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˚ ₊ ♡ ❰ CRUEL SUMMER ❱
*✧ ─── ❝ ❪ THE END IS NEAR ! ❫ ❞
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˚₊· ͟͟͞͞➳❥ SEASON THREE ☀️ ⁺⑅

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SUPER FREAKS SERIES ⋆ 🚲.
♯ ❝DANGER IS COMING ! ❞
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN ✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:*
˚ ₊ ♡ 1985, July 4th ─── episode seven
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MILO FEELS A BIT HAZY. "WHY ARE THERE TWO OF YOU JUNO?" ...or maybe a bit too hazy.

The girl in question let her eyes drift toward him in worry. Her grip on his wrist tightening slightly. "Just a little bit further Milo." She urges as they burst through another hallway door, sneaker screeching over the metal flooring as alarm bells ring and lights flicker red above them.

"Where the hell are we going!?" Erica shouts just from behind Dustin.

"I don't know!"

"Why don't you know!?"

"Because I don't know erica!"

"Oh what's that?" Milo wheezes, pointing ahead, eyes wide and comically with childlike wonder.

Up ahead at a junction, stood a small cart, and Juno lit up with relief. "The transport!" She shouted gleefully, pulling Milo closer to her whilst Dustin and Erica tried to shove a giggling Steve and babbling Robin into the back of the cart. "Go. Go. Go!" Erica demanded firmly, shoving the livestock rod into Dustin's hand who glanced at it, before throwing it in the back with Steve and Robin.

"Time to leave this place in the dust." Juno urges as she turns to look over her shoulder where the sound of rushing footsteps echo.

Climbing inside, Juno tries maneuver around a splayed out Steve and Milo who has dropped himself in a corner with his knees drawn to his chest, breathing heavily. She swallows her nerves and slams the door of the cargo hold behind her with a loud bang.

Hitting the roof of the vehicle she shouts at the two kids in the front. "Alright let's move it!"

The cart skidded over the floor, and for a moment Juno prayed that they wouldn't slam in the closest wall, but luckily Dustin managed to obtain some sort of control over the car.

A hiss caught her attention and Juno's head swiveled to the side where she locked eyes on Milo. He had thrown his head back, clutching it with his hands. He was shaking as if riddled with a fever. Crawling over Robin's curled legs, she hunched over his shivering body.

"Milo?" The brunette reached for his wrists but Milo flinched, almost as if he tried to disappear. "Milo what is wrong?"

"I-I." He stammed, "Make it stop. Make it stop." He cried out.

"I...I don't know how Milo. I don't know what's wrong." She rushed out, trying to pry his hands away from his ears. "Please what is it?"

"Danger! Danger!" He bellowed out, his eyes snapping open with fear.

"Danger? What danger?" Juno worriedly asked, before suddenly getting slammed into the side of the cart as Dustin's rickety driving devoted them around another corridor corner.

The vehicle shuddered and rattled, and Juno had to steady herself with both hands.

"Who's in danger Milo?" Juno tried again, panic rising in her chest as the boy remained silent as if suddenly frozen in time.

"Oh Milo? I didn't know you were here too!" Steve giddily turned to face the blonde. "Hi Milo!" Robin echoed the same sentiment.

But Milo remained still.

"Milo?" Juno whispered.

Gasping, Milo shot up, a more clear look in his eyes as he looked up at Juno. "The others." He rushed out, trying to push himself up but Juno pressed down on his shoulder.

"What's with the others?"

"It's coming. It is coming for them." He warned.

"Shit."

Another sharp turn made them all tumble around the cargo hold. "Jesus slow down!" Steve slurred, head lulling to the side.

"Yeah!" Robin groaned, "what is this? Like the Indy 500?"

"It's the Indy 300," disagreed Steve, pointing his finger at a dopey-smiling Robin and Juno internally groaned.

Milo's face scrunched up at the unfamiliar terms. "What's an Indy 500?" He spoke slowly as if worried about the pronunciation.

"Not important." Juno shook her head, before redirecting the conversation again. "Do you think you can find the others again?" She nibbled nervously on the skin of her lip.

Milo wringed his sweaty hands, brown doe eyes unsurely looking up at her. But Juno noted, that there was something more to it. Something akin to...fear.

"What happened?" She asked softly, reaching out to grab his shaking hands.

"I-I...there...when." His words were jumbled together as he tried to explain. "Something there." He whispered. "Something bad. Evil." He pointed at himself. "Knew me."

"Knew you?"

Milo nodded. "I don't know who. Did not see him before."

"Him?"

They were interrupted as Steve groaned in pain, a high pitched whine escaping his lips as he rubbed his arm and glared at Robin.

"No, dingus, it's 500!" Robin exclaimed loudly.

Steve shook his head defiantly and held up three fingers, punctuating each number as he spoke, "It's 300." There was dry blood caking his skin, and his swollen eyelid seemed to throb in the low light.

"No 500!"

"300." He jutted his fingers in his face before they both turned to Milo and Juno expectantly.

"Shut up you two!" She threw her hands up. Everything was going wrong. Milo was freaking out, the others seemed to be in danger and they still had a horde of crazy Russians on their trail.

