Love Me (Like He Loves His)
Micheal the Brave x William the Wise
Mike Wheeler x Will Byers
I do not own these characters
| When Micheal and William get transported to strange new world, they come face to face with their doppelgängers. There's only one difference about these boys that stand out to them and they make it their mission to fix it before they head home. |
Mud splashed up as Mike’s heavy boot fell into it. The ground almost vibrated as he ran through the forest. Fairies lingered by the trees, watching him as he sprinted with determination. The sword on his belt clattered against his thigh, the shield on his back weighing him down. But nothing could stop him at this moment, neither a root nor a bear. His dear Will was back at camp, bleeding out from an ogre attack. He clutched the red berries in his hand. They were said to heal whomever ate them.
He finally came to a stop at the edge of the clearing they had set up camp in. Dustin was bent over Will, applying pressure to his wound as Lucas did his best to distract Will from his imminent death. Jane was on the other side of Will, holding his hand. Mike could hear his own heart beating, the blood pumping through his body with a quick ferocity. He never believed he would see the love of his life, fighting for his own life. Mike had always planned to die first. It had been a topic often discussed between the two. Will was allowed to mourn him, to honor him, but never allowed to be the first to go.
“Will..” Mike whispered, walking closer to the boy on the ground. He knelt down, taking Will’s free hand in his. Their fingers intertwined but Mike couldn't tell whos hand it was that was shaking with intensity, though he was sure it was his. “Will, oh my sweet Will.”
There were tears in Will’s hazel eyes. They glistened in the sun which was already setting slowly behind the trees. “Mike,” he croaked out, his voice laced with pain and fear. His hand tightened around Mike’s as Dustin pressed an alcohol-soaked cloth to his wound. He sharply inhaled, wincing slightly at the cold biting touch. Dustin muttered a slight apology, hating to put Will in more pain. Mike looked to Dustin, Jane, and then to Lucas, signaling his want for a few moments alone with Will. They understood immediately and made up some excuse to go find wood for a fire.
After the others had left, Mike sat down next to Will.
“I have the berries,” Mike said.
“And you’re sure they’ll work?” Will asked.
Mike was silent for a moment before responding, “of course they will.”
“But if they don’t-”
“They will.”
Will took somewhat of a deep breath, more of a painful inhale. “But if they don’t, I– I need you to promise me something.”
Mike looked away, tears pooling in his own eyes. The thought that the berries wouldn’t work and Will would die was almost too much to handle. He didn’t want to promise anything, he didn’t want to act as if there would be an after Will. But despite his clear avoidance, Will continued.
“I need you to promise me that you’ll move on. Promise me that you’ll take Dustin and Lucas and Jane and continue the journey. Bury me here, visit me, but move on. Please.”
Mike almost immediately shook his head. There would be no moving on, not for Mike. Dustin may grieve, Lucas may spiral, Jane would cry, but they’d eventually be okay with Will living only in their memory. Mike wouldn’t. He couldn’t.
“Will, don’t speak that way. The berries will work, you will survive.”
Will understood that there would be no convincing Mike to say his goodbyes. He reached out, his weak hand shaking due to his blood loss. His hand wrapped around Mike’s other hand, taking the berries from him. Their eyes were locked, never looking away. Neither of them wanted to look away in case this was the last moment they had together. Before Will could bring the berries to his lips, Mike leaned forward, pressing his mouth to the brown-haired boy.
The kiss was sweet, gentle. But it was almost desperate. Like Mike was memorizing how Will’s lips felt on his. They both eventually pulled away; both were out of breath, Will more so.
“I love you, Will the Wise.”
“I– I love you more, Mike the Brave.”
Will took half of the berries, placing them back in Mike’s hand.
“You should have some too. You’re still injured,” he whispered, looking down to the hole in Mike’s armor that had been caused by a blow from an arrow. The arrow had only grazed Mike’s skin but he was still scraped up, nonetheless. Even in death, Will was worrying about others. So Mike nodded, agreeing to have some too.
