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Mike’s offer of having a Yes Day came out of the blue.
Just like he himself did, actually.
It was a lovely Saturday in July and Will was lounging on his bed, listening to his favorite tunes while sketching random things his eye caught sight of, when Mike flew into the room suddenly, almost knocking the door off its hinges, with a crazed look etched in his tomato-red face.
“Will!” He exclaimed, out of breath, his eyes bulging cartoonishly as if he’d crossed paths with some pretty traumatic dangers they hadn’t experienced before. Will sat up on his bed in a flash, determined to fight whatever and whoever threatened Mike’s life.
“What is it?” He asked, voice strained from worry, as he turned off the player and took off the earphones, throwing them carelessly on the bedside table. “What’s wrong?”
“Uh, what?” Mike mumbled, his dark eyebrows drawn together and nose scrunched cutely in a way that only happened when he was extremely confused. Will brushed it off and got up from the bed, striding over to Mike.
“Are you hurt?” Will checked him from head to toe quickly to see if he had any visible injuries. There were none, thankfully, but Will couldn’t let his guard down that easily – Mike’s physical well-being didn’t guarantee anything. He’d probably managed to make an escape before the damage could’ve been done to him. “Was somebody following you?”
“What? No.” Mike shook his head, looking a lot more lost now, as though Will was the one who barged into his room yelling like a lunatic without giving further explanation.
Will locked their eyes, his concern growing exponentially. “Are you in shock?” Mike had to be in shock. He could barely form a coherent sentence – it was the first alarming sign. “Why don’t you sit down and tell me everything that happened?” Will tried to lead him to his bed but Mike didn’t let him, staying in place stubbornly.
“Wha- Is it some kind of a prank? What are those questions? I’m not in shock. I’m okay, Will. Everything’s good.”
Oh. Well, that was embarrassing.
“So, no danger?” Will asked him again, just in case. He learned to be extra cautious the hard way. How did that saying go? Better safe than sorry? Will hoped that whoever said it first didn’t go through the similar horrors he did to gain that wisdom.
Mike gasped sharply, nodding so fast Will got genuinely worried for his straining neck. “Oh my God, sorry. Yes, Will. No danger. I’m just very excited. Couldn’t wait too long to share the coolest idea ever with you.”
“What kind of idea?” Will narrowed his eyes, suspicion taking over him immediately. The last idea Mike had ended so badly Hop didn’t let them to hang out with each other for a month. They found a way to meet in secret but the point still stood. Will wasn’t going to be that careless again and agree to something without asking first.
“We’re having a Yes Day today!” Mike announced chirpily, wide smile stretching his face, his tone and expression eerily similar to those that people were using when they were advertising the biggest scam in the world under pretense of something you shouldn’t think twice on. Buy this super-fancy vacuum cleaner 5000 today and get two extra attachments absolutely for free! Don’t wait! Call us right now!
“We as in...”
“Just the two of us. Together. I’m not willing to say yes to anyone else’s bullshit.” It was kind of fair, honestly. If Max had the chance, she would definitely use it as a legal weapon to get Mike make a total fool of himself.
“And how would it work exactly? Who says ‘yes’ to who? Or did you think we both do?” What could Mike possibly want from him? Most things they did together didn’t require verbal asking or confirmations and as of late they had little to no existing boundaries between each other. In a strictly platonic way, obviously. But still. Will couldn’t recall even one instance when he had to do something for Mike that wasn’t born from Will’s own initiative.
“Nope, not both,” Mike replied softly, his brown eyes shining happily and a sweet grin gracing his lips. To any other person he could come across as picture perfect innocence, but Will noticed the sly edge in his features he tried to mask diligently. Something there was undoubtedly off. “Only me. It’ll be your day, Will.”
“But isn’t it basically our usual day lately?”
And it wasn’t an understatement. Will was melting into a happy puddle on a daily basis from all of the attention he was constantly getting. The summer after graduation had been an unusual bliss for Will, strikingly different compared to the last couple ones when he either felt like he was invisible to everyone or couldn’t relax fully, staying on alert, expecting Vecna’s inevitable attack at any moment. Now, with the Upside Down and all the monsters gone and Mike not leaving Will’s side for more than a few hours at a time, he had finally gotten the chance to let go and have lots of fun he’d missed out on with his friends before they had to part ways and start their lives outside of Hawkins. Will didn’t like to ponder about it a lot – yes, he was excited to leave this town and move on to greater things but he still felt sad at the concept of being a grown up and the thought of saying goodbyes to people he cared about deeply. At least he’ll still have Mike by his side. He didn’t even want to imagine a world where he didn’t.
