#they think it would be impossible for mike to end things with el bc she would be so broken hearted and she doesn't deserve that

[starsundertheceiling]

Byler proof!! Which we do not need by this point but hey, it’s still nice to have more byler proof, right??

honestly idk if we know this by now or not but I’ve just realized this so I’m sharing

So!! Owen trying to persuade El to join him and restore her powers, remember?

We have this:

Everything onscreen corresponds with what Owens is saying (proof for that later, below). But in this case?

My first thought was Oh, they’re showing us Mike when Owens says ‘a very real possibility this program fails.’ They are literally telling us m:leven is bones.

But then I started thinking more about it and: Yeah, they ARE showing us Mike. The program (the monologue) failed, and El’s friend Max died (if not for El literally doing the impossible, she would never see her again).

But they are also showing us byler here. Jonathan leaves the frame and we see byler, both of them in the middle of the screen. Yes, Mike is in the foreground but Will is literally RIGHT THERE. Not even on the side. In the middle. Before Mike obstructs our view of him, he’s the central point (because he doesn’t move, so he has to be right in front of us so we pay attention to him. Mike is moving so our attention is naturally drawn to him until he stands right in the middle too). <- The entire point is: They clearly want us to focus on both Will and Mike. Plus, Jonathan says, “The reservation’s under ‘Byers’.” just a second earlier. Maybe I should’ve started with that.

So, “the very real possibility this program fails” = it’s the 80s, homophobia everywhere, Mike is still trying to battle his gay, Will is indeliberately doing everything to sabotage his chances... If it was all real instead of a show, the chances that byler gets together would be... woefully small. (I didn’t say that, Owens did. I believe in canon byler in every dimension.)

And if THIS program (byler) fails? In S5, if the power of gay love doesn’t prevail in the crucial moment? Everybody dies. El, byler, Dustin, Dustin’s mom, Harrington’s hair, Mews’ ninth life in LA, Theodore Decker in Antwerp—everyone. Vecna slurps people’s minds like Mike Wheeler slurps his plain skim milk.

What I mean is, m;leven program had a very real possibility of failure and it already did. Byler has a very real possibility of failure but they aren’t allowed to, because that would be the end of all.

And to support the dramatic “end of all” part: Everything we see on our screens corresponds to what Owens is talking about. (yada, yada, proof below) but in this instance? “And if it does, you will never see your friends again?” And they show us her brothers and boyfriend? Nobody who she primarily considers as a “friend”? Because, of course, Will is her friend, and Mike is her friend, yes, yes. But if you asked her what they are to her, what would be the first things she says? Maybe it would be friend since she still uses “friends don’t lie” with Mike (she does, doesn’t she? *genuinely cannot remember 100%*) but even if, Owens could have easily said “you will never see your family and friends again”. I just don’t understand why he didn’t, when that’s what would better suit what we are shown.

This led me to think that “friends” here is the final bell, “Friends” are not just “friends”, it’s everyone. It just feels like he’s talking about everyone. He is. He literally is, I didn’t need to say all that lmao.

Hope you see the vision. Here’s the proof that Stranger Things creators do their job and know stuff I know—which, honestly? the bar is on the floor. 

Brave friends, good people, Lucas onscreen. Makes sense. Lucas best boy.

Hop keeps swimmin’ because he knows El is still there, waiting for him. And Joyce. But then he thinks Joyce died bc of him. Darn. But El is still there as his reason to hold on just a little while longer, fight on just a little while longer, sing on just a little while longer.

I thought it was funny that when Owens starts speaking about starting to work on the program, he is literally shown with his computer, preparing a program. Not writing one, no. Just sending emails. He gets cushy money for his doctor diploma (? in question?) and sending emails. And asking a li’l boy questions that don’t do anything, and manipulating a teenage girl.

Government doesn’t believe in the power of love. How fitting. How sad.

Max. I love Max. They put her in the middle of our screens just like they put her in the middle of our hearts in the eye of the storm. Plus, to stress how very in the middle of the storm she is, and that it’s Max, Max it’s Max, helloo it’s Max that’s in the eye of the storm, they made her interrupt the long-ass speech in the middle of a sentence.

