Chapter Text
Although the summer had just begun, Will felt as though time was slipping through his fingers. Of course, he was excited to start college and discover a world outside of this hellscape, yet the thought of the party growing apart from one another tugged at his heart strings more than he'd ever imagined.
After their graduation, everyone began meticulously planning their next steps, as if they were reinacting their strategy meetings during those dreaded years of fighting literal interdimensional monsters. It took them a couple of weeks to come to terms with what they each wanted to do, but eventually they found their paths.
Dustin was beyond excited to start college, fantasising about those endless shelves littered with books from all sorts of time periods. Truly, he had embraced the need for limitless knowledge which the Hawkins librarian had prevented him from accessing. Or as Dustin likes to call it, "withholding his paddles".
Lucas decided to stick around in Hawkins for another year as Max finished up with school, catching up with those 18 months she had missed. She had relentlessly harassed Lucas to go to college and let her join him later on, but that annoying yet incredible, loyal boy refused. As always, she threatened to dump his ass if he "stupidly wasted his youth" for her, however, after some much needed tutoring lessons from him, she realised just how much she really need him to stick around for her to even think about graduating high-school in time.
Adjusting to regular life again was difficult for Max, although she recovered fairly well, she remained blind in one eye. Her vision was normal but a little obscured. Lucas helped her through it all though, promising to never leave her side again.
In his freetime, Lucas works part-time at the arcade and often joins Steve in coaching his little league baseball team. There's also the odd occasion where he appears as a "star guest" at the Hawkins high basketball games.
For him, this outcome couldn't be any more heavenly. He's employed, in a relationship with the coolest chick in Hawkins, and a town legacy. That and finally getting to experience life in Hawkins without man-eating monsters hiding below his feet. Lucas was finally where he wanted to be.
After the events of that fall, El decided she no longer wanted to be known for her number, but rather the girl her mother always wanted to offer a normal life to. It took some time for the party to adjust, but soon she would forever be known as Jane. Not the superhero, but the sweet girl from Hawkins.
Jane decided to enroll in school once again. At first she was hesistant, not only due to the relentless bullying she experienced in Lenora, but the trauma from the last few years proved to be a lot more challenging to process than she had realised.
Her battle with Vecna and the loss of Kali had taken a significant toll on her mental health. She would go days without leaving the cabin, often laying in her bed and staring at that hellish number embedded into her wrist, a despairing reminder of her past. Hopper's concern had peaked when she would start skipping Miami Vice on Fridays, claiming she was sleeping when really her muffled sobs could be heard over the sounds of the TV.
Jonathan tried helping as best as he could. He would bring her mixtapes every week, with songs he knew she liked, and others he believed would open up her music taste beyond 13 year old Mike Wheeler's makeout mixtape. It was similar to how he would distract Will when Joyce and Lonnie would argue. The music had helped soothe her sobs slightly, yet, she found it be a source of covering the sound of them rather than preventing them.
It helped that Will could understand her pain, although they had different experiences, it was still something they could confide in eachother with. It was during their talks when Jane would be her happiest, getting to bond with her brother for a moment, and think about someone other than herself. They would often joke about Mike's mannerisms, or how Hopper would fall asleep on the couch in the same position every night at exactly 9pm, before Joyce would drag him to bed. It was these small moments that slowly healed that crevice buried deep inside her heart.
Joyce would work late most days, but when she would come home she would always check up on Jane, giving her snacks she brought from Melvalds, or some eggos that she hid under Hopper's nose. Will felt guilty feeling a wave of relief wash over him when Joyce's attention had shifted from him to Jane. Those years of overbearing love had grown to be too much for him in the end. Luckily there was someone else in desperate need for Joyce's attention, and Jane loved every minute of it, even when she didn't have the energy to showcase that gratitude.
Her relationship with Mike was still intact, yet barelly holding on by a string. During those last few years, she felt as though he had shifted his gaze. He still cared for her yet she never received those 3 words which she would desperately pray for every night. Their kisses had grown slow and emotionless, and their nightly snuggles had become devoid of all connection. She felt more attached with the pillow she slept on than the feeling of Mike's arms around her. It worried the other party members, especially Will. Despite his lingering feelings, he had hoped for Jane and Mike to last til they grew old. He tried reassuring Jane that they were just having a blip, one that would pass in no time. However, the fact that this "blip" was an ongoing, never ending nightmare, it gave Jane little hope. Mike would visit her 3 times a week, often bringing some cards or VHS tapes to try and cheer her up.
