You were enjoying the Stranger Things drone show in Las Vegas, watching all your favorite characters appear in the sky, their movements perfectly timed to the music, listening to their voices and monologues as you excitedly took it all in.

Then, suddenly, you bumped into some guy, hard enough to stumble back a step, your breath catching in your throat.

Jamie Campbell Bower stood in front of you in the crowd. His presence alone left you breathless.

“Oh, sorry” you managed, voice too loud in your head. “You’re—” pointing at the Vecna figure in the sky.

He nodded slightly, shoulders slumped, eyes shadowed from hours of signing autographs and smiling for fans. “Yeah, that’s me.”

Your chest tightened. The drones above shifted. Lights twisted together until the Upside Down gate formed, jagged rings glowing red against the night sky. The air felt heavier. The crowd gasped and cheered, but you could barely hear it. You stared up at the sky then at the famous actor standing beside you.

Then his voice, deep and chilling, echoed through the speakers:

“It’s time for your suffering to end….and I will be there… I will be there to pick up the pieces when it does…and we will make it into something beautiful…It’s time for a new world…and there’s nothing you can do to stop it…”

You stared in awe as the Vecna figure disappeared into the sky, and he rubbed the back of his neck, smiling.

“I’m a fan,” you blurted quickly, trying to sound normal. “I promise not to be weird or make a scene.”

He let out a quiet laugh, strained but genuine. “I appreciate that.”

The crowd surged again, phones, shouting, music pounding. He shifted, weary, clearly wanting out of the crowd.

“Do you want to get away from the crowd?” you asked.

He hesitated, blinking slowly, exhaustion clear in his gaze. Then he nodded. “Yeah.”

You slipped behind the venue. The noise softened. The drones were still visible above, spinning the gate in ominous red, but distant now.

There was a low wall. You sat. He joined you, sinking down with a quiet exhale.

He glanced at you, tired but attentive. “I don’t really want to go back in that crowd.”

“I get that,” you said. Then, added teasingly to lighten the mood, “I promise I won’t kidnap you or anything.”

He paused, then laughed, head tipping back slightly. “Good. That was my main concern.”

He stretched his shoulders, thinking for a second. Then casually: “Want to walk for a bit? Just… away from here?”