13.

When Hopper pulls Will out of the room, Mike thinks he's dead. Not a fake corpse, not recovering after almost dying, not drugged unconscious, but actually properly dead this time. His eyes are shut, he's covered in blood and there's a blue lump on his forehead and bruising around one eye which stick out in contrast to the grey-white his skin has turned.

Joyce is screaming and Jonathan is frozen in horror so it's down to Mike to place a shaking hand on his best friend's shoulder and find out for sure.

"Will," he tries to say. His voice catches in his throat and comes out as nothing more than a whisper. "Will," he says again, louder this time. With every second that Will doesn't respond, Mike becomes more convinced that the worst has happened. He refuses to accept it. With a heart beating so hard he feels he might pass out, he learns over Will, shaking his shoulders. "Will, c'mon. Please. Will!"

In the silence, a tear drips off Mike's nose and lands on Will. He hadn't even realised he was crying.

But then, there's a spluttering noise and Will's eyes flicker open. "Mike?" he says, a disorientated rasp. "Ow."

Relief floods through his veins. He's stares at his friend, too overwhelmed to know what to do.

Joyce gets there first. She takes Will into her arms, gently helping into a sitting position, letting him lean against her as she cradles him.

"Will! Will, baby," she says. "You're okay. You're okay."

"Mom-"

"Where does it hurt, sweetheart?"

Mike's suddenly back alert, needing to know what the damage is so he can try to help fix it.

"The hospital," Will croaks, "need to… need to go."

"I know, baby, we're going to get you there, we'll get you some help-"

"No, not- not me. Need to see Max."

"You can see her soon," Joyce says, sounding confused. "We need to get you looked at first, okay."

"No, Mom. Max, it's… more important."

"I don't understand, sweetheart, what-?"

"Mom," he whimpers. "I just… Now, Mom. Please. Quick."

"I can take you," Jonathan says. "We've got the van."

Will moves as if he's trying to get up to go with his brother straight away, but he collapses back against his mom with a groan. Mike knows him well enough to identify it as a groan of frustration as much as pain.

"Come on, kid, I'll help you," Hopper says, clearly having realised the same. "I'll get you to the van but then I'm going to stay for El, okay?"

Will nods. "You stay too, Mom."

"No, no, baby, I'm coming with you."

"I'm okay."

"You're not okay," someone snaps. Mike realises it was him.

Will looks at him. "El's gonna need people," he says, his voice quiet.

It feels like a question. Mike knows he has a choice to make. He can stay for El or he can go with Will. He can be a good boyfriend or a good best friend. And he knows it should be a tough decision but only one of the options doesn't make him feel like his heart's been ripped out.

"Fine," he says. "But if they're both staying, I'm coming with you."

Will's expression, beneath the blood and bruises, is unreadable. "Fine."

Mike had expected Hopper to carry Will, like he did all those years ago when Will was unconscious in the lab. But Will is bigger these days, and Hop smaller, so after lifting him to his feet, he moves Will's arm around his shoulders, allowing Jonathan to duck under his arm at the other side. Mike trails after them feeling useless.

But once he and Will are in the back of the van and the doors are shut, Jonathan in the driving seat gripping the wheel so hard Mike can see his fingers are turning white, it's his turn to help. There's an old blanket on the floor which he shakes off, then wraps around Will.

Will slumps against him. Mike would like to think Will's leaning against him through choice, but he's trembling from head to toe and Mike suspects the short walk has worn him out so badly he's not able to hold himself upright. He wraps an arm around him and lets Will's head fall onto his shoulder. It feels familiar but at the same time strange, like it was a million years ago they last hugged like this.

"Does it hurt?" he asks Will, keeping his voice low.

"Mm," Will says, but then seems to remember he's trying to pretend he's okay. "Doesn't matter," he says, instead.

It does matter, Mike thinks. Then, you matter. Rather than voicing this, he just rubs his hand up and down Will's arm. "What's with the thing about Max, then?" he asks.

"…Hard to explain."

"Try me?"

"Later," Will says.

His eyes are fluttering shut and Mike realises he's fighting to conserve his energy for whatever he needs to see Max for. He shuffles, anchoring his back more firmly against the wall of the van and wrapping his other arm around Will too, moving him so that he's leaning against his chest, shielded by his arms.

Will lifts his head, looking up at him, a question in his eyes. "Mike-"

"Shhh, it's okay. Rest."

Will doesn't respond and gradually Mike starts to feel sinking into embrace. With Will's weight against him, Mike can feel every tremble and every tremor coursing through Will's body and so he's able to tell the second it gets worse.

"Hey," he murmurs, his mouth only inches from Will's ear. "It's going to be okay."

"But… El. What if he hurts her? If I… If I don't, if I can't-"

"Everything's gonna be okay, Will." Mike moves enough to take Will's hand, clasping it in front of Will's chest with both of his own. "Believe me for El. Friends don't lie, right? Everything's gonna be just fine."

