||𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐃𝐄𝐑'𝐒 𝐏𝐎𝐕||

It was her. It was really El.

I almost didn't recognize her. Her hair had grown out and was now a flattering mess of curls.

She seemed shocked to see me, she stood there like a deer in headlights but like me, I could see tears pooling in her eyes.

"Y/n," she croaked.

We both snapped out of our respective dazes and ran towards each other, enveloping one another in a hug.

"Oh, my God you're alive!" Tears were freely falling down my cheeks. "I can't believe- We thought you-"

I heard her sniffling and I felt my shoulder slowly grow damp from her tears.

"I missed you too," I could hear the smile she wore as she spoke.

We both chuckled half-heartedly and gave the hug one last squeeze before pulling away.

"I really did miss you, all of us did," I mumbled. "Where were you? What happened?"

She shrugged lightly, and began her eyes began to shift. Like she was getting antsy and she in one place for too long.

"Long story," she mumbled.

I nod in understanding. And I immediately remember Mike and the others.

"Mike. Mike needs to know you're here! He misses you like crazy. The others will want to see you too, they're all here. You'll even get to meet Will!" I began to talk faster without trying, growing more excited by the second but El seemed to change.

She gave me a somber smile, and I felt my grin fade away.

"El? What's wrong?"

She looked me in the eye and then looked away, seeming to be contemplating several things.

"I-"

My head tilted in confusion.

'How could she not want to see Mike?'

"I can't." Something was definitely off, it almost looked as if something clicked in her head. "Not safe."

It sounded as if she was realizing it for the first time as she said it.

"What?" I blinked several times, completely confused. "What do you mean, what isn't safe?"

She spoke slowly, like every word hurt her to say. "I shouldn't have come."

I felt a pang of sadness in my chest and I gaped at her.

"What? But I just found you. And Mike, he's been miserable, please don't-"

She seemed pained by words and she cut me off.

"Y/n," She urged, on the verge of tears.

She took a deep breath, composing herself. "I... was wrong. Can't be here." She reiterated.

She began looking around again, scanning our surroundings and swiftly moved herself around the corner and I followed, glancing around the corner to see someone pass through the halls.

My eye wandered back to her and our eyes met and I understood.

"You're in hiding, aren't you?"

She nodded her head.

I lightly sighed.

"You're safe, right?"

She nodded again.

"I know you probably can't tell me much, but..." my voice was hoarse and quiet, threatening to break. "I just want to make sure you're okay. You're getting enough food and a warm place to sleep, right?"

She smiled weakly at me, knowing I asked because I cared and she nodded.

"So, why did you come?" I asked, curiously.

A look of pain flickered across her face.

She shook her head, looking down at her feet. "Mistake."

There was a small pause.

"Y/n" she said suddenly. "You can't tell."

"But what about Mike? I know he'd keep a secret for you."

"Doesn't matter" I looked into her eyes and I saw the seriousness, and pain in them. "Knowing is dangerous."

She looked at her feet, shifting slightly. Her face was slightly scrunched up in concentration. In her absence it seems she had grown more accustomed to speaking for longer periods of time but still seemed to be getting used to it.

"Knowing about me is dangerous. You know now..." She paused, looking sincerely into my eyes. "I'm sorry."

She looked me sternly in the eyes.

"Promise not to tell."

My heart broke.

'How could I keep this from Mike, much less the others?'

"But-"

"Y/n." She pleaded. "Promise?"

The look in her eyes told me she didn't want to be asking me this, it pained her. She clearly wanted to see us or she wouldn't have come. She looked at me with heartbreak and desperation in her eyes.

I took a deep breath, sending several apologies to Mike in advance.

"I promise."

"Thank you," she whispered, nodding.

She glanced up at the wall behind me, and takes a deep shaky breath.

"Time... to go."

I swallowed the lump in my throat.

"Do you have to?"

She blinked back tears.

"Yes."

"Will I see you again?"

She smiled hopefully.

"Yes."

A knowing look flickered across her face. She had an idea.

"I... can reach you."

