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It was 3:47pm and Mike was sitting in his last class of the day, Spanish.
Was he paying attention?
No, instead his gaze was focused on whatever was going on outside the window. He had no interest in Spanish whatsoever, but he needed to take one more elective.
What made it suck even more was the fact none of his friends were in his class.
Dustin was sadly in the other Spanish class and the rest of the party didn’t take it.
He half-listened to his teacher drone on about verbs or grammar or whatever it was she was going on about.
However, the sudden crackling of the intercom caught his attention.
“Good afternoon everyone” Stacey began, speaking cheerily from the intercom.
“As most of you are aware, your last chance to get tickets to the Valentine’s Ball was today during lunch” she continued.
Mike suppressed a groan.
El and Max had bought tickets for everyone earlier in the week, the two very eager to have the whole gang back together after they had defeated Vecna.
Mike wasn’t over enthusiastic at the idea of the Ball, to put it one way.
He knew all his friends would have dates, to match outfits with, slow dance to sappy love songs and maybe even share a kiss with.
Mike wanted this too, don’t get it wrong, but he wanted to do all this with the one person he couldn’t have.
Will.
Will, who had insisted on staying Best Friends with Mike after he came out to him and the rest of the extended party.
Of course Mike said yes, what type of monster would he be to say no.
But Mike wanted more.
Mike loved that he could reach out and wrap an arm around Will’s shoulder, but he wanted more, he craved it.
He wanted to be able to hold his hand, cuddle with him during movie nights, and sneak kisses with him when the Party wasn't around.
But he couldn’t.
Why?
Because there was no way in hell Will was into Mike.
Mike had treated Will horribly in the past, ignoring him, constantly taking out his issues with his relationship with El on Will and even shouting at him.
Mike had apologised countless times and Will had accepted each apology, but Mike knew it hurt him.
and it hurt Mike to know he had hurt Will.
Another reason as to why Mike had no chance with Will at all was because Will was way out of his league.
Will had always looked pretty in Mike’s eyes, but ever since he came back from Lenora, all tanned and tall, he had people queuing up for his number left and right.
Will did politely turn down every single person, but that made Mike think even more about the possibilities of Will already having a crush on someone, waiting for them to ask him out on a date.
Mike didn’t like the idea of someone stealing Will away from him.
Stop it. He had to tell himself.
Will was not his.
He was just his best friend.
He shook his head, and tuned back into whatever Stacey was saying over the intercom.
“Also, gentle reminder that Cupids Week starts next week” she crackled over the intercom enthusiastically.
“Leave your love letters in the box outside the office each morning and Hawkin’s favourite Cupids will deliver them to each classroom over the week”
The crackling stopped and Mike’s teacher continued to drone on about verbs.
Mike stared up at the clock.
3:52pm.
Only five more minutes he thought to himself with a sigh.
Five more minutes till he was free from this hell hole and could go hang out with the Party at their designated diner.
El was joining them this week which he knew Max would be over the moon about, the two loved to gossip about school and family life at the end of each week.
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“How was Spanish?” Will asked as he walked up to him by the bike racks.
Mike was always out first on Fridays, seeing as his last class was right by the entrance, which meant he usually spent at least ten minutes for the rest of the party to arrive.
“Boring, wish you were there” Mike said, unlocking his bike from the rack.
Will let out a chuckle.
“As much as I love your company, I much rather sitting in art than Spanish”
“Yeah, yeah, can I join you in art next time?” Mike asked with a grin.
“Very funny, can you even draw?” Will asked with a laugh.
“No,” Mike said simply, “but I can be your model,” he added, striking a small pose to make Will laugh.
Will squinted his eyes, seemingly contemplating something.
“I mean I suppose you could”
“Really?”
“Yeah, as long as you don’t mind sitting in front of the class naked,” Will said with a smirk.
Mike felt his face turn a deep shade of red.
“Oh, I mean,uh-” he sputtered out.
Will hit his shoulder playfully.
“I’m messing with you idiot” He said grinning, “but I will take you up on that offer sometime next week, I have my February project due soon”
“Yeah, I’ll be the best model,” Mike said, trying to cool his nerves.
Was Will flirting with him?
“Just don’t have me going commando in front of your class preferably” he tacked on.
Will rolled his eyes.
“Who’s going commando?” Dustin asked, suddenly appearing out of nowhere, Lucas and Max by his side also.
Mike groaned.
“No one is going commando” he said at the same time as Will said
“Mike is”
The Party just stared at the two.
“Right, I don’t think I want to even ask” Lucas said, as he grabbed his bike from the rack.
“Come on idiots, we can’t keep El waiting” Max said, also grabbing her bike.
“You do know I’ve been waiting here for ten minutes right?” Mike asked, pointing a glare towards Max.
“The longer you complain, the longer it will take us to get there” Max said in a sing-song tone, leaping on her bike and heading off.
“Whatever” Mike grumbled under his breath.
He heard Will giggle from beside him.
“What?” he asked.
“You’re cute when you’re annoyed” Will said with a grin, also hopping on his bike.
“Come on slow coach” Will said in a sing-song tune, mocking Max from earlier.
Mike just stared at the road ahead.
Will was definitely flirting with him.
Will Byers would be the death of him, Mike decided as he too hopped on his bike.
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“So, Mike,” Lucas said, in between bites of his burger.
The group had finally met up at the diner and were catching up about their day.
Mike looked up from his fries, “what?” he asked.
“The Valentine’s dance is coming up”
“I’m well aware of that Lucas”
Mike suppressed a groan, he knew where this was going.
“I’m just saying man, it could be your chance to get back out there, you’ve been single for ages man”
Mike rolled his eyes.
“Am I not allowed to be single?” he asked, squinting at Lucas from across the table.
Mike didn’t like how the whole party was talking about his lack of relationship, when he could possibly be in one right now, with the boy squished right beside him, if he was just brave enough to ask.
Mike would love to be in a relationship right now, he’d love to do double dates with Max and Lucas and join in on board game nights with Dustin and El, but the what ifs always linger in the back of his mind.
What if Will doesn’t like him back, what if he only sees Mike as his best friend.
What if Will does like him back, but he does something stupid and ruins his chance to be with one of the most amazing people on the planet.
“I’m still single” Will adds, sending a look at Lucas's way.
