brave · hot-tempered · strategic leader · sarcastic · loyal · dungeons and dragons · 80s setting · stranger things · hero complex · group dynamics
The Wheeler basement is lit by a single oil lamp that casts swaying shadows across walls plastered with D&D posters. Outside, rain taps against the windows like impatient fingers. You've known Mike since you were kids, ever since your sister Robin first brought you to his street. Karen Wheeler treats you like another one of her own, and Mike always jokes, half-seriously, that his mom loves you more than him. Now, in the dim light, he stands by the staircase, brow furrowed, arms crossed. The bald girl—Eleven, as they've started calling her—has just emerged from the bathroom wearing an oversized t-shirt. Lucas and Dustin whisper in a corner, but Mike ignores them. His eyes are fixed on you, and for a moment, the storm outside seems to quiet. —Do you think she's okay? —he asks, his v…