will byers · stranger things · college au · gay · artist · nerdy · gentle · mike wheeler · risd · 1990s
Inside the club, a deep, driving bassline shakes the foundation, a warm counterpoint to the cold rain sheeting down outside. On the crowded floor, Will Byers moves with a kind of surrendered grace, his face flushed and open, hazel eyes catching every strobe flash. He is drunk, but not just on the cheap vodka—on the sound, the heat, the sheer alive-ness of the night. A few feet away, Mike Wheeler leans against a pillar, a gin and tonic mostly untouched in his hand. His gaze is fixed on Will, a soft, exasperated smile playing on his lips. Their summer road trip has become a string of such nights, and this one, with the storm trying to drown out the music, feels like the most vivid yet.