"How-?"

"Trust me."

I nod, and the look that crosses her face tells me she needs to go.

I realize what she might be talking about but my mind wanders to the others.

"Well..." I mumble. "I guess this is goodbye."

She pulled me in for a hug and I welcomed it, tears brimming in my eyes.

When we pulled away, she smiled at me sadly.

"For now,"

||𝟑𝐑𝐃 𝐏𝐄𝐑𝐒𝐎𝐍 𝐏𝐎𝐕||

Joyce, having previously called the school only to find out AV club had been cancelled, was now in a mad dash to the school. She needed to see Will, now that she knew what his 'episodes' really were. She only prayed he was okay. After all, he wasn't home yet and AV club was supposedly cancelled.

She flew through traffic, startling many citizens, and school children walking home.

She stomps on the brakes, coming to a halt on the front of the school and exits her car. She marches into the building, heading straight for the AV room. She frowns when she finds it empty.

A small part of her wanted to believe it was an ignorant staff member who was misinformed about the club schedule. Suddenly she heard a young voice come from down the hall.

"Will?" She recognized the voice to be Dustin's and she follows the source.

Rounding the corner up ahead was Dustin, soon followed by another girl his age she didn't recognize.

"Dustin!"

Dustin frowned. "Mrs. Byers?" He asked.

"What's going on? Where's Will?"

On cue, Lucas comes sprinting in from one of the entrances down the hall, he pants frantically.

"The field!"

He sprints back outside and the others are close behind. Sure enough, Will is standing frozen on the field, Mike at his side, hand on Will's shoulder trying to shake him.

"Will. I just found him like this!" He explains. "I think he's having another episode!"

Joyce, a firm grip on Will's shoulders began lightly shaking him. Desperately trying to bring him out of his episode.

"Will! Will! Will!" She plead.

Mike noticed out of the corner of his eye, figure running towards them.

It was Y/n.

Mike returned his attention to Will, a pit forming in his stomach at seeing his friend in such distress. There was nothing he could do to help him and he felt trapped.

"Sweetie, wake up! It's Mom!"

Joyce's heart was hammering in her chest, she could hear her blood pumping in her ears. His episodes have never been this bad.

《•••》

Icy fear filled his veins as the monster took over his body. There was nothing he could do but gasp for air but even that invited more darkness. He could feel it everywhere.

《•••》

"Will, wake up!"

"Will?" Y/n had finally reached them and her eyes welled up at the sight before her.

She had pushed through her small crowd of friends and stood next to her best friend and his mother, right at Mike's side.

Mike noted her paled features, all color had already been drained from her face.

Joyce stroked her son's cheek fearfully, desperately hoping to pull him out.

"Will, wake up!" She plead. "Can you hear me?"

《•••》

Will was choking, the icy dark matter chilling him to his very bone and invading his mind.

《•••》

"Will, please, just wake up." Joyce cried.

Lucas looked fearfully at his friends, each of them paralyzed with fear. He noticed Y/n who had her shaky hands on her mouth, tears streaming down her cheeks.

《•••》

Every second the shadow engulfed him felt like a lifetime. In that moment he feared this would never end. That this was the end of him.

《•••》

Joyce shook her son once more, slightly harder this time praying it would snap him out of it.

"It's Mom! It's me!" Joyce was crying now.

Will never faltered from his state. His eyes closed, his eyelids twitching feverishly, his eyes moving back and forth frantically beneath them.

"Will!" Y/n croaked.

Y/n's voice came out in a weak plea and her hand outstretched to touch his shoulder without realizing it.

《•••》

Every inch of him felt frozen to bone, like thousands of needles piercing through his skin all the way to his now icy blood that pumped itself into his heart.

But then he felt a searing, blinding hot pain in his arm. A pain so profound he could imagine a white hot iron bar stabbing him in the arm.

His eyes ripped open and he gasped, air finally entering his lungs. He was back on the field, his mother staring at him frightened in, Lucas, Dustin, Max, Mike and Y/n surrounding him.

