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Mike woke up with a start. He blinked his eyes trying to unblur his vision. He could barely register where he was. The light from the small window shined on the rest of the dark basement. He was on the couch. He tried to sit up and felt like his head was being sawed in half. ‘I will never drink again,’ he muttered to himself. He walked over to the bathroom and filled a glass with water and took some Advil. He looked at himself in the mirror. Dark circles around his big eyes, which seemed unfocused and blurry. His hair messy, his clothes from yesterday haphazardly on. He was leaning on the sink trying to let the cool porcelain bring himself back to reality when he heard the sounds of someone else down in the basement with him. He looked out of the bathroom and saw Will, on the floor, asleep near the couch.
He was so tired and out of it he didn’t even realize Will was down here with him. Dustin, Lucas, and Max were also here he noticed, sleeping on the other side of the room.
What happened last night?
—
They had gone to Stacy’s party after dinner. Dustin and Will convinced them. Well, they really only had to convince Mike. Max and Lucas were just happy to be together so they didn’t quite care where they were.
They got there a little after 9 p.m. It felt like the whole school was there. Mike, of course, wished he was anywhere else with his friends. But he saw how happy Will was and let himself be uncomfortable with these people he graduated with for one night. He wouldn’t have to see them again after all.
Stacy pulled Dustin away to talk, Max and Lucas grabbed a drink and headed to another room. Which left Mike with Will. They headed to the kitchen and grabbed red cups from the counter.
“I’ve never drank before,” Will said, his eyes looking over the options.
Mike knew that, and also knew Will didn’t really ever want to drink because of Lonnie.
“We don’t have to,’ replied Mike, a hand on Will’s shoulder.
“Maybe just for tonight, we only graduate high school once,” Will responded, choosing a bottle of vodka. He poured himself some and added some juice after.
“Do you want the same?” Will supplied, holding the bottle over Mike’s empty cup.
“Sure, whatever you’re having,” Mike said, holding his cup steady as it was filled to the top.
—
Mike looked around the room. He wasn’t sure how the five of them got back last night and managed to get themselves downstairs and asleep, but he wasn’t going to question it. He walked back over to the couch, lying back down and pulling the blanket over himself. He was not getting up until this headache was gone. He turned to get comfortable and saw Will perfectly in his line of vision.
He looked comfortable, safe, at peace. Mike felt glad for that. He selfishly hoped Will wouldn’t have to go through anything ever again. He knew that wasn’t realistic, but he couldn’t see him in pain or upset any more. He couldn’t.
Everyone was softly snoring. Mike checked his watch. 8:00 a.m. He needed to get more sleep, he had no idea when they got back the night before. He shut his eyes and willed his head to feel better.
—
After they got their drinks, they went back into the living room. Stacy’s parents' house was huge. Everyone was talking, dancing, and drinking in every corner. There were caps and gowns strewn about and in the center of the room, Dustin was dancing with Stacy. Mike would make fun of him for that later.
They walked over to a half-empty couch to sit down.
“I’m glad you decided to come, Mike,” said Will, smiling.
“I’m just happy you’re having a good time,” replied Mike, hitting Will’s cup with his own and taking a long drink.
They sat like that for a little while, people-watching and talking about their classmates. Their thighs brushed together from having to sit so close on the couch and Mike was reminded of earlier that evening.
They had finished Mike’s D&D campaign and Mike was telling his stories about all of his friends, when he felt something brush his leg. He ignored it, and it happened again, this time, up his thigh. When he looked up, Will was looking at him with this expression he’s sure he hadn’t seen before. What was that about?
“Mike, did you hear what I said?”
“Sorry, what was it?”
“I asked if you wanted to dance, I know it’s a long shot though,” said Will, his eyes searching Mike’s.
“Uh, sure, yeah, you know I can’t really dance though.”
He let himself be dragged up and pulled into the middle of the room by Will. He just wasn’t good at dancing. But Will was, it seemed. He knew exactly what to do and when, his body just seemed to move intuitively. If you looked at this from the outside, it would be Mike standing there holding their drinks, watching Will dance his heart out. He was okay with that. He tried to join in and sway with the music, but he was a writer, not a dancer. Will seemed to be an artist in every medium, though.
—
Mike couldn’t fall back asleep. He tossed and turned. Dejected, he sat up slightly rubbing his eyes. The movement of the couch made a noise and Will’s eyes opened.
“Mike?” Will said, voice hoarse.
“Sorry Will– shit. I just couldn’t fall back asleep, I didn’t mean to wake you. Go back to sleep, I’ll try to be more quiet.”
“Mike, do you want to come down here?”
“What?”
“I have all these blankets under me and it’s actually pretty comfortable,” Will whispered, lifting up one end of the blanket covering him.
Mike thought of a reason not to. Then he moved and the spring of the couch dug into his hip.
