Chapter Text
As far as first dates go, Will thinks this one has got to go down in the history books as the World’s Worst First Date.
Okay, okay, okay. That’s probably not fair. The date itself hadn’t gone that poorly—actually, the date itself had been incredible. It’s just… well… it’s just how the date ended that made it so bad.
Alright. Maybe Will needs to rewind just a little bit.
FIVE MINUTES AGO.
“Do not let me go!” MJ screams, literally right into Will’s ear, and Will can’t help but laugh as the two of them swing from building to building. Will’s heart pounds inside his chest, but it’s not the exhilaration of swinging from the highest heights in New York City that’s causing it this time.
Nah.
Will’s heart pounds inside his chest, and it’s really just because he’s still trying to wrap his mind around how he’s gotten so damn lucky and how he somehow got to this point—on a date with his best friend of over ten years. His best friend who now knows about Will’s big secret and who doesn’t really care, because he just cares about Will. His best friend who just kissed him for the first time last week, back in London amongst the wreckage of his fight with Mysterio. His best friend, who Will now gets to call his boyfriend.
(Cue Will’s heart beating faster than it ever has before.)
“I’m not going to let go!” Will reassures, but just for good measure, he holds his boyfriend close, shooting another web at a nearby building and swinging them both forward. “It’s okay! It’s okay! I’ve got you!”
“You better!” MJ yells back, though it sounds pretty muffled, since his head is buried in Will’s shoulder. “Oh God, oh God, oh God. Okay, I’m not gonna look; I’m just not gonna look; holy shit, why did I look, Will? Shit, shit, shit, I’m not ready to die—“
Will laughs, reaching up and pushing some of his boyfriend’s hair away so he can see better behind the mask. “Why did you look?” he teases gently. “You just said you weren’t going to!”
MJ huffs, and somehow, he manages to find enough courage to lift his head and give Will an exasperated but playful glare. “You’re laughing at me,” he accuses. “I’m terrified for my life, and you’re laughing at me.”
“Damn right I am.” Even though Will knows MJ can’t see it beneath the mask, he still grins. Will gets the feeling MJ knows just what he looks like underneath the mask, and his suspicions are confirmed when his boyfriend very warily and very shakily holds up his middle finger.
“Why did I let you convince me this was a good idea?” MJ groans, burying his head into Will’s shoulder once more. “And how do you do this every day without wanting to throw up?”
“You get used to it after a while!” Will promises. Just for good measure, he leans over and kisses the top of his boyfriend’s head gently. “We’re only a few blocks from your place, so I can put you down if you want?”
For a moment, MJ’s quiet, but he must open his eyes again or something, because he tightens his grip around Will and lets out a (very adorable) squeak, “Yes, please!”
Will just laughs, but he shoots another web and a nearby light pole, swinging the two of them forward before finally landing safely on the ground. MJ definitely does not let go, and instead, he lingers there for a moment—arms and legs still wrapped around Will tightly, like he’s still terrified of falling.
“You okay?” Will asks softly, and MJ opens his eyes, a relieved look forming on his face. He quickly pulls away, his cheeks reddening in embarrassment, and Will’s heart beats a little faster, and his stomach does a little cartwheel, and God, he really wishes he could kiss MJ again—
“Yeah, yeah, I’m okay,” MJ reassures, breathless and clearly relieved to be back on the ground. “I’m just… I’m never doing that again. Definitely leaving the whole… swinging from buildings and fighting crime thing to you.”
Will just laughs, before glancing around at the busy New York streets and sidewalks. A few people have stopped to look at the two of them, and Will can’t help but wince. In hindsight, he probably should’ve dropped MJ off somewhere less busy—to spare him the potential mess of getting questioned by nearby onlookers—but hindsight’s 20/20, unfortunately. On the plus side, it doesn’t look like anyone seems to care or pay too much attention to them.
“I should… probably go,” Will admits, turning back to his boyfriend. “I mean, we can still hang out and stuff if you want! But just… you know, not like this.”
He gestures down to his Spider-Man suit, and a wry smile forms on MJ’s face before he nods in understanding. “You could meet me at my apartment?” he suggests. “And then we could go grab dinner or something?”
“That sounds good.” Will can’t help but smile. That fluttery feeling inside his stomach has returned, and he fights the urge to lean forward and kiss MJ again—probably not a good idea with people watching. Also… probably wouldn’t work very well with the mask and stuff.
(The woes of being a superhero.)
“Be careful,” MJ adds, shoving his hands into his pockets. It kind of looks like he wants to say something more, but for whatever reason, he chooses not to.
All of this—dating your childhood best friend—is definitely still something that they’re both trying to figure out. After all, if there’s anyone in the world who knows Will, it’s MJ Wheeler, and if there’s anyone in the world who knows MJ Wheeler, it’s Will. That’s just what over a decade of friendship will do for you.
But learning how to be each other’s boyfriends? And trying to figure what boundaries exist and what they can and can’t say or do? Yeah, it’s all still a work in progress—but a good one.
So, Will just smiles behind the mask, and he waves slightly at his boyfriend. “See ya in a bit,” he says, before jumping up to the nearby light pole and perching on it. Below him, MJ smiles and waves back, and yeah… Will’s stomach does that little cartwheel thing again.
(It’s becoming a pretty common occurrence, but that’s okay.)
“We come to you now with revelations about last week’s attack in London,” a man’s voice says from behind him, and Will’s brow furrows as he glances over his shoulder. The news is playing on the giant screen behind him, and the words LONDON ATTACK REVELATIONS are spelled out across the news banner.
