June 30, 1985
Night

"The week is long, the silver cat feeds. When blue meets yellow in the west." The five recited from the whiteboard.

It was evening and Steve, Dustin, Robin, Brandon, and Ally had finally figured out the secret Russian code. They gave each other confused looks before Steve checked the time.

"It's time to lock up." He explained before he ushered everyone out the store.

"Dude, you don't need to push."

"Okay."

"I got it."

He pulled down the metal gate, shutting the ice cream shop for the day. "I mean, it just...it just can't be right."

"It's right." Robin declared.

"Just because it makes absolutely no sense, doesn't mean it's wrong." Ally shrugged. "Russian is a weird language."

"Honestly, I think it's great news." Dustin stated.

"How is this great news?" Steve scoffed. "I mean, so much for being American heroes. It's total nonsense."

"It's not nonsense" Dustin explained. "It's too specific. It's obviously a code."

"What do you mean, a code?" Steve asked.

"Like a super top secret spy code." Brandon informed him.

"But the Russians wouldn't just give themselves away to Americans. They're smarter than that." Ally agreed.

"That's a total stretch." Steve scoffed.

"I don't know..." Robin started. "Is it?"

"She's right. I mean...right?" Brandon questioned.

"You're both buying into this?" Steve looked at them in disbelief.

"Don't be dismissive." Ally sighed.

"Didn't know you knew big words like that." Steve snapped frustrated making Ally roll her eyes.

"Don't assume things."

"I didn't assume-" Steve started before Robin had cut him off.

"Listen, just for kicks, let's entertain the possibility that it is a secret Russian transmission." Robin spoke. "What'd you think they were gonna say, 'fire the warhead at noon'?"

"Exactly." Dustin and Ally both nodded.

"And my translation is correct." Robin continued. "I know that for sure, so... 'the silver cat feeds'. Why would anyone talk like that unless they're trying to mask the meaning of their message?"

"Exactly."

"And why would anyone mask the true meaning of the message unless it's super important or sensitive?" Brandon questioned.

"Exactly."

"So I guess that confirms our suspicious."

"Evil Russians." Dustin and Ally said.

"Totally." Brandon agreed.

"I can't believe I'm about to agree with this strange child, Ally, and my best friend, but, yeah, totally evil Russians." Robin nodded.

"So how do we crack it?" Dustin questioned.

"Well, I guess we translate the rest and hopefully a pattern emerges." Robin planned out.

"A pattern. Right, like 'silver cat' is meeting place?" Dustin suggested.

"Or a person."

"Or a super secret agency."

"Or a weapon."

"It's probably gonna take a super genius to crack it, but..." Robin stopped when she noticed the absence of her other co-worker. "Where's Steve?"

The four turned around and saw the older teen standing next to a mechanical horse.

"Hey, Steve." Robin called out. "What are you doing?"

"Uh, it's a quarter." Steve explained as he fumbled through coins in his pocket. "I need...do you have a quarter?"

"Sure you're tall enough for that ride?" Robin teased as they walked over to him.

"Quarter!"

"You need help getting up there, Stevie?" Brandon taunted as he put the coin in. Robin laughed at the boy's comment.

"Shh!" Steve hissed as they laughed. "Would you four just shut up and listen?"

"Holy shit." Dustin realized. "The music. The music!"

He took the tape recording out of his bag and started playing it.

"I don't understand." Robin crossed her arms.

"Me neither." Ally and Brandon said in unison as they glanced at each other.

"It's the exact same thing as the recording."

"Maybe they have horses like this in Russia." Robin suggested.

"Indiana Flyer?" Steve read out. "I don't...I don't think so. This code, it...didn't come from Russia."

"What are you implying?" Ally questioned.

"It came from here."

€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€

Beth was absolutely excited when Max suggested they have a sleepover. El was confused at what that was but the two girls had explained it to her. They decided to have it at El's house, since Max didn't want to deal with her stepbrother or stepfather. Beth said they shouldn't go to her house either, because her mother and brother had been working late. Also her father was on a business trip currently in New York. So, they decided to stay at El's house.

Max was dancing around the room, using a hairbrush as a microphone as she sang along, to the lyrics of Angel by Madonna. El had been looking at magazines that Max had brought. But Beth was busy staring and admiring Max and her beautiful voice. This girl was so perfect and Beth was so happy she got to be with her.

Beth watched as Max jumped around, her red hair falling across her shoulders and slightly messy, yet still beautiful. The blue hairbrush had been gripped in her hand and she started to sound just like the singer Madonna. Beth realized that those lyrics fitted Max perfectly, even if someone else didn't think so. She definitely did. Max saw Beth staring at her and winked at the brunette, making her blush. She then noticed El staring at a poster of Ralph Macchio from the magazine.

Max stopped her singing and set down the hairbrush. She chuckled as she kneeled beside El's bed. "Oh, you found Ralph Macchio?"

"Macchio?"

