#will byers as spider man | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

butchrobin · 1 year

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along came a spider

AO3

The air was frigid that particular evening, not unusual for the beginning January, snow continued to fall as it had since the first signs of dawn had broken through the clouds earlier that day. Beneath the few inches of snow was a thin layer of ice, though hidden from view people were aware of the dangers of the frozen coating under their feet and took great care with each step they took. Despite it being already winter, some remnants of fall still remained – that was evident enough in the untouched piles of leaves around the park, leaves that had begun to wither in the bitter weather. Soon all traces of fall would be gone, leaving only a frosty shell in its wake.

The snow was lighter than it had been in the morning, it fell gracefully and sunk into the rest of the snow on the ground. Kids gleefully collapsed onto it, some laughing, others complaining about the cold while their parents simply watched with disinterest, annoyance or amusement. It seemed to vary with every couple. The sun had set not too long ago, leaving the park to be illuminated by the golden glow of street lamps placed in each continent spot. As the thick blanket of darkness began to envelop the sky, parents barked orders at their children, calling them to come back home.

Mike Wheeler wanted to go anywhere but home right now. Even though the cold had started to get to him, breaching the protective layer his favorite sweater gave him – he would have much rather preferred to sit alone on his usual bench, knees drawn to his chest in a futile attempt for warmth and write in his notebook. His essay for school was almost due and he hadn't even written so much as a sentence, and it wasn't like he was able to get any work done at home any more. Not since his father had started to lecture him more often than usual, getting irritated at the slightest thing that he did wrong. So he'd left the house. Originally he'd planned to go to Will's, he always provided the comfort Mike longed for when he needed it most, but these days it felt like he was seeing less of him. It hurt. When he'd confronted him about it Will had only stuttered in response.

“What are you hiding?” Mike asked. Will startled at the question, his eyes going almost comically wide like they always did when he'd been caught out on something. Mike knew his mannerisms well enough, at one point he would have thought he was almost in tune with the other boy's emotions, but he was proved wrong. He was proved especially wrong when Will had started the cycle of lies.

“Mike- I- I'm not hiding anything.” And Will was a terrible liar.

Mike felt his anger rise. He'd never felt angry at Will before. Frustrated maybe, perhaps a little annoyed at times but never angry. But Will was blatantly lying to his face and it stung.

“Oh clearly,” sarcasm dripped from his bitter tone, “so you're not skulking around behind everyone's backs and lying to them?”

Will chewed his lip nervously, his eyes flickering from left to right. Mike's features softened and his anger simmered down. He sighed and absent-mindedly he started rubbing his arm. A nervous habit he'd picked up recently. “I'm sorry,” he murmured softly, “I'm just worried, that's all. We all are.”

Will looked up, giving him a look he couldn't quite read. It made him want to ask even more questions, but he could see how exhausted he looked and with great effort, he managed to force them down for a different time. “I know,” Mike could tell that his smile was forced, “but I promise you, I really am fine.”

The conversation had later taken a turn for the worst. His argument with his best friend was still a fresh wound and with his other friends far too busy to hang out, Mike was left alone with his thoughts. Not that he necessarily minded being alone, in fact, he was thriving in his solitude – he needed some time to think after everything that had happened. All he could focus on was the argument, it hadn't ended well but Will had continued to lie and Mike? Well, Mike knew he was partially in the wrong for pushing so hard but what else could he do when he was worried for his friend? He cared about Will so much, he couldn't stand not being able to talk to him the way that he used to. Or hang out like they'd used too, so carefree and oblivious to everything else around them. Just Will and Mike, Mike and Will.

Mike's cheeks flushed, surprisingly not because of the icy wind whirling right into his face, but at the comforting memories of him and Will together that made him feel warm. Only Will could have that kind of effect on him, because Mike... Mike loved him. But he'd never admit it aloud. He wasn't sure he could but he knew with all of his heart he loved Will Byers, he just didn't have the courage nor the strength to admit that to him or anyone. It had taken him a while to grasp the feelings he held for his best friend for a while. It had taken him even longer to accept them and who he was. He'd hated himself at first, because growing up he hadn't been immune to the comments his dad would make about people like him.

Wrong. Not natural. Queer.

