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Warning for bullying and extreme fluff as well as a slight bit out of character due to this being my second story for this fandom. Word count is 2,958 words. I hope you all enjoy I Didn't Know I Was Dating My Friend.

"How was your date last night, Mike?" Nancy asked teasingly as I sat down at the breakfast table.

"Date?" my mother asked, looking between the two siblings quickly. "What date? I didn't know you were going on a date last night, Mike. Did you have fun?"

"It wasn't a date," I stated folding my arms as I glared down at my waffles and orange juice. I couldn't understand why every time Will and I hung out together my sister asked me how my date went. Couldn't two friends hand out together without someone thinking there was more going on between them? "Will and I went to movies. Dustin and Lucas couldn't come because of family obligations."

"Oh," Nancy said, giving me a knowing smile and winking at me. "Family obligations?"

"Dustin and his mother went to the SPCA to pick out a new cat friend for Newes to pal around with. Lucas and his family went to visit his Uncle Jack in the hospital because he's sick. Why are acting like I'm trying to cover something up when I'm not?"

"Why are you covering up the fact that you're dating your best friend?"

"I'm not dating…."

"We're at the breakfast table," my father said, putting his paper down and looking between the children. "Can we curtail the arguing until after breakfast?"

"We're not arguing, we're just discussing Mike's love life," Nancy replied with a small grin after sticking out her tongue.

"I don't care. I've heard enough of it."

The table descended into silence as my family ate our breakfast. I looked across the table at Nancy to see her making kissy faces at me every time she caught my eye. I would know if I was dating my own friend, wouldn't I?

After breakfast was finished and before Nancy could start up with her taunting about my movie night with Will, I raced towards the door calling that I'd back in time for dinner. I didn't need to be stuck in the house with Nancy the way she was acting.

My bike stood against the inside of the garage wall waiting for me. I'd made plans to meet up with Will, Dustin, and Lucas at the arcade today. Maybe I could ask them what Nancy meant by asking how my date was?

While on the ride to the arcade I tried to calm my mind. There was nothing wrong with two friends going to the movies alone. Or for that matter, there was absolutely nothing wrong with one of those friends asking the other to hold his hand during a particularly scary part of the movie they were watching as Will had done. There was absolutely nothing wrong with any of that at all. Even though it had been what the couple in front of us and the couple to the right of us had been doing too. Friends could that as well. It wasn't just a couple thing, was it?

When I finally reached the arcade I chained my bike up outside and walked in, searching the game room floor for my friends. I spotted Will playing at one of our favorite games to play together and headed towards him. Looking every which way for any sight of the others. I couldn't see them anywhere.

"Hey, Mike," Will said, smiling at me as he moved over so that I could stand next to him at the game.

"Hey, Will," I said, watching as Will finished off the game. "You haven't seen the other yet today have you?"

I blinked as I saw a look of disappointment cross Will's face. But that couldn't have happened. The others were as much Will's friends as they were mine and hadn't Will been the one to say that they didn't hang out enough lately?

"Lucas and Dustin had things to do today," Will said, sounding like he was trying to sound disappointed. "They said they might try and meet up with us later for some Dungeons and Dragons at your house."

"Oh. Okay."

I took the control of the game and could feel Will's gaze hanging on my every move. Then the nagging feeling that had come to me when Nancy was teasing me about dating Will came back in full. Which strangely enough caused me to lose the game that I'd just started. I handed the game control over to Will.

"Nancy said the strangest thing ever today," I said, feeling my cheeks warm up as I thought back on what Nancy had said during breakfast.

"What was that?" Will asked, sounding more nervous than I had ever heard him sound in our entire lives together.

"She asked me about how my date went last night," I said, watching as Will quickly avoided getting turned into space dust in the game. "Why would she think that I went on a date when I was just meeting up with you and the guys?"

"I don't know," Will said, nervously avoiding being turned into space dust once more. "Maybe she was just teasing you? You know how older girls can be?"

"Watch out," I called, pointing to the oncoming portent of doom that was hurtling Will's way in the game. I reached out and with quick reflexes made sure that the game life was saved in time.

"Thanks," Will said, blushing deeply which was strange for Will Byers. His usually pale face didn't blush unless he was embarrassed about something.

"No problem," I said, not understand why the hand that brushed Will's was tingling slightly. That wasn't normal, was it?

