𝐖𝐄 𝐀𝐑𝐄 𝐏𝐈𝐑𝐀𝐓𝐄𝐒! [𝐫𝐨𝐛𝐢𝐧 𝐛𝐮𝐜𝐤𝐥𝐞𝐲]

𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐭𝐞𝐧

𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐆𝐀𝐓𝐄 𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐭 𝐭𝐰𝐨

When at last the drive was over, Steve and Margo managed to stumble out of the car behind the kids. Steve's head was wrapped in a ripped off corner of Margo's jacket and he limped when he walked, but he was otherwise recovering quickly. He clicked on his flashlight and shone it in Margo's eyes. 

"Jesus Christ, Steve," she said, flinching away. 

"I'm trying to see if you have a concussion," said Steve. "You hit the wall pretty hard, so much for those running skills." 

She pushed his flashlight down with one hand. "You definitely have a concussion."

"We'll deal with that later!" Dustin called, already halfway to the woods. 

Margo had no idea where they were. She'd never been in this part of Hawkins before. To tell the truth, she wasn't even sure they were still in Hawkins. Steve slung his baseball bat back over his shoulder and wiped a bit of blood from his cheek. "Hey, we said we'd keep them safe." 

"I fucking hate babysitting," Margo muttered, but hurried to keep up with the group in front of them. 

They reached a cave, and Margo instantly recognized the desolate air, the strange blue tint, and the floating dust. It was a portal to the Upside Down. Steve led the way, his flashlight pointed straight in front of him, his hand outstretched to keep everyone else behind him. 

"God," said Lucas. 

"What is this place?" asked Max. 

Margo sped up to fall into pace with her. "Welcome to the Upside Down. You're gonna hate it." 

"Guys, come on," said Steve. "Keep moving." 

Margo didn't even notice Dustin fall behind until he screamed. "Shit!" He fell backwards, dust- or whatever it was- dousing his clothes. "Help! Help! Help!" He scrambled towards the rest of the group. 

Lucas reached a hand out and pulled him up. Dustin was shaking from head to toe. Steve dove towards him. "What happened? What happened?" he shouted. 

"It's in my mouth!" screamed Dustin. "Some got on my mouth! Shit!" He fell to his knees and coughed, spitting out whatever he could. For an intense minute, Margo was convinced he was going to die. Then, he sat up and looked calmly at Steve. "I'm okay." 

"Nice," said Steve, irritated. "Very nice." 

They turned to keep walking, all grumbling about 'making a big deal out of nothing.' Dustin pulled himself to his feet and hurried to keep up with them. They walked in silence through the tunnel, careful not to stumble. Margo's head was pounding, and every time she looked at one of the flashlight beams, it felt like her brain might explode. Steve was probably right about the concussion, but if he could keep going in his state, so could she. 

"Alright, Wheeler," said Steve. "I think we found your hub." 

He stopped and everyone else gathered around. In front of him was a dark hole that looked like it had no ending. On every side of the chamber, more tunnels led to places Margo never wanted to see. They stared into the abyss in silence. 

Finally, Mike broke the tension. "Drench it." 

The kids must've stocked up on gasoline from the house while Margo was busy getting Steve to the car. They opened their backpacks and started pulling out anything flammable they'd been able to find. Max tossed Margo a bottle of hairspray. Without a word, Margo opened it and started spraying every inch of the walls she could cover.