the awful edges where you end and i begin
It is senior year of high school, there is a serial killer on the loose, and Will Solace is devastatingly in love with his boyfriend.
Rated: Teen and Up
3,249 Words
Read it on AO3
@solangeloweek Monstrous March Day 5: Humans- The Real Monsters (btw thank you for the great prompts all this week! I adored them in case that wasn’t obvious haha)
Will woke up on Tuesday morning, exhaustion rooted deep in his bones. Exhaustion then quickly turned to panic when he looked at the clock on his bedside table and realized it was 10 am, which meant he was officially late for school. He jumped out of bed and ran to the bathroom, but not before slamming into the door frame, still slightly disoriented from just waking up.
“Will, hon,” he heard his mom call out, clearly hearing the commotion. “No school today. You didn’t oversleep.”
“What do you mean no school? Why?” Will asked, not quite believing his luck. He was supposed to present a project during first period, and if he had missed it, he would have been screwed. “Oh wait. Another one?” Will asked, in the middle of squeezing toothpaste onto his toothbrush. His mom appeared in the bathroom doorway and nodded. She looked tired, Will noted, the circles under her eyes no doubt more purple than usual due to what had been happening in their town. His mom was always a worrier, ever since Will was young.
“A student from your school. A sophomore, Kelly?” Will’s mom said, tilting her head and squinting her eyes like it would make her remember the details better. “I’m sure you didn’t know her.”
Names didn’t come easily to him, but Will knew who his mom was talking about. “That’s a shame. Not shocking that they canceled school, though. There’s been more and more murders recently,” Will commented. He thought of all of the headlines in the local paper that loudly proclaimed that everyone was working overtime, trying to figure out who was the killer in town. “Do they have any leads?”
“No. It doesn’t seem that way,” Will’s mom replied. “But you know how it is. They don’t tell us anything in the papers.” She went over to Will and ran her fingers through his hair. She gazed at him softly, the tiniest hint of a smile on her face. “I know you’re practically grown up, a high school senior who’s going to be off to some college in less than a year. But be careful out there. I don’t know what I would do if something happened to you.”
“Yes mom,” Will said, smiling fondly at how his mom worried about him, even after all this time. It was endearing. He loved his mom. “I’m going to take today to study, but after that I’m gonna see if Nico is around. He said yesterday that he found a new band he wanted to show me. If that’s okay with you,” Will added, understanding if she felt apprehensive about letting him go out, even if Will knew he would be distraught if he couldn't see Nico.
“Yes. But, don't be out too late, and let me know where you are. All of this stuff happening is really making me unsettled.” Will understood completely where she was coming from. Will promised, before giving his mom a hug. He knew she had nothing to worry about. He would be fine.
* “Can you believe it?” Nico asked later that day, shoving his hands into the pockets of his oversized jacket. “Another murder. This is craziness.” It was so cold out, Nico's breath swirled around him, his nose starting to flush red.
Will wrapped his soft red scarf tighter around his neck, the howling wind abnormally strong and bone chilling for only November. “It is a really big change. It was never like this here, for as long as I can remember. It’s always been too quiet.”
“It’ll never stop being weird,” Nico confirmed. “I know I’m still relatively new here, but every other place I lived in was never like this, even in some of the cities I lived in. I mean, it’s been three people since last week and it’s not like this place is big.” The two of them walked past the looming cathedral in town, dark and towering over the pine trees. The bells tolled, telling them it was 3:45 pm, the sound making the two of them jump. They locked eyes, before giggling at themselves.
Nico sighed, shaking his head at their skittishness, before continuing on. “And the fact that it was Kelly. I mean, I just saw her yesterday, Will. She was sitting across the room from me in art class. And yeah, she wasn’t the nicest person to me, but hearing she’s dead is downright creepy.”
