Through The Strangest Things || Steve Harrington x Reader

4. The Body

I stood there, staring at the wall, expressionless, as Hopper's voice did little to cancel out the ringing in my ears. Someone had found a body in the quarry, and it had been wearing the exact same thing Will had been that night I spent at Nancy's. The night he went missing.

I chose to drown out everything he was saying, which wasn't difficult considering the ringing in my ears only continued to get worse. Hopper had said something about Will crashing his bike and then accidentally falling into the quarry, causing him to drown.

I knew it wasn't true. I had just spoken to him through the goddamn lights, for fuck's sake. My mother tried to tell Hopper the same thing, but he wasn't going to believe her. The only reason I believed every word my mother said was because I was there. I witnessed everything happen, right in front of me.

Joyce continued to walk frantically around the room, desperately trying to convince Hopper that what she saw actually happened. Jonathan didn't believe it any more than Hopper did. He was trying to get my mom to calm down and cooperate.

I stood alone by the arm chair in my living room, across the room from my mom, the chief of police, and my brother. I could hear bits and pieces of the conversation they were having, which consisted of my mother explaining the creature to Hopper.

I felt a rush of air blow past me. I looked up to see Jonathan retreating down the hall to his bedroom, silently sobbing while he walked. Hopper had his hands on Joyce's arms, taking Jonathan's place in calming her down.

I hated it. I hated the way they were treating my mom. Like she was fragile and going to break any second. Like they had to handle her carefully or she would turn to dust in their arms. It made me mad.

Hopper sat her down on the edge of our coffee table and kneeled in front of her. I decided I wanted to listen to this part of the conversation.

"Listen to me," Hopper said, taking a long pause before speaking again. "After Sarah . . . I saw her too. And I heard her. I didn't know what was real. And then I figured out that it was in my mind. And I had to pack that all away. Otherwise, I was gonna fall down a hole . . . that I couldn't get out of."

My mom shook her head, denying everything that he just said. "No, you-you're talking about grief. This is different," she said, her voice trembling.

"I'm just saying that you--" Hopper tried, but Joyce cut him off.

"No, I know what you're saying, Hop. I swear to you, I know what I saw. And I'm not crazy," she defended herself, tears rolling down her face while she spoke.

"I'm not saying that you're crazy," Hopper said.

"No, you are. And I understand, but . . . god, I . . . I need you to believe me," Mom said, full on breaking down. "Please."

Hopper just looked into her eyes for a beat before speaking again. "Listen . . . I think you should go to the morgue tomorrow and see him for yourself. It'll give you the answers that you need. But tonight . . . I want you to try and get some sleep, if you can."

Joyce sighed in defeat and patted his hand. Hopper stood up slowly, leaving my mother shaking slightly on the coffee table. She just stared blankly at the floor while fidgeting with the fabric around her knees.

As soon as Hopper exited the house, I walked away from the arm chair, slowly making my way towards the part of the wall where the creature came out of. I stared at it for a little bit before I went to my room, putting my headphones on and drowning out the rest of the world with music.

I have no idea what just happened with the lights and that creature, but I knew one thing for sure. I knew that Will wasn't dead.

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