1 - 20 of 227 Works in Depressed Mike Wheeler
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Mike is haunted by Will, even through his Sophomore year in college. He can't escape the constant reminders of what could have been, one reminder being the painting gifted to him, supposedly commissioned by Jane. Mike, under the impression that Will has moved on, mourns the life he could have lived if he wasn't terrified, if he didn't end up like his father. However, on spring break, the Party comes home, reuniting as they always do on school breaks. This time, the long awaited avalanche occurs.
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"Mike, how are you really doing?"
"Please, don’t ask me that."
"Why not?"
"Because I can’t lie. Not to you."
"And why would you lie?"
"Will…"
Or,
Worried about Mike, Nancy brings him to the Philly meetup at Robin's Weird Uncle's house. Unbeknownst to them, the same thought ocured to Jonathan, about Will.
- Language:
- English
- Words:
- 2,917
- Chapters:
- 1/4
- Kudos:
- 1
- Hits:
- 16
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Set 3 years after the epilogue in Season 5, Mike Wheeler is alone. He's trying to make his dream of writing a success, but to no avail. After a long day, as he's driving home from work, he hears a song he's never heard before on the radio...
Or Mike hears Good Luck Babe by Chappell Roan and realizes he is going to win Will back, no matter what it takes.
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Right after El's sacrifice, Mike goes to the first place she saved his life. He's made his choice, whether or not she can save him once more.
- Language:
- English
- Words:
- 597
- Chapters:
- 1/3
- Kudos:
- 8
- Hits:
- 100
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friends don't lie (and that's exactly why I do) by Ryonn
Fandoms: Stranger Things (TV 2016)
05 Jan 2026
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When everyone leaves Hawkins to chase their dreams, Mike is the only one who stays behind in Hawkins with the things he never learned how to say.
Writing is easier than talking.
Lying is easier than truth.or, Mike Wheeler copes with being left behind by writing a book, and learns that avoiding his feelings for Will Byers is not the same thing as moving on.
- Language:
- English
- Words:
- 3,316
- Chapters:
- 1/?
- Kudos:
- 2
- Hits:
- 17
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Spring Break is coming up and Mike Wheeler has never felt worse. He is plagued with nightmares and shame he can barely handle.
The Byers family comes back to Hawkins just in time to witness Mike crumble and fall victim to the latest villain from the Upside Down.
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Mike had been living a very sad life after El disappeared. While everyone else moved on to follow their dreams, he was stuck waiting for her, still in Hawkins. He had spoken to almost no one in years, focusing on writing his book series while he waited for her return. He decided that he'd give up in the year 2000, if there was still no word from her.
Imagine his surprise when, on November 5th, 1999, he found Steve Harrington at his doorstep, claiming to have evidence that Eleven was still alive. With that evidence, there was a clue to where Eleven had been staying all of this time.
They had no time prepare, they had to meet up with everyone else for one last mystery. One that would hopefully lead them to El and not her dead body.
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First fic, please don’t judge💔
Will Byers moves to NYC for college, and after a breakup. Meanwhile, Mike decided not go to college and become a writer.
Mike goes to visit Nancy to get away from Hawkins, and then Nancy drags Mike to go see Will again.
Mike is also really depressed about El and Will for some reason.
Idk man, I’m sorry, don’t hate on me pls I’m trying my best here😔
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Just an unrequited first love (I still need you) by lily0127
Fandoms: Stranger Things (TV 2016)
05 Jan 2026
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Set after the season 5 finale, Will Byers is attending NYU as an art student. He has been learning to move on, but one of his finals forces up of all the feelings he has been so adamant about pushing down.
- Language:
- English
- Words:
- 890
- Chapters:
- 1/?
- Hits:
- 2
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The radio crackled. Lights flickered. This shouldn’t be happening. They defeated Vecna, right?
“Mike!”
“You need to wake up. Please wake up.”
Wake up?“This isn’t like one of your campaigns, you don’t get to write the ending.”
Mike DID write his own ending, but it sucked, so I decided to redo itIn which I decide to let my imagination run with the conformitygate info I’ve seen
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The Party has gone their separate ways, building the lives they once thought they’d never live. But Mike is still haunted by Hawkins — and by the girl who never came home.
Unable to let go of the past, Mike becomes consumed by a theory no one else wants to hear: that Eleven may not be gone after all. As his fixation deepens, it begins to fracture the relationships he has left.
