Downside Up [W.Byers]

033

They all stand, sadly watching Will. Hopper seems to notice something peculiar. "Morse code." He states. "What?" Joyce asks. "Will. He's tapping his fingers. He's tryna talk to us."

They all run inside the house, grabbing a sheet of paper. "What happened?" Dustin questions. Hopper grabs a pen, then begins writing. "I think he's talking, just not with words."

He writed down a series of lines and dots, then begins translating it. "Hey, what is that?" Steve asks. "Morse code." They all respond.

"H-E-R-E." He translates. "Here." Everyone reads. "Will's still in there. He's talking to us." He states.

Johnathan plays Should I stay Or should I go as he takes a seat in front of Will once again. "Do you remember the first time I played you this? Mom and dad were both arguing in the next room. So I played you the mix tape I made you. And it was the first time you got into music. Real music."

Will continues to tap, which Hopper sends to the others.

"And then the party escaped into the sewers, and there were those big insect things, and you guys were still on level one." Mike states.

"And a really kind demodog helped us get out of there, and we were free." Ruby mentions.

"Then you cast Fog Cloud and you saved us. You saved the whole party." Mike continues.

"After you taught me D&D, I pretty much had the time of my life playing it. I felt so cool when I played with you and the others." Ruby smiles.

"You saw that little girl and she was in the sandbox and she was crying. You gave her your Tonka Truck. And I told you we couldn't afford to buy another one. You see said she should have it because she's sad. 'She's sad, Mommy.'. I love you so much." Joyce says tearfully. "So, so much."

Suddenly, the phone rings, causing Will's eyes to widen. Will's eyes roll into the back of his head as he breathes heavily. "It's just a phone, right? He can't know where he is.." Ruby says, looking to Mike. "Hey. Hey, can you hear me?" Joyce asks.

"It knows. It knows where we are." Hopper states. "Oh, shit." Joyce reaches for the needle, injecting will and putting him to sleep. They run out, checking for any sign of demodogs.

In the distance, the monsters screech. "They're coming!" Johnathan shouts as they unstrap will and carry him out. They get back into the house, and Ruby and mike immediately run to the windows, looking out.

"Hey. Hey, hey away from the windows!" Hopper orders. "Do you know how to use this?" Hopper asks Johnathan as he holds up a gun. "What?" Johnathan asks. "Can you use this?" He repeats.

"I can." Nancy says, being handed the gun. She holds it up towards the door, ready to shoot. Ruby holds up her fire, Lucas holds his sling shot, and Steve holds his bat.

A loud crash is heard at the far window, causing them all to turn around. "What are they doing?" Nancy asks fearfully. They are once again forced to turn around, following the sounds.

Suddenly, a lifeless demodog is thrown in through the window, causing everyone to scream. "Holy shit." Dustin mutters. "Is it dead?" Max asks. Hopper checks for any sign of life, which he gets no response from the creature.

Suddenly, the door creaks. The lock twists open, and the chain lock is pushed. Suddenly, the door creaks open, revealing someone that they never should have expected to come.

Eleven.

"El." Ruby mutters. Mike walks forward, tears staining his eyes. Sad smiles appear on their faces as they run to each other. "Eleven." Mike says in disbelief.

"Mike." He wraps his arms around her, pulling her close to him. "Is that.." Max trails off. Dustin and Lucas nod. "I never gave up on you. I called you every night. Every night for—"

"353 days. I heard." She smiles. "Why didn't you tell me you were there? That you were okay?" Mike asks. "Because I wouldn't let her." Hopper speaks up.

"The hell is this? Where you been?" Hopper asks. "Where have you been?" She asks angrily. Hopper sighs, pulling her in for a hug. "You've been hiding her. You've been hiding her this whole time!" Mike shouts, punching his side.

"Hey! Let's talk. Alone." Hopper grabs his arm, pulling him into another room. "El." Ruby walks up, engulfing the girl in a hug. "Ruby." She smiles. "Your timing could not be more perfect. We really need you." Ruby says as she pulls out.

"You look pretty cool." She smiles. "Thanks." Eleven responds joyfully. Dustin and Lucas join in on the hug as well. "We missed you." Lucas says. "I missed you, too."

"We talked about you pretty much every day." Dustin adds. Eleven turns to look at the boy, curiously squinting her eye. "Teeth." She says, reaching forward to touch them.

"What?" Dustin asks in confusion. "You have teeth." She repeats. Dustin smiles, turning to look at Lucas and Ruby, who smile back. "Oh. You like these pearls?" He purrs.

"Dustin, no." Ruby shakes her head. "Eleven?" Max speaks up. "Hey Um, I'm Max." She smiles, putting out her hand. "I've heard a lot about you."

Eleven looks right past her, walking away to Joyce. "She doesn't like meet new people.." Ruby states, trying to make her feel better.

Joyce and eleven stand by the table as the others slowly approach them. "You've opened this gate before, right?" Joyce asks. "Yes." Eleven responds. "Do you think if we got you back there, that you could close it?"

"Yes."

A/n: I got literal chills while writing the part where El came back. Why does stranger things make me cry so much?