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To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before AU | fem!Reader | Chapter 1: Out

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Why Mike Wheeler's Anger Towards Will Byers Makes Sense

In Stranger Things 4x02, from Will's perspective and therefore the audience's perspective, Mike is the one acting strange all day. First, he gives Will a half-assed hug even though it's been a while since they last saw each other face-to-face. Secondly, he is seemingly leaving Will out. Finally, he says that Will is being a douche and blames him, not El's bullies, for sabotaging the day.

Mike's anger towards Will seems misplaced and that it's coming out of nowhere. But looking back at Mike's own POV, his anger, especially towards Will, makes complete sense.

Mike is angry at Will because he believes that Will doesn't value their friendship as much as Mike does.

Let's go all the way back to the airport reunion, starting with the dreaded "hug".

From Will's POV, Mike's half-assed hug at the airport reunion is what initiates the simmering tension between the two throughout this episode. On the other hand, Mike genuinely doesn't know that his lackluster greeting is what makes Will upset.

Because remember, Mike is desperately trying to keep up a facade to protect himself and he believes that Will is straight, so in his mind, it doesn't make sense for Will to be overly upset over their lackluster greeting because straight guys (assumedly) hug like this all the time.

Mike doesn't have a plausible reason for why Will's behavior onwards seems... disproportionate. Because Will had looked so happy when he saw Mike and now, his mood has basically flipped soon afterwards. After all, why would a straight man be so upset about a missed hug from their best friend who is also a guy...

But guess what only cements the idea even further that "Will is straight" in Mike's head? When Mike asks Will about the painting, and he replies in response that it is just simply that, a painting. Now Will's statement here already conflicts with El's statement in her letter to Mike that Will is possibly painting for a girl. Regardless of which statement is true, the only thing that Mike can confirm is that the painting is not for him.

But it confirms something else in which the whole fight about Rink O' Mania is mainly about: Will does not confide in Mike anymore. After all, why bring a painting to Mike's arrival at the airport if the painting isn't even for him? How come he only hears about Will's "mysterious girl" from El just a day before he is to arrive in Cali and not from Will himself days prior? Something strange is afoot and it doesn't help that before Mike had arrived in California, they contacted each other less and less as time went on.

Mike can't stop to ponder about this because El is quickly escorting him to the van and telling him about what she has planned for them that day. From this moment on, Will is the one that isn't acting like himself in that he's acting uncharacteristically rude or in Mike's words, "being a douche all day" i.e. he's rolling his eyes, he's moping, he's barely talking to El and especially to Mike even though Mike flew all the way from Indiana to see them.

Will even goes so far as to respond snarkily to El about what friends she has. Remember, at this point, Mike still has no idea that El lied about her "friends". All Mike knows is that El is super excited to carry out this whole plan she had laid out for spring break. While it's hinted that Mike himself isn't very enthusiastic about El's plans for the day i.e. commenting on how breakfast burritos are weird, he makes the effort to enjoy these activities. But he notices that Will doesn't even try or pretend at the very least to enjoy the day that El has planned for them. Here, Will does give off the impression that he is acting like a huge jerk here so it's no wonder that later on, Mike calls Will out for being a douche to El all day.

Later, during the Rink O' Mania fight, Will says that he's been a total third wheel this whole time and Mike scoffs at this, brushing it off with a "Yeah, whatever, man". At first, I thought this was very uncharacteristic of Mike to brush Will off like this. But to be fair, from Mike's POV, it's difficult to interact with your best friend who's been moping the whole time for no seemingly good reason when today was supposed to be a fun day meant to celebrate your arrival.

While Will is third wheeling, I don't think that Mike purposefully ignores or leaves out Will. After all, Mike tries to make Will laugh with his vomit-green joke (either to lighten the atmosphere and/or improve Will's mood) but when Will doesn't react, Mike is resigned at that point, thinking "Clearly, Will isn't enjoying any of this". It wouldn't surprise me if what Will saw as Mike ignoring him was actually Mike giving him some space.

Will canonically hates being treated like a child because he feels that those who give him that treatment believe that he can't handle things on his own. This is stated back in S2 when Jonathan urges Will to talk to him and Will replies, "Stop treating me like that. Like everyone else does. Like there's something wrong with me. Mom, Dustin, Lucas. Everyone. They all treat me like I'm going to break. Like I'm a baby. Like I can't handle things on my own. It doesn't help. It just makes me feel more like a freak." Will has a tendency to keep things to himself because he doesn't want to give anyone more reason to think that he's immature, fragile, or a freak. This behavior continues into S3, when Lucas apologizes for his behavior, Will immediately states that he's already over it. Notice how Will doesn't include Mike in the list of people who give him this kind of treatment because he's correct.

