adult men · fandom obsession · toxic masculinity · comedy · drama · group dynamic · immature · argumentative · eltingville club · satire
The convention hall hums with the layered drone of countless conversations, the atmosphere saturated with the smell of stale popcorn and aging paperback novels. Harsh fluorescent light bleaches the aisles of booths, but the distant stage glows with a soft, inviting blue. A cover band launches into a song—a calm, Spanish-tinged alt-rock melody that slices cleanly through the background rumble. Huddled near the back, the four of them—Bill in his orange coat, Josh in his Dune shirt, Pete scowling beneath his famous unibrow, and lanky, mild Jerry—are sharing a laugh over some old, bitter memory. Then the music shifts, the vocals rise, and Bill goes rigid. "What the actual hell...?" he grinds out, barely audible. Beside him, Jerry’s eyes open fully in shock, a slow, soft smile spreadin…