“Nope,” Mike said, popping the ‘p’ and smirking smugly after. “It’s totally different. Today it’s official. I’ll say yes to every request you make, any small whim without even a smidge of complaining and bitching. Whatever you ask for, you’ll get it.”
Will’s stomach fluttered nicely at Mike’s words, his cheeks warming up at the variety of ideas already racing in his mind, wild and unrestricted. He could never say more than a half of them out loud, though. If Mike found out what Will thought of first, what this was doing to him, he wouldn’t talk to him ever again.
“Are you not scared to give me that kind of power?” Will asked, teasing lacing his tone. Mike will absolutely regret it. He couldn’t even imagine what he was signing up for.
“I’d trust you with my life, Will. You already know that.” Yeah, he did. The thought of that still made Will’s knees weak and chest warm in pride.
“Okay then. Movies first,” Will stated, feeling extra confident as there was no room for possible objection, and checked his outfit in the mirror with a critical eye. Was it better for him to change the top or just leave it as it was? He looked quite alright but he could probably find something cuter.
As Will opened his closet to go over his options, Mike spoke up again, stopping him in his tracks, “hey, no.”
Will turned to him with a pinched expression. “What do you mean ‘no’? Haven’t we already started? No complaints, remember?”
“I meant ‘no’ as we’re going to do it properly,” Mike explained, plopping on Will’s bed. “It just sounded like an order, not like a proposal. So, you have to ask me a question first, then I say ‘yes’ and do everything in my power to make your wish come true.”
“Really?” Will deadpanned, placing his hands on his hips just like Jonathan did when he was unimpressed and fed up with something.
“Yes,” Mike affirmed, completely serious.
In times like this Will couldn’t remember for the life of him why he fell in love with that nitpicker in the first place.
“Max’s right. You really are insufferable.”
“Hey!” Mike exclaimed, offended, pouting his lips adorably like a cute abandoned puppy. Ah, yeah. That’s why.
“Quit playing a victim, Mike.” Will rolled his eyes, trying to act exasperated, but the little grin that tugged at his lips betrayed him, making Mike smile winningly. “Okay, okay,” he paused, sighing. “Do you want to go to the movies with me, Mike?”
Well, just like Will was afraid of, now it sounded like he was asking him out on a date. And with the way he was going to dress up nicer, he already started to play a dangerous game with his poor, pathetically devoted heart. Will definitely had to stop before it bit him in the ass. But… What if it was the only chance for him to pretend like they had something more? Why couldn’t he be selfish for just a day? Only this once. He loved Mike irrevocably already so it couldn’t get much worse, could it?
“Yes, of course I do, Will.”
Damn. Will already had no doubt that this day would be the premature death of him.
¿ ¿ ¿
They entered the cinema half an hour later, facing each other as they chatted about everything and nothing at the same time – Will still didn’t know how they never ran out of things to say – and headed straight to the box office to buy their tickets to see Indiana Jones for the seventh time.
Mike rushed to pay for both of them, flashing Will a cheeky smile and catching his wrist to stop him from putting his hand in his shorts’ pocket to retrieve the money out of it. “Your day, Will. Everything’s on me.”
“But-” Will’s weak protest got cut off by Mike quickly.
“No buts,” he stated firmly, accepting the tickets with a dry ‘thanks’ thrown to the cashier.
Will could play ‘the Yes Day’ card – all he had to do was ask the right question, leaving Mike with no choice but to follow the rules of the game. The thing was – he simply didn’t want to. All because this way it was a lot easier for Will to pretend that they were on an actual date, not having a usual friendly hangout. By the end of the day it might turn against him, but now he couldn’t bring himself to care.
Not even a little bit.
“Okay. You win,” Will grumbled, feigning annoyance as if allowing Mike to spoil him rotten was a huge hardship. “Let’s get snacks now. I choose.”
Mike raised his brows at that, leveling him with an expectant gaze. Getting the silent hint, Will held back a groan but not the eye-rolling attitude, grumbling under his breath, “should we get snacks now, Mike? I choose.”
Mike beamed approvingly, wetting his lips in not so appropriate manner. “Yes, totally. After you, good sir.”
Mike followed him to the concessions stand dutifully, not objecting the choices Will made – choices that definitely drained Mike’s wallet, yet he didn’t whine once, paying for the order with the brightest smile. Will took their Cokes, hands dampening in an instant from the condensation, and went after Mike who was carrying extra-large bucket of popcorn, M&Ms and candies shoved in his pockets.