Will gritted his teeth, thinking about how Nico had told him last week that Kelly had laughed at Nico’s art project, something that Will himself had seen and thought was astounding. “It is weird. It doesn’t change the fact that she wasn’t the best person though,” Will said, trying to communicate his true thoughts as nicely as possible. In his opinion, it was better off that Kelly was no longer around.
“True that,” Nico said, raising his eyebrows and giving a nervous laugh in response. “Life will be quieter without her, that’s for sure.” Nico took one of his hands out his pocket and stuck his thumb out in the direction of the cemetery he and Will had come upon. “Wanna take a shortcut? We can go to the diner and get milkshakes before we start studying again.” Will nodded enthusiastically in response, glad to get out of the bitter cold, even if it was by way of passing through the cemetery as the sun was setting lower and lower in the sky. He grabbed Nico’s hand and entwined his fingers into his. Nico squeezed his hand in return. His hands were always frigid, but Will didn’t care.
“You have some brilliant ideas,” Will commented as Nico led the way, past intricate mausoleums and the freshly dug graves of the townspeople who had recently been slaughtered in their formerly sleepy town.
* School arrived the next morning and brought about the usual chatter of students. The typical gossiping was laced with an extra edge that had arrived ever since the serial killing had begun. Girls hung out in clumps, talking in hushed whispers while laughing nervously and jumping at the slightest of noises. The boys acted like packs of feral animals, running down the halls and laughing, slamming lockers and being rowdy, trying to get a rise out of others, ravenous for attention.
Lou Ellen and Cecil were engaged in a heated debate about the killer, spewing off more and more ridiculous theories and beliefs before homeroom, like it was some game. “You guys are too much,” Will commented, silently running through the dates he had memorized for his history exam while he scanned the school crowd for a small figure in a black jacket. He was desperate to see Nico.
“Looking for Nico?” Cecil teased. “You know he barely makes it in time for homeroom. I wouldn’t get your hopes up.”
“He makes me nervous,” Lou Ellen admitted, shifting from one foot to another, a nervous laugh spilling out of her lips. “Something about him is off. No matter how much I talk to him. And he’s great to you, don’t get me wrong. He’s nice and funny and smart. But…” Lou said trailing off. Her silence spoke volumes, all her words unsaid cutting through the quiet like a knife.
Will raised his eyebrows in response, shutting his locker a little too hard. “Biased much? Why? Just because he’s new and quiet, because he’s a little rough around the edges? He’s sweet, Lou. He just looks like he would be the killer, since that is what you are clearly insinuating.”
“I didn’t say he was the killer,” Lou Ellen complained, throwing her hands up. “You’re reading too much into it and putting words into my mouth.” Then, Lou crossed her arms, the slightest hint of a mischievous grin on her face. “You gotta admit it though. He just has that vibe.”
“It’s the bad boy vibe. Even though we all know by this point that he’s a giant dork. He’s even almost as big of a dork as our own William. Speaking of which,” Cecil said, throwing an arm around Will. “Will, I need to borrow your lab packet for today’s dissection in anatomy. I never got around to labeling all of the bones, and I know you have that shit done and perfect.”
“Our future surgeon,” Will heard a new voice say. He felt a huge smile break out on his face before he turned around to see Nico. His hair was wild (he definitely hadn’t run a brush through it) and his clothes were slightly rumpled, but he was grinning, clutching two cups of coffee. He held one out to Will. “Sorry. I know I promised you that I’d try coming earlier to school. I made it before homeroom though! And I got you a coffee, which is why I was so late. You wouldn’t believe the line.”
“You’re perfect,” Will said, feeling his heart twist a little, like Nico had personally stuck his hand into Will's chest and grabbed his beating chambers. He took the coffee Nico was offering and kissed Nico on the lips, letting it linger for longer than what was probably appropriate in school. “My hero.” Nico smiled in response, before grabbing Will’s free hand. The two of them walked down the hall towards their homerooms, bumping shoulders and chatting incessantly, as if it had been more than 10 hours since they had last seen each other. Will knew that he would never grow sick of Nico's attention, that he would spend the rest of his life clinging onto Nico, refusing to let him go.