“Yeah, but Will you’re single in a cute mysterious way, you have queues of people asking for your number” Max butts in, stealing a fry from Lucas’s plate while doing so.
“Meanwhile, Mike is single because he doesn’t put himself out there, and he’s a loser” Max continued, through her chews.
“Yeah, yeah, did anyone ever teach you to keep your mouth shut when you're eating?” Mike grunted.
Max just flipped him off.
“I think what Lucas was trying to say, was next weekend could be your chance” Dustin piped in, much more politely than the other two.
“What if Mike just wants to be single?”
“Thank you El” Mike said, nodding towards El.
“El you know you don’t have to defend him right?” Max turned to ask her.
“I know, I’m not defending him though” El said, in that tone she sometimes says the most ominous shit in.
Mike squinted his eyes at her.
What did she know?
“Okay, anyways” Lucas piped in again, “thoughts on matching suits for the dance?”
A chorus of ‘no’s made its way around the small table.
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The weekend had flown by too quickly for Mike’s liking, it was already Monday again and he was sat in the back of his English class.
He didn’t mind English, it being one of his better subjects, but Will being in this class with him made it a hundred times better.
He turned to Will, who was busy doodling in the back of his copy.
“Whatcha drawing?” Mike asked, leaning down to whisper into Will’s ear.
“Nothing really, just doodles”
“Shouldn’t you be paying attention to Hamlet or whatever right now?” Mike teased.
Will turned to glance at him.
“Nah, that’s your job”
“Oh, do I have to listen for both of us now?”
“Uh huh” Will agreed, turning back to his sketchbook.
“Do you want to come back to my house after?” Mike asked, turning back to him, when his teacher faced the board. “I can fill you in on whatever you missed while you’ve been doodling”
“Are you using study as an excuse for us to hang out?” Will teased.
“Is it working?”
Will fondly rolled his eyes.
“I suppose I’ll come” he agreed, “but I don’t know how much you’ve managed to retain, seeing how you’ve been staring at me the entire class”
Mike felt blood rush to his cheeks.
“I-uh, no I haven’t” Mike deflected.
“You can keep staring, I don’t mind,” Will said smugly.
“I wasn’t staring”
“Sure”
Before Mike could argue his reason for totally not staring at his best friend, the classroom door opened, the boys being ripped out of their conversation by the sound.
Stacey and her gang of friends piled into the room, holding a big tub, filled with sheets of colourful paper.
“Oh yeah, it's cupids week,” Will said absentmindedly, before Stacey's friends made their way around the room.
“Happy Cupid’s week everyone” Stacey cheerfully said from the top of the classroom,
“Now, don’t get too upset if you have no love letters written for you today, remember you love birds have all week to play Romeo and Juliet” she said, beaming at everyone around her.
When Mike turned his attention back to Will, he saw Will was staring at his own desk, looking quite shocked.
Mike followed his gaze and saw a small bundle of pink and red letters on Will’s desk.
“Holy Shit.” Mike said to Will with a grin.
“Looks like I won’t be single for the dance after all” Will laughed, still staring down at the letters.
Mike furrowed his eyebrows, lost in thought.
He did not like the idea of Will going to the dance, without him, and his friends of course, but now he was definitely going to be all alone,
He was going to be an idiot loner, while Will was laughing, dancing, holding hands with an amazing guy, who was not Mike.
Maybe Mike should have sent Will a love letter, maybe he’d say yes to the dance with him if he asked, maybe he likes Mike back.
A nudge against his shoulder pulled him from his thoughts.
“Are you jealous?” Will asked with a grin.
“Jealous, what? Why would I be jealous?” Mike asked, shit he thought to himself.
Did Will know how he feels, is he about to subtly reject him and go to the dance with some random boy that he barely knows, while Mike stands in the corner like a jealous idiot.
“Maybe because I got like five times the love letters than you,” he said with a grin.
Mike looked down at his table to see the lack of love letters staring right back up at him.
“As if I care about some stupid letter” Mike said, awkwardly laughing, “like I said at the diner, I’m choosing to be single”
Will squinted his eyes at Mike for a second.
“So, you didn’t send anyone any letters either?” he asked, staring at Mike in a way that made him squirm in his seat.
Mike shook his head.
“I wouldn’t write a letter to some rando, confessing my undying love for them” Mike began with a laugh, “It would have to be something meaningful, to someone meaningful” he added.
“Oh” was all Will said in response, and Mike swore he saw something flash in his eyes, was it sadness, Mike couldn’t tell.
Was that the wrong thing to say to someone meaningful, Mike thought to himself.
Mike internally facepalmed himself.
He just told the most important person in the world, who he hopes and suspects feels the same way about him that he would have to do something meaningful and loving to truly show his love for them, and he didn’t do that for Will.
I’m such an idiot, he thought to himself.
Mike snapped himself out of thoughts.
“So, what would you do, would you flirt with someone through a cheesy letter?” Mike asked, now it was his turn to squint at Will.
Will just shrugged in response.
“I mean, did you get a letter today?” he asked, a smirk growing on his face.
Mike felt his face growing red.
“What does that mean?” he asked, Mike sure did want it to mean what he thought it meant.
The bell rang for the next class, interrupting their conversation.
“What do you think it means, Mike”
“Will-”
“Sorry, I’ve art now and I can’t be late” he said, quickly grabbing his stuff.
“Will-” Mike tried again, but was yet again interrupted by Will, who Mike now noticed his cheeks were also bright pink.
“We can talk at that study session, remember, but now i have art so bye” he said, and then he was gone.
Mike stared at the door for a moment before he realised he needed to haul his ass to his Spanish class.
So Will is definitely flirting with me, Mike thought to himself as he packed his stuff away.
And it was driving Mike crazy.
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Mike was sprawled out on his bed, comic book in his lap.
Will was sitting at Mike’s desk, sketchbook in hand.
Mike had given up trying to teach Will whatever Shakespeare play they were learning about in class about a half an hour ago, as it seemed Will was right in saying Mike’s attention was elsewhere.
Now, the two were sat in a comfortable silence, which was not unusual for the two.
They hung out so much that they often ran out of new things to talk about, but Mike loved these quiet moments just as much if he was being honest.
Will swivelled around in his chair, turning to face Mike.
