Chapter Text
Will usually loves Saturdays. The lazy morning, a breakfast he can actually sit down to eat, usually with Harry. And then, Mike.
He sighs as the soggy cereal falls off his spoon back in the bowl.
Harry looks at him from the book he’s reading. He has his glasses on again. Will feels like he never takes them off anymore.
“Okay, I’m gonna ask–”
“Please don’t–”
“What’s going on?”
Will sighs again, leaning back in the chair. It’s uncomfortable, and he realizes why they never sit at the dining table.
Harry waits, his eyes fixed on Will.
“Me and Mike, we had…”
A fight? No, that wasn’t a fight. You can’t fight alone.
“...a misunderstanding."
For a moment, Harry doesn’t say anything. There’s a smudge on his left lens. Then he sighs, which seems a bit excessive.
“Is that the reason why you have been sulking since yesterday evening? A misunderstanding?"
Will is inspecting his cereal. He never thought milk could have such a weird shade of white.
Harry rubs his face, his glasses landing a bit crooked on his nose. He fixes them.
“Let me guess…it had something to do with that static shock you reported on Wednesday? The one that hit Mike?”
Will’s head snaps up and he hates how Harry is always right. And that Harry knows it.
“It was one slip-up, Will. Nothing happened, you said it yourself.”
“But it could have been worse. The numbers you measured, you said it’s getting stronger.”
Harry sips his coffee, then takes off his glasses and finally wipes away that smudge. He puts them back on and takes a moment before responding.
“I said your controlled output is getting stronger. That’s not the same thing. It’s strong when you are trying to make it strong. Otherwise, it’s…” he waves his hand around, “static, at best.”
Will wants to argue. He wants to say that Harry doesn’t know that. Harry doesn’t know how it feels. All he has is the data the probe measures. And Will isn’t touching that probe.
But he is touching Mike. He wants to be touching Mike.
He drops his spoon and shoves the cereal away.
“I want more tests.”
“Will…”
He looks at Harry, determined.
“I want to know it’s safe.”
That he’s not dangerous. That Mike is safe.
Harry looks him in the eye.
“It is safe. You can control it.”
Harry is just not getting it. Of course he’s not getting it. It’s science for him.
“I can’t. Not around Mike…”
Harry appears to be thinking about it, his fingers tapping against the empty coffee cup. Then he looks at Will.
“There is no way to test it. Not without Mike knowing about the powers.”
Will stills. Harry doesn’t miss it.
“You really need to tell him. I mean, at this point it’s ridiculous that you haven’t.”
Will swallows and reaches for his juice. He doesn’t drink it.
“I know, but it’s…weird. Hey, you know how the lamp exploded when we made out? Turns out that was me.”
Harry chuckles.
“You told me. And besides, it’s Mike. I’m sure he’s heard weirder.”
Will feels the corners of his mouth turn up. Ain’t that the truth. The kettle in the kitchen shuts off and Harry stands up to pour water in his instant oatmeal.
“So, you’re telling him today?”
No.
He’s not sure if he will even see Mike today. If Mike would even want to, after Friday.
“I’m having lunch with Jonathan today.”
Harry sits back down with his oatmeal that has no smell and probably no taste, either.
“Right, Nancy mentioned that.”
Oh. That again. The wasp’s nest that Harry and Nancy had been poking into.
Harry smirks when he sees Will's face.
“It’s fine. We’re not doing anything…illegal?”
Will gives him a look and Harry laughs.
“Maybe a little illegal. But it’s fine. It’s Oscorp.”
Will stares. Is Harry even hearing himself?
“Exactly. It’s Oscorp.”
Harry’s smile disappears.
“Oscorp, not Axon, Will. I know what I’m doing.”
Will really hopes he does.
“Wow, this is…good.”
Will looks down at the plate in front of him, examining the beef and the mashed potatoes. He looks back at Jonathan sitting across from him.
“Did you make this?”
Jonathan laughs.
“Do you not believe me?”
Will chuckles. He’s had his fair share of experience with Jonathan’s cooking. But this is genuinely good. Surprisingly good.
“Guess I have to now. You should make this for mom when she comes to visit.”
