+So after that Will leaves before Dakota's sister can say a word. It's really awkward between them and everyone notices especially Dakota obviously. When it's time for everyone to move out she asks if they can talk and they do. She tells him she's in love with him and everything but that she can't do it because she can't hurt her brother like that.
-----------------
i love you, i'm sorry
will horcoff x rhéaume-mullen sister!reader
word count: 0.6k
part five
︵‿︵‿︵‿︵‿︵‿︵‿︵︵‿︵‿︵‿︵︵‿
you're at the end of the year party talking to some baseball player when will comes up to you guys.
"sorry, but we have to go." he tells you, pulling you away from him.
you open your mouth to protest, but he's already dragging you toward the exit, not even giving you a chance to process what's going on. you try to ask him why but he doesn't answer, like he's blocking you out entirely.
by the time you get back to your dorm, the door slams shut behind you, and you spin around to face him, your anger finally catching up with you. "What the fuck is your problem?!"
he flinches slightly at your words, his eyes darting to the floor as he mutters a barely audible, "i'm sorry."
you wait for him to continue and explain why, but it's a while before he says anything else.
"i just.." he trails off, trying to put it into words without making himself seem like a complete asshole. "i just couldn't stand to see you talking to him."
"why?" you ask, crossing your arms over your chest. "since when does it matter to you who i talk to?"
he goes quiet again.
"wil-"
"since i realized i'm fucking in love with you, okay!" he shouts, finally looking up at you but immediately regrets it when he sees your face drop. "i'm sorry. i shouldn't have said that." he tells you, turning towards the door and leaving before you can say anything.
you stand there staring at the door, your heart pounding in your chest, as everything he just said circles in your mind.
︵‿︵‿days later︵‿︵‿︵︵‿
it's the last night before everyone moves out. you and will have been extremely distant with each other since the other night and everyone has noticed, especially dakoda.
you all decided on one more movie night but will can't take the awkwardness anymore and bails early.
you give it a couple minutes before telling them you're leaving to. you walk out and make your way towards will and miles dorm.
you knock but there's no answer. "will, it's me. i know you're in there."
he opens the door but barely. "what?"
"can we talk for a second? please?"
he hesitates for a second before opening the door wider to let you in. "yeah."
you walk in, both of you avoiding eye contact as you sit down on his bed.
"i didn't mean to make things weird between us." will tells you, rubbing the back of his neck.
"i know. you said all that stuff the other night, and i just-"
"you didn't have to say it back," he interrupts quickly. "i didn't expect you to. i honestly didn't even mean to tell you, my emotions were just out of wack and i panicked."
you look down at your hands, starting to mess with your bracelet. "i like you too" you whisper. "but i can't- we can't do this. i don't want to hurt anyone," you continue, the words rushing out of you before you can stop them. "especially dakoda. i'm sorry."
"i don't want to hurt him either. i never wanted to be the guy that messed things up for you, for him, for anyone. but i also didn't want to keep pretending that i didn't feel this way."
"i'm sorry." you repeat.
"i get it, don't worry. i'm not mad at you. i knew this wasn't going to be easy."
you nod, neither of you saying anything for a couple minutes.
"i should probably go," you say, standing up.
he gives you a sad smile. "have a good summer. take care of yourself."
you're missing from movie night, and will immediately notices. he glances around the room and asks, "where's y/n?"
dakoda shrugs. "i don't know. i'll text her."
dakoda: wya?
a couple minutes go by before dakoda gets a response from you.
y/n: sick i just woke up
dakoda:so not coming tn ig
y/n: no :(
dakoda: alright if you need anything lmk
y/n: k
"she's sick. you can start the movie." dakoda tells them all, locking his phone.
will nods, flopping down into his usual lovesac.
he gives it about twenty minutes before using his same 'i have to go. i forgot i have an assignment due tonight' excuse. the one dakoda still somehow hasn't caught on to but everyone else has.
he stops at the little convince store on campus and grabs some tea, tissues, soup, and even a small stuffed animal that reminded him of the plushies you kept in your dorm. he threw in a couple of your favorite snacks, ones that didn't need any prep, just in case you didn't feel like eating much.
when he gets to your dorm, your roommate is in the process of leaving. he knocks lighlty, nerves bubbling up in his chest. he didn't know what it was, but being around you had started to feel different lately. he wasn't used to wanting to help someone this much.
your roommate grabs her purse and opens the door, looking over at you. "will's here."
"he can come in." you tell her, rolling over.
"i was going to say if you need anything to call, but i'm sure you won't need me now." she says, smirking.
you roll your eyes. "have a good night."
