Joey Hopper//Will Byers

The bathtub: Part 3

Everything is quiet for awhile. I don't know how to process this information. Let me just break this down for myself. I somehow ended up in some kind of military science experiment when I was a baby. If I'm putting the pieces together correctly, which I wouldn't be shocked if I'm not, when I was around two I managed to escape. But in the process I tore some kind of hole in reality. A hole that El just recently ripped open. A hole that Will somehow got sucked into. Apparently at some point I hit my head, making this whole memory jump thing make sense. After all, people do say that exposure therapy's a thing and if this entire week hasn't been exposure than I don't know what is. So then my parents adopted me and thought I was a boy? Weirdly enough that's the most sensible thing I've heard so far. I mean, who in their right mind names a little girl Joey? So I guess that catches me all up. This still doesn't seem real. This feels like the plot of some tv show, not my life! I mean, up until a few days ago I was just a normal kid. Sure, my family life was kinda complicated but whose isn't?

After about three minutes of utter silence, I finally speak up.

"So...Will. We-we have to save Will." I stutter, trying to keep my voice from breaking.

I need to pull myself together. Sure, I just had a whole load dropped on me but that doesn't change the fact that Will's still stuck in the upside down with some monster chasing after him.

The boys take my cue and begin to explain the whole flea and the acrobat thing Mr. Clarke showed us yesterday. Mike got a piece of paper and draws out the entire thing.

"Okay," Mike starts, "so in this example we're the acrobat. Will and Barbra and that monster, they're the 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."

Dustin pops up, "a gate-"

"That we tracked to Hawkins lab." Lucas cuts him off.

"With our compasses." Dustin adds in.

Everyone just stares at us.

Dustin suddenly realizes who we're talking to. "Okay, so the gate has a really strong electromagnetic field, and that can change the directions of a compass needle."

"Is this gate underground?" My dad questions.

I look up. "Um...I guess it could be-"

"Yes." Eleven finally speaks, shocking a few people.

I guess the newcomers haven't really heard her talk yet.

My dad looks towards her. "Near a large water tank?"

"Yes."

"H-how do you know all that?" Dustin asks my dad.

"He's seen it." Mike realizes.

I stare at my dad. Why wouldn't he tell me? Not even just this. All my life I've been living a lie. How could words roll off his tongue so easily when they went even true? I guess I've always known my dad was a good actor. I just never thought he'd be acting with me.

Joyce, Will's mom, turns towards Eleven. "Is there any way that you could...that you could reach Will? That you could talk to him in this-"

"The upside down." Eleven says.

"Down. Yeah." Joyce trails on

I meet her eyes, "I've-I've done it before but I don't know how. I was sleeping-"

"I can." El interrupts.

"And my friend Barbra," Nancy asks. "Can you find her too?"

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Jonathan pulls out a ripped photo he had taken of Barbra and Joyce puts an old school photo of Will beside it. Next to that is my sticker decorated walkie-talkie playing loud static. Eleven sits at the head of the table with her eyes closed. The lights flicker above until suddenly it all stops.

"I'm sorry." El says sending a shiver up my spine.

I'm sorry is what people say when they're about to deliver bad news. I'm sorry is what my dad said when he told me Sarah died. I'm sorry is what my mom told me right before she moved out. Eleven couldn't be sorry because then that would mean-

Joyce stutters. "What's w-wrong? What happened?"

"I can't find them." El finally mutters.

That one sentence fills me with so much relief. Normally not being able to find them would suck but when the alternative is being dead I'd definitely rather hear the prior. Obviously Eleven doesn't see it like that though, sense she runs off to the bathroom. Mike goes to follow her-

"No kid." My dad says, grabbing his arm. "Give her a minute."

So we sit in a few more minutes of silence. Let me just tell you it's definitely official, I hate silence. I hate how even though you can tell everyone is thinking something, no one speaks. I hate the eerie feeling of the unknown that fills the air. I just hate it! Needless to say, I'm relieved when I hear the sink turn on in the bathroom.

"Whenever she uses her powers, she gets weak." Mike finally speaks.

Dustin takes that as his cue. "The more energy she uses, the more tired she gets."

"Like, she flipped the van earlier." Lucas starts.

"It was awesome," Dustin exclaims.

"But she's drained." Mike gets to the point

"Like a bad battery." Dustin simplifies

Joyce looks at us. "Well...how do we make her better?"

"I don't think we can." I add in, "we just have to wait and try again."

"Well how long?" Nancy exclaims.

"I don't know." Mike admits.

"The bath." Eleven says from behind, making me slightly jump in my seat.

"What?" Joyce asks

Eleven stares at us all. "I can find them....In the bath."

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Dustin and I go up to the phone. It rings a few times before he picks up.

"Mr. Clarke?" Dustin asks as I lean in closer to hear. "It's Dustin-"

"-And Joey." I add in.

"Is everything okay?" I hear Mr. Clarkes voice come through.

"Yeah, yeah," Dustin starts. "We just, we..."

"We have a school-I mean a science question." I stumble over my words trying to come up with an excuse.

Mr. Clarke sounds slightly confused. "It's ten o'clock on a Saturday. Why don't you two wait and we'll pick this up-"

"Do you know anything about sensory deprivation tanks?" Dustin interrupts.

"Specifically how to build one?" I add in for good measure.

"Sensory deprivation?" Mr. Clarke asks, "wha-what is this for?"

We hesitate for a moment.

"Fun?" Dustin states

"Okay well...why don't we talk about it Monday? After school, okay-?"

Dustin cuts him off again, "you always say we should never stop being curious. To always open any curiosity door we find-"

"Dustin-" Mr. Clarke tries.

"Why are you keeping this curiosity door locked?"

Mr. Clarke finally sighs.

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EDITED