An alternative view of things.
Nov. 9th, 2022 09:42 pmSomeone on Tumblr requested I write up the plot of a fic I daydream about but haven't committed to. I ended up committing to that, and decided it ought to be on Dreamwidth, too.
Hawkins, Indiana is a gem of American small towns. A good place to live, raise a family, not get into too much trouble. The main employers are the local government and the public school system; its attractions include the well-zoned downtown area, the Fourth of July festival, and the nearby military base.
It’s no secret. Everyone knows about it. The base is several miles out of town - a short drive, a decent bike ride, a long walk. It’s one of the country’s smaller army bases, as these things go: mostly, it’s a regional basic training center, and only dates back to the mid-sixties. You’ve got recruits, you’ve got officers, you’ve got staff. You’ve got people who go there to train and people who go there for assignments and people who live there year-round. A sizable number of the people who live there year-round are married and raise children. Because it’s as far out of town as it is, the kids who live on the base just go to school there. The class sizes are smaller, and the education is slightly varied from what the kids get in the town’s public schools.
The man in charge of their education is one doctor Sam Owens.
It’s not all the children he takes a particular interest in, only a few - and you’d have to look closely to put together the kids he takes a particular interest in are all in blended families, their parents all remarried after divorces or deaths - though if you ask, he’ll happily go on about how he genuinely enjoys the work of educational administration. Seeing all these young people with such different personalities and abilities grow and develop.
Everyone knows there’s kids who live on base. People come into town on evenings and weekends to see a movie, have a couple drinks, get some air. Kids get taken into town with their parents to have a meal at the diner, go swimming at the public pool. Kids from the base meet the kids from the town, and there’s friendliness, but no real mixing. Not when it’s such an effort to keep the friendships going when there’s that much physical distance between them - and, to be honest, a bit of a culture shift. The base’s brats are all friends with each other, with Dr. Owens having no tolerance for bullies.
The previous man in charge of the children’s education lasted about six weeks before being transferred to a less people-oriented position, much higher in management and far removed from the day-to-day work of dealing with the practicalities. The arrangement gives Dr. Owens a little more freedom.
The arrangement gives the kids homes to live in and parents who love them.
The arrangement has the kids knowing exactly where and when certain actions are appropriate, and under what circumstances they’re allowed conditional permission.
One of the base officers, James Hopper, is from Hawkins, and didn’t request the transfer. He was told where to go, and he went. He was told about his duty to the country, and he fulfills it. He’s a loving husband and a caring father. He’ll sometimes take a weekend’s leave to the house he keeps out in the woods, spend some time by himself, get some perspective.
Sometimes he brings his daughter Jane along. Not her mother - the two of them don’t even sleep in the same bedroom, let alone the same bed. They’re on good terms, happy in the arrangement, and there’s some weekends it’s nice to not pretend.
Jane doesn’t think much of this - a bunch of her friends’ parents don’t sleep in the same room, either. She always likes those weekends, because her dad’s always made sure she understands she doesn’t need conditional permission when they’re out there. It’s okay. He knows she knows how to do things safely. He’s seen her demonstrate why Dr. Owens takes an interest in her education over some of the other officer’s kids.
The house is a little closer to town than the base, and those weekends usually begin with an afternoon getting groceries and, if they got an early start, hanging out with the local kids.
The base’s brats are all friends to each other, and misfits when it comes to the town’s social scene.
Which doesn’t stop friendships between townies and base brats from forming.
It’s just a little harder, is all.
Hawkins, Indiana is a gem of American small towns. A good place to live, raise a family, not get into too much trouble. The main employers are the local government and the public school system; its attractions include the well-zoned downtown area, the Fourth of July festival, and the nearby military base.
It’s no secret. Everyone knows about it. The base is several miles out of town - a short drive, a decent bike ride, a long walk. It’s one of the country’s smaller army bases, as these things go: mostly, it’s a regional basic training center, and only dates back to the mid-sixties. You’ve got recruits, you’ve got officers, you’ve got staff. You’ve got people who go there to train and people who go there for assignments and people who live there year-round. A sizable number of the people who live there year-round are married and raise children. Because it’s as far out of town as it is, the kids who live on the base just go to school there. The class sizes are smaller, and the education is slightly varied from what the kids get in the town’s public schools.
The man in charge of their education is one doctor Sam Owens.
It’s not all the children he takes a particular interest in, only a few - and you’d have to look closely to put together the kids he takes a particular interest in are all in blended families, their parents all remarried after divorces or deaths - though if you ask, he’ll happily go on about how he genuinely enjoys the work of educational administration. Seeing all these young people with such different personalities and abilities grow and develop.
Everyone knows there’s kids who live on base. People come into town on evenings and weekends to see a movie, have a couple drinks, get some air. Kids get taken into town with their parents to have a meal at the diner, go swimming at the public pool. Kids from the base meet the kids from the town, and there’s friendliness, but no real mixing. Not when it’s such an effort to keep the friendships going when there’s that much physical distance between them - and, to be honest, a bit of a culture shift. The base’s brats are all friends with each other, with Dr. Owens having no tolerance for bullies.
The previous man in charge of the children’s education lasted about six weeks before being transferred to a less people-oriented position, much higher in management and far removed from the day-to-day work of dealing with the practicalities. The arrangement gives Dr. Owens a little more freedom.
The arrangement gives the kids homes to live in and parents who love them.
The arrangement has the kids knowing exactly where and when certain actions are appropriate, and under what circumstances they’re allowed conditional permission.
One of the base officers, James Hopper, is from Hawkins, and didn’t request the transfer. He was told where to go, and he went. He was told about his duty to the country, and he fulfills it. He’s a loving husband and a caring father. He’ll sometimes take a weekend’s leave to the house he keeps out in the woods, spend some time by himself, get some perspective.
Sometimes he brings his daughter Jane along. Not her mother - the two of them don’t even sleep in the same bedroom, let alone the same bed. They’re on good terms, happy in the arrangement, and there’s some weekends it’s nice to not pretend.
Jane doesn’t think much of this - a bunch of her friends’ parents don’t sleep in the same room, either. She always likes those weekends, because her dad’s always made sure she understands she doesn’t need conditional permission when they’re out there. It’s okay. He knows she knows how to do things safely. He’s seen her demonstrate why Dr. Owens takes an interest in her education over some of the other officer’s kids.
The house is a little closer to town than the base, and those weekends usually begin with an afternoon getting groceries and, if they got an early start, hanging out with the local kids.
The base’s brats are all friends to each other, and misfits when it comes to the town’s social scene.
Which doesn’t stop friendships between townies and base brats from forming.
It’s just a little harder, is all.
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