Archive of Our Own

Chapter Text

 “And yes, every town claims it’s diner’s waffles are the best in the world, but somewhere, in some town, there really are the best waffles in the world. So delicious, and rich, and golden brown that anyone who tasted them would decide never to leave that town. Somewhere those waffles exist. Why can’t it be here?”

Will had never visited City Hall, but this wasn’t what he expected. 

“Most of the department is out dealing with some problem at the baseball field, something about the bees returning?” Mitchell explained over his shoulder as he led Will down a narrow hall. They dipped around various other citizens and employees, all crowding up the City Hall corners as the morning settled along its patrons. “There should be someone around, at least the director, but come find me if you have a problem, okay?” Mitchell gestured toward the office and smiled, but went to hurry away. In their entire friendship, Mitchell was almost always hurrying around somewhere—a testament to his numerous siblings and two jobs, he supposed. “I’ll be just around the corner!”

Will raised his hand in goodbye as Mitchell jogged away and disappeared with a dirtied rag thrown over his shoulder. Will let out a breath, adjusted his shoulder strap. 

He’d never stepped foot in the Parks and Rec department for all the years he’s lived in Pawnee. He hardly knew where it was, except for the vague vicinity of City Hall where he’d dropped off Mitchell a handful of times. But he made a promise. 

As Mitchell had warned, the office was almost completely empty with the bare exception of a single young man lounging at a desk, his feet kicked up on the desktop while he flipped through a magazine, and a slightly older man tucked away in a side office. There was low punk music drifting from somewhere, and the air stunk of burnt coffee and even more burnt popcorn. Will approached the young man at the desk, who didn’t bother to look up. 

“Uh, hi,” Will began, “I wanted to talk to someone about fixing up Ramset park?” 

The guy popped his gum, flipped the page. Old Fall Out Boy faded out, a new song starting right after. The Wallflowers. “There’s no one available.” The guy said, still focused on his magazine. His nameplate, sitting on the very precarious edge of his desk, was covered in an array of messy stickers that hid his name. 

Will glanced to the side. The office to the side had a small plague on it— Percy Jackson, Director of Parks and Recreation. The door was wide open where at his desk, the director looked to be assembling a boat in a bottle. “What about the director?” 

“He’s busy.” 

“Um. He doesn’t look it?” 

“Fine, then he’s dead.” 

That shocked a small laugh out of him. “What?” 

Finally, the guy dropped down his magazine with a sigh and looked up at Will. He paused in whatever he was going to say, staring Will down for a few beats. 

Will huffed out a breath as he checked his watch. “Listen, I have a shift in half an hour and I just need to talk to someone about fixing up the area. I promised my little sister.” He pulled out a notepad and pen to scrawl out his information, ripped it off, and held it out. “Whenever someone’s free, can they give me a call?” 

The guy eyed the paper, then glanced down to Will’s soft blue scrubs. After a few moments, he reached out and took the paper. 

“Fine,” He finally said, tucking the sheet away at his desk. 

Will raised an eyebrow, amused despite himself. “Fine,” He echoed, walking backward for a few steps before turning and walking away. “I look forward to it!” 

Well. He had promised Marisol he’d try. Even if the Parks people never actually followed up with him, he did. 

A few hours later, near the end of his shift, Will was finishing up some last-minute paperwork when his phone rang, four-thirty on the dot. He juggled the chart, a slippery bottle of water, and his iced coffee to one arm as he struggled to fish his cell phone out of his pocket. The ringtone was nearing its final beats when he finally answered with a breathless,  “Hello?” 

There was a pause, a shuffling, then an answer. “Hi,” It was a guy, no one instantly familiar. “This is Nico di Angelo.” 

“Oh,” Will held the phone to his cheek with his shoulder. “Sorry, who?” 

“I’m calling from the Parks and Rec office. We spoke this morning.”

“Oh!” Will straightened up. Hina walked by then, her own armful of charts ready to dump on the counter next to him. “Sorry, tail-end of a shift here.” Hina made a face, a few metal charts falling from her stack as she lost balance. Will winced, “Sorry, can I call you back in an hour?” 

There was a brief silence before a quick, “Sure.” 

“Great! Talk to you then!” Will slipped his phone back into his pocket, already reaching out to help. “Here, let me give you a hand -” 

After his shift finally ended and he was changed into some clean clothes, he was just grabbing his stuff when he remembered to call back. 

The call picked up on the second ring. “Hello?” 

“Hey, thanks for calling me back,” Will said into his cell, packing up his bag with his free hand. There was a bit of commotion in the locker room; Hina, likely attempting to steal someone’s leftover lunch. He raised his voice slightly. “Did you get a hold of someone I can talk to about the park?” 

“No one’s in right now. The office closes at five.” 

Will checked the time, confused. It was nearly six. “Oh. Why didn’t you -” 

Nico spoke over him, quick. “It’s fine. I just - I wanted to tell you what to do. You’ll have to come back when Reyna’s in. To talk about the park, I mean. Percy doesn’t take meetings, but Reyna basically runs the department anyway. Her schedule is -” 

He scrambled to grab for a pen to write it all down. 

“Avoid Mondays and Fridays,” Nico added on at the end of his spiel. “She’s usually swamped. Come in around nine or ten if you can.” 

Will mentally checked over his work schedule for the next week. “Would tomorrow morning work, then?” 

There was a slight pause on the other end, “Sure.” He finally answered. “She should be in. I’ll… see you then.”

Will smiled into the speaker, “Thanks. See you then.” 

There was another long silence, before a technical double-beep. Call ended. 

Will wrinkled his nose at his phone, laughing a bit. 

There was a crash on the other side of the lockers. He sighed, slipped his phone back into his pocket. 

“Hina, if I get back there and you’re breaking into someone’s locker, we are going to have words.” 

“Nico!” Will greeted brightly as he walked into the office the next morning. “Nice to see you! How you doing?” 

Nico was in the same position as yesterday behind his messy desk except, this time, he actually looked up at Will’s greeting. Black fringe, hanging messy around his face, framed a face of pale skin, dark eyes. Will’s chest squeezed momentarily. 

Nico still hadn’t answered, a few seconds too long of a delay. Will cocked his head to the side. 

“I’m fine,” He finally said, a bit of color filling his cheeks. Will felt just a bit-slightly-almost charmed by the other man’s awkwardness, despite their initial meeting. 

Will gave him a small smile. “That’s good. Is Reyna available?” 

Nico stared him down for another beat, but nodded. He stood and went into the corner office, quietly speaking for a moment before gesturing Will forward.

The space was much more lively than the morning before, where now people were lingering around, flipping through papers, scrolling through tabs. The same burnt coffee and popcorn was in the air—was it a permanent fixture?—but now, a box of fresh doughnuts were open on the table. In the corner, an industrial printer was working hard at printing enough papers for a dictionary; the familiar soundtrack to an office at work. 

“Will Solace,” Nico gestured to him. “This is Reyna Ramírez-Arellano, the assistant director.” 

A tall, serious woman was waiting in the office at an overflowing desk, piled with folders and binders and loose sheets of important-looking documents. She wore a dark purple blouse and a single, neat braid tucked to the side. She stood to greet him, held out her hand for a handshake, and gave him a quick nod in greeting. Before either of them could speak, another voice in the room drifted out. 

“Well, hello to you.” A grinning man, who while previously was sitting upside down in his swivel chair, smoothly rearranged himself to right side up. Another desk was seated across from Reyna’s, Will just noticed, much more tucked away in the corner. It held a similar mess to hers, only instead of papers, it held an array of dirtied tools and a busted open ancient-looking computer. The man, young and tan with a burst of wild curls, straightened up to wink at Will. “Haven’t seen you around these parts. I’m Leo, by the way, but you can call me -”

Nico smoothly interrupted him and spoke directly to Reyna instead. “Will’s here to talk about one of the parks.” 

Reyna nodded briskly and waved him in. She began moving the folders to the side to try and clear some space. “Take a seat and try ignoring Leo, it’s necessary for survival.” 

Will smiled and did just that, setting his satchel on the ground. “I wanted to talk about Ramset park?” 

“The raccoons are taking over,” She noted in a dull voice, looking over a sheet of paper. She placed it to the side before giving him her full attention. “Ramset’s been in decline since before I took over.”

Will winced, “It’s… not looking good. That’s what I was hoping to talk about. It used to be great, you know? And it’s right next to where my sister lives but we never feel safe taking her there.” He shrugged, “So that’s why I’ve come to you.” 

Reyna was filling out a form, Will’s name now printed at the top. “Are you aware of any other damage?” 

Will fumbled to get his phone out, “I actually took some photos? It’s all mostly recent stuff, other than the raccoon hoard.” Reyna examined the phone screen as he flipped through the photos and took some notes. “Some of the equipment needs to be fixed up—there are a few broken swings and some rusty nails in the slides that should be replaced—and the picnic table broke a few weeks ago.” 

She nodded briskly after looking over each of the photos. “Leo, call Frank, will you? I know you have him on speed dial.” Leo was fumbling to type in the number before she even finished. “And before you start badly flirting with him, schedule an inspection for Ramset and transfer the info to McLean.” She turned back to Will, made a quick note in her planner. “We’ll get on this right away, Mr. Solace. We’d be happy to send along progress reports as it develops as well if you’d like to leave your contact information.” 

“It’s just Will. And thank you.” He shot a look toward her piling tower of binder and, before he could even really consider it, opened his mouth to ask, “Is there anything I can do to help? 

Her scrawling pen paused as she looked up at him, almost in question. 

“Like,” He made a wobbling gesture with his hand. “Cleaning it up or planning anything? I’d be happy to lend a hand. Or volunteer or something.”

Another moment of pause. Her eyes flickered to the doorway, then back to Will—almost like she was checking something. 

She cleared her throat, “I’m sure we can arrange some volunteer work.” She seemed to shift back into work mode, as she paused to make a note of something. “With the Harvest festival coming up and my City Council campaign, my schedule is already filled to the brim. I’ll be assigning Piper as the point person on this. Oh, and Nico, of course.” 

Outside of the office, there was a shuffling crash. Reyna, still smiling politely, made no reaction. 

“Oh, okay.” Will looked to the side. Through the window, he could see Nico bending to collect an array of binders on the ground. 

“You and Nico already have each other’s info?” Will looked back to Reyna and nodded. “Good. I’ll have him connect you with Piper, then.” 

Will gave her a pleased smile as he stood, “Thank you!” 

Reyna did just that, thanking him once more politely, before fleeing for an apparent upcoming meeting. He and Nico shared a quick, awkward look in the silence left behind. 

Nico had his hands shoved into his back pockets. He took a jerky step forward into the office, gesturing as he walked. “So, uh, this is Piper. You’ve met Leo, unfortunately, and Percy’s the director.” Nico pointed them each out as he spoke. They were all at their desks, with Percy hidden away in his office. Through the shut door, he could just barely make out ocean waves white noise. 

Nico noticed his drawn away attention. “We leave Percy alone for the most part.” Nico shrugged, “Reyna’s in charge anyway.” 

“Which is how we like it,” Piper spoke up, smiling sharply. “Percy’s a great leader when he tries just… intense. And incredibly disorganized. Reyna keeps us going.” She stood up and brushed off the front of her slacks. “Anyway, I heard something about a new project?”

Nico passed over the paperwork off Reyna’s desk. “Yeah, this is Will. He’s volunteering for the project.” He and Piper shared a quick, but meaningful look between them. Will shifted his weight. 

Piper looked at him and really examined him for a long moment. “You look familiar.” She finally said, which wasn’t what he had been expecting. “Nico said Mitchell brought you in yesterday?"

“Oh, yeah. You know Mitchell?” 

She raised an eyebrow at him, smiling softly. “A little. I’m his older sister.” 

Well, that was embarrassing. Especially considering that he and Piper had definitely met at some point, now that he was thinking about it. Some sibling’s birthday party, maybe, that Will had helped Mitchell pull together last minute? Maybe, probably? She had brought her boyfriend, he barely remembered, tall, blond, and easily embarrassed. 

“Piper,” Will said more meaningfully. Nico’s gaze was bouncing between them like a tennis match. “We met at Lacey and Sophia’s birthday, right? The roller rink one?” 

“I was the one in the glow-in-the-dark skates,” She told him in confirmation. “And you were the one who could skate backward.” 

Well, it was a roller skating party. “That’s me.” 

She nodded at him, looking somewhat pleased. “Well, nice to see you. So what’s this new project about? Ramset needs reno?” She looked over some notes, Will’s formal ‘citizen statement compliant’ Reyna had filled out. “A new project is godsent in these times.” She sighed, “If I don’t stop thinking about the Harvest Festival every second of the day, I’m going to scream.”

“You and Reyna both,” Nico muttered. 

She began collecting the papers in a neat pile. “Leo!” She waited until his head appeared around the corner of his office for her to continue. “Get the bible,” Piper told him. He disappeared a moment later. “And use a step ladder this time, please!”

There was a crash that followed right after, forcing Piper and Nico to show identical eyerolls in response, and a few moments later Leo was rushing out of the office, out of breath. His curls were covered in a thick layer of dust that Piper wrinkled her nose at as he threw an extremely thick binder down on the table.

“The Knope binder,” he told Will seriously. “We don’t do anything in the office without consulting it first.” 

Will blinked back, surprised. He hadn’t expected them to start working so quickly. He took a hesitant seat, along for the ride. 

Piper reached out to pull a line of dust from Leo’s hair, sighing and flicking it in the trash can. “Mayor Gergich basically lets the Parks department do whatever, but it’s best to stay in budget so we don’t cause another pet shelter incident.” Leo shook out his curls, causing another few layers of dust to fall from his dark strands. Piper pulled the binder away from him, keeping it clean, and ran her finger down the array of colorful tabs. She jabbed her nail in between the pages toward the middle. “Ah, budget reallocation. Nico, pull up the P&L spreadsheet, will you?”  

Nico sighed but reached for his laptop to seemingly do just that. After a few seconds, he passed the computer over to her waiting hands. 

“Looks like we used the last of the improvement fund on replacing the turf field at the dog park,” Piper said in a distracted voice as she clicked through the tabs. “But we haven’t dipped into the Emergency Maintenance Fund. We can also divert funds from another program, but that’s a last-ditch effort.” 

“So the maintenance fund,” Leo started, “that would be our best bet?” 

“Yes, but…” She grimaced, “It can be pretty limited on what we use it for, so we probably won’t be able to do much except the minimum. And to use it, we’d have to have a public meeting to hear out any complaints.” 

Leo and Nico both had matching expressions of dread, their faces wrinkled up. There was clearly something Will was missing. One just meeting? 

“Okay,” Will said slowly.  “Well, as long as the worst park damage is taken care of.”  He shot them a confused look. “That doesn’t seem like too much?”

“No,” Nico said seriously. “You don’t understand. A City Hall meeting. With the public.” 

“Okay?” Will trailed off. “I mean, it’s a park improvement! Who’s gonna oppose that?”

A week later, the time and date posted on the community bulletin board and newsletter, Will was sitting slack-jawed at the front of an auditorium in the local high school, a line of scowling citizens collected neatly furious before him. Complaints wild and low, such as:

“If you send a construction team and close the park for even one day, I will be forced to take drastic measures,” A middle-aged woman said loudly, three toddlers at her feet. “If you think I will be stuck in my house for the entire day with my children, you’ve got a big storm coming, honey.” 

-

“I vote we use the money to do something actually useful instead of a stupid park renovation. Just let the raccoons have it. So what if a kid gets bit? It’ll teach them to dodge. Who’s all for another vape shop?” 

-

“I fucking hate parks!” 

-

“I’m terrified of bees. Will there be bees in this park?” 

There was a slight pause, then Nico’s brisk answer. “Well, the park is outside.” 

“I want you to remove the bees.” 

Nico leaned forward until his mouth was almost against the mic. “From the outside?” 

-

“I’m in favor of improving the park,” One man said. 

Will perked up. Nico shot the man a deeply suspicious look. “But?” 

“But nothing, public parks are great.” The guy nodded. “I love parks. In fact, I think we should make special parks, like a mothers-only park, no kids. They can just go hang out there and whenever. Do yoga and tanning or whatever.” 

“There it is,” Nico muttered, falling deeper into his chair. “Gods, I hate people.” 

Will was squinting at the man in confusion. “Why would he want a mothers-only park? With no kids?” 

Piper sighed and leaned over to whisper into his ear. His expression turned horrified. 

“This is a public forum,” He said, shocked. “All of this is on record, why would he -”

“Don’t engage them,” Nico told him, waving the next patron forward. 

“You guys have to do this all the time?” Will asked, dazed.

“We alternate who has to run them. Except Percy, but he’s saved the department like, three times now.” Nico answered, “He earned his early semi-retirement, we just leave him alone for the most part. Keeping him out of actual work is basically my entire job.” 

Another woman stepped up to the mic, looking upset and clenching a large garden hose in her arms. Piper shot her, then Will, a dull look but nonetheless, readied her pen to take notes. 

Nico leaned into Will’s shoulder to continue, whispering. “Our longest streak was five months of no meetings, but then I took a sick day and the temp let anyone in. He still talks about that nightmare.” 

“Really?” Will laughed softly, matching his voice low. 

“There was a line to his office by the end of the day,” Nico said, gleeful. “Leo said Percy had to fight his way to the exit. And some people followed him to the parking lot! So I’m not allowed to take sick days until I pick an equally off-putting temp.” Nico rolled his eyes, “Which is basically impossible unless Orin in HR lends a hand.” 

Will snorted a laugh into his palm. Piper shot them a warning look as his knuckle brushed the mic, a thud of scratchy feedback following. 

“Boys?” Piper muttered from the corner of her mouth without somehow moving her mouth at all. “Later, please?” 

They straightened up and shared a quick look. Will picked up his pencil, still smiling.

...

“Well, that was horrible.” Nico dropped the bin of folders and binders directly on the floor and stretched. “Who wants to get drunk?” 

“Honestly, I was expecting this,” Leo noted out loud, “di Angelo can never handle a full City Hall meeting without drinking afterward.” 

“It’s not just di Angelo,” Piper told him, rubbing at her forehead. “We had a rambler who went on for a full 25 minutes and refused to yield his time.” 

“About what?”

She closed her eyes, tipped her face up to the fluorescent lights. “A parking ticket he got at Ramset in 2016. He brought print-outs.” 

“Oh, fuck,” Leo winced, “Yeah, okay, first round’s on me guys.” 

“It wasn’t…” It was Will’s turn to wince, as he tried to half-heartedly muster up an optimistic defense. After a few moments, he deflated. “Yeah, it wasn’t fun.”

“What wasn’t?” Mitchell chimed in, walking into the office. He had another stained rag thrown over his shoulder, smelling of shoe polish. He shot Will a grin and leaned against the doorway. 

Piper ran a hand over her face and accepted the open water bottle Leo was trying to push into her hand. “Townhall meeting went two hours over-scheduled and we’re mourning the loss of our youth. Also, we’re going out tonight if you want in. The Snakehole, maybe?” Leo was already nodding enthusiastically. 

Nico wrinkled his nose, “That place is way too crowded unless you can get a VIP booth.” 

Mitchell lit up. “Oh, I know the owner there! He could probably get us in.” 

“He’ll definitely let you in,” Leo muttered. 

Mitchell didn’t seem to hear him. “Let me give him a call!” 

Nico looked over to meet Will’s gaze and rolled his eyes. Ridiculous, he mouthed. Will cocked his head to the side, but didn’t ask. 

A minute later, Mitchell wandered back with his phone pressed to his ear. “Thanks, Connor! See you soon!” He hung up and smiled brightly. “We’re in!” 

The chatter around the office picked up in excitement, everyone pulling out their phones and coordinating rides, who else to invite. Leo paused at Will’s shoulder briefly, loudly declared Will to be an honorary Parks employee, and made Will swear on his life to come by. It was surprisingly nice. 

Will went over to Mitchell’s side, who was typing away on his phone. 

Will bumped their shoulders together, “You’ve never mentioned a Connor before.” 

“Oh, haven’t I?” Mitchell thought it over, “I’ve known him forever. The bartender at the Snakehole? He went to high school with us, remember? Connor Stoll?”

Will blinked and realized he knew exactly who Mitchell was talking about. “Uh, right.” In no way had Will connected the random bartender who Mitchell would occasionally comment on to be the same obnoxious peer they’d shared more than 7 years ago. “I didn’t know you two kept in contact.” 

“We didn’t really,” Mitchell said with a shrug. “We ran into each other at the Snakehole a few years ago when I was there for Lou’s 21st.” Lou Ellen, an old friend of theirs who moved out of town a few years ago. “Connor looked like he saw a ghost! You’d think in a bar, he’d run into more old acquaintances, you know?” Will hummed, “Anyway, that was right after Sabrina was born and,” Mitchell grimaced, “I hadn’t realized how… low my tolerance had gotten and I got so embarrassingly trashed. Connor must have felt bad, insisted on letting me stay in the backroom until I sobered up a bit.” 

“That was nice of him,” Will offered. 

“Now I stick to one drink,” Mitchell shrugged. “And we’ve become friends. Surprisingly, I see him a lot.” 

