Chapter 1: Your location, you forgot to turn it off
Summary:
Mike Wheeler had always had feelings for Will, but he never wanted to admit it.
Eddie Munson approaches the party with an offer; to join the hellfire club. He suggests meeting up with some members at a new-old pub at Hawkins, The Hideout. Only, that this suggestions causes small intricate waves...
Notes:
Love me some party angst cus I'm gonna 🎶party on you party on you party on party on you party on you party on party on🎶
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
Chapter One:
Your location, you forgot to turn it off
Mike had always had feelings for Will, but he never wanted to admit it.
The Black Dog was a pub right outside Hawkins, discovered by Eddie Munson and his bandmates. Previously called The Hideout, this pub always hosted the craziest and most alternative bands known to man, aka the couple of bands that dominated Hawkins, Indiana in that spot. It was decorated in mostly brown colors, the wooden surfaces and furniture dominating the space and creating a really empathetic atmosphere, filled with smoke from cigarettes most of the time, and accommodating people from the ripe age of 15-18 to old people with a fat cigar in between the fingers, smelling like burnt money and neglected parents. This pub became home to most wallflowers in Hawkins, despite it somewhen debatable background and scenes every now and then.
September 18th, 1985, Thursday.
Eddie was sitting at a corner table at the cafeteria of Hawkins high school when Micheal was just 14, along with his friends and bandmates; Gareth, Jeff and Doug, vividly discussing about a topic involving demons, and looking excited for it.
Michael was standing awkwardly just a few feet away, holding a disk with his lunch on it, staring at this new friend group with eyes mostly filled with envy. The other party hidden in his look was just plain confusion and a hint of disgust.
His friends, Lucas and Dustin, were standing right next to him, ready to take a seat on the table right in front of them. Mike didn't even notice them getting away from him to seat down, due to this new group.
And to be fair, everything in this school was new to him. He had just finished middle school a few months ago, with one of his best friends moving away to Lenora for a while, therefore making it way harder to adapt into a cruel new environment, like this high school, alone. Even in his first day there, he felt like he was missing a huge part of himself, and that he started this new chapter of his life empty.
“Will you keep standing there and gawk?” Lucas brought him back to this hideous reality, making Mike regret his existence for a moment.
“Yeah….” The boy rolled his eyes well into his head, reminding himself of the terrific show in front of him. Once he took a seat beside Lucas and next to Dustin, a boy from that other table screeched so loudly, it almost reached into Mike's ear, beating his eardrum with entire torsos of trees instead of drumsticks.
The other two boys stared at him with surprise, before the screeching boy realized how loud he was, and pulled his head back to face his lunch disk in shame, with a grinning sound now escaping his mouth.
Even Eddie, the freak they heard of the minute they entered this school, was seen covering his head with his hand leaning on the table, devastated.
Mike felt a slight pat on his shoulder before hearing a similar sigh. “We're gonna have a lot of fun this year”. Lucas yelped, with Dustin agreeing enthusiastically.
“You bet!”
And this, of all, was just the beginning.
Eddie, shortly after this, approached them with an offer. He was less scary than the kids had thought; his jean vest with that Dio stamp in the back and his roughly groomed curly hair made him look truly intimidating, but the minute they saw his rounded face and brown eyes seemingly like a deer's, the party exhaled in relief.
He took the courage to borrow a chair from the table next to them- where the jocks were sitting- flipped it over with the back facing his torso, and sat with his legs wide open, one on each side of the chair, and his arms crossed on top of its back.
“So, you guys,” he started saying, radiating a weirdly confident vibe. “Must be the new kids, right?”
Noticing Eddie's cunning smirk, Michael gulped. “Y-yeah?”
“Three of the little lost sheepies out there… I must say, this school is a bit of a hellhole but… welcome to Hawkins high!” A sarcastic tone escaped his voice, seemingly speaking from experience.
“So we noticed…” Lucas noted with a flat voice.
“You're welcome…” Eddie's sight landed on Dustin's chest. “Nice shirt, by the way”. He did, pointing to his green shirt with a nearly grained out stamp.
Had he seen this shirt a few months ago, he'd definitely make out Weird Al- Yankovic with a simple glance. The green background with the colorful stamp now became one, mushy, but still visible mess, which was intriguing to Dustin as a first-day-of-school shirt. "Thanks" said the kid, with his eyes lowering to his shirt while stretching it a bit further.
“I’m Eddie, by the way”. The guy spread his hand to shake others’.
