Hey Jude | A STRANGER THINGS Story

CHAPTER THIRTY FOUR

"It's not like before-" Hopper said with his arms crossed and his eyebrows furrowed, "it's grown...a lot." He seemed nervous looking over everyone circling around the kitchen table, scared even. "And that's even if we get in there. The lab is crawling with those dogs."

"Demo-dogs," Dustin corrected, making everyone look at him in confusion. He continued, demogorgon dogs. Demo-dogs."

"How is this important right now?" Hopper asked snarkily.

"I can do it," Eleven said, sitting next to Joyce and Judy. She looked at Hopper with a newfound confidence. "I can do it."

"Even if you can..." Mike started, looking as scared as Hopper was, "there's another problem. If the brain dies, the body dies."

"I thought that was the point," said Max.

"It is. But if we're really right - if she closes the gate and it kills the Mind Flayer's army..." Mike paused.

Lucas was picking up on what Mike was saying. "Will is a part of the army. Closing the gate will kill him."

An ominous silence washed over the group. Everyone was scared now. But even in her fear, Joyce was hatching a plan to keep her son alive. "He likes it cold," she said, low, almost just to herself.

"What?" Judy said from next to her, seemingly the only person who heard what she said.

Joyce looked at her and continued, "He likes it cold. Will told me that. And we just – we just keep giving it what it wants."

Joyce stood and strode over the kitchen windows, looking out at the shed. Judy began to pick up on her ideas. "Mike," she said, looking up at him from the table, "you said this thing was a virus right?"

He nodded and Jud was starting to get the whole picture. "So, if this is a virus... and Will's the host – we need to make the host uninhabitable."

Nancy looked at Judy then at Jonathan. The both of them seemed to have the same look in their eyes. Like they understood what Judy was trying to say. Suddenly, Joyce slammed the windows shut, silencing the wind from outside. She turned back to the group who all looked at her surprised. But she was more than confident now. "Maybe we can burn it out of him."

Everyone shared looks at this, understanding that it just might work.

"We'd have to do it somewhere he doesn't know this time. Somewhere far away," Mike pointed out.

Hopper knew just the place and without a word, he left the kitchen and walked into Will's room. Walking back into the kitchen, he held Will's limp body. "Start the car," he said to Jonatan, who sprung up with his keys, following Hopper. Joyce, Nancy, and Judy all followed behind them.

"Stay on Denfield until you see a bog oak tree-" he said, while laying Will into the back seat.

"Dad, I can just tell them on the way," Judy said from behind him, watching.

"No," Hopper shook his head frantically. "You have to stay here.

"Shouldn't someone who knows where it is, go with them?"

"We can get there, Judy. Don't worry," Jonathan said from over the roof of the car, but Judy didn't pay him much attention. She was too focused on her father.

"Judy, stay here with the children. You've kept them alive this long – keep them alive longer."

"Dad, I'm either going to the cabin or I'm going with you to the lab," she tried to plea, not understanding why he wouldn't let her help.

"No, you aren't. You're staying here and you're staying out of danger. I'm not gonna risk losing you just because you think you're being left out."

"I-"

"You're staying here," he pointed his finger harshly to the ground. His nostrils were flared, but his eyes were soft. Soft in fear and protection. "End of story."

Judy didn't say much more. She knew he didn't have faith that this would work and as much as she wanted to be with him if it didn't, she'd give him the peace of mind that she was somewhere safe. With her mouth shut and her fight gone, Judy sighed as she walked away from Hopper and back into the house. Walking into the kitchen she leaned against the sink like Steve had done just hours before. She looked above the sink through the window as Steve stood next to Nancy. They both looked at each other in a knowing, emotional look.

Judy was slow to walk through the back door and onto the steps, keeping her hand on the rail as she spoke quietly, "Steve?"

"Yeah?" He answered, swinging his head fast in surprise. Judy couldn't help but notice the relieved look on his face and the sad look on Nancys.

"Looks like I'm staying here with you and the parasites," she tried to joke, even though there was a twisting pain in her heart seeing Nancy and Steve so close.

"Good," Steve said, nodding as he handed a heater to Nancys. "That's good."

Without a heater in his hands, Steve walked back up the house, putting his hand on Judy's shoulder grazing it across her shoulder blades as he walked past her into the house. Judy kept her eyes on his retreating from until he was no longer in her sight. When she turned to look back at the yard, Nancy was looking at her intently.

Judy walked all the way down the steps and in front of Nancy who had a sympathetic smile on her pursed lips.

She looks in between the two of them. "So you and Steve?" she chuckled, looking back into the house and back at Judy.

"We're just... friends," Judy said quietly, looking at the ground. How could she be obvious in front of Nancy? How could she be so stupid to fall for him like she did?

"You know I don't care, right? That you like him." This surprised Judy. Whether it was the confession from Nancy or that for the first time, someone said what Judy felt out loud. She'd always tried to hide and she figured she did a good job at doing so until now.

"I don't like him," Judy denied, trying to stay innocent. "Not like that."

But Nancy could see right through it. They were once best friends after all. "Thank you, for not trying anything with him when we were together. I know he has this irresistible charm about him, but you're a good friend for resisting."

"We're just friends."

Nancy pursed her lips again, understanding how Judy was hiding herself for the sake of others. Something she did her entire life. "Well, I should get going."

Judy nodded and stayed planted in her spot as Nancy walked past her. She was left all alone with her thoughts.

How long had Nancy known how she felt about Steve?

How long had she been denying how she felt?

Did Nancy know if Steve felt the same?

Were Steve and Nancy finally over?

What would Judy do now?