TEENAGE NIGHTMARE
CHAPTER SEVEN — PART ONE.
THE WILD-POLLYWOG CHASE.

Dustin, Lucas, and Max had gone to show Mr. Clarke Dart, while Mike and Charlie waited for Will to finish putting his things away in his locker. Mike was tapping his foot impatiently, but he stopped when Charlie shot him a pointed look. The Wheeler boy gestured toward Will, who seemed oblivious to their urgent situation while he held onto his locker door, biting his lip anxiously. Charlie crossed his arms and shrugged, eyes drifting over to Will, raising an eyebrow at the pale look on his face. Charlie sighed quietly through his nose, then stepping to stand beside Will.

             " Hey, uh, are you okay? Like, seriously, this time, you look like. . . well, you look like shit, Will. " Charlie commented, an apologetic expression on his face as the boy turned his head to look at him, swinging his locker door gently before finally closing it with an exhale, turning to look at both Charlie and a now-interested Mike.

             " I have to tell you something. " He mumbled, his voice barely over a whisper as he looked between the two boys, who shared a concerned look briefly. " It's about Dart. "

             " What is it? " Mike asked, and Charlie nodded encouragingly, even though a grimace passed his face at the mention of the slimeball.

              " Yeah, is it bad? You look like you've seen a ghost. " Charlie added, and Will lowered his gaze to the floor for a moment, waiting for the last few kids the clear the hall before looking back up at the pair of friends.

               " I think I've seen him–it, before. I know I have. I heard that sound, the screeching sound, I heard it yesterday. " He informed them, seeming a bit shaken up even as he explained it to the two, " Ever since Christmas, I. . my episodes, I think they're real. They're not just dreams or-or visions, they're real, just not. . here, real, you know? "

            
                Mike and Charlie looked at each other, confused looks on their faces before the latter turned back to Will, suggesting, " Like. . . you mean like the Upside Down? You're seeing the Upside Down? "

             
                 " I. . Yeah, that's exactly what I think. " Will admitted, shaking his head lightly; Charlie wished he had told him earlier, because it all made sense now. The episodes and the dark circles underneath his eyes, the way he barely spoke and seemed too scared to even breathe. It made Charlie's heart hurt, but he pushed away that feeling to listen to Will. " Dart. . I've seen him there, he's from the Upside Down. "

               " Wait, shit, they can't show Mr. Clarke. " Mike suddenly said, the new information sinking in as he frantically looked between Will and Charlie with wide eyes; he gestured down the ball, exclaiming, " We have to go stop them, come on! "

            
                Will hesitated while Mike took off sprinting down the empty hall, his footsteps heavy against the tile. Charlie moved to follow him, but he stopped short when he saw Will still standing at his locker. Not wanting to waste time trying to convince Will to snap out of whatever zone he was in again, the blue eyed boy just reached out and grabbed his wrist, pulling him with him.

                " C'mon, Will, " He called, practically dragging the boy for a moment before he seemed to realize what was happening; Charlie felt his hands slick with sweat almost instantly, and he felt a rush of heat rising to his face when he realized that he was pretty much, unofficially holding Will Byers' hand. Even if it was just for a few seconds, rounding the corner after Mike as they neared Mr' Clarke's classroom, it was still a step up to the Walker boy.

                " STOP! " Mike shouted, bursting through the door, breathlessly panting as Lucas, Dustin, Max, and Mr. Clarke all snapped around to look at him, eyes wide with confusion. Will and Charlie skidded to a stop behind him, the latter momentarily catching Lucas' eyes lingering lowly; his eyes dropped to follow, seeing his hand still interlocked with Will's. He quickly retracted his hand, subtly wiping it on his shorts before busing himself by picking at the end of his shirt.

              The motion didn't go unnoticed by Lucas, who lifted his eyes back to shoot a suspicion look at Charlie, or Will, who glanced down at the absence of the other boy's contact, which had been there just as quickly as it had gone.

