─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───
LOVE REALLY HURTS WITHOUT YOU!

CHAPTER FIVE: HALLOWEEN.
─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

⠀⠀Halloween was exciting.

⠀⠀Kids dressed in various different costumes were scattered out all over town, their laughs and loud chattering echoing through the air. The costumes varied from princesses and princesses to characters straight out of a horror-movie and it was awesome.

⠀⠀Jonathan was supposed to have been with them, having been granted the task of watching over FIVE and Will — mainly Will — but the male had decided to let them off last minute, understanding Will's complaints about how lame it was that he had to have his older brother with him. Therefore it was now just Will, Mike, Lucas and Dustin, dressed in their Ghostbuster costumes, and FIVE in his white sheet with two holes cut for the eyes.

⠀⠀If you looked at five of them, he probably looked out of place. The others were talking loudly, the subjects differing, while FIVE was merely peering around at his surroundings, taking them in and preparing himself for probably not getting to see them for a while after. He'd never been outside like this, not when so so many people had been around and the night-sky hovered above them. It was nice.

⠀⠀Max Mayfield, a girl their age with fiery red hair and pretty, blue eyes, had soon accompanied them, which Dustin and Lucas seemed to be the only ones really excited about. Mike was straight up just annoyed, his unwillingness to let another person join their group surfacing once more, Will was just blank. It didn't bother him, but nor was he as excited about it as the two others, while FIVE was just pleased with having been introduced as "Will's cousin who'd come to visit" like a normal boy would have been.

⠀⠀Dustin, Max and Lucas were further ahead, their laughs bouncing off the houses of the city, as Mike, Will and FIVE trailed behind them. Will had a camera up and going, recording their experiences of the night, when Mike grumbled, "Did you agree to this?"

⠀⠀There it was again, just like with FIVE.

⠀⠀"What?" Will questioned, not seeing the problem like his best friend did. Max' presence didn't bother him, he seemed to just be happy to be back with his best friends.

⠀⠀"To her joining our party."

⠀⠀Will blinked, mildly confused, "It's just for Halloween."

⠀⠀"You should have checked with me," was all the Wheeler replied, not even sparing his best friend a second glance. He was letting the presence of a girl ruin his night.

⠀⠀"They were excited . . . I guess I thought you would be okay with it," Will explained, and just like FIVE, not getting why the whole thing was bothering him so much.

⠀⠀"She's ruining the best night of the year," the freckled boy sourly grimaced, walking ahead and failing to notice the brunet boy falling behind, his eyes apologetic.

⠀⠀FIVE, too, didn't pick up on the fact that Will was no longer walking between them. He kept his pace beside Mike, frown covered by what he called his costume for the night.

⠀⠀It didn't even take several minutes for the Wheeler to notice his absence, though, which sent him into frantic. He went running around the area in which Will had last been seen, panicked yells emitting from the back of his throat and worry practically dripping off his pale features. FIVE could tell he truly cared about the smaller boy, he was protective of him.

⠀⠀Shortly after, the two — FIVE had just followed the other, his eyes glazing over in concern as well, but his senses more unfamiliar with the feeling — discovered the Byers' petite frame propped against a wall, body rocking back and forth and arms curled tightly around his knees which were pulled to his chest. His breathing was uneven and rushed and he practically radiated fear. Mike had hurried towards him, a sense of relief crashing over his entire body at the fact that they'd managed to find him again.

⠀⠀"Will!" The freckled male had exclaimed, hands latching onto the boy's shoulders, to which he gasped and his eyes snapped open like he'd been asleep or in some sort of trance. Mike shook his body slightly, "Will, what's wrong? We couldn't find you. Are you hurt?"

⠀⠀As if on cue, Dustin, Lucas and Max came running down towards them a second later, Dustin with a "holy shit" and Lucas with a "is he okay?". They all stood back slightly, accompanied by FIVE, who'd carelessly pulled the big white sheet off and allowed his delicate features to be revealed so he could get a better look ( frankly, two small holes in a sheet weren't that great to look out of ). The risks that came with that action had been pushed far back into his mind, too stomped down to even hit him.

⠀⠀"I don't know," breathed Mike, before proceeding to try and help Will back on his feet. His words were reassuring and comforting as he spoke, "I'm going to get you home, okay? I'm going to get you home. Hold on."

⠀⠀Dustin, merely worried for his best friend just like the raven-haired boy, took a few steps forward, murmuring "all right, take it easy", resulting in a harsh "I got him" from Mike who then pushed the curly-haired male away. Will was whimpering, his mind too clouded with fright to pick up on the conversation going on, while their two other best friends were gazing at him in disbelief over his rough words and actions. Max was frowning in mild confusion, since she obviously had no clue what had happened, while FIVE was swallowing harshly while just getting ready to follow the two home. He was supposed to stick with Will, after all.

