Chapter Text
Wille walked through the forest, the snow crunching under his boots. The air was cold and biting, causing his breath to become visible as he exhaled. The trees around him seemed to come alive to welcome him, their branches swaying in the breeze, as if dancing to an unheard song. The forest was alive. Watching over him. He shoved his hands deeper into his pockets, trying to keep them warm. The snow sparkled in the sunlight, creating a beautiful, almost ethereal, landscape.
It was the first day of winter break, and he had nothing to do. His brother was dead and his parents busy with work. So, he decided to take a walk in the woods.
He had always been drawn to nature, finding solace in the peaceful surroundings of the forest. The crunching of the snow under his boots was soothing, and he felt the stress of school and his family's expectations melt away along with the snowflakes falling to his coat.
And it was on this walk in the woods that he met a different side of Simon Eriksson. Which he didn't know at that time. Simon was a new student at Hillerska. His family just moved to Bjärstad from Stockholm, and alongside with his sister, Sara, they transferred to Hillerska. They officially started two weeks before the winter break.
Wille’s first interaction with Simon was not exactly fairy tale like. Simon had insulted Wille's family in class, and Wille had been taken aback by his bluntness. But something about Simon's straightforwardness had piqued Wille's interest, and he found himself wanting to get to know him better. He was intrigued by Simon's outspoken personality, his sharp tongue, and his disregard for what was considered "societal norm" around there. Wille was immediately drawn to him. He wondered what it would be like to have a friend who wasn't afraid to speak his mind, who didn't care about fitting in with the crowd, and who was not fazed by who Wille was. So, three days later, Wille decided to take his chance and text Simon. To his surprise, Simon responded with interest, and they started chatting occasionally from then on. They talked about school, hobbies, and everything that randomly came to their minds. The last day before the winter break, Simon invited him to a football game, where they briefly held hands. And Wille got to meet Simon's childhood friends. They became so comfortable with each other in a short period of time, and Wille felt a sense of comfort and ease around Simon that he hadn't experienced before. Most people only wanted to talk or befriend him because of his status as a prince, and not because of who he was outside of it.
As Wille wandered deeper into the forest, lost in thoughts, he failed to notice the ice alongside the water. As his legs slipped out from under him, he fell into the ice-cold lake. The shock of the freezing water hit him like a ton of bricks. He gasped for air, but it was no use. The icy water had taken his breath away. He tried to swim out, but his soaked clothes were heavy, weighing him down, and his ankle screamed with pain, making any motion agonizing. Panic set in as he struggled to keep his head above the surface. His mind raced with thoughts of drowning, and he couldn't seem to catch his breath no matter how hard he tried.
Suddenly, there was a rustling sound, rapid steps of something running toward him, and a hard splash of water. He felt something grab onto his coat, and he was dragged out of the water a second later.
He was too disoriented to comprehend what was happening, but as he was pulled to the safety of the shore, he looked up to see fur. Endless fur. And then he saw the eyes, the unmistakable golden eyes of a wolf.
For a moment, Wille froze in fear, staring into the eyes of the creature that had just saved him. But then he realized that the wolf was not attacking him; not trying to eat him. It was staring at him intensely, its head close to his chest, with ears perked forward in full attention. Wille was both captivated and petrified, his mind trying to process what he was seeing. The wolf stood there, watching him. The color of its fur reminded Wille of a sunny autumn day; a mosaic of vivid hues, from earthy browns to gentle oranges and fiery reds, speckled with hints of golden yellow freckles that glinted in the light.
With a trembling hand, Wille reached out carefully—because you know what they say about the human need of wanting to pet every animal there is—, and the wolf seemed almost tame, allowing Wille to touch its soft fur. Wille's heart was racing as he continued to stroke the wolf's fur. Brushing through the little golden yellow dots under the eyes; they looked just like freckles. He was amazed at the creature's calmness. And as he looked into its eyes, he saw a kind of intelligence and understanding that he had never seen in any other animal before.
"Thank you," he whispered, and the wolf nuzzled into his hand. Wille buried his hand into the thick fur more firmly. Then the wolf gently tugged on his coat sleeve—just enough to convey what it wanted to say, without damaging the fabric—and Wille understood. "I should go inside, huh?"
Another gentle pull was the answer to that question. A few moments later, Wille slowly got to his feet, wincing at the pain in his ankle. The wolf stood there, watching him, as if waiting for him to make the next move. Wille knew that he needed to get back home before he freezes out there in the cold. He took a step forward, and the wolf shook off the water from its thick coat and then followed him. Wille walked back home through the woods, his hand resting on the wolf's back, all the way until the trees ended. Where the wolf stopped and backed away, and after a second, took off running and disappeared out of sight.
Wille couldn't believe what had just happened. When he got home, he immediately changed into dry clothes and sat down to warm up. While Malin fussed around getting a doctor to check his (probably) sprained ankle, he sipped a cup of hot chocolate and his thoughts wandered back to the amber eyes. He wondered if he would ever see it again.
Days went by, his first Christmas without his brother was agonizingly painful, but it passed.
Erik was everything to Wille. He was everything. Not only a brother, but a best friend too. Erik knew about his anxiety, knew about his discomfort of public speaking, and knew about him starting to question his sexuality. If Erik was anything, he was a constant in his life. A constant support. Erik understood him. Erik was there when Wille started to doubt, to question. And now Erik was dead.
Winter break came to an end. School started again, and Wille found himself back in the same routine, surrounded by familiar faces at the dorm. And most importantly, Simon. They messaged during the break, but not frequently. Still unsure about what was this feeling that was slowly growing between them. And it’s not like they had known each other for longer than two weeks anyway.
After the break ended, they started to hang out at school. Doing homework together and sitting together in class. Wille's cousin, August, was insufferable about it. He felt the need to talk down on Simon every time he somehow came up in a conversation between them, or even just randomly. And just continued on with it, disguising it as a joke, even when Wille told him to stop.
Just like when Wille and Simon were sitting at their usual spot in the study area in front of the library, surrounded by piles of textbooks and notes. Their friends, Felice and Maddie, and Simon's sister, Sara, were sitting by another table. Wille was struggling with a difficult math problem when August walked over to their table. Nils and Vincent in his heels, like always.
"Well, well, well. Look who's spending so much time together," August sneered, glancing at Simon. "I saw that you signed up for rowing."
"Yes."
Wille didn't know that. He was also in the team. More out of obligation and tradition than out of pure will, but it wasn't that bad, to be honest. With Simon there, practice might just become something he'll genuinely look forward to.
"Isn't it great? That it brings us all together?"
"Sure," Simon said, confused.
"You know, class, ethnicity, it doesn't matter. Everybody has the same chance in the team."
Simon smiled in a sarcastic way, gathered his stuff and stood up. "I'll see you later, Wille."
At the same time, Sara also gathered her things and came to walk out with Simon. Before that, she said goodbye to the girls, saying that she needs to go home.
If a stare could kill, August would have died right there. Wille was so fed up with his bullshit.
"Can't you just stop being an asshole for a minute?"
August chuckled, "What? Lighten up, Wille."
Wille stood up from his seat, glaring at his cousin some more. "No, August. You're always making fun of Simon, talking down on him, and it's not funny."
August's smirk disappeared, replaced by a scowl. "What's your problem, Wille?"
Wille shook his head, "What's YOUR problem?"
August glared at Wille for a moment, but before he could've said anything else, Wille stormed out of the same door Simon and Sara did just seconds ago. He was fairly sure he heard Nils and Vincent laughing, for some reason, finding the situation hilarious.