Joey Hopper//Will Byers -Book two-

The Mind Flayer: Part five

Even as I sleep, all I can hear are the voices. All of them whispering in my ears. I don't think that they all belong to the shadow monster though. Some of them sound friendly. Like a man buying his groceries, or a few kids doing their homework. Maybe I'm just hearing what the monster hears. All of it's vines, spreading over town, listening.

Everything gets worse though when I open up my eyes. My skin nearly boils and no matter how hard I try to speak, it feels like a battle. As if I'm not the only one in control anymore.

Finally, just for a moment everything becomes quiet, and clear. I take in a breath but my throat feels hoarse.

"It's hot." I murmur in a scratchy voice.

The group all turn towards me.

My dad immediately crouches at my side and brushes my hair out of my face. "It's gonna be okay, Joey. I've got you."

I just shake my head as the pain becomes almost too much to handle.

"It's too hot."

I follow my dad's eyes and look towards the small room heater sitting at my side. I immediately reach to turn it off but my dad grabs my wrist.

"Wait..." He says.

My eyes widen in shock. "Dad?"

Why won't he help me? I thought he was supposed to be my hero. The one who is always there. I should have learned by now though that he isn't. He won't save me. No one will.

Something snaps in my brain and I flinch. How could I be thinking like that? My dad loves me, I know it. Everything's becoming hard now. I can barely even trust my own thoughts. It's all just muddled and lost up there.

"What are you doing?" Someone asks, but their voice sounds like it's underwater.

Dad's hand goes to the diel and for a second it seems like he's going to turn it down...but then he twists it the other way."

"I'm sorry." He tells me with tears in his eyes.

My whole body feels like it's screaming. Fight or flight kicks in and I start punching out my legs, thrashing under my dad's grip.

"Stop!" I scream. "It hurts! You're gonna kill me!"

Commotion breaks out but I can hardly even focus on myself. I'm going to die. My own father is going to murder me. This is the end.

I catch a look at my arm and my veins seem to have turned black. I let out a scream as my stomach begins to churn. My head whips to the side and smoke comes spuing from my lips. A fog as dark as coal. I can't breathe anymore, not while the toxic gas is blocking my airway. My body begs to take in oxygen, to just breathe the smoke back in...but I can't.

I choke and punch my dad's arms. Digging my fingernails into his skin, just doing anything to survive. Everything seems to be turning white though. Eventually I lose my strength to fight and my arms drop to my side like a ragdoll. My throat burns and my eyelids become heavy. Everything suddenly seems so far away. All of my friends, my family, my passions.

I see a young version of myself playing with toys in an empty room. Then instantly I'm older, maybe four years old. I sit on a nice new slide with Sarah, looking over my first walkie.

"I knew I couldn't find it on my own," she says with glee. "You did it, Joey! You're magic!"

I blink and I'm alone, listening to Dad fight with mom from through my bedroom door.

"You're not the same anymore, Jim!" She screams.

I hear my dad punch a wall. "She's gone! I'll never be the same!"