They both took a breath and a quick gaze into each other's eyes before placing the berries in their mouths and swallowing. Nothing happened for a moment. Will’s injury still bled and pulsed and Mike’s injury still spread a red hue across his skin. But seconds later, they both groaned, their stomachs wailing and their heads spinning. Will was the first to go limp, his head lolling off the pillow and onto the ground, his hand dropping from Mike’s.
“William–” Mike was cut off by stars clouding his vision before falling backwards with a soft thump.
Jane and Dustin walked back into the camp, arm in arm, with Lucas trailing behind them, carrying an armload of branches and fallen wood. The wood fell to the ground as the three halted.
“Where’d they go?” Jane asked, her arm falling out of Dustin’s.
“I don’t know,” Dustin responded. He never didn’t know.
Mike had been showing Will his new D&D figures. They had recently arrived and he was trying to convince Will to paint them for him. But Will needed no convincing, he would do anything for Mike if he only asked. The two had decided to migrate downstairs, wanting to play games on Mike’s new Nintendo console. Their feet padded down the stairs and only when Will turned the lights on, did they gasp. Two people, dressed up, were lying on the floor of the basement. One, who looked awfully familiar to Will, was groaning, blood seeping through the bandages that were tied around his naked torso. The other, who was an exact copy of Mike, was still out cold.
The two, though confused, couldn’t find it in themselves to question it too much. They had both seen things over the past few years that would send anyone normal into a panic state. Mike seemed to regain his thoughts the quickest, his socked feet padding across the floor over to the Will lookalike.
“I think he’s breathing! We need to get him an ambulance!” He said, his breath quick and his face flushed.
Will could only look at the doppleganger of Mike. He had a scar across his cheek, freckles on his nose, and wild black hair. That was Mike, all right. He kneeled down next to the mysterious boy, reaching out and brushing the hair out of his eyes. This Mike and his Mike slept the same. With such exhaustion that even a nearby freight train wouldn't wake them.
Mike had gone over to the phone on the wall, dialing 911. Will was lost in his own imagination as he knelt there next to the other Mike. He wondered where these Will and Mike had come from. He wondered if they were friends, or– more than friends. He wondered if they traveled the world together, if they loved each other loudly.
“Will.”
He wondered if they slept under the stars together.
“Will.”
He wondered if Mike and him could go to that world.
“Will.”
Will finally turned his head to see Mike trying to gesture him over. His hands were hooked under the other Will’s armpits.
“Grab his legs, we’re going to carry him upstairs. The ambulance will be here by the time we get up there,” he said, a quiet determination in his voice.
Will only nodded. Thankfully, Karen and Ted had left for a weekend trip, so they didn’t have to worry about explaining why the boys had copies of themselves and why one of them seemed to be fatally injured. Will walked over, grabbing the boy’s legs and lifting as Mike lifted his shoulders and head. It took them approximately 7 minutes to get the boy up the stairs. They were both relatively weak, their nerd arms not able to lift much. And this Will, well he seemed to be pretty well built. By the time they made it up the stairs, the ambulance had pulled into the driveway and paramedics were knocking on the door.
“Will,” Mike said.
“Hm?” Will hummed, looking up.
“Go downstairs and stay with the.. other one. I’ll take him to the hospital,” he gestured to the other Will.
Will had gone quiet. He couldn’t find it in himself to talk much during stressful situations, let alone think about what to do next. So he only nodded, trusting Mike to tell him the right thing to do.
He walked back down the stairs as his Mike got into the ambulance with the other Will. When he reached the bottom of the stairs, his eyes widened as he realized the Mike with a suit of armor on was no longer laying on the floor. He rounded the corner and was immediately pushed to the wall, dagger pressed to his throat.
“What did you do with Will?!” Mike yelled, his cold metal armor pressing against the other boy.
Will couldn't respond, he didn’t know how to.
“Tell me!”
