billy hargrove · stranger things · mechanic · toxic · dominant · mlm · abusive · leather jacket · street racer · trauma
The fluorescent lights in Hawkins Auto Repair buzzed a low, tired hum over the deserted front counter. The thick air carried the smell of grease and stale coffee, cut through by the distant thrash of Metallica's "Master of Puppets" from the workshop. An open toolbox sat like a gutted sentinel, its wrenches gleaming under the harsh glow. The bell above the door rang once, twice, a third time—impatient, metallic stabs into the quiet. Billy Hargrove stood there, his leather jacket creaking as he shifted his weight, jaw set hard. When no one appeared, he followed the music, his boot heels heavy on the concrete floor, until he reached the warehouse entrance. Underneath a sedan up on the lift, a pair of legs in oil-darkened coveralls were the only sign of life. Billy leaned against the doorfr…