Chapter Text
“Rear Guard. Come in, Rear Guard. Do you guys copy?”
The familiar voice of Dustin Henderson came through the walkie in pure static, barely audible over the music playing on the radio. Mike stole a glance at the walkie on the center console between him and Will, but Will went for it first. With Mike driving and Joyce warning them at least one thousand times to be safe on the road, Will knew better than to test their luck against the cruelty of the universe.
It was best if Mike kept both hands on the wheel.
Will pulled the antenna of the walkie high, the clunky device between his hands and his knees as his feet rested up on the dashboard. The end of the antenna tapped against the windshield with every bump in the road.
Mike reached to turn down the radio.
“Copy, Supply Car. This is the Rear Guard. Over,” Will answered, his foot tapping restlessly.
“We just passed some gnarly roadkill on the side of the road. Like, really gnarly. I’m talking brains and guts and everything. I recommend you roll up your windows to avoid the smell. Over.”
Will and Mike made faces of disgust almost simultaneously, but Will was the only one who noticed since Mike was careful to keep his eyes on the road. The way his eyebrows cinched in tight above his brows, right under the dark curls of his bangs, and his lips curled in disgust made Will smile to himself.
Mike had always been the type of person who struggled to control his expression. His face constantly had subtitles describing his every thought while they were growing up. Will learned how to read him years ago, which had always made their friendship so effortless and comfortable.
“Fucking gross,” Mike muttered, reacting for the crank on the door to roll up his window.
Will chucked.
Yep. That’s exactly what his face said too.
Will pressed the button on the side of the walkie. “And how come we didn’t get a warning from the Zoomers leading the charge? Isn’t that their job? Over.”
There was a pause on the channel, a beat of lonely static and anticipation, before Eleven’s voice broke through. “We don’t have our windows down. The wind messes up our hair and it’s too cold out anyway. We didn’t smell it.”
There was another beat of silence as Will accepted her answer with a shrug.
Those were all fair excuses.
“Eleven,” Dustin’s voice whined. “We’ve been over this. You’ve gotta say “over” when you’re done talking so we know when we can respond. It’s going to be a really, really long road trip if I have to keep reminding you. Over.”
Will snorted another amused laugh, both of his feet tapping happily now as he stared at the walkie, enjoying the familiar bickering of his friends.
It was pretty cold outside with the fall weather rolling in this time of year, which was partially why Will’s feet wouldn’t stop going. The more he moved, the warmer he stayed, and he really, really hated the cold. They were trapped in a car though. It wasn’t like he could go for a jog to work up a sweat or sit in front of a heater.
As long as he kept his toes wiggling, he could stave off the cold and the memories of Vecna and the Mind Flayer.
“It’s going to be a really, really long road trip if you don’t shut up and let us listen to Kate Bush in peace. Stay off the walkie unless it’s an emergency! Over,” Max bit out, her impatience clear in her sharp tone, despite all the static muffling her voice.
Will didn’t even have to be in their car to imagine Max tossing their walkie in the backseat and turning up the radio. She was predictable enough, but Will liked that familiar fire in her. Everybody in their group did. She was a badass and they’d all rather be victims to her wrath than sulking around her hospital bed, wondering helplessly when she’d wake up.
This was better.
Pushing the antenna back down, Will tucked the walkie between him and Mike.
“How long do you wanna bet before we get another completely unnecessary alert?” Mike joked.
Will smiled and shrugged, picking up his book again. “I don’t know. Half hour, maybe, if Dustin doesn’t want to drain the battery.”
“I’m betting 15 minutes.” Mike offered Will his hand, stealing a glance at him with a mischievous smirk.
Will dropped his eyes to Mike’s hand, moving quickly to grab it and seal their bet with a handshake. He felt his cheeks warm instantly at the contact, not because touching Mike was anything new or strange, but because his hand was so warm.
Warm. Soft. Bigger than Will’s.
The same hands that caught Eleven every time she fell. The same hands that shook him out of his trance every time Vecna or the Mind Flayer tried to take over.
Caring hands. Gentle hands.
Warm. Soft.