The next thing he was aware of was the searing hot pain that was exploding over his body from where Y/n's fingertips barely brushed his arm.

||𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐃𝐄𝐑'𝐒 𝐏𝐎𝐕||

The five of us stand on the steps outside the school, watching as Joyce walked Will to the car.

"Okay, that totally freaked me out." Max said, looking at all of us.

I barely register this, and all I can focus on is Will as he gets into the car.

I was still trying to process the fact that I just ran into El. And oh God, how the hell am I supposed to keep this from Mike? I knew it was gonna be difficult but I'm already aching to tell him.

And on top of that, I wasn't there for Will because of this secret. This is the worst episode he's ever had. I can feel a stomach ache coming on, and I already feel the weight of everything that just transpired in the last twenty minutes weighing me down.

My ears perk up and I'm pulled from my thoughts when I hear what Max asked Lucas.

"What's true sight?"

I look from her to Lucas and he smiles sheepishly before looking back at the car Will was riding off in.

"Nothing." He said. "Y/n, you alright?"

I looked to him, distracted and I nod. My thoughts still on Will and El.

"Yeah, where the hell were you?"

My head snaps to Mike, who was now directing his fear and anger towards me.

I was prepared to spit a nasty comeback but knowing what I was keeping from him the anger mostly melted away.

Mostly.

I looked away, focusing on something in the distance rather than look him in the eye. I sighed.

"A teacher cornered me. Talked my ear off." I lied.

"What teacher?" Mike asked irritated, he seemed suspicious of me.

There was a very small, hopefully unnoticeable pause as I flipped through the rolodex of possible teachers in my head.

A name just came out.

"Clarke." Mike seemed satisfied and looked away, before heading inside, probably to get his stuff.

We all followed suit but then Dustin caught my eye and he furrowed his brows.

He definitely knew I had lied about something judging by the look he was giving me. My pulse quickened.

I gave him a pleading look and shook my head, silently begging him to drop it.

He frowned slightly and he waited for the others to head into the building before he pulled me aside, whispering frantically.

"I saw Mr. Clarke leave before Will found Dart. Now what are you hiding?"

I saw Max from inside the school, she looked at us and gave us a look that said "Come on!"

I looked back at Dustin and my eyes welled up. I gave my brother a stern and pleading look.

"I need you to drop it Dustin, just please. For my sake and yours. Trust me."

He seemed taken aback, and it looked like he considered it. He sighed.

"All right, fine. But you owe me one." He pointed a finger at me before heading into the school with the others.

I sighed heavily.

'This would not be easy.'

||𝟑𝐑𝐃 𝐏𝐄𝐑𝐒𝐎𝐍 𝐏𝐎𝐕||

"I can't remember." Will lied.

He was now back at home, sitting at the kitchen table with his mother who was trying to get him to talk.

Something inside of him didn't want to tell the truth. He didn't want to worry her.

"I need you to try." She said gently.

"I... I was on the field and... and then it..."

'It got me.' He thought.

But he quickly covered it up.

"it all just went blank, and... and then you were there."

It broke Joyce's heart knowing he was afraid to tell her. He knew he never did that, so it must be bad. She wasn't angry at him though, she just looked him in the eye, trying to show him it was okay.

"I need you to tell me the truth."

He shrugged his shoulders defensively.

"I am." He was stuttering.

She sighed, knowing what she had to do.

She stood from the table and grabbed her parchment paper tracing that she had compared to Will's drawing.

She returned to the table and set it down in front of him, tapping the paper.

"This shape," she began, already noticing Will's panicked look. "I saw it on the video tape from Halloween night. It's the same shape as... as your drawing."

Will looked to her and back at the drawing, eyes widened.

"These episodes that you're having, I think Dr. Owens is wrong. I think they're real. But... but I can't help you if I don't know what's going on. So you have to talk to me. Please."

Will looked from drawing and back to his mother. He was debating it all.

"No more secrets, okay?"

He nodded.

"Okay." She said slightly relieved. "Did... did you see this thing again on the field?"

He remembered the chilling feeling of seeing it on the field. Towering over him.

