The Four Rings || An Eddie Munson Fanfiction

Chapter One - The Lights

The room smelled of warm paper and dust and the longer Emelia spent crouched in the crowded space, the less attached she became to reality. It was quiet now, unlike the previous few hours she had spent aiding the new freshman and their projects, and she couldn't help but find peace within the emptiness. Mr. Tesch had assigned her the role of teacher's assistant, meaning she was responsible for supervising the new individuals in the class and making sure they weren't having any trouble with their projects. Although she was honored that he had chosen her for the role, a part of her wondered if it was just because no one volunteered. The majority of the people in "Hawkins' High Herald" selected the class as an easy credit. They did the absolute minimum required to pass, causing the overall importance of the paper to fall upon her. She didn't mind for the most part but as the year went on, it was getting harder for her to balance life between work and school.

"Just one more year, Emelia," she muttered under her breath, placing the copy of the front page into the copy machine. The lack of up-to-date technology meant the crew was responsible for printing off and fixing every newspaper together before handing them out. The activity was rather time-consuming, which was why Emelia spent every bit of her free time working on it. A little over half of the papers had been assembled. The due date was approaching fast, leaving her with less than a week to make sure everything fit the guidelines and was ready to be released. Emelia was surrounded by countless stacks of copies, making her head just barely visible to incoming individuals. Crumpled papers were scattered about on the floor – a mixture of improperly printed pages and mistakes she had made prior to publishing.

A yawn escaped her throat as she stretched her body, wincing slightly when her back released an unnerving crack. Based on the distant cheers that still engulfed the hallways, Emelia knew she hadn't spent too long in the classroom. The boys' basketball team had been facing back-to-back teams the last few weeks and today marked the championship game. Considering Hawkins' high had yet to win such a high title, it was considered to be one if not the most important game in the history of the establishment. If they were to win, Emelia would surely have her work cut out for her the next weeks, knowing it would without a doubt be on the front page of the paper.

The hallways were completely empty, the only source of life being that of fallen papers and the smallest evidence of a backpack peaking out of the occupied lockers. The difference in atmosphere was uncanny being that she was only space away from the hot and sticky environment of the classroom. She couldn't help but take a moment to breathe it all in. Her throat was dry and her eyes felt like she had been awake for countless days. Without a doubt, she planned to crash as soon as she got home.

Tickets for the game were hard to come across unless you reserved a seat ahead of time. The majority of both staff and students filled the brim, leaving hardly enough wiggle room for anyone. It made Emelia grimace, partially thankful that she had been stuck making copies for as long as she did. She couldn't imagine how uncomfortable everyone must be so packed in like that. She hadn't seen the bleachers that packed since the wrestling pep rally a few years ago. Peter Alverez gave a huge speech about how nothing was going to stop them from bringing home the biggest trophy only for them to come back empty-handed with their egos bruised.

Leaning up against the entrance, Emelia examined the gymnasium's energy. Everyone was sitting at the edge of their seats as the clock ticked closer and closer to the end of the game. The score was 23-23 and there was less than a minute left on the clock, leaving everyone to anticipate the fate of the game. If no one scored, they would inevitably fall into overtime but if the opposing team did manage to break the tie, the chances of Hawkins getting another basket was very slim.

Biting down on the tip of her finger, Emelia watched as the players bounced about along the court. She recognized the majority of the players both on the bench and on the court from previous years, only a few unfamiliar faces occupying space on the team. The basketball team was very picky when it came to tryouts. For the first two years of her high school career, they had only been known to allow a total of three people on the team that hadn't already been on it. She figured this was Jason Carver's doing. The coach had appointed him team captain almost immediately after the accident at StarCourt, figuring the school needed a friendly face to lead them into the school year. It started off alright, his speeches sparking motivation and relief in the student body, but as time went on, Jason began to feed off of this. Unless you were a pretty girl or had ridiculous shooting skills, you stood no chance of getting remotely close to his circle; that included trying out for the team.