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Mike and Will had been walking for days. Literally. The Upside Down’s air was dirty and filled with spores of who-knows-what, and Mike hated it. He felt disgusting. He assumed Will did too, but Will complained less, and always had.
They’d entered through a gate with one of their so-called “research groups”- Jonathan, Lucas, Dustin- and the two of them. Will and Mike had been separated from the group they’d been with- around three days ago, to count, during an encounter with a demodog. They didn’t know where they were, and that was proving to be a big problem.
Will had just decided they walk east- that’s where they remembered coming from, and because they had no other options, they did. They’d seen nothing but dead trees and vines for days now, and they were both trying hard not to lose hope.
Mike stopped, breathing hard. He was still as thin and unfit a twig, even if the last few months had been spent doing little but heart rate inducing activities- going out in research groups, carrying supplies, training- Will had taught him to use a rifle, though he wasn’t sure he remembered anything but the feeling of Will’s chest against his back, his warm fingers leading Mike’s to the trigger.
It had been a total of seven months since the gates had opened, and they still hadn’t ended all of this.
“Hey, Will?” Mike called out. Will turned back to him, raising an eyebrow. His flushed face was smeared in grime, his bag hiked high on his shoulders. His bowlcut had grown out during these last few months and now hung shaggy around his ears- Mike often caught himself wondering what it’d feel like to run his hands through it. Will’s hair had always seemed soft.
“Yeah?”
“Can we… uh, stop for a bit?” Mike asked uncomfortably. He felt ashamed to be as unfit as he was.
Will nodded. “Yeah, of course.” He made his way back to Mike, dead leaves crunching under his feet, careful to avoid any loose vines. “I mean, we’ve been walking forever… might as well eat something, maybe get some rest,” Will suggested. The night before (Though it wasn’t really night, there w as no night in the Upside Down. All they had to play off of were their watches), they’d taken shifts sleeping and watching. Mike had gotten no less than two hours- sleeping was not easy when there was the threat of interdimensional monsters looming over you.
Mike rifled through his bag. They’d packed enough food between themselves to hopefully ration them for a good week and a half- two weeks if they were lucky. That included dried fruit, jerky, and stale crackers- among other non-perishables. Water, on the other hand, was more important, and there was much less of it. Mike decided it wasn’t the time to stress. He pulled out a pack of beef jerky, and ripped open the airtight plastic bag. He offered Will the jerky, and Will took two.
“You don’t want any?” Will asked, sinking his teeth into a piece of meat.
Mike shook his head. “Not hungry.” That was a lie, but he wanted Will to eat as much as possible, without feeling guilty about it being too much. If Mike ate less, Will could eat more. Of course he prioritized Will over himself, which might’ve been stupid, but in reality, he didn’t care. Once Will had washed down the jerky with a single sip of water, they leaned up against a thick, vine-free tree. Mike placed his backpack between his knees.
“I wish we weren't here.” Will muttered.
“I wish we weren’t here too,” Mike responded, scooting a little closer to Will. “But, y’know, we are. So we better make the most of it, shouldn’t we?”
“Ah, so inspiring, Micheal.” Will rolled his eyes. “And how are we going to “make the most” of being stuck in another dimension, with barely any water and no known way out?”
“I dunno.” Mike prodded at the dirt with the toe of his shoe. “Talk?”
“About what?”
“Dunno,” Mike said again. “Stuff?”
“Jesus, Mike, you’re so difficult.” Will said.
Mike sniggered. “That makes you sound like my mom.”
“I do not!” Will retaliated.
“Do too!”
“Do not!”
“Do too!” Mike gave Will a playful shove to his shoulder, and they lapsed into a comfortable silence.
Mike had missed Will. When the Byers had been living in California, he meant. That was months ago now, and he’d seen Will practically everyday since they had got back to Hawkins. It had been an abrupt switch, but ever since Mike had gotten things worked out with El, Will and Mike had gone relatively back to normal (though that wasn’t ever going to be completely true. They’d never go back to how they were when they were twelve, not really).
Mike had only accepted the fact that he was gay over the past year. He’d gone through a period of time during mid-ninth grade, where he was sucked into a depressive state, couldn't think about anything but Will. Will, with his stupid haircut and shiny eyes and flushed cheeks and that fuckin’ smile. That- that pretty fuckin ‘smile. It was so pretty that when Mike was the one, the one to make him smile, his heart swelled up so large that sometimes he was afraid he’d burst.
