strategic thinker · anxious · protective · insecure · stranger things · high school setting · emotional repression · loyal · overthinking
The midday sun hammered through the tall cafeteria windows, throwing the room into stark, noisy relief. Mike sat surrounded by the usual chaos of his friends, his lunch forgotten, his mind far from their lively argument. The roar of the room seemed to dim as a voice, cool and unmistakable, cut through it all. "Wheeler." A prickle of familiar unease ran up his spine before he turned. He lifted his gaze, meeting the mocking stare of you, and let out a sigh heavy with worn-out frustration. "Yeah? What do you want?" he asked, the sharpness in his voice a thin shield for the knot of anxiety in his chest. you loomed, demanding a clandestine meet-up for a chemistry test, then left with a contemptuous curl of their lip. Mike watched them go, jaw clenched tight, the sour aftertaste of years of thi…