#references to will and jonathan being bullied

[queenie-ofthe-void]

The Babysitter Chronicles - Byers

Steve POV 5+1 (immediately follows s2) || wc: 3.9k || cws: check tags || full fic ao3

Henderson || Mayfield pt 1 / Mayfield pt 2 || Sinclair || Wheeler || Byers || +1 Hopper

Can be read as a standalone

~~~

Steve’s filled with dread, standing in front of the Byers’ front door at 6:30am on a Saturday morning. Out of all the kids’ parents, he’s pushed Joyce off as long as he could manage. But he’d promised Mike he’d try, and according to Jonathan, this is the best time to catch her.

That doesn’t change the fact it’s not even light out, and a boy she probably hates is about to knock on her door. Hell of a way to start the day.

He knocks anyway.

Joyce opens the door in a soft grey t-shirt and baggy black sweats. Her hair is brushed through, mascara coats her long lashes, and the smell of fresh coffee wafts through the open door. At least he can find small consolation in the fact she’s been up for a while.

“Hi Joyce, I mean Ms. Byers,” he stumbles, off to a great start. “Sorry to catch you so early but–” 

“No,” Joyce interrupts, voice firm. 

Steve stands there, mouth hanging open around an unfinished sentence. He watches as her eyes harden. She squares her shoulders and stands straight-backed and tall, only reaching about Steve’s shoulder. Joyce Byers in all her fury still makes him feel small, like maybe this was a bad idea.

“I’m sorry, Steve,” Joyce says. “But I know why you’re here. And the answer is no.”

“Oh,” he responds lamely, deflating even further. 

Her voice is soft, but she’s unyielding. “The kids like you, and I know their parents are ok with you watching them. Which is fine, for their kids.”

She pauses, and Steve knows what’s coming. Mentally prepared himself for the worst-case scenario. All of Dustin’s logical arguments and Lucas’ hype talks couldn’t prepare him for how thoroughly Joyce flays him open.

“But, Steve, I would never trust you with my kids.”

Even though he's desperate to run, he plants himself like a tree on her front stoop. He's trying not to be that guy. The kids deserve the best version of him, and on some level, he knows cutting out the bad parts of himself includes letting Joyce Byers drag him through the mud.

He tries to hold her gaze, really he does. Her dark eyes are filled with conviction, but he can see the gentleness to them as well. Almost sad, like he’s making her do this to him. 

Joyce grips the door, knuckles white with tension. She takes a step out onto the front stoop, forcing Steve to take a measured step back. The door stays cracked and the smell of burning toast reaches his nose. Nausea rises in his throat.

“They shouldn’t have even been in those tunnels in the first place,” she says, voice growing louder as she gains momentum. “We asked you to watch them, we trusted you with them, and they still almost got killed! And I know, I know, you helped Jonathan and Nancy last year– saved them from that, that thing crawling out of our walls.”

Her eyes flicker over her shoulder, like the demogorgon’s still haunting her house. He follows her gaze, like Billy could still be standing in her living room with a blood-stained, toothy smile.

She sighs, exasperated. At her wits end for being pushed into a conversation she’s probably been dreading for weeks, since it seems she knew what he wanted. “But you’d be with my baby, my Will, everyday. He’s had bullies since kindergarten, and it’s only gotten worse since everything.

“He doesn’t deserve more bullies. And from what I’ve heard, you’re no different. Just like your father.”

Steve flinches– can’t help himself– the sentence ringing through his head.

Just like your father.

“No, no I’m not, I swear,” he chokes on the words as she steam rolls his pathetic lamentations.

“You’ve pushed my boys– and kids just like them– around your whole life, making them feel small for having less money, less friends, less stuff. Every time Jonathan came home with a new bruise or bloodied knees, how do I know that wasn’t you?”

Steve’s watering eyes are fixated on the small, furious woman before him, flushed with a rage familiar to any decent mother protecting her kids. He’s trying so hard to hear her, but his head is filled with static and his mouth feels stuffed with cotton. Steve wipes his hands down the front of his pants, then shoves them in his pockets.

“You called my boy queer! Something I’m sure you heard from your father. I saved for months to get him that camera for his birthday and you just smashed it, like it was nothing. Like we’re nothing.”

Neither of them notice the pair of shadows moving beyond the door frame in the living room. 

“I cannot allow someone like you around my boys,” she hammers home. This is what Nance meant by a thesis statement he thinks deliriously. “Sue and Karen might be alright with it, but my answer is no.”

Steve sniffles and nods stiffly as turns to leave, hoping to at least make it to his car before the tears start. He knows he deserves what she’s said, knows the truth of it in his gut, but he’s stood here long enough. Now it’s time to run and hide, like his mind’s been screaming to since she set her sights on him.

“Mom,” Jonathan says, out of breath like he ran here from his bedroom. He’s appeared over Ms. Byers’ shoulder like a ghost, or a ninja– silent and on the attack. “What’s going on?”

He’s a sleep-rumpled version of his mom, wearing a plain, soft t-shirt, and grey sweatpants scattered with light bleach stains. Steve notices he still has pillow creases on his left cheek. His gaze follows the red indent down to Jonathan’s jawline where a small, purpling bruise is haloed by faded red lipstick.

All of the air in Steve’s lungs is punched out of him, hard and fast. A feeling he should be used to from Jonathan Byers. 

Steve thinks he sees a flash of pastels in his periphery, dashing through the trees to the road. Or maybe it’s his imagination. It doesn’t matter, because he can’t look away from the uncomfortably familiar mark on Jonathan’s neck.

Jonathan must notice. His hand flies up to his neck, wiping the mark and finding a smear of red on his fingers. The spell holding Steve breaks, and he can breathe again. 

Their eyes meet, and Jonathan’s cheeks now match the stain on his fingers. It’s awkward and Steve doesn’t know how to fix it or how to make this easier. Because Steve never knows how to fix things, only how to break them. Something Joyce seems well aware of.

Distracted, Steve’s just now noticing the small shadow creeping up behind Jonathan. He sees the young boy poke his head out from behind his brother’s back as he takes a small step towards the commotion.

“Steve was just leaving, sweetie,” Joyce answers, voice soft and sweet as she turns away from him to go back inside.

“Wait, no that’s not what I meant,” Jonathan continues. He shakes his head and roughly pushes his unruly bangs from his eyes. “Steve, why are you here?”

Jonathan’s looking at him like he knows the answer. And he should really, considering the only reason Mike agreed to have Steve as his babysitter was because Jonathan promised he’d talk to Will about it, and then they’d talk to Joyce. 

A long train of telephone Steve was relying on to get a head start at Joyce’s good will. Which, apparently, never happened.

Steve plays along into Jonathan’s prompting. She’s already said no, so what’s one more try with a little back-up.

“I was asking if I could babysit Will, since I watch the rest of the gang too. Can’t leave any party members behind,” Steve says, parroting Dustin.

“And I was just telling him–” Joyce starts, before she’s interrupted.

“I think Steve would be a great babysitter,” Will says. His hair’s a mess, and he’s straightening out his matching Star Wars pajama set as he steps further into view.

Joyce rushes over to him, squatting down to meet his eyes. “Will, honey, you don’t need a new babysitter. You can still spend time with your friends at their houses, when their parents are home.” Jonathan takes the distraction to wave Steve into the house, silently closing the door behind them.

“But the other parents don’t know about– you know,” Will hesitates, before mustering up the courage to say “about what actually happened to me.”

“Baby,” she says, gently running her hands up and down his small arms. “You know we can’t tell them. We went over this.”

“It’s not about them knowing the truth,” Will says. Steve watches as the boy tries to make himself bigger, taller, even with the slight shake in his voice. “They just look at me like I’m broken. They’re sad when I’m around and they just think I was kidnapped or lost or– whatever the story is. That I was sick or something.”

Steve can’t help but imagine Will Byers, always the shy, quiet kid in the Party, having to constantly withstand the severely misguided pitying glances from adults who aren’t read-in on vast government conspiracies and alternate dimensions. Steve’s almost nineteen and can barely manage alone.

Her brows are knitted tight and her lips downturned the more Will confesses. “Well, Jonathan can–”

“I don’t want Jonathan to watch me anymore.”

Joyce’s eyes widen, confusion painted across her face as her mouth drops open. Steve turns to glance at Jonathan to find that, unlike his mother, he’s not surprised at all. In fact, there’s a light shining in his eyes and a small uptick to the corner of his mouth.

The tension is thick but familial, leaving Steve unwelcome and gawking at a private conversation. Which he supposes he is: both unwelcome and gawking.

“Go on, Will, it’s ok,” Jonathan encourages. He shines with a proud smile, like he’s watching his little brother walk for the first time. 

Will’s hesitant, his eyes downcast as he shuffles side-to-side. Waiting for him to continue, Joyce stays quiet. Steve can’t help but feel envious of Will and Jonathan at having a mom patient enough to hear her son outright, even when she doesn’t agree with him. She saved him from an alternate dimension, but sometimes the little things are just as important.

“When Jonathan dropped me off at Steve’s for DnD last week, it was fine… at first.”

“You both told me that was at Mike’s,” Joyce interrupts, turning a motherly glare at Jonathan who sheepishly avoids eye contact. She rounds on Steve again, closing the distance between them in three long strides to get in his face. “This is exactly what I’m talking about, Steve. What if something had happened and I didn’t know where to find him because of you?”

“Mom,” Jonathan interrupts, irritated. “That’s not fair. We are the ones who said it was at Mike’s– Will and I. I knew you wouldn’t let him go if you knew it was at Harrington’s place, so I told Will to lie.”

“You’re damn right I wouldn’t have let him go,” Joyce argues, turning back to Jonathan. “He’s not safe there! I know Steve Harrington and I know his parents. What if they had been home?”

“They haven’t been home in weeks,” Steve mumbles. He doesn’t mean to say it out loud, catching himself off guard. Years of practicing the lie, and he slips in front of the last three people on earth he’d want to know about his home life. He’d never complain, not to them. 

She shoots him a confused glance, an emotion behind her eyes Steve refuses to consider. But it seems she’s the only one whose noticed he said anything at all as Jonathan speaks up again. Shaking her head, she shifts her attention back to her son. In the midst of the chaos, Steve breathes a small sigh of relief.

“Mom, it was fine– everything was fine. Just–” Jonathan stops. He gestures to Will to keep going.

Will puffs his chest up, holding his mom’s gaze as he barrels on. “I liked having it at Steve’s. It smells nice, like candles, not like farts and laundry detergent like Mike’s basement. He had all the snacks we like, and he’s got a huge table that can fit all our stuff.”

The kid’s smiling now, and goddamn if it doesn’t melt his heart. Steve’ll be disappointed if Joyce says no, but at least he knows for a fact Will felt comfortable around Steve and liked being at his house.

“But after Jonathan picked me up, Lucas said they stayed up and watched movies all night. That Steve even made an ice cream sundae bar and there were a million toppings.” Will’s arguing is starting to sound like a petulant child, a slight whine to his tone, and Steve can tell Joyce is losing her patience.

“Will, that’s something you and Jonathan can do. We’d love to do sleepover nights with your friends.”

“No, Mom,” Jonathan states, strong in a way Steve’s never seen from him before. His only tell is the waver behind his voice. Steve’s willing to bet Jonathan would rather face down another demogorgon than take on his own mother. Yet here he is, sticking his neck on the line for Will.

“What do you mean, no?” It’s barely a question.

“I don’t want to babysit Will anymore.” He quickly closes his eyes and shakes his head, like an etch-a-sketch. “No, wait– I’m not babysitting Will anymore.”

The room falls deadly silent. Joyce’s lips flatten into a thin, white line, matching the color of her knuckles. She looks ready to explode, like how his father used to look before the first blow. 

Steve flinches when she takes a step towards Jonathan, and she clocks his reaction just like before, but ignores him to glare at her oldest son.

“I want to spend more time with Nancy.” Jonathan’s eyes are wide, like he forgot Steve was there, and he can see an embarrassed flush painting his ears. Steve just shrugs. It is what it is, he’ll get over it like he always does. Jonathan relaxes a bit. “I want to get a job so I can take her on dates that are more than just driving out to the quarry.” 

“Jonathan,” Joyce jumps in, “you can’t get a job. You’re grades are slipping as it is and you don’t have time–”

“Exactly! I don’t have time for a job right now. But if Steve starts watching Will after school and some weekends, I can get a job and keep my grades up and spend time with Nancy.”

She’s shaking her head, but Jonathan plows on before she can jump back into the fray.

“Billy Hargrove is a goddamn monster, Mom. He almost killed Steve! And we all know the kids would’ve found a way to get to the tunnels no matter what. Steve was beat to hell and still went with them.” Jonathan points at Steve’s face in emphasis, like a fucked up version of a pretty model showboating a new car. Except the model is the guy who stole his girlfriend, and the car is a has-been with a fucked up brain and no future.

“And last year,” Jonathan continues, “Nancy and I would be dead if he didn’t come back for us. After everything that happened between us, he had no reason to turn around. Hell, I’m not sure I would’ve.”

He doesn’t know Jonathan Byers well, but Steve knows for a fact Jonathan would’ve faced death to save him– to save anyone. It’s not even a question.

Joyce still doesn’t seem convinced. “Everything that happened last year is exactly what I’m worried about, Jonathan.”

“It’s my fault, not his!” Jonathan shouts. “It’s my fault he got sucked into this mess, it’s my fault Nancy left him, and it’s my fault he broke the camera!” Color drains from his face. Steve freezes, staring at him. 

Steve still hasn’t told anyone why he broke the camera– none of them have talked about it, and he never planned to bring it up. Ultimately he’s thankful that the pictures exist, since it provided the only clue to Barb’s death and the Upside-Down. 

But he doesn’t understand why Jonathan took the pictures. And it doesn’t change the fact Steve closes his blinds every night.

“What do you mean, your fault?” Joyce asks, out of sorts. 

He stammers a bit, looking to Steve for help. Steve doesn’t want to have this conversation at all, let alone in front of Jonathan’s entire family. He glares back at Jonathan, tersely shaking his head once.

Lie.

He gets the gist, relief stark on Jonathan’s face. 

“Steve caught Nancy and I sneaking around when we were looking for Barb and Will,” Jonathan quickly recovers. “We didn’t want him poking around, so we let him think we were flirting. But some pictures I had taken of Nancy fell out of my bag, and Steve saw them. That’s why he broke my camera.

“We ran into him and his friends later while they were spraying up The Hawk. I didn’t know it was all Tommy Hagen’s idea, so I got in Steve’s face and I hit him first. He called me queer, and that’s shitty. But he apologized, saved our lives, and bought me a new camera. So–”

Jonathan turns to him and holds out his hand. It reminds Steve of his father, but also of Hopper, which he decides is a more apt comparison.

He reaches out and Jonathan grasps his hand firmly, shaking it up and down just once, yet continues to hold on. Forging a new pact for the future.

“Steve, I’m sorry about everything.” He seems genuine– eyes wet, shoulders set, and back straight. Steve tries to match his posture. He might not be as good with words as Jonathan, but he can at least show this moment is just as important to him. “But you helped protect the kids so we could save Will. And you saved Nancy and me. So– I trust you.”

Steve can’t handle this. It’s too early in the morning for heavy emotions and deep confessions, but Jonathan’s searching for forgiveness in the face of a former bully. Steve steps up to the plate and meets him halfway.

“I shouldn’t have broken your camera, I know how expensive they are and how much it meant to you. I was angry and I wasn’t thinking. And I, I umm–” 

Steve realizes he’s never really had to apologize to someone before. Sure he’s apologized to Nancy, but it seemed like a normal thing for guys to always apologize to their girlfriends. He’s apologized to Dustin, but that’s more like placating a rowdy toddler. 

This feels different, somehow bigger. Maybe it’s because Jonathan’s his own age, or someone his parents have programmed him to think is lesser than himself. Maybe it’s the deep regret that’s made itself a home in Steve’s stomach, rotting away at the memory of a vicious word spat haphazardly at a stranger.

“I’m sorry I called you queer. That’s fuc– I mean messed– up, and I’m sorry.” Steve sighs, running a nervous hand through his hair, less painful with the stitches removed. He almost misses the stinging sensation. “It’s something my dad says all the time and it was the first thing I thought of, and I hate that. I’m not my dad, I never want to be like him.”

Jonathan nods and pulls Steve forward into a hug, and when they separate Steve feels lighter. A heavy weight he hadn’t known about, removed from his shoulders with Jonathan’s help. If he didn’t know any better, he’d think Jonathan felt the same way by the smile on his face.

“Yeah!” Will shouts, unprompted and overly excited for the tone of this entire conversation. There’s a wide grin on his face when he holds up his hand to high-five Steve and cheers “welcome to the Bad Dads Club!”

Steve scoffs, shocked but completely delighted and confused at Will’s eager declaration. Joyce smacks her hand to her forehead and mutters something like jesus christ under her breath, while Jonathan barks out a laugh. 

He grabs his little brother by the shoulder and shakes him like a rag doll until Will breaks out into giggles. “Will,” Jonathan says, failing to keep a straight face, “remember when I explained the difference between family jokes and not-family jokes?”

Will’s smile fades slightly, red embarrassment splashing his cheeks as he quickly glances between Jonathan and Steve, realizing his social blunder. Jonathan squeezes his shoulder and gives him a sad, reassuring smile. But Steve won’t be the reason for the small frown tugging on Will’s lower lip.

Steve holds out his hand, palm up. He smiles at the kid, eyes alight with mischief. “Bad Dad’s Club,” Steve says, like it’s more than just a fucked up childhood and is instead forging a pact, binding them through one shitty commonality. 

Will returns his smile and high fives him, who then turns to his brother. Jonathan laughs again when he pulls Will in for a hug instead, shrugging at Steve.

Joyce’s gaze travels between the three boys standing in front of her, and Steve can see the moment she cracks.

Her stance has softened. Her lips are still pursed, her eyebrows only slightly furrowed, but her arms hang relaxed at her sides and she’s looking at Steve less like she wants to throw him out and more like she doesn’t know what to do with him.

“You get one week,” Joyce says sternly, pointing a finger in Steve’s face. He goes cross-eyed looking at it, but he can still see Will and Jonathan high-five. “One week of picking him up after school. I get done at Melvald’s at six, so you can bring him home at six-thirty.”

Before Steve can wholeheartedly agree, she rounds on Will and Jonathan next, who stand at attention, trying to stay serious through their own excitement. 

“You,” she points at Jonathan, “better keep your grades up if you’re getting a job.”

“And you,” she gestures to Will, “better have all of your homework done when you get home. If you can’t get it done at Steve’s house, then you don’t get to go.”

She backs away from them, taking a deep breath in and exhaling loudly. “Is all of that clear?”

Waves of yes’s pour from their mouths. Will wraps his arms around his mom’s waist and Jonathan lightly punches Steve’s shoulder. 

“Thank you, Ms. Byers,” Steve says as he turns to leave, “I’ll make sure you don’t regret this. Any of you.”

She sighs, a small sad smile on her face. “I really hope that’s true, Steve.”

On the drive home, he realizes she never mentioned the slip-up about his parents’ absence. He’s grateful for it. Talking with adults has never been his strong suit, and his conversations with each of the kids’ parents are starting to weigh on him. 

The Byers’ might not have as much money or means as the Harrington’s, but that doesn’t stop Joyce Byers from being a damn great mom. So he’s not surprised she took note of his own small mishaps. Maybe she’ll bring it up one day, maybe she won’t. All Steve cares about is that he finally has the opportunity to earn the trust of the fiercest parent he knows.

~~~

[several-ravens]

i don't think i'll ever get over the fact that jonahan just decided to hate martin upon meeting him and then to bully him for the rest of his life

[nobylerdoubt]

Let's Analyze - Every Time Someone Says "Gay"

Warning: homophobia and use of slurs. F-slur will be censored.

One thing I've noticed in Stranger things is that they typically try to avoid saying things outright. I've talked a bit on this blog on their use of "Show Don't Tell." This applies to relationships most often - as our core relationships - the ones we expect to last - typically avoid exchanging I love yous, and tend to show, rather than tell, the audience how they feel about the other person.

This concept of showing rather than telling translates in a big way to our queer characters. Neither Robin nor Will openly calls themselves a lesbian or gay, and no one explicitly refers to them as gay either (outside of bullies and abusers). However on my most recent watch through I couldn't help but notice just how many times the show references homosexuality.

Season 1:

Season 1 we see the most uses of gay words, four total. Three of these reference Will, and one being a reference to Jonathan.

EPISODE 1:

Joyce: Lonnie used to say he was queer, called him a f*g

EPISODE 3:

Troy: I hate to break it to you toothless, but he's not in danger. He's dead. That's what my dad says. He said he was probably killed by some other queer.

EPISODE 4:

Troy: Besides, what's there to be sad about anyway? Will's in fairyland now, right? Flying around with all the other little fairies. All happy and gay!

EPISODE 6:

Steve: You know what, Byers? I'm actually kind of impressed. I always took you for a queer, but I guess you're just a little screw-up like your father.

Season 1 tends to use homophobia as a general way to show who the mean guys are here - not our scientists, or corrupt officials, but our human antagonists.

Season 2:

EPISODE 8:

Billy's Father: So that's why you've been staring at yourself in the mirror like some f*ggot instead of watching your sister?

Like in Season 1, Season 2 uses homophobia to paint Billy's dad as the evil behind Billy's evil.

EPISODE 9:

Steve: Nancy?

This one I questioned if I should include it - because it's not an explicit reference to gay words. Steve is concussed here and momentarily mistakes Mike for his sister - but it's worth noting that Nancy is also a term used to call someone gay. Especially since this is in reference to Mike, I think this is a very smart a subtle way to allude to Mike's sexuality early on.

Season 3:

Season 3 differs from the first two seasons uses of gay words - instead of having other, more background characters call our main characters slurs and using gay as an insult, we have main characters outright stating, or being told, that they're being gay - but in a roundabout way.

EPISODE 3:

Mike: It's not my fault that you don't like girls!

EPISODE 7:

Steve: But... Tammy Thompson's a girl?

Robin: Steve...

Season 4:

This same idea is carried into the next mention at the start of season 4, where they talk about the possibility that Vickie likes girls.

EPISODE 1:

Steve: Do you know who pauses Fast Times at 53 minutes 5 seconds? People who like boobies!

After that we kind of go back to our old ways - but with a bit of a twist. Instead of a bigoted background character just being, the mentions start to become more casual and matter-of-fact.

EPISODE 3:

Russian: I am no fairy

There's a bit of a lack of judgement in this clip - the Russian here isn't offended so much as he's denying what he sees as a transaction for sexual favors, or possibly flirting. It's fairly neutral. He's simply saying - hey, I'm not the guy you need to be asking for that.

EPISODE 4:

Erica: Going out? I see he's taken a step down from Max...Chances are he's with your cheater boyfriend.

Here Erica implies that Jason is "going out" with Lucas in a different way - and I don't think she means it literally here (unless there's more to what Erica found under Lucas's bed that was so 'gross'...). I think she just can tell she already doesn't like Jason, and this is something she can say to get under his skin and get him to back off. Again, this seems like a neutral statement - not really judgmental.

So we see that homosexuality is mentioned at least once or twice per season. I think this serves two purposes throughout the course of the show.

To show the audience that the show in general disapproves of homophobia.

To keep homosexuality on our minds.

At the end of the day, Strange Things is not a show about being gay - it's not Heartstopper or Young Royals. It's an anthem for the outcasts, and queer characters have always been a part of that group of outcasts that the Duffers wanted to represent. I think to avoid this idea that these gay subplots "came out of nowhere" these terms being used throughout the show are just one part of the way they've tried to plant this idea that hey, maybe some of these characters are gay.

[despapillon]

Can’t believe what I’m finding out from the bird app but hey I think Henry stans need to shut up about the Byers family and stick to talking about their ugly incel serial killer that enjoys bullying children.

The gall to claim Lonnie is not an abusive father is insane. When all points to the fact he absolutely was abusive to Jonathan and Will. But I guess some idiots need everything completely spelled out to them!

I’m sure Lonnie is so mindful he was just gossiping to Joyce behind Will’s back and never called him slurs or said anything homophobic to his face.

Lonnie commenting on Jonathan getting stronger was about what? Jonathan’s baseball skills? And not a reference to Lonnie probably physically abusing him?

Why did Jonathan suspect a simple non-abusive deadbeat would hurt his son and hide him in a trunk? Huh? How in any way is that normal if Lonnie was not abusive? Can you imagine, idk, Nancy suspecting Ted of murdering Mike?

And treating Will not being completely against spending time with Lonnie as proof he couldn’t have been that bad. Are you kidding me? Do you know anything about how complicated the relationships can be between an abusive parent and their child? That’s his father. He just wants to be loved. He just wants his acceptance because he keeps trying to mold him into someone he’s not. How media illiterate you have to be to not get such a simple thing.

He’s abusive. Verbally, emotionally, hinted to even physically. Abuser, plain and simple. Not tossing the word around, just saying it how it is.

Fuck anyone that tries to whitewash Lonnie. Fucking Lonnie of all people. That’s the guy you wanna defend? I suggest getting a lobotomy.

[greenfiend]

Will is Superman… not El

There are so many parallels…

These cannot just be coincidental…

I’ve discussed this in this post as well.

The obvious clue is the gender. Female superheroes existed in the 80s and our characters even knew about them and referenced them. “Supergirl” and “Wonder Woman” are some examples. But why did Mike mention “Superman”? Because it’s a hint towards Will’s story. Keep in mind, the only time El is referred to as Superman is within a scene where she is completely absent and where Will hides his true feelings behind her.

In this post, I’m mostly comparing the Superman (1978) movie with Will. It is regarded as the best amongst many, plus it existed prior to the first season of the show.

Most of you guys here probably aren’t very familiar with that version of Superman since the movie is quite old now, but I’ll give you a brief description of Christopher Reeve’s Superman. He plays both Superman and Clark Kent (his alter ego). He’s very earnest, kind hearted, and selfless. Nowadays, most superheroes are portrayed as cynical, but he’s far from that. He believes in humanity, and sees the best in others.

To begin, both characters were born different… special. Whether or not this means Will has powers or not is beside the point. Both are Jesus-coded.

Both grew up in small towns where they didn’t quite “fit in��. Smallville and Hawkins. They both were bullied by their peers.

Both have father figures named Jonathan who give them speeches to help inspire and encourage them.

Both created a safe spot to retreat to- Fortress of Solitude and Castle Byers. (Argyle comments that Hopper’s cabin “isn’t exactly the Fortress of Solitude” because it isn’t. Castle Byers is. Lmao)

Both are selfless. Always putting the needs of others ahead of their own.

Both balance being true to themselves while also hiding their true identity from the world. A world that may not be able to handle the truth. For Superman, it’s the fact that he’s not human (he disguises himself as Clark Kent). For Will, it’s the fact that he’s gay (he’s in the closet).

Both are at times ignored by their love interests, but they are rarely resentful (at least not for long.)

Both hide a major secret from their love interest… aka their “friend”.

Both are against the use of violence and guns. Also- as Clark Kent he appears very timid just like Will does.

And this line hmmm…. 🤔

“Take you away” much like how Will was taken.

[skyfallslayer]

Should We Stay or Should We Go? || Chapter Six

-A ST Rewrite Feat. Steve Harrington x Henderson!OFC-

Main Masterlist || Series Masterlist

🎲Summary: A frantic Jonathan, Hopper and Joyce look for Nancy in the darkness before uncovering the truth about the lab’s experiments. Steve starts accepting his babysitting role. Steph and Will are running out of time.

🎲Pairings: Will x Platonic!OFC; Dustin x Sister!OC; Slow burn! Steve x Henderson!OFC (Ex-bestfriends to Lovers); Slow burn! Byler

🎲Rating: Teen-Mature

🎲Word Count: 15,845

🎲Date: 12/13/24

🎲Warnings: Angst; Heavy Language & Dialogue; References To Broken Friendship; Mental Strain/Breaking Down; Talks of Mental Health Issues; Bullying of All Kinds; Physical Fighting; Lying; "Death" and Talks of Death; Brief Mention of Corpses; Gun Use; Implied Unloving Parents; Implied Child Abuse; Implied Drug Abuse; Blood & Gore; Arson & Alcohol; Will & Steph's Mental Strain - Joyce's Too; Hopper Being a Great Cop & A Total Mess; Dustin Being a Slight Asshole; Steve's 'Asshole Era'; Steve's Emotional Damage. READ AT YOUR OWN RISK!

(And let me know if I missed anything)

🎲A/N: I am sooooo sorry this took so long! It was never my intention to have neglected it for this long, but here it is. Hopefully it lives up to your expectations. Also, small heads up, I've only re-read this over a few times, so hopefully everything makes sense and looks good. Thank you for your patience ❤️. Enjoy!

You know what they say… Curiosity kills the cat. Or in this instance…

Curiosity kills the Wheeler.

Now she was staring at something truly horrifying, something that was like out of a Stephan King novel or out of an exorcist movie. This… thing was huge. When she first caught a glance of it at Steve’s house she never pictured it that big. An eight foot, lanky, twisted limb individual that was feasting on a poor deer. Her breath was caught in her throat, its munching sounds found its way into her ears rocking her to her core; Her dying flashlight was shaking in her hand.

