Chapter Text
MIKE’S POV
"Mike !! Hurry up you’re gonna be late for school !!" Mike jumped hearing Nancy drumming at his door. He took a quick look at his nightstand : it was 7:26.
"Shit, shit !!" He overslept, and he probably shut his awakening down in his sleep. Mike almost fell from his bed reaching for the teeshirt he left on his desk’s chair the day before. He put it on quickly, a hand searching for the first pant that would come.
He took a black jean and put it, trying to fix his hair in less than 10 seconds. Nancy already warned him once, she wasn’t going to wait him forever. Mike’s gaze fell on the letter that he left on his desk, one he wrote for Will. He haven’t the time to post it now. Looked like he was going to give it to him directly when he will meet him in Lenora.
"Mike ! You have two minutes to leave the house or you will have to bike today !" Mike almost fell down his stairs yelling :
"Jesus !! Are you that pressed to make articles or it’s just to piss me off ?"
"Language !" A delicious smell of bacon was coming from the kitchen, but Mike haven’t the time to try the taste of it. He ran to the basement door, opened it and grab the bag that was standing on the top of the stairs. Nancy opened the door, and Mike could almost feel the mocking smile on her face.
"You have to be back before 10 tonight, remember ?" Karen almost yelled from the kitchen.
"Mom I have hellfire tonight I told you yesterday !"
"And I answered that you have a flight tomorrow. You fell asleep too late yesterday ! You can’t have another bad night. So no sleep, no California okay ?" Mike rolled his eyes, passing behind her mom and her accusing look.
"And no sweaty pie !" Added Ted when Mike closed violently the door. Only if he knew who was this sweaty pie…
"So, tomorrow the day ?" Asked innocently Nancy when Mike closed the car’s door.
"The day for what ?"
"Your meeting with the Byers !" Nancy almost looked shocked that he asked.
"Yeah. Tomorrow." Mike put an elbow on the window sill, his chin in his hands. Nancy couldn’t see his face if she would turn her head away from the road.
"How are you feeling ?" He slowly turned his own head, a frown between his eyebrows.
"Since when do you care ?"
"Well," she raised her own eyebrows, taking this expression Mike knew since always, "since you fall asleep at 2 am two days before your left. You are the person I know the most able to miss the event of his life to sleep a few more hours. And now you voluntarily take five off two days before you leave? It must be super important for you." Mike groans.
Nancy was too good at this, reading him. Even if she hasn’t find the most important stuff, like the knife in his nightstand or the gun inside a shoebox in his drawer…
"I had something to finish. But it’s not a… wait, how do you know I fell asleep at two ?"
"You’re very loud you know. And very bad at keeping secrets." The car arrived in the high school’s parking and Nancy put on the warnings.
"You can get out now. I’m gonna be late." Mike got out of the car, and started to walk into the high school’s direction. But Nancy yelled something in the wind and Mike had to focused to hear what she was saying.
"What ?"
"Have a good last day !"
☁︎
Mike always hated the airport. Too much people and too much gazes on him. He had passed the controls without any problem, and now waited in front of his plane’s door.
He had 40 minutes to wait before the beginning of the flight, and who knows what was going to append today, so he decided to order a coffee to try to handle it.
He sat at a coffee table near to his boarding door after ordering a double expresso and waited for it.
He was zoning cause of the early hour when it arrived, and he put a hand in his pocket while drinking it with the other. His fingers touched a paper and he took it outside. It was the letter he wrote for Will the night before his last day at school. He opened it, his hand shaking a little, and started to read it for the hundredth time. "Dear Will…"
This letter was the result of longs weeks of thinking, alone and laying into his bed when sleep wasn’t coming. He started to write theses letter about three weeks ago, trying to put words on what he was thinking.
He didn’t though that it would be that hard but it was, really. This letter was the most recent one, after dozen of pieces like it threw in his bin. And Mike couldn’t help it, but he needed to read it again and again, like the sentences were going to change if he stops.
After the 40 minutes of wait and another coffee, a mechanical voice announced that his flight was going to go, and Mike quickly pack his stuff to take the flight.
He walked straight to the door, showing his passeport and after a short scary moment when the woman told him that his name wasn’t on the list - she just wrote Wheeler "Weeler" - Mike could finally sit into the plane. He took the cheapest sit, so obviously he wasn’t alone.
On the way to his sit, he took a look to the persons who was already in the plane. An old man with sunglasses and a Hawaii shirt, a little child and her exhausted mom near to him, more far a women with red hairs and a dog between her feet…
He arrived at his sit that was in the second part of the airplane, sit G-17.
He put his bag above him and sat next to the window. The sky was still dark, and only the airports lights was bringing a little of light.
After five minutes of people taking theirs sits, a young boy that should have his age sat next to him, Mike head against the window.
He pulled it back quickly, he should looked like a kid.
