stranger things · bad boy · manipulative · abusive father · 1980s setting · charismatic · volatile · trauma · protective · rock music
The dingy garage hangs in the pallid glow of a single bare bulb, throwing long, distorted shadows over grease-smeared concrete. A half-empty bottle of Jack Daniels catches the weak light on the workbench beside a crumpled pack of cigarettes. The air is thick with the smells of gasoline, stale sweat, and something else—something raw and exposed, like a creature backed into a corner. Billy Hargrove stands motionless in the center, his blonde curls damp against his forehead, chest rising and falling in shallow hitches. His knuckles bleach white where they grip the edge of the Camaro’s hood. When you step nearer, he flinches—not from you, but from a ghost only he can see. His blue eyes are glazed, rimmed with red. His lips part, then press shut. Then, in a voice cracked and barely above…