Good morning/afternoon/evening/night everyone! Welcome to my first fanfiction, an AU of Mileven in high school. This was actually inspired by a true story of mine. Enjoy ;)


By the start of 9th grade, Mike and Eleven had become best friends over the past 4 years. Along with the rest of the party, they made a great group of friends, even if they had different ways of expressing it at times. However, their friendship started to come into question, though not in a bad way.

Mike was starting to believe that he was falling in love with none other than Eleven Hopper. Suddenly, he became nervous around her; he was very conscious of what he said around her; he could no longer look her in the eye without feeling awkward or embarrassed; he could not spend time alone with her without his heart racing at 100 mph. He had never been in love before, but he was pretty sure that this was what people meant. But he was left with one simple question: Why?

Why, after four years, had these feelings started to appear? Why, out of all people, was it El? Why was he so uncertain about this whole thing? Was this hormones or something more?

Mike wasn't the bravest boy, but he liked to think he had the courage to ask someone out (yeah, that's probably a lie). But at the same token, he didn't want to jump into something unprepared. He wanted his first girlfriend to be special, and he didn't want to date someone just for the sake of it. He knew he had feelings for El, but he didn't know why. And before he asked her out, he wanted to be sure. He had heard too many stories of people mistaking friendship for romance and regretting it later on.

"Mike! You look good today!" a certain girl exclaimed.

Mike, who was sitting on top of his desk, looked down at his clothing. He was wearing his favorite shirt, one with a plaid design, which was by no means fancy but appealing to look at. He had worn it before and received similar comments from her and the rest of the party, so he knew he had to wear it again. Well, that day was today. And with her comment, he couldn't help himself from smiling.

"Don't I always, El?" he smirked, earning a (cute) giggle from her. "And you're dressed quite nicely yourself."

He truly meant what he said; El looked amazing in that dress. It was one that she received from her parents on her birthday, and it just fit her perfectly. Truly, it wasn't the dress that made her beautiful; she was just pretty by nature. But it illuminated what was already present. (Plus, commenting on her dress was a way to express her beauty without making the conversation between the friends awkward.)

"Why thank you," El smiled with a gleam in her eye as she twirled her dress. "I love it, too."

Mike smiled at her childishness. "You going to wear that to homecoming?"

"Nah, I got another dress in mind," she shrugged. "Speaking of homecoming, you going with anyone?

He gave a half-chuckle. Those questions about love resurfaced: What is it? Who's his dream girlfriend? What does it mean to be in a relationship? He decided (more like he convinced himself) that he did not have a crush on El, rather an infatuation. His interest peaked, and the more he thought about their friendship, the more he felt himself falling head over heels. But he still didn't know why, and that's what made him scared. Since he didn't know if they would make a good couple, he wanted to spend more time with her to make sure that she was the one.

See, infatuations and crushes are two different things. (If you say so, Mike Wheeler…)

Mike shrugged, "If I can find someone, but I don't know who to ask…" A shameless lie. "And I mean, I'm not going to ask a random girl."

"Well, is there a girl you happen to like?" Crap.

Mike scratched the back of his neck. He tried to be purposefully discrete, but that had clearly failed. "Uhhh…maybe."

"Ooooo," El's interest peaked, "who is she?"

He didn't know how to react, so he ignored the blush on his cheeks and played it cool. He grinned, "Now wouldn't you love to know."

"Wait, you're not gonna tell me?"

Mike shook his head. "In your dreams I'd tell you…" (In your dreams too, Mike Wheeler…)

"But I'm an excellent match-maker!"

"Sure, but I don't know, El. I mean, it's more like…more like an infatuation." There's that word again…

The bell rang, and so Mike pushed himself off the desk to pick up the backpack from his chair. El, who had already retrieved her belongings, naturally followed him. They usually left class together anyway, so Mike expected to see her face when he turned around. What he didn't expect was for him to be breathless after seeing it.

"Please, Mike!" she frowned. "Just give me some hints?"

He cleared his throat. "But why try when you know I'm not one to succumb to peer pressure?"

She continued looking at him, and each second he felt himself cracking more and more. It wasn't even her face that got him, but the fact that this was fun. This was his chance to spend more time with her.

"Alright, but I'll give you one and only one hint."

She wore an adorable expression full of thoughtfulness as they exited the American History classroom, one of two classes they shared. None of their other friends shared the class with them, so it was the time of day that they would socialize the most. Not only that, but they would do it alone (much to the pleasure but also the terror of Mike Wheeler).

"What's a good question?" she mumbled to herself. "Eye color? Hair color? Short or tall?"

"Well you'd better make up your mind quickly," Mike chuckled, pointing toward his next classroom's door. "Time's a-ticking."

She grabbed his arm away so that they would move to the side of the hallway. He got a few glances from some people, but he just smiled and ignored them. It's not every day a pretty girl takes you by the arm.

"I got it!" exclaimed El. "How many classes do you share with her?"

He smiled, reflecting on the irony of this whole situation. Hey, I know that word! His English teacher would be proud of him right now. "I share two."

She stood thinking for a second, but Mike could tell she was having no luck. He purposefully wanted it vague, since the last thing he wanted was for her to figure it out. Then, it wouldn't be irony, it would be an absolute disaster, and Mike wouldn't think he could ever face El again. But when he saw the expression on her face, his thinking changed.

"Got no guesses, huh?"

"No," she pouted, "no I don't. Especially since I don't know which of the seven classes."

Mike sighed, "Alright, I'll tell you this. Out of my Math, Science, History, and Language Arts classes, I share one of those classes with her."

"Alright," she smiled, "more narrowed, I can work with that."

"And, if you want," Mike scratched his neck, "every day you can ask me a new question."

"So that I can set you up with her! That's genius!" she smiled. "You better be prepared for tomorrow, Mike."

"I will," he replied as he heard the bell ring.

They gave each other a quick look before quickly waving goodbye. He saw her run off to Max, who had a clear annoyed look on her face. But when Max whispered something into El's ear, El slapped Max, but that didn't stop Max from cracking up. He saw El look back at him, so he quickly walked into his classroom.

He smiled, a faint blush forming on his cheek.


How was it? I hope it was to your liking! All feedback and criticism is welcomed. Thank you guys!