Nico, who had been stepped off the side and listening in, coughed a laugh under his breath. 

“Well,” Will said, “it’s cool you’ve reconnected. “I’ll have to meet him sometime tonight.”

“You’ll regret that,” Nico muttered, only for him to hear. Will shot him a humoring look. 

Leo came back into the room and clapped his hands together, “Who’s driving?” 

...

They were at the bar an hour later, Will still in his old jeans and holey flannel he put on that morning. 

They went up to the main bar first to grab some drinks, Mitchell breaking off to run to the bathroom. There was a decent crowd formed already, and both familiar-looking brothers were behind the bartop mixing the drinks. Their wait wasn’t very long at all; Connor (slightly shorter, with tighter curls) came over to them after only a few minutes of idle chatting. 

“Heard the Parks people were coming by,” Connor said to them, distracted. He looked to trying to see around them into the crowd, looking for someone. 

Nico rolled his eyes, “Mitchell ran to the bathroom.” 

“Oh,” Connor paused, then forced a shrug. “Yeah, that’s cool. Not, um, that I was looking for him.” His gaze flashed to Will like he was just now realizing another person was here. “Oh, uh, hey. I didn’t know Nico had friends outside the department.” 

Nico ran a hand over his face. Will suppressed a laugh “This is Will. He’s working with us right now.”

Nico didn’t volunteer any more information for his introduction. Will put on a polite smile and stepped forward. 

“Hey, Connor. Uh, Will Solace? We went to high school together.”

He lit up with recognition, his grin a bit more easy-going. He reached out to shake his hand. “Will! Hey man, it’s been years, Mitchell’s mentioned you.” He pulled him in a bit closer. “Travis and I have a rule, every old Pawnee High kid we knew gets a free drink the first time they visit us, alright? What can I get you?” 

Will grinned, real this time. He scanned their menu quickly. “Uh, a sea breeze? That work?” 

“It’s your order, man.” Connor grinned at him, straight white teeth. When Will last saw him, he was covered in acne and butterscotch pudding (the senior prank gone wrong, it seemed)—it was odd to see him older, settled, more filled out in himself. “Nico, an Old Fashioned?” Nico nodded his agreement. 

“So, Will, what are you doing nowadays?” Connor turned to the side to grab a bright green bottle, some juice. “Working with the Parks people now?” 

“I’m down at Pawnee Medical, actually.” He gestured loosely over his shoulder. “Been there a few years as a nurse, I’m just trying to get Ramset fixed up.” Connor’s name tag, pinned on his snug black tee, caught his eye. Owner. “Oh, you own this place?” 

Connor nodded proudly. “Me and Travis, yeah. Got it for a real deal a few years ago after the last guy skipped town.” He plucked two glasses from a shelf and used a metal scoop to fill up both glasses with ice. “It’s been, what, six years since we took over?” He whistled, filling their glasses. “I wasn’t even old enough to serve alcohol when we bought this place, you know? Damn.” 

He set down both their drinks on the bartop. Will took a small sip. Lime, cranberry, the metallic cut of alcohol met his tongue. It was light, refreshing, fruity. 

Will nodded at Connor, grinning in satisfaction. “This is great, man.” 

Connor just smiled at him, “What can I say, I’ve always been good with my -”

“Hey,” A voice, breathless, called out from beside Will. Mitchell took the free seat at the bar, shooting them a grin. “Sorry, got caught in a conversation on the way back. I hate flirting in bars, you know? Always so loud.” He took a second to give Connor a full smile, “Nothing against this place, though. This place is great. I haven’t found anyone else in Pawnee who serves avocado margaritas!” 

Connor had gone completely still. There was a lasting beat of silence as Mitchell got comfortable at the bartop.

“I love avocados,” Connor only replied, his voice weaker than before. His bright grin was wobbling a bit. He glanced at Mitchell, then looked away. Beside him, Nico let out a loud sigh. “Uh, you want a? Drink?” Connor swallowed. “I mean, does a vodka soda work? If that’s what you want?” 

Mitchell gave him a fond look, “As it’s what I’ve gotten every single time since I started coming here, yes please.”

Right before his eyes, Will watched Connor melt into an awkward mess in real time, fumbling with each cup and bottle as he made the drink, almost slipping on a wet patch of melted ice and making Mitchell jerk up in concern. Nico shook his head in shame. 

Eventually, he managed to set the simple drink down on to the bartop. 

Mitchell pointed at him mockingly as he pulled it into his hand. “You better charge me for this one. I don’t want to look at the receipt and only see a club soda, alright?” 

Connor let out a horrible, awkward laugh. “What? I would… never.”

Mitchell, still smiling slyly at him, waved them on as he and Nico took a shared step back. Connor, bracing himself against the bartop, was breathless. 

Nico nodded toward the VIP area, his drink cradled in his hand. “You can’t make me look at that,” Nico said dully, turning away. “I refuse.”

“So dramatic,” Will told him, leading him over to their space. The VIP area wasn’t much—it was just a small space available for reservation for parties—but it had a few black leather couches, its own mini-bar, some space away from the crowd. A few Parks people were already milled about as well as some other City Hall employees: Percy and presumably his wife Annabeth, tucked in one of the loveseats and in the middle of an extremely animated discussion, the City Manager Jason Grace (tall, blond, and easily embarrassed, Will recognized him, thinking of a roller rink and birthday cake), and Piper and Leo, trading their brightly colored martini glasses to each other to try sips of. More people were crowded around the entrance, most of whom Will didn’t recognize. 

Nico took a seat on the couches along the back wall, Will following. 

“So,” Nico’s voice was raised now, over the music. “How do you know Mitchell, again?”

“We’ve been friends since high school,” Will matched his tone, almost yelling. He scooted closer along the couch. “We didn’t really keep in contact, but a few years ago both our little sisters started at the same daycare. We’ve been hanging out since. Marisol just loves all his siblings, they’re wild.” 

“Marisol, that’s your little sister?” Nico clarified, thoughtful under the pulsing music, spinning lights. 

“Yeah, we’ve got the same dad. Her mom is cool, around our age, works at the hair salon." Will shrugged, averted his gaze. "Apollo's not exactly the most reliable dad. I help when I can." 

Nico nodded, “So you’re… friends? You and Mitchell? He helps you take care of Marisol?” 

“Yeah, he picks her up from school with the others a lot, lets her crash in Sabrina’s room when Lena and I are both working. I help with his siblings when I can.” Will grimaced, “They’re…. A lot. I don’t know how Mitchell does it.”

“He’s mentioned his siblings,” Nico said thoughtfully, “How many does he have?” 

“Uh, last count? He’s taking care of nine. He’s got three more sisters, but they’re out of the house now.” Will snorted at the look on his face. “I don’t really know the whole story with their mom but she seems, uh, flighty.” 

Nico seemed to slowly regain a bit of his color. “I - he’s taking care of nine siblings?” He shook his head in disbelief. “I will never tease him for falling asleep at the stand again. Jesus. I mean, Piper’s mentioned their mom but I didn’t know.” He trailed off, “Wow.” 

Will nodded. “Yeah. He helped me a lot with Marisol at the beginning. Lena, her mom, had to leave her with me a lot when she was at work. We were on flip-flop schedules and it worked, you know? But I had no idea how to take care of a baby, and Mitchell had raised like, all of his siblings, so.” He shrugged, “Gave me the babysitting crash course.”

Nico was listening so attentively, it made something in Will’s chest glow. “He seems like a cool guy. He’s always in the office to talk to Piper, seems stressed, but cool.” Nico’s gaze went distant, like he was seeing something horrible in the distance, incapable of stopping it. “Gods, he must be so stressed.” 

“Who’s stressed?” 

Nico’s expression crumbled into something several shades more resigned. Leo took it upon himself to drape himself over Nico’s shoulders then, who grumbled unhappily but made no move to pull away. “Mitchell,” Nico explained, long-suffering. “With all his siblings.” 

Leo hummed, “Well, I can think of one person who’d commit actual treason to help him, uh, destress.” A wicked grin spread across his face. “Possibly even murder.” 

Nico seemed to be thinking it over, “Probably not murder, right?” He looked close to tapping his chin, “Everyone has to have a moral line.” He cast a look over to Will, genuinely curious. “People have those, right?” 

Will snorted, “Yeah, I think so.”

“So maybe not murder, then. I still have my doubts.” Leo pulled a shot glass from seemingly thin air and shoved it under Nico’s nose. “Anyway, want any snake juice? Fair warning, if you make me drink this one I will throw up on you.” 

“This stuff is rat poison.” Still, Nico took the small glass and downed it with a severe wince. He gagged. “Where did you even get that? I thought it was banned.” 

Leo winked, “I have my ways.” He looked over at Will, his interest peaked. “So Will, right? The sexy nurse trying to save the park?” 

Will blushed, “I mean, I am a nurse. And I’m trying to get the park renovated.” 

“A regular hero,” Leo leaned his head on Nico’s shoulder. “Don’t you think, babe?” 

“Very much not your babe,” Nico rolled his eyes. “Where’s your boyfriend anyway?” 

Leo nodded toward the bar. “Getting more drinks.” 

Will looked over and blinked in surprise. “Oh, you’re dating Jason?” 

Leo clenched at his chest with humor on his face. “So surprised! It hurts really.” 

“I just thought - nevermind.” Will smiled tightly. 

Nico guessed, “That Jason was dating Piper? He is.” 

Leo nodded happily. “Pipes and I are besties. I mean, can you even really call yourselves bros if you don’t share a boy toy?” Will blinked back at him.

Nico rolled his eyes, “Doesn’t Jason hate when you call him that?” 

Leo waved him off, “It’s all foreplay, don’t worry.” 

Nico wrinkled his nose, “Gross.”

“Water droplets emoji,” Leo said out loud, winking. Nico’s face turned an unprecedented shade of red. “Blushing emoji.”

“Stop saying emojis out loud,” Nico told him through clenched teeth. “No one does that, stop it.” 

Leo gave him a wide-eyed look. He blinked once, twice. “Sweaty emoji,” He answered, his lips turning up into a smile. “Tongue.”

“That’s it,” Nico’s hand found Will’s wrist and pulled him along, away from the other man. 

“Eggplant!” Leo yelled after him. Nico groaned loudly, drowning out the other man. 

“He’s ridiculous,” Nico confided in him, like Will hadn’t been laughing the entire time. “Really, you can’t assume the worst of us because of him.” 

Will didn’t say anything through his soft laughter, but threw a look over at him, teasing. “From my observation, you’re all kind of ridiculous in the best way.” He paused, “Except for Reyna, don’t tell her I said that about her.” 

Nico rolled his eyes, “Don’t worry, she’s ridiculous in her own way, you’ll see.” 

Will wasn’t sure if he believed that but hummed neutrally. He looked over the crowd, then tilted his head to the side. “I’m starving. Want to get a table? We can order food.” 

“Oh, fuck,” Nico pressed his hand to his forehead. “I would kill someone for some mozzarella sticks right now.” 

Will smiled, just to himself. “Well, I’m sure we won’t have to go to those lengths.” He caught the eye of a passing waitress, smiled. “Can we order food when you guys have a sec?” 

A handful of hours later, much later than Will had stayed out in probably years, he and Nico were spilling through the exit double-doors, letting them slam shut behind them as they tried to breathe through their laughter. 

“No, really,” Will was trying to tell him. “It’s probably the most embarrassing thing that’s ever happened to me. I was like, entirely covered in green paint and stage make-up, and it was during intermission and, oh my god, the girl playing Fiona had to fix my makeup but then she got it all over her human costume, and it almost looked like we - Jesus Christ. It was horrible. And that was before the mono kicked in, I didn’t even know about it then. I had to miss two weeks of school, I never did another show ever again, I’m just not cut out for the drama world.” 

Nico was struggling to catch his breath, “I - I can’t believe someone would do that. I, gods.” He shook his head, tampering in his laughter a bit. “I’ve had bad break-ups, but that’s… that’s so unfortunate.” 

It took a few minutes for them to get their breath back, huffing through the laughter. The fresh air was helping. He felt a few shades soberer already, without people, drinks, and heat pressing in at him from every angle. He took a breath, fought to keep it even. He wasn’t even drunk, just a pleasant loose, buzzed. He wasn’t going to drive—he called for a taxi a few minutes ago while they were still at the table—but he felt nice. Nico leaned against the rough stone wall, still smiling to himself. 

The parking lot wasn’t deserted. There was a small group of people nearby chatting happily at their cars, but it felt private enough anyway, a stark difference to the overstimulation of the busy bar interior. He enjoyed the cool air; where his body was left bare (his neck, face, forearms) the chill bit at him. The end of the summer was approaching quicker than Will would have liked. Autumn was already peeking its head around the corner in little bits of confetti; darkening leaves starting to dust the sideways and parking lot everywhere he looked. 

Nico’s face had been flushed for most of the time they were in the bar, the heat from the crowd most likely. They were both covered in a thin layer of sweat, but Will would find it hard to believe he wore it nearly as nice. Nico caught him staring, smiled with one corner of his mouth. 

He nodded at Will’s phone, “How far out is your ride?” 

Will checked. It was just leaving Eagleton. “Ten minutes.” 

Nico nodded satisfied, his fingers twitching at his pockets. It was a familiar motion; Will saw it every time he went home and his mom was aching for a rare cigarette. She gave up before he was born, but the cravings still hit her when she was distracted, stressed. 

Will pulled out a pack of gum, “Peppermint.” He offered a stick, “Want some?” 

Nico took two sticks, quickly unwrapped them, and crammed them in his mouth. “Thanks,” He said through the thick mouthful, gross. “I always forget to buy gum.” 

Will popped his own in. Anything was better than the remaining taste in his mouth, a back throat burn like his drink from half an hour ago decided that actually, I’m just going to die right here. 

The same exit they came out of slammed open then, a singular figure stumbling out. Nico sighed, greatly. 

“Leo,” Nico looked like he was praying for strength. Leo spun toward them. “Where’s your adult? Isn’t Jason watching you?” 

“I don’t need no man,” Leo told him, his eyes half-lidded. “Wait, no, please don’t tell Jason that. I really do need a man.” 

Will gave him a concerned look as Leo made his way closer to them, unsteady on his feet. “Hey, are you okay? Need some water or something?” 

Leo reached them. “No, no, I’m good. I was looking for my friends, and I found you guys. That’s nice.” He fell forward suddenly, and Will barely managed to catch him. “I think we should go get some food.” 

Piper came out of absolutely nowhere, from the shadows, “There you are.” She yelled over her shoulder, “Tell Frank we found him!” She turned back to them, rolling her eyes fondly. Leo lit up at the sight of her.

“I’ll handle him,” She said to him and Nico. She walked over and bent down easily to throw Leo over her back, standing smoothly and taking a moment to find her balance. Leo was babbling away, now slurring on about a late-night Paunch Burger visit. Jason raced out of the side-door exit and stumbled to a stop almost as quickly. 

“Told you he was gonna run outside,” Piper said only to Jason, fond. She pinched Leo’s side, next to her neck, but he made no reaction. “Let’s get going, apparently we’ve some stops on the way home.” 

She nodded at them both in goodbye and waved Jason on to join them as she walked further into the parking lot. Jason didn’t move. 

Nico reached over to punch his shoulder, who had apparently gone breathless and red-faced at the display. “Get going. They’re waiting for you.” 

Jason followed, if only on instinct alone. They watched him climb in the car, almost entranced, while laughing into their hands. They drove off, Piper in the driver's seat patiently listening to Leo’s rambling fast-food order.

Will snorted as their car left the lot. He shot Nico a grin. 

“They’re something else.” He laughed, small. “This was nice. I had fun tonight. It was cool to get to know everyone better.” 

Nico dipped his head, his hair falling over his face. “Yeah. It was good.” 

Will watched him for a moment.

“You know, I’m really looking forward to working with you,” Will told him, smiling crookedly. He waited until Nico looked up. “We’re gonna fix up that park.” 

Nico blinked at him, “I - yeah.” He swallowed, his Adam's apple obvious on his pale neck. “We’re… we’re going to fix up that park.”

Will pointed at him, “I’ll hold you to that.” His phone buzzed, “Ah, that’s my Uber. Talk to you later?” He thought for a beat, “Tuesday’s our meeting with the City Planner, right? I’ll talk to you Tuesday.” 

Nico gave him a very awkward pair of finger guns. “I’ll see you then,” Already, his face was mortified. He dropped his hands quickly. “Please forget I did that. Uh, that’s your ride, right? Great. Get home safe.” 

Will watched in amusement as Nico stumbled through his words, then promptly turned and disappeared through the nearest entrance. He snorted, feeling a warmth that had nothing to do with the fading alcohol in his system, and turned to the waiting car. “Uber, right? Who’re you here for?”

“Alright, let me know if you need anything else, Mrs. Davis!” Will told his patient brightly, a wide smile in place. The expression melted off as soon as he stepped out of the doorway, clenching his plastic clipboard. He shot a look at Hina as he returned to the desk, “You’re taking the next one.”

She wrinkled her nose in the direction of the room. “She’s still awake?” She blew a puff of air into her bangs. “She was calling every hour during the morning shift, doesn’t she sleep?” 

Will rubbed a hand over his face and stole the other half of her sandwich. She responded only by pushing the rest of her chips over as well, which he took happily. “Apparently, the cafeteria messed up the flavor sparkling water she wanted. Oh, and the humidity in her room is too low.”

“This is a hospital, not a hotel,” Hina muttered. She reached up to redo her high ponytail—it had fallen several inches lower than how it started off at the beginning of their shift. “Ugh, enough about the patients. Tell me something interesting.” 

Will gave her a dry look, “Nothing about my life is remotely interesting.”

“True,” She agreed, “considering we basically live the same life.”

Will huffed out a laugh, “Mostly. How’s Sage?” 

“Still hot as hell.” 

He rolled his eyes, “That’s what you always say.”

“Yeah, 'cause it's always true." Hina eyed him. “Any plans later?” 

Will leaned back on his elbows propped on the counter. “I’ve got to pick Marisol up from after-school care. I’ll probably stop and say hi to her mom, and get a pizza on the way home. Then, I’ll play a few hours of video games and do some laundry.” He smiled brightly at her, “Very exciting, I know.” 

She sighed and picked up an abandoned magazine, last month’s Cosmopolitan. Juniper’s, probably. “You need to get out more, Will. At least come out with us. We’re going out for a birthday this weekend, even.” 

Will grimaced, “I’ll go next time.” He said. At her expression, he quickly added, “I promise to come next time, alright? I'm just not feeling it right now. I’ll add some extra cash to the birthday card.” 

“It’s not about the cash gift,” She rolled her eyes, flipping to a random article. “It’s about you getting out of the house for something that’s not work or babysitting while you’re still young.” 

Will shrugged, fiddling with his I.D. badge clipped to his chest pocket. “I get out. I’ve actually been at the City Hall a few times, working with the Parks and Rec department.” 

Hina flipped to the next page in her magazine, scanning the headline. “Oh? For what? Got a court order?” 

Will rolled his eyes, “Not all of us go streaking at music festivals, Hina.” 

“That’s the only way I can imagine interacting with City Hall people. I mean. They have so many folders.” 

Will gave her a deeply oblivious look. Without a word, he gestured to the entire nurse's station as a whole—blue folders stuffed with papers filled nearly every inch of storage space. 

She wrinkled her nose, “Eh, it’s different. These are files. They’re the parks department, what are their folders about? Different kinds of trees?” Will had most definitely seen a packet of pamphlets advertising the different kinds of Indiana soil, but he purposely did not mention that fact. 

She let it go. “So why have you been hanging out there, then?” 

He reached out to play with his pen cap, clicking it back and forth with his thumb. 

“Remember that park I was telling you about, that’s right by Marisol’s apartment? They’re talking about finally fixing it up.” He cleared his throat. “Turns out most of them are about our age. They’re pretty cool. They invited me out with them, and I've been to their office a few times since."

Hina paused and gave him a look over the pages. “Most of them are our age,” She clarified, her words slow. “Including one in particular?” 

His face went warm, “What? I mean, no. What are you even asking?” 

“There’s someone you like, isn’t there?” She asked, slowly grinning. “Oh my gods, there totally is.” 

“I - they’re all cool! And they seem like they have a fun friend group, that’s it. And there’s just this one guy who’s been mainly helping me out, okay? And he’s easy to talk to, you know? That’s it. It’s seriously nothing more, not even a little. It’s just nice to have a new friend, you know?” 

She was still smiling that horrible knowing grin, but at least she didn’t seem interested in jumping to tease him. Oh, thank the gods Kayla wasn’t here. “That’s really nice,” She only said, “I’m glad you made some new friends. Maybe they can force you into enjoying your youth.” She pulled her magazine up, her lips quirked up in a satisfied little grin. “Or maybe just a certain someone -” 

Will stood and didn’t hesitate to march away, his face turning blotchy red. Mrs. Davis probably needed something anyway.

This…. was the weirdest meeting he’d ever been a part of. 

Not that that was saying much, he realized, considering most of his meetings had been fairly normal. Once, he accidentally spilled an entire thermos of coffee onto his advisor’s hardwood, but that was much more embarrassing than weird. This was weird.

