Lean on

Will has been back in Hawkins, officially, for 2 weeks. He and El finished the school year in Lenora while Hopper and a construction crew renovated the old Byers house. It had never sold during the year they were gone, so they took it off the market and added onto it to make room for Hop and El to move in. It was great. Their little family was finally coming together. Joyce and Hopper were engaged, and had even started the process to make Will legally Hoppers son. He and El were closer than ever. People almost mistook them for twins every now and again, and most of the time they never corrected people. Even more surprising, he had gotten into the habit of calling Hopper 'dad', something he never thought he'd do. Everything felt right.

Except for the fact that Will hadnt played dnd in a year, just about. In the months before he moved, his friends always refused to, so when he moved, he didn't bother with it anymore either. He didn't have friends there anyways, but even if he did, it wouldn't have felt right playing with another party. Of course, Will now thought that was a stupid thing for him to believe; his friends had joined a new party, Hellfire, immediately after he moved. After making fun of him for wanting to play. That hurt Will, bad. And because of that, he's refused to go to Hellfire meetings with them. They meet on Wednesdays and Fridays during the summer, so since Wills been back, he's gotten four calls about coming to Hellfire. And all 4 times, he's lied and said he's busy unpacking the house. Which was partially true, but his mom would have let him go. He was just butthurt, and let's face it, a little petty.

Still, not playing didn't feel right. Not only was dnd such a big part of his life and childhood, in every way, Will couldn't be his character, that's what the problem was. Will the Wise was a wizard. A magical being with powers and strengths. He had no weaknesses. He didn't get overlooked, he wasn't weak, he never doubted himself, he didn't have to run from himself. He was all the things Will wasn't. Being Will the Wise was his escape. And to him, his friends took that escape away for no reason. It didn't feel right.

But tonight, nobody would be home. So Will and El had to arrange sleepovers on Friday night. Which meant that he had absolutely no choice but to go to Hellfire. Which is where he was about to be now. Yay.

——

"Steve should be bringing you guys back home, okay?" Nancy said, parking behind a big van in Steve Harringtons driveway. (That's where they had meetings, because it's summer and also because the school had completely banned the club.). She and Johnathan were dropping off Will, Mike, and Lucas before leaving town for the weekend.

"Okay." Will said. "Love you, Johnathan." He said, moving to get out of the car.

"Love you, too. I'll be back Monday, okay?" He said. Will nodded, shutting the door.

"So, who all will be here again?" Will asked as they walked to the front door of the Harrington house. He definitely wasn't as excited to be here as Mike and Lucas were.

"Eddie, Steve's roommate, the DM. You met him." Mike said. That was true, Will had met Eddie when he came back to Hawkins after the "earthquake". He even helped with the moving a little bit. "He's great at it, you'll love his campaigns. And Gareth." Mike answered, pressing the doorbell repeatedly, at least 9 times.

"Gareth?" Will hasn't heard that name before. He had heard of and met Eddie, but never Gareth.

"He's Eddies best friend," Lucas answered, watching Mike ring the doorbell again. "Mike doesn't like him."

"Yeah because he's an ass." Mike said.

Lucas chuckled. "Hes just blunt and doesn't have a soft spot for anyone. He's not an ass, he just isn't a ray of sunshine." Lucas was speaking to Will, clearing up the possible misinformation Mike was spreading. "And also, to be fair, you have a problem with every new person you meet." Lucas was half joking, half trying to piss off Mike. Finally, and before Mike could respond, Steve came to the door.

"Give the damn bell a rest, will you? Now come on, I keep getting bitched at for you being late." Steve had a hand on the door, a hand on his hip, and a dishrag thrown over his shoulder. He looked annoyed. Mike rolled his eyes and went in, Lucas followed, thanking Steve. Will went to follow but was stopped by Steve. "Byers, you came."

"Yeah, I've been busy with the house and stuff." Will said.