“T– they took him to a hospital,” Will finally managed out, fear gripping at his throat where the sharp dagger was pressed.
“What is.. hospital?” Mike questioned, not letting up.
“A place of– of medicine. You know, bandages, medicines, that stuff?”
The other Mike finally pulled away, sliding his dagger back into the shaft on his belt. He glared at Will, his eyes narrowing, “you’re no threat to me, you’re weak. But how come you look like William?” he asked, still on edge and seemingly irritated.
Will didn’t have an answer for the boy. How could he? He’s never experienced anything like this before. Though, who has?
“I.. I don’t know,” he responded. He was hesitant, his hands fidgeting, his thumb pressing into the middle of his palm. Another thing he did when nervous.
The other Mike had started to pace, as if it would help him come up with an answer. He stopped, his eyes drifting to the table set in the middle of the room. He walked over and picked up a piece of paper that had been lying in the middle.
“Why do you have this?” he asked, turning to Will and holding it up.
Will quickly walked over, taking it out of the boy's hands, almost possessive over it. “It’s just a picture I drew for our campaign,” he responded.
“Campaign?”
“Yeah, for D&D– uh– Dungeons and Dragons. It’s just a silly game,” he said, trying to play it cool before he embarrassed himself in front of this Mike.
“This is my home,” Mike responded, pointing to the picture.
“What?”
“This is where we live,” he said slowly, as if Will was dumb and didn’t understand what he was saying.
Will’s chest started to hurt. What did he mean? They came from their game? Or– there was some universe where their characters existed? It was too much to think about. His fingers gripped the paper, crumpling the edges a bit as he stood by the stairs, frozen. Weak breaths escaped his nose, molars grinding together in his mouth.
“Sir?” Mike asked.
Will didn’t respond. He felt dizzy and he couldn’t form a coherent thought.
Without being prompted, Mike walked over, taking the paper and placing it on the stairs. He grabbed Will’s hands as their eyes met. Will automatically started matching Mike’s breathing. His head cleared a bit, his body relaxing from its stiff position. His own Mike would do this with him too, calm him down like they had all the time in the world.
Once Will realized what was happening, he pulled his hands away, wiping the sweat onto his jeans.
“How did you know to do that?” he asked, avoiding eye contact with the boy.
“My Will does that too,” he said, “you know, being silent. Breathing is the only thing that helps. Well, that and Perriberry’s,” he laughed.
Will could only assume that Perriberry’s were some kind of fruit in their land. He exhaled, sitting down on a step of the stairs, his hands still slightly shaking.
“Good to know we’re friends in every universe,” Will said, smiling slightly.
“Friends? Ha! Will and I aren’t friends,” he responded.
Will’s heart fell. “What?”
“Will is my husband,” he said matter-of-factly.
Will froze again, tears quickly brimming in his eyes even if he didn’t completely understand why. To think, in another universe, Mike and him were together. Like, actually together. And married even. For a moment, he seemed confused. This Mike and Will only appeared to be a year or two older and they were married? But, societal norms must be different where they’re from, so Will didn’t spend too much time thinking about that.
“Are you and your Mike fighting? Is this the reason for your reaction?” Mike asked, completely clueless.
Will shook his head, wiping his tears on his sleeve as they fell. “No. No– Mike, he uh.. He doesn’t even know I like him,” he said.
Mike sat one stair down from Will, placing his hand on Will’s knee to which Will looked up, meeting his brown eyes.
“Oh darling, you must tell him,” Mike said.
The name caught Will off-guard. He dreamt of being called things such as that by Mike, but he never thought he’d hear it. Even if this wasn’t his Mike, he still wanted to commit the sound to his memory.
“I– I can’t–” he started, before the basement door swung open.
“Will! What’s going on?” Lucas asked, standing at the top of the stairs with the rest of the party. Mike must’ve reached out to them over their radios.
“Is that-?” Max started before El came to the front, smiling when she saw Mike.
