Chapter Text
California!
It’s… sunny? Not really sure what else to say about it other than the fact that it’s sunny!
But Will didn’t really like it there.
Kids would bully him and El.
They’d tell him to end his life and call him slurs.
But that’s not what angered him.
It was the fact that they would bully El.
They’d torment her and make him watch, holding him back so he couldn’t protect her.
But school aside—
Will was really excited since Mike was coming to visit them… he couldn’t wait. He had so badly missed him.
He missed his taste, his scent, his smile—the feeling of his lips on his.
But he had stopped sending Will as many letters.
He knew Mike and El were dating, but honestly, El never seemed happy when she received letters from Mike.
But she seemed excited to see him, so Will paid little mind to it.
…
Mike boarded the plane and sat down. It felt surreal getting to see Will again… and of course El too!
Mike wouldn’t admit it, but he thought about Will all the time. He longed for his touch—he really missed him.
That one kiss before he left wasn’t enough. He wanted to kiss Will all over, be bathed in his scent—he wanted t—
“Coffee or tea, sir?” the flight attendant asked, interrupting Mike’s daydreaming.
Which was probably for the better.
“Uh, just water please,” Mike said, suddenly getting very fidgety.
The flight attendant handed him the water and moved on to the next row.
He had promised himself one thing…
He was going to tell Will how he felt… somehow.
…
The four of them sat at the airport waiting for Mike to arrive.
His flight had finally arrived, and the moment people started walking in, El stood up.
And there he was.
“He looks so stupid,” Will thought, but he couldn’t help but smile to himself.
“Mike!” El called out, running over to him.
The two hugged… they didn’t kiss, which was odd to Will, but he paid little mind to it.
“Careful, you’re squishing your gift,” Mike said, pushing her away gently.
He handed her some flowers. “I hand-picked those for you back in Hawkins ’cause I know you miss it there.”
El smiled and looked at the tag… her face instantly fell.
From Mike…
Again.
Will frowned. He knew that look—he’d seen it every time she had received a letter from Mike.
The thing is, El had been ranting to Will about Mike and how she “missed her days of freedom with Max” and that “Mike is over it too—he can’t even say love.”
But she never really did anything about it.
“It’s perfect… thank you…” El said, taking a step to the side so Will could say hi.
The moment the two locked eyes, they both smiled.
“Will!” Mike said, hugging him tightly.
In that moment, Will felt so safe, like nothing could ever hurt him again.
It had always been that way, though.
Anytime Will was scared or hurt, Mike would be there, and he’d hold him until he felt better.
Mike pulled away from the hug. “Hey, Jonathan.”
“Hey, man!” Jonathan said. “Right, we should get going.”
…
The seven of them sat around the dinner table, eating quietly.
El sat on the other side of the table… nowhere near Mike.
Will sat right next to Mike.
Mike had even moved his chair closer to Will’s.
“So there I was, heading down the road, going to see a client, and I’m looking for a motel to stay in for the night, and suddenly—bam! It hits me!” Murray banged on the table. “Didn’t the Byers move here?”
“Small world, isn’t it?” Joyce said, smiling.
“So I thought, hey, you know what? Why don’t I drop in and say hello to my old friend,” Murray said, taking a bite of his food.
“So sweet of you,” Joyce said, her tone unusually welcoming.
“Sweet of you to let me stay,” Murray said, laughing slightly.
“And he cooks too,” Joyce said, gesturing to the food on the table.
“And cleans,” Murray added.
“You should just stay.”
“I’d be tempted, Joyce, except you know, you have that, um…” Murray started, but his mind went blank.
“Right—that business trip,” Joyce said, winking as if to say play along.
“Wait, what business trip?” Will asked, staring at Joyce.
“For a… company conference! It won’t be for long, and Jonathan will take care of you guys, okay?” Joyce said, shifting her tone to a reassuring one.
“Hmm, okay,” El said, smiling at Joyce.
“You kids will have fun! There’s lots of things to do around here. Why not show Mike around tomorrow?” Joyce suggested.
“Yeah, I’d love to see what’s around here,” Mike said, placing his hand on Will’s thigh.
Will shot out of his chair, his face flushed.
“Will, what’s wrong?!” El asked, startled by Will’s sudden movement.
“N-Nothing! I just need the, uh, bathroom,” Will said, rushing up the stairs.
Will closed the door and just stared at himself in the mirror.
His face was all red, but he wasn’t upset by why Mike had done it, just extremely flustered.
He wasn’t used to this affection.
At least…not yet
Will leaned against the bathroom wall.
He was trying to stop thinking about Mike since it just made him blush even more.
Then there was a knock on the door.
"Will...?" Mike said softly.
"M-Mike..." Will replied, turning to face the door.
“Can I come in?”
"Yea," Will said without hesitation.
The door gently swung open, and Mike stepped inside, closing the door behind him.
“Will I…” Mike took a deep breath. “I’m sorry if I made you uncomfortable. I didn’t mean to. I—"
“Shut up” was interrupted before he pressed his lips against Mike's.
Mike instantly melted into the kiss.
But Will quickly pulled away.
