𝙘𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙧𝙮 𝙥𝙤𝙥! 𝙨𝙩𝙚𝙫𝙚 𝙝𝙖𝙧𝙧𝙞𝙣𝙜𝙩𝙤𝙣

SCENE TWENTY ONE. mysterious munson

she found herself sat at the back of nancy's car. headphones over her ears, not because she had too but she couldn't bear to listen to the conversation. she wore jeans and having her knees tucked against harrington's didn't make anything better. their shoes nearly touching. muddy vans against red converse. she was playing with the hem of her shirt, it was baggy and a pretty dark cherry coloured. she noticed steve's eyes on her but she didn't have the heart to return the look. 'i will survive' played softly on her headphones. robin had offered her the choice of changing the single tape to a mixtape. so piper choose her own. if favourite songs were the key to getting out of vecna's curse. piper was loaded with a mixtape of her own.

'you think i'd crumble? you think i'd lay down and die?' played lightly. she couldn't help but think of the awful foreshadowing of her playlist. how well it linked to the never ending string of events she found herself roped into. first a russian base, then the mind controlling monster and now this thing? what was next, they all came to destroy the world? right, count her out. but it didn't matter, every key they found out about vecna was one step closer to destroying him. and nancy drove the car to a halt at their destination. reefer ricks. the group clamouring out the car. steve walked along behind her as she removed her headphones to listen in to what the police man was saying. someone was murdered on the lake.

"an eighteen year old senior from hawkins high.'' mary held her breath. did piper have something to do with this? her daughter and her friends had come back looking shaken up, scared.

"is eddie still in hawkins?" one of the news reporters cried. when dustin's radio flickered on.

"dustin, can you hear me? parker, are you there?" dustin reached for it as piper returned to watching the group of people. she could understand why they painted him as the town's serial killer. he did look a little weird and creepy but he wasn't like that. he was just a little freak. strange if you will.

"skull rock. do you know where it is?" she heard eddie speak as she zoned back in.

"yeah, i know where that is." steve stated. as he should, he claimed it was their spot after all. and he led the group back to the car.

"we're coming!'' dustin shouted, reading to pocket the radio when eddie's voice came through. much weaker, like he had stopped pretending to be okay.

"wait, can i speak to parker?"

"hey eds." she spoke, grabbing the radio of dustin as she followed the group back to the car.

"i saw it, and it happened again. right in front of me." he cried, voice wavering a crack followed by the fuzz of the radio. he sounded like he was going to cry, or he was crying.

"i have something to tell you." she spoke after going silent for a moment, her voice was cold. and he knew.

"no.'' she didn't see it but she knew he had his head in his hands. knees tucked to his chest as he sat by the rock. hidden away from the world.

"yeha." she spoke softly, before the radio cut off. hearing the faint sob before it had turned off from his side. and she handed the phone back to dustin as they drove closer to the destination of eddie. she was helping dustin with the map, he was trying to figure out the compass as she held out the map. her eyes following the never ending winding path to skull rock.

"dude, i'm telling you. you're taking us the wrong way."

"it's north."

"i'm not sure we're going north.'' piper mumbled from in front of the two boys, leading them almost. she couldn't figure the map out and she certainly wasn't going to mention that it kept moving. the numbers flickering and switching constantly. but everything was fine.

"you do realise skull rock is like a super popular make out spot?" brilliant, their spot was actually a proper makeout spot.

"yeah well it wasn't popular until i made it popular. all right? i practically invented it." and she halted in her step. dust scraping against her shoes as she did so. dustin flying into her back. staring back at steve who finally realised what he had said.

the stretch of pinkish clouds were above them. his arm wrapped around her shoulder as they had laid there. music playing softly from his speakers. sipping on the beer he had bought from the stop and shop.

their spot? ha. how pathetic that she had fully believed him.

"you're an arsehole, you know that right." she sneered and his shoulders slumped finally before turning to walk in another direction. claiming that it was this way instead. she is walking alone now. noticing max having a heart to heart with lucas. robin having a chat with nancy, a metaphor of getting back together with someone. was everyone wanting steve and nancy to get back together? how could she feel so alone yet surrounded by her friends.

"in your face man. in you stupid cocky little face. even when it's staring you in the face, you can't admit it." steve laughed as he found skull rock. dustin mumbling something that it made no sense

"you are so..'' piper spoke as she showed herself through the bushes covering the entrance. getting leaves in her hair because of the bushes.

"smart? charming? handsome?" steve gleamed, turning back to look at her. he wore that stupid yellow sweater. the cocky little cunt. was he still trying to rub it in her face? he reached forward to pull leaves from her hair but she sneaked under his arm and out of reach.

"conceited." she spat, rolling her eyes as she shoved him out of the way slightly to get assed. she didn't even dare look at the actual skull rock. he had lied to her.

"boo!" someone shouted jumping out at the bushes and steve screamed like a little girl and ran behind piper. who had also been scared till she turned to see eddie.

"oh my god!" she cried, jumping at him as he smiled. wrapping his arm around her waist as he caught her. steve ignored the pang in his heart. eddie glanced at the boy in yellow with a smirk. interesting interaction harington.

"i conquer, you dustin henderson, are a total butthead." he commented as she pulled away from it. ignoring the smell of him. he smelt so bad but it was so good to see him.

"jesus, we thought you were a goner." dustin commented on going in for a hug as well. steve looking more jealous that dustin was friends with eddie then he was about that freak having his hands on piper.