Will let go and grabbed his book, shifting awkwardly in his seat as he wondered if he held Mike’s hand too long. Suspiciously long. Or maybe he pulled away too tightly and made it awkward.
He was overthinking again.
“Wh-What do I get if I win?” Will asked, attempting to act as normal as possible.
They were best friends after all. A little crush wasn’t going to totally ruin their friendship. He could talk to Mike as easily as he could talk to Dustin or Lucas. It was no big deal.
“If you win? You’re that sure of yourself?” Mike teased.
Will fought the smirk tugging at the corner of his lips. “Yeah. When have I ever been wrong?”
Mike shot Will a look, both impressed and amused by his confidence. Will might have been a little quieter or meek than most, but Mike could give him credit that he was never uncertain. Especially after the Vecna and Mind Flayer situation, he always trusted his instincts and he was, admittedly, always right.
Mike couldn’t argue that. He trusted Will’s instincts too.
“Alright, fine. If you’re right, there’s an extra large slushie on me at our next stop,” Mike declared.
“That’s it?”
“That’s it?” Mike echoed in outrage. “Did you hear me say extra large? That’s 42 ounces of syrup on ice, Will.”
Will chuckled at Mike dramatics and decided not to fight him on it. Maybe he was a little greedy but he wanted to lobby for some free snacks too, but Dustin and Lucas had plenty of snacks in their car. There was no reason to make Mike buy more.
A 42 ounce slushie sounded like a great prize, even in this weather, because it would force Mike to put his pride aside to buy it. That was better than any prize.
“Which comics did you bring?” Mike suddenly asked, pulling Will from his thoughts.
Will’s brows furrowed. “What?”
“Which comics are you bringing to college? Your collection is almost bigger than mine at this point.”
Will shrugged. “I brought them all. They’d only collect dust with my mom and Hop and I figured they’d look better on a shelf in our dorm anyway.”
“Then if I win, I get to borrow any issue I want. Anytime.”
Will threw his head back with a scoff, rolling his eyes and dropping his feet from the dashboard. “What, Mike? That’s totally unfair! If I win, I get a slushie and if you win, you get unlimited access to my comics?”
“Sounds completely fair to me, Will. They’re gonna be in our dorm anyway. Just let me read’em when I want,” Mike insisted. “I’ll be careful with them, I swear.”
Will opened his mouth to argue with him, knowing Mike was a little less careful than some people when it came to… most things. He stopped himself though, because Mike was his best friend. He trusted him to some extent and it wasn’t even that big of an ask. He was right. The comics were going to be there anyway.
And how could he ever say no to Mike…?
“Fine. We already shook on it. I get a slushie and you get comics,” Will agreed.
Mike grinned, nodding in celebration and excitedly tapping his thumbs against the steering wheel. Will snorted a laugh at his quiet giddiness, because he really looked like a little kid trying to contain himself. It was oddly endearing.
How could Will ever say no to him when he was so… Mike?
Will couldn’t help himself from admiring Mike. His thoughts often trailed off before he could catch himself and he was stuck simply… admiring him.
Mike Wheeler had always been exceptionally handsome in Will’s opinion, but it never ceased to shock him as they got older that he just continued and continued to grow into his looks. Even after all they’d been through, his eyes never hardened. His gaze was always so soft and kind, just like his smile and his laughter. Just like when they were little.
Mike was just bigger now. Broader shoulders, a sharper jaw, towering height, toned figure.
Handsome. Warm. Caring.
How could anybody not be helplessly in love with him?
Mike reached for the radio, his sudden moment startling Will out of his thoughts. Will shifted awkwardly in his seat and flipped through the pages of his book to find where he left off. The pages were stiff but soft under his fingertips, effectively relaxing and distracting him from his embarrassing thoughts.
Mike stopped himself before he turned the radio back up, stealing a glance at his passenger. “What do you think?”
Will’s spine straightened with alarm and he felt his heart suddenly pound fiercely in his chest.
Had Mike noticed him staring?
“H-Huh?”
Mike’s eyes shifted to the book in a silent gesture of curiosity. “The book. What one is it? What do you think of it?”
