will byers
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"el?," i shouted, loudly, for the fifth hundredth time.
'where on earth is my future step sister,' i thought, then hearing a twig break behind me as i whirled around. "there you are, ellie," i smiled and she grinned, poking her head out from the tree, jonathan appearing behind her with a camera in hand and a small bag.
"hey, will," he said, and walked in front of el and i, turning around to face us. "operation jopper is a go," he grinned, cheekily. el and i exchanged smiles and we followed him down to where his beige car was parked slightly behind some trees.
"first stop, jewellery shop," el said, and i laughed at how it rhymed. jonathan looked around, unlocking his car as he shoved his camera up on the dashboard and stuffed the bag into his pocket, opening the back door for me and el.
"we'll get a ring, a nice one, too, and plant it in hopper's pocket," el smiled. that was part one. "yeah, but we'll have to be quick," jonathan smiled. "really quick, maybe el can hug him really tight or something."
"i can do that," el said. i nodded. "then, after that, we'll go to nancy's, pick up the cake, give it to the people at the restaurant they're going to, and tell them to put it on table whatever they're sitting at," i said.
"and then, we wait for the magic to happen," el said. "it'll be, uh, cute," el said, looking at me to see if she used the right work choice. i nodded, smiling. "let's do it," jonathan said, reversing through the trees onto the old gravel road. "let's do it," i repeated, smiling.
mike wheeler
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"i wonder why will didn't come to the arcade with us," dustin said, out of nowhere, not breaking eye contact with the pac man machine.
"maybe he forgot," max said shrugging as i glanced at her, narrowing my eyes. "will doesn't forget," i said. "okay, maybe his mum needed him for something," she guessed. "maybe," lucas said, shrugging. max sighed, and pulled a lollipop she'd had for ages now out of her mouth, walking away as lucas followed her like a lost puppy.
i heard dustin sigh, loudly, in frustration, and turned around. "son of a bitch!," he exclaimed, slamming his fists down on the controls. "i hate this game," he murmured. "it sucks," he said.
i snorted, and shook my head. "you just suck at playing it," i murmur. "here, let me have a try," i push him gently out of the way and stand in his place, staring at the slashing screen in front of me. he huffs and turns his head. "shut up, mike," he says, and i laugh, slipping a coin into the machine. "suck a dick," i say, starting the game, doing really well as i hit the buttons and turn the controls around.
ten minutes later, i finally died with a score of 9,590, which isn't my best, but, at least it's still better than dustin's score by a thousand and a bit points. i hear him sigh, and he shoves me out of the way. i shook my head, laughing. "good luck," i say, and turn to buy a slushy.
"son of a bitch!"
max mayfield
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after the arcade, lucas took me down the street for ice cream, just the two of us.
"how have you been, madmax?," lucas asks, smiling down at his feet. i grin, slightly brushing. "i've been better, and you, stalker?," i look up at him as he looks down at me. "i've been great," he says, smiling very widely.
i nod, and we link arms as we walk down the street together.
"hey, is that will?" lucas asks, stopping as i nearly trip over, catching me. i look at the boy across the side of the road, standing with a tall boy and a shorter girl who is just above his height. he's wearing a beanie and mittens, as he turns around, smiling at us. "hey, guys!," he grins, and the girl has also turned around.
i smile at her, and she returns the smile back. "el," i whisper, meaning to say it louder. "max," she grins, widely, hugging my tightly.
"how's school?," she asks. "it's bullshit," i murmur, and she laughs, softly. we're still standing on the side of the sidewalk, her arms around my neck until lucas coughs. i grin and pull away, el punching my shoulder playfully. "i'm sure it's not that bad," she smiles. i shrug, "maybe not since now we have two weeks off for christmas," she smiled widely.
she grins, and links arms with me. "we can hang out way, way more?," she asks. i nod, smiling wider. "yes!," i say, loudly. "it'll be so fun," she smiles. will gently nudges el after a moment, and she glances at him, seeming to smile sadly. she quickly pulled my in for a giant hug, and i felt her press her lips against my cheek very softly.
"we're getting a present for joyce, gotta run. enjoy your ice cream," will said, and lucas patted him on the back. "see you soon, bud," he smiled.
jonathan smiles and shoved his hands in his pockets, el and will starting to walk towards his direction as he walked away, further and further.
"so, vanilla or chocolate? or mint?"
jane hopper
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"why is max weird around me?"
"huh?"
"why is max always really weird around me?"
"how so," will asks, looking slightly up from his menu, his eyes wondering across the road towards a small window where hopper and joyce sat, laughing over coffee and slices of what looked like cake.
"well," i start, narrowing my eyes to look at joyce and hopper, just above the menu i held in my hands. "she turned red when i hugged her," i say, and will nods. "mm?"
"and, when i was in hospital, she didn't want to see me," i continue.
"mhm?"
"and, sometimes she flinches when i look at her or smile and she's always say dreaming when we hang out," i finish, and will looks up for a split second, frowning in confusion. "i'm gonna have a little talk to max the next time we see her," he says, and turns his direction towards hopper and joyce.
"how long do you think it'll be until the cake comes out?," he asks.
"not long," i murmur, glancing at the waitress in the background, carrying a small simple chocolate cake, which jonathan said says a simple 'i love you' message on the top.
"oh, here it comes," will says, and jonathan shuffles behind us, crouching down to get a good view as the waitress lays the cake in front of the two, who eye is suspiciously.
i lower the menu to get a better look, and then, a large truck stops right in front of us, and none of us can catch another glance before the door flings opens and we duck under the table, narrowly dodging joyce's sad glaze.
i lift my head, resting it on the table. the cake is on the ground, and hopper is sitting at the small wooden table alone.
"mum," jonathan murmurs. "hopper," i whisper.
"maybe it was too soon," will says, gloomily, as hopper rests his head in his hands, a waiter coming over to clean the cake that's splattered all over the floor.
jonathan slowly wraps his arms around us, and i feel will lean his weight on jonathan and i, as he pulls us closer, and i turn my head away from my adoptive father, who's standing up, grabbing his hat, and walking through the door.
