Chapter Text
November, 1992
Will wished he were Aladdin right now. Well, the answer was obvious, it was because of the lamp and the fucking genie, and if asked for a wish by the blue character, he'd spit out "switch rooms with Mike forever" as his first.
While he spent most of his days outside, like painting in different places for hours after classes or visiting Max, Lucas, Dustin or Jane when he had nothing to do, he couldn't rely on them forever. A countless "No's" or "I don't have the time" had already escaped his mouth when they tried to set him up for blind dates. The truth is, he did have time. A lot of time. Heck, he even agreed to some dates after Jane pleaded with her wide, doe eyes, which Will couldn't even say no to. "Come on; he's cute, plays guitar, and he wouldn't stop asking about you! He'd always look at you when you passed by my classes. Just one date? Please? For me?"
"Fine. But this is the last time, okay?"
And that's how Will found himself sitting across Jay in a small cafe.
Surprisingly, it went well. Not like the previous one where Jake from Science major would interrupt him with theories and random facts Will didn't give a shit about, or Carlton who kept leaving bread crumbs on the floor and did not wash his hands after visiting the bathroom. Will grimaced at those thoughts. But Jay. Jay wasn't like that.
He'd shoot sparkles with his dark brown eyes, lazily smiling with a hand cupping his cheek as he leaned against the table, nodding to whatever Will said. "...And then, he said he'd consider my paintings for the art exhib- Hey. Jay. Are you even listening? Am I boring you?"
Jay simply grinned, leaning back comfortably and running a hand through his dust blonde curls. "Not at all, Byers. I just owe your sister for such a perfect date with someone smart and pretty like you. I would love to see your paintings some day." Will's breath hitched. So he was listening. And not only was he listening, he was actually interested in something Will did. Will bit his lips as to not smile too much, but his light red cheeks gave it away. "I'd like that. I'll invite you over sometime." Jay smirked. "Yes, yes you should."
"Cool."
"Cool."
And so Will strolled home with ease that silent night after giving Jay his address, telling him he'd call him regarding his availability. He didn't feel like entering his apartment. He stood outside, staring at the brown, relatively old door, letting his gaze wander for five whole minutes. Opening it meant pushing himself towards situations he didn't like involving himself with, but honestly, he didn't have a choice.
After exhaling a small fuck it under his breath, he cautiously unlocked the door, delicately turning the knob as if he were committing robbery. The place was weirdly quiet. Not the usual for Mike Wheeler. He decided to take a quick peek inside Mike's room, scrunching his nose at the mess left behind. Clothes everywhere, papers all over his desk, and well, a pair of panties on the floor. Yikes. He couldn't even act surprised.
He let out a sigh of defeat, dragging himself to his room.
Will couldn't place his finger on how exactly things changed. Two years ago, when they left for college, they were happy. He couldn't use Jane and Mike's breakup as a reason for Mike's behaviour, because, well, it happened years ago and Mike never seemed so off about it. He was rather very normal. The first year of college began with a tangled ball of nervousness and excitement, and everyone adapted pretty well to the city life. They started going to parties, Will got his ear pierced, and got matching tattoos with his friends.
Everything was fine. Will and Mike had gotten much closer than before. Will would show Mike his new paintings, most of which had been commissioned by other students. Mike couldn't be more proud. He mostly hung around in Will's room as if it were his own, either laying on the bed with his nose in some book, or writing on his typewriter, while Will painted.
"Hey, when you become a sucessful artist, make me the writer for your comics, okay?"
"I'd be stupid if I ever said no to that." A rosy pink tainted on Mike's cheeks as he threw a wide smile at Will, which the latter didn't fail to catch. Pink suited Mike. Will simply smiled back.
They both enjoyed each other's comfort and company, to the point that they would sometimes cancel plans with the party to cuddle up on a couch and watch some lame movie Mike picked.
Until three months ago.
August, 1992
After a long day of working on his art project, Will had collapsed on his bed with a long sigh. It was 10 pm, and he'd cancel plans to go partying with Mike and his classmates, leaving no choice for Mike but to go alone.