The sound of raucous laughter from the corner of the room filled both our ears making us turn and see what was going on. It was Troy and his friends over in the corner of the room watching them. Laughing like the funniest thing in the world had happened. I didn't think that anything funny had happened at all. Something confusing was going on but nothing funny.

"Maybe we should just go somewhere else?" Will suggested, shuffling from foot to foot nervously. More nervous than any confrontation with Troy and his goon squad had ever made him before.

"Alright," I said, grabbing the arcade tickets that we'd both just won. "Let's go and trade these in first, alright?"

Will nodded and followed me up to the front of the arcade where the prizes were. The sound of Troy and company's laughter following after them. The deep red blush coloring my cheeks the whole time.

"What can I do for two boys?" the man behind the counter asked, looking us over as we walked towards the counter.

"We'd like to trade our tickets in for a prize," I said, laying the tickets down on the counter and watching as the man counted them up. "What do you think we should get with our tickets, Will?"

Will's eyes alighted on the newest installment of Dungeons and Dragons. The ticket price seemed pretty high. But maybe we did have enough to get the game?

"Can we get the new Dungeons and Dragons game?" I asked, pointing to the mint condition box that was sitting there glowing in the sun like a beacon.

"You're one short, fellows," the man said, looking at the price on the game's front. "Choose something else."

"But can you actually say that anyone else in this arcade is going to choose Dungeons and Dragons as a prize?" I asked, watching Will's downcast gaze. I felt the sudden need to make my friend smile. "I only know a handful of people that would choose that game and we're two of that handful."

"If I allow an exception for you then everyone else in this arcade is going to want an exception made for them, do you follow?"

"But maybe…." Will said, turning hopeful eyes up at the man.

"No, sonny," the man said, folding his arms over his chest. "I can't make an exception for you without making one for everyone else. Then the whole place will be trying to run roughshod over me."

"How much would you take if we bought it outright?" I asked, reaching into my pocket as Will started towards the door dejectedly.

"What are you talking about, sonny?"

"Money. How much would you take for the game in money? My friend really wants that game and so do I."

The man took a deep breath and then looked from my upturned face then over to Will's retreating back. "I'll tell you what," the man said slowly, running a hand over his eyes. "You put away your money and we'll forget that your one ticket short. You can have the game for the number of tickets you have."

"Are you sure, sir?" I asked, putting my wallet back into his pocket.

"I am. Don't tell anyone that I said this but I think it's kind of sweet you want to buy your boyfriend the game. Reminds me of my older brother…."

I couldn't get my mouth to formulate the question I wanted to ask. Why did everyone think that Will and I were dating each other? Was it because I had tried to buy the game for Will? Any friend would do that for their best friend, wouldn't they?

I took the game with a thank you and headed towards the door. My mind was still clouded with confusion and I didn't like that. I left the arcade to see Will looking at me like I was crazy.

"You didn't steal that, did you?" Will asked, looking at the new game in awe.

"No," I said, thinking back on what had just happened in the arcade. "The man behind the counter said he'd give it to me for the number of tickets we had because I offered to buy it with actual money."

"That's cool. You sound confused though."

"It's nothing. What do you want to do now?"

"Maybe we can go back to your place and start setting up for Dungeons and Dragons with the guys later on?" Will suggested, looking at the box that was nestled into the basket on the front of my bike. "I was thinking of a campaign where we have to fight a group of trolls that is attacking a village. What do you think?"

"I think that sounds great," I said, as we jumped on our bikes and started riding back to my house.

Unbeknownst to Mike, while he was haggling with the man behind the counter at the arcade I had gone not to the door as Mike had thought I had. Instead, I had gone to the payphone next to the door, keeping an eye on the conversation that was happening at the counter as I picked up the phone and dialed Lucas Sinclair's number.

Lucas picked up on the second ring. "Hey, Will," he said. "What's happening?"

"I'm going to have to call our game of DnD off for tonight," I said, looking over my shoulder as the man behind the counter motioned Mike towards him. "Maybe next time we can get together and play but my mom wants me home early?"

"Oh. Okay. Did you tell Dustin yet?"

"I was just about to call him and tell him after I finished with you."

"Why don't I tell him for you? Would that be easier?"

"It would. Thank you."

I said goodbye to Lucas before hanging up and going out the door before Mike had turned around. How could Mike not know that the two of us had been dating since the first time that Lucas and Dustin had to cancel DnD on them? I had figured that it was easy enough to spot a date when one was on one. Even Mike's sister Nancy had spotted the fact that we were dating. How had it escaped Mike's attention?

