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Mike’s sitting in the middle of History Class, impatiently tapping his foot on the floor like a jackrabbit, expectant brown eyes glued to the analog clock hanging on the wall in front of him, right above Ms. Cooper’s head. He intently watches as the hands of the clock slowly, but surely creep along until hitting 3 o’clock on the dot, signaling the end of the school day. Usually, Mike’s a good attentive student. He quite enjoys History very much and Ms. Cooper was an entertaining enough teacher, but ever since the Party rescued Will and El died disappeared, he hasn’t been able to concentrate on his education like he used to.
Every day, Mike sits in History, his last class of the late afternoon, and waits for it to be over so that he could rush to the hospital, excited to visit a recovering Will. It’s all his mind can focus on these days. He stares at the clock, foot tapping away, fingers aimlessly drumming on his desk. Anything to distract himself, to make time move faster. Suddenly, he feels a pressure on his shoulder. Someone was continuously poking him to get his attention.
Mike sharply turns to his left, annoyed that he had to tear his eyes away from the clock for even a second, seeing a boy with braces and thick rimmed glasses holding out a ripped folded piece of scrap paper to him. It was a note, which Mike found peculiar because none of the Party, besides Will, takes this class with him. That meant someone Mike doesn’t talk to like that was passing him a note. It certainly isn’t this random boy (Mike thinks his name’s Colin-something something) that wanted to engage in the ancient art of covert communications. He’s just the unfortunate messenger urging Mike to take the note with a quickness.
Mike takes it from the boy’s nervous grip, albeit with a skeptical look, and stealthily opens it before Ms. Cooper can single him out, making him read aloud to the class whatever’s distracting him from her lesson. Y’know, the classic public shaming many teachers deemed a suitable form of punishment for disobedient students, and this was the year Mike wasn’t being a stellar student after all. He quickly read the contents of the note, and found his mouth fixing into an offended frown, jaw tightening, hands white-knuckling. Mike reads it again, and again, and again to make certain he isn’t hallucinating. That this was the English language he was correctly comprehending. The more he did, reread that is, the more he felt a primal gnarled creature within his spirit hissing and growling and clawing in rage at the sheer audacity.
Do you know when Will Byers is coming back? Is he less sick? I wanna decorate his locker to welcome him back.
Mike finally stops staring at the sentences, turning to Cole-something something with a heated glare, but the boy shakes his head frantically, jutting a thumb adjacent to them in an upward direction. By the windows, Mike soon peers at a girl - obnoxiously unfairly pretty - her name’s Carly Rutledge. According to Lucas and Dustin, she’s the 3rd cutest girl in the seventh grade. Ranked 5th overall if they’d factored in the eighth and sixth grade girls, too! Basically, Will was being asked about from one of the most sought after girls in all of Hawkins Middle School?!
Shyly, Carly waves at Mike with a disarming smile that would certainly swoon most boys his age, but Mike Wheeler wasn’t most boys. He was built different and wasn’t moved one bit by her friendly disposition. Grimacing at her like she called him a slur outright, Mike rudely balls up the note and roughly stuffs it into his pants pocket, instead of writing an answer down and passing it back to her with proper tween etiquette. Carly’s stunned by the aggressive reaction, mouth agape and eyes blinking in shock, but Mike honestly didn’t have the time to care because just then the bell loudly rang.
He didn’t so much as glance at Carly Rutledge while he ran out the door, down the hallway, and to his locker, haphazardly collecting his things. He meets Dustin and Lucas already outside by the bike rack. The three of them avidly biking partly across the parking lot that separated Hawkins Middle and Hawkins High to Jonathan’s beat-up used car. Will’s brother had the hatch popped open, anticipating for the boys to haul their bikes inside gracelessly before claiming a passenger seat for themselves. Jonathan settles behind the steering wheel, going through the motions as he starts to drive all of them to the hospital. It’s become standard for the Party to do this.
They’d gone to such great lengths to get Will back to them, or in Mike’s case, get Will back to him specifically. The drive always seems longer than it should be, but it’s definitely faster than them riding their bikes halfway through town. Mike quietly looks out the window as Dustin and Lucas chat about random stuff with Jonathan acting reserved as usual. His mind returns to that note in his pocket, and the 3rd cutest girl Carly, and Mike wonders why he’s so angry about it all. Why does he find himself unclenching his hands and unscrewing his jaw and fixing his grimacing face?
It’s normal, right? Normal for people to ask how Will’s doing and if he’ll show up for school soon. Normal for people to plan a welcome back thing or whatever for him. The Byers were kind of a big deal now, just briefly though. All the news buzzing around his best friend in the whole wide world, being brought to the land of the living again, after a confirmed autopsy to boot! No one else can say they had a fake funeral, that’s for sure.
Their classmates dubbed him Zombie Boy because of all the misinformation spreading like wildfire in the papers and unchecked fleeting gossip. He hates how the word zombie and Will’s name have become synonymous. Still, Mike feels it’s wrong that Carly dared to ask him about Will’s wellbeing, regardless if she’s truly sincere. She didn't need to know. It wasn't any of her freaking business!
