#but it’s all like that one rink o mania gif

[chirpsythismorning]

🎨 🖼️ 🌈 🩹 🧍🏽💡 🔮⚡️☄️

(At Your Best) You Are Love by The Isley Brothers

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[greenfiend]

Amadeus and Will’s Envy

So… for a while now people have been analyzing the Rink O Mania songs (Tarzan Boy, You Spin Me Round (Like a Record)) and how they relate to Byler… but Rock Me Amadeus has been sort of ignored/not delved into very deeply. So this post is about why that particular song may have been chosen and how it relates to Will’s character.

Rock Me Amadeus begins playing very silently in the background as we see Will sombrely roller skate alone behind El and Mike. The music begins playing loudly when we see Angela entering the scene.

Rock Me Amadeus is a song that was heavily inspired by the movie Amadeus, which is a tale about envy and how it can consume us.

Amadeus is a story about Amadeus Mozart through the eyes of his competition Salieri. Salieri is in awe of Mozart’s talent, but does not deem him as worthy of it. He is deeply envious of him. At one point in the film, Mozart even unknowingly “steals” Salieri’s love interest.

Now Will probably can relate to Salieri to a degree. But, here’s where the major distinction lies: Salieri is so consumed by envy that he roots for Mozart’s downfall.

Will feels neglected, hurt and oh-so jealous of El taking his place and stealing his love interest. However, when El is put in an awful situation, he attempts to help her out of it, unlike Salieri with Mozart. Will chooses to push his envy aside to help El; Salieri pushes Mozart down further.

Here’s the kicker: In the film, Salieri lies to Mozart about a commissioned piece, with the goal of passing Mozart’s art as his own. Will does the exact opposite! He creates a piece completely on his own, and gives all the credit to El, who he claims “commissioned” it.

[bibylers]

You know whats weird?

The fact that out of ALL THE TIMES Mike has lip glanced Will, NOTHING Will beat this one for me:

Like- I swear, out of ALL THESE:

Rink o mania still wins.

Hell, not even the famous “triple take” can win it for me

Like I swear there’s something about the rink o mania one that makes me go: “HOLD UP” everytime I see it

The way they’re in the middle of a FIGHT where they’re showing no positive feelings, yet Mike still can’t stop himself from just going:

Michael Wheeler, your closet is pure GLASS.

[kiirotoao]

I think my mind is stuck on the Rink O Mania fight right now and I can’t get it to stop so-

A deep dive on the line: “We’re friends. We’re friends.”

Said by none other than Mike “In the closet” Wheeler.

And in order to do this, let’s talk about:

The context

Mike’s tone

The urgency of the reply

The backing track

What could have been Mike’s reply

So first, context.

The moment that Will regrabs Mike’s attention with his “well, what about us?” Mike is hit with more and more thoughts of exactly that: “us.” Him and Will. And Will doesn’t stop. He accuses Mike of being mad, dismissive, uncaring, lacking, all towards Will.

The pressure is on. And look at Mike. He’s upset about it.

But then comes-

The last straw. And what is the last straw? Well, this brings me to my next and most crucial points…

Notice Mike’s tone. You can even see it in the gif alone.

Will just posed the tiniest question “and us?” with the biggest implication: what are we to you? And Mike immediately feels the need to repeat his friendship assertion twice. “We’re friends. We’re friends.”

Mike tends to repeat himself when he’s upset. He’s affected by this. Which, duh, right? But think about it.

Why might Mike be upset by this? Is it just because Will is upset and they’re feeding off of each other? Is it because Mike is annoyed that Will brought up El and compared himself to her? Or could it be something more?

Is Mike perhaps threatened by the fear of the idea of actually being something else to Will? Perhaps he’s worried that Will got the wrong idea? Perhaps it’s something internal to Mike himself that he doesn’t want to breach?

Mike is the one who set that boundary, after all, in making such a strong reply.

So once again, Mike is upset here. That’s pretty clear to see. And throughout the entire time Will brings up their relationship outside of El, he also looks so uncomfortable, if you ask me. Like he doesn’t want to talk about it. Like he doesn’t want to fight with Will lest things hit a little too close to home. Mike seems defensive.

Like his upset repetition, he does back out of the conversation twice, after all.

I think that he’s hiding his true heart. Running away from something. Running away from something because of Will.

Hm.

Next, let’s talk about the urgency. This is not a slow fight. There is barely a moment of pause from the entire fight, start to finish. In fact! It’s after this line that we get a pause to breathe. It’s only after Will retorts, “well, we used to be best friends!” that Mike stops.

As of “We’re friends. We’re friends.” Mike is steamrolling through this without need to stop. Mike doesn’t even need to think of his reply to Will’s, “and us?”

Does Mike just always and readily consider the distinction of Will as a friend as opposed to… something else?

Hm.

And now, briefly, because goddamn this should tell all, I want to bring up the backing track!

The fact is that “In the closet (at Rink O Mania)” starts playing right before Mike successfully backs out of the conversation!! And this needs to be talked about more!

Yeah. That song didn’t start playing while Will was speaking. It started playing while Mike was speaking.

And as the song plays, coupled with his upsetness, Mike deflects blame (“why is this on me?”), something that shows that he… doesn’t want to accept the blame nor the truth.

Once again: hm.

Now, lastly, I wouldn’t be me without at least one good ol’ counter argument, what could have been. I mean, this isn’t really a proper counterpoint as I still am believing that Mike is so gay to try and declare his friendship to his fellow male bestie with urgent and defensive fervency backed by a literal “In the closet” soundtrack but.

Maybe I should just call this an imaginative perspective.

Because seriously, Mike could have reacted in so many other ways than how he did.

Where’s the “what do you mean, ‘us?’” Where’s the simple “what?” for that matter? What about a “you know that’s not the same thing.”

Mike could have defended himself. Backed up. Questioned Will and gotten to the bottom of the emotion right then and there. But he didn’t.

Y’know why?

Because despite the variety of choices, if Mike didn’t spell clearly that they were just “friends,” he’d be so much more vulnerable to getting outed. Will could have easily parried by repeating himself and flustering Mike. Or Mike could have risked the potential continued questions from Will about what if they could be more? So logically, Mike took the safest route he could.

Angrily. And defensively. Not confusedly. He knew what he was saying and not saying.

Yeah, I just can’t not see Mike as someone trying to hide himself, here.

I find it so upsettingly fascinating overall how neither of the two seem to stop and question what each other actually means. They never ask for certain clarification or hesitate. Well, Mike does, once -

- but then things keep spiraling and they don’t get to stop and think twice again. Everything else seemingly comes out in quick anger and frustration. And it’s so easy for them to miss things when they’re also so rushed by the need to find El. Truly, did you leave this Rink O Mania fight feeling like it was satisfying and that Mike and Will said all that they wanted to towards each other? I know that I didn’t.

The only way I can see people thinking that Mike is genuinely and completely and utterly straight is if they think he’s arguing at face value and plainly had nothing else to say to Will. So really, it’s up to how you as a viewer see him.

But if Mike is actually just friends with Will, why do these same types of intimate one-on-one fights often happen between established couples? Why is Mike’s story interwoven with Will’s so deeply like this, enough to hit on the tension of romance versus friendship? Why is Mike even a main character if he’s supposed to only be taken at face value? How come Mike is able to smile again the moment that Will brings up them and only them two again a day later - even though this all happens before Mike apologizes for the Rink O Mania fight and their relationship hasn’t been fully mended yet??

“We’re friends. We’re friends.” is a cry to me across the screen that Mike is trying to state the facts and keep his head on straight (haha) despite everything that Will meant and continued to mean to him. It’s been half a year since Mike and Will spoke, and so they’d also had plenty of time to internalize their ideas of each other and ignore a number of thoughts without the other around. We know that Will kept his feelings at bay by painting them.

What do we certainly and canonically know about Mike and what he personally did away from Will specifically? That’s right!

Nothing.

But I choose to believe that he surely thought about Will while he was gone, right? And missed him during at least one Hellfire game? And potentially considered who Will was to him? And maybe told himself to stop if he imagined anything too deep because they were just friends? Or is that too much to assume?