“So, do you mind if I take you up on that offer to be my model?” he asked as Mike looked up from his comic.
“Oh, yeah sure” Mike agreed, grinning. “How would you like me to pose?”
“Mhm, sit up and turn your head slightly to the left and look up,” Will said, thinking to himself.
Mike nodded, shuffling himself up and throwing the comic onto the ground.
“Like this?” he asked, angling his head to the left.
“Uhm, a little more up maybe?”
Mike complied, moving his head slightly up.
“Now?” he asked.
Will let out a little laugh and stood up from his chair, making his way over to the bed.
“Can I?” he asked gently.
Mike nodded, too scared to speak, he didn’t know what would come out from him if he did.
Will gently placed his hand on Mike’s cheek and Mike had to fight for his life to not lean into it.
Will pushed his cheek slightly to the left, and then moved his hand to Mike’s jaw.
Mike held his breath as Will pushed his face upwards.
He was so tempted to kiss him right there and then.
Will let his hand linger for a moment before he moved away.
“There, perfect” Will whispered.
“I swear I was just like this”
“Shush Micheal, who’s the artist here?” Will laughed, sitting back in the chair and facing MIke.
Mike did as he was told and stayed still, fighting his inner demons to not turn his eyes to see Will in his element.
He listened to the quiet scratching of pencil on paper as Will concentrated on his drawing.
“Can you make that face you made earlier?” Will asked, breaking the silence.
“What face?”
“That jealous face you were making earlier” Will said, a shit eating grin plastered on his face.
MIke let out a groan.
“I was not jealous of you Will, Jesus, I don’t care that I didn’t get any cupid cards or whatever” Mike said with a sigh
“I know you weren’t jealous of me” Will simply said, not looking up from his sketchbook.
“What do you even mean by that?”
“You know what I mean”
“I literally don’t”
Will sighed.
Mike sighed louder in response.
“If you’re all going to be teasing me about being so single I might not even bother going to this stupid dance” he mumbled, trying not to move his head while he complained.
Will let out another sigh and put his sketchbook down, making his way over to Mike on the bed.
Mike turned his head back around, to see the look Will was giving him right now.
“Mike, how many times do I have to tell you, I will be single at this stupid dance too”
“But, what about all those people asking you today, and you’ll surely get more cards as the week goes on” Mike said, flailing his arms around a bit.
Mike knew he was thinking irrationally, but he just cared about Wil so much and yeah, maybe seeing him being asked to the dance by someone else did make him jealous, but he was never going to admit that to anyone.
Mike really wanted to believe he had a chance with Will, and he felt that chance getting slimmer and slimmer every time someone asks Will out.
Mike knew all he needed to do was ask, but it was a lot easier for someone else.
Others might say, ‘I’ll just ask him out, what’s the worst that could happen’, but Mike can’t follow that route.
If Mike asked Will out, a lot of stuff could change, for the better or worse.
What if Will rejects him, and Mike loses his best friend, his person.
What if Will didn’t reject him, but down the line regretted his choice and left him, Mike would still lose his best friend.
Will grabbed one of Mike’s flailing hands, pulling Mike out of the small trance he was in.
“Mike, I’m not interested in any of those nobodies, I just want to go to this dance and have a good time with you-”
Mike felt his eyes widen, was Will really about to say what Mike thought he was going to say.
-and the rest of the party” Will finished, a sweet smile plastered on his face.
“But what if one of those guys is like the love of your life or something” Mike sighed, flopping back onto the bed.
“And because you’re hanging out with us you miss your chance with him” he continued.
Will copied Mike and flopped down beside him, laying on his side, facing Mike.
“Mike, those rando’s aren’t going to be the love of my life” Will whispered.
“You don’t know that though”
“Trust me I do”
“How can you be so sure?” Mike asked, turning to face Will, not realising how close their faces were.
Will stared at Mike for a moment, a soft smile on his face.
“Because I know, Mike,” he whispered.
Mike looked at where Will was staring, realising he was looking at his lips.
Mike swore he saw him lean in slightly, so Mike copied.
He closed his eyes, and could feel Will’s breath on his lips.
A loud rapping on the door broke the two boys out of their little bubble, both rapidly sitting up.
“Mike, Jonathan’s here to collect Will,” she loudly said.
“Okay” Mike said, loud enough she could hear him through the door.
“See you tomorrow,” Will said, with a sad smile on his face.
“Yeah, you better be paying attention in English,” Mike said with a grin.
“You need to listen to your own advice, Micheal,” Will said with a laugh as he headed towards the door.
“Oh, you forgot your drawing” Mike said, picking up the piece of himself, which looked amazing, Will really did him justice.
“No, that’s for you” Will said as he left his bedroom, “so you can see how ridiculously cute you look when you're jealous” he added with a smirk, and closed the door.
Mike flopped down onto his bed with a sigh, mulling through the past four minutes in his head.
Will had almost kissed HIM.
Will Byers had almost kissed him.
Mike had almost kissed Will back.
Of course his stupid Mom had to interrupt them,
What if Will realised he was making a mistake and doesn’t want to kiss him anymore.
Mike also felt extremely dizzy over the fact Will was going to kiss him.
Not some random person at the Valentine’s Ball, but him, Mike Wheeler.
This gave Mike some hope, and some courage to potentially ask him out.
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Mike felt like ripping his hair out. He has been sat in Biology with Dustin for the past 53 minutes, waiting for the lunch bell to ring.
Dustin was paying attention which meant Mike was half paying attention at least.
He was listening to his teacher go on about osmosis, when Stacey and her friends all barged into the room, all dressed in an array of whites and pinks.
“They’re really playing into this cupid shit aren’t they” Mike whispered to Dustin.
“Yeah,” he whispered though, “no, need to be salty about it just because no one’s given you a letter” he added with a smirk.
Mike rolled his eyes.
“I’m not salty!” he groaned, “I genuinely don’t care if I get a stupid letter or not”
“Well maybe you should Wheeler” a voice from behind him said.
Mike turned around to see Stacey looking at him, a pink letter in her hand.
“Or else you might just break this lucky girl's heart” she added, dropping the letter on Mike’s desk.
Mike turned back around, a shocked expression on his face.
“No way!” Dustin said from beside him, “open it, I want to see what it says”
Mike unfolded the letter to find a message written in pretty cursive writing.
