Solangelo One Shots

Memories of Cardboard Swords and More(part 2)

Nico's POV

The words of his roommate were still ringing in his head as he watched the ground get smaller and smaller underneath him, the rumble of the engines sending a tremor through his feet. "You've barely been away for a few months," Trevor had said. "He hasn't changed, and he hasn't stopped liking you. You need to stop worrying." Despite the comforting words of his friend Nico still found himself chewing on his thumbnail as he rested his head on the cool window pane, using the puffy white clouds and blue skies of California to distract him from the problem at hand. He would miss the mild weather of California, and he knew that the harsh winters of New York would be a shock to his system. But New York was where Will would be waiting and Nico was willing to brave the harshest of conditions to see his boyfriend again.

"Anything to eat or drink, sir?" He glanced up and found himself staring into the kind face of the stewardess, a drink cart pushed out in front of her, filled with travel sized soda bottles and mini bags of pretzels. A flip of his stomach told him that the pretzels wouldn't be a good choice but a bottle of ginger ale caught his eyes and he smiled, hoping that it would help to fix the butterflies fluttering in his stomach. 

"I'll have the ginger ale," he said. 

"Enjoy the remainder of your flight," she said, handing him the bottle. It was tepid when he took a swig, doing nothing to distract him from the nerves collecting inside of his body. It had dawned on him several times that, despite their years of knowing each other and obvious connection they had only spent one real night together until they were ripped away from one another for months. Sure, there had been texting and calling and FaceTiming but somehow it wasn't the same. The all too familiar worry that the connection would be gone when he got back began to sneak up on him again and he took another sip, the bubbles washing down his throat. If they could only wash away his worries, he would be set. 

Will's POV

It felt strange to be back with his high school friends. It felt strange to have Jessica sitting across from him, obviously batting her eyelids and to have Michael's arm slung around his shoulders, just like old times. It felt strange to have the laughter surrounding him, high school memories rushing back. It felt strange because there he was with his friends, when the only person he wanted to be with was the boy they had bullied and harassed for years. His fingers twisted in his lap, drawing back from the conversation. There was something about being back with them that made him uncomfortable, as if his entire friendship had been made on a mountain of lies. He sighed, tugging his phone out of his pocket to check for a nonexistent text."You got a girlfriend down there in Boston?" Michael laughed, glancing down as Will clicked on his phone for the umpteenth time that afternoon. He was waiting for the familiar ding, for Nico's text to pop up on screen but nothing appeared, and it was making him nervous. 

"No, actually," Will mumbled, slipping it back into his pocket. Nico wouldn't be back until late that night, and it wasn't going to do him any good to worry for all that time. "Boyfriend, actually." He glanced away as he said it, the words slipping out of his mouth effortlessly, as if he had meant to say it. He squeezed his eyes shut, glancing up to see his friends gaping. 

"Boyfriend, really?" Michael's tone was that of shock, but not the bad type of shock. He seemed neutral to the fact, surprised but all together unfazed. "I hope he's hot, at least. Only the best for my Will." There were light-hearted chuckles and Will felt himself sigh in relief as the heavy feeling that had settled over the table lightened. They might have been terrible to his boyfriend, but at least they could help him pass the time until he could see Nico again.

Nico's POV

Nico woke with a start, his face smushed into his seat and his arm flung across his stomach. He groaned, sitting up and rubbing at his face. The plane was splitting through a dark sky, the clouds far beneath them. The plane was quiet, the only sound the quiet hum of the engine and the occasional snore. He knew that he wouldn't be able to sleep once he got back but that would prove to be a good thing. The more time he got with Will, the better.