Mike tried to convince himself he didn’t know why, but he did. He really did.
During this time in this… depressive state of sorts, all Mike wanted to do was hear Will’s voice. But the line was always busy. Mike wrote to El, but he had promised to call WIll. And he did. Almost every day for the first month, then at least a couple times a week. The few times Will actually picked up, he’d been too embarrassed to ask why the line was always busy.
One time, while Mike was working through his shit- this was just three months before the trip to California- he’d called, later in the night, probably nearing eleven PM. He’d been in a state of panic, reading through a book he’d found at the library about homosexuality.
The book had sent him on a spiral, and he’d wanted- no, needed to hear Will’s voice.
The line had picked up, and he hadn’t really been expecting it to, so he wasn’t sure what to say. There was static for a second, until a voice had finally drifted through the receiver.
“Hello? Byers residence.”
It was Will. Mike sucked in a breath. Will’s voice had gotten significantly deeper, definitely deeper than Mike’s. It was almost gravelily, and Mike had immediately felt butterflies swarm in his stomach.
“Hell-oh?” Will said again. “Jesus, is this another one of those prank calls? Isn’t it a little late for that, asshole-”
“Will.”
Mike heard Will suck in his breath. “Mike?”
Oh shit. The voice- Will’s voice was saying his name. Why did Will saying his name feel so goddamn good? Mike’s cheeks heated up, and his brain supplied a helpful ‘ Yep, you’re pretty fuckin’ gay, Micheal.’
“Yeah.” Mike managed, cursing off his brain.
“Shit, Mike,” Mike could tell Will was grinning. He wasn’t used to Will cursing- he wasn’t the type. “How are you?”
For the few minutes the call had gone on for, they’d felt normal again, and Mike had drifted off, happy for once.
Just to wake up ten minutes later and realize how fucking gay he was. It had been that easy. Click , and it was obvious. The reason he’d never had a celebrity crush on a girl? Gay. The reason he’d never had any kind of crush on a girl? Homo . The reason he felt like he had to date El or people would think… Shit about him? Queer. The reason he’d always stare at his poster of Johnny Depp in Nightmare on Elm Street for a little too long before he went to bed? The one of him in that really nice looking crop top? Fruit cake.
The reason Will caused him to go lightheaded and warm all over? Fucking. Faggot.
Mike had cried himself to sleep. Not panicking. Just filled to the brim with dead despair. The panicking came later. And then the anger, just for a little while. He’d researched, even asked Robin for help once he’d felt comfortable enough to tell her. She’d helped him a lot, and he appreciated her a lot.
And then came the acceptance. He was gay, and that was okay, even if sometimes his head said otherwise. But…
It made seeing Will again in California practically torture. The first few days were him trying to get over himself, focusing on his girlfriend, but his eyes kept drawing back to Will.
Once they’d been back in Hawkins for a month, he couldn't take it anymore. Just as he was about to break up with El, she’d come to his house and broken up with him . That part was scary, considering she knew . The first thing she’d said when he’d asked why, was just a singular word. Will.
She didn’t care if he liked Will, and had known they weren’t going to work out anyways. She’d just wanted them both to be happy, especially in a time like this. Mike appreciated her to the millionth degree- she was a really, really good friend.
Mike dipped his head back, his skull hitting the bark with a soft thud. “I have this… fantasy.” He said, immediately regretting it when Will snorted.
“Fantasy?”
“Oh shut up, you get what I mean.” Mike sighed. “You show up at my house in the middle of the night with your bike and… we ride through Hawkins and it’s normal. All normal, and then… we just leave. We get the fuck out of here.” Mike shook his head a little. “I used to be because of your dad, back when he was around. But now…” He trailed off.
“Yeah?”
“Now I think about what it’d be like if I’d just asked you to run away, y’know before everything happened. Maybe…” he sighed again, looking at his palms. “Maybe right now we would’ve been- I dunno, crashing in someone’s one-room apartment in, like, New York, or Boston, or even LA , eating cold pizza and watching Star Wars.” Mike sputtered out a laugh, not looking at Will.