“What about the lab packet?” Cecil called after Will, which Will ignored. Cecil could figure out the answers on his own.
* The news of the next murder came two days later. It was an older man, Mr. Hunt, who lived two streets over from Will. He didn’t know much about the old man, not really running in the same circles as him. All Will knew about him when he was living was that he saw Mr. Hunt grocery shopping sometimes, saw him once in a while at the local drugstore or the post office. He’d seen him the week prior when he and Nico went to go grab snacks before their movie marathon. He’d given them a pointed glare, probably because they were holding hands and loudly debating salt and vinegar chips versus sour cream and onion chips in the middle of the aisle.
“He’s been around for forever. My dad says he's always been living here in that same house, even when my dad was a kid. The guy has never left town, a permanent fixture, and now he’s just gone,” Cecil commented. Will, Lou Ellen, and Cecil were sitting around on a park bench, waiting for Nico to arrive so they could all get pizza and work on a class project together. Nico had left school early for a doctor’s appointment, but texted Will that he was done and on his way. Will hoped he would hurry up soon. He was starving and the wind stung as it whipped around.
“It’s horrible. He was an old, lonely man. I heard that he was sliced up, almost beyond recognition,” Lou replied, shuddering. “Of course, I heard that from Piper who heard that from Jason who heard that from Leo who heard that from someone whose sister works in the morgue. So maybe that’s an exaggeration.”
“It is,” Will said, rolling his eyes at how absurd and hyperbolic that story sounded. People always talked and were usually wrong. “And he wasn’t always nice. He was old and probably not the most progressive guy. He definitely gave me and Nico a bad stare once or twice when he saw us holding hands. And who knows what he thought about other people.” Will shook his head. “Either way though, yeah. It’s a change for this town.”
“It’s scary,” Cecil commented, before pausing and opening his mouth again. “So, who do you think is next?”
“Cecil!” Lou Ellen exclaimed, lightly hitting him. “What kind of question is that?”
“A valid one! Listen, I’m trying to connect the dots and there’s just no real common denominator that I can see. I’m wondering if an outside perspective is what I need to crack this,” Cecil said. “What kind of award do you think I would get for solving this case?”
“You’re sick,” Lou replied, just as Nico briskly walked up to the trio.
“Hey guys. Sorry, I’m late,” Nico said, his cheeks flushed red and eyes bright. The wind was blowing in his face, making his hair pushed back and feathered out around him like a dark halo behind his head. Will thought that Nico looked angelic in the low afternoon sun. “I tried to get here as quickly as I could.”
Will stood up and wrapped his arms around Nico, wanting nothing more than to get as close to Nico as he could. He squeezed Nico for a few seconds, wishing he never had to let go. “You’re fine. Let’s go get some pizza. I’m so hungry.” All talk of Mr. Hunt left Will's mind, his thoughts focused entirely on his boyfriend, drinking in his being.
* Nico and Will sometimes had a bad habit of sneaking out of their respective houses to visit the other. Usually it was after a bad day, or when it was a Friday and they had no school the next day, or when one of them was feeling lonely. Or at least, that was how they justified it at first. It quickly evolved into the two of them creeping through the shadows to spend the night wrapped around each other. Now, Will just kept his phone’s ringer on when he put it down for the night, waiting for Nico’s text that he was coming over, a text that came two or three times a week at this point.
That night, Will got a text just as he put on his pajamas. He smirked and gave Nico the okay to swing by, unlocking and opening up his window for Nico to slink through.
“What would your dad say if he knew you were sneaking out?” Will teased, a little breathlessly after kissing Nico so hard on the lips when he crawled through Will’s window.
