Work Text:
Mike sits on a chair, watching Lucas and Max dance.
They dance together with their hands intertwined, arms enveloping each other as they sway in time with the music. Their eyes crinkle at the edges as they smile, soft and sweet, and they gravitate closer, chests touching and cheeks flushed. The moment is beautiful.
It’s the kind of moment that opens a wide, gaping chasm of yearning in your chest. It’s sacred, reverent, leaving you transfixed as you watch, longing to experience that kind of closeness, that kind of pure, unabashed love.
Mike just watches.
His fingers dig into the hard plastic of the chair, knuckles turning white with the pressure. As if that could provide a reprieve from the pounding in his ears and the weight on his heart. Because Mike wants. Oh, how he wants. But he can’t get what he wants. Or rather, who he wants.
Because the person he wants to dance with is Will.
But they can’t dance. He can’t put his arms around Will, no matter how much he wants to—can’t hold him close to his chest, smile awkwardly for the pictures and share cheesy grins with each other. Not here, in front of the whole school, subject to sneers and mocking and that ever-constant feeling of wrongness.
Not here.
But maybe…somewhere else?
Will sits on the chair next to him, fidgeting. They haven’t spoken for the past five minutes, with Mike deep in thought, but the silence isn’t awkward. It never is; the air between them has always been a comfort, has always felt like coming home. Whether it was hours of excited chatting or hours of whiling away, doing nothing at all. Mike could spend forever in Will’s presence without a hint of awkwardness, because that’s just how they are. Ever since they were kids and joined at the hip. Like they were made for each other, meant to spend all their time together.
That’s not how the silence is now. The silence isn’t awkward, yes. But it isn’t comfortable, either.
And maybe it’s the weight of all Mike’s longing bearing down on his shoulders, and maybe it’s nothing at all. But Mike feels like the moment is charged, somehow. Like something is sitting there, waiting, heavy. Anticipatory. The shift in the air before a storm breaks, or the crackle before a strike of lightning.
The song changes, the soft notes of a slower ballad drifting through the speakers. It’s a song Mike knows well.
“Watching every motion in my foolish lover's game…”
Mike doesn’t know if Will even feels the same about him, if Will would even want to dance with someone like Mike, who is tragically inferior to Will in every way. Will is so beautiful, and kind, and artistic, and talented, and…
He watches Will, who is in his own world. His hair falls into his face, and his eyelashes flutter, long and dark. As if sensing that he’s being watched, he suddenly looks up, and their gazes meet, wide-eyed and soft.
“Take my breath away…”
Screw it.
Mike swallows. “Hey, Will?”
Will looks up at him, eyes wide and curious. In the lighting, Mike can see flecks of gold in his large, hazel eyes. God, he needs to get a grip.
“Yeah?”
He takes a deep breath. “Wanna catch some air?”
He fiddles with his jacket, nervously. Stay calm. Don’t overthink it.
“Um,” says Will. His heart is in his throat, and it beats with anticipation. “Sure, uh, yeah.”
Score.
Oh, god, so he’s really doing this, then. He’s really doing this. His heart rate picks up, beginning to race as he leads him across the gym, pushing through the mass of sweaty bodies to a side door on the far end. The lingering scent of cheap perfume trails after them as they step into a small alleyway, the cool night air a welcome change from the stuffiness of the gymnasium.
“Turning and returning to some secret place to hide…”
Will breathes deeply, sighing as the fresh air fills his lungs. “Wow, it’s hot in there.”
“Yeah,” Mike laughs. There is a stone ledge lining the alley on the opposite side of the gym wall. Mike hops up on it, and Will follows close after, hoisting himself up with a bit of difficulty. Mike reaches out, hands wrapping under Will’s shoulders, pulling him up the rest of the way.
Wow. Will.
Focus, Mike.
They sit there together, side by side, feet dangling off the edge. Music filters through the open door. Will is looking up at the sky.
“Stars are nice out,” he observes.
Mike looks up. Usually, the sky is clouded with pollution, but tonight the stars are sprawled across the sky, twinkling softly.
“Woah,” he replies, staring in wonder. It feels fated that the stars are out on this particular night. Makes the night feel special, somehow.
Mike looks back up with him, an odd, glassy expression behind his eyes. Fondness, with a twinge of sadness behind it, or perhaps guilt. His heart flutters. Something hangs in the air, and he doesn’t speak, afraid to fracture this delicate moment between them.
Oh, god. He feels like he’s about to burst from nervous energy. A thousand worries are racing through his mind, most prominently: What if this ruins everything?
But what if it changes everything?
He takes a leap of faith.
“Will?” Mike says. His voice cracks. Not off to a great start.
“Y-Yeah?”
Mike gulps. “Do you wanna dance?”
The sacred moment shatters, fracturing into something new, something extraordinary. The air between them cracks with that electricity again, creating sparks that shoot through his whole body.
Will inhales, sharp and surprised. “With…with me?”
Mike twists his hands in his lap, foot twitching nervously. His cheeks are flushed deeply as he searches Will’s eyes.
“With you.” His voice trembles softly, and his fingers twitch against the cold, smooth wall beneath him.
Will’s eyes are dark and curious. Like he doesn’t quite believe what he’s hearing. But behind them lies a sparkle— a soft glimmer of hope.
“Yeah,” Will breathes after a moment.
His heart swells.
Mike leans closer, tentatively, their arms brushing together. “I don’t know how,” he confesses.
“Um. I can teach you. If you want.”
Oh, god.
Mike nods, breathing soft and shaky. They push off of the ledge, Mike dusting off his jacket as Will faces him.
They stand for a moment, drifting as if in limbo. The music swells in the silence between them.
