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𝗔𝗨𝗚𝗨𝗦𝗧

chapter nine:
never mine to lose

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SERENITY SAT, HER heart racing against her chest both from adrenaline and from being on Steve's lap. Hopper's police cruiser was stuck in a tense silence as they drove further and further away from Hawkins Lab, leaving all of the Demogorgons behind. Serenity, Steve, and the kids didn't tell Hopper what they had been doing for the past couple of hours, and Hopper didn't tell them why he was at Hawkins Lab or why he was wearing scrubs.

Basically, nobody had any idea what was going on. Pretty normal for them, actually.

Her arms hooked around Steve's neck, Serenity tried to ignore the throbbing from her lower leg. Max's green hoodie was completely ruined at this point, stained with all of the blood. She also felt a little lightheaded from the blood loss. Wherever they were going, she definitely needed some water and a little food. Her eyes were trained on Jonathan's car in front of them. God, she hoped Will and Mike were in that car.

Finally, after about ten minutes of driving, they finally arrived back to the Byers' house. Hopper parked the car, and without saying a word to them, he got out and walked over to Jonathan's car. Serenity shared a glance with Steve.

Steve picked up Serenity in his arms, holding her legs in one and her waist in the other. He slid them both out of the car. Lucas pushed the seat forwards and him, Dustin, and Max all got out as well, Max still holding Steve's bat.

Serenity looked over, her eyebrows knitting in concern. Joyce looked positively shattered, also wearing hospital scrubs. Hopper took her shoulders in her hands and gently steered her inside. She had never really seen her look so numb, not since Will had been kidnapped to the Upside Down and everyone thought she was crazy because she kept insisting that she was talking to Will through the lights. Serenity wondered what made her become like that.

And the next thing made her eyes widen and her heart stop.

Jonathan had been leaning in the backseat of his car. When he straightened up, he was holding a small, frail body in his arms that was wearing a hospital gown. Will. He looked just as delicate as he did that night in the hospital when he had been rescued from the Upside Down. Serenity watched him carry Will into the house, Nancy trailing behind him.

Mike also got out of the car. He seemed to be frozen in place, just staring blankly at the house. Serenity frowned. She knew the telltale signs of when Mike Wheeler wasn't fine. He hadn't been okay for a while, not since Eleven disappeared, but he seemed even worse.

Serenity patted Steve's chest. "Put me down."

"Your leg—" Steve started to protest.

"I don't care about my leg right now. Put me down and take the kids inside, will you?"

Steve sighed, but he obeyed nonetheless. Serenity slightly winced as pressure got put on her bad leg. She ignored the worried glance from Steve and removed her arms from around his neck. Serenity limped over to Mike, placing a hand on his shoulder. That seemed to snap him out of his trance just a little.

"What happened?" Serenity asked quietly. "Is Will—"

"He's not okay," Mike snapped. It was clear he was all worked up, the pressure of the situation weighing him down. "The — the Shadow Monster is inhabiting him. It's using him as a spy, and we need to save him—"

"And we will. We've saved him once, we can save him again."

"We couldn't save Bob." Mike's hands clenched into fists. "The Demogorgons got him."

Serenity's eyes widened. Bob Newby, Joyce's boyfriend, had been eaten by Demogorgons. That's why she looked so broken. And Will was being a host body from something totally evil from the Upside Down.

She felt like she was going to be sick.

"And how are you doing?" Serenity questioned.

"I'm fine," Mike replied.

Serenity nodded, trying to ignore how short he was being with her, because clearly his emotions were all over the place. "Okay. How about we go inside—"

"Renny."

"Yeah?"

Mike Wheeler was totally not fine. Serenity knew that as she looked down at him, only to see that his bottom lip was quivering and his clenched hands were shaking. She brushed some of his hair away from his forehead before placing a gentle hand on his cheek. He suddenly surged forwards, throwing his arms around Serenity and burying his head into her shoulder. Mike was tall enough to do that now, and it made Serenity kind of sad.

Serenity hugged him back just as tight, reaching up and placing a hand on the back of his head, threading her fingers through his hair. Somehow, she could feel Mike stop trembling just a little more from the hug. She wondered when the last time he had one was. Her heart sank. It was probably back at the field the day Will had that episode.

She brought him comfort, and she wasn't there.

"I miss Eleven," Mike admitted, his voice slightly muffled.

"I know," Serenity responded.

"She's not gone." Mike pulled away, looking up at Serenity with a strong look in his eyes. "She's out there. I know she is. I wish you could've gotten to meet her."

"If she's really out there, then I will." Serenity pressed a soft kiss to his forehead, making Mike close his eyes in content. "You know you can always talk to me, right?"

"Yeah, I know," Mike answered. "Thank you, Renny."

"Any time," she stated. "Come on, let's go inside. I have some injuries that need treating."

Serenity took a step forwards. At the sight of her limping, Mike immediately moved forwards and wrapped an arm around her waist, allowing her to lean some weight on him. Serenity gave him a gracious smile and the two of them walked inside the Byers house.

