"Okay, get her down." Nancy spoke as she got ahold of all the medical supplies she'd need. Peter sat El down, her back against the shelf, having him go down and sit with her. "Okay. Lemme see."

Peter cringed when Nancy rolled up El's pant leg, the large hole in El's leg leaking terrible. Peter looked away and El gave an offended look. "Sorry, El, it isn't you."

"What- hey, hey, what are you doing?" Max cut Nancy off when she went to open the whips.

"I'm cleaning the wound." Nancy said back honestly as she looked back down at El's leg.

"No, first, we need to stop the bleeding, then clean, then disinfect, then bandage." Max listed on seriously, nodding her head each time. "I skateboard. Trust me."

"Okay, well, let's get it in gear." Peter insisted quickly when he saw the pain on El's face, even though she'd been trying to hide it. Max pressed a gauze pad to El's leg, telling Peter to hold it in place. The boy cringed but did it, mentally trying not to gag. "Keep the pressure on it, nice and firm, okay?"

"Yup." was all Peter could say before shutting his mouth.

"We're gonna need water, soap." Max looked at Nancy and Jonathan as they nodded and headed off. The clatter of stuff falling made them look over, seeing Lucas had emptied his backpack with unnecessary supplies across the floor.

"Does any of this help?" he asked, looking down at the three with Will by his side.

Max gave a look of disbelief. "No. Go get me a washcloth and a bowl."

"A bowl?" he asked in disbelief.

"Lucas." the redhead huffed in response. Will smacked his arm, heading off quickly and leaving the remaining four.

"She should probably eat something, right?" Peter spoke up, looking at Max as his hand stayed clamped on El's wound. "Loosing all this blood will make her dizzy."

"Yeah, you're right." Max nodded, taking over his spot on holding El's leg.

Peter stood up, looking down at El. "I'll be back."

She nodded, Peter passing Mike as he overheard Max telling him to hold the bandage while she went to search for Lucas. Peter had set off with one thing in mind, coming across the freezer first. Pulling it open, he grabbing hold of the second, because he never trusted the first, thing of egos.

He went toward the kitchen section, eyes scanning over each of the shelves. Reaching onto the top, the Clarke boy grabbed the toaster and secured it tightly under his arm. The paper plates not too far, syrup and whip cream basically falling in gaze on his way to the counter. Throwing all the stuff onto the check out section, he leaned down and unplugged the landline in the front.

Peter popped the egos into the brand new toaster, making sure to get a plate ready. He hummed slightly to himself as he waited. Peter looked out of the window at the night sky, the town empty, all at the carnival. He hoped Wesley had found friends to hang out with this summer and had ran away for a while. Their parents clearly knew he was okay or else there'd be police calls. They had to know it was coming though, after keeping him sheltered from everyone else in fear of their reputation being ruined, they had to know he'd make a run for it sooner or later.

Clearly they had, considering no one seemed to be in a rush to get him back home.

The egos popped, Peter grabbing them with a small burn to his thumb. He stuck it into his mouth for a second before giving a few drizzles of syrup, then making a heart out of whipped cream. He searched the candy section infront of the check out, leaning over the counter and grabbing a thing of M&Ms. Sprinkling a few on top, he threw everything away before slapping a few dollars on the counter to pay for the toaster, heading back to El with the plate.

"El." he sang song from a few isles away. "Wakey, wakey, eggs and bacey."

As he came around the corner, his face flooded with embarrassment at the sight of Mike looking his way. His eyebrows were frowned, lips slightly parted. El was laughing at Mikes face and Peters song, leaving the boys to gap at each other.

Peter cleared his throat as he walked their way. "That was-"

He didn't even have an excuse, handing El the plate. He cleared his throat again in realization. "Am I interrupting something?"

"No." Mike shook his head quickly.

"Mike was saying he was sorry." El said, getting a faint look of disbelief from the Wheeler boy. "And he likes that Max and I are friends."

"He gets it." Mike nodded quickly, face red.

