THE NEXT MORNING, REESE STOOD at the kitchen counter, staring out the window with a bowl of cereal in her hands. Her mind swirled to the night before, back to when they made a plan to go find Will later that night. She couldn't help but question if Will truly was out there, someplace into the unknown. Reflecting back to when El said he was in the Upside Down, and based on Dustin's reaction. It couldn't be good.

     "Reese?" Dustin asked, walking into the room as he saw her sister staring blankly, her right arm moving to move the spoonful of cereal to her mouth as if on autopilot. He couldn't blame her. He noticed that since that night, Reese had been consumed into her thoughts often, and after conferring with his friends, he began to wonder if she truly was feeling okay. When she didn't pay attention, he frowned deeper. "Reese?!"

     Reese jumped, splashing the milk towards the sink, making her snap her head towards Dustin, sighing. "I'm fine."

     Dustin gave her an I don't believe you look while shaking his head. "No, you're not," he spoke, walking towards her as he reached for the paper towels and helped her clean the milk from the counters. "You're staring into space again."

     Reese rolled her eyes fondly, before chuckling. "Just thinking, that's all." She spoke softly. "You ready for school? Got your supplies for tonight?" she questioned him, wanting him to be prepared. She had a bag of her own that she always tried to keep packed just for emergencies, and this was exactly it: Will was an emergency.

     Dustin nodded his head. He knew she was trying to be prepared, and he loved her for that. His friends even thought her being prepared saved their butts on occasion. "Yup, all ready to go."

     Reese nodded. "Go grab your bag, we're gonna be late," she told him before she rinsed her bowl out, leaving the kitchen to change shirts and grabbing her bag. She hoped today would be a good day, just for once.

     Upon arriving at the school, she could immediately hear whispers that roamed the halls. She could see an uneasy Nancy walking down the hall, frowning deeply, knowing that something must've happened. She hadn't heard anything in the slightest as far as she knew.

     Reese caught up to Nancy, and she linked her arms with hers. "Hey, Nancy."

     Nancy looked over at Reese, surprised to see her walking with her, usually she was alone. She sighed, glancing around. "Oh, hey, Reese."

     She furrowed her eyebrows. "You okay?"

     The Wheeler girl bit her lip, taking a deep breath. "Uh, yeah, everything's fine. Just had a long night, that's all.

     Reese hummed as she led Nancy towards her locker, nodding her head. "Would it happen to be with a certain brunette boy?"

     Nancy laughed. "Steve? No, no it's not him." Her smile faded as she continued on. "Have you seen Barbara this morning? We were out late last night and I couldn't find her before I got home."

     Reese shook her head. "No, I haven't seen her." She raised her eyebrows. "What were you guys doing out so late? Looking for Will?"

     Nancy let out a nervous chuckle. "No, uh. . .we actually went to a party at Steve's house."

     Reese scoffed. "Oh, I bet that was fun."

     "Yeah," she muttered, her body tensing up a little.

     With a soft expression, Reese stopped the two of them in the middle of the hall. "If I see Barb, I'll let you know, okay? I'm sure she's just skipping."

     Though not too convinced, Nancy nodded, anyway. "Thanks, Reese. I'll see you in class." She gave Reese a weak smile before unlinking their arms and hurriedly going down the hall.

     There was an odd feeling at the bottom of Reese's stomach as she thought back to her words to Nancy regarding Barbara. It seemed odd for Barbara Holland to go to a party at Steve Harrington's house, of all places, which meant that Nancy must've convinced her to go. But now she wasn't in school, something that was unusual for Barbara.

     First, it was Will, now her? What the hell was going on in this town?

     For the rest of the day, it seemed school went as it usually would. The whispers have died down, finally. Something about Nancy's expression told Reese that something was happening. It made her reflect back to Will, who still was missing. She couldn't decipher what was happening, something wasn't adding up, really, and it made her unsettle quite a bit.

     It wasn't until after school that Reese looked at the time and grabbed the walkie-talkie from her satchel, knowing that Eleven would be waiting for her. She turned on the signal and pressed the side button. "El, it's Reese. Can you hear me?"

     "To respond, press and hold the side button, El, I'm sorry I didn't teach you before I had left over," Reese responded, mentally smacking her head for forgetting to teach the girl.

     "Reese?" She asked softly, her voice quiet, frowning in confusion.

     Reese smiled when she heard her voice. "Hey, I'm on my way to pick you up, you know where the basement exit is?" She didn't bother with saying over, nor until Eleven knew how the walkies worked, she knew she was new at discovering a lot, so she was patient with her.

