#let mike wheeler cry

[gayofthefae]

You know how I know Mike is queer?

These are the same person. Mike is an inherently caring, loving, and protective person. It's what Will called out in 4x08 and reminded us of with Mike's desire and practice in attempt to be a "hero" and be able to help the ones he loves.

But when El tells him she feels unloved by him, he doesn't comfort her. At all. He defends himself. He doesn't even say "yes I do". He says "I say it". Even when he's arguing that he loves her, he is defending himself, not comforting her. If he was comforting her he would have reacted to her crying at all. He doesn't. He just becomes increasingly desperate and escalates the tactics that are making her cry more.

Because the accusation is that important to him. Not many things could be so important to him that he would deprioritize her or taking care and protecting and comforting those he loves. He even does quite well at it at the start of the scene. We have PROOF that he is pretty stable these days with any sort of accusation or invalidation with how well he takes "you don't understand" and simply asks questions without any sort of offense. So he CAN take it. He takes it IN THIS CONVERSATION.

But when she says he doesn't love him, he stops the "they just don't know you". He stops the "don't say that about yourself, you're lovable," which is what this is really about for her. If he had said that even if he couldn't say it himself, it might have still helped a little bit: frame it as his own fault if he can't. But he couldn't do that. Instead, he went with how it reflected on HIM that he couldn't say it and defended himself AGAINST her. FOUGHT her on it.

There are few things that can make him fight a person. And they've all actually been pretty similar. They're all El:

"You're prioritizing El over Will"

"There is something off about your relationship with El"

"You're prioritizing El over [Will]"

"He's right that your and [El's] relationship wasn't a good one"

"Your and El's relationship wasn't a good one"

"You're prioritizing El over [Will]"

"You don't love [El]"

He is comforting. He is kind. He prioritizes others' comfort and safety consistently. He takes other accusations fairly lightly and focuses back onto the person making them and their emotions. And yet, what does he say in those instances and only those instances?

"SHUT. UP."

"You lying piece of shit. You're crazy!"

"It's not my fault you don't like girls!"

"He's just some crazy old man"

"You're conspiring against me!"

"We're friends! We're friends!"

"You're being ridiculous. What is this?"

People who say his character has gotten worse are stating it under the idea that he is always like this. The entire discovery so many people, including myself, had that he's queer was because we noticed that his outbursts were consistent. People think he's random and angry because they think the situations are random: Lucas, Hopper, Will, Max, El. But they're forgetting to note what each of those people questioned about him right before.

The biggest proof is that he doesn't ever talk like this outside of these situations. It's lighthearted debates and empathetic conversations.

Mike Wheeler is a kind person. If he said "You're being ridiculous. What is this?" it is not just because he's scared of vulnerability or commitment.

[bangtanthoughts]

do you guys ever just sit and think about the fact will is the connection to the upside down so there's a chance if they ever want to kill vecna once and for good will is gonna have to die and like will is aware of that and he's gonna be ready to sacrifice himself just like he was in s2 cause i do all the time and i NEED a scene of mike losing his shit when will tries to sacrifice himself for everybody and trying to rescue him before it's too late

[lupon]

Everyone's talking about how El isn't seeking comfort in Mike yet no one is talking about how Mike has never seeked comfort in El

[romainlettusdinnerparty]

ok not to be controversial but if you think that joyce byers (joyce byers!!!) would choose to stay with hopper over her boys?? i’m so sorry but you’re crazy for that

[willbyerswithpowersblog]

Stranger things + ao3 tags

[booksandpaperss]

Some idiots people on tik tok: I think Will was ready to start moving on from Mike in season 4 and people need to realize that.

Meanwhile this is the Will they’re saying is ready to move on:

[your-stranger-halfblood-things]

So we all agree to have a collective cry after Mike dies in Will's arms, right?

[sadboyhrs]

i didnt even ask 💀💀💀

[lillie98]

I know we’ve all swooned over Dustin singing “Not While I’m Around” from Sweeny Todd to Max in the hospital, but have we considered swapping in Mike? He feels incredibly guilty for Max’s involvement in their mission and believes everything to be his fault. He sits by her side, keeping her safe and defending her from evil, especially while under her coma. Even while she is defenseless, locked inside Vecna’s mind, Mike will keep her safe. No. Matter. What.