Lucas was a bit put off, along with Mike, but Dustin shook his hand gladly, with nothing but enthusiasm escaping his voice. “I'm Dustin! This is Mike and Lucas, we've been friends since third grade”
The two members didn't quite seem to enjoy this involuntary introduction to the school’s freak, but they had no other choice. It was either them alone greeting him with a flat voice, or Dustin taking the upper hand to help the situation, and he did.
Eddie squinted in curiosity. “Do you guys play DND per chance?” He was really risking asking that question to some unsuspecting kids, given the satanic panic spreading like a virus that period.
Dustin kept a happy groan from echoing all over the cafeteria, yet he saved everyone's ears with an “Of course! We even have our characters and levels laid out, we've been playing for ages!”
“Well, look what we have here…” Eddie lowered his voice like a prey, glancing at them with hunger. “Coincidentally, we have a few free spots in our club, and we need fresh blood to defend us from the cult of vecna…soon to be defeated”. His tone was now more menacing, entering a theatrical field.
Dustin's happiness about this entire situation was yet to fade out even a little. “Time and place”. He was determined, smacking his fist on the table with excitement.
“The Hideout, today after school. Have your characters ready”. Eddie voiced, getting up from his chair, and placing back to its original spot.
“Noted”. Dustin did, completely ignoring the other’s reaction.
“Bring a drink, kiddos, the waiters won't serve beer to 13 year olds-”
“I'm 14-” Michael complained.
“So I noticed, Wheeler." He said while walking backwards, pointing his index finger to Mike with whimsy. "See you there”.
“Now, that's something” Lucas pointed out with irony once the elder student walked away from them.
“You don't like him?!” Dustin asked with a whine.
“Depends”
Dustin took a moment to process Lucas' reaction before continuing to fan over him like a little girl. “I think he's cool. And we're definitely going to this after school.”
“Whatever…” Mike exhaled sharply, placing his elbow on the surface of the table with a gnawing feeling lingering onto him again. There was no point in entering a DND club, or even playing DND occasionally with others now that Will wasn't there. Mike felt like this would be a grave mistake, and would soon end up in chaos if they acted on it.
There, he wouldn't feel allowed to compete, because, according to his opinion, there was no point in doing anything without Will anymore. Dnd was always something meaningful for Will and Mike only, as an inner ritual for the two of them and the party. Mike, if anything else, would go to California and pick up Will from Lenora to bring him here if it was up to him.
The Hideout, despite its glorious name and reputation, was strangely hard to find in a small town like Hawkins. The three kids were riding their bikes, cycling around town for a long while, trying hard to focus and observe a pub, or even a label that read "The Hideout" that would eventually lead them to their destination. But nearly two hours of searching passed, and the boys decided to take a break near lover's lake, at the east part of Hawkins.
As they slowed down to access that tiny part of the lake that was available for bikes, a banging muffly noise made Mike and Lucas flinch, turning their heads towards the source of the incident.
Dustin was nearly out of breath as he got off his bike's seat, grabbing the handles one by one with his arms and landing it on the ground with a loud thud. Before Mike could even get off his own bike to take a breath, he pulled out his compass, waiting for the needle to land on north so they don't lose their orientation. Although, the needle didn't quite end on the spot they wanted... it was playing along with the field as Dustin was holding it on his wobbly hand, shaking from the recent exhaustion of that ride.
"Where is it?" Mike exhaled, trying to catch his breath while leaning on his thighs to regain consciousness, with sweat dripping down his forehead. Even his teal polo shirt was now a shade darker around his neck and underarms.
"Wait" Dustin was puffed, holding a spread up index finger in front of Mike's face, still on the knockout for this goddamn needle to land.
"Didn't Eddie give you its location?" Lucas did, him also dripping with sweat and whining.
"Yes, Lucas, he did. Just give me a minute" the boy argued with an intense tone, demanding a small break to gather himself together.
The needle was still on the lookout, doubting to land on a certain point, even if it wasn't north. Dustin's compass was slowly playing up, and the more it taunted him, the more patience he lost. "Oh, c'mon now!" he grinned, smacking it with the palm of his hand furiously.
"Maybe we should just drop it" Mike suggested, still leaning on his knees. "Let's get back home"
That was not on Dustin's plan, and it shouldn't even cross their minds in the slightest. He turned around in irritation, glancing at the two of them as if they committed a crime. "No, no way" he bit his lip with no mercy. "We promised!"
