TEENAGE NIGHTMARE
CHAPTER FIFTEEN — PART ONE.
THE JUNKYARD.

Will woke up that morning in a hospital bed, his heartbeat measured on the monitor near his head while Mike and Charlie sat on one side of him, the former sleeping while the latter could barely keep his eyes open. Joyce, Bob, and Joseph stood a little away from them, talking quietly amongst themselves before they heard Will stirring awake.

" Mom? " He called, and the trio of adults immediately moved towards him, while Charlie blinked the sleep from his eyes rapidly, shaking Mike's arm to get him to wake up.

" Hey, " Joyce said softly while Bob went out of the door to get a doctor; Joseph stood off to the side, behind Mike and Charlie as they leaned forward in their seats, " sweetie, how you feeling? You okay? "

" They're on their way. " Bob informed them as he walked back into the room, moving to stand next to Joyce as he gave Will a small smile, " Hey, kiddo. "

Will blinked at Bob blankly before he looked to Joyce, " Who is that? "

" What? " Joyce asked in confusion, and Bob nervously chuckled.

" It's me, big guy, it's Bob. " When he went to grab Will's hand, the boy pulled it away, giving him a strange look as Mike and Charlie glanced to each other.

" Are you a. . " Will's eyes took in the blue scrubs that Bob— and the other adults that had been down in the tunnels— had been given, " doctor? "

" No, " Bob answered, lowering his hand back to the bed railing as he sadly smiled at Will, " no, it's just me. Just. . Just Bob. "

Dr. Owens came in not long after that, accompanied by a few other doctors and a pale looking Jim Hopper. They circled around Will's bed as Owens shone a light in the boy's eyes. He clicked the flashlight off and leaned back, asking him, " Do you know your name? "

" Will. "

" Your full name? "

" William Byers. "

Owens looked a little too relieved at that revelation, and Charlie couldn't help but wonder just how much Will has forgotten over the past eight hours. The doctor shifted before he then asked, " Do you know who I am? "

Will paused before he answered, " A doctor. "

Owens nodded a little, " Have we met before? "

" I don't remember. " Will admitted, and Owens nodded again.

" You don't remember me? " He clarified, to which Will shook his head lightly; Owens then turned towards the crowd of people standing at the door of the bed, then he pointed to the only two people not wearing scrubs. " What, uh, what about these guys here? "

Will's eyes slowly moved to Mike and Charlie, who stood with nervous looks on their faces, scared to hear his answer. A ghostly smile appeared on his face as he said, " They're. . my friends. Charlie and Mike. "

Charlie gave him a relieved smile, and Mike nodded to him in response. Hopper then lifted a hand, asking, " What about me, kid? You remember me? "

Will's head turned slightly so he could look at the tall man, and his smile slowly faded into a frown as he slowly shook his head. Hopper's grin faltered a moment, then he added, " They tell me you helped save me last night, you remember that? "

Will shook his head again, and Owens questioned, " Do you remember anything about last night? About what happened? "

" I remember they hurt me. " He answered, forehead crinkling as he thought back on the immense pain he'd felt. Owens asked if he meant the doctors, and Will shook his head, " No. The soldiers. "

" The soldiers hurt you? "

" They shouldn't have done that. " Will insisted lowly, " It upset him. "

Owens made a perplexed face, and Charlie felt his stomach twist as he saw the slight change in Will's demeanor. Owens pulled out a picture of Will's drawing from a blue folder, holding it out in front of him, " You say it upset him, is that him? "

Will stared at the picture and nodded. Owens quietly said 'okay' and took the picture from him, placing it away inside the folder again. He turned and looked towards the others in the room before he stated, " I want to try something, it's going to seem a little odd at first but I think it's going to help us understand what's going on here. Is that okay? "

He directed that last piece to Will, who hesitantly nodded in agreement.

