Arrow Inferno
Chapter 35: Stanley ‘STAN’ Norris vs. Ian ‘WILL’ Williams ~ The vision!

***

Will finally left the room and went to the living room where he found Stan lying on his back on the couch with his head resting on the armrest. He was flipping through channels. "Hey, are you okay?" Will asked as he pulled off his boots.

"Yep." Stan left the television on CNN and then watched from beneath his lashes as Will crawled on top of him. "How did the briefing go?"

"Went very well." He dropped a soft kiss on Stan's lips. "The Admiral was impressed." Another kiss. "Sure you're okay?" At Stan's nod, Will kissed him one more time. "Ready for the party tonight?"

"So ready I'm shaking." Stan chuckled, rubbing a hand on Will's back. "He's the owner of the fucking club, Will. That party is going to be pretty banging."

"I know." Will laid his head on Stan's chest and gave a sigh of contentment when Stan began to run his fingers through his hair. "You didn't have to get angry back there, you know."

Stan's fingers stilled for a moment before resuming their movement. "I wasn't angry, just shocked."

"I just don't see myself not ever seeing it again, Stan."

"Do you think it will trust you ever again if you deceive it into getting injected and taken out of his comfort zone?"

"I didn't think of that." Will groaned, and then went quiet for some minutes, lost in thought. "I won't take it away." He finally said with a sigh. "I'll travel here to visit it once in a while. Will you come with me?" he heard Stan laughing softly and smiled. "You don't have to go into the jungle with me. Just accompany me on the trips. It will be like reminiscing trips for us."

"It will be my pleasure." Stan leaned down and pressed a kiss to Will's hair.

"Thank you." His eyes fluttered close. "I'm tired."

"Sleep."

And sleep, Will did. When Gaia entered the living room later and saw them, she smiled like a proud mother. In order not to disturb a sleeping Will, she merely blew Stan a kiss and then quietly left the suite.

***

"Mum," Will gasped as he suddenly shot off Stan and landed on his arse. He shifted his gaze around, looking very disoriented. He also seemed to be sniffing the air.

"Hey, it's just a dream." Stan sat up and stared at his mate who was breathing harshly. "Will?"

"It felt so real." Will breathed shakily. "She was standing right there, looking at me." He pointed to a spot in front on the couch on which he'd been lying with Stan even as Stan moved to kneel before him. "I..."

"It was all a dream," Stan repeated as he reached out to frame Will's face between his palms. "Maybe you should call to check up on..." He trailed off when Will's phone began to ring.

Will moved as hastily as he could to the coffee table on which his cell phone lay. "Shay?" he croaked when he picked up the call which was coincidentally from his sister.

"Ian, mum just opened her eyes to ask of you." Will's sister said shakily on the other end.

"Is she okay? Let me speak to her," Will breathed.

"No, she's fallen back into a coma."

"I don't understand," Will rasped as he got to his feet. "You said she was just..."

"She only opened her eyes and asked of you," Sharon explained. "I was here visiting when she opened her eyes and smiled at me. Then she asked me where you were. I told her you were away on assignment. Then she said she needed to talk to you..." "Why didn't you call me?" Will all but bellowed at his sister.

"She went off again before I could even suggest that, Ian." Sharon sounded very upset. "I don't appreciate being bellowed at. I did nothing wrong." She started to cry.

"I'm sorry." Will groaned. "I just... Hey, please don't cry. I am sorry I shouted at you." He apologized again. "What are the doctors saying?"

Sharon took a moment to calm down before answering her brother. "They said she's back to her original state."

"Fucking hell." Will rubbed his eyes as he paced. "I should have been there."

"You have just two weeks to finish there." A sniveling Sharon reminded him. "Who knows, she might be awake by the time you get back."

"I hope so." Will sighed. "Hope everyone is okay."

"Yes."

"And yourself? That little human punishing you with enough kicks on my behalf?" He tried to lighten the mood. He smiled when a pregnant Sharon laughed softly.

"I've counted all the kicks. I will give all back to you the moment I see you."

"Even a cat kicks better than you, sister mine." He chuckled. "Take good care of yourself okay?"

"You take care too."

After the call, Will just stared into space. He didn't know what to think. "Very weird," he breathed as he turned around to face Stan. "Just as she was asking after me I was dreaming about her. Stan, that didn't feel like a dream. It felt like she was really here. I even smelt her perfume."

"You did?" Stan raised an eyebrow. "That's..." He shook his head in surprise. "Are you okay?"

"I don't know." He flopped into the couch.

"We don't have to go out tonight if..."

"I can't do that to you." Will threw his head back. "You can go."

"That's not how this works." Stan sat beside him. "I won't be able to enjoy the party knowing very well that you're here worried about your mother."

"I'm not worried. She will be fine." He sighed. "I just feel weirded out."

"Then you shouldn't be alone. Or better still, that party would rather snap you out of that feeling."

"Maybe that's what I need. A distraction."

"Good."

**

That evening, Will sipped on his whiskey on rocks and bobbed his head to good music as he watched Stan, Gaia, and some others including the birthday boy dancing their arses off. It was a great party. Everyone was having fun. There were lots to eat and drink. It was indeed a classy and expensive affair.

"Why is Will so quiet today?" Kwame Darko, the birthday boy and owner of the exclusive club asked Gaia as they danced.

"Just feeling a bit off because of some news he received from home," Gaia explained. "He'll be fine."

"Must have been some news. 'Cause this is so unlike him." He observed. "And at my birthday party too." He made a face, making Gaia laugh. "I went out of my way to ensure that every guest had a great time this night. So his mood is making me feel as though I've failed."

"How about concentrating on this goodness right here," she gestured at herself, "and worrying less about soldier boy?" Gaia purred.

"Vanity, thy name is woman." The vampire chuckled, drawing Gaia close. The two had recently discovered they had some chemistry which they'd been exploring on any flat surface they could find. "Try not to get me hard on the dance floor, baby." He pressed a kiss to the hair of a giggling Gaia but his expression remained brooding.