Uh oh.
On the ground below, quite a few people have stopped what they’re doing to watch the news broadcast, and Will glances down at MJ, who seems just as concerned as he feels. “An anonymous source provided this video,” the news reporter continues. “It shows Quentin Beck, aka Mysterio, moments before his death. A warning: you may find this video disturbing.”
What the hell? Will thinks to himself. A sinking feeling settles into his stomach, and he turns around fully to watch the broadcast, just as a shaky and somewhat blurry video of Beck plays on the screen.
“I managed to send the Elemental back through the dimensional rift, but I don't think I'm gonna make it off this bridge alive,” Beck begins to say, and Will’s heart drops all the way to the bottom of his stomach.
Oh God no.
No, no, no, no, that’s not what happened, and of course, Beck had some sort of back up plan. Of course, he’s found another way to twist the truth and to pin all the blame on Will, and as Beck continues to make up lies about him and shows a completely doctored video of Will, set up to frame Will as the villain here, a complete sense of dread fills Will’s heart.
“Shit,” Will whispers under his breath, before glancing down at MJ again. MJ’s eyes are wide, and he looks around at the crowd of people gathering around the screen and whispering to each other.
The video switches again—this time to that stupid news website, The Daily Bugle, that has been the bane of Will’s existence since the first year he put on this suit. Dustin had been the first to show it to him, and for some reason beyond Will’s understanding, The Daily Bugle has just decided that Spider-Man is Public Enemy #1.
“There you have it, folks,” Jameson says, his voice dripping with confidence and disdain. “Conclusive proof that Spider-Man was responsible for the brutal murder of Mysterio, an inter-dimensional warrior who gave his life to protect our planet, and who will, no doubt, go down in history as the greatest superhero of all time. But that's not all, folks. Here's the real blockbuster. Brace yourselves, you might wanna sit down.
The video cuts back to Tower Bridge—to Beck—and just when Will thinks it really can’t get much worse than this, everything goes to shit.
“Spider-Man’s real… Spider-Man’s real name is—” Beck begins to say, but the video glitches. Barely a couple seconds later, the video cuts back in, and Beck finally manages to say, “Spider-Man’s name is Will Byers!”
…
Shit.
Shit, shit, shit, SHIT—
The video of Mysterio fades away, and it’s replaced by a picture… by Will’s picture.
Will’s eyes widen, and pure panic settles into his heart. There are a million anxious thoughts running around his head, but all of them can be summarized in just three simple words.
“What the fuck?!”
(Yeah…
So much for a good first date for your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man.)
The universe fucking sucks, at least in Mike’s opinion.
It’s not like this is a new revelation; however, recent events have reminded Mike just how damn much the universe sucks and just how true Murphy’s law is. Anything that can go wrong will go wrong, and quite frankly, over the past few weeks, everything has gone wrong.
It’s not really fair, if you ask Mike. And sure, there’s no point in complaining about all of this and in talking about how much all of this fucking sucks —because none of it is going to change any time soon. But that doesn’t change the fact that Mike is annoyed about all of this and is going to complain about it any chance that he gets.
And the thing is? He’s not even angry about what’s been happening to him recently.
Sure, it’s annoying that people have somehow found his condo and that his parents keep whining about how their privacy is being invaded (as if Mike asked for any of this to happen) and that Mike can’t go anywhere without somebody asking him about Spider-Man, but Mike doesn’t really care. He’s fine with just going about his day, making some sarcastic comments at the news reporters who still try to stop him on the street, and ignoring his parents the way they usually ignore him.
No, what makes Mike angry is how awful people are being to Will.
It’s fucking everywhere. Stupid fucking Quentin Beck lit the match and set the fire, and stupid fucking J. Jonah Jameson and all the other news reporters across the world decided to fan the flames. Everyone is talking about Spider-Man—about Will—and even though he’s fortunately not in any legal trouble (thanks to that really good lawyer Will’s mom had managed to find), he hasn’t really had a moment of peace since all of this started over a month ago.
Even now at the school they’ve gone to for three years already, it’s like Will is just some… zoo animal or some specimen for everybody to watch. Everyone always has their phones out around him and is always taking pictures or videos, and Mike makes sure to give the people they pass by in the hallways the nastiest glares. They’re lucky Mike doesn’t just rip their phones out of their hands and throw them in the trash, because that’s actually what he wants to do.
It sucks. All of this just fucking sucks, and even though he’s still trying to keep a smile on his face and maintain his classic Will Byers optimism, Mike knows Will is tired and just wants everything to go back to normal.
So, that’s exactly why instead of going to fourth period, Mike grabs Will’s hand in the hallway and drags him up to their spot on the roof.
Okay, okay, so technically, it’s not just their spot. It’s the spot that the three of them—Mike, Will, and Dustin—all found when they were just freshmen, and it’s been their spot ever since. As far as Mike knows, nobody else at Midtown High knows the secret way up to the roof of their high school, so it’s a safe place to hide and to get away from everyone’s watching eyes.
And judging by the overwhelmed look on Will’s face, he needs a safe place. He needs a minute to just breathe and just get to be himself, without the pressure of knowing that everyone’s watching him.
“C’mere,” Mike says softly, and he wraps his arms around his boyfriend, pulling him close. Will doesn’t say anything, but he allows Mike to hug him tightly, resting his head comfortably on Mike’s chest. “You okay?”
Will’s quiet for a few moments, which is a pretty clear indicator that he isn’t okay. He’s always been good at keeping things hidden from other people—especially things like his frustration or his sadness—but he’s never been that good at hiding things from Mike.