When Angela and her friends drag El off to the rink, Mike doesn't leave with them. He chooses to stay behind with Will. Mike knows Will well and that trying to get him to talk isn't what Will wants (at least without the full context of Will's strange behavior at the airport and Rink O' Mania). I imagine his thought process probably went like this:

"You're acting like a douche right now and I know that you probably want some space but I'm going to stay, whether you like it or not, so that when you're ready to confide in me again, I'll be here."

I think that is why Mike doesn't seem to actively engage with Will but instead, sits silently by his side. To let him know (without having to speak these words out loud) that he isn't going to treat Will like a child by forcing him to talk and that whenever Will is ready to talk on his own terms, Mike will be there.

Later on, Will finally admits to Mike that El has been lying to him this whole time. And Mike is angry, not at El, but at Will because Will had many opportunities to confide in him about the problems El's been having at school. If Will had told him earlier, even on that same day, Mike could have found a way to disrupt the bullies plan to humiliate El at the rink. But Will doesn't. This only adds further evidence to Mike's statement that Will has, in fact, been acting like a douche all day.

While Mike is upset on El's behalf, we see that the true origin behind his anger is that Will does not confide in him anymore. And I think it goes hand-in-hand with how Will neglects to mention to Mike about what he's painting and who he's painting for or even anything about "said girl".

If Will hadn't told Mike about El's issues at school before... what else hasn't he told him about?

I think it is at this moment that Mike believes that he finds out the actual reason behind Will's strange behavior. Let's use the scientific method from Mike's POV, using his observations.

Question: Why is Will Byers acting weird at the airport? Ex. rolling his eyes, moping, barely talking.

Background Research: El has said in her letter: "Will has been painting a lot. But he won't show me what he's working on. Maybe it is for a girl. I think there is someone he likes because he has been acting... weird." Will brings said painting to the airport and says that it's just simply that, a painting, confirming that it's not supposed to be a gift for Mike.

Hypothesis: Inconclusive. What can be crossed out is because of Mike's half-assed hug because Will is obviously straight, and guys hug each other like that all the time. Therefore, it has nothing to do with Mike himself.

Experiment: Try to make Will feel better with a joke. Fail. Give Will space but stay by his side to let him know that Mike is always there for him.

Collect Data: Will finally reveals to Mike that El has been lying to him this whole time.

Analysis: If Will hadn't told Mike about El's issues at school before, what else hasn't he told him about? When Will said that the painting was "just a painting" at the airport, was Will trying to hide that it's actually for a girl?

Conclusion: Will is acting weird because Will has this mysterious girl on his mind all the time and he would rather hang out with the "girl" he likes than with his best friend and sister.

Consider how in S3 during their big fight, Will calls Mike out that he was prioritizing his girlfriend over his friends. With the conclusion above, Will comes off as a hypocrite in Mike's eyes. Especially since Mike has actually taken Will's criticisms from S3 to heart: he's back to playing D&D, he makes sure to stay by Dustin's side, and he doesn't spend all his time with El when he chooses to stay behind with Will at Rink O' Mania.

Yes, Mike knows that they have been contacting each other less and less. But on his end, he knows that he's the one making the effort to call even though the phone line was busy due to Joyce's telemarketer job and that Will doesn't initiate calling him as much as he should. After all, he knows his mom's schedule best so it would only make sense for Will to call Mike.

But after Will's "nonchalance" about the painting combined with El's conflicting statement that she thinks it's for a girl and Will not confiding him anymore, I wouldn't put it past Mike to make the assumption that Will hasn't been reciprocating the effort to contact him because Will has been prioritizing this unknown girl, either by spending time with her or painting for her; something that Will has neglected to share with Mike.

It would also explain why he's so defensive about sending El a "book of letters" compared to Will because before, Mike would be gifted a "book of artwork" from him (enough that it could fill up a binder aka S1) and now, to hear that he is painting instead for some girl he's just met? That's rich, coming from Will.

There are varying levels to Mike's anger towards Will. Near the surface, Mike's anger is aimed towards Will because 1) he's been acting like a douche towards El and 2) Will is acting like a hypocrite for essentially having the gall to do the same thing that Mike did in S3 even though he called Mike out for this behavior.

But when Mike only has the full context for Reason #1 (in that Will didn't confide in Mike about El earlier) and missing context for Reason #2 (in that Will isn't reciprocating in keeping in touch with Mike because of a girl), the overarching connection between these two is that Mike believes that Will doesn't value their friendship anymore and it shows in how he doesn't confide in Mike anymore.

I think that deep down, Mike feels that he has no one to blame but himself. Recall their fight back in S3 when he told Will: "We're not kids anymore. What did you think, really? That we were never going to get girlfriends? That we're just going to sit in my basement all day and play games for the rest of our lives?" Recall how at the end of S3 after this fight, Will reassures Mike that he isn't going to join a new party.

