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The group was running—Will, Mike, Max, Dustin, Lucas, Steve, Nancy, Jonathan, Robin—were running through the Upside Down, chased by Demos and Vecna. As they ran deeper into the woods, Mike and Will got separated from the group, ending up at the quarry—Vecna walking towards them as the two boys now stood 20 ft away from the ledge.
“I told you, Will Byers, you can’t escape me.” Vecna said, his voice deep, terrifying, and sounding like it was being dragged through gravel.
“Will, where do we go?! What do we do?!” MIke yelled, panicked as Vecna came within 10 ft of them, slowly coming closer.
Will stood there, his eyes brimming with tears that looked silver in the moonlight.
His voice was a broken whisper, his eyes looking at Mike and Mike realized, this was the end after all, “We can’t do or go anywhere, Mike. He has us trapped, for good this time.”
Mike looked at him, his facial expression shocked at Will who was now just giving up after all they had been through together.
“William Byers, why don’t you tell him your secret?” Vecna mocked, his face curling into a evil-like smile, his body glowing crimson, red in the silver moonlight.
Mike turned to Will, his face showing confusion and shock. Will didn’t hide any secrets from him, did he?
“Will, what is he talking about?!” Mike asked, his voice a urgent, panicked tone as he watched as Will turned towards him with his eyes brimming with tears.
“Please, if I tell him, do you promise to spare him?” Will asked Vecna pleadingly, ignoring Mike’s questions.
“I’ll consider it, William. But first you need uphold your part of your deal.” Vecna replied smugly, his eyes watching Will like a hawk.
“Do you promise?” Will asked in a broken whisper, his eyes finally going back to acknowledge Mike.
“Will? What is he talking about?! What are you talking about?! You can’t just sacrifice yourself! Not for me. Please, don’t leave me!” Mike said frantically, his eyes darting back-and-forth from Vecna to Will, not understanding what was happening.
“ANSWER ME! Do you promise?!” Will screamed at Vecna, his voice cracking as he stared back at Vecna.
“Yes, William. But you must tell him before I kill you.” Vecna responded, now 10ft away from Mike and Will.
“WILL?! What is he talking about?!” Mike asked for a third time, his eyes scanning Will as he saw Will looking back at him sadly now.
“Mike, do you really want to know?” Will asked in a whisper, the tears cascading down his face silver. His whole frame shook with held back sobs, his brown hair messy from their run.
“Will? I want to know what’s happening!” Mike pleaded, as he saw Vecna tilt his head and come so close he was only 8ft away from them now, and as he saw the scared and sad tears falling down Will’s face fall down more violently now.
“William, you’re running out of time.” Vecna mocked from a distance.
“Mike…I have something I need to tell you before it’s too late.” Will whispered, as he turned to face Mike, who was now staring at him pleadingly.
“Will?” Mike whispered.
“Mike…I…I’ve loved you since we were kids!” Will sobbed out, “I’m so, so, so sorry. I didn’t mean to fall in love with you. I tried to tell you multiple times and that’s why I was so upset when you started dating El. I love my sister but I was so jealous of her because I was upset that I had to share you now. I wanted you to love me, not her. And I’m so, so, sorry you had to find out this way. I never meant any harm, Mike. Please, forgive me.”
Before Mike could even process any of what Will had just said, Vecna raised his hand, causing Will to also lift in the air.
Vecna started closing his hand slowly. Mike heard Will’s limbs snapping with sickening *snaps* and *cracks*. As Will was raised into the air, blood started streaming from his eyes and mouth.
“Mike?!” Will wheezed.
Before Mike could even process or respond, Will’s neck snapped.
Will’s broken and lifeless body fell to the ground with a dull *thud*. His body was bloody, and his eyes! His eyes were gone, now just bloodied, hollowed out spaces. His limbs all at the wrong angels.
Mike collapsed to the ground, his heart tightening in his chest as his eyes started pouring out wet, hot tears.
“Will!” Mike screamed, his voice too loud in the now silent world.
Mike moved closer to Will’s broken, bloodied, and lifeless body, his hands shaking violently as he grabbed the dead body, his own body racked with broken keens and wails. Mike grabbed the body and put Will’s cold face against his shoulder, not caring that blood was getting all over his shirt.
Mike looked up brokenly at Vecna, who was now walking away from him with rage and grief consuming him.
Mike let out a loud, violent wail as wet, hot, and broken tears streamed down his face.
