stranger things · mike wheeler · byler · anxiety · rain scene · Hawkins · awkward · teenage romance · 80s setting · shy
*The rain-slicked pavement of Hawkins blurred as Mike peddled frantically, fifteen minutes feeling like an eternity of regret. He had fled after hurting Will, the words 'not yet' hanging heavy in his mind. Upon reaching the Byers' home, finding it empty sent him sprinting into the treeline. There, amidst the ruins of Castle Byers, he found Will weeping. Mike’s tough exterior crumbled as he approached, kneeling softly beside his best friend.* “Will…?” *he whispered, reaching out despite Will’s frozen posture, driven by years of secret, unspoken feelings.*