James Marriott x WillNE

Post credits

Will's POV

I shouldn't have let him get so attached to the good bin bad bin thing. They're fucking disgusting right now. All the sweets we didn't like, which was most of them, just got tossed into the red bin. Now it's absolutely covered in disgusting, sticky residue. I don't want to clean it. They might get thrown away.

"We're all going for drinks if you.. uhm.." Abby's voice wavered as she looked toward James, who has been sober for over a year now.

"He's not gonna go batshit crazy being around alcohol." I mutter a defence on the behalf of James. He doesn't particularly like to talk about his sobriety, despite how it might come across. "I'm not drinking much anyway so he'll be fine."

"You never know. I might start stealing drinks." James huffed out a laugh. I could tell it was forced. Honestly, a lot of the recording we did was forced too. I don't really know what's bothering him, but I plan to find out later.

——

At the bar

I've been sat on this uncomfortable chair at the bar with James for an hour, and I guess I am quite proud of him. I meant what I said earlier, I knew he wouldn't want the alcohol. But to not even get a pop or anything, just water? Sort of unlike him. I expected a doctor pepper or something. Maybe I don't know him as well as I thought.

"Alright?" I look over in his direction to see he's gazing off at something distantly.

"Huh? Oh yeah, i'm good. It's kinda late. I'm just dreading the train ride honestly." He shrugged as if I knew exactly what he meant. And I guess I did know. Trains aren't really his thing. You'd think he'd learn to drive if it really bothered him but I don't think vehicles are his thing as a whole.

"You don't have to. I have a pretty comfy sofa." I half joke, smiling into my beer as I take a sip. I've been taking it slow. I don't know if being around drunk people also bothers him, a sort of FOMO sensation. So i'm being cautious.

"I couldn't invade your space like that, Will."

"I'm asking you to." I swallow another sip of alcohol to get rid of the taste of how sappy those words were. I love James, and I always have, but sometimes I worry about whether or not us working together all the time makes him feel different to me.

James looks away and shrugs, "look if you want me to, then I will."

"I do."

"Okay."

We sit in silence like that for a few minutes. They're excruciatingly long  minutes. I'm almost convinced he's never going to say anything again, so I clear my throat and that makes him snort out a little laugh.

"What's bothering you?" I ask, getting straight to the point since I can't bear to sit in silence pretending I don't notice the cogs turning behind his eyes right now.

"Just thinking." He offers, brooding over whether or not he should add anything else. Finally he decides, "thinking about whether or not the comments on your videos are something I should concern myself with or.."

Ah. There it is. I sort of hoped he didn't read the comments. He usually tells me he doesn't read the ones on his videos anymore, but I suppose since he stopped streaming, there aren't many comments to miss anyway.

"Comments..?" I fein innocence.

"You know what comments." When James notices my silence, sees right through my silence but ignores it nevertheless, he adds, "the one's that say I wonder if James wants something more than Will or I wonder if this is just some sick fantasy of James' or why does Jim always make those jokes?"

My mind falters for a moment. The only comment I saw was about us using the same straw, but it was fine since we've kissed before. I didn't know they went so deep.

"And.. if it's not true then why does it matter?" I ask, snorting a tiny bit in my slightly buzzed state. It is an amusing thought. I know James is Bi, and maybe I worry sometimes that he thinks of me differently, but I don't actually think he'd date me. I don't know if i'd date him. Mia and I tried to talk about sexuality and similar things before we broke up but we never got very far.

James shrugs, seeming to mull the subject over. "Are you almost done with your poison?" He smiles at me, seemingly back to normal.

"Why, so you can take me home and shag me?" I tried to joke, but I notice how the timing wasn't exactly right when I see James' smile wobble a little. "Kidding. Obviously. Yes i'm done, let's go."