# ***Chapter 2***
“MIKE?!” Will asked in a panicked yell, noticing Mike was behind the group as they were all walking into the Squawk at midnight. They had all just gotten back from another crawl and the only ones left outside were Nancy, Will, Dustin, Robin, Jonathan, Steve, El, and Hopper.
Everyone turned to see what a very much alive Will was yelling about, when their hearts sank into their chests.
Mike’s eyes were milky-white and streaming scared, tears. His frozen face was a mask of sadness and fear. His body was stuck in a standing motion, unmoving besides the quivering lip he had and the tears streaming down his face.
“MIKE?!” Will yelled, sprinting over to a frozen Mike.
Will started shaking Mike, trying to pull him out of the painful illusion, but was unsuccessful. Mike was frozen in terror, his eyes still streaming tears as Will shook him.
“Oh my god!” Nancy yelled as she dashed over to Will, who was still unable to shake Mike out of the illusion.
“How did this happen?!” Hopper yelled, trailing behind El as she also ran over.
“Does anyone know his favorite song?!” Steve asked frantically.
Nancy shook her head, but Will’s face lit up as he remembered Mike’s favorite song.
“His favorite song is ‘Take On Me’ by a-ha!” Will shouted at Steve, as he continued to try and shake Mike out of the illusion, but was still unsuccessful.
Steve nodded and him, Robin, and Dustin ran inside to see if they could find that song and something to play it on.
“I’m gonna try and go into his mind to get Vecna out. I need everyone to stay quiet so I can focus.” El ordered as she sat in the grass and closed her eyes in concentration.
Hopper pulled Will back and they both watched, hoping that it wasn’t too late for Mike.
p># ***Chapter 3***
As El went into Mike’s mind, she felt his mind resisting, not liking the intrusion.
“C’mon, Mike, just let me into your mind.” El grumbled as she finally entered his mind forcibly, but not seeing what she wanted to.
Instead she saw visions…no memories. Mike’ memories of when he was younger and was happy and played in Castle Byers with Will. Memories of when Mike and Will made their DND costumes and characters. Memories of sleepovers at Mike’s house with Will. Then, El saw memories that made her gasp.
The memories were the ones Mike had never told anyone about. A younger Mike was getting screamed at by Ted Wheeler over a shattered plate by younger Mike’s feet. Memories flashed over El. Memories of being slapped by his dad. Memories of getting screamed at and memories of when Will was possessed. El saw a final memories that shattered her heart. She saw memories of what happened in Lenora and saw through Mike’s eyes, how Will looked.
Through Mike’s eyes, Will was perfect and beautiful. El saw more recent memories of Mike, a long in his bedroom, going through a big binder of drawings, Will’s drawings. As Mike looked over at them, he was quietly crying, his face a mask of guilt, fear, and sadness. She saw an even more recent memory of Mike, leaning on a bathrooms sink, holding a tissue to his nose, and opening a bottle of Advil.
El watched these memories, wondering why she couldn’t get to Mike, but could get to his memories. She hadn’t ever been able to do this before, so why now?
“What are you trying to tell me, Mike?” El whispered, as she saw more horrible memories of Mike and his dad.
Finally, the memories stopped showing, leaving El in front of Mike, or at least the mental apparition of Mike.
This Mike was holding a broken, dead body, who El realized as she got closer was Will’s. She realized this was the illusion. El went deeper into Mike’s mind and finally got the full illusion.
Mike was holding Will’s broken, bloodied, and lifeless body in front of the quarry in the Upside Down. He was sobbing and screaming words that El could just barely make out. Finally, she was able to make out what he was sobbing.
“Will! Will! Will, I’m so sorry! We could’ve fought! We always do! Why did you tell me you loved me then got yourself killed? Not when I couldn’t even react in time to tell you I’ve felt the same since that summer, when we fought in the rain.” Mike sobbed, his voice breaking as he pulled Will’s dead body closer.
El stood there, shocked, realizing something she had never noticed. Mike loved Will, really loved him and apparently had never told him in real life either.
“Mike!?” El said, but still unable to get through to him, the illusion too strong, even for her powers.
El exited his mind, seeing as she was unable to do anything about the illusion.
El opened her eyes, wiping her bloody nose as she stood up to face Will, Hopper, and Nancy.
