Chapter Text
"And, and, and," says the kid in front of him, so jittery and hopped up on sugar he could practically shoot up to the ceiling. "One pepperoni, please!" The kid finally says, and sighs of relief come from the customers behind him.
"Got it," Will says with a polite smile — the one he's trained himself to use over the years. He moves back from the extremely energized child, making his way to the entry of the kitchen just a few steps away.
It had been two weeks since Mike roped him into the cruel and unusual punishment that was — a summer job.
When they had announced the reopening of Starcourt Mall somewhere a lot more convenient, as well as under the supervision of a better politician, Argyle brought up moving to Hawkins since they had planned to merge Surfer Boy Pizza's California branch with the mall. One lazy afternoon, he came up to Jonathan and Will and asked if they'd be interested in working there over the summer, since they were under-staffed. Jonathan was somewhat ecstatic, and junped at the opportunity immediately. But Will was worried his brother would get addicted to whatever the hell was in the back of Argyle's truck again, and decided to sign up with them, for the sake of his and their mom's peace of mind.
And while it wasn't as pleasurable as he had expected, it wasn't all that bad, either. While he had a few more negative-ish memories attached to it — mainly due to what happened two years ago — he couldn't find it in him to hate or love it. For starters, Will had to clean up after the sticky messes left by both the children and the adults, but his manager always let him and his brother bring home extra pizzas. Little things like that — and the fact he was blessed with such a godsend of a manager, kudos to Rick — kept him on good enough terms enough to stay.
That, and well, the fact that Mike was working in the establishment directly across him.
Normally, having the love of your life, for whom you've been pining for for nearly a decade, working directly across you would be something tragic and painful — but Will's actually happy. Like, really happy. Over the damn moon. Now that Jane had broken up with him, maybe he had a chance, even if just a small one. Robin had really opened his eyes last year, and though there was a part of him that still doubted every move he made, he wanted to try. One small snowball at a time.
Max was the first to sign up as a temporary summer employee for the fabled Scoops Ahoy ice cream parlor, where Jonathan's friend and boyfriend, Robin and Steve, used to work back in '85. She had gotten Mike into it by making use of his one (of many) weakness(es): competitiveness. It went down like this:
"Y'know, I'm actually signing up for a summer job." Max mentions amidst various other ongoing conversations. "Ooh, where?" Jane inquires, ever so curious. Everyone else stopped what they were talking about to listen in.
"Scoops Ahoy," She says plainly.
The people's interest grows. "Isn't that the place Steve used to work?" Lucas said, grimacing slightly at the thought. Max nodded in response.
"With the minimum wage and disrespectful customers? Yeesh, you wouldn't last a day." Commented Mike, who was more interested in playing with his nails rather than looking up at Max. She glares at him momentarily, before breaking into a shit-eating grin. Small groans could be heard from the rest of the Party. They all knew where this was going. Hell, there was only one outcome for this.
"Please, I'll be just fine. You, on the other hand, wouldn't last a minute." She says in the insulting tone that was always reserved for Mike.
"Excuse me?" Mike's eyes form a glare.
"Look at you, you were spoiled from day one. Some rich little boy like you couldn't handle the workplace environment." Max continues to egg him on, crossing her arms and smiling cockily. No one utters as much as a tiny sound, now invested in whatever the hell was unfolding, or couldn't be bothered to interject.
"Oh, you're on." Mike rises from his seat, and Max does the same. They stare each other dead in the eyes, and Max crosses her arms.
"Whoever lasts the longest wins?" She asked.
"Yep. What are the stakes, though?"
"We can go over that later."
"Fine." Mike rolls his eyes a bit.
Honestly, it was so fast-paced that it was eerie. They always seemed to have a connected mind when it came to random things like, oh, I don't know, a wager about some job thag involves scooping ice cream over summer.
"Then, it's settled." The two shake hands firmly, and it was probably the most friendly interaction between the two that he's ever seen, if Will's being honest.
"The fuck just happened?" Dustin says, coming back from the kitchen aisle where he was mixing up some cookie dough that he put into the oven just then. He looks at Max, then Mike, then back to Max again. His eyes filled with confusion and bewilderment, probably thinking something along the lines of, Why the hell do you people keep starting shit while I'm gone?
"Max and I are gonna apply for a job at Scoops. A bet of sorts. Whoever lasts the longest gets something." Mike then gives him a look that would make you think it was supposed to be common knowledge.
