TEENAGE NIGHTMARE
CHAPTER NINETEEN — PART ONE.
THE SHED.

             All three Walker siblings jumped when Dustin slammed the book onto the table, opening it to a page he had stuck his finger on while everyone gathered around him to look. It was a black and white drawing of an alien like creature with tentacles growing from its mouth.

             " The Mind Flayer. " He introduced, and Hopper crossed his arms over his chest, lowering his eyebrows.

            " The hell is that? " He questioned, and Dustin sucked in a deep breath, clearly annoyed at everyone else's lack of D&D knowledge.

 
            " It's a monster from an unknown dimension. It's so ancient that it doesn't even know its true home. " He explained, " It enslaves races of other dimensions by taking over their brains using its highly-developed psionic powers. "

           " Oh, my god, " Hopper groaned, raising his hand to his head, " none of this is real. It's a kids game. "

           " No, it's a manual. " Dustin insisted, looking offended, " And, it's not for kids, so, unless you know something that we don't, this is the best metaphor— "

           " Analogy. " Lucas interrupted, making Dustin glare at him.

            " Analogy? That's what you're worried about?! " Dustin exclaimed, then sighed in frustration, " Fine. An analogy for understanding what the hell this is. "

           Nancy chimed in, trying to understand, " Okay, so, this mind flamer thing— "

           " Flayer. Mind Flayer. "

            " What does it want? " Nancy asked with a sigh.

            " To conquer us, basically. " Dustin replied casually, " It believes it's the master race. "

            " Like-like the Germans? " Steve interjected, earning confused expressions from the group. He awkwardly scratched the back of his neck as Dustin gave him a dumbfounded look.

            ". . . The Nazis? " He suggested, and Steve nodded, face reddening in embarrassment.

             " Y-Yeah, the Nazis. " He agreed, and JP found himself unintentionally frowning at the tall boy as Franny quietly told him it was alright and squeezed his hand in reassurance.

             " Uh, if the Nazis were from another dimension, totally. " Dustin said, sarcasm dripping from his words as he continued, " It views other races, like us, as inferior to itself. "

             " It wants to spread and take over other dimensions. " Mike clarified, and Lucas looked to the others with wide eyes.

              " We are talking about the destruction of our world as we know it. " He said, dramatically gesturing with his hands as Steve suddenly let out a small scoff of disbelief, pushing himself away from the table, running a hand through his hair.

               " That's great. That's great. That's really great! " He blurted, eyes wide as he exhaled shakily, " Jesus. "

               " Franny, please control your boyfriend so we can continue. " Charlie ordered, and Franny shot him a pointed glare, almost immediately feeling the other three teenagers' eyes on her at that.

               " Shut up, Charlie. " Franny hissed under her breath, but she still moved to tell Steve to calm down.

               " Okay, " Nancy said slowly, drawing her attention away from Franny and Steve to the book again, " so, if this thing is like a brain that's controlling everything, then if we kill it. . "

              " We kill everything it controls. " Mike finished for her, and Lucas shrugged. Charlie wore a small smile on his face until he looked to JP, who he saw was eyeing a preoccupied Franny with unease. The younger Walker quickly realized what he was thinking: Franny and Will were, more or less, being controlled, too. They'd die if they killed the Mind Flayer.

               " Theoretically, we win. " He added, and Hopper moved to take the book off the table, narrowing his eyebrows at it.

               " Right, so how do you kill this thing? Shoot it with fireballs or something? " Hopper asked rhetorically, earning annoyed looks from the four younger boys.

               " Don't be ridiculous. " Charlie insisted, and Dustin nodded in agreement.

                " Yeah, you would summon an undead army because— " Dustin noticed the irritated look on Hopper's face, but he didn't stop rambling, " because zombies don't have brains, and the Mind Flayer. . It. . It. . likes brains. . It's just a game, it's a game. "

                 " What the hell are we doing here? " Hopper sighed, slamming the book closed and sitting it back on the table. JP stepped forward from the table and looked to the police Chief with lowered eyebrows.

                 " Is any of this really all that crazy considering everything that's happened? " The lanky boy asked, earning silence from Hopper. Dustin nodded frantically, a glare on his face at Hopper's dismissal.

                " More sane than waiting here for your military backup! " He shouted, and Hopper's jaw tightened as Mike also got aggravated.