Will felt guilty, but he was sure Mike would understand. Mike always understood Will. He promised he'd make up to Mike somehow. It was a Sunday the next day anyway, and the six of them had planned to spend the day together. It was going to be amazing. They'd all be meeting together after a month of exams and busy schedules.
It was 1:23 a.m when a loud bang made Will spring up on his bed. Must've been Mike. He didn't bother to get up as he laid back down on the bed. Not until he heard another sound. A giggle. He could hear a couple of shushes, probably by Mike. He must've been aware that Will was sleeping. Was Mike talking on the phone? Will felt his heart race. He further listened as he heard more silent laughs, followed by some weird, smacking noises and...moans. They didn't belong to Mike though. They felt too...feminine.
He had brought in a girl. For the very first time.
Will's heart dropped. He shut his eyes tight as he tried to blur out the sounds he didn't want to hear, but he couldn't. He could hear everything. Everything.
He could hear the stumbling steps to Mike's bedroom, the soft click of the lock, the unzipping of clothes, the wet kisses, the moans loudly calling Mike's name, Mike's grunts, until he decided it was enough. He put on his headphones and played songs on his Walkman. Will's chest hurt. He swallowed the lump formed in his throat. He really thought that after almost two years of living with Mike, something was different between them. Like their bond had bloomed into something more. And he'd imagine scenarios where Mike would eventually tell him the truth, and Will would just hug and gently kiss him.
But maybe it really wasn't meant to be. Maybe he had it all wrong. Mike would never like boys.
It was 11 am when Will finally decided to step out of his room. A sense of grogginess crept up to him. He harshly blinked and rubbed his eyes as to not fall asleep again, and his head felt like a brick.
He could hear some shuffling in the kitchen.
Mike.
His heart raced faster with each step he took, shuddering breaths escaping his dry mouth. Was he just not supposed to address last night? Pretend like nothing happened? What would he even say?
Hey so- uh, did you like...invite a girl last night?
He didn't have to ask that question at all, because when he reached the kitchen, he found himself facing a tanned-skin girl.
Will froze as he took in the sight.
Her uncombed brown hair fell to her shoulders, as she leaned against the counter. She was wearing one of Mike's old yellow t-shirts, and appeared to be making herself some coffee. She looked up at him, her green eyes going wide and immediately straightened herself up.
"Oh. Hey. I'm Amber, nice to meet you. Are you Mike's roommate?"
The 'yes' laid on the tip of his tongue, only he couldn't manage to let it out. His throat was closing up.
"Yes, he is," a voice spoke behind him. Mike came out of the bathroom with a towel around his neck, as he began rubbing it against his wet hair. His pale skin glowed like waning moonlight kissing the seashore, a few droplets trickling down his waist. He was wearing nothing but a pair of shorts.
Will realised that he was staring a little too much, and whipped his head away in an instant. He wasn't sure if Mike had caught that, but he for sure wanted to run away from this situation.
He observed as Mike went to the girl and briefly pressed a chaste kiss against the corner of her mouth. He fluttered his eyes to Will as he rubbed his thumb against her waist, pressing into it.
"Do you need something?," he cocked an eyebrow.
"I..uh, no- I'm just gonna- use the bathroom."
Will slammed the door behind him and sunk down on the floor. He promised himself that he wouldn't leave until he made sure that the girl left.
The hangout with the party felt weird, too. Probably because he was the only one who knew about Mike. On the contrary, Mike seemed quite indifferent. He laughed along with the others, cracked some jokes, and blabbered about his writings.
But something felt different.
Mike would immediately look away when his eyes met Will's, and he'd sneak away from him when he came close by. Maybe it wasn't apparent to the others, but it very much was to Will.
Will just needed an opportunity to talk to Mike, and he found the perfect one. While the rest of their friends were picking what movie to watch, Mike had excused himself to grab a glass of water. Will wasted no time to do the same.
"So...are we gonna talk about it?"
Will's eyes captured the slight flinch Mike made before turning around like a thief caught red handed. Still, Mike maintained his composure and coolly poured the water in his glass.
"Talk about what?"
"I don't know...maybe the fact that you have a girlfriend and you didn't tell me?"
"She's not my girlfriend. I just met her at the club last night, and we were both drunk," Mike explained as he sipped from the glass.
Will rubbed his chin.
