A NEW AND IMPROVED VERSION
Ryan Fordman has lived next door to Steve Harrington her entire life. Her entire life, he'd always been a window away, occasionally shouting across the space between their houses. They were inseparable... at least, they we...
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The next morning, Ryan and Axel were helping Jonathan put up missing person's flyers around campus. It was passing period so there were people walking past them, occasionally stopping to watch them with looks of pity or that morbid intrigue, like they were a sideshow act at the circus. It was the most irritating thing in the world.
Ryan hadn't even been to a single class yet that day and it was already almost fourth period. She tried to focus on school, to go to class, but the second she walked into her first period English class, she turned on her heel and marched out the door. She couldn't take the look of pity her teacher had given her and the whispers of her classmates.
She headed to the front of the school, meeting the boys by the bulletin board, "Hey, I'm out of flyers. Got anymore?"
"I'm putting up my last one." Jonathan said, pushing a pin into the cork of the bulletin board. "How did you do that so fast? Axe still has half his stack."
Axel handed her the stack he had left, "I don't know where you plan to put them, but they're all yours."
"Thanks." She nodded, counting the flyers. There was enough for her to skip the rest of the day and hang up around town. If she ran out, she could always make copies at the station. "I'll figure it out."
Before she could say anything else, Ryan could feel eyes boring into the back of her head. It had been happening all morning, but this time, she had had enough. She whirled around to snap, eyes landing on Steve, Nancy, and their usual entourage, even Barb was leaning against the wall watching them with a curious expression. Lovely.
"Don't they have anything better to do?" Axel rolled his eyes, glaring over her shoulder.
"Of course not, Axe." Ryan scoffed, shifting her attention back to the flyer Jonathan was hanging up. "Morons tend to have plenty of free time."
"Hey," A small, soft voice came from behind them. Ryan turned around, surprised to come face-to-face with Nancy Wheeler, looking at her and Jonathan with a sympathetic expression. Ryan and Axel stayed silent as Jonathan returned her greeting, neither sure what to say. "I just wanted to say, you know, I'm sorry, for everything."
The trio stayed silent while Nancy looked back at Steve and his group of friends before continuing, "Everyone is thinking about you."
"Oh, I bet." Ryan rolled her eyes. "We're a regular sideshow attraction for them."
"No!" Nancy exclaimed quickly, shaking her head. "No! Not at all! It sucks, it really sucks."
Ryan's expression softened when she realized Nancy was actually being sincere in her attempts to offer her condolences. However, the group behind her was trying to avoid looking like they were watching and waiting for some drama to unfold. Everyone except Steve. He was staring directly at Ryan. She glanced down at the ground, trying to avoid his gaze.
