Upside Down and Inside Out

Chapter 1: New Revelations

Author's Note: This is the first Stranger Things fic I've written, and I'm particularly fond of Robin and Nancy. Feel free to let me know what you think in the comments; I always love looking at them. Happy reading :)

As I walked through the crowded halls of Hawkins High, I didn't think my afternoon could possibly get any worse. Of course, as most people are when they make that assumption, I was wrong. Okay, maybe I'm being a little dramatic, but sometimes running into a person I hate can be more draining than fighting a demogorgon.

"Nancy Wheeler, is that you?" a voice rings out down the hallway, startling me from my thoughts. I turn slowly and flash a smile at the new yearbook adviser, Christina Martin.

"Hey, Christina. How are you?" I keep my voice light and neutral, hoping my disdain for her wasn't too obvious. It's been a year since we dealt with any kind of supernatural monsters, but I've come to find that the real monsters are often the people right in front of you.

"I've been doing great, thank you for asking! What brings you back here? Miss your old glory days?"

"I was just coming to interview Principal Clancy for an article."

"Oh, are they actually letting you write now?" She cocks her head to the side, the perfect picture of innocent curiosity.

I offer her a tight smile before responding. "Yes, I've been writing for The Hawkins Post for five months now."

"Oh, okay. They must not have you working on the main stories since I haven't seen your name, but everyone has to start somewhere, right?" She offers me the fakest smile possible, and I want nothing more than to slap it off her face right then and there.

"Yes, for sure. I was surprised to hear that you aren't teaching journalism since you seem to know so much about it." Her smile fades immediately, and it takes effort to keep a smirk from my own face. "It was great seeing you, Christina." I offer her one more smile and head toward the main office. I can feel her staring daggers at my back the whole way.

...

A few hours later, I finally stagger into my apartment and toss my keys onto the counter. I hear a door open and the patter of feet on tile followed immediately by a shriek and a loud thud. "Robin?" I call, hurrying into the living room.

"Oh, hey, Nance. How's it going?" Robin flashes me a sheepish grin from where she's lying on the ground next to our coffee table.

"Are you okay?" I ask, trying to muffle my laugh. I love my roommate and how clumsy she can be.

"Yep! Never been better!" She staggers to her feet, nearly falling over again in the process, and I laugh for real this time. My day has already gotten significantly better, and I've been home less than a minute.

"Robin, how you have survived this long without a concussion, I will never understand."

"Oh, no, I've had a few concussions...come to think of it, that might explain a lot..." Her voice trails off, and I raise my eyebrows at her.

"Robin Buckley, what am I going to do with you?" I wink, and her face reddens slightly.

"Hopefully keep being my roommate because I think I'd starve to death if left alone with my cooking skills." She laughs as she flops onto the couch and pats the space next to her. I join her, unceremoniously kicking my heels to the other side of the room.

"Well, lucky for you, I don't plan on going anywhere anytime soon." I put my head on her shoulder for a moment, content to just sit in silence. Robin clears her throat a few minutes later, so I lift my head and turn to face her. I raise my eyebrows expectantly when she doesn't say anything right away. "What's up?" I ask when I finally get tired of waiting.