"Hey." Bradley got Eddie's attention as they got off the RV. "I'm sorry."

"Don't be, the kid needs you." Eddie shook his head, unloading the few weapons that were to be taken into the Crill house. "Was either you or Erica, and i'm not sure she'd be the best at pulling Peter out of a trance."

"That's true." Bradley smiled, looking back at Steve as he talked Peters ear off about being safe. "I was thinking about something."

"Oh, god." Eddie braced himself. "What were you thinking?"

"What if we open our time capsules after this?" he leaned against the RV with a small shrug. "You know...for old times sake."

"Old times sake, huh?" he nodded in his direction. "Little reminder that we were friends before school starts back up?"

"What? No. No." Bradley gave him an insane look. "We're gonna be friends."

"Oh, are we?" Eddie laughed. "You're gonna go to Hellfire meetings and i'll pretend to like soccer?"

"I kinda like the sound of that." Bradley shrugged. "So, what do you say?"

Eddie was trying to hide a grin, failing miserably. "I say it's a plan."

Bradley smiled, holding his hand out for a high five as Eddie went for a fist pump. Bradley tightened his hand around his knuckles a moment with a nod. "Okay."

"Better go take care of Little Clarke." Eddie nodded as he circled the RV. "Wesley will have your head if you don't."

"I'm terrified of that band nerd." Bradley said honestly. "With his skinny little arms."

"And girl fist." Eddie agreed, climbing into the RV with a wave. "Bye, Brad."

Bradley rose his hand when he turned back, already getting into the RV completely. "Bye, Eddie."

As they drove away, Bradley turned to see Peter staring at him. "What's that look for?"

"You're such a pussy." he rolled his eyes and started walking.

"What? Me?" Bradley asked in disbelief as he followed. "Why am I a pussy?"

"Because you didn't kiss him." Peter scoffed in disbelief. "Should have kissed him."

"Agreed." Lucas gave a point.

"See." Peter motioned to him. "P to the ussy."

"God, would you stop?" Max groaned.

"Sorry." Peter opened the door, holding it open. "After you."

Max gave him a sarcastic smile, walking in and passing him the light. They both pulled their headphones over their ears on sync once the door was fully shut. Max lead the way to the room they'd wait in, all having their own little notebooks incase of needing to communicate. Peter rested his arms on his knees as he leaned against the wall, his head back with a deep exhale.

El held DP in her arms as Jonathan looked for a way to get them home to Hawkins as soon as possible. She kissed his head and thought of Peter, she'd been so angry with him for ignoring her wishes for him to stay in California where it was safer. Now, he'd gotten himself right in the ring of fire and she was ready to scream. DP was good at calming her down, she'd been so thankful Wesley remember him after the attack on their house in Lenora.

"No, it doesn't have to be a one-way." Jonathan ranted on the other line, standing next to the pay phone. "I'll take one seat if you have it."

Wesley looked at Will. "Cold?"

"Not really." Will said back.

Wesley glanced away. "Oh."

Wills was quiet a second, not sure of what to think of that. "Actually...i'm very cold."

"Oh!" Wesley's eyebrows shot up, pulling his jacket off. "Here, i'm warm. Having a heatstroke."

Will smiled, Wesley smiled back as he put the jacket on.

"Please, there has to be something you can do." Jonathan huffed in a begging manor, leaning against the pay phone. "One of our family members is really, really sick, and I don't know if she's gonna make it through the night."

Wesley frowned his eyebrows as he looked back, following El quickly as she walked off. "El, wait."

"I'm fine." she tried to wave him off.

"My official job is to protect the sister in law and my hairy nephew." Wesley exhaled as he stopped next to her. "What are we looking at?"

"There." El pointed at the large sign before them. "I know a way."

"A way?" Wesley looked down at her.

"A way to protect Peter." El held her head up a little more. "A way to protect Max from here."

DP licked her face. 

Peter took a deep breath as Max stared down at him, nodding her head. It was time, Bradley and Lucas were having their own wave of anxiety. Peter took Max's hand in his as they walked together, down the hallway, up the stairs, and into the attic. Peters heart raced, fear over taking every single cell and veins within his teenage body. He didn't want to do this, he wanted to run away and hide.

