Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

November 5th, 1983.

When Mike opened his eyes, he definitely didn’t expect to wake up in a large theater-like room. 

He glanced around the room as he sat up, and he was able to make out the forms of multiple other people, but the room was dim, and it was hard to recognize them all. They all appeared to be laying on the floor as well, fast asleep. 

As his eyes adjusted, his expression lit up in recognition, spotting the party members a couple of feet away from each other. He quickly stood up, a bit light-headed at how fast he was on his feet, but he didn’t let that deter him. 

He slowly walked over, still surveying the room. He recognized a couple more people, but he was more-so focused on the party than anything else. He stopped when he was in front of Will. He kneeled down, lightly shaking Will by the shoulder. 

“Will?” he called, shaking his shoulder just a tad bit harder when the other boy didn’t stir. 

He looked around again, before looking back down at Will with a small frown. He shook his shoulder one more time. 

“Will, wake up,” 

Seeing the boy begin to shift, Mike backed up a little bit, giving him enough room to wake up fully. 

Will slowly sat up, rubbing his eyes as he squinted in confusion. 

“Mike? What’re you…” he trailed off, finally realizing his surroundings. His eyes widened a bit. He looked back at Mike, blinking. 

“Where are we?” Will asked, stretching his legs as he stood up, Mike doing the same. He saw Will’s eyes recognize the others, and Mike realized Will was probably just as oblivious as to what was going on. He huffs, shoving his hands in his pockets. 

“I don’t know, I just woke up here a couple of minutes ago,” he tilts his head, furrowing his brows. “Should we wake up the others?” 

Will looks around, frown in place, before he gasps quietly. “Mom!” Mike looks over to where Will is facing, and he looks on in surprise when he sees Ms. Byers, just as asleep as everyone else. Will makes his way over, shaking her arm in concern, his shoulders tense. Mike stares on, grimacing. 

This is weird…really, really weird.

“Mom? Mom, wake up.” Will’s shoulders relax as Ms. Byers groggily sits up, albeit slowly. She rubs her head, and she startles at the sight of Will and Mike in the unknown room. She stands up, wiping her hands on her pants as she looks back and forth between the two boys. 

“What- Will, honey, what’s going on?” Will opens his mouth, ready to recount the small-boring events that have happened in the past couple of minutes. Mike tunes it out in favor of examining the room some more.

Oddly enough, Mike can spot Nancy of all people, as well as her new “boyfriend” Steve Harrington. He blinks in bewilderment, swinging his head around to the right. He sees the Chief of police, too, as well as Jonathan, and- he’s pretty sure he sees another kid, not in the party. Whoever they are, they’ve curled in on themselves in their sleep, trying to seem smaller. 

“Mike?” he’s snapped out of his stupor when Ms. Byers calls out to him, and he turns, facing her. She looks -rightfully- worried, eyes moving all around the area, switching from person to person. 

“We should wake the other’s up, honey.” She pauses, gently pulling Will closer to her. She stammers. “What…whatever is happening- it’s weird, and I don’t think we should wait too long.” 

Mike nods. “Okay,” his words come out a bit shaky, his mind telling him something is wrong with this place. He just doesn’t know what . 

10 minutes later, almost everyone is awake, and all rightfully dazed. There are several questions asked, all with little to no answers, Mike does his best to ignore the tension that slowly builds up in the room as everyone gets progressively more troubled by the mystery of it all. 

“So- wait, no one knows where we are?” Dustin looks around, mouth slightly open in disbelief. His jaw drops as everyone stays silent. “ No one? ”  

Mike huffs. Crossing his arms. “ No , Dustin, we all woke up here randomly, same as you.” 

Lucas crosses his arms. “So- what? We all just- appeared here?” Lucas looks as confused as Mike feels, and his grimace gets deeper. 

Will tilts his head. “Like- teleportation?” his face twists as he fidgets with his hands. 

Dustin shakes his hand in a so-so motion. “Well- maybe, but. That’s, like, physically impossible.”

Lucas rolls his eyes. “That’s, like, physically impossible ,” he repeats, mocking Dustin. Dustin turns to him, throwing his hand in the air. 

“Really, dude?” Lucas just stares at him, unwavering. 

The rest of the group looks at the two, frowning. Nancy is about to open her mouth, before Hopper -the Chief- sighs, running a hand through his hair. “Now isn’t the time for this- let’s re-group,” he points to Mike, who blinks. “You. What do you last remember before you woke up?” 

Mike looks around, trying to scan his memory. He draws a blank, eyebrows pulling together. 

Why can’t he remember?

He shrugs. “I can’t remember,” he turns to Will. “Can you?” 

Will shakes his head, pursing his lips. Hopper shakes his head. He mutters. “Great, that’s just-” he sighs. Hopper turns to Dustin. “Can you remember, kid?” Dustin shakes his head. 

Hopper taps his foot, looking up at the ceiling in agitation. He grunts. Looking back at everyone. “Okay- can anyone remember what you were doing before you woke up here?” 

Resounding “no’s” and shakes of everyone’s head has Hopper scowling. He pinches the bridge of his nose, exhaling sharply. 

“Um, hey, guys?” Will calls out, hesitantly pointing to where the last kid remains. The kid who’s still asleep. The kid in a… hospital gown? Mike squints. Who is that ?

Will repeats the question in Mike’s head and Ms. Byers makes her way over to the small child. She kneels down in front of the..boy? Girl? Mike isn’t sure. 

Mike follows in Ms. Byers's stead, looking down at the kid in confusion. Whoever they are, they’re bald, and appear to be a bit skinny, as if they barely eat- if at all. 

Ms. Byers frowns in worry, clearing her throat, she mumbles. “Excuse me?” When the kid doesn’t have any reaction, Ms. Byers gently puts a hand on their shoulder. 

The kid startles, shooting up, and Ms. Byers's breath hitches in surprise. She takes her hand off the kid's shoulder, putting her hands in front of her. 

“Hey, it’s alright, it’s okay, sweetie.” The kid breathes heavily, looking scared, frightened . As if they’re going to get hurt. Mike backs up a little bit at that notion. 

Just where did they come from?

Ms. Byers breathes in, and the kids' attention is back on her. Joyce speaks, voice wavering in unease. “Do you know…where you are?” When the kid shakes their head, Joyce continues on. “Do you know how you got here?” another head shake.

Mike’s pretty sure he can hear Nancy and Steve muttering from a few feet behind him, and when he turns, he sees Jonathan holding Will, arm wrapped around his shoulder as he mumbles something, probably some sort of reassurance to the boy. Will nods, his eyes on his mother. Dustin, Lucas, and Hopper all stare, frowns on their faces as Ms. Byers continues to speak softly to the child. 

Mike tunes back into the conversation when he hears a small voice. 

“Eleven..” it’s soft, spoken so softly Mike can barely hear it. And the words are spoken with hesitance. The voice from the kid is feminine too. Are they a girl after all? He turns back to where the kid (the girl?) and Ms. Byers are. And Ms. Byers is nodding her head in understanding. 

“Okay, alright, sweetie…my name is Joyce, and um,” she stumbles over her words as she looks back at everyone else. “We’re gonna try and figure out how to get us all home, okay?” she flashes a tight, close-mouthed smile, trying her best to calm the ki- the girl. 

Ms. Byers stands up, slowly helping out the girl -Eleven- he presumes, to stand up. A weird name for an even weirder girl, he supposes. 

Ms. Byers nods her head. Turning towards Hopper. “This is Eleven. She isn’t quite sure how she got here either.” 

Hopper glances down at the girl, scowl in place. And Eleven shrinks slightly under his gaze. He mumbles in understanding. 

“So- wait,” Mike hears Steve start to talk, and he mentally rolls his eyes. He’s never liked Steve, but of course, Nancy had to go on and choose to date him of all people. 

“What is this- some sort of…prank? Or like a…trick?” 

Dustin screws up his eyes, looking at Steve. “That’s the same thing.” 

Steve turns his head down at Dustin, blinking. He nods. “Yeah, no- right.” 

Nancy sighs, patting Steve on the shoulder, her mouth turned down awkwardly. 

Mike is about to open his mouth when he’s interrupted by a sudden static to his left. He turns, seeing a large screen. Larger than the one at the movies. How did he not notice it before? 

He startles when words pop up on the screen. 

“Welcome. You have been selected today to watch the future, as the future involves all of you. You will be unable to leave until you are done, and I do hope after watching this you are able to put a stop to the upside down, once and for all. The TV will start when everyone is seated. Enjoy. ”  

Mike’s eyes widen, and he hears a few sharp inhales. Dustin gapes openly, breathing out. “Woah,” his eyes light up, sparkling. 

Lucas blinks. “ That’s a TV?” he makes a random gesture with his hands, stuttering. “But- that’s- how ?!” 

Will looks around, eyes filled with unease. “So…should we sit down, then?” 

Hopper clicks his tongue. “It did say we’re unable to leave this place til’ we watch everything.” he shakes his head, muttering under his breath. “Even though this seems far-fetched…” 

Ms. Byers nods, guiding Will and Jonathan over to two of the seats, before quickly helping Eleven over as well. Mike breathes in, scratching his face. He guesses there really is no choice. He takes a seat near Will, who smiles at him. Mike grins back. 

Steve and Nancy are still muttering to themselves, though it’s more-so Steve muttering than Nancy, who just keeps looking back and forth between Steve and the TV, probably trying to connect the dots as to what exactly they’re going to be shown. 

Dustin and Lucas take the seats to Mike’s right, and Dustin groans quietly. “I wish we at least had some snacks or something…” 

Lucas rolls his eyes, “Why would there be snacks?” Dustin sighs, loud and exaggerated. 

“Oh, I don’t know, maybe because this place looks like and is technically a movie theater?” Lucas just looks at him, shaking his head as he finds no argument to counter his reasoning. 

Hopper is the last one to take a seat, shoulders tense. 

And just like that, the TV snaps on. And a couple of people flinch at the suddenness of it. 

NOVEMBER 6TH, 1983, HAWKINS, INDIANA. 

Ms. Byers tilts her head. “Wait- that’s- that’s tomorrow…” she squints. Hopper looks at her, before looking back at the screen, confusion evident on his face. 

Mike furrows his brows, what happens tomorrow that could be so important? Sure, he has a campaign planned for tomorrow but- that’s all. 

The camera pans down from the night sky, facing the direction of the lab. It reads: HAWKINS NATIONAL LABORATORY U.S. DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY.

Eleven’s shoulders are tense in recognition, but it goes unnoticed. 

Inside the lab, the lights are shown to be flickering quickly, and the camera slowly gets closer to a large door. Silence, except for the sound of the lights slowly giving out before- 

The door slams open, a man in a lab coat is seen rapidly running out as the alarm sounds. What he’s running from, however, is unknown. Whatever it is, it has him shaking in fear, looking desperate as he runs, panting as he turns corners.

A few people jump at the loud alarm, looking on in worry.

Steve looks at the screen, disturbed. He swallows in unease. “What’s…what is he running from?”

Nancy looks on, frowning. She shifts slightly in her seat, her eyebrows downturned in worry. “I don’t know…”

Mike glances from the TV to the party, and he can feel the tension in the air, everyone collectively on edge. 

The man arrives at an elevator, frantically pressing the button as he tries to catch his breath. He looks behind him in anxiety, pressing the button faster. A loud clang sounds from down the hall, and his breath hitches, a fearful sound escaping him. He presses the button again, terror building up. 

If possible, the lights flicker faster.

Dustin looks from Lucas to Mike to Will. “Uhhh, I don’t like this, you guys.” 

Will kneads his hands together, looking at the screen in apprehension. Joyce glances at him, wrapping a gentle arm around his shoulder. Will relaxes slightly, but it doesn’t do much to calm the tenseness of what’s playing on screen. 

Finally, the elevator opens, and the man quickly ducks under the opening doors, his breathing ragged. He presses the button on the inside of the elevator multiple times as well, trying to close the doors as fast as possible. He stops, standing in the middle of the machine as he tries to slow his breathing. 

Everyone is tense, jaws clenched and shoulders set, the only sound in the room resonates from the TV, and Eleven twists her expression, curling into herself as she watches. 

The lights in the hall continue to flicker, and the man looks on, waiting, his breathing almost slowed. The lights flicker onwards. The man takes a deep breath, sweating. 

A growl is heard from above. 

Jonathan's eyes widen in alarm. He covers his mouth with his fist, watching. 

Everyone is stiff, the suspense too high. Eleven squeezes her eyes shut. 

The man looks up in horror as the growling continues. He was so close- he was so close to escaping. His breath quickens one last time. 

He’s dragged upwards, screaming as the elevator doors close. 

“What the hell was that?!” Steve breathes out, hand on his chest. Mike purses his lips, whatever that was- how did it involve him and his friends? He leans back a bit farther in his seat, clutching the arm rests tightly. 

The scene switches to a water sprinkler, moving rapidly, watering a field of grass in someone's front yard.

Mike and Nancy perk up, recognizing their house almost immediately. The rest of the party lightens up as well. Would the screen show the campaign they had planned?

Meanwhile, Ms. Byers chews on her lower lip in worry. She’s not sure she wants Will or Jonathan going out tomorrow if… whatever that creature was is lurking around. Whatever it did to that man…it definitely wasn’t good. 

A voice, Mike’s , narrates. “Something is coming, something hungry for blood.” The scene shows Mike peeking out over a book, glancing between his friends. 

“A shadow grows on the wall behind you, swallowing you in darkness.”

The rest of the party -not including Mike- lean forward, curious as to where the campaign will go. 

Mike grumbles quietly. He’d worked hard on the campaign, only for it to get spoiled . He frowns, annoyed. 

So much for all that planning…

Dustin wipes his nose, looking at Mike with alertness and a mix of determination. Lucas looks at Mike, too, with the same look of determination and curiosity on his face. Mike speaks again, voice dramatically grim.

“ It is almost here.”

Will leans forward in suspense. “What is it?” he speaks, eyes a bit wide in apprehension. Dustin blinks, suddenly coming to a realization. 

“What if it’s the Demogorgon?” 

Will rolls his eyes lightly, leaning back into his seat, and Lucas groans. 

“Oh, Jesus, we’re so screwed if it’s the Demogorgon…” Dustin puts his hand on his forehead, already awaiting his demise. 

“It’s not the Demogorgon!” Lucas retorts, and Mike looks back and forth between the two, before speaking again. 

“An army of troglodytes charge into the chamber!” he slams down a figure onto the board. And Lucas puts an arm across his chair, a bit smug at Dustin being wrong. 

Dustin looks over at Mike. “Really?” he smiles. Mike just looks back at him, a grin on his face. 

Dustin smiles lightly at Mike, eyes lit up, clearly having fun. “Troglodytes?” he asks, partially in amusement. 

Lucas chuckles. “Told ya.” 

Ms. Byers smiles. It’s always nice seeing the boys all having fun. Nancy however, rolls her eyes. Sure, she’d dressed up for a campaign once , but it was a long time ago. And plus, she was far too old for that stuff anyways. 

Will, Dustin, and Lucas all giggle at Lucas’s reply. But Mike stays serious, his voice suddenly ominous. 

“Wait a minute,” he says softly, looking from his left to his right, suddenly seeming on edge. 

Will tenses up, enthralled with what plays on screen, wondering if it really is the Demogorgon. God, he hopes not. 

“Did you hear that?” Mike asks, looking shaken. Still, he continues on, stumbling over his words slightly. 

“That…that sound…” 

Hopper grimaces at the TV. Does he really have to watch a couple of kids play a child's game? 

Eleven though, blinks, a bit interested. Also a bit confused by some of the words being used. 

“Boom…boom…” Mike starts softly when all of a sudden he yells- “Boom!” he slams the table to express his shout. 

Eleven flinches, as do Lucas and Dustin, Will doesn’t take his eyes off the screen, engrossed in the campaign, even if he hasn’t experienced it yet. 

“That didn’t come from the troglodytes, no that…” Will leans forward again, eyes attentive. 

“That came from something else.” Mike says, voice wavering and breathy. Dustin looks from Will and Lucas to Mike, swallowing. Lucas looks onward in anticipation. 

Mike slams another figurine down, ever the one for dramatics. “The Demogorgon!” he says. And the rest of the boys groan loudly. 

The party also groans, basically in sync with their on-screen counterparts. Of course it’s the Demogorgon. Eleven peeks over at them, eyebrows raised, a confused frown on her face.

“We’re in deep shit.” Dustin complains, gently throwing his hand up. 

Mike shouts. “Will, your action!” 

Will wails. “I don’t know!” Lucas quickly looks at him. 

“Fireball him!” 

Will groans again. “I’d have to roll a thirteen or higher!” 

Mike looks at the screen in interest, curious as to what the outcome will be. 

Dustin shakes his head, disagreeing with Lucas’s remark. “No, that’s-”

Dustin looks at Will. “Too risky. Cast a protection spell.”

Dustin nods his head. Gesturing at the screen. “See?” 

Lucas huffs, shoving Dustin lightly. 

Lucas speaks again. “Don’t be a pussy. Fireball him!”

Will looks back and forth between Lucas and Dustin. 

“Cast protection .” 

Will purses his lips. The fireball is risky but…maybe if he’s lucky? But- then again… he shakes his head to himself. He’ll just have to see what happens. 

Mike slams the table again, getting impatient. The rest of the party flinches, looking back at him. “The Demogorgon is tired of your silly human bickering!”

“It stomps towards you. Boom!” Dustin looks over at Will in panic, and Lucas does the same. 

“Fireball him!” 

Mike doesn’t let Lucas’s input deter him. “Another stomp, boom!” 

Will swallows, overwhelmed with the options. Dustin repeats his sentence, voice raising.

“ Cast protection. ”

The party leans forward all on the edge of their seats. And Jonathan blinks. He’s not too sure how D&D works, but he’s sure casting protection would be good, right? 

“He roars in anger!” Mike shouts, and the boys all clamor, voices overlapping as they panic. Mike speaks once more. “And-!” 

Will makes his decision, rolling the dice and letting it go onto the board. 

“Fireball!!” 

Dustin leans back, shaking his head and putting a hand on his forehead, muttering to himself.

The dice rolls off of the small table, rolling away onto the floor. The party stand up from their seats in alarm. 

The party sighs in protest. “Aw, man!” Lucas whines. 

“Oh, shit!” 

Lucas yelps. “Where’d it go? Where is it?” 

Will groans, looking around in a panic. “I don’t know!”

Dustin helps search, loudly asking. “Is it a thirteen?”

Will repeats himself. “ I don’t know !”

The boys start crouching around the basement, looking all around the room for the missing dice. 

Lucas asks again, but it’s rhetorical. “Where is it??”

Dustin is the only one not crouching now, he puts his hands on the sides of his head. 

“Oh, my god! Oh, my god!” 

Mike turns to Dustin, eyebrows drawn together in question. Dustin shrugs. It’s a tense moment, can’t blame him for freaking out…

Nancy sighs at them, not with them, drained from their dramatics. 

Ms. Byers just smiles again, leaning over to ruffle Will’s hair lovingly. 

Mike’s mother is heard yelling his name, once, twice, before she opens the basement door, yelling one more time, her hands on her hips. “Mike!” her yell drowns out the parties complaints, still unable to find the dice.

Mike looks up from the floor, raising his arms. “Mom, we’re in the middle of a campaign!” 

Karen’s voice is stern. “You mean the end? She taps her wrist with her other hand. “Fifteen-after.” She walks away from the basement door, back into the kitchen. The party is still searching, and Will can be heard complaining. 

“Why do we have to go-” 

Mike rushes up the basement stairs, making his way towards Karen. “Mom!” he meets her in the kitchen. 

“Mom, wait, just twenty more minutes!” 

Karen ignores his protest though, busy putting leftover food in Tupperware. “It’s a school night, Michael. I just put Holly to bed. You can finish next weekend.”

Mike disagrees, and he voices it. “But that’ll ruin the flow!” 

Mike crosses his arms, frowning. They were just getting to the really good part of the campaign too…

Karen tries to interrupt. “Michael-” 

Mike continues on. “I’m serious, Mom. The campaign took two weeks to plan.” Karen continues to store away the food, appearing to be not listening anymore. 

Mike sighs, dejected. “How was I supposed to know it was gonna take ten hours?”

Steve looks over at the party, confused. “Why would you spend ten hours playing a fantasy game?” 

Mike glares at him, Steve swallows, turning away as he looks back at the screen. He was just curious…

Karen stops, facing Mike. “You’ve been playing for ten hours ?” 

Mike raises a hand, trying to find an excuse. When he finds none, he turns, facing his dad, who’s busy trying to work the malfunctioning TV. “Dad, don’t you think that twenty more-” 

His dad interrupts him, voice deadpan. “I think you should listen to your mother.”

The static doesn’t disappear from the TV, Ted grunts, smacking the side of it. “Dang- dumb piece of junk-”

Mike looks back from his mom to his dad, in disbelief. 

The scene switches back to the basement where Will exclaims loudly. “Oh, I got it!” He runs up to Lucas. 

“Does the seven count?” Lucas looks disheartened. 

Will mentally groans. Just his luck. 

“It was a seven?” Lucas asks, and Will nods. Dustin continues getting ready to leave. Lucas lowers his voice. 

“Did Mike see it?” Will shakes his head, dice in hand. Lucas speaks again, voice resolute. “Then it doesn’t count,” 

Mike gawks, looking at Lucas. “That’s not fair!” Lucas raises his hands in defense. 

“I haven’t even done it yet, don’t blame me!” 

Mike scoffs. “Just because you haven’t done it doesn’t mean you won’t do it.” 

Lucas huffs, not in the mood to keep bickering. 

The boys all rush to grab their things, hastily putting on their jackets. As Lucas and Will head up the stairs, Dustin grabs a pizza box, opening it slightly. He calls. 

“Yo- hey, guys,” Lucas and Will pause on the stairs, both turning to look at him.

Dustin gestures to the box. “Does anyone want this?”  

In unison both boys respond. “No.” and they continue up the steps. 

Dustin stands there, holding the pizza box with one hand, looking around in uncertainty on what to do with the leftover food. 

The scene cuts to the upstairs portion of the Wheeler’s house, Dustin trots up the steps, still holding the box.  Nancy’s voice is heard from one of the rooms.

“No, I don’t think…” 

She pops into the frame, on call with someone. “Yeah, he’s cute.” 

Mike wrinkles his nose, she’s definitely talking about Steve. 

Dustin waves softly, trying to get her attention. But Nancy doesn’t notice him yet and continues speaking to her friend. 

“Barb, no, I don’t think so.” a beat. “Barb, you’re not-” 

Dustin interrupts, done trying to quietly cut in. 

“Hey, Nancy.” She turns to him, peeved at the interference. 

Dustin holds up the box in view, opening it. “There’s a slice left if you want, sausage and pepperoni.” 

Nancy almost rolls her eyes, she shifts, speaking into her phone. “Hold on,” As she gets up from her bed- presumably to take the last slice of pizza, Dustin smiles. 

She smiles back tightly, closing the door in his face. Dustin is left standing outside in the hall, smile gone as he raises his hand up slightly, waving it in the open air in what appears to be exasperation.

Nancy winces as Mike turns to her, glaring lightly. “Nancy! Really?” 

She sighs, looking over at where Dustin is staring ahead at the screen, a bit disheartened by the rude gesture. 

“I’m sorry, Dustin. I shouldn’t have done that,” she says, messing with her hair slightly. Dustin shrugs and glances at her before looking back at the TV. 

The scene cuts again, this time showing Dustin entering the garage where everyone else in the party is. “There’s something wrong with your sister.” 

Mike faces him, puzzled. “What are you talking about?” 

Dustin heads towards his bike. “She’s got a stick up her butt.” 

Nancy’s mouth sets into a straight line as Steve chuckles quietly. The moment he notices her annoyance, he quiets down, whispering a small “Sorry…” 

Lucas responds in agreement. “Yeah. It’s because she’s been dating that douchebag, Steve Harrington.” 

Steve gapes, offended. Lucas and Dustin smirk at each other, containing their laughter. 

“Yeah, she’s turning into a real jerk,” Dustin replies as he mounts his bike. 

Nancy shifts, she’s not that bad, right? 

Mike retorts, irritated. “She’s always been a real jerk.” 

Dustin glances behind his shoulder. “Nuh-uh, she used to be cool. Like that time she dressed up as an elf for our Elder-tree campaign.” 

Steve looks over at Nancy, eyebrows raised ever so slightly in question. Nancy purses her lips. Why did they have to bring that up?

Mike calls out to Dustin as he rides away. “Four years ago!” Dustin just replies “Just saying.” before continuing to bike away.

Lucas rides off as well, uttering a quick “Later.” before disappearing off towards his house.  Will and Mike remain in the garage, alone. 

Will looks at Mike. “It was a seven,” he says, and Mike turns to look at him, eyebrows furrowing. 

“Huh?” 

Will repeats himself, giving more context. “The roll, it was a seven.” a pause. 

“The Demogorgon, it got me.” Mike stays quiet at that. Will starts to bike away, grunting. 

Mike smiled, albeit small. He was glad Will hadn’t kept it from him. 

Unlike someone… He glares over at Lucas, still sour at the implications of hiding the roll from him. Lucas huffs when he feels Mike’s eyes on him.

“See you tomorrow.” 

The garage lights flicker as Will rides away, and Mike looks up in confusion. He turns off the lights, and heads back inside. 

The scene switches to show Lucas, Dustin, and Will all riding on their bikes across from each other, Lucas waves a hand, turning down a different road. “Goodnight, ladies.” 

Dustin glances over at him, responding cheekily. “Kiss your mom ‘night for me.”  

He turns towards Will. “Race you back to my place? Winner gets a comic.” 

Will perks up. “Any comic?” At Dustin's agreement, he speeds up, and Dustin shouts out in protest. 

“Hey-! Hey! I didn't say go!” 

It’s obvious who’s winning the race, Will is already ahead of Dustin by a pretty large margin. Dustin shouts again, trying to match Will’s speed.

“Get back here! I’m gonna kill you!” 

But the words fall on deaf ears, Will already passing Dustin's mailbox. He yells out back to him. 

“I’ll take your X-Men 134!”

Dustin slows down in front of his house, looking disappointed. “Son of a bitch.” 

Will grins, looking over at Dustin, who’s arms are crossed tightly, frustrated at Will technically cheating. 

Now the screen only shows Will, alone on the streets, riding quietly. A strange noise- possibly from a bird- is heard. 

He passes a fence, with two signs stuck on it. 

HAWKINS NATIONAL LABORATORY U.S. DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

RESTRICTED AREA: NO TRESPASSING, U.S. GOVERNMENT PROPERTY

Joyce squints at the TV. She had seen those signs around before but…were they really that close to her house? She had never noticed those two. 

Meanwhile, Will tenses his shoulders, the quiet of the night unsettling him. What could be so important about showing him riding home? 

Will has slowed down on his bike for now, not in much of a rush to get home. As he continues biking, the light on the front of his handle flickers, and he looks down at it, distracted by the sudden glitch. 