It was just him and Nico so far, sitting across from Annabeth Chase, the City Planner who they were meeting with about co-signing off on the budget reallocation. It was practically a done deal, Piper told him in passing, even though Annabeth was probably going to harass them about every detail beforehand. 

Piper hadn’t arrived yet, running behind a few minutes. Which left him, Nico, and Annabeth in pure, horribly tense, silence. 

Will looked back and forth between them, cowed into silence. They glared at each other, head-on. It’s like he wasn’t even there. 

Suddenly, Nico’s hand came down to slam on the edge of her desk, neither of them breaking their shared stare. As he watched, Nico slowly began to drag his hand across the glossy wood until reaching the end—right where a small stapler was resting. Nico paused, and Annabeth's eye twitched just slightly. A moment later, the stapler toppled to the ground. 

Will watched on, extremely confused, "Um -" 

Just then, the door clicked open as Piper swept in, juggling an armful of folders. "Sorry I was -" She stopped in her tracks at Nico and Annabeth, still staring narrow-eyed at each other. "No, oh my gods, we're not doing this!" She threw a heavy binder down on the desk with a satisfying thud. Both of them jumped back, looking slightly chastised at her words. “I have back-to-back meetings all afternoon, I don’t have time for this.” 

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” 

“You know exactly what I’m talking about,” Piper stared them both down, narrow-eyed. “Can you two do this or not? I really do have a busy schedule today.”

Annabeth leaned back in her chair, cool as a cucumber. “I’m perfectly able to have a mature, adult conversation. I doubt di Angelo can manage it, though.” 

Piper pointed the end of her pen at her. “Can you manage not to insult him for a meeting though?” She glared at Nico, “And vice-versa?” 

“If I wanted to insult di Angelo,” Annabeth said neutrally. “I wouldn’t need to resort to childish back and forth, I’d simply just review his dating history.”

“Oh, burn,” Nico told her, Sahara-dry. “Chase got in a good one.” 

Will gave Piper a wildly confused look. “What’s going on?” 

“They’re children, that’s what.” She sighed, “They like being assholes to each other, I don’t know why, no one knows why except Percy probably, because he thinks it’s hilarious.” She opened her binder, apparently determined to work despite their narrow-eyed glares. “Okay, okay. The Ramset reno, what do we need to get the city planner before we can start?” 

Annabeth reluctantly dragged her gaze back over to Piper’s waiting one. “I’ll need to check over the construction quote and contract when you get it. I’ll see if we’ve got any grant dollars laying around, but probably not. Reyna’s hoping to get this done by the Harvest Festival?” Piper nodded, which made Annabeth sigh. “I knew it. Well, that's in a few months. We've got to move fast." 

“Reyna's planning on using the parking lot as overflow parking, and throwing a few food trucks and fireworks seating there.” 

Nico pulled out a sheet of paper to reluctantly slide over. “The fixes aren’t major.” He begrudgingly muttered, “Some broken equipment, a layer of paint. We know we’re short on project money.”

“It needs some raccoon control too,” Will added, glancing up. “It’s… kind of out of control, in that area. Everywhere else has improved but they’ve just kind of migrated there, it seems.” 

Annabeth took that in with a nod. "Animal control has always been kind of a bust, but Frank's been doing a good job of cleaning it up since he was promoted." She flipped through their notes with a critical eye. “Ramset’s always been a hot spot though, but raccoon-based ER visits have been reduced tremendously over the past year despite that.”

Will winced, hospital shifts of days past flashing through his mind like war flashbacks. 

Piper tsked, “Wonder how long that’ll keep though. Did you hear how much they cut his budget this year? They’re barely able to keep their staff on.”

Annabeth shook her head in disgust. “As soon as anyone starts improving, they take that as a queue to start cutting costs.” She reached out to make a note, “I’ll have to meet with Frank soon. Anyway, where were we?” 

Piper went on to detail a few more things she would need before the renovation could begin, Nico taking reluctant notes, while Will nodded along to it all. He wasn’t exactly sure why he was here at this point but, eh. It was better than watching TV at home. 

“That went well,” Will said as they turned out of her office a few minutes later, Piper already striding back to the Parks department while Nico lingered to flip off Annabeth a few more times. Her door slammed after them. “I mean, other than the weird thing you apparently have with Annabeth.” 

“It’s not weird,” He protested. “Most friendships are built on like, admiration and general respect for the other person, right?” He shrugged, “Annabeth and I simply lack that for each other. And we enjoy it that way.” 

Will raised his brow, “So you guys are friends, then?” 

“Oh, gods, no.” Nico made a horrified expression. “Don’t ever let her hear you say that. We’re…. Colleagues. Who like to be assholes to each other.” He shrugged, “Don’t knock it till you try it.” 

They were right at the department entrance when Nico sighed suddenly as if remembering something. 

“We’ve got some paperwork to get signed,” Nico looked pained. “Unfortunately.” 

They turned into the office, right as Will was about to question the misfortune of it all. As soon as they stepped through the door, he understood. 

“Oh, hey guys,” Connor, in black jeans, sneakers, and a loose Farewell Li'l Sebastian hoodie, grinned at them from where he was sitting on top of Nico’s desk. “Wondered when y’all were gonna show up.” 

“Nico, print up a copy of the vendor contract, will you? We’ll just need some signatures, go over some paperwork, and you’ll be set.” Piper tapped at her tablet with a pinched look on her face. Nico, now at his desk, physically shoved Connor off so he could get to his computer. The printer started up only a minute later. “Gods, I hate Excel.” 

Leo, who had been spinning in his chair, stumbled up abruptly and wordlessly held out his hand for her tablet, which she happily gave up. He stared down at the pivot table Piper had up, his eyes sparkling. “Oh, you tricky little bitches,” He muttered to the spreadsheet, tapping away. Piper shook her head and left him to it. 

Nico grabbed a stack of papers from the printer and dropped them off at the small table in the middle of the room. Piper took a seat and began separating the sheets. Will followed her example, amused. 

Nico threw himself down in the chair next to Will, staring up at Connor in suspicion. “What are you even doing here? You’re already on the vendor list for the festival.” 

"Snakehole's in uh, a little trouble with the surprise rerelease of Snake Juice, and Piper mentioned that some good publicity wouldn't hurt." Connor nodded to where she was shuffling through some paperwork. "So, the club’s looking into community partnerships for good PR. I’m just the errand boy dropping off forms, getting signatures.” 

"Really," Nico asked, unimpressed. "And you have no other motive for coming by?" 

"None at all," Connor answered easily. "I'm just a good person, you know." 

Will smiled to himself and pulled out his phone. A few minutes later, just as they were working through the paperwork, Mitchell wandered in, a streak of shoe polish on his chin, and paused at the counter. He lit up when he saw Will, gesturing to his phone. Connor, in the middle of signing some forms, completely froze. 

"Oh, there he is." Will smiled easily and raised his voice to yell. "You can just leave them there! Thanks!" 

Nico cocked his head to the side, a question. 

Will bit down on his grin. "I’m kind of hungry. Mitchell always offers to drop me off snacks."  

“I brought some for everyone,” Mitchell corrected nicely, dropping a handful of NutriYum bars onto the shared coffee table. Within seconds of him walking away, Leo was already sweeping in to steal one up, unwrap it, and shove it whole in his mouth. 

Mitchell paused at Reyna’s office door, probably sharing whatever gossip he heard at the shoe stand that Reyna would insist she cared little about except never tuned out. Will turned back to their little table, only to realize how quickly they were losing Connor. 

Nico squinted and pointed at Connor with a pencil. "No. Stop it. We are government employees; we have shit to do! We don't have time for this! We need to review the changes to the contract -” 

"I'm sorry," Connor whispered, helpless. He dropped the pen down on the conference table and walked numbly across the room like he was being pulled on a string. Mitchell, mid-sentence, turned halfway on his heel to greet Connor happily as he approached. Connor’s face was already flushed. 

“Oh, hey, Connor!” Mitchell tossed the rag over his shoulder and shot him a teasing grin. "I didn’t know you were coming by today. You coming by for a shoeshine later? On the house?"

"I'm... wearing sneakers." Never before has a man looked so regretful over his choice of footwear. "I'm so sorry." 

Mitchell gave him an odd look, “No need to apologize. Stop by next time, alright?” 

Connor cleared his throat after a moment. “You, uh,” He swallowed and made a jerky gesture to his own face. “You have something on your chin.”

Mitchell touched his chin, his eyes going slightly wide. “Oh, do I? Gods, it’s shoe polish, isn’t it? That stuff gets everywhere.” He rubbed at his chin, completely missing it. He tilted his face up to Connor. “Did I get it?” 

“Uh,” Connor made a choking sound, “no, um, a little to the left? Uh-”

Will rolled his eyes and plucked a napkin from the coffee cart. “Let me,” Mitchell gave him a grateful look and stepped closer to him, allowing Will to reach out and wipe the streak of polish off. “There,” He crumbled the napkin in his fist and dropped it into the nearest bin. “All clean.” 

“Thanks,” He said gratefully. “ Anyway, I should be getting back soon, I was just dropping those off.” He rubbed at his hip, "Gods, it's been so busy, my knees are starting to hurt! Feels like half the building’s stopped by today!" 

"I wonder why," Nico muttered. 

Connor shot him a desperate look, clearly agreeing. He shrugged to get out the next part, “Uh, actually, I need… gum.” He nodded like he was only agreeing with himself. “Really bad. I need some gum.” 

Mitchell brightened, “Oh, the stand’s got some gum. I could sneak you a pack.” He winked, teasing. “Make up for those drinks you keep forgetting to add to my bill.” 

“Actually, Connor,” Nico interrupted, annoyed. “We still have some paperwork to go through. We made some changes to the last contract, so we’ve got to review them -”

Connor reached out and blindly scrawled his signature along the bottom of the paper. “Contract accepted,” He said without even glancing at it for a single moment. Somewhere, Travis Stoll suddenly gained a splitting headache. “Is that all?” 

“We need to list a designated volunteer -”

“Just list me,” Connor waved them off. “Whatever it is, I’ll do it. That’s it? I can go?” 

Nico sighed greatly. Connor’s signature covered half the bottom of the sheet. “I - yeah, whatever, it’s fine. Get out of here.” 

He left without another word, stumbling to where Mitchell was waiting, amused. 

“See you later, Will!” Mitchell called over his shoulder. He held up his palm in goodbye, smiling. 

“Jesus Christ,” Nico muttered, pushing his chair back and standing. “You did this, you know.”

Will shot him a wide grin. 

“I think it’s sweet,” Will said, grinning after him. 

“It’s sweet now,” Nico corrected him, beginning to sort through the papers. Piper had long since disappeared, seemingly incredibly uninterested in watching someone fail to flirt with her younger brother, probably off to one of her many meetings. “Just you wait. Just you wait.” 

Will snorted and stood with him. “I’ll keep my eye out. You need help with that?”

“How’s our park?” Will asked a week later as he walked into the department office, two coffees in hand and a satchel bag hanging off his shoulder, “Here.” He immediately handed off one of the coffees to Nico and let his bag fall to the ground.

Nico took the coffee and blinked down at it like he’d never seen a to-go cup before. “What is this?” 

Will began unpacking his bag. “1 cream, 5 sugars, right? You got that when we went to Starbucks over the weekend, right?” 

Nico was still staring down at it. “No, no, that’s my order.” 

“Oh, good.” 

Leo leaned out of his office, grinning. “How come di Angelo’s the only one who gets free coffee?” 

“Help me fix up the local park and I’ll buy you 10 coffees,” Will replied, looking over his shoulder with an easy smile. 

Leo grinned sharply. “And the croissant?” 

Will slid the other pastry bag onto Nico’s desk. “Now that’s just because he’s my favorite. Nico, the park?” 

Nico cleared his throat, “Um, yeah. The park. Let me - let me get my binder.” 

Still in the doorway, Leo raised an amused eyebrow. “You have a binder?” 

“Jason is constantly handing them over,” Nico muttered after he shuffled around his desk. “I just used one of his old ones.” 

“Interesting,” Piper noted, leaning back in her chair. “Very interesting.” 

Nico flipped her off. “Does anyone actually do any work here?” He asked, annoyed. “Or just stand around and listen in on other people’s conversations?” 

Piper and Leo shared a quick look. “Definitely the second one,” Piper told him, crossing her arms. “Where’s the fun with work, anyway?” 

“This is a horrible work environment.” Nico announced, “That’s it, we’re going to JJ’s.” 

Will raised an eyebrow as he stood, grabbing his coffee. “We are?” 

“Yes,” Nico ground at him. “Because we’re incapable of getting any work done here! So! JJ’s it is!” 

Will laughed, enjoying the shade of red Nico’s pale cheeks were going. “Well, alright.” 

So they did. Will drove, because Nico apparently had an awful habit of storming off without his keys, and they made it over fifteen minutes later. In addition to his keys, Nico also seemed to have left behind everything that would actually accomplish any work, like his laptop, binder, or a stack of paperwork. Not even a notebook. Or a pen. Will wisely decided not to mention any of this. 

They grabbed a table, took some time to look over the menus even though Will’s gotten the same thing for years. Their waiter swept by then, clasping Will on the shoulder with a familiar, light touch. 

“Oh, Mitchell!” Will perked up at the sight of him, “I didn’t know you were working today.” 

“Yeah, it’s an extra shift.” He filled up their flipped coffee cups, leaving enough space for cream just like Will took it, and leaned his hip against the side of the booth. “More parks business? Man, I’m just running into familiar faces today!” 

Will cocked his head to the side, “Oh?” 

“Yeah,” Mitchell turned to the side and gestured to one of the booths a handful away. “Hina and Sage were in this morning, and look who wandered in just a bit ago!”  

Sitting at the counter, Connor held up a hand in greeting at their attention, looking embarrassed. “Oh, hey guys.”

Nico gave him a dull look, turning in the booth to do so. “Really? You’re here?” 

“Oh, Connor’s always here,” Mitchell said, probably with very well-meaning intent. “He’s one of our best customers, spent nearly a thousand dollars on waffles alone last year!” Mitchell added with a smile. “Soon, we’ll have to name a dish after him!” 

Connor laughed awkwardly, “I just… love breakfast food.” 

“Ain’t that the truth,” Mitchell touched his shoulder briefly, kindly, before sweeping away. Connor was taking very careful, very even breaths. 

“Pathetic,” Nico whispered over to him. “A thousand dollars?” 

“I didn’t do it on purpose!” He hissed back, “He’s just so good at his job.” 

Mitchell was back only a few moments later, now with a pair of ice waters. He set their glasses on the table and flipped his notepad to the next page. “So what can I get you guys?” 

Will barely glanced at the menu, he got the same thing almost every time. “I’ll have the Leslie with wheat toast, please.” 

Nico handed over his menu to Mitchell. “Same.” 

Mitchell hurried away after shooting Will a quick, knowing wink. Will could already hear the teasing. 

Nico was pouring a frankly horrible amount of sugar into his black coffee, one cream. He already drowned the one Will brought him to the office, and showed no sign of stopping. 

“So,” Will said, leaning forward. Nico lifted the coffee cup up, his elbows propped on the table, and just held the cup in his palms. “Why the Parks department? You’ve been there a few years or so, right?” 

Nico shrugged, “It’s not bad work. I get to be the worst assistant in the world as long as Percy never has to attend a single public meeting. I got to move into my own place and I basically get to do nothing all day. Basically, my dream job.” 

“Nothing?” Will teased, “Does our park mean nothing to you?” 

Nico turned red. “I mean, other than the park.” He tried to clarify. “I’m… invested in this park. I don’t want to let anyone, uh - like Reyna, down.” 

Will let it go, taking a sip of his ice water. Nico took advantage of his beat of silence. 

“So why nursing?” Nico asked, playing with his paper napkin. “Is that something you always wanted to do?” 

“I guess. I’ve always wanted to help people.” He bit his lip, “It’s good work, dependable. I love working with the patients, I do. But it’s a lot. We’re always short-staffed, and being on-call most days is kind of limiting, you know? It might be time for something new, soon.” 

“I get that,” Nico told him. “I like the parks department, but it’s not forever for me, you know? Not like it is for, like, Reyna or Jason. Or even Percy, who’ll probably stay on until he and Annabeth have kids. It’s a paycheck, and my coworkers aren’t horrible. It’s good enough for now.” 

“What would you be doing if you weren’t at the Parks Department?” 

Nico blinked at the question, almost surprised. “Uh, I don’t really know, I guess. I worked at the art house for a bit, a gas station for a few months. I was a barista when the assistant job became open, so I’d probably be doing something like that.” He shrugged, “This is the longest job I’ve ever had.” 

Nico was clearly uncomfortable talking about himself, his gaze darting off and back, shifting his weight back and forth. Will gave him a break, his eye catching on Mitchell coming out with a round tray. 

“Food’s here,” Will told him, smiling. Nico nearly went slack with relief. He took a plate, a pair of waffles topped with whipped cream and extra strawberries, buttered toast on the side. Mitchell winked at him as he set the other plate down. 

“Enjoy,” He said, a cheeky grin. A few tables down, he greeted Connor brightly. “Anything else I can get for you, dear?” 

Nico watched him go, shaking his head in disappointment at the subsequent choking. “You can see that too, right?” 

Mitchell had to reach out to worryingly pound on Connor’s back. Will averted his gaze out of respect for the suffering. “Unfortunately. How long has that been a thing? Mitchell’s never mentioned it.” 

Nico rolled his eyes, “Too long. Since Mitchell’s been working at City Hall, at least, probably longer. He went to high school with you guys, right?” 

Distantly, he remembered the Stoll antics that would pop up here and there. He probably only exchanged a handful of sentences with them back then like what was the English homework last night? and for gods sake, please stop putting dye tablets in the locker room showers. But he didn’t remember them interacting with his small friend group at all, Mitchell included. 

Will shrugged, “Yeah, but Mitchell never mentioned them. And Connor wasn’t… hanging around like he is now.” 

Nico exhaled, “If it could be called that,” He said, resigned. “You know, the first time I met Mitchell, it was at the Snakehole. He smiled at Connor when he brought him a drink and Connor just. Knocked down an entire liquor shelf. It’s only gotten worse since then.” 

Will laughed into his palm, “Yeah, I think I would have remembered that as teens.” His eye caught on Mitchell, who was back on the other side of the counter, smiling at something one of his coworkers was saying. He smiled to himself, keeping a small, private note of how often Mitchell’s gaze jumped to Connor’s booth and back, like he wasn’t even noticing it. He turned back to Nico, “So. Tell me about everyone.”

When they got back to the office, pledging to actually somehow get some work done this time, the office was filled with the chaotic, overlapping soundtrack of an argument, from Leo and Reyna’s office, where a choppy ensemble of English and Spanish was audible even through their closed door. From what Will could understand, Leo was currently threatening to quit and return to his old shoe-shining job, and Reyna pleading that he actually would. Will looked nervously toward their shared office. 

Nico didn’t even glance over at the arguing pair. “This is nothing. Just wait until you see them drunk, they start yelling about their exes. Percy has to translate for us.” Nico huffed out a breath, “Let me go get my stuff, we can work in the conference room.” 

Will nodded at him and took a seat at the table, where Piper gave him a small smile in greeting. She had her laptop open to some spreadsheets but looked completely disinterested in whatever it was, instead choosing to doodle on one of Reyna’s discarded campaign posters. She seemed to be adding a series of biker tattoos down her bare forearms. In the background, Leo’s voice reached an unheard-of pitch. She didn’t even wince. 

Will leaned over to Piper next to him, smiling small. “Is it always this crazy?” 

She shrugged, setting down her marker. “They’ll calm down in a few minutes. They’re the biggest opposing forces in the office, so we thought it’d be funny for them to share the office. They never fight for long.” She reached over to grab her mug handle, held the cup to her face, and sipped at it. ”But to answer your questions, yes.” 

Will laughed softly, more of an amused huff. She was obviously telling the truth; even as they talked, Will could hear their argument start to temper down. Leo and Reyna were still yelling at each other, but much less angrily as they exchanged quick words, their voices bumpy with hardly suppressed laughter. Percy, leaning out his own office door and blatantly listening in, looked less annoyed and more greatly amused by the whole thing. Nico, searching his desk, rolled his eyes. 

Piper picked her marker back up. She was now working on a neat-looking floral tattoo down Reyna’s throat. It was surprisingly tasteful. 

“You know,” Piper noted, not looking at him. “Most people just lodge their complaint and we never see them again.” 

“What can I say?” Will smiled as Nico finally returned victorious from his journey, a thick binder in his hands. He stood to meet him. “I like to see things through.”

Will wasn’t really one for going out, especially post-shift, yet here he was cramped along a sticky booth, nursing a sea breeze and trying not to wince at every loud chorus burst of laughter. Every few minutes, he had to resist the urge to flee into the night, taking only his exhaustion and shift bag with him. 

