Worlds Turned Upside Down: Will Byers x Reader

Chapter Seven: Castle Byers

The world where (Y/N) and Will reside seems to be a toxic wasteland. Its sky can barely be seen from down below. However, when the clouds of white dust have rolled, a sky filled with a mix of red and black hues is visible. In this sky, a storm seems to be beginning. This storm has been brewing for quite some time and will keep brewing for years to come. Behind all the shadows, embedded into the atmosphere is a hidden power which is beyond the comprehension of any normal human being.
Under this sky, falls tall, rotten trees that make up an abomination of a forest. Two traveling children are engulfed in this deadly brush. They are no longer running, they walk side by side silently, listening to the pounding in their heads. (Y/N) feels like she may be sick from all the running and the leftover adrenaline which was produced by a few near death experiences, her stomach churns. Will is shaking because of the cold, biting weather and from the fear of being entrapped in this world forever. This mix of feelings is extremely confusing for the two children. Their heads are filled to the brim with thoughts. So many thoughts that not even one cannot be expressed clearly. So, they hold everything in.
Their minds aren't the only things that have taken a bashing. Their bodies ache. The wound that (Y/N) acquired from the bicycle pedals stings profoundly. Running had just opened it up more. As for their legs, they feel as though they just had the workout of their lives. Which they did. Their skin is frozen to the touch, the clothing they are currently wearing feels as though it's not there because the level of warmth they give the children is non-existent. The cold has seeped deep into their bones. And to top it all off, there are teensy shards of glass lodged into the delicate flesh of the two children's hands, arms, and legs. They feel as though they may collapse from exhaustion at any second.
After walking in a large semicircle in the woods, surrounding the house, the children see a strange shape come into sight. It isn't the monster, thank God, but a small structure. It's almost unrecognizable because of how rotted it's become. The blanket covering the entrance is tattered, but the wooden plate overhead the opening is still intact. This sign states that the residence is "Castle Byers". Well, a warped version of Castle Byers.
Castle Byers is Will's clubhouse, his safe haven. He and his older brother, Jonathan, decided to build it one day on a boring summer afternoon. Jonathan had gathered the wood from a nearby dump. He and Will went out into the woods behind their house the next day. Will was so excited that he woke up early just to start the construction.
"Jonathan!" He shook his brother awake.
"Will, not now," Jonathan rolled over, exhaustion was evident in his voice.
"Come on, please! Please!" Will dragged out the word "please" until Jonathan gave a groan of defeat.
"Alright, fine," Jonathan planted his two feet onto the cool floor. He outstretched his long arm and placed his hand on Will's head, ruffling his hair.
"Hey!" Will giggled while trying to pry Jonathan's hand, which seemed giant to the small boy, off of his head.
Jonathan and Will both had smiles on their faces, they really did love each other, although they'd never admit it. "Go head out and get the hammer from the shed, I need to get changed," Jonathan pushed Will gently towards the door. Will nodded enthusiastically and walked away quickly to complete his given task.
This clubhouse became a place where Will would go to think or to draw or to be alone. It really helped when he needed to get out of the house to escape his mother's angry voice as she fought with his dad over the phone. He would also allow his friends to enter if they knew his secret password.
This password was created on another summer afternoon as Will and (Y/N) sat in Castle Byers. The clubhouse provided shade for the two as Will and (Y/N) doodled.
(Y/N) picked up her piece of paper and tilted it in the air while squinting at it mockingly, like an artist would do. She and Will sat facing each other. Their backs were against the walls of Castle Byers, and they sat on thick cushions, which were placed there after Will had discovered that sitting on the stiff, dirt ground really wasn't that comfortable.
(Y/N) placed her paper down with a look of disappointment. She then tried to peek over at what Will was drawing but couldn't quite see it so well. "Can I see?" (Y/N) asked Will which snapped him out of his concentration.
"Um, yeah, sure," Will smiled and (Y/N) outstretched her hand, waiting for him to place the paper into it, "But, I wanna see yours first," He dramatically drew the paper back and held it in the air, he placed his hand out imitating the way she was doing so.
(Y/N) looked to her paper, embarrassed, "No you don't," she looked back at Will and shook her head, "It isn't good," she withdrew her hand from the air and slumped back.
"Nuh uh," Will shook his head, his hair swooshed around because of the way his hair was cut, "I bet it's good," he leaned forward and reached for the paper.
"Well it isn't," (Y/N) caught his hand and moved it away.
"Yes, it is!" Will giggled and tried to maneuver his hand out of his friend's. (Y/N) struggled to hold him back.
"No, it's not!" Will was now using his other hand to try and grab the paper, but (Y/N) had grasped that one as well. The children giggled as they wrestled against each other. One of Will's hands came free, and he used it to go for (Y/N)'s stomach and tickle her.
The girl gasped and let go of Will's other hand. She forcefully tried to remove Will's grip from her stomach, however, she was laughing much too hard, "Will!" She tried to pry him away finger by finger, "Stop it!" but that didn't work, "Stop it, Will!" (Y/N) was now on her back and Will leaned over her. They were a tangled, giggling mess.
