Illusion ~Stranger Things~ [COMPLETED & UNDER EDITING]

Chapter 5

||Realization||

-The Weirdo On Maple Street Part I-

1:00 pm. Pine had slept through her alarm clock. However, she didn't really care. There wasn't enough time for Pine to get to school and come up with a good excuse for being so late. That was one thing about Pine, she never had an excuse but, she always needed one. Pine had nothing to do and she couldn't go back to sleep. Bored out of her mind, she got up and dressed. She picked up her Walkman and headed out the door.

"Don't stop believing, hold on to the feeling, streetlights people, don't stop believing, hold on." Pine hummed, her converse squeaking against her socks as she walked.

Pine didn't really know where she was going. She was just walking. Walking without purpose. Squeak, squeak, squeak. Pine had grown accustomed to the steady beat of her shoes rubbing against her socks, the friction creating a soundtrack of which Pine ignored. The sun turned Pine's brown bomber jacket into a warm blanket, a nice thing to have on a chilly day. One hand fidgeting with a stick of gum in her jeans pocket, the other with a strand of her long brown hair. Pine stopped for a moment and sat on the curb in a neighborhood. She took out the mix tape that was previously in her Walkman and put it back in turned over. The sky was a nice shade of blue, no clouds to be seen. Pine sat on the curb, fidgeting with a piece of grass. A car pulled up, it was an old Honda. Pine didn't think much of it until she caught a gimps of the driver. Staring back at her with just as much confusion was Thorn. He drove up the driveway and parked. The Honda door creaked as Thorn stepped out and starting walking over to the young girl who'd just stood up.

"W-what are you doing here?" The boy asked confused

"Um, I was walking a-and I j-just sort of... ended up here." Pine replied "I didn't know you lived here. Honestly."

"I believe you."

"I just s-stopped to flip my mixtape."

"Ooh, watcha got on it?"

"Uh," Pine started to think "ABBA, The Clash, Dolly Parton, Michael Jackson, Journey, The Police, The Beach Boys, Elvis... Stuff like that."

"You got any Rolling Stones?"

"No."

"Oh. Well, what's you're favorite song?"

"Africa, I think."

"By Toto?"

"Yeah."

"I like that one too." Thorn smiled. Pine smiled too, a rare thing, a genuine smile.

"Uh, what time is it?"

"Um, almost 4:00."

"Oh!" Pine replied, surprised she'd been out so long. "Um... I k-kinda, don't remember the way I got here." Pine blushed embarrassed.

"I'll drive you." Thorn was growing accustomed to having to take Pine places because she constantly got lost.

"T-thanks."

"Come on." Thorn started walking back to his car and motioned for her to follow.

Thorn's car smelled slightly of alcohol, Pine decided not to ask. It was old and beat up but, Pine didn't mind. She wanted a car as soon as she turned sixteen so she could get away from Ruth. She wished she had a bike now but, she didn't have enough money. She'd have a job but, no one back in New York wanted to hire her.

"I-uh... heard about..." Thorn stuttered

"O-oh."

"I j-just w-wanted t-to tell you t-that... I know what you w-went through."

"No you don't." Pine retorted

Tension started building between the two. They could have spilled their darkest secrets at the moment and not cared.

"Yes I do."

"I don't believe you."

"Try me."

"Ok. How do you know?" Pine questioned, patience running thin.

"Same thing happened to me." Thorn didn't realize what he'd said until he'd said it.

"I still don't believe you." Pine was skeptical.

"Ask anyone." Thorn couldn't believe he was talking about this, about his parents, something he never talked about with even his closest friends, with a twelve-year-old.

"Really?" Pine softened her tone realizing Thorn was dead serious

"I was ten."

"Eight."

After that it was silent. That is until Pine saw something peeking her interest. A picture of Will. She looked closer, written on the top in marker was one word. Missing. The word was like a punch to the gut. Was Will really missing? Was what she saw, that night, really real? She could feel her heart violently beating inside her chest, like it was trying to break free. She couldn't breathe. She started sweating and her hands started to shake. She felt an overwhelming amount of guilt, she could have saved Will. The world started going dark. Despite not moving, she was dizzy.

"Are you okay? Pine? Pine!" Thorn pulled over

Pine felt a hand on her shoulder. Shaking and pale faced she looked straight into Thorn's brown eyes, brown like Will's, Thorn was freaking out.

"I was there."

There words, only three words. Somehow Thorn understood.

"What happened to Will?"

"It got him."

"What got him?"

"The Demogorgon."

"The Demogorgon? Isn't that from Dungeons and Dragons?"

"It is but, it's real. I dunno, it sounds- I sound crazy."

"You do."

"I know. I just... I was there. I think. I don't think it was a dream. I don't know."

Thorn didn't really know what to say. How could he? Nothing much ever happened in Hawkins.

"This is Hawkins, okay? You wanna know the worst thing that's ever happened here in the four years I've been working here? Do you wanna know the worst thing? It was when an owl attacked Eleanor Gillespie's head because it thought that her hair was a nest."
~Jim Hopper

"I shouldn't have said anything. It was probably just a nightmare."

That's what Pine said but, it isn't what she meant.

The car stopped.

"Thanks Thorn." Pine said as she got out of the car.

"No problem."

Will was missing. That thought repeated for hours to come. What was she going to do about it? She was going to find him.

A/N
Sorry for the short chapter.