They found their seats further back from the screen, huffing and puffing as they navigated the familiar routine of getting situated, exchanging food expertly and putting the drinks in their designated places. Will ate a handful of popcorn and sipped his Coke, eyeing the rows before them and noting the unusual lack of people happily, while they waited for the movie to begin. Once it started, he continued to munch on snacks, his cheeks turning chubby from the mouth full of food, and watched the scenes he knew by heart now almost with the same level of interest and excitement that he had when he saw them for the first time.
As Mike tried to sneak his hand in the bucket to get his share of popcorn, Will batted him away playfully, eyes still on the screen. “Uh-uh, no, Mike,” he admonished him in a whisper, barely stifling a loud laugh when he noticed in his periphery the betrayed look his friend was wearing. “You should’ve gotten your own snacks.”
“But we always share them,” Mike whined similar to a spoiled kid who didn’t get things go his way, puckering his thin lips in a pout. “And you got the biggest bucket, why would I’ve needed to buy more? You won’t eat the whole thing anyway.”
Will squinted at him, holding the bucket closer to his chest. “Watch me.”
“Seriously?”
“If you had asked nicely first, I wouldn’t have stopped you.”
“So that how it is?” Mike huffed begrudgingly.
“Mhm.”
“And who’s insufferable now?”
Will raised his eyebrow. “And who’s bitching when promised not to do so?”
“Touché,” Mike mumbled with a sigh, turning to him fully and clutching Will’s hand, oily from popcorn, in his own, making Will stare at the contact, transfixed and suddenly breathless. “Dearest Will, may I humbly ask you to grant me the honor of having some of your elite popcorn? Please and thank you.”
“Okay, you can have some, smartass,” Will gave in immediately, huffing to keep up the appearances, but they both burst out in not so quiet giggles as soon as their gazes met in the dark, Mike’s carefree face bathed in the movie screen’s light prettily.
Will’s laugh died down, leaving a soft loving grin in its place as he took in his best friend’s unrestrained happiness he’d been seeing more and more lately. Mike was closed off for quite some time, an empty shell of someone he used to be, clearly troubled by something he didn’t share with any living soul, but the last few months it seemed as if that burden got lifted from his shoulders, making him lighter and freer. A lot happier, too. Just like he was when he was a kid, loud and energetic, not second guessing anything he did and acting by sheer instinct. Will was glad that Mike found his true self finally, regained that unapologetic confidence and childish playfulness he lost along the way and embraced them wholly without hesitation. Will missed this side of him like a limb and couldn’t believe that he truly got his best friend back, still waiting for the other shoe to drop. It didn’t feel real. Still felt like it wouldn’t last, so in moments like this one Will couldn’t get enough of Mike, cherishing his openness, his blinding liveliness. Memorizing. Wishing he could burn it into his retinas out of fear of never getting to see him that unguarded and cheerful again.
Mike quieted down, his cheeks turning pink slightly, as he smiled at Will gently in return. “Why are you staring? Did your artistic eye catch something beautiful again?” He asked in a teasing manner, obviously joking, but Will nodded seriously, driven by the flow of courage that came over him unexpectedly.
“Yeah,” Will responded, his voice low but tender. “You.”
Mike inhaled sharply, spluttering and choking on nothing, clearly at a loss of words. His face flushed strikingly red so fast Will almost laughed, endeared by the way Mike tried to hide it from him, bashful and embarrassed. It was lovely. And so, so cute Will wanted nothing more but smother him in his arms and shower his beautiful face with smacking kisses like one of a fluffy adorable kitty he grew attached to at first sight.
“Wha- I mean- what?” Mike evidently struggled to form a coherent sentence so Will decided to take pity on him.
“Just kidding.” He wasn’t, obviously, but Mike didn’t need to know that. “You can relax.”
“Oh.” Will didn’t know how to interpret the way Mike’s face fell immediately, but if he had to guess he could say with no seed of doubt that it certainly wasn’t for the reasons he hoped for. “Kidding, yeah. I figured. You just caught me off guard. Didn’t mean to make it awkward, sorry,” Mike murmured, avoiding Will’s eyes, and pursed his lips as he turned back to the screen. Shit.
“All good,” Will replied, rather belated, suddenly dry mouth working with effort. He definitely had to learn to keep his inappropriate thoughts to himself before he scared Mike off forever.
The rest of the movie went by without him noticing, head in a mess so bad that he couldn’t focus on anything besides his berating and panicked overthinking session. He got snapped out of it only when Mike yawned loudly and stretched his limbs, almost hitting Will in the face with his giant hand that sometimes featured in Will’s wet dreams he forbade himself to ponder on once he was out of bed. Especially in the presence of his unaware best friend.