"you too."
"sorry horcoff, come in." she tells him, stepping aside.
will walks in and she walks out, shutting the door behind her.
you sit up, looking like a wreck with messy hair and a flushed face.
"hey," he says, his voice softer than usual. "i brought you something."
he hands you a cup of tea. "your usual."
you blink a few times, clearly surprised, as he sets the basket on your bed. "will, you didn't have to.."
"i know, but i wanted to. you're sick. and i figured the usual movie night setup wasn't gonna work, so i thought i'd bring the movie night to you."
you smile weakly, and his heart flutters. you were always so strong, always the life of the party, so seeing you like this made him want to do whatever it took to make you feel better.
you take a sip of the tea and put it on your nightstand. "thank you. i just don't want you to get sick."
"i'll be fine." he tells you sitting down on the bed, pushing the basket towards you.
you go through it, kind of shocked at how he remembered all of your favorite things. "a penguin!"
"mhm, i remembered the story about when you guys went to the zoo and dakoda had to literally drag you away from them." he smiles as you hold it close to your chest. "snack wise i got you a little bit of everything because i didn't know what you would be feeling up to eating."
"thanks will. i really appreciate it."
will shrugs. "i mean you're worth it, plus i need to keep my tutor healthy."
you laugh. "oh, that's all this is about, huh."
"no." he shakes his head. "honestly, i just like spending time with you. how are you feeling?"
"better than i was when i woke up, but still shitty."
will frowns. "i hate seeing you like this. i wish there was something i could do to make it all go away."
"getting me tea and snacks is helping more than you think."
"good. i'm glad. if you want, we could watch our show or a movie..." he trails off before adding, "i mean, if you're up for it."
"our show?"
he nods and grabs the remote from your night stand, putting it on. he waits for you to cuddle up to him like you usually do, and when you don't he looks over at you like he's offended. "do i smell or something?"
"i don't want to get you sick."
"i'm already laying in your germ infested bed. cuddle with me, sicko."
you laugh and move over to cuddle with him. you curl into his side and will shifts slightly to wrap an arm around your shoulders, pulling you in the rest of the way.
"this okay?"
"mhm." you hum, letting yourself relax against him.
part way through the episode you go into a coughing fit and he immediately sits up and reaches for your cup of tea, handing it to you.
you take a sip and manage to get a "thank you" out before the coughing starts again.
he gently rubs your back and waits until the fit subsides before speaking again. "you okay?"
you nod weakly, still trying to catch your breath. "yeah.. this cold's just kicking my ass." you hold the cup out to him and he takes it, putting it back on the stand.
you lay back down and he frowns, adjusting his position to make sure you're as comfortable as possible. "i hate seeing you like this. if you need me to go grab anything just let me know."
"i'm fine right now, thank you though."
he gives you a skeptical look but doesn't push it. "if you say so."
you cuddle back into his side, resting your head against his chest. "thank you for taking care of me."
"you don't have to thank me. you're always taking care of everyone else, it's about time someone takes care of you." he tells you, kicking the blanket up enough so he can grab it to cover you.
the episode continues to play in the background, and you let yourself relax again, focusing on will's heartbeat more than your discomfort. you drift in and out of consciousness, the exhaustion of being sick finally catching up with you.
"you can go to sleep. i'll be here when you wake up."
"you sure?" you ask, your eyes already starting to close.
"i'm sure." will nods, his hand gently brushing through your hair. "just rest, okay? you need it."
you nod and let the rhythm of his heartbeat lull you into a peaceful sleep.
somehow, the lines blurred over the past few weeks. maybe it was the night that he brought you home from that stupid frat party, or maybe it was because you got asked to tutor him and were forced to hang out more. either way, the study sessions that started in the library moved to the dorms. late-night walks for coffee turned into late-night walks for no reason at all. you're not sure when it started feeling different, but now you're here: half-distracted by the way his stupid hair flops into his eyes, doing all the work while he scrolls through tiktok.
you sigh and glance over.
he's already looking at you, laying on his side, one arm bent under his head, his phone's paused on some video. "what?"
"help me," you mutter. "this is your assignment."
he groans dramatically and rolls onto his back. but that's all he does. no movement toward the laptop, no attempt at notes. just that. "let's watch an episode of our show and then i'll help."
you narrow your eyes. "no."
"pleaseeeeee," he says, dragging out the word with a pout.
"will, you're getting closer and closer to the deadline."
he gives you that look, the one that he knows can get him out of things, the one that makes your chest feel weird and fluttery. then he leans up, peering over at the screen like he's suddenly interested in the assignment.
