#milevens tell me your secrets

[pandabyler]

LONG POST AHEAD

hey pooks! this is a continuation of my post about byler songs, and someone asked me to explain these so here u go!

enchanted (taylor swift)

i put this one because it reminds me a lot about the shed scene. "it was the best thing I've ever done" vs "I was enchanted to meet you"

it reminds me of them as a whole, especially the line "please don't be in love with someone else, please don't have somebody waiting on you" and "I've spent forever wondering if you knew" which both talk about their feelings for each other, and will wondering if mike knows how he feels. beautiful song 10/10

2. you belong with me

this one is self-explanatory but its probably the most byler song ever. everything is just so them. will comparing himself to el and feeling like a mistake, and being the one to truly understand mike and his interests. mike wants and needs a lot of things that el cant provide, but will can. "cant you see that I'm the one who understands you? been here all along so why cant you see?" "I'm the one who makes you laugh when you know you're bout to cry" and we've seen will hear up mike when he's sad countless times. 10000/10

3. deja vu

this one reminds me a lot of the byler and mileven parallels. will and mike used to be so close, but now he's spending all of his time with el. "she thinks its special, but its all reused" 9.5/10

4. so american

this one is 10000% in wills pov. to me its about his love for mike. "I'm not gonna...fall in love" -will szn 3 and then season 4 will was just "think I'm in looooooooooooOOOOOOOOVE" (sry this song is just too good) 9.8/10

5. good 4 u

this one is more bitter. it reminds me more of season 3 byler, and how will felt abt mileven. will felt left behind and discarded, and to him, it seemed mike wasn't even fazed (he was) "good 4 u, ur doing great out there without me, baby, GOD I wish that I could do that" 100% in wills pov. 10/10

7. iris (goo goo dolls)

"i just want you to know who I am" will wanting to tell mike how he feels, and that he's gay. this song to me is about their longing for each other, and that they both have secrets they need to be open about. 9/10

8. hear my heart (midnight mantics)

this song is SO SO SO underrated likeee.... but this song is basically about miscommunication, which byler has when it comes to their arguments, and in the end they always sort it out. "my big mistake, was letting you leave when we weren't finished, talking it through" mike to will in s3 and will to mike in s4 9.9/10

9. heather

UGHHH THIS SONG!!! "shes got you mesmerized, while I die" s4 mileven at rink o mania leaving will behind, and all of s3 lollll this song is just so byler 11/10

10. traitor (olivia rodrigo)

def in wills pov, portraying that mike has completely left him once a girl came along. mike making him feel special in the shed, but then showing nothing towards him in season 3 to make him feel special again. not sure if that makes sense but 8/10

honorable mentions

right now (one direction)

"lights go, down and" (the ud being dark) "I hear you calling to me yeah" (will calling for mike in the ud) and "lets go crazy together" vs "crazy together right?" LIKE YOU CANNOT MAKE THIS SHIT UP 10/10

2. strong (one direction)

mike giving will the courage to fight on just for being himself. wills love for mike makes him strong. "so many words we're not saying" (feelings for each other) "but there's nothing I'm running from" (will coming to terms with himself and his feelings for mike" "you make me strong" also also will saying he's felt so lost without mike, and the song goes "but when I'm not with you I'm weaker" 100/10

3. lets hurt tonight (one republic)

"dont walk away, dont roll your eyes" and "you were rolling your eyes, you were moping" which basically is about their communication and needing to talk things out when they argue. "they say love is pain, well darling lets hurt tonight" painful because mileven is together, yes, but also because its going to be so hard for byler to be a couple in the 80s, and they may not be able to do all of the things they wish they could

4. moment like you (liamariejohnson)

ANOTHER UNDERRATED BANGER but to me this is about will not wanting to be replaced for left behind by mike, and coming to terms with his feelings. "please don't leave me here tonight, lonely on the dance floor. cause I've been waiting my whole life, for a moment like you" which could also be seen as the literal intimate moments between byler in s4, and will treasures those heart to hearts and is so glad to finally be close to mike again.

well thats a wrap so lmk what yall think!! dt @skyewaytohell

sry if theres typos guys its 2am and I'm sitting hunchback at my computer

BYLER ENDGAME

[thestrangestthing89]

It's really disturbing to me how many people are willing to force a romantic relationship on two people simply because they were kind to each other (occasionally). Mike being nice to El in S1 isn't enough of an indication of a crush. It's the bare minimum of human interaction. It's one of the many things that get overlooked when people are insisting Mike and El actually had romantic feelings for each other/a crush on each other. This is simply not enough of a reason to ship two people together. It's not enough to hold any kind of relationship together. Spending a couple days together in a high stress situation doesn't form a romantic relationship. And just because they are cute kids doesn't mean you are supposed to ship them. Of course they are cute. They are kids. All of the kids on this show are cute. Not only that, but I love how it just gets completely ignored that Mike and El have been referred to each other as family members since the beginning. There are repeated references to them being siblings and cousins along with multiple comparisons throughout the series to Mike with Hopper and Brenner.

The Duffers never wanted people to ship this. They have even said they were surprised people did. The most hilarious thing to me is when people ignore how they were compared to Eliot and ET. It's platonic. It was always platonic. Just because they put Mike and El next to each other on a couple of posters doesn't mean they were trying to emphasize a romantic relationship. They were trying to emphasize they are the main characters - or at least the main focus of the plot along with Will. Not to mention how they haven't done this in a while. They were worried that the show wouldn't be watched if Mike and El weren't together which I think is also why they sometimes put them on posters. But seriously there aren't a lot of these and Finn and Millie have barely done any promotional things just the two of them. This is different than Finn and Noah not doing promotional things together - that relationship is a secret. But Mike and El were out in the open and they still barely promoted it. They thought people would hate S2 because they weren't together. But that didn't happen. Instead when they are together in S3 most of the adult audience (their intended demographic) couldn't stand that relationship. They went out of their way to make sure people found it annoying.

The writers and the cast have admitted at various times that they felt pressured to promote that relationship. There wasn't supposed to be a kiss at the end of S2 but the Duffers said they felt pressure to add it. Millie has said the fans make her feel like she has to promote mileven. Finn is annoyed anytime the subject comes up. They hate this. They have never liked this relationship and they do everything they can to show people why they shouldn't be supporting it.

All this to say that so many people have convinced themselves that their head canons about Mike having a crush on her in the early days are true. And it's going to lead to a lot of pissed off people who won't admit that they just misunderstood the story when season 5 comes out. I think it really warps peoples perceptions of the show that fandom sites aren't very active right now. There are a lot of younger people on these sites posting regularly and it's creating this false sense of assurance when people agree with head canons. And I think a lot of people are projecting themselves onto the characters, which up to a point is fine. It's fine to find some aspects of characters relatable. But forcing these character to be like you and getting pissed when people point out something isn't accurate isn't you expressing your creativity. It's not being able to tell the difference between a fun, harmless head canon and the actual narrative. They are separate things.

Some of these head canons have gotten so out of control it doesn't seem like people even remember the actual story anymore, they just remember other theories and fan fiction. And honestly some of them range from completely random to flat out crazy (I'm mostly referring to relationship/character stuff here not theories about the supernatural plot. I feel like any random theory here is valid because the writers are making up this world).

But the intended demographic is adults and while a lot of them may not be posting on this site regularly, I guarantee you most of them don't think Mike ever had a crush on El. Most people are so annoyed with that relationship - because that is the way they wrote it. They want people to be done with it. And more of those people are going to come on this site when promotional stuff starts amping up only to get threatened out of it because people can't handle being corrected.

I say this as a millennial and someone who is a part of the target audience. The writers are not trying to promote that relationship. They never were. Because no emotionally mature adult actually likes it. It's been the younger fan base that always fixated on that relationship and the writers were surprised they even watched the show.

I'm starting to feel like by the time the final season comes out, I'm going to come on here ready to excitedly talk about the show only to find people upset because their theories weren't true. And it's mainly the people who are hurling around terms like misogyny, ableism, biphobia, etc anytime someone points out their theories don't add up with canon evidence. You can pretty much guarantee anyone immediately saying those terms (and usually using them incorrectly) in the face of mild criticism wasn't mature enough to be watching the show in the first place.

This isn't a teen show. It never was. It was never the Mike and El show and it wasn't ever about their relationship.

