teenage tragedy (Max Mayfield)

3. thirteen

"Okay, Russians? As in, they're working for the Russian government?" Lucas said, watching out of the corner of his eye as Robin emptied the first aid kit out.

"What are you not comprehending? Am I not speaking English? We have a full-blown Red Dawn situation," Dustin said.

"So this has nothing to do with the gate?" Max asked.

Robin opened an antiseptic wipe.

"This will hurt," she warned Cammie.

Cammie nodded, squeezing Max's hand tightly as Robin started wiping the excess blood from the cut. It stung like a bitch, worse than any of the seizures her powers had ever given her. It hurt even worse than the seizure the year before when they were burning down the tunnels to try and kill the Demo-dogs.

"It has everything to do with the gate!" Dustin said.

Robin started threading the needle she'd found, looking apologetically at Cammie as she placed it against her neck. Cammie nodded slightly, closing her eyes as Max started stroking through her hair.

"You're okay," Max whispered.

Robin pushed the needle through Cammie's skin and a silent gasp left her lips, tears streaming down her cheeks as she felt every single stab of the needle and the tugging of the stitches through her skin.

There was an audible groan and then a thud. Cammie opened her eyes, seeing Eleven clutching her leg on the floor. Cammie moved to sit up, but Max pinned her down easily and nodded at Robin to continue stitching.

"Cammie, Cammie, listen to me. I know that's your sister, but you will die if we don't get you stitched up, so you have to stay still and let Robin do it. I can't lose you, okay?" Max whispered.

"What's wrong with her?" Erica asked.

"What's wrong? What's wrong? What's wrong?" Mike held Eleven's hand gently as she cried.

"My leg. My leg," Eleven panted.

"Her leg, her leg. Okay," Johnathon mumbled. "Get that off." he motioned to the bandage on Eleven's leg.

Nancy nodded and pulled it off. Everyone around her groaned and Cammie felt a sharp pain in her own leg. She gasped and her leg jerked unconsciously.

Max's entire face paled and she could feel Robin's eyes burning into the side of her head.

"Oh, shit," Max breathed.

"Oh, shit," Steve agreed, hurrying over to their sides.

Max quickly pulled the needle through the stitch Robin had been halfway through, then grabbed the antiseptic wipe and held it against Cammie's neck. Steve turned Cammie onto her side just in time before Eleven let out a scream.

Cammie's entire body started seizing within seconds of the sound leaving Eleven's mind, her eyes rolling back in her head as she shook violently around in Max's lap. Steve kept his hands holding her wrists so she wouldn't hit anyone or hurt herself, timing the seizure on the watch Dustin was holding out for him.

Everyone was watching Cammie or Eleven as they seized and cried over the pain they were simultaneously experiencing.

"What's happening?" Robin cried.

"They're connected. When something happens to one, it happens to the other. They power bank off each other. Whatever is hurting El is hurting Cammie," Mike explained quietly, wrapping his arm around Will's shoulders as he watched his best friend have a seizure.

Cammie's breathing picked up and Max could hear a ragged noise in her throat. She'd witnessed a few seizures after nightmares to know that this was what it sounded like when Cammie was choking, and Max was putting it down to the new cut on her throat.