Kinda like they made Jonathan mention “Byers” when sliding the camera towards byler with Mike in the front and Will behind because REMEMBER WILL IS THEREEE

[beaulesbian]

i can't stop thinking how the byler fight in s3 felt more like a break up than the actual elmike break up.

with will destroying castle byers and ripping the photo of him and mike (and lucas and dustin - but the way he ripped it in the middle of the photo, just between himself and mike wasn't a coincidence)

as contrast - the elmike fight had arguing but not on the scale and so drastic as when we saw will cry so much after his fight with mike- that was a whole mix of anger, panic, overwhelming sadness, everything at once.

when after the elmike break up el was mostly upset about mike because she didn't understood what he was doing, and she spent a day figuring out herself with some advice from max. mike was confused too about el, but remained distant from her and didn't try to go after her to explain or fix it. instead, after his fight with will he went after him right away to apologize.

bc with el he knew they still cared about each other as friends, the break up would be just a step down from the romantic relationship. but with will it was a fight about their friendship as a whole - if that'd be ruined, he could have lost will.

and that's what made mike start to figure it all out - that was the possible turning point for him.

the ending of s3, where he was upset after el kissed him, he looked even more confused, that she began this whole thing again,

vs how he needed to make sure will was still his friend and just the thought of that made him genuinely smile.

("what if you wanted to join another party?" - this wasn't just about a dnd party, it could have been as mike asking, again, if they would still be friends. "impossible" - will couldn't imagine not being his friend.)

Edit:

also another thing is how mike started paying more attention to will after the fight and bc of the fact that the mind flayer was back and he saw will could feel that, the danger was back.

He immediately shifted back into protective mode (cough paladin) as the thought of the mind flayer getting back to will or el scared him, and he right away trusted will's instincts about what was happening.

[lesbianrobin]

Ahh so while we're on the topic of Nancy rarely/never facing any consequences or repercussions of her mistreatment of other characters, I genuinely think that if anyone should call her out it should be Mike. I have had this particular gripe with Nancy and Mike's relationship since the end of season 1 because at the end of season 1 before they all split up to save Will, Nancy hugs Mike and makes him promise her that there will be no more secrets between the two of them and that they'll always talk from now on. Then in the following episode she ditches him without a word to go fight the demogorgon, and then in season 2 instead of telling him where she's going or what she's doing when she goes to get Justice for Barb. she just leaves without a word again and remains basically unreachable for the duration of the season. We only see her with Mike once that entire season and it's right before she then ditches him for Jonathan. then in season 3 she's chasing after the story of the rats and he's looking for her or anyone to help with the whole Billy situation and can't find them leaving the majority of the kids to come up with a plan yet again on their own because they also can't reach Joyce or Hopper, (also during this time he's having relationship troubles with both El and Will - which if I was him. it would probably feel nice to have his sister around a just talk about what's going on in his life). And then at the end of season 3 when they're all together at the mall, she leaves him at the mall (with the target of the mindflayer) and it's Jonathan who decides to turn back and go save them. And then finally at the beginning of season 4 when he asks her to fill in for D&D (which I don't agree with him asking her bc he should have been there for Lucas but lets ignore that for the time being) She doesn't even let him state his case she just gives him a dirty look and shoos him away. And the thing is she kind of acts like it's his fault every season for any miscommunication between the two of them, but she is always literally impossible for him to reach except for in season 4 which honestly good on him because she's never around to help him anyway.

But yeah I think that if any character should be a character to like, finally call Nancy out. Mike would be the one best suited for it.

this is a rly great point!! i've been missing the mike + nancy dynamic and it's honestly like sometimes the show forgets they're siblings (like on your s3 example). i'm hoping beyond hope that we get Something decent with the two of them in s5

[marypsue]

REVERSE CURSE DAY!! Very underformed theory on what may happen: we’re gonna see more of what’s happening with billy leaving max alone and it’ll be ominous and concerning. Two, the eleven is heading off and I’m curious if she’ll still go alone this time. Jonathan is gonna be Not Handling the loss of powers, and also (this one more is out there) maybe he’s also possessed and to maintain spy qualities it was impossible for him to keep his powers and not immediately freak over will. Theory two, ?????idk maybe the mind slayer was so unknowable or unpleasant his mind shut itself down in defense????? Buuuuut it’s a good chance to Jonathan to learn to communicate/be with people sans comfort blanket (turns out I’m actually very bad at coming up with theories but I swear I also just woke up). Also I wonder what we’ll see now that Robin is no powers team confirmed(NANCY ILY BUT NOT EVERYONE THAT IS HIDING IS HIDING POWERS) . Even if she doesn’t show up it’s also very funny to me if Steve walks into scoops and she’s immediately like so you have powers huh. Buuuuut obviously Robin is iconic and I’m rooting for her joining the plot sooner ( Steve and Robin are shamelessly my favorite duo) (( but I do love curse reverse Jonathan and Steve energy! Also max and El friendship being well done and not the duffer’s favorite/only way to write female relationship which is stupid conflict and then miraculous bonding ) Also I love your season four observations, and the way the show would’ve been better in your hands!! No more Russia plot lines!! Also I think it would’ve been objectively very funny if Nancy and Jonathan both decided to do a last minute hurrah and fly out to Hawkins/Calif and they ended up both switching teams. Also imagine the insane opportunities of a will Joyce Mike Nancy and Argyle set up. Maybe Joyce isn’t there bc the show tries to respect it’s audience and has her present during El’s “““ arrest””” and she ends up accompanying her to the Nina Project. Then we still get to see Nancy the big sister which is a role that we don’t see often. Also I cannot believe they did an entire season badly trying to show our Hunt The Freaks and made up a new one instead dod using Jonathan. Who isn’t well liked, under mysterious circumstances got to bring his brother back to life, is always there when shit goes wrong, and also experiences class based ostracism. Because imagine the cool potential for a Steve and Jonathan dynamic and actual growth bc then they can finally go back to foils but with growth. Steve is kinda wierd now, Jonathan in some ways has things that Steve doesn’t, also they’re both the protectors of their respective band of kids and are both shown to have been distancing themselves from that role kinda. ANYWAY that’s not relevant but can’t wait fir the chapter tonight!!