Max nudges Mike's arm softly. "Dumbass. You forgot to mention the part where I kick your ass at the bet, and you losing, "
"Wh— Fuck you! The bet just started and you're getting so over-confident! If anything, I have a way higher chance of winning than..."
Mike went on, and the two began another spree of back-and-forth insults and disses, Max being the most prepared, and Mike trying his best to defend himself with what would be the equivalent of five paragraphs, as usual. While Mike is filled with petty anger, the rest of the Party felt a mix of amusement and annoyance.
That was basically it. Just another Tuesday.
Surfer Boy Pizza's staff were pretty well-disciplined, with Argyle working pretty smoothly having worked there for a good amount of time, while Jonathan and Will did their best to be model employees, earning them praise from their manager and even Argyle. Although it was just a summer job, Will had to be on his best behavior, because who knows, it may be useful sometime in the future. El was absent today, though, having a case of the flu. It made things a bit boring.
The good qualities about Surfer Boy's employees can't be said for Scoops. But that's mostly thanks to Mike. He'd sneak off during shifts to loiter around in Will's area, even ordering pizzas as an excuse to hang around. Will swears If Max weren't so preoccupied with the flow of customers, she'd have definitely left him incapacitated by now. He finds it funny, but Mike would definitely be in trouble if his boss found out he was slacking. By some weird lucky streak, he's been getting away with it, but who knows how long it'll last.
"One sausage and one pepperoni," Will calls out to Argyle in the kitchen, clipping a note with the order on it. "Gotcha," Argyle says in response, moving about in his usual slightly dazed yet weirdly quick state. Jesus, he couldn't lay off the drugs for even a day.
As Will makes his way back to his side of the counter, a sharp ringing sounds from the left, meaning someone probably wanted some takeout - and who wouldn't? It's awfully sticky no matter how hard you clean, and the lines are just awful. He swerves and makes way for the phone. "Surfer Boy Pizza, how can we surf you?" God, he hated that slogan.
"Yes, one 'Quality Time with Will', please." The all-too-familiar and cheeky voice says from the other line.
He's filled with a rush of stupid giddiness, but his heart also sinks a bit. "Mike. Get back to your shift!" Will scolds, darting his eyes back and forth between the line of customers and the phone in his hand.
"But I have money," Mike whines, being just as persistent as last week. Will has to suppress a small giggle - he's not letting Mike win this. He's not left Will alone since he found out they were working near one another, and while he doesn't mind, Will doesn't want to end up being collateral damage of whatever Max does to her lazy co-worker.
"Mike, seriously. I don't want you to get fired on the second week." Will says in a softer tone. "Now, if you're not gonna order - and I'm sure you're not - I'm hanging up." He hears Mike trying to get a word in, but slams the phone into the receiver a bit too harshly, knowing he'd just stall him, and the customers would only grow more and more impatient.
Will returns to manning the counter, having to deal with the usual handful of annoying and rude adults and teens, people who came in line not thinking about what to order, and some really disheveled (more accurately, mentally challenged) looking people. He's not usually so judgmental, moreso a smile-and-nod type of person, but his experiences so far working in an establishment centered around unhealthy food - it's making him see some of the... more hidden-away parts of the world.
But, money is money. The job lets him help out with expenses at home, even if it's just a small amount, and that makes him feel better about it. His mom has enough on her hands, and so does Jonathan, with his university and all.
Jonathan, who — wait, where the fuck is he?
"Mini-Byers, dude," Argyle's chill voice said from behind him. It's funny he still called Will that, even though he was taller than his older brother. Alas, people see you more as what age you are rather than your height. "It's our breaktime," He gives the same unfazed smile he always displays, then walking out the back door to do who knows what.
Break time. That was fast.
That should also mean—
"Wiiiill!" Said a voice in an unnecessary higher-pitch. He seemed to just manifest out of nowhere whenever Will had a shred of free time. Regardless, it brought a smile to Will's face. He turned to meet the eyes of the boy running full speed towards him, stumbling a bit backwards when they'd made contact. Mike closed him in a short-lived hug, then backing away a few inches. "Looks like I got my order after all," He said triumphantly, making Will shake his head.
They were in the center of where Scoops and Surfer Boy met, directly facing the ice cream parlor, which meant Will had to be victim to Max's unyielding death glare. She was still behind the counter, clenching the underside of the marble table in an attempt to quell her fury directed towards her co-worker. Sorry, Will mouthed to her. Max's shoulders relaxed and her face softened a moment, until Mike looked back and flipped her off.
