✓ The Games We Play ⇔ Mileven {2nd - "Wake Up, Mike" Trilogy}

Sixty Six

I keep falling down the Wike hole. Help.

Will.

I watched as Mike grabbed his hair roughly and then started to hurry away, back towards the road. My immediate instinct was to follow him, so I tried to, but Dustin stopped me.

"Just let him go, let him cool down," he insisted, and I turned to look at him with wide eyes.

"Dustin, do you not realize who we're talking about right now? I'll see you guys later, I need to go," I rushed out, picking up my backpack and shaking my head a bit. Lucas stopped me then, and gave me a determined look.

"Keep him safe, ok? You're the only one that can," he spoke quietly, his voice demanding but calm. I knew what he meant and it hurt to hear, but I nodded firmly. I'll keep Mike safe, if it's the last thing I do.

I turned away and ran towards the road where our bikes are parked. I got there quickly and didn't hesitate in basically jumping on my bike and racing in the direction of his house. I'd be slower if I didn't know him so well. He's hurrying to his house, just like me, in order to assure he can finish all of his "business" before his mom gets home.

It hurts to think about. His mind is so narrow and is so easily able to come up with that kind of plan. He can come up with an entire plan in a split second, and it's terrifying. He'll go to any extent needed to ensure he's able to harm himself. I know it's not his fault, but it's still scary. Just knowing that it's constantly on his mind for whenever he needs it.

I shook my head clear of the thoughts as I neared his house, immediately noticing his bike in the yard. He didn't even attempt to put it away, which made me panic even more. I rode up the driveway and didn't even fully stop before climbing off, letting my bike fall roughly onto the pavement. I rushed to the door, turned the knob, and pushed with all my body weight.

It didn't budge. I looked at it with frantic eyes and tried to push one more time, but it wouldn't give way. It's locked. I let go of the knob and panicked for a second before taking a deep breath and nodding to myself. I turned to the left, running around the side of the house and running as fast as I could in the direction of the back door.

I approached the door and stopped, my heart racing in my chest. I took another deep breath before placing my hands on the handle, turning it and pushing hard. Nothing. I tried again, and again, but nothing worked.

"Shit, no," I muttered to myself, looking around frantically. I felt defeat, but knew I couldn't give up. I need to get inside, I can't just let him do this.

Out of desperation, I started running from window to window, trying to open each one. When one wouldn't move, I'd run to the next. I only had a few left, and I was starting to get hysterical. When I came to the living room window, the second to last one, it moved a bit. I stopped cold, using all my strength to push it up. It was stuck pretty bad, but I was persistent with it. It eventually started slowly inching up, finally opening enough for me to climb inside.

It took me a second, but I eventually pushed my way inside, trying not to hit the table that was right inside. When I turned around to close the window, my backpack hit something, followed by a big smash. My entire body tensed, my eyes closed, and I couldn't process anything in that moment.

Knowing full well that I have no time to waste, I pulled the window the rest of the way down and hurried around the table. I glanced at the ground, seeing a lamp smashed to no repair, the pieces scattered around the room. It'll be awful to deal with later, but there's no time right now.

I hurried to his stairs and ran up, praying he's up here and not downstairs. I quickly saw the bathroom light on from underneath the door, making me hurry even more. I rushed to the door, hesitated for about a millisecond, then grabbed the handle and turned it easily. I was tempted to close my eyes as a precautionary measure, but didn't as I pushed the door open wide.

The first thing my eyes saw were his. For no reason in particular, we immediately made eye contact that I didn't know the meaning behind. He looked scared, and I'm sure I did, too. I looked down at his bare thighs, noticing only a few fresh cuts. I made eye contact with him once more, and he softened.

"I was slow about it. I knew you'd come and stop me, so I didn't rush. I don't want to be like this, Will," he spoke in a whisper, his voice cracking and his eyes tearing up. I didn't know what to say, I just walked in and found a cloth, along with his old bandages in the cabinet. I wet the cloth, walking over to him.

"Do you want me to do it, or you?" I asked, feeling uncomfortable but willing to do anything for him. He reached forward, taking the cloth from my hand, and I let out a silent breath of relief. He started wiping them clean, his body tensed up. "Mike, things are gonna get better."

"Why would you even think that? Things are getting worse as the days go on, Will. My sisters are both gone and so is El," he muttered, obviously not wanting to mention El and make me feel bad. I swallowed thickly, pushing back my emotions and kneeling down in front of him.

"Mike, listen to me. Listen to me, look at me," I soothed as he looked up and I met his dark brown eyes. They melted a bit as I smiled lightly. "You are days away from seeing El. Just remember that when it gets hard, Mike. Days and you can hold her again."

The way he looked at me was a bit heartbreaking on my end. He suddenly looked so happy and full of light, but it wasn't for me. He didn't look at me with love, he looked at me with love for her. It hurt me, but I smiled back and pretended to be happy. The last time I let it affect me, my entire friend group hated me. I guess I need to suffer in silence, which I'm willing to do.

I'll be doing it for many years after she's back, anyway. Might as well get some practice in.

-

Really lame ending, but there wasn't much else to put. Oh, and by the way, this is the calm before the storm.

edit, 6-27-19: ^This is actually pretty true y'all things get wild af in the final 10+ chapters