"Carrie, stop." Mavis huffed as she sat wrapped up in the tarp while Carrie paced the little shed. "The police are gone."

"Yeah, with our friends." she shot back with an insane look. "Now we're alone and everyone else isn't back yet, and who knows what could happen next."

Mav exhaled, because she wasn't sure how to comfort people well. Usually, she'd always been the one others tend to and make sure was okay. And if it were someone else, one of the boys was always there to help her out. "It'll be okay."

"How can you say it'll be okay when people are dying and you and Max are next on the list!" she explained loudly, her hand tossing around as her eyes filled up. "Do you not understand? Not all of us can get drunk off wine coolers and forget about all our trauma."

"I didn't forget." she got to her feet with a glare. "Do you honestly think it just left my mind?"

"I don't know, how can I not when you're pretending it isn't happening?" Carrie stared at her, eyes glossy from the moonlight. She was hurting, and she'd always been the type to say things without thinking them through. "You'll die, then Max will die, and i'll be alone."

Mavis exhaled. "You aren't alone."

"Yes, I am! Because you and Max can handle all of this so well and act like everything is normal but I can't!" this time, her tears did fall. "I know i'm next. I know that whatever he's planning, he's gonna come for me. You don't understand what happened to me when I was in the Upside Down. He's gonna come for me and it's gonna be bad."

She walked forward. "He might. And it will be terrifying, and scare the hell out of you but you will be okay. None of us are gonna let him take you. Max and I both escaped because we had friends that are willing to fight and die for us."

Mavis grabbed Carries hands as she stood right in front of her. "I will always, no matter what, fight and die for you."

Carrie cried a she leaned into her, wrapping her arms around her tightly and dropping her head into her neck. Mavis rubbed her back as she felt warm tears trailing down her collarbones, shutting her own eyes. A ringing noise filled both their ears, Carrie pulled back slowly. "What is that?"

Mavis held a finger to her lips, walking toward the windows. She laughed. "We're saved."

Carrie gasped as the doors shot open, four figured standing on the other side as their shadows crossed the floor. Carrie locked eyes with Dustin, a sad smile going across her face as she gave a delicate wave. He smiled back at her. "You guys o-"

He was cut off by her hugging him tightly. His hands rose, not sure what to do, before gently placing them on her shoulders.

Mavis smiled at them. She smiled because she knew what it felt like to not know comfort until you see and have one person. Carrie would be okay, but Dustin grounded her, made her feel safer even if she wasn't. She understood because she had that, she understood because she was lacking it so horribly right now. Not only from her lover, but also because Mike, who had done everything in his power to always make her feel loved from the lack she received until the adoption, also wasn't here. Nor was Will, who filled up a space when Danny died.

"Hey." Lucas, and Erica. She sighed in relief, hugging them on sync.

"Can we get out of this cob web cluster?" Erica scoffed in disbelief. "Unless we need to continue pretending we're in a shitty movie."

"No." Mav pulled back with a small smile, feeling herself sniffle. "No, we should go."

"Where exactly do we go?" Carrie gave a questionable look as Mavis wrapped her arm around Max.

"So.." Dustin started as they headed for the bikes. "-there's a gate where each Vecna victim died."

"Wam wam!" Dustin cheered on Mavis as she used a broom she found the break through the gate. "Get that gate, Mav!"

"Dustin." Lucas gave him a weird look.

Mavis groaned as her arm muscles burned, breaking through the final ounce of gew as she stared up at the Upside Down. "Hello? Breakfast Club?"

"I know that voice." Eddie walked forward to peer up at her. "Look who it is!"

"Edwardo!" she cheered.

"No way." Carrie laughed as she looked up at the group of older teens. "No you didn't!"

"Sadly, we did." Robin inhaled deeply.

"Use those cheer muscles for good, would you?" Eddie reached up as Mavis tried to do the same.

She slapped Lucas' shoulder. "Put me in a stunt, brother."

"Oh my god, do not." Max gave an alarming look. "Let's just pull them out with something."

"With what?" Erica gave an odd look.

"I have a theory!" Dustin hollered, scaring Carrie as she jumped. "Sorry, Car. I mean, I have a theory."

"Spill your guts." Mavis encouraged him.

"We need a landing pad. Uh, a mattress maybe. And bedsheets, lots of bedsheets." he spoke fast.

"I don't like where this idea is going." Carrie grabbed Mav's hand and pulled her to get the bedsheets while Lucas and Max got Eddie's mattress from the bedroom.

"Those stains are, uh..." Eddie trialed off as Max and Lucas dropped the mattress below the gate. "I don't know what those stains are."

"Not quite sure how these physics work." Dustin said honestly as he took the tied bedsheets Carrie and Mavis made and looked up at the ceiling. "But, uh, here goes nothing."

"I can throw." Mav encouraged. "I throw hundred pounds in the air all the time."

"It's true, I was her practice dummy." Max confirmed as Mav sent her a wink.

Dustin passed the sheets. They gave her room, clutching the cloth before tossing them up. They stayed, planting on the other side of the Upside Down.

"And if my theory is correct..." he trialed off, Mavis let the sheets go. "Abracadabra."

"Holy shit." Max's face lit up.

"All right, pull on it! See if it holds!" Dustin called to the group. Robin did so, laughing as it held.

"This is the craziest shit i've ever seen in my life." Erica exclaimed as she smiled widely. "And i've seen some crazy shit."

Dustin held his hand up, getting a high five from her. Mavis shook Carrie and Max.

"Anyone gonna test the theory or just let us live in questioning?" Mav called out.

"Guess i'm the guinea pig." Robin latched onto the sheets first, grunting as she crawled up.

"All right, let's clear the landing pad." Dustin encouraged as they all stepped back, giving Robin space to flip from the ceiling hole and flop onto the mattress.

"Woo!" Carrie cheered.

"Oh, thank god." Robin laughed as she sat up with a smile, standing up and getting out of the way.

The trio stared before Eddie nodded. "All right, I guess i'll go."

Mav nearly got a foot to the face as Eddie flipped through. "Damn, Eddie. Ever consider trying out for the cheer team with those flips?"

"That-" he sat up with a breath. "-was fun. I'll hold you to it, Captain."

"See you on the other side." Nancy looked at Steve.

"See you on the other side." he agreed.

When it was still, the girls shared an odd look.

"Nancy, Nancy! Stay with me!" Steve began to panic.

"Holy shit." Mavis felt a chill as she stood up on the mattress. "Hey!"

"Steve, what's happening!" Dustin called in fear.

"Vecna." Max confirmed.

"Mav, Mavis no!" Lucas called as he watched his sister latch onto the bedsheets. They all yelled for her, but she paid them no mind as she flipped into the Upside Down with her cassette and walkman in hand.

•

kylie speaks

just a few days, babies!