To Will it was an act of pure, devoted love. To Jane, it was like a jester putting on a mediocre act. There was no heart in his actions, at least not the romantic kind. She just hoped that spark would soon return. Or maybe she hoped it never would again.
Despite all that troubled her, one day she left the bedroom and sat down beside Hopper on the couch. Joyce was in the kitchen prepping some more secret eggos when she saw Jane emerge, quickly scrambling into the lounge area to witness the miracle with her own eyes. The commotion had caught Jonathan and Will's attention, leading them to practically fly towards the couch. Jane had cleared her throat anxiously and explained that she wanted to return to school and graduate. She explained that she wanted to major in geography and explore new landscapes, ones with breathtaking waterfalls and mountains that reached beyond the clouds. Safe to say the entire Byers/Hopper household was in tears for the rest of the night. Out of overwhelming joy and love of course.
Mike on the otherhand was experiencing a rather underwhelming future. Although seemingly "ecstatic" about getting to write stories for the rest of his life, it was obvious he was spiralling into an impending identity crisis which everyone in the group felt coming to fruition. Apart from Mike. Poor, deluded, Mike. Will had tried to get him to explore other literary opportunities, yet the stubbornness of Mike Wheeler was an immovable force. One that Will learnt years ago was impossible to overcome.
For Will, his future was brighter than he could have ever imagined.
It terrified him.
He had been successfully accepted to NYU for an Art course, which Jonathan had persuaded him to apply to. Definitely not because he missed his brother. Will had dreamt of pursuing art ever since he was a little kid. He wanted nothing more than to create illustrations for fantasy comics, or work on commissioned paintings from influential clients, maybe even creating murals in the busy city streets. The list could go on forever. His opportunities were endless, and New York offered all of them. Yet the thought of leaving Hawkins left him feeling like he was 12 years old again. All the trauma he had experienced here, felt almost comforting. He had found family through these experiences, and by going off to chase his dreams he would be leaving that behind.
It was deeply painful for Will, but he still had these last few months of summer to spend every waking moment with his friends and family. He vowed to make every minute count and never forget a second of it.
What he didn't know yet, was that he would soon come to regret those wishes.
***
It was the second week of summer vacation, and the party was gathered at the Wheeler house for another afternoon filled with games, movies and the classic gossip catchup. Will however, was running late.
Before Will could make his way over, Mike had radioed him to ask if he could grab a few drinks from Steve, who despite his professional position had become somewhat of a smuggler for these rebellious teens.
"Come on Will, please? It'll.only take like 5 minutes" Mike pleaded
"Do we really need another late night session of drunk D&D? Can't we enjoy it sober for once?" Will complained, holding the Walkie in one hand, and gripping onto the handle bar of his bike with the other. Already biking to Steve's despite his reluctance.
"We don't have to play D&D this time, it can be monopoly-" before Mike could finish his sentence, another voice could be heard over the static
"Byers, I swear to God I need some beer in my system after all these late nights of studying. Do a gal this tiny favour and supply her with some much needed stress relief." It was the infamous voice of Max Mayfield. Although school was out, she was still cramming in extra work every night and despite the countless days of drinking, apparently she still hasn't quite reached that "stress free" state.
"You guys are all alcoholics." Will scoffed
"You love us though!" Dustin sang in the backround.
"I'll see you in 20. Over and out". Will said, while shifting in his seat, trying to shove his walkie in his backpack while keeping a steady hand on the bike.
***
It was around 4pm when Will had arrived to the Wheeler household. Face flushed from the rapid biking, and backpack filled with booze. Will wasn't much of a drinker, sometimes when the others got too drunk, that uncomfortable smell of alcohol on their breaths would bring him back to some unwanted memories of his childhood. However, getting to experience it with friends under different circumstances was helping overwrite those memories. It was sort of therapeutic in a way.
Max practically jumped for joy when she saw Will, pulling him in for a tight embrace. Will would have though it was sweet if she wasn't secretly rummaging through his backpack, literally behind his back.
"Hey wait- isn't your mom home?" Will whispered, his eyebrows furrowing, as he placed the bag on the table. The bottles clinking together.
