ENDGAME | STEVE HARRINGTON

( CHAPTER ELEVEN )

( CHAPTER ELEVEN )

The boys had explained to them that they were in the Junkyard. Hopper had left Nancy, Hailey, Jonathan, and Joyce behind to go and collect them.

Hailey waits nervously in the kitchen, pacing around and she couldn't wait to see her little brother.

"What if Hopper had already been caught?" Hailey worriedly thought allowed, Jonathan was with her as well, Nancy and Joyce were in the living room. "What if the boys have been caught. Oh, God, Dustin... He wouldn't survive a day with them!"

"Would you stop pacing?" Jonathan asks her and walked over to her. "Hopper's gonna get them here safe and sound, okay? He's not gonna let them get hurt." Jonathan had placed his hands on her shoulder, stopping her from walking around.

It had grown dark already, they were gone too long and Hailey couldn't help but think of the worst.

They now sat on the couch anxiously, waiting. Now, headlights illuminated through the window, a car had pulled into the Byers' backyard.

Hailey was the first to run over to the door and opened it, they all rushed out towards the car. "Dusty," she whispers and spots Dustin coming out of the car, relief washed over her. "Dustin!" Dustin looked at his sister with wide eyes as she runs towards him. "You scared the hell out of me, Dustin!"

"I'm sorry!" Dustin immediately rushed out. Nancy had done the same, hugging her own brother who doesn't hug back. Hailey had hugged Dustin tightly and Dustin wrapped his arms around her, he felt safe in her arms now.

Hailey releases the hug and looked over Dustin's shoulder, eyeing the girl with a buzz cut. "Is that my dress?" Nancy asks from behind.

Inside, Mike shows a drawing of a flea and the acrobat. They introduced the girl as Eleven. "Okay, so, in this example, we're the acrobat. Will and Barbara, and that monster, this flea. And this is the Upside Down, where Will is hiding. Mr. Clarke said the only way to get there is through a rip of time and space."

"A gate," Dustin answers from beside Mike. The tweens sat opposite Nancy, Hailey, Joyce, Jonathan and Hopper in the living room.

"That we tracked down to Hawkin's lab," Lucas added.

"With our compass," Dustin finishes and Hailey stared at him with wide eyes. Dustin noticed his sister's reaction. "Okay, so the gate has a really strong electromagnetic field, and that can change the directions of a compass needle."

Hailey nods. Okay, that makes sense, she thought.

"Is this gat underground?" Hopper asks, looking at Eleven.

"Yes," Eleven answered in a soft tone. Eleven and Hopper locked eyes.

"Near a large water tank?" Eleven nods at Hopper's question.

"Yes," she repeated.

"How do you know all that?" Dustin stutters a little, looking at Hopper with wide eyes.

"He's seen it," Mike realises.

"Is there any way that you could... That you could reach Will?" Joyce asks Eleven. "That you could talk to him in this-"

"The Upside Down," Eleven corrects her.

"Down," Joyce whispered. "Yeah," Eleven nods.

"And my friend Barbara?" Nancy added. "Can you find her, too?" Eleven gives Nancy a calm look.

Now, the group gathers around Eleven at the kitchen table. She sits before the resembled photo of Barb sitting on the diving board and a walkie talkie that is static. Nancy, Jonathan, Joyce, Hopper, Hailey, and the boys watched intensely as Eleven sits with her eyes close.