Will stammered for a moment, his thoughts buffering in his panic in confusion before his eyes dropped to the book in his hands. He turned the book over, looking at the cover to remind himself what he was reading. He had been paying attention to it early, but with Mike showing interest, he suddenly forgot everything he had just read.
Maybe that was because they were only an hour into their journey and he hadn’t gotten that far into the story yet. Or maybe it was because Mike had a special talent for scrambling Will’s brain.
“Oh, it’s, uh… Ender’s Game. It’s good so far, I think. Lucas recommended it,” Will answered.
“How far are you?”
Will ran his thumb across the edge of the pages he had passed, his other holding his place between two pages so he didn’t lose track.
He loved the sound the paper made when he flipped through the pages like that, which only really reminded him of how much of a nerd he was. At least, his friends were too, so he didn’t have to be embarrassed about how happy he was to be indulging in a new book.
The smell of new books straight out of a library though… Nothing could compare.
“12 pages. Not far,” Will said.
“Want to read it to me?”
A sheepish smirk tugged at the corner of Will’s mouth, his feet anxiously tapping. “What, like… out loud?”
Mike shrugged, switching his hands on the wheel so one held it steady and the other rested on the console between them.
Will shamelessly stared at him, admiring his handsome profile in the sun and the way he looked almost… manly while sitting in that position. The guy was already attractive but there was something about that pose that made Will’s stomach flutter with giddy butterflies.
Oh man… He was really far gone, wasn’t he?
“Why not?”
Will blinked, trying to get his head on straight so he would stop ogling his best friend and just think.
“What about Bowie? You were listening to that,” Will said, nodding to the radio they had turned down to answer Dustin on the walkie.
A smile spread across Mike’s face as he gave another shrug. “It’s a three day drive, Will. We’ll have plenty of time to listen to Bowie.”
Will hesitated, suddenly feeling inexplicably nervous to read aloud to his best friend. Which was ridiculous, he knew that. He could craft entire D&D campaigns, do the silly voices of NPC’s, and read intricate monologues from the Big Bad they had to fight. That was silly and stupid, but for some reason it was so easy.
Maybe because Dustin and Lucas were always there. Something about it being just the two of them in this car, nothing but his voice to keep Mike entertained, felt strangely intimate.
Or maybe Will was overthinking it.
He did that sometimes.
“Uh.. Okay.” Will adjusted in his seat to get comfortable and flipped back to the first page, stealing one more self-indulging glance at Mike before he started reading. “Ender’s Game. Chapter one…”
-
“I already called dibs, Lucas! I have to pee more than you do! You’re being an asshole!”
Will clumsily dodged Dustin and Lucas’s fumbling bodies as they pushed each other out of the way to barrel into the gas station. Through the dirty windows, Dustin and Lucas argued animatedly over the key to the bathroom as they raced down the aisles.
Will watched with a shameful shake of his head, hugging his jacket tighter around him as the cool breeze blew over the top of the car and rustled his hair. As the sun set, the air was only getting colder and colder and Will couldn’t help but squint against the wind as he shivered.
He really, really hated the cold.
Max slammed the door of her car shut, tossing her wild, ginger curls over to one side. The anger and impatience she felt over this little pitstop was written all over her face and it was clear in her body language as she stuffed her hands in the pockets of her jacket and stomped over to Will.
“We’re not going to make it anywhere if we keep stopping like this,” she barked.
Will shrugged, leaning back against Mike’s car. “We all agreed before the trip; if one of us stops, so do the rest of us. No party members left behind or we’ll end up getting lost.”
“Then I’m making a list,” Max declared, her piercing blue eyes wild with passion. “Every time somebody calls for an unregulated stop, I’m marking it down. The person with the most marks when we make it to campus buys dinner for everyone.”
An exhausted sigh fell off of Will’s chest, but he couldn’t fight the smile that itched at the corner of his lips at how amusing it all was. He wasn’t at all surprised that Max was going to start penalizing their party members for unregulated stops. If anything, he was surprised one of them hadn't thought about that before they took off.
Another gust of cool wind blew through the parking lot, making Will shiver and grimace all over again. The tip of his nose and the apex of his cheeks tingled with the chill.