The guy didn’t notice, and Mike looked at him as he sat with his backpack on his knees. He had shorts blonde hair, green eyes and was dressed in black. He wasn’t extremely pretty, but he had a cute face. Mike turned back his head when the boy met his eyes.
The stress was starting to grow now that he was so close to the goal. After a few more minutes of wait, the stewardess explained the security rules, and the plane finally left Hawkins. Mike had took his headphones, and he listened to all of his fav musics twice during the flight. "Dear Will.. dear Will…"
"… please ?" The boy next to Mike was talking to him, but Mike didn’t paid attention. He removed his headphones and ask a little too fast :
"I’m sorry what ?"
"I said my book fell under your sit, can you give it back to me please ?"
"Oh yeah sure." A roman with a black cover was under his seat indeed, and he simply grab it to give his sit neighbour’s back. Theirs fingers met in the middle of the transaction, and the guy blushed a little.
"Thanks. My name is Carlon by the way, what’s yours ?" He had a nice smile and even if Mike didn’t wanted to talk right now - the flight was going to arrive in 10 minutes - he couldn’t ignore it.
"I’m Mike."
"Nice to meet you Mike." Carlon smiled again, and open his book back. Mike put his headphones back in response. It was "just like heaven" by the cure now, and Mike closed his eyes. "Show me show me show me how to do that trick…"
Mike discovered The cure about one month after the Byers’s move. He couldn’t explain why, but this group reminded Will to him. This song wasn’t his favorite but he liked it anyway.
"..And threw her arms around my neck…" Mike’s stomach flipped. He wasn’t ready for the next week, not at all.
How was he suppose to do ? He couldn’t just arrived and say "Hey El ! What’s up since your last letter ? Me ? Oh I just got a depression’s diagnosis and I want to kill myself every time I see myself in a mirror. And I don’t love you ! I stopped when you came back at the snowball. Where’s Will ? I need to give something to him. And goodbye ! That’s probably the last time we see each other cause I’m gonna pop my heart with a knife, yeah !"
It wasn’t good. At all. But Mike didn’t really have the time to create a speech, cause the plane was arriving in Lenora.
☁︎
After getting off of the plane, he went to get his suitcase and breathed a last time before going into the meeting area.
It was it. The meeting up with El. He walked into the trafic of people’s meetings, searching for her. He turned his head on the right, without seeing any familiar head, then on the left and-
Will ?
His heart stopped for a few seconds. What the hell Will was doing here ? And most of it…
Who the hell was this person ? He took about 15 centimeters since ‘85 summer, his face looked like three years have been passed since the last time they met, and- god. His shoulders looked like they were going to crack his teeshirt. El didn’t mention that Will started muscle training, did she ?
Mike could feel his cheeks turning pink. But it wasn’t the moment. It wasn’t at all. He needed to stay calm, at least before giving that goddamn letter to Will.
El’s gaze fell on him. Shit. She smiled, this lighted smile that was giving Will’s vibe on her. Mike’s hand moved before his brain understood what was going on. He raised his hand with the bouquet he quickly does before leaving, and activated the automatic mode.
His body ran alone to El, kissing and hugging her. Mike wasn’t really there anymore. It was the perfect-straight-boyfriend-that-missed-his-girfriend Mike.
God he hated acting like that but he had to. It would be over soon anyway.
El kissed him, he kissed back, but just enough to keep away any El’s suspicion. And when she finally let his head go…
Will was there. Closer that he never was since they moved. Only few inches separated him of everything that Mike wanted. Of all of the dreams he dad the 6 past months, of all of the joy he could dream of. All was standing here, a huge smile on his face. This so cute smile that Mike missed so bad. Gosh…
"Hey Mike !" Will deleted the distance between them, moving too fast for Mike’s brain to follow. He was staring at Will’s lips and then, suddenly, Will was only at a couple of inches, Mike could feel Will’s breath on his skin. He was so beautiful…
"Hey, how.. how y’a doing ?" Mike mumbled hardly. He couldn’t. He couldn’t hug Will in a casual way, without saying "I love you" with his body.
He couldn’t. He cannot.
Before Will could land his arms around Mike, he put an arm on Will’s back, giving him a clumsy sort of hug but without any direct contact.
Will’s skin was hot, the sweet fabric of his shirt against Mike’s fingers. He wanted to grab it so bad, but he had to stay strong.
Will dropped his hand on Mike’s back too, and Mike could hardly breathe during the few seconds of the "hug" - that felt like an eternity.
Will let go first, his gaze falling to the floor, and Mike noticed that Will’s smile had disappear. Why ?..
"Hey Mike."
"Oh hey Jonathan !" Mike haven’t see him but he was here, standing with a guy that Mike didn’t know but with the long black hair he had, Mike did the link between him and this guy named Argyle in El’s letter.
Jonathan hugged Mike in a weird way, a little too strong like he wanted Mike to explode.
