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Will Byers had a plan, and one thing about him. is that when he has something in mind, he's gonna do it. That's the reason why, on a Tuesday night, he's sitting on the floor of Max's basement. Planning. Next week was Valentine's day, and Will was in love. He's liked Mike for as long as he could remember, from kindergarten having a harmless little crush, to being a seventeen years old realizing his feelings were deeper than he originally thought. For Will, Mike had always been the one for him, whether friends, best friends, or lovers. Basically, anything that ended with them being in each other's space more often than not.
Will, now, was acting on those feelings, the ones that made him nervous around his friend any time Mike offers to let Will sleep in his bed with them at sleepovers, or carry his books for him in the hallway at school before AP Chem. His heartbeat around Mike was basically the equivalent of the one time he chugged an energy drink before giving a speech, racing faster and faster until eventually slowing down.
But back to the plan. Drop subtle hints leading up to Valentine's day, and then tell Mike how he felt. Cringe, right? Max's idea, seems like someone has been watching too many romantic comedies.
But Will liked the idea, he liked the idea of being romantic, but more importantly, the idea of getting with Mike, and being able to love him as openly as he can in a town like Hawkins.
"Will, you do know you're gonna have to follow through with it this time, right?" Max interrupted him from his thoughts. She was sitting on the floor across from him, notebook in one hand, pencil in the other.
"Yeah, I know, it's just scary, what if he hates me, Max? I want to tell him, I'm just scared he'll be mad at me."
"He won't. He'd still love you if you killed his dad, Will. I seriously think he's incapable of hating you," Max says, sincerity in her voice.
"I know," Will pauses. "I know, sorry. So, this is the plan."
Will explains why he had in mind. Max listens attentively, giving her insight and tweaking it a little.
"And that's the plan," Will smiles nervously.
"I love it."
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"Morning, Will!" Mike greeted by their lockers, somehow filled with an ounce of joy considering its 7:30 in the morning.
Will grumbles in response, leaning on the locker across from Mike. They were close, Will could smell Mike's toothpaste on his breath (and he certainly wasn't complaining).
"You tired? I can take your english notes today if you want to sleep, I get it," Mike offered with a smile, because of course he'd offer that. If Will didn't see the way Mike treated everyone else, he would probably think Mike's the nicest person in the world. Will nods in response.
"Hey, what're you doing next week Tuesday? We could hang out," Will offers up a smile, eyes fixed on the freckles dotting Mike's face.
"That's the 14th, right? I think I'm free, you got something in mind?"
"Yeah, I was thinking we could do dinner? Or something like that," Will fiddles with the strap on his backpack, waiting for an answer.
"Yeah, sounds fun!" Mike smiles back. The bell rings, and Will was tempted to add a cheesy "It's a date!" like they do in the movies, but shot the idea down almost instantly. They walk to class together, hands brushing one another, both boys urging to reach out and lace their fingers together, but neither did.
As promised, Mike took Will's notes while he slept next to him, head leaning on Mike's left arm. They earned a look from Dustin and Lucas from across the room, Mike shrugs it off and goes back to writing, writing, writing.
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"Mike, have any fun plans for the 14th? Hot date?" Dustin say, wiggling his eyebrows. It was him, Mike, Lucas, and El at the table for lunch. They were waiting for Will and Max, who were stuck finishing a math test.
"Not really, well, Will and I are gonna hang out," He says casually, taking a bite of his PB&J. Lucas gives him a look.
"What are you guys gonna do?"
"I don't know, probably get dinner, maybe a movie" Mike says. "Why are you all looking at me like I'm insane?"
"You and Will are having dinner and a movie?" El says, looking to the other two boys.
"Yeah, what's wrong with that?"
"Will asked you out on a date!" Lucas says, laughing in disbelief.
"What- No? All he did was ask if I wanted to hang out next Tuesday, have dinner. We've done that before," Mike says, dropping his sandwich.
"Oh sure, it's just a coincidence that your very close gay best friend asked you to dinner," Lucas says, and Mike nods. "On Valentine's day."
Mikes eyes widen for a moment, "It-it's not like that. Trust me, Will doesn't like me like that."
"Yeah, and I don't have powers," El says causally, getting up from the table. "See, we can all say things that aren't true." She walks away, her short ponytail swinging behind her.
"It's not a date," Mike says again.
"Yeah, Lucas, I think you're looking too far into this, they're just hanging out," Dustin says.
"If you guys are just hanging out, can I come?" Lucas says, rolling his eyes.
"No! It's Will and I, not Will and Lucas and I," Mike huffs, biting into his apple.
"So then it is a date," Lucas replies.
"No! Can we just stop talking about this?" Mike sees Will and Max walking over to the table. Max takes a seat next to Lucas, Will by Mike.
"Hey, guys, what're we talking about," Max say, popping a chip into her mouth.
"Mikes da-"
"Nothing! Shut up, Lucas!" He jokingly spits a piece of apple at him.
"Ew! Gross,"
"Anyways! Hey, Mike, what type of chocolate do you like?"
"I don't know, anything with peanut butter, I guess. Why?"