Finally, Will decided that he'd tortured his friend enough and let go. (Y/N) relaxed and curled up into a ball to protect herself from another attack. Will went straight for her drawing as the laughing died down.
"I told you," he said examining the picture.
"What?" (Y/N)'s voice was muffled because of the ball she'd wrapped herself into.
"I told you it wasn't bad," Will grinned while looking at the picture. (Y/N) rolled over and poked her head up quickly. She sat up slowly and looked up at Will. "Yeah, I mean some of the proportions are off but that's easy to fix. You just need a little practice. Here look," Will picked up a black crayon and started to fix some of (Y/N)'s drawing's lines. She got lost in his words. He explained things beautifully and with such care. (Y/N) loved listening to Will. But, most of all, she loved that he actually listened to her.
Subconsciously, she leaned in closer to his face. Absorbed in everything he was doing.
"Yeah, and this part is really good, so you'd want to frame it-" Will trailed off abruptly, he noticed that (Y/N) was staring at him very closely. He looked into her eyes and searched for a command. What did she want to happen? Because he'd seen grown-ups kiss a few times. They kissed when they liked each other, and he definitely liked (Y/N). She's his best friend, but he kinda wanted to marry her, because grown-ups got married when they liked each other.
They slowly inched towards each other, confused on how to go about kissing. (Y/N) had also seen her parents kiss a few times. They hadn't kissed in a while though. Her daddy was too mad and her mommy was too sad.
Will closed his eyes and (Y/N) saw this, so she copied his action. The children could feel each other's breath against their lips. They were so close, so very close.
"Will!" Joyce called from outside of Castle Byers. The two snapped their eyes open and Will scooted quickly away from his friend. Joyce came through the clubhouse's blanket-door and smiled at the two, who had two of the most awkward expressions plastered across their faces.
"Hey," Joyce said softly to the children, "It's hot out here, do you guys want some lemonade? I brought some home from the store," Joyce looked at the children and raised an eyebrow, "Are you two okay?"
"Yep," The children said in sync while they nodded aggressively.
"Okay," Joyce let out a short laugh caused by the children's strange reactions, "Lemonade?" She offered again.
"Yes, please," Will responded while picking his drawing back up.
"Yes, please, Ms. Byers," (Y/N) politely answered while picking her drawing up from beside Will.
"Sweetie, you can call me Joyce," (Y/N) nodded and grinned politely back at her. Joyce smiled and started to back out of Castle Byers, which was a bit too small for her, "I'll bring it out, be back soon," The blanket swung downwards after Joyce had exited the clubhouse. The children stayed silent for a few seconds, listening to her footsteps trail away from Castle Byers.
"You oughta make a password," (Y/N) shifted her legs on the cushion and smoothed her paper out.
"Hm?" Will hummed, he wasn't sure what she meant.
"A secret password," The air had been cleared of their awkward encounter, "So that people have to say it before they come in," (Y/N) looked at Will for input.
"Yeah, that's cool," Will grinned and looked at his friend who was also beaming, she felt validated because her idea was accepted. "What should it be?" He asked and looked around examining random objects, "D&D?"
"No way! That's too obvious!" (Y/N) giggled at the boy's strong love for the game they played. She could have guessed that "D&D"  would be the password he'd suggest. "It has to be a name or something," (Y/N) looked around some more until her eyes landed on Will's drawing. "That's really good!" She shuffled towards him and held the drawing with him.
"Thanks," Will bashfully gulped and turned his head to his drawing instead of (Y/N).
Will had drawn a few characters from The Lord of the Rings. They all stood next to each other in a magical land, some using their powers, others with elaborate weapons. One of these characters had been Radagast, who held a staph and had a distinct pirate-like hat. (Y/N) knew Will had liked this character a lot.
"How about Radagast?" (Y/N) asked, pointing at him in Will's drawing then looking up at the boy.
Will scrunched his face up slightly for a few seconds, in thought, "Yeah, Radagast is perfect!" He took his paper and grabbed some tape from a small table in Castle Byers. Then, taped it up onto the wall. He took another piece and stuck it on (Y/N)'s finger, "Go ahead, put it up," He gestured towards her paper.
"Are you sure?" (Y/N) asked. Unsure that her picture was worthy enough to be showcased up with all of Will's drawings.
"Absolutely," Will took the drawing from (Y/N)'s hand and put it right next to his most recent drawing, "Do the honors," (Y/N) reached upwards and stuck the tape at the top of her paper, satisfied that she had the honor of having something of hers hung up in Castle Byers.
Will started to clap and whoop vigorously. (Y/N) giggled and added her applause too. The kids shouted and whistled goofily at their work, like they were celebrities.
Castle Byers was made to be comforting and fun. The kids always have a great time drawing, talking, or doing some other childish activity. But not in this Castle Byers. Not in the Castle Byers which is located in the other world.
The children go in expecting warmth and solace only to find that it's just as cold as it is outside. There is nothing comforting about it. The contents inside are all misplaced and rotted. At least there's somewhere to hide for now. Well, until that monster comes back anyway.