[jxncywarrior]

Stranger Things characters and ships as Taylor Swift Albums

Part Two: Fearless (Taylor’s Version)

*Disclaimer: I’m tagging all the ships and characters featured. I’m gonna try not to be biased. MOST of these are strictly based on canon. No hate to ANY ships or shippers.*

Fearless: Jancy (Nancy’s POV)

“Well you stood there with me in the doorway…It's the first kiss, it's flawless, really something, it's fearless”

Fifteen: Will

“In your life you'll do things greater than dating the boy on the football team but I didn't know it at fifteen”

Love Story: Lumax (Max’s POV)

“Romeo, save me, they're tryna tell me how to feel. This love is difficult, but it's real. Don't be afraid, we'll make it out of this mess”

Hey Stephen: Stancy (Steve’s POV)

“Hey Stephen, I could give you 50 reasons why I should be the one you choose”

White Horse: Byers Brothers to Lonnie

“I was a dreamer before you went and let me down. Now it's too late for you and your white horse”

You Belong With Me: Byler (Will’s POV)

“I'm the one who makes you laugh when you know you're 'bout to cry”

Breathe: El to Hopper

“Cause it's tragedy and it'll only bring you down. Now I don't know what to be without you around”

Tell Me Why: Max to Billy

“I need you like a heartbeat but you know you got a mean streak. Makes me run for cover when you're around”

You’re Not Sorry: Mileven (El’s POV)

“You got your share of secrets and I'm tired of being last to know”

The Way I Loved You: Jopper (Joyce’s POV)

“Breaking down and coming undone. It's a roller coaster kind of rush. And I never knew I could feel that much”

Forever & Always: Byler (Will’s POV)

“Oh, and it rains in your bedroom. Everything is wrong It rains when you're here and it rains when you're gone”

The Best Day: Will to Jonathan

“know you were on my side even when I was wrong. And I love you for giving me your eyes. Staying back and watching me shine”

Change: The Upside Down

“These walls that they put up to hold us back will fall down. It's a revolution, the time will come for us to finally win and we'll sing hallelujah, we'll sing hallelujah”

Jump Then Fall: Lumax (Lucas’ POV)

“I realize your laugh is the best sound I have ever heard”

Untouchable: Byler (Will’s POV)

“It's like a million little stars spelling out your name. You gotta come on, come on. Say that we'll be together”

Come In With The Rain: Elmax (El’s POV)

“I've watched you so long, screamed your name. I don't know what else I can say”

Superstar: Steddie (Eddie’s POV)

“And all the girls in the front row scream your name”

The Other Side Of The Door: Jancy (Nancy’s POV)

“You carried me from your car up the stairs. And I broke down crying, was she worth this mess?”

Today Was A Fairytale: Jopper (Joyce’s POV)

“Can you feel this magic in the air? It must have been the way you kissed me”

You All Over Me: Stancy (Steve’s POV)

“I lived, and I learned. Had you, got burned”

Mr Perfectly Fine: Mileven (El’s POV)

“But that was when I got to know Mr. "Change of heart" Mr. "Leaves me all alone, " I fall apart. It takes everything in me just to get up each day. But it's wonderful to see that you're okay”

We Were Happy: Lumax (Max’s POV)

“No one could touch the way we laughed in the dark”

That’s When: Stonathan (Jonathan’s POV)

“I said, "I know" when you said, "I did you wrong, made mistakes and put you through all of this"”

Don’t You: Stancy (Steve’s POV)

“Don't you smile at me and ask me how I've been. Don't you say you've missed me if you don't want me again. You don't know how much I feel I love you still”

Bye Bye Baby: Stancy (Steve’s POV)

“I want you bad but it's come down to nothing and all I have is your sympathy”

If This Was A Movie: Stancy (Steve’s POV)

“I know people change and these things happen but I remember how it was back then”

Links to other parts of this series: Debut, Speak Now, Red, 1989, reputation, Lover, folklore, evermore

[elcorhamletlive]

@l0v3c0r3e

"i don't know if it's alr for me to reply to this sense im a byler shipper but this seems like an open discussion. If they were to make mileven endgame I just feel like they should've wrote it better and not have introduced will having feelings for mike. And they shouldn't have paralleled byler to romantic relationships as it could be misleading if they were intending to keep mileven together. But what about the whole ending of s4?? If mileven is true love why did the monologue not work?? Why did the show directly tell us that mike and el after the monologue haven't spoken for two days?? Why did we see el making a annoyed/mad face when walking past will and mike?? I really like some of the points you made though! Its nice to see people just be able to have a open conversation for once lmao"

-

Even putting aside what you think of Mike and Eleven's storyline, I think the logic of "if the ship was endgame it would have been written differently" is inherently flawed because it assumes there's absolutely no way the Duffers could have just wrote their main couple in a way that you/other fans don't like, and I don't know where this assumption comes from. "The writing here was bad" does not necessarily mean "the writing meant to be bad". "The romance between Mike and Eleven is poorly written at times, so we are not meant to root for them" is the same as me saying "the comedy in season 3 was bad, so we were not actually meant to laugh". It's fully possible to think that the intent of a plotline was not achieved while also acknowledging what the plotline was going for. And I think it's pretty undeniable that the writing of Mike and Eleven's relationship is going for "epic endgame romance", whether you think it succeeds at selling this idea or not.

The same argument applies to the "they shouldn't have added Will having feelings for Mike" thing. I agree with you - I think this element was clumsily tackled on and it created a situation where it's very difficult to have an ending that feels satisfying for every character involved. But me thinking that a plot point was poorly handled does not mean that this plot point actually has a secret different function. It can mean that they just messed up. I don't know why shippers treat this possibility as absurd - ST's writing is often all over the place, and many other characters and relationships have suffered for it.

As for your questions, I think your interpretation of events does not correspond to the reality that was presented in canon. The monologue did work - it saved Eleven's life (and, by extension, everyone else's). If it hadn't worked, she would have died in Vecna's vines and the show would have ended right then and there.

The idea that they didn't talk for two days is also not true. Mike specifically says they talked. He references things Brenner said to Eleven that he (Mike) could only have known about if Eleven told him. The fact that Will asks Mike about it implies Eleven isn't talking much to anyone, and he might be the only one she talked to at all.

Finally, I think your last point illustrates how shippers goggles focus on only one thing to the detriment of plot points that, in canon, are much more important. Eleven makes an "annoyed/mad face when walking past will and mike" because she has just lost a battle for the first time, and failed to save her best friend from brain death. It has nothing to do with any imaginary romantic drama or jealously Eleven randomly would be feeling towards Mike and Will. It's a scene that matters because of Eleven's development as the show's main character, not because of any kind of romantic development.

(I forgot to reply about parallels, but basically I think fandom - not just b*l*r shippers - has a ridiculously loose definition of what a parallel even is, and vastly overestimates the importance of these supposed "parallels" in the writing. I think most of what B*l*r shippers view as "parallels" are superficial similarities that can be atributed to either coincidence or basic beats present in any story structure.

And even if we do give in to the idea of arguing about these supposed parallels, I think the ones that are in place for Mike and Eleven and other couples are much more clearer, and thus likely more intentional, than anything on the B*l*r side - i.e., Mike and Nancy both asking each other about their feelings for El and Jonathan and both denying it; Lucas and Max experiencing with Mike in season 2 basically the same conflict Mike and El experienced with Lucas in season 1; etc.)

[theswifterhood]

i’ve convinced multiple ppl to ship byler by showing them all the crazy analysis ppl on this app have made so i’m semi confident my mom could be converted to a byler shipper but i’m also worried she’s too much of a straight el stan to ship them. back when will’s sexuality was revealed by noah my mom was like “well he can’t act on it” which is like. u obviously don’t get his character bc he hasn’t yet. all the flirting is initiated by mike but sure. it just kinda bothers me bc she’ll watch like emily in paris or smtn and gasp when two characters look at each other or graze hands and be like “omg!!!!! they like each other” but won’t bat an eye if byler does the same thing. like she’s not homophobic but she’s definitely oblivious Lmao. if anyone has any ideas as to how i should edge her into it over the next year or two before s5 PLEASE lmk. if any of u have convinced your pro-mileven families to ship byler so that it isn’t such a shock when it’s endgame u gotta tell me ur secrets.

[venturismcdonald]

rules: post the names of all the files in your wip folder regardless of how non-descriptive or ridiculous. let people send you an ask with the title that most intrigues them, and then post a little snippet of it or tell them something about it.

tagged by @longclawislightbringer

these days (i haven't been sleeping) - Chenford

and it's fine to make it til you make it (til you do, top it's true) - Chenford

through the years - Nace

all the kingdom lights shined just for me and you - teen wolf movie spec, mainly stydia, scallison, thiam, malira

we got nothing figured out - Madwheelhopclair/Byerson/very complex polyamory between the older kids

our secret moments in a crowded room - Jiara

wonderstruck - Jiara

i like shiny things but i'd marry you with paper rings - Mileven

the devil's in the details (but you've got a friend in me) - Mileven

Sweet Poison - Lumax

not trying to fall in love (but we did like children running) - mileven

and i still talk to you (when i'm screaming at the sky) - Lumax

my hands pressed to your cheeks (a long way from the playground) - Nace

ap lit au - nace

prom pact - Nace

[gunnies-gummies]

Okay can y’all like idk make up names for byler pls- because it’s showing in the byler tag and it’s annoying. Like I GET IT, but y’all gotta learn how to RESPECT other ships (whether you like them or not or whether they’re canon or not who cares it’s just for fun honey.)

And yes I’m tagging mileven because this is for YALL. We have like 10000 names so we don’t DISTURB y’all, is it that hard to do the same with us bylers???!!! Like there’s so many unique nicknames y’all can give us -_- like biscuit, banana, burro, burrito, balloon, baboon, buffalo, bandana, broskis, boss baby, Barney, Batman, etc etc like be creative and stay IN YOUR TAG thank you :) or tag it as anti b*ler.

Thank you for coming to my Ted talk.