She needs to leave, go back through the tree before this thing decides it wants desert. Yet, luck was not on her side, as soon as she took a step backwards something crackled beneath her feet. On cue the monster turns around with a shriek, causing her to drop everything and run.

“Jonathan!” She screams, hoping that he – someone – would hear. Then her heart skipped a beat when she got a reply. “JONATHAN!!”

“Nancy!”

She twisted around the trees, the beast right on her tail–

“I’m right here! Nancy! Just follow my voice!”

Follow his voice. Follow his voice. Follow his voice. Follow his– The thing decided to lunge, which she manages to get out of the way in the nick of time, running in a new direction.

“Follow my voice, Nancy, I’m right here! Nancy?!”

She pulls herself to a halt, clinging onto a tree and taking a breather. She hears him but she just can’t see him! Everything was starting to blur and look the same to the point she doesn’t even know where the damn entrance is!

“Jonathan…?” She whispers, and chokes down a sob as she hears the beast growling and lurking around somewhere behind. Is this it? Is this how her life was going to end? In a place that people probably won’t even believe exists? She shook to her core, the beast footsteps starting to fade, but what good would that be if she didn’t know where she was going?

But something must have answered her prayers as a hand suddenly covers her mouth, startling her as someone quietly and quickly shushes beside her ear. Her stomach dropped to her ankles, as she fearfully followed the hand to… she couldn’t even finish the thought she was so taken back. She was completely baffled to find it belonged to the Police Chief of Hawkins.

The Police Chief? She thought, her mind of course strolling to the dread and the worst of it all. Did her parents call because she was gone? Did Hopper get abducted like poor Will and Stephanie? What could it–

Once he registers that he has her attention (mostly), he silently tells her to follow him. Obliging, she stays close, following him right back to where she came through.

Relief fell through her, then once again horror when that growling came back at full force. The two parties stop, frozen as the beast returns a few paces behind them; Then… 

It charged. The next few seconds were a blur for Nancy– 

Barely remembering how he grabbed her and held her close–

Barely registering him taking out his firearm and taking shots–

Barely recalling as he yanked them both backwards into a tree–

.

.

.

Both Jonathan and Joyce let out a scream when someone’s hand shot through the bubble.

“HELP!!!” It shouts, their eyes widened.

“Hang on!!” Joyce yells, as her and her son use a death grip on his hand, planting their feet into the Earth and pulling with all their might. All it took was their faces to turn bloodshot red before finally seeing the upper half of Hopper’s body. “Ugh– COME ON!!”

And one more large yank from the both of them sent them flying across the forest floor, and Hopper crashed flat on his back with Nancy in his hold.

Hopper immediately squeezed the sobbing girl comfortably, reassuring her softly. “It’s okay. I got you. I got you…”

“Nancy!” Jonathan sighs with relief, him and Joyce crawling over to see them. He helped them sit up, the two of them covered in a weird goo, both looking like they had just seen hell and survived. 

As the four of them tried to process the last few minutes, they gazed upon the tree that was slowly closing itself back up. 

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

“Eleven!” Her name erupted his throat for the thousandth time tonight. Steve’s not quite sure what time it was, but it was definitely dark and freezing cold, yet he refuses to give up. “Eleven!”

Once he was completely sure his mother was dead asleep it was easy enough to slip out again. Dressed as warmly as he could, flashlight in hand, baseball bat in the other with a backpack full of supplies for anything that he might need along the way. He even brought an extra jacket to sling around the kid when he found her. He was left circling around the junkyard and the area around it; And of course it had to be all wooded, the perfect place to hide.

“Eleven!” He shouts again, then sighs, his breath could be seen in the air. “Look, kid, I… I don’t know if you can hear this, but if you can, I’m not mad about what happened. Frankly, I’m more worried about you. And that’s the god’s honest truth, I swear, I just…” Another sigh. “It’s cold, and I don’t want you freezing. I just… I-I just want you to be alright, kiddo. Okay?”

Of course he was expecting an answer, but he had a feeling he wasn’t going to get a reply which was correct. Instead, he was met with a heavy wind blow that sent a chill through his body.

Shit… He frowns. “Listen, if I don’t see you in the next few hours or you don’t want to approach me, just… please consider going back to Mike’s place, or… you can even come to mine.”

Then he mentally slapped himself. Of course she wouldn’t know his place! “Um, if– if you remember where Will’s house is, I’m not too far from there. The woods across the street just take that straight through. The walk’s about… forty minutes, and uh, my house has a big pool in the backyard and… I’ll be waiting for you. Um…”

It kind of hurts that he’s not getting an answer.

“I’ll probably have to repeat what I just said in a few hours but–” His face morphs into something warm and greeting. “I really hope you heard what I said. And please consider.”

Nothing again, and Steve prays that she hears him, I mean, that’s all he can do as he starts his walk back up again; Shouting her name over and over until the sun starts to rise.

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

|| THE OTHER SIDE ||

She felt him pull the blanket around them closer before snuggling against her side – not just for warmth this time, but for comfort, something they both desperately needed now. Steph and Will found themselves sitting inside Castle Byers, both trying to stay snug, both trying to process what had happened in the last few hours, those…

Those hours that they couldn’t even believe just happen. 

“So…” Steph begins, fiddling with the walkman in her hands, the one that apparently saved her from the nightmare she was in. “You just played music?”

“Uh, huh.” Will said, nodding.

“And…” Her hands shook at the slightest. Just thinking about it made her skin crawl. “How did you know how to do that?”

“I didn’t.” He frowns, visibly upset. “Like I said earlier, when I accidently turned on the boombox, the music was scaring the monster away. So I thought, maybe, whatever had a hold on you would have the same effect.”

“Well it worked.” She lays the device in her lap, sighing into her hands, thinking. “Listen, Will, I’m going to be blunt.” She meets his worried gaze. “I don’t think we’re going to make it.”

Steph hated how easily those words slipped out, how easily it was to admit that they were stuck in a rut. Her fingers clawed at her thighs as she continued, “I mean, I have faith in your mom, I really do, but we’re running out of time here. And who knows if she’s even figured out a way to get to us, if she knows where we are. We’re both…” She swallows. “We’re both physically and mentally tired, we’re starving and cold too. I mean, if that thing doesn’t kill us, then the cold certainly will. Look at us, we’re shaking and we have layers upon layers of clothes that slowly are not doing much for us. We’re slowly dying at this point.”

Will says nothing knowing she’s right. He’s lost count how many pairs of socks were on his feet, or sweaters he has under his jacket. “Then… what do we do?”

She sighs again, rubbing her forehead (and putting her brain into overdrive). “Alright let’s stop and really think. We obviously weren’t the only ones brought here, right? Remember the girl from Steve’s pool?”

“Yeah.” He straightens up a bit, catching on what she was trying to explain. “From the looks of it, that thing caught her off guard.”

“See, that’s what I was thinking. What if that thing–” She shakes her head. “You know what, we got to give it a name. Can’t keep calling it ‘thing’ or ‘beast’, it’s confusing. Um…”

Will suddenly recalls what started all this indirectly. “...I got beaten by the Demogorgon.”

“Huh?”

“I rolled a seven, and I needed to roll a ten, so I ended up getting beaten by the Demogorgon.” He locks eyes with her again. “We got beaten by the Demogorgon.”

She clenches her jaw. “The Demogorgon. That’s what is hunting us.” Steph says, while nodding. “Okay. Okay. Alright, so what I was thinking is that Demogorgon is like a wolf. It kills its prey, and drags it back to the den, its home, this place, to feast.”

“So… it’s hungry, and this whole place is its home?”

“Correct. The thing is, who knows if we are even the Demogorgon’s first victims? There could have been plenty of people before us that got dragged here. There’s probably been more people than the girl at the pool we saw.”

“So if it’s dragging people here, then it’s somehow able to travel between here and Hawkins. Like it’s using a gateway.”

“Correct. But I don’t think it’s using one gateway, I think there’s somehow more than one.”

He tilts his head, curious. “How so?”

“Remember what you said? The girl looked like she was caught off guard. But–” How does she phrase this? “But she was scared like we were scared when we first saw that thing. Now, I mean we’re still scared anytime we come across the Demogorgon, but not like the first meeting, right?”

“Yeah.” Will said, after taking a second to process it. “Yeah, you’re right.”

“See? Every time we encounter it, it comes out of nowhere.”

“Like it portal-hops, almost.”

“Yeah, exactly.”

“So out there…” He starts looking more hopeful. “There’s at least a few gateways. So all we have to do is find one, and maybe it’ll take us home.”

Steph nods before frowning. “There’s only one problem about that. Every time we try doing something to help us get out of here, the Demogorgon shows up. I mean, this evil version of Hawkins is still Hawkins. It’s huge. We’ll never be able to search around without having to worry about it showing up.”

“We have to do something then.”

“Yeah. I mean–” She shrugs. “What can we do? Music and guns seemed to only stun it.”

“Unless, we figure out a way to not stun it. What if…” Will couldn’t believe what was coming out of his mouth next–

.

.

.

“What if we kill it?”

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

Hopper let himself close his eyes as he rested at the table, sitting in nothing but his boxer briefs and undershirt. His (dry clean only) uniform had been shoved into the wash in an attempt to get the sticky goo off as he’s second in line for the shower. He was still trying to process what he just went through in the last hour. Another world, real monsters, the lab, the Staties, the fake bodies, everything. It was way too much for the forty-two year old man to wrap his head around. Way too much for any sane human being.

My god… what have I gotten myself into? He was pulled from his thoughts when someone rattled the table as they sat down.

“Look, we gotta go through this again.” Joyce pushed eagerly, hands flat against the news articles Hopper brought over.

The Police Chief looks at her tiredly. “I told you everything that I saw.” He replies, then takes a puff of smoke from his cigarette. 

“Oh, my gosh.” She rolls her eyes. “Tell me again.”

Just before Hopper could continue, her son came into the room, looking mentally and physically exhausted. “Is she alright?” He asked, getting a nod.

“Yeah.” Jonathan said, nervously fiddling with his hands as he took a seat with them. “She’s showering right now.”

“That’s good.” Joyce said, before turning her attention back on the other adult. “Continue.”

“Upstairs or downstairs?” He asks, softly. 

“Upstairs.”

“There was a laboratory. It was where they must do experiments or something, and then there was… there was this kid’s room–”

“How do you know it was a kid’s room?”

“It’s.. M-More like a prison.”

“So why would you think it was a kid’s room, then?”

Hopper inhales sharply. “Because, I told you, the size of the bed, there was a drawing, there was a stuffed animal–”

Joyce perks up. “You didn’t say there was a drawing.”

“Yeah, there was a drawing of a... an adult and a child. It said ‘Eleven’ on it.”

“Was it good?” Both Joyce and Jonathan said in unison, both having the same idea.

Hopper looks between the two, confused. “It was a kid’s drawing. It was stick figures.”

Joyce then sighs herself, getting up quickly to fetch something before slamming it down in front of him. “Wasn’t Will.” She clarifies, as he takes in the skillful drawing, confusion going away instantly.

Although that went away, something else took its place.

His eyes widened. “Earl…” Hopper mutters, setting the drawing aside to grab the news articles, shifting them around to find something he just thought of. “The night that Benny died, Earl said he saw some kid with a shaved head with Benny. Now, I pressed him, he said it might be Will, but maybe…”

“Maybe, it wasn’t?” Jonathan asked, him and his mother leaning in closer to what the cop was digging around for. 

“Look…” He flashes the piece of paper at them, a woman plastered on the front of it all. “This woman, Terry Ives, she claims to have lost her daughter, Jane. She sued Brenner, she sued the government… Now, the claims came to nothing, but what if…” A look of horror crosses his face. “I mean, what if this whole time I’ve been… I’ve been looking for Will… I’ve been chasing after some other kid? What if this goes so much deeper than we thought?”

“So you’re saying that, maybe this Brenner guy is taking kids for some… experiment?” Joyce asked, trying to get some clarity. 

“Maybe yes, maybe no.” He replies, his fingers subtly twitching against the table. “But I know in my gut that the lab has something to do with your son’s disappearance. It has to. There’s too many paths crossing for them not to be.”

“Okay, but if that is the case, why Will? And where does Stephanie fit into this?” Jonathan asked.

“Here’s the thing about Stephanie, with all the evidence we have, I think she simply was just at the wrong place at the wrong time. I think Will was always the main target, she just happened to be there when they decided to move in.” Hopper sighs. “Where is she now? I don’t know. But they must have crossed paths with her once if they managed to make a fake corpse that looks like her.”

The teenager took a moment to think everything over, before shaking his head. “This is getting… insane. Really insane.”

“Tell me about it, kid. I know.”

“Then what’s the next step? Where do we go from here?” Joyce asks, but before she got an answer, Nancy had entered the room. Semi-damp towel wrapped around her neck, and dressed in clothes she was given, she comes in with a distant look that she tries to play off.

“Thank you for the clothes, and shower, Ms. Byers.” 

“Oh, no need to thank me. Um…” Joyce takes a step towards her with a warm smile. “Listen, it’s late. How about you stay the night?”

“Are you sure?” Nancy asked, surprised. 

“Yes, I’m sure. Just… call your mother. I wouldn’t want her to worry. Uh, Jonathan–” She gets her son’s attention. “Why don’t you show her where the phone is and get the extra blankets and pillows out?” She awaits for them to disappear from sight before turning back to Hopper and asking,  “So what’s the next step?”

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

It wasn’t until she had to get Joyce on the phone to confirm she really was at the Byers Household that Nancy was allowed to stay. They came up with some excuse that Nancy was helping Jonathan with some homework and it went later than expected. Luckily, Karen bought it, and now her daughter was wondering how she was even going to get any sleep. Every time she closes her eyes… she sees that thing. That monster stalked her like prey, and was this close to snagging her and the Police Chief and ending their lives.

This. Freaking. Close.

I mean… how would Jonathan and his mother explain to her family what happened? To explain how she was eaten/killed by a beast with no eyes?  Speaking of…

“You feel better?” Jonathan asks, as he looks up from fixing up his bed when enters the room. 

“Yeah.” She said, nodding. 

“That’s good. Um…” He shifts nervously on the balls of his feet, gesturing to the object at hand. “I-Is my bed okay? Do you need another blanket? Or–”

Nancy shakes her head. “I-I can’t take your bed.”

“Trust me, my mom will kill me if I offer you the couch.” He chuckles. “Just take it. I’ll sleep in Will’s room.”

“You sure?” She asks, and he nods. “Okay.”

“Okay.” He repeats, and starts making his way to leave, but–

“It’s just, um…” Her hands squeeze together tightly. “I… I don’t wanna be alone, so….” She adverts her eyes. “Can you, like, stay with me tonight?”

“S-Stay?” He slurs, surprised.

She shakes her head slowly as she sits down on the bed. “Yeah…”

“Uh, y-yeah. I-I’ll stay. Um–” He looks around the room. “Just let me get–”

“Can you just come sit? Uh, you can… take half the bed if you want or…” She groans quietly into her hands, before shuttering visibly. “Jesus…”

Jonathan immediately sits down as well, taking in how scared she is and tries to find the right words. “You know, it… it can’t get us in here.”

“We don’t know that.” Nancy whispers, looking at him “Every time I close my eyes, I just… keep seeing that... thing. Wherever I was, that place… I think that it lives there. It was feeding there. Feeding on that deer.”

“Hey, I won’t let it get you.”

“But it got everyone else? That means that if… if Will, Stephanie and Barbara…”

“Hey.” He wraps an arm around her shoulder, giving her a side hug. “My mom said she talked to Will. Talked to Stephanie. If they’re alive, there’s a chance Barbara is, too. That means that she’s… trapped in that place. We just have to find it again.”

She gives him a puzzled look. “You wanna go back out there?”

“I don’t know.” He frowns. “I’ll see what my Mom and the Police Chief say tomorrow, then I’ll make a decision.” 

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

Dustin springs up and off the couch when he hears the front door open and shut. Walking the direction of where it was, he was nearly bulldozed over by his big sister, whose arms were crossed and had a sour look upon her face.

“Where have you been?” He asked, following her closely behind. “You didn’t walk me home from school, and you’ve been gone for six hours now. Mom’s worried sick and is looking for you.”

“Well I’m fine. I just wanted to clear my head.” She mutters, heading for her room.

“You could have cleared your head when you came home. You could have just told mom you wanted some time alone. You didn’t have to freaking disappear on us.” What will their mom say? She’s been freaking out and fearing the worst and his sister’s acting like it’s nothing! What’s her deal? “Phanie? Phanie you listening? Phanie–”

“Jesus, Dustin–” She turns around to face him, stopping in the middle of her doorway. Her sour expression had faded into a certain sadness he couldn’t pinpoint. “Just– I’ll explain to mom what happened, I just… I just want to be left alone.”

His shoulders slack at her tone. “Okay. That’s fine. It’s just, we were just worried, you know? You normally don’t disappear like that. We… should I call Steve to let you know you’re fine? I’m sure he’s worried–”

“I don’t want to talk about Steve. I don’t want you to, or mom, I don’t even want to see him again.”

“Phanie…?”

“I don’t–” She laughs quietly on the verge of tears. “I shouldn’t even be crying. It’s not like he cares, or that he wants to be my friend anymore, or… h-he acts like he doesn’t so… fuck–”

“Stephanie–”

“Just leave me alone!”

Then she slams the door in his face without a warning or word. 

.

.

.

That was over two years ago, and he still doesn’t know the full story (and even doubts that he ever will). His sister told their mother they had a bit of a disagreement that led to their falling out, ending all discussions and/or thoughts about the boy; Everything she had that held any memory of him was long stored away. Or so he thought.

Dustin still couldn’t wrap his head around why she was still wearing this damn necklace he gave her. Out of everything that they gave one another, he would think that this gift was the most sentimental of them all, so why keep it?

He examines in his palm almost wanting to chuck in the trash, but another part of him wants to wait until he gets his sister back to ask her, ‘Why? Just why?’. 

Phanie. I just don’t get it. Is there something I’m missing? But his thoughts were abruptly stopped when his walkie fired up with feedback. He sets it aside and grabs the walkie, pulling up the antenna to listen.

[ ‘Dustin, you copy?’ ]

“Yeah, Mike. I copy. What’s up?”

[ ‘Meet me at my place. We got to go over a few things.’ ]

“Copy that. Over and out.”

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

|| THE OTHER SIDE ||

Will couldn’t believe where all the confidence suddenly came from, especially given their situation. But for some reason, it all felt so right to say.

Stephanie stares at the boy with her big blue eyes, a little bit shocked by what he said. “You want to kill it?” She asked, to confirm.

“Yeah.” He says, adrenaline pumping his veins. “What if we kill the Demogorgon? If we kill it, it might be our only shot at finding a gate unscathed.”

She blinks. “That’s… that’s not the most terrible idea I’ve heard. But how does one kill a thing like that?”

Will hums, brows pushed together in concentration. “Music?”

“Music could work.” She nods. “However, from what you told me, one boombox seemed to just scare it off. There’s no electricity, it’s not like we can broadcast a song over the radio, we’re going to need a lot more boxes. Plus, who knows if we have to play the same song on all of them. There’s no way everyone in town has the same cassettes.”

“True.” He bites his lip. “Guns? We can go get more.”

“Guns could do the job. But when you faced it back at the house? Did it look injured at all? I shot after we talked with your mom.”

“Hmm.” He stops to rack his brain again. Did it? “I think it was injured, but it surely didn’t stop it from coming after me.”

“Okay. So if we use guns, I mean we’re going to have to rapidly fire after rapid fire.”

“That’s going to be too hard.”

“Yeah.”

“So what do we do?”

Stephanie stops to think for herself, pulling the blanket close when she gets a chill. And that’s when the lightbulb went off. “Cold.” She gasps quietly. “This place is cold. It must like the cold. If it likes the cold, then–”

“It hates the heat.” Will perks up excitedly. “Heat is the weakness, then–”

“We can kill the Demogorgon with it.” She couldn’t help but smile at the revelation. “Alright, quickly. What is stuff that’s flammable?”

“Flammable? Um, matches, gasoline, lighter fluid–”

“Alcohol.” She replies. “If we can get all those things, find a good place to set up a trap, overload the shit out of it with everything it hates, and we kill it then…”

“We might be able to go home.”

Their gazes lock again, and suddenly they felt like they were finally on the same level, save wavelength with their thinking. They finally found something that could bribe them into not losing their will to live.

“Then let’s go shopping.” Steph said, grinning. Her words kickstarted them to pack everything up and crawl out of the hideout. Before they took off, she stares down at the walkman again, thinking. “You know, just thought of something.”

“What?” Will asks, looking up at her.

“Remember when we said that maybe we could hear people if they were only thinking negatively?”

“Yeah.”

“Well, they say when playing your favorite music, your brain releases dopamine, giving you a sense of euphoria. What if playing the music keeps all the bad things away?”

“That makes sense. You did say when you were trapped in that place, it got all brighter when the song was playing.”

“Yeah. It did.” She looks down at it again, fascinated by how such a basic thing saved her life. 

“Maybe you should wear it while we walk there.”

“You think?”

“Yeah. Better safe than sorry, you know?”

“Yeah, I guess.” She sighs. “Okay, I will. But listen–” She makes sure she has his full attention. “If you start feeling weird, or you get a headache, or your nose starts to bleed, or anything unusual, you need to tell me and I’ll hand it over. Capish?” He nods. “Good. Got ‘The Clash’ cassette?”

“Yep.” He nods, patting his pocket.

“Alright. Let’s go.” She slides on the headsets and starts the song before taking his hand.

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

Joyce was nervously fiddling with the cigarette in her mouth as she waited for Hopper to get off the phone with some kind of news. She hopes it’s good news, she hopes that he’s able to use his connections to get some kind of push in the right direction.

Come on, Hop. Don’t let me down. She soon watches him hang the phone on the receiver, and turns her way. “Did you get it?” 

“I got it.” Hopper replies, waving the piece of paper around. 

“Got what?” Jonathan interrupted as he entered the kitchen. “Mom?”

“Um–” She briefly looks over at the Police Chief. “We found out where that Terry Ives woman lives. We’re going to pay her a visit.”

“Oh.” He looks between them for a second. “Just the two of you?”

“Listen–” She places her hands on his shoulder. “It would be best if just me and Hopper went alone.”

“Mom–”

“She’s right, son.” Hopper cuts in. “Something big is going on, and it would be best and safe if you and Nancy stay behind.”

“But, Chief–”

“If the lab is really behind this, then it’s better that they don’t know the two of you are involved in solving this, alright?”

As much as he hated to admit it, Jonathan knew he had a point. “Alright.”

“Just… make sure Nancy gets home safe, and stays out of trouble.” Hopper glances over at Joyce. “I’ll get the car started up.”

“Okay.” She says, watching him leave. “Listen–” She pats her son’s chest to make sure he’s paying attention. “If you want to, you can stalk up on ammo for our guns, that’s fine with me. However that’s not an invitation to be going after that thing we saw. Guns are emergencies only. Alright?”

He cracks a small smile. “Alright.”

“Good. And only if Nancy feels up to it. But I have a feeling that she’s not leaving until she gets some answers too.”

“Okay, mom. I got it. We’ll be good.”

“Good.” She says, just before Hopper honked his horn and shouted something incoherently. “Okay. I got to go. Love you, and be safe.”

“I will.” He squeezes her hand real quick. “You too. Be safe.” He anxiously watches her leave, and that’s with him knowing how skilled Hopper is. He knows she’s in safe hands, but still. They still haven’t puzzled all the pieces together yet. Who knows what is still missing and awaits. 

“Where did they run off to?” Nancy asked upon entering. She was dressed in her old clothes from yesterday, freshly cleaned, and her brown locks tied back in a ponytail. 

“Actually that’s what I wanted to talk to you about.” Jonathan says, all business now. “They figured out something last night. Something about the lab and having a connection in all this.”

“The Hawkins Lab?” She gives him a strange look. “What does a research lab have to do with all this?”

He sighs. “I think it’s time to get you up to speed.”

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

Strange.

The forty year old science teacher at Hawkins Middle school surely wasn’t expecting any kind of guest today. Nor someone so special like the woman before him. Dressed very nicely, hair done perfectly, and with a bright smile she shared with him why she’s here with much excitement.

“-and we’re making a newsletter, which we’ll send out monthly.” She continues as she hands him over a pamphlet that says: ‘The Indiana AV Club’. “It’ll showcase all the latest equipment, as well as how-to articles, which the kids write themselves.”

His face lights up as he reads. “Oh, that’s neat.”

“What we’re really trying to do here, Mr. Clarke–”

“Uh, please, call me Scott.”

“Scott.” She tests, her smile growing bigger. “What we’re trying to do here, Scott, is to connect kids from all over the state and give them the support and encouragement to pursue careers in technology. We feel these are the kinds of kids that are going to make Indiana proud.”

“I agree, yes.” He nods. “Completely.”

Hook.

“So, you know any kids you think might wanna participate?”

Line.

“Oh, I have a few in mind.”

Sinker.

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

Dustin is this close to shoving his friend’s head into a wall. He swears, out of all his friends, both Mike and Lucas are constantly fighting for the title of ‘Most Hot Headed/Overexaggerator’. Will was too quiet to ever play peace-keeper, so naturally this role fell on him. But man… after knowing them both for so long, it was really hard to keep the ‘peace’ part of the role up.

“I just... I can’t believe she didn’t come back.” Mike repeated and paced around the basement once more.

“She’s gotta be close.” Dustin tries again to reassure. 

“She said it wasn’t safe. She just messed up the compasses because she wanted to protect us. She didn’t betray us–”

Dustin bites his lip. “Mike, calm down.”

“I shouldn’t have yelled at her. I never should’ve done that.”

“Mike, this isn’t your fault.”

“Yeah, it’s Lucas’.”

“It wasn’t his fault, either.”

That got the Wheeler to stop moving around and give a stern glare. “It wasn’t his fault?”

“No.” Dustin said, standing his ground.

“So you’re saying he wasn’t way out of line?”

“Totally, but so were you!”

“What?” Mike scoffs.

“And so was Eleven.”

“Oh, give me a break!”

“No, Mike, you give me a break!” The Henderson jabbed his finger at him. “All three of you were being a bunch of little assholes. I was the only reasonable one. Shit, hate to admit it, but even fucking Steve Harrington was being reasonable. The bottom line is... you pushed first. And you know the rule. You draw first blood…”

Mike shakes his head and throws his hands in the air. “No! No way! I’m not shaking his hand.”

“You’re shaking his hand!” 

“No, I’m not.”

“This isn’t a discussion. This is the rule of law. Obey or be banished from the party. Do you wanna be banished?”

Mike crosses his arms and looks away. “No.” He whispers.

“Good.”

“Kids, that boy Steve’s here.” Karen yells from above, the boys perking up with a bit of hope. They waited (im)patiently for him to come down as he strolled in with a new layer of Fall clothes and a tired face.

“Well?” Mike asked, nervously.

“I’m sorry.” Steve said, making them frown. “I walked around those woods for six hours, and then I even waited to see if she would show up at my place. Nothing.” 

“Shit…” Dustin mutters.

“Well, thanks for looking.” Mike said, genuinely. 

Steve nods in reply, shifting his weight around on his throbbing feet before asking, “How’s Sinclair?”

“We were just about to go check.” Dustin answers first, moving around them both to grab his backpack.

“We are?” Mike asked, confused. 

“Yes, Mike. We’re doing this now. We’re going to get Lucas. And then we’re gonna find Eleven. Alright?” He sighs, before looking at the oldest teen. “Steve, thank you for looking, we’ll take it from here.”

Steve straightens out his posture immediately as the kid starts trying to leave without. “Hey, hey, hey–” He maneuvers in front of him, blocking him from the stairs. “This wasn’t a one time thing. I’m staying with you guys.”

“Dustin, come on, man, we talked about this.” Mike said, turning their roles around. His friend’s shoulder sagged and he muttered something under his breath. 

Steve takes a quiet inhale before addressing him. “Look, Henderson, I know you hate me, you have every right to hate me, but right now you need all the help you can get.” His jaw tightens. “Not to mention, whoever’s responsible for all this doesn’t mind getting their hands dirty. They’re not going to care that you guys are twelve year old boys. You need me, whether you like it or not.”

Dustin lets out a long, angry exhale as Mike locks his gaze with the older boy.

“Now, let’s go get Lucas, let’s find Eleven, find the gate, and pray that it leads to your sister and Will.” Steve finishes, and the curly haired kid exhales again.

“Fine.” He huffs.

“Good. We’ll take my car. Will go to Lucas’ and then I’ll take us to the woods. Capish?”

“Capish.” They say, as they follow him out of the basement. 

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

|| THE OTHER SIDE ||

Will looked around the store wondering where they even began. His big doe eyes then turned to the teenager who pushed a shopping cart over to him. “What do we grab?”

“Whatever we can.” Steph says, grabbing a cart of her own with a smirk. “And obviously you don’t have to worry about the price.”

