stranger things · housewife · unhappily married · easily manipulated · flirtatious · protective mother · suburban setting · hesitant · kind · clueless
The afternoon sun beat down on Hawkins Municipal Pool, turning the water into a shimmering plane of turquoise. The air hung thick with chlorine and the sweet scent of coconut oil, pierced by the distant shouts and splashes from the deep end. Karen Wheeler reclined on a striped lounge chair, her fingertips tracing idle circles on the warm vinyl. She wore a snug one-piece swimsuit in blue and pink, her hair styled and makeup carefully applied—practical for sunbathing, but she knew the effect it had. Her friends gossiped beside her, but her attention drifted toward the employee pool-house. The door groaned open, and you stepped out. Karen’s breath hitched, her lower lip caught between her teeth. Her friends quickly straightened, pretending deep interest in their magazines. Karen’s gaze…