𝙌𝙪𝙚𝙨𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣𝙨

|CHAPTER ONE| Where Are You?

I walked outside of my house and hopped onto my bike. I waited outside the driveway of the Byers house patiently. Surely, Will would appear at any moment. But he didn't. Instead, it was his mother, Joyce. Joyce Byers.

"Good morning, Mrs Byers. Is Will inside?" I asked her.

I noticed the look that flashed through her eyes. A look of worry and fear. "Sorry, [Y/N]. I think he went to school already."

No he didn't. I would have gotten a call from him. From his radio to mine if he did. Or he would have been waiting outside for me. But besides that, I heard something in her voice. Like she had been rehearsing that same line to herself. Over and Over again. And to my knowledge, she could have. I nodded my head taking in her lie. I would keep the lie a secret. The part of the lie where I knew it was a lie.

"Bye, Mrs Byers." I told her kicking off of the ground and biking to school.

As I biked up towards the bike rack, I was met by Mike Wheeler, Lucas Sinclair, and Dustin Henderson, Will's friends. His only friends. Besides me. But I was his neighbor friend. That meant nothing to him and his friends.

"I'm sure he's fine." Lucas said, directing it to his friends. "Oh, hi, [Y/N]."

"Do you know where he is, [Y/N]?" Mike Wheeler asked me.

"No. No clue. His mom said he must have gotten to school early. But it was a lie." I told them.

"How do you know that?" asked Dustin looking at me.

"He would have radio me. Or he would have waited for me. I don't nearly take as much time as him to get ready in the morning. And plus her eyes went to the left. A sure universal sign that someone is lying." I explained.

"You are a girl which is weird that a guy would take longer than you." commented Dustin.

"Not if the guy wakes up much later than the girl does."  I told him.

"Are we really talking about how long she takes to get ready? I'm more interested in how she knew Mrs Byers was lying." commented Mike.

"Well, when your eyes go to the left, it means you're searching up something in your creative brain. Trying to come up with a story that is both ridiculous and believable." I explained.

"That's cool." Dustin commented.

"Step right up, ladies and gentlemen. Step right up and get your tickets for the freak show. And I see they have a new attraction. Who do you think would make more money in a freak show? Midnight, Frogface, Streetrat, or Toothless?" Troy Walsh said smackineach of the boys and skipping over me.

Troy and James have been calling me Streetrat since I moved here six years ago. My last name is Castaway, and I live with my siblings, Tony and Tia, and our uncle Bene. And yes, I have psychic abilities. Yes, I am an alien. Yes, no one knows about it.

"I'd go with Toothless." James Dante mocked Dustin.

"I told you a million times, my teeth are coming in. It's called cleidocranial dysplasia." Dustin said, defending himself.

"'I told you a million times.' Do the arm thing. Do it, freak!" Dustin took off his jacket and a pop noise resenated making both bullies wince. "God, it gets me every time."

"Assholes." Lucas said.

"You got that right, Sinclair." I said.

"I think it's kinda cool. It's like you have superpowers or something. Like Mr. Fantastic." Mike commented.

"Yeah, except I can't fight evil with it." Dustin said. "Hey, [Y/N], how come you weren't freaked out by it?"

"Will talks alot about you three. Plus, it's not the weirdest or possible strangest thing I have seen." I explained.

Running away from crazy men when you're seven is probably the most strangest thing. Crazy men that wanted to use you and your powers for monetary gain.

"We'll see you in Science right?" asked Dustin.

"What are you talking about? We have English together first." Mike commented.

"Yeah, see you three in Science." I told them.

School, for one thing, had always been boring. School for a second thing, had always had only one thing I liked. Science and English. Okay, I guess that's two things, but you get the picture. Which is why I had always looked bored in school. Which is why I only pay attention in two classes: Science and English. The bell rang signalling for lunch.

"Remember, finish chapter 12 and answer 12.3 on the difference between an experiment and other forms of science investigation. This will be on the test, which will cover chapters 10 through 12. It will be multiple choice with an essay section." Mr Clarke said trailing off at the end.

I walked out of the classroom and headed to the library. It was sad that at lunch I ate with the librarians in the school library. For one reason, my only friend was Will Byers, but he had his own group of friends that he ate lunch with. The librarian, Mr Montgomery, smiled at me as Mrs Breathwaite picked up some books and went to the fiction section to put it away.

"Hello, [Y/N]." Mr Montgomery told me.

I sat down at the counter and pulled out my sanwhich and my carrots. I was almost able to take a bite from my sandwhich when the principal appeared along with a cop. "May we please see [Y/N] for a moment please?"

Montgomery nodded  and I walked to the Principal's office where the boys were waiting. Hopper sat in a chair and asked us where would Will be? The three boys started to talk over one another while I just stood (well sat) quietly listening to the three of them.

"Okay, okay, okay. One at a time, all right? You. You said he takes what?" Hopper gestured to Mike.

"Mirkwood." Mike explained.

"Mirkwood?"

"Yeah." the raven haired boy nodded.

"Have you ever heard of Mirkwood?" Hopper asked Callaghan.

"I have not. That sounds made up to me." commented Collaghan.

"No, it's from Lord of the Rings." Which is made up, Lucas.

"Well, The Hobbit." Dustin specified.

"It doesn't matter!" Lucas exclaimed.

"He asked!" Dustin fired back. 

"'He asked!'" Lucas mocked.

Lucas and Dustin reached over both Mike and I and started to try to hit one another. I tried to stop Dustin (who was on my other side) while Mike tried to stop Lucas.

"Hey, hey, hey! What'd I just say?" Hopper said. He obviously has no experience with tweenage boys. But I do. Well, my experience is limited, but still. "One at a damn time. You."

"Mirkwood, it's a real road. It's just the name that's made up." Mike explained.

"It's where Cornwallis and Kerley meet, right?" I added looking at Mike who nodded.

"Yeah, she's right." he said. I only knew of it, because that's what Will told me. He takes Cornwallis home when he goes home from the Wheelers.

"Yeah, all right, I think I know that." Hopper said writing it down on his notepad.

"We can show you, if you want." Mike told him.

"I said that I know it!" Hopper said.

"We can help look." Mike told him.

"Yeah." Dustin, Lucas, and I agreed.

"No. No. After school, you are all to go home. Immediately. That means no biking around looking for your friend, no investigating, no nonsense. This isn't some Lord of the Rings book." Hopper said, shooting down what we wanted to do.

"The Hobbit." Dustin said.

"Shut up!" Lucas said and the two boys started to try to hit one another again.

"Hey! Hey! Hey! Stop it! Do I make myself clear? Do I make myself clear?" asked Hopper.

"Yes, sir." We chorosed.

Yeah right.