[emblazons]

—woke up from literal sleep to write down the thoughts that clicked for me after I made this post about the Mike/Hopper hug last night, so. Here's the expansion of all of that lmao.

people always talk about the way Mike looked conflicted when El kisses him in S3, on top of the way he seemed fine with them breaking up until she initiated the relationship again (because of the absence of Hopper). I think this is 100% true, and it’s also the start of Mike’s spiral about protecting her we see through S4.

Mike’s “care” in lieu of "love" for El (and lack of ability to tell her he loves he romantically) is directly correlated to Hopper telling him to BE CAREFUL re: El right before he died. Almost as though Mike didn’t even have space to think of El as a true romantic partner— he was too busy trying to hold up the end of her missing “dad," and why he didn't know what to do when she started talking about how she didn't belong (because he's fourteen and not capable of filling the shoes of her father lmao).

the reason why Mike said “I was worried too much about El” is because he was—he was worried in a way suited for a father, not a boyfriend (thank you @emily-tumbles-on for that tag lol).

It’s also why he was so willing to let El go back to Owens—it’s a trusted (-ish) adult figure who could help El in a way his 14 year old self could not. It’s also why he immediately seems okay with letting her go once she says she wants to + throwing away her letter, right up until he realizes where El went is dangerous again, which meant he has to restart the protector-in-Hop’s place worry (which he doesn’t want, but feels powerless to step away from in his paladin-oath-responsibility mind).

When Mike & Will get into it at Rink O Mania over Will not telling Mike what was going on, Will interprets it as romantic attachment when it’s really giving “worried parent” not boyfriend.

That entire “you should have told me” also DIRECTLY REFLECTS the way Mike sees Will as his actual partner and equal no matter the time or distance (like in S2)—and expects him to help shoulder leadership responsibilities the way romantic/life partners would by helping him look after his charge (El).

The whole painting is confusing af for Mike because he does not see El as his partner or lover, but his responsibility in Hop’s absence—and Will, in his projection, is conflating his romantic love for Mike into the familial one between Mike & El. That's also why Mike feels so insecure about not being responsible enough (!!!) and why he looks dejected the way a parent would when you tell them you want do something they used to think was fun before having a kid when Will says “we could just play DnD and Nintendo for the rest of our lives.”

The van scene takes on a whole new meaning when you think about how the second Will made it about El, it forced Mike into a mental conundrum because he felt loved as himself at first…only to have it thrown back in with this wildly inappropriate parental responsibility he has for El because of Hop’s loss. (I watched the van scene again with this in mind and...lmao. Mike's expressions make absolute sense once you keep this conflation / confusion in mind)!

Yet another reason Mike and Jonathan need to have another conversation is because both of them have been suffering from a severe parentification—Jonathan for Will, and Mike for Eleven.

Hopper returning leaves space for both of them to move back into age-appropriate selfishness/relationships (aka think about their own wants and needs with Nancy and Will for a change) because Joyce doesn’t need Jonathan to fill the “man of the house” space, Will is going to “come of age” and have Mike, and El is gonna have her dad.

....all that to say these (and probably a million more things) become WAY clearer when you realize Mike is carrying the burden of Hopper's absence not as a boyfriend, but as 14 year old boy filling a parent space...which makes me really glad Hop didn't really die in S3 all of a sudden lmao. And also...Duffers. FREE MIKE WHEELER 2025

[will80sbyers]

Ranking some byler moments bc I felt like yapping about them rn:

5) The Rink-o-Mania fight

They both showed that they were paying close attention to the other one, and both knew that there was a problem in their friendship. Mike was dying inside all day long to ask Will why things had changed between them and why Will suddenly stopped reaching out as much as he did even after Will was the one that promised him that it was not possible that he would have left Mike behind...

Mike was so terrified that Will didn't care about him anymore while he spent all the months apart from him feeling sad and like he lost him and feeling crazy because of how much he missed Will...

and Will was feeling so jealous all day long watching him with El and he just wanted to be given attention and appreciation... even just as a best friend, and instead he was feeling like Mike didn't care about him....

but as soon as Mike makes him understand that he was paying attention Will takes the opportunity to ask him why he didn't write to him if he cared, because Will needs reassurance that he's loved too even when he's the first to pull away because he doesn't want to impose his romantic feelings on Mike when he's with his sister still... great Angst™ and I just love their romantic af fights lol

4) when Will makes Mike smile

This very small moment is really sweet to me and we need more moments like this between them, it just shows that they enjoy the company of the other in all aspects from the serious conversations to the rants about random stuff and also when playing around and just having fun and laughing... it's just showing how they are best friends before everything else, they just want to stay side by side because they enjoy the other person completely on all aspects of their personality

3) The crazy together scene

Iconic moment of their relationship, I love when they support each other and in this moment both of them are opening up about their feelings and making a promise to go crazy together... saying that they want to face the future together no matter what others think they are, even if they seem crazy to everyone else they will ALWAYS have the other one that truly understands...

2) Mike's monologue in the shed

SO sweet and honest, the memory of their first meeting is just such an heartwarming memory and it shows the pure love they have and just how deeply Mike feels towards Will, he thinks the best choice he ever made in his life was to ask Will to be in his life because Mike loves him that much, he can't imagine his own existence without Will by his side... Mike's life got better because he met Will.

and Will is just already in love with him and you can see it in his eyes, this is true love that breaks the evil spell on him casted by the dark wizard

1) Will's van speech

I love this moment because I think Will has this deep yearning inside of him about confessing just how deep his own feelings for Mike are and he wants to tell Mike so badly and this is the closest moment to that that I can get for now lmao

plus I love how Mike FINALLY gets told by someone just how amazing of a person he is and sees that he is valuable for all of them as a person, as he is already.

I truly think Mike couldn't avoid falling in love in this moment and he's wishing deep down that Will was the one meaning all of that romantically... even if he doesn't get it and he's confused that's what his heart is making him feel

look at this... he's just falling for Will all at once without even knowing it completely, he has been hit by a truck emotionally

[silassinclair]

Uh Oh! It’s Magic!

[Billy H x Fem!Reader]

Summary: Billy and his friend Tommy are on a double date. Tommy with Carol and Billy taking out one of Carol’s annoying friends Brandy. They all decided to go to a roller skating rink but when there Billy is hypnotized by a roller skater completely in her element. But she isn’t quite what she seems?

Moving to Hawkins was probably one of the dumbest fucking things that Neil has ever done. I don't know why he chose to move to this hick town but there is no stopping that insufferable piece of shit when he makes a decision. The house where he, I, Max, and Susan live is small as shit. Whenever I can I am out of the house as much as possible.

This very moment I'm arm in arm with some blonde chick named Brandy. Her and I are following Tommy H and his girlfriend Carol into the entrance of Rink-O-Mania, one of the only places in Hawkins that isn't dull and lame. Honestly I don't want to be here, I hate dates, I just want to screw Brady and leave. But it's an excuse to be out of the house so I'll take it.

"Billy I don't know how to skate, can you hold my hand when we're in there?" The dumb bitch clinging to me says looking up at me with doe eyes. Why the fuck would her and Carol want to go skating if she doesn't even know how to? Probably wants an excuse to touch me with her grimy ass hands.

The white eyeliner on her bottom lid fails to make her eyes larger, she looks like a desperate clown instead. But she has a nice bod so I'll have to put up with her shit if I want a BJ.

Putting on my signature smirk I pull her in close, "Sure thing hot stuff. I roller skated all the time in Cali so I'll help you out."

That wasn't a lie. When I was younger if I wasn't surfing I was roller skating with my Mom when the weather got bad. Some of the only enjoyable memories I have honestly.

"Hurry up lovebirds we gotta pay for our skates." Tommy says when he and Carol approach the counter. The skating rink is lit up by neon lights and It's Magic by The Cars is playing over the surrounding speakers. Not many people are here except for some kids with their folks and some teenage girls.

"Billy" Brandy says, "Help me tie my skates." She pleads with a small pout. I hide my eyeroll as I kneel down and tie her skates. Once hers are on she nearly stumbles to the floor when we're literally on carpet.

Stupid bitch.

"Woah woah," I say and hold my arms out for her, "Wouldn't want to fall yet, we're not even on the rink yet."

