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Will loved the Wheeler’s, he really did, but sleeping in their basement was the worst.
He had so many good memories of the Wheeler’s basement. Years of D&D, movie nights that ended in jiffy pop fights, and sleepovers where they didn’t sleep at all were treasured memories. But, now it was different. This time, he wasn’t begging his mom over the phone to let him stay over with Mike crossing his fingers in hope behind him. This time, he wasn’t going back home in the morning.
Now, he was in the Wheeler’s basement, and the world was ending. No more D&D, no more play fights, just defeating Vecna and his army.
Will laid awake on his blow up mattress, staring at the popcorn ceiling and counting the shadows the bumps made. The yellow street light was filtering in through the curtains, painting half his face in an orange glow. He could hear Johnathan’s gentle breathing a few feet away where he was laying on the couch, fast asleep.
“Lucky,” Will muttered under his breath, rolling over to face the stairs. He couldn’t go back to sleep no matter what he tried. He had woken up from a nightmare an hour ago and now thoughts were running through his head a mile a minute, and no amount of counting sheep could get him to fall back asleep.
In the nightmare, he was back in the Upside Down, running away from the Demogorgon as it destroyed Castle Byers to try and get to him. He was twelve and a newly presented Omega, running on nothing but adrenaline and fear. The survival instincts had taken over, and his only thoughts were Run! Run now! Danger! He scrambled up the tree, feeling residue from the slimy bark collect on his palms and under his fingernails. He was near the top when he heard a blood curdling roar. The Demogorgon had found him again.
The scene shifted, and he was awake in Vecna’s lair, pinned to the wall and unable to move. Vecna moved towards him, looking too much like a predator stalking prey for his liking. He was sure his scent smelled horrible with the amount of fear and distress that it was projecting, but if anything Vecna seemed to enjoy that more.
He felt a clawed hand on his neck. “William,” He started, digging his pointer finger into Will’s nape, right next to his scent gland. “Soon, they will forget. Soon, you will be mine to control.”
Will cried as the vine shot into his mouth, choking off his airway and making him struggle twice as hard. As he faded out of consciousness, he saw Vecna’s evil sneer, reveling in his pain.
And now, he was here, back in the Wheeler’s basement and covered in sweat. That initial experience in the Upside Down had totally crossed his wires and changed him forever. The Omega instincts that had helped him survive in the Upside Down for so long were now all messed up. Most Omegas his age adored when their loved ones touched their neck, whether it be the soft scenting from a parent or the heated bite of a lover.
Will hated it. All of it.
Anytime anyone so much as got close to his neck he flinched away, spilling excuses about how he was a private person and just didn’t like to be touched there. But, in reality, it was because every touch and light breeze reminded him of Vecna. Hell, his neck was the way that he sensed Vecna was around.
He can’t imagine a time in the future where he would accept the mating bite from an Alpha that he loves. Anytime he even thinks of anything going to penetrate his neck he remembers the way that Vecna dug his nails into Will’s nape all those years ago. If he looked hard enough in the mirror, he could see the small scars in the crescent shape of fingernails that peppered the back of his neck. He couldn’t imagine a mating bite joining the scars on his neck, or letting anyone get close enough to try.
Will rolled back over onto his back, once again staring at the ceiling. He glanced over at the clock on the table and saw that it was well past 3 in the morning. He sighed and flipped the thin blanket off of him, swinging his feet around so that they rested on the floor. He got up slowly, grimacing when the air mattress creaked under him. He quickly looked to Johnathan to make sure he hadn’t woken him up, and let out the breath he didn’t know he was holding when Johnathan continued to slumber on.
He slowly padded up the stairs, socked feet making no noise against the beige carpet that covered them. He turned the corner into the kitchen, and to his surprise Mike was already there, leaning over the sink and chugging water like he had gone his whole life without it. He was bathed in the harsh white glow that came from the light above the sink.
Mike turned when he heard the floor creak, eyes lighting up when he spotted Will.
“Hey, man. What’s up?” The Alpha questioned, leaning back against the sink and placing his now empty glass on the counter. Will took another step forward and leaned against the kitchen island, the metal framing digging into the flesh at his hip.
“Just a nightmare,” Will muttered, unable to look Mike in the eyes. “Nothing I haven’t dealt with before.”
Mike’s shadow eclipsed his own as he stepped forward. A silent moment passed.
“Was it about Vecna?” He whispered.
“Yeah, back when I was taken for the first time. I just, I just couldn’t fall back asleep, so I decided to come up here. Normally, I love being in your basement. I have so many good memories associated with that room, but now whenever I’m down there I feel like the walls are closing in on me.”
Will finally forced himself to look up, meeting Mike’s eyes for the first time.
“I can’t help but feel like he can get me when I’m down there. You know, I was biking back home from your house when I was taken. We had spent the whole night playing D&D, and even though I didn’t know it at the time, the Demogorgon had already tracked me down and was locked onto me. Remember how the driveway light flickered when we were standing there? When I told you my fireball had failed?”