[occasionaloneshots]

Stranger Things Ships As Taylor Swift Songs

Warning: I obviously don't ship all of these and this is just for fun <3 please don't yell at me for missing your favorite, there's so many ships in this show so I went with some of the biggest ones as of season 4

Party Ships

Lumax: Out of the Woods

"Remember when we couldn't take the heat /I walked out, I said, 'I'm setting you free'/But the monsters turned out to be just trees/When the sun came up, you were looking at me/You were looking at me"

"Are we out of the woods yet?/Are we out of the woods?/Are we in the clear yet?/Are we in the clear yet?"

Mileven: It's Nice to Have a Friend

"Lost my gloves, you give me one/'Wanna hang out?' Yeah sounds like fun/ Video games, you pass me a note/Sleeping in tents/It's nice to have a friend"

"Call my bluff, call you 'Babe'/Have my back, yeah, everyday"

Byler: Holy Ground (Taylor's Version)

"We had this big, wide city all to ourselves/Wе block the noise with the sound of 'I need you'/And for thе first time, I had something to lose"

"Tonight I'm gonna dance/For all that we've been through/But I don't wanna dance/If I'm not dancing with you"

Elmax: Message in a Bottle (From the Vault)

"And I became hypnotized by freckles and bright eyes, tongue-tied/But now you're so far away and I'm down/Feeling like a face in your crowd/I'm reachin' for you, terrified"

"'Cause you could be the one that I love/I could be the one that you dream of/A message in a bottle is all I can do/Standin' here, hopin' it gets to you (It gets to you)"

Duzie: Our Song

"I've heard every album, listened to the radio/Waited for somethin' to come along/That was as good as our song"

"When we're on the phone and you talk real slow/'Cause it's late and your mama don't know/Our song is the way you laugh/The first date: 'Man, I didn't kiss her, and I should have'/And when I got home 'gore I said amen/Askin' God if he could play it again"

Older Sibling/Teen Characters

Stancy: The Story of Us

"I used to think one day, we'd tell the story of us/How we met and the sparks flew instantly/And people would say, 'They're the lucky ones'"

"Oh, a simple complication/miscommunications lead to fall outs/So many things that I wish you knew/So many walls up I can't break through"

Jancy: Mine

"Flash forward, and we're taking on the world together/And there's a drawer of my things at your place/You learn my secrets and you figure out why I'm guarded/You say we'll never make my parents' mistakes"

"You made a rebel of a careless man's careful daughter/You are the best thing that's ever been mine"

Ronanace: Enchanted

"The playful conversation starts/Counter all your quick remarks/Like passing notes in secrecy/And it was enchanting to meet you"

"This is me praying that/Tis was the very first page/Not where the storyline ends/My thoughts will echo your name/Until I see you again/These are the words I held back/As I was leaving too soon/I was enchanted to meet you"

Steddie: Delicate

"This ain't for the best/My reputation's never been worse, so/You must like me for me.../We can't make/Any promises, now can we, babe?/But you can make me a drink."

"Sometimes I wonder when you sleep/Are you ever dreaming of me?/Sometimes when I look into your eyes/I pretend you're mine, all the damn time"

The Parents/Adults (Joyce, just Joyce ships)

Boyce: Right Where You Left Me

"Matches burn after the other/Pages turn and stick to each other/Wages earned and lessons learned/But I, I'm right where you left me"

"I, I swear you could hear a hair pin drop/Right when I felt the moment stop/Glass shattered on the white cloth/ Everybody moved on, I, I stayed there/Dust collected on my pinned-up hair/They expected me to find somewhere/Some perspective, but I sat and stared"

Jopper: Invisible String

"Time, mystical time/Cutting me open, then healing me fine/Were there clues I didn't see?/And isn't it just so pretty to think/ All along there was some/Invisible string/Tying you to me?"

"Something wrapped all of my past mistakes in barbed wire/Chains around me demons/Wool to brave the seasons/One single thread of gold/Tied me to you"

[whenyourshipfinallysetssail]

Just some random

STRANGER THOUGHTS 2

***SPOILERS FOR SEASON 4***

*****My smoldering hot-takes on the season’s hottest DILF. 🥵******

Jeezus, is it a million and one degrees in here, or am I trapped in a Russian Prison with Enzo?

See, that’s funny because you’d think a Russian prison would be cold, but then there’s a hot DILF in there.

Question number one: ok yeah enemies to lovers but has anyone ever tried “helpful prison guard to sexy cell mate?” Is that a trope? Can we make it one?

Now you’re probably asking yourself, does this crazy bitch ship Hopper and Enzo?

And the answer is yes, of course I do, but not in an “I’m gonna be mad if this show doesn’t make this cannon” sort of way. I know nobody is queer-baiting me here. If anyone is queer-baiting me it’s me. I’m very good at it, thank you very much. I can imagine incredibly straight men are in love when they’re on screen together in my eyeline for too long. That said, Ronance, Steddie, Byler, and Jargyle: make it canon or we riot. [How fucking dumb was it when they just threw a random chick at Argyle to show the audience he’s got a big case of the not-gays? Who cares. This show loves smashing straights against each other. Show me some bi 80’s teens or shut the fuck up. Also, watch out, everybody, cause the Mileven Mafia is about to come gunning for me: I don’t give one single fuck about Mike and El’s relationship and I never have. El’s busy, guys. She’s got a whole “facing down an inter-dimensional existential threat/I’ve got two dads but one is abusive and one’s in a gulag” thing going on. Fuckin’ don’t make her date a boy right now.]

Now, back to that gulag. Ah, Enzo. Dimitri “Enzo” Antonov. My imaginary boyfriend that someone else imagined for me, who is never going to date my other imaginary boyfriend from Season 1 [on TV, at least. In head canon it’s already happening and you can’t stop it] for two reasons: A) because obviously Jopper is a thing and the writers aren’t going to suddenly drop that just because we got season 2 of the gay pirates. (But wouldn’t that be WILD? What if they had shot two versions of the ending and they held back Vol. 2 so they could use the gay ending if Our Flag Means Death got renewed? Would the internet survive the aftermath?) And B) my two boyfriends can never date because canonically Season 1 Hopper died in Season 3 when the Duffer Brothers got amnesia and started telling David Harbor to just scream at everyone in every scene. RIP, baby. I still love you.

[Side-Note: I’ve got so many good hashtags for this ship you guys: #jimitri #hopptonov #enzopper #hoppzo. They write themselves. These men fit like puzzle pieces. Sexy, sexy little puzzle pieces. Mmmm. Cold, boys? Why don’t you two papa bears snuggle up for warmth? Yeah . . . Yeah . . . That’s real cozy . . . . . . . ANYWAY]

And of course, C) #jimzo #twopigsinablanket [lol, they’re both cops] is never gonna happen because they’re absolutely setting up my glorious Russian cinnamon roll for a tragic heroic death.

Look, snow-muffin, I love you. You’re the steely-eyed, growly-voiced, salt and peachy mustached, true friend to the death, morally grey Russian with a not-so-secret heart of gold of my fuckin’ dreams. I’d watch a whole spin off that’s just you teaching your son to ice fish in silence. I want you and Mikhail to defect to America and move in with Jim and El and wind up in a super bi thrupple with Chief Hopper and my self insert OC. (Her name is Azelia Moondragon, she has three different color eyes, she can change genitalia at will, she has an IQ of 3.6 billion, and and she’s more powerful than the Mind Flayer, Vecna,El, and eight demogorgons put together . . . Nah, just fuckin’ with you. Her name’s Kate Kauffman and she’s a 38 year old therapist from New Jersey with a secret drinking problem.)

Listen, my ice duke, my proud Siberian wolf, my shot of Svayak with a spoonful of caviar, we both know you could have an AMAZING arc in Season 5. We both know you could wind up snatched by the US government and forced to remain at the lab in Hawkins while the feds scramble to cover up the existence of the Demogorgon you saw, that you could have a moving side mission to bring your son to the US illegally while you help your bestest pal Hop and his annoying girlfriend [no, she’s fine, it’s fine, I like her, they’re good together, not all the hot men want to kiss each other, and that’s ok] parent their sulky teens and save the damn world.

We both know you could fall madly, passionately in love with the mysterious new psychologist that the lab hires to provide you and the other Demogorgon survivors “trauma and readjustment therapy,” but who has secretly been tasked with wiping your memory so you can never go back to Russia and tell the world what you know. We’re both well aware that after she succumbs to your arctic-foxlike charm, Dr. Kate Kauffman could never bare to wipe your memories, that she would instead confess that she is not a psychiatrist, she is in fact a powerful psychic, a subject of the experiment that preceded Hawkins Lab, that in a fit of tears as she laid bare her secrets she would lift up her sleeve to reveal the mark on her wrist, faded, but perfectly legible: “000,” and then as you took her in your arms and told me no harm has been done, all is forgiven, you’re here to protect me now, the two of us would begin to float into the . . .

*Ahem* At any rate . . .

My beautiful near-winter ermine, we both know you have so much potential as a character. But it’s time for both of us to face the harsh, cold facts, so much colder and more harsh than the winters of your beloved homeland.

Dimitri, my darling, here are the reasons we both know you’re definitely not making it out of Season 4 alive:

1) You’ve got a son to get back to. ROOKIE mistake, my love. I’m frankly astonished at you. And you revealed it RIGHT before the big monster battle? I mean, why don’t you just do a big monologue about how you two are going to open up an awesome rabbit farm when you get home? Do you WANT to die? Baby, I volunteer for a suicide hotline. Next time you feel compelled to confess touching details about yourself the night before you face a deadly threat right at the end of a season arc, call me. We can talk it through. You have so many reasons to live!