The girl blushes and waits for me as I tie my skates on. Once on I take her hand and help roll her to the round wood rink. Looking out at the rest of the people I see someone zoom by in my peripheral vision. Scanning the floor I see a girl. Blue bell bottom jeans, a jersey styled crop top, dangly earrings, and pristine white skates. As the music plays her body moves to the rhythm as she glides on the floor as if she were walking on water. Her flowing h/c hair frames her focused yet relaxed face.

She’s absolutely breath taking.

"Oh Billy I don't think I can do this." Brandy says next to me. "What if I fall?"

Having enough of Brandy's pick-me bullshit I turn to her with a deadpan expression.

"Then fall bitch. Now get-"

I pull myself from her acrylic nailed grip

"-off of me. You're dumb and annoying as shit. Now screw off." I skate away from her leaving her standing crookedly by the entrance to the wooden floor. Tears fall from her face and her mascara follows the flow of her pathetic tears.

Oh fucking well, boo-hoo, I have my eyes on something else now. She was annoying anyways.

"Hargrove!" Tommy calls to me, Carol holding his hand as the two skate to me from where they once were out on the rink.

"What gives man? Why's Brandy prying her skates off and crying?" He asks.

"She was annoying as shit so thanks a lot for making me take her out." I turn to Carol and say disgustingly. Carol looks down embarrassed.

"Well now you don't have a date idiot." Tommy says with an eyeroll, but I grin.

"We'll see about that." And I look to see the girl again. She's low to the rink and doing a complex skate trick to the tune of the music. Her right leg bent beneath her bottom and the other stuck out long like a half squat.

Following my eyes Tommy sees who I'm looking at.

"Oh no chance in hell dude. She's way too pretty for your whore-ass." Tommy says and punches my shoulder. But I punch him back harder causing him to whine and rub his arm.

"We'll see."

The song comes to an end and the mystery girl skates to the exit where I’m leaning on the half wall.

“You’re pretty good out there gorgeous.” I say showing my pearly white teeth, aka my secret weapons.

She turns to me with a small smile. “Thanks. I haven’t seen you skate yet.”

I chuckle lowly and roll my eyes, then explain to her about my date and how she only wanted to use me as popularity gain and for my body.

As if I didnt want to use her but still- Not that that a matters.

“Brandy McMay. She doesn’t even know her left from right.” The girl said and I laughed with her to her joke. She was 100% right.

“The name’s Billy, Billy Hargrove.” I hold my hand out for her to shake, she gingerly accepts.

“Yeah I know.”

“Well how come I haven’t seen you around at school? I would never fail to notice someone as gorgeous as you in the halls of Hick-Hawkins High.”

She blushes and crosses her arms over her exposed tummy. “I don’t really dress like this in school. Not after being made fun of by girls like Brandy. So I only express myself here at the rink.”

Poor thing. My hand goes up to brush her hair out or her face without thinking.

“Don’t listen to them sweetheart, you’re an absolute doll. A total talent if you ask me. Don’t listen to those chicks, they’re just jealous of you.”

What the fuck am I saying? Jesus Christ, this is what happens when I talk with my heart instead of my mind and dick I guess. I should do this more often.

Her eyes lock to the floor. “T-Thanks Billy… Also I’m Y/n by the way. We have Chem and World History together. I sit at the all the way back in both those classes though.”

I smile and lean in closer to bask in her scent. Smells like sweet candy with a hint of honey. What a doll.

“Well I’ll keep an eye out for you. Say, how about we hit the rink together? You and me since my date ran off?”

Before she answers she checks her wrist watch. “Sorry Billy but I have to head home before the streetlights turn on or else my brother will be pissed. But I’ll see you in school okay!”

I hide my disappointment behind a smile. “Alright, I’ll see you Monday.”

Before she leaves she pulls me into a gentle hug which I don’t have time to reciprocate before she skates off with a small wave.

Oh my god I think I just fell in love. No I just met her… That’d be weird, right?

Monday…

It’s the second class of the day, World History. I changed my seat so now I’m in the back row. I took some nerd’s seat but he didn’t have the balls to tell me it was his seat so he sat in my old one towards the middle left. The seat next to my new one is empty, and I assume that’s where Y/n sits.

This is probably the first time I’ve come to class on time. And for a girl? Let alone one I met yesterday? God I’m embarrassing.

Seconds before the bell rings a girl stumbles into the room with a heavy backpack. Her puffy sage green coat, long brown frilly skirt that goes down to her ankles, and dirty white converse. Her hood hides some of her h/c hair but her bangs peek through the front. Big round glasses adorn her face and a black scarf is wrapped snuggly around her neck hiding part of her chin.

What a basket case.

Before the teacher notices the girl comes to the back and sits next to me.

“Hey Billy.” She whispers to me and pulls her hood and scarf down. Her hair is messier than how it was done up in Saturday and glasses sit on her button nose.

This is Y/n? Holy shit.

“Y/n? I didn’t even recognize you.” I say and turn to her completely. She giggles and takes her jacket off revealing a snug grey sweater.

“Yeah I can see why, I look like that girl from The Breakfast Club huh?”

I nod with my mouth slightly parted. I myself aren’t really into the basketcase type chicks. Not so into the baggy clothes that hide their bodies. But with Y/n, god it just makes me curious. I’ve seen her rockin bod in that crop top and jeans that framed her ass oh so well. The fact that only I got to see it too gives me a new sense of pride. It’s like my own little secret.

“I probably look silly to you now huh? Not so confident as you thought.” She said lowly when she realized I haven’t said anything like the idiot I am.

I reassure her immediately, “No no sweetheart not at all. I’m just admiring how adorable you are is all…” I mumble the last bit more to myself but Y/n heard it loud and clear, her blush says so.

“Oh shut up.” She fires back quietly like a kicked puppy.

I grin and hold her hand that was atop her desk. She freezes but relaxes in my hold.

“How about I take you on a date? Maybe we could go skating?” I shoot my shot hoping she’ll say yes. Why was I even nervous she’d say no? Girls always say yes to me.

But with Y/n… It’s different. Maybe it’s because I don’t only want sex with her? God I’m going soft, but I don’t dislike it.

“Sure.” She sends me a warm smile and holds my hand back in her smaller hold. “Are you sure you want to go skating though? I’d probably leave you in the dust Billy.”

I smirk at her snark remark.

“Oh baby you haven’t even seen me skate yet, don’t let that hidden confidence get to that pretty little head of yours.”

Just then the teacher walked in meaning we couldn’t talk anymore, but that didn’t mean that Y/n and I would stop holding hands. My thumb traced gentle circles on the back of her soft hand. Every minute or so she’d look at me with a cute smile.

My leg shook not with anxiety but rather excitement. This school day couldn’t go by any slower could it?

The final bell rang and I walked Y/n out to my car. Max came by but I told her to skate home much to her disappointment, oh well shitbird, I have a hot date.

“Hey wait!” Y/n called to Maxine before she skated away. My stepsister paused and turned to my date in confusion.

“I didn’t mean to take your spot, I’ll get in the back,” Y/n then turned to me, “Cmon Billy take her home would you? The ground is wet from rain and it’ll ruin her skateboard trucks.”

Maxine perked up at the fact that Y/n even knew what trucks were. So she skipped over and hopped in the passenger seat while Y/n got in the back.

“Ugh fine.” I groaned and started the car and drove Maxine home.

The while car ride was Y/n and Maxine talking about roller skating and skateboarding.

“Yeah I tried skateboarding but I liked roller skating more, it feels more fluid for me.” Y/n said.

Maxine replied, “I totally get that, less chances to crack your skull too.”

The two girls laughed as I sulked. It took longer to get hole too since I didn’t want to drive fast and scare Y/n.

Pulling up to the house Maxine hopped out of the car and waved goodbye and Y/n sat up front.

“You’re a good brother Billy, and even a better date. And the date hasn’t even begun yet!” The girl next to me said with a smile. Said smile was contagious because I couldn’t help myself to wear one too.

“Don’t flatter me too much doll it’ll get to my head.”

Next thing you know she placed a kiss on my cheek.

“I think I like you Billy, a lot.” She said bashfully and held her hands. “I don’t want to rush this though so how about we go to the rink now yeah?”