“Mike!” she said, quickly walking down the stairs and wrapping her arms around the black-haired boy who had just stood up. She pulled away but kept him in her arms and started to laugh, “what are you wearing?”
He stepped back, pushing himself away from her. “Jane, what are you–”
She seemed taken aback by the name, realizing that this wasn’t her Mike. She cut him off, “you’re not Mike.”
He shook his head. “Well, my name is Mike. But no, I’m not the Mike you all know,” he said, clarifying.
Everyone had gathered downstairs at this point. Dustin was examining Mike like a science experiment while Max and Lucas whispered to each other.
“How fascinating. His physical form is real, his conscience doesn’t seem to be combined with Mike’s. How did you get here?” Dustin asked, circling Mike and observing every little detail.
“I’m not sure. We both ate these berries. They were supposed to heal us but we awoke here,” Mike said.
“Us?” Jane asked.
“Will and I. He is at what your friend calls a hospital.”
All of them turned to Will, looking for some kind of clarification of what the hell was going on. Unfortunately, he didn’t have much to go off of either. “Mike and I were coming down to play on the Nintendo and we saw them lying on the floor. His Will was injured so Mike called an ambulance and went with him to the hospital while I stayed here with this Mike. We don’t know how they got here but so far it appears that they came out of our campaign or.. a world that's like our campaign? I don’t really know,” he rambled.
“And now we’re here?” Max clarified.
“Well, actually, we also discussed–” Mike started.
Will grabbed Mike’s arm, pulling him to the other side of the stairs with a hurried panic.
“You can’t say anything. Not about Mike, not about your Will. Mike and El–Jane–they’re together, they’re– dating.”
“You mean Mike is courting Jane?”
Will nodded, pushing down his emotions like he had learned to do so well since they were only kids. He had accepted a long time ago that Jane and Mike were meant to be together. Well, he never accepted it. But he learned to live with it. He learned to be happy for them. Jane was his sister, Mike was his best friend, he should only be happy that they’re happy.
“That’s odd. Jane is Will’s sister where I come from. I couldn't imagine dating my lover's sister.”
“We’re not–!” Will hushed, realizing he had gotten quite loud. “We’re not lovers. And we never will be.”
“Well, you won’t if that’s your attitude about it. Do you love him?”
Will’s eyes went wide. Love him? Love Mike? You mean the Mike he’s spent his whole life with? You mean the Mike he would sacrifice himself for? That Mike? There was no doubt about it, no question.
“Of course I do,” he whispered. For a moment, hope fluttered in his chest before the crushing weight of reality slammed back down. “But– that’s not how it works here. Boys can’t.. love other boys.”
“But you do.”
Will paused, looking at Mike. “I do.”
Before Mike could respond, they were interrupted by the group walking over to them.
“Sorry to interrupt, we’re all very curious, are we in your world too?” Max asked.
Mike examined them all for a moment before nodding. “You, you, and you are,” he said, pointing to Jane, Lucas, and Dustin. “I’ve never seen you before though,” he looked at Max.
Her shoulders dropped and Lucas looked at her before hooking his arm in hers. “Well, you should find her. I can’t imagine any version of myself being happy without Max,” he said, looking back to Mike.
Mike only nodded, clearly still observing those who stood in front of him. Versions of his husband and friends that simultaneously seemed nowhere near the same to the versions he knew yet exactly alike.
Jane, curly shoulder-length hair and a sweet smile.
Dustin, a hat instead of a helmet and a smart brain.
Lucas, protective with constantly observing eyes.
And then of course, Will. Same nervous disposition, same quiet nature, same short breaths, same way about him that makes him so easy to love. Though, their hair was a bit different. This Will had hair that seemed to be cut in the shape of a bowl. His Will had hair that was messier and a bit longer.
Mike was sitting next to Will’s bed. He was quiet, his knees bouncing as he fidgeted with the hem of his shirt. He never thought he’d have to be worried over two Will’s. His was back at his house, he never should’ve left him behind. What if the other Mike was dangerous? What if Will was in trouble? He could only hope that the party had made their way over to the house by now.
