𝙘𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙧𝙮 𝙥𝙤𝙥! 𝙨𝙩𝙚𝙫𝙚 𝙝𝙖𝙧𝙧𝙞𝙣𝙜𝙩𝙤𝙣

SCENE TEN. seeing what shouldn't be seen

and just across town, the two girls she had met only today were dancing and laughing in el's room. talking about the boys they had broken up with recently. 

"hey, don't worry about it. he'll come crawling back to you in no time, begging for forgiveness. i guarantee you, him and lucas are totally wallowing in self-pity and misery right now. they're like, oh, i hope they take us back.” max laughed, mocking the two boys and they burst out in laughter. 

"god, what i wouldn't give to see their stupid faces." max laughed again but a thought struck el, her face falling slightly. before looking up at max smiling. and el sat behind the now static radio, which was crackling as she tied the black towel around her head. 

"is this really gonna work? holy shit this is insane."

"max." el replied firmy and the girl's face fell as she nodded before realising el couldn't see it. 

"yeah, quiet. i'm sorry." she mumbled. watching as el practised her breathing as the radio static got clearer till voices could be heard. the voices of the teenage boys in which they dated. and she breathed out, el now some kind of dark room. the figures of lucas, will and mike in front of her. 

"i see them."

"eating." and she returned to the room, the boys sat on the sofa eating as they just complained. complaining about them, about how girls are complicated and strange.

"they say we are species."

"what."

"emotion, not logic. " 

"what!" and el returned to watching and listening to the boys. as they did boy things, burping and farting like disgusting creatures. and el pulled the towel from her head and laughed. the two girls giggling and fumbling as a car pulled up outside. the sounds of a drunken man entering the house. 

"hey! hey! when i say three inches-" and hopper burst into el's room. and instead of finding mike and el making out on her bed he found el and max laid on the floor giggling as they read through magazines. 

"do you knock! jeez!"

"yeah! jeez!"

"oh hey! i'm sorry. i thought that uh-"

"mikes not here."

"max wanted to have a sleepover. is that okay?"

"yeah. yeah. yeah. your parents know about it? eah, it's cool."

"did you need something?"

"no no. i'll just leave." and the door shut behind him pumping his fist in joy as he jumped towards his sofa, tv flickering on as he kicked off his shoes. no longer was he upset about being stood up by joyce. and the two girls were writing down the names of people they knew, they wanted to spy on some more people. the names laid out in a circle with a bottle in the middle. nancy, steve, piper, billy, mr wheeler, dustin and mrs wheeler. and el reached forward to spin the bottle quickly, the two girls watching in anticipation as it slowed on a name. mr wheeler. 

"boring. spin again." max smiled 

"against the rules?" el asked looking up at max who only laughed.

"we make our own rules." max smiled again as the two chuckled before el span the bottle again. watching as it landed between two names,rolling back and forth like the bottle couldn't choose who. billy and piper

"billy?" max questioned.

"piper?" el questioned before it finally rolled to billy and the girls agreed on it being billy. and max leaped from the bed. 

"oh okay, look i should just warn you. if he's with a girl or doing something gross. just get out there right away before you're scarred for life.'' max laughed as she grabbed the radio from the drawers, bringing it over to the bed for el. switching the radio to a static channel as el tied to the towel around her head once more. and el felt that same pulling sensation wash over her as she appeared in darkness. but there was a car, the windows smashed and still running. 

"i found him."

"what's he doing?"

"i don't know."

and she had in fact found him. he was in some kind of dirty room. and there was blood. everywhere. it was splattered on the walls and on the floor. his hands were limp beside him as he kneeled. one was a strange purple and seemed like it had been ripped and torn. she just stared as she took a few steps closer. hearing a girl whimpering in pain. a familiar girl crying. 

"don't be afraid."

"he's on the floor."

"it'll be over soon."

"talking to someone." and el walked closer hearing a girls whimper. and she screamed. billy fading away as el caught the girl. there on the floor laid a girl no longer screaming. no longer crying. covered in blood and marks ripped across her hip. like she had been attacked by some kind of animal. some kind of monster. it was piper. and she ripped the mask off her face. pulling her back into reality as she sharply gasped.

"what is it? what happened?"

"piper." el mumbled and max's face twisted in confusion at what the girl meant. she didn't go for piper, she went for billy. unless piper and billy were together. 

what was wrong with piper?

and what did billy have to do with it?