pairing: Byeler , and classic Dustin & Lucas being besties
When the roller skating craze began to spread across the States, Hawkins seemed to stay in its sleepy, isolated spot nestled between bronze wheat fields and dense forests. While a few people got their own pairs of skates and klutzed around the neighborhood on wobbly wheels and scuffed knees, most stuck to their trusty bikes (this was especially true for Mike, Will, Dustin, and Lucas).
That was until 1982, when Hawkins got its very own roller rink. It was unusual for Hawkins to get anything so gaudy and new, but there it was, a few blocks from the movie theater with its silver siding all the way around that glinted in the sun and made you blind for a few seconds if you looked too hard. The building itself was somewhat stark, just a big rectangle with just that metal siding and just two neon signs letting you know where you were; one rising above buildings to get you there and one above the doors to get you inside.
It opened in June, and the boys all begged their moms to let them go the week it opened. They were all able to go (the other three ended up chipping in so Will could afford it) and eagerly hopped on their bikes. Riding them felt so natural, like they would never fall down, and they assumed it couldn't be that much different from roller skating; they were wrong, obviously.
Dustin complained that the new asphalt was too dark and too hot, even through his shoes, and Lucas rolled his eyes but decided he wanted to be on good terms with his best friend; even though he'd be the last to admit that he was nervous and might need some help learning to skate.
Mike and Will trailed just a few steps behind, not saying much but exchanging small smiles at Lucas and Dustin's bickering.
The four clambered up the steps, somehow managing to only bump into each other a little bit in their excitement. They barely made eye contact with the person behind the ticket booth; they just shoved their money through the opening and waited for a little purple stamp to be pressed onto their wrist.
It was dark inside, save for neon tubes lining the rink and some dim ceiling lamps around the edge. It was also loud, but the good loud, the kind that made the boys giggle uncontrollably as they heard their favorite songs blasting from the speakers; they all wanted to dance, but they wouldn't dare do that in public. It smelled like the movie theater, like popcorn and chocolate and pizza, and a little bit like floor polish. Mike wrinkled his nose at the gaudy dark blue carpet, scattered with neon squares and triangles in a mess of something that he guessed was supposed to be "eye appealing". To a blind person, maybe. Yet something about this place, with the lights and the noise and the smells, even the less pleasant ones, was inviting. It seemed like too much and too exaggerated, but it also seemed like a place for friends. Mike could definitely see this being that kind of place, the kind of place like the arcade, which was lovable despite its musty smells and the two games that were always broken. Some places just were; were special, were important, were happy. He liked these memory-making places, even if they took a little bit of getting used to and a little bit of letting loose.
Lost in thought, as usual, Mike didn't snap back until he felt the gentlest of tugging on his sleeve. Will, almost a head shorter than him, was looking anxiously from him to the skate counter. Dustin and Lucas were already yelling their shoe sizes to the bored teenager behind the desk, jostling each other because that pair is a better color and those wheels look cooler and why do you get the ones with the red laces. As the day-dreaming, almost puzzled look left Mike's face, a small grin took its place. New hangout, same friends; same stubborn Lucas and same whiny Dustin, and same shy, sweet Will Byers.
"Yeah. Sorry," Mike finally said, giving Will a quick pat on the shoulder as they started to walk over to the other two boys. "We're here to actually skate, aren't we?"
