Picture of Baby Will - don't hate on him for being scared guys

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William's P.O.V.

Space. I'd asked for space and that's exactly what I got. 

I hadn't spoken to Damon for almost two weeks now and every day which passed by only drove the seed of regret deeper to cast out the fledgling of doubt that'd put me in this position in the first place.

The regret didn't come from asking for time apart, I didn't regret that because I'd needed it. It'd given me the room to see that I was too careless with Damon, too reckless with my emotions whenever he entered the equation. My precautions were put to bed with him which was both a thrilling and dangerous way of living, but in the end, I had too many scars to add another one to the collection.

The contrition, in fact, came with the clarity that allowed me to see that I had handled the situation poorly. It raked at my conscious to know that I completely disregarded Damon's feelings on the case, barely letting him get a few words out before I'd shut the door in his face through my desperation to protect myself. 

With time, my alarm bells to grew quiet allowing realization the chance to seep in to completely grasp the state I'd left him in by pushing him away. Something was going on with his family and I pushed him away when he needed me because, at that moment, I needed me and that had to come first.

Didn't it?

It confused me, trying to decide between allowing myself to feel remorse for protecting myself over someone I barely knew, but who I was growing to need at a faster rate than I thought imaginable.

I needed to talk to Damon.

I knew that I wanted that... yet I hadn't. It was quite simple that talking would clear the stagnant air that had been left between us, a distance I created. And it wasn't as if it'd be hard to talk to him, he was across the hall, not even two steps away. I still heard him going in and out of his apartment every now and again, so it wasn't like he wasn't there.

I needed, wanted, to talk to him once more and hear his voice caressing my ears as they'd done so frequently only a few weeks ago when we were living our own personal fantasy. He'd coiled his way around my heart and set up camp in my life, his absence blaring too loud to pretend any differently. Yet I couldn't imagine us going back to that blissful state which seemed to be blanketed by ignorance with the harsh reality that greeted me without Damon at my back. 

All of these worries excluding the probability that Damon's feelings or thoughts had altered during our time apart, I'd pushed him away. I couldn't blame him if the time apart gave him the clarity to move in a different direction, to someone who wasn't trapped behind razor wires that pricked him every time he tried to reach me. I couldn't blame him, but I still begged everything that would listen that he hadn't, hoped he'd still want me the way I wanted him.

I was such a selfish person.

I sigh tiredly as I walk with Sassy who was pulling at her leash, trouting lightly as she led the way home after yet another uneventful day of work. Like much of time at home, at work, I simply went through the motions, doing the tasks I needed to with a mind a million miles away.

My mind always drifted to Damon, whether I liked it or not. It either graced me with memories of our evenings together which always left me feeling emptier than when the day started, or I'd be thinking of how I could bring us back together. Nothing seeming right, not with the way I left things.

There were parts of me which wanted to beg Damon for forgiveness, but others that rebuked that thought knowing that I'd have regretted not pulling back some if I hadn't. I didn't know what to think or to even say if I came face-to-face with him, the only thing I was certain of was that I just wanted to be in his arms again.

The space, though helpful in its own right, only led to the expanse of darkness which inhabited my life to encompass me further.

Entering the lobby of my complex, I head straight for my mailbox. Sassy waits patiently as I unlock the small box and pull out all the mail I let pile up too often. It was wasted paper seeing as I couldn't see much of the written task, and any and all important mail came electronically where I could enlargen in to accommodate my vision. Yet, printed copies always found their way to my doorstep.

I pause when my fingers trail across a large, brown envelop that was light as a pen. I let my fingers squeeze gently at the corners of it to try and guess what was inside, my sense of touch providing me with an image of a vinyl record in my mind. 

My frown only deepens at this, confusion stemming in my mind at what felt to be and only could be, a record in my hand. I hadn't ordered any new ones recently and Blue always gave me any he wanted to in the store on my way out, I play with the envelope in my hands as I look around. Perhaps I'd missed a shipment or it was one that came late, but that was unlikely.

Locking back the small casing, I go to the receptionist who looks up at me with an expression I couldn't read and judging7 by her posturing, one I didn't want to even if I could.

"I think I got someone else's mail," I say handing over the envelope. "Can you just tell me the name on the package?"

"William Evans." She reads out holding the package loosely in her grasps before looking back to me. "Are you not William Evans?"

"I am," I confirm as she hands me back the envelops, casting her gaze back to her computer and ending the conversation in a single sweep.

I stand idly for a moment longer, wanting the issue to be explained and dealt with for me. When she raises her head once more, I slip out of my dazed state to make my way to the elevator and away from her angered gaze. With the rest of my mail under my arm and the unknown delivery in my right hand, I make my way up to my floor before stepping off the lift.

