Chapter Text
The air was cool as Will and Mike pushed their way through the sea of students at Hawkins Middle School, all eager to get home. Will had crashed his bike the night before, and as the tears welled up in his eyes, Mike had promised to take the bus with him until it could be fixed. The bus engines roared, hot smoke billowing out above them.
“C’mon, we wanna get good seats.” Mike said.
Will followed along a step behind, when suddenly a large boy with an even larger backpack cut in between them. Scrambling, Will reached for Mike’s arm, but the space between them kept growing, and his fingers shut around thin air. “Mike!”
Mike turned, stopping abruptly. “Will, are you okay?”
As he spoke, a girl pushed roughly past him, “Can you guys keep it moving?”
Will felt the familiar sensation of tears beginning to form, pin pricks in his eyes. He could feel his cheeks warming as his ears began to ring. Will had never liked taking the bus. The side doors by the bike racks were never as crowded as the hall doors leading to the buses. He had noticed at an early age that too many people around had a negative effect on him. All the bodies pushing and mulling about made him feel squished. He didn’t like to feel squished if he could help it.
Trying to find a way out before the tears began to fall, Will turned and pushed his way inside, making a beeline for a nearby bathroom. He tried to catch his breath, which was admittedly quite difficult what with the lingering cigarette smoke from the eighth graders who tended to skip last period. Grabbing a paper towel, he wiped off the sink counter and sat down. The tears were hot and heavy, coming down fast.
“Will?” Mike turned the corner and walked slowly toward him.
Will glanced up at him, eyelashes wet. “Sorry. I just…”
“Overwhelmed?”
“Yeah.”
“That’s okay! Do you want me to try and call my mom? I bet she could come get us.”
Will looked down at his feet. Dustin had stolen his left sneaker the previous night and drawn a somewhat accurate D20 on the rubber. Will shrugged.
“Do you… wanna just sit here for a bit?”
A moment passed. Will nodded, meeting Mike‘s eyes briefly.
“Cool.” Mike smiled as he pulled himself up onto the counter beside him.
Will was acutely aware of the distance, or lack there of, between them. Their thighs were pressed together, their arms brushing, their shoulders bumping. Mike’s hands rested in his lap, and Will felt a burning desire to hold them in his own. They sat there pressed together for a few more moments before Will, drained of energy, let his head fall onto Mike’s shoulder.
“I’m sorry.” He whispered, voice shaking.
Mike draped his arm over his shoulder, rubbing his arm soothingly. “It’s okay, Will. I promise.”
Will had to admit, though having a breakdown in front of Mike was incredibly embarrassing as a concept, and quite literally the stuff of his nightmares, the actual thing wasn’t so bad. He wrapped his arms around Mike’s waist, and hugged him tightly.
“Thank you, Mike.”
Mike paused before wrapping his arms firmly around Will. He rubbed his back, and ruffled his hair.
“Always. C’mon, let me call my mom.”
Pulling himself down from the counter, Mike grabbed his backpack and turned to Will, holding out his hand.
Will took it, an indiscernible blush creeping up his face, and hopped off the counter. He let Mike’s hand hold his for just a moment longer than it needed to before pulling away and grabbing his bag.