"You didn't steal that, did you?" I asked, hearing the door close before I'd seen Mike walking towards me with the game in his hands.

"No," Mike said, a strange thoughtful tone present in his voice as he spoke. "The man behind the counter said he'd give it to me for the number of tickets we had because I offered to buy the game with actual money."

"That's cool," I said, feeling a small smile cross my face at the fact that my boyfriend had offered to buy me one of my favorite games. "You sound confused though."

"It's nothing," Mike answered that strange confusion still in his voice. It sort of scared me the way he sounded so confused. "What do you want to do now?"

My mind reeled as I thought of something to say. But the only thing I could think up was a lie and it slid out of my lips more easily than I thought it would. Which is wrong if you want an honest and open relationship or at least that is what Jonathan had told me. But I go with my lie all the same hoping that Mike will forgive me when the dark-haired boy realizes that they're dating each other.

"Maybe we can go back to your place and start setting up for Dungeons and Dragons with the guys later on." I looked at the box that was nestled into Mike's front basket on his bike. It was new and shiny much like the relationship we had going on. The one that my boyfriend didn't know about but his sister did. "I was thinking of doing a campaign where we have to fight against a couple of trolls that are attacking a village. What do you think of that plan?" I couldn't help the excited tone that was in my voice not that Mike would have noticed.

"I think that sounds," Mike said as we jumped onto our bikes and started to pedal in the direction of his house. "The last one to my house has to kiss a troll!"

The whole ride to Mike's house my mind was filled with kissing. But it wasn't trolls that I was kissing. It was my best friend who was riding his bike next to me that I was kissing. To be honest, since the first time Lucas and Dustin had canceled our plans together I had always thought of kissing Mike when he and his mother dropped me off at home. But I never had the courage to actually do it. I was pretty sure that I probably never would.

"What are you thinking about, Will?" Mike asked, breaking me from my thoughts and causing my heat to jump into my mouth.

What should I say? That I was thinking of kissing him like the final girl kisses the final guy in a horror movie. I wasn't sure if he even knew we were dating yet. Let alone if he would respond in kind or laugh in my face.

"Nothing much," I said, hoping that blush on my face wasn't betraying me too much.

Mike skidded to stop and turned to face. "You've been acting weird since we met up at the arcade," he said, watching me. "What's going on with you? Is everything alright? You aren't having Upside sightings again, are you?"

I shook my head while biting my lip.

"But there is something that's going on, isn't there?" Mike asked, still watching me with concern on his face.

I nod.

"Well, what's going on? Did you get a girlfriend or something like that?"

"Something like that," I said, wanting desperately to cry out that we were dating and if he'd only take a closer look at our relationship he'd see that too.

"Come on, Will," Mike said, looking at me pleadingly. "I told you about that stuff with Nancy making fun of me earlier. Why won't you tell me what's bothering you?"

"It kind of has to do with why Nancy was making fun of you," I said quietly, trying to avoid eye contact.

"How?"

I took a deep breath and could feel my heart pounding away in my chest. I guess now was as good a time as any to drop the bomb that in my mind we were dating for the past few weeks. I hope he wouldn't be too angry about it.

"Do you remember last night?" I asked, walking my bike closer to his. I feel hopeful when I see him nod in confusion. "We've kind of been dating for about two weeks now. Last night was our two-week anniversary."

"We've been dating for two weeks?" Mike asked, not sounding angry which was a good sign. "It didn't feel like dating."

"But it was. Unless you don't want to date…."

Mike bit his lip nervously and glanced down at his shoes. His dark eyes taking on a rather thoughtful look to them.

"I'm alright with you not wanting to date me if you don't want to," I said, knowing that that would crush me but also knowing it was what he probably needed to hear. "But I kind of hope we could keep dating each other if that's alright with you, Mike, because I like more than a best friend would like you." I could feel my face heating up as those last words left my mouth before I could stop them.

"I'm not sure how people will take this….uh…..but I wouldn't mind if we continued to date each other either," Mike said, the nervous look leaving his face and a smile taking its place. "How do we make it official?"

"How about this?" I asked, leaning over the handlebars of our bikes and gently pressing my lips to his. From that day forward our relationship could start in full and I couldn't wait for our first official date that Mike would know about.

I hope you all enjoyed I Didn't Know I Was Dating My Friend as much as I enjoyed writing it.