Summary: Mike asked Will to be his fake boyfriend at a relative's wedding, so he could piss off his homophobic family. And if they're going to pretend to be boyfriends, might as well act like real ones right?
***
"I'm gay"
Those 2 words sucked all the noise of the room, making it an agonizing silence longing between the two boys. It wasn't the first time Will had said those words out loud but, this time he felt a lot more nervous. Probably because it was his opinion that he valued the most.
The first person he ever came out to was his mother. He and his mother were always really close. He knew she wouldn't be mad but it stayed tough to admit. He then planed on coming out to his brother, Jonathan, but didn't have to. Jonathan had made it pretty clear in the past that he was aware of his attraction to boys and was okay with it. Will knew he knew, and that was good enough.
He wanted so bad to tell his sister as well. They had grown really close and were almost inseparable. And this part of him he wasn't sharing with her started to create a gap. El was somehow aware of it but also of the fact that Will wasn't ready to explain why, and she respected that. But it felt wrong to come out to her before him.
Him being Mike Wheeler, of course. His best friend. The person he told everything, maybe more than to his own mother. Mike, the one boy who was always by his side, the boy who stood up for him, the boy who was always there when Will needed comfort. Mike Wheeler, the boy who he was madly in love with.
So yes, coming out to Mike was difficult.
They stayed silent for a couple of second, Mike lying on his belly on Will's bed, him sitting legs crossed a foot away from him; and right before Will started to regret his confession Mike spoke.
"Okay"
Will looked up to meet his eyes. Mike almost looked emotionless; like Will had just asked something as mundane as if he wanted mustard or ketchup on his hotdog. "You- you're not mad?" Will stopped pulling the tiny part of skin near his fingertips.
"Mad? Will, why would I be mad?" Mike sat up, ruffling the paper sheets next to him. He gave Will a reassuring smile.
"I don't know, some people would find me disgusting if they knew and I don't know I-"
"Yeah, but I don't. To me you're still the same" He smiled and put his hand on his best friend's. "It doesn't matter who makes you feel fuzzy. Boys, girls who cares right?" Will wasn't expecting that kind of reaction. He had hoped with all his heart that Mike would be accepting but his speech was weirdly open minded, too open minded.
"Are you..." He couldn't be but Will had to be sure. "Into boys as well?" He finally found the courage to ask.
"Who me? No." Mike said shaking his head. He didn't sound offended. He even smiled. "Why? Are you interested?" Mike teased Will, oblivious that the answer was a big fat yes.
"N-no! It's just you seem so chill about it, sorry"
"No it's cool" He casually said.
"Cool" Will repeated.
"Anyway, what'd you got for question 5?" Mike simply went back to their homework as if that conversation meant nothing, or never even happened.
"Um, 25"
"Shit I got 56"
Years passed but Will's crush didn't, it was slowly turning into something more intense. Back in 10th grade, he tried dating a boy he met at the arcade to get over his best friend. It didn't work. Will didn't date anyone else after that. Mike on the other hand, had become quite the womanizer. Will couldn't blame him; he went from a soft cute child to the hottest boy in the whole school.