Mike let go and focused back on Will. His bowl cut was still there, but except that, he really changed. In a good way. He looked really cute before but now, he looked more… he looked.. pretty. Really pretty.
Mike’s gaze fell on Will’s hand, he was holding something. A long paper curled into a cylinder.
"What’s that ?" Asked curiously Mike. He noticed that Will jumped when Mike asked the question.
"It’s nothing it’s… something that I’ve paint." Mike’s smile fell a little. Why… Why was he avoiding the question ? It was weird. Really weird.
He used to tell everything to Mike before. And he literally took the paper here, so why hide it now ? Mike saw a little part of the paper, it was a painting.
Oh.. wait.. ‘Will is painting a lot… maybe it is for a girl !’
Oh. Okay.
Mike felt like the ocean felt on his head. Will had a crush on a girl in Lenora. And he was painting for her. Never mind… Mike was happy that Will found someone. Really and truly happy but…
A part of him hoped for Will to be single and free. A little part who was shut by the biggest one, the one who was telling him to forget Will. It would be easier to leave after.
The group started to leave the airport, El curled into Mike’s arm. He hadn’t asked her to be there but it was the least thing to hug his girlfriend after a while, wasn’t it ?
El started to speak, but Mike was barely listening. Will was behind them, keeping a distance between them. Why..
"-burritos,"
"What, really ?" Will’s eyes met Mike’s gaze and both looked at theirs feet at the same time. "Burritos for breakfast ?" The atmosphere was heavy. Really really heavy. Mike was answering automatically, his head ached. He needed space.
Since Will moved on, sometimes Mike felt bad. The room he was was getting hotter, his head was feeling like it was going to break, and Mike needed space and cold air at theses moments.
But he couldn’t ask for it right now. Mike heard himself answer "Are your friends gonna meet us ?", even if he didn’t know what were they really talking about.
"Friends ? What… What friends ?" Mike jumped a little when Will talked. He felt his cheeks turning pink and looked down.
"You know, Stacy and Angela."
"Angela ?" Mike felt his stomach flipped again. What was that tone ?.. who was Angela ? Why was he saying her name ? And the most important question, who was she to Will ?
Mike couldn’t look at Will. Seeing the smile on his face while talking about some girl would be too much, way too much.
And why was he feeling like he wanted Will to be jealous, it didn’t make any sense… but the truth is that Mike’s body react without thinking about it, and he kissed El’s head.
He could feel Will’s eyes on them. Good. At least it was clear now that Mike wasn’t jealous about Will and that he loved his girlfriend, wasn’t it ?
"Come inside ! It doesn’t look like it, but this van is the greatest car that you can find in the whole town." Argyle said, introducing the old pizza van standing in front of the airport’s door.
Mike rush for the truck, opening it with one hand and putting his suitcase inside with the other.
Will was already inside the car when he and El sat in, but Will was looking outside with the painting between his left leg and the car’s door.
Jonathan started to drive and Mike enjoyed the few seconds of silence that followed. "Dear Will…"
☁︎
When the van arrived at Rink-O-Mania after leaving Mike’s bag and suitcase at the Byers’s, Mike had decided that he was going to give the letter to Will there.
It was sure. Nothing could report that moment, he just needed to find a few minutes while El wouldn’t be around.
The three of them went into the building, but Mike wasn’t really paying attention.
He only noticed the quantity of teenagers and the blue and yellow lights on the ceiling, following El and trying to focus on what he were going to say. "Hey Will. Can I talk to you for a few minutes ? I wanted to say that I’m sorry. For being a jerk theses past years and for not sending you any letter. You know I’m not good with words, and your line is always busy cause of your mom so… to maybe forgive myself at least a little, I wanted to give you that. But don’t open it now, do it tomorrow night. It’s very important. Thanks you and sorry for everything."
It was good ! Yeah !.. Quick and good.
Perfect to resume.
Now they were in front of a women who were asking questions to El- probably some stuff about their feet size.
It should be it cause after a few seconds, she came back with3 pairs of rollerblades.
"Have fun !"
"Thanks !" Mike heard El responding but from away, like he was underwater. They sat on a bench in front of the rollerblading track and Mike’s right knee bunched Will’s left one. He immediately brought him back against the other, feeling that Will was doing the same next to him.
"Oh I forgot but you need socks !" El suddenly said. Mike looked down at his feet, now realising that yeah, he needed socks. His mind didn’t even think about it before El mentioned it.
"They sell it next to the entrance door." Mike stood up mechanically and looked for the entrance door. The building was huge and the sense of orientation had never been his strong point, so he start to leave in a random direction, just to avoid another discussion with El.
He walked for a few minutes between teenagers, sometimes girls who laughed too loud, sometimes a band of boys flirting with girls while skating. His heart was pounding a little too fast because of the stress of giving the letter to Will. He couldn’t focus on his goal even if he wanted to.