         
               " Stop! Mr. Clarke, I'm sorry, it was just a stupid prank, " Mike persisted, walking towards the trio of kids standing at their teacher's desk; he promptly grabbed the back of Dustin's shirt, shaking his head as he breathed heavily, " I'm sorry, I told him to stop. "

              " What are you doing? " Dustin asked, an incredulous look on his face as he turned to look at Will and Charlie for more information; the taller boy simply placed one of his hands on his forearm, just above his watch, tapping his finger subtly along his skin. Dustin's eyes narrowed as he locked onto the pattern of short taps, remembering how Charlie had subsequently taught all of the boys Morse code after learning from JP.

              T-R-U-S-T  H-I-M, N-O-T  S-A-F-E. Dustin registered that much, lifting his eyes to meet Charlie's, who were solemnly locked onto his with a nod.

              " We need to go, right now, " Mike stated, pulling Dustin with him, Max and Lucas following with puzzled looks still on their face as the Wheeler boy practically ran out the door, urging Will and Charlie to leave. " right now! "

               The group sprinted back down the hallway, their huffing and panting reminding Charlie that maybe they should collectively join the basketball team, or something. Maybe they could start a kickball team, something that took less running than soccer but still had the same elements.

               They ran into the AV room, the door slamming closed behind them by Mike before Max could enter. Mike twisted the lock for more assurance that she wouldn't burst in. Charlie reactively jumped when the redhead began banging on the door, shouting at them that it wasn't 'cool' for them to exclude her, especially if it was because she's a girl. Charlie gave Mike a dry look, and he shook his head, not budging on his stance, and he couldn't necessarily blame him. Max wasn't there last year, she didn't know what they had gone through, and it was easier just to keep her in the dark.

            " What's going on? " Lucas asked, and Mike jerked his thumb towards Will.

            " Will says that Dart is from the Upside Down, " He explained shortly, going over the basic details that Will had told them; it wasn't much to go off of, but it told them that Dart was bad news.

           Lucas shook his head, " I don't understand. "

            " What don't you understand? " Mike snapped, looking only slightly apologetic as he Lucas glared briefly at him.

             
             " Will saw something that looked like Dart last year? " Lucas clarified, and Will nodded lightly.

             " Kind of, " He agreed, " but there was no tail. "

             " He heard it yesterday, though, " Charlie added, making Lucas and Dustin look over at him now, " the same sound Dart made today, when the light hit him. "

             " Why didn't you tell us this before? " Dustin question, and Will shrugged.

             " I wasn't sure. " He answered plainly, to which Dustin remarked, " A coincidence. "

             " Dustin. " Charlie called warningly; they all knew that was too scarily close to be just a coincidence, and, whether it hurt Dustin's chances at a Nobel Peace Prize or not, they had to do something about it.

             " What if, when Will was stuck in the Upside Down, he somehow acquired True Sight? " Mike suddenly suggested, making Lucas's eyebrows furrow in confusion.

             " True sight? " He repeated, and Charlie also looked to Mike for clarification, unfamiliar with the term.

             " It gives you the power to see into the ethereal plane. " Dustin explained, and Lucas sighed, wordlessly asking for more information.

            " It's like Will said, " Mike looked to Charlie, recalling their conversation just moments ago, " maybe the episodes he's having aren't just flashbacks or visions at all. Maybe they're real. Maybe Will can somehow see into the Upside Down. "

            The boys all sat in silence for a moment, and that was when Lucas declared, " We have to take him to Hopper. "

            " I second that. " Mike agreed, looking to the other three boys; Charlie wouldn't disagree, necessarily, but something about Chief Hopper made him nervous. He constantly felt like he was going to get in trouble for something he didn't know, but he'd never personally had a problem with the man; his father and Hopper had been quite good friends back in high school.

            " Well, we don't have much of a choice. " Charlie pointed out, and Dustin shook his head defensively.

            " No way. We take him to Hopper, Dart's as good as dead. " The curly haired boy insisted, and Charlie looked off to the side, muttering under his breath about that being for the best. It wasn't meant to be silent, but Dustin still glared at him for the comment.