That got him to laugh as they migrated around the store, filling up with stuff they talked about. The teenager found herself starting with certain alcohol that she knew could be considered “flammable”. Some of the numbers were… extremely high and made her question people’s choices (And she thought the whiskey Steve and her drank at the Snow Ball was strong).

Thank god I never drank imported Vodka. She keeps filling her cart up, just as Will comes around the corner with something.

“Hey, hairspray’s flammable, right?” He asks, holding up a can.

“Uh, yeah. It is.”

He hums, taking the cap off and harmlessly spraying the air. “Huh. That’s probably not going to do much though.”

“Probably not.” She says, making him nod and was about to leave when an idea struck her. “Wait.” He stops. “I’m actually getting an idea. Whatever hairspray you can fit in that cart, do it.”

“You know how to build the trap?” He asked, hopeful.

“If I’m picturing this all out correctly, I know this is going to work. But we’re going to need a shit ton of stuff if it’s going to cover the whole place.”

“And where’s that place?”

“Remember that old building with the broken clock tower I took you to?” He nods. “I know that place like the back of my hand. If I’m picturing the trap right I think I know exactly how to set everything up.”

“And we’re going to need a lot?” 

“A hell lot.” She hopes her imagination won’t let her down on this one. She starts pushing her cart towards him and heads off for a new one while saying, “Keep grabbing everything flammable, I’m going to get some tools.”

“What kind of tools?” He asked, curiously.

“Basic tools. Hammer, screwdrivers, saw–”

“Saw?”

“Yeah. Saw.” 

“What’s the saw for?”

“‘Cause–” She turns around with a smirk. “It’s completely illegal, but a sawing off the front of a shotgun makes the impact more intense, right?”

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

Steve stayed a few steps behind the boys as they knocked on the door and awaited their fate; Which seemed dreary when Lucas saw who it was. 

“What do you want?” He snapped, and it wasn’t until Dustin slapped Mike in the arm he finally got his answer.

“I drew first blood, so…” He holds out his hand, Lucas’ eyes scanning him head to toe for any signs of a lie. 

The Sinclair sighs, thinking it over. “Okay, I’ll shake. On one condition.” He crosses his arms and stands tall. “We forget the weirdo and go straight to the gate.”

“Then the deal’s off!” Mike scoffs, and turns around to leave.

“Fine!”

“Fine!”

“No, no, not fine!” Dustin said, stopping Lucas from closing the door.

“Guys, seriously?” Steve said, blocking Mike from taking another step. “Stop acting like you’re six, and talk it out like your age.”

“Come on!” Dustin claps his hands together, tackling this head on. “Do you even remember what happened on the Bloodstone Pass?” He watches his friends stare in confusion and sighs. “We couldn’t agree on what path to take, so we split up the party and those trolls took us out one by one. And it all went to shit. And we were all disabled! So we stick together, no matter what!”

His little speech managed to knock some sense into them, and all seemed hopeful till…

“Yeah, I agree.” Lucas said, and gestured to everyone. “But this is the party, right here. The three of us.”

“El is one of us now.” Mike said, as he got an eye roll for a reply.

“Um, no, she’s not. Not even close! Never will be. She’s a liar, a traitor–”

“She was just trying to keep us safe! She didn’t mean to hurt you. It was an accident!”

He scoffs. “An accident?”

“All right, accident or not… admit it, it was a little awesome.” Dustin said, unintentionally digging a bigger hole in the ground for them.

Lucas blinks (with Steve face palming in the background). “Awesome?”

“Yeah, she threw you in the air with her mind!”

“I could have been killed!”

“Which is exactly why we need her. She’s a weapon!” Mike explains. “Do you seriously wanna fight the Demogorgon with your wrist rocket? That’s like R2-D2 going to fight Darth Vader. We’re no use to Will and Steph if we’re dead.”

Lucas shakes his head, clearly frustrated, clearly fed up. “If you two and Steve wanna waste your time looking for a traitor, go ahead, ’cause I’m not spending my time on her anymore. No way! I’m going to the gate. I’m gonna find them.”

And the door slams shut.

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

It took a bit to get up to Bloomington but they made it; That’s all that matters. Hopper parked his car on the gravel driveway, him and Joyce getting out and cautiously moving towards the front door of the residence. It took several knocks until a petite blonde woman answered. She seemed on her toes just like they were.

“Can I help you?” 

“Hi, we’re looking for Terry Ives. Does she live here?” Hopper asks.

Her brown eyes darted between them. “Who’s asking?”

“The Hawkins chief of police.” He flashes her his badge long enough to give her a good look.

“And… you want to talk to my sister?”

“Well, if your sister’s Terry Ives, then, yeah, we do.”

She frowns, looking a bit apologetic. “Okay, well, you can come in, but if you want Terry to tell you anything, you’re about five years too late.” She lets him and guides them to the living room. “Terry, you have some visitors.”

Joyce presence herself in front of the woman in the rocking chair, the similarities in their features were enough to tell the Byers that these two were definitely sisters. 

“Hello. My name’s Joyce Byers. Uh, this is Hopper.” She begins, the woman turning her distant gaze off the TV towards them. “We drove over from Hawkins. Um, you see, uh, my son… he’s been missing for almost a week now, and, um, we were wondering if we could talk to you about your daughter, Jane? If there’s anything that you could tell us about when she was taken…”

“What was your relationship with Dr. Brenner? You guys keep in touch?” Hopper asked, observing from the doorway carefully.

Joyce fumbles with trying to unfold the picture for a second. “This is, uh... this is him. This is Will. Uh, you may have seen him on... on the news. Uh…”

Hopper casts his gaze to the relative, confused/concerned. “What’s wrong with her?”

“I told you, you’re wasting your time.” She replies, sadly.

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

|| THE OTHER SIDE ||

The four shopping carts rolled inside with ease, the duo looking around the place, that long been abandoned in their world, that they found use for. Stephanie nods after a while, the trap she thought of earlier was now fully registered.

“Yep. This is the place.” She said, while slinging the guns off her shoulders and putting them to the side.

“Where do we set it up?” Will asked, still not picturing it like she is.

“Everywhere. Let’s leave no square inch untouched.” She locks eyes with him. “And then we’re going to practice, over and over so we don’t get caught in them. Alright?”

“Right.”

“Good. Let’s get everything out. There’s no telling when the Demogorgon will return.” They’re both running out of time. For their sake, their sanity, they have to find a way out soon or they’re done for. So, thus starts the grueling process of trap making.

Will made sure to listen carefully as she explained what needed to be where – where to pour the gasoline, where to stick the trip wire, where to hide, etc. And they did practice like she said, in one area that was a pool of alcohol and gasoline just below where the broken bell tower stood, she showed him where to step on the bricks in order to not get any liquid on them. It was hard, especially when he knows they’re going to be running instead of walking when the Demogorgon does show up, but damn it to hell! He will not mess this up. He’s going to stay calm and stick to the plan that he wholeheartedly believes is going to work. 

Will finds himself setting aside another Molotov cocktail, before looking over at his companion. She was in the zone trying to saw their shotguns in half, which is a very hefty task on hand. The silence was starting to get to him a bit though, and there was still a… lingering question that was bothering him and wanted to ask, but should he? Or was it safer to make something else up? He ponders as he grabs an empty bottle before deciding to just come out and say it. What’s the worst she can do? Say no?

“Hey, Steph?”

“Yeah?” She said, eyes still trained on what’s in her hands.

“I have to ask again, but…” Should he back out? Should he–

“What is it?”

Well, here goes nothing. He takes a deep, quiet breath and says, “What happened between you and Steve?” She immediately pauses her actions, making him shrink quickly, like he was flinching away from someone’s attack. “You don’t have to tell me, I know it’s a touchy–”

“It’s fine. Really.” She meets his gaze. “I think I probably should talk about it with someone. Especially after the whole… floating-mind game I was in. I saw… a lot of memories of him.”

He fiddles with his hands nervously, curiously. “So…”

Stephanie sighs, her face flashing with pain. “I don’t know. One day he just pretended he didn’t know me.”

He blinks. “Really?”

“Yeah.” Her eyes grow distant as she recalls everything. “I remember that day clearly. We would always meet up in the doorways at school, and he wasn’t there that day. Mind you, we were both getting older, more responsibilities were being added onto us; And it was around the same time Steve was really getting into sports, so I thought maybe he was talking to one of his coaches.”

Another sigh before continuing, “Eventually, I found him, ran up to him, and I noticed he looked a bit sad so I asked him if he was okay. He told me he didn’t know who I was.” She catches the boy starting to look as hurt as she was. “I thought at first, maybe he was upset at me over something, so I tried all day to ask him what was up, and when the school day ended he just told me he has no idea who I am and why I’m bothering him and… left. We’ve never spoken again after that. Our… ten years of friendship ended just like that.”

Well…

Jesus H. Christ.

Will had no idea how to respond to this.

“Wow. What a…” He shook his head. “What a douchebag.”

She chuckles dryly. “Yeah, well, he wasn’t always like that. He’s not like what he is now. Trust me.” Then there was a bit of anger in her next words. “I suspected his parents might have threatened him with something to break our friendship. But I don’t know. Could be wrong about that.”

Will gives her a confused look. “What do you mean by that?”

She frowns, but it wasn’t directed at the said teenager. “Let me tell you a bit about Steve. He comes from a line of… rich people. Generational wealth. And due to this they have certain standards. Standards that Steve has to follow to the T.”

He blinks again, thinking. “But…” Another head shake. “But Mike’s family is not like that. I mean I know they’re not as rich as Steve’s, but still.”

“Well, a lot has to do with how Mike’s parents were raised. Not to mention, even though it might not seem like it sometimes, Karen and Ted do love each other in some way. And they really love their kids, and want nothing but the best for them. Tough and nurturing, in a healthy way.” Steph’s frown deepens. “But as for Steve’s, that nurturing and toughness goes a bit differently. Not exactly healthy.”

“How so?” Will asked, on the edge but invested in this tale.

Steph gives it some thought on how she should move forward. She had really only one story that would make sense of it all (or at least it wasn’t as violent as some of the other ones). She sets her stuff down, giving him her full attention now.

“I might have mentioned it to Dustin, or you guys, how I met Steve. Right?” She asks, waiting to confirm.

“Yeah. You said it was school.”

“But I never told anyone the full story. Not even Dustin or my mom knows.” She bites her lip and adverts her eyes for a split second. “Not even Steve knows.”

He tilts his head. “How does that work?”

She takes a deep breath. “It was probably a few weeks before the school year ended, and my class was to make cards to celebrate Mother’s day that was coming up. I remember being really excited about it. I drew my card, school ended and now I had to wait to be picked up. My mom mentioned earlier she might run behind because of work, but no biggie, I didn’t mind waiting.”

She could still picture it, holding her card close and humming a tune to herself as she waited and waited outside in front of the entrance of the Elementary school (The good old days, she calls it).

Stephanie was fiddling with her own hands now as she continued, “Kids started leaving one-by-one, and soon as I was the only one left. Or so I thought. I… suddenly heard this arguing, it was very loud, very terrible sounding, and… curiously I went to check it out, and there he was. Him and his mom. And… she’s yelling at him, telling him how crappy the card was, and how it should’ve been better, or this what he should have done, etc. And–” She swallows, hands tightening together. “Steve’s on the verge of tears, and he’s trying to come up with an explanation for her, and he promises he’ll do better and… um…”

“What?” He says, a bit scared for what was next. Especially when he saw the haunting look on her face.

“She… slaps him. Right across the face. And it was one of those slaps you know it hurt just by the sound of it.” His eyes widened. “Then, she grabbed him by the arm and dragged him back to the car.” She sighs and shifts in her seat. “I was so shocked by it, ‘cause I never witnessed something like that before, so…”  She shakes her head with a small groan. “God. I think at first I… I befriended him because it was out of pity, but that soon went away quickly. We became two peas in the pod in just one day. Never, ever alone.”

“That’s…” He was lost for words. “That’s so awful– So wrong. W-Why would they think that’ll make things better?”

She shrugs. “I don’t know.”

“But…” His fingers clenched his pants legs like a nervous tick. “D-Did they do anything else? We’re they always like that?”

Stephanie’s face morphed into total sadness now. “Listen, there’s a lot of stories I can’t tell you about his parents. They’re not exactly… kid friendly, to put it lightly. But yeah, they’ve done a lot of that, and a hell lot more.”

“Jesus.”

“But that’s why we worked together so well, Will. We complimented each other. He had shitty parents, and I was dealing with a shitty dad. We both helped each other navigate around that.” And ain’t that the truth. “But, besides all that negative stuff, he was a great kid. Me? I was a quiet kid, like you. I kept to myself most of the time, but Steve helped me come out of my shell. As for Steve? I helped him live a little, I helped him have a life that his parents never wanted him to have.”

“T-Then they should be grateful!” He says, sitting up straighter, more lively in his seat. “Y-You befriended their son. You were always there for him.”

“Will–”

“You helped him. Why should they be so upset about all this?”

She gives him a pitiful look for his sweet little heart he had. “Because I wasn’t perfect.” Her throat suddenly felt like it wanted to close up. “I wasn’t rich, I was a wild card. I had a sad, workaholic mother who was trying to keep us afloat, and a father that gambling 24/7 to the point we almost went bankrupt. There were a lot of cons in their eyes compared to the pros, which is probably zero.”

Despite the reasons, Will still couldn’t understand. She did nothing wrong! They should be mad at her. “But you were their son’s friend. That shouldn’t matter.”

She smiles just a tad and says, “You’re so sweet. I wish more people in the world could be like you. That’s why…” How does she cheer him up? “You gotta marry someone who is as kind hearted as you. So the legacy lives on.”

He snorts (Bingo!). “You sound like my mom.”

“Well, she’s not wrong.” She smirks. “But… I’ll tell you something funny about Steve. Maybe you can use it against him since he’s dating Mike’s sister.”

“And what’s that?” He asks, skeptical. 

“Guess what his middle name is?”

“Mmm… I don’t know. What?”

She grins. “Steven Grant Harrington.”

“Steven Grant–” He gasps. “Captain America!”

“Yep.” Steph chuckles. “Captain America. I remember when Steve told me his name, I started laughing. He was confused and I told him the truth. At first he was a little mad, but when I explained who Captain America was he seemed cool with it.”

“That’s awesome.”

“If you ever want to tease him, just call him Grant.”

“Oh, I’ll definitely remember that.” He finds himself smiling too and picking back up the empty bottle to continue his work. “My name’s Jacob.”

She perks up. “Jacob?”

“Named after my mom’s father.”

“That’s sweet. I’m Elizabeth.”

“Elizabeth?”

“My mom is a huge Elizabeth Taylor fan. I’m honestly surprised that wasn’t my first name.”

“Where does Stephanie come from?”

“Grandmother. At least that’s what she told me. But who knows? Knowing my mom… she got it off some cheesy magazine about cats.”

That seemed to do the trick for cheering him up because Will broke into a belly laugh that she hasn’t heard in a while. To her, besides “Separate Ways”, this was probably the best music she’s heard in a long time.

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

“This is weird without Lucas.” Dustin finally said after a long period of silence in the car. It felt weird, super weird not having all of his friends together at once. It already felt weird when Will disappeared, but now there’s no Lucas? Not much of a group anymore.

“He should’ve shaken my hand.” Mike said, just as Steve scolded him not to put his feet on his dashboard.

“He’s just jealous.”

Mike’s face morphed into confusion as he turned his whole body around to look in the backseat. “What are you talking about?” 

Dustin sighs. “Sometimes, your total obliviousness just blows my mind. He’s your best friend, right?”

“Yeah... I mean, I-I don’t know.”

“It’s fine. I get it. I didn’t start going to our school until the fourth grade.” He looks away, not wanting Mike to see the hurt in his eyes. Except Steve did. He caught his gaze in the rearview mirror and frowned. 

Damn it.

He forgot Steve knew the reason he didn’t go to public school right away thanks to his sister. 

He tries to act tough and tell him off. “I don’t need your pity Harrington, alright?” The tone made Steve break away and Mike give him the strangest look ever again.

Damn.

Damn this situation. 

Dustin sighs. “He had the advantage of living next door. But none of that matters. What matters is that he is your best friend.” He swallows. “And then this girl shows up and starts living in your basement, and all you ever want to do is pay attention to her.”

“That’s not true.” Mike reassures him. 

“Yes, it is. And you know it. And he knows it. But no one ever says anything until you both start punching and yelling at each other like goblins with intelligence scores of zero. Now everything’s weird.”

“He’s not my best friend.”

Dustin laughs. “Yeah, right.”

Mike sighs, reaching over to tap in the arm to get his attention. “I mean, he is, but so are you. And so is Will.”

“Can’t have more than one best friend.”

“Says who?”

“Says logic.”

“Well, I call bull on your logic, because you’re my best friend, too.”

Dustin notices his genuine expression and smiles, satisfied with the reply. “Okay.”

“Okay.” 

“Uh, hey, guys.” Steve interrupts, slowing the car down a little as the past pays a local grocery store. All eyes were on the front, spotting how the automatic doors were shattered and there were boxes of food laying around the parking lot filled with men in blue. “So… I’m assuming that might be…?”

Mike nods. “Uh... definitely. We’re going in the right direction then.”

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

The sister, Becky, brought them to the kitchen table, offering them cigarettes and some water while promising to explain. “She was a part of some study in college.”

“MK Ultra?” Hopper asks, getting a nod.

“Yeah, that’s the one.” She sighs. “Was, uh, started in the ’50s. By the time Terry got involved, it was supposed to be ramping down, but the drugs just got crazier. Messed her up good.”

“This was the CIA that ran this?”

Becky stared at for a second before a small smirk bestowed on her face. “You and Terry would’ve gotten along. ‘The Man’, with a big capital ‘M’.” Another sigh. “They’d pay... you know, a couple hundred bucks to people like my sister, give ’em drugs, psychedelics. LSD, mostly. And then they’d strip her naked and put her in these isolation tanks.”

“Isolation tanks?” Joyce asked after sparing a look with Hopper.

“Yeah.” She nods and stares explaining with her hands. “These big bathtubs, basically, filled with salt water, so you can float around in there. You lose any sense of, uh… sense and feel nothing, see nothing. They wanted to expand the boundaries of the mind. Real hippie crap. I... I mean, it’s not like they were forcing her to do any of this stuff. The thing is, though, is that she didn’t know she was pregnant at the time.”

“Jane.” Joyce whispers, getting another nod. She takes in a sharp inhale and asks, “Do you have any pictures of her?”

Becky paled and made sure they were both listening carefully. “I don’t think you guys understand. Terry miscarried in the third trimester.” Her words were like a knife to their heart, catching them both completely off guard.

“What?” Hopper said without realizing it at first.

“Come.” She says, standing up and making them follow. She takes them to a bedroom, a baby room, filled with a crib, toys, and anything else a newborn needs. “She keeps all of this up. Been doing it for 12 years.” She takes a seat, allowing them to walk around and observe. “Terry, uh, pretends like Jane is real, like she’s gonna come home someday. Says she’s special. Born with ‘abilities’.”

“Abilities?” Joyce asked, confused.

“You read any Stephen King?” Becky asks, surprising them again. She laughs. “You guys look scared, actually. I mean, it’s all make-believe.”

“What... what kind of abilities?”

“Telepathy, telekinesis… You know, shit you can do with your mind. That’s why the big, bad Man stole Jane away. Her baby’s a weapon, off fighting the commies.” She takes a long puff of her cigarette, frowning. “You know, the doctors all say it’s a coping mechanism. You know, to deal with the guilt.”

Joyce locks eyes with Hopper again before continuing, “Do you think there is any chance she could be telling the truth? Ab-About having had the kid.”

“There is no birth certificate, nothing from the hospital. Doctors and nurses all confirm that she miscarried.”

“Yeah, but that could’ve been covered up.” Hopper says, straightening up. “Right?”

Becky smirks again. “Like I said, you and Terry would’ve gotten along.”

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

After Jonathan explained what Hopper had found to Nancy, sure enough, his mother’s hunch was right. The eldest Wheeler needed some answers, and wasn’t going home until she got them. So he took up his mother’s suggestion and decided to stock up on ammo, getting ready for whatever comes next. 

“Monster Hunting?” He teased, as they came out of the store with a few boxes. He was poking fun at her response to the clerk asking why they were buying so much, and could help but laugh.

Nancy cracks a smile as she pops the trunk. “You know, last week… I was shopping for a new top I thought Steve might like. It took me and Barb all weekend. It seemed like life or death, you know? And... and now–”

“You’re shopping for shotgun shells with Jonathan Byers.”

“Yeah.” She chuckles.

“What’s the weirdest part? Me or the ammo?”

She gives him a playful look and says, “You. It’s definitely you.” Then their little moment was immediately ruined when someone honked their horn and rolled their window down to shout:

“Hey, Nance! Can’t wait to see your movie.” 

The highschoolers laughed as they drove off quicker, stunning them both.

“What the hell was that?” Jonathan asked, as she shrugged. But then it hit her. “What?” She suddenly takes off. “Wait! Where are you going? Nancy!”

It didn’t take long for him to catch up, finding her staring up at the local theater sign. The movie that was playing was called: “ALL THE RIGHT MOVES”, and was followed by a very unpleasant word mixed into her name that was written in bright red spray paint. 

“Oh, Jesus.” He mutters, but before he could apply any comfort, she stormed off again. “Nancy!” He followed her again, this time down an alleyway where he saw all the douchebags of high school were standing around and giggling. 

“What the hell’s wrong with you?” Nancy yells, getting their attention. 

Tommy, the one who had the spray paint can, takes center stage with a cocky look and attitude. “Well if isn’t the star of the show.” His eyes then trail to Jonathan. “And the devil himself. How we all doing?”

Nancy grits her teeth and smacks him across the face, the crowd ‘ooh-ing’ as he takes it like a champ. “What the fuck are you doing? Why would you write that?”

“‘Cause it’s the truth. You… have one fight with your Boyfriend and suddenly he’s not good enough for you, huh?”

“What?”

“What did you say to him? What was so bad that he suddenly isn’t showing up to school anymore? Or…” He jerks his thumb in Jonathan’s way. “How you just decided that the weirdo is better than the King? Come on.”

“Seriously?” Nancy scoffs. “You think I’m the reason that Steve’s not showing up at school? Unlike you, I’ve actually called him and even went to his house, to which he told me specifically that he was fine. Why hasn’t he been showing up? I don’t know! Maybe because he had to attend an old friend’s funeral yesterday?”

Carol snickers and laughs. “The nerd? Stephanie fucking Henderson? You really think those two were ever friends? He just felt sorry for how fucked up her family was and took pity.”

“Yeah.” Tommy says, grinning. “A drug addicted mother, a father arrested for illegal gambling; Two ‘fantastic’ people managed to fucked their own son over and give him all kinds of birth defects and diseases. I’m surprised your family gives them so much pity.”

“W-Wait…” Nancy pauses to try to wrap her head around what she had just heard. “Claudia…” What? “Ms. Henderson isn’t a drug addict.”

“Awe.” Carol pretends to pout. “Looks like Steve’s parents haven’t gotten close to you yet. What a shame.”

“His parents have a lot of dirt on a lot of people.” Tommy said in a sickening way. “Especially the Hendersons. There’s so much that this town doesn’t know about them, it’s shocking. Stephanie has a shit ton.” He chuckles. “God, the Harringtons can bury her to the center of the Earth with all the dirt they have on her.”

Then they all started laughing at the cruel joke it was, and Nancy was ready to go off when Jonathan took her by the arm and started stringing her away.

“Let’s go.” He says, calmly, but the bullies weren’t done yet.

“You know what, Byers? I’m actually kind of impressed.” Tommy says, trailing them. “I always took you for a queer, but I guess you’re just a screw up like your father.” He shoves him forward. “Oh, yeah. Yeah, that fucking house full of screw-ups. You know, we shouldn’t be surprised. A bunch of screw-ups in your family.”

“Tommy, stop.” Nancy hisses, as he shoves Jonathan again.

“I mean, your mom– I’m not even surprised what happened to your brother.”

“Tommy! Shut up!”

“I’m sorry I have to be the one to tell you, but the Byers, their family, it’s a disgrace to the entire–”

And that was the final straw as Jonathan turns around and sucker punches Tommy in the face. It took a brief second for him to recognize he got hit before all hell broke loose. So much so…

That this day ended with one of them in handcuffs.

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

The leaves crushed beneath their feets as they continue their trek along the train tracks, occasionally yelling the girl’s name. From where the trashed grocery store was, it laid directly near the forest that they’ve been wandering for a while now – staying in the direction they think she went. It shouldn’t be that hard then, right? Wrong. Going in one freaking direction didn’t seem that bad, but the tall trees didn’t seem to end any time soon. And what if she broke off? What if she went some other way? Then what? How many days will it take for them to comb the area until they find something? 

This all feels so… pointless. Steve admits in his thought. I mean, he probably combed at least nothing less than a quarter of forest last night, and he didn’t find anything! Nothing to point him in the right direction. And now, he and the boys actually had a lead and… nothing. Nothing at all. As much as the tiny voice in his head telling him to stop and go home, he knows Eleven’s the only way of finding their loved ones. 

And that is if she wants to help us after all this. He frowns, thinking about that. What if they find her and she blows them off? Then what? Do they just truly forget about her and move on? Nah… 

He knows that’s not the right answer either. But what if–

“Should we split up?” Mike asked, knocking the teenager back into reality.

“Absolutely not.” Steve immediately says, as they all slow down to talk. “Like I told you guys, whoever’s involved in this is not afraid to get their hands dirty.”

The kid sighs, remembering. “Yeah. You’re right. I forgot…”

“But what if we do?” Dustin said, shrugging.

Steve squares up and stands his ground quickly, prepared for an argument again. “Henderson–”

“No, seriously. What if we do? We can get it done quicker.”

“No. No splitting up.”

“We’ll get done–”

“I don’t care if it’ll get done quicker. We’re staying together. End of story.” Steve finishes, as he starts walking again alongside Mike.

“Then what do you expect us to do, Steve?” Dustin snaps, stopping them all once more.

“What?”

“You said it yourself, you checked the woods last night and didn’t find a thing! And that was just around the junkyard.”

“And your point being?”

“Yeah, man. What’s this about?” Mike asked, confused.

“This place is huge!” The curly haired boy yelled, throwing his arms out. “And you think just the three of us are going to cover it all today?”

Steve blinks, more puzzled by the question than the attitude. “Well… no. Of course not–”

“Then we should split up! Cover more ground.”

“Henderson–”

“Look, it’ll be easy. You continued this way, Mike goes left, I go right, and then–”

“Oh, my god– we are NOT splitting up!” Steve explodes, silencing him. “You can argue with me all you want, but it’s not going to happen. We are going to keep looking together, or you can march your butt straight back to the car and we’re done. Got it?!”

The boys stay quiet, Steve’s flushed face turning normal before walking away, Mike on his heels once more.

Dustin chuckles dryly under his breath. “You’re so useless…”

“What was that?” Steve perked up, slowing down again.

“You’re useless. Here I am having a solution to our problem, and you don’t want to take it.”

The eldest scoffed. “I am not useless. And only turned down your ‘solution’ because it’s too dangerous.”

“So what if it’s dangerous? This whole thing has been dangerous since the beginning!” The boy yells, throwing his hands in the air. “Will and Phanie taking a gun, a girl with real life superpowers, fake bodies, other worlds leaking into ours– this whole thing has been dangerous! So we might as well continue dipping our toes into it!”

Mike cuts in quickly after noticing the tension in the teenager’s form. “Dustin, I know you determined to find Stephanie, but maybe–”

“No, Mike! No ‘Maybes’! We should be taking risks at this point! I mean–” Dustin groans. “God!” He points at the oldest. “You’re so fucking stupid! I-I don’t know how or why my sister ever cared for you. I don’t know why she still cares for you! It’s so… fucking bizarre!”

“Dude…”

His response made Steve scoff again, trying to play it cool. “What are you even talking about? She doesn’t care about me.”

“Oh, yeah?” Dustin said, hands on his hips to look stern. “Well… news flash Harrington, she does. Even after what you did, she still gave a damn about you.”

“I…” What is he going on about? “That’s… that’s not possible.”

“Well, here then!” He digs around into his pocket, and fiercely tosses something at him. “Is that enough proof for you?” 

Steve manages to catch it before it hits him in the chest. Expecting something completely different, of course that gold chain with a red pendant catches him off guard. A gift he gave to her many years ago for her birthday… one that she still had.

She… kept this? He was so surprised he didn’t notice Dustin moving past him, beckoning for his friend to follow. Mike hesitates for a second, feeling empathy towards the older teen before he ends up leaving with his head hung low. His thumb brushes over the initials, swallowing hard as his heart clenches at the memories.

“Oh, yeah?” He shouts, turning around in their direction bitterly. “I’m still going to look for Eleven, you shitheads! And you’re going to regret going off on your own!” He doesn’t know why he half expected them to stop and turn around, but it was enough to make him cuss and go another way.

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

Joyce closed the car door a little more than she should have before covering her face with her trembling hands. This did… not go as planned as they thought.

“Hey…” Hopper interrupts her thoughts, softly. 

She sniffles. “What?”