But, Hina had followed up on Will's promise of the next one, and it was Juniper's birthday. So, here he was, trying not to fall asleep against a sweaty glass on a weekday night. It was a smaller group tonight—him, Kayla, Hina, Zoe, and Juniper all fit into one curved booth. They had long since changed out of their scrubs and ugly gym shoes, but he could still feel a gross layer of sterile hospital clinging to him; gods, he couldn’t wait to go home. 

Still—Juniper, at the head of the table, was nearly beaming with quiet excitement, and he really did like her. He hoped the grin he pasted on his face rang genuine, making sure to laugh along and join in on the jokes when he could. Someone—Hina, probably, though she’d never claim it—quietly ordered Juniper a dessert cocktail from the back; when it came out, they cheered loudly. Kayla, on Juniper's side, was the one to hold a Bic lighter up her face and flicked it on so they could sing happy birthday to her, laughing through it. They clapped her on as they finished, and she blew out the small flame with a wide grin. 

There was a flash of light. Zoe, holding up her phone with a grin and capturing them all grinning at Juniper. Zoe was the rare provider they actually invited on their nights out, purely because she also one hundred percent joined in on their bitching about the other doctors and took their drunken criticisms with grace and humor. She usually bought the first and last round too, which helped. 

His phone lit up with a notification. Lena, sending a picture of Marisol curled up in a blanket pile in front of the TV, some Disney movie frozen on the screen. He sent back approximately 150 heart emojis, the warmth completely separated from the alcohol bubbling in his chest. She really was a great kid, even if he was desperately jealous of her slumbering comfort. 

They did another round of drinks, cheered to Juniper, their youth in general, and to the downfall of the healthcare system, and by that point, Will was feeling much more loose and lenient with a few drinks in him. Zoe was in the middle of a college story, the time she fell asleep on a train ride back to school during finals week that left her stranded in New Mexico with five hours to get back to campus or else risk failing the semester, each of their attentions captured tight. She was always so serious at work, always the picture of professionalism, but melted into a new person as soon as she ditched her uniform and I.D. tag. 

Zoe finished with her story, ending with her back in time but having to beg use of a pen from the university president, to a round of their amused, astonished laughter.

“That’s incredible,” Juniper said, shaking her head. “Did you pass?” 

“Did I pass?” Zoe repeated, grinning like she had a secret. “I was the only student to get a perfect score.” 

He joined in on the burst of laughter, genuinely enjoying the moment. A beat later, his eye caught on someone by the entrance, a familiar face flashing through the crowd. He straightened up, startling Kayla back from where she was curled into his shoulder. 

“Sorry,” He muttered, gently pulling her back to lay against the booth. “Give me a sec? My friend’s here, I’m gonna go say hi.” 

“Will, with friends?” Hina raised an eyebrow at him but got out of the booth so he could slide out. “Now I know you’re joking.” 

God, she was catty. He loved her. 

He stuck his tongue out at her and went over to where he saw the familiar flash of brunette hair, who was just getting to the bar. 

“Mitchell!” Will called out, jogging up to his side. “Hey!” 

Mitchell startled back. He had dark circles under his eyes, just risen from bed from the looks of his baggy pajama pants and tee. Will’s expression automatically flickered to concern. 

“Will,” Mitchell blinked at him, “You’re… here?” 

Will nodded slowly. “I am. And so are you?” 

They were stating the obvious facts, if only because it was so strange of them; Mitchell hadn’t gone late-night partying in years, and Will was asleep by ten most nights. They stared at each other in confusion for a quick beat.

Connor appeared before them and, as usual, only had eyes for Mitchell—but his expression was downturned, apologetic.

Mitchell sighed when he turned back to the bartop. “Connor, hey.” His exhaustion was obvious, but he still tried for a tight smile. “Got your text. They’re okay?”

Connor returned the expression in kind. “They’re fine, in the back.” 

Will, curious and concerned, touched Mitchell’s shoulder. “Is everything alright?” 

Mitchell waved his hand at him, tired. “Yeah. Yes. Just -” He sighed, met Will’s gaze. “You know how my siblings are. Trouble. Connor calls me when they show up where they shouldn’t.”

Will very much did. He dropped off Marisol a few times a week at their house for playdates with Mitchell’s youngest sister, Sabrina. They were a loud, rowdy, dramatic bunch but ever since some of the older kids hit their late teens, they’d been going all out with the partying. It drove Mitchell sick with worry, most days. 

Connor grimaced, “We didn’t give them anything, of course, but they were already pretty gone when they got here. They had some water and fell asleep in the back room.” 

Mitchell looked exhausted, “Thanks, Connor. Really. I don’t know what I’d do without you.” 

Connor dipped his head and disappeared into the back room, presumably to fetch the teens. 

Will was unsteady on his feet but determined nonetheless. “Do you need help? I can -” Well, he couldn’t drive. “I can call an Uber for you?”

Mitchell gave him a small, tight smile. “Thanks, Will, but I can handle this. I’ve got my car, anyway. What are you doing here? I wasn’t expecting to see you.” 

Will nodded in the direction of his group, who were now taking shots. Thank the gods he missed that. “It’s my coworker’s birthday, I promised to make an appearance.”

“Oh, that’s nice.” Mitchell was already distracted, as Connor reappeared out the back with a trio of stumbling, loud teens. Sebastian and Scarlett were arguing about something somehow—likely because they didn’t even seem to be even talking about the same thing at all—while Stefan drunkenly tried to dance to the pulsing beat of the music crashing out of the large ceiling speakers. Mitchell went straight to their sides, just as they were trying to push themselves onto the bartop. “Why don’t you go back to your fun, Will? We can talk later.” He pulled Scarlett from where she was attempting to climb the barstool and, with incredible ease, bent down to throw her over his shoulder. She made a loud noise of complaint and kicked out her legs slightly, but didn’t seem capable of fighting back any more than that. Next, he took Stefan into his arms, bridal-style, He seemed much too familiar with the process. “Connor, could you -” 

Connor was already collecting the last teen—Sebastian, whose arm he put around his neck and held at the waist—and followed after Mitchell with a dazed look on his face. 

“Stay back, slut,” Sebastian slurred into Connor’s neck.

“I’ve got to go, call me if you need a ride home!” Mitchell yelled over his shoulder to Will. “I’ll text you later!” 

Will waved him off, feeling a bit confused with how fast the whole interaction went. He stared after them for a brief moment. Eventually, he could only shrug it off, returning to the bar top where one of Connor’s coworkers (Phoebe, maybe?) was waiting with a bored look on her face, deadly sharpened acrylic nails tapping at the painted wood. 

He ordered another round for the group, swore to himself to text Mitchell sometime tomorrow to check in, and returned to the table. He knew how these things went. It was another two hours max before their shift caught up with them. He could do two more hours. 

1.5 hours later, thankfully, they were piling into the backseat of a car. They shared an Uber home—he’d have to worry about his car tomorrow—and, miraculously, he was the second drop-off. He waved them off as the car pulled off the curb with the rest of them. 

He didn’t drink enough to get sick and probably wouldn’t even be hungover the next morning (thank god, his hangovers were a bitch) but he still felt just enough to feel warm and sleepy. He then locked the door behind him, spread some apricot butter on wheat toast, ate it on the couch, and promptly fell asleep right then and there with the plate on his chest. 

Finally. Sleep.

That weekend, right when he got home from his morning run, his phone lit up with a text from an unknown number—only an address and time included. 

And several emojis. 

Unknown number: 

2113 Underbridge Ct, suite A. 1pm. TODAY.

[CAT EMOJI] [DOG EMOJI] 

[PURPLE DEVIL EMOJI] [TONGUE EMOJI] 

[EGGPLANT]

Well. That was odd. 

Still, after a moment of contemplating, he shrugged. It’s not like he had any other plans for today, other than some light cleaning and preparing for the week ahead. Nothing he couldn’t do before the afternoon. 

He examined the row of emojis, something knowing pulling at him. Might as well check it out.

The address was actually a banquet hall, to his surprise, that was filled with numerous rushing individuals, some of them in stiff catering uniforms, others in neat professional wear. It was in a state of preparation, as tablecloths were still being unfolded, silverware and plates being unloaded. 

And a group of people gathered in a circle, seemingly dividing up responsibilities for whatever was ahead. A familiar head of messy ink hair spun toward him. 

“Will?” Nico immediately broke off from the group and came over to him. “What are you doing here?”

He held up his phone, “I got a text? A weird text?” He pulled it up with a few taps on his screen to show him. Nico took one look at it and scoffed. 

He turned toward the group, “Really, Leo? This looks like a text someone sends when they’re trying to murder you.” He paused and looked back at Will. “You really shouldn’t show up places random texts demand. That’s… very poor survival skills.” 

“Eh,” Will shrugged, “Seemed more fun than my original plans.”

“Getting murdered?” Nico tried to clarify, “That sounds more fun?” 

“Enough flirting!” Piper called out. “Get over here, we’ve got an event starting in less than an hour!” 

“What’s going on?” Will asked, walking toward their gathered circle. It was a typical banquet space with outdated decor, young people rushing around in catering uniforms and trays. The entire Parks department and more were gathered around in the circle, with Reyna and a tall Asian man in the middle pouring over a clipboard. Even some Snakehole people were even there, in the corner setting up a booth advertising a whiskey tasting. 

“Animal shelter fundraiser,” Nico told him, his voice low. “Frank’s budget got slashed last quarter and now they’ve got to replace all the carpeting in the cat enclosure after it flooded. He and Piper threw it together last-minute.”

Frank took over the explaining of the event, going over the event schedule and jobs they needed to fill. He seemed like a kind, if slightly nervous, dude who took a second to catch Will’s arm toward the end and earnestly thank him for his last-minute help. Will smiled at him, sweet. 

Reyna gave them one last word, handed out walkie-talkies to those assigned, and nodded their dismissal as a stern-looking older man entered at the door entrance, clearly waiting for her. 

“Alright, I’m on channel 2 if you need me,” Reyna said, taking a few strides forward. “Everyone’s got their jobs -” 

“Wait, one moment,” Leo clapped his hands together, entering the circle before anyone could break off. “This is a very serious operation and you said we could go by code names.”

Reyna rolled her eyes, “I never said -”

“You can address me as Eagle One,” Leo continued over her, pointing at each of them as he went. “Nico, code name: Been There, Done That,” An array of loud groans started up, which he completely ignored. “Jason is: Currently Doing That. Piper: If I Had To Pick a Chick, Frank: It Happened Once in a Very Good Dream, Will: I'd Be Lying if I Said I Hadn't Thought About it. And Reyna -” He paused, “Eagle Two.” 

“Oh thank gods,” Reyna muttered, tucking her binder under her arm. “Can we get back to work?” 

“What’s Percy called?” Piper called out. Percy, standing next to her, immediately walked out of hearing range. 

“Anytime, Anywhere!” Leo yelled after him, now being physically pulled away by Jason. 

Will snorted as he turned back to Nico, only an arm away. His face was so fiercely bright red, under any other context, Will would be concerned. 

Will laughed softly, “Oh, so you and Leo…?” 

“Don’t make me talk about it,” Nico told him agonized, burying his face in his palm. “It was - it was just for a year, and it was hardly, we weren’t dating -” 

“A year?” Will laughed in amazed astonishment, “and that’s not a relationship to you?” 

“Shut up,” Nico hissed, his hand still over his face. “Just - shut up. We weren’t, we aren’t anything serious!” 

“Present tense?” Will inhaled to laugh so fast, he choked. “You’re present tense fucking Leo?” 

“No!” Nico finally pulled his hands back to give Will an almost worried look. “No, I’m not - I’m not seeing anyone else right now! In any context!” His eyes were wide, “I’m not seeing anyone, it’s not like that, it’s been months, not since -”

He really didn’t want Nico to stumble himself into something he didn’t really want to say. “Nico,” He interrupted, a flower of fondness unfurling in his chest. Still laughing, he shot him a warm smile. “I know. I’m just teasing you. I’m not upset, or something.” He nudged their shoulders together. “You have to admit. It’s fucking hilarious you and Leo were involved considering how little patience you have for his… everything.” Will laughed hard again, wiping at his eye. “I almost want to say your proclaimed hatred of him is worse. Or maybe it makes sense?” Will choked, “He’s your ex, after all.” 

Nico let out an exasperated, if slightly relieved, sigh. “That’s not - nevermind.” He met Will’s gaze, there and gone. “I just didn’t want you to think anything else.” 

“I don’t,” Will told him. “Anyway, why didn’t you tell me about this? I love helping with this kind of stuff.”

Nico looked away, “I know the Parks department is taking up a lot of your time. I didn’t want it to eat your entire day off too.” 

Will shoved his shoulder against Nico’s, “Don’t be ridiculous. I wouldn’t be here if I didn’t want to be.” 

Nico looked up at him from the side. He turned his head back into his shoulder, not hiding his small smile as much as he probably thought. 

Reyna, in deep discussion with a phone pressed to her ear, someone rushing along in her wake talking along in her other ear, swept by then, a clipboard in her hand that she was scrawling away at. She flipped to the next page and shot Will a quick, expectant look. “Oh, here.” She pushed a bright yellow badge at him. “You’re the First Aid officer, congratulations. Help Leo usher the guests in, will you?” She swept away without another word, the walkie-talkie at her hip crackling to life, another voice joining the array. 

Nico gave him an apologetic shrug. “She’ll never turn down free labor at these things.” 

Will snorted. Before he could reply, another voice came in. 

“Hey, guys,” Will turned his head, and, to his complete surprise, Mitchell was standing there. Will had to do a second take. Mitchell gave him a small wave, one that Will didn’t even manage to mirror—Mitchell, before him, was more polished than Will had ever seen him. He was donned in a thin black turtleneck tucked into a pair of dark, well-fitted jeans, a leather belt, and finished off with a brown soft velvet racer jacket with silver buckles. A pair of delicate gold-rimmed glasses perched on the tip of his nose and his mess of brown hair sat artfully mussed. 

It was a basic, but devastating look. 

From the collection of vendor booths in the back, there was a loud shattering crash. A collection of small branded shot glasses, ruined. 

Mitchell was looking around the room, taking it in. “Oh, what’s going on in here? Are you guys doing an event?” 

Will had to take a second to swallow. In the background, someone was discovering how people could make religions off people. “Yeah,” Will regained himself. “It’s the pet shelter fundraiser, apparently? Did you get called into this too? Leo texted me a cryptic invite.” 

“I don’t think so? But then,” Mitchell gave them a confused look, “Leo did give me a weird name when I came in? Um, 'I'd be lucky if I could'?" With his nose wrinkled and eyebrow drawn together in thought, he could have been the inspiration for a Greek marble statue. "What's that?"

“The truth,” A voice coughed from the floor, like they were lurching to consciousness. 

Nico rolled his eyes so hard, it must have hurt. 

"Ignore Leo at every chance you get," Nico only responded. If he was all affected by Mitchell’s new look, he didn’t show it. "Park’s secret to survival." 

Mitchell still looked confused but shrugged. "Alright, well. Where do you want me?" 

Nico gave him an odd look. “For what?” 

Mitchell held up his phone, cocking his head to the side. “Uh, Piper texted me? Said you guys needed some extra help?” 

Just then, she appeared over his shoulder, looking relieved at the sight of him. She rushed over to grab Mitchell by the shoulder and turn him to her, looking over his outfit with a critical eye. She squinted down at him before nodding briskly. "You'll do well." 

Mitchell raised his eyebrows and allowed himself to be manhandled without question. "Oh?" 

She reached out, adjusting his clothing. He wrinkled his nose but allowed it without complaint. She continued on, her voice laced with distraction as she attempted to smooth a wrinkles out of his jacket. "We've got to raise some quick money for the pet shelter, and Joan Callamezzo's step-sister’s ex-boyfriend canceled." 

"Canceled for what?" 

"The date auction," She pulled out a clipboard from a very mysterious place. "We've got five slots and need to make at least 200 off each to meet our goal." 

"So... you need someone to run the event or something?" Mitchell asked, looking confused. 

She sighed, giving him a look. "I need someone to fill the fifth slot. You know. To bid on." 

Mitchell let out a small laugh, full of disbelief, that almost covered up the harsh choking taking place only a few feet away. "What? You're totally joking." He paused, something occurring to him. “Is that why you told me to dress nicely?”

Piper scrawled away on the clipboard. "You're my little brother and I'm telling you that you're participating." She looked up to glare at him, "So the animals can stay in their shelter another year and have a safe home, alright?" 

"No, it's just - " Mitchell gave her a dry look. "Really, who do you think will pay money to take me out?" 

A few feet away, where he had been setting up the Snakehole booth, Connor was slowly coming back to life. He took in a loud, desperate breath that had Mitchell glancing over in concern. 

“Trust me on this,” Piper said dully, “it’ll work out. We won’t force you on any dates if it’s super uncomfortable or the bidder gives off creepy vibes. We’ll do a background check and send a supervisor to watch over the date, just try it, please? All it entails is dinner at the bistro downtown. It might work out nicely, you never know.” 

Mitchell, looking tired, looked away. “I mean, I don’t know, Pipes. Why don’t you try someone who might actually raise some funds? Maybe Percy? I can think of several people who would gladly pay triple digits just to make small talk with him over spaghetti.” He paused and thought. “Including maybe me.”  

“Percy hardly shows up for director meetings, you think he’d give up a Saturday to talk with a stranger?” Piper gestured one of the volunteers forward. “Wait backstage, okay? We’re starting soon.” 

Mitchell still looked conflicted but allowed himself to be led away toward the stage by one of the shelter workers. 

Nico sighed after him. “Wow,” He said, “we’re going to make so much money.” 

Piper pulled her clipboard back up and scrawled out a few things. “That’s the point, di Angelo.” She didn't look up from her writing as she spoke but raised her voice several octaves. "Oh, and just a reminder, government employees—including those contracted for today's services—are not allowed to bid in the auction." She looked up to meet Connor's stare dead-on. "Just so everyone understands and doesn’t break any compliance regulations." 

Slowly but surely, a look of pure horror and devastation crawled over Connor’s face. Will almost felt bad. 

He didn’t have much time to feel so, though. 

“You two,” Piper pointed at them. “Go help set up tables, people are arriving in forty! Nico, help usher will you?” She was gone before they could either agree or disagree. 

“Well,” Will shot Nico a small smile, who followed him without a word. “Let’s get to work.”

The catering staff quickly walked them through the table setup, evidently relieved in the assistance, and left them to the rest of the table while they worked on the hors d'oeuvres set up, steaming silver trays being walked to the kitchen. They worked to set up the plates and silverware then jumped straight into showing people to their seats, a few of the other Parks employees and volunteers assisting. The event was mostly a high-end wine and cheese event, with a few trays of gourmet finger foods and music. The date auction would be accompanied in the schedule by an antiques auction, a wine tasting, a raffle, and a jazz saxophone player bookending the night. 

Finally, most of the attendees were in-seat, sipping their wine. He and Nico took a second to lean against the wall and sip on cherry sodas from the open bar. The event had already gone through the motions for the intro, the food, most of the wine. The dating auction was coming up in a few minutes, from Piper’s announcement. 

Will glanced at the vendors. The Snakehole booth had an older couple stopped by in front, and Connor was smiling so widely and brightly, he looked crazed. 

Nico snorted when he saw where Will was looking. “I was just over there,” He told Will, leaning in like it was a secret. “He just kept muttering about condiments and about some favor Katie owes him." Nico shrugged, "I think he finally lost it and honestly I'm a bit surprised he held out this long. If anything was going to break his brain, I thought it would have been the time JJ's hosted a car wash for the elementary school."  

This was the first time Will had ever heard of that. “Oh my gods,” A smile came to his lips slowly. “How bad was it? For Connor, I mean?”

“Connor somehow brought seven different cars to wash. I completely suspect he stole a few just to bring them to the wash and then abandoned them again.”

“Sounds about right.” Will nodded to the seating. “Wanna watch? No matter what, I’m sure it’s to be entertaining.” 

“Well, you know how committed I am to my work.” Nico threw himself down on the first chair he could and tossed his dirty sneakers up to rest on the back of the chair in front of him. “Twenty bucks Connor ends up crying.” 

Will snorted, “I’m not taking the bet.” He sat a bit more carefully than Nico, but nonetheless relaxed. They were hardly needed at this point anyway—no one was arriving at this point, and if someone needed medical help, they’d call Will from across the room just the same if he was sitting. 

“Ah, there we go.” Nico whistled under his breath, “Knew he was going to bet somehow.” 

Will looked over, watching as Katie Gardner appeared at the end of the hall and took a seat at the front. Katie, who had taken over Sue's Salads a few years back from what Will heard, looked tired but ready, her numbered paddle in hand. She also went to Pawnee High all those years ago, and they were distant friends. It was always nice to see her wide grin.

She took her seat, sitting patiently through the first few candidates. Mitchell was at the very end, a late addition, who looked awkward but unfortunately gorgeous at the back of the stage. 

The fourth candidate was over; just then, some commotion was happening in the front row. Will craned his neck but couldn’t see a thing, sharing a confused look with Nico. 

Mitchell was led to the front of the stage and gave a brief but charming introduction of himself. Piper started the bidding at a modest 75 dollars, which Katie was quick to up. Another bid—a familiar voice?—immediately rang out to counter her. Will spun to face the new voice. 