           " Well, maybe he should be. " Mike voiced Charlie's opinion, making the taller boy stick his tongue out at Dustin from behind the former.

           " How can you say that? " Dustin gasped, making Mike scoff in disbelief.

           " How can you not? He's from the Upside Down, he's dangerous, Dustin! "

           " Maybe he is, but that doesn't automatically mean he's bad. " Dustin insisted, and Charlie laughed humorlessly while Mike rolled his eyes.

           " That's like saying just because someone's from the Death Star doesn't make them bad! " The dark haired boy exclaimed, and Charlie nodded heavily in agreement; Dustin sighed and ignored the comment, looking down at Dart in the box.

            " We have a bond. "

              " Oh, my god, Dustin! " Charlie shouted, throwing his hands into the air, finding the boy's reluctance unbelievable.

             " A bond? " Mike seemed equally frustrated, " What, just because he likes nougat?! "

            " No, because he trusts me! " Dustin insisted, and Charlie took a step towards the curly haired boy; he stood nearly half a foot taller than him, having hit his growth spurt before any of the others.

            Looking down at him, Charlie firmly stated, " We have to take him to Hopper, Dustin. Anything from the Upside Down is too dangerous for us to pretend like it's not. I get that you have some sort of. . weird ass friendship with this thing, but we can't let it live in this world, not when it's doing what it is to Will. So, just. . just give me the box and we can take it to Hopper. "

             The room was mostly quiet, the ac having kicked on and Max's banging protests silenced. The boys all stared at Dustin and Charlie, the latter raising an eyebrow at the former, who sighed.

            " I promised I'd take care of him. "

             As Charlie opened his mouth to insist that, somehow, he sort of understood what Dustin felt, but the words went unsaid as the box began to tremble in his hands. Dustin dropped the box to the table, taking a step backwards with the others, while Mike swiped the microphone from their radio, holding it defensively above himself.

            " Don't hurt him! " Dustin pleaded, and Charlie had to clench his jaw to keep from shouting the boy's name in disbelief again.

            " Only if he attacks. " Mike assured him.

            Charlie flinched when Max started pounding on the door again, making him cuss loudly in surprise as the other boys' eyes stayed glued to the shaking box.

           " Open it already! " Lucas demanded, and Dustin moved forward cautiously, carefully prying the lid off the box before jumping back.

           The boys leaned in curiously, watching tensely as Dart squirmed a little. Then, suddenly, legs shot out from either side of his body, making the group recoil instinctively. Mike swore and moved to swing the microphone at Dart as the mutating creature moved to jump, but Dustin shoved his arm, swerving the microphone to land on the table.

          " Shit! " A few of the boys called in unison as Dart leaped out of the box, landing on the floor near the door; somehow, Max had managed to pick the lock with a bobby pin held securely in her hand, making Charlie subconsciously wonder what else they taught kids in California, but he had to push that thought to the side as the door flung open.

          " What the— " Max called, Dart jumping past her, scurrying out of the room and into the hall.

          " Oh, shit! " Dustin exclaimed, all of the boys squeezing through the door and bursting past Max to get to the hall; all their heads were on a swivel as they tried to locate the creature.

          " Where'd he go?! " Lucas questioned, Max approaching the boys with her eyebrows pulled together in confusion.

           " What was that?! " She shouted, and Mike whirled around on her, pointing accusatorially at the redhead as he glared at her.

           " Dart! And you let him escape! "

           " Mike, chill— "

           " Why did you attack him?! " Dustin ran at Mike, shoving him backwards and ruining any type of calming Charlie had tried to create; thankfully, Mike was unfazed by the sudden anger directed towards him and ignored it.

          " C'mon, we have to find him! " He insisted instead, taking off down one end of the hall; the others didn't speak a word to each other and split, half of them following Mike and the other half running down the opposite end.

