Zero: A Stranger Things Fanfiction

Chapter 008

The Americana sweatshirt was the warmest thing Jenna had in her closet. She drew it on without a second thought, tossing a pair of gloves in her bag. She nearly closed her dresser drawer, but at the thought of Eleven's cold little hands, snatched her old pair and packed them too.

Sliding onto the floor, Jenna grabbed her walkie-talkie.

"Come in, Mike." She began tying the laces to her converse, pressing her face against the side of her walkie. "Dustin come in. Christ. Michael Wheeler, Dustin Henderson, come the hell-"

"Jenna! What's going on? Over!"

She gave a breathless chuckle at the sound of Mike's voice, double-knotting the dirtied laces.

"I'm going out to look for El. Over."

"We are too! Dustin and I thought if all three of us split up, we'll cover more ground and find-"

"Nope." She sighed, leaning back against her bed and giving her bag one last look through. "No way in hell I'm letting you guys search out there on your own. Over."

"But it would be faster! And if El's in danger, she needs help! Over!"

That was true, Jenna had to concede. She made some obscene grumbles as she got to her feet, gazing out of her window.

"Fine," she said, with some annoyance. "But you and Dustin stick together. And never go anywhere far away from people, I need you within shouting distance of help. You stay on this channel, I want hourly check-ins. HOURLY. You copy? Over."

"Yeah, I copy. We'll start down Berry, by the McDonalds. Over."

Jenna nodded, even though nobody could see her. Flying down the steps without a care for the house's other inhabitants, she laughed at Dustin's voice in the background. Something about whether or not Eleven likes Nilla Wafers.

"Got it. I'll head downtown. It's unlikely she'll be there, but I need to check it off the list. Mike, be careful. Over."

"Always. Over and out."

---

There was no place lonelier than a place full of people. Jenna wandered the sidewalk, dodging in and out of alleyways, glancing through shop windows. As of yet, she had been greeted only by mannequins. There was no sign of Eleven.

The sun hadn't pierced the overcast sky once since Jenna had set out. Her pace was slowing, she had to admit. She was exhausted by the eternal clickings of passerby's heels and growls of car engines whirring past. She kicked a pebble along the concrete, always scanning her surroundings for the slightest hint that El had passed by.

Wherever that girl went, she drew eyes. Hopefully, some of those eyes were walking alongside Jenna. She turned a corner.

Oh, those eyes were not on anything but the spray painted theater.

She stared, openmouthed, at the uneven red words splashed across the marquee. All The Right Moves (hadn't that been playing since September??) was spelled out normally, but the spray paint screamed out: STARRING NANCY 'THE SLUT' WHEELER.

She slowly paced the sidewalk, keeping the vandalized building in sight. Sure, Jenna wasn't the type to cheer Nancy Wheeler on with a foam finger, but who the hell hated her enough to do that? She kept moving, arms crossed so one hand carelessly sat on her mouth. The voice she heard next was both a shock and a grim reveal. She stopped suddenly, standing in the mouth of an alleyway sandwiched between two brick shops.

"You know what, Byers? I'm actually kind of impressed. I always took you for a queer, but I guess you're just a little screw-up like your father." Steve Harrington was just as coldly furious as his words might suggest. Leading his entourage, he stood down Nancy and Jonathan, who had clearly both turned to leave.