Chapter Text
Will Byers was on his way to Hawkins Middle School, his bike gliding across the side of the road as if he was riding on air. A cool breeze was blowing against his face and for some peculiar reason he could not for the life of him get rid of this stupid smile from his face. Maybe, he thought to himself, it had something to do with the fact that his best friend, Mike Wheeler, was riding alongside him.
Mike Wheeler, the nerdy boy with freckles whom he had first met during the second grade. Will had always known that there had been something special about Mike, although he had never known exactly what had gravitated himself towards the Wheeler boy. Until fairly recently, that is. Ever since he realized that he liked, as in, like liked Mike, he was all he could possibly ever think about.
Although even saying that was a little dishonest. No, Will Byers was in love with this boy.
“What are you smiling about?” Mike asked him as he rode next to him, and Will noticed a tinge of amused curiosity in his voice.
Will figured that he was blushing fiercely, and he turned his eyes back to the road. “Nothing,” he mumbled quickly, although the smile on his face grew a little wider. For reasons he couldn’t explain, he always loved it when Mike asked him questions about himself, even pointless questions like what he was smiling at. It showed that Mike at least cared about him, adding him to a not-very-big list of people for Will. Although from Mike, it made him feel particularly special.
They approached the school and put their bikes on the rack, meeting up with his other good friends Dustin and Lucas. As Will Byers entered the school and headed towards his locker, he could not stop smiling. And when he looked over at his friend as he was walking through the hall, he could see that Mike was smiling at him too. He was giving Will that goofy grin that always made him giggle. The grin that told him that today would be a good day.
“Byers!” shouted a voice from the end of the hall. Will froze, his mood changing in an instant from delight to fright. It almost felt like his body was forcing itself to turn around to face his tormentor: Troy.
Will wasn’t able to get a word out, and just stood there, paralyzed in fear. The hall had gotten a lot quieter all of a sudden. “What’s the matter, fairy?” Troy sneered. “Peter Pan got your tongue?”
Will merely exhaled, unable to speak or move. Why couldn’t he move?! What was wrong with him? Outside of, of course, everything, Will thought pessimistically to himself. After all, Troy wasn’t wrong. He was a fairy, a queer. And one who had a massive crush on his best friend, no less.
As if he had been listening to Will’s internal despair, Troy’s face lit up in sadistic glee. “I know your secret, Byers,” Troy cooed, taking pleasure in Will’s pain. “You actually are a queer.” Will’s mouth was left agape in surprise and horror as Troy continued to mock him. “You are! And you’re in love with Frogface!”
Will felt his heart stop. His paralysis suddenly broke, and he quickly turned around to his friends to try to convince them it wasn’t true. But he could see it on their faces. They knew. Lucas and Dustin both looked awkwardly at the ground, almost as if they were embarrassed to be even near him. And Mike…
Mike was staring at Will with a face he couldn’t exactly describe. It was one of betrayal, combined with disgust. It didn’t make him feel warm and fuzzy inside, like he usually felt when Mike looked at him. Instead, it filled him with sorrow. It filled him with a feeling that nothing would ever be okay again.
“Mike…” Will let out, desperately wanting to explain everything to him. Or, at the very least, a lie that would alleviate his pain. Anything to stop his friend from hating him. But Mike wasn’t there to listen. Instead, he turned around and walked away from him. “Mike!” Will yelled as the tears that were already brewing in his eyes began falling down. “Mike!” He began sobbing pitifully. He deserved this. He glanced hopelessly back at Mike as he walked away. Will shut his eyes tightly, hoping that this was just a really bad dream.
“Will!” A voice jolted Will awake, and his eyes shot open. It was dark but as his eyes adjusted, he saw who had said his name: Mike.
He was in Mike’s basement for a sleepover. They had spent the night playing Dungeons and Dragons with Dustin and Lucas, although they had gone earlier due to it being a school night. Will had begged his mother on the phone to let him stay the night, and after a minute of promising to go to bed at a reasonable time she had said yes. Of course, however, they had stayed up watching Star Wars in the basement, and once it was over they were both too tired to go upstairs so they decided to sleep in the basement. It had been a perfect night.
And now, Mike was hovering over Will with a concerned look on his face. Will noticed the feeling of wet tears on his face. That’s when he remembered: the dream. Even thinking about it triggered a new flow of tears, and Will put a hand over his eyes to try to hide them.