Fic day!! And thank you so much for sharing your thoughts. Now I am ridiculously excited to share the next couple of chapters! (Steve and Robin are also my favourite duo. Shh, don't tell the others.)

I'm still only at the end of episode three, so I can't say much, but oh my god the hilarity of Nancy and Jonathan just missing each other? That would have been pure gold. And I never even thought of it, but you're right, it would have made so much sense to have Jonathan be the target of a witchhunt, and given so many good character opportunities for him and Steve. I just feel so bad for him, like, very clearly the Duffers are wishing they could just write him out and he deserves so much better. I did not expect to get this attached to him after my first watchthrough, but here we are.

(Tangentially related: the beautiful and talented @daddygrandpaandthebeaver is, as we speak, working on a season 4 AU rewrite where the timeskip between s3 and s4 is three years instead of nine months, and Dustin is the one who's running a drama I mean, D&D club and gets a murder unfairly pinned on him and the Party and assorted friends and relatives have to assemble to save him from the torches and pitchforks, and I am so hype for that fic that it's unbelievable.)

[moonlit-imagines]

Headcanons for being a Party Member

Stranger Kids x reader

warnings:

a/n: 💖💖 these ones were kind bad but i hope you like!

prompt: anonymous: “Hi! Can you make a headcannon for Stranger Things of just being in the party? Sorry if its too vague. Thank you so much for giving us so much free content!!”

you’ve known the boys for a long, long time

your mom was friends with joyce in high school, so you knew will your whole life

he introduced you to mike and soon lucas and dustin had joined the mix

let’s face it, you guys weren’t the most popular, but as long as you had each other it was fine

“at recess do you want to play castle?”

“yes! but we need to make up our characters”

will the wise was born that day, it just stuck

you guys were obsessed with star wars when it came out

“i’d totally be a jedi” -mike

“mike, you’d cry at the sight of any alien creature”

“not true!”

“i think lucas would be a kickass pilot, though”

“i’d get the princess, too” -lucas

dustin ended up playing lightsabers with you, though

you’ve accidentally knocked down tons of stuff in mike’s basement

“cut it out, you guys!”

“soooorryyyyy”

“you are not!”

AV club was just the 5 of you acting afool under adult supervision

mr. clark was still proud of your young minds, though

D&D campaigns, you were the rogue

you were also easily distracted during the game

“anyone want chips, im gonna get some chips”

“no! you can’t leave now!”

“watch me”

playing with mike’s toys while he’s not looking

battling them with lucas, dustin, and will

until mike started protesting

bike rides around town until sunset

SLEEPOVERS

“who the hell is snoring?”

“i think it’s dustin”

“PILLOW FIGHT!!!”

“kids, time to sleep!” -any parent

“let’s watch a scary movie”

“no! i mean—i’m tired” -mike

depending on which house you were staying in, you’d have a great time

will’s brother, jonathan, was always nice to you

nancy...not so much

“hi na—” *door slams* “oh...”

erica always intruded on your sleepovers at lucas’s

“i wanna play! can i play?”

“no, erica, go play somewhere else”

“you’re so mean, lucas”

“bye!”

dustin didn’t have any siblings, but he did have a cat who was pretty nice

“hi mews!”

the night will disappeared was a night you’ll never forget

you were so determined to find him, he had to be around somewhere

you ended up getting in deeper water than you’d originally thought when you met eleven, who apparently had superpowers

“mike!!! you’re mom is gonna kill you for bringing a random girl in the house”

“i know! shhhhh”

she was weird to say the least

and it was pretty scary sneaking around with her

“dude...she has the force”

“shut up!”

after a long week of fighting with your friends and encountering inter dimensional monsters and the government, you realized your life would never be the same

your mom was pretty protective over you for a while

the party had to come to your house instead for the next few months

“sorry guys, she’s just...really upset about the whole thing”

“it’s okay, y/n. we don’t mind”

being each other’s support system

especially when it came to will, he really worried you guys

“today is will’s doctor visit, hope it goes okay...”

spending HOURS in the arcade, struggling to beat other people’s high scores

“i’m gonna do it! i’m gonna get the top score!”

