I, Will Byers, Am Not a Victim

Chapter 18: Sensory Deprivation

The next day, after my friends had left, and I was home alone, I heard the phone ring. I answered, thinking it was somebody calling my mom or Jonathan, since I rarely get anyone calling for me, but to my surprise, it was Eleven.

"Hello," I answered.

"Will?" Eleven asked.

"Yes. El?" I asked, recognizing her voice.

"Yes," she answered. "I think you should come over. I have been having visions and I think they involve you."

"What kinds of vision," I asked.

"It's hard to explain," she answered. "Can you come over now? I have some ideas, but I can't explain them over the phone."

"...Sure," I hesitated. "I'll head over right away." I wasn't comfortable leaving the house without telling my mom or Jonathan, but I had to know more. I've always hated lying, so I left a note. It read: "I'm going out for a little while. Don't worry. I won't be long." I left out the details on exactly what I was doing, so I wasn't technically lying.

When I arrived, El was on the front porch, motioning for me to come in. Apparently, Hopper was out of the house, which was a good thing because it would make it easier for us to try out whatever El had planned.

The television was on, but all I could see or hear was static. El told me to sit down and face the television. Slowly, I did as she asked. Before I knew it, I couldn't see. She had put a blindfold on me. I would learn later that this was how she would reach out to people. It's called sensory deprivation. She did something similar when I was lost in the Upside Down and she reached out to me. Instead of TV static, she floated in a pool. I was confused, but I followed along.

"Just relax," she said in a soft, soothing voice. "Think of someone,anyone, and focus on that person." I decided to focus on Mom. I would have chosen Mike, Dustin, Lucas, or Jonathan, but I had seen them recently and I was kind of curious as to what she was up to. I was also hoping that she wasn't worrying about me.

To be honest, I didn't think this was going to work, and I didn't expect to see anything, but I kept on going. Everything was dark, but I could see my mother and Hopper, and I could hear them talking. I couldn't quite place where they were, but I assumed it was Melvald's General Store, where she was working. I listened in,

Mom: Now, let's read it back.

Hopper:*reading* There's something I've been wanting to talk to you bothabout – and I know this is a difficult conversation. But I care about you both very much. Wait. Wait. I could never say that. I don't talk like that.

Mom: You were fine! Keep going.

Hopper: I'm just going to get back to it later. I can't deal with this right now.

Mom: Okay, but you'll have to deal with this sooner or later. By the way, my magnets at home keep falling off the refrigerator.

Hopper: So?

Mom: It's happening here too. I think something else is going on. Maybe the gate has opened again, and that's why this is happening.

Hopper: Can you hear yourself? Magnets?! Because your magnets are falling, the world is ending? Look, I've got to go. Try and relax, okay? This is crazy.

I then took off my blindfold, since nothing else was going on, and the purpose of this was to test out my powers.

"What did you see?" El asked me as she turned the television off. "I heard you mumbling something."

"I saw my mom talking to Hopper," I answered.

"What did they talk about?" she asked curiously.

"Magnets," I answered. "My mom is telling Hopper about magnets falling down, and that she thinks the gate might have re-opened." I could have told her about the fact that they were also talking about setting boundaries between El and Mike, but that was none of my business and I did not want to get involved.

"I closed the gate," she said abruptly.

"I know," I retorted. "I don't think there's anything to worry about. My mom has always jumped to conclusions. With all these bad things happening, she's always on edge. I guess it's not always bad though. That is how she knew I hadn't died in the Upside Down and how she helped me."

"Could she be right?" she asked in a nervous tone.

"It's possible," I answered. "But I'm going to need to see more than just falling magnets before I start panicking."

"Okay," she responded. It was hard to tell what she was thinking about this. It worried me, because I figure, if anyone knows about the Upside Down, it's her. Even though I had spent a week there a few years back, she still knows more about it than anyone else.

"Your nose, it's bleeding," she said after a few moments. That confirmed to me that I had the same abilities that she did. I had never actually seen her use her powers, but I had been told about what it does to her. I quickly grabbed a Kleenex. Strangely, it didn't actually hurt. My nosebleed was more of an annoyance than anything else. I was feeling a little bit winded, but not too much.

"Thanks El," I said as I wiped up the blood. "By the way, I thought about what you said about my birthmark. I looked up some old pictures, ones taken before I was taken away, and that birthmark wasn't there. I think it might be a number. If I have powers like you, then I was probably experimented on as well, and have my own number."