El gave him a knowing look, nodding upwards to Peter as she took a bite of her heart shaped egos. Peter sat down as Mike hesitated. "So, you kinda have saved us a lot now."

Peter rose one his his eyebrows, leaning on one of his knees with a odd look. "Yeah?"

"Yeah." Mike nodded, looking at El again as she gave a knowing look once more. "You know, just, thanks."

Peter almost grinned at him. "Sorry, didn't hear you."

Mike gave a look of disbelief. "I said thanks!"

"Oh." Peter gave a cheeky grin. "Now I hear you, loud and clear. Didn't the first time."

"Right, right." Mike nodded with his own sarcastic smile. The radio static caught their attention, the faint voice of Dustin Henderson coming through.

"Isn't that your noodle hair friend?" Peter asked as Mike hurried toward the walkies. The word code red coming threw a few times.

"Dustin?" Mike asked as he pulled the walkie from the ground quickly.

"Mike!" Dustin yelled.

"Dustin!" Mike exclaimed.

"Oh, my god, you have to listen. I know i've been MIA, I-Russian-Steve-Freshman-" Dustin's voice broke up over the speaker, Mike looking back at the pair in confusion.

"Dustin, you're going way too fast. I cant understand you." Mike said over the walkie to stop him, only making the rambling and broken words even worse. "To open the gate."

"The gate?" Peter frowned his eyebrows.

"Dustin, you're-you're breaking up!" Mike called to him again quickly. Radio silence over took them, Mike sighing as he turned the walkie off.

"What is it?" Nancy came around in corner in questioning.

The hum of the freezers echoed in El's ears, the blind fold over her eyes. The group all stood around her in the freezer isle, Peter rubbing his arms in a shiver, the striped tee not bringing him much warmth. Lucas popped the New Coke can, making Max shh him.

"How do you even drink that?" Mike gave a look of disbelief his way.

"Because it's delicious." Lucas looked at him oddly in return.

"What?" Max and Mike asked on sync.

"It's like Carpenters The Thing." Lucas explained. "The original is a classic, no question about it. But the remake-"

He paused to take three dramatic sips of the drink before sighing loudly. "Sweeter, bolder, better."

"You're insane." Mike shook his head at him.

"Fine, let's ask Peter." Lucas turned toward the boy, who's eyes widened. "Opinions?"

Peter looked at the can oddly, holding his hand out as Lucas passed it his way. The group all watched him take a sip, pulling it away from his mouth with a questionable look. "It taste like watered down chemicals."

"Thank you!" Mike spoke loudly with a slap on his knee.

"Hey!" El yanked the blind fold off.

"Sorry." Mike apologized.

"Sorry." Lucas gave a worried look.

El stared as Mike hesitated. "Did you find him?"

"The movies?" Lucas asked in disbelief when El told them where Dustin had been, the group walking down the isle with a cart of fireworks. "Dustin's so freaked out about the gate, he decides to go watch a movie?"

"Sometimes when I freak out I watch movies." Peter suggested, walking behind him. "Like Endless Love."

"Peter!" Max gave him a crazy look, only getting a comical laugh. "See, I forgot you were a boy again until now."

"What happens in Endless Love?" Will spoke up honestly.

"Nothing!" Max exclaimed loudly with a shake of her head toward the giggling Clarke boy. "You're positive he said gate and not great?"

"Yeah, like, 'this movie i'm watching is great.' " Will explained in questioning.

"Sounded like gate." El said from Peters side, his arm around her to help her walk better.

"Which would explain how the Mind Flayers still alive." Mike agreed with El's words.

"Yeah, we just have to shut it again." Nancy sighed as they headed out of the store, Peter grabbing hold of the lemon heads before exiting.

"Then the monster dies." Will agreed.

"But if not, we always have Lucas' fireworks." Max spoke sarcastically as she helped him roll his basket of fireworks out of the store.

•

kylie speaks

brb gonna go get some
lemon heads and be creeped
out by the mom in 1981's endless
love but will watch it anyways
just for you, peter.
also, this is the face i was
seeing mike do when i was
imagining the singing scene,
i literally could not stop
laughing.