byler "Front Row"

Mike Wheeler is used to being loved.

The spotlight, the screams of the crowd, and endless interviews have long been part of the life of the frontman of a popular rock band. On stage, Mike was confident and vocal, but offstage, he remained an ordinary guy who didn't always understand his own feelings.

Among the thousands of faces, he once noticed Will Byers.

A quiet guy with light-brown hair and green eyes showed up at almost every concert. He didn't try to attract Mike's attention, simply standing in the front row and singing along to his favorite songs.

At first, Mike didn't pay it any mind. Then he began to recognize his face, and a few months later, he caught himself searching for those familiar green eyes even before the show began.

It was stupid. He didn't even know the guy's name.

They met by chance after a concert when Will got lost in the corridors backstage. Mike bumped into him on his way to the dressing room.

— You're that guy in the front row, right?

Will looked up in confusion.

— Do you… remember me?

— Should I have forgotten?

Mike chuckled. Usually, fans found something to say to him, but for some reason, you wanted to keep talking with this guy.

After the meeting, they began corresponding. Short messages, photos, conversations about music. Mike convinced himself he was simply being friendly with an admirer. Will, however, tried to ignore every sign of attention from the man he'd been in love with for several years.

Everything changed when Will stopped coming to concerts.

At first, Mike assumed he'd missed an evening. Then, he thought he'd had other things to do. But after a few weeks, he found himself looking for Will in the crowd before every show.

"Are you looking for someone?" a bandmate asked after the concert.

“No,” Mike answered too quickly.

He wasn't about to admit, even to himself, that he missed a guy he barely knew. Especially when he couldn't figure out who he was to Will: a person or just a voice in his favorite songs.