𝐬𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠'𝐬 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐫𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭; byler

-16-

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WORD COUNT: 1095

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AT WILL'S HOUSE, They didn't really talk. Will's mom was gone, so they just watched television silently in the living room for a while.

Afterwards, they went into Will's room and cuddled on the bed. 

Mike had told Will some stories from school and tried to distract him from his sadness, and a spell later Will was actually starting to become a bit more cheerful. Maybe cheerful wasn't the right word, but at least he didn't really look sad anymore- and when they finally cuddled, he actually seemed a little happy.

Mike was also distracted by talking to Will, and even after the incident that afternoon was shaping to be a pretty good one. How could it be bad when he was with Will?

Mike couldn't really be as worried when Will's body was so close to his, because being with Will always took everything else off his mind.

Mike actually liked being the big spoon. He liked seeing Will as they cuddled, he adored that feeling of being Will's "protector".

 He was warm and comfortable and his heart was full of a nice warmth and Will's hair smelled like vanilla- so he really didn't see a reason to stop his heavy eyelids from closing as he hugged Will even tighter.

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He woke up from the sound of a car pulling in the driveway. He looked at the window, and the sky was actually turning dark.

He had slept through the whole day.

He looked at Will, but it seemed like the boy was still asleep. His chest was rising evenly, and he was lying still on the bed.

Mike carefully pulled his hand away from Will, and got up from the bed. He stretched, aching from lying still for so long. He walked around the bed, suddenly yearning to see Will.

Beautiful, beautiful Will.

His eyes were shut, his lashes still a little wet from tears. But his cheeks were flushed red from warmth, and his lips were giving just a hint of a smile. He looked so innocent, so peaceful. Like nothing ever bothered him. 

Mike had never seen Will look like that.

Even smiling, he always looked like there was something on his mind. Mike had never noticed it before, but even when he thought he had seen Will really happy it was nothing compared to the peacefulness he showed he exuded now, fast asleep.

Mike knew it was creepy, but he could't help leaning down and kissing him slightly on the cheek. He was so adorable, how could he not kiss him?

He took another look at his sleeping boyfriend, but away from his distractions the events of earlier that day started creeping their way back into his mind.

Not even the freeze at Max's house. It was just their conversation in the car that kept replaying in Mike's head. 

Even though Will had denied any childhood trauma, Mike couldn't shake the feeling that there was something else lurking behind the scenes. 

It's not like he thought Will had lied to him- but something in his gut told him he had to talk Joyce. He had to find out what happened.

As if on cue, the faint sounds of the front door opening and closing sounded from afar. It must be Joyce, Mike thought to himself.

For a moment he actually considered just pretending to be asleep besides Will or straight up jumping out through the window. But another glance at Will's peaceful face convinced him he should just have the talk now, get it over with.

He stepped out of the room slowly, standing by the living room silently. Joyce was standing in the kitchen with her back to him, pouring herself a glass of wine.

"Mrs. Byers?" Mike asked softly, hoping his voice was normal. His stomach was tight with nerves.

Joyce turned quickly, and wore an expression of surprise at Mike's presence.
"Mike! hi sweetie," She finally smiled, " Where is Will?"

"He's sleeping... but I was wondering if maybe I- I could talk to you for a minute?"

She went back to her surprised expression, but to Mike's relief she nodded.
"Of course! Do you want me to fix you anything to eat?" She asked, gesturing at the stove.

Mike shook his head, "Thank you," He said- even though he actually was quite hungry.

"Okay. what's up?" Joyce asked, sitting down at the table. Mike hesitated before sitting across from her.

"Well- I- so... um, basically I was reading a little about different types of mutism, and I found this condition called selective mutism. It's caused by, um, really bad trauma and I just wanted to ask if anything happened to Will when he was younger-" 

Her smile faded, and she just stared at him. They sat in silence for a while, and Mike was wondering if she was going to kick him out.

"It's sweet of you to be concerned, but I can assure you if Will was going to talk he would have done it already. I know it's hard, but I think that's just the way he is, Mike-" She finally said, but Mike cut her off before he could stop himself.

"He did talk, Mrs. Byers. He talked to me, he's been talking to me, for about a week now." 

Mike saw all the color draining from Mrs. Byers' face. She looked as if about to pass out.

"He- Will- My Will- he talks?" She asked breathlessly, completely in awe.
Mike nodded, and she grasped at the table hard for support.

"Could you elaborate on that selective mutism thing, sweetie?" She asked,. Her voice was weirdly normal, but one look at her face was enough to make Mike understand something was terribly wrong.

So he did, and when he finished she was so pale Mike was starting to actually get worried.  

She clasped her head in her hands, and Mike was pretty sure he heard her mutter "fuck" a few times.

 "So... Was there something?" He asked, hoping he wasn't pushing his luck. She looked up at him and sighed, nodding.

"Maybe we should move to the living room. This might take a while."

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[AUTHOR SAYS]

Sorry for this filler chapter/ cliffhanger guys!!! I just really wanted a cute Byler scene and it wouldn't match well with how this conversation goes...

Anyway, If you're still reading this thank youuu and I really hope you're enjoying it:)) I really like this and I'm so scared it'll flop haha