I Like Me Better when I'm With You (COMPLETED)

You smile, and I am rubbing my eyes at a dream come true

Notes: Chapter title is from It Always Comes as a Surprise by Pet Shop Boys

***

It was a Tuesday afternoon when Will got back to his apartment. Climbing up the stairs, he was thinking about a thousand things at once. And no, that mysterious customer wearing all black that somehow had an emotional outburst was not one of those thoughts. It's been more than a week since their encounter at the Oracle. Why should he think about him?

He was thinking that he might want to start on that homework that the professor gave him today when he inserted his keys into the lock. Then he heard the sound of the door of Jason's apartment. Instinctively, he turned around.

He embarrassingly let out a small gasp when he saw the guy that was now standing in front of Jason's door. A small space of the apartment hallway separating them.

It seemed like the guy recognized Will, from the way he looked at Will, his head tilting a bit to the left. The right corner of his lips tugged up slightly, forming a vague half-smirk.

"You..." Will said, still a bit too surprised. Then what Mitchell said a few days ago crossed his mind. "So.. your name is Nico!"

Nico raised his eyebrows, looking mildly surprised. But a second later, he gave Will a single nod along with a small hum. "Yeah. Nico. Nico di Angelo."

"I thought your name was Luke!" Will blurted out.

Nico's eyes got widened, then he let out a small short laugh. "What? Luke? Why would you think my name is Luke?"

Will could feel embarrassment creeping up on his neck in form of heat. "I... I.. I mean..." he said. "I just.. You know... I thought... I thought your name was Luke." He stumbled on his words, not making himself any clearer.

Nico chuckled. Then he stared at Will, a small smirk playing on his lips and damn, he looked even more handsome if he wasn't sulking like the first time Will met him.

"Do I look like someone whose name is Luke?"

Will's hand flew to the back of his neck. "Uh. I.. I don't know. I mean... I don't know any Luke.. So. Uhm. I.. don't actually know how someone whose name was Luke would look like?"

Great, Will screamed at himself internally. He sounded like an idiot. Will wondered why he has come this far in life if he could not even make a sensible answer in a moment like this.

Luckily, Nico didn't seem to think that Will was an idiot. At least if that amused smile that he had now was something to go by.

Will fiddle with the strap of his backpack. "So. Uh. You're Nico? Jason's new roommate?"

Nico slid his hands into the pocket of his black aviator jacket. He shrugged his shoulder lightly. "Yeah," he said. "And you are?"

"I'm... I'm Jason's neighbor."

Silence for a beat as Nico stared at him with a funny look.

Then Will realized it.

"Uh. I mean... I am Will. Will Solace. And yeah. I am... Jason's neighbor."

Nico nodded. "So, that makes us neighbor, then."

Something funny pulled in Will's chest. "Uh. Yes. I guess so," he said, and let out a nervous chuckle.

"Hey," Nico said, his voice a little lower this time. And the look in his eyes underneath the thick eyelashes was softer. "Thank you, by the way. It was you, right? The one who wrote that note?"

Will nodded, trying to ignore the small fluttering in his stomach. "Yeah. You're welcome. And Jason is a great guy. I hope that he makes a better roommate than what you had before?"

Nico smiled as he brushed away some hair from his forehead. "He totally is much better," he said. Then he licked his lower lip, looking a bit hesitant. Will watched Nico took a deep breath.

"And.. I'm sorry, okay?" Nico said, this time with a softer voice.

Will's eyebrows raised up. "Sorry?"

"I am sorry that I snapped at you when we met the other week. I was just... having a bad day. And I shouldn't have...lashed it out to you. You didn't deserve it. Nobody deserves it."

Will's heart fluttered, and he smiled back at Nico.

"It's okay. Sometimes we have one of those days when everything is wrong and nothing is right."

"Yeah," Nico said, nodding vaguely. "But still. Servicing people is already a hard job. And other people should not make it even harder for them."

Will laughed lightly. "Hey, don't worry about it okay? You're forgiven. I already forgot about it. Don't worry."

A small smirk came back to Nico's lips along with a strange twinkle in his eyes. "Oh? So you're saying that you have forgotten about me already?"

Will could feel the rush of heat on his cheeks as he blinked, and quickly shook his head.

"No! No no! That's not what I meant! I mean, I still remember you, of course. But I mean... I was saying... It's not like I forgot you but it's not like I kept thinking about-"

Will stopped mid-word, freaking out that his word-vomit made things even more awkward. His face was practically on fire when he nervously rubbed the back of his neck.

"Uh. I mean. Don't worry about it," Will said.

Nico chuckled. Then he looked at Will with some sort of amused expression on his face.

"Well," Nico said. "Even if you don't remember me, I think at one point you will, because now that we're neighbors, I think we'll see each other sometimes?"

Will nodded. The thought that he and Nico might see each other again, even though maybe just some greetings when they passed each other, somehow it made that his heart did a happy little dance.

"Yeah, I guess so."

Nico smiled. "I got to run now. So, I'll see you around?"

"I'll see you around, neighbor."

Nico grinned at him and made his way to the stair. Will quickly opened his door and stepped in. He closed the door and leaned his back against the door.

Nico.

So his name was Nico. And he was Will's neighbor now.

Will didn't know why he had a stupid grin on his face now, but he didn't really care about it.

***

Author's Notes: Comments and feedbacks are always welcomed :D