Stay or Go

Chapter 14

We manage to get back to the Byers house in record time thanks to Chief Hopper's crazy driving, making me miss my bike which is sitting abandoned at home. The inside of the house makes Nancy pause, I guess she has missed a few chapters so all the Christmas lights and the mess catches her off guard but the rest of us power through the house and straight to Will's bedroom. Jonathan scrambles around trying to find his brothers radio until Joyce reaches under the bed and shouts "I've got it." and stands back up.

Nancy sits on the edge of the bed and speaks into the radio "this is an emergency Mike. Do you copy?" Making it sound like he is in trouble. I stand facing the window, hands braced on the window sill and head down. There is silence so she repeats "Mike do you copy?" my foot is tapping on the floor now nervously "I need you to answer. We need to know if your there Mike." Angrily Hopper snatches the radio from her as I turn around and lean against the window "listen kid, this is the chief. If you're there pick up. We know you're in trouble and we know about the girl. We can protect you, we can help you, but you gotta pick up. Are you there? Do you copy? Over?"

I suck in a breath and share a look with my best friend, the two of us as nervous as the other. Hopper sighs and places the radio on a chest of drawers before turning to us "anybody got any other ideas?" He asks and we are silent for a moment, thinking when the radio starts making noise. It's Mike "yeah, I copy." And we all relax slightly "its Mike." he repeats "I'm here. We're here." They tell us they are at the old scrap yard and Hopper starts towards the car.

I follow him out and when he realises I am following him whirls around me "absolutely not kid." he says and roll my eyes grabbing my gun from inside my pocket "shall we just skip the part where you tell me not to come? I am coming so you might as well save your breath." Hopper raises his eyebrows and I signal my gun "am I clear?" He nods and unlocks his car.

-

When we get to the scrap yard there are people shooting at an old school bus, I chuckle and shake my head as we stop "absolutely not." I mutter to myself and load my gun. I climb out of the car and go racing towards one of the men. They are all twice my size but because I know how to be quiet I manage to sneak up on them, one is just opening the door to the bus which is the one I go. I launch myself at him, taking out his legs and then grabbing his neck making him pass out. Hopper goes for a more aggressive approach with incapacitating the other men but when he is finished he looks at me in surprise "where did you learn that?"He asks sounding amazed. I smile and open the door to the bus wider "I didnt just learn my times tables while I was away sir." I say before turning to the abandoned vehicle.

I climb into the bus and see my brother and his group of friends stand up, panic on their faces. "What are you just standing there for?" I ask placing my hands on my hips "lets go." I clap and they jump into action. Dustin appears beside me and hugs me "I'm so happy you came." He says and I smile patting him on the head "me too, now lets move." We all race for Hopper's car. The kids all buzzing with excitement and nerves.

-

It's dark when we get back to the Byers, the other three come racing out when they hear us coming up the drive way. "Mike." Nancy says racing over "oh my god. Mike!" They embrace and I move over to Jonathan "see you're back in one piece." He muses awkwardly and I smile, nudging his shoulder "you ever doubt me?" Nancy steps back from her brother and says in quite a motherly tone "I was so worried about you." Mike looks like he wants to die from embarrassment "yeah, uh... me too." He says unsurely.

Then Nancy looks behind him to the girl standing awkwardly in the middle of all the boys "is that my dress?" She asks and I cover my mouth to keep from snorting out loud.

We all head inside and Mike is tasked with the job of explaining what the Upside down is. He holds up a drawing and starts to explain "okay, so, in this example, we're the acrobat. Will and Barbara, and that monster, they're the flea. And this is the Upside Down, where Will is hiding. Mr Clarke said the only way to get there is through a rip of time and space." The others seem excited to know something we don't as Dustin adds "a gate." Then Lucas speaks up, leaning forward "that we tracked to Hawkins Lab."

Dustin nods "with our compasses." we all look at him confused so he clarifies "okay, so the gate has a really strong electromagnetic field, and that can change the direction of the compasses." Hopper, who is sitting in an arm chair, frowns and asks "is this gate underground?" Then the girl, who hasn't spoken a word since we picked them up at the scrap yard answers "yes." everyone looks at herm even the boys, in shock. I guess she doesn't speak that often.

"Near a large water tank?" Hopper asks now looking solely at the girl and she nods subtly "yes." Dustin frowns and looks over at the older man. "How.. how do you know all of that?" He stutters and before he can answer Mike says "he's seen it." Joyce leans forward, hands clasped together tightly "is there any way that you could.. that you could reach Will? That you could talk to him in this..." She seems caught on the word so the girl, Eleven, finishes her sentence for her "The Upside Down." Joyce nods, close to tears.

Eleven nods in confirmation before Nancy asks "and my friend Barbara? Can you find her too?" Eleven nods again.

And so we set everything up. Radio static creating white noise as well as a picture of Barbara and a picture of Will. Eleven then closes her eyes and does whatever she is trying to do. The light above the table flickers and I feel a presence in my mind. Thinking it is Richard I slam my mental walls down but then Eleven jumps, opening her eyes. My own widen in surprise and she says "I'm sorry." I suck in a breath as Joyce starts stuttering, looking around confused "whats wrong?" she asks "what happened?"

Eleven's voice breaks as she says "I cant find them." I narrow my eyes, although no one noticed. She couldn't find them because she was in my head instead of where she was supposed to be. She is like me, but she is too young to have gone to the Academy and they don't shave girls heads there so how the hell did she get her powers?