Looking at the horizon, Will could already somehow tell it was going to be a cold night. The sunset painted the sky in hues of orange and purple, but they didn’t feel warm. The sky was far too dull. The clouds were too thick. It was going to be chilly and it was going to be windy until the sun came back up.
“You’re shivering,” Eleven said from the passenger seat of Max’s car, one hand across the open window. She reached between her feet and showed a fleece blanket. “Want to borrow my blanket for the ride?”
Will smiled gratefully, but shook his head. “No, thanks, El. I’ll be fine as long as we keep moving.”
“No really, Will. I know how terrible the cold is for you.”
Eleven popped the door open, gathering the blanket in her arms and joining Max and Will. She offered the blanket but Will didn’t even bother pulling his hands from his pockets to take it.
“Seriously, El. I’ll be just fine.”
Will spoke quietly, because some part of him was still subconsciously a little ashamed of the hold Vecna had on him. It was a silly thing to be ashamed of, he knew that. None of his friends ever made him feel less than for being chosen and possessed by that psychopath, but sometimes he really hated acknowledging it.
Vecna had called him weak, after all. That’s why he chose him. No self respecting person would want to relive those memories if they didn’t have to.
“It’s not the same kind of cold,” Will whispered, reassuring the girl who felt more like a sister to him than a friend.
Max’s eyes bounced between Will and Eleven, the wheels turning in her head before it clicked.
“Oh, you mean… The whole “he likes it cold” ordeal,” she muttered, cringing awkwardly as she cautiously looked Will over. “You don’t feel that kind of stuff anymore, do you? The cold, the goosebumps…”
“No, I don’t,” Will insisted firmly. “I’m really not that cold. Keep the blanket, El. You’ll need it.”
Begrudgingly, Eleven accepted Will’s stubbornness and stuffed the blanket under her arm. There was still a hint of concern in her eyes that Will hated, because it felt like pity more than anything. His mother looked at him like that too.
He wasn’t a kid anymore. He wasn’t small and weak. He didn’t need someone watching over him and acting like he couldn’t take care of himself. If he needed something or he felt something off, he’d say so.
Will knew Eleven’s care and concern came from a good place though, which somehow annoyed him even more. He couldn’t be mad at her when all she was doing was caring about him. She was like a sister to him. Of course, she wanted the best for him.
“What’s going on?” Mike asked, skipping out of the gas station with a large to-go cup in his hand.
“Will’s cold,” Max answered casually.
Mike stopped in front of Will, his brows furrowing in that familiar way they always did as he looked his best friend up and down. Will almost laughed, because what was he hoping to see by looking at him so intensely?
Was he hoping to catch him shivering? Was he looking for signs of injury?
It was just ridiculous.
“I’m not cold. It’s like 40 degrees out right now. They’re just—”
“Good thing I decided against the slushie, then,” Mike interrupted, offering the to-go cup to Will.
Will blinked, trying to understand what that meant before he pulled his hands from his pockets and grabbed the cup. To his surprise, the cup radiated a soothing warmth that instantly chased away the cold prickling at his fingertips.
The warmth was so nice, Will almost moaned in delight as he cupped both hands tight around the cup.
“I know the bet was for a slushie. I’m fine still owing you one since Dustin made us stop, but I know you hate the cold. Hot chocolate just seemed more logical.”
Will looked up at Mike, blinking absently at him as he was completely lost in thought.
I know you hate the cold.
With everyone else, that sentence felt like an itchy tattoo permanently embedded across Will’s forehead for everybody to see. It was like having a big, humiliating, neon sign spelling out his weakness above his head.
He hated it. He hated when people brought it up. He hated talking about it. He hated that it happened.
With Mike though, his thoughtfulness was just that.
Thoughtful.
There was no concern, no pity, no suspicion. He just knew Will so well and he cared so effortlessly about him. Somehow it translated differently.
Maybe Will was biased, but he couldn’t help but feel the coldness at the very core of his soul warm and melt away at Mike’s gentle affection. Maybe it was how princely Mike seemed when he cared that melted Will. Maybe it was the familiarity and the comfort of it all.
