Stranger Things: Strange Encounters

Chapter Sixteen: The Broken Compass

~Beth POV~

I found the gang stood in the middle of the warehouse. Dustin ran off to retrieve Imogen and Steve.
"Beth, what's wrong?" asked Robin.
"I don't think Billy is the only one in danger." I started.
"What do you mean?" asked Max.
"Mom said no one has heard from Hopper all day. They can't get a hold of him." I explained.
"What's happening?" asked Imogen as her, Dustin and Steve came and joined us.
"Hopper is missing too." said Eddie.
"Holy shit." said Imogen.
"I remember them saying on the news that there haven't been any leads on Chrissy. If Hopper had found her, then there would be." thought Lucas.
"Shit, is Hopper in danger?" asked Robin.
"I don't know. But he might be." I said.
"Well we can't just leave him. What if he's got stuck?" said Imogen.
"Stuck where?" asked Steve.
"In the Upside Down, dummy." Imogen replied to him. Hearing the Upside Down made my stomach turn.
"Surely you're not suggesting..." trailed Max.
"It looks like we really have to now." said Dustin.
"Wait...to go in the Upside Down?" asked Robin.
"Nope, no way!" added Eddie.
"Come on, I really don't think we have a choice now. We can't just leave Hopper." said Imogen.
"What about Billy?" asked Max.
"There doesn't seem to be anywhere he could really hide in here. Maybe he's in the same place as Hopper." suggested Dustin.
"So, if they're both trapped in the Upside Down...that means we have to go in there too?" said Eddie.
"It's our best option." joined Imogen.
"What are you thinking, Beth?" Robin asked me. I chewed my thumb for a minute, thinking about that horrific other world and trying to figure out if I wanted to go back in there again.
"I...I don't know..." I trailed.
"Hey." said Imogen, coming over to me and placing her hands on my arms. "Look, it's going to be scary. We're all scared. But you won't be alone this time. We'll be with you." she tried to reassure. I looked over at Eddie and the rest of the group, who were awaiting my answer.
"Screw it. I'm in." said Steve. Imogen turned her head and looked at him.
"Someones grown a pair." she joked. I thought about it for a second. Having Hopper as part of my life now, I didn't want any harm to come to him. I wanted to be braver, just like Imogen was, so I took a deep inhale and gave them my answer.
"Okay. Let's do this." I replied. Imogen gave me a side smile and nodded at me.
"Well, if Beth is in then so am I." sighed Robin.
"I can't believe I'm saying this but...me too." added Max.
"Jesus...okay, let's do this." joined Eddie. Imogen looked around at them and smiled. We were all in as a team now and we were determined to find Hopper and Billy.
We sneakily made it back out of the warehouse and past my mom and the other police officers without them noticing and then made our way back to Eddie's van. We all buckled ourselves in and then Eddie began the journey back.
"So, we heading to the woods again?" Eddie asked.
"That's where I told Hopper the gate was." replied Imogen.
"What about weapons? I don't have my bat anymore. It's in my car, which has likely been towed by now." said Steve.
"Check under the seats, we managed to leave the War Zone with what we got." said Eddie. I looked back and saw Robin lift up the big, double back seat and inside were the weapons they retrieved before we got arrested.
"Nice." I smiled. I turned back to face the front and exhaled loudly.
"You definitely sure you want to do this?" Eddie asked me.
"No." I laughed. "But, we have to. Imogen is right. No one else is going to do this and if Hopper is in danger, who's going to help?" I said.
"That's true. A couple of kids from Hawkins becoming heroes?" Eddie smiled at me.
"The most random bunch of heroes." I smiled back at him.

~Imogen POV~

Steve and I sat together on the journey back since our petty misunderstanding was out of the way. Didn't seem like too much of a loss from what Beth and I had gotten at the War Zone. The others had managed to get gasoline, a bear trap and also knives and long sticks with string. Must of been to make make-shift spears. They also got flashlights for each of us. I knew we were all scared, but we had to do this. We couldn't let this creature take more people. I looked over at Max who was sat by herself at the window. I hadn't had the chance to properly talk to her about anything. I didn't even think she knew why Billy and I broke up. I shuffled over to Max and sat on the floor opposite her.
"Hey." I said.
"Hey?" she replied.
"How're you feeling?" I asked.
"Are you really doing small talk with me? Just cut to the chase." she replied, bluntly. She seemed to have the same attitude problem as me.
"Okay...what's on your mind? What do you think about Billy?" I went straight to.
"I don't know. I'm stuck in two minds about him. Part of me is worried about him, if he's even still alive." she started. She looked down at her lap and started playing with her fingernails. "Then the other part of me wishes he was dead."
"I don't blame you." I replied.
"Really? You don't think me wicked?" she asked, looking at me.
"You know mine and Billy's relationship wasn't the best."
"It seemed awful." said Max.
"Okay...yeah...you're right, it was." I admitted. "He only treated me well when it suited him. Which was rare. Breaking up with him has been the biggest release for me."
"And has led you to date Steve." said Max.
"Steve and I...we're not dating..." I chuckled, nervously.
"For now." smirked Max. I gave her a small smile in return. She looked away from and then back out the window. "What if that creature got him?" she asked.
"I don't know." I replied.
"I'm not sure how I'm going to react. He is my brother but he's an asshole."
"He is. He's a total asshole. But does that mean he deserves to die?" I asked. Max looked back over at me again and thought for a second.
"I'm not sure if I can give an answer." she said, quietly.
"Me neither." I responded. Both Max and I had bad history with Billy. He was a bully and a nasty piece of work towards both of us. But our different relations to him, still made us care, in a way, about him. We were both confused in this situation. "You know, I use to think you hated me." I said to her.
"What?"
"Yeah. You never spoke to me and you ignored me quite a lot." I said.
"I never hated you. It's just...you were dating Billy. Anyone dating Billy, I thought they were just like him. I thought you would have joined in with the bullying." confessed Max.
"Not at all. I hate bullies."
"Then why'd you date him for so long?" asked Max. She had called me out. I didn't know how to reply.
"I...comfort...I guess?" I stuttered. Max exhaled air humorously.
"Comfort? I haven't had a day of comfort in my life. I'd like to know what that feels like." she replied. I leaned forward and held her hand. She looked at me with doe eyes, as if no one had ever held her hand before.
"It's going to be okay, Max. We're going to find Hopper and Billy and end this." I tried to reassure her. Her lips slightly parted as if she wanted to say something to me but couldn't. She just let a small smile come on to her face and nodded at me. I didn't think I ever saw Max smile. It was nice.