Sunshine

Gold

*Nico*

My door creaks open slowly, the sudden change in temperature and light startling me awake. I curl into myself, drawing my limbs tighter to my body and wrapping a blanket more tightly around myself as I roll over to face the wall in an attempt to go back to sleep. The windows make a sharp sound as they are forced open for the first time since Hazel left, and I can imagine the typical spiralling swirl of dust in the sunlight as the breeze disturbs the previously still curtains. Light footsteps on the hardwood tell me I'm not getting back to sleep, and the sudden sinking of my bed tells me someone is sitting beside me now. Whomever it is smells like summer, specifically honey and wildflowers, their presence enveloping me in a warm feeling of joy and belonging.

"Nico...time to get up Darlin."

I twist back around to face Will, who is sitting on my bunk with a soft, sad smile adorning his face.

"What're you doing?"

His eyes light up at the sound of my voice, a wide grin replacing his original sad puppy-dog expression.

"Hey, I just came in to check on you again. Hazel said you were still in here and I-"

"I'm glad you're here, but it's too early for this."

He laughs, reaching out to tug the blanket out from over my head where I had pulled it as a barrier from the sunlight streaming in from the now open windows.

"It's just after lunch Nico."

"But I'm still tired."

I pull the blanket back over my head, yelling at him when he gets off of my bed.

"Come back over here Solace!"

"Or what?"

He smirks at me, leaning over to grab my pillow from under my head.

"Don't you dare."

I glare at him, gripping the edge of my blankets more tightly when he starts to tug on them as well.

"Solace!"

He ends up pulling me off the bed, still tangled in my sheets, yelling in surprise when I knock him off his feet and he ends up lying on top of me.

"What'd you do that for?"

"You pulled me out of my bed! Besides, I'm tired, not out of training."

The hardwood is cold under my skin, making me shiver when Will starts trying to untangle us. I roll over on top of him, pinning him to the ground. The sunlight from the now open windows casts a golden glow over his red-flushed face, highlighting his blonde curls with a fiery brilliance.

"What're you doing?"

"You're not leaving."

He laughs, trying to dislodge me and, to be honest, manages to knock me off of him fairly easily.

"And why not?"

"Because I'm cold."

"Come outside then."

He smirks at me, grabbing the front of my shirt and pulling me down for a quick kiss before he stands up and extends an arm to help me up after him.

"You need to eat, and I brought you food."

I nod, stumbling unsteadily to my feet and following Will out onto the porch. He allows me to lean on him, one arm wrapped around my waist as we sit on the worn wooden steps leading down into the crumbling dead grass that surrounds my cabin. I accept the sandwich he hands me, unwrapping it slowly and only managing to eat about half of it before I start feeling sick. Will notices, reminding me I don't have to eat everything at once, but rather slowly ease myself into more normal habits.