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“Good morning Hawkins! It’s your favorite host, Rockin’ Robin, back from another year at college! I was able to get access to the booth yet again, just so I could bless you all with a day of my new top hits! This next song’s from an up-and-coming pop artist, Chappell Roan! Hey Mike, I think you’ll enjoy this one.” The radio of his car crackled to life, playing an upbeat song. Mike didn’t mind, Robin always dedicated songs to the group whenever she came into town. The thing that did nag at him were the lyrics.
‘ you can kiss a thousand boys in bars… shoot another shot, try to stop the feeling... ‘
What was that supposed to mean? Why did Robin dedicate a love song to him? Especially one about making the wrong decision. He had a vague guess of what she was hinting at, but he wasn’t going to fall for it. He was gone, moved away. Mike couldn’t get in contact with him a whole lot anymore. There was no point, anyway.
As his car pulled up to the Family Video, he parked and unbuckled, getting out of the car. Mike grabbed his keys to the store and unlocked it before turning on the flickering “We’re open!” sign. It was blue and yellow, flicking on and off occasionally. His boss hadn’t fixed it yet.
Mike started the shift by organizing new CDs, stocking the shelves, and rewatching the same 5 previews on the small TV in the corner for the 700th time. Eventually, sleep tugged at his eyes, almost falling asleep. He thought of Will, remembering the boy who was his best friend for so long with a fond pang. What was he doing now? Probably working on a new piece of art, or maybe at a gamestore, picking out some new dice. Mike wondered if he had a new party now. New friends meant they’d drift further apart. He didn’t want that to happen, that couldn’t happen. The two had gone through so much together. He thought back to when he met Will. They were both so tiny, not realizing what was going to happen over the next few years.
Mike snapped out of it a few seconds later when the door opened. It was a group of people around Holly’s age. They were looking at some horror movies.
Aside from that group, the day went by surprisingly slowly. Nobody else showed up and now it was time to close the store. He turned off the flickering sign before locking the door behind him. He got into his car and headed home for the night. Robin was still on the air. “For my final song before I fade into the abyss until next year, I’d like to dedicate it, yet again, to Mike. I think you’ll like this one. Here’s David Bowie’s ‘Heroes’, everyone!”
When he got back, his mom and dad were both asleep on the couch. Mike could faintly hear Holly upstairs getting ready for bed. He set the keys down and quietly crept up the stairs, gently shutting his door. He took off his clothes and hopped in the shower, feeling the water rush down his back. This was his favorite part of the day, when he got to come home and take a long shower, especially since the heat of spring constantly wafted through the video store and made him sweat buckets.
After the shower, Mike slid into his pajamas and laid on his bed. Next to him were the countless pages he had written for his new book. If he ever got in touch with Will directly, he could show him the concept. Dustin had said he’d loved it, and so did Max and Lucas.
His eyes shut and soon he felt a wave of sleepiness come over him. Mike dreamt of reuniting with his best friends. Max and Lucas had gone to grab popcorn, and Dustin was buying tickets to the movie they were seeing. Will, however, was still in the same spot next to Mike and wasn’t facing him. He tried to grab Will’s arm. “Hey, Will, are you okay?” He asked. The dream Will didn’t respond for a few seconds, until it turned to face him. He had no mouth, no nose, nothing. It was like somebody had smoothed his face out and erased everything. His shy smile, his beautiful hazel eyes, and his small (almost unnoticeable) freckles.
“Will? Will! Can you hear me, Will!? Are you okay?! Dustin! Max! Lucas! Come help!”
“You’ve lost your chance, Mike.” The faceless Will responded softly. The room faded, only leaving the two people. He stepped closer to Mike.
“You’re never getting him back. You had your chance, and he’s never coming back. There was nothing for him in this town, was there? You knew that. Why are you still waiting? Still yearning? Wake up, Mike.”
As if on cue, Mike jolted up due to his alarm. The dream slowly began to fade away, as if nothing had happened at all. He cursed himself. The alarm kept beeping before being slammed down by his fist. It was the first day of spring break, so luckily he didn’t have to work. His boss insisted he needed a vacation as well.
Not even two hours later, Mike was forced to watch over Holly as she and her friends played a session of DnD. He sat in the corner, watching as they acted out their characters. Mike softly smiled, seeing how similar it was to him and his friends at that age. They were debating something about the rules, while Holly grabbed her huge new rulebook and began to recite something about a certain villain they were going against. Mike wasn’t too sure why his mother had forced him to stay in the basement with the group while she stayed upstairs. Apparently she had a surprise for him? She had given him a pat on the shoulder and said it was something he’d been wanting for a long, long time, so he had to stay in the basement until it was ready.
A few minutes later, his mom yelled for him to come outside. Mike stood up, ruffling Holly’s hair. “Have fun, okay?” He smiled as he walked upstairs. He wasn’t exactly dressed for a surprise, as he was wearing an old sweater he had gotten from Steve, some sweatpants, and mismatched socks. There was no reason to get dressed during spring break so he took total advantage of that fact.