     "I do."

     "Okay, go outside, and meet me by the power lines behind the house. Can you do that?" Reese responded back, hopping onto her bike. While waiting for her to reply, she kicked off using her petals and let her one hand steer, it was a talent and a miracle that she would steer one handed on a bike.

     "Yes, I can do that. 3-1-5?"

     Reese smiled. "3-1-5," she confirmed, looking at the time on her watch, and it was 3:05pm, so she did have ten minutes to go by the Wheeler's. She clicked the side button. "I'm coming now to get you, remember to meet me."

     When she approached behind the Wheeler's, she noticed that Eleven was pacing back and forth anxiously. Frowning in concern, and glancing around, she noticed that they were alone. She stopped and got off her bike, walking towards the girl. "El?"

     Eleven jumped and looked at Reese, who looked concerned for her. She sighed in relief. "You're here,"

     Reese smiled. "I'm here. I did tell you I would come back." She told her softly, having noted the panic on her face. "Are you okay?" She asked in concern, glancing around them to make sure that there wasn't anything or anyone. She saw something in the distance, making her freeze as time seemed to slow. She blinked her eyes, only to see it disappearing. Shaking her head, she glanced back at El, who stared at the yellow tabby cat. "El?"

     Eleven shook out of her stupor, glancing at Reese as she hugged her, needing comfort. The cat had triggered something she wished she'd erase from memory.

     Reese furrowed her brows  slightly at the impact of Eleven, but nevertheless wrapped her arms around her. She seemed to know that the young girl was seeking comfort. She didn't mind it. She had been told that she'd apparently given the best hugs. She smiled gently, as she ran her hand against Eleven's back, closing her eyes for a moment. "Do you want to talk about it?"

     Eleven shook her head no, before she pulled back slightly, glancing up at her. "Thank you,"

     Reese hummed. "If you ever need a hug, you can count me in, okay?"

     Eleven nodded.

     They both knew it would be time before the boys came, so Reese began to tell El the plan. "Okay, so when the boys get here, we'll go off to find Will. You'll stay with me and Dustin just in case Mike and Lucas fall behind, and if anything happens, I got you."

     Eleven nodded with a deep breath. She could almost see where Will was hiding, but she had to be sure. Seeing Reese's face, she knew she could trust her. The boys, she'd hadn't quite gotten a feel from them, though Mike had been forthcoming the most.

     As the time struck 3:30pm, Reese rolled her eyes, seeing the three boys ride up to them. "About damn time you three showed." She saw the bags and raised an eyebrow of what possibly could have been inside of said bags. "Do I even want to know what you brought?" The boys opened their mouths, Reese held a hand. "I can take a handful guesses; Dustin is the one with the snacks, Lucas with the sling shots, and Mike has the map of Hawkins and what I hoped would be something for Will, yes?" She gave them pointed looks as she crossed her arms, shaking her head exasperated. "Boys." She turned to El, who had a tiny smile on her lips. "And you, missy," She playfully mocked, winking at the young girl to make her feel a little bit at ease. "Since only Mike's bike is capable of actually having a second seat, versus mine do not, you'll ride with him as he leads the way. Is that okay with both of you?"

     Mike nodded, turning to El, who stared at him, nodding her head slowly.

     Reese clapped her hands. "Good, rules apply from the night before, whatever I say, goes, got it?"

     "Yep," the boys and El spoke simultaneously.

     Reese hummed. "Good, let's hop to it, we'll lose daylight soon enough."

     The five of them began their trek, with Mike leading in the front with El sitting behind him, followed behind by Dustin and Lucas, as Reese brought up the rear. She couldn't help but ponder exactly what was in these neck of the woods. She never spent as much time here as the boys, but it became clearer as the skies turned darker where exactly El was leading them to.

     As they approached the Byers' residence, Reese had this gut feeling in her chest. As her bike hit a bump in the road, she could've sworn that she had heard a low growling in the distance. She paused for a moment, causing her eyes to scan the darkness for any predators that surely would've been following them throughout the whole time they kept searching. She swallowed a lump, shivering as if she was being watched by said being, but shrugged it off. She turned to see El, who looked just as paranoid, as if searching for someone, or something, too. Reese furrowed her eyebrows in confusion, yet wariness as she didn't know what to expect.

