you are not alone → stranger things

xxxxii. gone

Saturday night
El's POV

I stared at the black shape in the sky and felt sick to my stomach. It was a trap that we all so gullibly had fallen into, like a mouse who couldn't see past the cheese and notice the mousetrap.

Mike ran up to me and immediately took my hand. He didn't say anything, and neither did I. For all we knew, it could be our last moments together.

It was here. Thunder rumbled loudly, and Mike turned to me, his eyes wide with tears. "I love you," he said softly.

I moved towards him. "It isn't the end, Mike. It can't be."

"It might be," Max said gravely.

Will glanced at her and inattentively touched his lips. Setting his jaw, he brushed past us all and moved towards the monster.

"Will," I warned, holding out my hand to stop him, but he ignored me.

"Will, stop!" Jonathan exclaimed, running after him, but Will shot him a glare.

"No, you stop. I won't let it hurt the people I love anymore. You hear that?" he yelled at it, striding forward. "You won't threaten them anymore. And you sure as hell won't come anywhere near me."

It growled, a low, guttural sound. Will held out his hand towards it and squeezed his eyes shut. "Like unraveling a sweater," I heard him murmur to himself.

I released Mike's hand silently and walked forward to stand beside Will. I took his hand, and a jolt rippled through me like electricity. I felt empty afterwards, and knew it had worked. I had lended him some of my strength. I held tight to his hand and watched as his expression contorted angrily.

The thessalhydra lunged forward, trying to get me away from him, but I only clutched his hand tighter and shut my eyes. I heard screaming, but I didn't know who it was coming from. Then I realized it was Will.

And I screamed too. I sobbed for him, for the things he had been through, for the hell the last few months had been for all of us. Life can do terrible things, but all we have to do is fight back and it will eventually give repayment for all the damage it did.

I felt Will release my hand.

When I opened my eyes, he was crumpled to the ground and the monster was gone. All that remained was black ashes, being blown by the wind and soaked by the rain.

I knelt beside Will and shook him gently. He didn't respond. I felt for his pulse, and it was there, but weak and sputtering. I felt almost as drained as him, breathing hard in the humid air.

Someone knelt beside me. Then another, until everyone was crowded around Will. After a few moments of silence, Jonathan gently picked him up and wordlessly walked to his car. Everyone else followed, looking stunned. I was the only one who hadn't seen what had happened, and maybe that wasn't a bad thing.

***

early Sunday morning, January 14, 1984
I held Mike's hand tightly, and he stared straight ahead, rocking slightly. Everyone looked like that but me, and I felt out of place.

We were in the hospital waiting room, waiting to see how Will was. By now it had to have been a few hours since the monster had been destroyed, but no one was euphoric just yet. The mood was visibly somber. I didn't know if it was just the natural atmosphere of the hospital or what had happened between Will and the monster.

Joyce, Hopper, and Mrs. Wheeler had arrived a while ago. They didn't understand what had happened that had shaken everyone so badly. I understood what they were feeling, and had done my best to explain. But there were a lot of gaps, and I could feel their frustration with my lack of knowledge. But there wasn't anything I could do, and no one who had seen wanted to talk.

A nurse walked over to me and smiled sympathetically. I had talked to her earlier, but had forgotten her name. "He's doing okay, but no one can see him yet. Probably not until around noon."

"That's fine," I managed to say. "Thank you." She smiled again and walked back through the door nearby, her heels clacking loudly in the silence.

Mike then looked at me and wordlessly leaned on me. I stiffened at first, but then relaxed into him and stroked his hair with my free hand. "He'll be okay," I whispered to him. I realized then that there were tears freely flowing down his cheeks, but there was nothing I could do or say to make it better.