With Mike’s hand so close, it was a bit, one would say, hard not to think of it now. Will chortled unwillingly.
“What’s so funny?” Mike asked, genuinely curious.
“Nothing,” Will answered too quickly to not sound suspicious. Thankfully, Mike didn’t prod him for more. “Should we get ice-cream now and then head back to mine?”
“Yes, sir,” Mike agreed, saluting him jokingly. “Your wish is my command. Lead the way.”
¿ ¿ ¿
The cabin was empty when they got back and was expected to stay that way for the next few more hours at least, with his mom and Hop having their standing semi-weekly date, so he and Mike didn’t rush to lock themselves in his room, deciding to chill in the kitchen first, attacking the leftover pizza as though they’d been starving and didn’t eat burgers and fries with ice-cream just an hour ago.
Will couldn’t help but scrunch his nose, disgusted by the sight of Mike wiping his ketchup-smeared fingers on his white T-shirt. “Gross, Mike,” he complained, tilting his head to the side pointedly. “Napkins are right there.”
“Don’t need them.”
“Yeah. What you need now is a clean shirt,” Will sighed, tired, once again questioning his stupid heart’s choices. Really? This Neanderthal? Clearly there were much better options. “I’ll lend you one. C’mon. Up you go.”
Mike complied with a sweet smile, following Will to his room like a well-trained puppy.
Right. Mike indulged him like no other. His heart didn’t stand a single chance.
Will went through his closet, searching for Jonathan’s old band T-shirt, and then threw it to Mike who was standing awkwardly by his bed. “Change. I won’t look.”
He never expected to hear the next words to ever come out from Mike’s mouth. Only in his dreams, maybe, but definitely not in real fucking life.
“You can if you want.”
The way Mike said it didn’t sound like a joke. At all.
Will froze, staring at him with a slacked jaw. “Huh?”
He couldn’t possibly hear him right, could he? His ears were messing with him, there was no way-
“Sorry. I-” Mike sputtered, his neck burning red as if he’d been lying in the sun all day with no sunscreen on. “I didn’t mean to say that.”
So, he wasn’t joking. Mike genuinely thought it. Okay. Will felt totally cool about that. He didn’t panic by the possible implications at all.
He didn’t, but...
Why would Mike think that? Do straight guys like it when gay guys watch them change?
Nope. They absolutely didn’t. Most of them would find it gross and spew slurs. Yet Mike – only hypothetically – wanted him to do it. Or was it just his way of assuring Will that he accepted his queerness fully? That Mike wouldn’t think anything of it if Will looked at him while he was half-naked?
Yeah. It was definitely the latter. He should’ve realized it right away instead of getting his hopes up.
“It’s okay,” Will muttered, turning to his desk. He started to move things around mindlessly, trying to appear busy while Mike switched his dirty T-shirt, and willed his whining heart to calm down.
“All done!” Mike chirped right behind him, making Will flinch by the abrupt proximity. “Happy now?”
Will turned around, eyeing him momentarily, and swallowed hard when his gaze caught on Mike’s sharp collarbones, the stretched fabric of the T-shirt hanging low and leaving upper part of his very straight friend’s chest on display. “Yes,” he squeaked, trying to play his silence off with a forced bright grin. “Very.”
“So,” Mike started, prolonging the vowel dramatically. “What do you have in mind now?”
I want to mark your neck with my teeth.
Nope. Not going there.
“Will you let me teach you draw?”
It looked like Mike was about to protest, but he stopped himself, mouth parted, clearly remembering about today’s arrangement, and nodded once.
“Yes, fine. Go ahead. I’m sure I’ll be your brightest student,” he tried but failed to sound enthusiastic. Will let it slide this time.
“We’ll see about that.”
¿ ¿ ¿
Mike was a lost cause.
They were sitting atop of the bed with their backs leaned against the headboard while scribbling in the notebooks perched on their laps. Will was teaching Mike the basics, guiding him patiently, correcting his pencil hold more often than not, but also mindful of not crossing the invisible lines he’d established.
No direct lingering touches.
No staring. Especially at the lips.
No leaning too close.
No flirting. Not even jokingly.
It was torture, although he managed to keep the success rate at 95%. He stared once or twice. Yes, at the lips. Will just couldn’t help it. Not when Mike chuckled softly, tilting his chin to his neck, a smidge embarrassed by yet another failed attempt at sketching, drawing attention to his blabbering mouth.