He didn’t know how, but now he was at the extreme opposite of the entrance door, in front of a corridor that opened into a bowling room. He hated to admit it, but he needed help.
He turned back, trying to meet El’s eyes - that was impossible cause of the distance that he crossed- but someone grabbed his arm before he even tried to search for her.
"Where are you going ? The sock’s sailing is at the opposite." Will. Who hasn’t realised Mike’s arm and who was too close of him. If Mike was sure of still being his best friend, that would be totally realising to see him now. But he felt like a stranger was helping him and it didn’t felt right to have a hand grabbing his bicep like that.
Plus, Mike wanted to grab this arm to put Will closer so bad… before this stupid feeling became too strong, he started to talk a little too fast :
"Will. Can I talk to you for a minute ?" Since Will arrived to rescue him, Mike was avoiding his gaze. But now, Mike’s eyes finally found Will’s one, something that both of them tried to avoid.
But this time, neither Will or Mike looked away.
They stood there, eyes reading trough each other’s mind. And Mike finally looked at Will, really looked at him.
His eyes were clearer than before, more blue than brown now. He had dark circle under his eyes, but small ones. Like this night he haven’t slept correctly. Freckles ran through his face, starting from his ear and going down to his cheekbone, meeting in the middle of his nose.
"Now ?" Will asked, a little surprised.
"Yes, now." His look tensed, and his jaw clenched. The speech he prepared came out easily. " I needed to say that I’m sorry." Will’s eyebrows frowned a little. "For being a jerk theses past years and for not sending you any letter." Will slowly let go Mike’s arm and his hand fell against his leg. Mike closed his eyes, the pain of the reality of his speech was really hard to support in front of Will. "You know I’m not good with words, and your line was always busy cause of your mom’s job so…" he couldn’t look at Will. Not before saying everything he wanted to say." To maybe forgive myself, I wanted to give you that." He took the letter in his pocket and held it out to Will. "But don’t open it now, do it tomorrow night. It’s very important." Will took the letter with a suspicious look. "Thanks you and.. sorry for everything." Will stayed silent for a few seconds, and slowly started to say :
"Mike, you don’t have to-"
"I needed to say it. I was acting like a bastard but I’m not one and I need you to know that. I need you to feel like you can talk to me, whatever the subject."
Will had now tears in his eyes. Mike saw it cause of the yellow light that started to light him at this moment, but it went away fast and Mike thought that maybe it was just his imagination.
Will opened his mouth, a desperate look mixed with pity on the face, but a micro tinnitus covered what he was trying to say.
Mike and Will both turned around, looking at the rink. Everybody was now around it, Mike didn’t even realised that they were alone in the corner of the building.
"Oh no.." Will whispered, so low that Mike thought he had dreamed.
"What ?" He asked, the anxious face of Will wasn’t a good sign at all.
"It’s.. " Will stoped himself, mouth opened, looking like he was fighting with something in his mind. Looked like he won, cause he continued, with a hurried voice. "It’s El. She didn’t tell you everything. She have problems." El wasn’t really his first priority right now, but the urge in Will’s eyes scared him.
"What kink of problems ?" The micro started to make a sound again, and a male’s voice started to speak.
"This next song is dedicated to Jane, the local snitch." Mike’s heart skipped a beat. What ?
"Fuck !"
"Will, wait- Will !" Will started to run into the rink’s direction, pushing people that were on his way. Mike tried to follow, but Will was running very fast. Since when did he started training ?..
As Mike got closer to the track, he started to hear some voices from were the music was coming. "Freak !" "Go away !" Were they talking about El right now ? It became harder to approche the rink. Too many people. He just needed to pass a little more, just a little more…
Then the music stop. So the laugh does.
"Wipeout !" A huge splash noice spread as the silent fell, and what felt like hundreds of laughs started to grow.
Mike went out of the humain wall just to see El, on the floor with chocolate milkshake on her dress. A dozen people was circle her, mocking, some twisting with laughter on their skates. Will was already reaching for her, helping her to stand up. Mike was froze. What ? What did just appended ? A blond girl went out of the rink, laughing too loud. Two girls applauded her when she met them, and Mike only heard a few words of their conversation cause of the noice.
"It … so… crying like… amazing, Angela !" Angela ? Wasn’t she supposed to be El’s friend ? And Will’s crush ? No. El was impressionable, but Will could never crush on someone like that. It should be another Angela. Yes, it had to be.
Mike’s gaze went back on the rink, but Will and El had disappeared. Mike started to look for them, a little panicked - when he saw El’s hair disappearing behind a door.
Mike immediately walked straight in the direction, hitting some too-laughing person standing on his way with his shoulder. His heart was still pounding too fast.
The door wasn’t totally closed when he reached for it, and the sun hit his eyes as he walked outside.
