Hold On ·Will Byers x Reader·

3

Will POV

"So...y/n, huh? What's up with them? I've never heard you mention their name before," Jonathan said as soon as we drove off.

"That's because I just met them today," I shrug.

"Well, you guys really seemed to have hit it off," he smiled at me.

"W-what? No, it's not even like that," I blurted out.

Jonathan just chuckled at me. Ok, I'll admit, y/n is really cool. But I just met them, and we just started to get to know each other. Jonathan stopped the car as we pulled into the driveway of our home. We got out and walked into the house to see our mom, Joyce, setting the table.

"Hey, there you guys are! How are my favorite boys?" she greeted, giving both of us a huge, loving hug.

"We're good, Mom," Jonathan replied.

"So, how was the club meeting, Will?" she asked.

I glanced at Jonathan who shrugged. I guess she wasn't aware that we had unintentionally skipped today's meeting.

"Um, it was good. We just got a new ham radio and Mr. Clarke taught us all how to use it," I lied through my teeth.

Jonathan and Mom sat down as I went to go get ready for dinner. I tossed my backpack on my bed then went to wash my hands. As I dried my hands, the lights began to flicker rapidly. I looked up in fright, confused as to what was going on.

"Hello?"

No one answered. The lights stopped flickering, so I assumed it was just the wiring. This house was pretty old. I looked back to the mirror and ran my hands through my hair, wondering if y/n really liked us or if they were just another bully like Troy. I put both hands on the edge of the sink and sighed. The lights started to flicker again, before they turned off completely.

"Hello? Mom? Jonathan?" I called out.

Still, no answer. I tried to open the door, but it was locked and somehow I couldn't unlock it. I started to freak out and paced around the bathroom. Something wasn't right.

The lights came back on slowly, but were dim. I splashed water on my faced and calmed myself down. It was then that the mirror started to morph into another form. Suddenly, a large creature with no eyes poked its head through.

I backed up against the wall next to the door, as more of the creature's body manifested through the mirror, its arms reaching out to grab me. My eyes widened as the monster opened its face to growl at me, showing it's many rows of sharp teeth. I opened my mouth to scream, but no sound came out.

"Will?" I heard my mom speak from outside.

I turned around as she opened the door and poked her head in.

"You okay? You've been in here a while..."

I spun back around, ready to point out the monster, but it was gone. I returned my attention back to my mom, who just gave me another concerning look.

"Um, yeah. I just got distracted..." I lied again.

"Oh, ok. Well come on out so you can eat. Your food's getting cold, honey."

I nodded and silently let out a breath I didn't even know I was holding in.

"Ok, um... I'll be right out," I said.

I closed the door softly and went back to the sink. I traced my fingers along its surface cautiously. It was as solid and intact as it was before. I turned the faucet on and splashed my face with cold water for a second time. After I pulled myself together, I left the bathroom and sat down at the table. Jonathan gave me a weird look as if to ask if I was okay. I gave him a reassuring smile, and he nodded in return.

After dinner, I felt too scared and too lazy to shower, so I decided to go straight to bed and take one in the morning. I wasn't really sleepy, though, so I tried to call Mike. I grabbed my walkie-talkie and turned it to the same channel we always used.

"Hey, Mike... are you awake?" I waited for a moment and when he didn't respond I set the radio on my night stand and laid down.

"Yeah sorry, Holly stole my radio to use it as a giant telephone for her dolls. But, yeah, I'm here."

I picked the walkie back up and answered.

"Oh... wow."

"What's up?"

"I just... I can't sleep and I guess I wanted to talk to somebody," I half-lied.

"Oh, ok. Well what's on your mind."

I didn't want to tell him yet, so I lied again, for what felt like the millionth time tonight.

"Y/n?" I said it in more of a question than a statement, hoping they were a topic he'd be willing to talk about right now.

It was silent for a while, so I assumed he was either laughing at me on his end or asleep.

"What about them?" he responded after a while.

"Nothing, really..." I whispered. "I just think it's weird that they're so nice to us when they're practically family with Troy... the same guy who's bullied since we started school."

"True. But they seem cool. I mean they even agreed to attend our campaign Saturday."

I pondered this fact for a minute.

"Yeah, I guess you're right. So are they, like, a member of the party now or what?"

"Not yet. I mean, we can't just let anybody join our party. I think we still need to get to know them."

"That makes sense."

Mike and I talked about D&D and his campaign for a while until he said mentioned that he was getting tired.

"Yeah me too."

"Ok. Good night, Will. I'll see you tomorrow."

"Good night, Mike."

I put away the radio and settled into bed, trying to clear my mind in order to distract myself from what happened as I drifted off to sleep.