But then, one odd day while he'd been sulking around a video store, he'd run into Robin Buckley. Steve's best friend and co-worker whom he'd had a few short conversations with before. She'd noticed Mike's discomfort and asked him why he looked so glum and Mike, after bottling everything up for so long, had looked at her for a mere few seconds before spilling the truth about everything. He'd been horrified at first, admitting that he wasn't normal to someone that wasn't himself and thought for sure that Robin would look at him with disgust and walk away. But instead he'd found himself faced with a soft, sympathetic look. One filled with understanding

The conversation had quickly turned into an oddly comforting one. Odd because admittedly Mike never thought he’d ever be comforted by Steve Harrington’s best friend. But Robin wasn't what some people considered to be “normal” either and it helped Mike a lot to learn that he wasn't alone. He'd become a lot more accepting of himself after that, though there were still some moments Mike had a brief lapse in self-hatred and wished that things weren't so complicated. But for the most part, he was finally content. And those feelings for Will? Well, despite everything, those hadn't gone away. But he wasn't sure that he could ever confess, Will never gave any indication that he felt the same or that he was... like him either.

Though, it wasn't like he knew that much about him any more. Not like he thought he had. Mike sighed, casting his gaze up into the bleak January sky, he still felt hollow inside — numb to everything else around him. He watched the delicate snowflakes fall, absentmindedly tapping his pen against the blank page of his notebook, wishing that things could be different. Or rather the same as they once had been. Was it too much to ask?

“Are you uh, trying to catch a cold out here?”

Mike startled, both his book and pen toppling onto the floor and he looked up, slightly irritated for a moment only to find a figure dressed in a familiar, dark spandex suit standing before him. Suddenly, Mike couldn't breathe. He couldn't breathe because Spider-Man of all people was currently standing in front of him, hands placed on his hips and Mike could almost imagine the superhero giving him a scrutinizing look of sorts.

��I- um- shit, sorry.” Mike blurted out, not sure what else to say. It wasn't everyday he happened to come across the Spider-Man after all. He quickly leaned over to pick up what he'd dropped, but Spider-Man — Spider-Man! — held up a hand, Mike halted.

“No, no let me,” he insisted, Mike was acutely aware of how his voice sounded off — like he was forcing a low tone in order to disguise it properly — he didn't linger on it, “I should've known better than to just sneak up on you like that.”

He gathered the notebook and pen in his hands and placed them on Mike's knee. Mike looked at them for a few moments and then back towards the hero who was still standing there. Right, Mike flushed with embarrassment, waiting for a response. Here Spider-Man was, going far out of his depth to initiate a conversation and Mike hadn't even formed a proper sentence yet. His mom would've scolded him for his poor manners if she were here right now, he almost snorted at the thought.

“It's cool,” he finally replied, “I probably shouldn't be out here much longer anyway.” Spider-Man's words had gotten to him, awakening him to just how cold it truly was. It was only getting worse with each passing moment and his sweater did very little to protect him from the wind that was starting to blow more harshly than before. It surprised him a little, that he'd been so wrapped up in his own mind that he'd barely noticed the drop in temperature or the fact that the park was now deserted.

Well, deserted with the exception of himself and Spider-Man.

“No offense, but you'd have to be crazy to sit in the middle of this .” Spider-Man told him, gesturing with his arms at the snow-filled area around them. Mike blinked, his face was starting to feel numb but a small laugh escaped his lips even though his hands had started to shake slightly due to the long exposure to the cold air.

“Well no offense to you , but you're also currently in the middle of this. And in spandex too.” He retorted. Now it was Spider-Man's turn to laugh, Mike's heart jumped at how oddly familiar it sounded.

“I guess we're crazy together then.”

Mike let out a breathy chuckle, “right, crazy together.”

It was weird. Mike couldn't seem to grasp as to just why it felt so strange talking to him, it wasn't necessarily because he was nervous. Well, he was nervous but any person would be talking to a superhuman. No, that wasn't what made it so peculiar. It was strange because talking to Spider-Man seemed to come so easily. Mike wasn't too ashamed to admit that he had a difficult time talking to people he didn't really know well, but this time was different. He wasn't sure if it was because of the fact that he knew he could easily trust Spider-Man, he was a hero after all, or if it were down to that familiarity he felt around him.