"No reason," Will smiles, and starts to eat his lunch.
Will and Max exchange a look, and Max starts to laugh a little. The rest of the table gives her a confused look, which makes her laugh more. Will joins in, grinning widely. Mike is smiling too, not at Max, but at Will, who's laughing quite a lot now. Lucas clocks him in his peripheral, but Mike doesn't pay any more attention to him, solely focused on the boy who may or may not have asked him out.
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Nothing out of the ordinary has happened in the past two days, Will it at a stalemate with his plan, he doesn't really know how to be subtle. He's only fallen asleep on Mike one other time after english, but he's sure Mike doesn't mind.
Will missed his alarm Friday morning, arriving to school towards the end of third period. He opens his locker, and english notes fall out. Mike took his notes today, too, a scribbled and frantic cipher that no one except Mike could read without a decoder. Not really, but it certainly wasn't neat. Will smiles as he picks them up off the floor, noticing a few doodles on the corners, including stars, swirls, and hearts. More hearts than anything else, which warmed Will's own heart.
The bell rang shortly after, and Will sees Mike walking out of his class. Mike spots him, giving him a wave and a smile.
"Hey, missed you during first period, did you sleep through your alarm?" Mike says when they reach each other.
"Yeah, hey, thanks for taking my notes again. I promise next week I'll take my own notes, at least one of the days," Will says.
"It's okay, I don't mind!"
"Cool, so, random question. Do you like flowers?"
"Like, as a smell? Or as a color..?"
Will gives him a confused smile, "No, like, as a gift. Do you like flowers?"
"Oh! Yeah, I mean, no one's really gotten me flowers, but I've always liked the 3D yellow ones," Mike tries to explain them, and no one except Will would know what he's saying.
Daffodils, perfect.
"Cool, we still on for next week? Can I come over at, like, 4:30?"
"Yeah, that's perfect! Wanna walk to chem?" Mike says, taking the books out of both his and Will's locker.
"Yeah, thanks!"
"No problem," Mike smiles.
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"Max, can I ask you something?" Mike says, throwing a Rubix cube up into the air and catching it, repeatedly. He was laying on his bed, thinking (maybe too much).
"Yeah, what's up?" Max was reading a magazine, leaning against the desk in Mike's room. For some odd reason Max couldn't figure out, Mike asked her to come over, he hasn't really said full sentence since they got up to his room, but that's beside the point.
"Why did Will ask what kind of flowers I like?"
Max smiles to herself. "He did? Well, I don't know, maybe he's gonna get you some."
"I doubt it. It would be weird of him to give me flowers, unless there were some underlying reason that I don't know," Mike stopped throwing the Rubix cube, and sits up quickly.
"Mike Wheeler, you are such an idiot."
"What! What the hell did I do?"
"It's more about what you haven't picked up on, you're oblivious-" Max was cut off by the phone ringing.
"I'll be right back."
Mike runs down the stairs to the phone in the kitchen, nearly tripping over himself. He picks up, slightly out of breath. "Wheeler residence, who is it?"
"Hey, Mike!"
"Will! Hi! What's up!" Mike responds, way too enthusiastically.
"I was just wondering, do you prefer stuffed animals or balloons," Will says, curiosity in his voice.
"What's this for?"
"Science. So?" Will responds quickly, and Mike notices a slight sarcastic tone to his words.
"Right. I mean, personally, I like both, but I think the majority would say stuffed animals," A quick thought passes through Mike's head. Is this for me? But he dismisses it nearly right away. Of course not, Mike.
"Cool, thanks. Can you come over tomorrow? I need help with chem homework,"
"Yeah! Of course, I'll be there around 11:30, see you tomorrow!"
"Bye, Micheal!" Will says, and then hangs up.
Mike always loved it when Will called him by his full name. The way the Micheal would just roll of of Will's tongue, it was just so attractive, Mike couldn't help but blush every time he heard it, and Will had no idea the affect it had on him, because he does it over, and over, and over, so very casual.
Mike goes back upstairs, Max still reading her magazine, different page.
"Who was that?"
"It was Will, asked me for science reasons, if I prefer balloons or stuffed animals."
"Will, you are so not subtle," Max says under her breath.
"Y'know, he's been asking me a lot of stuff like that recently, not just the flowers. Is he planning something for someone?"
"I mean, yeah."
"But who? It has to be someone who has the same interests as me, or else he wouldn't be asking me. Also, me and him and hanging out tomorrow, and he called me Micheal! I love it when he does that," He smiles, falling back into his bed.
"God, you're so whipped," Max says, casually, turning the page.
"Excuse me? I don't even like- He's not- I'm not like that!"
"You're so flustered, what the hell! Mike, you obviously like him, you don't have to pretend. I'm pretty sure everyone in the whole entire party knows except for Will."
"Not just Will, I wasn't aware of this either, when was someone going to tell me?"
"When was somebody going to tell you that you like him? Mike, those are your feelings, how did you not know!"
"I don't know! You said it yourself, I'm oblivious!"
"Well, at least you've got your shit together now, I was getting so frustrated waiting for you guys to see if, I was gonna lock you two in a closet. Seems like you do that yourself," Max says, punching Mike in the arm.
