unlit candles (byler)

Vecna Strikes Again

   They finally arrived. Mike and Will had advised a plan to save El with Owens. He was going to get her out, and Argyle's van was the runaway car. They were waiting for about 20 minutes before Will spotted Eleven running to the van as fast as she could. He quickly opened the door as she jumped in.

"Eleven! I was so worried!" Mike exclaimed, hugging her tightly. She then kissed him, but Mike didn't reciprocate well. He sort of sat there in place while El kissed him.

"Everyone," Eleven said, "I got my powers back, can you believe it?!"

"That's great!" Mike said.

"Oh no, man! Your hair's all gone. Don't worry, it looks good."

"Thanks," El replied, "But pay attention to driving now. We need to go as soon as possible." Argyle nodded and began driving faster.; they headed to Hawkins. El needed to save the world.

"You need to tell us all about what happened! I'm so curious," Mike said.

"So much, Mike. They got my powers back by making me relive the past through memories, but then, after one of the most powerful memories I relived, I got out, and I felt really tired. Which Papa said was normal so I headed toward the makeshift bedroom they made for me."

"Who the hell is 'Papa'?" Asked Jonathan

"Papa is the man who gave me my powers in the first place. Anyway, I was headed back to the bedroom and that was when Owens stopped me and told me I needed to get out of there now. I got my powers back, but Papa wasn't going to stop there, I needed to leave before it got too dangerous. He helped me escape, but a ton of men were chasing me, and that was why I was running to get into the van. I did knock them out with my powers, but you can never be too careful," El finished.

"Damn El," Jonathan said.

"I'm glad you're okay," Mike added.

"So do your powers tire you out more, or was that memory just that powerful?" Will asked.

"I think it's a bit of both," El said. Will nodded his head to indicate he understood.

***

"Hey guys, I'm going to stop at a gas station, just letting you know," Argyle said.

"Okay!" Mike and Will said in unison.

Once Argyle left, Mike said, "I bet you 5 dollars that the van was running on fumes."

"Make that zero. I know it was running on fumes," Will said, causing both of them to laugh.

"When did you guys get close again?" El asked. She sounded upset but mostly curious.

"When I apologized for being a dick," Mike said.

"Oh," El said.

Throughout the road trip, El noticed that Mike and Will were much closer than before. They continued laughing with each other over things she didn't understand, and she kept a mental tab that whenever their hands brushed over each other's, each time Will would blush.

"Not fair," El finally said.

"What?" Mike questioned.

"It's not fair. Why are you so touchy with each other? It's obvious that Will likes you, Mike." El had always been too forward.

"What?!" Mike, Argyle, and Jonathan all said in unison. Will kept quiet.

"Will's not gay, El. That's, that's not a normal thing," Mike said. Will felt crushed by those words.