(The Spider-Man thing does not count, okay? Mike totally figured out that Will was Spider-Man. He just… needed the confirmation to be sure. But he totally had it figured out.)
“I guess,” Will finally sighs, and he glances up at Mike, offering a tiny smile. “I mean… it’s been a little overwhelming today, but it could be worse, right? They’re not throwing eggs at us or anything at least.”
Mike snorts, and he just rolls his eyes back at his boyfriend. So, technically Will has a point, and the whole “everybody hates Will Byers” thing probably can’t get much worse than that time the two of them went on a date and had promptly gotten egged. But still. It’s not like today has been that great either.
“You’re allowed to say that today has sucked, Will,” Mike points out. “Because we both know that it has.”
“It hasn’t been that bad,” Will insists. “Awkward? Definitely. And I could… do without everyone trying to take pictures and videos of us. But it’s fine. Really.”
Judging by how forced Will’s smile seems, it is not fine, and Mike just gives his boyfriend a look, before gently poking him in the side. “William,” he says, a bit exasperated.
Will yelps, immediately giving Mike an offended look. “Michael,” he parrots back in the same tone.
“Ugh.” Mike makes a face at that, because honestly, even if that is technically his name, it’s strange hearing Will call him anything but “MJ.” He’s the only person, after all, that still uses that old nickname—and the only person that’s still allowed to use that old nickname. Nobody else is allowed to call Mike that anymore, and if they ask why, he just simply won’t tell them.
(Nobody else but Will needs to know, after all, that five year-old Mike decided “MJ” was a cool name and declared that his new nickname, even though his middle name most definitely does not begin with “J.” Will likes to hold that over Mike, and… well, when you’ve been best friends with someone for twelve years and you’re maybe sorta kinda definitely head over heels in love with them, you let that person call you whatever they’d like.)
“I don’t think I’ll ever get used to hearing you call me that,” Mike muses, glancing at his boyfriend. “It’s weird.”
An amused smile forms on Will’s face. “It’s weird for me to call you your name?”
“Will,” Mike groans in exasperation, and Will just laughs. “You know what I mean.”
“I know, I know,” Will laughs again, and he leans up, kissing Mike and playing with his hair. “You and I both know that you’re my MJ.”
There’s a soft look on his face, and God, Mike can’t help but smile. It’s kind of crazy how someone he’s known since he was five can still manage to give him butterflies like this, but Mike supposes that’s just part of the new territory of learning what Will and MJ are like as boyfriends.
(Spoiler alert: they’re really great as boyfriends. Or at least Mike thinks so. Will and MJ as best friends is absolutely incredible, but Will and MJ as boyfriends is just a whole new level of amazing that Mike can’t even begin to describe.)
Mike smiles, and he reaches over, cupping Will’s face gently. “I know,” he says, his voice soft. “And I hope you know that you can talk to me… okay? You don’t… have to pretend like everything’s fine or like it’s not bothering you, Will. I’m here. We’re a team, you know? And just… whatever happens, I’m here for you.”
The look on Will’s face softens even more, and he leans forward, nuzzling Mike’s nose lightly. “I know,” Will says softly. “God… trust me, I know, MJ… It’s just all of this is such a mess, and I still feel bad about dragging you and Dustin into all of this… and I just wish we could fast forward to next year, when we can finally get out of here and get to go to MIT together.”
That thought is something that’s crossed Mike’s mind, of course. All three of them applied—early admission, because what else would they have done?—to MIT together, and Mike knows that both Dustin and Will are counting on getting to go to college together. And if Mike is being honest, he wants that just as much as they do.
But… it’s just not quite that simple. There’s still the matter of actually getting into MIT and being able to afford it and a dozen other things that make this situation more complicated than it seems on the surface. There’s no guarantee that all of this will work out the way all three of them are hoping, and well… Mike’s learned a thing or two about expectations.
He used to be a lot more like Will and like Dustin—always hoping and always expecting the best, only to get completely crushed when those expectations fell through. It’s happened too many times with Mike’s family, so as he’s gotten older, he’s just… learned to adjust his expectations.
After all, if you expect disappointment, then you’ll never get disappointed. It’s pretty simple.
“I do too,” Mike says, and he means it. Deep down, he knows he wants Will’s dream as badly as Will does, but he just… he can’t let himself think too much about it. Expect disappointment, and never be disappointed. That’s what Mike has to do. “But I don’t know… We shouldn’t get ahead of ourselves though. You never know what could happen this year. Probably shouldn’t wish away our senior year and stuff.”
Will narrows his eyes with a bit of suspicion. “I can’t tell if you’re actually being optimistic for once, or if that was some extreme pessimism there,” he teases lightly. “So, I’m going with optimism. You were trying to say I shouldn’t wish the year away, because maybe this year will get better, right?”
“Sure, Will.” Mike rolls his eyes, but he can’t help but smile. After all, the two of them just balance each other well—Will with his optimistic outlook on the world and Mike with his more realistic outlook. It works for them, and they keep each other grounded. “Maybe this year will get better.”
“Well,” Will says softly, and he turns to face Mike now, a small smile on his face, “no matter what, I know it’ll be okay… because I’ve got you.”
Warmth spreads across Mike’s cheeks, and his stomach starts doing that silly little cartwheel thing again. Only Will Byers can make him feel like this and make him smile this much and actually make him think about the future with more optimism, no matter how hard Mike tries not to.
