-𝖕𝖗𝖊𝖞 - 𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗻𝗴𝗲𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘀

𝘅𝘅𝘅𝘃𝗶𝗶. shrink

❝Tell me why this has to end.❞

-atlantis, seafret

THE NEXT MORNING WAS A NIGHTMARE, BUT A. . . BETTER NIGHTMARE. Almost. Instead of it being a nightmare she wouldn't wish upon her worst enemy, it was spending the morning in her friends presence, arguing on what Eddie would prefer to eat or not. However, it wasn't all sunshine and rainbows. After Dustin had told him what was going on, what they suspected had happened, they couldn't leave him in the dark. Especially with the hunch that he would soon be known more as a murderer than a freak across Hawkins.

When they settled on something good, with Dustin's major help, the five left the shop. Lila swore she could've heard the cashier sigh thankfully as they were leaving. The car ride was quite uncomfortable — being sandwiched in between Max and Dustin for a considerable amount of time. Then with the addition of a bag of food on her lap, which she didn't understand why Max didn't take; her hands were free.

Finally getting out was a miracle, but no time to stop. Every second they wasted could be a second further from saving Eddie from whatever miserable fate he could've been promised.

Barging in the same shed relentlessly, the five smiled innocently at his shocked figure. He probably had been thinking his time was up. Not yet, though. "Delivery service," Dustin innocently announced, holding up his bags, including the one she handed to him.

Lila leant against a wall when Dustin spoke. "So, we've got some good news and some bad news. How do you prefer it?"

"Bad news first, always," Eddie said. Lila seconded that.

"All right, bad news," Dustin started. "We tapped into the Hawkins PD dispatch with our Cerebro, and they're definitely looking for you. Also, they're pretty convinced you killed Chrissy."

"Like, one hundred percent kind of convinced," Max added.

"And the good news?"

"Your name hasn't gone public yet. But if we found out about you," Robin lamentably admitted, "it's only a matter of time before the others do. And once that gets out, everyone and their shallow-minded mother is gonna be gunning for you."

"Hunt the freak, right?" he groaned. When Robin agreed, he gave a small exclamation. "Shit."

Dustin still had some optimism left. "So, before that happens, we find Vecna, kill him, and prove your innocence." Eddie gave him a look of disbelief. "That's pretty much it."

If there was such a thing as inhaling passive-aggressively, Lila had just mastered that without even trying. "Yeah, because that worked out so well last time."