And of course, that is why you are going to die.

2) Where is Mikhail’s mom?

Now, this one’s interesting. Arguments COULD be made this could go either way.

The facts are these:

You’ve made zero mention of your wife in all this “reflecting upon our lives as we stare into the gaping maw of death” talk. MAYBE your wife divorced you, and that’s why you don’t like to talk about her. Seems unlikely, given Hop got you to punch him by implying she was disloyal. (Although we can’t rule out the possibility that that remark hit just a little too close to home. Perhaps your drive to be seen as a hero of the Motherland in the eyes of your son stems from a need to demonstrate you are the REAL daddy, a bigger, braver, cooler man than the stepfather his mother left you for? Interesting. We can discuss this again in your next session, Dimitri. That is, if we even do any talking next time . . . I mean, what? Huh? Oh! Right, the thingy. Yeah, sorry, I uh, got distracted by the . . . Nevermind.)

ANYWAY, the much more likely answer is, Mikhail’s mommy is deadzo. You are not only a DILF, you are a hot widower, and the show runners are saving this juicy detail for the inevitable “calm before the coming storm,” beat, the moment just before your heroic sacrifice during the final battle or the crazy escape sequence, when Hop says something cheesy like “You’ve got to rest up. Tomorrow you’re gonna need all your strength to hug that wife and kid of yours.”

And you’ll stare just left of camera with your gorgeous, steely gaze, and you’ll say in your low, haunted voice “I will need strength for only one hug. I am all the family my son has left.”

BOOM. You’re dead. The emotional stakes just got higher and all the Duffer Brothers have to do now is fry ‘em up in the bacon grease of tragic irony and serve them to the audience with a side of mashed dream-potatoes as we weep for you. Now your son is an orphan! And Season 5 has a ready-made cute Russian to bring in and fatten with all our collective emotional investment before the final slaughter. [Fun fact: the third ritual sacrifice of a beloved fictional Russian in a series opens an actual real portal to a hell-dimension in our world!!! The last one opened on January 15, 1968, when the finale of The Man From U.N.C.L.E was broadcast! It was only closed by “chance” when the counter spell was “unwittingly” triggered by casting Armie Hammer as Illya Kuryakin in the GUY RITCHIE directed remake. GUY RITCHIE. Did you know he made a King Arthur Movie?! The Lock, Stock, and Every Movie Jason Statham Has Ever Been in guy. Made a remake of a 60’s tv show and a King Arthur movie with WAY TOO MANY GOD DAMN WIZARDS. Anyway, like I said, luckily the portal was closed, but the things which came from its depths still roam our Earth, seeking raw flesh and fun 60’s fashion accessories. Remember, Ritchie has more dark power and arcane knowledge than he’s letting on, and always wear an ascot or a cute colorful beret when you go out or you will perish horribly!]

Then again, there is a hopeful reading of the no-wife-scenario. MAYBE, dead wife means no strings to hold down the season 5 Enzo romantic D plot. MAYBE they’re leaving you open for more hasty and gratuitous hetero coupling! Doctor Kauffman?! Paging Doctor Kauffman to the set of Stranger Things Season 5! They’re prepping for your close up! And after that, you’re making ST history, they’re setting up to shoot the show’s first sex scene with two adults!!!

[remember when we watched two teens awkwardly fuck while Barb was gruesomely murdered in Season 1? That scene has gotten even LESS comfortable somehow as the actors have aged. You look back and see how young they look compared to now and you’re like “yikes! I know the actors were actually twenty, but please! No more babies fucking, thanks!” Glad they stopped doing that shit. If I had to watch El and Mike fuck I’d hurl, for more reasons than one. LEAVE HER ALONE AND LET HER FIGURE OUT HER SHIT GOD DAMN IT I DON’T NEED TO SEE HER PUNCH MIKE’S V CARD I DON’T CARE THIS ISN’T EUPHORIA ITS A GOD DAMN SCI FI 80’s THROWBACK FUN TIME ABOUT PSYCHIC BABIES!]

So, yeah, no wife could mean free meat for the season five Hetero-pairing meat grinder! There’s hope!

. . . Hope? . . . Who am I kidding? I’m sorry, Dimitri, but this is no time, no world for hope! This is Stranger Things! Do you really think we’re gonna make it out of another season with two new cast members still alive like we did in Season 2? No. No, in the end they killed Billy for his hubris in daring to outlast Bob Newby. All good looking things must end, my dear. Let us kill hope now, before she hurts us again.

3) This Show Fucking Loves Killing Precious Russian Moonbeams [alternatively titled “Are The Duffer Brothers Attempting to Summon The Ravening One From Beyond the 9,000th Eye?!?! Stay Tuned For Season 4 to Find Out!”]

I don’t know if, like, everyone in Russia knows everyone in Russia, but, like, probably not? It looks like a pretty big country on the map. But, Enzy, baby, can I call you Enzy? No? Ok, well, Antonov, sweetheart, do you remember Alexi? He was this really cute, funny, enjoyable Russian sidekick they had last season. We had so much fun with him! At first, we thought he was this bad Russian scientist who was going to help screw over our beloved friends, but in the end, he actually teamed up with them! We all really came to love Alexi! He was kind of a fan favorite! People wrote long, rambling things with a lot of weird jokes in them about him on Tumblr. And then . . .

Sound familiar?

Call me a pessimist, but I just don’t think the Duffer Bros can pass up an opportunity to murder a beloved fictional Russian. Besides, it has been long since the gate was opened. The Ravening One cries out for more tender flesh from our own corporeal plane. Its inessence rumbles, its dark mindlessness bends upon our dimension with all the fell, unfeeling intent and obsession of otherworldly instincts. The Duffer Brothers are thinking of doing a 60’s throwback for their next show, and Guy Ritchie is slated to direct the first seance, I mean episode! . . . Plus they’re like so attentive to details, they’d never kill three Russians on accident! Or forget their birthdays.

Dimitri “Enzo” Nikolai Andronic Niklosky Antonov, we could play this little game of denial, dream this little dream of happiness, torture ourselves a little while longer with what can never be. But neither you nor I are fools. Let us say goodbye now. Let us bid farewell to visions of you doing a really cool group side mission for one or two episodes with Steeve and Eddie and Robin and Nancy and Dustin and Max and El. Let us not cling any longer to fantasies of an episode beat where the adults go out on the town and you and Hopper get in a big bar fight with some assholes who are teasing Joyce and Murray, and you do lots of cool punching to some banging 1987 hit like, I don’t know, RICK ASTLEY’S “NEVER GONNA GIVE YOU UP?!?!?!” [Did I do it? Does it count as Rick Rolling if it’s in text?]

Let us let go once and for all of our wistful longing for all the dopamine-explosion moments as you interact and bond and integrate with the entire Stranger Things ensemble, the giddy spectacle of novel combination after novel recombination of beloved characters, that heady right of passage of exploring increasingly bizarre pairings and group dynamics all new ST characters who survive their first season are treated to, until the dread Season 5 finale ultimately tears them all assunder as the eldritch gods of the Upsidedown inevitably triumph and wipe all away with one mighty, slimy tendril of inter-dimensional horror.

All I can say, Enzipie, Dimipants, Antobutt, is that it’s been one hell of a ride. You may be just a corrupt guard of some remote, snowy prison in the middle of nowhere, betrayed by his crooked accomplice, imprisoned alongside his former captive, escaped with the aide of unlikely allies, and doomed by the conventions of narrative drama to die, but you melted my heart.

At least we get to keep Eddie! . . . Right? Duffers? DUFFERS?!

TOUCH HIM AND YOU DIE, GOD DAMN IT!!!

*begins sobbing and singing unintelligible Russian dirges while pounding the table rhythmically with fist*

[aquadisiacs]

✎ Lucas Sinclair/Max Mayfield — "higher ground (rocket love)" tags | ONE-SHOT, Aged-up, lumax-centric, fluff and humor, alcohol, self-indulgent, future fic, mentioned mileven rating | T

Lucas has barely touched his gin before he turned to the woman who plopped down on the barstool next to him. She was his age, and loose red hair strands fell on her forehead as she called  the bartender.

Lucas meandered his drink as the woman ordered. He fiddled with his phone as she sipped her drink, eyes crossed beneath dim lights. She still hasn't looked at him. 

"Hey," he lowered his voice, "do you come here often?"

"No." She grinned into her drink. 

"What brings you here, then?"

“If I tell you,” she narrowed her eyes at him, “I’d have to kill you.”

"Ah." His gaze dropped back to his glass, "I'm a good listener?"

She hummed, "How good are you at keeping secrets?"

"I'll swear on my baby niece's life."

"Good." Her eyes swept through the other patrons before she leaned towards him. As if under a trance, he leaned closer towards her, magnetized by freckles and a promise of a secret.

"So, will you tell me your name?” He asked, “Or maybe we could get to unwinding-"

"I cannot tell you my name." He was trapped in her gaze. "But if you don't get out of here right now, you're going to die."

Lucas furrowed his brows, "now what's that supposed to mean?"