“Or maybe we’d be asleep in some car on some strange road in the desert, but that rings far too many bells,” Mike sighed. “I just think about how maybe… maybe the world wouldn’t be ending if I’d just asked you to just… run away with me . ” He felt his eyes itch.
Will stared at him, as if what he was saying was now just hitting. “You want to run away. With me?”
Mike’s cheeks flushed a little. He picked at his cuticles, a nervous habit of his. “Yeah, I guess. I’ve wanted to run away with you since we were, I dunno, nine?”
Will looked down, smiling softly. “Oh. Why me?”
It was Mike’s turn to stare. “Maybe because you’re my best friend?” Sure, Micheal. “Maybe because I wouldn’t want to be stuck with anyone in the fuckin’ Upside Down but you?”
“Really?” Will was grinning slightly.
“Really. Lucas and Dustin, they’re great, they're great… but y’know, they’re not you,” Mike smiled down at the dirt. “I wouldn’t rather be stuck here with anyone else.”
“I wouldn't either,” Will muttered, doing the thing where his eyebrows draw together. He leaned into Mike’s side a bit, and Mike let himself wrap his arm around Will’s shoulder. “Jesus, it’s cold,” Will sighed.
Mike laughed. “It is. Wouldn’t you rather be in some shitty apartment eating pizza?”
“Don’t forget the Star Wars.”
“I’d never forget Star Wars.”
Will reached up and took Mike’s hand from where it hung from his shoulder. His fingers were cold and warm at the same time, and Mike had to keep himself from shivering. Will slowly interlaced their fingers and Mike squeezed, neither of them talking, but knowing that it was okay. More than okay. Will’s other arm snaked around Mike’s waist, fingers sliding up the hem of his shirt and brushing against the skin of his waist. Shit. Mike did shiver this time. He felt something in his chest burn. He shuffled even closer to Will, and Will lay his head on his shoulder. Will was warm. He always had been. He was like the sun.
“Mike?”
“Yeah?”
“How’s everything with El?” Will asked. “Y’know, it’s been a while since you broke up and…”
Mike groaned. “Do we have to be talking about El right now?” He asked, his tone holding an irritated edge. Do we have to be talking about Eleven while I'm just trying to enjoy being wrapped up in the feeling of you?
“No.” Will shrugged, shuffling away a little.
Mike frowned, pulling him closer again. “I mean, we’re fine,” He gave in. “It’s… a little weird, but other than that, we’re pretty much back to normal. She’s a good friend.”
“Why did you guys break up?” Will asked suddenly. “She won’t tell me and you’ve never mentioned it.”
“I… well…” Mike contemplated it for a moment. On one hand, he hated having to keep being gay from his best friend, and on the other hand… What if Will pulled away? What if he felt weird around him? Maybe it wasn’t the greatest idea…
“I realized I don’t like girls, and El kind of figured it out and broke up with me,” Mike mumbled, and he was the one to shift away completely this time. Apparently, his mind had other ideas. Shit.
“Oh,” was all Will could seem to say. “You… you’re gay?” Will looked incredibly surprised.
“Yeah,” Mike muttered, bringing his knees to his chest and wrapping his arms around his legs. He got the familiar feeling of wanting to become as small as possible. “Surprised?”
“Yeah, I- a little.” Will said. “El’s… cool with it?” He questioned quietly, a stunned expression set over his soft features.
Mike nodded, pressing his eye sockets against his knees, trying to stop the way his tear ducts itched. S hit. “Yeah, she was totally normal about it. Said homophobia was bullshit, basically.” His voice was smaller than he would’ve liked it to be.
“It is,” Will said.
Mike looked up, surprised. “Really?”
Will smiled gently. “You think racism and sexism is bullshit, right?”
Mike gave him a sad looking eyeroll. “Those kind of people are kind of fuckfaces. More than kind of. Incredibly fuckface-y.” Will chuckled at that. “Just because someone’s different from you doesn’t mean….” He trailed off. “Oh. Oh .”
“Oh is correct. Besides, I’ve had a lot of time to think over how bullshitty homophobia is, anyways. C’mere.” Will opened his arms for a hug, and Mike immediately leaned in, relishing the feeling of being properly held. “Thanks for telling me,” Will muttered into Mike’s hair, and a sob bubbled up in Mike’s throat. He pushed it down. Will’s okay with it. Okay with me.
