Hellfire T-shirt Mike, You'll Always Be Famous (the Search)

yes clingy Mike but what about clingy Will

Shared Looks

mike suspected he was breaking both his and will's hearts in the monologue

I'm spinning the idea that mike both understood will's meaning in the van, and that he also knew that will was breaking his own heart by pushing mike back towards el at surfer boy pizza.

If this theory is true, it would add so much more meaning to all of mike and will's shared looks post the mindfight in vol. 2 - especially all the moments when mike tries to make contact with will.

let's explore these!

where else to begin than the sheer anguish of this scene? there'll be top-layer meaning to all of these scenes, but byler has always been told mainly through subtext so far, and this continues into vol. 2, giving every scene with mike and will a double (or triple, or quadruple) meaning. if there is only one way (ahem) to describe their relationship in s4, it is that they are hyperaware of each other. yes, love... yes, romance... yes, attraction... but all that is to come in earnest in s5. s4, with its attention and hidden looks, is all about the hyperawareness of the beloved, if not the self.

so what is it that vol. 2 does specifically? what is special about vol. 2 in byler terms? what separates it from vol. 1 thematically? there must be a difference, elsewise there would not be a divide of volumes. for each character arc, vol. 2 brings new changes, just like acts in a play. and vol. 2 for byler begins with the van scene; a scene of that establishes and clarifies. and then its all torn away in the monologue - but just imagine that mike's look to will in sbp is one of surprise and confusion.

why are you saying this? his face appears to scream.

there is understanding beneath the pain. and what if... what if he and will actually WERE on the same page, from the van scene right until the end on the hill? is there anything that supports this idea?

the desperation on both of their faces: panic, a sense of complicity: this is all we can do, there's no other hope.

can you imagine? if mike was simply waiting for a chance to talk to will, to sort everything out with el, but then... there simply is no chance? no moment to talk? everything we see post sbp suggests mike and will are trying to silently communicate without anyone else noticing.

the way we get the cross-shooting camerawork, where focus lands on the furthest person from the camera. the focus starts here on mike and then moves to will, showing how both of their reactions are of equal importance. it's subtle, but it's there, and they use this technique a fair bit with mike and will.

then they both look to el, and there's the sense that they are both thinking the same thing, looking with new eyes at what el has done. what she can do. her power. more than ever, she is inspiring wonder and awe; this plot point is not necessarily humanising her in mike's eyes, and as a conclusion to their shared 'you're my superhero' arc, it's only serving to make her even more awe-inspiring and mysterious.

of course, will's wistfulness is tinged with longing for mike, and despair, while mike's is tinged with knowingness and revelation.

el perpetuates (perhaps unknowingly) her own mysteriousness in mike's eyes when she refuses to tell him much about what happened in the desert and interim.

personally I don't believe they stopped at a motel for a couple of reasons, including the urgency with which el said they had to get home or their friends would die, and also because it was only two days on the title card between nevada and indiana. that doesn't seem like enough time for a junky old pizza van with an 80s engine to get across the interstate with a whole overnight rest stop included. we already see jon yawning and rubbing his eyes as he drives in the byler van scene, and we know a very tired argyle has also been driving too - and this was before the stakes had ramped up because they hadn't even heard that hawkins was in danger as well as el yet. plus will hasn't changed clothes despite bringing a packed rucksack - surely he would have at least washed and changed if they stopped at a motel, even if he couldn't sleep?

i love the romance of motelgate, but it just doesn't seem likely for a show known to have characters that ignore their own personal needs when extreme danger threatens their friends. the storytelling is suggesting that they pushed themselves through the fatigue to get home; jon and argyle taking turns driving, and mike will and el napping in the back if they even could.

we also then see this scene, with everyone looking concerned and very tired, practically speechless at the disquiet in hawkins...

... which is why its a perfect place for this rack focus shot of mike looking at will. will is looking out at the destruction, just like mike had in previous scenes, peering out of the window...

