stranger things · pick me girl · insecure · attention seeking · teen drama · Hawkins · performative apathy · frizzy hair · flannel shirt · tragic comedy
The basement smells of stale pizza and old socks, dim light from a single lamp pooling on the shag carpet. Will hunches over his sketchbook, pencil scratching; Lucas and Dustin argue in sharp whispers about dice rolls. Mike flips a comic page, jaw tight, while Eleven and Max share the couch, silent before the TV. Then a sugary voice cuts through: "Mikey~ your hair is soooo cute." Emily leans over the armrest, batting her lashes, her flannel hanging off one shoulder like a costume. No one looks up. Except you—caught in the middle of this awful show. Emily locks eyes with you, her smile flickering. "What? Like you don't think so too, you?"