“I-I-I don’t know why I did that. I’m sorry." Will mumbled, staring at the floor.
“It’s ok, Will…I liked it…we've kissed before many times," Mike said, taking his hand.
“But this time there’s something about it that feels—"
"-Different? "Yea...feelings, I guess," Mike mumbled. “Come on, let’s go back downstairs."
…
The two sat back down.
“Are you okay, Will?” Joyce asked, sounding pretty concerned.
“Yeah, I’m fine. I just really needed the bathroom,” Will said, taking a bite of his food.
Will took Mike’s hand under the table and squeezed it gently.
…
Mike lay down next to Will.
He had just gotten out of the shower, so he felt nice.
Will wasn’t asleep yet; he was just lying under the covers.
Despite it being boiling outside, he was just so cold most of the time, so he preferred being under the covers.
Mike moved a little closer.
“Warm night, huh?" Mike said, trying to make small talk.
"Mm," Will hummed, turning over and looking into Mike's eyes.
“Today was fun. I enjoyed spending time with you," Mike said, looking at Will. He looked so beautiful.
"Yeah, me too…" Will said, his face flushing slightly.
“We are going roller skating tomorrow, right?” Mike asked, running his thumb over Will's lips.
"Y-Yea," Will said, slightly confused by the sudden attention.
Mike lifted Will's hand and kissed it, which wasn’t unusual; he did it all the time before they met El.
But tonight was different…
Mike started gently laying kisses up Will’s arm, then his shoulder and his collarbone.
Will's face was red and hot, but he couldn’t deny how much he loved this…how much he wanted this.
Mike leaned in and kissed him. It was slow, like he was testing it first. Even though they had already kissed before, this felt different; there was more passion behind it, more desire.
He pulled away slowly and whispered, "Was that ok...?"
"Y-Yea," Will whispered back.
Will pulled Mike into his lap and cupped his face with his hand, pulling him in for a long, deep kiss.
Their bodies intertwined, and their tongues became one.
Mike ran his hands through Will's hair, pushing himself closer to him, feeling the warmth of Will's body against his.
Will pulled away for some air, and for a moment the two of them just sat there staring at each other.
Mike leaned in and started kissing Will's neck again, sliding his hands down to hold Will's waist.
“Mm, Mike…" Will mumbled.
Mike looked up, pulling away from Will’s neck.
“My turn," he said in a soft, whiny tone.
Mike’s face flushed, and he nodded, letting Will bite and kiss his neck.
Eventually they went back to making out.
“You taste like heaven," Mike mumbled against Will’s lips.
They were so focused on each other they didn’t hear the door open.
"Uh, what’s going on?" Jonathan said, looking dumbfounded.
Mike abruptly pulled away from Will, yet he made no effort to move away from him, keeping his hands on his waist.
“We were just, uh…” Will mumbled, having no good excuse. “We weren’t doing anything."
“Oh, ok," Jonathan said, closing the door.
He was clearly higher than the sky, so thankfully nothing would come of this…
The two stared at each other for a moment.
“We should go to bed." Mike mumbled, taking his shirt off and lying down.
"R-Right," he mumbled, fidgeting with the buttons of his shirt, clearly struggling.
Mike sat up, gently moved Will's hands away and helped him with the buttons.
Mike always did little things like this for Will since they were young.
Will’s stomach turned at this gentle act, though he honestly kept his eyes off of Mike.
Mine smiled, clearly enjoying Will’s attention. "Like what you see?” He said teasingly.
"Y-Yea...though I’d love you more with those shorts off." Will said, mumbling that last part.
Mike's face flushed; clearly he could only handle a little bit of flirting before completely breaking.
"Uh, g-goodnight, Will..." Mike said, pulling Will a little closer.
"Goodnight," Will mumbled, wrapping his arms and legs around Mike's bare torso.
He felt so warm... Will was definitely enjoying it too.
Both boys quickly dozed off in each other's arms.
…
Huh—a dream… not any old one, though.
This was a recurring dream for Mike—though this dream had actually happened in real life.
Will and Mike sat all cuddled up in Mike’s basement.
They were watching some new movie Mike had gotten.
It was really good! Both boys were definitely enjoying it…
Though they enjoyed each other’s company even more.
“Huh…” Mike said, staring at the TV.
“What’s wrong?” Will asked, looking over at Mike.
“Why do people kiss?” Mike asked bluntly.
“My mom says it’s to show affection and love,” Will said, bouncing up and down in his seat.
“Does that mean I can try and kiss you?” Mike asked innocently.
“Hmmm, yeah!” Will said happily.
“Oki!” Mike said, leaning over and giving Will a little peck on the lips.
“Ooh! I like kissing you!” Mike said excitedly, kicking his feet.
“Me too!” Will nodded in agreement.
“Can I kiss you… every day?” Mike asked slowly.
“Yeah!” Will said, smiling a little.
…
It was the next morning at the Byers’ house!
Will was eating breakfast while drawing with some crayons.
Joyce walked into the kitchen and smiled at Will.
Will looked up at her.
“Hey, Mom? Can Mike and I kiss?” Will asked, his tone flat—the way kids ask something silly in the most serious way.