                " And, even if they do come, how are they gonna stop this? " He questioned, " You can't just shoot this thing with guns! "

              " You don't know that! You don't know anything! " Hopper yelled back at the boys, all four of them now staring back at the man with narrowed eyes.

              " We know that it's already killed everyone in that lab! " Mike reminded him.

               " We know the monsters are gonna molt again. " Lucas added, and Charlie felt like Hopper was missing the point. This was urgent, they were losing Will, and they were losing time.

               " And we know it's only a matter of time before those tunnels reach this town! " Dustin input, leaving Charlie to look up at Hopper.

               " Most importantly, we know that the Mind Flayer is controlling Will and Franny, and if we don't come up with a plan, it's going to kill them both— with or without your military guys to do it for him. " He snapped, and Joyce, who had been standing near the back of the group, nodded.

               " They're right. " She agreed in a hollow voice, eyes reddened as they all turned to face her, " We have to kill it. I want to kill it. "

               " Me too, Joyce, " Hopper tried to assure her, moving towards her with a gentle expression, one completely contradicting his attitude towards the boys, " but how do we do that? We don't exactly know what we're dealing with here. "

              " No, " Mike interrupted, and when the group looked back to him, Charlie noticed that his eyes were locked onto Will's still limp body on the couch. He barely moved, walking over to the boy as he continued, " but he does. If anyone knows how to destroy this thing, it's Will. He's connected to it, he'll know it's weakness. "

               " Franny's connected to it. " Jonathan reminded them, making the brunette glance over at him, meeting his concerned expression as he turned to Mike. " Shouldn't she know, too? "

               " Maybe, " Mike entertained the idea, also looking over at the mentioned teenager, " we'd have a better chance with both of them, though. "

                " I thought we couldn't trust him— er, them — anymore? " Max said, avoiding eye contact with Franny, " That Will's a spy for the Mind Flayer now? "

               " Yeah, " Mike agreed, turning to look amongst the group, " but he can't spy if he doesn't know where he is. "

               " It could still use Franny, though, " Steve mentioned, raising his eyebrow at Mike as the girl reflexively tensed at the implication, " right? "

               Mike hummed in agreement, looking across the room to Charlie for assistance. Charlie'd realized that he was doing that a lot, recently, but he didn't mind being looked to for help. The tall boy chewed on his bottom lip as he glanced at his sister, seeing the veins crawling up from her collarbone.

              " Right. " He agreed, giving his sister an apologetic look before his eyes flashed to Mike, " We're lucky it hasn't already used her to figure out where we are by now, it must not have as much control over her as Will. . . "

             " I'm sensing a 'but' coming. " JP commented, fingers tapping anxiously against his arm as they laid crosses over his chest.

             " But, we should still treat her like it's going to use her. " Charlie stated, seeing a strike of alarm flash in Franny's eyes. He shook his head lightly, " We're not going to hurt you, we just need you to forget where we are, then we'll put you and Will somewhere that you won't recognize. "

            " Mr. Walker, " Mike suddenly said, pulling the man from his trance, his eyes having been glued to the ground as he soaked in all the information, " do you still have that anesthesia from the hospital? "

           " Uh, yeah, " Joseph answered slowly, pulling the small vile from his pocket and holding it out. Joyce scrambled through her own jacket pocket as she pulled out something wrapped in plastic.

            " Great minds think alike. " She joked half heartedly, revealing a packaged syringe.

            Mike walked over to them both, taking their stolen items before he turned to Franny. He gave her a slightly apologetic look, but she knew he wasn't sorry, because it would keep them safe. She understood that, but she didn't want that needle anywhere near her, and she would rather not be unconscious, since she had been having a streak of not-so-nice dreams while knocked out.

             " Um. . " Mike started, looking uncertainly at the items before Nancy stepped forward.

             " I can do it. " She offered, and the group quickly shifted, sitting Franny down in one of the dining room chairs as they stood on the other side of Nancy, who was drawing the medicine into the tube. Jonathan and Steve stood on either side of her, since Mike had told them to expect her to pass out quickly, and Franny felt her heart racing. She was never that scared of things like needles, but she could tell that it was something more than that. It was like the Mind Flayer was realizing its mistake, and she pressed her lips together in an attempt to keep her calm.

             " I feel like a fucking five year old at the doctor's office. " She muttered as she gripped Jonathan's hand, since Dustin had suggested that maybe the anesthesia would kick in quicker if they shot it into her non-injured arm. She felt a little bad, she was pretty sure she was crushing his fingers.

