I Know The End ✸ Steve Harrington

ii. pool party gone wrong

"They never break a promise." Mike commented before Lucas piped in, "Especially when there's spit."

"Spit?" Confusion was written all over Eleven's face.

"It means you never break your word." Lucas explained, spitting in his palm and gripping Dustin's hand, who grimaced. "It's a bond."

The curly headed boy pulled his hand out of Luca's grip, staring at it with disgust and wiped the spit away on his t-shirt.

Josie looked back to Eleven, trying to see if she understood. "That's important because...friends tell each other things. Even things parents don't know."

But she could see that Eleven was still puzzled with the topic but nodded nonetheless. "Friend?"

Josie smiled. "Friend."

Waking up the next morning felt like the most difficult task for Josie as she walked up to the school building, feeling like a zombie from being abruptly awoken last night. She swore if she closed her eyes a second longer, she'd be falling to the ground and going to sleep.

As she reached the entrance, she spotted a hunched figure enter before her. Josie was able to identify the person just from his shaggy locks a mile away. Her face fell as she saw him pinning up missing posters with Will's picture stamped in the centre, sorrow filling her chest at the thought of what he might be going through.

Gripping her backpack strap with her clammy hand, she approached the boy, coming to a halt by his side. "Hey, Jonathan."

Jonathan Byers slightly tensed up at the unexpected company, but he soon relaxed when he was met with the familiar curly headed girl. "Hi, Josie."

Her brown eyes glanced up at the poster, seeing Will's bright smile mirrored back at her made her swallow the lump in her throat. "This whole thing...sucks. I don't mind skipping school just to help you and your mom with anything...Will was like a little brother to me, it's the least I could do."

"It's okay, really, Jose. Just— if you hear anything, please tell me." Jonathan stopped the girl's rambling. Josie nodded but noticed his eyes trailing behind her shoulder over at Nancy Wheeler that was now walking up to the two, leaving Steve, Carol and Tommy to watch her disapprovingly.

Josie politely dismissed herself, hiding the smirk that threatened to creep up on her face at the longing look Steve gave Nancy as she talked to Jonathan while she walked off in the other direction to her locker, the school bell blaring around the hallways.

"Attention faculty and students," The Principal's voice came over the loudspeaker, "At 8pm tonight there will be an assembly on the football field in support of Will Byers and his family. All are encouraged to attend."

The Henderson breathed out in relief once the last bell of the day went. Picking up her things off her desk, she sprinted over to her locker to dump her things into the small compartment. But, she found herself flinching back in her spot when her locker door was slammed shut by a familiar figure.

"Well, well, well." Steve Harrington looked down at the girl with a distasteful expression on his face which Josie gladly returned, "Isn't it, Henderson. What's up?" He cockily said.

"Do you mind, dipshit?" Josie attempted to reopen her locker but the loud metal clanging shut and the sight of Steve's hand made her huff in annoyance as it snapped shut once more.