     Reese could see the lights ahead and saw that in fact, they were upon the Byers' house. She could easily see the boys getting annoyed with the direction they were going. Before it could go anywhere, she quickly hopped off her bike and approached them. She started to wonder if El knowing where Will was is true, or if it had been a lie.

     Lucas sighed, dropping his bike on the ground. "What are we doing here?"

     Mike shrugged. "She said he's hiding here,"

     Reese frowned as she searched around before glancing at El. The way the young girl looked, something told Reese to believe her. And she had remembered that night, and the way that Will could've been here when it had happened.

     "I swear, if we walked all the way out here for nothing–-," Dustin started.

     "Dustin, shut up," Reese interjected, elbowing him as she furrowed her eyes. "Okay, three of you, back off. You three have done nothing but pester her, so let me handle this, okay?"

     The boys began to protest, clearly annoyed with El and not finding El. Reese gives them a fierce look. They quietened.

     Reese inhaled softly, looking at El. "Is this the last place you saw Wil?" She questioned Eleven, her tone gentle, yet concerned. She had known the boys would just blow up at her, and that was the last thing she needed. Clearly to Reese, El looked like she was on the verge of panic. She reached for the young girl, and gently pulled her close, bending down to her height. "Ignore the boys for a second, okay?"

     Eleven glanced at the boys, who looked at her with confusion, then to Reese, nodding her head. "He's hiding in there." She pointed at the Byers' home.

     Reese nodded her head, mentally counting to ten. She hadn't realized she was tapping Eleven's upper arm by the rhythm of her song, until she felt a hand grasp her arm, causing her to look at her. She knew tonight was something, she had to believe there was more going on. "Okay, do you know exactly where inside the house he's hiding?"

     "Reese," Dustin called, staring at something in the distance.

     Reese paused, turning to her little brother. "What?" She asked, frowning when she saw the direction he was staring in. Then, she heard it.

     Sirens.

     Reese frowned deeper. She furrowed her eyebrows, then seeing two police cars, followed by an ambulance, her eyes widened, before scrambling to her bike. "Less talking, more moving, beat it!" She told them, not wasting any time.

     Her heart began to pound as they all followed the sound of the sirens, swallowing her anxious feeling that was growing steadily in her pit. There was something telling her that this. . .this was Will's body being discovered.

     As they rapidly approached the scene, pulling a stop behind a firetruck, she extended her arm out, preventing the boys and El from going farther. She couldn't help but stare at the scene. The flashes of red and blue were haunting around her, the time slowing down as her breath began to pick up. She stared at the scene, afraid that her feelings and her thoughts were intertwined, believing that the small body that was pulled from the lake was indeed a small sized child.

     Will Byers.

     She swallowed, stifling a sob, tugging Dustin closer to her, not realizing that the preteens were huddled around her. She could feel Dustin's hands on her forearms, his staring at her. She could feel wetness going down his cheeks. It couldn't be him. It couldn't be the boy who she watched for years, the boy who was so sweet, young, naive yet so innocent. It couldn't be the boy who she adored, and often would sit with her, talking comic fics and R-Rated movies she'd seen. She couldn't put together that the body the police found was indeed Will Byers.

     The yelling snapped Reese from her daunting thoughts. She turned to see Mike yelling.

     "You were supposed to help us find him alive!" he told Eleven. "You said he was alive!"

     Eleven stared at Mike, her eyes filling with tears. "I–I–"

     Reese cut in, wrapping an arm around Eleven. "Michael Wheeler, don't you dare yell at her," Reese scolded him, narrowing her eyes. "She has tried very hard, mind you, and after what you three no doubt talk shit about her? I think you owe her one hell of an apology." She told them firmly, tugging the young girl close, who seemed to be close in tears. Her heart broke for the young girl. True, she said that Will was alive, however, something about the way she had spoken it, and the trail she was leading, it didn't quite add up to her. She refused not to believe Eleven. "Look, I get that you lost a best friend, I do, but we all did our best to find Will. I think you best go home, sleep it off, and we'll re-group tomorrow."

     Reese sighed, and looked down at El. She was crying and it broke her. She gripped her close, tucking her head under her chin, barely tall enough to do so. She rubbed Eleven's back as she stared at Lucas and Dustin, who seemed to remain behind after Mike decided to leave. "Lucas, go on home. I'm sure your parents are waiting for you,"

     Lucas nodded, wisely keeping his mouth shut. He did admit that Mike had pushed too far after Reese explained what she really did do. She did try to help, that mattered most. He waved Dustin goodbye, picked up his bike and left the siblings and El there.