"Is that..." 

Nico rubbed a hand over his face, "I hate this fucking place." 

Travis Stoll, now standing on his chair, held up his number in the air. Some poor, clueless soul had accidentally handed over the '69' number board, which he now proudly brandished. Katie shot him a glare and jerked up her own sign in response. 

Piper raised an eyebrow, cradling the mic in one hand. "Oh, do we have a bidding war?" She smiled wide and giddy, "Alright! 200, can we get 500?" 

Both of them were instantly raising their boards, staring at each other. Mitchell was bright, bright red. 

"Oh, Jesus Christ," Nico sighed, "We're going to make so much money." 

"Nine hundred!" Katie yelled out. 

"One thousand!" Travis replied, excited. 

“Two!”

"Alright, two thousand! Can we get to three thousand?" Piper grinned. Both immediately yelled after her. Frank, at the base of the stage, looked ready to tear up. 

"The shelter's gonna be set for the rest of the year," Reyna muttered, deep in thought. She had apparently stopped by to check out the excitement. "They'll be able to replace the cat interior for sure, maybe even fix up the gated backyard like Frank's been wanting." 

Nico hummed, "At least something good can come out of Connor's desperation." 

"I think it's sweet," Will told them, smiling. He waved at Mitchell's brightly flushed face. 

Reyna raised his eyebrows, "Oh, it's sweet? I mean, feel free to go next, Solace. A cute nurse like you? I'm sure we'd have some bidders." 

Will laughed softly, taking careful note of the elbow Nico was trying to quietly shove into her side. "I'm good, actually. I'm just saying, it's kind of sweet to see how far Connor's willing to go just for a chance with him." 

"He's willing to do everything except outright ask him." Nico shook his head, "He's doing this to himself. He just needs to be straightforward with what he wants. After a certain point, you'd think he'd realize awkward flirting isn't going to help him with anything." 

Will hummed, "Easier said than done." 

Somehow, the bidding was still going on. Katie looked ready to climb over the chairs and settle the fact by brawl, looking more furious with every rise of Travis' paddle. They were long since the only two left bidding as the number crawled up. 

"Alright!" Mitchell suddenly spoke up in the middle of it, right when Katie looked to be seconds away from throwing fists. "That's good! I mean, nine thousand? That's uh, a lot of money! Too much money! I think that's a good cap, really, that's almost as much as the whole fundraiser!" 

"Oh, fine. Only because we have to move the bidding on." Piper replied, "21 and 69, please report backstage so we can iron this out. Now, let's move on to the item auctions..." 

Nico touched his arm and stood. "Wanna come? I want to see how this plays out." 

Piper was still leading the auction, which left Percy backstage to rub at his temples as Katie and Travis were ushered into the backroom. Nico held up his badge to get them through and went straight to where they were gathered. 

"Alright," Percy was saying, "I literally couldn’t care less about this and I was promised I wouldn’t have to do anything today, so let’s get this over with. You’re both committing the same amount, correct?" They nodded, "Mitchell said he doesn't care who it is as long as it isn't, quote, an ax murderer or an Eagletonian, end quote, and I'm completely over this so," He reached into his pocket and pulled out a gold coin. "Katie, heads or tails?" 

"Heads," She answered promptly.

Percy flipped the coin and slapped it down on his hand. He pocketed it and grabbed a clipboard, and scrawled across it messy. "Travis, head to the payout booth and settle your bid. Rules and contract will be explained there." He ripped off the sheet of paper and handed it off to him, "Thanks for playing, now get off my stage." 

Travis disappeared in a cloud of crackling laughter and quick speed, leaving Katie cursing after him. 

Nico gave her an odd look, “Why are you mad? Didn’t you kind of win anyway? It’s going to go to Connor anyway.”

Katie frowned, "Here's the thing. Was Travis there? Yes. Was he bidding for Connor? Absolutely not." She growled, "I hate him." 

“Isn’t he your husband?” 

“That has nothing to do with this,” Katie hissed back, glaring at Travis’ back. “Connor used his horseradish promise! Short of death, nothing is supposed to come in between that!” 

“Tragic,” Nico commented dryly, tugging Will away. “You might want to leave before Percy comes back.” 

She huffed out a sigh and stomped off in the opposite direction, toward the Snakehole booth. The auction was still going on, now auctioning a set of official Zorp(™) singing flutes that a pair of old men were bidding for. Nico didn’t seem interested in watching the rest of the proceedings, so Will went along with him to the back of the room where Katie had caught Travis as he came away from the paperwork table. 

“Wait, you shouldn’t even have been able to bet!” Katie pointed at him in accusation, “Isn’t the Snakehole prohibited from participating?” 

“Contracted employees are,” Travis told her brightly, “however, Connor apparently insisted on being the one to cover the event. He’s the only one who couldn’t,” 

“That’s evil,” Katie whispered, almost in awe. 

Mitchell had immediately fled the stage to hide in the shadows, where they were heading now. He and Nico shared a quick look, enjoying the whole situation immensely. 

Travis automatically melted into a proposal kneel as he reached Mitchell, his hands cupping his folded-up contract like he was presenting a ring, and spoke in a clunky mock-sophisticated accent. "My dear Mitchell, it looks you're to be my betrothed for the next day. What a joyous and completely unexpected twist Mistress Fate has brought upon us." 

Mitchell sighed greatly, his face still bright red. "I can't believe you dropped nine grand on a joke. That's irresponsible even for you." 

"It was for a good cause, my dear," Travis told him. "For I would do anything for your hand and consideration in marriage." 

Mitchell seemed begrudgingly amused by the whole affair, even with Connor quietly going through the soap-opera stages of grief in the background. "And what about your wife?"

Travis waved his hand over his shoulder, "Who said Katie wasn't involved? She was the other bidder." 

"I was wondering about that," Mitchell admitted. Finally, he let out a small laugh, "Alright, why not. Could be worse, am I right?" 

"Truly, I don't know how," Nico told him, frank. "But I’m glad you're cool with it." 

Mitchell rolled his eyes but did take Travis' offered arm as he stood, tucking himself into his side. In the distance, a sob. 

"First, let's hit the Snakehole booth," Travis said lightly, "I want to say bye to my brother." 

Will couldn’t help the laugh that sounded out of him, like a bark. “Evil,” Will coughed out, “Katie was right.” 

“That’s low,” Nico commented, but still craned his neck to get the best view of the vendor booths. “Oh, his face.” 

Will patted Nico’s shoulder, “Poor soul. Let him be.” 

“Poor Katie,” Nico corrected him, finally looking away. “She’s the one who’s going to have to listen to him whine all night.” 

Will thought it over and shrugged, more or less agreeing. He leaned his hip against the nearest fold-out chair. “What’s next? This is pretty much over, right?” With the auctioning finishing up and the wine tasting long since over, people were mostly milling around and socializing at their tables. 

“Yeah,” Nico bit his lip, looked to be working up to something. Will waited patiently. “So, uh, by the way. If you’re not working and don’t have any plans later, a few of us are having a get-together tonight. Just to let loose after,” Nico made a gesture toward the entire event in general. “All this. Everyone’s going.” 

Will shot him a look, “I’m invited this time?” 

Nico groaned, “No, nevermind. You’re not, sorry.”

“Too late,” Will sang out. “That’s a full invitation, no takebacks. I’d love to come. Text me the address?” 

Nico stared down his cheeky grin for a second longer than expected. He pulled out his phone, then Will’s contact. “Fine. Show up at seven, or whenever.” 

Will’s phone buzzed, but he didn’t look down to check it. Seven was only an hour or so away. Most of them were probably going straight there. Will didn’t bother to do his hair this morning, past a courtesy rub of pomade to keep it from frizzing. “Seven it is,” Will told him. “I’m gonna see if Reyna’s cool with me getting going, but I’ll see you later, okay?” 

Nico had his hands in his front pockets, his shoulders loose. “See you later, Will.” 

Will turned on his heel, didn’t look back—his cheeks were too warm to allow that—and found Reyna quickly enough. She nodded her dismissal, gave him another distracted thanks, and walked off into another conversation. That was good enough for him. 

Next, he hopped in his car, raced home, showered and changed, did his hair, debated on a bit of cologne before eventually deciding no, grabbed his stuff, drove halfway down the street, drove back, ran back into his house to apply one single spritz, and finally pulled up into the address Nico sent over, a charming one-story house hugged by the suburbs. 

He wiped his hands down the front of his jeans, took a breath, and knocked on the front door. It opened a second later, Leo’s mess of curls appearing. 

He leaned against the doorway, much too cheeky. He had a large almost-empty margarita glass hanging from one hand, a pair of oversized sunglasses in the other. “Well helloooo nurse. Aren’t you a sight for sore eyes?” 

Before Will could even respond, Nico was there physically shoving Leo out of the doorway. He pushed him straight into Jason’s arms, who had come up to greet Will, and where Leo went quite happily. 

Will held up a bottle of wine, “Hey, guys. Thanks for the invite.” 

“You brought wine?” Nico made a look of disgust, “That’s so… polite.” 

“Well, some of us do try.” Will handed the bottle over to Jason, who was thanking him with the profusion that only came after a handful of drinks. 

Leo was now tucked happily under Jason’s chin. “You can throw your coat in our bedroom, we’re gonna start a few drinking games soon.”

Will did just that, returning with a soft smile. “You guys have a nice place,” He told them, nodding at Leo. “It’s a two-bedroom?” 

“Yeah. Pipes, Jason, and I take the master. We’ve been using the other as a guest room since Nico moved out.” 

Will gave Nico a surprised look, “You used to live here?” 

“For a while. I got my own place after I started working at Parks.” 

“This place is falling apart, but eh. It’s home.” Piper popped the cap off a beer before handing it to Jason, who pressed a quick kiss to her cheek in thanks. “We’ve done a lot of work. When we moved in, there was a block of frozen mail in the freezer.” 

“Oh, icy mail! I miss icy mail.” Somehow, Leo sounded fond. “I was so sad when you guys got rid of it.” 

“It was a stranger’s mail frozen in ice. And it took up most of the freezer which we kind of need.” 

Leo sighed sadly. “It gave the house character!” 

“Please,” Reyna swept by seemingly only to roast Leo. “You do that enough for this place.” 

“Sad face emoji,” Leo answered, forlorn. Jason pressed a kiss to his temple in comfort. 

In the living room, they’d set up a few long plastic tables. At the end of it, Annabeth, out of her professional pantsuit and now cheering loudly in a thin tank top and shorts, jumped up in excitement as Percy landed a small white ball in a red cup. Frank and Reyna, on the other side of the table, groaned loudly. 

“We’re up next!” Leo announced, reaching out to pull on Nico’s arm. “Nico, come on, you’re my partner!” 

Nico rolled his eyes but went along. 

A few minutes later after getting a bit more comfortable, Will found himself on the couch with the only person at the party he was unfamiliar with—a pretty dark-skinned Black girl, around his age give or take a few years, who was smoothing down her sparkly purple velvet skirt. She brushed one of her braids back behind her ear and caught his eye, smiling softly.

“Apple spiced sangria,” Piper leaned over them with a tray and gave them each a glass. “There’s a whole jug of this stuff in the kitchen, it’s great.” 

Will took one. The glass was ice cold and had brown sugar and an apple slice on the rim. He took a small sip, then a larger one; refreshing, cool, and sweet. Piper nodded at them in satisfaction and headed back to the game, leaving them alone. 

“I don’t think we’ve met,” Will held his hand out like a dork but, without a beat, she slipped her small hand into his and shook it neatly. “Will Solace. I’ve been helping the Parks people out with fixing up Ramset.”

“I’m Hazel,” She introduced herself nicely, a sweet smile at the ready. “I’ve heard a lot about you, Will.” 

He gave her a pleased grin, “Good things, right? Otherwise, it’s all lies.”

She hummed, taking a small sip of her drink. It left a few specks of sugar on her lip, which she brushed away as she spoke. “Good things.” She agreed, tilting her head to the side. “You’re a nurse, right?” 

“That’s me. Do you work at City Hall too?” 

She shook her head, the gold clasps at the ends of her braids clicking together. “I’m the art teacher at Pawnee Elementary.”

“Oh!” Will lit up, “You are? That’s great! My sister goes there, maybe you know her? Marisol Solace?” 

Her hand came up to her chest, her eyes widening in surprise. “Oh, Marisol! She’s in fourth grade, right? She’s such a sweetheart, really. She and Sabrina are so adorable together.” 

“They really are,” Will took a long drink. Piper was right—these things were excellent. “I’ve heard her talk about your class a lot. She loved the slime workshop you guys did.” 

She made a face, “Those workshops are so messy to do, but the kids really do love them.” She sighed, “We’ll have to do more of them. Just… it’s so much glue. And glitter! Gods, I love them but they can be absolute monsters when it comes to a tub of fine grain glitter.” 

Will snorted out a laugh, “I can’t even imagine that. But that’s so fun, teaching art. How did you get mixed up with the City Hall crowd, with all that?” 

Hazel bit her lip, smiling still. “I’ve kind of known them all since forever. Nico started bringing them around when we lived together and they’ve all kind of stuck around.” 

“Oh,” Will blinked, reassessing. “So you and Nico…?” 

She raised an eyebrow, smiling. “Siblings,” She clarified, laughing a bit. “Nico’s my brother.” 

Will startled back, “What? Nico,” He raised his voice to yell over to the other side of the room, “You didn’t tell me you had a sister!” 

Nico wrinkled his nose. “Stop telling people information about me.” He yelled back at Hazel, who immediately protested. Will hid a grin in his glass. 

“I’m literally your sister, telling people we’re related. That’s not supposed to be a secret!” 

Nico sniffled, “You have a habit of sharing my personal information.” 

Hazel sighed with the air of familiar argument. “Oh my gods!” She turned to Will to explain, “I filled out the Census for our household once and he still brings it up!” Hazel turned to him, making a questioning gesture with her hands. “The government knows you exist, Nico! You literally have a federal job! I’m sorry if this is news to you!” 

Nico said nothing in response, just turned back to the game. It was his turn, evidently. 

“He can be such an asshole,” Hazel told him fondly.

Will held up his glass in a toast, “I’ll drink to that.” 

Hazel, especially after they both loosened up after a drink, was astonishingly cool and Will was rather cross that they’d never been introduced to this point. She was an art teacher, her favorite color was purple, and she and Will both (secretly) adored the same Eagleton cafe 40 minutes downtown that served the most delicious sugar-spun desserts. They made very secret, shameful plans to visit sometime in the future—they’d have to destroy all evidence after visiting. 

“Nico can never know,” Hazel stressed to him like Will wasn’t already in complete agreement. “Jason won’t let him disown me, but he’ll try.” 

Will nodded seriously, “No one will know, I swear.”

“Perfect,” She grinned at him, almost relieved, and held up her empty glass, his own matching. “Fill us up?” 

He did so, and then did so again, his step becoming more unsteady with each visit. After their third refill, Piper rolled her eyes and just pushed the extra sangria pitcher into Will’s hands. “Just put it on the coffee table. Easy access.” 

Will certainly wasn’t going to argue with that. 

Hazel let out a small cheer as he approached and made grabby hands for her glass, holding it somewhat still as he refilled it. 

“I never drink,” Hazel loudly whispered to him. “I don’t much like bars, especially the local ones where I’m always running into students’ parents.” She hiccuped and covered her mouth in surprise. They met each other’s eyes and burst into a fit of giggles. “I’m sorry,” She tried to say, still laughing. “I just never drink. I - ha - think it’s getting to me.” 

“I never drink either,” Will confided. “I’m always on call, it never seems worth it.” He sighed, “I don’t know. Maybe I need to try out something new.” He chuckled, “Think they’ll hire a nurse to teach?” 

Hazel gave him a wide-eyed look. “They should! They really should, you would be wonderful! I love teaching art to those kids and you would love it too.” She sniffled, “They’re such great little people, you know?” Her eyes went watery, “One of my afternoon kids painted me a horse yesterday.” She let out a sob, “I fucking love horses.” 

“Horses are great,” Will told her, nodding along enthusiastically. 

“Why aren’t we friends?” Hazel was softly crying now but didn’t seem to notice it. She had kicked off her heels a bit ago and had pulled up her legs to sit crisscrossed. 

Will reached out to grab her hand, which she clenched equally tight. “We can be friends now! There’s still time.” 

Hazel sniffled, “Really?”

“Yes,” Will told her seriously. “We can swap secrets like we’re at a sleepover in middle school and everything.” 

Hazel brightened, “Oh, yes! Let’s do that. What’d yours?”

Will thought for a moment. Across the room, Leo let out a victorious scream and threw himself around Nico, as Piper cursed them out and downed the rest of a cup. Will smiled, dopey, as he turned back to Hazel.

“I have a crush,” Will told her, smiling. “But I won’t say who it is.” 

Hazel nodded seriously. “No, I get it. You shouldn’t spill secrets when you’re drinking, that’s bad. I won’t even tell you that I have a crush on Frank from the animal shelter.”

Will pointed at her in alarm. "But you said it! You said your crush!" 

Her hands came up to cover her mouth, “Oops.” 

"Well," Will thought for a single moment then nodded. "I'll tell you mine then, so it's fair." He cuffed his hand around her ear and leaned in to whisper. "I like Nico." 

She gasped and pulled back. "That's my brother!" She whispered back. "Oh, my goodness!" 

“Oh, shit,” Will realized. “You’re siblings!” 

She waved her hands frantically at Will’s panicked expression. She held out her pinky, "I won't tell." She swore. "You can’t tell mine either. Pinky swear on it.” 

Will reached out to wrap his pinky around hers. "Deal." 

She laid her head on the couch and smiled at him sleepily. “I’m really glad you came here tonight. I’m having fun.”

Will reached out to grab her hand and squeeze it, smiling softly. “Me too.”

They lazed about for a long bit, laughing and exchanging stories. Soon, the drinking games came to an end, or at least a break. Nico was the first to come checking in on them, standing over them with a barely concealed look of amusement on his face. “Having fun?” 

He and Hazel shared a quick look before bursting into loud, obnoxious laughter over absolutely nothing at all. They hardly recovered from it. 

Nico was raising his eyebrows at them as they quieted down, hiccuping. “Are you two done?” 

“Never,” Will lifted up his cup. “We’re best friends now, we’re never done.” 

“Leo will be heartbroken,” Nico replied dryly, reaching out to nudge Hazel’s shoulder. “You okay?” 

Hazel blinked at him, then smiled sleepily. "I’m good.” She somehow managed to get to her feet, yawned, and stretched her arms out. “I’m gonna find something to eat.” She met Will’s gaze, hazy. “I keep my promises, okay? I’ll find you later.” 

Will waved at her, warm and content. He took another sip of his drink, the ice watering down the apple cinnamon into something less flavorful.

Nico watched her go with suspicion but didn't hesitate to take her place, curling up in the same couch cushion. "What was that about?" 

Will laid his head against the back of the couch and rolled his head to face Nico. He felt so heavy and sleepy, it was a wonder that he wasn't already asleep again. "Nothing. We’re friends now." Will replied, sleep weighing down his words and dragging them out slowly. For the drinking games Nico had been doing all evening, it was a wonder to see how alert he was. He must be very good at them. 

Nico was still staring at him. Will let out a breath and smiled small, like he was admitting defeat. "I think I'm a little drunk." 

Nico huffed out a laugh, "Yeah, I think so too." He looked at the coffee table before them, covered in empty cups. "Have you had any water?" 

"At one point in my life?" Will muttered into the couch cushion. "Probably." 

The couch shifted and, when Will cracked open an eyelid, he was alone on the couch. He closed his eyes again, feeling lulled by the music, the bright conversation around him. 

When he opened his eyes again, it couldn’t have been much later but he was still somewhat aware of the fact he had briefly fallen asleep. Nico was there then, one hand on Will’s shoulder, the other holding out a wet water bottle. 

He pressed the cold bottle into Will’s hand. “Drink, okay? I made Hazel drink some too.” 

Water actually sounded fantastic at that moment, so he didn’t hesitate to slightly sit up and drown half of it in one go. 

“Good,” Nico patted his shoulder, where his hand still lingered. “How you feeling?” 

“Sleepy. But okay.” He answered, as his eyes slid shut again. Nico returned to his former place on the couch, bringing his legs up like Hazel did. They were siblings. He didn’t really process that until now. 

“You have a sister,” Will said, slowly. “You never mentioned that.” 

“I have two sisters,” Nico corrected, matter-of-fact. “Bianca’s older. She lives in D.C.” 

Will sat up and tried to face him head-on. “D.C.? That’s cool.” 

“Yeah. I don’t really know what she does, something with at-risk teen girls. But she’s happy there, I think. She’s always trying to convince me to move down there.” 

Will paused and looked over. The water was helping a bit to shuffle his thoughts along in the same general direction, but it was a slow, slow journey. “You ever consider it?” 

Nico shrugged, “I thought about it. Especially before I got my job, nothing was really keeping me here.” 

Will took that in. He nodded. “I love Pawnee,” he announced.

“Really?” Now, Nico was amused. “Tell me why you love Pawnee.” 

Will let out a small sigh, “You think it’s funny.” 