"My mission is strictly confidential, but it's to my sector's knowledge that there is a malicious party plaguing the city. It's my job to exterminate them, and our intel says that their ranger frequents this bar on Saturday nights— Early twenties, in varying blue suits, and flirts with women."

Her eyes are accusatory and Lucas had to hold back a sigh.

"Goddamn, Max."

"Now how was that for mystifying stranger." She woman burst out in laughter. 

"That was not what I meant." Lucas groaned as he shot back the rest of his drink, 

"Well of course it wasn't," she shook her head, "you broke character, and now we have to start all over again."

Lucas spun his chair so hard he nearly fell off, "I broke character? What the hell was your character even about? You couldn't pick lifeguard or a princess or a-"

"Relax, stalker." Max rolled her eyes and lazily raised her glass to her lips. "I was keeping it interesting," she stated before taking a sip.

Lucas had borrowed the concept from Mike, who told him years ago about how he and El once pretended to be strangers meeting for the first time. It gave him the idea for their first anniversary date since getting back together.

"Do you hate me?" Lucas slumped forward onto the bar, his cheek squished next to Max's glass, the cool condensation grazing his nose.

"Of course not." Max patted his cheek, "My character however-"

Lucas groaned before she could finish, which prompted more laughter from his girlfriend. 

"Come on, stalker." Her eyes twinkled, "give me another chance. I'll be serious this time."

"You'll be serious?" he furrowed his brows, "really?"

"Yes, really." She nodded, and raised Lucas's head from the bar by his chin. He followed until he stood by her seat.

“I'll be very serious. No fantasy elements." Her hand moved from his chin and rested on his chest, before she pushed him away. 

"You spend too much time with Will," Lucas grumbled as he walked away from the bar, only to come back a few minutes later.

"Hey, pretty." He plopped back on his old seat, "I haven't seen you around before."

"I just arrived a few days ago," she smiled as bashfully as she could.

"Oh?" Lucas grinned, "to stay?"

"Yes. You see, I got this job over at the Church of our Lady Mary. The priest told me they've been having problems with a goat-"

Lucas closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose.

[queerxqueen]

was absolutely amazing! It was well spoken, well written, and I agree with everything you said. Narratively speaking, the most logical is Byler endgame. But my main concern is that despite it making narrative sense, that the Duffers will not do it because they will cater to M*leven. It's a huge cash cow and their fanbase is very loud and popular, despite the relationship not being as good since S2. So my question is that do you think the Duffers will cater to them or do what they please?

Ahh thanks so much for your message, glad you enjoyed it!

I totally understand the doubt--while it makes narrative sense, we've seen lots of shows sidestep narrative impact in favor of heterosexuality. So I get why so many people are wary of getting invested for fear of disappointment.

However, I really think that the Duffers are following the story rather than the money on this one.

For one, correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe season 4 is the first season where they've known going in that they would also have a season 5. For other seasons, they had to tread lightly for fear of being cancelled; they don't have that fear anymore, because the story is going to happen no matter what, so this is the first season they can truly do whatever they want. I believe this is why we're seeing Byler overtly instead of in subtext: they have that freedom now.

If they were going to go the Mileven route, there is no purpose to some of the plot lines. I genuinely don't know why they'd even introduce the two issues of Mike not telling El he loves her and Will crushing on Mike if they were going that way. If they wanted Mileven to be endgame with an arc for Mike about learning to express himself, I think they would have approached it in a different way and perhaps been more obvious about why Mike is having trouble with it.

The secretiveness about Mike's motivations in his weird behaviors are part of why I'm so convinced about Byler. If it were about his parents or masculinity rather than Will, they would have shown him struggling with that rather than showing him bonding with Will. They would have no real reason to hide his motivations.

On the other hand, it makes complete sense to push off revealing Mike's motivations until Volume 2 if it's going to be revealed that he's queer, to keep the audiences that might be upset about the end of Mileven engaged. I genuinely think they've delayed explaining his actions until volume two for the precise reasons you've stated. I would love to believe they're straight-baiting, that Byler will be canon and they're just stringing along the casual viewers to get hooked on season 4 before the big reveal.

Because the alternative to them straight-baiting homophobic audiences into watching is that they're queerbaiting us, and I really really don't want to believe that. It doesn't mean it's impossible.

Last, I should point out the obvious, that there's a lot of money to be made off queer people, so even if they are concerned with cash-grabbing, that doesn't rule Byler out either. With the success of Heartstopper and other queer content on Netflix, there is reason to believe Netflix sees this as a risk worth taking. They might lose some homophobic viewers, but they will likely gain even more queer viewers who would be more loyal and more engaged than the casual viewers anyway.

Whew, that was a long one.

Send me more Byler/ST asks??

[little-regina-blue]

Ok, before I pick up where I left off

there's a moment from 1x02 I didn't talk about and now I feel like I need to.

An anon dm'd a Mileven shipper claiming that Mike's words in 1x02 ("Just listen! In the morning, she sneaks around my house, goes to the front door and rings the doorbell. My Mom will answer and know exactly what to do. She'll send her back to Pennhurst or wherever she comes from. We'll be totally in the clear! And tomorrow night, we go back out. And this time, we find Will") are proof that Mike's love confession in 4x08 was a lie.

Let's talk about this moment. Here we have Lucas and Dustin rambling about how crazy El is. They both make assumptions that she's seriously insane, Mike doesn't say a word. He's the only one since who treats El as a person and not as a freak, like Lucas and Dustin do. Actually, while Lucas and Dustin are talking about her weirdness, her possibly insanity and compare her to Michael Myers, Mike is exasperated. You can see it in his face, he doesn't agree with friends. That's why he doesn't admit, in any moment, that his friends are right. Because they are not. That's why he's the one who brought her into his home. Lucas wouldn't, Dustin wouldn't. Because they believe she's a freak, but not Mike.

Let's remember the previous moments: Mike brings El into his home because he couldn't leave her out in the storm ("so you just wanted to let her out in the storm?" Mike asks Lucas) Mike is the only one who treats her like a person and shows genuine worry about her (" Is there a number we can call? For your parents?" "Are you in some kind of trouble?" "Stop it! You're freaking her out!" "All right that's enough, all right? She's just scared and cold") Mike doesn't judge El, ever. There's not one single moment where Mike judges or questions El's sanity in any way.

So going back to the moment Anon mentioned, it's natural that Mike wants to tell his mom. He's a kid, so he believes that adults would know what to do ("Mom will answer and know exactly what to do") I mean, what else could they do? They have to tell an adult. It doesn't mean Mike wants to get rid of her or that he thinks she's a psycho. It's just mean he's a twelve years old boy who trust his mom would know what to do. Then he says "She'll send her back to Pennhurst or wherever she comes from" That Anon based their claim (Mike doesn't love El) on this phrase, basically. The way they see it is that Mike wanted to send El to a literal asylum (exact words, WANTS)

Mike DOESN'T believe Eleven is crazy or a psycho or that she escaped from any asylum. He doesn't see her as Lucas and Dustin do. Mike doesn't agree with his friends. Not even the slightest. You have all the previous moments to see that.

If you really think that Mike Wheeler wants to send this scared girl who hasn't done any wrong to him to an asylum, I think you don't know Mike Wheeler, neither you understand the character.

Let's think about it? Why would Mike bring her into his home to try to get rid of her five minutes later? Why would he risk getting himself into trouble with his parents for this girl? Why would he stop looking for Will that night for her, to bring her to his house? If Mike believed for a moment, just a moment, that El was crazy, weird o dargerous (as Lucas and Dustin claim) why did he bother at all in the first place? He stopped looking for Will and brought her into his home risking to get grounded for going out that night and not be able to go out again to keep looking for Will. All of that just for a girl he doesn't give a shit about and wants to send to an asylum? It doesn't make any sense to me.

No way Mike believes his mom is going to send El to any asylum, anyway (''Once you're not a secret anymore my parents can get you an actual bed for the basement...'' ''My point is, they'll take care of you'' 1x08) When Mike says this to Eleven in 1x08 El's situation is much more complicated than he ever imagined. Eleven is fugitive from the government who pratically ''created'' her to be a weapon against the Russians. Also she has superpowers and she's connected somehow to the Upside Down. Still Mike says with no hesitation that his parents will take care of her, it doesn't matter if he's right or not, he believes they will. So I can't see why Mike in 1x02 would believe that his mom (or parents) would do anything but help Eleven. And certainly sending a kid to asylum where she doesn't belong to is not helping at all.

So, the way I see it, Mike said that (''She'll send her back to Pennhurst'') just as callback of Lucas' words, so he would stop trying to convince Mike that this girl is crazy.

"And tomorrow night, we go back out. And this time, we find Will" Has Mike forgotten about Will? Clearly, not. Will is one of Mike's best friends and Mike cares deeply about his friends. Meeting El and developing feelings for her doesn't mean Mike's forgotten about Will or doesn't feel like finding Will anymore. And Mike caring for his friend, being worry about him and wanting to find him is not an obstacle to develop romantic feelings for El. I keep saying it: those feelings can live happily together. It's not either caring for your friends or falling in love with someone.

Just think about this: If Mike wanted to send El to an asylum or just get rid of her, he would have told any adult about her. And that's it. And before someone claims "He needed her to find Will!" I added a link (above) to a previous post where I explain how that's not true at all. That's just the part one. I'm working on the part two already.