It takes a few seconds for his eyes to adjust and to finally see what was appening.
El was gone, but Will was standing in the middle of the parking, his head turned into the direction El probably took. He had both of his arms half-raised, like he froze trying to put his hand on El’s shoulders. Mike couldn’t see his face, he had his back in front of him, but Mike could see the shaking of his hands.
He reached for him, putting a hand on Will’s shoulders. Bad idea. Will jumped like a demodog hurt him brutally.
"Easy, easy. It’s just me." Will relaxed at the exact moment he turned and saw Mike. He put quickly his hands in his back, but Mike saw perfectly that they were still shaking.
"You okay ? What appended ? Where’s El ?" Will’s face was unreadable, but a little biting of his bottom lip convinced Mike that something appended. Even if they just spent 30 seconds outside.
"She’s…" Will tried to say, but the rest of the sentence drowns with his look that got lost somewhere above Mike’s right shoulder. He stayed silent for a minute, and said again, more carefully :
"She’s been lying to you, Mike."
"Wait what ?"
"El. She lied. In her letters." Will’s gaze met Mike’s one again and he continued with the same closed expression :
"She have problems here. The same type as we had in middle school, it’s.." he stoped again, and shallowed hardly. Mike was still lost, and nothing that Will said helped him understanding what the hell was going on in this town.
"Complicated." Will completed. "But she is the one you need to talk with. Not me." he said, avoiding - again - Mike’s eyes. Too much coded messages and suspicions for Mike’s head who was already dying. Way too much.
"What it that supposed to mean ?" Almost yelled Mike. Will was being mysterious, too mysterious to just hide some lame secret. This one was huge, too big for Will to told his best- ex best friend ? Should be something important. It had to be.
"Okay uh…" Mike started, in response to the silent of Will. "Where is she right now so I can talk about it with her ?" Will chewed his lip again, and Mike could clearly saw that Will was trying to keep it secret. But keeping secret had always be hard for Will. Especially from Mike.
"Will, listent." He started, taking the soft voice he only kept for Will. "I don’t want you to tell me anything El don’t want you to. I just need to talk to her, to understand what is going on. And after, we are going to be able to clarifie this situation, okay ? But I really need to talk to her right now. So can you tell me where is she ?" Even with the shitty situation that was going on, Mike couldn’t stop thinking about how Will looked goodness in the sun.
"She.. she left with Jonathan and Argyle. To go back home." Mike frowned. What ?
"What ?" He repeated, not totally sure to understand well.
"She left us here. She said that it would be better for us to continue without her." Mike frowned further.
"This is bullshit ! She is the one that bring us here !"
"Yeah Mike, I know !" Will said, a little start of anger in his voice. The first sign of impatience.
"But what do you want me to tell you ? I’m not in her head and I don’t freaking know what is going on neither !" Mike felt his heart pound.
"You can’t hide that you know more than I do, so why don’t you just tell me what I don’t know so we can go back to your house, talk to El and just put everything back to normal ?!"
"Because it’s not my job to do it, Mike !!! It’s her, and I’m sorry if she don’t trust you enough to talk about it in her letter !!" Mike stopped, something broke in his chest. Maybe his confidence ?
"So you are clearly saying that she is telling you things that she keep away from me, aren’t you ?" Will caught his head in his hands, sighting way too loudly to be a simple breathing sight.
"Mike, lisent." he pulled his head off of his hands, and the look he gave to Mike was just an exhausted look. With a little part of… sadness ? "El need to talk to you. She definitely did." He took a few feet away from Mike. "But I’m not going to push her. So we are going to go back home, and I will leave you and El talk. After, we will maybe continue to act like nothing appended, it matter in your discussion with her." Mike was standing at Will but without really watching him.
Too much things in his head. Why was El lying to him ? Why was Mike more worried about Will’s worried expression than for El herself ? Why was Will so cute compared to El ? Why was he a shitty boyfriend, friend and son at the same time ?
His vision started to blurry for a few seconds, and the world started to spin. Oh no, not now. Please. Not a panic attack, please…
But it was too late, Mike could feel the world breaking under his feet, and the last thing Mike saw before hitting the ground was Will reaching for him, his mouth open in some yell that should be his name.
At least, he wasn’t alone anymore. Will was here.
Will was here.
☁︎
"Mike ?… Mike ? Mike. You with me ?" A soft and familiar voice. Mike heard it as his eyes tried to open, but his head was hurting too much for it.
After a few seconds of silence, a cold hand landed on his forehead where it was hurting the most and Mike made a little pained moan. But just after it, the hand left and a very cold fabric took its place.
Mike breathed very softly as the cold calmed down the pain but before he could open his eyes, someone put a lock of Mike’s hair behind his ear. Mike froze.
Who could.. ?
He opened his eyes quickly - too quickly, and the balancing room where he was lying was a great answer to his stupid movement.