When it turns back on, he looks back up- 

A dark humanoid figure is in the street in front of him. 

“Holy shit-” Dustin mutters, heart beating faster.

A few people jump at the sudden scare, and Jonathan frowns deeply, worried. He tries to convince himself that it could just be some random pedestrian walking home, but he knows better than that.

Will, startled, swerves off the road and into the surrounding woods, falling off his bike in his haste. He groans as he dazedly gets up, and the sound of a clock is heard. 

Joyce is back to chewing on her lip, eyes a bit wide. God, please don’t let anything bad happen to her son…

Mike's gaze is fixed on the screen, leaning forward in a mix between interest and fear. Who was that in the street? … What was that in the street? Would Will be alright?

Will looks up into the shadows, and he can see the outline of the same odd humanoid creature from before. He whimpers, standing up fully. He runs, leaving his bike behind. 

He runs the rest of the way home, panting. Once he sees his house, he speeds up, sounding terrified. 

Hopper scowls, analyzing the scene. He hoped that… thing didn’t follow the kid home. 

Is this what’s so important? Does he get taken? What about when the text mentioned something called the Upside Down? 

Will enters his house, out of breath. His dog barks, loud and obnoxious. He locks the door. And he sprints through the small house. 

“Mom?”

He looks in one of the rooms. “Jonathan? Mom?” 

Joyce and Jonathan glance at each other, similar expressions of worry and anxiety on their faces. 

Jonathan looks back up, grimacing. Did he take the late shift? 

The dog continues barking. It does nothing to help ease the tension of the scene. 

Will runs back out of the hall and into the living room, he ducks under the window blinds, peering outside. 

The figure is back, and it’s slowly coming closer to the house.

Will jerks back, eyes wide in terror. 

Joyce pulls Will close to her, anxiety rising as her heart practically beats out of her chest. 

“Oh, my baby…” 

Will glances from her and back to the TV, scared at what will happen next.

What if- what if he gets killed? Will the creature leave if he hides well enough? Can he hide well enough?

Mike has a deep frown on his face, and he clenches his hands together tightly. 

Will runs up to the house phone, shakily entering a number as he holds it up to his ear. His breaths come out fast and panicked. The line rings, again and again- finally, it connects. 

He speaks into the phone, voice strained from fatigue. “Hello? Hello? ” 

Static is heard on the other line. And all of a sudden an inhumane screech is heard along with it. 

Will flinches, and his dog won’t stop barking. He’s scared- terrified at whatever is going on. 

With the phone still on his ear, Will slowly peers over at his front door, breath shaky and his lip quivering. 

A tall shadow is seen through the stained glass, and odd- high pitched growling is heard from the other side. 

Dustin sinks down into his seat, muttering. “I don’t like this. I don’t like this. I don’t like this-” 

The chain lock slides off the door by itself. 

Will drops the phone, and he runs. 

Eleven startles quietly.

Steve blinks, bouncing his leg, and he points at the screen. “Uh- did anyone else see that?” 

Lucas looks over at him, eyes boring into him, though there’s not much heat behind it. He’s too focused on Will right now. “Yes, Steve. We saw it, alright.” 

Hopper watches in apprehension, putting his fist on his chin as he looks on, not taking his eyes off the screen for a second.

Will slams open the back door, hurriedly making his way toward the shed in his backyard. He closes the door behind him, but he doesn’t have enough time to lock it. 

He grabs the gun off the shed wall and grabs the ammo alongside it. He quickly inserts the ammo into the gun, hands trembling. 

He turns the safety off the gun, and he points towards the shed door, eyes focused, but filled with fright. 

Hopper raises his eyebrows. And Mike glances over at Will, who’s tucked into Joyce’s arm. He didn’t know that he knew how to use a gun. 

His breaths are shaky, and his entire body is shivering. He doesn’t take his eyes off the door for a second, trying to hold the gun as steady as he possibly can. 

A growling is heard from behind him, and ever so slowly, he turns around, looking up. The creature is not shown, and Will mouths “Please.” in horror. 

The light of the shed brightens, practically blinding. That same inhumane screeching is heard once more and- 

The light goes back to normal. The shed is empty, and Will is gone without a trace. 

Joyce covers her mouth in shock, voice cracking. “Oh god…” 

Dustin blinks in bewilderment. “Wait- what? Where’d he go?!” 

Mike’s eyes are wide, confusion, panic, and fear, all mixed together are seen on his face. How did Will just…disappear like that? What about the thing following him? How did it get behind him? 

A large text reads.

THE VANISHING OF WILL BYERS.

Will sinks down in his seat, goosebumps on his arms and neck. What took him? Can he escape? Will he be found? Questions upon questions make room in his head, and he clenches his jaw in apprehension. 

Hopper, however, has a grim frown on his face. He knows for a fact that those who go missing in Hawkins are usually with a family member. But based on the look on Will’s face- and the sounds that thing made. It certainly wasn’t a family member- and Will definitely didn’t go with it willingly.

The screen shows an old crayon kids drawing, showcasing three stick figures and a house. It’s pinned to the wall, and the sound of a news reporter speaking is heard. 

Hopper’s frown is replaced with recognition. He’d know that drawing anywhere. He tilts his head in an attempt to crack his neck. Why are they showing his house? Shouldn’t it focus on the kid? 

“And that’s it for New’s Center this morning. Thanks for joining us. We’ll hand off now to Liz at the news desk.”

The other reporter- Liz, presumably, speaks. “All right, thank you, Donna. Turning now to local news, we’re getting reports of surges and power outages all across the county. Last night, hundreds of homes in East Hawkins were affected, leaving many residents in the dark.” 

The screen moves over from the tv to the couch, showing a still-asleep Hopper. His shirt is off and his jeans are still on, it’s obvious he probably didn’t sleep all too well during the night. 

A dog is heard barking, and Hopper looks up at the noise. He groans as he looks down to check his watch. 

The Party -minus Will- all frown, they don’t want to watch this guy get ready for the day. But still, none of them tear their eyes away from the screen, hoping to see more information on what could have happened to Will. 

Joyce rubs her hand against Will’s back, who keeps averting his eyes away from the screen and to the floor, nervous.  Will they show what happened to him? 

Hopper is shown lighting a cigarette on his balcony, staring out at the view, and squinting his eyes against the bright, rising sun. He exhales deeply, and his body shakes slightly at the cold air. He grunts quietly. 

The scene switches to him in the shower, haphazardly spreading his soap bar around his chest and arms. 

Almost everyone looks away at the sudden switch of location. Mike screws his face up in disgust. And Lucas is seen covering his eyes and looking down. Showing that couldn’t be necessary, right?

Hopper is then seen drying his hair and brushing his teeth. Ironically, he’s seen smoking directly after as he applies cologne. Right after that, he picks up some sort of unknown pill. He swallows it along with a quick drink of beer. 

Joyce looked at the screen in concern. She doesn’t talk with Hopper all too much now that they’ve grown up, but the simple sight of him taking who knows what with alcohol- worries her. She made a note to talk to him later. 

After putting on his police uniform, grabbing his gun, and pinning his badge onto his shirt, he quickly grabs his keys and hat. He exits his house, the TV still playing. 

“In other news, you might wanna stay home tonight, or at least pack an umbrella. We turn to everybody’s favorite morning weather guy, Charles.”

Back at Joyce’s house, she’s heard complaining in another room while Jonathan works at the stove. 

“Where the hell are they-?” she sighs, before calling out. “Jonathan?” 

Jonathan glances over, absentmindedly calling back. “Check the couch!”

Joyce can be seen moving around pillows on the sofa, groaning quietly. “Ugh, I did.” With one final once-over of the couch, she finds what she’s looking for behind a different pillow. Her face is sheepish. 

“Oh…got them.” 

Joyce heads over to the kitchen area, grabbing her side bag off of one of the dining room chairs. She grabs Jonathan's shoulder lovingly as he finishes cooking. 

“Okay, sweetie, I will see you tonight.” 

“Yeah, see you later,” he mutters as he plates the food. Meanwhile, Joyce goes to do the same comforting shoulder grab to where Will usually sits, only to see no one. 

She glances back at Jonathan. “Where’s Will?” 

Joyce and Jonathan frown deeply, Joyce’s eyebrows downturned in heavy concern. Will swallows harshly, but he’s not ready to look away from the screen now that it shows his house, hoping for anything , any information at all on where he went. 

Jonathan looks back at her. “Oh, I didn’t get him up yet- he’s probably still sleeping…” 

Joyce sighs, her eyes widening slightly at the sentence. “Jonathan…” she starts. “You have to make sure he’s up!” she scolds, hurriedly making her way into the hall to Will’s bedroom. Jonathan can be heard responding quietly. 

“Mom, I’m making breakfast.” he defends. 

“I told you this a thousand times,” Joyce remarks. She claps her hands as she walks to Will’s door. 

“Will! Come on, honey. It’s time to get up-” she pauses when she enters his room and sees the bed empty. She glances around, pursing her lips. 

Joyce comes back out of the hall, staring at Jonathan. 

“He came home last night, right?” 

“He’s not in his room?” he responds, confused. 

Joyce’s concern grows even more. “Did he come home or not?” 

Jonathan stumbles over his words as he sets the plates of food on the table. “I…I don't know,” 

Joyce looks at him, a bit bewildered. “You don’t know?” Jonathan stammers again. 

“No, I- I got home late. I was working.” 

Joyce’s shoulders tense as she looks around, miffed. 

“You were working?” 

“Eric asked if I could cover, I said yeah. I…I just thought we could use the extra cash.” 

Jonathan glances away from the screen, cursing himself for doing that. He shouldn’t have…he could’ve helped Will, kept him safe from…whatever that thing was. He still wasn’t sure. 

Joyce huffs, disappointed. “Jonathan, we’ve talked about this-” 

He cuts her off. “I know, I know.” 

Joyce continues on. “You can’t take shifts when I’m working.” 

Jonathan starts up again, trying to find the reason as to where Will could be. 

“Mom, it’s not a big deal. Look, he was at the Wheeler’s all day. I’m sure he just stayed over.” 

Joyce sighs again, deeper this time as she heads over to the phone, and her words overlap Jonathan’s. “I can’t believe you.” 

As soon as she grabs the phone off the wall she continues her rant quietly. “I can’t believe you- sometimes.” 

She enters the number, and the scene switches over to the Wheeler’s house, showing the family all sitting at the dining table, and the phone ringing is heard in the background. Mike is then seen pouring syrup over his eggs, and Nancy winces, grossed out. 

“That’s disgusting .”

Mike looks at her, affronted. “You’re disgusting!” 

Nancy glares over at Mike, and he sticks out his tongue at her, challenging. She rolls her eyes and scoffs, leaning back in her seat. 

Karen picks up the phone, holding Holly in her arms. 

“Hello?” 

“Hi Karen, it’s Joyce.” Joyce is seen adjusting her bag on her shoulder, but the scene quickly switches back to show Mike shamelessly pouring syrup on top of Nancy’s eggs. Nancy glowers. “What the hell, Mike?” 

Nancy gapes. She resists the urge to start arguing with her brother, crossing her arms. 

“Oh, Joyce, hi.” Karen responds, and she quickly glances over her shoulder at the noise. “Quiet!” she shouts gently. Ted is heard scolding Nancy for her language as she looks over at him, disbelieving. Mike apologizes quietly. 

At the sound of it, Joyce jumps to ask. “Uh- was that Will I heard back there?” 

Karen furrows her brows. “Will? No, no, no, it’s just Mike.” 

Joyce is seen again, glancing over at Jonathan quickly, unsettled. “Will didn’t spend the night?” 

Jonathan looks down at the table, quickly realizing that this might be a bigger problem than before. 

Karen continues speaking. “No, he left here a little bit after eight.” she looks forward, concerned. “Why, he’s not home?” 

Joyce covers up the problem, making a quick excuse. “Um, you know what? I think he just left early for…for school.” she stumbles over her last few words. “Thank you so much. Bye.” 

“Okay, bye.” 

Joyce and Jonathan look at each other, not quite sure what to do now. 

Now, back to the Party, Mike, Lucas, and Dustin are all seen riding their bikes past Hawkins High School, and towards their middle school. 

The group of three is seen parking their bikes, and Mike looks around, gripping his backpack. 

“That’s weird. I don’t see him.” He walks forward, trying to search for Will. 

Lucas and Dustin follow behind, and Lucas opens his mouth to respond. “I’m telling you, his mom’s right. He probably just went to class early again.” 

Eleven looks at the screen, confusion in her eyes at the sight of so many people in one place. They all looked to be her age, too. 

Dustin comes up behind both of them. “Yeah, he’s always paranoid Gursky’s gonna give him another pop quiz.”

Will’s cheeks turn pink at that. It’s not his fault Gursky just randomly springs quizzes on the class! Plus, there’s nothing wrong with being prepared, even if it is just in case. 

All of a sudden, two other kids come out of nowhere, walking over to the party. “Step right up, ladies and gentlemen.” The Party turns around, looking miserable. Still, the shorter boy of the two continues on. 

“Step right up and get your tickets to the freak show.” 

Nancy’s eyes widen ever so slightly. She knew kids could be mean, but…the face Mike was making…how often did these two kids say that to him and his friends?

The Party, however, all glared at the sight of Troy and James on screen. 

Jerks…

The smirks on Troy and James' faces were anything but nice. Troy spoke again, his words sharp. 

“Who do you think would make more money in a freak show?” He steps up to Lucas, hitting his shoulder. 

“Midnight,” he then walks up to Mike, doing the same thing. “Frogface,” and then Dustin. “Or Toothless?” 

James looks at the three, making a sound, acting like he’s genuinely thinking. His eyes stop on Dustin, and he rudely mimics the way he speaks. 

“I’d go with Toothless,” he adds a lisp to his words. 

Dustin looks at James, annoyed. “I told you a million times, my teeth are coming in. It’s called cleidocranial dysplasia.” 

James smiles, resembling more of a mean sneer. He mimics Dustin again, leaning forward. “I told you a million times.” He and Troy chuckle. Troy speaks this time. 

“Do the arm thing.” 

Dustin huffs, frustrated. Every time , they ask every time . He rolls his eyes. And the rest of the Party continues to glare at the two bullies on the screen. 

Dustin begins to shake his head, but James stops him short. “Do it, freak!” 

Dustin sighs finally, shrugging off his jacket. He places it on the ground along with his backpack and proceeds to bend his arms outwards to the point they make a loud cracking noise. 

Troy and James make sounds of disgust, and Troy speaks one final time. “God, it gets me every time.” 

Finally, the two bullies walk away, though not before pushing the three in order to get past them.

Nancy glowers at the boys walking off-screen. Maybe her and Mike didn’t talk as much anymore- and yes, more often than not they bickered over petty things, but Mike was still her brother. And Dustin, Lucas, and Will? They were still his friends. 

Mike looks down, dejected, while Dustin leans down to grab his jacket and backpack. Lucas mutters a quick “Assholes,” under his breath when the two boys are out of sight. Mike looks back up at Dustin, trying to ease the tense moment. 

“I think it’s kinda cool,” Dustin glances up at him. “It’s like you have superpowers or something. Like…Mr. Fantastic.” Mike grins at him. Dustin snorts in amusement. The three begin walking into the school building. 

“Yeah, except I can’t fight evil with it.” 

The scene switches over to Hawkins High School.

Steve blinks, and he sits up a bit straighter. 

Nancy can be seen walking, holding a binder, probably filled with some sort of school assignment. 

The bell rings, and Nancy heads inside. A slightly taller teenage girl walks up to her, holding a binder of her own. 

Nancy smiles slightly at the appearance of Barb. But…her smile dims. What about what happened to Will?

“So, did he call?” Barb asks. 

Nancy looks over at her, eyes a bit wide at the volume of her voice. “Keep your voice down,” she responds, though there’s no heat behind it. Barb smiles, leaning closer as they continue to walk through the hall.

“Did he?” 

Nancy looks back at Barb, smiling. Still, she tries to deny it, but it’s half-hearted. 

“I told you, it’s not like that.” a beat. Before-

“Okay, I mean, yes, he likes me, but not like that.” She and Barb make their way over to her locker. 

“We just…made out a couple times.” 

Mike looks over to where Nancy and Steve are sitting, knowing she’s talking about him. His nose wrinkles in distaste. Gross . 

Hopper puts a hand on his forehead, letting out a deep sigh. Was the screen ever gonna show what’s going on with the kid or not? 

Barb mimics Nancy, making her voice sound softer. “We just…made out a couple times.” she smiles again. 

“Nance, seriously, you’re gonna be so cool now, it’s ridiculous.” 

Nancy looks back at her, “No, I’m not.” she tries to say, but she’s smiling too. 

Barb shrugs her shoulders. “You better still hang out with me, that’s all I’m saying.” Nancy looks over at her, questioning. 

Barb continues. “If you become friends with Tommy H. or Carol-” Nancy cuts her off as she opens up her locker.  

“Oh, that’s gross!”

Steve frowns, what’s wrong with Tommy and Carol? He knows they can be jerks sometimes but, they’re not too bad…right?

Nancy speaks up again. “Okay, I’m telling you, it was a one-time…” she trails off when Barb raises her eyebrows, giving her a look. Nancy rolls her eyes. 

“Two-time thing.” she laughs. She stops when she sees a note folded in her locker. Carefully, she opens the note. It reads: 

MEET ME. BATHROOM. - STEVE

“Oh, gross!” Dustin whines, and the rest of the party nod rapidly in agreement. Joyce huffs in amusement, ruffling Will’s hair. 

Barb tilts her head. “You were saying?”

Nancy looks over at her, an open mouthed smile on her face, and then- 

Nancy and Steve are shown making out against one of the bathroom walls. 

Mike’s eyes widen in alarm, hurriedly looking away, and everyone else follows suit. Why?! Why did they show that?!  

Eleven scrunches up her eyes, puzzled. But she looks away too, not sure why but feeling like she should if everyone else is doing it. 

Steve and Nancy are red, glancing to and from the screen awkwardly.

Nancy mumbles once the kiss breaks. “Steve,” he mutters in question. “I have to go,” 

“In a minute,” he responds, continuing to litter her with kisses on her face. But then, the bell rings, and Nancy feels a sense of urgency, not wanting to be late.

“Steve. I really, like…” he kisses her on the lips again. “Seriously, I have to go,” she breaks the kiss, leaning down to get her bag. 

Steve speaks up. “Wait, wait, wait, let’s,” he grabs his own small bag. “Come on, let’s do something tonight, yeah?” he suggests.

Nancy pauses. “Uh…No, I can’t. I have to study for Kaminsky’s test.” 

Steve tries again. “Oh, come on. What’s your GPA again? Three-point-nine-nine-nine…” he trails off. 

“Kaminsky’s tests are impossible,” she responds as she pushes Steve slightly. 

“Well then just let me help.” Steve tries. 

“You failed Chem,” Nancy remarks, smiling. 

“C-minus.” 

Nancy tilts her head slightly, her smile wide. “Well, in that case…” 

“So, I’ll be over, around, say, eight?

Nancy turns it down. “Are you crazy? My mom would not-” 

Steve interrupts. “I’ll climb through your window. She won’t even know I’m there,” he shrugs. “I’m stealthy, like a ninja.” he nods to exaggerate his point. 

Nancy looks at him. “You are crazy,” she tries to walk past him, but Steve stops her one last time. 

“Wait, wait, wait. Just…okay, forget about that. We can just…” he holds her a bit closer. “We can just, like, chill in my car. We can find a nice, quiet place to park, and…” 

Nancy tries to glare, trying to stress her point. “Steve…I have to study . I’m not kidding.” 

Steve shakes his head slightly. “Well, why do you think I want it to be nice and quiet?” Nancy’s glare falls, and she grins, pushing his shoulder. 

“You’re an idiot, Steve Harrington.” she starts to walk to the exit, before stopping and turning back to look at Steve. 

“Meet me at Dearborn and Maple at eight,” she pauses, before emphasizing. “To study .” 

Nancy looks over at Steve, who smiles at her. She shakes her head and looks back at the screen, trying (and failing) to conceal a smile. 

Mike groans quietly, looking up at the ceiling. He just wants to know about how to help Will, not see his sister be all lovey-dovey with Steve Harrington , is that so much to ask for?

Will glances over at Mike, seeing his miserable expression after having to see Nancy and Steve. He chuckles, and Mike looks over at him, giving him a look that says “What are you laughing for?” but he’s grinning, too. 

Back with Hopper, he arrives at the police station, and he walks in slowly, cigarette in his mouth. The woman at the front desk -Flo- sarcastically talks to him. “Good of you to show.”  

Hopper slurs his words slightly. “Oh, hey, morning, Flo.” he walks into where everyone else is sitting. “Morning, everybody.” 

“Hey, Chief.” one officer says. 

“Damn! You look like hell, Chief.” another one remarks. 

Hopper responds with an, “Oh, yeah? And when the officer answers in agreement, Hopper speaks up again. 

“Well, I looked better than your wife when I left her this morning.” the officers cackle loudly. 

Joyce looks over at Hopper, disappointment on her face at the joke. Hopper pretends not to see it. 

Flo comes up to where Hopper is, in front of the coffee counter. She takes the cigarette out of his mouth. 

“While you were drinking or sleeping, or whatever it is you deemed so necessary on Monday morning, Phil Larson called. Said some kids are stealing the gnomes out of his garden again.” 

Hopper grabs a donut out of one of the boxes. He looks back at Flo. “Oh, those garden gnomes again. Well, I’ll tell you what, I’m gonna get right on that.” he starts walking away, putting the donut in his mouth. 

Flo continues speaking anyway. “On a more pressing matter, Joyce Byers can’t find her son this morning.” Hopper makes a humming noise in acknowledgement. 

“Mmm. Okay,” his words are muffled due to the donut. “I’m gonna get on that.” he takes the donut out of his mouth. “Just give me a minute,”

Joyce gapes at the screen and then back to Hopper. Disbelief coating her features. She sinks down in her seat slightly, shoulders tense. She chooses not to say anything.

The Party, though, speaks up. Lucas does it first. 

“Dude, really? She just said she’s unable to find him! Shouldn’t you be more worried?” 

Dustin pipes in this time. “Yeah, not cool!” 

Mike grumbles something under his breath, though it’s quiet, it’s obviously a curse word directed towards the Chief. 

Hopper pinches the bridge of his nose, and then runs his hand through his hair. He sighs, but he keeps quiet, not sure how to respond. 

Flo stresses. “Joyce is very upset.” She tries to add more, but Hopper speaks over her. 

“Well, Flo, Flo, we’ve discussed this. Mornings are for coffee and contemplation.” 

Flo tries to warn him. “Chief, she’s already in your-” 

“Coffee, and contemplation, Flo!” 

Jonathan frowns, glancing at Will and then at Hopper. Is he suited enough to actually help find Will? He gets he’s the Chief but…

Hopper walks into his small office and frowns when he sees Joyce sitting across from his desk. Joyce turns when she hears his footsteps, looking distressed. 

The camera cuts to Hopper typing out a large word: MISSING onto a paper. And Joyce is now standing up. 

“I have been waiting here over an hour, Hopper,” she says, her voice slightly shaky with worry. 

Hopper sighs deeply, looking up at her. He tries to calm her down a bit. “And I apologize again,” he says softly, but Joyce is on a roll now. 

“I’m going out of my mind!” she throws her hands up. 

Hopper tries again. “Look, boy his age, he’s probably just playing hookie, okay?” Joyce speaks over him. 

Will furrows his brows at that suggestion. No way he’d do that! 

“No, not my Will. He’s not like that- he wouldn’t do that.” 

Hopper sighs again, glancing away for a second. “Well, you never know. I mean, my mom thought I was on the debate team, when really I was just screwing Chrissy Carpenter in the back of my dad’s Oldsmobile, so…” 

Joyce stumbles over her words. “You- look. He’s not like you, Hopper. He’s not like me. He’s not like…most,” 

Will tenses. What does she mean-

“He has a couple of friends, but, you know, the kids, they’re mean. They- they make fun of him. They call him names, they laugh at him, his clothes-” 

Hopper pauses. “His clothes? What’s wrong with his clothes?” 

Joyce’s stress is getting to her, and it’s obvious with the way she raises her voice ever so slightly. “I don’t know, does that matter?” 

Hopper isn’t sure how to respond to that. He shakes his head, though not in disagreement. “...Maybe,” 

Joyce huffs. “Look, he’s…he’s a sensitive kid.” her voice cracks slightly. “Lonnie…” she sighs. “Lonnie used to say he was queer,” her voice softens, and her volume lowers. “Called him a fag,” She practically whispered the word.  

Will’s eyes widen, knowing his mom doesn’t mean it like that , but the reminder of what his dad used to call him makes him tense all the same. He grimaces. 

Joyce wraps an arm around his shoulder, kissing his head. She mutters. “I’m sorry, baby,” and rubs his shoulder comfortingly. 

Hopper straightens up slightly. He thinks, before asking. “Is he?” 

Joyce widens her eyes, leaning forward. “He’s missing, is what he is.” she inhales from her cigarette, hands shaking. 

Hopper sighs. “When was the last time you heard from Lonnie?” Joyce scoffs quietly, sitting back down in her seat. 

“Uh, last I heard, he was in Indianapolis. That was about a year ago. But he has nothing to do with this,” She rushes to say the last words.

Hopper leans forward, elbows on his desk. “Why don’t you give me his number?” He grabs a pen. 

Joyce tries to emphasize her point. “You know, Hopper, he has nothing to do with this. Trust me. ” 

The Chief speaks up again, moving his hands as he speaks. “Joyce, 99 out of 100 times, kid goes missing, the kid is with a parent or relative.” 

Joyce stammers. “Well, wh- what about the other time?” 

“What?” 

“You said, “99 out of 100.” What about the other time, the one?” 

Hopper says her name quietly, but Joyce keeps going. 

“Joyce.” 

“The one!” 

Hopper scrunches his eyes up. 

“Joyce, this is Hawkins, okay? You wanna know the worst thing that’s ever happened here, in the four years I’ve been working here? Do you wanna know the worst thing? It was when an owl attacked Eleanor Gillespie’s head because it thought that her hair was a nest.” 

Joyce sighs. “Okay, fine. I will call Lonnie. He will talk to me before he talks to-” 

Hopper mutters. “What, a pig?” 

“A cop.” Joyce corrects, frustrated. She leans forward one more time, voice breaking. “Just find my son, Hop. Find him!” 

Joyce holds Will a bit closer, trying to calm her nerves. 

Now, we switch over to what appears to be Hawkins Lab. And several men exit black cars, walking up to a middle-aged, white-haired man. One of them greets the unknown male. 

“Dr. Brenner.” The two shake hands. 

“Papa…” Eleven whispers the word quietly. 

Inside the lab, the men in suits, along with Dr. Brenner are seen walking alongside one of the many scientists. The scientist speaks as he walks through the crowded hall. 

“This way, gentlemen. The entire east wing will be evacuated within the hour. We’ve sealed off this area following quarantine protocol.” 