Mike nodded, the expression on his face morphing from neutrality to concern.
“It was already on me in the basement, just in the Upside Down. It was just waiting for the right time to strike.”
“Oh my God,” Mike whispers. “I didn’t even think about that. Shit, I barely even remembered that,” He put his hand to his forehead and pushed his bangs back, beginning to pace the length of the kitchen.
“And we put you in the basement? Why didn’t you say anything?”
“I didn’t want to be a bother, all the rooms upstairs are filled and I would hate to kick someone out of their own space.”
“We could just share my space,” Mike states, stopping in his tracks. “I have plenty of space in my room.”
“Mike, come on. You barely have enough space for you with all the stuff that you’ve collected over the years. Don’t think I didn’t hear your mom complaining that she couldn’t see the carpet because of all the clothes on your floor.”
Mike groaned and threw his hands up. “Oh my god, I’ve cleaned since then!”
They both burst into giggles, sharing shy smiles.
“Come on, let’s get you back to bed. You can’t save the world if you’re sleepy.”
Mike held out his hand in invitation and Will just rolled his eyes. “Shouldn’t you be saying that to El? She’s the one doing all the saving.”
“Oh, come on. Don’t play that game. You’re literally our connection to the Upside Down, you’re the only one who can sense when a Demogorgon is nearby, I can’t even count how many times that sense has saved us.”
“Fine, I’ll let you have this one. I’m too tired to care,” Will says, rubbing his eyes. In the time that they’ve been talking Mike’s scent has permeated the space between them and he took a deep breath in, letting the woodsy scent envelop him. He could feel himself becoming sleepier as he continued to breathe in Mike’s scent. The comfort that he was exuding was heady.
Mike took Will’s wrist and began to lead him towards the stair that went up to his room, but Will stopped in his tracks. “Wait, let me go down and grab my mattress,” He said, pulling away.
Mike held fast. “No, I’m not letting you go back down there tonight. You can sleep in my bed, it’s big enough for the both of us.”
Will stopped breathing. Sleeping in Mike’s bed, with Mike? Surrounded by his scent and heat and body? The Omega part of Will thought that that was a great idea, and that the Alpha would protect him. The human, more reasonable part of Will knew that it was a monumentally bad idea. Sure, he had loved Mike for years, but literally sleeping together would take it to the next level.
Mike must have sensed his unease as he began to worry his lip between his teeth. “Or, I could sleep on the floor. It’s no big deal.”
“No, no,” Will cuts in. “We can share the bed. It’s ok.”
Mike’s smile lit up his face. “Ok, cool.”
Mike led Will up the stairs and to his room, opening the door and wincing when the hinges squeaked loudly. The room was dark except for the glare from the streetlight outside, the same streetlight that had illuminated him in the basement. Mike made his way over to his bed, settling under the covers that smelled of him. Will hesitated in the doorway for a moment before joining Mike on the bed, sitting down on the edge gingerly, as if he was scared to disturb the sanctity of the space.
Mike held the blanket up, an open invitation to get under the covers with him. Will hesitantly crawled under the blanket and laid down on his back. Immediately, Mike’s scent was surrounding him, covering him from head to toe like a thick syrup. The scent from the pillow was especially strong, and Will had to resist turning his head to the side and mixing his scent with the one on the fabric beneath him. Instead, he resolutely stared at the ceiling, refusing to look at Mike.
“Come on, I don’t bite,” Mike joked, rolling over on his side to face Will.
“Yeah, let’s keep it that way,” Will mumbled, subconsciously bringing his shoulders up to protect his neck. When they were this close, Will could feel Mike’s hot breath against the side of his neck. While it felt nothing like the cold shudder he felt when Vecna was near him, the feeling was so similar that Will moved his head so that his neck was completely hidden from Mike’s eyes and breath.
There’s an awkward moment where neither of them move and the only sound is their gentle breathing and the buzz of insects outside. The Alpha was sure to have noticed that he flinched away when he got close to his neck. The silence stretches on for another few seconds, and for a fleeting moment, Will thinks Mike might have fallen asleep.
“I’ve been meaning to ask,” Mike starts, breaking the silence. “Why are you so flighty about your neck? I mean, a little bit of an aversion to people touching your neck is normal, but, like, you seem really repulsed by it.”
Will gulps. Thoughts start racing through his head again, just like they were when he had woken up from his nightmare. “I…” He croaked, the words getting caught in his throat.
He feels Mike scoot a little bit closer to him. “Does it have something to do with the Upside Down?”
All Will can do is nod.
“Vecna?” Mike whispers.
Another nod.
“God, what did he do to you?” Mike’s voice is strained and quiet, barely louder than a breath.
“Nothing, really,” He lies just as quietly, reflexively moving his hand up to cover the back of his neck. “It’s just…”
“Just?”
“When I was taken, I had managed to evade the Demogorgon for a while before it caught me. When Vecna finally had me trapped, he dug his claws into my neck to make sure that I didn’t try and escape again. There’s a few scars. And you know, the way I feel Vecna is that I get a chill down my neck.”