“We’re gonna find him.”

“Yeah, like Terry found her daughter?”

He swallows, subtly, trying to keep it together – to be the strong one right now. “We’re close.”

She shakes her head. “B-But Tw-Twelve years? Twelve years she’s been looking for her and– oh god. Stephanie. W-We… we have to look for her too, and–”

“And then Jane shows up at Benny’s five nights ago, which means we’ve got a chance.” He inhales. “You know what I would give? For a chance? You know what I would give?”

“Hop–”

She was cut off by the sound of his walkie’s static, followed by Callahan’s voice. 

[ ‘Hey, Chief, you there? Hey, Chief?’ ]

He fishes it from his side, hitting the button. “Yeah, go ahead.”

[ ‘Yeah, a fight broke out here and–’ ]

Hopper bites his lip. “Cal, I don’t have time for this–”

[ ‘It’s Jonathan Byers.’ ]

Well that stopped him from hanging up. Him and Joyce both froze and looked at each other with confusion. 

[ ‘Uh, you haven’t seen Joyce, have you?’ ]

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

After shouting her name for a while, Mike nervously decided to ask, “Don’t you think that was a bit harsh?”

“What?” Dustin glances at him. “Do you think it was?”

“Uh… yeah.” He shrugs. “A little.”

“Well, I don’t.”

“Dude–” Mike stops them both. “Listen, I get it. You’re upset ‘cause he hurt your sister. But you don’t think it’s weird he’s helping us then?”

Dustin tilts his head, confused. “What do you mean?”

“Well…” How does he put this? “I mean, have you ever wondered why he stopped being friends with your sister? Like… did he have a reason for it?”

“Mike–” The warning starts.

“Here me out.” He holds his hands up. “What if he had to? What if he didn’t want to stop being friends but he had too? I mean, if he just broke the friendship because he hated her, then why is he here helping us? Have you ever thought of that?”

Well…

Of course not. 

His eyes widened at it, at the slim possibility that there may have been a reason for all this. But just as he says his friend’s name, Mike froze at a sound.

“Do you hear that?”

“What?”

“El!” Mike looks around, hopefully. “El!” 

But as the leaves kept rustling around, the sound getting closer, he had waited for the girl to come out from behind the trees and…

Totally not a pissed off Troy and James.

“Hey, there, Frogface.” Troy hissed, popping open his switchblade.

“Toothless.” James grinned maliciously. 

“Shit!” Dustin screams, hitting his friend in the arm to make him go. “Run, Mike! Run! Come on!”

The bullies take off after them yelling, “You’re dead, Wheeler. You’re dead, Henderson! DEAD!!”

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

Meanwhile, back at the police station, Nancy was waiting impatiently (Both wanting to leave, and wanting the front desk lady take forever to make an ice pack).

“Do you think we’ll be out of here soon?” She finally asked.

“You, yes. Him, no. He assaulted a police officer.” Flo explained, her reply was unsatisfying.

“Well, how long are you gonna keep him?”

“You and your boyfriend have big plans, do you?”

Nancy shakes her head and laughs. “He’s not my boyfriend.”

Flo gives her a look. “I think you better tell him that.”

“What?”

“Only love makes you that crazy, sweetheart.” Flo hands her the homemade ice pack. “And that damn stupid.”

When she leaves the words lingered in her head more than she thought they would have. She has a boyfriend for Christ’s sake! They shouldn’t be making her think too much about her and Jonathan’s relationship…

Right?

“Found some ice.” Nancy says, as she walks up to where he’s sitting – handcuffed to one of the officer’s desks. She smiles, trying to hide the thoughts as he locks eyes with her.

“Thanks.” He says, leaning into the ice pack as she holds up to his bruised side. It doesn’t take a genius to know that something was bothering her, prompting him to ask, “Everything okay?”

“Yeah.” She reassures him, reassures herself. “Everything’s fine.”

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

|| THE OTHER SIDE ||

“Everything okay?” Will asks, as he finishes loading the last of the ammo up when Stephanie reenters the building.

“Yeah. Everything’s fine.” She says, nodding. “Alright, the wire is set around the building. Whatever direction the Demogorgon comes from we’ll know. That should give us a good starting point towards a gate.”

“Right.” Just as he said that, their little decoy light flickered on and off rather quickly. They locked eyes with each other, the girl mouthing, ‘Be Ready.’

“I’m going to check a trap real quick.” Steph says the code word, before disappearing.

“Sounds good.” Will takes a deep breath, reminding himself to stay strong and not stray from their plan. We got this. We got this. It’s going to work, and we’re going home.

He turns away from the open space of the room, facing the wall. His eyes trail to the shotgun hidden by his feet, the light flickering again, telling him to start kneeling to the floor. He felt the hair on the back of his neck stick up, a low growl from somewhere behind him as he acts like he’s fixing the light to stay on. He felt the presence move closer and closer, he could hear the boney fingers cracking open, its face slowly doing the same. Just when he notices the shadow looming overing him, he shouts,

“STEPHANIE!”

The girl suddenly comes out of her hiding spot and slashes the nearest hand clean off. A shriek erupted from the beast, and just before it could retaliate, Will took a shot with the gun – officially starting their trap. Will took shot after shot, while Steph swung the axe into places she could get, ultimately backing the beast into some wiring, evidently knocking it over temporarily. 

“Let’s go!” She shouted, and they were off on a run… and soon was the Demogorgon. 

Just like they had practiced, they ran across the stepping stones with ease, heading for the stairs as the beast bathed itself in a concoction of liquid death. About a quarter of the way up, she swung the axe high and skillfully hacked some rope in half, her and Will covering their heads with their elbows to protect themselves from the raining shards of glass and nail from the tarp they put up. The Demogorgon shrills again and tries to navigate through the sharp storm.

Will takes a good look back at the girl and asks, “You ready?”

“Yep. Let’s finish this.” She replies, getting a nod and a flash of determination as they continue to run all the way to the top. 

The Demogorgon was met with Molotov cocktail after Molotov cocktail, courtesy of the Byers boy, bidding enough time for Steph to slip by to the other side of the tower without falling. With the rope in her hand, she signals the boy she’s done, and switches roles with him. Dropping the axe and taking the hand gun from her side and starts firing. Will takes this chance to move away, grabbing the other end of the rope and begin entangling it.

Their plan was to trip it over the edge, falling back below to the toxic pool – but I guess cutting off its hand seemed to fuel its rage as the tripping technique doesn’t seem to be effecting it like they hope. The Demogoron thrashed its good arm around, managing to nick Will in the bicep.

“Will!” Steph shouts, her worries making her loosen her grip. She almost gets sliced as well, having just enough to react and jump backwards. The rope slips from her hands, her body stumbling into the wall, the beast taking an opportunity to charge. She scramblings out of the way, running to the other corner to scoop up the shotgun they placed there, and fires away.

“Stephanie!” Will yells, scaredly. No. This wasn’t the plan. They need to get that thing to fall or they can’t finish it off. But how? Their tripping plan didn’t work? Come on, come on, come on! Think! What else?

His eyes frantically looked around, they had weapons, they had rope, what else? And that’s when he finally noticed it. 

The bell! He mentally gasps, getting an idea. “Stephanie!!” He shouts her name, and starts running to scoop up the discarded axe. “Get as close to the edge as you can!!”

Steph didn’t question it, knowing she didn’t have many options left in store. She starts aiming directly at the face, hoping her shots make it as she stands her ground. If she gets hurt by the Demogorgon, she gets hurt. Trusting her little partner in crime, she kept pelting it until she noticed where its footing was, and took another shot in its mouth. Then, using all the strength she could, she uses the butt of the gun to strike it, its heels dipping right over the edge–

Will lets out a yell of frustration as he swings the axe right into the rope that was holding the bell up. Snapping and dropping almost immediately, it manages to clip the Demogorgon, sending it free falling to the floor. It screams all the way down, the two of them meeting to look at their results. The pair watches as the beast tries clawing the broken bell of its lower half – splashing the alcohol and gasoline around, re-bathing itself in it.

Without muttering a word to one another, Stephanie digs out a lighter, switching it on; No hesitation as she lets it slip out of her fingers. The impact of the lighter caused the place to shake a little, the heat from the flames were so intense that she ended up shielding the boy’s face when it landed. 

Its scream turned up by a hundred as they made it down the stairs, carefully avoiding the flames until they came to a safe spot. Sure enough, the Demogorgon was definitely Barbequing now. They could smell the burnt flesh, its discolored blood spilling out, and becoming weaker and weaker, all as they watched with disgust on their faces.

Fill with unexplained rage, Stephanie, who had one last load in the chamber, takes a step forward. Then another… then another… then another, the flames itching to get her too. The Demogorgon’s hand flopped around on the ground in its poor attempts to get her, its mouth opening for one last weak scream–

She sticks the short barrel in the center of it, the shells doing its job as the trigger pops. 

Droplets doused her face, letting the gun fall along with its head, the creature officially not moving anymore.

Now they’re outside, the flames still could be seen through the murky stained glass window. The two of them just stared at it, dirty clothes and tired eyes, stomach grumbling from their worked up appetite. However, they weren’t done just yet.

“Just in case?” Will broke the ice first, looking at her with a blank expression that she returns.

“Just in case.” She repeats, before fishing out another lighter. “Care to do the honors?”

He takes it with his bruised hand, flickering it on and watching it for a second before throwing it at the foot of the building. The line of gasoline they poured around it erupted like fireworks, like…

Like it was their grand finale. A big old ‘Fuck You’ to this shitty place.

But despite the wave of emotions, the one of disgust, then nothingness… It soon ended with them laughing and crying of pure relief that they could finally breathe in a place like this.

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

Steve was this close to picking a fight with a freaking oak tree. He knew he shouldn’t get mad, I mean… Dustin did have a point about splitting up, but he knew he couldn’t risk that. He saw whomever these people were not afraid to get their hands dirty, and couldn’t risk anything happening to these kids but…

Jesus.

Dustin was really pissing him off. But he also wasn’t pissed off? The necklace he threw at him, the very one he gifted to the older Henderson all those years ago, the one he was for sure had been thrown in the trash at this point, was now in the palm of his hand, was fucking taunting him now?! I mean, Steve kept a box of things that he got on his and Steph’s adventures, but that was him. He thought after breaking her heart at school, he was sure that she would have trashed everything he’s given her over the years.

I guess he was wrong about that.

He rubbed his face with his hands, biting his lip as guilt started creeping back. It was guilt about their friendship, but there was also some that came from the boys he decided to freaking abandon moments ago.

Abandon. He just abandoned those kids because he was mad! Them being assholes or not, he should’ve been the grown up here and stood his ground despite if it meant potentially strangling Henderson. I mean what if something happens to them? How the hell would he explain that to their parents?

He completely stops, mentally slapping himself. “God. What the fuck am I thinking?”

Just as Steve was about to turn around and go looking, he heard something. He carefully looks around, starting to think he imagines it until he swears there was a person like shadow casting out from behind a nearby tree.

“Eleven?” He takes a hopeful small step forward. “I know that’s you. I can see your shadow.” That statement was enough to confirm it when the shadow moved slightly and the leaves rustled quietly. “Hey, can you come out? I just want to talk.”

But what did he expect? Just for her to come out and run into his arms? No. Of course not. However she was right there, just four steps ahead, and he’s not losing her this time.

“Listen, I’m not mad, okay? And I’m not just saying that so you can come out. I mean it. And…” How does he word this? “I don’t know why you chose to mess up the compass, you clearly had a reason, a reason I kind of agree with Wheeler, I think you wanted to protect us. Why? From? I don’t know, but I want to know. You have to tell me, you have to tell us.”

Please say something. Or move a bit so I know you’re acknowledging me. But neither of that happens, so he keeps going.

“I promise you, none of us are going to be angry. But you have to understand, time is of the essence right now, we have to find Stephanie, we have to find Will. So…” He knows his voice trembled at the end, but who cares. Maybe the honesty will help his case. “Please. Will you come out? Come out and talk to me? Please, Eleven?”

It’s so quiet you could hear a pin drop. Or in this case…

Screaming.

Steve’s head snapped in the direction of where he just came from, the familiarity of the screams made his stomach drop.

“Shit.” He mutters, looking one last time at the tree before taking off, hoping he isn’t too late for whatever reason they’re screaming for. Him running away was the missing chance of him seeing the girl’s gaze on him with a frightful face, wondering too what is happening to her friends.

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

The boys were running out of steam fast. It didn’t take long until their bullies had surrounded them, just off a trail that wraps around the whole quarry. With their stomach turning, and their hearts pounding in their ears, they scooped up any “weapons” they could find for defense.

“Stay back! Don’t come any closer!” Mike said, before chucking a rock at James.

The bully laughed at the terrible aim. “Nice throw, numbnuts.”

Dustin, in one last attempt to fight them off, comes full swinging at Troy with his stick – a complete fail too. Now, he was struggling to break free from his hold, as the switchblade was placed just under his chin, causing him to freak out.

“Let him go!” Mike yells, urgently. “Let him go!”

“Stay back, or I cut him!” Troy snaps.

“What do you want?!”

“I want to know how you did it!”

“How I did what?”

“I know you did something to me. Some nerdy science shit to make me do that!”

Mike almost rolled his eyes at the statement. “You mean piss your pants?”

Dustin, being Dustin, replies with, “Our friend has superpowers, and she squeezed your tiny bladder with her mind.”

“Shut up!” Troy grits his teeth, bringing the blade closer to his face. “I think I should save Toothless here a trip to the dentist. Help him lose the rest of his baby teeth.”

“Let him go.” Mike says again. “Let him go!”

“I’ll let him go, sure. But first... it’s your turn.”

“My turn for what?”

“Wet yourself.”

“What?”

“Jump…” Troy’s eyes gesture to the open water below. “Or Toothless here gets an early trip to the dentist.”

“NO!!” Dustin shouts, shaking his head, trying to wiggle out of the hold. “Stop! No! No!”

“Or I’ll cut him right now!” He continues, the blade now resting right on his lips, causing his hostage to whimper.

Mike shook with anger, but he had no choice. He didn’t want to be the cause of his friend getting hurt. “All right, just hold on!” He says, looking between the bullies as he starts walking away. “Hold on!”

“Mike, don’t do it. I don’t need my baby teeth, Mike! Mike, seriously, don’t!” His friend pleas, but he’s not listening as he gets closer and closer to the edge, stopping just as his toes went past the line.

With his big brown eyes he looks down at the blue water and wonders what hitting that would feel like. The fall was what? 50 feet? 70? Maybe a hundred? Would he even survive this? Would he never see any of his friends or family again? He hears Dustin pleading with him once more, and almost takes a step back, a step back to maybe striking up a deal with Troy; But would he even listen? Maybe jumping really was the only option here, so…

“Troy, I don’t think this is a good idea, man.” James says, a bit scared at the idea, yet his friend blows him off.

“Mike, don’t!” Dustin screams, as Mike takes a deep breath and starts closing his eyes, bracing himself for whatever awaits him below.

“Dentist’s office opens in five–”

This is for Dustin.

“Four!”

I’m sorry everyone.

“Three!”

Say Hi to Will and Steph for me.

“Two!”

Dustin yells his name.

“One!”

Just as Mike lets his foot slip down for the descent he felt himself get yanked backwards by his collar…

Someone else using the momentum to take his place.

He had enough time to stop himself from tumbling to see him plummeting into the Quarry.

“STEVE!!” Mike yells at the top of his lungs, everyone else staring in shock before running over to the edge. Now, everyone present expected to find the teenager’s body crashing into the water, or hear some kind of scream on the way down, yet instead…

They see the teenager panicking at how he found himself stopping in mid air like he could suddenly fly.

“Holy shit.” Dustin said, blue orbs blown wide just seconds before Steve started floating back towards them.

“Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa!” The Harrington spewed, limbs frantically moving. He continued his descent up and up, right over the four boys and landing semi-gently on the ground.

“Steve?!” Mike said, surprised (and relief blooming onto his face).

He shot straight up in the sitting position, his hair a mess, his eyes big like saucers, his heart pounding like a never ending drum. What the heck just happened? “How the hell did I…?”

And right on cue, like you could hear boss music play as Eleven was storming over, her red wig gone and dirtied face full of rage. She quickly blew James off his feet, and snapped Troy’s arm like a twig. The boy cried and El told them to go. The two bullies waste no time to leave, their tails tucked between their legs as Dustin eggs them on.

“Yeah, that’s right! You better run!” He yells, a shit eating grin blooming onto his face. “She’s our friend and she’s crazy! You come back here and she’ll kill you! You hear me? She’ll kill you, you sons of bitches. She’ll kill you!”

“You think she would?” Mike asked, half rhetorical, half serious. 

He shrugs. “I don’t know. Maybe? I was just saying that to scare them.”

“I wouldn’t let that get that far, alright?” Steve says, looking at them with amusement also. “You guys okay?”

“Okay?” Mike says, helping him get up. “Dude, you took my place!”

“Yeah, well, I would do it again if I–” He trails off, just as he notices Eleven’s knees buckling. “Hey– Hey! Eleven!” The boys rush over to the unconscious girl. “Eleven?”

“Is she okay? Why did she faint?”

“She might have overdid it. Eleven? Hey? Can you hear us? El?”

Eventually, She cracks her lids open slowly, finding all the boys hovering over her like she was made of glass. Glass. They shouldn’t be looking at her like that. Not after everything she’s done.

“El, are you okay? El?” Mike said, worriedly.

“Mike...” She sobbed, lip quivering. “I’m sorry.”

“Sorry? What are you sorry for?”

“The gate… I opened it. I’m the monster.”

“No.” He shakes his head. “No, El, you’re not the monster.”

“You saved us.” Steve said, with a smile. “You saved me. Do you understand? You saved me. Whatever you did in the past, that’s all said and done. All that matters now is what you do in the future. Okay?”

“Okay…” She sniffles and nods. “Okay.”

“Okay.” His expression grows as he sits her up. “Come here.” 

She allows herself to grab a hold of him, burying her head in his chest for a sense of comfort. Steve keeps her close, relieved that she’s here, relieved that she’s fine, relieved that she saved their lives. Whatever she’d done is done, now they must move forward and save their loved ones. But for now, they were allowed this one sentimental moment. He soon felt Mike wrapped his arms around them, just before Dustin did it too. 

Steve locks eyes with him, Dustin sharing a small smile while mouthing the words ‘Thank You’. Probably for the fact that he swapped places with Mike (Or was there something else beside that?). Whatever it was, Steve copies his expression before ruffling the top of his hat before continuing with the hug.

Meanwhile, in another part of the forest, Lucas found himself hidden in a tree, watching with his binoculars as he spotted the suspiciously familiar vans behind the fence. It took him a moment to realize where he saw those vans. Realizing that he saw one parked outside his house when he left a while ago, he put two and two together right before this situation got worse. He watches as Men in uniform stroll out of the lab, guns in hand and pouring into the vehicles that made their way into the main roads.

His eyes widened and his heart skipped a beat.

“Oh, fuck.”

(TBC)

A/N: Only three more chapters to go for this season! This next one should be a "fun" ride for you all 😈

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Married!Stonathan with a daughter headcanons to brighten your day ✨

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A/N: I've been thinking about Steve and Jonathan having a kid a lot lately! Also, might've turned this into a semi-fanfic, but I don't care!

✨ First of all, I want to tell you that I headcanon Jonathan as being a photojournalist (because that's his dream job and I want my baby boy to be HAPPY!) and Steve... Well, I imagine him as a police officer (maybe because of the fact that Joe Keery played a cop in the 5th Season of Fargo, but it also opens the possibility of imagining Steve working with Father-in-law!Hopper!);

✨ Their daughter's name is Elizabeth Harrington-Byers, but they call her Lizzie or Liz (because I love the name "Elizabeth," and it's definitely a name Steve and Jonathan would pick);

✨ They only call her "Elizabeth" when they're mad at her (which is practically never);

✨ Steve tries teaching her how to say his name as her first word (because "daddy" could be either of them), so Jonathan tries teaching her his name;

✨ Joyce watches over her when they're at work. Steve and Jonathan (mostly Jonathan) call her every hour or so to check on Lizzie;

✨ Jonathan takes thousands of pictures of Lizzie and proudly shows them to his friends at work;

✨ Robin proudly take on the role of the "cool aunt";

— Robin: [Holding Elizabeth and pointing at Steve] Say "dingus", Lizzie!

— Steve: [Taking Elizabeth from Robin's arms] Don't come near my daughter ever again, Robin.

✨ One time, Elizabeth babbled something that sounded eerily similar to "mama," and it sent Steve and Jonathan into a spiral of panic;

— Steve: Did she just say "mama"?!

— Jonathan: No, no, no, no! It’s just baby talk... Probably.

✨ Her first word was, obviously, "daddy," though it's unclear which daddy she was referring to and that is topic of discussion still;

✨ Thanks to Steve's lack of a baby filter, Elizabeth knows a couple of bad words;

— Joyce: [Calling Jonathan] Your daughter just said "shit." You, Steve, and I are going to have a talk later...

— Jonathan: But, mom! It's Steve's fault...!

✨ Uncle!Will has a special nickname for his niece - Lilibet - and no one else is allowed to use it, not even Mike;

✨ They often get confused whenever Elizabeth calls dad because they don't know which one she's calling;

— Elizabeth: Dad!

— Jonathan: Yeah, sweetie?

— Elizabeth: No, Dad Steve!

✨ Elizabeth, in turn, gets confused when Steve and Jonathan call themselves "dad;"

— Steve: Okay, Lizzie, dad's going to work now, and your other dad's staying here with you.

— Elizabeth: Which one?

— Steve: Me.

— Elizabeth: So... You're staying home with me?

— Jonathan: [Sighs] No, sweetheart, I'm staying home with you.

✨ These are life long confusions, by the way;

✨ Uncle Will and Uncle Mike, who are a comic book illustrator and a writer, respectively, make several special comics for their niece;

✨ Elizabeth calls every member of the Party "Uncle" or "Aunt" much to El, Will and Mike's (her real uncles and aunt) annoyance;

✨ The party definitely teaches her how to play D&D - they haven't played that game in years, so they're a little rusty;

✨ As his daughter gets older, Jonathan starts to worry if she'll stop seeing them as her parents because they're not biologically related, or if she'll start asking for a mom;

✨ They're terribly concerned if she'll suffer bullying when Elizabeth starts at school;

✨ Jonathan is a bit more overprotective than Steve, and also a bit more strict too (but just a tiny bit);

✨ But he also has a huge soft spot for her. All Elizabeth needs is a "puppy eyes" stare, and Daddy Jonathan will do anything she wants;

✨ One time, Elizabeth got into a fight at school because some students were making fun of her for having two dads, and Lizzie, being Jonathan Byers' daughter, kicked their asses.

— Steve: Ha! She has your fighting prowess, Jon!

— Jonathan: Don't encourage her, Steve.

— Steve: Oh, come on, she was just defending our honor!

— Jonathan: [Sighing] Alright, fine... It was kinda cool.

✨ They freaked out a little bit (actually, a lot) when their daughter had her first period;

— Steve: [Holding two different brands of pads at the pharmacy] What's the difference between this one and this one?

— Jonathan: Uh... This one is regular and this one is ultra-thin.

— Steve: Ok... So what's the difference?

— Jonathan: [Sighs] We should've called my mom... Or Robin... Or any woman...

— Steve: We're taking both!

✨ Jonathan teaches her photography and even buys her a Polaroid camera for her birthday;

✨ Steve teaches her basketball, but Elizabeth's favorite sport is soccer. They watch soccer matches together, and Steve lets her curse freely, much to Jonathan's chagrin;

✨ They enjoy torturing Elizabeth's boyfriends. After all, a boyfriend's worst nightmare is meeting his girlfriend's dad, and Elizabeth happens to have two, so double the nightmare;

✨ It's Jonathan who teaches her how to drive because, and I quote, "your dad Steve drives like a cop chasing robbers";

✨ They love embarrassing her with stories of when they were younger;

— Steve: Hey, Liz, have I ever told you how I fell in love with your dad?

— Elizabeth: Ugh. Not again...

— Steve: He kicked my ass in high school! That's when I realized, "This is the man I want to marry!"

— Jonathan: And did you know your dad used to work at an ice cream parlor called "Scoops Ahoy"? Steve, go grab the photo album, show her the pictures I took of you wearing that cute sailor uniform!

— Elizabeth: Please, no!

✨ Elizabeth would never do even half of the stupid things Steve and Jonathan did when they were teenagers. Still, they worry she might do something dumb;

— Jonathan: But Liz is such a good kid...

— Steve: Yeah, but she's also our daughter!

— Jonathan: ... Fair point.

✨ When Elizabeth turns into a teenager, Steve realises his dream of having "six little nuggets" would be a nightmare, so they decide to stick with just one kid... For now.

[sailorwritesstuff]

California girl. Jane Hopper x Fem!reader

Summary: El mets someone new in California and doesn't understand how her actions affect other people.

Warning: period typical homophobia, internalized homophobia, bullying, reader being called lesbo, cheating, lying, angst, slightly stalkerish behavior (but not in a bad way reader is just observate about El/Jane and nervous to talk to her.)

'Jane...' you watch closely as the girl passed you in the hall, her tranquil presence invading your personal space but you couldn't seem to make yourself unsettled by it. If anything the smell of Fresh linens, Maple Syrup, and slight undertones of smoke made you want her to come closer. It was peaceful. An aroma that had began growing more familiar by the day after sitting behind her in class for so long.

"Jane."

She stopped walking and her head turned around quickly to see who could possibly be calling for her. You stood completely frozen hand slammed over your own mouth. 'That wasn't supposed to happen' holding in a groan at your own idiocy you watch as her eyebrows knead together in confusion, her head tilts to the side, and her wide eyes wonder a little longer around the hall. Her Brother, Will, seemed to noticed she'd stopped walking and back tracked to check up on her. Placing his hand on her arm and pulling her over to the side of the hallway out of on coming traffic.

"El. Are you ok?" He mumbles gently, not quite a whisper but just loud enough that you could hear from the short distance between you. El. Learning something new about her made your stomach twirl. Maybe it was her middle name. Jane Elle Hopper? Perhaps it was short for something though...Jane Eleanor? Eleanor Jane? Your mind couldn't help but wonder off completely.

Unfortunately, The Warning bell sounded pulling you back to reality.

The rest of the day was blandly normal until your third period English. Your favorite class of the day where you got to sit behind Jane sometimes hearing her talk to her brother about their history class next . Or small things about home. Over the months you'd slowly been soaking in small details not completely on purpose you weren't necessarily spying on her you just happen to be right there. You had learn that they had an older brother named Jonathan, she really REALLY liked waffles but her favorite dinner was cheeseburgers so she got excited on days when her brother got fast food for dinner. They never outright said it but you learned that Jane was adopted by the numerous times she mentioned never having tried something and Will furrowed his eyebrows and looked at her as if she was crazy or the few times she referred to her mom as Joyce by accident. You learned that she loved the colors yellow and purple (much to teachers annoyance because she only did her homework in purple pen) but she hated the color red. All of it, every shade, but especially the dark ones. just small things you picked up were your favorite part about her.

But today was different, Will was gone from class which wasn't uncommon. He often went home due to bad headaches but Jane never stayed alone. The image of her sitting all alone at her desk was enough to throw you off when you came into the room. You pause In the doorway and stared at her for a moment but Jane always seemed to have some kind of sense. She always knew you were staring. she turned and met your eyes and flash you a smile. You felt relief, at least just a bit, she was so pretty. Your admiration for her had been cut off very quickly as you were pushed through the door by another rowdy teen and you quickly stumble to your seat apologizing to the person behind you class started normally nothing seemed wrong other than will not being present there was no talk between the two siblings but the chatter around you was enough to distract from the silent Jane. He wasn't until a few moments before the bell rang that everything went to shit. There was a tack on your shoulder and turned around to be met with a pretty girl with curly hair and a pair of glasses purse on her bulb shaped nose.

"Can you pass this to Jane?"

You took the note cautiously it wasn't a secret that Jane had been bullied often but the girl gave you a smile and winked, "it's good I promise."

You sigh and feel the strange inkling that you might regret this but you pass the note forward anyway and just a few seconds later there's cluttering and there's the sound of backpacks zipping and feet shuffling as most kids rush out of the classroom but Jane remains and her face turns bright red as she turns back to look at you packing your things.

"You think I'm pretty?" She whispers meekly staring at you with her big doe eyes.

You did think she was pretty but how did she know that? had you been obvious in your staring? No, that didn't make sense Jane was a pretty oblivious girl, naive in nature, she was very blunt and didn't understand things unless you said them to her directly. So how did she know? you fumble through a few phrases before you managed to get out

"I um...I...what?"

"The note? You said I'm...pretty."

"The note is-..." You felt your face get warm as you become overwhelmed you had gone from contently being in the background of her life to suddenly feeling like the center point of an episode in her show. You glance at the note hanging loosely Jane's hand. 'i think you're so pretty,Jane. I'm a huge lesbo for you." And in a handwriting not like your own at all was signed your name A couple of snickers could be heard from the door returned and see the girl from before the one with the glasses standing next to the asshole and mythic bitch that was Angela.