"Whatever. But he won't like me back, so I guess my feelings are stupid,"
"Right," Max rolls her eyes. "You are stupid. For thinking your openly gay best friend who is always in your space, likes you."
"Right!"
"Just, don't lose hope, did he not literally ask you to hang out in Valentine's day?"
"He did, but-"
"Shut up and read this magazine before I go insane," Max say, handing him one from a small pile.
That conversation certainly got Mike's mind running.
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It was 11:00 AM the next day, Sunday, and Mike was dreading the bike over to Will's house. He always loved hanging out with him, but now? Now he was going to be awkward and nervous.
But he goes anyway, because it would be mean not to. He grabs his backpack and runs out the door, grabbing his bike from the grass. He starts to peddle the same path he's biked a million times. It's just muscle memory at this point. It was a nice day outside for February in Indiana. Partly cloudy, 45° (Fahrenheit, of course), with little to no breeze, Mine was perfectly content with a thin jacket and jeans.
The grass was covered in splotches of melted snow in the yard. Mike knocks on the door. Will opens it almost right away. He was wearing a striped shirt with jeans, an outfit that was so casually Will that it made Mike want to explode.
"Hey! Come in, Mike," Will says, opening the door wider for him. "Do you need any food or drinks or anything? Mom would not like to know I wasn't polite by offering."
"I'm good, thanks, we going to your room?"
"Yeah!"
They talked about chemistry for a while. Metals, gases, moles, and solutions, basic chemistry stuff. Mike had always been bad at chemistry, so there's no reason besides being best friends that Will would want to study with Mike. Will was amazing at chemistry, so he didn't really even need the help. It was simple to Mike whenever Will would explain it. He had a way about him that made Mike want to listen solely to the words Will said, paying no attention to anything else. Mike would take 5 hours of chemistry every day if it meant that he got to spend time with Will, and that's saying something.
"6.022 times 10 to the power of 23. Mike, it's really not that hard to remember!" Will says. He takes Mike's hand into his own, and writes down Avogadro's number on his wrist. "Hopefully you'll remember it now."
"I'm so hungry. What can we eat," Mike complains, completely ignoring what Will just said, mainly because he was freaking out at their contact, Will's hand on him. Still on him, after writing the number, Will didn't move away, and Mike didn't pull. So, they sit on the ground, Will holding Mike's hand ever so casually.
"Well, we have bread, we could make grilled cheese, we have bagels, we don't have a lot right now, it's been a while since we last went grocery shopping," Will says.
"Grilled cheese sounds good!"
"Great," Will stands up, holding out a hand to pick Mike up too. Mike takes it, and they head to the kitchen.
They made their grilled cheeses, having fun hanging out, neither one of them brought up going back to work on chemistry, neither one wanted to, to be fair, there was enough chemistry happening in the kitchen, if you catch the drift (Wink Wink). After a while of goofing off, Mike and Will decide to go on a walk.
Throughout the woods, you could hear the whistling of the wind, the rustling of the leaves(or at least what's left of them, which is very few), and the howl of pure peace run through the trees. It's poetic, almost, just enough of a breeze to dust Will's cheeks with pink, not enough to be shivering. The sun starts to move behind the clouds, shying away from the breeze, and the clouds start to darken until the snow starts to fall. It's not cold outside, not cold enough for snow, but Indiana is unpredictable in regard to weather. The two boys, who had been brushing hands and bumping shoulders their whole walk look up, the smallest bit of snow fanning over their eyelashes. Mike looks down at Will, who looks completely unreal. His smile is huge, surprising for the fact that Will hates the snow.
Mike looks back up, Will looks over. Two gazes that'll never meet, both filled with an overflowing look of love and admiration. There's a buzz between them, a calm moment. Will doesn't tear his eyes away from Mike, but instead he slowly leans into him, wrapping his arms around his back. Mike wraps his arms around Will, enjoying the warmth coming from the shorter boy in his arms. It almost seemed romantic, the way Will fit perfectly with Mike, they always had, even since they were kids. Like pieces of a puzzle, like a hand in a glove.
"You're my favorite person," Will whispers, almost not wanting Mike to hear. But he did, and he smiled like the sun, even though Will didn't see.
"You're mine too," Mike whispers back. All that's left on earth, it seems, is the two boys holding one another in the dead of winter, in a forest full of half dead trees and splotchy, snow covered ground. It was perfect.
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There it was. Tuesday. On the calendar, it would look like any other day, with the small words St. Valentine's day written on the bottom side of the small square. To Will, it was the day he would probably die. Not actually, only if Mike rejects him. Max keeps assuring him that that won't happen, that he should have a little bit of hope in Mike, but Will doesn't believe it. He doesn't want to, not until he hears it with his own ears. Will is standing at his locker, and hears the one next to his open.
"Goodmorning!" Mike says, handing Will a cup.
"Morning, Mike, what's this?" Will took the cup, holding it awkwardly.
"I got you a latte this morning, Nancy drove me and wanted to stop for coffee, just thought you might want some caffeine."