He didn’t pretend otherwise. “Pawnee’s… I mean, it’s middle-of-nowhere, Indiana. Nothing exciting. I don't think I've ever heard of anyone actually loving Pawnee. Most people were just born here and stay.” He picked at the hole in his jeans. “I mean, I never thought I’d stay here.” He peeked a look up at Will. “So tell me. Why do you love Pawnee?” 

“I -” Will took a second to really think about it. “I like the waffles.” 

Nico started laughing, but Will waved his hands around to stop him before he lost his train of thought completely. “The waffles,” Will tried again. “It’s like - okay. There’s the obvious stuff. I’ve got my family, good friends, and a decent job. That’s the obvious stuff.”

“Right,” Nico agreed easily enough, waiting to hear him out. “But the waffles?” 

“But the waffles,” Will agreed whole-heartedly. “The other stuff—that’s what makes me stay in Pawnee. But the waffles are what make me love it. I mean, Pawnee has everything I love. It has a good diner with excellent waffles, my favorite coffee place with baristas who know my name. There are bars filled with people I love, clean parks and water, and the beach is only a morning drive away.” He smiled, “I know Pawnee’s no Chicago, or L.A., or even Indianapolis. It still needs a lot of work. But every week, I walk downtown and I see a new restaurant opening or an art gallery or -” He waved his water bottle around. “A dog park, I don’t know. It’s special to be a part of something that’s growing.” He knew he was rambling but it felt okay, with Nico. A lot of things felt okay with him. He shot him a small, sleepy smile. “Maybe next summer, we’ll get a bubble tea place so I can stop driving to Eagleton in shame.”  

Will glanced away, taking in the room. Someone had put something on low, soft and romantic—a Duke Silver album—that Percy and Annabeth were swaying along to. Leo was laying on the other couch singing along while feeding Piper, who was spread across the carpet, grapes from the vine. Reyna and Jason were drinking the last of the sangria mix and laughing over something (summer camp?) and Frank, who had evidently found Hazel eating chips on the kitchen floor, was now loudly making grilled cheese and taking orders from each of them.

Will smiled, sipped at his water. 

“It doesn’t matter where you end up,” Will said, “It’s who you’re with. And everyone’s got to build a life somewhere. Why can’t it be here?” 

Nico didn’t immediately reply, let the quiet stretch out between them. Will looked over, already half-knowing. Nico was staring at him like he had found something, and Will was staring straight back. 

Nico swallowed, and Will tracked the movement with his gaze. His mouth suddenly felt incredibly dry, despite the water he had just downed. He was sitting so close and Will—well, he didn’t really think, past that fact. 

Will’s gaze flickered down, up, and down at his lips again. He leaned in slowly, tilting his head, but before he could get very far, Nico completely leaned back away from him. His hands found Will’s shoulders and they gently pushed back until Will was resting back on the couch, his head on the arm. Will blinked up at him, confused and sleepy. 

“You’re very drunk,” Nico told him, soft. He pulled the blanket off the back of the couch, the one Hazel had been rubbing her face on, and unfolded it across Will. “I think you should get some sleep. Everyone usually stays over after these anyway. We can talk in the morning.” 

Sleep was quickly catching up with him. 

"You're really nice, Nico." Will tucked his water bottle against his cheek, let his eyes slide shut again. "I'm really glad I met you." 

Nico smoothed the fabric down on Will’s shoulder and took a small step back. His voice was hushed, his eyes soft. “Get some sleep, Will.” He told him, “Thanks for telling me about Pawnee.” 

On his side, tucked in, sleep was fighting harder for him than it had all night. His eyes were falling shut, he was barely awake at this point, but he could still feel the gentle, tentative touch of a hand smoothing his hair back. Nico said one more thing in passing, but Will was already asleep. 

...

"What the fuck,” was the first thing Will got out the next morning when he opened his eyes. “What the fuck.” 

Existence was pain. Consciousness was agony. The light drifting in from the sliding glass door was basically a murder attempt. 

He opened his eyes against all odds and squinted at the ceiling. He barely managed to push himself up onto his elbows, groaning and rubbing at his temple. He was on the couch, still dressed in his jeans and a button-up, sweaty and aching from poor sleep and lumbar support. 

“Morning Sunshine,” Leo responded happily, way too perky in a tie-dye crop-top and boxers. “‘Bout time you woke up.” 

“Leave him alone,” Hazel spoke up from across the room, her voice so dripping with misery it was almost pitiful. “He had more than me, I don’t know how he’s even alive.” 

“Strong willpower,” Leo paused, “Get it? Will-power? Okay, that was funny. Piper would have laughed.”

“Piper laughs at fart jokes,” Annabeth, whose face was buried in a pillow resting on Percy’s shoulder, said without lifting her head. “That doesn’t mean it’s funny.” 

Reyna, who somehow looked completely put together at the kitchen table with a cup of coffee, nodded. The only admission she had toward their late-night was her completely ruined shirt (was that a scorch mark on her shoulder?) and the dark circles under her eyes. 

Jason swept in from the kitchen and, with him, brought the very distinct scent of breakfast. “How are you feeling, Will? Think you can handle some breakfast? Frank’s frying up some vegan sausage -” 

Will’s hand came up to his mouth as he froze. 

“Oh, no,” Leo was the first to realize his expression and jumped to his feet. “The bathroom,” Leo heaved him up, pushed him down the hall. “Throwing up happens in the bathroom!” 

Thankfully, he made it—he would never be able to show his face in this friend group if not—and Leo left him to it. After a few horrible minutes, his stomach finally settled into something solid and allowed him to pull himself away. He caught his breath and wiped at his sweaty brow before flushing the toilet and standing on unsteady limbs to fumble over to the sink. He spit and washed out his mouth, gagging. 

Right when he was debating stealing some mouthwash, there was a single knock on the wall. Will straightened and looked over where Nico was leaning against the open door frame.

“I come bearing gifts.” He offered them out. “Pedialyte and a wet cloth.” 

Will gestured to the counter, a signal: leave them there. He wiped his hand over his face and sighed when Nico didn’t immediately flee. 

His stomach didn’t feel good enough to peel himself away from the safety of the room, so he sat against the wall to wait it out. He looked up at Nico. “You should probably go.” 

Nico raised an eyebrow, “I should?” 

"I'm not pleasant when I'm hungover." 

Nico gave him an unimpressed look, "Is anyone?" 

"No, I -" He could feel the annoyance building up. He glared at the floor, "I'm kind of a huge dick when I'm hungover. Like, it's a known fact. Just leave me here to die and I'll crawl out for a ride home eventually." 

Nico didn’t seem to be taking the warning seriously. He sat on the edge of the bathtub, looking bored. “Well, I don’t care if you’re a bitch. Better than the sick and whining fest out there.” 

A headache had crawled into the space at his temples and was very loudly, painfully letting itself be known. Will groaned into his hands. 

Something nudged his shoulder—Nico, insisting on the bright pink bottle of Pedialyte. Will weakly snatched it away and undid the cap. It had already been cracked open, likely by Nico himself, and he only had to turn at it slightly so he could pour half the bottle down his throat. 

“Better?”  

“Please shut the fuck up,” Will somehow found himself grinning even before he got it out, “No, I’m being serious, I swear.” He started laughing halfway through. “I’m usually such a dick, I promise.” 

“Yeah, you really seem like an asshole right now. You said please and everything.” 

Will ran a hand through his greasy curls. He was acutely aware the room probably smelled like vomit, but Nico didn’t comment on it. 

“What do you remember about last night?” Nico asked, his voice quiet. Will’s raging headache thanked him. 

“I remember a lot of drinking,” Will rubbed at his temple. “Hazel and I cried over something, I think? Or maybe we were laughing? Um, Percy won flip-cup. We sat on the couch for a bit?” Will couldn’t muster up much past Hazel and he making a pinky promise over something, except for - “Wait, did I rant about how much I love Pawnee?” 

“It’s the waffles, apparently.” 

Will thought about it then nodded. They were pretty great. 

“It really is,” Will agreed, wistful. He took another smaller sip. It was sickly sweet and tasted like syrup, but it was also delightfully cold and refreshing. He offered a sip to Nico, who shook his head. 

“How are you not hungover?” Will asked, screwing the cap back on and exchanging it for the rag. Nico must have gotten it from the freezer, it was frozen cold and absolutely wonderful against his hot, clammy skin. “I distinctly remember you playing like, so many games of beer pong.”

“It was four games, actually.” Nico gave him a smug grin. “And I guess you just don’t drink that much when you’re a winner.” 

Will huffed out a laugh, “Does that explain why Piper hasn’t shown up yet?” 

“It’s her fault for pairing with Jason. He’s useless after a few drinks.” 

“I understand the feeling,” Will dropped the rag to his lap and closed his eyes. “I’m so glad I don’t have to work today, Jesus.” 

“We usually time these things so no one’s rushing into the office the next morning.” Nico agreed lightly. From the hall, someone called for his attention. He stood and stepped out of the doorway for a moment, quiet murmuring following. Will leaned the back of his head against the wall, tipped his head up to the light so he could breathe deep and easy. He took a breath in and out. His stomach felt as settled as it could be, under the circumstances. He might even be able to move, eventually. 

The murmuring faded, and Nico returned. He held up a pair of keys—Hazel’s, maybe, from the sparkly purple pom-pom hanging off the end. Or maybe just Leo’s. “Apparently, I’ve been elected for the coffee run.” 

“Congratulations,” Will offered weakly. “I’m sure you’ll do a lot of good in the community with that position.” 

He rolled his eyes, “Wanna come? The fresh air might help.” He jiggled the keys in prompt. “Or it could make it worse but, you know. Sacrifices.”

Will considered it deeply, the thought of moving and all it would take for him to get into a car. He’d have to walk and everything. 

But…. coffee.  

He cut a glare up to Nico, who raised an eyebrow at the sight. 

“I want a pumpkin spiced latte.” There was a small beat of silence before Will spoke over Nico, a deadly glare in place. “And I will not be having your teasing this morning, di Angelo. You’ll order the cup of syrup that is barely considered coffee to your ‘elevated taste,’” He made fingers quotes, “and shut the fuck up.” 

Somehow, Nico’s lips were quirked up in a small smile. “You weren’t lying, grumpy.” He held out a hand, “So you coming?” 

Will sighed and took the help. It seemed he was. 

A few days later, the office was in its busiest state Will had ever seen when he came in that afternoon, filled with young kids and stressed-out-looking parents. Reyna and Leo were at the front desk, each working through stacks of clipboards. Leo winked at him before he turned to face a mother with twins at her knees, “So about the cooking class capacity -” 

He went straight to Nico’s desk, dipping around people as he did so. He had just come from a short shift, leaving him donned in a loose pair of scrubs and comfortable sneakers. Not the sexiest look, he admits, but at least they were clean. He held out the cup of coffee, smiling. “I got your text. You free now?” 

Nico completely abandoned whatever he was previously working on. “Yeah, sure.”

Will nodded toward the commotion at the front of the office. “What’s going on today?” 

Nico grimaced, “Last day for fall registration at the rec center. A busy day for us” He explained, “Hazel’s art class is the talk of Pawnee elementary, and the last slot filled on Friday.” 

“Good thing I registered Marisol already,” He commented, watching the adult tantrum going on at the front of the room. 

“But what am I supposed to do with them?” The woman yelled, desperate. “Let them in my house?” 

“Uh,” Leo looked at them in bewilderment before turning back to the woman. “Is the ‘them’ your children?” 

Nico sighed and stood up. “Give me a second to take the trash out. You know the wildflower mural upstairs?”

Will felt a shot of surprise. He smiled, “Yeah, I know it.” 

“I’ll meet you there in ten.” 

Will watched as Nico went to the front of the room, his face melting into a fierce scowl, and inserted himself between the woman and Leo. Will was still smiling as he left the office, as Nico’s sarcastic remarks interrupted her demands for a manager. 

Twenty minutes later, Nico was rushing down the hall to meet him at the bench, a binder tucked under his arm. Will turned up and smiled at him, dropping his feet down from the bench where he had stretched out. 

“How’s it in there, now?” 

Nico huffed out a breath and took his seat, slightly out of breath. “Still crazy. We had to kick out that one lady, but everyone else seemed to take that as a queue to settle down a bit. Reyna and Jason are devising some impromptu Halloween program with the Pawnee Goddesses to smooth over the worst of it. We’ll see how it turns out.” 

“Sounds fun,” Will hummed, “So what did you want to meet about?” 

Nico turned to him, a spark in his eye. “Yeah. So. We got some good news last week, and I wanted to tell you in person.”

Will perked up, “Yeah?” 

Nico opened his binder and pulled out a sheet of paper—a budget form—and a neatly itemized quote sheet with a construction company logo printed along the top, Very Good Building & Development. “So we both remember how the shelter fundraiser made way more than expected?” Nico rolled his eyes, “Thanks to the Stolls, unfortunately.”

Will smiled, not sure where this was going. “And?” 

“And,” Nico slid the papers over to him and pointed at one of the bottom lines. “They were able to pay for all the shelter renovations and pad next year’s budget and still had some leftover.” His fingertip tapped the final line—labeled Parks & Rec allocation, renovation. “So they gave it to us.” Nico looked up to smile at him, real and excited. “We’re not just doing maintenance anymore, they’re letting us completely rebuild it!” 

Will took the paper, matching Nico’s excited grin. “Wait, really? Oh my gods!” Nico had another folder tucked away in the binder that he pulled out then, full of glossy example photos of potential play systems they could choose from, all done in bright colors. 

“It's been years since we replaced any of the equipment, and Reyna agreed. Percy signed off on it this morning,” Nico paused, “Well, he signed the paper this morning. I don’t think he actually knows what he signed, he refused to take off his headphones. But that’s considered full approval around here.” 

“That’s amazing,” Will shook his head, covering his grin with his hand. “When are they starting on it?” 

“Start of next week,” Nico told him proudly. “Reyna said we could pick whatever set we’re interested in from these options, wants it by the end of the day. If everything goes smoothly, the opening weekend will be just in time for the Harvest Festival.” 

Less than two months from now. “That’s incredible, Nico. You guys did such an amazing job with this.” 

“I mean,” Nico glanced at him, then away. “We uh, wouldn’t have done this without you.” 

Will snorted with a smile, “I’m sure someone would have complained about the raccoons eventually.” He paused, “It’s… chaos.” 

Nico huffed out a small laugh. “Complaining happens a lot,” He agreed. “But no one ever really cares, you know? It just gets lost in the shuffle while we’re running to put out fires.” He shrugged, small. “You, being here… it’s helped.” 

Will was definitely bright red at this point. “Well, we did it, then.” Will tucked his hands under his legs, not just to keep them warm from the hall’s chill. “Our park’s going to be fixed up. I’m glad to have helped you guys.” He cleared his throat and gave him a wry look. “I guess I’ll lose my best excuse to come annoy you guys.” He shot Nico a grin, as wide as he could make it. “Maybe I can come to opening day. You guys usually do something like that, right?” 

Nico blinked at him, “Oh, yeah. I mean, totally. We always do something to, uh, open the new parks. A community celebration or something. You should be there.” 

Will stared down at his sneakers—his incredibly ugly but unfairly comfortable work ones. He took a breath, “That’s settled, then.” This time, the smile he managed was a bit warmer, softer. “I’m proud of us for getting this done. We’re making the community better, you know? Like, who knows how many kids are going to love this park. Make their first friends there, how many teens are going to run around at night.” He had a vivid memory of doing just that at sixteen, laughing in the darkness, throwing himself onto the swings, only under the cover of night. There was a park right down the street from his childhood apartment building. At sixteen with a group of rowdy friends and energy drinks, there was no better place in the world. He exhaled, “That’s great, you know? Making something that’ll last.” 

“You said that’s why you loved it,” Nico muttered. “Pawnee. You’re a part of something that’s growing.”

“Did I?” Will asked curiously, then nodded. “Sounds like me.” 

Nico was still looking at him, too soft and open for a mostly empty government building hallway, where any of his coworkers could pop out at any moment. He cleared his throat and pulled out the stapled book of play system options, flipping it open to look through the options. After a moment, Nico slid in a bit closer to his side, peering down at the glossy pictures. “So, Reyna said we had to pick one this afternoon?”

“Impromptu bonfire,” Annabeth explained, barely an hour after he and Nico’s wallflower meeting, leading them around the house straight into the backyard. When they’d walked back into the office, Piper, Jason, and Leo were already chatting excitedly about a texted invite to the Jackson-Chase house and insisted Will come along to celebrate the new park. And it’s not like he had any other plans, so he didn’t hesitate to pile in the backseat with Nico and Jason—Piper driving and Leo in the passenger seat, fiddling with the radio—listened to their drawn-out, sarcastic arguments, and felt every inch of Nico’s bare arms pressed against his. After a quick grocery stop, they pulled up to an impressive two-story, stone columns and a Juliet balcony, where Annabeth was just pulling in a rowdy black-furred dog (“Blackjack, please stop jumping on our guests”) into the backyard. They followed, the back gate unlatched. 

There was an impressive rough stone firepit in the back of the large property, circled with artful log and chopped wood seating, where a large warm fire was already blazing, billowing dark smoke into the fading blue sky. “Make yourselves at home. The kitchen is right through the doors and the bathroom is the first door in the hall.” She kindly said the last part to Will. “Percy’s had chili in the crockpot all day, and the vegan enchilada casserole will be done in twenty. ” Annabeth nodded to the sliding glass door, “Eat as much as you want. Seriously, he makes enough to feed an army and Sally’s not even here yet, who knows how much she’s bringing.” 

Piper pointed over her shoulder with her thumb, “We stopped at Food ‘N Stuff on the way, grabbed some stuff. Leo’s putting together a pot of hot chocolate that may or may not be incredibly boozy.” 

Annabeth turned on them, her gaze deadly serious. “Please eat.” She sighed as she stood, “I better supervise Leo in my kitchen, I don’t trust him around the knives.” 

Piper nodded sagely and went along with her, leaving him and Nico to survey the space. Their backyard patio was done up for the season, rusted orange, brown, and red coloring covering the large table, and a string of twinkling gold lightbulbs hung along the sky. There was a light gray L-shaped couch tucked in the corner around a smaller table, white plush pillows with orange stitching saying hello, pumpkin and get cozy greeting them. Plump bright orange pumpkins were folded into every available space there was, some of them carved but most of them not, sitting fat and full on the wooden patio. The cool, crisp air stole away the gathered autumn leaves for just a moment before returning them back to the ground, taking them for a spin and nothing more. Will took in a deep, full breath, in and out. 

There was a collection of knit sweaters and blankets thrown over a free chair, seemingly up for grabs. Will tossed one of the folded blankets over his shoulder and gave Nico a smile. “Want to grab us a seat? I can get us drinks.” 

“Hot chocolate,” Nico requested as he turned on his heel, heading toward the seating. “With as much whip cream you can fit.”

Will snorted but did as he was told, dipping around the crowded kitchen as people filled up their bowls, cups. Someone had already put out an insulated container of hot apple cider, which he poured a cup of for himself. Leo happily poured him a cup of the freshly made hot chocolate, and Will somehow managed to spiral a truly impressive pile of whip cream on top, dusted with shaved chocolate. He added a cinnamon stick to his own mug and escaped just as a smiling, older woman appeared with a stacked pile of Tupperware, the same messy hair and tanned skin as Percy. 

When Will returned to him outside, Nico was sitting on one of the logs close to the fire, frowning down at a plate in his lap, two neat s'mores made up on the surface. 

“Oh, nice. I love s'mores.” Will passed over his drink and took a seat. “Did you make them?” 

Nico sighed, “Hazel did.” He nodded to where she was standing by the fire, talking animatedly to Frank. They looked to be preparing for a game of cornhole, the boards and bean bags already placed out. “She said we were, uh, required to eat them.” 

“Oh, well, if we’re required.” Will picked up one of the s’mores and toasted it against the one now in Nico’s hand. He took a bite, chocolate and burnt marshmallow against the melting graham cracker. Wonderful. 

Nico fiddled with his phone case, pushing his fingernail under where it gave way. “Leo texted Mitchell an invite,” He said suddenly, “if you wanted to hang out with him later or something.” 

Will hummed, “That’s nice.” It was; Mitchell spent much too much time rushing from one shift to another, tracking afterschool clubs and pick-ups on second nature. It would be nice to see him here, laughing around a bonfire. 

There was a game of pick-up football playing out on the other side of the field that Will couldn’t even be bribed into participating in, but watched on in amusement. Clarisse—a large, intimidating woman who worked security at the Snakehole and gushed about her fiancée whenever Will got up in conversation with her while flashing her his I.D.—was absolutely crushing the other team, flipping off Percy as she did so. A young guy with a head of brown curls held back his shoulder from where Percy’s face was turning a dark red. 

A loud, dancing country song started up from the Bluetooth speaker. Which wasn’t that surprising in context, they were in Indiana after all, except with how Nico’s shoulders perked up at the first few notes, sitting up straight. 

He looked over at Will automatically, wincing at his own reaction. 

Will raised his eyebrows, laughing. “You like country music?”

