mary. [ BILLY HARGROVE ]

xiv. CHAPTER TWELVE

     "No, no, no. Hey, guys, why are you headed towards the sound?" Max called after them. "Hello? Hello?" She began to follow them, the five now coming up over a hill as they were nearing the roaring noise. They stood over the town now, not knowing where Dart was. 

     "I don't see him," Dustin stated. Lucas brought up his binoculars, looking around and landing on something. 

     "It's the lab," he said, lowering the binoculars. "They were going back home." They began to trek through the woods again and towards the lab, approaching the outskirts as they saw the gate. They started going through tree's as they heard talking, Steve taking the lead for the group. His flashlight shined on two figures, and soon they were made out to be Nancy and Jonathan. 

     "Steve?" they asked at the same time. 

     "Nancy?" Steve questioned. 

    "Jonathan," Dustin stated. 

     "What are you doing here?" Nancy asked harshly as the groups met in the middle of each other. 

     "What are you doing here?" Mary asked in response. 

    "We're looking for Mike and Will," Nancy answered her. 

    "They're not in there, are they?" Dustin asked, referencing the lab.

     "We're not sure," Nancy said uneasily. 

    "Why?" Jonathan asked. One of the monsters suddenly screeched, everyone's heads turning to the lab as the screeching didn't stop. Once it did, everyone began arguing about who they'd seen in the last twenty-four hours, when, where, and what happened to them. As they were all talking over each other, Nancy stepped through the group to look at the lab. 

     "The power's back on," she said. Jonathan sprinted to the security box, pressing the button for the gate a bunch of times. 

     "Let me try," Dustin said stepping in. 

     "No, no, I got it-" 

     "Jonathan, let me try it!" Dustin yelled at him. He began to hit the button a million times, but it obviously didn't work. "Son of a bitch!" 

      "You're doing great, Dustin!" Mary called to him. 

     "Shut up, Mary!" Dustin yelled. He continued hitting the button, and the gate began to open slowly. "Ha! I got it! I got it!" Everyone stood in front of the gate now as they watched the metal move out of their way. Nancy and Jonathan got in the car, going to the front of the building. The other five waited for them to get back, pacing around in anticipation. 

     "Guys?" Max questioned. They all looked to see Nancy and Jonathan driving towards them, getting out of the way quickly. Hopper slammed the breaks next to them, Steve opening the door first. The kids climbed in first, then Mary, then Steve jumped in and slammed the door. Hopper hit the gas, speeding away from the lab as fast as he could. 

~*~

     Mary sat on the kitchen counter of the Byers house, her leg thumping up and down as she was unsettled from the recent events that had unfolded that night. Hopper was on the phone, be she was barely listening to him as she was too scared of anything happening to Dustin, or Steve, or anyone else that night. 

     "They didn't believe you, did they?" Mike asked after Hopper hung up. 

     "We'll see," he said. Mary tuned him out after that, ignoring the fit that Mike was throwing over Hopper's words. The group subdued again, Mary jumping down from the counter as she walked to Steve. She leaned her head on his shoulder, tired from the whole day. It'd been maybe nearly a day since she last slept, and too much had already happened. The kids began talking again, Mary ignoring them again.