There's a few moments where all he can hear is Will sniffing and the deep rasps of his breath. Then Will lifts his other hand and connects it with Mike's, giving a gentle squeeze. Mike looks down at their joined hands. There are some painful marks around the widest part of Will's hands, the skin cut and already swollen and tinged blue with a bruise. He locks their fingers in a way he hopes won't bother the injuries and gives a gentle squeeze back.

He feels Will relax a little more this time. He wishes he could drop a kiss on the top of Will's head but he's scared Will will push him away again, depriving himself of the comfort he needs and Mike so desperately wants to give. Instead, he makes do with resting his chin lightly on the top of Will's head. His hair is damp from exertion and it doesn't feel nice, yet Mike has no desire to move.

He doesn't understand this urge to kiss Will. If it were isolated, he'd put it down to the fear of nearly losing him again and the relief when he'd taken that big breath and opened his eyes. But ever since he'd made that impulsive move back in the abandoned restaurant, it's been all he wants to do. He doesn't understand why, but he just knows that kissing Will would make everything better. And he doesn't even mean about Vecna or the Upside Down.

Thinking about Vecna, sends his mind back to El, fighting to save everyone. He wants to ask Will what happened, what El's chances are like, but he's too scared to hear the answer. Besides, from the state they dragged him out in, there's a good chance Will doesn't know any more than he does. The only one who can tell him all the details is El, and he abandoned her for the sake of staying with Will. His head aches with guilt. He knows he's a bad boyfriend. But the two most important people to him were both fighting in their own way and he'd had to make a choice. He tries to tell himself, he chose Will because Will needs him more than El does, that it was nothing more than that. But then Will groans as they go over a particularly nasty bump on the ground and Mike feels his chest flood with emotion. It makes him want to cry.

He can tell Jonathan was driving far faster than he should, but he's painfully aware of every second until they arrive at the hospital. Eventually Jonathan pulls over, yanking the handbrake into position without bothering to tidy up his parking. The back doors to the ban open and Mike sees Jonathan's eyes immediately go to Will.

"I'm going to find a wheelchair," he says, thankfully not making any comments about their close proximity to each other.

"Hurry," Mike tells him.

Jonathan's back fairly quickly, pushing a wheelchair, slightly red cheeked as if he's stolen one from a patient and ran away. After they've bundled Will into the wheelchair, they push him as fast as they can. They all know the route to Max's room by now.

Lucas and Dustin look up as they crash through the doors.

"Shit! Will!"

"What happened, did-?"

"I'm fine," Will says, through gritted teeth as Jonathan pushes him alongside Max's bed, the opposite side to where Lucas has taken residence.

They look up at Mike questioning it. He shrugs. "He said he needs to see Max."

"Think you need to see the doctor, man."

"No time," Will replies, without looking up.

He stares down at Max. Mike waits for something to happen, though he has no idea what. After a minute of confused silence he can't wait any longer. "Will, what's-?"

"Shhh. I'm trying to- to get inside her head."

There's a beat. "Um," Dustin says, "You're not El."

Will gives an exasperated sigh. "I… I've been inside Vecna's, okay."

"You- what?" Something inside Mike lurches uncomfortably.

"I spied back."

"And what did you see?"

Will's still frowning at Max and at first Mike thinks he's not going to answer Lucas's question.

"Everyone he's kept… they make him strong. Their bad memories do, I mean. He like, feeds off it." He takes a deep breath. "But me and Max, we're- we're alive. We can… influence which memories of ours he's getting. And it's like… like a magnet. I- I tried it." He's stammering badly now, clearly exhausted. "I think I- I… unlocked other people's happy memories too. It makes- makes him weaker."

Mike's brain hurts from trying to keep up. "Vecna surviving off trauma," he says. "That makes sense. So, removing the trauma, it's like-"

"Removing his oxygen," Dustin interrupts.

"Right." Will sways a little. "But I got kicked out… but Max- Max's still trapped there. I need her help. I need to- to… to piggyback."

Mike stares at his best friend, barely able to believe what he's hearing. "Okay, but how? We can't exactly set up a sensory deprivation tank in the middle of the hospital" he says. His tone comes out harsher than he'd intended, and he immediately feels bad for snapping at Will.

"What about a blindfold and some static?" Jonathan suggests.

Will shakes his head. "It's not the same as with El. I managed to get inside Vecna's head and I think… I think some of that still remains with me. Like a- a residual power, you know?"

"Okay, so how did you get inside Vecna's?"

"It was, uh, kind of an accident."

"Oh, okay, great," Dustin snaps.

"But I was… I'd just helped El, and…" His head snaps back to Max. "I've got it."

"What is it?" Jonathan asks.

"Maybe if I…" Will mutters. He takes Max's hand in his.

Mike lasts no longer than five seconds of silence. "What, Will?"