Where’s all this care and concern when Mike and the Party were going through it, huh? Searching on a rainy night and defying curfew? Where’s this energy when Mike had to defend Will’s honor from Troy’s cruel snickers and insults? If it wasn’t for El making Troy piss himself that day, Mike had no doubt the Party’s longtime vicious bully would’ve pummeled him black and blue with bruises. He’s confident no one would come to his aid either, especially girls like Carly Rutledge, who stood by and kept mum when Mike and the other boys got targeted daily. It’s not like it was a secret that the Party isn’t the most popular. Now, while he’s still putting in work to support Will in any way he can in the aftermath of all this Upside Down mess, this girl Carly Blah Blah, wanted to be interested? Invested? No dice. Too late. Ship’s sailed. Goodbye.
When Jonathan parks the car, Mike’s the first to unbuckle his seatbelt and bolt like lightning, Lucas and Dustin hot on his trail. Didn’t matter that the boys couldn’t necessarily get past the strict and detached receptionist until Jonathan was present. Stupid dumb rules of “unaccompanied minors may not enter under any circumstances”.
Gosh! It made his blood boil every time he and his friends were forced to stay put until Jonathan sluggishly entered the lobby. He’d have to escort them through the halls towards the elevator. Mike imagined breaking into the sterile building more often than once. He memorized Will’s room number and what floor he’s on ages ago. Had it tattooed on each wrinkle of his brain the moment he heard it slip from Joyce’s mouth in the waiting room. Mike spent many sleepless nights under his covers, plotting to sneak into the hospital just past his bedtime while Karen and Ted soundlessly slept, merely to camp out with Will and be close to him like in their past sleepovers. Mike really wants to be near Will as much as possible if the universe would be so kind to either of them and grant his wish.
Eventually, the best part of the day arrives! They get to see Will! He gets to see Will! As always, the boys storm into the hospital room just as determined as the Bad Men that hunted El, and they head straight for the bed Will’s resting on. They all ecstatically hug him, each Party member finding a way to burrow into him with abundant affection. Dustin drapes his body halfway across Will’s blanketed legs while Lucas gleefully yells “Byers!” as he gently falls over Will’s waist.
Mike, who maybe does this out of trauma, or perhaps he’s genuinely that sentimental of a kid, unfailingly places his head atop Will’s chest. His ear directly above Will’s heart, subconsciously counting the beats per minute to verify again that they did it. El did it. Everyone involved really played their roles to keep Will Byers alive and kicking and safe.
“Come on, now. Don’t squish him.” Joyce mildly scolds from the corner of the room, sitting in the chair she’s made her second home since retrieving her darling baby boy from indescribable horrors.
As if Joyce had an invisible rope lassoing them, Dustin and Lucas instantly get off Will like they’ve been yanked on, yet Mike doesn’t comply right away. He remains attached, still has his head stubbornly on Will’s chest, soft dark hair tickling Will’s chin as he presses even further into the thin fabric of his friend’s hospital gown. His mind processes Joyce’s words perfectly, but his muscles felt it hard to follow, lagging in movement while nonetheless finding complete solace in Will’s body heat and pumping heart. He relishes in the rise and fall of Will’s listless breathing without the need of oxygen tubes lodged in his nose. Mike doesn’t want it to end, feeling like if he stops their embrace too soon then Will’s going to slip from his desperate grasp again, this time unable to be found. Lost forever.
Those are the types of thoughts running laps in Mike’s head. Taunting thoughts that he never shares with anyone. Mike wouldn’t want to burden the rest of the boys with his growing worries, so he keeps it locked up to hopefully wither away, suffocate, starve out, die.
Ultimately, Mike reluctantly peels himself away from using Will as a warm, cozy human comforter less one of the Byers intervenes. Last time, which was simply yesterday by the way, Jonathan had to practically remove Mike off like he was a bloodsucking leech. That’s honestly happened way too many times to count. Mike’s thoroughly embarrassed by it. Not embarrassed enough to stop it from becoming a bad habit, though.
“So, what’s new at school?” Will asks the same question every time they visit, face bright with wonder, a mix of innocence and mischief only he can master with ease.
He prepares to listen to all the rumors and drama, bored out his mind silly these past few weeks from recovery. Wasting no time, Dustin talks about the mystery vandal that’s graffitiing the bathroom stalls (Mike guiltily averts his eyes at that one), and how there’s an upcoming math test that’s stressing all of 7th grade out. Lucas tells Will about this new movie coming out just in time for Thanksgiving break that they should all see, and that he’s also down to tutor him in any missed subjects so Will won’t fall too far behind on his studies. Mike lets the boys do most of the info-dumping, choosing to silently observe Will instead.