But, without him, Max would go alone. And she'd never be alone, not as long as he was there.

The blue light lit up their faces. Peter watched Max turn her walk man off, making him look back at Bradley. He gave him a hesitant nod, causing Peter to slide his around his neck and pause My Girl.

"Hey!" Max yelled at the slowly dimming light. "Asshole! I'm here."

She looked at Peter, he nodded with a minor swallow. "Two for one sale, man."

Bradley gave a dumb look to the back of Peters head.

"No more music." Max went on. "No more games. You get us both, that's the only way."

Nothing was happening.

"Hey!" Peter yelled at the light. "What? Am I not good enough now?"

"Do you want us or not?" Max shouted.

Bradley watched closely as Peters nose started to bleed, grabbing his shoulder. He was close, Vecna was coming for him. Max squeezed his hand a moment longer. "I'll see you there."

"I'll see you there." he nodded, following Bradley down the stairs. They wanted to keep Max and Peter separate, in different rooms in hopes of limiting too much distraction.

"How do I know when to bring you back?" Bradley asked as he took Peters walkman and head phones.

Peter inhaled as he set his light down, watching it start to grow brighter and brighter. "Whenever Steve signals."

Peter shut his eyes, sitting down on the ground and waiting for Vecna to take him. Nothing was happening, he was frozen in place, stuck in the Crill house. Peter huffed, leaning closer to the light. "You can't take her but not me. You said that you've wanted me this whole time. That you've been watching me, where are you?"

Bradley stood in the corner, not saying a word. Peter smacked the box the light was on. "I asked you a question!"

"Woah." a new voice rung, making him look back. The second Peters head turned back, he was no longer in the Crill house, he was in his own living room. His father stared down at him. "You sound just like me right now."

Peter stood up, his eyes looking around. Max. He needed to find Max. He didn't let his Dad scare him this time, taking off.

"Hey." Will wiped his eyes, just crying in Jonathan's arms, now finding Wesley in the back. El was eating, DP in her arms as she spoke to him.

Wesley looked over, sat on the pizza counter. "Hey, Will."

"What are you doing back here?" Will hopes up on the counter next to him after Wesley patted the place. "Get some salt up your nose like DP?"

"Poor DP." Wesley laughed slightly, shaking his head. "I'm just thinking, really."

"About Peter?" Will frowned, Wesley nodded. "Me too."

"You know he loves you a lot, right?" Wesley nodded. "Honestly, you two were the last people I expect to bond."

"I didn't think we would either. I mean, we're so different." Will said honestly as Wesley nodded. "But, he was the first person I actually talk to about..."

Wesley looked over. "About?"

"About who I am. I don't know, I guess it made me feel close to him." Will shrugged his shoulders. He knew Wesley was gay, Wesley knew he was into him too, but Will still felt like he couldn't say it out loud to him. Maybe apart of him way scared this would all play out like a joke in the end.

"Hes the first person that knew I was gay, too." Wesley agreed. Wills eyebrows shot up. Welp, there went that fear. "He was nine, I was ten. He never liked knocking, don't know why. So, he nearly tackles my door down and walks in on me kissing me TV while watching Elvis."

"Elvis?" Will laughed in disbelief. "Seriously?"

"What? I loved Elvis!" Wesley defended himself. "Loved him so much I just laid the biggest kiss on my tv screen. I have a scar from banging my head against it after Peter came in."

He leaned in closer, pointing to the top of the his lip. "See? It's small, but it bleed so bad."

Will leaned in some, looking for a small mark. "I don't see-"

He was cut off by Wesley kissing him.

El was in Peters head first.

"What do you see?" Wesley asked from outside of her body, kneeling next to the tub as El floated. "Do you see him?"

"You have to stay calm." Will gripped onto his hand. "She needs to focus."

Wesley swallowed. "Sorry, El."

"I'm at...a quarry." El admitted, looking around, squinting her eyes. "I see trucks...the sleeping kind."

"RV's?" Mike asked, looking at Wesley. "Is this a memory?"