           All Charlie knew was that, if he found Dart, he was squishing him under his favorite pair of red Chucks.

          
            So, when he and Will broke off down one of the halls, losing Lucas and Max somewhere near the math hallways, he was plenty determined to find the little monster and stomp on it. The two of them silently checked every door they came across, most of them being locked due to the school day being over. They had spent maybe twenty minutes searching before they approached a classroom that was still lit up, the door cracked open an inch.

            Will and Charlie shared a look before the taller boy inched towards the door, reaching his hand out to the door knob. Will had his walkie talkie lifted to his mouth as Charlie pushed the door open, cautiously walking inside.

            " Where are you, you son of a bitch? " Charlie muttered, picking up a stapler from the desk; he noticed the name plaque sitting on the desk and looked back to Will, mouthing, " Mr. Salerno. "

             Will nodded and took a step back, not wanting to alert Dart of their presence. He pressed down on the button of the walkie, informing the others, " Guys, we found him, Charlie and me. "

             " Charlie and I. " Dustin's voice corrected, making Charlie roll his eyes as he tiptoed past the teacher's desk, getting closer to what he expected would be the perfect hiding spot for the creature, an empty coffee mug.

             " We're at Mr. Salerno's room. " Will replied, and Charlie raised the stapler over his head as he leaned down towards the mug, lowering his hand to wrap around it; he bit down on his tongue, concentrating as he quickly lifted the mug and turned it over, slamming it against the desk.

              He slowly tipped the edge of the mug up, holding the stapler close before fully picking it up, revealing. . . nothing.

             " Shit, " Charlie huffed, setting the stapler and the mug down as he turned around to tell Will about his bad luck. However, when he opened his mouth, expecting to see the boy standing at the doorway with the walkie in hand, Charlie stopped short when he realized that Will was gone.

              " What the hell. . . " He trailed off, jogging to the doorway and flipping the lights off before heading out into the hall; he glanced both ways, seeing no sign of the boy that had just been standing there. He slowly began to pull his own walkie from his shorts as he called out, " Will? Will? "

              He felt his head spinning as the worst case scenarios ran through his mind: what if Dart attacked him, what if he was being eaten alive by the creature right now? What if Will was having another episode, what if he stopped breathing during it? Charlie felt his own chest start to tighten, and he hadn't even noticed his hands shaking until he lifted the walkie to his mouth.

             " Will? Will, this is Charlie, where'd you go? " He asked, releasing the button to hear nothing but static; he closed his eyes tightly, inhaling sharply before he tried again, " Will, c'mon, man, where are you? "

             " Charlie! " A voice called, making the boy turn to look down the hall, where Dustin and Lucas were jogging to meet him, winded looks on their faces; Max and Mike appeared around the corner, looking significantly less tired as their eyes scanned the area.

            " Where's Dart? " Mike asked, and Charlie swallowed down the lump in his throat, shaking his head as Dustin stepped towards him.

            " Will said he was here, didn't he? "

             " Maybe Will has him. "

             " We thought he was here, but, " Charlie trailed off, pressing a hand to his chest as he sucked in a deep breath, " he wasn't. . Will. . "

              Then, as if they understood the reason behind the boy's quiet panic, they all looked around and realized that they were missing a piece to their puzzle.

              " Where's Will? "

X X X

          Franny reluctantly agreed to ditch school for the rest of the day with little convincing from Steve. After the whole fiasco in the hallway, the two of them wound up outside, in the parking lot. Steve had opened the door to the passenger side while sitting behind the steering wheel of his car, giving her an expectant look and telling her to get in. Franny didn't bother asking where they were going, knowing that Steve would probably just tell her that it was a surprise or something. She had pulled down the visor as they drove, looking at herself in the small mirror and frowning at the red rings around her bloodshot eyes. She attempted to make herself look slightly more presentable, but eventually fell back against the seat with a huff.

          " I look crazy. "

           Steve hummed in agreement, making Franny shoot him a look that told him he wasn't supposed to agree with that. He quickly realized his mistake and pretended to laugh it off.