He’s been doing that more lately. Just staring at Will. Examining him with quizzically searching eyes that he masks with nonchalance. Mike notices there’s more of a healthy color to Will’s skin. He looks less sickly, less cadaverous then when the Party was initially given permission to see him. Will has more weight on him, also. Cheeks less hollow and crestfallen. The doctors finally allowed for solid foods after flushing Will with fluids due to the week he was stolen from them, scared and starving. Bleak puffy bags under his eyes still lingered. Will must not be sleeping well.
Mike keeps scrutinizing, unblinkingly, detailing the way Will’s face crinkles into an amused smile, and how his laughter was airy. He considers it amazing that regardless if Will’s energized or lethargic, in Mike’s honest opinion, his first ever best friend is pleasant to look at in all forms of appearance. Curious hazel orbs leave Lucas and Dustin’s flailing gestures to lock with Mike’s doggedly searing gaze. Breath hitching, startled from getting caught, Mike fights down a burning blush to no prevail.
“What about you? What’s going on, Mike?” Oh! Will’s trying to include him into the conversation. Strange because it’s typically the other way around.
Dustin and Lucas were mostly chatterboxes, overlapping their speech to get a word in edgewise, and speaking over Will’s generally hushed voice that couldn’t compete with their set of piping lungs. Mike would have to shut them up with his own booming voice for Will to say his piece without getting drowned out. Now, he’s standing with eyes bucked as Will picks over him carefully.
“Uh… Well…. I got a note…. From Carly -”
“Carly Rutledge!” Dustin interrupts, bouncing on his feet and Lucas shoots a skeptical glance, both in disbelief at Mike’s news. He can't really believe it either.
“It’s meant for you, actually. Not me.” Mike doesn’t know why he did it, but he digs up the crumpled paper that he wishes was illegible from his pants pocket, and hands it to Will begrudgingly, almost with an attitude.
He feels queasy while Will reads it. Dustin and Lucas intrusively looking over his shoulders to get a peep. Mike should’ve thrown the note away, or burned it, or even ate it like those spies in the TV shows and movies do. He should’ve never mentioned this girl was interested in Will. A smarter version of him would’ve torn up the note directly in front of Carly just so she’d understand that her attention wasn’t needed nor welcomed into the Party’s space.
“That’s nice of her.” Will faintly says, very casually, his tone the type of politeness that means he's rather, overall, apathetic about the whole note situation.
Mike’s utterly relieved, his tense body relaxing, unaware that he was dismayed in the first place. Will seems immune to Carly’s powerful snake-hypnotizing charm. He’s thankful that unlike the other 13 year old boys in their grade, Will’s never much expressed a longing towards girls in any aspect. Mike has a brief hope that Will’s never going to like girls, and gets confused as to why that possibility makes him uncontrollably giddy.
“I’d do anything for her to notice me. I mean anything. ” Dustin sighs dreamily, a dopey grin on his lips as he glimpses above to the ceiling in a daze.
“She does have a point, though.” Lucas begins, unceremoniously snatching the note from Will’s hand and pointing to it with inquiry, brow curling up. “When are you coming back to school, Will?”
Shrugging his shoulders because he’s got no clue, Will shoots a glance at Joyce who’s radiantly smiling at them. Jonathan matches their mother’s enthusiasm with a knowing smirk of his own.
“Thought it’d be fun to surprise ya. You’re coming home tonight, baby!” Joyce animatedly hip-hip hoorays.
That’s quite the surprise indeed. Mike cheers with Lucas, Dustin, and Will. All of them huddling up and squeezing Will in untamed elation. Joyce giggles happily at seeing her youngest get showered with ample love. Jonathan chuckles at the display, especially when witnessing how Mike’s buried his nose in the crown of Will’s hair, arms wound snug on his little brother’s shoulders, and nearly smothering the smaller boy with his tall-for-his-age physique (Lucas and Dustin complaining how Mike’s monopolizing Will).
The note from Carly and the displeasure of a girl taking any interest in Will vanished from Mike’s priority list. Problems for another day.
*****
“Be home no later than 7:30, Mike! I don’t want you pestering the Byers that much. They’ve been through a lot and need a break.”
Karen’s in the kitchen, standing in front of the fridge door while writing on the calendar held up by a tacky fruit shaped magnet: Mike’s eating dinner at the Byers tonight.
“I’m not pestering them, Mom! I go over there all the time!” He scrunches his nose at Karen’s pointed look, reaching for his backpack and tying his sneakers.
“Exactly. You go over there all the time. Almost like you’ve moved in there, am I right? Newsflash, Michael, you live here.”
Mike dismisses his mother’s strongly enforced suggestion, beelining toward the garage where his bike’s at. He, Lucas, and Dustin always biked to school together. They all planned to get a lift from Jonathan afterwards, this time to the Byers instead of the hospital. Will’s been in his childhood home, his bedroom, since last night. The doctor advised him not to come to school yet, not until tomorrow, just to sort out affairs.