(Somewhere, in the back of Mike’s mind, he wonders if this is what falling in love feels like.)
“Yeah, somehow, I feel like I always end up getting assigned to the strangest models for my classes. I mean, it’s nothing against them, but I swear to God, if one more person shows up to a shoot in bare ass naked, I’m dropping out of college and moving back to New York.”
Will bursts into laughter, and he turns away from the lego Death Star he’s been attempting to rebuild for the past couple of months to look at his phone. His brother’s exasperated yet amused expression takes up the entire phone screen, and Will just shakes his head.
“I don’t know whether to call this story bull or not,” he muses. “The first time this happened with Argyle, sure. I could believe that. The second time it happened with that Eddie guy who used to date your boyfriend? Okay, I guess. I’m glad Steve decided to have better taste in men at least. But three times, Jonathan? You’re shitting me.”
“I’m not!” Jonathan reassures with another laugh. “LA’s fucking weird, Will. And if it helps, both Argyle and Eddie were both high as fuck when this happened.”
“Well, was this girl high?” Will questions, fiddling with a lego absently.
“It’s LA. Everyone’s high.”
“You know what I mean.” Will rolls his eyes, and Jonathan just smiles. “Was she high enough to show up naked to this modeling job? Or did she just misunderstand the job, or what?”
“Hell if I know,” Jonathan says, and he shrugs slightly. “She did have a change of clothes at least, so we still ended up doing the shoot. I still have to edit the pictures before the project’s due at midnight.”
Will snorts, leaning his head on his hand. “Why am I not surprised that you waited until the last minute to do your editing?”
Jonathan rolls his eyes. “Because I do this every single goddamn time,” he deadpans. “You remember when I was up all night before my portfolio was due for my college application?”
Will laughs. “Oh my God, yes,” he says, shaking his head. “I stayed up with you that entire night because you were freaking out, and I was texting MJ, because God knows why he was up, and Mom kept making you coffee, and Bob…”
Will’s voice trails off, and he glances away from the phone. It’s been a few years now (or… technically more than that, even though Will’s entire family had been blipped for five years) since his step-dad passed away, but thinking about it is… still difficult, especially for Will. It’s one of the things he regrets most about becoming Spider-Man, and nowadays, with this entire mess of his identity being revealed to the entire world, Will has found himself thinking a lot about Bob’s death recently.
The fact that the entire world knows that he’s Spider-Man just… puts everybody he loves in so much more danger. Someone could easily target his mom or Jonathan or Hopper or Dustin or MJ to get to him. All of them are putting their lives at risk simply by knowing Will, and that’s… that’s honestly terrifying.
“Bob kept trying to be helpful and reassuring, like usual,” Jonathan finishes, his voice softer now. There’s a small, sad smile on his face. “I remember I wanted to strangle him, so you kept trying to distract him… when you weren’t too busy flirting with your boyfriend, that is.”
“He wasn’t my boyfriend back then!” Will complains, leaning back against his chair. “And I just want to remind you, I didn’t have to stay up and help you that night. I just did so because you’re my brother, and I wanted to help you get into college.”
Jonathan smiles a bit, and he leans his head on his hand. “I know, I know,” he chuckles. “You’re a good little brother, and you always have been… But don’t even try to deny it, Will. You and MJ have basically been dating for years now.”
Warmth spreads across Will’s cheeks, and he looks for some kind of comeback to his brother’s remarks… but he finds none. It’s… honestly kind of true. Not much has changed about his friendship with MJ, other than the fact that now Will gets to do things like kiss him and hold his hand whenever he wants.
It’s actually pretty great.
“You know he hates that nickname, right,” Will reminds, deciding to dodge the conversation. “He goes by Mike now.”
“Right… he hates it when anyone but you uses that nickname,” Jonathan recalls. “So, the two of you have jumped from practically dating to practically married then, huh?”
“Jonathan!”
While Will just stares at the phone in complete embarrassment and mortification, Jonathan bursts into laughter, his eyes crinkling when he smiles. It’s nice seeing him so much happier— something that’s really only happened as a result of him moving out to LA and pursuing his dreams. And hey, if Jonathan is happy, then Will is too.
“Speaking of college,” Jonathan says, apparently taking some pity on Will and deciding to go back to the former subject, “how’s that going?”
There’s a bit of hesitancy in Jonathan’s voice, which definitely means he’s just trying to ask Will if he’s heard back from MIT yet.
That answer, unfortunately, is still no, which is very anxiety-inducing. Like… seriously, Will has been fighting crime since he was fifteen years old, and he’s literally almost died multiple times. But waiting on an acceptance (or rejection) letter from the last college he still hasn’t heard back from? Yeah, that might be the most nerve-wracking thing Will has ever faced.
If MIT rejects him, then… then that’s it. Will doesn’t have another backup plan, and neither do MJ or Dustin. MIT is it.
“Still the same,” Will says with a forced smile. “I should be hearing back from MIT any day now though! And I… I don’t know. I’ve got a good feeling about that one.”
Expect disappointment, and you can never really get disappointed, MJ’s voice echoes in Will’s mind, and he swallows the lump in his throat, forcing himself to pay attention to his brother instead. Sure, things… don’t look so great right now for the three of them, but Will can’t let himself give up hope. Not when he has to have enough hope for himself and MJ.
“I’m sure you’ll get in, Will,” Jonathan reassures, offering him a smile. “And Dustin and Mike too. You guys are like… some of the smartest people in the world. MIT would be lucky to have you.”