“I - it’s Johnny Cash,” Nico stressed to him, almost defensive. “It’s - forget about country music, Johnny Cash is his own form of music, it’s basically poetry over string work -”

“You think I don’t listen to Dolly Parton?” Will interrupted, grinning, “I love country music. It’s just so outside of your -” Will made an awkward gesture with his hand. “Everything.”  

“I was an English major,” Nico responded, resigned. 

“Oh, that explains it.” It kind of did. 

Jason took a neat seat next to them, a paper plate balanced in one palm, a disposable fork in the other. “Sally brought cinnamon tres leches.” He told them happily, digging in for a bit. “I’m pretty sure Reyna’s willing to pull out a knife to get a piece, so I’d get in there before it runs out.”

Nico snorted fondly, “Thanks for the advice, but I’d rather not risk getting in between her and that cake. I enjoy having hands.” 

Jason took a bite of his cake, sighing in appreciation. Will took a sip of his cider, the hot liquid warming him up. They made some brief conversation, remarks on the decor, the weather, when a few minutes later, they heard raised voices in the distance, from inside the house.  

The sliding glass door slammed open suddenly then, Annabeth’s yelling following Leo as he jogged out of the house. His gaze snapped to them on instinct. “Jason!” He was nearly sprinting toward them. “I was looking for you!” 

Jason sighed, almost disappointed. Will gave him a questioning look. 

“Baby,” Leo smiled nicely, as sugar-sweet as Will had ever seen. He tucked a curl behind his ear, his eyes playfully wide. “Oh, is that Sally’s cake? Can I steal a bite?” 

Without hesitation, as Leo was coming in to grab his fork, Jason jerked the plate over his head, out of reach. Leo came up anyway, reaching for it. Jason stumbled to his feet and took a few steps back all while keeping the paper plate over his head. 

“I love you,” Jason told him, simple and compact. He gave Leo a look of endless patience. “But you’re not getting a single bite of this cake, bud.” 

Leo was clenching at Jason’s flannel, but sliding down his front slowly like his knees were going out. “You’re going to leave me to starve -” 

“Baby,” Another voice—Piper, coming out of the kitchen—rang out, a near-identical note of sugar sweetness. “Oh, you got some of that cake? I just love that stuff, mind if I take a bite -” 

Jason was using all of his height now. “No, no I told you both ten minutes ago that Sally was getting ready to cut it, I told you to come get it, and her one-piece policy meant I couldn’t get enough for everyone -”

“He’s not falling for it, Piper!” Leo cursed at her. 

“Oh my god,” Will muttered. “How good is this fucking cake?” 

Nico shrugged and tipped his mug. “It’s decent.” 

“Oh, Will, you’ve never had it?” Jason took a clear step back from Piper and Leo, dropped his arms, staring at him in surprise. “You’ve got to try it, man. Here, have a bite.” 

Piper and Leo let out a sound that was not unlike a screech. 

“He’s never tried it!” Jason told them, sternly. “C’mon, guys.” 

Will suppressed a wide grin. Piper and Leo were leaning against each other for support, their arms pressed together. They sighed as a unit. 

“You’re right,” Leo admitted, “Seriously Will, you’ve got to try it.” 

“It’s amazing,” Piper nodded, resigned. 

Will laughed, “I’d love to try it. Thanks, Jason.” 

Jason brightened and dipped around Piper and Leo, grabbing a clean fork so he could offer a bite. He cut off the corner piece, which is obviously the best and therefore Will was sincerely touched that Jason would give it up. Piper and Leo ran off, presumably in search of their own stolen bites of cake. 

Nico raised an eyebrow as Jason came over. “I’ve never tried it.” He said, deadpan. 

Jason rolled his eyes, holding out the plastic fork to Will. “Please, if Will wasn’t here you’d be Reyna’s accomplice.” 

Will took it and flashed Jason a grin in thank you. Jason nodded at him eagerly. 

He popped in the bite of cake, creamy and chilled. His hand went over his mouth automatically, his eyes going wide. “I - holy shit.” 

Jason nodded seriously, “Yes.” 

“Holy shit,” Will muttered, chewing. “This is - I - this is....magnificent.” He blinked, “I’ve never used that word before.” 

“It’s Sally Jackson’s tres leche cake,” Nico commented, reaching out to pluck the candy cherry from the side of the plate, where it had been evidently discarded. He tore off the stem between his teeth. “Pretty sure they’re going to like, send that recipe up into space to show how it exemplifies the human race.”

This was not an exaggeration. 

“Shit,” Will had to stop cursing at one point, right? “That’s the best fucking cake I’ve ever had.” 

“She does weddings,” Jason told him, smiling happily. He popped a bite of the cake in his mouth and took a seat at the log across from them. “If you ever find yourself interested. You know, Nico and I were just talking about weddings, weren’t we?” 

Nico’s face flushed up suddenly, blotchy patches up his neck. Will gave him a concerned look. “Are you okay? You just went really red, are you feeling hot?” 

“I’m fine,” Nico replied stiffly, glaring so fiercely at a distant pile of leaves, Will was slightly concerned about his relationship to horticulture. “I - the cake’s good, right? Sally brings them all the time. What other cakes do you like?” 

It was a surprising question. He doesn’t think anyone has ever asked him about his favorite kind of cake. “Uh, I like red velvet, I guess? With cream cheese frosting.” He paused, “What about you?”

Nico’s leg was bouncing. “German chocolate cake is always good, I like coconut.” He nodded, “Good. We don’t have to talk about cake anymore.”

Will mirrored his nod, slowly. “Okay.” 

There was another beat of silence. 

“Fascinating,” Jason said suddenly, humor dancing on his face. “I love this.” 

Will gave him an odd look, “What do you mean?” 

“Bonfires at the Jackson-Chase’s,” Nico explained loudly. “They do this a few times in the autumn, it’s always a great time.” 

“Of course it is,” Another voice—one that Will was amongst the least familiar with but still recognized, said from the other end of the wooden logs. Percy, who Will had had the least interaction with. As his usual attire, he wore a thick, well-fitted flannel, sleeves rolled up to his elbows, in a shade of teal green that complimented his eyes stupidly nicely. He had his arm over a shorter man’s shoulders who he was leading to the seating circle. It was the same guy from the football game, with wild curls. “Oh, hey. Will, you two haven’t been introduced, right? This is my best friend, Grover. Will’s been volunteering with the department. Cool of you to come, man!” Outside of the office, Percy Jackson was like a whole new man. A much happier, welcoming man. “Did you get something to eat?” 

“I actually just had a bite of your mom’s cake,” Will told him, grinning. “Which was, Jesus, probably the best thing I’ve ever had.”

Percy brightened, “Oh, she brought it? I’ll check if there’s any left!” 

“She saved you a piece,” Jason told him, warmly. “You and Annabeth are the only ones who get pieces set aside, you know.” 

Percy smiled sweetly, “I know. She’s the best.” He clasped Grover’s shoulder. “Want to help me find where Tyson ran off to? Last time I saw him, he was raiding the pantry for the peanut butter.”

Grover laughed, “Sounds about right. I’ll look in the house.” 

“I’ll check the front yard,” Percy gave them a final wave. “Thanks for coming, make sure to eat! And take home leftovers!”

Will watched him go, a surprised look on his face. “That was…”

“Different?” Nico guessed, sipping at his mug. “Yeah, he’s like that off the clock. Or when Annabeth’s around.” He wrinkled his face, “It’s gross. He’s ten times worse at these things.” 

Jason shrugged, smiling softly. “They just like being around each other, I get it. Even when they’re trying to steal your cake, they’re still the best part of your day.” He had a sudden flash of Percy and Annabeth, at the Snakehole, mid-argument and grinning. Another image, softer—Nico, rolling his eyes and hiding his face behind a coffee cup during a boring meeting. Will swallowed, as Jason continued. “Your day’s just better with them in it.” 

Will shared a look with Nico, then promptly looked away. 

“Gross,” Nico muttered, averting his gaze. Jason only hummed, taking another bite of cake. More people were arriving, carful by carful. A toddler came waddling by, her hair pulled up in two cute little pigtails with sparkly, pumpkin orange ribbon. Sally’s husband was only a step behind her, watching her with a smile, as she bumbled along in her short, unsteady path. 

Reyna took a seat on Nico’s other side, flipping her braid over her shoulder. Annabeth took the seat across, handing over a sweet, steaming drink to the other woman without a word. Reyna nodded at her in appreciation. 

Reyna glanced at Will, “I assume Nico told you the news,” She said, smiling small. “Congratulations.” 

Will dipped his head, his face warm. “You guys would have gotten to it eventually, but thank you. My sister will be ecstatic.” He’d already texted Lena about the news, who sent several colorful emojis back in celebration with a grinning selfie in return, she and Marisol’s cheeks pressed together. Reyna nodded, pleased. 

Piper took that moment to take a seat in Jason’s lap, evidently giving up on her cake conquest, but instead stole Leo’s drink from his hand as she went. She wrinkled her nose after her first sip, “Christ, Leo. Is there even any hot chocolate in this?” 

Leo shrugged, “Probably, right?” 

“It tastes fine,” A woman Will didn’t know spoke up from across the circle, her words seriously slurred. “I’ve had four cups, it’s great.” 

“Four cups, Calypso?” Another woman, bright red curls and paint on her overalls, touched her elbow. “Oh, geez -” 

“I feel fine -” 

Leo made a face, “Perhaps it’s a bit strong. But I didn’t want the chili to make it too spicy! Uh, so I added a little more rum than the recipe called for. A little.” 

Piper shoved his shoulder, “You think?” 

“Oh, Jesus,” Annabeth serged to her feet, her loose golden curls bouncing. A burst of commotion from the driveway, already filled with neatly parked cars, drew their attention. “Who the hell invited the Stolls?” 

“Leo invited Mitchell,” Nico said, unimpressed. “That’s basically all it takes.”

“No!” Annabeth yelled, sprinting over. “Katie is the only one allowed in my house, not after the vacuum incident!” She ran off, yelling about dust and the nightmares she’s still suffering from. Both Stoll brothers were already grinning identical smiles at her, clearly not understanding the trouble they were in. They had also seemingly brought enough hard cider and chilled beer to supply a much bigger, much wilder party so they may in fact actually bargain their invite through that alone, especially with how interested Percy was peering down at the label. Katie was in the back of the truck they had pulled up in, handing down the boxes of bottles down to Connor and Travis’ waiting arms.

“Well,” Nico drowned the rest of his mug. “Think I’m going to need some more hot chocolate.” 

Reyna, looking exhausted at the night before her, nodded seriously. 

He smiled into his mug. He liked these people so much. If his time with them was coming to a close, he was going to enjoy every moment he could. Will stood, clapped his hands. From the driveway, there was the sound of two identical cheers as Annabeth sighed and nodded in resignation, stealing a hard cider from the pile. “Alright, who wants a drink?”  

A sea of raised hands. 

A few days later, in an oddly quiet house, he and Mitchell were thrown across the couch over each other, talking lightly. Having a monopoly over the living room and television didn’t come often in this household, especially without some loud argument going on in the background, but the kids were evidently each busy with their own things for once. That was enough of an occasion to celebrate.

Will wasn’t the biggest fan of beer, but he enjoyed the hard apple ciders Mitchell would buy by the case whenever they hung out. He cracked one open, passed it to Mitchell, and grabbed one for himself. He had a shift in the morning so he definitely wasn’t going to be drinking much of anything, but it was nice enough to sip on. 

His phone lit up with a new notification—a text. 

Renovations started today, Nico texted, Should only be a few weeks for construction. 

Will smiled and sent back a few emojis: a crying face, a heart, praying hands. He could already imagine the wrinkle he’d push his nose up into at the sight. 

A finger poked his shoulder. Will rolled his head to the side, waiting. 

“Are you texting a boy?” Mitchell asked, teasing. He pulled himself back into the couch cushion, grinning wide. “I wonder who it could be~” 

“Shut up,” Will shoved his feet in Mitchell’s lap, his cheeks filling with heat. “Like you’ve got a place to talk. How many times has Connor texted you today?” 

“Oh, whatever.” Mitchell rolled his eyes, smiling. “Connor and I aren’t flirting.” Somewhere, Connor was likely bursting into tears. “He’s like that with everyone. Whereas I don’t think Nico has ever smiled at a random citizen until you wandered in off the street.” 

“You literally dropped me off at the office.” 

“Semantics,” Mitchell waved him off, “the point is, your boy is a new person when you’re around. I don’t think I’ve ever seen him pick up a pen until you came around. He’s like a super assistant now.”

“He’s not my boy,” Will muttered. “He’s just - we were working together to get the park fixed up, and now it is. That’s all it was. I, you know, probably won’t even hang around City Hall that much anymore, if at all.” Mitchell’s eyes were getting a bit too pity-soft. “New topic, please.” Mitchell didn’t look convinced. Will sighed, “We haven’t had a guy’s night in forever. Can we just, like, play video games and make fun of each other? Please?” 

He eyed Will for another long moment. “Oh, fine.” Mitchell tossed him the other Switch controller. “I’m still going to kick your ass.” 

“Unlikely,” Will commented, grabbing the controller. The Smash loading screen appeared, which unfortunately made Mitchell’s statement several times more likely. 

Mitchell grinned at him sideways, “Let’s play.” 

...

A few hours later, long after the DVD title screen had gone back to playing on loop, a loud ringing shattered the quiet of the night. 

Before Will was even fully awake, Mitchell had already rolled off the bed and stumbled to his feet, fumbling for his phone. Will lifted his head and squinted at him in the dark. He reached over to flip on the bedside lamp as Mitchell answered with a brisk, tight, “Hello?” 

Will stared at him, worried as Mitchell’s face went pale and tight. 

He couldn’t hold back on it. “What’s going on?” Will whispered, sitting up and pushing the blankets back. 

Mitchell still had the phone pressed against his cheek. “Yes,” He finally answered, his voice strained. “Yes, that’s me.” 

He pulled away from the speaker for just a moment—an automated voice. “It’s the Pawnee Police Department.”

Wil winced and sighed. Before he could offer any words, Mitchell swept out of the room as he began to talk. “Scarlett? What’s going on?” 

In the distance, the sound of doors opening and closing. Will got out of bed himself and started to dress, borrowing clothes directly from Mitchell’s closet. All he’d brought for himself was his scrubs. 

Mitchell returned then, his phone at his side. “Jesus Christ,” He breathed out, looking lost. “They got arrested.” His eyes were fluttered close as his hand came up to pinch the bridge of his nose. “It wasn’t just Scarlett. Sebastian and Stefan are in there too.” He let out a rough sigh, “I - I didn’t even know they snuck out. Jesus.” 

Will grabbed his keys and straightened up. “You get ready, I’ll let Asher know he’s in charge.” 

“You don’t have to - I mean, I can drive, it’s late and you have to work -” 

Will gently pushed Mitchell toward the closet, “C’mon, get dressed. We don’t have the time to work this out.” 

Mitchell stared at him for a moment, then nodded. He went off to get dressed and ruffle through his bedside drawer, while Will stopped in Asher’s room to gently wake him up and explain the situation. A few minutes later, they were locking the door behind them and trudging to Will’s Jeep. 

Mitchell had a red binder (Important Documents printed across the front in thick black marker) that he clenched to his chest. “We’ll need money, right? To bail them out?” He pulled at his hair as he thought, his eyes wide. “Fuck, okay, we have the backup credit cards, they’ll take that, right? Fuck. Three bailouts, how much do you think that’ll be?” 

“Let’s get there and see what the situation is first.” Will tried to reassure him. “It could be something small, a misunderstanding.”

The drive was completely quiet, as Mitchell no doubt spiraled into the worst-case scenarios and Will tried and failed to offer comforting platitudes. Forty minutes after they received the call, they were pulling into the parking lot. The officer working the front desk was talking on the phone when they arrived, leaving them waiting anxiously for an extra ten minutes, but eventually led them to the back cells where Mitchell’s siblings were all poured in one shared square. The rest of the cells were empty, as was the waiting area.

Except for one notable face. 

“Connor?” Mitchell jerked back in surprise when he saw him in front of the cell. “What are you doing here? Are you okay?” 

Connor has been dipped close to the bars, talking to Sebastian as they walked up, but their conversation broke off completely at he and Mitchell’s appearance. Connor nodded toward the trio behind the bars, his hands shoved deep into his pockets, his shoulders up. “Got a call.” 

Will tried to look over each of the siblings the best he could through the bars. Sebastian looked fine and mostly bored, but Stefan’s shirt was ripped at the collar (perhaps it was the style?) and Scarlett’s tight red dress was colored in a dark mysterious stain at the hem, her face and arms covered in glitter. They seemed to be in an alright state, other than their obvious inebriated state.  

Mitchell was unable to take it all in. He looked at Connor, then the trio once again before speaking. “What do you mean you got ‘a call’?” 

“We each got a call after they brought us in,” Scarlett spoke up, slurred. She examined her nails, seemingly much more interested in them, “Obviously, I called you.” 

“And I called him,” Sebastian added, swinging his arms around the rails. 

Mitchell looked to the heavens for patience. “And why would you drag Connor out of bed at four AM? Any reason for that?” 

Sebastian gave him an unimpressed look. They continued to stare each other down for a few long moments, the tension building. Stefan was the first to break the silence. 

“Well, I called Ellis, but he didn’t pick up.” Stefan pouted and threw himself against the bars, “I wanted to see how far the officers would let me go if I tried to seduce him over the phone, but his voicemail was full.” 

Everyone very purposely ignored him.

Mitchell glared at Sebastian before turning to Connor, sighing. “I’m so sorry they bothered you again, especially so late at night. You didn’t have to come, but I really appreciate it.” 

“It’s no problem,” Connor was so sincere, it was painful. “Seriously. I… want to help. If that’s okay with you.” 

Mitchell suddenly looked exhausted—Will hadn’t completely noticed how dark the circles under his eyes were, “I’m not sure what there’s to do with these three. I mean -” He was talking to his siblings now, through the bars. “Really, guys? I - really? The partying isn’t new, but getting arrested in the dead of night? It’s just - so selfish! You don’t care about anyone or anything but partying and that’s ridiculous! And I know I’m just a complete stick in the mud, but someone has to be! Gods, I’m gonna have to put the bail completely on credit cards -”

Unfortunately, the siblings seemed to be a tad too drunk still to take in any of Mitchell’s very valid points. They stared at him, their gazes unfocused and fuzzy. Mitchell let out a breath, pinched his nose. 

“Hey, uh,” Connor’s hand came up like it was going to touch Mitchell’s shoulder, but chickened out at the last second and wobbled unsure in the air. It fell back to his side. “Don’t worry about the bail -” 

Just then, an officer came by, bringing Connor to a stilled halt. He had a ring of keys in one hand and unlocked the holding cell easily, gesturing the trio of siblings out. He looked over his shoulder and nodded at Mitchell. “You’re their guardian?” 

Mitchell straightened up, the binder clenched in one hand, “Yes, I am.”

The officer nodded, brisk. “They’ll have some paperwork for you upfront. Make sure you sign everything before you go and collect your personal items.” The officer let the unlocked door fall close, now that the cell was empty and the free siblings crowded around Mitchell. “You’re all free to go, then. Apologies for the misunderstanding.” The officer’s voice went bitter at the end, as he eyed Connor. “Stoll. Give your father our regards.”

Connor smiled, bright and false, “Will do.” 

And, with that, the officer left them alone, giving them brief directions to the front desk before he disappeared. A long, heavy silence blanketed over them. 

Mitchell was still blinking after the officer in surprise, holding the binder close to his chest. “What was that?” He shook his head, turning to his siblings. “They’re just letting you guys go?” 

He looked to Will for confirmation, who had nothing to offer except a confused shrug. 

A beat later, Mitchell’s sharpened gaze found Connor’s. “Wait, does he know your father?” 

Connor gave him a small half-shrug, “You know Pawnee. Everyone knows everyone.” He nodded toward the door. “We should get going. Don’t think they want us hanging around.” 

Mitchell stared at him, narrowed eyes, and didn’t take a step even as his siblings blindly stumbled toward the door.

Mitchell bit his lip, “Did you… do something?” 

“It’s nothing,” Connor shrugged again, looking away. “I just talked to him real quick.” 

Behind Mitchell, Sebastian clicked his tongue, tipsy but still managing a shade of smug. “And that’s why I called you.” 

The three siblings cheered, still sounding tired and slow, but Mitchell just continued to stare at Connor. “What?” 

Connor rubbed the back of his head almost like he was embarrassed. “I - listen. The Stolls just have, uh, an understanding with the police department here. And I just reminded them of it. It’s really no big deal.” 

“It is to me,” Mitchell replied softly. 

“C’mon,” Connor gestured them forward. “I can give you a ride home, if you want? By the time we finish the paperwork and get back to your place, it should almost be time to get the rest of the kids up for school.” He glanced at Will, “I can take them home. You have to go to work in a few hours, right?” 

Will blinked. He had no idea how Connor knew that. “Yes,” He agreed slowly. He glanced at Mitchell, “Are you cool with that?” 

Mitchell stared at him, wordless. He looked so incredibly overwhelmed that Will held up a hand before he could start spilling words out. 