"We've been biking for hours and we got nothing, Dustin! What do you expect, for us to wander around town till dawn to find a stupid pub where all the esshays and freaks hang out? Besides, it's not even worth it to go on with dnd without Will!"
That last sentence echoed in the awkward silence that followed Mike's words. The absence of Will Byers was now more notable than ever, given how he was somewhat the life of the party whenever they hung out. At least for Mike.
The two boys glared at him with realization and part pity in their eyes, acknowledging what Mike meant with this. It truly meant a lot for them to open up their chances to a new party, and out of all of them, Dustin was the most eager to go on with life after Will and El moved out, and their party changed with no way to go back.
"They're not eshays, Mike" Dustin lowered his voice, glaring down at his broken compass to avoid the humiliation of looking at him in the eye.
"Eddie is known to be a dealer" Mike fudged, taking deep breaths of relief now that they didn't have to continue that subject.
"And since when are you biased?" Now, Lucas was the one to defend him on the subject.
'I'm not-"
"It doesn't matter that Will isn't here, we still can have fun without him" Dustin interrupted Mike, clearly wanting to avoid the topic of this conversation. He didn't have any appetite to do a purity test on Eddie with his friends, since all this time they were messing up with stuff, and this wouldn't change his mind in anything about this certain friendgroup.
Mike stood there in awe for a little. "What?" the voice that escaped his mouth was light, hiding the pain he endured right in that moment. Out of all the things Dustin had said today, this was the worst that crossed his ears. He was sure the rest of the party was missing Will as much as he did, and these last words of Dustin's wrecked the ground from underneath his feet. Of course it mattered that Will wasn't there. Because ever since he left, the party wasn't as connected as before.
Mike's face remained still, unable to form any other expression. The shock waves were coming one after the other, yet his eyes and mouth were wide open, wishing he wasn't there to listen to what Dustin had to say.
“Look, I mean-” Dustin did after noticing such a reaction. “It doesn't always have to be the four of us to play DND. You saw it, there were many times it was just Lucas, Will and you that opened a campaign while I was away at camp-”
“That didn't mean anything” Mike spat out with spite. “We just planned the campaign, we would wait for you to come back so we'd play along all together -”
“We both know that's not true, Mike.” Dustin sighed, staring at his friend with an upsetting look. “The minute I returned, you guys were away hooking up with your girlfriends, while all I wanted was to spend some time with you and Will”.
“Yeah, I guess, sorry about that!” Mike rolled his eyes just a bit for Dustin to notice it and get even more frustrated.
An eyebrow raised, two hearts started to hurt. “At least Steve was around to listen to me! What did you do? Hang out with El and whisper empty words to her ear?”
“Dustin-” Lucas began merely whispering to get his friend to calm down, but he was unsuccessful.
“No, Lucas-”
“What does that have to do with anything!” Mike complained, bothered to see the party heating up like that in such a discussion. It was the first time Dustin had offended his relationship with El, and hopefully the last time he'd get to witness him like that.
“Oh, c'mon. I'm sure you know what I mean”. His tone was devious, ready for a fight.
“No, Dustin, I don't know what you mean!” Mike raised his tone, reaching the heat onto Dustin's level.
“It's obvious you don't love her, Mike! All this time you were talking about Will, and how he doesn't pick up the phone, and how you want to send him letters so bad but can't in case they get mixed up with El’s- you barely ever talk about your own girlfriend!”
Which was true. Mike really cared about El, but also loved and cared as much for Will. He didn't quite figure out why he was acting like this, but whatever it was, it made him miss him more and more with each passing day. What Dustin was spitting was facts, but Mike was yet immature enough to face the truth.
He didn't know how he felt about El, but it was about time he fixed his relationship with her. “That's bullshit!”
Lucas was not interested in any point to get into a fight about the Byers twins, given his past advice to Mike to get back to El and fix things. “Uh, guys, if you're gonna argue, then I think I'm gonna go”.
Dustin didn't get the time to respond to the blasphemy that Mike dropped onto the air, and within his frustration, he turned around to face his friend in awe. “WHAT?!” him and Mike bawled.
“If you're gonna act like this in hellfire, then it would be better for me to just join another club”. Lucas did. “I got an offer for a sports team anyway”.
The last sentence was left hanging onto the air, unprocessed by any of the two that were still in heat about their argument. “You mean the tigers?” Mike stood still, freezing in position.
Lucas pumped his lip before answering. “Yes, one of those seniors saw me in the field today- they offered me a bench position for a start”.