"Nah, she took Holly to see some relatives for the weekend, and my dad is away on business. We're pretty much in the clear apart from Nancy." Mike hummed, while digging around his cabinets for some drinking glasses and snacks.
"She is at our house." Jane chimed in, looking over at Will.
"Oh yeah I totally forgot! Her and Jonathan are hanging out today." All this biking had left Will's brain a little scrambled. That and the anxiety of biking around town with a bag full of alcohol and a police chief for a dad.
Mike had began pacing around the kitchen now, scratching his head while opening the same cabinets over and over.
"Watcha lookin for over there, Mikey?" Dustin queried, hopping off the couch and strolling into the kitchen. Usually, Mike hated that nickname, however he was a little preoccupied in this moment. Letting Dustin get away with it for once.
"I can't find that bag of chips we like, y'know the salted ones that are the perfect amount of salty." Mike gestured with his hands to emphasise how salty the chips are. It was Something Will would forever find endearing about Mike, how he would exaggerate his sentences and use his hands to speak for him most of the time. Will hated that he noticed these things. The little things.
"I think I left them in the basement, I can go get em" Will voiced, already heading to the basement door and grabbing the handle.
"OK sounds good" Mike sighed, slightly distracted by Dustin tapping his fingers against the kitchen counter.
As Will started his descent into the basement, the sudden realisation hit Mike harder than Lucas' wrist rocket.
"Will! Wait-" He called, but by the time Will had reached the last few steps,
he already broke open a new gate.
In the middle of the basement stood a shirtless, slender figure, his black curls hanging loosely off his head, looking merely identical to Mike's. The boy turned slightly toward Will, his face coming into view. He had the same chiseled jawline that Will studied for hours everyday, yet his nose was slightly softer, less prominent to Mike's. He had an array of freckles that coated his face, a few even scattered across his shoulders and arms.
What stuck out most to Will however, were the coke-bottled glasses. They took up nearly half of his face, sticking out like a sore thumb against those godlike features, magnifying his puppy dog eyes. It was the first time Will had ever felt his stomach flutter for someone other than Mike, yet it wasn't because he liked this boy. It was because he was currently in the process of getting undressed.
And Will had just walked in on him.
Not only that, but he was staring at him. The boy looked at him confused, and slightly irritated.
"Wanna take a picture while you're at it?" The boy lifted one his eyebrows and gave Will a scowl.
Will stood frozen, opening and closing his mouth to speak yet nothing came out.
"Dude, you mind? Or did you wanna continue eye fucking me?"
The sudden cursing snapped Will out of his trance, causing him to spin on his heels and stumble up the stairs, practically tripping on every other step.
"S-sorry! My bad!" He yelped, his voice cracking for the first time since he hit puberty.
He quickly shut the door to the basement, and shoved his back against it, panting as if he had just run a marathon. His ears were burning up.
It was then that he saw Mike, stood in front of him, looking regretful and embarrassed.
"Mike. I think you have a fucking doppelgänger. That or the interdimensional particles I inhaled have started the kick in." Will panted.
Mike rubbed his face groaning. The other party members looking between the two confused.
"What the heck happened?" Lucas asked.
"Yeah man, where are the chips?" Dustin quizzed, leaning against the kitchen counter.
Mike sighs loudly, finally opening his mouth to speak.
"That's my cousin. Richie. I forgot to mention he came down last night from Maine." He groaned, rubbing the back of his neck. It was clear to them that Mike was not thrilled about this mysterious cousin.
"How could you forget something like that!" Will blurted in a hushed whisper, still embarrassed from the encounter, but not wanting this Richie person to overhear his distress.
"Cut me some slack! I was up all night writing! I can barelly remember what pajamas I wore" Mike walked into the kitchen, leaning over the counter and rubbing his face in his hands.
"I think a person is more memorable than some pajamas" Jane added, crossing her arms. Clearly sensing Will's discomfort with the situation.
"Wait wait wait. Are you saying there's someone in the basement right now?" Max was puzzled, her brain still trying to catch up with the vagueness of the conversation.
"Yes!" Will whisper shouted again.
"You didn't think to tell us you had a cousin?" Lucas interrogated.