As soon as Mike waltzes through the school entrance, he feels a disturbance shift in the air. Intuition teeming with zeal. Approaching his locker, Mike stops dead in his tracks when he sees not one - not two - but THREE girls are hovering around, apparently waiting for him. Lucas and Dustin, who were debating about comic book heroes while walking beside Mike, fell speechless and became astonished at the eerie sight, sharing glances with each other before looking toward their Party Leader Mike to take action.
“Uh… Can I help you?”
He needs to grab his math book and unfortunately, his gym clothes for P.E. as well. Whichever guidance counselor who scheduled his Physical Fitness Class to be 2nd period at 9 AM, where he can burn off his breakfast dying from dastardly dodgeball or a jog around the unforgiving field, Mike repeatedly prays they forever stub their barefoot toe on the hard corner of a table as payback for his torture.
In order, the girls blocking Mike from his locker were Jennifer Hayes, Beth Cookman, and Judy Jackson. Lucas and Dustin had likened them to the closest thing Hawkins Middle had to tangible goddesses walking on Earth. Jennifer definitely starred in a commercial once. Beth’s family would be the richest in town if not for the Harrington’s. Judy’s like a unicorn, both a nerd and abnormally pretty. Mike hasn’t seen that combo since Nancy, and it truly pained him to call Nancy pretty, because - ew! - openly complimenting his sister almost made him projectile vomit right then and there. He could feel the bile inching up his throat just thinking about it. Yuck!
By themselves, the girls were all very intimidating, and when together, their presence expanded into an indefinable force that weighed anxious boys like the Party down tenfold.
“You’re Will’s friend, right? His best friend?” Beth twirls a strand of styled ringlet hair around her finger, eying Mike up and down unimpressed. The feeling’s mutual.
“We’re all his best friends.” He says coolly. Solid ice could’ve blown out with each breath he takes, a frigid stare aimed directly at her. Dustin and Lucas dumbly confirm that they’re pals of Will, silently nodding their heads with extreme caution.
“Great! Can you please give him this for me?” She hands Mike a note, it has a series of tiny hearts doodled on, and Beth winks coyly at him but he knows she's just doing it to get her way. “Don’t peek inside, m’kay. It’s for Will’s eyes only! I even sealed it with a kiss!”
Mike has the desire to drop the note on the floor, fantasizing about rudely stepping on it with the bottom of his dirty sneaker like it’s an icky insect. He hates himself for taking the note without a fuss or fight. Setting off a chain of events, Jennifer and Judy hand him their own personalized notes for Will in rapid succession. When the girls scurry off to their separate destinations, bidding the boys a satisfied “buh-bye” like they didn't just ask for the biggest request in the galaxy, Mike slackens his standoffish face into the distraught expression he keeps at bay.
“Wow! I never thought I’d see it in the flesh!” Dustin says, viewing the notes in Mike’s hands with marvel. Damn, it’s not like he’s holding gold, calm down.
“See what?” Mike thinks he’s missing a pivotal fragment of conversation, twisting his head from both boys frantically. He needs them to elaborate. “What am I not getting here?”
Lucas leans against the wall, one strap of his backpack hanging loosely off his shoulder. “Duh, Mike. What I’ve been saying for years. It’s the fact that girls like Will.”
“Girls like Will?” That’s unexpected information drilling into Mike’s skull, causing irreversible damage to his brain chemistry. It's true, knowledge is a curse. Ignorance is bliss. “GIRLS LIKE WILL?!”
“Yeah.” Lucas reiterates very pragmatically, wincing at Mike’s tone. “Don’t you remember? Since we were in kindergarten, girls have always liked Will. We had to struggle every playtime or recess cuz they stayed trying to get Will to play house. They always wanted him to be their husband.”
Did Mike have repressed memories or something because he felt blindsided by this! Supposedly, Dustin knew of this not-so-secret truth about Will, as well! Mike roughly recalls when Dustin first joined the Party. He had delegated Lucas to do the informal introductions between them all. In the midst of that, Lucas must’ve described Will to Dustin as having a flair with the ladies, despite never doing anything to garner their amorous affections. But why couldn’t Mike pick up on any of this? Why wasn’t this on his radar? Unless…
“Can’t wait to see Will’s face when he sees three girls have notes for him.” Dustin teasingly waggles his brows and Lucas snorts. Mike finds nothing funny. None of this is okay. He’s rather bothered. Perturbed even. They should be too!
Mike gets through his classes on autopilot mode, unable to concentrate, and feeling mad at the person who invented paper because if the trees weren't cut down then none of these girls could make their stupid notes to give to Will. TREES DIED FOR THIS! What a waste and a shame for Mother Nature honestly, she doesn’t deserve all this, and neither did Will or Mike matter of fact. He excuses himself to the bathroom after curiosity kills and revives him, thankful Mr. Clarke trusts Mike not to dilly dally in the halls compared to other unpromising students. Except Mike's absolutely going to do just that, be a deviant that is.