“But we agreed -” Mike mumbled, but was cut off by Lucas once again.
“I don't care, Mike. I don't want to be involved with people like that anymore. Basket can give me a chance to actually be someone rather than a freak”. Lucas took a deep breath in, afraid to continue opening up like that.
Even Mike noticed it. After Billy's death and Max breaking up with him, he was hiding more and more in the shadows, distancing himself emotionally from the other two. Will was the one he was closest to, and since his departure, he was left alone biking around town and only joining Mike and Dustin when they planned hangouts in the afternoons.
Even Dustin sided with Mike on this one. “And you're gonna prefer benching over playing with us?”
“I'm not saying that”. He sighed. “Look, I don't know what's gonna happen with this hellfire club, but I don't want to worry about that.You go to that pub, I'll see you tomorrow”. He reached to lift his bike from the ground, accidentally hitting the bike ring as he was standing it in position.
“Lucas-” Mike tried to reach for his shoulder, but his friend had already turned his back on him, and was busy enough with his bike to not notice it. “Bye guys”. He said, as he was riding the seat to push the bike backwards and then be able to turn it around and leave.
Lucas was cycling away from the two boys, leaving the atmosphere to flood with bitterness, and huge sighs of regret. “I told you he wouldn't be in for this”. A voice next to Mike reassured him.
“Shut up, Dustin!” Mike whined, knowing damn well what his friend meant.
“Must have felt good when he supported you with your relationship with El” his voice was monotone, wrapping around Mike's guts with disgust.
“What's gotten into you lately?”
The boy couldn't escape Mike's upsetting frown. “I wasn't the one unbearable to be around when school started”
“Oh, shut up” he whined. “Wanna go to The Hideout alone? Fine. Have fun without me”. Mike gripped up his bike, and, like Lucas, he lifted it up and started rolling it through the mud to get away from his friend as sassily as possible. “Weren't we supposed to follow the goals we set in August?” Dustin yelled from afar right behind Mike's back.
The boy with the teal polo shirt stood there, in doubt. They did, indeed, and all that without Lucas. On the first day of school, Lucas was put in a different homeroom than him and Dustin, and something in him changed, he came back to them with a new attitude of need. He admitted he wanted to experience new things and let them know about the chance of him entering the basketball team. On the other hand, Dustin was too intimidated by Eddie but still was eager to join the one and only DND club in that school, so he was always rushing an enrollment. Mike just followed.
“Lucas was the one that did. Not us”. He confessed. “We were always on remaining in a safe space, remember?”
“That's what I'm saying”. The boy was still talking to Mike's back, since he refused to turn around. “Hellfire can be a safe space. Even for those of us who are here”.
Dustin had a point. Even if Will was gone, they could still feel safe with each other. But he hated that, he hated being wrong with all his being.
The knot that formed in his stomach earlier now started to resolve itself. “So where is that pub anyway”. He nearly mumbled, forcing Dustin to make out his words with huge difficulty.
“Eddie said during the break it's near the trailer park…we must be close.”
Notes:
Alexa play the black dawg by taylah swift
Chapter 2: Some bar called The Black Dog
Summary:
The black dog is filled with an alternative crowd, old people, smoke and regrets. Mike finds this a pretty place to open up and find a shrink in his friend a freak he had just met.
Things always go sideways from here.
Notes:
Byler angst and 🎶the smoke cloud billows out his mouth like a freight train through a small town🎶
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
Chapter two:
Some bar called "The Black Dog"
They must be close.
It didn't take them long to leave the lover's lake to get back biking onto the street. Dustin was right after all, indeed they weren't far from the bar Eddie set the meeting to. Going there without Lucas pierced a brand new hole in Mike's heart, but he had to deal with it.
Cus later on, this small decision could lead to even bigger events. Lucas leaving them to go home, alone for a meeting at that pub could later persuade him to leave them for basketball and forget about DND completely. It could lead to the party breaking even more, creating more cracks than ever before. And they then wouldn't have any time or energy to fix it.
Mike wouldn't have any energy to fix it. Because, after all, without Will he couldn't function properly.
The cool breeze petting his face brought him back to the actual Hawkins, reminding him of the knot in his throat and stomach that prevented him from enjoying this wistful ride. He obviously didn't want to lose Lucas, or any of his other friends. He feared that, after all this takes a huge leap into the gnawingly horrifying future, he'd be left alone into a void that once used to be the familiar town he grew up in.
