Bound By Shadows 3 | Will Byers x Reader (Fem)

~ 20 ~

Nightfall had swallowed the pool whole, the kind of darkness that pressed against the windows until the glass looked like mirrors. We'd waited long enough for the laughter and splashing to fade, for the last stragglers to leave. Now the silence was thick — too thick. Every shuffle, every creak of the building felt magnified, like it was daring us to flinch.

The six of us crammed into the narrow broom-closet to the sauna room. I could feel the heat of everyone's bodies pressed too close, their breaths catching in the stale air.

Mike's knuckles were bone-white around a metal pole. Will stood just beside me, chains looped over his arm, the steel catching in the dim light. Lucas rolled the lock in his palms like he was trying to convince himself it was heavy enough to hold what we were about to trap.

Max and I dressed the CPR dummy in stiff silence, pulling a hoodie over its head, stuffing towels in its chest so it looked human enough in the shadows. 

My hands shook as I teleported tape into my grip, the static flickering against my skin before it solidified. Wrapping the tape around the dummy, I tied my supercom to its waist. Every movement felt mechanical — don't think, just do.

The plan was simple. On paper.
Lure him in. Lock the door. Heat it until the truth showed itself.
The hard part was pretending not to panic.

My shoulder brushed Will's as I shifted, and without a word, his hand brushed my arm, warm and grounding. My chest squeezed tight. Mike had already locked the front doors, but that didn't stop the sound of running water drifting down the tiled corridor. A shower. It ran steady, too steady. Then it stopped.

Go time.

I slammed the closet door once, loud enough to echo.
"Pool's closed!" Billy's voice cut through the silence, sharp, irritated.

Every nerve in me fired at once. My heart was a drum in my ears. I glanced at Will. He nodded once, calm, steady — like he was telling me it's okay, trust it.

I turned back to the handle, opening the door again, this time closing it with a smaller metallic rattle.

"Hey!" Billy barked. "Do you hear me?!"

His footsteps moved further, checking the door we'd already locked. My pulse was wild, my palms clammy, but I forced my body to stay put.

Then the lights snapped off. Absolute black. My stomach lurched. El stood a few feet away, her eyes shut, her focus sharp.

Mike's voice cracked through the static of his supercom. "Billy!"
A pause. Then: "Billyyyyy!"

My skin crawled.

"Who's there?!" Billy's voice thundered back.

I rattled the door again, keeping the noise inconsistent, drawing him in, the sound bouncing off the walls. My chest felt tight, like my body was warning me to turn and run, but I stayed put.

I heard the slide of a shower curtain being yanked open, the rings scraping against the metal rod.

"Billy, Billy!" Mike's voice came again, playful, needing.

"You think this is funny, huh?" Billy's footsteps grew louder, closer.

"Billy... come and find me." Mike's voice this time was quieter, sharper.

I looked at Will without even meaning to. He slipped his fingers around mine, a small squeeze. The only thing in the room that felt steady.

"Come and get me! Come on!" Mike yelled.

The gym room door creaked open — the one leading to the sauna room. We all froze, listening.

"Got you," Billy's voice dripped through the dark, following by a cackle. Hands clapping. It could've been his usual twisted humour... or something else entirely.