Two men guard a sealed-off area and unzip the cloth that blocks it. Dr. Brenner walks through, as do the other men. 

Now, they’re all seen dressing up in white hazmat-like suits, and they even grab what appear to be guns with flashlights on top of them. They enter an elevator, and they go down slowly. Dr. Brenner stares forward. 

All of a sudden, the elevator thuds, signaling their arrival. It opens to show a blocked off part of the lab. It’s dark, with the lights dim and flickering. And dust- or maybe something else- floats through the air. 

“Woah…” Dustin says, looking intently at what’s playing on the screen. 

Hopper, though, has a deep frown on his face. 

Was this the same hall we saw at the very beginning?

The men walk slowly down the hall, flashlights and guns in hand. The corridor ahead is eerie, darker than before, and a muted screeching is heard as the light flickers on and off. 

Definitely the same hall. Hopper thinks. And that screeching- muted- muted but still slightly audible. It sounded just like whatever took that man at the beginning. And whatever took Will .

They turn a corner, going deeper. And odd, dark, and grotesque are seen spread across one of the walls, leading to an open door. One of the men looks closer at the dark spots and hears a small squelching noise coming from them. They almost appear to be breathing . They almost appear to be alive.

Lucas looks at them, sucking in a sharp breath. What even are those things? Why is there so much dust in the air? Why were they moving ?

Finally, the men all walk through the door, entering a larger room. A low growl is heard somewhere, and Dr. Brenner walks toward where the noise emanates from. 

What everyone sees next makes them sick to their stomachs. And Dustin gapes at what’s shown on the screen. 

A large entryway, almost like a portal, is shown. Slimy vines surround it, and the portal is covered in what look like cobwebs. This, too, breathes. This too, is alive. 

One of the men speaks. 

“This where it came from?”  

Dr. Brenner responds. “Yes.” 

A beat. “And the girl?” 

The white-haired man continues looking forward, in awe, or maybe in fear. “She can’t have gone far.”   

Now, we pan over to what appears to be the nearby woods. And a young, bald-headed girl in a hospital gown walks out of them, her face covered in grime. She stares at a nearby building, watching a man take out the trash.

Eleven’s mouth opens slightly, startled. She’s not in the lab anymore- that much is certain. 

The Party all peer over to where Eleven sits, looking at her in curiosity. She blinks, and she looks at them right back, confused. 

Joyce looks over as well, mouth open in question, but Hopper beats her to it. 

“That you, kid?” he asks, pointing at her on-screen counterpart. Her eyes turn to him, and she purses her lips, hesitating. 

“...Yes.” she finally answers, her voice still soft, bordering on a mumble. Hopper nods to himself, leaning back into his seat. The Party all look at each other, before going back to watching the screen. 

The girl slowly opens the back door to the building- a diner, it seems- she continues walking through the back of the building, looking through an open entryway that leads to the front of it. The man who took out the trash earlier is seen walking, talking as he does so.

“All right, and one more…” 

She looks at him, brows furrowed. She keeps her footsteps silent as she continues walking. Another man speaks, a customer. 

“Hey, Ben, whaddya think about that, uh…” he trails off, the rest of his sentence inaudible. 

The other man- Benny- throws his hands up slightly, not sure. “Hey, I don’t know. I don’t know,” 

The young girl walks into another room, pushing open the thin doors. She looks around as she goes, taking in all the new sights. She’s not sure what to make of it. Finally, she sees something on the counter. Food- french fries, to be exact. 

She carefully takes one, biting it. When she realizes it’s edible- and that it’s good , she starts eating more of it. Looking up at where the customer and Benny are, she tries to be as quiet as possible, taking big bites. She acts as if it’s been a while since her last meal. 

Benny turns around, and he can see through the space in the wall that there’s someone there, stealing his food. He shouts out. “Hey!” 

The girl jolts up, eyes widening in alarm. She grabs the plate of fries and runs back where she came from. 

Benny sprints after her, shouting another. “Hey, come here!” he runs into the back of the diner, following her closely. 

The girl tries to get out through the back door, but Benny catches her by the shoulders, making her drop the plate. He turns her around, upset. He speaks again. 

“You think you can steal from me, boy?!”  

At the sight of her, clothes and face covered in dirt, her rapid breathing, and head shaved, Benny pauses. 

“What in the hell-?” 

Will winces in sympathy for Eleven. Getting caught like that can’t be fun. 

Back at Hawkins Middle School, a bell rings, and the classroom is shown full of students, packing up and about to leave. The teacher tries to speak. 

“Remember, finish chapter 12 and answer 12.3 on the difference between an experiment and other forms of science investigation.” More students pour out of the classroom, he raises his voice slightly. “This will be on the test, which will cover chapters 10 through 12,” his voice starts to go quieter as most students have left. 

The Party all glanced up at Mr. Clarke’s voice. Would they finally see themselves again?

“It will be multiple choice with an essay section…”

He sighs, turning back to the front of his classroom. Mike, Lucas, and Dustin are there to ask him something.

“So, did it come? Mike asks, poorly concealing excitement. 

Mr. Clarke dims. “Sorry, boys. I hate to be the bearer of bad news but…” The three all look dejected. Mr. Clarke brightens suddenly. “It came.” 

Will looks at Mike, grinning. The Heathkit! It had to be the Heathkit. Mike grins back at him, giggling quietly. 

The three boys are shown rushing into another room, Mr. Clarke trailing behind them. Mike rushes to sit at the seat in front of a desk, he breathes out in excitement. “Yes!”

Mr. Clarke now stands behind the three. “The Heathkit ham shack.” 

Mike mutters a small “Woah…” and Mr. Clarke continues on. 

“Ain’t she a beaut?” 

Dustin leans forward, tinkering with one of the many controls on the Heathkit. “I bet you can talk to New York on this thing.” 

“Think bigger.” their teacher says, exaggerating with his hands. Lucas glances at him. 

“California?” 

Mr. Clarke smiles, albeit small. “Bigger.” 

Mike looks over at him, too, the headphones connected to the Heathkit now on his head. “ Australia ?” At Mr. Clarke’s nod, the three all smile, exclaiming in excitement. 

The Party all look at each other, animated. Dustin gapes as he laughs, and Lucas bounces his leg, he can’t wait! 

“Oh, man! When Will sees this, he’s totally gonna blow his shit!” Lucas exclaims, grinning. 

Everyone dims at the reminder of earlier events. Right, they still don’t know what happened to Will, this is no time to be thinking of other things. 

Mr. Clarke levels Lucas with a stern glare after hearing him curse. He crosses his arms in an attempt to be strict. “Lucas!” 

Lucas glances at him, still smiling. “Sorry.” 

Mr. Clarke smiles with him after he apologizes, glad to see the three boys all having fun. 

Mike speaks into the mic on the desk in a poor Australian accent. “Hello, this is Mike Wheela’, president of Hawkins Middle AV Club.” Now, Dustin grabs the headphones off of Mike’s head, putting them on his own. He leans into the mic, speaking with an Australian accent of his own.

Lucas giggles. “What are you doing?” 

“Hello, this is Dustin, and this is the secretary and treasurer of Hawkins Middle AV Club. Do you eat kangaroos for breakfast?” 

Mike laughs, and Lucas grins, grabbing the headphones himself, ready for his turn. 

They’re all interrupted by a knock on the open door. The Principal coming inside, Hopper behind him. The boys pause what they’re doing.

“Sorry to interrupt, but, uh, may I borrow Michael, Lucas, and Dustin?” He points to each one of them as he says their name. The boys look at him, smiles gone. 

Will untenses slightly, posture straightening. If Hopper is there, that means he’ll definitely be questioning the rest of The Party about him. 

The three middle schoolers now all sit in another room, voices overlapping as they try to answer Hopper’s questions. Hopper, fed up, holds out a hand. 

“Okay, okay, okay. One at a time, all right?” He makes eye contact with Mike. “You.” the boy nods. Hopper asks for more clarity. “You said he takes what ?” 

“Mirkwood.” 

“ Mirkwood ?”

Mike winces at his own words. That answer definitely won’t help them find Will.

Mike nods again. “Yeah,”

Hopper looks over at the officer he came with. “You ever heard of Mirkwood?” The officer looks up from where he was writing something down. 

“I have not. That sounds made up to me.” 

Lucas cuts in. “No, it’s from Lord of the Rings.” 

“Well, The Hobbit.” Dustin corrects. Lucas looks over at him, face one of annoyance. 

Eleven tilts her head. She’s never heard those string of words together before.

“It doesn’t matter .” 

“He asked!” Dustin remarks. And Lucas mocks him. 

“ He asked! ” 

Mike tries to get them to be quiet, though his approach isn’t the best. “ Shut up, guys!”

Mike huffs. Them all bickering won’t help with what’s going on. He glances down a few seats, watching Hopper rub his forehead in frustration.

Hopper leans forward in his seat. “Hey, hey, hey. What’d I just say? One, at a damn, time. You.” he looks at Mike again, and the young boy is quick to respond. 

“Mirkwood, it’s a real road. It’s just the name that’s made up. It’s where Cornwallis and Kerley meet.” 

Hopper sighs, leaning back. “Yeah, all right, I think I know that-”

Mike cuts him off. “We can show you, if you want.” He tries to suggest. 

“I said that I know it!” 

Mike doesn’t let that deter him. “We can help look.” 

Will glances at him, weakly trying to smile. “Thanks,” 

Mike gives him a small grin in return. 

“No.” Hopper breathes out, shutting the idea down.

Lucas gapes, looking over to where Hopper sits. “What?! That’s so unfair-” 

Dustin speaks too. “Yeah, we’re his friends-!” 

Mike glares at Hopper. “That’s such bullshit!” he practically spits.

Hopper levels the three with a stern glare. He huffs, glancing from the screen and back to them. “Look, whatever took him, whatever that thing was, it is dangerous . You kids shouldn’t put yourselves in danger like that-” 

Mike glares right back. “But we’re his best friends , if anyone knows where to look for Will, it’s us!” 

Lucas and Dustin nod in agreement, both trying to voice it too, and all three clamor over each other. Hopper scoffs in annoyance, looking away from them in disbelief. “Oh my god,” he mutters. He turns back to them. 

“Hey- hey! Okay, listen, this hasn’t happened yet, let’s just keep watching and we’ll see what happens. Alright?” 

The boys go quiet. Hopper repeats himself. 

“ Alright ?” 

The three mutter small, half-hearted “yeah”’s and all look back to the screen. Will awkwardly blinks, his mouth set in a straight line as he looks at the rest of The Party and at Hopper. He slowly looks back at the TV. He was more than happy that his friends wanted to help look for him, but they didn’t have to make such a big scene…

The boys all speak in protest, all speaking over each other. Hopper says no once more, setting his foot down. 

“No. After school, you are all to go home. Immediately . That means no biking around looking for your friend, no investigating, no nonsense. This isn’t some Lord of the Rings book.” 

Dustin corrects Hopper this time. “The Hobbit.” 

Lucas lightly smacks Dustin’s knee. “Shut up !” 

Dustin responds with a smack of his own. And the two immediately start fighting. Mike looks miserable, shouting “Stop it!” The boys all bicker, and Hopper stares at them, looking like he’d be anywhere else. 

He sighs. “Do I make myself clear?” Dustin and Lucas stop fighting, and it’s quiet once again, and Mike sits in the middle of the two, frowning deeply. 

When Hopper gets no answer, he stands up, towering over The Party. 

“Do I make myself…clear?” 

Mike nods, and he, along with Dustin and Lucas, all agree quietly. 

Mike looks down at his lap. So much for wanting to be able to help look. He glances at Will, and a wave of determination passes through him.. He won’t get in trouble if no one catches him, right? He grins to himself. 

The screen shows the woods again, although the surroundings are a bit different. Joyce is seen walking toward a stick fort, the sign CASTLE BYERS is pinned on it. 

Joyce pressed down on a button on one of the larger sticks, an imaginary doorbell. “Ring-a-ding-ding,” she smiles. “Anybody home?” 

Joyce tilts her head. Her hair is shorter on-screen, but that can’t be right, the last time her hair was that short was last year. She chews on her lower lip, thinking. 

Will’s voice is heard inside the fort. “Password?” 

This time, Will tilts his head. Is this a memory? Why is it being shown now?

Joyce stammers. “Uh, Rada…Radaga- Radagast? She questions, not quite sure if that’s correct. 

Will speaks again. “Yeah. You may enter.” 

Joyce pulls back the faux blanket door, and Will is seen sitting calmly, reading a comic. He glances up at his mom. “Thank you, sir.” Joyce comments, going to sit across from him. 

Will puts the comic down, his attention now on his mother. Joyce smiles. “So, guess what? I got off early and…” she grabs two movie tickets from one of her pockets. 

Will’s eyes light up in recognition. Of course, it was the day his mom gave him the greenlight to see Poltergeist. 

“Ta-da! Poltergeist.”

Will shakes his head slightly in disbelief. “I…I thought I wasn’t allowed to see it.” he grins. 

Joyce looks down at the tickets. “I changed my mind.” She looks back at Will. “As long as you don’t have nightmares for a week.”

Will shakes his head again, this time in protest. “No, I won’t. I don’t get scared like that anymore.”

“Oh, yeah?” Joyce questions, “Not even of…clowns?” At Will's disagreement Joyce asks a different question. “What about…my witch?” her voice takes on a crackly tone at the end, and she flexes her finger up and down. 

“No. Mom,” Will complains, but Joyce continues on. “I’m not five anymore.” he objects. 

Joyce grins. “Oh, but Will Byers, I’m going to cook you up in my-” She tickles Will, and he laughs, still trying to deny it. 

“Stop. That’s so stupid. Mom!” 

Back in the present, Castle Byers is empty. And it looks lifeless without Will there. 

Jonathan’s previous amusement at the happy memory leaves him. He sighs quietly, messing with his hair. He peers over to where Will is sitting next to Joyce, watching the screen with a deep, forlorn look on his face. He’s sure if he were to look in a mirror, his face would look the same. 

Joyce huffs as she looks at the empty fort, and she exits, frustrated. Jonathan is seen yelling Will’s name. The two start yelling his name louder, walking all around the area, hoping for any sign of him. 

The blanket covering Castle Byers blows in a strong gust of wind. It goes unnoticed. 

Back at Benny’s, he cooks and hands the girl a hamburger. She digs into it quickly, obviously enjoying it. She’s no longer wearing the tattered hospital gown, and is instead dressed in a large, yellow, oversized shirt. Benny looks at her, puzzled. 

“Geez. Your parents forget to feed you?” he questions. The girl continues eating, not even looking up at him. He asks a different question this time. “Is that why you ran away?” 

The girl is still silently chewing on the burger, and Benny isn’t quite sure what to do. He glances away. “They, uh…they hurt you?” He tries his best to figure out where she’s come from. “You went to the hospital, you got scared, you ran off, you wound up here, is that it?”

Finally, the girl looks up at him, but she doesn’t say anything. Benny makes a decision, grabbing the plate and the burger she was holding. He holds up the burger. “I’ll give this back, all right? And you can have as much as you want. All right? Maybe even some ice cream. But you got answer a few of my questions first, all right?” 

The girl looks at him, a bit hesitant, but not entirely disagreeing. Benny takes that as a deal. He puts the burger down on the plate. “All right, let’s start with the easy stuff. All right?” he holds out his hand. “My name’s Benny. Benny Hammond.” 

At her questioning look at his hand, he grabs her own, showing her how to give a  handshake. “See? Like this, here.” When her eyes widen slightly, he rushes to reassure her. “I got you. Don’t worry. It’s okay.” 

With her hand now in his, he brings their hands up and down, shaking them. “Nice to meet you, yeah. And you are?” The girl doesn’t answer yet again. Benny sighs. 

Hopper looks at the screen, confused. Is she more weary around adults? She gave Joyce her name, even if it took a couple of minutes. 

Benny looks at one of her wrists. A tattoo printed on there. It reads: 011. The girl moves her wrist out of view. Benny sighs, his fist covering his mouth. He looks at her. 

Mike swerves his head to where she sits. How does she have a tattoo? Isn’t she too young? When Eleven tentatively looks back at him, he gapes at her, before looking back at the TV. Eleven sits there, befuddled.

“Eleven? What’s that mean?” The girl continues looking at him, eyes wide in reluctance. Benny asks again. “What’s it mean ?” 

Finally, she opens her mouth and talks. “No,” 

Benny smiles slightly. “Well, I’ll be damned. She speaks.” he tries to get more context. “No? No, what?” When he’s met with silence, he moves the plate of food towards him. He clicks his tongue. “All right. I guess no more food, then.” 

At that sentence, the girl responds once again, quickly. “Eleven,” Benny stops. 

“Yeah. What’s it mean?” 

The girl points at herself. She says it again. “Eleven.” Benny nods. 

Joyce looks over at Eleven. The earlier panic of where she was had kept her from questioning the name too much. But now, her eyes are full of curiosity. What kind of parent names their daughter after a number? And…Joyce chews on her lower lip. Why does she have a tattoo?

“All right, then.” He sets the plate back down in front of her. “Here you go,” he chuckles. “Take it easy, take it easy.” 

Now, in the back room of Benny’s diner, he appears to be speaking with someone on the phone. Child services. 

“Yeah, look, all I know is that she’s scared to death. Yeah, I think maybe she’s been abused or…kidnapped, or something.” Benny looks at Eleven from afar, concerned. 

The person he’s speaking with says something inaudible. Benny rubs his forehead. “Yeah, it’d be great if someone could come by. Yeah, we’re at 4819 Randolph Lane. Yeah, Randolph.” 

Eleven finishes eating a couple of fries, and the loud noise of the fan is heard. She looks up, annoyed at the sound. She tilts her head down in the direction of the fan. She stares intently at it. 

The fan stops moving. Eleven goes back to eating her fries.

Everyone startles at that, and Steve gapes, hand in the air, pointing at the screen. 

“What- what the,” he looks over at Eleven, who looks surprised at the sudden attention on her. “What was that?” Eleven continues staring in silence. 

The Party gapes. Dustin’s eyes sparkle in excitement, as do Mike’s. Lucas’s face is one of shock, and Will mirrors it. How did she…

Hopper and a couple other officers drive down where Will was last seen. They call his name loudly. Hopper walks down the road, looking along the woods. He pulls out the same unknown pills from one of his pockets. He pops one in his mouth. 

He stops when he sees something, right at the edge of the woods. “Hey! I got something!” 

They all sprint over to where Hopper stands, and all of them stare down at Will’s abandoned bike. 

“That his bike?” One officer- Callahan- asks. 

“Yeah, he must have crashed,” Hopper looks around carefully. 

“You think he got hurt in the fall?” 

“Not so hurt he couldn’t walk away,” Hopper looks back down at the bike. “Bike like this is like a Cadillac to these kids. He would’ve walked it home.”  He picks up the bike, looking around one last time. 

Will lets out a breath he didn’t know he was holding. With any luck, the Chief will keep searching and he’ll be found. He swallows. He tries to repeat the affirmation in his head.

He will be found.

Back at Hawkins Lab, multiple people are sitting in front of a table, headphones on every person. They’re taking notes, too, listening in on other people’s phone calls throughout Hawkins. Multiple people’s voices are heard.

Joyce gasps when she hears her own voice, and Hopper stiffens. Is every phone in Hawkins bugged? 

“They’re tracking the calls that people make to each other…” Nancy mutters, eyes blown.

Joyce’s voice is heard on one of the lines. 

“Is Lonnie there?” another woman’s voice answers her. 

“Lonnie isn’t here right now.”

Joyce’s voice can be heard breaking through the phone. “Can you please-”

Still on call, the screen shows the Byer’s house, Joyce holding her phone to her ear. 

“I told you, Lonnie’s not here.” The unknown woman’s voice speaks again. Joyce, frustrated, questions her.

“Who is this?” 

“His girlfriend. Cynthia.” 

Will and Jonathan both wrinkle their noses at the answer. Her voice sounds way younger than Lonnie’s. 

Jonathan scoffs. Of course . 

Cynthia asks the same questions towards Joyce. “Who the hell is this?” Her tone is anything but friendly. 

Joyce tries to keep her voice steady, irritation at Lonnie not answering apparent. “Cynthia, this is Joyce. “ Jonathan is seen in the living room, looking over at his mother in concern. 

Will looks at his mother’s on-screen counterpart. He winces when he sees her frazzled look. Guilt seeps through him when he realizes how stressed she is. 

“Who?” Is Cynthia’s response. 

“Lonnie’s ex-wife. I really need to speak to him-” 

Jonathan carefully writes ‘HAVE YOU SEEN ME’ down on a large piece of paper. He continues to overhear Joyce’s phone call. 

“Lonnie’s not here.” Cynthia dryly remarks. Joyce’s voice starts breaking again. 

“Can you please put- no!” 

“Why don’t you call back later?” 

Joyce finally voices her anger. “No-no, not later, now! Can-”

The line disconnects. Cynthia has hung up. 

Joyce slams the phone back on the wall. Shouting. “Bitch!” She glares at the phone, as if Lonnie or Cynthia will call back. 

Jonathan is quick to placate her, stopping what he’s doing for a moment. “Mom.” At Joyce’s stressed response, he continues to try and calm her. “You have to stay calm.”

Joyce scoffs, chuckling unamusedly. She looks at a paper, probably with a number to call on it. She mutters to herself as she enters it back into the phone. Jonathan looks back to what he’s been working on, despondent.

The phone number goes to voicemail. “ Hey, you’ve reached Lonnie, ” Joyce smiles, though it’s bordering on a sneer. She sniffles. “ Leave a message and I’ll holler right back at ya. ”

Joyce takes a deep breath before talking. “Lonnie, some- teenager just hung up on me. Will is…is missing. I don’t know where he is. I need-” Her throat closes up, voice leaving her. “I just need you to call me back, please, just-” the line disconnects again. 

She angrily throws the phone onto its holder, shouting again. “Damn it! Damn it!” She puts her hand on her forehead, breathing deeply. 

Joyce does the same deep breathing technique, reminding herself that this hasn’t happened yet. Reminding herself that it won’t happen as long as she keeps Will safe. She has one day. One day to prepare for all of this to happen. She looks down at Will next to her, wrapping her arm around his shoulder again, bringing him a bit closer. 

Jonathan hears a car approaching the house outside. He looks up from the couch. “Mom?” At Joyce’s aggravated “What?” Jonathan stands up. He looks through the window. “Cops.” He murmurs. 

Joyce opens her front door, rushing outside, Jonathan in tow. Hopper exits his car, Will’s bike in his hand. Joyce swallows harshly when Hopper grimaces. 

Back inside, Joyce and Hopper stand across from each other. 

“It was just lying there?” She asks,

“Yeah. Cal?” Hopper motions to look around the house. The two officers with him follow suit. 

Hopper glances around the house, slowly walking. Joyce continues to ask questions. “Did it have any blood on it, or-?” 

“No, no, no, no, no…” He mutters his disagreement. 

This time, Jonathan speaks up. “If you found the bike out there, why are you here?”

Hopper keeps looking around the house, now in the dining area. Joyce and Jonathan follow close behind him. 

“Well, he had a key to the house, right?” As soon as Jonathan agrees, Hopper looks through a window. “So…maybe he came home.” 

Joyce is quick to protest, having already looked around her own house multiple times. She stammers. “You think I didn’t check my own house?” Hopper walks over to the wall right next to the door that leads to the back exit.

“I’m not saying that,” he focuses on a dent in the wall, it looks fresh, barely a day old. Joyce doesn’t seem to think so, though. “This always been here?” He points to it. 

“What? I don’t know, probably. I mean, I have two boys.” She motions around to the disorganized room. “Look at this place.” 

Hopper opens the door, confirming that if someone opened the door hard enough it’d make the dent. He looks back at Joyce. “You’re not sure?” Joyce sighs loudly, too stressed to think that clearly. All of a sudden, the dog starts barking outside. Hopper heads to check on him through the back, Joyce follows. 

The dog barks, staring at something in the distance. Hopper heads up to him, crouching down and petting him. “Hey, what’s up with this guy, huh?” 

Joyce doesn’t pay the dog any mind. “Nothing, he’s probably just hungry,” She grabs his collar gently, pulling him back into the house. “Come on.”

Standing up, Hopper looks at the shed in front of him, he slowly heads towards the entrance. Opening the door, he enters the shed. It’s alarmingly dark inside, luckily, with a flip of a switch the light comes on. 

Hopper inspects the counters, picking up the almost empty box of ammo. He puts the box back down, looking at the empty gun holder on the wall. He’s about to- 

The light flickers, making a loud noise in the process. The shed is dark once again.

Steve jumps at the sudden noise, grabbing onto Nancy’s hand for support. He sheepishly smiles at her, and she smiles right back, holding his hand a bit tighter. 

Hopper turns around, spooked by the noise. He spots a flashlight, and he’s quick to turn it on. In the dim light, he can see a hole of some sort in the miscellaneous boxes surrounding him. He walks closer towards them, squinting. Maybe it’s his imagination, but he’s sure he can hear some sort of squelching noise. Like something slimy is moving. 

Mike’s brain connects the dots. “That was the same noise that the weird doorway at the lab made!” Everyone looks at him, faces dawning in realization. 

Will glances to and from the screen. “You don’t think there’s a similar doorway in my shed, do you?” he asks slowly. Is that where he was taken? Through some weird-slimy portal ? He shudders. God, he hopes not. 

Mike looks hesitant to answer Will now, pursing his lips in thought. He shakes his head. “Even if that’s the case- which it’s probably not - but if it is, we’ll still find you!” Mike nods his head to himself, sure in his answer. 

Joyce nods her head with him, looking at Will. “He’s right, we will find you, okay, honey? We will.” 

Will looks at her and then at Mike, and then at the rest of The Party's determined faces. He smiles in appreciation. 

“Thanks, guys.” 

As soon as Hopper shines the light onto the odd hole, the squelching stops. He slowly stands up from where he was crouched. The light flickers back on, and one of the other officers calls him. 

“Hey!” 

Hopper turns around, startled. “Jes us .”

Dustin jumps this time, hand on his chest. “Why are there so many jumpscares?!” 

Callahan continues on. “What’re you, deaf? I’ve been calling you.” 

Hopper breathes out sharply, looking back behind him. He walks forward. “What’s going on?” Callahan asks him. Hopper doesn’t answer, speeding up and exiting the shed. Callahan follows him as fast as he can. 

“Hello? Are you sure you’re okay, Chief?” 

“Listen, I want you to call Flo, I want to get a search party together, all right? All the volunteers she can muster. Bring flashlights, too.” He makes his way to the Byers back door. 

“Hey, you think we got a problem here?” Hopper looks at Callahan, but he doesn’t respond. 

Joyce turns to look at Hopper. “Thank you, Hop. Thank you so much .” She expresses, grateful that he’s working hard to find Will, even if he was a bit…indifferent at first. Hopper grunts in affirmation, not sure what to say. 

The screen moves over to nighttime at the Wheeler’s house. Mike is speaking to his parents as they all eat dinner. “We should be out there right now. We should be helping look for him.” 

