afterlife ➳ stranger things [2]

Chapter 7: Baltimore Bound

Erin sighed after being defeated the trillionth time on Super Mario Bros. She slammed her hands on the screen, sliding her hands slowly down.

"Having trouble?" Max chuckled.

"A little bit." Erin looked up at her.

"Ahh, the mighty has fallen." Max smiled.

"Stop enjoying this."

"Never. Need me to help?"

Erin scoffed. "No never."

"Move over." Max rolled her eyes, waving Erin out of the way. Erin moved out of the way, where her boyfriend was.

"Finally a game you can't beat." Dustin smiled.

"Oh stop enjoying this! Sorry I didn't grow up playing Super Mario Bros." Erin complained.

"Well," Max paused. "I did." The victory music came from the machine as she leaned against it. She gave a side smile.

"No way!" Erin exclaimed, as Dustin and her rushed over to the game.

As Max said it, she beat the level. Dustin and Erin looked at the game, with shocked expressions.

"Did MadMax beat you again?" Keith came over with a bag of chips again.

"I whooped their asses." Max smirked.

"Not," Erin paused. "Exactly."

"She beat the highest high score, which has been there for seven years!" Dustin exclaimed. "How is this possible."

"Well you better believe it," Max smiled, backing away from the machine. "I whooped your asses."

Behind her, was Steve in his mom pose. Hands on hips and everything, you can see the fire in his eyes.

"It is a school night." Steve stated.

"It's only nine!" Dustin complained.

"And your mom wants you home," Steve sighed. Erin snickered, looking at her boyfriend. "Hey, you too. Hopper is away, and I'm in charge of getting you home before curfew."

"That is so unfair!" Erin complained.

"What's happening?" Lucas came over, confused.

"Mom, oh sorry I meant Steve," Erin glared at Steve. "Is making us go home."

"Hopper wants you home so you're going home." Steve crossed his arms.

"Let me grab my backpack." Erin rolled her eyes, moving past them. Once Erin left the area, the group moved closer to each other.

"I have news." Steve stated.

"What?" Max asked.

"After pulling some strings, I got that Kali is in Baltimore looking for Sarah." Steve nodded.

"What does this has to do with Cassidy?" Dustin crossed his arms.

"She was spotted with a brunette. Either it's one of her friends, or Cassidy." Steve explained.

"Isn't Hopper going to Baltimore?" Dustin questioned, Steve nodding.

"So they'll most likely run into each other." Lucas concluded.

"Does that mean we can go down there?" Max asked.

"No," Steve paused. "I am."

"What?" Dustin raised his eyebrows.

"I worked it out with Nancy, she's coming with." Steve nodded.

"You're taking a pregnant teenager and not one of us?" Max asked.

"Nancy is due soon, but not so soon it's a risk. We'll find Hopper-"

"You're going down to Baltimore too? You'll miss our epic d-n-d game." Erin asked, approaching.

"I'm sure you'll tell me all about it." Steve smiled.

—

"Alright, I called Nancy on Lily's phone and Steve and her are gonna be in Baltimore tomorrow," Kali paused. "So will Hopper."

"We have to be really careful then," Cassidy nodded. "Get Sarah and then get the hell out of Baltimore."

"Hopper will be looking for Sarah, it would be stupid to still go." Kali argued.

"Sarah is crucial to finding Brenner and you know this!" Cassidy stood up.

"I know that but I'm saying it could risk having them find out about you." Kali attempted at reasoning.

"So you don't want me to go to Baltimore?" Cassidy asked.

"I'm saying it would be much safer for you." Kali softly said.

"Okay so then I won't go." Cassidy nodded.

"Okay. I'm just trying to protect you." Kali smiled.

"I know." Cassidy nodded.

"We could go today if you really wanted to go." Kali suggested.

"No we should get to Baltimore tonight, and I'll stay at the hotel. That way, I can meet Sarah when you bring her here." Cassidy nodded.

"Alright. We should head out now, we can catch the next train." Kali nodded.

"Are we meeting Dr. McFee at the lab?" Cassidy asked, gathering her stuff.

"I don't think we're gonna see her for awhile." Kali answered, swinging her bag over her shoulder.

"What do you mean?" Cassidy questioned.

"Erin needs to find out one of three things, she's adopted, Brenner is her father, and that you're still alive. It's hard to tell her these things all at once, I think we should wait." Kali explained.

"Fair enough." Cassidy nodded.