you and Will fighting and he says something he doesn’t mean then he just feels really bad but you kinda leave for a while than come back angst to fluff
fragile hearts
pairing: will smith x reader summary: an argument that goes too far, and the distance that follows warnings: angst, ends in fluff
wc: 1.6k
the apartment feels unusually still tonight, almost too quiet. the soft hum of the heater is the only sound, mixing with the faint scent of dinner lingering in the air. will is on the couch, sprawled out with his phone in hand, eyes flicking between the screen and the ceiling as if the room itself can't hold his thoughts. you stand in the kitchen, drying a plate with slow, deliberate movements, trying not to notice the way his jaw tightens when you clear your throat.
you've been holding this in all week -- small irritations that have stacked up like invisible bricks. a look that lingered too long on the phone. a half-hearted nod when you tried to talk about your day. a sigh that felt like a wall between the two of you. and now, every breath feels heavier because you can't ignore it anymore.
"will?" you try, voice careful, measured. "can we...talk?"
he glances at you, eyes tired but sharp, and murmurs, "mhm," before returning to the screen. the casual dismissal gnaws at your chest. you take a step closer, gripping the counter like it might give you strength.
"i just feel...distant from you lately," you say, the words trembling on your tongue. "like, i'm trying to connect, and it's like you're not even here."
he lets out a slow breath, rubbing the back of his neck. "i'm tired," he says, voice flat. "can we not do this right now?"
the tension in your shoulders tightens. "not do this?" you whisper. "will, this isn't about timing. this is about us. i feel like you shut me out whenever things get hard."
he looks up finally, eyes flashing with frustration. "i'm not shutting you out! i just…i need space when i get home, okay?"
you set the plate down a little too forcefully, the clatter echoing. "space doesn't mean ignoring me! space doesn't mean pretending i'm invisible!"
will rises from the couch, pacing a little, the muscles in his jaw clenching. "i'm not pretending anything! i'm exhausted. do you know what it's like to be on the ice all day? to have everyone expect perfection? and then come home to...this?"
you take a step closer, heart pounding, anger and hurt warring in your chest. "i don't expect perfection! i just...i need you to notice me. i need you to be here, really here!"
the silence after your words is deafening. will runs a hand through his hair, jaw tight, chest rising and falling faster than it should. "i...maybe i say things i shouldn't," he mutters, almost to himself. "but you...you make it feel like nothing i do is enough."
there's a heavy silence. you're both breathing hard, staring at each other, the air thick with everything left unsaid over the past week -- the little slights, the tiny resentments, the exhaustion that's turned into bitterness.
finally, will mutters, almost bitterly, "maybe if you actually understood how much i do for us -- how much i sacrifice-"
the words cut deeper than any slap could. "what did you just say?" you whisper, voice shaking.
he stops pacing and faces you, his eyes wide, vulnerable. "god, i didn't mean any of it. i'm...i'm such an idiot," he says, voice low, almost breaking. "i just...i get frustrated, and i say stupid things i don't mean."
the knot in your chest tightens further. "i need space," you murmur, stepping back. "i need to breathe."
without another word, you grab your coat and leave, the door clicking softly behind you. outside, the night air bites, sharp against your cheeks. it doesn't matter. you need the space, the cold, the solitude. every step feels like an effort to keep the sting from your eyes.
inside, will collapses onto the couch, shoulders slumped, hands buried in his hair. the panic rises in his chest before he even realises it.
"she's gone," he whispers to himself, voice barely audible.
it's not just leaving the room -- this feels final. his mind races, the words you said echoing over and over. 'i need space. i need to breathe.' the way your voice trembled, the sharp edge of hurt that he can't undo, it all presses down on him. his chest tightens, and for a moment, he can't breathe around it.
what if she…doesn't come back? he thinks to himself, the thought crawling into every corner of his mind. what if i broke her? what if i pushed her too far? he imagines you leaving for good, your coat disappearing into the night, the apartment empty and cold without your warmth.
every mistake he made tonight is amplified in his mind. the words he didn't mean, the frustration that slipped into anger, the defensiveness that he thought was justified -- they all pile up. i could have held it together. i could have said something else. i could have been better. i should have been better.
will curls up on the couch, hugging his knees, the apartment suddenly feeling huge and empty. he thinks about all the times he's messed up before, the times he's let work, stress, or pride get in the way. but this...this feels different. this feels like he's standing on the edge of losing the most important person in his life.
