𝐓𝐑𝐈𝐂𝐊𝐒 𝐎𝐅 𝐋𝐈𝐅𝐄 || STEVE HARRINGTON

CHAPTER xiii.

Disbelief And Hope

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THE sound of sobs escaped the woman's mouth, the liquid dripped out of her eyes, leaving stained residue on her puffy cheeks. Joyce Byers listened to every word Jim needed to say regarding her child. It killed both family members to break the news towards her.

"A trooper found something in the water that's at the quarry," Jim informs the woman, her concentration somewhere else, "Our working theory right is that Will crashed his bike, he made his way over the quarry and accidentally fell in."

Y/N wrapped an arm over Joyce in order to comfort her as the woman stood in silence, her voice spoke up softly, "The earth must have given way."

"Joyce?" Hopper tries to gain her attention, she seemed very dazed off, "Joyce? Do you understand what I'm saying?"

"No," Joyce finally spoke, Y/N held her closer, shakily breathing, "Whoever you found, is not my boy. It's not Will."

The words coming out of  the woman impacted Y/N, it was denial she was in, something the girl knew all too well. Hopper needed Joyce to get back on her common sense, "Joyce."

"No, you don't understand," The trembling woman stammered, "I talked to him a half hour ago."

Confusion filled Jim and Y/N, Joyce struggled to leave Y/N's arm as she walked to a cabinet, opening it and grabbing a clutter of tangled Christmas lights, "He was.. He was talking with these."

"Talking?" Both Hoppers questioned, Y/N feeling extremely awful because she knew these were words of a woman who didn't want to accept the fact her son was gone, similarly to someone she knew.

"Uh huh," Joyce lifted up the load of lights in her small hands, "One blink for yes, two for no."

In disbelief, Y/N continued to let the women rant, as Joyce stammered, "And then I made this so he could talk to me." She shakily walked towards the couch, where the alphabet was written on the wall with old paint, a string of lights hovering above it, "Cause he was hiding, from that thing."

"The thing that came out of the wall?" Hopper elaborated, his facial expressions gave a skeptical look as Y/N was baffled at their words.

"Yeah," Joyce clarifies, her son then walked inside the house after being informed by the other authorities outside of the premises.

Jonathan moved towards his mother, in worry for her deranged remarks she was rambling about, he quietly told her, "Mom, come on please."

"No, maybe he's..."

"You've got to stop this," Jonathan interrupts her, allowing her to be in his arms as she harshly gets a grip on him and shakes him.

Her voice became more worrying and louder, letting them know that it was important, "It's after him! He's in danger. We have to find him! We-"

"What exactly is this thing?" Hopper wonders, trying to understand Joyce's words, "It was some kind of animal, you said?"

Joyce shook her head and tried to explain in anxiety, "Uh, no, it-it was almost human, but it wasn't. It had these long arms and it didn't have a face."