CHAPTER ELEVEN
ELVIS TAPES

The instant the group arrived, Kimmy could tell something was wrong. There wouldn't be so much police and ambulance is there wasn't. Kimmy also knew she wasn't the only one who could tell, each and everyone of them tensed at the sight. Even if it was never admitted verbally, they all knew what was going on.

Kimmy almost told the group they should leave, already knowing what was about to happen. She didn't want them all to see their friend in such a state.

But she didn't. In fear of being shut down or yelled at in a form of projection as they hid their feelings.

Suddenly, Aaron got off his bike, causing Kimmy to follow his lead. Following the other four to a fire truck and crouching behind it.

There were firemen, police and medicals all in the water. Each surrounding one thing bobbing in the water. Kimmy felt repulsed, she knew exactly what it was.

Or who it was.

She wanted to look away, but she couldn't. She was waiting to be proven wrong.

Unfortunately, she wasn't.

A body was pulled up from the water and layed on a stretcher, a lifeless body. Kimmy froze, as did each of the twelve year olds she was stood with.

She felt her heart drop as a feeling of nausea sunk in, she heard a shuffle from behind her as Aaron walked away at a rapid pace. Stopping by the bushes as he vomited.

Dustin, who was stood next to Kimmy went to go after him but Kimmy stopped him, placing a hand on the curly haired boys arm.

"Leave him," she whispered, not wishing to draw any attention over to him from the others. "He'll come back when he's ready."

Dustin didn't answer, only nodding with a slight sniffle. He didn't shake off the hold she had on his arm as he turned away either, Kimmy supposed he could use the comfort. So her hand remained in place.

"It's not Will." Mike announced with a shake of his head, though Kimmy could tell he was unsure from the tone of his voice. "It can't be."

Kimmy didn't say anything, not wishing to push in her opinion. Especially when the young boys were in the early stages of grieving.

"It's Will." Lucas replied after a short moment of silence. It sounded as if he was forcing himself to talk, Kimmy didn't have to look at him to tell he was crying. "It's really Will."

Kimmy stepped back as the boys in front of her moved to step away from the truck and to face each other. Kimmy and Dustin watched as Mike stepped back, practically at the back of the truck as he let out a broken sigh.

Kimmy felt someone stiffen beside her and shifted her gaze to find Aaron had returned, he wasn't looking at her. And Kimmy wondered if he was doing it on purpose so he wouldn't have to look at anyone while so upset. Kimmy shifted her gaze from him and instead focused on Mike.

She watched as Eleven approached him placing a gentle hand on his shoulder as she looked to him in concern. "Mike-"

Mike slapped her hand away- harshly. Kimmy jumped violently, her eyes widening in fear as she stared at the boy. She couldn't really help it, it was something deep within her which she had no control over, but she knew she'd look at Mike differently from then on. It was only a small smack but Kimmy knew too well that just one small smack, could lead to lot worse.

"Mike? Mike what?" He boy snapped, glowering at the girl as the tears continued to flow down his cheeks. "You were supposed to help us find him alive. You said he was alive."

Kimmy honestly felt bad for the boy, his best friend's dead body had just been pulled from a lake in front of him, and he appeared to be in deep denial about it.

"Why did you lie to us?" He asked, his voice cracking are the emotions continued to spill out of his voice. "What's wrong with you?"

Kimmy watched as the small girl stuttered, her eyes widened in fear as she looked to the boy in front of her in utter horror. "Mike?"

"What?" He snapped again, raising his brows as he waited for her to elaborate.

She never did.

Kimmy noticed that Eleven was now crying, Mike took no notice. Instead pushing past her and heading straight for his bike.

"Mike?" Lucas called after him with a teary voice. "Mike, come on!"

"Mike?" Dustin asked as he sniffled from her side, turning to face him causing Kimmys hand to drop. "Where are you going?"

Mike didn't pay attention to any of them, just picking his bike up as he biked away, evidently too upset to deal with it all in that moment.

Kimmy watched as Lucas went to pick up his own bike and left not long after, next to do so was Dustin. Until it were only herself, Eleven and Aaron left.

Aaron hesitated before walking over to his own bike, getting on it just like the others although he stopped and turned to face her before he left. He was quite far from her and it was dark so she couldn't really see his face.

"Do you need a ride home?" He asked quietly, ignoring the way his voice cracked slightly at the question.

Kimmy did need a ride home but she wasn't going to take up his offer, not after what he had just witnessed.

"No," she replied finally, her face blank of any expression. "I'll be fine. Thank you though."

Kimmy watched as Aaron nodded before speeding off, heading in the opposite direction the three before him had as his house was at the opposite end of town.

Kimmy turned to face the girl who was quietly crying behind her, crouching in front of her as she placed a hand on her shoulder, trying to ignore the way the girl jumped.

"Are you okay?" She whispered, her brows knitted together in concern as the girl met her gaze. "Do you have somewhere to go?"

Mike had left, as had the other three boys. Meaning it was up to Kimmy what happened to the girl. She wasn't going to leave her to fend for herself, she was obviously a very shaken girl who got startled very easily. Kimmy knew she couldn't leave her out if she had nowhere to go.

