𝐬𝐮𝐦𝐦𝐞𝐫 𝐣𝐨𝐛; byler

t h i r t y

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apparently, will's fear wasn't as deep-rooted as he had thought- because all it took for it to completely dissipate from his body was a single glance at mike wheeler.

mike wheeler. his dark curls messy, his dark eyes cloudy with sleep. wearing gray sweatpants and an oversized red t-shirt- and still somehow looking completely, entirely gorgeous. 

will hadn't realized quite how bad he had missed him. he hadn't realized how much one single look at this boy meant to him. just one look, one second standing in front of him, and everything already felt better. 

he knew that the sheer force of his emotional reaction to mike was ridiculous. he knew he shouldn't feel this way about a boy he had only met weeks ago... but he just couldn't deny it. he couldn't deny that seeing mike made him so happy a smile started blossoming on his lips. because how could anything be really wrong when there was mike wheeler? when he was so close, when those dark eyes were focused on him and just him, when (if he had the courage) he could just reach up and kiss him, right there and then?

and then mike's eyes widened, his mouth opened slightly, and will was at once brought back to his miserable reality.

the smile dissolved before it was even really formed.

"will, i-" mike started, his voice thick with the same sleep that was still evident in his eyes. he must've heard it too because he cleared his throat, trying to rid his voice of the strange thickness.

"can i come in?" will asked. he didn't know what he expected mike to do, he didn't know why he wanted to go into mike's room at all- but he did. he just did.

there was a second of stunned silence and will saw mike's eyes scanning his face, and every time they landed on one of the bruises a bit of the sleepiness cleared from them, making way to a fog of fear. or maybe it was sadness, or anger- will really couldn't tell- but he did know that the new emotion in his eyes wasn't sleep at all.

"y-yeah, of course," mike finally said, moving to the side to let will enter.

and there it was: his room. looking exactly identical to the last time he had seen it, and yet feeling so different.

blue walls, posters, television. the glass wall was so dark it seemed almost like metal, and the black bedsheets were messy, the dark duvet was hanging half off the bed, thrown away in a haze. clothes were scattered on the floor and on the bed, practically everywhere possible except for the empty laundry basket sitting by the bathroom door.

same exact room. a room he had visited once, in an experience that was less than positive. the last time he was in here he had felt so out of place: the room was surprising and busy and he had been humiliated and really, all he wanted was to dash out.

now, he wanted to stay here forever. just as with mike, just being in the room for a second made everything feel a little better. this time, being in this room, being here with mike, he simply felt... he didn't know exactly what he felt. just that it was so, so much better.

"here, you want to-" mike asked, gesturing towards the messy bed. will nodded silently, and walked over to the edge of the bed. mike followed him, tossing clothes into a messy pile as he went. he was tydeing up... for him.