Hidden Within the Shadows

subject to testing

Eddie was with Reefer Rick, getting some more weed and H to sell to the preppy teens of Hawkins High. Adrian had long since gotten used to this, knowing it was a side hustle. It was also funny how the preppy kids of the school would do deals with Eddie behind the school to get some weed or heroin. Ketamine was off the roster for now until Rick got some more in stock - which usually meant going into farmland and stealing from the farmers.

Wayne was asleep in the trailer, having worked overtime at the plant. Money was a little tight, and Adrian always felt bad that he couldn't go out and earn some money. Hawkins wasn't safe for him, and even though Wayne and Eddie knew he couldn't get a job and didn't hang it over his head, Adrian still felt bad about it.

The one thing he could do was go and find some wood for the bonfire in the trailer park. The plan was for the families in the trailer park to come together for a bonfire. They were going to roast some meat, like a barbecue, and generally get to know each other better and have a good time.

Adrian was wearing the old jean jacket that had once belonged to Eddie before he'd outgrown it in his growth spurt. It had old patches on, giving off the metalhead vibes Eddie had, and what Adrian seemed to have adopted too.

Adrian didn't mind it one bit. It was the new year - eighty-three - and it meant the possibility of new things for him. Maybe he could get his GED early since he'd been learning for it whilst he'd been with the Munsons. Wayne had also mentioned something about getting his name changed legally. Since he was sixteen, and technically an emancipated teenager, he had total control. But that meant saving money Adrian didn't have for a petition form or order. Plus he'd have to take the forms to a court clerk and file them as well as having to fill in Indiana's required filing fee. And Adrian didn't know if a judge or magistrate would simply grant the name change or if he had to make a formal advertisement.

He didn't want Ted Wheeler finding out his new name, so there had to be some kind of loophole Adrian could go through. Forge a new birth certificate and a new ID.

Hands in the pockets of the jacket that smelled like Eddie, Adrian went out into the woods nearby. With the plan for a bonfire, it was Adrian's job to go hunting for some good firewood.

Only ... Adrian didn't get very far. He'd made it several feet into the woods, trying to find some wood, so kept an eye out for any good-looking logs. It was supposed to be a good get-together for all the families, the last thing they needed was a shitty bonfire.

There were a few odd sounds, of cracking sticks. Adrian assumed it was the wild animals that lived in the woods, so paid it no mind. It was one of the worst mistakes Adrian could've made.

The people appeared almost out of nowhere, trapping Adrian in a circle.

He looked around, throat feeling tight as his heart pounded hard in his chest. What the fuck was this? Was he about to be murdered? Kidnapped or worse? There was no way he could escape them, and he knew he couldn't get through their arms in the gaps and fight his way back to the trailer park. He was completely fucked. All he could do was look at them, to try and see their faces hidden behind masks. What the hell was this?

"This one looks good enough, doesn't she?"

Adrian couldn't stop himself. "He," he corrected.

The man with white hair grinned, something cold and malicious. He stepped forwards and tucked his hands into his winter coat. "Yes, I do believe we can make this work."

∞✡♡✡∞

Adrian wasn't sure how it happened. Something had happened, and now he was trapped, stuck in a small room that reminded him of insane asylums and solitary confinement. He'd been dressed in some type of hospital gown, and his hair had been buzzed short to the scalp. A tattoo had been put on his left wrist, and he felt chills and sick when he realised what it reminded him of. The number 020 reminded him of the Jews forced into concentration camps, numbered and labelled. Where was he? Was he in some kind of concentration camp?