“Hey,” Mike whispered soothingly, bringing Will into a hug. Will trembled in his arms, although his embrace gave him some comfort. “I-it’s okay,” Mike said as he hugged Will, who was leaning into him.
After a little while, Mike pulled away as Will sniffed a little, already feeling a considerable amount better. He wiped away the tears on his face as he offered Mike a small smile of gratitude. “You have a nightmare?” Mike asked. “I heard you mumbling and moving around when you were asleep.”
Will nodded weakly, instantly feeling bad that he had woken him up. “I’m sorry,” Will said.
“It’s okay!” Mike told him quickly. “I was already awake, and I wouldn’t mind anyway.” Mike gave him a smile, which made Will smile back almost immediately. “Why were you, um…I mean, you want to talk about it?” he asked.
Will’s face fell. Of course, part of him did want to tell Mike about the nightmare. More than that, he wanted to tell him about everything. His fears, his struggles with his sexuality, and most importantly that he liked…no, loved Mike Wheeler. But he couldn’t. He had already thought of a million different possible reactions Mike would have, and most of them were bad. His dream had been just one example of that. This paralyzed him from saying anything.
“It wasn’t anything important,” Will managed to let out, turning away from Mike. He could see Mike out of the corner of his eye staring at him with a concerned look on his face. Will felt his face burn, but he hoped that the cover of darkness would help hide his blush.
“Will…” Mike started to say, his brow furrowing.
“Mike, seriously, it doesn’t matter,” Will said, forcing a smile and looking back at his friend. He knew that if Mike kept pressing, he would probably be unable to not slip out an answer. It would be best for both of them if this conversation ended. “Why don’t we go back to sleep, huh?”
Mike sighed and nodded. “Okay…but, um, if you want to talk, just know I’m here for you, ok?” he said.
Will bit his lip. “Thanks,” he said. Truth be told, there was nothing more that he wanted to do than to talk about everything he was dealing with. Mike wanted to help, and Will knew that part of him needed to be helped too. Before he could restrain himself anymore, he asked him a question that had been plaguing him since he had woken up. “Mike, what would it take for you to hate me?”
Will immediately hated himself for asking the question, and cursed himself for his impulsiveness. What was he thinking? What type of question was that to ask a best friend? He could see Mike blink a couple times in response, still processing the question. He quickly tried to backtrack. “I’m so sorry, I didn’t, I-I…” he stuttered, trying to take it back. “Just f-forget I said anything, le--”
“Will Byers, look at me.” Mike interrupted, taking Will’s hands firmly in his own. “There is nothing that you could do to ever make me hate you.” Mike said, staring Will directly in the eyes. “Never.” He repeated as he drew Will into a tight hug, wrapping up the smaller boy in his arms. Mike also punched his arm lightly. “Don’t ever ask a stupid question like that again,” he scolded firmly yet warmly.
Will, caught completely off guard by his reaction, giggled at the last comment. “Sorry. Won’t happen again,” Will sighed happily, resting his chin on Mike’s shoulder and hugging him back. A hug from Mike always felt like a special occasion, and this was no exception. He felt warm butterflies swarming in his chest, not only from Mike holding him but also from his response. It made him feel special, just like when Mike smiled at him. It made him feel loved, even if it wasn’t necessarily in the way Will loved him back.
Maybe he does, a tiny voice in Will’s head said to him.
Will pulled away from Mike, giving him one last, warm smile. “Thanks, Mike,” he said quietly.
“Anytime,” Mike replied, grinning at him. This only made Will blush even more. “Now, let’s get some sleep, ok?”
Will nodded, lying back down. “G’night, Mike,” he said, closing his eyes.
“Good night, Will,” Mike replied as Will heard him lie back down as well.
The majority of Will’s brain couldn’t help but be pessimistic towards his chances with Mike. He had no idea if Mike was even into boys at all, and even if he was, why would he go for a scrawny, nervous wreck like himself? But the fact that Will had kept a crush on him at all meant that there was also a small optimistic voice, no matter how tiny, that told him that there could be a chance. That he deserved love and Mike Wheeler could be the one who loved him. Most of the time, this small voice was pummeled by the rest of his brain deep into his subconscious, beaten and bruised to the point where it was almost insignificant.
But the way Mike had cared for Will tonight made the voice reappear, and it gave him hope. Even if it was only a little hope, it was enough to shake away the nightmare and his anxieties for the time being, and close his eyes with a smile.
Will Byers slept peacefully for the rest of that night.