We all stop at Mr Clarke's desk after class, waiting for him to tell us if it came. "I'm sorry to be the bearer of bad news, guys, but..." he begins, we look at him in disappointment. I was really hoping it would be here today, "It came" he finishes. Yes! We all run to the small lab room where our prize is. "Hey, slow down" mr Clarke instructs us like we're wild animals. Mike opens the door and switches the light on to reveal the, "The Healthkit ham shack, ain't she a beauty?" Mr Clarke says coming in behind us. I move past Lucas to get a better view as Mike sits down in front of it. I turn the volume up on the side and switch channels. "I bet you could talk to New York on this thing" Dustin says, "Think bigger" I look at Mike and laugh at how cool this thing is. "California" Lucas asks, Mike puts the headphones on. "Bigger" Mr Clarke says, "Australia?" Mike asks earning a nod. Now way! That's so cool. "When Will sees this, he's totally gonna flip his shiy" Lucas says, only to get scolded by our teacher.
"Lucas!" Mr Clarke says. "Sorry" Dustin and I laugh. "Tune it it" I say, Mike turns the knobs on the radio and starts using a fake Australian accent. "Hello this is Mike Wheeler. President of Hawkins middle AV Club" he says, making the rest of us laugh. Dustin takes the headphones next and uses another Australian accent, "Hello this is Dustin, the secretary and treasurer of Hawkins middle AV Club. Do you eat kangaroos for breakfast?" he asks, I roll my eyes and laugh. Such an idiot. Lucas goes to take the headphones but we're interrupted by a knock on the door. We all look to see Chief Hopper with another cop and our principal. "Sorry to interrupt but...may I borrow Michael, Lucas, Zoe, and Dustin?" he asks. What did we do wrong?
I grab my backpack and follow my friends out the door, we all sit in the principal's office. "Do any of you know what route Will Byers took on the way home last night?" the chief asks. We all look at each other and start talking at the same time. Our voices overlap. "Okay! Okay! One at a time! You." he says, looking at Mike. "You said he takes what?" he asks. "Mirkwood" Mike answers, the cop and chief look confused. "You ever heard of Mirkwood?" The chief asks, looking at the cop. "Nope, sounds made up to me" he says, it's not, "no, it's from Lord of the Rings" Lucas says. "Well, the Hobbit" Dustin corrects, I look at him, "It doesn't matter" Lucas says. "He asked" Dustin says, making Lucas mock him. I ball up my fist and sock them both in the shoulder. "What, he did ask" Dustin continues, making us all start arguing back and forth. "Hey, what did I just say?" Chief Hopper says, making us stop. "One at a damn time, now you" he says, looking at me. I sigh, "Mirkwood, it's a real road the name is just made up. It's where Cornwallis and Kerley meet" I say.
"Alright, I think I know it" he says, looking at the other officer. "We can show you, if you want" Mike says. "I said I know it!" The chief says, irritated with us. "We can help look" Mike says, we all agree. "No, after school you are all to go home. No biking around and looking for your friend, no investigating, no nonsense" chief Hopper says, that's such bullshit. He's our friend. "This isn't some Lord of the Rings book." He says, "The Hobbit" Dustin corrects. "Dustin!" I say, Lucas hits him in the leg, "Shut up" he says. Dustin starts hitting him back between me and Mike, "Stop it, both of you" I say, trying to separate them. "Do I make myself clear?" chief Hopper asks. Lucas and Dustin stop as he walks towards us, "Do I make myself...clear?" he asks again, waiting for a response. "Yes sir" we all say. "Get to class now" our principal says, they can't do that can they? Ban us from looking for our friend? We all walk out of the door in silence, not arguing with the chief. "Guys, keep your walkies on tonight, okay?" Mike says, we all nod. Mike and Dustin head to their nect class while Lucas and me head to ours. "Do you think something bad happend to Will?" I ask as we walk the hall. I just have a really bad feeling, "No, of course not. He probably just got spooked from his mom and brother not being home and ran off" Lucas says. I really hope that's all it was. "See you later Zoe" Lucas says as we separate. That's when I remember what Will said last night. "The demogorgan, it got me."