"Yeah, he's the Karate Kid." Max nodded, surprised that El didn't know him. Max then did a karate chop which made all three girls laugh. "Hai-yah!"

"That's one of Max's favorite movies." Beth informed El. She then slightly glared at Max, "Although, I don't think she liked it for the plot."

Max eyes widened and she slapped Beth's thigh lightly. "Shut up, babe! I like the story, I just...like Ralph Macchio more." Beth raised her eyebrow at her girlfriend. "But you're definitely hotter than him, love."

Max turned to El, "He's so hot, right? I bet he's an amazing kisser too."

Beth widened her eyes, "I'm sorry?" She laughed slightly.

"What?" Max questioned, looking between Beth and El who both had similar shocked expressions on their faces. "You don't think about that?" El shook her head and Beth just stared at her in shock. "Oh, come on babe. I'm joking. No one is a better kisser than you."

Beth chuckled, "You got that right."

"Okay, but you have to admit he's hot." Max smiled.

Beth slightly hesitated before looking at Max and smirking at the girl, "If he was a girl than yeah...but...uh..." Max tilted her head a bit waiting for her to finish.

"Sorry but I'm not into guys." Beth smirked making Max giggle.

Max turned to El and asked, "Hey, uh..." She got off her knees and sat on the bed next to Beth. "Is Mike a good kisser?"

"I don't know." El smiled, as a red shade formed on her cheeks. "He's my first boyfriend."

Max nodded before correcting her, "Ex-boyfriend." El's face fell and Max put a hand on her shoulder. "Hey, don't worry about it. Okay? He'll come crawling back to you in no time, begging for forgiveness. I guarantee you, he's like totally wallowing in self pity and misery right now." Max proceeded to imitate what she thought was happening. "Oh, I hope she takes me back! God, what I wouldn't give to see their stupid faces!"

"I bet he still has that dumb face for when El dumped his ass. That was hysterical!" Beth chuckled.

Max laughed with her, "I know right? I would love to see that again!"

El looked at the two girls with a smirk. Max and Beth looked at her in confusion.

"What is it?" Max questioned.

"I know how we can see." El told the two girls.

Beth and Max were immediately intrigued by what she meant. They watched as El got off the bed and grabbed a black piece of fabric to use it as a blindfold. She then tunes the radio station that wasn't being used to static, letting it echo through the room. Beth and Max watched as El sat down on the carpet with her legs crossed and tied the bandanna on her face, covering her eyes.

"Is this really gonna work?" Max asked excitedly, now sitting on the edge of the bed next to her girlfriend. El just nodded in response. "Holy shit, this is insane-"

"Max."

Max quickly shut up and nodded, "Yeah, quiet. Sorry."

Beth let out a giggle at Max's excitement. She watched as El took some deep breaths, and trying to relax. A couple of seconds, went by until El's nose started dripping blood and she announced, "I see them."

Beth and Max shared a look of shock before getting off the bed and sitting in front of El on the floor. "What are they doing?"

"Eating."

Beth chuckled, "Those boys are always eating."

Max laughed at her girlfriend's comment and nudged her a bit making her smile.

"They say we are, species." El announced, making the two girls stop being all lovey dovey.

"What?" Max and Beth asked in unison.

"Emotion, not logic." El continued.

"What?"

Beth's eyes widened as she made her hand into a fist, "Who the hell said that?"

"Mike." El told her.

Beth scoffed and shook her head, "Of course it was him."

A few more seconds went by before El tore off the blindfold, with her eyes widened. Beth raised her brow, "What is it?"

"What happened?" Max asked.

El didn't answer but instead let out a laugh. Beth raised her brows and laughed herself. El started laughing hard that she fell to the floor. Max and Beth both had the same looks on their faces as they asked, "What happened?" She continued laughing, which only made Beth and Max laugh as well, mainly because they were confused as to what happened that made El laugh. They laughed together making their ribs start to hurt until the sound of a car pulling up to the house was heard. El sat up instantly, her laughter stopping.

All three girls looked at each other before El stood up, turning the radio back to the station they were previously listening to. Max grabbed the magazines from the bed and gave one to each girl as they laid on the floor to read them. Just as they heard Hopper open the door and shut it, Beth still noticed the blood dripping from El's nose. She used her finger to wipe it away before they heard Hopper yell, "Hey!"

He barged in as the door slammed against the wall. Beth raised her brows in surprise as she noticed him wearing a colorful shirt which wasn't like Hopper at all. He also held a bottle of fancy wine in his hand. Oh he's so drunk. Max was the first to speak, yelling out, "Do you knock? Jeez!"

"Yeah! Jeez!" El added, imitating Max.

"Oh, hey." Hopper said, surprised to see two girls in El's room instead of Mike. "I'm sorry. I thought that, uh-"

"Mike's not here." Max told him.

"Only us." Beth nodded.

"Max and Beth wanted to have a sleepover." El informed Hopper, who was still surprised. Mainly because he might have been drunk. "Is that...okay?"