But now, Will is the one growing up and leaving Mike behind.

Until Mike realizes that he was wrong and discovers that Will's painting (that depicts their D&D party) is for him.

If you haven't already, read my companion piece to this post aka analysis on Will's POV here to get the bigger picture:

I’ve been meaning to do something like this!!

I asked my friend who doesn’t watch Stranger Things some questions

I wanted to hop on the trend about asking friends about Byler and so I sent a text to my friend about “3 rhetorical characters relationships.”

I wanted to see how this looked to someone with an outside perspective and no bias based on gender. I am one of those believers who FULLHEARTEDLY believes that if Will was a girl, everyone and their mother would be demanding Mike break up with El and get together with her. So I told my friend about the relationship between Boy (Mike), Girl 1 (El), and Girl 2 (Will). I basically gave him a run through of M!levens relationship vs Bylers. I told him about M!levens getting together, their fights, and their “ily” scenes. I told him about Bylers fights, the monologue in s2, and general quotes they’ve said to each other.

Once I was done I texted him:

He agrees that “Boy” is in love with “Girl 2”

I then told him about how “Girl 2” was actually a boy

He STILL agrees that “Boy” in love with “Girl 2” even though he now knows that “Girl 2” is actually a boy!

So then I pulled the old “One of these characters is canonically in love with the other, which one is it?” with these photos:

Guess who he said?

He agrees just with a basic rundown and photos of their faces that Mike is in love with Will. He literally said “it’s so obvious”.

In short Byler canon

Bonus:

Iconic

woah guys I just found leaked footage of vecna in the upside down while Mike and will are chasing him:

what we used to be | masterlist

season one:

part one part two part three part four part five part six part seven part eight

season two:

part nine part ten part eleven part twelve part thirteen part fourteen part fifteen part sixteen part seventeen

season three:

part eighteen

I just noticed this from the end of ST season 3 after Will and El leave Hawkins:

Mike goes home, and walks towards his mom with the most distraught expression. But the expression doesn’t seem sad that his girlfriend or best friend left him; the expressions feels almost as if he discovered something that was so shocking and unexpected to his core that he hugged his mother because that’s all he could do.

And this is after El kissing Mike and he completely stands still, confused, and with a similar expression in his face with his eyes FULLY open (I know what you are)

Additionally, this would explain why he is acting so different when he meets Will and El again in california in S4 - he discovered something about himself at the end of S3 that he wants to cover up and hide, because he is so distraught and ashamed of himself 🙃

I always underestimate Finn’s acting skills and then he does things like this!

Heteronormativity is so powerful and here’s an example:

This is the “Cool” “Cool” scene. The pictures above show the moments after where they’re literally just staring at each other. There’s tender, emotional music playing in the background. They get interrupted right after by the sound of Argyle’s car and then Jonathan.

Basically, this is the trope of staring into each others’ eyes, having a moment, then getting interrupted. And if this were any straight couple (like jancy, lumax, or jopper, which I’m pretty sure all have a moment like this during the series), people would be like “oh they’re definitely getting together.” Like, actually imagine this is Jonathan and Nancy before they get together. It seems romantic, doesn’t it? The general audience would assume they’re going to end up together. But because Will and Mike are two boys…

It’s not homophobia. You can be accepting of LGBTQ+ things but still be affected by a heteronormative perspective. It’s the same thing that makes us think that characters being straight is the default and they have to be confirmed otherwise. Point is, the GA’s view of Byler is so much different than the straight couples. (There’s also Robin and Vickie, who are very much perceived as a couple or almost-couple, but that’s because it was outright stated. Byler is not.)

How the Duffers likely will make the general audience AWARE of Byler and CHEER for Byler

First the TL;DR:

The Painting Lie

Will comes out to Mike

Will gets bullied for being gay

Mike and Will face danger together, alone, for the 1st time

And I'll spell out exactly how and why!

We in the Byler fandom have our theories: Flickergate, Lettergate, Churchgate, etc. While totally fun and while it would be amazing if they became reality, they don't answer the question of how the Duffers would manage audience expectations to make them accept and cheer for Byler.

Because we all know the reality: on a surface level, season 4 ended with a grand "love confession" from Mike to El. It appeared to have culminated a four-year arc that started from show's beginning. For the vast majority of viewers, a Byler relationship will be a HUGE SURPRISE.

This isn't just heteronormativity; it's also the fact that in EVERY slow-burn romantic relationship in fiction, you need to make the audience start to wonder "Will they or won't they?" for a while first. The audience needs to start thinking that these 2 characters (1) MIGHT be together, and (2) eventually that they SHOULD be together and cheer for them!

