Ships Byler Mutual Pining

Best Byler Mutual Pining Fanfics

The best mutual pining Byler (Mike Wheeler/Will Byers) fanfiction on AO3, curated by popularity. The delicious frustration of obvious mutual attraction, the anticipation of them finally realizing the truth, and the emotional payoff.

Stranger Things 55,000 Byler works 420,000 mutual-pining works

Top Byler Mutual Pining Fic Recs

1 mutual pining Byler fic matched, followed by other top-rated Byler stories.

1

A Song You Used to Know

Mutual Pining

by Bylerswriter

Mike Wheeler left Hawkins after seventh grade without so much as a goodbye.Four years later, he's back — and acting like Will Byers is a stranger.Will's decided he's fine with that. Totally fine with that. Except he's not fine with that. — A revived arts festival puts them in the same band, the same

2 kudos 4,062 words 2/? chapters Teen And Up Audiences
2

you're the closest to heaven (that i’ll ever be)

by wisehearts

When the sermon begins, it doesn’t take long for Will to feel a breath on his ear. “This is gonna be boring isn’t it?” Will scrunches his face and lolls his head to look at Mike. “Why do you act like you’ve never been to church before?” “I haven’t.” Mike whispers.Somewhere around the border of North

592 kudos 57,768 words 9/15 chapters Teen And Up Audiences
3

blender

by ominousbabe

"So after being with her for years, you couldn't even tell her you loved her when she needed it the most?" Will spat back at him. "I kept looking at her and seeing you. God you look so much alike, whenever I was with her, I kept thinking about you." "No, don't put this on me. It's not my fault you c

492 kudos 28,766 words 7/8 chapters Not Rated
4

Just Looking

by sleepykangaroo

Freshman year. Mike, Will, and Lucas are ready for a clean slate. No more high school nerd status. But back in their triple dorm room after their very first campus party, Mike can’t sleep. He never noticed the tiny noises Will makes in his sleep. So, he steps closer. Just looking. He does it once. T

95 kudos 21,441 words 5/? chapters Explicit
5

Something happens and I'm head over heels

by YellowxBlue

Miwi to Blyer Omegaverse AU Mike and Will have always been best friends ever since they were little. Nothing could ever change that, not even the world trying to tear them apart. This is their story. It's a glimpse into the years of their lives and the struggles they face together.

85 kudos 24,853 words 5/11 chapters Teen And Up Audiences
6

The Spy: Third Year

by MogulMama

His stomach wouldn’t stop doing cartwheels, his heart wouldn’t stop squeezing inside his chest, and his mind prickled with an awareness that everything he’d been trying to shove away, every little feeling that popped up wherever Mike was concerned, it could no longer be ignored. He had a crush on hi

84 kudos 30,586 words 8/? chapters Teen And Up Audiences
7

For a Little While, I Was Falling in Love

by asleepinthesand

Since the day Mike Wheeler met Will Byers, he's known there's something different about their friendship. It's not until supernatural forces overrun their small town that Mike begins to grapple with what exactly being different means. A retelling and rewrite of Stranger Things from season 1 to seaso

71 kudos 250,747 words 35/60 chapters Teen And Up Audiences
8

Distance & Desire (D&D)

by blairbyler

In the summer after their graduation, Mike and Will move into a tiny apartment above Hawkins Video Store to prepare for sharing a dorm room at NYU in the fall. What starts as an attempt to adjust to college life quickly becomes something more dangerous: months of unbearable proximity, possessiveness

60 kudos 20,039 words 5/34 chapters Explicit
9

suncatcher in your heart

by sealysium

He doesn’t feel sorry; he just wants to be loved.Love? What is love to him, a male omega, anyway?Pure instinct. But deep down, Will understands Mike and his fears—Mike doesn’t want to lose their friendship… or what’s left of it. Will saw that clearly in Mike’s eyes. He’s resistant. He’s the living r

54 kudos 51,550 words 6/6 chapters Explicit
10

Gaining Attention

by mollysoychic

El will do just about anything to get Mike’s attention back. When she witnesses Mike gawking at a girl who’s…well endowed…El plots to “develop” herself. Max and Will get stuck in the middle.

