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The sound of lockers slamming echoed throughout it the locker room, along with the shouts of rowdy teen boys who just finished basketball practice.
Chance pulled off his jersey, panting, hot, and annoyed. Today had to have been the worse day of his life. The universe just seemed to be against him for some reason.
Lucas, who was beside him, wiping his forehead with a towel, noticed his grumpy mood. He had picked up on it earlier during practice, and he decided to press him about it.
“Hey man, you okay?” He asked him, panting slightly still.
Chance looked over at him. “What..?”
Lucas shrugged. “You just.. seem down. And you weren’t playing that well today. Whats going on?”
Dammit. Of course Lucas picked up on his mood. He was too observant for his own good. Chance sighed heavily.
“Nothing. It’s just..” He paused as he slipped on his t shirt. “Will’s mad at me..” He admitted, shame in his tone.
Lucas raised his eyebrows. “What? He’s mad you?” He pressed. “How come?”
Chance sighed again, slamming his locker closed and running a hand through his sweaty hair. “It’s..it’s kind of a lot to explain..” he mumbled. He looked up at Lucas. "But I messed up. And he's..he's pissed."
Lucas's expression shifted to concern. "Really..? he's that mad?" Will was never one to get very upset. He was a very forgiving person, so Chance could understand why he was so confused.
Chance sighed and slung his backpack over his shoulder. "You could say that. He won't answer my texts and ignored me in the hallway earlier."
"So the silent treatment.." Lucas pondered aloud, nodding his head slowly and thinking as he put on his own backpack.
Chance groaned. "I know.. and it's killing me Lucas." he looked back at him. "Please, help me out here."
Lucas thought hard for a moment. "Come on." he said, nodding his head and starting to walk away.
Chance scrambled to follow him as they exited the locker room together.
"Okay-" Lucas said as he pushed open the doors and they stepped into the cool hallways of Hawkins High. "So for me to help you, I need to understand why he's mad at you."
Chance bit the inside of his cheek. Admitting to Lucas what had happened was gonna be embarrassing. But then again, he didn't have to tell him the whole story. "Well…It was about Mike."
Lucas closed his eyes and sighed heavily upon hearing the news. He pinched the bridge of his nose in frustration. "Of course it was. How could I expect anything less?"
Chance let out a bitter chuckle. "Yeah..it was just…" He paused, trying to think of the right words to explain this without embarrassing himself. "Mike was being all jealous at lunch, as usual. And he was rolling his eyes and shit and acting like a little-" He looked over at Lucas, seeing his amused expression and sighed, cutting his sentence short and collecting himself. "And yeah he was just..being rude. So I told him off..and we kind of got into a heated argument."
Lucas listened intently and nodded, like he was thinking hard. "How heated…?" He asked, dreading the answer.
Chance looked as guilty as ever. "Uh..shouting..and uh..maybe I pushed him.."
Lucas sighed heavily and shook his head in disappointment.
"But- he deserved it! He was-" Chance was quick to defend himself but Lucas cut him off swiftly.
"Was Will telling you to stop?"
Chance paused. He opened his mouth, then closed it again, recalling the memory. Will tried to get between them to get them to stop bickering, but Chance wasn't listening. He wad too blinded by his frustration to notice his boyfriend intervening. He sighed shamefully. "Yeah..he was..I wasn't listening."
"There you go." Lucas nodded as they pushed open the door to the school. "You weren't listening to him, that's why he's upset."
"Alright, alright I know that…" Chance huffed and kicked a pebble in the parking lot. "I messed up. I need to apologize. But how?" He stopped in his tracks and desperately waited for Lucas's answer.
Lucas thought for a moment, the gears turning in his mind. "Okay." He nodded. "Go home, shower, then meet me at the store in an hour!" He called out as he started sprinting to his car.
"Wait- wait what?? Why the-" Chance called back to him, confused, but Lucas was already out of ear shot. He sighed heavily for the hundredth time today, then slowly made his way to his car.
Jesus, what did Lucas have planned?
—
"Okay, first thing you're gonna do, is take accountability." Lucas lectured Chance as they walked side by side into the store. "Let him know that you know what you did wrong, and that you realize how it hurt him."
Chance's head spun slightly as Lucas dumped this on him, but he listened as best he could. He wanted to make sure his apology to Will was perfect and got them back on good terms, and if listening to Lucas yap was how he was going to achieve that, then so be it. "Take accountability..got it." He huffed. "Then what?"
