "I wanted my room to be like this, back in Texas. Away from everyone and everything."

His voice was a low hum in an otherwise quiet environment. He tugged me upstairs, and I sat down tentatively on his bed, ruffling his floral bedsheets.

Will sat down and stared at me with such intensity that I believed fully that his eyes were going to pop out of his sockets. But instead, Will Solace pulled me close and wrapped his arms around me in a hug. His arms were strong and refused to let go, and, with our chests pressing against each other, I could feel the quick pace of his heartbeat.

At first, I had the urge to recoil. But he felt so nice, so soft and so warm that I couldn't help but lean into the embrace, his bushy blond hair tickling my shoulder. A few moments later, his voice breathed into my ear.

"I can't even express how sorry I really am," Will said. I opened my mouth to speak, but he beat me to it. "And don't spout that nonsense about how it's not my fault. I still hate that this happened."

I buried my face into his chest and dared to let out a shaky, shuddering breath. Will Solace squeezed me tighter and I couldn't help but unleash a few more tears and thoughts into the world.

"He's gone, isn't he?" I said, desperation hollowing out my heart. "There's nothing the hospital can do. Oh, God, Will, he'll be completely forgotten, won't he? Just a headline that'll disappear in a month. A number in a statistic some kid will use in their schoolwork. Another reason not to live here. Not a human being who lost his life because of a stupid, terrible person."

I let out a strangled sob at that last sentence, so it came out wrong like a cry for help. My whole-body shook, and Will clutched tighter.

"I'll remember him," he said softly. His hands held my jaw gently and he was gazing down at me. "So will you, Nico."

"That isn't enough," I sniffed. I didn't know why I was arguing with Will now. "He deserved to grow old. Live in a house with cats. Or live with someone he loved. Now he won't even live to see us graduate."

Will paused. The dust swirling in the air settled. If it wasn't for Will's blinking, I would've thought time had come to a standstill. When he turned his head downward, his blond curls fell onto my forehead. That's how close we were.

"He should've, Nico." Will spoke quietly, and his voice came out like a record scratch. He averted eyes, instead focussing on the one window in the room, overlooking the rest of the house. "He should've gotten to live to find his love. He should've gotten to laugh one last time. He should've gotten a peaceful death."

He uttered the last word like curse, soft and pulled back. The shadows settled on Will's face; his freckles invisible. But even still, I could see the reflection of sunlight on the tear tracks on his cheek. Was Will Solace crying?

"I'm sorry," Will Solace sniffed. His voice was as quiet as a mouse. Every part of him deflated. His hair was flat and pasty against his scalp. His cheeks were angular now, and his lips were pulled in a thin, chapped line. "I haven't even known him three months and he's already gone. I didn't expect . . ."

"Nobody did," I mumbled. I played with my shirt, pulling at the stretchy fabric. Then, as if we both had the same mind, we flopped on our backs onto the bed. We both sunk into the mattress, so now there were two Will and I shaped depressions in the bed, lit gently by the sunlight from the window. Lying down, I could see Will's chest heaving every breath. I could smell the must in the air, but also a sweet, perhaps strawberry scent wafting from Will Solace.

Will's blond eyelashes remained pressed against each other as he closed his eyes. He stretched his arms to the head of the bed, like a cat and he turned his head to me. His half-lidded gaze put me in one. I hadn't let myself feel how comfortable the bed was earlier, but now, I was succumbing to the sheets.

***

I yawned and instead to waking to sunlight, the night awoke me. There was moonlight and entered meekly through the windows and settled on the surfaces of the room. I turned to the side. I clapped my hands over my mouth in order not to release a guttural scream. Next to me, in all his moonlit sheen was Will Solace, sleeping like a koala next to me.

The memories of earlier bounced around in my head, moments flashing like disco lights. Arriving here . . . crying . . . Will crying . . . and falling asleep next to him.

I tried to wriggle from the sheets without awakening him to no avail. Will Solace groaned, and in a low voice and with sleep edging his tone.

"Nico?"