              " You look like a fucking five year old. " JP replied sharply, earning a sarcastic smile from his sister as he sat across from her with a small smirk that didn't reach his eyes.

              " Okay, I'll count to— "

               Franny interrupted Nancy, " Don't count, Nancy, just do it— "

               She didn't have to tell her twice.

               Franny winced as the needle pierced her skin, and Nancy pushed the plunger. The others waited in silence as the Wheeler girl drew the syringe out and tossed it into the trash can. Franny could feel the right side of her body lighting on fire; the Mind Flayer didn't appreciate that, she concluded. But she felt her grip around Jonathan's hand loosen considerably, and her head started to feel fuzzy.

              Jonathan and Steve both leaned forward in an instant as her eyes began fluttering with a hazy look, all muscles relaxing, her body slumping slightly forward. She heard Steve say something to Jonathan that she didn't really hear, and then her blurry vision shifted as one of them picked her up, carrying her bridal style. Charlie appeared in front of her, eyebrows creased in worry as he saluted her with two fingers.

             " One for all, " He said, though his voice sounded slurred as she vaguely remembered seeing JP join his side, looking down at her with the same expression as Charlie.

" All for one. " He finished, nodding firmly to her, " See you on the other side, sis. "

X X X

Mike and Charlie's plan was set and the group were busy at work. While nobody voiced their doubts about the chances of success, their uneasy facial expressions showed that they weren't all that confident that it would work, but they were trying to believe that it would. None of them had any other ideas, so it had to work. Steve and Jonathan had taken Franny and Will to the shed in the Byer's back yard, setting up two chairs that sat back to back before they secured them to the seats with thick rope and wire, even using Hopper's handcuffs to intricately keep them interlocked around the pole that sat in the center of the shed. Steve had mentioned that he thought it was a bit of overkill, but they ignored it. Joseph, Joyce, Hopper, and Jonathan cleared out the shed, removing everything except the old heaters they'd had stored inside. The took out everything and anything, including boxes of old books and picture albums, gardening tools, fragments of furniture, and other miscellaneous things. They hung up blankets and old quilts along the walls, trying to keep the place hot and insulated while trying to disguise anything that might be a giveaway to where they were.

The kids had been tasked with searching the house for anything that could be used to cover the walls of the shed. Dustin and Lucas had gone to the garbage outside, while Max, Mike, and Charlie dug through every kitchen cabinet and drawer. Outside, Steve, Nancy, and JP were searching in the pile of junk thrown out from the shed, told to get anything they thought could be used to insulate the shed or cover it up.

JP could feel the awkward tension in the air as he tossed the detached top of a missing grill behind him, letting it land with a loud clank. Steve and Nancy were on the other side of the pile of junk, and he heard them quietly speaking to each other, but the conversation was over oddly quickly. Then, Steve dug out an old heater beside JP, dusting it off and tucking it under his arm as he continued to search. JP couldn't help but feel distracted, so he inched closer to Steve, shoveling through the pile before turning his head to look at the long haired boy.

Steve had to have felt his eyes on him, since JP had plenty of practice intimidating people with his glares, but the boy didn't look back at him until the blond cleared his throat purposefully. Steve raised an eyebrow at him, and JP tilted his head thoughtfully.

" So, " He began, yanking out the long pile of a broken lamp, stabbing it into the ground and straightening his back, " you and my sister. Is that uh, is that a thing, now? "

Steve blinked at him, then briefly looked away before meeting his eyes again, " Uh, a thing? I don't. . I mean. . what do you mean by that, exactly? "

JP rolled his eyes, sighing in annoyance and making Nancy's head perk up in his direction. She looked at him questionably and he flashed her a dismissive look before he turned back to Steve, " You really are something, Harrington. You into Franny, or what? And don't pull some bullshit about just being friends because I am not an idiot. That shit you were doing back there, the fucking hand holding and shit, looks a lot like you're more than friends. "

" I. . " Steve seemed speechless after JP's declaration. He adjusted the heater under his arm, pursing his lips as he admitted, " Yeah, I like her, I guess— "

" You guess? " JP questioned, and Steve's eyes widened as he shook his head.