With this Will still asleep, Mike had a moment to think to himself. The room was quiet, aside from the buzzing of the lights and the occasional beeping from machines. Will slept the same as his. Quiet, soft breathing. Slight twitches and a sleep so light that a pin drop could wake him. It was weird, looking at the face of his best friend who actually wasn’t his best friend.
When they arrived at the hospital earlier, it took only about an hour for them to patch up Will. They cleaned the wound, prescribing antibiotics for the infection, and stitched him up. Mike wondered if Will would’ve died if they hadn’t been sent here. Mike couldn’t imagine his Will dying. Mike couldn't imagine any version of Will dying.
He broke out of thought when he heard a light groan coming from the boy in the bed. His eyes fluttered open and he looked over to Mike.
Mike’s breathing became heavy. A memory from when his Will was in a hospital bed just like this one seemed to resurface in his mind. The way Will looked at him, scared, looking for safety. It was exactly the way this Will was looking at him now.
“Mike? Where– where are we?” Will asked, sitting up quickly to which he winced and grabbed his side.
“No no, lay back down–” Mike said, standing up and holding Will’s shoulder to lay him back down on the bed. There was no fight from Will, he just did as Mike said, probably still under the impression that this Mike was his Mike.
“I uh.. I’m not the Mike you think I am, I mean– you’re Mike is back at my house with my Will,” he said, shaking his head while realizing this virtually makes no sense when said aloud. He sat back down and put his head in his hands, sighing.
Will only looked at him before leaning over, lifting Mike’s head up and running his finger over his cheek. “You don’t have the scar,” he said.
But Mike couldn’t hear Will’s words. He was distracted by the soft touch on his cheek. He longed for his Will to show him physical affection like that. But every time he seemed close, he would always pull away. Mike had convinced himself that Will didn’t feel safe with him, that he didn’t think he was allowed to show such affections. He cleared his throat and quickly stood up, if only to halt the heat that seemed to crawl up his face and hands.
“The doctor said you’ll be fine. Just a light wound, not too big of a deal. You do have to take some medication though for the infection,” he said, now avoiding getting too close to the bed.
“Where is your ring?” Will asked.
Mike looked at him, incredibly confused. “Ring? What ring?”
“From your Will,” he somewhat clarified. He reached over to the bedside table, taking the gold ring that the doctors had taken off and sliding it back onto his ring finger. “Mike found mine after we beat a dragon. There were a million rings in that cave but.. he found the perfect one for me. You should've seen our wedding–”
“Wedding?”
Will looked at Mike, noticing his now tense nature and shallow breathing.
“Are.. are you guys not married?” Will asked, confused.
“What? No! We’re still in high school and– and I don’t like Will like that. I mean, sure, we’re close but.. I’m dating El! And– and– and dating boys as a boy is off-limits, we don't do that here,” he quickly got out, now standing across the room with his arms crossed.
“El? You mean, Jane, my sister? Well, Will’s sister? You’re courting Will’s sister? What is wrong with you?” Will asked, now adjusting himself to be sitting up against the pillows stacked on his bed.
“There’s nothing wrong with me. Besides, El is only Will’s sister by adoption.”
“So you’re telling me you don’t love him?”
“Well– of course I love him! As a friend.. you know, like– friendly love and stuff. I don’t love him like– like– like a– like a boyfriend.”
Will couldn't imagine there being a universe in which Mike didn’t love him. In which they weren’t destined to be together. So he sighed, annoyed and put-out. He had to be lying, Mike had to be lying.
“Tell me, Mike, how do you feel when you see another boy talking to Will?”
“Annoyed, obviously. He’s my best friend, I should be the only one he comes to for stuff. I just– I want to be the only one that makes him happy.”
“If you could choose an evening with Jane or Will, who would you choose?”