What did it matter?
Will was whipped either way.
“What was the bet?” Max asked.
Mike tore his eyes off Will, rubbing the palms of his hands against his jeans.
“We bet on how long before Dustin made us stop again.” Mike made a bitter face. “I lost.”
“I’ll take that bet.” Max offered her hand to Mike, her smirk as cocky as ever. “Ten bucks says we're forced to stop again before morning.”
Mike snorted a disbelieving laugh, clasping his hand with Max’s and challenging her cockiness with his own. “I’ll do you one better. Midnight.”
Eleven rolled her eyes at the cocky competitiveness of her friends, but she couldn’t hide the amusement in her smile. Will, however, felt his smile falter and tried to cover it before anybody noticed by taking a sip of the hot chocolate in his hands.
It wasn’t like making bets was anything new in their party. They were all highly competitive, and with no more threat of the world ending anymore, they just naturally fell into a habit of creating their own high stakes. It was harmless fun to pass the time. Something to pass the time.
Really, Will had no reason to feel a little jealous that Mike was making bets with Max so soon after he’d made a bet with Will. It wasn’t like it was their special thing they shared.
It was stupid.
Will just wanted all of Mike’s attention to himself and he knew it was childish and dumb, but he couldn’t help it.
Crushes were torturous like that…
Eleven watched Will take a long sip of his hot chocolate, his eyes drifting to every single thing in the parking lot that wasn’t Mike or Max. She noticed the way his body language changed and how his expression dropped in distaste. If their friends weren’t so distracted with their competitiveness, they would be able to read it just as easily as she could.
Will was never very good at hiding how he felt. Though, Eleven was the only one in the party who had lived with him and was like a sibling to him. Maybe she could read him better than they could.
“Max, do you have the map?” Eleven asked, putting a hand on Max’s shoulder to steal her attention. “We should make sure we’re getting back on the right road before we take off.”
“Yeah, of course, I have it.”
Max pulled the folded up map from her back pocket and walked back to his car to unravel it across her hood. Eleven, Will, and Mike followed, crowding around her with their thighs pressed up against the cold, steel grill that they could feel even through their clothes.
It made Will shiver and he went for another sip of his hot chocolate in an attempt to warm himself up.
“Is the hot chocolate helping?” Mike asked, leaning in beside Will.
They were hip to hip, shoulder to shoulder, only to be close to the map as Max laid it out. Their closeness was pure coincidence. Happenstance. Nothing that surprised Will enough to over analyze, until Mike slung his arm across his shoulders and purposefully held him close.
To warm him, Will realized.
Admittedly, it wasn’t the hot chocolate that made Will’s face bloom with warmth or his stomach flip. It was Mike’s willing closeness. It was the gentle, sincere look in his eyes as he stared so casually into his best friend’s eyes. It was the slight smile at the corner of his lips that gave him a boyish charm everybody loved.
Will’s throat worked around a nervous gulp and he tore his eyes off of Mike before he could catch any sign of his feelings woven into the blush across his cheeks. “Y-Yeah, thanks. It’s perfect.”
“Really? It’s good? I was kinda worried a hot chocolate from a shitty, middle of nowhere gas station might taste like ass.”
Will snorted a laugh, thankful that Mike’s humor and his obliviousness to his crush was the very thing that distracted him from it.
Mike never gave him any time to be flustered or uncomfortable because they really were just friends. Best friends. It was so easy to forget how gut wrenching this crush was when Mike was living so carelessly beside him, like everything about their relationship was so… normal and platonic.
“You want to try it?” Will asked.
“Sure.”
Adjusting the cup in his hands, Will put his hand on the lid and was about to pop it off so Mike didn’t have to drink from the same hole as him. He didn’t even get the chance to before Mike slipped his hand around the cup, his long, soft fingers gliding across Will’s and stopping him instantly. He took the cup and tilted it to his lips without hesitation, completely unfazed that he was putting his mouth exactly where Will’s had been.
An indirect kiss.
Will’s face warmed all over again as he realized how embarrassing it was that he would fixate on something like that.
They were best friends. They had shared drinks before. It was no big deal.