Will didn’t even realize he was doing it again until Mike snapped his fingers in front of his dreamy face.
“You okay?” He murmured, worried.
“Yes, peachy,” Will affirmed, plastering on a hopefully convincing smile. He then looked at Mike’s page, furrowing his eyebrows like a real teacher would, studying the drawing meticulously. “What is that supposed to be again?” He asked, giving up.
“A heart.”
A short laugh bubbled out of Will involuntarily.
“Hey, stop!” Mike exclaimed, giggling too. “I know it looks like a butt but you should hold it together. I’m pretty sure it’s unethical to laugh at your students. It might hurt their feelings.”
“Sorry, sorry. It’s just-” Will paused, searching for the words that wouldn’t sound too offensive. He was certain that saying ‘a five-year old would do a better job than you’ didn’t fit that criteria. “You just need more practice. I see a bright future there. A true potential.”
“You can just say it’s terrible and that we should call it a day, you know.”
Will shook his head, suddenly determined to help Mike make at least one decent drawing. “Okay, here. Let me just-” He reached for Mike’s hand without thinking, stopping abruptly as soon as he realized what he was about to do. The line he was about to cross.
His hand hovered over Mike’s awkwardly, not quite touching, yet tangibly there. Will couldn’t help but stare at the half-contact, wishing to feel it fully with all his might, heart thrashing in his chest, crying for him to do something, so he threw all caution to the wind and indulged himself by closing the short gap.
The first light brushing of their fingers awakened the goosebumps on his arm, making his skin tingling as if it was zapped. Mike’s breath stuttered. Will gazed at him under his lashes, taking in his flushed cheeks and parted enticing lips, licking his own automatically. Mike followed the action with his eyes, leaning closer – just a little, as though it was done by accident, halting right before it could potentially mean something more.
Will waited, not daring to move or breathe, afraid of reading it in a wrong way. Mike took the leap first.
“Why haven’t you asked if you can kiss me yet?”
“I didn’t realize you wanted me to,” Will choked out a response, not louder than a whisper.
“Well, I do,” Mike answered, trying to appear confident, but his voice exposed him, wobbling by the end.
“Can I-” Will paused as he inhaled deeply, mustering the courage to finish the dangerous question. “Can I kiss you, Mike?”
“Yes. Thought you’d never-”
Mike didn’t get to complete the sentence as Will captured his lips in a soft, tentative kiss. He reciprocated almost instantly, throwing their notebooks and pencils aside before raising up his hand to hold Will’s cheek gently. They parted for a beat with a loud smack, moving in sync to accommodate each other better, and then dove in again, more confident now. Will gripped Mike by the shoulders, breathing through his nose, fingers flexing impatiently at the collarbones he wanted to mark earlier. He tried to keep up, give as much as he was receiving, unsure if he was doing it right and melting in Mike’s scorching embrace at the same time.
The kiss got heated rather quickly, causing his head to grow dizzy and heart thump erratically in his heaving chest, so Will shied away in urgent need of a moment to find his bearings, overwhelmed by everything he was feeling at once.
“You okay?” Mike asked, worried, sitting up in alert.
Will jerked his head, breathing heavily. “Yeah, yeah, just-”
“Too much?”
Will huffed a chuckle, suddenly embarrassed. “A little. Just need to process that it’s really happening. Before now I didn’t even think it was in the cards.”
Mike took Will’s hand in his, giving it a comforting squeeze. “Well, if it makes you feel any better, I’m freaking the fuck out now, too.”
Will squinted at him, searching his face attentively. “Doesn’t look like it.”
“I just learned to hide it well,” Mike informed him like it wasn’t a big deal. Will would beg to differ. He preferred it a lot more when Mike felt comfortable enough to be vulnerable with him instead of putting on a brave face. “My heart literally forgot how to function when you kissed me.”
Well, that made two of them then. Good to know.
“Then show me that,” Will said, his tone edging on a plea. “I want to see that we’re in this together.”
“Okay,” Mike half-whispered on a shaky exhale, his tensed shoulders relaxing visibly. Will stroked his neck gently. “I can’t believe this is happening, either. I’ve dreamed of this for quite a while already,” Mike confessed then, just as quiet, looking at Will with so much love he felt himself melt inside.
“Yeah?” Will wondered, flustered smile tugging at his lips. “For how long exactly?”
Mike frowned cutely, doing his mental calculations. “A year, maybe? Unconsciously probably even more. I’ve lost track.” He grinned bashfully, dropping his gaze at their clasped hands for a moment before locking his eyes with Will’s again. “It’s been killing me, being so close to you but not enough to do something about it. Honestly, I never thought I would.”
