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It was common in the Byers house for Joyce or Jonathan to share their beds with Will. Even before his abduction into the Upside Down, his interest in horror often led to nightmares and difficulty sleeping alone. But it had gotten more frequent after his disappearance. Neither Joyce nor Jonathan minded, both of them happy to just have Will with them, safe and warm.
That's why when Jonathan heard the creak of his door opening and felt the light pressure of a body on his bed he didn't start. Groggy from almost falling asleep, he rolled over as Will crawled under the blanket.
His insistence to sleep with Joyce or Jonathan had become nightly since the Mind Flayer had been burned out of him. Jonathan had asked if Will just wanted to crash in his bed rather than come sneaking in some hours later, but he was determined to get over his anxieties alone. He didn't talk to either their mom or Jonathan about what had happened, even though Jon urged him to and told him it wasn't good to keep it inside. Will refused and Jonathan figured it would be something he would eventually feel comfortable opening up about. He wanted to be strong, to handle it on his own…
Until then, Jonathan didn't mind sharing his bed and holding Will close so he could get some sleep.
Except something was wrong. He could feel Will trembling faintly and make out covered-up sniffles. The haze of sleep left him, replaced with concern, and he looked at the balled-up form of his brother. Will had pulled the blanket up to cover his face.
Jonathan leaned up on one arm, the cool December night air chilling as the blanket slid off him.
"Will?" He whispered softly, shifting closer and resting a hand on his shoulder. Will flinched and tensed, tugging the blanket down just enough to peer at Jonathan with one eye. "Hey, what's wrong, bud?"
Will's gaze left him and he sniffled before giving a shrug.
"You can talk to me, it's okay. Was it another nightmare?"
Will nodded. Jonathan slid back down on his side, pulling himself closer and running a hand through Will's hair. His brother didn't look at him, eyes shining and damp, but he pulled out of his fetal curl to press against Jonathan. Smiling, Jon wrapped an arm around Will, holding him close and pressing a kiss to his hair.
Will didn't like to talk about his nightmares, either, but they were more upsetting for him than any horror movie could be. He supposed when you lived through a horror movie - several of them, even - that it got a lot harder to find peace in sleep… But Will liked to be held when he had the dreams, the touch to remind him that someone was there with him.
Jonathan closed his eyes, nose pressed to Will's hair as he calmed down and waited for sleep to come for them both. Instead, he felt Will grab his shirt with hands that still trembled.
"You okay, Will?"
Will shook his head.
Jonathan pulled back a little, enough so Will could look up at him.
"I still… Feel him…" Will whispered, voice cracking and making Jonathan's heartache. Will shifted uncomfortably, twisting his hold on Jonathan's shirt, not even wanting to voice what he felt.
Jonathan didn’t blame him. Although he’d been away through the majority of Will's affliction - something he still kicked himself for, even if it had led to the Hawkins Lab finally paying for their bullshit - he’d seen what Will had become. Their mother had told Jonathan later, after it was all over, what Will had told her. How the Shadow Monster had gotten him, from his point of view. How it had gotten into him. Everywhere . He remembered his mother repeating it in a voice meant to mirror Will’s, and how she broke down saying it.
They didn’t need to say it out loud to know that the closest comparison to what had happened to Will was a supernatural rape.
"What can I do to help?" Jonathan breathed, pulling out of his thoughts to focus on Will, brows knit together in concern. Will's eyes left his again, his brother's expression hard to read in the dark but appearing conflicted. Jonathan pressed his forehead to Will's. "Hey." Their eyes met, blurred by closeness. "You can tell me. It's okay. Let me help."
Will still seemed to struggle with his voice, forgoing words to tilt his face up to Jonathan's and pressing their lips together.
Jonathan felt himself go tense and resisted the urge to pull back, Wills tear damp cheeks against his own. Will pulled back slightly, a shuddering breath leaving his parted lips and ghosting over Jonathan's.
“I… Can you… Touch me?” It was a request so quiet that Jon almost didn’t register it. But he had, looking at his baby brother in further confusion.
“Want me to hold you closer?” Jonathan asked, confused because they were already close, almost pressing against one another with one of his arms draped over Will.
Will shook his head a little, reaching for Jonathan’s hand. He let Will guide it until it was teasing beneath his tee shirt. His skin was warm against the cool pads of his fingers and Jonathan could feel him shiver.
“Touch me… Under- Under my clothes,” he seemed embarrassed to voice it, his eyes watching Jonathan with fear.
Jonathan didn’t know how to react, Will still holding his hand to him and watching him.
“I- I don’t-”
“I keep feeling Him …” Will said, eyes blurring as he blinked away more tears. “I want to feel someone else. Please , Jonathan, I just want to feel you, not Him.” His voice cracks as more tears come, Jonathan shushing him gently on instinct.
He ached for Will, he can’t imagine what he feels, what he dreams, but he knows if he ever got the chance to into the Upside Down he’d fight every monster there with his bare hands for making Will feel this way. Jonathan cups Will's face and thumbs away the tears with his free hand. His brother leans against the touch, closing his eyes.