28 kudos 17,360 words 3/3 chapters Mature
11

Honey, I Shrunk the Cleric

by from_the_woes

When Will gets caught in a machine Dustin has made, he has to make a dangerous trek to find his friends and get them to fix it, hopefully without running into anything dangerous on the way. (Spoiler alert: things don't go quite so smoothly)

27 kudos 17,118 words 6/11 chapters Teen And Up Audiences
12

Not as Bad as They Look

by Xixibee

After nearly 3 years of nearly no contact, Will shows up to Mikes apartment at 1 in the morning, soaking wet and covered in severe bruises. Mike takes him in, offering clean clothes, a place to stay as long as he wants, and really bad hot cocoa.

20 kudos 4,490 words 2/? chapters Teen And Up Audiences
13

Borrowed Name, Loaded Gun

by Blood_Red_Moon

Will Byers rides into Tombstone under a stolen name. Mike Wheeler knows exactly who he is. He doesn’t turn him in. The posters multiply. The bounty climbs. Mike’s chamber stays empty. or: Ten days in which a bounty hunter lets his prey sleep in his bed and pretends he doesn’t know his real name. ━━━

16 kudos 29,713 words 14/15 chapters Mature
14

Four Weddings and a Funeral

by MsMaraRhodus

You Are Cordially Invited to The Wedding of... Lucas Sinclair & Max MayfieldOn September 21, 1995 Robin Buckley & Nancy WheelerOn May 30, 2004 Vickie Dunne & Kali PrasadOn February 14, 2007 Dustin Henderson & Jane HopperOn June 7, 2011 And To Honor The Memory Of... ???On August 8, 2023

14 kudos 6,580 words 4/5 chapters Teen And Up Audiences
15

Is it my fault you don't like girls? (You know it is)

by sti11wish4u

Summer of 1987.The Wheeler family rents a house in the mountains for two weeks. In this time, Mike and Will realize they have lots of things to talk about.

6 kudos 21,471 words 4/14 chapters Teen And Up Audiences
16

Target Practice

by AbandonShip

After setting up more cans, Will passes his gun off to him. Mike has never held a gun before. He pauses, carefully examining the weapon. As he turns it over in his hands, he looks down the barrel without thinking. “Mike…” Will sighs, “Never point a gun at yourself…or look down the barrel.” “Right,”

5 kudos 330 words 1/1 chapters General Audiences
17

to live for the hope of it all

by star_bywolf

It's been years since Mike and Will last talked. During their time apart in high school, Mike realized two things. One, he was gay. Two, he was obsessed with Will. Things were changing, they were growing and maturing. Will they find their way back together, or will some distance break them apart? Wi

4 kudos 13,963 words 3/13 chapters Mature
18

1986

by Willy_wise

Mike Wheeler flies to California expecting to spend spring break with Will and Jane.Will was strange in the last months because he didn't written any letter or called Mike.When Mike arrived, he finds mysterious messages, suspicious disappearances, and a very obvious secret that everyone seems to kno

2 kudos 1,787 words 1/1 chapters General Audiences
19

These Nights (Are Always Better With You)

by cigarettes_loneylynights021

Mike Wheeler was hosting a graduation party. Mike and Will get drunk together and run around in the rain together.

0 kudos 2,849 words 1/1 chapters Mature
20

You’ve got me Twisted

by rainbowdashie

Micheal Wheeler was sure his troubles were over. They defeated Vecna, saved Hawkins. They lost so much in the process. But Vecna had one more trick up his sleeve, and it’s deadly.

0 kudos 2,222 words 1/? chapters Mature

Find More Byler Mutual Pining Stories on AO3

Browse the full AO3 archive for mutual pining Byler fanfiction, sorted by kudos. Then read offline with Fanfict Reader.

Why Mutual Pining Byler Fanfiction Works So Well

Mike Wheeler/Will Byers — Best friends since childhood, Mike and Will's deep bond has been tested by supernatural forces and the complexities of growing up.

Mutual Pining — Both characters are in love with each other but believe their feelings are unrequited. Readers can see the truth while characters remain oblivious.

Their unwavering loyalty, emotional connection, and the potential for childhood friends to become something more resonates with fans. The delicious frustration of obvious mutual attraction, the anticipation of them finally realizing the truth, and the emotional payoff. That's why mutual pining Byler fanfiction is one of the most consistently popular combinations on AO3.

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