e l e v e n

Chapter Eleven: A sudden realization

A/N: As promised!
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Will paced back and forth in his room.  There had to be something he could do to save her. Anything. His friends seemed to really care about this girl. Especially Mike. He wasn't sure Mike would be able to cope with loosing her again. As it was, all four of them had had extensive mental therapy to recover from the ordeal, and he had had to have physical therapy as well. He thought about El. He had been in the upside down for a week. She had been there for six months. He didn't know how she was even still alive.
Every time he thought about the upside down he could feel it calling to him, pulling him to return.
What would happen if I gave into it, just this one time?
And so he did.
Will closed his eyes, bracing himself as memories came flooding back. All the ones he had tried so hard to forget. All the things that had nearly driven him insane while he had been stuck there.
He opened his eyes. There was a portal in front of him. He gasped, tuning his attention away to something else, anything else. And it was gone. He smiled with relief. There was a way he could save her.
He called each boy in turn on the walkie-talkie.
"I need you to sneak into my house, bring weapons and all the eggos you can find!"
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Mike, Lucas and Dustin all arrived in turn, stashing their bikes in an inconspicuous spot behind the house and climbing through Will's window with ease.
They sat in a circle on the floor, each having dumped out a backpack full of knives, guns they had stolen from their parents, and eggos. Lots of eggos.
Mike had the most eggos in his bag. Will assumed he had stocked up when El disappeared. Hoping she would return to him and that the two of them could have a happy ending of sorts.
"Why are we here at one in the morning with eggos and weapons?" Lucas asked, tying his trademark bandana around his forehead. "This is about El isn't it? Have you found a way to save her?"
"Watch." Will said, closing his eyes. They turned their eyes to the wall Will was facing as the lights began to flicker. As they watched, a portal began to form on the wall.
All three gasped, and Will took his mind off of the upside down, as to shut the portal.
"Are we all going in there to save her?" Dustin asked, excited
"I can't go." Will said "I have to stay here to open and close the portal. Besides, I don't know if I could handle going back there again." The boys agreed, not wanting to risk it, since Will had already been exposed to the toxic environment.
"I'll go." Mike said, right away
"Someone needs to go with Mike and someone needs to stay here." Will said, addressing Lucas and Dustin
"I'll go." Lucas said, raising his hand.
"I guess I'll stay then." Dustin said looking over at the three.
"So you two," Will said, looking at Mike and Lucas "Each of you pack half the eggos and weapons and each of you need a walkie-talkie." The boys grabbed their equipment and stuffed it into their bags.
"Ready?" Mike asked the other three boys
"Ready. "
Will closed his eyes and opened the portal.
"Good luck" Dustin whispered as they walked through the portal
"Thanks." Lucas whispered "We'll need it."