"Thank you," Will smiles, walking to first period, with Mike following along. Maybe Mike liking him isn't such a far-fetched idea after all.
Throughout the day, Mike couldn't focus, couldn't think about anything other than hanging out with Will later. About what Lucas was saying last week. It's not a date, right? Will doesn't like me like that.
At lunch, the party was having a conversation, loud and common, but Mike didn't care one bit. He was zoned out, his mind racing, racing, racing until it ran out of breath (Spoiler: It doesn't stop).
"Mike," Lucas says, but he doesn't get a response. "Mike!"
Mike snaps out of it, neck cracks as he snaps his head up, making eye contact with Lucas.
"Yeah?"
"You looked like you had something on your mind, you good?" Dustin asks.
"Yeah, I'm alright, I think I'm gonna head home early, I don't feel good," He says. He's totally bluffing, Max can tell, but she doesn't say anything.
Will looks disappointed. "Are we still on for tonight?"
"Yeah, don't worry, you can still come over, I just don't feel good right now." Mike stands up, "See you guys tomorrow," He says, and walks away.
Mike's at the payphone outside school, trying to find spare change to call Nancy, but can't find any.
"Need a quarter?"
Mike heard the voice from behind him, going red in the face. He turns around, and Will is behind him, arms crossed over his chest. It's a fairly chilly day, which is clearly reflected by Will's thick sweater and slight shivers.
"Aren't you cold?" Mike says, half a smile forming on his face.
"Yeah, but so what, you need a ride and I know that you're totally BS-ing about not feeling good. Whats up?"
"Can you drive me home? I don't think Nancy will pick up, and I don't want to bother her at work," Mike replies, avoiding the question.
Will notices Mike's apprehension, of course he does, but Will lets him. They walk to the car, Will unlocks the door, and the smell of flowers quickly hits his nose. Oh shit! He forgot to take the flowers out of the car, the ones for Mike.
"What's that smell, smells great in here!"
"Oh! Uh- El bought our car a new air freshener, yeah, very floral," Will clears his throat, and changes the subject. "So what happened that made you want to skip out on school today? Everything good with Nancy?"
"Yeah! No, yeah, we're great. It's- it's nothing, everything's good."
"You sure? You're acting weird," Wills voice was laced with concern. He reaches out a hand to wrap around Mike's and squeezing it tightly. "You know you can talk to me, right?"
"I know. I'm fine, Will, just- there was just a lot on my mind." Mike smiles. He adjusts his hand to intertwine his fingers with Will's, squeezing back the same familiar rhythm.
Will knew better than to push for an answer, he trusted that Mike was okay, and Mike was glad for Will in that way.
Mike sat back and put the seatbelt on as he felt Will's hand loosen from his grip. Mike looked over at Will, who was putting the keys into the ignition. His hands held the keys confidently, turning once, twice, three times before the engine roars. Mike's eyes trail up Will's arm, which was putting the car into gear, and up to his shoulders, and when did he get so broad? Mike's breathing catches in his throat, momentarily. Will notices, but doesn't say anything, and continues to turn up the music, push his hair out of his face, grab a piece of gum, all while rolling through the busy, snow-dusted school parking lot. And Mike noticed every single bit of it.
Quite honestly, he was caught off guard by how suddenly his mind was flooding with thoughts of Will, and his oh-so-perfect hands. Number 1 on the list of why Mike didn't want to stay at school: he was overthinking with Will, everything that seemed so simple and second-nature now felt awkward. Nothing changed, except the new information that Mike was Will's favorite person. He thought it would be a good idea to continue to be a good favorite person by getting Will coffee, but now he was just overthinking about this evening, and how their date-but-not-date would likely end in Mike dreaming of more than just Will's hands on the gear stick.
Mike's face rushed a ferocious shade of red, so all he could do was look out the window and wish he were dead, wish he wasn't in the passenger seat of Will's car, and wish that Will's hands were tangled in Mike's hair, instead of his own. What the hell, Mike, knock it off.
Will drives past the road to Mike's house, a sly smirk forming on his face.
"Will, where are we going?"
"Oh, come on, now we have the day off, we can basically do anything!"
"Dude! I was looking forward to a nap!"
"You can, after we stop for milkshakes," Will turns his head towards Mike, making eye contact. Will knew Mike loved the milkshakes from the diner across town, and he knew Mike wouldn't even hesitate.
"It's literally February, Will," Mike comments, still not saying a definite "no."
"Okay, then if you're hands get hold, I'll hold them. C'mon, Mike, it's the least I can do for driving you around."
"This was 100% your choice, Will! But yes, I do want a shake," Mike adds. He acts as if he pays no mind to Will's very sly offer at hand-holding, acts as if that's not what he wants, but, Will wouldn't mind, right? "One condition."
"Oh, yeah?" Will smirks. Mike holds out his hand, palm up. Will grabs it, feigning aggression, and wraps their fingers together. Mike looks down, observing Will's hand, memorizing every vein, every knuckle, every patch of dry skin, and smiles because he's done it a million times before.
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They get to the diner, seated almost immediately, which wasn't surprising considering it was 2 PM on a school day. They ordered their milkshakes, Will got strawberry, Mike got chocolate.