⠀⠀"Keep trick-or-treating. I'm bored, anyways," Mike snarled with eyes narrowed and an arm slithered around the narrow shoulders of his best friend, while already guiding him away from the others. He was clearly being protective and worried for his closest friend, while also showing his annoyance for his two other best friends.

⠀⠀"I will go with them," FIVE declared while shooting the once left an apologetic smile over his shoulder as he sauntered up the stairs after Mike and Will. He felt sorry for the ones Mike had lashed out on. The boy was unable to control his emotions properly, it looked like, and sometimes he let them get the best of him. He got jealous easily, annoyed too, but it was nothing but protectiveness and concern revealing themselves in weird ways.

⠀⠀FIVE trailed behind the two as they headed towards Mike's place, what had been his costume draped over his shoulders and eyes locked on his moving feet. He was surprised that some snappy "why are you here?" hadn't been shot his way, but he said nothing.

⠀⠀After some time, thee three boys had ended in the basement of the Wheeler house. The two best friends were seated on the couch, shoulders pressed firmly against each other, while FIVE had plopped down on the floor on the other side of the table, chin resting on the surface of the wooden furniture. The candy they'd gathered throughout the afternoon was scattered out across it, some of it also having landed on the carpeted ground.

⠀⠀"It's like . . . like I'm stuck," Will explained, eyes distant and trained on the table. FIVE hadn't gotten the full story of what had happened last year yet, everyone seeming too traumatized to talk about it so he didn't ask. He knew bits and pieces though and he'd picked up on the fact that Will had been the one to suffer the most. He had been the one to lose a part of himself that he feared he'd never get back.

⠀⠀"Like, like, stuck in the Upside Down?"

⠀⠀"No," Will sighed, mildly frustrated with the fact that he couldn't seem to form words to describe how and what he was feeling. " You know View-Master when it gets, like-"

⠀⠀"-Caught between two slides?" Mike suggested, attempting to help his friend along the way of expressing himself as best as possible.

⠀⠀"Yeah, like that," Will bobbed his head up and down into a small nod, peering over at the boy briefly before averting his gaze back to the table ahead of them. "Like one side's our world and the other . . . The other slide is the Upside Down. And there was this noise coming from everywhere and then I saw something."

⠀⠀"The Demogorgon?" Mike breathed, his words almost catching in his throat over the the thought of it being back. It was what had started the whole thing in the first place. The Demogorgon was the reason he was hurting so much; the reason everyone was, especially Will.

⠀⠀"No . . . it was like this huge shadow in the sky. Only, it was alive," he formed his words carefully, eyes glazed over in thought as he fiddled with his hands. "And it was coming for me."

⠀⠀"Is this all real? Or is it like the doctors say, all in your head?"

⠀⠀FIVE's eyes were darting between the two friends repeatedly, brows furrowed and nose scrunched up in confusion. He didn't quite understand what they were talking about, but by the looks of their expression, it wasn't good. Just seeing the way Will's face was morphed into fear, anxiety even, was enough to send chills down his spine.

⠀⠀Will shook his head, finally craning his neck to look over at Mike and into his eyes, "I don't know. Just . . . Just please don't tell the others, okay? They won't understand."

⠀⠀Mike glanced away just as their eyes met, teeth gritting and jaw clenching and the thoughts that were going through his head, "ELEVEN would."

⠀⠀"She would?"

⠀⠀"Yeah," confirmed Mike, nodding his head and briefly sparing the boy a second glance with the hurt that always rested in his eyes, much more apparent because in that moment, he stopped trying to hide it. "She always did."

⠀⠀ELEVEN.

⠀⠀The only thing FIVE knew about her was that she had been a subject at the lab, just like he had. He didn't know how they'd met her, what she was to them, nor why she wasn't still here and didn't dare ask. She had meant a lot, to Mike specifically, though. Anyone could tell.

⠀⠀"Sometimes I feel like I still see her," said boy informed, taking it as his turn to share a part of his pained heart. His voice was faint, yet just loud enough for it to reach both Will and FIVE. "Like she's still around, but she never is. I don't know. Sometimes I feel like I'm going crazy."

⠀⠀"Me too."

⠀⠀The boy perched on the floor in front of them felt like his heart was too heavy for his body all of a sudden. The words exchanged hit him hard, because after everything he'd been through, the feeling of being pushed further and further into insanity never left. Being kept from the light of day, proper food, actual people, school, friends, family, did that kind of thing to you.

⠀⠀"Me too," he agreed, voice low in a whisper that was barely heard by the others, olive eyes bathing in sorrow.

⠀⠀All three of them had been through enough misery to last a lifetime at such a young age. They had gone through different things, different experiences that had left them marked for life, yet as they sat there, they pushed all personal feelings away and just . . . felt with each other.

IDA'S NOTE!
this book is FLOPPING
but i still enjoy writing
it so im gonna keep
doing so :DD
ilove my little babies ):
they've all been through
hell and back as kids and
like ifeel like shared trauma
can really bring you closer.