“Do you know when she’s coming?”
He hasn’t seen her since the hospital, and that one was one hell of a story to explain. She almost made him leave with her, and she gave Harry and Jonathan hell.
She gave him hell, too, for keeping Spider-Man secret all those years. He can still feel his ears ringing just thinking about it.
Jonathan shrugs.
“June, I think? After you’re done with the exams.”
Will hums and takes another mouthful of potatoes. Maybe he should visit Jonathan more often. And Mike can come with.
It’ll be great to see mom again.
“Which reminds me, what are your plans for the summer break? Nancy and I, we’ve been thinking about going back to Hawkins for a week or so. We’d be staying with her parents…”
“With the Wheelers?”
“Yeah.”
Will raises an eyebrow. Unless Mike wasn’t telling him something, his parents wouldn’t even allow Jonathan and Nancy to share a room in their house. Plus Mike’s dad was just a killjoy to be around. According to Mike, at least.
“Why?”
Also there’s nothing in Hawkins. Nothing to see, nothing to do. He watches as Jonathan takes his empty plate and puts it in the sink. Will isn’t finished with his potatoes yet.
“It’s her family, Will. I’m sure Mike would like to see them too.”
Will isn’t so sure about that. Mike seemed to be pretty determined to never set foot in Hawkins again. Then again, Will is sure he missed Mrs.Wheeler and Holly more than he lets on. He finishes chewing his meat.
“So what you’re saying is that you want us to come with you?”
Jonathan gives him a sheepish smile as he sits down at the table again.
“Nancy thought it would be nice.”
Of course Nancy thought that. Nancy didn’t have a relationship she needed to hide. Will isn’t even sure if Mike’s parents know about them. His mom would be fine, she was always nice to Will, but as for Mr. Wheeler, he had no idea. Mike rarely speaks about him and Will’s memories are of a rather indifferent man.
He sighs.
“I’ll ask Mike.”
He doesn’t add that they haven’t spoken since Will literally told him to leave. That has no place in his afternoon with Jonathan.
They get ice cream as dessert and watch a rerun of some stupid show from their childhood.
Jonathan is in the middle of retelling some story from when Will was little when the afternoon news comes on.
Neither of them pays much attention at first. Jonathan is currently really focusing on the fact that a four year old Will ate colored pencils when they catch the presenter’s voice.
“—and in other local news, Spider-Man has not been seen in New York for several months. The masked vigilante, who became a familiar sight across the city in recent years, was last seen in late November. Police have declined to comment on his continued absence—”
Jonathan picks up the controller and lowers the volume.
Will keeps looking at the television.
The footage is old. Spider-Man swinging between buildings, disappearing behind a rooftop before the news cuts back to the anchor.
“Do you miss it?”
Will looks at Jonathan.
“Spider-Man?”
Jonathan throws a glance at him.
Will huffs a quiet laugh. But his heart is heavy.
“Yeah.”
He looks back at the television. There’s a grainy photo of him crouching on a ledge.
“Sometimes.”
More often than not, he finds himself wondering what it would be like to swing again.
Jonathan doesn’t say anything.
Will picks up his spoon again, turning it between his fingers.
“It was hard.”
“Losing it?”
Will nods, “Really hard.”
He searches for the right words.
“It was kind of like losing a limb. Like something was just cut off.”
Jonathan’s expression softens. Will tries to laugh it off.
“I mean, I know it sounds stupid.”
“It doesn’t.”
“I just…” Will shrugs, “I had it for so long. I didn’t have to think about it anymore. I could jump higher than everyone else, hear things nobody else could, just…”
He trails off.
“It was there.”
Jonathan nods.
“And then suddenly it wasn’t.”
Will looks down at his ice cream.
“It felt weird. It still does. Like my body had forgotten something that my brain still remembers.”
For a moment, Jonathan doesn’t say anything.
“I’m still trying to understand how I missed it.”
Will looks at him.
“What?”
“You being Spider-Man.”
Will laughs softly. He thinks back to the broken furniture, unexplained school absences, torn up clothes and in general dodgy behavior he must have been showing.
“You really didn’t know?”
