▸Whip It - Devo

T H E  B A T H T U B  P T . 1

As soon as Danny dropped me off at home, I entered the house and slammed the front door shut. I stormed into the kitchen and as I was about to open the freezer, I saw a note placed under a Mickey Mouse magnet saying "Had to run to the store to get groceries. If one of you get home before I do, please do the laundry. Love, Mom". I let out a loud groan, stomping out of the kitchen into the utility room.

"Freaking Steve. Freaking chores." I angrily muttered, picking up the blue clothes basket and dumping it into the washing machine. I put in the required measurement of the detergent and turned the machine on after closing the lid. "All I want to do is eat junk food and cry."

I made my way back into the kitchen and opened the freezer. My heart shattered when I couldn't find the gallon of ice cream. Muttering curses under my breath, I jogged to my room and noticed that my stash wasn't on top of my nightstand. Instead, there was another note from Mom. Slowly walking towards the note, I picked it up and read that she hid the snacks once she saw all of the trash from the ones we've eaten that night.

"Why, Mom? Why?" I cried out. Shaking my head, I grabbed my purse that was hanging on my chair and headed to the garage. Opening the garage door, I pulled my bike out of the garage before closing the door. I set my bike against the house and ran to lock the front door. After I double checked that I had enough money to buy some food, I jumped on my bike and started to ride. As I rode my bike down Cornwallis Street since it was the fastest route to the gas station, I saw two familiar looking middle school boys and a girl with a shaved head zipping towards me on their bikes.

"Dawn?!" Dustin yelled as I stopped my bike. "What the hell are you stopping for? Turn your damn bike around and pedal your ass off!"

"What the hell is..." I trailed off when I saw a line of white vans speeding down the road towards us. My eyes widened as I noticed the three preteen's fear stricken faces. "Holy shit!"

"Go! Go!" Mike screamed, waving me on. I quickly turned my bike around and followed after them.

"What is going on here?" I demanded, glancing over my shoulder to check on the vans. Yup, they're still following us.

"Bad men." The girl, who I was assuming is El, told me.

"Yeah, the bad men are after us and El." Dustin nodded in agreement. "Oh yeah, Eleven meet my sister, Dawn. Dawn, meet Eleven."

"Nice to meet you El, wish we could have met under different circumstances." I sent her a sweet smile.

"Shit!" Dustin cursed, noticing the white vans further ahead, turning down the street we were currently on.

"This way, come on!" Mike turned his bike towards a drive way. Looking back, I saw the vans gaining on us.

"Pedal faster guys!" I yelled. We rode to the backyard of the house, two little girls playing a game of patty cake while the other was coloring on the picnic table. I instantly started to ring the bell on my bike.

"Out of the way!" Dustin warned as we neared them. The girls jumped apart, us riding in between them. "Out of the way!"

We managed to get back onto an isolated street. As we started to stop our bikes, Lucas pulled up next to us.

"Lucas!" Mike announced.

"Where are they?" Lucas he stopped and stared at me in shock. "Dawn?"

"Yeah, I had bad timing to go buy more junk food." I shrugged.

"I don't know." Mike answered truthfully.

"I think we lost them." Dustin said. Loud screeching caught our attention. Looking in the directions of the tires screeching, we saw the vans turning down the road.

"Nope! We didn't." I shook my head, holding back a string of curses.

"Go, go, go ,go, go!" Mike screamed. Dustin yelled as we started to pedal again. I made sure to be the last one, putting myself in between the kids and the bag guys.

"Shit! They're gaining on us!" I started to pump my legs faster.

"Faster, faster!"

"Shit, shit, shit, shit!" Dustin repeatedly said. Suddenly, a van turned a few feet in front of us.

"Give us a break!" I screamed in frustration.

Dustin started to yell again as the van kept coming towards us, not showing any sign of slowing down. Then out of nowhere, the van flipped. It flew over us and crashed a few feet behind us. It blocked the other vans from following us. The four of us continued to pedal forward, glancing over our shoulders to check the damage. The van was laying upside down and the people were existing their cars. Dustin and I exchanged looks before checking on El. Her eyebrows were furrowed and a stream of blood was dripping from her nose.

"Where to now?" I asked the younger boys. They all exchanged look before Mike spoke up.

"Somewhere where they won't come looking."

▷

"A junk yard?" I uttered to myself as we rode into a clearing in between the worn down automobiles.

"Holy...holy shit!" Dustin said as we all started to get off of our bikes. Mike instantly helped El get off of his bike, sitting her down on an old tire. "Did...did you see what she did to that van?"

"No, Dustin, we missed it." Mike sarcastically answered. I kicked the stand of the bike, making sure it was steady before I walked over to El.

"I mean that was...." Dustin stammered, trying to find the right word.

"Awesome." Lucas panted out, finishing my little brother's sentence. We all turned to face him. "It was awesome." He started to walk over to El. Not wanting to interrupt what he was going to say, I took a stop back. Lucas kneeled down next to El. "Everything I said about you being a traitor and stuff...I was wrong. I'm sorry."