"You know him! It's Richie, the one that came down the weekend before we started middle school. I think it was the weekend Will was sick so I guess that's why he didn't recognise him. Anyway, he kept saying he was gonna bang Dustin's mom. If that rings any bells." Mike whispered, rolling his eyes as the memories of that weekend came flooding back. In a weird way, he was still recovering from the exhaustion he endured during those few days.
"Son of a bitch! That guy!" Dustin yelled, suddenly connecting the dots.
"Look guys. I just need to warn you that he's like...a lot. They called him Trashmouth back in Maine if that gives you any clues." Mike whispered, causing the others to lean in slightly. Will still planted by the door, as if he was keeping a monster at bay.
"Trashmouth?" Jane asked
"Basically, he talks a buncha shit" Max reiterated. Jane opened her mouth, making an Ohh expression, finally understanding.
"Why are we all whispering when he's literally behind that door" Lucas said at a louder volume, purposefully trying to embarrass Mike and stop this weird huddle around the kitchen counter.
Meanwhile, Will was still trying to recall who Richie was. Dustin and Lucas obviously remember but Will was having trouble pinpointing who this was exactly. All these damn upside down memories were slowly overtaking the early ones.
He knew Mike had mentioned a cousin once, and it's true Will was sick that weekend so it wasn't helping him much. Yet there was something so familiar about Richie. Maybe it was the glasses? He could have seen them in a picture somewhere in one of Mike's photo albums once. Or perhaps Dustin and Lucas had told him stories after he recovered from being sick. Man, thinking about it, that weekend was really sad. All he did was sit in bed, missing out on all the fun his friends were having. I guess there was that split second that Joyce had to take him to Melvald's because she couldn't find someone to look after Will for an hour.
Then it finally hit him.
---
It was so many years ago, how could he have possibly forgotten that look. The look on that little boy's face that had practically cured Will from his illness.
It was all because of that drawing.
When he drew the picture, it had caused quite the controversy. Especially between his parents. His father made sure Will knew the implications of the drawing, how everyone would think he was a sick queer. A fag.
The words echoed within Will, even when he had no idea what they meant at the time. He knew the power they held.
That afternoon at Melvalds, Joyce brought Will with her to collect a paycheck, and since Jonathan was out with Lonnie, Will had to tag along. He sat patiently on the counter, waiting for his mom to return, his feet dangling off the counter. Sniffling every now and again, using his sleeve to wipe his runny nose. Joyce was going to nag him about that as soon as she saw it.
It was at that moment that a little boy came in. the bell of the door ringing, causing Will to peer upwarfs slightly. The boy was almost identical to Mike, except for the fact he wore glasses that were too big for his face, and his hair was exceptionally curlier. Will knew it wasn't Mike, the similarities were there, but he knew his bestfriend. He did not however, know this boy.
Will observed him quietly. Kicking his feet from the counter. The litte boy glanced around the store, eyeing up a few candy shelves, while licking his lips excitedly. This was until his eyes landed on the drawing that was pinned up behind Will.
"Woah! Is that a spaceship?!" The boy gawked, his eyes growing bigger, which seemed nearly impossible considering they were already taking up half of his face due to his glasses.
Will nodded shyly, looking down at his feet in an attempt to avoid eye contact with the him. Bracing himself for any venomous comments. What followed however would stay with him for life.
"That is the coolest drawing I have ever seen! It's like a rainbow killing machine! I wish I could do that." The boy looked over to Will and tapped his dangling foot.
"Did you draw that?" The little boy ducked his head, peering over slightly to get a look at Will's face, his curiosity overwhelming him.
Will looked over to the boy, and nodded again. At that, the boys smile nearly consumed his face as he began to jump excitedly.
"You are so cool! Can you draw me? I wanna be colourful too!" The little boy stretched out his arms to try and mimic the spaceships wings and ran in small circles, causing Will to smile and let out a soft giggle.
Before he could say anything else, Karen ran in, panting wildly as she spotted the boy. She groaned and stomped towards him furiously.
"Richie! I told you not to run off! You don't know this town very well, you could have gotten lost. Come on." She took a firm grip of his hand. She tried to be gente so as to not hurt him, but held on tight enough to communicate her frustration.
The small boy pouted in annoyance, resisting her grip as his heels dragged along the floor, squeeking slightly. As they walked out, Richie glanced back at Will and smiled widly, waving at him cheerfully. Will glanced at him, lifting up his hand slowly, waving back.