“in your dreams, y/n”

hAlLoWeEn

you knew you weren’t supposed to dress up at school but no one was paying attention to you when you told them

unfortunate.

there was a new girl who mike hated right off the bat

but lucas and dustin wouldn’t stop fighting over

“you two are the worst, you know that?”

trick or treating and dumping your candy later on to trade, the most effective way to get the best halloween

“nougat, disgusting. anybody want it? i’ll give it to you for free”

*dustin and you simultaneously* “ME!”

dustin’s “pet lizard” scaring the hell out of you

“dart makes me...uncomfortable”

max pulling you aside to ask why mike hates her

“uh...he’s a dick? i don’t know”

you and max ended up getting along pretty okay, though

she did complain about mike a LOT though

and when lucas filled her in on the demogorgon/upside-down/eleven situation, EVERYONE was pissed

you guys realized that the upside down stuff was not over and there was an epic teamup with all of you yaaaay

steve harrington adopted you it’s true

eleven came back

that was cool

you gave her a hug bc like duh??? you missed her

steve babysitting you guys and then getting beat up by max’s stepbrother, billy

“can i hit him? i wanna hit him”

“do it!”

doing dumbass shit in the tunnels that ended up working out anyways! yay!

“we’re all gonna die we’re all gonna die oh my god i’m too young to die”

“Y/N STOP”

in the end everything was (mostly) okay but like, that was scarring

summer rolled around and el and mike were dating, max and lucas were dating, and dusting came back from camp and claimed to be dating some girl from faaaar away

“liar”

“i’m not lying!”

steve sneaking you into movies

he also gave you (and only you) free ice cream but only bc he knew you wouldn’t tell anyone else

robin and you talking while you hid in the break room to eat your ice cream

“so...what do you do for fun”

“kill monsters”

“oh...okay”

kinda sick of the party’s shit for a while, so dustin and you were off scheming with the scoops employees

bad ideaaaa!! the russians!! you were almost killed!!

rescue mission for steve and robin

“they’re high as shit”

“nO YOu aRe”

“wonderful, we’re screwed”

losing them fhdhdhsh

“y/n?!”

“what? i’m not a babysitter!”

being chased by russians but also the rest of the party showing up and updating you but also adults finally making an appearance and you wanting to cry because like what the fuck is happening

being chased by the mind flayer

“GUYS IF WE DONT MAKE IT I WANT YOU ALL TO KNOW I LOVE YOU”

“Y/N. STOP SAYING THINGS THAT MAKE US THINK WE’RE GOING TO DIE”

eek that night sucked

you also almost fell down the hill that cerebro was placed on

and then uhhh hopper died so that was really bad and will ended up moving away with el and everyone was very sad

your mom cried when joyce left :(

you cried way too much

might i add going over to lucas’s to hang out with erica bc now you guys are friends lmaooo

“why are you here, y/n?”

“erica wanted me to come over”

“you two are impossible”

and to end this on a high note, the remaining party members in town were finally working through their differences as you all grew up and knew that it’d be impossible to separate for good

also pizza nights every week (sometimes accompanied by an older teen bc why not)

“if you guys eat all the damn pizza we’re gonna have a problem”

“we can’t help it! we’re growing!”

taglist: @locke-writes // @queenofthehairharrington // @praellee // @bonniesbabybunnie // @lotsoffandomrecs //

[themikewheelers]

I don't want to imagine just how distraught Mike must've felt when he found out El would be moving away. Although I don't think he let her know just how devastated he really was, as El was grieving over Hopper and he probably didn't want to add to that. I can picture him crying by himself every night, feeling so frustrated he can't do anything to stop El from leaving. Again. Other characters have had it worse than Mike, but damn, that boy has suffered so much too.

i know :(( mike rlly was going through a lot those three months. on top of dealing with his own trauma from everything that happened, i’m sure he put a LOT of pressure on himself to be there for el all the time and support her unconditionally with everything she was going through. bc that’s just the kind of person mike is, and he prides himself very heavily on his ability to take care of the ppl he loves, and sometimes that can be rough on him. it would pain him a lot to see how depressed el was, and it would pain him even more to know that there’s nothing he can do to help her and he would end up burdening himself with this feeling like he’s responsible for helping her and doing absolutely anything he can to support her, which can absolutely be overwhelming for him. and then when he finds out she’s moving, that’s gonna be so so so hard on him bc obviously he’s gonna miss her (and will) SO much, but it’s also gonna make him feel worse bc now that she’s gonna be gone, he won’t even be around to support her and help her with her grief. and then not to mention his own grief over hopper, bc even if the two of them didn’t have a great relationship, i do think mike rlly appreciated hopper for everything he’s done for el and will the last several years, and i do think it would eat mike up inside thinking about all the time he spent messing with hopper and pushing his buttons and all that with el.

