Here We Go Again

The next day after class had ended for the day, I packed a small bag and walked to my apartment. I had told Travis about what Will and I spoke about when I got back to the room yesterday, and how he had invited us to dinner. Travis said he would go, if only to see Annabella, and that he would pick up Erin and I from our apartment.

When I got to the apartment, I found Erin sitting on the couch in the living room, watching TV. I set my bag on the floor near the door before I shut it behind me.

"What are you watching?" I asked as I flopped onto the couch next to her.

"I'm not really sure," she replied with furrowed eyebrows. "I think it's a documentary," she said with a shrug.

"Oh, okay," I said with a nod. "What are you doing tonight?"

"Nothing, why?" she asked me as she tore her eyes away from the TV screen.

"Want to have dinner with me and everyone else?"

"Who's everyone else?"

I held up my hands and started naming off people as I numbered them off with my fingers. "Chris, Hayley, Travis, Sara, James, Annabella," I paused before I said the last name quietly. "and Will," I finished quickly. Erin looked at me in surprise.

"Will?" she asked in disbelief.

"Uh, yeah," I replied awkwardly.

"What the hell happened since the last time I talked to you?" she asked incredulously. So I told her what happened with Will yesterday and then I also told her what Travis and I spoke about as well. "So a truce?" she asked me once I was done telling her everything.

"Yup," I replied with a nod.

"And you think this is gonna work?"

"I'm hoping. I'm more than willing to make this work, but if Will doesn't cooperate, it's not gonna work out. So let's just hope he doesn't pull a dick move or something and fuck everything up," I said with crossed fingers. Erin gave me a look and I held up my crossed fingers in front of her face. "Cross your fingers, damn it!" I exclaimed. She broke out into a laugh as she held up her own hand and crossed her fingers.

"Okay, okay," she said through her laughter.

"So is that a yes on dinner tonight then?"

"Sure, why not? It's not like I had any plans anyway."

"What happened with Marc?" I asked as I grabbed the remote from between us on the couch and changed the channel.

She shrugged before she replied. "We didn't really click as well as I thought we would. We're still friends though."

"Oh, I see. That's cool," I said as I settled on some comedy show.

"What time is the dinner at?"

"I'm not sure yet. Will said he'd text me the details later today." Erin nodded as we continued to watch TV.



About an hour later, I got a text on my phone from Will. It was a simple text with the name and address of the place we were eating at, and at what time. I forwarded the text to Travis before I told Erin the details. We had two hours before we would be leaving, so Erin and I didn't start to get ready until half an hour before Travis was supposed to pick us up.

When Travis came by, I invited him inside because I was still getting ready. This was the first time he had ever actually been inside my place, so he glanced around while I finished getting ready. When Erin and I were dressed, we got into his car and made our way to the restaurant.

The restaurant was a casual type of place, so it wasn't too much of a surprise that there was a party of nine for dinner. As we were seated, I glanced around the table. I sat at one side of the table with Travis next to me. Next to Travis sat Sara and then James. Chris sat across from me at the other side of the table with Hayley next to him and then Erin next to her. And finally sat Will and Annabella next to Erin.

We ordered our food and as we waited for it to arrive, we all got to talking. I mostly spoke to Chris seeing as how I barely hung out with him anymore.

When everyone got their food and we all started to eat, I glanced at everyone at the table. It felt nice to sit with everyone and this time actually remember who everyone was. There was a sense of normalcy in all of it and I liked normal. Normal was good. You couldn't go wrong with normal.

The rest of the dinner went off without a hitch. After dinner was over, Chris suggested we go for a drink or two at a nearby pub. I was good for a drink, but not everyone was down for that. Annabella and James had to leave early so they could go to their parents' house for the weekend, and Sara wouldn't want to go if James wasn't there. Hayley didn't really drink much and Erin was tired and just wanted to rest. Since our apartment was on the way back to the dorms, Hayley offered to drop off Erin at our apartment. So the only people who were down for a drink was Will, Travis, Chris and I.

In the end, the four of us just went for a drink while everyone else went home. As we sat in a booth, I realized how weird this whole thing actually was.

Chris - one of my best friends who told me that he loved me before - was sitting next to me. Travis - my current roommate who had a bit of feelings for me at one point - was sitting across from Chris. And Will - my ex-boyfriend and ex-roommate - was sitting across from me. I was completely surrounded with boys who have liked or loved me at one point. I couldn't help, but feel as if I needed more than one drink tonight. Talk about awkward.

When we got our drinks, I quickly took a gulp to help calm myself. It helped and I loosened up shortly after. Eventually, I just forgot about the awkwardness and enjoyed my time with my friends.

Friends; that was weird to say. I considered Chris and Travis one of my best friends. Will though? I had so much trouble describing what he was to me exactly. When we were still dating, I just thought of him as my boyfriend. And before we dated, I just thought of him as my roommate and the guy I used to like. Now that we had this truce though, not only was he my ex-boyfriend, he was my friend. And that gave me an unsettling, but at the same time, a nice feeling in the pit of my stomach.