Walking to my room, I slow as I look to Damon's shut door. Standing still, I watch it foolishly, fingers curling with the urge to knock as I stare at it, willing it to swing open. But it didn't and I wasn't brave enough to knock first, so instead, I open my own door and close it behind me.

I slip my shoes off, resting my bag on the floor before making my way to my kitchen. I let the mail and the unknown package slide onto my breakfast table where it would wait until I got something in my stomach.

I pull my two fridge doors open and sigh sadly when I find it practically empty, I hadn't made a grocery run since the last time I went and discovered it was a lot less fun than it was with Damon. It wasn't really excited to pay the place another visit after standing in front of the rack of spices for twenty minutes, unable to do much of anything besides remembering.

So it seemed like I'd be ordering in, yet again.

I let the doors shut, encapsulating the chilled air as I slip my phone from my pocket. I click on the microphone icon and part my lips to speak, only to come short of words when my eyes trail over the blurred, brown envelope which sat on top of the rest of my mail. 

I set my phone down, studying it for only a moment more before I allow my grappling curiosity to take me hostage. Grabbing a small knife from one of the draws, I pick up the small package on my way to my record player, cutting open the sealed package with a small knife, pulling out a vinyl record as I expected. 

There were no graphics in the center for me to try at guessing at an artist or album, it was just a bold red that made me smile a little. 

I place the record I'd been playing this morning into its case and slip the unknown product into place, gently resting the tonearm into place. I turn up the volume and take a few steps back waiting for it to begin. 

Fateful News - Luke Richards (replay if you can)

"Hey Will, it's me, Damon," My entire body goes absolutely rigid at the sound of Damon's voice. "I know this may seem a little strange and sudden, but this seemed like the best way for me to talk to you. You said you needed some time apart and I-I get that, so you can stop this and listen to it whenever you're ready. But I thought if I put it like this, then... I don't know... I just hope you give it a chance."

I take slow steps towards the innocent machine as if it was Damon himself but I knew it wasn't. Heart racing and blood pumping at the sound of his voice after being apart for too long. My skin tightens over my skin as I sink onto the arm of my couch, the force of just how much I'd truly missed him, locking me in place with no other choice but to listen.

"There are just some things I want to explain to you Will and others I want to apologize for, hopefully, you get this and listen to what I have to say. I know I don't deserve to ask that much of you, but I hope you'll give me a chance here.

Well um, first of all, I want to say sorry." He says before releasing an audible breath. "That day... that day I let you down and I'm sorry Will, Goddess I messed up on so many accounts. I'm sorry. I wasn't trying to hide you, h-honest, I just had a... a bad moment when the things I left behind came back and it surprised me. I know you think it was me rejecting what we were, what we are, but it's not. I promise you it's not. I have two dads and too many gay siblings to count, there's no reason for me to reject who I am with you because it's who I am. But I did, in a way, and I-I'm sorry."

A few moments of silence pass as if he was allowing time for me to take in his words while he gathered more to follows.

"I'm also sorry for leaving you alone, for letting you leave on your own. I know it was your choice to go, but I shouldn't have let you. Not when I knew about your challenges at night, not with the memory of the first night, I should've known better. You may not think I need to apologize for that, but I do. I was the one who brought you out and then I wasn't there when you needed me... so I'm sorry. I'm sorry for not being there for you when you needed me, I-I wish... I wish I hadn't hurt you the way I did. I didn't mean to and I'm so sorry that I did."

I let his words sink in, the apology too honest to ignore or call it anything other than what it was. It should've made me feel better but it only made me feel more guilt, hearing him so distressed making my own hurt seem inadequate in comparison to the raw hurt so clear in his voice.

My fingers claw over the fabric of the couch, gripping it for strength which seemed to be spilling from my body with every passing moment. My breaths come out shaky and strained as I listen on, eyes shut to filter everything else out and just listen to Damon's sweet voice and the words that ran along with it.

"I said I'd explain some things and I will, to the best of my ability here. There some things I'd rather tell you in person, some things I want to tell you to your face... if you ever let me." The last part comes out as a muffled whisper that tears at the strings of my heart, begging me to find Damon in this instant and assure him that I could never let him go. "I think the first thing I should tell you is that my family is very important to me. There's nothing in this world that I love more than my family and all my life, I've always put my family first, before myself because that's just how I was made I guess. 

I've got two amazing dads, three awesome brothers, and one kickass little sister. We're a happy family, crazy and dysfunctional, but happy. It's always been a happy family and I have always loved being a part of it, I couldn't ask for any better. But..um, some things happened recently, before I met you, and it kind of destroyed all of that for me."