A few moments later, a man in scrubs rolled in a silver cart that held a small glass tank on top of it. Inside was what looked like a thick tendril of the monster from the depths of the tunnels. Charlie eyed the blowtorch in the man's hand cautiously, already knowing that it wasn't going to be good.

" Now, Will, I want you to just let us know if you feel anything, okay? " Owens asked, patting the boy's shoulder before nodding towards the man with the blowtorch; the flame burst out and made Charlie visibly flinch as he began to lower it towards the slimy creature.

The monster squealed as the heat got near it, and Charlie could see Will tense up as he stared at it. His heart beat started to quicken on the monitor, and, when Owens asked him if he felt anything, he replied with, " It's a little sting. "

" A sting, where? "

" My chest! " Will said through a strained voice as he placed his hand against the afflicted area; Owens gave him a cautious look before he turned back to the man, nodding for him to continue. The flame seared the creature this time, and Will jumped in his bed, body rigid as he exclaimed, " It-it burns! Everywhere! "

" That's enough! That's enough! " Joyce declared as the monster screeched and Will wailed in pain; Charlie and Mike both reactively stepped away from the bed while Hopper intervened.

" Knock it off, you heard her! That's enough! " His loud voice boomed, and the man withdrew the blowtorch. Hopper placed his hand on Will's shoulder as his body relaxed, the beeping on the monitor sounding off rapidly before it started to slow.

X X X

Similarly, Franny felt a sharp, white hot pain flash throughout her palm, spreading throughout her arm as they walked further along the railroad, which were coming to an end. She reactively held her hand to her chest, her grip around the bucket handle tightening in her other as she let out a small hiss of pain. Steve and Dustin both glanced back to look at her, questionably looks on their faces as she tried to ignore the burning feeling that ran up and down her arm.

" You doing okay, Fran? " Steve asked, and Franny gave him a tight lipped smile as she nodded.

" Yeah, just, it burns, is all. " She insisted, and, she wasn't necessarily lying, because the pain had started to subside just as quickly as it had came; she couldn't help but wonder what was happening to cause the burning, and she helplessly hoped Will was okay. Neither boy looked very convinced, but they didn't say anything more on the matter.

" Well, we're here. " Dustin announced as the three of them walked off the tracks, veering to the right where a clearing broke off, surrounded by trees half ridden of their orange leaves and yellowish grass that was long enough to scrape her knees. Old, rusted cars and long forgotten trucks sat around, busted up and missing obvious parts that scattered the dirt ground.

As they walked further into the junkyard, Dustin quickened his pace to get ahead of them, leading them towards a long bus that had been abandoned a while ago. It was an off white color with rusty red stripes, but actual rust was covering most of it. It looked sturdy enough to be used as a shield if they needed it, but Franny prayed that it wouldn't come to that.

" Oh, yeah, this'll do. " Steve declared, pulling his glasses off of his face and grinning at the bus. " This'll do just fine. Good call, dude. "

Dustin wore a proud smile as he began dumping whatever meat was left in his bucket near the entrance of the bus. Franny tossed a few pieces out to keep the trail going, but she soon joined the curly haired boy and Steve as they emptied their buckets, smacking the bottoms of them to get every last chunk. Franny tossed her bucket off to the side with a clank, and she promptly pulled the rubber gloves off of her hands before throwing them into the discarded bucket.

" That might've been the most disgusting thing I've ever done. " She commented, then, upon seeing the look Steve gave her, she corrected herself, " Actually, second most disgusting. I try to forget that I slept with Billy. "

Steve made a look of agreement before chuckling at the disgust on her face. It quickly left as she placed her hands on her hips, raising a brow as she looked to the bus. Steve followed her gaze, and then she asked, " So, what now? "

" We wait, I guess. " Steve replied, and Franny gave him a dry look.

" Wait for what? Dart to come eat us? " She questioned rhetorically, and Dustin nodded.

" More or less. Preferably less. " The curly haired boy insisted, and Franny's groan was drowned out by a shouting voice.