Nico rubbed his lip where Will had nipped him while they were kissing and rolled his eyes in response. He got down and began to unlace his combat boots. “He’d have to be around more for him to notice,” Nico replied, his voice laced with the slightest bit of resentment. He stood up and shrugged off his jacket, before diving into Will’s bed, face down.
“Fair enough,” Will responded, thinking of Nico’s hardworking but incredibly absent father. Will sat down next to Nico and rubbed his back in small circles, attempting to provide comfort to Nico. He seemed more tense than usual, more tightly wound. Nico eventually turned his head so he could look at Will.
Will didn’t think he was someone who was easily struck into silence. He felt like he was good with people, and easily talked to anyone about most anything. Charming even, if he really gave it a shot. Looking at Nico, however, made Will lose all ability to think straight.
He was beautiful, a dream come to life. Dark hair contrasted against his skin, his eyes gorgeous and expressive, his lips pink and soft. Will loved the slope of his nose, Nico’s slender hands, the edges of his body where Will felt he fit in perfectly, like two puzzles clicking into place, made only for each other. Will didn’t know how he lived, how he loved before Nico. Being with Nico made Will feel more alive than basically everything else did. He could feel his heart pounding in his chest whenever Nico said his name, and feel the blood coursing through his veins whenever Nico laughed. Touching Nico was like injecting straight electricity into nerves, his touch all but setting Will aflame. Nico made him dizzy and lovesick, exhilarated and intoxicated all at once. He wanted to spend forever with Nico and no one else. Will would go to the ends of the world for Nico, he would do anything for him, and he wouldn’t have it any other way.
Will laid down next to Nico and coiled his arms around him. Nico accepted it and moved in close, melting into Will’s touch. Will just held on tighter, convinced that he would never be close enough to Nico to satisfy his craving for him. He would live inside him if he could, and it still would never be close enough.
They stayed like that for a few hours cuddling and speaking in whispers, while the moonlight leaked into Will’s bedroom. It sprawled across Nico, making his long eyelashes form shadows on his cheek. Eventually, Nico yawned and Will smiled, adoring the way Nico’s nose scrunched up when he yawned. “Someone’s sleepy,” Will teased and Nico gave him the finger in response. “I’ll let you go. I know you have a quiz first period tomorrow.”
Nico groaned, but stood up. “Did you have to remind me?” He complained as he laced up his shoes. Once he finished, Nico stood up straight, leaning up to kiss Will softly on the lips. “I’ll see you tomorrow?” Nico asked, a gentle, tender smile on his lips.
“Always,” Will confirmed, pulling Nico in close for another kiss. Nico climbed out of Will’s window and waved once more, before turning and stalking into the woods.
Will watched Nico until he blended in with the shadows, before sighing. God, he was head over heels for Nico. Will finished getting ready for bed, brushing his teeth and going over the different elements on the periodic table that he needed to know for his quiz in Chemistry. He wasn’t too worried about it. It was more of a precaution at this point. Will was more than acing all his classes, but he didn’t want to start screwing that up now, right after he had finished all of his college applications. Pre-med track was no joke.
Though Will was tired beyond belief, he had one thing left to do before bed. Will sat down at his desk and pulled out that day’s newspaper from his desk drawer. He had stolen the newspaper out of the recycling bin when his mom left to go grocery shopping after dinner and shoved it upstairs, eager to look at it later.
The front page was a whole spread dedicated to the murders in town. There were theories about who was behind it all, ghosts, serial killers, teens with too much free time on their hands, degenerates who would contribute nothing to society but destruction and death. Will smiled a little while he carefully cut it out, his hands practiced and used to making easy, straight cuts at this point, even when they were shaking. It was funny seeing how wrong the police and media had it. They would never get the killer. They couldn’t be more off base.
Once the story was clipped out, Will pasted it into the scrapbook he had bought from the dollar store a few months ago. He admired how the new addition looked, before shutting the book and hiding it back in the drawers under his bed. Will went to bed with a satisfied smile on his face, falling asleep within seconds of his head hitting the pillow.
