Risky Business.

011. enemy agent

chapter 011,
enemy agent

SOMETHING ABOUT INTERROGATING A BOY AS INNOCENT AS WILL BYERS rubbed Lucy the wrong way, especially when Hopper and Jonathan held his unconscious form up to a chair and tied him down so he couldn't escape. Lucy knew that Will was dangerous, sure, but she couldn't look past the fact that on the outside, he looked the exact same. He looked like Will Byers. And Will Byers was not a kid who was so dangerous that he needed to be tied down and interrogated.

So Lucy sat inside the Byers's house with the rest of the kids save for Leo and Jonathan, who were those arguably closest with Will and therefore had special perks—such as staying at his side as he was examined in the locked-down shed.

Mike, Lucas, Max and Dustin sat in the kitchen, surrounding the breakfast table and leaning back in their seats, none of them uttering a word to each other. Nancy and Steve watched over them from the doorway, both leaning against opposite sides of the frame and gazing at the ground with their arms crossed. Lucy had excused herself for the bathroom, but if anybody took notice of how long she truly had been gone, they didn't seem to think anything of it. Nobody came after her. This was probably for the best, she decided—she didn't want anyone to see her holding back tears.

She had no idea why she was crying. All she knew was all of her emotions from the past twenty-four hours were coming back up in a heap of hot tears. Fear, nervousness, anger, confusion—all of it. She had always been an angry crier, but the only frustration she felt was toward herself. Guilt. All of the liability for her brother fell on her shoulders, and if she had been just a little bit less focused on herself, she would have noticed everything he'd been going through. If she'd just been stronger.

     A knock.

     Somebody was on the other side of the door. It was a short, quiet rasp. One tap. Lucy lifted her head, swallowing back a lump of tears and steadying her voice long enough to call out, "Just a minute—"

     But the person on the other side cut her off with a gentle voice. "Luce, it's me. Can I come in?"

     Lucy paused. She stared at the door for a second, debating within herself as to whether or not she should unlock the door. Finally, she reached out from her spot on the ledge of the bathtub and clicked the lock out of place.

     The doorknob twisted and Steve's head poked through a small opening, his eyes searching the bathroom before realizing Lucy was behind the door. He frowned and slid his whole body into the tight room.

     "Hey," he said quietly, shutting the door behind him. "You okay? I was wondering where you went."

Lucy rested her chin on her fist, gazing in front of her at nothing in particular. She could feel Steve's eyes on her. She didn't reply for a moment, afraid her voice would betray her and show Steve she'd been crying.

"I'm okay," she said, slowly and carefully, trying to control her emotions. "How's it going out there?"

"Same as it was when you left." After a pause, Steve frowned, narrowing his eyes at Lucy. "You sure you're alright?"

She avoided eye contact, giving him a nod. "Yeah. Just kinda.. shaken-up, I guess."

"Do you wanna talk?" Steve asked, tilting his head in. "I'm all ears."

"No, that's okay," she said quickly, lifting her shoulder. "I'm.. I'll be alright. Thanks, Steve."

He muttered an "Of course" in a tone that made Lucy think he wasn't thrilled she wasn't telling him what was on her mind, but altogether nodded his head and made to leave the bathroom. As his hand turned the knob and he pulled open the door, Lucy stood, saying his name.