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It was seven in the morning, and Mike was blearily rubbing his eyes, a feeling of calm washing through him…a still sensation he hadn’t felt in years. He was curled on the sofa under a fleecy blanket, feet tucked under him, with a comforting weight on his arm. Had he been asleep? He stretched out his neck and looked towards the window, over the arm of the sofa. The darkness of the apartment was splitting wide open. The quiet was noticeable: dawn was just breaking and no music was playing. And he was okay with that. For the first time in years.
He turned his head to his right, stunning himself when he came face to face with—
Will. The comforting weight leaning against his arm, fast asleep and snoring lightly.
Mike’s heart melted in an instant, breath hitching in his throat, as last night (this morning?) came flooding through his mind all over again.
*
2:01am
“You don’t have to go. If you don’t want to.”
And thank goodness he didn’t.
They set themselves down on the sofa, still in full costume, hands shaking, but not just from the October chill outside.
“Are you gonna put on some music?” Will asked tentatively.
Mike found himself hesitating as well. Even though he knew the answer, this was still uncharted territory. “No. It’s okay.”
Will nodded, shifting closer, a proud smile tugging at his lips. “Okay.”
Another thing that was okay now was kissing. That was very much okay. It was the most significant change from when they left this apartment earlier, to returning here, magic sprinkled in the air between them.
Mike leaned in close towards Will. Their lips met softly, crackling with tenderness, like an old record. They were fixed to the sofa and, pulling back slowly, fixed to each other’s eyes, and how much there was left to learn within them.
“It’s so quiet in here.” Will whispered. “It feels so…light.”
“I’ve never felt like this before.” His own honesty surprised him. “I mean,” he continued, “moving here was meant to fix things. But it just made everything so much heavier…”
“Until now.” Will completed his sentence.
A moment of silence. Longer. But comfortable.
“I grew up in Indiana.” Mike began. “And it was impossible for me to find people I could relate to. I never fit in anywhere, never had friends. The bullies loved me though.” He laughed, raw and haunted. “I’d always dreamed of getting out of there, starting my own life somewhere that wasn’t Indiana, not following the footsteps of my parents, and their parents, and their parents. New York was the furthest I could think of. I got a place at Columbia, somehow. Hard work, I guess. I really was that motivated. But I completely broke down.” His voice cracked and Will placed a soothing hand on his knee. “Had a panic attack in the halls on the first day. I crawled straight back here afterwards and…” He was sniffling now— when did that start? “…felt like an absolute failure. I never went back. I didn’t get any more panic attacks that were nearly that bad, but... I’ve never had a job. I don’t really leave here. Everyone else is so ahead in life, and I’m just…” A sharp exhale. A reset. “The music stops me thinking about that stuff, I guess. Because all my life I’ve been made to feel less of myself. By the bullies. By my own head. To tell the truth, I think I forgot who I was. But…” Mike finished the sentence with his eyes. You showed me who I am, Will. Who I always have been, somewhere underneath.
“Mike.” Will’s voice was as fragile as his. “I don’t know what to say.” But of course he did— he always did. “None of what those bullies did defines you. You’re not a failure at all.” He tightened his grip on Mike’s knee. “You have your whole life ahead of you to…catch up. Whatever you want. It’s your life.”
And it was only just beginning.
Mike told him about the night before they met, how he’d been thinking about going to a concert, maybe getting a start on catching up.
“There you go, then. You’re already one step ahead of where you were.”
But in truth, he was lots more steps ahead.
They sat and talked for ages, about the dark stuff, and the light stuff, and the grey stuff in between. Laughter filled the chasm in the room, patching it over with gentle joy. It was the longest conversation Mike had ever held, but it wasn’t draining or difficult. Instead it came infinitely more natural than expected, like every time they talked…except now it was four am and they were curled together under the blanket, heads leaning against each other’s as they talked, drowsier with each sentence.
“And then Max pushed Lucas in the pool, and El got absolutely soaked. Dustin was so protective over her, it was really sweet. And funny.” Will smiled.
“Your friends sound cool.”
He thought he’d seen a picture from this day on Instagram, when he was combing through Will’s page. There were two couples in the group, Max and Lucas, Dustin and El…and then there was Will. He was— double third-wheeling? It was an interesting dynamic, but it seemed to work really well for them: they’d all been friends since middle school.
