Risk | Byler

13 - Tremble

Two hours later, the guys found themselves standing in front of a closed coffin. It was just unbelievable.

Will kept silently blaming himself for everything that was going on.

After all, if it wasn't because of him, the people he loved would never have had to go through all that nightmare. Oh, those thoughts were consuming him.

A tear fell from his eyes. But when he looked around, all of his friends were also crying. It was probably one of the most painful moments of their lives.

Their friend was gone, and now they had to say goodbye forever.

But they would get revenge, for Max, and for every Vecna ​​victim during those nearly four years of pain.

Once the burial was finished, all the people present went inside the hall. It was still raining a bit.

Part of the group was having snacks, while some others were just sitting or chatting. There aren't many nice things to do at a funeral.

Will was sitting at a lonely table, just looking at his tea, biting his nails.

Mike was standing across the room, chatting with Dustin and the older teens, but staring at Will for some moments.

Will noticed that.

But Jonathan also did. So, he went and sat right next to Will, looking at him with a soft smile.

- Hi, dude. - He said.

- Hi - Will replied, stopping biting his nails.

- Are you okay? - Jonathan asked.

- Well, aside from the fact that we are at Max’s funeral....  I guess so. Why? - Will replied, serious.

- Because your tea is probably getting cold. - Jonathan said with a little laugh.

- Oh, shit, the tea. - Will muttered, taking a sip of his tea.

- Busy mind? - Jonathan asked.

- Yeah, something like that. - Will answered.

Oh, Jonathan wasn’t expecting Will to say something himself, so he had to make the first move.

- You know what? I haven’t driven a car that slow since I was learning how to drive at 15. - Jonathan said.

Will shocked and choked on his tea.

Jonathan couldn’t help but laugh before asking Will if he was okay.

- Hey, hey. Be careful, Will. You okay? - He asked, trying to get serious again.

- Ye- Yeah, I’m fine. - Will said with a little cough. - It’s just.. the tea is cold. - He added, lying.

- Busy mind…. - Jonathan said again, with a soft smile.

Oh, Will just wanted to disappear.
If Jonathan was making fun of him, there was nothing funny about it.

Will’s leg began to tremble under the table, with little footsteps. Oh, this situation would have been so much easier to deal with if Jonathan would have caught him with a girl.

Jonathan noticed Will was really nervous, so he approached him to calm him down.

- Hey, it was just a little joke. - He said, now in a low voice.

- It 's not funny. - Will replied.

Jonathan sighed and put his hand on Will’s trembling leg.

Now he had to fix the situation.

- How do you feel…? - He asked.

Will sighed.

- I feel stupid, Jonathan. So stupid. - Will answered.

- Hey… you’re not stupid. Don't say that. - Jonathan said, trying to comfort Will.

He couldn’t really say much to help, but he wanted Will to know that he was there for him.

Will calmed down a few seconds later. He knew that his brother, somehow, could understand.

- Maybe you should... talk to him. Everything's better when you talk. - Jonathan suggested.

- Yes, I know. I just -

- Jonathan! - Nancy interrupted. - Could you come here for a second? I need some help.

- You should go now - Will said. - The Wheelers are complicated people. - He added with a little laugh.

Jonathan laughed too, and then got up from his chair.

- I'm sorry. We’ll talk later, okay? - He said.

- It's okay. - Will replied, smiling.

Mike heard Will’s laugh and turned his gaze to look at him. Will looked… pretty. And he was wearing a black suit, too, so it was so easy for Mike to get lost in Will.

Getting back to reality was never an option.

Without hesitation, Mike went straight to Will’s table.

Will could feel his heart pounding on his chest as soon as he saw Mike walking towards him.

Then, Mike sat right next to Will.

An awkward silence dominated the moment for a few seconds.

- Nice suit. - Mike said, a little nervous.

Oh. Did he really say that? Will thought.
He flustered.

- Oh, thanks. - Will replied. You look nice too. - He added, nervous.

A few more seconds passed. Will knew Mike wanted to say something.

He would just wait for him to start talking.

- Will, may I ask you something? - Mike said, hesitantly.

Will nodded, hearing.

- I mean, it’s not really a question, I just… - Mike said, then sighed. - It’s just… you didn’t move. - Mike said.

- … What? - Will asked, confused.

- Mike approached Will and sat even closer to him, just so his hand could reach Will’s.

Mike caressed Wil’s left hand with his right little finger under the table.

- This morning, you didn’t move. - Mike said again.

Will looked down and saw Mike’s hand caressing his.

(Yup, his heart was melting inside.)

- I wouldn’t have. - Will replied, in a low voice and blushing.

Mike smiled, blushing too.

- But… - Will added, now hesitant.

- But..? - Mike asked, waiting for Will to finish the sentence.

- Were you just trying me? Just as I said? - Will asked, unsure.

Mike sighed and rolled his eyes. Well, somehow, he deserved not to be totally trusted.

- I wasn’t…. - He denied, now holding Will’s hand.

Oh, Mike perfectly knew what he was doing.

Will tried to cover his flustering so that the other people wouldn’t notice what was going on.

But Mike was just staring at him with a little smile, just in the way he had always wanted Mike to look at him, and Will just couldn’t handle that.

But then, suddenly, everything started to shake. And it was not just Will’s heart.
It was an earthquake.

Not a natural earthquake. It was familiar.

It was a war alarm for them.