He proudly holds the wooden hall pass in case any faculty would dare to question why he's wandering. Mike goes to his locker, swiftly unlocking it, and unzips his backpack to see the notes from Beth, Jennifer, and Judy callously stuffed between his textbooks and radio among other trinkets. Without care for Will's privacy because if this were the real postal service, what Mike’s going to do is legally considered a felony crime, he had to read what was in those notes. Beth's "for Will's eyes only" haunting him. So, read he did, and by now Mike must be a glutton for punishment because he got that prickling, disgusting feeling of indignation, poisoning his very being the more he indulged.
Hey Will, do you have a date for Snow Ball? If not, I'm available. - Beth Cookman
What's your favorite candy? I'm making you a get-well basket when you return. - Jennifer Hayes
Do you like me? Check yes or no. P.S: I like-like you. - Judy Jackson
Were girls always this bold? Mike wouldn't know. No one from the opposite sex ever approached him. What’s with all this cutesy flowery handwriting, too! As if Will could read this illegible crap! Grade zero for penmanship, if Mike were a teacher. Also, he’s pretty sure these girls can’t appreciate Will for how awesome of a person he is! They don’t know Will like Mike does!
Needing an outlet for his newfound upset tap dancing in his stomach, and breakdancing in his heart, Mike stuffs the notes into his backpack once more and gallops to the nearest bathroom. Armed with a permanent marker, he proceeds to write obscenities on the stall doors. Things his parents would blow a gasket over. Things that would have Dustin and Lucas perhaps look at Mike sideways. Things that would probably disappoint Will so much he’d wear a droopy expression that could bring out the regret in an obstinate Mike instantly. It doesn't make him feel any better, but at least it keeps him preoccupied, keeps him from doing something worse.
Returning to Mr. Clarke's, Mike plays innocent when the intercom comes on, denouncing school vandalism. He ignores Mr. Clarke’s unreadable stare leveling on him.
*****
Waiting for dinner to be done cooking at the Byers, the Party hung out in Will’s bedroom. They crowded in Will’s bed that’s definitely only meant for a single person. Lucas and Dustin are sprawled at the foot while Mike and Will are lounging at the headboard. They’re a variety of entangled limbs, and Mike loves it because he can freely touch Will without it being weird. Can’t be weird if the whole Party’s literally laying on top of each other in a dogpile.
It’s also comforting for them after being forced for weeks to have limited contact with Will in an off-putting white painted hospital room, lurking doctors and nurses ushering them to the doors the minute visiting hours are over. This feels more familiar, more secure to the boys. Will manages to sketch in the cramped space, provided Mike and Co don’t move a muscle. One wrong shift of positions and all of them would tumble to the floor, mirroring a jenga game. It was a delicate balancing act indeed.
“You got more notes!” Dustin squeals, eager to tell the good news.
Will pauses from sketching to look up with his big soulful eyes. “I do?”
“Yup!” Lucas irritatingly kicks Mike’s hip bone with a socked foot. “Show him, dude.”
“Ugh. Fine.” Mike moodily retorts with maximum eye rolling, awkwardly leaning over to fetch his discarded backpack on the floor.
Dustin, Lucas, and Will have to anchor him so Mike doesn’t faceplant. Once re-settling halfway on the mattress’s edge, he gives Will the notes for him to read. Mike notices that Will’s face is unchanging as he scans the contents. Mike also notices that he’s holding his own breath in dreaded anticipation. He wonders what Will’s answers are going to be for the hopeful admirers puppy-crushing on him. Mike imagines Will rejecting Beth’s offer of a date, imagines Will declining Jennifer's get-well basket, and imagines Will firmly telling Judy that he doesn’t like-like her back. Dustin and Lucas have no clue that Mike already (inappropriately) read the notes, their lips smirking proudly that at least one of them isn’t a total loser.
After a beat of silence, Will says, “They’re very kind.”
“That’s it!” Dustin doesn’t buy it. “There’s gotta be something you’re not telling us. Lemme see.”
“Nooo!” Will presses the notes protectively against his chest and Mike wants to die. Don’t tell him that Will’s actually flattered by the attention?! “I… I don’t think they wanted anybody else to see but me. So, no peeking this time.”
“Right.” Lucas dutifully agrees and for a split second it appears Dustin’s outnumbered. “But we’re not just anybody, Will, we’re a Party! Atta boy, let us see what they wrote!” Nevermind, Lucas and Dustin share the same braincell.
Will gulps at Lucas and Dustin’s mischievous leering, his sights turning on Mike to help, and since Mike’s forever and always on Will’s side, he bravely defends his cleric by smacking half of their Party with pillows. This led to a full blown pillow fight, notes forgotten, and Jonathan later comes in to quiet the boys only to be hit by a stray stuffed toy animal accidentally. What a ripple effect, for the boys yelled louder as Jonathan’s accurately headshotting everyone, sans Will, with multiple pillows to the point where the Party pitifully surrenders. Jonathan wasn’t going to show mercy, no matter how much they begged as he towered over them, but Joyce hollers “dinner’s ready!” unintentionally saving the day.
