The Overcomer, Stranger Things

The Vanishing of Will and Gwen Byers

Gwen Byers laughs in contentment as she sits on the back of her brother's bike, gripping his shoulders like they were a lifeline. Because to her, they were. Will Byers is a terrible driver. 

"Faster, Will! He's gaining on us!" Gwen yells as she sees their shared best friend, Dustin Henderson, rolling down the hill. 

"I'm gonna get you, Byers!" Dustin shouts.

"In your dreams, Henderson" Will replies back, right as he passes Dustin's mailbox. 

"We'll take your X-men 134!" Gwen shouts to the fuming 12-year-old. 

"Screw you!" Dustin shouts after them, making Gwen and Will high five. 

"Love you too, Dustin!" Gwen called, right before the Byers' siblings left his line of sight. Little did they know, the Byers would never get their comic book. 

~:~

Gwen felt a shiver run down her spine as she and her brother unknowingly trespassed a restricted area. Gwen could hear the crickets chirping and an owl hooting in the distance. The road was completely deserted. It certainly didn't help calm her nerves that it was pitch black outside. The only light to guide them through the darkness was a small headlight, attached to the front on Will's bike. 

And then it went out. While Will was focusing on turning the light back on, Gwen kept her eyes on the road. Boy, she wished she hadn't. Gwen's eyes widened in fright when she saw the silouhette of a figure standing a few feet away from them. The creature, a tall and thin humanoid with elongated libs, looked like it decended from the creepiest tree in the cemetary. And that's not even the part that scares the 7-year-old the most. It's the fact that the creature has no face. 

Gwen lets out a terrified gasp right as Will's light turns back on, illuminating the fearsome creature. Will copies his sister's action as he catches a glance at the monster. Will steers the bike away from the creature, resulting in the Byers' bike rolling down the hill, taking the kids with it. 

Gwen and Will groan in pain as they tumble onto the unforgiving, hard ground. Gwen whimpers in fear as she slowly looks up to see the faceless creature growling at them from the top of the hill. She is literally pulled out of her stupor when Will tugs on her arm, pulling her to her feet. 

The kids cast one last look at the creature, who is getting closer by the second, before interlocking their hands and sprinting down the path that leads to their house. 

~:~

Gwen is panting heavily as she stumbles into the Byer's household with Will by her side. As Will locks the door, with shaking hands, Gwen calls for their mom and older brother. 

"Mom!" Gwen yells, as she opens her mother's door, only to find the room empty. 

"Johnathan!" she yells, her voice cracking, as she opens her brother's bedroom door. 

"They're not here! What are we gonna do?!" Gwen panicks as she walks up to Will from behind, who is looking at something through the window. 

Gwen furrows her eyebrows in confusion when he ignores her and simply runs over to the phone. Then Gwen peeks through the blinds to see what Will was looking at, and her breath gets caught in her throat. That nightmarish creature followed them home!

"Hello! Hello?!" Gwen hears Will calling for help desperately. Her heart plummets to the pit of  her stomach when she hears indistinct screeching coming from the phone in reply. 

Gwen takes shakey steps to stand next to her brother. She peeks around the wall, just in time, to see the lock on the door come undone. Will drops the phone, grabbing his petrified sister's hand and drags her to the shed outside their house. 

Gwen's legs feel like Jello, as she trembles with fear behind her brother. Will loads a shotgun with shaking hands, pushing his sister behind him, before aiming the weapon at the door. The only sound that can be heard is Will's whimpers and Gwen's teeth chattering. 

Gwen gets a feeling of de ja vu when she feels a shiver run down her spine. She starts shaking uncontrollably as she hears demonic growls coming from behind her. The youngest Byers opens her mouth to warn her brother, but it's like her motor skills shut down. The 7-year-old is quivering with fear as she turns around to be greeted by the monster that will forver haunt her nightmares. 

The youngest Byers lets out a cry of utter terror as she tries to back away from the demonic figure. Will Byers turns around at the sound and is frozen to her spot with fear when he sees the creature approching them. Knowing that they aren't going to make it out of this shack, Will Byers wraps his arms around his little sister, holding her protectively. Gwen buries her face in her brother's shoulder as the Byers siblings get enveloped by darkness. 

When the light in the shack reappears, the Byers siblings are gone.