Lucas placed a hand on Eleven's shoulder. It took everything in me not to coo and hug him.

"Friends...friends don't lie." Eleven said. "I'm sorry, too."

"Me, too." Mike interrupted. He held out his hand, staring at Lucas. Standing up, Lucas walked over to Mike and shook his hand. Not being able to conceal my happiness, a shrike flew out of my lips. Everyone turned to face me with confusion written on their faces.

"What...was that for?" Dustin questioned, looking at me with his nose scrunched up.

"I'm just happy." I grinned.

"You're happy? We were just chased by psychos." Lucas bluntly told me.

"Yeah, well, I've had a pretty shitty day and you guys acting like adults made me happy alright? Give me a break." I defended myself, placing my hands on my hips. "Now...can someone please explain why there were psychos chasing us? And can I please adopt Eleven?"

"Wait...why would you want to adopt Eleven?" Dustin frowned.

"I've always wanted a little sister." I innocently smiled.

"Anyways!" Mike clapped his hand, to stop Dustin and I from bickering. "El here, as you saw, has powers."

"Badass powers, yeah." I grinned at the girl.

"Well, these bad guys are after her and we think they're related to Will's disappearance and the Demogorgon." Mike explained.

"Wait...those guys are responsible for the Demogorgon?" I angrily asked.

"You know what the Demogorgon is?" Lucas perked an eyebrow.

"If you're talking about the monster freak, then yeah, I know what the Demogorgon is. It almost got me twice." I crossed my arms.

"What? Twice!? You never told me that!" Dustin exclaimed, looking at me in disbelief.

"Yeah. But continue, my near death experiences can wait for later." I waved him off. "Tell me about these bad guys."

"I know where they're located." Lucas said.

"What? How?"

"When I was talking to you guys over the radio, I was running away from the gated fence." Lucas stated.

"Tell us about it." Mike requested. "What do you know?"

"It's Hawkins Lab. I'll just draw a map and go from there. Hold on." Lucas quickly gathered up some sticks and set them up. As he set up the shape, we all gathered around, sitting on the ground. Holding one stick in his hand, he drew a line on the outside of big stick from the shape he had made. "This is Randolph Road, right here. The fence starts here, and goes all the way around." After circling the shape with his finger, he set an empty can of coke in the shape. "And this is the lab right here. The gate's gotta be in there somewhere. It's gotta be."

"Well, who owns Hawkins Lab?" Dustin questioned.

"The sign says 'Department of Energy'." Lucas answered.

"Department of Energy?" Dustin repeated. "What do you think that means?"

"Sounds like it's somehow involved with the government." I thought aloud.

"Yeah, it means government. Military." Mike confirmed.

"Then why does it say 'Energy'?" Dustin asked, still confused.

"Just trust me, all right? It's military. My dad's told me before." Mike told my younger brother.

"Mike and Dawn are right. There's soldiers out front." Lucas articulated.

"Do they make, like, lightbulbs or something?" Dustin continued to ask questions.

"No, weapons...to fight the Russians, and commies and stuff." Mike retorted.

"Do I want to know how you know all of this?" I raised an eyebrow at the younger Wheeler.

"I told you, my dad." Mike shrugged.

"Weapons." Lucas muttered, looking at all of us. My eyes widened in realization.

"Oh, Jesus, this is bad." Dustin gasped.

"Really bad." Lucas nodded. "The place is like a fortress."

"Well, what do we do?" Dustin quizzed. I licked my lips anxiously, thinking over possible ways to go through this information.

"I don't know, but we can't go home. We're fugitives now." Mike declared. Everyone look at me for confirmation.

"He's right. If they found you guys, then that means they probably know where we all live. Not to mention, that would mean putting our families in trouble." I gnawed my bottom lip.

"G-guys?" Dustin stuttered, looking towards the sky. Before I could follow his gaze, I heard the familiar whirring of a helicopter. "Do you hear that?"

"Shit. They're searching from the sky." I quickly stood up, frantically searching the sky for the helicopter. My eyes widened when I noticed a black speck in the atmosphere growing bigger and closer. "Hide! Get the bikes and hide them!"

Everyone scrambled to their feet. We grabbed the bikes and started to stuff them under the abandoned bus.

"Go, go, go, go!" Mike yelled as Dustin and Lucas started to push the last bike under the bus.

"Go into the bus, hurry!" I started to guide Mike and El towards the entrance of the old bus.

"Come on, come on!" Dustin screamed as they finally pushed all of the bike under the bus. "Go, go, go, go, go!"

I waved Lucas and Dustin over as I waited at the entrance. I placed my hand on their backs, pushing them in. glancing up at the sky, I quickly climbed the stairs, closing the door shut behind me. We started to run towards the back of the bus.

"Get down!" Mike ordered. We all dropped to the ground where some missing seats were. Breathing heavily, I wrapped my arm around Dustin's shoulder and brought him closer to me. The whirring of the helicopter started to fade away, signaling that it was leaving our spot.