He tried to sat up but a force pressed on his forehead made him stay lying.
"Okay, take it easy. You passed out." Mike turned his head to see Will, sitting on a desk chair next to him.
He had a hand on the ice pack calming his head, and he looked scared. Like Mike was going to start to speak german or turn green.
"How are you feeling ?" Mike stayed silent. He took a quick look on the room he was lying in, and the bed felt like it was falling when he realised he was in Will’s room.
How did he know ? A lot of poster was on the walls, his shoes was next to the door and a painting set was beside the window. Pure Will.
He looked back at Will to see that the worry expression turned into a really terrified one, and Mike blushed as he answered the question.
"Good, I’m- I’m good. Don’t worry it’s not a big deal."
"It’s… purple. So yeah, I think we can say it’s a big deal."
"What ?"
"Your bruise. It’s purple." Will rolled his eyes seeing Mike’s lost reaction.
"You hit the ground when you passed out, and we were in a parking, so your head hit tar. And it look like your head didn’t really appreciated it."
Mike put a hand on the part of his head that wasn’t taken by the ice pack and pressed it a little. The pain he got was the perfect exemple of a huge bruise.
"I called Jonathan and he took you here." Will blushed a little when he said :"I thought my bed was more comfortable than the couch, so…"
Mike finally stood up, more slowly than before. He had took the ice pack so Will could leave his head, but his hand stayed near to him, like he was afraid Mike could pass out again. But he didn’t, and Will pulled it off.
A long silence came, neither of them knowing what to say. Mike refused to meet Will’s gaze - he could feel it on him - and after a few minutes, Will stood up.
His face was unreadable, but a little sad frown was between his eyebrows.
"I’m gonna warn mom and El that you’re awake." He stood up and walked in the door’s direction, and before opening it, said without turning to face Mike :
"She want to talk to you. El." A few seconds pause. "Do you need time or can I tell her that you’re ready ?" Mike’s brain refused to function, and he answered the first thing that passed his mind.
"Oh, no it should be- it should be okay."
Will didn’t wait and went out of the room, closing softly the door behind him.
Mike took a deep breath and sat straighter as he put his legs out the bed, sitting on the side of it.
The memory was starting to come again. The letter, the music and the laughs, the hair trough the door, Will standing in the middle of the parking, Will jumping as Mike touched his shoulder, Will yelling at Mike…
He took his head in both of his hand, his leg starting to shake a little. It was truly harder to hide his feelings for Will in front on the interested one than kilometres away.
A quiet knock pulled Mike off of his trance. He looked at the door as it opened, showing El.
She changed her dress for a pretty top with fluffy short sleeves and pink patterns all over the waist, with a simple light blue skirt.
She sat next to Mike on the bed, but without making any contact.
"How are you feeling ?" She sounded like she was keeping something hide, but Mike preferred to ignore that strange feeling.
"I’m feeling good. Will is a pretty good doctor actually." The joke made El laughed, but the smile didn’t reach her eyes. She was staring at Mike like he had a maths problem written on his face.
"So… are we gonna talk about it or ?…" Mike asked, hesitating on witch words he had to choose. El’s gaze fell on the floor.
"About what ?" Her tone had changed. Now it was full of shame, sadness and a little of pain.
"Well, I don’t know, maybe about your pretended friend that threw a milkshake at your dress or planned a whole prank to make people laugh at you ?" Mike’s tone was, him, low and open, like he wanted to prove El she could talk to him. But she staid silent, her eyes lost on the floor. "It’s not like I couldn’t understand you know… I’ve get bullied for my entire life, so…"
"It’s different." She cut him sharply, quickly. Something unusual for El.
"What do you mean ?"
"You. They bullied you cause you were different from them. But me, they are bullying me because I am different from everyone."
"Everyone’s different, El." A little grin reached the corner of El’s mouth hearing her name, but it disappeared almost as fast as it came.
"But I’m different from everyone, Mike. You and Will for exemple, are the same kind of persons. Lucas, Dustin and Max too. But me ? I’m not like you. I’m like no one else."
Mike started to feel a little change in El’s speech. It looked like she’d prepared it before coming. But if she does, where was she going, speaking about how they were different ? "My life started when I was 10 and I escaped the lab. And from my "birth" to now, I never knew anything else than you, Mike. We got together after only a week of real life. Do you realise what it mean ? It’s like giving a boyfriend to a baby that just birth. How is that baby supposed to know what love feel like if he don’t have the choice of loving someone ?.." pause.
Does that mean El didn’t loved him ? His brain wasn’t able to function right now. So he just staid silence, and let El continue what she was saying. "I think… it could be nice, for both of us to…" Mike’s stomach flipped. It was the moment. The rest of the sentence came slower, the words said as a news someone couldn’t handle.