"So, Will, can I ask you something? I need you to be completely honest," Mike says, fiddling with the hem of his shirt under the table.
"Yeah, what's up?" Will looks at Mike, a casual tilt of his head and a small furrow in his brow.
"Why did you want to hang out with me today? Like I'm glad we are! Don't get me wrong, but why today?"
"I don't know, I feel like we haven't hung out just us two in a while, and, I guess I miss you," Part of what he said was true, he missed Mike, but they hang out all the time. To be fair, he missed Mike whenever they weren't together, he just wished Mike felt the same.
"Oh, that makes sense. Anyways, I'm excited," Mike could read Will like a book, not to mention the fact that they're together almost every day.
"Me too."
Their milkshakes come out, each in a tall, fancy glass cup. In each shake, there was a heart made of whipped cream decorating the top.
They each took a sip, very pleased.
"Hey, you have something on your cheek," Mike pauses, he leans a little over the table. He puts his hand up to Wills cheek, and Will looks at him, face turning a slight shade of pink. Mike smears a streak of whipped cream across Will's cheek, and Mike laughs a little.
"Mike!" Will smiles brightly, picking up a napkin and wiping his face off. He kicks Mike lightly under the table, and keeps his leg resting in between Mike's, their knees bumping.
Mike couldn't focus on anything else, and his legs burned, hyper-aware that Will was touching him. It's not abnormal, it's not a weird occurrence for them to be touching, frankly, it's weird when they're not. But this was different, it was more subtle, more romantic.
Play it cool, Mike, don't overreact.
Mike tries to pick the conversation back up, and he does, a little shakily. Neither of them moved, they just talked until their milkshakes were gone. Music plays softly throughout the diner. It had been playing the whole time, some older songs that weren't so popular anymore, and some newer. It was almost cinematic.
"You ready to go? It's almost 3:30," Will says. Mike looked at the clock on the wall, shocked that they had been here for that long. That's always how it's been with Will, though, being able to talk for the longest time and have it feel like only minutes have passed.
"Yeah," Will pays the bill with a $10 bill, and they head out, bell dinging as they open the door.
Will drives Mike back to his house, and they sit in the driveway for a minute.
"So, I'll pick you up in an hour?" Will asks.
"Yeah, see you then, Will," Mike smiles. Suddenly, his body starts to move on autopilot, and he moves closer to Will from the passenger seat, and kisses him on the cheek, which causes both of them to blush. "Uh- thanks for the ride," Mike says in a hurry, pulling away and practically running inside the house.
Why the hell did I do that? He's going to think I'm weird later! What if he totally blows me off?
Mike was internally hitting himself, trying to reason with himself. That wasn't a bad idea. Are you kidding?! He's going to hate you! Oh stop, he was probably thinking the same thing. Just shut up! God, I need a nap.
Mike finds his mom in the kitchen, cleaning the dishes.
"Hey, Mike, How was school?" Karen asks, not paying attention.
"It was fine, just a normal day." Mike replies.
"Your father and I are going out to dinner tonight, there's leftovers in the fridge." Karen adds, not looking up from the sink once.
"Actually, I'm going out tonight."
Karen pauses, she turns around with a shocked look on her face. "No way! You have a date tonight?"
"Not really..." Mike rubs the back of his neck awkwardly. "It's just Will, we're going out to dinner."
"Oh! So it's kind of a date," She grins.
"Not really! We've hung out a thousand times, it's nothing different,"
"I get it, he just asked you out to go to dinner on valentine's day, very sly." She pauses, "Y'know, I don't care if it's a date. I'd rather have you go with Will, someone who makes you endlessly happy, compared to settling on someone to be 'normal.' Trust me, Mike. If you like him, which I'm pretty sure you do, don't hide it."
She's okay with it?
"Really? You're okay with that? With me..?"
"Yes, really, c'mere," She holds her arms open, and Mike collapses into them, returning the bone-crushing hug. Mike starts to cry, he doesn't know why, it's nothing big, it's simple, really. But his heart feels full and he feels loved, seen.
"Thank you, mom," Mike smiles, pulling away and wiping a tear away.
"I love you, baby, don't you ever forget that. And, if you ever want to talk about Will or hear any stories, or just talk to me, don't ever hesitate."
"I love you too, but I have to get ready, see you later," Mike waves, and runs up the stairs, 2 at a time.
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Will drives home, completely stunned. He certainly wasn't expecting Mike to kiss his cheek, but he certainly wasn't complaining. That one little action gave Will the confidence and reassurance to profess his love oh-so boldly, filled with a newfound hope that Mike would reciprocate.
He got back to his house, making sure to take the flowers out of the trunk. He greeted his mom and Jonathan, and immediately went to his room. He looked at the corner of his room, a small pile of gifts meant for Mike were sitting there. A pack of Reeces, a brown teddy bear holding a blue heart, not subtle at all, and the flowers, that Will just added. One last thing, there was a rolled up piece of thick paper, a painting for Mike.