I could still feel her lips on my cheek as I drove us to the rink. Drive by The Cars played on the radio which Y/n turned up, saying it was her favorite band.

The date was everything I hopes it would be. Y/n and I skating under the dim neon lights as music softly played. It was getting late and everyone was gone except us. And under the discoball in the center Y/n and I shared a kiss that sparked something inside me. It felt like magic coursing through my veins.

Uh oh, I think I just fell in love… That was fast.

[pandabyler]

LONG POST AHEAD

hey pooks! this is a continuation of my post about byler songs, and someone asked me to explain these so here u go!

enchanted (taylor swift)

i put this one because it reminds me a lot about the shed scene. "it was the best thing I've ever done" vs "I was enchanted to meet you"

it reminds me of them as a whole, especially the line "please don't be in love with someone else, please don't have somebody waiting on you" and "I've spent forever wondering if you knew" which both talk about their feelings for each other, and will wondering if mike knows how he feels. beautiful song 10/10

2. you belong with me

this one is self-explanatory but its probably the most byler song ever. everything is just so them. will comparing himself to el and feeling like a mistake, and being the one to truly understand mike and his interests. mike wants and needs a lot of things that el cant provide, but will can. "cant you see that I'm the one who understands you? been here all along so why cant you see?" "I'm the one who makes you laugh when you know you're bout to cry" and we've seen will hear up mike when he's sad countless times. 10000/10

3. deja vu

this one reminds me a lot of the byler and mileven parallels. will and mike used to be so close, but now he's spending all of his time with el. "she thinks its special, but its all reused" 9.5/10

4. so american

this one is 10000% in wills pov. to me its about his love for mike. "I'm not gonna...fall in love" -will szn 3 and then season 4 will was just "think I'm in looooooooooooOOOOOOOOVE" (sry this song is just too good) 9.8/10

5. good 4 u

this one is more bitter. it reminds me more of season 3 byler, and how will felt abt mileven. will felt left behind and discarded, and to him, it seemed mike wasn't even fazed (he was) "good 4 u, ur doing great out there without me, baby, GOD I wish that I could do that" 100% in wills pov. 10/10

7. iris (goo goo dolls)

"i just want you to know who I am" will wanting to tell mike how he feels, and that he's gay. this song to me is about their longing for each other, and that they both have secrets they need to be open about. 9/10

8. hear my heart (midnight mantics)

this song is SO SO SO underrated likeee.... but this song is basically about miscommunication, which byler has when it comes to their arguments, and in the end they always sort it out. "my big mistake, was letting you leave when we weren't finished, talking it through" mike to will in s3 and will to mike in s4 9.9/10

9. heather

UGHHH THIS SONG!!! "shes got you mesmerized, while I die" s4 mileven at rink o mania leaving will behind, and all of s3 lollll this song is just so byler 11/10

10. traitor (olivia rodrigo)

def in wills pov, portraying that mike has completely left him once a girl came along. mike making him feel special in the shed, but then showing nothing towards him in season 3 to make him feel special again. not sure if that makes sense but 8/10

honorable mentions

right now (one direction)

"lights go, down and" (the ud being dark) "I hear you calling to me yeah" (will calling for mike in the ud) and "lets go crazy together" vs "crazy together right?" LIKE YOU CANNOT MAKE THIS SHIT UP 10/10

2. strong (one direction)

mike giving will the courage to fight on just for being himself. wills love for mike makes him strong. "so many words we're not saying" (feelings for each other) "but there's nothing I'm running from" (will coming to terms with himself and his feelings for mike" "you make me strong" also also will saying he's felt so lost without mike, and the song goes "but when I'm not with you I'm weaker" 100/10

3. lets hurt tonight (one republic)

"dont walk away, dont roll your eyes" and "you were rolling your eyes, you were moping" which basically is about their communication and needing to talk things out when they argue. "they say love is pain, well darling lets hurt tonight" painful because mileven is together, yes, but also because its going to be so hard for byler to be a couple in the 80s, and they may not be able to do all of the things they wish they could

4. moment like you (liamariejohnson)

ANOTHER UNDERRATED BANGER but to me this is about will not wanting to be replaced for left behind by mike, and coming to terms with his feelings. "please don't leave me here tonight, lonely on the dance floor. cause I've been waiting my whole life, for a moment like you" which could also be seen as the literal intimate moments between byler in s4, and will treasures those heart to hearts and is so glad to finally be close to mike again.

well thats a wrap so lmk what yall think!! dt @skyewaytohell

sry if theres typos guys its 2am and I'm sitting hunchback at my computer

BYLER ENDGAME

[bookshelf-dust]

all because of a fucking skating rink.

billy hargrove x fem!reader

word count: 3,294

warnings: swearing, mentions of broken bones, injury and healing, reader has anxiety, doesn’t like to be away from billy, college sucks, fluffy fluff

a/n: another from the archives. i hope you guys like this. i'm kind of in love with it, which is rare, so but here i go overthinking it. anyways, enjoy. i love you guys.

————

In December of 1985, a Rink O' Mania sprouted up down the street from where Starcourt Mall had been. The chain of skating rinks at been expanding slowly, but Hawkins was always extra slow at catching up with the west coast.

December had seemingly been a good time for it to open, since it was below freezing in Indiana, and teenagers needed something to keep them occupied. Parents needed an excuse to get their kids away for a couple of hours.

Eleven had written to all of her friends in Hawkins about the Rink O' Mania in Lenora, and how she'd convinced not only Will, but Jonathan too, and occasionally Joyce, to skate with her. She wrote about how she wished they could find out how fun it was.

When the rink opened, Max wanted to go. She figured it couldn't be difficult. She could skateboard, after all.

The first couple of times, Billy agreed to take Max, but only if she went with a friend. So Billy drove Max and her selected friend—Lucas—for a while, like he had for the arcade, and they busted their asses together. Then Dustin found out, and was pissed they were leaving him at home. Billy was less than thrilled to have three shitheads in his car at least once a week, if not more.

In March, Vecna showed up. But they'd handled it. The unusual group of 15-year-olds, their parents, their siblings, their odd friends-of-choice, and Billy, had taken care of it. Not to say they'd all come out unscathed. He'd gotten to Max. Shown her images of her brother she'd never wanted haunting her memories, showed her the fate of Hawkins, of her loved ones. He'd told her she couldn't run.

But she had. And now Vecna was dead. Max had broken her arm in that try-and-save-the-world plan of theirs, and been pretty fucking beaten up, let alone scarred. Incidentally, Billy had become ten times more protective of his sister. He called her his sister now.

He'd been there throughout the entirety of her recovery, just like she had been for his during the summer. As shitty as it was, bonding over their Upside Down related trauma had brought them a lot closer.

When her arm had healed and she'd been cleared to skateboard again, Max'd tried that before anything else. Billy would sit on the stoop and watch her, smoke a cigarette to calm his nerves. But he'd only allow himself one or two, because he really was trying to cut down. After saving up money to get the Camaro fixed, he didn't have all that much spare cash lying around anyways. What he did have he tried to give to Max.

Eventually, she'd asked if she could go to the rink again. Told Billy that she'd still take Lucas and maybe someone else, that they'd watch out for her. He'd agreed, but he'd seen too much happen to her. So Billy found himself going in to the skating rink with Max and her assortment of friends.

He wasn't proud of it, and he didn't enjoy the shit music they played over the loud speakers, the same list of songs over and over again.

He did enjoy watching toddlers and pre-teens eat shit on the wooden floor. He'd order fries or get a drink or wander to the pinball machines to keep himself occupied. Occasionally wander outside to smoke.

The first couple of times he didn't notice you. And in your defense, you hadn't noticed him either.

You'd loved to skate when you were younger. Had a pair of skates that you wore in until they needed new wheels and you'd changed the laces more times than you could count. But that was the mid 70s, and the rink you'd liked as a kid had long closed and been converted into a parking lot or some shit.

Now you came as a stress reliever. Skating was one of the only things you felt like you were actually good at. That you could do for fun and no one would grade you on it or tell you you needed to do better next time. It was for you. It was the one thing you had for yourself. Until Billy.

