"Err, do you know that vine? The one that's like Zach, stop." Will asks me. I stop walking and stare at him in shock. "Where are you going with this?" I ask him, trying to hide my smile.

"Patience is a virtue." Will says and I roll my eyes. "Alas, before my soliloquy was interrupted, I was asking a question." We continue walking.

"The answer to your query would be positive." I reply in a similar manner. "Also, soliloquy? I think you've been spending too much time with me Will."

Will laughs. I try not to blush at the sound. "Maybe. But I was with a few friends and we decided to recreate the vine and I ended up with a caution." He says. "I still have a copy of the video."

"When you were arrested did the person behind the camera say Mary , is that a police?" I ask him.

"Ghost. You astonish me more and more everyday. Who would know that you're familiar with meme culture?" Will asks me, jokingly. I laugh. There's nothing more amusing than dead vine references (sarcasm, of course). Suddenly, I realize that we've reached Will's house.

"Is this the part where I walk you up to the door and kiss you on the porch while your parents give disapproving looks through the window?" I ask him, joking. Will blushes at the mention of kissing.

"Actually my parents aren't home." He says quietly.

"That has got to be one of the most popular lines used in romance novels. After it's spoken, the main characters always end up sleeping in the same bed because they'll argue over the couch and they'll wake up in the morning hugging each other." I say, frowning.

"So, do you want to come in?" Will asks me.

"Oh, definitely." I say. Will laughs.

Will unlocks the front door and we step inside at the same time. The lights are all off, hiding my blush. I try to compose myself before Will turns them on, closing the front door behind him. "I- uh... I don't wish to impose or anything but I was wondering whether I could bother you for a little longer than you've probably planned." I ask Will.

"Sorry, what? I don't speak genius Summer." Will says. I smile but then I realise that Will called me by my actual name. Strangely enough, I don't mind, the sincerity in Will's voice making me shut myself up.

"Oh sorry. I wasn't thinking. It's just weird calling you Ghost all the time because you... Well, matter to me." Will says and this time he's the one who can't hide his blush. I laugh.

I guess I care for Will too. Probably more than he cares for me and probably more than I should. Not that I would ever admit that to him.

"I guess I don't entirely loathe your company." I joke and Will raises his eyebrows. "Oh shut up." I add quickly, noticing his expression and I kiss his cheek unexpectedly, running my hand through his golden hair.

Damn, where did that sudden confidence come?

Will's cheeks flush even more (as do mine) as he looks at me, slightly confused. After a couple of seconds, a wide grin erupts on his face and turns away to hide it.

Cute.

I smile, noticing how I affected him. "So, do you want to work on the project?" I ask him, trying to mimic the most serious face I could think of. Will's smile falls like a ton of bricks and I laugh after I can't hide it any longer.

It's not long until Will starts laughing too.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"A strawberry Nesquick for the lady." Will says, handing me a pale pink drink in a clear glass. I accept it.

"Wow, you really know how to make a girl feel special." I say, laughing. I take a sip from the straw and Will sits down next to me on the sofa.

"I've been told that it's one of my specialities." Will says, smiling. We clink glasses, as if we're drinking champagne.

"To happiness, and the hope that a specific friend of mine's no-no square falls off." Will says and I laugh.

"That's under the assumption that there's something to fall off anyway." I say and Will chokes on his strawberry milk. I smile.

"Maybe we should stop talking about my friend's... you know." Will says, looking awkward.

"No-no square?" I tease him, quoting his words.

"Yes~" Will begins but I cut him off.

"Wait, why do they call it a no-no square? It's not square-shaped, right?" I tease Will again. He blushes, looking a bit uncomfortable and flustered.

"I- uh... What?" Will says, his cheeks pink-ish.

Oh God, did I break Will Nox?

