Chapter Text
Will yawned as he opened the doors of Hawkins High, the bright sun casting a glow on his face and burning his eyes. It was Friday, a day like any other. He put in his locker combination and grabbed his books for his first few classes of the day. He heard ruckus down the hallway and glanced over only to be met with Chance Romanillos’ eyes on him. He quickly looked away, hiding in his face behind his locker door. What the hell did Chance want with him? He felt his heart rate pick up slightly.
Will felt his phone buzz in his pocket, he fished it out and unlocked it, it was a notification from Mike, he clicked on it and read the message:
“Where are you???”
Will let out a shaky breath and shut his locker as he typed out a response.
“Locker, be right there”
He made his way down the hallway, passing by Chance, his eyes glued to his phone. He had Instagram open, tapping through stories just to look busy so Chance would leave him alone.
He turned the corner and walked over to his friends, who were crowded around Dustin’s locker, like they were every morning.
“Hey, Will,” Max said as she saw him approaching, her hair in braids, as usual.
“Hey,” He said before shutting his phone off and leaning against the wall. He tried to be present in the conversation but he couldn’t help but wonder why Chance Romanillos was looking at him.
“You okay?” Mike asked him, leaning against the wall next to him, his voice soft.
“Yeah, I’m okay.” Will said, glancing up at him.
If Will was being honest, talking to Mike was hard for him. It took Will so long to get over Mike, and yet Mike was still the same person he always had been. He was the same boy that Will used to be in love with. Whenever Robin asked him what made him change his mind, he could never muster up an answer. Will just simply had to get over it, he knew that, but deep down part of him wondered what might’ve happened between them if only Mike was like him. But Will knew not to think like that, it was dangerous, it only led to false hopes and dreams he knew would be crushed.
Will’s train of thought was interrupted as the bell rang, signaling the start of first period. He and his friends parted ways, each of them heading to their first period classes. Will went through the motions of his day, focusing on his work and keeping quiet during his classes like he always did.
Once the lunch bell rang, he made his way through the bustling halls to the cafeteria, where his friends were seated at their table. He sat down between Max and Mike, pulling his phone out of his pocket. There was a new notification from Instagram.
“Chance Romanillos (takeachance) started following you”
Will’s eyes furrowed in confusion, he clicked on the notification, which took him to Chance’s instagram. He didn’t have that many posts, Will noticed as he scrolled through the page. Most of his photos were from parties or basketball games. He had a plentiful amount of followers, way more than Will did. Chance didn’t follow any of friends, except for Lucas, but they were on the same team. Maybe he misclicked and Chance didn’t mean to follow Will…
“Dude what’s got you glued to that thing?” Lucas asked, throwing a rolled up straw wrapper at him.
“Hey!” He said, giving Lucas a playful glare, “Nothing just…” Will glanced back down at his phone, “Chance Romanillos started following me,” He said, a hint of confusion in his voice.
“Chance Romanillos? That douchebag started following you?” Dustin asked, peering over Will’s shoulder to glance at his phone.
“It was probably just an accident,” Mike suggested, looking at Will’s phone screen before looking back up at Will.
“Yeah, maybe,” Will replied before shutting off his phone and placing it face down on the table.
Will took his lunch out of his paper bag, a PB&J, the same thing he took to school everyday for lunch since he was in kindergarten. He ate quietly as he listened to the party argue over when the next campaign would be. From across the room he noticed Chance’s eyes on him again. He quickly looked away, but not quick enough to stop Chance and his buddies from getting up and walking over to Will’s lunch table.
“What’s up freaks?” Jason said as he pulled up a chair and sat next to Lucas.
Chance nudged his arm before sitting on the edge of the table.
“Freaks? That’s really original.” Dustin retorted. As usual, his retort went ignored.
“Sinclair, you tell them about the game yet?” Chance asked, his eyes drifting between Will and Lucas.
“Yeah, he told us, we’ll be there!” Jane piped up from her place next to Mike leading to Chance’s friends stifling chuckles. The tension rose as the party, Dustin especially, got increasingly upset with the whole interaction.
Will noticed how Chance tensed up slightly, his jaw clenched before he spoke again, “There’s a party afterwards, at Jason’s. You guys should come,” He said, his voice almost flat, which was unusual considering the basketball team usually spoke to Will and his friends condescendingly and sarcastically.