     Reese sighed gently looking at Dustin who was watching them. "I'll take her to Mike's and maybe explain to Mike about some things. You go ahead," She nodded to the dirt roads that they came, rubbing El's back a bit, providing as much comfort as she could give. El didn't deserve this at all.

     Dustin hesitated, but nodded before he picked up his bike, gave one last look to Reese and El, before he, too, left to go home.

     When it was the two of them, Reese hummed a tune of "Landslide," and began to sing softly. "I took my love, took it down; I climbed a mountain and I turned around; and I saw my reflection in the snow-covered hills; 'til the landslide brought me down,"

     Eleven smiled in Reese's arms, finding her voice beautiful.

     Reese smiled. "You feeling better?" She questioned her softly, still continuing to rub her back, wanting to make sure she was doing good.

     Eleven nodded.

     "Okay, let's get you back to Mike's, don't worry, he's just being a big ole meanie, I'll straighten him out," Reese winked, before picking up her bike, casting a look one last time to the gurney, swallowing before turning her head. "Remember what to do?" She gestured to her bike, knowing she'd have to stand on the bars.

     Eleven nodded. After Reese hopped onto her bike, she climbed and using her shoulders, she held onto Reese as she stood on the bars, her eyes still misty from tears.

     Reese began to pedal back to the Wheeler's, and away from the daunting scene.

     After dropping Eleven off at the Wheeler's, Reese knew that Dustin would be torn up about what they had seen. Upon approaching her home, she noticed all the lights were cut except a lamp, which she knew was to be Dustin's. She parked her bike in the garage, taking a deep breath before she entered the house. She closed the door quietly behind her, and leaned against the door for a moment. It had been a rough night, and she knew she wouldn't get any sleep.

     The light flickered on in the kitchen, scaring Reese as she spun around, her eyes wide, before sighting her mother, who sat at the kitchen table nursing a cup of tea. Reese closed her eyes as she inhaled. "Mom, you scared me."

     Claudia hummed, placing her cup on the table. "I was waiting for you. Dusty came home upset. What happened?"

     Reese bit her lip, and walked to the table. She was surprised no scolding was happening, but yet knowing what had happened and the look on Dustin's face, that would be later no doubt. She took a deep breath, clasping her fingers together. "The boys wanted to find Will, and I only went to keep an eye on them," she explained quietly to her mother, staring at the table cloth. "We. . .We followed the police to the quarry and. . ." She trailed off for a moment, trying to keep herself composed before continuing on. "They found a body. Mom," she whispered, her voice cracking a bit as she raised her head, her eyes growing misty. "We think it's Will."

     Claudia's heart broke, now understanding what was happening. She stood up, and went around to reach her daughter, wrapping an arm around her. "It's okay, baby."

     "No, it's not. It's my fault he's missing. I saw him last," Reese told her, her head shaking as she looked at her mother. "I-I–"

     "Go talk to Dusty, baby. He needs you and you need him," Claudia whispered, helping her daughter up, and leading her towards Dustin's room, and cracking the door open to reveal Dustin laying in his bed, facing the wall.

     Reese stood there, watching him with tears in her eyes. She turned to her mom, who nodded encouragingly.

     "Go on," Claudia murmured, kissing her daughter's cheek, before heading to her bedroom for the night.

     Reese stared at Dustin, swallowing before she went to his bed, taking her shoes off, pulling back his covers, and climbing into his bed. The last time she had done this was when Dustin had nightmares when he was younger and often came to her room; it seemed this time, it was the other way around. "Dustin?" she murmured quietly, afraid to ruin the peaceful silence.

     "It can't be him, Reeses'," Dustin murmured, his voice cracking, using the nickname he'd always given her. Because her name was essentially a chocolate candy, he used to call her that, having been an accident to properly pronounce her name. "It can't be Will."

     Reese's heart broke, wrapping her arms around her baby brother, spooning him until he turned, so they were face-to-face. "I know," she mumbled, her eyes fluttering shut as a tear fell down her cheek. "But you know what we saw."

     Dustin hiccuped, nodding his head. "It can't be him, it can't be him." His tears flowed down his cheeks, eventually his mantra quietened when he fell asleep.

     Reese laid, watching him with pain in her eyes. She reached up, brushing away his hair, swallowing a lump in her throat. She couldn't believe that the body they found was actually their friend. And this also confirmed that yes, something bad did indeed happen to Will Byers.