Karen turns to him. “We’ve been over this, Mike. The Chief says-” 

Mike cuts her off, irritated. “I don’t care what the Chief says!” 

Karen scolds his tone. “Michael!” 

“We have to do something. Will can be in danger.” He tries to say. 

His mother doesn’t budge. “More reason to stay put.” 

“Mom!” He tries again. 

Karen has already made her decision, staring at him in indignation. “End of discussion.” 

Will glances at Mike. “Thanks for trying to help.” 

Mike looks back at him, leaning closer. He whispers his next words. “Of course I’d wanna help! My mom doesn’t know what she’s talking about I swear-” 

Will chuckles quietly, cutting him off. He gives one last grateful smile before turning back to the screen. Mike does the same. 

Nancy chews her food and Mike huffs, looking down at the table. Ted takes a drink of his juice, having no input on what Karen’s decided on. Nancy swallows, carefully wording her sentence. 

“So…me and Barbara are gonna study at her house tonight. That’s cool, right?” 

Karen doesn’t look up from her plate. “No, not cool.” 

Nancy gapes. “What? Why not?” Karen looks up at her in disbelief. 

“What do you think? Am I speaking Chinese in this house? Until we know Will is okay, no one leaves.” 

“This is such bullshit.” Nancy complains, annoyed. 

Ted does little to help the situation. “Language.” 

“So we’re under house arrest?” She glances at Mike who’s still looking down dejectedly, not eating. “Just because Mike’s friend got lost on the way home from-” Mike cuts her off, angered by the ignorance Nancy shows.

“Wait, this is Will’s fault?!” 

Nancy cringes at her own words. She definitely shouldn’t have said that. And by the way Mike is glaring at her, incredulous, he very much agrees. She sighs. “I’m sorry, Will. I…I shouldn’t have said that.” 

Will looks over at her, surprised by the apology. He waves a hand absentmindedly. “Uh, it’s okay. Really.” He gives a weak smile. Nancy knows it’s probably not okay at all, but she doesn’t push it. 

Karen looks at Nancy, surprised by the comment. “Nancy, take that back.” 

“No!” 

Mike retaliates against Nancy, still not over her remark. “You’re just pissed off ‘cause you wanna hang out with Steve !” Their parents pause. Nancy looks over at Mike, eyes wide in warning. 

Ted breaks the silence, finally paying attention. “Steve?” 

Karen speaks next. “Who is Steve?” 

Mike ignores Nancy’s warning look. “Her new boyfriend!” He answers quickly. 

Nancy turns to him in a flash, her words heated. “You are such a douchebag , Mike!” 

“Language!” Ted says yet again. Nancy groans, getting up from her seat at the table. Mike tries to fight down a smile at her outrage. She makes her way towards the stairs, up to her room. 

Karen tries to call out to her. “Nancy, come back. Come back!” Holly (the Wheeler’s youngest) looks around, anxious about the noise. Karen sighs. “It’s okay, it’s okay, Holly. Here, have some juice, okay?”

Ted gives an absentminded glance to Karen, before looking back at Mike. “You see, Michael? You see what happens?” 

Mike shouts his following sentence. “What happens when what?! I’m the only one acting normal here! I’m the only one who cares about Will!” 

“That is really unfair, son. We care.” Is Ted’s dry reply. He pops another piece of chicken into his mouth. Mike gapes. He hesitates for a second, but then slams his hands on the table, getting up from his seat much like Nancy did. He storms up to his room as well.

“Mike,” Karen calls. Ted doesn’t even look over at him. 

“Let him go.” He mutters. Karen looks back at Ted, eyes roaming from his face to his plate of food. He continues chewing. 

“I hope you’re enjoying your chicken, Ted.” She deadpans. Ted furrows his brows. 

“What did I do?” Karen grabs Holly, picking her up, and leaving the room, ignoring him. Ted sits there, somehow not getting the message. “Hey! What’d I do?” He drawls his words. 

Mike scowls at the screen, annoyed by his dad. He’s always so- dry . And deadpan . It’s like half the time he doesn’t even pay any mind to what’s going on around him! Mike crosses his arms, shoulders rising up to his neck. He resists the urge to groan. 

In the surrounding woods, the search party that Hopper asked for roams around, calling Will’s name. Hopper walks along with them, and even Mr. Clarke is there. He walks next to Hopper.

Will’s eyes widen when he sees his teacher. He feels warmth stir in his chest. He didn’t think that many people would volunteer- let alone Mr. Clarke. He sits up a bit straighter, his attention entirely focused on what plays in front of him. 

“He’s a good student.” Mr. Clarke  mentions, looking at Hopper. The Chief turns to him, questioning. 

“What?”

Mr. Clarke speaks again. “Will. He’s a good student- great one, actually.” 

Will’s eyes light up in appreciation, glad that his teacher thinks so highly of him. Dustin peers over at him, motioning towards the screen, grinning. Will returns the grin, spirits a bit lighter than they’ve been for the majority of the time he’s been here. 

“I don’t think we’ve met.” Is Hopper’s reply. 

“Scott Clarke,” he holds out his hand. Hopper shakes it firmly. “Teacher, Hawkins Middle. Earth and Biology.”  The two continue walking through the woods, flashlights shining. 

“I always had a distaste for Science.” 

“Well, maybe you had a bad teacher.” Comes Mr. Clarke’s suggestion. 

“Yeah, Ms. Ratliff was a piece of work.” 

Mr. Clarke chuckles. “Ratliff? You bet. She’s still kicking around, believe it or not.”

“Oh, I believe it. Mummies never die, so they tell me.” He hesitates for a second. “Sarah, my daughter. Galaxies, the universe, whatnot…she always understood all that stuff. I always figured there was enough going on down here, I never needed to look elsewhere.” 

Joyce grimaces at the reminder of Hopper’s daughter. She looks down, fidgeting with her hands. She doesn’t know what she’d do if she ever lost Will or Jonathan. 

And now Will apparently goes missing…

She breathes in sharply, shaking her head. No. She won’t let that happen, she reminds herself. She won’t . 

“Your daughter, what grade is she? Maybe I’ll get her in my class.” Mr. Clarke responds, sounding hopeful. Hopper tentatively says his next few words. 

“No, she, uh…” he pauses, thinking. “She lives with her mom in the city.” Hopper changes the topic abruptly. “Thanks for coming out, Teach. We really appreciate it.” He walks ahead, leaving Mr. Clarke to walk alone. 

Mr. Clarke looks up ahead to where Hopper has gone, confused at the sudden change of conversation- and the odd and sudden goodbye. Another woman comes up next to him. 

“She died a few years back.” 

Hopper sucks in a sharp breath, shoulders stiff. 

Mr. Clarke looks at the woman in confusion. “Sorry?” 

She nods her head over to where Hopper walks ahead of them. “His kid.” She walks away from Mr. Clarke, too. He’s left to continue walking in morbid silence. Hopper continues silently walking ahead of everyone else. 

Hopper runs a hand down his face. What importance- what is so important about the future that it entails sharing private and fragile topics from his life? He messes with his hair, trying to calm himself down. It’s fine. It’s fine . He breathes in and out slowly, untensing his shoulders. 

It’s fine. 

Now, inside the Wheeler’s basement, Mike sits in front of his D&D board, staring at the Demogorgon figure. He turns on his walkie-talkie. “Lucas, do you copy? It’s Mike.” he waits for approximately half a second before asking again, patience low. “Lucas?”

The camera shows Lucas sitting on his bed. “Hey, it’s Lucas.” He answers. 

“I know it’s you. And say “over” when you’re done talking so I know when you’re done. Over.”

“ I’m done . Over.” Is all Lucas counters with. 

Mike pays the rude-toned response no mind. “I’m worried about Will. Over.” 

Lucas sighs, shifting to lay on his stomach. “Yeah. This is crazy. Over.”

“I was thinking…” a beat. “Will could’ve cast Protection last night, but he didn’t. He cast fireball. Over.” 

“What’s your point? Over.” 

Mike huffs. “My point is…he could’ve played it safe, but he didn’t. He put himself in danger to help the Party. Over.” 

Will connects the dots quickly. He frowns. The Chief had said to stay home . He glances at the ceiling, exasperated. But, it is Mike after all. God knows he would ignore that direction, even if it cost him.

Lucas glances towards his wall in thought, recognizing what Mike is trying to say. “Meet me in ten. Over and out.” He and Mike both close their walkie-talkies, determination on their faces. 

Mike packs his backpack, quietly riding his bike out of his garage. He glances back at his house- 

Steve is poorly climbing his roof, making his way towards Nancy’s window. He turns to glance behind him, and he does a double-take when he sees Mike from afar. He puts a hand on his hip, trying and failing to act casual. Mike rolls his eyes, continuing on. 

Nancy giggles, trying to muffle it with her hand. What an idiot . She looks down at her other hand, still tightly grasped in Steve’s. She puts her head on his shoulder, giggles dying down. He better not get caught. Her mom would kill him…and then kill her.

In Nancy’s room, she sits at her desk, pop music playing in the background. She looks through her flashcards, memorizing each one. 

Steve taps on her window, smirking. Nancy looks over in disbelief. He motions for her to open the window, and she begrudgingly complies. She leans down to whisper. 

“What are you doing here? I told you on the phone, I’m under house arrest now.” Steve’s smile dims slightly. He waves a hand toward the inside of her room.

“I figured we’d just study here.” His smile is right back on his face at the idea.

Nancy smiles back at him without meaning to. “No. No way.” She leans back, and Steve barrels in as quietly as he can. (Not very quiet.) 

“Oh, come on. I can’t have you failing this test. So just…” His voice strains as he struggles to land on her floor safely. “Bear with me,” Finally, he gets on his feet. He looks back at her, playing it cool. “What’d I tell you? Ninja.” 

The Party all cringe. That was not stealthy like a ninja at all . Mike crosses his arms. 

Now, back at the diner with Benny and Eleven, Benny works the sink, rinsing off dishes while Eleven eats her ice cream quietly. Benny glances at her. “You like that ice cream, huh?” 

Eleven smiles at him shyly. “Smile looks good on you,” Benny comments. Eleven’s brows furrow slightly, confused. Benny is quick to explain. “You know, smile?” He smiles at her awkwardly, and she smiles again in amusement. Benny chuckles, turning back around. 

Someone knocks on the front door of the diner, and both Benny and Eleven turn their heads at the noise. Eleven turns back to him, looking scared. Benny quickly tries to soothe her. 

“All right. You just sit tight. Whoever it is, I’ll tell ‘em to go away real quick, alright?” He walks to the front, Eleven watches him go wearily. The knocking starts again. “Yeah, yeah, yeah…” Benny mutters as he heads towards the door. He opens it, coming face to face with a blonde woman.

“Hey, can I help you?” He asks. The woman smiles.

 “Hi, you must be Benny Hammond.” It’s more of a statement than a question.

Benny glances behind him. “I’m afraid I am. I’m afraid we’re closed for the evening, too. So try back tomorrow.” 

The woman disregards that. She holds out a hand. “Connie Frazier. Social Services.” Benny stands up straighter in realization. He quickly shakes her hand.

“Ah, Social Services. My apologies. I didn’t expect you so soon. That’s a heck of a drive.” 

“Not too bad this time of night.” Is all Connie answers with. Benny lowers his voice to a whisper. 

“Hey, listen, I…” he points to the kitchen discreetly. “I haven’t told her that you’re coming yet. I didn’t want her running off. She’s a tad skittish.” Eleven looks at Benny, wondering why the random person hasn’t left yet. 

Connie isn’t phased. “Children I work with usually are.” 

Benny nods. “Right, right.” 

Connie shrugs. “So, where is she?” 

“Right. She’s in the kitchen.” He lets her in easily. “Come on up. I’ll introduce you.” Connie thanks him as she walks in. Benny apologizes once more. “Sorry again for trying to turn you away there.” He walks her towards the kitchen, Connie wards off his worries. 

“You know, it’s funny.” Benny continues. “Your, uh, voice sounds different on the-” 

Connie shoots Benny in the head, kind demeanor gone as she holds her gun.” Eleven gasps in shock. 

Dustin jumps back, appalled. Lucas’s eyes widen as he flinches back too. Will and Mike are both stunned. 

“What the hell-?!” Joyce clutches her chest with her hand, breathing heavily at the sudden scene. Hopper swallows harshly. That was Benny . His friend . His eyes are wide just like everyone else's. Steve openly gapes, and Nancy tightens her grip on his hand in dread.

Eleven looks on at the scene in horror. Benny was nice to her. Why did he have to- why did he have to go? 

Eleven jumps off the counter she was sitting on, discarding her ice cream. She runs through the back doors, leading to the exit, but two men, also holding guns, are there to meet her. She stops, panicked. 

Dr. Brenner walks through the front door. The radio that was softly playing in the back turns to static. He looks up towards the end of the diner hall when he hears a thud. He walks towards the back exit, the two men are lying on the ground, bleeding. Eleven is gone.

Hopper squints his eyes when he sees Dr. Brenner. What the hell did he want with the kid? And how did she get away from the men? He thinks back to when the fan stopped by itself. He looks over to where she sits, knees curled into her chest as she looks at the screen forlornly. He grunts quietly, slowly looking back at the screen. 

Dustin looks over at Eleven, too. “How’d you do that?” at the questioning tilt of Eleven’s head, he asks more thoroughly. “How’d you escape from the two guys holding guns ?” Eleven stays silent. Mike pulls Dustin back into his seat by his jacket sleeve, glaring at him. 

“You act as if she knows ! This is the future!” Mike whisper-shouts. 

Dustin holds up his hands in a shrug. “Geez! Fine, don’t be so prickly. I was just curious.” 

Will gives Mike a look . Don’t be mean . Mike huffs, sinking deeper into his seat. 

Back at the Party, Mike and Lucas now have Dustin in tow, the three all riding towards where Will’s bike was found. They stop when they see that it’s blocked off. Thunder rumbles close by. Dustin looks up at the sky, holding up a hand. 

“Hey, guys. You feel that?” A drop of rain hits his cheek, he haphazardly wipes it away. “I think maybe we should go back.” 

Mike isn’t too keen on the idea, protesting immediately. “No. We’re not going back. Just stay close.” He walks toward the woods. “Come on.” Lucas follows him. Dustin stands still.

“Just stay on channel six. Don’t do anything stupid.” Mike and Lucas are already walking into the forest, and Dustin finally gets the courage to follow as more thunder rumbles, closer and louder than before. 

“Hey, guys, wait up.” He rushes to catch up. “Wait up!” 

The three walk into the dark woods, unknowing of what’s to come. The rain pours down harder. 

Hopper pinches the bridge of his nose, shaking his head. He told them to stay put . But no, of course, they just had to go out by themselves. 

Will mirrors Hopper’s frustration, worried for his friends. What if the creature that took him takes them too? He shivers, leaning into his mom’s side. She glady wraps her arm around him. 

The screen cuts back to Nancy’s bedroom. Steve reads off one of the flashcards to her. 

Mike rolls his eyes. They were just about to look for Will! He doesn’t wanna see his sister and Steve be all gross and cheesy with each other. 

“Which polymers occur naturally?” Nancy looks up in thought. She answers slowly, but sure of herself. 

“Starch and cellulose.” 

Steve reads off another one. “In a molecule of CH4, the hydrogen atoms are spatially oriented towards the center of-” 

Nancy answers faster this time. “Tetrahedrons.”  Steve turns the flashcard around, reading the answer. 

“Wow,” he mutters. “Jesus, how many of these did you make?” He skims through the pile he holds, looking at them. Nancy shakes her head. 

“You said you wanted to help.” She grins at him. Steve smiles back at her, coming up with an idea. 

“How about this? How about…how about every time you get something right, I have to take off an item of clothing? But everytime that you get something wrong-” 

“Uh, pass.” 

Mike gags, feeling sick. Will wrinkles his nose in distaste. 

That’s so much worse than being cheesy with each other.  

“Oh, come on.” He suggests, moving a bit closer. “Come on, it’ll be fun.” 

Nancy is firm on her answer, but she’s smiling all the same. “No.” 

Steve reads another flashcard. “During fractional distillation, hydrocarbons are separated according to their-” Nancy gives a lively close mouthed smile. 

“Melting point.” Steve flips over the flashcard, he clicks his tongue.

“Ooh,” He looks up at her. “It’s boiling points.” 

Nancy scoffs. “That’s what I meant.” 

Steve lightly shakes his head, still gazing at her. “Yeah, that’s not what you said.” He gestures to his shirt. Nancy scoffs again. 

“No.” Is her amused reply. 

Steve repeats the word back at her. “No?” He questions. He sits up, coming closer to her. “Oh do you need…do you need help, or…” Nancy smiles again. 

“No,” Steve leans close to her face, tilting his head. Nancy smiles when he kisses her. 

Mike throws up his hands, groaning. “Do we have to watch this?” He whines. Nancy glares at him. 

“Oh, shut up, Mike-” 

“Nancy you can’t seriously think it’s just okay to show 12 year olds you making out with Steve Harrington - It’s so gross-!” 

Nancy turns pink, huffing. She doesn’t have a good response to that. Truly, she’d much rather prefer if no one was watching because really- it is quite personal. But she doesn’t really have much of a choice, seeing as the screen continued to play in front of everyone. Luckily, everyone has turned their eyes away from the screen. 

Nancy breaks the kiss when Steve attempts to unbutton the top of her shirt, whispering. “Steve. Steve, cmon.” 

“What?” 

“Are you crazy? My parents are here.”  

Steve looks around the bedroom, confused. He looks back down at her. “That’s weird, I…don’t see them.” He reaches back down, kissing her again. But this time, Nancy isn’t having it, so she breaks the kiss again, sitting up. She levels him with a stare. 

“Was this your plan all along? To…to get in my room and then…” She buttons the top of her shirt back up, looking away. “-get another notch on your belt.” 

Steve shakes his head. “No. Nancy, no.” He looks down. Nancy continues talking. 

“I’m not Laurie, or Amy, or Becky.” Steve bobs his head. 

“You mean, you’re not a slut.” He looks back up at her. 

“That’s not what I’m saying.” 

Everyone is silently looking away, covering their ears. Mike wants to gag again. How long does he have to sit through this?

Steve gives her a small and cheeky smile. “You know you’re so cute when you lie.” Nancy gapes, before forcing down a smile. It still partially peeks through, though. 

“Shut up.” 

Steve grabs hold of a teddy bear stuffy off to the side of Nancy’s bed, he holds it in front of Nancy, pouting. “Bad Steve.” He turns the bear around to face himself. He groans. “Bad. Don’t do that to Miss Nancy…”  

Nancy grins, gazing at Steve fondly. “You’re an idiot, Steve Harrington.” 

“You are beautiful, Nancy Wheeler.” 

Dustin yells loudly, ears still covered and eyes still shut tight. “Is it over?!” 

Nancy rolls her eyes. She huffs, crossing her arms. “Yes, it’s over.” 

Mike hesitantly looks back at the screen, when he sees no Nancy or Steve, he lets his hands fall off his ears. He sighs in relief. Thank god…

Lucas purses his lips, scrunching up his eyes in disdain. “That was so not necessary.” 

Thunder rumbles outside the Byer’s house, and the rain has yet to cease, only pouring down harder than before. 

Both Jonathan and Joyce sit on their couch, sorting through photos. Joyce marvels at the quality of each one. “Jonathan, wow. You took these?” She glances over at him. “These are great.” She sniffles. “Wow, they really are.” She stops suddenly. 

“I know I haven’t been there for you. I’ve been…working so hard and I…I just feel bad. I don’t even…barely know what’s going on with you.” She chuckles half-heartedly. “All right? I am sorry about that.”

Jonathan lets out a breath, his mouth quivering slightly. He doesn’t look up at his mom. He instead starts to softly cry. Joyce grabs his shoulder comfortingly. “Hey, what is it? What is it, honey?” Jonathan keeps his mouth firmly closed, trying to conceal his sobs. Finally, he shrugs his shoulders, sniffling. 

“Nothing,” 

Joyce knows better than to leave it alone, though. “Tell me. Tell me. Come on, you can…” 

Jonathan shakes his head. “No, it’s just…” His voice breaks. “I should’ve been there for him.” 

Will’s eyes widen, knowing that his brother is talking about him . He wrings his hands together, fidgeting with them nervously. 

Joyce looks to her left where Jonathan sits, pulling him in for a half-hug. “Oh, honey…” Jonathan weakly returns it. 

Joyce’s voice goes hoarse. “No. Oh, no. You can’t do that to yourself. This was not your fault. Do you hear me?” She stammers. “He is…close. I know it. I…I-” She points at her chest. “I feel it in my heart.” She continues to try and comfort Jonathan, pulling him closer as he shakes. 

“You just have to…you have to trust me on this, okay?” Jonathan nods, muttering an agreement. Joyce looks down at the scattered photos, trying to change the topic to help him. “Oh, look at this one, look at this one.” She holds up a photo of Will, smiling at the camera. Joyce and Jonathan let out broken laughs. 

“I mean, that’s it, right?” She questions. Jonathan smiles.

 “Yeah.” Joyce puts her hand on the side of her face, looking at the photo in remembrance. 

“That’s it. That’s the one.” Joyce is about to say more, when the phone rings in the hall, she shoots up, letting out a sigh. She rushes over to answer it. “Hello?” 

Static meets her. Joyce looks at the floor, eyebrows furrowed. “ Hello ?” She asks again. When more static comes through, she lists off names. “Lonnie?”  

Jonathan looks over at her, whispering “Dad…” Under his breath. Joyce continues. 

“Hopper?” Muffled breathing is heard through the static, fast- scared. Joyce holds the phone closer to her ear. “Who is this?” 

Hopper looks at the screen, puzzled. A prank call, maybe? 

But Joyce thinks otherwise. She knows otherwise. 

The muffled and fast-paced breathing fills the silence. Joyce looks over at Jonathan, bewildered. She recognizes the breathing. She’d know it anywhere. 

“ Will ? Will?” 

Jonathan looks at his mother, just as shocked, but he can’t tell who’s on the phone, it’s too inaudible for him to tell. “It’s Will?” He quizzes, breathing heavy in anticipation. 

Joyce hears another sound- but it’s not breathing, it’s not Will . It’s a weird chitter sound, like from an animal. It borders on a high-pitched growl. Joyce’s eyes widen in alarm. She lets out a breathy sob. 

Joyce covers her mouth in shock as she watches the events. That sound- that same exact sound from earlier. It was there with her son. And he was alone with that- thing . She feels her eyes burn at the thought. She blinks back tears. 

Jonathan is still without an answer. “Mom, it’s Will?” 

Joyce lets out a strangled yell. “Who is this?! What have you done to my boy ?!” The weird chittering continues. Joyce panics. “Give me back my son-!” The phone shocks her, and she drops it to the floor with a pained noise. Jonathan is quick to pick it up. 

“Hello? Hello, who is this?” He shakes the phone. “ Who is this ?!” He puts the phone down, turning to his mom. And she’s crying, trembling as she stammers. “Mom, who was it? Who was it, mom?” Joyce just mutters gibberish, sobbing.

“It was him…!” She gets out eventually. Jonathan grabs her by the arms. 

“Look at me, Mom, Was it Will?” 

“Yes!” She chokes out, a lump in her throat. 

“What did he say?” Joyce shakes her head- almost violently. 

“He just breathed. He just breathed!” She goes to grab the phone again. Jonathan continues firing off questions. Joyce hugs him tightly. 

“It was him. I know it was his breathing. I know it was his breathing.” She wails. Jonathan hugs her back, just as tightly. 

The theater is silent, no one able to give any words to comfort the Byers family, especially not after watching the tense moment on screen. Joyce just pulls both of her sons close to her, kissing their heads as she mutters something inaudible under her breath. 

Deep in the woods, the Party keeps looking for Will. They yell his name. All of them are covered in water, clothing soaked as they keep walking through the heavy rain. 

“Guys, I really think we should turn back. “ Dustin says in anxiety. Still, he continues walking next to Lucas and Mike. 

“Seriously, Dustin? You wanna be a baby? Then go home already!” Lucas snarks. Dustin yells right back at him.

“I’m just being realistic, Lucas!” Lucas turns to him, irritated. 

“No, you’re just being a big sissy!” 

Dustin voices his anxieties even more, ignoring Lucas’s last jab. “You ever think Will went missing because he ran into something bad? And we’re going to the exact same spot where he was last seen?” He stresses. “And we have no weapons, or anything?”

Mike looks elsewhere, listening for something. He holds out a hand in Dustin’s direction. “Dustin, shut up.” 

“I’m just saying, does that seem smart to you?” 

Mike holds out his hand farther. “Shut up, shut up.” He whines, and nearby a rustling in the leaves is heard. “Did you guys hear that?” The noise is louder this time. The three all turn, shining their flashlights. Nothing is there but trees. They hear it again, they turn and- 

Eleven stands, flashlights shining on her face. Her clothing is drenched in rain water, she breathes fast and panicked. 

The three boys look at her, intrigued, confused- and unsure of who she is.

The screen fades to black. 

Steve is the one to break the silence. “Uh…what happens now?” 

Chapter Text

The group all sit in contemplative silence. The weight of what they've just seen, the horrific, irrational absurdity of how quickly things went downhill, lays itself over them, so thick it's near suffocating. A cold chill passes around the room, leaving goosebumps in their wake.

Joyce tugs at her lip with her teeth. She looks down at Will, his eyes are wide in doubt, undeniably scared of what happened and what's to possibly come. A fierce bolt of protectiveness runs through Joyce's body, leaving her jaw clenched and her eyes blazing in determination. She nods to herself before addressing those around her. 

“We have to keep watching. There’s no telling how long we’ll be here…or—or how much we need to see. But,” She trails off, taking in a shaky breath. “We’re all here for a reason. We need to keep watching.” 

Will swallows, uncertain. Everyone else nods in agreement to Joyce’s announcement, a few muttering between themselves. His fists clench and unclench in his lap, and he glares down at them in anxiety. It’s scary, but his mom is right. Somehow, he’s connected to whatever they all witnessed in the lab, and there’s no telling how or why. Not yet. 

He risks a glance toward Eleven, the mysterious new addition to his friend’s search. She’s busy picking at a ripped corner of her hospital gown. Her face is blank but her jaw ticks, harshly clenched. Will sets his gaze back down to his hands, slumping. 

He wonders if she has an idea as to what the strange…man? Creature? That followed him and—presumably— took him. Will shudders. That thing was too tall to be a man. It didn’t sound like one, either. Thinking back to the “end” of Mike’s campaign, right before he had left, what had seemed like a simple admission of his failed roll at the time now feels…heavier. 

“The Demogorgon, it got me.” 

Will clenches his fists tighter than before. His knuckles turn white as his nails dig into his palm. 

“The Demogorgon…” He mumbles, frowning, before he shakes his head. No. No. Don’t think about that. 

“Is everything okay?” Mike asks suddenly. Will jumps, not expecting his hushed voice or for him to be leaning so close. 