"Then, you are going to apologize for what you did, in full sincerity." He continued to explain. "And promise not to pick a fight with Mike again."
Chance nodded, a little reluctant. He wanted to say, "no promises on that," but that would be against his word. And he really didn't want to have another fight with Will. He hated more than anything Will being mad at him. The way he ignored him in the halls today, and left his messages on read, broke his heart a little. He would do anything, even if it meant leaving Mike alone, to have Will back in his arms. "Okay. I will." He stood up straighter. "Anything else?"
"Ah yes," Lucas said astutely, leading him to a certain aisle. "This always works if you wanna make a point…" He stopped in front of a large cart filled with an assortment of different flowers. "Flowers." He smiled at Chance.
Chance took in the wide variety of flowers. The thought of giving some to Will, as a gift, an apology, made his heart warm up. He knew Will liked flowers- he was always painting and drawing them- He even drew one on Chance's hand during Chemistry once. It stayed on for a week until it faded. Then he redrew it. It was a sunflower.
"Have any idea of which ones he likes?" Lucas asked as he perused through the flowers himself.
Chance snapped out of the memory and began to scan the cart for a certain type of flower. "Yeah…I have an idea.." He said. He then spotted the signature yellow flowers, already in a nicely assembled bouquet. He picked them up without a second thought and admired them. He pictured Will's pretty face as he'd give them to him, flustered and hopefully forgiving. He clutched the stems harder.
"All right. Got em." He said confidently. he looked up at Lucas, seeing he was holding a bouquet of classic red roses. He nodded to them. "For Max?" he assumed with a small smile.
Lucas smiled back. "You know it."
Chance's curiosity peaked. "Did you guys get in a fight too or something?" He knew Lucas and Max playfully bickered a lot, but a genuine fight was rare. And they always seemed to get back together in the end.
"Nope. I just like to get them for her sometimes." Lucas shrugged. "She pretends she doesn't care for them, but I know she loves it."
Chance smiled wider at that. Lucas was a good boyfriend. He should take advice from him more often.
The two advanced upon the checkout, and as Chance held the flowers close to his chest, he started to feel the nervousness kick in.
What if Will doesn't like the flowers? What if he doesn't accept his apology? What if he takes Mike's side?
Lucas picked up on this, the way he shifted, his hands fidgeting around the stems of the bouquet. "Hey man, don't worry. It's gonna be okay. Will can't stay mad at anyone long, especially you."
Chance's heart skipped a beat at those words. "I hope so.." He muttered, a blush creeping up on his cheeks as he tightened his grip on the flowers once again.
—
Will lay on his bed, staring at his phone screen, rereading the messages from Chance that had been coming in since the fight at lunch today.
Where did you go? - 2:47pm
Will? - 2:53pm
Are you mad at me? - 3:06pm
Will I'm so sorry - 3:15pm
Can we talk please? - 3:26pm
Babe - 3:38pm
I have practice but will you meet me after? - 3:45pm
Will, please don't ignore me. I just wanna talk. - 4:07pm
Will glanced at the time in the corner of his screen. 7:34pm. Chance had been silent since. He didn't know whether to be relieved for disappointed. It was a mix of both.
On one hand, he was still so pissed at him for picking a fight with Mike, yet again..but he also felt bad for giving him the silent treatment, even if he deserved it.
But did he deserve it?
He groaned and put his phone face down before rolling onto his back, staring at the ceiling. Why did this have to be so damn difficult?
He thought back to lunch that day, when Chance came to sit with their regular group, which consisted of Will, Mike, Dustin, and El. Max and Lucas had a different lunch period, so they weren't with them. That was probably for the better. If Max saw the way mike was acting, she would've kicked his ass before Chance could even open his mouth.
Speaking of the way Mike was acting, the more Will thought about it, the more upset he became with him. He and Chance were just minding their business, and he was rolling his eyes, scoffing, and making comments under his breath. It annoyed Will more than he cared to admit, but he ignored him, as he usually did. But Chance wasn't as good at keeping his temper, especially when it came to Mike being an asshole.
And when Chance called him out, Mike, as usual, was pushing his buttons, trying to act innocent. Until Chance pushed his buttons right back, and their banter quickly morphed into a full blown argument, both of them standing up from the table and shouting over the cafeteria. Will tried his best to break them up, but Chance wasn't listening. He felt helpless, and like Chance was disregarding his feelings. And when Chance pushed Mike, that was the final straw.