            " Crazy beautiful— " He tried to correct himself, his laugh dying off as he nervously tapped his fingers against the wheel; Franny rolled her eyes, leaning over to look out the window as she tried to find the smile inching its way up on to her face.

       
            They pulled up to their destination a few minutes after that, and Franny lowered her head to look up at the sign through the windshield. She glanced over when Steve unlocked the doors, freezing amidst opening his door when he locked eyes with her, raising an eyebrow, " What? "

           " I didn't bring any money. " She blinked at him, making him shrug as he leaned on his elbow, tilting his head and giving her a half smile.

          " Don't worry about it, Walker. My treat. "

            Franny didn't argue with him, well, even if she had wanted to protest, he was standing out of the car after that. The brunette also got out of the car, gently closing the door as she shielded her eyes from the glaring sun that reflected wildly off of the Benny's Burgers sign. She remembered coming to the diner a few times before, mainly with her father and brothers, but that was before Benny was killed the year prior. The building had been sold, but, fortunately for Hawkins, the new owner kept the name as a sort of memoriam for Benny.

            Steve met her at the front of the car, where Franny stood idly. She felt glad to be away from school, but she wasn't entirely sure how a burger and some fries would fix her situation. Still, she appreciated Steve's efforts, even if they were slightly cheesy.

             " Right this way, m'lady. " He said, holding his arm out to her expectantly, looking down at her with a bright grin.

             Correction: majorly cheesy.

             Franny genuinely laughed at that, shaking her head and saying, " You're an idiot, Steve Harrington. " Nonetheless, she still looped her arm through his and let him lead her through the doors of the diner.

            As a bell jingled to announce their arrival, a burly, older man that stood behind the grill nodded to them. A few waitresses walked around, catering to other customers while the two of them slid into the nearest empty booth. It was a short wait for one of the waitresses to come around, her uniform a pretty blue dress that flared outwards at the bottom, perfectly curled, golden locks fell around her face as she offered them a smile.

            " Hi there, what can I getcha? "

             " One chocolate milkshake— " Franny and Steve said in unison, eyes instantly snapping to each other's with an amused grin before Steve corrected, " Two chocolate milkshakes, and, uh, just an order of fries. "

             The waitress asked if that was all, and, after the simple nod from Franny, she promised that she would be back soon. The brunette leaned forward, resting her chin on her hand as she raised an eyebrow curiously at the boy sitting across from her.

             " Didn't take you for a chocolate milkshake kind of guy. " She commented, to which Steve's forehead wrinkled quizzically.

             " And what does that mean? "

             " Not sure, just roll with it. "

              " Mhmm. " He replied, giving her a suspicious look before the waitress came back, quicker than even Franny had expected. She placed the two milkshakes onto the table, comical swirly straws placed in them, and she sat the carton of fries in between them before telling them to enjoy their meal.

             The two were silent for a minute, both becoming equally invested in slurping down a quarter of their cold drinks while a familiar Queen song played in the background. Franny tapped her fingers along the table to the beat, resisting the urge to hum the tune quietly as she usually would. Steve eyed her, lifting his head from his straw to reach across the table to grab a fry.

            " You do that a lot. " He mentioned, and Franny blinked at him, unsure of what he meant; he nodded to her dancing fingers.

             " Oh, yeah. " She said absentmindedly, slowing her taps and admitting, " I guess it's kind of a distraction, music usually gets my mind off of the shit I don't want to think about. "

              " I get that. " He insisted, popping the fry in his mouth and chewing it up before he leaned forward again, reiterating, " I get what you're going through, too, at least, a little bit. Is there anything I can do to, I don't know, help? "

              Franny wrapped her hand around the milkshake, the cold glass freezing against her fingers as she started twisting the straw with her other hand. She didn't really know how to tell someone to help her, she wasn't sure what would even help. Just sitting there with him across from her was helping already.