"Oh. Okay. That still doesn't explain why you've been acting weird around me."
"Weird how?"
"Mike, come on. Ever since you brought her over yesterday, which, by the way, you were insufferably loud with to the point that you ruined my sleep last night-"
"Are you just here to complain, Will? Just because I found someone to have a little fun with last night, and for your information, it meant nothing-"
"What-? No! That's not what I meant," Will spluttered. "I..I just wanted to ask why you were avoiding me today, Mike. You were dodging conversations with me, you were running away from me, you couldn't even look at me! Did I do something wrong?"
"I wasn't avoiding you Will! Jeez, not everything is about you! I'm just tired from yesterday, and I just need some time for myself. Can we please drop this conversation, now?"
The words harshly jabbed at Will's chest. He bit the inside of his cheek and took in a deep breath. Maybe Mike was actually tired, and being bombarded with questions and justifications wasn't helping at all.
"Fine. Okay. I won't ask again."
Will kept his word. He wished nothing between the two would change after the talk. For sometime, he believed so. Mike would cook dinner with him like they always did, pick out movies to watch with him or discuss storylines for his DnD campaigns. But his eyes had drowned the petals of enthusiasm deep within, the same ones which floated with heaps of them. Will chose not to address it.
He heard the same noises two days later. After a long day of working on his painting, the last thing he wanted was someone (cough, Mike Wheeler) to disrupt his sleep. He was in no mood to face Amber again the next morning, with her stupid coffee and stupid voice. He braced himself mentally as he left his room, expecting to see her big green eyes in the kitchen. Well, he was. But not quite. He met with a new pair of the same ones. That wasn't Amber. But she weirdly resembled her. The hair, the eyes. The eyebrows.
Will looked everywhere but at Mike, who was kissing her neck at the counter, and the girl, who was giggling and slapping his shoulder to stop. He poured milk into the cereal, counting the seconds in his head to get out as soon as possible.
Mike didn't stop at that. He started bringing a different girl every week. Will ensured that he was never there during that time. He scowled at the fact that almost all the girls Mike had sex with looked like Amber, because genuinely, what kind of a brain-fuck was this? He'd decided to crash at Jonathan's or Jane's every time he saw Mike getting ready for another stupid "party".
It got to the point where Mike didn't acknowledge Will's presence at all, a bunch of hey's when they bumped into each other in the kitchen was all they had. They mostly just spent time in their own rooms. Sometimes Will would find Mike making out with a girl on the couch, one hand clutching her hair and the other making its way down her pants.
Will noticed how Mike never closed his eyes when he kissed them. He'd try to when he would lean in, but they'd just bore into the void as his lips machined their way through. Perhaps Will felt too lonely to be observing his best friend doing all of that.
There was an instance when Will had returned exhausted from working out with Lucas. He'd decided to take a hot shower, and watch some movie before going to sleep. Unfortunate for him, that plan was ruined. He walked in, only to witness Mike being sucked off on the couch. At least it was under a blanket. He wanted to throw up regardless. Mike shifted his gaze from the ceiling to Will, who dumbfoundedly stood at the door. He'd let his eyes hover from Will's hair, to his chest and stomach, further down to his shoes, then go back to his face. Heavy pants escaped his mouth as his dark eyes shot through Will's hazel ones.
Will's breath thinned. But at the same time, something about Mike's expression made heat pool in his stomach, and further down. The way Mike lazily stared, refusing to break eye contact. He panted with each tick of the second-hand of the clock. Will's throat bobbed and he rushed to the bathroom.
He'd had enough. He decided to confront Mike about it. He slammed the door to his room open, to find Mike lazily sprawled across his untidy bed, a hand on his forehead. Will took a minute to take in the sight of his room.
A lot of his clothes were on the floor, his typewriter looked dusty and unused, and smelt like sex. His eyes lingered further, only to pause at at the wall. His painting. Where was his painting?
In place of the painting stood the American flag pinned at the corners. Will seethed through his nose, but he knew that wasn't the most important thing right now. He closed his eyes and took a breath, turning to Mike.
"Mike."
Mike hummed.
"Mike, listen."
Mike opened his eyes.