“Okay, make room for me, Byers.”
—
Will got tired from dancing at some point and headed back into the kitchen for another drink. Mike followed and made sure Will didn’t fall when he rounded the corner and almost slipped on the linoleum, someone’s drink spilled and left there.
He smiled at Mike, filling up their drinks again.
“I need to pee, will you come with me? I don’t want to get lost,” Will said, his hand gripping Mike’s bicep.
“Of course,” said Mike, letting Will grab his hand and guide him yet again around this too big house full of people he didn’t care to interact with.
They went upstairs, reaching an unoccupied bathroom. Will walked in and shut the door as soon as Mike entered.
“Okay, turn around, please,” said Will in a sing-song voice, setting his drink on the edge of the sink.
Mike turned, checking out the hand towels.
He turned around after he heard the toilet flush and the water running to find Will staring at him with that unreadable expression from earlier again, this time with slightly less focused eyes and a smile.
Mike mirrored that same smile and took a step toward him. “What?”
“You don’t even want to know,” said Will, also taking a step forward.
“Of course I do, I want to know what you’re thinking,” Mike replied, putting his hand on Will’s shoulder to balance him, or maybe to balance himself. The drinks were strong, he wasn’t sure who needed steadying more.
“Hmm,” was all Will said, before he attempted to fix his hair in the mirror, out of place after dancing so much. Mike’s gaze lingered on Will, but he didn’t press further.
—
Mike got off the couch, bringing his pillow with him. Everyone was still asleep so he whispered as he spoke, facing Will as he slid under the blanket.
“Do you remember last night?”
“Mostly, do you?”
“Not really, just that we went to Stacy’s party and we all somehow ended up back here in one piece.”
Will made sure the blanket was fully over both of them before tucking his head back into the pillow. “I think we called Steve and he brought us home. I remember Max and Lucas had to carry Dustin down the stairs,” Will quietly laughed at that.
Mike smiled, tucking his head into his pillow too. “I do remember that I still have to make fun of him for how he was dancing with Stacy.”
Will rolled his eyes.
“I woke up earlier because I had such a bad headache.”
“Is it gone?” asked Will, his eyebrows furrowing.
“Mostly, I just feel super tired and don’t want to get up until I feel better.”
“Fine by me.”
—
They left the bathroom just as two of their classmates went in right behind them. Will looked at Mike and grabbed his hand again, now leading him somewhere else for the third time that night. Mike didn’t mind, of course. They ended up in what looked to be a very large bedroom. Will closed the door after Mike was inside and locked the door.
“Will?”
—
Mike had dozed off, or maybe he hadn’t fully yet. He felt a gentle pressure on the sides of his forehead and opened one eye to see Will leaned over him, rubbing his temples.
“Will– what?”
“Shhh I’m fixing your headache so you can sleep.”
Mike didn’t say another word, but he did appreciate his headache melting away and Will’s soft hands on him.
—
Will sat criss cross on the bed, patting the area in front of him. Mike walked over and sat down, mirroring Will.
“I definitely wouldn’t be able to be doing this if I was sober, so I hope I can say what I want to, and I hope you listen.”
Mike sat, his eyes on Will, searching for some clue of what this could be about, his head buzzing from the alcohol.
“I don’t want to have any regrets before college, and what I’ve learned from all of this is that it’s better to say how I really feel, regardless of what happens.” Will took a sip of his drink before continuing.
“The person I said that I had a crush on– it was you, Mike. It’s always been you. I don’t want to freak you out, but I also don’t want to lie to myself anymore. It also wasn’t, sorry, isn’t just a crush. I don’t think it was ever just that.”
Mike’s head was now spinning, full of thoughts only alcohol could bring out, and also full of Will. He thought back. Was Will playing footsie with him under the table earlier? That couldn’t be right. He looked back even further– when Will came out he felt happy for him, but also another emotion he couldn’t name. Even further back still, he thought back to them in the back of the van. The painting. El in her letter to him saying Will was working on a painting for someone he likes.
—
Will had turned onto his side facing away from Mike. Mike was still facing him. He had nowhere to put his arm and was finally feeling comfortable in this position now that his headache was gone, thanks to Will. He gently placed it over Will’s hip, scooting his body closer. He felt Will shift slightly. He closed his eyes and finally fell asleep.
—
“Mike? Can you please say something?” Will worried his lip between his teeth, his hands tightly grabbing his cup.
“Uh– yeah, yes, I’m sorry.” He looked up into Will’s eyes then, softening his gaze.
“You know I’m not good at expressing how I feel about real life stuff, so bear with me, please.”
Will nodded, putting his cup on the nightstand, now toying with the frays in his jeans.