Eleven shook her head slowly, sniffling as she wiped her eyes with the jacket she had on.

Kimmy sighed, taking the girls hand as she thought over what to do. The only thing which she knew in that moment, was that they could not be caught at a crime scene.

...

The next morning, Kimmy was awoken by a loud ringing noise. It took her longer than she cared to admit to fully wake up and realise the phone was ringing. Rubbing her eyes she got up and left her room, walking out into the hall to pick up the phone.

Her parents weren't home- well, her mother was. But Kimmy didn't really count her, even when she was psychically there, she never was mentally. As long as her father was gone she didn't really care.

"Hello?" She grumbled as she scratched the back of her head, her voice slightly raspy from sleep.

"Uh- hi, it's Aaron." The voice on the other line announced quietly, his voice too sounding different, however Kimmy assumed this was due to tears and not sleep. "Is this the right number? I wasn't sure-"

"Hi, yes- yeah, it is." Kimmy rambled at once, closing her eyes as she realised how pathetic she sounded. "What's wrong? Are you alright?"

"Yeah," he mumbled, Kimmy only then realising her choice of words. "Do you know where the weirdo is? Mike asked me to call and ask."

"Yeah, she's here- at my house I mean." Kimmy replied instantly, worried she'd done something wrong. "She stayed over last night, I didn't know what else to do."

"Okay, that's fine," Aaron mumbled, letting out a sigh as he thought over his next words. "Fuck, okay I'm going to have to come over and get her and bring her back to Mike's. He's freaking out."

Aaron sounded really annoyed now, and Kimmy supposed he had every right to be. His friend had died the night before and he wasn't even getting proper time to grieve.

"Okay, that's fine." Kimmy answered awkwardly, not sure what she was supposed to say. "See you then."

She then hung up the phone, turned to her bedroom again. Last night her mother hadn't been conscious when she came home, so she was perfectly able to sneak the small girl into her house without raising suspicion.

She had allowed the girl to sleep in her bed, Kimmy took the floor. Kimmy had grabbed her small stuffed rabbit and slept with probably the smallest blanket to ever grace the earth on the floor.

"Eleven? El?" Kimmy whispered as she shook the girls shoulder, watching as she awoke with a start. "Come on we need to go, come on get ready."

Kimmy walked away from the girl then, leaving her to come to her senses as she walked over to her closet. She cringed, trying to find something presentable for the girl to wear.

Eventually she landed on an old pink sweatshirt as well as some of her faded blue jeans. A bit girly, but Kimmy supposed she could do with getting out of Mike's old clothes.

"Here," Kimmy called as she placed the clothes gently on the edge of the bed. "You can wear these, get out of those boy clothes."

Kimmy smiled at her softly, hoping to comfort the girl, very much pleased as she noticed the girls lips pull up in response. Kimmy turned back to her closet, picking out the first thing she could find as she suddenly began to worry that Aaron would arrive while the two weren't ready.

Kimmy took her clothes and left to change in the bathroom, going as fast as she could.

Moments later, when Kimmy returned to her room after having brushed her teeth and hair, she found Eleven dressed and sat with her hands in her lap at the edge of her bed, messing around with something in her hold.

Kimmy instantly grabbed Mike's old clothes and began folding them as she watched the small girl from the corner of her eye. Excitment bubbling within her as she realised what it was she was holding.

"Oh, that's my Elvis tape!" Kimmy exclaimed with a toothy smile, clutching Mike's clothes tightly to her chest. "If I Can Dream, that's my favourite. I do want to get some of his other ones, but I don't know it would take me forever to save up for it."

Kimmy paused, waiting for the girls response, though she just stared blankly at her.

"Do you know Elvis?" Kimmy asked unnecessarily, already knowing the young girls answer.

Kimmy watched as the girl shook her head slowly, her brows knitted together in perplexity.

"He's like, my favourite singer ever." Kimmy continued dramatically. "His songs are so cool, I'll have to show you sometime when we have more time to talk."

Eleven nodded, the look of confusion never leaving her face as she looked to the overly excited girl in front of her.

Excitement pumping through Kimmy as she realised having a friend to talk to about girly things was actually really fun if the girl you were talking to wasn't acting as if everything that came out her mouth was weird or embarrassing. Even if the girl she was talking to about her interests didn't understand half the things she was saying.

Kimmy went to say something else, but was stopped as a knock came from the front door, Kimmy jumped as did the girl she had been talking to.

"Oh, that's Aaron," Kimmy whispered to the girl, acting as if he would somehow be able to hear her through the walls or something. "Come on let's go."

Eleven stood hesitantly, still holding the Elvis tape. Kimmy of course noticed this.

"Uh- can you give it back please?" Kimmy asked, reaching out to hold the edge of the tape Eleven wasn't holding, though Eleven wasn't letting go she only held on tighter. "Please? It's my only one."