Dustin pulled the brakes so suddenly in front of him, that Mike nearly crashed into the back wheel of his bike. “Oh shit” he whispered, repeating the word over and over again to curse himself.
“Shit, shit, shit, shit, shit!”
“What is it?”
Dustin pinned his sight to the label of the pub, shaking his head repeatedly. He leaned his head forward, pinching the space between his eyes and above his nose with his fingers.
Mike noticed his distress, and apparently he had to repeat himself. “Dustin, what is it?”
Dustin, still in the same position, pointed his other hand towards the wooden label, hanging with chains from the bottom of the balcony on the first floor; the building they were standing in front of wasn't just any old tavern.
The wooden label, now wiggling with the breeze, read with black, decorated letters: The Black Dog. Mike squinted, wondering why Dustin was acting so intensely about a random store in the middle of their town, that wasn't even their meeting spot. “Yeah…” he agreed, not knowing exactly to what.
“You don't get it?” Dustin almost screeched.
“Get what?” Mike squinted once again, he didn't understand shit of what was happening right now.
“This is The Hideout! This is the place we were trying to find all this time!”
No… it couldn't be. In any universe. Having not noticed the label, Mike swore they passed by this place at least twice while searching for the pub. It just looked like any other ground floor cabin, or even a house. This didn't look like a wallflower pub to the side of his eye while they were biking. Mike's brain glitched, facing a huge error to load any other thought than just one simple word. “What?”
Dustin shook his head again, done with his companion at the time, and dragged Mike by the hand right inside the courtyard of the pub, pushing the doors furiously with the other.
The slim seconds that Mike got to witness such a beautiful yard would stay in his brain days after that. The well-watered grass and the flowers on the side accompanied by fancy rocks made this place seem like an entire venue hosting fantasy weddings and such. Mike closed his eyes, imagining an arch decorated with lace and pearls in the back of the yard, a river crossing the stones and flowers, near the path, him in a groom costume, and El, dressed in a beautiful white gown with lots and lots of tinsel, looking at him with a smile, fixing the flower that matched her dress in his pocket, and ready to respond with a word that every groom wanted to hear…
Wait-
Dustin's grip became stronger, now about to leave a mark if he held him for much longer. With a thud, he pushed the doors of the pub, and pulled Mike right in, pushing him playfully inside the space with ease. Mike was too out of his mind to notice anything, so Dustin handling him that easily was no trouble. The minute Mike blinked to take a look of the location, he came by mostly brown colors, wooden surfaces and furniture dominating the space, creating a really empathetic atmosphere, filled with smoke from cigarettes most of the time. As Dustin was roaming around with his sight to find Eddie and his bandmates, Mike was later pulled over to the closest table, the smell of the smoke piercing his nostrils.
Around the other tables were from teens and the youth of Hawkins with mostly punk appearances and piercings, to old people with a fat cigar in between the fingers, smelling like burnt money and neglected parents. This pub seemed to host most wallflowers in Hawkins, despite it having a questionable first impression.
“Finally!” Eddie mused once he saw them. “Little lost sheepies even in Hawkins, huh?” He mused, sarcastically.
“Well, you didn't expect us to show up on time when you were cryptic even about the name of the place, now did you?”
Mike grinned at Dustin, curious as to why he was being so friendly with Eddie. He met him, like, a few hours ago…
“Sorry, my bad, kids. Should've known they changed the name…” Eddie looked around, somewhat in disgust, “and some other things, out of nowhere”.
“Were any adjustments made recently? I don't remember this pub at all as The Hideout.” Dustin took a seat in between Eddie and another blonde curly haired guy who was probably called Gareth. Mike was left alone for those few messy seconds before he could find another seat between a black classmate of his whose name he couldn't remember, and Doug, the loudest member of that group. Mike could tell him apart due to the sonic mess he made in the cafeteria earlier that day during lunch.
“Meh, just the name and some small renovations.” Eddie sighed. “Still, they should've kept the stage as it was, since our band had enough space to fit every single instrument up there”. He pointed to a corner of the pub, where a little step protruded right a few inches above the floor, and a microphone stand on it and a few cables laying on its bottom.
Dustin had many, many questions, not knowing what to ask first. Thankfully, Mike, who was finally paying attention to Eddie for once, took the courage himself. “You're in a band?”
“Yeah!” A bawl of enthusiasm left Eddie's lips. “Mike, Dustin, meet Corroded Coffin! This is Gareth, Jeff and Doug.” He introduced the kids to the blonde guy, the guy with the electric guitar jacket- which Mike had just noticed - and the loud one respectively.