“What? Oh,” He blinks rapidly. “Yeah. Sorry.” He clears his throat. “Just thinking.” 

Mike nods, looking serious. He looks back and forth from Will to the TV before sighing. “I’m sorry.” 

Will feels his eyebrows shoot up before furrowing. “What? For…for what?” 

“Just…” Mike shrugs, a bit helpless, unsure of how to fully explain. “...having to watch all of this.” He scratches the side of his cheek. “I dunno. I know we're being shown all of this to “help us,” but still! It’s bullshit that we only have, like, a day to learn about it.” He scowls and crosses his arms, his shoes scuff against the floor. “Why not show us earlier? Give us more time to prepare?” 

Will nods, taking in the words. He shrugs this time. “I don’t know. I mean, I guess we’ll just have to wait and see. Even if it’s…” Unfair? Terrifying? Utterly, horribly creepy? “...weird.”

“So—what is the…TV gonna start up again? It’s been blank for a few minutes. What if that’s all we’re gonna see?” 

Mike and Will blink, both of them jerking their heads and looking up at the sound of Steve’s sudden question. They must’ve been too caught up in their own conversation to have heard the other’s discussion. Mike glares. 

“The note clearly said it won’t be.” Mike retorts with, snappish. The uncertainty of all that’s been seen so far and his avid dislike of Steve blending together into an attitude. 

“Mike,” Nancy starts, but—

“Okay, well, then why is it still blank?” Steve cuts her off, already taking the bait and responding to Mike. Nancy’s mouth twitches into a frown. 

“I don’t know, maybe because someone keeps talking!” 

The Party—save Mike— all glance at each other awkwardly as Steve stammers, bewildered by Mike’s animosity and Nancy’s attempts to try and de-escalate while simultaneously scolding her little brother. Hopper roughly rubs the bridge of his nose, eyes squeezed shut and his jaw clenched, his patience already running thin. 

“How about we just—” Joyce tries to speak up before big, bold letters on the TV cut her off.

THE WEIRDO ON MAPLE STREET

All chatter (read: quickly escalating arguments) promptly ceases at the sudden text illuminating the dark screen. The TV has started up once more. They all subconsciously shift forward in unease.

The scene opens with a view of Mike’s house and the sound of rain falling, loud and intense, soaking everything below. Thunder rumbles above, booming.

In the basement, Eleven sits on the couch, now with a jacket haphazardly tossed on her shoulders as she takes heavy breaths. Her clothing and buzzed hair are still damp from the rain. 

“Is there a number we can call for your parents?” Mike asks, staring down at her. Dustin and Lucas stand beside him. 

“Where’s your hair?” Dustin asks next. “Do you have cancer?” 

“Did you run away?” Lucas adds.

Eleven’s eyes dart back and forth between all of them, overwhelmed by the sudden onslaught of odd, constant questions.

“Are you in some kind of trouble?” 

Lucas squints. “Is that blood?” He reaches out a hand toward where he’s supposedly spotted the stain on her shirt, but Mike is quick to smack his arm away before he can get a better look. 

“Stop it! You’re freaking her out!”

“She’s freaking me out!” 

“I bet she’s deaf.” Dustin cuts in, he claps his hands loudly near Eleven’s face and she jolts back, staring agape at him. Dustin lowers his hands, silent for a second. He raises his shoulders at his friends.

“...Not deaf.” 

“Are you guys serious? Give her space to breathe.” Nancy sounds, staring over at The Party like they’ve all grown multiple heads. At least they have the decency to all look a bit sheepish. She shakes her head in exasperation, letting out a huff of air. 

Eleven stares up toward the screen with a similar expression as her on-screen counterpart. Confusion and apprehension contorting her face into a stunned look. 

“All right, that’s enough, all right? She’s just scared and cold.” Mike says, glancing back toward Eleven. She continues to stare up at them from the couch. Thunder rumbles again, stronger, as Mike makes his way toward a basket. Eleven squeezes her eyes shut, letting out a shaky breath. 

Mike walks back toward her, holding out a set of folded clothes. “Here, these are clean. Okay?”

Eleven stares at the clothing and gently grabs them from Mike’s hand. She hesitantly feels the fabric against her face. They’re soft. Incredibly so. Finally, she starts to stand up from the couch, taking the jacket off of her shoulders. The Party watches her, curious. 

When she makes the move to try and change suddenly, they all gasp, Dustin and Lucas turning around and covering their eyes as Mike frantically moves to stop her. “No, no, no! No, no!” 

“Woah, woah—” 

“Oh, my god, oh, my god, oh, my god–” 

Mike awkwardly stammers and points toward a door. “See…over there? That’s the bathroom. Privacy. Get it?”  

Eleven’s eyebrows furrow as she looks toward where he points, but she grabs the folded clothes and heads toward the bathroom anyway. She glances around the ceiling, eyes wandering as Mike goes to close the door behind her. She turns around, grabbing it with surprising speed before it closes completely, her eyes are widened in alarm. 

Mike pauses. “You don’t want it closed?” 

Eleven swallows. “...No.” 

Mike’s eyes light up at her talking. He lets out a small, surprised smile. “Oh, so you can speak. Okay, well…Um, how about we just keep the door…” He slowly moves it so that it’s open a few inches, not completely closed, but just enough to give her privacy. “...just like this. Is that better?” 

Eleven stares at him through the small opening. “Yes.” She decides. Mike smiles again and nods, walking back toward where Dustin and Lucas are still standing in the middle of the room. 

“This is mental.” 

“At least she can talk.”

“She said “no” and “yes.” Your three-year-old sister says more.” 

“Lucas!” Mike exclaims, glancing toward where Eleven sits, eyes wide. 

“What?! I’m…” He looks over toward where Eleven sits, either not paying attention to their conversation or simply ignoring it; her eyes remain fixed on the screen, but a frown is etched on her face. Lucas lowers his voice. “I’m right to be suspicious! At least, in this context!” He gestures toward the screen. “Think about it! Will goes missing, and then some random girl, clearly running from something, just coincidentally shows up?” He huffs, intending to end it there, before he splutters out a quick: “And you of all people shouldn’t be lecturing me about being nice!”

Mike bites his cheek. Not wanting to fully admit that Lucas has a point, the overall weirdness and confusion of everything happening is beginning to mess with him. He rolls his eyes and leans back in his seat. In a show of great restraint, he chooses not to comment on that last sentence. He grumbles. “I guess…” 

“She tried to get naked.” Dustin points out. 

“There’s something seriously wrong with her. Like, wrong in the head.”

“She just went like—” Dustin makes a gesture like he’s taking off his shirt, knocking his hat off in the process. His hands fumble as he makes a grab for it. 

“I bet she escaped from Pennhurst.” 

Eleven blinks, sullen. She doesn’t know what Pennhurst is, but with the way the boy, Lucas, says it, it doesn’t sound like it’s a good place. She fidgets with her hands. She comes from a bad place, too. 

“From where?” Mike questions.

“The nuthouse in Kerley County..?” 

“You got a lot of family there?” Dustin replies, smiling cheekily. 

“Bite me.” Lucas responds, and Dustin's smile fades quickly. “Seriously though, think about it. That would explain her shaved hair and why she’s so crazy.” 

Dustin is still hung up on the clothing thing. “Why she went like…” He makes the same gesture as before. 

“She’s an escapee is the point. She’s probably a psycho.” 

Dustin’s jaw drops as he makes a sudden connection. “Like Michael Myers.” 

“Exactly! We should’ve never brought her here!”

Dustin brings both of his hands up to his hat, sliding it farther down on his head and hiding his eyes, abashed. Lucas, though still adamant in his— extremely valid— reaction, is similarly hunched, and an undercurrent of guilt makes itself known in his stomach at the fact that she’s actually here to hear what he’s saying, barely a few seats away. Still, suspicion and guilt twist erratically in his head. 

Mike rolls his eyes, letting out a large huff. “So you just wanted to leave her out in that storm?”

“Yes. We went out to find Will, not another problem.” 

“I think we should tell your mom.” Dustin announces, his mouth set in a firm line. 

“I second that.” 

Mike gapes. “Who’s crazy now?” 

“How is that crazy??” 

“‘Cause, we weren’t supposed to be out tonight, remember?” 

Lucas shrugs. “So?”

“So, if I tell my mom, and she tells your mom, and your mom—” He glances at Dustin, whose expression falls. 

“Oh, man…” He lets out. 

“Our houses become Alcatraz.” Lucas finishes, looking dejected. 

“Exactly. We’ll never find Will.” 

The silence from The Party is tense. Will avoids the feeling of Dustin and Lucas’s eyes on him, frowning at his feet. Mike crosses his arms and sinks into his seat, the tag of his shirt moving up and chafing against his neck.

How does this all happen within the next two days?! He internally groans. 

Lucas crosses his arms, pursing his lips in thought. Dustin takes on a similar stance as they all wrack their brains for what to do. 

Mike is the one to speak up. “All right, here’s the plan. She sleeps here tonight.”

“You’re letting a girl—” 

He cuts Dustin off hastily. “Just listen!” He takes a breath. “In the morning, she sneaks around my house, goes to the front door, and rings my doorbell. My mom will answer and know exactly what to do. She’ll send her back to Pennhurst or wherever she comes from. We’ll be totally in the clear. And tomorrow night, we go back out. And this time, we find Will.” 

Eleven feels her heart jump at his words, hands shaking slightly.  She can’t go back—not to the bad men. And definitely not to Papa. She lets out a small, choked breath, digging her nails into her palm. She doesn’t know how she got out, but she doesn’t want to go back. Now or anytime in the future. El inhales slowly, though her breaths are still uneven. She feels sick. 

“Mike, I don’t think…” Nancy begins before stopping short. There are still too many unknown variables going on; who’s to say what will happen if he tries that plan? And plus…she readjusts her hair, all too aware of the fact that the Eleven girl is only a few seats away. She sighs, shaking her head as she quiets and grabs Steve’s hand. 

Jesus. Hopper thinks to himself. His head is starting to hurt, a throbbing pain aches just above his eyebrows. Just how long will they have to wait before they actually know what’s going on? He wishes he had access to…something. A notepad, a recorder. Anything to log everything they’re seeing, to try and rewatch and put it together. They don’t even have a TV remote. 

For now, this is all just guesswork. 

Soon after, Lucas and Dustin walk up the stairs, watching as Mike helps Eleven settle in. A small blanket fort now formed for her to sleep in. 

“Here you go. This is my sleeping bag…” 

Dustin looks toward his friend. “You really think she’s psycho?” 

Lucas continues watching the scene in front of him for a few seconds, frowning. He shakes his head. “Wouldn’t want her in my house.” 

As he walks up the stairs, Dustin looks back at Mike and Eleven below, Mike now helping her adjust the sleeping bag comfortably. 

He sighs. “Mental.” 

With both of his friends now gone, Mike and Eleven are the only two left in the basement. He’s crouched in front of the fort while she finishes shifting the bag. “Hey, um, I never asked for your name.” 

Eleven stops messing with the sleeping bag, peering up at him, she slowly rolls up her sleeve. Her wrist reads clear as day: 011. 

Seeing the tattoo again, and much clearer, causes Joyce to hunch over, her shoulders hiking up slightly, she picks at a hangnail as she thinks, wincing when she pulls it too hard and it stings. She opts for crossing her arms tightly instead.

Mike’s eyes widen, and he leans forward with a hand stretched out, curiosity overwhelming him. “Is that real?” 

Eleven quickly snatches back her wrist, clearly startled by his sudden change in demeanor. 

Mike pulls back as well at her reaction, he gives her a small, apologetic smile. 

“Sorry, I’ve just…never seen a kid with a tattoo before. What’s it mean? Eleven?” 

Eleven stares at him for a beat before pointing at herself, eyes dour.

“That’s your name?” 

She nods quietly, glancing down and messing with her hands. 

“Eleven. Okay.” Mike fumbles on what to say next. “Um, well, my name’s Mike. Short for Michael.” He turns his head up, a small spark in his eyes. “Maybe we can call you “El.” Short for Eleven.”

Eleven continues to stare at him before nodding once more. 

“Um, well, okay. ‘Night, El.” Mike stands up, grabbing the top of the blanket fort and laying it over the entrance to cover it. 

“‘Night, Mike.” 

Mike takes slow steps towards the light switch, glancing at the blanket fort before shutting the overhead light off. He takes quick steps up the stairs and out of the basement.  

El hears him walk away as she tentatively lies down, her face slightly scrunched as her lip starts to quiver. The sound of thunder in the back makes her flinch, and a single tear falls from her eye. 

The scene changes, it’s presumably the next day, and the Byers house is shown amongst old trees and brown, dying grass. 

Inside, Jonathan is scooping food onto plates as Joyce sits hunched at the table. Cigarette smoke fills the air as it burns in her hand. 

“All right, Mom. Breakfast is ready.” Holding two plates in his hands, he goes to set them down on the table. 

Joyce jolts, frazzled. “What—? Uh, no, be careful of the poster...” She hastily moves the stack of papers aside.

“Yeah, okay, all right—” 

“...I can’t eat.” She breathes out. 

Jonathan isn’t swayed. “I just need you to eat, Mom.”

Joyce takes a deep breath, sniffling slightly as she looks up. “Listen. Listen, the Xerox place opens in, like, 30 minutes.” 

“Yeah.” 

“And I don’t want you to go alone, so I…” 

“No, no, I know, I told you, I got it.”

“...so I’m gonna have Karen take you, ‘cause I should be here.” 

“Okay.” 

Joyce takes another breath. “We need to make, what, 200, 300 copies?” Her eyebrows furrow. “How much is a copy?” 

Jonathan nods, his expression downcast as Joyce continues to ramble anxiously. His face twists. “Yeah, okay.” 

“Ten cents?” 

“Okay, Mom. Mom–”

“If we…Ten cents…” Joyce looks down at the money in her hand, stammering. 

“Mom. Mom. Mom!” Jonathan places his hand down on top of hers, cutting off her distressed prattling. Joyce looks back up at him, her face falling. Her eyes close in resignation, she drops the money and scrubs her hand across her face, shamefaced.

“You…you can’t get like this, okay?” His voice shakes as he moves his hand to her shoulder. 

Joyce bites her lip, blinking harshly. Guilt weighs heavily on her chest. Wordlessly, she gently places her hand on Jonathan’s head, leaning over and giving him a small, apologetic kiss on his temple. His shoulders relax from their tense position, but only slightly. 

Next to her, Will bites the inside of his cheek. Downcast, he looks back down at his shoes. He feels awful for making Jonathan and his mom so miserable. 

Joyce purses her lips, dried tears on her face. “I’m sorry. I’m sorry. I’m...” 

“No, it’s okay.” 

She goes to take a drag from her cigarette before a loud knock sounds from her door. She looks up instantly, snuffing the cigarette and rushing over to open the front door.

Hopper stands at the porch, looking down and away from Joyce. He twists his hat in his hands.

She lets out a shaky sigh. “We’ve been waiting six hours.” 

“I know. I came as soon as I could.” He responds quietly, closing the door behind him. 

“Six hours.” 

“A little bit of trust here, all right?” Hopper continues to fidget with his hat—hesitant—though his voice is firm. 

“We’ve been searching all night. All the way to Cartersville.” He licks his lips, glancing away from Joyce and back.

“And?” 

“Nothing.” 

Joyce’s face crumples as she brings her trembling hand up to her mouth, turning away from Hopper. “God…” Her voice breaks. 

“Flo says you got a phone call?” Hopper asks, frowning. 

“Oh, yeah.” Her voice is still broken, short of breath, as she walks over to stand across from the phone and next to a silent Jonathan, crossing her arms as she does so. Hopper follows close behind. 

He reaches out, grabbing the phone off its base. Noting the burnt, black and charred smudges on the speaker. “Storm barbecued this pretty good.” He lets out a quiet breath. 

Joyce uncrosses her tense arms, staring at Hopper with her eyes wide in bafflement. “...The storm?” 

Hopper looks back at her, confusion painting his face. “What else?” 

Joyce’s voice raises slightly in anxiety, her head shaking back and forth as she tries to elaborate. “You’re saying that— that’s…not…” She flings her hand out, gesturing to the phone still in Hopper’s grasp. “...weird?” 

A beat. “...No, it’s weird.” Hopper agrees, putting it back onto the wall. 

Finally, Jonathan speaks up. “Can we, like, trace who made the call? Contact the…?” He trails off.

“No, it doesn’t work like that.” Hopper leans against the wall, breathing heavily, before he asks his next question. 

“Now, uh, you’re sure it was Will? Because Flo said you just heard some breathing.”

“No. It was him. It was Will.” Joyce’s eyes well with tears as she speaks, her already shaky stature turning more erratic. She struggles to say her next few words. 

“And…he was…scared. And then…something—” 

“It was probably just a prank call. It was somebody trying to scare you.” 

Joyce stammers low denials before Jonathan cuts in. “Who would do that?” 

“Well, this thing’s been on TV. It brings out all the crazies, you know. False leads, prank calls, uh…” 

“No, Hopper, it was not a prank. It was him.”

“Joyce,” Hopper tries. 

She doesn’t let him deter her, her voice closely veering into shouting territory. Despite her anxieties and stress, she’s firm in what she heard. “Come on, how about a little trust here?” Her breath trembles. 

“What, you think I’m…I’m making this up?” 

“I’m not saying that you’re making it up. All I’m saying is it’s an emotional time for you.” Hopper responds slowly, trying to placate her. 

“And you think I don’t know my own son’s breathing?” She stares wildly at Hopper, eyes boring into his face. “Wouldn’t you know your own daughter’s?” 

Hopper lets out an achingly slow breath, blinking to try and dispel the sudden blurriness in his eyes. He ends up squeezing them shut, sniffing. He blinks them back open and leans back in his seat, slouching. 

Joyce feels shame lance through her body. It’s a low, low blow to go there. She knows that. But…she also knows she’s right. There’s no mistaking what she had heard on the phone, she couldn’t be swayed to believe anything else. Bringing up Sarah probably wasn’t the best thing for Hopper, she’s aware she likely blurted it out from lack of sleep and agitation, but she also knows it was to help get her point across. To stress how genuine she’s being. Still, she looks over at Hopper, feeling her chest twist at his expression. 

Hopper’s nostrils flare, and his mouth closes in a grim frown. Quietly, he stares at Joyce. She looks away, lips pursed, and crosses her arms, her shoulders still trembling. He looks down, face wrinkling as he clenches his teeth. Slowly, he takes a few steps away, showing his back to Jonathan and Joyce. 

When he turns back a few moments later, his eyes are shining, wet with unshed tears. “You hear from, uh, Lonnie yet?” His voice unmistakably wavers as he changes the topic. He tries to ignore it.

Joyce sniffles, scowling. “No.” She brings up a hand to wipe at her eyes. 

At her response, Hopper quickly puts his hat back on, taking fast, hard steps toward the front door. “It’s been long enough. I’m having him checked out.”

“Oh, come on!” Joyce lets out a disbelieving sigh. “You’re wasting your time.” 

Her complaints are fruitless. Hopper steps out of the house and toward his car.

Now outside, Hopper takes yet another one of those small, unknown pills. Jonathan opens the front door and walks up behind him, calling his name. Hopper’s eyes close in frustration. He turns around. Jonathan’s expression is serious, unflinching at the strained atmosphere.

“Let me go.”

Hopper’s shoulders are tense, expression hard. His response is stiff, measured. “I’m sorry?”

“To Lonnie’s.” 

Joyce feels her neck crack with how fast she turns her head. Jonathan avoids her eyes, bouncing his leg. 

Hopper fishes a hand through his shirt pocket, pulling out a box of cigarettes as Jonathan stumbles over his words. He places a cigarette into his mouth, eyebrows furrowed.

“You…you know, if…if Will’s there, it means he ran away. And…if he sees the cops, he’ll think he’s in trouble. He’ll…he’ll hide. You know, he’s good at hiding.”

“Yeah?” Hopper asks, coming up to grab Jonathan by the shoulders. “Well, cops are good at finding. Okay? Stay here with your mom.” He lightly punches Jonathan on the shoulder. Letting him go, he walks to open his car door. “She needs you.” 

Back at the Wheelers’ house, four waffles pop up from the toaster. Mike hastily grabs a couple, shoving them in his jacket pocket. He places the other two on an actual plate. 

At the dining table, he rushes to finish his breakfast, taking an alarming number of bites in an incredibly short amount of time. Nancy glances over at him, face scrunching in distaste as she cuts into her own breakfast. Karen glances over as well before going back to her own food. 

When Mike shoves the rest of the waffle in his mouth without pause, Nancy has had enough. “Slow down, Mike. That’s disgusting.” 

Mike pauses, turning over to face her. “You do a lot of studying last night?” He asks loudly. 

Nancy’s own chewing slows. She raises her eyebrows. “Yeah, actually, I did.” 

Mike rolls his eyes. Yeah, right. He wants to gag at the memory from earlier. He shakes his upper body and sticks out his tongue in a silent blegh. 

“What was your test on again? Human anatomy?” 

At this, Nancy fully stops, sending Mike a dark glare. She sets her jaw, kicking him under the table. He kicks right back, harsher. If possible, Nancy’s glare deepens.

Karen sits up straighter. “Hey, what’s going on?” 

The two siblings both stop their petty jabs to hesitantly turn towards their Mother. Then, simultaneously: “Nothing.” 

Downstairs in the basement, El fiddles with Mike’s walkie-talkie, crunching static rings out as she twists the tiny knobs. Small footsteps approach the blanket fort and the blanket covering the front of it lifts, revealing Mike. Seeing the walkie-talkie in her hands, he grins. 

“Hey, you found my supercomm. Pretty cool, huh? I talk to my friends with it. Mostly Lucas, ‘cause he lives so close.” He tsks, looking at El. “Signal’s pretty weak.” He chuckles.

Eleven doesn’t give a response, simply blinking up at Mike. He switches topics, grabbing the waffles from earlier that he had haphazardly shoved in his pockets.

“Got you breakfast.” 

Nancy’s nose scrunches. She hopes that that jacket is clean. 

El doesn’t hesitate, grabbing the waffle from his outstretched hand. She bites into it, still staring at the supercomm as she chews thoughtfully. Mike points near the back door, ready to put his plan in motion. 

“So, listen, this is gonna sound a little weird, but I just need you to go out there.” 

She turns her head over to where he’s pointing, tensing slightly. She looks back toward him, unsure. Undeterred, he continues. 

“Then go to the front door and ring the doorbell. My mom will answer, and you’ll tell her that you’re lost and that you need help. But whatever you do, you can’t tell her about last night, or that you know me.” He shrugs, giving her a hesitant smile. “Understand?” 

El continues chewing, giving Mike an unblinking, suspicious once-over. Her eyes are still slightly wide. Mike doesn’t catch on to her nervousness, talking again despite her silence. 

“Really, it’s no big deal. We’ll just…pretend to meet each other again. And my mom, she’ll know who to call.” 

“No.”

His face falls, confused. “No?”

El shakes her head, again, she repeats: “No.” 

“No…you don’t want my mom to get help?” 

El is unyielding. She shakes her head once more.

Mike’s eyebrows furrow, anxiety in his gut. “You’re in trouble, aren’t you?”

Silence.

“Who…who’re you in trouble with?” 

El stares off, sombre. Finally, she whispers. “Bad.”

“Bad?” Mike asks. “Bad people?”

El’s following nod is heavy, her mouth set in a grim line. 

“They want to hurt you? The bad people?”

El brings her hand toward her head, contorted into the shape of a gun. She points her hand at her temple before facing it towards Mike. He stares at her hand, unsure of what to do. El lowers her hand back to the floor. She lets out a breath. 

“Understand?” 

Lucas’s mouth drops. He can see Dustin next to him doing the same. Fear, hot and intense, burns in his throat and down to his stomach. They’d already seen men chasing after her at the diner, weapons in hand, but it feels…different, now. More cemented. Heavier and real. The fact that they’re hiding her, not just from the men but from their parents…who knows what could happen if they find out? 

If anyone were to find out, the men from the lab would know immediately. They bugged the phones. If Mrs. Wheeler was to discover her, and tell his mom…Lucas’s stomach turns. He thinks back to how that woman had shown up at Benny’s. She’d killed him, not a care in the world.

We won’t find Will. We won’t be able to go anywhere. We’ll get in trouble. Deep, deep trouble. 

Mike gapes at her, unsettled. He’s about to respond, but before he can, Karen’s voice sounds. 

“Michael, where are you? We’re going to be late. Let’s go!”

He flings his hands up, stammering as he gets up and grabs the top of the blanket fort. “All right, I’ll— I’ll be back. Just stay here, okay? Stay here.” He covers the entrance of the fort back up once more, rushing upstairs and leaving El alone. 

El listens as his footsteps fade, an anxious set to her jaw. She stares at the floor. 

Suddenly, Dr. Brenner is back, walking through the halls of Hawkins Lab, shoving on a jacket over his shoulders. He walks with purpose. Two others follow him from behind, the woman from Benny’s, and another man.

“When was this?”

“Last night. Less than two miles away.” The woman reports.

Dr. Brenner adjusts his watch. “And the boy?” 

The man answers him this time. They all turn a sharp corner. “Still missing.” 

At the sudden mention of who he can only assume to be himself, Will startles, sitting up straighter than he has in ages. His hands dig into the cushion of his seat. Everyone else seems to be in a similar boat; his mother, in particular, having snapped to attention the moment the question left Dr. Brenner’s mouth. 

The grotesque imagery of the —slimy, dark, pulsing as if it was alive— door in the lab from earlier, mixed with the noises Hopper heard in the barren Byers shed has Joyce narrowing her eyes at the man on screen. He knows Eleven, the poor girl, obviously running and terrified of going back to wherever he had her, and now he knows about Will. She feels a harsh, violent anger overtake her the longer she thinks about what his role must be in all of this. 

The only reprieve, it seems, is that he’s not here.

Will, noticing his mother’s expression, frowns. He hesitates, picking at his nails, before he leans his head on her shoulder. 

It’s—weird, he thinks. Surreal, to have to watch this. Seeing his family break down over his disappearance, his friends determined to find him, but now also grappling with the sudden arrival of El. All the while, despite the constant change of setting, he has yet to actually see himself and where exactly he went. 

He’s not…hiding, as far as he’s aware. At least, not from his family. He definitely didn’t choose to leave…that much is…strikingly clear. They all saw it. Will knows that Hopper going to Lonnie’s won't do much of anything. It’s terribly, horribly obvious that there’s something…else happening. Something supernatural. Even so, a small, foolishly hopeful thought forms. 

 Maybe he got away from the monster that had taken him. Maybe he just got lost trying to find his way back. Maybe he’s on his way, right now. Exhausted and scared, but okay and coming back home. 

Will wraps his arms around his Mother’s, his eyes prickling. 

Now sitting in a new room, chunky headphones held over his ears, Dr. Brenner listens to what can only be a recording of Joyce’s distressed report about the mysterious phone call from the night before. 

“It was my son. I—I know it. And…I…I heard something else.” 

At the admission, Brenner glances up at his co-workers, something unreadable in his eyes. He continues to listen intently.