Whatever it was, Mike was certainly too cold to figure out whatever it meant right now.

Spider-Man watched him silently for the few moments that Mike was pondering, he cocked his head to the side, with his expression hidden underneath the mask it made it entirely impossible to tell what he was thinking. Though Mike wasn't too good at reading people, in fact, it was probably one of his worst traits.

“How far is your house from here?”

Mike blinked against the cold again, “um, like a couple of blocks?” He responded, his teeth had even started to chatter together, god how had he not even prepared for this? In his defense however, he hadn't exactly been thinking about layering up before he'd left, he'd just wanted to get out of the house.

It felt so empty since Nancy left for college. Without his older sister there, even though sometimes they rarely talked, it had been nice knowing that he wasn't alone. His younger sister, Holly, had yet to face the harsh reality that her mom and dad didn't even love each other like they claimed to around her. For the kids. Mike had overheard, they'd only stayed together to attempt to create some stability in their household. But they'd instead done the exact opposite.

“-ello?”

Mike jerked slightly, oh good he'd gotten wrapped up in his head again and completely missed the question that had been pointed at him.

“Oh- uh, yeah?”

“I was saying I don't mind swinging by your house,” Spider-Man repeated, his voice was soft and surprisingly patient even though Mike had proved to be a terrible listener thus far, “there's been a warning issued for ice, you really shouldn't be out here.”

“So I've been told,” Mike snarked with a roll of his eyes, “but… actually, y-yeah. I don't think I'm built for these conditions.”

He reached for his backpack, his fingers shakily fiddling with the zip — he stuffed his belongings that he'd brought with him into it and closed it back up. Spider-Man waited, the blank lenses on his mask locked onto his form as he got to his feet. Mike shifted nervously, the sudden realization that 'swinging' by his house meant literally. Oh god, his eyelids slid shut briefly, he hadn't thought this offer through.

“Are you alright?”

He reopened his eyes, the superhero was standing about a foot away, his hand twitched in the air like he had been about to prod or shake him. Mike shook himself, was he really that out of it? He hadn't noticed it much beforehand, but he was more aware of the exhaustion weighing him down. That could easily be traced back to his lack of sleep the past few nights, he'd been worrying about Will so much that it left him feeling restless.

“I just- I'm not so good with heights.” Mike swallowed thickly. It was the honest truth, he had never been good with heights. Not since… He shivered, Troy's taunting laughter echoed in his mind. But this wasn't like that, he reminded himself, this was nothing like that. He was safe. Spider-Man was safe.

“If it makes you feel better you can close your eyes,” Spider-Man offered, closing the gap between them, “nothing bad will happen, you have my word.”

His voice was unwavering, so incredibly gentle, it almost washed away any doubts he’d started to have.

Ignoring how that little part of him that despised the idea of swinging through the air, Mike hesitated a few moments before he nodded and gave a small smile. I'm gonna regret this. He thought to himself, taking the hand that Spider-Man had offered out to him. He was guided slowly and carefully into position, with one arm slung over his shoulder and the other under his arm. Mike breathed deeply, trying to calm his nerves before he went into a full blown panic.

He most certainly did not want to have a meltdown in front of a superhero.

“You ready?” Spider-Man turned his head slightly, Mike took another slow inhale.

“As I'll ever be,” he said rather timidly, “you- you won't drop me, right?”

He laughed, “of course not,” his tone was light and bubbly, but still entirely serious at the same time, “alright, tuck your legs around my waist and hold on.”

“I thought you said you already had me?”

“I do, I do. I just don't need you kicking me in the legs all the way, that's all.” Spider-Man responded humorously.

“Right. Sorry.” Mike felt a rush of embarrassment as he struggled to lock his feet together so that they wouldn't fall out of position. He felt a rush of heat flush through his face, because here he was clinging to Spider-Man like an idiot and they weren't even in the air yet. But more important than that, the only thing his mind could focus on — other than how in just moments he'd be in the air and away from the safety of the ground — was that he was clinging to Spider-Man. Oh Dustin would tease him mercilessly if he found out about this.

