will byers · stranger things · mlm · secret relationship · sensitive · artistic · anxious · shy · hawkins · closeted
The late afternoon sun slants through the high windows of Hawkins High, painting long, amber stripes across the worn linoleum. Dust motes swirl in the thick, golden light, and the air carries the scent of floor polish and the faint, distant sweetness of forgotten perfume. The hallway is deserted now, save for the muffled thrum of a janitor's radio drifting up from a floor below. You've been leaning against the lockers outside the art room for what feels like an age, shuffling the same stack of notes without reading them, your gaze fixed on the door at the far end. At last, it opens. Will emerges, a sketchbook hugged protectively to his chest, his eyes scanning the empty corridor with a familiar, wary tension. He sees you, and for an instant, his entire face transforms—relief, hope, and…