Title: Headlong Into Happiness
By: angstytimelord
Pairing: Hannibal Lecter/Will Graham
Fandom: Hannibal
Rating: PG-13
Table: 50ficlets
Prompt: 29, Happiness
Author's Note: Sequel to "All the Colors of Love."
Disclaimer: This is entirely a product of my own imagination, and I make no profit from it. I do not own the lovely Hannibal Lecter or Will Graham, unfortunately, just borrowing them for a while. Please do not sue.
***
How was it possible for him to be this happy?Will leaned back in his chair, stretching his arms over his head. The invitations were done, and the plans for the wedding were moving along well.
It hardly seemed possible that in less than a month's time, he and Hannibal would be getting married. He would have a ring on his finger. He would have a husband.
He already had one ring on his finger, Will thought as he lifted his hand to gaze at the thick gold band with the diamond winking in the center. He had objected to having an engagement ring at first, but Hannibal had insisted on it, and he'd gone along with his fiancé's wishes.
Actually, he liked wearing this ring, he thought with a soft smile. He liked knowing that he belonged to Hannibal. He liked having that knowledge in plain view.
Also, wearing that ring kept any unwanted advances from other people far away from him. Most, if not all, of the people who saw him respected what that ring stood for.
He loved what this ring stood for. Happiness.
Who would have thought when he first met Hannibal that so much would have happened between them? Will thought with another smile. It seemed like a fairy tale.
He had fallen headlong into happiness, and he never wanted to get up again. He was sure that the life they had ahead of them would be filled with that same happiness, and that it would only keep growing day by day, year by year, until they were old and grey together.
It wasn't hard to imagine himself growing with Hannibal, and loving him for all those years. The days would be golden, and he was actually looking forward to them.
Their years together would be the best time of his life.
He had never thought that he was meant for happiness; he'd always seen it as something that was intended for other people, but never for him.
Still, had he ever really tried to find it before? he wondered. He didn't think so. He had always shied away from finding that happiness, sure that it would never last.
Maybe that was why he had been single for so long, Will mused. Maybe he had just been afraid to make the kind of commitment that he'd made now; maybe he was just terrified that it wouldn't last, and that he would be left in a worse state than when he'd begun.
He hadn't wanted to deal with that kind of emotional pain, so he had closed himself off from it. But now, he had opened the floodgates, and he was willing to take a chance.
No, he wasn't taking a chance with his happiness, he told himself firmly. Hannibal would never hurt him. He was sure of that, as sure as he was of his own name.
Hannibal loved him. Hannibal would never cheat on him, or do anything to make him feel marginalized and small. Other people had; even people who had claimed to care about him in the past had used words to make him feel as though he was somehow less than they were.
That wasn't in Hannibal's nature, to do something like that. Oh, he could do it to others; he was good at cutting people down to size when he felt that they needed it.
But he would never do that to someone he cared about. Will was absolutely positive of that. He would never be on the receiving end of Hannibal's tongue-lashings.
He held a special place within Hannibal's heart, a place that he treasured.
And Hannibal held that same place within his own heart, a place where he would always be. Will couldn't imagine a life without loving him, not now.
Hannibal had come into his life with a bright shower of sparks, like fireworks flashing across a darkened night sky. He had been brilliant and exciting, and Will had turned to him instinctively, as a child turns from darkness to light, holding out his arms -- and his heart -- for comfort.
He didn't regret falling for Hannibal, not for a single second. He knew that he'd done the right thing for himself. He had done what made him happy.
He had never expected to feel like this, and he cherished the emotion.
He'd been so sure that he could never fall headlong into happiness like this, that he would always be on the outside looking in. And now, suddenly, surprisingly, everything had changed.
He was on the inside now. He had the happiness that he had always wanted, but had never thought would come to him. He was no longer an outsider, longing for warmth and love.
He had that love. It was his to hold close to him, his to wrap himself in. And he would, Will told himself, his eyes dreamy, a smile curving his lips at the thought. He would hold that love to himself, within his heart, and he would guard it carefully, making sure to never lose it.
Life with Hannibal might not always be easy; they both had strong opinions, and they wouldn't always agree on everything. They would clash here and there; he was sure of it.
But those clashes wouldn't take anything of what they felt for each other. He would always love Hannibal. That love was lodged firmly in his heart, and it would never leave.
Happiness was something that he could now reach out and touch.
He had never thought that he would get to this point in life, Will thought with a smile, rising to his feet. But here he was. He felt like the happiest man in the world.
He might have rushed headlong into happiness, but the outcome was what he'd been searching for all of his life. And it was something that he would always cherish.
***
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