Major Malfunction (Sequel to American Heroes)

This Place Sucks

Sorting through clothes on the floor, Will leans his back against his bed, listening to El talking on their ham radio with Max. They speak every few weeks whenever Max has the time to get to Cerebro since she prefers not to call from her house, but it's been over a month since they last spoke. Actually, calls from the rest of the Party have been scarce lately. The last person Will spoke to from Hawkins was Nancy, and that was three weeks ago.

Holding the radio up, El sits beside Will, legs curled to her chest. "They're still not back, but I've been trying to practice."

Will holds up an old Joy Division shirt, examining it. "And El's been helping me out a lot, too. By the time her powers do come back, I think we'll both be a bit more comfortable using them." At least, he hopes so. Every few days, he practices turning lights and other electronic devices on and off, which isn't much, but he's noticed that the more he practices, the less his nose bleeds. He isn't sure what to make of it, though he hopes it's a sign he's getting better.

"Do you think once El gets her powers back," Max says, "you guys will be able to come back to Hawkins? Since both of you will have your powers and can help us if things go sideways."

Will and El exchange glances. As much as they want to, the idea of returning to Hawkins seems pretty far-fetched. At least for the time being. Leaning forward, El speaks into the radio. "We're not sure. It's Will's mom's decision."

From the other end, Max lets out a sigh. She seems to be doing that a lot lately.

El frowns. "What is it?"

"I just wish you guys could come back."

"We do, too."

"Man, this place sucks right now."

The sharpness in her voice makes Will's forehead crease. Was it really that bad in Hawkins? "I thought things were getting better since the break? At least, with Dustin and Mike."

"It was for a while, but lately, it's been worse than it was before." She groans. "It's that stupid Hellfire Club and Lucas's stupid teammates. They're at each other's throats. I've been trying my best to stay out of all that shit, but I have a bad feeling something horrible's gonna happen soon."

"Why do you say that?"

"Just... I don't know. There's this weird sort of... aura. It's like everything here is tense, like it's waiting for something to happen so it can strike."

"So what can strike?"

"Not anything specific. Like I said, it's just a feeling."

That doesn't sound good. Will knows very well that 'feelings' aren't always meaningless. Bad things can follow those feelings.

"I'm sorry, Max," El says.

"You don't have to apologize for anything. All the crap that's going on has nothing to do with you guys." She lets out a laugh. "Honestly, this whole year's been a drag."

"I wish you could come visit."

"In my dreams." She sighs. "Anyways, what are you guys up to? Have you electrocuted the shit out of those assholes who keep bullying you?"

El cracks a smile when Will laughs. "I wish," he says, "but I'd rather not be abducted by the government and have them run tests on me."

"Isn't there some way you can use your powers to mess with them without them knowing it's you? You can zap them every so often until they go crazy."

Will guffaws. "Okay, Max, I'll just go around zapping them. Then they'll definitely leave us alone."

"It was just a suggestion. Besides, if they do find out you have powers, what can they do about it? Everyone will think they're crazy if they try to tell people."