so mike’s gonna be dealing with so much grief and guilt and trauma on his own, he’s not gonna feel like he can express these feelings to anybody bc knows a lot of people are going through a lot worse, and he’s gonna be burdening himself with this belief that he has to be doing everything in his power to take el’s pain away, which he knows is impossible, bc u can’t take away grief, and it’s gonna pain him so much to accept that. and all these feelings are just gonna be worse when he finds out el’s leaving. poor boy rlly is going through a lot and i completely agree with the last thing u said bc yeah there’s a lot of characters who’ve dealt with much worse, but poor mike rlly has spent every season dealing with so much pain and trauma and he rlly never gets a break

[thepringlesofblood]

thoughts on stranger things three  (spoilers. so many.)

this is just me yellin into the void as usual, but I like recording my opinions on things even if no one will read them 

good:

- every single scene w/ the robin, steve, erica, dustin gang, especially!!! the coming out scene. scoops?? iconic. steve and dustin’s secret handshake? transcendent. the drugged out back to the future scene? perfect. 

- eleven and max say fuck the patriarchy. love el’s new look 

- more competent women is always a win

- funhouse fight!!! carnival fight!!!FIREWORKS??!??!

- the destruction of the mall (sadly the only anticapitalist symbolism I could find)

- the scene after jonathan and nancy get fired where they’re angry about their separate marginalized identities making this loss worse. I really liked how it went into the ways it will impact both of them, and I especially liked when nancy got home and talked to her mom. 

- joyce going buckwild and getting shit done. 

- the portrayal of hypervigilance as a symptom of PTSD. All of these characters have seen some shit, and all of them pick up on the littlest things the second they present themselves because subconsciously, they’re always on edge, always aware of bad it could break. 

- most of will’s character arc. not all, but most of it. the queer experience of watching all your friends get dates and feeling like you’re missing out on something? trying to regain their interest because you feel lost and left behind? worrying that you’re not “growing up” because you don’t recognize romantic interest in yourself? not realizing you’re falling for your best friend until they get a romantic partner and suddenly you hate the partner even though they haven’t done anything wrong? a poignant, beautiful, very painful portrayal of queer teenhood. I really, really wish there was a moment that the audience realized will was in love with mike though. Like, it’s been building for a very long time. Also, a more thorough confirmation of will’s queerness would’ve been nice. I think they meant mike saying “you don’t understand bc you don’t like girls” to be that confirmation, but I want to hear it from will. Robin’s moment is so so so good though. 

- domestic fuckery 

- getting someone on the inside to help them/alexei as a character. not the symbolism or larger ramifications of his character arc, but how his knowledge and personality interacted. 

- mr clarke!!!!

- el going into someone’s memories again

- how prepared everyone is to fight because they’ve seen this shit before and robin and erica are just like ‘this might as well happen’ 

- keeping with the stranger things pattern of having a bunch of different groups of people all in different genres and then together they all meet up and go ?????

- I know every says billy didn’t get enough of a redemption arc but tbh I did not see his character development as redeeming in any way and I liked that. It didn’t excuse his abusive actions, it just explained them. There was no “oh he was secretly good all along”, no dramatic total character reversal on his death bed, just him deciding that he had enough of being controlled. Max didn’t get full closure with him, he didn’t say some big speech about being wrong or realizing the ramifications of his actions bc he hadn’t reached that point yet. he just said “I’m sorry” and died. that could mean “i’m sorry for how I’ve treated you”, “I’m sorry for how many people I’ve killed”, “I’m sorry for not being able to stop the monster”, anything. we don’t know what it means. we don’t get an explanation. It speaks to how survivors of abuse often don’t get to know why, don’t get closure, don’t get all the answers. 

- steve finally won a fight before getting the shit kicked out of him

- the whole no one knowing anything about each other bc no cell phones and/or wasnt there when It Happened. 

- Erica getting the DND set was poetic cinema 

- when joyce sees will on the firetruck and they run towards each other because finally, for once, will is completely unscathed, will isn’t the one who got hurt/possessed. I was already crying but this is the part where i had to get tissues bc I was sobbing. 

Bad:

- the red scare bullshit and glorification of capitalism. this show started out as “the US govt is doing shady shit” and now the big climatic “everything’s alright” is the army getting there?? what the fuck. There’s being accurate to the time period and then there’s sending a message. they could’ve subverted that trope in so many ways, but they just went for straight up “capitalism is great! fuck russia!” and I hated that. also, talk about one-note villainry. there weren’t even any dramatic monologues to make up for it, it just kinda sucked. 