Will smiles—more genuine this time—and he opens his mouth to respond back to his brother. Before he can though, someone turns the key in the door, and Will looks up, glancing at the entrance to Hopper’s apartment.
Instead of Hopper though, Will’s mom walks through the door, and she looks at him with an excited look on her face. “Will!” she exclaims. “Will, it’s here! It’s here!”
Will’s eyes widen, and he jumps to his feet, all but sprinting over to his mom. “My letter from MIT?” he asks, taking the envelope from her. Sure enough, his name and address are spelled out on the middle of the envelope, and the return address has the MIT letterhead on it.
It’s finally here.
And Will’s future? It’s all contained in this little piece of paper.
“Holy shit,” Will breathes. “Holy shit, I can’t believe it’s actually here.”
“Well, are you going to open it, honey?” his mom asks with a laugh, and she grabs his shoulders, shaking him slightly. “Come on, I want to know!”
“I do too!” Jonathan calls. Oh yeah. Will had almost forgotten he was here. “Hi, Mom!”
The smile on his mom’s face brightens, and she walks over to the table, leading Will with her. “Oh, hi, honey!” she greets. “How are you? How’s school going? How’s Steve doing?”
“Steve’s good! He and Robin got into a bit of a mess the other week at work, but it’s fine now. And school is, uh… it’s interesting,” Jonathan says with a bit of a wince. Will can’t blame him. The idea of telling their mom about Jonathan’s (many) run-ins with nude stoners sounds absolutely mortifying to Will. “I was just telling Will I have a project due tonight that I still have to edit pictures for. But I want to stay on to hear about Will’s letter!”
Will winces, and he looks up from the MIT letter, meeting his mom’s eyes. “Actually,” he says apologetically, “MJ, Dustin, and I, um… we sorta agreed we’d all open our letters together. Just because… you know, we had planned to go to school together, and none of us have gotten accepted anywhere yet… So, we… figured it might be best to rip the bandaid off together.”
The brief look of disappointment on his mom’s face almost makes Will reconsider his plans, but luckily, the disappointment fades quickly into a warm and reassuring smile. “Of course, sweetie,” she says, pulling him into a hug. “You can do whatever you want to. But as soon as you find out, I want you to call me.”
“Me too,” Jonathan adds, and he offers Will a smile as well. “Or a text at least. I should probably work on getting these photos edited. God knows that Neal shows no mercy when it comes to late assignments.”
“Sounds like you know that from experience,” Will quips, just because it’s fun to be an annoying little brother sometimes. Jonathan holds up his middle finger when their mom isn’t looking, and Will just grins. “I’ll text you later, Jonathan.”
“Sounds good.” Jonathan smiles, waving goodbye to them both. “Talk to you guys later! Love you!”
“Love you!” Will and his mom say in unison, and Will watches as Jonathan’s face disappears from his phone screen and the call ends.
He takes a deep breath, turning now to look at his mom. “I think MJ has a shift at the donut shop close to his place,” Will explains. “Is it cool if I…”
A teasing but fond smile forms on his mom’s face, and she bumps Will’s shoulder. “Of course, it is,” she says, rolling her eyes. “But like I said: call me when you find out. And say hi to Mike and Dustin for me, okay?”
Will grins, and he reaches forward, hugging his mom and kissing her cheek lightly. “I will, I will,” he reassures, walking quickly towards the window. It’s probably going to be faster if he just swings over to the donut shop, and besides, it’s not like he has anything left to hide. Might as well use this whole no-longer-a-secret secret identity thing to his advantage. “You’ll be the fourth person to know! Promise!”
“Be careful, Will!” his mom calls, as Will opens the window and begins to climb out. “Don’t do anything reckless!”
“I won’t, I won’t!” Will promises. Then, with one last final grin at his mom and a quick, “Love you!” Will jumps from the window.
For a moment, he just falls. It’s an exhilarating and terrifying feeling, and Will loves it. There’s nothing better than the freedom of just falling and being able to catch himself and swing with his webs. It’s something so mundane in his life as Spider-Man, but Will loves it.
And he wouldn’t have it any other way.
The letter from MIT is here.
Yeah, the letter from MIT is finally here, after months of waiting, and of course, the mailman comes right before Mike has to leave for work. The letter gets quickly shoved into Mike’s backpack, and throughout the entire subway ride and walk to his job, Mike can feel the weight of that letter heavy on his back.
This is it. If MIT has sent him another “no” like all the other universities have, then Mike… Mike doesn’t really know what he’s going to do. He’s created backup plans—applied to second and third and fourth choice schools—and done everything right over the past four years. He goes to one of the most renowned science and tech high schools, his grades are near perfect, his test scores are even better, and he’s even been involved in various extracurriculars over the past few years.
Mike has done everything right.
So, if MIT is a no… then, he has no idea what comes next.
And honestly, that’s terrifying to Mike. College is supposed to be his ticket out of here—an excuse to finally get away from his parents and also an opportunity to finally prove to them that he’s enough. Everything is riding on his acceptance to MIT.
Which is exactly why Mike has already decided that this letter is another rejection, not an acceptance.
Expect disappointment, and you can’t get disappointed, right? Even if he wants to go to MIT and he wants to get the hell out of New York and away from his parents, Mike already has a bad feeling about all of this. He’s not an idiot. He knows that he’s more than qualified for these schools. There’s no reason that he shouldn’t have gotten rejected from the places he’d applied to.
There’s no reason that Dustin should have gotten rejected from all the places he’d applied to either.
And there’s no reason that Will should have gotten rejected from all the places he’d applied to.