The one next to him must have been Jeff, because the minute he heard his name, he spread a hand to shake with Mike. “Nice to meet you-”
"Speaking of, where's Sinclair?" Eddie wondered.
"Oh, he didn't wanna come-"
"He was too tired so he went home" Mike buldged in, preventing Dustin form speaking the truth about earlier.
Only then did Mike observe how Eddie knew his last name back in the school cafeteria. He didn't even introduce himself with his full name back then. “Are you a senior?” he blurted to the guy next to him, fading that previous thought into oblivion.
“Yeah, graduating this year, finally” the guy sighed in relief.
The boy raised his eyebrows in awe. “Nice.” It wasn't the first time he heard a senior awaiting to leave Hawkins high with such a thirst. He knew some things about graduating and its aftermath, since Nancy was slowly drowning in college applications here and there.
It wouldn't be bad to open a conversation with a senior, right? He thought, biting his lip nervously. He wasn't really the type to ramble with someone he had just met, but he just got in high school, and he promised himself even the slightest change. “So what do you wanna do after school?” he wondered.
“Probably continue the Corroded Coffin with these folks” Jeff nodded at his mates. “And see where drumming will get me. Mum says I need to apply to a music school or stuff, but I'm not sure where this will get me”.
And a drummer, Mike thought, a bit impressed by the idea of Jeff playing drums. He did, in fact, have muscly arms, and a really fitting appearance, so his hobby was a call from within.
“So how did you discover this place?” Dustin spoke, directing to Eddie and interrupting Mike and Jeff's conversation.
“Well uh… a few gigs here and there, and the minute we played here a couple of years ago-”.
“in ‘83?” Dustin mused.
“Yeah, in ‘83. We saw how the place met our needs and kinda settled here after having a chat with the boss of the club”. The metalhead said, tapping on his beer glass now that it was half empty. “We played a lot till now, but ‘The Black Dog’ is way more intoxicated than ‘The Hideout’” he admitted.
The smoke, the atmosphere, the bar…everything reminded Michael Wheeler of a romantic date. A pretty alternative one, to be exact. And picturing El with a wedding dress right outside the venue- I mean, pub- couldn't help but bloom a fantasy of having her sit on a table, hold her hand and look her in the eyes… “Have you ever brought someone over here for a date?” His thoughts formed into a blob of words.
“Yeah…a classmate of mine, once…”. Those words hung in the air like an executed sinner. Mike noticed the unsuspecting looks of the rest of the band, pretending they didn't hear anything of what the freshmen exchanged with Eddie.
“Classmate? You didn't get to know each other well?” Mike was invested now that the topic concerned him.
Eddie clinged onto his drink with a first. “He uh…he moved away now. And it happened years ago”.
Moved away? He? Mike and Dustin both knew one person that moved away, but this couldn't possibly be the case. Will was a preteen child years ago, and Eddie was, what, 19? It didn't fit in the timeline. The two boys exchanged a look, telepathically sharing their thoughts with each other. But Eddie didn't seem eager to share more about the situation, especially to a group full of straight boys, and this was completely understood.
But something was itching Mike to know more, yet he didn't know why. Eddie dated a guy years ago, probably his age, and now he moved away? A guy? His thirst for information increased, warming up his butt to listen to more gossip. “What was he like?”
“Mike-” Dustin grinned at him.
“No, it's okay. He's a year younger than me, we dated right when I discovered the pub. He said he liked The Clash, so I brought him here where they put Clash, Police, Dio and stuff like that. Thought he'd like it.” The long haired freak took a deep, sharp breath in. “He stopped seeing me a little bit before his younger brother went missing, and we haven't spoken ever since”.
Hearing this, Mike struggled to add the puzzle pieces together before adding those clues into a timeline. A missing brother, The Clash and a current highschooler?
Dustin saved the day once again, but asking him where he moved away to, and Eddie's response was more than helpful- the guy moved away to California. The boy then glared at Mike with such an obvious look that it screamed from miles away…
It was Johnathan.
Both of them were left speechless, unable to move from that freezing frame of realization. Not even knowing that Johnathan was queer and into boys in the slightest, and probably Will's disappearance made him want to stop things and focus on his brother, and then he disappeared to work things with Nancy- it all made sense now. Even his behavior and reaction when they called Will a queer, it was all because he was one of them, too.