“It’s fine,” Will shook his head, smiling. “Go, I’ll talk to you tomorrow, okay?” He gave him a small smile, “Seriously, I know you, don’t even think about beating yourself up over this. Everything worked out and that’s all that matters.” Will pulled him in for a quick hug, “Go home, get the kids ready, and I’ll pick them up after school later. I’ll text Marisol so she knows. We can talk then, okay? And seriously, get some sleep!” 

Mitchell squeezed his shoulders tight before pulling back, “I can’t thank you enough for driving me.” 

“Of course,” Will paused, lowering his voice as his lips turned up into a smile. “So do you think Connor’s like this with everyone? Genuinely wondering.” 

Mitchell scoffed and shoved his shoulder away. “Nevermind, my thank you is rescinded.” He turned back to Connor and softened ever so slightly—if Will hadn’t been watching him so closely, he wouldn’t even have noticed. “Everyone ready?” 

Connor had taken over control of the siblings as he and Mitchell spoke and seemed very much ready to flee the police property with Scarlett draped over his shoulder, Stefan tucked under his arm. Sebastian was still on his feet but, from how he was swaying, that wouldn’t last much longer.

“Alright,” Mitchell sighed, reached out, and hooked Sebastian by his jean loop to pull him along. “Let’s get out of here before people start to v-o-m-i-t.”

“I’m drunk, not stupid, M,” Sebastian slurred out loudly, taking rough steps along as he was pulled along. “Who's going to MIT?”

“Good for them,” Stefan added, snuggling into Connor’s arm. “That’s a good school.” 

Mitchell sighed, “Thanks for your help again, Will. Talk to you later, okay?” 

He waved them off, feeling a bit useless as they all went out to the parking lot, and they broke off toward a shiny SUV in the distance, fuzzy dice in the window. Will scratched at the back of his neck as he watched them go, rubbed the sleep out of his eyes. Thank the gods Marisol wasn’t old enough for this kind of stuff, he supposed. 

As inevitable as the changing leaves, with the fall autumn air came flu season in Pawnee. All week, every shift had been full of miserable, dehydrated, and nauseous patients filling up every spare bed and waiting room chair. And, it seemed, everywhere else, too. 

Will crossed his legs, the metal folding chair pressing into his back. “Uh, why am I here, again?” 

Nico sighed, gripping his cardboard cup of black office coffee with the hold of a much more desperate soul. “Jason,” He ground out, “is having a breakdown and dragging us all down with him.” 

Will blinked, “Oh.” 

Nico took a long drink of his steaming coffee, screwing up his face as he did so. He hated the stuff from the office pot with an intensity that bordered on worrying. Usually, Will brought him a cup whenever he swung by the office, but hadn’t been expecting to come by today in the least—since the park picked up on construction last week, he hadn’t been able to come up with much reasoning to stop by the department. Jason’s frantic text caught him on the way home from a shift, demanding Will be by the conference room in twenty. Will complied, still confused by the whole thing. 

Jason was still pacing along the front of the room, a shine to his skin. The department was kept at a comfortable temperature, but his face was flushed despite it.

He turned on his heel, surveyed them all in their seats. Not that it was much of a group: he, Nico, Leo, and Mitchell were the only ones sprawled out in chairs. 

“City Hall has been compromised,” Jason told them, deadly serious. “The Pawnee flu has arrived.” 

Will raised an eyebrow, shared a glance with Nico, who looked completely done. 

Jason continued, “Every department’s got at least a handful of employees out, we have to be extremely vigilant when it comes to this sickness. If I hear a single cough -” Jason took a deep breath. “There will be no coughing. I’m going to demand that everyone submit to hourly temperature checkings and a health symptom checklist.” 

“Yeah,” Nico said, not looking up from his cup. “That’s not going to happen.” 

“I can’t be sick, Nico, my body is like a microchip!” Jason yelled, crazed. He’d been high energy since he pulled them all in a conference room for the meeting, last-minute and disorganized. His face had a layer of sweat shining on his skin. “One grain of sand can ruin everything!” 

“My body is like a chip… a potato chip.” Will grimaced. “Sorry about that.”

Nico reached out to wordlessly pat his shoulder in sympathy. Jason’s “No touching!” went ignored. 

“Well, if you’re worried about one of us being sick, it might be too late for that.” Leo picked up Mitchell’s shoeshine rag with the end of his pencil. “Since I’m pretty sure Mitchell caught something and won’t admit it.” 

“I’m fine,” Mitchell groaned, his face tucked inside his elbow. He’d been curled up since Jason brought him in from the hall. “It’s just a headache and a small fever and some nausea. It’ll probably pass after I have some Gatorade and aspirin.” 

“Isn’t that like your third Gatorade?” 

Mitchell drained the bottle and reached for another, “I have to stay hydrated.” 

Will sighed, “Alright, straighten up.” He came up beside Mitchell and gently but firmly pulled him up to sit straight. Nico, wordlessly, came up beside Will to frown down at him. 

Tilted up to the light, it was obvious Mitchell definitely wasn’t well, despite his claims. His face was bright red and clammy, his brow shiny with sweat. 

“Yeah, you’re definitely sick.” Will reached out to check his pulse, counting with his watch. “If you’ve got what everyone else has got, you should be too sick to walk. Why did you even come in?” 

Mitchell groaned, closed his eyes against the light. “I’ve never called off before. And really, I should just try some Tums and cold water.” 

His heart rate was a bit higher than normal, but not a real cause for concern yet. But he was definitely going on dehydrated, despite the Gatorade. 

“We need to check you in the hospital,” Will noted, “preferably before it gets worse.” Mitchell, by his own claims, hadn’t vomited yet but from Will’s numerous shifts in the past week, he knew it was very likely coming soon. At the front of the room, Jason’s expression was turning shades of horror, staring down at his own hand—the one he used to pull Mitchell into the room. 

Nico wrinkled his nose at Mitchell, took a step back, “Who’s your doctor?” 

Mitchell thought for a moment before smiling dreamily, “Will’s my doctor.” 

Will snorted, “Cute.” He reached around to pull up Mitchell’s arm around his shoulder. “Up you go. We’re going to the hospital.” 

“The kids -”

“Will survive,” Will shook his head, “I’ll swing by and pack a bag for you and we can settle everything at the hospital.” 

“Piper’s in Indy for a conference,” Mitchell said, his voice hazy. “And Silena’s out of town for the weekend. There’s no one to check in on them.”

Will smoothed his hair back from his face, “I’ll handle it.” 

Leo was frowning as he felt around Jason’s forehead. “Maybe we should get you checked out too, babe. You’re not looking great.” 

“The microchip has been compromised,” Jason muttered, fully leaning forward into Leo’s side. Leo smoothed his blonde hair back in sympathy.

“Nico, don’t you have something to drop off at the Snakehole?” Leo clicked his tongue, “Why don’t you load up Mitchell in my car and I’ll take them both to Pawnee Medical? I’m definitely already exposed to whatever Jason has anyway.” 

Nico shrugged, “Whatever. I’ll grab the paperwork.” He disappeared to comb through his messy desk. Will turned to Mitchell. 

“I’ll pick up your stuff and be by after, okay? You should be all checked in by then. Leo’ll take care of you.” 

Mitchell nodded, still loosely clenching his Gatorade bottle. “They’re at the house and school. Ask Valentina, she knows everyone’s schedules. They can order groceries with my card to the house, but ask Micah to review the list so it’s not just ice cream and frozen waffles.” He yawned, “And don’t leave Scarlett in charge.”

“Got it. You need anything from the house?” 

Mitchell sighed, closing his eyes. “Pajamas would be nice. A phone charger? My glasses?” He paused, thinking hard. “A toothbrush?” 

“I’ll grab the basics,” Will promised, waving off Mitchell’s attempts at making up a list. “If you think of anything specific, have Leo text me.” 

Mitchell groaned into his hands, now covering his face. Will patted his back. 

“I’ll text you guys!” Leo yelled over his shoulder, an arm around Mitchell to hold him up, the other steering Jason toward the parking lot. “Wait, babe, no, that’s not where we’re parked -”

Nico returned with a thick manilla folder. “Ready?” 

...

The bar wasn’t even officially open yet, but the door was unlocked and Clarisse, leaning against the wall on her phone, just nodded them through after Nico held up the stack of thick paperwork in explanation. Travis was at the front of the bar, a clipboard in hand as he organized the half-full bottles. It was almost strange to see the place this empty, with only light pop music drifting in from the back instead of the pulsing beat, blinding neon lights that typically greeted its patrons. It felt like it would when he’d come into school hours before classes for track practice, when the yellow floodlights were still on, his steps echoing on the linoleum. 

“Hey, Parks,” Travis set his clipboard to the side. “What’s up?” 

“Dropping off the tax paperwork for the fundraiser sponsorship.” Nico announced as he handed off the folder, “Reyna’s already signed off on all of it.” 

Travis took it with a nod and headed back toward the office. That was all they were where to do, Reyna apparently didn’t like to mail this kind of stuff when the vendors were just down the road but predictably, before they could leave, Connor appeared in front of them with a breathless grin, a plastic tub of dirty dishes against his hip. 

“Hey,” He said breathlessly. “You guys heading back to the Parks office? I’m due for a break, maybe I could catch a ride -” 

“Mitchell’s not at City Hall,” Nico told him, not bothering to look up from his phone. Will peeked at his screen—a game of Candy Crush. He tried not to smile. 

Connor deflated comically. “Oh. I thought he took the mornings there on Tuesdays?” 

Nico shrugged and didn’t answer any further. Will took some pity on him.

“He usually does,” Will allowed, “But he’s out sick today. Leo was just taking him to the hospital when we left.” 

“What?” Connor dropped the silverware tub directly onto the floor. “Mitchell’s in the hospital? Why? Where?” 

Will startled back. “Um, Pawnee Medical? Looks like he caught the bad flu that was going around so we made him check-in.” 

“Oh my god,” Connor took off sprinting, not toward the parking lot but toward the general direction of the hospital on foot. 

“We’re literally about to go there!” Will yelled after him. Connor didn’t stop. 

“Jesus Christ,” Nico commented, watching him go. He almost sounded impressed. “Who knew Stoll could move that fast?” 

Will stared after him, shaking his head. “That’s…” He shook his head. “Let him go. Let’s swing by his house.”

They did so, having almost no issues (Will and Mitchell had long since exchanged keys, it was just easier at this point) except how most of the siblings insisted on coming along to see Mitchell which, honestly, he should have expected. They were oddly protective of Mitchell, at times. 

So an hour later, after loading up Will’s Jeep to a frankly dangerous occupancy level, they were pulling up to the hospital. They went up to the room number Leo had texted them, Will waving to his coworkers as they passed. 

The room where Connor was apparently already waiting. 

Connor lifted up his hand into an awkward wave as they spilled into the room, the siblings turning up the room volume to an almost offensive decimal. Will set down the packed bag on his bed and began unloading it. Mitchell was in the bed, buried in a mess of sterile white sheets and blankets, his hair a tuft of mess. He was looking worse than he did in the office, his face flushed and sweaty, his eyes glazed. Will went to his side, clasped his shoulder in sympathy. “Hey, I brought your siblings.” Obviously. “How are you feeling?” 

Mitchell stared up at him with a hazy gaze. Absent-mindedly, he scratched at his IV site. “I’ve vomited somewhere in this room,” Mitchell said weakly. “I….” He dragged his gaze across the room until it caught on the innocuous bedside drawer. “Maybe in there.” 

Valentina patted his back, murmuring comfort. Somehow, Connor still had stars in his eyes.

The other siblings gathered around Mitchell, staring at him like this was their favorite show. Mitchell’s gaze went over each of them, bouncing, like he was counting his ducklings.

Nico wrinkled his nose and looked around the room. “Isn’t there like, a visitor limit here?” He asked, rude. God, Will liked him so much it was stupid. 

“Oh, yeah, definitely.” Will just answered. “Maximum five to a room. But they’re my coworkers, they’re not going to say anything.” Will grabbed his chart to look over. He had to work the night shift anyway, so he’d be here in a few hours. He clicked his tongue, “Looks like he’s probably gonna have to stay overnight, at least. We’ll see how he feels tomorrow morning.”

Mitchell was absolutely not paying any attention, slowly reaching for a box of tissues and starting back in surprise when Connor dove for them to better give Mitchell access. He blinked at him but took the tissue, the box going empty. 

Mitchell stared down at it for a long moment. His face crumpled into tears, “There’s no more tissues.”

Connor held out his hands in a stay calm gesture. “I’ll get you more tissues! It’s okay! There’s got to be some more tissues around here -” He was still speaking loud and fast as he disappeared around the corner out of the room, frantic. 

Mitchell was crying big, steady tears. Juniper, the angel, stopped by the room with a tray full of plastic cups filled with ice chips. He promptly pressed one into Mitchell’s hand. “I know you’re feeling really weird and awful right now,” Will told him, “but you’ll feel better without a dry mouth, trust me.” Will smiled small at him, smoothed his sweaty hair back. “I’m your doctor, remember?” Will barely managed to tip some of the ice back into his mouth, “Suck on those, okay? You’ll feel better.” 

“M’s a nightmare when he’s sick,” Lacey offered sympathetically, patting her brother’s leg through the sheets. 

“Because he doesn't know how to let anyone take care of him,” Sebastian rolled his eyes where he was leaning against the window. “And he never slows down when he does feel sick, so he just gets worse and worse until he’s -” Sebastian made a lazy gesture toward the hospital bed, “Like this.” 

Micah, the quietest of the siblings, shot him a rare glare. “Yeah, and you’re really helping with your everything. Maybe if you three would stop screwing off for ten minutes, he actually could relax for once.”  

Sebastian cast him a bored look, “Who said I was here to help? I just thought we were pointing out character flaws in each other.” 

“Oh, well, if that’s the case -” 

Will sighed, sharing a look with Nico. “Alright, guys -” Maybe there was a reason they had room occupancy limits, now that he was thinking about it. “We should give Mitchell some space, let's take this out to the lobby -” 

Right then, Connor came running back in the room, a stark-white flutter of toilet paper still attached to the roll clenched in his hands. “I got more tissue,” He told Mitchell, out of breath. “Uh, well, it’s good enough.” He pressed it into Mitchell’s hand. “Right? It’s good enough?” 

Mitchell didn’t respond, other than to loudly blow his nose into the toilet paper. Connor beamed. 

“Disgusting. Anyway, can you drive us to school tomorrow?” Stefan asked, raising an expectant eyebrow at Connor. “I have a physics exam and Piper’s still out of town.” 

Connor was already nodding. “Of course. Uh, who's been watching you guys since he was checked in?” 

Sophia grimaced, “Technically… Scarlett’s in charge.”

“Oh shit,” Connor shook his head, “Yeah, no, I’ll have Katie drop off an overnight bag. And, uh, my car.” 

“Perf,” Stefan popped the word, his attention already completely on his phone. “I want tacos for dinner.” 

They all slowly ambled out, Will stopping to promise Mitchell he’d be back later even if Mitchell gave him no response at all. He caught Connor’s shoulder before the wave of kids could steal him away. “Hey, you got this? I can help, if not. They can be a lot.” 

“Oh, please, I’ve been on their babysitting schedule for years.” Of course, he was. Will should have known this; it was a logical conclusion from the everything that Will had observed about him. “Katie’s dropping off my car in a few, they can all fit.” Something in the distance caught his eye.“Uh, got to go. Let me know how Mitchell’s doing, okay?” Before Will could respond, he took off toward the end of the hall, where the siblings were now congregating. “Guys? Let’s leave the nurse’s station alone, alright?” 

He and Nico watched him go, racing down the hall. They had matching expressions of resignation, almost pity. 

Will was the first to break it, turning to shoot Nico a grin. “Well, now that I’m free for the evening, you hungry?” 

Nico perked up slightly. “Yeah, sure. JJ’s?” 

Will sighed happily, walking toward the exit. “I could eat breakfast food for every meal. Why don’t people do that?”

Nico shook his head gravely, “People are idiots, Will. Let’s go.”

“Hey,” Will called out a day later, just to watch Nico fumble with an armful of paperwork as he turned in surprise. “Fancy seeing you here.” 

Nico dumped the paperwork messily on the nearest surface, Piper’s desk, and walked away without another glance. “Hey,” Nico gave him a happy look. “I didn’t know you were swinging by today.” 

Will shrugged with a small smile and held out one of the two coffee cups in his hands. Nico took the cup without a word, but nodded thankfully as he took a long drink. Will leaned against the wall. 

A sour-looking older woman marched into the office right then, clenching at the sides of her sweater. “I’m looking for the Parks and Rec office, I have a complaint to file -” 

Nico glanced at the woman, bored. “This isn’t the Parks and Rec office.” 

“The sign says -” 

“The Parks and Rec team died.” He said blankly. “Try sanitation.” 

Nico turned back to him, “Anyway, want to do lunch?”

“I’d love to, but I actually have a meeting.” He gestured over his shoulder, walking backward into Reyna’s office. “Maybe after?” 

Nico’s gaze flickered to Reyna, then back to Will. “Uh, sure.” 

“Shouldn’t be very long,” Will told him before the door clicked shut after him. He waved through the glass, smiling brightly. 

He shifted his attention back to the actual meeting he was here for, where Reyna was typing away at her laptop. Her desk was covered in an array of artfully organized folders and binders, a laptop, and two desktop monitors. She was typing away as he took his seat, not looking up. Leo’s desk tucked to the side was abandoned—and slightly smoking?

“Uh -”

“It’s fine,” She told him, still focused on her screen. “That’s just how he works.” She typed a few more words before sending something off, the swoosh of the email server audible, and folded her hands on the desk as she turned to meet his gaze. “Thank you for meeting with me, Will. I know it was a sudden request.” 

“Oh, no worry. I was probably gonna come by sometime this week just to see everyone.”

She stared at him for a few beats before nodding sharply. “Yes, that’s what I thought.” 

There was a slightly awkward silence that Reyna seemed completely content with staring him down during. He swallowed. 

She started, “I assume you know that the park renovation has started, and should be completed within a few weeks.” He nodded and moved to speak, but she continued. “But that’s not why I wanted to meet.” 

“Oh?” He cocked his head to the side. He had assumed that’s what this meeting was about. A citizen survey on their work, or something.

She pulled out a mysterious-looking folder and began flipping through it. “You’ve been working at Pawnee Medical for five years now, yes?” 

Will leaned forward, his eye-catching on one of the papers. “Is that my DMV photo -?”

She closed the folder. “I wanted to talk to you,” She said frankly, her tone neutral. “About the possibility of your continued work with the Parks department. In particular, with the Harvest Festival.” Another array of papers, this time flyers for the local blood bank. “I would like to host a blood drive on the first two days of the festival, and I’d like you to run it.” She handed over the array of papers—flowcharts and statistic sheets. “It’ll be a good opportunity for citizen outreach. We need a medical advisor to stay on-site for the event and direct flow. You’ll be granted a small government stipend for your work organizing it, of course.” 

“Oh,” Will looked down to the sheets, “that’s great! I would love to help in any way I can.” 

She gave him a brisk nod, looking like she expected nothing less. “Wonderful. I’ll send over the preliminary planning we’ve put together.” She scrawled on a post-it. “IT will get you set up with a department email shortly. Once that’s been established, we can set up some planning meetings.” 

Will took the handful of papers she was offering. “That sounds great,” He paused, “I mean, I’m happy to do it. And I’m honored you thought of me, but I have to be honest, I don’t really have much experience with this kind of stuff.” 

She gave him a careful look. “You have proven yourself to be a dedicated, competent worker in the time I’ve known you, and you have a good rapport with the rest of the department. Your resume -” His resume? “- additionally lists several holiday events where you’ve volunteered and led hospital events. I think you’ll do well with this.”  

Will blinked back at her, “I - thank you. I’ll do my best.” 

“I know,” She glanced up at him, moving back to her laptop. “If you don’t have any other questions, you are free to go.” 

He did just that, taking the papers with him. Nico stood from his desk as soon as Will clicked the office door shut behind him. 

Will touched his chest, right over his heart. “Why was that so terrifying?” He asked lightly, willing his heart rate down. “Jesus.”

“That’s just how interacting with Reyna is,” Nico dismissed. He focused on Will intensely, “What did she say to you?” 

He blinked a few times, “Uh, just about a blood drive. Apparently, she wants me to run one during the Harvest Festival.” 

“Oh,” Nico relaxed, “that’s cool, I guess. What’d you say?” 

“I told her sure? I mean it’s nice that Reyna wants to do it, and I’m honored to have been asked, but I hardly know anything about running a public event like this. I guess I’m gonna have to figure some stuff out.” He cut a look over to where Nico was leaning against the desk. Will managed a small smile. Oh, well. That would be a nice perk to this all. “You know anyone in the Parks office who could help me?” 

Nico rolled his eyes, pushed himself off the desk. “I’m sure I can come up with someone. You’ll have to buy them lunch first, though.”  

Will dipped his head as Nico went to grab his jacket. “I’m sure that can be arranged.”

The Harvest Festival was a month away. He had a month.