as max raced out of the way, troy sighed, and waited for her to get out of sight, before getting up, and picking up the posters and stapler. he followed the route she would have gone on, and finished putting them up. though he often picked on their group— he felt awful that their friend had gone missing, and he realized that they thought he was a bully, but it was the best way to keep them away, keep them away from what he knew.
his uncle was a very famous scientist, whom had recently purchased hawkins laboratories, and he discovered a portal, a portal to what they believed may be an alternate universe. he was saddened when he was told about this in grade nine, because he had recently apologized to mike, will, lucas, dustin, and max— and it looked like he might be able to move on from the bully he had been, and maybe be more than that. he knew that they were always very accepting and forgiving, and when he was told that he had to cut ties with them in case they figured out that his uncle had discovered the portal, well, he went back to the bully he had always been, just figuring it would be easier to keep everyone safe if they stayed away from him.
that's why he tried so hard in the sciences, to beat mike for the internship, he knew his uncle would never just give it to him. he also knew that mike had been in love with that girl, that freak, that broke his arm and made him piss his pants. when she disappeared, mike went into a state that no one could break him out of. the wheeler family was going through hell daily, and troy didn't see an end to their troubles and struggles.
troy, unlike everyone else in this town, knew where mike went. he saw him in the camera. he saw as the room began to shake, and he watched as mike hit the ground—
his head about to slam on the ground.
troy flinched, looking away, but as he dared himself to look at the bright screen, he hoped that his eyes had deceived him.
mike's head never hit the ground.
well, mike wasn't even there. troy hit the screen, begging it to load, begging for it to not be true. a cold voice behind him maed the boy wince. "my, my, troy, what are we doing here?"
