Chapter Text
1.
Max likes to think she’s a very perceptive person — and she usually is, so it doesn’t come as a surprise that she’s the first one in their group to notice it.
Mike and Will are sitting side by side on the loveseat, knees touching and heads bent together over Mike’s D&D playbook. Mike waves his hands as he talks animatedly, probably talking about some dumb new plot. Will watches him, completely enraptured. Max would believe it if someone told her that Mike was sharing the secrets of the universe with the way Will is looking at him. When Will laughs at something Mike says, Mike watches him with this ridiculously sweet look on his face — a look she’s never seen him give anyone else.
Max looks around to see if anyone else has noticed. Surely it’s not just her? But everyone else is busy doing their own thing, paying no attention to the pair on the carpet. She grabs onto Lucas’s shoulder, shaking it lightly to get his attention.
“There’s no way they’re not dating,” she hisses at him, gesturing to Mike and Will.
Lucas’s face twists into something complicated. “I’m telling you, they’ve always been like this. Even when we were kids.”
Max scoffs. “Lucas, they’re practically fused together right now.”
As if on cue, Mike leans closer and drapes his arm over Will’s back. Will freezes for a moment before leaning into the touch, a slight blush rising to his cheeks.
Max gives Lucas a look. “See what I mean?”
Lucas sighs, “That doesn’t mean they’re dating.” But he sounds uncertain. “I see it though.”
Max has never seen Will or Mike act so soft with anyone else. Even if they aren’t dating — as unlikely as that is — there are definitely some unresolved feelings between them. Max grins. “I bet you $10 that they’ll get together before the end of the month.”
Lucas looks at her consideringly. “Deal.”
Max hums in acknowledgment before she shifts her focus over to whatever El’s doing on the carpet. She’s certain the month will end with her becoming $10 richer.
2.
It’s a pleasant Saturday morning and Ted Wheeler sits on his La-Z-Boy reading the daily newspaper. The birds are chirping and there’s the sound of quiet shuffling as everyone in the house gets ready for the day. The peaceful atmosphere is broken by the sound of the phone ringing in the kitchen.
“I’ve got it!” Mike’s voice calls as he thunders down the stairs, heading to the kitchen. The ringing stops and Mike’s voice filters into the living room as he talks to the person on the other end. Ted can tell he’s talking to Will from the soft tone of Mike’s voice. He chuckles a bit as he thinks about his son’s attempts at hiding their relationship.
It had thrown him for a bit of a loop the first time he realized. But stranger things have happened in this town than his son being a queer. It took him some time, but he accepted it eventually.
Anyhow, it could have been someone a lot worse, like that Harrington kid. If Mike had to fall for a boy, he was glad it was a good kid like Will. Now, he was just waiting for the day when Mike would come to him and Karen to tell them they were dating.
Mike hangs up the phone and runs to grab his coat from the closet. “I’ll be back by dinner,” he yells before heading out the front door.
“Who was that?” Karen asks him, her eyes lingering on the front door.
“Oh, it was just Will,” Ted replies.
An amused look crosses Karen’s face. “Is that so?”
Ted looks at her knowingly. “Say, when do you think they’ll tell us that they’re dating?”
Her eyes snap to his, confusion colouring her face. “What do you mean? They’re not dating,” Karen says, a flicker of panic☼ in her voice.
Now it’s Ted’s turn to be confused. “Surely not. Mike literally has a special voice for whenever he talks to the boy.”
Karen just shrugs in a clear I don’t know motion before walking into the kitchen.
Ted is left sitting in shock as he thinks over this new information. Karen knows the two of them much better than he does, so if she says they’re not dating… well, they probably aren’t. But clearly, they like each other, which leaves only one conclusion: they haven’t realized how the other feels yet.
All this thinking is making Ted’s head hurt, so he shoves his thoughts away and goes back to reading his newspaper. They may not be dating right now, but they will be soon.
3.
Dustin is a scientist. Sure he’s still in high school and has yet to publish any research, but that doesn’t stop him from recognizing patterns and evidence when he sees them. Which is why he’s recently come to the conclusion that Will and Mike are in a relationship. It wasn’t just one thing that tipped him off, it was a whole avalanche of them.
Firstly, they were always looking out for each other. Mike spills something on his hand? Will is handing him a napkin before he can even ask. Will is thirsty? Mike’s already there with his water bottle.
Secondly, they’re always sharing clothes. Dustin can’t count the number of times he’s seen them wearing each other’s clothes on one hand. The most recent example being Mike wearing his red sweater to school and Will wearing a very similar, but slightly long and tight around his chest and arms, red sweater a few days later. Dustin would bet you his last dollar that it was the exact same sweater.
Thirdly, the way they look at each other — or more specifically the way they look at each other’s lips. The first time he noticed it, it had thrown him for a loop. He had seriously doubted his sight until he found Mike staring at Will’s lips once again. After that, he just could not stop noticing it. Every time they hung out, it was guaranteed that one of them would look at the other’s lips at least once.
There were many pieces of evidence, but these had stood out the most to Dustin. He wasn’t sure how much longer he could stand watching them act like this while pretending he didn’t know they were dating.
He finally reaches his breaking point one day while at the newly rebuilt Family Video store.
“So,” he starts, spinning around to face them, “are you ever going to tell us that you’re dating or do we have to pretend to not know for the rest of our lives?”
Will has gone bright red, mouth hanging open in shock.
Beside him, Mike chokes. “What? We’re not—!”
Dustin raises a hand. “There’s no need to pretend. You guys will always be our friends no matter what.” He’s quick to reassure.
Mike’s face becomes pinched and Will lets out a startled laugh.
“Dustin! Look I appreciate your... acceptance, really, I do. But we really aren’t dating. I mean it,” Will says.