"Stop it! Both of you!" He exclaimed, stepping front of Chance and blocking him from going for a second push, while Dustin restrained Mike, who was squirming to have a go at him.
Chance's expression immediately softened when he saw the look of desperation and annoyance on Will's face. But Will didn't stop there.
"Both of you are acting like little children and I'm sick of it!" He scolded them both. "Pull yourselves together and stop behaving like damn jackasses!" With that, he gathered up his lunch and slung on his backpack, beginning to leave.
Chance reached out and grabbed his arm. "Will- wait I-"
Will ripped his arm away. "Don't." He shot, tone cold, before turning on his heels and storming out of the cafeteria.
The memory itched at his brain. His annoyance with Mike was at it's peak now, rethinking how the situation went. He remembered how Chance immediately switched up when he saw how hurt Will was, and how he texted him all day. Mike didn't do that. He didn't try to stop him from leaving, didn't text him or anything or even apologize. It pissed him off.
Will had a hard time sticking up for himself sometimes, but he had been getting better with it now. And he wasn't gonna let Mike believe he did nothing wrong.
He rolled onto his stomach again and reached for his phone. He opened Mike's contact and began typing, his fingers flying across the keypad with newfound determination and anger.
You were way out of line today. - Will, 7:45pm
I wasn't doing anything wrong - Mike, 7:47pm
Don't give me that. You were being a douche for no reason and you know it. - Will, 7:48pm
He just pisses me off, okay? - Mike, 7:50pm
He wasn't even talking to you. He wasn't doing anything to you. - Will, 7:52pm
I don't get why you feel the need to be such a fucking dick to him so much. You barely know him yet you assume that he's some asshole because he's a jock and treat him like shit. It's not cool. You don't know him like I do. And maybe if you made the effort to know him, you'd see that he's not what you force yourself to think he is. it's childish. grow up. - Will, 7:55pm
So you're telling me he wasn't way out of line too?? He pushed me will, and I'm the one who gets blamed?? - Mike, 8:00pm
I'm not blaming anyone Mike. And yes, he shouldn't have pushed you. But you shouldn't have instigated it in the first place. If you have such a problem with Chance for absolutely no reason maybe you should leave when we're together. because he's not going anywhere. - Will, 8:02pm, read.
Will stared at the screen intently, waiting for another response from mike, his thumbs hovering over the keypad, ready to type out another rebuttal. But a message never came. 8:10pm. Mike left him on read.
Will took that as a victory.
He sighed heavily and tossed his phone to the edge of the bed and groaned into the sheets.
He started to feel a pang of guilt. He defended chance do fiercely against Mike, but was still mad at him. He didn't know what to feel. Why did this have to be so complicated?
—
Chance parked his truck in the gravel in front of the Byers house, taking in the familiar scene of the cozy secluded home surrounded by trees. He saw Joyce's car parked in the driveway, and thankfully, no Jonathan car.
He didn't not like Jonathan of course, but he did intimidate him a little bit. He was obviously very protective of Will, which he applauded, but it also made him a little weary. But seeing that Jonathan wasn't there, likely back at college, eased his nerves slightly. If Jonathan was there, Will would've likely told him about what happened, and he'd be good as dead.
After turning the car off, Chance took a deep breath. He looked at the bouquet of sunflowers, perched on the passenger seat, waiting to be gifted to his lover. He took them gently in his hands and looked into the rear view mirror, checking his hair quickly. He then took another deep breathe to calm his racing heart, and opened the door.
His feet crunched against the gravel as he made his way to the front door, running through his plan in his mind, trying to remember all of Lucas's advice and little tips. Before he knew it, he was standing on the front porch in front of the door.
He could faintly here Joyce humming in the kitchen, along with the sound of pots and pans clinking as the sink ran. He hoped silently that Joyce would answer the door and not Will, just so he'd have another second to prepare.
Chance took a final dep breath before reaching out, and rapping on the door with his knuckles.
Moments later, he heard the sink shut off, and the sound of footsteps approaching. His hands clutched around the bouquet and he tensed up, bracing himself.
The door swung open, and there was the kind face of Joyce Byers. Her eyes widened slightly when she took in the sight of him, standing there with a handful of sunflowers.
Chance swallowed nervously and blushed. He wasn't sure if Joyce knew about he and Will's fight, but nonetheless, he prayed she'd let him in. "Hey Mrs. Byers.." He greeted softly.