“The illusion is too strong for me to get to him. I’m sorry. I could’ve but I don’t have enough strength to try again. I need to recharge first, before I try again.” El sighed, her voice tired as she looked at Will slightly different, still struggling to process all the memories Mike’s brain had shown her.
“Wait! I can access the hivemind, and since Vecna is apart if the hivemind and has trapped Mike in a illusion, I should be able to get to that illusion and break it.” Will yelled, looking around for approval from Nancy, El, and Hopper.
‘”I don’t know, Kid, that sounds dangerous, even for you.” Hopper argued disapprovingly.
“Please, I can’t lose my best friend, Hopper.” Will pleaded.
Hopper nodded and El gave him a weird look but he ignored it, walking back over to Mike, who was still frozen in terror with tears streaming down his face.
Will closed his eyes, concentrating as he accessed the hive mind. He saw Vecna’s illusion and he started dismantling the illusion. He saw Mike, sobbing over a broken, dead body but Will didn’t know whose or why Mike was crying so much over the body but he figured it was probably one of his family members, it couldn’t be him? Could it?
Will opened his eyes and saw Mike’s frame collapse to the ground, sobbing with his head in his hands. Will dropped to his own knees, ignoring the pain of the gravel and wrapped Mike in a giant hug, feeling Mike put his face on his shoulder.
“Shh, it’s ok, Mike. Whatever you saw happen wasn’t real.” Will soothed, holding shaking and sobbing Mike in a right embrace.
“It felt so real though, Will.” Mike sobbed from his shoulder, his whole frame trembling from terror and his body racked with sobs.
“It wasn’t real though, Mike. It was just a illusion made by Vecna to trick you.” Will reassured him, feeling Mike sit up from off his shoulder and wipe his face with his sleeves, sniffling as he stood up.
Nancy ran over to Mike, and wrapped him in a extremely, tight embrace.
“Mike! I was so worried. Are you okay? Are you hurt? What did you see?” Nancy asked after she hugged Mike, and started checking him for any cuts or scrapes.
“I’m fine, Nancy. And I don’t wanna talk about what I saw.” Mike said, pushing himself away from her and standing up like a wobbly giraffe.
“Mike—” Nancy started, but stopped when she saw Mike stumbling towards the inside of the Squawk.
“I’m going to go inside now. I’m fine though, Nancy.” Mike yelled, stumbling inside even though his voice trembled.
“Go with him, Will.” El ordered, her voice firm as she finally processed what the memories she had seen meant.
“But, he said—” Will replied.
“Go. Now, Will.” El commanded firmly, knowing that if Mike kept what he had seen private, it would destroy him mentally.
“Fine.” Will grumbled as he walked inside, going to the roof because he knew that that was was were Mike typically slept at the Squawk.
Will opened the hatch and finished climbing up the ladder. He saw Mike crying quietly, his head in his hands, and his frame shaking, until he turned and saw Will, and quickly acted like everything was fine and he wasn’t just crying.
“Mike? Were you just crying?” Will asked, taking a seat across from Mike.
“No!” Mike’s voice trembled brokenly.
“Friends don’t lie, Mike.” Will stated.
“Fine, yes. Yes, I was crying, Will. But what does it matter to you?!” Mike snapped.
“Why are you acting like this, Mike?” Will questioned, annoyed that Mike was being rude even though all Will wanted to do was hug him and make him feel better.
“Because…because I saw you die and you confessed your love and then you died and I couldn’t even tell you that I loved you too. That I always have and was just too scared to say anything. I wasn’t quick enough to stop you from sacrificing yourself for me and then Vecna threw your body at my feet and I couldn't even stop it and I couldn’t even…” Mike’s voice broke as his eyes welled with tears again.
Will’s eyes widened. Mike loved him. The Mike he had loved since as long as he could remember, loved him back.
“Mike?!” Will reached his hand out and lifted Mike’s chin up.
Mike’s eyes flashed with confusion until his saw Will scoot closer and lean in, planting a passionate, affectionate kiss on his lips.
Mike’s hands flew into Will’s hair and Will’s hands went to the side of Mike’s face and and hair, kissing each other’s lips like dying men.
Mike pulled away from Will for a second, looking deep into Will’s brown eyes.
“I love you so much.” Mike breathed.
“I love you so much too, Mike.” Will replied softly, pulling him back into a passionate kiss.
And that’s how they stayed, kissing under the night sky until dawn, realizing they both loved each other and had been too scared to say anything to one another.