"I...I don't care about who you're having sex with, or-- or making out with, or anything, for that matter. But please keep it inside your room. I don't wanna enter the apartment to see some random girl sucking your dick. I live here too. You need to respect that."
"Well, you never really are in the apartment, so how's that my fault? You spend half your time living somewhere else. It doesn't even feel like you live with me anymore."
Will let out a cold scoff. He cannot be fucking serious right now.
"Well, I'm actually busy doing stuff unlike you, who's not spending all the time inviting girls over like a horny bastard, so sorry if I'm not usually there."
Mike flinched. His face hardened, his eyebrows slightly furrowing. He looked hurt.
Will didn't mean to hurt him. He opened his mouth to say something, but Mike beat him to it.
"Fine. I won't do it again."
November1992
He'd kept his mouth shut for three months now. Every time Mike's name came up, he felt a ball of nausea trying to escape his throat. He had to tell someone. After his date with Jay the previous night, Mike hadn't come back home. While Will missed his presence a little, a wave of relief hit him at the fact that he didn't have to face the other, and that he'd get peace for a night. He couldn't be bothered less. The next morning, he grabbed the opportunity of Mike's absence to slip out of the apartment before the latter returned. His legs found their way to Lucas and Max's apartment.
"Will! Come on in," Max beamed, Will returning the same.
"Will's here? Hey, man! What's up? Everything alright?" Lucas came out of his room, looking a little breathless, as he wiped off some sweat off his forehead. "Was working out a little, heard Max say your name." Will gave a tight smile and nodded.
"Hey," Max slightly frowned, nudging his elbow. "Are you fine?"
Well, it was now or never. He nervously fiddled with the hem of his sweater. "Um, I need to talk to you guys about something." Max and Lucas glanced at each other and back to Will, gesturing him to the couch.
"WHAT?!" They exclaimed.
Will rubbed his forehead, sighing in defeat. "Yeah. Three whole months."
"And...this is...like almost...everyday?" Lucas' nose wrinkled, his lips curling downward.
"Well, not everyday, but I mean, I've lost track, honestly."
"And he's avoiding you, too?" Max questioned. Will nodded.
"It's like he's hardly there. He doesn't wanna indulge in conversations with me, and whenever I try to, he just seems like he wants to run away. I tried to talk to him about this. Asked him if he was okay. But he just chose to be mean about it. I don't know what changed. This is really not like Mike."
"Does he...know that you...you know. Liked him?" Lucas gently asked, as to not come off strong in his words.
"I think so? I mean...he had an idea since I came out, I guess. And also after he got to know the truth about my painting. But it doesn't matter anymore. He doesn't wanna talk, and he's made it pretty clear. I mean after our talk yesterday, he made sure to be louder the same night. Real mature of him. Oh- and also, they all look like the first girl he had sex with. He probably formed a weird connection with her. I don't know."
Max blinked. Her mouth parted, as she whipped her head to Lucas, and back at Will.
"Wait. Let me get this straight. You're telling me, that Mike brought in another girl last night? Who looks like-"
"-Amber," Will nodded.
"Amber..." Max sneered.
"Wait- so- he was extra loud just for fun and to piss you off 'cause he knows you despise the noise?"
Will shrugged. "I shouldn't have shouted at them to keep it down that night. And, with them specifically sounding like dying dolphins also having sex, precisely, yes, he does that to irritate me." Lucas pressed his lips as to control his laughter. He slid it as a cough instead.
"Mike is the kind of person who'd annoy you at the wrong time. I don't know. Maybe that's just me," she pinched the bridge of her nose.
The room fell silent for a few minutes. He looked at Lucas, who was either deep in thought or zoned out. Max looked around.
Will didn't blame them. That was a huge load of information to process.
"I got it," Max suddenly looked up. "What?" Lucas asked.
"Why don't you do the same? Give him the taste of his own medicine," Max slyly grinned. "I mean, if his goal is to annoy you, so should you. Oh my god, I remember pulling this shit with Jane when we were fourteen."
"What? What do you mean?" Will raised an eyebrow, only for realisation to dawn upon him the next second. He went still. "Wait, you don't mean-"
"Invite someone to annoy the hell out of Mike Wheeler?," Max shot them a smirk. "Exactly."