𝐌𝐎𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍 𝐒𝐈𝐂𝐊𝐍𝐄𝐒𝐒 steve harrington

xxiii. i need to scream right now

━︎ VOL TWO. CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

❝︎ you're an asshole and i love you
so much ❞︎

"The Mind Flayer," Mike explains. "It built this monster in Hawkins, to stop El, to kill her and pave a way into our world."

"And it almost did. That was just one tiny piece of it," adds Nancy.

"How big is this thing?" Hopper asks.

"It's big," Jonathan murmurs. "Thirty feet, at least."

"Yeah," Lucas agrees. "It sorta destroyed your cabin. Sorry."

Steve begins to speak beside him. "Okay, so just to be clear, this... the big fleshy thing that hurt El, it's some kind of gigantic...weapon?"

"Yes." Nancy answers.

"But, instead of, like screws and metal, the mind flayer made its weapon... with melted people."

"Yes, exactly," Nancy exclaims.

If Jack were in Robin or Erica's place he would be shocked to his core, but after last fall, nothing really surprises him anymore.

"Are we sure this thing is still out there, still alive?" Joyce asks.

Max nods. "El beat the shit out of it, but, yeah, it's still alive."

"But if we close the gate again-" Will starts.

"We cut the brain off from the body."

"And kill it," Lucas says. "Theoretically."

"Yoo-hoo!" The man yells, who Jack learned was named Murray. He waves paper over his head as he approaches the group.

He slams the paper down on a table and everyone gathers around him.

"Okay, this is what Alexei called 'the hub'. Now, the hub takes us to the vault room." He points to a part of his man-made map.

"Okay, where's the gate?" Hopper asks.

He points toward the vault room and explains the distances between the gate and other rooms.

"Maybe 50 feet or so," Murray says, and Jack tries hard not to laugh because he is so wrong.

"More like 500." Erica approaches the man. "What, you're just gonna waltz in there like it's commie Disneyland or something?"

"I'm sorry, who are you?" The man raises his eyebrows.

"Erica Sinclair. Who are you?"

Jack almost wants to clap for Erica while she lectures the man. Dustin defends her, and explains the layout of the basement, and shows them how to reach the vault.

Hopper does not like that idea at all.

˚₊· ͟͟͞͞➳❥

Jack hops on the same counter he was cowering behind a few hours ago. Steve is already sitting there, across from Robin.

"Hey," Jack turns to his boyfriend. "I know we were high as shit, but I'm still down with kissing you in front of the kids."