... and while it looks somewhat like mike is doing the same, notice the little raising of eyebrows, the look of gentle and timid confusion, and the way that from his seat the view through the front windscreen would make leaning forward/peering the natural response. instead he sits still, with a look of hidden pain on his face. why doesnt he look out of side window instead, like in previous shots? and if thats not enough, the rack focus alone, from will on to mike, suggests that this is very much a moment about the two, about the emotional connection between them - and the way it awkwardly makes sure to crop el from the frame results in a shot that feels uncomfortable and unfinished - which is exactly how mike feels right now. this shot is showing us mike is bursting with so many things he wants and needs to say to will, but he just can't get him alone.

not only does this track with the motelgate isnt real idea - they surely would have had a moment while el slept or showered? - but we see in their next scenes that mike is still looking to get a moment alone to talk to will properly.

in the hospital, max and lucas are the main narrative focus. but underneath, there are always subtleties and details, like will gently caressing mike's back when they hug. mike's not resisting will anymore. he's letting himself be touched, be held. almost as if there is an understanding between the two of them, finally. finally. if only they could get a moment alone amongst the chaos.

in the cabin, it happens. mike so readily opens up to will even when el is around, choosing to confide in will instead of going after his girlfriend. it's healthy because he's reading the room and giving her the space she definitely wants - its a direct contrast to him going to her room in lenora. but it's also a growth of a different kind, where he follows his instincts and finally allows himself to talk to will instead, allows himself to want will by his side instead.

their physicality is very close; not as close as they were by the freezer at surfer boy pizza, but then again there is no direct danger right now (or so they think).

even so, mike can barely look will in the eye for more than half a second.

he's in distress about el - she and will are at the forefront of his mind. we don't see mike talking about the destruction of hawkins and his family - that will come, but to tie up his s4 arc, they're choosing to remain in the romantic conflict realm for mike. the story is told both through dialogue (re: el) and through physicality (re: will), which we see when mike steps closer to will before moving to the sofa. do we think he did this subconsciously or consciously?

and will leans in too, because it's the most natural thing for them both.

i find this shot so interesting. it's a long take two-shot which began with a left-right pan but then features a backtracking right-left pan, which is beautiful because the cinematographic language is so LOUD.

right -> left implies going backwards, characters retracing steps or backtracking, deliberately or not. el is moving left to right when she walks past mike and will: she is moving forward, moving on from them both in this situation. this is not to say she won't reunite with either of them in a new way in s5, but for now, she has deduced something about the both of them, and herself, and is choosing to move onwards. the camera then moves backwards, right to left, finding will and mike where el left them: standing together.

they make eye contact, speak intimately and complicitly (both in vocal tone and in content), and move off together in the frame, again from right to left. they're going back: back to basics, back to their friendship, back to a start where it was the two of them together and they could figure stuff out. i really do think s5 is going to take us back in time, although i'm not sure if that means physically or just emotionally yet.

and then mike moves into a sunbeam.

it's a high beam; it comes from above.

which means that it misses them when they both sit down, leaving only will in the light. but mike touched it. the light touched mike, momentarily. then he slid back into the dark.

and will plops down on the upside down sofa (having followed mike there... oh, visual storytelling foreshadowing), completely bathed in beautiful sunlight from mike's pov.

and yeah, when we see another intimate two-shot, mike is still mainly in the dark and will in the light...

...but when it was will's pov, will following mike to the sofa, he saw a beam of angelic light grace mike's shoulder.

lets now take a moment to appreciate the sheer intimacy and closeness this entire scene portrays. sat together calmly on a sofa, discussing the end of the world. and then mike makes another promise to will, that they'll finish it together.

i don't know about you, but i wouldn't want to cross THIS michael.

the cinematography is so pure and warm - but isn' it the end of the world? where's the horror? it comes in the stinging music when will talks, but the atmosphere and lighting is telling us that love and safety exists underneath everything, and hope. mike's grip on will's shoulder: the extra meaning of the fact he's even allowing himself to be touched by will at all, let alone choosing to touch will deliberately, to reach out to him finally, isn't lost on will. the way the light hits will's irises so crisply and perfectly, asking us to search his eyes for meaning. this is arguably the first scene of s4 that tells us will is going to be making a return as a main character for s5.

and mike only reluctantly lets go, because he wanted to talk to will. there is still so much he needs to say. that hand reaching out was only the start. he's reaching into the light.

look how upset he is when they are interrupted AGAIN. and that light? does it want to be any more painterly? it's practically a vermeer. it's sheer romance, even when it's not (yet).

and even as they move off, mike is momentarily included.

and when we see will peeking out of the cabin, it throws us right back to his s1 arc.

and of course we follow this with the family reunion and the hillside scene.

mike wheeler realising that he's cared for and missed when he's gone and that his existence is a net positive by the way. if you even care

☆ WE HAVE TO KILL HIM ☆

Byler as She wants Revenge- Tear you apart for bylerween

lying beside you here in the dark, feeling your heartbeat with mine.

Just curious

Why do you guys ship Steddie? 🤔

#23 carrying the other one in their arms w byler because im very normal and not insane?

The credits roll on the TV screen, and Will stirs in Mike's lap.

