╔══════✮❁•°♛°•❁✮ ══════╗

𝗕𝗘𝗧𝗧𝗬

chapter seven:
a ray of sunshine with a
spiked bat

╚══════✮❁•°♛°•❁✮══════╝

SERENITY KNEW SOMETHING was up when Steve didn't answer the phone.

After they had watched Billy run into the woods, Serenity had driven her and the kids back to Mike's house. It was a car ride of very, very intense silence. None of them really knew what to say, and there weren't even any words to describe what they had just witnessed, anyways.

Serenity had realized, with immense guilt, that she literally hadn't talked to Steve since she had taken Eleven and Max to the mall, which was over two days ago. (Yes, please save her the lecture, she was a horrible girlfriend. However, she was focused on Billy and Heather and the Mind Flayer, so maybe she got a pass.)

So, when they all piled in the Wheeler's basement, Serenity rang Steve's number on their telephone. No answer, which was weird, because Steve always answered his telephone. He had one in his room, and even if it was in the middle of the night, he would answer. It was late, but not too late that he would be sleeping. That was only the start of her concern.

She also called her older brother to reassure him that she was alive. Serenity had just told Spencer that she was babysitting the kids, which wasn't exactly a lie, and would be home soon.

Neither her or the kids had slept at all, too scared at what they had witnessed. Serenity hated feeling like this again — not being able to sleep because the Upside Down was fucking with her head. She had gotten a whole lot better lately ever since November, but here it was, rushing up on her again. Who could blame her? It was the fucking Mind Flayer. Arguably, he was worse than the Demogorgon.

They stayed up until the sunrise, the basement completely silent. There would be some conversations, but not a whole lot. It was mostly Serenity, whispering to all of them to ask if they were all right and if they needed anything.

Finally, when Serenity glanced at the clock again, it was almost time for the mall to open. Steve most likely had a shift and would have to get up for it, so she stood back up from her place on the couch and rang him again. The same thing as last night — no answer. That was also very concerning, because if he wasn't at home before his shift, where was he?

If he wasn't going to answer her, Serenity decided to go to him.

The kids had all reassured Serenity that they would be okay without her for a little while. Serenity wasn't exactly very keen on leaving them, but she had to make sure Steve was okay, especially with all of this going on. She got back in her car and drove to the mall. However, unlike the drives to the mall before, the summer air didn't bring her comfort. This drive was suffocating her in anticipation, because if Steve wasn't at work or his house . . .

Serenity pulled into the mall and parked in a closer spot than she ever had before since the mall had basically just opened. She got out of her car and locked it, staring up at the neon sign reading Starcourt Mall. Serenity let out a deep breath and walked up the street towards the entrance, which people were piling into.

She was definitely getting some weird looks. The front pieces of her hair that had been pinned back were definitely falling out, her shirt was slightly untucked from her skirt, and she looked sweaty. Overall, she was just disheveled, but she honestly didn't care. All she cared about was getting to Steve.

That, unfortunately, didn't happen. When she went down the escalator and rushed into Scoops Ahoy, she was only met with a very angry manager, one that she had only met a couple of times. Serenity had asked him where Steve was, or Robin because maybe she knew, but he had told her that Steve hadn't shown up to his shift last night or this morning.

Concern was practically raging through her veins now. Serenity walked out of the mall with her heart racing against her chest, back into the strong and hot summer sun. Her mind was starting to spin, both from the lack of sleep and all the new information that had been piled on her. Despite him hating his job, Steve would always show up to every shift. And he would always answer his phone, especially at his house. It also worried her that Robin hadn't shown up for her shifts, either.

Something had to have happened, and she didn't have a good feeling about it at all.

Serenity walked up the rows of cars in the parking lot, but when her eyes set on a very familiar car, she froze in her tracks. All of her breath suddenly left her and her eyes widened. She immediately beelined for it, letting the cars stop for her instead of her stopping for the cars.

Her thighs and calves burned from how fast she had walked, and they shook from exhaustion, but she ignored it all. Serenity stopped next to Steve's maroon BMW, staring down at it in bewilderment. If Steve was nowhere to be found at the mall, and especially at Scoops, why was his car here?

Yeah. Something was definitely wrong.

Serenity didn't know how, maybe it was her intuition of caring for people her whole life, but she could tell Steve was in danger.

She was also in danger. Serenity suddenly flashed back to last night, and how she had hit Billy with that metal pole like a baseball bat.

Bat.

A sudden thought popped into her head. If they were going to fight this — which she had no doubt they would, because that's just what they did — they needed at least one weapon.

Serenity looked down at the trunk, hoping, praying that it was in here. She pulled her own car keys out of her pocket and grabbed onto Steve's spare key on the ring. (Yes, he had given her his spare car key, and no, do not ask any questions, he just insisted she have it.) Serenity let out a deep breath and put the key in, unlocking his trunk and opening it all the way.

Sitting there, rolled towards the back, was exactly what she was looking for. Serenity reached forwards and took the wooden handle, pulling it towards her. She lifted up the bat out of the trunk and examined the nails spiked into it for a moment. The first time she had seen it, Steve had used it to protect everyone, and this time, she was using it protect everyone. Serenity never really ever thought she would use the bat, that was more of Steve's thing, but desperate times called for desperate measures.

Serenity glanced around for a moment to make sure nobody was looking, which was futile, because there were a ton of people around and she looked like a total mess. Nevertheless, she pulled the spiked bat all of the way out of the trunk, slamming the trunk shut and locking it.