“No.”
“Not even a little?”
Jonathan shakes his head.
“I thought you were just a weird kid.”
Will grins.
“I was a weird kid.”
“Yeah. Just apparently also Spider-Man.”
Then Jonathan laughs.
“Mom thought you got involved with the wrong group of kids.”
Will chuckles. He remembers her trying to talk to him about it.
The news moves on to something else.
Neither of them turns the volume back up. Will keeps watching Jonathan. And then, before he can change his mind, he opens his mouth.
“They’re back.”
Jonathan furrows his brows. Will’s pulse is way too quick for a very safe and calm situation like telling your brother about your new superpowers.
That’s his life now, apparently.
“What’s back?”
“The powers. I-I mean, not exactly the same, but–”
Jonathan just stares at him for a second too long.
“What? How long?”
“A few weeks? I didn’t really notice at first.”
“Are you okay?”
The question catches Will off guard.
“I’m fine. Great, actually.”
Something soft appears in Jonathan’s eyes.
“Good.”
Will keeps watching his brother, still unsure how to take that reaction. Jonathan smiles as he puts the empty ice cream bowl on the coffee table.
“So, what are they? Your not-exactly-the-same powers?”
“Some are the same. The strength, the reflexes…”
He looks down at his hand and then back at Jonathan, grinning.
“And some are new. The electricity.”
Jonathan’s eyes widen and he sits up a bit straighter.
“You mean you can control electricity?”
“Yeah. I can actually generate it inside my body. Harry calls it bioelectricity.”
Jonathan sits with the information for a moment.
“Harry knows then?”
Will sees the look in Jonathan’s eyes. It’s not the first time he has seen it, either.
“He’s the only scientist I know. And I trust him. If anyone can help me understand these powers, it’s Harry.”
Jonathan nods.
“I know.”
Will hopes he does. Harry is Harry. Jonathan is Jonathan.
“I just wish I was your favourite brother.”
Will rolls his eyes and playfully shoves him.
“You’re my most annoying brother.”
Jonathan laughs. And Will laughs, too.
“So, what are you now?”
“What do you mean?”
“Are you still Spider-Man? Or …Electro-Man?”
Will blinks.
“Electro-Man?”
That sounds so incredibly dumb.
“Or Shocker?”
Jonathan is having fun with this. Will feels something settle over his chest.
He was all alone the first time. Terrified. Figuring it out, falling off the roofs. Hiding the bruises and the broken things.
“Or maybe Flash-Man?”
But now Harry knows. And Jonathan knows.
Will grins.
“Flash-Man? That sounds like a pornstar…”
Jonathan laughs, but then looks at him, a bit more serious.
“For real though, are you going back out there?”
Will looks back at the TV. They’ve moved on from Spider-Man minutes ago.
And Jonathan’s not telling him not to do it. He’s asking. He’s letting Will decide if that’s something he wants to do again.
“I don’t know.”
The admission feels easier than it should be. With Spider-Man, it was never a question whether he should or shouldn’t do it.
He just did it. It was like breathing.
Now?
He looks down. There’s a paint smudge on his sleeve. He rubs at it.
Jonathan lets him stay quiet.
“You don’t have to decide now. It’s a big thing. I just have a feeling you really loved being Spider-Man. Even if it was hurting you, apparently. Or maybe you let it get so far exactly because you loved it so much.”
Will turns to Jonathan. Someone who he didn’t tell. And yet somehow, Jonathan understood.
“I did. Love it, I mean. Not just the helping people part, I loved that, obviously, but the…”
He doesn’t have words for it. Mike surely would have.
“...freedom, I guess. I could go anywhere, any time, and nobody knew it was me.”
He realizes that maybe, selfishly enough, he loved that the most.
Jonathan nods and Will has a feeling maybe he actually understands that.
“You can’t swing around anymore, but the electricity surely has some good uses. It could really help people.”
“I know.”
He really does. He even discussed it with Harry and it has so much potential for good things.
“So what’s stopping you?”
Will stills. He swallows. So much potential for good things. And so much for bad ones, too.
“Mike.”
Saying it out loud is as hard as thinking it. Jonathan listens, his eyes never leaving Will’s face.