Hayley had driven Chris to the restaurant and Annabella had driven Will, so when they left, Chris and Will had no one to drive them home. Travis had driven, but he had been drinking, so he decided to leave his car there and get it in the morning. So after we had a drink or two, we all shared a cab and went home.

I was the first one to get dropped off at home. I sat in the back between Chris and Travis, and Will sat in the front. I gave Chris a hug before Travis got out of the car to let me out. I gave him a hug as well before he got back into the cab. I turned to the front of the car where Will was sitting, the window rolled down.

"See you guys later," I said with a wave as I stepped back further onto the sidewalk. I could hear Chris and Travis say their goodbyes to me through Will's open window before Will also said his goodbye. He held his hand up to wave before I waved back at him. I turned away and made my way up the stairs to my apartment. I was silently glad that Will didn't get out of the cab so I wouldn't have to hug him goodbye or something. The whole being friends with him now was still all too new and awkward to me, and I didn't think I could have handled hugging him right now.

When I got inside of my apartment, I quickly did my nightly routine before I crawled into bed and fell asleep.



Saturday came and I spent the morning with Erin and then I Skyped with my mom and Eric for the afternoon. Seeing my family was always something that I looked forward to so I spent a good few hours talking to them. I eventually had let them go though, because it was way past Eric's bedtime. I told them I loved them before I ended the Skype session.

I stayed inside for the rest of day and didn't even bother to change out of my pajamas. I just did my homework and watched movies to pass the time. Even though it was Saturday and people usually would go out, I wasn't really feeling like it today. Plus, I hung out with everyone last night and had a few drinks, so I was pretty much done for the weekend.

Night passed quicker than I expected and I was in bed by eleven. While I was sleeping though, I was suddenly woken up when I heard my cellphone ringing on my bedside table. I reached over and grabbed it before I answered the call without looking at the caller ID.

"Hello?" I asked groggily.

"Nicole!" I heard a familiar voice with a slight slur. I furrowed my eyebrows in confusion. I moved my cellphone away to read the caller ID and confirm the caller before I brought it back to my ear.

"Will?" I asked.

"Yup!" he said loudly.

"Why are you calling me? It's," I paused as I looked over at the clock on my bedside table. "almost two in the morning."

"I need a favor," he said as he lowered his voice. I could hear a bunch of different noises in the background. I couldn't hear exactly what they were saying, but it sounded like he was at a bar.

With a heavy sigh, I replied. "What kind of favor?"

"Can you come pick me up?" he asked simply. I sighed again.

"Where are you?"

"I'm at The Crown."

"I'll be there in a bit. Don't move."

"I won't!" he said happily and I could imagine his drunken grin. I hung up on him before I got out of my bed. I changed out of my pajama bottoms and into a pair of jeans before I grabbed a jacket and threw it over myself. I made sure I had my phone, my wallet, and my keys before I left my apartment.

I hailed down a cab, glad that they were still running late for all the drunken folks on a weekend. When I got to The Crown, it was still pretty packed with their parking lot nearly full.

I quickly entered the bar to get away from the cold and was instantly met with a welcoming warmth. I searched the bar for Will, but couldn't find him. Right as I turned to ask the bartender if he had seen him, I felt someone poke my side. I squealed in surprise as I turned to look at who poked me. I saw Will with a big grin on his face.

"Will!" I exclaimed. "Jeez, don't do that. You know I'm ticklish," I said. His grin only widened.

"I know. That's why I did it," he replied. I couldn't help but blush at that.

"Anyway, are you good to go now then?" I asked as I changed the subject.

"Have a drink with me," he said as turned to the bartender and ordered two drinks. I quickly told the bartender to not bother with the drinks and that we were just leaving.

"No, Will, let's go," I said as I pulled on his arm.

"Oh, come on! You're here, so you might as well have a drink," he argued as he took his arm out of my grip.

"I'm here, because you called me to take you home. So that's exactly what I'm going to do; take you home."

"Please? Just one drink," he practically begged. He even threw in the little pout, but I wasn't about to cave in.

"No," I said with a firm voice.

"Fine," he said with an exaggerated eye roll.

"Come on, grab your coat." I walked towards the exit and glanced behind me to make sure Will was following me. He still had a slight pout as he dragged his feet and followed me, grabbing his coat on the coat rack near the door on his way out. "Did you drive here?" I asked him as we entered the parking lot. He nodded right before I spotted his car. As we walked towards his car, I held out my hand for his car keys. When he didn't hand them over to me, I stopped and look up at him. "Will? Your car keys?" I asked with a raised eyebrow.

"No," he said stubbornly.

"Excuse me?" I asked in surprise.

"No," he said again. I narrowed my eyes at him. I didn't have time for this. I was tired and I just wanted to go back to sleep.

"You're drunk, Will. You need sleep and I need sleep," I said in a dull voice as I continued to walk to his car. I was stopped suddenly though when I felt a warm hand on my forearm. I looked back at him as he had an almost pleading look on his face.