I would love to see a scene like this where Mike sits at her bedside (preferably when she can’t respond) and pours his heart out to her. He tells her about his depression, survivor’s guilt, and self-appointed duty to protect her. Despite their constant bickering and antagonism, Mike and Max are two sides of the same coin. They operate on the same wavelength: Everything that goes wrong is mine to fix. I brought this upon myself therefore I don’t deserve help or assistance. Even if Max can’t respond and assure Mike he does in fact deserve help and none of what’s happened is his fault, it would lighten Mike’s burden to acknowledge and name his emotions out loud. Duffers, if you read this, I am begging you to add this scene. Please let Mike Wheeler be vulnerable, acknowledge his trauma, and start to heal. ❤️‍🩹

[pluralbyler]

am i allowed to say they do cnc

[nancyfilm]

''for mike, love will'' written on the back of all will's paintings

[gayofthefae]

Mike and Will - WILDFLOWER by Billie Eilish, Mike POV

@throne-of-crows @urchindog @imatotallynormalteengirlok lmk if you wanna be added to the tag list

[milkyway-sunshine]

When I saw in the new season that the Byers don't stay with the Wheelers, and Will doesn't spend the night in Mike's room

[thranduel]

reminder that will byers is the only reason mike could say the words “i love you”. this is canon and nothing will change that. he could only say it because of will.

will gave mike strength. will made mike feel like he was worth something. will listened to mike express his struggles and insecurities when no one else would. will chose to sacrifice his own feelings just to help mike because that’s how much he loves him. will made mike feel more confident about himself. will made mike feel more loved than anything.

will gave mike the painting he worked so hard on and basically told him “there’s nothing wrong with being a nerd. you talk down on yourself and think that you’re lame and worthless compared to el just because she has powers, but you’re not. you’re the furthest thing from that. and yes, you’re a nerd. but that nerd is the boy that i fell in love with. that nerd is the boy that has made me feel safe my entire life. that nerd is the boy i immediately related to when he walked up to me all alone at the swingset on the first day of kindergarten. that nerd is the boy that has never made me feel like a mistake; like i’m better for being different. that nerd is the boy that holds our party together. that nerd is the boy that understands me better than anyone else. that nerd is the boy that changed my life in the best way possible. and look, here’s a painting of us; our nerdy party, from our nerdy game that we play. i don’t know about you, but i think that being a nerd is the best. and here you are, my knight in shining armour with a heart on your shield, because that’s exactly what you are to me. i’ve always loved you for exactly who you are. not because of societal pressure. not because you’ve done things for me. not because i feel like i owe you something because you saved me. but just simply because you’re YOU. you mean the world to me. i would never walk away from you or leave you behind. i’ll always be by your side and i hope that you’ll always be by my side too, because i will always need you. i love you more than anything.”

all it took was one painting and a beautiful monologue for will byers to make mike wheeler feel more loved than he’s ever felt in his entire life. and although what i wrote above wasn’t what he said exactly, it was everything he was thinking. because will has always loved mike for who he is. it doesn’t matter that he’s a nerd. will is a nerd too! they went through the same struggles growing up and they’ve always shared the same interests. that’s why there’s so much understanding. that’s why they feel safe with each other and why they can actually be themselves without being fake. but it’s heartbreaking that mike doesn’t realise will was talking about his own feelings in the van because THAT is what gave him strength and made him say “i love you”. seriously, no one else has ever made mike feel loved the way that will did in that scene, and that’s exactly why they can’t leave this storyline unresolved. mike’s current relationship is unhealthy, there’s so much miscommunication and misunderstanding and he only said “i love you” because of a lie and because he was forced and pressured into it. he feels inferior and insecure (and so does el) and they don’t feel like equals. it’s not good for either of them. also, will can’t suffer anymore after everything he’s been through.

anyone who can’t see that mike and will have the closest, strongest and most genuine relationship on the entire show clearly isn’t paying attention or simply don’t want to admit it. it’s always been THEM. they were each other’s FIRST friend. they are each other’s safe place. the show started with them. most of the other characters wouldn’t have even met if it weren’t for them. mike’s current relationship would’ve been over if it weren’t for will giving him strength and making him feel loved. they need each other. they understand each other better than anyone else. their relationship has always been different to everyone else’s. mike and will are the heart of this show. they belong together and they deserve to be happy after everything they’ve been through.

[evil-gay-person-inactive]

@kidovna i just realized that you rickrolled us in the For, Will playlist.

made my day, i havent been rickrolled in ages lmao

[uselessnbee]

fucking crying because Mike just never gives up on Will no matter what

when Will went missing Mike never thought he's dead, he went out looking for him, even after seeing his 'body' he just never gave up

when Will was possessed Mike was there by his side the whole time and never gave up on him

even when Will moved away and Mike felt like he lost him he still called him even if Will never picked up but he still tried and tried and called Will again and again and he never gave up

and even after that even with that theory that Mike's monologue was him ripping off the bandaid after Will pushed him to say ily to El even after that he's still by Will's side and we need to kill him and we will we will i will be by your side and we will fight him together because you're not alone i'm here and you may not love me the way i love you but i'll always be here with you i'll never give up on you and and

and what if i jumped of the quarry myself