"just one episode and i swear i'll start."
you scoff. "no. we both know 'just one episode' doesn't work with us."
but before you can stop him, he's swiping the laptop from your lap, screen snapping shut.
"will!" you gasp.
"it's saved!" he says, smiling, setting the laptop on his nightstand. "i made sure. i promise. one episode, and that's it. you're stressing yourself out over something i can get done in one hour max."
you cross your arms. "you're the reason i'm stressing out. if you can get it done in an hour max why can't you just do it now and then we can watch our show."
"i'll get it done." he reassures you. "i still have three days."
"you have one. you'll be busy friday."
"well, i'll still get it done. i promise." he tells you and you roll your eyes as he plays the episode.
the episode drags on and ends on a cliff hanger, and by the time the second one ends it's already 11:30 p.m. "okay, that's enough. you need to work now."
he nods, grabbing his laptop and notes from his nightstand.
you guys spend the next couple hours working on it, by the time you finish it's 4am and will tells you just to stay the night again.
you're laying in his bed, backs facing each other.
"are you still awake?" will's voice breaks the silence again.
"mhm." you hum.
"y'know i don't think i'm ever going to get tired of doing this with you."
"what do you mean?"
"i mean all of this. hanging out, studying late, watching stupid shows, you bitching at me because i don't want to do my work."
you smile. "it's a good thing you like it, because i don't think you're getting out of it anytime soon."
"good. i think you secretly enjoy hanging out with me to. you just don't want to admit it."
"maybe a little bit...." you admit. "i don't enjoy your procrastination though."
"hey. i'm working on it, okay."
"mhm."
will laughs. "we should probably go to sleep."
"probably."
"goodnight."
"goodnight."
︵‿︵‿the next morning︵‿︵‿︵︵‿
you wake up the next morning wrapped around will and he's playing with your hair. "morning."
"morning."
"good morning."
you jump, sitting up to see miles in his bed. "when did you come back."
"seven." miles smirks. "didn't realize you two were so close."
"we're not. we were studying and she just crashed." will tells him.
"again. for the the second time this week. you're going to need to find a new excuse, buddy."
you roll your eyes. "it's not an excuse, that's literally what happened. we didn't get done with his econ until 4."
"mhm. whatever you say."
︵‿︵later in the day‿︵‿︵
it's movie night in dakoda and michael's dorm, and there's barely enough room for everyone. you're on the floor in front of will who's on the love sac. his knee keeps bumping your back, and at one point he casually rests his chin on your shoulder to make some dumb comment about the plot.
michael looks over at the two of you and rolls his eyes. "can you two stop whispering?"
you both shut up, but only for like a minute.
"y'know, i think you two just need to admit that you're dating already." miles says, looking over which makes every head turns toward you and will.
dakoda laughs. "please, that'll never happen. funny joke, though."
you and will awkwardly laugh it off.
"yeah, no. could you imagine?"
"right. us? come on. we're just friends."
"besties," you add, thumbs up.
everyone goes back to the movie, well besides michael and miles, who are now whispering back and forth to each other.
the movie ends and you stand up, making dakoda look over at you. "you're leaving already? we only watched one movie."
you nod. "i have a bunch of assignments due tonight."
"i'm heading out too. i have to finish my speech."
you turn around as will stands up. miles, hunter, and michael all start laughing.
dakoda frowns. "whatever. text me when you get to your dorm."
"i will." you tell him, walking towards the door.
will follows you out and before the door shuts you hear, "will you three knock it off. they aren't together."
you just finished asking all of the players the monday question when coach naurato calls you into his office.
"i need you to tutor one of the guys for me. he's not doing so well in econ."
you nod. "okay, who is it?"
"horcoff."
of course it is
︵‿︵‿later that week︵‿︵‿︵︵‿
he's sitting at one of the tables with his airpods in on his phone when you get there.
you drop your bag onto the floor before sitting down, making him jump. he takes one of his airpods out and stares at you.
"naur assigned you?"
you nod, pulling your laptop out. "econ, right."
"i- uh. yeah. you don't have to do this."
you raise an eyebrow. "yeah, i kinda do actually. coach said if you fail another quiz, you're benched. so here i am."
will shifts in his seat, suddenly very interested in the label on his water bottle. "i just didn't think it'd be you."
"what's that supposed to mean?" you ask, typing in the password to your laptop.
"nothing," he mumbles. "i just thought they'd get, like, an actual tutor."
you pause mid-click on your laptop. "okay, rude."
his ears go red. "no, i didn't mean it like that. i'm sorry."