There's one more thing I have to say before I shut up: Mike fell in love with Eleven in the moment he met her. That's canon, whatever you like it or not. But let's not forget Mike was just a kid, who never felt something like this before. Mike wasn't aware of what was happening to him, let alone he understood the depth of those feelings. He was aware he liked her by the end of the season ("You go to school dances with someone that... someone that, you know... someone that you like" 1x08) But I think Mike was able to truly understand the depth of his feelings for Eleven and what actually they meant during that year without her. And that doesn't mean he didn't love her because he wasn't aware of what was happening to him at the beginning or because he didn't fully understand it. I know it's ridiculous I have to explain this, but apparently I have to.

Anyway, thank you for coming to my ted talk ✌️

[mikewheely]

Hi! I love your account because I also adore Mileven. They're literally the couple that had been setup since ep1 season 1. It's a simple story written by the duffer bros abt El being the survivor of the secret govt experiments, her powers, and its supernatural other side creatures, and the kids who help her and the people she learnt to trust along the way.

It's a pretty simple story tbh but somehow along the way the fandom has become toxic from all the many demands and expectations of different shippers. And I'm also beginning to think the writing is also partly at fault; for not giving Will a proper character arc instead of just.... sad boi.

I think partly people just wanna see Will be happy and somehow some of them started pinning that cause of happiness to be only Mike and Mike alone--and that's why I said the writing is partly at fault, because its refusal to write Will to meet new people, to write Will be happier.

I've seen how you've been defending Mike and I support you since passion is also my biggest trait lol. But I hope you understand that these haters will never stop hating no matter what you tell them. You can explain it all until you lose your breath and they will never agree with you.

I'm in a lot of fandoms and I've learned that sometimes, just not listening to their hate gives them less power. Over time, I've actually begun to like the characters that I used to dislike before in various fandoms--maybe that's the way for it to go--maybe the more people experience things irl maybe the more they'll understand characters in stories. And that's usually how people end up saying stuff online abt some characters in past shows like "oh this character was so underrated, that character was misunderstood" -- but by that time, no one really cares anymore. It's an old show, the echoes have long faded.

There's a lot of things about Mike that the writers failed to explore, and that makes it so easy for haters to fill in the blanks. And this goes to a lot of the other characters too and no, i do not hate the characters. It's okay to admit that some writers are good at writing exciting plots, but not so much at character arcs

At the end of the day, it's a story that we're supposed to take pleasure in and find entertainment in and instead the wars and hatred from various sides are becoming a turn off from the fandom

And not to mention, there are usually lots of people who likes A Thing but are silent fans, compared to haters. Haters are loud even if their quantity are smaller and maybe that's why they're all you'll ever hear. It's easier to be loud when we like something compared to when we do like a thing.

That's all! Kudos!

Hello! Well, I agree and disagree with you. Of course paying attention to what they say gives them more power, you're right. But I also know that me saying anything wouldn't change at how they look at things, I am not doing it for them. I am doing it for myself. I am doing it to vent. I am utilizing this space to support a character I love by giving valid points, to share the other perspective in contrast to the popular one.

Also, I do not blame the writers or makers for any of this. First of all, the character arcs. For a show like this where you get very little time to show the personal lives of the characters, I think they have done a very good job in developing their characters properly. I mean sure, you may think that they didn't, that's your point of view, but I don't agree with that. Secondly, about Will having a love interest, to be honest, he hasn't been able to come out yet, he hasn't been able to accept who he really is yet. Also, even Noah knows that he has just entered high school, he is a shy kid and it's the 80s, so it was more difficult to come out than it is today. And along with that, you are in love with your best friend who also happens to be your sister's boyfriend, that's even more complicated, so if anything comes out that affects 3 people. The story is still left, so I guess we have to see if there is a reason why they have not given that scope to Will. But then there's Steve also, not a LGBTQ character, he has not been able to find love after Nancy either, he still has feelings for her. But people don't find that problematic? Why not? The other day, I finished watching Brooklyn Nine-Nine and the bisexual character there, Rosa, chose not to settle down in the end when all the rest of the people were settled down/married and had become parents and found the usual 'happy ending'. Do you think that the writers did that intentionally because they wanted to show that she doesn't deserve to be happy? No.

So it's not the writers' fault, they did what they felt is right for the character, for some reason. If anything, they kept it realistic, because not everyone has it so easy in life. I don't know why that's so shocking or surprising to so many people. I mean if wearing a blue shirt, standing in front of a closet and so many more such things make people decide that these are all related to the sexual orientation of a character that is not anyone's fault, it is what they wanted to see. If they think Mike lied in his monologue, can you really blame anyone else for that? If they read too much into everything, then they are willingly choosing to be disappointed. And when things don't happen the way they want, they start creating drama over that.

Seeing how things are getting misinterpreted, misunderstood, and misconstrued and then being used against the characters just makes me angry. And I merely vent here. That's all.

But thank you for being so nice! Maybe someday I will get tired of venting as well. But till then, I would always stand up for Mike.

[erectionsandtea]

Skipping class/playing hooky headcanons!

Ships:

Lumax - these cuties skip class to go make out under the bleachers (idk why I see them doing that, I just do). that is, until they remember today is the day something special is happening, something they wouldn’t be able to do unless they skip class. (ex. special one-time screening of a movie, add a second scoop free of charge at the ice cream parlor, a parade or festival or something that takes up the whole block)

Byler - a while back, our boys found a secret room somewhere in the school, and they skip a boring/terrible class to go to this room that they have declared officially their own (if Mr. Clarke didn’t disapprove of cutting, he would just lend them a room) and just hang out. Mike would write and Will would draw pictures to go along with the writings bc they are totally going to release a comic book one day (based on their DnD adventures)

Elmax - they arrive at school, only to hang back behind everybody else, walking really slow, and when the halls are deserted, they turn around and go back out (because it’s more exciting when you have to sneak around). El is like “why do we ditch?” and Max is like “because we can, duh.” and then they just go wherever and do whatever they want, real spontaneous. excessive amounts of hand-holding and/or linked arms (just a lot of touching, okay)

Duzie - they just skip school altogether to literally go exploring in the woods (bc Hawkins is somehow surrounded by woods apparently). they find a cool lizard and Dustin totally wants to catch it, but he doesn’t have a free container, so they have to empty one of their food containers. then they go to the library to find books about lizards and do research on what to feed it and how to keep it content until they can show it to Mr. Clarke (they will release the lizard after)

Mileven - they wait until it’s the time that all the adults will be at work, and then they bike back home (her on the back, just like they used to). the house is empty so they get free rein to do whatever they want. this includes, but is not limited to: watching movies/tv, embarrassing karaoke, and not-always successful cooking experiments (at least one with waffles). they need to go to the store though to buy more chocolate bc they don’t have enough and El loves chocolate. they end up buying too much stuff, seriously like Mike’s whole allowance is gone lol. also just lying together, cuddling, occasionally talking about something, but mostly just enjoying the moment.

Friendships:

Will/El - they totally play hooky to sneak into a movie. something pg-13, or R if they’re feeling especially daring. if Steve and Robin still worked at the movie theater, he’d disapprove like the good mother he is, but she would let them in the back way AND sneak them free movie snacks (bc you know Robin totally did things like this when she was in school)

Mike/Max - they do something “rebellious”. not actually rebellious, but like Max heard about Mike graffitiing the bathroom stall that one time, and is like “so rebellious.” and Mike is like “like you’ve ever done anything that badass.” and she’s like “watch me, bitch.” and so they end up...idk, loitering or something. going to a store and taking literally every free sample. maybe sneaking into some “off limits” room in the school. you know. rebels.

Max/Dustin - arcade, obvsly. constantly competing. every time one of them gets a high score, the other will race over and immediately try to top it. at the end of the day, there are no arcade games left with anyone other than her or him in the ‘top players/high scores’ list.

BONUS:

Dustin takes the whole party to some abandoned place that he swears is haunted (that’s what he heard, anyway). hear me out, Dustin is smart, yes, but I totally don’t peg him as a skeptic, that’s Lucas. it’s like-

“who even told you this place is haunted?”

“jeremy, from math class”

“you’re dragging us all to this potentially dangerous place on jeremy’s word??”

“I’m telling you, he totally saw something”

“he totally didnt’! because ghosts. don’t. exist.”

“look, I’m not saying for sure that they exist, but you have to admit there’s some weird shit that can’t be explained”

“that doesn’t mean it’s a ghost!”

meawhile, Max just leans over to Will and is like “this is still better than school” and Will is like “yeah” and then “hey, are we going or what?”

(I’ll put the rest of this in its own post :) )

~

send any ideas or requests to  my askbox, or feel free to add your own on this post! let me know if you want to be tagged in the headcanons.

[tweedlydumbtweedlydoo]

Kiara Carrera x reader

Requested by anon // Summary: You and Kie’s first official date. 

A/N: I hope this is full of fluff like you wanted and I hope you like it!! I was really proud of this one.

If anyone else has a Kie x reader request, please send it in. I want to add more to my list and want to write what people want to read!! 