Jonathan doesn’t know if Will understands what he’s asking for - or if he understands it himself. There was a hesitation in what Will asked for, a shyness, a shame… Was Jonathan reading too far into it? Guided by those haunting thoughts that he maybe loved his brother more than he should?
But as he waited and hesitated, Will’s eyes opened, and look for his brother.
“Is… Is this what you want?” Jonathan whispered, sliding his hand away from Will’s and under his shirt. His brother takes a sharp inhale and nods as Jonathan ran his hand up Will's side. He could feel the stretch of his skin as he breathed, the faint protrusions that made up his ribcage, the way he shuddered slightly. Jonathan hated that he also felt a sense of pleasure in it, in the simple intimacy of touch.
Will watched him with wide doe eyes, lidding slightly as his hand ran over to his back. His little brother pushed himself closer, as if the clothing still between them was a barrier he wanted to push past. Maybe that was exactly what he wanted, desperate for touch that could divert the phantom sensations of his dream. Jonathan tried not to think about taking off his and Will's shirts to press against him, instead keeping his eyes locked on Wills and ghosting his fingers over the jut of his shoulder blade and down the bony ridge of his spine.
He was still so skinny, so small, so frail, like the events of the past 13 months had stunted him. In a way, they had. They’d stripped him of time to grow, lost in the dark caverns of fear and trauma that he tried not to let show. But it was hard to keep a bold face in the dark of night when the shadows pulled the nightmares closer to reality.
Jonathan was lost in those thoughts, clinging to the anger at the supernatural monsters that hurt his family so badly to ignore the way Will's body heat so close made him excited, so much so that he barely noticed that Will was pushing his own shirt up. Only when cool fingers pressed to his stomach did he notice, snapping back to reality.
“You okay?” he breathed, his heart jumping at the unsure touches. Will nodded.
“I want to feel more of you…” he said, looking away shyly. His face screwed up in pain, tears brimming. “I’m sorry- I know- I know it’s… It’s not- right … I just…”
He doesn’t finish what he’s trying to say, sniffling and fingers trembling, curling into a fist against Jonathan’s chest.
“No, no, no, it’s okay, shhh,” Jonathan tried to reassure him. Frankly, Jonathan didn’t care if it was wrong or bad; Will was hurting and scared and he was reaching out for help, something he did rarely. And he was feeling guilty about it.
Jonathan’s hand at his back pressed more firmly against his body, pulling Will to him and kissing him firmly on his forehead.
“You’re okay, this is okay, I promise…” Jonathan whispered. A thought tried to rise and reprimand him for taking advantage of his brother, but he swatted it down. This wasn’t about him, it was about Will . What Will wanted, what he needed. “Tell me what you need.”
He heard Will sniffle and swallow, hands unclenching.
“I want to feel you against me, no- no clothes…” he admitted. Jonathan nodded pressing more kisses on his forehead.
He pulled away from Will to shimmy out of his sleep top, leaving him in only his boxers. He hoped to God that Will wouldn’t notice the outline of his half-hard cock, but Will’s eyes were locked on him, on his face. When Jonathan shifted to get comfortable on his side, Will pulled himself closer, arms wrapping around him in a desperate embrace. Jon's hands went back under Will's shirt, tugging it up but not off as they pressed together.
He could feel Will’s little heartbeat, thrumming so fast against his own. Will's hands were holding him like if he let go he’d drown. A foot slid over his own, legs hooking as Will tried to pull himself closer, like he wanted to be absorbed into him. Jonathan held him, both arms wrapped around his tiny frame and running down his back and side in soothing motions. Will tucked his head under Jonathan’s chin, taking a deep breath.
But he started trembling again, a small whine in his throat.
Jonathan tried to soothe him with shushes, slow and drawn out, but he still seems to struggle. Will angled his head to take a shuddery breath.
“It-It's better but... I still feel Him,” he said softly, guiltily. “It’s like… He had so many hands… Touching everything, all at once… and- I don’t… I don’t know how to make it stop.”
Jonathan chewed on the bottom of his lip as his brother spoke, protective anger flaring up again. He had an idea, several, that may help. But he wasn’t sure how much were thoughts of help, and how much were his own perverse desires.
“Want me to try something?” Jon asked in the silence. He figured they were already approaching things that would be left unspoken of in the face of dawn, that the line he knew he shouldn’t cross was rapidly approaching and demanding to be leapt over, but he still wanted Will to give permission. It would at least make him feel slightly less guilty.
Will nodded, adding an extra, “yeah” for confirmation.
Jonathan shifted down the bed slightly to be face to face with Will, one hand reaching up and out of the collar of Will's shirt, blunt nails scraping his scalp gently. He could feel Will shudder, head rolling back slightly into the touch. Then Jonathan leaned in and kissed him.
Will tensed for only a moment, fingers twitching against Jonathan’s back before relaxing and kissing back. Jonathan parted his lips, Will’s breath hitching as he kissed him again and again, gently sucking on his lower lip as he did. Heat rushed straight to his cock, but he ignored it, ignored the fact his baby brother might even feel it against his thigh, and focused on Will. He could feel the flitter of his heart speed up, beating harder against his ribcage as he leaned into the kisses with his own hunger.