“Jane, duh. I mean.. I don’t know. I think I’d prefer to hangout with Will. But only because he’s a boy and understands me better! I mean, he knows everything about me. And– and I only ever want to really hangout with him because.. well– he just gets me, you know? And he knows how to make me feel better and what sets me off and– if we could live together for the rest of our lives and never have to marry girls and go our separate ways, I’d be happy–”
“Mike,” Will said.
“Yeah?” He responded, looking to Will with wide eyes and shaking hands, “holy shit. I think I love him.”
“Glad you figured that out. Now, I really need to get back to Mike and get home, can you help?”
“Uh– yeah, yeah, of course.”
Mike left the room for a moment before coming back with a wheelchair. A nurse had asked him where he was planning to take the boy and he made up some fib about the both of them needing fresh air. He helped Will into the wheelchair and they headed out of the hospital. It took only about 10 minutes to walk home, 15 minutes due to Mike pushing Will along with him who was much more muscular than his Will.
Will, the other Mike, and the party were sitting on the floor of the basement, exchanging stories of their individual lands. There had been multiple points at which Mike had insisted to leave and go find Will but the party knew that he would be arrested the moment he stepped into broad daylight. A sword on his hip, a dagger in his sheath? This town was already skeptical enough of those playing D&D, they’d have a fit if they actually saw someone dressing up as a character. So they distracted him with simple tales and stories about high school.
The door opened and closed upstairs and within seconds, Mike had opened the basement door and was helping Will walk down.
“William!” Mike stood up from the floor, running to meet Will at the bottom of the stairs. His arms wrapped around the boy before he leaned forward, kissing him.
The reactions were priceless. Max and Lucas gasped, Jane and Dustin looked at them and then looked at each other. Will smiled, happy for Mike. Mike frowned, jealous that the two of them seemed openly in love with one another.
“Micheal, how are we getting home?” Will asked, pulling away from the kiss with fear etched into his face.
But Mike only smiled, reaching into his pocket and pulling out red berries. “You know I always take more than I need,” he said, smiling at the boy before handing him some of them.
Before they ate the berries, Mike excused himself and walked over to Will as the party fanned over the other Will and his hair.
“Tell him,” Mike said. That’s all he said.
Will, on the other side of the room, turned to Mike and whispered, “tell him.”
The two boys met in the middle of the room again.
Lucas interrupted as they were about to put the fruits in their mouths. He put his hand on Mike's shoulder.
“Find your Lucas his Max,” he said, turning to Max and taking her hand in his, “they need each other.”
Mike gave a polite smile and curt nod. Will looked at Jane who was standing next to Dustin.
“In our world, you and him are.. what you call, dating. I think you’re a better match anyways,” he said, smiling as if he didn’t just make the two of them blush and step farther away from each other.
Mike and Will finally turned to each other, smiling and nodding before consuming the berries. Nothing happened for a moment but then they visibly got light on their feet, their bodies swaying. The party excused themselves, almost as if this was an intimate moment that they shouldn’t be here for. Mike fell back and Will caught him, gently laying him on the ground. Mike did the same for Will.
Will took a deep breath and grabbed Mike’s arm, pulling him to the side of the room. He had the confidence to do it now, he didn’t want to wait.
“Mike, I– I have to tell you something,” Will mumbled, his hands fidgeting and his breath shallow.
“I have to tell you something too,” Mike responded, grabbing Will’s hand to stop them from shaking.
“Okay.. uh.. on three?” Will suggested.
Mike nodded.
“One..” Will started.
“Two..” Mike said.
“Three..” They both ended.
“I love you, William Byers."
“I love you, Micheal Wheeler.”
Neither of them seemed to be expecting to hear it from the other. Their eyes met and their hands stayed clasped together.
“Mike, I–”
“Don’t say anything.”
They both looked to the middle of the room, now empty of any other people, including the other Mike and Will.
As Will looked back, Mike was already looking at him. He watched as Mike’s eyes traveled downward before he finally leaned in and kissed him.