"S' it over?" he asks blearily, as Mike smirks down at him, hands in Will's hair. They've been curled up like this on the couch for the better part of an hour, half-watching some movie Mike had rented from the video store. It's Saturday night, which means movie night, which means Mike and Will cuddling in their shared apartment, which means that Mike is basically as happy as it gets.

"Yeah," he answers, poking a finger in Will's cheek, and Will makes a face at him, scrunching up his nose. "Were you even watching?"

Will blinks, shifting around in Mike's lap and half-sitting up before seeming to decide it's not worth it and flopping back down beside Mike. "Of course I was," he says evenly, yawning. "There was, like, people talking and shit."

"Lucky guess," Mike teases, placing his hands back in Will's hair, and Will smiles a little as he leans into Mike's touch. "You okay?"

"M' sleepy," Will says, voice muffled as he shoves his face into the couch cushions, and Mike laughs quietly.

"Okay," he murmurs, dragging a gentle hand over Will's back. "Let's go to bed."

Will peers out at him, opening one eye suspiciously and wriggling around to face him properly. "I'm sleepy," he reiterates, tugging his blanket further up onto his chest.

Mike widens his eyes, leaning over to press a kiss to Will's temple. "I know," he says, "That's why we should go to bed."

Will just huffs out a breath, tucking his face away against Mike's hip. Mike smiles down at him, leaning over to kiss the top of his head again, and Will makes a pleased little noise into Mike's shirt.

"You want me to carry you?" Mike offers, and Will nods instantly, no doubt getting exactly what he'd been angling for. Mike laughs softly, gently lifting Will's head off of his lap and shifting to get a better angle. "If my arms give out, though, it's not my fault."

"I'll take my chances," Will mumbles, as Mike hooks his arms around him and lifts him off the couch with a decent level of difficulty. He's not- he's not weak, okay, he's a perfectly respectable level of strength, but his arms are sort of- stringy, he supposes, and Will's broad now, so it's a bit of a struggle as he hitches Will bridal-style into his arms.

All the exertion is worth it, however, when Will tucks his face into Mike's neck, humming happily and pressing a kiss to his collarbone. "My paladin," Will mumbles, as Mike kicks their bedroom door open with his foot. Mike smiles at the old nickname, pausing just in front of their bed and peering down at Will.

"My favorite cleric," he murmurs, as Will lifts his face and blinks up at him, a sleepy smile on his face. He presses a kiss to the tip of Will's nose, then his lips. Will smiles against his mouth, hooking his arms around Mike's neck and hitching himself higher, swiping his tongue over Mike's lip.

This is, unfortunately, the exact moment where Mike's arms give out, and he topples onto the bed, pinning Will down beneath him and squeaking in alarm. "Sorry!" he yelps, but Will's laughing, face tucked into Mike's chest. "Sorry, sorry."

"It's okay," Will says softly, wriggling up onto the pillows, and Mike shifts around to the side and tugging the covers out from under Will. "C'mere."

Mike flops down onto the mattress beside him, climbing under the covers and pulling them up over both him and Will. "This better not become a regular thing," he says to Will, slinging an arm over his waist and kissing him quickly. "My arms can't take it."

"Maybe you'll just have to adapt," Will huffs, eyes fluttering shut as Mike cups the back of Will's head, pulling him close to his chest.

"Right, because historically I've been great with change," Mike mutters, as Will runs a hand over his bicep, squeezing the muscle - or lack thereof.

"I believe in you," Will teases quietly, squeezing his arm again.

Mike laughs, kissing the top of Will's head and slipping a hand under his sweater, brushing his thumb over Will's ribcage. "Thanks, babe."

Will's eyes fall shut, and Mike can feel his breathing evening out from where his hand rests against Will's side. He smiles, watching his boyfriend sleep peacefully. This, above all else, is why Saturday nights are his favorite - Will is warm and cuddly and sweet, and they have the whole evening together, and in the mornings they can sleep in, all wrapped up in each other, and Mike- he's happy. It's moments like this when he feels it the most.

"I love you," he whispers to his sleeping boyfriend, kissing his forehead one more time before settling into the pillows.

Will's mouth twitches into a small smile, and Mike presses down one of his own - maybe he's not asleep after all.

Will doesn't respond, but his fingers find Mike's arm again, and Mike smiles as Will taps out a well-known pattern:

.-.. --- ...- . / -.-- --- ..- / - --- ---

let’s talk about finn giggling and kicking his feet whenever he’s asked about byler

actually, to me it's not cool until you finally confess you're in love.