Brandi [STEVE HARRINGTON]

III. THE BREAKFAST CLUB

[ THREE ]
[ THE BREAKFAST CLUB ]

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Brandi's week went by faster than she expected. School was a drag at times, but it had its perks. Every day was the same, but different; Jeff had a new story to tell, Nancy had a new assignment to stress over, and Eric had to be dropped off at the arcade at the same time after school.

Tapping her fingers on the steering wheel to the beat of The Rolling Stones, Brandi sat in her truck outside of the arcade impatiently, windows down and music on full blast. She puffed her cigarette out, boots sitting up on the dashboard lazily. A middle-aged woman from across the parking lot scrunched up her face at the sight, so Brandi leaned over and lifted up her middle finger against the window. The lady gasped, then scurried off to her Station Wagon.

Eric was obsessed with the arcade. It seemed he made some friends since they moved to Hawkins, contrary to Brandi's long-lasting belief that he hung out at the arcade by himself. Every time he walked outside the building, four boys around his age would wave him goodbye, and then would stare at Brandi's truck in pure fear as she zoomed off.

After about ten minutes of tapping her boots on the window, Brandi was getting bored waiting for her brother. She quickly put out her cigarette and got out of the vehicle, turning her car keys around in her hand as she walked towards the arcade.

As soon as she walked in, she wished she had stayed in the truck. Loud explosion noises boomed from every corner of the place, and kids were crawling everywhere. She'd never seen so many kids at one place. From the other side of the room Brandi could faintly hear a kid-like voice screaming curse words in a country slang. Bingo.

"Fuck you, Frogger! Fuck you! Goddammit!"

Brandi made a beeline towards the shouting. Sure enough, Eric Sutton had his hands over his head in defeat, standing in front of the Frogger game with four boys crowded around him.

"Dude, you suck," the dark-skinned boy said, putting his hand on Eric's shoulder.

A curly haired boy with a baseball cap on his head pushed Eric out of the way, cracking his knuckles. "Let the master show you how it's done."

The group exploded in protest. Brandi rolled her eyes, walking towards the group. The raven-haired boy saw her first, his eyes widening as he elbowed his friends around him. One by one, they all stared at her, and finally Eric locked eyes with Brandi and winced with disgust. "What are ya doin' here?"

"Pickin' ya up, dickwad." She tilted her head towards the front doors. "Come on, let's go."

"One more game," Eric pleaded. "Please?"

"We're gonna be late to dinner, Eric," Brandi told him, looking down at her nonexistent watch.

Eric sighed in defeat, turning to his friends who still looked at Brandi in confusion. "Sorry, guys. I'll see y'all tomorrow."