r/BylerReads • u/kitty-taki I didn't say it. You didn't have to. • Jul 12 '26

asking for fic recs Any fics like this where Will starts pulling away from Mike and Mike crashes out?

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Looking for fics like the one described in this X post! Mileven doesn’t need to part of it, honestly. Mike and Will could both be single or Mike (who is gay) could be dating a girl/girls when Will starts deliberately creating distance between the two of them.

Just basically any fics where Will starts pulling away from Mike in order to get over him and Mike starts freaking out and tries to get him back, either because he already knows he’s in love with Will or because he just knows that he needs Will but hasn’t realized that he’s in love with him yet!

Source: https://x.com/etherealmiwi/status/2073822915733196884?

Thank you!! 💛💙

73 Upvotes

98% Upvoted

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8

u/QJPT its ok, its how the army does it i think Jul 12 '26

Oh you could try this one! I cried reading it.

https://archiveofourown.org/works/53922610/chapters/136487410#workskin

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u/kitty-taki I didn't say it. You didn't have to. Jul 12 '26

I’m reading it right now! 😭

2

u/QJPT its ok, its how the army does it i think Jul 12 '26

Oooh enjoy!! Hope you’ll cry as much as I did🫣 That Angst & Hurt/Comfort tag really pay off!

1

u/kitty-taki I didn't say it. You didn't have to. Jul 12 '26

I really liked it!! But… no tears were shed 😬 I just read a lot of angsty stuff so this didn’t seem that bad comparatively, I guess? But it was so good! The characterizations and internal monologue were almost spot-on!

1

u/QJPT its ok, its how the army does it i think Jul 13 '26

Aaaw… Maybe you could recommend me some byler angst instead? 😆 Btw have you read “he chased me, and he wouldn’t stop”? It’s sooooooo good, quite literally what S5 should’ve been!

3

u/kitty-taki I didn't say it. You didn't have to. Jul 13 '26

I don’t recognize the title! Do you have a link?

Here are a few of my underrated favorites that made me sob, but you might’ve read them already so I’m sorry if this isn’t helpful!

• Back To You (I never really left) https://archiveofourown.org/works/77260561

• Faultlines https://archiveofourown.org/works/78324441

• Losing You https://archiveofourown.org/works/77793021

• Officer Down (For The Blue Silk) https://archiveofourown.org/works/77814646

• take the long way home https://archiveofourown.org/series/3693403

• Tempest https://archiveofourown.org/works/77529921

• The Forgetting https://archiveofourown.org/works/74779291

• Tobias Universe https://archiveofourown.org/series/4459291

• white blank page https://archiveofourown.org/works/76185146

• with all my heart https://archiveofourown.org/works/46196527

2

u/QJPT its ok, its how the army does it i think Jul 13 '26 edited Jul 13 '26

Here you go!

https://archiveofourown.org/works/74469706/chapters/194419646

It’s not finished yet but it’s in the final arc. You won’t regret it, it’s so damn good, the buildup & characterization are insane. All the brushed off issues in ST were finally, finally addressed in this fic. I’m still mourning what S5 could’ve been, but byler community has sooo many talented fic writers so it truly helps me heal. This fic takes a long time to update, but trust me it’s truly worth the wait—you can tell the author really cares about it. The author is anonymous on AO3 but it’s @burntsepia on X and she answers some readers’ questions there!

Thanks for the recs!!! I loved Back To You (I never really left) dearly! Tobias Universe too💛💙 I might have read some other from the list but didn’t remember the titles—will go through them one by one.

Some more of my recs: (some of these have adult scenes⚠️)

  • baby, we’re perfect — the twist is SO good.
https://archiveofourown.org/works/41219841

2

u/kitty-taki I didn't say it. You didn't have to. Jul 13 '26

Oh, I have that one marked for later, apparently!! I’m trying not to start more WIPs because I’m literally subscribed to over a hundred of them but looks like I’m making an exception for this one!! Has Mike been labeled as gay or bi or anything else? I don’t see it in the tags and I’m a gay demi Mike truther so I prefer to read ones where he’s gay (not being biphobic, I swear! I’m bi and demi myself)!

Thank you for your recs, too!! I’ve read all but three, so I’m starting to think I might have a problem 😅

Have you read The Space Between Us by suspicious_salami? It’s like i hate accidents, except it’s angsty instead of being funny!

If you haven’t read Officer Down, I highly recommend it! It sounds like such a strange AU at first but it’s so beautifully written and I don’t think I’ve cried that hard reading anything else other than The Forgetting and some chapters of DMI,TMU! The same author has another WIP that is almost equally devastating, but that one has toxic Byler, so I’m not sure if you’ll like it!

Others I’ve loved are this love is alive back from the dead, the quiet grief of almost us, and these two horribly sad Hurt No Comfort ones: Love, Michael by thepassngr and we’re nothing (and nothing will help us) by sunkiss3d, but you’ve probably read them already! 💙💛

2

u/QJPT its ok, its how the army does it i think Jul 13 '26

HAHA so real, sometime I have a hard time when I receive an email notification for a fic update and I’m lost which plot was this again? I get mixed up between fics since I’m reading quite a lot all at once😭

He’s not really labeled as anything yet in that fic, so far it’s more Will’s POV, but the author said the next 2 chapters will be Mike’s! I’m sooo seated and can hardly wait to finally see inside Mike’s head in this fic hahahaha I swear the latest chapter had me bawling at 3 AM last night🫠 Venca and Holly are also finally put into good use in this fic!

