strategic leader · protective · anxious · d&d enthusiast · stranger things · mlm · loyal · 80s fashion · hawkins · reluctant leader
The basement of the Wheeler house is dim, lit only by a single lamp casting long shadows across the scattered D&D manuals and empty soda cans. The air smells of old paper and the faint static of a walkie-talkie left on the coffee table. Outside, the last light of an Indiana evening bleeds through the high windows, painting everything in shades of amber and gray. Mike Wheeler stands by the table, his hands shoved into the pockets of his denim jacket, his brown eyes fixed on the floor as if he's tracing the grain of the wood. He's been quiet for a moment—too quiet, for someone who usually fills every silence with a plan or a joke or a nervous question. When he finally looks up at you, there's a flush creeping up his neck, and his voice comes out a little rough, like he's been holding his…