I tense at the sound of Damon clearing his throat, his tone losing its natural edge as emotion begins to weigh it down, making it creak and croak in certain areas.

"So I left." He reveals and as I opened my eyes, I could almost picture the sad smile he'd wear to try and mask the hurt behind his words. "I wasn't really in a good place after that, leaving seemed to be the best option, but it didn't feel like it... felt worse than staying because, for the first time in my life, I was on my own. 

Things were hard Will, they were really, really hard... I didn't really see an out for me that didn't seem to end with anything other than anger and sadness. Things were falling apart, everything was falling apart, not just my family but my home and it didn't really f-feel like home anymore ya know... it hadn't for a while. 

I wasn't happy...

...and then I met you." A small smile tugs at my wobbling lips as my eyes begin to fill, the sound of his helpless chuckle sending shockwaves through me. "I met you and everything just clicked. Goddess, Will I don't know where I'd be right now if you hadn't come into my life when you do, but I'll be forever grateful that you did. Because with you... y-you brought joy back into my life in a way I hadn't experienced for a long time. Will with you it was like if I could breathe again because you were there and you actually liked me." 

I wipe at my tears as he takes in a shaky breath, small sniffs coming from the speakers before he gathers himself to continue.

"Nobody likes me Will, not really. I know my family loves me and I have friends who like to be around me, but nobody really likes me. But you don't mind the knives, you tell me I'm amazing when I know I'm not and you smile at me as if I could never do a single wrong in your eyes and you have no idea how that along makes it just a little easier.

You make everything easier. You showed kindness to me when you didn't have to and held me close when nobody else would. 

And I hurt you... which is something I always promised myself I'd never do. I know you've gone through some things which makes it hard for you to open up and I know what I did put that all at risk. But I promise you, Will, I will never hurt you the way others have before and I will protect you the way you protect me... because I need you more than you can ever imagine."

I slide further down against the chair as my muscles lax in my frame, leaving me feeling somehow full and empty at the same time. Damon's words casting new emotions rippling throughout me while banishing all that threatened to dismiss them. My heart soars within its prison as I listen on for more, Damon's voice lightening as if he were wearing a smile.

"There's so much I want to share with you and so much I want to show you," He says sounding genuinely excited. "I'll have to go home soon, I can't keep hiding from what I left behind and those who hurt me before. It hurts but they're my family, and I'll never stop loving them. 

But I won't leave until I fix things with you." He declares with so much strength in his voice it took the air from my lungs. "I've always put my family first, my home first, everyone first and I can't help it because I love to see everyone else around me happy... that's what has always made me the happiest in this world. 

But that's changed recently. Someone very important told me that I should try to take something for me, something that makes me happy... and that's you, Will. You are what makes me happiest in this world. Please believe me when I tell you that you, William Evans, you are my happiness. So I'll wait as long as I have to because I am not going to give you up."

And they have escaped the weight of darkness - Olafur Arnalds

I rush to lift the tonearm, letting the spinning record come slow itself as I switch off the machine. My hands grip either side of the small table as I pant heavily, a constant stream of tears pouring from my eyes as I struggle to piece it all together. Damon's words circling through my mind as if on repeat.

You are my happiness.

Those three words alone seemed to stand out to me in the crowd of apologizes, explanations and tenderly crafted promises that left me to soar with the ache to be with him. Doubt tried to play a telling hand once more as my heart urged me to go to its other half. Past afflictions trying to cave me in as my heart swooned at the care that no other showed me that Damon did, his words taking flight inside of me.

You are my happiness.

I chuckle helplessly as I wipe my tears away, opening my eyes to find the blurred vision that had struck my life into an unrecognizable cast of sadness and sorrow that had kept me locked up in a chamber of solitude. One that hid in the shadows until Damon, who'd come in and shone his light without even knowing just how bright he truly shone.

I wipe at the tears, my cheeks wet and stained with the undeniable truth that even my most fearful thoughts couldn't shut away. 

Damon was my happiness.

It was Damon who made me smile after months of heartache, Damon who made me laugh after weeks of tears and Damon who held me when the touch of anyone else terrified me. 

Damon who went out of his way to keep me happy, Damon who walked me home after work, Damon who cooked me dinner and breakfast and anything that my heart desired.

Damon who took Sassy for walks when I couldn't even though she hated him, Damon who promised to make me my own special knives to match his, Damon who read books out loud for me. Damon who never touched me first but waited for my consent instead. Damon who was always there for me.

It was Damon who had given me my happiness back and Damon who had become my happiness in turn.

