𝐄𝐌𝐎𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍𝐀𝐋 𝐑𝐄𝐒𝐂𝐔𝐄! ✽ 𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘁𝗼𝗻

44

𝐈𝐓 𝐂𝐀𝐌𝐄 𝐀𝐒 𝐀 𝐒𝐔𝐑𝐏𝐑𝐈𝐒𝐄 𝐓𝐎 absolutely no one that when the conversation of volunteering to disguise the shed came about, steve and sheridan instantly offered to do the job together. just as nancy had begun to extend the help, dani beat her to it. hopper had emptied the shed of the junk it had accumulated over the years, and sheridan followed steve as he trudged outside. tarps littered the ground. steve let out a sigh as he dragged one inside, the redheaded girl giggling quietly.

dani tore off strips of duct tape and hung them from a nearby beam, while steve stood atop the step ladder, stapling the tarps taught to the wood. she smirked as she watched him bite down on his bottom lip in concentration. "thanks for helping out, steve," sherrie piped up as she ripped another piece away from the roll. while he paused, she continued. he gawked down at her, almost falling into a trance. she could make even the most mundane tasks enchanting. "i always seem to get you wrapped up in these kinds of things."

"don't sweat it," he replied, beginning to staple again. "i'll always be here for you, and if that means helping those little shitheads too, then so be it." quaint laughter fell from sheridan's lips before she went silent.

"do you think will's gonna be okay?" she questioned. her voice cracked, causing steve's head to instantly turn in her direction once more. he watched as a single tear, illuminated by the single lightbulb, drifted down her cheek.

"hey," he murmured softly. the boy stepped down from the ladder and wrapped his arms around dani. he felt her tear soak into his t-shirt, her cheek pressing against his chest. his hand ran up and down her back as she embraced him tightly. he rested his chin atop her head. "i know he'll be okay. he's made it through everything else that's been thrown at him, he won't stop now." sheridan's grip tightened. she balled his jacket into her fists. steve stared down at her as his hands continued their fluid motion along her spine. "i know it's easier said than done, but will wouldn't want you to worry about him."

sherrie nodded her head, her hair tussling against steve's body. she peeled herself off of him as she wiped away her tears. one of his arms remained around her shoulders. "i can't believe you ratted dustin out about mews," the girl chuckled, changing the subject before it had grown too tense. steve let out a defensive scoff.

"i didn't know we were keeping that under wraps!" sherrie continued to laugh. she had done that more today than she had in what felt like forever. and steve had grown to adore the sound. he was happy to be the cause of it. he would say the stupidest things every day if it meant he had the chance to hear her laugh. in situations such as these, he needed it. he craved it. his appetite for the sound of her laughter for nearly insatiable; it was his life source.

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𝐄𝐕𝐄𝐑𝐘𝐎𝐍𝐄 𝐇𝐀𝐃 𝐄𝐕𝐄𝐍𝐓𝐔𝐀𝐋𝐋𝐘 assembled in the shed, helping steve and dani put up the last of the tarps; they also lined the walls with sheets of newspaper, cardboard, and aluminum foil. they had even wrapped the furniture in kraft paper.

steve stood at sheridan's side just outside the shed. the redheaded girl chomped down on her fingernails, watching as jonathan tied will up to the support post in the middle of the shack. once he was finished, and lucas had gone back inside the house, he poked his head through the door. "ready?" he inquired with raised brows.

tears pricked at sherrie's eyes. her heart had grown heavy in her chest; but the feeling of steve's hand on her shoulder had instantaneously sent the weight floating from her body. she glanced back at him. his lips curved in a comforting smile. she practically lept into his arms, nearly sobbing into his shirt again. shivers flew down her spine as he ran his fingers down her flames of hair. "i'll be right outside," steve reassured quietly. dani held him at arm's length, and after a moment of contemplating whether she truly had enough courage to go through with this, she gave him a nod. steve gave her shoulder a squeeze, and with that, she led the way into the shed.

joyce and hopper stood just inside the door. barely past her mother's shoulder could sheridan see her younger brother. the industrial-strength studio lights cast a white glow on his already ghostly, fragile body. jonathan closed the entrance behind them. they watched together as hopper dangled an ammonia-soaked cotton ball beneath will's nose. the boy gasped awake, his pupils the size of marbles. dani jumped out of her skin, and just beyond the door, steve paced back and forth ceaselessly.

will's squinted eyes fell onto all of them, one by one. all sherrie could do was send the real will a smile of sympathy. he grunted in pain as he attempted to wiggle free from the grip of the rope. once he had realized exactly what was happening, his movements became more feverish. his eyes rigidly glanced around the room. "w-what is this?" he asked as he continued his squirming. "what is this?" will questioned, louder than the first. "why am i tied up?!"

joyce knelt down to his level, her hands grazing his knees. "will, we just wanna talk to you. we're not gonna hurt you."

without responding to his mother, he demanded, "where am i?!"

hopper joined joyce. in his hands was one of will's drawings; dani could hardly recollect it but could tell immediately from its contents and the way that it was drawn that it was a product of her brother. "you recognize this?" jim interrogated. he had donned his chief voice. "do you recognize this?" he persisted after no reply from will. he shook his head from side to side.

"hey," joyce muttered, capturing his attention. "we wanna help you. but to do that, we have to understand how to kill it."

"why am i tied up?" will screamed. sherrie jumped from the suddenness. her heart rate increased tenfold. "why am i tied up? why am i tied up?! why am i tied up?!" he continued. hopper restrained him, one hand around will's shoulders and another against his chest. will continued to screech out his question. dani clasped a hand over her mouth, tempted to move it up to her eyes to avoid watching the scene that was unfolding in front of her. but before she could, she began to notice that the floodlights and the shed's lightbulb had begun to flicker. her eyes locked with mike and jonathan's to make sure she wasn't just hallucinating. "let me go! let me go! let me go! let me go!" will's voice distorted with each cry. it was like they were watching a rerun of the exorcist.

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