build up a castle (fix the broken things)
Will thought returning Castle Byers would bring some closure… and it does, just not how he expected.
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He sat on the ground, staring up at what remained of Castle Byers. Broken boards, torn, tattered, and dirty blankets. None of it was cleaned up or packed away before they had moved to Lenora. Left behind in a rush to leave behind a haunted past. It was just a broken relic, a sad reminder of his life, before the Upside Down. Just as broken as his life after.
Really he should clean it up, leave behind no sign of it being there to begin with. He knew this. It would be best. But he couldn’t bring himself to completely remove the last reminder of his childhood. So instead, there he sat, frozen in broken memories.
Will was startled from his thoughts by the sound of crunching footsteps and a warm body coming to sit beside him. Gareth just offered Will a soft smile.
It takes a few moments to gather his words. “How did you know where I was?” Will asked, just above a whisper. He was late. They had made plans.
Their friendship had surprised Will. It had started with talking about the D & D sessions and their theories about where Eddie was going to lead the party in their campaign. But over time, they talked less about D & D, more about themselves, their families, music, and everything under the sun. Will was barely surprised when Gareth invited him to band rehearsals, even teaching him how to play the drums after everyone else left. If he didn’t have a crush at that point, he certainly did after. But their friendship was something that Will would cherish. He wouldn’t let his stupid crush get in the way.
One thing he appreciated was that they didn’t always need a plan, but just enjoyed spending time together. Yes, they didn’t always need a plan, but today they had one. They are going to Arthur’s Music to find some music to share. Or they were… until Will ruined it. He really hadn’t meant to lose track of time, but this place had a way of inviting.
“When I came to pick you up, your mom told me that you weren’t there, but I might find you here.” Gareth let out a short laugh, hand coming to rub the back of his neck, “Though, finding ‘here’,” he gestured, “was a bit of a challenge.”
Will swallowed and hesitated, feeling guilty. “I’m sorry. I lost track of the time, I guess.”
“It’s alright, man.” He took in the sad structure. “So… what is this place?”
“I,” Will paused, “I’m not sure anymore.” Gareth looked at him with soft eyes and confusion. After a breath, Will continued, “Sorry, that doesn’t make sense. I guess, well, it used to be my place. Castle Byers. A place I could come to be alone and safe. I used to come out here to read comics or listen to music or just think for a while.” He glanced down, unable to face the boy who was giving him undivided attention as he spoke.
After a moment of silence, Gareth’s voice was hesitant, “Can I ask what happened?” It was as though he wanted to give Will the chance to say no, to change the subject.
“I did.” Will took a deep breath before continuing, Gareth waiting patiently. “A lot happened. When I came back, after I was found. It was a long time before I came back here. I had a really bad day, one of the worst actually. Nothing felt like it could be the same anymore. I kinda lost it. I came out here with a baseball bat, and I just started swinging. And I kept swinging. Until Castle Byers was no more. Until it was just some wood.” His breath hitched. He hadn’t even realized that he had started to cry. Will looked away, embarrassed.
He felt a hand on his arm, and he turned back to see a sympathetic smile. He continued. “I guess I realized that things would never be the way they were before,” he gestured with his hand, “and, well, this was the last place that it felt like it could. I came here expecting some comfort but it just felt like it was mocking me with what was.” The tears settled into shaky breaths. “So I destroyed it.”
The silence felt too long, and not long enough. Like an eternity, and only a moment. “Sorry for ruining our plans.” It was almost a whisper.
The silence stretched out a bit longer before Gareth stood up, “New plan then,” he reached his hand out to Will.
Will raised his brow. “What do you mean?”
“Do you trust me?”
And wasn’t that a question. Despite the crush that he was choosing to (unsuccessfully) ignore, Gareth was an amazing friend. Their friendship was one that he could grow to be as strong as the ones he had with Dustin or Lucas, or even Mike. He never felt different or other around him. He could freely be himself without feeling like Gareth would fear that he would break or go missing or have some other tragedy occur. Gareth would smile at him and talk with him in a way that made him feel like he could take on the world, like he was a kid with dreams, like he could just be a normal kid. A normal kid with a stupid crush that was definitely going to be the end of him, but a kid nonetheless.
He looked up at the older boy with the most inviting smile and took a breath, a small smile of his own forming. He took Gareth’s hand. “Of course.”
Gareth returned an even brighter smile and helped Will to his feet. “Good, then we better get going.”
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I have not been able to get GreatWise out of my mind and there aren’t enough fics of them. Idea from this tiktok. I’ll post the rest when it’s finished!
Thank you to @laurenwhale and @ilovecupcakesandtea for being beta readers.
So.... I accidentally forgot about finishing this... the rest is in my google drive! It will be posted soon!