The duo glared at her before sharing a look and bursting out in laughter.

"Let's say... a million." Robin declared and they fell in another fit of giggles.

Juno instead turned back to Milo. "I know you scared. But if the others are in danger, you can find Eleven right? Warn her, tell her we're coming?" She reached out to clutch his hand. "I'll be here the whole time. I promise."

Milo let out a shaky breath, before nodding. "Okay."

She smiled at him and Milo felt a bit of relief and assurance flood through him despite the thrumming of his heart.

He took in a deep breath before letting his eye flutter shut.

a cold breeze made him open his eyes.

It was quiet, the ominous blue sky flashing with unheard thunder. He stood frozen, glancing around the familiar forest. The cabin he called home close by.

Slowly he took careful steps, leaves crunching beneath his dirtied sneakers.

"El?" he whispered as the feeling in his chest grew tighter. "Eleven?"

A single light slithered through the drawn curtains of the cabin as he approached it. The porch steps creaked as he walked toward the front and reached for the knob.

It twisted as he slowly pushed it open.

Faint voices resounded around the living room, like a footprint left in the sand he watched as a translucent figure paced the floor.

He took another step and the floorboard creaked and the figure tensed.

On the other side of the upside down Eleven froze and the others faced her with worried frowns.

"What is it?" Nancy murmured nervously.

"Someone is here."

"Billy?" Max asked softly, stepping closer to the girl.

Eleven shook her head, eyes focused on the front door. "No..."

The light above them suddenly flickered and everyone watched as another lamp lit up, and another and another until the light in one of the bedrooms flickered on.

Milo's bedroom.

"Milo?" Will asked, coming to stand next to Eleven.

"I..." Eleven shrugged.

"Well let's find out?" Mike offered, holding up a kitchen towel.

"El?"

"Zero!" Eleven exclaimed tearfully, rushing through the bedroom door of her brother and rushing into his arms.

"Okay?" Milo asked in hear ear as he clutched her closer to his chest.

"Okay." She promised, before frowning. "Why are you here?" she took in his appearance, the pale, sickly looking skin to the bruised that decorated every piece of skin she saw. "What happened?"

"Not important." He shook his head. "Danger is coming. I feel it. I feel..." He paused unsure. "Anger?"

"Danger?"

"Something bad is coming for you...for us."

Eleven's mind flashed to Billy.

"Monster." He repeated. "I find you soon. I promise."

"Promise." Eleven echoed, and before Milo could say anything else his body lurched forward without warning.

His eyes flashed open, as pain surged through his body.

The wheels of the cart skid loudly on the floor and Milo can vaguely make out someone screaming in the front as they slammed straight into something. Juno has her arms wrapped around his body, holding him close to protect him from the metal cargo hold wall.

"Shit." She curses as she glanced down at the boy. "Are you alright?"

"yes."

"You guys alright back there?" Dustin asked as he turned around in his seat, catching Juno gaze as the girl nodded. With those words the two kids at the front threw the doors open and rushed toward the cargo hold.

Erica opened the back door and Juno wasted no time climbing from the back, dragging a sluggish Milo with her. She slung his arm around her shoulder and winched at the way the boy struggled to stand on his own two feet.

The exhaustion was clearly catching up with him now that most of the adrenaline had left his body.

"Come on, we've gotta go. Now." Dustin demanded.

"Get out! Now!" Erica screeched worriedly.

The preteens both reached for the teenagers, dragging them forcefully out of the car as they protested with slurred words.

"We're coming!" Steve complained as Erica clapped at them to speed up, and Dustin had walked over to the elevator doors with a keycard, Juno and Milo following close behind him.

"This sucks!"

"'m sorry." Milo mumbled as he tripped over his feet, Juno barely managing to keep them both up.

"It's okay." She squeezed his shoulder in an assuring gesture. "you can make it up to me some time."

Milo nodded, grinning toothily at her with that smile she liked so much.

Dustin cheered gleefully as the keycard was accepting, the greenlight flicker before the doors opened with a hiss.

Wonkily Milo and Juno made their way through, a bit uncoordinated as Milo's body became heavier by the second.

"I'm tired Juno." He said quietly.

"Just a little bit longer." She promised. "We're almost there."

Dustin was still gesturing to the open doors urgently as Steve and Robin still kept giggling like a couple of lovestruck preschoolers. "Move you idiots!" He screamed, rushing towards them to literally push them inside the elevator.

Quite literal done with this shit and completely riddled with fear for Milo, Juno spun on her heels, marched to the teens and pointed at them. "If you don't get your asses into his elevator by the count of three I will murder you, bring you back to life just to kill you all over again!"

Their giggling stopped and they both looked at her with wide dopey eyes. "She's scary..."Steve whispered to Robin. "Like really scary."

"Move it!"

They both jumped and rushed inside the elevator.

"Thanks." Dustin sighed.

"Let's just get out now we still can."

The elevator jolted to life, mechanical whirring resounding as they started to rise.