"You two never knock it off, do you?" Says Will, calmly lowering Mike's hand. "Never," The movement of his hand pauses slightly, as if he were thinking of something else to do, before deciding to slide it back down to his side.
The two walked side by side, strolling through the mall and occasionally commenting on the various stores. Things like "Why the hell's there a toy store near a liquor store?" and such. Sometimes, the surge of people walking in front of and behind them was overwhelming, and they had to stick closer together — hands finding the other's, but not quite interlocking. Merely a graze, really.
As they push past another not-so pleasurable, warm wave of people, Mike lets out a groan of discomfort, lightly holding on to Will's left arm. "It's so fucking crowded,"
"You know, I found an okay place where we could hang around. The two of us," Mike said, looking to Will for any sign of affirmation. "Huh. That would be better than this," Will grunts slightly as he bumps past another person, distracted by a conversation they weren't willing to take their attention away from. "But where?"
"You'll just have to see," Mike brought his hands up and wiggled his fingers, trying to go for mystical but ending up looking like a fake magician. Will sighed. "Okay. I trust you," Mike's expression beams at that last part.
Their breaks were considered an average amount of time to rest, but it seemed to pass by so quickly, especially when they spent it rambling on. By the time they circled back to their respective workplaces, they had to start up ob their shifts soon. With a small wave goodbye, the two part ways, but their gaze never really left the other. From time to time, they'd make eye contact, and Will would cast his sight back down to the counter on instinct.
Will returned to his cashier duties, not looking toward the direction of Scoops, and tedious and consistent hours of taking orders, cleaning, and closing up ensued. Nothing really noteworthy happens during shifts, only after the employees leave and meet up with the ones from the other stores.
"Will!" Max yells as she leaves her workplace in all its blue-and-red LED light glory. Her bright red sneakers squeaked against the polished tiles of the mall, rushing towards Will and trapping him in a hug. "Hey, how was work?"
"Don't get me started," Max rolls her eyes with a smile. A smile that immediately dissipates as a certain raven-haired boy finally catches up to them, out of breath. "This buffoon over here was skipping out on work. Again." She flicks him on the forehead, making him wince.
"Was not! It was important business, because I actually have a life." Mike crosses his arms defensively. "Oh, really? So, chit-chatting with the other restaurants' employees is more important than your wages?" She snaps back as she raises her eyebrows, and Mike's still visibly trying to figure out how in the world she knew all that — even though he could be terribly obvious most of the time — and Will practically being able to see the cogs turn in his mind.
"You can't hide things from me, Wheeler." Mike rolls his eyes in response, extremely doubtful of that. Though, it is true that Max had somehow found out about a lot of things even El didn't know - which makes Will glad that he's on her side rather than in Mike's position.
"Your bickering aside," Will says before it can go any further. "any plans for tonight?"
"Not really, but Jane's over at my house since we've got the medicine she needs. I'm gonna head straight to sleep." Max hunches over slightly, looking exhausted. She side-eyes Mike for a moment, reminding him who's at fault.
"You?" She looks back to Will. "Not much, either. Heading straight home,"
Max furrows her eyebrows, and Will sweats a bit. "We should really make some better plans this summer. Can't just waste it all on serving people fucking food." She crosses her arms.
"We can talk about that tomorrow," Mike pushes her by the shoulders in the direction of the mall's exit doors, with an impatient smile. She glares at him for what must be the twentieth time today, giving a simple "Fine."
"But I'm leaving you out of any of the fun stuff," Max said under her breath when Mike returned to Will's side, tightening the grip on her bag.
"Okay then," Will shrugs, taking Max's hand and walking them both towards the exit. He swears Mike glares at the first gesture, but when he looks up, Mike's eyes are roaming the establishments that surrounded them. Most were now closed, while some still had a few employees inside, cleaning or casually talking with their co-workers. One of them gives Will a small wave, and he smiles back in return. The people here had always been friendly to one another, even if they were working in different places. You could walk up to them and chat, and once Max asked one of them for ten dollars and they didn't so much as bat an eye. Just handed it to her without a second thought. (In case you were wondering, she spent it all on arcade tokens during her break and beat everyone's high scores. Mike was extremely bitter and spent the rest of that night rambling on about how it was 'pure dumb luck', much to Max's amusement.)
When they swing open the doors, being met by a cold gust of wind and the trees that had surrounded the town, Mike speeds up and the two eventually lose sight of him as he disappears off into his path home, leaving only streetlamps and a few moths floating around. "What's his hurry?" Max comments, and Will shrugs.
"Well, I can take it from here. See you tomorrow," She smiles, humming as she walks on over to her house.
