Stare.

Chapter One: MADMAX

It was now the start of a new school year. I sat in the back of Steve's parked car. Nancy was in the passenger seat, and Steve was in the driver's seat. We were in the parking lot of Hawkins High School, and Nancy was reading Steve's college application paper as I sat looking out the window. 

"It's crap, I know." I heard Steve say to Nancy. 

"No, it's not crap," Nancy said back to him, looking up from the paper. 

Us three became close over the winter break. "It's not good," Steve said, putting himself down again. 

"It's going to be. Just-- it needs some reorganising." Nancy said as she looked at Steve. He then sighed. 

I looked over Nancy's shoulder at the application paper. "Can I mark on it?" I asked Steve. 

He looked at me for a second before he answered. "Yeah, I guess." Nancy passed it over to me. 

I quickly read over it, and after a few minutes, I began speaking. "So, in the first paragraph, you used the basketball game versus Northern as a metaphor for your life, which is great. But then, around here..." I pointed at the paper. "...you start talking about your granddad's experiences in the war. And I-- I don't really see how they're connected." I looked up at him. 

"It connects because-- because, you know, we both won." I looked at him with a straight face, and then I looked back down. 

"Do you think I should start from scratch?" 

"No. I mean...when's the deadline?" I asked him as I passed it back to Nancy. 

"It's tomorrow for early application." He held my eye for a few seconds before he looked away from me and towards Nancy. "Can you come and help me tonight?" Steve asked Nancy, and I fell back into the car seat with a sigh. 

"We have our dinner tonight, remember?" Nancy said to Steve. 

"Oh my god!" 

"We already cancelled last week. You don't have to go. Just work on this." 

I looked at the teens that passed by the car window as the two in the front talked.

"No, no, no. What's the point?" Steve says, grabbing the paper and scrunching it into a ball. 

"Hey, calm down." 

"I'm calm. I'm calm. I'm just being honest. You know, I mean... I'll end up working for my dad anyway." 

"That's not true." 

"I don't know, Nance. Is that such a bad thing? There's insurance and benefits and all that adult stuff. And if I took it, you know. I could be around for your senior year." 

"Steve..." 

"Just to look after you a little bit. Make sure you don't forget about this pretty face." Nancy looked away and chuckled. "Nance, I'm serious." They both leaned in and kissed each other. "I love you." 

"I love you, too." They said to each other. 

"Oh, gross," I said as I opened the door and got out. 

I heard Nancy and Steve laugh from inside the car. A breeze hit my face as I shut the car door and turned around to lean against the car. 

A shiny blue car drove into the parking lot with loud rock music as it moved slowly and parked a bit away from us. Nancy and Steve both got out of Steve's car. 

Then a man stepped out of the shiny blue car with a blond mullet; he was wearing nearly all denim, and a small redhead opened the other door and stepped out, skateboarding away.