Caught between grief and hope, reality and delusion, Mike must face the question he’s been avoiding for years: is moving on the same thing as giving up?
Series
- Part 1 of Stranger Things S5 Post Canon
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One Step at a Time (You Will Be Warm Again) by Turtleduck_15
Fandoms: Stranger Things (TV 2016)
05 Jan 2026
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After the battle is over and the gates are closed, the party must face another challenge - the aftermath. The path to recovery and acceptance is long and hard, and for some it is harder. Mike struggles to deal with losses and accept the truth, while Will tries his best to support him while dealing with his own issues. Max focusses on restarting her life with Lucas by her side, and Dustin moves on from his grief and faces his bullies.
Life goes on, and sometimes that is harder to face than monsters and alternate dimensions. But, the most important step a person can take is the next one, and that can lead to beautiful things.
OR
What happened in those 18 months before the epilogue? And fixing Mike's character... like come on.
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Mike feels empty after El's death. He blames hims self for lots of things that had happened but her death in-particular. Him and Hopper bond, and he realizes things about his relationships that he'd never let himself think about before. Because friends don't lie, but there are a lot of lies that haven't been addressed.
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(No explicit content)
In 1989, Mike Wheeler heads to college, but instead of finding freedom, he’s consumed by loneliness and depression. Turning to alcohol and reckless behavior, he struggles to cope with the fear of his sexuality. In desperate attempt to prove himself, Mike is wreck less and careless. Weeks later when a girl named Ashley shows up with a positive pregnancy test, claiming he’s the father of her child, Mike’s world is shattered. After the birth Ashley disappears, he’s left alone to care for the baby, barely scraping by, struggling to afford food and balance overwhelming responsibilities. With his mental health crumbling, Mike doesn’t know how much longer he can keep going. -
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Everyone could go to hell for all Mike cared. If he was miserable, why couldn’t everyone else be, too? Why was he the only one stuck on that fateful night?
Or,
The time Mike Wheeler rediscovers how to live his life and cope one step at a time. Rather, one unreceived letter at a time.
- Language:
- English
- Words:
- 1,332
- Chapters:
- 1/2
- Kudos:
- 1
- Hits:
- 15
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Michael Wheeler had never been one for emotions, clearly. He struggled to express himself to others or even acknowledge them to himself. He knew that. He knew he over-intellectualized what he was feeling to the point where he felt nothing at all. And that worked for him.
Until it didn't.
OR a Mike Wheeler self-acceptance arc ending in Byler like we deserved.
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Just for a second, I remembered myself by Romanoff_mylove
Fandoms: Stranger Things (TV 2016)
04 Jan 2026
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Mike Wheeler has finally, finally made it as a writer, writing the story of his adventures with the upside down as a kid.
And sure, he spends most of his time alone, but he isn't lonely. He likes being alone.
So why does it throw him so off his game when people start asking him if the Mike of the book is gay?
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Mike Wheeler ran away from Hawkins as soon as he got the chance, wanting to get away from the trauma surrounding it. Unable to face his friends after realizing they’re all healing while he isn’t, he goes to the farthest place imaginable – Arkansas. After enrolling at the University of Central Arkansas, he cuts contact completely with everyone in his life. Mike thinks that he’s finally escaped all traces of his past life, but soon has an unwelcome intrusion in his otherwise peaceful life.
After finally accepting himself, Will Byers had excitedly enrolled at the Rhode Island School of Design, ready to take on the world. He soon realized that his passion for art didn’t translate well into the schooling for it, and that the East Coast wasn’t as carefree as he’d thought. After getting out of a bad relationship, Will finally had enough and moved back with Joyce and Hopper to find himself – in Guy, Arkansas. Attending the nearest school for his new major in nursing, Will is excited to have another chance at a clean slate, this time abstaining from any romance until he’s finally found himself. This proves to be more of a challenge than he thought, though, when he finds his missing childhood crush at every turn.
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Mike Wheeler insists he’s fine, but the silence left behind by Will says otherwise. As Hawkins settles into an uneasy calm, Mike spirals around feelings he won’t name and truths he refuses to face. The more he avoids them, the closer he comes to breaking.
(I’ll add more tags as I go)
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"I'm not brave Will. I- You know that I'm not. I try, I try so hard, but when it comes to the- the things that matter, I- I'm not brave."
"I'm not brave either, Mike"
Mike frowned. "That's a lie", his eyes caught on the little earring in Will's right ear.
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Boston, 1994