"Take our distances. At least for a moment to let me realise what love is supposed to feel like, and what a life without love is suppose to feel like." Mike’s head felt heavy again. Was El dumping him because… because she didn’t loved him ?
But all the efforts Mike had done these past years, all the secrets that have been kept was for her, for her happiness. And now, she was saying all theses efforts had been made for nothing ?
His head ached. El was looking at him now, but he couldn’t anymore.
"And maybe…" she continue, Mike was thinking she finished, but apparently not. "Maybe it’s the occasion for you to think about your feelings too, for me and for…" she made a pause, looking around her, her gaze floating in the room. "everyone else." The word had been said heavily, like she meant something else behind that. What was she thinking ? Why does he care ? And why the broke up felt more like a realise than a bad thing ?
"Mike." He pulled his head up, realising he was staring at the floor without shutting his eyes for now a minute. El had a caring expression, the same she used when she was seeing a cat or a baby.
"I’m…" Mike started, not really sure about what he wanted to say. Was he supposed to supplie El to take him back ? To thank her ? To say the truth that he never really loved her ? That he was in love with her brother ?
"I’m sorry." It was a pretty good resume of all he was thinking about. El moved a little, posing a hand on Mike’s cheek, but in a way that felt more friendly than romantically.
"You don’t have to." Mike felt a deep pain as he realise how much he missed his friend El, and how much he wanted to explain himself. She needed to know.
"You don’t know the whole truth, I… I never really loved you. Not in a romantic way, I mean. It’s just… it felt normal to be in love with you, and… I made you have fake hopes for years, I’m really sorry about it, El… you deserve so much more than a boyfriend that lie about his feeling for you. And I missed you, I missed my friend." El had smiled more and more as he talked, and now she pressed Mike in a platonic hug.
"Thanks for being honest with me. And now at least, I know how to kiss someone."
Mike laughed a little, tears in the corner of his eyes. At least, someone wouldn’t be mad at him when he will leave. It was really good to feel like someone didn’t cared about your errors, and forgive them.
Mike took a slow breath, still in El’s hug. And they stood there, hugging for minutes as the tension of the fake dating of the last years floated away from the room.
For once, Mike felt like his leave would be something positive for someone, and he was happy he could say the truth to El before leaving.
With the letter he wrote for Will, it would make two persons knowing the truth.
Two persons. Two.
Like the number of days he had left to live.
☁︎
It was dinner’s time, the whole family sitting at the table.
Murray - who had been invited by Joyce without warning anyone - and Argyle joined it, with the configuration of Jonathan and Argyle sitting at a side of the table, in front of Will, Mike and El.
Joyce and Murray was, them, at the extremities of the table, the guest wearing a pink apron. He was the one that made the diner - a porridge, and the diner table was silent. Jonathan and his friend was high, and it was almost comic how Joyce haven’t noticed yet.
After El and Mike’s conversation, the teenagers haven’t done anything really interesting.
Mike soot up his bed in the friend’s room after eating a cereal bar, - he slept for around an hour, so he skipped lunch - Will locked him in his room and El stood in the house, watching a fashion show of which Joyce had all the DVDs.
Will and Mike was avoiding looks. Again. Since their fight and the strange way Will took care of Mike - his head wasn’t hurting anymore, he kept a red mark on the forehead nevertheless - the two boys haven’t shared a look.
Will had his own bathroom and Mike didn’t have any excuse to begin a conversation. So no words have been said. And it was probably better like that cause Mike could hardly support the gaze of Will, knowing it was the last night they was spending together.
And Will didn’t know it.
Or at least, he didn’t know what was the content of the letter : Mike saw it on Will’s desk, still closed. And Mike trusted Will to only open it when he was allowed to, which means tomorrow night.
"So, how was your day ?" Asked indifferently Joyce.
"Good ! It was good !" Jonathan answered slowly, voice deep and low. "Wasn’t it ?"
"Yeaah, man. Sooo good." Argyle answered, eating all of his porridge conscientiously. "We went in the car cemetery and we smashed golf balls to destroy windows. Soo good."
"That’s great !" Joyce now said, but hearing her tone, Mike was sure she wasn’t listening at all.
Mike never really liked porridge, and he wasn’t hungry. Will, him, was eating without getting his eyes away from his plate.
From what Mike knew, Will wasn’t a porridge lover neither. And Will eating something he didn’t love was unusual. Weird.
"Jonathan, I’m going to leave you the house and the liability of looking after your siblings." Jonathan wasn’t listening, busy reading the composition of the oil bottle. "Murray and I, got a promotion ! We have a professional diner in Alaska tomorrow."
Will raised his head, El frowned her elbows. Mike turned his head away from Will to avoid a possible look.
"You’re going to Alaska ?!" Will’s tone was shocked, almost scared.
"Yeah ! For a professional meeting. But I’ll be back in a few days, don’t worry. And Jonathan will be there ! Right Jonathan ?" He didn’t answered, of course.