Joyce coughed, a bit shocked, but quickly recovered and bent down to be eye level with Will.
“Well, honey, you see, Mike is a boy just like you. But boys can’t kiss boys… well, they can, but other kids would tease you about it,” Joyce said, her tone knowing—like she had lived through what she’d just described.
“But… I see boys and girls kiss all the time, and no one makes fun of them?” Will asked, looking kind of sad.
“I know… it makes no sense,” Joyce said softly.
“So we can’t ever kiss again?” Will asked, suddenly realizing what Joyce was saying.
“Hmm, maybe on the hand, like a prince does to a princess!” Joyce said, waving her arms in the air.
Will’s little face lit up. “OKAY!” he said, kicking his feet excitedly.
Joyce smiled as she watched Will draw away.
The dream ended after that.
…
Sun streamed through the windows, gently waking Mike up.
He stared at the ceiling, then remembered who he was lying next to.
His heart skipped a beat, and he was honestly filled with joy.
“Mm,” Will mumbled, stirring slightly.
“Will,” Mike whispered gently.
“Mm… Mike,” Will said, barely awake.
“Come on, we need to get ready,” Mike said, holding Will closer.
“It’s so early, though,” Will said, sitting up.
“Yeah, but El said we need to be there early, so we need to wake up early,” Mike reasoned.
"Mm, you’re right." Will said, looking at Mike's lips.
He slowly leaned in and kissed Mike, quickly slipping his tongue into his mouth.
Mike, of course, melted into the kiss, pinning Will down against the bed.
He ran his hand down Will’s chest, then torso, then his thighs.
He then started fidgeting with his shorts, trying to take them off with one hand while not breaking away from Will.
Knock knock.
Someone was at the door.
“Aw, come on… at least they knocked this time,” Mike mumbled, letting Will sit up.
“C-Come in,” he said, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand.
El cracked the door open. “We are leaving in ten minutes,” she said, quickly closing the door and leaving.
The two looked at each other.
“Okay, let’s actually get ready,” Will said, walking over to his closet and picking out an outfit.
…
They had made it just in time! Well, technically there wasn’t a time limit, but they were aiming to get there early—and they did!
The three of them quickly started skating, talking and laughing amongst themselves.
Will was in the middle, with Mike and El holding one of his hands each.
“Fag,” one boy said.
“Oh look, the fairy got a boyfriend,” another guy said, flipping Will off.
“They bully you down here?!” Mike asked, looking like he was about to blow someone up.
“Yeah… b-but it’s no big deal. You know, what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger,” Will said, trying to smile through the pain.
“Bullshit. They can’t just pick on you and El and get away with it!” Mike said, skating over to the group of bullies.
“Aww, did your boyfriend send you here?” a girl asked.
“No,” Mike said, his voice dead calm. “Stop bullying Will and Jane.”
“And why would we do that?” another boy asked, looking like he was holding back a laugh.
“Because it’s cruel, and it isn’t right. Will doesn’t deserve that shit from you—of all people,” Mike said, growing angrier by the second.
Will quickly skated over to him. “Mike, it’s okay,” he whispered, slipping his hand into Mike’s.
“Fags,” the first boy spat. “Let’s see how your boyfriend would like this.”
The two boys grabbed Will and started mocking him. The other bullies slowly joined.
The shoving and grabbing slowly turned to punching.
…
In a moment when someone you love is in danger—pain, or even both—you’d do anything to protect them.
Mike and El didn’t hesitate to run in and help Will.
El chased after the girl, whose name was apparently Angela.
Mike didn’t hesitate—he punched one of the bullies in the face.
His nose instantly started pouring blood, scaring off all the other bullies.
Will was sitting on the rink floor, looking defeated. His shirt was slightly torn, and his lip split.
“Shit, Will, are you okay?!” Mike said, bending down and helping him up—which was kind of difficult while wearing roller skates.
“I’m okay, Mike. It’s just a split lip. I’ll live,” Will said, wiping the blood away.
“Okay… well, El went after this girl named Angela, so we should probably find her,” Mike said, leading Will to the edge of the rink and helping him off.
The two took their skates off and ran around looking for El.
When they found her, it was just a moment too late.
…
Sibling love… it’s always there.
El felt this love for Will, so just like Mike, she ran as fast as she could.
But she noticed someone backing away—Angela, the worst of them all—so without hesitating, she kicked off her skates and ran after her.
She eventually caught up.
El pushed Angela to the ground, grabbed one of her skates, and slammed it down onto Angela’s face multiple times.
“Never ever mess with my brother again,” El said, walking away.
Will and Mike caught up to her, and the three of them made their way home.
…
“We have to find El!” Will said, leading Jonathan to the van.
The drive felt so long.
And during that long wait, Mike thought of something stupid to say.
“Will! I promise you our love will last way longer than this drive… so, that being said, would you be my boyfriend?” Mike asked, looking hopeful.
“Y-yes… yes!” Will said, wrapping his arms around Mike and gently kissing his neck.
Suddenly, the long drive felt a bit more comfortable.
Together.
End