            " I don't know, " She confessed, trying her hardest to avoid his eyes as they locked onto her; she tilted her head slightly as she trained her state to the milkshake. " you've already done more than you needed to, though. "

            " That's what friends do. " He said, making her look up at him with a lowered eyebrow; a small grin rose on his lips, and he folded his arms on the table as he asked, " Why can't you just admit that we're friends now, Walker? "

            Franny didn't want to answer that, so she easily changed the subject, hoping Steve wouldn't press her, " So, what'd Nancy say today? Is the golden couple of Hawkins really done-zo? "

            " Super done-zo, apparently. " He confirmed blankly, now averting his eyes from hers as he sighed. There were very few other people inside, and they were chatting quietly amongst themselves, leaving Franny the opportunity to recognize the song's lyrics.

            This thing called love, I just can't handle it. This thing called love, I must get around to. Franny nearly grinned and grimaced simultaneously at the meaning. She went quiet again, not wanting to push it. The melody sweetly rang through the small diner as the two of them sat in peaceful silence again. After a moment, Franny noticed the odd look on Steve's face, his nose scrunched and eyebrows pulled together, looking as if he was wondering if he was going to regret something, or, maybe he just needed to go to the bathroom.

            " I'm sorry, Franny, " He suddenly said, confusing her further and making her look at him questionably; she opened her mouth to ask him what he meant, but he continued, lightly shaking his head as his fingers fidgeted with the basket of fries. " for ignoring you, acting like you weren't there. God, I was such an idiot, I can't believe I was ever friends with Tommy and Carol and the rest of those assholes—it was all so. . fake. "

             Franny stopped twirling her straw to look at him, seeing the unfamiliar expression of regret and hurt and self-loathing all rolled up into one on Steve's face. At her silence, he ran a hand through his hair and sighed, sounding irrevocably melancholic as he said, " Maybe Nancy was right. Maybe I am bullshit. "

            Franny frowned at the sullen look that befell Steve's face. The sight of such a strong hurt in his eyes made her heart throb, a familiar feeling to when she was drunk at the party and had seen the tears on his cheeks. Before, Franny would've laughed at the idea of Steve 'the King' Harrington feeling sad and alone, but now, she saw it for the reality that it was. Here he was, trying to cheer her up and get her mind off of all the shit that was weighing on her shoulders, while trying to hold up his own wounds by himself. That wasn't fair. He needed someone to talk to just as much as she did, if not more.

               " You're not. " She suddenly said, barely lifting her eyes to meet his as they widened questionably, " Coming from me, it might not mean much, but I don't think you're bullshit, Steve Harrington. Just because you made a few mistakes, doesn't make you a shitty person. Tommy and Carol? Bullshit. Billy Hargrove? Bullshit to the max. "

             Franny paused, wanting to look away from him as he stared so intently right back at her, but she kept her eyes locked with his. She swallowed down the anxiety she felt bubbling in her chest, a knot tying in her stomach as she reached forward and laid her hand over one of Steve's. She gave him a small smile when his eyes widened even more, a surprised look on his face as she squeezed his hand.

              " You're a good guy, Steve, whether you think so or not. I mean, you're here with me when you could be doing a million more interesting things, so. . . If Nancy can't see that, then, " Franny tilted her head and shrugged lightly, " well, she's bullshit, too. "

              Steve's lips twitched into a smile, and he looked genuinely grateful as his eyes lingered on hers, he spoke in an uncharacteristically quiet voice, " Thanks, Fran. . that. . it means a lot. "

              Franny reciprocated the smile, nodding to him before slowly pulling her hand back, letting it fall to her lap. He quirked an eyebrow at her. His smile slowly shifting into a grin as he assured her, " And, uh, Fran? "

              " Yeah, Steve? "

               " There's nothing possibly more interesting than hanging out with you. "

                Franny dropped her eyes to the table, her smile expanding as she dragged her fingers across the table, promptly standing up. Steve raised an eyebrow at her, and she stuck her hand out to him, a grin on her face.