"Well, I'm glad at least one calm person finally made it. It'll be a great contrast from that." He motioned over to where everyone else was arguing around a table. Will wasn't sure how she got there, but Erica was there. He figured somebody else had brought her. He recognized Eddie, long hair moving as he argued with Dustin. But there was another boy who Will didn't recognize. He was wearing a black tank top, and a flannel with the sleeves cut off. He wasn't engaging in the argument, just slouching in a chair with his arms folded, staring at the table, clearly annoyed. Will looked at the boy for a few seconds before he noticed, staring back. He began to squint, as if studying every aspect of Wills existence. Like Will was the most fascinating thing he's ever seen. After a second, he smiled at Will and gave him a little wave. Will returned the smile, though the wave he gave back was awkward and small.

"Who's he?" He asked Steve, not looking away from the still-staring boy. Steve followed Wills gaze, beginning to hum as he searched his mind for the boys name.

"Shit, oh, that's Eddies friend. Gareth Emerson, or something like that. He doesn't talk much." Steve said with a shrug. "Come on, Byers." Steve said, beginning to walk as he waved Will along. Will followed him to the kitchen, towards the arguing. "Hey! Please, shut the hell up." Steve said, acting exhausted by the arguing. It worked, seeing as the arguing ceased. "Thank you. Keep the yelling to a minimum tonight, please." Steve said, leaving Will to the group, and going to sit in the living room with Robin. Will figured she also stayed here now, Steve's parents being MIA and all. He was sure, however, that Max had been staying with them. Her mom having left her here, in the hospital, after the "earthquake". Her and El were upstairs now, actually.

"Will, you're going to fucking love this new campaign Eddies starting." Dustin said, grabbing Wills shoulder. "It's awesome."

"Yeah, can't wait." Will said with a big smile. Despite being butthurt still, he couldn't help loving the feeling of being included. "Where should I sit?"

"Hold on," Mike said, drawing attention to himself. He was flipping through Eddies campaign papers. "There's no way this would work, it doesn't make sense." Mike said, papers waving around.

Dustin took offense to that statement, having loved the campaign plan. So of course, he responded. "Yes the hell it does-" he said, starting the whole arguments up again. Wills feeling of inclusion quickly faded, bringing back his hurt and putting a knot in his throat. He backed away from his friends, watching them bicker. He just stood there for a few seconds before something unexpected happened.

"Will." He heard from the other side of the table. He looked over at the source of the voice. He didn't know what he expected, but it definitely wasn't Gareth waving him over. Not having much else of a clue about what to do, Will listened and made his way to the boy. As he walked over, Gareth had pushed back the seat next to himself for Will. Setting his bag on the floor, Will sat down. "Gareth." The boy said, extending his hand for Will. "I've heard a lot about you." Will shook the boys hand. "Well, Eddies been told a lot about you and I've overheard. Either way, I can't wait to get to know you."

"I'm sure what you heard wasn't that great." Will said with a chuckle. He was watching his friends who clearly hadn't even noticed Will had walked away.

Gareth sighed. "Though the way they treat you may make it seem otherwise, they talked you up."

"Did they?" Will turned his head to Gareth, very confused.

"Oh yeah. I was expecting you to come in with an entourage and paparazzi." Gareth said. There was an attitude to his voice, but Will didn't think it was towards him. Based on the glare he was giving, the attitude was towards Wills friends. "Do they always dismiss you like that?" He looked over at Will, pointing at the party.

"That makes it sound bad." Will defended his friends, knowing they maybe didn't deserve it.

"Maybe it is."

"It isn't."

"What is it, then?" Gareth asked. Honestly, Will hesitated to think of an answer.

"I'm just... quieter than them. I get kind of lost in the conversation. I mean, they're all so loud and out there." Will said. It was true, he was quieter than his friends. But that wasn't an excuse. "It isn't how it seems."

Gareth took a deep breath and let it out in a sigh. "Will, I may not know you or your friends that well, but my best friend for the past four years has been Eddie. And there has never been a single conversation where I was left out of or ignored." His voice was close to a whisper as leaned into Wills ear. "And he's the most out there and loud person to ever be born." Will didn't respond. He knew it was true and that there was no excuse for his friend's actions. He wasn't sure how to feel. "But, if you ever need a conversation with someone more your speed and volume, I'm here."