“I think you’d really like them.” Will yawned, stretching out an arm and laying it sleepily over Mike’s torso. His heart swelled with a fizzling feeling. “We should get together sometime, maybe go on a…” another yawn, “a triple date.”
Mike’s eyes widened in surprise, and he started to speak before realising— Will had nodded off. It was the calmest sensation ever, having another human being trust you enough to switch off their brain in your company.
Feeling soft and fluffy, his eyelids drooped, the only heavy part of him left.
He felt himself dropping…dropping away with an all-consuming swoop.
And he was
asleep.
7.15am
Will grunted in his sweet slumber. His glasses had slipped off his nose, pressing into his cheek, leaving a small dent. Mike prised them gently away from him and set them on the arm of the sofa next to him. That should be more comfortable: that way he wouldn’t have a sore cheek when he woke up.
He smiled proudly to himself remembering that he, too, just woke up, which means that he actually fell asleep. It didn’t matter how long for, only that it happened. And he was capable of giving himself the chance to rest. To look after himself.
8.30am
At last, Will began to stir. He stretched out his legs and rubbed his eyes dazedly.
“Morning.” Mike’s voice was warm and clear. “Sleep well?”
“Yeah,” Will smiled, sitting up straight, running a hand over his face, “you?” He immediately cringed, face falling as he realised his error. “Shit. Sorry, I—”
“Actually, I did.” Mike cut in, picking up Will’s glasses and handing them back to him. “I slept really well.”
Will made a small noise in his throat, before diving forwards to wrap his arms around Mike. “I’m so proud of you.” He whispered.
“I couldn’t have done it without you.”
They stayed in each others arms a while longer, happy in the sunlight streaking through the window.
“I realised we didn’t get any videos. Of last night.” Mike pursed his lips.
“We got the group picture, and that selfie with the couple next to us. Oh, and I exchanged numbers with one of them. We can see if they have any?”
“It’s not a problem. I just…everything you see on social media is people living their lives through their phones. But we actually experienced it, you know?” They didn’t need to film everything to have a good time.
“Do you think we could find Chlorine online?” Will’s eyebrows shot up.
Mike grabbed for his phone on the floor and fumbled with the passcode. Living in the moment was great and everything, but so was a video of them singing with the one and only Tyler Joseph.
And sure enough, there it was— the first video on his feed. Posted by the official @twentyonepilots account.
“Oh my God.” Will’s hand flew to his mouth as they pored over the screen. “That’s us!!”
They watched their past selves high-five Tyler and silently scream at each other in excitement; it was incredible to see. Mike reposted the video for all 5 of his followers to see. (Will; Nancy; her girlfriend Barb; Holly; and his middle school teacher Mr Clarke, whom he’d — strangely — become friends with after leaving school.) He tagged Will in, feeling a flutter in his stomach as he did so.
They were surely more than friends by now.
But what were they? Mike was about to find out for sure.
“Um, so, I was wo—wondering, if you’d maybe—if you’d like to…” He kept tripping over his words. (In his defence, he’d never asked anyone out before. His only previous romantic experience was one awkward kiss at a high school dance, but now he looked back on it, it had probably been a dare from the other girl’s friends. Not that he’d enjoyed it: he had been pretty sure he didn’t like girls at that point.) “If—if you’d like to be my—my boyfriend.” He cringed aggressively at himself: he sounded like a teenager.
“Yeah.” Will nodded, a heavenly look in his eyes. “I really would.”
A kiss to seal the deal.
The kind of promise for which no more words were needed.
10.45am
They’d been trawling through Indeed for nearly an hour now, squinting at Will’s laptop. His apartment was neat and clean, with hardly anything inside. (“I never really had time to…unpack.” Will had said as they stared around at the boxes piled at the edge of the room.)
Mike groaned in annoyance, leaning back against his chair, resting his head on Will’s shoulder. “It’s so boring. And so confusing.”
“This is how people find jobs,” Will laughed, “even if it’s hard to use.” His squint deepened as he fumbled with the trackpad.
Mike had decided he wanted to work in an office, rather than from home— he’d spent far too much time in that old apartment. Once he’d decided that, they were definitely getting closer to what he wanted. Or so they hoped.
