troubled souls ~ Steve Harrington

*seven*

There's a twinge of guilt eating at me.

The whole ride to Elm Street, my tactless conversation with Nancy keeps playing back in my mind. Not that I was usually eloquent in the way I spoke my mind. But she cared about Barb just as much as I did. Maybe she just didn't show it the same way.

The thoughts finally stop when I discover that Barb's car is exactly where we left it last night. Even on the inside, everything remains untouched. Down to the placement of my jacket and Nancy's sweater in a pile on the floor.

It seems like a long shot, but I decide to retrace our steps from last night in hopes I can locate some evidence of Barb along the way. It's the only thing that seems to make sense.

My eyes are peeled for anything that sticks out of the leaves. I was stunned at the amount of trash that was scattered all along the way. All I seem to find is ancient beer cans and candy wrappers. Nothing giving a clue as to Barb's whereabouts.

I walk the full three blocks and find myself at Steve's house again. With hopes to get into the backyard, I knock on his door. He mentioned the reason we had the party last night was because his parents were gone, but I didn't know if they would be back by now or not.

There's no response, even after four attempts.

My options at this point are limited. Either I go back to my bike and find some other way to look for Barb. Wait for Steve to get back and I could ask him for help (which I really didn't want to do). Or I break into the backyard.

"Screw it," I mumble under my breath. I scan the street quickly to make sure no is watching me, then rush towards the gate closest to the pool.

My arm barely fits through the gap in the wood. I graze the cold metal, then readjust my stance to get a better grip on the latch.

The gate creaks open to reveal the Harrington's backyard. Dead leaves drift aimlessly in their pool. All the chairs sit, lined up the exact way we left them last night.

The loud crack of a tree branch sounds nearby. It seems to come from the forested area on the property, just past the concrete. Cautiously, I step towards the sound.

"Hello?" I manage through a nervous breath. "Barb?"

The gate squeaks open behind me. I expect to find one of the Harrington's gawking at me, but I'm relieved when I realize it is Nancy.

"Holy shit." My hands collapse against my legs with relief, "You scared the shit out of me."

"I'm sorry," she musters.

Both of us are unsure of how to address each other, the tension palpable. An apology was on the tip of my tongue, but I just couldn't bring myself to say the words.

Nancy takes a deep breath, "Look, you were right earlier. Going to the game was totally stupid. I am so worried about Barb, but I thought I could just ignore it for a minute. I just wanted to run and-"

"I shouldn't have said what I did and I'm really sorry," I interrupt her to confess. "If I had stayed with her, none of this would have happened. I shouldn't have put that on you, Nance."

She solemnly looks at her shoes. Dark specks form in the gravel as tears fall from her eyes.

"But I told her to go home," she bites her bottom lip to stifle a cry, "I blew her off. I knew you left and that she was alone. I shouldn't have been so mean."

I shake my head and step closer to her, "You can't put that on yourself. You weren't being malicious, you know that."

Nancy tugs at her sleeve and wipes it under her eyelids, "But..."

The leaves in the woods shift again with the sound of heavy steps. Nancy and I both swing our heads towards the woods.

"What is that?" She whispers. We cautiously walk in sync towards the forest.

"Barb?" I timidly call out towards the movement. My heart wildly thumbs against my rib cage.

A small squirrel dodges out from behind the trees. It skitters towards a tree branch and rushes up, only to disappear in the canopy above.

I turn to Nance and offer a small chuckle, "That little guy sounded way bigger than he was."

But just as she opens her mouth to respond, a towering figure rushes by.

We both turn to run away, but Nancy slips in the leaves and drops her bag. I double back to help her up. We cling to each other as we exit Steve's yard, then slam the gate shut behind us.

My legs pump faster than they ever have before, mostly because I've never put effort into running. But I'm not satisfied until we're safely hidden behind Barb's car.

"What was that?" Nancy pants, her voice barely audible.

My back muscles twitch, making it uncomfortable to sit still. The spasms to ease a bit as I stretch around to make sure we weren't followed.

"I don't know. But that's not the first time I've seen it."

A lump in my throat makes it impossible to swallow. I ease back against the cool metal, finally meeting Nancy's gaze.

Her eyebrows are arched, lips pursed in confusion, "Wait. You saw that thing before?"

I apprehensively nod my head. "A couple of nights ago when I was biking home. I swear, I blinked at it was just... it was just gone."

A scoff escapes my lips as I continue. "And I know I sound certifiable, but I think it had something to do with Will going missing. And Barb too, it just- it can't be a coincidence."

Nancy's response shocks me.

"I think you're right."

***

My mom didn't deserve to hear the full story. It wasn't like she was going to listen to what I had to say anyway. She would find out about Barb's disappearance on the news and forget every damn word from our conversation, only for me to tell it again.

So, after explaining the smaller details, I march off to my room and strum at my guitar mindlessly. Nancy would tell her mom, who would actually do something productive to help find Barb. Meanwhile, I sat by my phone to wait for her promised call.

It's not long before I hear footsteps stomps up the stairs. Dustin's bedroom door opens and slams shut, shaking the foundation of the house in the process.

This wasn't his normal nighttime ritual when he got home. In fact, usually he stops by my room to tell me some weird fact about lizards or Star Wars. That shift alone leads me to his bedroom door in less than a minute.

"Dustin?" I call out as I lightly rap my knuckles against his door. Before he says anything, I turn the knob and poke my head in.

My brother sits on his bed, legs crisscross, with his baseball cap in his hands. He looks up at me with red rimmed eyes, tears streaming down his cheeks.

"Woah, what's going on?" I hurry into the room and sit myself on the bed next to him. "Are you okay?"

He takes in a ragged breath, "It's-it's Will. They found," he lets out a massive sob, "they found his body at the quarry."

A jolt of negative energy rushes through my body and settles in my stomach. A kid, only twelve years old, is dead.

There are no words I can say that will comfort my brother. Instead, I pull him into my arms where he cries into my shoulder. His fingers grip the fabric of my shirt as we hold each other.

So many emotions swarm through me. I mourn for my brother, for Will's mom, for Jonathan. I'm anxious for Barb, worrying she'll be the next body to wash up on the shores of the quarry. There's a sense of guilt that I wasn't there for her last night, when she needed me most.

And somehow all mixed in, there's a sense of relief. Dustin was still here with me. It wasn't his body they found tonight.

And even though I know it's completely selfish, I try to cling to that feeling just as tightly as I hold him now. It was something I learned from personal experience.

Hope is the only thing that will get us through this nightmare.