The house was dark. Some lights were on, but all the blinds were drawn shut. There were also multiple drawings taped together in a specific pattern all over the walls and floors. It kind of looked like roads. Joyce was nowhere to be found. Will was laying on the couch, Jonathan kneeling next to him and Nancy standing close by. Hopper was by the phone, punching in a phone number. The rest of the kids and Steve were in the kitchen.

Serenity looked at the drawings. "What is all of this?"

"They're Upside Down tunnels that run underneath Hawkins," Mike explained. "The Shadow Monster made Will see them and he drew all of these."

Steve instantly walked up to the two of them. "'Renity, ready to treat your leg?"

"Treat her leg?" Nancy inquired, walking away from Jonathan. Her eyes focused on the green blood-stained hoodie tied around her leg. "Oh my God, Serenity, what happened?"

"I got scratched by a Demogorgon back at the junkyard," Serenity told her. "We didn't have any supplies with us to clean it while we walked to the lab."

"Should've brought the Band-Aids," Lucas commented from the kitchen.

Serenity nodded in agreement. "I definitely should've brought the Band-Aids."

"Which is why we're cleaning it now," Steve cut in. "Come on, let's go."

"I can do it," Nancy offered.

Serenity and Steve froze for a moment. She stared at Nancy, a slight frown on her lips. Her and Nancy were never close, only acquaintances because she was dating Steve. They never really talked one-on-one except for that time in the hallway after the Halloween party.

"Sure," Serenity voiced.

Serenity stepped forwards. Nancy supported her instantly, just like Steve and Mike had done. Serenity glanced back at Steve as they walked down the hallway, giving him a small smile. He sent one back. She then looked straight ahead as Nancy turned them into the small bathroom that the Byers had.

Nancy shut the door behind them. She led Serenity over to the tub and Serenity sat down on the edge of it. Nancy sat next to her as Serenity, wincing, pulled her leg up so her foot was resting on the edge of the tub. Serenity untied the bloody green hoodie and dropped it in the tub. It revealed the four deep gashes. The hoodie had stopped the bleeding. Now, her leg was just a mess of built up dried blood. Looking at it made Serenity made even feel more sick.

"Okay," Nancy said to herself as she looked at the cuts. "Okay."

She took a towel from the cabinet and wet it underneath the faucet of the tub. Nancy then started to wipe away all the built up blood gently. Serenity only flinched a couple of times as the cool water sunk into her cuts. Nancy repeated sorry every time, but Serenity was quick to reassure her that it was okay.

Nancy looked at the cabinet under the sink and found hydrogen peroxide, gauze, and medical tape. She screwed open the top of the hydrogen peroxide and held it over her cuts.

"This is going to hurt, okay?" Nancy told her.

Serenity nodded. "Do it."

Nancy poured the solution on her cuts. Serenity gasped at the pain and squeezed her eyes shut, her hand flying up to her mouth so she wouldn't scream. Tears involuntarily sprung to her eyes and she started to feel dizzy. But as soon as it had happened, it was over. Her cuts bubbled up for a second and Nancy wiped the extra hydrogen peroxide away.

Serenity's eyes slowly fluttered open to see Nancy was now wrapping gauze all around her cuts. It was going all the way around her leg, but Nancy was making sure to put multiple layers so her wounds had padding.

"Serenity," Nancy began, making Serenity look up from how her leg was being bandaged. "I, um . . . I just wanted to say I'm sorry."

"Sorry?" Serenity repeated, her eyebrows knit in confusion. "Sorry for what? You've done nothing."

"But I've done everything. Listen, Renny, I've seen how much you like Steve, and I went for him anyways. At the time we didn't really talk, but now that we're kind of friends . . . that's not what a good friend does. I basically took him away from you."

Serenity shook her head, a small although sad smile on her face. "He was never mine to lose."

"That's not true," Nancy insisted. "Steve was always yours. He was always crazy about you, even if he didn't know it at the time."

"I think you're just trying to make me feel better."

"I'm not." Nancy started to place medical tape over the gauze to hold it in place. "I offered to help with your cuts because I wanted to talk to you. I just . . . I wanted to tell you that I don't like Steve like that anymore."

"Because you like Jonathan?" Serenity urged. She smiled at the way Nancy's face flushed red. "I see it."

"Just like how I see you and Steve," Nancy stated. "Trust me, Serenity. Steve's crazy for you." She placed the last piece of tape on the gauze and stood up. "And you're all done. I'll go get a pair of Jonathan's sweatpants for you, okay?"

"Nancy," Serenity called after her as she went to leave. "Thank you."

Nancy grinned at her. "Any time."

She went away for a moment until she came back in the bathroom, handing Serenity a pair of black sweatpants. Nancy shut the door behind her as Serenity started to take off her shoes so she could change better. Serenity pulled off her blood-stained and ripped jeans and put them in the tub along with Max's hoodie. She put on the sweatpants and tied the drawstring so that they would fit her better. Once she tied her shoes again, she left the bathroom, not limping as much from her wound being treated.

