Work Text:
Will Byers is tired.
Well physically he`s fine. He has slept more the past two weeks than he ever has in his life. Okay, maybe that`s an exaggeration, but that`s how Will feels. Physically he`s fine, but mentally, not so much.
After their reunion with Joyce and Hopper, they decided to stay in Hawkins. It`s not like they could go back to Lenora, especially after what happened there. At first Will was happy to be back, but after a few days that happiness started to fade. Don`t get him wrong, he`s happy to see everyone again, but Will just feels lonely and a little useless. Everybody`s doing their own thing. Lucas and Erica are always at the hospital visiting Max, Steve and Robin are volunteering at the school, Dustin is still mourning the loss of Eddie, Mike and Eleven have been spending a lot of time together at Mike`s house, his mom and Hopper are fixing the cabin and Jonathan and Nancy are helping them while Argyle is just wandering around doing his thing.
Will wanted to help, of course he did because helping everyone fix the cabin would give him something to do. It would take his mind off of everything that has happened, and Max, and Vecna. And him. His mother, however, insisted he rest, especially after he told them about Vecna.
Feeling Vecna`s anger and pain at the back of his mind brings out Will`s own anger and pain. After everything he`s been through and after everything they have done to kill the demogorgons and to kill Vecna and end this bullshit, he`s still connected to it. It`s not over yet. The worst is yet to come. Will knows it. He feels it.
Seeing the others doing their own things makes him feel worse. The boredom and the loneliness inside him turn his mood sour, they irritate him. He wants to do something, anything. Instead he stays in his almost finished room, that he will most likely have to share with El, seeing as the cabin isn`t big enough for all of them, and sleeps. He sleeps, and sleeps, and sleeps, `till he`s tired of sleeping.
And today is no exception.
It`s a gloomy and quiet afternoon in Hawkins. Many residents have evacuated the town, leaving their homes, and together with them, their lives behind. It hasn`t been "snowing" that much lately, so people were able to get out of their houses more often. Not Will though. Joyce doesn`t want Will to get exposed to the Upside Down dust in fear of what would happen to him. Mike has been coming over to help sometimes, but mostly because El wanted to. They have been spending a lot of time together, but something is different about them. Something between them has changed. Will can`t put his finger on it. A regular person would probably not notice the slight change in their relationship, but Will has. He has because he knows Mike and he pays a lot of attention to him. A lot more than he probably should. A lot more than is considered normal. Will tried to stop, but he just can´t.
Deep in his thoughts, Will doesn`t notice his mother entering the room and gets startled by the sound of her voice.
"Will honey, I`m making dinner soon. What would you like to eat? Jonathan wants to order pizza." Joyce says.
"I don`t know mom, I`m not really that hungry." Will says. Joyce, instead of leaving him alone, like someone else probably would, sits down next to him.
"Is everything alright? I know with everything that`s been going on, restoring the cabin and all that, you`ve been spending a lot of time alone in this room. Are you okay?" She says, her voice laced with worry. Will hates to be the reason for his mother`s worry.
"Everything is fine. I`m just tired. That`s all."
"Are you sure? I know I`ve been a little distant lately with work, and then, you know, flying to Russia to get Hopper, and now this. We haven`t really got the chance to talk. "
"Everything is fine mom." Will says. A lie.
"Are you sure? You know you can talk to me. About anything. I`m always here for you." Joyce says.
"Mom you sound like Jonathan"
"I do, don`t I. But seriously, I mean it. If there`s anything bothering you, I am always here."
"I know mom. Nothing`s bothering me" Another lie
He doesn`t like lying to his mother, but he doesn`t have a choice. Not about this. Telling her the truth is not an option.
"It`s just that Jonathan told me something that has happened between you and Mike on your way back to Hawkins." Will`s stomach drops as soon as he hears that. His palms are starting to sweat and his eyes are starting to water. She can`t possibly know, can she?
Will stays silent.
"Look, it`s not really my place to say anything, but you two have been acting weird lately. You have been distant. I noticed that in Lenora and now here. You are best friends. What happened?" Joyce asks.
At this point Will is doing everything in his power to not cry. he cannot cry right now. Not in front of his mother.
"Everything is fine. We just had a little fight that`s all. It`s something that Mike said. I can`t stop thinking about it." Will says. Deep breaths Will, deep breaths.
"I have known Mike for years, since the day you two became friends. Mike has the habit of talking without thinking. I`m sure you guys can fix whatever happened. You just need to talk to each other." Joyce says. Will gets more agitated by the second.