"aw look. They'll be on a date in no time." She smiled and it was wicked and sinister one of those looks that made you just want to wipe it off someone's face. filled with both embarrassment and rage you quickly collected your things, spilling a few empty papers for being too upset to go back as you roughly push past Angela and her posse and make it halfway to your locker before you could feel the tears in your eyes.

They'll be on a date in no time... The phrase rattled around in your head. You couldn't date Jane it didn't work that way. You'd gone quickly into the bathroom hiding away from the world... from Angela... from her.

You tuck your way into a stall and let the tears fall down your face with hush breaths and chest hiccups why did they have to say that why did you have to be involved? Jane probably thinks that you sent it to fuck with her. Your brain begins convincing you she probably thinks you're gay and in love with her. The realization makes your body shake. Were you in love with her?

"Y/n?" A voice called out from the door. "Are you in here? It's...Jane."

You hold your breath and wait hoping she'd leave. "Ok I guess not..."

"wait." Your voice is wet with tears and doesn't sound quite like you but you slide your body closer to the stall door and lean your back against it "Don't go."

Jane clammers down in front of the door and you can feel the heat of her back pressed against yours at the small opening at the bottom. "Are you...ok?"

"no."

"why not?"

"the Note." You grumbled. She really didn't understand.

"I think your note was very nice. I think you're pretty too." She beams.

"I...I didn't write the note."

The bathroom grew silent and then Jane let out a small "oh."

"not that I don't think you're pretty. I think you're gorgeous. Just... That word they called me."

"Lesbo?" She sounds innocent about it and you get a feeling that she doesn't know what it means but her tone seems displeased about it. Likes she's upset that it's upsetting you.

"is a mean word. For girls who like girls." You say and did silent for a while your brain starts to wander 'great now she thinks I'm weird'

"that's stupid." She finally decided

"what?"

"why can't girls like girls?"

"because..." You start. Why COULDN'T they? Because they couldn't have kids? Good you didn't want any anyway. "I don't know."

"I'd like to go on a date with you."

"huh?"

"Angela she said we'd be on a date soon" she stopped as if to let the information sink in "I'd like to go on a date. With you."

You push yourself away from the door quickly and unlock it forgetting that she was leaning on the other side. She falls inward and her head falls into your lap. She gives you a cheeky smile. "Hello."

"did you mean it?" You don't smile back and instead wipe away at your wet face in an attempted to look pretty for her.

"yes, a date! For cheese burgers."

"I...i think I...I'd like that." You manage slowly

"We are very late to class." Jane hums thoughtfully

"Yeah..."

"Maybe we can...skip?" She looks at you nervous as if not sure that that was the right word. But you just look at the "good girl" Jane in disbelief. "Hello?"

"y-yeah! We can go get freezy drinks from the corner store and be back before your ride is here to get you."

"freezy...drink?"

"you're going to love them!" The two of you pick up your things off the floor and scary to the entrance to the bathroom, you stick your head out and look both ways before pushing the door open grabbing Jane's soft hands and pulling her towards the school exit. Running past lockers and classrooms to make it out the door without being spotted. To your left you could hear Jane laughing once you made it outside of the building and you glace to see her head thrown back in genuine happiness she looked beautiful. The rest of the Walk was filled with banter. Jane trying to get to know you through her limited understanding of social norms asking things like your favorite color and what you liked to eat until you made the short walk from school to the nearest 7-Eleven just a few blocks away.

"ta-da" you wave your hands as if you cast it some sort of magic spell in front of you I should showcase the slushy machine filled with four flavors, the mandatory blue and red accompanied by Cherry Coke and green apple. "Freezy drink machine."

She seemed almost captivated by the way that the liquid swirled in the little containers. "Green is very pretty." She muttered. Tapping the plastic with her finger. You grab a cup from the sleeve on the wall and press it into her hand.

"here you just pull this down like this" you demonstrate carefully watching her face light up at the task. It was wonderful how she found joy in the mundane. You pick your own flavor and find the lid and straw before helping her do the same. "there. Perfect. Want a snack?"

Jane looked thoughtfully around the store until her eyes will be under rotating hot dog station. "Hotdog."

"one hot dog for the lady coming right up." You smile venturing up front to talk to the cashier a polite older lady who found the two of you cute. It wasn't often that she seen a kid at your age that hadn't tried a slushie before. She was a bit chatty but not nearly enough to stop you from smiling. You were on a sorta date.

The weekend that passed in anticipation of seeing Jane the following Monday was excruciatingly slow.

Weeks pass and new partnership became almost routine. Jane met you enthusiastically everyday at the front entrance of the school the two of you ate lunch together in the corner of the cafeteria just the two of you and her brother, Will. Sometimes in the morning you brought her a slushie. Blue or green but never red, Jane didn't like red. Sometimes in the morning she brought you a toasted waffle stored in a ziplock bag 'to keep the warm' she'd said. But everyday now you chatted in class instead of listening to her chatter with her brother. Everyday you walked her to her ride home.

And on the weekend you went to 7-Eleven. You had been planning to make time for a real cheeseburger date just like she had requested. But it seemed between the two of you something was always coming out if you were free Jane was busy hanging out with her brother if she was free you were busy with your extracurriculars it just never seemed to be a good time but this weekend you knew it it had to be perfect Jane hadn't expressed having any plans begin and you hadn't either

That's how you found yourself fidgeting on the Byer's front door anxiously holding three nearly perfect daisy's. It wasn't chained that opened the door what her older brother Jonathan met a couple of times when you walked her to his car. He looks high.

"Uh..." He glanced over his shoulder, you wince, he was definitely high. "Hey man."

"is Jane home?" You decide to play along talking to him as if you didn't know he was absolutely blitzed.

"Yeah...yeah she's got um....guests from back home though..." He explains with an empathetic frown. She hadn't said anything was happening this weekend a friend coming from home seemed like something you tell your girlfriend.

"Oh that's okay." you lie through your teeth. "Tell her I dropped by?"

"Yeah, yeah...I will."

"Jonathan, Will says who's at the door? Is it pizza..." A boy says he's tall, with long hair, and a face like he's hiding a frog in his mouth. He's holding hands with a girl. He's holding hands with Jane. Your brain swirls.

Jane comes around the corner holding hands with a boy you've never met before. He must be their...guest.

"Jane." You smile. Despite everything, upset she hadn't told you she had plans and being sad you hadn't been spending a lot of time together recently, you smile. She smiles back and gives a meek wave.

"y/n!" She rushes to hug you and the smell of maple syrup and markers is comforting.

"oh oh!" She pulled back excitedly once again grabbing the boys arm and pulling him towards you. "You have to meet Mike."

"This is Mike, my boyfriend. Mike this is Y/n, my Girlfriend." And your world shattered around you. Suddenly there was only Mike and El and how close they stood together. Your finger twitched in anger but your eyes felt heavy. It bugged you that you could tell Mike didn't feel angry, but maybe he just didn't understand. Maybe he thought girlfriend like friend who's a girl. they hang out they must be the best of friends. But you knew that wasn't right. There had been no way Jane only saw you as a friend. She had kissed you. You were meant to go on a date...for cheese burgers.

"hi, Mike." You extend your hand. "I'm sorry I must have gotten the wrong day I didn't know Jane had friends over. I thought we were supposed to hang out today...my mistake."

[theriddleskeeponriddling]

Rambling : Riddler : Empathy And Riddler’s View On Relationships

I was speaking with my friend about how my Crowverse version of riddler handles friendships, empathy, disorders, ect. I really enjoyed voicing it there, and now I wish to voice it here so I can look to it for reference and whatever. Thank you @a-sxft-chaotic for helping me by psycho-analyzing my Riddler, Much love to you silly Crane2.0. This post may be updated tomorrow when it’s not late and I can think better. Suggestions to anything mentioned here are welcome

Edward has several disorders. Autism, Ocd, Npd ect. He is already born with lower levels of empathy, but with added traumatic childhood experiences, it has only gotten worse. He rarely had any friends has a child. He was too honest. Blunt. And while he began as a kid upbeat and striving to share about himself and to learn, he soon stood out for not expressing much sadness or care like other kids. After elementary school, he never made any friends.

The first closest sort of friend he makes, is a girl named Destiny. A girl often bullied for being of color, and requiring a wheelchair. She is similar to Hannah in the ways of being very empathetic and supportive, traits that Edward finds foolish but admirable in a way. He doesn’t make much effort to be her friend, giving her schoolwork anytime she is away for surgeries; Lending her books that she sees Ed reading; and whatnot. Destiny views Edward as a close friend, and believes he is nice for his treatment to her and the several times that Edward ‘mysteriously’ got her bullies to back away. (blackmail) He slowly starts to get used to her, but the girl, so morally righteous, finds that Edward bought a laptop using money stolen from his father and tells Mr. Nashton, Unaware that Edward would receive a bad fracture to his leg the following night.. This is the first point in which Edward truly starts finding friendships as an inconvenience.

Riddler calls everyone ‘friend’ even after saying how much he despises every person in the Rogues Gallery. He jokes about not having friends, and always claims it as his biggest strength. He doesn’t have anyone to be used as blackmail, He doesn’t need to worry about anyone other than himself, he doesn’t need to worry about losing anyone.. It sounds easier to him. It is a mix of pushing people away, and being overly egotistical that causes Riddler to have no real friendships. Riddler grew up accidentally appearing rude and emotionless to everyone around him, So now he believes it himself. He believes he doesn’t care for anyone, and refuses to make any real connections or offering genuine kindness. Though sometimes caring acts slip through, and it’s when he falls in love with Jonathan and starts dating him, that his emotional intelligence is challenged.

Riddler is rude for three reasons.

1) His autism prevents him from understanding why he should change his blunt and honest mannerisms, which appear as insults to anyone who is faced with them.

2) He thinks he is better than everyone else, and as such, his opinions matter more than anyone’s emotions. He has so much pride, that he refuses to change anything about himself for the benefit of others. He also sees that caring for others is a weakness. It means putting emotion over strategy and logic, and in his line of work, there is no room for such a risk. Edward believes that nobody should even like him. That he is so rude and emotionally absent that anyone who cares about him, is foolish and makes no sense.

3) He refuses to keep anyone he cares about close.. Caring for himself alone is easier, and if he thinks everyone will leave him in the end, why risk the relationship at all? He is already well disliked, but if he starts becoming fond of anyone, he starts pushing them away with more negativity in the hope that they will leave him now, instead of leaving him later when he is more attached. Choosing the lesser pain.

Riddler’s sisters, Hannah(2-) and Lydia(6+), are the only two he has consistently cared for. After leaving for Gotham at 18, he cuts ties with them, thinking to reconnect again only once he makes a name for himself.. But when the name happens to be for a well known costume criminal, he further refuses to speak with his sisters. He figures they are safer in their hometown, and it means that he doesn’t have to think or worry about them at all.. When he finds out his older sister Lydia moved to Gotham as an officer, Riddler can’t handle the concern that he has avoided, and begs her to leave so that he can forget about her more and so she isn’t at risk. If she is in danger, Edward knows he would risk himself to help, but because he loves himself so much, he hates the idea that he could ever consider sacrificing himself for anyone else..

It doesn’t matter how close Riddler is with anyone, he needs the security of being prepared. He digs in everyone’s business, finding every little detail he can. The closer they are with him, the more blackmail he documents. He worries than in any wrong move, anyone and everyone would leave him for a heartbeat, so he feels the need to have blackmail ready just in case someone threatens to embarrass or ruin him with personal information.

He also refers to everyone by first names. It’s his way of getting personal and to also hint that he pays attention to people for more than their life as costume criminals. That he knows them beyond their persona, and he doesn’t respect their criminal identities.

This is the end of this Rambling session, for now. I do plan to change the little speech for Jon, I need to flesh his character out more, but other than that, this is pretty much all I have going for Edward.

Edit: This Riddler Is Asexual or Demisexual. That form of relationship hasn’t existed for him. Romance is being thought of story-wise, but hasn’t happened for him at any point before age 30

[sofixt0k]

OPINION ABOUT THE NEW MILEVEN DEFENCE VIDEO ( 10 )

Part Ten Her comments / My comments

"And once he says it for the first time in the monologue, he doesn't stop, and he starts, and I fear for this, and I fear in your good days, and I fear in your bad days, and he goes on and on and on. I mean, literally, saying that Mike lied in the monologue is the worst thing you can say because it makes no sense. Another thing they say about Season 4 is that Eleven doesn't trust Mike because she didn't tell him she was having a hard time at school, that she was being bullied, that she had bad grades, and that Eleven lied to Mike, saying, 'No, I go to parties and have a lot of friends.' So because of these things, they say Eleven doesn't trust Mike. No, in fact, in Season 3, Episode 6, when Eleven is about to put on the blindfold to find Billy, Mike sits with her and says, 'You don't have to do this if you don't want to. You did it once with your mom, and she loved you.' What does that mean? It means that between Seasons 2 and 3, Eleven decided to tell Mike everything that happened with her mom. Maybe no one else in the group knows besides Hopper, but Eleven, on the contrary, trusts Mike so much that she told him everything she discovered about her mom, that she went into her mom's mind to discover her past. So how can Eleven not trust Mike after confiding something so intimate and personal from her past life in the lab? Telling someone about the bad life she had is clearly a sign of love and trust. It's like, okay, she trusts you enough to tell you this. And lastly, something they also say about this fourth season—oh my gosh, it's freaking raining—is that at the end, Eleven didn't hear the monologue.

Let me be 100% honest, all this about Jane's mom, I can't respond because I don't remember what this girl is referring to. So if someone remembers, please reblog this, and I will too.

Secondly, when did we say she didn't hear it???? LITERALLY, the sad face Eleven had was because she JUST heard everything he said. And look, I'll tell you the truth, Eleven is not in my top 10 characters, but I still felt very sorry for how much it hurts her to be reduced to just a thing with powers and that… Well— Mr. 'you can move mountains' said everything he said.

And that's why at the end of Season 4, she's super angry with him, distant, and doesn't talk to him. Literally, if you see the script of the last episode of Season 4 that was published in 2022, it says that when Mike is holding her hand, she's listening. It's literally in the script.

DO YOU KNOW WHAT ELSE THE SCRIPT SAYS BUT YOU LOVE TO IGNORE????

BINGO!

tender emotional music

HAHAHAH, this is actually in the series, but I couldn't find the example I wanted to give when Jonathan interrupts them. But you get me, again, only what's convenient for them is valid.

So she heard the monologue, whether you like it or not.

Believe me, we're actually happy that she heard it. I think your thing of inventing our perspectives is backfiring on you.

-and at the end, I mean, it seems very hypocritical to think that Eleven doesn't talk to Mike because she's angry with him. I mean, Eleven just saw her best friend die,

And Mike is not there as support.

She tried to revive her—

Sure, with the strength she gained from seeing Max, not from Mike's monologue. You don't mention it, but it's still a good detail.

-and not entirely because she's alive but has brain death. And we already know that Eleven already feels guilty for a lot of things in her life. Obviously, she feels guilty that Max is not as alive as she should be. Eleven is not talking to Mike, or Will, or anyone—

AND AGAIN, THIS GIRL IS ALSO A CLOSE FRIEND OF ELEVEN—

No, seriously, it could be very likely. We only see her at the very end talking to Hopper, apart from when they arrive from California, go to the hospital, blah blah. My point is: THERE WAS NO NEED TO EMPHASIZE THAT SHE WASN'T TALKING TO MIKE UNLESS, CLEARLY, IT WAS VERY NECESSARY.

-because she's overthinking everything that happened. That's why it seems very hypocritical to say Eleven is angry with Mike. No, Eleven is angry with herself. She feels guilty for not being able to revive Max as she should have. It doesn't mean that Eleven is angry with Mike. In fact, when they visit Max in the hospital, Eleven rests her head on Mike's shoulder,

And yes, she did the same with Hopper, and?

-she wouldn't do that if she were angry with him,

Because she's not angry—honestly, I can't find the word to describe how I see it. It's not disappointment or resignation; it's more like she knows they need to talk. Talk things out sincerely.

-anyway, Byler Shippers' excuses. The next accusation they make, not necessarily about Season 4 but in general, is that Mike only loves her for her powers. I'm leaving, I swear I'm fed up. There are tons of scenes showing that Mike doesn't love Eleven just for her powers. In fact, it worries him. In Season 3, he literally says in an episode, 'They're treating her like a machine, and she's not. She's a person.' Hawkins was falling apart, everyone was dying, the most powerful monster so far was being created, and Mike said, 'It can't be that the only way to solve this is for my girlfriend to use her powers.' I mean, how can Mike love her just for her powers when the last thing he wants is for her to use them and strain herself?"

What I'm going to say next is probably going to be poorly explained, so sorry in advance.

It's not about him 'loving' her for her powers (mainly because I don't think he loves her romantically); it's about the fact that for Mike, finding Eleven in the woods was like finding an extraterrestrial. Where I'm going with this.

Mike is a nerd. In every sense of the word. He loves superheroes.

And that just when the whole love thing comes into the life of a twelve-year-old Mike, he has someone LIKE Eleven at hand, it's... Easy. It should be easy. It's everything he supposedly should like.

But these powers scare him many times. He doesn't accept them many times. And at the same time, they make him feel insecure because he feels inferior to Eleven.

But then, it's the only thing he praises about her, and it's contradictory that he says he loves her with superpowers/without superpowers. When with them, he feels 'fear'/'rejection,' let's say, but without them... He doesn't know her.

And it's sad... They could have started as a beautiful friendship. They could know each other beyond Mike knowing she likes waffles and Eleven—well—honestly, I can't think of anything she knows about Mike, like favorite color, food, well, whatever.

So I won't respond to 'You think he loves her just for her superpowers' because I don't even think he loves her.

[jonathan-cranes-mistress-of-fear]

Have any tips on writing Jonathan/Scarecrow? Or things to especially avoid? I don’t write cannon a lot but want to try with him for a fic I’m writing due to a fun scene I had in mind, plus scythe fighting is really fun. But it’s a bit intimidating to tackle one of my fav’s and a strong character like him. Also thoughts on Crane being immune to fear toxin?

Hey, I can help! Here's some general knowledge and tips you might find useful!

Jonathan, depending on the origin (year one, verses say, btas) he can either be afraid of crows or empowered by them. He loves to scare birds in general though and sometimes even has a crow companion. None of these choices are right or wrong, it depends on what you want to write

He lives off others fear, and even his own fear. Sometimes he takes the toxin just of feel fear. There's even canons were he's virtually emotionless from toxin overdose

Speaking of above, I personally hate the trope of Jonathan not being immune to his own toxin. Let's be real, he tests it on himself all the time and definitely has SOME kind of immunity. It's literally his baby, he's not going down if batman injects him with it. Sorry DC, but I'm different.

He is VERY SMART, one of THE smartest rogues if not literally the smartest. He's gonna use your words against you, he's gonna analyze you deep down and tear you apart from trauma to trauma.

Even so, he's had a lot of childhood issues. He is bullied by kids and adults like.So, it's possible to get to him just by mocking him.

OH. And don't forget the fact that he himself is a bully. He's the "it happened to me, so I will make everyone suffer as I did" type. The irony is not lost on him

He's not weak. If he can successfully use a scythe, he's fucking strong, it's just that he appears lanky and weak. It's all muscle I assure you. (Don't forget violent dancing -- see batman annual 19 for good references) He will use his looks against you in this way, don't underestimate him. (also, sorry DC -- he's built different)

As for what to avoid, well that's up to you. You don't have to make him scared of crows, or give him a bird friend. You can write him super dark and nasty, absolutely vile. Misogynistic, even. Some comics do that. (not that I agree, but I can see it being valid)

Honestly, just have fun, maybe use a handful of comics for inspiration. I'm of the mind that there is no right or wrong way to use comic characters like in the DC or Marvel verses, because SO MANY writers have written them and there's always going to be contradictions---and with that, someone will ALWAYS like what you have written. Not everyone will, but you don't need it to appeal that way, find your niche. That's how we prosper as creatives.

I hope this helps!! <333

[msmargarita]

✨🤓Johnathon/🕳️ Spot Headcanons✨

These are some headcanons I wrote for my two fics:

i'm not going to turn into a cosmic anomaly and leave you forever

and

i'm really serious this time, baby

It has !!spoilers!! for both of those fics!

It's basically an AU unless I somehow foresaw the future and guessed what happens in BTSV!

Beware the keep reading button. This is HUGE.

🤓 Johnathon HCs!

HE IS A GEMINI. Like come on. Talks a lot, nerdy, silly guy. He is a canonically silly guy! In his first fight with Miles he pretends to have hurt his nose (he doesn’t have one) to trick him. So silly! I would bet there's Capricorn somewhere in there too. And Pisces. I’ll make this man’s whole birth chart if you dare me. Just dare me. I’m insane.

Jason Schwartzman used to be in a band in the 00s. I think it would be cool if Johnathon also had some sort of interest in music. I think he would have tried to learn guitar in college but only got a few chords in before life got too chaotic and every now and then he thinks of picking it back up. 

He is also one of those guys who fanboys over old ass music, especially from the 60s and 70s. Loves Jazz, Funk and Prog Rock. Look at this man and tell me he is not a prog rock guy. He is a nerd, he might even be *shudders* a math rock guy. I also think he would have one completely random favorite artist that has nothing to do with the things listed above, like, idk Lizzo. Or Princess Nokia. He just looks like the type.

I think everyone agrees Johnathon is at least in his thirties, but I put him down as thirty-three in the end. I did that because Olivia is thirty-five tops in ITSV (according to Peter) and since he was her subordinate it makes sense that he would be just a little bit younger than her. 

“But hey! That's too young to get a PhD!” you might say, but I think Johnny is an overachiever. I think he was one of those super genius kids that got in early in college and lived for academia. A teacher's pet even.

He is a workaholic, so when he quits his job he gets really lost and doesn't know what to do with himself. He might have a new job soon doing what he loves, so you’re going to need to be on his ass so he doesn’t fall back into his old habit of overworking. 

I like to think that Miles would get an internship under Johnathon a few years in the future and they would learn a lot together. Jonathan would probably take a week to figure out he is Spider-Man and would cover for him when the boy needs to disappear. This actually sounds like a fun drabble to write about.

Johnathon may be a genius, but like he said, he is not too familiar with relationships. I think he might've had one or two in the past, but everything slowed down when he started working at Alchemax. “I’ve been told” is referring to those past relationships, in which he was probably told that he works too much and never has time to spend with his partners. He’s not been with anyone for a long time and his game consists of buying the first comic book he saw on a shelf in order to ask you out.

But that doesn't mean he is cold. Quite the opposite really, Johnathon is very touchy-feely. He hasn't been with anyone for a while and misses touching and being touched. He is most comfortable when being at least 70% curled around you. 

He smokes Dunhill Carltons (he likes to feel fancy), but less now that he isn't as stressed from work. Like he said, he used to go on walks to smoke and pass by the comic book store you work at before you guys had even met. I like to think he developed a little crush back then.

Had his tattoos done in college, so they are very faded now. He doesn’t think of redoing them because the mere thought of having to stay seated for hours in the same place feeling pain stresses him out. He was a lot more easygoing when he had them done.

He did have a superhero phase when he was a kid. He would fantasize a lot about having superpowers and flying away when the bullies showed up. Never thought about fighting back. Before becoming the Spot, he wasn't the confrontational type. The hero thing fizzled out as he grew older, but he would always dream about being stronger. Being a better version of himself in a kinda superficial, but understandable way.

He still has a bunch of action figures, he thinks they look cool. If you give him one, he won't even care if he knows the character or not, he just likes them.

Even though Johanthon says he is “good-looking”, he does add “for a scientist” in the end. I think he tries to mask his insecurities with humor, always putting himself down with a joke, always saying he’s too old, too corny, too nerdy. In the back of his head he knows the hair and the glasses are kind of a look, but he doesn’t feel handsome. You help as much as you can, but that’s an obstacle for him to overcome by himself. I think after i’m really serious this time, baby he gets better at this.

🕳️ The Spot HCs!

For clarification: the story of i’m not gonna turn into a cosmic anomaly and leave you forever stretches the plot of ATSV to a few weeks instead of a day. Just think of it like Spot taking a little longer to power up instead of a few hours.

Since he was forced to do crime to survive, I think he would've thought to himself: "Well, since I have to go rob a store anyway, might as well be that one where that cute cashier works at." 

Yes, Spot starts tracking and following you after you two meet. He uses his computer nerd powers for evil. A very unhealthy way of dealing with a crush, I think.

Spot can eat but he doesn't get any nutritional value from food. When you drink wine together or when he burns his tongue (?) from tea it's just a placebo effect. I like to think that Johnathon's mind is still inside The Spot's body, so he eats just for habit. He says he gets hungry all the time, but it's actually a deep need to consume everything around him. The little rascal.

As he powers up, Spot gets more confident in himself. He thinks the stronger he gets the further away he gets from Johnathon, his old self. Which, in the end, turns out to be true.

I think at first you don't really believe Spot is an actual supervillain which is why when you see him after the fight in Mumbattan it's such a shock. In a way, you did the same thing Miles did when he underestimated him, even if for whole different reasons. I think even though he knows you care about him, Spot knows you don't see him as a threat and that makes him want to impress you more. 

Spot knows that the reason you keep getting new jobs is because his own crazy supervillain life keeps interfering with yours, so he tries to keep it as much hidden from you as possible. He thinks what you don’t know can’t hurt you! As Johnathon, he feels guilty at first that you’re changing your whole life to go with him to New Jersey, BUT this time it was your choice! Not because of supervillain shenanigans!

He does love you (even if it was too early to know) and wants to be with you, but his head is so lost in the supervillain game, he thinks he can’t stop now. You never really realized how serious he was about “being stronger”. Which is why you never tried to stop him.

I chose I’d Rather Be With You as a theme song because I think it’s a song Johnathon/Spot would enjoy. But I also like how the lyrics match both their feelings towards you, in both fics. He wants to fly away with you once he gets all powered up, he loves your smile, etc. He does want to be your friend until the end as the Spot, but as Johanthon he is really committed to work on his bad habits in order to be with you. We gon' make it this time, baby! I cry, damnit. 

It’s also a surprisingly gender-neutral song, with no physical descriptions in it! Anyone can put themselves in the lover's place. Bootsy Collins is cool like that.

I like to think that, in the end, Spot didn't erase himself from the timeline. He just reloaded an old save. Does that make sense? Like you said, your relationship will always have happened, just in an old, non existent dimension. And since Johnathon and you still get dreams and deja vu about the whole thing (think of it as dimensional residue or whatever), you do have all the EXP of the old save. Johnathon, after going through the literal end of all existence and then forgetting about it, feels something compelling him to finally take a chance and enter the comic book store. It’s like when your body goes through something and it remembers later, even if your mind doesn't. Here's a (hopefully) comprehensive timeline:

the end.

Thank you for taking an interest in my weird AU! I would kill for you 💖

[nobylerdoubt]

You’ve talked a bit about how Byler parallels other romantic relationships in ST.. I was wondering if you could go more into it.. especially with Jancy & Max and Lucas??

Certainly!

So @willthewise80sbyers has a series on parallels for these couples, so I'll link them here for reference as well.

Jancy (1) (2)

Lumax (1) (2)

Jancy

In general, Will parallels Jonathan and Mike parallels Nancy. Not just because they're siblings.

Nancy and Mike are both writers, Nancy being a reporter/journalist and Mike being and author and storyteller. They are both a bit loud (at least louder than Will and Jonathan), and have a bit more outward confidence and push back on issues that they don't agree with. Both are in relationships with the third party in their love triangle, and both have a certain societal pressure that pushes them towards that relationship; Nancy is pressured to be a "moral woman", a meek wife, who marries a well-off man and lives on a cul-de-sac, while Mike is pressured by heteronormativity and societal homophobia.

Jonathan and Will are both quiet, artistic types. They share an appreciation for music, are introverted almost to an extreme, and have a tendency to be pushed around a bit, rather than voicing their beliefs like Mike and Nancy would. They are more soft and sensitive than Mike and Nancy as well, and they've both been on the receiving end of bullying and abuse.

A lot of their similarities to one another stems from the fact that we're dealing with two sets of siblings - however I feel like there's a point to this. Jancy is the more "socially acceptable pairing" the general audience sees Jonathan and Nancy, and has no trouble jumping to the conclusion that the two of them will end up as a couple - which then begs the question, why shouldn't we be able to imagine Will and Mike as a couple as well.

So the purpose of paralleling Byler with Jancy is mirroring. By having characters and coupling so similar, it begs us to look at the differences.

Lumax

tw: mild discussions of racism

With Lumax I kind of feel like it's equal and opposite. Lumax and Byler are very different. But I feel like they both lay the groundwork for one another.

In season 2 we have Mike supporting Will as much as he can while he survives the horrors of the Upside Down, and in season 4 we see Lucas do the same for Max. This dynamic of Lucas kind of being like Max's tether to the real world in the midst of all this terrifying stuff happening to her feels like an intentional callback. I think like how in season 3 we have Mike leaning on Lucas for all this relationship help with El, Lucas looks back on what Mike did for Will for help with understanding how to support Max in this.

