[ 𝚂𝚞𝚗 & 𝚁𝚊𝚒𝚗 ] ~ 𝙹𝚘𝚗𝚊𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚗 𝙱𝚢𝚎𝚛𝚜 𝚡 𝙾𝙲

II - Rats?

Justin had been hanging up the photo she had taken of some beauty pageant girls for the Sunday paper when Jonathan decided to ask her to go with him and his girlfriend on some weird call. The picture was nearly done, it just needed to dry so it could finish developing. Jonathan had been stood a little off to the other side of the room, dousing his own photo in development fluid. Justin didn't have a clue what he'd photographed, just that he had tried to get it developed the day before when Nancy let light into the darkroom to bring in lunch. Again. She did it quite often and it was very annoying, but such is life. 

"Why am I here again?" Justin groaned, running a hand over her face. She stood behind the office couple, her camera hung around her neck. She most definitely didn't realize how much of a third wheel she'd feel like when she accepted his offer.  

"Extra witnesses?" Jonathan shrugged.

"I don't know, you just followed us." Nancy huffed, going to knock on the front door of this stranger's house.

"Actually Jonathan technically asked me 'you want to come on some boring assignment that's not really an assignment and we totally aren't supposed to be doing?' And I said 'sure, why not, sounds fun'." Justin clicked her tongue.

"I didn't say that-"

"You basically did." Justin smirked. 

An elderly woman pulled the door open, she looked sweet, yet. . .oddly intimidating. "Yes?"

"Mrs. Driscoll?" Nancy questioned, her eyes were wide, clearly not expecting a woman like herself to answer to knock.

"Yes?"

"Hi, uhm, I'm Nancy. Nancy Wheeler. We spoke briefly on the phone last night." 

"We're from The Hawkins Post." Jonathan added. Justin poked over the two's shoulders with a bright smile and a wave.

"Oh! Oh, yes! Oh, my goodness. Oh, you look too young for reporters." Mrs. Driscoll smiled at the three, nodding slightly as she looked between them. 

"We get that a lot." Justin and Jonathan told her at the same time, the brunette tilting her head to let her ponytail fall with gravity.

The woman chuckled, pulling the door further open to let the teens inside. "Follow me."

The group of teens followed after Mrs. Driscoll, walking into her home. She seemed to be a bit of a clutterer, having things that she most likely didn't need, though everything was still nicely tucked away into their own spots. 

"Oh, it's. . .it's lovely." Nancy let out a fake, airy chuckle. "Uhm, do you live here all alone?" The brunette flipped open her notepad, ready to take down anything the woman said.

"Yes. Jack, my husband, he passed away. What is it now? Ten years ago." The woman shook her head, leading the teens further into her house. 

"Oh, uhm-" Nancy started, turning to Jonathan for help.

Justin rolled her eyes, pushing past the two so she could stand next to Mrs. Driscoll. "I'm so sorry for your loss, ma'am. My father passed away last year, but I can only imagine the pain of losing your partner."

"Oh, why thank you dear. But, there's no reason to be." Mrs. Driscoll turned to Justin, they had stopped by a door. The woman took Justin's hands into her own, looking the blue eyed girl straight in the eye. "I'm sorry about your father, dear."

"Oh, don't be. He was a prick." She assured, shaking her head slightly.

Mrs. Driscoll laughed, "I like this one." She told both Nancy and Jonathan. "But, I kinda like the quiet. At least, I did." The woman turned, pulling the white door beside them open to reveal stairs that lead down into what seemed to be the basement.