“The goosies.”
“Yeah, the goosies,” Will lets out a single breathy laugh. “But, feelings on my neck have always been associated with bad things.”
“So that’s why you don’t do any scenting with your neck? Because it reminds you of Vecna?”
“Yeah, basically.”
Mike is silent for a moment too long, and Will turns his head to look at him. The Alpha has a hesitant expression on his face, like he wants to say something but can’t.
“Whatever it is, you can say it,” Will says.
“Have you ever thought about trying to replace those bad experiences with good ones? Like, exposure therapy?”
“Where’d you learn that big word?” Will jokes, trying to lighten the tension between them. He felt like he was being suffocated by Mike’s incessant stare.
“Oh, come on,” Mike says, bringing his hand up to playfully bat at Will’s arm. “Just answer the question.”
Will thinks for a moment. “In a way, yes. I’ve let mom and Johnathan scent my neck a few times, but it never feels fully right. Like, there’s a fifty-fifty split between me wanting to lean into the feeling and wanting to run for the hills.”
Mike shifts again, and this time his thigh is touching Will’s under the blanket. Will can feel the Alpha’s breath on his neck again.
“How do you feel about scenting with people not in your family?” Mike asked, and he’s an inch closer than he was before.
Will is acutely aware of every place he and Mike are touching, and Mike is only getting closer. “Well, I don’t know. I’ve never really tried. I was kidnapped right after I presented. I never got to have the normal Omega experience.”
“Would you like to?”
Will stops breathing. His voice comes out as barely more than a whisper when he says: “Like to what?”
“Have the normal Omega experience, be scented by a friend. We could try and replace those bad memories with much better ones.”
Now Mike was entirely plastered to Will’s side, and the Omega had no idea what he wanted to do. Sure, he had loved Mike for as long as he could remember, and being scented by him was something out of a dream, but a part of his brain was kicking and screaming that he should get the hell out of Mike’s embrace and run back to his makeshift bed downstairs.
Will didn’t even realize that he was starting to hyperventilate until Mike backed off a little bit, giving him the space he needed to breathe.
“Or we can just go to sleep, that’s ok too.” Mike went to roll over, but Will grabbed his shoulder, preventing him from pulling away further.
“No, no. I want to. It’s just… new. New things are scary, especially when they mean this much.”
They made eye contact and suddenly, the world around them didn’t exist anymore. They were no longer in the Wheeler’s house in Hawkins, they were in their own space where they could do anything they wanted to.
“I really do just want to help, I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable,” Mike murmured, and Will could see that he was genuine from the shine in his eyes.
“I understand, let's just… start slow.”
Mike perked up. “You mean it?”
“Yeah. I’m still not entirely sure, but I’m willing to try. I feel safe with you.”
“Ok, well, uh…” Mike started, eyes darting all over Will’s face before they finally landed at the scent gland on his neck. “How about you lay on your back? That way you can always see me.”
“Uh, alright.” Will moved to do so, and in a blink Mike was over him, hair hanging around his face in a curtain of black curls. And then he was leaning down, telegraphing every moment to not spook the Omega underneath him. Mike started on the left scent gland, gently bringing his head down to gently graze his own neck against Will’s. When Will initially flinched away Mike stopped, giving Will a moment to recenter himself. When Will nodded, Mike continued.
With every new moment that the Alpha continued to scent Will’s neck, he relaxed more and more until he was completely limp against the bed, surrounded by Mike and his intoxicating scent.
This felt like heaven.
Will couldn’t believe he had gone his whole life without experiencing this feeling. Sure, scenting with his family was nice, but with an Alpha, a potential mate, was so much different. All thoughts of Vecna and impending doom were replaced with the feeling of Mike’s chest pressing against his own.
Thoughts and fleeting images begin to flash through Will’s mind. The after. After defeating Vecna. After their lives go back to normal. After he goes back to normal.
Courting Mike. Building a nest to share with Mike. Sharing a heat with Mike. Sharing a bond with Mike.
After a minute or two Mike switched to the other side of Will’s neck, continuing to gently scent the Omega. Now, Will was arching into the feeling, trying to get his scent glands closer to Mike’s.
Mike was so focused on his task and making sure that Will was comfortable that he didn’t notice when Will started to purr, deep rumbles working their way up and out of his throat as Mike continued to scent him.
When Mike finally did notice, he paused, taking in a deep breath and inhaling his and Will’s combined scent. He felt a little drunk off of the satisfaction of providing comfort for an Omega, and the fact that Will was purring only made it worse. Slowly, Mike’s arms gave out and he was laying entirely on top of Will, blanketing him with his body and warmth. In this position Will’s purrs vibrated against his chest and into his body.
They fell asleep like that, everything about them intertwined. Over the course of the night they shifted in their sleep, and by morning Will’s nose was buried in Mike’s neck, taking in everything he had to offer with a clear mind and a full heart.