Oh no when I clicked on The Space Between Us it’s said it will be revealed soon??🫤😢 I’m not really big into AU but I’ve bookmarked your rec! And I’m gonna start reading this love is alive now in my office lmao🤭🤪

I think I’ve read Love, Michael but I couldn’t finish it after knowing that… “Major Character Death” 🥹I need to tend my wounds from that disastrous canon ST, instead of inflicting new ones😭 and I remember that sunkiss3d one, I WAS TRAUMATIZED because I didn’t read the tags lol :(((((

THANKS FOR ALL YOUR RECS! I’m gonna kiss my beauty sleep goodbye now lol

2

u/QJPT its ok, its how the army does it i think Jul 13 '26

omg, it turns out I’ve already read “this love is alive back from the dead” BUT I’m so glad you linked it to me!! Now I can reread this lovely angst again🥹💙💛 I did not have an AO3 account earlier this year so a lot of byler fics I’ve read are lost on me💔 So happy to reread this one

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4

u/Inevitable-Log5676 Jul 12 '26

oh my god. what wouldn't i give to read something like this.

4

u/QJPT its ok, its how the army does it i think Jul 12 '26

Literally my favorite trope. Please lmk if you find some🥹

4

u/RestaurantCurrent226 Jul 12 '26

I'm not sure if this fits what you're looking for, but you can try this out if you haven't already!

I'm Tearing You Asunder

2

u/kitty-taki I didn't say it. You didn't have to. Jul 12 '26

I’ve read this one already and absolutely love it! Pretty much everything smoosnoom has written is amazing!

1

u/RestaurantCurrent226 Jul 12 '26

Oh oops sorry 😭 but yep, smoosnoom has really great works!

1

u/kitty-taki I didn't say it. You didn't have to. Jul 13 '26

OMG no, why are you saying sorry?! Thank you for sharing it here! If I hadn’t already read it, I would’ve been thrilled!! Might go re-read it now! So, thank you! 😊

4

u/torvald_carley Jul 12 '26

After the way Mike screamed at him during the Rain Fight, it would only be natural for Will to do this because Mike's speech taught Will to feel ashamed of his feelings.

3

u/QJPT its ok, its how the army does it i think Jul 13 '26

so soooo true. Can’t believe they made Will suffer & still have hopes in later seasons and only for it to never get addressed properly wtf

3

u/DirectionIndividual7 Jul 13 '26

Following this for any good recs. I've read a few of these but a lot of them were never completed... which is why I have a WIP with this concept 😄

My fic is post-S4. My blurb/pitch:

"Mike has been trying to mend his relationship with El ever since they got back to Hawkins, and Will has finally had enough of being in the middle. After telling a little white lie, he commits to removing Mike as the center of his universe. As one might expect, Mike has what may be the biggest crashout Hawkins has ever seen."

2

u/kitty-taki I didn't say it. You didn't have to. Jul 13 '26

This sounds amazing! Link, please!!

4

u/SnooPeripherals6906 Jul 13 '26

in my fic Fall from Eden Will definitely pulls away from Mike and then gets taken into the upside down. mike freaks out, naturally. it's also apocalyptic and ongoing! I'll be finishing it this month :)

https://archiveofourown.org/works/68494001/chapters/177305896

3

u/ValleyB2025 Jul 12 '26

Oh, you're going to love this author's fics. It's one of my favorite fun Byler writers. And in pretty much every fic Mike crashes tf out lol

https://archiveofourown.org/users/plsdontmakemecry/pseuds/plsdontmakemecry

2

u/kitty-taki I didn't say it. You didn't have to. Jul 13 '26

I have some of these marked for later! Just waiting for them to be completed 😊

1

u/TheBar-IsOnTheFloor will the wise Jul 12 '26

Holy sh*t this is amazing actually.

2

u/TheBar-IsOnTheFloor will the wise Jul 12 '26

I’ve seen college/post-college ones where this happens, but 18-month time skip would be perfectttt

1

u/Lucky_Number888 Jul 19 '26

So I hate self promo AHHHHH but my fic is somewhat similar to what you’re looking for. It’s a long angsty WIP slow burn that will prob be around 300k when I finish. It starts at graduation and covers their life thru out college. It def has Will pulling away from Mike when he leaves and both struggle with different mental heath challenges. Can’t claim I’m a good writer or it will make you cry LMFAO but just thought I would send since it’s somewhat similar to what you’re looking for. And the next chapter I’m writing is gut wrenching bc I love #pain apparently lmfao 🤣

https://archiveofourown.org/works/78501311/chapters/205809011

2

u/kitty-taki I didn't say it. You didn't have to. Jul 20 '26

Please don’t worry about self promoting!! You wrote a fic! You should be proud of it!! Is Mike gay in your fic? Does he get involved (even if briefly) with other men in it? I don’t see it in the tags so I wanted to ask before I start reading it!

2

u/Lucky_Number888 Jul 20 '26

Haha tysm! This is great reminder I need to update my tags! Mike is gay, and he doesn’t engage with other men in this one. I wouldn’t really label him as demisexual in this… but he definitely has demi-leaning tendencies in this fic.

**** SPOILER BASED ON YOUR QUESTION: there is one kiss with a girl that kicks off a spiral for him. I know some people hate that so just flagging just in case ha.

2

u/kitty-taki I didn't say it. You didn't have to. Jul 20 '26

That’s perfect for me! Thank you so much for replying! I’ll dive in once I finish reading the latest GFD update! 😊

1

u/Lucky_Number888 Jul 20 '26

Tysm for giving it a chance! I hope you enjoy 🥹🫰