“Ready now?”

“If I have to be.”

With one final laugh, Spider-Man flicked the wrist of his free hand outwards and propelled into the air. Instinctively Mike's grip tightened, pressing himself as close to the superhero as he could manage. The hand that was currently securing Mike's own hands together squeezed him lightly, reassuring him without any words needed.

Now Mike knew that Spider-Man had reached civilians from dangerous situations like this all the time, so seemingly effortlessly it was like he didn't even try. He was a professional. But Mike? Well, he was afraid of a lot of things and this was most definitely at the top of his list.

“Holy shit.” Mike breathed after risking a glance down at the ground far, far below them — too high, much too high — he shut his eyes, not wanting to see anything more.

“You alright back there Mi-” Spider-Man cut off abruptly, Mike was far too preoccupied with internal panicking to notice the way he stuttered, “oh wait, I didn't even ask your name did I?”

“You're asking me this now ?!” Mike yelled incredulously, his eyes were beginning to hurt.

“No time like the present!”

“It's Mike- fucking hell! ” He hissed as they took what must've been a sharp turn, too fast and too sudden for him to even comprehend.

“Nice to meet you Mike, I'm Spider-Man!”

What a dork. Annoying, slightly irritating — but what an admirable dork Spider-Man turned out to be. His persistent quips and snarky humor were known to many, especially the petty criminals he fought daily. Mike wished he had the confidence to be able to face off a man twice his size and throw joke after joke at him; he'd tried that once with a simple middle school bully and it had ended as well as one might've expected. With a black eye and a trip to the nurses office.

“I know you you were keeping your eyes closed, but you should really see the view from up here.” He was dragged from his thoughts when Spider-Man piped up again, Mike's brows knitted together as his eyelids throbbed under the pressure he was using to keep them closed.

Mike was really, really starting to regret his choice.

It took more effort than he thought it would to force his eyes to open, his body was currently working overdrive in fight or flight mode and unfortunately for Mike — who often chose flight over fight — he could do neither. Though in an ironic way, he supposed that he was flying in some way. Just not in the way you'd think him to be.

When he finally opened his eyes however, all his fears seemed to melt away within seconds.

Hawkins City wasn't much from the ground, that was an understatement really, the city looked godawful from any normal person's perspective. The air filled with smog so thick it was almost impossible to see the sun even at its brightest, buildings that towered into the sky that were either so decrepit and worn down that they were falling apart or close to it. The small suburban area just outside of town where Mike lived wasn't very big, but it was better than the city center and less of an eyesore at that. Perhaps Mike was treating the city too harshly, as someone who hated the general area of Hawkins he probably wasn't the best person to ask for his views on it.

Maybe, all he'd needed was to see it from another point of view. Spider-Man had the view of the city that people would long to see.

Above the smog, away from the rundown looking areas and around the center of the city — fluorescent lights shone all around them, reflecting off the windows of nearby buildings and clashing together so perfectly that it was stunning. Breathtaking even. Mike could see the tiny circles of what he guessed were street-lamps dotted around below him through the fog. He blinked in awe in every direction, his eyes catching new things that he liked or marveled at in astonishment.

He felt silly, gaping at the city he'd lived in all his life with such childlike wonder in his eyes, but it was so different seeing it like this. Below, Hawkins was nothing, but above? It was truly something incredible. And he realized he was lucky to have seen it this way, he wasn't sure Spider-Man would let others hitch rides like this all the time. He also wasn't sure why that thought seemed to make chest swell with heat.

“It's better up here, isn't it?” Spider-Man's voice pulled him out of his daze.

“Yeah,” Mike whispered, “it's different.”

“Whenever I need to I always take a swing up here to clear my head, it helps.”

“I can see why.”

“The city does have its own unique kind of beauty,” Spider-Man contemplated, “it's just parts of it that aren't so pretty that ruin it.”

Mike remained silent, taking in his words. He took a moment to process the meaning behind them and he quickly understood what he had meant. The potential that Hawkins had, to be such an alluring city — but it was the violence associated below that ruined its reputation, the corruption festering deep within the very heart of the town. From crime-gangs to petty criminals, Hawkins had its troubles and Spider-Man had become their savior.

