Chapter Text
The familiar click of the lighter and glow of the end of the cigarette brought Will comfort as he walked down the busy street of New York City toward the subway. He would never call himself a smoker but sometimes when work was especially draining or his nightmares were keeping him from sleeping, he found himself pulling out a pack of Marlboros and a lighter.
After graduating from Hawkins High in ‘89, Will moved from Indiana to Brooklyn to attend Pratt Institute to pursue his love of art, something he never thought he would be able to do. Jonathan had graduated from NYU a few years prior and stayed in New York to continue working on his film and Hop and Joyce settled in in Montauk, so all the people that mattered the most to Will were all within reach. Will loved New York. The stifling smalltown nature of Hawkins nearly killed him during his youth, and he found comfort in the hustle and bustle of the big city. Will was grateful when he landed a bigtime job as a children’s book illustrator for Simon & Schuster right after graduating in ‘93. In the back of his mind, he never believed art would be something he could seriously pursue as a career, despite tirelessly working through his degree for 4 years. He worried he would be stuck at his bartending job forever, but at a gallery showing in the fall of ‘92, he met a Simon & Schuster representative and things all seemed to fall into place. Though in his teen years Will did more painting than anything, sketching was always his favorite medium. He used to spend hours after school at the kitchen table drawing the newest scene from the Party’s D&D campaign or anything else his mind could think up. Getting to bring children’s stories to life and inspire the imaginations of the next generation was a dream come true for him. The commute from his apartment in Brooklyn to the headquarters in NYC didn’t phase him anymore. He found solace in the routine of it all. Today in particular though, it was a Wednesday, the streets seemed too crowded, the air too thick, and he just wanted to make it back to his apartment and shake off the stress of all of his upcoming deadlines. He put his cigarette out and threw it away before hopping on the subway back to Brooklyn.
As Will entered the lobby of his apartment, he went directly to the mailboxes like he did every day. Usually there wasn’t anything of substance in there. Sometimes some assorted coupons, a letter from Max or Dustin, or the latest edition of one of the few magazines he’s subscribed to, but most of the time it was empty. He immediately spotted something out of the ordinary upon opening the little box. A creamy white envelope with the address written is swooping, sloping calligraphy and a large red wax seal keeping it closed. After double checking there was nothing else in there, he tucked the envelope under his arm and made his way up to his place on the third floor. He fumbled with the key and swung the door open with a push. He slumped down on the couch and carefully tore open the pristine letter and slid the card out. Will began reading while his breath caught in his throat.
“You are cordially invited to join us in celebrating the marriage between Michael Wheeler and Monica Bennett.”
Will momentarily wondered if he was currently the target of some elaborate prank. Mike? Getting married? The two of them still kept in touch, but it was nothing like it once was. Their time of hushed late night conversations over their walkie-talkies and constant sleepovers had long been a thing of the past. These days, they talked once or twice every two weeks on the phone, keeping conversations unintentionally surface level. Will would complain about roommates being too loud late at night and Mike would gripe about his overbearing manager at his office job. Will had heard only briefly about Monica even though she and Mike had been together for nearly two years.
Will wasn’t sure Mike would ever be able to move on after losing El, so he was happy Mike found someone to love again. Marriage, though? Mike never made any comments about that being on the horizon for the two of them. Will felt a pang of sadness and hurt that Mike didn’t mention something so important to him before he found out alongside the rest of the invitees. Has their relationship really regressed that much? Without thinking, Will tossed the card back on the table while moving toward the phone. He typed Mike’s number on the landline as if it was muscle memory and waited for him to answer.
“Mike” Will said as soon as he heard the other end be picked up.
“Oh, hey Will, wh-” Mike began, but Will cut him off before he could finish.
“Do you mind telling me why the hell I just got an invitation to your wedding in my mailbox?” Will posed in a tone that might have been a little too harsh, frustration clearly seeping through.
“Oh, I- yeah, sorry uh, I was going to tell you about that before it got there but it slipped my mind. Work has been just, uh, a lot recently and yeah, I’m sorry,” Mike stumbled, slightly taken aback at Will’s clear displeasure.
Will took a deep breath before replying, “I-I’m sorry that sounded accusatory, I’m mostly just confused. I mean why have you not told me more about Monica? I barely know anything about her and you guys have been together for like two years. I didn’t know how serious things were. I care for you a lot and I want you to be happy- I’m happy for you, Mike. But I just feel like you might be holding things back from me about this.”
“I’m not- I’m not holding things back from you. I really like Monica, clearly. She’s great. I guess I hesitated to tell you about her because I was worried how you would react.”
“W-why? Why would I react badly?”
“I don’t know, I just thought you might judge me or silently resent me for moving on from El. I know you still miss her a lot, and I-I do too and I worried that if I told you about Monica it would seem like I-I didn’t care about El anymore and-”
Will could tell Mike was starting on one of his verbal spirals and cut him off, saying, “Mike, stop, I would never judge you for finding someone else. Neither would El. El knew you loved her. El would want you to find happiness again.”
This response stabbed Mike in the heart. Will was always the biggest champion of Mike and El’s relationship. He loved both of them deeply and wanted to see the two of them happy together. What Will didn’t know was all of the fighting, the disagreements, and in particular, the last moment they shared together in El’s mindspace. Mike didn’t tell El he loved her as she was dying. He couldn’t bring himself to do it. He tried to rationalize it to himself, that it was because he didn’t want to accept they would never see each other again, but he knew that wasn’t the reason. Mike has had a hard time moving on from El because he feels that if he loved her, really loved her the way he should have, things would be different.
“Yeah. Yeah, you’re right Will. I’m sorry I didn’t tell you about all of this. I really like Monica, like I said. I care for her.. so much. And I can see a future with her,” Mike said, which was not completely true but wasn’t a lie either.
“That’s great Mike, I’m really happy for you,” Will replied, which was not completely true but wasn’t a lie either.
“Thanks, Will.”
After a slightly uncomfortable lull in the conversation, Mike asked, “So do you think you’ll be able to make it?”
“Oh, uh, it is still like a year away and I don’t know what I’ll be up to in terms of work projects and stuff but I will make sure I’m there,” Will sighed, forcing a small smile for no one around.
“Awesome, cool, I really want you to be there Will. I can’t imagine experiencing something so monumental in my life without William Byers there,” Mike half chuckled.
The small, fake smile on Will’s face broke into a real smile at Mike’s teasing use of his full name. “Well, Michael Wheeler, I do have to let you go because I’m exhausted from work today and I have some chores I have to get done. Bye Mike.”
“Okay, bye Will.”
The phone burned in Will’s hand as he hung up.