Will collapses onto the decaying cushions and (Y/N) does the same. Will immediately starts to cry into the palms of his hands. (Y/N) reaches towards him, wanting to put a hand on his back and comfort him while he's in this state of deterioration.
Her whole body stops while her hand is in midair. A terrible feeling that has been lingering in her gut now becomes fully evident because she's able to think a bit clearer. Her stomach churns and the feeling runs up into her throat. Oh, no. (Y/N) lurches over to her right, away from the direction Will is in, and hot chunks of vomit start to spew out from her mouth.
Will hears the choking heaves of his friend and rushes to hold her hair back from her face with his tear stained hands. She isn't sure if this fit was induced from all of the running, the fear, the pain, or a very strange mixture of them all.
(Y/N) gives a final gag yet stays resting her elbows on her knees. She doesn't want to be thrown into another round of puking. Suddenly, her cheeks burn furiously, embarrassed that she may have just disgusted the one person who she didn't want to be repulsed by her.
"Sorry," (Y/N)'s voice is weak and a little hoarse. She sits up straight and Will releases his grip on her hair.
"You don't have to be sorry," Will tries to offer (Y/N) a sympathetic smile, but she avoids his stare. It's obvious she's disgusted with herself. (Y/N) stares at the mess she's made.
"I'll clean it up," (Y/N) spies a stick, grabs it, and starts to scratch the surface of the ground. Her goal is to dig a small ditch. The silence is awkward. Will decides to help the girl out, so he also grasps a stick lying loose on the ground and helps her dig. (Y/N) thinks back and reminisces. She tries to find a sliver of positivity so that she doesn't fall totally into a cycle of dismay.
"Do you remember that time," (Y/N) starts to say grinning a bit while sniffling away some fresh tears that had leaked from her nose, her voice is still a bit nasally from the remaining snot, "When Mike got so into that game of D&D that," she lets out a short, airy laugh, "that he stood right up and hit his head so hard," she broke into a more real laughter, Will also let a few giggles at the memory and at the newfound gleefulness of his friend, "He hit it so hard he," (Y/N) is failing to let the words escape her mouth, laughter erupts instead, "He fell right back down to the ground," tears are nearly falling from her eyes, Will is laughing chaotically as well. "Plop!" (Y/N) roars, mimicking the speed that Mike had raced back to earth.
"He hated us for laughing!" Will howls, bending down.
(Y/N) plasters an exaggerated frown onto her face and places a hand atop her head, "Guys! That hurt! It isn't funny! It isn't!" (Y/N) whines, mocking Mike. The two burst out into a louder laughter, if that's even possible, and gasp for breath. They go on like this for a while, the memory is funny to them, but not that funny. They aren't laughing solely at the memory but at everything. They are laughing to escape the truth and horror of their situation. They use the laughs to cushion their fall from sanity.
After a while, the chuckles die down and they sit smiling, still digging a small hole in the ground. It's deep enough. "The vomit hole's done," (Y/N) pats her knees and lets out one last, single giggle, Will grins at her choice of words. (Y/N) scrapes the puke into the hole messily. It isn't easy.
Will drops the stick and is now terribly aware that there are sharp pains all over his body. Little, spiky, pains. He's felt it for a while but it was numbed by the joy he felt temporarily. Small shards of glass have seeped into his skin. Looking over at (Y/N), who is now covering her hole back over, he notices she has glass stuck in her as well.
(Y/N) throws the stick and looks down at her hands. Small streams of blood flow messily down her palms. Why hasn't she noticed this already? The cold has tranquilized the feeling in most of the children's bodies. This must also be part of the reason for them not noticing the pain prior to now. (Y/N), who has the tendency to be a bit squeamish, winces a bit at the state of her hands.
Will takes a deep breath and starts removing the shards from his palms. Little yelps can be heard from the boy as he quickly manages to free himself of the glass pieces. (Y/N) decides to start doing the same. She slowly clutches each small piece and yanks it from her flesh. The glass is mostly present in the children's hands. The rest, thankfully, hasn't touched any other part of their skin, but has attached itself to their clothing. The two stand up and jump around maniacally trying to get the little pieces to remove themselves. More blood runs down to their wrists from the open wounds.
They sit down and clear away the last glass shards from their clothes. They stare down at the minuscule pools of red fluid forming at the bases of their wrists. The two concur that they need to stop the bleeding.
(Y/N) hesitantly takes Will's hands and places them onto her thighs, her pants will absorb the blood and put some pressure onto the wounds. She does the same for herself and places her hands onto Will's jeans.
"Sorry, it might stain," she gives him a crooked, apologetic smile. He looks back.
"It's okay."
The children sit silently across from one another, looking actively at the other's features. They both have that same feeling that they had back on that summer afternoon in Castle Byers. When Joyce Byers interrupted what could have been the first kiss of many.

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I loved writing this chapter! The flashback scene randomly came to me as I was going about the day. I sat down to write and ended up completing much more than I expected! Thank you guys so much for reading my work, it really makes me so happy♡ What's your favorite chapter so far?
~WoodCeiling xx

*THE CHARACTERS, THEME, AND SOME DIALOGUE BELONG TO STRANGER THINGS AND THE DUFFER BROTHERS*