His voice came out in a whisper.

"Yes." He was beginning to shake.

Joyce just wanted to understand. But she was afraid to ask.

"What... What is it?"

He remembered facing it on Halloween. Y/n and Mike had disappeared and he was all alone.

"I don't know," He spoke tearfully, eyes welling up and a lump forming in his throat. "I-It's almost like a feeling."

"Like the one you had that night at the arcade?"

He recalled the moment before Y/n had found him. How the monster stared into his very soul. But something had angered it. It made what could only be assumed as a roar. But it didn't sound like one. It bellowed and screeched but was almost drowned out by the crack of thunder. The earth shook and the monster recoiled slightly in anger and disgust.

Will recalled thinking it felt threatened, that the monster wanted him to feel scared and alone but in that moment he wasn't.

That was when Y/n pulled him out.

"Yes." Will answered, now shaking.

Joyce listened intently, desperately trying to understand. She was now feeling the fear her son was as he spoke.

"What does it want?" She stuttered.

It had chased him down the hallway at school. He couldn't get the image out of his head as no matter how fast he ran the dark shadow followed him.

Will shook his head, tears clouding his vision.

"I don't know. It came for me, and..." Tears streamed down his face as he said the words out loud.

He was no longer looking at his mother but past her, miles and miles away as he relieved that terrible moment.

《•••》

Will gathered all his courage, tears brimming in his eyes and he cried out.

"Go away!"

《•••》

"I tried. I tried to make it go away,''he sobbed.

Joyce brought a shaky hand up to her mouth to cover her quivering lip, trying to be strong for her son.

She was wrong before, this is what truly broke her heart was knowing the tremendous horrors her son was going through.

《•••》

The monster bellowed, and one large tentacle began twirling down onto the ground, the size of a small tornado. The swirling gust of black fog engulfed Will.

He stood frozen, now trapped in the swirling fog. Several black tendrils spawned from the mass and invaded Will and he could feel the evil presence as it possessed his body and settled in his very soul.

《•••》

"But it got me, Mom." He cried, his whole body wracked with sobs.

Joyce swallowed sobs of her own and put a gentle hand on his.

"What does that mean?" She gently urged.

"I felt it..." His voice had broken and he struggled to talk through the sobs. "everywhere."

His voice fell into a shaky whisper. "Everywhere."

《•••》

He felt every essence of warmth cease to be, and all that existed was icy darkness.

《•••》

"I-I still feel it." He croaked. "I just want this to be over."

Joyce pulled him in for a hug and cradled him, and he collapsed into her arms, sobs still shaking his body. She rubbed his back and stroked the back of his head whispering encouragement in his ear.

"It's okay. It's okay. Hey," she cooed.

She placed her palms on either side of his face and brought him to look her in the eye.

"Listen. Look, look at me."

He sniffled several times, face pink and tearstained from crying.

"I will never, ever let anything bad happen to you ever again." She said firmly.

She stroked his cheek with her thumb, head still between her hands. She looked him right in the eye.

"Whatever's going on in you, we're gonna fix it. I will fix. I promise. I'm here."

He shuddered and collapsed into her arms once more, his face nestled in the crook of her neck and she lovingly stroked his hair, something that always helped calm him.

Still embracing her son, her eyes fell to the drawing and she looked at the figure on the paper with malice. Burning a hole in it with her eyes, disgusted and utterly repulsed by the creature, ready to do anything for her son.

⊹ ⊹ ⊹

The sun had set over the trees, leaving the sky a vibrant pink. Darkness fell over the woods but it wasn't a problem to El. She still found her way, not to mention the dread of possibly facing Hopper more than kept her mind busy on the long walk back.

Sure enough, the cabin was just ahead and she stopped when she saw the silhouette of Hopper in front of the window. He was leaning against the railing and smoking, waiting for her, knowing she'd be back. Soft yellow light from the curtains made out his figure.

She stared at him, taking a deep breath. He stepped forward, putting out his cigarette in the ashtray outside. He could see her from there, her small figure emerging from the shadows, her face illuminated by a patch of moonlight.