All three of them have received a “no” from every single place they’ve applied to, and Mike’s not an idiot. He knows exactly why they’ve gotten all these rejections and why MIT is almost certainly a rejection too.
It’s because of this whole “Will is Spider-Man” mess.
Yeah. Months after this whole stupid, fucking mess began, and it’s still ruining Will’s life—and quite frankly, Dustin and Mike’s lives too. And God, it’s not Will’s fault. Never once has Mike believed it’s Will’s fault. Will is the primary victim here, because all he ever wanted to do was protect the world and do his part to make it a better place. And this is how the world repays him? This is what the world has decided to do to him?
It’s bullshit. It’s all just a load of bullshit.
The three of them haven’t talked about it yet, but Will and Dustin are just as smart (or maybe even smarter) than Mike. Even though none of the schools that have rejected them have explicitly said their reason for rejection is related to the Spider-Man mess, Mike gets the feeling Will and Dustin have put the pieces together just like he has. It’s not hard to figure it out, after all.
But none of them have talked about it. Dustin probably doesn’t want to bring it up—in fear of hurting Will’s feelings or making Will feel like he’s to blame—and Mike sure as hell isn’t going to say anything about it. If (and when) they receive their last rejection, then they can cross that bridge together. Or maybe they just won’t ever address the elephant in the room. Either way… it’s not something Mike wants to think too much about.
Whatever happens is already set in stone. Even if Mike worries about it or tries to bring this up with Will or Dustin, MIT has already made its decision. For better or for worse, the decision has already been made.
And Mike’s made his decision too—a long, long time ago.
His decision is one that he doesn’t regret—one that he will never, ever regret. His decision is one that he made over twelve years ago now, back when he was just a scared little kindergartener who had decided to go by “MJ” simply because he thought the name sounded cool. His decision is one that started with seeing a boy in a yellow and white striped shirt, sitting on the swings alone, and that prompted the beginning of the most important relationship in his life.
Mike’s decision was, is, and always will be Will Byers.
Because meeting Will—going up to him that first day of kindergarten, introducing himself, shyly asking if Will wanted to be his friend—was the best thing that Mike has ever done.
So, screw everyone else’s decision. If they want to reject Mike just because they hate Will now for the Spider-Man/Mysterio mess, then they can go ahead and reject him. Mike doesn’t regret his decision.
Not one bit.
The door to the donut shop opens, letting in the cold air, and Mike glances up, finding himself staring at his best friend. Dustin offers a tentative grin, holding up his letter. “Judgment day,” he remarks.
Mike smiles dryly, and he holds up his own letter. “Judgment day,” he echoes; then, he turns around and looks at the rows of stale donuts. “Would it be a dick move of me to offer you a Boston cream donut?”
“Only if we don’t get in,” Dustin replies, walking over and taking a seat at the counter. “Besides, when do you care about being a dick?”
Mike rolls his eyes, and he grabs one of the pieces of wax paper, carefully picking up one of their last Boston cream donuts. “Maybe I’m just turning over a new leaf,” he deadpans, setting the donut down in front of his best friend. “Trying to be a nicer person or something like that.”
Dustin raises a brow, and he gives Mike a disbelieving look. “Who are you, and what have you done with Mike Wheeler?” he jokes.
“Shut up, Dustin.” Mike rolls his eyes, but he smiles back at his best friend, leaning against the counter and setting his letter down next to Dustin’s. “Will’s on his way. He texted me a little bit after you did that his letter finally got here.”
“Gotcha.” Dustin nods, his mouth full of the donut, and he glances hesitantly at Mike. “How are you… feeling about all this?”
He gestures to their matching letters sitting next to each other, and Mike just shrugs. “You know my thoughts on this,” Mike mutters, looking away. “The odds aren’t really looking good for us, so… I’m not expecting much.”
“Yeah,” Dustin says softly, and Mike glances back up, meeting his best friend’s eyes. Surprisingly, there’s a sad look on Dustin’s face—as if he, like Mike, has already figured out what’s going to be inside this letter. “Me either.”
Mike opens his mouth to respond, but before he can, the doorbell jingles again. Both he and Dustin turn to look at the front door, right as Will runs inside, a bright smile on his face. “I’m here!” he says breathlessly, holding up his letter. “I’ve got it!”
In spite of everything, Mike can’t help but smile, and he weakly holds up his own letter. “We’ve got ours too,” he says as Will comes up and sits beside Dustin. “Should we… get it over with?”
Will takes a shuddered breath, and he glances at Dustin, then back at Mike, before nodding nervously. “Yeah,” he murmurs. “On three… 1… 2… 3.”
Despite the way Mike’s heart pounds inside his chest, he tears the envelope open and takes the MIT letter out, scanning it as quickly as he can.
All it takes is one sentence to seal Mike’s fate.
Dear Michael,
We regret to inform you…
There’s a lump in the back of Mike’s throat, and he clenches his hands around the letter tightly, forcing himself to read the rest of the letter.
In light of recent controversy, we are unable to consider your application at this time.
Well.
At least they’re being honest about why they’ve decided to reject Mike—and Will and Dustin too, judging by the looks on their faces. Hell, Mike isn’t even sure he can count this as a rejection. No, MIT is outright refusing to even consider any of them.
Expect disappointment, and you will never get disappointed. That’s been Mike’s motto for a while now. But as tears burn his eyes and the lump in the back of his throat only grows, all he can feel is disappointment.
Will finally looks up, and there’s a heartbroken, dejected look in his eyes. He looks over at Mike, asking the silent question: Did you…?