The letter read
You and me would make a great pear x
Mike looked down to the end of the page to see a small but beautiful drawing of a pear, it looked extremely life-like.
Mike swore he could recognise the pencil markings from anywhere.
Did Will send him this?
“Oh my god, no way,” Dustin repeated, looking down at the letter.
“Did she sign it?” he asked, pointing to the bottom.
“No,” Mike sighed, partially relieved as it meant that even if this wasn’t Will he could live in his delusion for a little longer.
“Wait till the rest of the party finds out you of all people have got a secret admirer” he said with a grin, packing up his bag as the bell rang out.
“Don’t sound so shocked” Mike said with a grin, “I’ve got game”
“Uh huh” Dustin said as the pair walked out of the classroom.
They made their way to their designated lunch table and waited for the others.
“Guys, Guess what” Dustin practically screamed as soon as Max, Lucas and Will had joined them at the table.
Mike internally groaned, he knew where this was going.
“What?” Lucas half-heartedly asked, starting on his lunch.
“Mike got a cupid’s letter today” Dustin proudly said,
Mike just scoffed.
Lucas’s eyes widened
Max’s jaw dropped,
And Will stared at Mike, as if he were trying to figure something out.
“Holy shit” Max said, Mike didn’t appreciate how shocked she sounded.
“Who’s the lucky person?” Will asked, bumping his foot against Mike’s from beneath the table.
Before Mike could respond, Dustin butted in.
“They didn’t sign it!” he exclaimed.
“Maybe they were embarrassed to admit their love for Mike Wheeler” Max said with a laugh.
“Hey!” Mike said, reaching over the table to whack her shoulder.
“I think it’s kinda cute” Will said, again bumping his foot against Mike’s underneath the table.
Will was slowly going to drive him crazy.
“Are you going to go with them to the dance?” Lucas asked, “now you won’t have to complain about being single.”
Mike sighed and rolled his eyes.
“I was never complaining” Mike argued, looking at Lucas, “and no, I can’t go with them, they never left a name idiot”
“Maybe they’ll ambush you,” Dustin said with a laugh.
Mike groaned, “can we talk about something else now?”
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Mike was sitting crisscrossed on Will’s bedroom floor, the two having retreated there for the day after school.
He was in the middle of attempting his biology homework when he heard Will shuffle closer towards him.
Mike wondered if Will remembered that they almost kissed yesterday.
“Hi” Will said, shoulder bumping against Mike’s”
“Hi” Mike echoed in response, turning to face Will.
“So..” Will began.
“So?”
“Are you going to take your secret admirer to prom?” he asked quietly.
“I don’t even know who they are, Will” Mike responded with a laugh.
“If they-she” Will corrected himself, “if she signed her name, would you go with her”
“I think that would be worse,” Mike said honestly.
He knew that if it was a girl and she signed her name the Party would be relentless in getting him to go with her, and then Mike would have to explain to them all why he couldn’t, He’d have to explain part of himself that he didn’t know if he could fully explain yet, not to all his friends anyway.
Sure, they were all supportive of Will when he told them all he didn’t like girls, but what if they had a different reaction to him.
“Why would that be worse?” Will whispered.
Mike sighed, he knew he could trust Will right? It was Will for Christ’s sake.
“Because then, I'd have to go with a girl,” Mike whispered, averting his gaze away from Will.
“oh”
Oh, what did that mean? Was that a good ‘oh’, a bad ‘oh’ a sad one?
Mike was scared to ask.
“oh?” Mike whispered back
Mike felt a gentle hand on his knee.
“Mike, thank you for telling me” Will said sincerely, “I’m proud of you”
He then wrapped Mike in a gentle hug, Mike felt himself sighing into it.
“Sorry for not telling you sooner” he mumbled into Will’s shoulder.
Will pulled away, hands still on Mike’s shoulder.
“Mike listen to me,” he began, staring straight at Mike, “you have nothing to be sorry for, what you told me is personal, it’s up to you when to tell someone okay?”
Mike nodded a small smile on his lips.
“I know how it feels” Will said with a grin, “all the letters I’ve gotten this week are from girls, I’ve even gotten one from Jenifer Hayes”
Mike rolled his eyes with a laugh.
“Oh my god, I still remember her crying that day, she clearly hasn’t gotten over you” he chuckled.
“Yeah, her constant pestering has gotten a bit annoying, it’s made it very tempting for me to tell her I don't even like girls” Will sighed.
“Would you tell her?” Mike asked
“I mean probably one day, but it’s none of her business” Will answered honestly.
Mike nodded.
“So, would you go to the Valentine's dance if one of those letters was from a guy?” Mike asked.
Will chuckled, “Mike, I told you like a trillion times I'm not interested in going with some random person”
Mike nodded, “I know, but are you not interested in anyone like at all?” he asked curiously.
Mike was setting himself up to break his own heart, because if Will answered yeah, and he told him who he was interested in, Mike knew it would never be him.
And if Will said no, then Mike’s heart would still be broken regardless.
Will rolled his eyes and bumped his shoulder against Mike’s
“I mean, I didn’t say that” he shrugged.
Mike’s face cracked into a grin, he was going to be supportive, even if it meant his crush was unrequited.
“Will, oh my god, who is it”
“nuh uh, not saying”
“Willl, I just shared my deepest darkest secret with you, come on” he said teasingly.
“I can’t say”
“Why?”
“It might ruin things,” Will said, turning to face Mike.
“Will, trust me, I’m your best friend, it wouldn’t ruin anything.”
Will sighed, gazing into Mike’s eyes,
Mike swore he saw him glance down towards his lips for a split second
“Okay” he agreed, “it’s y-”
He was interrupted by Nancy shouting through the door
“Mike, get your ass in the car, I’m leaving now” she said.
Mike flopped on the ground with a groan, Will was never going to say it now. The quiet moment they had together was ruined by his sister.
His family really needed to stop interrupting his moments between him and Will.
“Oh well” Will said with a laugh, pulling Mike up onto his feet.
“See you tomorrow?” Mike asked as he threw his backpack over his shoulder.
Will nodded.
Before Mike could register what was happening, he felt the quick brush of lips on his cheek.
Will just kissed him. On his cheek.
