vertigrove

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  1. Rec *

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    “Your friend, Eleven, disrupted your assimilation,” Vecna explains, so close Mike can see his crooked, rotting teeth. “The others were gone in a moment, absorbed into my psyche, but you… linger.” His expression darkens on the word, bitter that things didn’t go as planned. “But no matter. It won’t last long. You are simply an echo of a dying mind. You’ll lose yourself soon enough. Lose yourself… to me.”

    Dread settles in Mike’s stomach. Unlike the others, he doesn’t even get the privilege of a proper death.

    This hell is just for him.

    Or: Trapped in Vecna's mind, Mike tries desperately to hold onto a fading sense of self. Meanwhile, the Party in Hawkins struggle to pick up the pieces and prepare for their final confrontation with the evil that has overtaken their town.

    This is a continuation from my s4 rewrite in which Mike never made it to California, covering the 18 months between s4 and s5. Read Part 1 first!!

    Series
    Language:
    English
    Words:
    58,009
    Chapters:
    6/6
    Comments:
    371
    Kudos:
    570
    Bookmarks:
    104
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    10,441

    05 Jul 2026

  2. Rec 75

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    Mike laughs, something warm and fuzzy filling his chest. He flips over so he can face Will and throws an arm over his shoulder, his fingers fiddling with the chestnut hair shimmering as honey gold sun seeps in through the curtains. Will’s cheeks are flushed, a light sheen of sweat dampening his forehead and glistening over his bare shoulders, and Mike stares in awe at what he has.

    Will takes his hand, entirely serious and waiting patiently for an answer, and Mike snorts. “At this point, why don’t you just ask me to marry you?” He jokes.

    Suddenly, Will goes quiet and takes his hand, his fingers finding Mike’s ring finger, his eyes gazing at it almost contemplatively, and Mike’s jaw drops.

    Will’s considering it. He wants to.

    Series
    Language:
    English
    Words:
    3,178
    Chapters:
    1/1
    Comments:
    33
    Kudos:
    567
    Bookmarks:
    75
    Hits:
    4,638

    04 Jul 2026

  3. Rec *

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    Was…was Mike’s heart reacting to Will?

    Mike isn’t looking at him. He’s staring hard at his cards as if he hasn’t seen them before, biting his inner cheek, and accentuating his dimple. As Will looks closer, he notices the pink shade spreading over the shell of Mike’s ear, the red emerging from the black curls like a rose sprouting from the earth.

    Was Mike still nervous around him? Hadn’t they resolved that?

    Will decides to test it. He leans onto the bed and rests a hand on Mike’s uninjured thigh, his thumb swiping side to side over the covers, and waits.

    Mike's leg twitches into his hand, and barely a moment passes before the beeps speed up again, a rapid climb from steady to sprinting, and when Will looks, the blush has spread to Mike’s cheeks, his eyes unmoving and glued to his cards.

    Oh. Will gapes at the monitor, the green spiking line. That's not discomfort.

    Oh. He can have some fun with this.

     

    Or: Mike, while protecting Will, gets attacked by a demogorgon. Guilt-ridden, Will stays with him in the hospital, forcing them to resolve the awkward air that has surrounded them for months, and, along the way, uncover some truths.

    Series
    Language:
    English
    Words:
    37,394
    Chapters:
    4/4
    Comments:
    186
    Kudos:
    957
    Bookmarks:
    244
    Hits:
    15,392

    04 Jul 2026

  4. Rec 25

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    Mike smiles into the kiss, and carefully brings his tongue to Will’s swollen lips, swiping it across once as a way of asking permission. Will allows the kiss to deepen, and–

    A sharp intrusion of rapid knocks breaks the moment almost instantly.

    “Mr. Will! Mr. Will are you in there? Mr. Will-lll!”

    The superglue that had just held Mike and Will impossibly close, practically inseparable, has now been dissolved by the rude, abrasive acetone of their childcare responsibilities.

    Mike and Will are working as summer day camp counsellors alongside the rest of the party to make some extra cash before university.

    Kids are, of course, challenging to say the least, but the even bigger challenge is hiding a secret relationship from everybody when you're completely and irrevocably in love and want to shout it from the rooftops.

    Especially when the kids keep catching on.

    Language:
    English
    Words:
    3,869
    Chapters:
    1/?
    Comments:
    16
    Kudos:
    92
    Bookmarks:
    25
    Hits:
    1,868

    04 Jul 2026

  5. Rec 85

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    Join Mike and Will alongside the rest of the party for a week of summer employment as they experience the epic highs and lows of teenage lifeguarding and relationships.

    Language:
    English
    Words:
    8,151
    Chapters:
    3/3
    Comments:
    108
    Kudos:
    328
    Bookmarks:
    85
    Hits:
    9,595

    04 Jul 2026