𝐙𝐄𝐑𝐎 ✯ steve harrington¹

𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐄𝐈𝐆𝐇𝐓 : webb vs. callahan

WORD COUNT : 5.6k

All of the Webb kids burst through their front door, laughing and talking over each other. They were all still feeling the buzz of the basketball game, despite their home team losing terribly. The sight of their dad hunched over the kitchen counter stopped them in their tracks, halting their joyful entry. Typically, he was already in bed by this time, so the sight threw all of them off. His eyelids were sagging while he shoved a sandwich into his mouth mindlessly.

Further investigation of the scene had the kids noticing a couple different open liquor bottles that were sitting atop the coffee table in the living room. One of the bottles was right next to him in the kitchen, apparently supposed to accompany his ham and cheese sandwich. The three of them looked at one another, not sure what side of their father they would have to deal with right now. Gordon was the one who finally stepped forward slowly, approaching the larger man.

"How about we get you in bed for the night? It's pretty late," Gordon reasoned, speaking gently. The older man's eyes pulled open just to shoot a lazy side-eye Gordon's way, stubbornly shoving yet another bite into his mouth.

"Don't talk t'me like I'm a child. I'll go t'bed when I want," he grumbled, reaching forward to take another sip from the bottle beside him. But Law was surprisingly quick, stepping up and snatching the drink before the drunkard could grab it. Surprisingly, their father just continued to feel around on the countertop, blindly searching for the bottle that was no longer there. Eventually, he gave up with a grunt, stuffing the last of his sandwich into his waiting mouth. Law quietly brought the bottle in his hands back into the living room and sat it amongst the others.

The three kids felt like they were holding their breath, not wanting to make any kind of wrong move or comment that would set off their drunk father. He was clearly already feeling pretty tense just based on the way that Gordon had baby-talked to him. That was basically strike one in their world. Now, they just needed to get him to a bed so that he could pass out and they could roam freely about their own house.

"I've got t'work in th'morning. Need'ta get t'bed," their father announced, making their job easy. He finally stood to his full height, eyes opening despite their lids being so droopy. He turned slowly, looking almost surprised to see Gordon standing beside him. Then, like their interaction just moments prior was forgotten, he patted his oldest son on the shoulder before slipping past him. "Don't bother me 'till tomorrow," the older man warned as he continued down the hallway. In his way, this was saying goodnight to his kids. They knew it and so did he.

Once the bedroom door shut for the evening, the three kids began to clean up the mess strewn from the living room to the kitchen. They cleaned silently as they waited for the telltale sound of their father's snoring, their sign that he was sound asleep for the rest of the night. Law tucked the final bottle away in the pantry, just as the obnoxious snoring began to resound through the walls. Gordon, Owen, and Law all peeked at each other excitedly, feeling like their mission was complete. 

All three of them plopped down onto the couch, sighing in relief. Gordon reached up, grabbing the remote and flicking the television on. Their dad had apparently been watching the news before he went to bed, which almost never interested the three kids. Gordon nearly changed the channel upon instinct, but Law swiftly leaned forward and grabbed the remote out of the older boy's hand.

"Wait! Look!" Instead of changing the channel, he turned up the volume just slightly. A breaking local news story was on the screen in front of them.

Will Byers' body had been found.

This story certainly caught all of their attention once they really processed what it said. This information caused silence to fall upon the three siblings once again. Each of them listened intently in an attempt to hear what could have possibly happened. Reportedly, a state trooper was the one to have found the boy in the nearby Sattler Quarry. There was no cause of death yet, leaving the interpretation of the boy's death up to the viewers for now.