Will to Survive

Getting Prepared

Steve, Dustin, Evelyn, and Erica arrived at the Harrington household to gather supplies for their investigation at the mall. Robin and Cat were getting their own supplies at the Byers house since Cat was living there. They needed to be prepared for their break in just in case there would be cops or any of the people with the devices. 

The four entered Steve's garage and started gathering some stuff. Luckily, Steve's parents were out on another business trip so they wouldn't get any interruptions. Steve immediately grabbed his nail bat as Dustin gathered up some rope and flashlights, Evelyn with any guns and billets, Erica with some snacks she stole from Steve's fridge. Dustin put the supplies he could fit in his backpack and everything else they carried with them out of the house.

"Can I carry one of the guns?" Erica asked the mom of the group. She was the only one who was not holding a gun and it pissed her off. 

Steve rolled his eyes at the kid. "No you cannot. You are a little kid and you never learned how to shoot a gun. You can't trust little kids with guns," he told her, annoyed at her antics.

Erica sighed exaggeratingly and crossed her arms. "That's not fair! Dustin and Evelyn get to hold guns but I can't?! They're kids too and they are huge nerds!" She yelled. 

"Dustin got special lessons from Chief Hopper and Evelyn says she went hunting before with her family," Steve explained. "Now if you don't keep quiet, you won't be able to go on this adventure with us. Do you understand little girl?!"

Erica groaned and shut her mouth up. Dustin snickered at the younger girl, causing her to get mad and kick him in the shin. The boy cried out in pain and glared at Erica, who laughed in response. Steve was getting fed up with them as every minute passed and was close to exploding. Evelyn chuckled to herself at the two.

Just then, Evelyn heard a whisper noise behind them. She turned around and saw Grayson peeking his head behind a bush. She told Steve that she would be right back as she ran over to her friend, confused as to why he was there. The two ducked behind the bush and kneeled on the grass.

"Grayson, what the hell are you doing here? You're supposed to be back at the lab," Evelyn said in a low voice so no one could hear their conversation.

"Quinn told me I had to look after you to make sure you would be spying on the party. What are you doing with those guys anyway? That's only one member of the kids you're supposed to be watching," Grayson informed her, also confused.

"None of the others believe me as to where I come from. Dustin is the only person who trusts me and I am only able to use him to fulfill our plan," Evelyn explained. "Trust me on this. I know what I'm doing. I have a plan." Her voice faltered a little at the mention of her plan. She looked back over at Dustin, Steve, and Erica, who were standing on the sidewalk, waiting for her to come back.

Grayson eyed her curiously. "Do you like this Dustin kid or something?" He asked. "Evelyn, you can't. You know what will happen if we don't follow through with Quinn's orders," he reminded her, sounding scared at the mention of Quinn. She wasn't someone to be messed with, especially when it came to following orders. 

"I don't know Gray. I don't know," Evelyn told him. "He's just so sweet to me, especially since the other party members don't trust me. I don't know at all. Just trust me, okay?"

Grayson sighed and nodded at her, letting her go back with the group. He hoped that she knew what she was doing with this. He would just have to watch her to make sure. With that, he turned himself invisible and followed the group.

...

"You saw her?" Mike asked his girlfriend as she took off her blindfold. "You saw 008?"

El nodded in response and stood up from the couch. "Yes, But shes not in Hawkins. She's somewhere else. Sitting by a fire pit. It seemed like she knew I was there though," she informed the group.

"Do you know what exact place she's in?" Max asked. "You can figure that out in the void, can't you?" 

"Yes. In... Chi...ca...go?" El answered, trying to pronounce the word correctly. Hopper nodded in approval at her pronunciation of the word and she smiled to herself. "We need to go to Chicago now," she declared, putting on her shoes and rushing out of the cabin in a flash.

Mike ran out the door after her and called out her name, causing for her to turn around. "El wait! You can't go alone. What if someone catches you and takes you away? I'm coming with you," he said.

El immediately shook her head. "No Mike. I don't want you getting hurt if there is a bad man or if it's a trap. I should go alone so no one else gets hurt," she told him, grabbing his hands and squeezing them gently.

"What happened to the party's motto? We stick together no matter what. I'm coming with you and that's final. Nothing is gonna stop me," Mike said, cupping her cheeks with his palms. "That way you can have some company to Chicago too. It's dangerous in cities."

El sighed and nodded. "Fine, you can come too. But I'm not gonna let anyone else come," she said.

As if on cue, Lucas and Max came out and told them that they were coming along as well. El groaned, but she had to give in so she let them come along. Lucas also mentioned that he had called Will so he wouldn't be left out on an adventure. As Hopper yelled at them to come back, the four walked off to the bus station. They met up with Will, who had brought Jonathan, Nancy, Reyna, Keelan, and Delilah  with him,  and went onboard the bus to take them to Chicago.

Mike looked over at the sleeping El, who's head was resting on his shoulder. He took her hand and squeezed it gently to prevent her from waking up. She looked so beautiful when she was sleeping. He kissed her on the forehead, which caused her to smile in her sleep. Mike held her close to him, as if he were protecting her.

 He looked over at his other friends, all of them being asleep on the bus. It was a long drive to Chicago, so it was good for them to get some sleep. Except, Mike couldn't sleep. His worry for what would happen kept him awake. He was scared that someone would die, or that someone would be taken away. Dustin was definitely up there as someone who he worried about a lot. By now he would be hanging out with Evelyn because he trusted her. Even though they told him that she could be a threat, he wouldn't listen. 

But the most of his worries was Eleven. Mike only ever called her by that name if he was extremely worried. After Hopper had told her about her mother and her real name, El refused to be called Jane Ives, knowing that that name was the past and that El was her future. But what if they was no future for her? What if this was the end? She died one time before and was taken away several times. What if she was actually going to go for real this time? Mike started to breathe heavily as he thought of it. The lights on the bus started to flicker immensely as his worry for his love grew more and more.

"It'll be okay Mike," A soft voice spoke up. Mike looked down and saw El staring up at him, as if she knew what he was thinking. "Calm down. I'm here," she reassured. "Just take deep breaths." Mike obeyed as he started to breathe slowly. His anxiety eased down as he listened to El's soft voice calm him down. "You okay?" El asked.

Mike looked over at her and smiled. "I'm okay. Go back to sleep now," he told her, kissing her forehead. El smiled at him and cuddled up at his side. Mike did the same and they both slept on the bus, awaiting for what the next day will bring them.