Loss - Lucas Sinclair

The Gate (Part 2)

The group quickly caught Nikki up to speed with the Demo-dogs and Will and everything that was happening.

"Let's just say if we don't find a way to stop this everyone in this town is in a lot of danger," Hopper finished explaining to Nikki who was standing beside Lucas and El.

"I can do it," El spoke up looking at Hopper.

"You're not hearing me," Hopper shook his head.

"I'm hearing you. I can do it."

"And I can help," Nikki spoke up, trying to sound confident. El looked to her surprised and worried about her sister. Nikki saw the hesitation flash quickly in her expression. "I've gotten stronger. I can help fight off the Demo-dogs."

Lucas felt his heart drop knowing that fighting off one Demogorgon is what made her disappear. He did want to think what could happen fighting off hundreds of Demo-dogs.

"Even if El and Nikki can," Mike sighed, "there's still another problem. If the brain dies, the body dies."

"I thought that was the whole point," Max shook her head.

"It is, but if we're really right about this...I mean, if El closes the gate and kills the mind flayer's army..."

"Will's apart of that army," Lucas looked at Nikki timidly as she put her hand on top of his, trying to comfort him.

"Closing the gate will kill him."

They sat in silence for a moment until Joyce stood up and started walking towards the room Will was in with everyone close behind her.

Nikki looked at the boy's unconscious figure. This was the boy she tried to help save last year, during that time she couldn't do much without tiring herself out, but this time around she knew she could help. She was going to help.

"He likes it cold," Joyce muttered, taking Nikki out of her thoughts.

"What?" Hopper asked, watching Joyce's gaze go to the open window.

"It's what Will kept saying to me. He likes it cold," she walked towards the window and shut it tight. "We keep giving it what it wants."

"If this is a virus," Nancy thought out loud, "and Will's the host, then..."

"Then we need to make the host uninhabitable," Jonathan completed her thought.

"So if he likes it cold..."

"We need to burn it out of him," Joyce said, looking at Will.

"We have to do it somewhere he doesn't know this time," Mike piped up.

"Yeah," Dustin agreed, "somewhere far away."

"I know a place," Hopper said starting to gather up Will in his arms. Everyone followed him to the front door as his quickly told Jonathan the directions to his place. "The Denfield, then you'll see a large oak tree."

They walked out of the house, leaving the kids behind to wait for something else to happen. Within a minute, Hopper came back in the house looking between Nikki and El. "Alright, let's go."

***

"You going to be okay?" Lucas asked Nikki as they waited for Hopper to finish packing up the truck.

"I think so," Nikki nodded as she started to play with her hands.

"You gotta be careful," Lucas grabbed one of her hands to try to calm her down.

"I know."

"I know you know, it's just...I don't know what I would do if you disappeared again or if something worse happened."