"hm. i actually know what i'm doing, believe it or not. i got a 4.0 last semester and econ's kinda my thing. so unless you'd rather flunk and have naurato breathing down your neck for the rest of the season-"
"okay," he interrupts you. "teach me."
you pull up the shared drive folder and slide your laptop slightly toward him so he can see the screen.
you clear your throat. "okay, so this is the outline for the next quiz. it's mostly marginal analysis and opportunity cost. pretty basic stuff."
"mm," he hums, nodding like he understands, but the blank look in his eyes says otherwise.
you glance at him. "you don't know what either of those things are, do you?"
will shrugs. "i mean opportunity cost is like, uh... choosing one thing over another?"
"not terrible," you mutter. "but also not helpful. we'll start from the top."
he sits up straighter, trying to look like he's ready to learn, but you notice the way he keeps fidgeting, tapping his fingers on the table, bouncing his knee under it. you ignore it, or at least you try to.
"so, say you've got two hours free on a friday. you can either study for econ, or go to a party-"
"really?" he interrupts again. "we're using that example?"
you shoot him a look. "do you want to pass or not?"
"right. sorry."
you hate how polite he is now. ever since that night, ever since he pulled you down from the table, he's been treating you like glass which has led you to avoid him as much as possible.
you shake the thought away and refocus. "okay, so. if you choose to party instead of study, the opportunity cost is the time you could've used to improve your grade."
he nods slowly. "right. so if i fail the quiz, it's your fault."
you laugh. "no. it's your fault for choosing to suck at econ."
he smiles a little and you look back at your laptop.
"we'll talk about it after."
"talk about what?"
"y/n."
you sigh. "why?"
"because it's weird now, and i don't want it to be."
"it isn't weird."
will rolls his eyes. "you've literally been avoiding me since it happened."
you press your lips together, staring hard at the spreadsheet on your screen. "i haven't been avoiding you."
"you left without saying anything."
"i didn't want anyone to walk in on us like that and get the wrong idea."
he nods. "but you didn't go to truss' saturday."
"i slept in."
"and you ghosted the group chat for the whole week."
"i was busy."
he leans back in his chair, crossing his arms. "you always have an excuse. doesn't make it not true."
"kay. fine. maybe i was avoiding you."
he blinks, surprised you actually admitted it. "why?"
you hesitate, starting to mess with your bracelet. "i was embarrassed."
"why?"
you scoff, eyes glued to your bracelet still. "i literally danced half-naked on a frat table."
"yeah, but i wasn't judging you. even though i was pissed. i was scared too."
"scared?"
he nods. "i've heard how those nights end. drunk girls with the wrong people. and i just kept thinking, what if i hadn't been there?" his jaw clenches a bit. "you could've gotten hurt."
your stomach knots. you know he's right. you knew it since that moment he dragged you off the table. you just hadn't let yourself really feel it until now.
"i didn't mean to worry you," you whisper. "i just felt really alone that night and i wanted to forget all of it for a little bit."
will exhales, uncrossing his arms. "i get that, but next time if you're ever feeling like that again, call me. i don't care what time it is. just call or show up."
you nod. "okay."
"good. now back to opportunity cost and marginal analysis or whatever it is."
"right. so, opportunity cost is about making choices. the opportunity cost of choosing the party is the potential better grade you could've earned by studying. marginal analysis looks at the benefit of choosing one option over another, basically measuring how much better you're off with one decision versus the other. so if you choose to study, your marginal benefit is the potential for a higher grade. if you choose to go to the party, the marginal benefit is.. well, fun and socializing, i guess."
he raises an eyebrow. "so the cost is what you're sacrificing?"
"exactly. choosing to study costs you the fun of the party, but the marginal benefit of studying is a higher grade."
will taps his fingers on the table, thinking. "you're actually kinda good at this. i actually kind of understand now."
"good, then try your worksheet. if you have questions ask."
"okay."
he pulls his laptop closer to him and gets started. you work on your assignments while he does it, glancing over every so often to make sure he's not stuck.
after about twenty minutes he turns his laptop towards you. "check please."
you go through his worksheet and surprisingly they're all right. "you got the hang of those ones pretty quick. you got them all right." you tell him, turning the laptop back to him.
"all thanks to you. are we done?"
you nod. "for today. you did good."
"thank you. and you're good now, right? with... everything?"
you take a deep breath, nodding slowly. "yeah, i'm fine."
he gives you a small smile before standing up. "cool. well, i'll see you around. thanks again."
"yeah, no problem." you tell him, standing up too. "have a good night."
word count: 0.9k
you are crammed into a room full of people you don't really know, with a drink in your hand.
you have no idea how many drinks you've had, just enough that your dancing up on one of the gross sticky tables at one of the frats.