————

You'd met Max shortly after she started coming back to the rink with her friends. You'd complimented the shoes she'd been putting back on, as the both of yours had been in the neighboring shoe cubbies. They were an old pair of Vans, which had just started showing up in Hawkins. You'd gotten some at the mall, before that went to shit.

Max was endeared by you simply because no one had ever complimented her on something she wore before. Occasionally you'd sit together and have a milkshake or something along those lines. Get to know each other.

She'd picked up on the fact that when you showed up with your Walkman though, that you wanted to be alone. She'd wave, and you'd reciprocate, but then you'd both go on with your skating business.

On bad days you took your Walkman with you, to drown everything else out and just try and calm down. It was also a perk since most of the time the music they played in the rink was shit. On one of those bad days, you saw Max come in with Will and someone else. The someone else you figured was her brother—Billy, she'd told you—though whenever you hung out with Max before he was off doing whatever. And he was gorgeous.

He was wearing jeans, a gray shirt sloppily tucked into the waistband, worn out converse on his feet. You almost tripped over yourself the first time you saw him. And even on the good days you found yourself looking for him after you saw Max.

————

Billy had slept like shit one night before he ended up at the rink again. He was starting to worry about Max less, and was frankly just sick of showing up. He was sitting at a table, eating fries and finishing a soda when he looked up, eyes wandering to try and see Max, finding her spinning around in a far off corner.

But then, he saw you. Headphones covering your ears, in baggy clothes, skating around and around. He realized he'd seen Max with you before, but never alone. He was suddenly pissed at himself for not taking a minute to look at you. He thought you were fucking beautiful.

You looked like you were having fun, even though your brow was furrowed in concentration and you rolled your eyes as some probably-eight-year-olds skated much too close to you. He could see your fingers drumming on your thigh every once in a while, and the way you'd just slip your hands into the pocket of your denim jacket and glide around was mesmerizing to him. He found himself looking for you the next few times he was there.

————

This was the last night, he'd decided earlier, that he'd keep an eye out for Max. He'd settled in an empty booth, messing with the cuff on his wrist, before looking for you.

Billy didn't know how long you'd been there, but it was a Friday night, and the more crowded it got, the more tense you seemed. Before you gave up skating altogether, you'd just lingered around the edges of the floor, but then it got too much, and you decided to head out.

You moved from wood to carpet with ease, gliding over to the shoe cubbies and plopping down on a bench to change. You moved your headphones from over your ears to around your neck, pausing the song. Coincidentally, the booth Billy had chosen was right next to your bench.

You looked up as you finished tying one of your sneakers, making eye contact with him and immediately blushing, which pulled a grin out of him.

"Hi," Billy drawled. You weren't expecting him to talk to you, and your palms started to sweat when you realized he had an earring in.

You looked down, double-knotting, "Hi."

"I've seen you hanging around a certain red-haired little shit. Hope she's not bothering you or anything," Billy told you.

"Nope, not bothering me. She's pretty sweet. I quite enjoy the sarcasm." He laughed, warm and hearty.

"Yeah, she's very good at that," he said, propping a leg up in his seat.

"I'm Billy, by the way."

You nodded. "Yeah, I figured. She's mentioned you before." He reciprocated your nod and you told him your name. It seemed then that the both of you wanted to talk to each to each other, but didn't really know what to say. Billy was starting to think his game was off, but realized you were quite literally the first girl he'd spoken to since Starcourt.

"I guess you're headed out? I'd say I could buy you a milkshake or somethin', but I won't keep you."

There was no way you'd turn him down, not with his cheeks pinked like they were, and his curls tied into a loose bun at the base of his neck. "Yeah, I was gonna go. It's getting too crowded out there. But a milkshake sounds nice."

You followed him to the counter and then back to the booth, sliding in across from him. You plucked the cherry from the whipped cream, popping it into your mouth. He'd done so simultaneously, when you started chewing and coughed out, "Cherry tastes like shit." He laughed, wiping his mouth off.

"It really does. I've never had a cherry taste that fuckin' bad." You spent the next hour talking to Billy, either nonsense or whatever he'd wanted to know.

Max, Lucas and Dustin went to find Billy and go home, realizing he was talking to a girl. To you. Lucas and Dustin both muttered an "Oh, shit," on seeing you with him, but Max was thinking you'd be good for him, actually. In fact, she was kind of happy.

"Hi guys. Fancy seeing you here," you said upon their arrival. Billy looked at you, a glimmer in his eye, and when you looked back at him, the both of you giggled like you'd been caught doing something you weren't supposed to, even though you hadn't.

Billy scribbled his number on half a straw wrapper before he left, leaving the other side for yours, and you carefully tucked the thin paper in your pocket.

————

You still had the aging straw paper, but now it lived pinned to the cork-board in your room, next to a folded up letter he'd written you. Billy wrote it a few weeks after that night at the rink, telling you how beautiful you were, and then he asked if you wanted to go to the movies. It was the simplest thing, but knowing it was from him, that it was his handwriting, that he'd taken the time to write it, made you put it up on the wall.

You'd been getting closer with him over the last month-and-a-half-ish, and were now sitting on his bed, his legs draped over yours. He had shorts on, so your hands rested on bare skin.

"Are you going to school in the fall?" You questioned.

You'd been meaning to ask. But you'd been afraid to. If he was surprised that you had, he didn't show it.

Instead, he stretched his arms out over his head, and smirked at you when he caught you eyeing his happy trail as his shirt rode up. "Yeah. Sorta need to. Think it's the right thing to do. And my grades were good enough, so I had two or three options." You nodded, afraid to ask your next question.

"A—are you leaving?" You turned your head, eyes wandering anywhere but him.

Billy could see that the thought was worrying you, so he took pride in telling you, "No. Not leaving." Your head turned back to him, a small smile grazing your lips. "You want me gone or somethin'?" He teased.

"Oh, yeah. Just trying to get rid of you." He slipped his hand into yours. "No, uh, I don't—I don't want you to go. Was worried maybe you'd picked something far away. I know that's selfish of me, though." He laughed lightly, finding it hard to believe that someone could want him around. Could want him to stay.

"Nope. Going to the University just outside of Hawkins. It's like thirty minutes away or somethin'. Couldn't really afford to not go to school. Gonna need a good job at some point."

He rubbed up your arm. "What about you, sweet thing? Gonna leave me?" You poked him in the stomach.

"No. Lucky for you, looks like we're going to the same school. Guess you won't be getting rid of me either. It was cheaper to stay in-state, and I thought about Indiana State, because they have an eastern campus, but I'd rather stay at home, I think, until I get used to this grown up shit."

He understood that. As much as Billy wanted to get away, he didn't like the idea of having a roommate or having to socialize more than he had to. He knew college was likely to have more pricks than high school, and he wanted to cut down his intake as much as possible. But knowing you were going to be there, that made him feel a little better. He knew college was going to be hard, that he was going to have to try hard. But he'd have you.

He sat up, pulling his legs from over your thighs. "I don't wanna sound excited or anything, but uh..." He trailed off, scratching his nose. "Since we have to take the basic classes and shit, we could try to sign up for the same ones. Like the sections, you know." You swore your heart grew at his words. You didn't have friends. You had Billy, and that was it. So you expected to get through college alone, and you were content with that. But knowing he'd be there, that you could talk to him, it meant everything.

"Yeah, we could." You smiled at him and moved a curl from where it was twisted around his earring. Billy had this look in his eye, and he was suddenly pulling you into his arms. "We'll be okay. You and me." He rubbed his hand up your spine, and you smiled into his neck. He could feel it against his skin, and smiled right back.

————

College was ass. It was hard, and you were stressed, what with the workload and getting used to everything: the campus, your schedule, having to do everything for yourself. Billy was a little more used to doing everything on his own, but he never shied away from comforting you when you when you were anxious. Not to say he wasn't anxious. As much as he'd been a partier in high school, he didn't like huge crowds, not anymore. The buzz made him nervous.

When the two of you had worked most of it out, you'd try and eat lunch together on the couple of days you were there for a long period of time. He'd buy sandwiches and meet you in this secluded spot you'd found behind a greenhouse. And your heart clenched every time he had to go to class. But he'd press a sweet kiss to your forehead, to both of your cheeks, and tell you "You're gonna be okay, pretty baby. I'll see you later."