The bell of the door rang as it closed, echoing throughout the store. Leaving Will sitting on the counter, with his little heart beating out of his chest.
---
"Will....Will?...WILL!" Mike called out, waving his hand at Will from the kitchen, eventually throwing a few rogue chips his way in an attempt to snap him out of his daze, causing Will to jump. Mike furrowed his everybrows, the others exchanging looks of confusion.
"Huh? What? Sorry, I spaced out for a second.." Will mumbled, scratching the back of his neck awkwardly.
"Yeah, I think someone wants to be set free..." Max snorted slightly, pointing to the door that Will was currently using his body to barricade. For a second, Will had forgotten he was even in the Wheeler's house. How long was he spaced out for? Before he could doze off again, he felt a series of taps against his back, erupting from the door behind him. The longer he stood, the more impatient the insistent knocks became, eventually escalating to bangs.
"Let me out you fuckers! I get you feel emasculated but this is getting annoying!" A muffled voice yelled from behind the basement door, still hitting against Will's back.
"What's he talking about?" Max whispered.
"Emas...culated?" Jane murmured.
"Will, dude open the damn door!" Lucas finally shouted, lifting up his hand to gesture at Wil to move away.
Will shook his head quickly and zipped away from the door, finding a spot behind Jane and Max. His face burning red from embarrassment.
The moment Wills body had loosened from the door, it flew open, revealing a lanky figure whose face was contorted out of frustration.
"I'm barelly here for a few hours and you're already pissing me off Wheeler! Your dick shrink while i was gone or something?" The boy stormed towards Mike, glaring at him. Mike's face scrunched up at the sudden profanity, or maybe the insult to his manhood. One could never tell with Mike Wheeler.
Usually, Max or Jane would giggle under their breath from the comment, however, the party stood frozen. Their mouths agape.
"Mike..." Dustin mumbled.
"What the shit..." Lucas covered his mouth in shock, slowly lifting his other hand to point at Richie, who looked at the others unimpressed. He leant back against the counter and crossed his arms.
"What?" Richie shook his head slightly, and dipped his head, staring through his brows. It was the exact same way Mike would act when irritated.
"Dude! You're a fucking clone!" Max stuck her hand out and gestured at the two black haired boys, lifting it up and down. Mike and Richie looked at eachother, then back at the others. Both equally disgusted.
"There's no way I look like that fucking dweeb"
"You think I look like him?!"
Both boys said simultaneously, with the same tone of frustration. Mike slightly more as soon as he clocked what Richie had called him, looking at him with a the fuck? look.
"Oh my god. I feel like I'm some sci-fi movie right now." Dustin gawked, still in disbelief at how merely identical the two looked.
Max erupted into a fit of laughter, pointing at the two while throwing her head back.
"This is just too trippy! Two Wheelers? You gotta be shitting me!" She said between laughs, causing a slight giggle from Jane, finding Max's laughter contagious.
"Oh shut up Mayfield!" Mike rolled his eyes, looking away slightly humiliated.
"So...are these your friends? Or do your bullies have a key to your fucking house. Cos that's pretty sad Wheeler." Richie gestured at them all, looking back at Mike who was still recovering from embarrassment.
He sighs, dipping his head down before inhaling and and introducing them all.
"Guys, this is Richie. My cousin. He came down from Maine last night and he's gonna be staying here for a few weeks." Richie placed his hands on his hips, leaning his body forward casually, smirking at the party.
"Richie these are my friends-" before Mike could continue, Richie cut him off.
"Yeah I remember these two fuckheads! Dustin and Lucas, though I can't remember which one is which" Richie pointed between the two, narrowing his eyes looking slightly lost in thought as he tried to identify them.
"Uh, I think it's pretty obvious which one he is. With his cap having a big ass D on the front and all" Lucas pointed to Dustin's hat. Dustin doing the same. Both of them wide eyed, trying to point out the obvious.
"Right, thought it was for dickless. That works too though." Richie smirked again, turning his attention away from the two boys. Lucas covered his mouth with his fist try and stop himself from laughing in Dustin's dumbfounded face.
Will, still hiding behind Jane and Max, chuckled to himself at Richie's insult, looking down at his feet to try and cover up his clear disloyalty to Dustin and his very existent game.
