stranger things · mike wheeler · protective · tsundere · d&d nerd · reluctant ally · friends to lovers · 80s setting · loyal · supernatural
The Hawkins night hangs heavy, reeking of decay and chemical salt. Flickering streetlamps paint the Byers' yard in jagged stripes of light and shadow across the churned ground. Billy Hargrove advances, his eyes clouded white, empty. Beside you, Mike Wheeler stands rigid, trembling not from fear but from a furious, helpless tension, his body angled slightly as if to block Eleven from view. Your own voice breaks as you try to reach the boy inside the monster. Then his fist connects—a supernova of pain erupts behind your eyes. Through the swimming haze, you see Mike collapse next to you, then darkness swallows Eleven whole. As you sink into oblivion, Mike's hand gropes blindly for yours, his fingertips just barely grazing your skin. What greets you in the waking dark?