Carefully, Juno brought Milo to sit down on the ground, pushing back the blonde hair that stuck to his sweaty forehead. "Thank you." He whispered.

Juno just smiled at the boy as he closed his eyes to rest for a moment, but there was not even a moment of peace as Steve and Robin started giggling again. Steve, who had been staring around the elevator with awe had hopped on a trolley stashed in the corner of the space. But as he attempted to ride it, he jostled unsteadily with his arms out for balance whilst Robin clapped her hands in an encouraging manner, hollering and cheering him on. "Hey, you look like you're"

"—surfing, yeah!" laughed Steve as he finished her sentence.

Off to the side, Erica and Dustin watched the entire scene unfold with confusion and a fair share of exasperation. "They seem drunk." Erica deduced flatly with her arms crossed over her chest.

Dustin glanced at her unsurely. "Why would they be drunk?"

"They're not drunk, they're high." Juno added with a sigh, rubbing her temple. "Those Russians probably thought they would be spilling all their secrets if all their reservations were down."

They all turned to look at the two.

"I'm a natural! Check it out!" he yelled with joyfully, a bright smile on his face.

Mischievously however, Robin grinned and pulled the trolley out from under Steve's feet, who immediately plunged forwards.

She flinched as Steve fell of the trolley, long legs and arms twisted uncomfortably as he fell in a heap on the floor at Robin's feet who was cackling at the sight.

"Wipeout!" Robs exclaimed giddily hand thrown forward, falling a couple steps backwards until her back slammed into the wall of the elevator.

Milo's eyes flicker back open to see Steve sprawled on the ground among a couple of cardboard boxes, his bloodied face morphing into a large grin. "What's happening?" He breathed out, trying to push his body up.

"They're high." Juno voiced.

"High?"

"yeah you know...never mind." She cut herself off as she saw his brows pinch together in a frown.

"Oh."

"He's burning up." Dustin stated from where he was crouching in front of Steve.

The older teen swatted his hand away from his head, "You're burning up!" He countered.

"One sec. one sec. Steve, Steve." Dustin was trying to get a closer look at his eyes.

"God, no." Steve groaned.

"His pupils are super dilated." He supplied.

"Told you—high."

"Boop!"

Juno grimaced as Dustin slapped Steve's hand away from his face and lightly slapped his cheek. "Steve, are you drugged?"

"How many times, dad." He started mockingly, "I, I don't do drugs. It's only marijuana."

"Oh my god." Juno dropped down next to Milo, shoulders brushing together.

"This isn't funny okay. I need to know what they did to you." Dustin continued. "Are you gonna die on us?"

"We all die my strange little child friend." Robin giggled from where she sat on the ground, staring at her fingers as if she had never seen them before.

"They're acting strange." Milo said, head lulling to the side, toward Juno."

"It's just a matter of how and when..." She trailed off, suddenly more interesting in twirling two locks of hair between her fingers.

"They're gonna be looking for us up there." Dustin was getting more irritated by the second. "our only superhuman who can get into contact with the others and senses literal danger has an empty battery and is about to sleep for the next century—so focus! I need you to tell me where you parked the car."

"oh! Can we make a pitstop at the food court?" Steve asked hopefully, wistful eyes crinkling as a smile overtook his face.

Robin gasped, "I would kill for a hotdog on a stick," she puncged the ground lightly with her fist as if to further support her wish.

Juno rubbed her face.

Steve awed in agreement.

Dustin sighed, trying to keep calm, "Alright. Yeah, food. Yes, you can have as much food as you want, but only if you tell me where your car is parked."

Steve was silent for a moment, as if still processing Dustin's words but then suddenly his eyes widened and Juno heart spiked with fear "Uh-oh."

"Uh-oh?" repeated Juno.

"The car's off the board," replied Steve dopily, glancing at Juno before riffling through his sailor uniform. "They took the keys. The Russians, they took the keys. Like, forever ago." He started laughing loudly, soon Robin joined him.

"I hate this day." Juno groaned.

. "That's a bummer, right?" He smiled dopily.

"We're going to die," said Erica flatly, exchanging a serious glance with Dustin, Juno and Milo.

"We're going to die a stupid dead." Juno added bitterly.

Milo clasped her hand in his. "We'll be fine. I'll keep you save. All of you."

"You can barely stand." She frowned.

"I'm fine."

Before she could say anything else the elevator jolted to a stop.

Erica dragged Robin to her feet whilst Dustin tried to help Steve up.

Milo was pushing himself up, shaking off the pain that rushed through his body and instead focused on Juno. "Fine." He pressed again.

"Okay."

Fresh air greeted them as the doors hissed open, and the stuffy atmosphere of the Russian base was replaced with the cold evening air. But their moment of peace was interrupted as the gates in front of them squealed open and two men in uniform came running towards them.

"Shit!" yelled Dustin in alarm, turning on his heels "Oh my god! Come on! Come on!"

Shit indeed was all Juno could think as they took off in the opposite direction

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hi! the story is not dead! I promise! It's gonna be one of my focus projects of 2023! I'd love some enthusiam to help me get back in the swing of things for this fic 💓