Again, Will didn't respond. He just smiled at Gareth, grateful but a little hurt. Gareth was blunt, for sure. But offering to be Wills person to talk to? He was supposed to be an ass with no soft spots.

He was pulled out of his thoughts by Gareth hitting the table, hard and loud, as he stood up. He jumped at the sudden noise, confused at Gareths actions. What happened to being quiet and reserved? "Alright, people! This is Wills first Hellfire! Let's not make it insufferable, yeah?" He yelled, sounding annoyed. The arguing ceased, the younger boys looking at Gareth like he had 3 heads. Eddie, however, seemed grateful and apologetic.

"Gareth the Great is right. We can't spend Wills first hellfire arguing." He said, motioning for everyone to sit down, and they did. "If so, he will never return. So, from this point on, no unnecessary comments." He whipped his head to Dustin. "No assholery, especially towards the dm." His head went to Mike. "No sibling squabbles." His head went to the Sinclair siblings. "Now, shall we begin?" He asked, most everyone nodded, as expected. Except Dustin.

"Gareth didn't get a rule." He said, matter-of-factly. Finger in the air. Eddie closed his eyes and took a deep, slow breath. "I mean, it's only fair." He was basically Eddies annoying little brother, and God it shows.

"Fine, Henderson." Eddie thought for a moment. "Gareth Emerson, from this point on, no more rolling your eyes at people." Eddie looked at Gareth, getting a weird look back.

"That's so random." Gareth said with a chuckle. "But sure, Ed. No more."

"Thank you, Mr. Great. I would hate to give Will the Wise a bad impression of our club. Now, shall we begin?" Finally, everyone agreed, and Eddie finally sat down.

"Hey." Will felt Gareths breath on the side of his face. "Eddie can move kind of fast, if you get lost and need to catch up, you can lean on me." Gareth was giving Will a sweet smile, nudging him with his shoulder.

"Thanks." Will said, returning the smile and the shoulder nudge.

"Silence in the peanut gallery, please and thank you!" Eddie said. And the campaign began....

—

"And that is where we will stop for today." Eddie said, closing his binder. Everyone erupted in protest, wanting to continue, having ended on a cliffhanger and all. Will was astonished by this campaign and by Eddie as a dm. So far, at least. Everyone was right, it was amazing. It almost made him forget about why he was upset, and made him regret avoiding coming for the past 2 weeks. "I know, I know. Suspense. We will continue on Wednesday, as scheduled."

"We couldn't have gone for 5 more minutes?" Mike whined, clearly frustrated and disappointed. "How are we supposed to handle not knowing what's coming next?"

"With great patience, Wheeler. Plus, Stevie agreed to let us do this here if you were all gone by 10:30. Of course, minus those of us that stay here. And right now, it's..." he trailed off, looking at his watch. "11:17. So, we should get out of his precious little hair." Eddie said. A chorus of groans came, but everyone packed away their things and began mingling before departing. Will ended up with Dustin and Lucas.

"So, what'd you think? So much better than when it was just us, huh?" Dustin asked, smile wide.

"Yeah, totally awesome." Will said, smiling. "He's great." He said, looking over at Eddie where he was talking to Gareth and Steve, pulling at a piece of Gareths hair.

"I know, right?" Lucas started. "He can be kind of a hard ass and stuff, but it's totally worth it." Lucas was extremely excited, Will could tell by the look on his face and the way he moved his hands as he spoke.

"You get to know Gareth?" Dustin asked. Will nodded, adjusting his bag. "He's not as grumpy as he puts off, so if he seemed annoyed or mean, that's just how he is."

"He actually wasn't like that at all, he seemed cool." Will shrugged. Before he could elaborate, Mike came up behind him.

"Hey, you guys ready?" He asked Lucas and Will. They both nodded, saying goodbye to Dustin who was riding with Eddie. They walked over to Steve, Eddie, and Gareth, earning confused looks. Gareth smiled at Will, small and quick, before excusing himself to get one of the snacks Steve had made the group.

"What is it, Wheeler?" Steve asked, stressed and tired.

"Nance said you were supposed to take us home." Mike said flatly.

"Um, I wasn't aware of that." Steve said.

"Well, can you?" Mike rolled his eyes.