“Well,” Mike said musingly, “at least we have you to make it better.”

Spider-Man didn't reply, but Mike could still tell that he greatly appreciated his words. He just didn't know how much he really took them to heart, clinging onto them with everything he had.

They were coming up to the edge of the city now, the familiar suburbs soon came into view.

“Can you see your neighborhood?” Spider-Man asked.

“Yeah, you're heading right for it,” Mike told him. Readjusting his position to get a better look over his shoulder, “take a right down this street, my house is the first one.”

Even though he'd loved the view of the city from above, Mike was still wholly grateful to be back near the ground again. He still hated heights, but he hadn't felt as scared as he'd thought he would be while in the air.

But he still never wanted to do that ever again.

Spider-Man landed gracefully in his front yard and gently eased Mike to the floor. The floor. Oh how relieved he felt to be back on solid ground again.

“I can tell you had a blast.” The hero snickered upon seeing Mike's expression.

He rolled his eyes playfully, “oh I had the time of my freaking life up there.”

Another laugh. Mike's chest blossomed with warmth.

“Well it was nice to have some company, I should really head back though.” Spider-Man told him, he jerked his thumb back in the direction of the city.

“Ah, spidery things to attend to, right? Flies to catch and all that.” Mike nodded vigorously, Spider-Man gave a frustrated huff.

“I do not catch flies.”

“Right, of course not.” Mike said with a wink. He was confused for a moment as to where this sudden burst of confidence came from, winking at a superhero of all people, but the question was lost to his mind. It was just too damn cold to think about anything anymore.

Spider-Man shook his head, Mike almost could have pictured a smile underneath the mask. But there was no face to match no matter how he tried, he couldn't just will a face he didn't know or hadn't seen into his mind's eye.

“Goodnight, Mike.” There it was again. The rush of familiarity in his tone. It was verging on making him frustrated as to why he couldn't place it, he just knew that he knew it.

“Goodnight, Spider-Man,” he murmured with his lips pulled into a delicate smile, “and thank you, by the way.”

“Anytime.” And then he was gone, flinging himself up onto a lamppost and shooting into the air, Mike watched after him until he disappeared from sight.

Without any hesitation he made his way up the path leading to his front door, swiftly making his way inside — he cast a fleeting glance in the living room, seeing his father slumped in his chair with his eyes fixed firmly on the TV. His face showed no signs that he'd even noticed him come in, though he could have and instead resolved to not acknowledge it. Mike was just fine with that, he didn't feel like talking anyway. He trudged up the stairs without a word, entering his room and closing the door quietly behind him.

His mom must already be in bed and Holly in her own room, having been put to sleep hours ago. Nancy's room remained unoccupied, except for all the junk his dad had moved inside the moment she'd left for college.

With an empty sigh, Mike collapsed onto his bed, he lay on his back and stared at his ceiling. His mind replayed the events of the evening, Spider-Man in the center of it all. Why couldn't he get him out of his head all of a sudden? He hadn't really given him much thought before he'd properly met him, he'd been just like most people, soberly grateful for how he helped the city and everyone in it. He'd never held any kind of hero worship for him, not like some of his adoring fans did and Mike had seen plenty of those at school. Troy was one he could name.

He wondered what Spider-Man's reaction to that would be. A dick like Troy worshiping the very ground he walked on. His lips curled up in amusement, he was certain Spider-Man wouldn't exactly be pleased with that. Especially if he knew how much of a complete asshole he was.

He lay like that for a while, unmoving and undisturbed. He was so thoroughly exhausted he didn't even bother rolling over to his bedside to switch the lamp off. Instead, he felt his mind slowly start to cloud over as sleep came quicker than he'd expected. He didn't fight it when his eyelids began to flutter, he only sighed contentedly at how his evening had become much more bearable in such a short amount of time, and in the least anticipated and astounding way.

Mike dreamed that night. He dreamed of flying through the air, laughing and free. But if he dreamed of Will's smile underneath Spider-Man's mask and how natural it looked in place, then unfortunately everything was too blurred together to remember when he woke up the following morning.

#stranger things #stranger things fanfic #will byers as spider man #mike wheeler #will byers #byler #byler fanfic #noodle's fics

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