“What changed?”
The answer was simple, yet so raw, it took Will’s breath away.
“I finally saw that you wanted the same.” Mike turned hesitant when Will didn’t say anything in response, not realizing that he just broke him. Got him completely speechless just by being fearlessly honest. “You do, right? Want the same, I mean.”
In lieu of answering Will leaned in, staying an inch away from Mike’s anxious face. “Depends. Can I kiss you again to make sure?” He breathed out the question, edging forward, his lips brushing Mike’s teasingly.
“Y-yeah.” A garbled response Will received made his stomach flutter in a way he usually pushed down, feeling guilty and dirty in his skin. Now, for a change, he allowed himself to savor it. Welcome it with open arms. Not cover from this blazing fire like it was something to be ashamed of. No. He deserved to feel it. To experience this connection with Mike who’d evidently been craving the same just as much. “Yes, you can.” Mike gulped hard, his Adam’s apple bobbing at the action.
“Okay.” Will gave him a slow nod, trying not to smile slyly as a genius plan began to brew in his head. “Where?” He moved up, mouth grazing over Mike’s forehead. “Should I kiss you here?” The faux-innocence in his voice sounded so natural, Will seriously considered to pursue an acting career – it was a shame that such a talent would have to go to waste all because he wasn’t keen on living in the limelight.
Pitifully, Mike was more focused on not combusting on spot to praise Will’s incredible skills right now. He shook his head ‘no’, squeezing his eyes shut like it physically pained him, lips pressed together tightly to not oppose aloud. Who even needed a compliment when they got a reaction like that?
“You didn’t forget today’s rules, did you?” Will tutted, gaze burning at his friend in a mock disapproval.
“I remember,” Mike gritted, clearly catching up to the game, but not quite satisfied with a choice of placement. “Yes, you should kiss me here,” he confirmed nonetheless.
Will smirked, humming appreciatively, and left a quick peck on a soft skin, moving to Mike’s temple next.
“What about here?”
Mike threw a pleading glance at Will, fingers gripping at Will’s shirt, visibly struggling to not tug him by the collar and kiss him like he so desperately wanted. “Yes,” he sighed despite himself, nodding jerkily.
Will maneuvered Mike closer, hand curling around his burning-hot neck, and pressed a lingering kiss near his eyebrow, feeling it twitch a little.
“Where next?” He lowered his lips, tracing the path with his nose tenderly, stopping at Mike’s freckled cheek, his hot breath fanning over it. “Here?”
This time Mike didn’t think of putting up a fight, following accordingly with a steady affirmative answer. Will granted him with another kiss, mouth tingling at the contact, already thirsty for more. His fingers splayed over the nape of Mike’s neck, tangling in the short curls there.
“I liked this one. Did you?”
“Yes, it was sweet,” Mike agreed with a sincere smile, the flushing on his face growing more prominent.
Will tilted his head to the side, nipping his underlip, not able to contain his own blushing. “Good.” As he remembered the task at hand, he shifted again, pausing at the corner of Mike’s lips. “Do you want me to kiss you here, too?”
“Yes, absolutely,” Mike replied, his raspy voice sending pleasant shivers down Will’s spine. It still felt like a fever dream – not like something that was actually taking place in his bedroom, in his bed. How did they even get there? How hadn’t Will passed out yet? It was truly a miracle.
Will kissed him at the chosen spot reverently, still chaste, staying there significantly longer than in all the previous ones, and jerked back when Mike succumbed to his greed, turning his head a little to connect their lips together properly for a second.
“Uh-huh, patience, Mike,” he scolded him, eliciting a sharp gasp from Mike as he tugged at his hair. “Just for that you’ll have to wait more.”
“What? N-” Mike cut himself off immediately, eyes widening at the realization of what he’d almost let out.
Will lifted his eyebrow playfully. “What was that?”
“N-nothing.”
“You sure?”
“Yes,” Mike confirmed, convincing nobody.
Will decided to play pretend. “Cool.”
Spurred on by a sudden surge of unfamiliar boldness, he let his hands slide down to Mike’s shoulders, holding onto them tightly for leverage, and swung his leg over Mike’s thighs, landing on his lap gracefully as though it was a dance routine that he practiced every day, feeling like he arrived home, no less. Mike gripped Will’s hips instinctively, his breath hitching and eyes glazing over, looking dumbstruck and ready to worship. Almost like he did when he called Will a sorcerer repeatedly after witnessing the first display of Will’s siphoning powers – spellbound, proud, overexcited.