Flo’s voice is heard next. “Something else?”

Joyce stammers. “Yeah—” Her voice cracks. “It…it was like, uh, s…some kind of animal— I don’t…I don’t know,” Her voice takes on a harder edge. “Just…please tell Hop to hurry.”

The reminder that people are actively listening to and recording the phone calls in Hawkins leaves a bad taste in Hopper’s mouth. There’s no telling how deep this all goes, or how long whatever it actually is has been going on. He clenches his jaw, running a rough hand through his hair. 

Dead, broken leaves litter the forest floors as the screen cuts to another search party. Dozens of volunteers walk through snapping twigs and decaying weeds as they yell out Will’s name. Dogs bark in the distance at the loud shouts. Officer Powell and Callahan weave along the trees before Hopper comes into view. 

“Hey!” He calls. “Anything?” 

 Callahan shakes his head, and the two officers stop at Hopper’s approach. “You?” 

“No, nothing but a dead phone.” He slips off his hat. 

“Joyce?” Callahan questions. 

“About one step from falling off the edge.”

“She’s been a few steps for a while now, hasn’t she?” Powell retorts. 

Jonathan resists the urge to scoff. He crosses his arms, leaning back in his seat. Joyce licks her lips and purses them, closing her eyes for a few beats before opening them again. She clears her throat and squares her shoulders. 

Hopper scowls, the lines around his mouth deepen. “Kid’s missing, man. Show a little class.” The conversation ends, short and flat. He walks ahead, calling to the search party. 

“All right. Come on, let’s go! We got a lot of ground to cover.”

Callahan and Powell watch as he walks off, deeper into the forest. The search party moves ahead of them. Callahan leans towards Powell with his hands on his hips. 

“The chief and her, they’ve screwed before, huh?” 

Will feels his face screw up, mouth pulled back into a disgusted grimace. Ew. Ew. Next to him, Joyce cringes, scoffing under her breath in offense. 

Powell squints at him and doesn’t bother responding. He shakes his head, turning to catch up with the search party as he calls for Will. 

Callahan stumbles as he moves to follow along. “...That a “yeah” or did they…” He trails off. Clearly thinking better of continuing that train of thought, he begins calling for Will again, too. 

Now, at Hawkins High School, students walk along the perimeter, chatting with their friends as music blares from cars pulling into the parking lot, while others rush to go to their respective classes. 

In one of the halls, Barb and Nancy walk side by side. Barb reads off a list of flashcards, Nancy listening along with deep focus. 

“When alpha particles go through gold foil, they become…” She flips the card around. 

“Unoccupied space.” 

Barb nods, grabbing and flipping the next card—

—Steve appears suddenly, snatching the cards right out of Barb’s hands. She looks up sharply. Nancy admonishes him with a small hey! Steve only makes a small noise in response, stopping by the nearby lockers. 

Oh, goody. Mike sours.

Tommy H. and Carol are never far behind, and Tommy quickly brushes his hand behind Barb’s ear as he goes to stand by the other boy. Barb pauses, bringing her hand up to graze where he touched her ear, uncomfortable. 

“I think you’ve studied enough, Nance.” Steve declares, sorting through the stolen flashcards. 

“Steve—” 

“I’m telling you, you know, you got this.” He smacks the cards, sure of himself. “Don’t worry. Now, on to more important matters. My dad has left on a town conference and my mom’s gone with him, ‘cause, you know, she doesn’t trust him—” He says, putting the cards in his pocket. 

“Good call.” Tommy cuts in, a smarmy grin on his face. Steve gives him an amused glance.

“So, are you in?” He looks back at Nancy with a hopeful smile.

Nancy furrows her eyebrows. “In for what?”

“No parents? Big house?” Carol replies, raising her eyebrows and waiting for Nancy to connect the dots.

“A party?” 

“Ding, ding, ding!” 

Steve is still smiling, but Nancy is hesitant. “It’s…Tuesday.” 

Tommy laughs meanly in disbelief. “It’s Tuesday!” He mocks. “Oh, my god—” 

Steve lightly smacks him, but Tommy keeps laughing anyway, Carol eventually joining in. Nancy’s face falls slightly before Steve interrupts. 

“Come on. It’ll be low-key. It’ll just be us.” He places his hands on his hips. “What do you say? Are you in or are you out?” 

Nancy looks down, considering. “Um…” 

“Oh, God.” Carol cuts in. Staring off in a different direction, a look of distaste on her face. “Look.” She gestures with her head. 

The group’s eyes follow where she gestured to and Steve blinks. “Oh, God, that’s depressing.”

They all watch as Jonathan, a few feet away, carefully hangs up a missing poster on the school bulletin board. Nancy frowns. “Should we say something?” 

Carol gives Nancy a sharp look. “I don’t think he speaks.” 

An evil grin forms on Tommy’s face, eyes scrunching with displaced mirth. “How much you wanna bet he killed him?” 

Jonathan’s face contorts into a sneer, his chest tight like something heavy has been placed on top of him. He’s used to being alone and having other teenagers find him off putting, he’s no stranger to others whispering around him, thinking he can’t hear their condescending jabs, but even the sheer idea that Jonathan would ever even want to hurt Will makes his entire body thrum in anger. 

He lays his head back against the chair and rubs at his eyes. He watches the dark ceiling, the shadows twisting and turning into random shapes. He swallows through a harsh lump in his throat and pointedly ignores the TV.

Steve pushes him lightly, face screwed up. “Shut up.” He shakes his head, still looking at Jonathan. 

Nancy grimaces and bites the inside of her lip before making a decision. She walks over to Jonathan, leaving the group behind. 

“Hey,” 

Jonathan, not having heard her walk up, startles, turning to look at her. He blinks.

“Oh, hey.”

“I just…” She pauses, trying to think of what to say. She stares at the poster. “HAVE YOU SEEN ME” in big, bold letters glares at her, clear as day. “I just wanted to say, you know, um…I’m sorry about everything.” 

Jonathan stares at her, giving a barely noticeable shrug before he sees the group Nancy was with a few feet away from them, watching. Nancy follows his gaze. Steve looks away immediately, while Tommy lifts a slow hand in a lazy, stiff sort of wave. Carol gives him a small shake of her head, eyebrows raised in a what are you looking at? motion.

At this, Nancy turns back to Jonathan. “Everyone’s…thinking about you.” She offers. 

Jonathan is still silent, looking down awkwardly. Nancy continues. “It sucks.”

“Yeah.” He breathes, shoulders hunching in on himself. 

Nancy glances at the poster again. “I’m sure he’s fine.” She emphasizes. “He’s a smart kid.” 

Jonathan looks like he wants to respond, but the bell rings loudly, noise filling the halls. Nancy swallows. “I have to go.” she smiles. “Chemistry test.” 

He gives her a small, polite smile in return, huffing a barely audible laugh. “Yeah.” 

“Good luck.” She finishes, walking back towards the group.

“Thanks.”

Students all rush to their classes, leaving Jonathan alone in the hall. An announcement starts over the speakers.

“Attention, faculty and students. At 8:00 pm tonight, there will be an assembly on the football field in support of Will Byers and his family.”

 Jonathan smooths out the poster on the board one last time, and leaves as quickly as he came, the metal door closing slowly behind him.

“All are encouraged to attend. Volunteer sign-ups for search parties are still available in the office.” 

The door shuts with a loud BANG! 

At the same time, now in Hawkins Middle School, Lucas sets his textbook onto his desk with a BAM! He takes his seat, letting out a sigh. Dustin sits down next to him, moving to take off his backpack. He pauses. 

“Oh, this is weird.” He says, looking over at where Mike usually sits. The seat is still empty. “He’s never this late.” 

Lucas huffs. “I’m telling you, his stupid plan failed.”

“I thought you liked his plan?” 

“Yeah, but obviously it was stupid, or he’d be here.”

“If his mom found out a girl spent the night—”

“He’s in deep shit right about now.”

Dustin jolts, quieting his voice to whisper. “Hey, what if she slept naked?”

Oh, no. Oh, God…Dustin sinks in his seat, his face starting to flame as it turns a glowing red. The Party all peer at him, faces scrunched in different expressions of distaste. El’s own face contorts, cringing silently. 

“Dude—”

Dustin shoves his hat so far onto his face the only thing visible is the end of his chin. His muffled voice raises, ringing out. 

“Shut up, oh my God.”  

Small, mortified “oh my God’s” fill the room; Dustin doing his best impression of a turtle trying to hide in its shell.

“Why is that where your mind goes—!?” 

“—Oh my God…Mike! Shut. Up.”

Mike, Will, and Lucas all share a disturbed look, laying back into their seats as they grimace. Lucas rolls his eyes so hard they hurt.

“...Dude, stop saying “oh my God” so we can finish watching!” Lucas asserts, lightly smacking Dustin on the shoulder. 

Dustin hastily rips his hat off of his face to smack Lucas back, offended by the sudden hit. 

“Don’t hit me!”

Smack!

“Then stop! Talking!”

Smack!

Their arguing turns nonsensical as they slap each other’s hands, words becoming unintelligible as they speak over each other. 

“You are so immature—!” 

“Me?! You’re the one who hit me first—!!” 

“You’re the one who interrupted the TV, and you’re hitting me harder—!!!!” 

Everyone in the room watches them, varying levels of annoyance, confusion, and impatience on their faces. Mike—not even wanting to try to cut into whatever is happening, thank you—rolls his eyes, looking back at the screen. It seems to randomly pause anytime someone talks aloud. So, at the worst moments, naturally. Lucas and Dustin don’t seem to be slowing down nor stopping their incessant bickering and childish hand slapping. He shares an exhausted look with Will. 

Hopper drags a hand over his face, taking in slow, very calm breaths. He cannot believe he is stuck in a room surrounded by giggly teenagers and incredibly chatty twelve-year olds. Glancing over, he makes eye contact with Joyce. She looks a bit more endeared at the petty squabbling than annoyed, but she gives him a tired smile. 

Steve, meanwhile, ducks down toward Nancy’s ear, his arm wrapped around her shoulders. 

“How long does this usually go on for?” He whispers, staring off at Lucas and Dustin like they’re some weird, quirky hallucination. They’ve gone from slapping each other’s hands to trying to see who can list more comic issues. 

Nancy turns to face him, blinking as she purses her lips. 

“Um,” She looks toward the arguing pair again, and back to Steve. “I don’t…know? They’re really pushing it though.” Aiming a quick glance over at her brother, she can feel the irritation coming off of him in waves. His arms are crossed and his shoulders are hiked up to his ears as Dustin shouts a garbled Incredible Hulk 271! She lets out an amused puff of air. 

“Mm.” Steve nods, squinting. “I just figured, since, you know, I guess they hang out at your house all the time, that they do it a lot.” He shrugs. “You know?” 

Nancy falters. “Oh,” She fiddles with the tie in her hair. “Well, I mean…I guess so? I— they’re my brother's friends. I don’t really…I mean you saw earlier, I don’t hang out with them.” 

Steve starts to grin, teasing. “Right. Because you’re studying.” He sighs, wistful. “Always studying...” 

Nancy bites back a lovesick grin. It shouldn’t be so endearing—she can practically see Barb in her head going Nance, come on! She’d be rolling her eyes so hard Nancy would worry they’d get stuck, and she’d have a disbelieving half-smile on her face…despite herself, Nancy lets out a small, short laugh that borders on a giggle. She shakes her head, settling it down onto Steve’s shoulder instead of responding. 

Mike is seriously debating just leaning over and throttling both of his friends, when finally, mercifully, their shouting finally stops. Both of them seem to have given up on their weird, spiraling argument, chests heaving from exertion. They both give each other challenging glares before simultaneously flopping back against their seats, clearly calling some temporary truce. 

Will snickers, bringing up a hand to cover his mouth. 

Lucas barely resists rolling his eyes. “She didn’t.”

Dustin pinches the bridge of his nose, distraught. “Oh, if Mrs. Wheeler tells my parents…”

Lucas sits up straighter at that. “No way. Mike would never rat us out.”

Dustin isn’t too confident. “I don’t know,” 

“All that matters is, after school, the freak will be back in the loony bin, and we can focus on what really matters,” Lucas stresses. “Finding Will.” At that, he opens his textbook, flipping through its pages before class starts.

Dustin stares off, still dejected. 

Outside, on her way back from dropping Mike off at school, Karen drives down the road, off to run errands, pointedly not noticing her son hiding behind a large tree. As soon as her car is out of view, Mike carefully bikes down the road and back to his house. 

Walking around the house, he shows El around. The fear of his parents seeing her now thankfully gone…for a few hours, at least. “You want anything to drink?” He walks toward the kitchen. “We have OJ, skim milk, what else…”

El looks around the living room, eyes catching on the large TV. Mike turns, noticing her interest. He smiles, placing his hands on top of the TV box. “Oh, this is my living room. It’s mostly just for watching TV.”

El touches the grooves and buttons on the TV, curious. Mike continues on. “Nice, right? It’s a 22-inch. That’s, like, ten times bigger than Dustin’s.” 

She looks over at the far wall, something piquing her interest once again. Baby photos and present photos alike sit on a shelf with barely any dust littering them. She steps closer, standing on her tip-toes to peer at them. She smiles at a photo of Nancy. 

“Pretty.” 

Miffed, Mike’s face screws up. “I guess. That’s my sister Nancy.” As El moves to look at a photo of a blonde infant: “And that’s baby Holly.” And then she moves to look at the family photo of all of them together. “And those are my parents. What are your parents like?”

Nancy’s appreciative smile at the compliment drops immediately into a glower at Mike’s response. Asshole. Steve snorts next to her before putting his hands up placatingly at her offended look. 

Done looking at the photos, El steps back down. 

“Do they live close?” Mike wonders. 

She doesn’t answer, instead looking curiously at the La-Z-Boy. 

“That’s our La-Z-Boy.” A beat. “It’s where my dad sleeps.” He awkwardly smiles. “You can try it if you want.” 

El glances down hesitantly, slowly making her way to sit. 

“Yeah,” Mike crouches down to the side of the La-Z-Boy, grabbing the small lever. “It’s fun.” He looks at El, not wanting to startle her with the sudden, jostling movement. He pauses. “Just trust me, okay?” 

El nods, laying back. Mike pulls the lever and the seat reclines suddenly, bouncing back and forth slightly. El lets out a nervous laugh as Mike smiles. 

“See? Fun, right?” He brings the seat back up, still smiling. “Now, you try.” 

Taking the invitation, El leans over and grabs the lever, activating it herself. The seat reclines back suddenly again, making her fully laugh this time as she bounces back and forth. The pair laugh together, a small, comforting moment compared to the unease of everything else. 

Mike feels a small and cautious grin form. Lucas’s judgements and future potentially dangerous situations aside, she seems nice, fun even, despite her timidness. She’d probably get along with Will, he can be pretty quiet. He actually seems to prefer it sometimes. Mike’s smile starts to fade. He gulps at the reminder that Will won’t meet El in the future. Not yet, if ever. Mike wilts.

 Needing some form of comfort, knowing Will hasn’t vanished yet, that he won’t as far as Mike can help it—he presses their shoulders together. He relaxes minutely when Will gently presses back a moment later.

Back with Jonathan, he drives down a road, rock music loudly playing from the speakers. He doesn’t appear to fully be listening, his expression is blank, his mind is somewhere else, thinking. The rock song ends, and another starts up. Guitar rings out in a familiar pattern. He looks down at the radio, eyebrows furrowing.

That same song—Should I Stay or Should I Go—continues to play, but inside of Jonathan’s room from his stereo. Will is nodding his head along with the music, sitting hunched over on the edge of his brother’s bed. Jonathan nods along with him as the lyrics play. 

Darling, you’ve got to let me know.

Should I stay or should I go?

Jonathan glances over at his brother, speaking over the music. “You like it?”

Will smiles, head still moving along with the beat. “Yeah, it’s cool.”

“All right, you can keep the mix if you want.” He offers.

Will brightens. “Really?” 

“Yeah, really.” Jonathan explains. “All the best stuff’s on there. Joy Division, Bowie, Television, The Smiths…” He smiles. “It’ll totally change your life.”

“Yeah, totally.”

Joyce’s muffled voice can be heard, echoing through the walls and over the music. The sweet moment is soured at hearing her argue with Lonnie over the phone. Will’s smile falls as he turns toward the door. Jonathan is quick to get up, gently shutting his door closed. He sits back next to Will, lowering the music. 

“He’s not coming, is he?” 

“Do you even like baseball?”

Will stares at the stereo, considering, before he shrugs weakly. “No, but…I don’t know. It’s fun to go with him sometimes.”

“Come on.” Jonathan’s voice lowers. “Has he ever done anything with you that you actually like?” He asks. “You know, like the arcade or something?”

Will helplessly shrugs again. “I don’t know.” 

“No, all right? He hasn’t. He’s trying to force you to like normal things.” Jonathan’s eyes narrow, shaking his head. “And you shouldn’t like things because people tell you you’re supposed to.” He looks back up at Will, searching. “Okay? Especially not him.”

Will nods silently, stewing in thought. Jonathan gestures towards his stereo. “But you like The Clash? For real?” He starts to smile. 

Will’s nodding turns more upbeat as he beams back. “For real. Definitely.”

With that, Jonathan turns the volume back up again. Both of them nodding their heads to the beat and smiling large, happy grins all the while. 

Should I cool it or should I blow?

The background vocals come in as Jonathan starts moving his hands, up and down quickly like he’s a drummer, he shakes his head back and forth, lively. 

Should I stay or should I go?

The memory ends, leaving Jonathan alone in his car once again, sullen. He drives by the large, LEAVING HAWKINS sign, and off toward Lonnie’s. 

Joyce’s eyes shut in resignation at the confirmation that he really is going to see Lonnie. Taking a heavy breath, she opens her eyes, wrapping her arm around Jonathan’s shoulder. There’s no use getting on him about it now, when this happens in the future. Even still, she slumps at the urge to try and fret over him anyway.

Future or not, she’s well within her rights to worry. 

Meanwhile, still in Hawkins, Joyce stumbles over to Melvad’s, the bell chiming as she walks in. She maneuvers around the aisles with purpose. 

Donald, her boss, startles at her arrival and moves to follow her. “Joyce, I wasn’t expecting you today. I brought Jeffrey in to cover.” 

Joyce squints at the shelves, searching. “I…I’m not here to work. I…” She lets out a haggard sigh. “The storm last night, I…” She sighs again, stopping. She turns around, earnest. “I need a new phone.” 

The cash register dings! The new phone lays on the checkout counter in its box. Donald brings up the price. “Okay, that looks like $22.56.” 

Joyce grimaces. “Uh…yeah, you know, uh…I gave Jonathan all my money for…for the copies of the posters…” She shuts her eyes, biting the bullet. “Uh, I need an advance.” 

Donald licks his lips, sympathetic. “Yes, well, of course. Of course.” 

Joyce silently mouths her thanks, watching as Donald writes. She stammers. “Yeah, uh, I was thinking, two weeks?” At this Donald looks up, dubious. She stares, eyes wide. 

Donald is careful in his response. “Yes, I understand, but, you know, I have to pay Jeffrey for covering—”

“Donald.” She cuts him off, unwavering. “I’ve been here…ten years, right? Have I ever called in sick or…or missed a shift once?” 

The man looks down, lips pursed, as Joyce talks. 

“I’ve worked, uh, Christmas Eve and Thanksgiving…” Her voice breaks, gesturing with her hand. “I don’t know where my boy is. He’s gone. I don’t know if I’m…gonna ever see him again, if he’s hurt…” She breathes in and out, looking back up at Donald. “I…I, uh….” She sighs. 

“I need this phone. And two weeks’ advance.” 

Donald closes his eyes, nodding in hesitant understanding. He leans back down to write again. Joyce glances down at the paper and up again. “...And a pack of Camels.” 

At the Byers’ house, a large man with a thick mustache and holding a clipboard in his arm knocks loudly on their front door. After a few seconds of silence, he tips slightly toward the nearby window, glancing in. With no answer, he lifts a walkie-talkie to his mouth. 

“We’re all clear.”

“Copy that”

Turning around, a large van sits in front of the Byers’ driveway. The van door slides open, familiar white boots and hazmat suits coming into view as they step out. All of them hold briefcases and wear masks on their faces. Dr. Brenner is the last to step out. 

Hopper feels a vein in his jaw tick. He leans forward, eyes focused. Just what the hell are they doing?

They all walk behind the house, close toward the shed. They meticulously survey the area, a faint beeping emanating from multiple detectors of some sort in each of their hands. Dr. Brenner walks closer and closer toward the shed, opening it and taking a step inside. The door shuts behind him. 

All of a sudden, the beeping from his device becomes louder, quicker. He turns to his right, moving a few steps toward whatever caused the sudden spike. Something slimy, oozing, can be heard in the darkness. Dr. Brenner squints, taking another step, as far as he can go in the cramped corners. The blinds of the shed have something on them, the source of the odd noise. It’s dark and almost reminiscent of flesh. It seeps downward. 

“Eugh…” Dustin wrinkles his nose. The Party all pull disgusted faces. 

“What is it?” Lucas asks.

Will’s earlier passing thought of potentially being taken through some gloopy, absolutely gross portal pushes insistently back into his brain. He shudders. 

Dr. Brenner is entranced as one of the other men comes up behind him, he doesn’t pay him any mind, staring at the substance without blinking. “Extraordinary.” He breathes.

“God, he’s creepy...” Steve mutters, raising his eyebrows and letting out a puff of air. 

Back with Mike and El, they now sit in his bedroom. He places a small Yoda figurine onto his table, making silly sound effects as he does so. “Ready are you? What knows you of ready?” He says, mimicking Yoda’s odd speech. “His name’s Yoda. He can use the Force to move things with his mind, like this.” 

In one quick motion, he shoves his other knick knacks off of the table. El glances off to the side, scanning the rest of the room. Mike continues to prattle on excitedly. He grabs a dinosaur figure next, unaware as El stands up, walking towards whatever has caught her attention. 

“Oh, this is my dinosaur, Rory.” He turns toward her, holding it up. “Look, he has a speaker in his mouth so he can roar.” He presses onto the button, showcasing the noise. 

El stops in front of Mike’s nightstand, crouching down to stare at a large trophy. Mike gets up to crouch beside her. He grins. “Oh, these are all my science fair trophies. We got first every year.” 

El’s eyes jump from trophy to trophy, the side of her mouth twitching in a small smile as Mike continues to talk in the background.

“Except for last year when we got third. Mr. Clarke said it was totally political.” 

Her eyes stop at a photo of Mike, Will, Lucas, and Dustin; all of them huddled around and holding a large trophy with large smiles on their faces. El’s face drops, her mouth dropped open in silent shock. Mike’s eyebrows furrow at her sudden switch in expression and—still looking stunned— El leans closer to the photo, bringing up a hand to point directly at Will. 

The Party all swing their heads over to look from the screen and back to El. Lucas’s eyes narrow. This is getting way too weird for him. Well, screw it, it’s been weird, getting weirder, really. It bears repeating. He subtly shifts his gaze toward Will, who’s busy awkwardly fidgeting with his jacket sleeves as he also tries to not–so-inconspicuously stare at Eleven. Lucas bites his lip so hard it hurts. They’re way out of their depth here. Both them and their on-screen counterparts. 

This time, he chooses to keep the thought to himself. 

Mike stares at her, serious. “You know Will? Did you see him? Last night? On the road?” 

Before he can question further and she can answer, the sound of a car pulling into the driveway alerts them both as Mike rushes to peek through his blinds, watching as Karen arrives back home. He turns back around toward El, panicked.

“We gotta go.” 

He hurriedly grabs her wrist, opening his door to rush them both back downstairs. Halfway down the steps, the front door opens, Karen entering with Holly in her arms and a grocery bag hanging from her wrist. “I got pizza and macaroni,” She mutters, Holly letting out a garbled sound of content. 

Mike, improvising, sprints back up the stairs with El. At the noise, Karen glances around, confused. “Ted? Is that you?”

“Just me, Mom!” Mike calls, still dragging El behind him. 

“Mike? What are you doing home?” 

“One second!” 

He comes to a stop in front of his closet, opening it as he pants from all of the running. He looks at El, gesturing towards the cramped space. “In here. I’ll be right back, okay?”

At this, El looks anxious, looking at the small space and back to Mike.

“Please, you have to get in, or my mom, she’ll find you.” He stresses. “Do you understand?” 

El still looks dubious. “I won’t tell her about you. I promise.” Mike adds. El’s eyebrows furrow in sudden confusion.

“Promise?” She questions.

“It means something that you can’t break. Ever.”

Karen calls again, voice louder. “Michael?” 

Mike stares at El, pleading. “Please?”

Her mouth opens and closes in anxiety before she lets out a small, accepting sigh. She slowly steps into the closet. Mike is quick to close it all the way, not seeing her eyes widen in sudden dread. Now alone in the dark closet, El’s breaths start coming out heavier and faster. 

She glances up and around the closet before blinking harshly, stepping backwards and farther into the dark in apprehension. She looks forward, eyes unseeing. Or perhaps, seeing too much as past memories drown her. 

Down a long, white hall, with sickly dim lights illuminating it, two men in uniform drag Eleven by her arms, carrying her down the hallway and past blank white doors. She’s back in a medical gown as she thrashes in their grip, legs kicking helplessly as she yells out behind her. 

Nancy gasps, her fist flying to her mouth. She presses her knuckles to her lips. Others in the room match her shock as unease buries the room. Nancy thinks she might choke on it. 

“Papa!” She screams, looking toward none other than Dr. Brenner. He watches the men drag her away, face unreadable. He ignores her calls, simply watching. 

“No!”

Hopper watches the scene through his eyebrows. He tilts his head low and bites down onto his bottom teeth. His molars grind against each other insistently. His neck feels sore from the constant pressure, he moves to crack it. He doesn’t look away from the TV once, cataloging the faces shown.

Dr. Brenner…

The men turn a corner, their expressions flat and uncaring. They pay no mind to her distress, their grips on her arms so harsh that their knuckles are white. They lead her down toward a dark door. Eleven struggles harder, terrified. The door opens. 

“No! No, no!” 

The men throw her into the room carelessly, already moving to close the door and lock her in. She lands roughly on the floor, rushing to get up before the door shuts. She gets to it a second too late, the metal door closing in finality and leaving her in darkness. She bangs her palm against the door, desperate. 

“Papa!” 

She yells out to him again and again, sobbing until she’s too exhausted to raise her voice. Her next call comes out wordlessly as her face crumbles. She sluggishly walks over to one of the corners of the suffocating space, sliding down the wall as she cries. 

In the present—back in Mike’s closet— El slides down the wall, too. Her eyes shut tight as she silently cries at the memory. 

Eleven feels her own eyes burn. A tight ball of dread hits her so strongly in her sternum, her chest feels like it’s on fire. She brings her knees up to her chest, breath hitching as she wraps her arms around herself. She’s still in her hospital gown, and the thin, scratchy fabric chafes against her upper arms and she feels them itch when a sudden cold breeze passes over her.  She sniffles quietly to herself, feeling a tear or three fall down her face. 