They eat and talk and Joyce brings out a fat tub of ice cream for dessert. It’s a merry occasion, a celebration of them trying to regain normalcy. Mike pretends he’s not itching to know how Will’s going to respond to those notes. He really longs to know if Will’s even slightly interested in reciprocating some of the girls’ feelings. Was this how Lucas felt with him and El? He’s starting to see why having a potential girl in the Party was vexing and threatening.
As Mike bikes home with Lucas and Dustin, he internally makes a vow to himself. He’d never pass another note to Will again. If girls had the gall to brazenly pine for Will using Mike as a resentful messenger, then they should have enough courage to hand it to Will themselves, the cowards! This was for Mike’s own mental health and for Will’s own good too. He’s sooo not spiteful or anything petty like that. Nope. He’s quite mature for his age.
The next day, Mike and the boys wait at the bike rack. Will’s coming to school today, but ever since the Upside Down incident, he’s not allowed to be by himself anymore. Jonathan drives him to Hawkins Middle now. A few more girls approach Mike with notes, and Mike makes sure to discreetly take them, Lucas and Dustin oblivious simply because they’re more focused on Will arriving than anything else (as they should be). That’s how it goes for a while. Mike taking notes from Will’s admirers and just not finishing the line of communication.
He pockets them and then smiles fondly at Will during lunch period. He slips them in his backpack and then insists Will sleeps over for the weekend. He’s not necessarily lying to Valerie or Erin or Paula or What’s-Her-Name-Again? Mike never claims that these notes of theirs will reach Will’s hands. They’re just assuming he volunteered. Technically, it’s their own fault for shoving the physical embodiment of their lovesick feelings onto Mike. He never asked for that huge responsibility. In fact, none of the girls had the decency to see if Mike even agrees to doing the task. Disrespectful.
Besides, it’s not like Will cares. Mike regards how Will never ever questions if girls have notes for him. He knows if it were Lucas or Dustin, they’d be checking in daily, smugly even, but not Will. He’s quite complacent with the sole presence of his Party bugging him. Sure, Will sometimes got a mixture of looks in the hallways from jilted and snubbed girls, but none of that fazed him much. Sadly, Will’s used to being gawked at. Only Mike knew why the girls kept eying Will with hurt expressions, and why Will appears insensitive to the girls. Luckily, Hawkins Middle School’s female population wasn’t prone to bullying (not targeted at the boys at least), so Will didn’t get accosted for his lack of reaction. In fact, to Mike’s utmost grief, it turns out girls are trickier to decipher than he originally thought because Will’s presumed icy coldness to his admirers was well-received instead! Talk about a backfire.
What the hell? They liked being left in the dark with no type of closure? Mike’s thunderstruck. Where was the self-respect?! Guess Will being labeled as unavailable rose his social currency among the girls, that or they soothed their humiliated feelings by reasoning how Will still needs time to reacclimate from his traumatic hush-hush experience. Incredibly confused and pissed, Mike keeps getting notes and watches the girls optimistically whisper whenever Will impassively walks by. Mike can only hypothesize that the girls think it’s better for Will to be alone than to actually choose one of them, to have a concrete preference, and that preference excluding them in particular. Makes their rejection sting less. Well, whatever, as long as they realize they don’t have a chance, Mike won’t complain.
He won’t contemplate on why he needs Will to be disinterested in girls because, like, eventually they’ll be a time where the entire Party’s going to have girlfriends, but as of present, he’s alright with how things are.
*****
Is there anything worse than working in a group for homework? If he’s not with his friends, then Mike thought it’s the bane of his academic existence. Mr. Shapiro has a reading assignment due tomorrow, and he paired up Mike with a girl he’s never talked to in his life, Sam Crawford. They’re using their free period to knock it out in the school library because neither wants to see each other after school. Mike’s going to the arcade with the Party and Sam’s got band practice. It makes sense for them to split the short essay questions in half, Mike doing the front of the worksheet as Sam finishes the back of it. They’re quite the efficient partners.
Not to toot his own horn, but Mike fancies himself as a decent writer, so initially he worried that Sam would be incompetent or a slacker. Wasn’t the first time Mike had to do a majority of an assignment, if not all of it, for a useless group partner. Wasn’t the case this time. Unexpectedly, Sam’s a real cool girl. Not as cool as El, but cool in a different way. If Mike squints hard enough, which isn’t a lot, Sam sort of looks and acts like a combined version of both Will and Mike! Funny, it’s almost as if Will and Mike had a child together, a daughter, with the way Sam behaves! Physically speaking, she’s got moles like Will and she’s okay at drawing judging by the doodles on her English journal cover. Personality-wise, Sam resembles Mike more, a bit talkative and excellent at writing. She’s done with her portion of the short essays faster than Mike is!
Also, icing on the cake, in the midst of Sam chatting away to fend off boredom while Mike silently scribbles, she reveals that her parents named her after some character from Lord of the Rings and now Mike thinks he’s in love because what?! A girl knows (by proxy) what’s the greatest fantasy story ever made! Color him intrigued. Mike slightly tunes her out though, drifting into a daydream, picturing what it’d be like if he dated Sam. She’s clearly not grossed out by him, even if she’s just talking to hear her own voice at the moment. Maybe if he dates Sam then Dustin and Lucas can stop asking for Mike’s opinions on beautiful models, actresses, and singers that just don’t do it for him to be truthful.
