Byler- The Unwanted Return of Everything (And How It Finally Ends)

The Anniversary of Everything

"You like it?" Will twirled the phone cord slightly like some giddy teenage girl.

Mike hesitated. "...Yeah. It's cool." He didn't sound genuine, but Will decided to ignore it. "How's school for you?"

"It's pretty good," Will said. College felt like the start of a new life. One he wasn't sure if he liked better or not, but at least it was a new life.

Will could've drowned in the multitude of silence between the lines of their conversation. He wished he would. It was as if they were reading off a script in which they had never seen in their lives. Will had no idea what was happening. Finally, he asked the question: "Why are you calling?"

"I- Well, has El talked to you recently?"

Will furrowed his eyebrows at the name. "Jane, you mean?" Jane didn't go by Eleven anymore. She wanted to be a normal person now. She thought maybe Jane could symbolize that.

Mike sighed. "Shit. Yeah. Jane. Has she talked to you?"

Will thought about it. "She called today to... wish me a happy birthday."

There was another awkward pause. "It's your birthday?" Mike asked quietly. Will's heart dropped into his stomach. Had he forgotten?

"Yeah, it is. But it's also everything else, so it's okay if you didn't remember." Of course he didn't remember. Will's birthday was unimportant compared to everything else.

"No, I should've known it was your birthday. I'm sorry." Will heard Mike groan. "God, I'm horrible. So much for being a good best friend."

Will almost laughed. " Best friend ?" He hadn't thought of Mike as his best friend in a while. They just didn't talk much anymore.

"Yeah, best friend." Mike was silent for a second before he said something in a low voice. "Are we not best friends?"

Will felt chills throughout his body. He didn't want to answer that question right now. Or ever. He'd rather just ignore it. Honestly, he'd still like to think Mike was his best friend, but part of him knew it didn't make sense.

"Do you have... another best friend?" Mike tried again.

"No," Will sighed. "I guess not. I just... thought... since we don't talk all that much..." His knuckles were white, harshly gripping the phone.

"Oh." He could've crumpled like paper, hearing the disappointment in Mike's voice. "Yeah, I should've called, I guess. I'm... sorry." It must've been the hundredth pause. "You're still my best friend." Crumpled. Tossed into a giant trash bin. Never seen again.

Will could feel the tears in his eyes even more now. "You don't have a new one?"

"What? I... Uh... I have friends. At Harvard. It's just... you're better at it than them, I think." He changed the subject abruptly, much to Will's relief. "Have you been feeling any of those weird Upside Down feelings lately?"

Will closed his eyes. "No, the Upside Down is gone. Why would I have the feelings?"

"Just... wondering. Jane said... never mind. Sorry I bothered you. I should go." Mike hung up the phone before Will could argue. He felt like he needed more information. What was Mike going to say about Jane? Why had he brought up the Upside Down? Why had he even called?

You're still my best friend. It was so unfair. Mike hadn't even tried contacting him all year, and barely over the summer. How could he expect Will to still count him as a best friend? All the best friends Will knew usually talked to each other more than once a year.

The door opening cut short all of Will's thoughts on the phone call. Will walked into the hallway, watching Brad enter the room.

Bradford Hemmingway. On the University of South California football team. Strong, very athletic looking, extremely blond, undeniably attractive. The boy who Will had been rooming with and, conveniently, his boyfriend.

"Hey, Will," He said, stepping inside and taking off his sneakers. He was holding his backpack and football gear in one hand but used the other to wrap around Will's waist and give him a kiss. He leaned his head back, tilting it. "Ask me about practice today."

Will looked up at Brad, who was taller than him. "How was practice?"

"Great. You shoulda seen me today, babe. I'm gonna be captain before long, I know it. I was tackling guys left and right." He left Will, going into the kitchen, but continued to talk. "I've got a game in a couple of weeks. You're gonna come watch it, right?"

Will nodded, slowly trailing Brad into the kitchen. "Yeah. Of course I will." He braced himself to ask a question, smiling. "So... we got any plans for tonight?" He figured Brad might have something planned for his birthday.

Brad took a beer out of the fridge, which Will scrunched his face up at. He'd been trying to tell Brad not to drink that stuff. Brad wasn't always good at listening. "Oh, yeah. I'm going to a party. You'll be good on your own?" He popped the can open.

Will stared for a second. "You're going to a party? Tonight?"

Brad raised an eyebrow. "Uh, yeah? What's the problem with that?"

Will looked down, slightly disappointed. "Well, I just thought... since it was my birthday-"

Will jumped as Brad slammed down his drink. "Your birthday?" he repeated. "How old are you turning again?"

Will laughed. It was a joke. Of course his boyfriend knew how old he was. "Come on, you knew it was my birthday."

Brad sighed. "Babe, look, I've been busy lately. Haven't really had the chance to keep up with all that. You understand that, don't you?"

Will raised an eyebrow. "Wait, you do know how old I'm turning, right?"

Brad thought about it. "Twenty-one?" he tried.

Will sighed. "Twenty. I feel like you should know that."

"Well, it's not like you remind me every day!" Brad argued. "I already said, I've been busy! I can't keep track of everything right now." He crossed his arms, looking slightly offended. "You said you understood my commitment to the football team, Will! You can't blame me for this!" He frowned. "You don't care about that, do you?"

"No, no, no. That's not it at all!" Maybe I'm making too big a deal of it. "It's not a big deal. I'm sorry." Will looked at the ground, defeated. "So... you could ditch the party and we could go do some fun birthday stuff," he suggested hopefully.

Brad took a sip of his beer. "Look, Will. I already told the guys I was gonna be there. I can't back out on them now. I've gotta go. We'll celebrate your birthday some other time. I promise I'll buy you a present or something."

"Yeah, I get it. We can do that."

Brad smiled. "Great, thanks, babe." He looked at his watch. "I gotta go get ready." He walked past Will, giving him a quick kiss. "Hey, maybe we can celebrate a little when I get home, huh? That'd be fun."

"Yeah, maybe." Brad would be home very late. That's how his parties usually worked. And Will was thinking of a celebration more along the lines of going out for ice cream or something.

Brad kissed him again. "I love you. Gotta go." He rushed away to take a shower after practice. Will watched him leave.

"Yeah, you too," he said quietly.

Great. His boyfriend hadn't remembered his birthday either. It was less understandable since he didn't have anything else to think about today. He hadn't saved the world. His brother hadn't died. But he still didn't remember. Will knew Brad's birthday. He knew how old Brad was.

It's not a big deal. He just forgot. Right. It was okay. If he could let Mike get away with not remembering his birthday, he had to let his boyfriend off the hook too. Mike wasn't even his best friend.