Work Text:
December 12, 1986
They’d been back in Hawkins for eight days now. Max still hadn’t woken, Will had visited her everyday. They all did, really. He had been volunteering at the high school which had been temporarily turned into a shelter for people without places to go, a place to search for missing loved ones, and a place to get needs like blankets, pillows, clothes, food, and toys for children. Will had been sorting out toys and handing them out for the past few days. He liked it. He liked seeing the children get excited at the toys, it gave him a sense of hope or… comfort.
Nothing with Vecna had come yet, but Will could feel it. He knew it would be soon. He knew they would have to go fight soon. He knew he’d have to return to the Upside Down. He knew. They had been planning, briefly. They knew they could escape him with music, and they knew that fire was, most likely, a weakness. The fight would happen soon, but for now, the main goal was to help Hawkins.
With everything going on, Hawkins’ spring break was extended until further notice, and Joyce had called Lenora High to inform them of a family emergency, saying that they’d be out for a while. So no school. Not that it was important, really. Not with everything that was going on.
Everyone had fixed up the cabin just enough for Hopper and El to stay there safely; out of sight from everyone else in Hawkins. Will visited every day because with them there, it left the Byers family-Joyce, Will, and Jonathan-staying at the Wheeler's house, with Joyce in the guest room and Will and Jonathan down on the basement, taking turns on who got the couch and who got the cot on the ground. But when winter came and the basement grew too cold to bare, Mrs. Wheeler decided it would be best for Will and Jonathan to sleep upstairs, in Mike's room. She and Joyce moved the cot in there, despite Jonathan insisting that he and Will could have done it.
The first night, they had only made it through Joyce poking her head in to say goodnight before Jonathan was up, sneaking across the hall to Nancy's room. At first, Will had thought it would be fine. Just like a sleep over, right-and he and Mike had had plenty of sleepovers over the years. But that night, after Jonathan snuck away, it was just so... awkward.
It had been like that since they got back to Hawkins. Awkward. All Mike and Will's interactions had been filled with awkward attempts of small talk and nothing more. Will wanted to throw himself out a window every time Mike entered the room, which was terrible, really, considering they were in Mike's house. So, he tried to stay away. He tried to push Mike away as much as he could when his only place of escape, really, was Mike's own bedroom.
He sat on the floor, back against Mike's bed, drawing a memory of Joyce, El, Jonathan, and himself at the beach when they first moved to Lenora-something El had requested. Mike was downstairs, last time Will checked, helping Mrs. Wheeler with the dishes after being ushered into the kitchen by her-something about "It's like Joyce and I are the only ones who care about chores. And I never see my own children anymore; this will be nice!" To Will's knowledge, that's where he was. Until the door opened. Will looked up.
“Hey,” Mike said from behind him, closing the door again.
“Hey,” Will repeated.
“How- uh, how have you been?” Mike asked.
“Fine, I guess,” Will shrugged.
“Yeah,” Mike nodded. It was awkward. “Glad to be back in Hawkins? I mean- I’m- I’m glad you guys are back.”
“I guess,” Will said, still not looking over. “It’s different, and I guess I just wish I was back on better terms.”
“Yeah,” Mike said, sitting down on his bed. Will looked back at his drawing.
Awkward.
“It’s just crazy, everything that's happening,” Mike went on anyway. “It just feels so much different this time. For everyone, I guess. El is- I mean she won’t say it, but I can tell she’s scared. And everything with Max, whatever it was Nancy says she saw, and you… I mean, you can feel it, you know? Well, I mean, of course you know. That was stupid.”
“Just a little bit,” Will said, grinning up at Mike.
“It’s just… I mean, the world could realistically end tomorrow, you know? It could end right now, actually,” he said. “And I guess I just- There’s something that I want to tell you and I shouldn't really say it, I don’t think, but I really want to.”
“Okay,” Will nodded slowly, feeling his heart rate rise. “Go ahead.”
Mike took a breath. “I’ve been thinking a lot about… everything that happened in California and on the way to Suzie’s and to find El, and I guess I just… I was a total jerk to you when I first got to California, and I know we already talked about it, but I said I was sorry I didn’t call and I… Well, I did call, Will. I did, but the line was always busy. I guess because of your mom’s new job, but I called. A lot. And I called for you, not El. I wanted to talk to you.”
“You called?” Will asked.
“Every day for 43 days,” Mike nodded. “I gave up eventually because I figured that if you wanted to talk then you would’ve called when your mom was done with work, but you never called so I just stopped."
"Oh," Will said, because he didn't know what else to.
“El and I broke up,” Mike said dully. “It was a mutual break up, I guess, but she… I mean, she initiated it. Her exact words were that she didn’t need me anymore. I mean, that sounds kind of mean, but, you know, the whole independence thing or whatever. She’s not this helpless girl that I found in a giant t-shirt in the woods in the pouring rain anymore, you know? We grew up and with that, we grew apart, I guess. But the funny thing is, I knew she didn’t need me anymore. It was so obvious, so I guess, I mean- you had to of known too, right?”
“I don’t-”
“I don’t want to call you a liar, Will,” Mike said, and Will’s heart sank. “You knew she didn’t need me but you said she did. You said she was pushing me away from her because she was scared of losing me, but that wasn’t true at all, was it?”
Will thought back to what he had said to Mike in the pizza van. Of course it wasn’t true.
“You also said that she commissioned the painting, but she- she didn’t. I know she didn’t. She didn’t even know what it was, Will, she said you wouldn’t show her and she told me she thought you were working on it for a girl that you like and… When I read that, I felt so… like, sick. I felt sick.” Mike explained. “I’m not gonna ask you to explain it to me. I don’t need to know why you lied."