Will knew this had to be a joke. There was no way the basketball team was inviting them to a party. He exchanged a worried glance with Mike.
“Yeah, we’ll be there,” Lucas responded quickly before anyone else in the party could say anything. Dustin shot Lucas a glare and Mike furrowed his brows. Was Lucas insane?
“Great, see you there,” Chance said as he hopped off the table, his eyes not tearing away from Will until he turned around.
“Really, Lucas?” Dustin said, clearly pissed off, crossing his arms over his chest.
“What?” Lucas said defensively, his eyebrows furrowing slightly.
“Lucas, these guys have bullied us for years and you, on behalf of all of us, decide we’re going to their party?” Mike spoke up, agitation clear in his tone.
“Look, this is our senior year, and I don’t know about you guys but I’m tired of missing out. I think we should go.” Lucas’ tone was serious, Will could tell this party was important to him. Why? He didn’t know, but he would go if Lucas wanted him to.
“I think you missed the point where Mike said these are the guys who have bullied us for years.” Dustin ignored the point Lucas was trying to make.
“Not all of them! Do you really think I would be going to this party if I didn’t have friends on my own basketball team?” Lucas said, his voice raising in volume as he got more defensive.
“I think we should go,” Max agreed, “Besides, you guys need to get out anyways, you haven’t even been to a real high school party.” Max was always getting invited to parties, sure she went, but she still stuck with the party. It baffled Will, everyone knew her and yet she decided to hang around with them.
“Who cares about high school parties?” Mike whined, crossing his arms over his chest.
“Apparently Lucas,” Dustin muttered under his breath, leaning back in his chair.
“What’d you just say?” Lucas’ head snapped towards Dustin, his eyes colder now.
“Guys come on,” Will finally spoke up, “It’s just a party, what’s so terrible about it?” He tried to be some form of a mediator, as he usually was with his friends. Will was always trying to make things more positive even when he couldn’t.
“Wait,” Mike said, shaking his head and turning towards Will, “You actually want to go to this thing?”
“It’s clearly important to Lucas, Mike,” Will explained calmly, “It’s just a party, we don’t have to stay the whole time.”
“A party sounds fun,” Jane said, probably already daydreaming about what she was going to wear. Ever since Max took her to the mall a few summers ago, Jane had loved choosing outfits and accessories to wear. She would drag Will to the store with him occasionally, but he didn’t mind, he enjoyed spending time with his sister.
“Fine,” Mike sighed, sulking.
Will looked towards Dustin, raising his eyebrows in a question.
“Yeah alright fine, but don’t expect me to have fun.” Dustin grumbled, picking at his food.
Will glanced over at Lucas, who mouthed a small “thanks” in which Will nodded in response.
The rest of lunch was spent with the six of them making small talk and picking at their food. There was still tension in the air between Lucas and Dustin, so the bell ringing felt like freedom.
Will could hardly focus in any of his classes. He had never been to a party before. He didn’t know how to act or what to wear. He kept creating fake scenarios in his head over and over, most of them consisting of something embarrassing or bad happening. He shook his head and tried to focus on his work.
Once the final bell rang, he stood up quickly shoving his books into his bag, and rushing out the door, not bothering to go to his locker. He was first at the bike rack, where he waited for his friends.
Chance walked out of the doors, his eyes glued to his phone. Will instantly reached for his own phone, pulling it out of his pocket, desperate for something to make him look occupied. He opened Instagram, Chance was still following him, and there he was, a few feet away from him, on his phone…
So it wasn’t an accident?
Will clicked on Chance’s profile, his thumb hovering over the follow back button. He hit it and glanced up, watching as Chance’s face broke out into a subtle smile before shoving his phone back into his pocket and unlocking his car.
“Who’re you staring at?” Max teased as she came up behind Will.
He jumped when he heard her voice directly behind him, “Jesus, Max, you scared the shit out of me,” he chuckled, turning to face her.
She nudged his arm lightly, “Who have you been staring at,” She asked, a small smirk on her face. Will groaned and rolled his eyes, dropping his head back before looking at her again. She laughed, “Okay fine, fine, don’t tell me then,” she shrugged, “but I will find out who you’ve been mysteriously admiring.”
“Hey, staring and admiring are two different things,” He joked in response.
“You are ridiculous,” Max laughed as the rest of the party walked out of the school. Mike and Dustin were still irritated about having to go to this party; they silently unlocked their bikes from the rack and began to pedal home.
