Work Text:
Wheeler's Basement, 7:04 pm. June 17, 1987. The party had been over at the Wheeler's household almost all day. After many hours of playing Dungeons and Dragons and watching various movies, the majority had grown tired and left to return to their respective homes.
Only two remained, that of Mike Wheeler and Will Byers. The familiar tune of 'Don't You' played on the TV as the two boys sat watching The Breakfast Club.
Mike is entranced by the movie and doesn't seem to notice Will growing more and more fidgety by the minute. Finally, the young Byers boy relents and turns to his long-time best friend. "Hey, Mike, can I... tell you something?" He asks nervously, still fiddling with his fingers.
Mike looks back at Will, slightly caught off guard by his seemingly out-of-nowhere question. "Yeah, I mean- Will, you can tell me anything. I'm your best friend. Remember man? Crazy together."
Will nods but chooses to keep his eyes focused on his lap. "Mike... You know how I've never really been with a girl?" Mike nodded.
"Hey, don't worry about that, some people are late bloomers. You'll get there eventually." He said reassuringly.
Will sighed. "Mike, I- that's not what I meant by not liking girls..." He told him, hoping Mike would get what he meant. He still refused to meet his best friend's eyes, fearful of the look he knew he'd see there.
"Will, I know I told you that-" Mike started.
"I like you, Mike." Will interrupted, "Look, Mike, I know you might not want to be my friend anymore and that's completely fine if you don't. I just-" he tried. It was no use, Mike couldn't hear him. His entire brain had shut off at Will's admission. Static clouded his mind and made a fool a Mike Wheeler.
Much like a dam breaking, Mike felt several thoughts spring to the forefront of his mind, all of which were far too overwhelming to handle at this very moment. "I- look- I just, I need to go," Mike forced out and got up from the couch. He left his house and the boy he'd known for as long as he could remember and started walking.
"Mike! Mike wait!" Will called out desperately. Giving up, he sat on the Wheeler's couch defeated and alone. ______________________________________________________________
Mike Wheeler didn't know what to think. He walked through the Hawkins streets, scrambling to process the news he'd just been told. His best friend since kindergarten had just told him he was gay, and that was a lot to process for the boy.
To say he had a lot on his mind right now was an understatement.
Not to mention that Will liked him.
The raven-haired boy easily became lost in his thoughts as he tried to decipher his feelings. Unbeknownst to him, his feet were leading him toward the annual Summer Bash. A buzzer sounded nearby as another prize was won. Mike looked around to pinpoint the noise. "And we have yet another winner! Congratulations, pick a prize! Any prize!" A game clerk declared. Mike smiled to himself, a memory from last year's bash resurfacing.
*****
The entire party had finally gotten to go to the bash. It was its last day at Hawkins and by tomorrow would no longer be there. El and Max had already run off to go ride the Ferris Wheel and Dustin and Lucas were playing Laser Tag leaving Will and Mike alone to wander the park together.
They had been goofing off and eating cotton candy when Will stopped and stared at one of the games. "I've always wanted to win at one of those but I never had the upper arm strength for it." He said.
Mike looked at the game he was talking about. 'Hammermania' was one of the games where you had to hit the target hard enough to chime the bell at the top of it. They were always rigged so Mike didn't often play them.
He looked back at Will. The lights surrounding them made his eyes twinkle and his emerald irises stand out. Mike had never seen his eyes in such detail before and he was absolutely mesmerized at the time. He remembered asking himself if it was normal to do so but shrugging it off and coming to the conclusion that it wasn't uncommon to find that people had pretty eyes. Especially if it was Will, and to Mike, Will definitely had pretty eyes.
"Then let's go play it," Mike suggested.
Will looked at him questioningly. "Huh, what? No! We don't have to, Mike. Seriously." Will told him. Mike grinned and started to walk off.
He spun around and grabbed Will's hands, effectively pulling the smaller boy with him towards the game. "Yeah I know we don't have to, but I want to."
Will couldn't help but smile. "Mike..." the boy said, dragging out his name. Mike simply glanced back at Will, his face burning with a subtle shade of red. Mike continued to pull Will to the hammer game.
They got in line for the game and listened to the idle chatter around them. When they finally stepped up to bat Will looked uncertain but Mike walked over to the hammer with him. They both placed their hands on the handle.
"Mike, I'm not sure we'll be able to get it..." Will started. Mike looked back at him.
"Don't worry, we'll do it together like we always have. Count of three?" He suggested.
"1..."
"2..."
"3..."
They lifted the hammer down and slammed it against the buzzer with just enough force to hit the top. Will's eyes lit up as they cheered and hugged. Their touch lingered a bit longer than usual and even though they'd always been touchy with each other even as friends this one just felt...
Different.
"I had all and then most of you."
*****
That night he'd let Will keep the prize they won, a medium sized stuffed lion, insisting that he really didn't help that much. He told him he should keep it. So Will did. He's kept that lion with him ever since.
*****
Mike found himself housing a soft smile as he remembered the memory.
Ever since that day, he's always considered green to be his favorite color, until now he never fully realized why. His eyes.
As Mike thought about it he realized that he had remembered that night as one of the happiest he's had in a while. And that was only a week after he and El had officially broken up. After that night, Mike had found himself heading over to Will's house every day for at least a week or two after that. All because he just wanted to bask in the boy's presence.