Mike shakes his head. “No,” he answers softly, and he watches as his boyfriend’s face falls even more. “You?”
“No,” Will whispers back. He dares to look at Dustin, whose eyes are still glued on the letter in front of him. “Dustin?”
It’s quiet for a moment, and Mike holds his breath in anticipation, watching his best friend carefully. He doesn’t know why —because Dustin’s letter is most likely a rejection just like his and Will’s—but there’s still a small part of Mike that is hoping that maybe one of them would have some luck. Maybe Mike’s got it wrong. Maybe MIT said “yes” to Dustin.
But then finally, Dustin quietly reads the same words written on Mike’s letter, “In light of recent controversy, we are unable to consider your application at this time,” and Mike feels his heart drop to the bottom of his stomach.
That’s it then. Their last shot of going to college… officially thrown out the window.
Will takes a shuddered breath. “This isn’t fair,” he whispers. Mike turns back to his boyfriend, and he feels his heart break into a dozen little pieces. There’s a completely heartbroken and guilty look on Will’s face, and he looks back and forth between Mike and Dustin, his eyes watering slightly. “I mean… this just isn’t fair! I-I didn’t… I didn’t do anything wrong! And you guys definitely didn’t do anything wrong!”
His voice breaks on those last few words, and Mike closes his eyes, taking a deep breath. There’s a million different thoughts running through his mind—all of them angry and anxious and confused and disappointed. And God, Mike hates that. He knew that it would end this way. He prepared himself for this.
So, why does it still hurt so much?
“It’s fine, Will,” Mike manages to say, and he reaches over, hesitantly taking his boyfriend’s hand. Will is clearly more upset about this than Mike is, so right now, Mike just… needs to put his own shit aside and make sure that Will is okay and that he knows this isn’t his fault. “It’ll be fine.”
(The words are just as much for himself as they are for Will, but… Will doesn’t need to know that. Not right now at least.)
Will looks up, meeting Mike’s eyes again. There are a dozen different emotions in his eyes, but none is more prominent than guilt.
I’m sorry, Will’s expression seems to say. I’m so sorry.
Mike squeezes his hand gently. It’s okay, he tries to say back. We’ll figure it out together. We’ll be okay.
Before he can actually say any of this out loud, Paul—the shop’s owner and also Mike’s boss—shouts, “Wheeler! What are you doing out there? Get back to work.”
(God, Mike hates that guy.)
Mike rolls his eyes, and he gives Will’s hand another gentle squeeze, before letting go and picking up the rejection letter once more. The words “We regret to inform you…” stare back at Mike—a harsh, taunting reminder of the disappointment and shame of what will surely be seen as a failure in his parents’ eyes.
Mike clenches his hands tightly around the letter; then, before he even fully realizes what he’s doing, he tears it in half. “You know what?” Mike says, as both Will and Dustin look up at him. “I wouldn’t change a thing I did.”
The words are an act of defiance but also of confidence, and Mike knows deep in his heart that he means every word. No matter what his parents say and no matter what comes next for him, he doesn’t regret it. He doesn’t.
After all, at the end of the day, Mike still has Will.
And that’s what matters the most.
Will sticks around a little bit longer after Dustin leaves the donut shop.
Part of him really just doesn’t want to be here. After all, it hurts to look at MJ and to see the way he’s hiding how much this actually bothers him—the way he’s just pretending like everything is alright because it’s easier than actually dealing with all the frustration and sadness of this shitty situation. MJ’s always been like that, though, so it’s nothing new to Will. He’s sure that eventually the two of them will sit down and talk through this—that they’ll rant and scream and cry about how fucking unfair all of this is.
But for right now, MJ needs his space, and Will gets that. And he’s more than comfortable giving his boyfriend a little bit of time and space to process this alone before they process this together.
In the meantime though, all of this just sucks. It sucks because MJ shouldn’t even be in this mess, and Dustin shouldn’t either. Neither of them did anything wrong. They’ve just gotten dragged into all of this shit because of Will, and God, Will knows that he didn’t do anything wrong, but it’s his name tied to this whole controversy. Sure, it would’ve sucked if he was on his own and having to deal with this shit, but even that would’ve been better than seeing his best friends suffer through the same thing.
It makes Will feel like complete shit, and that’s part of the reason Will chooses to stick around the donut shop with MJ for a little bit longer.
If he goes back home now, he’s going to have to face his mom (and Jonathan) and tell them both about the rejection. His mom will probably try to cheer him up and offer him some advice (though, she’ll also probably call MIT a bunch of nasty curse words too, which actually might help Will feel better), and then, she’ll hug him tight and promise him that they’ll figure this out together. Jonathan, like their mom, will definitely call MIT a bunch of nasty curse words, and then, he’ll give a “Jonathan Byers” pep talk meant to help Will through all this.
And the thing is? Talking to his mom and Jonathan will help Will feel better. It’ll remind him that even though things suck right now and even though Will feels like complete shit, things will get better eventually. After all, the three of them have been through a lot together, and somehow, they always end up okay at the end of it. Just like his mom and Jonathan will promise him, Will knows that they’ll figure this out.
Talking to his mom and Jonathan will help Will feel better… so that’s exactly why Will chooses not to go home.
Is it bad that part of him doesn’t want to feel better? That part of him just wants to be angry and wants to be hurt and wants to feel guilty about all this? He knows —God, Will knows —that his mom and Jonathan will be quick to reassure him that none of this is his fault. They’ll be quick to ground Will and remind him of their love and help him through the guilt and frustration he feels. It’s what they did when Bob died, and God knows that took a long time for Will to come to terms with.