"Mental." Dustin stated as he stared at the ceiling of the bus.

"We are not leaving this bus until we know for sure that they've stopped looking for us." I sternly looked at all four of them. "Do you understand?"

They all nodded, too busy trying to catch their breaths. A few minutes later and the whirring started to come back. I sighed, leaning my head against the back door of the bus. Everyone was quiet until a muffled sound broke the silence.

"You guys hear that?" Dustin sat up straight. I dropped my arm from his shoulders, nodding my head.

"Mike, it's me, Nancy." The voice sounded clearer. Mike dashed for his backpack. He unzipped it, pulling out his radio. "Mike, are you there? Answer. Mike, we need you to answer."

"Mike?" I looked at him, waiting to see what he was going to do. Mike only brought the radio closer to his ear.

"Is that your sister?" Lucas looked at Mike.

"This is an emergency, Mike. Do you copy?" Nancy stated. "Mike, do you copy?"

"Okay, this is really weird." Dustin muttered. Lucas reached for the radio.

"Don't answer." Mike yanked the radio back.

"She said it was an emergency." Lucas said.

"What if it's a trick?" Mike asked.

"It's your sister!" Lucas argued.

"Mike, maybe you should answer." I told him.

"See? Dawn agrees!" Lucas pointed at me.

"What if the bad people kidnapped her?" Mike countered. "What if they're forcing her to say this?"

"I need you to answer." Nancy said through the radio.

"Mike can be right guys..." Lucas turned to look at me with his eyes furrowed and mouth wide open in betrayal. "If they found out about you guys, what makes you think they don't know about our families?"

"It's like Lando Calrissian." Dustin thought aloud. Mike turned to face him. "Don't answer."

"We need to know that you're there, Mike." Nancy spoke again.

"Listen, kid, this is the chief. If you're there, pick up. We know you're in trouble and we know about the girl." Chief Hopper assured.

"Why is she with the chief?" Lucas queried.

"Johnathon may have been arrested and she may have gone to be with him along with Danny." I winced out, rubbing the back of my neck sheepishly. "Maybe they got help because Danny, Johnathon, and Nancy know about the Demogorgon."

"What?" Dustin spoke in shock. He shook his head. "How the hell does he know about..."

"We can protect you, we can help you, but you gotta pick up." Hopper continued to speak. "Are you there? Do you copy? Over."

"Answer it Mike." I told him. He looked at me with uncertainty. "It's okay. I think he's being for reals. I don't think the bad guys are with them."

"Yeah, I copy. It's Mike. I'm here." Mike answered, looking at all of us. "We're here."

▷

As we waited for Hopper and help to come, the nerves started to get to us. I was anxiously biting at my nails as I was checking on the kids. Dustin seemed to be the one with the worst of the nerves. He was pacing up and down the aisle of the bus.

"Will you stop pacing?" Mike told Dustin.

"It's been way too long." Dustin responded, still pacing. "Do you know what? Maybe you're right. Maybe this is all a trap and the bad men are coming to get us right now!"

"It's not a trap. Why would the chief set us up? Nancy, maybe," Lucas tried to assure one of his best friends. Mike raised his hands and gave Lucas a look. "But the chief?"

"Lando Calrissian." Dustin rebutted.

"Would you shut up about Lando?" Lucas asked.

"I don't feel good about this. I don't feel good about this!" Dustin yelled in front of Lucas' face.

"When do you feel good about anything?" Lucas shouted.

"Boys!" I sternly glared at the two. Dustin walked away, going back to pacing the aisle. The sound of vehicles approaching caused everyone to be quiet. We all shot toward the front of the bus, peering out the windshield. Two cars started to pull up. Well shit.

"Shit!" Dustin cursed as soon as he sat down on the driver's seat.

"Go, go, go, go." Mike demanded.

"Back to the end of the bus and stay quiet! Stay low!" I hissed, pushing them all back. We all scrambled back to our original spots.

"Lando." Dustin glared at Lucas.

"Do you think they saw us?" Lucas ignored Dustin's comment. Before I could scold them, Mike beat me to it. El was sitting next to him quietly.

"Both of you, shut up."

Doors slamming shut caused me to wince. I quickly scanned the area in hope of finding something to defend the kids with. My eyes fell on a broken leg of a seat not far away from me. I reach over and grabbed it. The bus door squeaked as it was slid open. Dustin eyed me, fear in his eyes. Holding my breath, I tightened my grip on it. Then, there was a grunt followed by a thump. Furrowing my eyebrows, I stood up straight.

"Hey!"

Whack! Thump!

"What the-"

Whack! Whack! Thump!

The door creaked again as it opened. I slowly stood up, gripping the broken leg. The kids raised to their feet, looking between me and the front of the bus. A hat popped up first followed by the Chief. I sighed in relief, lowering my weapon.

"All right, let's go." Hopper panted out. We were frozen still. "Let's go!"

Scrambling to get our things, we rushed out of the bus.

As you guys can tell by now...not edited 😂

Might be able to update again tonight so keep an eye out

Much love,
Lux xx