- Hopper’s character in the beginning of the season. the scene where he gets wasted after getting stood up? shitty. not talking to el about his vaguely sexist overprotective actions? shitty. blowing up at joyce for no reason? shitty. he pulls it together in the end but it was OOC for a bit there. Plus I would kill for more “hopper and el work through their trauma together”, rather than “friend group splinters bc hopper did a yell” 

- I don’t know what to think about hopper’s death. It just hurts, and not in a satisfying, last harry potter book way. 

- why the fuck are the byers and el moving?????? did they ever give a reason???? WHY?????? WILL AND EL’S ENTIRE SUPPORT NETWORK, THE ONLY PEOPLE WHO KNOW WHAT THEY’VE BEEN THROUGH AND CAN HELP THEM, IS IN HAWKINS!!!!!

- the ads. omg the ads. lucas idc about your fucking coke. there’s so much goddamn product placement. christ on a goddamn bicycle. 

- previous seasons have had body horror, but it was all black goo so it was removed from reality and conveyed a psychological, otherworldly horror. and I liked that. WHY WAS THERE SO MUCH FUCJING MEAT IN THIS ONE??? THE MIND FLAYER LOOKED LIKE IT WAS MADE OF BBQ SAUCE AND I HATED IT!!! STOP!!!THE MEATS!!!!!

- can el not be injured......for oNCE?????

- also can people stop standing around staring at shit so much? theyve seen it before. it’s not like it’s a huge shock. people stand around for like 5 minutes before Doing Things and it annoys me. with the New Kids like erica and robin it makes sense but like....whenever theres a monster mike just sits there like :o cOME ON DUDE YOU’VE DONE THIS SO MANY TIMES GET A KNIFE OR SOMETHIN!!!

- WHAT. WAS. THE GREEN STUFF?????????????????? IS IT FUCKING PLUTONIUM OR SOMETHING???? WHAT THE FUCK!!! IF YOU NEED A MACGUFFIN BE LESS OBVIOUS ABOUT IT!!!

- idk about you but murray yelling at them about sex kinda rubbed me the wrong way. 

- speaking of, you caNNOT convince me that murray, 4 locks on the front door lives in a bunker murray, would take a goddamn enemy of the state to a carnival and leave him alone for any period of time. seriously????????

- look.....it was adorable.....i’ll give you that.....but.....the song dustin and suzy sang slapped me with secondhand embarrassment and genre disconnect so hard I found it impossible to enjoy. also...planck’s constant??? you could/......idk........call mr clarke????????? you’ve interrupted the man’s life for less!!!! I was also half expecting it to be joyce who remembered it from all the studying she did on the magnets. I did enjoy the whole “i met a girl at camp” story being unbelievable until it was but like I was expecting the thing she wanted him to say to be like a famous star wars love quote or something not an entire song jesus christ 

- if hopper turns out to be alive I will face god and walk backwards into hell. I suffered through supernatural, I will not be caught in a cycle of fake deaths again. 

- i get the whole “we’re growing up now” thing but aren’t they like 13? theyre still so young??? also like i dont rly care for the vague soap-opera-y vibes the core squad gave off. 

- the only people who got flayed were either a. already pretty shitty or b. completely unknown. like. it just made it less scary????

- hopper just fucking standing by the machine looking at joyce instead of running the 5 seconds up the steps into the room. seriously? was that supposed to be slow motion or was that real time??? 

- the whole thing with cerebro not working at the beginning sucked ass. 

- hey does mrs wheeler have eyes??? like??? there were exactly two (2) scenes she had with mike and nancy and both were Big Conversations like they live there right/????tbh i forgot she was their mom until those scenes bc of the whole billy thing, which i decidedly do not have an opinion on but like....do they eat breakfast there??? 

[trnstlanticism]

why can’t i have that?

hey i wrote a really quick henclair thing. i meant for this to be fluff but it became more dustin centric and introspective than i originally intended. sorry - the henclair is there at the end! but it’s mostly dustin centric, him being emo about dying alone, with side byeler bc i’m predictable. there’s mention of underage drinking and they’re all aged up to be 17 in here. this is my first time writing Dramatic Dustin so i hope it wasn’t too terrible...

Dustin wakes up with his head aching which immediately puts him in a bad mood. He grumbles sleepily from his place on Mike’s basement floor, the pain too much to simply ignore and go back to sleep. Last night had been just the guys - rewatching Star Wars and eating junk food, and then taking sips of the whiskey Mike had stolen from his father’s cabinet. It had been disgusting and Dustin was ready to spit it out but watching the way Lucas chugged it down, smirking at all of them after he’d finished, bolstered his competitive spirit and he immediately chugged down several sips.

Now, he was paying the price for it.

