𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐀𝐅𝐓𝐄𝐌𝐀𝐓𝐇 || stranger things

the vanishing of will byers.

Maggie May was born, on August 8, 1971, coincided with the only sound playing on the car radio as Jim rushed Diane to the hospital: Rod Stewart's "Maggie May." This uncertainty led her parents to choose the name for their newborn. By the age of five, Maggie May had adopted the nickname "Mags," a decision she made in the presence of her younger sister, Sara Hopper.

Tragedy struck when Sara fell ill with cancer, leaving Maggie to fend for herself as their parents were constantly at the hospital. Sadly, Sara lost her battle two years later, and her mother fell into a deep depression.

After her parent's divorce and a move to Hawkins, Maggie found solace in the company of her best friends Mike, and Dustin, and her secret love, Lucas. The arrival of Eleven, a quiet and introverted girl, soon formed an unbreakable bond with Maggie. However, when Eleven disappeared, Maggie spiralled into a deep melancholy. Her father experienced déjà vu and feared for her well-being.

Maggie's life took a dark turn as she skipped school, started smoking, and hung out with a troubled crowd. One night, after a night of heavy drinking, she crossed paths with Jean, a girl who reminded her of someone from not too long ago but will this new connection be enough to bring happiness back into Maggie's life?

Autumn 1981

"GET UP!" A distant cry pierced through Maggie May's hazy consciousness. She stirred in her euphoric state, her thoughts racing. "Shit," she mumbled under her breath, aware that she had taken another dark turn. As her eyes opened, they met the unforgiving sight of the cold bathroom floor tiles, sending a shiver down her spine.

"Maggie May, not again," a booming voice resonated behind her. It was her father, Jim Hopper. Jim's demeanour had grown stern and unyielding, especially since the loss of her younger sister, Sara, to cancer and their relocation to Hawkins without her mother. He showed no mercy, and she knew that her father's discovery of her slumped on the bathroom floor at 7 a.m. was a grim omen.

"Maggie May, get up. Now!" he urged, moving closer, but she remained motionless, trapped in her own despair.

"GET UP, DAMMIT!" Jim Hopper's voice erupted with fury, his frustration boiling over. His face contorted with rage as he stood over his daughter, who lay motionless on the bathroom floor.

Jim's grip tightened as he shook her, his anger evident in his trembling hands. "You think this is some kind of game, Maggie May? Do you even care about what you're putting me through?" His voice cracked with a mixture of anger and desperation, the weight of his daughter's self-destructive behaviour bearing down on him.

But despite the thunderous rage in his voice, it seemed that Maggie May had sunk too deep into her darkness to heed his words or his anger.

Maggie May could feel the intensity of her father's anger, but it seemed distant as if she were watching it through a thick fog. She couldn't find the strength to respond, her inner turmoil consuming her.

With a groan, Maggie May began to stir. The throbbing in her head matched the pounding of her heart, a painful reminder of the previous night's excess. She reluctantly pushed herself into a sitting position, her movements sluggish and unsteady.

Jim Hopper's anger still hung heavy in the air, but Maggie May appeared to be in a world of her own. She barely registered her father's words as she focused on the arduous task of getting ready for school. The sound of her father's voice slowly faded into the background as she trudged to the bathroom sink to splash water on her face, attempting to wash away the remnants of her night.

As she mechanically applied makeup to hide the dark circles under her eyes and dressed in her default outfit of an oversized dark jumper and jeans, it was as if she had built a wall around herself, shutting out the anger and frustration of the world beyond. Her detachment was a defence mechanism, a way to shield herself from the harsh reality of her choices and the pain she was causing her father.