Will assembled it all neatly in a basket padded with blue tissue paper. He smiles at the basket, but his stomach drops at the negative thoughts entering his head, all the what if's and possible outcomes. He shakes them off, and hops in the shower.
Once he's out of the shower, Will starts to get dressed, and calling Max for some advice.
"Max! I don't know what to wear, can you come over?"
"Oh, my God, Will, don't you get there in, like, 30 minutes? Yes, I'll be there in a second."
"Thank you, see you soon."
Will sets out what he thinks would look good, and it looked stupid, scratch that, and he finds another outfit, hopelessly waiting around for Max. There was a knock on his door, which didn't really mean anything, considering Max barged right in after knocking.
"You needed help, I'm here," Max was carrying a small bag, a makeup bag?
"Hello to you, too," Will smiles, "Yeah, so I don't know what to wear. El's out with Dustin all night, and I know you and Lucas weren't doing anything until tomorrow. So, help me."
"Nice button down, you got any?" Will nods his head, walking over to his closet. He pulls out three. One light yellow, one dark blue, and one white. "Hmmm, I'm feeling yellow, Mike likes when you wear yellow. Can I use your phone real quick? I need to call Lucas," She says, and leaves the room.
Mike likes when I wear yellow? Yellow it is, then.
"Max! I have more questions! Come back!" Will yells, looking for a pair of pants that would go with the shirt. Jeans? Dress pants? Maybe. Max comes back in the room, ready.
"Okay, Yellow shirt, dark brown dress pants, do you have any ties?" Max starts searching the room, but changes her mind. "Y'know what? I think this outfit will be better without a tie, just like, don't button it all the way."
"Why? That'd look messy," Will questions.
"Yeah, but it'd drive him crazy, have you never noticed Mike looking at you? Will, he's hungry, believe me. Oh! How do you feel about makeup? Nothing much, just like, a little eyelash curl, maybe some extra freckles?"
"I- I don't know, Max, I'm a guy, wouldn't it be weird?" Will was trying not to dwell on what Max just said about Mike, besides, it's probably not even true.
"So? Can I try it, at least? If it looks bad we can wash it off. What do ya say?" Max looked hopeful, excited.
"Okay, yeah. But I have to leave in, like, 10 minutes."
Will sat on his bed, and Max pulled up his desk chair. Will closed his eyes as Max dotted his face with some face freckles, and she put lip balm on his lips, for moisture, she said. Will opened his eyes while Max curled his lashes, making awkward eye contact as she focused on trying to not pinch his eyelids. Finally, she pulls out a little pink lip gloss, applying a small bit of it.
"Oh, my God, Will! You look really good," She lifts up a small mirror, and Will observes himself. His face was freckly, textured, and his eyes were shining. Will smiled brightly, and turned to Max, who was also smiling.
"Thank you, Max! I'm gonna go change real quick, then I'll do a fashion show," Will got up to change in the bathroom, the pants say loosely on his hips, held up by a black belt. The yellow shirt, which was tucked in, made his face glow, he felt pretty. He ruffled his hair, which was still damp, and fluffed it up a bit. The grown out bowl cut was starting to cover his ears, becoming frizzy at the ends, and Will didn't mind, even if Joyce brings up getting a hair cut 3 times a week. It was so uniquely him.
He walked into his room, found Max reading a magazine in the desk chair, she looked up. Max beamed, "You look AMAZING! Will, really, you look great!"
"Thanks! Okay, I need to go, wish me luck. I'll call you tonight!"
"Okay- Wait, Will," She walks closer to him, and unbuttons the top buttons on Will's shirt. "Trust me," She winked and walked with Will outside.
"Bye, Mom! Love you," Will waves, he left before she could be sure to get any pictures, he then waves goodbye to Max, who handed over the basket for Mike.
"You got this, kid, be confident." They share a smile, once again, and part ways.
The drive over to Mike's was short, not enough to put on music, but Will finds his cassette anyway, The Cure, and Just Like Heaven starts to play. Will pulls up to the curb in front of the Wheeler house, checking his look one more time in the visor mirror. Next to the mirror, there was a small sticky-note written to Will, from Mike, of poorly done drawings and flowing spirals. The words, written in a messy font, read i love you, and Will grins at the memory. He takes a deep breath, looks at the basket, and thinks. It's kind of a stupid idea. He takes the candy, stuffed bear, flowers, and painting out of the basket, holding it all in his arms. Will gets out of the car, getting the courage to walk up to the Wheeler's door. He closes his eyes for a second, and knocks on the door.
The door opens, but it's not Mike, it's Karen.
"Will! Hi, oh, come in!" She smiles warmly, moving to the side to let Will in. "Mike's just about ready, you look so handsome and fancy tonight."
"Yeah- um, just wanted it to be special, I guess," Will smiled awkwardly.
"It will be, you two boys are going to have so much fun," Karen lowers her voice. "Not too much fun though," She says with a wink.
"Oh! Um, yeah, we won't, no need to worry."
"Alright, well-"
Thankfully, she was cut of my the soft creak of the stairs. Will snaps his head, not seeing anything but the shadow of Mike at the top of the stairs. He slowly descends, a nervous smile on his face.
