Chapter Text
“I’m sorry!” Mike said, throwing on his hat as he held his arms out toward Max.
She shot him a death glare.
“I don’t believe you. If you were actually sorry, you’d start coming in earlier,” Max scoffed as Mike slipped behind the counter next to her.
“I was dropping Holly off at her friend’s. Sorry,” Mike shrugged, heading to clock in at the back.
“I don’t care,” Max rolled her eyes as he walked back over.
“Come on, this job isn’t that hard,” Mike said, grabbing a rag and wiping up some spilled ice cream.
Max rolled her eyes again—something she already knew she’d be doing a lot this summer.
“This is only our second week here, and you’re already making me regret applying,” she muttered.
“You should’ve worked at Surfer Boy Pizza,” Mike shot back, not even looking up.
He thought, briefly, how much better his summer would be if Max and Will had just switched jobs.
“What, so El could’ve worked here and you two would just make out all day?” Max raised an eyebrow.
“No,” Mike said quickly, shrugging. “I was actually thinking Will working here with me.”
Max turned to look at him fully.
Mike stared right back.
“What?”
She narrowed her eyes at him for a second longer… then turned away. “Nothing.”
“You’re so weird,” Mike muttered, stepping closer beside her.
“You’re so annoying,” Max fired back.
“You are so—”
“Hello?” Erica’s voice cut them off.
“Hi, Erica,” Max said quickly, almost relieved for the interruption.
Mike slipped into the back, already mentally clocking out even though he’d been there for—what—two minutes and twenty seconds?
He grabbed a box that didn’t really need moving and set it down somewhere else, pretending to look busy. From the front, he could hear Max talking to customers, her voice flat but efficient. She was better at this than him. Way better. Even if she clearly hated every second of it.
Still—she got better tips.
Mike leaned against the counter in the back, letting out a quiet breath as the hum of the freezer filled the silence.
It was weird.
Everything was… weirdly normal.
After everything that had happened—after Vecna, after the Upside Down tearing through Hawkins for what felt like the hundredth time—you’d think things wouldn’t just go back to this.
But they did.
Or at least… they tried to.
Hawkins patched itself up the way it always did. People stopped talking about it. News crews left. The government covered things up, like always. And the Party—
The Party had to figure out what came next.
Which, apparently, was this.
Jobs.
College.
Actual plans.
Mike let out a small, disbelieving breath, dragging a hand down his face.
They had graduated.
That still didn’t feel real.
For years, their biggest concern had been surviving the next week. The next monster. The next gate. Now it was… applications. Savings. Figuring out where they were supposed to go.
Most of them had landed on the same idea: take a gap year.
Just… breathe for a second.
Figure it out later.
Except Dustin, obviously.
Dustin had a whole plan. Of course he did. Something about a program, internships, a future that already looked like it had been mapped out for him since he was twelve.
Mike couldn’t even decide what he wanted for lunch most days.
So yeah—jobs.
That was the compromise.
Work for the summer. Save up some money. Pretend they had any idea what they were doing.
Mike huffed out a quiet laugh, shaking his head slightly.
Normal teenagers.
That’s what they were supposed to be now.
He wasn’t sure any of them actually knew how to do that.
From the front, he heard Max call out, “Mike! You alive back there or did you finally quit?”
Mike rolled his eyes, pushing himself off the counter.
“Relax, I’m coming,” he called back, grabbing a rag like he had actually been doing something important.
Normal.
Right.
When he stepped back out, his expression shifted instantly—something softer, brighter. A smile he didn’t even try to hide, a faint blush creeping up his neck.
You’d think that kind of reaction would be reserved for his girlfriend—Eleven.
But… no.
It was for his best friend.
Her brother.
Standing right there in that stupidly cute Surfer Boy Pizza uniform.
“Will,” Mike breathed.
Max watched them carefully, taking a small step back. Mike didn’t even notice.
"Hey, Mike,"
“What do you want? Everything’s on the house for you,” Mike said, leaning against the counter. Max tilted her head, doing her best not to roll her eyes.
“I don’t want anything,” Will said, shrugging, his hat turning in his hands. “Mom picked me up from work and needed to grab something, so I just… wanted to stop by. Say hi.”
“Where’s El?” Max cut in, stepping forward again.
“Oh—yeah. Where—where is she?” Mike added quickly, like he had just remembered.
“She’s with Jonathan at Family Video,” Will said. “They’re picking tonight’s movie.”
Mike nodded, a little too fast.
“Are we still on for Friday?” he asked, turning back to Will. Max smiled at Will, and Will smiled back.
“Yeah. D&D,” Will said with a small shrug.
Max raised her eyebrows, expectant.
