thinking about people who view bychance as a stepping stone for bylr, which is obviously not my journey, I raise you the alternative of bychance in which Chance fully believes that this is the case. Chance who truly thinks he is just a distraction for Will since Mike is straight, but he is so hopelessly in love with Will that he will take it because he's willing to accept anything to have Will in his life. Chance dating Will and being the happiest he's ever been and doing everything he can to make Will happy, all the while believing the moment Mike has a bicurious crisis he's getting dropped because he is just a consolation prize--Chance who honestly feels sad about this because Will deserves the best possible prize, and that must be Mike because they've been friends for so long and Mike has always been the leader and he's never strayed from doing what's right for fear and peer pressure, not like Chance. Chance who has come to terms with the idea he was never what Will wanted, just what happened to be available, and he will stay available as long as Will needs him to because that's still more than he ever thought he could get. Chance who knows Will dreamed of a knight in shining armor and knows that can never be him--a knight rebels against bad orders, a knight doesn't hide behind other people, a knight doesn’t lower his head and looks away from what's wrong because he's too scared to become a target. Chance who sits down and learns the rules for D&D anyway, because he loves the excited look on Will's face as he explains them. He will be a fighter and not a paladin, and he starts to write down a backstory with such seriouness, brow furrowed because he wants to create a good character to play alongside Will and Will is so creative, Chance can't half-ass something, because spending time with Will is so valuable and important, who would ever squander an opportunity like this? And he misses the big heart eyes and fond smile Will is giving him across the table, which is good because if he saw it a dumb part of him might feel a little hopeful, and he knows there's no point in that.