For the years Mike now knew Joyce, he knew she was nervous about something. Probably a lie in what she said. But was it about Murray, Alaska or the professional meeting ?
Murray raised his eyebrows, and Argyle bent his head excessively to whisper too loudly :
"Your mom is asking something." Jonathan slowly raised his own head, and said, truly confused :
"Wait, what ?"
"Jonathan, what’s wrong with you ?"
"I think I know what’s wrong with him." Murray said, before taking another bite of porridge. Joyce looked like she haven’t notice, and continue like everything was normal.
"So tomorrow we’ll go at the airport around 6, and we’ll call you with a hotel’s phone before the night. Is it okay for you guys ?" Mike turned his head, staring at Will now, waiting for his answer.
Mike knew that it wouldn’t make any problems for them to stay in a house alone for a few days, but Will never loved to be separate from his mom since autumn 83’.
"Yeah no problem. Hope it will be great." Will said, putting his eyes back on his plate. Mike noticed a little shake in his hand as he took his fork back, and Mike frowned a little. Was he that nervous to be apart from his mom ? Or was it something else ?
No. Will was strong, enough to carry a few days without his mother for sure. So what was the deal ? Staying with Mike for a couples of days ? Was it that bad ?
El promised that all of them were going to be nice, and the dinner took his silence back.
Mike hated to say it, but the fact Will was going to find his dead body without her mother around was a little binding. But what could he do ? It was like it was, and nothing were going to change his mind. Mike decided to off himself in Lenora, first to avoid his family as much as he could before leaving, and second to allow Will and El to know the truth. Or at least, the little part of truth Mike wanted them to know, the part about his regrets and apologies.
A quick pain passed trough his head, and Mike closed his eyes as the feeling of having an arrow in his brain left his body. He shivered at the same time, and felt a gaze on him when he opened his eyes back. A discret and observing gaze, who was probably waiting to see if Mike would act weirdly again or not. Should be Will’s gaze.
Mike had often pains like that, the doctor said it was tiredness result.
In less than 24 hours, it would be over.
Everything would be. Mike just had to be patient.
☁︎
WILL’S POV
Mike was weird.
Will knew it since he woke up after the rink-o-mania fight, when his mood changed.
Mike was always talkative, ready for any conversation about witch Star Wars was the best or a new comic book. But now, he was silent, not eating his porridge and avoiding Will’s gaze.
Will ate half of his plate, cause he didn’t shallowed anything since the last dinner.
This morning he was too excited to see Mike again to eat anything, and this lunch too scared about this huge bruise on Mike’s forehead.
Do Mike remembered he didn’t like porridge ? Probably not. But Will was remembering that Mike hated it, saying "it tasted like we have combine all the fridge’s ingredients but with a disgusting texture."
Will wasn’t a fan neither, but he didn’t hated it. He just didn’t like it.
When the dinner finished finally, after Argyle and Jonathan - both was high as fuck - finished all porridge’s plate, Will get back in his room.
He painted all afternoon, working on a new piece he wanted to expose on his room’s wall. It was the castle Byers, as Will remembered it. With the "castle Byers" wood piece, the American flag and the pled they used as curtains at the entrance.
Will missed it, he truly does.
It was where he went when something appended, with Mike, the mind flayer or any other situation.
A safe place, in fact. And Will lost it just like he lost the only friends he could make in his whole life.
Will never agreed with the moving on stuff, and just followed her mother’s intuition that things would be better far away from Hawkins.
And it was, actually, everything was simpler. Will didn’t had any bullies anymore, he haven’t felt the mind flayer once since he got here, and he didn’t had to act like he wasn’t in love with his best friend.
But it was simpler too. Will didn’t have any friends anymore, or any reason or motivation to do things. Watch TV became boring since Dustin’s comments disappeared, biking was terribly boring alone, D&D wasn’t an option and the only thing that Will found to feel less alone was painting.
So he painted, again and again. Thinks that he missed, things that didn’t made any sense, things that he loved, just anything that would make his mind travel at least a little.
He snapped back at the reality when his paintbrush felt down the floor, Will zoning for a few minutes, his eyes watching the plant he made around one of the wood base of the cabin.
When he looked at his clock to check the hour, he almost laughed. He was painting for an hour and half, that felt like 20 minutes. Never mind.
Will packed his stuff back, putting his art piece under his bed, and got prepared for bed.
He washed his teeth, put on a pyjama and slipped under the cover of his two sided bed. He turned his face, his gaze falling at his desk, and his eyes found Mike’s letter.
To maybe forgive myself, I wanted to give you that.
Mike was acting strange about this letter too. But he supplied Will to only opening the next day, and no matter how long they have been away, no matter how weirdly Mike acted at the airport, avoiding Will, he would never broke any promise.
And tomorrow wasn’t in too long, what could append before that ?
What could append ?