" I said medium well! "

At the entrance of the junkyard, Lucas and Max appeared on their bikes, quickly dismounting them and discarding them off to the side before they approached the trio. Lucas waved to them, and Max appeared less than thrilled to be there, but that didn't stop Dustin from shamelessly ogling at her. Franny noticed, a small grin on her face as she lightly elbowed Steve in the ribs to make him realize it, too.

" I hope you didn't just call her special because she's a ginger, Henderson. " Steve commented under his breath, and Franny nodded in agreement as she crossed her arms.

" Yeah, that's rude, I'm sure there's more great qualities to her than just that. " Franny interjected, making Dustin whirl around and glare at them both, pointing between them with a serious look on his face.

" Not. A. Word. " He muttered, to which Steve lifted his palms in mock surrender and Franny shrugged.

" These lips are sealed, kid. "

After they had made brief introductions, the unlikely group of five got to work on trying to make the bus somewhat safe in terms of a Demodog attack. Lucas, Max, and Dustin took to hoarding up the windows of the bus with pieces of wire fencing that had been ripped off from the gate of the junkyard. Steve and Franny opted to pouring the gasoline out near the entrance, since Dustin was sure that would attract them sooner. As bitter as the smell of gasoline was, Franny oddly liked it. Somehow, it was the most normal part of this entire situation.

Once they'd finished, the two teens walked back to the bus and went inside, seeing that the three younger kids had done pretty well fortifying it from the inside. A ladder sat inside, propped so that it made for an easy exit to the top of the bus through the exit hatch, and there were big shards of sheer metal splayed around the bus for extra protection. The five of them, satisfied with their work, sat down inside the bus to wait.

Lucas had opted to keep watch on top of the bus, stating that he would let them know if he saw anything as he took his binoculars with him. That left Max, who sat across from the other three with her knee propped up as she stared none-too-subtly at Franny's hand, Dustin, who just kept fidgeting with his walkie, pacing back and forth, and Steve and Franny. The two of them had sat near the windows, their backs pressing uncomfortably into the edges of the fencing, and Steve had insisted that he rewrap her hand for what felt like the hundredth time.

Max broke the silence between the four, finally tearing her eyes away from the ugly wound on Franny's hand to look at Steve, " So, you've really fought one of these things before? "

Franny had been staring down her hand, too, biting her lip as every time the bandage scraped against the gash it sent a shock of pain into her arm. Steve mustn't have heard the girl's question, too preoccupied with finishing his current task to acknowledge her. Franny flickered her eyes from her hand to Steve, meeting his eyes to nod towards the redhead. Steve suddenly turned his head in her direction and wordlessly nodded before he finally finished, sitting back against the fencing.

" And you're, like, totally one-hundred-percent sure it wasn't a bear? " Max asked, chasing Dustin to scoff.

" Shit, don't be an idiot. " Franny frowned instantly as she glanced over at Dustin, who didn't even looked fazed by his own bash attitude. " It wasn't a bear. Why are you even here if you don't believe us? Just go home. "

Max sighed and rolled her eyes, standing up and heading towards the ladder to join Lucas. She left them with a jab, " Someone's cranky, is it past your bedtime? "

Franny watched as the girl ascended, waiting before she knew she was actually out of the bus to shoot a scowl at Dustin, " What the hell was that, Dustin?! "

" No, that was good. " Steve insisted, though Franny could hear the edge in his voice that told her he was being sarcastic even though it was his advice that had made Dustin say that. " Just show her you don't care. "

" I don't. " Dustin stated, and Franny rolled her eyes, shaking her head before leaning it back against the wall of the bus. The boy left to pace at the other end of the bus, and the brunette tilted her head to look at Steve.

" You know that's awful advice, right? " She asked rhetorically, making Steve copy her motion, turning his head against the fencing to look right back at her with a small grin as she flexed her hand to loosen the bandage a bit.

" What do you mean? " Steve replied as if they hadn't watched the same train wreck a few moments ago.