Everyone was still in exactly the same place, including Nancy, who went back to Jonathan's side, placing a hand on his shoulder as he muttered something to an unconscious Will. The only one who wasn't in the same spot was Steve, who had been standing in the doorway of the kitchen with his arms crossed, apparently waiting for him

"Sam Owens, Dr. Sam Owens," Hopper was saying into the phone. "I don't know how many people are there! I don't know how many people are left alive!"

"Hey," Steve greeted her softly. Him and Serenity walked into the kitchen. "What do you need?"

"Water would be great," Serenity responded. "Maybe a snack."

"I am the police!" Hopper shouted. "Chief Jim Hopper!"

Steve walked off as Serenity pushed herself up to sit on the counter. He got a glass from the kitchen and filled it up with cold water. Steve then opened the pantry and brought out a granola bar. He walked back over to Serenity and handed her the water and granola bar. She gave him a quiet thank you as he leaned back against the counter, his shoulder brushing against her arm.

"Yes, the number that I gave you, yes. Six-seven-six-seven, I will be here."

Hopper hung up the phone angrily. He turned back to look at the group in the kitchen.

"They didn't believe you, did they?" Dustin asked.

"We'll see," Hopper replied.

"We'll see?" Mike repeated. "We can't just sit here while those things are loose!"

"We stay here, and we wait for help."

He then left the kitchen, disappearing down the hallway, probably to talk to Joyce. Serenity ate her granola bar and drank her water silently. Steve looked up at her, nothing short of adoration in his eyes. She already looked more alert, just by having some food and water and having her cuts cleaned up.

Serenity didn't pick up on that, but nevertheless, she put an arm around her shoulder and brought him in close. Steve rested his head against the side of her stomach. Both of them embraced the comfort it brought them.

Steve was going to go insane. He had to tell Serenity that he knew, that he agreed, that they could be something. But right now wasn't the time. Not in the dark house that was stuck in tense silence, melancholy drifting around in the air. Serenity deserved sunshine.

Mike suddenly got up and walked over to the table in the living room, picking up a cube that had been sitting there. "Did you guys know that Bob was the original founder of Hawkins AV?"

"Really?" Dustin questioned.

He turned back to them. "He petitioned the school to start it and everything. Then he had a fundraiser for equipment. Mr. Clarke learned everything from him. Pretty awesome, right?"

"Yeah."

"Yeah," Lucas agreed.

Mike placed the cube down on the table. "We can't let him die in vain."

"Well, what do you want to do, Mike?" Dustin argued. "All right, the Chief's right on this. We can't stop those Demo-Dogs on our own."

Serenity blinked. Huh?

"Demo-Dogs?" Max repeated.

He held up one hand. "Demogorgon." He held up the other hand. "Dogs." He then put his hands together. "Demo-Dogs. It's like a compound. It's like a play on words l—"

"Okay."

"I mean, when it was just Dart, maybe."

"But there's an army now," Lucas added.

"Precisely," Dustin said.

"His army," Mike announced.

"What do you mean?" Serenity and Steve chorused before giving each other a weirded-out look from talking at the same time.

"His army. Maybe if we stop him, we can stop his army, too."

Mike turned and walked down the hallway into the very last bedroom — Will's room. Lucas, Dustin, and Max immediately followed him. Serenity pushed herself off of the counter, putting all of her weight onto her good leg. She walked down the hallway with Steve right by her side and entered the bedroom.

In Mike's hand was another one of Will's drawing. This one, however, was what Serenity guessed to be. It was the landscape of a street with a forest in the background. In the sky was a large black shadow. It had a long head, a thin body, and eight legs, almost like a spider. Surrounding the monster were dark gray clouds, red fog, and red lightning. Serenity felt her heart momentarily stop in fear as she stared at it.

"The Shadow Monster," Dustin voiced.

"It got Will that day on the field," Mike continued, making Serenity's heart sink. "The doctor said it was like a virus, it infected him."

"And so this virus, it's connecting him to the tunnels?" Max inquired.

"To the tunnels, to the monsters, to the Upside Down, everything."

Serenity rubbed her face with the back of her hand. "Shit."

"Woah, woah, woah, slow down, slow down," Steve insisted.

"Okay, so, the Shadow Monster's inside everything," Mike explained. "And if the vines feel something like pain, then so does Will."

"And so does Dart," Lucas noticed.

"Yeah. It's like what Mr. Clarke taught us. The hive mind."

"Hive mind?" Steve echoed, clearly confused.

Dustin looked up at him. "A collective consciousness. It's a super-organism."

Mike pointed to the drawing. "And this is the thing that controls everything. It's the brain."

Dustin's eyes widened. "Like the Mind Flayer."

Mike's eyes widened, and Lucas snapped his fingers, pointing at Dustin in agreement.

"What?" Steve and Max said together.

Serenity frowned. She had heard that name before from somewhere, but she didn't know what. However, from the faces of Dustin, Lucas, and Mike, she guessed it was something D&D related.

Fantastic. That was just what they needed.

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I'm making it canon that mike gave her the nickname renny nobody can argue with me