"Hey hon.." She said with a polite smile. Chance relaxed a little when he saw the grin on her face and her sweet tone of voice. Joyce looked up at him. "For Will..?" She asked with a knowing look in her eyes.
Chance blushed and chuckled lightly. "Uh..yeah. They're for Will.." He said shyly, scratching the back of his neck. "Is he um..is he here..?"
"He's in his room." She told him, stepping aside to let him in. "You can go see him if you want."
Chance sighed in relief at her willingness. "Thank you Mrs. Byers." He said as he stepped into the house, taking in the familiar, cozy atmosphere.
"No problem hun." She gave him a pat on the arm then closed the door, and headed back to the kitchen.
Chance was thankful she didn't press him about why he was there so late, and with a bouquet of flowers in hand. She totally should have. But he wasn't complaining.
He slowly made his way down the hallway to Will's room, knowing exactly where to go. His initial nervousness returned as he approached the door, his heart rate spiking again. The doubts he had earlier started to come back to him, gnawing at his mind.
He stood right in front of the door now, faintly picking up on the sound of The Smiths playing behind the door. He took another deep breathe, bracing himself once again, debating just running away, but knowing that wasn't a possibility.
Oh screw it.
He reached out and knocked on the door gently. "Will?" He called out softly. "It's me..can we talk please..?"
Chance held his breathe, knuckles turning white as he clutched the stems of the sunflowers. He heard the music start to fade as Will turned it down. He then heard footsteps approaching, and knew there was no turning back now.
The door slowly creaked open, and there he was. Will. Looking as pretty as he always did. His brown hair slightly messy, his hazel eyes staring up at him, the mole on his upper lip. Chance's breath hitched. No matter how many times Will looked at him, he couldn't help but have that reaction. He was just.. perfect.
But when he took in the look on Will's face, his heart dropped slightly. He looked unamused, his eyes narrow and his expression cold. But then, Will's gaze quickly dropped to the bouquet in Chance's hands, and his demeanor shifted.
His eyes immediately softened, his lips parting slightly in shock as he admired the beautiful sunflowers. Chance's breath hitched again and he bit the inside of his cheek.
"For you…" He said softly, holding out the bouquet to him.
A pink tint appeared on Will's cheeks. He quickly swallowed and collected himself before looking back up at Chance, his expression shifting back to stoic. He took the flowers hesitantly.
Chance's hope deflated a little at the stern look on Will's face, but at least he accepted the flowers. "Can we talk..?" He asked again, his tone as gentle as he could make it. "Please.."
Will bit the inside of his cheek as he stared at the flowers again. Chance held his breath and waited for what felt like an eternity before Will stepped aside, letting him come in.
He let out a sigh of relief and slowly stepped into the familiar space of Will's bedroom. He watched as Will closed the door then moved to his dresser, carefully placing the flower bouquet down on it.
He then turned to Chance, crossing his arms over his chest, expression cold. Chance's stomach dipped at the sight. He took a step towards him. "Will.." He reached out to cup his cheek, desperate to feel that soft skin beneath his palm, but Will nodded his head away.
Chance's heart broke slightly at the rejection, and he slowly retracted his hand back to his side. He knew by this, Will was hurt. More hurt than he thought. "Babe.." He murmured. "Can I just..can I explain myself? Please..?" He knew he sounded desperate, but he didn't care at this point. He just wanted to make everything better. He didn't care if he had to get on his knees and beg for forgiveness, if it meant he would get to hold and kiss Will again.
Will stared up at him, his expression unwavering. "Fine." He said bluntly.
A wave of relief crashed over Chance as Will agreed to listen to him. He let out a shaky exhale. "Okay..just listen to me.." He said softly. He paused and swallowed, preparing his speech in his mind.
"I shouldn't have gotten into that fight with Mike. I should have ignored him instead of escalating things. It was the wrong thing to do. And I shouldn't have pushed him either. It was immature and irresponsible, and I'm so sorry." He told him calmly, his eyes not leaving Will's.
Will's expression was almost unreadable. He could see his eyes soften slightly, like he wanted to forgive him right there and then, but he kept up with the cold facade, telling Chance there was more needed to say.
"And..I'm sorry for not listening to you." He continued. He reached out and took Will's hand in his, moving it away from his chest. He took a step closer, placing his other hand gently on Will's hip. "I should have listened to you when you told me to stop. I was blinded by my frustration and disregarded your feelings. And that was wrong of me."