“You can come too if you want, Max,” Will added, smiling—because he knew exactly what she was doing.
Mike scoffed immediately. “Will! Stop being so nice. You can’t invite people to my basement.”
“First of all,” Max said, crossing her arms, “I’m not people, I’m Will’s friend. Second, I already have plans—with El.”
She smiled sweetly at Will.
“Oh, yeah,” Will said, nodding. “You’re sleeping over Friday.”
Max pointed at him. “Exactly. So whenever you come back from playing, El and I will be waiting for you.”
Mike looked between them, his expression tightening.
Don’t get him wrong—Mike loved Max.
That didn’t mean he always liked her.
“Hey—no. Will’s staying at my place on Friday,” Mike said quickly, turning to Will like it had already been decided.
Will just let out a soft laugh.
“Why?” Max shot back. “Lucas and Dustin aren’t even staying over.”
“And?” Mike shrugged. “Will always stays on Fridays.”
“Well…” Max tilted her head, eyes flicking to Will. “It’s up to you.”
Both of them turned to look at him.
Will pressed his lips into a thin line.
“It’s just one Friday, Mike,” he started carefully.
Mike threw his hands up. “Oh my—”
“Oh! One more point,” Max interrupted, already rushing to the back.
She came back holding the little board Robin had told her to use—something she’d clearly taken way too seriously. It read I rule on her side and you suck on Mike’s.
She added another tally with a grin.
“Shut up,” Mike muttered, turning to glare at her—
—but then he heard Will laugh.
And just like that, his expression softened into a small, helpless smile.
Jane walked slowly down the aisles, fingers brushing over the plastic cases as she searched for something—anything—that everyone would agree on. It was harder than it should’ve been.
She was thoughtful like that. Or at least… she tried to be.
Behind the counter, Lucas leaned over the computer, arguing with Jonathan about late fees and unreturned rentals like it was life or death.
Jane barely heard them.
She was still in her Surfer Boy Pizza uniform, the bright colors clashing a little with the darker rows of movie shelves. She’d ditched the hat, though—her hair pulled back with small purple butterfly clips she’d found at the bottom of her bag. They kept slipping a little, but she liked them.
She paused in front of the comedies, tilting her head slightly as she read the titles, trying to imagine what everyone would laugh at. What would make Hopper smile. What Jonathan wouldn’t complain about. What Will would—
“Need help?”
Jane turned.
Dustin stood a few feet away, smiling at her like he’d been there longer than she realized. His hands were tucked awkwardly into his pockets, like he wasn’t sure what to do with them.
“Oh,” Jane said softly. “Hi.”
Dustin’s smile widened just a little. “Hi.”
He stepped closer, glancing at the shelf she’d been staring at. “Looking for something specific, or just… something that won’t start an argument?”
Jane let out a small laugh. “That one.”
“Yeah,” Dustin nodded seriously, like it was a real challenge. “That’s the hardest category in this store.”
He leaned in slightly, scanning the options with her, his shoulder almost brushing hers.
Jane felt something warm settle in her chest.
“You could go with something safe,” Dustin continued. “Like… Who Framed Roger Rabbit. It’s got everything. Cartoons, mystery, jokes. Very crowd-pleasing.”
Jane looked at him instead of the movie.
The way his curls fell into his face. The way his smile didn’t fade when he talked, like he couldn’t help it.
“Or…” Dustin added, glancing at her again, softer this time, “you could pick something you want.”
Jane blinked, caught off guard. “Me?”
“Yeah,” he shrugged. “You’re the one trying to make everyone happy. Seems fair.”
She didn’t answer right away.
Instead, she nodded slowly, like she was thinking about it—but her thoughts had already drifted somewhere else.
Somewhere… quieter.
She wondered, briefly, if this was normal.
To feel like this.
To stand next to someone and notice the small things—the way they spoke, the way they smiled, the way their presence made everything feel just a little lighter.
Even when you were already in a relationship.
Her eyes dropped to the shelf again, but she wasn’t really reading anymore.
She thought about Mike.
About how she cared about him. How she knew she did.
But...
Her thoughts didn’t go to him first.
They went to moments like this.
To Dustin’s voice.
His smile.
His hair.
And she didn’t know what that meant.
Or if it meant anything at all.
Maybe it was normal.
People had crushes, right?
Even when they were with someone else.
That didn’t make her a bad person.
…Did it?
Jane swallowed softly, pushing the thought away before it could grow into something bigger.
She pointed at a case, almost randomly. “That one?”
Dustin leaned in to look, then broke into a grin. “Solid choice.”
He reached for it, their fingers brushing for just a second.
Jane felt it.
And she didn’t pull away.