Hi guys! I want to start out by saying how sorry I am for not posting for April, and how incredibly appreciative I am to have such amazing readers. A bunch of you commented on my last post and I know that I didn't respond to any but I just want to say that I read all of them and they meant a lot to me. I'm doing a lot better and I'm really excited to get back to writing, so here's this week's post!

Nico's POV

He groans quietly when he feels the rays of the sun on his back and he blinks open his eyes, finding himself staring into Will's still face. Nico is still clutching a handful of a blanket to his chest, his legs curled up underneath him. He glances away from Will, craning his neck to see the sky still painted in the colors of the sunrise. Maybe falling asleep at six after eating an entire large pizza by himself had some benefits. He hasn't woken up this early in years.

He turns his head back to Will, watching a strand of hair flutter with each soft breath he takes. For the first time in what feels like too long, his face looks peaceful but the dark bags underneath his eyes are evidence of his late nights staying up studying for his med school classes, long after Nico begs him to come to bed. It's nights like those, the nights where the lamp doesn't turn off until two or three in the morning, Nico feels the strongest worry.

He traces his thumb across Will's cheek, his skin smooth underneath Nico's finger. He doesn't move under Nicos' touch, his shoulders still rising and falling in a steady rhythm with his breaths. Will shifts, tugging at the blanket subconsciously and Nico lets him take it, watch as he gathers it up around his chest and sighs softly. His long fingers curl around it and when Nico inches closer he can see the shadow of his eyelashes on his cheek, the dusting of freckles. Nico loves those things about Will more than anything else, the subtle features of his face that add so much depth, the features that only Nico ever gets close enough to see. Still, the bags underneath Will's eyes make Nico's chest hurt and every time he looks at Will's face, they seem like a stain on a porcelain surface.

He stands up, cracking his back and stretching his arms as far up to the ceiling as they can go. Will bullies him relentlessly for his height, reaching up and touching the low ceiling of their bedroom easily as Nico jumps up and down, struggling to make even the slightest bit of contact. But there are other times Nico doesn't mind his height. It means that, for the most part, he gets to be the little spoon.

He brushes his teeth and splashes water on his face as he listens to the sound of Will sleeping in the adjacent bedroom, hearing the sheets shift around his body. When he looks over Will has somehow managed to take up the entire bed, splayed out like a starfish with a toe hanging over the edge. His face is mashed into the pillow, turned towards Nico with his mouth hanging ajar. Nico smiles before turning around, spitting toothpaste into the bowl and washing it down with water. He tucks the toothpaste back into the cup, straightening the various face washes and moisturizers on the shelf. He washes a fleck of toothpaste off of the side of the bowl, scrubbing it until it's glistening. He's never been one for keeping things neat, preferring the messy bachelor type of living where he can't see the floor after a week but Will likes things neat. Nico knows he'll appreciate it.

He pads to the kitchen, careful to slip silently through their bedroom as Will snores on. Normally he's up earlier than Nico, rummaging around in the kitchen before Nico's body has even thought of the concept of waking up before ten. But the late nights have been doing a number on him, with the end of classes looming ever nearer. It makes Nico's chest pang a tiny bit to watch him drag himself through every day, listening to the tapping of Will's pencil long past the sun has set. So that morning it's Nico who brews the coffee, Nico who sits at the tiny table next to the big window in their apartment, watching the bustle of the city underneath him as he waits for Will.

After his second cup of coffee and more time than he can count scrolling mindlessly through his phone, Nico is starting to realize that it might be a while until Will wakes up. His foot is tapping on the floor in a steady rhythm, the only way he can get the new burst of energy out of his body. He pours his third cup of coffee out of sheer boredom, taking one step and airing out his shirt against his sweaty body. Maybe he should give the caffeine a break, at least at that moment.

He finds himself sifting through the fridge as he keeps his ears turned towards the bedroom, listening for any sounds of life besides snoring and the odd murmur that he can't quite hear. His stomach is growling but he and Will eat breakfast together; it's a perpetual rule, what with Will's hectic schedule between work and school, and Nico's twelve-hour shifts at the bar three days a week. Almost mindlessly he's pulling out eggs and bread and milk, tossing the vanilla and cinnamon onto the counter next to the rest of the ingredients. While he waits, at least he'll have the opportunity to satisfy the strange craving for french toast he's had in the past few days. Not to mention, he knows that Will will appreciate a hot breakfast, with the only other option being cold and slightly stale cereal in one of their chipped bowls. For a while, it's been strange, some days only seeing each other at the very end of the day, when both of their eyes are beginning to close. But this will be a chance, Nico tells himself as he cracks the eggs. This will be a chance to show Will that he loves him.

He's never been a good cook but soon the kitchen smells of cinnamon vanilla, and he hears a soft groan from the bedroom. He lets the french toast simmer in the heat of the oven as he peeks his head into the bedroom, watching as Will pushes himself up, blinking blearily at Nico. His head is sticking up in five different directions on his head, red sleep lines running up and down his arm. When he sits up, the blanket pools around his waist and Nico can see his wrinkled shirt twisted around his body. "Hey," Will says, rubbing his eyes and wincing at the sun streaming through the window. "You're up early."

