Chapter Text
Chapter 1: August 1990 - Chicago, Illinois
”Are you sure you have everything, Michael?”
Mike Wheeler closed the trunk of his car and turned around to face his parents. “Yes, I have everything. But if I do happen to forget something, Chicago is only a four hour drive away Mom, it’s not like I’m moving across the country!”
”I know honey, I just can’t believe that you are going to college! I am just so proud of you.” Karen Wheeler said with a soft smile, tears glistened in her eyes as she pulled Mike in for a hug. Mike gently wrapped his arms around her, still nervous to hug her too hard. It’s been almost a year since the demogorgon attack back in November. His parents have made a full recovery, the only evidence that the attack even happened are the now-faded scars on their bodies, but Mike still remembered how fragile his mother had looked in that hospital bed.
To this day, Mike still carried a lot of guilt for the way his involvement with Vecna and the Upside Down had hurt his family. It is part of the reason he decided to take a gap year before going to college. With Nancy in college herself, Mike needed to be there for his family. He needed to help take care of his parents as they recovered physically, and be there for Holly emotionally. It was hard for him to stay behind while the rest of the party left and moved on with their lives, moved on from Hawkins… moved on from him. But it was important to Mike that his family was healed, as much as they possibly could be, before he could move forward with his own life. He couldn’t believe that day had finally come.
Mike pulled away from his hug with his mom and gave her a soft kiss on her cheek. “I will be fine mom, I promise. I’m more worried about you guys!” He said with a casual laugh, though his eyes betrayed him as they filled with tears. He looked over to Holly who was standing next to their mom. She clasped onto the Holly the Heroic figurine necklace that she wore around her neck. The one he had given her not long before Henry took her. She hadn’t taken it off since.
“You did forget one thing Mike.” Holly said with a shy smile. She reached into her pocket and pulled out the Mike the Brave figurine and passed it to him. “Remember what you told me? Whenever you get scared or nervous, you imagine Mike the Brave by your side… because Mike the Brave is never scared.”
Mike laughed as the tears spilled over and ran down his cheeks. He quickly swiped them away. “When did you get so wise?” He chuckled while ruffling her hair. He gave her a hug and a kiss on the top of her head before standing up and giving his dad a quick side hug.
“Good luck, son.” Ted said awkwardly. Even after all they endured over the last year, Ted Wheeler still wasn’t a man of many words.
Mike gave one last wave to his family before climbing into the driver's seat of his 1979 Volvo 240, he had saved up for it while working part time at Melvald’s over the last year. Melvald’s needed a new clerk after Joyce moved away and Mike had been eager to work. The extra cash was nice, but he mostly enjoyed working at Melvald’s because it was an excuse to get out of the house. With high school done and the party no longer in Hawkins, he no longer had much of a reason to leave the Wheeler residence these days.
Mike turned the key to start the engine and slowly pulled out of the driveway, watching as his family and home faded into the distance of the rearview mirror. When he turned the corner and could no longer see his house, he looked away and popped a cassette into the aftermarket cassette deck that he had added to the car. The tape was one he had recorded himself, a mix of everything from Bowie to the Butthole Surfers. The opening beat of Smalltown Boy by the Bronski Beat started playing and Mike inhaled a deep breath and settled into his seat, mentally preparing for the long drive ahead of him. He watched as the familiar streets of Hawkins started to blur through his window as he passed by.
————————————
A few hours into the drive, the Chicago skyline started to creep into view and Mike felt the unwelcome bubble of nerves start to build in his stomach. When the party left last year for the University of Chicago, everyone promised to keep in close contact with him. The phone calls and letters were frequent in the beginning, but as time went on, the communication dwindled and the distance between them slowly grew. Although Max, Lucas & Dustin did come home for a bit during the summer break, Mike has not seen Will in over a year. Not long after the group graduated from high school, Hopper received a job offer for Chief of Police in Montauk, New York. Joyce, Hopper & El made the move not long after, excited to build a new life in a new city, one that won’t haunt them with the memories of all that had happened. Over the summer break, Will went to Montauk to stay with them. Mike was about to be reunited with the party, he was about to see Will for the first time in a year! He should be excited, he should be thrilled! Why was he so nervous?