“What’d you mean by you’ve had a lot of time to think it over?” Mike asked, trying to hold conversation so he didn’t get choked up.
Will clicked his tongue. “Let’s just say, there are a lot of hot guys in California.”
Mike felt his eyes widen. Oh. “Yeah?”
“Yeah.”
Mike held Will tighter now.. He buried his face in Will’s shoulder, clutching him like they’d be pried apart. A sob finally broke from his chest. Will was gay. Will rocked them back and forth a little, holding Mike like he wanted to be held. Like he needed to be held.
They broke apart after a long time, staring at each other. It felt easier to breathe, for once. Will reached out and put a hand on Mike’s cheek, running his thumb across his freckled skin. Mike felt himself flush, and leaned into the touch.
“You know,” Will started, his voice quivering. “I never thought anybody from Hawkins would be, y’know, like me . Not anybody I knew anyways, but… you, you’re…” He trailed off. “You’re not messing with me, right?” He asked, voice hardening a bit. He dropped his hand. “I need to know you won’t go and- and tell everyone, Mike- I-”
Mike’s eyebrows furrowed. “I wouldn’t.” He took Will’s shoulder. “Will, you know I’d never lie about this, and I sure as hell wouldn’t out you-”
“I know.” Will’s voice cut through. He was smiling again, though it was shaky. “I know. But…” He sighed, the small smile dropping. “I’ve just…”
“Will, I like you,” Mike blurted out, eager to get him out of that spiral. Fuck.
Will just stared at him.
God, you’re such an idiot. Mike, just because you both came out at the same time and he touched your cheek doesn’t mean he likes you like that. Just cause he’s gay doesn’t mean-
“I’m sorry.” Mike’s voice broke. He felt pathetic. Shit.
Will shook his head, looking more stunned than before. “You… like me. As in…?”
“As in I’ve got feelings for you,” Mike muttered. Fuck, why was Will making him say it?
“Oh.” Will muttered, eyes wide, and Mike swore he was blushing, swore those wide eyes were almost, dare he say, hopeful . “Yeah?” Will leaned forward a little as he said it. What the fuck was happening?
“Yeah.”
“Really?” Will's voice was so low that it was barely audible, and Mike felt himself shiver. Will was so unbearably close.
“Really .” Mike whispered, and their noses bumped slightly. Will leaned in slowly and- and brushed his lips against the corner of Mike’s mouth. Wait- Will’s mouth lingered there just long enough to cause goosebumps to rise on the back of Mike’s neck. He felt himself close to tears again, cheeks burning, his chest burning, everything was burning. Will pulled back slightly. Mike didn’t know what was going on- What the fuck was happening? Why did Will just- They were breathing in tandem, Will giving him those eyes, and shit. Those eyes told Mike everything he needed to know.
Before either of them could say anything, Mike grabbed Will’s face and pressed their lips together in a firm kiss. Fuck. Will’s surprise must’ve worn off, because his hands found Mike’s hair, his lips moving against Mike’s with an almost well-practiced precision. Will’s mouth was hot. Everything else about him was warm, but his mouth was hot. It was like the things Mike would fantasize about- but a million times better. And this was really happening. It felt like a dream.
Will kissed him desperately now, hands trailing from Mike’s hair to his waist, pushing him against the vine-free tree from earlier, knees on either side of Mike’s legs. Will’s finger’s gripped at Mike’s waist, pressing his thumbs into Mike’s hip bones, and the simple gesture made Mike see spots, warmth pooling deep in his stomach. Their mouths had grown messy now, and Will slid his tongue over Mike’s lower lip slowly. Mike whispered a choked-out Will- and he could almost feel Will’s smirk at the name.
Another spike of pleasure hit Mike deep in the gut, and he tangled his hands in Will’s own hair, tugging on it slightly. Will made a throaty noise and Mike’s pulse buzzed. Will was everywhere around him, everywhere, and Mike could barely handle it.
They pulled away, panting, and Will half collapsed against Mike, their arms around each other, legs tangled. It took Mike a long while to catch his breath, but once they both had, Will spoke first. “I’ve wanted to do that for so long ,” He whispered, breaking the delicate post-kiss feeling surrounding them. His breath ticked the skin on Mike’s neck. “You don’t even know.”
“I think maybe I do,” Mike smiled softly. “I think I really do.”
