Chapter Text
Will’s head lolled from side to side as he was clearly struggling to keep it upright even in his subconscious. His eyes were moving a million miles a minute beneath his eyelids, his skin had turned a nauseating grey, and sweat made his hair cling to his forehead despite the cold. From his gaunt frame alone, it was clear his energy was completely depleted.
The sight of him, so broken, almost killed Mike on the spot. His heart ached.
“Take me instead.” He insisted, eyes never leaving the body of his best friend as Will groaned in pain. Or fear.
Mike desperately wanted to run to him, to help him. Instead, the asshole was holding him suspended mid-air, cackling at his futile attempts to break free. For once, Mike didn’t care. All that mattered was getting Will out of the cocoon of vines engulfing his body, stopping the violent shaking, and getting him home. So he could be safe, for once.
“You really think I would just take anyone, Michael?” Vecna asked, his face and blinding white jumpsuit stained with blood. Mike silently begged for it not to be Will’s. “It truly is a wonder your little group has lasted against me for so long. I was under the impression you were some kind of remarkable leader, but you are, in fact, useless.”
Somehow, a fire burned even brighter in Mike as he tried again to writhe free of the invisible iron grip. It was to no avail, which only made the bastard laugh harder. All Mike could do was spit at him. Vecna clicked his tongue.
“Now, now, Michael. I’m sure you have better manners somewhere inside you. After all, our old friend over here didn’t fall for you because of your looks.”
Mike’s head throbbed. His world spun.
Fall for him?
Surely… no.
Had Will fallen to Vecna as a sacrifice? Instead of Mike? It was probably at the fucking quarry as it was the only place in Hawkins deep enough to make sense of it. That would explain why Will had gone missing.
But why did Mike’s looks matter in their friendship? It wasn’t like Will ever thought about Mike, yearned for him the way Mike had longed for Will. Will didn’t spend hours memorising every strand of Mike’s hair, the shape of his face, the curve of his lips as he ached to claim them as his own the way Mike did.
For fuck’s sake, he was on a stupid suicide mission for lips he would never get to kiss. But that was okay. Because even if Mike didn’t live, Will should. Will deserved a future happier than his childhood, and the thought alone made tears spill down Mike’s face.
They fell thick and fast now. His throat was raw, his voice hoarse, maybe he wasn’t as composed as he’d assumed.
Dignity be damned, he thought, anything for Will.
“You two truly are adorable,” Vecna cooed, slowly stepping dangerously closer to Will. Mike realised, sickeningly, that Vecna had been rummaging through his mind without him noticing. Normally, Mike would’ve gone nuclear over a violation like that but what he was forced to watch instead made him freeze.
The skeletal monster slowly slid a hand down Will’s face.
Mike felt physically ill.
Will, with what little strength he had, shuddered away, but the asshole remained steady, as if he had some kind of right to touch him. All the while he kept his eyes locked on Mike, as if trying to measure his reaction. Use it to decide what to do next. Mike tried again to thrash uselessly against the invisible restraint. Something. Anything. Just to reach Will.
A wicked grin spread across the monster’s face.
“I have an idea,” Vecna said. “A chance for you and William to go home.”
“Anything.” The word left Mike’s mouth before he could stop it.
For all he knew, he had just signed away the fate of every person left in Hawkins. A small, evil, selfish part of him didn’t care, not if it meant Will went free. The Mouth-Breather's smile widened.
“Well, I’m going to let you down, and let you help your little… friend. You can spend a few days in my house. It's safe from the monsters and even I’ll leave you uninterrupted until he,” Vecna tilted his head toward Will. “Feels better. Seven days should do it. Then you go home. I will never bother you again.”
Mike’s eyes widened. It had to be a trick. A lie. A trap.
Or… was this a free pass?
A singular act of kindness from the fucked up soul?
“What’s the catch?” he asked, breathless.
He would get Will home. No matter what. He had to. He’d fight a thousand Demogorgons. Obliterate the Upside Down. Anything.
“Perhaps you aren’t as dim as you seem,” Vecna mused.
At some point, the once-human shape of the monster had shifted into its full, charred form. It was disgusting and made worse by the hand still resting on Will’s face.
“There is a catch,” Vecna admitted as he continued. “When you leave, you won’t walk side by side. You’ll go single file. You in front. William behind.”
An involuntary tremor shook Mike.
“And if you ever turn around , even once, to check that he’s still there, still alive… he comes back to me. Anyone who tries to find him will die.”
Mike searched desperately for a flaw in the deal. They’d have a week to recover. Then they’d just walk home. He’d survived a year without seeing Will in Lenora. A short walk without looking back couldn’t be that hard.
“Do we have a deal, Michael?”
Vecna held out his hand. The grip on Mike loosened just enough for him to reach forward. Their hands clasped.
“Yes.”
The word barely left his mouth before everything dropped away.
The grip.
The fear.
The world itself.
Mike was falling.
He screamed.
He felt instantly sick.
Then—
Thud.
He was sitting in a chair beside a bed.
With Will sleeping peacefully in it.
Sunlight streamed through the window, bathing Will’s face in gold. It was the kind of light that made his hair look like fine strands of precious metal. He looked ethereal.
Without thinking, Mike lurched towards Will’s hand, rubbing small, reassuring circles into it. He murmured promises of a plan to get home and a safe future until exhaustion finally crashed over him, washing the day away.
For a moment, he considered climbing into the narrow bed, but stopped himself. Will deserved space after everything he had been through.
Mike could survive a few hours in a chair.
He let himself sink into it, ignoring the things that would usually make him anxious. For now, he just watched Will, matched his breathing to his, and followed him gently into sleep.