He thought for a moment. "It's where he wanted to take her for spring break, before California happened. Do you remember him telling you that, El? At the mall?"

"Yes." she walked closer, staring at the side of the RV. "Red hair...it's Darcy."

"My Mom?" Wesley blinked. "Can she see you?"

"No." El answered. "She's laughing."

El walked right pasted the redhead woman, looking around for any sight of him. "Peter! Peter!"

"Do you see anything that looks off, El? Something that shouldn't be there?" Will asked her after a moment, realizing El hadn't found Peter yet.

"I'm looking." she answered, walking to the edge of the cliff. She had never been to this quarry before, but she knew that there was suppose to be water at the bottom, not glitter. "Glitter."

"Glitter?" Jonathan asked.

"The water...it's just glitter." El stared down at it with a blink. "It's-"

"I know what it is." Wesley braced himself. "It's not a good memory. El, don't go down there."

"He's there." El said back. "He is there."

With that, she jumped.

Peter couldn't escape his house, every single door was locked. He tried the windows, the back door, the front, even attempting the attic. His Dad was following him everywhere he went, giving him little to no space. Peter spun around. "Just go away!"

"I know what this is about, Pete." Shane said back. Peter didn't like when he said the nickname, it was only tolerable when Jonathan said it. "I'm not stupid, I know you've been sneaking out on school nights."

"You are so weird!" Peter yelled back. "Oh my god, you don't even make any sense anymore!"

He knew it wasn't his Dad, he knew it had been Vecna. But, this had been the third time he'd had a run in with him, at this point, he knew when it was time to be scared. And right now, all he was trying to do was hurt him mentally rather then physically. Peter yanked the basement door open, going down the stairs and trying that door. Shane followed him the entire way. "Your uncle called. Why have you been sneaking out to stay at his house? This one not good enough for you? All the work we put into it, and you don't like it?"

Peter let him stay behind him, thinking about something he did as a child. It got him in trouble, a right hook to the jaw, too. It was a bad memory, but it would help him out right now.

"You're ungrateful, just like your mother." Shane went on, standing in the middle of the basement as Peter rummaged through the cabinets. "At least your brother had the decency to stay h-"

Peter turned, throwing two large things of glitter into his fathers face, sprinting up the stairs.

"Peter!" Shane yelled from behind him as Peter slammed the basement door shut, leaning against it to keep him out. He squeezed his eyes shut as his body shook against it. "Open the door! Open the door!"

He didn't have to open the door, Vecna stood right in front of him now. Now was the time to be scared, now was the time he wanted to hurt him. Peter came off the wall with a heavy breath, staring in a panic as his chest heaved. Vecna didn't talk this time, he just breathed and rose his claw.

That was, until he was thrown into the Clarkes kitchen and hit Darcy's stove.

Peter breathed heavy, clutching his chest as he watched Vecna. He fixed his gaze back on the front door, realizing something had to do it. After all this time, all this panic and pain, it was removed from him, even in such a horrible moment. El's eyes filled up as she smiled. "Peter."

"El." he ran to her, the pair wrapping each other in a tight hug. Her arms were tighter around him, he ducked his head into her shoulder. "I've been so worried about you."

"Me too." she held the back of his head. "Are you hurt?"

"No, are you?" Peter pulled back, leaning down a little to cup her face. "How are you here?"

"I'm in your head." she swallowed, hands placed on his waist.

"I'm imagining you?" he felt a wave of disappointment.

"No, kind of like when I spy." she tried to explain. "I piggyback on a pizza freezer."

He laughed. "Okay."

El looked to Vecna. "Where's Max?"

"That's what I was looking for?" he let her face go with a little smile. "I love you."

El gapped. "You do?"

"Yes. Sorry it's taken me a little bit to tell you, and sorry it's at really bad timing, and i'm sorry that I didn't get to tell you with a bunch of streamers and rose petals." he listed on with a deep inhale to catch his breath.

El smiled, cupping his face and leaning in to kiss his lips. "I love you too."

Vecna groaned as he got to his feet now. "We should go find Max."

•

kylie speaks

babies babies babies!
i hope this makes up for
how long it took me to update!