"god...what if i ruined it?" he whispers, voice trembling. his eyes sting as he imagines you walking away forever, your heart breaking because of him. every scenario plays out in excruciating detail -- the worst-case scenario of a life without you, of coming home to an empty apartment, of realising too late that he let you slip through his fingers.
he leans back against the couch, staring at the ceiling, tracing cracks in the paint with his eyes as though it could distract him from the thought of losing you. she might hate me. she might never forgive me. she might...leave me. the word 'leave' feels like a knife, twisting in his chest.
will buries his face in his hands. he mutters apology after apology under his breath, words that aren't meant for anyone but the walls and the heater that hums in the background. "i'm sorry. i'm so sorry. please don't leave me. please...i'll do better. i'll do anything. i just...i love her too much to lose her."
hours pass. the apartment is quiet. every tick of the clock amplifies the dread, the fear of a permanent loss. every empty moment feels like a reminder that he almost destroyed the one thing he loves more than himself.
finally, you walk back into the apartment. dim light filters through the windows, and will looks up immediately. relief and fear ripple across his face.
"you came back," he murmurs, voice low, tentative.
you sit beside him slowly, careful to leave a little distance. "i needed to," you whisper. "but i needed you to feel it too. how it feels when you push me away."
will swallows hard, turning to look at you with wide, desperate eyes. "i know. i hate that i hurt you. i shouldn't have said what i said. i'm so sorry. i...i don't deserve you sometimes, i know that. but i...i want to fix it. i'll do whatever it takes."
he wraps his arms around you, pressing his forehead to yours, voice low and trembling. "i'll do better. i'll listen. i'll be present. i'll fight for us, even when i mess up. i'll do whatever it takes to make it right. please...please don't leave me."
you let yourself lean against him, feeling the weight of his sincerity. his hands rub up and down your back, gentle but desperate, like he's memorising your warmth with every motion.
"i'm here," you murmur.
"i'm so sorry," he continues, voice rough. "i hate that i made you cry. i hate that i made you doubt us. i love you more than anything, and i- god, i just don't want to lose you. i'll do better, i promise. i swear i'll show you how much you mean to me every single day."
he pulls you closer, one arm under your shoulders, one across your waist, resting his chin on the top of your head. "i don't deserve you," he murmurs again. "but i'll spend the rest of my life trying to make it up to you. please...please let me. i'll never stop. you're everything to me."
you press your lips to his temple, feeling the warmth of his body and the sincerity of his remorse. "i know," you whisper.
he lets out a shaky laugh, muffled against your hair. "i'm such a mess," he admits. "but you...you make me want to be better. you make me...me. can i...can i just hold you like this for forever?"
you snuggle closer, and he adjusts so that he's practically wrapping you in a human cocoon. "forever sounds perfect," you murmur.
for the next few hours, the apartment is filled with quiet warmth. he makes little attempts to make you smile -- a soft joke about burning the toast you left from earlier, a playful nudge when you shift too much, clumsy kisses to your shoulder. you laugh quietly, letting the tension dissolve into something tender, something home.
eventually, you rest your head on his chest, listening to the steady beat of his heart. he presses kisses to your hair, murmuring, "i love you. more than hockey, more than anything. i'm never letting you go again."
and for the first time tonight, everything feels right again. the fight, the distance, the fear -- it all melts into warmth, and will holds you like he's finally learned just how precious you are.
a/n: i loveee a good angsty argument fic THANK YOU for the request !!