Eddie being queer also made sense now. Once a wallflower for being into metal and non commercial music, his style, his obsession with DND and being a nerd, always a wallflower for being queer.
And as a sign from god, now that things were getting a little too personal and Mike had many questions to ask, a female, raspy voice crossed their ears, like an angel's calling. “Corroded Coffin! You're up in 30’” the barwoman from behind the bar functioned like a god machine to isolate him, Dustin and Eddie into one table alone together.
The band shared looks of boredom with each other, receiving this calling as a chore. They weren't in the mood to give another concert yet today, as Mike was told by Eddie, but now, they had to fill the pub with music the crowd was asking for. They picked up some of their essentials and got up, as Gareth leaned on the table to gather his guitar pick, addressing Eddie. “You coming?”
“Play ‘The starting line’, you don't need me in that one” the guy warned them. “I'll be with you later on”.
Then, Gareth put the guitar pick in his pocket, and headed for the curtain next to the cornered stage to get to the back and prepare their next few songs.
A wave of relief flooded Mike's heart now that Eddie was also interested to talk to the two freshmen. The minute the band disappeared out of their sight and went backstage, Mike opened an imaginary papyrus full of questions to list for Eddie and his situation with Johnathan. Now, Mike was not only given the chance to enjoy Eddie all by himself for a bit, but also, apparently, he was preparing himself for his first Corroded Coffin concert. “How long did you guys last?”
“Hm?” Eddie was too lost in his own thoughts, probably about the song he mentioned, to focus on Mike's words.
“I mean with Johnathan”.
He was shocked to hear that name after years, along with Dustin, who was not ready at all to hear this subject down. Mike's fur, however, having gathered enough energy from his interaction with Jeff, was burning for more tea.
Eddie glared at the child with horror in his eyes, wondering how the fuck he made that out. He had no other choice but to answer, due to that curiosity always leading him to strange places. “About three months”.
A pause followed that sentence, since neither of the two boys had anything to say. “I asked him out in August of that year, he was a sophomore and I a junior. He was shy, so I was always the one initiating any interaction. I feel like he just went along for the first time, and then he was just too tired to continue hanging out with me…”
A somber look pinned on Mike's eyes. “He wasn't”. Eddie gathered his eyebrows into a narrow, desiring to hear more of this, even if he was a little bit confused.
“Losing Will wrecked him just as much as it wrecked me” Michael confessed. “Maybe even more”.
“Wait…” his look shifted into something more serious. “Zombie boy was your friend?”
“Don't call him that” Mike defended him. “He was lost for six days, and even the cops were unable to find him”. This media induced truth created a bitter taste on his tongue, recognizing how he couldn't scream the actual truth about the upside down and Will's misfortune even if he wanted to.
“Sorry…” Eddie spoke, lowering his sight. “He moved away too, right?”
Mike nodded, swallowing that bitter taste from before. “El too, of course”.
“Who's El?”
“No one-” Dustin joined in with Mike this time to cut the hurricane from getting too wild. Eddie knew nothing about the incidents in Hawkins, and it should stay that way.
“Someone”.
“I presume you and this kid- Will, you were close, right?” Eddie softened his gaze, sharing that of recognition. He's seen this film before.
“I suppose so…” Mike mumbled, goggling his eyes to Dustin's later reaction.
“Oh, absolutely”.
Are you kidding me? Mike leaned to the back of the chair, spreading his neck away from the table and facing the others. No matter how close he was with Will anyway, that wouldn't affect his friendship with the others. Even though this previous interaction with Lucas might prove him wrong sooner or later.
Eddie formed a smile on his face. “I'm sure this fella means a lot to you”.
Mike pumped his lips in declaration. “You wouldn't believe”. A deep breath in, and Mike was already lost in his thoughts of how he was already missing Will, and he was just gone for about a month. His absence really noted Mike's life more than it should've.
Dustin also lowered his sight to the table, fidgeting his fingers onto the glass, tapping nervously. “I just wish he'd come back sooner so we can see him. You can meet him too, if you want”. That wasn't Dustin trying to tease Mike for his stupid obsession over Will, but him indeed missing him. It was true, Eddie would love Will if he ever met him, and, to be fair, the two would be inseparable one dnd was brought up.
“Oh, really? What is he like?” Eddie wondered.
