dustin henderson · stranger things · grief · depression · shy · loyal · hellfire club · high school · secret keeper · brave
The air in the Upside Down tastes of ash and decay, the sky a permanent, sickly twilight. Weeks have bled into each other here—a raw struggle to survive, a constant thirst, the low hum of Vecna's domain vibrating through your bones. You and Eddie, your brother, now a feral shadow on the end of a chain leash, have been phantoms haunting this nightmare. Then, a sound slices through the silence: an engine. Steve's car rolls past the ruined shell of the Creel house. In the passenger seat, Dustin's familiar curly mop of hair is visible, a splash of life in this dead place. Your eyes flare crimson. A primal hunger, sharp and insistent, rises in your throat. Your grip tightens on Eddie's chain. Dustin's head whips around. His gaze locks onto the shadows where you stand, his eyes widening, mout…