Mike just guesses that his hormones are a bit more disciplined than Dustin’s or Lucas’s or the rest of his male peers. Why else doesn’t he get excited at famously attractive girls and women like the others do? He’d think himself odd if Will wasn’t the same way, and since Will doesn’t bat an eye at the dolled up ladies in magazines and movie screens, then Mike feels comfortably ordinary that he’s not the only one unmoved.
Abruptly, he discovers the beginnings of his introspective side developing when monotonously answering the essay questions. Is he attracted to Sam since on paper they could match together like puzzle pieces? Or is he attracted to Sam because she reminds him of Will? Is it possible to date girls just like Will? Boy, would that make getting a girlfriend a lot easier. If a girl can understand him in the way Will can, he’d hit the jackpot! Another inquiry blooms in his brain. If Sam also reminds Mike of himself, is he delving into an ego issue or what?
His philosophizing is cut short by a “Mike, you’re in the library too for free period?!”
Mike snaps his eyes to Will, who’s carrying a stack of books. He genuinely hadn’t expected to see him, but when thinking of the devil.
“Working on this dumb thing for Mr. Shapiro.” He lamely waves his homework with an irked expression.
Will nods, grinning toothily at him, and Mike feels a fluttering in his stomach. Geez, did Joyce swallow a piece of the sun when pregnant with Will because every time Mike’s with him his day gets brighter. Evidently, Will affects more than just Mike within the vicinity, Sam Crawford’s cheeks lighting aflame and pupils dilating as she attempts flirtatiously to flip her hair. Welp, gone was Mike’s mild fascination with her. It dissipates the second he catches her drooling for Will all bashful, and Mike’s ready to rebuke her like a demon.
“I’m returning some checked out books. Wanted to do it earlier, but, y’know.” Will doesn’t further explain and Mike knows he gets a special pass for the rest of the year from the Upside Down fiasco. “Anyways, I’ll let you keep working. Don’t wanna distract you. When you’re done, I’ll be at Lucas’s locker.”
Will’s briskly leaving, and usually Mike would give the deepest pout to sway him to stay longer, but instead he’s encouraging Will to go so Sam can stop staring. When he’s officially out of sight, out of mind, Mike hurries his last set of scribbling, scornfully ignoring Sam while she starts begging for any information about Will. Once completely done, he curtly bids her farewell and books it out of there. Mike spots Will at Lucas’s locker as promised, the two sneaking in sticks of gum in their mouths to chew on, both having a competition on who could blow the biggest bubble without it popping. Dustin is timing it like they’ll break a world record or something, he’s doubling as a lookout for any teachers too. Endearingly, Mike gazes from afar at Will losing to Lucas with Dustin gutturally laughing, two water fountains and a staircase down the hall in between them.
His feet move forward, getting nearer to his friends. Will’s mouth is covered in sticky bubblegum that he has to meticulously peel off. Hearing his footsteps, Will wistfully looks to him, and a tantalizing stirring of the jitters infects Mike as he’s the subject of those invigorating eyes. He ends up concluding within a heartbeat that girls like Will don’t exist because nothing would compare. Will’s one of a kind, once in a lifetime, a certain type of special that can’t be duplicated.
*****
Joyce and Jonathan must take extra shifts at work. Life’s becoming more expensive from inflation and Will’s still not allowed to be by himself at the house. That’s the one thing all the Byers agree on. It’s on a school night when Joyce phones Karen last minute for a favor, to let Will sleepover, and both mothers shield their ears at Will and Mike’s thrilled screaming. The boys hadn’t done a solo sleepover in forever. Jonathan’s going to drop Will off and Mike hustles to make his space presentable, cleaning up his room and the basement spic and span. He does all his chores with no complaint and swipes the best junk food from the pantry, envisioning Will and him having a wild night despite it not being the weekend. Karen warns him not to go overboard.
To be vain, Mike radios Lucas and Dustin to rub it in their faces that Will’s staying with him. All three banter back and forth until the doorbell rings, Mike’s ears picking up on Karen greeting Will downstairs. Like old times, Mike hosts swimmingly, entertaining Will after Karen forces them to do any residual homework. Earlier, the Byers had been rushing, Joyce forgetting to double check if Will packed his pajamas (he did), but since Jonathan was running late, Will neglected to grab his overnight bag when scrambling for everything. That left Mike fishing in his closet and dresser for spare clothing.
He gives Will pajamas that don’t fit him anymore, the last couple of months being conquered by Mike’s sporadic growth spurts. Mike conveniently goes to the bathroom to brush his teeth, essentially letting Will have privacy to change. What’s tight on Mike’s frame is very loose on Will’s. The smaller boy has on a borrowed sweatshirt that reaches a little above his midthigh with the sleeves covering the tips of his fingers. When it comes to the pants, Will must triple knot the drawstring to keep it from slipping off his hips. Generally, he feels comfy. The engulfing sweatshirt resembles Mike hugging him and Will rapturously buries his nose in the collar.