‘Watching in slow motion as you turn to me and say…’
Will exhales. “Um, so I’m gonna put my hands here…”
He places his hands on Mike’s shoulders, looking him in the eyes. Mike’s breath catches.
“…And you put your hands…” he takes Mike’s hands, guiding them. “Here.”
Heat blooms on Mike’s cheeks as he rests his hands around Will’s middle. Will looks equally flustered, and his eyes are wide and glimmering as they stare into his own, and Mike is suddenly so overwhelmed with the ache in his heart that he wants to melt.
‘My love, take my breath away...’
“Now what?” he asks, so softly, it’s almost a whisper.
“Just…move with the music.” Will sways to the chorus, drawing closer to Mike’s chest. His face is so close that he can see every freckle dotting his cheeks. They match the stars in the sky.
"If only for today, I am unafraid…"
“Where did you learn how to dance?”
“My mom taught me,” Will giggles. “She made me dance with her in our living room.”
Mike's face breaks into a grin, imagining the sight. “Bet Jonathan got a really good video of that.”
Will sighs. “Of course.” His mouth pulls up at the corners, betraying his fondness.
The air between them turns softer. Mike sways with him in time to the music, gaze never leaving his own.
Mike spins Will around, face breaking into a smile. Will giggles. When they come together again, their faces are flushed deeply, and Mike should be embarrassed but he’s not, because everything feels so right.
But, then, Will doesn’t put his hands back on Mike’s shoulders. Instead, they land on his chest, and Mike's breath hitches as he takes into account how close they are.
Will seems to realize at the same time, and as if on reflex, he flinches away, hands hovering in the space between them. Just an inch, but the space is cold in his absence. Mike can see the worry, the doubt in Will’s eyes, and all he wants is to somehow convey to Will just how much this is for him. Just how much love claws at the confines of his chest, begging to be poured out.
Without thinking, Mike reaches out and takes Will’s hands.
Will freezes, eyes locked on his own. The air was merely electric before— now it shatters with bolts of lightning, a thunderstorm crackling between their beating hearts. They seem to gravitate towards each other slightly, naturally, as if it’s just the way of the universe.
Never leaving his gaze, Mike guides Will’s hands back towards him, resting them over his heart. Will’s eyes grow wide as he feels his pulse, how quickly it races. Mike’s sure Will can feel everything beating against his shaking palms: all the choked emotion, all the repressed passion, the sheer amount of devotion bubbling there, ready to burst.
Will’s breath shudders. “Mike?”
“Yeah?”
“Is this…is this real?"
His voice is shaky, and his eyes are gleaming. Mike’s heart drops at the sight—he looks so hopeful, yet so scared. Like he’s tired of hoping.
Mike feels the same.
“Will, it’s always been you.”
His face flushes deep as the words leave his mouth, the gravity of them sinking in. It’s kind of a ridiculous thing to say: after all, they’re only thirteen. But Mike knows it’s true. He’s always been drawn to Will as the tides are to the moon, and he always will be, and that’s just how it is. As surely as the planets orbit the sun, Mike orbits Will.
“It’s always been you, too,” Will whispers, and the words are heavy and tangible.
‘Watching, I keep waiting, still anticipating love.
Never hesitating to become the fated ones…’
His gaze drifts to Will’s lips, then back up again. His breath hitches.
Will notices. His hand drifts upwards to his neck.
“Can I?” The words are hushed, barely above a whisper, but they rock Mike’s entire world.
He nods.
Will grabs both sides of his face and kisses him, slow and sweet. His lips are soft, and he lingers only for a moment before pulling away, eyes blown wide and breath shaking.
Mike always thought that kissing Will would be this huge thing. Something that would change him, irrevocably, eternally, something that would shift his world on his axis and uproot his very soul.
But it feels familiar. Almost like home.
Like this is how it was always meant to be.
Mike gazes in awe. “Wowza.”
Will chokes back a giggle.
Mike’s dazed look morphs into pure mortification. “Oh my god,” he breathes. “I did not just say wowza.”
Will laughs into Mike’s shoulder. “You did.”
“Oh my god,” he groans. He leans down, resting his forehead against Will’s own. When he looks back, he is entirely red.
They share a cheesy smile, eyes wide and sparkling. It’s everything Mike had ever wanted.
“Wow,” Will whispers.
“Wow,” Mike agrees.
They linger there quietly for a while, reveling in the moment, swaying together in time with the music.
Then, carefully, Will leans fully against his chest, body flush against his, his head resting just under Mike’s chin. Mike lowers his head so that they are tucked together, fitting perfectly like two pieces of a puzzle.
Mike’s thoughts wander. He thinks of sappy, romantic cliches: soulmates, pre-destiny. Fates written in the stars. An invisible string; him and Will, forever entwined.
And now, alone with Will, with only the stars as a witness, Mike thinks it’s possible. For the first time in months, since the Mind Flayer and the horrors of the Upside Down, he thinks past tomorrow. For the first time in months, he thinks of forever.
And for the first time in months, he believes in forever.
He looks down at Will. Will looks up at him. They stare at each other like they hung the moon.
Mike leans back down, and their lips connect again. The song is almost to an end, and the music begins to fade away as they hold each other close. They listen, smiling against each other’s mouths, wishing the moment would never end.
“Take my breath away…
And even though the song will end, and they’ll go home, exchanging sweet goodbyes and soft-spoken promises, the moment will never truly end. Because they have each other. Mike has Will, safe in his arms again. And nothing, no matter how dire, how cruel, could ever separate them from each other.
My love, take my breath away, she sings, the music fading at last. And Mike, who had always felt doomed to just watch, to forever yearn from the sidelines, finally feels right.