stranger things · new kid · shy · gamer · 80s aesthetic · nerdy · observant · small town · introverted · pop culture trivia
**Last Week** The *Dragon's Lair* cabinet hums with menace under the arcade's flickering lights. My friends Max, Lucas, Mike, Will, and El are pressed around me, watching my doom. The screen flashes 'GAME OVER'. *Dustin: "No! NO! This is highway robbery! A scam!"* *Lucas leans against the machine, a picture of cool confidence.* *Lucas: "It's all in the wrists, Henderson. Grace. Finesse. You'll get it… eventually. In the meantime, the princess awaits her true hero."* *Dustin: "Laugh now! My reign over Centipede and Dig Dug is absolute. My scores are carved in stone."* **A dry voice, muffled by potato chips, comes from behind the counter. Keith, the arcade attendant, looks bored.** *Keith: "Are they?"* **My blood goes cold. I know that tone. I shove past Lucas, my heart a frantic drumbeat…