"strip!" someone yells, and in your drunk haze, you do it. you rip your shirt off and toss it at one of the guys who's egging you on, but before you can do anything else, you're yanked off the table.
"hey! put me down!" you yell, punching the guys back but he just laughs in response.
"no. what the hell is wrong with you." he snaps. "dakoda would fucking kill you if he knew what you were just doing."
you freeze, your heart sinking in your chest when you realize who is carrying you. of all people, it had to be will who saw you.
the cold air hits you in the face as he walks outside. he doesn't say anything else, just sets you down and pulls off his hoodie, sliding it over your head.
"will, i-" you start to say, but he cuts you off.
"don't. do you have your dorm key?"
you shake your head and he sighs, squeezing his temples. "alright you're staying with me then. let's go."
he starts walking and you try to walk with him but you almost face plant right onto the sidewalk. will quickly grabs you before you can go down.
"for fuck's sake," he mutters, shaking his head. "alright. just get on." he tells you and crouches down in front of you.
"huh?"
"piggyback ride. we're not walking like this," he says, glancing over his shoulder at you. "come on."
you hesitate but climb onto his back, wrapping your arms loosely around his shoulders as he hooks his hands under your thighs and stands up.
"thank you,"
"mhm. you're an idiot," he replies, but there's no actual bite behind his words.
"will-"
"what the hell were you thinking?"
"i wasn't."
"yeah, no shit." he scoffs, shaking his head. "you're lucky it was me who pulled you down and not some creep trying to take advantage of you."
your chest tightens again. you know he's right. it was stupid. you just didn't care at the time, or maybe you did, but the alcohol made it easy to ignore.
by the time you get to his dorm your head is spinning. he pushes the door open and walks over to his bed and kneels slightly so you can slide off his back. the moment your feet hit the floor, you sway again but he steadies you.
"sit," he orders, pointing at the bed.
you sit and watch as will moves around the room, rummaging through his drawers before tossing a pair of sweats onto your lap.
"put those on," he says. "i'll turn around."
he turns around and you stand up. you manage to get your skirt off and tug on the sweats. they're huge on you, the waistband barely staying up.
"okay."
will turns back around and shakes his head. "jesus, they're practically falling off you."
you just shrug. "i mean you are like a foot if not more taller than me."
he nods and grabs the trashcan, setting it next to the bed. "just incase." he says, studying you for a moment. "get some sleep. i'll take the floor."
you frown. "but"
"no 'buts'. you need the bed more than i do."
you lay down as he grabs an extra blanket from his closet.
"you scared the shit out of me tonight."
"i didn't mean to."
"i know," he mutters. "but you can't just do that. you know what kind of people hang around those parties."
you know he's right but you don't want to talk about it anymore so you keep quiet.
silence settles between you. your body feels exhausted but your mind won't slow down.
"can you lie up here with me?" you whisper.
will turns his head slightly. "huh?"
"just for a little while. you don't have to, i just..." you trail off, unsure how to explain the feeling gnawing at you, the loneliness, the shame, the overwhelming exhaustion.
will exhales, rubbing the back of his neck. "yeah." he says, pushing himself up and getting into bed with you.
"get some sleep," he murmurs.
_the next morning_
you wake up with not only a bad hangover but will's arm draped over your waist. you pry his arm off and slide out of bed. he stirs slightly but you hold your breath, waiting until he settles again before tiptoeing away.
you grab your skirt off the floor and quietly slip out the door.
but immediately regret it.
because standing in the hallway, looking like he just hit the goddamn jackpot, is hunter.
he takes one look at you wearing will's oversized hoodie, sweatpants barely clinging to your hips, your skirt balled up in your hand.
his eyes widen before a shit-eating smirk spreads across his face. "oh my god."
you freeze. "no, it's not what it looks like."
hunter crosses his arms. "so you're telling me you didn't just walk out of will's room, wearing his clothes, looking like you had a long night?"
you groan, rubbing your temple. "hunter, i swear nothing happened."
"uh huh." he nods, clearly not believing a word you just said. "better hope dakoda doesn't find out."
"he's not going to because nothing happened. i got drunk and didn't have my key to get back into my dorm so he let me stay with him. that was it. and if dakoda does find out i'll know it was you because will isn't going to say anything to him."
"mhm. you should get going before someone else sees you like that. wouldn't want anyone else to get the wrong idea, would you?"
"yeah.." you mutter, walking past him. "thanks for the advice, make sure you keep your mouth shut."