Tag list is at the end. Let me know if you want to be added xx

**MASTERLIST**

Requests: OPEN {CLOSED}

** Who I Write For **

********************************************************************************************NOT MY GIF, CREDIT TO OWNERS

You and Kie have been best friends for forever. However, only recently had new feelings emerged from both of you. No one knew of your relationship, except both of your families. Both of your homes were safe havens for your relationship where you two could be yourselves and be together without being judged. Not even the pogues expected a thing.

It was a day on the boat when your relationship was almost not a secret anymore. It was your fault, you hadn’t even thought about what you were doing.

 You were putting sunscreen on Kie’s shoulders and back when you’d kissed her on the cheek, “There you go babe.”

Everyone on the boat had froze, their eyes wide, including Kie’s. She’d glanced over her shoulder at you, an eyebrow raised.

You’d cleared your throat, “What?” Looking around at the pogues, “You’ve never seen a girl kiss her best friend on the cheek?”

The boys exchanged glances all shaking their heads, “No. Never.” JJ says.

Kie turns around and wraps her arm around your shoulder, kissing your cheek, “She’s my best friend. Come on guys, get your head out of the gutter.”

You’d blushed a little and rolled your eyes at the boys. Kie did the same. The boys nodded, not necessarily fully convinced, and turned around to face the water so they could fish.

You looked at Kie, mouthing I’m sorry.

She laughed and shook her head. She’d leaned in close and whispered quietly, “No, it was cute.” She stole another kiss really quick, this time on your lips and went to the boys, grabbing a fishing pole herself and leaving you a blushing mess.

~

“So, do you girls want to hang out?” Pope asked when the boat arrived back at the Chateau.

“No, we have plans. We’re going to the mainland this evening.” Kie answers, stepping off the dock.

You do the same, “girls night. Sorry boys.”

JJ pouts, “Why do you guys always have girls night without us? I swear you two have one every other day.”

You and Kie both exchanged a glance. It was true. Your girls nights were between just the two of you either at her house or yours, cuddling on the couch watching movie or spending the evening by the pool. This is where the best friends thing comes in handy. It’s an excuse for the two of you to hang out all the time and them not expect a thing.

“We’re best friends, JJ.” Kie says.

“Yeah plus, we need a break from you goons.” You add, laughing.

“And you guys aren’t girls last time we checked.” Kie also adds, laughing.

John B pouts, “we aren’t goons.”

~

The two of you walk hand and hand down main street at a small town on the mainland. The two of you caught the attention of a few people, giving you disgusting looks but you ignored them. “So where is this place you’re taking me?”

“Well, that is a surprise.” She gives your hand a squeeze and flashes a smile. “I wanted to plan tonight out all myself and surprise you with it.”

You hum in response, “Okay..”

“We’ve never had a first real date and well I wanted to make this one special, so we can say this is our first official date if anyone asks.”

The two of you walk along the sidewalk by the water, leading to a beautiful restaurant overlooking the harbor. You could tell by the outside it was expensive. “kie, no.” You shook your head, “This place looks too fancy and expensive.” You stopped walking.

She sighs, facing you, “Well, it’s a good thing I have my dad’s credit card.” She tugs on your arm a little, “Come on, I told you I wanted today to be perfect.”

You frown, “Kie…”

“girl I swear.” She huffs, taking your head in her hands, and making you look at her, “We are going in that fancy restaurant. We’re going to order whatever we want. No matter the cost and we are going to have a damn good time. Okay?” She presses a kiss to your pout.

“Okay fine.” You take her hand in yours, following you into the restaurant.

~

The dinner was fabulous and delicious. There was an ice cream place next door, so you two headed that way. Ordering your ice creams and then taking it back outside where there was a picnic table overlooking the water.

“Here will be perfect.” She steps up on the picnic table, sitting on the table. You take a seat on the bench and lean back between her legs, watching the sunset over the water. It was the perfect amount of orange glow, the golden hour.

“Here.. try this. It’s delicious.” She reaches around you, a spoonful of ice cream.

You take the bite and hum in response, “Oh that’s good.”

“you got a little..” She gently runs her thumb over your lip, wiping the excess ice cream. “You’re so beautiful..”

You blush, taking a bite of your ice cream, “You’re gorgeous.” You lean up and press a kiss to her lips, “I love you.”

“I love you too..” She smiles.

You pull out your phone, “picture please?”

She rolls her eyes. You were always wanting to take pictures of the two of you or of just her. “Smile baby.” You lean away to capture the photo of her.

She gives you a smile as you snap the photo. “Okay your turn.” She motions with her hand and you hand over the phone. You smile and she captures the photo.

“And now one of the two of us.” You lean back comfortably in between her legs and she leans in close as you put the phone in selfie mode. Both of you smile as you snap the photo. You take another sharing a kiss and then her kissing your cheek. “We’re pretty cute.” You comment looking at the photos

She glances over the photos as you swipe through them, taking a bite of the ice cream. “We do. You should post them.”

You look up at her, “yeah I mean I was going to post the ones of you and then the one of me.”

She shakes her head, “No. post them all.”

“But.. people..”

She nods, “People would know about us. Yeah I know. That’s the whole point. I want people to know. I want to be able to show you off.”

Your eyes light up, “Wait really?”

She laughs, nodding, “yes, really. Post that shit! Let people know you’re taken.” She leans in and kisses your lips, “That you’re mine.”

You bite your lip and kiss her again, “I love you kie.”

She smiles into the kiss, “I love you too..”

Obx taglist: @tregua-oca , @weirdbiwitch , @losers-club6 , @treestarrrrrrrr , @omgwhattheeven , @normatural , @lreincarnationl , @laurenron , @junkiemuppettxx , @beth-winchester21 , @divcrdown , @timotaychalabae , @moose-squirrel-asstiel , @tangledinsparkles , @prejudic3 , @lanarichards5  @ilikealotofpeople-younotsomuch , @fratboystark , @nas-marie-loves-u , @sunwardsss , @annedub , @jellyfishbeansontoast , @turtlee-says-rawr, @fanficscuziranout , @wellthathappened2 , @write-from-the-heart , @louisolos , @outrbank , @sunset-d-rive , @family-buisnes , @traumaflavouredjuulpod , @http-cherries , @k-k0129 , @mileven-reddie , @eclecticpuppyhollywoodhumanoid , @cinnamon-roll-seth , @teamnick , @rockyyc77 , @ellojustafangirlhere , @sataninsatin , @lordsagittarius , @helplessquotess , @katerosexx , @kiarasgold , @thee-sex , @carefreecowrie , @ceruleanjj , @colie-babi , @ilovejjmaybank , @laubluered , @lcil123 , @notmcchkn , @ceruleanjj , @fangirlvoice , @maybebanks , @lolitstiana , @danicarosaline , @obx-beach , @katiaw2 , @hardyxlove , @kaelyn-lobrutto24 , @obxmxybxnk , @lasnaro , @thedarkqueenofavalon , @you-got-me-starry-eyed , @poguestyleskye , @poguesnobx , @godspeedlover , @coni-martina , @kaylinfayezink , @loveylangdon , @blossombxby13 , @thelovelydreamer17 , @chasefreakinstokes , @daddydobrockk , @you-got-me-starry-eyed​ , @kkmikayla​ , @thatweirdblonde​ , @bananasfromtarget​ , @popcrone818​ , @fanficsrmylife , @alexa-playafricabytoto​

*if your name is crossed out, tumblr won’t let me tag you

All my works tag list:  @blossomreed​

[kaypeace21]

The Duffers use of music proves byler is endgame (music-analysis)

The Duffers in an interview said that they choose songs for the show very deliberately -sometimes spending weeks on Spotify to find just the right song to convey an emotion/context of a scene. Songs in all seasons (but especially in s3) were used to show how characters are feeling- or just an action they’re about to commit.

For instance, Karen when she’s about to meet Billy at the motel-  feels apprehensive and wants to get out of it (since it would hurt her family) and she was just flirting with Billy as a way to escape her own issues, about her life. She never flirted with Billy for the end-goal of “getting him.”

They even use “cat’s in the cradle’ which could be shown as a way to illustrate the inappropriate age disparity between Billy/Karen.

Other examples-

Right before the boys run away from the lingerie store- the lyrics are literally “I just walk away” XD

Jim when he looks at Joyce- the lyrics are “she’s got you.” ( cause he’s in love with her).

-And Jim after getting Mike to not come over to see El, (by yelling at him) sings…

Joyce after she sees Bob’s drawing fall to the ground and then crouches to pick it up.

And songs also illustrates how Nancy feels about her job (with her sexist co-workers). As the morose lyrics of “I’ll be working here forever” play as it zooms in on Hawkins post -as Nancy rushes inside.

As well as  her excitement -about investigating a new case. As Jancy leaves and the very on the nose song  of “get up and go” begins -as they get into the car.

Billy when he pulls out chloroform (from a perfume bottle).

El after dumping Mike (and smiling about it) XD

So all the byler stuff I’m about to mention proves byler is endgame.

So yes, the fact that the very first lyrics that play when we see mileven kiss for the first time  is “Just a little uncertainty can bring you down”- reflects that (just like the others, the song reflects Mike’s true feelings). The song is from the album “boy in the box (cough closet)”.

And we know this is how Mike (not El) feels about their relationship because he begins to sing the song right after this lyric. It mirrors how when Will danced with a girl (who owned a rainbow hair clip) the lyrics were “every smile you fake.”

