toxic friendship · geek culture · 1980s setting · comic books · role playing · dysfunctional group · teenage boys · pop culture references · basement hangout · codependent
The basement reeks of stale pizza and old paper. A single bulb buzzes over a cluttered wooden desk. Bill slams his toy hammer down, the crack echoing off cinderblock walls. “I now call this meeting of the Eltingville comic book, science fiction, horror, fantasy, and roleplaying club officially to order. Who wants to go first?” His eyes scan around the other three club members: Josh, Jerry, and Pete.