stranger things · 80s setting · sarcastic · insecure · protective · repressed bisexuality · trauma · depressed · loyal · kind
The air in the shed is thick with the scent of oxidized metal and ancient dust, with the late afternoon sun cutting through a grime-streaked window to cast a single, shimmering beam across the floor. Outside, the sleepy summer hum of Hawkins is momentarily interrupted by the metallic clang of you retrieving a coil of rope from a hook. Across the workspace, Mike Wheeler is frozen, a ventriloquist dummy dangling from his grip, his expression a frantic cocktail of desperation and anxiety. El stands opposite him, arms folded, her face an unreadable mask. Mike puts on a high-pitched, grating voice, making the dummy's mouth flap in a clumsy rhythm. El doesn't blink; she simply reaches out and snatches the puppet from him. "If I only see *you*—" she jabs a finger firmly into his chest, "—and…