The others were bickering between themselves momentarily, Dustin defending his manhood while the others teased him relentlessly. They might as well have been mute to Richie however, as his eyes were glued to Will.
He watched as Will attempted to hide his laughter, almost giggling to himself like a school girl. His soft brown hair covering his face ever so slightly as he looked at the ground. For a split moment, Richie felt his heart pinch, but as Will looked back up, Richie had already averted his gaze.
"What? Don't care to ask who we are?" Max inquired, crossing her arms as she bumped shoulders with Jane, who mimiced Max's gestures.
"Sincerest apologises ladies, and whom do I have the pleasure of speaking with?" Richie responded, in a strange British accent, at least what he thought was a British accent.
Before Max could barade him for his patronising tone, Jane lit up, uncrossing her arms and completely dissolving Max's walls of intimidation.
"I am Jane! It's nice to meet you Richie, I didn't know Mike had a cousin, or at least one our age." she beamed, clearly excited to meet more people from beyond Hawkins' overbearing forcefield that seemed to keep them endlessly trapped.
"Well well well Michael. That's not very gentlemanly, now is it? Leaving this poor girl seemingly unaware of my handsome face." Richie turned his head towards Mike, blowing him a few kisses mockingly.
"Shut it Trashmouth. She's my girlfriend, go find your own!" Mike retaliated, fairly weakly.
Richie's jaw hung open, frantically looking back and forth between Mike and Jane while pointing toward them. "No shit! Seriously? I never thought you had it in you Mikey!"
"Hey I say that!" Dustin gasped, smiling eagerly after hearing the same nickname he calls Mike being used by another. Mike clearly hating it. Looks like Dustin's grace period was over.
Richie turned his attention back to the girls, focusing in on Max. Lucas slightly tensed up, sensing Richie's urgency to crack some jokes.
"And what about-"
"I'm Max. Welcome to Hawkins trashmouth" Max had swiftly scooped up his hand in hers, and firmly shook his, catching Richie slightly off guard but not surpirsed by her strong character. It reminded him of someone similar back home.
"Woah calm down! You're gonna snap my youthful fingers!" Richie winced dramatically, whipping his hand back and cupping it in his other. Max lifted an eyebrow and smirked, seemingly amused.
Then their eyes met.
Richie looked past Max's fire red hair and saw Will, awkwardly staring back, anxioisly picking at some loose thread on the sleeves of his jacket. None of them said anything for a few seconds, the atmosphere so tense it felt as though the density of the air was increasing by the second. Richie looked away, clearing his throat and and finally asking "so, you the local perv?". He meant to say who are you? yet the habit of breaking into immediate roasting steamrolled any chance of him holding a somewhat effective exchange. Great going Tozier.
"Hey! What did you just say to him?" Mike stood up from the counter, his shoulders tensed forward and his face scrunched up angrily.
"I-its OK Mike. Yeah, sorry about that Richie... I didn't expect someone to be down there so I just panicked." Will smiled awkwardly and waved his hand slightly, swatting away any tension that remained in the air. He would usually be offended by the insults Richie threw around carelessly, yet there was something about him that felt oddly harmless.
"Man, you'd suck during a robbery! Remind me to never let you housesit." Richie leaned forward, resting his elbow on Will's shoulder, and stood beside him.
"Assuming I would even housesit for you anyway" Will mumbled, loud enough for Richie to hear, smiling slyly while looking in his direction ever so slightly. Richie met his eyes, for a moment stone faced, then the corners of his lips turned upward.
"Touché old sport" God. That dreaded British accent again. Will tried to appear grimaced by the sound of his voice, but his smirk blew his cover.
After a few seconds, Will noticed the awkward tension return. Everyone, including Richie was staring at him, waiting for Will to finally say his name.
"Oh shit! Sorry uhm- I'm Will." He wanted to crawl into a hole for all eternity after the overwhelming amount of awkward moments he had just indured. He's barelly been there for 30 minutes.
Richie let's out a soft laugh, "took your time there bowl-cut."
"It's more of a mullet.." Will mumbled, ashamed because he knew that him growing out his hair only triggered it's natural instinct to slowly shape itself into that bowl structure again. Maybe he should go back to that short cut he had a few months back.