"Shush!" Lucas says. He's staring at Max with the same desperation Mike feels about Will.

Mike watches, trying not to blink, not wanting to miss any signs that Will's not okay. It feels like ages. He senses Dustin and Lucas exchange confused looks, can feel Jonathan fidgeting by his side. It's taking all his strength to remain silent.

After what feels like a few of the longest minutes on record, Mike sees Will's head jerk. He stoops to get a better look at his friend's face. With shock that feels like a punch to the stomach, he sees that Will's eyes have glazed over, the soft brown replaced by a sheen of white.

"Will!" He drops to his knees besides Will, his hands on his best friend's shoulders, ready to shake him out the trance.

But Jonathan grabs hold of his arms and pulls him backwards. He's surprisingly strong and Mike is forced back up on his feet away from Will.

"What the-" he splutters. "What are you doing? Look at him! We've got to do something."

"Will's got this, Mike," Jonathan says, someone both softly and firmly. "It's okay."

Mike lets out a noise somewhere between a groan and a sob. He knows he should be embarrassed but he can't bring himself to care. Jonathan's arms stay around him and Mike thinks of Will, who must have been in this embrace many times before.

Will's shaking slightly, his lips are moving but no sounds are coming out. The cut on his head is bleeding freely. Mike wishes he could wipe it clean.

"Do you think it's working?" Dustin whispers after a while.

Lucas shrugs. Mike can't manage even that.

"Lucas," Will's hand flaps around blindly, palm open, looking to make contact with Lucas. "Help me out. Talk to her."

Lucas gives a fleeting look towards him, Dustin and Jonathan, and Mike sees the embarrassment on his face at doing it in front of them. But it's barely a hesitation. He puts his hand in Will's and begins to talk.

"Hey, Max. I don't know what crazy shit this is, but I hope it means you can hear me. I really hope you can." There's a pause. "I miss you," he says. "Nothing's the same without you here."

"Lucas, happy memories, remember?" Dustin instructs.

Mike looks at Lucas long enough to sees his friend take a deep breath, composing himself, but then his eyes are back on Will. He's trembling under the strain even more now and Mike can do nothing but desperately hope this works, and works quickly.

"Remember our first movie date?" Lucas says. "Our first one just the two of us, without this lot making stupid kissy faces at us. You made me buy both sweet and savoury popcorn for you but it turned out you had a massive pack of sweets stashed in your bag the whole time and you had no use for the popcorn other than to throw it at me. The guy who worked there chucked us out halfway through the movie. You found it funny, Madmax. I was pissed. But then you let me kiss you to make up for it and that… that made everything okay again."

Mike notices Will's hand twitch. He doesn't know what that means.

"And when we go have that movie date you promised me, I'll buy you as many boxes of popcorn as you like. I'll even let you throw them at me. But… lets sit at the back this time, yeah? Where they can't catch us. Where no-one can see what we're up to."

Mike would snort if he weren't so worried about Will. He senses Dustin go to comment but then must decide better of it. It's not reassuring.

"You never told me what memory you picked, Max, the memory to hide in the light in. But I think I know. You said I was in it. Well, you said I might have been in it, but you gave me that smile and it kinda gave it away. It was the snowball, right? Where we… we had our first kiss. I was just this… this little nerd, but you made me feel like a king. You always make me feel like that Max, like I'm… special. But you know what? I'm not. Not compared to you. You're so special, Max. What you did-" Lucas's voice begins to waver, "-not everyone could do that."

Mike winces, worried how Lucas is veering back away from happy memories. But Lucas dabs at his eyes with the cuff of his sweatshirt and shakes himself, as if brushing away the darker turn to his monologue.

"Yeah, you're pretty awesome, Madmax," he continues. "I like talking to you. You've always got something to say, whether it's something smart or you're just being a smartass. Or both, actually, a lot of a time." He gives a weak chuckle. "Like in middle school, when we'd sit together at the back of Mr Kennedy's history class and you'd give an alternative commentary on what he was saying. It made me laugh so hard, Max. You always make me-"

A loud inhale stalls Lucas midsentence.

Will is bolt upright in the wheelchair, breathing heavily, his eyes back to their usual brown.

"Will?"

"Vecna," Will says, breathlessly. "He's gone."

With that, he sways alarmingly to one side. Mike knows what's coming and throws himself forward just in time to catch Will as he loses consciousness and falls forwards out of the safety of the wheelchair.

He hears the door behind them clatter as Jonathan rushes out of it, shouting for a doctor.

Mike's on the floor, cradling Will for the second time that day, so the first he realises anything is happening is when Lucas and Dustin's chairs scrape as they leap up from them.

"Max? Max? Can you hear me?" Lucas says, desperately.

Mike cranes his neck to look up to the bed. He can just about see the flickering of Max's eyes.

"Lucas?" she says. Her voice sounds painfully croaky but it's still unmistakeably Max. "Where- where am I? What's going on?"