“How do you even like me?” Will asked. “I swear you could have anybody, but you chose Zombie Boy.” He laughed sourly.
Mike pulled him closer into him. “Elaborate on who would want me - the freckled, gangly loser who looks like he’s never slept a day in his life? Yeah, I think not.” He smiled goodheartedly. “But you- Will, Zombie Boy is a stupid nickname. You’re not a zombie, you’re a human being, and you're so alive, Will. You’re so alive, more alive than I could ever be.” He pressed a kiss to Will’s cheek, almost freaking out because he could do that now.
Will laughed again, cheeks red. He looked pretty. “Thanks Mike. And sure, you’re a loser, but so am I. Besides, your freckles are cute.” He reached up and traced a thumb across Mike’s face. Mike shivered.
“They are?”
“You’re cute.”
“I am?” Mike could feel his cheeks heating up by the minute.
“Very much so. Though, you were cuter in eighth grade… I’d say you’re more hot now,” Will grinned, leaning in to press another kiss to Mike’s lips.
“Hot , hm?” Mike reddened even more at his straightforward demeanor. Will had been much more forward recently. “You’re the buff one,”
“I am not buff,” Will laughed.
Mike reached out and began to undo the buttons on Will’s jacket, pulling it off him. Will shivered as the Upside Down’s arm hit his skin. He rolled up the sleeve of Will’s t-shirt, giving the muscles on his upper arm a quick squeeze, trying to help the way his stomach fluttered. “Do you see now? ” He kept his hand on Will’s bicep. “Did you work out in Lenora?”
Will shrugged, looking embarrassed. “A little.”
Mike snorted. “ A little, he says.”
Will looked at him, exasperated. “Seriously! I hate the gym!”
“You hate spending hours in a place surrounded with hot, sweaty, California men.” Mike said flatly, running his fingers up Will’s arm subconsciously.
“Yes!” Will cried, swatting Mike’s hand away and pulling his jacket back on. “Jesus, it’s cold.”
Mike made a face. “I almost forgot we were still here for a second.” He sighed, the hopeless feeling from before seeping into his chest. “ God , I almost forgot,” He pulled himself away from Will and leaned back against the tree. “Fuck.”
Will’s face dropped. “Oh. Yeah. Jesus, Mike, what’re we gonna do?”
“Keep walking.” Mike said glumly. “But we should really get some sleep.” He sighed. “I’ll take first watch if you want to sleep.”
Will suddenly looked exhausted. “You sure?” He asked.
Mike nodded. “Yeah, and don’t you dare argue. I’ll wake you up in a while to switch shifts. You need your beauty sleep,” He teased softly.
Will made a face but nodded, He drew his arms around himself and dropped his head against Mike’s shoulder. “This okay?” He asked, intertwining their hands- the gesture felt very intimate.
“Yeah,” Mike breathed.
“Mike, when we get out of here, when all of this is over… d’you wanna go get dinner together?” Will asked sleepily.
Mike grinned. “Like a date?”
“Like a date.”
“I’d like nothing more.” Mike squeezed his hand, and Will settled closer to him, smiling comfortably.
Will was asleep within ten minutes.
Mike let himself close his eyes. With them leaning against that tree together, Mike could almost imagine that they were twelve again, freshly out of Hawkins, sleeping along some tree-lined road in the middle of nowhere. Their backpacks packed with food and water and whatever cash they could snatch from their parents, their young minds packed with visions of a better life.
Mike fell asleep there. That was the last mistake Mike ever made, because, alas, there was no one there to stop the vines that snaked around the two of them minutes later. The vines that slipped around their throats and choked their life away within moments.
Michael Wheeler died a full six seconds after Will Byers did, at eleven fifty-eight PM. Exactly two minutes before midnight.
His last seconds were the most agonizing of his life.
Maybe in another life they would’ve run away, maybe they would’ve been sitting in some run down apartment now, pressed up against each other, watching a movie that in the long run was irrelevant. Maybe they would’ve been kissing as some love song played from a scratched record, or simply sleeping deeply on a thin mattress.
If Mike had just asked Will to run away, they wouldn’t have taken their last breaths at fifteen, vines wrapping around their lungs and throats and choking the life from their bodies.
At least, if they were ever found, Michael Wheeler would be holding the love of his life’s hand.
That was the least he could ask for, anyways.