Mike felt his cheeks burn.
“See you tomorrow Mike” Will said softly, a smile growing on his face.
“Uh, huh, yeah tomorrow” Mike sputtered, he was at a loss for words.
“What’s gotten your knickers in a twist?” Nancy asked, once Mike had gotten into the car.
“Nothing, just shut up” he said, turning to face out the window.
“Right” Nancy just responded, giving Mike a quick look before starting the car.
He was going to do it, Mike decided.
He was going to ask Will to be his date to the Valentine’s dance.
Because that kiss had to have meant something
Right?
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As soon as Mike got home he ran to the basement, partially to hide from Nancy’s curious stares, and also to come up with a plan.
A plan to ask Will to prom.
He wanted to do something that was special to him and Will.
Will was extremely special to him, and Mike wanted to make sure he knew this.
He looked around the dimly lit basement, trying to draw inspiration from anything that might be laying around down there.
That’s when his eyes landed on it.
It was a painting Will had done for Mike years ago, when they were both still in elementary school.
It was a small painting of him and Will as their dnd characters, Will the Wise and Mike the Brave, fighting monsters in a different world, before monsters started spilling into their own world.
Maybe he could do something dnd related.
Sure, it would be extremely cheesy, but it was special to both him and Will.
Mike got up from the small couch in the basement and stretched his legs.
He found a small poster board belonging to Holly in the corner of the room, that he was sure she wouldn't miss.
He began rooting around in the drawers, trying to find some old paints.
He let out a sigh of relief when he managed to find a set in the back of a press.
He hunched down at a small table and began to design his poster.
He knew it wouldn’t look amazing, Will was the artist out of the two, but surely he would appreciate it regardless.
⊹₊˚‧︵‿₊୨ᰔ୧₊‿︵‧˚₊⊹
“You okay?” Will asked, nudging Mike awake in the back of their Maths class.
“mhm, yeah I’m fine” he responded, letting out a yawn.
“Why are you so tired?” Will asked with a chuckle.
Mike was glad nothing was awkward between him and Will after yesterday, he wouldn’t know how he’d handle it.
“I didn’t go to sleep till like four” Mike sheepishly said, rubbing his eyes.
“Four!” Will exclaimed, “Mike, what were you doing till four in the morning” he asked.
“Nothing, was just busy” he answered,
He couldn’t tell Will he was up all night planning how to ask him to the dance.
“What were you busy doing idiot” Will asked, poking Mike’s side.
“Nothing, it’s a secret,” he said, grinning over to Will.
“Oh, yeah”
“Yeah,” Mike responded with a grin, “but you can find out if you want to come over later”
Mike was praying to whatever gods out there that Will wouldn’t say no.
“Okay, will I meet you at the bike racks?” he asked.
“uh, could you actually come over around six, I have to help my mom out after school” Mike quickly said,
In truth, he was actually going to get Will a bouquet of flowers, regardless of how cliche it was.
Will stared at him curiously, “okay” he agreed.
Mike smiled at him, “great” he said, as the bell rang, signalling the start of lunch.
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Mike rushed out of school as soon as the final bell rang, he didn’t want anymore questions from his friends about what he was doing this afternoon, especially Will.
He quickly pedalled on his bike into the centre of town, slowing down once he reached the shop he was looking for.
Melvalds, they usually had a nice selection of flowers whenever he was there. Mike just hoped he would get a nice bouquet and some reeses pieces for less than 21 Dollars and 13 cents. How much could flowers cost anyways?
He was inspecting the array of flowers at the entrance to the shop, none were really catching his eye, until he saw the small bouquet of yellow and blue flowers at the back.
Perfect! Mike thought he knew they were two of Will’s favourite colours, and they were only ten bucks. score.
Mike made his way to the back of the store in search of some Reese's pieces.
They had been Will’s favourite candy since forever.
He grabbed two bags and headed towards the checkout.
He halted to a quick stop when he realised who was the cashier at the checkout.
It was Mrs Byers.
Shit.
How was he meant to pay for the flowers now?
Mrs Byers would definitely know who he’s buying them for.
She doesn’t even know Mike likes boys, but she has that weird instinct all mothers have where she would just know.
Mike was screwed.
What if she told Will?
What if she didn’t want him to ask Will out?
What if she hated him?
Mike shook his head, trying to stop himself from spiraling.
He wasn’t thinking rationally, he’s just buying flowers and candy, that doesn’t mean she will know he’s about to practically confess his love to her son in approximately 2 hours.
Mike took a deep breath and headed towards the till.
“Hi Mike” Mrs Byers cheerfully said from her seat at the till.
“Hi Mrs Byers, I’m good, how are you?” he asked politely, placing his items nervously on the till.
“I’m great, and it’s just Joyce, remember, you’ve known me long enough to drop the Mrs Byers stuff” she smiled at him.
“Right, sorry, Joyce” he said, twiddling his thumbs.
“These flowers are lovely, who are they for?” she asked.
Shit, Mike thought to himself, she definitely knows.
“Just my mom,” he responded, avoiding eye contact.
“Oh, okay, that’s very sweet of you” she said, eyeing him suspiciously.
“Mhm,” Mike nodded, “you know me,” he added.
Mrs Byers smiled at him, Mike just hoped she bought that lie, that stupid lie..
When did he ever buy his Mom flowers?
“Okay, that will be 14.68” she said.
Mike nodded, handing her over his cash..
Mrs Byers handed Mike the small plastic bag.
“Thanks” Mike said, about to leave, but Mrs Byers grabbed his hand.
“Good choice on the colours, they’re his favourite” Mrs Byers said with a sweet smile on her face.
Mike stopped in his tracks.
She knew.
Of course she knew.
“Oh, um, what no its, no-” Mike sputtered, before Mrs Byers gave him a look.
“Mike it’s okay, I trust you to take care of him” she said quietly.
“oh” was all Mike was able to muster out.
“What if he says no?” Mike mumbled quietly, before this was a stupid conversation to be having with Will’s Mom of all people.
Mrs Byers gave Mike a knowing smile.
“Mike, It’s Will, we both know how much he adores you”
Mike felt a deep blush creep up on his cheeks.
He stood still for a moment before he nodded.
“Thank you” he said, and he meant it.
Mrs Byers patted his shoulder with a smile.
