only fools fall for you [mileven]

23 - glow

'Your girlfriend?' asks the principal.

'Yeah,' I manage to say.

'Well, I never.' I frown. He stares at me sourly. 'These girls are fighting over you. Heather's mom is a very high authority figure and she does not take no for an answer. Now, I don't know what you're planning to do about this but you need to make it very clear to them both that you like this...El.'

'I have. They won't listen.'

He sighs and sends me out of his office.

Well, that was pointless.

The next day I stay home to stay away from all of the rumours circulating at school.

I hang out with Nancy, who had to go to a trial in the morning. I call El over to our house, and we sit in the basement, drawing for a while.

Suddenly I hear something outside the window, and El clutches the back of her neck. She passes out and I catch her, laying her on the floor. I fling open the basement door and find a note on the other side.

Give back 011, and we'll stop, it reads. I start trembling.

I yell for Nancy, and she runs to the bathroom to get cold water to douse her in. We never really tried any other method of waking her up, but it always worked.

El wakes up, sobbing, touching her neck constantly.

I take off the necklace she's wearing and push her hair out of the way. A large red mark glows on the back of her neck, and Nancy stares at it.

'Is that a tracker?' she asks.

I nod. 'I mean, I think so. It'd explain everything.'

'How do we get it out?' 

I shrug. 'Hospital?'

She nods, and runs upstairs to get her keys.

We head straight to the hospital and the whole place is pretty empty. They ask us what we're doing here, and Nancy shows the nurse the pulsating, glowing red patch on El's neck.

The nurse, a nice looking old woman, pulls her into the back and tells us to stay in the waiting room.

Four hours later, when the whole Byers family is waiting with us, along with Mom, Dad and Holly, El walks out of the room with a different nurse.

'We can confirm that there was a device of some sort that was implanted in El's neck. We are sending it off for testing so we can find out its purpose.'

I walk over to hug El, and she beams.