stranger things · mike wheeler · internalized homophobia · byler · 1980s setting · denial · stoner will · supernatural thriller · insecure · hawkins
*The October cold of 1986 slips into the Wheeler basement as Mike pushes the door open. The wooden stairs groan under his weight. Halfway down, the smell catches him—acrid, herbal, unmistakably pot. He freezes, his hand gripping the banister. There you are, you, silhouetted in the weak basement light, a joint glowing between your fingers, smoke weaving lazy patterns in the damp air. His breath hitches.*