In that moment they both knew, they both preparing themselves for another big fight.

Here goes nothing.

She stepped over the tripwire and made her way to the front porch. Stomping up the stairs and never giving him a second glance she walked into the living room, Hopper storming after her.

He slammed the door behind him, and El made her across the living room.

"'Friends don't lie.' Isn't that your bullshit saying?" He asked fuming, discarding his hat on the kitchen table.

She walked into her room, reaching for the door and tried to slam it shut.

"Hey, hey! Hey!" He ran to the door, catching it before it could close, and pushed it open. "Don't walk away from me!"

She turned around at her bed, looking him in the eye and staring him down, showing him she was just as angry.

He stood in the doorway, not backing down and glaring at her just as hard.

"Where'd you go on your little field trip, huh?"

She shed her coat angrily and tossed it on the bed as he spoke in a low but low and angered tone. She didn't answer.

"Where?" He asked louder.

She turned, not meeting his eye.

"Did you go see Mike?" He asked.

This time she did look him in the eye, and she remembered the girl she saw him with. How she made him laugh and smile. And how much it crushed her.

"He didn't see me."

Before she could work up the courage to tell him about Y/n he pushed himself off the doorframe and trudged into her room.

"Yeah, well, that mother and her daughter did and they called the cops." He put his hand on the bedpost at the end of her bed, leaning on it, and glared at her.

"Now, did anyone else see you? Anyone at all?"

The familiar pit in her stomach formed, almost scared to tell him. She hadn't felt like that in a long time. Since that place.

She must have waited too long because he began shouting at her, impatient.

"Come on, I need you to think!"

"Y/n, alright?" She hissed at him, snapping at his tone.

She looked to the floor, avoiding his stone cold gaze.

"Y/n? Y/n saw you?"

She stayed quiet, silently fuming.

He ran a hand down his face, sharply exhaling as he processed the information.

"Do you have any idea what you've done?" He asked, his voice began to rise as he continued. "The danger you've put us in? Put her in-?"

"YES!" She roared, snapping at him and he quieted, still glaring at her.

She was panting with fury, and it quickly melted into sadness.

"I'm alive," She said. "That's all she knows."

"That's still dangerous!"

"I know!" She bellowed.

He said nothing and walked over to the dresser and leaned on it, still silently fuming.

"She promised not to tell. I made her promise." Her voice faltered ever so slightly, threatening to break.

"How could you be so reckless?" He spit.

She pointed to him accusingly. "You promised..." He voice broke fully now, choking on her sobs. "I go! And I never leave! Nothing ever happens!"

"Yeah! Nothing happens and you stay safe!" He yelled, slamming his hand on the dresser, rattling the lamp that stood on it.

She flinched at his outburst, and he puts his elbow on the dresser, resting his head in his hands.

"You lie!" She screamed.

"I don't lie!" He snapped. "I protect and I feed and I teach! And all I ask of you is that you follow three simple rules. Three rules. And you know what? You can't even do that!"

He was almost towering over as he screamed. Then he turned on his heels and stormed out of the room.

She looked around her room and stomped, not used to having this much anger built up in her.

"You're grounded." She could hear him go into the kitchen. "And you know what that means?"

"It means no Eggos..." she listens as he rummages through the freezer and throws stuff out, and slamming the fridge door. "And no TV for a week."

She steps outside her room and watches him reach for the TV and bend over. But she already has a hold of it.

He tries to pull it back but it doesn't budge. He gives it another tug but it still doesn't move. He looks over to see El, head tilted down and blood begins to drip from her nose.

Sighing sharply he stands up.

"All right, knock it off. Let go."

Head still tilted in concentration, she glares at him and shakes her head no.

He bends down and using all his might he pulls at it. It still doesn't move. He stands back up, looking at her.

"Okay. Two weeks."

He tries again to no avail.

"Let go!" He yells.

She shakes her head once more.

"A month!" He snaps.

"No!" She says firmly.

He just looks at her.

