"𝐖𝐄 𝐇𝐀𝐕𝐄 𝐓𝐎 𝐅𝐈𝐍𝐃 𝐇𝐈𝐌, 𝐁𝐄𝐅𝐎𝐑𝐄 𝐒𝐇𝐄 𝐋𝐎𝐒𝐄𝐒 𝐇𝐄𝐑𝐒𝐄𝐋𝐅."
In which Caroline Byers loses her twin to the supernatural, fights feelings for her best friend, befriends a girl with telekinetic superpowers, gets tossed into a w...
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𝐂𝐀𝐑𝐎𝐋𝐈𝐍𝐄 𝐖𝐎𝐊𝐄 𝐔𝐏 𝐓𝐎 𝐒𝐎𝐌𝐄𝐓𝐇𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐂𝐎𝐋𝐃 dripping down the side of her head and onto her temples. She opened her eyes and immediately shut them again, the yellowish light blinding her.
Her head ached, and she moaned and reached up to touch it.
A small, calloused hand grabbed hers and gently lowered it. "No, no, no- don't touch it."
After a moment Caroline opened her eyes all the way, blinking to let them adjust. When her vision cleared, she saw Mike Wheeler looking down at her, grinning. "Hey, sunshine. You back?"
"Mike?" She tried to sit up, but the boy pushed her back.
Looking around, she realized she was sitting in the Wheeler's basement. She was sprawled out the old worn out sofa, the one that smelled like farts built up from over the years. The D&D board from the game the boys must have played last night was still sitting on the table, pieces sprawled all over the place.
"What happened?" Caroline asked Mike.
Mike ran a hand down his face, then grabbed a cup of water sitting on the floor and handed it to her. She drank it quickly, not realizing how thirsty she had been.
After a moment, Mike finally said, "You passed out. Your mom said you had a panic attack and she called my mom to come get you. She said the... stress was too much."
Caroline sat back, eyes burning. For a cruel, taunting second, she had forgotten.
Now she remembered. Oh, God, she remembered.
"Will's missing," she looked at Mike, broken.
"I know," Mike said softly. "The chief came and talked to Lucas, Dustin, and I at school."
Caroline stared at the floor, fidgeting with the ice pack Mike had sloppily lay on her head. "I'm scared, Mike."
Mike scooted closer and pulled her in for a hug. "I am too," he confessed.
Caroline lay on his shoulder, the way she always did with Will when she was tired or sad or they were watching a movie. It felt the same with Mike; comfortable and reassuring. Mike was a brother to her, had been since the day the Byers twins met him on the first day of kindergarten a thousand years ago.
"Caroline?"
Karen Wheeler came down the basement stairs, her features softening into maternal concern when she saw her.