And now in love.
Will could spot it side by side with the unbridled desire in his dilated pupils, feel it in the gentle and a bit firm hold of Mike’s hands – several layers of clothes be damned – catch it in the quickened pulse of his heart, hear it in the nervous gulps. It was everywhere, warming him up from within, yearning for Will to take. To accept. To claim.
Maybe this love was there then, too, but it was shy, terrified of being seen, of existing at all. Will suspected that it could be present at some point, but ultimately convinced himself that he was seeing things, that it was wishful thinking. Felt extremely guilty for even entertaining that insane thought. So, Will lost the last bits of hope and stopped attempting to decipher Mike’s mixed signals before he had the chance to discover the truth. He even managed to lie to himself, living under pretense of getting over his own feelings, trying out the role of a best friend who had nothing to hide. It never fit. Was too tight, too suffocating, making Will itchy and uncomfortable, leaving him with no other choice but to drop the foolish act and resign to his fate. Once he did, he didn’t allow himself to scrutinize Mike, to overanalyze his words and actions, look too close to find anything that could mean more to him than to his friend.
That’s why Will didn’t see today’s revelation coming. He was too busy to not get his hopes up to realize that there really was something to hope for, that it wasn’t all in his head. That Mike shared the similar journey with him all along.
Will was never happier to be proven wrong.
“Fancy having you there,” Mike broke the charged silence, his hands creeping up to Will’s waist, thumbs sneaking under the T-shirt and rubbing the skin nicely.
“Yeah?” Will breathed out, lifting up a bit and shifting his knees to get closer.
“Mhm. Comfy?”
“Eh. You’re too bony,” Will retorted, biting back a fond smile. “Good thing my ass can serve as a pillow.”
Mike cackled, throwing his head back. “Oh my God. I can’t believe you said that.”
“Just stating the truth.”
“And I think your statement needs thorough fact checking.”
“You see my ass every day, Mike,” Will scoffed, wiggling his backside pointedly. Mike squeezed his waist to stop him, stiffening and choking on a sharp intake of breath.
“But never touched it to confirm,” he witted once he collected himself, melting under Will’s weight.
“Be nice and maybe I’ll let you.”
Mike squirmed at that, soft moan slipping out before he caught his lip with his teeth, cutting it in half. “Will! What the hell?”
Will smirked, caressing Mike’s strained jaw, relaxing it effectively. He studied him attentively, amazed by the power he possessed over Mike, by the way he could affect him without much effort.
Was it always like that? And, more importantly, how far could Will go before Mike commanded him to slow down?
“Something bothering you?” Will moved closer, his hot mouth ghosting over Mike’s neck, nipping at the skin under his chin teasingly. He leaned away after that, puckering his lips. “Should I stop then?”
“No.” Mike stated, not missing a beat, eyes burning into Will so intensely it made him hot all over.
Finally. If he knew that seeing Mike break was so deliciously good, he would’ve tried to do it much earlier.
“But it’s a Yes Day, Mike,” Will taunted, frowning as if he was greatly disappointed by his blatant refusal. “You broke the rule.”
“I know,” Mike started, so confidently unrepentant Will immediately grew excited to hear what he was going to say next. “That’s why you shouldn’t ask for things that I would never say yes to.”
Turned out, it wasn’t so difficult to break Will either. He cupped Mike’s cheeks with his hands and crushed their lips together, tired of denying them the thing they both were practically dying to have. Screw the game. He waited long enough already – now he planned to revel in this for as long as his yearning heart needed. With the way Mike led him expertly, mapping his skin under the T-shirt with his soft hands and slotting their mouths in a better angle, it was quickly learning to be insatiable.
“And who’s breaking the rules now?” Mike mumbled between the kisses breathlessly, smirking like a self-assured bastard.
“Shut up,” Will huffed and drew Mike back into the kiss, deepening it in an instant to stop him from thinking of anything but keeping their lips attached to each other until they couldn’t anymore.
Mike hummed, smug like he got exactly what he wanted, letting one hand drop and grab at Will’s thigh, squeezing it firmly. Will gasped at that, granting the access to Mike’s sneaky tongue, and melted at the new sensation. It was mind-blowing. Somehow too much and not enough. Their tongues clasped, getting familiar with each other, making Will a moaning mess, completely unashamed, his brain turning into mash.
He broke the kiss slowly, urgently, in acute need of something he couldn’t quite put his finger on.
“Are you okay?” Mike asked, panting and soft, rubbing Will’s skin in relaxing circles. “Do you need a moment again?”