Franny stared at him for a moment before her lips quirked into a smile and she breathily laughed, " You're unbelievable, Harrington. "

Steve didn't say anything, his eyes just lingered on her face for a moment before he turned his head back to look straight ahead of himself. Then, after a beat of silence, he said, " That's different. "

She lifted her head from the wall to look at him in puzzlement, " What? "

" I've been called a lot of things: popular, attractive, douchebag, asshole, bullshit. . " He listed, and Franny slowly turned her head away from him, picking at the loose ends of the bandage as he continued in a soft voice, " I don't think I've ever been called unbelievable in a good way. . . It was in a good way, right? "

Franny's eyes snapped to his, eyebrows knitted together as if she couldn't believe he'd asked that, " Yeah. . Yeah, of course. I don't know what other way I could've meant it. "

Steve shrugged, and then he surprised Franny Walker yet again by reaching in between their touching knees to grab her uninjured hand, giving it a small squeeze before interlocking his fingers with hers, quietly saying, " I'm really glad you're here, Franny. "

His earlier words came back to his head as he felt it- felt the electricity, echoing in his ears: when you feel that, you make your move.

Franny squeezed his hand in return, softly smiling at him as she insisted, " Wouldn't want to save the world any other way. "

A smile split onto Steve's face, and Franny felt her heart race in panic while she felt the sweat between their hands, not entirely sure who's it was. He almost did it, almost followed through with his own advice, but stopped himself from leaning towards her when a loud, strangled howl came from outside. The two teens' wide eyes flashed to each other's before they scrambled to their feet, looking out the fenced windows. Dustin joined them in alarm, and he asked in a quiet voice, " You see him? "

" No, " Steve answered, and Franny couldn't really see much of anything; the sun had set a little over an hour ago, leaving them in the pitch black darkness of the night that she was becoming far too familiar with. A thick fog covered most of the ground, making it hard to even make out the cars that were around the junkyard.

" Lucas! What's goin' on? " Dustin called, and the trio heard the boy shout from on top of the bus.

" Hold on! "

They waited for him to speak again, a low growling sending chills down Franny's spine as she tightened her grip around Steve's hand. That made the tall boy glance down, having not even realized that they hadn't let go of each other.

" I've got eyes! " Lucas exclaimed, making them peer out of the windows again, " Ten o'clock! Ten o'clock! "

" There. " Steve said, pointing through the fencing. Franny followed his finger but saw nothing but shadows in the fog.

" What's he doing? " Dustin asked, and Steve kept his eyes glued to the Demodog standing outside, not moving.

" I don't know. " Steve confessed, then his eyebrows scrunched up as he shook his head lightly, " He's not taking the bait, why's he not taking the bait? "

Franny saw it then, Dart's evolved form, dark and menacing as it lingered near the raw meat, sniffing at it briefly before becoming uninterested.

" Maybe he's not hungry. " Dustin suggested, and Franny could feel the change in the air as Steve paused for a moment.

" Maybe he's sick of cow. "

Steve released Franny's hand, fingers slipping from hers as he backed away from the window. The girl turned around and, by the look on his face, she already felt a sense of dread pooling in the pit of her stomach. He met her eyes with a dangerous flicker of bravery as she started to shake her head.

" No. " She whispered, then raised her voice as Steve's expression didn't change, the boy turning away from her to grab his bat; she reached forward and grabbed his arm, pulling him back to face her with a determined look. He'd already decided. She wasn't going to let him go without a fight, though. " No, Steve, hell no, you can't— "

" Wait, Steve, what're you doing? " Dustin asked, eyes darting between the two teens as the taller boy briefly gave him a reassuring look before turning back to Franny, whose face was hardened to conceal her fear.

" The bait's not working, I have to— " Franny cut him off, giving him a pleading look. Steve could tell that she wasn't going to let up, but he wasn't going to not do it, like she already knew, he'd decided already. The idea of him dying was definitely present on his mind, which is exactly why he did what he did next. Well, that, and to hopefully distract the terrified girl long enough for her to momentarily forget about how he might die.

