[ 𝙿𝚎𝚝𝚊𝚕𝚜 & 𝚃𝚑𝚘𝚛𝚗𝚜 ] ~ 𝚂𝚝𝚎𝚟𝚎 𝙷𝚊𝚛𝚛𝚒𝚗𝚐𝚝𝚘𝚗 𝚡 𝙾𝙲

XVIII - Bandages

"Code red, I repeat, code red. Does anyone copy? This is a code red, I repeat, a code red. This is a code red, I repeat a code red. Does anyone copy? We're innocent children and we are trapped under Starcourt Mall. The Red Army has infiltrated Hawkins, and if we are found, they will torture and kill us." Dustin had been repeating the same thing all night long. Russell was covering her ears with her hands, she'd started getting annoyed about two hours prior. Steve noticed and frowned. He gave her a kiss on the forehead before climbing up onto the table, onto a box and poking his head up through the grate. 

"Hey! You gotta take it easy on that thing. Okay? You're gonna drain the battery."

"The mall just opened." Dustin's voice could be faintly heard.

"So?"

"So someone could be in range."

"What do you think, Petey the Mall Cop is gonna rappel down here and save the day?" Steve pushed himself fully up to the platform.

"Alright, why are you such a cranky pants?"

Steve huffed.

Lucy mumbled something that Russell couldn't quite hear. She sighed, pushing herself to her feet and walking over to Robin to try helping with the door. Robin was looking at the buttons again, pressing them in different orders to try and see if there was a pattern or something that would work. It didn't. Russell brushed her hand past Robin's trying to hit a light blue button. Robin flinched back and Russell frowned. "Hey, sorry-" 

"Don't worry about it." Robin shook her head, looking away and turning back toward the buttons just as Lucy dropped down from the hatch to the roof.

"You okay, Lucy?" Russell sighed, walking up to the younger girl with a frown. She looked so drained.

"Just. . .tired." Lucy muttered back, scratching at her arm. It looked like she'd dug it raw, scratched red and bloody. She had to have been messing with it all night. 

"Can you redirect your stream, please?" Robin called to Steve.

Russell took Lucy's hand away from her arm before picking her backpack up from the ground and placing it on the table instead. She started looking through it, careful not to misplace anything in the bag. There were notepads and snacks and water bottles. Stickers, pens, pencils, erasers, markers, even watercolors. But none of that was what she was looking for. She finally found it at the very back of the bag, at the very bottom, a red first aid kit covered in bright yellow stickers.

Russell sighed in relief, taking it out of the bag and putting it down on the table, flipping it open and grabbing a roll of bandages. She walked over to Lucy, putting her hand on the younger's shoulder and turning her around. Lucy looked up at Russell, a soft, confused look on her face before her eyes landed on Russell's hand. Lucy huffed, looking at the table before holding her arm out. Russell smiled in return, starting to wrap Lucy's hand up from the palm all the way to her elbow. She made it tight yet loose at the same time, not wanting to hurt her but wanting to make sure it wouldn't come off and she wouldn't try to scratch under it.

There was a quiet whir coming from outside the doors of the room.. Robin walked back to the door, pressing her ear to the metal door. In less than a minute, she hurried up the table and then up the box to peek her head up to Dustin and Steve. "We've got company." She told the two of them. As soon as she heard this, Russell put the bandage roll in Lucy's hand and shoved the first aid kit into the backpack and grabbed the bag. "Come on." Russell hurried the words, waving Lucy and Erica up and out of the room. She helped push Erica's feet up before climbing up herself and closing the hatch. They could see two men come into the room from the grates on the roof, they spoke to each other in Russian back and forth. The second man who spoke sniffed the air before shrugging and leaving with a box. The first man walked in past him and picked up a different box, walking it out. They repeated that over and over until they had eight boxes total, both of the men oblivious to the six above them. Steve held a finger to his mouth, looking at Erica and the green tube she held and giving a small nod he took it from her. At the same time, Russell finished wrapping up Lucy's arm and put the roll back away. She took one of the sunflower stickers Lucy had out of the front pocket of the backpack and stuck it right where the bandage was being held shut with medical tape. Lucy smiled.

Steve moved the hatch and dropped down again, jumping off the table. The door started closing and he shoved the green tube upright through the crack to prop it open. "Let's go." He huffed, throwing both Lucy and Erica's backpacks through. Erica jumped down and Steve helped urge her through, repeating 'go' over and over.

"I'm going!" She huffed as she slid all the way through. Lucy was next, hitting the floor and army crawling through with ease. Dustin was quick to follow, then Russell, then Robin, and last Steve.

Just as Steve got all the way through, the tube shattered and the green liquid covered the floor. It melted the concrete below. Steve huffed out. "Jesus Christ-" Russell helped pull him up, hugging him with worry weighing heavy in her chest. His arms were quick around her back, holding her tight to him. He could've gotten crushed. 

"Ooh." Erica hissed.

"You still wanna drink that?" Robin grinned, making Lucy snicker.

"Holy mother of God." Dustin said.

"That's. . ." Russell turned, looking down the long hall in front of them. It was longer than they'd probably be able to handle. "Shit." She mumbled, loosening her hold on Steve. 

"Well. . .hope you guys are in good shape." Steve murmured, his hand trailing down to Russell's own. He walked between Dustin and Lucy, patting Dustin on the chest.  "Looking at you, roast beef." He continued ahead of the rest of the group before noticing that only Lucy and Russell were with him. He waved the other three along. "Let's go, come on."

Dustin turned to Robin as they started walking, asking. "Why me?" To no response. 

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Word Count - 1,092

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Published - January 28, 2024

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