Will felt his cheeks go red and his heart beat faster. Mike looked handsome. Will couldn't look away. He was wearing gray dress pants paired with a neatly buttoned dark blue shirt. His hair was damp, too, curled slightly at the ends. Will stops breathing, taking it in. Mike doesn't look up at Will right away, instead, he sees his mom, who was smiling too.
"So, how do I look, mom? Do you think Will will like it?" He seemed hopeful.
"Why don't you ask him?" She says, tilting her head in Will's direction.
Mike turns his head, and suddenly the world slows. He's obsessed, suddenly, at how absolutely breathtaking Will looks. Mike's eyes dart as he takes it in, his shirt, his shoulders, his neck, which was displayed by the lack of effort put into buttoning, his face, he was perfect.
He's so... Sublime.
Mike's thoughts are flooded between the good thoughts that complement and praise Will, and the ones that absolutely should never be said out loud.
"Will."
Mike says, breathlessly, moving closer.
They stand a foot's length away from each other, both scared to move, scared to say too much, scared to break this fragile thing between them.
"I'm just gonna leave you two, see you later, boys!" Karen says, walking away rapidly.
Now it's just them two standing in the kitchen, just them two, just like it's always been. Neither of them say a word, but Mike moves closer, closing the distance by wrapping his arms around Will's waist, taking him into a hug.
"You look amazing, Will," Mike whispers into Will's ear, bottom lip slightly grazing Will's earlobe. It sends a shiver down Will's spine.
"You do too. I wasn't expecting you to dress up, but, God, am I glad that you did," Will laughs a little, and pulls away. "I got you something."
"Oh yeah? I already have the best thing in the world."
"Sure you do, what is it?"
"You," Mike grins.
Will laughs, but turns to grab Mike's gift off the counter. He hands Mike the daffodils.
"Wait- the flowers were for me? They smell like your car!"
"That's because they were right behind you in the car the other day, thank goodness you didn't notice," Will says, and grabs the bear and candy.
"Thank you, Will, sincerely," Mike pauses. "I'm sorry I didn't get you anything."
"It's okay, Mike. I have one more thing." Will takes out the rolled up painting, and hands it over to Mike. Mike's eyes wide, and the guilt about not getting anything for Will was washed away.
"Wait, I'll open it later, we should go to the car, it's a little awkward standing here," Mike takes the painting in one hand, and takes Will's hand in the other, he pulls them out the door and to the car. They sit for a while, talking.
"Can you open the painting now?" Will asks patiently, hands folded in his lap.
"Yeah! Sorry, I wanted to open it when it was just me and you, alone, not standing in my kitchen," Mike smiles, and unties the thin piece of twine that was keeping it rolled up.
Mike slowly unrolls it, holding it like one would hold a newborn animal, gentle and fragile, scared to drop it. He sees the painting, and his face lights up, as if he was staring at the sun. He looked over at Will, and for a moment, he was looking at the sun, because, to Mike, Will was the very centerfold-star that his universe revolved around, like the planets that orbited their sun. Mike looks back down to the painting, fingers tracing each unique color, each brushstroke, each patch of paint that made up the clouds in the sky.
It was a picture of Mike and Will on the swings. The swings were they met, where they imagined a new realm made up of dragons and battles every recess. There was Will, on the left. Sweet, young William Byers, smiling, looking at baby Micheal Wheeler, not knowing who each other were yet, not knowing the people they would become. It was beautifully painted, the swings were smudged, as if in motion, and there was no one else around but them. Mike and Will.
Mike felt a tear roll down his face, his smile still so bright. His heart ached with joy, still resting in the peace that this was the best decision he ever made. He wipes the tear and lets out a breathy laugh. "Did- did you paint this?"
Will doesn't say anything, he just nods, grinning.
"You've gotten so good at painting! This is the best piece of artwork I have ever seen. Screw the fucking Mona Lisa, this is better! Way better."
"You really mean that?" Will says.
"Sincerely! I'm so proud of you, I can't believe this is for me."
Will realizes then how badly he wants to kiss Mike. He won't, wrong moment, right? But Will gave Mike his gift, all that's left is dinner, then what? They go back and watch a movie in Mike's basement? Sleepover? It's fucking Valentine's Day, and all of a sudden Will Byers is too scared to make a move. He remembers what he wrote on the back of the painting before he started to work on it, perfect.
"Hey, Mike, flip it over."
"What?" Mike turns the painting upside down, looking confused.
"No, like, turn it around, painting facing away from you," Will laughs nervously.
Mike flips the painting around, spotting the small, cursive inscription on the side.
i'm in love with you.
Mike's eyes widen. "What..." he mumbles under his breath, a look of pure shock and disbelief flooding his face. The car was silent, scarily so.
"Mike, say something. Please," Will pleads.
Mike opens his mouth, and closes it again. Again, he opens it, voice only at a whisper. "You mean it?"
Will nods.
"No, Will. I have to hear you say it," Mike whispers, eyes welling up, looking like somehow knocked the wind out of him.
"Yeah, I mean it," Will pauses. "I do love you, so much that it hurts me. So much that the mere thought of you brightens my day."