There were evenings when he'd sit with you in the library, in your favorite corner, the both of your textbooks and papers splayed out over the worn wood table. You'd work until it was dark, and then pack up, and when you'd gotten outside he'd move his backpack, fixing it on his chest. He'd then get you to stand on a stair and hop onto his back, and he'd provide you with a Billy-certified-piggyback-ride to the car.

College wasn't your favorite experience. It just wasn't. You didn't really get how anyone could like it. But you had Billy, and it was so much better with him. So you liked it a little.

————

By the time fall break came around, the short four-day-weekend provided to you in October before the longer November break, the both of you were exhausted. You'd had a handful of exams before the break, and had studied your asses off. And you still had exams post-break, which meant the recess wasn't really what it was supposed to be, finding yourself still studying to the best of your ability.

On this night though, you and Billy had been working and working, and decided to take the evening off, just to spend time with each other. You could study some more tomorrow.

He'd taken you on a drive, rolled the windows down and played music, loud, but not loud enough to hurt your ears, letting you both be obnoxious teenagers before you weren't teenagers anymore.

You'd eaten greasy ass food, gotten the good stuff that campus damn well didn't have. You were excited to have something you hadn't had in a while, being too nervous to find new places to eat on campus and sticking to the same things over and over again. But everything was easier with Billy. It was easy to breathe with him. And Billy felt the same way about you. For the first time in his life, he didn't feel tense all the time, didn't feel like he needed to have a guard up, be ready to fight if he needed to. He felt safe. He felt safe because of you. With you.

He was lying half on top of you. You were nestled in his pillows, and his head was on your chest, cheek pressed against you firmly. His leg slung over yours. You played with his curls, listening to his steady breathing. You didn't think he was asleep, so you ran a hand above the waist of his sweatpants, where his skin was exposed, and he shivered. He'd liked that spot.

A little after that though, his breathing hitched. You couldn't see his face from where your head was tossed back to allow him room against you, so you thought maybe he yawned. But his chest felt a little shaky, and you started to worry.

On top of you, Billy had suddenly become very overwhelmed with emotion. Laying with you like this, going to school with you, having you in his life all because of a fucking skating rink, led him to be content. Billy was happy. And so he started to tear up, thinking about you and all you'd given him, and even though he tried to stop it, which he'd gotten very good at, the tears just spilled over. He felt weak at first, but knew you wouldn't see it like that. You never did.

"Billy, sweetheart are you okay?" Your voice broke him out of his stupor.

"Yeah. Fine."

"Can you look at me then?" He shook his head immediately, nuzzling further into you, sinking down your body to try and bury himself in your abdomen. "Billy, it's me."

He pulled himself to his knees, displaying his teary face to you. "What's wrong, Billy?" He put his hands on the bed in front of him.

"Nothings wrong, sweet thing. I'm just—I'm happy. I'm fucking happy. Because of you. With you. And I haven't been happy in a really long time." You held your arms out and embraced him. And even though there were tears wetting your shoulder, you could hear the smile in his voice when he said, "I'm happy and I'm in love. And it's all your fault." You cackled in response.

————

please let me know if you liked this! feedback is always appreciated!! comments and reblogs mean more than you know. <33

[erikiara80]

More on Will, dragons and Petergate

The disco ball is associated with the Mind Flayer/hive mind/Vecna. There is the one at the snow ball, when the Mind Flayer is looming over the school.

Two in S4. One at the Rink-o-mania, where El remembers the massacre and we hear the clock ticking sound (I'm sure we’ll see that place in a vision in S5)

And one in Max’s memory, where Vecna attacks her.

Oh, and when El throws him in the air, he’s exactly under the disco ball.

(gif credits to certifiably evil)

But iirc, the first time we see a disco ball is in 2x01. At the Arcade. 

Where Will has the first vision of the Mind Flayer storm.

And what are the kids doing there? They’re playing Dragon’s Lair.

So Will, Mind Flayer/Vecna AND a dragon’s lair. Ok

In 3x03, at Castle Byers: two eagle upside down, two dragons (interesting, I have thoughts about that too), and Mike's voice: Something’s coming. Not to mention that the password to CB is Radagast, a reference to The Hobbit, a story with a red dragon.

Then the drawings of Will the Wise and another dragon, in case for some reason we missed all the other references, lol

And in the same episode, in one of the lifeguards’s magazine there’s an article about Rick James, who released a new album in 1985, The Glow (analysis of 3x03 here)

The glow is also the power that a martial artist can develop in the movie The Last Dragon. 

Once you are able to use that power, a mystical energy that makes your hands and body glow (Will=lights) you become the last dragon (analysis here)

So, in S3, mention of Rick James/the album The Glow. And in S4, the poster of the Last Dragon at Family Video (post here)

But I noticed another poster with a dragon, on the opposite side of the Family video! Like the two eagles facing each other at Castle Byers.

Pete’s dragon. Another Peter! 

Peter references so far: 

Fairy/Will in S1, Skull Rock, the light particles at the Wheelers’ and the clock chiming as a warning like the alarm clock in the crocodile’s stomach (Peter Pan). The two (Peter) Venkmans, Lucas and Mike, foreshadowing of Will and Max being targeted by Vecna. Owens’ son Peter and Henry/Peter Ballard. The Peters (plus keys) at the Warzone store. And the parallels ST shares with Fringe, where one of the main characters is Peter Bishop, who has a lot of parallels with Henry and Will.

Here another possible parallel: Will, dragons and the god Gozer (Ghostbusters)

Pete’s dragon 

It’s the story of an orphan who flees his abusive foster family, with the assistance of an unseen force he calls Elliot. But Elliot is real, it’s a dragon that can turn invisible and helps children in trouble. In this story there is also memory loss and people who blames Peter for troubles that the invisible dragon causes... 

Interesting.

Much to think about!

Are there other Peters?

[demadogs]

Do you think Mike is already aware of his feelings?

yes!!! i totally do. the reason i believe this is because in s3 the majority of our byler evidence is technical cinematic choices like framing, blocking, color pallets, music, etc. but for s4 theres way more byler evidence that are directly from mikes behavior!!!

in other words, s3 queercoding had to be achieved through more film choices because he wasnt aware of his own feelings so his character didnt reveal that much to the audience. but in s4 a HUGE portion of our byler evidence is of mikes behavior towards both el and will, so he definitely became aware of his feelings some time within those 6 months apart from them.

———

in s3 these are what i think are the biggest byler evidence:

framing mike perfectly in the closet (this ones also a bit behavioral because he doesnt kiss her back, leaves his eyes open, and looks beyond confused after, but i think the framing is overwhelmingly the loudest thing here).

the huge difference in the aesthetic of the mlvn break up and bylers fight. they intentionally filmed mlvns as humorous, colorful, and unserious but for byler they had pouring rain, dark grays and blues, theyre alone, and emotional synth music plays after.

and consistently placing el alone and pairing up byler with the canon couples.

there is only one huge behavioral thing mike does in s3 that gives us a clue on what hes feelings and thats “its not my fault you dont like girls”. i think this was him subconsciously projecting but hes still unaware of his feelings or wills.

———

s4 byler evidence still has a lot of technical film choices, but we see WAY more evidence thats directly based on mikes behavior. he is well aware of his feelings and he doesnt know how to act around will or el because of them.

s4 mikes behavioral byler evidence:

the non hug at the airport.

there is NO reason for him to do this unless he is well aware of his feelings for will. he is terrified of being perceived as gay. this scene reminds me of the book the goldfinch where the main character who canonically has a lot of internalized homophobia refuses to hug goodbye his close family friends before he moves because it would “seem gay”. thats literally almost the exact situation here only its a greeting hug instead of a goodbye hug. that character later admits that hes in love with his best friend.

looking nervous when he asks about the painting.

i dont think people talk about this one enough. it was clearly art and mike has a whole binder of wills art at home. why wouldnt he be excited to see it? (because el told him its for a girl!!)

not calling will that much

why wouldnt he want to call his best friend since kindergarten who moved away? i think the ‘couple times’ will was referring to was before he realized his feelings and then he stopped calling him after he figured it out because he didnt want it to be true and he was trying to ignore his feelings.

