Can't Get Use to Losing You- Max Mayfield

The Flayed

TJ is stood in his basement bathroom, visions of Riley possessed flood his mind. He closes the lid to the toilet and sits down, someone knocks on the door bringing TJ out of his thoughts.
"Hey. I've got some medical supplies." Max tells him.
"Great. Yeah I'll... thanks." TJ stutters out, his mind elsewhere. She walks over to the dark haired boy and pulls him into a hug. At first he just lets her hug him, but then he wraps his arms around her. Silently tears escape the boys eyes.
"I'm scared too, Teddy." She muffles into his shoulder, this causes him to grip onto her tighter.

Silence washes over the two, as Max is cleaning TJ's cuts. TJ opens his eyes and sees Max concentrating, he starts to smirk at how focused the girl is.
"Why are you smirking?" Max asks.
"You just... you look really cute when you're concentrating." TJ replies.
Max smiles saying, "Shut up asshole. Don't make me kick your ass." As she carries on dabbing at the boys face.
"Are you flirting or trying to start a fight with me?" TJ replies to the girl.
"Which would you prefer it to be?" Max retorts arching her eyebrow at the boy.
The two stare at each other in silence and they feel it...this so called electricity, both not realising they're leaning in. Their faces are so close that TJ can feel Maxs breath, suddenly there is a knock on the door and the two jump apart. El walks in totally oblivious to what's just happened, or nearly happened.
TJ stands up making his way to the door, turning to the girls and saying, "I'll give you two some space." Brushing Max's hand with his own as he's leaves.

TJ is in the basement with Mike, Lucas and Will. TJ is laid on one of the sofas, trying to stay awake. He can hear the boys talking about not just stopping Billy but the Mind Flayer as well.
"They're conspiring against me." Mike states, drastically changing the subject.
"That's what you're concerned about now?" Will asks Mike, agitation evident in his voice.
Mike rolls his eyes before replying, "It's not my main concern. It's just a sub-concern."
"I thought it was already over?" Will growing more and more irritated asks.
"It's not over okay? We're just taking a break." Mike says, trying to convince himself that him and El haven't actually broken up.
TJ let's out an over dramatic yawn before stretching and sitting up, he points at his younger brother and says, "Maybe if you didn't lie about Nana being sick and just told her the truth. You wouldn't be in this predicament of a break or a break up."
"She said she dumps your ass. That doesn't sound like a break." Will whisper shouts at Mike.
"It wasn't! You guys do realize we can still hear everything you're saying, right?" Max shouts from the bathroom, TJ smiles hearing the two girls giggling.
TJ soon rolls his eyes though, when he hears his brother tell everyone that the girls are conspiring against him. All of a sudden there's a knock on the basement door and the voice of their sister Nancy Wheeler shouting, "Mike, TJ! Open the door!"

The group are sat around listening as Nancy explains that Mrs Driscoll is potentially another flayed victim.
"The Mind Flayer. He flays people. Takes over their mind. Once they do that they basically become him." Mike tells Nancy and Johnathan, who there is some obvious tension between.
Lucas and Will tell the group that they have to assume there is more.
"Heather." El whispers out, then continues,
"Billy was doing something to her. She was scared. She was screaming. Bad screams."
"What's a good scream?" Lucas asks.
"Max said..." El begins, but TJ interrupts her,
"Yeah Max, what did you say a good scream was?"
"Doesn't matter." Max quickly cuts him off, hitting his knee as she speaks.

As the group explains who Heather is TJ stands up and picks up the bass guitar in the corner of the room. Nancy watches her brother confused, "TJ what is it?"
He takes a deep breath, "It's not just Heather. It's Riley too... he's flayed."
The group falls silent, it's as if they forgot the boy was attacked by his best friend not too long ago. They watch as TJ continues, "You know. It was the worst time of my life last year thinking that Riley would never talk to me again and now theres a possibility I might lose him forever." The boy looks up as Nancy walks over to him, wrapping her younger brother in a hug, "We can do this TJ. We will get him back."

The group head out into the car deciding to investigate at the Holloways. TJ is sat looking out the window, he feels a hand take a hold of his. He turns and smiles at the redhead giving her hand a squeeze, knowing that they both need comfort right now. TJ doesn't realise that this act doesn't go unnoticed by his older sister. They pull up on the Holloway drive and head inside, soon discovering that Tom Holloway and his wife have been attacked and more than likely flayed.

They're in the garage discussing possible theories when Nancy speaks up, "Mrs Driscoll. She kept saying, I have to go back. What if the flaying is taking place somewhere else? There must be a place where all this started right... a source."
"Somewhere he didn't want me to see." El says.
"If we can find the source, then maybe we can stop him. Or at least stop it from spreading or doing whatever the hell he's doing with those chemicals." Nancy tells the group.
"How do we find it?" El asks the older girl.
"Mrs Driscoll..." Will says, everyone turns to look at him before he continues, "If she wants to go back so badly, why don't we let her?" TJ has a weird feeling about this plan,
"Doesn't it seem a bit harsh...like we're sacrificing the old lady?" The groups already heading up the stairs, "Nope? Okay so we're going to poor ole Mrs Driscoll."

The group walk into the local hospital, following Nancys lead of confidently walking straight past the reception lady whose on the phone.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa! Excuse me! Where do you think you're going?" The lady shouts at the group.
"Shit do you think she saw us?" TJ asks.
"Obviously she saw us TJ." Max says rolling her eyes at the boy.
"Oh, um... I was just going to visit my Grandma again." Nancy sweetly replies to the lady, the lady looks at the group questioningly as Nancy continues, "And-- And this... this is my family."
"Extended." Lucas says with a smile.
"Yeah we might not be brothers by blood but we're brothers by choice...right buddy?" TJ declares, his arm around Lucas both giving the lady dazzling smiles.
"I don't care who they are. You know the rules. Two visitors at a time." The lady sternly tells them.
"Yeah but..." Nancy tries to argue.
"TWO!" The lady shouts, picking the phone back up, "Girl, this child has lost her mind."
TJ lets out a laugh before turning to Will and saying, "I like her. She means business."

TJ's sat on a chair on the corridor with Will next to him, Lucas and Mike are at the vending machine and Max and El are standing in the corridor picking up magazines. TJ watches as El uses her powers to help Mike get some candy.
"Ah free snacks. Byers you want something?" TJ asks the boy, Will nods at the older boy who shoots up and grabs a handful of different things. He sits back down next to Will watching as Mike who is now two seats away helplessly tries talking to El, his brother gives the two boys a nod asking them to go away.

TJ stands up going to find Max while Will walks the other way. TJ turns the corner and sees Max and Lucas throwing skittles into each others mouth, they stop and look at him as he says "Ah sorry. Didn't realise I was interrupting. I'll urm I'll go." TJ walks away, he's not sure why but he feels annoyed and irritated he thought that maybe him and Max were... nevermind it's stupid he tells himself.
He walks off past reception his head down, but something catches his eye. He looks up as the lights start to flicker.
"Shit! That, that's not good!" He says out loud to no one, he bolts back round the corner running into the rest of the group who are stood watching as the lights flicker.