“Nothing on this website makes any sense.” Mike crossed his arms defiantly over his chest.
Will folded the laptop away, gears turning in his head.
“What is it?” Mike noticed quickly. Will was smirking, reaching for his phone.
“I have to make a call.”
11.03am
Will had been on the phone for a long time now, such a long time that it was beginning to make Mike anxious. Not knowing what was going on really fed into his catastrophic thinking.
“Okay. Thanks so much! Bye.” At last, he set his phone down on the table, a wide grin spreading over his face.
“Who was that?” Mike croaked.
“That was my boss. You know how things got really hectic the other day and I had to cancel dinner? Well, we’re actually understaffed at work— it’s a lot of pressure, you know, doing jobs that are nothing to do with mine. But! Good news, they’re hiring in admin. And I may or may not have just got you an interview. Tomorrow.”
Mike frowned— he was about to make a fool of himself, he was sure. “I don’t know much about jobs, but isn’t that, like, cheating?”
“Well, you haven’t got the job yet.” Will smiled. “But I think you’re in with a good chance.”
1.20pm
“Okay, so when they ask about your strengths, you say…”
“I’m patient, dedicated and organised. Perfect for an admin job.”
“And weaknesses?”
“Self-criticism.” Mike pursed his lips, remembering everything they’d just been through. What and what not to say. “And public speaking. And I’m easily startled—”
His phone trilled loudly, taking him by surprise.
“I believe you.” Will laughed, placing a hand on Mike’s arm to calm him down.
Mike peered at the screen. Nancy.
They hadn’t spoken properly in weeks, maybe even months. It wasn’t her fault— Mike knew how busy she was, how hard she worked as Indiana’s star reporter. And he didn’t have a great track record of confiding in her.
He picked up the phone, anxious that something was terribly wrong. Why would she be calling, if not to break some awful news? What was so urgent that she had to ring instead of text him?
“Nance?”
“Mike!” Her voice was bright. Not a voice used to break bad news…but you never know.
“Is— is everything okay?” He chewed on the side of his thumb.
“Yeah, yeah, we’re all good.”
He heard someone else whisper to Nancy, wherever they were. He guessed it was probably—
“Barb and I saw your repost! How was the concert?”
“Oh my God,” he laughed, smiling up at Will, “I literally cannot describe it.”
“And who’s your new friend?” Barb’s voice sounded down the line. “Will the Wise?”
“He’s my...” This was really happening.
Will widened his eyes in anticipation.
“…my boyfriend.” Mike’s voice was shy but proud; Nancy and Barb gasped happily; Will blushed so deep he thought he might pop a blood vessel.
My boyfriend.
“I can introduce you if you like.” Mike raised an eyebrow at Will, who nodded excitedly. Mike switched to speakerphone and set the phone on the table next to the forgotten-about laptop.
“Hi Will!”
“Hi!”
“I have some brilliant stories about Mike I think you’d love to hear.” Nancy’s smirk was audible. Completely true to herself, she pounced at the first opportunity to embarrass her little brother.
“Nance. Now is not the time.” Mike groaned, flopping his head onto his folded arms as Will’s laugh bubbled next to him.
THE NEXT DAY
8.00am
Mike woke up in Will’s apartment, curled against his side, thick duvet resting on top of him. Will’s alarm was going off quietly— it was Robot Voices.
“I love this song.” Mike mumbled sleepily into the pillow, enjoying the warmth he felt himself wrapped in. Not just the duvet, but his boyfriend next to him. His boyfriend.
Will yawned and rolled onto his back. “Me too. Reminds me of Scaled and Icy.”
He didn’t snooze the alarm, instead let the song play all the way through.
10.30am
“You’ve got this.” Will grinned, twisting his bag strap with one hand, squeezing Mike’s with the other. They were walking up the iconic Met steps, preparing to go in.
“I’ve never been here before.” Mike gazed up at the museum, its stunning Beaux-Arts facade quite simply taking his breath away. He sipped his coffee in contemplation.
“It’s my favourite place in the world.” Will sighed. “And I’m from California.”
The sudden sarcasm caught Mike off-guard and he spluttered out a laugh, stopping briefly in his tracks. Someone bumped into him from behind and half of his coffee spilt on the steps in front of him, droplets catching on his ‘smart Converse’.