“Have fun” she said as he walked out the door.
⊹₊˚‧︵‿₊୨ᰔ୧₊‿︵‧˚₊⊹
It was currently 6:06pm and Mike was sat in his basement, slightly panicking.
Was Will always this late?
Was Mike only noticing it because he really hoped Will would turn up.
What if Will rejected him?
What if the kiss on his cheek meant nothing to him?
Mike tapped his fingers against the top of the small poster.
oh my god, Mike thought to himself, what if he finds the poster really weird and then rejects him.
A creak at the top of the basement stairs pulled Mike from his thoughts.
Shit, there was no going back now, he supposes.
“Mike, you there?” Will asked from the top of the stairs.
Mike stood up, hiding the poster and small bouquet of flowers behind his back.
“Yeah, I’m here, come on down” he nervously said from his position by the couch.
It was now or never, he thought to himself, even though he really really wanted to jump out the basement window and hide.
It felt like an entire lifetime by the time Will was at the bottom of the stairs.
“You okay?, you’re very quiet” Will asked as he made his way over to Mike.
Mike nodded.
“Can I ask you something” Mike began, but his nerves got the better of him, “actually, never mind, it’s stupid.”
Will smiled softly at Mike, moving closer to him.
“Mike, you can ask me anything, you know that right?” Will reassured him, “I don’t care how stupid you think it is”
Mike nodded, taking in a deep breath,
It was now or never.
“doyouwanttogotothedancewithme” Mike rushed out, pulling out the small poster and bouquet from behind his back.
He quickly shut his eyes, scared to see Will’s reaction.
The poster was simple, but it took Mike hours last night to make.
It read
"Will the Wise, Will you be my d8 to the dance?”
With a, horrendous in Mike's own opinion, drawing of a d8 die from dnd.
Will remained silent.
The silence scared Mike even more,
Mike cracked open his eyes to gauge his reaction.
Before he had time to do that though, he was being crushed into a tight hug.
Will wrapped his arms around Mike.
Mike sighed, taking this as a positive reaction.
“Mike, are you serious?” Will asked, surprised as he pulled away from Mike.
Mike let a smile take over his face, “yes, of course I am”
Will stared at him for a moment
“As friends?” he asked,
And Mike swore he saw a glimmer of hope in his eyes.
“As whatever you want it to be” Mike began,
Fuck it, he decided, it was now or never
“Fuck, Will I’m obsessed with you” he added, staring into Will’s doe eyes.
“Really?” Will asked.
Mike nodded,
“You don’t have to say anything, you can reject me if you like, I just felt I had to let you know how I feel about you, and maybe I’ve gotten this all wrong but I felt like maybe you-mphh”
Mike’s rambling was interrupted by Will’s lips on his own,
Mike felt like he had reached heaven, he quickly reciprocated the kiss, still awkwardly holding onto the bouquet of flowers and the poster.
Will gently pulled away, and Mike already felt desperate for more.
“Mike, I’m obsessed with you too” Will whispered, a bright smile shining on his face.
“Really?” Mike asked.
Will laughed,
“Yes, you idiot, why else would I have kissed you?” he asked with a grin.
Mike just shrugged.
He held out the bouquet of flowers towards Will.
“These are for you, they might have gotten a bit squished from when we uhm kissed” he said sheepishly
“They’re perfect, I love them Mike” Will said, taking the flowers from him.
Mike felt a buzz when their fingers lightly grazed off of one another.
“So, is that a yes?” Mike asked, holding up his cheesy sign again.
“Yes, of course it is Mike, I would love to go to the dance with you” Will said
Mike gleamed, reaching out to pull Will into another hug.
When they pulled away, Will looked at the sign again.
“This is amazing, is this what you were doing till four am last night?” he asked
“Yeah, I wanted it to look perfect for you, but I'm clearly not as good of an artist as you are”
Will fondly rolled his eyes.
“Mike you could have asked me in a dusty alleyway with a dandelion and I still would have said yes” Will earnestly said.
“Would you have said yes if I was holding a pear?” Mike asked with a sly grin on his face, remembering the pear drawing from yesterday.
“Did you know it was from me the whole time?”
“It was kinda obvious” Mike chuckled, “Who else can draw as amazingly as you”
Will pulled him into another sweet, but short kiss. Mike felt he could get used to this pretty quickly.
“oh, yeah” Mike began, suddenly remembering something, “my parents are letting me take the car for the dance, I could pick you up, since everyone else is going together anyways?” he asked quietly.
“I’d love that Mike” Will responded, “is it okay if we act as just friends in front of my Mom and Hop though, I don’t know how they would act.
“Yeah, of course Will” Mike said, “but, uhm, I think your Mom already knows” he added on with a laugh.
“What How?”
“When I went in to buy you flowers today, um your Mom saw right through me, I tried to say they were for my Mom, but she could tell I was lying”
“oh” Will said, sounding a bit shocked.
“Sorry, I probably should have tried to hide it a bit better”
Will grabbed one of Mike’s hands.
“Don’t apologise, it’s okay, My Mom is like psychic” Will chuckled, “I think she would probably be able to tell what happened just from my face when I got home tonight”
Mike laughed.
“Well we can still act as friends though in front of Hopper, yeah?” he asked
“I mean, I might tell him if that’s okay with you” Will said sheepishly, “We’ve gotten a lot closer lately and I feel he won’t have a problem with it”
“He might have a problem with me though” Mike sighed.
Will rolled his eyes fondly.
“No, Mike he won’t, he just hated thirteen year old you, you were a bit of an arsehole back then”
Mike scoffed,
“Yeah, I was to be fair,” he agreed.
Will rubbed circles into the back of Mike’s hand.
“So, are the matching suits back on?” Will asked with a smirk.
Mike groaned,
“Fuck off, no way”
“Really, because you would look really pretty” Will argued,
“nope, nuh uh, compliments aren’t going to convince me”
“You sure, hot stuff”
Mike felt his cheeks heating up.
“nope”
“Okay, princess”
Mike was going to explode,
He grabbed one of the bags of Reese’s Pieces from the table and threw it at Will,
“Here, shut up and eat these, baby”
⊹₊˚‧︵‿₊୨ᰔ୧₊‿︵‧˚₊⊹
Saturday had finally arrived.
