Byler- The Unwanted Return of Everything (And How It Finally Ends)

Words That Shouldn't Be Said

Notes- TW for description of gore and implied mention of abuse

Mike finally found Will curled up into a little ball with his knees tucked his under his chin. He was shaking violently and shrieking for Mike to help him. Mike scolded himself for thinking to wander so far in the first place. And he scolded himself for not finding Will earlier. He should've known something would happen while Will was left alone.

Mike ran as fast as he could to the boy's side and shook his shoulders until he finally woke up. Will looked terrified. Whatever he saw in this vision was much worse than the last.

Mike just hugged him and Will hugged back with such a power that you'd think Mike was his only hope in not slipping out of reality again. His fingers dug into Mike's back as he wept with his face buried in the fabric of his shirt. It hurt slightly, but Mike didn't care. All Mike could do was reassure Will that everything was okay and stroke his hair like Mrs. Wheeler would whenever Mike would have a nightmare as a child. He didn't know if it would help Will, but he always felt so powerless against Will's visions. There was really nothing he could do.

"Hey, just breathe, okay?" Will's breath was unleveled and fast-paced. His mind seemed to be spinning in many different directions, unable to stay in one place. He kept his hands latched onto Mike's back.

"I'm sorry," Will said, his first understandable statement. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry." He crumpled further inward, embarrassed by his current state.

Mike frowned, lifting Will's head up to look him in the eyes. "You don't have to be sorry, okay? You didn't do anything wrong. I'm sorry for not staying close by. I would've got to you quicker if I had."

Will just stared for a second. Mike wasn't sure if he looked terrified of Mike or overwhelmingly calm. Another tear ran down his face as he turned his head sharply away. "You were collecting rocks for us. It's fine."

"If I had thought about what could happen, I would've stayed closer. I should've put more thought into it. With your visions and everything, we have to be more cauti-"

"We don't have to be more anything. I don't want you to change what you do because of my problem. It already happened. It doesn't matter now." Will sighed and put his head on Mike's shoulder again.

Mike was quiet for a second, unsure of what exactly Will was thinking at the moment. He used to be able to read the boy's emotions, but he realized he couldn't as easily now.

"What did you see?" Mike finally asked, quietly. The question always sounded weird. He wasn't sure if Will would want to recall the experience or not. Still, he was curious. And maybe it would help to talk about it rather than just think about it. And Mike was worried Will saw the Mind Flayer. If he had seen the Mind Flayer, that meant it was one step closer to possessing him, and that couldn't happen.

Will took a deep breath. "I pushed the rock on top of the gate. I was almost done. And then... it just got dark. I was in the Upside Down."

"Okay," said Mike, assuring that he was listening. "And what happened there?"

"I heard noises behind me so I ran. Then I saw something on the ground and I looked at what it was..." Will trailed off, tightening his grip again. "It was horrible," he whispered. "He looked horrible."

"He?" Mike asked.

"The man," Will explained. "There was a dead man. He had been attacked. He was barely recognizable as human anymore. The blood and eyes and I could see..." Will broke off into tears again.

"Was it someone we know?" Mike asked, slightly disturbed by the thought.

Will shook his head. "I don't think so. I hadn't seen him. He looked... old. Wrinkles. White shirt. Jeans. And then I heard another noise, but I couldn't move. And then I woke up."