Solangelo TWO shots

The Hat

They all go to Texas so Will can spend his birthday with his mom in his hometown <3

I make a really bad dirty joke soooo yeah!!
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After hours upon hours of birthday festivities, all coordinated by Nico, Will was ushered into going to dinner at a nearby bar.

They sat down at a high-top table outside and waited for their waiter to come.

"Good birthday so far?" Nico asked.

Will's face was hidden behind a menu. "Yeah, thanks babe."

Nico flicked the rim of Will's cowboy hat.

Will looked up. "What?"

"Nothing. I love you."

Will smiled his golden smile. "I love you too."

"I am so glad you know where the queer-friendly restaurants are."

"Oh, of course. My mom refused to sing at any place that discriminated, so I have a whole list of places that we were allowed to eat at."

"Howdy," said the waitress in her flare jeans and cowboy boots. "I'm Jenna. How can I be of service to y'all today?"

Nico looked at his husband and raised an eyebrow.

Will responded with the exact same accent. "Hi! Can I have a Coke, please?"

"What kind?"

"Sprite please."

Jenna scribbled the order in her little notebook. She turned to Nico. "And for you?"

"Um... water?"

"Alright. I'll get those out for y'all!"

She left, and Nico remained confused.

"What's that face for?" Will nudged Nico's foot with his own under the table.

"You asked for a Coke... but she asked what kind...and you said Sprite. That's not a Coke. A Coke is a Coke. It's the brown liquid."

Will laughed. "Oh! People in the south refer to all sodas and carbonated beverages as Coke."

"But...it's a soda?"

"Yes, but no. It's not a soda in Texas."

"You're so weird."

"You're not allowed to say things like that on my birthday, Nico."

"This is Texas. I can say what I like. This is America."

Will put his hand on his forehead and fake swooned. "Oh, my patriot!"

Nico kicked Will's foot and rolled his eyes. "Cut it out."

"My big, strong American man!"

Jenna returned with their drinks and Will quickly stopped his antics. "So, we celebratin' any special occasion, boys?"

"It's his birthday." Nico said, smirking.

Will glared back. He hated getting sung to on his birthday.

"Oh! We'll make sure to give you a big ol' Texas welcome! Everything's bigger in Texas, you know."

Will forced a polite laugh. "Yep, I know. I'm from here, actually."

"Oh, how lovely! We'll make it extra special for a native Texan, then. I'll come back to get your food orders."  Jenna left again.

Will groaned and hit himself with the plastic menu. "Nico!"

"What? How was I supposed to know they'd want to sing to you?" Nico feigned innocence.

"You're evil."

"You love me anyway."

Will grumbled something under his breath.

"What was that?"

"Nothing."

Nico looked around the restaurant in awe. "So it really is a cultural thing where people wear cowboy hats around here."

Will tilted the brim of his hat in acknowledgment. "Yep."

Nico furrowed his eyebrows. "Do I look like a tourist without one, then?"

Will grinned. "Yeah, but you would still look like a tourist with the hat."

"Oh, yeah?" Nico plucked the hat off of Will's head and put it on his own. "Looks like you have to be the tourist now."

Jenna returned to them at that moment and smacked a hand over her mouth.

Will's eyes widened into saucers. "Nico..."

Nico looked between the two of them, not understanding the joke. "What? Does it look goofy on me? What am I missing?"

"Oh, bless your heart." Jenna giggled.

Nico stared at his husband. "Will, I know what that means. What's the deal with the hat?"

Will held back a laugh. "I can't tell you."

"William Andrew!"

"There's this unspoken rule...it's to prevent people from taking each other's hats..."

"Just tell me!"

"If you wear a cowboy's hat, you have to ride the cowboy!" Jenna blurted, then covered her mouth again. "I'll just excuse myself." She hurried off quickly.

Nico turned red, tilting the brim of the hat to hide his face. "Oh, gods!"

"No, it's ok. You didn't know." Will tried to comfort.

"I can't believe I did that in front of the waitress!" He groaned.

"You didn't know!"

"I should have known! We're married and I don't even know the sex things in your culture!"

"It's not a legally binding thing, Nico. It's just a thing people say." Will laughed. "And I don't know if I would consider it a culture."

"Don't laugh at me, William!"

Will chuckled some more, then stopped when Nico didn't move from his heap of shame on the table. He cleared his throat. "Nico, in all seriousness, you look good in my hat."

Nico lifted his head, his cheeks still thoroughly flushed pink. "Yeah?"

"It suits you." Will smiled. "I'd pay to see you wear my hat all the time."

Nico looked Will up and down. "Well, since it's your birthday..."

"What?" Will raised an eyebrow.

"I might have to follow through on the cowboy hat rule when we get back to the hotel." Nico winked.

Will's ears turned red and he shifted in his seat. He likes this bold Nico. "You would?"

Nico tilted the brim of the hat towards his husband. "Yeehaw."

THE END
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WC: 900