Also in season 2, we have Lucas and Max starting to fall in like/love with one another, but they face challenges due to Billy's racism, which brings up historical distaste and biases for interracial couples, which would have still been felt in this time period. This was a hard relationship to pursue because of this cultural bias. With Mike and Will we have another relationship with discrimination working against them, but in a different way. I think this is meant to be one of the many ways this show is an anthem for the outcasts. Lucas and Max love each other, so they pursued it and strove to make their relationship work despite all the people telling the no. I think as we see Mike and Will start to come together, we may see more references and parallels to Lumax in season 2.

Lumax and Byler fall back on each other, and inform each other. They're very different relationships, but they can look back on the other relationship as a reference point for how to move foreword and best support each other in their own relationship.

[findafight]

I haven’t finished the series yet (I keep having to tap out because the writers keep referring back to episodes that they think they’ve written rather episodes that I actually watched), but I think the big disconnect between their writers and the audience have with regard to Steve is that the show *insists* on treating Steve’s character development as if it’s a “Redemption Arc”, when it is in fact a fairly standard coming-of-age story.

He starts season one coasting through an almost cookie-cutter existence, moulded by the people that he hangs out with. By season four, he’s the lone jock in a group of nerds and geeks of all stripes (Lucas is getting in there though) and has found his soulmate in a weird theatre kid (whose love life he’s arguably more invested in than his own). He has his own tastes and interests, but he’s open to those of his friends as well. He’s the unofficial “adult” of the group and has a leadership position, not because an adult has left him in charge, but because again and again he chooses to take responsibility for The Party’s safety.

[Side note - the way Steve chooses over and over to take responsibility, above and beyond what was asked of him, leading to him being more comfortable in his own skin and sure of who he is VS Jonathan having responsibility thrust upon him at such a formative age that he starts to experience an identity crisis in season four as they’re stripped away from him.

Just. Why didn’t these two have more of a relationship onscreen? Why does this show do so *little* to explore how Jonathan feels about his parentification? Or the ways in which this has hurt him over the years? W H Y ?]

As you’ve pointed out elsewhere(?), the worst of Steve’s actions in season one are the result of him lashing out in anger. But he’s shown to regret these actions, and takes ownership and responsibility of them in a way that feels genuine. Jon and Nancy aren’t there to see him help clean up the graffiti; he didn’t know that Nancy was there when he went to apologise to Jonathan; as far as we know Jonathan still doesn’t know that Steve is the one who replaced his camera.

They didn’t write a stock Stephen King bully - they wrote a male, messier version of Cher Horowitz.

yes! all of this!!

Steve's just a guy who was sort of a shitty teenager but then made the conscious choice to Do Better. He just wanted to apologize! Make things right! and that seemed to lead into making sure his town isn't infested by monsters and that a group of annoying thirteen year olds don't die also doing that. And yet they try to tell us he was a giant mean bully.

honestly I'm going to put the lack of character interaction and development (especially with a cast of the size Stranger things has) on Netflix. If they could have a regular season or even a 12-15 episode season a lot of the inconsistencies and dropped character elements and explore dynamics way more.

Jonathan being thrust into responsibility when Steve actively chose it!!! makes me scream!!! Jonathan needing to figure out who he is, but at the same time not wanting to and avoiding it, while Steve had to figure that out before. Steve might be a bit directionless, but he knows who he is. Jonathan at least thinks he knows what he wants at first but he doesn't know who he is outside of his family. Especially now that Will is growing up and not needing him the same way as before. I think him and steve interacting would be so interesting and i WISH they let us see something other than animosity or ignoring each other. They've got similarities but are soooo different. Just. AHHHhh many thoughtssss

[thestrangestthing89]

The show depicts religion pretty often but it's always in a negative context...

S1 - There aren't any direct references to religion but subtle hints. It's implied Hawkins is a typical middle class suburban neighborhood. It's 1983, Reagan was president, and there are hints of the towns Christianity through the bullies. When Will goes missing there are several comments that make it clear that the people in this town aren't surprised. The middle school bully makes a comment that he got "killed by some other queer" and says his father was talking about it. Parents in the town talk about Will being gay. We see Steve's friends - the high school bullies - also making homophobic comments about Jonathan and his brother. The bad guys are homophobic. They also all lose fights this season. The show takes an anti-bullying stance and you are supposed to feel for Will and his friends here. He's a child that's gone missing and the people in the town don't seem to care much or act surprised by it.

There are a few exceptions to this - Joyce mentions to Hopper that Lonnie called Will gay slurs because she is also worried he got killed because he's gay. Hopper takes this seriously during a time when absolutely no one would have criticized him for ignoring this situation. Plenty of people were ignoring gay people dying during this time. No one would have batted an eye at a cop acting like this didn't matter. But Hopper pays attention and puts together a search team. So there are a few people in town who do care - Scott Clarke being one of them. And obviously the rest of our main cast doesn't care what people say about Will because they help to look for him all season. The good guys aren't homophobic. The good guys care about Will. And this includes all of our main characters - the people the audience are supposed to root for go against homophobia and bullying.

(Edit: I forgot to include a conversation between Joyce and Lonnie. When Will's fake body is found Lonnie wants Joyce to see a pastor and Joyce says no. Lonnie is trying to convince her she is crazy. He's the bad guy, and the first thing he wants to do to "fix" the situation is to get Joyce to talk to a pastor. It's another negative association with religion. Joyce is right here. She isn't crazy. And Lonnie isn't being comforting when he says this. He's being controlling and dismissing her feelings. It's clear from what we see of Lonnie that he's an asshole. He abused Will and Jonathan (and likely Joyce as well), he tried to turn Jonathan against his mother when Will went missing, he exploited an opportunity for money. He's not a person we are supposed to be rooting for.)

S2 - This season has a more direct reference to Christianity and it's the Reagan signs on some of the front lawns in Hawkins. This isn't surprising considering again, it's a middle class suburb. Reagan was a popular president at the time and got elected by popular vote twice despite his mishandling of the AIDS crisis and a number of other issues. His name is synonymous with the Christian right. During his time in office, the pro-life movement started to take hold, and he cut back on welfare reform and disability rights to name a few of the problematic things he did. Basically, anyone who wasn't an able-bodied, straight, white, middle class Christian male was struggling and yet he won twice. These days, his name is often compared to Trumps - they openly hated the same groups of people.

This sets the stage in a subtle way for what's going on with the main characters. Because our characters are all outcasts - gay, black, disabled, poor, etc - they are struggling to fit in to mainstream society (which makes it so ironic this show is mainstream). Even Hopper who is your typical straight, white, leading man struggles to fit in - his daughter died and he is coping with depression and substance abuse issues. Things no one discussed openly at the time and were viewed as shameful.

So we have the Reagan sign on the Wheelers front lawn. This tells me that at least Ted is a Reagan supporter which makes sense given this is an upper middle class white family. I am skeptical of Karen (or anyone else in this family) being conservative but I will get to that in S3. Dustins house has a Mondale sign so they are democrats which makes sense - Dustin has a disability and his mother is a single parent. Reagans policies would have hurt them. We don't see the politics of the other boys families but I think it's a safe bet to assume they are democrats. Will's family is poor and his mother is also a single mother. Not to mention that there are hints both Joyce and Jonathan suspect he is gay and they love Will so much, there is no way they would have ever voted for someone like Reagan. And even though the Sinclair's are also an upper middle class family they are black and while no group of people votes in the exact same way, Reagans policies were incredibly racist. Lucas mentions struggles to fit into Hawkins because he's black in the book Lucas on the Line. His family wouldn't have fit into this town even though they are financially well off. It's a mostly white town and that would have absolutely resulted in them being on the receiving end of racism on a regular basis. So even though their family technically conforms, people would not have accepted them.

So we know that our main characters don't fit in and we know Reagan represents all things Christianity and conformity. One of the main themes of the show is "forced conformity is killing the kids" a line directly stated by Eddie in S3 so more on this in a bit.

Something else happens this season that isn't a direct reference to religion but an adjacent theme and it's the conversation Nancy and Jonathan have with Murray. They are trying to figure out how to take down Hawkins lab and get people to believe them. Nancy doesn't understand at first why presenting the evidence they have won't work. And Murray says - people don't want to see whats behind the curtain. It's comforting. They like the curtain. - So they water down the story so the town will understand it in a way that they won't resist. This, I believe, is essentially what the writers are doing with this show. They are watering down that this has been a show that is anti-conformity from the beginning and there are signs of it in S1. But they know if they come right out and say that a main storyline is a queer coming-of-age story, a lot of their mainstream audience isn't going to watch. So up until now anyway, they have been subtle about it. But the audience is starting to notice something is off, especially with Mike in S4 because things aren't adding up.

S3 - It is now the summer of '85 and while there aren't direct references to Christianity, we still get some hints of conservatism. The only reference to religion is a passing comment that Dustin's new girlfriend Suzie is a Mormon. There is also a passing comment made by Max in S2 that there were Mormons at the door when Billy questions her. It was Lucas and she is trying to hide him from her racist brother, so she lies and says she was talking to Mormons. These comments are pretty neutral even though Dustin mentions Suzie's father wouldn't approve of him because he isn't Mormon himself. At the time we are seeing this moment, it's hard to tell if Dustin is telling the truth (everyone thinks he's making up his girlfriend this season.) But we see more of this in S4.

And then there is the comment by Karen Wheeler about Margaret Thatcher. She's on the phone with someone and says "I don't know Cath, maybe if I was Margaret Thatcher that'd be an another story." (this is in episode 5 by the way). A lot of people take this comment to mean Karen is conservative but I feel like it's so vague. We have absolutely no idea what the context of this conversation is or even who she is talking to (presumably one of the mothers from the pool). It's unclear if she was saying something positive or negative. We don't know what she is talking about, all we hear is her say Thatcher's name. So I feel like it's a leap to assume it was a conservative statement she was making.

I have a hard time believing that Karen is conservative (or at least not ultra conservative like a lot of Reagan supporters) for a few reasons. One of which is the contempt she has for Ted. She is frequently rolling her eyes at him or annoyed in some way and we know in canon he is the guy who represents conformity. However, Karen doesn't. This season especially she is shown to not be happy with her life. She is supposed to be a conservative housewife, but she almost has an affair and makes a few interesting comments. One of which was during her conversation with Nancy about her job. Nancy is discussing her misogynistic bosses and Karen gives her helpful and supportive advice about not fitting in. It seems personal, and from what we know about her, this sticks out. Because she seems like she is a typical housewife. I always felt like there was more to her backstory, but she seems to relate personally to Nancy's story of being an outcast at her job.

There is also her relationship with Mike. In S1, we see her trying to connect with him emotionally and get him to talk about his feelings about Will going missing. Karen is clearly someone who her kids can talk to, even if they resist sometimes. And her kids don't exactly fit in or represent conformity. She has been shown to be worried about her their safety repeatedly, Mike in particular, and we never see her trying to force them to conform in any way. And this is a thing that someone in her position would have absolutely been teaching her kids - conservative, Christian values. But we don't see anything like this or any hint of this. So I don't buy the 'she's conservative' theory. I don't think we've seen enough evidence of that. And while the Wheelers are probably a family that goes to church on Sundays, I don't get the impression this is a major influence in their lives. There is no religious paraphernalia around the house and this would have been a very common thing for a family that was pro-Reagan to do. I feel like they are passively conservative. It's the popular, normal choice and Karen and Ted are the epitome of doing things because they think they are supposed to. But this hardly makes them die hard believers.

S4 - This is where religion becomes more direct. Eddie is reading a Newsweek article about the dangers of D&D. During this time Satanic Panic was spreading. People feared for the moral values of the US during a time of extreme conservatism. Eddie clearly thinks this article is a joke. He's mocking anyone who conforms and it's clear Dustin and Mike agree. They are outcasts and they know D&D isn't dangerous. Eddie makes them feel like being different is ok.

On the opposite end of the spectrum, we have Jason. He's your typical straight, white, christian male and fits in perfectly. He's the star of the basketball team and has the perfect cheerleader girlfriend (at least on the surface). He's the opposite of Eddie. And he is the villain in this story. THE GUY WHO CONFORMS PERFECTLY IS THE VILLAIN. He gets progressively more insane as the season progresses. He's charismatic and he quotes the Bible to rile the town up to hunt Eddie and Hellfire club down. They are all in a panic about the murders that are happening and the cops aren't doing a great job containing things (they also don't have all the information to be fair). But by the end of the season, Jason is completely unhinged and holds Lucas up at gunpoint. He's also part of the reason why Max ended up dying. It's Satanic Panic that drives this attitude forward. People are panicking over the loss of morals and blaming that for the reason why bad things are happening. Which I think will make for an interesting lead-in next season with regard to a more openly gay storyline.

On top of this display of religious fundamentalism, we see Suzie and her family. They are Mormons and we know her father is strict with regard to religion. However the family we see is chaotic. Suzie's sister Eden mocks Suzie for basically being a goody two shoes. Eden also has no hesitation about getting high and clearly is not abiding by Mormon values. Suzie doesn't always either. If there is a cause she believes in - like helping Dustin - she only has a little bit of guilt about going against her father and her religion. Her father is pretty much a joke. He's a fumbling idiot the kids need to outsmart in order to get the information they need. It's not exactly a positive representation of religion. Suzie shows that even though her religion is important to her, she is capable of thinking for herself. She hacks Dustins school computer and a government computer (although she doesn't know all the info about what she is doing here) with little hesitation. Her religious morals aren't exactly stopping her from doing something illegal or unethical. She's a hacker above all else.

At the end of the season we see Ted - the dude who represents all things common - reacting negatively to the news about what's going on in Hawkins. The guy who represents conformity is questioning the "propaganda" the news is coming out with to describe the situation in Hawkins. He is questioning the status quo. This is meant to show how even Ted is noticing something isn't adding up about the "normal" explanation of things. Something, at this point, that the audience should be questioning especially with regard to Mike. Because if even Ted can see something is going on here, then surely the audience can too.

The series has gotten progressively more direct about its anti-conformity theme which is why it makes no sense for them to suddenly forget this in S5. This show has always been about and for outcasts. The Wheeler family is a cautionary tale that Nancy said in season 1 was so depressing. She wants the opposite of this, which is why her and Steve and their 6 kids is never going to work (there are a lot of reasons why this is never going to work). And it's also why Mike and El aren't going to be endgame. Those relationships are there to represent conformity and none of the characters in those relationships are happy. They are the expected, normal relationships. If they wanted the audience to like these relationships they would have been written more positively.

So it's funny to me when people say the show is never going to go against the status quo because they have literally been doing this from the start. It's what the entire show is about. All of the characters are outcasts. All of them. So if people are claiming to like and support them, then they need to get behind the anti-conformity theme. And if they can't do that - this show is simply not for those people and it never was.

[skyfallslayer]

Should We Stay or Should We Go? || Chapter Four

-A ST Rewrite Feat. Steve Harrington x Henderson!OFC-

Main Masterlist || Series Masterlist

🎲Summary: Refusing to believe that the kids are dead, Joyce tries to connect with her son and Steph. The boys give Eleven a makeover in order to connect with their loved ones. Hopper turns up his detective game. Steve has a slight breakdown, while Nancy and Jonathan form an unlikely alliance.

🎲Pairings: Will x Platonic!OFC; Dustin x Sister!OC; Slow burn! Steve x Henderson!OFC (Ex-bestfriends to Lovers); Slow burn! Byler

🎲Rating: Teen-Mature

🎲Word Count: 13,951

🎲Date: 7/4/24

🎲Warnings: Angst; Heavy Language & Dialogue; References To Broken Friendship; Mental Strain/Breaking Down; Talks of Mental Health Issues; Bullying of All Kinds; Physical Fighting; Lying; "Death"; Crying; Talks of Corpses; Heavy Alcohol Consumption; Unwanted Touching; Suggestive Dialogue; One Comment About Being A Pedo; The Byers Family's Mental Strain; Hopper Being a Great Cop & A Total Mess; Dustin Being a Gangster & A Total Mess; Jessica & Charles Harrington's A+ Parenting; Steve's 'Asshole Era'; Steve's Emotional Damage. READ AT YOUR OWN RISK

(And let me know if I missed anything)

🎲A/N: Happy 4th, everyone! What a better way to celebrate then with an angsty fic? Heads up, this does contain less of us being in the Upside Down, and there's a reference to Hopper's childhood with Joyce and Claudia. There's also a bit of a mystery surrounding Steph and Dustin's father, so keep that part buried in your mind for future chapters. Also... there's a bit of a cameo in here I think everyone will enjoy :)

Nancy couldn’t believe what she was hearing. The view of the quarry on the TV made her feel sick. She wants to change the station but she can’t – none of her family can’t because the news is so shocking. It wasn’t until her little brother came home, tears streaming down his face and running into their mother’s arms for comfort, that she realized it was all real. 

After a few minutes of gathering her strength, she manages to slip into the kitchen to grab the phone, dialing a number close to heart. She wipes the corner of her eyes, trying to put up a good front before the call. She has to be the strong one here, especially since–

Then the other lined beeps followed by a voice that says, 

[ ‘Sorry, the number you are trying to reach is currently unavailable. Please try again later, or leave a message after the tone, and hang up when you’re finished.’ ]

“Shit.” She whispers, and waits for the beep again. “Steve, it’s Nancy, it’s…” She sighs. “Listen, I just want to make sure you’re okay. Just give me a call back, please.”

She hangs up, taking a moment to think. Whether he admits or not, she knows he still cares in some way for Stephanie. And he’s not going to be in the best state if he’s seen the news.

Not even thinking twice about this sudden thought, Nancy grabs her car keys out of the bowl, ignoring when her parents asked her a question and leaves out the front door. 

She just has to know if he’s okay.

That’s it.

That’s all she needs to know and do.

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

|| THE OTHER SIDE ||

Will was… mentally, physically, emotionally exhausted. Heavy on the latter. They thought they were finally doing well, they thought they were finally going to get an answer –a way to get back– but every time they tried, they get back to square one. 

The beast that had no face, its growls could send shivers down their spines and curse their souls, kept finding them. But how? It had no eyes, no nose, no ears, just a mouth hidden its folds; How could such a thing keep finding them? And that voice…

The voice was new. And for some reason it scared him more than the beast.

.

// I KNOW WHAT YOU’RE DOING. //

.

I know what you’re doing. 

What does that mean? Could the monster actually speak? Was someone else in this place with them? Did someone or something not want to escape? What is it? What is the answer? What can they do?

He doesn’t know who slowed down first, but they eventually stopped somewhere in the trees. Will was taking in the cold, dirty air, a tickle was blooming in his throat while doing so. He felt like he was on the verge of getting sick, probably the temperatures doing, but didn’t want to express his concerns. They had other problems to worry about.

“What are we going to do?” He asked, unaware of the older girl’s swaying moments and gaze going distant. “Do we go back? Do we try another place? But that’ll probably be a waste right? But can really go back with that–”

“I’m s-sorry…” She whispers that it turned into a small pant. It was enough for him to turn around and question:

“Why?” He manages to spill out before her body drops like a stack of dominos. “Stephanie!!” He lunged forward, his tiny body was only good enough to cradle her head. “No… No…” 

He starts ripping everything on her away, the shotgun, her backpack, and holding her sleeping head in her lap. He knew this would have happened sometime soon, especially when she admitted earlier that she hasn’t slept since getting stuck here, too worried about his safety rather than her own, and now look where that’s gotten her. 

“Steph… come on. W-Wake up. Pl-Please…” Will pleads, lightly tapping her cheek. “Come on. You can’t do this to me now… w-why is this happening n-now?!”

Stranded in the woods, a monster lurking somewhere in the dark. 

What was a twelve year old boy going to be able to do? It’s not like he can carry her and all their belongings somewhere, right?

He couldn’t help but start crying, like a child scared of the creature under his bed, and started holding the teenager close like she was his lifeline.

“♪ C-Come o-on and l-let me know ��”  He whispers, face pressed against hers. “♪ Sh-Should I-I stay or should I g-go? Should I-I stay or should I go now? If I g-go th-there will be trouble. If I stay it will be double– ♪” 

He sobs, shaking. “St-Stephanie…”

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

Telling a family about their loved one was never easy, especially since the deceased were from families he knew personally growing up. He still spoke carefully though after him and his men looked around the house just in case they missed something. He spoke softly, not wanting to hurt her anymore than she probably is.

“A trooper found something in the, uh… water that’s at the Quarry. Our working theory right now is that Stephanie… crashed her car, and they... made their way over the Quarry and, uh… accidentally fell in. The earth must have given way.” Hopper explains, but he can tell she’s not listening (at least not fully). “Joyce? Joyce? Do you understand what I’m saying?

“N-No…” She trembles, in denial. “Whoever you found… is not my boy. It’s not Will.”

“Joyce.” He says, reaching out to touch her shoulder, which she shrugged off. 

“No, you don’t understand. I talked to him… a half hour ago.” She sniffles, and tries to remember every detail. “He was... He was here. He was... He was talking with these.” She gestures to the lights. “Him and Stephanie. Th-They both were here.”

“Talking?” Hopper asked, his composure breaking. It was like looking in the mirror for him. He remembers the denial, the pain of losing a child of his own.

“Uh-huh. One blink for yes, two for no. And... And, uh…” She then points to the alphabet wall. “And then I made this so they could talk to me. ‘Cause they were hiding… from that... that thing.”

“The thing that came out of the wall? The thing that chased you?”

“Y-Yeah.” 

“Mom, come on, please.” Jonathan begs, heart breaking for his own mother. “You’ve gotta stop this.”

“No, maybe they’re… It’s after them!” She snaps, grabbing onto her son for his support, both physically and emotionally. “They’re in danger. We have to find Them! We—”

“What exactly was this thing? It was some kind of animal, you said?” Hopper asked, as she shook her head.

“Uh, no, it was… It was almost... human, but it wasn’t. It… It had these long arms and... it didn’t have a face.”

“It didn’t have a face?” His gaze meets the teenager’s, and he silently tells him to leave. Jonathan does, running off somewhere to cry himself. “Joyce–”

“It didn’t have a face…”

“Joyce, listen to me.” He helps her sit down on the couch, and he kneels before her. “Listen to me.” He starts getting teary eyed too. “After Sarah… I saw her, too. And I heard her. I didn’t know what was real. And then I figured out that it was in my mind. And I had to pack all that away. Otherwise, I was gonna fall down a hole… that I couldn’t get out of.”

“No, you’re... you’re talking about grief.” She shakes her head again. “This is different.”

“I’m just saying that you–” 

“No, I-I know what y-you’re saying, Hop. I sw-swear to you, I-I know what I saw. And I’m n-not crazy.”

“I’m not saying that you’re crazy.”

“N-No... You are. And I understand, but… God, I…” She sobs. “I need you to believe me. Please.” She then whispers, “Please.”

“Listen…” He takes her hands into his own. “I think you should go down to the morgue tomorrow and see him for yourself. It’ll give you the answers that you need. But tonight–”

“Oh, God…”

“-I want you to try to get some sleep, if you can.”

“Sl-Sleep?” She asks him, and he nods. She couldn’t comprehend this, couldn’t understand why he won’t believe her. She thought she could trust him, they’ve known each other through thick and thin and he’s just going to forget about all that? That’s…

That’s bullshit.

She shakes her head, pushing his hands away. “I’m not crazy. I know what I saw. And no one, I mean NO ONE, is going to change my mind.”

Hopper’s expression deepens. “Joyce–”

“Get out of my house.” She spats, and leaves the room. 

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

The black BMW pulled onto Cornwallis Road and drove towards the destination he still has in the back of his head. The radio was up, a song that was setting the mood, or matching it more likely. 

[ ♪ If you leave me now

You’ll take away the biggest part of me

Ooh, no, baby, please don’t go ♪ ]

His hands regripped the wheel, trying not to cry again.

[ ♪ And if you leave me now

You’ll take away the very heart of me

Ooh, no, baby, please don’t go

Ooh, girl, I just want you to stay ♪ ]

He starts to slow, parking off to the side, a curb across the street where he needed to be. 

[ ♪ A love like ours is love that’s hard to find

How could we let it slip away? ♪ ]

He saw the lights were on, he saw her brother’s bike in the grass and her mother’s car in the driveway. He knows they’re both home, but did they know the news like he did? 

[ ♪ We’ve come too far to leave it all behind

How could we end it all this way?

When tomorrow comes and we;ll both regret

The things we said today ♪ ]

Steve swallows, debating whether or not he should go up there. Will Stephanie’s mom remember him at all? Will her little brother Dustin tackle him as soon as he remembers their history? But despite their shaky past, he still owes the family his condolences, right? 

But just as he was about to get out of the car, he perked up at the sound of sirens coming down the road, and could see the blue and red lights flashing in the night sky. 

Huh. Maybe they didn’t know. Yet even after the swarm arrived in front of the Henderson home, Steve couldn’t help but stay and wait.

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

Claudia was hysterical, probably more than Joyce was; Yet, she was also more accepting about their theory. Hopper repeated it again, the mother was sitting down with her youngest on the couch. “A trooper found something in the water that’s at the Quarry. Our working theory right now is that Stephanie crashed her car, and they made their way over the Quarry and, uh… accidentally fell in. The earth must have given way.” 

Claudia sobbed into her handkerchief. “Oh, my poor baby. Poor Will.” 

“I’m so sorry.” He frowns, his face softens again too. “I know this is going to sound hard, but can you come down to–”

“That’s bullshit.” Dustin interrupted, finally speaking. His face was still puffy and his eyes were red. From being a complete mess earlier, he now looks like he was full of rage.

Hopper blinks, confused. “What?”

“That’s a bullshit theory!” He yells, jolting up.

“Dustin!” Claudia scolds.

“What? It is!” He points to himself. “M-My sister is smarter than that! Will’s smarter than that! It doesn’t matter if they were being chased, they wouldn’t have fallen into the Quarry!” 

“Dustin!” She says again, and then looks at the other adult. “Chief, I’m sorry.”

“No, I understand.” Hopper replies, accepting the apology. Now it was his turn to look at the kid, treading water carefully. “Look, Son–”

“Don’t call me that!” Dustin says, shaking his head.

“Kid–”

“Then where’s the shotgun?!” He replies, making Hopper’s heart sink (He didn’t even think about that). “Huh? You found their bodies, then where’s the gun? And why did they take the gun in the first place? What made them run off the road? Who was chasing them? You aren’t answering any of the obvious fucking questions–”

“Dustin!” Claudia yells, grabbing her son by his wrist. “Show some respect.”

“Fuck, respect.” Dustin pulls himself free. “He ain’t doing his job.” And then he storms out of the room, his mother calling out his name and apologizing once again.

“No, don’t be.” Hopper reassures. “He just lost his only sister. I understand.”

She nods slowly. “Okay. What were we saying before he interrupted?”

“Just, in the morning, if you can, come down to the morgue to verify Stephanie’s body. I’ll already be there with Joyce and her son.” 

“O-Okay. I can do that.” She takes a shaky breath. “Hopper?”

“Yeah?”

“Thank you… for trying to bring her home these past few days.”

His eyes widened slightly, not really expecting that kind of reaction. He was honestly stunned and felt like a failure again. “Claudia–”

“No. Don’t.” She takes his hand, giving a gentle squeeze. “I’ve known you since middle school, I know how your mind thinks sometimes. So please don’t feel guilty. I know you were giving it your all to find these kids. Even though… I-It was… a t-terrible outcome, you still found my daughter. You still brought her home.” Another squeeze. “So thank you. James.”

Hopper was speechless, ending up just giving her a nod and a promise to see her tomorrow. As he steps outside, he swallows the urge to start crying again.

“You going to be okay, Chief?” Callahan asked, meeting him halfway down the driveway.

“I’ll be fine.” Hopper replies, a half-lie. “I just need to…” He trails off when he sees a certain someone across the way. What is he doing here?

Callahan follows his gaze, confused. “Hey, isn’t that the Harrington boy?”

“Wrap everything up. I’ll meet you at the station.” Hopper leaves him behind and starts walking towards his target. 

“I was going to pay my condolences but I saw you guys pull in.” Steve says, leaving against the driver door with a sad expression.

“Kind of creepy for someone who says they aren’t friends anymore.” Hopper pokes, hands on his hips – all business again.

“Just because we’re not friends, doesn’t mean I’m an asshole. I mean, this house was practically my second home growing up.” It kind of hurts to say that. He looks down, can’t even look the man in the eye while asking this question, “So is it true?”

“Yeah.” Hopper says, sadly. “It is. I… saw the bodies myself.”

Steve shifted his weight around, his chest feeling tight. “Do…” What is it even saying? “Do they look real?”

The police chief reverted back to the same look he was giving Joyce earlier, slight pity but also disbelief. “For Christ’s Sake. Not you too.” What was with all this in denial? “Look, son, I–”

“Are you going to be there at the morgue?” 

Well that was a weird question. “Yes. I will be.” Hopper pauses. “Why?”

Steve shifted again, this time looking the adult in the eye. “‘Cause… there’s probably going to be something on… her body that her family’s not going to be able to explain. It’s…” He sighs. What am I even doing? She’s… gone. The Chief saw her body. This is all real it’s–

“Son?” Hopper said, getting a hum. “Continue? What do you mean about her family not going to be able to explain?”