All of this… it feels a little bit like that.
Because all of this… it’s his fault. Yeah, he didn’t actually kill Mysterio, and he knows this. Will’s conscience is clear—at least in that regard. But Will did —and still does —choose to be Spider-Man. He made the decision years ago to put on that suit and to start fighting crime, all because he just wanted to help people. He wanted to do his part to make the world a better, safer place. He wanted to help out the people in his neighborhood—the underdogs who didn’t have anyone fighting for them.
Will made that decision a long time ago, and… well, he supposes he’s done some good. He helped to save the world, right? He’s stopped threats and kept some people safe. But he’s also put a lot of people in danger. He’s been reckless and stupid at times, and he hasn’t been able to save everyone.
And now, because of his decision to be Spider-Man, he’s effectively ruined MJ and Dustin’s chances at a normal life.
So… all of this… it’s Will’s fault, really.
And that is the worst realization in the world.
“Hey,” MJ says softly, and he leans forward on the counter, his face close to Will’s own. He offers a gentle smile and kisses Will’s nose lightly. “You’re thinking too loud.”
“I didn’t even say anything,” Will laughs. In spite of everything, he can’t help but smile. MJ just has that effect on him.
“Mmm,” MJ hums, and he leans closer, kissing Will on the lips this time. “You didn’t have to. I can read your mind. That’s my superpower, Byers.”
“Careful about saying that out loud, Wheeler,” Will says dryly. “The world might try to cancel you for being a superhero and stuff.”
A grin forms on his boyfriend’s face. “Hey, I never said I was going to be a superhero,” MJ teases. “Maybe I want to be a villain. Friendly neighborhood supervillain. Spider-Man’s worst nemesis.”
“Oh please.” Will rolls his eyes, but he smiles back at his boyfriend regardless. “You couldn’t be a supervillain even if you tried.”
“Okay, rude,” MJ says with a laugh. “Just for that, I think I am going to become your worst nemesis.”
Will raises an eyebrow, leaning his head on his hand and smiling at his boyfriend. “I’ve got a lot of nemeses, you know,” he teases back. “What makes you think that you would be my worst one?”
“Oh, that’s easy.” MJ rolls his eyes. “ Obviously because I know your biggest weakness.”
“And that would be…?”
Another smile forms on MJ’s face, and he leans forward, kissing Will once again. “Me,” he says, his voice soft and still a bit teasing. “Duh.”
Warmth rises to Will’s cheeks, and he can’t help but smile as he meets his boyfriend’s eyes. There’s a playful look on MJ’s face, and God, there’s so much going wrong right now, but for just a moment, none of that matters.
The only thing that matters is what’s right in front of Will.
“Someone’s got a big sense of his importance,” Will teases softly, and MJ just smiles, taking Will’s hand. “But ah… you might be onto something there, MJ Wheeler. Maybe you shouldn’t become a supervillain.”
An amused look forms on MJ’s face, and he rolls his eyes. “I’ll try not to,” he says dryly. “But just know that every day working in customer service brings me one step closer to actually becoming a villain and taking over the world.”
The joke should make Will laugh—after all, MJ complaining about his job is nothing new. He’s hated this job since the very first day he started a few months ago, and he has nothing good to say about it. The joke should make Will laugh.
But instead, all Will can think about is the fact that—for the foreseeable future, at least—this job is all MJ has. Sure, all of them still have to finish high school, but after that… none of them have any plans anymore. Going to college—going to MIT—was their only plan. Will sure as hell doesn’t have a backup plan, but he assumes he’ll probably have to find a job at some point too. And without a degree, there’s no way any of them will be able to get the jobs they’ve been dreaming about for years.
A lump forms in the back of Will’s throat, and he forces a smile, leaning his forehead against MJ’s. “Please don’t become a villain,” he says with a quiet laugh. “That’d probably make our relationship really awkward.”
“Probably,” MJ muses, a small smile on his face. “I bet we could work through it though.”
Before Will can respond back, the bell above the door jingles, and MJ winces, pulling away and looking at the customers who have just entered the shop. “Be right back,” he sighs, before walking back over to the register and greeting the customers halfheartedly.
As MJ continues to talk to the new customers, Will leans his hand on his hand and looks around the shop. It’s getting close to closing time, so there are only a handful of donuts in the back, as well as a half-full pot of coffee sitting on the maker. The trash where MJ’s torn up letter now sits is starting to overflow, and behind the counter, old Halloween decorations that look like Dr. Strange still adorn the ceilings of the shop.
Wait.
Wait a minute.
Will sits up, and he stares at the Halloween decorations curiously. The little wizards really look like Dr. Strange—so much so that Will wouldn’t be surprised if they were specifically made to look like the Sorcerer Supreme.
And well… Will saved the world with Dr. Strange, right? The two of them… they’re not really friends—more like work acquaintances? Yeah, something like that. It’s a bit of a longshot, but maybe… maybe Dr. Strange can help him.
Maybe Dr. Strange can fix this for him.
Without thinking too much about it, Will stands up, and he grabs his rejection letter, stuffing it into his pocket. “I’ll see you later, MJ!” he calls, running out the door. “I’ve gotta go!”
Will doesn’t stick around long enough to hear his boyfriend’s response—though in hindsight, he realizes running out without any warning is probably a little rude. Oh well. He’ll make sure to apologize later to MJ.
Right now, Will has a sorcerer to find.