Suicide Hotline (Byler)

Chapter One: The Arcade

      Today I agreed to meet Will, Lucas, and Dustin at the arcade. Rather than playing video games in my basement, we decided to switch it up for the day and go to the Hawkins arcade together for a couple of hours.
       "Hey Mike!!" Will yelled to me as my bike came to a halt. I hopped off, and threw it on the cold, metal rack as fast as I could. I ran up to him and gave him a big bear hug, his feet slightly levitating above the concrete as we held each other. As soon as I let go of him, Dustin and Lucas came speeding into the arcade parking lot. I glanced at them as I stepped away from Will. Lucas and Dustin smiled and waved at us as they put their bikes in the same metal rack as mine.
       Just as we started towards the door, I noticed Jonathan's vehicle pulling out of the lot and shot him a small wave, though I knew he probably wouldn't notice it. He had a sense of worry on his face, but I didn't think much of it.
      Lucas opened the door and a little bell rang above. "I'm going to hit the restroom real quick. I'll be back in a minute!" He gave us a thumbs up then jogged away, and Dustin turned in mine and Will's direction.
      Dustin asked us, "Wanna' go try to beat Max's score? Still pissed about that!" Will laughed as he nodded at Dustin. "Well.. of course!!" I exclaimed. We ran towards the games and made our way towards Dig Dug, but I couldn't stop staring at him. He was so pretty, like nobody else in the universe. His beautiful hazel eyes, his brown hair, I mean... he was flawless. Will the Wise. Zombie Boy. He was perfect.
      
       RINGGG!!! Oh. My gosh. I frantically snatched my phone out of my left jean pocket. Great. Of all times... someone miss dialed the hotline again.
      I hated the way I reacted. Whoever this was... they just needed help. I couldn't be mean, especially to someone so fragile and vulnerable. I watched it ring, and closed my eyes as I swiped except and told my friends I needed to excuse myself.
     "Hello?" A middle-aged woman asked. She sounded sad. "Hello ma'am. What is your name?" "I'm Kristen." "Nice to meet you, Kristen.What has seemed to bring you down lately?" I hoped she couldn't sense my anxiety. "Well, burn out from just about everything, really. I have no energy either; I feel worthless." She sighed. I paused to think, then spoke again. More confidence overcame my body.
      "What exactly has burnt you out ma'am?" As I finished speaking, I drew my attention to Will. A smirk appeared on the corner as I watched him.
      The woman continued, "My job, taking care of my kids, driving everyone around, and doing all of the work in my house. I just can't do it. I'm tired of everything and everyone. I just want it to be over." Her voice sounded tired and lifeless. I wanted to squeeze her hand and tell her that it will be ok. And that she can do it. I told her, "By the looks of it, it seems obvious that you are the backbone of your family, and the hardest worker. You are very strong to be able to handle this, and I hope you can see that everyone loves you so much. You provide so much for them to have good lives. And deep down, they love you more than anyone else in the entire world." "Mhmm.b" Her voices attitude showed improvement: it showed hope.          
       "Hang on Kristen, you're strong. You can get through this. Rest and give yourself time to yourself. Find your passion for everything you do." "Thank you for assisting me and giving me more insight hun. I needed it." I smiled as I told her, "No problem. Good luck, I wish you the best!" "You too hun." She hung up the phone, and it was easy to see her smile, even though I couldn't physically see it.

      "I'm back guys!!" I smiled and peered at the wide Dig Dug screen. "I've almost beat Max's score!" Dustin exclaimed to me as joy spread across his face. I looked at his score in the corner, and yes, he was very close. I snugged next to Will as I watched Dustin play. "Come on...!" Will muttered as he clenched his left fist.
      I turned to see Lucas sprinting towards us. His eyes widened once he saw the score on the screen. "HOLY SHIT DUSTIN!" His jaw dropped to the floor. Dustin took a split second to peer at Lucas. He couldn't stop smiling. "I'm so..close..." His focus increased as he came close to stealing Max's first place spot on the leaderboard.
      We watched patiently in the loud silence. Seconds began to feel like hours. Tick. Tock. Tick. Tock.

    "YEAH!!" We all screamed as our fists shot in the air. Dustin FINALLY did it. MadMax? Yeah. She was now second. And Dustin? Our best friend? Was now number one.