Deciding it’s time to roll out his sleeping bag, Will bends down only to stumble and trip to his knees. The pants were lengthy on him, his ankles and feet swallowed at the hem. He’s grateful to break his fall, though he does knock over Mike’s bedroom trash can as a casualty. Will frowns, preparing to pick up snotty tissues or pencil shavings or scrapped D&D campaigns, but blinks in awe at the heap of notes leaking out. Gasping, Will wonders why Mike’s harboring notes, if some of these notes belonged to Mike, and what’s inside them. He timidly checks the door. Mike’s still in the bathroom. Will grabs a handful and reads. He scans each different bubbly girly handwriting, and suddenly, Will’s decoding months worth of strange stares from Judy, Jennifer, Beth, Carly, Sam, Beth and others.
“What are you doing?” Mike’s voice has Will abandon the evidence in his palms.
“I should be asking you that. What are you doing?” Will drops the notes, rising to his feet from his kneeling position.
Mike shuts the bedroom door behind him. Will paces forward, awaiting some type of clarification.
“You really wanna know?” This isn’t how Mike thought he’d come clean.
“Yes, I do.” Will chuckles at Mike’s stubbornness, finding it to be silly.
“I intercepted possibly hazardous notes.” Earnestly, solemnly, Mike says this with no inkling of remorse.
Will snickers at that. “Hardly hazardous, I’ll say.”
“Hey! Those girls are potential thieves!” Mike pleads his case ardently. Will begs to differ.
“How so? Enlighten me.” He says in between his increasing snickering.
“They… Uh… Wanted to steal your heart!” Mike was reaching for straws here.
“Oh, yeah?” Will gives up, absolutely laughing now.
Mike’s own lips curve into a sly smirk, Will’s laughter contagious. “Yeah.”
“So, does that make you a thief too, then?” Will ponders, putting on a thoughtful face and scratching his chin. “Pretty sure rifling through mail that’s not yours, and hoarding said mail is a felony crime.”
Mike crosses his arms, standing on it with no signs of backpedaling. “I’ll serve my time cuz I don’t regret doing it.”
“I bet you don’t. You’re smiling. You gonna smile for your mugshot?” Will’s breezy tone nearly sweeps Mike off his feet.
“If Jonathan takes my picture then yup. I’m flashing my pearly whites.”
“Idiot.”
They fix the fallen trash can and put the notes back inside. Will doesn’t dig into why the trash can solely has the notes in it, almost like Mike’s collecting them as bizarre trophies. He opts to roll out his sleeping bag rather than deep dive into Mike’s chaotic thought process. Mike slides into his bed once Will’s snuggled up. The lights are off except for the soft glow of a desk lamp that Mike keeps on for Will and him. Both having a reemergence of fearing the dark from their Upside Down experience. Mike and Will lie on their backs and look at the ceiling.
“Don’t worry.” Will whispers.
Mike turns his head to the side, downcast eyes on Will. “What?”
“Don’t worry about my heart being stolen.” Will resolutely reassures.
“Are… Are you sure?” Mike licks his lips, hands clutching, nails digging in his palms that the skin might tear. “The girls really like you and they’re really pretty.”
“That’s true.” Will hums. “But all that doesn’t matter to me.”
“It should.”Mike always thinks about the future and what it means for the Party, and why everyone treats them differently when they don’t hurt anyone, and if there’s ever a point in life where they can be left alone without judgment. “We’re almost in eighth grade. Then it’ll be high school.”
“Uh-huh.” Will sleepily says, a yawn escaping him as his eyes close. “So? I’d rather spend time with people I actually like than waste my time with people I don’t.”
Mike shifts in bed, looking down at Will’s figure with his torso bowed. “People you actually like, huh? Am I one of those people?”
Will cracks an eye open. “Do you even need to ask?”
“Answer the question Will.”
“Yes! Of course you’re one of the people I like!”
“Yeah? Cool. I like you, too.” Mike casually states, shifting again to lie on his stomach and rub his face in his pillow to de-escalate his blushing.
Will’s too tired to shyly react. “Duh. We’re best friends. I already know that you like me. Nothing new.”
“I know you know, but it’s nice to hear it sometimes.” Mike sighs in contentment.
“Good night, Mike.”
“Good night, Will.”
Slumber subdues Will, a serene smile gracing his lips as he coasts into the sweetest dreams he’s ever had since being rescued. That’s the effect of being near Mike, Will gets the best sleep ever. Grinning from ear to ear, dark brown eyes glue to Will’s peaceful face, glad the smaller boy felt safe and secure in his room. Mike follows Will shortly after into slumber, but not before admitting to himself that he and the girls from Hawkins Middle are similar, maybe the same. They all want Will’s attention in some fashion or form.