Chapter Text
“Best friends!”
Will can’t even look Mike in the general direction of his face after that. There he goes again, with a long dramatic pause, only to inevitably reveal that he was, in fact, the biggest loser in all of Hawkins.
Micheal fucking Wheeler. The boy Will had loved, the boy that Will thought he might have a chance with, especially after witnessing the shit show that was spring break which left Mike's relationship with El completely in shambles, forcing Will to play neurosurgeon with band aids and cough drops. Or more accurately paintings and back rubs.
Will spent so long giving Mike hope in a such a futile relationship, that its end felt like something different could actually begin. El deserved better than Mike, and within the span of less than a day, Will came to realize he did too. Desperately.
If Mike can’t tell his girlfriend he loves her or his friends then who the hell else is left for him to tell? Surely not his father, surely not his mother, Nancy’s well deserving of one as well as Holly. Mike just can’t seem to do it.
To think pitifully for a moment, no actually several moments, Will thought Mike was like him? That he liked him. All those shared looks over the years, the brushing of their elbows, their knees, the whole “Avalanche” metaphor Robin explained to him. Who's stupid enough to actually believe that? He was. Apparently.
All those times it felt so real. It was all for nothing. He can’t fight the feeling, thankfully he can’t fight the impulse either.
“They’ll believe me Micheal,” Will shoots out, turning away from the ladder rungs in order to face Mike, who’s staring out into the upside down, still catching his breath from climbing.
“What was that Will?” Mike asks, looking up at him, face contorting into a confused expression.
Their eyes meet.
“That he made me do it.” Will spits out plainly, inching closer towards Mike.
Mike's hip bumps against the faulty railing sending a faint rattle up the tower, forcing him to lock his fingers around the railing for balance. “That who made you do what? Will- I- are you okay..?” His eyebrows furrow and his smile falters. Concern etching into his features, as Will inches even closer. Not once breaking eye contact.
“This”
Wills hands grip onto Mike's shirt, moving them up his chest, pulling his own elbows back to draw a force, and finally shoving him over that stupid fucking railing.
It does pain him seeing the love of his life plummet into death, starry eyes glistening in the blue glow, without ever knowing of Will's true feelings. But those feelings are things of the past now.
There's more to life than witnessing your childhood crush push you away for a girl he can't admit he loves.
And there's definitely more to life than pining over Mike fucking Wheeler.