"You and El were having problems," Will tried. "I just wanted to help, and I figured since I was saying that you're 'The Heart,' it would sound better coming from El-"
"-because she was my girlfriend?" Mike asked, "and girlfriends love their boyfriends, and boyfriends love their girlfriends. That's what I wanted to talk to you about, actually."
Will opened his mouth to say something, closed it, opened it again, and then closed it again.
"I have no idea if we're going to be alive tomorrow. Or next week, or next month, or... I mean, I have no idea what this asshole is planning for Hawkins," Mike explained. "But I don't want to die without you knowing that I... I mean, I don't want to die keeping the biggest, worst secret ever, from my best friend."
“What do you mean?” Will finally managed to ask.
“I love you,” Mike said, like it was the easiest, most natural thing to do. “I love you and it’s not like how I love Lucas or Dustin or Nancy or Holly or even El. I mean, it’s how I should’ve loved El, but it’s not, it’s- it never was. It’s how I love you. Am I making sense?” Will just stared at him. “Okay, I guess, it’s-it’s more than just I love you,” he started again. “I’m in love with you. And maybe that scary as hell for you to hear, I mean, it’s terrifying to say, because-well, I have been for a long time, I didn’t-I mean, I didn’t know it at first, but I know now, Will, I know. I’m- I love you.”
Will continued to stare and it was suddenly obvious that that was all Mike had planned to say and so that sat there, like that, just stared. Will was aware of how quiet it was, he hated it. Hate, hate, hate. He hated the awkward silence that had seemed so obvious in situations with him and Mike. He got up from his spot on the floor and Mike watched him. He crossed the room slowly and sat next to Mike on the bed.
“I need you,” Will said. “In the van, it was never El I was talking about-I was talking about me. I need you and I’m scared of losing you. I was being mean and I was pushing you away. And yeah, El had no idea about the painting, it was all me, but everything else about it is true you’re- you’re the heart.” Mike was looking at him, he could feel it. He continued to stare straight ahead. “I’ve known- I’ve known that I’ve been… in love with you since the eighth grade.”
“Yeah?” Mike asked, he seemed to be a lot more calm than Will who could feel his heart about to beat right out of his chest.
“Yeah,” he said. “I’ve always known I was… different and, I just, I don’t know, but um, I- I love you too, Mike.”
Finally he turned his head, meeting Mike’s eyes. Mike was smiling.
“I was gonna give you the painting right away when you got to California,” Will said.
“Is-I mean, is that why you were so upset, because me and El-”
“-Us being friends has always been most important to me,” Will answered. “I felt left out, it’s-I know how stupid that sounds, but-”
“-It doesn’t sound stupid,” Mike shook his head. “Not at all.”
Will took a deep breath and shook his head, “I was being a douche to you and El and I totally should’ve told you about Angela sooner but I- I don’t know. I was upset. I was excited to see you and you blew me off. On my birthday”
Mike looked away.
“It’s always been-I’ve always been more focused on our friendship and you just- It just seemed like you didn’t care anymore,” Will sighed, and then he laughed. “You didn’t even hug me in the airport.”
“I didn’t forget, you know,” Mike said quietly. “I knew it was your birthday, I-maybe that makes it sound worse. I just-I don’t know… I panicked.” Mike got up again and grabbed the backpack he had brought to California, he unzipped it and pulled something out- a cassette. He brought it back over to the bed and handed it to Will as he sat back down.
Will’s Songs
Happy birthday!
Love,
Mike.
“I was gonna give that to you,” he said. “I’m- sorry it’s late.”
Will just smiled at him, “Thank you.”
“It’s all your favorites,” Mike grinned. “And a few new ones I thought you’d like.”
“This’ll- I mean, this will be really helpful with everything going on,” Will smiled.
“Yeah, I guess so,” Mike sighed. “‘m glad to know the gift I got you could potentially save your life.”
Will looked down again.
“Do you think that, maybe, since I’m connected like this I- Do you think I might have a higher chance of getting attacked?” Will asked slowly.
“I don’t know,” Mike shook his head. “But no matter what we won’t let you die- I won’t let you die.” He had grasped onto Will’s hand as he said this and suddenly Will was thirteen again, sitting on his bed, all possessed and stuff, and Mike Wheeler was holding his hand.
Will looked over at him, and for a while, he just let himself watch Mike. Slowly, he could feel himself moving closer, like there was some sort of force pulling him to Mike, like Mike was a refrigerator and Will was the magnet that clung to it, and then, Will’s eyes fluttered shut and he felt his lips on Mike’s.
It wasn't fast like he had seen in movies. It wasn’t like they were starved for touch and needed this. It was slow and warm. Their hands were still holding each other's, and Will felt Mike’s free hand come up and hold onto his face. It lasted a while, but Will felt it could’ve been longer. When they finally pulled apart, Mike’s face was covered in a soft pink and Will felt himself smile.
“I don’t want the world to end,” Will whispered. “Promise me we’ll stop it, just like we always do. I don’t care how different it is this time or how crazy I sound, just… promise me, okay?”
“We will, I promise-even if we sound crazy. Crazy together, right?”
Will felt his stomach flip.
“Yeah,” he smiled. “Crazy together.”
Mike moved forward again, but didn't kiss him again. He brought his hand up to the back of Will’s head and pressed their foreheads together. He closed his eyes.
“Will?” He whispered. “I love you.”
“I love you too,” Will whispered in response.