I push my negative thoughts away, all shadows of doubt which tried to overpower me at this moment. I pushed it all away as I steady myself and headed straight for the door. Pulling it open, and knocking on the opposite door before I could think against it.

My breathing comes out labored and rushed as I wait, chest tightening against my racing heart as nerves trickle in through the fog of need and want that made it impossible to spend even a minute longer without Damon.

The door pulls open to reveal a blurred image of the man I was without a doubt falling for, my mouth locks as anxiety triples its way through my bloodstream, heart freezing in its place but it was all feeble when going up against the absolute elation that filled me at the sight of him. 

Being this close to him after too much time apart made the tears come even faster as he stood waiting, waiting for me to take the first step because he would always wait for me to make the first move. 

I jump into his arms taking him by surprise and making him stumble back a bit as he holds me to him, my arms latch around him as shockwaves ripple through me at the feel of him against me. The feeling of his skin against me, the sweet aroma that he carried with him, the overwhelming warmth of him all combine to fill my body with a firework display of bliss within my heart.

A feeling which only grows when Damon wraps his arms around my waist after a stunned moment of hesitation, he pulls me close and then tighter against him. Burying his face into my neck he breathes me in as he leans into me, my feet stay off the ground as I let myself get swept in his care and comfort.

Neither of us says a single word as we soak in one another's warmth, my body finally settling from its state of discomfort that'd formed since our parting. My tears flow freely with the weight of it all, Damon's words and his presence, too much to bear but somehow not enough at all. My body rakes me small sobs as he keeps me to him, as promising to never let me go even if I tried to run.

Resting me on my feet, I'm forced to untangle myself from Damon as he pulls back to look at me, his deep blue eyes swirling clearing at the contact allowing me to see the man I'd grown to care for before I could catch up with my own heart.

He holds my face close, his larger hands holding me in place while his thumbs wipe away my tears while his flowed freely. Those beautiful blue eyes hold me captive, as he studies me with both terror and complete happiness, his lips spreading in a wavy smile.

"I'm sorry." He whispers and I shake my head quickly to rid him of any more apologies.

"I know you are Damon, you don't have to apologize anymore," I assure him as I rest my smaller over his, gripping onto them like the lifeline that they were. "I know you didn't mean it, I forgive you."

The words seemed to be the trigger to break down his barely standing walls of fright as his deep blues glaze over with more tears that topple over without permission. He pulls me back into him, holding me even tighter as his body trembled against mine, relief so great it swept into me as I clung to him. 

"It's okay Damon, I know you didn't mean to hurt me," I say gently against his collarbone as my fingers sweep into his hair. "I'm sorry that I didn't see that earlier."

"I'll be better." He promises against my skin. "I promise, I'll be better."

"You don't have to be," I reply holding him tighter to me. "You're already too good," I tell him honestly, smiling slightly at his determination as I press soft, loving kisses to his neck that seems to relax him a bit.

When he's calm down, I pull back enough to press my lips to his. He falls into the kiss as we sink into one another, a hum of contentment pouring out of him as our lips move slowly in a gentle caress that sends electricity pumping through my veins. Our movements aren't rushed, careful and testing as we fall back into the feel of one another that came easily. 

Pulling away, I peck his lips once more before letting my eyes meet him smiling when I find them almost glowing which he smiled back weakly at me.

"Damon..." I start gently, making his deep blues focus directly onto me. I steel myself to tell the truth, knowing he needed to hear the words like I had needed to hear his. "You're my happiness too." 

His smile stretches further across his face, his worry morphing into complete delight as he delivers a doting kiss that makes my head swirl as he claims me as his. He pulls apart all too soon, smile wide on his lips as more tears build in his eyes. Before I can say another word, he picks me up suddenly pulling a squeal from me as he spins me around. His face radiates his joy as he holds me to him through his display of contentment that leaves me laughing desperately in his arms.

I stare down at him, smile transferring to my lips as I watch him in all his glory.

My light.

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They honestly are just..... man fuck.

Thoughts???

I just love them so much it should be illegal how happy their happiness makes me. Like I feel at peace right now, like just let them be great!

I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter, I can't wait to see what happens next with these two. If you have any theories of what's to come, comment them and vote up.

We're coming to the end of the month and soon the Fiction Awards will be over, last time I checked we were 2nd place and we just need to be in the top 3.

So I just wanted to say a HUGE THANK YOU to all you voting desperately for AM.

I love you alllllllllllll and win or lose, I couldn't be happier to have you all as readers, best fucking readers I could ask for. 

Until next time,
Byeeeeeeeeeee Humansssssssssssss and Potato