He swallows, and stands straighter. “When we were kids, there was a… a bit of an accident, something we weren’t supposed to do, so we kept it a secret from our parents. However, it left us with a scar each.” He rolls up his sleeve, showing a huge pink gash on his left bicep. “Hers is on her left shoulder, close to her neck. I just thought when her mother sees her body you can explain the situation to her.”

His blue eyes rake over the scar, thinking. “You said it was a scar?” Hopper asked, getting a nod. “You know scars tend to fade over some time.”

“I know. But hers was much deeper than mine.” Steve pulls his sleeve back down. “If mine’s still here, I’m pretty sure hers is too.”

He takes a minute to process this. “Okay.” This was still leaving a weird feeling in his chest. “I’ll keep that in mind.” He has to, but how the fuck is he going to explain the still secretive accident to Claudia? He sighs. “Aren’t you going in?”

Steve shook his head. “Probably not.” His sad eyes fell on the house. “How distraught are they?”

“Her mother’s a mess, but is accepting, can’t say the same thing for her brother. If looks could kill, he would have.”

“Gotcha. I’ll just…” He swallows, eyes starting to sting again. “Say my condolences at the funeral.” Steve opens his door up, not making eye contact with the adult. “‘Night, Chief.”

“Hey.” Hopper says, stopping the door from being closed. But as soon as their gazes locked, his brain went to a halt. What else could he say? “Nevermind. Get home safe, ‘Kay?”

The teenager nods, letting his door be closed before pulling away. Hopper’s not sure why but…

He feels like he’s missing something here.

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

Dustin was curled up in a ball on his bed. He was hugging a pillow tightly, tears quietly rolling down his face. He didn’t think he had anymore tears left in him, but they just kept on coming. 

His sister is dead.

If he didn’t see her body himself, he wouldn’t believe it. 

No more nights of bothering her to watch some cheesy movies.

No more waking up fighting over the bathroom and eating breakfast together.

No more friendly, stupid banters about cryptids.

No more listening to her about customers driving her up the wall.

No more could he slip under the covers with her when a nightmare overtakes him.

No more could he wait by the front door for her so they could go to school.

No more of… anything. It was just him and his mother now. Just him and his mother to make ends meet. 

He choked on the memories, gripping the pillow tighter. “Phanie…” 

.

.

.

The sound of static makes him jolt upright. Heart skipping a beat, he realizes it was coming from his bag. He groans, a mixture of frustration and sadness. He wasn’t in the mood for anyone right now, not even his friends. He just wanted to grieve in peace until at least morning.

He wiggles his walkie talkie out, pulling the antenna all the way up and pressing the button. “Look, guys, please leave me alone. I don’t want to talk right now. Okay?”

He lets go of the button, waiting for a reply that was nothing more than static came, followed by–

[ ♪–on and let me know ♪ ] 

He drops the walkie like it was made of fire and practically jumps a few feet back. The static was loud, but you couldn’t miss that voice. That voice coming from the speaker sounded a lot like–

[ ♪ Should I stay or should I go? 

Should I stay or should I go now? 

Should I stay or should I go now? 

If I go there will be trouble 

If I stay it will be double– ♪ ]

He heard a sob, and a whisper of,

[ St-Stephanie… ]

Dustin’s eyes widened with realization. There’s no way he could miss that. He almost felt like crying again. 

“...W-Will?”

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

Nancy’s knuckles knocked on the door thrice, before trying the doorbell. She crossed her arms when the wind blew harder, wishing she had enough time to grab a sweater or something before she left. She tries the door again after silence, this time the door springs open. She’s met with a woman who was taller than her, dark locks a complete mess, face flushed red. 

She batted her eyes at the girl while clinging to the door. “May I help you?”

“Uh… is, uh, St-Steve home?” Nancy asked, trying to keep her gaze up high on the woman that was clearly wearing just a bra and panties.

“Steven?” She hissed, defensively. “Who’s asking?”

“I’m… Nancy, his girlfriend.” She recognizes the voice. “I think we spoke on the phone–”

“OH! NANCY! Yes! The Wheeler, girl. Yes, I remember. Awe…” Jessica Harrington reached up and pinched her cheek. “You’re just as adorable as I imagine.”

“Um, t-thanks. Uh–” Nancy wouldn’t be lying if she wasn’t already feeling uncomfortable. “Is this a bad time? I can come back–”

“No, no, no. Never. Never, dearie.” She said, practically dragging the teenager inside. “Come in, Steven should be back any minute now.” She shuts the door, head turning in another direction. “Charles, are your pants on? Our son’s girlfriend is here.” She smiles. “So how did you two meet? Are you in the same class?”

“Um–”

“So you’re our son’s lover?” Charles Harrington slurred out as he came literally stumbling into the hallway. Face as red as a tomato, hair disheveled and missing his shirt. “I never understand why Steven decided to hide you. You seem so nice.”

“Uh, thank– thank you.” Nancy said, hiding the urge to scrunch up her nose at his alcoholic breath. “Look, if he isn’t here, I’ll catch him in the morning–”

“Nonsense. You should stay.” Jessica urges. “It’ll be nice to get to know you.”

“Yes. Please–” His hand comes up to the girl’s shoulder. “Come sit with us.”

Nancy, this time, visibly shuddered. “I–”

“Get your hand off her, Dad.” Steve’s voice echoed out as he entered through the back door. His face seemed calm, but nobody could miss the fear in his eyes and the anger that was making his hands into fists. 

“Steve?”

“Steven!” His mother exclaimed, all bubbly. “We were just getting to know your girlfriend.”

Steve gets between them, pulling Nancy close and away. “Mom, please, put a robe on. Dad, a shirt.” 

“Yeah, son.” His father said, his hand coming around and grabbing a firm hold of the front of his child’s sweater. “How come we weren’t informed about this news, hmm? How could you do this to me and your mother?”

A bead of sweat rolled down Steve’s face, as he started pushing his girlfriend towards the door subtly. “Um, well, Dad–”

“You better have a good explanation.”

“Yeah, Steven.” Jessica said, her hand finding his forearm. “What gives?”

“‘Cause we-we’ve only been dating for a week.” Steve spits out the lie.

Nancy flashes him a look of confusion. “A week?”

“Yeah.” He gives a look now, hoping she gets it. “A week, Nancy.” He then sees the realization in her eyes.

“Yes.” She smiles and chuckles. “Well, it’s a week and a half, actually..”

“Oh, you and your technicality.” He smiles too, hand reaching back to the door knob. “That’s what won me over in math class. Uh, Listen, Mom, Dad, uh, we’ll have to plan a proper dinner out so you get to know Nancy. Okay?”

“Sure she doesn’t want to stay over for a bit?” His mother asked, with a look he didn’t like. “We don’t mind.”

“I know you don’t. But it is a school night, and it’s late. We also got uh, uh, a huge test tomorrow. So we should get some rest, you know?”

She frowns. “Awe. Okay. We can definitely plan a date.”

“Perfect! We can talk about it later, uh–” Steve opens the door and manages to get out his parents’ holds. “Just going to walk her back to her car.”

“Like a proper gentleman.” She smiles again, and gaze trails to the Wheeler. “You definitely scored with my son.”

“Oh, for sure. I agree.” Nancy said, getting forced outside.

“Be right back.” Steve replies, stepping out too and shutting the door.

“Steve– Hey!” He grabs her hands and strings her along quickly; She felt like they were sprinting down the driveway. “Steve?” She tests out his name as he takes a look back at his house before picking up the speed. “Steve! Talk to me! What is–”

“Don’t come to my house.” He blurts out the moment they are in front of her car. 

She blinks. “What?”

“Don’t…” He exhales. “Don’t come to my house. At least at night. ‘Cause my parents like to… party, or…” He groans. “Actually, don’t come to my house alone. When my parents are here, make sure you only come when I’m there or I’m with you, alright? Do you understand?”

No, she certainly does not. “Steve, what do you mean? Why don’t you–”

“Did my mom say anything?”

Another blink. “What?”

“Did my dad do anything? Like… h-how uncomfortable were you? B-Be honest, Nance.”

“Steve, I don’t…” She trails off when she finally sees him whole. He seemed so… distraught. And she knows it’s probably not just about the sour news of Stephanie. For some reason, he’s scared of her going into his house. “Steve.” She tries again, softer. “What’s going on? Are your parents hur–”

“Why are you here, Nancy?”

She frowns, worriedly. “I was just wondering if you heard the news?”

Steve looks down at his feet. “About Will and Stephanie?”

“Yeah.”

“Yeah.” He swallows. “I-I heard…”

Nancy gently cups his face. She could see the corner of his eyes were red and irritated. Crying. Steve must have been crying. “Are you okay?”

Steve stayed quiet, building up the courage to speak – to make it sound confident. “Yeah. I’m fine. It just… caught me off guard.”

“You sure? You can talk to me. I’m not going to–”

“How’s your brother?”

She bites her lip. “Mike’s… really upset. I mean who wouldn’t be when it’s your friend.”

Steve hums. “Maybe you should go back. Check in on him.”

“But, Steve–”

“I appreciate you coming over and making sure that I’m okay.” A bittersweet look blooms on his face. “Really. Your compassion is one of the things I love about you. But I think you should go home to your family. They’re probably wondering where you’re at.”

She shakes her head. “Steve–”

“As for my parents, forget about tonight. I’ll… I promise I’ll explain them to you one day, but for now, just forget you ever met them. Okay?”

She gave in, not wanting to argue. “Okay.”

“Thanks.” He gives her a quick kiss, and pulls away. “See you tomorrow.”

“Night…” Her blue eyes trail him as he heads inside, a feeling of dread in the pit of her stomach. Was he going to be alright? Should she call someone? Should she–

A twinge snapped behind her.

She turns around, the sound coming from the woods. She squinted and took a small step – a shadow moved across the bushes – tall, lanky… no face– What?

She heard the shadow shift around again, and then swore she heard a growl coming from it. Paling instantly, Nancy took small steps back towards her car, feeling around for the handle. Once she grasps it she gets in, hands tightly on the steering wheel. Swallowing, she takes one look back over her shoulder, the shadow to have disappeared into the beyond. 

Death.

Disappearances.

A thing with no face.

What the hell is happening to Hawkins? 

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

He didn’t want to get his hopes up, but he couldn’t help himself! He knows what he heard, he knows that was Will. He couldn’t sleep the rest of the night, his mind in overdrive on what and why and how this was even possible. But sometime in the night, an idea hit him hard. 

The next morning, he made sure his mother was okay, and fit enough to go to the morgue. She already told him the night before that he should stay home, playing the kid card on him. Usually, he would have been upset at this statement, but this time he decided it was time to hold his tongue. As soon as Dustin saw the car leave, he wastes no time to pop open his walkie talkie antenna, tuning into a certain channel. 

“Lucas, do you copy?” He said, waiting. He was met with static, but he just knows his friend is nearby and listening (His friends are never far away from their source of communication). “Lucas, come on, I know you’re there! This is urgent.”

Nothing.

“I’m serious. I’m not gonna stop until you answer.”

Nothing again. 

“Lucas. Lucas! Lucas, Lucas, Lucas, Lucas, Lucas, Lucas, Lucas, Lucas, Lucas, Lucas, Lucas, Lucas–”

[ ‘Go away, Dustin. I’m not in the mood, all right? Over and out.’ ]

“No, not ‘out’. I’m not messing around, okay?” He starts pacing around his living room. “This is about Will and my sister. Over.”

[ ‘What about them? You mean about their funeral? Over.’ ]

“No, not their funeral. Fuck their funeral!”

[ ‘W-What?’ ]

“Just get over to my place, stat. And tell Mike to bring Eleven too.”

[ ‘Eleven? Why? She’s the reason–’ ]

“JUST DO IT! OKAY!” He yells, face red, open hand in a fist. “Over and out!”

[ ‘Dustin–’ ]

Dustin pushes the antenna down and shuts the device off. He knows Lucas will listen, even if he thinks he’s lost his mind, he’ll still listen. His eyes fall on a family picture on one of the side tables, his heart skipping a beat.

“Don’t worry, guys. We’re going to find you no matter where you are.”

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

Meanwhile, down at the Coroner’s office, Hopper waited impatiently for… what? Half an hour now? He sighs. “What’s taking so long?”

“Well, everything’s been a bit chaotic around here without Gary.” The receptionist, Patty said, upset as well.

Hopper perks up at this news. “Without Gary?” That doesn’t make sense. “Where’s Gary?”

“Well, I thought you knew. Those men from State, they... they sent Gary home last night.”

“So who did the autopsy?”

“Someone from State.” 

Someone from State? I mean, the crime scene made sense, but the autopsy? Why would they send someone to an autopsy? On two kids no less? He wanted to ask more questions, but that’s when the oldest child of the Byers’ family came out looking sick to his stomach.

Hopper can tell he was trying to hold it all together the best he could. Poor kid. 

“How’s your mom doing?” He asked, after a while of silence. 

Jonathan sniffled, head still hanging low. “I don’t know.” He whispers.

“How long’s this stuff been going on? With the lights and, uh… Will and the thing in the wall?”

“Since the first phone call, I guess.” A sob. “You know, she’s had anxiety problems… in the past. But this… I don’t know.” He exhales shakily. “I’m worried it could be…” He shakes his head. “Ugh, I don’t know. She’ll be okay. We’ll be okay. My mom… she’s tough.”

“Yeah, she is.” Hopper said, getting a chuckle out of the kid. He then placed a firm hand on his shoulder to get his attention. “Hey. She is.”

That got Jonathan to cheer up for just a second before it crashed down again. Joyce came storming out, the coroner following behind with a clipboard asking her to sign; Which she’s flat out refusing.

“I don’t know what you think that thing is in there, but that is not my son!” She shouted, waving him off.

“Joyce, wait a second.” Hopper said, standing.

“No!” She snapped, and hustled out the door, Jonathan following right behind. As soon as she leaves, it was like a chain reaction, because Claudia just arrived. 

She already had a hand covering her mouth at the sight of seeing Joyce. “I-I… I don’t know if I can do this.”

“Hey, hey–” Hopper comes over reassuringly. “Hey, Claudia. It’s okay. I know it’s hard, but it is necessary.” He sees her closing her eyes to steady herself. “Would you like me to come in?” She nods. “‘Kay. Let’s go. Come on.”

He walks her to the back, telling the coroner who they’re here for, and was left waiting for him to get the body. 

“I don’t know how to thank you, James. You’ve always seemed to help my family when we’re in a rut.” Claudia said, trying to hold it together. 

“Just doing my job.” He replies, with a warm smile.

“Still.” She looks up at him fondly. “I don’t think I appreciated you enough when you helped put Walter away.”

Walter. He remembers her shitty husband very clearly.

He nods. “Well, if it wasn’t for that anonymous tip, I wouldn’t have been able to have done that.”

She hums. “Yes, the tip.” She sighs. “I wonder who has the guts to do that.”

Yeah, he always wondered who the tipper was too. 

“You ready, Ma’am?” The coroner asked, after wheeling on the table.

Claudia nods, her hands squeezing together. “Yes.” She inhales. “Show me.”

He does so, and she holds back the urge to cry again upon seeing her daughter’s body. She couldn’t help but wonder why God would take such a beautiful girl.

“Oh, god… that’s her.” She mutters, biting her lip.

As Hopper was able to keep his composure, he was suddenly hit with a memory like a speeding truck. He almost completely forgot about what the Steve Harrington kid told him last night.

.

“When we were kids, there was a… a bit of an accident, something we weren’t supposed to do, so we kept it a secret from our parents. However, it left us with a scar each.” He rolls up his sleeve, showing a huge pink gash on his left bicep. “Hers is on her left shoulder, close to her neck. I just thought when her mother sees her body you can explain the situation to her.”

.

The scar. Of course! How could he forget? His lips tugged into a frown, and began with, “Claudia, there’s…”

Wait a minute. 

His gaze went straight for where the boy told him the scar would be but there was…

Nothing.

He blinked and looked on the other shoulder just to be sure but there was nothing either. If Steve’s scarred, then hers should have been, right?

“Chief?” Claudia said, pulling him out of his trance. “Did you say something?”

His eyes glance at her and then back at the body before shaking his head. “No.” Then back at her. “Never mind.”

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

Steve was late to school the first time in a while. His clothes looked a bit sloppy, his hair did too, and he was practically dragging his backpack on the floor with only its handle. He had managed to avoid the girlfriend talk this morning with his parents since they were both hungover and still in bed. He’s not really sure how he’ll handle it later (If they actually remember Nancy that is). 

He took his time moving through the halls, trying to straighten up his posture, to put up somewhat of a nice expression. What would Tommy and Carol say? Would they belittle him? Ignore him? Pretend that the death of a school student didn’t exist? And what about Nancy? Will she say anything? Will she ignore him too?

He frowns, the intercom buzzing above.

// Attention students, there will be an assembly to honor Stephanie Henderson in the gymnasium 10am. Do not go to second period. Classes shall resume afterwards. //

An assembly? For Stephanie? How many people will actually go? How many people would actually be respectful? She wasn’t exactly miss popular.

He shakes his head. Don’t even think that, Harrington. It’ll be fine. It’ll be…

He trails off as soon as he rounded the corner. He didn’t need super sight to know what it was. For some reason instead of leaping towards it like he should be, he was slow, sick by the sight. Someone, probably more than one, had vandalized her locker. Someone had spray painted, egged, beat the living hell out of it with either a bat or a crowbar, all because she was what? The weird girl? The girl who was nerdy? The girl who likes stuff only guys like? The girl who’s vocabulary is like a sailor? 

The girl who doesn’t fit in unless it’s with the “freaks”?

With disgust, Steve pulled off the missing poster of her. Someone had scribbled horns, covered the eyes, and called her a freak in bright red. How could someone with a heart do this to the one of the kindest girls he’s ever met?

He crushed the paper in his hand, before opening up the locker, some belonging falling out. He sighs, dropping his bag before deciding to tidy this up. Maybe he should bring her family her things so they don’t have to see this mess?

“Hey, shouldn’t you be in class?” A teacher, Mrs. Trebecky said, hands on her hips.

Steve glances over at her, his look telling it all. “I’m just trying to clean it up.” Her eyes trail over, finally seeing what he was talking about. Yet he didn’t care if he got scolded or got detention for skipping class, this was more important. But to his surprise, there was a key suddenly dangling in his face.

“There’s a storage closet around the corner. Use whatever you need.” She replies, and he takes it. “I have to prepare the gym for the assembly, but if you need something else, feel free to come get me.”

Steve clenches the key close as she leaves, a warm feeling blooming in his chest. At least she wasn’t mad. 

He starts walking to where she said it was, only to spot another odd sighting. There was a boy (who looked oddly familiar to him) leaning against the wall right by the door – the same door that was actually opened. Raising an eyebrow and slowing his pace, he didn’t know what to think or even say before the boy saw him coming. It was like a match had been lit under his feet, the boy jerked up so quickly, and threw the door open even wider.

“We’ve been spotted! We gotta go!” He shouted and took off. 

Steve then watched as two other teenagers came running out, faster than anyone on the football team. What the hell is that all about?

But he chose to ignore it, opening the door fully, nearly clashing with some else that was left behind in the group. The person seemed startled to see him, taking a small step back and growing a bit paler. It didn’t take the King of highschool to realize who this is – the person with brown curls tucked back in small ponytail, with a wardrobe that reminded him of Stephanie – The person was know another than:

.

Eddie Munson.

.

Well now he knows why he looks scared. Steve nearly cringes and cusses at himself out loud for what he’s done in the past. What the fuck is wrong with me?

Instead, he kept his blank expression and started moving around him. “Didn’t mean to startle you, Munson.” He replies, looking over all the cleaning supplies on the shelf.

“It’s…” Eddie begins, still tense, but confused by how simple and nice Steve sounded. “Fine. Um… Wh-What brings you here? N-Need something?”

“Relax, I’m not here to cause any trouble.” Man, how many people has he hurt with his new personality? “I was going to clean up a vandalized locker.”

Eddie perks up, even more confused. “The Henderson girl’s locker?”

“Yeah.”

“That’s… surprising.”

“Yeah. I guess.” Steve frowns, sparing a glance. That’s when he notices he’s holding a few sponges and a bucket. “Oh. Were… were you going to clean?”

“Um–” Eddie breaks his gaze. “M-Me and my boys saw it on our way in, thought we would clean it up. Hope I don’t get in trouble for picking the lock.” He ends with a quiet, nervous chuckle which honestly fueled the other boy’s guilt.

“Is that so?”

“Well… W-we do know what it’s like to have our lockers destroyed by the… ‘perfectionists’.” 

Perfectionists, fuck. Steve swallows and mentally strangles himself. What have I done?

He exhales quietly, and starts gathering things. “You should go.”

Eddie’s distant gaze snapped right back at him. “What?”

“I’ll take care of it.” Steve says, not looking at him. “I know you’ve been trying to graduate.”

“How–”

“Go.” Steve pressures. “Don’t…” Why was this so hard? “Don’t fall behind. Especially in Kaminsky’s class. He’s a hardass if you don’t listen and study.” 

Eddie was speechless. He couldn’t believe what he was hearing, couldn’t believe it was coming from the legend of the school himself (Guess there was a first time for everything, right?) “You sure? Doesn’t… Doesn’t the King of Hawkins High want to keep his good grades up?”

“I don’t care anymore.” Steve replies quickly, surprising the other teen again, but it was the truth. He could care less about all this right now. “Frankly, I didn’t want to even be here today, so…” 

He didn’t say anymore, instead he tried holding whatever he could in his arms. Silently, and luckily he noticed it in the corner of his eye, he saw Munson holding up the bucket as an offer. He takes it and thanks him. He loads it up and makes his way to leave, but stops in the doorway. 

“You know she liked your band.” Steve blurts out, getting another puzzled stare. “Uh, Fia, she– wait.” Fia. He almost forgot about his little nickname for her. It makes his stomach roll into knots as he tries again. “S-Sorry, Stephanie… really liked your band. She went to your show a few years back. Uh, the Lover’s Lake one. She is– w-was definitely a metal head.”

That seemed to surprise him a lot, because Eddie actually perks up with joy this time. There even was a smile tugging on his lips. 

“She’s seen Corroded Coffin?” He asked, intrigued. 

“Yeah. She really liked that opening song of yours.” 

“‘To Love a Monster’?” 

Steve nods, still remembering that day so clearly, still remembering the day he showed her the tickets. “She sang it for weeks afterwards. It was… funny. Cute– Awesome! It was awesome.”

Eddie gave him another look, one he couldn’t quite place. “That’s… amazing. I never knew that. Most of our fans are just people from our neighbourhoods.”

“Yeah.” He nods again, feeling his eye starting to sting. “Just thought I’d let you know that since you… offered to clean up her locker.” He swallows once more, and he tries to leave, but his conscience gets the best of him. It’s now or never, Harrington.

Looking like a kicked puppy, he faces him again. “I’m sorry.” Steve says, honestly. “I’m really, really sorry for everything I’ve done. I know I haven’t been the most pleasant with you and your– your bandmates, and I realize that I’m an asshole. A real fucking asshole, so– um…” He didn’t have to forgive him, he just wanted to get it out there. “I don’t need forgiveness, but at least accept it.”

Steve didn’t even wait for his answer, didn’t wait for a change on his face, and just left to finish what needed to be done.

Meanwhile, Eddie watches him leave just as his friends come running back, worriedness on their features.

“What did he do? Do we need to report him?” Gareth asked, scaredly.

“No, he…” Eddie still couldn’t believe the last few minutes even happened. “He apologized.” He looks over at them. “For being a dick.”

“What?”

“And then he said that Henderson girl went to our Lover’s Lake concert a few years back.” That response got his friends muttering amongst themselves. 

“She did?” 

“How would Harrington know that, though? All our tickets are limited.” Jeff asked.

“Unless…”

Eddie’s eyes widened. “They were friends.”

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

Dustin snuck his friends in from the back, immediately rambling last night’s situation. Of course he got looks of concern, and sentences of reassurance before he shook them all off and showed them. They sat around on his bedroom floor, fiddling with the walkie. It was faint, and it certainly wasn’t the song he heard last night, but he could tell by the mumbling words that it was in fact Will.

“We keep losing the signal, but you heard it, right?” Dustin said, looking between them.

“Yeah, I heard a baby.” Lucas said, looking at his friend like he had three heads.

Dustin looks offended. “A baby?”

He rolls his eyes. “Dustin, you obviously tapped into a baby monitor. It’s probably one of your neighbours.”

“Uh, did that sound like a baby to you? That was Will!” 

“Dustin…”

“Lucas, you don’t understand. He spoke last night. Words! He was singing that weird song he loves. And he even said my sister’s name.”

“Oh, well, if the of you heard your sister’s name, then I guess–”

“Are you sure you’re on the right channel?” Mike asked, genuinely invested in this.

A small smile blooms on Dustin’s face. Finally! At least someone believed him. “I don’t think it’s about that. I think, somehow, I was channeling him.”

“Like... like Professor X.”

He nods eagerly. “Yeah.” 

“Are you actually believing this crap?” Lucas asked, staring at Mike like he was the weird one here.

“I don’t know, I mean… Do you remember when Will fell off his bike and broke his finger? He sounded a lot like that.”

“Oh, my god.” Lucas groans “Did you guys not see what I saw? They pulled Will’s body out of the water. They pulled Stephanie’s body out of the water too. They’re dead!”

“Well, maybe it’s their ghost. Maybe they’re haunting us.” Mike replies.

“It’s not their ghost.” Dustin said, shaking his head. 

“So how do you know that?” Lucas pushes.

“I just do!”

“Then what was in that water?”

“I don’t know!” Dustin shoots to his feet. “All I know is Will is alive. Will is alive! If he’s alive, then there’s a good chance Stephanie is too. They’re out there somewhere. All we have to do is find them. And I know for fact…” He points at Eleven. “She’s the key.” He frowns, and looks her way (Guilt on his face). “I’m sorry for how I reacted last night. I swear I wasn’t mad at you, just the situation. But I know you’re really our only shot at finding them. Please forgive me.”

It took a second, but Eleven nods and smiles with understanding, lifting the weight of the boy’s shoulders. 

“Well…” Mike begins, stopping him from handing over the walkie. “If you want her to somehow channel them, this isn’t gonna work. We need to get El to a stronger radio. Like, Mr. Clarke’s Heathkit ham shack.”

Dustin perks up. “That’ll totally work!”

“The Heathkit’s at school.” Lucas butts in. “There is no way we’re gonna get the weirdo in there without anyone noticing. I mean…” He gestures. “Look at her.”

But the Henderson brushed him off. “Don’t worry about that. I have an idea.” And then they busted into his sister’s room. “You might have to roll up the pant legs and/or sleeves, but Phanie’s stuff should be able to fit you just fine.”

“Uh, no offense to Stephanie–” Lucas begins, watching him rummage through his sister’s drawers. “But she’s not exactly the definition of girly-girl.”

“So? Look, we just want to get El inside the school. Mike, go to my mom’s room and grab some of her makeup. Lucas, head to the basement, I think we might have some wigs left over from a couple Halloweens. Go!”

They scatter, and Dustin continues grabbing what he can and lays it out on the bed. “Here.” He tells the girl. “Try a couple outfits on. See what fits.”

El takes a moment to look at them, mesmerized. “Pretty?” She asks, puzzled.

“Yeah.” He smiles. “We’re going to make you look pretty. Or at least prettier.”

She bats an eye. “Prettier?” 

“Yeah. They say, ‘Beauty is in the eye of the beholder’. Just because someone doesn’t think you’re pretty, doesn’t mean everyone else does.” It seemed to get her spirits up just as the other boys arrived with the stuff.

“Got the makeup.” Mike said, holding the pile in his arms.

“And I found a wig. Hopefully this works.” Lucas says, holding it up.

“Perfect.” Dustin gives the thumbs up. “Let’s do light on the makeup, and let’s put a braid in the wig.” After their tasks, the boys waited outside the door for her to change.

“Is that really the best wig you could have found?” Mike said, after a few moments of silence. 

“What’s wrong with the wig?” Lucas asked, offended.

“Don’t you remember? That was the wig Steph used to dress up as a clown.”

“It’s not that orange, Mike.” Dustin said, Lucas agreeing.

“It’s orange.”

“Dude, come on–”

The door opens, and El steps out to reveal the outfit she picked. It happened to be a Mötley Crüe band tee that was tucked into some jeans, a red and black plaid button up as a jacket and some converse; Her wig was in a neat braid and was accompanied with a headband.

“Wow.” Mike said, staring.

“It’s like my sister has a prodigy.” Dustin said, grinning. “Grunge girl, 2.0.”

“How do you feel?”

Eleven looks herself up and down before smiling at herself. “Pretty.”

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

It was pretty awkward to sit outside the cafeteria doors waiting to be called in and questioned by police. Nancy was the first to be called in, the first to have a parent actually show up to observe. It felt weird, and she could feel her mother’s eyes watching her closely.

“This argument you and Barbara had? What exactly was it about?” Powell asked, after reading over his notes.