Will is seemingly reduced to a state a monosyllabic answers so I decide to stop teasing him. I have to admit, it's rather fun to not be on the receiving end of teasing and seeing Will all flustered is just an added bonus. I don't even want to admit to myself about how cute he looks when he's blushing and wide-eyed.

"How are you so innocent? You are Will Nox, not an imposter, right?" I ask him, genuinely curious.

"I don't think innocent is the correct term. It's more of a privilege thing." He says, visibly uncomfortable, gesturing to all of the expensive furniture.

"Ah." I say awkwardly.

Will winces when he notices my expression. "I wouldn't like to think that I'm a terrible person." He says, looking at all of the expensive items surrounding us.

"I wouldn't think that you're a terrible person either. It's quite the contrary actually." I say, putting down my glass on a coaster.

"Really?" He asks me.

"I mean, your friends are assholes but you're okay, I guess." I say with a smirk.

"On the topic of friends, are you ever going to tell me who your friend was?" Will changes the topic.

I sigh.

"My first ever and only friend was this girl called Jasmine. We were inseparable since nursery. We both liked the exact same things, whether it was music or books. In the last year of middle school she was diagnosed with leukaemia." I say, trying to keep my voice steady.

"Is she..." Will begins to ask but trails off.

"I wouldn't know." I say. "Her parents took her to get treated abroad a few years later after she felt as if she weren't herself anymore. As if she were just her cancer and nothing else. A host. She told me that her doctor said that she only had until Christmas. That was two years ago." My hands start shaking.

"I shouldn't have asked, I'm sorry." Will says softly.

"It's alright. I could sprout some poetic bullshit about how part of me belives that she's still alive, but I'm not strong enough to believe that. I just prefer not to think at all." I say, staring anywhere other than Will.

"She told me how stupid she thought it was. How cancer just wants to live and by infecting her, it was killing itself. Because if she died, it would too. And she told me how unjust of a victory that was. Where both of them lose and how it was like no one ever wins." I continue.

"And what do you think?" Will asks me, propping his head up, his elbow against the arm of the sofa.

"I think that everything's all temporary. But that doesn't mean that while we live our lives, we've already lost." I say.

Will hums. "That's probably the most positive thing I've heard you say." He says.

"Oh, shut up and drink your nesquik." I joke and we laugh.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Okay... Never have I ever flirted with someone?" Will asks me.

I drink from my nesquik and he drinks from his. "Summer!" Will pushes my arm gently. "How scandalous!" He says with a smirk.

"I was seven." I say.

"So... who was it?" Will asks me.

"Itmayormaynothavebeenthispersonthat~"I stutter quickly and Will interrupts me.

"Woah, woah, slow down. Who do you think you are? The roadrunner?" Will asks me.

"Sorry." I mutter.

"Okay, try again, Sonic." Will asks me with a smirk.

"I may or may not have flirted with someone to make them physically uncomfortable because they annoyed me." I say with a sigh.

"Do I know this person?" Will asks me.

"There's a very high chance that they're one of your current friends." I say honestly. Will's eyebrows shoot up and he tenses.

"I did successfully succeed in making him move away from me if you're wondering." I say before he can make any assumptions. Will relaxes a bit.

I laugh when I notice his sudden expression change, from tense to calm. I think I may have succeeded in making Will Nox jealous.

..........................................................
Hi, how are you guys?

I know, I'm kind of a terrible author and the last time I updated was about ten years ago, but I've been busy with exams and, well, procrastinating.

'Jasmine' is actually based on one of my previous teachers, who was diagnosed with a rare form of blood cancer a few years ago. I last saw her back in 2019, when she told me that she only had until Christmas to live. The treatment was too expensive and she was denied from it, because of her age (she was around 60). Which is why I've created her in this universe as a younger person. So at least her character will have a chance to survive.

She told me that she had lived a full life but I can't help but feel bad because no one remembers her. And I want her to be remembered. Even if it's in a pretentious romance on Wattpad, it's like she's carrying on.

~CatlikeG 🖤