When Jonathan stopped, pressing his forehead to Wills to catch his breath, Will gave a small whine. He scratches small circles into Will’s scalp, watching his eyes flutter closed.
“That help?” Jonathan whispered.
“Y-yeah…” Will said in reply. “Can you do it again?”
Jonathan breathed a singular chuckle, nodding.
“Only if you’re okay with it.”
“Please, I’m okay, please, Jonathan,” he sounded so desperate that Jonathan couldn’t say no if he wanted to.
He pressed another kiss against his lips, Will opening his mouth slightly. He tried to mimic Jonathan, unskilled kisses making his heart stutter. It shouldn’t have aroused Jonathan the way it did, his bother's attempts at kissing, but it did. Will’s hands pulled away from holding him like driftwood in a raging river, instead resting against Jon's chest before sliding up to his neck. His thumb curiously traced the stubble that ran along his cheek, thin fingers holding him delicately.
Fuck, he was really driving Jonathan wild.
Jonathan swiped his tongue along Will’s lower lip, Will gasping and quickly leaning in for more. It felt inappropriate for Jon to smile, but he did. This night was already inappropriate as a whole.
“That okay?”
“Yes!”
When he kissed him again, he slid his tongue into Will’s mouth. He tasted sweet, like the chocolate bar he’d eaten after dinner that night. Running his tongue over Wills, Jon’s hand slid down and teased the elastic band of his boxers. He pulled back from the kiss, Will’s lips shiny and wet in the bit of moonlight that seeped in through the curtains. There wasn’t a need to ask, Will looking at him and nodding.
Jonathan went back into the kiss, one hand in his brother's hair and the other sliding beneath the boxers and groping at the soft cushion of his butt. Will moaned, the sound swallowed in his own mouth and sending a shudder through Jonathan. Will’s tongue was sliding against his own now, exploring his mouth with exploratory pokes and prods. He squeezed Will's ass cheek and earned a squeak, but no resistance.
He can’t believe this is actually happening, pulling apart from the kiss so they both can breathe. Will grinded against him, both avoiding pressing their pelvis’ together until that movement. Jonathan hisses in surprise, feeling Will’s cock rubbing against his own.
“‘M sorry…” Will breathes. He was looking at Jonathan with eyes half-lidded from pleasure and Jonathan shook his head.
“It’s alright… Is it okay if- if I touch you there?”
Will nodded, his arms wrapping around Jonathan's neck and pulling himself closer as he jerked against Jonathan. Jon pulled off Will’s boxers, then tugged his own down. Will kissed his cheek, nuzzling against him and giving soft and breathy moans while Jonathan reached past Will to the bedside table. With Will's arms still around him, he awkwardly squeezed a small palmful of lube into his hand, carefully reaching with it beneath the sheets again.
“This’ll help,” he said, kissing Will’s eyelids gently. His brother nodded and gasped when the lube was slathered on both their cocks. Will’s grip around Jonathan tightened, hips twitching into the hand that was wrapped around both of them.
The high mewls were like music to Jonathan, but he was worried about their mom possibly waking and used it as an excuse to kiss Will again. He scooped out Will’s moans with his tongue, free hand squeezing his ass again. He was so soft, warm, and gentle, the only thing he’d ever known his baby brother to be.
Will’s attempts to tongue Jonathan back slowed as his breathing grew more pronounced, still hungrily kissing with an open mouth but sucking in air between the messy lip-lock. He could feel him getting closer, thrusting up into his hand and against his cock as he moaned against Jonathan’s lips.
He broke the kiss with a gasp and a choked moan, mouth hanging open as he tensed from orgasm. Jonathan pressed their foreheads together, closing his eyes and focusing on Will's panting, punctuated by small flittering warbles of pleasure. He could feel his brother's cum coating his hand, his sheets, his little prick twitching as Jonathan kept thrusting up into his fist.
“I love you, Will, I love you so much,” Jonathan panted, hand going back to Will’s hair and holding them to one another. He could feel Will nod, panting sharply as he rode out the high.
Jonathan came with a shuddering moan, an ugly sound he normally tried to repress. He couldn’t, not this time, his cock throbbing as spurts of his own cum joined the growing mess on the bed and on them both. He gulped down air in shuddering breaths, cock twitching and spent.
As he rolled his head back slightly, Will pressed kisses to his chin. He didn’t want to move, even with the dampness on the sheets. Will was still laying with his chest pressed to Jonathan's, arms around his neck like a little lover. He tilted his chin back down and kissed him on the lips, gentle and soft.
“Did that help?” Jonathan asked.
“Yeah, I think it did,” Will replied, giving a tired smile and nuzzling closer.
“Wanna… Wanna get cleaned up?” Jonathan suggested, despite his own willingness to sleep in their mess and deal with it all tomorrow.
“No, wanna sleep,” was the reply. Jonathan nodded, closing his eyes with a contented sigh and giving Will another kiss on his forehead.
“M’kay… Love you, Will.”
“Love you, too, Jonathan.”