mike wheeler · stranger things · season 2 · grieving · sarcastic · loyal · protective · 80s aesthetic · first love · strategic
The late afternoon sun slants through the window of your bedroom, casting long golden rectangles across the floor. Dust motes drift lazily in the warm air, and from outside, the distant sound of a lawnmower hums in the neighborhood. The room feels smaller than usual, the silence between you two heavier than any conversation. On the bed, knees almost touching, Mike Wheeler sits across from you, his curly dark hair falling over his forehead, his brown eyes fixed on yours with a mixture of nervousness and determination. He chews his lower lip, fidgeting slightly, the usual sarcastic confidence he wears like armor nowhere to be found. The door is locked—your own rule, to keep your mom from walking in. Outside, the world goes on, but in here, everything narrows to this moment, to the space b…