"Yeah. Yeah. Yeah, yeah." Hopper slurred. Beth slightly giggled. "Your parents know about this?"

Max nodded with a 'yup' and Hopper turned to Beth, "What about you, Beth? Your brother or your mother know?"

Beth smiled and nodded, "Yeah, my mom knows."

"Uh, yeah, it's cool. Yeah." Hopper awkwardly responded. "That's-that's really cool."

The three girls awkwardly stared at Hopper, waiting for him to leave. He continued to stand there, not knowing what to do. He looked shocked and surprised as they all just stared at each other. Max finally spoke up, "Did you need something?"

"Uh, no, no. Uh, I'll leave." Hopper shook his head. He grabbed the doorknob, pulling it to close. "I'll just let you-I'll leave you..."

As soon as the door closed, a quiet laughter was heard from the three girls. Hopper was obviously drunk and he was shocked to see Max and Beth in El's room, instead of it usually being Mike. Beth sat up, sitting against El's dresser as Max did as well. "So what should we do next?"

€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€

The girls decided it would be a fun idea to spy on people by spinning a bottle. They wrote down names of people they knew including parents and teachers. Whoever the bottle landed on, El will use her abilities to find them and spy on them.

Beth watched as Max wrote down one last name onto a piece of paper and put in the circle. The empty Coke bottle was in the center, ready to be spun. "Holy shit, I can't believe we're doing this! Ready?"

El nodded, "Ready."

Max turned to Beth, waiting for her answer. Beth nodded with a smile, "Ready."

El grabbed the bottle and spun it. The two girls watched as it spun for a few seconds before it stopped at Mr. Wheeler's name and all the girls read out, "Mr. Wheeler."

Beth frowned. If they were going to spy on people, then it should be on someone interesting. Max agreed with the girl, "Ugh. Boring."

El nodded, "Yeah, boring."

"Spin again." Max giggled.

El put her hand on the bottle before pausing and looking at Max, "Against the rules?"

"We make our own rules." Beth told her, with a huge smile on her face.

El smiled back before spinning the bottle. It spun for a couple seconds before it landed on Billy's name. All three girls read out, "Billy."

"Something tells me this is going to be bad, but hopefully good." Beth admitted. Billy was definitely an asshole but he was a mystery. Beth didn't know what he did in his spare time and she didn't want to know. But she was curious to see what was gonna happen.

Max hesitated but saw El's smile, she sighed and got off the bed. "Okay, look, I should just warn you, if he's with a girl or doing something gross, just get out of there right away before you're scarred for life."

Max grabbed the radio and the blindfold from El's dresser before going back to the bed. El took the blindfold. "Max-"

"No, I'm just saying, I'm serious." Max continued. "He's really gross."

"Max!" El scolded, knowing she needs quiet in order for her to concentrate.

"El, will be fine." Beth told Max, chuckling. "She's a grown girl."

Max held her hands up in surrender. "Okay, shutting up now."

Max turned the radio to a unavailable station. The crackling static echoed throughout the room. El gave one last look to the girls before she put on the blindfold and focused. A few minutes went by and El's nose had started to bleed as she announced, "I found him."

"What's he doing?" Max asked.

"I don't know." El started. "He's...on the floor...talking to someone."

Beth furrowed her brows, "Who is it?"

El started to breathe heavily, like she was scared. Beth and Max exchanged confused looks before looking back at El. The blood started to drip farther down and she suddenly ripped the blindfold off and gasped loudly, gasping for air. El was shaking, so Beth reached over to her. "What's wrong? What happened?"

"What is it?" Max asked, grabbing her as well. "What happened in there?"

El was breathing heavily, her chest was rising up and down. Beth moved close to her and wrapped her arms around the girl. Max grabbed El's hand and both girls waited until El finally felt comfortable to explain. "He saw me."

Beth and Max exchanged confused looks before Beth looked at El, "Saw you? What do you mean?"

"I don't know." El stated. "There were screams. The girl was screaming. He was hurting her."

"That's pretty normal for Billy to be honest." Max admitted. Beth gagged at the statement Max made about it being normal for girls to scream with Billy. "He wasn't hurting her. He was actually probably making her feel good."

Beth shook head, telling Max to stop continuing about her stepbrother having sex. "Max, please stop."

Max flashed a small apology smile to Beth before she looked at El, "I'm sure she's fine, same with Billy. I'm sure he didn't see you."

"But, he did." El assured her. "He looked right at me."

"We can check tomorrow and see what Billy's up to if you want." Max told her. "But, I'm telling you, he didn't see you and those screams weren't what you think."

Hey y'all!! Sorry for the long wait on a new chapter! I've been super busy since I recently finished up finals a few weeks ago but it's officially summer and I'm writing for you all again! I absolutely can't wait for you all to see where this story goes. Especially in season 4👀

I'm super excited for season 4 vol 2 of stranger things!! And I swear if anything happens to anyone, I'm deleting my Netflix account. Anyways, hope you all enjoyed and more is coming soon! Love you all!

-Mary💗