But every single sliver of Mike that Will could have to himself felt like some personal victory. Some very selfish part of him couldn’t help but celebrate the fact that Mike wasn’t grossed out by him. He touched him and drank from the same cup as him freely—comfortably.
Mike may not be in love with him but he was infinitely more grateful that he wasn’t disgusted by him. As long as that remained true, he could live with this hidden crush if it meant keeping Mike close.
Mike’s expression twisted in pure disgust as he swallowed the hot chocolate, holding the cup out for Will to take. Will chuckled as he watched every muscle in his best friend’s face react to the taste. Even when he was making such a horrid expression, he was still stupidly handsome.
“Yeah, that tastes like ass. I don’t know how you’re drinking that.”
Will shrugged, wrapping his hands tight around the cup to absorb as much of its warmth as he could. “It tastes like victory to me.”
Mike scoffed, his eyes bouncing all over Will’s face as he watched in shock as he took another sip. The fact that he would dare to continue to drink it when it tasted so terrible—and enjoy it—simply because he won a bet was unsurprising but fascinating.
Mike couldn’t help but snort a laugh.
“Okay, we got off at this exit and it was less than 2 miles before we hit the gas station,” Max blurted, dragging her finger along a line on the massive map. “In order to get back on track, we have to take road…”
Max leaned more closely into the map as her words trailed off in thought, Eleven following beside her until they were both leaning across the hood. Will and Mike stayed pressed up against one another and watched as the girls retraced their steps on the map.
The wind blew, tossing Will’s hair. Mike took note of which brunette strands jumped out of place.
Dark clouds closed in overhead, erasing the streaks of orange and purple in the sky and replacing it with a gloomy grey. Mike squinted slightly to make out the freckles on Will’s face that stood out so much more in the sunlight.
The door to the gas station chimed as Dustin and Lucas barreled out with renewed vigor and a pile of snacks in their arms.
“Alright, let’s get this show on the road!” Lucas declared, stopping beside his party. “I’m itching for a drive.”
He dropped a small bag of Max’s favorite chips exactly where she was dragging her finger, interrupting her detailed tracking. She leveled him with a sarcastic glare and he simply smiled right back at her. She never scared him but it was the fire in her eyes that he loved the most.
“If you’re itching for a drive, how about you stop making us pull over?” Max retorted playfully.
“We had to piss,” Dustin argued in their defense.
“Are we switching cars yet? So I can hang out with my girlfriend?” Lucas asked, looking across his party.
“We can swap,” Eleven said. “I don’t mind.”
“You guys can swap. I’m keeping Will for another leg,” Mike declared, slipping his arm from his shoulders and walking backward toward his car. “We just started Ender’s Game and I want to hear the rest.”
Will looked back at Mike, carefully studying him to make sure he wasn’t reading into his response. He was just interested in the book. It wasn't anything more than that. There was no secret look of love in his eyes or possessive tension in his shoulders. He had absolutely zero ulterior motives behind his words.
And yet still, the butterflies in Will’s stomach danced at the prospect of having Mike Wheeler all to himself again. Not only because he wanted that, but because Mike did too.
“Oh, you’re reading it?” Lucas asked excitedly. “You guys are going to love it. Update me on how far you’ve gotten at our next stop.”
“Absolutely,” Will agreed, moving to follow Mike toward the car.
The other four talked amongst themselves to decide if they were swapping here or at their next stop as Mike and Will climbed into their car. Will smiled to himself as he buckled in and got comfortable, unable to hide his giddiness over how fun this trip was going to be if he got to spend it with Mike.
Will secretly hoped they didn’t finish the book before their next stop. Not because it was such a good read, but because it was such a good excuse to stick together.
Maybe there would be more books at their next stop. Something with a lot of pages. It didn’t even have to be good, just long enough that Will could keep Mike all to himself. Hell, Will would volunteer to read a magazine or street signs or bumper stickers if it meant being stuck in this car with Mike Wheeler for 3 days.
He was so helplessly crushing on him, it was silly, really. He knew that, but he didn’t quite feel foolish enough yet to let it go.
Not yet…