" No, that's not what I meant— " He stopped himself, closing his eyes and sighing quietly before reopening them and looking JP dead in the eye. He could feel his hands sweating as he pulled out a rusted license plate. " I do like her, a lot. And, she likes me, too, so, I guess it's a thing? But it's not a thing, you know? "

JP stared at him for a moment, then a small grin appeared on his face as he quietly chuckled, shaking his head, " Yeah, I know. You've changed, Harrington. And, don't take that as a bad thing. Don't take it as a compliment, either, more of an observance. "

Steve quirked his eyebrows in confusion, then he replied with a small, " Oh. Thanks, I guess? "

JP hummed in response, then he went back to digging through the pile, adding one last thing, " But, uh, Harrington? "

" Yeah? "

" Break my sister's heart again and I will personally break that pretty boy look you got going for you. " It was more of a promise than a warning, but Steve was caught on the word again, making his heart hurt as he frowned.

" Not gonna happen. " Steve answered with utmost certainty, and JP spared a glance to him, pausing to look over him before he said anything else.

" Good. "

There was a beat of silence, then Steve spoke up, " Are you into Nancy? "

JP's eyes snapped to his, eyebrows furrowing as he turned to look at the aforementioned brunette, who was glaring at a particularly stuck piece of metal in the pile. JP breathed a laugh through his nose, shaking his head lightly at her before his eyes caught on Jonathan, who approached the pile. The awkward boy said something to Nancy before tossing more trash into the pile, his eyes flitting across it to meet JP's. He gave him a short nod, and JP offered a halfhearted nod in return before Jonathan turned on his heel to walk back to the shed

JP lowered his head, sighing quietly as he answered truthfully, " No. "

Steve noticed his change in demeanor, and his eyes darted to the blond boy's slight frown with puzzlement before he glanced across the pile to see Nancy taking an armful of things to the shed, where Jonathan stood. Steve's eyebrows scrunched together, and he looked back at JP, and he swore he saw the faintest hint of red on his face. Then, he understood.

" Oh. " Steve said softly, eyes lingering on JP for a moment as the boy turned his head to look at him again with a sad smile. Steve would've never expected to see JP Walker looking so vulnerable. He looked back to the pile briefly before he stole another glance at JP, adding, " Sorry. "

JP shook his head, his stomach knotting as he realized that he had practically just told Steve Harrington the biggest secret of his life. He was the only person that had ever even come close to knowing, and they weren't even friends. The blond exhaled through his nose, jaw tightening as he stared at the Mayor Kline sign staring back at him.

" Don't. . " He trailed off, his voice barely above a whisper as he felt Steve looking at him again. " Don't tell anyone. Please. "

Steve's face softened, and he nodded lightly, " Yeah, of course. I won't. "

A while after that, the group stood inside the shed, which was covered in pieces of metal, cardboard, and heavy blankets. Other than that, it was mostly empty, with Will and Franny in the center of the room, still unconscious as their bodies sat slumped in the chairs. Seeing two of the most important people in his life like that made Charlie's skin crawl, and he was just ready for all this shit to be over. There were heaters sitting in the room in hopes of weakening the Mind Flayer enough to keep it from taking over the pair. They were only in there a minute before Hopper ushered them out, leaving only himself, Joyce, Jonathan, Charlie, Mike, and JP inside the shed. Joseph had opted to staying inside to keep an eye on the kids and Nancy and Steve. Hopper shut the door behind him as he stood with his arms crossed.

            " What do we do now? " JP asked from his seat, leaning forward and clasping his clammy hands between his knees nervously.

             Joyce stared at the unconscious bodies of Will and Franny before them and she said, " We wait. "

             Inside the house, Dustin paced back and forth, holding his hat in one hand and running the other through his curly locks. Nancy leaned against the wall, arms crossed and eyes fixated on the floor, and Lucas and Max sat on the ground with their backs pressed to the couch. Steve stood idly in the living room, picking absentmindedly at one of the various nails stuck in his bat. Joseph sat at the table, eyes glued to the drawing of the Mind Flayer as a thousand uneasy thoughts ran through his head.

            " If one of them finds out where they are. . " Max suddenly said, a frown on her face as she looked to Lucas, " will they send those dogs after us? "

            " They won't find out. " Lucas assured her, but Max couldn't shake the dreadful feeling that that wasn't true.

           " Yeah, but if they do? "

          Lucas set his jaw and answered, " Judgement Day. "

X X X

note.

we're so close to the end of part one I can taste it

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