Joey Hopper//Will Byers -Book two-

The Mind Flayer: Part one

The leaves crunch under our feet as we make our way beyond the bus.

"Where are we even going?" Max asks from my side.

Dustin turns to her. "To find Dart."

Max looks around. "Who else thinks this is a terrible plan?"

"I do," I mutter.

The boys stop.

"What?" Lucas starts. "Why?"

I let out a heavy sigh. "Because we should be looking for Will and Mike. From what it sounds like you guys have no idea what happened to them."

"Weren't you supposed to go with Mike after school to check on Will?" Lucas asks.

"Uh, well yeah...there was a change of plans, okay?"

"Wait, wait, wait." Dustin says. "If you weren't with Mike then where were you this whole time? I tried to get a hold of you for hours."

I become fidgety at that. I was with El, obviously. It's not exactly like I can just tell them that though. My dad might have taken things too far but at the end of the day...maybe he really was right about keeping El a secret. Even from the party. I mean, after seeing what Hawkins lab did to my mother when she found out about her daughters, I don't even want to think about what could happen.

So I shrug and try my best to stay calm and collected. "I was with my dad."

"Weren't you fighting with your dad?" Dustin asks.

"Yeah," Max nods. "You said you ran away."

As anxiousness builds up in me I throw my hands into the air. "Why is everybody suddenly questioning me?"

Dustin seems to talk before he thinks. "Well, you have been acting kinda off lately."

"Dude," Lucas elbows him in the side.

But the damage has already been done.

I laugh. "Off? You think I've been off?"

Everyone seems to grow tense.

Dustin shakes his head, "Joe I didn't mean-"

"No, you know what?" I say, something overflowing inside of me. "I have been acting 'off'. Maybe it's because I found out I can move things with my freaking mind? Or-or that I was stolen by a secret lab as a baby and that I have a mystery twin sister? Hey, who knows, maybe it could just be that I found out they murdered Sarah!"

Silence. Stunned silence is all that follows.

I bite my lip, I shouldn't have spoken. I should have just kept it all inside. I guess I just bursted. Like some stupid over filled balloon.

"I'm finding Mike and Will." I say in a quiet voice.

"Joey!" Lucas shouts as I begin to walk away.

Steve calls, "I'm watching you guys! You can't just leave!"

I don't listen to any of them though. I just let my legs carry me away. Away from them, and away from the huge scene that I just caused.

.

.

.

I pant as I finally stop myself. The world is becoming fuzzy and it feels like I'm going to explode. I don't think I've ever felt so panicked before in my life. My heart ponds as pressure seems to be weighing it down. I look up to see a street light flickering wildly. My eyes focus on the reflective surface though, looking at my own reflection. I'm a mess. My tear stained cheeks and my messy hair. I don't look like me anymore. The girl staring back is a complete and utter stranger.

My hands go to my short blonde locks and frantically flatten them down. Then I whip the tears from my face. The last step is to smile. To force a smile on my lips and for everything to appear to be okay...but this time I can't, I can't smile. As I try to curl my lips upward the glass shatters, leaving a broken image there for me to stare back at. It seems fitting, I must be broken. Even my friends can see it.

I mean, I ran away from home, I cut off my hair, I left my sister all alone to go try to find some mysterious girl. I never would have done any of that last year, back when I didn't need to be fixed. Now I think that I am beyond repair. I don't deserve my friends, I don't deserve my family. I just deserve to be alone.

Suddenly a familiar roar fills my ears. My head snaps to the side only to see Hawkins lab now looming over me. That's when an idea comes to my head. Every month, Will says he goes to a doctors appointment. Dustin said he looked all over for Will and Mike. After what happened on the field though...What if the 'doctor's office' is actually the lab. What if...

I reach into my backpack and pull out my walkie.

As I turn it on I silently pray for this to work. "Mike? Will? This is Joe...Come on, if you can hear me please respond. Please..."

Nothing.

I'm about to give up when a static comes across the machine.

"J-Joe? If you're in range then you've got to get out of here. Okay? Get out!" Mikes voice shouts into the walkie.

I knit my brows. "Mike, what's wrong?"

His voice rings back in. "Will he-he's a spy. The shadow monster got inside his head. He's leading something-"

Then a loud growl comes through so loud that I almost drop my walkie.

"Mike!" I shout into the thing, "Mike!"

That's when it all becomes clear to me. Maybe I don't deserve the people in my life but if I can help them, if these crazy powers I have can do some good...then they deserve me.

I shove my walkie-talkie back into my bag and make a run for the back entrance to Hawkins lab. 

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EDITED