As the one and only Michael Wheeler walked down Main Street deciding to pass up the bash, he continued to keep walking to nowhere in particular. And although he might not have noticed, he was blushing underneath the glow of the moonlight.
It started to rain, but Mike continued walking, not minding the small shower.
Mike found himself at Haddler's Bridge. It was one of their favorite spots as kids. The party would often spend hours here playing in the river below him or just exploring the area. Mike had found it about a week after they finally got the Mind Flayer to leave Will's body and sent it back to the Upside Down. He had just been biking around town to pass time and had discovered it.
Unfortunately, this spot had triggered a different memory. One that was far worse.
*****
Suddenly he was back at Hawkins Lab. He was staring at a now possessed Will Byers. His stunning green eyes were now an earthen brown and he was wearing a hospital gown after undergoing multiple tests . Bob, Joyce, and Mike had asked him if he could remember who they were to him. They had learned that he was being controlled by the Mind Flayer.
"Some and then none of you."
A tied up Will sat bound to a chair in the Byers shed. They had to make the shed unrecognizable so that the Flayer couldn't track them while they waged their war against the upside down.
Joyce walked up to her son. "Do you know what March 22nd is?" She asked him, "It's your birthday. Your birthday. You turned 8. I gave you that huge box of crayons, do you remember that? 120 colors. And all your friends, they got you Star Wars toys. But all you wanted to do was draw with your new colors. And you drew this big spaceship, but it wasn't from a movie, it was your spaceship. A rainbow ship, that's what you called it. And you- you must've used every color in the box. I- I took that with me to Melvald's and I put it up. I told everyone who came in, 'My son drew this.' And you were so embarrassed but I was so proud. I was so, so proud." She said with a tearful smile.
Will's eyes were blank but teary, as if Will was trying to remember and he knew it meant a lot, but something wouldn't let him recall. "Do you remember the day Dad left?" Jonathan spoke up.
Will glanced at him. He continued. "We stayed up all night building Castle Byers. Exactly the way you drew it. And it took so long, because you were so bad at hammering. You missed the nail every time. And then it started raining, but we stayed out there anyway. We were both sick for like a week after that, but we just had to finish it."
Jonathan and Joyce stared at Will with tears in their eyes as they recounted the memories. Mike remembered that Will had tears in his eyes too, along with just the ghost of a smile. "We had to." Jonathan finished.
"When the night was full of terror, and your eyes were filled with tears."
Mike remembered getting teary eyed himself and wanting to have his Will back.
He asked him, "Do you remember the first time we met?" Will turned to look at him. Mike couldn't keep the tears at bay and one ran down his cheek. He looked down.
"It was- it was the first day of kindergarten, I knew nobody, I had no friends." He inhaled sharply, clearly bothered by the thought of losing his best friend. "I felt so alone, and so scared. Then I saw you on the swings, and you were alone too."
Will still hadn't broken eye contact and he hung on every word Mike was saying. Mike continued, "You were swinging alone, and- and I just walked up to you and I asked- I asked if you wanted to be my friend. And you said yes."
"You said yes."
"And it was the best thing I've ever done."
And at that point Will and Mike were both crying.
*****
Mike had been so scared, so incredibly scared. Mike rarely ever cried, but that night and the night they had discovered Will's fake body in the Quarry had been an exception.
Mike just didn't like the idea of not having Will Byers in his life, and he hated that in that moment, the Mind Flayer could've done whatever he wanted with Will.
More importantly it was so unfair, Mike had just got him back and he couldn't lose him again. Mike couldn't bear the idea of existing in a world without Will. Will was his best friend, his other half, his most favorite person on the planet. As far as Michael Wheeler was concerned a world without Will Byers wasn't worth him living in.
Will was Mike's lifeline.
Will Byers was the closest thing to perfect Mike had ever seen.
Mike Wheeler was in love with Will Byers.
He had just never realized it until now. He probably had been for years, honestly. He stopped dead in his tracks at this realization. Eyes wide he looked to see where he was. He was at the same playground he and Will had met all those years ago at kindergarten.
He looked to the swing-sets where he remembered seeing the Byers boy for the first time. His eyes fell upon another figure there, sitting alone at the swings.
He listened as the figure let out quiet sobs. A voice, "Stupid, so, so stupid. Now he's all gone." It said.
‘That voice. I know that voice.’ Mike thought.
Will.
_____
Will didn't know Mike was there yet, but Mike couldn't just stand there and watch Will suffer like that, especially after realizing that he loved him back. Mike didn't even have to think twice about running to the boy.
Will was seated in the swing still crying. He would never forgive himself if he lost Mike. Having him as a friend was still better than losing him.
He heard something behind him but before he could turn around he felt a pair of arms wrap around him. He didn't have to worry though, without another thought he knew that it was Mike. Mike pulled Will as close to him as he physically could, burying his head in Will's neck. He was crying too. "Will, I- I'm so, so, sorry. I couldn't stand the thought of losing you and- and I hope you can forgive me for being such an asshole and you didn't deserve any of that, especially after being so vulnerable and honest with me. And Will?"
Will reached up to hold Mike's arms, both of them emotional. "Y-yeah?" He asked.
"I love you too." Mike told him.
"Take me back to the night we met."
So rather than meeting at the very same playground as childhood friends, they met there on that June night, as something a bit more.