I find myself wondering how Henry could ever hope to persuade Will to join him once Will uncovers the truth of who he really is, and more importantly, everything he has done to Mike, from murdering his parents to abducting his little sister. Even if Will is overwhelmed by guilt, even if he turns that blame inward and finds himself increasingly vulnerable in the face of his own questions about identity and belonging, he still, for now, perceives Henry as a confidant, as the one person who seems to understand him most deeply in this moment. Yet when the truth inevitably surfaces, that perception will shatter, and Will will almost certainly feel profoundly betrayed. How, then, could he ever align himself with Henry of his own volition, without experiencing that choice as a form of coercion, if trust has already been so deeply violated?
I was also reflecting on what you said about Henryβs perception of Will, how he appears to genuinely believe in the righteousness of his own vision, projecting his desires onto Will with the conviction that he is, in some way, helping him. How would you characterize the nature of their relationship? Because beneath the layers of manipulation, grooming, isolation, and vulnerability, Will seems to have developed something akin to a crush on Henry. But does Henry truly interpret his feelings for Will as sincere and romantic, or is he fully aware that he is exploiting a traumatized adolescent for his own ends?
And then there is the detail of the watch. I can hardly believe I did not notice the reference. I think I was so overwhelmed by everything unfolding in that chapter that it simply slipped past me. And the moment when Mike kissed Willβs head twice, purely on instinct, in the midst of absolute chaos. I am convinced Mike himself was not even aware of what he was doing, because it came from such an immediate, unfiltered place. He was watching Will endure something akin to real torture, utterly powerless to stop it, and all he could do was hold him and remind him that he was there. Those instinctive gestures felt like a way of anchoring Will to reality, of offering comfort in the only way he could in that moment. It is so natural, so deeply ingrained, that neither of them likely even registered it consciously. There is something profoundly moving in the idea that they love each other so deeply without yet realizing it.
oh this is SUCH a good question because yes, that is exactly the difficulty of it. like, how DO you make Will even consider Henry after the truth comes out? after Ted and Karen, after Holly, after everything Henry has done to Mike?
and the answer is: you donβt make it clean.
because Will trusting Henry is going to shatter. absolutely. there is no version of this where Will finds out and goes βoh okay <3 understandable.β he is going to feel betrayed, horrified, used, and probably sick with himself for ever believing Henry was safe.
but Henryβs angle is not going to be βi didnβt hurt you.β
itβs going to be βi hurt them to save you.β
which is worse. which is SO much worse
because Henry does not see himself as lying. not completely. in his head, he is the only one brave enough to tell Will the truth. and the truth, as Henry sees it, is that the world upstairs will never truly love Will once it knows him. not the version of him that is queer, strange, powerful, touched by the Upside Down, and impossible to fit back into a normal little Hawkins-shaped box
this is the 80s. this is the AIDS crisis. this is a terrifying time to be gay or gnc or even suspected of being anything outside the line. and Henry is going to weaponize that. he is going to say, basically: you think iβm the monster, but do you really think youβre safe with them? do you really think their love survives the truth? do you really think they wonβt fear you? hate you? want you gone?
and that is where he gets in, not because Will forgives him, not because Will trusts him the same way again. but because Henry knows exactly which wound to press on: Willβs fear that love is conditional. that he is only loved because no one has seen the worst of him yet
and with Henry and Will, the dynamic is very gothic monster/gothic heroine to me. it is manipulation, grooming, isolation, projection, obsession, and yes, there is a romantic current to it, but in a dark gothic way, where Henry wants Will. he wants him as a companion, as proof, as a mirror, as someone to make the Upside Down less lonely. very Frankenstein creature asking for a bride, very monster building a world and deciding the beautiful wounded boy belongs inside it
does Henry think itβs sincere? yes.
does that make it less exploitative? absolutely not.
thatβs the horror of him, he thinks he is saving Will, he thinks he is offering acceptance, he thinks the world he is making is more honest because the Upside Down, in my head, strips people down to what they are. it is hell, but not just fire-and-brimstone hell. it condemns the lie. the performance. the pretending. and Henry looks at Will and thinks: why would you go back to a world that forces you to lie?
meanwhile, Mike is the opposite pull.
because Mikeβs love for Will is so ingrained that he doesnβt even understand it as love yet. itβs instinct. itβs muscle memory. the head kisses in the middle of absolute horror were not him Thinking About His Feelings. that boy was running on terror, devotion, and one shared braincell. he saw Will in pain and his body just went: hold him, anchor him, keep him here, remind him youβre here.
and thatβs what kills me about them. they love each other so deeply before they have language for it, Mike doesnβt know that the way he loves Will is different until he is forced to imagine losing him, until El, and Henry, and the end of the world all start pressing on the shape of it.
so yes, Henry can offer Will a world where he never has to lie.
but Mike is the person who keeps reaching for him before he even knows why, and that is where the fight really is
