𝐩𝐚𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐜𝐮𝐭

xix. MENTAL

  

     Lucas and Charles were driving down the road hurriedly, Lucas was trying to reach the others. Lucas is shouting at his radio as they both pedaled as fast as they could. "Lucas, slow down, we can't understand you." Charles sighed in relief when he heard Mike. "Yes, I copy! Do you?" Lucas shouted into the radio. "They know about Eleven!"

     "Get out of there! They know about Eleven! The bad men are coming! All of them! Do you hear me? The bad men are coming! The bad men are coming!" Lucas shouted into the radio.

      As Lucas and Charles continued to drive down the road, Lucas can hear Dustin on the radio, "oh, my God, oh, my God, oh, my God." The boy kept repeating. "Dustin!" Lucas said into the radio. "Dustin, do you copy?" He shouts. "Yeah, Lucas, they're on us." Dustin said in response.

     "Where are you?" Lucas shouted into the radio. "Cornwallis." Dustin shouted back and Charles looked at Lucas. "Meet me at Elm and Cherry!" Lucas shouted into his radio before he and Charles continue to drive down the road.

     The two other boys came from behind a house, so all four stop. "Charles!" Mike said as Dustin looked over. "Lucas!" He said as Charles sighs. "Where are they?" He asked and Mike stammered, "I don't know." Charles looks at Dustin. "I think we lost them." The curly haired boy says.

     "Go! Go! Go! Go!" Mike yelled when they heard the tires screeching as the vans turned to the road they were on. The boys start pedaling down the road, "faster! Faster!" Mike yelled. "Shit, shit, shit, shit, shit!" Came from Dustin. Then another van comes from the other way, straight towards them, "Mike!" Charles yelled as he drove to the side, but the van went into the air over them, they all looked up at it as it flipped to the other side.

     It gets in the way of the other vans which all came to a stop as Lucas and Mike looked at each other. "Holy shit.." Charles whispered underneath his breath before they all continued to drive.

     Mike got ahead of the other three, stopping by a random bus in the junkyard where he got off his bike, quickly helping Eleven off. "Holy.. Holy shit!" Dustin said right away as they reached them, they also get off their bikes, putting them down.

     "Did.. did you see what she did to that van?" Dustin asked as Charles looked at him. "No, Dustin, we missed it." Mike said sarcastically before Charles could. "I mean that was.." Dustin said, breathless as Charles looked at Eleven.

     "Awesome." He and Lucas say at the same time causing the girl to look over at them. "It was awesome." Lucas repeated as Charles sighed, looking down. Lucas walked over to Eleven, kneeling beside her. "Everything I said about you being a traitor and stuff.. I was wrong." Lucas said to the girl and Charles sighed, coming to kneel beside her as well. "Me too. I didn't.. I didn't mean to say those things about you, especially the whole you're just a girl we found in the woods stuff, you're more than that." He said and Eleven looks at him.

"Point is.. We're sorry." Lucas said and Eleven looked back at him again. "Really sorry." Charles said as Lucas reached out, grabbing her shoulder softly. "Friends.. friends don't lie." She said softly as she looked between the two boys.

"I'm sorry, too.." She said then looked at Charles who just smiled a bit. "Me, too." Mike said and they both look over at the dark haired boy. He holds his hand out towards Lucas, which the boy grabbed and shaked with his own. Charles stood up, "I'm sorry, too, Mike.. I s-shouldn't have punched you." He said then he stepped forward.

When he did, Mike flinched, "I'm not gonna hit you." He said as he raised his hand to Mike's arm. "I'm really sorry. I didn't mean to. I was just mad about the whole Will stuff. I didn't mean to take it out on you.." He said and Mike smiled at him. Charles pulled him into his arms, tightly hugging Mike. Mike gave a confused look to Lucas.

"Just go with it." Lucas mouthed to Mike who just smiled and wrapped his arms around Charles as well, hugging him back as tight. Charles pulls back from the hug, sighing softly. "I really am sorry.." He tells Mike who sighed, putting his hand to Charles' shoulder, smiling slightly at him. "It's okay. I forgive you. I'm sorry too." He tells him.

     Later, the four boys and Eleven all sat, Charles and Lucas showing them what they saw, the fence and everything. "This is Randolph Road, right here." Lucas said, making a line with a stick. "The fence starts here," Charles said as he pointed with his finger. "And goes all the way around." Lucas continued as he used the stick to point all around the sticks they had set up on the ground.

     "And this is the lab right here." Lucas said as he sets down the can that was sitting between him and Charles. "The gate's gotta be in there somewhere. It's gotta be." Charles said as he looks up, looking at Dustin, to Eleven, to Mike.

     "Well, who owns Hawkins Lab?" Dustin asked as Charles looked down. "The sign says Department of Energy." Lucas said as he looked at Dustin. "Department of Energy? What do you think that means?" Dustin said, looking at Mike who sat directly across from him. "It means government. Military." Mike said and Charles looks at him. "Then why does it say Energy?" Dustin asks.

     "Just trust me, alright? It's military. My dad's told me before." Mike said and Charles looks up. "Mike's right." He says and Lucas nodded. "There's soldiers out front." Lucas said as he looks at Dustin. "Do they make, like, lightbulbs or something?" Dustin said as he looks at Charles and Lucas.

     "No, weapons." Charles says as he looked back at Dustin. "To fight the Russians, and commies and stuff." Mike furthered the explanation. "Weapons." Lucas said, looking at Eleven. "Oh, Jesus, this is really bad." Dustin said as he looked at Eleven then looked over at Charles and Lucas.

     "Really bad. The place is like a fortress." Lucas says as Charles sighed. "Well, what do we do?" Dustin said and Charles looks at him. "I don't know, but we can't go home." Mike says. "He's right. We're fugitives now." Charles said. Then Dustin heard a helicopter, so he looks up. "G-Guys? Do you hear that?" He asked and they all look up as well.

     "Hide!" Charles said, hurriedly getting up. They all grab their bikes, putting them underneath the bus. "Go! Go, go, go!" Mike shouted as Dustin also shouted, "come on, come on!" "Hurry up!" Mike yelled but Dustin's bike gets stuck. "It's stuck, it's stuck." He said as Lucas grabbed him. "Let's go, let's go!" Lucas says as he helps him.

      They rush into the bus, all the way into the back. "Get down!" Lucas shouts as he grabbed Charles, pulling him down at the side of the bus with him. Charles looks over at Dustin, Eleven and Mike who were also on the ground. "Mental."

    

     

   

      

      

     

authors note can ya'll imagine charles and will's reunion?? omg