Joyce brings a hand up to her mouth in horror. The anger she had felt toward Dr. Brenner grows even stronger. She glances over to where Eleven sits, her heart aching at the sight of her. She’s still wearing that gown, and Joyce can still feel the slight, cool wind in the room from earlier. She must be freezing. Mind made up, Joyce stands, carefully walking to where Eleven sits. 

El’s face shoots up at the sound of steps coming near her, eyes wide. She blinks, trying to dispel the clouds in her vision. She clumsily wipes at the stray tears on her face. Despite Joyce’s earlier niceties, she feels her shoulders tense at her approach anyway. 

Joyce crouches down in front of her, a gentle smile on her face. “Hi,” She starts, carefully removing the jacket she currently has on. “I, um, well, I figured you may be cold.” She moves slowly, trying not to startle the young girl. Eleven watches her, nervous, but she doesn’t move away. “I’m sure you might need this more than I do.” She lays it gently across Eleven’s shoulders, her small smile never leaving her face. 

El stares at her. She brings her hand up, clutching at the warm, heavy fabric. It doesn’t feel too thick or suffocating, just warm. Soft and comforting. She feels her shoulders relax slightly. Before she can decide otherwise, she leans her head against it for a few seconds, savouring the cozy feeling, before quietly slipping her hands through the sleeves.  

She lets out a breath she didn’t know she was holding, and she feels her mouth turn up, a quaint, tentative smile on her face. 

“...Thank you.” She whispers, it’s barely audible, but Joyce seems to hear her anyway, and Joyce’s eyes scrunch at the corners as her smile grows. 

“Would you like to come sit closer?” Joyce asks. “It’s a bit warmer over there, if you still feel a bit chilly. And if not, that’s okay, too.” 

El glances over to where Joyce was sitting in between Jonathan and Will. El had chosen to sit two or three seats away from everyone else, unsure and wary at the time. Now, feeling warmer, safer, she considers moving just a bit closer. Hesitant, she gives a singular nod. 

Joyce nods back, her teeth peek out from her smile. “Alright, you don’t mind sitting next to Jonathan?” She leans farther down, as if she’s sharing a secret, just between them. “He’s a bit quiet, but I promise he’s nice.” She winks. 

Remembering that word from earlier, promise, El feels her mouth twitch again, dimples showing. The boy—Jonathan, was quiet. She was quiet, too, and found she didn’t mind the idea of sitting next to him at all. She nods again, slowly rising to her feet, Joyce hovering next to her as they both step back toward the others. 

El gently sits next to Jonathan, wrapping the jacket tighter around her. Joyce gives her one last smile before settling back in between the two boys. Jonathan glances at her from the corner of his eye, and simply gives her a polite, albeit awkward nod. Even so, her chest feels a bit lighter, and she doesn’t feel cold anymore.

Downstairs, Mike sits on the cough next to his mother. Her arms are crossed as she stares at him, a stern but open look on her face. 

“I just…I don’t feel good. I woke up and my head, it really hurt bad, and my throat was all scratchy, and I wanted to tell you, but the last time I told you I was sick you made me go to school anyway, and—” 

“Michael.” 

“Yeah?” Mike asks hesitantly. 

“I’m not mad at you.”

Mike looks a bit disbelieving. “No?” 

“No, of course not.” Karen shifts, sighing. “All this that’s been going on with Will, I can’t imagine what it’s been like for you. I just…” She purses her lips. “I want you to feel like you can talk to me. I never want you to feel like you have to hide anything from me.” She smiles. 

“I’m here for you. Okay?”

Mike nods his assent, but a loud thud from upstairs interrupts them both. Both looking up at the noise, Karen frowns. “Is there someone else here?”

Mike’s cheeks puff up slightly as he shakes his head. “No.” He lies.

Having rushed upstairs, Mike enters his room, locking the door behind him. “Eleven?” He calls, making his way toward the closet. “Is everything okay? El?” 

Opening the door, he pauses, looking down to see El sitting against the wall, her knees up to her chest. She looks up at him, tear tracks on her face, almost as if she’s surprised that he’s back. 

“Mike.” 

“Is everything okay?” He asks, crouched down in front of her. 

Despite her expression still being scrunched, she nods. 

“Are you sure?”

Mustering up a half-smile-half-grimace, she nods again. “Promise.” She whispers.

Now, back at the Byers’ house, Joyce is back home and she opens up the box for her new phone. She clears away the loud, crumpling padding, lifting up the phone and setting it up, plugging it into the wall. She awkwardly grabs one of the chairs in her living room, turning it around and moving it to be closer to the wall. As she sits, she places the phone in her lap, waiting. 

Even with the warm, rustic hues of the house, it’s never felt colder. 

Outside, a ways away, officers and volunteers alike still continue to call for Will. Hopper and Officer Callahan stand on a large rock cliff on the edge of a tall quarry. Callahan leans over to look down, but Hopper is quick to warn him. 

“Woah, woah, careful. Careful.” He puts his hands on his hips. “I need you alive for the next few days, at least.”

“Oh, hell, I could survive that.” Callahan says, grin dropping when Hopper lets out an incredulous laugh. “What? George Burness made the jump. And he was drunk as a skunk. He did it on a $10 bet.”

“George is a liar. You make that jump from this height, that water turns into cement.” He claps his hands together. “Hits you like a ton of bricks. Break every damn bone in your body.”

Callahan looks off, suspicious. “Nah.”

Dustin shakes his head in bafflement. Is he stupid? Who actually believes they could survive a drop like that? 

Flo’s voice rings out from Hoppers walkie-talkie. “Chief, you copy?” He brings it up to his mouth. 

“Yeah, Flo, talk to me.”

“Hey, Chief, we got a call from over at Benny’s. I think you need to get there right away.”

At Benny’s, multiple cop cars are parked around the building. Hopper lets out a plume of cigarette smoke before walking in, Callahan and Powell not far behind him. He takes off his sunglasses, face unreadable as he walks toward the scene. 

Benny lies on one of the tables, flies buzzing around his body as drying blood pools down the side of his head. The gun is in his hand. 

Steve brings his fist to his mouth. Nausea twists and turns in his gut. 

“I think I’m gonna be sick…” He mutters. Nancy gingerly rubs a hand up and down his back, focused instead on his side profile then the screen. She taps her shoes against the matted carpet below her, trying to focus on the grounding feeling of the floor.  

El adjusts the large jacket on her, pulling it tighter across her chest. 

Callahan brings his fist up to his mouth and nose to try and cover the smell of decay, looking repulsed. “Ugh, Jesus.”

Hopper walks around the table, looking down at Benny. Powell crosses his arms. “Suicide?” he questions.  

“Mmhmm.” Hopper answers, frowning. He doesn’t look away from Benny’s body.

Hopper feels his mouth thin, clenching his teeth. He glares at the screen in silent anger. A staged suicide. Shoving his hand in his pocket, he takes out the lighter that laid inside it. He spins it around in his hand, hearing the quiet clink as the tips of his fingers make contact against the cool metal.

“Missing kid, suicide…You must feel like a big city cop again, huh, Chief?” Callahan says, trying to lighten the sombre atmosphere, albeit in poor, poor taste. 

Hopper finally breaks his gaze. “Well, I mostly dealt with strangers back then.” He lets out a stilted, heavy breath. “Benny was my friend.”

In a different setting, the sky is cloudy and grayish-blue, sprinkling. Jonathan drives down a narrow street, rain drops against the windows. He glances at the small houses around him, searching. He pulls over once he finds the house he’s looking for. He walks up the steps to the house with a purpose, his bag over his shoulder.

Shifting, Jonathan feels a spike of unease in his gut. He glances over at Joyce, her eyebrows screwed in worry and her eyes hard. She grabs his shoulder, squeezing it in gentle but firm reassurance. Jonathan lets out a small breath, blinking harshly. He glares at the screen.

 He peers in through the small window at the front door, orange light filling the room. Muffled music plays from inside. No one seems to be around. Jonathan bangs his hand against the door in short, quick knocks. 

“Hello?” He calls. He bangs on the door again before a woman, Cynthia, walks to open it, looking annoyed. 

“Can I help you?”

“Yeah, is Lonnie around?”

“Yeah, he’s out back, what do you want?” 

Jonathan wastes no time stepping inside. “To look around.” He maneuvers around her, speed-walking through the hall. “I’ll be fast.” He mutters, ignoring her shouting after him. 

He peers into the open rooms, eyes roaming around quickly. “Hey, Will? Will!” He tries to open another door, but it won’t budge. “Will, you here?” He knocks on the closed door. “Will?” He turns back toward the open room, peering into a bedroom. No one is there, either. He sighs, turning back down the hall. 

Lonnie appears suddenly, shoving him against the wall. Jonathan grunts in surprise for a second before shoving Lonnie away from him. “Get off!” He glares. 

Lonnie has a small grin on his face, smug and far too sharp. “Damn, you’ve gotten stronger.” 

Joyce feels her teeth grind against each other, sharp pain shooting through the sides of her skull. She can hear Will suck in a nervous breath, and Jonathan letting out a slow, carefully measured one. She grabs both of their hands, trying to quietly comfort them both. Will leans his head slightly toward her shoulder, and while Jonathan doesn’t quite do the same, he shifts closer to her, his grip on her hand tightening. 

Jonathan feels the space above his eyebrows throb, a headache worming its way into his head. He sniffs, biting the inside of his cheek. Anger swirls hotly in his chest as he looks at the screen. Asshole…

Cynthia is still confused, throwing her hands up. “Will someone please explain what the hell is going on?” 

Lonnie gestures toward her and back to Jonathan. “Jonathan, Cynthia. Cynthia, this is Jonathan.” He nods in the younger boy’s direction. “My oldest.” He claps Jonathan roughly on the shoulder, trying to bring him in for a hug of all things. “Come here,” 

Jonathan shoves him away once again, glaring. “Get off me, man.”

Back in Hawkins, school has ended, and Dustin and Lucas ride their bikes toward the Wheeler’s house. 

In Mike’s bedroom, Dustin closes the door slowly, Lucas standing next to him. They both stare at Mike across from them and El, who sits on his bed. They do not look very happy at her still being around.

Lucas speaks first. “Are you out of your mind?” 

“Just listen to me!” 

“You are out of your mind!” 

“She knows about Will!” Mike announces, adamant. 

Dustin speaks up, startled. “What do you mean she knows about Will?” 

Mike maneuvers around Dustin to grab the photo from his desk. He holds it up. “She pointed at him, at his picture. She knew he was missing. I could tell.”

“You could tell?”

“Just think about it. Do you really think it was a coincidence that we found her on Mirkwood, the same place where Will disappeared?”

Dustin glances at Lucas, considering. “That is weird.” 

“And she said bad people are after her. I think maybe these bad people are the same ones that took Will. I think she knows what happened to him.”

Lucas frowns. “Then why doesn’t she tell us?” He narrows his eyes, turning over to where El sits. She’s been quietly watching them, looking worried. Lucas walks over to stand in front of her. “Do you know where he is?” He grabs her by the shoulders, raising his voice slightly. “Do you know where Will is?”

“Stop it, you’re scaring her!”

Lucas turns back to glance at Mike, before quickly making eye contact with El again. “She should be scared! If you know where he is, tell us!” He urges.

El stares up at him, her bottom lip wobbling slightly. Lucas has had enough, he throws his hands up, gesturing vaguely as he stares down at Mike. “This is nuts. We have to take her to your mom.”

“No! Eleven said telling any adult would put us in danger.” 

Dustin’s eyes widen slightly. “What kind of danger?”

“Her name is Eleven?” Lucas asks, unbelieving. 

“El for short.” 

Dustin speaks up again, louder this time. “Mike, what kind of danger?”

“Danger danger.” Mike works his jaw, bringing up his hand—shaped like a gun— to Dustin’s forehead, the same way El had done so to him last night. Dustin’s mouth drops open in slight shock. Mike brings his hand over to point at Lucas as well, but he smacks his hand down. 

“No, no, no!” Lucas says, looking back and forth. “We’re going back to plan A. We’re telling your mom.” He walks through the space between Mike and Dustin, opening Mike’s door. Only, he doesn’t get very far, the door slamming closed before he can fully swing it open. The force of it shakes Mike’s desk. 

Lucas jumps back in surprise before trying again, he turns the knob, opens the door barely, before it slams closed once again. Harder this time. The figures on Mike’s desk fall over, shaking. The door locks by itself. 

The three boys turn back around, all staring at El. She’s standing now, her face grim and serious. A streak of blood runs down her nose. 

“No.” 

The Party all feel their eyes bulge. Dustin’s jaw drops, opening and closing at a loss for words. After a few seconds of amazed, slow blinking, he’s the first one to say something. 

“Huh?!” 

His exclamation sets everyone off, The Party starts speaking over each other rapidly, while others in the room mutter quietly to themselves. 

“Holy shit, what—?” 

“She just closed the door with her mind! Her mind, Lucas, did you see that?” 

“Why is her nose bleeding?” 

Steve shakes his head in disbelief, running a hand through his hair. He leans toward Nancy. “What the hell was that?” 

Nancy purses her lips, eyebrows scrunched, her eyes widened in surprise. “Um,” She swallows. “I…”

Steve continues shaking his head, dragging his hand over his face. “What the hell, what the hell…what the hell—”

Nancy shifts, leaning her face closer to his own. She drops her voice to a whisper. “Are you alright?” 

Steve blinks multiple times, as if he’s waking up from a long nap. He lets out a long huff. “Yeah, no, I mean,” He shakes his head again, as if that did anything to help the first time. “You know, it’s one thing to see…everything we’ve seen so far, and I’ve just been trying to uh—ignore it, you know? The…overall…” He shakes his hands, gesturing randomly. “Craziness? Insanity? I mean, a guy got shot, Nancy, and then the Byers’ kid got chased by something…” He breathes. “Yeah…I think it’s just hitting me.” 

Nancy nods silently. She scrunches the fabric of her shirt in her hands, tense. She nor Steve have been shown too often, and when they have, they’ve been off in their own worlds, save for her small condolences toward Jonathan. Anxiety settles in her throat. She frowns, mind running a mile a minute. She is involved in all of this, after all, isn’t she? There’s no way they’d just show her and Steve simply…hanging out, when all of this is going on around them. 

Remembering how the light on Will’s bike had flickered before he’d seen that thing, and how just before the garage lights of her house had done the same, the anxiety grows stronger, almost too much. She glances over to where Mike sits, still rambling in shock and excitement, his eyes sparkling as he and his friends relentlessly talk over each other. She swallows again, harsher this time. She doesn’t want Mike near all of this, even if “this” is still full of unknowns. Clearly, it’s dangerous. She smooths out the now wrinkled fabric of her shirt, sitting up and straightening her posture.

Steve is still mumbling disbelieving exclamations under his breath. She takes his hand, sighing. She wishes Barb was here. Even though she’s sure she’d be rolling her eyes and shaking her head at Steve’s reactions, silently teasing Nancy for liking his cheesy one-liners, she’d know what to say to quell all of the worries in Nancy’s head.

“Wait, so, when she was running from those men, did she knock them out with her mind?” Dustin suddenly exclaims, hands on his head. 

“Like Yoda?” 

“Exactly, holy shit, holy shit—!” 

Jonathan glances down at El next to him. Unlike the others, he, at least, knows how to be subtle about it. She sits, leaning her head over at where The Party all loudly talk, her expression blank. She’s absentmindedly rubbing at the tattoo on her wrist. He sees her eyebrow twitch slightly after yet another round of profanities. He sighs, looking back to the screen. His brother has gone missing, there are evil scientists(?) running around who seem to be aware of both Will and Eleven—and Eleven can control things with her mind. And…all of this is discovered in less than 48 hours. Jesus Christ, his head really, really hurts.

Hopper feels his eye tingle before twitching multiple times. He doesn’t know if he has it in him to withstand another long, noisy, entirely too long—did he mention that—conversation between 4 kids on potential sugar-highs. He clears his throat, hoping to catch everyone’s attention. Joyce is the only one who glances at him, she’s currently stuck watching Will and his friends talk both between themselves and then to her, she looks wholly bewildered at what to do. She gives him a look that reads yes, this is insane, but I’m a bit preoccupied, try again later? Hopper’s eye twitches again. 

“Hey,” he tries. No dice. “Hey.” …Still talking. Alright. Fine. “HEY!” 

Everyone goes quiet, shoulders jumping as they all turn to look at him. Mike immediately scowls at him.

“What?” 

Hopper rubs the bridge of his nose. “I’m sure this is all very exciting for you, but we need to focus on actually seeing how the rest of this plays out, not prolonging the amount of time we’re here.” He cracks his neck. “So, if you please, leave the talk for later.” 

Dustin’s voice cracks. “Aw, what? But—” 

“Later.” 

The Party slump in their seats, arms crossing as they mutter to themselves. If Hopper strains, he can hear whispered profanities being dropped in his general direction, but he can’t bring himself to fully care. Peace and quiet (for the most part). Finally. 

Back with Jonathan and Lonnie, they’re now outside. Rain lightly falls around them. Lonnie walks around his car, showing it off. Jonathan speed-walks ahead of him, focused on finding Will and leaving as soon as he can. “Take a look at this beaut. Should’ve seen it when I got it. Took me a year but it’s almost done.”

Jonathan opens the car trunk, scanning. It’s empty. Lonnie puts his hands in his pockets, incredulous. “Really? You wanna check up my ass, too?”

Jonathan glares, slamming the trunk closed. Lonnie is unbothered. “I told you the same thing as I told those cops, he’s not here and he never has been.”

Jonathan steps closer to him, annoyed. “Then why didn’t you call Mom back?”

Lonnie shrugs. “I don’t know, I just…I assumed she just forgot where he was.” He shrugs again. “You know, he was lost or something. That boy was never very good at taking care of himself.” 

Will feels his face fall. He readjusts in his seat, fully ready to hunch into himself, look smaller—before he remembers what Jonathan had told him. The memory of them listening to The Clash lightens some of the stiffness in his joints. He shouldn’t care what his dad thinks. Though he still feels a pang of hurt, nerves on end in his chest, he grabs his mom’s hand instead and tries to ignore the words being spoken on screen. 

“This isn’t some joke, all right? There are search parties, reporters…” 

“Hopper’s not still chief, is he?” Lonnie suddenly questions, changing topics. Jonathan keeps quiet. Lonnie shakes his head in disappointment. “Tell your mother she’s gotta get you out of that hellhole. Come out here to the city. People are more real here, you know?” He shrugs. “And then I could see you more.”

Jonathan glances up at him, mouth twisting into a sneer as he shakes his head. 

“What, you think I don’t want to see you?”

“I know you don’t.” 

“See, that’s your mother talkin’ right there. She even know you’re here?”

Jonathan doesn’t say anything, glancing down. Lonnie scoffs. “Oh, great. So one kid goes missing, the other one runs wild? Some real fine parenting right there.” Jonathan continues to quietly stare, eyes narrowed. “Look, all I’m saying is, maybe I’m not the asshole, all right?”

Jonathan grabs one of the missing posters from out of his bag, stomping forward and shoving it into Lonnie’s chest. “In case you forgot what he looks like.” He says, walking away. 

Lonnie stares at the poster as Cynthia walks up behind him. “He’s kinda cute, hmm? Maybe I’ll trade you in for the younger model?”

Jonathan cringes, face screwing up in disgust, Will mirroring his expression. Joyce’s nails dig into her palm.

In the Hawkins Police Station, Hopper sits with the same man Benny had been talking to the day before. Earl. He fumbles with the lighter in his hand. It clicks, but doesn’t produce a flame. “Just doesn’t make any sense, Chief.” He sighs. Hopper brings his own lighter forward, lighting the cigarette in Earl’s mouth.

“You, uh, notice anything…odd about him the last few weeks?” Hopper asks, placing his lighter back in his pocket.

Earl shakes his head. “No, we’re fixin’ to go fishing down to Etowah next Sunday. I mean, he was looking forward to it, I know that.” 

“He got any enemies you might know about? I mean, people who might not want him around?”

Earl sighs again. “The exes didn’t like him much. That’s for sure, but…” He shakes his head once again. “...nah.” He takes another drag from his cigarette.

“When was the last time you saw him?”

“Yesterday. Lunch, same as always.”

“Just you and the boys?”

“Yep. Me and Henry and…” He stops. “Well, there was this, uh, this kid. But, uh…no kid did this.”

Hopper pauses, raising his eyebrows slightly. “Kid? What are you talking about?”

“Yeah, at lunch, uh, there was this boy that, uh…I mean he was trying to steal food out of Benny’s kitchen. Can you imagine that?” 

Hopper glances over toward where Callahan sat across from him, eyes signaling to him. Callahan sits up from where he was slouched on the desk, walking away to grab something.

“This kid…what’d he look like?” Hopper asks.

Earl brings his hand up. “Well, he was about yea high. You know, tiny like. I didn’t get a good look at him, though. He was back in the kitchen.” 

Callahan walks back over, handing Earl the missing poster of Will. “He look like this?”

“Oh, no, that’s…That’s Lonnie’s missin’ kid. No. This was a different kid. This one had really short hair.” He continues. “I mean, it was buzzed nearly down to the scalp.”

“Yeah, well, let’s…You know, let’s forget about the haircut.” Hopper stands up, looking down at the poster. “I mean, if this kid had a buzzcut…could it be Lonnie’s kid?” He asks, eyes boring into Earl. 

“Well, I…I didn’t get a good look at him. About the right height, though. I mean, could’ve been.” He mumbles, voice trailing off. “Yeah, that’s…Could’ve been.” 

Hopper nods, grim. 

The space between Hopper’s eyes aches. He understands his train of thought perfectly—this is him, after all, yet he knows it’s not right. It’s apparent that Eleven and Will are a part of something bigger, and it’s becoming clearer and clearer to him that he’s going to be stuck searching in circles unless something else happens to veer him toward the right track. 

His hands itch for a cigarette. 

In Nancy’s bedroom, she lays on her bed with the phone in her hand, pressed up against her ear in the middle of a conversation. She unconsciously fiddles with her hair.

“Because I don’t want to go by myself.” She explains. 

A pause. 

“Barb…Barb, it’s not rocket science.” She insists, sitting up. “You just tell your parents you’re gonna stay at my place afterwards.”

Barb’s response is inaudible. Nancy blinks. “No, tell them we’re…studying.”

“Nancy!” Karen calls up. “Dinner!” 

Nancy stops, lowering the phone. “Coming!” She calls back. She sighs, placing the phone over her ear again. “Look, I gotta go. I’ll see you in an hour.” 

Downstairs, the Wheeler family all sit at the table, along with Lucas and Dustin. The sound of forks scraping against plates and slow chewing sound throughout the dining room. Mike, Lucas, and Dustin are all a bit tense, barely eating. 

“Something wrong with the meatloaf?” Karen wonders. The boys all glance up at her, straightening. Dustin smiles. 

“Oh, no, I had two bologna sandwiches for lunch. Uh…” He shrugs. “I don’t know why.”

Lucas chuckles. “Me, too.” 

Will cringes. They’re being so obvious. He makes anxious eye contact with Mike, who ducks his head down, embarrassed. Mike scratches the back of his head. 

“It’s delicious, Mommy.” Nancy smiles. 

“Thank you, sweetie.” 

“So, there’s this…special assembly thing tonight…” Nancy begins. “For Will at the school field. Barb’s driving.” 

Karen cuts into her dinner, eyebrows furrowed in confusion. “Why am I just hearing about this?” 

Nancy raises her eyebrows. “I thought you knew.”

“I told you, I don’t want you out after dark until Will is found.”

“I know, I know, but it’d be super weird if I’m not there. I mean, everyone’s going.” 

Karen sighs, considering. “Just…be back by 10:00.” At Nancy’s nod, she continues. “Why don’t you take the boys, too?” 

The boys' heads shoot up. 

“No!” 

“Mmm-mmm.” Dustin shakes his head.

“Mm-mm. Mm-mm.” 

Karen stops, bewildered. Nancy turns to look at them as well. “Don’t you think you should be there? For Will?”

Mike is mid-drink, sipping milk, when he looks behind his mother and notices Eleven is walking down the stairs. He chokes, milk splashing up and out of his cup. Karen turns to glance behind her before Dustin bangs his fists on the table, panicked. Karen swerves back around with a gasp. 

“Sorry. Spasm.” 

Lucas opens and closes his mouth, his eyes wide. 

Will drops his head into his hands. 

Holly, frightened by the loud noise, whimpers, sliding down in her seat. Karen straightens. “It’s okay, Holly. It’s just a loud noise.”

Nancy looks over at the boys with raised eyebrows, mouthing a sarcastic “Nice.”

Dustin glances down at himself, embarrassed. 

Outside near Benny’s, more volunteers walk around, calling out for Will. Hopper walks deeper into the nearby woods with Powell and Callahan behind him. 

“Hey, you think Earl really saw Will?” Callahan asks. “I mean, what’s he doin’ with a shaved head?” He walks around a thin tree to stand in front of Hopper. “And stealing food from Benny?” 

“Tell you what, when we find him, we’ll ask.” 

“Can’t ask a corpse questions.” Powell says, unfazed. 

Hopper opens his mouth to respond when a loud whistle echoes and a volunteer yells out. 

“Hold up!” 

Hopper quickly walks toward the yell. “You got something?” He shouts.

He speed-walks over to a crouched Mr. Clarke. “Hey, what do you got?” 

Mr. Clarke stares down at something in his hand. He frowns. “Not sure. Maybe nothing.” He shines his flashlight at it. “I found this. In there.” He says, gesturing toward the large drain pipe next to him. He hands the unknown object to Hopper. 

Hopper stares at it. It’s a small, torn piece of fabric. White with small blue-ish patterns on it, like a hospital gown. He leans down, aiming the flashlight into the drain pipe. Powell and Callahan observe behind him. 

“No way a kid crawls through there.” Powell states.

“I don’t know. A scared enough one might.” 

Hopper stands. “His brother said he was good at hiding.” 

He walks away, off in the direction the drain pipe leads. The other two cops stop behind him as he eventually pauses, unable to cross the large wired fence that blocks off some of the woods. Looking up, behind the fence shows a clear view of Hawkins Lab. 

With Eleven and Mike, now thankfully safe from being caught, El continues to inspect Mike’s supercomm, gently twisting the knobs. She’s sat in the blanket fort, seemingly content. 

“El?” 

Eleven looks up toward the stairs. Mike, Lucas, and Dustin all tentatively come down. Mike has a tray of food in his hands. He crouches in front of her, smiling. 

“No adults. Just us and some meatloaf.” 

El glances to and fro at Dustin and Lucas. They both stand off to the side, unnaturally quiet. Mike catches her hesitance, trying to offer some words of comfort. 

“Don’t worry. They won’t tell anyone about you. They promise.” He raises his voice slightly, stubborn. “Right?”

Dustin starts to smile. “We never would’ve upset you if we knew you had superpowers.” He chuckles. 

