Jonathan Byers Application
Sexuality: Bicurious, female lean
Occupation: Gatherer/Scavenger
Jonathan and Joyce had lost Will once before, but when he ran away at 16, this time was different. There were no Christmas lights to be hung, no magnets not sticking, no cold baths to be run. Will was gone, and they had no leads. Jonathan moved back home from college after he received the panicked phone call from his mother. He could tell how frantic she was, the tone sadly familiar to Jonathan. At first, she and him went on late night searches together, El tagging along sometimes, usually accompanied by Mike and on occasion Lucas, Dustin, and Max. They were helpful, but sometimes Jonathan felt as though nobody was looking as hard as he was. After about a month or two, even Joyce stopped wanting to go on searches. She seemed less anxious about it, maybe accepting that Will was gone, and trying to be at peace with it. He could see that she was sad without Will there, like a part of her was missing, because Jonathan felt it too, but he didn’t want to hurt her anymore. He couldn’t be distraught over the circumstances if she wasn’t. But, Jonathan also couldn’t go back to college; it felt somehow wrong, like he was taking an opportunity away from his brother that he never got, and the thought of that made Jonathan sick, so he stayed in Hawkins. He worked two jobs: one at the Newspaper and one at the Quickie-Mart near their house. He worked hard to provide for his mother and El, wanting them to be as happy as they could be. When the outbreak happened however, that whole plan was completely foiled. Jonathan wasn’t much for fighting, he hated what it brought out in his father, and he didn’t want any part in that, so providing for his family during this whole ‘kill zombies if you want to live’ thing wasn’t very easy. Jonathan usually went out during the least active hours of the day, just trying to gather as much as he could to support El, Joyce, and himself, but it was getting harder and harder as time went on. He had gotten into it a couple times with a particularly nasty pack of undead, his back and cheek marked with scars to prove it. But Jonathan never lost hope that Will was still out there somewhere, he just hoped they meet again soon.
- Jonathan still listens to the copy of the mixtape he made Will with his favorite song ‘Should I Stay or Should I Go’ as the title track.
- Jonathan and El sometimes go out scavenging for new clothes, but most of the time the clothes they find is torn so they collect it for Joyce to patch their current clothes with and discuss which patterns they think would look best together.
- Jonathan takes a new photo of the same spot in town once a month and keeps a catalog full of photos to show how the town is deteriorating post outbreak.
- Jonathan has a collection of Newspapers from when he used to work at the company chronicling all of the Lab’s misconducts published and some nights when he can’t sleep he reads them all again trying to connect them to where Will may have gone.
- After Joyce and El left, Jonathan hung up Christmas lights around the house just as his mother did all those years ago. He didn’t want to do it when they were home and disrupt the fragile peace they had slowly coveted. Though, Jonathan didn’t honestly think that this run away was the doing of the demogorgan, but Jonathan was willing to try anything at this point to get Will back.
Growing up in the Byers household was no easy feat. With an abusive, alcoholic father and little to no money, some days were easier than others. Though, Jonathan always had his mother; someone who would always listen, always knew what to say, and was embodied the term strength. Jonathan had his mother, his mother and Will. Yet, for the last few years that second part had changed. Jonathan still peeked into his younger brothers room in some desperate hope that he had just lost track of time at the Wheeler’s again. For the first few weeks Jonathan accidentally made a breakfast plate for Will before he realized his seat would remain empty.
One night his mother found him listening to the mixtape Jonathan had made for Will in his room, an all to familiar position for her to find him in. Joyce entered Will’s room, Jonathan’s back to her. She took a seat next to her eldest son and placed a gentle hand on his back.
“He loves that tape Jonathan.”
Jonathan looked up at his mother.
“Then why didn’t he take it with him? Did he even leave on his own accord?”
Jonathan shifted, settling his face back into his hands and stared straight head.
“I just want him to be happy.”
Jonathan speaks aloud. That was really all that Jonathan wanted for his brother and he wouldn’t rest until he knew that was true.
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