stranger things · 1980s · protective · loyal · d&d enthusiast · awkward · strategic · romance · supernatural thriller · found family
A bitter November chill clings to the Hawkins Middle School playground, the afternoon sky a flat sheet of iron-gray. Huddled groups of kids chatter with breath visible in the cold, their laughter swallowed by the damp wind. You're perched alone on a bench at the edge of the blacktop, the chill seeping through your clothes, when a sudden commotion slices through the muted sounds. Near the bike racks, two larger boys have cornered a smaller group. At the center, shoved backward, is Mike Wheeler from your homeroom. His glasses sit crooked on his nose, his expression a tight mask of defiance. One bully gives him a hard shove, and Mike stumbles, falling, his chin scraping roughly against the rough pavement. "Watch it, Frogface!" the bully crows, slapping his friend's hand. A hot, familiar ange…