Mike bends to the side, smacking Dustin hard on his leg.

“Ow!” 

“What Dustin is trying to say is that they were just scared…earlier. That’s all.” 

“We just wanted to find our friend.” Lucas says, fidgeting in place. 

El’s mouth twists. “”Friend”?” 

“Yeah, friend. Will?” Lucas explains.

“What…is "friend "?" 

Lucas squints. “Is she serious?” Dustin shrugs, looking just as confused. Lucas stumbles. “Um, a friend is—” 

“Is someone that you’d do anything for.” Mike cuts in.

“You lend them your cool stuff, like comic books and trading cards.” Dustin adds. 

“And they never break a promise.”

“Especially when there’s spit.” Lucas asserts. 

El frowns. “Spit?” 

“A spit swear means…” He pauses, spitting into his hand before grabbing Dustin’s into a firm handshake. “...you never break your word. It’s a bond.” 

Dustin holds up his now free hand, looking disgusted. 

Dustin—the one in the room— turns to look at Lucas, mouth open in offense. Lucas rolls his eyes. 

“Stop being a baby. I haven’t even actually done that!” He hisses. 

Dustin scoffs. “So what? Why’d you have to shake my hand?” 

“I don’t know, maybe because you were closest to me?” Lucas retorts. “We don’t know anything, none of this has happened.” 

“Yeah, but it’s you! Shouldn’t you know your own thought process??” 

“Not when it hasn’t occurred yet?!” 

“That’s super important, because friends…they tell each other things.” Mike goes on. “Things that parents don’t know.” 

El purses her lips in silent thought.

Joyce smiles at the heartwarming scene, though it’s bittersweet. Learning that El, the same age as Will, has had to live this long with no actual family, no sense of friends, no idea what a friend even is. She has no doubt that Dr. Brenner is quite obviously not truly related to the young girl, so who knows where her actual family may be? Joyce can’t even stand the thought of Jonathan or Will having to be left by themselves for so long, completely alone without any sort of comfort. 

Joyce readjusts in her seat, clearing her throat. Now, at least, she’s glad for the young girl to be able to experience that sort of closeness despite the horrific events around them. She’s sure that Will would get along with her too, even though they haven’t fully interacted yet. When all of this is over, maybe they can be friends. Absentmindedly, she ruffles Will’s hair. He lightly pushes her hand away after a few seconds, but at least his expression looks brighter than before. 

Now with Barb and Nancy, Barb slowly drives on the road, eyes ahead. The radio plays upbeat music at low volume. 

“Barbara, pull over.” Nancy suddenly says. 

“What?” 

“Pull over!”

Listening to her friend, Barb stops the car, pausing the music. She turns to Nancy, puzzled. 

“What are we doing here? His house is three blocks away.” 

Steve perks up. So Nancy decided to come to the party after all. He smiles.

“We can’t park in the driveway.” 

“Are you serious?” 

“Yeah, the neighbors might see.” Nancy presses, reapplying her lipstick in the mirror. 

Barb shakes her head, starting to have second thoughts. “This is stupid. I’m just gonna drop you off.” 

“Calm down, Barb. Come on. You promised that you’d go. You’re coming.” Nancy grins. “We’re gonna have a great time.” 

Barb isn’t so sure. “He just wants to get in your pants.” She tries, troubled. 

Nancy chuckles at the thought. She rolls her eyes. “No, he doesn’t.”

“Nance, seriously? He invited you to his house.” She deadpans. “His parents aren’t home. Come on, you are not this stupid.” 

“Tommy H. and Carol are going to be there.” 

“Tommy and Carol have been having sex since, like, seventh grade.” Barb scoffs, but there’s a small smile on her lips. “It’ll probably just be, like, a big orgy.”

“Gross.” 

“I’m serious!” 

Nancy shifts, starting to move her arm out of her shirt sleeve. “Alright, well…” She pauses. “You can be, like, my guardian. All right? Make sure I don’t get drunk and do anything stupid.” She tugs her shirt over her head. 

Mike’s face drops, slamming his hands over his eyes so hard they hurt. His friends quickly follow suit.

“Nancy, again?!”

Nancy flounders, her face feels like it’s burning. “I didn’t— what do you mean again?!” 

“We keep being shown you being disgusting and gross! First you make out with douchebag Steve—” 

“Woah, woah, woah, hold on, why the hell am I a douchebag?”

“Oh, grow up, Mike! And it’s not like I asked or wanted this to be shown! Just—” Dear God this is humiliating. Nancy wishes she had something to throw so she could just break the TV screen. “Cover your eyes and ears!” 

“What do you think I’m doing?! Honestly, how is you hanging out with your boyfriend this important in the grand scheme of things—?!” 

“Oh my God, Mike, you are so insufferable!” 

“We could be using this time to find out more about Will! It’s one thing to just sneak out, but you used Will as an excuse to leave, too! It’s completely ridiculous!” 

“Would you just stop talking?! Everyone just look away and cover your ears!!!!!” 

Everyone is quick to follow the loud order, ducking their heads down. Hopper shakes his head in disbelief. 

Jesus Christ. 

Nancy huffs before doing a double-take at seeing Steve still sitting with his eyes open. She gives him a look. He jumps. 

“Oh. Me too?” 

“Yes.” 

Steve nods quickly, ducking his head down and bringing his hands up. He closes his eyes. 

Nancy takes three—no. Five calming breaths. This sucks. She tugs at the tie in her hair before fully taking it out to re-tie it. 

Really, really sucks.

Barb gives Nancy a knowing look. “Is that a new bra?” 

“...No.” Nancy says after a beat too long. 

Now changed into a different outfit, the pair stand in front of Steve’s porch. Loud music blares from the inside. Nancy rings the doorbell as Barb stands next to her, stiff as a board. 

Dustin blindly jerks his head up, ears covered and his eyes shut so tight it looks like it hurts. 

“IS IT DONE YET?” He yells, sounding muffled to his own ears. 

Nancy feels a sense of deja vu. This better not keep happening. 

“Yes, it’s done.”

“WHAT?” 

“IT’S DONE.” 

“Oh.” Dustin lowers his hands, everyone else following suit. The Party all hesitantly open their eyes. 

“Phew.”

“Barb, chill.”

“I’m chill.”

The front door opens, Steve standing in the entryway with a smirk. The music is deafening. He puts a hand on his hip. 

“Hello, ladies.”

In a different building, Hopper lays in bed next to a woman. Both of them are shirtless. The woman’s arm is thrown over his chest.

Mike groans loudly. You’ve gotta be kidding me. 

Hopper slowly sits up, delicately moving her arm to her side. He gets dressed and tries not to wake her. 

Outside, Hopper stands on a balcony. It’s late at night, crickets chirp and the nostalgic noise of animals yip in the distance. The woman is up, now, and she goes to stand beside him. 

“What are you doing? It’s freezing.”

“You ever feel cursed?” He asks. “You know, the last person to go missing here was in, uh…the summer of ‘23. The last suicide was in the fall of ‘61.”

The woman doesn’t seem to know how to respond. She sighs. “When’d the last person freeze to death?” She asks, chuckling.

Hopper doesn’t share her amusement. He just continues staring, pensive. 

“Hey…come back inside. Warm me up. Just…”

Hopper smacks his lips. “Just give me a minute out here.” 

The woman shivers, quickly walking back inside and rubbing her hands down her arms in an attempt to stop the chill she feels. Hopper goes back to staring off into the night, taking a slow, sombre drag from his cigarette. 

Back in Mike’s basement, El sits down at the small table The Party had sat barely a day before, playing D&D. The three boys all follow her, questioning. 

“What’s the weirdo doing?” Lucas asks. 

El places her palms flat on the D&D board and closes her eyes. 

“El?” 

She opens her eyes and picks up the small wizard figurine. “Will.” 

Will’s eyes widen in wonder. “Woah…” He leans forward in his seat. 

Dustin’s eyes sparkle. “Superpowers.” He breathes. El sets the figure down, off to the side of the table. 

Mike goes to sit down next to her, focused. “Did you see him? On Mirkwood? Do you know where he is?” 

Eleven stops, eyes narrowing down at the board. In one smooth movement, she knocks the remaining figurines off of the board and they fall off of the table onto the floor. She grabs the edge of the board, flipping it over. The boys watch in apprehension. 

Without a word, El grabs the wizard figurine and slams it down onto the board. 

“I don’t understand.” Mike utters. 

El doesn’t look up. “Hiding.”

Mike leans forward in earnest. “Will is hiding?”

Eleven nods in agreement, glowering. 

“From the bad men?”

El’s eyebrows twitch. She shakes her head. 

“Then from who?” 

El grabs the only other figurine left on the table. She places it onto the board next to Will’s figure. The Demogorgon. 

Mike gapes, he makes eye contact with Dustin and Lucas, their faces in similar expressions of unease. Dustin brings his hands to his head and lets out a harsh breath. 

Will swallows. Any sense of wonder from El’s powers has since dried up, wilting into something rotten. Goosebumps break out over his neck and down his arms and he feels unbearably cold. The Demogorgon…what he’d believed to be a silly, stupid, passing theory from overthinking and panic just became real. It’s no longer in his head. 

Will sinks in his seat. 

Out near Mirkwood, the same place where Will’s bike had crashed, Jonathan pulls over. He steps out of the car and opens the trunk, grabbing his camera. Determined, he walks into the forest.

He crouches down in front of a tree, snapping a photo of the broken twigs and leaves near the stump. He swerves his head around. 

“Where are you?” He mutters. 

He stands back up, unsure of where to continue. He snaps a photo of an old, abandoned car tire in the distance, surrounded by rotted and dried out sticks. 

He takes one more photo of the disturbed dirt in front of him before a loud scream echoes in the forest. He swings his head around, startled. He gasps and quickly stands, sprinting in the direction of the scream. The screaming continues as he pants, crushing rotted leaves under his feet. He stops behind a few small trees, peering into the clearing. 

The source of the screaming was Carol, being held by a smirking Tommy H. The group of teens are all in Steve’s backyard. Carol shrieks as Tommy swings her back and forth in front of a large pool. 

“One! Two!” 

“Stop it, Tommy, don’t!” 

“Three!” He cackles, not actually throwing her into the water. He sets her down as she glares and pushes him by the chest. 

“You’re such an asshole, Tommy.” 

Steve holds a can of beer and a pocket knife, a cigarette tucked behind his ear. He slices the side of the can open instead of using the tab. He chugs the beer through the slit, fully emptying the can. He huffs, flopping down in one of the nearby chairs. A smile works its way onto Nancy’s face. 

“Is that supposed to impress me?” 

Steve, with the cigarette now hanging out of his mouth, blinks. “You’re not?”

“You are a cliche, you do realize that?”

“You are a cliche. What with your…your grades and your band practice.” He flicks the lighter in his palm, bringing it to his mouth to light the cigarette. Nancy scoffs.

“I’m so not in band.” 

“Okay, party girl. Why don’t you just, uh, show us how it’s done, then?” He questions, holding out a can of beer. Nancy takes it with a smile.

“Okay.” She stands, the pocket knife now in her other hand. 

Out in the forest, Jonathan still stands, observing. 

“You gotta make a little hole right in—”

“I got it.” Nancy interrupts. Steve holds up a hand placatingly. 

Tommy chuckles. “Yeah, she’s smart, you douche!”

Successfully making a small slit in the can, Nancy starts to drink the beer. Steve sits up, beginning to chant. 

“Chug. Chug. Chug.” 

Tommy and Carol join in, cheering her on. 

“Chug! Chug! Chug! Chug!” 

Nancy drops the can onto the ground, succeeding in drinking the entire thing. Tommy lets out a cheer as the others laugh. Barb, who’s sitting in a chair close behind Nancy, rolls her eyes. Nancy notices her silence, gesturing toward the other cans. 

“Barb, you wanna try?” 

Barb’s eyebrows shoot up. “What? No.” 

Nancy is undeterred, moving to grab another can. 

“No, I don’t want to. Thanks.” 

“Come on…” Nancy goads, smiling. Steve mirrors her, egging her on.

“Nance, I don’t want to.”

“It’s fun! Just give it a…Just give it a shot.” Nancy asks again, handing her the knife and an unopened drink.

Now holding her own can, Barb rolls her eyes again, getting to her feet. “Okay.” She gives in, angling the knife down. “So you just…?” She goes to stab at the can, only the angle is too wonky and the knife slips down instead of stabbing inward. The knife cuts the side of her thumb and she drops the can in surprise. Blood immediately gushes from the wound, dripping down her wrist.  

Nancy’s entertainment instantly goes away, the smile that had been working its way onto her face drops. Guilt slips its way in between her ribs. If she hadn’t pressured Barb to try, she wouldn’t have cut herself. She winces. It’s a deep cut. 

Steve lets out a nonchalant breath. “Yikes. That thing might need stitches.” 

Nancy glances at him in alarm. Feeling sour, she slips out from where she’d been laying against his shoulder. 

Tommy laughs. “Gnarly.” 

Nancy’s amusement instantly evaporates, moving closer to her friend. “Are you okay?” 

“Yeah,”

“Barb, you’re bleeding,” 

“I’m fine.” Her voice wavers. She holds her hand, putting pressure on the cut. She glances over at Steve. “Where’s your bathroom?”

Steve jumps, standing up as well. He points toward the house. “Oh, it’s, uh…It’s, uh, down past the kitchen, to the left.” He walks away and partially out of view, pointing closer inside the house.

“Okay, thanks.” 

Jonathan, who had still been watching this whole ordeal, takes a photo of the group of teens. He’s too far away from them for anyone to notice the quick shutter of the camera. 

Steve squints. “Uh,” He closes his mouth, instead settling for staring at the back of Jonathan’s head, calculating. What the hell...? 

Carol lets out a laugh, crossing her arms. “Oh…”

Jonathan takes another photo, now only of the three: Tommy, Nancy, and Carol. 

Joyce’s eyebrows furrow. Jonathan has always been very observant, keen on noticing others around him while he would fade into the background. He enjoys taking photos, having keepsakes of moments of his family and his surroundings to look at later. Multiple times she’s walked by his freshly developed photos, caught a glimpse of great shots, before he moves them away from her view. 

Joyce tugs at her lip with her teeth, turning to glance at Jonathan. His eyes are planted firmly onto the ground below the TV. Him accidentally stumbling upon the other teens doesn’t matter, him staying around to watch them, however, does. 

Tentatively, she places her hand on his shoulder. His body is stiff as a board, he barely moves. She gives his shoulder a light squeeze. Once, twice. A quiet reminder to say: we’re talking about this later. 

Carol sighs, staring up at the sky as she stands in front of the pool. Tommy breathes out a waft of tobacco before pushing Carol into the water. She shrieks as she falls in, rising up for air. 

“Oh, my God! What the hell, Tommy?” 

Tommy drops his cigarette onto the asphalt, diving into the water to join her and she screams again as the water splashes. Nancy stares down at them, smiling. Steve comes up behind her and shoves her into the water too, and she shouts out in surprise. Steve yells before jumping in himself.

“Whoo!” 

All of them swim around, giggling. Tommy and Carol share a kiss, grinning from ear to ear. Steve steals one of Nancy’s shoes, holding it up as she goes to grab it. Jonathan’s camera clicks as he takes a photo yet again. And then another. And another, capturing Nancy’s beaming smile directed toward Steve. 

At the Byers house, Joyce still sits in the same chair from earlier, having fallen asleep. It’s apparent she hadn’t moved once. The phone is still right there next to her. She breathes softly, looking peaceful for once. 

The phone rings suddenly and she jerks awake, wasting no time as she answers. . 

“Hello?”

Barely any sound can be heard, only eerie, crackling static and the odd thrum of electricity. Joyce rises to her feet, holding the phone tightly. “Hello.” She says again. It’s no longer a question. 

“Who is this?”

Muffled, labored breathing echoes from the speakers. Joyce’s expression breaks. 

“Oh, my god…” Joyce covers her mouth, muffling her trembling, fast breaths. She pulls Will into her. Arm now looped around him, she holds him firmly. He stays still. 

Will’s not sure he’s breathing. He’s rigid in his mother’s arms. 

“Will?” She sniffs. “Will, it’s me. Talk to me.” She begs, hands shaking. “I’m here. Talk…Just—just tell me where you are, honey. I can hear you. Please.” 

Static crackles louder. The lamps around Joyce flicker. She pays them no mind, her focus is stuck entirely on listening to the phone for an answer, any answer at all.

Mike peers suspiciously at Joyce’s surroundings. “What’s going on with the lights?” He mutters. 

“Mom?” It’s Will’s voice. It sounds distorted and wobbling, but it’s him. Joyce gasps. 

Hopper’s face slackens. He leans forward in an attempt to better hear the audio coming from the phone. What’s going on with the distortion? 

Joyce does gasp this time. Her vision blurs near instantly at the sudden onslaught of burning tears forming in her eyes. Even Jonathan, who had been shamefully quiet, shoots his head up to watch. 

Everyone is rapt with attention, subconsciously all trying to lean closer to the TV screen in interest.

“Will.” She sobs. “Yes, it’s me. It’s me. It’s me.” She repeats as her breaths come out in shaky, quick gasps. She holds the phone tighter and closer to her ear. The static cracks again. The thrumming grows stronger. “Where are you? Where are you? Just talk to me—” 

The phone shocks her, electricity shooting out and stinging her hand. She drops it with a shout, staring down in panic. She moves to grab it, desperate. 

“What?” Joyce breathes. “Wh…how, how—?” 

“Oh, no, no!” She puts it back up to her ear, but no sound comes from it, not even static. “No! No!” Joyce sobs, crumbling. “Oh, no! No! No…!” She inhales, grabbing the broken phone and throwing it down onto the ground. “No…!” She hyperventilates before screaming out. “NO!” She wails, banging her hand on the ground.

 The lights above her flicker again. She turns her head up, tear stains on her cheeks. She clumsily stands, looking up in confusion as the lights flicker down the hall. She gulps and moves to follow them. 

“Jonathan?” She breathes, watching as lights flicker one after the other, down toward Will’s bedroom. “What…” She whimpers, stopping near the end of the hallway. She tries to breathe. 

Music BLARES from behind the door to Will’s room and she jumps, gasping. Should I Stay or Should I Go plays loudly from inside. Looking down, Joyce notices a bright light flickering under the door.

Dustin and Lucas jump, both of them practically getting out of their seats. They clutch at each other’s arms from the sudden scare. 

“Holy shit—!” 

Will tilts his head. He doesn’t even know if he’s blinking. His gaze is fixed on the scene in front of him, lips parted in shock. 

Steadying herself, she walks over, raising a trembling hand to open the door and peer inside. “Will…?” She whispers. 

The desk lamp is on, but no one is there. The seat is pushed in, empty, and the desk only has abandoned pencils and sheets of paper on it. The music continues to play from the cassette player. Joyce’s face screws up in dread. And then—

Another light in the room flickers, buzzing. She turns to face the lamp, taking heavy steps toward the old light. She grabs the lampshade, sniffling as she looks at the bright and malfunctioning lightbulb. “Will…Will, is that you?” She cries. 

The bulb stops flickering, instead it grows brighter, so bright it’s almost blinding, she squints as the music suddenly clicks off and the lamp goes out. She glances around, astonished as she’s left in the quiet, haunting dark. 

The wall next to her moves. A thunderous groan vibrating as something large and gnarled starts to stretch through the wall, warping the paint as it comes closer and closer to breaking free. She screams, running out of the room and completely out of the house.

Lucas screams, high pitched and loud. Nancy lets out a yelp, slapping a hand over her mouth. Joyce lets out a short shriek, similar to her on-screen counterpart. She pulls Will in for an awkward side hold slash embrace. 

Will gapes at the screen. His eyes are the size of saucers.

“What the hell? What the hell was that?!” Steve shouts, contorting back and huddling into his chair. He holds Nancy’s hand tightly. 

She rushes to get into her car, her feet tripping over each other as she pants in fear. “Oh, god,” She whimpers. “Oh, my God…” She leans her head onto the steering wheel as the engine turns on. She raises her head, and then, loud and booming, the music starts playing again from inside of the house, so loud she hears it from all the way outside. She looks toward the bedroom window, watching in awe as the lights inside flicker on and off, on and off. Over and over again. 

She pauses and works her jaw, turning the engine off as a determined fire lights behind her eyes. She steps back out of the car and on unsteady feet, she walks back inside.

Why would you go back inside?! Dustin wants to yell out. He turns to face Lucas, both of them still clutching each other’s arms like a lifeline. They jolt back from each other, causing Dustin’s hat to tumble off his head onto the floor. He bends down to grab it, grumbling. 

At Steve’s house, the group of teens dry off, wrapping themselves in towels. Carol shudders. “I’m freezing.” She complains. 

Mike flings his hands out in confusion.

 “We’re just going back to this like nothing happened?!" 

“Hmm…well, I hear his mom’s room has a fireplace.” Tommy suggests, walking away. Steve brings a hand up in annoyance. 

“Wh…are you kidding? Okay, well, you know, you are cleaning the sheets.” He warns. He puts a hand on Nancy’s shoulder in passing. “You alright?” 

“Yeah,” 

“Come on, let’s get you some dry clothes.”

Steve walks up the stairs, Nancy shivering and going to follow. Barb calls out to her before she can go all the way up. 

“Nance. Nancy.” 

Nancy stops, staring down at Barb. 

“Where are you going?”

Nancy blinks a few times, moving a stray lock of hair out of her face. “Nowhere. Just…upstairs. To change.” She gestures down at her clothing. “I…fell in the pool.” She tries for a smile. Barb just stares at her, upset. Her smile falls.

“Why don’t you go ahead and go home. I’ll just…I’ll get a ride or something.”

“Nance…”

“Barb…” Nancy says, mirroring her tone. “I’m fine.”

Barb swallows. “This isn’t you.”

Nancy blinks. She knows she’s been a bit more preoccupied with Steve as of late. Did it really bother Barb that much? Barb didn’t like Steve, not really, but Nancy had figured that maybe she just needed to come around. They’d eventually get along, in the same way her and Mike do. Like some weird, annoying sibling type of relationship. Nancy needlessly fiddles with her hair. 

Maybe she was wrong. 

Nancy’s eyebrows raise. “I’m fine.” She reaffirms. “Just…go ahead and go home, okay?” She requests, turning around to walk all of the way upstairs. 

Barb is left in the entryway, hurt. 

Upstairs, Nancy stands in front of a large window. Jonathan, able to see her through the halfway opened blinds, takes a photo.

Steve grips Nancy’s hand tighter. He frowns in dismay. Why is he still watching them? 

Nancy crosses her arms, thinking to herself. Steve walks up next to her and hands her dry and folded clothing. She takes them gratefully. 

“Thanks.” 

Steve continues to stand there, mouth turned up at the corners. Nancy holds the clothing to her chest. 

“Um…some privacy, maybe?” She asks, bashful. 

Steve’s mouth drops, clicking his tongue. “Oh.” He shakes his head. “Yeah, right. Sorry.” He lets out a breathy laugh, turning around. Nancy moves to change before stopping, setting the clothing down. 

“Steve?” 

He turns back around. Nancy is uncertain before she begins to lift her shirt, keeping eye contact. Steve stares. 

Nope. Nope. No, thank you. No. The Party ducks their heads, everyone else following suit. 

Nancy brings her knees up to her chest, lowering her head onto them. She wants to smack her head against a wall. This is so stupid. Having to be shown this, while also knowing she abandoned Barb minutes prior. She lets go of Steve’s hand. 

“Damn.” He lets out. Nancy chuckles. 

“Shut up.” 

Steve walks over to her, capturing her face in his hands to give her a kiss. 

Jonathan’s breath catches and he tears his gaze away, moving to look back down at the pool instead. Barb sits on the pool dock, feet gently moving back and forth in the water. She has a small towel wrapped around her injured hand. She stares at the water, dejected. Jonathan takes a couple of photos, the camera shuttering before it jams. He ducks down, trying to fix it. 

Barb stares off in a daze, thoughts jumbled. She purses her lips as she seems to be trying not to cry. Blood drips from the towel wrapped around her hand and drips into the water. She raises it, watching the blood drip one, two more times. The lights surrounding her flicker before shutting off completely. 

Mike peels his eyes open, hesitantly squinting before he jolts. He smacks Lucas on the arm. 

“Guys. Guys, wait, look!”  

Dustin nervously laughs. “Um, yeah, no thanks, man.”

“No one wants to see your sister and Steve Harrington swapping spit!” Lucas shouts.

Mike groans, rolling his eyes. “Ew! Obviously ew! Don’t be gross!! The scene’s over, I mean look, something else is happening!” 

At his urgent tone, everyone finally looks back at the screen. 

Nancy feels her breath hitch. The lights were flickering. 

A growling, unnatural chirp sounds from above her. She jerks her head up, staring at the shadow that looms over her. She screams. 

Jonathan snaps up at the noise, squinting. Barb is gone. The lights are still off. 

He sighs, turning around and trudging back through the woods. 

Inside, Nancy and Steve continue to kiss passionately, unaware of the lights turning off, and unaware of when they eerily flicker back on a few moments later. 

The screen goes dark.

Nancy shoots up from her seat, mouth agape and her eyes wide. “What?! W—Where did she go?” She stammers. Her eyes start to water, she roughly scrubs at them before covering her mouth and falling back into her seat on shaking legs. 

The shame and guilt that had been in her ribs grows, banging hard against her chest. Her heartbeat is so loud she can hear it in her ears. 

And the noise…All of them have heard it by now, they’re no stranger to it. The creature—what did they even call it—? The Demogorgon had taken Will, and…Nancy feels sick. So sick that her blurry vision doubles as she feels a wave of lightheadedness overtake her. 

It took Barb. 

She’s sure she can hear Steve trying to get her attention, potentially trying to quell her panic, but it’s muted, as if she’s underwater. 

She had left her. She had left her alone. She had learned about Will’s disappearance, she’d ignored it, she’d used it as an excuse to hang out with a boy and drag an unwilling Barb along with her without a care in the world. 

Nancy feels hot tears fall from her eyes, sliding down her cheeks and through the cracks of her fingers. She buries the rest of her face in her hands, shaking her head. 

It took Barb. 

Steve is still talking. He grabs her by the shoulders, now crouched in front of her seat. 

“Hey, Nance, look, c’mon, it’s alright—”

Nancy lifts her head. She must look like a complete mess; her hair in disarray and tears smudged across her face, her eyes a bloodshot red. Her face screws up as she takes a deep, stuttering breath. She shakes her head again, shrugging Steve’s hands off of her shoulders. 

“No. No, it’s not alright,” Her voice cracks. She tugs her hair back tightly, the pressure making her scalp ache. “God, I can’t…I can’t believe I—” She cuts herself off as more tears fall. 

Nancy sniffles, standing up and walking around and away from Steve, away from the other voices she’s sure are calling out to her. She needs…something. Space. Air. 

As she walks away, searching for somewhere to go, to get away from everyone else, she can only think one thing, over and over again, repeating itself until she feels her head start to throb.

She wishes Barb was here.