Solangelo One Shots

One Final Night

Nico's POV

Nico almost feels bad, with him and Will and Will's three suitcases taking up the space of the elevator. The strap of Will's duffel is digging into his fingers, red lines buckled around them and every time Will turns, his backpack hits Nico in the face. But figuring out how they're going to possibly fit everything into the tiny elevator is better than talking, Nico supposes. Because for the past week the talking has only grown more painful, the conversations stilted, like they were when they first met. It's as if three years of dating had suddenly gone down the drain and they were back at the beginning of their sophomore year when Will's chorus teacher still considered him a soprano and Nico hid in the leather jacket that once swallowed him but now, fit him like a glove. Anything was better than going back to those days.

The elevator dings and, wordlessly, they step onto the fourth floor of the building, already humming with activity and pre-school excitement. They hear laughter coming from inside one of the dorm rooms but there's none of that between Nico and Will; only the tense, charged silence that neither of them is ready or willing enough to break.

They drag the duffel bags down the hallway, past doors cracked open, to reveal freshmen setting up posters, smoothing down their comforter five times over. There's a window between the bathroom and the janitor's closet and Nico pauses to peer out of it, eyes sweeping over the verdant green campus, the bushy trees with select few leaves starting to turn. Nico can see why Will picked it over a New York college, one that would bring Will a mere half an hour away from Nico. The campus is gorgeous, and there's no denying that. "Nico?" Will pauses in his steps, glancing over his shoulder, eyebrows creasing in the middle.

"Yeah, sorry. Coming." He rips his gaze away from the campus, following Will down the hall.

They're standing in front of the door, neither one daring to open it. Opening it will make it feel final; that they are starting college in a few weeks, that Nico really will have to leave Will soon. Will glances down at the floor, running his tongue across the roof of his mouth, bouncing on his knees. Nico watches him, swallowing nervously, waiting for Will to make a move. But he doesn't; he stays, almost completely still, making occasional eyes at the door and suddenly it occurs to Nico that maybe, Will is just as nervous for this as Nico is. "Will?"

"Yeah." Neither of them says another word but still, they both know what the other means. Will lets one of his bags drop to the floor and it thumps as he pushes his dorm room open, the creme walls blank, the bedframes bare. It's so empty, lacks so much character.

"Looks like your roommate isn't here yet."

"Yeah." Will swallows, glancing at the floor. He bends down, wrapping his hand around the strap of his duffel bag, but he waits before picking it up, his back still bowed, his fingers trembling.

"I can't believe it's here. I can't believe you're leaving."

"Yeah, me neither."

"I can't believe it's so far."

"It's a three and a half hour drive to New York."

"Yeah. But it's so far." Will smiles a thin smile that doesn't reach his eyes. It's a sad smile and he bumps his shoulder into Nico's, still staring into the dorm room.

"How about we don't think about that right now."

"How can I not think about that? I'm going to drop your stuff off and then maybe we'll get dinner and then I'll leave and move into college and then it'll start and we won't see each other until break. How can I not think about that?" Will sighs softly, tossing his bags into his room before setting his hand on Nico's back.