levin ; stranger things

chapter three

mellifluous (n.)
a sound that is sweet and smooth, pleasing to hear
-Collie's Journal, Edition 1

          COLLEEN runs down the street to the Byers' house, her copper-colored hair whipping behind her. Her feet pound the uneven road as she sprints, never slowing. When she reaches the house, she skids to a slower pace, the police cars in the drive sending her heart thudding even harder.

          She dashes to the door and knocks repeatedly until heavy footsteps hurry to fling it open.

          "Yeah, please-" Jonathan stops upon seeing Colleen, who stares up at him. His eyes are pink from crying and he slumps over, his chocolate hair a ruffled mess.

          "Jonathan." Colleen throws her arms around his neck and embraces him tightly. He immediately returns it, raising her off the ground so that her tiptoes only graze the porch.

          "Colleen," he murmurs softly, warming her heart. Hearing his voice helps the ache in her heart, if only just a touch.

          Mellifluous, she thinks. The pair release each other and step inside away from the cold. Colleen drops her bag by the door and takes a deep breath, inhaling the warm scent of the Byers household. It ignites a flickering fire inside her that burns with the welcoming presence of belonging.

          "Colleen, sweetheart?" Joyce, who had been pacing back and forth in the dining room, stops upon seeing the girl. She's a disheveled sight, her hair a mess and her eyes wide and alarmed. She trembles, wringing her hands as she steps closer.

          "Joyce, I'm so-" Before Colleen can let her condolences and grief flow out, Chief Hopper slams the back door and strides into the room, tailed closely by the two other officers that had questioned her earlier.

          "Well?" Joyce demands immediately, hurrying to the chief's side. "Did you find anything?"

          Hopper eyes Jonathan and Colleen, ignoring the question and saying instead, "We're going to organize a search party. He might have just tried a shortcut through the woods and gotten lost. We'll keep you updated."

          Joyce scoffs and throws her hands up in exasperation as the three officers depart.

          Colleen loves being at the Byers', she comes practically every other day, though it feels so empty without Will there. When she'd come through the door, she'd half-expected the boy to come bounding around the corner to show her a drawing or inform her of his latest Dungeons and Dragons campaign.

          Joyce drops onto the couch and places her head in her hands, mumbling. Colleen's heart pangs with sadness and grief and loss, leaning into Jonathan a bit as heavy silence hangs over them.

          At last, Colleen decides to break it. "I should be getting home, and I can walk, Jonathan, you don't have to drive me."

          Joyce's head snaps up as Jonathan begins to protest. "No, no," she says, "your mother called this morning, you're staying with us." Joyce waves a dismissive hand.

          Colleen shakes her head and dares to take a step closer to the door. "Really, Joyce, this isn't a time for me to be intruding. I'm perfectly okay, I promise," She picks up her bag and slings it over her shoulder before opening the door, biting her tongue as Joyce and Jonathan attempt to get her to stay.

          "Colleen, come on, stay," Jonathan says as he follows her out onto the porch. Outside, the leaves are painted with firey oranges and deep scarlets, all dancing about in the wind.

          Colleen turns to face him. "Jonathan," she says, silencing him. The two fall quiet as they look to their feet, the invisible link between them tightening. She reaches up and gently touches the side of his face, feeling his ruffled hair between her fingers. "I'm okay. You don't have to worry about me. You should be with your mom, helping her."

          Jonathan heaves a sigh, savoring her touch. When she pulls her hand away, his skin tingles where she's touched him and he leans towards her a bit. "But Colleen," he breathes, unable to put together the right words.

          She wraps her arms around his middle and hugs him tightly, feeling his arms snake around her and his face nuzzle into her neck.

  "I'll be okay, Jonathan," she whispers. She pulls away, giving the slightest of smiles before turning and hurrying back down the drive.

          Jonathan slouches and watches her go, staring as she disappears around the bend and onto the road.

          Colleen walks down the street towards her house, staring at her shoes as she goes. Her chest weighs her down, feeling like lead, and she clutches her bag straps tightly.

          Slowly, she works her way back to town, hardly paying attention to anything around her. Her mind whirls with thoughts, her expression scrunched into deep thought.

          Joyce obviously doesn't buy what the chief said about Will getting lost, or trying to take a shortcut home and hurting himself. In all honesty, Colleen doesn't either. She's known Will his whole life, and it's extremely unlike him to do anything like-

          BEEEEP. Colleen jumps and throws her arms out to brace herself on the car's hood, her feet skidding back from the impact. She yelps as her heart thunders in her ears and she slowly looks up, her eyes wide.

          She's walked right out into an intersection without realizing it, and a sleek, black sedan has nearly plowed into her. Colleen stares at the car, her hands still braced on the hood as she pulls in sharp breaths. The windows are tinted so darkly that she can barely make out the silhouette of the driver inside, looking right back at her.

          A chill goes up her spine and she doesn't move until the car suddenly lurches forward an inch, as if threatening to hit her if she doesn't step out of the way.

          Swallowing, Colleen takes a step back and moves backwards to the sidewalk, never taking her eyes off the sedan. The car's engine revs and it takes off, rounding the corner and speeding away. People who have watched her almost get hit stare at Collie, who trembles slightly and looks around.

          Her ears turning a shade of pink, she stares after the car, then turns and hurries away.