Time After Time (a Stranger Things fanfiction)

Don't Dream It's Over

"Don't Dream It's Over"

There's a battle ahead, many battles are lost

But you'll never see the end of the road

While you're traveling with me

- Crowded House

Joyce drove through the darkening night, wishing she knew how to pray, desperately wanting to get there and find Hopper and end at least this part of her ever-growing nightmare. She didn't think she could face what might be happening to Will without Hopper at her side. She loved Bob, she did, but ... he didn't make her feel safe, not the way Hopper did.

"There's nothing," Mike said anxiously, watching out the side windows. "There's nothing here."

"Are we close?" Joyce demanded of Bob, who was squinting as best he could in the darkness at the map he was holding.

"We're in the vicinity."

"What's that mean, 'vicinity'?"

"It means we're, we're close! I mean, I don't know, it's not precise."

"But we did all that work!"

"I told you, the scale ratio is not exactly one to one, now we need to—"

"Turn right." It was Will's voice, coming suddenly from the back seat after he had been silent the whole way here.

Joyce looked at him over her shoulder. "What?"

"I saw him."

She turned back to look through the windshield. "Where?"

"Not here; in my now-memories."

"In your what?" Bob asked.

Joyce hated that they had a term for this thing being stuck in her son's brain, but for the moment she would use it to find Hopper.

"Turn right!" Will said again, determined this time.

So Joyce turned right, the wheels skidding on the packed dirt of the road before they caught on the softer dirt of the field. They burst through a pumpkin patch sign, hay bales and everything, all of them screaming as the car went a little out of control, but she didn't stop. Not until she was practically on the bumper of Hop's police vehicle.

She looked around at everyone else in the car. "Are you okay?" They seemed to be.

Mike glanced at Will. "Super spy."

Bob was fixed on the car. "What's Jim doing here? Joyce?"

But Joyce couldn't stop to explain. Hopper was here, she was sure of it. Now they just had to get to him. "Boys, I need you to stay here," she told them as she got out of the car.

Behind her, she heard Will. "No, Mom, Mom, it's not safe!"

"That's why I need you to stay here," she told him. "Stay here!"

Bob got out on the other side. Joyce slammed her door and then went out into the field, yelling for Hopper. There was a crater in the field, with an abandoned shovel lying along the edge of it. She went down into it, with Bob's anxious "Hey, be careful" following her.