you are not alone → stranger things

xi. max

{A/N: I skipped Sunday because nothing happened lol}

Monday morning, January 8, 1984
Mike's POV

I walked into school the next day, my head filled with Eleven. I could barely think straight, slamming into people left and right.

"Mike!" There was Lucas, right in front of me. He grabbed my shoulders. "Man, what's wrong with you? I've been talking to you for, like, five minutes."

I shrugged. "Guess I was busy."

He rolled his eyes. "Anyways, as I was trying to say, Mr. Clarke wanted to do some tutoring or something with you since you missed a whole week. Just warning you. Oh," he added as we walked in the noisy classroom, "there's a cute new girl. You missed a lot."

"What?" But he didn't need to explain. Behind me, in the desk that had been empty for ages, sat a red-haired girl, who looked wholly unconcerned that no one was talking to her. She glanced around suspiciously a few times, drawing something on her arm.

I raised an eyebrow at Lucas. "'Cute'?"

He blushed as red as her hair. "Yeah. Isn't she?" he sighed.

I rolled my eyes at him and slumped into my chair. Dustin and Will were already there. "Hey," Dustin said. Will waved at me.

I turned around to the girl. "Hi."

She looked at me and raised an eyebrow. "What do you want?"

"I'm Mike," I said, offering my hand to her. "You must be new."

"Obviously." She took my hand and shook it once. I could feel calluses on her hands. "Max."

I opened my mouth, my mind teeming with questions, when Mr. Clarke walked in. "Settle down, everyone," he called. His eyes landed on me, and he smiled. "Welcome back, Mike."

I could feel everyone's eyes zero in on me, and someone audibly whispered, "Didn't he have the plague or something?"

As Mr. Clarke started class, I felt Max poke me with her pencil from behind. "Plague?"

I ignored her, trying to focus. I needed to catch up. Plus, I couldn't think straight enough to remember El yesterday. After Nancy left, I had kissed her again, and it was warm and soft and-

"I know you hear me, dumbass," Max hissed.

I turned slightly and gave her a dirty look. "Shut up."

"Make me," she taunted.

Needless to say, that was the longest class I had ever had in my life. When the bell finally rang for recess, I nearly bolted out of there.

"What were you and that new girl talking about all class?" Dustin asked, falling into step beside me.

"She was being annoying," I sighed. "Her name's Max."

"Talking 'bout me?" Max suddenly was there, walking backwards in front of me. She snickered. "What, in love with me already?"

I flushed red and glared at her. "I have a girlfriend, thank you." Technically a lie, but still.

She raised her eyebrow skeptically. "Right, okay. And I like pink." Then, without letting me say anything else, she ran off, the black ink on her arm flashing as she went. I wondered what she had drawn.

"She's got a stick up her butt," Dustin remarked.

"Who?" Will joined us as we walked towards the door.

"The new girl, Max," I answered, looking around. "Where's Lucas?"

Will shrugged. "He didn't follow me. It looked like he was trying to follow- uh, what did you say her name was?"

"Max." I snickered at Lucas' new obsession. "Should we go find him, then?"

Lol what do you guys think of Max? This was kind of a filler chapter tbh... the real drama is starting soon lol
Comment, vote, and follow ❤️