Brenner had a favorite. She was volatile, and dangerous. A storm he thought he could control. She hated him for it.
Henry was like a saving grace. Her friend, the man she thought she could love forever. The man that she wasn't sure if he loved her...
Eleven and I nod, jumping up to leave, taking nothing else with us except for a grey back pack Eleven swoops over her shoulder. As we settle back into Reese's truck in the late morning, Eleven digs into the bag and passes around chocolate muffins. I take mine greatfully, feeling the pain of hunger clawing at my insides. "You're gonna love Hawkins," the girl grins from the front seat. "They have Eggo's."
I furrow my brows in confusion, tearing off a bite of the chocolate pastry and my eyes lighting up in delight. I'd never had a muffin before, let alone a chocolate one. It was heaven, I swear. "Egg-o's?" I sounded out the word, confused beyond belief. What the hell was an Eggo? The smaller girl grins wider, if possible.
"It's like frozen waffles. You can eat them plain or with syrup!"
"Um...okay. Can't wait to try them."
Eleven holds her grin, but turns around with a nod. I tune out the rest of the drive, feeling myself become over tired, despite having spent the better part of the last day passed out. Reese turns the radio on to some classic rock channel and my head gently lays against the window as the lull of sleep pulls me in against the gentle rocking of the moving truck.
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Hawkins is small midwestern town with a population of 10,000. It was nestled in between forestry and the main street was one long strip with mom and pop shops. There was an elementary school, a middle school, and a high school all separate from each other, but within walking distance from one another. It was the type of town where everyone seemed to know about everything, and what they didn't know, they tried their damned hardest to find out. But the ice that was coating my spine the further into the town we got, the more I dreaded getting wherever we were going to.
I could hear strange howls coming from the trees. The unnatural rustling of the trees only enhanced the dangerous feeling of the setting by the moon that was disclosed by clouds. It was dark out, so dark that Reese was squinting through the windshield even with the headlights on. We rolled through slowly until Eleven gasped and looked wide eyed out the window. "Take the next left," she suddenly exclaimed.
Reese had to slam on his breaks and jerk the wheel, jostling us all in our seats as he practically drifted around the corner. Eleven insisted he drive faster, to which there was a small argument, but eventually he listened, stepping on the gas and speeding down the road. I looked out the window, trying to see what was freaking Eleven out so badly, but not seeing anything. I couldn't see them, but I could hear them. My leg began to bounce with anxiety as their horrible wet growling reached my ears. I peered forward when I thought I could see whatever was following us. It was long with dark grey shin, running within the trees. I bit my lip, leaning away from the window with that odd, horrible, familiar feeling coiling around in my gut.
My friends were both freaking me out as we broke every speed law known to man up until we pulled up to a small house, low yellow lights illuminating the ground through the windows. I recognized this place...I'd dreamed of it that night I'd seen those people tie up that little boy. Confusion made me pull my lower lip between my teeth as we skidded to a stop and Eleven clambered out of the truck. I followed suit, my skin going pale as I finally saw what it was in the trees. It was those creatures from my dreams, with the toothy petals for heads. They had no eyes, no mouths, no real shape until it turned and screeched at us, it's flesh petals peeling away from the center to scream out, saliva flying out in our direction.