"Well, congratulations." He says, eyes still locked on her he starts backing up.

"You just graduated from no TV for a month to no TV at all!" He reaches behind the set and yanked out the wire connecting the TV to the wall.

The screen goes dark and she grows furious and fearful, while he throws the wire down and storms across the room.

"No!" She runs for the TV, and attempts to move the antenna, a trick he had showed her to get it to work but nothing happens. "No! No. No!" She cries.

Hopper, who is on the other side of the room, leans against the wall exasperated.

"You have got to understand that there are consequences to your actions."

She whips her head around accusingly.

"You are like Papa!" She screams venomously.

"Really?" He scoffs, running a hand down his face. "I'm like that psychotic son of a bitch?"

She just stares at him, glaring daggers at him as he continues.

"Wow! All right. You wanna go back to the lab? One phone call and I can make that happen."

She shakes her head in disbelief, tears pooling in her eyes.

"I hate you." She spits tearfully.

He shrugs.

"Yeah, well, I'm not so crazy about you, either. You know why?" He takes a step forward. "'Cause you're a brat. You know what that word means? How about that be your word for the day, huh? Brat."

He reaches for the dictionary and grabs it, pretending to flip through it.

"Why don't we look it up? B-R-A-T. Brat." He tosses it at her and she stops it mid air, her hand out.

She shook her head in disgust and pulls her arm back. The book reels back in sync with her arm and suddenly it goes flying across the room.

He deflects it, slapping it away with his hand and he looks at her in shock.

"Hey! What the hell is wrong with you?"

He begins walking towards her and El, out of pure instinct, blocks his path by sending the couch into his legs, knocking him off balance and stopping him before he could reach her.

"Hey!"

She stomps into her room, throwing her arm behind her and the bookshelf near the wall is thrown to the ground.

He stalks after her, limping slightly from the couch and he watches as she stomps into her room.

The last thing he sees is El looking over her shoulder as she throws her other arm back and the green wooden door slams shut.

He pounds on the door, not done yelling at her and he tries to open the door. But she was keeping it locked.

He pounded his palms against the wood and yelled. "Open this door!"

El stands in front of her window, and collapses again the wall, slowly sliding down onto the floor as tears began to flow freely.

"Open the damn door!" He yelled from the other side.

She cried harder, feet tucked into her chest and she felt all the anger and frustration, sadness and utter helplessness building up inside her. And it only increased with every scream from Hopper. Every pound to the door.

"You wanna go out in the world? You better grow up!"

She had never felt so helpless. She never remembered ever being this frustrated and lost.

"Grow the hell up!"

Every emotion bubbled up to the surface. All those times she wished herself out of the cabin. All those times she missed Mike and couldn't see him. How alone she felt in this moment. All her sadness, all of her anger. It all boiled over and she screamed, pounding her fists and she screamed so hard she felt her throat go raw.

All the windows in the cabin shattered and Hopper was sprinkled in tiny shards of glass.

Hopper looked around in shock. Astounded by the damage her psychic tantrum had caused.

She collapsed into the corner between the bookshelf and the wall, sobs shaking her body.

⊹ ⊹ ⊹

By the time Jonathan got home it was dark outside. He stepped into his house expecting some source of light, but there was none.

Usually someone was up at this hour which is what worried him. He would have been more worried if his mom's car wasn't parked outside but he was still suspicious.

He walked down the hallway, looking for any light to be pooling from under any of the doors.

"Hello?" He called softly.

He opened his mom's room first, it opened but he before he could step inside he noticed the bed was empty.

He turned to face Will's room. And his pulse quickened ever so slightly. Ever since the incident last year and especially since Will had been having those episodes he was worried about him.

He turned the doorknob slowly and stopped abruptly.

His mother was curled up on Will's bed with him. He was tucked safely in her arms, his hand over her arm that was held protectively over his middle.

Jonathan felt relieved and for a brief moment wished he had his camera.

He closed the door behind him, failing to see his brother's eyelids twitching feverishly like they had on the field.

The shadow monster was hard at work.