Mike felt as if he could implode from all the butterflies in his stomach.
He was nervously tugging at his hair, which had a bit of gel in it thanks to Nancy’s persistence.
“come on Mike, straighten up, let me get a few more pictures,” his Mom said from behind the camera.
Mike hates this.
He hated getting his photo taken, unless it was with Will, he hated being fawned over by his Mom as well.
He sighed.
“Don’t you have enough pictures to last a lifetime?”
“That’s not the attitude you should have Micheal” his Mom shook her head, “this is your second last prom ever, enjoy it”
Mike rolled his eyes
“Yeah, second last prom, not the second last time you’ll ever get to take a photo of me” he groaned
His Father peered over his newspaper.
“Are you bringing a girl to this dance Micheal ?” He asked, half looking at Mike while still paying attention to the paper in front of him.
Mike rolled his eyes again.
“No, I told you this last week, me and Will are just going to hang out, the others have dates”
His Father just nodded.
“It’s about time you got a girlfriend”
“Yeah,yeah whatever” Mike grumbled.
“So, are going back to Will’s after” his Mom asked, finally putting the camera down.
“Yeah, I got my bag in the car”
“Okay, see you later” she said, pressing a kiss to the top of his head, “tell Joyce I said hello”
“Yeah, bye” Mike said as he left his house for the night.
When he got into his car he made sure the small flower he got for Will’s suit was still hidden in the back of his car, he didn’t need his Dad asking any more questions than he already was.
He made his way over to the Byer’s house in silence. Sometimes breaking the peaceful silence by humming a tune to a familiar song.
When he reached their driveway the nerves started to appear in his stomach. He still had to face Hopper.
Mike was absolutely certain Hopper hated him. He was a dick to him that one summer so he wouldn’t blame him.
He parked his car and slowly made his way to their front door.
No going back now he thought to himself.
although, there was no way he wanted to go back, not that he now knows that Will feels the same as him.
They weren’t official or anything but baby steps, he thought.
He quickly knocked on the door.
Rap
Rap
Rap
The knocks sounded as loud as his heartbeat.
He wasn’t waiting long thankfully.
Will opened the door almost immediately.
and Mike was
Awestruck
Will looked breathtaking.
He was wearing a simple gray suit that hugged him nicely, and his dark yellow tie went perfectly with Mike's deep blue one.
Mike was thankfully able to convince Will against the matching suits, instead agreeing on ties that would look good together.
And wow, Will sure did look good.
“You look amazing,” Mike said, breaking the silence that had fallen between the two.
Will cheeks heated up at the compliment.
“Thanks, you too, you look hot” Will said with a grin.
Mike’s cheeks turned a matching shade of red.
“come in” Will said, dragging Mike in by the hand, “Jon wants to get a photo of us together, he’s back for break”
Mike just grinned, he may have hated getting his photo taken by his Mom but he would never say no to a photo with Will.
Mike stepped into their living room to see Mrs Byers and Jonathon standing there patiently.
Mrs Byers' eyes lit up when she saw the pair enter the room.
“aw Mike” she said, making her way over to the two, “you look so handsome”
Mike smiled politely. “Thank you Mrs Byers”
Mrs Byers gently whacked him on the shoulder.
“Hey, what did I say about that the other day?, you can call me Joyce,”
“Oh, right, sorry Joyce” Mike said with a grin.
Will tugged on his hand, bringing his attention to him.
“Ready to get a photo” he asked, glancing at Jonathon.
Mike nodded, “yeah of course” and let Will drag him over to the corner.
He gently placed his arm around Will’s waist.
“This okay?” He asked into his ear.
Will nodded, beaming up at him.
They let Jonathan work his magic, changing poses whenever he demanded and patiently waiting while he fixed the lighting.
Once he was done, they sat on the couch for a few moments as Mike arrived early and the dance didn’t start for a while.
Will was absentmindedly playing with Mike’s fingers while they were talking to Joyce.
Mike had never felt so happy in his life.
While they were deep in conversation about their classes and school life, the front door started to creak open.
Hopper made his way in through the door, shaking his boots off at the doorstep.
Mike felt his heart drop.
This was the moment he was most nervous for the entire night.
Will tightened his grip on Mike’s hand, as if he could sense Mike's uneasiness.
“Mike it’s okay, it’s just Hopper” he whispered into his ear.
Mike nodded in response.
yeah, it’s just Hopper, he thought to himself, what’s he going to do about it anyways?
“Wheeler” Hopper grumbled from the front door, starting to make his way into the living room.
“Hi, Uh Hopper, sir” Mike responded politely.
god why did he call him sir.
Mike was going to die from embarrassment.
“No need for the nicety’s Wheeler” he said, standing behind Joyce on the couch.
Mike gulped.
“You’ve matured over the past few years, so I trust you” he began.
Mike nodded along as he spoke.
“As long as you have him back here before twelve, you’ll be fine”
“Yeah of course” Mike agreed, he didn’t want to find out how he could possibly not be fine.
“Hop, stop scaring him,” Joyce said with a laugh.
“Just doing my duties” he grumbled, making his way to the kitchen.
“Have fun kids” he shouted as he walked away.
Mike let out a nervous laugh.
Will continued to rub his hand, looking towards the clock.
“Oh, it’s almost eight, should we go?” He asked
“Yeah, you ready?”
“Yeah” Will said as he stared at Mike with a look full of love.
The two said the rest of their goodbyes and made their way to the car.
Mike ran around to open Will’s door for him, earning a laugh from Will.
“Wow, how chivalrous of you” he said with a chuckle.
“I know, I’m amazing aren’t I” Mike agreed, running back over to the drivers side of the car.
“Don’t let it get to your head” Will said, buckling his seatbelt.
The two begin their journey to the Hawkins High gym, the radio softly playing in the background as the two conversed.
Once they arrived, Mike grabbed Will’s hand before they got out of the car.
“um, before we go, I got you this,” Mike said, using his other hand to rummage around the compartment in his car.
He pulled out a small yellow flower.
“I know we can’t really show each other off in public because you know, people, but I thought you could stick this on the inside of your suit” Mike rambled.
Will had a sickening sweet smile plastered all over his face.
“aw Mike, thank you so much” he whispered.
He lifted Mike’s hand to his lips and pressed a light kiss there.