For Jonathan and Nancy, there were a lot of moments suggesting they MIGHT be together in Season 1. Then in Season 2, we had THIS episode that made the audience think Nancy absolutely SHOULD be with Jonathan instead of Steve:

Anti-Bylers raise a fair point that there "isn't enough time" to replace a relationship that seemed to have been "fulfilled" at the end of s4, with an entirely different one. Of course, the ground has been laid for four seasons, but HOW EXACTLY can the Duffers make the audience accept and cheer for Byler, after seeming to have "built up Mike and El for 4 seasons"?

Showing Byler is POSSIBLE:

The most obvious (and elegant) way for the Duffers to accomplish this is the Painting Lie.

The main things that make the General Audience/GA dismiss the possibility that Mike likes Will back are (1) he confessed "I love you" to El and (2) he said "it's not my fault you don't like girls" and so can't be gay or bi.

The show has to address that, and there are ways that are pretty obvious.

The fact that El had no role in the painting COMPLETELY undercuts the "I love you" confession in the GA's mind. Anti-Milevens completely underestimate how this will affect Mike and El's relationship, and how the audience views it. Many things Mike said didn't apply to El, but applied to Will.

When El finds out, she'll realize that Mike only said he loved her based on a LIE. She'll realize that she clocked Mike for not loving her when they argued in s4. Mike might desperately try to repair things, but this will show the GA that Mike and El WILL PROBABLY NOT end up together.

And Mike will be confronted with the fact that he felt romantic love because Will described HIMSELF. This will show the GA that Mike and Will MIGHT be together.

Then there's the OTHER Chekhov's gun that needs to fire: Will comes out to Mike. Will is still in the closet at the end of s4. This HAS to be resolved. And he HAS to come out to his mom and his best friend.

When he comes out to Mike, he of course won't spurn Will. Will likely explains he was afraid Mike would be homophobic because of what he said that one summer, "It's not my fault you don't like girls":

Mike will need to explain why he said that. Whether he's honest or comes up with an excuse, it's a golden opportunity to get the GA to revisit that scene and think that Mike might have been lashing out due to his internalized homophobia.

We've been told that Season 5 returns to Season 1 themes. The Core Four are probably bullied for the Hellfire Club, and Will might be bullied for being gay. Since Mike and Will are attached at the hip, the same accusation might extend to Mike. This would force Mike to have to CHOOSE to stand up to the bullying. (This might be the reason we have a BTS pic of Mike with a bruise on his face) It could strongly hint that Mike is standing up not only for Will, but also for himself. And it could clearly parallel Jonathan fighting Steve in s1, which showed Nancy that "only love makes you that crazy sweetheart, and that damn stupid."

Once the GA sees the POSSIBILITY of a Mike/Will romance, their mental floodgates will open. As Jancy shows, It doesn't take long to get an audience to cheer for a relationship, especially when the seeds have been planted. And Byler has FOUR SEASONS of material for the GA to revisit and look back on!

How Season 5 can make the GA CHEER for Byler:

First, the show can continue to make the audience want Will to have a happy ending. Second, we already know that Will is in danger and Mike is again rallying the party in s5. This likely will echo Mike and Will's relationship in s1 and s2 (probably with flashbacks, including the newly-filmed flashback to when they were young kids, bringing their long-time closeness to the forefront of viewers' minds).

Plus, we likely will have Will and Mike facing danger together, alone, for the first time:

It was Jonathan and Nancy facing danger together in s1 that made the vast majority of viewers ship Jancy then. Mike and Will facing death together will put their love and their willingness to risk their lives for each other to the fore, and make millions say "They should just kiss already."

There are SO MANY WAYS to get the audience cheering for Byler. Will probably lives in Mike's house because the Byers don't have their own house in Hawkins anymore. The romantic tension between Mike and Will s5 that will make s4 look like nothing in comparison.

When Will comes out to him, Mike might ask, "Is... there anyone you like?"

He'll ask NERVOUSLY, like he once did before:

Will probably won't answer honestly, and it will lead to a new cycle of these two boys mutually thinking their love is unrequited LOL

But this time the General Audience will be fully aware of it. Will and Mike become THE "Will they or won't they?" couple that everyone is talking about. Mike's sexuality will not be officially revealed until mid or late season in order to keep up the suspense. If Season 5 is released in more than one volume, there will be a flurry of videos and articles revisiting past seasons, finding evidence of Mike's feelings for Will that we Bylers have analyzed and curated for years.

Season 5 will be messy. And glorious. It will be the most Byler season of all.

-teambyler

there's no way these two aren't in love

there's no way these two aren't in love

there's no way these two aren't in love

there's no way these two aren't in love

there's no way these two aren't in love

there's no way these two aren't in love

there's no way these two aren't in love

there's no way these two aren't in love

there's no way these two aren't in love

true i don't get how people ship mileven

"when you're...different, sometimes you feel like a mistake."