Although he was usually shy, getting him to open up using music was rather easy. Jonathan Byers was rarely noisy and the sound of his laughter was lost on the locals, reserved for those close to him. Namely Will and his mother, and then me. Dancing around his house, listening to good music, tangling with the lights, it's quite a show when I'm around. The only sad part of being around him is the constant pining after Nancy Wheeler. So as you can probably infer, being his best friend is full of constant effort to keep his mind off of her.
"Jonathan is in his room," Will said, as he answered the door on a rainy and cold Saturday evening. "Thanks, bud," I greeted him with a smile, crossing the threshold and leaving my jacket and shoes at the door. "It's a little late for you to be here," Will remarked softly, raising his eyebrows and crossing his arms. "Yes, it is, " I agreed, noting the time was 9:30 vs the 8:30 when I left my own home. "Where is your mom, Will?" I questioned, wanting to reach out and make sure he's ok. "On a date, Sarah," Will responded, a lump clearly rising in his throat and tears welling in his eyes. "Hey, it's ok honey," I tried my best to comfort him, feeling my own tears rise and I open my arms, inviting him in for a hug. The small child crashed against my chest, he knocked the wind out of me and began to cry. "It's ok," I cooed, as I rubbed his back and held him close. As quickly as he had leaped into my arms, he sprung back, drying his eyes. "Yeah it definitely could be worse. It's just Hopper," he sighed and regained his composure. "Can you take me to Mike's?" he whispered, and took caution to not let Jonathan hear him. "Of course, let me go get Will and we can go out for pizza or something as an excuse," I suggested and started down the hall, feeling the familiar rhythm of The Clash beneath my socks.
Without knocking I threw the door open, yelling the lyrics until I saw the tears. "It's not like I wanted Lonnie to come back. I just didn't know this would happen while I was still in the house," he said, wiping away tears. "It's ok Jon, everybody needs someone. Your mom is trying," I said sinking down onto the well-worn mattress and lacing my fingers through his."Will wants to go to Mike's," I muttered, as he laid back, leaving his hand in mine. "I can take him there if you want. Or we could go for pizza and the arcade and stuff," I suggested feebly, really trying to show that there are options here. I never wanted him around her but if he wanted to go I couldn't stop him. "Can I bring my camera?" Jonathan asked, sitting up and clicking off his stereo. "Only if I carry it until we're in town," I bargained for the sake of his mental health. I always did, God knows he wouldn't save his own mind from the sorrow of Nancy Wheeler. "Deal," he said as he pulled his hand out of mine and hurried to the door. I lied back to stare at the glowing stars on the ceiling, letting out a long and wistful sigh. "When," I muttered and tried to keep the tears back. My hand felt almost as empty as my heart and I realized that is as much as I was going to get. All I was ever going to get while he was wrapped up in her was goodbyes and hands leaving mine.
I walked back down the hallway and I stretched my hand out, letting my fingertips graze the wall as a beat pounds in my head "Should I stay or should I go," I murmured, adding a sarcastic scoff at the end with a laugh. I shook my head to clear away the thoughts of loneliness and too much alone time. Home was quiet and dark, Dad drank his life away and mom left two years ago. After that, the only "Sarah, honey, I love you," I got was from Joyce, which was usually followed by a "thank you so much for taking care of my boys." Will emerged from his room with a bag and when I raised an eyebrow he quickly answered the unspoken question "I'm going to spend the night.". "If you need me, call here, I'll be on the couch," I reminded him, squeezing his shoulder as I passed him to the kitchen to scribble down a note to let Joyce know where we are just in case she came home early. Jonathan approached me with a small and sweet smile on his face as he dropped the neck strap to his new camera over my neck, running his hands against my throat as he reached to pull my hair out of the way. He was so focused on making sure his camera wasn't going to be damaged, that he didn't notice me gazing up into his warm brown eyes. In the moment it became almost impossible to resist the urge to wrap my arms around him and pull him closer, finally catching that kiss I had been dying for. "Alright, let's go," Will said, eager to go play with Mike, Dustin, and Lucas.
"Can I drive?" Will asked, climbing into the front seat of my dad's pride and joy. "Nope, get in the back Byers," I responded sternly, opening the back door for him. "Ok," he sighed, seeming generally disappointed. "Ok Will, I don't care what time it is. If it gets too much for you to handle there I want you to call the house. Or call Hopper, just don't walk home alone. Do not take a ride from Nancy, or Steve. Call me," Jonathan reminded the smaller Byers child. Due to recent events and the clear PTSD his brother has developed, Jonathan had become rather overprotective. That night Jonathan Byers would get almost no sleep. Will nodded furiously in the back seat as I began the drive and Jonathan slid a cassette into the player, turning the radio way up. You can tell he when he doesn't feel ok in the slightest when he leaves this song on repeat. "Do you want to drive Jon?" I ask, stopping at a red light. "Really?" he asked and his eyes bulged a little. "After we drop off Will. If we crash he shouldn't be involved," I remarked, still smiling at his response. "Ok yeah totally," he said, getting excited. The smile that accompanied the statement was the smile I was looking for.
We get to Mike's and Will clumsily stumbled out of the back and I could see Nancy walking towards the door, Steve shining a shimmering smile at us from the doorway as she hurried, all wrapped up in a sweater. "Hey Jonathan, how are you?" she asked, the light from the porch gleaming off of her eyes. "I'm ok, how are you?" he stammered and I put my head down against the steering wheel. I internally screamed as they carried on a lively conversation. "Hey man where are you two headed?" Steve asked, leaning down to see in the window. This time I groaned aloud and I could hear the gentle laughter in Jonathan's voice. "Just out to pizza, do you wanna come?" Jonathan asked, inviting them on our night out. If they were crazy they'd accept. "No, I think we're gonna stay in tonight. Maybe next time," Steve suggested, steering Nancy back towards the house by her shoulders.