"Don't go yet. Stay with me here for a bit and keep me company. Come on. Aren't we friends now?" he slurred. I bit my lip in worry as I debated this. We didn't have to drink and he didn't want to go home yet. I didn't think staying here alone with Will was a good idea, but since we were trying to be friends, I couldn't just leave him here by himself. With a heavy sigh, I nodded at him. A bright smile came over his face as he engulfed me in a hug.

"Whoa," I said as I tried to push him away. He was too heavy and strong though, so I couldn't stand a chance. I gave up in defeat as he still clutched to my small body. I awkwardly reached up and patted his back while his grip on me tightened.

I could feel my chest tighten and my breath hitch in my throat as he continued to hug me. And it wasn't because of how tightly he was holding me. It was because of how close I was to Will. It had been months since I was last in his arms and it felt so warm, and so... right. I inhaled and his scent filled my nostrils and sent a thrill through my body.

I was slightly disappointed though when he suddenly pulled away. He placed his hands on my shoulders and held me an arm's length away from him. I stared at him in curiosity, wondering what he was thinking. I didn't need to know what he was thinking though as he acted upon it.

Will suddenly leaned down and captured my lips with his own. I gasped in surprise and shock before I pulled away from him. Before I could yell at him, his lips were once again on mine. I couldn't push him away though as he wrapped an arm around my waist and placed a hand behind my neck to keep me from moving. He continued to just have his lips pressed against mine until I eventually relaxed against him. There was no point for me to fight against him. And even though I wouldn't admit this to anyone, deep down inside, I really did want to kiss him back.

As soon as I was relaxed and no longer tense against him, he pressed his lips against mine harder in a heated kiss. I let myself kiss him back and I could faintly taste the alcohol on his mouth. I brushed that thought away though as I pressed my hands against his chest and leaned up further to reach him. I didn't realize that Will had turned us around and was lightly walking me backwards until I suddenly felt something hard and cold pressed against my back. I peeked my eyes open for a second to see that he had pushed me up against a car. I completely forgot about the car however as I felt Will's tongue slip into my mouth. I let out a small moan at the sensation and I could feel him smirk under my lips.

His hand that was once on my waist was now traveling upwards to undo the buttons of my jacket. Once all the buttons were undone, he pressed his warm hand underneath my shirt on my rib cage. His thumb gently rubbed against my skin and I wasn't sure if it was a good thing or a bad thing that I was still wearing my pajama shirt without a bra underneath.

His other hand that was behind my neck was now lower and was running against the side of my leg. I let out a surprised gasp as he hitched my leg up against his hip. That just encouraged him to kiss me harder.

We continued to kiss for a few seconds longer before he pulled away from me, placing sloppy wet kisses down my jaw to my neck. I ran my fingers up his chest to his neck before I tangled them in his hair. I tugged on it lightly as he nibbled at my earlobe.

"Bloody hell, Nicole. The things you do to me," Will started in a breathless voice against my ear. "I love you," he finished as he caressed my sides. I instantly let go of his hair and pushed him away as my mood turned sour.

"You what?" I asked him in shock and anger.

"I love you?" he asked more than stated. I pushed his wandering hands away from me and brushed past him. "What? What did I say?" he asked with a hint of a slur still in his speech.

"You said you loved me," I said as I kept walking away from him, readjusting my shirt and buttoning up my jacket.

"Yeah, and?" I turned around and faced him.

"You don't get to say that," I said to him.

"And why the hell not?"

"Because you don't love me. If you really loved me, you wouldn't have broken up with me in the first place. You wouldn't have caused me all this pain. And you definitely wouldn't have made me the other girl when you have Annabella! Again!" I cringed as I remembered he was still dating Annabella. And once again, he had drunkenly kissed me while he still was with her. I turned to walk away, but my rage was still burning. I turned back around and took a step towards him. "Gosh, Will! You're such a fucking dumbass! You can't decide! Is it me or Annabella?!" I shouted at him. I watched as his eyes widened and I let out a heavy sigh.

"Nicole," he started hesitantly.

"You fucking had me and you let me go. Whose fucking fault was that?" I paused to let that sink in for him. "You can't just go... go kissing me, tell me you love me, and then just expect everything to be alright. That's not how it works." It went quiet and Will didn't bother to say anything. "Call Chris. I'm not dealing with anymore of your shit tonight," I finished as I turned away to the street and hailed a cab home.

As I sat in the back of the cab, I thought about just happened with Will and I.

He had kissed me. Will had just fucking kissed me. Two days; we were two days into being friends and he had to pull some shit like that. Did he not understand the concept of a truce? Of me trying to move on?

I let out a shaky breath as I closed my eyes and leaned my head against the cold window. I felt tears pool at my eyes and fall down my cheeks. I opened my eyes and quickly wiped them away.

Will had only kissed me and it left me feeling flustered like a middle schooler. It had left me wanting so much more of him that I could no longer have. I reached up and covered my heart. It was pounding like crazy. I reached up further and touched the necklace through my clothes.

I couldn't stop the next wave of tears from coming even if I tried.