“Come on, Mike! Just outside here.” His mom smiled. She seemed too excited for it to just be a small surprise. Mike followed her outside and noticed a car.
Somebody stepped out of that car, somebody who Mike recognized extremely well.
It was Will Byers.
“WILL!?” Mike yelped, running over to him and collapsing in a hug. Will laughed weakly and hugged him back tightly. The two hadn’t seen each other in almost a year. Mike could feel the warm breath of Will, and he just wanted to stay in this moment forever.
Will laughed breathlessly, his eyes looking Mike up and down. “I missed you so much! I worked with your mom to save up a ticket to fly here and see you! I- I hope you, uh, don’t mind, but I brought some of the artworks I made at college.” Will admitted. Mike pulled away from the hug, looking back at Will’s rental car. Sure enough, he saw a bag of rolled up paper in the front of his car.
“Oh, Mike, honey, go help him with that!” Karen shouted from halfway in the doorframe. She was busy talking to somebody on the phone, closing the door with her hip behind her.
“I was gonna help you anyway, but okay,” Mike laughed, grabbing the car door and picking up the bag. The paper rustled around inside. From what he could see currently, there were a few paintings inside but the papers were mainly sketches.
“I just wanted to show you some of my progress since we last talked. Anyways, how have you been? It feels like it’s been forever.” Will acknowledged, walking over to the back of the car to get his bag out of the trunk.
Mike shrugged nonchalantly, turning to lean on the door as he closed it. “I don’t know,” he said, adjusting his grip on the papers, “It’s just been.. boring, I guess. There’s not much to do without the party here. I got a job at Family Video, though!”
Will’s eyes widened and let out a sigh. “Really? I remember you saying Steve and Robin used to work there, right?” When Mike nodded to answer his question, Will smiled and elbowed him. “That’s much better than what I’m doing. Aside from my art, I got a job at a small diner near my apartment. It pays pretty decently, enough for me to survive I guess.”
Mike opened the door to get inside for him and Will stepped inside politely. He took his shoes off, setting the bag down. “How’s Holly? Is she still playing DnD like we did?” He questioned. Mike nodded as he set the bag of sketches down.
“Yup. She actually just started a new campaign. Derrick’s surprisingly good at playing a ranger. The group’s actually in the basement right now.” Mike replied. He softened at the slight grimace Will had on his face. Especially after dealing with Vecna, he had such a close connection to Holly and cared for her as if she was his own sister.
“That’s good, that’s good. Now, uh.. What do you want to do?” Will wondered, pretending to scratch his stubble. Huh. Mike had never noticed Will had stubble. He felt his face slightly heat up, but snapped out of it quickly.
“We- uh, should probably go up to my room and set your stuff down.” He hastily answered. Grabbing the bags, Mike led Will up to his room and opened the door for him. After the demogorgons attacked Holly a few years back, they had redecorated his room. Now it looked more like a middle aged man lived here instead of a college kid, mostly due to the poetry Mike had haphazardly stapled to the walls in a fit of inspiration late at night. Will whistled, gazing around the newly decorated room.
“Woah, you seriously updated the place, huh?” He said, taking in all of the new additions and accessories. Mike nodded sheepishly, rocking back and forth slightly due to his embarrassment. Will looked so cool now, with his hair slightly grown out, a whole new style he picked up from his time away.
This was going to be a very long spring break, but deep down, Mike didn’t mind at all.
At dinner, Will sat next to Mike while Holly was on his left. Ted and Karen were on each end of the table, while Nancy and her new girlfriend sat directly in front of the three.
Mike was picking at his pasta noncommittally when his mother spoke up, clearing her throat. “So, Will,” she started, wiping her face with a napkin, “How is your art program going?”
Will smiled shyly, just like he always did. Mike just noticed anytime Will would smile, his eyes would sparkle ever so slightly. “It’s going pretty well I think. I have a whole new idea for a piece, and I think I’ll put it on my portfolio for college! I got an apartment using the money Mom put aside for me when I moved out, and my landlord’s super nice!”
Karen smiled brightly, nodded, and clapped gently. “That’s amazing, Will! You know, you could give Mike a lesson or two on being independent. He’s going to live with us till we die! Isn’t that right, Ted?”
Ted shrugged while shoving another round of pasta into his mouth. He was at least trying to be more present after the whole attack all those months ago.
“Well, uh, thanks mom, but I wanted to take Will stargazing tonight.” Mike suddenly said. Why did he say that? He knew nothing about stargazing! God, he was so stupid sometimes-
“Oh? That’s awesome, Mike! I actually brought along my telescope since I wanted to show you how I've used solar systems in my art. I could bring that, if you want.” Will added, motioning to his bags upstairs. Holly gasped.
