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MACIE STOOD IN THE DOORWAY, WATCHING AS THE DOCTORS TOOK CARE OF WILL.
What was going on? She knew the story of Will being lost in the woods last year, but this was something more.
Once they had gotten out of the tunnels, they found Will screaming in pain, convulsing in the dirt.
They took him to Hawkins lab, putting him on a hospital bed while Jim was taken away to be looked at.
The doctors gave her a change of clothes, wanting to look at her own in case any residue was transferred.
"When can I see him?" She asked a nurse,
"He's going through a detox right now. He might be out by tonight." She answered,
Macie stared at her, "Can you tell me what's going on?"
"I'm not a liberty to say." She answered before walking away, Macie's clothes in a bag.
Macie stayed there all night, falling asleep in the uncomfortable chairs in the lobby. It wasn't until the next morning when she felt someone shaking her shoulders,
"Hey... Mace, wake up."
She opened her eyes to see Jim, "You're okay." She gasped, wrapping her arms around him. She clung to the hospital gown he was wearing before he pulled away,
"You didn't have to stay." Jim stated,
"Actually, I did. I have to sign some forms." Macie sheepishly replied, standing and following him towards the room at the end of the hall, "But I also wanted to make sure you were okay." She tugged at his hand and he stopped, turning towards her, "Will you tell me what's going on exactly?"
Jim sighed and looked around making sure no one was listening, "Look, I can't tell you here, alright?"
She nodded and they entered the room where Will laid, doctors and nurses around him, "Do you know your name?" The doctor asked Will after shining a light in his eyes,
"Will." He answered,
"Your full name?"
"William Byers."
"Do you know who I am?" The doctor questioned,
"You're a doctor." Will responded,
"Have we met before?"
"I don't remember." The boy answered,
"You don't remember me?" Macie looked over at Jim and everyone else's faces. She could tell that they knew Will, that he had been going there for a long time, so he should've known the doctor.
He had memory loss from his seizure?
"Okay," The doctor continued, "How about this guy over here?" He asked, pointing at Mike. Will turned slowly to look at him and Mike waved, "Do you know who that is?"
Will kept staring and it was clear that he was thinking, "It's alright, take your time." The doctor encouraged,
"That's... my friend." Will responded, "Mike."
"What about me, kid? You remember me?" Jim asked,
Macie didn't like the look in the kid's eyes as he turned to stare at Jim and shake his head.
"They tell me you helped save me last night. You remember that?" Jim continued and Will shook his head again,
"You remember anything about last night?" The doctor asked him, "About what happened?"
"I remember... they hurt me." Will answered,
"You mean the doctors?"
"No." Will responded, "The soldiers."
"The soldiers hurt you?" The doctor questioned, confusion written on his face.
"They shouldn't have done that." Will's expression turned hard and a shiver ran down Macie's spine, "It upset him."
They all looked confused. Who was the 'him'?
The doctor reached into his file and pulled out a photograph of a drawing, showing it to the boy, "You say 'upset him'. Is that him?"
Will nodded and the doctor took the picture back, "Okay, I want to try something." He told Joyce, "It may seem a little odd at first, but I think it's really gonna help us understand what's going on here." He turned back to Will, "Is that okay?"
"Okay."
The doctor left for a few moments and asked everyone to step aside. Jim pulled Macie back and she clung to his scrubs, still not understanding what was going on.
Why was Will acting like a possessed boy from a horror movie?
Doctor Owen wheeled in something in an open container. Macie was able to peek inside and tensed as she saw the vine things from inside the tunnel from the night before,
The doctor sat beside Will once again, "Now, Will, I want you to just let us know if you feel anything. Okay?"
One of the other doctor's lit a blow torch and they all watched as the flame was moved above the creature,
The creature began to screech and Macie tightening her grip on Jim's shirt.
"Do you feel anything?" Doctor Owen asked Will,
"Little sting." Will answered, shifting uncomfortably,
"It stings? Where?"
"My... chest." Will grunted out, his heart beating faster and the monitor beeping louder,
"Okay..." Doctor Owen nodded at the other doctor and he lowered the flame to make contact with the creature, "How about now?"
Will began to panic, "It burns!" The creature screeched louder and Will sat up in the bed.
"Where?"
"Everywhere!"
"That's enough. That's enough!" Joyce exclaimed,
The creature bashed against the glass, cracking it. Macie backed away, her back hitting the wall as Jim moved towards the doctor and Will, "You heard her, that's enough!" He yelled,
The doctor pulled the flame away and the creature stopped moving. The monitor began to slow down and Will relaxed once more as his mom comforted him.
The doctor led Jim and Joyce out of the room and Macie turned to Bob, "So... do you understand anything that's going on?"