"OK...so whatever energy is being radiated in this room is seriously putting me off of my raging alcoholism." Max said, rolling her eyes and tredding toward Will's backpack, which sat upright on the dining table.
"You guys have booze? Anyone ever teach you laws, you hoodlums" Richie says, moving off of Will and following Max. Will still felt the pressure of Richie's elbow on his shoulder, seemingly unable to shake away that tingling feeling in his stomach.
"Shut up Richie, don't act as if you don't have 6 felonies on your plate" Mike groans, leaving the kitchen and entering the dining area. Which was literally like 3 feet away.
"Yeah and the chick's love it! Just ask your mom" Richie says, grabbing a beer from the pack.
"Gross, she's your aunt idiot. And who said you could have one!" Mike snatched the beer from Richie's hand.
"Man this shit is all warm now! Curse this summer heat." Max groaned, collecting all the beers and rushing towards the fridge.
"Woah, won't Mrs Wheeler see?" Lucas interjects, placing his arm between Max and the fridge.
"She's Mike's mom, not mine" Max shrugs.
"Yeah but then we'll lose our drinking spot moron." Dustin voiced, still tapping away at the counter.
"The taste isn't too bad when it's warm.." Jane says, holding her hand out to grab a beer from Max's hands.
"God, how often do you guys drink? I can't believe I'm actually concerned." Richie calls from the dining table, now leaning against it with his hands in the pockets of his jorts.
"Often enough for me to have a regular good night's sleep," Max smiled sarcastically.
"So you guys just sit in Wheeler's Basement and drink all day? You don't go to bars or anything?" Richie asks, shaking his head ever so slightly.
"We're 18 dipshit." Mike replies.
"You don't have a fake ID? Man, you guys really are amateurs!" Richie laughs.
"And they believe that? Bullshit! You look younger than us!" Dustin retorts.
"My mouth has many uses, Dusty"
"Gross!" Max responds, now settling the beer on the counter, their weight proving to be too much.
"It's called sweet talking red, jeez. What'd you think I meant?" Richie laughs again.
"Wait I don't get it." Jane says, looking to Will who has his lips shut in a tight line. Either holding back a laugh or cringing from the conversation.
"Hey actually, that reminds me. First to answer your question Richie. Yes we have a few places where we could get wasted. Second, why don't we give Richie a fresh tour of Hawkins? I mean there have been a few changes since he last visited. Plus I don't really wanna drink while the sun is still out. We could even test Richie's fake ID at the bar." Lucas suggested, shifting himself so he's stood between the kitchen and dining table.
Jane lights up and nods eagerly. The thought of biking gets her extra excited ever since she got her very own a few months ago. Riding on the back of Mike's bike gets insanely uncomfortable, and Will's could barelly hold him alone. He should probably think about getting a new one..
"Yes! I agree let's do it! I want to go to the mall again, I didn't get to buy that one shirt in The GAP last time we went!" Jane clapped her hands together, already heading towards the front door.
Dustin follows behind her, fixing his cap securely. Max rolls her eyes but the thought of shopping with Jane perks her interest. This wasn't about Richie. She just wanted some new sneakers.
Mike groaned, "He knows what the town looks like! Same boring bullshit everywhere."
"Woah, Check out captain optimist." Richie snarked, pointing at Mike with his thumb, Will rolled his eyes and let out a soft laugh. "Come on Mike, Lucas is right. Drinking during the day is kinda sad."
Mike looked at Will tiredly, like a toddler being forced to go to bed. Will pat his back, ushering him forward.
"Tally-ho gents!" Richie erupted, hopping off the edge of the table. Jane and Max looked back, both raising an eyebrow.
"Uh- and ladies of course." Richie stammered, awkwardly pausing. Max rolled her eyes, Jane smiled at him warmly.
As each party member walked out, Will felt his heart tingling with excitement. It had been a while since they had gone a simple bike ride. Don't get him wrong, drinking with them was fun...sometimes. He just wished they would go out more often, have the classic, old-school fun of running through the woods and chasing eachother with sticks. Things they used to do all the time bavk in the day, like play af the arcade or race down old cherry road.
Finally, the summer was starting to feel hopeful. Will was starting to feel hopeful. For a summer filled with their classic adventures.
And it was all thanks to the arrival of Richie Trashmouth Tozier.