“Did Mike ask you not to do it?”
Will shakes his head and looks at that paint smudge on his sleeve again.
“He doesn’t know.”
He doesn’t see Jonathan’s reaction, nor he wants to. He can guess what it is.
Because it’s stupid.
“Why not?”
Yeah, why? Why was it so easy to tell Harry? Why didn’t he worry about Jonathan’s reaction?
He rubs at the stain, knowing it’s useless. It survived washing.
“I don’t know. I just…I feel like he won’t like it.”
Because he won’t. Mike might have thought, at one point, that Spider-Man was cool. But he surely didn’t like Will being him.
“You don’t know that. And even if he won’t, that doesn’t mean he will stop liking you.”
Will looks up at him.
“I never said–”
“I know, Will. I know.”
Jonathan raises his hands.
“But fear isn’t rational. And you…you spent years pining after Mik–”
Will’s face grows hot.
“I wasn’t pining!”
Jonathan gives him a look. Will shuts up. Maybe he was pining. A little.
“Anyway, you spent years probably thinking you could never have Mike. And now you do. It’s normal to be afraid to lose him.”
This conversation is embarrassing but Jonathan doesn’t seem to mind.
“And see, you were actually wrong about Mike once. I’d bet…my dinner that you’re wrong this time, too.”
“Your dinner isn’t much!”
“It’s more than what you’re betting on someone you love.”
Will looks away. Not because Jonathan is wrong. Because he’s right. Too right.
Jonathan sighs.
“Will, you’re not a little kid anymore. You’re an adult in an adult relationship…”
Will chokes.
“Jesus, don’t say it like that!”
Jonathan remains unfazed..
“So act like an adult and tell Mike the truth. I think he’d prefer you telling him over finding out after you blow up a lamp or something.”
Will clears his throat.
Jonathan stares at him for a second and then starts laughing.
“Oh my god, you did! You blew up a lamp!”
“It was an accident!”
Jonathan doubles over, laughing even more. Will hits him with a decorative pillow.
“Stop laughing!”
Will takes the longer way home and he stops by the art supplies store. His acrylics are running out, again. He’s picking out only the colors he really needs when his eyes wander over to the canvases.
They get free canvases at school for assignments. But he needs one for a personal project. He considers the size. He wants to make it big. But not too big. Not too much.
In the end settles for the biggest one he can carry comfortably. Portability means it's a good size. He checks the price and frowns. It’s a bit more than he expected. He picks it up anyway.
Maybe he can get a part-time job, now that his extracurricular and nocturnal activities are gone. At least for the summer.
Beats going to Hawkins and spending time under one roof with Mike’s father who may or may not think something very ugly about people like them.
“Planning something big, Will?”
Will smiles at the store owner. He’s been buying his supplies there since he moved to New York and the man always gives him free samples to try. This time, he puts one extra tube of white, some new brand Will doesn’t recognize, into Will’s bag.
“A birthday present. For a friend.”
The man looks at him for a moment and then returns the smile.
“A lucky friend then, getting such a big painting. I saw some of your work at the university exhibition last month. You’re really talented.”
Will feels the blush in his cheeks. He nervously rubs his neck.
“I do my best.”
“Listen, I’ll make you a deal. You’ll get the canvas for free and when you have another exhibition, you’ll let me know, alright?”
Will’s breath catches. His eyes land on the canvas. It's eight dollars. He looks back at the owner.
“I can’t accept that.”
“That’s too bad, I already wrote it off. The paints, too.”
Will stares at him. That’s not how you do business. He opens his mouth but the man just hands him the paper bag with a big smile.
“Come back again.”
Will just mumbles his thank you, still stunned, and leaves the shop with everything he needs. The canvas is safely tucked underneath his arm.
He opens the door to the apartment. Unlocked.
“Harry?”
He doesn’t see Harry’s jacket. He must be out. But then he sees the other jacket on the hanger.
His head snaps towards the living room. Mike is standing there, book in hand.
“Hi…”
Will’s pulse rises. What is Mike doing in the living room? He’s absolutely not ready to talk to him.
Not yet.