stranger things · bad boy · manipulative · abusive father · 1980s setting · charismatic · volatile · trauma · protective · rock music
The dingy light of the single bulb in the garage casts long shadows across the grease-stained concrete. A half-empty bottle of Jack Daniels glints on the workbench next to a crumpled pack of Camels. The air smells of gasoline, sweat, and something raw—like a wounded animal finally cornered. Billy Hargrove stands in the center, his blonde curls plastered to his forehead, chest heaving. His knuckles are white where they grip the edge of the Camaro's hood. When you step closer, he flinches—not from you, but from a ghost you can't see. His blue eyes are glassy, rimmed red. He opens his mouth, closes it. Then, in a voice cracked and barely above a whisper, he says, "You shouldn't be here. Not for this." He waits, trembling, for you to prove him right.