It was Mike's turn to yap till his deathday. He started explaining his traits like a painting, and his personality like the greatest movie plot he'd ever heard. He insisted how Will was his ride or die during middle school, and how they came closer after his disappearance only for a while, for things to go downhill right before they started highschool, that fourth of July. He noted how this date was probably the worst day they all have lived in Hawkins, and then, Eddie underlined how everyone knew at least someone who got lost in that fire. Mike kept himself together with triumph, trying not to spoil the reality of things.
After staying at this for a while, Mike kept on talking about Will's traits in DND, and how the two came up with a campaign and Dustin and Lucas followed, and therefore formed the party as it was right now. The more he described him, the more enthusiastic Eddie seemed.
“He's a cleric?” Eddie mused an eternity later.
Mike nodded quickly.
“And he also defends the party even if it means sacrificing himself” Dustin added. “He's a real hero, I'll give him that”.
Mike blushed, leaning his sight slightly downwards. He was a hero, indeed, given how he saved the party multiple times during their games. Although, he kinda wished he was a hero in real life too, and not let the mind flayer take over him again and again, torturing him like he did in the past. He wanted Will to be a bit more about himself, and look after his own happiness for a while. As many times as he called El a hero, he feared that Will would eventually be the real one in his heart.
He shook his head before these thoughts started blowing up in his mind again. “Yeah…”
“Ladies and Gentlemen…” The speaker blasted right next to them intensely. “Warm up your butts, chug onto your beers, and get ready to scream your lungs out…because this next band will get you on the edge of your seats!”
Eddie pinned a smile on his face, knowing what would follow this announcement.
“Please welcome on stage, the Corroded Coffin!” The barman was now behind the microphone on that small stage, pointing to the curtains on the back of it, as they unrolled to their sides and revealed a drum kit and two guitars, one bass and one electric, right behind the main microphone occupied by the guy. Seconds later, Jeff, Gareth and Doug appeared on the drums and guitars respectively.
“Where's Eddie??” A few people from the crowd yelled with anticipation. It seemed like they were more fond of him than the other members in the band…
Gareth nervously tapped the microphone with his finger, and took a deep breath. “Hey, guys” he spoke. It was the first time Mike had seen him like this. “We're gonna start with a song we haven't played in a while, and, to be honest, it took a while to rehearse….”
“We don't care, where the fuck is Eddie?” A woman yelled from the back of the pub. Mike turned around, following the voice, and came by and angry person with a mohawk and the most earrings and piercings he had ever seen on a person.
“Oh, man, fuck it”. Eddie grinned, dropping the empty beer glass on the table with a bit of force, and pushing his chair backwards to get free from the table and head to the stage.
“What are you doing?” Dustin voiced, concerned.
“Gotta give people what they want, right?” Eddie dropped a cunning smile. He then pushed another chair into the table that blocked his way to get to the stage, grab the microphone in the front and start his own speech about the song.
Then, for Mike, all the lights went out. He didn't even get the time to process Eddie leaving the table, and the next minute he was on stage, as the lead singer, about to sing a song he probably never heard before. His co- members were just as shocked as he was, with Gareth hissing at him behind the microphone, and Eddie mouthing something back. Mike didn't know what they were saying, but he could imagine a few scenarios.
“Hey guys” he did. He looked a lot more confident than Gareth. “So uh, as Gareth said, this next song was one we used to play the hell out of a few years back, and I'm sure it'll keep you on the edge of your seat”. He winked to the barman with a flirtatious tone, underlining the reference he made right before he got up. “This is The Starting Line”
Silence followed. Not even a single breath could be noticed, only Mike's own. The lights of the bar went out, before one projector focused on Eddie alone.
“One, two, three” Eddie whispered on the microphone.
The song that followed started with a soft guitar riff, solely played by Gareth, with each note of the melody echoing in the silent pub, filling it with part nostalgia and part desperation. Mike took a deep breath in, swearing he had heard this melody before. Then the drums came in, mumble and calming, followed by the bass that launched the entire song.
The lyrics were the thing that forced Mike's thinking into a detective mode. He swore he had heard this song before.
Those eyes, so deceiving
Stop staring at the ceiling
And look at me, pretending like nothing has changed.
So stop believing,
Having the energy to fix it.
And when someone plays “The Starting Line”
You jump up, but she's too young to know this song
For a cruel fraternity I pledged
And I still mean it
Old habits die screaming.....
Notes:
Eeeeee macarena
Clara (Guest) on Chapter 1 Thu 24 Jul 2025 03:24PM UTC
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Shiftingfics on Chapter 1 Thu 24 Jul 2025 09:42PM UTC
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