“Oh no! I’m so so sorry.”
A familiar voice, blurting an apology. Mike and Will spun around at the same time, only to find themselves face to face with
Joshua
Freaking
Dun.
“It’s okay.” Mike squeaked.
Josh Dun Josh Dun Josh Dun.
“No it’s not! I feel so bad.”
“What’s going on?” Another voice: Tyler appeared from behind Josh with corndogs for the both of them.
Tyler Joseph Tyler Joseph Tyler Joseph.
“I caused a coffee spillage.” Josh sighed, clocking what Tyler was holding. “Hey, I love you, man, and you know I love corndogs, but we’re literally going into a museum.” Tyler shrugged and handed Josh his corndog, suggesting they all move to the side and make way for the influx of people.
Mike and Will were too stunned to do anything except stare and nudge each other excitedly. You seeing this?? Yeah. What do we do?? I don’t know I don’t know I don’t know!! Let’s think of something cool to say. Okay okay good plan let’s—
“I know you guys!” Tyler grinned, chowing down on his corndog with enthusiasm. “You were at the show on Saturday!”
“We were.” Will grinned right back at him. No way! We’ve been remembered! “Not to be weird or anything, but we’re huge fans.”
“That’s awesome.” Josh smiled.
“I’m Will, this is Mike.” They exchanged handshakes.
Mike stuttered around his words. “You- you guys are actually how- how we got talking. We were bonding over your music literally last week.”
“Saturday was our first official date.” Will blushed.
Were they oversharing? As far as they were concerned, it didn’t matter. When the opportunity came up to chat with Tyler and Josh, you had to grab it with both hands and make the most of the moment.
“Awww.” The Pilots said in unison, genuinely caring about the guys they’d only just met.
“What brings you guys to the Met? Don’t you have a show in Virginia tomorrow?” Will asked.
“Do we?” Tyler muttered to Josh. Mike and Will were very amused. “Just kidding,” Tyler clarified, “of course I know our tour schedule.”
“Do you?” Josh chimed in.
Tyler was most certainly not amused. He balled up his napkin and chucked it playfully at Josh’s chest; he caught it effortlessly and twirled it around his fingers. That’s what you get from all that drumming, Mike thought. Excellent coordination. Should I take up drumming…or would that be a disaster?
“We wanted to see some art, maybe grab some sushi in the cafe.” Tyler shrugged.
“I love this place so much. Always seemed like it would be cool to work here.” Josh followed Tyler up the steps, chatting to Mike and Will like they were old friends.
“Will works here!” Mike grinned proudly.
“That’s awesome! Maybe you could show us around properly?” Josh asked.
“As brilliant as that sounds,” Will sighed, “Mike actually has an interview.”
“But it won’t take long!” Mike spluttered, desperate to find a way to make this dream come true. Walking around the Met with his boyfriend and Twenty One freaking Pilots.
They were inside now, gazing around at the wide entrance hall. It still stunned Will, no matter how many mornings he trudged inside here. It was still beautiful.
“Well, we’re going this way,” he pointed to a doorway you wouldn’t notice if you weren’t looking for it, “so maybe we’ll catch you later? And I can give you that tour?”
“That would be awesome!” Tyler smiled.
“Good luck with your interview.” Josh nodded at Mike— it was the most genuine nod he’d ever seen.
*
“How did it go?” Will sprung from the corridor sofa excitedly. He’d been sat twiddling his thumbs for half an hour, anticipating Mike’s return from the interview.
“I’m not sure.” Mike‘s mouth was pinched into a frown. “I don’t really have anything to compare it to.”
Will took his hand and sat him down on the sofa. “Tell me about it.”
*
“So it probably went a lot better than you think. You answered all the questions really well. You were yourself. I’m sure you smashed it.”
Mike felt a smile crawl over his face. “You think?”
“Of course.” Will shuffled close to him and gave him a soft kiss on the cheek. “I’m really proud of you.”
They emerged into the entrance hall again, wondering if the Pilots were still hanging around. Sure enough, they could be spotted at the help desk, asking a bored-looking staff member a question.
Will approached with confidence, waving to the employee. “Hey Angela.”
“Oh. Hi Will.” She seemed to brighten up, tossing her long blonde hair over her shoulder and leaning over the desk with a…flirty smile??
