"mike"
"mike!"
i wake up to my drapes being pushed open, slapping the morning sun onto my face.
i groan, lifting my head from pillow, oblivious for a moment from where i was.
-"what?" i groan at my sister, rubbing my eyes and starting to sit up from my bed.
-"you're going to be late to school, mom doesnt want you riding your bike." nancy replied, clapping her hands in my face to wake me up which irritated me even more.
-"why?" i scolded sitting at the edge of my bed still squinting from the bright sunlight.
-"because, i don't know? hurry up so we can leave! i have work." she declared before leaving my room, not shutting the door.
i stood up from my bed to shut the door and get ready for this morning, purposely taking my time to piss nance off.
i threw on a navy blue and yellow striped shirt with a random pair of pants and shoes.
i walked downstairs while hearing the irritating sound of my sister following and pushing me around to hurry up.
-"if i'm late to work, mike, i swear i will kill you." she pleaded.
i opened the cabinet door and pulled out a pop tart for breakfast before feeling it being snatched out of my hands.
-"nancy, what the hell?" i growled.
-"car, now!" she pointed towards the door.
i groaned under my breath, pounding my feet onto the floor and out the door to nancys car.
_
my friends and i walked through the school hallway together, lucas and dustin. for some reason, will wasnt there in the parking lot when we arrived. maybe he was just biking? that's what we all assumed, anyway.
max and el strutted down the hall together passing us, wearing their green and gold cheer uniforms. school had just started, it was mid august. which meant it was cheerleading season. i didn't think eleven was the type of person to do any extracurricular, but max put her up to that stupid idea. they were hanging around all the popular girls, which really irritated me. the popular girls hang out with the popular football guys. what if eleven hangs out with them too?
i dont want our relationship to split like i've been dreading. it feels like we're slowly pulling away from each other. it seems like ever since she left for california, our relationship has been distant and awkward. i thought since hopper and wills mom decided to move back to hawkins, our relationship would feel closer and better than before. but it seems even worse.. i've been trying my best to please her but i don't know what to do. i hope she doesn't find a reason to break up with me, i really need her.
i didn't realize i was looking at them from behind me until i turned around from a familiar voice that had gotten deeper over the past year.
will byers was standing next to me, walking with us in the hallway.
he was wearing a white and blue flannel with a similar pair of pants i was wearing, except they were a lighter wash.
-"hey, byers!" lucas called out, smiling at him.
-"are you coming out to lucas' tonight?" dustin asked.
-"for sure." he nodded, smiling at them and then looked across to me and met his eyes with mine.
i gave him a short smile before turning my head straight to look forward again.
things between will and i have shifted a lot since the move. i really like having him as my friend, hes always been one of my favorite friends. but something about him just annoys me now. i don't understand why and what it is, hes such a great friend and we've gone through so much together, but thinking about him makes me moody. it makes me sound like a horrible friend thinking like that, and maybe i am. but i do miss when our friendship was better than it is now, in eighth grade. we were so close, we played atari and d&d all the time together. he would make the best drawings of our party and they were so creative and had so much detail, i still have all of them. he never trusted dustin or lucas to take care of them, so i always got them because i always adored his work. my favorite is one he made of him and i together. it was him, the claric, in his purple and white wizard costume.. and me, the paladin, with my sword and silver armor and red cape. the details of our hair and facial features were so amazing, i hung it up in my bedroom and it's been in there since we were 11.
now we're sophomores in high school i wish i could go back and do whatever i need to do to make our friendship as strong as it was. i really needed him at that time and i need him now with everything going on. hes always there for me and always encouraging and pushing me to do the right thing. i don't know why our friendship grew apart like it did, maybe if he called me more or if i would've ever visited them. i didn't go to california once to visit them and i guess i was just too busy to call, so maybe im the problem.
i sorted my books and papers in my locker for my first class, going through to find my english folder.
-"boo!" i heard from behind me, turning around to see el smiling and walking over next to me.
-"hey!" i weakly smiled, finally finding my folder in the bottom of my bag.
-"are you coming to the game tonight?" she asked, messing with her wavy and long brown hair.
-"uh.. i don't know. i have that thing at lucas' tonight. we all haven't gotten to hang out together since you guys moved back into town." i replied, shutting my locker and leaning against it.
-"half time is at 6:30. will you please at least come by during half time?" she begged, not taking no for an answer.
i hesitated to give her a response. i hate football, always have and always will. but if i dont say yes, she could get up upset..
-"fine, for 10 minutes!" i pleaded, walking away from her.
i could feel her still gazing at me from in front of her, but i didn't turn around to check. i walked in to mrs clicks for class and sat at my usual seat with dustin.
-"hey!" i heard a whisper from next to me, making me turn my head towards the voice.
-"don't be late tonight." dustin whispered again before i responded with a nod, turning my attention towards the teacher again.
i hope el doesnt try to make me stay, i truly hate the idea of her in cheerleading. shes going to get popular and she'll find someone else to be her boyfriend, i can't let that happen.
she won't make me stay, she wouldnt do that. she knows about my thing with lucas tonight.
its only 10 minutes.