" You're going to get yourself killed, Harrington, are you really that— " Her words of protest were lost as Steve lifted one hand to her face and pulled her towards his, crashing his lips into hers with that same electricity that they'd both felt before only multiplied by a thousand. Her hand gripped the sleeve of his jacket tighter as she kissed him back, but her breath was taken from her as he pulled away from her with a half grin, tilting his head at the shocked look on her face.

" Unbelievable? Yeah, guess I am. "

Then, before she could even wrap her mind around what just happened, Steve tossed the lighter to Dustin and ran down the stairs of the bus, the doors creaking to signal his departure. Franny felt frozen in her place, an odd mix of warmth, butterflies, and thick apprehension swirling in her gut. Dustin also seemed in a trance, blinking before stating, " Holy shit. "

The sound of the rusted doors clanking back shut made her snap back into reality, and she ignored the buzzing feeling in her head when she heard Steve calling out to the Demodog. The two of them moved towards the windows, seeing Steve walking slowly away from the bus, swinging his nailed bat back and forth as he taunted Dart.

Franny frowned, placing her hand above her head against the cool glass of the window, exhaling through her nose as she whispered, " Idiot. "

Outside, Steve began whistling to the Demodog, waiting for it the lunge from the shadows. He clutched his bat tightly, muscles tended as he prepared to swing at any given moment, but his tight grip made his hands tremble the slightest bit.

" C'mon, buddy, " He urged, swinging his bat lowly as he approached the growling noise.

Max came down from the ladder to join the two watching through the windows on edge, she gave them an incredulous look as she asked, " What's he doing? "

" Expanding the menu. " Dustin commented, causing Franny's frown to deepen. He noticed and quickly glanced over at the girl, " Sorry, I definitely didn't mean that, he's going to be fine. . probably. "

" Not helping. " Franny muttered, fingers wrapped uncomfortably around the fencing as she got impossibly close to the window to see Steve approach a small sheet of metal that was rattling.

" He's insane. " Max stated.

" He's awesome. " Dustin corrected.

" He's a dumbass. " Franny declared in a strained voice.

Then, they saw Steve stop moving, and the Demodog's darkened body came through the fog. Franny could already feel her heart threatening to burst from her chest, so Lucas' urgent yell didn't help.

" Steve! " He exclaimed from the top of the bus, " Watch out! "

" I'm a little busy here! " Steve yelled back, and Franny's head shot up to look at Lucas as she walked over to the ladder, seeing the boy leaning forward with his binoculars.

" Lucas, what is it? " She called, and Lucas's eyes darted down to her.

" It's not just Dart. There's more of them. " He explained, and Franny turned around to look at Max and Dustin with an alarmed look. Lucas turned his attention back to Steve, " Three o'clock! "

Franny heard a loud banging noise, and she immediately stormed over to the doors, kicking them open to see another Demodog standing on the roof of a car just beside Steve, growling loudly at him as Dart approached him from the front. Franny watched in pure, horrified shock as another one appeared on the other side of Steve.

Dustin ran over to join her at the door as she leaned forward, gripping either side of the doorway, shouting, " Get your ass back here, now, Steve! "

" Steve, abort! " He yelled, making the lanky teen turn around to see the two standing at the door, " ABORT! "

He turned back to see one of the Demodogs running at him, and he dodged at the last second, rolling across the hood of one of the rusted cars before another one leaped at him. He swung the bat at it, it's slimy body went flying into the dirt. Lucas and Max had also ran over to the door, screaming at Steve to get back.

" STEVE, HURRY! " The shrill voices shouted, and he quickly recovered, eyes snapping back to see the remaining Demodogs running after him. He let out a loud yell as he started sprinting back to the bus, and Franny pushed the kids to back up, making sure that they'd be able to close the door when he got back.

