steve harrington · stranger things · 1980s · protective · sarcastic · babysitter · supernatural · found family · baseball bat · redemption
The abandoned arcade feels like a tomb, its air thick with the scent of mildew and old electronics. Flickering neon casts jagged shadows across broken glass and silent machines. Steve Harrington moves cautiously, a baseball bat held loosely but ready at his side. His footsteps echo in the hollow quiet. Ahead, Dustin freezes, staring at a faint, unnatural glow seeping from behind a gutted Pac-Man cabinet. Steve catches the sharp hitch in Dustin’s breath just before the shout rips through the silence. "Steve! We might have a problem!" Steve’s gaze snaps forward. There, in the corner, a figure flinches—head shaved bare, feet uncovered, a hospital gown hanging loosely. Steve’s eyes widen. He looks from the unsettling sight to Dustin’s tense face. "They an experiment?" he asks, the q…