"See you,"
When Will sees Max make a left, getting farther and farther away from his line of sight, Mike reappears from the corner of his eye, slightly jogging toward him. "C'mon," He grabs Will's wrist, and swerves past the side of the mall, hopping over a few bushes and stepping on fallen tree branches.
When they finally stopped, Will looked around where Mike had just dragged him. "You really chose the area where people dump their trash as a meeting spot, of all places?" Will says disappointedly. The back of the mall didn't really bother him, only the stench from the dumpsters. He's half-convinced people dump some sort of toxic waste into those.
"And that's exactly why no one would think to look here." Mike justifies, holding his hands up. He's not quite in the mood to question him more about the location yet. Tomorrow. If he remembers.
"So, why are we being so secretive about this?" Will says instead.
"Why not?" Shrugged Mike.
He leans against the wall, distancing himself from the waste and other things he'd rather not identify in this dark. "Like, isn't it fun to have something only we know?" Mike says, a bit quieter now.
"Like when we were kids," Will says softly, taking the space next to him.
"Exactly! Remember that fort we built together?"
Will faces him and raises a finger as he recalls. "The one that got destroyed in a storm!"
"Yeah!"
They both sigh, and Mike's gaze is fixed on Will as the other looks up at the sky and setting sun. "Good times." He whispers with a smile. It was really nice knowing Mike remembered small details like that.
When he looks back to Mike, he's rustling through his pocket for a moment, then pulling out something Will recognizes on the spot. Cigarettes. He sticks one in his mouth and pulls out a lighter from the pocketside of his bag, the small flame illuminating his face with warm, orange light.
As he slowly draws it out, exhaling some smoke into their surroundings, Will can't help but hold his breath and move back a bit. Mike extends the hand where his box of cigarettes were, holding it up to Will. "You want one?"
"No, thanks. I don't smoke," He tries to say as neutral as possible, avoiding the mere sight of the thing. Mike shrugs, and tosses his stuff back into his bag.
They spent some time chatting about work. A lot of complaining about new customers they hated, as well as returning ones they despised with a burning passion. Then of course, that one customer that brightens up your day. It did feel like a huge weight off his shoulders, even if temporary at the moment. And hearing that Mike has the same experiences — if not worse sometimes, because he works in the dessert area. While they talk, Will does his best to avoid the smoke coming out of Mike's mouth. When he finally tossed it onto the ground and smushed it with his sneaker, some relief washed over him.
And some realization in regards to the time.
"It's getting late, we should probably head back." Will's mom and brother might get worried if he stays out too late. They never liked him being gone or on his owm for too long, and he can't necessarily blame them for it. He's scared sometimes, too.
"Do you want me to walk you home?"
"No, I'm fine." He said a bit too quickly, but tried smiling again to mask it.
Mike frowned. "Okay.. See you tomorrow."
"Bye,"
The walk home was nice and quiet. Maybe even too quiet. Sometimes, he'd glance back, but the only thing he ever saw was the mall getting smaller and smaller, and the greenery that surrounded him. When home was in sight, along with the comforting front porch lights, his pace quickened.
Opening the door, he saw that the lights in the living room were off. Mom wasn't home yet, probably taking extra shifts again. Will and Jonathan are always trying to tell her she doesn't have to exert herself — to let her rely on them a bit. Nevertheless, she insists on taking on more work. Will just sighs to himself, then makes his way upstairs and into his room.
He quickly changes and falls onto his bed, hair strands flowing onto the sheets. He looks around the room, but there wasn't much to do that would entertain you. There's the sketchbook, but he's not exactly in the mood to draw just yet. With a lack of anything to do, Will thinks back to the whole summer job thing.
It's not the best thing in the world, and now that he was thinking about it, kind of agonizing considering the people — person — that surrounded him. It's funny how hopeful he was earlier this morning. But he was in too deep to back out now.
Summer break flies by pretty fast, anyway, whether you want it to or not. You can go from a deep, uninterrupted conversation about life in someone's basement to longing for the carefreeness of running under the rays of the summer sun. Maybe it'll be just as ordinary as their past summer vacations.
We should really make some better plans this summer, Max's earlier statement suddenly echoed in his head.
Maybe they should. It won't be so bad, would it? You should savor it while it lasts if it's short, no?
Who knows when someone like Mike Wheeler suddenly decides to waltz out of your life in the blink of am eye? What if that day was the very day summer ends? What if—
There you go again, Will. Spiraling.
Oh, well. 79 days to go.