He’s considering the pros and cons of waking up and dragging his sorry hungover - over barely a glass of whiskey?! Seriously!? Alcohol was such bullshit - self up the stairs for a glass of water and Advil, and hopefully Mrs. Wheeler’s cooking. Then he remembers that she’s out for the weekend - the only reason they’d been able to drink alcohol in the first place, and feels despair so acute in his gut, he could throw up.

There’s a soft groaning from the couch and he cranes his neck a little to see Will sitting up with a disgruntled expression, his eyes squinting. Dustin’s about to ask him if he feels the after-effects of the whiskey as well when two gangly arms come out of nowhere, wrap around Will’s waist, and pull him back down against the couch. Will squirms a little. “Mike,” he says with fond exasperation and now Dustin is definitely going to throw up.

So… yeah. That was a thing. Mike and Will, not officially “together” by any means but pretty much definitely “together” in every sense of the word - now they slept together on the couch or even retreated up to Mike’s bedroom on sleepover nights, held hands whenever they went out to the party, and Dustin had seen Will’s swollen lips and Mike’s self-satisfied smile too many times. He’s happy for his friends, he really is, but it reminds him of how Mike and El and Lucas and Max were back in the beginning of high school - happy couple holding hands and shit, painfully reminding Dustin of his single status and how at this rate he was going to die alone.

Dustin wasn’t… lonely by the standard definition of lonely but it sure would be nice to have someone to cuddle in the morning. Not that he wanted to cuddle Will or Mike - judging by Mike’s soft voice and Will’s motherfucking giggles, he was going to kill them if they engaged in any public displays of affection right in front of him. Like, seriously how dare they? Didn’t they care about his feelings?

He turns his head back to his other companion on the floor. “Lucas are you seeing this shit?” But there’s no Lucas in his sleeping bag, beside him, where they fell asleep last night. He blinks. “Hey guys stop making out for a second - where’s Lucas?”

Mike groans out loud. “We weren’t making out!” Yet, Dustin thinks miserably.

Will sticks his head out to where he is with a sheepish smile. “Oh you’re awake,” he says, way too chipper for someone who most definitely has a hangover. “Well, he’s probably upstairs. Do you wanna go check and see?”

Will does this thing with his voice where he’s not exactly asking you to do something but he might as well be with his large hazel doe-like eyes. Dustin has never wanted to punch his friend so much.

“Fine,” he grumbles as he stands, making sure to look as unhappy as possible. His headache has increased exponentially - a certain consequence from being exposed to his friends happy gay vibes. Will is smiling, pleased, and Mike isn’t even looking at Dustin, running his hands up Will’s sides and kissing his ear. Dustin makes a disgusted noise before he climbs up the stairs, making sure to step down on each one particularly hard, even though it makes his ears ring something awful.

“How dare you,” is how he greets Lucas. Lucas, who’s in the kitchen looking perfectly fine, cooking eggs on the stove, a plate of warm toast already on the table.

Lucas raises his eyebrows at him. “Good morning to you too, asshole,” he says cheerfully.

Dustin practically throws himself onto the chair with a whine. “How could you leave me down there with the lovebirds?! They’re in their honeymoon stage - it’s disgusting!”

“It’s cute,” Lucas corrects him with a laugh. He grabs a glass, fills it with water, and hands it to Dustin. “Here. Drink this, you look like shit.”

“Still look better than you,” Dustin mumbles back, before chugging the water down gratefully. “I mean seriously, don’t they have any shame? I swear, Mike was going to eat Will right in front of me! Like come on!”

“At least they’re happy?” Lucas puts a plate in front of him, eggs a little runny just the way he likes it, so that he can dip his toast into it. “I mean… you remember sophomore year.” Dustin cringes. Yeah, he remembers sophomore year. Mike and El’s messy breakup, Will’s obvious and tragic pining - yeah it was bad. Really bad. “Make sure you eat some toast, then take some Advil,” Lucas gestures for him to eat. “You have a headache right?”

Dustin sinks in his seat, flashing back to the way Lucas had so easily drank last night. “No, I don’t,” he lies. Lucas isn’t with Max anymore either, the two of them amicably breaking up last summer but Lucas has still drifted from him in a way Dustin didn’t like thinking about. He’d joined the track and field team at his dad’s urging and by junior year he was a star player of the team. Doing sports did good things for your reputation and Lucas had been elevated to “cool kid.” He still hung out with them but he also hung out with a lot more people - not the art kids like Will knew or the theater nerds Mike hung out with. Certainly not anyone on the school decathalon team like Dustin was. Lucas was smart, athletic, popular, and probably went to tons of parties were he learned how to drink whiskey like that.

Yeah, Dustin definitely didn’t want to think about that.

Lucas stares at him, his dark eyes seeing right through him. “Just eat, Henderson.”