“thats because shes my girlfriend will … we’re friends!! we’re friends.”

this one SCREAMS internalized homophobia. especially since will didnt imply anything romantic, mike interpreted it that way on his own. this one also goes hand and hand with the technical stuff because right after that line the track “in the closet (at rink o mania)” plays.

mike not telling el he loves her when its so blatantly clear thats all she wants to hear

if mike really loved her this argument wouldnt happen to begin with but the fact that it did and mike had the clearest opportunity to reassure el that he does love her and all he could get out was “youre being ridiculous. you know what i think of you. youre the most incredible person in the world.” yikes.

talking to will about that fight but not telling him “that thing” he couldnt say was that he loves her

he was comfortable enough telling will about the fight and that there was something he couldnt say but he blatantly chose not to tell him what that thing was. this one DEFINITELY tells me he is aware of his feelings. if he genuinely didnt know why he couldnt say it i think he would be comfortable asking will about it but he refused.

this

and this

so yes i think mike is well aware of his feelings bc his behavior is so strange and different in s4 than any other season. i think while he was away from both of them he realized that he missed el the way he was supposed to miss will and he missed will the way he was supposed to miss el. and that freaked him out a lot. and as finn has said, he is just trying really hard to be normal (and failing miserably).

[love-kurdt]

wip (william's imminent peril) wednesday muahahahaha

from now that we don't talk: 1 ! y'all, i'd never imagined writing so in-depth from will's pov (i'm definitely more of a mike kinda gal, i mean... it's kinda concerning tbh) but lo and behold: this absolute monstrosity of an excerpt! i couldn't figure out which part to post without taking away too much context so... i decided to post the whole thing. anyway. this is about 1/10th of chapter 1.

When Will first moved to California, it had taken him two months to fully unpack his boxes. And he knew why. He didn’t want to be there. He’d left a part of himself behind in Hawkins— a part that grieved him in reciprocal. He’d seen the expression on his best friend’s face through the passenger side mirror as he stood with his bike in front of the old house; he looked lost, confused, and hurt. Will could definitely relate. Being uprooted from the only place he’d ever known and dropped into an unfamiliar, blistering hot, suburban town in California didn’t provide him with much motivation to unpack. Unpacking, to Will, meant the Byers’ big move became real. Unpacking, to Will, meant that it was permanent. Unpacking, to Will, meant that he’d eventually have to start his new life, at a new school— high school— without his best friend by his side. Well, on the other hand, at least he and Mike could still talk over the phone.

Will could not have been more wrong. Mike did not make a single call to Will for the entire seven months that he and his family were in Lenora. Mike did not send a single letter, either. And El was too busy building a shoebox shrine for Mike to realize that her brother was practically falling apart because of their thriving relationship. So Will started unpacking, each box representing a call and letter El received instead of Will. His clothes were put on hangers in the closet, and his art supplies finally found a place next to his bedroom window. And all of Mike’s writing was shoved away into the darkest depths of his lowest desk drawer, never to see the light of day again. Yeah, it was petty, but Will was angry. He deserved to be angry, damnit. He was angry at Mike for abandoning him, and he was angry at himself for being delusional enough to believe Mike cared that much about their friendship.

His mood hadn’t changed much when they’d initially arrived back in Hawkins. He watched from afar as Mike continued to pursue El, who had clearly resigned from their relationship the second Mike referred to her as a superhero following the incident at Rink-o-Mania. About a month into the Vecnapocalypse, Mike had told Will that he’d finally broken up with El. Will was secretly elated; the torture fest was finally over. But when Mike revealed the reason why they’d broken up, which was the very painting that Will had used as a device to try and clear the air between Mike and his sister, his back-breaking efforts seemed to be all for nothing. They had a little argument-turned-heart-to-heart about it, but they hugged it out in the end like best friends do. And things were fine. They were a team again, and that’s what mattered most.

The dynamic between Will and Mike had changed, though, throughout the course of the Vecnapocalypse. They’d gone from being virtually radio silent to… whatever the situation was. They’d flirt, hold hands, listen to each other’s mixtapes, and partnered up together during missions. This continued on for a while until one particular moment in the Upside Down, when Mike had leaned in a bit too close and Will was just about to lean in as well, giving into the deepest desire he’d ever had in his life: kissing Mike square on the mouth. In typical Mike fashion, ever the dramatic, he’d jumped backwards, stumbled outside, tripped over a gigantic vine, and triggered a shit ton of Demobats to swarm the Upside Down version of the Wheeler house. After that shit show, Will couldn’t help but be a little bit bitter towards Mike. That side-battle could have cost them everything. Vecna could have won. And on top of all that, Will was tired of being led on by Mike and all of his contradictions, so Will kept Mike at a distance from there on out. They never brought up the Almost-Kiss ever again. Once he’d moved back to Hawkins for good, unpacking went fairly quickly.

Things got even stranger when a few years had gone by, and the Party had made it out of high school in one piece. Then Will found the letters. When he’d confronted Mike about them, he was pinned against the wall and kissed as if it were something Will should have been expecting that entire time. Which, first of all, he had no fucking idea, and two, he’d just been going along with all the flirting because he’d assumed Mike was merely using him for practice for when they’d inevitably go off to college and find real significant others. But Mike had made his stance on their relationship crystal fucking clear, leaving Will feeling breathless, thoroughly kissed, and blindsided.

There was no way Will could have fathomed that this was how his time in Hawkins was going to close out. He’d been looking forward to the time in his life where everything could just be normal for once; he’d been on a decent roll for the past two years. But Mike just had to go and drop the bomb on Will that he wanted the two of them to spend the rest of their lives together, and that threw Will for a goddamn loop, because in what world– in what universe– was Mike Wheeler loving Will Byers even remotely viable? Had the Upside Down come back again? Was Will trapped in a nightmarish torture chamber, with Mike as the subject of said nightmare? He’d believe it, honestly; when he mentally added up the Vecnapocalypse period of their relationship (including the almost-kiss), the endless mixed signals afterwards, senior prom, the letters, the reality that Mike probably would have just let Will leave without admitting his stupid, dumb, impossible feelings or letting Will know about all of those love letters he’d written over the past few years, it made sense. By the time Will escaped the Wheeler house that humid August evening with tears following the semi-permanent track marks that stained down his face due to crying for literal years back to back, Will knew for sure and certain that he couldn’t spend one more week in Hawkins, Indiana. He was done.

He’d been pretty damn quick about escaping Hawkins to begin with, but the urgency to get away from Mike only accelerated it. He’d spent the rest of the summer avoiding Mike at all costs; he’d been working at Melvald’s with his mom all summer, but started picking up extra hours under the guise of wanting to save as much money as he could for his new car– which he’d already had more than enough money for, but still. Time spent at work was time spent away from Mike. Joyce certainly didn’t complain; she loved having Will around, and savored every moment she could with her Baby Boy before he moved to the Windy City.

Will realized, as he sat on his mattress amongst heaps of boxes scattered across the floor of his dorm at the American Academy of Art, that anger seemed to fuel his unpacking process. It ignited the flame of desire for transition and change in his life. And oh, after the summer he’d just had, did Will desperately need a change. This particular change, Will decided, would be good for him. He was out of Hawkins, at his dream school, about to begin studying the subject that he loved most in the entire world, and Michael Wheeler wasn’t around anymore to throw him off. Will grabbed a marker out of his pencil case and marked off the date: Sunday, August 20th, 1989. This was going to be a good, drama-less, normal year. Will could feel it.

[cringengl]

MiIeven and lying- what their relationship represents.

The airport and rink o mania scenes show the state of miIeven's relationship really well.

Not only do these scenes set up the whole cali plot line, in terms of what all the characters end up doing (such as El being separated from everyone else) but it also sets up how miIeven is such a performative relationship.

To make it clear, I have no doubt that El and Mike love eachother, I just believe it's in the platonic sense and that the reason they chose to date was due to their desire to be normal (aka they mistook their friendship feelings for romantic ones because they wanted to conform).

At the beginning of the airport scene, we see a happy reunion between Mike and El. It's clear that Mike is trying to be a great boyfriend by doing everything that a boyfriend typically should, such a flowers, however, the performative aspect quickly becomes apparent when El's smile drops as she reads the tag: "from Mike".

