Arrow Inferno
Chapter 50: Stanley ‘STAN’ Norris vs. Ian ‘WILL’ Williams ~ Surprise!

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Will jogged for three hours. He'd wanted to do more hours but felt he had to go home. Just as he rounded the corner to the house, that silly scar on his neck began to tingle like hell. He frowned in surprise as he rubbed it. I wasn't even thinking about the guy for fuck's... His thoughts were interrupted by the sight of the sleek dark olive green G-Wagon parked in his mother's driveway. Will could tell it was the latest model and wondered which of his silly pals had decided to ignore his wishes just to come and flaunt his new ride. Probably Ty, he thought with a chuckle. Not only was Ty into cars, but he was also wealthy enough to buy any car he fancied.

"Ty?" Will called out as he went past the car. "Didn't I tell you..." He trailed off and his eyes went wide in shock when he saw the man standing on the porch. That wasn't Ty. "What the fuck are you doing here?" Will's tone was harsh but he sounded genuinely curious as he stared at Stan.

"Well, hello to you too," Stan muttered, allowing his gaze to drink in his mate. Fuck, he'd missed the guy he thought as he watched Will climb the stairs onto the porch. His wolf was going crazy within.

Will stopped in front of Stan and simply stared at him. Stan stared back. On the inside, the werewolf was scared shitless but looked calm and cool on the outside. At least he hoped he did. He felt his heart drop as he took in the dark circles around Will's eyes, the exhaustion in his eyes, and how lean he had become after just a week.

"Jesus, Will." Stan breathed. "What have you done to yourself?"

"What are you doing here?" Will repeated. "You have one more week to go."

"I wrapped up."

"When did you get back?"

"I came directly here from the airport." He responded but when Will turned his head to look pointedly at his car, Stan added. "I asked..." oh shit, the mark... "I asked someone to...to bring it...airport." He swallowed hard and resisted the urge to lick at his lips. "Plan was to come...to drive... I wanted to come here from the airport."

Seeing his mark on his mate had turned Stan's mind to mush. The feeling inside him at that very moment was one of pride, elation, and irrepressible love. He wanted to kiss that mark so bad. But he knew he couldn't do that because doing that would only arouse Will...and they needed to talk first.

"Are you okay?" Will asked, surprised that Stan suddenly couldn't seem to string a sentence together.

"Yes." It was just a whisper.

Will kept his gaze on Stan. He thought the guy was acting weird. At least he knew why Stan's phone had been off since the night before. "Jackson?" "Still there with the recruits. They'll come next week as scheduled." He responded, more composed. "And Gaia?"

"Stayed back to keep Jackson company. Or keep fucking Kwame. What's that saying? Once you go black... She's probably never coming back." He shrugged. "You still haven't told me why you're here."

Will folded his arms across his chest, his facial expression, sullen. That posture was more to hold himself back from throwing himself at the man standing in front of him than the aggressive stance it portrayed. Stan looked damn hot in his casual but classy and sexy outfit. He was in grey chinos, a badass black fitted polo shirt, and black boots. And the way those chinos hugged his thighs so smugly...the guy was sex on wheels! Focus, Will screamed at himself.

"I wanted to come and see you, Will," Stan said softly. "I wish I'd been here earlier to take care of you."

"You're not my mother."

"I never said I was."

"Neither are you my lady to concern yourself with what I eat and what I do."

"I'll pretend you didn't say that," Stan said quietly. He wasn't there to fight. And he didn't want to give Will any reason to drive him away.

Will stared for a moment and then took out his keys. "Need to take a shower." He said as he went past Stan and opened the door. Stan followed him in. "Make yourself comfortable. I'll be with you soon."

"Thanks." Stan watched Will till he disappeared into one of the rooms. "At least he didn't throw me out," he muttered to himself. "Will you fucking calm down in there?" he snapped at his excited wolf but he had to admit that despite his panic, he was just as excited as his wolf.

Stan didn't sit. He went around looking at pictures of Will, his sister, and parents. His mother was such a pretty lady. And Will looked a lot like his dad. Stan liked Sharon already. He'd spoken to her immediately after the plane had landed. She'd thanked him profusely for his kindness again, and then told him that her brother had become a hermit. Well, hermit or not, Stan hadn't expected to see Will looking like that. He was clearly not eating or sleeping much. That was dangerous. He wandered into the kitchen and started opening drawers and checking out shelves. There was no food stored. He checked the fridge and frowned when he noticed there was nothing apart from water and milk. What the fuck was Will trying to do, Stan groaned as he took out his phone from his pocket. Was the idiot trying to kill himself? Stan sent some quick messages before going back into the living room.

In the living room, he turned on the television and then relaxed into a seat. It took a while for Will to join him. He was still tying the drawstrings of the soft blue linen shorts he wore as he came. With it, he wore a white t-shirt and no footwear. His hair was still damp from his shower.

"Sorry, had a call from Ty," Will muttered as he dropped into the couch.

"No worries. How have you been?" Stan asked.

Will shrugged. "Okay."

"You're not eating or sleeping. Why?"

"What's this? An exam?" Will mumbled. "I don't feel like eating. And I can't sleep," He said.

"Have you consulted a doctor?"

"As you can see, I haven't broken down or anything. I'm okay."

Stan nodded. "What would you want to eat this morning?"

"Did you hear anything I said?" Will raised a brow. "I don't want to eat anything."

"You will become weak, Will." Stan sighed.

"At least I'm able to manage tea."

"Not good enough but..." Stan got to his feet and started for the kitchen. "At least you have cream and sugar."

"What?" Will stood and followed Stan. "Been going through shit already, huh?"

"I get here to find you looking like that and you don't think I'd be curious?" Stan grabbed a box of Earl Grey and took out a teabag. "You need to see a doctor."

Stan dropped the tea bag into a mug and then went to fetch some hot water from the water dispenser in the kitchen. Will leaned again the kitchen cabinet with his arms and feet crossed, watching Stan the entire time. He wouldn't admit it aloud but having Stan there surprisingly gave him some comfort.

After making the tea just the way he knew the soldier with a sweet tooth liked it, Stan took it to him. Will took it and then murmured his thanks before taking a sip. It was so good he closed his eyes briefly as he savoured the unique and tasty flavour of Earl Grey. When Stan left the kitchen, Will followed to the living room. They sat in a comfortable silence as Will sipped his tea. To Stan, Will looked like someone who had a burden on his shoulder. He looked distressed and Stan hated that.

Apart from the fact that he was there just to be by his side, he'd also wanted to have a serious talk with Will...come clean about everything. But looking at his mate, that didn't seem like the right time to tell him about the supernatural world. He would observe him for some time and reveal who he was when he felt was appropriate. He'd heard from his elders that the most difficult reveal was to humans but he hadn't thought it would be that difficult.