#tft

At this point, you've known Mack for maybe three months.

Long enough to become friends, not long enough for anyone (even Will) to understand how attached you've become to each other.

The Sharks had an off day, which meant Will decided that you should go on a date.

With Macklin as a third wheel.

"You're not gonna believe what just happened," Macklin announced, sliding into the booth beside Will with the grace of a drunk giraffe. He jerked his thumb at the bathroom where he'd just come from.

His grin was halfway between pride and panic, fingers drumming the table like he wasn’t sure whether to laugh or bolt. "Cutie Pie, you're gonna die" he said, leaning in, "some guy at the urinal recognized me."

"What?" You asked, looking up from your phone you were sharing with Will.

Macklin smiled. "Yeah. A guy at the urinal recognized me, right? So he asked for a selfie while my dick was out. Fully in frame."

Will choked on his iced tea, thumping his chest while you stared, torn between horror and fascination. "Please tell me you said no," you managed.

"Obviously I said no!" Macklin threw his hands up, then paused. "Okay, I considered it. But then I remembered I like not being on a registry."

---

Your food gets there before the boys, and Macklin immediately made a grab for your plate. You slapped his wrist away.

Macklin pouted, fingers twitching toward your food again. "C'mon," he whined, "just one bite. You don't even like fries."

"Uh, I do like fries," you corrected, stabbing a forkful pointedly. "I just don't like them when they've been mauled by your greasy fingers."

Will snorted into his tea, watching Macklin slump dramatically against the booth like he'd been personally betrayed.

"Q please," Macklin whined like a dying man, slumping facedown onto the sticky table with enough force to rattle the silverware.

You caught Will's eye and mouthed the single syllable—Q?—with raised eyebrows. Will's grin softened into something unbearably fond, the kind of expression usually reserved for puppies or toddlers mid-tantrum. He shrugged and took a fry from your plate.

"What, too hungry for my full name?"

years later, when Will is six-foot-whatever and playing in the NHL and pretending he's mature, you'll still bring this up.

It was late November of third grade and practice had ended almost twenty minutes ago. Most of the kids had already been picked up, leaving only you, Will, and two other boys on the team scattered around the front of the rink.

His mom was running late, not super late, but just enough that the two of you were bored.

And when you and Will were bored, bad things happened.

You and Will were sitting on the curb together, his backpack was tossed beside him and your lunchbox was dangling from your wrist while he was telling you about what Grace had done the night before when Jaxson suddenly interrupted.

"Bet you can't hold your breath for a minute."

Will looked over. "Easy."

You immediately frowned. You knew that tone. It was the same tone he used before doing something stupid.

Jaxson grinned. "Then do it."

"Fine."

Ben pulled out one of those cheap little digital watches every kid seemed to have. "I'll time."

Will shrugged like he was the coolest person alive, like this wasn't a completely pointless competition, like he wasn't about to do this because you were sitting next to him.

You crossed your arms. "Will."

"What?"

"Don't."

He looked at you and smiled. That stupid smile, the one that basically said I'm gonna do it anyway, then he pinched his nose, took a huge breath, and started.

The first twenty seconds were fine. Will looked annoyingly confident, Jaxson looked annoyed, and you looked unimpressed.

Thirty seconds.

Forty.

Fifty.

Okay.

Now this was getting weird.

Will's face was getting red. Really red.

You sat up straighter. "Okay, that's enough."

He shook his head.

Sixty seconds.

Ben's eyes widened. "Dude thats a minute!"

Will grinned.

You did not like that grin. At all.

Because now he wasn't looking at Ben or Jaxson. He was looking at you out of the corner of his eye like he wanted to make sure you were watching. Like he wanted you to think he was cool.

The idiot.

"Will."

He ignored you.

Seventy seconds.

His face was turning purple now and your stomach dropped. "Will."

Nothing.

"1:20!! Keep going!"

"Stop."

Will shook his head stubbornly.

You stood up. "Will, stop."

His eyes looked funny and unfocused like he was trying really hard to stay upright. Then he swayed a little.

Your heart immediately dropped into your shoes. "Will?"

And then he tipped sideways, straight off the curb.

Thunk.

For one horrible second nobody moved.

Then chaos.

"OH MY GOD."

"DUDE."

"WILL."

By the time Ben and Jaxson reached him, you were already brushing your shaking hand over his nose, testing for air. "Will."

Nothing.

"Will!"

His eyes fluttered, then slowly opened and the first thing he saw was three terrified faces staring down at him.

The second thing he saw was you.

And because he was Will—your Will—his first instinct was smiling. "Hi."

You nearly exploded. "HI?"

His smile immediately vanished. Uh oh.

You only used that voice when you were really mad.

"What were you THINKING?"

Will blinked. "I—"

"You PASSED OUT, you idiot!"

"I know."

"You could've DIED."

"I don't think—"

"Don't."

Will immediately shut his mouth and Ben and Jaxson wisely took three steps backward. Jaxson looked like he wanted the earth to swallow him whole and Ben suddenly found his shoes fascinating.

Meanwhile Will was sitting up now, still dizzy, still a little purple, and still staring at you.

Because Will had known you long enough to recognize when you were scared.

Really scared.

"Bird."

You ignored him, rummaging in your gear bag for water.

"Bird."

Still ignored.

"Bird."

"What?"

His expression softened.

"I'm okay."

You looked at him. Really looked at him. The grass stuck in his hair, the scrape on his elbow from falling, the lingering blue in his face. Then you smacked his shoulder.

Will grinned.

"There she is."

And when Colleen finally pulled into the parking lot five minutes later, she found Will sitting on the curb with an ice pack on his head.

Ben and Jaxson looking guilty.

And you sitting so close your shoulders were touching.