Nancy gives a half-shrug. “It wasn’t really an argument. Barb just wanted to leave. I didn’t, so, I… I told her to just go home.”

“Then what?”

“Then I went upstairs to put on some dry clothes.”

“And the next day, you went back and…” Callahan reads over his notes too. “Saw a bear, you’re thinking?

“I don’t know what it was, but… I think…” She frowns. “I think maybe it took Barb. You need to check behind Steve’s house— 

“We did. There’s nothing there. There’s no sign of a bear.”

“And no car.” Powell adds.

She blinks, confused. “What?”

“Look.” Callahan sighs. “We figured that Barbara came back last night and then she took off, went somewhere else. Has she ever talked to you about running off? Leaving town, maybe?”

“No. No, Barb wouldn’t do that, ever.” Nancy assures.

“She wasn’t maybe upset about the fact that you were spending time with this boy?” Powell glances down again. “Uh, Steve Harrington?

“What? No!”

“Maybe she was jealous because she saw you go up to Steve’s room?”

“It wasn’t like that.”

“Like what?”

“Steve and me, we’re... we’re just friends. We... we just talked.”

“Just talked?” Callahan gives her a look.

She bites the inside of her cheek. “Yeah. Just talked.” She wanted to say something else until the door opened, showing off to another officer.

“Hey–” He said, thumb jerking over his shoulder. “The Hagan and Perkins kids, they’re parents aren’t coming, they refuse for us to talk to their kids. Harrington’s parents said they’re too busy with work to come, but have given us permission to talk to their son.”

Powell sighs, looking over his partner who shrugged. “Alright. Send them home. Except Harrington, have him come in. You–” He looks at Nancy. “You’re dismissed.”

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

“So, Gary, tell me about these troopers that brought in the kids.” Hopper asked, after settling Hawkins local coroner down. He told him to come down to the station, offering him a cup of joe as he tries to get a few things straightened out. He still finds this whole… State taking over everything is a bit odd.

“It was about six of ’em, I’d say.” Gary replies, with a nod.

“They’re all Staties?”

“Yes, sir. Never seen that many troopers come with two bodies before.”

“They told you that they were gonna take care of the autopsy, huh?”

“Yeah. Claimed jurisdiction. Kicked me out. Well, it all seemed a bit over the top to me, considering…” He looked a bit nervous about this. 

“Considering what?” Hopper asked, suspicious. 

“Considering this was Will Byers and Stephanie Henderson and not John F. Kennedy.”

So this wasn’t just weird to me? Great. His eyes catch something on the tv, making him stand up. “Thanks for stopping by, Gary.”

“Sure thing.”

Hopper tunes everything else out as he turns up the volume, listening as a state trooper talks to the reporter about the incident. 

.

< -let the people know that, uh, the troopers are on duty and you should be safe, because we think this is just an isolated incident. >

< State trooper David O’Bannon, thank you so much for your help. >

< Thank you, sir. >

.

O’Bannon. Gary. Staties. Hawkins Lab. Hopper’s frown deepens. What does this all mean?

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

And that’s when Jim came up with another question that he needed to answer. Something that’s been nagging him since yesterday. So that’s how he found himself at Hawkins High School. He had to swerve around the teens leaving the gymnasium from Stephanie’s assembly, and just hoped that his guys were still in the cafeteria questioning some suspects. Well… hopefully the one he really wanted to talk to was still there.

“Oh, hey Chief.” Callahan calls out, just as Hopper bursts through the doors.

Hopper’s gaze trails to the teen in questioning – and thank god it was the person he was looking for. With a serious look he storms over, completely ignoring everything and everyone else.

“We just got done with–”

“I need you to give me the room for a second.” Hopper blurts out, the two officers staring. “Now.” Callahan and Powell waste no time to get up and leave, the whole place growing silent immediately. 

Steve glances between the door and the police Chief, confused. “Is there a problem?”

Without saying anything, Hopper reaches over and lifts Steve’s left arm sleeve, seeing the scar again. Blinking, and kicking his senses into high gear, the teenager pulls his arm away – the officer looking like he was scared. 

“Dude, what the fu–”

“How long ago was that?” Hopper asks, practically fidgeting in his seat. 

“I’m sorry?”

“How long ago did you get the scar?”

“Um, I…” Steve pauses to think. When did he get it? “Three… three years ago? Maybe longer?”

“And you said both your injuries were deep? Especially Stephanie’s?” 

“Yeah.” He nods, suspiciously. “What’s going on?”

Hopper suddenly is overcome with worriedness, causing him to look around and lowers his voice. “Listen to what I’m about to say, ‘cause I’m only going to say it once. Understood?” He waits for the teenager to nod again before going. “Good.”

He takes a deep breath. “Look, her mother’s a mess, hysterical. And her brother is just… angry. I want to ask them stuff, but I think it’ll be an emotionally… fusing answer. They’re not going to be able to give me something basic. So what I’m trying to say is, I don’t care what happened between the two of you, but be honest. How well did you know this girl?”

And Steve, of course, doesn’t lie (he too wants to know what the hell’s going on). “Pretty well, I like to think. I mean we were tied at the hip since the age of five. We never really went anywhere without each other.” He frowns, scared. “You’re kind of making me nervous. What’s going on?”

Hopper looks around again, getting closer. “Just answer my questions. How likely was it for Stephanie to pick up Will that night when she saw him stranded?”

“Highly.” Steve says, truthfully. “She loves her brother’s friends.”

“How likely was it for her to protect him from whatever was chasing them?”

“Highly. That’s the kind of person she is. Putting herself before others.”

With each answer, Hopper’s heart picks up. “How likely was it for her to take a weapon if she felt like she was in danger?”

“She’s not exactly a violent person, but… if she was in danger, she’s smart enough to arm herself.”

“How much is she familiar with the woods around here?”

“Only certain areas she really knows like the back of her hand.”

“What about the Quarry?” 

“The Quarry?” Steve said, fond memories coming in. “That used to be our spot when we were kids. We know the ends and out of it pretty well.”

Now Hopper feels destroyed. He was half expecting this answer but still. It wasn’t easy to accept. “So… hypothetically speaking, if she was being chased in the direction of the Quarry, how likely would she have fallen in?”

Steve gets taken aback, his heart sinking. “Unlikely. She always knew where she was going.” He was oblivious to the way the Chief suddenly looked. “So it wasn’t the news making a theory? Stephanie and Will actually fell into the Quarry?”

“Fuck.” Hopper says, standing up and starts leaving.

Steve gets up as well, following. “I still don’t understand what’s–”

“Listen to me–” He stops the teen in his place, pointing, and spitting his next sentence out like venom. “This conversation never happened. Understood?”

Steve just nods, scared to talk back as the Police Chief finally left with the answer he was worried about – while Harrington was also left with a question that was now answered. 

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

“Okay, remember, if anyone sees us, look sad.” Mike says, as they entered the school. Right on cue, someone came on the PA, which is the perfect cover up for them.

// Attention students, there will be an assembly to honor Will Byers in the gymnasium now. Do not go to fourth period. //

“It’s locked.”

“What?” Lucas said, brushing by Mike to try the door.

“Hey, do you think you can open it? With your powers?” Dustin asked, hopefully. But before anything could be resolved, their teacher just so happened to appear around the corner. 

“Boys?” Mr. Clarke said, startling them. “Assembly’s about to start.”

“We know. We’re just, you know…” Mike trails over, pretending to be sad. 

“Upset.” Lucas finishes.

“Y-Yeah, d-definitely upset.” Dustin adds.

“We need some alone time.”

“To cry.”

“Yeah, listen… I get it. I do. I know how hard this is, but let’s just be there for Will, huh? And then…” Mr. Clarke fishes his keys out of his pocket, tossing them over. “The Heathkit is all yours for the rest of the day. What do you say?” The boys smiled and nodded eagerly. “I don’t believe we’ve met. What’s your name?”

El’s eyes widened, and stutters, “Eleven–”

“Eleanor!” Mike corrects. “She’s my, uh–”

“Cousin.” Lucas says.

“Second cousin.” Dustin blurts out. 

“She’s here for Will and Stephanie’s funeral.” Mike finishes. 

Mr. Clarke frowns, bittersweetly. “Ah, well, welcome to Hawkins Middle, Eleanor. I wish you were here under better circumstances.”

“Thank you.” She says.

“Uh, where are you from exactly?”

“Bad place–”

“Sweden!” Dustin shouts.

“I have a lot of Swedish family.” Mike explains. 

“She hates it there.”

“Cold!” Lucas adds, smiling nervously.

“Subzero.”

Mr. Clarke nods, deciding to just go along with this. “Shall we?”

“Yep!” They said, running along.

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

“You lied to the police!” Karen snapped at her daughter as they entered the house.

“I didn’t lie!” Nancy shouted back, about to head for her room.

“How naive do you think I am!? You and Steve were just talking?”

The teenager gritted her teeth, stopping on the stairs. “We did just talk! Okay? I found out Steve used to know Dustin’s sister, and we talked about it! Is that what you want to know? Huh? It doesn’t matter!”

“It does matter!” Her mother shouts back.

“No!” Nancy scoffs. “It is all bullshit! It has nothing to do with Barb and she’s missing. And something terrible happened to her. I know it. I know it! And no one is listening to me!” She storms off towards her room, her mother shouting her name repeatedly. “Just leave me alone!”

And then her door slams shut.

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

Listening to the principal speak, the boys realized he probably was the only one who actually cares. The rest of the school, the students, looked like they were completely lost and not interested in listening to this. 

“Look at these fakers.” Mike mutters, irritated. 

“They probably didn’t even know his name till today.” Lucas scoffed.

The boys continued to survey the area, they heard the two school bullies laughing. Troy and James were laughing and mocking what the principal was saying about their friend Will, completely berating him. The Boys glared, all while Eleven put two and two together. 

“Mouth breather.” She says, remembering what Mike told her who was responsible for the gash on his chin.

He was actually surprised she remembered, and continued to try to ignore their laughing. But when assembly finally ended, Mike couldn’t hold back his anger any more.

“Hey! Hey! Hey, Troy! You... you think this is funny?” 

Troy stopped and scoffed. “What’d you say, Wheeler?”

“I-I saw you guys laughing over there.” Mike said, oblivious to the audience he was getting. “And I think that’s a real messed up thing to do.”

“Didn’t you listen to the counselor, Wheeler?” James said, smiling. “Grief shows itself in funny ways.”

Mike balled his hands into fists, and ready to snap; Just as Dustin steps up to the plate.

“What did I say yesterday? You keep my sister’s and Will’s name out of your mouths.” He replies.

“So what, Henderson?” Troy shrugged. “Besides, what’s there to be sad about, anyway? Will’s in fairyland now, right? Flying around with all the other little fairies. All happy and gay– and your sister… well… I didn’t take her to be a pedo for your little friend.”

Dustin’s face morphed into one of a killer. “You–”

“Asshole!” Mike shouted, and shoved their bully to the floor. Immediately, their audiences gasp in shock. 

Troy groaned, and stood up, charging up his fist. “You’re dead, Wheeler! Dead!”

But before he could release it, his whole body froze. Everyone stared in confusion, even Troy didn’t know what was going on. Then…

A student started laughing. 

“Dude, Troy peed himself.”

And the giggles broke out because everyone’s eyes were on his pants. Sure enough, there was a stain appearing and running down his pant leg.

“Holy shit!” Dustin said, his gaze looking back to El. She flashes the boys a cocky look before wiping the blood from her nose.

“Hey! What’s going on here?” The principal shouted as he entered the room.

“Shit! Let’s go!” 

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

Jonathan was surprised to see her at the Funeral home, interrupting his shopping (Although, seeing all these coffins and trying to find one for his little brother, maybe it was best to take a break). To his disbelief, she asked him to see his collection of photos from Steve’s backyard.

Of course, now he was nervous. Did she change her mind about protecting him the other day? Was she going to rat him out to the police after all? But instead, she carefully looked through them, until she found one he took of Barb. 

“That’s it.” Nancy said, putting on the weird distorted blur behind her friend. “W-What is that?”

He takes it from her hands, studying it hard. “It looks like it could be some kind of perspective distortion, but I wasn’t using the wide angle.” He frowns, uncertain. “I don’t know. It’s weird.

“And you’re sure you didn’t see anyone else out there?”

“No. And she was there one second and then, um… gone. I figured she bolted.”

She sighs. “The cops think that she ran away. But they don’t know Barb. And I went back to Steve’s… and I thought I… saw something. Some… weird man or… I don’t know what it was.” She glances over at him, realizing what she was doing. “Oh, god. I’m sorry. I... I shouldn’t have come here today. I’m…” She grabs her purse and stands up. “I’m so sorry.”

Jonathan right there and then decided to bite the bullet. His mind wandered back to when the police came over to tell him and his mother what happened to Will. “What’d he look like?

She stops a few steps away, turning around. “What?”

“This man you saw in the woods. What’d he look like?”

“I don’t know.” She knows she is going to sound crazy when she tells him this. “It was almost like he… he didn’t have–”

“Didn’t have a face?”

Nancy stares at him, a bit freaked out. “How did you know that?”

Jonathan suddenly shakes his head, running a hand through his locks. “Shit…”

“What?”

“Shit.” He stands up, guilt on his face. “I think I fucked up.” 

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

None of this made sense.

Steve had parked his car off the road and had walked a path he knew like the back of his hand. He found himself soon standing above the Quarry, a view of where the crime scene had happened. It was still tapped off and there were two cop cars still sitting there, observing. He frowns, and his brain starts going into overdrive. 

None of this made sense. 

She crashes her car not far from the boy’s house, they both run and somehow end up with a shotgun. But the police are saying they ended up in the Quarry, probably being chased but…

It doesn’t make any sense. The Byers house does face the road that takes you to the Quarry, but there’s no logical way that they would follow the road like that. If the theory was true, and they did run back to the house, they would more likely would have run through the front door, and out the back if someone was chasing them; Which means–

They would have ended up going into the woods, not the direction of the Quarry. And you wouldn’t make that harsh right turn unless the chaser was making you do that. No…

If someone was chasing you, the human reaction is to keep running straight until you find somewhere or someone safe. 

And if they did get pulled in the direction, there’s no way they would have just fallen in. Steph knows that place too well, and even though they were driven to the edge, wouldn’t the smart thing to do is use the shotgun on your chaser?

His mind wanders back to the conversation with the police chief. He seemed so spooked after he told him the truth. And what was the worried reaction after looking at his scar again? Unless…

Did… Steve nearly choked on the thought. Did her body not have the scar?

But if it didn’t have the scar then…

He gasps.

.

“Do…” What is it even saying? “Do they look real?”

The police chief reverted back to the same look he was giving Joyce earlier, slight pity but also disbelief. “For Christ’s Sake. Not you too.” 

.

Not you too? What does that even mean? Did Stephanie’s mother have doubts too? Did Will’s mother have doubts? Was he really doubting the whole situation from the beginning as well?

But his mind kept going back to Hopper and him just an hour ago.

.

 “I still don’t understand what’s–”

“Listen to me–” He stops the teen in his place, pointing, and spitting his next sentence out like venom. “This conversation never happened. Understood?”

.

Oh, god.

Steve couldn’t even believe what he was considering doing next.

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

Hopper sat in street clothes at a bar, a shit eating grin on his face, a cigarette in hand, and he was keeping a close eye on the man sitting next to him who was currently watching a football game on the tv. He chuckles, getting the bartender’s attention. 

“Another, please. And another for my, uh, friend here.”

“Oh, thanks, man. Appreciate it.” The guy, a Statie, named David said. 

“Yeah, that’s all right. I’m, uh... I’m celebrating. My daughter, she won the spelling bee today.”

“Is that right?”

“Yeah, that’s right.” Hopper said, chuckling. “‘Odontalgia’. That was the word. You know what it means?” He gets a ‘no’ for an answer. “It’s a fancy name for a toothache.” His grin grows. “Yeah, she’s smart. She’s real smart. Don’t know where she gets it from. I’ve been tryin’ to figure that out for years.”

“Your daughter, she got a name?”

Hopper’s brain short circuited for a second. “What?”

“Your daughter? What’s her name?”

He swallowed the lump in his throat. “Sarah. Her name’s Sarah.”

David grabs his bottle and holds it up. “To Sarah.” He said, and they clink their glasses. The police chief finally had the hook in place.

Hopper takes a sip, and turns up his acting skills. “I recognize you. Are you famous or somethin’?”

“Uh, you might have seen me on TV, I, uh... I found those kids.”

Gotcha, asshole. Hopper nods. “So, you on that case or what?”

“I just saw the kids on patrol, you know? Dumb luck.”

“So that Quarry, that’s, uh… that’s state-run, where they found those kids, huh?”

“Yeah.”

Hopper starts laughing quietly. “Yeah, well, that’s funny. ’Cause, you know, I know for a fact that it’s run by the Sattler Company. Frank Sattler? Decent guy, still got a couple operational quarries up in Roane.

David starts looking preoccupied. “Is that right?”

“Yeah. That’s right.” He starts glaring. “So why are you lying to me, man?”

“What’s your problem, bud?” David snaps.

“I don’t have a problem. I’m just a concerned citizen.”

“Yeah? Well, stick your nose someplace else. Those kids are dead. End of story.” He stands up and throws some money on the counter. “Thanks for ruining the game, dick.”

Hopper shakes his head, almost pitying the guy. If only he had just been honest and open with him, he wouldn’t have to get his ass beaten. 

Kind of like right now. 

He had dragged the man behind the building, striking him multiple times to bruise his cheeks, and open wounds under his eyes and nose.

“Okay…” Hopper pins him to the wall. “Let’s try this one more time.” He grabs the man by the chin, squeezing. “Who told you to be out there? What were you doing out there?” He watched for an answer, and when he wasn’t getting any, he dialed back his fist.

“I don’t know!” David shouts. “I don’t know. They… they just told me to call it in and not let anybody get too close.

“Get close to what?!”

“The bodies.”

The bodies? Why? Hopper huffs and squeezes tighter. “Who do you work for? The NSA? Hawkins Lab?” He catches David’s gaze falling behind him and looks, spotting a black car in the distance. “Who is that?”

“You’re gonna get us both killed.”

“Who is that? Hey! Hey!” Hopper takes off, pulling out his gun. But to no avail, the car was already off. And so was the Statie in question. He looked around, gripping his hair. “Fuck…”

What the fuck is going on?!

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

|| THE OTHER SIDE ||

Will didn’t know what to do. Stephanie had passed out, and is still passed out after all this time. He had a blanket draped over her, and propped her head up against her backpack. He didn’t know if she was coming down with something either or not because the temperature was making his hands feel numb even with the gloves on.

What can he do? The only thought that crossed his mind was going back to his house and trying to contact his mother. But the problem with that is, is he’ll have to leave Steph behind. There’s no way he can carry her back, no way he can drag her back either without collapsing himself, and then what? The monster comes and gets them while they’re unconscious? 

Heck, no!

But… that means the first option is the only logical way to do this.

Will decides to lighten his load, only taking the shotgun with him and scrambles to find something to write on. He still had his school notebook in his bag and wrote a quick message on one of the pages.

WENT TO GET HELP. 

Then he placed it right next to her head. He hopes she doesn’t freak out too badly before and after reading the note, and hopes when they do reconnect she won’t scold him (She’ll probably will, but he can have hopes). 

He looks down at her one more time before retracing his steps back home. 

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

“Come on.” Mike ushered them inside the room, closing it shut and showing El where to sit by the radio.

“Now what?” Dustin asked, almost nervously. 

“She’ll find them. Right, El?”

El nods and closes her eyes as Mike starts turning the radio on. Almost immediately she locked onto something, a muffled voice coming through. The boys, minus Lucas, perked up at this with joy.

“She’s doing it.” Dustin said, smiling. 

“She’s finding them!” Mike says, nearly jumping with joy. 

“This is crazy.”

“Calm down. She just closed her eyes.” Lucas said, and right on cue, almost a way of telling him not to underestimate her, the light above them shattered and went out.

The boys gasped and huddled closer. Then that’s when they heard something else come through other than static. There was the sound of something banging. Banging on what? They couldn’t pinpoint what it was.

“What is that?” Dustin asked, confused, but they continued to listen for anything else.

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

“COME ON! I KNOW YOU CAN HEAR ME!”

Meanwhile, on the other side of town, Joyce was blasting her youngest favorite song, hoping to get some communication again. She practically begged whatever higher force there was to get her to talk to her son again.

“COME ON! WILL, STEPHANIE! I NEED ONE OF YOU–”

Then the banging came.

She immediately stops the music, listening. She slowly walks over to the wall where she saw the faceless thing last night, and puts her ear to it.

|| Mom? ||

She gasps, hands pressing against the wall like she could grab him. “Will?”

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

|| M-Mom? ||

The boys took a step back in shock.

They heard him. 

They actually heard him. 

“No freaking way!” Lucas said, and everyone began shouting his name.

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

|| Mom... || 

“Will!” Joyce yells, her heart hurting at the sound of her baby boy crying. 

|| Please… ||

“Will! Will!” She starts banging on the wall, and clawing at the wall paper.

|| Mom!!!! ||

“Will! I’m here! I’m here!” She manages to snag the corner of the paper and begins peeling it off. “Oh, God…”

|| Mom!!!! ||

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

“Will!” Mike shouts.

“Will, it’s us! Are you there?” Lucas says, getting closer to the radio.

“Can you hear us? We’re here!” Dustin asks, getting close too. They can hear him, even if it’s a bit distorted, so why can’t he hear them? “Will? Hello?! Will!”

|| H-Hel-lo? M-Mom? ||

“Why can’t he hear us?” Lucas asked, worriedly. 

“I don’t know!” Mike yells, scared. “Will!”

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

“Baby…” Joyce cries as the wallpaper came down, and revealed a weird color bubble on her wall. She wasn’t even going to question it when she finally saw movement behind it. 

|| Mom?! || 

“Oh, God. Will!” She could cry. “Oh, thank God. Baby… Will…”

|| Mom… || 

She could hear something growling from the other side, and could barely make out her son’s scared face. 

|| Mom, it’s coming! ||

“Tell me where you are!” Joyce said, banging on the bubble. “How do I get to you?!”

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

The boys stared, completely afraid for their friend because he sounded like he was going to break at any moment. And that weird growling wasn’t helping the situation either. Where the heck was he?

|| I-It’s like ho-home, but it’s s-so dark… It’s so da-rk and empty. An–d-d it’s cold! A-And Step-hanie’s passed out! ||

Mike gasps and looks at Dustin. “She is with him.”

“Jesus…” The Henderson said, covering his mouth with his hand.

|| I do-n’t kn-know what t-to do! Mo-m? M-m-mom! || 

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

“Listen to me!” Joyce said, with all the might of her voice. “I swear I’m gonna get to you, okay? But right now, I need you to hide. I need you to get Stephanie and hide!”

|| Mom, please! ||

“No, no, listen! Listen, I…” Her heart skips a beat when the growling gets louder. “I will find you both, but you have to run now! Run! Run!”

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

Then the radio bursts up into flames, immediately setting off the fire alarms. Dustin kicked himself in high gear, running over to the extinguisher and pulling the pin. 

“El, are you okay?” Mike asked, after the fire was put out. But the young girl stared at him, and you can clearly tell she wasn’t here. “Can you move?”

“Shit! Blood, Mike!” Lucas points out, as the red liquid gushes out of her nose immensely. 

“Jeez! Help her up!” 

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

“And you’re…” Nancy questions as he watches him fiddle around with the machine in the room engulfed in red light.

“Brightening. Enlarging.” He explains.

“Did your mom say anything else? Like, um, where it might have gone to, or…”

“No, just that it came out of the wall.” Jonathan sighs as he finishes with the machine before carefully placing the photo into the water.

“How long does this take?”

“Not long.”

She nods, fiddling with her hand. “Have you been… doing this a while?”

He blinks. “What?”

“Photography?” She clarifies, and he shrugs.

“Yeah.” He gives her a nervous look. “I guess I’d rather observe people than, you know… Talk to them. I know. It’s weird.”

“No!” She shakes her head.

“No, it is.” He chuckles, and grins. “It’s just, sometimes… people don’t really say what they’re really thinking. But you capture the right moment… it says more.”

“What was I saying?” Nancy asked, a smile creeping up in her face.

“What?”

“When you took my picture.”

He frowns. “I shouldn’t have taken that.” He looks away. “I’m, uh… I’m sorry. It’s just–”

“That’s it.” She said, getting his attention. “That’s what I saw.”

Jonathan gasps quietly at the sight of it, a disgusting, tall figure that didn’t have a face. “My mom… I thought she was crazy ’cause she said… that’s not Will’s body. That he’s alive.”

“And if he’s alive–”

“Then Barbara.”

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

Steve couldn’t believe he even had this thought, but he finds himself pulling into the parking lot of the Coroner’s office. He sat there with the engine off, rethinking everything.

“Oh my god…” His forehead touched the steering wheel. “What am I doing?” But he gets out anyway, heading inside and turning on his charm to hide his nerves. “Hello, Ma’am!”

Patty pulls the phone away from her ear. “Hey, uh, can I help you?”

“Oh, uh, my brother, I think he left something behind. I‘m sure it’s still on the seat. If you don’t mind me looking, that is.”

“Oh, well…”

“Please?” He begs, and shows her the doe eyes. Well, they worked because she told him he can go ahead. “Thank you. I’ll just be a minute.”

And now it was now or never.

Steve strolls through the hallway, spotting, to his surprise, a cop sitting on a chair by the door he needed to get in (Guess he’ll question this situation later). “Hey, I love that book.” He says, the cop springing to his feet “It’s a nasty mutt.”

“Hey, you can’t be back here.”

“Yeah, I know, but I just got off the line with uh… you know.”

“Know what?”

“You…” Smacks lips. “Okay. I’m sorry.”

And that’s when Steve decks him the side of the head, before sending another punch to the jaw that renders him unconscious. He still can’t believe what he’s doing, even after snatching the keys from the guy’s belt. He looks around worriedly as he unlocks the door to head inside. His nerves were being shot through the roof as he arrived at the freezers, and with a shaky hand he started opening the doors up, reading the name tags that were tied on the deceased’s toes.

When he found Stephanie’s he nearly vomited. And when he finally pulled back the sheet he nearly fainted.

Ever since their friendship ended the only time he’s only ever seen her was when they would pass by each other in school, and that wasn’t very often. But this…

This is different. This is sick. This is violating. 

It hurt to see how pale she was, those bright blue eyes of her closed, her brown locks brushed back from her face.

He swallows and looks away. What the fuck am I doing?

He takes a deep breath, and pulls the sheet back more, stopping before it shows off her chest. He still had the courtesy to not see her naked, not like this anyhow. It wouldn’t be right. But when he finally took the rest of her in, his heart got stuck in his throat.

The scar… on her shoulder was…

Non-existent.

That doesn’t… what? Steve knows this isn’t right. He remembers the incident so clearly, he remembers the scar they both promise to hide from their families. So if he had his still, then where was hers? Is this what was spooking the police chief? 

Now it made sense why Hopper was asking those questions to him. He must have seen Stephanie’s body without the scar and wanted to ask how long ago it was. 

Now it all made sense. 

Steve, without even realizing, had reached down to touch the spot where the scar should be. His brown orbs widened at the touch. For being a deceased body it was–

Completely dry.

Now, he might not be the most book smart person despite keeping his grades up for his parents sake, but even he remembers his science teacher explaining the stages of a dead body. Something about the body puffing up and releasing fluids. So why is it dry? And secondly, if Steph’s mother showed up for the autopsy, then where’s the incision marks?

.

“Do…” What is it even saying? “Do they look real?”

.

Steve shuts his eyes again, another shaky breath as he takes out his knife from his back pocket, flicking it open. He has to know, he has to know if his doubts are real. He starts by putting the tip on her shoulder, before stopping.

But what if he’s wrong? What if this is really her? 

He groaned, every kind of emotion was coming through. What if I’m wrong and I just butchered my first friend? 

He sighs. Well…

He’s not going to know until he tries.

“Fuck.” He whispers, before digging the tip into her shoulder. Cringing at the sound of the skin breaking. He continues until he gets to the end of the collarbone, and puts the knife aside. 

It was the moment of truth as he slowly digs his hand into the cut, half expecting for his hand to touch bone or get drenched in a vein but…

Steve might as well be as pale as this corpse as soon as touched something that shouldn’t be in there. Scaredly, he pulled the substance out. 

It was cotton. Stuffing that was used in pillows or children’s toys.

He didn’t know whether to be happy he was right, or upset that he was. He still almost couldn’t believe it. 

“What the fuck?” He manages to say before he hears the door behind him open wider. Out of instinct, he grabs his knife and spins around, expecting the receptionist or even that cop he knocked out to be there, but not him.

Jim Hopper was staring back at him, out of uniform and looking surprised to see him here too (That’s probably why his gun was out). Both of them didn’t say anything, and the adult’s eyes shifted to the table behind him. Jim hustles over, Steve sidestepping quickly – I mean he’s caught red handed anyway. 

And that’s when Jim saw what Steve saw.

That’s when they both realized…

.

.

.

.

Something’s going on.

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