"Oh, thank God," Mike breaths. "I love you, too."
"Why 'thank God?'"
"Well, I was starting to think that you got those gifts for someone else and that you were going to ask someone else out. I couldn't tell if you liked me or not."
Will bursts out laughing. "As if! I thought I was being totally obvious, I was scared that you picked up on it and didn't say anything because you didn't feel the same," Will smiles.
"Well, I'm glad we're here now. I love you, Will. Will Will Will Will, I love you I love you I love you," Mike smiles. "I love how that sounds."
"I love how that sounds too. But, I also think it's time for our reservation," Will points out.
"Oh, screw the reservation. Let's get takeout, I don't want to spend a single second across from you tonight, but right next to you, so I can hold your hand aaaaaaall night," Mike grins like a lovesick puppy, and looks up at Will. "You're so amazing."
"You're even more amazing. Do you want chinese food? Let's order that," Will asks.
"Yes, please. I am so hungry."
Will starts to drive, putting the car in gear and peeling away from the Wheeler-residence's curb. Will takes Mike's in his own. Although they've held hands thousands of times, it feels different this time. Warmer, stronger, definite. Will squeezes, Mike squeezes back.
They head in the restaurant, ordering and back outside to sit in the car, waiting the slow 10 minutes for their food. This time, they sit in the backseat.
"Y'know what we haven't done that I've been waiting for since forever?" Mike asks, his face inches away from Will's.
"What?" Will asks innocently. He glances down at Mike's lips, chapped, but coated with a slight saliva-gloss. Will notices Mike staring at Will's lips, too, not for the first time, but the first time he'll make a move.
"This," Mike whispers, and puts a hand to the side of Will's face. He closes the gap, breathing ever so slightly over Will's lips before connecting them. It's soft, light, intense, and everything in between. Will wraps one hand around Mike's neck, pulling him deeper, other hand tangling itself in the hair on the nape of Mike's neck. They stay like that, both scared to ruin it.
They're shy, both boys can feel their hearts beating out of their chests. It's new, and no matter how many times either of them has played this scenario in their head, this is real. It's different and passionate and not a figment of their imaginations.
Mike lets out a soft noise as he takes control of the kiss, but giving Will a second to breathe. He returns to Will, the kiss looser, flexible. Mike moves one hand from Wills face and grabs his waist, running his thumb in circles. Will lets Mike take over, letting his tongue prod at Will's lips, messy and heavenly all at once. Will gives in too, teeth gently grazing Mike's lower lip. Mike lets out a low groan, mouth open just enough to let Will in.
Will's heart starts to flutter, everything he's felt and thought about Mike, and imagined about this moment is washed away, because in reality, everything is one hundred times better. He can taste Mike's lips, the vague taste of minty lip balm. He can feel the want in Mike's grip, his mind starting to blur. In an instant, Mike was sitting with his back to the seat, pulling Will over his lap, hands still on Will's hips. Their lips break apart, but they' stay close, foreheads glued together. Will is straddling Mike, one thigh on either side of Mike's, locking him in. Mike goes back in, offering tiny pecks along Will's jawline. He leans into Will's neck, lips staying right below Will's earlobe. He kisses, sucks, and coats the new sore spot with his tongue, earning a few light gasps from Will.
Mike pulls away, and Will notes a look in his eyes, one that he hasn't seen before. It's new, exciting, and hungry. "You look amazing in yellow," He whisper, and returns to peppering kisses along Will's neck. He moves slowly, moving further and further down, reaching the bit of exposed collarbone Will was displaying. "And you look so hot like this. Please never button your shirt all the way, ever. You're driving me crazy." Mike breathes these words nearly into Will's ear before going back down to the collarbones. They're bony, jutting out from Will's strong figure, making them ever more enticing to Mike. He runs his tongue along Will's skin, stopping occasionally to add a few kisses.
He stops when he hears Will, who let out a quiet, soft moan. Mike goes back to the spot he was just at and begins to suck the thin layer of skin.
"Mike," Will breaths out. His eyes are closed, and his head is leaning into Mike's shoulder, allowing Mike to kiss him, feel him, mark him. Will knows he's done for, he knows that there will be a mark there tomorrow, and that he’ll have to explain that to quite a few people. But for now, he knows that Mike is making him feel the best he's ever felt, and he never wants him to stop. "Mike."
Will tangled his hands into Mike's hair, and offers up a little tug, Mike was caught by surprise. Will feels Mike's lips become rigid against his skin, and he can feel the fire burning within the boy underneath him. Will can tell Mike was getting tired, sloppy, but all he can do is whisper in Mike's ear, how good he's doing and how Will feels (like he's floating, in case you were wondering), and offer up a small series of jaw kisses.
Mike slows down, and all that's left is two boys, heavily breathing in each others' space, smiling and ecstatic at their brand new relationship. It's new, sure, but it'll work out, how could it not?
For the remainder of the time they've been waiting for their food, they stay seated the same, whispering short 'i love you's and making each other laugh the same way they've done since they were five.
"I am so lucky to have you in my life, Will," Mike says.
"Me too."