Remember Us // Byler

Journey to the Past

I see El storm away from Mike and I watch as Max goes after her. Confused to what's just happened I see Lucas run after Mike and I see it's a moment I have to leave him alone. They both saw me watching them talk from the window and so it's obviously my fault to what's just happened... right?

I sit outside the girls bathroom, waiting for El and Max to come out so I can ask El what just happened. I found an old poster and three crayons. So I'm just sitting doodling on the back of the poster feeling absolute boredom after Dustin went off to find Mike and Lucas. I hear the creek of the bathroom door open and see Max exit.
"Is she okay?" I say softly as to not alarm the rest of the kids in the arcade.
"She's um... good?" I hear an interruption in Max's voice as footsteps can be heard coming up behind her.
"I couldn't get much out of her, but maybe you can... wait where is Dustin?"
"He went to find Mik- I mean Lucas"
"Oh okay... well, I will go find him." She paces off out the door, looking back giving me a supportive nod. I turn to see El slowly making her way out of the door, she pulls her hair back and sits beside me.
"Hi" she whispers and a sigh creeps out her mouth.
"You okay?" She pushes her hair back again and looks to her hands as she is fiddling with her blue wristband.
"I need to ask you something Will... and you have to be honest because friends don't lie"
"Anything"
El shifts her whole body towards me and stares me right in the eyes.
"Do you think Mike still loves me?"
I feel my heart beat stop and the crashing arcade games flood through my head. Of course Mike loves El.
"Because I don't think he loves me anymore"
What is she talking about? Mike is obviously in love with El; when she left he was distraught, when they broke up he did everything to get back with her and she is probably the person he missed the most. If only El could see that he does care and love her.
"Well El, I-I..." sighing I compose myself "I can't speak for Mike but looking at what he has done for you shows how much he cares about you"
"That's it Will... everything he has done for me hasn't been just for me. Like yes he was sad when I left the first time but he was like that when you vanished when we first met"
She has a point and I can feel my stomach turn with my cheeks going very red. I crept a small grin on my face before wiping it off fast. I didn't want her to think that I was happy that Mike could possibly not love her . But it's absurd to think he didn't love El. She was the perfect girl. Any boy would want her. Not me though, I never looked at her that way or really any girl. Yet...
"You have a point but neither of us know what is going on in Mike's brain so-"
"And the worst part is, that when I walked down the stairs I expected to see him looking at me but he wasn't he was looking at you" I gasp and almost choke on my on saliva. He was what? I'm sorry El but can you repeat that... cause I am... what?
"Wait what?"
"Yeah Will, I am as surprised as you"
Just as she says that Max and Dustin come barging back through the arcade door. I can't even look at them. I just watch as El runs over to Max and Dustin, giving them a hug and running off to play another game. Looking at my drawing I see nothing of worth anymore. This is all my fault. I hurt El. I ruined Mike and El's bond because of me and my stupid mouth on that Christmas night. I just pick up a crayon, not caring what colour it is and just start colouring every inch of the page.

After doing this for at least twenty minutes, I see trainers in my peripheral vision when looking down at my drawing. I look up to see Mike staring down at me. Immediately I turn back to my drawing after seeing his face but he takes the crayon and paper out my hands to sit down beside me. I hear his sigh when sitting next to me. We can hear the giggles of the girls playing on Dig Dug and Lucas furiously calling everything fixed. I laugh to myself at this event.
"What are you laughing at Byers?"
I suddenly notice him staring at me, which results in me jumping a bit. Mike smiles before pulling his eye contact away from me and onto the girls.
"No-nothing Mike" I cross my arms and slide back into my chair whilst staring off to the other side of the room.
"I missed seeing you laugh"
I feel my whole face burst like a rash. I chuckle to myself while also trying not to let Mike see me smile at what he said.
"You just going to leave me hanging Byers?"
I finally turn to Mike and we both giggle to ourselves at our stupidity. I've missed him a lot and after what happened between him and El, I'm glad I can put a smile on his face.
"Hey... Byers?"
"Yeah?" He fidgets with his hands and I can see he is struggling to speak.
"Um... well... what exactly did you see outside?"
"Well I- um... nothing really... I was only uh- looking for a-a few sec-conds so- nothing really at all... really" I revert my eye contact from him because I didn't want Mike to see my face build up in redness once again. It was embarrassing to admit that I was wanting to see what happened between them. That I wasn't looking for a few seconds but for the whole time they were out. No one saw me other than them though; Max was too busy on Dig Dug and Lucas and Dustin were trying to distract her so they could get the top score. I wasn't interested in this war for the top score anymore and so I snuck away to watch Mike at the window. To see him talk to El or rather to see them fight. When things got heated I couldn't help but wonder what they were both so upset about and I want to ask Mike but I'm afraid that if I do he will know I was watching for a long time. When they both turned and saw me peeking at their conversation I was so embarrassed and turned away fast. They saw me, but I was hoping he wouldn't bring it up. Led to Lucas chasing after Mike and El storming into the toilets. Maybe it was my fault that they broke apart but I can't go assuming. They've always been so strong why would it be my fault that they would fall apart? I hope that it wasn't, the guilt would consume me. I couldn't do that to El, not after the year we have had. Not to Mike either, never to Mike.

"Well okay" Mike responds. It didn't sound convincing and he may know I am lying but I can't think about that right now. The room falls yet again into silence and I feel a chill go down my spine. The music of the arcade is ringing through my ears to the point that it starts to hurt. I feel something touch my back and I respond by flinching at the touch.
"Byers it's just me..." it's Mike rubbing my back, he must of seen me shiver.
"Are you okay?" Mike seemed genuinely concerned, just like he used to. I remember when he used to care for me like this. He would come to my house everyday after I got back from the upside down. We would sit and play all day. Whether it was d&d or Mike creating stories and I illustrating everything he recited to me. I remember we wrote a story about a wizard who saved his friends from a threat. Though I knew Mike only wrote that to make me feel better and not feel like a freak or weak. He really cares then. But when El came back that just disappeared.

I turn to Mike and I whisper as to not let the other participants know.
"No I'm not the noise is a bit much, Mike"
Mike stands up and pulls he up also.
"Well then let's get you out of here"
I am confused by this as Mike still hasn't gone to speak to El and now he wanted to leave with me?
"Wai-t wha-at?" I feel my voice break between and because of this my cheeks start to swell up but Mike doesn't acknowledge my accident.
"Let's get out of here Byers" Mike smiles at me as he walks away. I watch him go towards the door to see if he turned around to play a joke on me but instead he doesn't, in fact he stops at the door because I am not there and looks back to me.
"What are you waiting for Will?" This shakes me awake and I start following him outside. We get on our bikes and just ride, feels good to do this again, I just wonder where he will take me?