The Demodog was nearly an inch away from snapping his foot off when Steve leaped into the bus, Franny pulling on the lever to slam the doors shut in it's face. The Demodog screeched as it collided with the door, and Franny fell backwards against the driver's seat as Steve fell against her in an attempt to scramble away from the doors. Dustin, Lucas, and Max were piled into the seat behind the driver's, eyes wide as they all asked Steve if he was okay.

" Are they rabid?! " Max questioned as the Demodog continued scratching the door, ramming itself into it, rattling the bus and making Franny let out a scream of surprise.

Steve grabbed one of the pieces of sheet metal and shoved it against the door, pressing his foot against it as he dug his fingers into the first thing he could find to give him some slack; one of those being the seat cushion, the other being Franny's leg as she tried to shift upwards, holding her hands defensively in front of the trio of kids panicking behind her.

" They can't get in! They can't get in! " Lucas exclaimed, trying to reassure himself and the others, failing miserably as the entire bus shook violently. They all screamed as the glass of the windows across from them shattered, and they all looked to the end of the bus where the growling had moved to.

Steve had mistakenly let up against the door, and one of the Demodogs suddenly slammed into it, cracking the frame and jumping at them. The kids all shrieked and scrambled out of the seat, rushing towards the middle of the bus as Franny stood in between the seats, arms tightly wound around the trio's shoulders. Steve slammed the bat down on it's head continuously, and Dustin held his mic to his mouth.

" Is anyone there?! Mike, Will, Charlie, God, ANYONE?! " He yelled, backing further into Franny as she kept wrapped her arms around Lucas and Max's fronts grasping at Dustin's shoulder; more windows shattered as Steve managed to kill— or at least get rid of — the one at the door. " We're at the old junkyard, and we are going to die! "

Franny noticed Max look up, and she followed her cautious eyes as a thudding came from the roof of the bus. Rhythmically slamming down into the metal before a Demodog slowly crawled up to the open hatch in the ceiling. Franny felt her blood run cold and she took a small step back as she pulled the kids with her. The creature latched a hand around the top of the ladder, growling lowly at them, making Max scream.

" Move! Out of the way, out of the way! " Steve ordered, now pushing Franny and the kids behind him as he lifted the bat in front of himself defensively, glaring up at the Demodog lurking above them. " You want some?! Come get it! "

The Demodog opened its mouth, the flaps of slimy skin pulling back to show an endless pit of razor sharp teeth as Steve didn't back down, waiting for it to get closer before swinging. It screeched in their faces, spewing strands of gooey slime before another wail sounded in the distance. The Demodog stopped and shut its mouth, perking its head up and turning to listen. It let go of the ladder with a growl and then howled into the air while the five in bus just stared in panicked confusion.

Then, the distant growling came again, and the Demodog seemed to forget about them, leaping off of the bus with a shake. They could hear a dozen similar sounding inhuman screeches, and they all stood still as everything went silent. Franny could only hear the wind whistling through the cracked glass and the heavy panting of the kids as they regained their breath. Franny noticed that she was holding onto Steve's upper arm, so she squeezed it to catch his attention. He looked back at her with wide eyes, and she nodded towards the door. He glanced at it then to her with a sharp look before he walked over to it.

He slowly pushed the doors open and crept outside, bat held up just in case. Franny followed behind him, the other three trailing closely as they walked out of the bus. The junkyard was empty.

" What happened? " Lucas questioned, and Dustin suggested, " Steve scared 'em off? "

" No. No way. " He quickly denied, staring off into the darkness briefly before he turned back to look at them. " They're goin' somewhere. "

X X X

note.

let me just say that fifteen chapters is the longest I've ever waited to make characters kiss— ALSO PLEASE DISREGARD THE FACT THAT I CANT WRITE KISS SCENES FOR THE LIFE OF ME.

as always, all comments, questions, predictions and feedback are greatly appreciated!