Loss - Lucas Sinclair

The Pollwog (Part 1)

"Your mom was so happy when she found out she was pregnant with you," Gwen explained after she had Nikki sit down on the couch.

Once Gwen had gotten her surprise of seeing her supposedly dead goddaughter, she sat down and tried to answer some of the questions that were probably floating around in her head.

"Of course, she didn't know if there would have been any issues with all of the experiments she had been put through and that worried her. But she tried her best to forget about them," Gwen looked at Nikki who was barely giving her any reaction.

Gwen sighed before continuing. "When she had you, all of the experiments and drugs she had done...it was really bad for her...and you. She died a few minutes after you were born. And she died thinking that she was going to meet you in heaven."

Nikki looked at up that women in front of her. Nikki knew what that meant. And she hated knowing that.

"The doctors," Gwen continued as she started to get misty eyed, "they told her that you had died just before you were born. That they couldn't save you, even though they tried."

"They lied," Nikki whispered feeling a tear run down her cheek.

"Yeah," Gwen nodded sadly, "but Ally-"

"Nikki," Nikki corrected her quietly.

Gwen gave her a kind smile. "Nikki, you here now. And I may not be your mom or what you imagined you might have for a family, but your mom was my family. And I will be happy to have you here, to keep you safe from those people. You choose your path of what you want your life to look like. Just know that if you stay with me, I will do everything in my power to protect you."

Nikki wiped away another stray tear as she looked at her godmother. "I'll stay."

***

"Good morning!" Gwen's cheerfulness took Nikki out of a dreamless sleep. Gwen opened the curtains letting some light in.

"Good morning," Nikki greeted almost subconsciously.

"I'm running late," Gwen sighed as she put on her jacket. "Breakfast is on the table and please have something for a snack, even if it is candy. I don't care. I also have some math sheets on the kitchen counter for you to try. If you have troubles understanding it we can go over it tonight. But who am I kidding, you are just naturally good at math. I should be home around 4:30, I'll see you then."

Before she left the room she gave Nikki a quick kiss on her forehead.

"Have a good day!" Nikki called as Gwen disappeared in the next room.

"You too!" She heard Gwen call back before the sound of a door closing ran through the house.

Nikki got out of bed and made her way to the kitchen to find the math sheets. She found them instantly and picked them up to see what she was doing today.

Multiplication. She read to herself. Not bad.

It's pretty obvious that Nikki didn't exactly get the education she needed for the age she was, but that didn't stop her from trying to get that education. It really helps when the person you're living with is a 4th grade teacher and knows how to help people who need some extra help.

She settled down in the living room as she started the math worksheet. She would pause every once in a while to have a bite of her breakfast before continuing once again.

Once she was done, she turned on the television and watched the screen. It was times like these where she would get bored and start thinking about the people she left back in Hawkins.

She could only wonder: what are they doing right now?

***

"I still don't get why they call him zombie boy," Max shook her head as she and Lucas turned the corner in the school hallway. Lucas was trying to explain the situation about Will but with the same lies they had told everybody else when Will returned. "I mean, I get it. He lost in the woods for a week or something, but why is he a zombie? Because everyone thought he was dead?"

Lucas personally felt bad about lying to her but unless he told her the "truth" she would keep on asking questions that could get her and everyone in his friend group seriously hurt.

"Yeah," Lucas's voice wavered. Something he did when he lied. He steadied his voice before continuing. "I mean, we had a funeral for him and everything."

"After a week?" Max gave him a disbelieving look.

"Well, see, some other kid drowned at the quarry," Lucas said trying to remember the exact details of the lie everyone knew. "We thought it was Will because his body was super decomposed."

"What?" Max glared at him, stopping in the middle of the hallway. "Okay, that's not funny."

Lucas sighed. "It's not a joke, all right? It's public knowledge. You can ask anybody. Except Will, because he is really sensitive about it. All right?"

Lucas didn't think Max fully believed him, but he didn't care. As long as he protected Will from hearing her talk about it and their secret about the girls is safe, that's all that mattered.

"Okay," Max nodded still unsure of what to think.

The two continued down the hall in silence. Max was processing the new information and Lucas was thinking about Nikki.

The secret about her is safe. He told himself. She's safe...hopefully. Wherever she is.

***

"The case of Phineas Gage is one of the great medical curiosities of all time." Mr. Clarke explained to a semi-bored class. No one was paying any attention other than the three boys who sat towards the front of the class. "Phineas was a railroad worker in 1848 who had a nightmarish accident. A large iron rod was driven completely through his head. Phineas miraculously survived. He seemed fine. And physically, yes, he was. But his injury resulted in a complete change to his personality. So much so that friends that knew him started referring to him as 'no longer Gage.' At the time, this was known as the American Crowbar Case. Although, it wasn't a-"

Mr. Clarke stopper abruptly when a loud bang rang through the classroom. Everyone's head turned towards the door that had opened and Dustin ran in noisily.

"I'm so sorry, Mr. Clarke," Dustin panting heavily and made his way to his desk. "Really, I'm so sorry. Please continue with the class. Don't mind me. Really, continue, please. Thanks."

His friends looked at him confused as he took his seat and Mr. Clarke continued.

The four boys turned to one another as Dustin started to talk to them. "We have to meet. All of us. At lunch, AV Club."

"Why?" Mike whispered.

"I have something that you won't believe."

Satisfied with the answer everyone turned back to the lesson as Dustin tried to whisper something to Max in the back in of the classroom.

"Dustin!" Mr. Clarke scolded him.

"Yes, my lord?" Dustin asked turning away from Max.

"Would you care to join the class now?"

"Please, yes," Dustin responded reaching for his text book.

"The case of Phineas Gage."

"Phineas Gage."

"Page 104."

"104. 104," Dustin opened the book to his page and waited for Mr. Clarke to continue the lesson before turning back to Max.

Oh my god, he's an idiot. Lucas laughed in his head before finally paying attention to the lesson.

Authors note
Yay! Another chapter out!

Hope you guys liked it!

Love ya!!❤️❤️❤️

Edited in 2025.