“Will you put it on for me?” He asked.
“Of course” Mike whispered, reaching into the side of Will’s suit jacket and pining the flower there.
“ready to go in?” Will asked.
“Oh, I’m so ready” Mike responded, “I wonder if the others are there yet”
“probbably” Will said with a laugh, getting out of the car , “you’re always late so”
“Hey, I was on time today”
“Yeah, yeah we’ll see how long that lasts”
Mike ran to catch up with Will, poking him in the side.
“shut up, you idiot,” Mike said as they reached the doors.
“I know you don’t think I’m an idiot,” Will said with a smirk.
“no, I do,” Mike grinned, “you’re an idiot, but it’s okay, I still like you” he whispered, causing Will to turn red.
“Shush, you’re the idiot, we’re in public” Will said, elbowing him.
“I agree, Mike is an idiot” a voice said from behind them.
The two turned around to see the rest of the party already there, they were in fact, late.
“Hello Max, Nice to see you too” Mike grumbled.
“Looking good boys” Dustin said with a grin, he had his arms around El, who Max had managed to sneak in.
“You too” Will said, beaming at the others,
“Come on, let’s dance while the music is still good,” Lucas said, grabbing Max’s hand and dragging her away.
Mike turned to Will with a grin, let’s go, he mouthed.
Will nodded, bumping his shoulder against Mike.
The two boys danced to upbeat songs with the rest of the Party, having the time of their lives.
Once the slower songs started to play, they made their way over to the bleachers.
Mike let their knees bump against each other.
“Do you reckon they’re going to play any more upbeat songs?” Will asked quietly from beside Mike.
“Probably not” Mike said with a sigh, “they ran out of all the good ones an hour ago”
While Mike was really enjoying the night, part of him was wishing he could hold Will’s hand and slow dance to whatever cheesy dance song was playing right now.
People were really stupid to hate love, Mike thought to himself.
Will bumped his foot against Mike’s.
“Wanna ditch the dance?” Will asked with a grin on his face.
“Sure” Mike grinned, “where do you want to go?”
“I mean, my Mom and Hop are gone for the night on their own Valentine’s date, so we could go back to mine?” Will offered.
Mike nodded, starting to stand up.
He offered a hand to help Will up, which he accepted.
The pair made their way out of the hall, avoiding any teachers who may question where they were off to.
Once they were in the safety of the car, Mike leant over to press a quick press to Will’s lips.
“Hi,” Will whispered.
“Hi” Mike echoed back,
Will held onto one of Mike’s hands as he started to reverse out of the car park.
“Thanks for being my date tonight” Will said, “I had a lot of fun”
“Thanks for saying yes”
Will squeezed Mike’s hand in response. Mike grinned, trying his best to keep his focus on the road ahead of him.
Once they made it back to the Byers house, Mike let Will drag him in, feeling all bubbly inside.
Will dragged him all the way to his bedroom, shutting the door quietly behind them.
He turned around and immediately brought his hands to Mike’s hair, running his fingers through it, slightly messing up his gel, but Mike didn’t care.
Mike leaned in and pressed a soft kiss against Will’s lips.
Will licked his bottom lip, asking for permission and Mike parted his lips in response, letting Will explore his mouth.
After a while the two had to pull apart, needing to refill their lungs with air.
Mike dropped his head to Will’s shoulder.
“I’ve been dying to do that all night” he whispered against his neck, causing Will to shiver a little.
Will pressed a kiss to the top of Mike’s head, “me too” he whispered.
“It was so hard to keep my hands off of you when the slow dancing started” Mike whispered, pressing a light kiss to Will’s neck.
Mike could feel Will’s smile growing from his place on his head.
“I mean we could do a slow dance now if you want?” Will asked quietly.
“Really?” Mike asked, lifting his head up to look at Will.
Will nodded.
“Yeah one sec,” Will said, pulling away to put a tape in his cassette player.
‘Just like heaven’ started softly playing in the room.
“I wouldn't call this a slow dance song,” Mike chuckled.
Will grabbed his hands, pulling them onto his waist.
“Shut up you idiot and just dance with me” Will laughed, letting his head rest on Mike’s chest.
The two gently swayed around the room as the song played out, Will falling into fits of giggles as Mike attempted to spin him around.
Once the song had ended the two collapsed on the bed.
“That was fun,” Will said as he shuffled up the bed, making room for Mike.
“Yeah, we should do it more often,” Mike agreed, pushing himself right up beside Will.
“You’re only saying that so you can hold my waist again” Will smirked.
“What, me, no never”
Will rolled his eyes fondly and took Mike's hand.
“Seriously though, thank you for today” Will whispered.
“It was my pleasure,” Mike whispered back.
Will squeezed his hand three times.
Mike turned to look at him, beaming at the sight of how cute Will looked right now.
“I know we never said it officially” Will began, nervously playing with Mike’s fingers.
“But, would you like to be my boyfriend?” he asked quietly.
Mike’s smile grew impossibly wider.
He grabbed Will’s hand and pressed a gentle kiss to it.
“Of course, I would love to be your boyfriend Will.” he whispered.
This was officially the best day of Mike’s life, it felt like a fairytale come true.
Will beamed back at him.
“Great” He whispered, before pulling him into another kiss.
This kiss was different, it was slower, the two took their time to learn each other’s mouths.
Mike found it amazing.
Once they parted, Mike leaned his head on Will’s shoulder, letting him continue to run his fingers through his hair.
That's when it clicked in Mike’s head.
“Shit” he said, letting out a soft groan.
“What is it, are you okay?” Will nervously asked, retracting his hand from Mike’s head for a moment.
“Our anniversary is going to be on Valentine’s day” he sighed.
Will gently whacked him on the back of his head.
“You idiot, I thought something was seriously wrong”
“But Will it’s so cliche”
“You’re one to talk about cliche, Mike” Will giggled, “you literally made me a dnd sign to ask me to the dance”
Mike softly sighed.
“I did, didn’t I”
“Yeah, but it's okay, I love you, you idiot” Will whispered, pressing a kiss to Mike’s forehead
“I love you too, idiot” Mike whispered back, tilting his head up to press a sweet kiss to Wills lips.
⊹₊˚‧︵‿₊୨ᰔ୧₊‿︵‧˚₊⊹