Work Text:
When Will learned through social media that his former college roommate had moved to Italy, he didn’t hesitate to reply to the story with a, congratulations! that’s so cool! He hadn’t actually spoken to Nico in a few years - between moving to different states after graduation and the chaos of normal life, those thoughts that he should reach out and try to keep that connection open kept on and on, even as Will failed to reach out over and over again.
The thoughts never went away, though.
And it was strange to think that one of them moving halfway across the globe would be the thing that ended up bringing them together again.
Will never missed one of Nico’s stories, often seeing them while groggy first thing in the morning, or catching them after his shift, long after Nico had gone to sleep. Nico always responded to his messages, though, no matter what time Will sent them. Even if there were seven hours in between.
Finally, after a few months, Will built up the courage to send, I miss you, and in the morning he found a miss u too waiting for him, which had his heart skipping a beat.
I wish we could hang out in person, he sent next, during the rare handful of hours where they would both be awake across their drastically different time zones.
same :( Nico replied nearly an hour later. if i could fly back to visit u i would
Will’s thumbs hovered over the screen. He chewed on his lip, mentally checking his budget, his savings, his PTO. Say the word and I’ll hop on a plane.
Nico started typing back.
Will didn’t speak Italian. He couldn’t read the airport signs, and he couldn’t even tell the taxi driver where to take him, holding up the address on his phone screen instead. He kept Nico updated on his progress through WhatsApp, then nearly jumped out of the still-moving car when he spotted his old friend standing outside the apartment building where Will was headed.
“I forgot you were so stupidly tall,” Nico commented, squinting up at Will as if he was the sun once Will and his luggage were both on solid ground.
Will couldn’t fight back the smile that stretched across his face. “I’m going to hug you now.”
Nico didn’t get a chance to argue before Will’s arms were around his torso, heaving him up off the ground just like he used to in their tiny shared dorm. “Dio, I forgot about that, too. Don’t hurt yourself - we’re not twenty anymore.”
Will lowered Nico back to his feet once he felt Nico tap out. “Twenty-seven is not that old,” Will commented.
Nico clutched his chest. “Twenty-seven! I don’t know how you’re walking around. Do you need a twenty-six year old spring chicken to help you with your bags, signor?”
“You’re such an asshole,” Will laughed, his chest feeling light and his head swimming at the proximity to his old friend. “Show me inside. I wanna put my stuff down so you can give me the Holy Roman tour.”
They didn’t venture far from Nico’s apartment for Will’s first day, since it had already been cut short by travel, and they both knew the jetlag would be catching up with him sooner rather than later. Still, even just wandering around the city of Rome, Will was treated to a handful of ancient sites, from the Colosseum to any number of beautiful statues that were older than the country he was born in.
“We’ll visit the Vatican tomorrow,” Nico told him as the two sat together on Nico’s bed, the studio apartment barely furnished aside from the built-in desk and the kitchen nook in the corner. There was just enough room on the floor beside the bed for the air mattress that Nico had blown up that morning ahead of Will’s arrival, which currently held Will’s suitcase and backpack.
They’d split a pizza for dinner - a real, Italian pizza, which Will had to admit was significantly different from an American pizza, but kept to himself the fact that both had their own place in the world - and eventually found themselves lying back on Nico’s pillows, watching a dumb American comedy on Will’s phone, because Nico didn’t have enough space to get himself a TV.
One thing that America had going for it was the expansive use of air conditioning. Having grown up in Texas, Will was no stranger to waking up hot and sticky from sweat after an exceptionally humid night. But at least then he could get up out of bed and plop himself in front of an air vent for a few minutes until he felt human again.
When he opened his eyes and realized that it wasn’t just the Mediterranean air that was keeping him warm, Will suddenly realized he never wanted to cool off again.
He’d never made it to the air mattress that night, instead falling asleep with his phone on his chest and one of Nico’s arms draped over his stomach, his head resting over Will’s heart. Even as stripped down as he was in shorts and a thin tank top, Will was on fire, but he wouldn’t change it for the world.
Nico must have started to feel the heat as well, or maybe the erratic beating of Will’s heart caused him to stir, and soon his head was rising from Will’s chest. He didn’t go much farther than that.
“I have something to tell you,” Will said softly, to which Nico hummed in response. “I don’t care about seeing the Vatican.”
Nico frowned, a sweet look on his tired face. “What?”
“I didn’t come here to see Rome.”
“Rome and Vatican City are distinctly different places--”
“All I cared about was getting to see you.”
“I’m taking you to the Sistine Chapel,” Nico insisted, and when Will started to move, Nico pressed a hand into his chest. “No. You’re seeing it. It’s a beautiful church, and everyone should see it. They say a young turtle with a strange mutation painted the ceiling--”
Will pulled Nico to him, silencing him with a kiss that simultaneously cut off his terrible joke and poured out all of the affection Will held for something so silly. Even after so many years, Nico got him.
“You’re so dumb,” Will told him fondly when they both came up for air. Nico’s hair was hanging in his face, so Will carefully tucked a few strands behind his ear. “I think maybe I’ve been in love with you for years.”
Nico’s expression was unreadable. Will had known Nico so well when they were younger - better than almost anyone - but this was the first time in a long while that Will couldn’t tell exactly what he was thinking. But maybe Will just hadn’t learned what this face meant just yet, having never been allowed to see it before.
“Prove it,” Nico whispered, his fingers brushing over Will’s cheek as he started to lean in again. “Kiss me in front of the Chicago Pope.”
I think around here he’s just the regular Pope, Will wanted to say, but Nico had already pressed his lips to Will’s, which was a better use of his mouth anyway.