Mike and Will are best friends, at least they were supposed to be. However, their relationship had taken the biggest hit over the last year. The distance felt reminiscent of when Will had moved to California a few years ago, the only difference being that this time, it was Will who barely called or wrote. Mike tried to write letters to Will frequently, determined to not make the same mistake as last time. However he rarely received a letter in return. There’s only so many unanswered letters you can send before it starts to feel pathetic, so he eventually stopped. He had better luck reaching Will over the phone, but even then, the phone would end up ringing incessantly before going to the answering machine more often than not. Mike was hopeful that their friendship could return to how it was before, now that they will be living in the same city again. I mean they were going to be roommates for christ sake! You cannot live much closer to each other than that.
During their last phone call, they made plans for Will to meet Mike at 2pm to show him where their dorm is located and help unload his bags from the car. Mike drove past the University of Chicago sign and eased the Volvo down the narrow streets of the campus. The late summer sun glinted off of the tall arched windows of the stone buildings, many of which had lush green ivy creeping up the sides of the walls. He passed by the quad where students were sprawled out on the manicured lawn, books open in their laps. He manually cranked down the window so he could fully take it all in, the sounds of the leaves rustling softly in the August breeze, casual chatter and laughter floating through the air. It felt like something out of a novel and Mike felt another pang of nervousness. He glanced down at the clock on the dash of his car, 2:15pm. Shit - He was late. He took a deep breath trying to steady his racing heart as he pulled into the parking lot Will had told him to meet at. He found an open spot and carefully maneuvered the car in.
That’s when he saw him — William Byers, leaning against a maple tree up ahead, a book in his hands. He was wearing a striped yellow and white t-shirt and dark blue jeans with a backpack slung over one shoulder. His hair was longer than Mike last remembered, with a slight wave, parted down the middle framing his face, one lock of hair hung in his eyes while he looked down at the book he was reading. Will hadn’t spotted him yet and Mike’s chest tightened as he looked at him, taking it all in. Will looked taller, more muscular and impossibly grown-up. How had it only been a year since they last saw each other? He gripped the steering wheel for a moment longer, fingers tapping anxiously against the wheel, reminding himself to breathe.
After a few grounding moments, Mike shut off the engine and opened the car door, feeling the August heat hit him as he stepped out into the sun. Mike started walking towards him, slowly, not wanting to seem too eager. Will glanced up from his book, looking around the quad for a moment before landing on Mike, their eyes locked. Will didn’t look away as he slid a bookmark between the pages of his book and slowly closed it. The quiet confidence in Will’s gaze made Mike’s heart skip a beat. It’s really you. He thought, You’re really here. And you’re…. different.
Will looked stronger, more himself than he had ever been back in Hawkins.
“Classic Mike Wheeler, showing up late and making me wait.” Will said.
Mike’s chest tightened and he forced a laugh as he stepped closer “I… yeah, sorry I’m late. The traffic was…” His sentence trailed off as he watched a small teasing smile form on Will’s face.
“Some things never change, huh?” Will said with a smirk.
Mike scratched the back of his neck, trying to play it cool. “Nope, some things definitely don’t.” But some things definitely do change too because who was this version of Will? Mike swallowed. “I… It’s really good to see you, Will.”
Will’s smile widened. “It’s good to see you too, Mike.”
There was a brief moment of silence where they held each other's gaze. Mike coughed awkwardly, breaking eye contact first and looking off to the side.
Will slung his backpack off his shoulder and placed the book inside. “Well c’mon, let’s get your stuff to our dorm, shall we?” Will said while retracing Mike’s steps toward the parking lot. Mike followed, glancing sideways at Will and noticing the easy way he carried himself, the confident way his shoulders were rolled back, the sunlight reflecting off of something buried behind his hair… was that a little hoop earring in Will’s right ear?
“Sweet ride, is this yours?” Will said as they approached the Volvo, running a hand over the hood of the car.
“Yeah, I finally saved enough for it last month.” Mike said bashfully.
“Of course it is Blue too, it’s so… you.” Will smiled as their eyes met again. Their gaze lingered on each other for another few seconds before Will broke the silence. “But seriously, Mike,” Will said, voice quieter now, “It’s really good to see you.”
Mike swallowed, emotions twisting in his chest. Without another word, Will closed the distance between them, opening his arms slightly, just enough for Mike to realize what was happening. Mike hesitated for a moment before stepping into it. The hug was tentative at first, but warm and grounding. Will’s shoulder was firm and strong under Mike’s cheek and for the first time in a year, Mike felt the weight of all the missed calls, unanswered letters and distance fall away.
When they pulled back, Will gave him a knowing smile, the one that had always made Mike feel seen. “Better late than never, right?”
Mike laughed, feeling a little overwhelmed and breathless. “Yeah… better late than never.”