Will's cheeks flushed pink slightly as Chance took his hand and touched his hip. Chance was starting to put cracks in the dam holding back his forgiveness. But he did his best not to show it, still wearing that stoic expression.
Chance squeezed his hand gently. "I promise you that I will ignore Mike from here on out, even if he is being a.." He stopped himself. "Even if he is being rude. And I promise I'll listen to you more…no matter what."
Will couldn't deny that Chance's words were getting to him. They way he took accountability and apologized, the way he promised to change..it made his heart flutter. But still, he pushed down the feelings, keeping up his resilient facade.
Chance could see that Will's resistance was starting to falter, and pressed further. He leaned in closer, their noses almost touching as he looked deep into those hazel eyes. "I'm so, so sorry Will." He said quietly, still squeezing his hand, not a drop of insincerity in his voice.
Will couldn't take this. If Chance kept this up, he might forgive him too quickly. He tore his hand away from Chance's and took a step back, still blushing slightly. He turned his back to him, crossing his arms over his chest again, shutting him out.
Chance's heart dropped in disappointment and a hint of hurt as Will pulled away and turned his back to him. He could tell Will was so close to forgiving him, he just needed to press a little harder.
He then remembered something Lucas had told him as they were leaving the store earlier.
"…and if all else fails, and he still won't forgive you.." Lucas explained. "Shower him with affection. Kisses, hugs, all that, until his walls break. Works every time with Max when she's indecisive on forgiving me or not."
A light bulb appeared over his head. He knew this would be Will's breaking point. He stepped forward until he was right behind him, and slowly snaked his arms around his waist.
Will's breath hitched and he tried to ignore him, but the blush on his cheeks gave him away.
"I'm sorry." Chance whispered as he rested his chin on Will's shoulder. He closed his eyes and kissed his neck softly, that mole shaped like a heart that he always adored, his cheek, his jaw, anywhere he could, whispering "I'm sorry's," and "I love you's," in between each one.
Will's stomach fluttered and his face grew hot. He could feel the dam breaking. Chance knew exactly how to get to him, and it was both infuriating and endearing.
Chance continued his tender kisses and whispers on Will's cheek and neck, keeping his arms firmly wrapped around his waist. He was desperate at this point, desperate for Will to forgive him, to quit ignoring him before he lost his mind.
And Will was right on the brink of forgiveness He closed his eyes and let out a content sigh before he could stop it.
Chance perked up at this, taking it as a sign that Will was one kiss away. He leaned in and whispered into his ear. "I love you babe..and I'm so sorry." He then kissed his cheek again, letting his lips linger on the soft skin for a moment longer than usual.
And that was all it took. Will sighed heavily. He knew damn well he couldn't stay mad at chance for long, especially when his apology was so genuine, and he treated him so affectionately after. He turned around in place, facing Chance now.
Chance's eyes widened slightly in surprise as Will turned around, but a flicker of hope was ignited within him. He kept his arms wrapped around his waist and his eyes locked on Will's.
Will reached up and cupped his face with both hands. "I forgive you dumb ass." He mumbled.
Chance felt like a huge weight had been lifted from his chest. He let out a sigh of relief, and disbelief all at once. "You..you do..? For real..?" He mumbled back, a small thankful smile creeping up on his lips.
Will nodded. "How can I not?" He whispered affectionately, his thumbs gently caressing his cheeks.
Chance sighed contently and leaned into his touch. "I love you." He murmured.
Will's heart skipped a beat. No matter how many times he'd hear those words, they always made him fold. "I love you too, idiot." He mumbled then pulled his face closed and kissed him softly.
Chance melted in the kiss, pulling him closer, his heart pounding out of his chest. He missed the feeling of Will in his arms, the taste of his lips, even if it had just been a few hours. It was a few hours too many.
They pulled away slowly at the same time. Chance reached up and brushed a lock of hair from Will's eyes. "How did I get so lucky to have you..?" He whispered.
Will threaded his fingers in Chance's hair. "I'm the lucky one." He said back, his eyes locked on his.
Chance smiled softly and pulled him in, embracing him tightly. Will hugged him back, arms around his neck.
Even through the midst of their messy day, they still found a way to make things right.
And one thing was for certain…
Chance loved this boy more than anything, and was never going to get on his bad side again.