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The Grove

Tires screeched. Glass shattering. A loud thud.

Her vision was blurry. "Hmm." She looked to the side. Realizing. "Shit. I'm sorry, Bob." Rene breathed as sat up, and sighed. Feeling something quite heavy on her leg, she grabbed it and made her way out of the car. Still in some pain.

-

"Go! Go! Get him in there!" A man ordered. Will was screaming.

"God! Hold on, sweetie!" Joyce said to her son. He sobbed, holding onto himself. Nurses, doctors, rushing him down the long hall of the hospital. Joyce and Bob followed.

They scrubbed Jim with a rough shower scrub. He yelled.

Devices beeped. They placed Will onto the hospital bed. Will cried.

"Heart rate 220. Temperature's 106."

A woman held onto Will's face. "Will, where does it hurt?"

"All over!" He exclaimed. They started to cut the long sleeved shirt of the boy.

"She says he feels like he's burning. Check for burns." Dr. Owen told the doctor. Finally, the shirt was teared. Will screamed even more.

"I don't see anything. Where does it hurt Will?"

"EVERYWHERE! EVERYWHERE!" He screamed. Bob held a crying Joyce.

-

A song played on the car's stereo.

"Wait a sec. How big?" Steve asked Dustin.

"First it was like that." Dustin demonstrated with his hand. "Now he's like this." He held both arms up.

"I swear to God, man, it's just some little lizard, okay?"

"It's not a lizard."

"How do you know?"

"How do I know if it's not?"

"How do you know it's not just a lizard?"

"Because his face opened up and he ate my cat." Dustin exasperated. Earning furrowed brows. Dustin looked outside of the passenger window. He saw a car on its side. "Hey, uh, Steve?"

"What?" He averted his gaze to where Dustin looked. "What the hell?"

The drive continued until they saw a familiar figure walking on the side of the road. The headlights made the person's eyes squint when they looked over at them. The window rolled down. "Rene?" Dustin called. She looked like a mess. The car stopped. Dustin got out to check on her.

"You alright? Jesus, you're bleeding." He pointed out on her nose bridge

"Peachy." She responded wholeheartedly. "I'm okay."

"Do you need a ride? Do you want to come with us?" The curly haired boy asked. She looked over at Steve. He gave a nod.

"I'll go with you two."

"Okay, c'mon, gal friend." Rae scoffed, smiling at Dustin's wittiness. As she got into the back seat, Steve asked, pointing at something she had by her leg. "Woah. Is that a?"

"Yeah." Rene responded. Steve continued the drive. Dustin told her where they were heading and that he could patch her up at his house.

After patching her up, the trio made their way to the storm cellar. Steve had his bat with nails. Rene left the rifle she had in Steve's car, had a pair of survival knives with her.

"I don't hear shit." Steve said, flashing his flashlight on the door while they waited silently.

"He's in there." Dustin insisted. The older boy tapped on the doors. Nothing. He banged on them, still, nothing.