PUPPET MASTER, eddie munson

i. queen bee

DOLORES HERNANDEZ HATED BEING LATE-- and screaming at her younger sister from downstairs while shaking her car keys in her manicured hands was the last thing she wanted to be doing on the last day before spring break. The exasperated girl tapped her foot impatiently, looking up at the stairs as she awaited her sister's arrival.

"Valentina!" she yelled. After a second, her sister ran down the stairs, attempting to gather her unruly locks into a low ponytail while rushing into the kitchen to grab a quick breakfast. "We're literally so late, I told you I didn't want to miss the pep rally! Did you stay up playing that stupid game again?"

"It's not stupid! You just wouldn't understand the complexity-"

"Yep, and I don't care either. Could you hurry up?" Dolly whined, continuing to shake the keys in her hand as she took note of her sister's outfit. "Oh for God's sake, would you get rid of that stupid Hellfire shirt? You look so..."

"Freak-ish?" Val sarcastically answered as she snatched a banana from the kitchen island. Having already heard her older sister's daily complaints, Val had pretty much developed a sense for determining what new insult Dolly would throw at her.

"Yeah, exactly. If you know what I'm going to say, why not actually listen to me? Call me a bitch if you want, but I think I'm justified in not wanting my sister to spend all her time with Eddie 'The Freak' Munson."

"You and your stupid friends act like he's some sort of evil supervillain. Maybe you should get your head out of your ass and try to get to know him,"

"I'm leaving in five seconds," Dolly stated as she opened the door and started walking to her car. She calmly started the ignition as she watched her sister trip over her own feet while attempting to run towards the passenger seat.

Dolly's eyes widened and she quickly locked the car before her sister could enter. Noting her sister's exasperated stare, she pointed towards the backseat and unlocked the door once Val begrudgingly made her way there. Valentina sat against the window with a harrumph, throwing her backpack to the ground.

"Are you blind? Chrissy's cheer uniform is already in the passenger seat and I don't need your dirty jeans ruining it." Dolly scolded as she backed up into the road, glaring at her sister through the rearview mirror after noticing her eye roll.

"They're not dirty!" Val said, before looking down and noticing the burnt detailings on her black jeans. Her eyes widened and she quickly attempted to cover them up with her hands. "Uh, they're just stained! Besides, that stupid cheer uniform could use some spice."

"You haven't worn those god-awful jeans since summer, I don't know what kind of stupid games you were playing with Nancy Wheeler's brother but you need to chill. God, you have got to stop hanging out with those weirdos." Dolly sighed. "Even that little redheaded girl is a total freakshow now. If you wanted, I could still find you some more, uh-"

Feeling her sister's glare burning into the back of her head, Dolly cleared her throat and continued.

"Respectable friends."

Val crossed her arms and with a glare, snarled, "I don't need new friends. Mike, Dustin, Lucas, El, and Max would risk their lives for me and I'd do the same."

Dolores chuckled at her sister's dramatics and she pulled into the school parking lot.

"I know this may seem hard to believe, nerd, but Dragons and Dungeons is not real life. Just because those kids, I don't know, let you borrow their dice does not mean they'd actually fight a dragon for you."

"Believe what you want," Val grumbled as Dolly parked. Dolly looked back at her sister through the rearview mirror and sighed. As her sister grabbed her bag and opened the door, she softly reached for her sister's arm.