42 Hold Me

Hearing the door open gently, I turn to see Will standing there with towels. It looks like he's no longer angry, just sad. The melancholy he appears to feel makes me want to cry for him. Silently, he hands me the towel. I start to dry off and after a few minutes, he takes the towel from me and breaks the silence.

"Why don't you go take a shower and I'll wash your clothes for you."

"You don't have to do that."

"You can't show up to the set looking like that."

Looking down, I realize he's right.

"Sorry about that."

"I should be the one to apologize. Blitzen should be better behaved than that."

He then leads me down the hall to one of the guest rooms and leaves a pair of his sweats for me to change into. Before I leave I remember the ring.

"Hey Will, before I forget, what do you want me to do with the ring? We should probably find the owner."

"I wish nothing more for the same thing. Maybe one day I'll find her. For now I'll take it." He says as he takes it from my hand.

While I close the door to the bathroom, I see a tear fall from his eyes. While I shower I ponder what he meant by those words. One day he'll find her? Did he lose someone? Or could it be–. Oh my goodness. Was that an engagement ring? But whose? Was it someone else's or could it be one that he meant to give. Who exactly is that ring supposed to belong to and why does it bring such melancholy to his eyes. What has he gone through that shaped him into the person he is today? After showering, I quickly change and go to him. He's staring at the ring with tears in his eyes. When he sees me he quickly wipes his eyes.

"Oh good, they fit you I thought they might be too big–"

I can't stand here and not do anything. Without thinking about it, I give him a hug.

"Astra, what are you doing?"

Knowing that he's a prideful man who would never admit his feelings, I make up an excuse on the spot.

"I'm really sad. Can you hold me? Give me five minutes no, one minute and just hug me please?

"Ok." He says after a pause.

Slowly, he wraps his arms around me while resting his chin on the top of my head. I think we both know what the other one is truly feeling but neither one of us is willing to admit it. I don't know how long we stand there. It feels like minutes, but I know it's longer than that. There's a beep signaling the dryer is done. Will clears his throat and lets go of me.

"How are you feeling now?"

"I'm feeling ok. Thank you for that."

"You know, if you ever feel like you need another one of those it's okay to come to me."

He says that, but I think we both know he means it the other way around.

"Thank you, and Will."

"Yes?"

"If you ever want to talk about, food or the dogs I'm only a phone call away."

"Thank you, Astra." He says with a gentle smile.

After he walks away, I seek out Donner and Blitzen and give them both a hug. They have an important job taking care of their dad. Will comes back with the clothes to see me cooing over the dogs.

"You should not be giving Blitzen attention; he shouldn't have jumped on you."

"It's fine, he was just as excited to see me as I was to see him. Besides, I still haven't given them their bacon."

"You think they still deserve it after the way they behaved?"

"Absolutely! I, as their loving and forgiving dog mother, have moved past that and it wouldn't be fair if only Donner got some. And it also wouldn't be fair if neither of them got some. So naturally, they both deserve some bacon."

He looks at me like he wants to argue but then he gives up.

"Go ahead. I'll be getting dressed. Just don't get knocked into the pool again."

"Yes!"

I take turns having the dogs do tricks for their treats while Will gets dressed. My dog children are so intelligent. I'm balancing a tennis ball on Blitzen's nose when Will walks out. Does this man always look like he walked out of a magazine? I guess you have to to be at his level of fame. He wears a white button down with the sleeves rolled and untucked. Paired with jeans and tennis shoes. The shirt reminds me of our first meeting.

"Yes, this is the same shirt you stole when we first met."

"I did not steal it!"

"Then, what do you call what you did?"

"I borrowed it and with your permission at that!"

"You took it off of me in front of the entire store."

"I took it halfway off you in front of the entire store. And then, I let you take it off the rest of the way in the bathroom. Besides it would have never happened if you hadn't spilled my latte all over me."

"It. Was. An. Accident."

"Speaking of that latte, you never did replace it."

"Are you kidding me?"

"Do I look like I'm kidding? Not only did you spill my latte, you stole my milkshake and on the same day!"

"Hey, you abandoned that milkshake. It was free game at that point."

"I forgot it for thirty seconds. I was going to come back for it."

"It was free game the moment you left it."

"And you, you–"

"I what?"

"You even used the same straw as me!"

He chuckles when he hears this.

"You're still hung up on the fact that we shared many indirect kisses aren't you?"

"I said those weren't real kisses!"

"Admit it, you're not mad because they were kisses."