“Could I borrow it afterwards?! Please!? I’ve always wanted to see what outer space looks like!” She pleaded. Will smiled before nodding, his hazel eyes glinting in the light of the dining room. Mike snapped out of his trance, realizing he was staring at Will’s eyes.
Oh god. He was staring at Will.
Only a few hours later, it was around 10:00 at night, and the two had already gotten into their pajamas, with Mike wearing yet another pair of sweatpants with an old t-shirt, and Will wearing matching flannels. When Mike had asked about it, he replied that his mom got them for him when he moved out.
On the car ride there, the two just talked about the others. “So, uh.. Are you doing okay?” Will asked softly, looking over at Mike as he drove. His fingers tightened around the wheel. He knew what Will was referring to.
“Yeah, I, uh.. I’m doing alright. I miss her all the time, but we all do. I just hope she’s doing okay.” Mike responded. He had moved on from El a while ago, but it still stung. He had lost one of his closest best friends.
“I miss her too.”
“Yeah?”
Will let out a soft noise of agreement, before looking out the window. The rest of the car ride was relatively silent except for the soft sounds of their breath and the occasional bumps.
Eventually, they got to a huge hill. Mike had taken the two back to the hill they gathered on to meet Suzie for the first time, as well as when Will got back from California and the group observed the damage of Hawkins.
“Woah,” Will breathlessly exclaimed, gazing upwards, “it’s so beautiful.”
Mike nodded, dragging the telescope behind him. He couldn’t help but notice how Will’s eyes sparkled in the moonlight, reflecting off his face..
“Oh! Right! Uh, so I guess we set up now.” Mike explained hastily. Will nodded, and the two put the telescope together in no time.
When it was finished, the two took turns gazing up at the stars and passing it to each other, smiling softly when the other found a new star or saw a planet they hadn’t spotted yet.
It had to have been at least an hour by now, with the two laying on the grass and simply letting the wind blow small gusts into the spring air, hearing the crickets chirp around them.
Mike had to tell him. He had to do it now, or he’d never have the chance to. He swallowed his nerves and turned to lie on his side next to Will.
Will looked absolutely stunning, even though he was just laying there. His eyes dimmed and sparkled as he looked around, his hands looked soft and warm, and the slow rise of his chest was enough to make Mike blush. It was time.
“Will?” Mike nervously asked, dragging his gaze up to meet Will’s.
“Hm?” Even though Will was half asleep, he was focused right on Mike.
“I, uh, god, how do I say this?-” Mike started to choke up. Partially because he lost sleep over this moment countless times, or maybe it was because he was scared. Scared of what Will might think.
“I like you.”
Will sat straight up, turning to face Mike fully. His face was as red as a tomato. “WHAT?” He yelped.
Mike burst into tears. Will immediately overwhelmed him with a hug, letting his tears soak into the flannel. He whispered softly into Mike’s ear, letting him calm down. “Mike,” Will whispered, pulling away from the hug, “I’m sorry..”
Oh no. Here it was. “I have a boyfriend,” or maybe “I actually wasn’t gay and lied!” or-
“..but you were so obvious.” Will finished, gently grasping Mike’s hand.
Mike was now a mix of sweat, tears, and his half-choked sobs bubbling to the surface. It took him a few seconds to actually stop for a moment and take in what Will had said to him. “Wh- What?” He asked with a confused expression and slightly terrified tone.
Will giggled, tilting his head in the same way Mike was. “I thought I was obvious with my crush on you, but you’re worse. You were staring at me all dinner, even though we were next to each other, you spent an hour afterwards telling me how much I influenced your new writing ideas, and you also kept talking about how much you missed me and felt so lonely while I was gone. Come on, Mike!”
Mike was absolutely floored. Personally, he thought he was being very sneaky with his side-glances over the break, and confessing how much he missed him seemed like a best friend thing to do, right? Guess not. He gazed up at Will’s face, eyes drifting over his lips. “Do.. uh.. Do you like me back?” He blurted out, voice cracking slightly.
Will laughed, but in a soft way where you knew they weren’t laughing at you. “Of course, silly!” He tackled Mike in a hug, the two rolling down the hill in a mess of tangled limbs and a sort of hug.
When the two heaved each other up, they stood there for a moment, just gazing into each other’s eyes. “Could- Could I kiss you?” Mike stuttered. He felt his face heat up. Why did he say that?! He really was a mess.
Will smiled softly, eyes crinkling. He nodded eagerly and suddenly hugged Mike, giving him a soft kiss.
-----
A few days after they became boyfriends, it was the end of spring break and Will had to return to California. They were gathered at the airport, with Mike watching as Will went through the gate.
“Hey Will! Come back next break, okay?!” Mike shouted. Will smiled and waved to him.
“Of course!”
And just like that, he went through the gate to board.
Mike couldn’t wait to see him again.