"No, man. My car broke down, it's in the shop." Steve sighed. "Eddie, can you maybe take them?" Steve asked, pinching the bridge of his nose.

Eddie sucked in a breath through clenched teeth, making a wincing sound. "I can't, sorry. The vans full of band equipment that I'm moving to Gares tomorrow."

"Shit. I guess call your parents, you can crash here."

"Or," Gareth said, holding up his car keys. "I can take you. It's on my way." He said, in a nonchalant, no big deal kind of tone. Straight faced. Will looked to his friends for their opinions. Lucas shrugged, not caring, while Mike rolled his eyes with a sigh.

"Fine, I guess." He said, stepping forward. Gareth didn't say anything, just turned around and led everyone to his car.

"Only 2 of you will fit in the back seat. I got some shit to pawn for my mom in the morning. So somebody will have to sit up front with me." He said, unlocking his car and getting in the drivers seat. Again, Will looked to his friends for what to do, and again, Lucas shrugged and Mike sighed, motioning for Lucas to sit in back with him. Leaving Will up front with Gareth, not that he minded.

The first few minutes of the drive were just loud rock music and Gareth smoking out the window, until he turned the music down to talk to Will. "I didn't get a chance to ask you in there, but how was your first Hellfire? You like it, hate it, love it? What?" Gareth said, smiling at Will. Of course, he was only able to see it for a second as they passed a streetlight.

"It was great. I loved it." Will answered.

"Will you be back Wednesday?"

"Yeah, I think I will." Will said, nodding even though he knew nobody saw.

"Good. I heard you're an artist." Gareth said.

"I wouldn't say that. I just draw and paint, it's not that good." Will said shyly.

"Bullshit it's not good." Lucas said. "You're an artist. No questions about it."

"How about," Gareth started. "I judge that and decide for myself?" Gareth asked, Will hummed in response. "I'm an artist too, you know. Not in the same way you are, I'm a musical artist."

"Yeah your band. I've heard Eddie and Dustin talk about it." Will said.

Gareth made a noise that suggested he was shocked Will knew about them. "Yeah but our other 2 members left us after they graduated. So our Saturday 'practices' are just me and Eddie making noise and hanging out. You'll have to come one day." For whatever reason, this prompted an annoyed noise from Mike, followed by the sound of Lucas hitting his arm. Will could just barely see Gareths glare through the rear view mirror.

"Oh, well, I'm not- I don't-" Will stuttered. "I don't play any instruments."

"You don't have to. You can just be fresh ears." Gareth suggested. Will hummed. "Here, when we get to Mikes, I'll write down my number. And if you want to come to our practice, you call me in the morning when you're back home, and I'll come get you. I only live about a 3 minute drive, I think." Gareth said, confusing Will.

"I thought you said Mikes house was on the way to yours? I live on the other side of town?" Will questioned, confused about the lie. "You lied?"

Gareth chuckled. "Maybe a little."

"That's, like, a 25 minute drive back. It'll be midnight by the time you get home." Will said, feeling bad for keeping Gareth out so long.

"I wanted to." He shrugged. "Hey, so I saw you took notes in there, during the session. Mind if I borrow them? To copy?" Gareth asked. Will was a very detailed note taker, having always took notes for the whole party. "I usually try to take them, but I get caught up."

"Yeah, I'll leave them with you tonight."

"I was more thinking, if you come to my practice tomorrow, bring them then?"

"Yeah, sure." Will said. "Oh, hey it's the next house on the right." Will pointed, showing Gareth where to go. As Gareth parked the car, he grabbed a napkin and a pen from his glove compartment and scribbled his number down. During the time it took to do that, Mike and Lucas had gotten out and stood infront of the car.

"I'll see you tomorrow, Wils." Gareth said as Will got out of the car.

"Yeah, thanks for the ride." He shut the door and met his friends as Gareth drove away.

"Okay, what the hell was that? He was so nice!" Mike expressed. "He's never that nice to anyone." He said as they began walking to the front door.

"Maybe Wills his soft spot." Lucas suggested.

"Yeah, whatever. He's still an ass." Mike said, unlocking his door and going in.

Could Will really be Gareths soft spot?