Dustin frowns. “Okay? But you guys hold hands when you think no one’s looking.”
Silence fills the air as Will and Mike glance at each other — Mike’s eyes flicker down to Will’s lips for a moment, for what must be the tenth time that day.
“T-that’s because Will’s hands get cold sometimes. I just… warm them up.” Mike says weakly.
Will nods vigorously. “Exactly.”
Dustin stares at them in disbelief. That’s their reasoning? The more Dustin listens to them, the more he gets the feeling that his friends are complete idiots. They probably don’t even realize how weird they act with each other.
“Okay. If you say so,” he says, hands raised in a placating gesture. Apparently, they are not dating. Dustin’s not going to question it any further.
4.
The last thing Hopper wants to do is think about his children’s love lives. Unfortunately for him, Will makes it impossible for him not to. He’s seated at the dining table, coffee in hand, glaring at the steam like it could help him escape.
In front of him, Mike and Will eat breakfast together, giggling at some inside joke that Hopper could never hope to understand. Mike had spent the night at their house again, and now Hopper has to endure watching his son and his son’s boyfriend goofing off together.
Joyce slides into the chair next to him, plate in hand. “Morning,” she says cheerfully, paying no mind to the scene in front of her.
“Morning,” Hopper grunts, taking a long sip of coffee.
Mike leans over to Will, whispering something into his ear that makes him turn red. Will looks scandalized and shoves Mike’s shoulder playfully. Hopper shifts in his seat, gripping his mug a little too tightly. He really can’t stand this anymore.
“Uh… you two have anything you want to tell us?” he asks, trying to sound casual but failing spectacularly.
Joyce shoots him a glare.
Will nearly drops his fork. “Tell you what?”
Hopper gestures vaguely between the two of them with his mug. “…You know, anything.”
Mike starts fidgeting in his chair. “Nope. Nothing.”
Joyce lets out a long sigh and reaches over to lightly smack Hopper’s arm. “Jim,” she mutters, then smiles apologetically at the boys. “Don’t mind him. Just finish your breakfast.”
Will nods quickly and focuses intently on his eggs. Mike does the same, suddenly fascinated by his toast.
Hopper squints at them, unconvinced. “You sure?”
“Yes,” they say at the same time.
Joyce shoots Hopper another look — the drop it kind — so he does, leaning back in his chair with a frustrated huff. He watches them out of the corner of his eye instead.
Mike’s arm moves under the table. Hopper freezes. Nope… this can’t be happening. The angle it’s currently in tells Hopper that he’s placed it on Will’s thigh. Will relaxes almost immediately, shoulders lowering as he glances over and gives Mike a small, grateful smile. Hopper notices. Of course he does.
He rubs his face with one hand. Great. So they’re not dating.
That somehow makes this worse.
5.
El thinks it’s very polite of Mike and Will to not make a big deal out of their relationship.
They’re sitting in the living room of the Hopper-Byers household. The lights are off and The Shining is playing on the screen before them, but El isn’t paying much attention. Instead, she’s focused on Mike and Will, who are squished together on the other end of the couch. It’s just the three of them watching; the rest of the party is too busy to meet.
At first there’s a space between the two boys, El knows because Mike keeps glancing at it like it’s wrong. Halfway through the movie El gets up to get more popcorn from the kitchen. When she comes back the space has disappeared completely. Mike’s arm has settled around Will’s shoulders, like it belongs there. A gentle smile comes onto her face at the sight.
During a particularly scary part, Will jumps slightly. Mike’s trying to be brave, she can tell from the slight fear in his eyes. El bites down on her lip to keep from giggling. Her heart swells as Mike tightens his arm and tilts his head a bit so his temple touches Will’s. They both relax instantly, and Will curls slightly into Mike’s side.
The movie ends and El stretches her limbs before getting up to turn the lights back on. When she returns, Mike and Will have separated, a small space between them. They’re both looking away from each other, with nervous expressions on their faces.
Oh.
El walks over to them.
“You can sit closer if you want,” she says helpfully. “You don’t have to pretend around me.”
Mike startles so hard he nearly falls off the couch. “Pretend what?”
Will turns red all the way up to the tips of his ears. “El—”
She gestures at them. “You’re dating.”
She’s met with silence.
Will blinks. “We’re not.”
Mike gives a meek noise of agreement, a puppy-esque look on his face.
El frowns down at them. Their hands are lying next to each other, fingers almost close enough to touch.
“…Then why were you holding each other during the movie?” she asks, genuinely confused.
Mike opens his mouth and closes it. “I—”
“It’s just comfortable,” Will whispers.
El accepts this with a nod. “Yes. Because you love each other.”
Mike makes a strangled sound. Will’s eyes go wide.
El frowns. “Am I wrong?”
“No! I mean—” Mike hides his face with his hands. “I— obviously I love him.” It comes out a bit muffled.
“What?” Will sounds shocked. He should’t be shocked, everyone knows this.
“What do you mean obviously?”he continues. Honestly, anyone can tell, with just one glance, how much Mike loves Will.
Mike drops his hands, face flushed and eyes wide like he can’t believe the words escaped. “I-I mean,” he glances at El, who’s watching him with an amused expression. “I thought that was obvious.”
“You… you love me?” Will says the words like he‘s testing them out loud.
Mike’s voice goes small. “Yeah… I think I always have.”
There’s a beat of silence where they’re both just staring at each other, seemingly having forgotten El’s presence.
El claps her hands sharply, grabbing their attention. “Okay,” she says, feeling satisfied. “I will be in my room.” She pauses, then adds, very seriously, “Do not pretend anymore.” And then she goes to her room smiling. They clearly have some talking to do.
Dating or not, they’ve been acting like it for a long time. And El knows love when she sees it — even if they’re only just starting to.