written by ℳina ♡ , mike wheeler 𝔁 f! reader | wc 1138
🪻 synopsis as hawkins faces another looming threat, mike grows distant, consumed by his secret fight against vecna, leaving you confused and hurt by his sudden absence.
labels & warnings breakup, angst, emotional confrontation, secrecy, love & loss, intense emotions, arguments, heartbreak, kissing
there’s a certain kind of quiet that only happens when something is wrong.
you notice it in the way mike doesn’t call anymore, not like he used to, rambling about nothing and everything at once, his voice warm and familiar, grounding you after long days. now, when the phone rings, it’s short. clipped. hurried. he always sounds like he’s halfway out the door, like you’re catching him in between something important.
something more important than you.
you try not to think like that. you really do.
at first, you tell yourself he’s just busy. school’s been hell since everything in hawkins went to shit again. half the town still looks like it’s recovering from a nightmare no one wants to talk about. curfews are tighter. parents are stricter. everyone’s on edge.
and mike wheeler, your boyfriend, starts to feel like someone you’re borrowing time with instead of someone who’s yours.
you’re lying on your bed, staring at the ceiling, counting the cracks you’ve memorized since childhood, when you hear your bedroom window slide open. the cold air flowing inside your bedroom. you don’t jump. you already know it’s him.
❝you’re late,❞ you say quietly, not even turning your head.
there’s a pause. then the soft thud of his sneakers hitting your floor.
❝i know,❞ mike says. his voice is tired. deeper somehow. ❝i’m sorry.❞
you sit up slowly, pulling your knees to your chest. when you look at him, he’s standing near your desk, backpack slung over one shoulder like he might bolt at any second. his curls are messier than usual, dark circles blooming under his eyes.
and that almost makes you let it go.
❝you said you’d be here at eight,❞ you reply. ❝it’s almost ten.❞
you swallow. ❝something always comes up, mike.❞
he sighs, running a hand through his hair. ❝y/n, please-❞
❝no,❞ you interrupt, standing now. ❝i’ve been asking you for weeks. what’s going on with you?❞
and you see it, just for a second, the fear. not guilt. not annoyance.
❝nothing’s going on,❞ he says quickly. too quickly. ❝i’ve just been busy.❞
you laugh softly, but there’s no humor in it. ❝busy doing what?❞
it stretches between you, thick and suffocating.
❝mike,❞ you whisper. ❝i’m not asking to interrogate you. i just want to know.❞
he looks at you then. really looks. like he’s memorizing your face. your eyes. your mouth. like he’s already preparing to lose you.
❝i can’t tell you,❞ he finally says.
that hurts more than if he’d lied.
your chest tightens. ❝you can’t or you won’t?❞
❝i can’t,❞ he repeats, firmer now. ❝it’s… it’s not something i can share.❞
❝because it’s dangerous.❞
you blink. ❝dangerous? mike, listen to yourself.❞
❝i am listening!❞ he snaps, voice rising before he can stop it. ❝that’s the problem.❞
you flinch, and he notices immediately.
❝shit❞ he mutters. ❝i didn’t mean,❞
❝you don’t trust me,❞ you say softly.
he looks devastated. ❝that’s not true.❞
❝then why won’t you tell me anything anymore?❞ your voice cracks. ❝you used to tell me everything. every stupid thought, every fear, every plan. i never had to ask.❞
he opens his mouth. closes it. his jaw tightens.
❝things are different now,❞ he says.
he steps closer, lowering his voice like the walls might be listening. ❝because if i tell you, you could get hurt.❞
your heart stutters. ❝mike-❞
❝i can’t let that happen,❞ he says, eyes shining. ❝i won’t.❞
something inside you snaps.
❝you don’t get to decide that for me.❞
he recoils like you slapped him.
❝you heard me,❞ you say, tears burning now. ❝you don’t get to choose what i can handle. you don’t get to shut me out and call it protection!❞
❝i’m trying to keep you safe!❞
❝from what?❞ you cry. ❝from your life?❞
❝i feel like i’m losing you,❞ you whisper. ❝and you won’t even tell me why.❞
❝then why does it feel like you’re already gone?❞
❝because i don’t know how to be both,❞ he admits quietly. ❝i don’t know how to be your boyfriend and… this other thing.❞
he shakes his head. ❝see? i can’t even say it.❞
your hands tremble at your sides. ❝i show you all of me, mike. all the ugly, messy parts. i let you in every time you knock. and you’re standing here telling me there’s a whole part of your life i’m not allowed to touch?❞
❝it always is,❞ you say bitterly.
the silence that follows is deafening.
outside, a siren wails in the distance. hawkins never really sleeps anymore.
❝i love you,❞ mike says suddenly, desperately. ❝doesn’t that count for something?❞
tears spill over. ❝love isn’t supposed to feel like this.❞
he steps forward, reaching for your hands, but you pull back.
❝don’t do that,❞ he whispers.
❝i can’t keep pretending i’m okay,❞ you say. ❝i can’t keep waiting for you to come back to me when i don’t even know where you’re going.❞
❝i always come back,❞ he insists.
he swallows hard. ❝are you… are you saying?❞
you close your eyes. ❝i don’t know who we are right now. and that scares me more than being alone.❞
❝maybe…❞ he starts, voice breaking. ❝maybe this is for the best.❞
the words feel unreal. like they don’t belong to either of you.
❝maybe,❞ you echo, even though it feels like you’re carving out your own heart.
he nods slowly, like if he moves too fast, he’ll fall apart.
❝i never wanted to hurt you,❞ he says.
❝i know,❞ you whisper. ❝that’s what hurts the most.❞
he steps closer again, careful this time, like he’s approaching something fragile.
you nod before he finishes.
his hands cup your face, thumbs brushing away your tears like he’s done a hundred times before. when he leans in, the kiss is everything you’ve been holding back. desperate, aching, full of all the words you’ll never get to say.
you cling to him, fingers digging into his jacket, memorizing the feel of him. the way he kisses you like he’s afraid this is the last time he’ll ever be allowed to.
when you pull away, your foreheads rest together.
❝i’ll never forget you, y/n.❞
he leaves through the window the same way he came in.
but this time, he doesn’t look back.
he doesn’t even shut the window closed.
you sit on your bed long after he’s gone, the quiet settling in around you again. different now. heavier.
because this time, it’s real.
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