Lucas sighed as he flipped up his kickstand with his foot and began to pedal after them.
“See ya tonight,” Max said to Will and Jane as she skated off.
“Bye, Max!” They called out before pulling their bikes from the rack and heading home.
“Are you excited for this party?” Jane asked him as they biked side by side.
Will shrugged, “I guess so, I’ve never been to a party but… I know Lucas really wants us to be there.”
“I’ve been to some with Max, they’re fun.” Jane always lightened the mood with her positive energy. She was so bubbly it was hard for Will to be nervous around her.
Will smiled at her, “I bet this one will be too.” She smiled back before the two of them fell into a comfortable silence, the only sounds were the chains of their bikes and the leaves that had fallen off the trees crunching under their tires.
_____________________
Will paced his bedroom, he couldn’t find anything to wear. He didn’t want to look like an idiot. Should he change after the game and before the party? No, that's dumb. He sighed, flopping onto his bed, his face in his pillow. It suddenly dawned on him that Lucas hadn’t told him what time the game started. He unlocked his phone and texted him.
“Hey, what time is the game?”
Minutes went by with no response. Will sighed, frustrated, and texted Max the same thing.
“idk lucas hasn’t answered my text”
Will ran a hand through his hair. If even Max didn’t know what time the game started, that meant Mike and Dustin didn’t know either. He could only think of one other person to ask. He opened Instagram and clicked onto his profile, sitting on the edge of his bed, contemplating. Maybe Lucas would text him back. Will tapped his foot anxiously. He didn’t want to make a fool of himself and be late. He sighed as he tapped on the message button, typed out, deleted, and then typed out a message.
“Hey, what time is the game tonight?”
It was just a simple question, so why was he so hesitant to press send? “Jesus Christ,” he muttered to himself before sending the stupid thing.
He stood up, leaving his phone on his bed, and walked over to his closet. He looked around for an old Hawkins High hoodie he knew he had somewhere. One he found it, he pulled it out and threw it over his head, adjusting the strings and the waist band in the mirror. Was this too casual? He groaned in frustration and ran his hands over his face.
About two minutes later, his phone buzzed, he froze momentarily before walking over to his bed and clicking his phone on. He looked at the notification, wondering if he should actually open it or just leave it unread.
[takeachance] Chance Romanillos: It starts at 8
The Instagram notification stared at him from his screen. Just as Will was about to put his phone down, his screen lit up again.
[takeachance] Chance Romanillos: Do you need a ride to the after party?
What the fuck was happening right now? Chance Romanillo was asking him, Will Byers, if he needed a ride? In his car? He swallowed hard, this had to be some sick joke. He let out a shaky breath and tried not to think that way. Will was so used to people messing with him like this, just for a couple of laughs. The only real friends he had were Jane, Mike, Lucas and Dustin, it was hard for him to believe Chance had any good intentions.
Without really thinking he unlocked his phone and called Max. After two rings she answered, “Will, just wear that Hawkins High hoodie you have with jeans or something.”
He chuckled, “How did you know I was going to ask you that?”
“Figured,” He could almost see her shrug.
“Uhm… so Lucas wasn’t answering about what time the game started…”
“Right,” She responded.
“So I asked Chance…” he said hesitantly.
“Chance? As in Chance Romanillos?”
“Uh.. Yeah,” Will said, his knee bouncing profusely.
“Huh. What’d he say?” Max asked, clearly intrigued as to why Will was talking to Chance Romanillos of all people.
“It starts at 8, but…” He trailed off, chewing on his lower lip.
“But..?” Max prompted curiously.
“He asked if I needed a ride to the party…”
“Holy shit…” Max sounded like she had just seen a plot twist in a horror movie. “Wait, what if he’s messing with you?” She asked cautiously, the slightest hint of worry in her tone.
“Yeah, that was my first thought too, but honestly I’d rather just stick with you guys,” He said, though his curiosity was getting to him.
“Then tell him that. Anyway, I gotta get ready, I’ll see you there!”
“See ya,” Will hung up the phone and clicked on the message from Chance before typing out a response.
No, but thank you for offering!
He hesitated before hitting send, almost instantly Chance read it and responded with a thumbs up emoji. He couldn’t help chuckle, what a dweeb.
Will shoved his phone in his pocket and tied his shoelaces before rushing out the door, his whole body wound up with nerves.