She lifted the bat up and rested it against her shoulder, heading back to her own car, and definitely headfirst into danger.

❯ ────── ｢ ✾ ｣ ────── ❮

SERENITY WALKED BACK into the Wheeler's basement, the spiked bat resting against her shoulder again. She had driven pretty quickly back to the house, itching to get back to the kids and to tell them that her boyfriend, who always helped them with this sort of thing, was missing.

She shut the door behind her. Eleven and Max weren't there, but she heard giggling coming from the bathroom, so she assumed they were in there. Mike, Lucas, and Will were standing there, having a hushed argument with each other.

"Everything okay?" Serenity began to announce her presence, making them all turn towards her.

"Hi, Renny," Mike greeted, honestly sounding a little annoyed. His eyes then set on the weapon in her hand. "What the hell? Where did you get that?"

"Steve's car," Serenity answered. "Which is still at the mall with no Steve. Steve and Robin are literally missing, and I may or may not be freaking out." She gestured to the bat. "My boyfriend's gone, but his bat isn't."

He blinked at her. "How exactly is the bat supposed to defend us against the Mind Flayer?"

"Dude, I don't know. I kind of panicked in the mall parking lot for a second." Serenity sighed. "What'd you do while I was gone?"

"Eleven used her powers to try and find Hopper," Lucas revealed. "He's with Will's mom in the woods going to Illinois."

"Why the fuck are they going to Illinois?" Serenity asked, and Mike shrugged. She then suddenly straightened up, her eyebrows knitting in thought. "Wait, hold on. Do you think she could find Steve?"

"I don't see why not," Will replied.

There was suddenly a knock at the door from the top of the staircase.

"Not now, mom!" Mike shouted.

"Mike, open the door," Nancy's voice ordered.

He did as he was told and walked up the stairs, opening the door for his sister. Nancy pushed past Mike and walked down the stairs, followed by Jonathan. The two of them looked disheveled as well. God, was everyone just going through it right now?

Serenity gave the both of them smiles in greeting, but it didn't really reach her eyes. (Her sunshine was dimming again.) Nancy and Jonathan didn't say anything, but their eyes trailed up to Serenity's shoulder, where the bat was.

"Oh, hey, what's up?" Serenity began. She lowered the bat and rested the top of it against the floor. "I'm channeling my inner Steve."

"Will, are you okay?" Jonathan immediately questioned.

"I'm fine," Will responded. "Why?"

Nancy shook her head. "We have something to tell you."

Serenity got Eleven and Max from the bathroom. She sat down on the arm of the couch, her legs crossed together. Serenity held onto the bat's handle and rested it on the ground next to her, holding onto it like it was her lifeline. After all, it was Steve's.

Nancy and Jonathan started to tell their story. Apparently, they had dug into a story about the strange behavior about rats. They had visited a woman named Mrs. Driscoll, who complained about the rats eating her fertilizer, only to find her later eating fertilizer. She was taken to the hospital, but when Nancy visited her, she was screaming and had black veins all over her body, just like Billy. Speaking of him, Serenity and the kids recounted what happened to them last night and everything that had gone down in the sauna.

"It was the same thing, the exact same thing that happened to Will last year," Nancy voiced. "And look at this. Look at the body temperatures."

Nancy put down Mrs. Driscoll's hospital records on the table in front of them. Serenity slightly leaned forwards, looking down at the recordings of her vitals.

Will pointed to her temperatures, which were all way lower than what they should've been. "He likes it cold."

"Okay, so this crazy old woman who was eating fertilizer—" Mike started to say.

"Mrs. Driscoll," Nancy corrected.

"Right, yeah, Mrs. Driscoll. What time was this attack?"

"Last night."

"Right, but what time last night?" Mike insisted.

"Around nine," Nancy revealed.

Jonathan looked over at her. "You waited all night to call?"

"I was waiting for the doctors to run some tests."

Will focused in on his brother. "You weren't there?"

"Well, I'm here now, aren't I?" Jonathan argued.

"Hallelujah!" Nancy exclaimed with a scoff, her voice dripping with sarcasm.

Serenity's eyebrows knit in confusion and she glanced between Nancy and Jonathan. There was obviously some sort of . . . tension.

"Ooh," Lucas let out, apparently feeling Jonathan's pain.

"Um, so, w-what time was your . . . sauna test?" Nancy inquired.

"Around nine," Serenity and the kids all chorused.

"Well, that proves it. That proves my theory."

"She's flayed, just like Billy," Mike stated.

"Flayed?" Jonathan repeated.

"The Mind Flayer. He flays people. Takes over their mind. Once they do that, they basically become him."

"If there are two flayed—" Lucas began.

"We have to assume there are more," Will finished.

"Heather," Eleven breathed out, and Serenity's eyes widened as she whipped her head over to Eleven. "Billy was doing something to her. She was scared. She was screaming. Bad screams."

Lucas stared at her. "What's a good scream?"

"Max said—"

"Doesn't matter," Max swiftly interrupted.

"I'm sorry, I'm lost," Nancy admitted. "Who is Heather?"

Serenity looked at her. "Heather Holloway. You know, the lifeguard?"

Nancy and Jonathan looked at each other.

"Tom," the two of them said together.

Serenity had no clue why they were so concerned about Heather's dad, but she assumed she was about to find out.

⊹⊱••••••⊰⊹

and renny FINALLY wields the spiked bat <3