Strange as IT Seems

Chapter 6: Mix-Up

A/N: Warning, language.

El watches the schoolyard from behind the chain-link fence. She checked the watch that Hopper had given her, it was almost time for the lunch break and soon the empty yard would be filled with students. She knew she was pushing the rules by sneaking out to find Mike again, but it just wasn't fair that she had to wait six hours to see him again. While Hopper had become reasonable with letting her walk-through town more and more, he always reminded her not to be stupid and be aware of her surroundings. This was why Jane had taken to cutting through the forest to get around so no one would see her.

When the sound of the bell echoes across the courtyard, Eleven's heart races and she smiles, knowing exactly where the party ate every day. She walks along the back fence, going near the shed behind the baseball diamond and near the pavement, where the group liked to eat and it allowed Max to skateboard around.

Her heart skips a beat when she sees the slightly lengthy dark hair of Mike. His back is to the fence and he's eating his sandwich while waiting for everyone else. Except he's in a different spot, much closer to the soccer field instead of the baseball diamond. Maybe he's trying to change it up a bit. The other thing she notices is that he's not wearing the same jacket that he was this morning... that shouldn't be concerning, he might've borrowed someone else's because it got dirty or something.

Feeling a bit playful, El decides to surprise Mike. She quiets her steps, easy enough considering she'd had to learn such practices when out in Hopper's cabin. The smile grows on her face as she reaches out and taps him on the shoulder.

"Mike," she says in a low voice.

However, the boy who turns around is not her boyfriend. He has the same hair colour and a similar-looking face, but he wears very big glasses that magnify his dark brown eyes. The guy throws his sandwich in the air in fear and jumps back up after seeing the pale face staring at him through the fence.

"What the fuck?!" he screeches. He steps back. "Don't ever sneak up on a guy like that!"

A different voice too.

El immediately begins to shrink away, becoming very afraid of this loud, Mike-looking boy.

"Hey, look I'm sorry I yelled at you, but you scared me so bad I almost crapped myself."

Eleven still begins to back away from the fence, ready to go back home again since Mike wasn't here. She's worried she missed her chance.

Richie stands at the fence, peering at this girl. She looked as scared as he did, maybe more so. She was a pretty-looking girl, with curly dark hair and wide curious eyes. She wore a pair of overalls and a dark shirt underneath, she could practically blend into her surroundings if she wanted to, which she just might at this point.

"Mike?" Eleven ventures, even though she knows it's not him.

"No sorry, I'm not Mike. The name's Richie. Richie Tozier. Do I look like this Mike? Is he better looking than me?"

Jane frowns and raises her eyebrow cautiously. This loud-mouthed boy is not her favourite person at the moment.

"It's a joke," Richie says, adjusting his glasses. "I just make up shit to make people laugh at me. Here watch this..." The bespectacled member of the Loser's club then goes into a five-minute routine involving two British guys and a Jamaican man. While Jane feels a bit off-put by his excessive energy, she does enjoy the funny voices he does so much that she manages to crack a smile. He reminds her of Dustin with his joking nature. Once Richie sees her grin, he stops his performance and points through the fence at her. "See that's what I like to do, make people laugh."