Mike bristled immediately, stepping forwards as if to interrupt. Will looked just as suddenly uncomfortable as he was, albeit less mad.
“I can take care of these two, thanks.” Will briskly turned to Tyler and Josh. Mike gave his hand a quick kiss, subtle enough to seem natural, but clear enough so Angela would get the memo.
“How was the interview?” Josh asked as Will led them through a set of double doors, ready to start the bespoke tour.
“It went…better than I thought.”
3.58pm
“That was incredible. Thank you so much.”
“It’s no problem! Any time!”
But, realistically, how many times would they have this opportunity? Probably never again.
It was a busy day at the museum, and Tyler and Josh had been recognised five or ten times; they always stopped to smile, wave and have a quick chat. It was this kindness that proved how authentic they were, and why they were so idolised.
At the doors, they exchanged hugs with Mike and Will, saying their goodbyes and “see you soon”s, leaving them slightly winded. They watched them leave from the top of the steps, still in disbelief.
“That really happened.” Mike breathed, watching it spiral in the cold air. “Didn’t it?”
“I think it did.”
*
THE NEXT DAY..
8.45am
“Have a great day at work!” Mike waved Will off from the doorway of his own apartment— they’d watched Pirates of the Caribbean there again last night. And now he had a whole day to himself…what was he even meant to do?
He phoned Nancy again, and told her about his interview. She said to update her when he knew more and he promised he would, before she had to hang up and get ready for her work.
He scrolled through Instagram, and found he had a few new follow requests. They were Will’s friends: Lucas, Dustin, El and Max. It seemed they’d coordinated, and added him at the same time. He accepted them all, excited by what this meant. Four new friends.
After a bit of snooping, which didn’t lead anywhere as they didn’t post as much as Will did, he put down his phone and made himself a drink. Coffee sounded great right now, to give him a bit of motivation to maybe do something else? He could go out for a walk? Go shopping?
He could try, at least. This week had been a great one for trying.
12.15pm
Central Park was beautiful in the fall. He picked a great day to go for the first time, to quietly munch on a bagel and watch the squirrels rustle in the leaves. It was peaceful.
He brought his headphones, too, just to add to the ambience.
Clancy and Breach were playing on shuffle and he listened through til he’d heard every song. He wondered what Tyler and Josh were doing now, as they prepared for their next show. Were they thinking about yesterday too?
He stood to leave, closing down the Spotify app, when his phone began to ring. Curiously, he studied the number, but he didn’t recognise it.
“Hello?”
“Hey there. Michael Wheeler?”
“Speaking.”
“Delightful!”
Mike chuckled, already enjoying the whimsy of this call.
“I’m Derek, from the Met museum.”
His stomach tightened.
“I wanted to let you know that we were very impressed by your interview. We’d like to offer you the job, if you’d be interested?”
The phone slid out from his hand as he spasmed in shock. He scrambled to pick it up, brushing dirt off from the screen.
“Yes! Yes, I would! That would be incredible!”
“When can you start?”
THREE MONTHS LATER…
8.02am
“I just wanna dance and style and stay a while, the lines on the floor…”
“How did you find me?…”
They were singing along to the alarm as they got themselves together, crawling out from under the covers to pull on their clothes. Mike struggled with the sweater vest he’d permanently borrowed from Will, as it got stuck over his head. Will pulled it down for him, laughing affectionately, planting a kiss on the tip of his nose.
They no longer lived in their old apartment building. A month ago, they’d decided to move in together, selecting a place closer to the Met— where they both worked. Will had been promoted, recognising all his hard work over the short-staffed period, and Mike was more happy than he could have imagined, working with admin and numbers all day.
After breakfast they set out to work, listening to Scaled and Icy with one AirPod each. Mike had to admit, the album was really growing on him. They climbed the steps breezily, scarves blowing behind them. Mike smiled down at his coffee, as they passed the spot from three months ago, where Josh had accidentally bumped into him. It still didn’t feel quite real.
“Have a great day. See you at lunch.” He squeezed Will’s hand as they parted ways in the building, as they did every morning.
“I can’t wait.”
Mike smiled warmly as Will walked off, waving over his shoulder.
He wasn’t looking for love this year, but love found him anyway.