              " I think I can declare you my friend now, Sir Steve Harrington. " She announced, and the boy shook his head, hitting his hand off the table and letting out a laugh as he slid across the seat to stand across from her.

               " It's an honor, Miss Franny Walker. " He replied in a royal-sounding accent, grasping her hand and shaking it firmly; Franny ignored the fact that his hand was clammy in hers and laughed softly at his quick change of mood.

              Amidst their laughter, Franny accidentally swung her arm, letting go of Steve's hand and hitting one of the milkshakes. It fell off the table, falling to the ground and shattering into a pile of chocolate ice cream, whipped cream, and glass.

             " Shit! " Franny exclaimed, feeling her face redden when the other patrons turned to look at the commotion; she quickly crouched down, moving to pick up the pieces of glass scattered within the melting chocolate. Steve moved to copy her, but recoiled when Franny let out a sharp hiss, a pinch of pain spreading out through her hand as a particularly large piece of glass sliced her palm.

             " Jesus, damn it! " She muttered, feeling herself stand as Steve was at her side, pulling her up while one of the waitresses insisted she would clean up the mess.

            " Damn, Fran, " Steve said aloud, gently tugging her wrist so that he could see her hand, a thin red line stretching across it, blood welling up beneath it before slowly starting to pour out; he looked from her hand to her face, where she was wincing at the stinging feeling radiating throughout her palm. " Are you okay? "

             " Yeah, just feels like a huge ass papercut. " She insisted, mumbling a quick apology to the waitress when she heard a loud ringing come from behind the bar counter.

            " Franny Walker? " The man called, and both teens' heads snapped in his direction; they shared a confused look before Franny stepped forward, holding her hand to her chest.

            " Yeah? "

             " You, uh, you got a call. "

              Franny slowly walked over to the counter, accepting the phone from the man, watching the cord stretch out to reach her as she turned and looked to Steve, who stood nearby, waiting.

              " Franny, my god, are you with the boys? Is Will with you? " The familiar, frantic voice of Joyce Byers rang in her ears; Franny shook her head, even though she couldn't be seen.

             " What? Why would I be with— " She cut herself off, feeling extremely confused and caught off guard with the question. " How did you know I was even here? "

          
             " I didn't know who else to call, " Joyce insisted, not really answering her question. Franny racked her brain for possible answers to give to the woman, who sounded strained and very worried, like usual.

            " Th-they're probably at Mike's, did you try— "

       " Sharon says she hasn't seen any of them since Mike and Charlie left for school this morning. "

        " What? " Franny whispered, more to herself than to the woman on the phone; Steve raised his eyebrows at her, looking for some sort of explanation, but the girl just closed her eyes and said, " Um, maybe they're at the school? AV club, or something like that. "

         " Okay, maybe, maybe, thank you, Franny, " Joyce said, and then she hung up. Franny quickly stretched across the counter to place the phone back on the wall, holding her injured hand to her body as she walked past Steve, grabbing his forearm and pulling him out of the diner. Fortunately, he had tossed the cash and an extra tip for the mess before they had left, and was now looking at Franny with a wildly confused expression as the bell rang at their departure.

             " Franny, what's going on, who was on the phone? " He asked, rounding the car and getting in the driver's seat as she quickly got in the other side, buckling her seatbelt and trying to keep her hand from bleeding on his floors. " Your hand, we need to go to a hospital— "

              " I'm okay, Steve. " She insisted, turning to look firmly at the boy who's mouth was left open in protest as he looked to her, " We have to get to the school, something's wrong with the boys. "

              " What, your brother and his friends? " Steve asked, and, at her instant nod, he added, " They're probably just messing around, being stupid, that's what I— "

               " Steve. " Franny cut him off, giving him a deadly serious look to which he lightly shook his head at her.

               " What? "

                " We need to go to the school, now. My boys are in trouble. "

X X X

note.
fair warning, stuff's about to get a little confusing

as always, any comments, questions, predictions, or feedback are greatly appreciated!