"Or maybe you're just up late." Nico grins, nodding at the clock. "You're never up past eight." Will squints at the clock, sighing and letting his head drop to his knees, and his face disappears from Nico's view.

"Fuck. I was gonna go for a run this morning." Then, he picks his head up, sniffing at the air. "Is something burning?" Nico feels the blood drain from his face.

"Shit, the french toast." He bolts back to the kitchen, listening to Will laugh softly behind him. He hears shuffling behind him as Will pulls himself out of bed, walking slowly to the bathroom, still trying to rub the sleep out of his eyes. Nico hears the water running as he pulls out the french toast, charred slightly around the edges but the middle is still soft and gooey, just how Will likes it. He slides two pieces each onto plates, filling the rest of the porcelain with strawberries and pouring Will a cup of coffee before he comes into the kitchen, with just a dash of cream and sugar, just how he likes it. He's sitting at the table by the time Will comes out from the bedroom, and Nico feels his heart flutter as he watches a smile spread across Will's face, half confused and half filled with bursting joy.

"Did you make breakfast?" he asks, his eyes moving from the counter that Nico still hasn't cleaned up to the breakfast display on the table to Nico's beaming face, waiting for Will to sit down. "Nico, you didn't have to."

"I know," Nico says, standing up and pulling out the chair, gesturing for Will to sit. "But I was up early and you've been working really hard lately, and I just thought I'd do something nice. You know, to show you I love you."

"Well, thank you," Will says, leaning across the table to plant a kiss on Nico's lips. When they pull apart Nico can see every single detail on Will's face, the faint groove of a dimple and the flecks of green in his bright blue eyes. If he wanted to, he could count Will's freckles. Will takes a bite of his french toast, surprise flashing across his face. "Hey, this is good!"

"You sound surprised."

"I am. Remember that time you tried to make soup?" Nico's face flushes.

"I don't want to talk about when I tried to make soup." Will laughs, a sound that Nico is always grateful for. That's Nico's favorite sound in the world. Nothing else has ever compared.

"So," Nico says, taking a bite of his french toast. Will's right- it's pretty good. He's a little bit surprised at himself. "I was thinking we could do something today. Doesn't have to be big, we could just stay in and binge watch movies, order a pizza. Maybe we can go out for dinner." He nurses his coffee cup, the porcelain warm in his hands. "I feel like we don't do much together anymore."

"Yeah, I know." Will glances down at his plate, pushing around a piece of french toast and watching it absorb the maple syrup. "It's just- I have a massive test next week. I can't do bad." Nico frowns, biting his lip. He was afraid of this.

"It'll be one day," Nico says. "Neither of us is working, and your lecture got canceled, right?" Will nods. "Come on, it's the perfect opportunity. And you've been studying so hard, and you always look so tired." He tries not to look at the bags underneath Will's eyes but it's hard. They're starting to look like twin bruises. "I miss us hanging out, doing stupid stuff on the daily and not caring about anything, none of this adult stuff that takes up so much attention." Twenty-two was a good year. College senior, dating the most beautiful boy in the world, living off of fast food and ramen made with water heated up with one of his friend's hairdryer. Twenty-three hadn't been as good. He and Will had gotten an apartment, an apartment that they needed to pay for and full-time jobs needed to pay. He misses being a kid, him and Will against the world. "Come on." He reaches across the table, giving Will's hand a light squeeze. "You can take one day off." Will runs his tongue along the inside of his mouth, a hint of a smile on his lips.

"Sure," Will says, giving into the smile. He squeezes Nico's hand back and despite all of the times it's happened before, the kisses given and the nights spent curled up next to Will in their bed, Nico gets the same happy shiver he got the first time they held hands. "You're right. I need a break."

"Good. I-I'm really glad, Will." They stay with their hands intertwined in the middle of the table, letting the sun streaming in from the window warm their bodies. The air still smells of vanilla and down on the street, Nico can hear incoherent yelling, horns honking, the general noise of the city that he's grown to love. At that moment he's acutely aware of every detail, of the beating of his own heart, the small callous on Will's hand where he balances his pencil, smooth underneath Nico's touch. He loves the awareness, the power it gives him to see the emotions that are written across Will's face, the happiness and the relief and the love reflected in the way his eyes shine, in the way his smile is more vibrant than it's been in weeks. It's a small thing, to make breakfast and stay inside watching movies curled up next to one another on the couch, legs twisted together and hands clasped together until they become sweaty. But, after dating Will for a year and a half, getting to know Will for a year and a half, growing with Will for a year and a half, he knows it's the little things that really matter the most.

Hi guys, I just want to say again how grateful I am to have such amazing readers and once again thank all of you who commented on my last update, even though I never answered any of them. You all mean the world to me and I couldn't ask for better readers. Anyway, I hope you liked this one!

Nina