he was ready.
michael edward wheeler gripped onto candle stick, feet planted beneath him as he looked at the door in fear. his friends stood around him, all armed in some way, his sister brandishing a fucking gun.
'when the fuck did that happen?' mike pushed the thought aside, gripping the brass even tighter until his knuckles turned white. he looked around quickly, checking off a mental list of everyone important in his life. but she wasn't there. she hadn't been there for a long time. el should've been. she could've saved will, she knew everything. she was the cure to everything. at this thought, he could feel his dark eyes brimming with tears. because, god it hurt. his heart hurt, so so bad. but now it was just a dull ache that he'd grown to deal with ever since the second she disappeared.
he heard max let out a soft gasp from somewhere behind him, the sound of chittering growing louder from outside the byers house. everyone straightened up, holding their chosen weapons tighter. mike was ready to die, he knew he probably would anyway. during those 353 days, he'd felt himself dying slowly, bit by bit. he felt like when the demogorgon died, breaking up into tiny fragments, like a VHS in slow-mo. mike was pulled back slightly, by the sounds of the creatures crying out and whining. then, nothing. for a few seconds everything was silent, the sounds of shaky breathing belonging to his friends the only thing floating in the air. then, there was a smash. mike flinched back, waking up from his (eleven-induced) haze. there on the ground, lay one of the demo-dogs. completely still. he watched, wide eyed, as hopper stepped forward slowly to kick the motionless monster.
'what the fuck killed that?'
mike was beyond confused, as was everyone around him. then, his attention was pulled to the door again like a magnet. slowly, the wooden door creaked open. then she was just, there. eleven. his mind was running a million metres ahead of him, just looking at her with a hint of a crooked smile. the candle stick dropped from his hand in shock.
'how the hell can she look so pretty, just stood there like that? and oh my god, she has hair now. her eyes look so beautiful, I can't tell if I'm crying or not and her clothes? where the fuck did she get those from? her eyes actually look astounding, holy fuck i'm definitely crying.'
"mike?" she whispered, quietly. the sound of her voice was melodious, making mike snap out of his thoughts. for the first time in a year, he broke into a wide grin. "el.." he replied, tears flowing down his freckled cheeks as he grasped the girl tightly in his grip. mike was pretty sure he was crushing the fragile girl in his grasp, but he couldn't help himself to let go of her. for such a long time, he'd dreamt of holding her in his arms again, but he'd never think it would feel this perfect. she'd grown up, as had he. she was a little taller, she looked like a total badass.
that night, eleven saved the entirety of hawkins and the world. she also saved a certain thirteen year old boy, just trying to live a normal life with no monsters or heartbreak. that night, el and mike stayed at the byers' house with everyone else. the two lay in will's room, el basically passed out with mike's fingers intertwined with hers. one of his arms was wrapped around her waist, their hands laying over the mattress. mike's other hand was gently playing with her dark curls, that were still slightly damp from the shower she'd taken as soon as she'd gotten back from closing the gate. mike wasn't able to sleep, not when he had his girl back. she slept soundly, her head pressed to his chest as she heard his heart. he felt safe, happy. mike hadn't been the same person as he had when she was with him for that week, he had changed. he'd become aggressive, and angry, and easily irritated. but now, he couldn't imagine ever feeling like that again. because finally, eleven was there. she was finally safe.
mike wheeler had his love back.