Eleven either didn't understand what she was saying or she didn't care. Either way, the small girl wasn't letting go of Kimmy's prized tape. Kimmy was stressed, with Aaron waiting for them downstairs she couldn't really afford to bicker with the girl. She didn't want to bicker with her anyway, in fact the last thing she wanted to do was annoy her new friend.

So, with a look of deep sadness which she simply could not hide, Kimmy felt her shoulders drop in disappointment, feeling as if she could cry as she left her room. The girl following with her tape still clutched tightly in her hold.

Kimmy rushed downstairs, Mike's clothes still held to her chest as she opened the door to reveal the blond boy behind the door.

His eyes were very much bloodshot, it was obvious he had been crying. It was expected considering the circumstances.

"Hi," Kimmy blurted, unsure of what else she was to do.

"Hi," Aaron responded, his voice different than usual. Definitely a sadder tone to his voice. "Is Eleven here?"

"Yeah, she's just-" Kimmy turned slightly flustered, jumping as she realised the girl had apprised directly behind her. "Oh, she's here."

Eleven didn't move from her space behind Kimmy, looking to Aaron with a questionable stare.

Kimmy soon realised that the two would not get along together and the walk to Mike Wheeler's would certainly drag on for the pair.

"I can walk with her to Mike's if you want?" Kimmy asked abruptly, reaching for her shoes as she slipped them on. "I know you probably want to be yourself right now."

Aaron didn't reply right away, biting the inside of his cheek as he furrowed his brows and looked down, thinking over her offer.

"No it's alright," he mumbled finally, looking up to meet her gaze as he shrugged his shoulders. "Probably shouldn't surprise Mike like that. He'd probably have a heart attack."

Kimmy sent him a half hearted smile, "alright," she mumbled, ushering Eleven out of the house as she shut the door behind herself.

Aaron looked to her with a wide eyed expression. Following her with his eyes as she walked with the dazed girl to her side.

"What are you doing?" Aaron questioned, jogging to catch up with her as he spoke.

"What do you mean?" Kimmy asked, turning to face him with a perplexed expression. "I'm walking with you to go-"

"What about school?" He injected curiously. "Wont you get in trouble for skipping?"

Kimmy froze, she'd forgotten about school that day, but it wasn't as if she was going to leave him to walk to Mike's alone with a girl who refused to talk. Especially not in his current state.

"No, it'll be fine." She replied simply, unsure of what else to say.

Aaron looked like he wanted to say something else, to object to her previous statement maybe? But he didn't, simply scrunching his nose softly before nodding in acceptance.

He didn't say anything though, simply walking beside her as he stuffed his hands in his pockets.

Kimmy wondered why it was Aaron who had to do this. Just like all the rest of the party, he had lost his friend too. She supposed he was the most friendly with her out of the rest of them, still, Kimmy couldn't help but feel it was unfair on his behalf.

"What's that she's got?" Aaron mumbled from beside her, obviously trying his best to ease the very evident tension in the air.

Kimmy turned to face him, he had his usual black hat on as well as woolly gloves and a red scarf. His eyes had this sort of distant look in them, telling Kimmy he had no real interest in the conversation at hand, he just wanted to go home.

After the previous night, Kimmy couldn't blame him.

"Oh," Kimmy sighed disappointment evident in her voice despite her best efforts to hide it. "That's my Elvis tape."

Aaron furrowed his brows, "is that not a good thing?" He asked in a puzzled voice.

Kimmy was quick to shake her head waving her hands to dismiss his thought, she hadn't meant to make her out in a bad light. "No, no, she just kind of took it, I mean I let her look at it but then she wouldn't give it back. Sucks too cause it's my only one."

"Why don't you just ask for it back?" Aaron retorted sounding genuinely confused, his face scrunched up in puzzlement.

"No I can't!" Kimmg whispered, shooting him a horrified stare. "She's my friend now, I mean, I think she is. Besides, I let her look at it to begin with, I don't want to be rude."

Kimmy watched as Aaron cracked a small smile at her outburst of a response. Although Kimmy hadn't intended on her response being taken as a joke, she was glad she was the one to distract the boy of his current troubles, even if it were only for a few moments.

"Alright, whatever," he muttered, a ghost of a smile on his lips as well as the faintest of teasing in his voice. "You're weirder than I thought, Jenkins."

Kimmy laughed and shook her head.

The rest of the walk to the Wheeler's was filled with continuous small talk between the two, Kimmy trying her best to cheer Aaron up with the small time she had with him that day.

Upon arrival, Mike quietly thanked the two before quickly shutting the door on them, most likely wanting to get the awkward interaction over with before his mother found out.

Kimmy and Aaron then went seperate ways, each making a thirty minute walk alone in the opposite direction of the other as they crossed the small town and returned to their quiet, lonely, empty houses.

...

Is it bad I've already written the snowball scene??😭

I've also already written 2 different endings to this story because I'm indecisive and idk what way I want to take this story LOL😭😭😭

Anyway hope you all enjoyed this chapter TYSM for all the reads <3

Btw I'm aware this chapter is dog💩 but whatever let's ignore that!!😃

-AJ:)