So Dustin does, moodily chewing his eggs and toast, his mood too foul to properly enjoy them even though they’re exactly the kind of pick me up he needed after last night. He’s feeling weird - frustrated over Will and Mike’s easy affection, jealous that he can’t have any of that for his own, and Lucas standing there in front of him with his patient eyes and sly smile isn’t helping him at all. Lucas hands him the pills after he’s eaten most of his breakfast. “Drink.”

“Whatever,” Dustin mumbles as he does so. Lucas’s smile is gone, replaced with a concerned frown.

“Hey man, are you okay? You’re like, moodier than normal.” His voice goes quiet. “Mike didn’t really - “

“No!” Dustin’s head is throbbing. “No, it’s nothing like that. It’s just. It’s so stupid. Relationships, love.” He sighs, pushing his plate away, and putting his head down on the table. “It’s all bullshit.”

Lucas doesn’t say anything but after a beat of silence, Dustin feels a hand in his hair, slowly stroking his curls. Dustin hates that Lucas knows how much this calms him down - he wants to stay angry god damn it - but the tension in his body slowly starts to seep out, as Lucas’s touch somehow magically massages his headache away.

After all, Dustin knows it’s not bullshit. He wants that - he wants soft looks in the morning, tender touches in the afternoon, and a warm body to curl up with at night. He wants to feel love and be loved in return. It doesn’t seem like it should be so hard, considering most of his friends have been with someone at least once. Dustin wants to call up Steve and tell him that his advice was full of shit but it’s not like Dustin every laid moves on someone he actually wanted to be with. He didn’t want to just date someone for the experience. He wanted someone that he could talk to about the recent discoveries in gene therapy and have them actually listen instead of having their eyes glaze over. He wanted someone who would listen to him when he cried about New Zealand’s kakapos becoming an endangered species because of what it could mean for other similar species.

He wanted someone like Lucas, who did all of that and more. But Lucas had so much more going for him so there was no way Dustin could find someone to replace him. It was impossible.

“Are you falling asleep Dustin?” Lucas hasn’t stopped petting his hair, but he definitely sounds amused. Dustin groans into the table, insistently bumping his head against Lucas’s hand.

“Don’t stop,” he mumbles, eyes shutting close. Maybe he was getting a little sleepy. “Don’t stop, or I’ll die.”

“You’re so dramatic.” Lucas hums a little, a tune Dustin vaguely recognizes as a song that Will keeps playing in Mike’s car. It’s always Will in the passenger seat, holding Mike’s hand across the dash, while Dustin and Lucas are pressed close together in the back. It’s always been like that.

“Hey Dustin?” Lucas’s voice is serious and Dustin tries to listen even though dreamland is dragging him back into blissful sleep. “It’s not bullshit, you know. Love and all that. I promise, it isn’t.”

Easy for you to say asshole, Dustin wants to reply but he’s already asleep. He doesn’t know it, but Lucas keeps stroking his hair, staring at him with longing, intense eyes, words that remain unspoken getting swallowed in the lukewarm morning air.

[themikewheelers]

how do you think the rest of the season would have gone if mike and el really HAD been reunited when she was snooping through the school in episode 3 (i think)?

I mean it's hard to say bc if El came back at that point, EVERYTHING would have changed so it's hard to know exactly what would happen If El walked into the gym and reunited with Mike, Mike probably would have immediately supercommed the other boys and they would have all come running. And that means two things. 1) Will wouldn't have ended up getting possessed that day 2) Dustin wouldn't have found Dart, and as a result he wouldn't have found out Dart was actually a Demogorgon Now the first thing SOUNDS like a positive thing, but honestly I really think Will would have still gotten possessed, just at a different time. And that time maybe no one would have been around to help him during his vision and it could have gone very badly. And if El was back when Will was possessed, then Mike probably would have been so focused on her he wouldn't have gone to help Will and without him helping Joyce and Bob, maybe they wouldn't have been able to help Will. And basically changing this little detail would basically change the entire plot of the season so it's impossible to guess how much everything would change, and whether it would be overall good or bad And if Dustin didn't know Dart was a Demogorgon? Well then there would be an entire army of the Demodogs loose in Hawkins and NO ONE WOULD KNOW. It would be really really bad And this isn't to mention the fact that if El came back that early, then she wouldn't have ever found out the truth about her past or have met her mother or have met Kali (who taught her a really important lesson about letting go of her trauma and finding her true home, even if it was unintentional) and yah idk I don't think El was READY to come home yet that early. She wanted to desperately, but I think if she did there's a lot of stuff that would have started to eat away at her and idk I feel like in the long run it's really good and healthy for El that it took her so long to come home bc her s2 arc really did help her grow a lot All in all, I think El coming home that early in ep3 probably would have been a DISASTER