“I think I always knew, at least partly, even if I didn’t let myself linger too long on thoughts like that. What I didn’t know until now is how I felt about it. I’ve always wanted to be there for you, around you, and protect you. I thought how I felt is how people normally feel for their best friends. But I don’t feel the same way about Lucas, or Dustin. I don’t feel the same way about anyone as I do about you.”
Mike took another long sip of his drink before leaning to put it on the nightstand next to Will’s.
“I also don’t know what to do with it. Where to put it. These feelings.”
Will’s face was unreadable, again.
“I thought I loved El, and I did. But I loved her the way I loved my friends. I wanted to help her and be there for her and protect her, the same I wanted to do for everyone I cared about.”
“But how I feel about you is different, I realize that now. I felt something I couldn’t quite understand at the time when you came out to everyone, but now I know. I felt sad. Sad that I wasn’t there for you when you needed me, and sad that I was never going to be that brave to face myself the same way.”
Will’s hand was on Mike’s knee now. He continued on.
“But I think if you can share your feelings with me, I can too. If you can be that open about yourself, maybe I can too.”
—
Mike woke up, his face being tickled by someone’s hair. Will’s. Last night had started coming back to him and he let the memories wash over him. He grabbed Will closer. “Will? Are you awake? Do you want to go upstairs?”
“Sure,” he yawned, untangling himself from Mike and sitting up. They made their way across the basement, careful not to wake the others, and went upstairs.
—
“Well– how do you feel, Mike?” said Will, his eyes hopeful, searching.
“I feel like I want to be next to you every second I possibly can. I feel like I want to be the one you come to for all your problems. I feel like I want to make sure you sleep peacefully without nightmares. I feel like I want anything you’re willing to give. Which is how I’ve always felt, I know that. But under all of that is the feeling of needing to kiss you now, too.”
—
They walked into Mike’s room, able to get by everyone including his parents, Holly, and Nancy without any questions. They were both still in their clothes from the night before. Mike rummaged around in his drawers for pajamas for the both of them. They changed and got into Mike’s bed. Will sat on the edge, looking unsure.
“Come here,” said Mike, already under his covers thankful to not be on the couch or the floor anymore.
Will climbed in and under the comforter.
—
Will’s face was something Mike wanted to remember forever. He was about to lean in when there was a knock on the door. “Hellooo is there anyone in here?” It was Max’s voice.
Both Mike and Will jumped. “Yeah, it’s me and Will,” replied Mike. “Just a minute!”
Mike looked at Will, grabbing his hand. “Later,” he said. Will smiled and nodded, his eyes bright. They both got up and grabbed their drinks, attempting to make their expressions look as normal as possible after what they shared with each other.
He unlocked and opened the door, to a surprised Max and slightly drunk Lucas.
“Whatcha doing in here with Will, Wheeler?”
“Will and I were just talking, it was too loud down there. What have you and Lucas been up to?”
Lucas smiled, grabbing Max around the waist. “Just having fun,” she said, leaning back into Lucas.
“We were looking for you two. Dustin got way too drunk. We think we should head out, maybe stay at your house for the night? We called Steve to come pick us up and he begrudgingly accepted.”
“That sounds good, everyone can stay over, let’s go get him before he does something embarrassing.”
Max and Lucas headed down the hallway toward the stairs and Mike looked back at Will. He walked over, squeezing his hand. Will looked up at him, gripping his hand tight. They let go as they left the room, making their way down the hallway and down the stairs.
—
Mike was facing Will in his bed. The rest of the night came back to him. He looked down at Will's lips and back up again. Will was looking at him, looking only slightly nervous. They closed the little distance between them.
—
Mike and Will were useless when it came to Dustin. Lucas made it look easy, drunk and still able to keep Dustin upright. They said their goodbyes to the few people they cared to, and went outside. Steve was out front with his truck, leaning against it with his arms crossed.
“I hope you guys appreciate this in the morning,” he muttered, helping Lucas get Dustin into the front seat and buckled.
Lucas, Max, Will, and Mike made their way into the backseat after and shut the door. Max was on Lucas’ lap on the left, and Mike and Will were sat in the middle and on the right. They started driving back to Mike’s.
Will seemed okay, just fidgety. Mike subtly put his left hand in Will’s right. That seemed to help.
Soon they arrived back at Mike’s. They all piled out of the truck, thanking Steve as they did. Lucas and Max brought Dustin in and helped him down the stairs. Mike and Will followed. He got blankets and pillows for everyone out of the closet and they all made makeshift beds on the floor. Mike went to the bathroom and once he came back out, the lights were off and everyone was seemingly asleep. Not wanting to wake him, Mike tiptoed past Will and laid on the couch, his head swimming as he fell asleep.
—
Mike pulled back, looking at Will’s glassy eyes.
“So, you do remember last night then?” Will said, his hand hovering over Mike’s jaw.
“It came back to me.” Mike replied, his hand firmly in Will’s hair, leaning back in.