“N-no, I-” Will trailed off, losing the train of thought as he got distracted by the disheveled look Mike was sporting now. His hair was an artful mess, lips shining red and seductively raw – he was a vision so compelling and stunning Will wanted to paint it on canvas for keeping. Or eat him whole. He would be happy with any of those two options, honestly.
But which one he desired more?
“Do you want to be my canvas?” Will blurted out without thinking, unexpected even to himself. As the question landed though, he realized that it was a brilliant suggestion. Why choose one when he could combine the best parts and have both? Will brushed it off earlier but it happened before this whole ordeal started. Now he had a right to actually ask for it.
“What?” Mike said faintly, taken aback by the abrupt request. “You want to draw on me?”
Will shook his head, lips curling up in excitement. “No. I want to leave marks on you. With my mouth. Here.” Will slowly dragged his hand from Mike’s neck to his prominent collarbones, tapping his fingers gently on his pulse point on the way back. “Can I?”
Mike took a sharp breath, his pulse quickening under Will’s hand, and nodded eagerly in place of an actual answer, his eyes fluttering shut as he bared his neck, leaving it at Will’s complete mercy. Will scooted back in his lap an inch and leaned down, pressing a trail of kisses on the smooth skin first. He preened, satisfied, when Mike let out a pleased sigh, pulling him closer so they were chest to chest.
As Will breathed in the natural musk and sweat mixed with the hints of the citrusy shower gel Mike liked to use, his logical side finally caught up to him. “Um,” he hiccupped, blushing furiously from a sheer embarrassment that overcame him.
“What is it?”
“Uh…” Will cleared his throat, wincing. “How do I do it?”
“Oh,” Mike paused, opening his eyes and tilting his head to get a good look at Will. “We- we’ve never got to it with El, so I’m no expert, but from what I’ve heard, um, you should like suck?” He coughed at the last word, matching flush spreading over his face. “The skin, I mean. For a while. And no teeth. Like a vacuum.”
“O-okay, got it.” Will nodded, receiving an encouraging smile in return that actually helped to calm his nerves a little. It always did.
He bent down again, nosing at Mike’s neck and leaving light kisses there for quite a bit to get them both back in the mood before opening his mouth and sucking on the skin, gently yet purposefully. Mike groaned, shuddering, and wrapped his arm around Will, burying his hand in Will’s hair to press him down. His hold got loose gradually as he surrendered to the feeling, and Will went lower, mapping the path to the collarbone with his lips and getting to work immediately as he reached it. He grew more confident, goaded by the sweet unrestrained whimpers Mike was producing constantly, grasping at Will like he was his saving grace, his lifeline, not willing to be separated from him even for a second.
Will leaned away after a few more minutes to admire his work, breath hitching at the sight. If Mike looked slightly messy before, now he looked like an actual sin. Debauched and disoriented, forehead glistening with sweat, neck and collarbones painted red with developing marks – Will’s vivid imagination didn’t do the real thing justice. Not able to restrain himself, he bit the very first hickey he left and then touched it reverently, wincing at Mike’s hiss.
“Sorry.”
“It’s okay. Just sensitive,” Mike mumbled, opening his eyes lazily. “I kinda liked it.”
“Freak.”
“Can you blame me? It’s everything I’ve ever wanted and more.”
“Yeah?” Will murmured, definitely grinning like a lovesick idiot.
“Mhm.” Mike confirmed, mirroring Will’s stupid infatuated look. “I knew my plan would work but didn’t expect it to take that turn.”
“Are you saying that it was your ulterior motive all along?” Will asked, shocked but not surprised. He knew something was off about that 'Yes Day' offer. Mike wouldn’t have proposed it without an actual reason or just because he got bored.
“Of course it was,” Mike confirmed without even a cadence of shame. “And I regret nothing, obviously. Do you?”
“You know I don’t. I’ve dreamed of it just like you did. Longer than you, too, so I expect you to make it up to me.”
“Was planning to. Did I at least get a good start?”
“The best.”
“Cool.”
They grinned at each other giddily and closed the gap for a short-lived kiss – more teeth than actual lips. Will loved it anyway.
He stayed laying on Mike’s chest after that, nuzzling his face into the crook of Mike’s marked neck, mouthing at it idly and snaking his hands lower. Mike gripped him tighter.
Will lifted up his head, finding his ear and biting at his earlobe. “One more thing, though,” he whispered hotly, feeling Mike shiver under his body.
“Anything, Will.”
“Will you be my boyfriend?"