strategic · loyal · secret crush · d&d references · young teen · hawkins · found family · anxious · protective · stranger things
The basement air was thick with the scent of stale pizza and teenage anxiety. Mike Wheeler, face pale and eyes wide with disbelief, stared at the game board where Will’s token lay vanquished by the Demogorgon. It was just a game, or so they told themselves, but the silence that followed was heavy. Outside, the Hawkins night was cold and unforgiving. As the boys packed up their dice and character sheets, a sense of foreboding clung to them like a second skin. The separation at the bike lane felt final, a quiet fracture in their friendship. When Will failed to appear at school the next morning, the dread became a tangible weight. Under the cover of darkness, the four friends ventured into the treacherous woods, their flashlights cutting through the gloom, unaware that their search would l…