The most damming evidence of all this is when Argyle calls Mike ('s outfit) a "shitty knockoff"- Mike is a shitty knock off of the normal kid he's trying so hard to emulate.

The sympathy is also strongly weighted towards Will- the 'hug', Mike and El ignoring him, having to trail behind them as El says she wants it to be a day about only them, Will's dejected face and even Jonathan noticing and wishing Will a good day. It all shows that Mike and El haven't learnt from their mistakes in s3 about abandoning their friends for eachother, because if miIeven was going to be endgame, they so easily could have done this and acted like s3 showed them that they should stop being so rude to their friends when they're together- but no.

The whole day that El plans out is what she wants her life so desperately to be with the lie she makes up, and Mike plays into that. However, the audience is shown how ridiculous their performance is through Will. He's not afraid to be honest about the fact that they don't go to parties, or that El is having trouble and it really does show how Mike being with Will would be staying true to himself, and not doing what other people want him to do.

Will has always been true to himself, whether it being for wearing bright clothes that got him bullied in middle school, to staying true to his intrest in DnD in s3.

This makes the van scene all the more tragic as Will is not a character that lies, the closest he gets is telling Joyce "I'm not going to fall in love", but this can easily be interpreted as I'm not going to be able to be in a romantic relationship because I'm gay in 80s Indiana.

This is why the van scene is so important to his character- because it's the first time that he's not true to himself, which is why it has to play a fairly big part in s5.

Now Mike has to make the choice about whether he wants to be true to himself, his queerness and his love for Will, or to keep living the dream life that he and El have created. However, with El already realising that she cannot have a normal life and that maybe that isn't such a bad thing (her whole arc about discovering who she really is as a person, and that she is not the monster, meaning that she doesn't have to imitate the movies she saw in Hopper's cabin anymore), it is all the more likely that Mike is going to end up with Will.

Just like in other famous love triangles, such as Katniss, Peeta and Gale, where Katniss has to choose not only between the two boys, but also how she wants to live her life- through violence or peace, Mike has to do the same.

However, we've already seen how this conflict has played out....

[will80sbyers]

hot take: Will was never as sexist as people want others to think...

he was ignorant because he was a 12yo kid that never had a girl as a close friend before Max and El

he didn't have the experience and didn't think about it, he thought only boys liked to do things like play videogames or do science because he only had that experience...

he bonded with the guys over nerdy stuff but he was never hostile towards girls, he was interested to know them and learn!

I'm sure he always treated every girl with respect and kindness because Joyce talks about how he gave up his toy to a little girl that was sad & there is that girl that is crying at his funeral = Will probably talked with her at school and he was kind with her... it's just his character

here he's genuinely confused but immediately accepts Max into the group, before Mike... and he doesn't even have a romantic interest for her like Lucas and Dustin did lol

here he is simply surprised by the fact that Suzie is into science too! El and Max were never interested in science so he is just surprised by this because he doesn't know any girl that is interested in it!

here he was simply angry and jealous but he never thought El was really stupid!! He was jealous because he's in love with Mike and when you are angry it can happen that you say something you don't think!!

He was angry at Mike here, not at Eleven

now that he has grown up he adores his sister & knows she's the strongest person!!!

He knows she's smart because he doesn't believe her when she pretends to be dumb at rink o mania and not know that she's lying to Mike...

and knows she's the only one that can save them from the upside down!!!

he is bestie with Max because they went to the movies together all summer (this is my truth even if they don't show it in the show explicitly)

and he defends Suzie saying that she's a genius in s4 because he learned that yes, girls like science too and sometimes(often) they are even smarter than guys

they ALL grew up and learned that women are amazing!

[mikeweasel]

Hello 🌈 what is your favorite thing about the relationship between Mike and Will in the show, and what are some of your favorite moments between them? How do you think the love confession will play out next season?

- Rainbow anon

Hey and thanks for the ask! Sorry it took me so long, I thought I posted this but I saw this in my drafts.

I'll try to make this short and sweet cuz there's so much I love about byler and I don't wanna go off, but the main thing I love about them is how amazing their connection is. Their love is real and the story they share is beautifully heartbreaking in all the right ways.

I've been on Mike's side, then later Will's side, and got my heart shattered twice, so to see them go through the same shit together while simultaneously shooting and reciprocating hints to eachother automatically pulled me in and kept me stuck. You can feel how strongly they feel for one another and you get to see how unconditional and consistent their love is, like in one of favorite scenes, the Rink-O-Mania scene, where even though Mike's doing his super straight boyfriend thing and being slightly pissy, he doesn't miss a beat on jumping up beside Will, coming to his aid when he sees Will troubled,

He doesn't even think about it, it was instinctual for him. What capped off that scene for me was the argument of course cuz that was the most sus argument to have after you're girlfriend just got humiliated in front of a bunch of her peers. Btw, every time I watch the part of the dinner scene when he goes "She didn't look fine" I choke 😭 he did not have to do her like that.

Anyway, my other favorite scene is very much the Cool scene. It was a clear what they were doing with that, and it works perfectly. I didn't see Mike be that gentle with Will in a while and it was even better to see how quick they were to flirt, as if nothing else was going on.

The intensity of Mike looking Will directly in the eyes as he said "Cool" in that way was insane. Like, there was know way he didn't know what he was doing, and Will picked up on it too. That's why I think, (and hope) Mike is the one to confess first. Will's really playing it like that ship has sailed so I'm thinking Mike catches on somehow and finds a way to subtly tell him, and since we already know they don't need words to fully understand eachother it might be a slow scene almost like Jopper's but most likely more intense.

All in all I'm really here to see my boy win. Will deserves the world and Mike is more than ready to give it to him. I honestly can't see it any other way.

[strangerthingsfan-fics]

After rink o mania gareth emerson x Fem!byers reader

Warnings-swearing,kissing,blood and fighting

You was sick and tired of getting bullied by Angela will and Jonathan (your brothers) saw how sad you was they saw you cry all the time because of her and when you spoke about hopper on something they was laughing at you when you was all at the airport you was waiting for Gareth’s plane to land you was sat waiting when you saw him after leaving the gate from his plane you ran and hugged him smiling when he kissed you both of your brothers found it gross will noticed you lying to gareth because you knew gareth wouldn’t be happy you was all in rink o mania jonathan and argyle sat out because there was no way of them getting on that skating rink

“How often do you come then” gareth asks

“I come here a lot for parties with my friends” you respond

You got on the rink and you was laughing at how gareth looked like bambi on ice so when you started laughing you held his hand and started skating will was staying behind because you and gareth barley saw each other now Angela and all her friends saw you and gareth when you was roller blading you did a trick making gareth shocked when you got off to have a drink of cola when Angela came up when Gareth’s arm was around you

“So where have you been hiding this pretty thing” Angela asks

“This is my boyfriend gareth” you say

“You must be Angela yn has told me lots about you I’m glad she’s got some friends here” gareth looks over your shoulder

“Come on ‘friend’ let’s go roller blade together”Angela chuckles

Angela grabs your wrist and pulls you onto the rink when everyone was forming a circle around you gareth looks confused till they was doing your fidgeting thing that helps you concerntrate when they throw chocolate milkshake on you and you skate off gareth trys chasing you when your sat in the storage room crying your eyes out that feeling of revenge comes into your body you storm out taking someone’s roller blade

“ANGELA” you shout causing her and all her friends turn around

When you storm over everyone knows some shit is gonna happen and when you smack Angela square in nose with the wheel of it will and gareth are stood there in shock and so are you you’ve never let your anger get the best of you but this time it did when you walked to the pizza van with will and gareth following you all that you do is just run to your big brother Jonathan and hug him Jonathan isn’t used to you hugging him unless something bad has happend you was crying really bad and when gareth and will came behind you and hugged you when argyle makes everyone get in the car you explain what happend

“That was hella hit when I walked in there to go to the toilet a minute ago her nose bridge was split open and bleeding that’s what you call a hit” argyle mentions

You was cuddled into gareth now at the back gareth keeps giving you pecks on the face to show that he’s here you keep your hand on the one on your shoulder and will looked over at you