"I don`t think so mom. Not this time" Will says, a tear running down his cheek.
"What did Mike say?"
"He said that his life started the day he found El in the woods. That`s the day I, his bestfriend, went missing. His life started the day I disappeared." Will says. He`s crying now, and Joyce pulls him in for a hug.
"Oh baby, I`m sure he didn`t mean it that way. The day you went missing was the worst day of our lives. Mike was a mess, he was going crazy looking for you. And so were we. Will, baby, he never once stopped looking for you. He came by every day to ask if we found you." Joyce says.
"It still hurts. Everything hurts. He didn`t call me. He didn`t write to me. It was like we weren`t friends anymore. He even joined a new party and made new friends and I was there, alone, far away from everyone. And it`s not like he didn`t have the time to call or write because he called El, almost every single day. And .. and he wrote to her every week. El has like a box full of letters from him and I got nothing. Nothing. And I know I can`t really be mad cause El is his girlfriend and she loves him, but she`s not the only one who loves Mike, but he only pays attention to her. And now we`re here and he`s still ignoring me and spending time with El, even though we talked and I thought we were fine. I thought everything was fine. But it`s not. Nothing is fine and it hurts mom. It hurts so bad."
Will is now crying and Joyce tries her best to help calm him down by rubbing his back and whispering words of endearment. Will hasn`t cried like this in her arms since that one time he came home from school after being bullied by his classmates. She lets him cry in her arms, waits patiently until Will has calmed down and is ready to talk again.
"Will baby look at me. It`s okay. Everything is going to be okay."
"How mom, how? Every day I feel like I`m losing him. I don`t want to lose him. " Will says.
"Can I ask you something?"
Will nods.
"Do you love Mike?" Joyce asks.
Will can`t look her in the eyes. There is no point in lying now. He doesn`t trust his words so he just nods his head. Joyce hugs him tight while Will starts crying again.
"I know I shouldn`t feel this way. I know it`s wrong and I know that I`m a freak. Everyone was right mom. Dad, Troy, everyone. They were right. I`m a freak and a mistake. And I shouldn`t feel this way towards Mike but I can`t help it. I tried to stop. I did mom. I really tried." Will says.
"Look at me Will. Look at me. You are not a freak. You are not a mistake. You are my boy and I love you. I love you so much Will. You are my baby boy and nothing, absolutely nothing in this world will ever be able to change that. You hear me? Nothing! Having you and, and Jonathan was the best thing that has happened to me. Do you hear me? I wouldn`t trade it for the world." Joyce says, tears running fast down her cheeks. Hearing her boy say that about himself shattered her heart into a million pieces.
"You are the kindest and bravest boy a mother could ever ask for. You are a gift and a blessing. And I don`t want to hear those words come out of your mouth ever again. Do you understand? Lonnie, the people in town, the world, they`re wrong. They`re all wrong. I love you Will. We all love you." Joyce says.
"I love you too" That is all Will can say. His breathing is rapid and shallow from all the crying. For the first time in months he feels loved. He feels loved and he feels safe. Safe in his mother`s embrace.
"Wait here baby. I have something for you." Joyce says and gets up.
Will follows her figure with his eyes and waits patiently for his mother to return. He`s doing his best to calm down and wipe the tears off his face. By the time Joyce comes back into the room, Will`s breathing is back to normal. Joyce hands Will a bag and tells him to open it. Inside there is a big drawing set with 64 colors and many pencils and brushes. Will hugs his mother tight and thanks her for the set, although a bit confused as to why she gave it to him.
"This is a very late birthday present from me and Hopper, and I guess Murray. I am so so sorry that I forgot your birthday. I don`t have any excuses. Even though Murray and I had to rush to the airport, I still could have wished you happy birthday. So I am very sorry Will. I`m sorry." Joyce says.
"Mom it`s okay. This is perfect. Thank you so much" Will says with a big smile on his face.
"Well I`m glad you like it. How about you go and find a spot outside to try out the new colors? How does that sound?"
"Really? I can go?" Will asks and Joyce nods her head.
Will hugs her mother one last time and rushes out of the room, past Hopper, and heads straight outside. His hearts feels lighter and his mood has improved. The talk with his mother has been exactly what he needed. And, while there are still a few things that need to be sorted, for the first time since coming back to Hawkins, Will can relax without having to worry about anything.
Hopper walks into the room and sits down next to Joyce. He`s a little bit concerned after seeing her and Will`s red faces, but Joyce tells him not to worry. That everything is fine. And this time she really means it.