Anonymous asked: Can u do a fic, that just basically crocuses on Mike's thoughts during season 2, like he kinda knew he had feelings for will already?

10-29-84

Will's gone.

Will's gone, and Mike's heart feels like it's about to pound straight out of his chest. It's a little embarrassing, really, getting so worked up at such a little thing, but the last time Will was gone, he nearly died, so Mike thinks he has the right to worry at least a little. He tries his best to not baby him, because Will's not weak – he's probably stronger than the rest of them, having gone through a full week of hell alone and coming out on top. But, when Will just disappears without a word, Mike can't help remembering last November. He manages to slip out of the conversation with Keith, which was growing increasingly uncomfortable anyways, and he tries to tell himself that Will's just gone off to play another game, but even after multiple checks down every isle, there's still no sign of him. Okay, so maybe he's in the bathroom, he thinks, trying to push down the panic that's rising into his throat. But, of course, nothing there, either. Just his luck.

Okay, he'll admit it, he's kind of starting to freak out.

In the midst of his panic, he finds himself walking towards the front doors of the arcade. He doesn't really understand why, because it's not like Will's going to just leave entirely – oh, wait, scratch that, he sees Will. He's just… standing there? He's staring at something just past the sign for the arcade, but as far as Mike can see, there's nothing out of the ordinary. Oh, whatever, he thinks, pushing the door open.

"Will!" Mike's voice isn't loud by any means, but you'd think he'd screamed with the way Will whirls his head to look at him, eyes wide with fear. The look he's wearing isn't new by any means – Mike's seen it many times throughout the years, though it has definitely grown more common since the whole Upside Down incident – but Mike's breath catches in his throat nonetheless. He does his best to keep his voice from shaking and asks, "Are you okay?" It comes out a little bit breathless, but at least it doesn't crack halfway through the sentence like it has been lately.

Will turns back to the sky, and he starts shifting his weight from one foot to another just the way he always does when he's nervous. "Yeah, I just…" He's backing up now, confusion evident in his voice. "I needed some air." And while Mike really does want to know just what's going on inside Will's head, he trusts that Will will be able to reach out when he needs help. He's pretty sure he's made it clear that he's here for Will no matter what. He knows not to push.

Instead, he walks over to Will and slings his arm over his friend's shoulders. Mike's grown a little taller, and now Will slots perfectly under Mike's arm, but even before his growth spurt, having an arm around Will always felt like it fit just right. Being pressed up against Will has felt right ever since they were little, but Mike had never really payed much attention to it until a few years back. Since then, he's noticed his face gets warm when they're together that he never gets around the others, and after last year, he'd felt something similar around Eleven, but what he felt around Will was so much more intense. There's a constant thought swirling in the back of his head, and deep down he knows why his chest feels fluttery around Will, but he pushes it back, because he's only ever heard of boys liking other boys in the form of slurred curses from Will's so-called father and muttered words from his own at the dinner table. (His mom always gives his dad a warning glare, so Mike doesn't think she quite agrees with him (then again, his parents rarely ever agree on things), and Mike almost exclusively agrees with his mom over his dad, so he's really not sure what to think.)

He desperately fights down the blush threatening to rise on his face, especially because now is not the time, Mike! "Come on, you're up on Dig Dug," he says, and turns the two of them around, walking back into the arcade. For just a moment, he feels Will's hand brush against his back like he's going to hold him back, but then the touch leaves and Will's stuffing his hands into his pockets. He doesn't make a move to get out of Mike's hold, though, so Mike'll count it as a win as he ignores how his chest tightens. "Let's take back that top score, huh?"

10-30-84

Mike can see Will's face fall as soon as the principal says his name. He leaves, shoulders hunched, and they watch Will walk to the car. "You guys think he's okay?" Dustin asks, voice quiet and tender. He's usually loud without realizing it, but it's at times like this that he makes an effort to keep his voice low. Mike's not sure he'll ever get used to it.

Lucas' tone matches Dustin's when he answers, "He's always weird when he has to go in," and it feels just a little less weird hearing it from his weird (though, it still doesn't feel right).

"I don't know. He's quiet today." Mike doesn't look away from where Will's getting into his car. He's well aware that Will hates visiting the lab – Will had said so himself. He had told Mike that he hates being singled out, that he wanted to be treated like he's strong (and Mike can't help but feel like anyone who thinks Will's weak after what he went through needs to actually think about it, because it's so obvious to him and he can't comprehend how you could see Will as anything but strong), and the checkups really don't help with that at all. The doctor tries to treat him like a kid, and while that might have helped if Will were younger, he's thirteen, so it just ends up feeling like he's being seen as even more of a baby.

Mike can hear Lucas say from behind him, "He's always quiet," but he doesn't try to respond. Instead, he's watching the car drive off, and he can feel his lips twist up sourly. There's a bitter taste in his mouth and a pang of sadness in his chest, and in the back of his mind he thinks that maybe this means something, maybe he should think about why he feels like this. He brushes it off, though, because this is just a normal friend thing; he doesn't like boys, he doesn't like Will. He can't.

(He could. He might. It's probably not a normal friend thing, he knows that, but he's not going to say anything. Ever. Because boys aren't supposed to like other boys – not in Hawkins.)

i don't usually do multichapter fics so hopefully i can finish this!
requests are taken via tumblr william-bylers (or you can just come chat)