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Holidays in Hawkins were getting easier. Will had built a life and career in San Francisco, and just a stroll down one of the sleepy small-town streets could bring back memories that Will would rather forget. But he liked seeing Mom and Hop, especially loved seeing Jonathan and Nancy and their ever-growing daughter Barbara, who lived in New York. It was always nice to see El, but they saw each other plenty, both of them living in the West. There was also—
“Uncle Mike!” Barbara shouts, jumping off of Will’s lap to toddle over to where Mike had appeared in the entrance to the living room of Joyce and Hop’s home.
“Barbie!” Mike exclaims, long arms scooping up his niece.
Will looks away, focuses his attention on the Full House rerun playing on the TV. But it isn’t long until Mike settles onto the couch next to him, with Barbara climbing all over him like a jungle gym, and greets Will with a “Hey.”
Will turns to him and tries his best to not sound like a condemned man as he replies, “Hey.”
-
Mike’s always been family long before he was in an official sense — the day Will was Jonathan’s best man, Mike another groomsman and El a bridesmaid. Whenever the Byers-Hopper-Wheeler clan gets together, he should be the last person Will should have any anxiety about speaking to.
But Will avoids being alone with Mike like the plague.
Somewhere between Christmas and New Year’s, a massive blanket fort sprung up in one of the guest bedrooms. Barbara manages to drag Will into it one afternoon, finding Mike already underneath it, reading a book Nancy gifted him. Three minutes later, his niece hears Holly down the hall and abandons him.
It leaves Mike and Will nearly shoulder to shoulder, all alone.
Will tries not to immediately scurry away, makes some pleasant conversation before he starts to scoot his way out of the fort, but Mike catches him by the arm, asking, “Are you mad at me?”
Stupid question. Will’s always and never mad at Mike.
“No,” Will lies.
Mike shrugs. “I don’t know, we always, I mean, I thought—”
Will knows exactly what Mike thought, because it’s exactly what Will’s been avoiding. Whenever they’re home, together, they end up downtown on some sort of date and in each other’s guest bedrooms. Will feels a naive part of himself, the one that brought a painting to an airport, creep up on him.
And Will doesn’t know how to explain to Mike that he feels like a second choice ever since El finally, officially called off the engagement.
“Are you seeing someone?” Mike asks.
“No,” Will replies, automatic and unthinking.
Of course, Mike scoots closer. Despite his brain screaming otherwise, Will leans into his space.
“Good, I—” Mike pauses. “Y’know, you’re one of the main reasons I ever come back here.”
And Will doesn’t know what to say to that that wouldn’t be revealing far too much, so he just kisses Mike.