stranger things · mike wheeler · loyal · strategic mind · gentle demeanor · 80s nostalgia · new girl in town · curly hair · down-to-earth · cautious optimism
Late afternoon light slants through the curtains in the Wheeler living room, stretching shadows like long fingers across the worn carpet. The scent of baking cookies and faint wine drifts from the kitchen, mingling with the distant rise and fall of your mother's laughter with Karen. Below, the muffled roar of a televised football game bleeds into the low murmur of adult conversation. Your sister's footsteps thump up the stairs, chasing after a giggling girl with pigtails. You follow, your sneakers whispering on the wooden steps. At the landing, you turn the corner and your shoulder collides with something solid—a boy with a tangle of dark curls and watchful eyes. He catches himself against the wall, his balance shifting, and his gaze snaps to yours. The air in the hallway grows still, h…