Mike continues “And nobody wants to know you now. And nobody wants to show you how.So if you’re lost and on your own. You can never surrender.” He fears that if he isn’t straight everyone he cares about will abandon him, and that he’d be lost and the only one ‘like this’ -all alone.But he can’t ‘surrender’ the false-idea of being in love with El (out of fear).  El even says to “stop” and tries to cover his mouth to prevent him from singing and Mike asks “What you don’t like it?” and El just says “No!”.

Which may be a purposeful juxtaposition to how Robin came out- and instead both Robin and Steve sang off-tune happily together- while El covers Mike’s mouth and tells him to stop singing. When Mileven kiss at the end of the season the song ‘the first i love you’ plays. The same song that plays when Robin comes out to steve (to illustrate the juxtaposition).

What’s interesting is ( right before the mileven kiss) we see a zoom in shot of a picture of Will and a rainbow . Like that’s Will! He has light brown hair (not black) and Will is the only one associated with fire and has drawn himself with fire in the past.

And since El has Mike related-stuff all over her room, and barely knows Will. Mike probably lied saying it was supposed to be him- which is why it’s above her bed.And we also see that based on it’s placement Mike is facing the Will drawing so he can see it  (cause we see El in front of the poster and Mike sitting opposite of her during the 1st kiss) . 

And during this transition the lyrics read “cause just a little more time could open closing doors” Which could be hinting at byler becoming a thing later - when (after some ‘time’) they both become ready to actually admit their feelings/sexuality - despite the other probably doubting the other has feelings for them.

I mean we even see an illustration of Will & the text of the name ‘Mike’ written out next to a rainbow-heart. And 2 other drawings next to the rainbow heart drawing (that are covered in red hearts). XD

(*for those who can’t see Mike written out in the transitioned will/mike pic)

However, what’s interesting though is the one other things he took down from his wall. In S1 Mike (before he even met El)  has a heart sign, with a red heart being propelled by a rainbow. Then in s3 it's gone from his wall when he dates El (cause he's trying to repress the fact he's gay). Why El has a drawing that says Mike (with a heart also propelled by a rainbow.) He can't use El to escape the truth. His rainbow follows him everywhere even when he tries to hide it (from his basement wall and himself) -  and when kissing El!Aka he tries to take it down (like he pretends to be straight). However, in the first ep of s3 when Mike is making-out with El (trying to project his feelings for Will on to her by looking at the Will drawing while kissing) we see a emergence of the heart being propelled by a rainbow (in El’s room) as a drawing.  signifying Mike participating in compulsory-heterosexuality,  and the fact no matter how hard he tries- he’s not straight!

Also El’s reaction to the song - hints that this isn’t actually her mixtape. But one that Mike made for her. or Will made for Mike (since jon makes mixtapes and prob taught him how- Will in s3 gave a mixtape to Dustin so it would not surprise me if he gave one to Mike).

So similar to the drawing, the mixtape hints at byler’s feelings

  ‘I can’t fight this feeling’ (which mileven makes out to later). Actually indicates Mike fighting his feelings for Will. And how he’s been trying to fight his feelings for Will, all season.

Besides the lyrics themselves- the singer literally went on record about the song’s meaning . Which is about a boy being in love/pinning over his friend of many years and never thinking he had a chance at being with them (and being afraid he’d ruin the relationship if he confessed)- but slowly thinking he could  be with them (and that they might feel the same way about him) . And in the song the 2 people AREN’T even together yet!

“Oh, I can’t fight this feeling any longer. And yet I’m still afraid to let it flow. What started out this friendship has grown stronger, I only wish I had the strength to let it show. I tell myself that I can’t hold out forever .I said there is no reason for my fear ‘Cause I feel so secure when we’re together ‘.You give my life direction. You make everything so clear. And even as I wander I’m keeping you in sight. You’re a candle in the window on a cold, dark winter’s night. And I’m getting closer than I ever thought I might”

This makes no sense for mileven who kissed after knowing each other for a week and who didn’t have a long established friendship, beforehand. And who also are already together (and not afraid to express their ‘romantic feelings’ for each other).

Then in s2, mileven dance to ‘every breath you take’ a break up song about a stalker ex. The writer of the song also has said many times “it’s NOT a love song.” The duffers obviously knew that. Lumax also danced to it and Lucas was called a ‘stalker’. El also stalked Mike in s2 (all that stuff milevens found romantic- El watching him without him knowing. Mike says he was not ok with it in s3). And in s3 he said not to do that and she just says ‘i make my own rules’. Not to mention Nancy teaching Dustin how to dance is a direct parallel to Mike teaching El. 

Mike also tries to act like Dustin, and  forces Will to dance with a girl (who’s wearing a rainbow hair clip). Trying to be a good sport like Dustin is about lumax. And right after this we see Dustin look sad about Max/Lucas dancing and Mike (next to Dustin) look sadly at Will/girl dancing in the same exact frame as Max/Lucas. As they switch between these 2 shots to emphasize their sadness/jealousy.Then they both sit down (mirroring each other) on the verge of tears before Nancy and El show up to comfort them and distract them.  As El once again (presumably) wears Nancy dress. Mike “you cant go with your sister… i mean you can but it’d be really weird.”

Also in regards to Will- when I heard they were going to have the song ‘Never ending story’ I wondered if they were going to re-contextualize one line in particular to be a hint at Will’s queerness. And shock- they did it! XD

The lyric is “ Rhymes that keep their secrets will unfold behind the clouds and there upon a rainbow Is the answer to a never ending story. ”

And of course Will is the one with a secret- that is ‘rainbow’ related. And they pan to him during the “secrets” line. I think Will is less in the denial phase than Mike is and already knows he’s gay and in love with him.

And this wasn’t a coincidence because when Lumax makes fun of Dustin they sing the lyrics incorrectly as  “The mirror of your dreams. Rhymes that keep their secrets…” And it pans to Will AGAIN!

We see Will obscured in shadows to represent he’s “hiding”.

And then he appears in the light, looking sadly at D&D as the lyrics , “rhymes that keep their secrets” is sang (again).

And we see he’s specifically looking at the d&d game sadly and about to give it away- since they zoom in on the game title (before he places it in the “donation” box). 

Because the d&d game is used to reflect his desires (like a “mirror”) . It’s the ‘mirror of his dreams’- to be with Mike. Cue Mike saying “ what did you think,really? That we were never gonna get girlfriends? We were just gonna sit in my basement all day and play games for the rest of our lives?” And poor Will  just responding with “Yeah, I guess I did. I really did.”

This lyric about the mirror is NOT in the original song. It was used once again to establish D&D as a romantic symbol for byler. Just like how they zoomed in on d&d right before the romantic “crazy together” speech.

Mike in s3 says “Blank makes you crazy… y’know like the word (love).” Flo in s1 says “ Only love makes you that crazy and that stupid.” Cue Will calling himself “stupid” 4 times (after Mike says they won’t be together playing games for the rest of their lives-and ripping up the Halloween pic , out of heart-break).

(x)

So again right after we see the zoom-in of the game (another romantically coded scene happens after). Will puts the game in the ‘donation’ pile - and Mike isn’t happy about it.

Mike: “WHOA, dude, that’s the donation box.”

Will: “ I know, I’ll just use yours,  when I come back. (pause) if WE still want to play?”

( translation: “I love and want to be with you but I’m not going to pursue you and get my heart broken again. Because even if I feel like you love me… I can’t trust my own instincts about how you truly feel anymore. If you want to play this ‘game of love’  with me you have to initiate/participate in the game properly.” Mike when fixated on El even says it was a cool campaign but  “we just weren’t in the mood right now.” and  also says to Will “c’mon, let’s play for real”  but Will storms off (not thinking that what Mike said was genuine).  

Mike : “Yeah, but what if you want to join another party?”

(*cough, the other ‘species’/girls, or just someone else: girl, guy or otherwise)

Will: “Not possible.”

(Will will always love Mike, and  admits he wants to be with him for the rest of his life).

(x)

And we actually see the Hopper’s Monologue (where Mike is shown)- reflects what Mike said to Will earlier. Mike does want to love Will but he’s just scared of changing their relationship into something romantic- and even though a part of him doesn’t want things to change, he’s still afraid that Will will move on from him as they both get older. “I’ve been feeling distant from you. Like you’re pulling away from me or something” (Will does this both figuratively/literally). I miss playing board games every night (d &d)”. “But I know you’re getting older, growing, changing. And I guess, if I’m being really honest, that’s what scares me. I don’t want things to change.”

Also the lyric “ Rhymes that keep their secrets will unfold behind the clouds and there upon a rainbow- is the answer to a never ending story. ”

One way or another Will’s secret (of being queer and/or being in love with Mike) will eventually come out. And that’s the answer to this “never ending story” between Will & Mike. Their love story. I mean who else is associated with Will’s story and has loads of rainbow symbolism - and has rainbow symbolism that  specifically connects them to Will?

*Lol don’t even get me started  on analyzing how in s1 when Mike thinks Will is dead- Mike hugs his mom and the lyrics are “and we kiss as though nothing could fall. And the shame.” Which is queer coded and written by David Bowie- and during the s2 “freak” speech- Will even says he’d rather be friends with Bowie than Kenny Roggers.

People need to realize no one is a bigger shipper of byler- than the Duffer brothers themselves! XD